Hello everyone now i want everyone of you know that this story belongs to Merodach the Original Sin but it's only for the first chapter.

Disclaimer:I don't own belongs to it's respectable owners

Anyway, enjoy

Ash Ketchum: Being More

Becoming More.

Seeing the world at an early age radically changed the boy known as Ash Ketchum.

Ash Ketchum's mother, Delia Ketchum, loved to travel almost as much as she loved her own beloved son. She traveled abroad as much as she could, usually with friends and family, visiting all kinds of interesting places to experience their charms and to learn the local people's customs.

When a far off place inevitably caught her attention, she always vowed to visit it within a years' time. Of course, the moment her son entered her life she slowed down some and stayed at home more in order to take care of her child, but the moment she deemed him old enough to travel, which was around five years old for the small Ash Ketchum, she once again went abroad as much as she could. Taking her child with her, of course.

The pair visited places all over the world like Goldenrod City in the Johto region, Lilycove City in the Hoenn region, Sunyshore City in the Sinnoh region, Opelucid City in the Unova region, Lumiose City in the Kalos region, and even regularly visiting places all over the Kanto region, to name a few.

Ash Ketchum learned to love traveling just as much as his mother. He was a curious young boy that loved nothing more than to travel alongside his mother to new and interesting places where he could meet exciting new people and Pokémon.

In the years before he even set out on his Pokémon journey he had already seen a lot of the world and had met many a people and Pokémon thanks to his mother's love for traveling.

He had indeed seen a lot of the world at his young age, but there were three places that had left the greatest mark on the boy that would, in the end, change the child into something…

More.

Ash Ketchum - Age 7.

Sinnoh region - Alamos Town.

Alamos Town wasn't really a town, it was more the size of a small city than anything else. The main part of the city sat on top of a large mesa with steep hillsides in the middle of a lake. A large bridge connected the mesa to the mainland where thousands of tourists would cross over every day. The city's most iconic feature is the massive and beautiful structure known as the Space-Time Towers that pierced into the sky and could be seen for miles around.

Ash and Delia Ketchum walked down a dirt road hand in hand, coming closer and closer to the mesa that held Alamos town. Both mother and son were excited to visit the city and could hardly wait to see it in all of its glory.

Both sucked in a deep breath as they crested the hill they were walking and got a stunning view of the beautiful city. The sunlight caught the city at just the right time to frame its beauty.

"Wow," Ash breathed out in awe as he looked at the steep hill-sides of the mesa in the center of a crystal clear lake. The beautiful and artistic structures of the city towered into the sky on top of the mesa, which was reflected upside down on the surface of the blue lake.

His mother was equally as awed by the sight. She stood frozen on the spot. Her mouth was half-open and her eyes roamed hungrily over the image in front of her, trying to take it all in.

"Uh, mommy," Ash said as he tugged at his mother's jeans. "How are we going to get there?" He questioned, realizing that there was no path for them follow to the city. Ash could see a massive bridge in the distance that went over the lake to the city, but it was on the other side of the lake and quite far away.

His mother's eyes widened and she took out her travel guide. Flipping the thin book open she quickly saw what was wrong. She sighed. "It looks like we're on the wrong shore."

"And I'm exhausted," Ash complained, sagging forwards as he let his tiny arms dangle to the ground. He was not looking forward to walking around the lake and up and down the hills to get to the bridge.

"Me too, but we don't have a choi-"

"Would you two like a lift?!" A voice suddenly interrupted his mother.

Ash looked around but didn't see anyone. Suddenly, a shadow came over him and his mother. The pair looked up and were surprised to see a hot air balloon descending towards them. A young blond-haired woman with a Chimchar on her shoulder was in the balloon and waved at them as she and her Chimchar shouted greetings.

It didn't take long for Ash and his mother to agree and board the hot air balloon, taking their places in the basket. They took off quickly again, taking to the sky as Chimchar used Flamethrower to heat up the air in the balloon and for the woman to steer the balloon directly towards Alamos Town.

"We can't thank you enough for your kindness," Delia said gratefully, smiling at the young woman who had taken the time to help her and her son. "I'm Delia and this is my son, Ash. What's your name?"

"I'm Alice," the blond introduced herself and smiled at Ash and his mother. Above them her Chimchar breathed another Flamethrower into the balloon, making it climb up in the air even higher and making it go faster.

"Awesome! We're moving really fast!" Ash said excitedly, peering over the basket's ridge.

"What a pretty lake," Delia commented as she looked at the pristine lake that was speeding down beneath them.

"Hey, Alice. Do you do this often? Giving people balloon rides I mean?" Ash suddenly questioned, his eyes wide with childish innocence.

"Well, I work part-time as a hot air balloon tour guide, but I spent the most of my time as a music student," Alice said brightly as she took out a small leaf from her pocket and placed it against her mouth as she started playing her favorite song: Oración.

Delia raised an eyebrow. "A leaf whistle?"

Delia completely forgot about her question as the beautiful melody of Oración reached her ears. It was a calming and beautiful sound that immediately put her at ease. Ash had sagged slightly as the melody coming from the leaf whistle calmed his excitable nature and made him relax.

Suddenly, two flocks of Pelipper, Pidgey and Pidgeotto came flying besides the hot air balloon, drawn in by the melody. The Pokémon chirped at Alice, thanking her for the music.

Alice continued playing. The Flying-Types chirped at her one more time in thanks before taking off again.

"You see. The Pokémon are showing me the air currents," Alice said brightly. "Come on Chimchar!" Her Pokémon nodded at her and angled its head up. It breathed another Flamethrower up into the balloon, heating up the air and making the balloon go even faster towards Alamos Town.

"Look at those towers!" Ash said excitedly, looking at the famous Space-Time Towers that arched into the sky, dominating the city's skyline.

"Here, listen to this," Delia said, taking out her travel guide from her backpack again. She flipped it open and read. "The brilliant architect Godey designed the Space-Time Towers a hundred years ago."

"And that's where we also hold our Pokémon Contests," Alice informed them, smiling brightly.

"What's a Pokémon Contest?" Ash asked, his head cocked to the side in interest.

"Oh, a Pokémon Contest is a competition where people known as Coordinators show off the beauty of their Pokémon and their skills in battle in order to win a Ribbon. Similar to how ordinary Trainers try to win Badges from Gym leaders," Delia informed her child as she smiled at his inquisitive nature.

Ash nodded at the explanation and looked interested.

Alice gave them a tour over the city, free of charge, and showed them everything the fine city had to offer. Taking the most time to showcase the famous Space-Time Towers and the beautiful Alamos Town Park while sharing interesting tidbits of knowledge about both iconic features of the unique city.

It was not long afterward that Alice landed her hot air balloon and gave the excited mother and son duo a land tour through the city, making sure to visit the Space-Time Towers during the tour and ending it at the Alamos Town park.

Delia clapped her hands together in delight, "Okay, it's about noon now. How about a picnic?" she said brightly, looking at the beautiful and artistic scenery of the Alamos Town park. The perfect place for a picnic, she thought.

Ash cheered. "Yay, a picnic!"

Alice giggled at him. Suddenly, her stomach growled loudly. The pretty blond blushed as Delia and Ash looked at her with amusement. "Mind if I join you?"

Delia's smile told Alice everything that she needed to know. "Sure, the more the merrier."

The mother took out a blanket from her backpack and laid it down on the soft grass. Ash sat down on it as his mother took out their food, a few sandwiches, salads and different kinds of pastas and side dishes, and placed them on a few neatly arranged plates. Alice took out her own food from her own backpack and joined the mother and son on the blanket for a nice and quiet picnic, which was rather remarkable considering Ash was present.

During the picnic Ash's eyes were drawn to a group of Pokémon that had suddenly appeared from the bushes. A Shinx, an Azurill, a Marill, an Azumarill and a Luxio. The Pokémon cried out in delight when they spotted Alice and promptly tackled the surprised woman, nearly knocking over the dishes.

"Oh, hey you guys, how's it going?" The music player righted herself and smiled at her Pokémon friends as she petted them, giving them attention one by one.

Alice spotted the questioning look in Ash's and Delia's eyes and answered the unasked question. "I've been playing in these gardens since I was a little girl. These are some of the friends I have made here. Say hi to Delia and her son, Ash, everyone."

The Water-Type Pokémon waved at the mother and son duo with their stubby arms and cried out their names, greeting them. The Shinx and Luxio nodded at them, polite smiles stretching over their faces.

Suddenly, the small Azurill lost its balance and fell down, falling on the rim of one of the dishes with pasta on it, sending it flying and striking a surprised Luxio in the face, covering it completely. The other Pokémon laughed, while the Azurill looked sheepish. Ash's shoulders shook in silent laughter while Delia and Alice had raised their hands to their mouths, hiding their smiles.

Luxio did not find it funny and promptly tackled the nearest laughing Pokémon, the Azumarill, and knocked it over. The other Pokémon quickly moved to break the two Pokémon up but got shocked for their efforts as Luxio used Thunderbolt in anger.

Mayhem followed.

The situation developed into an all-out brawl between the five Pokémon. The Shinx and Luxio where shocking the living daylights out of the Water-Types while the Water-Types in turn blasted them with Water Gun's and Ice Beam's.

In between this chaos Ash and Delia where trying to get away from the blast zone, crawling over the ground in order to evade the stray Thunderbolts, Water Gun's and Ice Beam's arching over their heads.

They didn't have to bother.

Suddenly, the soothing tones of Oración washed over the clearing, instantly calming down the wild Pokémon and stopping their battle. Ash and Delia looked in awe at Alice, who was still sitting calmly on the blanket with her legs folded under her as she played on her leaf whistle.

The Shinx and Luxio settled down on the ground, their eyes closed in contentment and their ears dropping as they almost fell asleep from the sweet tones of Oración. The Azurill fell asleep instantly, making the now calm and content looking Azumarill catch the sleeping baby Pokémon. The Marill walked off, found a comfortable place in the grass, curled up and fell asleep.

Alice stopped playing her leaf whistle and smiled.

"That was awesome!" Ash nearly shouted, looking at Alice in undisguised awe.

"Why thank you," she accepted the praise gracefully.

"Can you teach me how to do that?" The boy asked excitedly.

"You want to learn how to play music?" Alice asked, surprised. It wasn't every day that seven-year old children decide that they want to learn how to play music. And certainly not boys.

"Sure, why not? If music can do that," Ash said, pointing at the sleeping and content looking Pokémon, who had been fighting only moments ago. "then I want to learn it."

"What's that song called, anyway?" Delia suddenly interjected. She was very curious about the song that could have so much effect on Humans and Pokémon alike. She was also very pleased that her child wanted to learn something that artistic. She could already see her child becoming a world-famous musician who attracted lots of fans...and girls. The mother quietly giggled to herself.

"It's called Oración. My grandmother taught it to me when I was a little girl," Alice said as she took out an old picture from her back pocket. She showed the black and white picture to the mother and son who looked at it curiously. On it where two people sitting on a bench in the park, an elderly man with a beard and what looked a young version of Alice. "The older man is Godey, the famous architect, and that girl is my grandmother when she was little."

She turned the picture around. On the back of it was the symbol of Oración, two heavily decorated intertwined half's of a leaf and beneath it was the sheet music of Oración, neatly displayed on decorated lines.

Alice smiled at Ash. "I'll make you a copy of Oración and show you how to play on a leaf whistle. But I warn you, it will take some time before you'll be able to play Oración with any degree of fluency. It's harder than it looks. Don't worry, though. I'm sure you'll be able to learn it. After all, practice makes perfect."

Ash nodded, smiling. Some of the words went over his head but he got the gist of what Alice was saying.

Alice got up and stretched for a bit. "Well, it's still early. How about a visit to the Space-Time Towers?" She smiled as she got two excited nods for her question.

And so, Ash took the first step in becoming something more.

Two weeks later it was time for Ash and his mother to leave and to go back home. Both mother and son had just packed their stuff and had left their hotel. They were about to leave the city, heading for the airport.

But first they had to say goodbye to a friend.

Alice.

"I can't believe you're leaving already," the blond laminated sadly. The two weeks had gone by too fast for the music artist.

Delia smiled at her friend as she held her child's hand in her own. They were standing on the bridge that led out of the city. Alice and Delia had become fast friends in the two weeks that they had been together. The two had met each other daily at the park where Alice taught Ash how to use a leaf whistle and gave him a copy of Oración.

Ash had been practicing every day and while he had sucked at it in the beginning he was starting to make progress. It was little, but it was something, and if you could describe Ash as being anything it would be stubborn. Delia was sure that he would try, try and try some more until he got it right.

"Sad, but true. I'm sure we'll meet again. We like to travel you see, I'm sure we'll visit here again someday," Delia said, smiling slightly sadly at Alice.

"There's that. Or maybe I should come and visit you in Kanto," Alice returned, also smiling a sad smile.

"Oh, I would love that, and I know Ash would like that too."

Ash looked sadly at Alice but he was used to it. He had made many friends with people all over the world and he always had to leave them behind as he and his mother went back home. He still held contact with some of them, though.

Alice crouched down and tussled Ash's hair, smiling at the young boy that had warmed her heart with his dedication. He had really surprised her with his determination to learn how to play Oración.

"Keep on practicing, Ash. And when you come back I want you to play it for me, okay?" Alice asked. Ash nodded immediately. He would love to show Alice what he had learned when he came to visit her again.

Alice suddenly dipped her head and kissed Ash on the cheek. The boy's face went completely red in an instant. Alice smiled at the embarrassed boy and stood back up after tussling his hair one more time.

Delia giggled and held out her hand. Alice took it and said goodbye to the mother and son, winking at the still blushing Ash. She turned around and left, heading back home.

The mother and son turned and started making their way across the bridge. "Did you have a great time, sweetie?" Delia asked as they walked. She already knew the answer but she wanted to hear it from her son's mouth.

Ash smiled brightly, his blush having finally abated, "I sure did! It was awesome playing with the Pokémon in the park and learning how to play Oración with Alice. The Space and Time Towers were also pretty nice."

Delia smiled at her son's excited description. "Say, will you play Oración for me?"

Ash's blush returned full force/ "Um, not yet. I want to practice it a bit more."

Delia giggled again. She knew that her son's current skill at playing music was more likely to render her deaf than calm her down.

Ash Ketchum - Age 8

Kanto region - Rota

The Kingdom of Rota was a nice place, if a bit plain in Ash's opinion. The people where nice enough and the buildings were decorated like in ancient times, giving the town an old and medieval feel to it. But it was not the town that drew people to the kingdom. No, Rota's claim to fame was Cameron Palace.

This ancient palace is famous for its beautiful structures. The Palace resided in the middle of a lake on an island with steep hillsides. Two bridges connected it to the town of Rota that wrapped completely around the gorgeous castle. The Renaissance style castle had white marble walls that glinted in the sunlight. Blue jagged crystals embedded into the walls added to the dazzling display. White towers pierced into the sky, their sharp blood-red points starkly contrasted with the white and blue theme of the castle. At one end of the castle was a massive draw bridge that thousands of tourists were crossing over.

It was this gate that Ash and Delia entered through to the famous castle.

Both mother and son were wearing clothes that were worn in ancient times, in the times of the castle's creation. Delia wore a plain white noble woman's dress. She had a jeweled necklace around her neck and her hair had been braided into a stunning hair piece. Ash, on the other hand, wore a down sized version of a chain mail based knights armor for his small size. It looked comical to a degree, but it fit.

Today was a special day, a day of celebration. A festival was being held in honor of the legendary hero that had saved the Kingdom of Rota from certain destruction, the famous Sir Aaron. The main event of this celebration was a Pokémon competition. A tournament that trainers have come from far and wide to compete in for the honor to be dubbed Guardian of the Aura.

Ash was looking forward to the tournament. Too bad he wasn't a trainer yet or he could have competed himself. Oh, how he would have loved that!

Delia looked up at the clock tower of the castle, checking the time. "Hmm, it seems we're running a little late. The tournament is about to begin in ten minutes. Let's hurry dear!"

Ash smiled. "Yeah, let's hurry!" he cried out in delight.

Delia took her child's hand and let him through the throngs of people. She quickly took them to the arena that was tucked away in a spacious corner of the palace. Mentally, she thanked herself for having learned the castle's layout the day before, otherwise they would have gotten hopelessly lost.

The duo entered the arena mere moments before the main crowd started making their way to the about-to-be-held tournament. The mother and son ascended a flight of stairs and came to a viewing area, perfect for a bird's-eye view for the battles that were about to be held. They quickly took a place at the front of the stone viewing areas. Ash had to take a small chair to stand on, though, in order to be able to see over the railing.

Ash looked out over the arena. Down below was a plain dirt battlefield, one commonly used in big Pokémon competitions like in the League. The 'stadium' was a medieval style arena with stone viewing areas. There were quite a bit of people in the arena already, Ash noted. The viewing areas where still filling up, but would be full in a few moments.

Several minutes later the stadium was full and the competition was ready to begin, heralded by blowing of trumpets. The judge appeared down on the battlefield, clothed in a suitable medieval purple outfit, and made the opening words. "Presenting her royal majesty," he boomed, his voice loud and authoritative, "The illustrious ruler of Cameron Palace, Lady Eileen!"

Up on a special balcony overseeing the battlefield at the highest point, Lady Eileen, queen of Cameron, appeared with a Mime Jr. in her arms. Her maid followed close behind her. The queen placed Mime Jr. down, who twirled in happiness and copied Lady Eileen's movements as the queen waved at the public.

"Oh, just look at her! She's so beautiful!" Delia commented in admiration as she saw the queen.

Ash blinked, weren't woman supposed to be jealous of other beautiful woman?

Queen Eileen spread her arms wide and smiled at the crowd, Mime Jr. copying her actions again. "And now, in honor of Sir Aaron and his noble deeds, we will begin our annual Pokémon Competition!" The crowd roared and cheered in approval.

That was the starting sign for the tournament to begin. Two trainers came rushing out of the tunnels on either side of the battlefield, fully prepped and fully ready as they threw two Pokéballs up into the air. In two identical flashes of white light a Gallade and a Sandslash appeared on the battlefield. They glared at each other and tensed for battle.

"Begin!" the ref shouted over the roar of the crowd, lowering his flag.

The Gallade and Sandslash rushed each other at their trainers command. Gallade came in swinging with Psycho Cut, its sharp forearms shining a dangerous pink and Sandslash rocketed forwards with indecent white glowing claws as it used Slash.

They met, an explosion lit up the battlefield and raised a gigantic smoke cloud, hiding the Pokémon from sight.

The tournament was on.

"...And welcome back after our half hour intermission! Now that our final two contestants Pokémon have recovered from their previous battles the final match of the Cameron Pokémon Competition is about to begin!" The ref shouted as the crowd once again took their places in the viewing boxes. He raised his flag. "The final match between Jason Treymor from Kanto and Candice Lockhart from Hoenn for the beloved title of the Guardian of the Aura, BEGIN!" The ref threw down his flag as the last word echoed out over the stadium.

The two final contenders took their places on either end of the battlefield, one boy and one girl.

Jason, an eighteen year old red-haired young man with deep green eyes and dressed in plated armor of old hurled his Pokéball into the sky. It released a towering and massive Rhyperior onto the battlefield. Rhyperior roared, its sheer weight crushing the ground underneath the huge Pokémon and its roar actually released a small shockwave that scattered dirt and dust in all directions.

Candice, a twenty-one year old blond-haired woman with light brown eyes and dressed in a flowing, dark blue royal woman's dress threw her own Pokéball. It snapped open and released a powerful looking Sceptile. The Forest Pokémon proudly raised its head, giving a deep glare at the now silent Rhyperior.

Ash immediately knew what this battle was going to be about. Speed versus power.

Jason made the opening move. "Rhyperior, use Earthquake!" Rhyperior grunted in acknowledgement and raised one gigantic foot, pausing for nary a moment, it stomped the ground with enough force to shake the entire stadium. The ground shook and rippled like water under its immense power. A fissure opened in the ground and went directly for Sceptile.

"Jump up to evade and then use Leaf Blade!" Candice countered as she fought to keep her balance. Sceptile nodded in confirmation. It recovered its balance and jumped into the air with great speed, causing the fissure the harmlessly pass under it. Sceptile threw its arms to its sides, the leaves on both of Sceptile's forearms glowing a dangerous green and elongating, taking the form of a Leaf Blade.

"Use Rock Polish and dodge! Then Come around with Hammer Arm!" Jason commanded quickly.

Rhyperior crushed its fists together. Its red plated armored hide glowed a deep red as it used Rock Polish. With great speed Rhyperior zipped away from Sceptile's Leaf Blade attack at the last moment. Circling back around Sceptile it raised its gigantic right arm, an angry orange energy enveloping it as it used Hammer Arm. Still using its augmented speed Rhyperior rushed at Sceptile's from behind as the ground shook under its immense weight.

"A frontal attack! How foolish!" Candice taunted with a smirk. "Now Sceptile, end this with Frenzy Plant!" She commanded.

Sceptile turned around to meet Rhyperior head on. Channeling its power into the ground dozens of gigantic tree roots suddenly sprouted. They speared high into the sky, growing in size as Sceptile concentrated to make the attack as powerful as possible. Once the tree roots almost blotted out the sun light thanks to their immense size they came spearing down towards the onrushing Rhyperior with the speed and double the striking power of a coiled Seviper.

It was too late to dodge.

Jason looked unconcerned, even as the most powerful of all Grass-Type attacks bore down on his Rhyperior.

One by one the roots struck Rhyperior, knocking it back with every blow and dealing quite a bit of damage with each hit. Rhyperior grunted with each hit as it held its immense arms in a cross guard in front of its body, lessening some of the damage.

To everyone's shock, Rhyperior was still standing tall and strong after the attack ended. The Drill Pokémon actually smirked and crushed its fists together, ready for more. Suddenly, it rushed forward again. Still using its augmented speed, it slammed it's still glowing Hammer Arm into the surprised Sceptile's chest with tremendous force.

Sceptile went flying and crashed into the stadium's walls, cratering it from the sheer force behind it

"Sceptile!" Candice cried out in concern.

"Did you really think it would be that easy!? I've raised my Rhyperior's defenses as high as I could with lots of special training. Rhyperior's Solid Rock ability also comes in handy of course," Jason said, smirking.

'Solid Rock, that means that the damage of super-effective attacks are reduced by a fourth. That Frenzy Plant only did slightly more than regular damage and by the looks of it the attack wasn't nearly enough to faze Rhyperior,' Ash thought, his eyes glued to the battle below. He was trembling excitement. That would be him down there someday!

Sceptile shakily pulled itself up and stumbled back onto the battlefield. Taking a deep breath the lizard-like Pokémon hardened its stance and prepared to continue fighting.

Candice's eyes hardened. "Keep it away! Frenzy Plant again! Then follow up with Solar Beam!"

Jason's eyes widened in clear alarm. While those attack wouldn't do super-effective damage because of Rhyperior's Solid Rock ability they were still very powerful attacks. One Frenzy Plant wasn't enough to slow down his Rhyperior, but another followed by a Solar Beam might even put Rhyperior out of commission!

"Quick, use Rock Wrecker! If it survives finish it with Ice Beam!" Jason commanded. There was a tinge of desperation to his voice.

Rhyperior roared, shaking the earth thanks to the sheer force behind it, and cupped its gigantic palms. Small chunks of gray stone came out of the holes on Rhyperior's hands and formed together into a large rock that was outlined in red. The red outline faded and Rhyperior reared back, took aim, and launched the stone directly towards Sceptile at an incredible speed.

"Take that Rock Wrecker and keep on charging Solar Beam!" Candice commanded. She hoped that her Sceptile could take the hit.

Sceptile nodded and started charging Solar Beam. The bulbs on its back started glowing as they took in sun light in preparation for the mighty Grass-Type attack. Meanwhile, the roots of Frenzy Plant that it had summoned mere moments before arched above and around the incoming Rock Wrecker. The gigantic tree roots honed in on Rhyperior and struck the mighty Ground and Rock-Type over and over, knocking it back with every hit.

Finally, the Rock Wrecker struck Sceptile, creating a mighty explosion. Smoke and sharp chunks of stone billowed outwards. A heavy haze of dirt now obscured the battlefield. It slowly began to lift, only the area around Sceptile's last known location was still hidden behind a heavy cloud of dust.

All was silent for but a moment. All eyes were now glued to the dust cloud hiding Sceptile from sight, waiting to see if the Forest Pokémon was able to continue battling.

The answer came a moment later in the form of a gigantic Solar Beam that speared out of the smoke and surged towards the only just recovering Rhyperior.

The Drill Pokémon quickly opened its maw and started charging an Ice Beam. Within seconds it had charged the Ice Beam as much as it could in such a short time frame and unleashed the icy blue zigzagging beam towards the rapidly closing in Solar Beam.

The two attacks met head on, impacting harshly against each other and for a moment stalemated, but only for a moment. The Solar Beam overpowered the Ice Beam, breaking through it and shredding the beam into nothingness.

The Solar Beam struck Rhyperior, actually throwing the immensely heavy Pokémon back and setting it ablaze with white energy as the power of Solar Beam covered it. Rhyperior fell to its knees, shaking the entire arena, gasping and moaning in pain. The white energy covering it snuffed out after a moment, revealing the black burn mark where the Solar Beam had struck Rhyperior in the chest.

With a grunt of exertion Rhyperior got back on its feet, all though it looked like it would keel over at any moment.

The smoke covering Sceptile was swept away in a sudden breeze, revealing the Forest Pokémon. Sceptile's entire body was shaking, there where deep cuts all over its green and pink body and some shards from the Rock Wrecker had embedded themselves into its skin. There was also one huge bruise on its chest where the Rock Wrecker had initially struck.

The Forest Pokémon and the Drill Pokémon glared at each other, daring the other to admit defeat.

There was another breeze of wind.

With a gasp of pain Sceptile suddenly collapsed, falling face first to the ground in a dead faint. The Forest Pokémon was completely knocked out cold.

There was a heartbeat of complete and utter silence.

The Stadium erupted.

Everyone was cheering for the trainers and their Pokémon. The crowd cheered, clapped and whistled as hard as they could. Ash and his mother joined in on the cheering and clapping.

"Sceptile is unable to battle, Rhyperior wins! We have a new Guardian for the year, Jason from Kanto!" the ref announced as he lifted his flag towards Jason.

"All right!" Jason cheered as he pumped his fist in victory. Rhyperior smirked in satisfaction before Jason recalled it and thanked the Drill Pokémon for its efforts.

Candice sighed and recalled Sceptile as well. She had a defeated, but satisfied look on her face. She drew herself up and walked across the battlefield to shake Jason's hand and congratulate him on his victory.

Jason blushed in light embarrassment and gratefully took the offered hand. The crowds clapping and cheering took on an even higher pitch at the sportsmanship.

That night, several hours later, a large crowd had gathered in the Cameron Palace Ballroom. The red marble room was decorated elaborately with tapestries and ancient paintings. The room was packed to the brim with people, who were all still dressed as people out of the medieval era. Only the section of the floor that was used for dancing was free of people.

Ash and Delia stood a little to the side, watching Queen Eileen as she got up from her throne and walked forwards. The crowd fell silent as Lady Eileen was given a polished wooden staff. It had metal rings and decorations with a shimmering crystal at the top. Ash was in pure awe of it. She held it out for the crowd to see, who watched the staff with interest and awe. The queen smiled as nostalgia swirled in her eyes. She turned towards Jason. Walking up to him she held the staff out towards the victor of the tournament.

"This is the staff of the Guardian that once belonged to the great Sir Aaron. According to our tradition the winner of the Pokémon Competition is named the Aura Guardian for the year and is presented with this staff. In behalf of my kingdom, Jason, it's yours."

"Awesome," Jason breathed in awe as he gingerly took the staff from the queen. "This really belonged to Sir Aaron?" He said, looking at the deep blue gem on the top of the staff.

His question went ignored as the queen continued on with her duty. "Now we will begin the Grand Ball in honor of Sir Aaron and our new Guardian. Please, enjoy yourselves everyone," The queen announced and smiled as classic music started playing. Couples swiftly took to the ball floor to dance.

Delia smiled at her son and took him to the buffet which was neatly tucked into the side of the ballroom. Ash nearly started drooling at seeing the large and diverse buffet.

His mother giggled at him and patted her child on the shoulder. "Go and enjoy yourself sweetie, but don't overeat. I'm going dancing with that fine young gentleman over there."

Ash nodded, not really paying attention to whom his mother was planning on dancing with. He made a beeline for the buffet.

Delia smiled one more time at her child's back and turned towards the gentleman who had caught her attention.

Half an hour into the celebrations Ash had finally had his fill. He sagged into his seat and patted his stomach in contentment. He didn't notice the people around him who were staring at him incredulously. They had just witnessed a little boy eat twice his own body weight like it was nothing! It was impossible!

Ash stood up from his chair and was about to wander of in search of something else to do until suddenly a glint in the corner of his eyes caught his attention. He turned and spotted the massive gem on the staff in the hands of Jason, who was sitting beside the queen herself.

He looked at it curiously. He wasn't sure but he thought he felt a sort of connection to something inside the gem, or was that just his imagination playing tricks on him? The longer he stared at it the more there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind, as if someone was screaming at him from a great distance, but he couldn't make it out.

He also felt as if someone was looking right at him.

Ash didn't know it, but that someone was actually looking at his Aura.

Lucario had no idea what was going on.

His last memories where of impending doom. Two armies who were dead set on destroying each other where about to wage war on Cameron soil. He had seen them mere moments before they would have met with the incredible sight his Aura granted him. The clash would have destroyed their kingdom without question.

Then his master had done the unthinkable.

His master had betrayed him.

Sir Aaron was his master and his teacher in the ways of Aura, but he had abandoned him and the kingdom in its hour of need. He had fled the palace, abandoning Queen Rin to her fate and took off on his Pidgeot towards the Tree of Beginning.

He had of course chased after his master, thinking and hoping that he had a plan to stop the impending destruction.

How wrong he was.

The moment he had caught up with Sir Aaron his master had denounced him as his student and had continued on running. Shocked and confused Lucario continued to follow his master only for Sir Aaron to turn around and throw his staff down in front of Lucario, where it lodged into the ground. The jewel on top of the staff had glowed brightly and the gem had captured him just like a Pokéball did in the here and now.

Not that Lucario knew what a Pokéball was. Or anything about the here and now.

The now ancient Pokémon had been sleeping inside the gem for a very long time, held in suspended animation for centuries, unaware of the passage of time outside of his long time resting place. Nothing had disturbed him, nothing had touched him, and nothing had so much as caught his notice.

Until someone with an Aura nearly identical to his long dead master came close enough to rouse him from his forced slumber.

Rage, sadness, and betrayal where the first emotions the Aura Pokémon had felt in over seven hundred years.

Not that he knew that he had been sealed for over seven hundred years.

Lucario shook his head. He could wallow in his emotions later. First, he needed to free himself. He turned his attention outward, looking for a way to escape.

His view from the outside world was blurry at best. He could only see the blue outline of the room that he was in and the inner Aura of the people present in the room. It was more than enough, though.

His Aura sight didn't hone in on the person that was holding the staff of his master, but on a child not far away from him. This child had and Aura so closely resembling his master's own that he could have mistaken the child for Sir Aaron if the child wasn't so obviously small. The child even had similar physical characteristics to his master from what he could make out.

Did his master have a child? He didn't have some one night stand with some woman, did he?

He wouldn't have even entertained the thought before but with his master's abandonment and subsequent betrayal he wasn't certain anymore to just what Sir Aaron was capable of.

Lucario quickly shunted his thoughts to the back of his mind. He had better things to think about. Like, how to get out of this stupid gem.

There was only one way to escape, and he knew how.

The staff only reacted to his masters Aura. His master wasn't anywhere nearby, luckily there was someone with a near identical Aura not too far from him who was naturally giving of the needed Aura to escape.

Hopefully, this would work. No, it had to work.

Using his own impressive skills in Aura manipulation he started drawing the ambient Aura in the air towards the gem and focused on the young child's Aura that had diffused into the air. Little by little he drew the needed Aura for him to escape. To his joy he could feel the gem reacting towards the child's Aura. He would be free soon enough.

The celebrations lasted deep into the night. After one last speech by the queen at midnight and the setting of off a spectacular display of fireworks the celebrations slowly but surely petered out.

Ash and Delia where some of the last people there. It was nearly two o'clock in the morning and only about a dozen people remained, including Ash, Delia, the queen, her maid and Jason.

Queen Eileen got up from her throne and approached Jason who got up from his chair as he saw her approach. She held out her hands. Jason nodded and handed the staff back to the queen. Lady Eileen turned to address the few remaining people. "Another night of celebration in honor of Sir Aaron has come and gone. On behalf of him I thank you for attending and I hope that all of you enjoyed yourselves. With that, I wish you goodnight."

The queen dipped her head at the last remaining guests. With that the queen left the room, taking the staff containing Lucario with her, completely unknowing of what she was carrying with her.

Dammit!

All had been going so well. Just one minute more was all he would have needed to escape from the wretched gem that contained him but it was one minute to many. The staff had been taken from the room and Lucario had seen the child leave with his mother. He had been separated from the only chance that he had to escape.

He could already feel the gem's power pushing down on him again. It was trying to return him to his forced slumber.

No!

Lucario raged against his confines and in a desperate instinctive move he took hold of the child's Aura he had been able to pull to himself. Concentrating, he used it to make a protective shell around his sealed form.

The Aura Pokémon sighed in relieve as the pressure abruptly left as the gem's power could no longer reach him, for the moment.

Now what?

It was a good question. He didn't have enough of the child's Aura to escape and the child was now too far away from him. He needed the child in order to escape but he couldn't rea-

Wait, that's not entirely true.

There was one technique, a technique that Sir Aaron had taught him mere months before the impending battle that had threatened to destroy the kingdom of Cameron and his master's betrayal. This technique allowed him to make a telepathic connection with anyone with a strong enough Aura over great distances. So long as the child hadn't left his range he could contact him and try to ask for the child's help! There was still hope!

This is it. My final chance.

Lucario closed his eyes and concentrated.

Ash was almost asleep when the mental voice of Lucario barely managed to reach him. His mother had immediately taken the now very sleepy child back to their hotel in Rota the moment the queen had closed the celebrations. He had stayed up way past his bed time and while Delia was far more lenient on enforcing bed time than most parents, she still made sure that Ash received enough sleep. She was his mother after all.

Hello, can you hear me? A voice whispered into his mind.

Ash's eyes snapped open at the sudden mental intrusion. Tiredness almost forgotten in his shock, he bolted upright in his bed and quickly scanned his room. No one. There was no one in his room, but then where did that voice come fro-

Hello? Please answer me! the voice shouted. It held a frantic note to it.

Little Ash's eyes widened in the darkness. He could hear the voice perfectly clear, but there was no one but himself in the room, "H-hello?" he spook up hesitantly.

Thank Arceus! You can hear me! Please child, I need your help, the voice continued.

Ash stuttered. "W-who are you?" He asked, rather afraid of the disembodied voice.

I'm Lucario, but who I am is not important right now, child. I'm desperately in need of your help, Lucario continued with a grim edge to his voice.

Ash gulped in uncertainty. "W-what do you need my help for?"

I'm trapped, dear child. I've been sealed away for who knows how long and I cannot escape without your help, was the curt reply.

Ash was still uncertain. "How do I know you haven't been 'sealed away' as you put it with good reason? What if you did something bad and was sealed away for some kind of crime? And why do you specifically need my help? Why can no one else help you?" He questioned, now more sure of himself.

My master betrayed me, dear child, and sealed me away into his staff for unknown reasons. I did nothing to warrant this imprisonment, at least not to my knowledge. As for why I need your help specifically... Well child, you're special. You have a power that's extremely similar to my master's power. This power is called Aura and yours is nearly identical to my masters. Only his Aura, or yours in this case, can set me free, Lucario explained patiently.

"How do I know you're not lying?" Ash questioned skeptically.

You can't. You'll just have to take my word for it, the disembodied voice replied.

Ash hesitated. He had no way of knowing if this 'Lucario' was telling the truth, but on the other hand, if he was telling the truth Ash didn't think he would be able to live with the guilt of abandoning him in his hour of need.

It all came down to the fact if Ash would be able to throw caution to the wind.

He thought about for about a little less than a second

"All right, I'll do it," Ash answered resolutely.

Ash could suddenly feel an immense surge of joy and relieve from the voice.

Bless you, dear child!

"What do I need to do?" Ash questioned as he crawled out of bed. He took his clothes from a nearby chair and began putting them back on.

I need you to return to Cameron Palace and get close enough to my master's staff in order for me to draw the needed Aura from you in order to escape. Don't inform your mother. She might try to stop you. I'll guide you back to the castle. Simple.

Ash suddenly froze as he was about to put on his shirt. His master's staff? He knew of only one staff. He couldn't mean… "Your master wouldn't be Sir Aaron, would it?"

Well, yes. My master is, or was, Sir Aaron. He isn't my master anymore. He said so himself mere moments before he sealed me.

"I-I'm not really sure how to tell you this but Sir Aaron died seven hundred years ago. You have been sealed for at least seven hundred years," Ash spook up hesitantly.

Silence. Ash could feel total and utter shock from Lucario over their mental connection.

Ash put on the remainder of his clothes and patiently waited for Lucario to speak.

W-while you're traveling to Cameron Palace could you please inform me of what has happened with the world since I've been sealed? I dearly need to know what happened to Sir Aaron and how Cameron Palace managed to survive the impending battle that had threatened to destroy our kingdom, Lucario spoke up after a long moment of stunned silence.

Ash nodded and prepared to leave. "Sure, my mother told me story of the Aura Guardian Sir Aaron and how he saved the Kingdom of Cameron," he said as he tiptoed out of his room. He quickly snuck past his mother's room and rushed out of the hotel. To his luck the reception area was completely devoid of any people, making it easy for Ash to sneak out.

He quickly took off towards Cameron Palace, all the while informing Lucario of what he knew.

Lucario's sealed form sagged as the enormity of the situation dawned on him.

Seven hundred years, the Aura Pokémon softly murmured.

His once master was long dead. Everyone he had once known where long dead. Nearly everything he cherished was long gone. Only Cameron Palace and the royal line of the kingdom remained to bind him to his past.

What am I supposed to do with my life now? He questioned himself.

He could once again pledge his allegiance to the royal house of Cameron, but everything would be different now. From what he could gather from what Ash had told him the world was a lot calmer now. Wars where rare and almost never happened anymore. Big bands of mercenaries that wreaked havoc everywhere in his time no longer existed. Humanity in general was a lot more peaceful than they were in the past. The unsavory elements of society, while certainly still there, had been more or less tamed. The Kingdom of Cameron no longer needed protection.

The child, Ash (he even had a name similar to his long dead former master. A part of him mused on how many more coincidences he would run into with the child), had been most enlightening.

Ash had told him the legend surrounding the death of his former master and how he had presumably saved the kingdom of Cameron. One part of him felt disgusted that his traitor of a former master was heralded as a hero, but on the other hand a part of him wanted nothing more than to believe the legend. Maybe, just maybe, Sir Aaron hadn't betrayed his trust and had sealed him away with good intentions.

He was still very angry and bitter at his former master but there was an underlying emotion under it now. It grew stronger with every moment.

Hope.

Hope that his former master had indeed been loyal until the end. Hope that his former master had indeed respected him as his student. And hope that his former master had indeed regarded them as friends.

He resolved to travel to the Tree of Beginning as soon as possible. The legend said that Sir Aaron sacrificed himself to save Cameron and he gave his life in the Tree of Beginning to make it happen. Maybe he could find answers there.

But first he needed to be freed.

He had guided Ash back to the castle, his mental voice steering him through secret passageways that where thankfully still there after seven hundred years. This allowed the child to circumvent certain protections and check points and allowed the child to make record time to the castle.

Lucario smiled as Ash entered the room where the staff that held him was being kept.

He would be free soon.

Ash looked around nervously, scanning the small and dark room for any threats.

He had returned as fast as he could to the castle, Lucario guiding his path and making quick time. Once inside the castle Lucario had instructed him to take several back doors to where he was being kept. He had stuck to the shadows the entire trip. It wouldn't do to be spotted.

It took him almost an hour to reach Lucario.

Finally, after traveling so long alone in the dark he found himself in a dark room in some closed off part of the castle. There where shiny objects all around him. Each piece of jewelry was probably worth a lot, Ash mused.

Before him laid Sir Aaron's staff. It was laid down horizontally on a small dais. Ash hesitantly took a step towards it.

Don't be afraid, Ash, Lucario's mental voice whispered into his mind. There are no protections around the staff itself. It's safe, trust me.

Reassured by Lucario's words, Ash walked up to the dais. He paused when he was in front of it, unsure of what to do.

Grasp it, I'll do the rest. Be warned, though. This won't hurt, but it might be tiring.

Ash nodded and after a moment's hesitation he firmly grasped the staff, his hands coming to rest on the polished wood.

Immediately Ash could feel energy draining out of him. It was weird feeling, he mused, but not harmful.

Five minutes later Ash's eyes had trouble remaining open. His Aura was still being sucked into the staff and up into the gem that was now shining brightly in a canopy of lights, shining brightly in the dark room.

Just a little more, Ash's sleep addled mind was only barely able to hear Lucario's muttered words.

In a bright flash of white light a lance of energy sprang from the gem and struck the ground behind Ash. It quickly materialized in the form of Lucario, who grinned as he was finally freed.

Ash's eyes finally shut as his body gave up. He went out like a light and started falling to the floor, his hands slipping from the polished wood of the staff.

Lucario caught him with time to spare and picked Ash up. He cradled the small child in his arms.

Thank you, Ash, the newly freed Pokémon muttered with his Aura Voice, which echoed lightly in the room.

Ash hadn't heard what Lucario had said. He was sleeping deeply as he snored softly. Naturally seeking out the warmth of Lucario's fur Ash actually snuggled as deep as he could into Lucario's chest. Said Pokémon paused and shook his head. This was new, he mused. A child clinging to him like he was a pillow.

Lucario shifted Ash in his arms to make him more comfortable and took off running in a swift sprint, leaving the room behind and quickly running through the passageways and corridors of the castle. With his phenomenal speed he came outside on the castle's courtyard within a minute. He maintained his speed and quickly left the castle grounds before anyone saw them.

Delia yawned and got out of bed. She glanced over to the clock that hung above her bed in her luxurious hotel room and noted that it was eleven o'clock already. Normally, she would have been up much earlier but it had been quite late last night. She was also quite sure that Ash was still snoring away in his room. She giggled, her child was a very, very deep sleeper.

She walked out of her room, still yawning and made for the kitchen. She entered the small room and was about to make herself breakfast until she spotted something surprising.

Ash was already sitting at the dinner table. He smiled at her, but he looked extremely tired. There were small bags under his eyes and he leaned on the dinner table, as if he was too tired to sit up straight. He yawned deeply as he wished her good morning.

Delia felt a stab of guilt. Maybe they shouldn't have stayed up so late last night.

She softly murmured as she approached her child. "If you're still tired you can go back to bed if you want, sweetie."

Ash smiled tiredly at her but shook his head. "I need to tell you something first, mom. Could you please sit down, I don't think you're gonna like what I'm about to tell you."

Delia felt a spike of worry at her child's words. She still heeded them and took a seat across from him. She looked at him with worried eyes.

Ash smiled at his mother. "Relax, mom. I'm perfectly fine, just a bit tired." He took a deep breath as he started to explain. "Mom, last night, someone came to me asking for help." Immediately spotting the widening of his mother's eyes he hurried to explain. "Don't get me wrong, mom. He didn't actually break into our hotel room or anything. He just... You know what, since I know you're not gonna believe it, I'll be blunt about it. He made a telepathic connection with me and asked for my help from far, far away."

His mother's brow twitched. "Of course I'm not going believe that! Its ridicules and not to mention impossible!"

Is that so? a strong telepathic voice suddenly echoed in her head.

Delia's eyes nearly popped out of her skull as her eyes widened to an unnatural degree.

Lucario stopped leaning against the wall of the kitchen and walked towards the table. He placed his paw on Delia's shoulder and went to stand to the side so that both Ash and Delia could see him without problems.

"W-who are you?" Delia asked, stuttering in sudden fear.

My name is Lucario. I'm the one who asked your son for help last night, the Aura Pokémon replied while frowning at Delia's apparent fear of him. He had switched from his telepathic speech to his Aura Voice.

Delia seemed to gather herself and gave Lucario a hard look. Said Pokémon was impressed at how fast the mother was able to rally herself.

"And why, do tell me, did you need my son's help in the middle if the night?" She asked, a rather hard edge to her voice.

Do you mind if I take a seat first? This is going to be a rather long and complicated story to tell, Lucario said, looking her directly in the eyes. He was even more impressed when Delia didn't even flinch from his scarlet eyed gaze. Quite a lot of people he had encountered in his own time were afraid to look him in the eyes. His deep red eyes spooked them.

Delia nodded after a moment of thought. Lucario gave a reassuring nod at the mother and took a seat at the table. He shot a glance at Ash and then turned to look seriously at Delia.

The short version is that my master sealed me into his staff seven hundred years ago. And your son was the only one with a power similar enough to my former master's power to be able to free me. You already know of my former master. His name was Sir Aaron. Delia gasped, recognition sparking in her eyes. My story began seven hundred years ago, you actually know a part of it already; Ash told me you read the tale of the Aura Guardian Sir Aaron to him before you came here. Anyways, Sir Aaron was actually my master and teacher in the ways of the Aura.

Lucario paused for a moment to gather his thoughts before continuing. The tale you've read portrays my former master as a hero who sacrificed himself in order to save Cameron from the impending battle of two armies who were mere moments away from clashing and destroying everything around them.

Delia swiftly cut in. "And you're telling me that story is false?"

Lucario paused before answering. I'm truly not sure. You see, my former master had fled Cameron Palace, leaving Queen Rin behind. I caught up to him as he was traveling towards the Tree of Beginning and questioned what he was doing. He didn't answer me and denounced me as his student, saying that he wasn't my master anymore. He left me behind as he continued on to the Tree of Beginning. I followed, of course, only for him to seal me into his staff for unknown reasons.

Both Delia and Ash frowned. Delia because she simply didn't like the fact that a story that she loved might not be true. And Ash because he looked up to Sir Aaron. His legend portrayed what a real hero should be, selfless and noble. But if what Lucario said was true, and Ash was inclined to believe his words, then he might just have been a coward who had opted to flee instead of staying to fight.

He didn't like it one bit.

I tried to free myself last night at the ball, but the staff holding me was taken from the room before I was able to draw enough Aura from Ash in order to escape. Luckily, I know a technique that allows me to speak to people over long distances. I contacted Ash and convinced him to help him. I guided him back to the castle where he freed me. Then, I carried him back here, and since I thought that you two deserved an explanation I stayed to explain things to you, Lucario finished, looking seriously at Delia.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

Lucario snorted, feeling a sense of déjà vu. Ash can tell you. He released me from Sir Aaron's staff, the staff you saw yesterday at the ball. That should be proof enough.

The mother's eyes turned to Ash, who nodded sleepily at his mother. "It's true, mom."

Delia's eyes narrowed at Lucario. "Now that you're free what are you going to do?" She questioned sharply.

I'm gonna go to the Tree of Beginning to find out the truth. I need to know if Sir Aaron did indeed betray me or that his legend is true after all, Lucario answered curtly.

Ash suddenly cut in. "When are you leaving?"

As soon as we're done talking, I'll set out.

Delia frowned. "Don't you need to prepare provisions first?"

No, Lucario answered flatly. I take what I need from the land.

Ash smiled sleepily. "I wish you the best of luck, Lucario," he said, as his eyelids started dropping. He was close to falling asleep.

Go to bed, Ash. You need to sleep and recover, Lucario said, his Aura voice betraying his concern.

Delia nodded and got up to escort her son to his room. Ash didn't protest and was swiftly herded to his bed where he almost immediately fell asleep.

Lucario spoke as Delia returned to the kitchen. I owe your son my freedom, he said quietly. How long will you be staying?

Delia frowned in thought. "We'll return to Pallet Town in eight days."

If I return in time I'll teach him how to reach his Aura, Lucario said, looking into the distance. He deserves to be able to use his gift.

Delia looked concerned. "It's not dangerous, is it?"

Lucario shook his head and stood up from his chair. No, it's his own energy. It can't harm him. He walked towards one of the wide kitchen windows and opened it. I'm leaving now. I hope I'll be back before you leave.

Not waiting for an answer Lucario jumped out of the window. His immense strength carried him across the street as he flipped to land on a roof. He landed and took off running over the rooftops. His eyes locked with his goal. The massive shadow of the Tree of Beginning. It was barely visible in the distance as it was obscured by the morning mist.

It was going to be a tiring journey, he knew. But he needed to do this. In order to set his own doubts to rest.

To see if his master had indeed betrayed him.

Three days.

It had taken Lucario three days of non-stop traveling in order to reach his goal. Three days of traveling through rugged valleys and hills. Then up the gigantic structure that was known as the Tree of Beginning. He could now say one thing with absolute certainty. The tales didn't do justice to the beauty of the Tree of Beginning.

Lucario came rushing out of a tunnel and entered the Core of the Tree of Beginning.

The sight took his breath away.

All over the room gigantic blue crystals sprouted out of the strange green segmented walls and the smooth glass like floor to curve up and to come together above the center piece of the room.

In the middle of the room was a giant, crystalline structure that looked almost like a blossoming flower. Bright blue energy pulsed upwards out of it and up into the surface of the Tree of Beginning, giving the tree its power.

Lucario could feel the immense power flowing from it. His Aura senses screamed at him, nearly overloading at being in the presence of this immense and all-consuming power.

He took a hesitant step forwards, but froze almost immediately.

Sir Aaron's gloves, carrying the mark of the Aura Guardian, hung from one of the smaller crystals that made up the structure in the center of the room. He quickly walked towards it and kneeled down to get a better look at them.

Could it be? Lucario whispered out loud. These are his gloves, but... He trailed off as he touched the gloves resting over the crystals, looking up at the large mound of crystals beside the small ones. He stared at it for a moment. Sir Aaron?

Lucario raised his paw and formed an Aura Sphere. A distinctly human shape trapped within the crystals responded to it, glowing the same color and becoming visible.

It is you, Lucario whispered. He almost didn't believe his eyes.

Lucario allowed his Aura Sphere to dissipate and placed his paw back on the ground, accidentally nudging a Time Flower.

A Time Flower is a crystalized flower that grows in and around the Tree of Beginning. It has the ability to record events and play them at a later date as a holographic image along with sound, if it's stimulated by the right Aura.

He looked down, surprised. The Time Flower twisted open and released an orb of light. The orb of light abruptly expanded to cover the room, overlapping the room with a black and white view, giving Lucario a glimpse into the past.

Lucario knew he had just activated a Time Flower. He had a feeling that all his questions were about to be answered.

Sir Aaron came rushing into the cavern, his cape billowing behind him in his haste. "Mew! I know you're here! Show yourself Mew! I need your help!"

Lucario's ears twitched as he heard the high-pitched and haunting call of a bird. He looked up, and spotted, to his surprise, a black and white image of Ho-Oh perched on one of the gigantic crystals that dotted the cavern. Its body glowed for a split second before it shifted into the much smaller form of Mew.

Mew flew down and came to rest in front of the visually relieved Sir Aaron.

"Mew, I realize that you and this tree are one. This fighting has shifted the power of the tree, and I know you can set it right, but you need help. Please, take my Aura, and save the people," the memory of Sir Aaron said and stretched out his arm towards the memory of Mew.

"Mew," the small Legendary nodded and cooed at Sir Aaron.

An Aura Sphere appeared in front of his hand. The crystals on his gloves shimmered with the focused energy.

Lucario knew what he was about to witness. Sir Aaron's death.

"The power of Aura will prevail!" Sir Aaron shouted. His body pulsed and shook with the energy that he was forcing away from his body and into Mew.

Sir Aaron's Aura Sphere grew and surrounded Mew. Lucario cringed, he knew what Sir Aaron was doing. He was giving all his Aura to Mew, forfeiting his life in the process.

"AAAAAH!" Sir Aaron's final yell of exertion echoed throughout the cavern as Mew's energy exploded outwards.

Sir Aaron! Lucario yelled. He grasped towards the memory of his former master.

The memory abruptly vanished.

Lucario was shocked into motionlessness. His paw grasped nothing but empty air. After a moment he numbly lowered it.

The Aura Pokémon turned to look at the animated and trapped form of Sir Aaron. Sorrow and regret filled him. Tears gathered in his eyes. His master had indeed given his life to save the kingdom just like the legend had said, and he, the very own student of Sir Aaron, had believed the man to be a traitor and a coward who had abandoned him.

It was inexcusable.

Forgive me for ever doubting you, master, Lucario's Aura Voice came out as nothing more than a whimper. He slumped as tears streamed like two tiny rivers from his eyes. Droplets fell towards the smooth and glass-like floor of the chamber. He choked and sobbed softly. His grief was overpowering.

It was because of this that he didn't notice the tiny, but extremely powerful presence that had just appeared behind him, until it spoke.

Don't be sad, it whispered into his mind.

Lucario's head came up and snapped around. His scarlet eyes widened as he took in the physical representation of the Tree of Beginning: Mew.

Mew floated towards him. The mighty being's eyes where stained with sorrow as it regarded Lucario.

Your Master died a hero. He gave his life to save the tree and the people he was sworn to protect. It was a fitting end for a man as honorable as Sir Aaron, Mew said. Her mental voice echoed in Lucario's mind.

I-I believed him to be a traitor! I believed him to be a coward! I hated him! I despised him! How could I have possibly doubted the man who took me in and trained me into a mighty warrior! How can I ever forgive myself! Lucario's Aura Voice dropped into a whisper. How can I ever attain my master's forgiveness?

Mew smiled. An expression filled with childish innocence. You don't need to attain forgiveness, Lucario. Your master cared for you like few people could ever hope to care for another. He would forgive you in a heartbeat.

How do you know that? Lucario whispered demurely.

Mew pointed with one of her stubby arms towards the side, towards another Time Flower. Find out for yourself.

Lucario hesitantly removed his eyes from Mew and looked at the Time Flower. He walked up to it and dropped into a crouch in front of it. Lightly tapping it with his paw, he activated it.

The Time Flower twisted open and a ball of light floated up out of it. It quickly expanded to cover the room and began to play the recorded memory.

Directly besides Lucario, the memory of Sir Aaron slumped to the ground. He took his gloves off of his hands and laid them onto the crystals where Lucario had found them. Sir Aaron leaned back against the crystal. His body glowed a sickly muted green and waves of energy surrounded him as his life bled away. Sir Aaron struggled with the pain for a moment, before looking off into the distance, a sad expression on his face. "Lucario, forgive me."

To Lucario, it almost felt as if Sir Aaron was speaking to him in the same time and space. The time didn't really matter though, his words were heard and acknowledged all the same. I forgive you, master.

"Please understand, I had to seal you inside of the staff," Sir Aaron continued, as if he knew that Lucario would one day stumble onto that very Time Flower to find the memory. Maybe he had. "I knew that if I didn't, you would follow me here and suffer the same fate. I only wish you could have known the real story."

Lucario was crying again. I understand.

"One day, someone will release you from that staff. In a distant and more peaceful time. I wonder what it'll be like." He smiled as he looked up. "I wonder if-" He groaned in anguish, cutting of his words.

Lucario clenched his fists. He wished, oh how he wished that he had been there with his master in his final moments.

"I have no regrets," Sir Aaron said. "My journey has been good. I served a beautiful queen, and you and I shared many adventures." He closed his eyes with a smile on his face. "Those memories will always be with me."

Master, Lucario whispered. He was shaking with tears. If only you could hear me. I want to tell you how much you mean to me.

"Farewell Lucario," Aaron said, the smile never leaving his face. "You were more to me than just my student, you are my closest friend."

I feel the same, Lucario choked out.

"It could be..." Sir Aaron said as he opened his eyes. They were clouded with tears, "That one day, we will see each other again." He closed his eyes. A single tear fell down his cheek, but his smile never faded. "But, before that, I want you to have more adventures with new people, to live life to its fullest. I hope so, my friend." Sir Aaron faded away as he become one with the Tree of Beginning, his body becoming a part of the crystals that gave the tree its power.

In a flash of light, the memory vanished.

Lucario couldn't stop his tears from falling. His master and friend deserved the tears he was shedding. He sobbed as he knelt in front of the place where Aaron was trapped. Sir Aaron, my friend, I'm sorry I let you down.

You haven't let him down, Mew whispered into Lucario's mind. He knew perfectly well that you would be hurt and confused by his actions. That's why he left that message for you. This just proves how much he cared for you. Mew looked down at Lucario and smiled. Honor his memory, Lucario. Live your life and be happy.

But... But how am I supposed to do that? I've nothing left. Nothing to live my life for. What am I supposed to do with myself? Lucario murmured as he looked up to Mew imploringly.

Mew gave Lucario an earnest look with her deep and expressive blue eyes. You have indeed felt a great loss, Lucario. But the friendships and the bonds you've made with Sir Aaron and the people back in your own time haven't disappeared. The affection you felt for them is still there inside of you and you can use that affection to make new bonds and friendships. I believe you've already started to make a new bond with someone.

Ash, Lucario whispered as he stood up right. He felt empowered by Mew's words.

That's right, Mew said with a nod of approval. He's already wormed himself a place in your heart, hasn't he? Don't answer, I can feel it. Mew's smile threatened to split her face in two. Go to him, Lucario. He'll be your first friend in this new world.

Lucario nodded and smiled at Mew. He looked at Sir Aaron's form one last time and gave it a watery smile before snagging up his masters gloves and bolting from the chamber, leaving Mew behind.

Mew gave one last smile at the retreating figure of Lucario. Look after him and make him strong, Lucario. He's gonna need all the help he can get. His station demands it.

It took Lucario another three days of traveling to return to the town of Rota. It was rather late when he arrived. The sun was going down the horizon, bathing the world in a brilliant orange glow.

The moment Lucario arrived at the city's outskirts he closed his eyes and raised his arm, placing his palm in front of his chest spike. The Aura is with me! He called out as he focused his Aura, causing the black tube-like extensions on the back of his head to raise up into the air. His Aura sight activated, allowing him to see half a mile into the city, aiding him in his search for Ash.

It didn't even take half a minute for Lucario to find Ash. He was with his mother at the park in the center of the city. Ash was playing in the grass while Delia watched him fondly. He was happy to see that they were alone near a pond far away from the path and far away from any prying eyes.

He took off running again, becoming nothing more than a blur to the people he passed as he shot through the town towards his goal. Lucario tightly clenched the paw that held Sir Aaron's gloves.

He was still very sad and had cried a few times on his way back, but he refused to be drowned by his sorrow. He knew that Sir Aaron wanted him to move on with his life, and he would do just that. He would work through his sadness, he would make new friends and he would make a new future and place for himself in this new word. Lucario swore to himself that he'd succeed.

He would make Sir Aaron proud.

Lucario arrived at the park in less than a minute. With his Aura senses guiding him Lucario quickly found Ash and Delia in the secluded part of the park. Smiling, he emerged from the tree line. He then slowly approached the mother and son.

Both heard the soft crunch of the grass under Lucario's feet as he approached and turned to look at him. Their eyes widened in surprise and Ash got a wild grin on his face. The grin grew wider as he got up from the grass.

"Lucario, you're back!" he nearly shouted as he ran up to Lucario. Delia followed behind, also looking happy to see the Aura Pokémon again.

"Well, how'd it go?" Delia asked, referring to his quest to uncover the truth regarding his master.

The Aura Pokémon smiled, an expression that surprised Ash and Delia. I'm glad to say that my assumptions were wrong.

Ash gained a glint in his eyes. "So he really was a hero?"

Lucario nodded. Yes, he was the greatest hero there ever was. The legend is completely true.

Delia smiled. "I guess you have quite a story to tell. Care to share it?"

Lucario snorted and smiled back at her. I would love to, but first I want to rest a bit. Do you mind if I stay with you for the night? I'm very tired.

Delia was surprised by the request but nodded nonetheless. "Sure, you can stay with us. Just make sure no one sees you when we go back to hotel. People will be surprised to see a Pokémon suddenly staying with us. Not to mention that the hotel managers might make us pay extra if they know of you."

Lucario nodded. Don't worry, I can be very stealthy when I want to be. No one will know I'm staying with you.

Ash then noticed the gloves tightly clenched in Lucario's paws. "Hey, Lucario. What are those?"

Lucario looked at what Ash was staring at and smiled at him. These are my master's gloves. They aided him with focusing his Aura. Here, do you want to hold them? He asked as he held the gloves out for Ash to take.

Ash took them with excitement practically vibrating through his entire frame. He ran his fingers over the silk like material reverently. "These really belonged to Sir Aaron?" He whispered.

Lucario's smile grew. They certainly did. If you take good care of them I'll even let you keep them.

Ash's head snapped up. His eyes where gleaming, "Really?"

Yes, Lucario said simply.

Delia looked at her watch. "It's getting late. We should start heading back to the hotel," she said and took Ash's hand in her own. "And Lucar-"

You won't even notice I'm there, Lucario assured.

Delia nodded and started making her way out of the park, tugging Ash along with her. Lucario followed, melting into the shadows as he followed behind.

"So, let me get this straight," Ash said drily. He was staring incredulously at Lucario, who looked calmly back at him from the other end of the kitchen table. "You went to Tree of Beginning, where you found these Time Flower's that can record moments in history. From these, you found out that Sir Aaron had indeed sacrificed his life to save Cameron Palace and Rota with help from Mew! The! Mew! Mew comforted you, and then you came back here."

Lucario nodded with a straight face. Exactly.

Ash snorted. The story sounding completely ridicules. "If you were Human, I would have never believed that story in a thousand years."

The Aura Pokémon cocked his brow. Oh, how come?

Delia giggled from her seat at the table and answered for her son. "It's just that what you've described is rather hard to believe. Really, what you've just told us sounds like the plot of a drama movie."

Lucario blinked. What's a movie?

Ash grinned. "We've got to show you a movie sometimes. Believe me, you'd love it."

Lucario shook his head, dispelling his thoughts before looking Ash in the eyes. Tell me, Ash. Did your mother tell you of the offer I made if I came back in time?

Ash's grin grew so much that it nearly split his face in half. "You mean the one where you promised to teach me how to use my Aura?" He said excitedly.

Lucario nodded. Yes, that one, he took a deep breath and calmed himself. This was it. One thing you need to understand, Ash, is that learning how to control Aura takes years of effort. The best I'd be able to teach you before you leave is how to feel its presence and how to access it. Anything else would take too much time.

Ash frowned at that. "Really? What a bummer."

Lucario hesitated for a brief moment before steeling himself and making his proposition. Ash, I'm more than willing to teach you all there is to know about Aura, but that will take time. Time that we do not have... If I stay here, that is. Ash and Delia shot him a confused look at his last remark. He took a deep breath before speaking quietly. There's nothing here for me anymore, Ash. Everything I once knew is long gone. If it's all right with you and your mother, I would like to come with you. It would give me a chance to start over in a new place while also giving you the chance to learn how to control your Aura.

Ash's eyes bugged out in surprise. Delia gasped, equally as surprised as her son. "Y-you would do that for me?" Ash stuttered.

Lucario smiled lightly. I like you, Ash, and I would love to pass on my knowledge of Aura. Besides, this is my chance to start over. It's a win-win situation for me.

Ash turned to look at his mother pleadingly. In the end, she was the one who would get final say if Lucario was to be allowed to come with them. He hoped with all his heart that she would say yes to Lucario's proposition.

Delia hummed in thought. Lucario's proposition had thrown her for a loop, but she gave it honest thought. Whenever she was faced with a difficult choice she liked to make a mental list of advantages and disadvantages of either possible option.

Immediately the advantages of accepting Lucario's proposal sprung up to her.

For one, it would teach Ash how to defend himself. Dealing with Pokémon could be dangerous at times, and with her son's ambition to become a Pokémon trainer it would be very reassuring to know that her son could defend himself. In addition, Aura was a part of him. He had the right to learn how to use it. On top of that Delia knew that Lucario wouldn't need any up keep or anything. He evidently knew how to take care of himself.

She tried to think of any disadvantages, but came to a startling conclusion.

There weren't any.

The choice was easily made.

"Sure, why not," Delia said with a big grin.

"Thank you mom!" The smile that blossomed on Ash's face lighting up the room. Lucario nodded thankfully at the mother, smiling. His eyes also became a bit moist as well. He raised a paw to rub them while steadfastly telling himself that he had something in his eyes.

"Something wrong, Lucario?" Ash asked in concern. "Are you crying? I've something that might help," he said as he took out a small leaf from his pocket.

Lucario shook his head as he finished wiping his eyes. No, everything's all rig- He got cut of as Ash placed the leaf against his mouth and started playing. The soothing tones of Oración, perfectly played, echoed in the room.

Lucario's eyes involuntarily dropped as the soothing tones washed over him. He sagged into his chair as the music relaxed him. All his sadness, residual anger and self-loathing for himself disappeared in an instant. All dark emotions vanished and were replaced by a feeling of peace and contentment.

Delia closed her eyes and smiled as she listened intently to her son's song. She loved it. So much so that she insisted that her son played it to her at least once every three days.

With one last high-pitched note, Ash finished the song and removed the leaf from his mouth. He smiled at the relaxed form of Lucario. "All better now?"

Lucario's bright red eyes fluttered open. Wha-what was that?

"Oración," Ash answered. His smile widened. "A song that calms the mind and banishes the darkest of emotions. A friend taught it to me about a year ago. It's beautiful, isn't it?"

It is, Lucario admitted. He straightened in his seat and smiled gratefully at Ash. He felt so much lighter now, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

He decided then and there that Ash was special, and that he would do everything in his power to make him great. Lucario would be Ash's mentor just like Sir Aaron was his. He would teach him everything he would need to know to be great. Everything about Aura, Pokémon, survival skills and everything in between. He swore it to himself.

"Now that that's settled," Delia said as she clapped her hands. "How about some breakfast?" Her son nodded brightly. His stomach suddenly rumbled loudly, causing Ash to blush. Delia giggled and got up to make breakfast. Even Lucario chuckled at him.

"Hey, Lucario," Ash said, gaining the Aura Pokémon's attention. He reached over the table towards Lucario with his hand open for a handshake. "Friends?"

Lucario's lip's twitched into a smile as he reached over and shook Ash's hand with his own spiked paw. Friends.

Ash's soft smile did wonders to light up Lucario's spirits even more.

The second piece of the puzzle fell into place.

Ash Ketchum - Age 9

Johto Region - Alto Mare.

Beautiful, a certain nine year old mused as he stared at the horizon.

In the distance, the water city of Alto Mare slowly but surely became visible as the cruise liner Ash was currently on came closer and closer to the water-locked city. The sun rose in the distance, bathing the city and the ocean in a warm orange glow. The day had just started.

He was on the deck, leaning on the railing as he looked off into the distance.

"Are you excited, sweetie?" Delia asked her child from the side as she leaned on the railing as well. Her hair whipped around in the strong wind and her smile was bright enough to shine.

"Of course I am! Alto Mare is famous for its guardians, the Legendary Pokémon Latias and Latios! With my luck I might just run into them! And even if I don't get to see them the city itself is more than worth the trip!" Ash cried excitedly.

Delia giggled. She absolutely adored her child's excitable nature. "You're right. With your luck you might just run into them. The most improbable things always seem to happen around you. Like the time when we ran into that herd of Nidoran. And instead of chasing us of like their nature should have demanded you had them playing with you in mere moments."

Ash smiled in remembrance. The memories his mother had just called up were very fun. They had been visiting Vermilion City and when they had been wandering through the grasslands surrounding the city they had run into a huge herd of Nidoran, headed by a Patriarch Nidoking and Matriarch Nidoqueen. Before things could have turned sour Ash had taken out his leaf whistle and had played Oración, calming down the Patriarch and Matriarch and quieting down their herd. After that it was a simple matter of manipulating his Aura to convey his friendliness to the herd in order to gain their trust.

He had the playful Nidoran eating out of his palm in moments. They loved to play and Ash was more than willing to play with them.

Ash's smile turned into a grin as he thought of Lucario, who had taught him in the ways of the Aura Guardian. He absent-mindedly tugged at the Pokéball that was attached to a simple silver chain that hung around his neck, the one that held his teacher and closest friend. Shortly after going home with them Lucario had found out about Pokéballs and their uses in the modern world. While initially weary of the device he had to admit that it was a very convenient way of taking Pokémon with you.

Lucario, knowing how much his student traveled with his mother and unwilling to be separated from him for long periods of times, seeing that traveling around with them out in the open might lead to sticky situations in the current world, had procured a Pokéball from Professor Oak and had handed it to Ash. After explaining his reasoning to the child, he had let himself be captured by his student.

Ash was now officially a trainer, but he didn't consider himself a true trainer. A real trainer had to actually train their Pokémon. With Lucario, the situation was reversed. The Aura Pokémon was training Ash. Lucario himself was such an advanced Pokémon that Ash, while having learned a lot about Pokémon in the last year from Lucario, was unable to help him in sharpening his own skills.

Lucario was still training himself, of course, and was slowly growing stronger. It was actually a scary thought to Ash. Lucario was strong the moment they had met, amazingly so. Professor Oak, who was the only person besides Delia and Ash who knew of Lucario, had tested the Aura Pokémon in battle shortly after they had first met with his own battle hardened Pokémon.

Elite level; that was how strong Professor Oak had rated Lucario. Considering that Elite level Pokémon were considered only a little bit weaker then Pokémon from, let's say, the Elite Four, that was saying something.

Ash blinked as his mother called for his attention.

"Get your stuff, sweetie. We will be docking soon. I want to check into our hotel and start exploring the city as fast as possible."

Ash nodded excitedly and ran down the deck towards their cabin. He entered and promptly started to pack his stuff back into his backpack. Not having a lot of stuff to pack he was done within ten minutes and quickly left to rejoin his mother, who had already gathered all her own stuff the night before.

He rejoined his mother at the railing. Ash smiled as he spotted Alto Mare again. The city of water was far closer now, close enough that he could make out some of its architecture and structures.

It was indeed very beautiful.

Alto Mare was a very nice and peaceful looking island city, Ash noted from a single glance. The mass of canals leading into the city proper were bound to make things fun when they entered. He couldn't wait to start exploring it with his mother and Lucario. Ash reminded himself to release the jackal-like Pokémon at the first possible opportunity.

It didn't take long for the cruise liner to arrive at Alto Mare's main port. The ship quickly anchored itself to the dock and people started moving towards the ramps to disembark. Ash noted as they walked that several ships were already anchored in the harbor. Hundreds of people were moving around the place, loading and unloading the boats or embarking and disembarking, depending on the function of the vessel.

"We have arrived at the island city of Alto Mare," the ship's captain informed everyone over the ships speakers rather unnecessarily. "All passenger may now take the ramp down to the city."

They waited a bit for the crowd to dissipate along the boarding ramp, seeing as the number of people descending was big and they didn't want to deal with the crowd. As the crowd lessened, Ash and his mother quickly disembarked and walked onto the port. The duo quickly left the uncomfortably crowded port behind, arriving at an adjacent canal where they took a gondola into the city and towards their hotel.

Ash whistled in awe as he observed in the cities beautiful architecture. The city's canals and ancient history combined made it one of the most beautiful places he had ever seen. Delia looked around, equally as awed by the city of water. She took out a camera and started making pictures of everything that caught her interests.

"Hey, what's that?" Ash asked as he pointed towards two pillars that rose out over a low built house in the distance. He could see statues on top of the pillars, depicting what appeared to be Pokémon. He had an inkling of which Pokémon they represented.

"Those statues depict the Guardians of Alto Mare, Latias and Latios," the man guiding the gondola answered, confirming Ash's thoughts. "Legend has it that they watch over our city and protect us in case of danger."

"Are they just statues or do they really exist?" Delia wanted to know.

"I sure would love to meet the real ones," Ash commented with a big grin.

"Me too," the guide said. "We've never really seen them, though. Because everything is always so peaceful around here. There was never any need for them to protect us."

"If this city has always been so peaceful, then why does it need two Legendary Pokémon to protect it in the first place?" Ash asked, his face scrunched up in confusion.

"Because..." The guide fell silent, blinking in confusion as he had no answer. "I've got no clue to be honest," the man admitted.

"Look, there's our hotel!" Delia said as she pointed into the distance towards a pretty large three-story building with a small plaza in front of it that separated it from the canal. The guide quickly steered the gondola towards it.

After thanking and paying the guide Ash and Delia entered their hotel. The duo walked up to the reception area, counting themselves lucky that they were the only ones checking in at the moment.

"Hello, how can I help you?" The pretty brown-haired receptionist asked cheerily as the mother and son approached.

"We would like to check in, please," Delia said brightly. "The names are Delia and Ash Ketchum."

The receptionist nodded and punched in some commands into her computer, looking up the necessary data. A couple of seconds later she smiled and nodded to herself. Then she took out a key from underneath her desk and handed it to Delia. "Room number 12 is where you'll be staying. It's on the second floor. Please, enjoy your stay," she said kindly.

Delia nodded her thanks and headed for their room, Ash trailing behind her. The duo quickly found their room and entered. Both were pleasantly surprised by the room's lavish interior. There were several large, soft looking beds in the comfortable room and the room was beautifully decorated in an old, but comfy style.

"Niiiiiiice," Ash whistled in appreciation. "Let's unpack and then head out, mom. I can hardly wait!"

"Of course, honey," Delia said, smiling.

The two quickly unpacked and chose the bed that they would be sleeping in for the night. Delia quickly went into the small attached bathroom. Ash sat down on his bed. He grinned and yanked the Pokéball from the chain around his neck.

"Come on out, Lucario," he said and released the Aura Pokémon in front of him with the push of a button. In a flash of white light Lucario appeared kneeling in front of Ash. Said Pokémon grinned and stood up right.

Ash stood as well and gave his mentor a small bow. The jackal-like Pokémon returned the gesture and smiled at his student.

Well, Ash. What will we be doing today? Lucario questioned, his Aura voice echoing in the room.

"We're going to explore Alto Mare, of course!" Ash answered, grinning. "You can stay out of your Pokéball in the city. I saw many people keep their Pokémon outside of their Pokéball on the way here."

Really? That's great! Lucario said, his good mood soaring. While he had nothing against being inside a Pokéball - as a matter of fact, he found it rather comfortable - but he enjoyed being out and about with his student.

Anything in particular you want to see? Lucario asked curiously.

"Besides the Legendary Pokémon Latias and Latios? Just the city itself, the Alto Mare museum and Alto Mare's main square," Ash answered.

Sounds fun, Lucario commented. He grinned from ear to ear. When are we heading out?

"As soon as mom is finished unpacking," Ash said.

"Which can wait 'till tomorrow," Delia said as she returned from the bathroom. She grinned at her surprised son. "Let's go dear, or do you want to wait?"

"Hell no!" Ash said and quickly ran out the door. Delia and Lucario followed behind, their eyes dancing in mirth.

"Man that was fun!" Ash's excited shout rang out over the Alto Mare's main square where, coincidently, a town celebration was being held in honor of the Legendary Pokémon Latias and Latios. His shout drew a few odd looks from the surrounding people, but he had long since learned to ignore them. Some of those looks lingered on Lucario, who was right besides Ash, since most people didn't recognize what kind of Pokémon Lucario was.

It was amusing, Lucario admitted, referring to the carnival-like ride he had just ridden.

Delia came walking up to them, having come back from a stall where they sold cotton candy. She had two sticks of the delicious cotton candy. One she handed to Ash and the other she kept to herself. She knew that Lucario didn't like sweets.

"Thanks mom!" Ash took the cotton candy gratefully. He nodded towards his mother in appreciation and took a bite from it. Lucario wrinkled his nose at it, but kept his opinion to himself.

"My pleasure, sweetie," Delia said and smiled at her son. She took a bite from her own cotton candy and looked around. The elaborately decorated city square was packed to seams with people. "I think we've done everything worth doing here," she commented while taking another bite from her cotton candy. "It's getting late. Let's head towards the museum before it closes."

"Awesome, I've heard a lot of great stuff about it," Ash said and followed his mother. They quickly left the city's main square behind and came to another canal where a guide with a gondola was already waiting for them. Said guide gave Lucario a strange look, but shrugged it off, thinking that Lucario was just some exotic Pokémon.

A ten minute trip in the gondola later and finishing their cotton candy, the trio found themselves in front of Alto Mare's famous museum. After paying the guide for his services the group quickly headed towards their destination. Ash looked from side to side and noted that they had just passed in between two ornate pillars that framed the approach to the museum.

He looked back at the museum and was surprised at its appearance. "It looks more like a palace then a museum," he mused.

Delia nodded. "True, it's not something you would expect to find in a city like this."

Lucario smiled. What are we waiting for? Let's head in! He said and walked forwards. Delia and Ash followed.

Shortly after entering the museum the trio split up and went their separate ways, heading into the direction they thought they would find the most interesting things. All three of them 'oohed' and 'aahed' over the sculptures, tapestries, ancient texts, statues and paintings they encountered on their way through the museum.

Lucario received strange looks from everyone in the museum, but he ignored them and continued to enjoy the unique sights. One portly older man, a curator at the museum, looked curiously at Lucario and decided to follow him around for a bit.

Ash, Delia and Lucario met up again at the very back of the museum, right near an antechamber that held the most important objects in the museum: The DMA and the fossilized bones of an Aerodactyl and Kabutops.

They paused in surprise as they spotted something surprising down on the ground. They looked down towards the two fossilized skeletons of long dead ancient Pokémon embedded into the museum's marble floor. "Wow, cool. Pokémon fossils," Ash said, looking down in awe.

"They sure are," the portly elderly man said as he boldly walked up to the group. "It's also a reminder of our past. These fossils are of Pokémon that once terrorized Alto Mare. One was an Aerodactyl and the other was a-"

"Kabutops," Delia interrupted, guessing.

"That's right," the elderly man nodded in confirmation. "Come, have a look over here."

The man led the group towards the end of the chamber and up a short flight of stairs, where a strange machine was situated. "This is called the DMA. The Defense Mechanism of Alto Mare."

"And what is this Defense Mechanism of Alto Mare?" Ash asked with a raised eyebrow.

The old curator launched into an ancient and well-rehearsed tale. His voice echoed in the antechamber as he spoke. "Long ago, the Aerodactyl and Kabutops were taught by an evil trainer to attack people, so everyone lived in fear until Latios came and brought water to the city, drowning the evil Pokémon and turning our streets into canals. That's when the city was named Alto Mare, which means 'High Sea'. That was also when they built the DMA. They wanted to make sure that no one would disrupt their peace ever again. Fortunately, we've never had to use it."

Lucario whistled in appreciation. Good forethought. I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised.

The curator's head snapped towards Lucario, his eyes nearly popping out of his skull as he beheld a Pokémon capable of Human speech. Said Pokémon rolled his eyes. He was very much accustomed to people looking to him like that by now. The first that had looked at him with such bafflement was Professor Oak, and after that pretty much any person who had witnessed him using his Aura Voice had done the same.

"Y-you can talk!?" The curator stuttered.

Yes, is there a problem with that? Lucario asked drily.

"No, it's just very, very surprising, that's all," the curator said, gathering his wits quickly.

"Oh, don't mind Lucario. He just enjoys shocking people," Ash said, smiling. Lucario's brow twitched in annoyance.

"It's all right. I like shocking people too, mainly with the wonders of Alto Mare. I'm Lorenzo by the way," Lorenzo introduced himself.

"I'm Ash. Ash Ketchum," the Aura Guardian trainee returned the gesture.

"And I'm Delia," the mother said with a smile and a nod.

Call me Lucario, the ancient Pokémon returned.

"Grandfather." A girl around Ash's age walked up to Lorenzo. She was a bit taller than Ash and had brown hair in a peculiar hair style, which was partially covered by a white barrette. She shot Ash, Delia and Lucario in particular inquisitive looks, but shook her head and focused on Lorenzo. "I thought I would find you here. Did you forget our plans for today? You're late for the picnic," the girl chided.

Lorenzo blinked in surprise before his eyes widened in remembrance. "Oh. Sorry, Bianca. I must have completely lost track of time."

Bianca shook her head at her grandfather. "Obviously. Are you coming now?"

Lorenzo nodded, "Of course, of course." He turned towards Ash and the rest. "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. Maybe I'll see you three again later. Goodbye."

The three returned the goodbye and watched as the grandfather left together with his granddaughter.

"You know, grandfather. Maybe you're getting too old to work at the museum, considering just how much you're forgetting lately. You should start thinking about retirement," Bianca said mischievously, as she and Lorenzo walked away from the museum.

Lorenzo gave a big, rumbling belly laugh at the suggestion. "No way! I like it too much. Besides, I'd go stir crazy within a month. You can only spend so much time making gondolas before it starts to wear on you. No, my dear Bianca. I will be working at the museum until the day I die," Lorenzo said passionately.

Bianca smiled. "I was expecting that," the girl admitted. She quickly changed topics. "We better hurry. Latios was getting impatient when I left to go look for you."

Lorenzo chuckled. "Then better make haste before Latios eats all our food." He paused as he thought of something. "And what about Latias? I'm having a hard time imaging that she was being the patient one this time around."

Bianca blinked at the question. Her brow furrowed as she thought of the red Eon Dragon and what Latias was doing the moment she had left the Secret Garden. She came to a startling conclusion. "Um, now that I think about it, I don't remember Latias being there..."

Lorenzo facepalmed. "She snuck off on her own again," he muttered, annoyed. "I swear, no matter how many times Latios and I tell her to be more careful and that she should never go off alone without telling anyone, she never listens."

Bianca shrugged, unconcerned. "It wouldn't be the first time that has happened, and nothing bad has ever come of it. I don't see what you have to be so worried about."

Lorenzo sighed. "You just don't understand. If anyone saw her..." he trailed of, looking into the distance with a worried gaze.

Bianca rolled her eyes, "If Latias ever got in trouble she would just use Sight Share with Latios and he would come and save her in a heartbeat."

Lorenzo gave her a deadpan gaze as they rounded a corner into a small side alley. "You're forgetting that Latios has no battle experience whatsoever. Latias and Latios might be Legendary Pokémon and they have a lot of power at their fingertips, but no way to use it in any fashion. They lack the experience and training," the old curator countered.

Bianca snorted. "And you're forgetting that Latias can make herself invisible and take on a Human disguise at will. She would be hard-pressed to get into trouble if people are unable to see her or her real self in the first place."

Lorenzo sighed again. "All right, all right. Let's not argue about this. All that's important right now is that we inform Latios and find Latias."

Bianca nodded in agreement as the pair turned another corner, disappearing into another dark alley. The two continued walking and took many turns into the small and narrow alleyways of Alto Mare, leaving the hustle and bustle of the water city behind.

After some time they came to what appeared to be a dead end. A brick wall blocked their path at the end of the final alley, but both continued on walking, not even pausing. Without breaking stride Bianca and Lorenzo walked up to the wall and passed straight through it, the illusionary wall rippling like water as they passed through.

They came out on the other side and stepped into one of the greatest secrets of Alto Mare: the Secret Garden. The home of the Guardians of Alto Mare, Latias and Latios, and the resting place of the Soul Dew.

Both the grandfather and granddaughter looked around with nostalgic smiles. They both had great memories of this place.

The Secret Garden was a very beautiful place. It's an incredibly large place surrounded by a stone wall, and has many fountains made of brick and contains grassy fields, all sorts of flowers, ponds (natural and manmade), trees of varying sizes (from small to incredibly huge) and essentially looks like a Venetian garden. Light filtered through the green canopy of the garden, throwing shades and blots of light everywhere, highlighting the beauty of everything.

Bianca and Lorenzo's eyes were drawn away from the beautiful scenery, as the blue streamlined draconian figure of Latios approached them.

Latios smiled and cooed in greeting as he approached his longtime friends.

"Hey Latios," Bianca greeted and walked forwards to pet the Eon Dragon. Lorenzo chuckled as Latios gave another coo in delight.

"Latios, do you know where Latias is? Bianca told me that she didn't remember seeing her when she left," Lorenzo said, turning abruptly serious.

Latios paused as he pondered the question. The last time he saw his sisters was moments after they had finished setting everything up for their picnic and he had laid down on the soft grass, waiting till everyone was there for the picnic. The Eon Dragon's eyes darkened and his brow started to twitch in annoyance as he realized that his sister must have slipped off on her own, again.

Lorenzo chuckled ruefully. "I thought so," he muttered. "Well, would please call her. We're all hungry."

Latios threw off his annoyance and nodded. Concentrating, the Eon Dragon called on the bond that he shared with his sister in order to make a mental connection with her. As he was just about to call her, Latios's scarlet eyed gaze widened and he swore loudly, which just sounded like a particularly loud coo to Bianca and Lorenzo.

Without waiting to explain Latios turned on a dime and shot away with the titanic speed his species was known for. He flew to the edge of the Secret Garden and without losing any speed dove into one of the secret waterways lining it, taking a shortcut in order to reach Latias as fast as possible.

Within less than a second, he was gone.

"...I guess something is not quite right," Bianca muttered. Lorenzo facepalmed again.

"Well, dear. The sun is starting to go down. Maybe it's time to go back to the hotel," Delia said as she put the last spoonful of ice cream sundae in her mouth. She, Ash, and Lucario were sitting at a table outside a nice little restaurant called the Grey Cloyster, right beside a narrow canal. They had decided on having a late night dinner there and had just finished their deserts.

"I don't know. I'm not really tired yet and it didn't look like there was much to do back at the hotel..." Ash said from his place across from her, a bit of a disappointed wine to his voice.

Delia chuckled at her son. "I'm rather tired myself, dear. How about you, Lucario?"

Lucario frowned. I'm not tired yet either. If we go back now I'll probably have trouble sleeping, he admitted. He was a very active Pokémon, after all, and without his daily training regimen to tire him out he simply wasn't tired yet.

Delia nodded. "All right then. I'll go back to the hotel and you two can continue to explore the city," she said, surprising both Ash and Lucario. Delia shot Lucario a hard look. "And you better keep an eye on my son, Lucario. If something happens to him I'll skin you alive," she threatened.

Far from intimidated Lucario raised his paw and bowed lightly from his seated position. Your wish is my command, he said theatrically.

"Be back at the hotel before ten, okay. Here's some money to pay for a gondola or two," Delia said seriously as she handed Ash a small wad of money which he quickly stuffed into his pocket.

Ash laughed. He was surprised by his mother's decision, but he understood why she took it. Thanks to Lucario's teachings he could defend himself pretty well and with Lucario there, a very powerful Pokémon that watched over him, his mother probably felt secure in letting him go out on his own. Besides, he would be leaving home within a year. Delia probably figured that he was ready to go out without her.

"All righty then!" Delia said and clapped her hands. She signaled for a waiter and asked for the bill. The waiter gave Lucario a look, but shrugged it off and gave Delia the bill. Said mother paid it and they quickly left.

Delia said her goodbyes and wished them a fun time before turning around and departing, leaving Lucario and Ash behind on the sidewalk. Ash and Lucario watched her walk away until they lost her in the crowd.

Well, what do you want to do now? Lucario asked as he turned to look at his student.

"Hmm," Ash hummed as he pondered the question. "Why not just wander around for a bit? I'm sure we'll find something interesting to do eventually."

I guess, it's not like I have a better idea, the Aura Pokémon admitted with a shrug and started walking. Ash quickly caught up with him.

Eventually, after ten minutes of aimless wandering through the streets of Alto Mare, Ash and Lucario found themselves in a small empty square that was tucked away in some easily missed part of the city. The cobblestone ground of the square was lined by waterways and large thick trees that came close to blocking out the sun with their thick canopies. The surrounding buildings even had statues and carvings built into them. In the very center of this was a small wooden bench.

Both Ash's and Lucario's eyes narrowed as they noticed something.

They were being watched.

On some unspoken agreement teacher and student moved towards the bench and took a seat, discretely looking around as they did so. They saw no one, but their Aura senses where practically screaming at them that something was close by.

The two made small talk as they focused their Aura, concentrating on the presence. It was there, to their left, and was floating in the air. It was invisible and could make itself float. Evidently a Pokémon then.

Both could sense great power from it, but it was wild and untamed, as if its wielder was extremely inexperienced and wasn't capable of harnessing it. That was good, both mused.

They also felt that the being that was watching them was merely curious. There were no bad intentions, merely curiosity. While this made both Ash and Lucario relax a bit, the being was still watching them, spying on them.

They didn't like to be spied on.

As the two continued their facade of relaxation the 'presence' came closer, apparently secure enough in its invisibility to risk getting close enough that merely an outstretched arm would be enough to touch it.

Which was exactly what happened. Both Ash and Lucario suddenly shot out their right arm and grabbed the 'presence', their fingers clenching around the two arm like protrusions of the invisible Pokémon.

The 'presence' squealed in surprise and dropped its invisibility, revealing itself as its concentration broke.

Ash and Lucario blinked in shock and surprise as they realized just what they were grasping. The red streamlined draconian figure of Latias looked back at them, her eyes wide with shock as her two stubby red arms were clenched tightly in the pairs grip.

"Uhhh..." Ash was shocked. This was the last thing he had been expecting. "Hi," he said rather lamely. "Why are you spying on us?"

Lucario's eyes narrowed at the shocked speechless Legendary. He had nothing but respect for the mighty beings that administered and protected the world, but Legendary or not he didn't like to be spied on. He wanted an answer and he would get one.

Latias's golden eyes darted around nervously and her mouth moved but no sound came out. She gathered herself and spoke. Her PokéSpeech was nothing more than a series of high-pitched squeaks and squeals, but Ash was perfectly able to understand it. His Aura automatically translated PokéSpeech into ordinary English, a skill that Lucario had taught him at the beginning of their partnership.

"Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. I was just curious about your friend. I know about every single Pokémon in the area but I've never seen a Pokémon like him before," Latias said. She glanced down at her arms. "Could you let me go, please? I promise not to run off."

Ash and Lucario glanced at one another. Coming to a decision they released Latias, who drew back a little but didn't take off.

Lucario crossed his arms again and Ash raised an eyebrow at the Legendary Dragon. This was the first time he had ever seen a Legendary Pokémon and he tried to take in every detail of the Eon Pokémon. Latias blushed at the scrutiny. She wasn't used to being looked at so intently.

And now then? Lucario suddenly spook up, still scrutinizing Latias closely.

"Could you...could you please not tell anyone about this?" Latias requested hesitantly. She looked at them nervously. "If people hear about another sighting even more people will come streaming in, trying to find my brother and I. The last time I got spotted I was scolded so bad..."

"Your brother?" Ash wondered. Latias winced at her slip up.

"Yeah, my brother, Latios," Latias confirmed, seeing no reason to hide something that they would probably be able to figure out on their own anyway. "It would probably be better if I left now. If my brother saw me talking to you..."

"Too. Late," Latios' voice was heard in the square, his tone cold. Latias squawked as her brother appeared behind her, erupting up from one of the waterways in a spray of water. Latios glared at them and floated closer, his deep red eyes boring holes into Ash and Lucario.

"B-brother!" Latias stuttered. Any further words from her got cut of as her brother shot her a stone cold look. The blue Eon Dragon turned his attention back to Ash and Lucario and growled audibly.

"What?" Ash frowned at the apparent hostility of Latios. While he was awed at seeing another Legendary Dragon he was very disconcerted by Latios' behavior. They had done nothing to warrant it, after all.

Lucario frowned at Latios and tensed, ready to move at a moment's notice. If things turned sour he would strike Latios down.

Latios simply growled at them in reply. "You will speak of this to no one," Latios snapped out. He huffed audibly. "If you do... Well, it will be far from pleasant."

Lucario's eyes narrowed at the threat. If you threaten me or my student again, Latios, I will teach you a lesson. I do not take kindly to being threatened, especially when we have done nothing to warrant it.

The Eon Dragon smirked back in turn. "And what will you do. I am a Legendary Pokémon. What hope do you have to defeat me yo-" He got cut off by a deep audible chuckle, which came not from Lucario, but from Ash. "What so funny!" Latios snapped.

Ash's eyes glittered with amusement. "Your empty threats, that's what so funny. You aren't able to fool us, Latios. You may have a lot of power, but it's wild and untamed. We can sense it. You aren't trained in its use. Any well-trained Pokémon can take you out, Latios." Another chuckle. "Lucario would crush you, type disadvantage or not."

Latios' claws tightened into fists and he gave another growl, far louder than before. Unfortunately, he knew that the child was right. He could feel Lucario's restrained power. It was vast and honed to a razor's edge, just waiting to be unleashed. He knew that the strange Pokémon, Lucario, would crush him and his sister easily.

"What do you want?" Latios bit out.

"Who said we wanted anything?" Ash countered.

"Of course you want something!" Latios snapped back. His brow twitched in annoyance. "What do you want in order to ensure your silence? Ask and I will deliver, within reason, of course."

Ash frowned deeply and glanced at Lucario, who had a similar expression on his face. Latias' eyes constantly switched between Ash, Lucario, and Latios, unsure of what to do or what to think.

Ash, I think I have an idea to prove that we're trustworthy to them, Lucario said, causing Latios' eyes to narrow. Latias looked at him, curious about his remark. Remember what I taught you last month?

"Yeah, but how is that going to- Oh, I see," Ash smiled as he realized what Lucario was planning.

"What are you ta-" Latios began to demand, but got cut of as Ash's and Lucario's palms suddenly snapped up without warning and pointed at him and his sister. He blinked and suddenly two Aura Sphere's had formed in front of his face. Jerking back, Latios was about to scream a warning to his sister until the Aura Sphere's suddenly grew immensely in size. The Aura Sphere's continued growing and fused together, growing until they completely enveloped Latios and his sister.

Inside the immense Aura Sphere Latios and Latias looked around warily. The inside of the Aura Sphere was a maelstrom of energy. White and blue energy surged around them, cutting off their view of the outside world. Strangely, they weren't being hurt by being inside the attack.

Suddenly, images began assaulting their mind. It was similar to their Sight Share where they would show the other what they were seeing by making a mental connection over their bond, only except of sharing sight, Ash and Lucario were sharing their memories with them.

They saw a small boy growing up, traveling alongside his mother as they visited places all around the world. They felt his determination; his iron will to be the very best. They understood his compassionate nature, Ash's natural inclination to help other people in need.

Then, they saw a Pokémon unlike any other be picked up by a hero, who trained him up to be a powerful warrior. They felt his hate and despair at his master's apparent betrayal, and his self-loathing when he realized the truth. They understood Lucario's dedication to Ash and his vow to make Sir Aaron proud.

They saw and they understood.

The last image was of Ash and Lucario shaking each other's hand and their declaration of friendship, which was now set in stone.

Without warning the energy around the Eon Dragons disappeared, as Ash and Lucario dismissed the technique.

There was a moment of silence. Latios and Latias were looking wide-eyed at Ash and Lucario, almost not believing what had just happened. Latios swallowed hard and Latias shook her head in astonishment.

"That was..." Latios was unable to find the words to describe his feelings.

"Yeah..." Latias said in agreement with Latios. She felt exactly the same way.

"Do you trust us now?" Ash questioned, his gaze switching between Latios and Latias.

"Yes," Latios answered curtly. How could they not? They had just witnessed what made Ash and Lucario who they were. The two had shared secrets so profound that they made up the building blocks of their personalities and their motivations. It was one of the greatest acts of trust the two Eon Dragons had ever seen. That thought just brought more questions. Why did they do it?

Latias hadn't even realized that she had voiced the question when Lucario answered.

It was a simple logical decision, really, he said nonchalantly. It was the only way I could think of that had any real chance of earning your trust. Besides, all Legendary Pokémon such as yourselves are noted for being honorable and wise beings. My student and I felt secure in sharing a few of our secrets with you in order to break the ice, so to speak.

"I see," Latios murmured.

There was another moment of silence were both sides were unsure of what to do. Suddenly, Latias perked up as an idea came to her. She smiled as she made the suggestion.

"Hey, brother?" Latios turned towards his sister with and inquisitive stare. "Maybe we should invite them over. It'll be fun!"

Latios paused at his sister's suggestion. He knew that he could trust Ash and Lucario with their secret just as much as he could trust Bianca and Lorenzo, but it was hard to make that jump so swiftly. After a moment of deliberation he smiled and nodded. "Of course, sis. As long as they promise keep the existence of the Secret Garden to themselves, I will allow it."

Latias squealed in joy and nuzzled Latios' slender neck in thanks.

"Uhh, sorry to interrupt, but what is the Secret Garden?" Ash questioned, breaking up the moment.

Latios' eyes focused on Ash as he answered. "The Secret Garden is our home. As the name suggests, it's a secret place hidden deep in Alto Mare. The only way to reach it is through a set of secret waterways that only Pokémon can traverse and secret passages obscured by powerful illusions. You can only find your way there if someone shows you the way."

He frowned as he realized something. "Hey, wait a moment. You have been understanding me, perfectly, this entire time. How are you doing that?"

Ash blinked. "It's a skill that Lucario taught me. I'm his student in the ways of the Aura. With the right training, Aura can automatically translate the natural PokéSpeech of any Pokémon."

Latios and Latias looked curious at that. They had a bit of knowledge on Aura and what it was but weren't entirely aware of what the mysterious energy was capable of.

I would love to see your home, Lucario suddenly said. His scarlet eyes glimmered in curiosity. He wondered what the home of Legendary Pokémon looked like.

Latios nodded and smiled. "Just follow me. I assume you can still sense me even if I'm invisible since you managed to detect my sister." At their nods the Eon Pokémon turned his eyes towards his sister. "Sis, would you go on ahead and warn Bianca and Lorenzo that we are bringing guests. They might get spooked if we suddenly bring strangers to the garden."

Latias nodded and with one final nuzzle to Latios' neck she turned and blasted away. She dove into the waterway from which Latios had emerged earlier and quickly followed it back to the Secret Garden, leaving her brother alone with Ash and Lucario.

Latios gave them one last smile before using his feathers to reflect the light around him, effectively making himself invisible.

Ash and Lucario stood up and followed Latios as he led them away, leaving the tiny square behind and once again setting foot in the streets of Alto Mare. It was getting late and less and less people were out on the streets. Nevertheless, Latios levitated up high, making sure that no one could accidentally bump into him.

"How surprising," Ash mused as they dutifully followed the Eon Legendary. "How big were the chances of actually meet them?"

Lucario chuckled. Not very big, but then again, it is you we are talking about. The most unlikely things always seem to happen around you, Ash.

Ash shook his head as Latios led them into a small side alley. "I've stopped trying to find out why that always happens. I just take it as it comes. At least it's never boring around me."

Lucario nodded in agreement. He blinked in surprise as they came to a dead-end, a plain brick wall blocking the path forwards. Latios dropped his invisibility, appearing in a shower of sparkles. The Eon Dragon chuckled at their expressions, winked at them, and rocketed through the illusionary wall, making it ripple like water.

"...Did he just..." Ash was too shocked for words.

So this is what he meant by powerful illusions, Lucario mused. He tugged at Ash's sleeve to get him moving. Let's go. I want to see this.

Nodding, Ash stepped forwards and passed the illusionary barrier together with Lucario.

The sight on the other side made their breaths get stuck in their throats.

"Do you like it?" Latios asked them as they stepped through. He looked faintly amused as he took in the awed expressions on their faces. "Welcome to my and my sister's home: The Secret Garden of Alto Mare."

"It's incredible!" Ash breathed, looking at the beautiful scenery. Lucario nodded in mute agreement.

"I'm glad you like it," Latios said with a chuckle. "Come, I want to introduce you to a couple of friends of mine."

Once again, Ash and Lucario followed Latios, all the while taking in everything the Secret Garden had to offer. Both Human and Pokémon wondered how this incredible place could have been hidden for so long. Sooner or later people should have noticed that a gigantic chunk of the city was missing, hidden behind powerful illusions or not.

"It's you!" An elderly voice boomed out over the Secret Garden, disturbing the Butterfree up in the trees and making them scatter in panic. It also broke Ash and Lucario from their reverie. Their eyes were drawn towards the voice. They blinked in surprise as they took in the portly figure of Lorenzo and the petite form of Bianca.

Latios cocked his head, surprised that Lorenzo already knew their guests and levitated towards them. He nodded at them in greeting as he beckoned Ash and Lucario over. They acquiesced and walked over. Lorenzo and Bianca studied them, suspicion rife in their eyes.

"Well, this is surprising," Ash mused. He took one look at Lorenzo and Bianca and immediately felt on edge. "You don't trust us, do you?" He deadpanned.

"In a word: No," Lorenzo said as he studied him and Lucario like a hawk. "But since Latios brought you here, I am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. We've already met but I'll introduce myself and my granddaughter again anyway. I'm Lorenzo and this is my granddaughter, Bianca."

Bianca hesitantly greeted them. "Hello, it's nice to meet you."

Ash smiled. "Well met, Bianca."

Lucario looked around before his scarlet eyes focused on something behind Bianca and Lorenzo. What's Latias doing?

Bianca, Lorenzo, and Latios blinked in confusion at the question. Latias appeared in a shower of sparkles behind Lorenzo and Bianca, smiling mischievously. Latios' eyes widened as he tried to warn his friends, but he was too late.

"BOO!" Latias screamed into Bianca's and Lorenzo's ears.

"AHHH!" Both jumped up, startled. They bolted around, looking in wide-eyed panic at the now cackling Latias as they grasped at their rapidly beating hearts.

"SO NOT FUNNY!" Bianca screeched, pointing accusingly at the still cackling Latias.

Ash started snickering before breaking down in a deep, rumbling belly laugh. He nearly fell over in hysteria. Lucario chuckled loudly at the scene even as he tried to hide his amused smile behind his palm. The fact that he was shaking with laughter didn't help him covering it up. Latios tried to look sternly at his sister, but eventually succumbed to his own amusement and started laughing as well.

Bianca and Lorenzo looked annoyed when they finally calmed down from their scare, but after a few moments they joined in on the laughter.

While it might not have been Latias' intention to do so, her action had broken the tension, leaving a friendly atmosphere behind.

"That's my sister, all right," Latios commented, amused. "Always playing and never serious."

"You don't say," Ash said, snickering.

Lorenzo took a deep breath before facing Ash and Lucario. "Well, now that that's behind us, will you be joining us? We were about to have picnic until Latias disappeared on us, again!" Lorenzo paused as he turned to glare at the sheepish Latias. "We have more than enough food for the six of us."

I appreciate the offer, Lucario began. But I'm afraid my student and I have to decline. We've just eaten, you see. Would it be all right if we explore the garden for a bit while you have your picnic?

Lorenzo turned to look at Latios for his opinion. Said Eon Dragon nodded his agreement. Lorenzo shrugged. "It's fine by me and Latios agrees. Knock yourself out," he said as he gestured to the beautiful surroundings.

"Thank you," Ash said and immediately took off running. Lucario shook his head in bemusement and quickly followed his over eager student.

"...Can we trust them?" Lorenzo asked as soon as their guests had disappeared from sight. Bianca turned her serious eyes over to Latios. Latias smiled at Lorenzo's protectiveness.

Latios stared deeply into Lorenzo's eyes and nodded resolutely, trying to convey just how much he trusted their new friends.

"All right, Latios. I trust your judgment," Lorenzo said gravely before lightening up. "Well, let's stop this useless talk and enjoy ourselves," he announced as he made a beeline for their already set up picnic. Latios, Latias, and Bianca chuckled in unison and followed the elderly curator.

Ash and Lucario wandered all over the Secret Garden, taking in all the sights. From the beautiful architecture, to the waterways, to the splendor of nature and of course the scores of Pokémon that called the Secret Garden home. The duo had found themselves entranced by the garden's beauty.

"This place is incredible," Ash breathed in awe. Lucario nodded in agreement.

It is. The only place that I can compare to it is the inner sanctum of the Tree of Beginning, the Aura Pokémon said.

Both student and master froze in their steps as their Aura senses picked something up. Something strong, something vast and something undeniably ancient. A vast reservoir of energy was at the very center of the Secret Garden, beckoning them, calling for them.

"Are you feeling that?" Ash asked, his voice a mere whisper as he tried to take in the presence.

Yes, Lucario answered curtly as he started walking into the direction he could feel the presence in. Ash immediately followed him. It didn't take them long to reach the center of the Secret Garden, where, to their surprise, an ornately decorated fountain rested.

The air surrounding them was saturated with ambient Aura, its source rooted in the fountain. The duo walked up to it, holding their breaths as they took in more and more of the power. Vast didn't even begin to describe what they were feeling right now.

As they walked up the steps leading to the fountain the two noticed that water streamed down from the fountain into four interconnected waterways that branched out through the garden. From there it went beyond into the city, as if the fountain was feeding the city its water. Both found this curious but didn't dwell on it further.

They walked up to edge of the fountain and looked down into its waters, spotting something surprising.

In the very center of the fountain was a jewel, but it was unlike any jewel the two had ever seen. The jewel was a deep aqua blue in hue and had white light dancing within. It was huge in comparison with most jewels and an otherworldly light danced inside of it, sending small beams of light everywhere.

Ash and Lucario peered down curiously at it. The strange jewel was the source of the immense amount of energy that they were feeling, which they just realized was an extremely concentrated form of Aura. It defused all out over the Secret Garden, particularly into the waterways and presumably out into the canals of the city.

Very, very curious, the mentor mused. I wonder what kind of jewel this is. It's radiating Aura by the bucket load, far more than any living being can produce naturally. It's flowing freely, yet it is guided into the waterways and into the city. How strange. Aura is not supposed to act this way.

"What's so strange about it?" Ash questioned curiously. "It's an inanimate object, which means that the flow of the Aura can't be obstructed by flesh and blood like what happens in all living beings. Without those blockages the Aura flows freely and into the nearest source of matter, which in this case is water."

Lucario frowned. You're right, Ash. But you're forgetting that inanimate objects can't normally radiate Aura. It's the energy of life. Something that isn't alive, in a sense, can't have Aura unless a large amount of it is imbued into it by an Aura Guardian. And even then it would be impossible to have an object of inanimate material give off this much Aura and to such a continuous degree.

He shot his student a contemplating look. And what does that tell you?

Ash pondered the question for a moment. His eyes widened as he figured it out. "That means that whatever this jewel is, it isn't an inanimate object. An inanimate object would never be able to do this. It has to contain life for it function!" He said in realization.

Lucario nodded, pleased. Before he could congratulate his student at his swift reasoning, he was interrupted.

"You are correct," a voice said from behind them. Latios approached them from behind, his demure and slightly sad gaze centered on the duo. "That jewel, known as the Soul Dew, contains the soul of a Latios. My and my sister's father, to be exact."

"How's that possible?" Ash questioned as he turned to regard Latios curiously. His eyes widened as he realized something. "Wait a minute, you said that the Soul Dew contains the soul of a Latios. It's the one that saved Alto Mare all those years ago, isn't it?" It was more a statement then a question, but Latios nodded in confirmation anyway. Ash noticed from the corner of his eyes that Latias had joined them, but she was oddly subdued. She shot sad glances at the Soul Dew now and then.

"Correct again. My father sacrificed himself to save Alto Mare and brought the sea to its shores, seeding the island with life and giving the city its livelihood," Latios said, smiling sadly. "He also made the Secret Garden and the illusions that guard it in order to provide my sister and me with a safe place for us to grow up in. In honor of our father we protect Alto Mare and his legacy."

That's quite the tale, Lucario said. He glanced over his shoulder at the Soul Dew, a question burning in his eyes. So your father is in the Soul Dew and is effectively shackled to the mortal realm because of it, unable to move on to the afterlife. Why have you never tried to free him?

Latios grimaced. "It's more complicated than that. Father's life-energy, which you call Aura, is the only thing that keeps the sea surrounding Alto Mare in place. If we were to destroy the Soul Dew or even remove it from its resting place for too long the water will retreat from Alto Mare. That isn't the worst part, though. After that the water will come back as a tsunami, destroying the city. That's something we cannot allow. That's why my sister and I guard this place, to protect the Soul Dew."

I see, Lucario remained silent for a short while, pondered something. And you have never tried to communicate with him? I mean, his soul's right there. Latios shot the Aura Pokémon an annoyed look.

"Of course we've tried!" He snapped. "We've tried to contact his soul with our psychic abilities more times than I care to count, but we've always failed to make a connection. Making a mental connection with our father's soul using psychic abilities has proven to be impossible."

And that gave Ash an idea.

Without warning the nine-year old turned around in a swift flowing motion and stepped up to the edge of the fountain. Before anyone could react his right hand swept into the water and firmly grasped the Soul Dew. With nary a pause he channeled his Aura into it and, to his delight, could feel it take hold as he made a connection to the soul within.

Hello.

The soul inside the Soul Dew started at the sudden intrusion. Ash was uncertain just what kind of emotion he could feel from the spirit. Was it shock, awe, incredulousness or a combination of all three he wondered?

Hello? came the hesitant reply back, as if the Father Latios was uncertain if the voice that he had just heard was real or not.

My name is Ash. And you are? Ash asked, as if he was talking to someone whom he had just met on the street and not like he was speaking to someone who was technically dead.

I'm Latios. There was a brief pause. How are you speaking to me? He asked. Ash could easily hear the barely restrained excitement and glee in the ancient Eon Dragon's voice.

I made a connection with your soul using my Aura, Ash answered curtly. He was aware of Latios and Latias when they darted towards him, probably to try and stop him from doing whatever he was doing. They grasped his shoulders and where about to yank him away until...

You're an Aura Guardian? The Father Latios asked curiously.

Both Latias and Latios froze. The moment they had grasped Ash they had been included in the connection that he had made. They didn't recognize the voice, but something about it made them relax and feel safe.

Lucario chose to let things proceed as they were for the moment. There was no malice in either Latias' or Latios' actions. So he felt secure in letting them close to his student. Besides, he was curious as to what would happen.

Ash was acutely aware of the two Pokémon grasping his shoulders. He also knew that they were now listening in on the conversation. He had nothing against it, after all, it was their father he was talking with. They had the right to hear him speak.

I'm an Aura Guardian in training, Ash corrected. He smiled as he continued on. I'm only nine years old after all. Way too young to be a real Aura Guardian.

Is that so? the Father Latios mused, ignorant of the fact that his son and daughter were now listening in on the conversation. The sound of his voice made their eyes widen and their breaths quickened. Both where very much aware of who Ash was speaking with.

You must be quite talented to be able to make a connection with me at nine years old, the elder Latios said. He fell silent for a moment, a question that had been burning in the back of his mind finally demanded to be asked and his patience had worn thin. Where are my children? Latias and Latios. Are they safe? Are they healthy? Are they happy? You must tell me! He demanded.

You can ask them yourself, Ash said, a happy twinkle to his eyes. He could feel a surge of emotions from the Father Latios. They have been listening in on our conversation since almost the beginning.

You mean-

"F-father," Latios stuttered, interrupting his father, who fell silent at hearing his son's voice for the first time.

"Daddy," Latias whispered as tears of joy gathered in her eyes. They heard a deep intake of breath over the connection when Latias made her presence known.

...My darling precious children. You have no idea how happy I am to hear your voices, Father Latios whispered. They could practically hear the tears of joy in his eyes. How...how are you two? Are you happy? Are you healthy?

"Yes, father. We're happy and healthy as can be," Latios whispered back in response.

"Daddy," Latias said, her voice full of hope. "How is this possible? How are we talking to you?"

The Father Latios took a deep breath before answering. It's thanks to Ash that we are talking right now. The Soul Dew is the compressed form of my soul, which is made from my life force, better known as Aura. Ash here is a practitioner in the ways of Aura, which allowed him to directly connect his own consciousness to my own. And when you touched him you two where included in the connection.

"Does that mean we can only talk with each other when Ash is here to make a connection?" Latias asked hesitantly. Only being able to talk with her father for a brief period of time and then being cut off from him again. That would be too cruel for words to her.

I'm afraid so, my dear. Unless another person capable of using Aura resides in the city, which is highly unlikely, we will only be able to talk so long as Ash holds the connection for us, Father Latios said sadly.

"That might not be entirely true," Ash cut in. All the attention snapped towards him. He grinned tightly. "Latios, your physical form is pure concentrated Aura. I am an Aura user, which means that I can manipulate Aura in its most basic form. With the right skills I can...modify your Soul Dew. I'm thinking of either allowing your soul to leave the Soul Dew as you please or make it possible for your children to connect with you by simply touching the Soul Dew, or maybe even both. What do you say?"

There was a brief stunned silence at his suggestion. Latias and Latios looked sharply at Ash. Tampering with the Soul Dew might prove dangerous. It provided Alto Mare with its lifeblood after all. On the other hand, if he could do it, if Ash could allow their father to be a part of their lives, then they felt that they had to at least try; consequences be damned.

Lucario raised an eyebrow at Ash's suggestion. He hadn't heard the entirety of the conversation but he could guess the gist of it. What Ash was proposing was entirely possible, he knew. And he knew that it was well within Ash's skill range to do it. It would be a true test over his mastery of Aura. Lucario smiled. He loved testing his student. Besides, he reckoned that if something went wrong he could step in and correct the damage himself.

If you want to try, Ash, go right ahead, Lucario called out to his student. Ash nodded in acknowledgment, pleased that his mentor had enough faith in him to allow him to try this.

Ash felt the Father Latios steel himself over the connection. Do it, he hissed. Let me be with my children again. Do it!

He nodded, closed his eyes and concentrated. An almost invisible pulse of energy erupted from Ash. It traveled down the length of his arm and joined with Soul Dew, causing it to light up, sending beams of blue light everywhere. Ash's brow furrowed as he concentrated, a blue light emanating from behind his closed eyelids. As more and more of his Aura sunk into the Soul Dew the more and more light it began to project. Eventually, the jewel disappeared behind a bright halo of energy that formed a sphere of blue light around the Soul Dew.

Ash gritted his teeth and focused his mind to the max as he started to modify the Soul Dew. The blue halo of energy started to sink into the Soul Dew as Ash began to realign the inner structure of the jewel, changing its properties and make up.

After ten minutes of painstaking work and mental exertion, Ash finished the modification, allowing the last bits of the needed Aura to sink into the Soul Dew and become one with it.

Ash released the Soul Dew and stumbled back in exhaustion. He took a deep breath and centered himself. After cracking his neck he peered down into the fountain to admire his handiwork. The Soul Dew appeared mostly unchanged except that it appeared a bit thicker than before and that the light emanating from it was quite a bit brighter.

"Did it work?" Latios questioned anxiously. Ash dimly realized that Latias and Latios where still tightly grasping his shoulders. Their claws dug into his skin as they anxiously held on to him.

"Of cours-" he began saying, but got cut off when the Soul Dew flashed white, nearly blinding them with its intensity. The water of the fountain suddenly burned bright white, obscuring the Soul Dew from sight again. Deep burning red eyes became visible in the sea of white and a ghostly draconian figure slowly emerged from the water, floating up out of the bright white mass.

For the first time in over a century, the soul of Father Latios was free.

Father, son, and daughter locked gazes with each other for the first time and in spite of the fact that Father Latios was merely a soul his eyes still projected the sheer happiness that he felt at seeing his children.

Latias and Latios let go of Ash's shoulders and slowly floated over to their father. Tears gathered in their eyes as they nuzzled their parent. Father Latios nuzzled back, basking in the presence of his children.

"My dear, dear children," Father Latios whispered. Ghost-like tears streamed down his see through face. "I'm here now, and I'm never letting you go again." Latias and Latios were crying themselves and this solemn vow only increased their tears of happiness.

Lucario grabbed the shoulder of the positively beaming Ash and started tugging him away. Come on, Ash. I think these three need some time alone. Ash nodded and followed his mentor, leaving the newly reunited family alone.

Ash had never been more proud of himself, or happier for someone else.

It was half an hour later when Latias, Latios, and their father once again approached them, having finished 'catching up' for the moment. They now found themselves relaxing on the side of a large pond. Lucario was deep in meditation while he sat in a cross-legged position and Ash was laying back against a solitary tree. His arms were crossed behind his head with his eyes closed.

"So, finally run out of tears, huh?" Ash said with an impish grin, still not opening his eyes. All three Eon's smiled brightly at him. Lucario cracked open an eye and watched them curiously. Ash got up from his position and approached the Eons.

"I don't know how to thank you enough Ash," Latios said. "What you have given us... it can never be repaid."

"You have my eternal thanks Ash," Father Latios said, bowing his head to the nine-year old.

Latias' reaction was a bit more enthusiastic; she promptly glomped Ash, knocking him over and causing him to give a cry of surprise. Ash's eyes widened and he wheezed as Latias pulled him into a rib-shattering hug. He managed to awkwardly return the hug, despite the fact that his arms were essentially crushed. Latias didn't let go of him for another few seconds.

Father Latios shook his head, amused by his daughter's antics and his son was rumbling with laughter. Lucario chuckled at the sight.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you," she murmured as she nuzzled Ash fiercely. Latias let him go after a moment and backed off, allowing Ash to stand up. He stretched and smiled.

"You don't need to thank me," Ash said, his smile widening. "It was my pleasure."

Father Latios chuckled. "Be that as it may, I still feel that you deserve a small gift in return." Suddenly, Father Latios made eye contact with Ash and his deep red eyes blazed a deep blue. Ash froze as his eyes blazed blue as well. Lucario shot up from his seated position, alarmed, but calmed down as soon as he recognized what Father Latios was doing. A power exchange.

A power exchange was exactly what it sounded like; it transferred power from one being to another, simply by making a connection with the recipient and transferring a small amount of the users essence, soul if you will, over to the one receiving the power. Lucario knew that Father Latios could not increase Ash's Aura powers, but he could give him a new one: psychic powers. He smiled, it seemed that his student would have even more options available to him in future conflicts.

Ash knew this as well, Lucario having taught him of this, and knew to steady himself as the new power coursed through his veins and settled inside of him in the deepest reaches of his mind suddenly stopped moving, becoming a part of him.

The last piece of the puzzle fell into place.

Abruptly, Father Latios' eyes stopped blazing blue. The spirit smiled as he finished the power exchange and looked at Ash, impressed that he hadn't fallen over from the strain. His children, who were already aware of what he had planned to give to Ash, also looked impressed.

"You didn't have to do that," Ash coughed as he recuperated from the experience.

"No, I didn't have to, but I wanted to," Father Latios said, still smiling. "Besides, I have no use for that power anymore and I still have plenty of power remaining anyway."

"I don't know what to say," Ash said, looking a bit lost. "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," the elder Latios, intentionally repeated Ash's earlier words.

"Yeah, you deserve it," Latios said. His sister nodded in agreement.

Ash, Lucario walked up to his student. It's getting late. If we want to be back at the hotel in time we have to leave. Ash frowned and gazed at the sky, reading the time from the sun's position. He nodded, it was time to leave.

"How long will you be staying in Alto Mare?" Latias asked curiousl. "Maybe you can come visit again tomorrow?"

"We will be staying for about a week, and of course we will come visit tomorrow," Ash answered, smiling.

"Good," Father Latios nodded in approval. "I will help you along tomorrow with learning how to use your new Psychic powers."

Ash pouted. "Shucks! There goes my vacation." Everybody chuckled at him. "Thanks for the help, though," he added gratefully. Ash suddenly looked pensive. "Hey, Latios?" Both Latios in the clearing perked up. "Um, the older one. I know I'm supposed to keep quiet about this, but can I at least tell my mom? I can't really keep secrets from her and I need to explain to her how I suddenly got Psychic powers." Father Latios considered this for a moment before smiling and nodding his agreement. Ash sighed in relieve. "Thanks."

"No problem. Now, off you go. The kids and I need to think on how we're going to explain this to Bianca and Lorenzo. I have a feeling its going to be quite complicated," Father Latios said his goodbye's and worries in one breath. His children said their goodbyes as well. Lucario and Ash quickly found themselves back on the streets of Alto Mare, heading towards the nearest gondola that could take them to their hotel.

"That was fun," Ash said as they walked. "I can't wait to go back there tomorrow."

It was indeed quite fun, Lucario admitted. And productive too, who would have guessed that you would receive such a gift today.

"Certainly not me," Ash said. "But I'm not complaining." He paused as he considered something. "How are we going to explain this to mom?"

Lucario let out strange mix between and yawn and chuckle. You mean, how are you going to explain this to your mom. I'm going straight to bed.

"Traitor," Ash hissed, although it lacked any real feelings behind it. The smile on his face also counteracted his words.

The rest of the way back to the hotel was shared in companionable silence.

The week went by too fast for Ash. They visited the Secret Garden daily and Delia even accompanied them a couple of times. While Ash trained to use his new powers alongside the Eon dragons and under the watchful eye of Lucario, Delia would explore the Secret Garden. She had been absolutely delighted by the scenery and quite liked the Legendaries that called the place home.

Bianca and Lorenzo had been overjoyed for Latias and Latios when they had found out what Ash had done for them. They had thanked him profusely for it and because of it they hadn't even raised a fuss when Ash brought his mother along the next day.

He had made a bit of progress in harnessing his new abilities, although it was hard-earned progress. Harnessing Psychic powers was harder than he had first envisioned. Contrary to popular believe, the strength of a psychic does not depend on intelligence or knowledge. But is measured by creativity, flexibility, will, and being able to think outside the box, though knowledge does help.

Ash was creative, he was flexible, had great will, was more than capable of thinking outside the box and he was plenty knowledgeable thanks to Lucario's teachings, but he had difficulty turning those traits into psychic force. Father Latios had explained to him that the skill would come to him in time. In the meantime he had given Ash certain exercises that would help focus his mind and increase his Psychic abilities.

It was quite similar to Aura in that way. Aura comes from the soul. When a Pokémon, or in this case a Human, uses their Aura they draw upon their own strength as a person or being. Aura is quite literally yourself at the deepest level, which is why emotions are tied so strongly to it. And what makes it unique is that every being has one; some similar, some really different.

At the moment, Ash, Lucario, and Delia found themselves on the docks of Alto Mare. The ship that would take them back to Kanto was docked behind them. Facing them were Lorenzo, Bianca, Latias in her Bianca disguise, and the invisible forms of Father Latios and Latios, though everyone knew they were there.

"I can't believe you're leaving already," Bianca laminated sadly.

"There's nothing to be done about it," Ash shrugged. He was used to this, leaving his friends behind. "That's just the way it is."

"That's true," Lorenzo nodded, smiling sadly at them. "That's how things go, I'm afraid."

"You will come to visit again, won't you?" Bianca almost pleaded with them. It hurt to see people she had become such close friends with in such a short amount of time leave so quickly.

"Of course," Delia assured. "I promise that we'll come and visit you again someday."

I'm already looking forward to it, Father Latios spoke to them telepathically. Oh, and Ash. Keep on practicing. I'm going to test you when you come back.

Ash nodded, determined to prove himself to the ancient Eon. "I will, I promise," Ash said, looking into the seemingly empty space where he knew the soul of Father Latios resided. Any further words he wanted to say got cut of when their ship gave a loud whistle from its funnel, signaling that it was about to leave.

"That's our que," he muttered and hefted his backpack. "It's been great getting to know you guys. Goodby-" Again, he got cut of when Latias, still in her Bianca disguise glomped him and gathered him in a tight hug. Not giving the boy a chance to react she kissed him on the cheek. Ash froze, a stupefied look on his face.

Latias stepped back and giggled at the look on his face, or at least made the motion of giggling. In her human disguise she was unable to speak ordinary PokéSpeech and she could not speak Human tongue. And since she wasn't able to use telepathy yet she couldn't tell Ash just how much she was going to miss him. At least not by words, but she thought that her actions conveyed her feelings just fine.

An atomic blush exploded on Ash's face after a moment of stupefied bewilderment. He averted his eyes from the grinning Latias in disguise, inadvertently catching the eyes of everyone else present. The looks on their faces... His blush deepened a shade or three and spread to cover nearly his entire body.

Delia was giggling madly. Lucario was smirking at him. Lorenzo looked amused. Bianca was trying, and failing, to hold back from laughing. And while Ash wasn't able to see Latios' and Father Latios' reactions he could practically envision the shocked looks on their faces.

Umm, guys. I think we need to hurry if we want to make it to the ship in time, Lucario suddenly said, looking a little nervous at possibly missing their ship.

Ash didn't need any more prompting then that. He quickly said his goodbyes and bolted towards the ship. Delia and Lucario did the same and quickly followed him, their friends screaming their own farewells at them from behind all the while.

It was time to go home.

A/N: Well, what do you think? Do you love it, or hate this premise?By The Way This is a Ash X Multi Fic I thought about writing.