AN: Long time no see, people! If you want a reason for my absence, please read my profile! As for this… Well, turns out I'm not good at writing soppy stuff like that, so here's a new one! But bear with me, this is basically a continuation of my discontinued story, with a timeskip. Skip all the melodrama, yeah?

Also, this ties loosely to Black 2, and was inspired by the trailer for that. (You should really watch it, it's great!) May include an OC.

No pairings yet. Enjoy!

..

A teen with spiky black hair strode down Road 19, humming a soft tune. It was a few hours before noon, Aspertia City not too far ahead.

The person in question was wearing jeans and a black and red jacket, the hood being unused at the moment. Instead, a black hat with a red half-pokeball design rested on his head. At his waist were six pokeballs, and a mega-evolution bracelet on his right wrist. A small scar ran down his left cheek. A simple black backpack hung on his back.

He was relatively tall for an 18-year-old, well-built from years of training.

"I wonder how Cheren's doing...? Haven't seen him in ages..."

..

"C'mon!" Hughes called, walking ahead. "Let's go get your Pokemon!"

Grinning, the brown-haired boy sprinted forwards. "Let's check the lookout first!"

Quickly, the two childhood friends bounded up the steps, reaching the top in no time at all. Sure enough, a girl with a large, green hat was there.

"Don't you think the view is great?" she said, eyes glittering as she rested her arms on the railing. "Oh, sorry! I'm Bianca, Professor Juniper's assistant. Would you happen to know someone called Nate?"

He walked forwards, nodding. "Yup. That's me!"

..

Spotting a familiar face atop the lookout Aspertia was ever so famous for, the black-haired teen grinned. Walking up the steps, he heard the faint sounds of a battle.

"Tepig, tackle!"

"Dodge it, Oshawott! Then use Tackle!"

'They don't sound too experienced...' was his first thought, frowning. 'Reminds me of my first battle...'

Grimacing at the memory, and the recollections that came with it. Shaking his head, he hurried up the remaining steps.

"Yo, Bianca!" he called, a smile on his face once more. "Still running into people?"

Immediately, Bianca looked away from the battle, recognizing the voice. "Ash?"

Recognizing the face, she smiled brightly. "It is you! Ash, It's been forever!"

Running up to him, she hugged him tightly, her head reaching up to his chin. After a moment of hesitation, Ash returned the hug lightly.

The two stayed like that, until Bianca realized what she was doing, jumping back as she did. "S-sorry! Anyways, why were you gone for so long? Nobody knew where you were!"

Ash shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Just a training trip, nothing more. Anyways, who're those two? They seem new to this."

"Hm?" The blonde tilted her head, before realizing who he was referring to. "Oh, this is Nate, and Hugh! They're just starting their adventure!"

Nate stepped forwards, looking between the two. "Ash, was it? Would you like to battle?"

"Hey, battle me, too!" Hugh called out, recalling his own fainted Pokemon, Oshawott.

Ash looked to Bianca, who shrugged. "They need to visit the Pokemon Center first, but why not?"

"Well... Ok, then."

..

After the Pokemon were healed- thankfully, their injuries were light, so it didn't take long-, Nate's mom and Hugh's sister gave them some necessities needed for their trip, including a map.

The group made their way to the forest, Ash chatting with Bianca, and Nate chatting with Hugh.

"So... I got some stuff I wanna get done with, so why don't we do a two on one?" Ash asked, once they were ready.

"But..." Hugh started, stopping as Nate put a hand on his shoulder.

"C'mon, don't you think it'll be interesting?"

While they talked, Bianca approached Ash worriedly. "Are you still planning on doing... that?"

Quickly, Ash turned to her with a look of surprise.

"How did you..." he started, before sighing. "Yeah, I am. Nothing's going to change my mind, Bianca."

Frowning, the blond nodded, and returned to the bench.

"Anyways..." Ash muttered, turning to the two. "Oy, you ready?"

"Yeah! " Nate replied. "Let's do this, Tepig!"

Hugh did the same, a grin on his face. "Let's get this show on the road, Oshawott!"

"I'm counting on you, Gabite." Ash said, calling his own Pokemon into battle.

"Oshawott, use Water Gun!" Hugh called, taking the initiative with a type-effective attack.

"Dodge, then Dragon Rush."

Jumping over the stream of water, Gabite enveloped itself in a blue aura, shooting at Oshawott with incredible speed.

"Protect Oshawott with Ember!" Nate called out, receiving a grateful nod from his childhood friend.

Quickly, Tepig shot the fire in front of Gabite, but the dragon continued, trusting it's trainer.

"Counter with Stone Edge at Tepig, then Dragon Claw on Oshawott." Ash called out, waving his arm in a sweeping motion, maintaining his composure.

"Ugh..." Hugh gritted his teeth. "Dodge it, Oshawott!"

"Too slow..."

In an instant, Gabite had closed the remaining distance and swiped his attack across it's chest. At the same time, the glowing rocks overwhelmed Tepig's flames, the type-effective attack knocking it out.

"Hmm... That was a good match." Ash said, recalling his Pokemon with a grin. "Hugh, you were correct in taking the initiative, and the typing. But you need to react faster, and keep your defense up."

Nodding gratefully, Hugh recalled his own Pokemon. "Good job, Oshawott. Thank you, Ash."

"No problem." Ash responded turning to his second opponent, who had recalled his Pokemon with words of praise as well. "You're the opposite. Your defense was good, but you need to focus more on offense. If you launched the Ember directly at my Gabite, you might've landed a hit instead of leaving yourself open for a counter."

Grinning, Nate gave a mock salute. "Yes, Ash-san!"

Sighing, turned to Bianca. "Well? Shall we go?"

The blond girl blinked, before realizing he was talking to her. "Eh? Ah, yeah! Of course, where are you headed off to?"

"Hmm?" Ash tilted his head to one side. "What are you so surprised about?"

"Ah... I just never took you for a teacher..." Bianca said, averting her gaze.

Ash looked at her blankly for a few seconds, before shaking himself back to attention. "Ah, right. Anyways, I'm going to visit an old friend. Bianca, don't you have a job from the Professor?"

Fumbling around her bag, Bianca pulled out what looked suspiciously like a grocery list.

"Umm... I have to do this... and that... But I've got time!" Bianca exclaimed, smiling. "How about a battle to pass the time? For old time's sake?"
Ash grinned, reaching for another Pokeball. "Sure! Let's do this, Lucario!"

"Come on out, Samurott!" Bianca yelled, eyes glittering.

"Double Team, Lucario." Ash declared, keeping a wary eye on his opponent. "No doubt you've picked up a few tricks the past few years, right?"

"Ehehe. Not as much as you, probably." Bianca replied, rubbing the back of his head. "Samurott, Swords Dance!"

Now a trio of Lucario stood at on one side of the field, while glowing swords circled Samurott, who stood on the other.

"Blast him with Hydro Pump!" Bianca responded immediately.

"Block it with Aura Sphere!"

Quickly, all of the Lucario formed the blue sphere of energy, running forwards. In response, Samurott shot the pulse of water at his opponent.

Immediately, Lucario placed Aura Sphere in front of him, the orb diverting the attack around him. However, the clones were unable to do the same, making them disappear.

"Follow through with Thunder Punch!" Ash called out, not wasting a moment.

"Parry it with Cut!"

The two attacks were evenly matched, and they disengaged after a few seconds.

"Flash Cannon, Lucario!"

"Ice Beam, Samurott!"

The two attacks collided, gray and blue transforming into a large dust cloud, making both fighters cough. Slowly, the smoke dissipated, revealing Samurott... but not Lucario.

"Wha- Watch out, Samurott!"

"Giga Impact, Lucario!"

Immediately, a shadow appeared over Samurott, growing larger as the attack landed, the gravity multiplying the damage created.

Before long, the dust cleared, showing Ash's bipedal pokemon standing proudly, not even looking winded.

..

Anyhow… This probably won't be updated in a while. I just figured you guys might wanna know what I meant in the Author's Note from Flickering Flames.