Beep...Beep...Beep...

The sound continued to play in a simple rhythm that sounded to Ash's ears. It was the only thing that broke the protruding silence in the room next to the ER. He sat on the bench in silence as Pikachu and Espeon sat with him, both of them seeing him come back on Garchomp, making them curious. Garchomp stood near the glass, gazing at the young Electric type in the other room.

Ash was never this quiet, which didn't sit well with the others. He was told by Nurse Joy that Jolteon was lucky that the Shadow Sneak didn't hit anywhere else, otherwise he would've been in a cast. Ash was relieved to hear that, but Nurse Joy also said he would not be able to move excessively for a few days.

Ash was thinking about what else he should have done differently. The first thing that popped was to just give up the omelette, but Max's ego is so big that he probably wouldn't get away with that. The second was to alert the others, but this is his problem. He doesn't really want them involved with his former friends, but the tag battle, Ash had no choice. So now all he feels is slight depression.

"Why did I go through with it?" He asked himself.

"Pika pi..." The little mouse Pokemon patted his trainer for reassurance. He hated seeing him like this. A state of mind that little to nothing can fix except for time.

"Espe..." Even Espeon tried her own attempt at easing him by rubbing against his leg, an action that she normally only does for Anabel.

"Garr? Garrr..." Garchomp walked up to Ash and placed his claw on his trainer's shoulder, making Ash snap out of his trance.

He looked around and saw all three of them giving reassurance. He flashed a smile and pet each of them for a moment. "I appreciate that. Thanks. I'm just sad that it came to this."

All three of them nodded in understanding. Then Garchomp gave a determined glance, which shocked Ash for a brief moment until he knew what Garchomp wanted. He gave a smirk to the Land Shark. "Sure Garchomp. You get dibs on Max's full team if we face him."

"Garr!" Garchomp let out a cry of content, earning a chuckle from Ash.

He faced the glass screen once more. "Just a couple days Jolteon. I'll be back when you wake up."

He stood up and walked out of the side room, the others following suit, exiting into the main lobby, where Ash saw the others sitting and waiting for him. They all had fearful looks on their faces, which Ash already knew the purpose behind them.

He sighed. "Hey. How was the rest of your meals?"

Greta spoke first. "We didn't stay. How is he?"

"Stable. He's allowed to go in two days, but no excessive movement until two days after that."

"That's great to hear." Tucker stated.

Anabel then walked closer, sadness in her eyes. "Why?"

Ash frowned. "Why what?"

"You knew they were there, yet you said nothing. Anabel realized that after you left." Lucy stated.

Ash didn't meet their eyes. "I didn't want to worry any of you. You all wanted to eat there, so I put my concerns aside. But my luck isn't ways on my side, and Max saw me. So he got May and they tag teamed me. I used Jolteon cause the others were tired besides Garchomp, and I didn't want to use him first. I guess I should've."

Anabel put a hand over her chest. "Ash, we are your-"

"I know. But this is my problem to shoulder. So I kept it a secret." He cut her off. "My little issue shouldn't be holding any of you back."

"That's valiant young man." Ash turned to see Brandon and Spenser walking in the Pokemon Center. "But your 'little issue' is more problematic than most. Judging from what I heard, something happened at the Battle Buffet?"

Ash did an explanation of the events that led to this, making Brandon stone his gaze even more. "They had better have been punished."

"Owner kicked them out for life, and he wants to personally thank Ash for attempting to battle while still following the rules even if he couldn't the whole time. He also paid our buffet cost and Ash gets a free buffet next time he goes." Tucker exclaimed.

"That was nice of him." Spenser stated.

"Maybe so, but I feel like he should have handed them to the police." Brandon added.

"I don't care about that right now. I'm just glad Jolteon will pull through." Ash said

"So how will you approach them if you have to fight them for the tournament?" Lucy asked.

"Not sure about the others, but Garchomp already called dibs on Max." Ash inferred bluntly, causing the others to gasp.

"And I thought I was mad. Garchomp never wants revenge." Greta stated in surprise.

"Shocked me at first too, but I can't blame him. He knows Jolteon's past as well as I do, so he feels like he needs to get proper payback." Ash explained.

"It figures." Brandon looked at a nearby wall clock. "Well Noland and Thorton are done. Should we go see what happened?"

"Sure. Let's go." Ash began walking away until he stopped next to Anabel. "And Annie?"

She blushed slightly. "Yes?"

"If any of them face me in the later rounds, I'm getting payback." Ash said darkly.

She turned around to look at him. "You sure? Their Pokémon aren't exactly our level, and I don't want to brutalize them because of their trainers."

"They follow their trainers orders to kill like servants. I'm done playing nice guy. They provoked my ruthless side, and now they will get the full result. I didn't want to, but they played with fire by trying to kill Jolteon. And I intend to make sure it burns. Badly." He inferred coldly.

Anabel sighed. "Alright. I understand. Just don't go too far."

"I don't plan to." He said as he started walking away.

The other Frontier Brains exchanged looks that showed much fear in their eyes. They all shared the same thoughts. 'This is going to get bad.'

. . . . . . . . . . .

Ash was standing in the Frontier Box as he continued to watch the rest of the tag battles for the day. He was leaning up against a wall by himself as Pikachu watched with him. The other Brains tried to approach him, but he was being distant again, which was something they never wanted to see again.

Currently, they were viewing a match of Wattson and Elesa against Acerola and Nanu. The match was getting extremely close, with both sides down to their last Pokemon. But Ash wasn't too interested, as his thoughts were drifting elsewhere.

"Hey, is Ash here?"

"Hmm?" Ash turned around at the sound of his name and saw Lillie at the door, where Scott answered. He was a little surprised, but he turned his attention away once again. Scott let Lillie into the box and closed the door behind her.

Lillie quickly spotted the Castle Guardian leaning against a wall. "Ash!"

She walked up to him. "I heard you went to the Battle Buffet. I was planning on going there with some people. What did you think?"

The other Kanto Brains felt the temperature drop about twenty degrees as Anabel tried to speak up. "Uhh, Lillie. Ash doesn't-"

"The place is nice." Ash spoke softly. "Just make sure you are careful. Some of the trainers that appear there aren't pushovers."

Lillie smiled seemingly not noticing Ash's little emotional shift. "I'll keep that in mind."

Then the box was eerily silent. Lillie finally managed to notice something was off with Ash. She quickly grew worried, seeing a side of Ash she never saw before. "Ash, is something wrong?"

Ash sighed as the others tensed. "It's a long story, Lil. I really don't feel like reliving it right now."

"But Ash-"

"Lillie. Come over here for a second." Greta called out as she gestured her over to where her and the other two female Kanto Brains were seated.

Lille moved over and plopped into a seat next to them. "What happened? He was so happy yesterday."

"We had a bit of... an issue at the Battle Buffet. Ash was going after food when he ran into Max, aka, the little glasses dweeb. After an exchange, they separated until Max came back with his sister. And the next part..." Lucy hesitated.

Lillie grew scared. "What? What happened."

Anabel looked down. "They broke Battle Buffet rules and ganged up on him in a two vs one. Ash was using his Jolteon, who already has a bad history, while the other two had a Glaceon and a Gallade. Ash lost the battle due to not having Jolteon long enough to make him on par with his other Pokémon. But before Ash could recall Jolteon..."

"I know I'm going to regret asking, but what?" Lillie asked in a mumbled tone. She was already scared of what might have happened.

"They brutalized him. Or at least attempted to. Max called a Shadow Sneak even though the battle ended, and they tried to kill him with full power attacks." Greta finished.

Lillie's eyes widened, tears already forming. "Please don't tell me he's..."

Lucy shook her head. "No, he's alive. Ash lost his cool and released his Garchomp, one of his strongest Pokémon, to protect Jolteon and finish the job before anything else bad could happen. Ash managed to get Jolteon to the Pokémon Center, but he vowed that he was through taking it easy on them. Now, he's acting distant."

"You should consider yourself lucky. You're the only one who's managed to make him say a few sentences since we got up here." Anabel elaborated.

"I can't blame him. It's not like he could completely control the outcome of that fight. He has every right to be depressed." Lillie stated.

"Well it's partially my fault." Everyone eyed Greta. "Every single time Ash dropped a hint of worry or Anabel noticed he looked off, I made fun of his eating habits, which means we didn't take him seriously. If we had, maybe the outcome could have been different. It's just as much my fault as anyone else here."

"Greta, you can't go blaming yourself." They turned to see the Dome Ace leaning on a chair just behind them. "None of this should have happened in the first place. Ash's former friends caused this, not you. They made a choice, and now Ash is determined to act on it. And I want him to, because those punks need to be disciplined and embarrassed in front of this crowd out here if they are truly going to understand their mistakes."

"He's right. This stage here is where it matters. The tournament is being broadcasted across the globe, so if they act out of character, it makes them media fodder. Heck, the world news line already came out with a story of how the Kalos Queen and her partner are being criticized by critics and higher ranking officials for acting completely out of order and taking the insults too far. Serena was forced to give up her title, and Clemont's inventions are quickly dropping in interest on the market." Lillie stated.

"So Ash wasn't kidding when he said they weren't worth bothering anymore after he beat them. They literally lost their entire fanbase like that?" Anabel asked.

"It wasn't really the fanbase as much as it was their sponsors." Tucker elaborated. "I should know, cause I run a fashion line in my spare time. Because of their outlandish behavior, their titles were dirtied, so the people that supported them by giving certain payments or gifts, who are called sponsors, left them to not get caught in the media crossfire. It helps keep their business alive by not keeping relations with infamous people."

"So they couldn't attempt to change the details of what happened?" Lucy asked.

This time, Noland chimed in from below them. "Impossible. This tournament is being globally televised, which means everyone sees this. And I mean everyone. They can't hide anything out here."

"And Ash had all of this figured out? Amazing." Greta muttered.

"I don't know if he thought 'that' far, but he knew that if they tried to act like smart alecks in a place this big with so many people watching, then it makes them look bad to the public." Noland inferred.

"He's right. Every move they try gets recorded or seen in some way. So I can guess they probably caught Clemont and Serena trying to provoke Ash before the battle even started. So they were screwed from then on." Lillie added.

"And he beats them in battle with ease, causing their insults to look scornful and full of jealousy. So when you think about it, it really does ruin them. That's pretty insane." Greta finished.

"It is. But does Ash know about them losing their titles?" Lillie asked.

"If he does, he hasn't said anything to us. And I doubt he feels bad about it, considering what they put him through for the last few years." Anabel said.

"Well I'm going to see if I can cheer him up a bit." Lillie stood up.

"Lillie, I don't know if-"

"Let her try." Anabel cut Noland off. "She at least got him to speak a few words. Even I couldn't do that."

Lillie noticed the small amount of disappointment in that last statement. "Well, here goes nothing."

She slowly approached Ash, who was still staring off at nothing. His face just a blank expression of mixed emotions. He blinked for a second before he noticed Lillie was there. "I assume they told you?"

Lillie nodded. "Yeah. They did. You want to go get a drink at the trainer area in the Pokémon Center?"

Ash frowned, but decided not to be rude. "Sure."

They took a slow walk of silence out of the Frontier Box as the others hoped Lillie would be able to reason with him. All of them let out sighs the moment the pair walked out, everyone thinking the same thing. 'We hope you can help him.'

. . . . . . . . . . .

Evening time bore down on the Indigo Plateau, as the shadows casted by the setting sun danced around with the wind. Some people were doing some extra training in the fields while others were simply taking the time to relax, having either been already defeated or waiting until the next round.

Lillie had taken Ash to a booth in the Pokémon Center's own little café, hoping the scenery would ease his mind a little bit. Both had ordered some Roserade Tea as their drink choice and were currently sipping them down.

Ash sat his cup down and looked at the stadium as it casted its massive shadow over the Pokémon Center. "You know, I never wanted things like this to happen."

Lillie gave a curious look as he continued. "I always thought that they believed in me no matter what happened. That the strong bonds of friendship we made would hold through until our later years. I never even gave way to the thoughts of them betraying me. Heck, even after all they did two years ago, I held on to the light thought they might have finally grown up and realized their mistake. But I was wrong both times. It was foolish to think that everything would go back to normal."

"No it's not." Lillie pipped, making Ash turn back to her. "You always value your friends and your Pokémon above everything. That trait is what makes you the person you are, and it isn't something you should change."

"But that trait has put everyone I know at risk. Anabel almost died trying to help me escape, and Jolteon almost died fighting for me. I hate letting the ones I care about get caught in the crossfire. It's just not fair to them to deal with my problems." Ash stated.

Lillie sighed. "Ash, the more you try to keep them out, the more they want in. They're worried about you. Anabel's upset that she couldn't even make you speak. It isn't fair to them if you just force them out even though they want to help."

Ash said nothing as she continued. "Ash, you always attempted to help me get over my fears of Pokémon. I never attempted to push you out or any of the others for that matter. And look at where I am now. It's because of you and everyone else helping me get over my fear after so many years of being afraid. It may have taken some time, but it still happened. And if you would do the same for the others, then you wouldn't have to worry so much."

"Your situation is very different from mine, Lillie." Ash stated.

"Elaborate."

"For starters, we never really put ourselves at risk trying to help you. Your situation was but a fear, which was an obstacle for you climb. Mine isn't an obstacle, it's a death trap. The amount of times they tried to intentionally harm me or someone close to me is stacking up quickly. If I let the others get involved, everyone else could be put at risk."

"But what about the others already somewhat involved, huh? Tell me that."

"Thanks to an old friend of mine, Brock should be fine. And once Jolteon gets better, I'll train him soon to make sure he is strong enough to handle a situation like that, and Bonnie and the other Brains can take care of themselves right now. And you have the rest of my Alolan friends to back you up."

"Ash, you're missing the point! Everyone wants to help you. It isn't doing you any good keeping the others out and taking the brunt of the damage by yourself. And even if you try to not let us get involved, after what happened at the Battle Buffet, do you really think the others will just let you face this alone anymore?"

Ash didn't respond. "No they won't. So let us help you. With all of us together, we can take them on easily. They won't be able to beat us all. You have a group of professional A grade trainers as friends, and basically the entire Alolan Island Challenge group at your back. We can all take them easily. They talk smack, but they can't really hold it up considering the amount of slaughterfests you keep hitting them with."

Ash still refused to say anything. His partner, laying down below him, climbed up onto his lap and tried to grab Ash's attention, which he eventually managed. "What?"

"Pika pi. Pikachu pi pika!" Pikachu gave a small salute to his trainer.

Ash gave a light chuckle before finally looking up at Lillie, who was attempting to stifle her laughter, but failing miserably. The group shared a laugh before Ash finally spoke again.

"Alright. You win. I won't push the others out of my problems anymore." Lillie gave a sigh of relief as Ash stood up, Pikachu hopping onto his shoulder. "Now I need to go check to see if Jolteon has woken up yet. I'll see you tomorrow before my battle."

"One more thing." Ash turned his head back around.

"Make sure you apologize to Anabel. That hurt her when you refused to speak to her. Ok?"

Ash felt a pang of guilt before nodding. "I'll make sure of it. See you later. And thanks."

"No problem. I needed to return the favor for helping me get through my problems." Lillie grinned as Ash walked out of the diner, feeling as though a weight has lifted off his shoulders.

. . . . . . . . . .

The world seemed to be covered in a blanket of darkness as Ash walked into his room. He saw Anabel sitting on the couch in her night clothes as she was about to start an episode of the new Purge series that they both got hooked on. The room dropped a few degrees before Ash walked up to Anabel. Pikachu jumped off of his trainer and onto the arm of the couch, next to where Espeon was.

Ash stopped and gave her a small smile. "Hey."

Anabel stood up. "Hey. So how did your talk with Lillie go?"

Ash could tell she was hiding a little bit of hurt, but decided to wait. "It was an eye opener I guess. She helped me see that I was being an idiot."

"You weren't being an idiot. You were just in a bad place for a small time. With what happened to you, old memories can do that to a person." Anabel assured.

"Still though. I shouldn't have taken them on solo and risked Jolteon. I just wanted to keep you guys out of it for the sake of your enjoyment."

"Ash-"

"I'm not done yet. I closed you all out when in reality you just wanted to help me. It's not right for me to keep you out of a situation you want to be involved with. I just didn't want anyone to get hurt. And I'm sorry that I closed you out especially. You've always cared about my well-being and to refuse your help wasn't right of me. So I want to make it up to you." Ash finished.

"Ash you don't have to make it up to me. I understand."

"Well I still want to." Ash stated.

"And if I don't want you to?" Anabel asked.

"Well I still will anyways."

"What if I make you not do it?" Anabel said as she tried to hold back a laugh.

"Too late. Already happening." Ash piped.

"Ash!" Anabel playfully whined.

"Nothing you say or do can stop me. I am going to make it up to you." Ash exclaimed.

"Oh alright. I doubt it could be that bad." She laughed. "So do you already have a plan or something?"

"There is a nice restaurant on the opposite end of the plateau. After the three on three battle before the Top 128, you and I are going on a date. That is, if you would like to go on a date with me?" Ash smiled.

Anabel thought aloud, even though secretly, she already had an answer. "Well let's see. Lucy and Greta wanted to take me shopping at a clothing outlet because of a huge sale."

Ash gave a nod. "Well I won't stop-"

"But, I suppose I can always tell them to go without me." Anabel said.

Ash frowned. "You're toying with me, aren't you?"

"What gave you that idea?" Anabel said with an innocent tone, giving Ash a look.

"Oh that's it. Come here." Ash grabbed her and held her as he fell onto the couch, her above him as he locked his arms, preventing her escape.

"Ash! Quit it!" Anabel giggled.

"No can do. You already toyed with me, so now I get to toy with you." He laughed.

"If you don't let go, I swear." She said as she attempted to struggle.

"I'm using Bewear Hug. It's apparently super effective." Ash joked.

"Ash! Come on! I need to turn the episode on." She pleaded.

They continued their little struggle until Ash finally let her go so they could start the episode. Just before turning the episode on, Ash spoke. "So, what is your answer?"

The next moment caught Ash off guard. Again. She leaned in close and planed a soft kiss on his cheek. He was frozen for a second as his cheeks turned into Tamato Berries. Anabel flushed too, but gave a giggle at Ash's expression before leaning onto his arm and laying her head down.

"You don't know how long I wanted you to ask that." She stated. "Of course I will go on a date with you."

"You've waited for me to ask that?" Ash frowned.

"Yeah. It's a little cheesy, but I've been hoping for a while now. You took me to places before, but you never really made it elaborate or anything." Anabel confessed.

"You like me that much?" Ash questioned.

"Why wouldn't I?" Anabel countered as if it were a ridiculous question.

Ash smiled. "Well then maybe I need to start doing that more often. Hopefully this goes right."

"Knowing our luck, probably not." Anabel bluntly remarked. "But I don't care."

It was silent before Ash finally spoke again. "Well what are we waiting for? I've been wanting to see this all day!"

. . . . . . . . . .

Sitting at home all alone is something Delia grew accustomed to since Ash had left. But the current situation was a little different this time around. Finally finding someone else she can actually see all the time instead of for a few weeks each year has helped her tremendously. Ever since her former husband has been reported missing, she has been holding onto the hope that he would return, but he never did. Ash never knew his father that well, and she never got to spend enough time with him.

And since Ash left, she had finally found another person. It took a little bit, but they both ended up finding out that they had similar situations. He had a wife that died at child birth and a daughter that he couldn't support for a long period of time, who he ended up sending to foster care until she could become a trainer. They had an argument when she saw him again after seven years, which led to them never speaking again after that.

With more similarities than differences the pair quickly grew together, and Ash's former mother went from Delia Ketchum to Delia Collins. Now they spend their time in Pallet together as they continue to spend their life together. Her husband, James Collins, managed to earn a degree in Engineering, and he works in his shop in Viridian, which thanks to his car, is only forty-five minutes away.

Now as she sat alone to wait until her husband gets home from work, she hears a call coming on her video phone. She pulls out the casserole from the oven and takes off her oven mittens to answer the phone. Much to her surprise, it's Misty.

"Misty? What could you want at this hour? I thought you would be busy with the tournament."

"About that." Misty started. "A little weakling came back who is bothering us and cheating all over again. Let me give you a hint. He has black hair and his name rhymes with trash."

Delia frowned. "You're joking. He's still battling?"

Misty scowled. "Yeah, and he just brutalized May and Max at the Battle Buffet!"

"That boy..." Delia muttered. "Alright. I'll see if James and I can get over there tomorrow. He's closed on Sundays anyways, and he could always leave a note saying he is going to be out a few more days."

"Ok thanks. I'll see you then."

As Delia closed the call off, she heard the door unlock as her husband walked through the door. "I'm back!"

Delia stood up from the where she was sitting, and looked over at James. "You know how I mentioned my son, who ran away because he was being stubborn?"

"Yeah. What about him?" James asked as he took off his work boots.

"Well he's causing trouble at the tournament on Indigo Plateau right now. Do you think you could take a few days off and we could go set him straight?"

James was silent for a moment as he hummed in thought. "Well I don't see why not. I'll just call one of my employees and tell him to watch the shop while we're gone."

Delia gave him a chaste kiss. "Thanks hon. Now let's eat. I made casserole."

. . . . . . . . .

The following day drifted on fast, as before Ash or Anabel knew it, they were about to start their next fight against the twin team of Jake and Daniel. As the Frontier duo rose up, they saw their opponents smirking at them. Both dressed in what looked like dark pants, a white shirt with a red jacket over it, in combination with their looks made them almost identical, as they both had grey eyes and black hair with their smirks lining their faces.

"Well, well, well. You both showed up. Too bad-" The one on the left said.

"-cause you're done this time. You can't get through the unbeatable sibling bond of Jake and I." The one on the right finished, who they realized was Daniel.

"Unbeatable, huh? I like a challenge. Ready Anabel?" Ash asked.

Anabel grabbed a Poke Ball. "You bet."

The ref rose his flags. "This is a tag team battle between the twins Jake and Daniel and the Frontier Duo Ash and Anabel. You know the rules. Now release your Pokémon."

Daniel and Jake went first. "Garbodor-" "Escavalier-" "Come on out!"

The Unovan native Pokémon were released once again, staring down the familiar opponents. Ash and Anabel nodded to each other as they threw out their Pokémon.

"Lucario, I choose you!"

"Mienshao, come out my friend."

The fighting type duo got into a stance as they prepared to battle their opponents across from them. Everyone tensed as the ref rose his flags. "Now let the battle begin!"

The Frontier Brains wasted no time. "Lucario, use Extremespeed to get close then use Bone Rush."

Jake wasted no time reacting either. "Escavalier, get in front of Garbodor and use Iron Defense."

"Mienshao, use Fake out on Escavalier."

As Mienshao froze the Escavalier with the flinch off Fake Out, Lucario drew close to Garbodor, making Daniel a bit unsettled. "Use your arms and push him back."

Ash recognized this strategy. "Oh no you don't. Lucario, use your Aura."

Lucario closed his eyes as he began to feel for his surroundings. After painting a picture using his Aura, he began dodging the flailing arms of Garbodor with ease. After stepping in close, he let loose on the Poison type, landing many Bone Rush hits before pulling back.

"Wow. You must've trained with Roxie." Ash praised.

Jake frowned. "You've met our cousin before?"

Ash smiled. "Yeah. She was my last gym battle before I qualified for the Vertress Conference several years back."

The twins eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, you mean-"

"-you actually beat her?"

"In retrospect, she told me to use my full team while she used three, but in the end, I still managed to win by only one. I remember her Garbodor pretty well. You must really take after her."

"Of course we do." Jake nodded.

"She taught us almost everything we know." Daniel added.

Anabel smirked. "Then let's see how far that knowledge gets you. Mienshao, use High Jump Kick."

"Lucario, rush Garbodor down with Dual Elemental Punches." Ash commanded.

The Aura Pokémon formed an Ice Punch and Thunder Punch in each hand and rushed quickly at Garbodor.

Daniel smirked. "That's not the only trick in my book Ash. Dodge it."

Before Lucario could land any hit, Garbodor disappeared in a quick blur, appearing behind Lucario and hitting it with a swift Drain Punch, sending him flying. Ash widened his eyes.

"Crap. Weak Armor." He muttered.

Daniel heard him. "Exactly. You want to make this a speed game, then you better be ready."

Meanwhile, Anabel's Mienshao had just landed a High Jump Kick, but Escavalier had used Iron Defense to lessen the impact, and was now engaging Mienshao in a close quarters fight.

"Mienshao, use Power-Up Punch."

"Don't let it get close. Use Twinneedle."

The two Pokémon began attempting to land a hit, each thing that they threw, getting dodged by the other, until Anabel noticed something.

'He uses his long arms as a way to keep Mienshao pushed back. That's It!'

"Mienshao, wait for the next attack."

As Escavalier came in for a Megahorn attack, Anabel waited until the right moment. "Now Vital Throw!"

Mienshao grabbed the arm of the Escavalier and chucked it over her shoulder, sending it over towards Lucario and Garbodor. Ash noticed this before Daniel did and moved fast.

"Flip and send him down with a Force Palm."

Lucario managed to jump above one more Drain Punch and sent Garbodor to the floor. It's big mass managed to become a target, as Escavalier crashed right into him. As the dust cleared, both Pokémon were registered as defeated, groaning as they laid on the ground.

"Escavalier and Garbodor are unable to battle. Mienshao and Lucario win. Send out your last Pokémon."

The twins recalled their Pokémon, giving thanks for trying so hard. Then they gave a swift glance up before pulling out their next Pokémon. "It's true what the power ranks said."

"You both are some of the few to be trifled with in this tournament."

Ash gave Anabel a quick glance. "Did Scott ever mention power ranks?"

"No. But I do know they are a tournament thing. But I never really paid them any attention." She answered.

"Enough simple chatter. Let's continue. Sawsbuck-"

"Druddigon-"

"Come on out!"

As more Unova Pokémon came out once again, Ash and Anabel gave a nod to the ref, stating they wish to keep their Pokémon in. "Alright, battle begin!"

Nobody moved for a moment as the opponents sized each other up. Anabel turned to Ash.

"I think this is the right situation for my new Attack Chain we discovered this morning. I just need Druddigon in a good spot."

"Hmm, I'll set the Druddigon up, but keep Sawsbuck on your end. Otherwise, this might not work." Ash inferred.

"Got it." They turned back to see the twins about to call attacks. Luckily, Ash and Anabel are quick with their reflexes, like their fighting types.

"Druddigon, use Dragon Claw."

"Sawsbuck, use Horn Leech."

"Lucario, meet the Dragon Claw with a Meteor Mash."

"Mienshao, use Detect, then go for our new Attack Chain ten!"

Lucario and Druddigon got into a direct standoff with their attacks meeting and holding their places. Mienshao managed to dodge to the left and avoid the Horn Leech before driving a Poison Jab uppercut to Sawsbuck's chest. Then before anything else could be majorly registered, Mienshao started firing a flurry of Drain Punches before sending an uppercut to send the Grass Pokémon flying into the air.

Mienshao followed up into the air before slamming down on Sawsbuck with a Knock Off and Poison Jab combo. The sad part for the twins was Lucario still was holding Druddigon's standoff, near where the impact point of Sawsbuck was supposed to end up.

Ash widened his eyes. "That was quick. Lucario, use Circle Throw."

Lucario sidestepped and grabbed the Druddigon's arm, flinging the Dragon type towards Sawsbuck with the Fighting type move, making sure to apply power to the throw. Just before they were to make impact, Ash and Anabel smiled to each other before turning back to the battle.

"Twin Aura Sphere!" They yelled in complete sync.

Both Fighting types smirked as they let loose the blue spheres of energy quickly, making sure to strike the pair as they both collided with each other. A brief explosion resulted, and past the smoke, both Pokemon were revealed to be fainted with swirls in their eyes.

"Both Druddigon and Sawsbuck are unable to battle. Lucario and Mienshao win. Ash and Anabel move on to the Top 128 rounds."

Ash and Anabel smiled at each other before returning their Pokémon, giving some words of thanks. Before they moved more, they found their opponents walking over with arms extended. Brief handshakes occurred, the twins giving smiles in the process.

"You both won." Daniel acknowledged.

"Now one of you better win the tournament." Jake added.

The Frontier Duo nodded. "We will. You two take care. We need to go do a few things. Great battle."

With no more words to exchange, Ash and Anabel left the stadium, unsure of what would appear before them past the locker room.

. . . . . . . . . .

Ash took a step out of the locker room first as he called back. "Alright. I'll go grab some. I think I left the Oran Berries in my bag at the box."

Anabel called back. "Ok. Just be quick. I'd like to make sure they still have energy before we take them to Nurse Joy."

Ash closed the door and jogged towards the nearby elevator before stepping on with a small group of people. He hit his button before they climbed to the top level, where the boxes were at. Ash stepped off and made a dash for the Frontier Box, pulling the door open and stepping inside. Scott was there with Brandon and Palmer.

"Not bad. They sure grew from last month, huh?" Scott asked.

"Yeah. Too bad they already took on the challenge, or I would offer it again." Ash said before glancing around the box and spotting his bag. "There it is."

"What did you forget?" Palmer asked.

"Oran Berries. We are just making sure our Pokemon have enough energy to go through a good checkup, cause they had a run for their money that time." Ash responded as he put his bag on his back.

"Mind if I come with? I need to go down anyways." Scott stated.

"Sure. Let's go." Ash held the door open for his boss and closed it behind them as they walked for the elevator.

"I think they might have made it to Top 128 if we hadn't faced them. We know those strategies too well." Ash sighed. "They have a lot of potential."

"Wanting to live up to someone like a Gym Leader can do that to a person. Roxie is one of the finest Gym Leaders Unova has. Her and Drayden were marked as the strongest Gym Leaders in their region for the longest time until Drayden had to retire." Scott inferred.

"Yeah. Too bad that gym had to go to Iris. If Drayden had known what she did to me, he would've brought down a punishment, considering how strict he is." Ash said as they stepped into the still open elevator and hit the bottom floor button.

"Yeah. I thought that you should know, since Iris became Gym Leader, the Gym has really gone down in popularity. I asked around and someone told me that she berates her challengers by calling them little kids every time they do something wrong even if they win. Rumor has it she's still doing it in the tournament right now."

Ash rolled his eyes. "Yeah she did that to me too durring our journey in Unova even though I pretty much knew most of what I was doing anyways. She gets pride out of berating people, which honestly should be enough to kick her out of the position right now. A Gym Leader is like a Frontier Brain in the sense that they are supposed to make a challenge for the person. Not make the person want to strangle her."

They stepped out of the elevator. "Didn't you tell me something about Skyla and how she would not do legitimate battles with challengers and that she would just make up the result in her head? That's not much different, huh?"

"It actually is. Iris is deliberately taunting challengers. Skyla did it because she wanted to do more of her hobby and didn't think it would tick anyone off. I was the one who make her think otherwise. It was just like with Volkner for a time, who was on a crazy long win streak, causing him to lose his battling spark and just give out badges at his doorstep, which it took me and Flint to set him right."

They were getting closer to the locker room until Scott stopped. "Well glad I talked to you for a bit. I need to go visit with Goodshow. I'll be back later."

Ash waved him off as he continued to walk away and towards the locker room. He was about to grab the handle until he heard a loud and familiar voice call his name. One that he never wanted to hear ever again.

"Ashton Ketchum!"

Ash froze and turned around, anger forming upon his face. Standing right there was Delia, his former mother, along with some black haired person as well. Ash could only assume that was her new husband.

He decided to play it off. "I'll make this quick since I have a place to be. Who are you and what do you want?"

"Don't play dumb with your mother!" She yelled.

Ash rolled his eyes. "I don't have a mother. Haven't since I joined the Battle Frontier. Now if you would just leave me alone, I need to go to my Pokemon."

"What, so you can give them more drugs!?" The man stated in anger.

Ash blinked slightly. "I'm sorry, who are you?"

"James Collins. I'm your new stepfather." He stated with crossed arms.

"Then you must be mistaken. You aren't my stepfather because I am not in that family anymore." Ash inferred coldly.

"By legal means, yes you are. And due to those legal means, we have the right to make you obey us. So you are coming with us this instant young man!" Delia glared.

Ash heard the locker room door open. "Ash, is that you? What's going..."

Anabel gasped as she saw who was outside with Ash. "Oh no..."

Ash thought she meant Delia alone, but he saw her gazing at James harshly. The man widened his eyes in surprise and shock. "A-Anabel? Is that really you?!"

"...Dad." She said coldly.

. . . . . . . . . .

Ok, before the comment section goes crazy, this is not James from Team Rocket. I just decided that this would make for some interesting development. After all, Anabel never had any family specifically mentioned before. People relate her to Lucian from Sinnoh, but I don't know if that is actually true or not, so I just did this.

So tell me what you think. I am open to creative criticism.

-Bl0t0rch