"...Hm. Silver, huh?" Ash mused once Jessie and James had told him everything. He and Pikachu looked down at Meowth curiously.

"Don't look at me. How was I supposed to know Giovanni's son was a security guard?" he rebutted.

"He's right, twerp. It's not like we know everybody in Team Rocket." Jessie added in Meowth's defense.

"...I mean, they do have a good point." Brock admitted.

"It's a huge organization, after all. They're bound to have secret members." Zoro stated firmly.

"Yeah, just look at how big the Navy is, for example." Nami piped in.

"Good point there." Usopp affirmed with Eevee nodding. Ash and Pikachu just sighed upon realizing they were right.

"Still, for Silver to want to face Pikachu, Charizard, Snorlax, and Sceptile all on one team, that guy is ballsy." he admitted, clearly interested.

"Yeah, I'd have to question his sanity there. I understand wanting to kick Giovanni out of Team Rocket, but yeesh, wanting to face those four to see if he can measure up to his dad...yikes." Meowth uttered, almost sounding nervous.

"Yeah. And this could help us potentially weed out Madame Boss into the open." Uta pointed out.

"True." Meowth responded.

"Well, I'd better let Swellow, Corphish, Sceptile, and Snorlax know to be ready at a moment's notice." Ash said.

"Three of them are always battle-ready. It's the big guy who needs to know to stay awake." Meowth replied with a chuckle. Jessie and James sniggered while Ash, the Pikachus, and Brock chuckled nervously.

"True." they both muttered. The curiosity got the better of Serena as she pulled out her Pokedex. She flipped through it until she found the Pokemon she was looking for.

"Snorlax, the Sleeping Pokemon. After eating its fill, Snorlax is too sleepy to move. Small children sometimes play on its belly." the Pokedex spoke.

Sweat fell down the back of Serena's head as she mumbled under her breath, "Oh boy..." Sanji, who was looking at the Pokedex entry, narrowed his eyebrow in interest.

"So Ash, how much does a Snorlax eat?" he asked.

"My Snorlax once ate a whole year's worth of Pokemon food...all at once." Ash answered mareepishly with Pikachu rubbing the back of his neck. Serena's eyes grew wide as saucers.

"A WHOLE YEAR'S WORTH OF POKEMON FOOD AT ONCE?!" she yelped.

"Yep." Brock concurred.

"...Oh Arceus, the amount of baking I'll have to do..." Serena groaned. Ash placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax, Rena. He'll appreciate the effort." he reassured Serena.

She huffed indignantly before shooting back, "That's not the issue here."

"Serena. He'll appreciate your efforts. After all, Professor Oak is a horrible cook." Ash admitted. The Pikachus made a nasty face at the mention of Professor Oak's cooking. Serena's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"That bad, huh?" she inquired.

"Yeah, that bad. Almost makes me sad Tracey isn't there. He's usually the one feeding the Pokemon at the ranch." Brock replied.

"True. Though, Mom's there. And she's an amazing cook. They'll be fine. But let's not tell Professor Oak that." Ash added with a nervous chuckle.

"Agreed. But anyway, let's make that call later. Pallet Town is probably sleeping right now since Lance called Jessie and James after midnight their time." Meowth stated.

"...Oh right. Time difference and all that." Ash uttered.

"To be fair, this was probably the biggest one you've had to take into account. Then again, I say probably because I don't know about the time difference between Kanto and Unova." Brock responded.

"For ya information, Kanto is thirteen hours ahead of Unova. But besides getting Charizard back late in that journey, ya didn't really have to take that into account as much as ya do now." Meowth explained.

Clemont whistled before saying, "That's about half as bad as the time difference between Kanto and Kalos. Kalos is seven hours behind Kanto."

"Yeah, that is still pretty bad." Ash concurred. Nami suddenly perked up upon seeing dark rain clouds coming toward them.

"Guys, we should probably find shelter soon. A rainstorm is coming." she warned the group. And after Ash ended the call with Jessie and James and put his tablet back in the bag, they all took off running. Soon, the group spotted a mansion up ahead, and Zoro noticed something peculiar looking at him from a window upstairs that made him interested.

"Oh?" he mused. As they ran toward the front door, it suddenly creaked open a little bit. The group managed to make it under the roof just before the rain started coming down.

"Phew. Right on time." Nami said in a relieved tone.

"Geez, having Nami is like having a 24/7 weather report lady." Meowth admitted, clearly impressed with his trainer. Nami had to chuckle a little bit there.

"Oh please. This is nothing compared to the weather in our dimension." she replied sassily.

"...How bad is it over there?" Bonnie asked uncertainly. Each of the Straw Hats had a nervous chuckle at that question.

"You have no idea, Bonnie." Nami answered.

Bonnie shivered a little bit while saying, "Did I ever mention how much I hate storms?" As if to prove her point, thunder boomed in the sky, which caused her to scream and bump into the door, back first.

"...Huh?" Bonnie uttered once she noticed it was ajar. She pulled the door open and looked inside the creepy-looking mansion.

"Let's ask if we can stay here until the rain stops." Clemont suggested.

"Already ahead of you, Big Brother. Look, the door's open." Bonnie replied as she ran in.

"Ah, slow down, Bonnie! You can't just go in like that!" Clemont gasped while he and the others followed after her.

Bonnie ignored him and called out, "Anybody home?! Hello?! Can we stay here until the rain stops?!"

Dedenne hopped on top of her head before adding, "Dedenne?! (Pretty please?!)"Brock knocked on the front door.

"Excuse us!" he called out.

"Hello?!" Ash and Luffy piped in. An easily spooked Serena was hiding behind her crush's back while Usopp and Eevee looked like they wanted to be anywhere but there.

"...Okay, nobody's home. Let's leave." he stated a few seconds later. Usopp was walking back to the front door when it suddenly slammed shut on its own. And just like that, the lights turned on. Everybody looked at a puzzled Clemont, who was the closest to the light switch.

"Uh, that wasn't me, guys. Must have been...um...motion detectors! Yeah, motion detectors! That explains the door closing on its own too!" he deduced despite sounding a little freaked out himself. Nami, Usopp, and Eevee, who were looking very terrified, calmed down upon hearing the explanation.

Their moods immediately got ruined when Serena uttered in a terrified tone, "But what if science can't explain this, Clemont? What if...we really are in a haunted house?" That made Usopp and Eevee shudder as chills went up their spines. Serena noticed that and covered her mouth.

"Did I say that?!" she mumbled under her breath, clearly embarrassed. Ash put his arm around Serena comfortingly.

"Relax, Rena. If worst comes to worst, I'll have Noctowl sense any Psychic or Ghost types that might be lurking here." he reassured her. Serena couldn't help but blush a little bit as she managed to calm herself.

Zoro drew one of his blades while saying, "Have your Noctowl ready just in case." Ash nodded in acknowledgment as Uta turned toward Luffy.

"Zoro's got his blade out already?" she whispered to him.

"Yeah. With the Navy here in Kalos, who knows if any other Devil Fruit users besides us got sent here. I can just imagine someone like Buggy scheming something in here." Luffy replied with a bit of a smile. Uta giggled at the mention of Buggy the Clown.

"From what Shanks had told me, this would be a good place for a Buggy trap. Especially with his Chop-Chop Fruit." she admitted. Serena puked in horror upon hearing the name of Buggy's Devil Fruit.

"Oh Arceus, that makes him sound like a slasher villain in a horror movie." she uttered. That time, it was Clemont who shuddered as a chill went up his spine. Once again, Serena realized what she said and covered her mouth.

"Why did I say that out loud?!" she muttered to herself exasperatedly. Ash gently tightened his hug on Serena, causing her to look up at him.

"Rena. Relax. I can handle this Bugger if he shows up." he declared confidently. Serena smiled and calmed down.

...This is the most romantic thing I've ever seen from Ash/the twerp. Brock and Meowth both thought while shaking their heads.

Bonnie sniggered before saying in a teasing tone, "Oh, just kiss already. You know you want to." That comment made Ash and Serena blush so hard that they thought they were seeing red.

"BONNIE!" Clemont exclaimed scoldingly.

"What? I'm just trying to lighten up the mood here, Big Brother." Bonnie replied nonchalantly with a shrug. Sanji just shook his head and took a puff from his cigarette.

"Before you two start making love in a haunted house of all places, at least get Noctowl out here so we can scout the place." he stated.

"S-S-SANJI!" Serena stammered, clearly embarrassed. Trying to hide his own embarrassment, Ash wordlessly called out Noctowl, who immediately rotated his head in confusion upon seeing the state his trainer was in.

"No noct noctowl? (Uh, what happened?)" he asked.

"Pika pika pikachu. (Just some lovey-dovey stuff.)" both Pikachus replied at the same time. Meowth had to resist shaking his head there as he went over to an amused Noctowl.

"Anyway, can ya scout this place out? We have either some Psychic or Ghost types...or both." he inquired. And just like that, Noctowl became serious and nodded in understanding. Before he could take off, and to Brock's surprise, Croagunk popped out of his Pokeball onto the surprised Owl Pokemon's back.

"Croagunk. (Take me too.)" he ribbited out. Meowth actually chuckled a little bit.

"Man, that Croagunk always seemed to know when things are up. After all, he stopped our attempted raids of the Oreburgh and Veilstone City Gyms in Sinnoh." he commented.

"...Huh, I was wondering where he disappeared to during those two Gym battles. Okay, Croagunk, just be careful." Brock warned Croagunk. The Toxic Mouth Pokemon gave him a nod as Noctowl took off.

Bonnie whistled before saying, "Croagunk sure is helpful."

"Yep. And he's always calm...unless that jerk's Toxicroak is around." Meowth responded.

"...Isn't Toxicroak the evolved form of Croagunk?" Clemont mused. Ash took out his Pokedex and flipped through it until he found the entry he was looking for.

"Toxicroak, the Toxic Mouth Pokemon, and the evolved form of Croagunk. Toxicroak's throat has a poison sac, and its poison stirs and becomes even more potent as it croaks." It spoke.

"So let me guess...Paul has a Toxicroak?" Serena asked. Ash shook his head.

"Good guess, but no. One of Team Galactic's three commanders did, though. And Croagunk HATED it." he admitted.

"...Oof. That bad, huh?" Uta inquired.

"Yeah. Heck, he wouldn't stop Brock from flirting with girls if he knew Toxicroak could be around." Ash answered. Those not in the know had their eyes widen in surprise. Even Meowth was blinking at that revelation.

"Huh, I never knew their rivalry was THAT bad." he uttered. Zoro was the first to recover.

"Let's focus on this first. Then we can discuss what Pokemon the Team Galactic commanders have for if we have to face off against them someday." he suggested sternly. Everybody else nodded in agreement with that idea. Suddenly, lightning flashed outside, which caused Serena to squeak and hold on to Ash. The flash brought to everybody's attention a painting of an old woman.

"Geez, Serena. There's nothing to be afraid of here." Bonnie retorted. Serena looked like she was going to make a comment about the little girl's fear of thunder when Ash gave her a light squeeze.

"Relax, Rena. Relax." he murmured to her soothingly. A mareepish smile formed on Serena's face before she took a deep breath.

"Thanks, Ash. I don't know what I'd do without you here. Also, I'm guessing this isn't your first rodeo with haunted houses." she whispered back. That last line made Ash chuckle nervously.

"Yeah, this isn't my first time in a haunted house." he confirmed. Ash then shuddered upon remembering the incident in Lavender Town.

I can't tell her about the time I wanted to catch a Ghost type to fight Sabrina. That's another forehead flick just waiting to happen. Heck, Sabrina's actions would terrify Rena. he brooded. Ash then turned to Brock, who nodded in understanding.

Meanwhile, Noctowl and Croagunk were searching the upper floor when they heard three Pokemon voices in the next room.

"Honedge hon Honedge?! Honedge?! (What if it's really the Navy?! What do we do?!)" a metallic voice asked, clearly concerned.

"Es espurr es espurr espurr es espurr. Es espurr es. (Ralts said she can sense some goodness in this group. Let's believe her.)" a serious voice responded sternly.

"...Ral...ralts... (...Yes...trust me...)" a very weak voice uttered. The mention of the Navy immediately set off alarm bells for both Noctowl and Croagunk. And the Owl Pokemon also remembered hearing a story from Glalie about Ralts's emotion sensing and immediately recognized the weak Pokemon just from that. However, he and Croagunk didn't recognize the other two voices.

"No no-noctowl no Noct. Noct no noctowl noct noctowl Owl-no. (I recognize the Ralts. But the other two must be native to Kalos.)" Noctowl stated sternly. Croagunk gave him a nod before jumping off and standing guard at the door to the room they heard the voices from.

"Croa croagunk. Croagunk croa Gunk croa croagunk. (I'll stay here. You go get Brock and the others.)" he replied, equally serious. Noctowl nodded back and hurried downstairs to the group. Some of them were looking around for anything shady when he arrived. Brock and Meowth both narrowed their eyes upon seeing Noctowl without Croagunk.

"Hey Noctowl. Where's Croagunk?" the Pokemon Doctor in training asked. Noctowl relayed a message to Meowth which made him frown.

"He said there are two unknown Pokemon protecting an injured Ralts upstairs. It must have been the Navy's doing. Ralts is convinced that she senses goodness in us. However, while one of her protectors believes her, the other one is not so trusting. So someone would have to either prove it or battle it. Croagunk is standing guard at the door." the Scratch Cat Pokemon translated. Nami and Zoro both heard that and quirked their eyes.

"A Ralts, huh?" she mused as she pulled out her Pokedex and went through it until she found the Pokemon she was looking for.

"Ralts, the Feeling Pokemon. Ralts senses the emotions of people using the horn on its head. It rarely appears before people. But when it does, it draws closer if it senses that the person has a positive disposition." it spoke. Needless to say, Nami was immediately hooked.

"Hm...I wonder if Ralts can sense something like corruption. Would be good to have somebody like that." she stated.

"Yeah, it is certainly possible for Ralts to sense corruption. I know this because Max has one of his own." Brock answered. Ash heard him and suddenly turned pale.

"Oh no, I just had a thought. Since Ralts and its entire evolution line can sense corruption, wouldn't the Navy be threatened by them? After all, they could tell everyone..." He trailed off.

"...so the Navy could see the species as a threat." Serena finished Ash's thought with her and the Pikachus' eyes wide. Now it was Clemont who paled.

"Aw crud. Diantha, our Champion, has a Gardevior, which is one of the final evolved forms of Ralts." he uttered. Everybody else flinched.

"...Welp, that's a J attack waiting to happen." Luffy whispered to Uta seriously. She nodded in agreement.

"All the more reason to get this Ralts on our side then. Especially if the Navy is serious about exterminating every troublesome species of Pokemon they can think of." Nami affirmed. Ash, Serena, and the Pikachus tensed up upon remembering that threat.

Nami turned to Zoro before asking, "Can I ask you to handle the untrusting Pokemon?" He nodded as he sent out Deino and his Eevee and explained the situation to them.

"We don't necessarily wanna hurt the Pokemon, but just in case it does come down to a fight..." Zoro trailed off. Deino and Eevee both understood their trainer's intentions and gave him a nod.

"...Oh, so NOW Moss Head decides to hold back." Sanji retorted with a scoff. That comment earned him a smack in the back of the head from an annoyed Nami.

"Idiot. Those goons were evil. These Pokemon are scared." she rebutted.

"Yeah, Sanji, get your priorities straight." Serena added sternly. Ash and Meowth both gave Sanji a glare while the Pikachus sparked their cheeks. The cook wisely backed off. With Zoro, Deino, and Eevee up front, the group followed Noctowl upstairs to the room Croagunk was standing guard at. As Brock thanked him, the swordsman opened the door.

https://youtu.be/SSftkNqh5-I

"Excuse us, we're here to-WHOA THERE!" he gasped as he instinctively brought his blade up, resulting in a clash with...another sword. His body was silver with a light gray hilt. Embedded in the hilt was a blue gem with a dark center that appeared to be his eye. Attached to the pommel was a long, dark blue cloth with a swirl design in lighter blue at the tip; the tip of the sash split into four tassels. In the cloth, he was holding a dark brown sheath with curved lines resembling a triquetra across its surface. Near the top of the sheath were two rings and a hole that in conjunction with the shape of his blade created the illusion of a face, with eyes and a mouth. A third ring extended onto the hilt and encircled his actual eye.

"WHOA, IS THAT SWORD ALIVE?!" Luffy yelped, completely stunned alongside his crew. Serena hid behind Ash's back while he took out his Pokedex to scan the new Pokemon.

"Honedge, the Sword Pokemon. It is said that Honedge is a spirit living inside a sword." it spoke.

Ash raised an eyebrow before saying, "Oh? This one is a Steel and Ghost type."

"Wow, now that's a unique type combination." Brock commented.

"...Well, this is certainly different. Never thought I'd see a swordfight in my life...and with a Sword Pokemon, no less." Meowth muttered as he watched the clash of blades.

"Whoa, whoa, Honedge! We don't have to fight! We just wanna save the Ralts!" Zoro exclaimed determinedly while he continued parrying the strikes. Honedge just scoffed.

"Honedge. Hon honedge hon honedge hon Honedge edge. Hon honedge hon Honedge hon honedge hon honedge. Hon...edge. (Liar. You people are the same as Navy scum. You'll just kill her if I let you do as you please. Now...leave.)" he spat out venomously. Meowth knew he needed to step in before somebody got seriously injured.

But just as he was about to, another voice yelled out, "RAL-RALTS! RAL RALTS! (HONEDGE! STAND DOWN!)" That was followed by some hacking and coughing. The group turned to the bed, where a severely hurt Pokemon laid. She was a humanoid Pokemon with a white body. She had thin arms and legs that widened toward the feet. There was a wispy extension trailing off the back of her feet, creating the overall impression of a nightgown. Most of her face was covered by green hair that resembled a bowl cut, but a pair of pinkish-red eyes was sometimes visible. There were two flat, red horns on top of her head, a large one toward the front and a smaller one at the back.

Another very worried Pokemon was sitting at the bedside, patting Ralts's back. She was a bipedal, feline Pokemon. Her fur was a pale gray with white tips on her ears and white paws. There were tousled tuffs of fur on her head, cheeks, shoulders, chest, and hips. She had wide, pale purple eyes with darker purple pupils, a tiny nose, and a small mouth. When her mouth was open, two pointed teeth can be seen on her upper jaw. Her tail was fluffy and slightly curled. And she was carrying a green pendant around her neck.

"Honedge- (But Ralts-)" Honedge got interrupted.

"Espurr...purr. (Honedge...please.)" Espurr uttered, almost sounding broken. Honedge just sighed bitterly while floating away from Zoro, who looked as aghast as everybody else upon seeing the sorry state Ralts was in.

"Um...Brock..." Nami uttered, clearly worried sick. Brock snapped out of his stupor and called out his Blissey before starting his work alongside Croagunk.

"...Okay, I'm 100% calling Lance and the lab first thing in the morning. A group chat meeting is also needed." Ash spat out angrily. Serena nodded in total agreement as she put a hand on his shoulder.

"Ash, calm down. I get that you're angry. I am too. But don't let your anger control you." she stated sternly.

"Yeah, she's right." Meowth concurred with a nod. Once he saw Ash calm down a little bit, he turned to Espurr.

"By the way, what Pokemon is that beside Ralts? I've never seen one of them before." Meowth asked curiously.

"Oh, that's an Espurr." Clemont answered. Serena pulled out her Pokedex to scan Espurr.

"Espurr, the Restraint Pokemon. Espurr's Psychic energy can travel hundreds of feet, blasting everything around it." it spoke.

"...Hold on, Espurr is a Psychic type. So was it you who caused the lights to turn on and the front door to close downstairs?" Serena inquired. Espurr just nodded and looked down at Ralts.

"I see. You did it for Ralts's sake." Nami and Usopp mumbled under their breaths. While Brock, Blissey, and Croagunk continued their work on Ralts, Uta turned to Luffy.

"Something tells me your grandpa isn't gonna like what the Navy is doing here." she whispered seriously. Luffy tensed up at the mention of his grandfather.

"Shush. Don't bring that up." he muttered back. Though, Luffy had to admit that Uta made a good point. His grandfather would be really furious if he saw what the Navy did to the poor Ralts.

Sanji thought to himself, I have a hunch Nami is gonna catch Ralts. And Moss Head will likely catch the living sword. So maybe I could-

"Hey Clemont, maybe you should catch the Espurr. Keep the trio together." Bonnie suggested. Sanji fell over comedically.

"Damn it, she beat me to the punch." he muttered to himself exasperatedly. Espurr turned to the siblings...and shook her head. She then relayed a message to Meowth which made him tear up a little bit.

"She said thanks for the offer, but she already has a friend that she considers her master...or had. And this is her home. She doesn't wanna abandon it." he translated as he wiped his eyes. Bonnie and Clemont nodded in understanding while Sanji groaned.

Still out of luck on a second member so far... he brooded.

"...Espurr also said she only just found Ralts and Honedge laying on the doorsteps yesterday. Ralts was running away from her natural habitat after narrowly escaping a mass extermination of her family at the hands of the Navy, and the noble Honedge found her nearby and knew he had to help...Wow. Just...wow." Meowth uttered in horror. Everybody else's eyes grew wider and wider at the revelation. While Bonnie and Dedenne were shaking in terror, Clemont was consoling them. As Deino, Shinx, and both Eevees growled ferociously, the Pikachus were sparking their cheeks more furiously than ever. Even the usually calm Noctowl and confused Psyduck were looking very disturbed. And out of all the other humans, Nami was looking the most affected, especially after everything that had happened with Arlong.

Bell-mere would have never allowed this to happen on her watch when she was a Marine. Ever. she thought as she looked over at the bedridden Ralts with so much sadness in her eyes.

"...Yep, I'm calling Lance. No if's or but's about it. This is by far the most messed up situation I've ever seen or heard of in my life. And Arceus knows I've been through some messed up situations." Ash growled fiercely.

"Agreed." Meowth responded, equally upset. Serena and the other Straw Hats nodded before she gave Ash a hug, which he gratefully returned.

After they let go, Luffy turned to him and asked, "What time is it?" Ash checked the time on his tablet, and then the map.

"It's currently 6:30. And there is a Pokemon Center nearby. So we should head over there once the rain lets up." he responded.

"Agreed. Ralts needs the best possible treatment right now." Brock concurred while Blissey was putting the finishing touches on bandaging up Ralts.

"Hm...then should I catch Ralts in order to make it easier to transport?" Nami inquired. Brock mulled it over before shaking his head.

"...No. It's too risky. We don't know what'll happen." he admitted. Nami gave Brock an understanding nod and looked outside to see that it was not raining anymore.

"Well, the good news is, the rain has let up now. So we should hurry over then." she replied in a very serious tone. Everybody else had to agree with her there. And so, after Ash, Brock, and Zoro returned their Pokemon except for Pikachu, the Pokemon Doctor in training was about to grab Ralts when her body glowed multicolored, became outlined in light blue, and disappeared.

"Ah, she just teleported!" Usopp yelped, totally surprised alongside the others. Seconds later, and to Nami's shock, Ralts reappeared right in her arms.

Serena smiled a little bit before saying, "Aw, I guess she trusts Nami." Nami held Ralts close to her like a baby.

"All right, let's get you fixed up." she uttered. Everybody, including Espurr and Honedge, ran out of the house and straight for the Pokemon Center. Little did they know, a car was following them.

At 7:00, the entire group arrived at the Pokemon Center.

Nami rushed inside before hollering loudly, "NURSE JOY! WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY HERE!" Joy and Wigglytuff noticed the severely injured Ralts and let out a horrified gasp.

"Oh my! Wigglytuff, get a stretcher out here!" she shouted urgently. While Wigglytuff dashed to the back room, Joy ran around the desk to get a closer look at Ralts.

"What happened here, young lady?!" she asked sternly. Nami explained the situation to Joy. By the time she finished, the nurse was left in complete and utter disbelief with her eyes wide open.

No way. How could the Navy do this?! she brooded. Joy wanted to argue that the Navy were the good guys, but then she remembered her cousin from Lumiose City calling and spreading rumors about what they had done by taking over the gym. She didn't have time to think about it further as Wigglytuff returned with the stretcher.

"Okay, leave this to us. We'll fix Ralts right up." Joy said determinedly. Nami mouthed a thank you before gently placing Ralts on the stretcher.

She patted her on the head and gave her a gentle smile while saying, "Don't worry, Ralts, you're in great hands now. You'll be fine." Joy then turned to Brock.

"Since you were the last person tending to Ralts, Doctor Brock, I would like some help with her." she stated. Brock nodded as he called out Blissey, put on his doctor coat, and ran to the back room with them.

"Looks like the rumors about the Navy are starting to spread." Ash observed while the rest of the group sat down on sofas.

Luffy hummed before replying, "Good. That will break their hold on Kalos the more people hear of their misdeeds."

"Yeah, and it's only gonna get worse once Lance finds out." Meowth added seriously.

"True." Ash concurred. Suddenly, his and Serena's tablets both went off. They pulled them out...and smirked at what they saw.

"Bingo. Let's have that talk now." they muttered to each other as they brought up the group chat.

Traveling Companions...and Oak Tree II

------------------------------------------------------

Dawn: Cynthia and I are here in Kalos!

Lillie: Lucky you, Dawn. I've always wanted to go there one day. I hear Prism Tower is beautiful at night.

Dawn: Well, I can confirm that it is a majestic sight to behold. No doubt you and Gary would love it here.

Lillie: So would Kenny, I would imagine.

Gary: Ha ha, nice one, Lils!

Dawn: ...Be quiet, both of you.

May: Geez, you're making me and Drew very impatient to get to Kalos already.

Max: And we've only begun our plane ride.

Ash: ...Well, isn't this just great...

Gary: ...Oh boy, I DO NOT like the sound of that.

Lillie: Same here.

May: No kidding. Ash, what kind of bad news do you bring?

Serena: Four words: The Navy is INSANE.

Dawn: ...Just how bad is it?

Max: And where's Brock?

Ash: In the emergency care center in the Pokemon Center.

Dawn: WHAT?!

Lillie: WHAT?!

Gary: WHAT?!

May: WHAT?!

Max: WHAT?!

Serena: With a Ralts the Navy tried to kill. They did actually get to her family. The Navy was trying to erase the existence of the entire line due to their ability to sense corruption, as that would ruin their reputation as the "good guys".

Lillie: EXCUSE ME?!

Dawn: WHAT THE FUCK?!

Max: WHAT THE FUCK?!

May: Max...language...

Gary: May, this one he has every right to curse. Especially given his own Ralts.

Gary: ...Oh no. Max has a Ralts. That makes you three prime targets for the Navy.

May: Oh, terrific.

Max: Just our luck.

Dawn: Yeah. I just told Cynthia, and she's now trying to get a hold of someone on her tablet.

Serena: ...Of course! Diantha!

Ash: My thoughts exactly. Diantha is the Champion of Kalos, has a Gardevior, and is Cynthia's best friend.

Gary: That makes sense.

May: Yeah. Thank Arceus the TRio is one of us now. I don't know what we'd do if we have to contend with them on top of this monstrosity that is the Navy.

Serena: Actually, we still get into it with Team Rocket. Especially those two idiots. Fortunately, we haven't ran into them since Nami snapped at them for the Silver incident in Johto. And speaking of Team Rocket, Ash got a...very interesting challenge, to say the least.

Ash: Long story short, Giovanni's son, also named Silver, wants to take over Team Rocket. And so he wants to prove his strength against someone who's been a thorn in his dad's side for years: me. But he doesn't wanna face just anybody. He wants to face the best of the Battle Frontier teams. Pikachu. Charizard. Snorlax. Sceptile. Swellow. And Corphish.

May: ...Seriously?! He wants to face Pikachu, Charizard, Sceptile, and Snorlax...ALL ON ONE TEAM?!

Max: YEESH! I understand wanting to replace Giovanni, but I would NEVER wanna face all four of them in the same battle! This guy must be bonkers!

Gary: I have to agree. And I've faced both Snorlax and Charizard in the same battle.

Serena: Anyway, we plan to inform Lance of the situation in the morning.

Dawn: I smell a potential war coming between Kanto and Kalos. However, I have good news. Cynthia got through to Diantha. And...let's just say Diantha is not happy with the Navy one bit.

Lillie: Yeah, same here. At least you don't have to contend with the Kalos Champion here. That's a relief.

Gary: Yeah, it really is.

Max: Geez, why did the incident with the evil team of the region start out guns blazing?!

May: Yeah, it usually starts small and builds up.

Brock: Not the case here.

Serena: How's Ralts?!

Ash: How's Ralts?!

Lillie: How's Ralts?!

Gary: How's Ralts?!

Dawn: How's Ralts?!

May: How's Ralts?!

Max: How's Ralts?!

Brock: Fine. Exhausted, but fine. We're having her stay over for the night. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, she should be discharged in the morning. And we've also decided that only Nami should be allowed to visit, since Ralts trusts her the most out of all of us.

Serena: Understandable.

Ash: Understandable. I'll tell her.

Serena: Anyway, Zoro is more than likely getting a Honedge.

May: A Honedge?

Dawn: A Honedge?

Lillie: A Steel and Ghost type.

Ash: Seems like a perfect fit, what with Honedge being a living sword and Zoro a swordsman.

Max: Certainly sounds like it.

Brock: Yeah. By the way, I've been thinking. Do we know of any other Pokemon that can sense things like how the Ralts line senses feelings? Like, for instance, aura?

Dawn: Something that can sense aura...RIOLU AND LUCARIO!

Ash: Aw crud. That line could be on the Navy's hitlist...

Max: Oh boy...Should we tell our dad about this?

Lillie: Wait, he has a Lucario?

Brock: No, but I think Max means we should stack the deck.

Ash: I say we do that. Brock, tomorrow, while I call Lance and the lab, I want you to tell either your dad or Forrest to inform the other Gym Leaders, just in case. Lt. Surge has experience with war. Blaine's older, so he'll have strategy. Koga, Sabrina, and Misty will already be here anyway.

Serena: We just need Misty to focus on the issue at hand and not...you know, lust over you.

Gary: Now, now, let's stay on topic. Next is Erika.

Ash: Ugh.

Serena: Is something wrong, Ash? Did you have a bad experience with her?

Brock: Oh, you could say that.

Ash: Drop it, Brock. Now did we ever get a new Viridian City Gym Leader, or is it still Agatha?

Brock: Still Agatha. Seems like nobody else wants to step in. Makes sense, considering it used to be Team Rocket's gym.

Gary: Don't remind me...

Lillie: Bad time with that gym, Gary?

Ash: You could say that.

Gary: Shut up.

Max: Testy. Testy.

Ash: Max, I wouldn't be talking if I were you. Or should I mention the Purika City Contest?

Max: ...Shutting up now.

May: ASH!

Brock: OK, let's all calm down now.

Dawn: ...Uhhhhhh...

Gary: It involves Harley.

Dawn: Oh...him.

Serena: Who?

Lillie: Who?

Gary: A crazy Coordinator with a grudge against May.

May: Don't remind me.

Max: Getting back to the subject at hand, who else do we know that has one of the Ralts or Riolu lines? There's Butler's Kirlia. And I was gonna mention Sir Aaron's Lucario, but he's already gone.

Ash: I think Butler will be fine. He's got a Salamence too. Plus, he's hidden in Hoenn.

May: Agreed.

Dawn: Let's not forget about Zoey, Maylene, Melodi, Riley, and the Riolu at Lucario Kingdom. J had tried taking the Riolu and Melodi's Gardevior before. Who's to say she can't try again?

Brock: True, but one of them is a Gym Leader in Sinnoh. And regardless, I don't think J or the Navy would wanna risk going back there anyway. Especially not J.

Lillie: Yeah. Plus, that's an international incident if they go after a Top Coordinator or a Gym Leader.

Gary: Good point.

Ash: Then we better hope Cameron doesn't show up here. Knowing him, he could show up in Kalos looking to compete in an entirely different League altogether...and without having the right number of badges or Pokemon. *facepalms*

Serena: Wait, seriously?!

Ash: Yeah. It's scary how scatterbrained he was. The only reason he got as far as he did was because of his Riolu/Lucario and Hydreigon. He sent out a Grass/Steel type against a Fire/Fighting type and two Water types against Pikachu, one of which was a Swanna, a Water/Flying type.

Lillie: Yeesh! That kid could seriously use some help with type matchups...

Max: Type matchups ain't everything if you can strategize around them. Guess who I learned that from.

May: Heck, Ash's Grovyle beat an Altaria!

Lillie: WHAT?! HOW?!!

Brock: Ash used the Fortree City Gym's pillars to outmaneuver Altaria.

Serena: I bet someone here knows a thing or two about having a type advantage and still getting out-strategized by Ash. Isn't that right, Oak Tree?

Gary: Ugh, don't remind me, Rere. I lost half of my team in our battle in Johto when I had type advantages.

Lillie: What?!

Brock: Ash's Heracross beat Gary's Magmar while Charizard beat Golem and Blastoise.

Dawn: Sounds like the poetry guy's grandson could use some love to recover, Miss Aether.

-Lillie has left the chat-

Gary: DAWN!!!

Dawn: 🤣🤣🤣

Dawn: Sorry, couldn't resist. Anyway, gotta hit the hay. Jet lag. I'll keep an eye out for Misty. After all, like you said, Serena, we don't need her lusting over your precious Ash.

-Dawn has left the chat-

Serena: AGH! DAWN, YOU FREAKING SHIPPER! GET BACK HERE!

Ash: ...Too late...

May: ...To be fair, she's right about jet lag. And keeping an eye on Misty.

Serena: Ooooh, I'll get her later!

Ash: ...Hm, maybe we can help find Clemont a Plusle and Minun.

Brock: ...Ash...

Ash: Hey, if she wants to tease us, then we have the right to tease her back.

Max: ...OK, let's call it here. We can chat later.

Gary: Agreed. After all, we got school in the morning.

Brock: And we need to watch over Ralts. Though, Nami's got that covered.

Serena: Agreed. In the meantime, we should ask Clemont if he knows any Riolus/Lucarios in Kalos.

Ash: Heh, excellent idea, Rena. Damn, you're smart.

May: OK, lovebirds, knock it off! No make-out sessions in the chat room! Especially not when there's a ten-year-old here.

Ash: MAY!

Serena: MAY!

Brock: OK, guys, knock it off before we go too far!

May: Fine. Later.

Max: Later.

------------------------------------------------------

As Ash and Serena logged off, their faces were very red from blushing so hard at the end.

Uta noticed that and smirked before saying, "So, couldn't stay away from the shipping squad, huh?"

"...We don't wanna talk about that." Ash and Serena uttered at the same time.

Bonnie giggled while whispering to Uta, "That's a yes, obviously."

"Bonnie..." Clemont muttered in a scolding tone as he tinkered with an invention. Bonnie stuck her tongue out before going over to play with Espurr, Dedenne, and Fuecoco. Nami had gone to the back room to watch over Ralts. Zoro was outside, having a practice swordfight with Honedge. And Luffy was training up his abilities while Usopp took care of his egg.

"So did Zoro catch Honedge yet?" Ash wondered out loud.

"I just did." Zoro called out of nowhere as he came inside.

"...Wow, that timing..." Serena uttered, completely stunned. Ash just nodded, totally speechless. Suddenly, the group heard a cough before the door slid open again. They saw an annoyed Bulbasaur bring a poisoned Sanji inside and drag him all the way to the kitchen. Meowth, who was shaking his head exasperatedly, parted from them and went to the group.

"Thank Arceus he has backup for these situations in case Nami isn't around..." he grumbled to himself. Serena could guess what had happened and scowled.

"REALLY, SANJI?! YOU HAD TO FLIRT WITH SOMEONE NOW, OF ALL TIMES?!" she hollered furiously as Chuchu sighed in annoyance.

"Yep, exactly. I think ya should meet this woman. Remember the painting in the mansion?" Meowth asked. Espurr perked up while Ash and Pikachu raised an eye in confusion.

"He flirted with an old woman?...Unless she has a daughter or granddaughter..." He trailed off once the realization dawned on them.

"She's way younger, but I did see a resemblance there. Luffy and Usopp are talking to her now as we speak. Follow me." Meowth responded. Everybody else gave him a nod and followed him to an orange car that Luffy and Usopp were gawking at.

"Hi...um, are you friends with these two and a flirt?" a young woman inquired uncertainly. She had fair skin, short medium length lighter shade of brown hair, and green eyes and wore two blue jewels on either side of her head, a light purple undershirt over a light yellow jacket, blue jeans, and white shoes.

"Yep, we are." Ash admitted.

"I'm so sorry about that idiot's actions. I'll make sure he gets an hour of intense training in the kitchen." Serena added seriously. Sanji, who had recovered and was walking back, heard her and shuddered. The woman blinked in confusion.

"...Uhhhhhh..." She couldn't say anything, unsure of what to make of that.

"Trust me, lady, he'll regret the flirting." Meowth stated. Needless to say, the woman looked stunned.

"Did you just..." She trailed off.

"Yeah, he speaks. But that's not important right now. Do you know the woman in the painting at the house thirty minutes from here?" Ash inquired. The woman narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"Yes, that house used to belong to Lacy. I'm her granddaughter, Elise. Now who are you guys, and why were you trespassing there? I also noticed her pendant around that Espurr's neck." she asked back. Once the group introduced themselves, Meowth and Espurr stepped up.

"Forgive us, Elise, we were only trying to get out of the storm. That's why we went inside. Turned out to be the right choice too because we had an almost dead Ralts in the house." he explained. Elise's eyes grew wide in a mixture of shock and horror.

"WHAT?!" she yelped. Ash quickly told Elise about the situation with the Navy. By the time he finished, her body was shaking a little bit.

"So that's why Grandma never trusted the Navy when they first appeared." Elise stated.

"Oh? She didn't trust them?" Ash questioned her.

Elise shook her head while saying, "No, she did not. Is Ralts okay?" At that point, Brock came out of the Pokemon Center.

"She's gonna be fine. She just needs a good night's sleep. Another one of our friends, Nami, is tending to her as we speak." he confirmed. Elise let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank goodness. I assume Kalos isn't gonna let the Navy get away with this?" she inquired seriously.

"Yes. In fact, the Champion has been informed of the situation." Ash answered.

"Good." Elise uttered. A short silence followed before Espurr relayed a message to Meowth.

"By the way, where has Lacy been? Espurr wants to return her pendant." he asked.

Elise had a sad look as she replied, "She had passed away years ago due to health problems." Needless to say, Espurr was devastated. She had known about Lacy's health problems, but she didn't think it was that bad.

"Oof. Sorry to hear about that." Meowth uttered, looking sad alongside the rest.

"On the plus side, and this may sound crazy, but at least she passed before the Navy went this crazy." Elise admitted, clearly relieved.

"Hm...true. Her health may have gotten worse if she had heard of their plans." Serena responded.

"Excellent point." Ash concurred while the others nodded.

"...Anyway, so why were you visiting the house, Elise?" Meowth asked curiously.

"Oh, right, about that...well, my family was thinking about tearing it down and possibly replacing it with something else. However, now that I've met Espurr, I don't necessarily wanna do that, as that would make her sad. So instead, I'm gonna see if I can't renovate it instead." Elise explained. Everybody smiled at that, especially Espurr. The Restraint Pokemon was going to use her psychic powers to return the pendant, but Elise bent down to stop her.

"Keep it. It's yours now. Anyway, would you like to visit Grandma's grave with me?" she inquired kindly. Espurr instantly nodded in agreement. And so, after saying goodbye to the group, she and Elise got into the car and drove off.

"So...that's that." Serena stated as the group followed Brock back inside the Pokemon Center.

"Yep, and once Nami catches Ralts, that part of the adventure is done." Ash replied.

"The way she's caring for her, and as much as she'd wanna deny it, it's all but inevitable at this point." Brock concurred.

"True, true." the Straw Hats said at the same time. Serena and Chuchu then turned serious as the girl unexpectedly grabbed Sanji by the neck cuff of his jacket.

"Time for your intense training...with Chuchu AND Fennekin." she declared sternly while dragging him to the kitchen.

Sanji gulped before saying in a meek tone, "...Yes, Serena." Serena pulled him all the way there and shut the door behind her.

"...That's his own fault." Luffy, Usopp, and Meowth stated at the same time, with Shinx and Eevee nodding. Brock just shook his head in disappointment.

"I may be a flirt, but the situation with Ralts was more important." he admitted. Ash, Pikachu, and Meowth just looked at Brock like he had become some kind of alien.

"...Wow, Brock, you actually showed restraint?! If the others hear about this, they might think the world was ending!" the boy yelped, totally surprised. Ash, Pikachu, and Meowth then fell over laughing so hard.

Brock let out an annoyed groan while uttering, "...Ha ha. Very funny, guys." As Luffy pulled Ash and Meowth back up and Pikachu hopped back on his trainer's shoulder, they suddenly heard screams coming from Sanji in the kitchen.

"...Yikes." Usopp uttered with sweat falling down the back of his and Eevee's heads.

"And here I thought Nami had a bad temper." Zoro muttered to himself, almost feeling sorry for the idiot love cook.

"Wow, she's definitely a strong woman. Good luck, Ash." Bonnie said teasingly. Ash blushed and turned to an exasperated Clemont.

"Geez, your sister, I swear...Anyway, I've been meaning to ask you something. Are there any prominent Riolu or Lucario trainers here?" he inquired cautiously. Clemont tensed up at the sound of that question.

That's definitely a yes. Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Meowth thought at the same time.

"...I do happen to know two Lucario trainers. One of them just so happens to be my partner for the Battle Chateau and the Shalour City Gym Leader, Korrina. And the other one is her grandfather." Clemont answered.

"...Terrific." Ash groaned alongside Pikachu.

"...Ya don't think..." Meowth trailed off cautiously.

"...the Navy would go after Lucario due to the ability to sense intentions via aura? Yes. Yes, I do." Brock confirmed.

"Well, this is way worse than we thought." Zoro stated seriously. Luffy, Shinx, Uta, and Fuecoco nodded in total agreement.

Usopp let out a groan while saying, "Why must this journey get more complicated?" Eevee had to agree with his trainer there. Bonnie turned to Clemont, who looked visibly shaken.

"You gonna call Korrina, Big Brother?" she asked, very afraid for Korrina.

"I have to, Bonnie. I can't have what happened to Ralts's family happen again. Especially not to her." Clemont answered seriously, mumbling the last sentence to himself. Bonnie heard that but didn't comment. Meowth was looking at Clemont suspiciously.

"Is he..." he muttered to himself. Meowth quickly shook his head.

No. Don't assume things. he thought. Clemont went upstairs to the siblings' room for the night. He pulled out his tablet, brought up the Call app, and clicked on a certain contact.

Please pick up...please pick up...please... Clemont brooded after each ring. A few seconds later, which felt like an eternity to him, the screen showed an image of a girl. She had very long creamy blonde hair tied in a big, thick, high fluffy ponytail and green-gray eyes and was wearing red sunglasses on top of her head, a short white and red sleeveless dress over black cycling shorts, a gray V-neck over her top, and white high tops with red wheels fitted in the bottom.

"Hey Clemont...wait, you're looking pale. What's wrong?" Korrina asked worriedly. Clemont let out a relieved sigh he didn't know he was holding in as the color came back to him.

"Thank goodness..." he mumbled to himself. Clemont then turned serious.

"Korrina, I have a question for you. What is your stance on the Navy?" he queried. Korrina raised an eyebrow in interest.

"Honestly? I never trusted the Navy." she admitted. Clemont was taken aback by that.

"Wait, seriously?! Never?!" he yelped.

Korrina snorted before saying, "Yeah, never. See, Grandpa's Lucario has been on edge with them ever since their arrival several years ago. Now he's even more on edge, and it's starting to rub off on my Lucario." That made Clemont flinch.

"...Oh no." he uttered fearfully.

"...Clemont. What happened?" Korrina inquired in a stern tone. Clemont explained the situation with the Navy killing off Ralts's family and Ash and Brock's theory about them potentially going after the Riolus and Lucarios next. Once he finished, Korrina was beyond livid.

"Those bastards...It's probably a good thing I'm traveling then. They wouldn't be able to find me easily. Grandpa, though...I should check on him, just to be sure." she stated.

Clemont nodded while replying, "Good idea. Also, we've sent word to Diantha." Korrina's eyes grew wide.

"How did..." She trailed off, totally shocked.

"Cynthia. She's here too." Clemont responded.

"...War is coming, isn't it?" Korrina questioned him seriously. Clemont gave her a nod.

"Yep. On that note, where are you now?" he asked back.

"Cyllage City. Should we tell Grant?" Korrina queried. Clemont mulled over the question before ultimately shaking his head.

"Too risky. We don't know where his allegiances lie. I only told you because I trust you." he admitted. Korrina nodded in understanding.

"Thanks for that. Anyway, I'm gonna call Grandpa now. Unless something unexpected happens, I'll see you at the Battle Chateau." she replied. Clemont gave Korrina a nod back before they ended the call. After he put the tablet away, he went back downstairs to the group.

"Okay, I've informed Korrina, and she's calling Gurkinn." he confirmed. Nami, who had just rejoined the group, smirked.

"Is Korrina actually your girlfriend?" she asked teasingly. Clemont blushed bright red as Bonnie turned on him.

"No fair, you're keeping her to yourself, Clemont. I wanna meet my future sister-in-law." she retorted in annoyance. Clemont shot a glare at Nami, who winked and stuck her tongue out. She then turned to the kitchen door, where Sanji was still screaming.

"...Do I even wanna know?" Nami uttered nervously.

"No, you don't." everybody else uttered with sweat falling down the back of their heads.

Nami just shook her head while muttering, "Sanji..."

"...Anyway, so Nami has three team members now." Luffy stated knowingly.

"Uh, I haven't caught Ralts yet." Nami rebutted.

Uta rolled her eyes while saying, "Keyword: yet." Nami once again had to shake her head.

"Fine, I'm waiting for her to be discharged tomorrow before I ask her to join my team. There, you happy now?" she inquired exasperatedly.

"Yep." everyone replied at the same time. Now Nami was rolling her eyes. Soon, the scream died down, and Serena came out of the kitchen with Chuchu and Fennekin looking quite satisfied. Ash was about to rush over to her, but she waved him off.

"I'm fine, Ash. Thanks for the concern, though." Serena affirmed. Usopp and Eevee snuck a look inside the kitchen to check on Sanji's well-being, and what they saw spooked them to no end.

"...Rest in peace, buddy." he uttered before shutting the door.

"HEY! I'M NOT DEAD YET!" a badly burned and zapped Sanji hollered loudly while puffing out smoke from a cigarette.

"Oh, you're still alive, Twirly Brows? I can end your suffering if you want." Zoro declared.

"NO THANK YOU, SHITTY SWORDSMAN!" Sanji yelled out.

"All right, knock it off, you two! And Sanji, if this sort of thing happens again and you flirt with a girl, what Serena did will seem tame!" Nami shouted back. Sanji heard her and gulped.

"...Aye, Nami." he muttered. Bonnie then went over to Serena, still looking annoyed.

"Serena, Clemont has a girlfriend, and he didn't tell me." she whined. That piqued Serena's interest as she turned to a very embarrassed Clemont.

"Oh, really? What's her name?" she asked teasingly.

"...Bonnie, quit it." Clemont muttered meekly. Serena giggled.

"What, just trying to lighten the mood after what we learned tonight." she admitted.

Clemont groaned before retorting, "Understandable, but can we do this without dragging my love life into the conversation?"

"Nope." Bonnie, Serena, and Nami replied at the same time as they snickered.

"...Man, am I glad I pretended to be dense for the longest time. Saved me a lot of trouble." Ash said to Brock.

"While also driving Misty nuts." the Pokemon Doctor in training responded. Ash frowned at that.

"Even the 'not dense' me can't figure out when she started developing feelings for me." he admitted.

"I can't either, and we've been following ya the entire way." Meowth replied, also puzzled.

"...Well, anyway-" Usopp got interrupted.

"NAMI! RALTS IS IN A STATE OF PANIC RIGHT NOW! SHE NEEDS YOU BACK HERE!" Nurse Joy called out, sounding panicked. Just like that, Nami rushed back to the room with Psyduck and Meowth.

"Well, safe to say they're spending the night with Ralts." Ash stated seriously.

"Yep. Anyway, let's all go to bed." Luffy responded.

"Agreed. We got calls to make in the morning and more ground to cover on the way to the Battle Chateau." Zoro concurred. Everybody else nodded. Once Sanji finished cleaning himself and the kitchen, they went to bed.