Another Road Repaved - Conception

Standby for Battle!

After a successful flight in which Charizard only got pissy with Ash once - he made a pun because he got bored and Charizard didn't find it terribly funny - Ash found himself over Veilstone City. The boy grinned as he guided towards the house he remembered as Reggie's, and was mostly certain still was, judging by the numerous Pokémon milling around the property.

The dragon landed heavily, gathering the attention of all the Pokémon present. The older and more powerful ones stepped forward, regarding the dragon as a threat. Some recalled Ash vaguely, grinning at the prospect of a battle, he assumed. Others assumed it was merely business as usual. Another Pokémon was going to be tended to.

The only one who really bothered to come up to greet them was a little Glameow, and it made the mistake of assuming that Charizard wanted to play.

Thankfully, as Ash was about to ask Charizard to play nice, a familiar voice interrupted.

"Glameow! Mind yourself!" Reggie chided, wiping off his hands. He must have been cooking, judging by the stains on his apron. Flour and berry smears marked his sleeves as well. "Well, I'll be! If it isn't Ash Ketchum. It's been a while. Can I invite you in for some tea and cake? I'll be busy a moment, but right now I'm watching a Lopunny who likes to tend to the house, so it could get things ready while I serve everyone else their lunches."

Grinning at Reggie's ever welcoming nature, Ash merely shook his head before holding out his hand to the man. "It's good to see ya, Reggie! Actually, I'm here to see Paul! I'm coming through Sinnoh before I head back to Kanto, and I wanted to have a battle with him!"

Reggie grinned. "Oh, well -"

"Hello!" came a sing-songy voice. Walking into the lot was a well-dressed madam who immediately recognized as Bertha, and an impossibly small Hippopotas trailing behind her. "Reginald!"

"That's not my name," Reggie whined.

"And Ash!"

"Bertha!" Ash exclaimed.

"...Why doesn't he get a nickname?" Reggie mumbled.

"It's so good to see you both! But, first, Reggie, my Hippowdon had the most beautiful little girl earlier this week - this is she, by the way," the madame explained, gesturing to the little darkly colored ground type. Blinking her long hippo-eyelashes, the calf was clearly rather shy. "Would you be a dear and tend to her while she gets strong? Hippowdon is fabulous with tending to eggs, but she still believes once they've hatched, they can keep up with her, and, well, I'd like to have that be true!"

Reggie let out a sigh before walking over. "Right. Of course. Normal arrangement, then?" Once the Elite Four member nodded, he clicked his tongue to the little ground type. Confused, she let out a tiny squeak before walking towards Reggie. He produced a poffin, and that's all it took to convince her that following the man behind the house was a good idea.

"Well! My, my, Ash, you've grown!"

Ash chuckled. "Thanks, Bertha! How've you been, by the way?"

"Or it could be that I've shrunk... Darn you, old age..." The woman looked over to his Charizard, muttering to herself for a moment before she answered the boy. "Hm? Oh, wonderfully, dear! Aaron and I have been keeping things lively, though Flint continues to argue that, upon my retirement, Volkner should become an Elite! The nerve of the boy." The woman crossed her arms. "As if I would retire! Anyway, enough about Flint's favoritism. How have you been?"

"Busy," Ash quipped. "Oh, yeah, thanks for flying us here. Charizard, return!" Ash recalled the Flame Pokémon. "I went training on Mt. Silver for a while. and now I'm passing through Sinnoh. I picked up a couple of new Pokémon, too. Speaking of that, actually...!" Charizard's capsule was exchanged for another, and Ash threw it into the air. "Come out, Rosa!"