Pokemon The Novel: Next Generation

Chapter 5: The Tournament Begins

The following day, Ash wakes up seeing his girlfriend's face. He kisses their foreheads and then gently wakes them up. "Hey, rise and shine." he says, smiling as Misty and May wake up, sitting up with Ash, then they give each other morning kisses on the lips, "You girls ready for today," he says with a heartwarming smile, with the girls nodding in response. "We're sure you are ready, Ash," says Misty as she gets out of bed first, then she smirks secretly, waiting for the other two to get out of bed.

As soon as Misty playfully pushed them back on the bed, "Gotta get out of bed first." she said, giggling. Then she left the room for the bathroom first, leaving Ash confused, but May pouted, "Oh, that woman...Pushed us back on the bed so she could get to the bathroom first." she said annoyingly, but Ash chuckled then helped May up. "Don't worry, we can get her back after the tournament, okay," he says, reassuring her that they will get revenge. "Heh...Guess you're right." They both then kissed each other.

After an hour of getting washed and dressed, Ash, May and Misty went to the kitchen, where they were the only ones who had woken so far, and started making breakfast. Ash told them he needed to do something at the Pokemon Centre, but he reassured the girls that he set up the table and teleported with Mewtwo to the centre. "Thank buddy," he says to Mewtwo; he responds with a smile and nods. "I'll wait out here, Ash; it's always peaceful in the mornings," he says as he stands next to the main entrance while Ash goes to the front counter.

Before Ash goes to Nurse Joy, he spots Iris with someone but doesn't care about the other person talking to her. He just sneaks up behind her and places his hands on her shoulder, making her jump. "Alright, buddy," says Iris. She turns around to punch the person but stops to notice it is Ash. "Red, why did you do that? You know I don't like it," she says with a pout on her face while Red rubs the back of his head, chuckling. "Sorry, just couldn't help it, plus I was worried when you didn't return home," he says, looking at her.

Iris sweats drops. "Sorry, big brother, but I was catching up with my boyfriend." she then introduces an old friend, Gary Oak, but Ash also sweats drops. "Long time no see Gary." Red confuses Gary, and then Red uses his aura powers to change his appearance, surprising his childhood friend. "ASH!." he says, pulling him into a bro hug. "Missed you a lot, Ashy-boy," he says while Ash is happy to see him again.

"Let's go to the counter," he says, smiling at the two love birds as they follow him to the counter. "Oh, hi Ash, what can I do for you today?." asks Nurse Joy, wondering what the champion's son wants, "I would like you to change my name back to the original one, please," he asks politely. Then Nurse Joy nods and changes his name. "There you go, Ash, all done," he says. Ash nods his head and then leads his two friends outside to Mewtwo.

Gary is surprised that Ash has a Mewtwo. "Ash...Where and how did you catch a Mewtwo?." he asks with a sweat drop on his face. "Oh, he came to me along with Mew," he says with a smile. Just before Gary could say anything, Mewtwo teleported them back to Cynthia's home. Ash's loved ones also greeted them, but Cynthia looked annoyed. "Um...Everything okay, Mom?." he asks her, looking worried. "Young man, where have you been? the tournament starts in two hours, and you haven't eaten anything yet." Ash's sweat drops quickly, and he waves his hands, explaining about bumping into Iris and Gary, which calms Cynthia down. "Sorry to worry you, Mom," he says but gets hugged. "It's alright, dear, just don't take too long next time," she says, reassuring Ash.

After spending time for the remaining hour, everyone headed to the stadium, where they bumped into another friendly face, Brock, who bullet-trained Ash the minute he saw him and hugged him uncontrollably. "ASH! Where have you been," he yells, hugging Ash tightly. "Brock...Need...Air..." Then Brock lets go of Ash, and the group is joined by the Pike Queen, Lucy, who happily approaches them and leans on Brock's shoulder. "Hello Ash, it's been a while," she smiles, confusing the group except Cynthia.