1. Ash's Story (Part 7: Kalos)

Chapter 60: Haunted Wings

We were taking a short rest on the road after the Poké Ball Factory crisis when Hawlucha suddenly disappeared from the group. At first, I thought it had found a good place to practice its poses, but then it returned from the trees carrying something carefully in both arms.

"Is that a Pokémon Egg?" Clemont asked, leaning closer.

Hawlucha nodded and pointed back toward the place where it had found it. The Egg glowed before any of us could decide what to do, and Fletchinder immediately moved closer. Its Flame Body warmed the air gently, not too hot, only enough to help the Egg through the final moments before hatching.

The shell cracked, and a tiny Noibat blinked up at us.

Everyone leaned in at once, which turned out to be too much. Noibat panicked, its huge ears trembling before a piercing Supersonic burst spread across the clearing. Bonnie tried to calm it, but Noibat only cried harder. Serena and I moved slowly, keeping our voices low until Noibat's eyes found us.

"It is okay," Serena said softly. "Nobody here will hurt you."

I held out my hands without grabbing it. "You are safe with us."

Noibat's meaning reached me through its frightened shivers. "Everything is loud, and I do not know where I am."

"We will help you learn," I said.

Noibat finally quieted, nestling between Serena and me while the others stepped back. Elline smiled at us with a teasing look.

"Wow, it looks like he sees Ash and Serena as parents."

Serena and I both blushed, but Noibat seemed calmer when we stayed close. When I asked if it wanted to travel with us, it fluttered toward the Poké Ball on its own and tapped it with its head.

Pokédex Entry Updated - Ash and Serena's Shared Kalos Record

Noibat, the Sound Wave Pokémon. A Flying and Dragon type. Its enormous ears release ultrasonic waves that can make even strong opponents dizzy, and it uses sound to search for fruit and understand its surroundings.

After Noibat joined us, we tried to find fruit it liked. Dedenne proudly offered one first, but Noibat listened with its sensitive ears, sniffed it, and refused. Bonnie took a bite to prove it was good, then immediately made a face.

"That tastes terrible," Bonnie said, almost crying.

Every Pokémon helped gather fruit after that. Pikachu brought small yellow berries, Pangoro carried an entire branch, and Furfrou walked back with leaves stuck in its styled fur after pushing through the bushes for Elline. Noibat listened to each fruit as if sound could reveal flavor, then rejected almost everything with tiny stubborn shakes of its head.

Finally, it noticed two pieces Bonnie was still holding and happily ate those. Once it finished, it waddled away, spread its wings, and tried to fly.

It fell back down almost immediately.

I caught it before it hit the ground. "Nice try. Flying takes practice."

Fletchinder and Hawlucha became its teachers. Fletchinder showed Noibat how to catch warm air, while Hawlucha demonstrated gliding from a low rock with more style than necessary. Noibat improved for a few seconds, then tumbled again, though Hawlucha caught it before it landed.

"Wow, this could be a problem," Serena said.

Clemont thought for a moment. "Maybe Noibat needs to learn how to glide before true flight."

That advice helped, but Noibat still struggled to stay airborne for long. Each failure made it more frustrated, and each frustrated flutter created another burst of Supersonic that made everyone cover their ears. I kept reminding it that falling did not mean failing. Fletchinder had once been a Fletchling, Hawlucha had learned its own balance, and every flyer had started below the sky before learning how to belong in it.