I held onto the edges of my jacket.
Greninja balanced itself on Hawlucha.
Pikachu tried to keep its balance on my shoulder. "Pika!"
"All right, Pikachu, Thunder Shock."
Greninja dodged it. "Ninja."
"Are you crazy?!" Nicole's Froakie yelled from the ground.
"How did you get here?!"
"I followed Noivern!" Nicole's Froakie used its Frubbles to latch onto me and pull me down.
"Ash, you look really good in yellow." Froakie commented.
"Thanks." Pikachu jumped onto my head, making it look like I had its ears.
"Heh." Froakie jumped, grabbing Pikachu and climbing up the draining pipe.
"Aww, no fair!" I yelled. "I can't climb!"
"Ash, I've got it!" Froakie yelled.
Greninja used its tongue to grab on and climbed up.
"Aha." Froakie said. "Greninja."
Greninja winked at Froakie and shot up.
"Could you slow down?" I asked. "You're scaring me."
"Well, Ash, if you hadn't been such an idiot, you would be asleep." Froakie said.
"Ninja, Greninja."
"You dared him-" Froakie facepalmed. "I'm not going to finish that sentence."
The next morning: Clemont's POV
"Ash?! Where'd you go?"
Nicole yelled her lungs out, looking for Ash. I didn't tell her that Ash ran away, but I was going to.
"Hey, Nicole?"
"Yes?"
"Ash ran away."
"Why?" Nicole whipped around. "Doesn't he love me?"
I'm not sure of that.
I shrugged. "I think he got spooked when you said that you were going to make love to him."
"Oh, Arceus, that poor thing might be cold and lost in the forest!"
"I'm sure he's found a Pokemon Center."
"Knowing Ash, he probably did."
"That's the spirit. Maybe he'll come back when he wants to."
"OK." She leaned on me. "Clemont?"
"What?"
"Are you single?"
Ash's POV
"Good morning, Ash."
Froakie was stretched out, drawing scribbles on a piece of paper. "I bet you don't remember that stunt you did last night."
"What stunt?" I narrowed my eyes, sitting up.
"I'm not telling you!" Froakie said indignantly. "You need to remember yourself."
I sighed. "I'm hungry."
"I'm not feeding you, you're twenty-one." Froakie stood up. "Nicole taught me that, FYI."
"Please?"
"Nope!" Froakie leaped onto my belly, which growled. "If you're hungry, Pikachu's pigging out on all your snacks."
Pikachu sighed contently and looked up at me, ketchup smeared all over its fur.
"Oh, yeah." I said. "You stole the Pokemon Center's ketchup, didn't you?"
It nodded.
Froakie snickered and used a gentle Water Pulse to clean off its fur. "I helped."
"Ninja." Greninja pointed to itself.
"But then Hawlucha spied on us and it found this." Froakie pulled out a piece of ripped paper from underneath its Frubbles.
"What does it say?"
"Six-six-six."
666? Oh, god..
"Ash? You look worried." Froakie tapped my cheek.
"I'm fine."
Noivern growled. "Vern."
"And Noivern told us that it was the mark of the beast."
"It is."
"Holy shit!" Froakie swore.
Pikachu leaped into my arms and curled up into a shivering ball.
Noivern tilted its head, its tail swishing. "Vern?"
"You scared Pikachu, Noivern, no big deal."
Froakie traced the numbers with its finger. "I know this handwriting."
"Whose?" I looked at it.
"Isn't this your handwriting?"
"I don't write in red," I said.
"Then who does?"
Evil Ash?
"Maybe its Evil Ash's handwriting." I looked at it again.
"Can't be." Froakie said.
"I'll examine it later. When I've got to eat, I've got to eat."
"Greninja." It clapped.
"Well said, brother." Froakie jumped down.
Clemont's POV
"Yes."
"Yay!" Nicole hugged me so hard I started to wheeze.
"I mean no! I'm with Delia!"
"What?!" Nicole yelled.
I coughed.
"You all right? You're sweating."
"I'm fine." I sat down. "I'm just tired."
"You told Ash to run away didn't you?"
"No." I sniffled. "And even if I did, I would tell you."
Nicole narrowed her eyes to blue slits. "Are you sure your fine? You're sniffling like, every three seconds."
"I'm fine," I denied.
Ash's POV
Noivern tapped my shoulder.
"Yes?" I turned around.
"Vern."
"Wait up!" Froakie screamed. "I'm coming with you!"
Greninja chuckled and kneeled down, letting Froakie climb onto its shoulder.
Pikachu chirped and waved its tail.
Someone zipped past me.
"Move! No time to talk!"
Serena?! I thought she was dead!
Serena turned around and panted. "Ash?"
"Hi, Serena." My voice sharpened and I narrowed my eyes.
Serena glared at me. "What do you want, Ketchum?"
"I'll tell you!" I spat. "You nearly ran into me!"
Serena scoffed. "Who cares? Nobody likes you anyway."
"I will hit you!" I snarled.
"I'll choke you to death." Serena snarled.
Noivern and Greninja stood in the way.
Froakie jumped down. "Leave Ash alone! What'd he do to you?"
With that, Froakie pounded Serena's cheek.
Serena screamed. "God damn it!"
"Good work, Froakie. Now, Water Pulse her. Greninja, Water Shuriken, and Noivern, Boomburst."
"Get out there, Delphox, and show Ash who's the better Trainer here!" Serena growled.
"Three against ones not fair, Serena Yvonne. You should know that."
"I don't care! Delphox, flamethrower him!"
The only part of my head that got burned was a tuft of hair.
Froakie water pulsed it out.
Delphox snarled.
"You were a good friend until Misty came along, Ash." Serena spat. "Let's get out of here."
Noivern snarled and flew upwards.
"Hey, wait!" I grabbed onto its legs.
Noivern stopped. "Vern."
Nicole appeared at the back of my vision. "Ash?!"
"Nicole?!" I yelled, climbing up Noivern's back.
"Ash, Clemont's burning up!" Nicole yelled. "Let me up!"
Greninja politely let her onto its back. Froakie jumped onto her head.
Hawlucha and Pikachu glided next to me and Noivern.
Later
Clemont coughed again. "It was probably your hand's heat."
"My hands aren't that hot." Nicole objected.
Clemont narrowed his eyes.
I sighed. "I'm not in the mood, you two. I saw Serena again."
"She's dead!"
"She burnt me." I snarled, turning around. "Here."
Nicole gently took my hair. "Poor you."
I lowered my gaze to the floor.
"Ash! Clemont! Nicole! We're home!" Misty yelled, jumping up the stairs.
