Take With You

Fear of Getting Lost

Ash laid awake in his bed. He stared at the ceiling while Pikachu slept on the floor beside him. The rain seems to have stopped, but the dark clouds remained above the Alola Region.

He woke up late today. Earlier, he was in a rush to get ready for school this morning. He panicked as he ran down the stairs where his mother had to stop him in his tracks. As she explained to him what today was, he walked back upstairs to his room grumpy. He got ready for nothing, so he flopped back onto his bed very upset.

Today is a Saturday.

Ash wasn't used to staying at home with nothing to do. As he laid there, he began to realize that he missed traveling the world a whole lot. All of the friends he made and rivals he met in each region, all of the exciting pokemon encounters, and all of the many different sights to see. From Kanto's meadows to Unova's cities.

The feeling of getting lost along a dirt path in a forest is terrifying. But when you're lost with your friends, it's a fear that you all share. A fear that turns into excitement while all physical stress seems to melt away. You don't feel the tiredness in your legs until night falls and you have to stop to set up camp. You don't feel exhaustion until you smell the food cooking over a campfire. And after a good night's sleep under the trillions of stars in the endless night sky, you wake up with your friends, ready to fear the world all over again.

Although the beautiful shores of Alola are a nice change of pace to the long stretches of forest from all the other regions, this place feels so small that adventure seems a little bit too much to ask for.

As Ash continued to reminisce about the past, his mother Delia opens the door slowly.

"Ash?" Delia's head peeks around the his door, "There's a girl at the door asking for you, is she your girlfriend?"

"What!? N-no, I don't have a girlfriend, " Ash stuttered as he sat up in his bed. He turns his head toward Pikachu to find that he's still asleep.
"I'll be down in a sec, I'm just uhh..."

"Okay, I'm inviting her inside!" Delia says.

As she closes the door, Ash gets up and makes his bed. He reaches under his pillow for his blue ribbon and ties it around his left wrist. He takes a look outside of his bedroom window, the dark clouds had blocked out the sun for so long that even his room bagan to feel chilly. He pulls a dark gray sweatshirt off a hanger in his closet and puts it on over his regular school clothes. Before he leaves his room, he rubs the top of Pikachu's head. Pikachu doesn't open his eyes, but he smiles as he continues to sleep.

Making his way out of his room and down the stairs, a girl with blonde hair sat at his dining table waiting for him. Her big white hat rested on the table.

"Good morning, Ash!" Lillie smiles.

"Morning!" Ash gave a weak smile, he was still upset about not having school today, but he was genuinely happy to see her.

Delia walks out of the kitchen at looks at her son, "So Ash, Lillie says you two are going to watch a pokemon performance in the next town over?" She asks. The town was located halfway in between the Alola Trainer's School and Ash's beach house.

Ash looks at Lillie where she gives him the same smile as when he walked down the stairs. He looks back at his mother, "Uh, yeah." He answers nervously.

Delia excitedly speed walked to the coat closet by the front door, "Great! I'll go grab you two an umbrella and-"

"Oh it'll be okay! The performance is indoors!" Lillie informs her.

"Oh? Well, okay! You kids behave you hear?"

"Of course! Thank you for having me over Mrs. Ketchum!" Lillie smiles and beckons to Ash. Ash walks over and they both make their way out of the door, Lillie's hat remains on the table.