[The Next Day]
The air was thick with humidity—the sort that clung to the skin like a second layer, dampening every breath and making even the most basic movement feel like wading through invisible syrup. Towering trees loomed above, ancient sentinels of the dense Pallet jungle, their vast canopies woven so tightly together that the sky had all but vanished. Only fractured shafts of golden light filtered through the gaps, painting the forest floor in strange, shifting patterns. Moss grew in patches along gnarled roots, and vines hung like serpents from the branches, swaying ever so slightly in the breeze that barely reached the undergrowth.
The buzz of insect wings reverberated through the silence like static, occasionally drowned out by the rustling of leaves or the distant, guttural cries of unseen Pokémon moving through the brush. Despite the seemingly serene surroundings, there was an edge to the atmosphere—like the forest itself was holding its breath, waiting.
Ash trudged slowly along a worn trail, the soles of his sneakers kicking up flecks of damp soil. He wasn't walking with a destination in mind. Not really. His body moved forward, but his mind was adrift.
He was remembering.
So much had happened in so little time.
The past few months had been nothing short of a whirlwind. His new life was taking shape—and though it was still early in his journey, the threads of destiny had already begun weaving tightly around him. His friendship with Green and Yellow had grown deeper and more layered with every passing day. They were a constant in his life now, each with their own way of grounding him, even when the weight of what he knew threatened to crush him.
Green, ever confident and bold, had a way of invading his personal space without hesitation. She teased relentlessly, throwing flirty jabs and sly smirks his way like it was second nature. But beneath her bravado, Ash could sense something real—a warmth in her gaze, a softness she rarely showed to anyone else. Her touches lingered longer than they should have. Her eyes lingered even longer.
Yellow, in contrast, was gentle, almost ethereal. She had a kindness that ran so deep it seemed to radiate from her. Her affection wasn't loud or obvious like Green's. Instead, it came in the form of small gestures—a packed lunch when he forgot his, quiet concern when he seemed troubled, or simply sitting close without saying a word, offering silent companionship that somehow made everything more bearable.
He cared about them both—deeply. But love? Romance?
Ash shook his head slightly, as if to physically dispel the thought. There was no time for distractions. Not now. Not with what he knew was coming. The events of the anime—the real ones, the dangerous ones—were unfolding slowly but surely. The timeline was progressing, and every step brought them closer to the moment when things would change forever.
That psychic presence from weeks ago… it still haunted him.
Mewtwo.
He didn't need to see it to know it existed. The raw, chaotic energy that echoed through the edges of his mind like a persistent storm had only grown more defined. Sharper. Like the pressure drop before a tornado, it was a sign that something world-shattering was on its way. Mewtwo was no longer a distant threat; it was becoming real—solid. He could feel its consciousness pulsing, somewhere far away but steadily approaching.
And Team Rocket? They weren't just the bumbling trio the anime so often portrayed. They were dangerous. Strategic. Powerful. Somewhere deep in their underground labs, they were building something. No—someone. And when that someone awoke fully… the world would never be the same.
But as terrifying as Mewtwo's eventual awakening was, Ash had something more immediate to prepare for.
The field trip.
It had been announced a few days ago, and Oak had confirmed it with a detailed itinerary earlier that morning. A short expedition through the forest surrounding Pallet Town. On the surface, it was just another school activity—an educational walk with a few instructors, some wildlife observation, maybe a few catch-and-release exercises.
But Ash knew better.
This trip was different. It was a fixed point in the timeline. It was the moment when Goh—the Goh—would first see Mew.
The elusive, mythical Pokémon. The origin of all Pokémon DNA. The one with ties not only to Mewtwo, but to something far greater. Something ancient.
Ash had watched that episode so many times in his old life that it was practically etched into his memory. Goh catching even a fleeting glimpse of Mew would spark his obsession. It would lead to his partnership with Scorbunny. To Project Mew. To their travels. Their friendship.
And Ash needed to be there for it. Not just as a spectator, but as a participant.
Suddenly, he stopped walking and leaned against a broad tree trunk, letting the damp bark press cool against his back. His mind was racing now. He knew he had to be careful. If he acted too differently—if he changed too much—he could disrupt the balance of events. But he also couldn't just sit back and let things play out as they did in the anime. This was real now. People could get hurt. Pokémon could die.
"Hey, Ash!" a voice called through the trees, jolting him from his thoughts.
He blinked, looking up to see a familiar figure pushing through the brush with far less grace than she likely intended. Leaves stuck in her hair, and her shirt was snagged slightly on a twig, but Green didn't seem to care. She gave him a smirk as she walked up, brushing her fingers through her hair to shake the foliage loose.
"There you are," she said. "You spaced out during class and disappeared the moment we were let out. What are you thinking about?"
Ash looked at her. She tilted her head slightly, expression unreadable.
"Oh, nothing," he said, slipping back into the easy mask of casual indifference. "Just curious about the field trip Professor Oak mentioned."
Green snorted. "You? Curious about a school event? That's a first."
"It's not just a school event," he replied, a little more defensively than he meant to.
Her brow arched, but she let it slide. "Yeah, yeah. I heard we're heading out into the forest. I think they're making us write reports on Pokémon behavior or something boring like that."
Ash nodded. "Maybe. But it's a good opportunity. You never know what kind of Pokémon we'll encounter."
She leaned against the tree beside him, close enough that their shoulders brushed.
"Or what kind of people," she said quietly, glancing sideways at him.
He didn't respond immediately. His thoughts had already returned to Mew.
Would it reveal itself the same way? Would Goh even be there? Or had his presence already changed too much?
He had met Goh briefly—a shy, quiet boy with a spark in his eyes. A boy still clinging to childish dreams, not yet hardened by failure or loss. But there was brilliance there. Determination. The kind Ash recognized instantly.
He would need Goh. Or someone like him. When things escalated, Ash wouldn't be able to face it all alone.
Green was still watching him.
"You're really serious about this, huh?" she asked. "The trip."
Ash looked away, nodding slowly.
"There's something I need to see out there," he said. "Something important."
She studied him for a moment longer, then gave a small shrug. "Well, whatever it is, just know I'm coming too. I'm not letting you wander off."
Ash smiled faintly. "Wouldn't dream of it."
Green gave him a side glance, eyes squinting with that trademark smirk. "Good. Because if I so much as hear you slipped off without telling anyone, I will find you."
Ash raised an eyebrow. "You make it sound like you're my babysitter."
"I am your babysitter," she said, flicking a stray leaf off his shoulder like she was proving a point. "Someone has to keep you from falling into a ravine."
"I'm not the one who walked straight into a Beedrill nest last spring," he countered.
"That was one time. And they came out of nowhere." Green crossed her arms. "Besides, I thought they were flowers."
"They were buzzing."
"I thought it was wind!"
Ash laughed. "Wind that hums and has stingers?"
"I was distracted! You were the one showing off that dumb cartwheel."
"It wasn't dumb. It was cool."
"You tripped halfway through and fell on your face."
"…It was a stylized landing."
Green let out a laugh, light and easy, as she leaned back against the tree beside him. "Sure, sure. Stylized. Like that time you tried to vault over that fallen log and ended up stuck upside down."
Ash blinked. "That didn't happen."
"Oh, it did," she said, grinning. "Yellow and I had to pull you out by your legs. You were kicking like a baby Growlithe."
Ash groaned. "How do you remember this stuff?"
"Because watching you make a fool of yourself is the highlight of my week."
"Wow. Harsh."
She shrugged. "Only because I care."
Ash shook his head, hiding a smile. "You've got a weird way of showing it."
Green straightened up and stretched her arms above her head. "So do you, honestly. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were part Pokémon. You've been dragging us out into the woods every other weekend like you're training to live here."
"It's peaceful," Ash said, shrugging.
"It's humid," she replied. "And there's bugs. And you always pick trails with, like, three different kinds of thorny plants."
"You survived."
"Barely," she reached down and rubbed her ankle. "Pretty sure I still have a scar from last month's 'shortcut'."
"That shortcut saved us fifteen minutes."
"And added three bug bites and a bruised knee. Great trade-off."
"You're welcome."
She gave him a shove. "Next time I'm picking the route."
Ash leaned into a branch and gave her a mock-serious nod. "By all means. Lead the expedition. I'll even let you hold the map."
"Oh no," she said, smirking. "You're still holding the map. That way I have someone to blame when we inevitably get lost."
Ash grinned. "Smart."
"I know."
A gust of wind stirred the canopy above, sending a flurry of leaves drifting down like lazy snowflakes. One caught in Green's hair.
"You've got something—" Ash pointed.
She scowled and started patting her head. "What? Where?"
"Right there. No, a little left—wait, now it's tangled."
Green groaned and pulled the leaf out with a tug. "This jungle hates me."
Ash gave her a look. "You wore a white skirt into the forest."
"I didn't think we'd actually go this deep! I thought we were just going to skip out of school, sit under a tree, and eat Poképuffs or something."
"You've clearly never followed me into the woods."
"I have," she said pointedly. "And every time it ends with mud, scratches, or suspicious berries."
Ash paused. "Okay, that's fair."
Green plopped down onto a mossy rock and pulled out her canteen. "At least Yellow had the sense to stay back today. She would've hated this humidity."
"She's helping Oak with that report thing, right?" Ash asked, sitting cross-legged nearby.
Green nodded. "Yeah. Sorting Pokédex data or something. She actually likes it, which is kind of scary."
Ash smiled faintly. "She's really into the research stuff. Kinda reminds me of Oak when he's in a groove."
"She's too nice to be Oak," Green said, taking a sip from her bottle. "He yells at us when we track dirt into the lab."
"That's because you tracked half the Viridian forest inside last time."
"It was a little mud!"
"It was a whole trail, Green."
She grinned. "Fine. But at least he can't stay mad at me."
Ash leaned back on his hands, looking up through the trees. "You're lucky. He always makes me mop."
"Maybe because you're his weird 'prodigy student' or whatever. He's grooming you for some big science-y destiny."
Ash snorted. "If he is, he's gonna be disappointed."
Green smiled, but didn't say anything right away. The sounds of the jungle filled the pause between them: rustling leaves, distant bird Pokémon chirping, and the occasional buzz of something unseen flying overhead.
Eventually, she glanced at him. "Hey, serious question."
"Yeah?"
Green pulled her legs up and hugged her knees. "Do you ever get… bored?"
Ash blinked. "Bored?"
"Yeah. Like… school's fine, and Pallet's nice, and I like hanging out with you guys, but sometimes I feel like I'm just… waiting for something. And I don't even know what."
Ash stared at her for a second, then gave a slow nod. "Yeah. I know what you mean."
Green looked surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah. Like there's this feeling in your chest that something big's gonna happen, but no one else seems to notice."
She let out a breath. "Exactly."
They were quiet again, not uncomfortable, just thoughtful.
Ash tilted his head toward her. "That's why I like coming out here, I think. Being in the forest. It makes things feel… closer. Like whatever I'm waiting for, it's just around the corner."
Green looked at him, eyes softer now. "Maybe that's why I follow you out here all the time. Because if something's gonna happen, I want to be there when it does."
Ash gave a small, honest smile. "You will be."
They sat there for a few more minutes, not saying much, just letting the jungle speak around them. The heat wasn't as oppressive now, or maybe they'd just gotten used to it.
Eventually, Green stood up and dusted off her skirt. "Alright, philosopher boy. If we don't start heading back, Yellow's gonna think we fell into a pit trap."
Ash stood too, brushing dirt off his pants. "She probably already sent out a search party."
"Her 'search party' is just her and that Spearow she's trying to tame."
"Which still hates her," Ash added.
"Violently," Green confirmed.
They began walking back along the trail, side by side. The sun had shifted, and the golden light filtering through the trees was thicker now, richer. Shadows stretched longer across the ground.
Green picked up a stick as they walked and started swinging it absentmindedly. "So, you excited for the trip?"
Ash shrugged. "Yeah. Should be fun."
"You think Oak will give us something like what you got for your future Pokedex?"
"Nah. He will tell us to watch and take notes from all the experience and, I quote: The real prize is the experience and knowledge that you gain."
Green sighed. "Lame. I want a real challenge."
"Like a Nidorino charging straight at us again?"
"That was awesome!"
"We had to climb a tree."
"We escaped, didn't we?"
"Barely."
Green grinned. "Totally worth it."
Ash shook his head, but he was smiling too. "You know, sometimes I wonder if you actually like getting in trouble."
"Oh, I do," she said proudly. "But only when you're there to get blamed too."
"You're the worst."
"And you're still friends with me."
Ash gave her a sideways glance. "Don't remind me."
She bumped him with her shoulder. "Shut up. You'd be bored without me."
He didn't argue.
The two of them walked the rest of the way in companionable silence, their steps familiar, easy. The jungle began to thin a little as they neared the edge of the tree line. Distant voices — faint shouts and laughter — drifted from the direction of town.
Green stopped for a second, then looked at him again. "Hey, Ash?"
"Yeah?"
She hesitated, then said, "Thanks."
Ash blinked. "For what?"
Green shrugged. "For letting me hang around all the time. Even when I'm annoying."
"You're always annoying."
"Shut up."
He grinned. "You're not so bad."
She kicked a rock at him.
He dodged it.
And together, they stepped out of the forest — two kids, covered in dirt and twigs, laughing as the world slowly shifted around them, just one ordinary afternoon before everything changed.