After hearing Brock's suggestion, Melanie was stunned. She hadn't expected that, just for Bulbasaur's sake, they would even bring up applying to the Pokémon League to make her little shelter an official rescue station.
That wasn't something that could be approved easily. But the fact that they even mentioned it showed how serious they were, especially the boy in the middle. The look on Ash's face when he said he wanted Bulbasaur was so firm it almost startled her.
If Bulbasaur followed a Trainer like him, it might truly change his future.
Shaking her head, Melanie said softly, "There's no need. This place is only a temporary shelter I put together on my own. Bulbasaur has been helping me, and I'm grateful, but I know it's holding him back. If he stays here forever, he'll never grow.
"So… Bulbasaur, if you like this boy, Ash, then go with him."
She smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry about me. I made this shelter to help injured Pokémon. But if it ends up limiting their growth, then I'd rather not have it at all."
Her words were echoed by the Pokémon gathered around her. Even Oddish, standing at Bulbasaur's side, cried out encouragingly.
They all owed much to Melanie and Bulbasaur. Now, they wanted Bulbasaur to have his own chance at a better future. As for themselves, they could continue living in the wild. Eventually, one of them would rise to take Bulbasaur's place as the "big brother" of the group.
Bulbasaur fell silent. Her words made sense, and he already felt the tug of wanting to follow Ash. His friends urging him only pulled him further in that direction. He was close to deciding, but something still held him back.
And then;
A shrill, arrogant laugh split the air, followed by the whoosh of a hot-air balloon.
"Who's there?" Melanie asked instinctively.
"Since you asked so nicely… PREPARE FOR TROUBLE!"
"And MAKE IT DOUBLE!"
Jessie, James, and Meowth popped up over the trees. After half a month, Team Rocket had tracked Ash down yet again.
This made the fourth time they'd appeared. Persistent didn't even begin to cover it.
And this time, they had a new toy: a gigantic, roaring vacuum machine!
The suction was so strong that the Pokémon in the shelter were dragged in one by one. Once trapped inside the collection bag, they couldn't escape.
"Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried, frantically lashing out with Razor Leaf and Vine Whip, but the reinforced nozzle didn't even budge. The machine kept pulling, and even Bulbasaur himself was on the verge of being swallowed.
Then;
A blazing blue sphere shot out, striking the vacuum's joint with a thunderous impact.
CRACK!
The massive machine split in two, sparks raining down. Jessie and James froze mid-laugh, their jaws dropping.
"What?! Our reinforced steel! Even a high-level Pokémon couldn't dent it in one shot!"
Every pair of eyes turned toward Ash. Jessie and James hadn't seen who fired, but everyone else had. That glowing Aura Sphere had come from Ash's own hands!
Misty and Brock didn't even blink, they were used to this by now. But Melanie's eyes went wide, her jaw slack in disbelief.
'Was that… an attack from a human?'
Not even Bulbasaur, the strongest Pokémon here, could scratch that machine, and Ash had destroyed it in a single strike.
'Just what is he?'
"Aura Sphere!" Ash shouted again, and another ball of shimmering energy exploded against the capsule that held the shelter's Pokémon.
BOOM!
The metal shell shattered, and the captured Pokémon tumbled free into the air.
"Bulbasaur, catch them! Use Vine Whip!" Ash commanded sharply.
"Bulba–SAUR!"
Vines lashed out in a blur, snaring the falling Pokémon one by one and bringing them safely back to the ground.
Jessie's face twisted in fury. "You brat, you ruined everything again!"
James was red with outrage. "Are you even human?! What were those glowing blue spheres?!"
This time, they had come fully prepared, insulated steel, machines designed to counter Pikachu's electricity. And yet Pikachu hadn't even lifted a paw, while Ash himself had blown their device to pieces!
"Your evil plans are always the worst for us!" Ash shot back, pointing forward. "Bulbasaur, finish this, use RAZOR LEAF!"
Bulbasaur obeyed Ash's command without hesitation. He shook his body, unleashing a storm of razor-sharp leaves that sliced straight through Team Rocket's hot-air balloon.
Unlike the heavy vacuum machine, the balloon's thin fabric didn't stand a chance. Within seconds, dozens of gaping holes ripped across its surface.
"Team Rocket's blasting off again!!!" Jessie, James, and Meowth wailed, their faces pale as the balloon popped and sent them flying into the sky.
With the villains gone, Ash and the others rushed to check the injured Pokémon. Thankfully, none of them had suffered serious harm.
Bulbasaur finished his inspection, then turned to Ash. His eyes burned with determination.
"Bulba… saur!" I want to go with you.
"Really?!" Ash's voice cracked with excitement, and he practically jumped three feet high. "That's awesome!" He had nearly given up hope, but Bulbasaur had made his choice after all.
Brock tilted his head back toward the endless blue sky and chuckled. "Funny enough, Team Rocket actually did us a favor this time. They forced Bulbasaur to see his own limits and Ash's strength. That's why he decided so firmly to follow you."
Ash, still hugging Bulbasaur in delight, froze for a second, his expression twitching.
It was true. Without Team Rocket, Bulbasaur might still be hesitating.
And last time, it was thanks to Team Rocket's meddling that he'd stumbled into Clefairy's ritual and met Ralts.
Could it be… those three were his lucky stars?
Ash immediately shook his head hard. No way. Absolutely not. Team Rocket was just a pack of bumbling villains! He would never admit that.
Still, the result spoke for itself: Ash had successfully caught Bulbasaur. His party now numbered five Pokémon, just one short of a full team.
After thanking Melanie for her help and asking her for directions, Ash, Misty, and Brock set off once again for Vermilion City.
Compared to their relatively smooth trips to Pewter and Cerulean, the road to Vermilion was an ordeal.
They had gotten lost more times than Ash could count. By car, the trip would have taken a single day. On foot, even with no detours, at least a week. But thanks to their constant wandering in circles, two weeks had passed, and they'd only covered half the distance.
Still, catching Bulbasaur alone made all those detours worthwhile.
Finally, following Melanie's directions, they managed to escape the forest and reach a proper road. Relieved, they found their place on the map and pressed on.
Two days later, however, they found themselves staring at yet another endless stretch of identical trees. Ash's forehead beaded with sweat.
They were lost again.
"Noooo!!! Why are we lost again?!" Misty screamed, clutching her head in despair. "This road to Vermilion City is impossible! We should've taken the bus back in Cerulean!"
Ash winced but tried to defend himself. "Don't say that. If we hadn't gotten lost, I wouldn't have caught Bulbasaur! And besides, we've gained tons of experience along the way!"
Misty jabbed a finger at him. "Correction: you gained all that! What about us, huh?"
Ash shut his mouth.
Misty's frustration wasn't hard to understand. Being lost in the woods for days, unable to find a town, and going without proper baths was more than enough to fray her temper.
Brock crouched beside Ash, studying the map. "I think we're here. If we head this way, we should reach a main road, then a small town near Vermilion. From there, it'll be smooth sailing."
That was the plan… assuming they didn't get lost again.
Ash suddenly smacked his forehead. "Oh, wait! I can use my Aura! I can scan up to fifty miles around me and see the terrain. That way we'll find the road easily!"
Misty froze. Her face darkened, twitching as she slowly turned toward him.
"You… you've had this ability… the entire time…" Her voice was low, trembling with suppressed rage.
Then she exploded.
"AND YOU DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING UNTIL NOW?!!!"
Misty's face twisted with rage. She stretched out her pale, delicate hands, clamped them around Ash's neck, and shook him furiously, looking every bit like a demon from the depths of hell.
"Why… didn't… you… SAY THIS EARLIER?!" she roared.
"Alright, alright, Misty! Let Ash find the route first!" Brock quickly stepped in to break it up, worried the two might actually go too far. If Ash reflexively fought back, Misty's physique wasn't exactly on par with Team Rocket's.
At Brock's words, Misty finally let go. Truthfully, she hadn't used much strength; she just wanted to vent her frustration.
Ash, ever the dramatic actor, flopped back, sticking out his tongue as if he'd nearly been strangled to death. His over-the-top reaction actually drained most of the fire from Misty's anger.
Once she released him, Ash sheepishly rubbed his neck, then finally closed his eyes and activated his Aura.
No wonder Misty was furious. If he'd remembered earlier that his Aura could map the terrain, they'd already be in Vermilion, or maybe even Celadon, by now!
Still, a loss sometimes turned into a gain. After all, he had caught Bulbasaur during their detours.
"I found the road! It's over there!" In just moments, Ash had scanned the entire area with Aura and located the path to Vermilion City on the map.
When Misty saw how quickly and easily he solved the problem, her temper almost flared again. You mean you had this ridiculous shortcut the whole time and just "forgot"?
Brock, however, was more thoughtful. "Aura really is something else. I looked up some information back in the Cerulean City Pokémon Center. From what I read, only a handful of Pokémon can even use Aura, and even then it's usually just for things like Aura Sphere or wave-sensing moves. Nothing like what you're doing. And there's no record of any human wielding Aura this way. Ash… you're one of a kind."
Misty bit her lip, her anger slowly cooling as she remembered all the strange, miraculous things Ash had already done with his Aura, shielding others, pathfinding, even attacks rivaling a Pokémon's.
A Rookie Trainer who possessed power on par with high-level Pokémon, who showed surprising talent for training, creative tactics, a caring bond with his team, and rapid growth in experience, Ash was undeniably remarkable.
If other girls knew about this side of him, Misty thought, they'd probably line up just to travel with him. An excellent Trainer was always in demand.
Her gaze lingered on Ash, strange emotions stirring.
"Ah! There's a Pokémon up ahead with a really weak Aura! Let's go check it out!" Ash suddenly shouted, cutting her thoughts in half.
Misty nearly jumped out of her skin. That fleeting flutter in her chest was instantly replaced with the urge to punch him square in the face.
At least Ash's shout wasn't random, his Aura sense had picked up a faint, weakening presence from a Pokémon further down the path.
...
10 BOnus @500 PS