Pokemon: Radical Redux

"Wow, these are delicious," Yellow said happily, eating her crepe she had just gotten from the restaurant. She lowered it to let Chuchu take a bite too.

"Yeah, they say this place has legendary crepes," Brock said, giving his compliments as he grabbed his order. The one making the crepes scratched the back of his head sheepishly with a thankful smile.

Ash was about to place his order, but Misty playfully scooted in front of him.

"Nope, I need sugar. Immediate sugar," Misty declared.

"Didn't you already have a churro, a gelato, and three mochi?" Ash asked with a helpless smile.

"Exactly. And this crepe will tie the flavors together. It's like... sugar science," Misty insisted, pointing at the most overloaded item on the menu, one piled high with strawberries, whipped cream, chocolate drizzle, and a Poffin stuck in the side.

"You are chaos," Ash muttered with a grin, stepping back.

"You love chaos," Misty replied smugly as she accepted her crepe like it was the Holy Grail. She immediately took a huge bite and made a muffled noise of approval.

"I'm surrounded by dessert goblins," Ash said, finally stepping up to the counter. "One crepe, please. The simple banana one. Just... banana."

"Boring!" Misty said around a mouthful of cream.

"Respectfully, not everything needs five toppings and an explosion hazard," Ash said as he placed his order. As he reached for his wallet, he noticed Pikachu looking at something and moving toward it.

Following Pikachu, he saw a Vaporeon being rinsed under a cold-water faucet by what was probably its trainer. Pikachu smiled, he was feeling thirsty and wanted a cool splash of water on his head.

As he ran up, the trainer stopped pressing the faucet and started walking away, with the Vaporeon following. That meant the water wasn't flowing anymore, so Pikachu couldn't get a sip.

Just as Pikachu drooped his ears, a little disappointed and wondering if he should just go get Ash, a girl walked up and turned on the faucet for him.

Pikachu looked up at the girl as she smiled at him. Instantly cheered up, he took a drink of water and splashed it over his body.

"There you are," Ash's voice rang out as he walked casually over, Vee strolling beside him. He was eating his crepe as he walked. He'd told the other three that Pikachu had just gone for a walk, so he was going after him.

They were against it, Ash had a bit of a track record with "walks", but this was Pikachu's walk, and Vee had promised to keep him out of trouble. So they let him go. The fools.

Ash smiled when he saw the girl and recognized her.

"Hey, I see you helped out Pikachu here. Thanks for that."

The girl didn't say anything right away. She just walked up to him, circling around as if observing him, and then sniffed him. She stayed quiet for a moment, then smiled and turned, suddenly breaking into a run.

Ash knew exactly what was going on. That was Latias. And he knew what was coming. He glanced at Pikachu, who was shaking out his fur to dry.

"You good? Then come on, bud. Let's follow her," he said as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder and took his crepe, starting to munch on it. Vee followed on foot.

—-

{Meanwhile}

Inside their speedboat, Annie and Oakley sat in front of a wall of monitors, sipping sodas through curly straws as they watched the street feeds.

"Ugh, how many tourists does this town have?" Annie grumbled, tapping her nails on the console.

Then Oakley squinted at a screen. One figure's thermal reading looked different.

"There. That one. Her heat signature's off."

Annie leaned in with a smirk. "Bingo. Looks like we found one."

"Let's do this," Oakley said, taking the wheel. The engine roared to life as they sped off across the canal.

—-

Back with the girl, she was walking happily through the streets when two young ladies in expensive-looking clothes suddenly appeared behind her, Annie and Oakley again, riding in a speedboat.

"Looks like she turned into a little girl, but we still know who you are, Latias," Oakley said smugly, an Espeon sitting calmly beside her.

Latias flinched slightly when she saw the two girls and took a slow step back, but as she did, she heard a faint skittering sound. Turning, she saw an Ariados staring at her with glowing eyes.

"By the way, where did you get that dress? It is so last year," Annie mocked, snapping her fingers.

The Ariados clicked its chelicerae and shot out a web, aiming to grab Latias. She flinched and shut her eyes, but someone grabbed her and pulled her out of the way.

Ash ran up and pulled Latias back, holding out his arm and catching the webbing instead. "Now, what do you think you're doing?"

The three girls blinked collectively in surprise, Ash seemed to have come out of nowhere. Oakley gave a little fake laugh.

"Oh, we're just trying to stop a fashion disaster. Surely you wouldn't want to get involved, right?"

"I mean, who are you?" Annie purred. "I didn't know this girl had a boyfriend, especially not one as good-looking as you."

She said it half to distract Ash so they could grab Latias, and half because, well, he was attractive.

Ash raised an eyebrow at the Rocket girls. "Yeah, that line would probably work better if you weren't attacking people with an Ariados."

Latias peeked from behind Ash's shoulder, still in her human disguise, clutching his sleeve tightly.

Annie gave a slow shrug. "Okay, fair. But still, how about you be a good boy and let us take her? It's really none of your business."

"And maybe your number, cutie. Depends on how you wanna play this," she added, leaning on the edge of the boat and twirling her hair.

"Yeah, I'll pass. Besides, if it's fashion sense you're looking for, maybe you should stop wearing that 1900s-looking crop top and those thirty-dollar haircuts," Ash said with a smirk.

Latias let out a soft giggle. Even in disguise, her red eyes twinkled behind Ash.

Annie blinked, momentarily taken aback. "Oh, you're gonna pay for that," she said, snapping her fingers.

Espeon raised its head and fired a small [Confusion] toward Ash, but he didn't even flinch. From the side, Vee leapt in and blocked it with a solid [Iron Tail], while Pikachu casually sat on the bridge railing, finishing the last of his crepe.

"Really? That's your plan?" Ash said, his tone dry. He held his arm steady, Ariados was actively trying to pull him in, but Ash didn't budge.

"Wow. Okay. You've got muscles and a backbone. Didn't think they made trainers like that anymore," Oakley muttered, half-sarcastic, half-curious as she adjusted her sunglasses. "Still, you're being a real pain. Espeon, [Psybeam]!"

Before Espeon could even charge up, Pikachu sparked to life on the railing. His cheeks lit up, and he fired a bolt of electricity, blasting the front of their boat just enough to short the system and jolt the engine, making Annie and Oakley stumble.

"Hey! Watch the controls!" Annie shrieked, grabbing the dashboard. "I just got my nails done!"

Ash smirked. "Maybe next time, don't go after girls in disguise with bugs and brain blasts."

Latias peeked up from behind him, still holding tightly onto his sleeve. "Mm…"

Ash let go of her for a moment, grabbed the webbing with his other hand, and spun, whipping Ariados like it was on a leash. The spider flew into Espeon, knocking it aside and crashing both of them into the boat with the girls.

"Sorry, but maybe you should think a little more. You're way too weak to beat me," Ash said, snapping his fingers. "Pikachu, [Splishy Splash]!"

Pikachu smiled as he jumped up and flipped, slamming his tail into the water. The slap triggered a large wave that surged up, crashing into the girls, their Pokémon, and their boat. Screaming, they were carried off by the water, their boat launched up and over a nearby bridge.

Latias watched it all, then looked at Ash, taking his hand and nudging for him to follow. He did, with Pikachu and Vee running behind.

Meanwhile, Annie and Oakley were now soaking wet, tangled in Ariados's webs, and stuck in their lopsided boat, which had wedged itself halfway under the bridge. Espeon groaned, dazed, while Ariados dangled upside down like a damp ornament from the railing.

"…Okay," Annie hissed, trying to wring out her shirt, "getting dunked by a cute guy wasn't on my to-do list."

Oakley pulled off her sunglasses with a scowl. "Wasn't this supposed to be an easy mission?"

Annie flopped back, defeated. "Ugh. I'm gonna need, like, six lattes and a new outfit to process this day."

Up on a nearby rooftop, a blinking flying camera hovered. It watched the two defeated Rockets, then turned to track Ash and Latias disappearing into the streets. It beeped once before flying off. The data had been sent. Now it was time for the games to begin.

—-

Latias led Ash through narrow alleys and over quiet rooftops, weaving through the maze of buildings until they arrived at the fountain again. She finally let go of his hand, turned, and gave him a small, graceful bow. Then she smiled and darted off once more, this time leaving Ash, Pikachu, and Vee behind.

And Ash didn't follow. Not this time.

Misty was probably already ready to scold him. He'd been gone for about ten minutes. Yeah, best to keep what happened to himself. Besides, Brock wanted to go to the museum.

So he turned and started walking back.

Misty sat on a bench outside the ferry terminal, arms crossed and foot tapping rapidly against the cobblestones. Her empty crepe wrapper fluttered in the breeze like the last shred of her patience.

"I swear to Arceus, if he says 'it was just a walk' again, I'm throwing him into the canal."

"I mean," Brock said from beside her, flipping through a museum brochure, "statistically, he does always come back eventually."

"That's not comforting."

Yellow sat nearby with Chuchu in her lap, nibbling gently on the last bite of her crepe. "Maybe something distracted him? You know how curious Pikachu can be."

"Somehow, I don't think this was Pikachu's fault. Why did we even let him go alone? Every time he goes for a walk, something happens," Misty sighed.

Just then, Ash waved as he walked up. "Hey! Sorry I'm late. I had to help a Meowth stuck in a tree."

Misty slowly crossed her arms. "…So. Was it a nice walk?"

Ash blinked. "Yeah? Super nice. The weather's great. The locals are cool. Pikachu got some water."

"Did you get into trouble?"

"No."

"Any fighting?"

"Nope."

"Any giant explosions?"

"…Not giant."

"Ash."

"Okay, technically it was a large splash, not an explosion," he corrected, biting into the last of his crepe like that would somehow end the conversation.

Misty gave him a long, suspicious stare.

Brock sighed and raised the museum brochure over his face like it was a newspaper.

Yellow looked between them and just smiled.

"Well," Yellow said brightly, "at least you're back in one piece!"

Ash grinned. "See? Yellow gets it."

Brock pulled the brochure off his face and cleared his throat dramatically. "Alright. Now that the stray Ash has returned from the wild, can we please go to the museum before the sun sets?"

Ash blinked. "Wait, weren't you just saying how relaxing this place is?"

"Exactly. And nothing says 'relaxation' like centuries-old waterlogged artifacts and fossilized seafloor pottery," Brock said, eyes gleaming with excitement.

Misty gave him a look. "You've been holding that brochure for like an hour."

"Because I care," Brock said solemnly, placing a reverent hand over his heart. "Do you even know how rare it is for a museum to have a full Sea Crown replica from the pre-League era?"

"...No?" Misty said slowly.

"Exactly. Which is why we need to go. Right now. Before someone spills soda on it."

Ash looked over. "Do people spill soda in museums?"

"They do when they're unsupervised tourists," Brock muttered darkly. "Over in the Pewter Museum one time, a toddler wiped cotton candy on an Armaldo fossil."

Yellow gently patted Brock's shoulder. "Okay, okay, I'm in. Museums can be fun. Especially with Brock narrating like a dramatic audiobook."

"I do have a good museum voice," Brock said proudly, immediately standing up.

Ash looked at Misty, who still had her arms crossed.

"You coming?" he asked, already knowing the answer but giving her a hopeful smile anyway.

She gave him a long, squinty stare. "You're not off the hook. You're getting at least one scolding glare every hour for the rest of the day."

"Honestly? Better than usual," Ash grinned.

Misty rolled her eyes but smiled as she followed along too. "Fine, but only because you guys are hopeless without me."

Ash smirked as they walked. "Oh really? Alright then, I got a question. If one of us had never joined the group, which one do you think would've changed things the most?"

Yellow blinked. "Huh. That's a big question."

Misty tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Well, I feel like if Brock wasn't here, we'd probably all be severely underfed and dehydrated."

Brock gave her a mock bow. "I'll take that as high praise."

"Nah, we'd be fine. I can cook too, remember?" Ash said playfully.

"Hey!" Brock said, but he wasn't annoyed. If anything, he let out a little chuckle.

"But seriously," Misty went on, "if Yellow weren't here, we'd probably have emotionally imploded by now. Or gotten eaten by a wild Ursaring while trying to 'make friends' with it."

"Hey!" Yellow protested, cheeks puffed out. "I'm not that bad anymore!"

Ash laughed. "Yeah, yeah, we all know you're like... 70% better now."

"70%?" she echoed, squinting at him.

"Okay, fine. 72," Ash smirked.

Brock shrugged. "Honestly, if I hadn't joined, I'd probably still be stuck at the Gym, playing babysitter and pretending I wasn't jealous every time I saw a trainer heading out on their journey."

That earned a quiet pause, but Misty gently nudged his shoulder. "Good thing you escaped then, huh?"

Brock smiled. "Yeah. Feels like the first real choice I made for myself."

Yellow looked between them, thoughtful. "I guess if I hadn't met Ash, I wouldn't have ever started training seriously. I'd still be hiding behind Uncle Wilton every time a wild Pidgey flew too close."

Ash snorted. "Come on, after all we've been through, you're not allowed to talk about yourself like that."

She gave a little smile, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Still... you helped me start all of it. You believed in me before I did."

As they walked into the museum, Brock paused to think. "But if I had to give an actual answer… probably Ash."

"I'd still be stuck at the Gym every day, wondering if I was even meant to leave Pewter. Misty might've stayed locked in 'rage and resentment' mode."

"I—hey!" Misty sputtered. "That's... okay, maybe not wrong, but still rude."

"And I probably would've just stayed in Viridian City," Yellow said softly. "We wouldn't have met without you."

Ash laughed and smiled at them. "Aw, you guys are getting sappy on me."

Misty rolled her eyes. "I will push you into a canal."

"Do it and I'll drag you down with me," Ash said, sticking his tongue out and laughing as they stepped over a large Aerodactyl fossil embedded in the floor.

Meanwhile, off to the side, a white-bearded old man watched them with a warm smile. Seeing how close the group was, he approached. "Hello there. I'm Lorenzo, curator of Alto Mare's museum. Would you like a tour?"

Brock was the first to speak up. With experience in museums, he nodded eagerly. "That would be wonderful."

Lorenzo smiled. "Then follow me."

He led them to the back of the museum, into a beautiful room with a circular ceiling inlaid with colored glass. In the center stood a strange-looking, ancient statue.

"According to island legend," Lorenzo explained cheerfully, "this museum and the Defense Mechanism of Alto Mare were built by the ancient people to honor Latios and Latias for protecting their home!"

He gestured to the large device. "This structure was also created to provide protection to the island, but its exact method of use is still unknown. Though the museum has been renovated many times over the centuries, this mechanism has never been moved or activated. It's stood here since the very beginning."

Sunlight filtered through the glass ceiling, casting a kaleidoscope of colors across the room.

Brock stepped forward, opened his arms wide, and declared with full confidence, "I will definitely meet a beautiful lady here!"

Misty and Yellow both sighed and laughed helplessly, but this time, Misty didn't even bother pulling his ear.

Ash, meanwhile, looked up and spotted a familiar girl packing up her things. She had just finished painting and was heading out through a side exit.

He smiled to himself, then turned to Lorenzo. Tapping him on the shoulder, Ash slipped him a small note, picked up Pikachu and Vee, and quietly left through the side door.

Lorenzo blinked in confusion. And by the time the other three turned around, Ash was already gone.

"Where did Ash go?" Yellow asked.

Lorenzo looked down at the note in his hand, then at the group. He opened it and read aloud, "Be right back. I'm going for a walk."

Misty's eye twitched. She raised both arms to the ceiling, "Nooooo!"