CHAPTER 37 - TOGETIC’S STORY
A few days after Ash’s win against Casey, our heroes were sitting in the hotel room with Lucy and Brock. During the past few days, Ash progressed through the other two pre-rounds with ease, thanks to his Snorlax and Pikachu. Today, he was about to battle Paul in the second stage of the tournament. Here, trainers were paired in groups of three, from which only one trainer would progress. A win would net a competitor three points, a draw means one point for both, while a loss leaves the loser with zero points. Stan, the young Ledyba trainer Ash met in Ilex Forest was in the group as well, but he suffered a defeat against both Paul and Ash. Today, the two winners would decide who progresses to the knockout stage of the tournament.
“You sure have a big battle coming up soon,” Lucy said. “Do you already know what Pokemon you want to use?”
“Well, thanks to the book Dawn and Zoey gave me for my birthday some months ago, I knew it would be good to look up what Pokemon the opponent would use. I think he’s going with Gliscor, Torterra and Hariyama, he also used those three in his battle against Stan,” Ash answered. “So, I decided to face him with Totodile, Quilava and Butterfree, to take advantage of type advantages.”
“Ash, don’t you think Paul would use some other Pokemon now? Stan was obviously weaker than you, so he might’ve thought he could win using some of his weaker Pokemon. I think he’s going to use his strongest Pokemon against you. If I recall it right, that would be Torterra, Honchkrow and Electivire,” Brock countered.
“Well, I already registered Totodile, Quilava and Butterfree now, there’s nothing I can do now,” Ash said. “And hey, I’m sure Paul wouldn’t underestimate Stan.”
“I’m pretty sure Paul also didn’t overestimate him,” Lucy teased.
Then, Misty heard a loud, bleeping sound. “Hey, the phone is ringing,” Misty said, while walking up towards the video phone and taking the call.
“Hi Misty, happy late birthday!” a blonde girl said.
“Um... Thanks, Daisy...” Misty said. “But why didn’t you do this on my birthday?”
“Violet, Lily and I have been drinking,” Daisy explained. “When we came home from the night club in Vermilion City, we wanted to call you before going to bed, but we forgot. I just remembered, so I called you.”
“That’s not surprising at all,” Misty said.
“So what are you up to?” Daisy asked.
“Ash is going to battle Paul in a while, we’re about to go to the stadium,” Misty answered.
“So he survived the pre-rounds? That’s great to hear!” Daisy said.
“Daisy, there’s something I thought about for some time now. I want to tell you I forgive you. Yes, you’re an airhead, but that’s just who you are. You seem truly remorseful for what happened to me, and you do seem to care about me more than Lily and Violet,” Misty said. A tear flew down her right eye.
“Misty... I don’t know what to say...” Daisy said. “This feels like a huge relief to me!”
“That’s nice,” Misty replied. “I thought I forgave you three after the Whirl Cup, but then I got those phone calls from you that bothered the hell out of me. And maybe I thought I forgave you because you were pushing it so hard back then, but I still wasn’t ready for it. Now, I feel like I can truly forgive you.”
“And how about Lily and Violet?” Daisy asked, while the two sisters stood behind her, about to do a fashion shoot with lots of girly dresses, mostly pink. Meanwhile, Brock stood in front of the phone, gushing over Daisy and her fashionable pink dress like a total perv. However, Lucy dragged him away from the screen in the same way Misty, Max and Croagunk used to do that. “Croagunk is left at the Battle Pike, but you’re not going to get away with gushing this easily!” Lucy teased.
“No!” Misty snapped. “They don’t regret anything, they didn’t learn a thing!”
“But Misty, those things happened in the past. Forgive and forget,” Lily shouted, in an attempt to force Misty to get over it.
“That’s easy to say if you’ve never been trapped for years! You never lost the love of your life for six years! You wouldn’t even find that love, because all you do is party in night clubs with random guys! You never had to give up on your dreams in order to fulfil someone else’s dirty work! You can do those stupid shows of yours at the Gym! You never had to release the Pokemon you had a special bond with like I had to do with Togetic seven years ago!” Misty snapped. “You never even released one of your Pokemon!”
“So? You are with Ash again, Dorian is the Gym Leader and we’re taking over now he has a burn-out, and Togetic returned two years ago. Everything is fine again,” Violet said.
“It’s not, all that gave me a huge trauma!” Misty screamed. “You should learn from Daisy, she actually realized what you three did to me and is honestly remorseful!”
“Yeah, but I’m not Daisy. Really, the only reason Daisy suddenly became boring and less like Lily and me is because she was influenced by Tracey’s boringness!” Violet countered.
“Could be, but at least Daisy is capable of caring about others than herself!” Misty snapped. Then, she threw the phone horn on the ground, getting lucky it didn’t get damaged. Meanwhile, Pikachu, Togetic, Lucy, Ash and Brock just stood there, not knowing what to say or do.
“Ehh... Sorry, but those two are such airheads, they’re so stupid! Do they have any idea what they’ve been doing to me?” Misty apologized.
“It’s fine. Sure, they’re hot,” Brock said, much to Lucy’s dismay, “but they’re too unempathic and selfish to realize the impact of their behaviour on others.”
“The thought of them being my sisters in law doesn’t appeal to me,” Ash sighed. “Oh well, being together with Misty is worth it. And hey, Tracey becoming my brother in law seems pretty cool.”
“It’s so sad, I was hoping to talk to Daisy without drama, and then this happens... I’m not going to let it spoil my day, I’m just going to focus on Ash battling Paul,” Misty decided.
“Good for you,” Lucy said. “Just try to ignore them until you feel ready to forgive them.”
“If you ever will,” Togetic said in Pokemon-language.
“They also didn’t have ketchup for me when we last visited them,” Pikachu mentioned to Togetic, causing the Flying-type to nod.
Then, someone knocked on the hotel room door, which got opened by Ash. “Mom? And Professor Oak? What are you two doing here? I thought you two had to go on some trip through Johto.”
“That trip to Johto was visiting you and being there for you during the League, we just wanted to surprise you,” Professor Oak explained.
Then, Delia smelled something nasty. “Ash, are you wearing dirty underpants?”
“He never changes his underwear,” Misty said. “I’m so used to the smell, I don’t care about it anymore.”
“How long have you been wearing your current boxers?” Delia asked.
“Only two months...” Ash moaned. “Anyways, let’s go to the stadium!”
“Not before you put on some clean underwear!” Delia snapped.
“But mom, do I really have to?” Ash asked.
“No but, young man! Don’t you dare to leave this room until you put on some clean underwear!” Delia shouted. And so, Ash finally changed his boxers for the first time in months.
Half an hour later, the group marched to the stadium together, all being ready for Ash’s big match, sitting on the coaching couch just behind the spot Ash was standing. While Misty made her Azumarill, Hoppip, Dewgong and Togetic cheer for Ash, Brock decided to send out his Ludicolo for some extra support.
“This match is a three on three match between Ash and Paul. The winner will get three points and progress to the knockout stage of the Johto League,” the referee explained. Then, he pushed a button on a remote control, in order to decide who had to choose his Pokemon first. Unfortunately, Ash was the unlucky one, allowing Paul to get an early type advantage.
“Totodile, I choose you!” Ash said, while sending out the dancing crocodile. Meanwhile, Paul chose his Torterra, just like Brock expected. Then, the referee told the competitors to begin. “I’ve got to take advantage of its low Speed, that Pokemon can barely avoid anything!” Ash thought.
“I told you I was right,” Brock teased.
“Brock, shut up!” Ash shouted. Then, he focused his attention to Totodile. “Start with your Water Gun!” Ash said. The crocodile spit a ray of water at the Grass-type, who was too slow to avoid getting hit. Because the opponent was part-Ground-type, the attack actually did significant damage.
“Torterra, use your Razor Leaf!” Paul commanded, causing the Pokemon with the pointy shield to hurl two sharp leaves at the crocodile, who started a dance in order to avoid the attack.
“That’s great, Totodile! Now use your Blizzard!” the Water-type heard his trainer shout. A snowstorm started to cover Torterra, even to the point of freezing him.
“That was that,” Ash thought. However, the opponent was able to surprise him. “Torterra, break the ice with your Leaf Storm and then hit Totodile!” And so, the twirling leaves caused an attack strong enough to not only break the ice covering the frozen Torterra, but also hit Totodile, who was severely hurt.
“Totodile, can you go on?” Ash asked, glad to see how his trusty pal stood up and did a dance.
“Now, Torterra, finish this with your Vine Whip!” Paul commanded, causing the Grass-type to let his vines move towards the crocodile, who started dancing on one of them like a cord dancer!
“This is so cool!” Misty said. “Ash is lucky to have a Pokemon with such skill in its feet!”
“Yeah, it’s saving him now,” Lucy said, while the Pokemon were cheering for Totodile as loud as they could.
“Great, now use your Hydro Pump at full power in his face!” Ash commanded, causing Totodile to use his strongest attack. While the water smashed Torterra against the wall, Totodile felt exhausted. However, it was enough to beat the opponent. “Torterra is defeated, Totodile is the winner!” the referee declared.
“Torterra, you did well, have some rest,” Paul said gently, while returning the Pokemon to its Poke Ball and sending out his Honchkrow.
“This is weird...” Ash thought. “Paul seems nicer to his Pokemon than he used to be...”
“Ash, you should choose another Pokemon, Totodile is really tired!” Brock suggested.
“No, I’m sure Totodile can defeat Honchkrow,” Ash said, while the referee started the battle with a flag signal.
“Honchkrow, start with a Wing Attack!” Paul commanded. The crow flew at its opponent, only to be hit in the face. “Totodile, when Honchkrow is close, use your Hydro Pump!” Ash said quickly, causing Honchkrow to be significantly hurt.
“Honchkrow, now use your Thunder Wave!” Paul tried, going for a more strategic approach. The jolt of electricity was enough to paralyze Totodile.
“Now finish it with Shadow Ball,” the purple-haired boy said, causing his Pokemon to hit Totodile with a big, dark ball emerging from the wings. This time, there was no avoiding anymore.
“No, Totodile!” Ash screamed, while the referee declared the crocodile’s defeat. And so, Ash had to call back his Pokemon, followed by choosing Quilava to enter the battle.
“Honchkrow, let’s start with your Haze!” Paul shouted. The Dark-type created a black, dense fog, preventing its opponent from seeing it.
“Quilava, try a Flamethrower!” Ash said, causing Quilava to spit fire at the haze, hoping to hit the bird. However, that didn’t happen.
“Honchkrow, use your Whirlwind!” Paul commanded. And so, not only the fire was blown towards Quilava, but also the haze.
“And now Double-Edge!” the opponent said, causing Honchkrow to fly at Quilava at high speed. The Fire-type wasn’t able to see Honchkrow coming and got hit by an extremely strong attack. With lots of trouble, he was able to stand up, but he couldn’t take much more.
“Quilava, it’s time to do something back, use your Blast Burn!” Ash said. A pillar of fire emerged from the ground, completely burning Honchkrow, who was hovering just above the attack. The Pokemon didn’t have much energy left to battle, and was just as exhausted and damaged as Quilava, but it was enough to continue battling.
“Honchkrow, finish it with your Shadow Ball!” Paul shouted. And so, another purple blob of eerie power struck Quilava, who fell down on the ground, only to be declared to be defeated by the referee.
“This is bad, Ash only has Butterfree left...” Misty said softly, fearing a loss for her boyfriend.
“He’s at least wearing clean underpants,” Delia mentioned.
“Yeah, but Honchkrow is so tired, one hit should do the job,” Lucy tried pumping some optimism into Misty. Meanwhile, Ash already swapped his defeated Pokemon for the beautiful butterfly, while the referee started the battle again.
“Yeah, but Honchkrow isn’t a weakling, there’s no guarantee Butterfree can beat it without getting hit first...” Professor Oak complained.
“Butterfree, use your Stun Spore!” Ash commanded. Dust scattered down upon Honchkrow, who was too tired to avoid getting hit. The bird was stunned and incapable of moving!
“Yes!” Ash thought. Then, he told Butterfree to use his Silver Wind, causing Honchkrow to be smashed against the wall, effectively defeating the crow.
“Honchkrow, no!” Paul shouted. While the referee declared the bird’s defeat, Paul promised his Pokemon some good rest and sent out his last Pokemon. “Electivire, I choose you!” A big, yellow Pokemon stood on the grassy battlefield.
“I knew he’d use Electivire, I told you so! Brock one, Ash zero!” Brock teased.
“And I knew Butterfree would have an easy time against a weakened Honchkrow, I told you so! Lucy one, Professor Oak zero!” Lucy joked.
After the beginning signal from the referee, Paul quickly tried to make use of Electivire’s sheer strength. “Thunderpunch!” he shouted. However, Butterfree flew upwards in the air, higher than Electivire could jump.
“Butterfree, try a Psybeam!” Ash said. A colourful ray from the Pokemon that hovered in the air was aimed at Electivire, but the opponent was able to run away.
“Now, use your Thunderbolt!” Paul commanded. Electivire tried to zap Butterfree, who managed to fly away fast enough.
Half an hour later, the Pokemon both weren’t hit anymore, they constantly evaded each other’s attacks. Both of them were incredibly fast, while Butterfree was also able to fly away from physical attacks with ease. The audience even started booing! “We want our money back! We want to get entertained, not lulled to sleep!” an angry man shouted, only to be taken away by the guards in the stadium.
“Electivire, try another Thunderpunch!” Paul tried. Then, Ash suddenly knew how to break the status quo. “Butterfree, don’t avoid, but use Sleep Powder when he’s in front of you!” he said. And so, a green powder was blown into the fast Pokemon’s face, causing him to fall asleep, much to the audience’s hilarity.
“No!” Paul shouted.
“We got ‘em!” Ash said, followed by telling Butterfree what to do. The Bug-type tried another Psybeam, and this time, the attack indeed struck Electivire. However, despite damaging the Pokemon severely, the effect wasn’t what Ash hoped for: Electivire woke up! However, he was still dizzy.
“Butterfree, now try your Tackle!” Ash shouted. The butterfly quickly flew towards the Electric-type and smashed himself at his opponent.
“Electivire, use your Thunder!” Paul shouted. His Pokemon wasn’t able to aim well, but got lucky enough to suddenly hit Butterfree with his strongest attack! The zapped butterfly crashed down on the ground.
“Butterfree, can you go on?” Ash asked.
“This doesn’t look so good,” Brock moaned.
“Hey, look!” Lucy said, pointing at how Butterfree succeeded in standing up and flying upwards again.
“WAKE UP!” Misty shouted in Professor Oak’s ear. The Professor fell asleep on the warm summer afternoon, mostly because of how boring the thirty minutes of avoiding were.
“Zzz... What?” the Professor asked.
“Butterfree was struck by Thunder, but can still continue! Sure, it’s just one hit, but it’s a very strong one,” Delia helped Oak to catch up.
“Butterfree, fly behind Electivire’s back and use your Silver Wind!” Ash commanded. And so, the butterfly flew to a place where Electivire couldn’t see him and struck the Pokemon with a wickedly strong attack, causing the Electric-type to fall down on the ground.
“Electivire is defeated, Butterfree is the winner!” the referee announced, while looking at Butterfree.
“Butterfree, you did it!” Ash shouted, while his friends were cheering on the supporting couch behind him.
Then, after putting Butterfree in his Poke Ball and getting congratulated by his friends, Paul walked up to Ash. “Ash, six years ago, during the Sinnoh League, after you defeated me there, I thought I bettered my life. However, I realized I’ve still been treating my Pokemon like crap. However, now, I’m really going to change. Apparently, I can’t beat someone who truly cares about his Pokemon, your way is better than mine. During the battle, I started tor realize it, and after losing to Butterfree, I’ve accepted that I was wrong.”
“That’s very mature of you, Paul!” Ash replied.
“Thank you, Ash. Thank you for showing me the way!” Paul said. “I’m going to the Pokemon Center now, bye!” Then, he ran away before Ash could say goodbye.
“Come on, let’s leave this place and go back to the hotel room,” Delia said. However, then, a woman from the stands jumped on the battlefield and walked up to Ash and his friends.
“Who is that woman?” Professor Oak asked.
“That’s Princess Sara from the Mirage Kingdom, and she’s very sexy!” Brock squealed, while being dragged away by Lucy.
“Princess Sara, what are you doing here?” Ash asked.
“Well, for a state visit to Johto, I’m here at the Johto League,” Sara explained, while shaking hands with Togetic. “And it’s Queen Sara now, don’t you remember?”
“Yeah, sorry,” Ash said. “Why did you jump from the stands and run at us like that?”
“Well, I saw Togetic and Misty standing up from the coaching and support couch behind you, so I wondered if Misty had any questions about Togetic suddenly returning to her two years ago,” Sara explained.
“Yes, I indeed have. I still don’t understand why Togetic returned. I’m very happy with it, of course, but didn’t you need her to protect the Togepi Paradise?” Misty asked.
“The reason why we needed your Togetic seven years ago was because we only had Togepi, while we wanted the protector of the Paradise to be stronger, evolved... Because she was a Togetic, we felt like we needed her, and she felt like she was needed here too, despite wanting to stay with you. However, two years ago, my own Togepi evolved and felt like protecting the kingdom. Because of that, I told your Togetic that she was allowed to go back to you if she wanted to. And I knew you needed it, you seemed really sad and depressed when I met you, I thought you could use a friend like Togetic,” the Queen explained.
“That’s so sweet!” Misty said, while shedding a tear. “That’s so... thoughtful...”
“Hey, look!” Brock yelled, while Lucy and Sara stood next to each other. “Queen Lucy and Queen Sara, the hottest queens on the planet!” The pervert was referring to Lucy’s ‘Pike Queen’ nickname and Sara’s status in the Mirage Kingdom. “I’ve got to take a sexy picture of this! I wish Sara would have such a skimpy outfit like Lucy!” However, before he could take his camera from his backpack, he felt how Lucy dragged his ear again.
“Queen Sara, does Brock’s behaviour offend you?” Professor Oak asked. “This is really impolite!”
“Yeah, just like you sleeping when you’re supposed to watch Ash’s battle,” Delia teased.
“No, it’s fine,” Sara said. “He can’t help it, I know that’s just his personality. Anyways, I’ve got to go now, the mayor of Silver Town is waiting for me. Bye! And don’t tell anyone you heard about this!”
“Bye, thanks for explaining that what I’ve wondered about for two years!” Misty said, while walking away together with the rest of the group. Then, much to Misty’s dismay, she saw the fixtures for the next round tomorrow. Tomorrow, in the evening, Ash would have to battle Melody.