The summer camp came to an end, and with it, Grace's anxiety grew. Although Serena had made friends and even gotten her first boyfriend — something she found quite sweet — Ash and Leaf lived in Kanto while she lived in Kalos, two very distant regions. At that time, Smart Rotoms hadn't been invented yet and only regular phones existed, so the only way for the two to stay in contact with Serena was for Grace to ask Ash and Leaf's mothers for their home phone numbers so they could talk. That was the only solution.
In the end, when she went to pick up Serena, she achieved her goal — partially. Leaf's mother had a work issue and couldn't come to pick her up, so Ash's mother would take Leaf home. Although, as mentioned, she only partially succeeded.
After a difficult farewell, Serena said goodbye to Ash and Leaf — especially to Ash — and mother and daughter returned to Kalos. Surprisingly, when they arrived, Serena underwent such a radical change that even her own mother was shocked. Serena was still shy, yes, but she was no longer the same Serena who was bullied by her classmates. She stood up to her bullies and even made some friends at school, undergoing a surprising transformation — all thanks to that summer camp. A few months later, Serena had become one of the most popular girls in school and even became popular with boys, receiving dozens of confessions per day. But Serena never forgot about Ash. Never. She continued talking to him regularly… and that went on for years.
"And that's the whole story. So… we never lost contact. We've been talking almost every day for the past 6 years…" I said, somewhat nervous.
Unlike the original Ash, this Ash had continued keeping in touch with Serena for more than 6 years, stopping only when I took over his body — mainly because I completely forgot about her and left without giving her my Smart Rotom number. Though I wonder why my mother didn't give her my number… I'll have to ask her later.
"WHAAAAAT?!" all the girls exclaimed.
The boys simply smiled, and a few looked at Ash with mocking grins, enjoying the show.
"Uh… I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but… I forgot," I said.
"For six whole years?" Leaf asked.
"Well, to be completely honest, I thought my mom gave your mom my number and that you two were also talking. But since you never brought it up, I didn't either," I excused myself.
That was more or less the truth and I really don't have any other excuse. This happened before I took over Ash's body, so I have no idea what he was thinking back then. This is just an excuse I came up with on the spot. Although I would like to know the real reason. Why didn't Ash mention Serena again for 6 years? It's a mystery I'll never solve.
"My mom didn't give me anything. Your mom must have forgotten. Besides, since I had no idea you were still in contact with that girl, of course I wasn't going to bring it up. How did you expect me to?" Leaf said.
Also, she hadn't liked Serena very much. Now it would probably be different, but back then Leaf still hadn't accepted the fact that Ash would have a harem, so she saw Serena as her love rival — a nuisance — which is why she didn't like her much.
"Ahem, we'll talk about that later. Though anyway, I'm still the big sister," Leaf said.
Even if Ash accepted Serena — which was very likely — she had gotten engaged to Ash first, so she was still the big sister. Nothing had changed.
"Hehehehe, Celeste, Roxanne, and Koharu are going to love this story," Giselle said with a smile.
But it wasn't a happy smile — it was a sinister one that said: "Get ready!" Seeing it, Ash swallowed nervously, but there was nothing he could do. He hadn't inherited Ash's memories and only remembered some fragments that came to mind from time to time. Until this moment, he hadn't known he had a childhood friend and fiancée named Leaf, nor that he had been in contact with Serena before, made her his fiancée, and kept in touch with her for the last 6 years… He simply didn't know. How was he supposed to explain it to Celeste if he didn't even know himself? However, from an outside perspective, it looked different — it seemed like Ash had deliberately hidden this secret.
"Fine, I'll face it. But just so you know, I had completely forgotten. I didn't tell you because I forgot… I'm sorry, Leaf," I said.
This might sound like an excuse and could even hurt Leaf, but it needed to be said.
"It's okay. It's normal that you forgot with everything that's happened. The important thing is that you remembered now. Let's forget the past and look toward the future," Leaf said.
Someone else might have been offended, but Leaf was different. Leaf was very similar to Ash in personality and talent, so she often didn't think too deeply about things. She just… acted like Ash would.
"Hmph. It sounds like an excuse to me. However… your tone does seem quite sincere," Giselle said.
If there was one thing that characterized Ash, it was his sincerity. He had never lied to her, so if he said this, it was very likely to be the truth.
"Thank you," I said gratefully.
"Though I'll have to tell the girls everything. They are my sisters after all," Giselle said.
"I understand, and when the time comes I'll apologize to all of them," I nodded.
"I'll go with you. That way I can meet my sisters," Leaf said.
Since I owed Leaf quite a bit for forgetting about her (even though technically it wasn't my fault), I couldn't refuse her request.
"I guess… that's fine," I nodded.
"I'm coming too! It's been a while since I saw Celeste and I want to meet your other girlfriends!" Verity said.
"It's been a while for me too. I'll go say hello," Neesha nodded.
As could be expected of me… I didn't reject any of them.
"You're screwed, man," Fergus said, patting Ash's shoulder.
"… Quite possibly," I nodded.
"Girls are too much trouble. That's why I'm single," Fergus said.
"You're single because all the girls reject you, not because you want to be," Neesha said.
Those harsh words struck Fergus right in the heart.
"Hmph. Women? Who needs them? They'd only get in the way of my journey. I don't want any romantic entanglements until I become a Pokémon Master. Only then will I consider having a woman — which won't be difficult, by the way," Gary said arrogantly.
"This time, and even though it pains me, I agree with Gary. Women are just a distraction. I prefer to remain single until I become the best trainer in the world," Corey nodded.
"Well, I'd like to find a girlfriend as soon as possible. I want to know what it feels like," Joe said.
After this little exchange, they continued talking for a while longer until finally…
"Good morning everyone! Could you please be quiet?" a voice said.
The voice was strong, firm, and echoed throughout the entire stadium, causing all the trainers to fall silent and look toward the stage set up in front.
"Alright, trainers. My name is Victor Langley and I am the official presenter of the Kanto Pokémon League. I will be explaining all the rules that you must follow to the letter!" Victor said.
Victor was a middle-aged man, stout, with brown hair streaked with gray and a serious face. He was probably one of those people who went around all day with a furrowed brow, as if always angry, but also strict and serious about the rules — or at least that was the impression he gave.
"Alright, I will now explain the rules of the Pokémon League, and it is important that you listen carefully because violating any of these rules will result in immediate disqualification!" Victor said with a serious expression.
He then began explaining the rules, which were basically as follows:
GENERAL RULES
Only previously registered Pokémon may be used.
Each battle will have an official referee whom you must respect.
A Pokémon is out when it can no longer continue fighting.
The battle ends when all of a trainer's Pokémon are defeated.
Trainers may switch Pokémon freely unless instructed otherwise by the referee.
Those were just the most basic rules, but not the only ones. Apparently, just like in the anime, there were themed stadiums, which were as follows:
BATTLE FIELD SYSTEM Before each important battle, a digital roulette on the stadium screens determines the battlefield.
Available Fields:
Grass Field
Water Field
Rock Field
Industrial Field
Ice Field
Classic Field
The stadium can transform the terrain using modular platforms.
The final is always fought on the Classic Field to ensure balance.
But that wasn't all. There was more:
TOURNAMENT DURATION Approximate duration: 9 days
DAY 1
Trainer arrival
Official registration
Opening ceremony
DAY 2 Preliminary Round 1 3 vs 3 battles 256 → 128 participants
DAY 3 Preliminary Round 2 128 → 64 participants
DAY 4 Final Preliminaries 64 → 16 participants
DAY 5 Top 16 3 vs 3 battles
DAY 6 Quarterfinals (Top 8) 6 vs 6 battles
DAY 7 Semifinals
DAY 8 Top 3
DAY 9 Final
That was basically the explanation of everything related to the tournament. However, Victor also told us about the accommodations. Apparently, participating trainers received free lodging for the 9 days in any hotel in the village and even priority access to Pokémon Centers — meaning we were like VIP clients. Of course, all these advantages would only last until they were eliminated. Any trainer who lost would lose this VIP treatment. However, they weren't too cruel: even if you lost in the preliminaries, you would keep the VIP treatment for three full days, giving you time to move to another hotel or stay in the same one by paying the necessary amount. Food was also free, but only in the hotel. In the village restaurants you had to pay normally, with no discounts or VIP treatment. Still, you couldn't ask for more. It was simply perfect.
"That's all! But don't forget to check the list of opponents at the Pokémon Center tonight. There you will find out who your opponent will be and in which stadium you will fight! That's all. You may leave and enjoy the day!" Victor said.
Without another word, Victor left, and the trainers followed.
Basically there were 5 stadiums, but the first 4 were only for the preliminary rounds. The following rounds would take place in the main stadium with a capacity of 60,000 people. Those people would be protected by force fields, so there was no chance of a Pokémon's attack accidentally harming the audience.
KANTO POKÉMON LEAGUE MAP:
{Note: image in the comments}
After this explanation, we also left to enjoy the rest of the day with our families, because the next day was going to be tough, and for those who advanced… the following days were also going to be tough.