//------------------------------// // Extended family and friends for the holidays // Story: My Little Pokémon // by Amarvax //------------------------------// Kanto. Pallet Town. Ketchum Household. Day. "Ash!" Delia's name bellowed throughout the house and right into Ash's home. "Your Aunt Hillary and cousins Trey and Troy will be here soon! I hope you've cleaned your room to make a good impression?!" "Do I have to?" Ash left his room, coming downstairs. "I mean, my room's pretty good as it is right now." "I know. But Aunt Hillary will think otherwise. You know how she gets after all..." Delia shrugged. "And about your cousins. I know Troy would absolutely love to see the other world and all of your accomplished feats as well. He's just as excitable as you. Especially when you wrote down logs for some of your adventures. He can't help but read all of them constantly." "What about cousin Trey?" "Trey is still himself as always. Albeit on the stoic side here and there. I bet for a fact that he's the most eager to see his cousin do cool things. He always was a fan of that. They'll be here for a while until the new year. I know you're excited. Just wish your father could be here for once." "Ah, he's fine. Do they know about Equestria and all that? If not, then I've got something to show them." "I sure do. It'll be great for you to see them as well for the first time, Pikachu." "Pika-Pika!" "Though it's strange honestly..." Delia pondered. "They've aged but they still look relatively young. Much like everyone else we know. Must be a generational thing. I mean, I still look as gorgeous as ever for my age!" "Do you really think it could be, Ho-oh's doing again?" Ash turned to Pikachu. "Pikachu?" But the Mouse Pokemon just shrugged, unsure of that. Though it was a curious thing to wonder about. Everyone Ash has met, while they have aged, retain fairly young appearances. "Anyway, Mimey and I will be setting up decorations in the meanwhile. Your friend Pinkie Pie will help with the Christmas food. Plus, both of us will trade foods from each world. Riveting, isn't it?" "Making me hungry..." Ash was thinking about eating as he and Pikachu rubbed their stomachs. "Pika-Pikachu." "And when your cousins get here, make sure that nothing too crazy happens. I know how much your adventures escalate, Ash." Delia wagged her finger. "One minute you're strolling through the plains and the next thing an outburst of Pokemon Moves start flying. So I'm told." "Nah, Nah. Nothing major's gonna happen this time, mom. The Sea Temple thing's all done for. But I am kinda thinking of heading there to help rebuild the place. Might take some time and-" "Hmmm...?" Delia paused for a moment, making a poker face with a squint. "You're not thinking of overdoing things again at this time of the year, Ash? It hasn't even been a full week. No son of mine is going to skip out on a wonderful Christmas." "N-N-No way..." He laughed nervously as one of the few things in this world that terrify him is his mother. Delia closed in on Ash with the same judgemental state. "I promise. It won't get out of hand like it always does. It'll be for a moment too. Celestia, Luna and everyone are gonna help. Hehehe..." "Pikachu..." Just then, a knock on the door could be heard, promptly saving Ash from his mother's potential wrath. Delia couldn't help but head over and answer it. "Ah. That must be them. Pretty early." Once she reached the door as a sigh of relief came to Ash and Pikachu, Delia opened the door, revealing the cousins and aunt of Ash Ketchum. "Hillary!" "Delia!" The two of them were ecstatic to see each other again as they embraced with a hug. Clearly, these two were close in the family category. Mainly due to how they were related. "How's my sister doing?" Hillary asked as she and Delia were indeed related. There were striking resemblances minus the glasses. "Wonderful as ever!" Delia laughed along with Hillary. "And how are my lovely nephews?" "Hi, Aunt Delia!" Troy waved with equal amounts of energy while Trey simply raised his arm out of his pocket for a quick wave instead of a prolonged one. "We're great!" "And cold too..." Trey shuddered, already feeling the chill. "Do we have our coats?" "It's not too cold yet, Trey." Hillary wagged her finger. "But it's best that you get them and-" However, she quickly stopped to focus on something far more important. Ash. "Oh! Is that young Ash Ketchum I see over there?" She gawked before walking over. "Hey, Aunt Hillary." "Pika-Pika." "Oooh! Look at you! Mature yet still so young! The striking image of your elusive father! I'm sure you've already heard that, haven't you?!" Hillary giggled as she grabbed Ash's face, pulling his cheeks and stretching them. "Thanks, auntie...ow!" Ash grimaced after having his face stretched. "And yeah, last Christmas from mom's friends..." "How are things recently? You've only ever told us about your escapades in Kanto all those years ago. And it wasn't much. Fairly limited. I, mainly your cousins, would love to know everything. From Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh and your adventures in Unova and beyond. Isn't that right, you two?" "Right!" Troy replied with enthusiasm. "Sure." But Trey's reply was more laid-back and less bombastic. However, he let out a smile afterwards. "It'll be fun I bet. Right, Ash?" "You bet. I'll even show you some stuff too." "You have a lot of catching up to do, you three. Ash, you've been so busy on all of your Pokemon Journeys it's been years since you've even spent time with your cousins. Now's a good time since you're not in one region all the time." Delia snapped her fingers. "As for us..." "Our catching up will be short but juicy. I have a lot to tell you, Delia. Too much!" Hillary exclaimed afterwards. "The things I've seen and had to deal with could be considered otherworldly." "Oh really....?" Delia gawked as she and Hillary walked off, already being stuck within a lengthy talk that many mothers get into. Usually, it's at the shops but a house is a good substitute. "Really. But what about that husband of yours, first? Has he responded yet or is he as rare as any Legendary Pokemon out there?" "Alright. It's just you guys, me and Pikachu now. For a few days. Maybe a week, I think," Ash crossed his arms. "Let's get started. It's been a while so we've got a lot to catch up on. Plus, how does the other world sound?" "You mean the world with the ponies...?" Troy gawked. "Not just that. There's way more! Come on!" Ash immediately rushed off in a hurry as Troy couldn't help but follow him. "Wait? Seriously? We're going now?" Trey said before following after his brother and cousin. He walked for a moment before running as well. But there was no need to run. The gateway to the other world was incredibly close. Practically only two metres. Equestria. Sweet Apple Acres. Day. "Alright, Sceptile. Made ya this with the help of Rarity and Leavanny." Applejack held out a Sceptile-sized sweater for the Forest Pokemon. And for a good reason. Sceptile was a Grass-Type. Plus, with Mega Evolution, a Dragon-Type, he was extra vulnerable to the cold. "Sceptile!" And this was the best early Christmas gift that he could ask for. Sceptile could wander around in the cold thanks to this sweater. He put it on as it was a perfect fit. As to be expected. "Now ya won't have to worry about staying in all winter, huh?" Applejack nudged the Forest Pokemon. And just as she did so, the first drop of snow had appeared. The weather was now fitting the current month and incoming holiday. "Nice timing. Ooh...But I didn't get any for Apple Bloom's Pokemon..." Applejack put on an embarrassed face. Apart from Sceptile, a majority of Apple Bloom's Pokemon were vulnerable to the cold. She dedicated most of her Trainer career to catching Grass-Types and it didn't help that Emolga was a Flying-Type. Speaking of Apple Bloom, she had all of her Grass-Types inside of her room, looking at every last one of them. She had caught an impressive amount. Still not every Grass-Type out there. "Hmmm...This is great and all but...I don't know." She jumped on her bed, laying on her back. "Being a Monotype Trainer's not as great as I thought it would be." "Emol?" "Maybe I could try something else..." She pondered. Indeed, at first, Apple Bloom was enamoured by the thought of being a Monotype Trainer. And while the actions done to catch these various Grass-Types was entertaining, it left a void in her. She had come this far in her goal but was searching for another. "Hmm...Gym Leader? I could maybe take over Roseluck's Gym one day...Nah. Maybe not." "Somepony in there struggling?" Granny Smith entered the room, sensing something wrong. "Ya ain't supposed to have existential crises at this age, Apple Bloom. That's my job." "Granny. I just don't know what I'm gonna do next. I was thinking about being a Gym Leader but that went out. What do you think?" "You're asking little ol' me? I still don't get this Pokemon stuff even today. Ain't that right, Drampa?" She looked at her Drampa. "Drampa." "Right, right. Should've figured." Apple Bloom chuckled. "I'll just ask my friends what I can do." "Well, I can give ya this. Do what you want, sugarcube. You know more about this whole thing than me." Granny Smith went up the filly, giving her a comforting part on the head. "Thanks, Granny. Maybe I can ask Mayor Mare first. She seems like she knows something about Pokemon Occupations." "Good luck. That Stoutland and her get out a lot. Might even be wandering out there right about now..." Bidoof Beach. "Go fetch, boy!" Indeed, Mayor Mare and Stoutland were out there. Usually, Mayor Mare stays behind at Ponyville. But ever since she got Stoutland, when he was a Lillipup in the beginning, she's been taking part in more activities outdoors. "Stoutland!" Stoutland chased after a stick that Mayor Mare had thrown. The Big-Hearted Pokemon dashed as fast he could as the throw distance was fairly impressive considering that Mayor Mare didn't have any magic or pegasi wings to do so. That was just natural Earth Pony strength. Stoutland jumped over many Bidoofs to try and reach the stick. Leaping high into the air, he was able to catch it midair. The Normal-Type then landed over at the nearest acre of trees with no trouble. Afterwards, he ran right back with the stick in his mouth, dropping it in front of Mayor Mare. "Good boy!" Proud of her partner, Mayor Mare patted Stoutland. Stoutland panted happily as his tail and ears wagged. Afterwards, she pushed a box of Pokemon Food towards Stoutlan. "You get a treat for that!" "Stout!" Stoutland politely took one piece of Pokemon Food instead of multiple. He wanted to savour it all. "Now then. Let's try something bigger. We can't slow down for the Pokemon Dog Contest at any cost. Princess Celestia and her Arcanine are tricky and massive contenders. So..." She then revealed multiple sticks. "Try catching all these. Your speed is greater than ever, I know that much. But how much greater?" "Stoutland." "Alright then. Fetch!" Mayor Mare curled her hooves, holding the sticks while another was being held by her teeth. She then launched them all in different directions, wanting to see how swift Stoutland can be. After tossing them, Stoutland dashed once more. He would have to somehow grab each stick from the air from the various directions without a single one touching the ground. He didn't want to disappoint as the Big-Hearted Pokemon kicked it up into High Gear. And no Pokemon moves would be used. Just pure agility at its peak. Stoutland got off to a strong start, lunging off of the ground and into the air. With this height, he managed to catch two sticks in his mouth, but he had to find a way to catch the others before they hit the ground. To do that, Stoutland used the palm trees of Bidoof Beach. He landed on one, using his weight to his advantage. The tree bent a bit as Stoutland flung off of it. He gained some more air time as he went in the direction of the others sticks next. The Bidoof could only watch in awe as their fellow Normal-Type was doing something utterly amazing. It inspired them to do amazing things as well. Stoutland grabbed four sticks only three remained. After grabbing the four sticks, Stoutland then descended, dashing towards the final three sticks before they could hit the ground. At this rate, the speed he had picked up would be enough to catch them. "Hound!" Until someone else did. Appearing throughout the acre of trees was Houndoom, swooping in and grabbing the sticks with its mouth. Stoutland paused before coming to a screeching halt. He did not expect that as Houndoom slid on the ground. "A Houndoom?" said Mayor Mare. "Houndoom!" And appearing out of the acre of trees and into the beach was the owner of Houndoom. Hollow. He ran over here before spotting how his Pokemon had three sticks. "Did you have to run off the moment you saw sticks in the air?" "Hound. Houndoom." Houndoom panted as he couldn't resist. A majority of dog Pokemon are tempted by the power of fetch and cannot help but instinctively chase after any stick or frisbee that is thrown. "Stoutland." Stoutland's ears dropped as he couldn't finish the task. "Stout..." "Oh, Hollow. Fancy seeing you here. Seems as if your Houndoom swooped in with that jump and grabbed the sticks before my Stoutland could." "Sorry about that..." Hollow put his hands together with a bow, giving a traditional Johto apology. "Houndoom just gets excited when stuff like that happens." "No, no, no. It's fine." The mayor shook her head. "We were just practising for the next Pokemon Dog Contest. Princess Celestia and Arcanine are our biggest competitors and we want to make sure we can surpass them in every category. If not keep up with them. How about you? You were in the last one." "Yeah but I rarely go to those contests." Hollow shrugged. "Only when I've got nothing else to do. But Houndoom seems to love it whenever we go there. But I might go less than ever when my kid comes along. I wanna be there for him, ya know." "Houndoom." Houndoom accidentally ended up burning away the sticks while panting with his tongue out. "And when we do, we do great. Princess Celestia and Arcanine aren't the only ones you should watch out for," said Hollow, going up to the Dark Pokemon and patting him on the head. "I know that much. So does Stoutland. But...the next one is next year at Sinnoh. How about we practice together? Just to prepare for what's to come." "A Pokemon Battle? Sounds good to me. What do you say, Houndoom?" "Doom!" Houndoom howled, agreeing to this battle. So did Stoutland as all of the Bidoof looked at each other, unaware of what was about to happen. Mayor Mare and Hollow stood far from each other with their Pokemon in front of them. They made sure to have plenty of space. The spectators of this battle would be the many Bidoof that populate this area along with a few other Pokemon. "Let's make it quick, shall we? I also have decorations to get to soon." Mayor Mare asked. "Sure, sure. As quick as it can be." "Allow me to go first. Stoutlan, use Thunder Fang!" "Stout...!" Stoutland made the first move with sparks of electricity forming around his teeth. The Normal-Type then approached, causing the sand to rise from his dash. "Houndoom, Crunch!" "Doom!" Houndoom also used his fangs, which were sharper. He approached his fellow Dog Pokemon, lunging through the air. Stoutland made the first bite, only for Houndoom to dash past him with an evasion. "Stoutland?!" "Hound!" Houndoom then bit on Stoutland's back, dealing the first hit. After biting on Stoutland's back with a darkness explosion, Houndoom gripped Stoutland for a moment before tossing him away. "Doom!" "L-Land!" "Right back at you! Reversal!" "Stoutland!" But among Stoutland's many moves, a fairly recent one he had obtained was used. He slid on the ground, covering his body in a red aura. The Big-Hearted Pokemon blitzed forward, hitting Houndoom back with a mighty tackle, taking the damage he had received and using it against the Dark Pokemon. "Hound!" Houndoom cried out before being knocked back with super-effective damage. He tumbled on the ground before recovering afterwards. "Same to you too! Counter!" "Dom!" Houndoom did the same to Stoutland! He gained a deeper red aura, moving at lightning speeds as well. He smashed his horns onto Stoutland's head, giving super-effective damage as well. Stoutland was knocked sideways by this overhead attack. "Now! Use Overheat!" "Houn...!" Houndoom's eyes flared with a red burst. Flames appeared out of his mouth, burning as hot as magma. Afterwards, the Dark Pokemon cocked his head back before throwing it forward, opening his mouth and releasing a cataclysmic wave of fire that instantly turned some of the sand into glass. There was a Palossand on this beach and it felt threatened just by seeing that wave of fire and how intense those flames were. It could be turned into glass by accident. "Oh my...!" Mayor Mare was surprised by the ferocity of this attack. "I'll respond in kind! Giga Impact!" "Stoutland!" Stoutland responded with an equally powerful move. Giga Impact. Running forward while creating an invisible aura around himself that expanded to a colossal size, Stoutland had crashed into Houndoom's Overheat. The result was an outburst of attacks as both Giga Impact and Overheat cancelled each other out. The Bidoof closed their eyes after this massive explosion appeared. A shame they couldn't close their ears too. Out of the smoke, Stoutland slid back as the two seemed equal in moves and strength. However, Stoutland was now vulnerable due to Giga Impact's recharge. "Now's our chance! Houndoom, Overheat one more time!" "Doom!" Overheat was used again. But against a vulnerable Stoutland who could do nothing to counteract this. The wave that turned some of the sand into glass once more as Stoutland could only take this attack. And he did. The attack struck the Big-Hearted Pokemon, creating a dome-shaped explosion of flames. "Time's up! Reversal!" "Stout!" Stoutland's recharge ended the moment Houndoom used another move and it connected. Jumping out of the explosion was a tattered Stoutland with a glowing body, ready to crash into his fellow canine. "Here they come! Get ready to Counter!" "Doom!" Houndoom snarled, preparing for Reversal as he stood there. Stoutland gave him a hard bash, causing the Dark Pokemon to stagger. However, then countered with a headbutt via Counter. "Land!" Stoutland also staggered too. "Once more! Reversal!" "Use Counter back to back!" "Stoutland!" And thus began an exchange of super-effective blows. The second Stoutland struck back with a reversal of attacks, Houndom did the same. They went all over the place with canine bodies flying through the beach. Every single time, they dealt supreme damage to each other. Stoutland's Reversal was growing stronger due to how much damage he was taking. And the same went for Houndoom's Counter as it grew stronger the harder he was hit by the increasing Reversal. Eventually, they tired each other out after hitting back with super-effective hits. Both Pokemon started breathing in and out repeatedly. "Oh. Hold on." Mayor Mare interrupted. "This was just supposed to be training. We might be going a little too far with this. I suppose that's just the result of being carried away in a Pokemon Battle." "Yeah. My bad." Hollow shrugged. "I was getting too into it. Okay, Houndoom. That's enough for now." "Doom." Houndoom sighed as he was slightly relieved about that. So was Stoutland. "Another time. And perhaps with less aggression than before." Mayor Mare brought over the box of Pokemon food for both Stoutland and Houndoom to eat. "Well, I suppose I shall be seeing you around later. Once Hearths Warming and Christmas come to a close." "Mhm. But I don't come around Ponyville as much. Then again, I've got a kid coming so I'll be back at Johto for a while. And it'll be worth it. Can't wait for my kid." "Neither can I. Ooh. Perhaps I should get the little one a gift once he's born, eh?" Mayor Mare suggested. "And one for you this Hearth's Warming." "Hm." Hollow nodded before sparking an idea up. "Actually...how about Jewel and I come over and spend the holidays with you for a while? How does that sound?" "Perfectly fine!" Mayor Mare could get behind that as Stoutland and Houndoom went wild on the food. The Bidoof felt a bit perplexed after seeing all of that while Palossand could only feel relieved. Universe 6. Equestria. Canterlot. Day Meanwhile, over at Universe 6's Equestria, after being freed from the deepest part of the dungeon which she was in for so many years, the true Twilight Sparkle had been cleaned up. Replaced by Empress Twilight and having her identity stolen, it would be hard to come back to everything considering the number of years stolen. "There. You look stunning now, Twilight." Celestia said to Twilight as she was sparkling once more. The metal object on her horn had been removed as it was originally restraining her magic. Twilight looked more like herself. "Thank you, Princess Celestia." She thanked Celestia. "And thank you for clearing everything up with everypony. I didn't know if I could go out there looking like this..." "Again. I'm terribly sorry for what happened to you. But those wrongs have been righted if you must know. Thanks to the help of some interesting characters from another universe, we defeated the Empress and freed this universe. And your friends are better than ever. Younger too." "Younger?" "It's a long story. But anyway...would you mind showing me what happened to the human world? Since that's where the Empress originated from." "It's best not to." Twilight shook her head. "That world has also been conquered by her. If we go there, we're asking for trouble instantly." "That place as well?!" Celestia gasped. "What about Sunset Shimmer?! Is she okay?!" "No..." Twilight shook her head before closing her eyes. Tears started forming. "When the Empress received all of that magic, Sunset ended up being crushed in their clash." "Oh...Sunset." That brought distraught to the atmosphere, hearing about Sunset Shimmer's fate once the Empress gained magical power in her world. "I never got to apologize to her and-" "It's alright. I should've worded it better. Sunset's still alive. But she's injured. And all the magic that she had is gone. The same goes for the human world entirely. It's all under the Empress' control." "Not for long. We'll get to it eventually. Right now, we have other things to do. One of which should be starting right about now." "Now?" Twilight repeated, unsure as to what Celestia meant. Her answer came once the doors to the throne room had opened. And through those doors were Twilights' friends. Young again thanks to Discord's magic and free from the dungeon as well. "TWILIGHT!" They all cried out once seeing their true friend. Celestia had informed them all about everything. She just had to. This cleared up some major confusion as all of her friends, including Spike, who was currently still a giant dragon, came up to her. Well, Spike mainly stayed outside, peeking through the window due to his massive size. Twilight was stunned, surprised and happy to see her friends once more. "Girls...Spike...Oh, it's so great to be back! You all look so young still." "Good to be back, Twilight! And don't worry about our looks!" Rainbow Dash uttered. "It's just Discord stuff." "We're just happy to see you again. We had to show up once Princess Celestia gave us the letter," said Fluttershy. "Honestly, we should've known that the other Twilight wasn't from here. The Twilight we know would never go that far." Rarity shook her head. "Not one bit." And so did Pinkie Pie as she currently had a box of Twilight's favourite things. She needed them due to how long it's been. "Feeling better, Twilight?" Applejack asked. "I am now. I've heard that a lot of good things happened while I was down there. I never gave up hope that somepony would find me. And that all of this would be undone. I was right to put my trust in all of you. My friends." She looked at every last one of them. "Don't thank us. Thank Universe 1 for that." Celestia replied. "And Ash, the Pokemon and...I-It truly is one big story all things considered. But for now. We want to wish you a happy welcome back Twilight. And for Hearth's Warming as well." "Everypony in Ponyville will be waiting for you, darling." Rarity nudged. "Let's not keep them waiting. We will be having the biggest Hearth's Warming party ever before the rule." "Thanks. But I'd like to see my family first." Twilight requested as it shall be granted to her. For now, she was going to take her mind off of the Empress and anything related to it. She focused on all of her friends as they came together for one big hug. The holidays were put before anything else. The time for all those worries to be drowned out by absolute joy across the world. More worlds really, as the journey continues. Chapter 626 End.