Pokémon: Perfect Start

When Ash set out on his journey, he released his Pokémon, with the simple goal of letting them accompany him. Growlithe, lively and energetic, played well with Charmander.

Miltank was busy milking herself, while Chansey prepared eggs for everyone.

Meowth tinkered with a machine, Ralts held Ash's hand, and Pikachu stood on Ash's shoulder, opening a bottle of ketchup for itself.

Some might wonder why there were more than six Pokémon, but of course, Professor Oak had helped out.

Besides, Meowth, Pikachu, and Chansey rarely stayed in their Poké Balls, and Miltank was only tagging along to provide milk. In reality, Ash only carried three Pokémon with him.

"Growlithe, Charmander, stop randomly spitting flames."

"Woof!"

"Char!"

Seeing that the two little ones were behaving, Ash didn't stop them. Instead, he turned to Pikachu and said, "Pikachu, we're about to eat. Are you really going to have ketchup now?"

"Pika pika!"

"I know you can handle it, but aren't you worried about gaining weight?"

"Pika!"

Watching Pikachu strike a bodybuilder pose, Ash chuckled and patted it.

"Alright, I get it. Meowth, how much longer until we get out of here?"

"Unless the weather changes, we should make it out today, Meow. But the sky looks a bit off, so we might arrive soon, Meow."

"Alright, let's keep moving. Everyone, follow me! Let's pick up the pace!"

Although Ash wanted to leave quickly, the weather changed abruptly, and heavy rain began to pour. Ash and his Pokémon took shelter in a tent.

"See, Meowth? I told you bringing a large tent was a good idea."

"Indeed, Meow. Everyone fits inside, Meow. But this rain might last a while, Meow."

"Then we'll just wait it out. Let's start cooking in the meantime."

"Alright!" *N

Just as Ash began cooking, a figure ran toward his tent.

"Ugh! Why am I so unlucky? Oh! Excuse me, can I take shelter here from the rain… Ah!!! Why aren't you wearing a shirt?"

With a scream, Ash, who wasn't wearing a shirt, turned to look at the newcomer.

"That's rude. I can do whatever I want in my own tent, right?"

The girl realized she was the intruder and quickly apologized, "Sorry, I was just startled. My name's Misty. Can I stay here to avoid the rain?"

Seeing Misty drenched, Ash handed her a blanket and said, "Change out of your wet clothes first, or you'll catch a cold. I'll put up a curtain in the middle."

Taking the blanket, Misty quickly wrapped herself up and said, "Thank you. And you are?"

"Me? I'm Ash. But let's save the introductions for later. Hurry and change out of your wet clothes."

"Oh, thank you."

After Ash set up a curtain for privacy, Misty quickly changed into dry clothes and wrapped herself in the blanket. Once that was done, Ash and Misty properly introduced themselves. Misty was surprised to learn that Ash had a Chansey and a talking Meowth.

"Food's ready. Pikachu, here's your omelet rice—add your own ketchup. Meowth, your fish. Growlithe and Charmander, your chicken breast. Ralts, your mixed berries. Miltank, your hay. Chansey, your cake. Misty, I hope you don't mind having fried rice like me?"

When Ash asked, Misty, who had been staring in confusion, snapped out of it and said, "No, not at all! Thank you!"

Misty was growing more and more curious about Ash, as he had just shown her what it meant to cook at an astonishing speed.

"Here, this is fresh milk from Miltank. It's really good." After handing Misty a glass of milk, Ash noticed Charmander had spilled milk all over its face and sighed, pulling out a tissue to clean it up.

"Hold still."

"Char!"

Watching Ash gently wipe Charmander's face, Misty smiled.

"Ash, you're really kind."

Misty then released her own Pokémon and began feeding them.

After everyone had eaten, Ash first called his mother, Delia, to let her know he was safe, and then he received a call from Elesa.

"Hey, Ash, have you reached Pewter City yet?"

"Ran into some bad weather, so not yet."

"Really? Be careful not to get sick. And hey, even though you're an adult now, you better not go to those kinds of places, okay~?"

Ash could easily understand what Elesa was implying and replied with a dark expression, "I'm not that bored…"

"You never know. At your age, some families already have kids. I'm just reminding you not to get distracted by the temptations of the world."

Ash was almost speechless. While it was true that in the Pokémon world, fifteen was considered adulthood, he wasn't that shameless.

"Come on, do you really think I'm that kind of person…"

"Of course I know you're not, but I'm just worried someone might get charmed by an older woman. Be careful, or Nana and the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys might come after you. Or maybe there's already a girl by your side?" Elesa's tone was light, but the dark aura emanating from her was enough to scare her manager.

"Sis, you're being a bit scary…" Glancing at Misty beside him, Ash wondered if Elesa had installed a camera on him and couldn't help but ask, "Meowth, there's no surveillance around us, right?"

Meowth gave Ash a strange look and shook its head. "No, Meow."

But then Elesa's voice came through the call.

"Oh, looks like I hit the mark. I know you're charming, Ash, but isn't this a bit fast?"

"Sis, stop joking. I'm more about developing feelings over time."

"Oh? Then why haven't I developed any feelings for you?" Hearing Elesa's increasingly dangerous tone, Ash wondered why the package hadn't arrived yet.

"Miss Elesa, your package is here!"

Hearing the announcement, Ash breathed a sigh of relief. So it had just arrived now. But then again, it was a cross-region delivery. A scream from Elesa followed through the call.