It had been over a full week since Ash had returned from the Kalos region. It was the longest he'd gone so far without rushing off to another journey. He knew that eventually, he'd have to leave again as his heart was still dead set on becoming a Pokémon Master. However, right now he just wanted a break. After everything that had happened in Kalos he wasn't ready to go to on his next adventure just yet.
He finished breakfast with Pikachu, said goodbye to his mom and left for a morning run just as he had everyday for over a week. He stopped by Professor Oak's to say good morning to all his other Pokémon and took off for the forest to the south of Pallet with Pikachu running along side him.
"Race you to the waterfall!" Ash suddenly declares as he starts to speed up.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu agrees, picking up speed as well and running ahead of Ash.
"...In summary, the thoughts of the Pokémon species inhabiting the forest near Pallet Town are simplistic — unsurprising, given the prevalence of Pidgey and Rattata. Thoughts appear to focus primarily on survival needs, such as food, water, and shelter, but desires to engage in social activities such as playing, grooming, and fighting for dominance are just as, if not more, frequent as survival. Overall, Colress Machine №329 shows promise for revealing the hidden thoughts of Pokémon! In the future, I want to focus on improving... eh?"
Colress pauses the recording. He's sure he just heard something moving in the woods, something too agile to be the bird and rodent Pokémon he's been observing to test his new invention. Did he miss a species while surveying the area? The idea causes a spasm at the corner of his mouth; it's not like him to overlook something so important. Tapping a few buttons on his tablet, he saves the audio log he's been working on and edges closer to the source of the sound, only to spot Pikachu as it reaches the waterfall.
Pikachu?
It's then that he catches sight of Ash, and all of a sudden, it clicks together. Pallet Town was Ash's hometown, wasn't it? He'd been told something like that while being detained by Interpol. "Well, well," he says, stepping out of the woods into the clearing, "what a surprise, you two! Enjoying the weather?"
Pikachu doesn't appear to have a care in the world as he dashes up to the waterfall, letting out a victorious 'Pika!' when he he's the clear winner of the race. He pauses though as something doesn't seem quite right.
"Okay, you win." Ash concedes defeat as he makes it to the waterfall and than pauses, noting Pikachu's stance. "What's up, Pikachu?"
Both take a step back once the man reveals himself, Ash's good mood vanishing in an instant.
"What are you doing here?" He demands, shifting into a more battle ready stance. Pikachu, following suit.
At the first sign of tension, Colress throws his hands up. While he's eager to witness Pikachu's capabilities again firsthand, the prospect of receiving an electric shock — especially with something so delicate as a Colress Machine prototype on him — is something he's rather less enthusiastic about.
"I don't mean any harm," he says, trying to sound as genuine as possible. "I'm here testing out one of my machines on the local Pokémon. Not to control them," he adds hastily, "I don't work with Ghetsis or Team Plasma anymore. No, this machine can read the thoughts of Pokémon! ...To some extent. It's still a work in progress."
Pikachu narrows his eyes, standing on all fours and raising his tail in warning. Ash also stays poised for battle. He remembers exactly what this man had done to Pikachu and Reshiram and all those other Pokémon so he's not going to drop his guard that quickly.
"Yeah? Why should I believe you?" He asks, his voice tight as he eyes the man carefully. Ash isn't that well versed in the laws of Unova but he's pretty sure this man is supposed to still be in prison.
Pika!" Pikachu agrees, sparks coming ominously from his bright red cheeks, just waiting on Ash to give him an order.
As if on cue, the machine in Colress's coat pocket begins to beep. The beeping only lasts for a few seconds, however: a tinny, stilted voice — not unlike that of Ash's PokéDex — follows, issuing forth from rudimentary speakers.
"NEW POKÉMON DETECTED. CLOSEST MATCH: PIKACHU. 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL. PRIMARY EMOTION: HOSTILITY..."
"Aha!" says Colress, beaming. "You see! My machine is currently able to detect the emotional states of Pokémon. Pikachu isn't suffering any adverse effects from its emotions being read.
"Anyway, it's just as I told you." He holds up a finger, all threat of a Thundershock seemingly forgotten. "Before you arrived, I was testing it on the Pokémon here in the woods, but it can only interpret very basic thoughts for now. You'll notice they're not a bit bothered either."
Pikachu stops his growling and glances up at Ash, confused. "Pi?" He questions. Ash just shrugs. Not as impressed with the device as he might have been. Clemont had built something similar before but unfortunately, it had kind of exploded.
"I don't know why you would need a machine to tell you that, It's not that hard to tell what a Pokémon is feeling." Ash points out. He thinks it's pretty obvious that Pikachu was mad.
If he's not hurting the Pokémon though, there's very little reason for him to try and get in the way. Although, he's still not sure he trusts the man. Anyone that thought of Pokémon as weapons wasn't someone to be trusted so easily.
Nate sprints over to his partner's side as Colress' last Pokemon falls, ready to wrap her up in a victory hug. Samurott, for her part, is already preening over her success, and pushes her snout right into her trainer's waiting arms. He ruffles up the fur under her neck, scratches her favorite spot right behind her ear- all the good stuff she's earned after a hard fought battle.
"You looked so cool in there." She barks back in her usual "yeah, uh-huh, praise me more" way, to which he just grins in response. "Hey, I'll butter you up all you want later, okay? Rest up for now."
Samurott returns to her pokeball with an agreeable huff, and Nate tucks the ball back inside his jacket as he makes his way across the arena. There's a lot of beeping and booping down here; he passes by screens full of metrics and calculations, numbers that don't make sense to his eyes. A strange place to have a pokemon battle. But then, his opponent isn't exactly a normal person.
"Did you get all the data you wanted from that?"
Accustomed to it as Nate is by now, it still feels a little strange to refer to his bond with his pokemon with a word as clinical as "data." But he's been having these battles with Colress for- months now, wasn't it? The phrase slides off the tongue much more easily than it used to.
Colress blinks. For a moment, he considers demonstrating to Ash the actual utility of the Machine, pointing it at a nearby Rattata and showing him, you see, it can tell what Pokémon are thinking! — but, truth be told, he's not sure how well a tech demo would land for an already unimpressed ten-year-old. Especially not in the middle of the woods, after encountering someone who, for all intents and purposes, could be considered an enemy.
Remembering this, he smiles, laying a hand on his chest as he bows. "Excuse me," he says, "I'm getting carried away. That's not all it can do, but the exact details of my Colress Machine can always be explained in greater detail at a later date. —How are you and Pikachu? I must say, I'm surprised to cross paths with you again. I would have thought you too busy to come back to Pallet."
Ash tenses just the tiniest bit more when the machine is pointed towards a Rattata. Coless said it didn't hurt them, and Pikachu was clearly unharmed but he's still ready to jump in if something bad happens.
"Pika Pika. Chu Pika!" Ash's attention returns to Pikachu, it's pretty obvious he doesn't trust this man either.
"We're taking a break." Ash finally admits, Pikachu glances up at his trainer in concern because he's pretty sure why they're back in Pallet is none of this man's business.
"That doesn't mean I won't stop you if you are trying to hurt Pokémon again." He says firmly.
Across the arena, calling back his Klinklang, Colress grins as Nate compliments Samurott on a job well done. Although he's been on a real losing streak these past few months, it's hard to feel like he's lost, really lost, in any way but the superficial. Part of it is, undoubtedly, the benefit he gains from these rematches — his printer behind him, in the protected alcove at the back of the arena, begins beeping as if to prove his point — but another is the satisfaction of seeing the outcomes of battles like these, the trust between Trainer and Pokémon. While Nate isn't the only Trainer Colress has met who has strong bonds with his team, he's certainly one of the strongest — and one of the most kind-hearted. If the results are anything like they've been over the last few months, well...
The printer dings again, and Colress turns, hands in his pockets, to the array of machines and screens inhabiting the shielded corner of the arena. As Nate continues to praise Samurott, he tears the auto-generated report from the mouth of one of the feeds, flips past the first couple of pages to get to the data, and scans them. Aha — he lights up, seeing the numbers line up with the upward trend they've been taking every battle. It's this page he holds out as Nate approaches, never mind that he hadn't actually explained to the boy how to interpret the results.
"More than enough — you've achieved splendid results, as usual! It's quite remarkable." Colress points to one of many numbers on the sheet, the grin on his face growing ever wider. While he's usually calm, he's never been good at concealing his excitement, and the rise in pitch and volume of his voice is hard to mistake. "The results are as you'd expect, but there's something else I added to the analysis of our battle today. I want to ask before I explain... Nate. In your experience, do you think bonds have an effect after battles, too, not just during them?"
"A break? So am I! What a coincidence that we've ended up crossing paths again."
Setting Machine №329 to OFF — the chassis is starting to feel a tad too warm in his hands for comfort, and besides, it seems to put his two companions on edge — Colress drops it back into the pockets of his lab coat. Then, tilting his head, he takes a good look at the two of them, the boy who stopped Ghetsis and his trusty partner Pikachu. They seem to have matured, somehow, since their confrontation at the White Ruins... not physically, since Ash is just as short as Colress remembers. But something in the way they carry themselves, the looks in their eyes...
He snaps back to it when Ash issues him a warning. "You don't have to worry about that," he reassures them, pushing up his glasses. "As I said, I'm no longer affiliated with Team Plasma, and I despised Ghetsis from the start. It's just that, when somebody says they'll fund your research, that's an offer most scientists can't refuse! ...Not that I expect you to understand."
Ash isn't sure how he feels about the casual nature in which Colress continues to address them. He feels on edge and ready for a battle but the man is not matching his mood at all. It's a little disorienting.
"Yeah, coincidence." He's not so sure he agrees with that. It seems like no matter where he goes he always run into some form of disaster. It's not so much that he minds having to help the legendaries and occasionally save the world. It's more that being tortured and watching a Zygarde kill someone would leave anyone wanting a break. However, it doesn't seem like he's going to get one.
"You're lucky, you know. Reshiram showed you mercy. Some Pokémon aren't so forgiving."
At first, it had simply been a matter of keeping an eye on him. Battles were an excuse to check on Colress and see how his experiments were developing, to make sure he wasn't veering into "harmful for pokemon and the world at large" territory again. But that didn't last. They talked, Nate participated in a few more studies, and somehow it evolved into this actual sort of... camaraderie? Colress' dedication to the betterment of pokemon and the study of their power through bonds is so genuine. When the two of them are on the same page about something, it's difficult not to get swept up in his excitement.
It's funny how it worked out, all things considered. They get along now. Nate visits his lab a few times a week. But that's the point of going on a journey, isn't it? To meet people you never expected to meet, forging new bonds. That's how Nate likes to think of it, anyway.
Colress holds out the paperwork for him to view and his eyes immediately glaze over trying to parse those numbers. Nate can't quite keep up even with context, most of the time. He's making an effort to understand, but the subject of Colress' study is something that comes naturally to Nate. Those sure are a bunch of numbers that quantify his love for his pokemon with data and statistics! Cool. Yep.
Luckily, Colress steers the conversation back to their usual sort of exchanges.
"I mean, wouldn't they have to? The way we trust each other; that's something that extends to every part of our lives, not just when we battle." He folds his arms across his chest, a thoughtful look on his face. He can't guess what Colress is getting at this time; it'd be faster just to ask what he's trying to measure. "What kind of effect are you looking for?"
"Am I lucky?" Colress chuckles. "I suppose I am. If Reshiram had wanted it, I would probably be dead. Ergo, I wouldn't be standing here conducting experiments on Pokémon's thoughts and emotions. But that's a matter for hypothetical Colress, living in a universe where he's been incinerated to ash, to deal with. No pun intended."
Having made his intentions clear, Colress takes his eyes off of Ash to examine their surroundings. The deep green of forest makes it impossible to penetrate beyond a few metres in any direction, save for the waterfall and pond Ash and Pikachu are standing in front of. Everywhere he casts his attention, there's the rustling of a wild Pokémon in the trees, in the tall grass, in the leaves. He shuts his eyes for a moment, taking it all in. Then he turns back to Ash.
"You two... you truly believe in the relationship between Pokémon and people to be mutually beneficial, don't you?"
It's taking all of Colress's restraint not to immediately dump his findings on Nate; he never seems more animated than when he has someone to explain his research to, doubly so when that person is a direct participant in his attempts to quantify potential. And Nate... well, Nate is more than "a participant" by now. Just as Nate has become used to visiting Colress, Colress has gotten used to Nate's presence, his Pokémon, his feedback. He's almost a contributor to these experiments, more than a recurring research subject. "That's certainly true," he says approvingly, when his companion gives an answer. "Between battles, trust is built between Pokémon and their Trainers that lays the foundations for when we face each other. But..."
Colress's smile turns sly. He's given Nate this look before, a look that suggests Nate's hypothesis is good, but not the one he's looking for.
"...that's between battles. This number" — and he taps the paper again — "was recorded just after our match concluded, while you were talking with Samurott. Do you see the asterisks?
"What this means is: When you praised Samurott after the battle, it actually increased the levels of energy present in your Pokémon by nearly 10 percent! In other words, if the bond between a Trainer and a Pokémon is sufficient, the Pokémon can regain some of its energy losses, and continue past the limits of physical exhaustion, using positive reinforcement. This suggests that strength is not set in stone, but relative to the context or situation. If true, we're one step closer to understanding the potential of Pokémon! Do you think that matches up with what you've seen?"
So sorry for the late! I could have sworn I tagged this
Ash narrows his eyes. He doesn't find it to be amusing at all. Do people really not understand the destructive power the Legendary Pokémon possess? That when they mess with them or send them on a rampage it messes with the balance of nature? However, being angry isn't going to solve anything.
"Pika." Pikachu nods, still agitated. Ash is, after all, living proof of the concept. Not that he wants Colress to know that.
Ash just chances closing his eyes and takes in a deep breath. With it, he allows himself to feel the life around him. The Pokémon, The trees, the flowers and every single blade of grass. He opens his eyes again as he releases his breath, feeling a good deal calmer.
"I don't just believe it, I know it." He says with determination.
Colress had expected no less from Ash, but even still, he seems pleased with the answer. "A worthy response from the aspiring Pokémon master," he says. "And your Pikachu seems to agree as well. Yes, you have quite a bond! And that bond is what allowed you to defeat Team Plasma, Team Aqua, Team Magma, Lysandre of Team Flare... you're quite busy for a child. And a talented Trainer, to boot."
He pauses again, this time to reflect. Younger, he had been busy in his own right; he too had had goals and dreams of his own, but they were nothing like Ash's, desires to understand and quantify the world and the shared reality of Pokémon. He can't fathom being the kind of person who travels from place to place, righting others' wrongs; he can only think of all that time, wasted. But he can't help being curious about it, too — about what kind of a person someone needs to be to answer "I know it" with such certainty.
"I think the forest is an awkward place to keep having this conversation," he says, at length. "Don't you? I imagine you're wondering why I'm not still in detention at Interpol. Likewise, I'd like to know more about your journey with Pikachu. Do you want to meet up again later?"
The name 'Lysandre' gets a reaction from both. Ash's eyes widened slightly and he might have even leaned away just the tiniest bit. It's a such a small movement it'd be easy to miss.
Pikachu, however, narrows his eyes and lets out a few warning sparks, staying protectively in front of Ash and just daring Colress to come closer. He had failed to protect him from Team Flare in Lumiose City but that was never going to happen again.
Ash isn't sure how he feels about Colress knowing about what he's been up to. It's creeping out a little and sparking a small panic in his chest. What else did Colress know about him? Did he know about The Orange Islands, or Mew and the Tree of Beginning?
Despite how he sometimes seems, Ash Ketchum isn't stupid and if he's being honest, this does sound like a trap. However, he knows that if there's even a chance the safety of a Pokémon is at stake there's no way he can refuse.
"Pikapi. Pikachu." Pikachu tells him insistently. Ash gives him a slightly apologetic look.
"Where?" He asks, attention turning back to Colress.
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He finished breakfast with Pikachu, said goodbye to his mom and left for a morning run just as he had everyday for over a week. He stopped by Professor Oak's to say good morning to all his other Pokémon and took off for the forest to the south of Pallet with Pikachu running along side him.
"Race you to the waterfall!" Ash suddenly declares as he starts to speed up.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu agrees, picking up speed as well and running ahead of Ash.
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Colress pauses the recording. He's sure he just heard something moving in the woods, something too agile to be the bird and rodent Pokémon he's been observing to test his new invention. Did he miss a species while surveying the area? The idea causes a spasm at the corner of his mouth; it's not like him to overlook something so important. Tapping a few buttons on his tablet, he saves the audio log he's been working on and edges closer to the source of the sound, only to spot Pikachu as it reaches the waterfall.
Pikachu?
It's then that he catches sight of Ash, and all of a sudden, it clicks together. Pallet Town was Ash's hometown, wasn't it? He'd been told something like that while being detained by Interpol. "Well, well," he says, stepping out of the woods into the clearing, "what a surprise, you two! Enjoying the weather?"
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"Okay, you win." Ash concedes defeat as he makes it to the waterfall and than pauses, noting Pikachu's stance. "What's up, Pikachu?"
Both take a step back once the man reveals himself, Ash's good mood vanishing in an instant.
"What are you doing here?" He demands, shifting into a more battle ready stance. Pikachu, following suit.
no subject
"I don't mean any harm," he says, trying to sound as genuine as possible. "I'm here testing out one of my machines on the local Pokémon. Not to control them," he adds hastily, "I don't work with Ghetsis or Team Plasma anymore. No, this machine can read the thoughts of Pokémon! ...To some extent. It's still a work in progress."
no subject
"Yeah? Why should I believe you?" He asks, his voice tight as he eyes the man carefully. Ash isn't that well versed in the laws of Unova but he's pretty sure this man is supposed to still be in prison.
Pika!" Pikachu agrees, sparks coming ominously from his bright red cheeks, just waiting on Ash to give him an order.
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"NEW POKÉMON DETECTED. CLOSEST MATCH: PIKACHU. 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL. PRIMARY EMOTION: HOSTILITY..."
"Aha!" says Colress, beaming. "You see! My machine is currently able to detect the emotional states of Pokémon. Pikachu isn't suffering any adverse effects from its emotions being read.
"Anyway, it's just as I told you." He holds up a finger, all threat of a Thundershock seemingly forgotten. "Before you arrived, I was testing it on the Pokémon here in the woods, but it can only interpret very basic thoughts for now. You'll notice they're not a bit bothered either."
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"I don't know why you would need a machine to tell you that, It's not that hard to tell what a Pokémon is feeling." Ash points out. He thinks it's pretty obvious that Pikachu was mad.
If he's not hurting the Pokémon though, there's very little reason for him to try and get in the way. Although, he's still not sure he trusts the man. Anyone that thought of Pokémon as weapons wasn't someone to be trusted so easily.
no subject
Nate sprints over to his partner's side as Colress' last Pokemon falls, ready to wrap her up in a victory hug. Samurott, for her part, is already preening over her success, and pushes her snout right into her trainer's waiting arms. He ruffles up the fur under her neck, scratches her favorite spot right behind her ear- all the good stuff she's earned after a hard fought battle.
"You looked so cool in there." She barks back in her usual "yeah, uh-huh, praise me more" way, to which he just grins in response. "Hey, I'll butter you up all you want later, okay? Rest up for now."
Samurott returns to her pokeball with an agreeable huff, and Nate tucks the ball back inside his jacket as he makes his way across the arena. There's a lot of beeping and booping down here; he passes by screens full of metrics and calculations, numbers that don't make sense to his eyes. A strange place to have a pokemon battle. But then, his opponent isn't exactly a normal person.
"Did you get all the data you wanted from that?"
Accustomed to it as Nate is by now, it still feels a little strange to refer to his bond with his pokemon with a word as clinical as "data." But he's been having these battles with Colress for- months now, wasn't it? The phrase slides off the tongue much more easily than it used to.
no subject
Remembering this, he smiles, laying a hand on his chest as he bows. "Excuse me," he says, "I'm getting carried away. That's not all it can do, but the exact details of my Colress Machine can always be explained in greater detail at a later date. —How are you and Pikachu? I must say, I'm surprised to cross paths with you again. I would have thought you too busy to come back to Pallet."
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"Pika Pika. Chu Pika!" Ash's attention returns to Pikachu, it's pretty obvious he doesn't trust this man either.
"We're taking a break." Ash finally admits, Pikachu glances up at his trainer in concern because he's pretty sure why they're back in Pallet is none of this man's business.
"That doesn't mean I won't stop you if you are trying to hurt Pokémon again." He says firmly.
"Pika!" Pikachu agrees.
no subject
Across the arena, calling back his Klinklang, Colress grins as Nate compliments Samurott on a job well done. Although he's been on a real losing streak these past few months, it's hard to feel like he's lost, really lost, in any way but the superficial. Part of it is, undoubtedly, the benefit he gains from these rematches — his printer behind him, in the protected alcove at the back of the arena, begins beeping as if to prove his point — but another is the satisfaction of seeing the outcomes of battles like these, the trust between Trainer and Pokémon. While Nate isn't the only Trainer Colress has met who has strong bonds with his team, he's certainly one of the strongest — and one of the most kind-hearted. If the results are anything like they've been over the last few months, well...
The printer dings again, and Colress turns, hands in his pockets, to the array of machines and screens inhabiting the shielded corner of the arena. As Nate continues to praise Samurott, he tears the auto-generated report from the mouth of one of the feeds, flips past the first couple of pages to get to the data, and scans them. Aha — he lights up, seeing the numbers line up with the upward trend they've been taking every battle. It's this page he holds out as Nate approaches, never mind that he hadn't actually explained to the boy how to interpret the results.
"More than enough — you've achieved splendid results, as usual! It's quite remarkable." Colress points to one of many numbers on the sheet, the grin on his face growing ever wider. While he's usually calm, he's never been good at concealing his excitement, and the rise in pitch and volume of his voice is hard to mistake. "The results are as you'd expect, but there's something else I added to the analysis of our battle today. I want to ask before I explain... Nate. In your experience, do you think bonds have an effect after battles, too, not just during them?"
no subject
Setting Machine №329 to OFF — the chassis is starting to feel a tad too warm in his hands for comfort, and besides, it seems to put his two companions on edge — Colress drops it back into the pockets of his lab coat. Then, tilting his head, he takes a good look at the two of them, the boy who stopped Ghetsis and his trusty partner Pikachu. They seem to have matured, somehow, since their confrontation at the White Ruins... not physically, since Ash is just as short as Colress remembers. But something in the way they carry themselves, the looks in their eyes...
He snaps back to it when Ash issues him a warning. "You don't have to worry about that," he reassures them, pushing up his glasses. "As I said, I'm no longer affiliated with Team Plasma, and I despised Ghetsis from the start. It's just that, when somebody says they'll fund your research, that's an offer most scientists can't refuse! ...Not that I expect you to understand."
no subject
"Yeah, coincidence." He's not so sure he agrees with that. It seems like no matter where he goes he always run into some form of disaster. It's not so much that he minds having to help the legendaries and occasionally save the world. It's more that being tortured and watching a Zygarde kill someone would leave anyone wanting a break. However, it doesn't seem like he's going to get one.
"You're lucky, you know. Reshiram showed you mercy. Some Pokémon aren't so forgiving."
no subject
It's funny how it worked out, all things considered. They get along now. Nate visits his lab a few times a week. But that's the point of going on a journey, isn't it? To meet people you never expected to meet, forging new bonds. That's how Nate likes to think of it, anyway.
Colress holds out the paperwork for him to view and his eyes immediately glaze over trying to parse those numbers. Nate can't quite keep up even with context, most of the time. He's making an effort to understand, but the subject of Colress' study is something that comes naturally to Nate. Those sure are a bunch of numbers that quantify his love for his pokemon with data and statistics! Cool. Yep.
Luckily, Colress steers the conversation back to their usual sort of exchanges.
"I mean, wouldn't they have to? The way we trust each other; that's something that extends to every part of our lives, not just when we battle." He folds his arms across his chest, a thoughtful look on his face. He can't guess what Colress is getting at this time; it'd be faster just to ask what he's trying to measure. "What kind of effect are you looking for?"
no subject
Having made his intentions clear, Colress takes his eyes off of Ash to examine their surroundings. The deep green of forest makes it impossible to penetrate beyond a few metres in any direction, save for the waterfall and pond Ash and Pikachu are standing in front of. Everywhere he casts his attention, there's the rustling of a wild Pokémon in the trees, in the tall grass, in the leaves. He shuts his eyes for a moment, taking it all in. Then he turns back to Ash.
"You two... you truly believe in the relationship between Pokémon and people to be mutually beneficial, don't you?"
no subject
Colress's smile turns sly. He's given Nate this look before, a look that suggests Nate's hypothesis is good, but not the one he's looking for.
"...that's between battles. This number" — and he taps the paper again — "was recorded just after our match concluded, while you were talking with Samurott. Do you see the asterisks?
"What this means is: When you praised Samurott after the battle, it actually increased the levels of energy present in your Pokémon by nearly 10 percent! In other words, if the bond between a Trainer and a Pokémon is sufficient, the Pokémon can regain some of its energy losses, and continue past the limits of physical exhaustion, using positive reinforcement. This suggests that strength is not set in stone, but relative to the context or situation. If true, we're one step closer to understanding the potential of Pokémon! Do you think that matches up with what you've seen?"
So sorry for the late! I could have sworn I tagged this
"Pika." Pikachu nods, still agitated. Ash is, after all, living proof of the concept. Not that he wants Colress to know that.
Ash just chances closing his eyes and takes in a deep breath. With it, he allows himself to feel the life around him. The Pokémon, The trees, the flowers and every single blade of grass. He opens his eyes again as he releases his breath, feeling a good deal calmer.
"I don't just believe it, I know it." He says with determination.
No worries, I've been stupid busy orz
He pauses again, this time to reflect. Younger, he had been busy in his own right; he too had had goals and dreams of his own, but they were nothing like Ash's, desires to understand and quantify the world and the shared reality of Pokémon. He can't fathom being the kind of person who travels from place to place, righting others' wrongs; he can only think of all that time, wasted. But he can't help being curious about it, too — about what kind of a person someone needs to be to answer "I know it" with such certainty.
"I think the forest is an awkward place to keep having this conversation," he says, at length. "Don't you? I imagine you're wondering why I'm not still in detention at Interpol. Likewise, I'd like to know more about your journey with Pikachu. Do you want to meet up again later?"
no subject
Pikachu, however, narrows his eyes and lets out a few warning sparks, staying protectively in front of Ash and just daring Colress to come closer. He had failed to protect him from Team Flare in Lumiose City but that was never going to happen again.
Ash isn't sure how he feels about Colress knowing about what he's been up to. It's creeping out a little and sparking a small panic in his chest. What else did Colress know about him? Did he know about The Orange Islands, or Mew and the Tree of Beginning?
Despite how he sometimes seems, Ash Ketchum isn't stupid and if he's being honest, this does sound like a trap. However, he knows that if there's even a chance the safety of a Pokémon is at stake there's no way he can refuse.
"Pikapi. Pikachu." Pikachu tells him insistently. Ash gives him a slightly apologetic look.
"Where?" He asks, attention turning back to Colress.