Light's Love and Night's Passion

A/N: In case you guys forgot in earlier chapters: I don't want to start a fan war in the comments. So please, keep the language to a minimum, and if you don't agree with the shipping in this story, then don't read it.

Now that that's out of the way, let's get on with Chapter 3. Roll it!

Chapter 3

Reunion Between Old Friends

When the door opened, Ash was still staring down at the blood red rose in his hands, a strange, indescribable emotion in his eyes, looking almost blank but thoughtful. Pikachu and Buizel however, saw it open, and Piplup quickly waddled inside, greeting them happily. The two Pokémon were overjoyed to see their old friend from their journey in Sinnoh, and they both jumped down from the bed and rushed over to the little Water type.

Ash finally broke out of his thoughts and turned around to look over at the three friends. "Piplup?" He asked, immediately recognizing the Penguin Pokémon.

The door then opened up a little bit more, and then it closed softly. "It's been far too long, Ash." A very familiar voice said to him.

Ash looked ahead towards the doorway and saw Dawn standing there, putting two pretty Gracidea flowers on a table and a bright smile on her face. "Dawn!" He exclaimed happily, the previous somberness immediately gone from his eyes and the rose dropped from his hands and laid forgotten on the desk.

Dawn gave her old friend a smile and lifted her hand up, asking for a high-five. Ash beamed and felt his heart start to swell. He remembered their little trademark back when they were younger. He quickly held up his own hand and it made contact with hers. Right when their palms clapped, Ash felt something click inside of him.

The two of them stayed like that for a few extra moments, not bothered or felt awkward in the least. This was something that was much too personal to be ruined by something like that. Both of them took the opportunity to study how much the other has changed.

Both of them had grown, but Ash was now a couple of inches taller than Dawn, instead of when they were young teenagers and were about the same height. Dawn's figure had become slim with some curves, and Ash had grown a bit more muscle on his body, but still pretty svelte. But both of them noticed that the spark that they had always admired in each other, even back when they were younger, seemed to have vanished as the years went by.

However, it had to come to an end when they heard their Pokémon trying to get their attention. All three of them had smug and knowing looks on their faces, looking between the two Trainers. Both of their humans blushed red and gave them silent threats as they glared at them. But the trio of cheeky Pokémon just shrugged it off as they all went over to the other side of the room to continue catching up while their Trainers talked things out.

Dawn was the first to break the silence. "So, um, how have you been after all this time?" She asked him. "I haven't seen you since the Junior Cup in Unova."

Ash smiled fondly at the memories that came back into his head. "Yeah. It has been a while." He said. "Four years actually."

Dawn then looked down at the floor. Ash wondered why, but then, he saw guilt in her eyes. "I'm sorry." She said. "For not trying to keep in touch with you. You were, and still are, my best friend."

Ash felt oddly touched by her words, a strange little warmth developing in the pit of his stomach, but he knew that he can't really blame her for anything. They have had their fair share of arguments throughout their Sinnoh journey, but he couldn't stay mad at her for long.

"It's not your fault." He assured her, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him. "You were working towards reaching your goal, I was working towards mine, and they couldn't go down the same path forever. Look at you now. You're a Top Coordinator now."

The Sinnoh-native woman smiled up at her old friend. She had really worked hard in the Hoenn Pokémon Contests after she had parted ways with Ash at the end of their Sinnoh journey together about six years ago. During the course of those years, after she had won the Hoenn Grand Festival, and also become a Poké Stylist back in her home region, she still felt like there was something missing in her life that she couldn't put her finger on, but she wasn't sure of what it was. When she had visited Ash in Unova when they were sixteen, something came back into place, but only briefly, for it was gone when she had to leave again.

"Still though, I also should've tried to make the effort to contact you." Ash continued, removing his hand from her shoulder and the smile had vanished from his face. He then turned slightly away so that he wasn't facing her anymore.

Dawn looked at him with curious eyes. Something had changed in her old friend, and for some reason, it chilled her to her core. "Ash, did something happen?" She asked him.

Ash flinched visibly. The conversation between their Pokémon quieted down once the Coordinator asked her question. The raven-haired man gave a dry chuckle, recognizing his old friend's keen observant skills when it comes to either him or her Pokémon.

"I see you haven't changed a bit." He said. "Unlike me."

Dawn placed a hand on his cheek, making him look back at her in the eyes. She ignored how pale he looked and how cold his skin felt to her. Any other time, she would've blushed at what she was doing, but she couldn't worry about that then. Her friend needed some reassurance.

"Ash, I know that we haven't spoken in a long time up until now due to us being super busy trying to reach our dreams, but you know that you can always talk to me about anything." She said. "That's one thing that will never change between the two of us, I can promise you that."

Ash didn't say a word, and he resisted the strange urge to lean into Dawn's soft touch. Instead, he gently took her hand in his, removing it from his face and then silently led her towards the bed. Once they had sat down, he spoke.

"A lot has changed since I last saw you." He began. "When I came back to Pallet Town from Unova, my mom got really sick with a high fever. I had to stop travelling so that I can help my mom's Mr. Mime take care of her. But she just got worse by the day, so she had to go to the hospital. Finally, she just couldn't fight it anymore."

Dawn's hand covered her mouth when she realized what Ash was implying. Then, she wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to her. "Ash, I'm so sorry." She whispered, feeling her eyes well up in tears.

Ash didn't do anything for a couple of moments, sitting there stiffly a bit surprised by her action. But he then returned the embrace, holding Dawn tight and close to his body, which was vibrating as he tried to will himself not to cry in front of her. The Pokémon remained silent, but Pikachu and Buizel looked down in sorrow at the reminder of the painful loss. Piplup only patted them on the backs gently in an attempt to comfort them, not making a sound.

Finally, Ash broke the hug. "I've been in a bit of a funk ever since. But Professor Oak thought he could cheer me up by sending me here to Kalos for a research assignment." He continued. "And I've learned a lot during my time here, and I've made some great friends here in Lumiose City. But now, I think I don't want to go back home. If I do, I might lose the will to explore completely."

"You can't stay away from your home forever." Dawn said. "We don't run from our problems, we face them."

What happened to the Ash Ketchum she knew who would fight against all odds and jump headfirst into danger just to do what is right? Obviously, the death of his mother, who she supposed was the only parent he ever knew, was affecting him on a level that Dawn couldn't comprehend. She supposed that this kind of grief was one of the hardest to overcome in life. She honestly wouldn't know what to do if she was in his place; feeling broken and lost if she lost her own mother.

She gently squeezed his hand and decided to change the subject to a much lighter one. "But I have to admit though, that performance you did with Pikachu and Buizel earlier was just incredible." She said. "I could've mistaken that you have been practicing Contest performances behind my back."

Ash chuckled lightly, grateful that Dawn wasn't going to press more on the matter of his loss. "Hey, I remember that I've had lots of fun with Contests during our journey together in Sinnoh, and since they didn't have a replacement for the Performer who was supposed to do the opening act tonight, it was suddenly given to me when they saw what I can do."

Dawn giggled. "Still, now that I'm going to be a temporary instructor here, maybe you and I can practice some appeals in our free time."

The Pokémon all cheered at the thought of spending more time with each other, and with the rest of Dawn's Pokémon who they haven't seen in a long time, but Ash had a somewhat worried look on his face. "That would be nice, but... I can't." He said. Dawn just looked over at him, puzzled. "I have been practicing Contest appeals, but with someone else."

The blunette woman raised a curious eyebrow at her friend. "Who?" She asked.

Ash was a bit hesitant, but answered her question. "She calls herself an Angel, but I'm not sure myself. She actually is amazing with performances."

Dawn felt like there was something that Ash wasn't telling her about, but she didn't question anything else about the subject. "Well, how about you and I continue catching up over dinner?" She asked him.

Ash looked up at her with confused and surprised eyes, a stray pink streak across his face. Dawn immediately figured out why. Her little suggestion sounded a lot like a date! No one just straight up asks someone they haven't seen in over four years on a date just like that!

"Uh, I mean, uh, since the gala's going on downstairs, you can get out of your costume and come attend the dinner, and uh, I can, um, save you a seat?" She quickly stammered out a correction.

Ash did feel an unfamiliar but not unpleasant heat continue to build up in his face at the thought. But he ignored it. "I'm sorry, I can't." Dawn and the Pokémon just looked at him, obviously confused. "I-It's not that I don't want to, it's because...." He trailed off, his eyes quickly scanning the room with fear, as if he was afraid that something or someone was going to barge in at any second.

"The Angel is very strict about my activities when I'm not practicing my appeals." Ash finally said. "She doesn't like it when I slack off in my practicing."

"Well, it won't be for too long. Just for a few minutes." Dawn said, not entirely listening to what Ash had said because of her embarrassment about her sudden dinner invitation. She held out her arms, and Piplup hopped into them.

"You can change, and I'll be waiting downstairs. See you in a bit, Ash." The last part was rushed as the blunette Top Coordinator hurried outside.

"Dawn, wait!" Ash called after her. But the door had already been closed.

******************

From the other side of it, in the now empty hallway, Dawn slapped a palm to her forehead. "Way to go, Dawn Berlitz." She quietly scolded herself. "That invitation couldn't be any more embarrassing."

Dawn would silently admit it right then, she knew that she had formed some sort of a crush on Ash Ketchum during their journey together. And after his performance an hour ago, those feelings that she had around him returned, were increased tenfold, and were finally identified in the span of five seconds. But now, she might've already blown it before she even tried to make a move. If she wanted to.

She walked away from the door and down the hall, muttering to herself and holding her beloved Piplup in her arms. But the little Pokémon was trying to contain his bubbling laughter from his Trainer's failed attempt.

"That's not funny, Piplup!" Dawn quietly admonished him as she exited the hall. But just only a few seconds after she had left, a shadow came by the door of Ash's dormitory, standing in front of it.

*********************

Back inside his room, Ash was scribbling something on a piece of paper. Once he was done, he put down the pencil and folded the note in half. He looked down at the note with Dawn's name written on the front flap and sighed.

I wish I could tell her. But I can't. He thought to himself. Dawn was one of his closest friends, and he did feel bad about not being completely honest with her. But this was for her safety more than his.

"Pika-pi." The voice of his top partner made Ash turn around to face his Pokémon. Both Pikachu and Buizel were looking at him with unconvinced expressions.

"Don't look at me like that, guys." He said to them, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious from the way they were looking at him, his cheeks colored a faint red. "It's not that I don't want to catch up with her, I do! I really do!" He then sighed again. "I'm just worried about what she might think."

The Pokémon just looked at their Trainer with even more befuddled expressions, their heads slightly tilted sideways in confusion. But they didn't press further on the subject, since it looked like he was starting to get stressed out about it.

Ash knelt down to Pikachu. "Hey, Pikachu? Can you give this to her?" He handed the Electric type the note he had written. "It tells her that I'm really sorry, but I'm not going to dinner."

Pikachu looked up at his Trainer with bewildered eyes, and then at the note. Well, at least he's giving Dawn notice instead of completely ditching her. He grabbed the note in his mouth and scampered out of the room through a flap in the door just for Pokémon.

Ash then looked over at Buizel, pulling out his Poké Ball. "All right, Buizel." He said. "Return. You did a great job tonight."

Buizel was a little surprised and concerned that his Trainer was calling him back to his Poké Ball so soon, for he was still worried about him, but the red light from the capsule sucked him in before he could react or attempt to dodge it. The only thought that went through his mind was this: Ash was hiding something.

Once Ash had Buizel back in his Poké Ball, he placed it on the night table that was next to his bed. Next, he went into the bathroom to get out of his now restricting costume.

As he struggled to free himself from the constricting clothing, he muttered to himself, "Guess I really was that into the performance."

Soon, Ash was finally free from the fancy outfit and dressed into much more comfortable clothes for sleep: a simple white tank top and pale blue shorts, and barefoot. He exited and dropped the clothes on a spare chair. He stifled a yawn as he went to lock the door. But for some reason, before he could turn the lock, he saw that it was already locked.

"That's weird." He said to himself, slightly pulling on the handle to open the door, but it didn't budge. "I don't remember locking it already." Ash fiddled with the handle a few more times. "Does this door even lock from the outside?"

A sudden chill ran down his spine as he slowly turned away from the door, letting go of the handle, and then cautiously looked around the now strangely darkened room. He knew who was responsible for this.

*****************

Back near the stairs of the main hall, Dawn was getting a little anxious about Ash arriving late. At first, she thought he was ditching her, but then she realized that he would never do that. Even if he was going to decline, he would do something to let her know.

Finally, she sighed, rubbing her arm. "I had to open my big mouth." She muttered, her cheeks a deep pink as she recalled just how the abrupt dinner invitation went. "Of course he wouldn't come after what came out of it."

"Piplup." The little Water type Pokémon in her arms chirped, a bit disappointed for his Trainer and that he also couldn't get more time to catch up with his old friend, Pikachu.

But then, he sensed some movement coming down the stairs. "Pip?" He questioned, looking up at the stairway.

Dawn looked up towards the stairs also, and for a brief moment, thought that it was Ash. However, it turned out to be his Pikachu instead. "Pikachu?" She asked.

The little Electric type bounded down the stairs towards Dawn and then handed her the note from his mouth. "Pika-pi, Pikachu." He squeaked.

Dawn took the note from Pikachu, unfolded it, and began to read it.

Dawn,

I really am happy that I got to see you again after so long. Maybe even the happiest that I've ever been since my mom passed. No, traveling to a totally new region didn't count this time, but it was a close second, to be honest.

I really wish I could continue catching up with you, and with the rest of your Pokémon, but I can't. It's not that I don't want to, I just can't. It's because of the Angel. She seems pretty touchy whenever I mention old friends, so I hardly talk to her about stuff like that. Even when I'm not practicing with her, she always seems to know where I am, who I was with, and what has been on my mind.

It's actually kind of spooky, now that I really think about it, but I can't exactly put up a fight against her. I'm not as strong as I once was back when we were younger. So I think it would be best if we both keep our distance from each other, at least for now and in the theater. I promise, I'll find a way to explain everything to you, even if it may sound crazy. But at least do this for me in the meantime.

No need to worry about me. We'll continue catching up some other time, I promise.

Thank you,

Ash.

Dawn was now officially confused. So Ash does want to catch up with her, but is forbidden to do so? All because of this Angel, who apparently is his mentor. Why?

Obviously, this Angel is a woman, so maybe she is a bit protective of him, like a mother? Or is it for something else entirely? Is she controlling his life because he is mourning? But out of all the questions that were swarming in Dawn's head, two stood out the most.

Just who is this Angel? And what makes her think that it is her place to say about who Ash can and cannot hang out with? He is a grown man now and is free to make his own choices, no matter what anyone else says. She learned that back when they were fifteen and travelling together in Sinnoh.

She quickly folded the note and looked back up towards the stairs, a determined look in her blue eyes. "Come on, you two." She said to the Pokémon beside her. "I want to talk to him, even if he doesn't want to."

Piplup and Pikachu voiced their agreements while nodding their heads. Together, all three of them went up the stairs and back to Ash's dorm. "Ash?" Dawn called out to her friend, lightly knocking on it. "Come on, I know you're in there. I just want to talk."

There was no answer.

"Ash, you better not be ignoring me." Dawn said, getting a little bit annoyed, and then reached for the handle. But when she tried to twist it to open it, it didn't budge.

"Ash Ketchum, did you lock this door?" Dawn demanded with a huff, and continued to struggle with the door.

Pikachu looked up at the lock. It was strangely turned to the right to show that it was indeed locked, but he knew that Ash wouldn't lock it until he was back, even though he could always go through the flap if so.

Suddenly, there was something being heard from inside the room. A voice.

"Come to me, my hero." It said, and it was as sweet as a melody and smooth as honey. However, as enticing as it was, it sent a chill down the spine of the little Electric type.

Dawn immediately froze in her trying to fiddle around with the locked door handle. She had heard it too, and Piplup gave out a quiet chirp of surprise when the voice reached his ear slits.

"What was that?" Dawn muttered to herself. Then her voice rose up in volume. "Who is that in there?" She demanded.

She then began worrying. What if someone had broken in and Ash was attacked? "Ash?" She asked, rapidly banging her fist on the door. "Ash!"

But the only answer she got was the silky voice again. "Come to me, my hero." It repeated.

Pikachu quickly went over to the door flap, but he was immediately pushed back once he tried to charge through it! "Pika?!" He chirped in shock.

How could the flap be sealed shut?! One thing was for sure, Ash wasn't responsible for it. He continued to push against the flap to try and make it open up, and Piplup joined in his efforts while Dawn continued to bang on the door.

"Ash, answer me!" Dawn pleaded, now starting to get really worried about what might be happening. But not another sound was heard, not even the voice.

Finally, Pikachu and Piplup got through the flap, as if it was never sealed shut, and a bit haphazardly though. The electric rodent immediately began calling out for his Trainer once he was back on his paws.

"Pika-pi?" He called, eyes frantically scanning the room.

But no one was there. Ash was gone.

A/N: Now at last, the suspense is starting to build up. Hold on to your seats, though. Things will only continue to escalate, even though the pieces will be found. The question is, how will they fit?

You guys will have to wait until Chapter 4 for more clues. Until then, I'll see y'all! Please leave a comment about what you think. They are highly appreciated, but remember, no starting fan wars! And keep the language friendly.

Got to fly! ;)