103 Chapter 103
"Hey!" Aizen lightly smiled as he watched Sabrina open her pink eyes.
She seemed surprised that the sun was already up, it was late morning now but did not ask him why he had not woken her up earlier.
Last night, she had finally managed to Teleport using her Psychic Powers, and the toll it took on her body was too much for her after a night-long training session.
She was still not proficient at Teleporting, and could only do it within a range of a few meters. But it was a start, and she would improve on it over time.
Aizen gently caressed her head when she did not bother getting up from his lap.
"Can you show me more memories?" She looked at him and expectantly asked.
"Of course!" He smiled at her and then helped her get up and sit on his lap, wrapping her legs around him.
Sabrina leaned in on her own accord and captured his lips, kissing him softly. She had gotten quite good at it, and Aizen did not need to lead her anymore.
"Was that my morning kiss?" He playfully asked and chuckled when she nodded her head. "Thank you!" He planted a kiss on her forehead before resting his forehead against hers.
The last Moonheart knew what she needed to do and gave him free access to her mind, dropping all her shields. She closed her eyes and waited for a new sequence of memories to play in her mind.
This time, Aizen showed her the memories of another one of the happiest days of his life. It was the memory of his Shelgon evolving into a Salamance. And the first ride he had taken on his beloved Pokémon.
Sabrina had a light smile on her lips as she experienced the memory as if it was her own, feeling every emotion that Aizen went through during that time.
Aizen hugged her when the memory finished and she buried her face in his neck, trying to relive it on her own, but it was still black and white, and she failed to draw the sensations that he had helped her experience. However, over time, she had managed to remember fragments of those sensations, and there were certain desires taking root in her heart now.
He knew that they could only progress slowly. It could take years for her to finally be able to feel her banished emotions again. But he was hopeful that she would make it one day, as she had already gotten so close to him.
Sabrina sometimes asked him to kiss her and hug her on her own accord. And lately, she had not even bothered asking him and had hugged and kissed him when they were alone.
Though her reasons for doing such were that he tasted sweet and that he was comfortingly warm to hug, Aizen knew that somewhere deep inside of her, some desires were sprouting.
"Awww!!"
They both heard a sweet voice and inadvertently turned to look in its direction.
"Hey, hey, Rina, did you kiss your mate again?" Diancie playfully asked, trying to tease her Master, but Sabrina simply nodded to her, not feeling any embarrassment or shyness.
Diancie happily clapped her hands and then told the two of them how her morning ride was.
She had gone out with Sky and Aerius in the clouds to fly, which she had fallen in love with.
"We are getting late! I saw that the Races of the day are about to start!" Diana urgently said.
"Do you want to watch Misty compete?" Aizen smiled and asked.
"Of course!" And the Diamond Fairy nodded her head.
"Okay." He nodded back to her and then pulled his backpack to him before searching for a robe in it.
Though it would look strange seeing someone wearing a robe on a beautiful summer day, it would save Diancie from unwanted attention.
The Diamond Fairy happily accepted the robe and wore it. But it was too big for her small frame, and even after she levitated nearly a metre above the ground to make herself pass as a human, she still failed.
"Come!" Aizen chuckled at her and then put on his backpack before opening his arms to her.
"Yay!" Diancie happily jumped in his arm and let him pick her up, making it seem like she was a little child that he was carrying.
Aizen then asked his Mega Metagross to silently teleport them to their cottage.
The girls were not there, as they had already left for the Race Course, but he had come here to do something else.
After freshening up, he helped Diancie change into Anira's robe and then emptied his backpack before helping her get inside it and carrying her on his back.
"Looks good!" He checked in the mirror, making sure that it would be hard for anyone to make out what Pokémon he was carrying on his back.
After they were set and Sabrina changed into new clothes, they left for the Race Course.
The stands were already filled with people, and cheers were rising in support of an ongoing Rhyhorn Race.
Aizen and Sabrina spotted Leaf and Anira sitting with Brock, and thankfully, they had reserved their seats with an extra one, where Misty's Houndour was sitting.
"Brother!" Anira brightly smiled at him and then laughed when she recognized Diancie's red eyes peering from under the hood. But she stayed quiet about it.
"Misty is already at the starting point?"
"Yes!" Leaf nodded to him. "Her race will start right after this one."
Aizen took off his backpack and placed it on the seat next to Anira before whispering to Diancie.
"Don't worry, you can talk with Anira." He told her that he would prevent anyone from hearing her, which she was immensely delighted about.
Diancie happily started chatting with the Orayen Princess, telling her about how much she enjoyed the morning flight and that Sabrina had kissed Aizen again, which made his little sister giggle.
Aizen sat next to Brock, picking up the little pup and placing it in his lap.
"Awoo!" Houndour happily greeted him and earned his comforting pats on its head.
"Good Morning, Aizen!" The dark-skinned boy politely greeted him.
"Good Morning!" He greeted him back. "So, are you rooting for Ash?" He playfully asked.
"Yes." Brock nodded his head.
"You seem confident that he would win."
"Lara has been training her Ponyta for nearly a year now just for this race. It is one of the favourites to win."
"We will win!" A girl, who was sitting next to Brock with her Growlithe confidently said but when her eyes met Aizen's, she could not help but warm up in a blush. After all, he was a little too handsome. "Hi! I am Lara Laramie!"
"Aizen!" He shook her hand and politely smiled at her. "I wish you the best of luck for the race, but my apologies that I won't be rooting for your win."
"It's okay. I know your friend is taking part too." She understandably nodded her head. "Are you also going to take part in the Indigo Conference in January?"
"Yes." He nodded and then turned to look at her left arm, which was bandaged. "Get well soon!" He wished her.
"I will be fine and ready for the Free-For-All. The doctor said that I only need to take it easy for a couple of days.
"That's good to hear." He smiled at her and then they all turned to look in the distance where Rhyhorn were charging towards the finish line.
The cheers were deafening when the Rhyhorn and its Rider, who were number 17, won the race, winning a cash prize of 50,000 Dollars as well as a beautiful trophy.
"There's Misty! She's number 14!" Leaf happily said when the giant screen showed the participants of the Ponyta and Rapidash Race that was about to start in a few minutes.
"She looks determined!" Aizen smiled when he saw how serious his orange-haired lover looked right now.
The race course for the Rapidash and Ponyta Race was different than the Rhyhorn one, but they would all finish right here.
It was an 11 km long track with difficult turns and rounds, and also a hill that had to be ascended and then descended.
Dozens of drones were up in the air, telecasting the event on the Giant Screen and making sure that no foul play is involved in the race.
As soon as the countdown started, everyone turned silent, but when the gunshot sounded out and dozens of Ponyta and Rapidash shot off from the starting line, deafening cheers broke out.
However, their group was watching everything with bated breaths as neither Ash nor Misty was in the lead.
"Yes!!" Leaf cheered for Misty when she emerged into the top five at the end of the first kilometre of the track.
The straight stretch was over, and now turns and curves came, which made the race even more competitive.
Misty was maintaining her fourth position in the race, but to the surprise of everyone, Ash and Lara's Ponyta managed to overtake her and then even overtook the person in the third position.
The Ponyta was indeed well-trained, and it was finally showing its skills as it made it through some of the toughest turns quite elegantly.
"Come on, Misty!" Leaf shouted out when the orange-haired girl managed to catch up with Ash and Ponyta.
Time passed and only a distance of a kilometre remained now.
Ash and Lara's Ponyta were right on the tail of the Rapidash who was running in the first position.
Misty was several metres behind them in the third position, but she was closing in on Ash.
Aizen and the girls could not help but praise her Rapidash in their hearts. It was one tenacious fellow. They could see how determined it was by its flaring ethereal fire.
Lara's Ponyta was finding it hard to get into the first position as it was failing to overtake the one ahead of it.
And just when everyone thought that Misty would pass Ash, Lara's Ponyta suddenly started shining in bright light.
It evolved into a Rapidash in the middle of the race, and as soon as it emerged out of the light, it accelerated, managing to get into the first position with only a couple of hundred metres to the finish line.
"Yes!!" Lara and Brock excitedly jumped up on their feet when Ash won the race.
"Congratulations!" Aizen smiled and congratulated them.
Anira and Leaf did the same.
Though the girls were a little sad that Misty could not win the race, she had managed to come in the third position despite only preparing for the race in the last couple of days. It was an achievement in its own right, and she still had a chance to win the Free-For-All, which was three days later.
"We will go and check on Misty!" The two girls said, and then together with the Houndour rushed ahead to console their friend and cheer her up.
Thankfully, she was not really mad at losing.
