Ch 40. An old yet new friend

Having left Sunny town behind, Ares and his Pokemon find themselves into a forest, covering most of the mountain they need to pass over to reach their destination, Fuchsia city.

They had traveled for a few days now and had found themselves to be lost in the forest, the way up the mountain already lost.

Ares "The map doesn't help one bit."

He grumbled as he looked at his rotom phone, not finding any way markers that resembled anything on the map.

Lucario looked at the map as well, but he too soon shook his head. They were definitely lost.

Ares "Well then, let's just go to the top of the mountain. From there we should be able to pinpoint where we are."

Having formed a plan, he didn't hesitate and moved on.

On his way, he encounter various Pokemon, most he had already seen before. The Butterfree and Beedrill population was once again more than present in the environment, with a brand new addition of Venonat and Venomoth being present as well.

He didn't see them a lot though, as the Venonat were rather reserved compared to the quickly ticked Beedrill and the sociable Butterfree. The Venomoth he only saw in the evening and night. Not that it was strange, as Venomoth were well known for being nocturnal pokemon.

Arriving at the top of the mountain a little more than two days later, Ares could see the forest spanning out over the surrounding mountains, with in the far distance signs of a city. A bit near there, he could see a mansion situated on top of a mountain.

Taking out the map, Ares quickly noted down the waymarkers, having pinpointed where he was.

Ares "I see. Good to know where we should be heading to."

Muttering so, he put away the map again.

Walking downwards in the direction of the city, a sudden vibration was spreading throughout the forest. It wasn't something like tremors in the ground or gust of wind. It was more like all the plant life was livening up, shaking in response.

[She's coming!]

Mew, having woken up, got out of the back and was flying up and down in anticipation.

Looking upwards, Ares followed Mew's gaze.

A blinding green light was slowly formed, tendrils of light spreading outwards like unfurling flower petals. Brightening up even more, a small creature sped out of it, flying towards Mew in elation as the two hugged each other.

Mew [Long time no see!]

Mew yelled out loudly as she took a good look at the new arrival, an old friend of both Mew and Ares.

Celebi [It's so good to see the both of you too. It seems like yesterday since I last saw you. Was it yesterday? I don't really recall.]

Celebi replied, giving a questioning look towards Ares.

Ares "It has been a few months. On my 16th birthday."

He said stoically, though a smile slowly appeared on his face as he too had been looking forward to see Celebi again.

Celebi [So it was a few months ago! I always seem to get a bit lost with the year.]

Giggling at her own clumsiness, Celebi released Mew from her hug, flying towards Ares and taking a spot on his shoulder.

Celebi [So what did I miss this time? Any exciting encounters to share with me?]

Mew [Oh oh, let me tell her~]

Mew budged in, taking a spot on Ares's remaining shoulder and began to chatter away about his journey since he left Pallet.

In the time they were chatting, Ares had put up his camp, taking out all his pokemon and introducing them to Celebi. With the new encounters, Mew would share with renewed exhilaration about how they were added to his team.

Night soon fell, as he made dinner and fed all his pokemon.

Even when they turned in for the night, having taken a spot in the sleepingbag, Mew was still tattling on about the journey so far.

Mew was currently summing up his gymbattles and the battle against other trainers. Yawing a bit, Mew finally added the part about team Rocket.

Mew [You really should look out for yourself where you end up. They are really annoying.]

Mew concluded, seriously advicing Celebi on what to look out for.

Celebi [It seems you had a lot of fun~ I should visit more often in the future.]

Celebi replied, not taking Mew's advice too seriously.

Celebi [It is nice to see you surrounded by new friends. It makes you seem a little more approachable, even if it is only for me and a few friends.]

Gently tapping Ares on the head, Celebi smiled brightly as she settled herself a bit deeper into the sleeping bag.

Ares "If it seems like that to you, then I suppose I've become a little bit more approachable, if only just a little. I have a question though. Someday, a bit in the future, could you temporarily send me back to my former village? There is something I need to find out."

He didn't expect much with this request. It was dangerous to mess with time, something he knew all too well. Still, if there was a chance, he would rather take it and be cautious than let it slip away.

Celebi looked at Ares with a scrutinizing gaze, remaining silent for a bit before she answered.

Celebi [I can, but it won't be for long. Changing the past is worse than taking someone to the future. It shouldn't matter too much though, as your previous village has been gone for a while now. In this timeline at least.]

Having gotten a positive reply, Ares sighed in relief. At least he would have an option to go back. He wouldn't go back now, not when he was exploring this region. But maybe later, when he was a bit more experienced in this way of life. When he had a bit more knowledge about how to handle himself in certain situations. Maybe then he would give it a shot.

Ares "Thanks. I will take you up on that some time in the future."

Celebi [Sure, that's what family is for~]

Celebi replied, nodding off and falling asleep. Taking her action as an example, they all fell asleep.

The next morning they saw Celebi off, as she gave Mew, Lucario and Ares a final hug before she flew away, enriching the forest and plains wherever she passed by.

Ares "It was nice to see her again. What about you, Lucario?"

Lucario grinned, giving Ares a playful punch on the arm. Ares knew what he thought and he didn't mind giving some 'extra' feedback as well.

Ares happily laughed as he rubbed his sore arm, his gaze once more fixed on the city a bit further away.

'Time to move on again.'

With renewed vigor, they descended the mountain, a step closer to getting to Fuchsia city.