CHAPTER 29
COMING HOME

Before we left, I talked to Crystal again.  I advised her to use less legendary Pokémon.  She told me that I had no business in telling her what to do, but in a sort of friendly way.  We left on a good note, and she agreed that she would try to be more fair.
       Meanwhile, at the Pokécenter in Chrono, we phoned our family and friends.  Kamon called his mom, Professor Elm, and Jasmine.  I called my parents and Professor Oak.  We were finally coming home, almost a year after we first found out about the Prime League.
We flew home-Kamon on his Delibird, and Carly and I on my Lugia.  We first stopped off at Viridian, healed our Pokémon (they were exhausted from flying), and then walked to Pallet Town to see my parents.
'Oh, Drew, we are so proud of you,' my mom said.
'Yes, son,' said my father, 'I never could have imagined that one day you would become the most powerful trainer in the world.'
'Well, don't forget Kamon, here,' I replied.  I introduced my parents to Kamon.  'This is Kamon.  One of the only people to beat me.  Of course, I got him back, didn't I?'
Kamon laughed.  'That you did, my friend,' he chuckled.  'That you did.'
We left my parent's house and went to Prof. Oak's.  He offered us lunch and toasted to our journeys.
After lunch, we left to Johto, via Flying again.  We landed in New Bark Town, where Kamon's mother and Professor Elm lived.  Elm congratulated Kamon for participating in the Prime League, and was, generally, ecstatic that one of his trainers made it that far, and had become that famous.  He shook hands with me, and praised me.
He had known who I was before this, because I went to Johto to begin my quest, instead of my homeland of Kanto.  He was the one to give me Cyndaquil.
We went to the air again, this time to Olivine to meet Jasmine.  Then we met someone none of us expected.
Eileen.
'What are you doing here?' I asked, bewildered that she was here.  She was hanging out with some guy, whom I assumed was her new boyfriend.  His name was, apparently, Jeff.
'I came by here to congratulate you,' she said delightedly.  She walked seductively over to me and kissed me.
'Who is this?' Carly asked.
'My ex-girlfriend,' I responded sternly.  Then something dawned on me-why we broke up.  'Hey, wait a second!' I shouted.  'We broke up because you said that you didn't want me to leave, and that you were tired of me training!'
'Oh, that...' said Eileen.  'Well, uh...you see, I didn't know exactly what you were doing, and all the exotic places you were going, and-'
'You know what?  I don't really care what your excuse is,' I retorted.
'But, I you're missing the point, I want to get back with you!  Start over on a new leaf!'
'No, Eileen, you are missing the point.  I don't care about you, or your boyfriend, or anything else.  We are through.  We were through a long time ago.'
'You mean ex-boyfriend,' Jeff spoke up.
'Wha-what?' Eileen stuttered.
'You were just about to leave me for this Champion punk, no offense,' said Jeff.
'None taken,' I assured him.
Jeff nodded, and then continued.  'I'm not going to be with someone that is going to leave me at any moment.  I'm through with you.'  He turned around and left.  We did likewise.
'Drew,' Carly said, 'don't you think we should have been more...sympathetic?'
'No!' I replied.  'I'm angry at her, and I think she got what she deserved.'
'She was crying.'
'She's a hypocrite and would turn her back on anyone.  Even a "Punk Champion" like me.'  Carly agreed.
We sailed across the sea (now with Jasmine), and to Kamon's gym.  There were protestors outside.
'What the hell?' Kamon cursed.  'Hey-what's going on here!?'
'The gym leader has been gone for almost a year now!' someone shouted.
'Yeah, and we're going to raid the gym and take all the badges!' someone else yelled.
'Oops,' said Kamon.  'I forgot about that.'
'Hey, wait a sec-I know you!' said this one kid.  Kamon gulped.  'You are the Pokémon Master!'
Realizing he was talking to me, I started to speak.  'Why, yes, I am.  And uh...'  I was trying to get their attention away from Kamon.  Carly whispered something in my ear.  'And I'll be taking autographs over here!'
I walked over to a bench and sat down.  The mob ran over to me with pens their signs.  They flipped over their protest signs to be used as paper to get my signature.
Meanwhile Kamon and Jasmine opened the doors to the gym and slipped inside.  No one ever noticed.

* * *

Life went on normal from then on.  In April, we celebrated my birthday.  The two presents that stood out most were the plaque that Kamon and Jasmine got me that read, 'Drew Anderson: Pokémon Master of Johto, Gehta, and the Orange Islands.  From, Kamon & Jasmine.  PS: (from Kamon) I'm still better than you in Kanto.'
The second gift wasn't really a gift at all.  I found out that Carly was two months pregnant.  A small shock, but we'd get through it.  We always did.
'Kamon,' I said, one summer afternoon.  It happened to be June fifth, the anniversary of our journey.  'Before we left, I consulted Sabrina, and she said that I would fail in the Prime League.'
'You did,' he replied.
'Yeah, but then I won.  She also said that you would triumph over me.'
'Did she say that I would triumph over you in training?'
'No, she said that you would become more famous than I would...'
'Well, there you go.  My destiny may not be fulfilled, yet.'
'Speaking of destiny, she said it was my destiny to fail.  But I won.'
'Just goes to show you,' said Kamon, 'that destinies are not always etched in stone.  You can always change them.'
'True,' I replied.  I thought for a moment, and then continued.  'I never believed in that destiny stuff, anyway.'

EPILOGUE

"Is that it?" a little boy asked his dad.
"Pretty much.  Soon after, you two were born," he replied.
Julia smiled.  "That was a nice story, but too much battling," she said in her squeaky voice.
"Too much battling?" Drew questioned his daughter.  "There's no such thing as too much battling!"  He smiled back.
"I liked the battles," Andrew remarked.  "They were cool."
"Of course they were..." Drew said.  "Of course they were..."
Carly walked over to them.  "Lunch is ready," she said.
"Good, 'cause I'm starving," Drew replied.
"If you were so hungry, you should have made it yourself," Carly responded playfully.
Andrew ran over to the table in the kitchen, while Drew picked Julia up and put her on his shoulders.  At the same time, the doorbell rang.  Little did Drew know that it was Kamon, who was going to introduce them to another challenge: an ultimate tournament.
Because, of course, you can never have too many battles.