And… another chapter…

The floor… it’s clean… wow…

Disclaimer/Notes: See earlier chapter

Time Jump: 4 months

Chapter 6

And so it began.

Ash took magic lessons from Lance when they weren’t busy doing what the Elite Four and Champion were supposed to do.

He was quite good at it.

Lance was a very nice teacher… but somehow, he had the oddest feeling he was missing something.

Like what?

Well, Lance was cute, very cute… er, bad thought!
Ash sighed.

< I’m only thirteen, shouldn’t be thinking this, bad thoughts! >

Oh well…

Starmew was usually on hand, being helpful, while his pokemon trained and played on their own, but he made sure to spend at least 2 days a week with them.

Bulbasaur and Squirtle were expecting eggs. That was nice.

“Ready?”

“Ready!” Ash said. Lance nodded as he cast Magic Gift on Pikachu. Just in case, there were amulets ready to prevent magic escape.

There!

It worked?

Ash slumped down as the last of the threads faded into Pikachu’s body and she smiled, sparkling with new energy.

Lance picked up the amulets. “You did well.”

“Hai!”

He hugged Lance as the boy supported him over to the table, where elixirs and healing potions rested.

“That was quite skillful of you.”

Ash grinned.

“This is an Earth Amulet. It helps in the casting of earth-type spells.”

Ash slipped it over his neck, feeling the warm pulse of energy. “It’s nice.”

“Magic is supposed to be nice.”

He smiled; then began practicing Sand-Attack. Sure, it seemed like a weak move, but lowering accuracy did help annoy people.

It helped in battle too.

After Sand-Attack came Mud-Slap, which was slightly harder… by the end of the Earth lessons, he would be able to do fissure, but that was in the distance.

Still, it was good to have a goal to look to.

He had already learned Mud Shot and Earthquake when he started Fire.

Why was fire close to earth? Well, he’d keep working.

Fire wasn’t too hard… Ember was easy, and so were the ones that followed. Fire was easier than earth, too…

He learned a little alchemy to adjust oxygen concentration in the air. That way, the flames burned hotter.

Lance said that when he got really good at it, he could do flame patterns like Flame Wheel and Fire Spin with Flamethrower’s power by just pulling around oxygen. How cool!

Water…

Lance held him underwater until he turned blue.

< I nearly asphyxiated! >

“No, you didn’t.”

< Why not! That was mean! >

< Learning is a hard process, Ash dear… >

He blushed slightly, but quit complaining.

What did holding his breath have to do with anything though?

He learned later on, when he had to attack underwater. They fought with wooden swords, which was difficult.

Still… it was supposed to teach balance.

He did enjoy staring at Lance, although he never mentioned that part.

It was a reward.

“Lance?”

“What is it, Ash?”

Ash quit his attempt at mind reading in frustration. “I thought you took down all your shields.”

“I did.”

“Then what-.”

“Lugia-san put shields in my mind too, and so did Serebii-san and Rayquaza-sama, and I can’t break them.”

Ash’s jaw dropped. < Legendary pokemon – why – what? >

< I suppose it’s time to tell you. > Lance sighed. * I was hoping it wouldn’t be so soon… oh well; time’s not my command. *

Sometimes she wished it were.

But no matter, things had to work out somehow.

< Firstly, though this has nothing really to do with the situation, I’m a girl. >

Ash dropped his spoons. < What? >

So he had been levitating them for practice…

< Secondly… > _She_ smiled, < I’m a Dragon Master. >

< What is a Dragon Master? >

< I take care of the world’s dragons. I feel every birth, every death, every pain and love and joy… >

Ash gaped. < Isn’t that… hard? >

< Of course it is. >

< And? How do you deal with it? >

< Dragon’s blood is fire, what runs in the rest of me is ice. The two balance out and the ice …well, it locks away my emotions. >

< I see… >

< No, I’m afraid you don’t… I’m sorry; you’re still a child… >

< What? >

< But since I have told you… >

Starmew nodded.

Two amulets fell from his fingers with a chink.

Destiny… and Hope.

< There you go, Master Ash. Take things easy, though… >

Ash took a deep breath as he put them on, and fell backwards into time.

It was easy, actually.

When he returned, he understood more. Not perfectly, but enough. He held Lance as they watched the scales float in midair.

Testing…

But they would survive and live to spin another tale.

They began again. The guardians traveled the land, bringing justice and life and healing and death, respectively.

It was fine, really, he didn’t expect more.

“Lance?”

“What is it?”

He smiled as she kissed him lightly. “You know, I don’t care if it seems repetitive. It’s real.”

“Life is real, yes.”

She played idly with the strands of interwoven blue and yellow, smiling.

Green was a color of healing, and from two types that destroyed came life. Wasn’t it ironic?

Maybe that was the real meaning of Honou’s rainbow.

< Thunder. >

< Too hard. > Lance shook her head. < You missed the target completely. >

< I did? > He sounded mortified as she laughed.

< Yes, you did… quite badly, too. I hope the farmers don’t mind. >

< Oh no! >

He quickly fixed it with Frameshift. It looked like his magic still needed practice. It was raw magic, after all, not tamed.

Tame magic was too structured and fake.

Lance concentrated and the real target was ripped apart by gale force winds. < Not as quiet, but this leaves no mark. >

< Oh… >

< Electricity – you have no problem calling up the magic, you do have problems controlling it. >

< Hai… >

< You will get better though, eventually. >

He looked to the future with hope.

The illusions would all fade in time.

Lance was standing with her hair flowing in the wind, having forgone the bandages today.

The Elite Four already knew.

Besides, he didn’t hate her for keeping it a secret. What did it matter?

End Chapter

Completed 7/26/04