"Attention, everyone! We are now boarding and will be departing for Saffron City momentarily!"

"This is it! Thanks for letting me travel with you," Daisy said as she hugged Ethan.

"Don't mention it. Thanks for keeping me company for as long as you did. It would have been boring otherwise," Ethan smiled, returning her hug.

"Vee?! Eeveev, eev eevee vee?" Eevee exclaimed from his shoulder.

Ethan tapped Eevee's nose. "No, no, you're not boring. I'm just saying it was fun traveling with Daisy. Don't you think?"

Eevee playfully nipped the offending finger and nodded.

Ethan, Daisy, Ash, Brock, and Misty stopped at a small town a few days outside Mount Moon the previous evening. During their stay, Daisy discovered that a bus scheduled to head to Saffron City would arrive the next morning. She bought a ticket since she was a bit behind schedule to get back to Celadon.

"Oh, Daisy, my beautiful flower! Wherever you are, wherever you go, please don't forget me!" Brock cried as he cupped her hands, causing her to chuckle.

"D-don't worry about that, Brock. I doubt I'll forget about you," she said as she reclaimed her hands.

Daisy then turned to Ash and adjusted his hat. "Ash? Train hard, and you'll be a great trainer."

Ash puffed out his chest. "Of course I'll be great! I'll beat anyone who challenges me!"

"Except Samurai. And Ethan. And Brock," Misty counted on her fingers.

"Misty!"

Everyone laughed at Ash's expense as he hung his head.

"Final call for Saffron City! Final call for Saffron City!"

"I gotta go! Look me up when you get to Celadon. Good luck on all your journeys!"

With a chorus of goodbyes and see ya's, Daisy stepped onto the bus, and the doors closed behind her. The bus roared to life and pulled away, leaving behind fresh tire tracks on the dirt road.

Ethan patted Brock's back at the noise of the former gym leader's sobbing. "Cheer up, Brock. We'll see Daisy again. In the meantime, there'll be plenty of other girls to flirt with."

"I know, but," Brock lamented, "there will never be anyone like Daisy!"

"Of course no one's gonna be like Daisy, Brock," Ash said. "She's not a twin or anything."

Misty shook her head. "Oh, Ash. You're so oblivious."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You'll understand when… if you start noticing girls, Ash," Ethan chuckled at Ash's look of confusion. "You guys don't mind if I travel with you for at least a little while longer, do you?"

"I don't mind," Misty said. "What about you, Brock?"

"Why not? Someone's gotta look after you if you have another, um, episode," Brock agreed.

"Sure! The more, the merrier, I say," Ash said.

"Pika pikachu, Pi-Cha!"

"Eevee Eeveev!"

"Neat!" Ethan grinned. "Let's get going then, shall we?"

----------------------------------------

"This road leads to… Cerulean City," Brock read from the sign at a fork in the path. "Well, I guess we're headed the right way."

Ethan raised a brow. "The other path leads to the backcountry of Rota. Huh, I didn't know there was a path from Rota that led here."

"That's where you're from, right?" Brock asked.

"Sort of? I only lived there a week before leaving on my journey, but it's home for now," Ethan replied.

"Where are you from originally?"

Ethan's shoulders sagged slightly, and his face fell before he schooled his expression. "Far away. Maybe I'll tell you someday."

Brock narrowed his eyes – more than they already were – before shrugging. "I look forward to it."

"'…Gary was here… Loser?!'"

Ash ground his teeth, and Ethan felt irritated as he turned toward the fuming Ash.

"That Gary!" Ash muttered before declaring, "I'll show you!" to the sky and sprinting down the path, arms spread behind him.

"Ash! Cerulean City's still a week's walk from here!" Ethan yelled, his words failing to reach Ash's ears.

Ethan sighed in exasperation and turned to Brock, Misty, and Pikachu, who wore similar expressions. "Serious question: How do you all put up with him?"

"I haven't known Ash for very long, but he's a good kid. He has the potential to be a great trainer and an even better friend," Brock said.

"Pika pika," Pikachu nodded.

"Eevee vee?" Eevee asked.

Ethan nodded and left the two Pokémon to whatever they were discussing. "Well, we better catch up."

Brock agreed and took the lead. Ethan adjusted his weighted vest as he fell into stride behind him while Misty hesitated for a moment before following.

"Eevee, Pikachu, Sandshrew, Jade, we're leaving!" Ethan called as they started walking.

Jade was the nickname Ethan chose to give his butterfree. He was hesitant to give her a nickname at first, primarily out of fear that he would forget it, but thought it was necessary to avoid confusion with Ash's butterfree when they were both out. Jade, however, loved her new name so much that Ethan thought she had learned Quiver Dance. So it stuck.

The morning after the Moon Stone ceremony, Ethan found Sandshrew curled up next to him alongside Eevee. It took a moment for Ethan to get the message, but when he asked Sandshrew if she wanted to join him on his journey, she agreed.

Three girls. When Dad said I would get all the ladies, I don't think this is what he meant, Ethan mused before the corners of his lips tugged upward. I suppose it doesn't matter. I love 'em all.

His smile quickly faded as his thoughts turned to the vision of his funeral and the subsequent discussion with Sir Aaron. His dreams were plagued with that same vision; he would wake up in that cemetery and see his family, but they wouldn't respond to his cries. It was like a cruel deity was taunting him and laughing at his misery.

And then seeing his dad looking so broken….

Ethan shook his head and stared into the crystals of his gloved hands. Since the secret about his powers came out, he had taken to wearing the gloves full-time. He furrowed a brow and concentrated on pushing an imaginary power in his body to the crystals and was rewarded with a subtle pulsing glow before he let his focus go.

He thought back to what Sir Aaron said in that vision. He revealed that his empathic abilities had begun developing. Ethan briefly wondered if he had already started sensing others' feelings without knowing it.

A subtle notion of anxiety tugged at his chest, and he subconsciously glanced to his left at Misty, who was staring blankly at the ground.

Ethan's eyes widened a fraction as a realization hit him. He had been feeling little tugs like that for a few days now but didn't think much of it. Could they be the emotions of his traveling companions? There was one way he could find out right now.

"You feeling okay, Misty?" he asked.

The redhead's shoulders briefly tensed before relaxing. "Hm? O-oh, I'm fine."

The tugging feeling intensified in time with Misty's words, and Ethan mentally cheered at his discovery.

"You sure? I can literally feel your anxiety. You're worried about something."

Misty's viridian-green eyes met Ethan's blue ones before she sighed. "You wouldn't understand."

Ethan chuckled. "I bet I would. Care if I take a guess?"

"Sure, go ahead."

Ethan looked back at the path ahead of him. "You're not looking forward to seeing your sisters again."

A hand slapped over Ethan's mouth as he was roughly pulled backward, nearly causing him to lose his balance.

"How do you know that?" Misty hissed into his ear, not wanting to get Brock's attention.

I watched the anime.

"Mmph, mph pthbbft," Ethan pointed to the hand covering his mouth.

Misty removed her hand and wiped it on Ethan's sleeve. "Now talk!"

Ethan wiped his mouth and spat into the grass to get the taste of moisturizer off his lips. "I know a lot of things I shouldn't. But I did my research on the Kanto Pokémon League gym circuit before I left on my journey. The Cerulean Gym is run by the Waterflower family's 'Sensational Sisters', of which you are one of them. Though the picture online seemed to be dated. And your name was in the footnotes."

Misty's eyebrow twitched before she sighed, and the two of them continued walking. "So, does having aura let you read minds?"

Ethan rubbed a spot around his mouth where it stung from being slapped. "I think mind-reading is more of a psychic thing. I can just relate to you. I have two pretty bossy sisters who think they know everything, so I guessed you have a similar relationship with yours. Aura lets me feel others' emotions, so when I say I know exactly how you feel, I mean it."

Misty chuckled humorlessly. "That's exactly how my sisters are."

Ethan grimaced. The tugging – which he had decided to call it for now – felt sad. "You know, even though my sisters are the way they are, I still love them, and they love me. I bet it's the same with your sisters. After all, it's a sibling's responsibility to tease their other siblings. It's in the job description."

Misty's gaze turned to the ground as if in thought.

"Let's move on to another subject," Ethan suggested. "Let's talk about water Pokémon! I can tell you a few things about water Pokémon from other regions, and you can teach me what you know. It'd be a waste not to ask a Cerulean Gym leader about water types."

Misty's eyes brightened as she smiled. "Sure! You first."

The tugging changed from sadness to eagerness. Hey, I'm getting the hang of this!

"Okay, uh, have you heard of the Pokémon feebas before?"

"Nuh-uh."

"Well," Ethan grinned, "I don't have a picture, unfortunately, but feebas are among the weakest and ugliest-looking Pokémon in the world. Yet, they are one of my favorite water types."

"But if it's weak and ugly, why would you want one?"

"Well, you know that magikarp evolve into powerful gyarados once they get strong enough, right?"

Misty shuddered. "Y-yeah, I know that."

"It's the same case with a feebas' evolution. I mentioned how they are one of the ugliest Pokémon, remember? Feebas evolves into milotic, which is the most beautiful water Pokémon in the world."

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Misty gasped, and her eyes widened. "Wallace has a milotic! He's a famous water Pokémon trainer and coordinator in the Hoenn region. I didn't know milotic had a pre-evolved form! But you're absolutely right about its beauty."

The tugging feeling changed to… excitement? Excitement. "Oh, so you know who Wallace is? Great! I don't have to try and describe how a milotic looks. Anyway, there are a couple of theories on how a feebas can evolve into a milotic.

"One theory says that the feebas has to look past its ugly exterior and realize its true inner beauty. It helps if it has a trainer to help them along. The second theory involves an evolutionary item called a 'Prismatic Scale.' Or is it 'Prism Scale'? I don't remember which."

Misty was in awe. "Wow, now I want a feebas. Realizing one's true inner beauty to transform into a more beautiful version of oneself sounds like a happy ending in a fairy tale!"

Ethan shrugged. "I guess so. Enough from me. It's your turn to teach me something you know about water Pokémon."

"Fair enough. Now, where to start…."

----------------------------------------

Ethan's messy hair caressed the bridge of his nose as a gentle, early-morning breeze blew through the trees, carrying the scent of morning dew, though he paid it little mind.

He and Brock were the group's early risers. Brock acknowledged him with a nod before returning to his morning preparations. Joining Ethan in his twilight meditation were Eevee, Sandshrew, and Jade.

During the few days after discovering his empathic abilities, he came up with a theory. Suppose his empathic abilities worked by feeling a tugging emotion from an outside source. Could he use his new sixth sense to initiate a connection with anyone's consciousness to feel their emotions?

That was the objective of this morning's meditation and why Eevee agreed to meditate with her trainer. Though, she didn't seem to mind the closeness between them as she settled in his lap.

Ethan scratched behind her ears, much to her delight, and she purred and leaned into his hand. "Thanks for joining me this morning, Eevee. I know you don't… prefer meditation, but I think this will help me get closer to understanding my powers. You too, Jade and Sandshrew."

Jade and Sandshrew nodded and quietly whispered an acknowledgment.

"May as well get started. I'm gonna start with you, Sandshrew."

Ethan brought his fists together, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, smelling the scents of morning dew and the woods around him.

Okay, I want to reach out to Sandshrew. We haven't known each other for too long, but maybe….

Ethan envisioned what he wanted to happen, imagining his heart making an intangible connection with Sandshrew's very being, like a tether. He exhaled and willed himself to create what he envisioned.

. . .

. . .

. . .

Maybe doing this requires a stronger bond than what I have with Sandshrew?

He tried again with Sandshrew before moving on to Jade, then Eevee, becoming frustrated the more it didn't work.

Why isn't this working? I thought for sure it would!

"Eeveev!"

Eevee squirmed in his lap, and he opened his eyes to see what was going on. He raised a brow in confusion when he noticed that his Pokémon seemed unsettled.

"What happened?" he asked.

Sandshrew shyly averted her eyes. Jade tilted her head, looking concerned. Eevee buried her head in Ethan's chest with her ears down.

Eevee only does that when she's… OH!

"Were you three feeling something just now that made you uncomfortable?"

Jade and Sandshrew glanced at each other before nodding.

Ethan sighed and gently pulled Eevee into a reassuring hug. "I'm sorry I made you upset. I think I ended up projecting frustration rather than making the connection I was going for."

"Eev eevee, Eeveev," Eevee forgave before resting her muzzle on his shoulder. Jade walked up and leaned against his side, followed by a hesitant Sandshrew on his other side.

Aww, this is cute, Ethan thought with a smile.

Ethan felt contentment and love, and his eyes shot up. While he, too, was feeling those emotions, the tugging directed his attention to his three girls around him.

He wanted to smack himself. I'm so dumb. I never needed to initiate contact. Why did I think that? The tugging is like a passive ability, like a radar!

"I love you all, and I think I've made some progress, thanks to you. Why don't we move on to your training now?"

----------------------------------------

After giving instructions to his Pokémon, Ethan left Eevee and Sandshrew to practice and spar together. Eevee was teaching Sandshrew how to use Swift and, in return, was being shown how to use Dig more effectively.

"Alright, Jade. You're going to be the MVP in our battle at the Cerulean Gym," Ethan began.

Jade tilted her head as she hovered in place.

"Oh, right. MVP means 'Most Valuable Player.' Let me explain what I mean. The Cerulean Gym's battlefield is mostly water, with a few floating platforms. I can't use Sandshrew because she's a ground type, and she can't swim. Eevee can swim but would have a hard time getting close enough to a water Pokémon to get a good hit in, even with the floating platforms. You, however, can fly, and you've had a lot of evasion practice this week, so you should be able to avoid getting shot down.

"I want to make sure that we get Electroweb to a proficient level before we get to the gym. You've got the web part down, but we need more power for the electro part." Ethan held his chin. "In fact, I wonder if we could borrow Pikachu again. Maybe he would have some tips on generating the needed electricity, or-"

Ethan heard a little sneeze some distance to his left, and he looked to find the yellow mouse rubbing his little nose.

"Oh, hey, Pikachu, great timing! Can I ask for your help again?"

"Pi?" Pikachu asked as he walked over.

Ethan crouched as the mouse approached. "We're trying to figure out how to help Jade make enough electricity for Electroweb to be effective in battle. Do you think you can help her figure out how to generate more electricity?"

Pikachu frowned before apologetically shrugging.

Ethan sighed as he rubbed Pikachu between his ears. "That's alright. I guess being an electric-type, you've never really had to think about how to make electricity. It's just natural for you."

Ethan turned to Jade. "Got any ideas, Jade?"

"Fwee…," Jade looked between Ethan and Pikachu as she hummed, then landed in front of Pikachu and grabbed his paws. "Fwee, fweee! Fwee?"

"Pi-ka?!" Pikachu seemed shocked at Jade's idea and rapidly shook his head.

"What's the matter?"

Ethan paid attention to what he felt as Pikachu and Jade spoke. He could feel a mix of hesitance, eagerness, desperation, and shock. If I didn't know any better, I wouldn't be able to tell what emotion was coming from which Pokémon.

"Let me see if I got this right."

The two Pokémon went silent and turned to Ethan.

"Jade, you'd like a battle with Pikachu?"

Jade nodded.

"Pikachu, you don't want to battle because Jade is a friend, and you don't want to battle friends?"

"Pi-ka," Pikachu affirmed.

That's what I thought. Pikachu wasn't much of a battler and refused to battle friends, at least until after he fought Lt. Surge's raichu. Let's see if we can change that.

"Pikachu?" Ethan began. "I can't, and won't, make you do something you don't want to do, but I want you to know that it's okay to battle friends."

Ethan pointed to Eevee and Sandshrew, who somehow ended up in a pile and were laughing. "Just take Eevee and Sandshrew, for example. Battling with friends helps you both become stronger and deepens your friendship with them. Jade and I ask for your help because we're all friends, and we could really use your help with mastering Electroweb. I know you can do it."

Pikachu pondered what he said, then turned to Jade. "PikaPika? Pik Pi-Cha pika-chu?"

"Fwe fwee!" Jade fervently nodded.

Pikachu looked at Eevee and Sandshrew again, who had resumed their sparring, before taking a deep breath. He looked at Jade and Ethan and gave them a determined nod. "Pika-chu pika pi, chu ka PikaPika."

"So, you'll help us out?" Ethan asked.

"Pi-ka!" Pikachu nodded again.

Ethan smiled and rubbed Pikachu's head. "Thanks, little buddy. Jade and I appreciate any help you can give."

Ethan stood and began walking back to camp. "Jade, you and Pikachu decide how to work this out. I'll be back soon, but come get me if you need anything."

----------------------------------------

"Hey, Brock, need help with breakfast?" Ethan quietly asked as he stepped past the sleeping forms of Ash and Misty.

Brock glanced at him from in front of the fire pit laid with hot, cherry-red charcoals, over which a griddle was placed. "Thanks, Ethan. You can start by making your Pokémon their food."

"Got it." Ethan reached into a compartment of his bag, grabbed some ingredients and a batch of Pokémon kibble base made by Brock, and got to work.

"Brock, why do you want to be a Pokémon Breeder?" Ethan asked.

The aspiring breeder smiled as he sliced some berries. "Before I got Onix – my starter – there was an elderly couple that ran a Pokémon breeding farm and daycare on the edge of Pewter City, close to the Pokémon Center. When I wasn't busy helping my dad with the gym, I'd go play with the Pokémon and help out around the farm. They taught me most of what I know about breeding and raising Pokémon."

Brock's face turned somber. "A few years ago, they had to close the farm when their health began to fail, and they had no one to pass it on to. They never had any children. Whenever I could, I visited them to keep them company and learn what they knew before they passed away last year. In a way, they were more like parents to me than my actual parents."

Ethan wiped an eye with the back of his hand. Wow, I wasn't expecting a tear-jerker. I guess some of what I felt was coming from Brock. Note to self: Learn how to feel others' emotions without them affecting me.

"That's a pretty cool origin story," Ethan chuckled as he set aside Eevee's food, then picked up Jade's and Sandshrew's dishes. "Thanks for sharing."

Brock raised a brow, then chuckled along. "What about you? Do you know what you want to do? I want to be a breeder, Ash wants to be a Pokémon Master, and Misty wants to be the best water Pokémon trainer in the world. I don't think I've heard you say what you want."

Ethan paused his food prep as he thought about how to answer Brock's question. His initial thoughts turned to home, and a feeling of homesickness washed over him. If only he had a way to tell his family he was okay, then maybe being away from home wouldn't-

"Ethan? Bud, are you alright?"

Ethan pulled himself out of the hole that his thoughts dug him into. "I'm fine," he lied. "I'm not sure what I want to do yet, so I'm just doing the gym circuit for now. Maybe I can do something that could put my talent in aura to use, depending on how it develops. I'm also pretty good with tech and software development."

"Ethan," Brock frowned, "you're not fine. I have nine younger siblings, so I have a fair amount of experience telling when someone is not fine. Do you want to talk about it?"

A sigh escaped Ethan's lips. Brock was always the most perceptive of the group, wasn't he?

"Not now. Maybe someday."

"Alright," Brock nodded after a moment. "Whenever you want to talk, you can come to me."

"Thanks, Doctor Brock," Ethan chuckled.

"Doctor Brock, huh? You know, that has a nice ring to it," Brock considered.

The two laughed for a moment before a strong feeling of distress hit Ethan's senses, and he hurriedly turned in the direction he thought it came from. A moment later, Sandshrew burst from the ground.

"Shrew! Sand sandshrew, sand sand sandshrew!"

Ash and Misty stirred and sat up.

"Huh?" Ash yawned. "What's going on?"

Ethan furrowed his brows. "Something must have happened at the training ground."

"What? What do you mean?" Misty asked, getting on her feet.

"Sandshrew's distressed, and she was just training with Eevee. Pikachu and Jade could be in trouble too!" Ethan turned to where he had left his Pokémon to train and ran, with Sandshrew on his heels.

Ash grabbed his Pokéballs and ran after him. "I'm coming too!"

----------------------------------------

"Grr, why can't ya 'it that stupid bu'erfree, ya daft Pokémon!"

Ethan ran onto the scene of Jade casually avoiding attacks from another eevee while Pikachu and Ethan's eevee watched worriedly from the side. Unlike Ethan's, this other eevee was thinner, its fur was unkempt and faded in some places, and a bit of its lower left ear was missing.

He couldn't help but feel pity for the poor eevee. He grew a soft spot for them ever since he met his own.

"If I dun't catch that bu'erfree, ya dun't get ta eat!"

Ethan looked at the trainer with the Cockney accent and felt his blood boil. Commanding the poor eevee was Damian, the blue-haired asshole that left Charmander for dead before Ash, Misty, and Brock rescued him in the anime.

"Who's that?" asked Ash. "And why is he attacking your butterfree?"

"I'm going to find out," Ethan growled. "Stay here."

Ethan stepped forward, still unnoticed by the despicable trainer. Eevee and Pikachu noticed and moved to their trainers' sides.

"Jade, Sleep Powder! Just enough to put that eevee to sleep."

Jade flew up higher, avoiding another attack from the eevee, and scattered the blue powder from her wings over her opponent. The eevee fought for a moment to stay awake but succumbed and fell to the ground.

"Oi, butt out! That's my bu'erfree. I saw it first!" Damian snarled.

Ethan glared, expanded Jade's Pokéball, and wordlessly returned her, keeping eye contact with Damian the entire time. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't attack my Pokémon! You should have been able to tell that my butterfree had a trainer the moment you started attacking, at least."

"Tch. Wha'ever. It looked funny anyways. Prob'ly has a disease," Damian said as he returned his eevee to its Pokéball and began walking away.

"One more thing, you prick," Ethan growled. "If I ever see another Pokémon abused like your eevee by your hands, I will make you regret it."

Damian frowned, then busted out laughing. "Yeh, sure you will," he said as he walked away, still laughing.

I can't wait 'til route 24. I gotta make plans for that.

"Eeveev? Eevee eev eevee…."

Ethan picked up and hugged Eevee, then returned to the others. "I know, Eevee. It hurts to see another eevee, or any Pokémon, abused like that eevee was."

"Abused?" Brock asked.

"Ethan, what happened? What did you say to him?" Misty asked.

"That prick thought Jade was a wild butterfree and wanted to catch her. That eevee he has looks like it's been abused," Ethan said.

"What? We gotta do something!" Ash yelled.

Ethan sighed. "We can't really do anything to help without some solid evidence. Not legally, anyway."

"But…."

"That poor eevee," Misty murmured.

"Don't worry. I have a feeling we're going to run into him again. We'll do what we can to help," Ethan assured.

"Hey, Brock?" Ethan asked as they walked back to camp. "How much authority do gym leaders have policing Pokémon-related crime?"