Chapter 15 Phone Call
Under the night sky, a Meowth-shaped hot air balloon was flying over Viridian City towards the Pokémon Center.
Inside the basket, a young man with short blue hair, dressed in a special white uniform, tightly clutched a wanted poster. After carefully comparing it, despite the blurry face on the poster, it could be seen that the wanted poster was actually of the young man himself.
"Is this the drawing they're using to wanted us?"
"The police in Viridian City are really unprofessional. They can't even get a wanted poster right; there aren't even basic facial features."
A young girl with a peculiar hairstyle beside him also chimed in, "It's normal for police in rural areas to be short-sighted and unable to appreciate our charm!"
"This is simply a misunderstanding and prejudice against us. Such behavior is unforgivable."
"Yes, such treatment really fails to showcase the charm we should possess. Unforgivable!"
"I want these people in Viridian City to see how formidable we are."
"It's fine to show off your strength, but don't forget, our goal is to collect rare Pokémon. Don't ever forget that."
Just as the two were lost in their self-indulgent excitement, a third voice spoke up. To their surprise, it was a Meowth standing upright on two feet.
"How could we forget that?"
The two didn't seem surprised and responded very naturally.
Meanwhile, Ash and Misty had also settled down at the Pokémon Center.
While Pikachu and the others were recovering their strength, Ash went to the public phone in the Pokémon Center lobby and dialed his home number.
"Hello, this is Ash's mom," a familiar voice came from the other end of the line.
"Mom, it's me, Ash!"
Ash looked at the phone screen, where his mother, Delia, was wearing a face mask and looked relaxed and content. He suddenly felt like he was an accident.
"Oh, it's Ash," Delia paused, then asked, "Where are you?"
"Mom, I'm in Viridian City."
Ash answered truthfully.
"Oh, son, you're amazing, much better than your father. He took four days to get to Viridian City back then, and you only took one day. I believe you'll definitely surpass your dad in the future," Delia said with certainty.
"Of course I'm better than Dad!"
Ash would never admit that he was worse than someone who had been gone for over a decade.
Since he was born, he had never seen his dad, nor had he ever found anything related to his dad at home, not even a single photo.
So, Ash concluded that his cheap old man was either dead in some forgotten corner or was involved in some Legendary Pokémon incident and couldn't get away.
"You brush your teeth once in the morning and once at night, right? There's an idiom, something like 'a tiger father begets a dog son,' or 'a tiger son has no dog father.' "
"Mom, it's getting late. I need to brush my teeth, wash my face, and Rest."
Ash quickly interrupted Delia's thoughts, afraid that he wouldn't have enough time if they kept talking.
"Alright. Oh, by the way, Ash, Serena called today. Remember to call her back when you have time," Delia reminded him.
Delia was quite supportive of Ash and Serena's relationship.
"Okay, I know."
Ash nodded in agreement.
He had also anticipated why Serena would contact him.
After hanging up, Ash looked around, made sure Misty wasn't there, then dialed Serena's home number.
"Hello, this is Serena's mother. Who are you looking for?"
"Aunt Saqi, it's me, Ash!"
Ash looked at the person on the other end of the phone, who was also wearing a face mask, and wondered if all mothers in this world were so focused on skincare.
"Oh, it's Ash. Serena just went to take a bath, so you might have to wait a bit."
After Summer Camp ended, Ash and Serena exchanged contact information and would call each other from time to time. Over five years, it was impossible for their families not to find out. In fact, their relationship wasn't hidden for more than two months before Serena's mother, Saqi, discovered it.
The two weren't caught in the act; rather, a bill forced the revelation. In the first month after Serena returned, their phone bill nearly doubled. As Saqi, who knew her daughter was socially anxious, she didn't even need to guess to know there was something going on. With a little probing, Serena confessed.
Initially, Saqi was a bit resistant to the matter and even wanted to send back the Ralts that Ash had given Serena. In the end, it was Delia, also a mother, who stepped in, and Saqi reluctantly agreed to their relationship.
Over the years, Ash had also successfully gained the approval of Serena's mother with his intelligence and wit.
"It's fine, Aunt Saqi, I have plenty of time."
Ash was happy to wait as long as it took to see his future wife. He was just a little worried about Misty stumbling upon their good thing.
Then, Ash heard a voice from the other side urging Serena, "Serena, Ash is on the phone! You need to hurry up!"
The next second, a Kirlia appeared out of nowhere on the phone screen.
That was the evolved form of the Ralts that the system (crossed out) Ash had given to Serena.
"Kirlia?"
Kirlia didn't see her older sister as usual and showed a puzzled expression.
"Kirlia, your sister is recovering her strength at the Pokémon Center and isn't with me right now!"
Initially, two eggs hatched at the same time, but because the Ralts in Ash's possession spoke first, it naturally became the older sister.
"Kirlia~" (Alright....)
Clearly, Serena's Kirlia was a bit disappointed.
Soon, Serena appeared on the screen.
"Ash, that Squirtle and Snivy, you had someone send them, right?"
"That's right, I specifically chose them for you. They should be pretty good, right?"
"They are indeed very well-behaved and cute, but Ash, if you send these two little ones to me, what will you do? Aren't you going to become a Pokémon Master? It would be much better for them to be with you than with me, and it will be over two more years before I can travel with you."
Serena learned from Ash's mother, Delia, that Ash had already set off, and her anticipation for the journey was at its peak. However, she was not old enough, and Ash was far away in the Kanto region, so she couldn't accompany him.
(This setting is for plot reasonableness, don't argue, thank you.)
"For my starter Pokémon, Pikachu and Kirlia are already enough. I can catch others through battles. Serena, let me tell you, I caught three wild Pokémon today…"
Half an hour later, Ash reluctantly hung up the phone.
Afterward, he communicated with Professor Oak and sold him the video he had taken of Ho-Oh at a high price.
If Ash hadn't been worried that giving the Rainbow Feather to someone else would cause problems, he would have even wanted to rent it to Professor Oak for research at a high price.
While discussing the price, Ash also heard that Gary had already met the basic conditions for a full battle—catching six Pokémon—and had even sent several Pokémon back to the research institute for Professor Oak to study.
Ash also knew that Gary's speed was entirely due to the other Pokémon Professor Oak had specially prepared for him—Growlithe and Eevee.
Anyway, Ash had already decided that the next time he saw Gary, he would find an opportunity to fleece him. He held an excellent Fire Stone and an excellent Moon Stone, and items produced by the system were much better than those of the same quality on the market.