The moon emerged from behind a veil of clouds. A stone path stretched from the backyard of the house, leading to a wide expanse of grassland behind the neatly arranged homes.
The grass was neither sparse nor overly dense. Stepping lightly on it produced a faint, crisp sound, and the sensation underfoot was soft and gentle.
A few dark clouds obscured part of the moon, but its pale light still filtered through, scattering across the open grassland, where there were no obstructions, making it appear even more radiant and clear.
Ash walked to the center of the grassland, took a deep breath of the cool night air, and then flopped straight onto the grass.
Feeling the touch of the grass against his back, Ash's mood instantly relaxed. Though he hadn't felt sleepy before, in just a moment, he began to yawn.
"Mm~~ So comfy~~"
He stretched lazily, rolling onto his side and closing his eyes, though he didn't try to fall asleep.
After all, this was someone else's home, and they'd kindly invited him to stay the night. If he was found sleeping outside all night the next morning, it'd be way too embarrassing.
But come to think of it, how long had it been since he'd felt like this?
Before he traveled back to the present, as he worked toward becoming a Pokémon Master, he trained day and night in fixed locations, leaving no time to relax in nature like this.
Savoring this beautiful moment, Ash could only sigh in appreciation: "It's so good to be back~!"
"Back? Back where?"
Ash: "?!"
Just as Ash let out that sentiment, Dawn appeared from behind him, unnoticed until now. Whether it was because her footsteps were so light or because she was wearing slippers, she hadn't made a single sound on the grass.
"Ahem, nothing, just saying something random."
Though he was curious why Dawn was here, Ash quickly responded.
Dawn blinked curiously but figured that, given how many regions Ash had traveled through, it was probably normal for him to say something like that out of the blue.
Still, it gave her a strangely old-soul vibe from him.
"Can't sleep either?"
As Dawn sat down beside him, Ash couldn't keep lying down, so he sat up to join her side by side.
Moonlight bathed their profiles, as if offering the purest blessing and baptism to children about to embark on a new journey, captivating and enchanting.
"Yeah, a little… excited or maybe nervous?"
Dawn hugged her knees, her body gently rocking back and forth. This uneasy demeanor was a bit adorable and rare for her.
After all, her personality was usually brimming with confidence, rarely faltering over minor setbacks.
In Ash's memory, the number of times Dawn had been so discouraged by a setback that she became dejected could be counted on one hand. Seeing her like this now felt novel to him.
"It'd be weirder if you didn't feel like that.
The night before my first journey, I was so excited I overslept. I spent the whole night thinking about which starter Pokémon I'd choose as my partner, and then I just slept through the next morning."
Ash's first day of travel back then was, admittedly, a bit embarrassing.
It's normal to be too excited to sleep, but being so late to the lab? That wasn't normal. And Gary, just to rub it in, had waited at the door for him. Thinking about it still annoyed him.
"Overslept, huh… If I weren't at home with my mom to wake me, I'd be scared I'd oversleep too…"
Though it seemed she was the only rookie Trainer starting at this time, arriving late would leave a bad impression. After all, she'd likely have to deal with Professor Rowan plenty in the future…
And rumor had it Professor Rowan was pretty intimidating. Dawn didn't want to get on his bad side on day one.
"Back then, oversleeping made me super flustered. I didn't even have time to brush my teeth—I just threw on my pajamas and rushed out. Even then, I was too late. All three of Kanto's starter Pokémon had already been claimed."
"Huh?" Dawn covered her mouth in surprise, then asked, "So you didn't get a starter Pokémon?"
"Well, technically, I didn't get one of the three starter Pokémon Kanto gives to rookie Trainers. I felt really disappointed and regretful at the time, but when Professor Oak gave me Pikachu as my starter, I felt like I hit the jackpot. Though, like I said at lunch, Pikachu back then really didn't like humans. It'd shock me if I so much as touched it. But I fell for it at first sight. Looking back, I think I'd thank myself for oversleeping."
Dawn listened quietly, as if she were Ash back then, her mood shifting from the low of missing out on a starter to the joy of receiving Pikachu.
Seeing that Dawn seemed to be calming down, her arms gradually loosening from around her knees, Ash continued:
"Traveling is full of uncertainties. Getting lost, running into bad people… those are unavoidable. But overall, things tend to work out, don't they? My companions and I faced a lot of dangers and troubles along the way, but we always managed to solve them. In the end, all we had was the joy of what we gained…"
As expected…
A faint smile crept onto Dawn's lips, confirming the thoughts in her heart.
His love for Pokémon and for traveling was genuine, straight from the heart.
Sure, traveling was bound to be fun, but if she went with him, could she encounter even more interesting things?
If before, Dawn's feelings about traveling alone were a mix of excitement and worry, then after meeting Ash, hearing his tales of travel, and receiving his encouragement and reassurance, her view of the journey had completely shifted toward the positive.
After all, things would work out when the time came, right? If she ran into trouble, she could just see it as enriching her life's experiences. Wasn't that how it worked?
Dawn gazed at Ash's profile, finally making up her mind. She turned to face him directly, and under his puzzled gaze, she said:
"This might be a bit sudden, but can I ask you to agree to a request?"
"A request?" Noticing Dawn's movement, Ash turned to look at her, asking curiously.
"Yeah."
Dawn nodded gently, staring at her reflection in Ash's eyes. She took a deep breath and said, "Please let me travel with you!"
The few clouds in the sky drifted away with the breeze, revealing the moonlight that had been partially obscured. Now, in the vast night sky, it shone even more dazzlingly.