Love Me Like You Do (Ash Ketchum x Reader x Calem)

- 32 -

From the moment I met Braixen, I saw her as this quiet and timid Pokemon. She would hide from strangers and avoid them at all costs. I remember telling Ash I wanted a Starter Pokemon who was not afraid of anything and was someone with a strong mind. So imagine his surprise when I picked Braixen. I just fell in love with her instantly and felt a connection between us. I felt as if she needed someone who actually understood her and was patient. Prof. Sycamore had warned me that it was going to be hard for Braixen to open up for me. It took them months before she warmed up.

Of course, I thought I wouldn't have any problem, I mean, how bad could it be? Obviously very bad. The first time I let Braixen out of her Pokeball, she would run away and hide from me. And when I got her to stay still for a while, she would avoid me everytime I tried to touch her. It was difficult the first few days. Every day, I made it an effort to get Braixen to open up. I would spend time alone with her, away from everyone else. I would spoil her with many sweets. But of course, these methods never worked. I eventually learned that kindness and patience were the best methods. I shouldn't force Braixen to open up, that was wrong and unacceptable.

Whenever I let her out of her Pokeball, I would let her have time to herself and sometimes join her for company. At first, she was cautious about it. She would scoot away and leave me by myself. Or other times, she would just look at me weirdly before walking away. But then, slowly, she learned to trust me and open up. Braixen turned out to be much happier and excited over everything when I finally got to know her. She is still timid around people she doesn't know. But eventually, when she gets to know them, she'll reveal her true self.

I know Braixen still needs a little more help with gaining confidence and possibly won't happen any time soon. But I'll stick with her through the end, no matter what. After all, two are better than one.

Calem, Braixen, and I, along with our new members of the group, Alain, Mairin, and Chespie, walked through the quiet and peaceful forest. It was a little chilly, but overall, it was a relatively warm day. Braixen had stuck with me the entire walk, never once leaving my side and staring cautiously at our new members. Honestly, this wasn't new to me nor Calem. Alain and Mairin were obviously a bit confused about this, but once they figured out about Braixen's attitude, they didn't bother with trying to get Braixen to talk to them.

Figuring out they weren't going to do anything, Braixen left my side and ran ahead of us. She seemed content with herself and happily skipped the hike. A few flowers were on the side of the path and she began to collect them. Braixen ran back and handed three flowers to me: a red flower, pink flower, and white flower. And much to my surprise, she handed the other three to Mairin before running back off.

I looked down at the flowers in my hand and smiled. Braixen would always bring me flowers whenever I was feeling down or just wanted to give me something beautiful. She was a very kind Pokemon. I began to tie the stems together to form a bracelet and slipped it onto my [R/L] wrist. Pleased with my decoration, I smiled.

"Could you do one for me, too?" Mairin asked, holding the three flowers in her hand: a yellow flower, light violet flower, and light green flower.

"Of course," I take the flowers from her hand and began to tie the stems. I made hers a little different with one flower on top and the other two on the side.

"Thank you!" Mairin smiled in happiness and quickly put it on. She placed her arm in front of her and moved it around before looking down at Chespie. "Isn't it pretty, Chespie?"

"Chespin, Pin, Ches!" Chespie agreed, smiling brightly.

I chuckle at the two of them, their cheery personalities can brighten anyone's day. As I look back towards Braixen, she was still happily collecting some flowers and just seemed really happy. She would stop every once in a while to make sure we weren't left behind before continue her small adventure. It was honestly a peaceful day until...a yellowish-orange beam come from out of nowhere and hit Braixen. It all happened in slow motion. I watched as Braixen didn't notice the move and slowly fell to the ground. My eyes were wide with shock and I had to cover my mouth.