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Lights, Cameras, Action! / Songe del Roze	By : RainbowOfLight Category: Pokemon > Threesomes/Moresomes Views: 326 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: This is a nonprofit work of fiction any resemblance to real life figures is purely coincidental, and all recognized trademarks are property of their respective copyright owners. All characters will be treated as having their canon ages.

Chapter List
- 1-Prologue: Setup I
- 2-Prologue Final: Setup II
- 1
- 2
The whole room had stopped to take in the sheer arrival of the co-starring male protagonist of the series with his entourage of friends. Some were shocked to see that it was Ash Ketchum himself cast in this role, others keenly picked up on his lack of awareness for what he signed up for, and a remaining number were more concerned about the "guests" he had brought with him. One such individual slipped off with their friend to find enough space and work up the nerve to tell them what they had gotten involved with, but they clearly struggled with whether to tell the truth and face rejection or lie and break their trust. Diantha watched Candice discreetly pull the girl named Zoey off to the side for a private one-on-one talk, but Candice kept freezing up every time she got ready to spill it to Zoey. She felt bad for Candice being in this situation and wished that Ash Ketchum had first thought about whether him bringing all his friends was a good idea to not give some of those participating a horrid start. She then kept her eye out for the reactions of the Rhondshrym men to gauge their next move so she could see what hers would be in response. She watched as Ash, in a rare sheepish move, approached the elder Rhondshrym to introduce himself.
"Um, I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town," he said, scratching his head nervously. "Sorry for not getting here earlier, I got held up by a bunch of other stuff and kinda got lost on the way here."
"Ash, honey," came Delia's voice, "try to look the nice gentleman in his eyes when speaking to him."
"Quite right, young man," was Professor Oak chiming in. "It fosters a healthy start using good manners at the very least."
"Sorry."
[NO APOLOGY. IS NEEDED.] Jacquemontii the Elder responded, his electrolarynx giving the three a minor start. [THE FAILURE. OF COMMUNICATION. LAYS. ON MY SHOULDERS.]
"As it does mine," the elder's son was quick to add. "We should like to correct this error with a few queries if you may permit so."
"Uh, sure, go ahead." Ash just hoped that the questions weren't about super private for him or anything like that.
"To verify," the younger Rhondshrym began, "you are indeed Ser Ash Ketchum, correct?"
"Sure am!" Ash reached into his jacket and pulled out his Rotom Phone, showing the director and producer his Trainer ID. From it, the director confirmed details about him such as his residence in Pallet Town, his rank among the different Pokémon Leagues and his recent World Coronation Tournament ranking as top trainer, and his current team of Pokémon on hand. What he simultaneously did and didn't expect to see was his age.
It read "10".
The lad is ten? Jacquemontii Rhondshrym II thought, bewildered by what he saw. Impossible. The Indigo League he competed in took place no less than seven years ago, yet he does look the part at least. This information is clearly inaccurate, but I shall return to that shortly; other pressing queries remain.
"This information is most illuminating, much appreciated, young ser. I believe my Ser Father has a query of his own to ask of you."
[INDEED.] came the elder's voice box. [IF I MAY. PRESENT MY QUESTION. I ASK THIS. WHO DIRECTED YOU. TO OUR ESTATE. FOR THE SERIES?]
"Oh, right!" It was as if something clicked in Ash. "It was an Aegislash who found me a few days ago and gave me this flyer for a movie and a bunch of other paperwork stuff. I think it told me that I was chosen for a series' role as a warrior hero who fought Pokémon battles and real battles."
"Ash naturally told me all about it," Delia said, beaming with pride. "My little boy already getting movie deals so soon after his World Coronation win...! But, of course, you know how movie making is, so I phoned Professor Oak here to help me and Ash look over the paperwork the Pokémon provided him."
"I did my own fair share of research on the Rhondshrym Foundation beforehand as well," the professor explained. "Your establishment is of great repute from the way you treat those who feature in your works and others who are behind them being such roaring successes which is very good to hear. Of course, there was also the matter of a number of your world being...ahem...suitable for an adults only audience with mature and dark themes present."
"As his mother, I was quite hesitant to allow Ash to star in such a series, you understand," Delia followed up. "The Pokémon who brought this to our attention was very clear that mature themes like politics and war and even some degree of exposure would be in this series."
"I myself was taken quite aback when I heard all of that explained to me, and though I know Ash is still a growing young man—"
"Aw, come on, Professor Oak!" Ash protested at the insinuation.
"Ha ha, now, now, I did not mean to downplay you, sonny; I merely meant to say that me and your mother here both felt that you are quite mature enough to handle such topics. You've been through quite a lot on your journey, Ash, and starring in such a mature work is certainly to be a challenge unlike any other you've faced, but you and I both know that you are more than capable of handling yourself alright here, even with—and especially with—so many other upstanding figures participating in this as well." It was heartwarming to see how much faith and confidence that the old professor had in the boy with a reassuring smile and hand on his shoulder, and his mother similarly beamed at him with a glowing smile of her own that made nearly everyone forget where they were for a moment.
"Uh, Gramps?" Gary spoke, not swept up in the sentimentality so much. "Not to be rude, but I think we're getting off topic here."
"Oh, my goodness! We are; my apologies for that, good sirs."
"Yes, well, that does explain a fair deal in itself, so I have no issues as of yet." Something still bothered the Rhondshrym men about this, so a question lingered in their minds.
[IF I MAY. POSE ANOTHER QUESTION. THE FLYER. YOU RECEIVED. IT REMAINS. IN YOUR POSSESSION?]
"Yup! Got it right here!" Pikachu quickly dug into Ash's backpack and fished out the flyer for him. "Thanks, buddy." Ash then handed the flyer to the elder Rhondshrym who gingerly took it into his hands for his son to read, something Professor Oak quickly caught onto but chose not to remark on for the moment. The elder's son looked at the flyer and noted several things that should have been present on it were missing for some inexplicable reason, namely the more explicit details as if censored by a third party.
Vexing. Most vexing this is.
"...Much appreciated, Sir Ketchum," the director said. "If I may, I must away for a spell to decide with my Ser Father how we are to move forward with this. In the meantime, you may converse with your peers until we have concluded our discussion."
"Alright, I'll be here." With that, both Rhondshrym men left the others to themselves for a moment to process what this all meant. While Ash quickly settled into conversation with his family and friends he brought with him, others took to redirecting their thoughts toward their prior discussions until things were ready to begin. Diantha and Gardevoir, though, kept their eyes on the two men as they distanced themselves a fair bit away from the rest of the crowd to converse in private.
Here it is, the moment of truth... Diantha thought. How the two men would handle this would be the make it or break it for her and Gardevoir remaining to participate in the series—as well as for her Elite Four peers. The two watched the men finally stop with the director turning to the producer with his expression grim.
"Ser Father, a grave miscommunication error has occurred," the son said to his father in a hushed tone. "Was Aegislash not instructed to deliver the full of the series' scope to Sir Ketchum? He speaks to no knowledge of any of the explicit content. And we had reached out to him days prior yet received no word on what he was doing nor where he was until this moment. And his age? It is officially registered as ten despite his Trainer ID listing all of the major Pokémon Leagues he has participated in where some had happened years prior. To my understanding, one must be a minimum of ten years old to join any of them, and for him to be ten now and participate in leagues that are nearly a decade passed is an impossibility. Why were we not informed of this sooner, and why did Aegislash have Sir Ketchum sign the contract without properly informing him of all he is to partake in?"
[erring. does not. exist. in aegislash's. vocabulary.] the elder responded in a lowered volume. [specific. instructions. were given. yet. some. have not. been carried out.]
"So this is a deliberate subversion for some yet to be explainable reason?"
[there is. no room. in. my mind. for doubt.] The elder Rhondshrym could not fathom why now, of all times, Aegislash would suddenly decide not to carry out some of what it was tasked to do, and this was not a minor issue but a major problem. He had not been kept up to date much on all of the happenings of the world beyond his estate for some time despite his son and Aegislash's best efforts to appraise him of the global affairs, so when he heard of a new rising star from Kanto named Ash Ketchum, he knew that a trainer of that much skill would be perfect to cast as the hero of this series. But, seeing the actual boy in person whom he assumed was a young man at minimum, he was ready to send him home immediately, but his son bringing to his attention that this Ash Ketchum participated in leagues he couldn't possibly be old enough to even think of entering had the elder thinking hard about why that was. He trusted the information to be up to date, so something else was amiss here. His eyes were all but totally blind, so merely looking at Ash Ketchum would not glean anything useful, but he had a secret way of scrying the truth when his eyes would fail him. As much as he could, he channeled the light in him toward his eyes and closed them slowly before total darkness took his foggy view.
let us see what my true sight tells me... Looking Ash Ketchum's way, he saw in the darkness of his closed eyes the boy's form framed in intensely vibrant silhouettes of blue—a benevolent soul from the hue of his aura. What surprised him most, however, was seeing another differently-colored silhouette trail behind him—and more trailing behind that one to resemble afterimages following after the boy in different colors as well. These extra silhouettes extended further behind him and looked identical to the main body in size, shape, and features as if cloned from the main body, specifically eight more of them before the silhouettes after the eighth would display the years gone by at different stages of the boy's life. What's more is that all of the silhouettes, growing from the blue body, all glowed the full colors of the rainbow, something he did not see in anyone else in the room but that he knew he first saw from somewhere else before.
he is not ten years of age... he thought. yet he remains unchanging in his present state as if frozen in time... his aura burns brighter than all the rest... shines in different tones that others do not... why...? The Elder Rhondshrym pondered this for a moment longer as he looked to the rainbow colors of the boy's aura. Then, slowly, he noticed a golden light faintly coalescing in the center of the boy's chest, and from it floated away what appeared to be feathers. It hit him then, there, seeing these colors, and what it all meant. he saw it... he saw ho-oh... truly beheld it with his eyes... he was ten when he beheld it... and he remains unchanged since... He knew the legends well, how they spoke of those witnessing Ho-Oh's splendor true and in full would be endowed with eternal happiness, and he had encountered scant few in his lifetime he could truly say had met with the great bird. He never thought that "eternal happiness" could be interpreted as "eternal youth" in this manner, though, but his true sight had not once failed him; the boy's aura was no trick. One last look around the room, and he started seeing a pattern of the others with afterimages of their current state trailing behind them as though they too had stopped aging, but their aura did not glow with all the colors of the rainbow as Ash Ketchum's did, and few burned as bright as he did. The boy's aura gave off the energy of someone who brushed with legends beyond his sight of Ho-Oh, and with that, he could also see the phantom grips of death having tried to claim this boy many times over; clearly, Ash Ketchum was no ordinary boy by a long shot. Just before he could open his eyes, a gentle breeze blew past him and forward toward Ash. Keeping his eyes closed, he watched as two silhouettes manifested at his sides, and from their aura, he nearly opened his eyes in shocked disbelief, knowing exactly who they belonged to.
you... you are...here...? my moon and star...? Warmth radiated from the figures at Ash Ketchum's sides toward the Jacquemontii men. The elder understood what this meant, but he did not get to ask why, for they left in a whisper into the air. He sat in silence to gather himself before his son noticed his state.
"Ser Father..." came his son's voice. "What do you see...?" His son lacked true sight like him, and his own true sight never once steered him wrong; they were his departed love and light, and they chose the boy where he was certain that, even with the true age of Ash Ketchum revealed, there would be an absolute certainty that the boy would have to be excluded from this project. His mind set, he spoke to his son.
[ash ketchum. is suitable. for. the project.] And just as he predicted, the look on his son's face quickly flashed with disbelieving shock before it returned to a more even—if slightly austere—expression.
"...Ser Father, your senses have not yet taken their leave, have they? Pray tell there is sound judgment behind this decision..."
[your eyes. beheld. his form. frozen. in time. as. it was. when. he beheld. ho-oh.]
"...what?"
[it is. true. and. that is. not all. for we. have. blessings. from our. dearly departed.] Jacquemontii the Second had difficulty believing this with his own ears, for his father to say that not only did Ash Ketchum legitimately see Ho-Oh and had his age slowed if not outright halted but also that his own father had seen the ghosts of his mother and sister who gave express approval of the choice to cast Ash in this series project. Difficult as it was, he knew his father used his "true sight" as he called it—an advanced stage of aura vision that could discern deeper details than what the ordinary ability could do—and though he himself did not possess this ability unlike the rest of his family, their judgment always turned out to be sound in the end of not immediately so, and his father had yet to go senile even at this advanced age.
"...I understand. However, I have concerns about the matter of his ignorance in the matter as well as whether he or his kin will accept knowing the project's full subject matter."
[that is. for them. to decide. after. we divulge. the truth. to them.] The two men continued to converse on the matter as Diantha and Gardevoir watched them from a distance to see if the two were still men of standards or fell from grace. Diantha looked for any signs of ill will in their body language as Gardevoir read their emotions with her psychokinesis. Half a minute into the men's continued quiet conversation, and there was nothing suspicious or unbecoming to be seen in their behavior. Diantha, out of concern, turned to Ash to see how he was doing, seeing him chat with his many friends that he brought with him into this. He looked as carefree as could be with his peers around him either gushing about how big this was going to be for Ash or gave more moderate approval for him landing the role. If only they all knew what was fully in store for Ash, they might have been singing a different tune. Before Diantha could parse why one of Ash's blonde friends seemed to instead eye the room suspiciously, she felt a sharp spike of psychic energy coming from Gardevoir, alerting her to an approaching presence. Diantha turned, and she saw her again, this time walking her way over to the two of them.
"My, my," came the newcomer's teasing lilt, "you were staring awfully hard at little ol' Ash, there. Worried your co-star's going to get swamped by his curious friends, robbing you of some extra one-on-one before the show starts?"
..."Malva." Diantha did her best to keep an aggressive edge out of her voice as she addressed Kalos's former Fire-type Elite Four member and former colleague of hers, but she dared not hide the displeasure laced throughout her even tone when speaking to the other woman. "We did not expect to see you here. We had thought this sort of movie would have been too tasteless for you."
"What, the fact that this series' got a bit of free love going around in it? Or are you really just surprised to see me in person after that whole Team Flare business? Quite a mess, that was."
"Alright, then, if you are so keen on reopening healing wounds to make this another grand spectacle of yours..." Diantha took measured warning steps toward Malva with steel in her eyes as Malva held a fiery mischief in her smile, "...why are you here?"
"Am I not allowed to start over and turn a new leaf? Goodness, Diantha, but you are most certainly the type who doesn't forget." Diantha refused to rise to Malva's retort and pressed her question again.
"Why. Are you. Here. Malva?" Diantha made sure to raise her voice only a small amount higher to stress how she was not playing Malva's games then and there. "I will not repeat myself a second time."
"Ah, kitty's got claws after all. Well, since you asked so nicely: someone saw in me a second chance that was too poor to let go to waste, so here I am on some stipulations, you see, to prove to them that their time and effort would not be for naught. Of course, I imagine that I would not be welcome in the Kalos League so soon, but this here is not a half-bad start. That satisfy your burning curiosity?" Diantha did not like Malva dancing around the matter with vague answers that only begged more questions and failed to solve the ones already posed, but Gardevoir signaled to her that it was not worth getting worked up any further on it if Malva was keeping hush-hush on her release. The two women were attracting concerned attention from others around them, after all, and it looked like the Rhondshrym men were approaching them all to inform the whole group of their next decision, so Diantha let it be for the time being.
"You know damn well that that is not what I had asked for, but if this is your answer, then so be it." Diantha and Gardevoir walked away from Malva to let the air cool and simmer down, giving the Rhondshrym men the stage to make their next move proper.
[WE APOLOGIZE. FOR THE DELAY.] came the elder Rhondshrym's voice box. [THERE WERE MATTERS. TO SORT OUT. AND DISCUSS.]
"There is an apology to be made to you, Sir Ketchum," the second Rhondshrym followed up with. "Our envoy had failed to properly communicate to you the full nature of what this project entails as well as having settled this matter sooner. Now, we wish to rectify that miscommunication error and fully explain to you and your kin what we set out to accomplish here." Everyone in the room fully tuned in to what the men were about to say next from those in the know, those not in the know, and those who seemed more interested in Ash's Pikachu than the camera equipment they were testing for quality checks. "Sir Ketchum, as the good Professor here and your Lady Matron had mentioned, we are an enterprise that creates adult media, and this project you had signed for is no exception. What is your experience with adult media?"
"Oh, uh, you mean like movies or comics you're not allowed to see as a kid?"
"Precisely. Such media often contains material unsuitable for younger audiences without the consent of their guardians. When we received your signed document, we were under the impression that our envoy fully divulged to you everything that would be present in this project."
"I noticed that," came another boy's voice. Everyone turned to the blonde lad rocking a rebel's style with his asymmetrical bang and black punk wear, being the boy Diantha noticed was glancing about the room moments earlier. Gladion was his name, and he kept his eyes on the two Rhondshrym men without their sharp edge dulling. "Something told me that this didn't all add up as it should have when Ash told us he didn't get actual directions to the place or a solid date of when he was supposed to show up along with how we only barely know what this whole project is supposed to be. I also found this poster around in the city on the way here." The boy pulled out a large flyer and unfurled it for all to see. Ash's group crowded around the illustration and found themselves in awe of how it looked.
Taking up much of the upper half of the illustration was Diantha, dressed in strapless and sleeveless black without a back, her eyes pointed toward the heavens with grim and weary determination across her features; in her gloved hands was a simple golden dagger with runes etched into its blade as she held it sharp-end up, close to her chest, and pinned to the breast of her chest was a blackened rose with a blighted stem of thorns whose petals flew off and swirled about her in a whirlwind. The petals shifted from black to white and coalesced behind her into the silhouette of her Gardevoir, mega evolved, her hands clasped in prayer behind her lady. To the other side of them was a male figure shrouded in darkness, wearing distinct feudal armor from head to toe save for his exposed chest bearing an X-shaped crest over it from the edges of his war coat, and the only discernable features they could make out of his face were glowing white pinpricks of eyes and a crescent of a mouth in an unsettling grin below them; in his hand was a different weapon, a large, curving, single-edged sword pointing down in a planted position, and along its edge ran chinks, cracks, gouges, and a disconcerting red streak midway down. In his other hand was what could charitably be called a primitive Poké Ball prototype, opened up and revealing a white rose inside of it with its own petals blowing out and swirling behind him as well; their colors shifted into a pitch black before converging into the shape of a Charizard in its Y Mega Evolved form, roaring out fiercely.
The rest of the illustration depicted a countless amount of other figures near the bottom of it assembled in battle postures with Pokémon at their sides, all of them forming a winding path side-to-side and ascending up toward the center of the illustration as they shrank and thinned out, and their colors shifted from a bright cyan into a deep crimson near at their ending point. All bore the smallest speck of a rose on their person with no two colors being the same between them all. The point they led up to was where things took a turn for the more macabre: there sat someone on a throne in a silhouette of white against a stain of red where one hand held a sword face down and in the other was some poor, unfortunate soul's head still dripping down the seated one's hands they held the hand up as if it were a glass of fine wine. Above this figure was what looked like a floating gold castle encircled by a banner that read "ἌΡΧΩΝ" on top and "混亂" on the bottom upside down, swords of all kinds jutting out from within the banner to frame the castle; atop this castle stood someone in the throes of manic euphoria with their body bent back and arms outstretched wide, reaching up as if to grab the heavens and yank them down while two others lain around their legs like acolytes gathering toward their god. And above this flew a caped figure atop a dragon wrapped in blue against their black silhouette, armed with a polearm as their dragon gathered flames in its mouth ready to rain a torrent of hellfire upon all below it.
It was a striking illustration no one in the group had seen, the flyer they saw Ash had received from the POKéMON being nothing like this.
"Wow, what is all this?" the small lad in glasses said. "This some kind of movie poster?
"It's the poster for an entire series, Max, not just a movie," May near him explained. "This looks so good—and Ash is going to star in it!"
"This must have taken days to make, this is the work of a professional artist!" Tracey was admiring each and every detail getting closer to the illustration. "It would take forever for me to get anything half as good as this—even the costume I drew up looks very simple compared to this."
"Ash is going to be the male hero in this..." Serena couldn't help but stare at the male protagonist on the poster, and though a part of her suspected that this was still just a work in progress itself, something about how it didn't look like Ash didn't sit with her. "Um, is this supposed to be Ash here?"
"My thoughts exactly," Gladion responded. "This doesn't look like Ash at all as if whoever made this never saw him before. And he doesn't seem to be anywhere else in the poster either." That got everyone's attention with Ash's group slowly putting it together that Gladion was right: their friend was conspicuously absent unless the shadowy and ambiguous warrior figure was supposed to be him, but why the ambiguous, indistinct look? "Care to explain that?"
Diantha herself also wanted to ask about how Ash was seemingly not depicted in the illustration despite having given the men his okay for starting in their series, yet Diantha was depicted even though she herself had not yet having to formally agree to star in the series yet.
"The poster was drafted after having spoken with all other participating parties to show them the working illustration for the series' first arc," came the second Rhondshrym's reply. "It was not meant to be reproduced beyond the estate until all parties had gathered and fully signed their contracts. Where precisely did you find this?"
"Lumiose City, took a detour to get here, found this on a wall. So I'm guessing that no one else told either of you two here what Ash looked like before this was made, and that someone copied and reproduced this without your knowledge?"
"Correct, unfortunately."
"And you're also telling us that Ash signed up for something he doesn't have the whole story of because your Pokémon left out some pretty important details, right?"
"Also correct, regrettably, an unacceptable grievance for the Rhondshrym Estate and disservice to Sir Ketchum."
"Huh. So? What now? Is he still going to have to perform for this thing?" A pointed question posed to the Rhondshrym men following the revelations of Ash's involvement with their work, though no one expected the response to be so swift nor given with utmost sincerity.
"Under those grounds, Ash Ketchum's contract with the Rhondshrym Estate is rendered null and void—effective immediately." That was not what anyone expected to hear, completely discarding Ash's contract on the spot then and there, and Gladion even had to ask again just to make sure he heard that right.
"I...what? You're just... literally terminating Ash's contract? That's it?"
"Indeed, we are. The original contract was signed under tainted good faith of foreknowledge regarding the series' and the role Sir Ketchum would play in it. The Rhondshrym Foundation shalt not have any actor or actress or any other individual besides work under or alongside it without fully informed and explicit consent under any circumstances. The original contract is thus negated." If there was ever a blow to Ash in everything he's wanted to do but denied, that had hit him unbelievably hard, and it wasn't even his fault in this case. It was unfair that he was already being thrown out like this, and he was ready to protest until the elder Rhondshrym slowly raised a hand to beat Ash to it.
[WE UNDERSTAND. YOUR BEING UPSET.] his electrolarynx radioed out. [BE. AT PEACE. WE ARE NOT. DISMISSING YOU. FROM THIS PROJECT. WE MERELY. AIM. TO DISCARD. YOUR OLD CONTRACT. AND DRAFT. A NEW ONE. WITH YOUR FULL. KNOWLEDGE. OF WHAT. YOU SHALL BE. TAKING PART OF.]
"Indeed. It is still our intention to have you here with us, Sir Ketchum, and we would be most fortunate should you still choose such after signing the new contract, but we must first settle this matter once and for all. Ahem. Jescinda, Jamsel. The outline scripts, if you please." The respective camerawoman and cameraman flinched at their names being called, dropping their strange Pikachu-like prop and hurriedly scurrying toward Ash Ketchum after grabbing the papers.
"H-Here you are, Mister...Ketchum," the woman said, strangely avoiding eye contact with Ash as she handed him the scripts and speaking with an affectation to her voice the second Rhondshrym knew wasn't the natural voice she spoke with to him before.
"We hope it is to your liking...!" the male beside her said, similarly acting strange toward and around the boy. The second Rhondshrym raised an eyebrow as the two quickly retreated back to their camera check—after hastily covering up that strange Pikachu-like prop they had, but that would come later. He then turned his attention back to Ash who had the scripts of the whole series in his hands.
"These are the scripts for the whole of the series project we shall create, and it would be of utmost import for you to read them to fully understand what shall happen here. If you may, whenever you are ready."
"Wait, I gotta read all of this to everyone in the room?"
"For all present to best understand without obfuscation as to what this work entails and to ensure total transparency, it would be most beneficial."
"Uh, sure, okay."
Diantha watched how Ash's friends grew curious at this and gathered closer to him as he prepared to read the scripts handed to him with Pikachu curiously leaning over his shoulder to read, although the other side of the room seemed to hold its collective breaths in, anticipating what the reactions would be in the end.
"A Collaborative Project Written by: Yorna Rhonds...erm, how do you pronounce that last name again...?"
[R-HAWNDS-HR-IM. RHONDSHRYM.]
"Got it. A Collaborative Project Written by: Yorna Rhondshrym. Jac-Jackyooe...um..."
[JACK-KWEH-MAWHN-TEE. JACQUEMONTII.]
"Okay, thanks. By: Yorna Rhondshrym, Jaquemontii Rhondshrym the Elder, Jeanette Rhondshrym, and Jacquemontii Rhondshrym the Younger. Overview of: Songe del Roze..."
...
============================================================================================
...
The atrium was silent, deafeningly so, minutes after Ash Ketchum had read the full script of the project for everyone to hear. There was no doubt as to what would be done in it, those who already signed up for it knowingly having chosen to participate, but for those who did not already know the full scope of the project...surprised was an understatement. Everyone seemingly waited to see who would speak first, to do something—anything—to clear the tension in the air; even the suspicious camerawoman and cameraman duo of Jescinda and Jamsel looked ready to bolt out of the awkward atmosphere. Then, naturally, Jacquemontii Rhondshrym the Younger stepped forward to retrieve the scripts from Ash Ketchum whose expression was—in a rare occurrence—hard to read.
"What you have just read is the entirety of this project's details from beginning to end, the roles everyone shall play for those who have agreed to participate, and the scope of who this shall be broadcast to," the man said. "It is an undertaking of no small measure of time, effort, and patience. Understanding all of this, should you choose to join us in this, we would greatly appreciate having you here to perform alongside many other individuals of good standing, but if you choose not to, there is no shame and no hard feelings on our end. This decision is entirely up to you." What Ash Ketchum would've done to have said something first and not be put on the spot so much, but he and everyone else knew he would have become the center of attention sooner or later. All eyes on him and Pikachu, he worked up the nerve to speak finally.
"I mean, well...if you want me to sign on, I guess I can do that...?"
"Indeed, we do. We believe that you could bring your unique perspective and experiences along with all the others here. However, our question is not if you think you should because we would appreciate your presence but rather if this project in and of itself is something you truly wish to do for yourself. We will not—cannot—force you to make a decision in either direction." That gave Ash plenty of pause to think long and hard about if he truly wanted to do this, to join in on this series project and perform as an actor for quite a while. He is glad that everything was now properly explained about what he would be getting himself into by joining on one hand, and he did not harbor I'll feelings about initially being left out of some details as the men themselves seemed nothing but honest while their Pokémon made a mistake, but he also wondered about how this would affect his journey to become a Pokémon Master on the other hand—not to mention some of the specific details about his role in the series being new stuff for him to deal with, and with Diantha no less. He felt the need to look around the room to gauge everyone's reactions; for everyone who was already participating, most of them watched him in varying levels of anticipation or curiosity over what his response would be, though most of those who personally knew him were much more hesitant to maintain eye contact, watching Misty and her older sisters shrink further into themselves and each other, Brock seemingly looking between the Viridian City's Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy for something to say but getting hesitant silence, Cilan and his two brothers only able to give apologetic looks, and Iris couldn't stand still with her fidgeting back and forth. Further past the massive crowd was Candice and Zoey, the latter looking sad for the former, her friend, who looked to be on the verge of a breakdown. On his side, Ash could see how shocked everyone was from hearing what he read out loud, and he could only imagine what his mother and Professor Oak's reactions would be before he turned to them. The good professor looked ready to faint on the spot, his grandson looking at him with a wince of pity, and Ash's mother? Surprised was all Ash could say that she looked like as it was the only thing he could get a read for—whatever else she was thinking was impossible to tell which worried Ash more than anything else.
Eventually, Ash made up his mind and shared a glance with Pikahu who nodded, and he gave a look toward the director and nodded before walking his way over to the producer to give his answer. Before he could say anything, the elderly man slowly lifted up a hand.
[I CAN SEE. THAT YOU HAVE. COME TO A. DECISION. HOWEVER. I BELIEVE. THAT THE MADAME. WISHES TO SPEAK. HER MIND FIRST.] Ash turned his attention back to his mother who seemed very pensive at the moment, but true to the producer's words, Delia looked ready to say her mind on the matter as she looked at and carefully approached him.
"...Ash," she began, "I must...no, I need to say this as your mother first and foremost." This was it, the moment of truth that everyone had waited to see. "Your safety and happiness are the most important things to me—to any mother who truly cares for her children, and allowing anything to happen to you that threatened either of those things is not something I could hear. This series project is...far more intense than what we initially thought, far moreso than anything else I know you have done before. Even with all of the adventures you and your friends have all gone on, I still can't help but be worried for you whenever you get involved in the really dangerous ones just like with those islands, and something like this would especially worry me with everything you would be...doing if you were to sign a contract with these gentlemen." And there it was, the "I'm sorry, Ash, but I cannot in good conscience allow you to participate in this," that everyone knew was coming before Delia could even say it.
"Ash..." Delia knelt down to Ash's height and placed her hands on his shoulders as she looked her son right in his eyes. "If anything were to happen to you in this environment, if you were taken advantage of or worse...I would never be able to live with myself. You are, always have been, and always will be my rock until the end of my days."
"I understand, Mom..." Just like that, it seemed as though Ash Ketchum would not be participating after all, his participation vetoed by his mother which was all too expected an outcome, and all Ash could do is look back at the director and producer with an apologetic smile as Pikachu's ears drooped sadly. And then Delia placed her hands on Ash's shoulders once more.
"Wanting to make sure you are safe will always be something I will worry about, however old you get, and you achieving your dream is all I want. But, I know that...I cannot always be there to protect you or to tell you how you should want to achieve your dream. All I can ask for is that, whatever you put your mind to, that you take care of yourself and others around you."
"Mom...?"
"More than anything else, still, I am also very proud of everything you've done in your journeys since you first began, proud of who you are. I must admit that I have reservations about you involving yourself with material like this to the moon and back, but.."
"Delia, you can't mean—" Professor Oak seemed to be readying a protest to appeal to Delia's protective motherly instincts, but it was just as much of an attempt to steer the atmosphere to normalcy as it was him so completely shocked at it all. She actually seemed to be lucid and genuine as she said all of this to Ash in insinuating what the professor thought she was getting at, and he found himself just a few words away from agreeing with it all.
"There are so many things I feel like saying instead at this very moment, and none of them would be fair to you or respect that you've really grown from being just my little boy. It almost feels like it was just yesterday you got up ready to face the league and met Pikachu here, a little too eager to get out there and be a Pokémon Master." Delia made it a point to rub and scritch the mouse to his foot-thumping pleasure, including him in this and smiling at his reaction while Ash laughed with his partner. "Ash, if you and Pikachu really want to do this, truly, then I will support you both as you navigate this new environment."
Almost the whole room froze up in that instant, having convinced itself that there would be no way in all of the Distortion Realm's twisted dimensions that Delia would ever allow her son anywhere near such explicit adult material—let alone approve of any such decision to involve him with it in any measure. Was it the sheer absurdity of the situation that caused a temporary leave of Delia's senses, the despairing realization that her child was growing too far behind her reach, or some other factor lending itself to her making this decision?
"But..." The room again held in its breath, knowing that classic "Mother's Ultimatum" was coming on. "You must promise me one thing, Ash."
"Yes, Mom?"
"If you are serious about joining in on this series project with everyone here..." Delia took pause to look around the room at everyone present with as serious a face anyone could have seen on any mother's face, and then she continued, "...you must promise me that you treat everyone here with all the respect and kindness they deserve, no less. This is a serious project where you will discover more to yourself and those around you, your friends, everyone involved. To do this, you need to be respectful of everyone's boundaries, what they are and are not okay with, but also recognize when a situation calls for intervention to keep things from escalating or know when to step back and let things simmer down to not let them boil over. It will not be easy, but I trust that, knowing what you will need to do, that you handle it all with the utmost care—not just for yourself..." Delia rose from her son's height to face Diantha eye-to-eye, standing just slightly shorter than the actress but feeling no less of a person before the renowned star. "This is also for the lady you shall share in this role of yours, Ash."
Diantha felt a beat skip in her chest when she felt Delia's hands gently take her own into them, softly clasping over them both in support and a plea perhaps that she did not need to beg as Diantha would have answered her all the same.
"If I may ask this of you too, Miss Diantha, might I please ask you this favor for me? I do not wish to trouble or impose to much on you, but I only wish that you...help look out for my son whenever you are able to in this project. I will not always be there for him, and while he is able to handle himself well, it would give me some peace of mind knowing that people like you are watching over each other the best you can. That...that is all I can ask if you."
The transformation was slow, but there, and in Diantha's eyes formed steel of polished luster joined hand-in-hand with velvet. Delia tentatively pulled away only for Diantha to take the other woman's hands into her own with a firm gentility of her own, followed by the hands of her love at her side enveloping them both in her embrace to Delia's surprise. Whatever lingering reservations Diantha and Gardevoir once had about joining this series project had all but vanished.
"Mrs. Ketchum, you have our solemn oath that we shall not let your son's life fall into the wrong hands," Diantha said. "On our lives, we swear it." Delia couldn't be any more touched by the sincerity in Diantha's words, the honest look in her and Gardevoir's eyes, that she couldn't help but feel an extra spot of moisture welling up in her own eyes.
"...Thank you. Thank you so very much Miss Diantha. That means everything to me." Ash and Pikachu looked to Delia after she and Diantha and Gardevoir's hands parted from each other's, and she smiled at them still misty-eyed herself before nodding her head in approval. They turned their attention to Diantha and Gardevoir who both gave their own looks, and with that, the two shook heads on it with Ash making his way back over to the director and product who awaited his answer.
[HAVE YOU. COME TO. A DECISION?] The elder asked Ash. Ash and Pikachu looked between him and his son, both eyeing the working illustration of the series with great interest which the two older men noticed. The director handed the illustration to Ash for him to look at it again, watching his eyes roam over its details and pinpointing his and Pikachu's particular attention on where the male protagonist—Ash's presumed role—had been painted in. After moments of silence passed, Ash looked ready to hand the illustration back, but not without cracking his signature confident grin before asking:
"Think you can draw us in here too?"
...
...
For minutes, the once quiet atrium of the Rhondshrym Estate was again abuzz with activity and conversation. Ash Ketchum and Pikachu had decided at last they would indeed sign on for the series project and voiced anticipating approval for it, leading to a round of applause from the other figures who were participating, some cheers from Ash's peers, and a silent plot going on near the far corner of the grand space where the camerawoman and cameraman pair with their cat Pokémon decided "OPERATION: Pika-napping" was a-go. Ash was given time to chat with his friends as well as his soon-to-be co-stars before the producer and director had finished furnishing everyone's rooms, and his decision to take on his role in the explicit adult work caused quite the buzz.
"Never in a million years thought YOU'd be rubbing elbows with the big screen bigwigs," Gary teased, elbowing Ash who playfully ribbed him back.
"Why? You thought you and your fan club would beat me to it?"
"Pfft, beat you to it? More like 'scare you out of the competition if you tried', but no, I just figured your head would be too full of lead—and chock full of Pokémon battles—to even be considered for any movie making."
"Aw, come off it, Gary! I'm not dumb!"
"Hey, hey, I'm just funnin' ya'! Point is—you gettin' a movie deal is pretty big, so my advice? Don't choke up too much being out of your element—that'd be real embarrassing."
"Come now, Gary, that's quite enough teasing," Professor Oak chided. "Unless my own memory is foggy, I don't recall you having starred in any moving picture projects yourself."
"C'mon, Gramps, I'd totally ace it if I tried. I just need the right studio to find me and BAM—cinema stardom, here I come."
"Well, it's good you have your sense of humor at least, that might carry you far enough should an agency notice you in the near future. Now, Ash, one of the gentlemen procured these books for me that I believe you should spend a fair time to read up on before carrying out scenes where you...ahem...are fixing to comingle with your fellow actors." Professor Oak didn't show much red on his face as he handed Ash the few books he was lent by the Rhondshrym men, but it was there nonetheless. "Looking back on things now, perhaps it would have done a great service to you had I or your mother broached this topic sooner, but better late than never. Speaking of, I did run these through with your mother, and she approved of the material within, so you should find them very useful and enlightening in a respectful way."
"What are these?" Ash and Pikachu leaning over the former's shoulders both observed the covers of the books, but they were all plain save for the text on them reading various things. "'Understanding the Biology of S—'"
"Excellent choice choosing to star as an actor, Ash!" Tracey came up to Ash, spooking him and Pikachu. "Oh, sorry! Didn't mean to startle you guys. I don't think I ever showed this to you, and I know it won't be used for this project, but when I heard that you'd play the role of a warrior from ancient times beginning to find his way, back when Poké Balls were just being invented, I just had to sketch this look of you to try and capture a little bit of those times with the armor choice and aesthetics anyhow. Want to take a look?"
"Sure!" Ash and Pikachu quickly forgot about the books, Ash handing them back to Professor Oak who only chuckled in response and let the topic be for the moment, as Ash and his other peers gathered around Tracey to see what he made. Presenting the sketch of Ash Ketchum, everyone could see him depicted by Tracey as something of a rough-and-tumble warrior adorned in pieces of feudal armor including some odds and ends here and there for character. A red headband with a single armored plate in the front was tied to his head with a heavily stylized "リ" character on the front close very similar to his Pokémon League Expo hat that had the "L" alphabet on it, and it was made painstaking evident that work was done to ensure it wouldn't be confused so much with the other "ソ", "レ", or "ン" characters. Ash's hair was tied up into a topknot like soldiers of old but mercifully kept otherwise full without shaving elsewhere, and worn on his upper body was a sleeveless, open blue jacket made for war from which a badge hung from near his shoulder, and a tattered flag attached to the back of this jacket and emblazoned with a Poké Ball symbol flowed in the wind. His trousers looked tattered toward the bottom edges over his feet where he wore just some simple strap sandals, and in his hands was a particularly large sword with a single-edged blade curved and reaching out a fair length away from the swordsman. What caught everyone's attention the most, however, was that Tracey for some reason had designed Ash to be shirtless in this outfit with the jacket more or less having been thrown on over his bare upper body so his arms, chest, and stomach were plainly visible, and only a sort of "buckle" in the shape of the "凶" character in the middle pinned to both inner edges of the jacket kept it from otherwise just flying open.
"...Is there a reason you drew Ash shirtless like this, Tracey?" Misty, who broke away from her sisters, was equal parts confused and flustered seeing Ash so much as bare like this given what she now knew Ash would be doing in the movie.
"I was honestly going for a sort of 'Burgeoning Warrior' look here with Ash's character kind of cobbling his outfit together to make himself look and feel more like an experienced warrior, and at some point, I guess I sort of...came to the conclusion that leaving some of the armor out best helped with that look. You know, some guys like to look stronger and tougher with their upper body exposed to show off their strength and fearlessness to their enemies or rivals or even, you know, girls they like."
"But you had no idea Ash would be starring in an adult series?"
"Absolutely no idea."
"Well, he doesn't look half bad, at least...?" May commented, unsure whether to say more with other girls also crowding around the sketch. "I mean, some creative liberties with the thin muscles goes a bit of ways for the look."
"Oh, well, I actually...sketched the musculature from memory from the last I saw Ash when we went swimming..." Tracey suddenly felt like he shouldn't have said that as so many other eyes of varying reactions were on him . "C'mon, everyone—I just wanted to sketch out the look to capture the early warrior phase of Ash's character!"
"Uh-huh..." Misty was now giving Tracey the "inquisitive-somewhat-accusatory-eyebrows" look as May couldn't help but snicker to her brother Max's confusion. Dawn couldn't fight hard enough to keep the blush from creeping into her cheeks and opted to avert her eyes with a cough disguising the movement, and as for Serena? She looked more frozen than Candice did moments ago when the gym leader realized what her friend was walking in on, and Serena's jaw seemed to forget it existed for as long as she stared at the sketch. Everyone else took to that design element with their own thoughts on it such as Ash's Alolan classmates otherwise not seeing anything strange with Mallow in particular complimenting Ash working out and Kiawe only responding with a simple "nice".
"Well, you definitely captured the 'scrappy misfit' look if that's what you were going for," Gladion commented. "Not half bad, I guess."
"Thanks! Of course, this would only represent Ash's character during the early parts of his journey, and I didn't have the full gist of the series when I made this sketch."
"Impressive," came the director's voice, startling Tracey and others looking at the sketch who didn't know he was there observing.
"O-Oh! Mister Director, Sir! You liked the sketch?"
"Your concept perfectly encapsulates the start of the male protagonist's development. By your permission, mayhap we could adapt this design into the character's appearance? You would be fully compensated and credited for the work."
"R-Really!? I—wow, that would be a huge honor!" The director and Tracey continued conversing about the latter's sketch and then the former's artistic direction as the rest of Ash's peers all listened in, all being watched by Delia Ketchum, Diantha, and Gardevoir from a fair distance away.
"I am surprised that the director took to Tracey's sketch so quickly," Delia remarked. "He is a very good artist, but still."
"I suppose the director simply appreciates artistic talent," Diantha mused. "It is still rather unusual for a director to approve of new elements being added in at the last second, but then again, the Rhondshryms are not your usual filmmakers."
[MY SON. IS A BUFF. FOR ARTISTIC CREATIONS.] The producer's electrolarynx spoke to the three women as he wheeled up to them. [FOR HIM. TO BE IMPRESSED. SPEAKS TO. THE YOUNG MAN'S. TALENT FOR ART.]
"Tracey really is, dedicating it to detailing all the Pokémon he comes across as a Pokémon Watcher as Ash told me."
"'Pokémon Watcher'...that is not an occupation I have heard much about. I assume it involves observing Pokémon in their natural habitats akin to a professor, yes?"
"It is much the same, I believe, though it involves much less testing and more simple observation."
"Interesting."
[THE PROFESSION. IS FAR LESS. INTRUSIVE. UPON. THE POKÉMON'S. ENVIRONMENT.] The four adults watched the crowd of Ash's peers eventually disperse and begin wandering about the place with the director and Tracey making for another room, the older gentleman guiding the youth at an even pace. Ash and Pikachu seemed more interested in mingling with the others who they were to star and act alongside, striking up a conversation with Brock as the older young man greeted him alongside the Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny he was with—the latter two seeming relieved with Brock's attention not solely on them for the time being.
"You know," Diantha started as she and Gardevoir turned to the producer, "I have been meaning to ask about the presence of public servants participating in this series. Even given that many gym leaders, elite four, champions, and other figures of great importance to their regions are all here, I would imagine that the nurse and officer's respective professions would be rather shorthanded. How did you address that?"
[I CONTACTED. THEIR RESPECTIVE. AGENCIES. FOR ADDITIONAL HANDS. IN THE EVENT. ANY ACCIDENTS. OR MISFORTUNE OCCURS. AND THEY VOLUNTEERED. AFTER CHOOSING. THEIR BEST CANDIDATE. TO TAKE THEIR PLACE. IN THE MEANTIME.]
"I see. And the same goes for the others?"
[INDEED.]
"You really thought about all of this."
[A RHONDSHRYM. MUST BE THOROUGH. IN THEIR PROCEEDINGS. AND FOR WHICH. I MUST APOLOGIZE. FOR THE EARLIER. MISCOMMUNICATION. OF THIS SERIES. TO THE KETCHUM FAMILY.]
"Oh, consider it water under the bridge, good sir," Delia Ketchum said. "I admit to feeling concerned that your Pokémon had made a mistake in not delivering the full news, but that you and the director explained it to us better and were completely transparent about it all makes me feel much better about allowing Ash to partake in this."
[REST ASSURED. THAT SUCH INDCIDENTS. WILL BE PREVENTED. IN THE FUTURE. WITH CLEARER COMMUNICATION. BETWEEN ALL PARTIES. DIRECTLY.]
"That is a relief to hear," Diantha said. "Though I never said this before, I want to say that it is a great honor to be here for this series, Sir Rhondshrym. Your works are truly revolutionary for the medium of adult entertainment. I must...ahem...confess to having watched such a film in my own girlhood, having snuck into a theater once to watch Angel's Tears and found myself enjoying the 'forbidden film'."
[HM. HM. HM. I APPRECIATE. YOUR KIND WORDS. AND YOU TOO. ARE A GREAT. SOURCE OF INSPIRATION. FOR MANY. IN THIS LINE. OF WORK. OUR FAMILY. INCLUDED.] The elder found himself able to manage a laugh and enjoy the conversation among adults before his Aegislash returned from its duties, whispering to him to inform of its progress. [THE LODGINGS. ARE COMPLETE?] The Pokémon nodded and bowed, gesturing to escort everyone to their rooms. [VERY WELL. WE SHALL. WRAP UP. THIS MEETING. AND ALLOW. OUR GUESTS. TO REST. FOR THE NIGHT.]
"Oh, alright then. Well, thank you for having me here, Mister, and I cannot wait to see how Ash does on his first acting set whenever he calls me! You all take very good care of yourselves." Delia shook the producer's hands and bid them all a goodnight, but the producer was faster to call out to her before she could get far.
[WE HAVE ARRANGED. ACCOMODATIONS. FOR YOU. TO STAY. IF YOU WISH. FOR WE HAVE. SPARE ROOMS. FOR OUR GUESTS. TO STAY DURING. THE FILMING. ALONGSIDE THE ACTORS.] That caught Delia, Diantha, and Gardevoir off guard for the producer to allow them to stay. [OUR ESTATE. CAN BE. YOUR HOME. AWAY FROM HOME. WITHOUT COST. OR ISSUE. IF YOU WISH. TO STAY. WITH YOUR SON. AS WELL. AS HIS PEERS. STAYING AS WELL.] Delia paused and thought about the offer, wondering if her staying would seem as though she would be hovering over Ash or if he would appreciate her being there to support him still. She looked to Diantha as if looking for the other woman's approval, and both she and Gardevoir gave inviting smiles for her to accept it.
"With the arrangements, you can still be here to support your son as he stars in this series, and I feel that he would not object so much to it. Right dear?" Gardevoir hummed and nodded in response, and beside them was the producer nodding as well in being genuine with his offer for her to stay with them. Delia found herself smiling along with them and shook on it.
"Well, when you put it like that, how could I refuse? I'll need to go back to the house and take a few things with me and ask Mimey to look after the house for a while, and I should be back before you know it!"
"Wonderful. We'd love to have you here with us too."
[I LOOK FORWARD. TO HAVING YOU. HERE WITH US. MADAME KETCHUM.]
"Please, just Delia is fine, good sir." With that, the producer pressed a button on his powered wheelchair, and the family Corviknight came flying in and landed with impeccable poise, ready to serve.
[MAY YOU. ENSURE. SAFE PASSAGE. FOR. THE MADAME. TO HER HOUSE. AND BACK TO US.] The Corviknight nodded and walked alongside Delia as they made their way toward the exit. Shortly afterward, Ash Ketchum came up to Delia, Gardevoir, and the elder Rhondshrym with Pikachu on his shoulder, looking quite at home.
"Man, this place is huge! Seeing all the gym leaders I met here, this is gonna be a real big series, huh?"
"Pika Pi~!"
"Indeed, and our rooms are ready for us to retire for the night whenever we're ready. I also just finished speaking with your mother, Ash, and the Rhondshryms were generous enough to allow her to stay with us here while we all play out this series." Diantha and Gardevoir noticed the change in Ash's expression almost immediately, the lad going from excited to suddenly looking somewhat bashful but not put off by it.
"Oh, uh, okay. That's cool."
"...You don't feel comfortable with your mother being here?"
"Nonono, it's not like that! I guess...it might be a little strange with Mom here and watching everything with how she might feel, but I'm not mad that she's staying here."
"Ah, that's good. And if you feel embarrassed about here being here, no need to be worried—they often say that your mother is the last person you could ever make feel embarrassed or ashamed. Your mother loves you a lot, Ash, and I am sure that that won't change now."
"Really? Thanks, Diantha!"
"Not a problem." Again, the Aegislash near its master leaned in to whisper to him with Ash and Diantha occupied.
[YOU WISH. TO ESCORT. MASTER KETCHUM. AND MADAME DIANTHA. TO THEIR ROOM NOW?] The Pokémon nodded with Ash, Diantha, and Gardevoir taking this as the cue that it was time to hit the hay. [VERY WELL. YOU MAY. ESCORT THEM. TO THEIR STAYING QUARTERS.] The elder turned to the three and bowed his head to bid them a good night. [MAY YOUR SLEEP. FIND YOU. PLEASANTLY.]
"You as well, Sir Rhondshrym." Diantha, Gardevoir, and Ash walked up to the Aegislash awaiting them, ready to take them to their room. "Whenever you are ready, lead the way." The Pokémon turned and levitated up the stairs from the atrium, motioning for the others to follow behind it and not moving too fast nor far for them to keep pace. The producer watched as the parties left for the night, and his attention was brought from the stars of the series to his son arriving with Tracey at his side. The young man seemed to be in the middle of a spirited discussion with his son, even if the older man did not show it through his perpetually stoic demeanor.
[HOW FARES. YOUR TIME. MY SON?]
"All is proceeding in orderly fashion, Ser Father," the man responded. "Young Master Sketchit has agreed to allow the use of his conceptual design for Ash Ketchum's character to be adapted into our work and has been compensated in full."
[WE THANK YOU. FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS. TO OUR SERIES. MASTER SKETCHIT.] Tracey was all but besides himself with pride that his art was valued so much by the two gentlemen, thanking them for this chance.
"The pleasure was mine, good sirs! I'd never thought I'd be asked to design a character for any kind of series, but I'm really glad you liked my sketch of Ash's character!"
[WE HAVE PROVIDED. ADDITIONAL. LODGING. FOR YOU. AND THE REMAINDER. OF THE GUESTS. MASTER KETCHUM. HAS BROUGHT WITH HIM. SO YOU MAY. STAY. DURING THE PRODUCTION. OF THIS SERIES. WITHIN OUR ESTATE.]
"Really!? I—wow, that's...ahah, I don't know what to say! Thank you!"
[IT IS. OUR PLEASURE... ...BE SURE. TO NOTIFY. THE OTHERS. IF YOU MAY.]
"Absolutely!" Tracey nodded and went off to the others in Ash's gathered group to tell them all the news, and with just the two of them, the director closed the distance between himself and his father to speak further.
"This is quite an unexpected development, Ser Father," the man said evenly. "I am willing to allow our guests lodging for the duration of this series' production without issue under most circumstances, but the matter of Aegislash's communication towards Young Master Ketchum remains a concern regarding the nature of our initial reaching out to him. Preferably sooner it would have been for him to have arrived and avoid unnecessary tension among him, his family and friends, and the others. Might we take extra precautions to ensure their welfare and get to understanding the cause behind Aegislash's sudden errant behavior?"
[WE MAY. ESTABLISH. ADDITIONAL MEASURES. AS WELL AS. OBSERVING AEGISLASH. FURTHER. TO DETERMINE. THEIR REASONING.]
"Of course, Ser Father. I surmise Corviknight is away at the moment?"
{ESCORTING. THE MADAME KETCHUM. TO. AND FROM. HER RESIDENCE. TO HERE.]
"He and I shall look into the matter of Aegislash upon his return with the madame safe and sound. Might I escort you back to your quarters as I wait for Corviknight's return and to sort the remaining others' rooms?"
[VERY WELL. MY SON.] The director bowed and stood at his father's side as the two made their way up the stairs from the atrium. The two of them, especially the elder, felt ill at ease with the Aegislash's behavior and needed to get to the bottom of why it was suddenly disregarding instructions as if it made a mistake. They hoped that this was not a sign of some ill scheme brewing in the shadows.
...
...
Diantha and Gardevoir walked alongside Ash and Pikachu behind the Aegislash on their way to where they would be staying, engaged in conversation to add some lightheartedness to the mood.
"I still can't believe that they got EVERYONE here!" Ash exclaimed. "Brock, Misty, Candice...I even saw Lillie and Gladion's mom and dad here! Boy, that must have been weird for Lillie and Gladion to see when they saw them earlier. I guess they all have time to act out as characters for this series."
"I imagine their schedules were free of any pressing concerns or matters that needed immediate attending to."
"Is that the same thing for you too, Diantha?"
"Indeed. Believe it or not, I was not in the middle of or being called for any roles in any upcoming works yet before the Rhondshrym Foundation contacted me. I was initially unsure of whether me and Gardevoir here should join, what with the signature of the letter only having the director's initials and me not being familiar with that, but it all seemed to turn out well in the end."
"So, um, is this your first time doing an adult series or movie?" Diantha was tempted to dodge that question, not sure how she felt about alluding to her past explicit roles so soon into this new one with Ash and with this being his first explicit go, but that teasing tsk tsk in her head lightly chided her for entertaining dishonesty. Diantha merely laughed in response, teasing back that her love can get away with this being a Psychic-type, and so Diantha chose her next words carefully.
"Well, seeing how you are now about to star in an adult series yourself, was there something in particular you wanted to ask, things you were curious about regarding the way it works?"
"I guess...I was curious about how if you had any pointers or advice on how I should act for this? This is all still really new to me." Diantha couldn't tell if Ash was asking for experience in acting for film in general or if he was specifically asking for tips on when he gets to the more intimate parts of the series he would be acting out. Something that could apply broadly to both would be a response she was sure to be satisfactory for him.
"Regardless of the film or series you are starring in, it pays to have patience," Diantha began. "Patience with those around you, understanding for what parts they will play, and respecting of their boundaries goes a long way in helping you know how best to work in the environment you share with others. This goes for all actors, producers and directors, executives, and crew members involved. When one person stops respecting these values, fails to understand one another, and cannot have the patience to step back and trust each other to do their parts, it can lead to a mess of a production and toxic workplace. Believe me, I have been there before."
"You mean, like, you had someone do that to you?"
"Unfortunately, yes. There will almost always be one coworker that you cannot ever seem to get along with or even find the common ground to perform without stepping on another's toes, though sometimes it's the director or producer who finds themselves unable to work effectively with those under their contracts, and that leads to the whole work being redone or outright canned in the worst case scenarios if it escalates to such a point. We all have our limits of what we can stand and can't stand, and it is up to those who have cooler heads to manage the best they can."
"Wow...that already sounds like a lot to have to figure out."
"Which is why it is a good thing that you have others who are experienced in this line of work to help you navigate the environment."
"Have you ever gotten mad at someone else yourself?"
"Pika?" Diantha was almost surprised by Ash's question, but oh, there were indeed those that earned her ire throughout her work.
"...There have been a choice few moments where I myself could stand no more of what I was to be doing, namely with select directors and producers when they fail to be honest with me about what I am expected to be doing in some of the films I feature in. The one time I was most cross with one such individual, and I do mean very cross with him, I swore to never work with him again for his deceitful exploitation of my trust."
"Oh, um, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"
"You are not at fault for asking, Ash. Really, I am glad that you are asking these questions now for me to better prepare you on what will be expected of you soon."
"Did you ever hit somebody when you got mad at them?"
"I...erm, I may have lost my temper once and let the director know exactly how I felt with a firm strike across his face. I regret that I got that upset to resort to getting physical with anyone, but I do not regret whom I ended up striking."
"Whoa, you mean you slapped him hard?"
"As hard as I could. It left my hand sore for a while, especially my wrist."
"I bet that jerk is still thinking about how red his face must have been and not showing himself around for a bit."
"I should hope so."
"What was it that he did that made you so mad?" And that right there was when Diantha internally debated with herself on elaborating the specifics, that scene of her leg uncrossing and come to find out that everyone in that room when they shot that scene was able to see her state of undress beneath her dress unlike what the director told her; white underwear creating too much glare, he claimed, lucky that she didn't also cuss him out after finding out about that lie. Diantha heard her love's voice in her head encouraging her to ease Ash into the answer gradually.
"Well...how should I start this...?" Before she could answer, Diantha noticed the Aegislash stopping before a door, likely to be the room one of them would be staying in.
{Your staying quarters...} its voice whispered to them, the door flying open before it gestured for them to enter. When Diantha approached the doorway, the Aegislash reached toward her and dropped something into her hand: a set of keys. {Enjoy your stay... You two... please come with me...} The Pokémon gestured to Pikachu and Gardevoir, and though Diantha felt a bit of protest building up in her wondering why they all weren't sharing a singular room, her love gently placed a hand on hers and assured her that they would be fine. Diantha deliberated for a moment longer before conceding that she'll allow Gardevoir and Pikachu to follow the Aegislash to their own separate quarters.
"Guess we're not all gonna bunk in the same room, huh buddy?"
"Cha..."
"Don't worry, me and Diantha will be fine. You and Gardevoir go ahead, and we'll see you tomorrow."
"Pika!" Pikachu leapt off of Ash and stood on the floor to follow alongside Gardevoir who nodded back at him before turning to Diantha and taking her hands into her own once more. The two only touched foreheads before Gardevoir departed with Pikachu, kneeling down to let Pikachu know he could hitch a ride on her shoulders for the walk. Pikachu obliged her and hopped on, finding the space a little thin but comfortable, and the two bid their trainers a good night and left with Aegislash. The royal sword Pokémon bowed and levitated away into the dark halls, disappearing with the two other Pokémon at its sides. Diantha looked at the keys in her hands for a moment longer, and looked into the room.
"It appears...that we will be alone in this room together."
"Guess so... Um, ladies first?"
"Gentlemanly, are you. Why, thank you." Diantha played along and stepped inside first with Ash behind her, though she stopped once he made it in and closed the door behind them with a lock put in place afterward. Once inside, the two marveled at the room they would be sharing: much like the atrium, the room seemed to be the blackest pitch from all sides that made it impossible to tell where the walls were had it not been for the edges of the corners and floor being faintly illuminated in a blue glow, and the wallpaper depicted patterns and shapes that could generously be considered outlines of something more of a night sky with moon and starts painting the black canvas. The window leading to the outside world also seemed little more than glowing outlines surrounding nothing but darkness like it was merely drawn on the wall, and past it was an equally pitch sky with more cathedral structures lining up the landscape and floating glass that light beamed through.
A pocket dimension, huh... Diantha remembered the professor's words about the estate seeming to be a Poké Ball for places, how much bigger on the inside it looked than how it did from outside and how the inside just looked like they were outside. Strange magic for sure gave this place its distinct features, and Diantha had many more questions for the Rhondshrym men she hadn't gotten a chance to ask. For now, it seemed she needed to just rest up and save them for the morning. Strange architecture aside, the room's furnishings were normal by comparison as everything was largely a singular color for each item, vibrant and bright edging close toward pastel colors in blues and pinks from the closets to the night stands. Lastly, a single piano stood in the room. There rested only a single bed in the middle of the space, Diantha immediately knowing what that meant while Ash's attention was darting around the room in wonder.
"Whoa, this is definitely nothing like I've ever seen before! What about you, Diantha?"
"This is certainly new for me as well. How the Rhondshryms managed this is no small feat."
"Oh, hey, is that the bed? That's weird, I thought there'd be two beds."
"A large bed is as good as two small ones.
"I guess..."
"...Not used to sharing a bed?"
"Well...not since I was old enough to sleep in my own instead of sharing my Mom's bed."
"That's understandable. Since we will eventually be acting out scenes as more than just friends, perhaps this is a start in how we get more used to each other.
"Yeah, makes sense."
"Let's change out of these clothes before we lay down."
"Okay." The two approached the bed and looked into the closets on the opposite sides of each other's, and in each of them were several spare outfits for them to wear when sleeping or lounging about casually in the estate. All of the outfits were surprisingly modest, not at all grandiose or extravagant as one would have expected of the Rhondshryms, but they were a comfortable modest that both Ash and Diantha could appreciate. Diantha fished out a simple white pants and button-up shirt pajama set and sat down on her bed's side to begin undressing.
What a situation this is, sharing a sleeping space with Ash Ketchum... Diantha wouldn't so quickly suspect ulterior motives going on, though she wasn't completely sure how ready she was to get too comfortable around Ash so soon. Delia seemed to be the kind of mother who would have brought Ash up as best as she could and impart a lesson of being respectful of others' privacy, but the part of her nagging at her to just take the outermost layers off and slip the pajamas on was hard to quiet. Still, she shelved those thoughts in short order and just focused on undressing. You're overthinking this. We both know what we signed up for, no pretenses or misleading. We will eventually lay together in this bed for more than just sleep. And Ash has shown to be nothing but honest and respectful about this whole deal. Stop thinking that this would suddenly change that part of him... At least she tried to tell herself that it was that that she was still on the fence about and not perhaps the thought that she should only save anything particularly revealing or intimate for when the acting called for it, remembering that her love was away in another room. Diantha had to shake her head clear of those thoughts as quick as they came. No—this is not betraying her. She knows, she agreed as well. We...Our relationship is... ...I should stop and get to sleep already...
On Ash's end, he dug out a blue set of pajamas with button-up shirt and pants. They looked well worn but well kept, presumably by the producer's son when he was Ash's age but a little bigger than his size. Ash couldn't be bothered to wonder about wearing someone else's clothes; Serena wore his outfit once when he was sick and accepted a trainer battle on his behalf, so this wasn't so weird. Ash was quick to toss off his clothes on his side of the bed until he was just down to his underwear, but just before he could get dressed, he noticed a mirror looking back at him from the wall in front of him. He still remembered Tracey's sketch of him in warrior clothes, especially the part where his chest and stomach were exposed under the battle jacket he had on in it. He had to admit that he did get some muscle here and there, certainly not the uber bulky kinds of muscle, but it was there and lean enough from all the adventures he had been on since his journey started. He could imagine that warrior costume on him now, wondering how heavy all of that would actually be to wear when he had to act out his role, but it couldn't be all that heavy he thought to himself. He was about to put on his shirt, but then he noticed movement behind him and realized that it was Diantha on the other side of the bed changing into her night clothes. He saw her back turned to him and now just down to her lady underwear, and Ash stopped himself for a bit; he hadn't really seen what a girl's underwear looked like, and curiosity held him there as he looked on. He found himself immediately regretting letting curiosity lead his inner cat as he watched Diantha's hands hook her thumbs into the waistband of her underwear and then pull them down past her hips while bending forward.
Butt
He saw butt
He saw Diantha's butt
Oops...!! Ash quickly averted his eyes from the mirror with his face catching fire and coughing something awkward. Argh, stupid mirror...!! Just put on your pajamas and go to bed...! Ash tossed his shirt on and pulled his pants up as fast as he could and then sat there as still as a rock, waiting for Diantha to signal that she was done. He didn't have to wait for much longer as Diantha eventually stopped moving audibly.
"...All dressed up for the night," Diantha called back at Ash, and he turned around to face her but not stare too hard anywhere else but her face.
"I'm done too." Both looked at each other's sleepwear and found their attention held for a spell. Ash saw how loose Diantha's pajamas were but saw that she was all the way buttoned up thankfully, though Diantha noticed Ash's own shirt seemed a little off.
"I believe your shirt is inside out, Ash," Diantha said.
"Wait, really? Dang, put it on wrong. Hang on for a minute." Ash didn't give Diantha time to turn around before he disrobed again and left his upper body exposed just long enough for him to fix his shirt and for Diantha to see. Diantha knew Ash had to have been on some adventures before they first met and did a lot of traveling as a trainer, but she didn't think he'd look a fair good athletic and lean huilt with some budding muscle underneath the surface. Like Ash, Diantha was quick to redirect her eyes elsewhere before Ash noticed she had been staring for a little. "Okay, how's it look?"
"Better."
"Finally! Now we can get to sleep." Therein lied the issue as Ash quickly realized and scratched his head over. "Uh, so, sharing a bed...how do we...? I mean, do we have to...?"
"We can sleep with as much space as we need," Diantha said, keeping her voice measured. "There is enough space for us both in it."
"Yeah, that's cool." With that being said, the two climbed into bed and under the sheets, not too far from each other but not too close so they had a modest amount of space to themselves. Laying up in bed on their backs and looking up to the ceiling, Ash found himself meaning to ask Diantha another question. "Hey, so, um... Diantha?"
"Yes, Ash?"
"When we start getting to the parts where we, you know, act like a guy and a lady in love with each other...would he have to be...?"
"Be what?"
"Be, um, dating before then? Like boyfriend and girlfriend dating? Is that part of what we have to do?" Diantha looked to Ash in surprise and gave the question some thought. Part of acting was that one did not always have to act the way one felt toward another for the sake of the narrative, and there were plenty of cases where some acted as though they were great friends in a work while in real life they were little more than fellow contracted strangers and vice-versa. And in this work, Diantha and Ash would eventually get to a point where they would be joined together in a way only most couples would try with those they trusted. Diantha knew this would be the case, only surprised that it would be with Ash Ketchum, but the thought of doing so with someone she only tangentially knew was not something she was wholly comfortable with. With Ash's suggestion, with the two dating, they could naturally build up their feelings toward one another and understand where they stood. Diantha decided to test the waters with Ash and see how he felt on this.
"When acting," Diantha began, "you don't always have to feel how you are supposed to perform. Acting is all about being able to play a convincing enough role for the audience in any given work's narrative to make it feel real enough to them. I've acted out roles before where you might be hard pressed to believe that it was me in them, and the more convincing you are able to adopt a persona different from your own personality for the audience and the more personas you are able to take on, the more you can further develop the role to the point where the audience cannot tell if it is all an act or real. The issue with acting, of course, is that some roles just run too counter to what we are willing to portray which creates a clash that can affect development in no small way, and another thing to consider is how long you act and how many roles you can take on. Some people throw themselves into every role they can and face burn out, and others who are able to pick up roles as easy as a Carbink catches the gleam of light and reflects it, they find themselves slowly becoming lost in their works and that their acted roles bleed into their natural personality, creating a dissonance within themselves."
"Like they start getting confused on which part of themselves is real?"
"Precisely. I myself try to avoid to drastic a role that runs so against who I am, and despite my fame and prestige, I try not to take on too many roles as well. I am still a Pokémon Champion, after all, and I have obligations to the Kalos Pokémon League that my acting career cannot affect too much. Beyond all of that is my own private life I try to manage with everything I am juggling between. So for me, the work may seem endless, but I try to handle what I can and not lose sight of myself."
"Huh... Okay... That makes a lot of sense."
"But I digress. You asked if we had to be dating to make our scenes work where we act as man and woman together?"
"Yeah, I did."
"Well, did you want to? Trust me, there is no pressure if you would rather not. It is not necessary for our scenes from the way I see it, and I would not begrudge or bescorn you for it. But, at the same time, I do not see any real harm in it either. If you wanted to, we could date each other, not just for the sake of this series, but just for personal reasons as well, no strings attached. And don't worry, I'm not one of the 'high maintenance' types; simpler and more casual dates just to get to know each other and spend time together is enough for me." Diantha watched Ash get to thinking about what she said, looked really deep in thought that Diantha equated to his serious face when in the middle of Pokémon battle strategies. After some time, Ash turned to face Diantha and smiled, confident like he usually did.
"Sure; if that's how you're putting it, I'd like to give dating a try with you." Diantha chuckled lightly at Ash's enthusiasm and smiled back at him.
"Alright, then. I look forward to when we get the time to try it out. Together." Diantha and Ash took each other's hand and held them while facing one another, ready to give this new relationship of theirs' a shot. "Now, let's get some rest. I'm sure we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."
"Alright. Good night, Diantha."
"Good night, Ash." Champion and World Trainer allowed their eyes to drift closed and let their minds take a break so they could drift off into dreamland, anticipating the challenges and all that would come from the next day onward but feeling confident that they could weather it. So lost in their sleep they eventually became, neither could feel or notice the sheets they hadn't fully pulled up to themselves slowly finding themselves rising to meet them just under their chins...
...
...
Soon, all of the estate's occupants had fallen fast asleep from the actors meant to play their characters in this series to the two surviving Rhondshrym conducting it all and the guests Ash had brought with him to witness him on the big screen. All but one found peaceful sleep, and this one found sleep to the be last thing that would find them that night. After everything had calmed down in the excitement of the moment, they could only stare up at the ceiling of their room with stars smattered across it. They had found their world so close to them, but now, with this series and despite the proximity they once again shared, it couldn't have felt any further away as though they now had an ocean of stars to cross to reach it now...
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Lights, Cameras, Action! / Songe del Roze