Do I Hear a Ralts? (LAoPtS)

Plot
Ash and his friends are on their way across a forest to Sootopolis City for Ash's final Gym battle. Max remarks that he thought for sure they would be out of the forest by now, and May adds that things always looks closer on the map then they do in real life. Brock suggests it may be at least another day. Ash, however, attempts to cheer the other guys up. At that moment, Snorunt suddenly pops out of his Poké Ball. Ash is surprised, but Snorunt uses Icy Wind on him, freezing him and Pikachu solid. Suddenly, Max hears a voice calling and takes off running to find out what it is. However, Ash, Brock, and May are surprised because they didn't hear anything. Soon enough, Max finds a Ralts laying next to a lake. When it is brought back to the others, they assume that it must have fallen into the lake and it was now sick. Brock hands some soup for it to try. At first, Ralts won't eat the soup, but then Pikachu tells Ralts to go ahead, so Ralts manages to eat it and enjoys it.

May pulls out her Pokédex to find out more about the Ralts. Max lays it back down when Snorunt suddenly pops in, scaring Ralts. Max and Ash get angry at Snorunt for this; Snorunt gets angry in turn, swipes Ash's hat and Max's glasses, freezes the objects with Icy Wind, and then puts it back on them. Ash and Max start dancing wildly when the ice cold hat and glasses are put back on them. The Ralts, however, starts laughing at this, causing Max to realize that Snorunt was just trying to cheer up Ralts. May thinks it must be feeling better, but Brock, however, thinks otherwise. He explains that it is definitely running a fever, and it was pretty high, so it would be best for them to get the Ralts to a Pokémon Center right away. Max offers Ralts a lift, then declares that he is going to take full responsibility for Ralts on the trip.

Not far away, Team Rocket is watching them. Jessie sees the Ralts and comments on its cuteness, though James remarks that it doesn't compare to his Chimecho. Meowth suggests they snatch Ralts and give it to the boss. James initially shows skepticism at this idea, but Meowth begins to have another one of his boss fantasies. Upon realizing the possible benefits they would get for catching Ralts, Team Rocket gets excited and decides to initiate their plan. Later, as Ash and the others are running down the road, James appears, disguised as an elderly man named Lord James Jameson the third, Esquire; claims Ralts is his Pokémon; and thanks them for finding it. Jessie and Meowth also appear, disguised as a Gardevoir and Kirlia, respectively.

Brock explains that the Ralts is sick and that they need to get it to a Pokémon Center. James, however, explains that since it was "his Pokémon", it was his responsibility to take it. Max, however, becomes suspicious upon realizing Ralts seems to be afraid of James. James quickly explains that the fever must be affecting its mind. When Meowth suddenly falls off his toes and lands flatfooted, Ash's suspicions are raised too, and he takes out his Pokédex to scan him. As a result, instead of it reading Kirlia's entry, the Pokédex reads Meowth's. With their covers blown, the trio abandon their disguises and say the motto, with Wobbuffet and Chimecho adding their own touches.

Jessie sends out Dustox, which attacks with a fierce Whirlwind, knocking the gang off their feet. James then sends out Cacnea, which attempts to give him a hug, but he is able to dodge it and orders it to use Pin Missile. Max takes cover behind a tree, promising to keep Ralts safe. Ash has Pikachu use Thunderbolt, which strikes Team Rocket and their Pokémon. However, James has Chimecho use Heal Bell, which completely heals everyone. May then sends out Combusken and has it use Fire Spin. However, Dustox releases another powerful Whirlwind, which keeps the attack at bay. Jessie then sends out Seviper and orders it to use Poison Tail, but Ash has Pikachu counter with Iron Tail. Cacnea fires another Pin Missile, which heads towards the group, but Brock has his Ludicolo intercept it with Razor Leaf.

Max, however, realizes that Ralts is getting worse, and alerts the others, causing them to assume it must be suffering from something worse than a cold. Ash tells Max to make a run for the Pokémon Center while he still can. When Max is nervous about going alone, Ash reminds him that he is the one who wanted to be responsible for Ralts. After further encouragement from Brock and May, Max goes for it. After Ludicolo crashes from Dustox's Psybeam, Ash orders an Icy Wind from Snorunt. Snorunt freezes everything in Team Rocket's direction, then runs off after Max. Unfortunately, Team Rocket wasn't frozen by the Icy Wind, since Wobbuffet was able to protect Team Rocket from the Icy Wind with Mirror Coat. Jessie then orders Seviper to use Haze, which allows Team Rocket to escape and go after Max.

Stopping for a moment, Max finds out that Ralts's fever is getting worse, and he needs to come up with something fast. He then finds a bundle of Berries that his mother would always give him whenever he was sick, and tries to convince the Ralts to eat some of them. Unfortunately, the Ralts is too sick to eat, and Max starts to worry that Ralts is giving up. He then begins to emotionally break down, wondering why he wanted to be the big hero, and he becomes scared that all he did in the end was let Ralts down. Suddenly, an icy wind blows past him, and Max looks up to see Snorunt holding some of the Berries, which it froze solid. Max, getting an idea, wraps the Berries in a rag, and uses it as a cold compress for Ralts. This cools Ralts down, and Max once again tries to convince it to eat. Fortunately, it manages to take a bite this time.

Moments later, Team Rocket finds the group, and they order Max to hand over Ralts, but he refuses. Suddenly, a real Gardevoir and Kirlia arrive and send Team Rocket blasting off again. Max realizes the two Psychic-types were looking for Ralts, but he is forced to try to explain to them that Ralts is in bad shape and needs help. Kirlia is put off by this, but Snorunt refuses to let it get closer. They get into an argument, which results in the angry Kirlia firing a Psychic attack. However, Ralts stops this by using Safeguard, although it leaves the Ralts even weaker than before. Kirlia tries to approach it, but Gardevoir stops it. They decide that if Ralts is willing to trust Max that far, then so can they. As they teleport away, Max quickly gets going again.

Max finally manages to make it to the Pokémon Center, and it is put in the intensive care unit. Ash and the others then show up, upon which Max runs crying into May's arms. May calmly comforts him, saying he really came through. Eventually, Nurse Joy comes out, announcing that Ralts is fully healed. Max quickly runs in to see it, and they are overjoyed to see each other. It turns out that Max got him to the Pokémon Center just in time; had he been an hour late, Ralts might not have survived. Ash and May praise Max for stepping up when he needed to. However, Max realizes that since Ralts is feeling better, it was time for it to go back where it belongs. He heads outside and starts calling for Gardevoir and Kirlia. However, only Jessie and Meowth respond, in their respective disguises again. James is hidden off to the side, convinced that their ploy will work this time as long as they stay up on their toes.

However, the group sees through their disguises easily. Max tells them that if they really cared about Ralts, they wouldn't let it fall into Team Rocket's hands. He then orders a Psychic attack, which Ralts uses to send Jessie and Meowth blasting off. As they bemoan James being the only one not blasting off, James tries to flee, but he ends up running into the real Gardevoir and Kirlia, who send him blasting off with Psychic attacks of their own. Gardevoir and Kirlia then appear to Max, who prepares to hand Ralts over to them. Ralts, however, doesn't want to leave Max, and it is obvious that Max is equally hesitant to let Ralts go. However, he promises Ralts that one day, when he is older and becomes a Trainer, he will come back for it. With the promise made, Gardevoir, Kirlia, and Ralts teleport away. Max then calls out that he will remember his promise.

Major events

 * Max befriends a wild Ralts, which he promises to return to when he begins his Pokémon journey.