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Chapter Text

There was a massive explosion as the last two attacks hit their targets. When the smoke eventually cleared, Decidueye and Pikachu were on their last legs.

For a few tense moments, neither Pokemon moved, until they crumpled to their knees. Ash and Hau called out to their respective partners to stay strong, and the two Pokemon began to push themselves back up.

In the stands, Gladion and Kiawe's knuckles turned white, Lana and Mallow had no more fingernails left to bite, while Lillie and Sophocles clutched their respective Pokemon tighter.

Eventually, Pikachu's legs gave out and he fainted, while Decidueye was able to get back up. 

The referee waved his flag, "Pikachu is unable to battle, Challenger Ash has no more Pokemon left. Therefore, Challenger Hau wins!"

There was a roar from the grandstands, and an ecstatic Hau joyfully tackled his Pokemon,. Meanwhile, on the other side of the arena, Ash sank to his knees and millions of thoughts raced through his brain. Eventually, he got up and walked over to his starter and best friend, picking him up tenderly, "You did good buddy, I'm proud of you."

He walked over to a celebrating Hau, and stuck his hand out. "Congratulations, Hau! You deserve it!"

The newly crowned champion shook hands, "Thanks Ash, it could have gone either way, and there is no one else I'd rather lose to."

Immediately after the ceremony, Ash walked away and once he was alone, sank to his knees again. The mouse Pokemon jumped down from his shoulder and attempted to console his friend. Ash clenched both fists, collecting a bit of dirt along the way, as he reflected on his journey right from Kanto.

He whispered, "Maybe I set the bar too high when I said I wanted to be a Pokemon Master. 7 Leagues, and I fall short every time."

Ash turned to his best friend, "Pikachu, should I just give up?"

The mouse tilted his head, "Pikapi?"

"Yeah, I know my motto is, never give up until the end. But after so many years of falling short, I'm just so tired of building up my hopes, only to lose."

"Pika..." the mouse's ears drooped sadly.

The next few days went by as a blur, and Ash eventually found himself at the airport. Lillie and Gladion had already departed with their mother a week ago, to search for their father. Then it was time for him to head back to Kanto. He bid a tearful farewell to his remaining friends and to professors, Kukui and Burnet.

Along the way, he passed a video phone booth when he had an idea. Since he still had time before his flight left, he made a bee-line for it. The loss still raged in his head and he really needed a friendly ear to listen. Initially, he thought of Brock, but realised that he may not be at home since he was working as a Pokemon Doctor, so he dialled the Cerulean Gym instead.

Soon, a familiar face picked up, but not who he was expecting. Surprised, he said, "Hey Daisy, what are you doing here? I thought you, Lily and Violet were travelling, also where's Misty? I kinda needed to talk to her."

"Hey Ash, we're actually done with our tour and now Misty is making sure that we can actually take care of the gym while she's away. Speaking of her, last I heard, she was somewhere in Sinnoh, looking for more Water Types to catch."

His shoulders sagged a little, "Oh, okay."

Her face grew concerned, "Are you okay? the three of us watched the Manalo Conference. You were so close!"

"Yeah... Anyway, thanks a lot Daisy, I'll see if Brock's at home."

He ended the call and dialled again. This time, it was Brock's father, Flint, who picked up.

"Hey Flint, Is Brock at home?"

"Yeah, he's just refereeing a Gym match for Forrest, the new Gym Leader. I'll just go and get him."

Eventually, his second-oldest friend got on the line, "Hey Ash! Dad told me that you wanted to talk. How's Alola?"

"Alola's great! I'm actually on my way home after the Manalo Conference."

"And?"

His shoulders slumped again, "I got the runner-up spot..."

Brock's face lit up, "That's great! But... you don't look too happy."

Ash sighed heavily, "Yeah, the thing is... I've been doing this for a long time. I remember when I started out my journey, I said that I wanted to be a Pokemon Master. It's been 7 leagues and I still haven't won anything, and the Orange Islands don't really count. Maybe I'm not cut out for this and I set the bar way too high." 

He took a deep breath, "I've been thinking of slowing down."

To say that Brock was taken aback, was an understatement, "Ash... what are you saying?"

"Brock, I'm tired of just entering leagues every time, only to fall short! Every time, I train myself and my Pokemon to the limit, but it's almost never enough!"

Ash glanced at his Poketch, "I gotta go, my flight will be here soon."

With that, he hung up, and Brock just sat there, shell-shocked. Snapping himself out of it, he grabbed his cell phone and fired dozens of texts. They all said the same thing, "Guys... emergency meeting! How soon can you make it to Pewter City?"

Chapter Text

After the plane touched down, he began the long walk home. As evening approached, a familiar landscape greeted his eyes, Pallet Town... home sweet home. Ash soon reach his house and spotted Mimey sweeping the porch.

"Hey Mimey! I'm home! Where's Mom?"

"Mime! Mime! Mr Mime!", the Pokémon gestured inside.

Ash walked over and opened the door, "Hey Mom! I'm back!"

Emerging from the kitchen, Delia Ketchum called out, "Ash? Honey! So good to see you! How was your time in Alola?"

Flopping down on the couch, he perked up a little, "It was great! But... I lost the final. Man I was so close."

She sat down next to him and wrapped him in a tender hug, "Aww sweetie... Don't worry you'll get them next time."

He sighed, "I'm not too sure about that Mom. I mean, I've been doing this for years and I'm 18 now, and I still haven't won a league! I don't know, I think I want to slow it down a little bit."

Delia was a bit surprised, because this was so unlike her Ash. She sat up and glanced at him, "Ashy... Is that what you really want or is this the pain of that loss talking?"

"I guess... I... I don't know. I'm so confused about what to do."

"Why don't you eat something and go to bed. You must be tired from your trip. If you sleep it off, maybe you can think with a clearer head. If you're still not sure, why not talk to Professor Oak."

He smiled, "Thanks mom, you're the best!"

"Not a problem, sweetie."

The Next Day

Ash woke up bright and early, but his Alola loss still weighed heavily on his mind. After breakfast and some soothing words from his mother, he headed over to Professor Oak's laboratory.

He knocked on the door, and was soon greeted by the professor himself. The old man's face brightened, "Hello Ash my boy! A little Fletchling told me that you were back from Alola. Do come inside!"

The boy's face perked up, "Hey professor!" 

He looked around, "Where's Tracey and Gary?"

Samuel Oak waved a dismissive hand, "Gary is currently in Sinnoh, interning with Professor Rowan. I'd take him in myself, but didn't want to be accused of nepotism. Tracey is actually on a small vacation back in the Orange Islands. Last I heard, he was dating the Mikan gym leader, Cissy."

Ash chuckled, "Yeah I remember he had a bit of a crush on her, back when we travelled there. Anyway, I came here because I needed some advice."

Oak sat down on a chair, folded his arms and focused on the young man sitting opposite him, "Go on, I'm listening."

Ash took a deep breath, "When I started my journey, I wanted to become a Pokémon Master. Unfortunately, it's been so many years and 7 leagues and I still have not won a single one yet. I've been thinking that maybe I set the bar too high. I'm kind of torn between giving up and trying one last time."

The professor got over his initial shock at hearing that Ash wanted to give up. He reached over and grasped the young man's shoulder, "My boy... Your mother, the people of Pallet Town and I couldn't be any more proud of your achievements. I understand that you are still upset about the loss, but is that what you really want?"

The teenager sighed, "I... I don't know at this point. On one hand I have a gut feeling that if I go for another league, I can do it this time. I can finally get the Mankey off my back. On the other hand, what happens if I fall short again? I don't know If I can handle another loss."

On his lap, Pikachu rested his paw on Ash's stomach.

The older gentleman suddenly snapped his fingers, "I have an idea! Why not just take a sabbatical from challenging leagues and do something else temporarily. It will get your mind off of things and who knows, maybe it can help you just recharge and you can challenge the leagues later."

Ash gave a small smile, "Thanks professor, I think that will help. What do you suggest I do?"

Professor Oak stroked his chin, "I heard that one of my proteges, Professor Cerise, is opening a new lab in Vermillion City next week. If you want, you can intern with him as a research assistant for a while. That will likely give you enough time to make up your mind. I trust that you will make the right decision by then."

Ash nodded firmly, "I will, professor! Thanks!"

With that, Pikachu climbed up onto Ash's shoulder and the two decided to head to the ranch to spend time with their Pokémon friends. However, Oak suddenly called out after him, "If you ever change your mind, there is a new region that's been discovered, called the Galar region!"

The two paused in their tracks and doubled back. Samuel Oak chuckled, "I just remembered that an old colleague of mine spoke to me last week. Her name is Professor Magnolia and she actually prepared a thesis with her grand-daughter about a new phenomenon."

"Phenomenon?"

"Indeed! It's called Dynamax and Gigantamax. From what I read, when a Pokémon Dynamaxes, it grows a lot bigger!"

He pointed to one of Ash's stampeding Tauros, "Take Tauros for example, when it undergoes the Dynamax, it will grow very, very big. However, if you take Pikachu or a Charizard, not only do they grow bigger, but they also take on a different appearance. That is known as Gigantamax. As far as I know, your Pikachu, Charizard, Kingler, Snorlax and Melmetal have the potential to Gigantamax. Even your former Lapras and Butterfree have Gigantamax forms."

Ash's eyes were the size of dinner plates, "That's Awesome!"

"Indeed, but this is only temporary and it requires a Pokémon to be standing over a certain power spot to trigger the change. It was quite fascinating! However, do think about what I said, my boy."

"I will professor!", with that, he left Ash on the ranch to spend time with his Pokémon.

Back in the lab, Professor Oak picked up his video phone and dialled a number. Before long, a bespectacled man with maroon and grey hair, picked up.

"Hello Cerise, I have a small favour to ask of you. Are you still searching for research assistants?"

Chapter Text

On the other end of the line, the now-named Professor Cerise replied back, “Indeed I am. I have two volunteers already, and my daughter, Chloe is also helping out, albeit reluctantly.”

Before Oak could get a word in, his colleague began a small rant. Cerise moaned, “I don’t know what to do about her, Samuel. She used to like Pokémon when she was young, but has since grown distant from them. I have been trying to get her to follow in my footsteps to reignite her passion, but it isn’t helping.”

He shook his head, “Anyway, I shouldn’t be burdening you with my problems. You said you had a favour?”

Samuel Oak had a thoughtful look etched on his face, “I did, I also may be able to help Chloe start liking Pokémon again. Do you remember I told you about Ash Ketchum?”

“Absolutely! I remember you saying that he has the potential to be a Pokémon champion. Why do you ask?”

Samuel Oak’s face morphed into a small frown, “Ash has just come back from the Alola region and came agonisingly close to winning the league. He’s participated in 7 leagues and placed higher every time. In Kalos and now in Alola, he has made the final. However, he has been in a bit of a slump and is thinking of giving up. Having known the boy since he was a child, I personally think he has the talent and it is just his depression talking. I suggested that he interns with you for a while and just get his mind off the losses.”

Professor Cerise tapped his chin, “I understand, a loss can be hard to stomach. Don’t worry, I can take him in. Also, what did you mean when you said that you could help Chloe?”

Oak smiled, “Ash can help”

The younger professor caught on, “You really think so?”

“Absolutely, Chloe reminds me of one of Ash’s friends, May from Petalburg in Hoenn. When she started her journey, she didn’t really like Pokémon. Ash became her mentor of sorts, and helped guide her. With him as her friend, she began to like them. Now she is one of the best Pokemon Coordinators and the 'Princess of Hoenn'”

Professor Cerise smiled, “Thanks Samuel, I look forward to meeting Ash. I’m assuming the two of you will come to Vermillion City for the lab’s inauguration next week?“

“Wouldn’t miss it for anything other than a Legendary Pokémon’s appearance.”

They chuckled at their inside joke before hanging up.

A few days later, in Pewter City

An annoyed Misty confronted Brock, “Alright Brock, now that most of us are here, what was so important? I was just about to get my hands on a Gorebyss when your call came. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW RARE THEY ARE?! I SPENT THREE DAYS SEARCHING FOR IT AND THE STINKING PHONE SCARED IT AWAY!”

Brock snapped, “I got a call from Ash the other day. He just barely lost the Alola League final and he was really depressed. That’s what was so important!”

That clearly caught Misty off guard, and she turned to the Alolan gang, who were missing Lillie and Gladion. They grimly nodded in confirmation.

The orange-haired Gym leader suddenly felt very small. She mumbled sheepishly, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have exploded like that.”

Brock patted her back, “All’s forgiven, I know how passionate you are about water types and Gorebyss is quite rare in the wild.”

Feeling guilty, she replied, “Still, Ash is our friend and he’s always come through for us. Anyway, what did he say?”

Brock’s shoulders shook, “He - believe me, I'm still having a hard time processing what he said - he said he was thinking of slowing down and giving up.”

That got everyone to cry out in shock. A wide-eyed Serena exclaimed, “That’s not the Ash I know! It can’t be!”

Brock continued, “That’s not all, I asked him if he was sure about it, and he said that it’s been 7 leagues and he’s never won anything yet.”

Tracey raised a hand, “He’s beaten the Orange Island league.”

This time it was Misty who spoke, “That’s true, but it’s not an officially sanctioned Pokémon League.”

Max pipped up, “What about the Battle Frontier? Ash has beaten them and he can technically become the eighth Frontier Brain.”

Brock nodded, “You’re right, and they say that the Frontier Brains are close to the Elite 4 level, if not surpassing them in power.”

Dawn grumbled, “He would have won the Sinnoh League if Tobias hadn’t been there.”

She spat out the word, ‘Tobias’ with surprising venom.

Bonnie tilted her head, confused, “Who’s Tobias?”

Brock explained, “He was a trainer who entered the Sinnoh League and dominated everyone to win the whole thing. He used just one Pokémon to decimate everyone, a Darkrai.”

Everyone’s eyes widened, and he ignored Dawn who muttered, “I still think that was cheating.”

Brock continued, “Nobody could defeat that Darkrai, but Ash did. He was the only one who defeated that Darkrai and Sceptile landed the final blow.”

Dawn cut him off, “It got worse from there, he sent out a Latios next, but Pikachu managed to tie with Latios, but by then Ash lost all his Pokémon, while Tobias lost 2. Ash made it to the Top 4 over there.”

Kiawe’s face was priceless, “Incredible! I knew that Ash was strong but I didn’t think he was THAT strong.”

May chuckled, “Trust me, he has beaten a couple of Legendary Pokémon, like the Regi titans and Articuno.”

Iris interrupted, “Anyway, back to the subject, what are we waiting for? Let’s go and smack some sense into that kid!”

Mallow cut her off, “It’s not that simple Iris. We were there when he lost to Hau. Ash was absolutely devastated and he wouldn’t come out of Professor Kukui’s house for three days.”

Dawn also chipped in, “The last time I saw him this depressed was when he suffered a really bad loss to Paul. I don't think a Pokemon performance is gonna work this time”

Clemont adjusted his glasses, “I agree, Ash is probably still upset about the loss. He was fine in the Kalos League because it was highest position he had ever achieved. Now he would be hoping that he’d have a real shot at the championship this time. So to lose at the last hurdle would be heart-breaking. If you were to suddenly barge in like that, you’ll only end up making him feel worse.

Iris turned beet red.

Max pipped up, ” I say we give him some time to get over the loss before we can talk to him about it.”

Cilan nodded, “Sounds like a well-cooked plan.”

Back in Pallet Town, the day of Ash’s departure

Delia Ketchum stood next to Professor Oak’s car while Ash clambered in. She handed him a box with all his Pokémon, as Professor Oak insisted that they come along with Ash. He revealed that Professor Cerise had a Pokémon park near the lab and his Pokémon could stay there and be with him.

Then she handed him another Pokeball, “Ashy… This is Mimey’s Pokeball. Could you please take care of him for me?”

He stared at her in shock, “Mom, are you sure? I don’t want you to be alone at home.”

She waved him off, “Don’t be silly, I won’t be alone. Even if I do, I can always go to Professor Oak’s.”

He shrugged, “If you’re sure.”

Then he surprised her with a hug, “Bye Mom, I’ll see you again soon.”

By then, Oak had come out of his lab and they were ready to go.

Chapter Text

Along the journey, Professor Oak explained that Ash would be serving a dual purpose. Aside from helping Cerise with his research, he has to get to know the professor’s daughter, Chloe and find out why she grew cold towards Pokémon.

Suddenly, they were interrupted by a loud screech and a giant shadow descending upon the car. The professor slammed the brakes and the two ducked immediately. When they looked up, they spotted a massive Fearow.

Ash groaned, “Here we go again.”

He dug around the box, when another screech tore through the sky. He looked up and the dive-bombing Fearow was suddenly T-boned by another large bird, a Pidgeot.

His eyes widened and he called out, “Pidgeot?”

The bird turned and screeched happily in response, flying down towards Ash and nuzzling him. Another scream cut short the happy reunion, and he smirked, “You want to finish this grudge match?”

The bird chirped, before foiling an ambush with a Wing Attack. Their battle raged on, until Pidgeot unleashed a new move that caught Ash off guard, “Wow! You learned Hurricane! That’s awesome! What else do you have in your arsenal?”

Pidgeot chirped and took off, surrounded by a blue aura. Ash’s eyes widened further, “No way! That’s Brave Bird!”

The battle between the two aerial titans raged for a minute longer until another Brave Bird felled the Fearow. Getting an idea, Ash grabbed an empty Pokeball from his backpack and tossed it.

After the ball wobbled twice, Fearow was finally caught. Ash and Pikachu did their signature celebration, with Pidgeot joining in. Then he turned to the red and gold-crested bird.

He ran over and hugged the bird, “Hey girl, I’m sorry I never came back for you. Do you forgive me?”

She nuzzled him again and he took out a Pokeball, “Do you want to come back?”

Pidgeot tapped the ball with her beak and got sucked in, confirming the capture.

He watched as the ball shrank and he placed it with the others, “Welcome home, girl”

Professor Oak smiled, “I’m glad to see you make amends, my boy. Now, shall we? “

Fortunately, there were no more interruptions for the rest of the journey. Before long, Ash stood in front of the gate while Oak went to park the car.

He stepped inside the gates with Pikachu riding on his shoulder. Before he goes take another step, a small dog-like Pokémon bounded out, barking angrily.

Ash froze, unsure of what to do. Then a girl’s voice called out, “Yamper, Heel!”

The voice’s owner then ran out of the laboratory and picked up the dog, who now relaxed.

She turned to him and bowed in apology, “I am so sorry, Yamper gets very protective. “

He raised both arms placatingly, “No worries, I’m Ash.”

The girl looked at him and gave a polite smile, “Hello Ash, we’ve been expecting you.”

As they headed inside, he got a good look at her. She had fair skin with bright green eyes. However, the most striking feature was her maroon hair, which was done up in an elaborate plait.

Inside the lab, there was a bit of a crowd, but the girl was able to weave through everyone and Ash tailed her.

They soon joined two others, both were male and all three were around his age. The first boy had black hair with red streaks and blue eyes. The other boy had silver hair and hazel eyes.

The first boy noticed them and called out excitedly, “Hey! I’m Goh and this is Horace.”

Ash introduced himself, “I’m Ash from Pallet Town. Nice to meet you Goh and Horace.”

He addressed the girl last, “I’m assuming you’re Chloe?”

“That’s right, I’m also acting as an assistant here. Unfortunately, “she muttered the last word under her breath, but Ash heard it.

He thought to himself, ‘Man, this girl has got it worse than May. It’s probably going to take her some time. But I wonder what happened to make her this way.’

While this was going on, the orientation began and they soon quietened down to listen.

Before long, a man, who Ash assumed was Professor Cerise, called the four of them on stage and were introduced as research interns.

The quartet were also introduced to the professor’s subordinates, Ren and Chryssa, who will be guiding them.

Soon, the crowd dispersed and Cerise asked the four to just get to know each other. He would call them if anything important cropped up.

Horace initiated the conversation, “So guys, what’s everyone’s dream? Mine is to find the Mythical Pokémon, Celebi!”, he finished proudly.

Goh boasted, “My dream is to catch every single Pokémon until I catch Mew!”

A visibly annoyed Chloe shrugged, “I don’t know, I’m still thinking about what to do.”

A scandalized Goh got in her face, “Come on Chloe! You got to have some dream.”

She backed up a little, before Ash came to the rescue, “Calm down buddy. You’re making her uncomfortable. Besides, it’s okay to not have a dream right at the start, she can do just about anything.”

The girl was quite surprised to hear this, but didn’t show it. Then she asked him in a slightly bored and sarcastic voice, “And let me guess, you want to catch every Pokémon before you gun for another Legendary.”

He shook his head, “Nah, my aim is to be a Pokémon Master... But I really haven’t been making much progress on that front.”

She raised an eyebrow, not expecting that answer at all. Chloe asked, “What happened?”

He sighed, “Let’s just say, I lost in the Alola league final, just barely.”

The boys mumbled their condolences, but Chloe grasped his shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze.

Ash continued, “That’s mostly why I’m here. I wanted to just get my mind away from the league. Don’t get me wrong, I still love battling, but that loss took a toll on me. So, Professor Oak suggested that I intern over here and just clear my head.”

“And I’m glad that you came here.”, everyone turned to see Professor Cerise leaning against the doorway.

“I have a mission for you four. We picked up a strong signal somewhere near the docks, and we believe that a rift may appear and reveal a strong Pokémon. Would you all be willing to go there and battle whichever Pokémon comes out of the rift?”

Ash saluted, “Got it!”

But Goh raised a hand, “Wait! I don’t have any Pokémon.”

With that, Ash zipped off and rummaged through his box. He tossed a couple of Pokeballs to Goh and Chloe, “These two are Pignite and Corphish, I’m letting you two borrow them temporarily until you guys pick a starter.”

With that, everyone rushed out and made their way to the docks. When they got there, Ash’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when he spotted a few trainers battling a Lugia of all Pokémon!

The massive Legendary Pokémon soon made short work of the trainers’ Pokémon. It looked around for another challenge before zeroing in on Ash’s group.

The quartet rushed up, ready to battle. Ash and Chloe sent out Pikachu and Corphish. However, Goh dug out an empty Pokeball, “Alright! I’m going to catch you! Go Pokeball!”

Lugia simply huffed and swatted the ball away. Then, Horace tried to curve the Pokeball, and that got blasted away too.

All the while, Chloe had her hand slapped across her face, and Ash gaped at them as if they grew second heads.

A new voice called out, one that was quite familiar to Ash, “Did you seriously think that a Legendary Pokémon will simply let you catch it!?”

Ash spun around to come face-to-face with his Sinnoh rival, Paul, along with Barry and his Kanto rival, Ritchie. The purple-haired boy glanced at Ash, “Their first time?”

He nodded, “Yeah, I loaned one of them my Pignite, but he’s not using him.”

Paul scoffed, “And I thought you were pathetic when we first met. No rookie is stupid enough to go after a Legendary right off the bat. Especially without battling them.”

Barry smirked, “Come on Ketchum, let’s give these newbies a crash course in battling. But after that, I expect a fine from those two for being idiots.”

“Torterra, prepare for battle!”

“Empoleon, Go get them!”

“Let’s go, Sparky!”

“Hey Charizard, want to take down another Legendary?”

That got everyone’s attention. Ritchie raised an eyebrow, “Another Legendary?”

Ash scratched the back of his head, “Uh yeah…”

Ritchie deadpanned, “And this is the same Charizard that refused to listen to you at the Indigo League and got you disqualified.”

Ash nodded, “Yeah, I managed to win back his respect, and now he is one of my strongest.”

Ash then shot Ritchie a look, “Also, thank you for rubbing salt in my wounds. Would you like some lemon juice too?”

Barry pulled at his hair, “Enough time-wasting or you’re getting a fine!”

Rolling their eyes, they lined up and attacked.

“Torterra, use Stone Edge!”

“Empoleon, Hydro Pump!”

“Sparky, Thunder!”

“Charizard, use Dragon Rage!”

All the attacks hit, but barely fazed Lugia, who countered with Aeroblast.

The battle raged on, with Sparky being eliminated first, and Barry following a few moves later. Ash and Paul steadily wore it down, until Paul ordered a Mega Drain, and Ash followed it up with Overheat.

The Legendary was on its last legs, Ash glanced at Paul,” You going to catch it?”

He shook his head, “Not my style, be my guest.”

With that, Ash dug out an empty Pokeball and tossed it at Lugia. The ball hit it and sucked it in, after wobbling for several agonizing seconds, before confirming the capture.

Paul smirked, “I guess Tobias isn’t the only one with a legendary now, is he?”

Ash grinned right back, “I guess so, but if I used Lugia in any battles, that’d be pretty lazy. I’m not going to be another Tobias.”

Then Barry grabbed him by the shoulders, “Alright Ketchum! What did you mean by ‘want to take down another Legendary?’ How is your Charizard so strong that it can take down a freaking Lugia? You better give me and answer or-”

Now annoyed, Paul cut him off, “For Arceus’ sake! If you mention a fine one more time, then I’M fining you!”

That shut him up.

Ash rubbed his head, “Charizard has taken down quite a few Legendaries,”

By then, Goh, Horace and Chloe had also gathered around him.

He continued, “Charizard defeated Articuno in the Battle Frontier against Noland.”

Paul did a double-take, “He has an Articuno? I went up against a Heracross and lost.”

Ritchie asked, “So what have you been up to?”

“Well… I’m taking a break from battling for a while. I… er… I had a pretty bad loss in the Alola League final, and I got in a bit of a funk. So, I’m interning as a research assistant for Professor Cerise, here in Vermillion City. Once I have my head on straight, I can go and challenge leagues again.”

Barry was surprised, “This isn’t like you Ash. I would have thought that you would have immediately searched for another league to challenge.”

Paul chipped in, “I think it’s a good call. I mean, after falling short several times, it’s good to just recharge your batteries, train harder and then challenge the next league. Reggie taught me that after I failed to beat the Battle Frontier.”

The trio made to depart when Paul turned around, “I’ll see you around Ketchum. You better get back your mojo when we next battle. And you two… I hope you won’t be so pathetic, the next time I see you. Rookies…”

Chapter Text

Back in the lab, Professor Cerise and his assistants were going gaga over the fact that Ash now has a Legendary on his team. Even Professor Oak called up and was stunned at that fact, as he got the notification.

However, Ash had other problems on his hands. Apparently, Paul’s insults cut a little deep for two of his new friends. Chloe was unaffected, since she never made a move, but Goh and Horace were fuming.

Ash had a hard time calming the two of them down and explaining that Paul was generally a bit of a jerk. He confessed, “Just be glad you didn’t come across Trip. That guy is twice as annoying and he’s often insulted Kanto.”

Horace eventually got over it, but Goh was still mad.

Later that evening, the professor soon guided them to his Pokémon park. Luckily, it also had a small cabin where Ash could stay in.

Once Ash got settled in, he released all his Pokémon, except for Lugia, Pidgeot and Fearow.

Before he could release them, Gible and Totodile pounced on him and chomped on his head. Then, Bayleef tackled him to the floor and nuzzled him.

Eventually, Charizard wrapped his arms around Bayleef’s barrel and hauled her off Ash. Then the boys managed to pry Gible and Totodile off his head.

Goh’s grumpiness briefly faded when he saw the numerous Pokémon. Ash went on to explain their stories. Though he admitted that some of his Pokémon are off training elsewhere or have been left behind to protect some areas.

Finally, he brought out Pidgeot and Fearow. The angered Beak Pokémon immediately dived to attack Ash, but Ash’s Pokémon were faster. They quickly formed a wall of muscle between Fearow and their trainer.

Then Ash decided to slowly approach the massive Pokémon, as he recognized it. He carefully stretched out his arms. The bird tensed but he didn’t flinch.

He knelt and bowed his head, “Hey Fearow, I’m really sorry for what happened all those years ago. I was just a rookie trainer at the time, I was young and stupid. I hope you’ll forgive me for throwing that stone. That’s the sole reason why I caught you, because I wanted to apologize.”

He took out Fearow’s Pokeball, “Now that I’ve got that out of the way, I’ll release you, unless you really want to come with me.”

In the background, Goh was about to protest, but Horace held him back. He whispered, “They’re having a moment, don’t ruin it.”

The raven-haired trainer was about to release the Beak Pokémon, when the bird stopped him.

He glanced up, “You want to come with me?”

It nodded, and everyone relaxed. With all forgiven, it joined the other Pokémon.

Then he remembered that he still had one more Pokémon. He turned to them and got their attention. “Hey guys! We have one new friend, and this one is special.”

He tossed the last ball, “Come on out Lugia!”

After the Pokémon got over their initial shock, they went to greet their new comrade.

As they settled down for dinner, Horace asked the one question on everyone’s minds. He queried, “Hey Ash, why did you offer to release Fearow?”

Back to his grouchy self, Goh quipped, “Yeah, that was a stupid move, because Fearow is a powerful Pokémon.”

Next to him, Chloe elbowed Goh, “Don’t be rude!”

Surprisingly, Ash was not offended, “That’s just how I operate. I don’t see Pokémon as creatures to just catch. They have feelings too, and trainers have to bond with them.”

Goh quipped back, “Well I think that it’s better to catch lots of Pokémon.”

Ash shrugged, “Suit yourself”

A Few Days Later

Professor Cerise switched on a projector to show live footage of several Bulbasaur and Ivysaurs, filling the streets.

“Alright you lot, your new assignment is to investigate where these Bulbasaur and Ivysaur are going.”

Horace asked, “How are we supposed to find them? Vermillion City is huge!”

Then, one of Ash’s Pokeballs popped open to reveal his own Bulbasaur, who took one look at the footage, turned tail and walked off. He then turned back to the group and called out, “Bulba!”.

Cerise smiled, “I guess you have your answer.”

The quartet and Pikachu followed Bulbasaur, who led them down a really twisty route. Along the way, they stumbled across an Ivysaur that was struggling to cross a wall. Instinctively, Ash went to help it, but Goh held him back, “Don’t interfere. We came here to investigate why they are behaving strangely. If you butt in like that' we're never going to find out why.”

Ash argued, "Come on! It's a Pokemon in need! We have to help it."

Goh snapped, "You can't go around trying to fix everything! You'll end up keeping a Pokemon from learning how to help itself! If someone is always saving it, it won't learn to live on its own!"

Ash was slowly beginning to lose his patience. He snapped back, "That makes no sense! If a Pokemon needs help, then I have to help!"

Goh roughly shoved him back, "Don't you get it! When a human tries to help a Pokemon in trouble because they feel sorry for it, then that's their emotions talking!"

Ash really felt like punching him, but controlled himself. He grunted, "Fine, call it what you will."

The boy relented and they watched and waited as the Ivysaur struggled. Finally, Ash’s Bulbasaur got fed up, had a quick conversation and helped it over the wall.

Soon, the quintet scaled the wall and followed the Pokémon all the way to an under-construction Pokemon Gym. Goh was not in a talkative mood and was determined to keep up his grudge. Ash just shook his head at the stubborn idiot. They all watched as all the Bulbasaur and Ivysaur used Vine Whip to climb up the scaffolding, including Ash’s.

Without any hesitation, the trainer began climbing up the scaffolding, with the others reluctantly following. He waited until they were all side-by-side and slowed his pace to match theirs.

As he climbed, Ash mentally thanked his many years of travelling, for helping his stamina. Then, Goh slipped, but Ash was quick to grab his hand and save him. At that moment, all three of them were surprised, considering that they were bickering a few minutes ago.

Eventually, they reached the top of the tower and saw the Bulbasaur and Ivysaur simply bask in the sun. They quietly observed and Horace took out a Rotomphone and began recording. Once he was done, they debated on what to do when Ash lay down next to his Bulbasaur. Chloe raised an eyebrow, he replied, “You three want to join me? The sun feels so warm.”

They obeyed, and were soon relaxing. They stayed like this for a while, when one of the Bulbasaurs began to glow. This time, Chloe whipped out her phone and began to record, and right on time too.

More and more Bulbasaur and Ivysaur were engulfed in a bright light and soon they all evolved, except for Ash’s Bulbasaur.

Suddenly, Pikachu’s ears perked up and he cried out a warning. They looked up, just in time for a net to grab a number of newly-evolved Ivysaur and Venusaur.

Goh, Tokio and Chloe cried out in shock and anger, while Ash groaned. He moaned, “Just once I would like to go on a journey without these idiots hounding me.”

The net began to get winched back to a Meowth-shaped hot air balloon, as laughter broke out. Three figures jumped down, a man and a woman, both in their early 20s, as well as a Meowth.

*Cue Team Rocket Motto*

Goh’s eyes shone, “Is that a talking Meowth!”

He started forward, ready to record, but Ash pulled him back, “Not important right now, let’s focus on getting the Ivysaur and Venusaur out”

He turned to Bulbasaur, “Just like old times, eh? Bulbasaur use Razor Leaf to free the Pokémon!”

Meowth leaped into action, “Taste my Fury Swipes, twerp!”

Before he could reach Bulbasaur, some more Razor Leaf attacks hit him. Ash glanced back to see Horace next to him with a Chikorita.

Team Rocket and Ash and Horace battled a little while longer, before Bulbasaur and Chikorita charged up a Solar Beam.  They were also helped by the other Grass Pokémon, and everyone fired a Solar Beam at the trio. As Ash predicted, they were sent ‘blasting off’.

Ash hugged Bulbasaur, “Good job buddy! I see you haven’t been slacking off!”

“Bulba!”

Then the Seed Pokémon motioned to its bulb, which began to glow. Ash’s eyes widened, he looked around frantically for an Everstone, before the Pokémon used its vine to touch Ash’s hand.

He looked at him, before it dawned on him.

“Bulbasaur? Are you sure you want this? “

He nodded, “Saur”

With that, a bright light engulfed the Pokémon, and when it died down, Bulbasaur looked a little bigger and the bulb opened up to reveal a pink flower.

“Ivysaur!”

Eventually, they all got down and Ash told them about Team Rocket, the perennial thorn in his side.

When they reached home, they delivered the data to the professor. Then Goh came up to him, “Hey Ash, I’m really sorry for how I treated you. I get that we have different ways of viewing Pokémon. Also, Paul’s words kind of got to me.”

Ash rested a hand on Goh’s shoulder, “It’s alright. I actually learned that lesson the hard way back when I competed in the Indigo League, my first Pokémon league.”

Horace nodded, “Yeah, Ritchie mentioned that.”

“Yeah, so I used to rely on Charizard a lot and I got very overconfident. It got to a point where he refused to listen to me. Only when he thought that the opponent was strong enough to battle him, he got serious.”

Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Of course, it was also mostly my fault, since I used to get very lucky in some of the gyms. In what I can only describe as shenanigans, I used to just win the badges because I helped save the gym or I lucked out. I can count on one hand, the number of REAL Gym battles I had. So, when I faced off against Ritchie, he sent out his Pikachu, Sparky. However, Charizard decided to take a nap, so I got disqualified.”

Horace winced, “Ouch, that’s rough.”

“Later on, in the Orange Islands, he went up against this strong Poliwrath, and lost. Charizard ended up getting frozen in ice, and I spent all night trying to take care of him. I think that was the point when he began to respect me as a trainer and a person. I guess I deserved that wake-up call.”

“My point is, I didn’t consider Charizard’s feelings at that time, so I had to earn his respect. That’s why I believe in bonding with Pokémon before catching them. Since then, I have never gone back to my philosophy.”

By now, Chloe’s respect for the 18-year old had skyrocketed. She marveled, “Just looking at you handle those crooks, I find it hard to believe that you lost the Alola League.”

He chuckled, “Thanks Chloe. Also, remember I mentioned about Charizard defeating Articuno? He’s not the only one on my team to beat a Legendary.”

Then he yawned, “But that’s a story for another time. I’m beat.”

Chapter Text

As he got to know his new friends better, he found out some more about Chloe. Apparently when she was in school, many often expected her to follow in her father’s footsteps and be a Pokémon Professor. Some had even pestered her, asking if she was good at battling. He sat down next to her with a sympathetic smile.

He said, “You know, you remind me of one of my friends. Her name is May from Petalburg Town in Hoenn. She wasn’t too keen on Pokémon and just wanted to travel. That changed when she discovered Pokémon Coordinating.”

Chloe tilted her head curiously, “What’s that?”

“Basically, there are two types of rounds. The Appeals Round is for the trainer to show off your Pokémon’s moves in the most beautiful and flashy way. After that is the Battle Round. This time, you face an opponent and have to defeat them while making your own moves look good.”

She nodded in understanding, “Sounds fun, but the only Pokémon I have, is Yamper. As far as I’m aware, he only knows Spark.”

He rubbed his nose, “That’s okay, I can help you train him. Also, you might need to catch some Pokémon and build your roster. The more Pokémon you have, the better.”

They were interrupted by a knock on the door and turned to see Chryssa holding a Pokeball. She said, "I hope I'm not interrupting. Anyway, there's a new assignment for you. Goh and Horace are already with the Professor. By the way Ash, on my way here, I bumped into someone called Rebecca. She said that you had lent her father one of your Pokémon to train. According to her, there's nothing more to teach."

Ash had a big grin on his face as he took the Pokéball from her. The woman whispered to him, "Also, just between the two of us, you are more than welcome to talk to me. I heard about Alola, and I have a degree in counselling, so whenever you feel like it, my door is always open."

He nodded gratefully at her and the followed her to the main room. At the head of the room, Professor Cerise clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. He said, "Good to see that everyone made it! Your next assignment is to travel to the Galar region to document something. One of my colleagues told myself, Professor Oak and other regional professors about a new Phenomena. Its called the Dynamax and Gigantamax phenomena. Are either of you familiar with it?"

Goh, Horace and Chloe shook their heads, but Ash raised a hand, "Professor Oak mentioned it to me earlier, but even he was a bit mystified."

Cerise's smile widened, "Excellent! I look forward to seeing all of your observations! Also, this is a new region so feel free to catch some new Pokemon. Don't worry about paying for your tickets, we've already covered that for you. Your flight leaves in a few hours so I'd suggest you start packing."

Goh and Horace rushed off, but Ash and Chloe took their sweet time. He asked her, "Hey, do you want to help me pick out my team?"

She eyed him skeptically, "Are you sure? I'm scared about making the wrong choices. Besides, they're your Pokemon and you're more experienced."

He grinned at her, "Hey! none of that, you hear? Like my friend Dawn always says, 'No need to worry!'."

Before long, Ash rejoined the trio with four Pokeballs clipped to his belt and his backpack had a handful of Pokéballs inside.

Before long, they touched down in Wyndon City, the capital of Galar. From there, they boarded a train to Wedgehurst, home of Professor Magnolia. The quartet idly chatted on the train for a while until they felt it ground slowly to a halt. Horace poked his head out of the window, "That's odd... There's no station. So why have we stopped in the middle of nowhere?"

An old lady passing by, happened to overhear them. She smiled at them, "Hello there. I'm assuming that this is your first time in Galar?"

Ash nodded, "Yes ma'am."

She gestured outside to a lush scenery outside the window. The woman explained, "This is known as the Wild Area. Over here, there are lots of Pokemon that can Dynamax and Gigantamax."

Goh was wide-eyed, "Wow! You know all about it?"

She chuckled, "My dear boy, I wrote an entire thesis about it"

The penny dropped for Ash and he stuck out a hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you at last, Professor Magnolia. We actually came all the way here to meet you."

She adjusted her glasses and peered sat them curiously, "Did you now? Whatever for, pray tell?"

Horace chipped in, "The Dynamax Phenomenon. We're here on behalf of Professor Cerise in Vermillion City in Kanto. He's asked to document the phenomenon."

Magnolia mused, "I see..."

Chloe asked, "Professor? What have we stopped? Has the train broken down?"

Magnolia waved a dismissive hand, "Its probably nothing my dear. Maybe its a bunch of pesky Wooloo who have wandered onto the track. Those fluffy little rascals have a habit of getting to places they shouldn't be. My granddaughter has gone ahead to talk to the train conductor and investigate the stoppage."

Just then, an orange-haired woman rushed into the compartment. After catching her breath, she exclaimed, "Gran! You won't believe this! There is a Gigantamax Snorlax lying in the middle of the track!"

Magnolia was stunned, "Good heavens!"

She turned to Ash and the gang, "My dear children, I don't suppose you could battle it and hopefully catch it, so we could be on our way?"

Ash pumped his fist, "You got it Professor! Leave it to us!"

The four Trainers sprinted for the exit. As he ran, Ash tossed two Pokeballs towards Goh and Chloe. He explained, That's Noivern and Hawlucha! Horace! Are you going to use your Chikorita?

The silver-haired boy nodded frantically. 

Right on cue, they stumbled upon a behemoth of a Snorlax with a giant apple tree growing on its massive belly. Ash dug out his Rotom phone and took some footage immediately. Once he was satisfied with the data collected, he kicked off the battle with his newly re-acquired Primeape, who hugged him before settling into a battle stance. Meanwhile, Horace sent out his Chikorita, Goh sent out Noivern and scanned its moves, Chloe did the same for Hawlucha.

Ash struck first with a Mega Kick from Primeape. Goh followed up with Noivern's Acrobatics, Horace's Chikorita used Vine Whip. Chloe froze up, and Ash nudged her, "Tell Hawlucha to use Cross Chop."

She hesitantly stammered out the move, and it obeyed her immediately. They continued attacking and Chloe slowly got more comfortable with battling. Their Pokemon did take a few hits from the Snorlax, but held on. Then it happened... A giant apple fell from the tree, bouncing off the Pokemon's belly. It then continued its journey to the ground. Except that there was a certain maroon-haired girl right in its trajectory. Chloe was so engrossed in the battle that she didn't notice the imminent danger. Goh yelled out a warning, but Ash was already moving. He tackled her out of the way and the fruit crashed down harmlessly where her body used to be.

The two rolled a few feet before stopping, with her lying on top of Ash. Brown eyes met green and they gazed at each other for a bit. Ash couldn't help noticing how pretty she was, and she lost herself gazing at his handsome face. Then they suddenly remembered the compromising position that they were win and scrambled off each other with cherry-red faces. Goh and Horace were still focused on the battle, while Hawlucha and Primeape took matters into their own hands, with their trainers temporarily indisposed.

Eventually, the Snorlax was defeated and Horace glanced at Ash, "You going to catch it?"

Ash shook his head, "I already have a Snorlax, knock yourself out."

The silver-haired boy tossed his Pokeball and confirmed the capture. Meanwhile, Ash knelt in front of Primeape, "So buddy, I'm sorry I didn't come back for you for a long time. I promise I'll be a better trainer. Anyway, what new moves have you learnt?"

He scanned the Pig Monkey with his Rotom Phone, "Huh... Mega Kick, Cross Chop, Close Combat and Rage Fist, eh? We can work with that. I'm proud of you, buddy!"

Soon, they were back on the train and moving once again. Goh and Horace were on one side of the compartment, chattering about their new capture. Ash and Chloe sat on the other end, opposite each other and avoiding eye contact. Finally, Ash got up and sat down next to her. Suddenly, she surprised him with a quick hug, which he also returned in a state of shock. Then they pulled away just as quickly, with her face burning up. Chloe mumbled, "Th-th-thanks for saving me."

Ash sheepishly responded, "No problem... I'd do it for any of my friends, and you are my friend. Besides, its not the first stupid stunt that I've done. I remember when I arrived in Kalos to start a new journey, Pikachu and I helped calm down a rampaging Garchomp. We ended up on top of Lumiose Tower and the ground caved in from under Pikachu. I-er wasn't thinking straight and just jumped off the building to try and save him. Only the timely intervention of a Mega Blaziken stopped me from being a grease stain on the ground."

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Not exactly my finest moment there. My friends Brock and Misty used to say that I was a disaster magnet. Well, it was mostly Misty who said that. According to Brock, I'm a Legendary magnet, cause Lugia isn't the first Legendary I've met, but definitely the first one I've caught."

Ash mused to himself, "Now that I think about it, maybe I should release Lugia. It wouldn't be fair to other trainers if I used him in battles."

Chloe's eyes were wide, "Is your life really THAT full of adventure?"

The boy laughed, "You don't know the half of it. Comes with the territory. Stick with me, and you're guaranteed an adventure of a lifetime, even if I'm not actively looking for it."

They sat in silence, and Chloe's cheeks reddened again as she replayed the scene in her head, over and over again. She stammered, "Umm... Hey Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"About when you saved me-"

He got the idea and his cheeks also reddened, "Yeah sorry about that awkward moment."

She waved her arms frantically, "N-no! It was my fault, I should have moved!"

He smiled, "Hey, its okay, you just froze up. It can happen to anyone. For the record you did good in your first real battle."

More awkward silence reigned when he bit the bullet and blurted out, "Would you like to go on a date with me!"

Chloe's head whipped back towards him, her face now scarlet, "Wh-what!?"

His own face burned up, "When we reach Wedghurst... Would you like to go on a date with me?"

Her heart beat faster than a Quick Attack and then she breathed, "Yes..."

He relaxed, and grinned at her as they looked forward to the rest of the trip.

Chapter Text

Before long, they reached Wedgehurst and the professor escorted them to her laboratory. When they reached, they found the orange-haired woman feeding three Pokemon, a white and orange rabbit, a green monkey and a blue lizard. After she was finished with her task, the three Pokemon scurried off to parts unknown. The quartet got seated, while the younger woman introduced herself as Sonia, the professor’s granddaughter and assistant.

Ash then initiated the discussion, “So, Professor, Sonia, could you tell us about this Dynamax and Gigantamax Phenomenon?”

Magnolia said, “Of course, young ones, follow me.”

She and Sonia led the group to her desk, where there was a strange rock emitting a red glow. The wizened old woman turned to them, “So, what do you know about Dynamax and Gigantamax?”

Goh, Horace and Chloe shrugged, however Ash raised a hand. He said, “Professor Oak gave me the bare minimum, but I still don’t know much about it, other than it’s temporary and only certain Pokemon undergo Gigantamax..”

The woman nodded and pointed to the glowing rock, ”According to my studies, that rock there, is the source of Dynamax energy. There are various power spots around Galar where you find a number of Dynamax and Gigantamax Pokemon. However, I still have to figure out why certain Pokemon, like that Snorlax, undergo Gigantamax.”

Sonia also chipped in, petting Pikachu, who was perched on her shoulder, “According to our data, your Pikachu is also capable of Gigantamax.”

The Mouse Pokemon soon jumped off and went to play with the monkey, the rabbit and the lizard, who were back.

Meanwhile, the professor dug through some drawers, before removing a few black bands. She proceeded to hand four of them to Ash and the gang, “These are Dynamax Bands, they help you control the transformation better. The bands are an invention of Chairman Rose, the head of the Galar Pokemon League. They actually harness a little bit of Dynamax Energy, which helps in controlling it.”

Just then, Sonia whispered in Magnolia’s ear, earning a mildly surprised look. Once the conference was over, Sonia turned to the teens, “So I believe that we won’t be getting any new trainers for a while. So I was hoping that some of you could take the starters. Otherwise these three scamps will grow too big for us to keep them, and I'm not overly fond of releasing them back into the wild.”

The four of them had a quick conference, resulting in Horace declining, as he already had his Snorlax. Goh stepped up first, and took the rabbit, which Sonia mentioned, was Scorbunny. Chloe went next, after Ash convinced her, and took the lizard which was named Sobble. As he was the last one, Ash took the monkey, called Grookey.

Just then, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Sonia opened it to reveal two Officer Jennys, one dress in the Kanto uniform and the other dressed in the Galarian uniform. One of them peered inside, “I’m looking for an Ash Ketchum, we wer told that he was here.”

Ash stepped forward, “That’s me, I’m not in any trouble, am I?”

The Kanto Jenny smiled, “Hardly… Ash, do you remember me?”

Then he did a double-take, “Hey! I know you! Wait… does this mean what I think it means?”

She grinned, “Yes, he wants to come back.”

The other one also stepped forward, “I actually came here for a trade. One of our Growlithe has been having some disciplinary issues. I followed your progress through the years and I am confident that you can train this Growlithe.”

Magnolia intervened, “Lucky for you, I do have a transfer machine in my laboratory.”

As they lined up, Ash asked, “Are you sure about this? I only have a bunch of Tauros that are up for trade.”

Jenny shrugged, “It’s fine, I know that Growlithe are normally associated with the police department, but some of us do have other Pokemon partners. I also know that many of my sisters who reside in Alola, have Tauros as their partners.”

“Alright then, Officer Jenny.”

Luckily, Ash had brought one of his Tauros’ Pokeballs and they initiated the trade. They stepped outside and Jenny sent out Tauros from its Pokeball before climbing on its back. Just before she set off, Ash approached it for the last time and patted its snout, "See you around, buddy. Be good for Officer Jenny."

The bull mooed and nuzzled him before trundling away with Jenny on its back. Meanwhile, Horace poked Ash's shoulder, "Hey, so what did Officer Jenny mean when she said that 'he wants to come back'. Who's 'he'?"

The first Jenny who lingered back grinned, "You'll see."

Now full of excitement, Ash dug out the other Pokeball and tossed it in the air, "Alright! Come on out! ... Blastoise?"

He eyed the giant Shellfish Pokemon in confusion, as he was clearly expecting a Squirtle. Jenny responded, "He evolved into Wartortle sometime after your adventures in the Battle Frontier. Later on, I think he got a bit jealous after watching the Kalos League. So he's been working harder ever since, and soon evolved into Blastoise."

Ash hugged Blastoise, who donned a pair of triangular sunglasses and smirked, "You did that for me? You didn't have to, but I'm happy for you."

Jenny tipped her police hat towards him, "Don't worry about the Squad. He's appointed one of his friends as the leader. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to head back and make sure that lot haven't caused any trouble."

After she left, Ash and Pikachu went to hang out with their old friend. Then, Ash sent out his new Growlithe, who instantly began gambolling about. The Puppy Pokemon darted outside, and Pikachu chased after it. Guessing what the Growlithe needed, Ash also sprinted after the two. The duo battled it out on a training battlefield, which ended up with Pikachu winning, and Growlithe working off its energy.

Later on, Goh and Horace stocked up on Pokeballs ran off to catch some Galarian Pokemon. Meanwhile, Ash and Chloe were headed to a local restaurant that Sonia had recommended for their date. After placing their orders, they sat in a slightly awkward silence. Pikachu was busying wolfing down his ketchup-topped food without a care in the world. Finally, Chloe mumbled, "Umm... You should know, I've never dated or been in a relationship before."

Ash smiled sympathetically, "I understand, cause I haven't either. I'll be honest, I had small crushes on some of my past travelling companions. However, I tried not to act on those feelings because I knew deep down that eventually when the journey ended, we would go our separate ways. I was too scared about the heartbreak of separating. Sure, some of them would insist on coming with me, but I don't want them giving up their dreams just for my sake. That would be really selfish of me."

She leaned forward, "I get it. Could you tell me about your companions? I've heard you mention some of them a few times."

Ash leaned back on his chair and gave a nostalgic sigh, "Well what can I say about them? Brock and Misty are my oldest companions and friends. Brock's a brilliant cook, and he had to be one. He's the oldest of 10 siblings and had to take care of them after his parents suddenly left the family. Also, his dad used to be the Pewter City Gym Leader, so Brock took over that role as well."

Chloe blinked in surprise, "He's a Gym Leader?"

"Was... Brock's now a Pokemon Doctor, and now one of his siblings has taken over Gym Leader duties. Fortunately, both his parents have returned."

She smiled, "That's nice to hear."

Ash continued, "Misty was my first companion. Admittedly, she only tagged along because Pikachu and I accidentally destroyed her bike. In my defence, I was escaping from an angry Spearow flock and a stray Thunderbolt from Pikachu struck her bike. Man! We sometimes got on each others nerves and argued a lot. But then she kind of grew on me and now our arguments are more playful than anything. Oh yeah, before I forget, she's the Cerulean City Gym Leader and the youngest of the Sensational Sisters. They stuck by me during the Indigo League, through my journey across Kanto. When we travelled to the Orange Islands, Brock temporarily split up to head elsewhere. Then we met Tracey, a Pokemon Watcher and he became our new travelling companion. He's a big fan of Professor Oak, so when we returned, he became the professor's assistant."

By then, their food had arrived, but Ash was not pigging out like he usually did. That was because Delia had sat him down and taught him some manners. Additionally, he didn't want to make a bad impression on Chloe.

Swallowing a bite from one of Galar's famous scones, he said, "Then Brock returned when I decided to travel to Johto. However, before my Hoenn journey, Misty had to return to her Gym. So Brock and I joined forces with May and her little brother Max. Remember I told you about her? Like I said, she didn't like Pokemon initially, but I'd like to think that I rubbed off on her. Since then, she's had a passion for Pokemon Coordinating. During our journeys, we sometimes bickered, but it was never serious. Pikachu and I accidentally fried her bike as well. Max on the other hand, he was too young, but that kid was smart. I think he should be old enough to be a trainer now."

He took a breath, "Then Brock and I travelled to Sinnoh. Over there, we met Dawn, another aspiring Coordinator. Man! That girl was always so cheerful and one of my most supportive friends. Sometimes, she used to dress up as a cheerleader for my gym battles. Rather embarrassingly, her bike also got zapped by Pikachu. Surprisingly, she wasn't that mad about it, but fortunately, the burnt bike streak ended with her. Our high-fives were pretty special and she's helped me a lot in my battles."

Slurping some pasta, Chloe asked, "How so?"

Ash replied, "Her Coordinating influenced some of my battle styles. She came up with one of my favorite moves, the Counter Shield. In essence, you take a move like Thunderbolt and Pikachu spins on his back while performing the move. It provides good defence and attack at the same time. Then I travelled to Unova. It was the first time I was without Brock or any of my other companions. I did meet up with Cilan, one of the Striaton City Gym Leaders, and we travelled together. Also with us was Iris, from the Village of Dragons. At first, she was a bit annoying, constantly teasing and belittling me. In hindsight, I probably deserved it because I wasn't such a great trainer in Unova. Since then though, our fights became more playful."

"In Kalos, I met the Lumiose City Gym Leader Clemont and his little sister Bonnie. Clemont's an inventor, though sometimes his inventions had a tendency to blow up. Bonnie, if I'm being honest, was a miniature version of Brock, and not in a good way. One thing I forgot to mention about Brock is that he's a massive flirt. Bonnie used to do the same thing, though it was to try and find a girlfriend for Clemont, much to his embarrassment."

He paused to snicker at the memories. Ash continued, "I also reunited with an old friend of mine. Her name is Serena and we first met at Professor Oak's Summer Camp. Serena was a massive help because she kept motivating me through my journey."

Ash's cheeks then reddened, "Chloe, I have a confession... Serena was my first kiss. This happened just as I was leaving Kalos and she was heading to Hoenn."

Chloe shook her head and smiled, "Ash... I'm not mad. Its obvious that you care about all of them. We've not known each other for long, so there's no point in me being jealous of that."

The boy then quickly changed the subject, "Finally, I went to the Alola region. Over there, I enrolled in a Pokemon School. Man, I loved it there and it was like a second home to me. I even made a few friends, like Kiawe, Sophocles, Mallow, Lana, Lillie and Gladion."

Chloe was now enraptured, "Tell me more!"

"Kiawe is a great friend and one of my rivals. He also taught me about the power of Z-Moves and about respecting the Alolan culture. Sophocles is also a bit of an inventor and he's fun to be around. Gladion though, has to be one of my toughest rivals. His Silvally was a tough Pokemon to defeat. Then we have Lana, who's a bit of a prankster, if I'm being honest. She also loves Water Types and is quite loyal. Mallow is a great cook, and sometimes felt like the glue that held everyone together. I also asked her for some cooking lessons because I began to realise that there may be times when I can't rely on her or Brock any more. Finally, there was Lillie. She's Gladion's sister and for a long time, she couldn't even touch Pokemon. It all kind of boiled down to a traumatic incident in her childhood. But since then, we've been able to help her get over her phobia. She's really smart, but that phobia held her back sometimes. Of course, she does get a little uncomfortable with unfamiliar Pokemon, but once she gets to know them, she's cool."

Ash finally leaned back, his jaw aching, "Man! I feel like I've been talking for hours. I hope I didn't bore you."

Chloe shook her head with a smile, "No no, it was nice to hear about your friends. I'd love to meet them all someday."

The couple finished their meal shortly, while making small talk, where Chloe opened up on her own family. Finally, they paid the bill and headed off to reunite with Goh and Horace.

Chapter Text

After their Galar adventure, they returned and delivered the data to the professor and his assistants. As the days passed, Ash and Chloe’s bond grew deeper. The best part was that when they told the professor, he didn’t mind at all and gave his blessing.

One fine morning, the professor asked them to head to the Viridian Forest and document some Bug-Type Pokemon. With that, Goh rushed off and bought a box full of Pokeballs.

Surprisingly, Ash took just a few Pokeballs, leaving Goh to divide the rest between himself, Horace, and Chloe, who was texting on her Rotom Phone, begrudgingly took a couple. With that, they elected to walk to the Viridian Forest.

After a few hours, they reached the outskirts, before Ash stopped them. He turned to the others, “So, how are we doing this? Do we split up or stick together?”

Horace was in favour of splitting up, but Goh suggested that they stick together. His reasoning was that the Viridian Forest was huge and it would be easy to get lost. Additionally, when catching Pokemon, there would be no overlap of data in the form of them catching the same species.

Before long, Goh bagged himself a Caterpie, a Paras, a Scyther and a Pinsir. Meanwhile, Horace snagged a Metapod, a Venomoth and a Parasect. Ash was under no obligation to catch any Pokemon, so chose to simply walk around.

Just then, he heard Goh shout, “Aha! I see two Butterfree there, I’m gonna catch them”.

Ash turned and spotted two very familiar Butterfree in the distance. He rushed forward to get a closer look, Chloe right on his heels. Sure enough, he saw a Butterfree with a yellow scarf around its neck. Right next to him was a Pink Butterfree.

The two Pokemon spotted the young man and fluttered over to him. Ash was about to speak when a Pokeball came sailing over his head and struck the yellow-scarved Butterfree. The Pallet Town native gazed in horror as the bug got sucked inside and the ball shook twice. Then it burst open and he breathed a sigh of relief. Ash then heard a disappointed groan, “Darn! Almost had it!”

Butterfree was not amused, and even Ash was mad. He exploded, “Do you mind? He is my Pokemon! I released him to take part in the Butterfree migration and to be with the pink one, his mate.”

Goh had the decency to look sheepish. However, Ash wasn’t done, “I get that you want to capture every Pokemon, but you don’t just around wildly throwing Pokeballs at every one that you see.”

Having finished his rant, he turned back to the Butterfly Pokemon, who promptly glomped him with a hug. Ash laughed and he and Pikachu hugged the bug back, before the human took out an empty Pokeball, “What do you say buddy, want to come back?”

Just then, they heard some giggling and turned to see the pink Butterfree nestled on top of Chloe’s head. He grinned, “Hey Chloe, I think she likes you. Why not catch her.”

The Shiny Pokemon fluttered down to the ground and she crouched down and held a Pokeball out, “Do you want to come with me?”

It nodded and tapped the ball, getting sucked in and confirming the capture right away. At the same time, Ash’s Butterfree also decided to come back home.

Goh was still a little grouchy at the lost opportunity, but Ash explained that Bug Types generally evolved pretty quickly. He admitted, “I mean, I caught him as a Caterpie and he evolved into Butterfree before I even left the Viridian forest.”

That managed to placate the dark-haired boy, and he promptly rushed off to catch some more Pokemon. Horace simply sighed and jogged after him.

Ash and Chloe continued walking through the forest, though the former was a bit moody that his first Pokemon friend, aside from Pikachu, was nearly taken from him due to some idiot’s impulsiveness.

He turned to the maroon-haired girl, “You’ve known Goh for long?”.

She nodded and replied, “Honestly, I’m not surprised by this stunt. He was always too impulsive and loves to think of himself as a Pokemon expert. However, he doesn’t really get out much, and was practically a shut-in. It was only when he met Horace that he finally. Began to be a bit more outgoing. Without Horace, Goh is out of control.”

Ash’s mood lightened a little, “Goh reminds me of myself when I started on my Pokemon journey.”

She grumbled, “Even at 18, he is still so immature.”

Her companion simply smiled, “Hey, it’s good to stay in touch with your inner child once in a while. Goh will grow out of it, and I’m sure Horace will help him.”

Just as they reached a clearing, they heard faint screaming, which steadily grew louder. She clutched his arm, “W-What was that? That sounded like Horace”

He gulped, “My best guess, they must have pissed off a Beedrill hive.”

Sure enough, they spotted a dust cloud on the horizon, which slowly grew bigger. Chloe stuttered, “What do we do?”

Ash and Pikachu slowly backed away, “Running would be a good idea.”

She noticed and began to back away, as well. Then, Goh and Horace were visible, and they were running like Zubats out of hell. There was also a whole swarm of Beedrill chasing the two boys. Taking that as their cue, Ash and Chloe turned tail and bolted, with Pikachu clinging to Ash’s shoulder for dear life.

The chase raged on for what seemed like hours, until the Beedrill eventually gave up at the edge of the forest. However, the quartet and Pikachu did not know that and continued running.

They didn’t stop running, even when they reached the city. Then, Ash rounded a corner and ran headlong into someone with a *THUMP*. The other three also crashed into him.

All five went down with a collective, “OOF!”

Ash was up on his feet in an instant, “Sorry! Sorry! We just got chased by a Beedrill swarm and- Misty?”

The newcomer’s head snapped up, revealed a familiar face with orange hair. She beamed, “Ash! Pikachu! So good to see you!”

She wrapped him in a hug and Pikachu jumped onto her shoulder. Then, she frowned and punched his shoulder. She yelled angrily, “Why didn’t you tell us you were back!? You think you can just disappear and reappear just like that without telling us?!”

Ash chuckled and suddenly hugged her back, “Still the same old Misty… One moment, she is happy to see you, the next moment she wants to rip off your head.”

She responded in the most mature way that she could, blowing a raspberry. Ash suddenly blinked, “Oh that’s right! These are my new friends, Goh, Horace and Chloe.”

The orange-haired girl turned to them and waved, “Hi, nice to meet you all. I'm Misty, co-Gym Leader at the Cerulean City Gym”

They responded politely and introduced themselves, before Ash turned to them, “Hey guys, you go on ahead, I’ll catch up.”

The trio shuffled away, unbeknownst to Ash, Chloe had a small smirk on her face.

Turning back to Misty he struck up a conversation as they walked, “So I heard from Daisy that you were in Sinnoh.”

She grinned, “I found lots of cute Water types there-” However she soon scowled, “-but then a call from Brock scared a Gorebyss away. I was tracking that thing for three days!”

He patted her back sympathetically. Then, as afternoon slowly shifted to evening, they entered a park, she shifted the conversation to him, “So how have you been? Daisy told me that you wanted to talk.?”

His mood instantly shifted and she picked up on it immediately. Tilting her head, she asked, “Hey… What’s wrong?”

The two of them found a bench and sat down, “Don’t know if Brock told you, but I made it as far as the final at the Manalo Conference in Alola. Second time in a row that I’ve reached, but I screwed it up at the end.”

Pikachu hopped onto Ash’s lap and he unconsciously began to pet the mouse. Meanwhile, Misty was taken aback, she had never seen him so broken before.

Instinctively, she wrapped an arm around him and gave him a hug. He mumbled, “Honestly, I really thought I could do it this time. I let myself down and I feel like I let everyone down.”

The Cerulean gym leader interrupted him firmly, “Ash… You didn’t let anyone down. I remember back in the Indigo League; you were just a rookie. Top 16 for a beginner is an impressive feat, even with a disobedient Charizard. My point is, look how far you’ve come since then. Dawn still feels that you could have won if Tobias hadn’t shown up. Listen, if anyone asks, I’m going to deny I ever said this, but you are a great trainer. That Pokemon Championship will come eventually. “

He snorted, “Thanks Mist. You always know what to say. The thing is, I still don’t feel like I’m ready yet. I know that Professor Oak told me about the Galar League, which is still some time away, but I really needed this internship just to take my mind off from battling for a while.”

They stayed like that for a while, until she asked, “So what else is new with you?”

He waved a hand dismissively, “Oh you know, I reunited with Pidgeot, Primeape, Squirtle and Butterfree. Also, Squirtle’s a Blastoise now. According to Officer Jenny, he evolved into Wartortle sometime after the Battle Frontier, and eventually into Blastoise when I was in Kalos.”

Her eyes shone, “That’s wonderful!”

“Also, I put most of my Tauros up for trade and the first Pokemon I got was a Growlithe. I also got one of the Galar starters, the Grass-Type Pokemon, Grookey. By the way, Butterfree’s mate has chosen Chloe as her trainer. “

As they sat together, the two of them could not help noticing how much the other changed. Ash’s face became a lot more rugged, and handsome, Misty had to admit to herself.

Meanwhile, Misty herself had grown into a beautiful woman. All those years of swimming did wonders to her body, blessing her with a shapely figure and long legs.

Just then she blurted, “Ash there’s something I wanted to tell you.”

He turned to her, “What’s that?”

She blushed a little, “I- er… I really like you… As more than a friend. The other girls do too”

His cheeks reddened, but his eyes shone a little, “Really?”

She nodded a little too quickly.

However, his shoulders sagged a little, “I really like you and the others too, Mist. But the thing is, I’m actually dating Chloe.”

Suddenly, Chloe’s voice sounded near them, and they jumped. The maroon-haired girl giggled, “It’s okay Ash, I’m not mad at you. I know you’ve known Misty and your other friends longer. Also, I’m willing to share.”

He raised an eyebrow, “Really? That’s a thing?”

This time Misty chuckled, “Yeah it is, Brock is actually in a relationship with Suzy, Pike Queen Lucy and another girl called Holly. They all know and are okay with it.”

Ash did a double-take, “Wait, wait, wait… Brock’s in a relationship? The same Brock who would go love crazy and end up getting dragged away by you, Max or Croagunk? That Brock?”

She snickered, “Yeah… surprised me too.”

He grinned, “Well… This isn’t how I envisioned my day ending. But hey… I’m not complaining.”

The two girls sat on either side of him and leaned on each shoulder. They remained like that until evening came and they watched the sunset together.

Chapter Text

Just then, Misty dug into her pocket and fished out a Pokeball, “Oh! I almost forgot. This is from Serena, she said that your Goodra wanted to come back. Unfortunately, she couldn’t find your Greninja. Instead, she ran into this Pokémon called Squishy who told her that Greninja’s work is nearly done. I’m not sure what she meant by that, though.”

Ash got up and took the Pokeball, “Thanks Misty, be sure to thank Serena for me.”

Before long, the three of them had to part ways. Just before she left, Misty called out to them, “Hey Ash! Next time you are about to have some kind of crazy adventure, give us a call!. I’m sure the others agree with me, because it’s getting a little boring without you around!.”

He grinned back, “Definitely!”

A few days later, Ash’s Pokémon reacquainted themselves with the returning Goodra. Talonflame, Hawlucha and Noivern were particularly thrilled to see their old friend back.

One fine day, Ash’s Pokémon, including Mimey were busy performing some exercises. After a while, Goh, Horace and Chloe decided to join in, with their Pokémon. It was easy to distinguish between Ash and Horace’s Snorlaxes because Ash’s was bigger.

An hour later, Ash came rushing over, waving a bunch of tickets in his hand. He hollered, “Guys! Pack your bags! We’re off to Hoenn! I got a call from one of my friends, and she said that there’s a tournament called the Flute Cup. I’m going to go participate, you guys in?”

Horace grinned, “Count me in, though not for the tournament.”

Goh shot to his feet as well, “Me too! I’d love to catch some Hoenn Pokémon! And I suppose I’ll give battling a try.”

Ash then grabbed Goh’s arm, “Hey, just promise me one thing. Don’t just go around randomly throwing Pokeballs. I want to avoid another Butterfree incident. I don’t think he’s fully forgiven you for that. Also, the last thing we need is for you to be accused of trying to catch a Pokémon that belongs to someone else. That’s called stealing.”

The boy nodded, “Got it! I learned my lesson.”

One flight later, they quartet touched down in Slateport City, where the tournament was taking place. Close to the venue, a pair of voices called out to them, “Hey Ash! Over here!”

Ash spun on his heels and a broad grin plastered itself on his face, “May! Max! So good to see you guys again!”

The three old friends hugged it out, though May had a small blush on her face. As they broke the hug, she quickly composed herself before anyone noticed.

She turned to the others, “You must be Goh, Horace and Chloe, it’s nice to meet you. I’m May, a Top Coordinator, and this is my brother, Max.”

The three newcomers waved back.

Lacing his hands behind his head, Ash asked, “So Max, are you going to participate in the Flute Cup?”

The boy nodded excitedly, “Yep! I can’t wait to face you at last! By the way, I entered the Hoenn League last year and ended up in the Top 8!”

Ash ruffled Max hair, “That’s awesome! You did far better than I did in my first Pokémon League. I only made it as far as the Top 16. I probably would have been a little higher if I was a better trainer.”

May smacked the back of Ash’s head and scolded, “Don’t sell yourself short, Ash! You’ve improved a lot, plus I have you to thank for helping me on my journey.”

Just then, there was a cry of delight, “Whoa! I’ve never seen those Pokémon!”

Ash and May turned to see Max getting uncomfortably close to Goh’s Scorbunny, Chloe’s Yamper and her Sobble, and trying to hug them. The brunette smacked a palm across her forehead, “Oh great! Here he goes again. I am not going to save his butt this time.”

Sure enough, a terrified Sobble turned invisible out of fear. Scorbunny wriggled out of Max’s grip, raced behind and kicked him in the buttocks. Finally, Yamper hit him with a Spark attack.

May sighed and dragged her twitching brother back, “That’ll teach you to respect a Pokémon’s personal space.”

After Max recovered, Ash asked, “So what does your roster look like, Max?”

He counted from his fingers, “My starter, Mudkip, who’s now a Marshtomp, Shuppet, Mightyena, Breloom, Kirlia, and Vigoroth. Shuppet, Mightyena, Breloom and Kirlia are the same Pokémon we encountered before. Vigoroth was a gift from Dad.”

Ash fist-pumped, “Awesome! I can’t wait to have a battle with you.”

Then, May coughed deliberately, “That’s all well and good, but you two have to register first.”

The two boys rubbed the back of their heads sheepishly before heading off to register. Even Goh decided to join them, after much coaxing from Horace and Ash.

With the boys gone, May casually sidled up to Chloe, “I take it that Ash knows?”

The maroon-haired girl nodded and May grumbled, “Damnit Misty! We were all supposed to confess together! I guess she got impatient and jumped the gun. Iris is not going to be happy.”

Chloe asked her, “So what will you be up to, after the tournament is over?”

May tapped her chin thoughtfully, “Hmm… I know that Dawn, Serena and I are tasking a brief hiatus from Contests. The thing is, we were starting to get burnt out because we’ve been doing this for years. I hadn’t seen Mom, Dad or Max in ages, so I wanted to take a break. I was hoping that Max and I could travel back with you guys.”

Her face soured a little, “Of course, my ex-boyfriend, Drew, didn’t take the news of my hiatus too well. He went on and on about some Tauros crap that I’m not taking Coordinating seriously. That was actually the real reason why we broke up, because he was treating me less as a girlfriend and more as a rival. Harley couldn’t care less, but Solidad was quite supportive. I think Dawn’s friend Zoey also encouraged her to take a break.”

The boys soon returned, and Goh was looking quite fired u;. May cocked an eyebrow, “What’s up with him?”

Ash waved a dismissive hand, “Oh its nothing really. Goh’s just found himself a new rival. Some guy called Hodge from Lavaridge town. Goh was so mad that he had to rush off and catch three Wurmple and a Taillow to calm himself down.”

Chloe tilted her head curiously, “Why three Wurmple? Isn’t one enough?”

May jumped in to explain, “It mostly has to do with their evolution line. Wurmple can evolve into either Silcoon or Cascoon, and its usually luck of the draw. Back when Max and I travelled with Ash and Brock, I caught a Wurmple. Eventually, she evolved into Silcoon and later into a Beautifly.”

“Oh, I see!”

Finally, the tournament began in earnest. Ash and Pikachu breezed through the first round, as did Max. However, Goh was drawn up against Hodge right at the start. To say that Hodge massacred Goh, would be a gross understatement. Goh sent out his Scyther against Hodge’s Mightyena.

In the stands, Max observed that Goh had a type advantage, and should win easily. However, Ash had his doubt and predicted that Goh didn’t stand a chance. Sure enough, Goh ordered a Swords Dance to boost Scyther’s attack. However, Mightyena were on the offensive straightaway. With a single Fire Fang, Scyther was defeated.

Max’s jaw dropped, “B-B-But… How?! Scyther had a type advantage! This should have been easy! How long has he had that Scyther?”

Ash winced in sympathy, “Was afraid of this. Goh recently caught it, and as far as I’ve observed, he hasn’t battled much.”

They group focused on the match again, as Goh sent out Scorbunny. Unfortunately, his time on the battlefield was also short-lived. Returning his fallen Pokémon, Goh tottered up and shook hands with Hodge and then trudged away. Upon entering the tunnel to the locker rooms, he broke into a sprint.

Horace shot to his feet, “I’ll go and talk to him.”

Ash followed suit, “I’m coming too, my match isn’t going to take place until much later.”

The boys soon caught up to their distressed companion outside the stadium. Horace wrapped an arm around his friend’s shoulders and whispered, “It’s okay, it’s okay. I know it’s hard, but you can still get better from there.”

Goh simply mumbled, “Maybe I’m better off just catching Pokémon instead of battling.”

Ash hung back and elected to let Horace handle things. Finally, he walked forward and placed a hand on Goh’s shoulder, “Yeah, the first loss is never easy, buddy. I know what it feels like. In case you had forgotten, I took this internship because I missed out on being Pokémon Champion so many times. Don’t let this one loss break you.”

Goh wiped his eyes and Ash smiled warmly, “Come on, let’s get back. The others will probably be worried. If you want, I can help train you and your Pokémon. Horace, you’re welcome to join us too.”

The trio walked back to the stadium, just in time to seen Max beat his quarterfinal opponent with his Vigoroth. May spotted them, “Just in time! Ash, your match is next.”

He dropped the two boys in the stands and rushed off with Pikachu perched on his shoulder. Eventually, it was the semifinal round, and Ash was drawn against Max. The winner would meet Hodge in the final, who decimated his opponent with a Hariyama.

The two former companions stood on opposite ends of the field. Max grinned and called out, “This is it huh, Ash! We’re finally going to battle each other, just like we promised.”

Ash pumped a fist, “You got that right! Now show me what you’ve got!”

Max tossed a Pokeball, “Shuppet! Let’s go!”

Ash responded, “Blastoise! I choose you!”

Blastoise kicked thing off with a Water Pulse, but Shuppet countered with Shadow Ball. Blastoise then nailed Shuppet in the face with a Hydro Pump, before the latter landed a hit with Sucker Punch. Ash used Hydro Pump again, but Max countered with Will-O-Wisp. Then Max tried two Shadow Sneak attacks, with the first one hitting. However, Blastoise dodged the second one and returned fire with an Ice Punch. On and on, they continued, until both were panting. Finally, an Icy Wind and Will-O-Wisp attack resulted in both fainting.

Ash and Max returned their fainted Pokémon and sent out fresh legs. Namely, Pikachu and Vigoroth respectively.

Max struck first and the Wild Monkey Pokémon used Fury Swipes. Pikachu barely had time to defend, and took damage. After his best friend assured that he was alright, Ash ordered a Quick Attack. Both Pokémon then traded blows, with Pikachu firing a flurry of Thunderbolts, Quick Attacks and Iron Tails. Vigoroth responded with Fury Swipes, Slash, Focus Energy and Throat Chop.

Feeling a little emboldened, Max called out, “Give it up Ash! I know all of your tactics! I know that you’re just building up for a Volt Tackle!”

Vigoroth and Pikachu were both panting heavily. However, Ash smirked, “Hey Max! You might want to update that information! Pikachu! Use Electroweb!”

With fire burning in his eyes, Pikachu wound up and fired off an Electroweb at Vigoroth. The normally speedy Pokémon could barely dodge, as it was too tired, and it promptly fainted. Meanwhile, Max’s eyes widened from behind his glasses, “Has it really been that long? When did Pikachu learn that!?”

As they collected their respective Pokémon, Ash said, “I’ll tell you later, that’s a promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

The boys shook on it and headed back to the locker rooms.

Finally, it was Ash facing Hodge in the final. The two of them sent out Mimey and Hariyama respectively. Up in the stands, Max adjusted his glasses, “I think Ash might win this. Admittedly, I’ve never seen Mimey in a battle before, but Psychic Types are resistant to Fighting Types, and Fighting Types are weak to Psychic Types.”

Hodge decided to start things off and ordered a Force Palm. To everyone’s amazement, Mimey effortlessly dodged it. Now getting frustrated, Hodge ordered a flurry of Force Palms. However, Mimey displayed surprising flexibility and dodged them all.

Horace then observed, “Hey guys! Remember the other day when Ash’s Pokémon were training? I think Mimey is using the same techniques to dodge.”

Then, Ash ordered a Focus Punch and Mimey’s fist planted itself on Hariyama’s belly. Hodge grit his teeth, “It’s close! Arm Thrust!”

“Reflect!”

“Arm Thrust again!”

“Keep using Reflect until I tell you otherwise!”

This carried on until Hariyama was practically trapped. May and Max couldn’t help but chuckle, “Should have seen this coming. Only Ash is capable of pulling off such an insane strategy.”

Finally, Ash ordered the finishing blow, “Mimey, use Psychic!”

With a slightly feral grin, “Mr Mime lifted the immobilized Hariyama in the air and slammed him down for a knock out.”

Hodge sent out his Mightyena, and Mimey suddenly chickened out. Sweat dropping, Ash returned Mr. Mime, “Thanks Mimey, get a good long rest, Pikachu and I will take it from here, won’t we, buddy?”

Pikachu fist-pumped and bounded into the arena. Once again, Hodge attacked first and Mightyena used Snarl. Pikachu swiftly dodged it with Quick Attack and countered with Iron Tail that was met with a Crunch.

The Mouse Pokémon followed it up with a Thunderbolt that was strong enough to blow a hole in the ceiling. Suddenly, Hodge ordered a Sucker Punch, and Mightyena complied by running in circles before headbutting Pikachu into the air.

Ash quickly ordered an Electroweb on the ceiling. Pikachu effectively used the Electroweb as a catapult and shot downwards to Mightyena. On the way down, he somersaulted while charging an Iron Tail. The attack slammed straight into Mightyena and sent up a huge plume of dust. When it finally cleared, Mightyena had fainted, handing the win to Ash and Pikachu.

Max, Goh and Horace high-fived, while May and Chloe hugged each other and cheered, “He did it! He did it!”

After the award ceremony, the group walked for a bit. Ash turned to the siblings, “So Max, May, what are you two going to do now?”

The two shared a look before sheepishly scuffing the ground with their toes. May spoke, “Umm… You see… the thing is, the two of us want to hang out with you guys for a bit in Kanto. If that’s okay with you.”

Ash glanced at the other three, who nodded. Knowing his answer, he grinned, “We’d love to have you guys come with us. Would your parents mind though?”

Max nonchalantly waved off the concern, “It’ll be fine. Mom and dad know you and trust you. I’m sure they’ll let us come.”

That gave May an idea, so she whipped out her Rotom Phone and dialed her parents. She and Max walked away from the group for a bit while the call was underway. Eventually they returned and nodded excitedly. Soon, all six of them, Pikachu and Goh’s Scorbunny were on a plane back to Kanto.

Chapter Text

The days passed by and Max and May proved to be very useful in the lab. Even Misty came by from time to time to help out. One fine day, Ash and company were busy washing all of the Pokémon in the park. Meanwhile, Goh was busy trying to catch Pokémon somewhere near the docks.

Suddenly, there was a loud “LUP!!!!”, and a small blue, white and blubbering blur tackled Pikachu in a hug. Ash and company looked towards the commotion and spotted a Piplup crying its eyes out, with Goh chasing after the Pokémon and panting.

Ash tilted his head in confusion, “What’s a Piplup doing all the way out here in Kanto? And why is he hugging Pikachu?”

Misty, May and Max shrugged, but then Pikachu tugged on Ash’s trouser and pointed to Piplup.

That’s when Ash got the message, “Wait… this is Dawn’s Piplup?”

“Pika-Pikachu!”

“Piplup-Pip”

He knelt and pet the Penguin Pokémon as the others crowded around him. Ash spoke, “Hey Piplup, what are you doing here? Where’s Dawn?”

Just then, Ren came running over and hollered out, “Ash! There’s a call for you! It’s from a friend of yours, I think her name is Dawn!”

Ash called back, “I’ll be right over! Come on Piplup, let’s tell Dawn that you’re safe.”

He scooped up the penguin, and Pikachu took his usual spot on his shoulder. With that, he and the others headed back to the lab. When they entered, a familiar face showed up on the monitors, and she looked pretty panicked.

As soon as his face came on screen, she babbled hysterically, “Ash! Oh, thank Arceus! Have you seen Piplup anywhere? He-”

He placated her, “No need to worry, Dawn. I’ve got him with me, but what’s he doing all the way out here in Kanto?”

She slumped with relief, “Oh Piplup! I was so worried about you when you ran away! The thing is, Ash, he and Pachirisu got into a bit of a fight, and they ended up attacking each other. Pachirisu wound up getting a bump on his head, so I had to treat him first. When I turned back to attend to Piplup, he was gone. I’m so glad you guys found him!”

Ash suddenly had a thought, “Where are you, anyway?”

“Snowpoint City. There’s a small event here called the Pokémon Iceberg Race. You should come with some of your Water Types.”

Upon hearing that, Misty shoved Ash out of view and squealed, “Water Types! I’m in!”

Finding his face buried in a couch, Ash groaned, “Misty!!!! You’re worse than Bianca. At least there’s no waterbody for me to fall into.”

After May helped him up, Ash turned to Dawn, “Hey Dawn! we’ll be there soon. I just need to pick out my Pokémon. Hey Misty! Can you give me a hand?”

The orange-haired girl nodded, while Dawn ended the call from her end. Before long, Ash and Misty returned to the Pokémon park, before he got the attention of Ivysaur.

“Hey Ivysaur, can you get all the Water Types to come over here?”

“Ivy- SAUR!!!!” the Pokémon nodded, before firing a weak Solar Beam, which appeared to be blue in color.

Like clockwork, all the Water Types began to rush over, with Blastoise leading the charge. Before long, they all gathered in a line, while Ash and Misty discussed between themselves.

Running a finger under her chin, she mused, “If I’m being honest, the only realistic Pokémon you can field are Buizel, Corphish or maybe Totodile. I don’t know how good Kingler is at swimming, Oshawott and Palpitoad will be at a disadvantage because of their small size, and I’m not sure about Blastoise’s speed either.”

He nodded, “Yeah I kind of agree with you there. I was leaning more towards Buizel, since he is pretty quick, but I wanted to give someone else a shot. I’m thinking of entering with Totodile. Remember back in Altomare, he was quite fast?”

“I do, Totodile’s a good choice. Also, if you ask me, it looks like he is close to evolving.”

Ash grinned, “Thanks Mist!”

She grinned back, until Ash blinked, “Oh right! We got to go!”

They scrambled away from the park and split up to get ready. Soon, everyone was at the docks and waiting to depart. In the meantime, Goh caught a Mantyke, while Misty befriended and caught a Tentacool.

After a fairly long trip, they finally touched down at Snowpoint City. As they stepped off the gangplank, they heard a familiar voice call out, “Ash! Guys! Over here!”

With a broad grin, Ash turned and spotted Dawn running towards him. He and Pikachu charged straight towards her. Screeching to a halt, she raised her arm and winked. He got the hint and they performed their signature high-five.

Just then, Piplup wriggled out of Misty’s arms and ran straight into Dawn’s arms. She cuddled the penguin and cooed, “I’m so sorry Piplup! I know you got jealous when I attended to Pachirisu. Remember, you’re my starter and oldest friend, I would never abandon you. No need to worry, I gave him a ticking off since he started the fight.”

Then, she took out a Pokeball and released the electric squirrel. Dawn placed her hands on her hips before sternly talking to the Pokémon, “Now… what do you have to say for yourself, mister!”

The Electric-Type solemnly chittered an apology and Piplup appeared to forgive him.

They hugged it out, and Dawn smiled. She turned to the gang and introduced herself to the new faces. The dark blue-haired girl then chirped, “So, are you guys taking part in the Iceberg race? I’m entering with Piplup.”

Suddenly, there was another *Pop*, and a brown blur tackled Pikachu off of Ash’s shoulder.

“Pika!”

“Buneary!!!!!”

Ash couldn’t help but chuckle, “I guess she still hasn’t got over it, huh?”

Dawn merely giggled, but Goh looked lost, “What’s going on here?”

Dawn fielded the question, “Buneary’s got a bit of a crush on Pikachu.”

May, Misty and Chloe cooed in response with hearts in their eyes. Pikachu simply sweat-dropped as the bunny continued nuzzling him.

Having had their fun, everyone made their way to the edge of the pier, before Misty sent out a Luvdisc, that she called Caserin, and May took out her Wartortle. Ash also brought out Totodile, who began dancing around, as always. Goh revealed his newly-caught Mantyke, but Chloe’s Sobble immediately turned invisible. Sweat-dropping, she returned the Water Lizard Pokémon, “Sorry guys, I’m going to have to forfeit…”

The gang went off to register and boarded a ship. Meanwhile, the Pokémon took their places at the start line. The gang exchanged glances before grinning, Dawn quipped, “Whatever happens in the race, no hard feelings?”

Ash, Misty, May and Goh nodded in assent as they waited for the flag to drop. Meanwhile, Horace, Chloe and Max waited in the stands. Just then, Max spotted a small ship, half-hidden behind an iceberg.

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously and tugged on Chloe’s and Horace’s shirts. They leaned over to listen to the boy, “Is that ship supposed to be there? I don’t see any other ship aside from the one the others are on.”

Horace nodded, “You’re right.”

Max grumbled, “I hope to Arceus it's not Team Rocket, I’ve had enough of them to last a lifetime.”

Back with the others, the flag dropped and all the Pokémon were off. Caserin took an early lead, with Piplup and Totodile hot on its wake. The small Pokémon was surprisingly agile and it was able to navigate the course.

The race was fairly close with several Pokémon swapping the lead. Heading into the final lap, disaster struck, as race leader, Wartortle suddenly got caught in a large net. Every other Pokémon got caught as well, since they were all so close together.

There was a cry of shock from everyone on the ship. Just then, the hidden ship came into view, as a bunch of burly men hauled up the net filled with struggling Pokémon. One of them, presumably the leader, let out an uproarious laugh. He grinned smugly, “Good catch boys! All these Water Types will fetch a hefty price on the market!”

Ash wasted no time and yelled out, “Totodile! You know what to do!”

The Big Jaw Pokémon nodded, and soon, there was a massive *Chomp*, followed by the sound of several Pokémon tumbling into the sea from a gaping hole.

The ringleader pulled at his hair in frustration, “Curses! Damn that pesky Totodile! We’re not letting you get away so easily!”

He threw out a Beartic, while his minions called out an assortment of Pokémon. They ranged from a Conkeldurr to a Machamp to a Shiftry and many more.

Goh’s Mantyke raced up to the trainers' ship and caught Ash’s eye. The trainer nodded and glanced at Pikachu on his shoulder, “You ready for this, buddy?”

Pikachu flexed his arms, “Pika-Pikachu!”

He bounded off Ash’s shoulder and onto Mantyke. The two raced back and joined a bunch of miffed-looking Pokémon. Suffice to say, the battle was fierce, but the various Water-Types were victorious. While the battle raged, Chloe, Horace and Max rushed off to call the police. Suddenly, in the middle of the fight, there was a bright light. When it died down, an angry Croconaw floated where Totodile used to be. Misty winked at Ash, “Told you so.”

Just as the battle ended, a patrol boat drove up, and a number of Officer Jenny’s swarmed the poachers. Owing to the chaos, the race was called off, and the results were counted back to the previous lap.

As a result, a trainer’s Croagunk got the victory as it was leading on the previous lap. Croconaw was second, millimeters ahead of Wartortle and Piplup respectively.

When they returned from the ship, Ash asked Dawn whether she would like to come back to Kanto with them. She was only too happy to accept, and rushed off to let her mother know.

Back in Kanto, the gang returned, and the newcomer moved into a small cottage at Cerise Park, where Ash and the others were lodged. Ash scanned his newly-evolved Croconaw and noted its moves.

Just as he lay on his king-size bed, he thought to himself, 'Man! What a day! Maybe I’ll join Goh and Horace one day and catch some Pokémon of my own.'

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door. As he granted permission to enter, Misty, May, Dawn and Chloe walked in wearing nightgowns. He raised an eyebrow, “Hey girls, what are you all doing here?”

Dawn began to bashfully draw circles on the floor with her toe, “We were hoping to spend the night with you, Ash. If that isn’t a problem.”

He gave a gentle smile and gestured, “Come on in then.”

The four girls crawled into the bed, Misty behind him, Dawn in front of him, and May and Chloe on top of him. After much adjustment, they formed one giant cuddle pile.

He gazed at all of them before throwing caution into the wind. In a daring move, even for himself, he pecked the four girls on their cheeks. Their eyes widened, and a split-second later, his did too. Ash’s face turned blood-red, “Sorry girls, don’t know what came over me-”

Misty was the first to react, as she crashed her lips on his. When the orange-haired girl finally pulled away, they gasped of air, before she grinned, “You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that!”

Just then, a trio voices interrupted, “Our turn!”

Before he knew it, May, Dawn and Chloe wrapped themselves around him and stole a kiss, each. When they were done, he couldn’t help commenting, “Wow! You four are pretty good kissers.”

Dawn sassily replied, “You’re not too bad yourself, Mr. Smooth.”

He grinned again, “Night, girls.”

“Night, Ash”, came the reply, before they snuggled down around him.

Chapter Text

When he woke up the next morning, Ash found himself lying on his stomach and weighed down. This was definitely not the work of four girls and he wouldn't dare call them heavy, if he valued his own life. His voice came muffled through his pillow, “Bayleef! I told you a million times to not sneak into my room and fall asleep on top of me”

Remembering that he was still the meat in a massive cuddle sandwich, he carefully wriggled around onto his back without waking them. Instead of meeting May or Chloe’s sleeping faces, he spotted Iris’ sleeping face inches from his own. Looking around, he noticed Serena, Mallow, Lana and Lille all asleep on his bed, and the four-girl cuddle pile turned into a nine-girl burrito.

Now, he was completely confused, ‘How on earth did they get here? What about Cilan, Clemont, Bonnie, Kiawe, Sophocles and Gladion?’

Eventually, Serena stirred from the dogpile. She noticed Ash awake and staring at her, so her face went beet red, as did his face briefly. He fought down his blush and whispered, “When did you guys get here?”

She composed herself and whispered back, “We were planning to surprise you. We turned up pretty late last night, but your friends, Goh and Horace were still awake when we got there. By the way, it’s not just us girls, Brock, Cilan, Clemont, Bonnie, Kiawe, Sophocles and Gladion are here too. They’re just sleeping in the other rooms.”

He nodded slowly, “Ahh okay… By the way Serena, I’m sorry for not noticing your feelings sooner, or the other girls, for that matter.”

She shook her head gently and smiled, “It’s okay Ash, better late than never. Besides, Chloe told us why you never acted on your feelings, and I don’t blame you for thinking that way, none of us do. But that doesn’t matter now.”

Eventually, all of the girls woke up one by one, and it was a happy reunion. Then, Lillie nervously asked, “Ash? Are you okay with this? I mean sharing us?”

He chuckled, “I’ll admit, when this whole thing was dropped on me, it kind of caught me off guard. But when I really thought about it, I realized that I care for all of you equally, I just couldn’t choose between any one of you girls.”

With their hearts melted into one giant puddle, they wrapped him in a group hug. They stayed like that for a while, until Ash pecked the cheeks of Iris, Serena, Mallow, Lana and Lille.

Misty pouted a little and Ash stuck a tongue out at her. “Hey! I kissed you, May, Dawn and Chloe last night, don’t be selfish!”

After the remaining five girls got over their shock, they hugged him tighter. It got to a point where he had to tap Mallow’s arm repeatedly, “Okay girls, you can let go, I’m starting to lose feeling in my arms and legs and Lana’s choking me.”

Sheepishly, they untangled themselves and everyone split off to get ready. Before they left, Ash tapped Lillie’s shoulder. The blonde-haired girl turned to him and he said, “Hey Lillie… Is Gladion okay with the two of us dating?”

She giggled a little, “Surprisingly, yes. I actually broke the subject very, very gently before he bluntly asked whether I liked you. Then he said that since he’s gotten to know you, he trusts you to take care of me.”

Ash sighed with relief, “Oh thank Arceus! I dread to think what would happen if I ever crossed him.”

She snorted a little, “He went through that overprotective sibling phase once. This was long before I met you, I was friends with this guy called Elio and he was a nice guy. However, Gladion didn’t know him so well so he gave Elio the 'hurt her and you're dead' talk. I was so mad at Gladion for that because he avoided me ever since.”

Once everyone had freshened up, Ash reunited with Brock, Cilan, Clemont, Bonnie, Kiawe, Gladion and Sophocles. Gladion also confirmed that the search for their father was still on, but their mother insisted that they go on their own journey. However, if she found him, she would call them.

Later on, the professor called everyone into the lab. He switched to some footage of a fisherman who mentioned something about a wild Dragonite saving him from a freak storm.

When the broadcast finished, Ren looked up from his computer and mentioned that there was supposedly a Dragonite island somewhere nearby. Their mission was to find this elusive Dragonite island.

With that, the large group promptly headed to the docks. Along the way, they made a detour to a Pokémon Centre and adjoining PokeMart. Goh and Horace zipped off to buy some Pokeballs, while Ash and company went to have their Pokémon checked up. Just as Ash handed his Pokeballs and Pikachu, there was a commotion outside the Pokémon Centre.

“Whoa! What’s going on, Nurse Joy?”

The pink-haired nurse waved it off, “Oh nothing… It’s probably a couple of trainers having a battle. You can check it out if you want.”

“Thanks Nurse Joy!”

With that, Ash sprinted off to see the battle. Over by the battleground, there was a massive crowd, but he and the gang managed to weave through.

Upon reaching the front, he spotted a dark-haired teenager with thick curly hair. The boy had just sent out a strange Pokémon that Ash had never seen before. The Pokémon comprised of six small black creatures with golden armor.

 He turned to a random female trainer next to him, “Who’s that? And who’s that Pokémon?”

The girl said, “Oh! That’s George from Hulbury in Galar. He’s supposed to be one of the favourites to win the Galar League this year. Some say that he has some pretty interesting tactics. Dunno who the other guy is, though, but that bloke is getting absolutely wrecked.”

Ash turned to see the other opponent, and his blood boiled. He leaned towards Misty and Brock, “I might need you two to restrain me.”

Misty raised an eyebrow, before she spotted George’s opponent and growled, “Damian…”

Battle POV

George grinned, “Bravo! Charlie! Delta! Echo! Tango! Zulu! 3-1-2 Formation!”

The six Pokémon re-arranged themselves, two up front, one in the middle and three at the back.

Damian called out, “Skunktank! Use Poison Jab!”

George shot back, “Tango! Park The Bus with Protect!”

The Pokémon on the left front reacted and a green glow enveloped all six Pokémon. Suffice to say, the Poison Jab bounced off harmlessly.

Without letting up, Damian ordered, “Get it with a Crunch!”

George calmly ordered, “Take the hit, Delta I need you to Gegenpressen with Reversal.”

The Crunch landed on the middle Pokémon, but it countered with Reversal, dealing heavy damage.

Damian grit his teeth in frustration, “Grrr! Finish that weakling off with multiple Shadow Balls.”

Grimer shot out a Shadowball, with the first one heading straight for Zulu. George smirked and called out, “Zulu! Follow the pattern and initiate Tiki-Taka Focus Blast.”

Quick as lightning, the one at the back on the extreme right formed a Focus Blast and all six of them began to rapidly toss it between themselves. Admittedly, a few stray balls hit them, but they were largely undamaged.

With a broad grin, he ordered, “Bravo! Finish the move!”

From aside Ash was confused, “Park the Bus, Gegenpressen, Tiki-Taka?”

The girl grinned, “In Galar, they are pretty fond of football, and those words are part of some football tactics. Apparently, George adapted it into his battling style. I should know, I’m from Galar as well. Park the Bus is just a fancy way of defending. Gegenpressen is a style of quick counterattack and Tiki-Taka sees the attack building up into one strong attack.”

Ash grinned, “Cool!”

With that, they watched the battle reach its conclusion

The one on the extreme left was the last to receive the Focus Blast and it tossed the attack towards Skunktank.

Damian suddenly sported an evil grin, “Skunktank! Dodge and point-blank Acid Spray on the trainer’s face!”

George’s face morphed into one of confusion, “Wait what…”

In an instant, Skunktank materialized in front of the trainer and fired an Acid Spray straight to the eyes. George went down, howling in agony. Damian taunted, “Try and compete in the Galar League now!”

On the sidelines, the spectators booed Damian, while Ash just stood there in disbelief. He stammered, “Did he just do that…”

Suddenly, Ash felt a volcano erupt behind him. He turned and found Dawn fuming. The blue-haired girl stormed up to Damian and slapped him hard. He, Misty, Iris and Kiawe rushed over to the arrogant trainer to give him a piece of their mind.

Meanwhile, the rest of them rushed to the fallen trainer. George yelled out, “You fecking pillock, you wanker, you bellend! What possessed you to do that you absolute knobhead! My eyes! They’re burning!!!”

Serena approached and ordered, “Hold still! Let me help!”

He stopped struggling long enough for her to grab a bottle of water that a nearby trainer tossed to her. Serena poured the contents into his eyes to try and get rid of most of the poison. Mallow leaned over and asked, “Better?”

“Nah mate, I can’t see a thing!”

Chloe helped him up, “I’ll take you to Nurse Joy. Let’s see if she can help.”

Just then, Goh and Horace jogged up, with the former carrying a cardboard box full of Pokeballs. Horace raised an eyebrow, “What did we miss?”

Chloe sighed, “The others will tell you more details. In short, there was a battle and this guy’s opponent cheated by attacking him directly. I need to take him to Nurse Joy.”

With that, the girl walked back to the Pokémon Centre, with George following her with a hand on her shoulder.

Before long, Ash, Misty, Iris, Dawn and Kiawe returned. Ash beamed, “That felt good! Charizard also got his revenge. Also, one of the spectators called Officer Jenny and she promptly arrested Damian. Good riddance!”

Then he looked around, “Hey, where’s Chloe?”

Brock replied, “She went with George to see if Nurse Joy could heal him. We were just about to head inside and check on them.”

They soon returned to find Chloe watching as Nurse Joy shone a flashlight in George’s eyes. She did one and then the other, before sighing.

The nurse gathered everyone and spoke somberly, “I’m afraid it is bad news. George has been rendered permanently blind because the attack was point blank. I’m terribly sorry, but I’m afraid you may have to forfeit your Gym Challenge.”

The Galar native’s shoulders slumped, “Aw crumbs! Lee’s gonna be mighty ticked. He was looking forward to the battle.”

The woman disappeared back inside the clinic and asked them to wait for her. May asked, “Will you be okay?”

He turned in the general direction of her voice. “Oh? Oh! Yeah, I’ll be alright, mate.” His cheeks reddened a little, “I also owe you all a bit of an apology. When that cretin attacked me, I spouted some uncouth language, I’m terribly sorry about that.”

Bonnie chirped, “That’s okay! None of us are really that little any more. Besides, you were in pain, so you can be forgiven for swearing a little.”

Lillie spoke up, “What will you do now?”

He shrugged, “I might as well return home now. I can’t compete in Gym matches because of that numpty.”

Ash interrupted, “Hey, what Pokémon were you using against Damian?”

“Oh! That’s Falinks the Formation Pokémon. I also had others, like my starter, Rillaboom, Corviknight, Grapploct, Toxtricity, and a Galarian Rapidash.”

Max did a double-take, “Wait… Ponyta and Rapidash have Galarian forms?”

“Aye laddie, that they do, there are also a few other Pokémon with Galarian forms. You lot should visit Galar someday. If you’re ever in Hulbury to take on Nessa’s Gym, do look me up!”

Just then, Nurse Joy returned with a Gardevoir following her. She cleared her throat, “Before you go, I’m letting you keep Gardevoir here. She’s one of our therapy Pokémon and has often been used as a visual guide.”

“Thank you kindly, Nurse Joy. Right! I’m off then, Cheerio!”

The Embrace Pokémon gently took his hand and guided it to her shoulder. With that, the two figures slowly and steadily made their way out of the Pokémon Centre.

Soon, the group made their way to the docks. Along the way, Serena noticed Goh’s box for the first time. She quirked an eyebrow, “Are you going to catch all the Dragonite on the island?”

He proudly declared, “I’m gonna catch the whole Dragonite line! I want to catch every Pokémon until I get to Mew!”

Iris was about to interject, but Ash silenced her with a look. When they reached, Brock and Cilan headed off to see if they could hire a boat to get to the island. Meanwhile, Goh and Horace got distracted by a Dewgong and were frantically throwing Pokeballs at it.

Misty, Iris, Kiawe and Max gaped at the two, Ash and Chloe were busy face-faulting at the scene. Iris tiptoed to Ash and whispered, “Hey Ash… remember back in Unova where I used to tease you and always call you a kid? I take it all back… These two deserve that title.”

Dawn whispered, “Should we tell them that they can battle the Dewgong?”

Ash suddenly had an evil smirk, “Nah… I want to see their faces when we finally meet the Dragonite, but they don’t have any Pokeballs to catch them with.”

Always fond of a good prank, Lana grinned, “I like the way you think!”

Eventually, the two boys managed to catch the pesky Dewgong. At the same time, Brock and Cilan returned and told everyone that none of the boat captains were willing to go to the islands.

Sighing, Misty sent out Gyarados, May sent out her Blastoise, Iris sent out her own Dragonite. Ash silently regretted leaving his Blastoise and Charizard back at the lab.

Just then, a loud coo interrupted everyone somewhere to their left. Ash turned and had a big smile on his face, “Lapras! So good to see you, girl!”

The Transport Pokémon nuzzled him lovingly. He held out a Pokeball, “Do you want to come home with me?”

She turned to her pod, who collectively nodded at her. Squealing happily, she booped the ball with her snout and got sucked inside, confirming the capture.

He sent her back out immediately, “Welcome home, girl. I need your help. Do you think you could lead us to the Dragonite Island?”

Lapras nodded and he climbed aboard her back. Chloe, Sophocles, and Dawn also climbed aboard. Brock, Serena and Cilan opted to join Misty, while Max, Clemont and Bonnie rode on Blastoise with May. The Alola gang sent out their Pokémon from their Ultra Guardian days, Iris and Dragonite also joined them in the air. Meanwhile, Goh and Horace rode on the newly-caught Dewgong.

Once they were all ready, they headed off to a location that the professor suspected was the location of the island. Unfortunately, they got side-tracked, as Dewgong suddenly veered off course to chase after a female Dewgong.

As if things could not get any worse, she led them straight into a storm! As everyone got tossed around, Iris screamed, “Goh! You’re such a little kid!!!”

Somehow, everyone managed to grab each other’s’ hands to stick together. Just then, they heard a sharp bark from somewhere ahead of them. Iris’ Dragonite barked back, and a few Dragonite showed up.

Ash, May and Misty returned their Pokémon, while the Dragonite scooped them up from the sea and carried them. Eventually, they reached an island, and true to its name, there were plenty of Dratini, Dragonair and Dragonite.

Goh’s eyes shone, “Alright! This is my chance! Go Poke-! Ball? Where did all my Pokeballs disappear!”

At that, everyone burst out laughing, Misty gasped between giggles, “You- you wasted them all on that Dewgong! Serves you right for just trying to catch it without battling! Hee hee hee!”

Iris quipped, “Everyone knows you have to battle Pokémon to catch them. No Pokémon will just allow you to catch them. You’re such a little kid!”

Ash stepped up and offered Goh a Pokeball, but he shook his head, “No… keep it. It’s yours.”

Ash simply shrugged and pocketed the ball. The gang followed a Dragonite and a Dragonair around the island, and soon came across a scene of three Dragonair dancing around in the air with the wings on their heads.

Bonnie even recorded a video of a Dratini shedding its skin. As they watched the Dragonair dance, Ash couldn’t help noticing that the Dragonair with them looked fairly downcast.

When the dancing Dragonair began to glow, Max recognized it as Dragon Dance, which probably explained the freaky weather around the island. Unable to take it anymore, Ash stepped up to the sad Dragonair and offered to teach it Dragon Dance.

Horace was puzzled, “Ash teaching a Pokémon Dragon Dance? Why would he do that for a Pokémon he’s just met?”

Mallow simply smirked, “It’s Ash, don’t question it. He’s always wanted to help out a Pokémon when he felt like it. That’s how he befriended his Lycanroc when it was just a Rockruff.”

Iris jumped up, eager to help out a Dragon-Type Pokémon “Wait up Ash! I’ll help!”

Ten minutes later, Ash, Pikachu, Iris and Dragonair were on the beach, with the others watching on in interest. Ash turned to Pikachu, “Alright Pikachu! Use Electroweb on those rocks!”

The Mouse complied immediately and Ash turned to the Dragonair, “Okay! So we’re going to be using Electroweb as a trampoline to get you airborne, so you can fly and use Dragon Dance!”

Before anyone could comprehend what was happening, Ash suddenly leaped into the Electroweb, obviously shocking himself, and fell off. Nevertheless, he jumped on again and again, finally managing to bounce a little bit.

All the while, Goh and Horace stood there with dropped jaws. They could only mumble, “Electroweb can’t be used as a trampoline.”

Max simply smirked, “What did we just say? It’s Ash… He always managed to do the impossible.”

They watched as the Dragonair eventually joined in and got shocked as well. After a few more tries, it eventually got airborne and was enveloped in a sea green glow, indicating that it managed to use Dragon Dance.

Squealing in delight, the Pokémon coiled around Ash in an affectionate hug. Max turned to Horace and Goh with a triumphant smile, “Told you so!”

Of course, the beautiful moment had to be ruined, as an explosion reached everyone’s ears. Lillie gasped, “That came from the other side of the island!”

The gang rushed back, only for an unwanted sight to greet them. A bunch of Dragonite were in cages on a boat, and three figures were celebrating on it. Ash groaned, “Oh no! Not them again! Team Rocket!”

*Cue Team Rocket motto*

Jessie sneered, “Well, well, well! Looks like the whole twerpy gang’s here to witness us getting some glory for the Boss”

Ash rushed forward and managed to board it, yelling out, “Not on my watch! Pikachu- Wait… Dragonair? You want to fight?”

The Dragon Pokemon nodded with a determined expression on its face. From a new device, dubbed the Rocket Prize Master, they sent out a massive Wailord.

The Float Whale Pokémon attacked first, with a Splash, rocking the entire boat, Dragonair took to the air and Ash ordered Pikachu to use Iron Tail on the cages, freeing the Dragonite

However, after a second Splash attack, things began to go wrong for everybody on the boat, very quickly. Ash and Dragonair were sent flying, and Serena screamed, covering her eyes.

Dragonair managed to recover and dove down to rescue the boy. Unfortunately, he could not get a good grip on its slippery skin. The dragon dove faster and suddenly got enveloped in a blue glow.

The wings by the head morphed into nodes, a pair of wings grew on its back, its body grew bulkier and a pair of stubby hands grew from the body. Those arms immediately wrapped around Ash’s falling body, and the newly-evolved Dragonite spread its wings and flew to a safe spot.

Meanwhile, the other Dragonite surrounded a recovering Team Rocket, and they were NOT happy. Jessie chuckled nervously, “Err… We come in peace?”

One Dragonite opened its mouth and formed an orange ball in its mouth, a telltale sign that it was preparing a Hyperbeam. The other ticked off Dragonite also prepared a Hyperbeam. When they fired, the point-blank attack sent the Three Stooges ‘blasting off’ once again.

Misty groaned, “They are still pursuing you after all these years? When are they ever going to quit!”

Panting, he wheezed, “I’ve been asking myself the same question every time they’ve appeared.”

*WHAM* The next thing Ash knew, he was on the floor, with Misty towering over him with a mallet in her hands. She screeched, “ASH KETCHUM! HOW COULD YOU SCARE THE CRAP OUT OF US WITH GETTING SHOCKED MULTIPLE TIMES! AND THEN WHEN YOU FELL! I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO DIE! AGAIN!”

He could only sheepishly respond, “Sorry for worrying you Misty, but I can’t promise that I’ll be safe every time, considering my track record.”

She wrapped him in a hug, “I know, Ash. At least I’ll be there to have your back.”

When she released him, another figure grabbed him and wrapped him in a hug, the Dragonite. Ash nearly turned blue when the Pokémon Ursa-hugged him. When it released him, he asked, “Do you want to come with us?”

The Pokémon nodded vigorously, and Ash took out the empty Pokeball and tapped Dragonite on the nose. It got sucked in, and after two wobbles, the capture was confirmed. Ash fist-pumped, “Yeah! I caught a Dragonite!”

He and Iris high-fived, “Dragonite buddies!!!”

Later on, they returned to the Cerise Laboratory and submitted their findings on the Dragonite Island. Needless to say, the Professor was thrilled, and was quite interested in Ash’s unusual training methods.

After a long and tiring day, ending with Ash introducing Dragonite to his other Pokémon, everyone retired back into the cottage for the night.

Chapter Text

One fine day, everyone was scattered throughout the house, with the professor and his aides in the main room. Just then, Cerise asked Ren to head to the basement to fetch some files. Meanwhile, there was a knock on the front door of the lab.

Horace was the nearest person and opened the door. Upon doing so, he came face-to-face with a blonde-haired girl, clad in what could only be described as a black school dress with a white collar and a purple horizontal stripe along the edges of her skirt and two purple lines running down the front of her dress. However, the things that stood out for her were her lavender eyes and a Keystone earring.

She spoke, “Hi I’m looking for an Ash Ketchum?”

Horace nodded, “Yeah I’ll just go get him. Why don’t you come inside?”

Before long, Ash walked in with Pikachu on his shoulder. He spotted the girl, who was now sitting on a couch. He cleared his throat, getting her attention, “I’m Ash Ketchum. I was told that you were looking for me?”

Then he did a small double-take, “Hey wait a minute, I think I recognize you! We battled at Avignon Town in Kalos and later on at the Lumiose Conference! Umm… Astrid, right?”

She nodded and smiled, “Nice to see you again, Ash! I actually came here for a trade. Recently, my Absol laid an egg which hatched to another Absol. The thing is, for the sake of diversity, I’d rather not have two Absol on my team and I feel that you would be a great trainer for the young one.”

Ash nodded back, “I’m flattered that you hold me in such high regard. However, I only have Tauros up for trade. I kind of caught far too many at the Safari Zone when I started my journey in Kanto. Trust me… That was quite a story! The whole herd kept getting in the way while I tried to capture some other Pokémon!”

She giggled a little, “That’s okay that you only have Tauros. I only have my ace Absol, a Pyroar and a female Meowstic. Tauros could be a useful addition to my team”

With that, the two of them headed to Professor Cerise’s Trading Machine. After a successful trade, Ash walked her back to the front door. He smiled at her, “Take care of Tauros! I’ll definitely take care of Absol!”

However, before she could leave, a piercing scream ripped through the entire building. With a look of alarm, the two sprinted towards the direction of the scream.

It originated from the basement, and the two trainers rushed down immediately. Soon, the others joined them, to see an unconscious Ren sprawled out on the floor with a fainted Magnemite next to him.

Chryssa immediately got to work trying to revive her colleague. Eventually, he came to and they helped him back up the lab. The professor and Chryssa asked him about what happened, but he was far too shaken up.

Amid his ramblings, the only word they could make out was ‘G-G-G-Ghost!’, before he fainted again.

Clemont and Sophocles clutched each other in fear and shivered. Thinking back to a conversation he had with Serena a few days ago, Ash found out that the two inventors began seeing each other and quickly bonded over their love for tinkering.

Serena had suppressed a giggle when she told him that Bonnie wasn’t too thrilled. In the younger girl’s words, “All this time I was trying to find you a keeper… AND I WAS LOOKING AT THE WRONG GENDER!!!”

Coming back to the present, he got up and put his hands to his waist. With a determined expression, he said, “Okay guys! I guess we’re dealing with a Ghost Pokémon.”

Then everyone noticed the professor getting a thoughtful look on his face. Chloe tilted her head sideways, “What is it Dad?”

He replied, “The Pokémon you’re looking for is a Gengar. From what I remember, it had been in this building long before I moved in and turned it into a lab. Of course, it tried several times to scare me away, but I was persistent. Since then, it left me alone, except for the odd prank.”

He mused, “Then it seemingly stopped bothering me for a long time. But now it seems that it is back to its usual antics. I still don’t know where it came from, I don’t suppose you lot could find out for me?”

Everyone nodded, while Astrid shrugged, “Sure why not… I have nothing better to do.”

Before long, everyone split up to explore different parts of the house. While exploring, Astrid sidled up next to her fellow Kalosians Bonnie and Serena, with Misty also joining them. “Wow! I didn’t know you guys have such an adventurous life!”

Misty snorted, “Trust me, this is actually really tame compared to all the drama we’ve been through. Finding a mischievous Pokémon is just an average Tuesday.”

Astrid smirked, “Well, I’m glad I stuck around.”

Elsewhere, Ash, Cilan, Kiawe and May patrolled their area of the building. Unbeknownst to them, an invisible shape phased through a wall behind their backs.

Suddenly, Pikachu’s ears pricked up and nudged his best friend. The trio stopped, when the mouse leaped up and batted away a Shadow Ball with an Iron Tail.

Instantly, Ash went into battle mode, and so did Pikachu. Shooting out an arm, he ordered a Thunderbolt. The mouse bounded across the arm, leaped into the air, slapped the electric sacs on his cheeks and fired off a strong Thunderbolt.

Needless to say, it was a powerful hit, but the Ghost-type was still standing. However, it never got a chance to recover, as a large red blur body-checked it with a Blaze Kick. Ash turned to May who nodded in response, as she also settled into a battling stance. Kiawe and Cilan respectively, sent out a giant red turtle and a large green monkey with what could only be described as a massive mohawk.

The Pallet native quirked an eyebrow, “Pansage evolved huh?”

The Striaton co-Gym leader nodded in response. With that, Pikachu, Blaziken, Turtonator and Simisage attacked, Gengar withstood a few attacks before sinking through the floor.

Ash snapped his fingers in frustration, “Shoot! He got away!”

After an hour of fruitless searching, he got out his Rotom phone and fired a few texts

Misty: Nothing on our end, we’ll keep an eye out.

Brock: This area is clear

Lillie: Snowy got a little spooked, but it disappeared before we could attack.

Mallow: A little busy trying to stop Clemont and Sophocles from freaking out.

Iris: We found it… and these two idiots are busy chucking Pokeballs without battling.

Upon reading that last one, Ash smacked his palm on his head and dragged it across his face. He grumbled, “I swear to Arceus, these two won’t last 10 minutes on a journey. Even Team Skull will eat them alive, and those guys are just a bunch of street thugs.”

After a while, they decided to give up and changed strategies. The new plan was to explore Vermillion City together and look for some clues. Before long, they heard some voices, with one getting increasingly animated.

Unbeknownst to everyone, Gengar snuck in with Ash’s group, currently hiding in Lana’s shadow.

The gang soon passed a couple, with the girl comforting her agitated boyfriend.

The man groused, “Argh! Even after all these years, I still can’t catch a damn Pokémon! Its official, that thing has cursed me! I should never have caught that stupid Gengar!”

Cilan froze in his tracks, as did the others, “What Gengar?”

The guy turned to them and ranted, “YES! Ever since I caught it, I’ve been losing battle after battle and it always refused to listen to me. I had to leave it behind because it was holding me back!”

Suffice to say, Ash and company was mad, suddenly, the Gengar quickly made its presence known and prepared a gigantic Shadow Ball. The guy screamed, and he bolted, dragging his girlfriend with him.

With its targets gone, Gengar turned to the larger group and prepared to shoot. Almost immediately, Ash took a protective stance in front of his friends.

“Gengar stop! That guy is not worth it! If he could not train you properly, that’s his fault, but he should never have abandoned you. Trust me, I should know because some of my own Pokémon have had trainers who abandoned them!”

In the group, Astrid turned to the others in confusion, Brock mouthed, ‘Charizard, Infernape and Pignite. Tell you the story later’.

Gengar tensed as Ash steadily inched forward and his arms in front of him in a pacifying manner. He looked at it kindly, “I understand that you don’t trust anyone, especially when it happened three years ago. You just wanted a friend, right? I can be that friend… I promise that I will never abandon you.”

The dark-haired trainer slowly took out a Pokeball and held it out. Gengar’s eyes fixated on Ash, before drifting to the outstretched Pokeball, and back to Ash. Eventually making up its mind, Gengar dissipated the Shadow Ball and tapped the Pokeball. The Ghost-Type got sucked in and after two wobbles, the capture was confirmed.

Ash smiled, “Welcome to the family, Gengar.”

A while later, everyone watched as Charizard, Infernape and Pignite spoke to Gengar. Suddenly, the Ghost-type got ambushed by Dragonite and wrapped in a snug and comforting hug.

As they said goodbye to Astrid, she took one last glance at Absol, who was playing with the rest of Ash’s Pokémon, as well as everyone else’s. She couldn’t help but smile, “Once again, thank you so much for giving Absol a new home. I know she’s in good hands.”

He shook hands with the blonde, “Thanks, I know you’ll take care of Tauros too.”

With that, she left the premises and headed to the airport to go back to Kalos.

Chapter Text

Misty woke up one morning to find that Ash wasn’t in bed. The girls finally agreed to take turns in sharing a bed with Ash. That came about after their second group huddle almost suffocated the poor boy. To make matters worse for them, Pikachu was sleeping on the same bed and promptly shocked everyone in the morning.

The orange-haired girl rolled over, to find Ash already fully dressed with Pikachu on his shoulder. He smiled at her, “Hey Mist, did you sleep well?”

“I did, though I was a little disappointed to not wake up in each other’s arms. By the way, where’s everyone else?”

He scratched the back of his head sheepishly, “Yeah, sorry about that. The others have gone on different assignments in different places. It’s just the two of us, as well as Iris and Lana. Mom called me an hour ago and told me about some event in Johto. Iris and Lana weren’t really interested in tagging along and wanted to just relax a little. Admittedly, it was kinda hard to get out of your embrace.”

She stuck out a teasing tongue and winked, “What can I say? I’m a hardcore cuddler. Also, I’d love to come along! It’ll kinda be our first date!”

Before long, the two of them were on a plane to Johto and then hopped on a tram. As they sat in the tram, with Pikachu on Ash’ lap, Misty turned to Ash, “So where is this place? You never told me.”

He scanned the itinerary, “The place we’re headed to is called Fula City and the event is called the Wind Festival. According to some legends, Fula City was once a barren land, but Lugia brought wind to the area after seeing the strong bonds of friendship between people and Pokémon. The people went on to utilize the wind for electricity generation and construct the modern metropolis of Fula. The Wind Festival commemorates Lugia's annual return and its gift of wind for another year.”

She dropped her voice almost to a whisper, “Would it count if you brought out your own Lugia?”

He shrugged and whispered back, “Doubt it. I think the one I caught is different, and the one from the legend is the Guardian Lugia. To be honest, I was planning to release mine, because I don’t know what I would do with her. She’s way too powerful on her own, I just caught her in that raid battle because I kinda had to. Knowing our luck, when we do meet this city’s Lugia, I’m hoping to let mine go free with her/him.”

Before long, the tram stopped and the two disembarked. They walked around, hand-in-hand, just exploring the city. Then, a commotion erupted ahead of them. Ash and Misty spotted three young boys by a lemon cart, confronting a little girl for some reason.

The Pallet Town native’s blood boiled, he hated bullies. He stalked towards them just as one boy grabbed a lemon and hurled it at the girl. Luckily, Ash caught it before it could hit the child. The younger boys spluttered in shock, but the older trainers formed a protective wall in front of the redheaded child.

Misty placed her hands on her hips and tsked, “What do you three think you’re doing, picking on a little girl!”

The boy who threw the lemon, presumably the ringleader, shot back, “Hey! This is between us and her! But since you are taking her side, Phanpy! Use Rollout!”

A blue elephant-like Pokémon leaped out of the tossed Pokeball and began to somersault towards the couple and the child. Ash wasn’t taking it lying down, “Pikachu, dodge and use Iron Tail!”

Pikachu leaped into the air and descended back to earth, with his tail enveloped in a white glow. The mouse’s aim was true and Phanpy was down in one hit.

Ash crossed his arms sternly as the boy returned the fallen elephant. He spoke, “Now I don’t want to see you picking on her again, do you hear me?”

The boys ran off, and the girl promptly hugged the couple. Misty knelt and wiped away a few tears, “Don’t worry sweetie, those mean kids are gone. What’s your name? I’m Misty. That’s Ash and his partner, Pikachu.”

The girl bashfully replied, “M-Margo.”

Ash also knelt, “Hey Margo, we were wondering about the Wind Festival. Do you know where it will take place?”

She pointed, “It’s that way. I’d love to take you but my daddy is expecting me home.”

Ash smiled and gently ruffled her red hair, “Thanks! Will we see you there?”

She nodded happily, “I will be! My daddy’s the mayor so my family has to be there.”

With that, she ran off in another direction, while Ash and Misty continued in the direction that Margo pointed.

Soon the festival loomed in front of them, and Misty spotted a nearby event. She bolted towards it, half-dragging Ash with her.

She cheered excitedly, “Come on Ash! This is right up your alley! A Pokémon Catch Race! You got to go and participate!”

He chuckled at his girlfriend’s enthusiasm, “Okay! Okay! Lemme get signed up first!”

Soon, Ash is lined up with Pikachu on his shoulder and the two were simply stretching. Meanwhile, Misty stood in the crowd and took pictures, making sure to send them to the gang.

When the starting pistol fired, everyone was off. Unsurprisingly to Misty, Ash rocketed into the lead. However, a burly man with brown hair, sporting a red shirt, grey trousers, a yellow and brown jacket and a blue beret, was right on his heels. Earlier, Misty and Ash had overheard him boasting about how he was an incredible Pokémon trainer, but they paid him no heed.

Just as Misty was recording, she felt a tap on her shoulder. They girl turned to come face to face with a tall blonde girl with pink and green highlights on the fringe of her hair, with a pair of red sunglasses resting on top of her head. The girl smiled nervously and held out a Rotom Phone, “Hi I hope I’m not bothering you; I was wondering where I could find this Pokémon. I’m Risa”

Misty peered at the Pokemon picture on the phone and replied, “Hi! I’m Misty, um… I’m kinda new here, but I'm sure you can find plenty of them in the wild.”

“Thank you!”

Misty turned back to the giant screen, just in time to catch some major drama. Apparently, a Tyranitar had inexplicably gone on a rampage, and Ash and Pikachu were chasing after it, trying to calm it down. Misty couldn’t help the smile on her face, this was typical Ash Ketchum behavior.

Eventually, a well-time Iron Tail managed to knock out the Tyranitar before it could attack some nearby spectators. The two managed to find the source of discomfort, a coil of wire had tangled the large Pokémon and hurt it a little. Slowly, Ash helped it regain consciousness and helped it back to the area.

Suddenly, it wrapped him in a hug. Needless to say, he was caught off guard with the sudden affection. Ash turned to face the Armor Pokémon, when it locked eyes with him. Just then, a flash of recognition crossed him, “Wait… Are you the same Larvitar we brought to Mt. Silver?”

The giant Pokémon nodded, “Ty-ranitar.”

Misty came running up, just as he and Pikachu embraced the wild Pokémon. Just then, a man approached him. The man clapped, “Incredible! I have never seen any trainer pull off such a display of bravery! I am the mayor of Fula City”

He took note of Tyranitar’s proximity to Ash, “Say… do you know this Pokémon?”

Ash nodded, “I took care of him as an egg when I had to deliver him from Pallet Town in Kanto to Mt. Silver. Along the way, he hatched and… you could say, we bonded.”

The man smiled, “Normally, it is against the rules for people to keep the Pokémon they caught. But I’m willing to make an exception for you and Tyranitar. Only because you saved our city and because of your bond.”

Ash looked at Tyranitar, joy filling his face. He took out his own Pokeball, as opposed to the competition’s Pokeballs, “What do you say buddy? For old time’s sake?”

The giant Pokémon tapped the ball with its snout, got sucked in and confirmed the capture immediately.

The man nodded to him, “Congratulations, you have finished 2^nd in the competition. Please head this way to receive your trophy.”

The eventual winner was the burly man, who they later found out was called Callahan.

That night, Ash and Misty were sitting, cuddled up in their hotel room. She had already given him an earful for his recklessness, but eventually forgave him with a kiss.

The two stepped out, as they planned a romantic stroll through the city. Just as they approached the elevator, it dinged and opened, to reveal Risa, who was a mess. Her red dress and white blouse were torn in various places, her makeup was smudged and there were leaves and twigs sticking out of her disheveled hair.

As soon as her gaze fell on Ash, her eyes brightened with recognition. Unfortunately, the elevator doors nearly closed in her face. Luckily, she caught it in time and forced them open. The girl lunged and grabbed Ash, “Finally! I found you!”

Ash and Misty were startled, but none more so than Pikachu. The mouse promptly jumped and launched a Thunderbolt, shocking the trio. After they recovered, and Risa apologized profusely and introduced herself to Ash, he promised to help her.

The next day, Ash, Misty and Risa found themselves crouched behind a bush. They peeped out and spotted an Eevee frolicking around in a meadow. Ash grinned, “Alright Risa! Here’s your chance! Here, you can borrow Pikachu.”

He and Misty gently pushed her out of the clearing, as Pikachu bounded forward and got in a battle stance. As the taller girl trembled a little, Eevee took capital advantage of her hesitation and unleashed a Sand Attack.

A bit caught off guard, Pikachu got blinded, but Ash managed to coax the girl into getting Pikachu to dodge a Tackle. On her orders, Pikachu darted forward with a Quick Attack. She tossed the Pokeball, but Eevee broke out. After defending a Swift with Iron Tail, Pikachu fired a Thunderbolt. That was when she tossed another Pokeball and the capture stuck this time around.

The delighted girl celebrated and wrapped her two companions with a hug. They decided to rest for a bit while Pikachu and Eeevee played around. That was when Risa revealed that she used to be a track and field prodigy until an injury ended her hopes. She managed to recover, but she was too afraid of injuring herself again. Empathizing with her situation, Ash gave her a comforting pat on the back and she blushed a little.

Next to him, Misty smirked to herself, ‘I guess we have another one, huh? Jeez Ash, you’re a natural at this. Of course, we’ll give her time to sort out her feelings first. Can’t deny one thing though, she is quite pretty.'

Ash told the blonde, “You know something? I’ve been through a bit of a slump too. Ever since I started my journey in Kanto, I competed in various leagues but never managed to win. The Kalos and the Alola Leagues was where I got the closest. I lost in the final on both occasions.”

He exhaled, “After the Alola loss, I was so devastated that I almost considered quitting. Honestly, I’m still on the fence about that, but I’m just tired of being so close, yet so far.”

She reached over and wrapped him in a side hug. Risa whispered, “That win will come Ash, don’t worry.”

He shot her a grateful smile, until they heard the sound of an approaching motorbike. The trio turned to see Officer Jenny racing towards them. The cop explained that she and her team have discovered signs of minor vandalism, including damaged wires and detergent.

With a look of alarm, the three of them gathered their Pokémon and rushed back to the city. When they reached, they met with the mayor once again. He briefed Officer Jenny on the situation, while Ash and company also listened in.

Ash and Misty immediately volunteered to help with repairs and get the festival up and running again. Risa grudgingly followed them and began to help out. While they worked, the three happened to hear a few townsfolk talking about something known as Zeraora’s curse.

Ash and Misty shared a knowing look. Their thoughts were clear, ‘This is going to be another one of those adventures, huh?’

As they walked back to their hotel, they spotted some familiar and slightly unwelcome faces in an empty alley. Ash groaned, “Oh no, not again!”.

However, it appeared that Team Rocket were not paying attention to them. Ash and Misty hid while James, activated a small device. Sure enough, a holographic screen popped up with a grim-looking man facing them.

"Jessie, James and Meowth! I have been reviewing your activity over the years of your service. There have been a few occasions where you did me proud."

The trio nodded, "Yes sir!, Boss, sir!"

The man’s mouth twisted into a scowl, "The bad news for you three is that your failures far outweigh your successes. Frankly, I have had it with your failures. You have consistently wasted my time and money on your hair-brained schemes. So, with immediate effect, you three are hereby fired from Team Rocket!"

They visibly paled and looked absolutely crestfallen.

Their boss' scowl turned into a thin-lipped smirk, "Fortunately, I am merciful, so all the Pokémon that you have caught at the various regions will be returned back to you."

With that, the boss terminated the call.

The Rocket trio stood there, stunned and staring blankly at the device.

Ash whispered to his girlfriend, “Is it weird that I feel bad for them? Sure, they were a pain in the neck to deal with, but you can’t deny that they helped us out in some situations.”

She nodded and whispered back, “Yeah you’re right. I think we can help them turn over a new leaf.”

The couple then approached the depressed trio and Ash cleared his throat. Jessie turned her head dejectedly and simply mumbled, “Oh… It’s just you two, the original twerp pair and a new twerpette. Here to blast us off again? Go ahead then, we don’t care anymore.”

Ash approached them, they flinched, expecting a Thunderbolt. Jessie opened one eye, and he was still standing there, with a sad smile, as were the others.

"I know we've all had our differences, but for what it's worth, I’m sorry that that happened to you three."

Meowth grumbled, "At least a couple of good things came out of it. First, I don't have to see that smug Persian any more. Secondly, Jessie and James can't stand Billy and Cassidy."

With that, the five of them, plus three Pokémon went back to their hotel. While James and Jessie booked a room, Ash and Misty texted the rest of their friends about the new development. Surprisingly the response was positive from everyone. Then they went back to trying to salvage the festival.

As they worked, Ash and Misty met Margo again, and a girl called Kellie also joined them. The group talked while they worked and Ash even regaled a few of his adventures. Repairs continued for the rest of the day, until Ash, Misty, James, Jessie, Meowth and Risa trudged back to their hotel. Misty offered to let Risa crash with them for the night, which she accepted.

Knowing the former Gym leader, Ash figured out that Misty was trying to get the taller girl into their circle. He shot her a look and she winked at him, prompting him to roll his eyes good-naturedly.

The next day, as soon as they exited the hotel, Ash could clearly tell that something was wrong. After speaking to a few panicked locals, they found out that the windmills were no longer functional and the city’s prized possession, the Eternal Flame was stolen.

The former Team Rocket trio immediately insisted that this was not their doing. Eventually, the six met with the Mayor once again and he implored them to find the Eternal Flame. Without it, Lugia would not be able to find Fula City and supply it with wind power.

Misty was about to open her mouth, but Ash silenced her with a look. They all went to see where the relic was supposed to be on display. Just then, Pikachu and Eevee picked up a scent and bounded after it. The group gave chase and it lead them to a Smeargle at a nearby lab.

One of the researchers, called Toren revealed that the previous night, there was a break in at the lab and the perpetrators spilled some Smeargle ink. Toren soon joined the group, as he carried a UV torch to check for footprints from the Smeargle ink. Eventually, the trail lead all the way into a forest outside the town.

Back with Ash and company, Mayor Oliver was shocked to discover that the footprints lead to Margo, his own daughter! Unfortunately, she had her hands full with a group of hunters. On the bright side, there was a bipedal Pokémon in front of her, as if it was protecting her. The Pokémon and Ash made short work of the hunters, before the Mayor turned to his daughter and scolded her.

Nearly in tears, Margo spoke about how she met the Pokémon, which was the mysterious Zeraora. As it turned out, she wanted to stop the Wind Festival from going ahead to prevent anyone finding Zeraora. Upon hearing that, his features softened and he gently told her a story.

Ash, Misty and Risa also gathered around to hear it. According to legend, Zeraora once lived peacefully in the forest with the city inhabitants. Unfortunately, 50 years ago, the forest was gutted in a fire, due to people’s greed and disregard for nature.

Although Zeraora saved many of the wild Pokémon, it lost faith in humanity. Owing to this, Oliver’s predecessor lied to the people to protect Zeraora, and forbade anyone from going into the forest.

Suddenly, lightning flashed somewhere in the forest and triggered a forest fire. Ash jumped into the action straightaway. He called out his Oshawott and ordered a Hydro Pump. Misty called out Starmie and ordered him to do the same.

Meanwhile, Risa was panicking, until Ash managed to calm her down a little. Margo retrieved the Eternal Flame and Ash handed it to the taller girl. He told her that she had to run back and put it back on the pedestal. Risa tried to protest, but he grabbed her face with both hands and forced her to look into his eyes.

“Look… I know you’re scared. But if you don’t do it, lots of innocent people and Pokémon will possibly die. You’re strong and I believe in you. Even your Eevee believes in you. If not for the city, do it for Eevee! As long as you have your Pokémon partner with you, you can do anything!”

Her gaze hardened and she nodded firmly. Kicking off her heels and tying her hair, she assumed a sprinter’s stance and took off running. Meanwhile, Mayor Oliver went back to the city to calm the people down, but not before Ash and Misty promised to keep Margo safe. Meanwhile, James, Meowth and Jessie went off to find some more help. Apparently, they heard talk of an old woman who used to work at a nearby power plant before it was later abandoned.

Ash approached the Pokémon slowly. He stopped when he saw it tense a little. However, Margo continued before Ash could stop her. Zeraora froze for a moment and the girl stopped.

While all this was going on, a group of Pokémon had gathered near the commotion. Margo stepped forward again to try and reason with Zeraora. Unfortunately, it lashed out in a random direction and the attack almost hit some of the Pokémon. However, Ash dived in the way to try and shield them, ignoring Misty’s screams.

The Plasma Bolt attack struck him and shocked the trainer. Upon seeing the selfless act, Zeraora snapped out of it. Ash slowly got up, and Misty rushed to help him. She sighed, “You always have to be the hero, huh? You’re lucky I know you so well.”

With the help of the Mythical Pokémon, Ash managed to convince the wild Pokémon to help put out the fire. Admittedly, they made progress, but was too slow for Ash’s liking.

Just then, there was a loud metallic groan in the distance. The couple turned in that direction to see the old power plant slowly whirr back to life. The Pokémon redouble their efforts and push the fire back. Eventually, they all reach Fula stadium, where the fire was at its worst. However, Zeraora had mysteriously disappeared when they moved closer to the city

Oshawott and company tried to keep it up, but were soon running out of energy. Misty spotted a sprinkler system and caught her boyfriend’s attention. Ash then had a quick talk with Pikachu, who rallied the Electric types to try and get the electricity back up and running. After they got it back up, Margo rushed off to turn the system on and the sprinklers turned on immediately.

Even with the sprinklers, progress was way too slow. Oshawott slumped over, completely spent, and one by one, the wild Water Types also exhausted themselves. Then, a fresh burst of water sprayed the fire, and the gang turned to see Mayor Oliver and many residents gathered. A number of them also have a variety of Water Types with them.

With renewed vigor, they worked harder to fight the fire. Everyone was making good progress, until there was a loud creak. Ash and company turned to see a weakened support beam about to fall on the ground. Then it broke and plummeted to the ground, with an oblivious Margo right in its path.

The mayor yelled out a warning while Ash sprinted to save the child. However, someone got to her first, Zeraora. Ash and the mayor rushed to the duo, and were relieved to find that she was unharmed.

Suddenly, a pale green light lit up from the corner of everyone’s eyes. Mayor Oliver sagged with relief, “The Eternal Flame has been restored at last.”

Ash and Misty also sank to the floor, hugging, “Arceus bless her, she did it! Risa actually did it.”

To cap off the situation, the wind picked back up and the turbines began to spin again. Ash, Pikachu and Misty led the crowd to the seafront and towards the building that housed the Eternal Flame. Just then, an audible gasp rippled through the crowd. Ash and Misty turned and they spotted a massive Lugia burst from the water and hover above everyone.

Lugia opened its mouth and let out a roar. On cue, the skies were filled with massive dark rainclouds and the rain quickly took care of the fire. Gradually the crowd dispersed, and it was only Ash, Pikachu and Misty. Lugia was still flying around when it decided to land in front of the couple.

Ash took out a Pokeball and approached the Legendary. It tensed upon seeing the ball. Ash stopped, pressed a button and released his own Lugia. His Lugia was considerably smaller, so he assumed that it was just a baby. He spoke to the larger Legendary, “Please take care of him, I just caught him in a Raid Battle because I didn’t want anybody to exploit him. Besides, what would I do with a legendary?”

With that, Ash pocketed the now empty ball. Both Lugia gave a small bow in acknowledgement before they both dived back into the sea. Misty placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, “You did the right thing Ash. Now, shall we go back? You still owe me a date.”

He grinned back and linked arms with her, “You got it, Mist!”

All in all, they had a great time at Fula City, and Misty even managed to capture a Lanturn. Jessie, James and Meowth also joined in the festivities. Soon, it was time to depart, and the six of them decided to head back home to Kanto. Just before they reached city limits, a voice called out to them. They turned to find Risa and her Eevee running towards them.

Catching up to them, she panted a little and caught her breath. She looked up at them, “Hey I was just wondering if I could tag along with you guys. I’ve never really had many friends and I thought it would be fun to travel with you guys.”

Ash had a broad grin, “Well come on then! The more, the merrier. I can’t wait for you to meet my other friends. Also, Eevee will have a lot of fun with my Pokémon.”

Chapter Text

A couple of weeks passed by with not much happening. Then, one fine day, there was a knock on the door of Cerise Laboratory. Ren hollered that he would get the door.

Mere minutes later, there was a loud thump, which caught Ash’s attention. He rushed to the front door, only for a bizarre sight to greet him. Standing at the door in front of an unconscious Ren sprawled out on the floor, was a bemused Diantha.

Ash, taken aback by the sudden appearance of the Kalos champion, stuttered a little, “H-H-Hi Diantha! What are you doing all the way out here?”

The woman’s eyes lit up when she spotted Ash. She waved, “Hello Ash… I must say, I wasn’t expecting such a reaction.”

Ash snickered as he dragged Ren’s unconscious body inside the house, “In Ren’s defense, it’s not every day that that the Kalos Champion suddenly decides to drop by for a visit. Though I’m assuming that this is not a random visit, just to say hello.”

She nodded and began to rummage into her purse and held out a bunch of tickets, “Indeed it isn’t. I actually have some invitations for you and all of your friends. You see, Mr Goodshow has decided to set up an event called the World Coronation Series. Lance will be facing Galar champion, Leon in the final in a few days time. Cynthia was actually the one to suggest inviting you and your friends.”

Ash grinned as he took them from her, “Of course we’ll be there! I’m actually on a bit of a hiatus from battling. I kind of took the Alola final loss pretty hard. So, I just wanted to take a break for a bit, just recharge my batteries.”

Diantha smiled,” That’s a good plan. I know for a fact that Alder is planning to retire soon. He is actually waiting for the next Unova League to commence.”

“That’s awesome!”

She smiled, “Anyway, the match will be held in Galar. Leon promised all of us that we’ll have a ‘champion time’, whatever that means.”

Ash chuckled, “Thanks Diantha! I still want that rematch with Gardevoir!”

She smiled back, “I look forward to it. I’ll see you and your friends in Galar.”

With that, the Kalos champion left and Ash rushed back inside. He hollered out, “Hey guys! Pack your bags! We’re off to Galar in a few days!”

Brock poked his head out from his room, “Galar? Wait… Who was at the door?”

“Diantha, the Kalos champion. She’s invited all of us to watch the final of the World Coronation Series in Galar. Apparently, Lance will be facing off against that region's champion Leon.”

Max poked his head out next, “Really!?! That’s awesome! So, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

A couple of days later, everyone was on a plane to the Galar region. Sitting near the window and watching the clouds pass by, Ash mused, “I can’t wait!”.

Just then, there was an announcement on the intercom, saying that the plane had entered Galar airspace. Suddenly, in the middle of the announcement, all the lights in the aircraft blinked off. On cue, there were several gasps from the passengers and the flight crew did their best to pacify everyone.

Just then, Pikachu pressed his nose to the window and got Ash’s attention. The boy obliged and peered out, musing to himself “I think something’s out there. It’s coming! I can feel it somehow!”

Sure enough, Ash and Pikachu caught a very brief glimpse of something big. Unfortunately, it was a ‘blink and you miss it’ moment. Then, just as quickly as it turned off, the lights came back on again. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as the pilots regained control and continued towards Galar.

Next to him, May leaned over and murmured, “This is going to be another one of those adventures, huh?”

Ash grumbled back, “Gosh! I hope not! I’ve had enough of almost dying in nearly every region I’ve been to.”

Soon, everyone was wandering around the city of Wyndon. For the newcomers, they were all marvelling at the sights. Goh took a deep breath, “This will be a great place to catch some Pokémon!”

Ash shot Goh’s declaration down, “Nope! We’re hitting the stadium!”

However, Goh decided to be a little stubborn, “Well… I’ll be out catching Pokémon.”

Unfortunately for Goh, Ash was not taking no for an answer, so he and James promptly grabbed Goh and dragged him to the stadium.

Jessie leaned over and whispered to Chloe, “Is Goh always like this?”

Chloe moaned, “You have no idea!”

As they entered, another familiar face greeted them in the lobby, Ash waved enthusiastically, “Hey! Its Cynthia! Long time!”

The tall blonde woman smiled serenely, “Hello Ash and friends, old and new! It’s been a while since I’ve seen some of you! I’m glad you all accepted the invitation. I dare say, a lot of you will be in for a surprise!”

Ash pumped a fist, “Alright! I’m so excited!”

Cynthia chuckled, “I’m sure, follow me everyone! You’re all our guests, so you will be in the VIP box with us.”

The group broke into excited chattering and hurried after the Sinnoh champion. Once inside, they saw an elegantly-dressed man with short ice blue spiky hair. Ash recognized him as Steven Stone. Meanwhile, May, Dawn and Serena’s eyes widened when they spotted a familiar tall figure with aquamarine hair. The trio blurted in unison, “Wallace?!”

The flamboyant man was absolutely delighted, “Hello, you three! How lovely to see you! Could I have a word with you all?”

With that, the trio moved away to speak privately to the Coordinator. Alder gave a jovial wave as he lounged in his seat, and even Diantha said hello. Meanwhile, Lance was pacing up and down in the VIP Box, murmuring to himself. A tall man with tan skin and lavender hair was seated across from Diantha, and he was meditating. Ash assumed that this was Leon. Meanwhile, Cynthia called Ash over and led him to a transfer machine. She smiled, “I actually am doing this as a favor for a friend of mine. Her name is Geeta and she is the champion of the Paldea region. She would have come herself, but her flight got cancelled at the last minute. The Alola Champion also wrote to us last week, saying that he was a bit busy choosing his Elite 4, so he couldn't make it either.”

He tilted his head curiously, “Paldea Region? I’ve never heard of it. I only just heard of the Galar region.”

Cynthia smiled, “Indeed… The Pokémon world is much bigger than you think.”

She withdrew three Pokeballs from her jet-black overcoat, “In these Pokeballs are the Paldean variant of Tauros. There are three kinds of Paldean Tauros. One is a pure Fighting Type, another is a Fighting and Fire Type, and the third is Fighting and Water Type.”

His eyes shone, “Awesome! Geeta’s really willing to trade them for three of mine?”

Cynthia shrugged, “That woman works in mysterious ways. And I’ve been friends with her for five years.”

With that said, she and Ash successfully completed the transfers. Just then, Steven Stone came rushing over, “There you two are! Hurry up, the match is starting in two minutes!”

Everyone quickly rushed to their seats, as Lance and Leon walked out of the VIP box. 

The group and the audience waited for a while, and then the lights dimmed. A moment later, the light show began, and a master of ceremonies began announcing. He said, “Welcome everyone! It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for! We’re here to witness the world’s largest, world’s greatest Pokémon battle to determine the world’s greatest trainer! Welcome to the World Coronation Series!”

The announcer paused briefly, “So how did we get here? The Master’s 8! The top trainers ranked by the Pokémon Battle Commission, have entered this competition of high stakes battling. So that they may vie for much coveted title of Monarch! But who, you may wonder, are our two finalists!”

The lights dimmed before a spotlight shone on Lance walking onto the field, “First up! I introduce to you, Lance! One of the Kanto league’s Elite Four and winner of the prestigious Elite Four Cup. Then went on to emerge victorious from the trainer’s ultimate dream, the Pokémon World Tournament in Driftveil City! Lance showed his attack skills as a member of the Pokémon G-Men! His use of Dragon-Type Pokémon, has been described as battling art. A world class trainer with world class Pokémon!”

Then on the other end of the field, another spotlight lit up and illuminated Leon. The announcer continued the introductions, “I am now pleased to introduce the other finalist. It’s Leon! Born and raised in Galar! Known for winning the Galar Champion Cup on his very first try! In battles that weren’t even close! One who has never tasted defeat! A trainer who takes on any challengers. Even once taking on 100 challengers from throughout the world and beating every single one of them! The king of the kingdom! The superstar of Galar! The undefeated champion, Leon!”

No sooner had he stopped speaking that the crowd went ballistic! They were so loud that the glass windows in the VIP box began reverberating.

The two champions faced off against each other and the referee ordered them to release their Pokemon for the 1 versus 1 battle. With a big broad grin on his face, Leon threw his Pokeball skywards, and a massive Charizard popped out with a roar. In response, Lance tossed his own Pokeball, which released a massive red Gyarados. Ash's eyes widened when he saw the red Gyarados. Meanwhile, the announcer was babbling, "It's Leon's undefeated ace Pokemon, Charizard. And evolved from a gold Magikarp, Red Gyarados!"

Ash was taken aback and his head tilted in confusion, "Evolved from a gold Magikarp? I thought-"

Cynthia coughed, "Lance wanted to keep the whole 'Lake of Rage' incident quiet from the general public, so as not to start a panic. So we collectively agreed upon a story that he caught a gold Magikarp and it evolved into a red Gyarados."

Brock mused, "Yeah, that makes sense."

The referee stepped onto a platform attached to an Aegislash and it floated up into the air. He yelled, "Battle begin!"

Lance hollered, "The time has come! I've been looking forward to this!"

Leon yelled back enthusiastically, "Indeed! Let's have a Champion Time! Now, Charizard... Flamethrower!"

As Charizard charged up its attack, Lance ordered Gyarados to counter with Hyperbeam. Both attacks met in the middle and practically wrestled for dominance. This kept up for a while, until Hyperbeam overpowered the Flamethrower, but Charizard dodged just in time. Next, Leon ordered an Air Slash, but Gyarados used its tail to block the attack. Leon continued to go on the offense and ordered another Flamethrower. Oddly enough, Lance elected to boost his speed and attack with Dragon Dance. That left his Pokemon vulnerable to the Flamethrower attack.

After the attack landed, Lance elected to close the gap to his opponent and ordered an Aqua Tail. Gyarados responded by engulfing its tail in water, leaping into the air and smacking Charizard in the face. Although the fire lizard landed on its feet, it still had to shake its head to recover. Not allowing them a moment to rest, Lance ordered multiple Ice Fang attacks, which Gyarados dutifully obeyed. After getting buffeted about for a while, Charizard responded with Fire Spin. Unfortunately for Leon, Gyarados got out of that jam with Aqua Tail and advanced with Ice Fang.

Leon smirked, knowing that Lance fell for his trap. He yelled, "Alright Charizard, use Thunder Punch!"

Lance was clearly caught off guard, and Gyarados paid the price. It only got worse when Leon ordered multiple Thunder Punch attacks, which was swiftly countered with Aqua Tail. Then, the two trainers recalled their Pokemon, to the confusion of many. Max pressed his nose against the glass in the VIP box, "Is it over? Is the match a draw?"

His question was answered when both Lance's and Leon's Pokeballs began to glow red. Cameras zoomed in on specialized wristbands that had small beams of red light envelope their Pokeballs. Then the balls began to grow exponentially, all the while glowing red, and the combatants tossed the Pokeballs back into the arena. In an instant, the skies began to darken and adopted a maroon tinge. The Pokemon re-emerged from their Pokeballs and began to grow in size at a rapid pace. Though it was worth noting that Charizard appeared to take a different form. Chloe mused, "Is this the Gigantamax Phenomenon?"

Back on the field, Lance yelled, "Use Max Geyser!", and Leon also yelled, "Use Max Lightning!"

Both attacks hit their target, and Lance responded with a Max Strike, while Leon countered with Max Air Stream. Charizard avoided the attack, and scored a direct hit on Gyarados. Finally, Leon figured that it was time to end it. He shouted, "G-Max Wildfire!"

With a roar, Charizard launched what looked like a flaming phoenix towards Gyarados. Lance wasn't about to be outdone, so he ordered a Max Guard. However, it looked like G-Max Wildfire was still active, and the flaming phoenix suddenly dive-bombed and smashed on top of the Dynamax Gyarados. When the assault finished, the red Pokemon was lying prone and shrinking back to normal size. The referee was by the Pokemon's side in an instant. A moment later, he announced, "Gyarados is unable to battle! The winner of this match is Leon!"

The Galarian crowd went wild, and in the VIP box, Ash was starstruck. He exclaimed, "Wow! That was incredible! Leon must be really strong! I can't wait to face him one day."

When Lance and Leon returned, they fielded plenty of questions from Ash and the group. Just then, Iris approached Ash and tugged on his sleeve. She sheepishly said, "Hey Ash... I was just thinking... Now that Alder is retiring... I was hoping to compete in the Unova League, so that I could take over as the Champion."

Ash smiled at her, "That's great, Iris! I couldn't think of anyone better! Also, now that you mention it, I kind of do want to retake the Unova Gym Challenge. I got to be honest with myself, Unova wasn't one of my best performances. Arceus above! That fiasco at Elesa's Gym still haunts me to this day, because I was such an idiot. Look, I'm not going to take on the Unova Pokemon League, I just wanted to redeem myself with the Gyms. Can we tag along? It would be nice to travel with friends."

The dark-skinned girl grinned, "You got that right!"

Chapter Text

Early one morning, Ash suddenly woke up with a start. His eyes were wide, and he was breathing heavily. His body was also sweating, even though the weather outside had grown colder and snow had begun to set in. The sudden motion woke up Serena and May, who were sandwiching him. The honey blonde-haired girl spoke up, her voice laced with concern, “Ash? Are you okay?”

He panted for a few seconds longer before getting his bearings, “I’m fine. Just some bad dreams. It’s nothing to worry yourselves about.”

May softly spoke, “Do you want to talk about it? Please don’t bottle up your emotions. We’re always willing to listen.”

After a minute of silence, he replied, “We’ll wait for the rest to wake up. I really don’t want to repeat myself multiple times.”

About an hour later, everyone was gathered around the table for breakfast. Brock noticed Ash’s dour mood, “Ash? You ok, bud?”

As all eyes turned to him, he sighed, “Just a nightmare last night. Felt too darn real. It started out relatively similar to real life, where I lost the Alola League. Except, you guys took the loss a lot worse than I did. From there, all of you were urging me to give up this dream of being a Pokémon Master. And-”

Serena interrupted him with a stern look, “Ash, let me stop you there… I’m saying this with utmost respect, and I’m sorry about the language I’m about to use. But that is the biggest load of Tauros crap I’ve ever hear. I know I speak for all of us when I say that there is no way on Arceus’ given earth where WE would ever betray you or force you to give up your dream. You have helped a lot of us achieve our dreams or have the determination to work towards it. ”

Brock nodded firmly, “Ash, you are my best friend. Telling you to give up your dream of being a Pokémon Master, sounds wildly out of character for any of us.”

Bonnie chipped in and snarked, “Yeah, this nightmare of yours sounds like a trashy fanfiction that some of my school friends would write as an essay.”

Then Serena reached over and clasped his hand, “Ash? You were the one who inspired half of us to find our dream. Winning and losing is part of life.”

Misty shifted next to him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, “Listen. When Brock and I first met you, you were just a rookie. Like I told you the other day, Top 16 in your first league is very impressive. And that is despite a disobedient Charizard. And hey, at least you managed to beat Gary.”

Finally, Cilan sat down in front of him, “Ash, I’ve been thinking. Maybe this nightmare you had, is just your own insecurities? A lot of us think that being the runner-up in two back-to-back leagues, is very impressive. You didn’t think so. I mean, since you’re still kicking yourself over it, it probably means that this nightmare was born out of your own insecurities. But that’s just my guess. There’s nothing wrong with that, Ash.”

James then shared an uncomfortable look with Jessie and Meowth. He hesitantly raised a hand, “While we’re on that subject of the Indigo League, Jessie, Meowth and I need to apologise. It was technically our fault that he lost the league-”

That was the last thing he said, when an enraged Misty leaped up from her seat and pounded the three of them on the head with her mallet. She screeched, “I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN IT WAS YOU THREE IDIOTS! HE COULD HAVE MADE IT PAST THE TOP 16 IF YOUR TEPIGHEADEDNESS HAD NOT SCREWED HIM OVER!”

She was quickly restrained by Chloe and Risa, but everyone was glaring at the former Rocket trio. Pikachu even growled and began sparking, ready to shock them. However, Ash raised a hand, “Guys! Stop! In a way, I have to thank you.”

Dawn looked at him in surprise, “Ash?”

He continued, “Sure, I’m mad that that stunt forced me to use Charizard. But then on the other hand, it showed me that I needed the kick up the butt and try and fix things with Charizard and earn his respect. Lets be honest, in most of my Gym battles, I coasted by on pure luck or random shenanigans. I think I only ever had three proper gym battles, and that was against Lt. Surge, Koga and Blaine.”

With that out of the way, they went on to finish breakfast, wrapped themselves up in warm sweaters and headed to the lab. Inside, they saw Professor Cerise waiting for them, with his hands behind his back. He said, “Hey gang! So I have a bit of bad news. As you can see, it’s snowing outside. As a result, I’m operating this section of the lab with just myself, Chryssa and Ren, while the rest of the lab is going under maintenance. We've discovered a few leaks here and there and I've already hired a contractor. Of course, our research isn't stopping, So I’ll be splitting you all into different groups and sending you to different locations. Ash, Iris, I understand that you two want to challenge the gyms there in Unova, and Cilan is getting a headstart. You’re free to do that. Goh, I want you to head to Unova as well, with two others. You’re needed on the outskirts of Castelia City. The rest of you, I’ll tell you your assignments later.”

A few days later, everyone was packed and ready. Cilan was leaving early, so that he could go back and prepare for Ash and Iris. Meanwhile, Goh, Horace and Chloe would head to the outskirts of Castelia City. May, Max, Bonnie and Clemont were off to Johto, Dawn, Misty and Risa were going to the Orange Islands. The rest were either elsewhere or staying behind.

As they walked towards Striaton City, Ash threw back his arms and stretched, “Hey Iris, this does bring back memories, doesn’t it?”

She grinned back, “Sure does! The only difference was that you’re not much of a kid anymore.”

“Hey!”, he playfully shoved her. “You do realised that we’re more or less the same age, right?”

Iris teased, “Could’ve fooled me when we first met!”

His smile melted, “Yeah… Yeah, you’re right… I was an idiot. Heck! I still get nightmare of that match with Elesa. What the hell was I thinking!? That was a rookie move!”

Iris sidled up and wrapped a comforting arm around him, “Hey… sorry for bringing up bad memories. It happens to the best of us. You just got caught up with the fact that Palpitoad was a strong Pokémon and threw all your chips behind him. Could have happened to anyone.”

She changed the subject, “So, what’s your plan for the Striaton Gym? The last time, you challenged all three of them. You going to do the same again?”

He shook his head, “Nah… I was thinking about getting a rematch with Cress. He was the only one I didn’t beat. As much as I want Pikachu to get his revenge, I’m going with Snivy this time. She’s been working hard and I’m sure that she’s close to evolving. What about you?”

She replied, “I’m thinking of facing Cilan, and I’ll be relying on Axew.”

On cue, Axew popped out from her wild bushy purple hair and waved cheerily. About an hour later, they finally stumbled upon the Striaton Gym. Just before Ash was about to step in, Iris teased, “Ready to make an impression like last time?”

He smirked and poked her in the ribs, earning a small squeal. Ash mock grumbled, “Jeez! Let it go already!”

They entered the restaurant, which acted as a front for the gym. Cilan greeted them and got them seated. After a short meal, the lights dimmed, and all the patrons in the restaurant began to cheer. The green-haired young man walked to one end of the hall, while all the tables and chairs were moved to one side. Cilan’s brothers, Chili and Cress also joined him.

A microphone was tossed from the side, and Cilan deftly caught it. With his back to everyone, he announced, “Ladies and gentlemen! This afternoon, we are delighted to treat you to a two for one special! You will witness two battles for the price of one meal!”

He spun around on his heels, “Alright then, Ash! Today I shall grant you a shot at redemption!”

Cilan tossed the microphone to Chili, “So you’re back! So you’ll receive a welcome as pleasant and hot as the noon day sun!”

Finally, Cress concluded, “Well… I hope you will be as cool as ice for this matchup, like a refreshing glass of water.”

In unison, they announced, “Now, its show time!”

Soon enough, a false wall opened up to reveal the gym. Ash and Iris hurried inside, along with the cheering patrons. Meanwhile, Cilan, Chili and Cress walked at a more sedate pace. Cilan folded his arms, “So, Ash and Iris? Who among you is battling first?”

Iris glanced at Ash, “How about you go first. I want to get my strategy right.”

Ash acknowledged and Cilan also nodded, “So Ash, how about it? Do you want to face the three of us like last time?”

He shook his head, “Sorry Cilan. This time, I want to face just Cress. He was the only one who I didn’t beat last time, so I’ve got unfinished business. Though, I’m not battling for a badge this time. This is purely because I wanted to redeem myself in most of the gym battles here.”

Cress bowed gracefully, “I look forward to our battle.”

Cilan turned to Iris, “What about you, Iris?”

She pointed at him, “I want to face off against you! Sorry Chili”

The green-haired boy was amenable to that, while the redhead waved off the apology.

Cress and Ash stood on opposite ends of the battlefield. The blue-haired triplet fished out his Pokeball, “Time to make a splash! Simipour!”

Ash grinned and sent out Snivy, who took up a battle stance. Cress was gracious enough to allow Ash the first move. Immediately, he ordered Snivy to use Leaf Blade. The Grass Snake Pokémon proceeded to dart across the field with her tail glowing green. Cress ordered his Pokémon to dodge, which it dutifully did. Simipour retaliated with Fury Swipes, before following it up with Water Gun.

Ash didn’t let up and struck with Vine Whip, which hit its target. Simipour then tried to bamboozle Snivy with Double Team, but Snivy got rid of the clones with Vine Whip again. Simipour then fired a Water Pulse, which hit its target. Snivy got blasted back a few feet before shaking it off. Simipour followed up with another Water Pulse, but then Ash decided to bring out his big guns.

He yelled, “Snivy! Redirect it back with Magical Leaf!”

That definitely caught Iris and Cilan off guard. As far as they were aware, Snivy’s move set consisted of Vine Whip, Leaf Blade, Leaf Storm and the infamous Attract. Clearly, Ash and Snivy had updated her move set. The next surprise was when Ash ordered a Mega Drain, and sapped Simipour’s stamina.

Iris wondered aloud, “Huh… What happened to Attract? That was supposed to be Snivy’s signature move.”

Ash overheard her and called out, “Honestly, I felt like Attract was a bit of an unfair tactic. Also, there is a 66% chance of it failing because my opponent could either be a female Pokémon or genderless. Snivy wasn’t too happy about it, and it took me a month to convince her.”

The battle raged on, until Ash finally called out another Magical Leaf, and knocked out Simipour. The referee raised his hand, “This battle between Challenger Ash and Gyn Leader Cress is over! Challenger Ash wins!”

Ash and Pikachu punched the air in celebration, and an exhausted Snivy saluted. A moment later, Snivy was enveloped in a bright blue glow, forcing everyone to turn away. When they turned back, Snivy was replaced by a Servine. An excited Ash raised his Rotom Phone, “Servine, the Grass Snake Pokémon, and the evolved form of Snivy. Servine whips its opponents with its vines and dodges their attacks by hiding in the shadows of thick foliage.”

He also checked Servine’s moves. As it turned out, Leaf Blade was replaced by Slam and Mega Drain was upgraded to Giga Drain. He hugged Servine, who hugged him back with her vines. An hour later, it was Iris’ turn because the battlefield needed maintenance.

After sometime, Ash and a grinning Iris left the Gym, with the latter winning a Trio Badge. However, there was a new addition alongside her, Fraxure. At some point during the battle with Cilan, Axew had evolved into Fraxure. The dark-skinned girl was practically skipping, "OMIGOSH! OMIGOSH! OMIGOSH! I can't believe he evolved!"

Ash grinned, "I know, right! It was about time he evolved!"

Just then, Cilan's voice sounded behind them, "Hey guys! Wait up!"

The couple stopped and allowed their green-haired friend to catch up. He reached them and panted, "Whew! So I have some news for you guys. Kind of forgot to mention it in the heat of our battles. My brothers and I have been thinking of stepping down as Gym Leaders. We're finding it difficult to maintain our relationships with Misty's sisters, and our Gym duties and being Connoisseurs. So Cress has been in talks with Morana, you remember her, right? By next month, she will take over as Gym Leader, and my brothers are planning to move to Cerulean City."

Ash pat his friend's back, "Jeez! That's a pretty big decision!"

Cilan snorted, "Yeah, tell me about it! While Cress spoke to Morana, Chili went and spoke to the other Gym Leaders and Champion Alder. They were actually pretty supportive about it."

They wandered around the city for a while, then Iris spoke, "Should we call Goh? Maybe we can join them or pick them up and head back to Kanto."

Ash dialled his Rotom Phone, and it was Horace who picked up. He told them that they were done with their business and were just on their way to Striaton to pick them up. Horace said, "Oh yeah, I managed to catch a Darmanitan and Goh caught a Golurk. We were participating in a Raid battle and we were up against that same Golurk."

Ash grinned, "Nice! Tell Goh I said congratulations! On our end, I managed to beat the Striaton Gym, and Iris also beat it and got her first badge!"

"Awesome! We'll be reaching the train station in half an hour. Meet us there and we can swap stories later."

Chapter Text

About a couple of weeks had passed since Ash’s rematch with Cress. Iris officially left the group, to continue her journey, and the group promised to cheer her on in the Unova League.

Early one morning, Ash was startled awake, yet again. His movement stirred May awake. She sleepily rubbed her eyes, “Ash? Are you still having that silly dream again?”

He shook his head, “No, actually… I… er… I felt something. Some kind of… pulse. Like, I could feel it in my head.”

She mused, “Could be a Psychic Type? Maybe a Psychic Type was attempting to telepathically communicate with someone and accidentally locked onto you?”

He shook his head again, “No, actually it felt different from Telepathy or any other Psychic move. We’ll wait for the others to wake up and get their thoughts.”

A while later, Ash filled in the others on the weird pulse that he felt. However, no one else could offer up a decent theory. Misty replied, “Maybe it was just a coincidence. If it happens again, maybe we can talk to Professor Cerise and see if it’s worth investigating.”

In the lab, the Professor didn’t have any work for Ash, but he did send Goh and Horace to catch some more Pokémon. Serena, Lillie and Clemont were off to Kalos for a research mission. In the end, only Ash, May and James were left in the lab with nothing to do. So, Ash decided to go do some training with his Pokémon, while May joined him to practice her Coordinating.

At some point, Pikachu was facing off against Quilava. He started off with Quick Attack, and Quilava dodged. The Pokémon then fired back with a Flame Wheel, that connected with Pikachu. The mouse was sent flying, but spring boarded back with an Iron Tail and nailed his opponent on the head. Ash was really getting into the battle, when suddenly he felt the pulse again.

Not a moment later, he heard Professor Cerise calling out to him. He yelled, “Hey Ash! Can I interrupt your training for a minute?”

Ash promptly halted the battle, healed his Pokémon and met with the Professor. Cerise directed him to the holographic display in the main lab, “So Ren has just picked up an unusual blip somewhere. If I’m not mistaken, the location isn’t far from here. Ren, do you think you can triangulate the location?”

The blonde man grinned, “You got it, Professor!”

He typed away at his keyboard at then exclaimed, “Got it! It’s somewhere in northern Kanto. In Rota, to be specific!”

Upon hearing that, Ash and May exchanged glances, and said in unison, “Aura! Should’ve known!”

Cerise stroked his chin and nodded, “That’s a sound theory. Why don’t you three check it out?”

Ash rushed back and gathered his Pokémon. Aside from Pikachu, he also took Quilava, the Blaze Tauros, a regular Tauros, Absol and Palpitoad. When he met up with May and James, the former quipped with a smirk, “I wonder if Queen Ilene still remembers us.”

After a few days of travelling, Ash, Pikachu, James and May found themselves in the beautiful kingdom of Rota. It wasn’t as crowded as last time, as there was no festival happening. They wandered through the kingdom, and then Ash felt the Aura pulse again. This time it was much stronger. The closer they got to the palace, the stronger it was. Along the way, they happened to bump into Jenny, Queen Ilene’s head maid. The old woman recognised them immediately. With a smile on her face, she exclaimed, “Well I never! If it isn’t Ash and May! Welcome back to Rota! What brings you and your new friend here?”

Ash explained, “Ms Jenny, A few days ago, I felt an odd pulse. It happened again, later the same day, and then I recognised it as Aura. My friends and I traced the source of the pulse to here.”

She started a little bit, as a thought struck her, “Ahh yes. I think I know what you are referring to. Follow me, you three. Stay close, because it is easy to get lost in these streets.”

The trio followed her to the imposing palace, but it was surprisingly unguarded. Ash glanced backwards with confusion etched on his face, “Miss Jenny, I just noticed something. Where are the guards?”

The old woman just waved him off, “Nothing to worry about, dearies. However, if you do wish to know, Lady Ilene may have the answers. I am aware of the situation, but it is above my station. Now come, Lady Ilene is waiting.”

Eventually, they entered the throne room, where Queen Ilene was sitting on her throne. It had probably been a few years since he last saw her, but the Queen was definitely looking a little older. Her eyes lit up at the sight of Ash and she stood up gracefully, “Ash Ketchum! It is an honour to see you again!”

Ash stepped forward and knelt, “Queen Ilene, my friends and I came here because I sensed something calling to me. Through my Aura.”

The woman nodded slowly, “I know what it is. Walk with me, please?”

Ash, James and May walked alongside the queen, and she spoke, “This conversation never really cropped up with Sir Aaron’s Lucario, not even until his untimely passing. However, for centuries, my ancestors have been raising his descendants. Now, I am the latest monarch to perform this duty. I believe the egg that I am raising, has sensed your Aura. Since it is similar to Sir Aaron’s, I suspect that it reached out to you.”

Eventually, she led them to a small dungeon that was set up to look like a Pokémon laboratory. Inside was a Nurse Joy, who was carefully monitoring a Pokémon Egg. Ash slowly walked up to the contraption holding the egg and pressed his nose against it, “Lady Ilene, do you really think I can keep the egg?”

She nodded firmly, “Indeed, young Ash. Ever since you arrived here and helped save my kingdom, I have been following your exploits in the various Pokémon Leagues. I am confident that you will be worthy of raising this young Riolu when it is eventually born.”

Suddenly, it began to move a little and a glow pulsed a few times. Nurse Joy busied herself and opened the contraption, allowing everyone to see it. The pulsing grew more frequent, and then the glow grew brighter. Everyone covered their eyes to avoid being blinded. When it died down, they looked at the spot, to see a young Riolu sitting down on the cushion that the egg used to stand on.

Its eyes were closed, and it slowly opened up. At the same time, Queen Ilene backed away and did the same for May and James. She murmured, “Give them some space. It’ll allow the Riolu to imprint on Ash properly.”

The Riolu gazed at Ash and blinked a few times. Then it stood up a little unsteadily, and Ash had to resist the urge to reach his hands out and steady it. He softly spoke, “Hey there, little guy! I’m Ash Ketchum, and I would love to be your friend.”

Ash slowly backed up a little and slowly held out his hand. The Riolu looked at his hand quizzically, before hesitantly taking it. The boy then slowly took out a Pokeball, “What do you say? Do you accept me as your trainer and your new friend?”

The Pokémon nodded vigorously, “Rio!”

On the side, Jenny observed, "That's surprising. Most trainers who received their Riolus in the past, have been very excitable. Their loud voices sometimes spooked a couple of the baby Pokemon."

May just murmured back, "Ash has had experience raising Pokemon from an egg. This Riolu will be his fourth or fifth Pokemon that has hatched from an egg. If I remember correctly, his Donphan and Scraggy evolved from an egg. He also was tasked with delivering a Larvitar egg to Mount Silver, and along the way, it hatched and he cared for it. He and another friend of ours, Misty, also cared for a Togepi egg. So this isn't his first rodeo."

Back with Ash, the new-born Riolu then tapped the button on the Pokeball and got sucked in, confirming the capture. Ash waited for a few seconds and then fist-pumped, “Yes! I just caught a Riolu!”

A jubilant May pounced on him and kissed him on the cheek, “Congratulations, Ash!”

James also grinned, “Good job!”

Ilene smiled, “Thank you very much, Ash. I am certain that you and Riolu will go far, together. If you all wish to leave, allow me to escort you back to the gates.”

As they walked, Ash once again noticed the lack of guards. He asked, “Queen Ilene, if it is not too forward of me to ask, what’s with the relaxed security.”

The regal lady sighed as she walked, “I’m afraid the political situation in the world has gotten complicated. The kingdom of Rota is one of very few monarchies left in this world. Many of us have been aware of the change in governance in all of the regions. Now, some of the rulers from different regions, including myself, have chosen to slowly dissolve the monarchy and establish a more democratic ruling, with elected officials. As for myself, I shall be retiring to enjoy a more sedentary life. I’ve already given most of the guards their leave of notice and they are free to pursue any other occupation, if they wish to.”

Ash wondered, “What’s going to happen to the castle?”

She replied, “Most likely, it will be converted into a museum. It would be a shame to just leave it empty. Though, not to fret, I will occasionally return to the castle to continue to honour Sir Aaron’s heroism every year. I hope we meet again someday. Take care of Riolu for me.”

Ash nodded firmly, “I will, Queen Ilene.”

As the trio exited the castle, they didn’t speak much. Then James broke the silence, “Well… I did not see that coming.”

When they neared the Pokémon Centre, a middle-aged man walked up to them. He spoke in a genial voice, “Hello there! Are you Ash Ketchum?”

Ash nodded, “I am. May I help you with anything?”

The man sighed, “I’m in a bit of a tight spot. My daughter’s turning six next week and I wanted to get a Pokémon for her birthday. Preferably one that isn’t scary-looking, so Ghost-Types, Dark-Types and Poison-Types are out of question. I made the mistake of doing a Blind Trade with another Trainer. I traded a Raticate and got a Houndoom instead.”

James winced, “Yeesh! Houndoom’s can be a little scary, especially for a six-year-old.”

The man nodded, “Exactly! Then, I saw that you put up a Tauros for trade. I think Tauros would be a great gift, because she can have fun riding on them.”

Ash grinned, “Sure, Let’s do it!”

They entered the Pokémon Centre and went straight for the transfer machine. Ash initiated the trade and successfully received the Houndoom's Pokeball. After the man left, Ash let the Houndoom out of the Pokeball. The canine Pokemon's horns were curved backwards, so it was clearly an alpha Pokemon. Surprisingly, it wasn't very bad-tempered, but it did start gambolling about very vigorously.

Ash returned Houndoom back to its Pokeball before they made the journey back home. As they walked, James slapped his back good-naturedly, "Well! I say this was a productive day! You got two Pokemon to add to your arsenal!"

Back home in Vermillion City, everyone was excited to see the Riolu and Houndoom. Goh finally managed to catch a Butterfree, and added a Cubone to his collection. Additionally, Scorbunny also learned Ember and later evolved into Raboot. Meanwhile, Horace bagged himself a Spearow and a Rattata.

Chapter Text

Ash casually observed the newly-evolved Raboot with interest. The Pokémon on the other hand, was giving off an aloof air. He asked, “So, what moves have you taught Raboot?”

Goh frowned, “Well… He knows Quick Attack and Double Kick, and he recently learned Ember. He did that on his own, though.”

Ash sighed, “Listen buddy… I know that you’re just interesting in catching Pokémon and not battling them. But there will eventually come a time when a Pokémon won’t let you simply catch it. It will make you battle for it. For that, your own Pokémon need to get stronger.”

Goh made a face, but Ash had put his foot down and dragged him away. From there, Ash, Goh, Horace and Kiawe all trained hard. By the time they were done, Bayleef evolved into Meganium and learned Frenzy Plant. The new-born Riolu had to be prevented from battling, right off the bat. Ash wanted it to get used to being around him and his Pokémon for a while.

Meanwhile, Buizel evolved into Floatzel and learned Whirlpool. Ash’s Grookey also evolved into Thwackey and learned Knock Off. Horace’s Chikorita also evolved into a Bayleef. Even Raboot learned Blaze Kick. As the days passed, more of Goh’s and Horace’s Pokémon learned new moves. Horace’s Venomoth learned Stun Spore, Goh’s new Grimer learned Poison Gas and his Dewgong learned Ice Beam.

One day, Ash and company were training as usual, when Clemont came running over. He hollered, “Guys! I got a letter from Korrina! Turns out, the new World Coronation Series season has started. She’s invited us to Shalour City to watch her first match!”

Ash pumped a fist, “Alright! That’s going to be awesome! Let’s go!”

Everyone was soon packed and ready to go. Ash checked his own roster, which consisted of Pikachu, Quilava, Blaze Tauros, Absol and Oshawott. Once they landed, the large group decided to explore Shalour City for a while. Having been there before, Ash, Clemont, Bonnie and Serena became the impromptu tour guides. Along the way, Goh caught several Pokémon, including a Binacle and a Fletchling and Horace caught a Flabébé and a Scatterbug.

Ash even enjoyed a few random battles with passing trainers. His Pikachu made short work of a Clawitzer. His other Pokémon also led him to three straight wins. Just then, a young tan-skinned girl with grey eyes and hair, intercepted them. She was dressed as a martial artist and pointed a finger at him, “You there! Are you competing in the Pokémon World Coronation Series?”

Ash was a bit taken aback by her forwardness, “Uh… Sorry, not this year.”

That didn’t deter her, “Very well! I shall consider this a practice battle, Trainer!”

They moved to a battlefield and got ready. She introduced herself as Bea and called out, “This will be a one on one battle. Once a Pokémon has made an appearance on the field, you cannot change your mind at the last minute!”

Ash grabbed a Pokeball, “Alright! Qui-”

Suddenly, another one of his Pokeballs popped open and Oshawott emerged on the field. The Sea Otter Pokémon patted his scalchop with a confident smirk on his face, “Osha!”

An unfazed Bea then sent out a large octopus-like Pokémon. Oshawott took one look at the bigger Pokémon and sweat dropped as the colour drained from his entire body. He looked around and spotted Pikachu, and tried to drag him into the arena.

Bea yelled out, “Oshawott cannot tag out! You may not have wanted to field him but it’s too late now!”

An annoyed Pikachu glared at Oshawott, who chuckled sheepishly. The electric mouse swung his tail and bonked his teammate on the head and began yelling at him. Off to the side, Meowth helpfully translated, “You arrogant little moron! How many times have we told you not to pull stunts like this! You can’t just go in all overconfident and then chicken out at the last minute. Now you made your bed and you lie in it. But I’m warning you, if Ash gets his butt kicked, you’re going solo against all of us as punishment when we're back in Kanto.”

Oshawott gulped as Pikachu scampered back to Ash’s shoulder and glared again. As for Ash, he fished out his Rotom Phone, “Grapploct, the Jiu-Jitsu Pokémon. A Fighting-Type. Grapploct’s entire body is made up of overlapping muscles. It’s tentacles have terrifying power for squeezing attacks.”

Ash then called out, “Okay, Oshawott! Aquajet!”

Oshawott surrounded himself with water and rocketed towards Grapploct. Bea struck a fighting pose and ordered, “Detect!”

Sure enough, Grapploct dodged all the attacks and then Bea ordered a Close Combat. Before Ash could react, Oshawott got smacked around. Then, she ordered Liquidation, and the massacre grew worse. Finally, the two separated, and Oshawott looked like he had gone through the ringer. Ash clenched a fist, “Oshawott! Are you okay buddy? Use Focus Energy!”

Oshawott boosted his accuracy and then Ash ordered a Razor Shell. For a small Pokémon, Oshawott was quite speedy and managed to land a hit. However, the advantage didn’t last long because Grapploct took advantage of the close quarters to pounce. Somehow, Oshawott dodged and Ash followed it up by ordering a Hydro Pump.

Grapploct got pushed back slightly, before using its tentacles to shield itself. The Galarian Pokémon then pounced again and managed to catch Oshawott. Bea ordered, “Octolock!”

On cue, all tentacles wrapped around Oshawott and began squeezing tight. Ash grit his teeth as Oshawott began crying out in pain. At the side, all of his friends were getting increasingly nervous. Ash’s eyes darted around, looking for a way out, and then he hollered, “Oshawott! Use your legs to push up off the ground!”

Bea jerked back, a little surprised, and Oshawott obeyed his commands. Both Pokémon were sent a few feet in the air, and as they came down, Oshawott twisted, so that Grapploct hit the ground first. The impact was enough to let go of his captive. Bea recovered quickly and ordered Liquidation, followed by another Octolock.

By this time, Oshawott was exhausted, thus at the mercy of Grapploct. As the Jiu-Jitsu Pokémon continued squeezing, Bea decided to throw Ash a bone, “I’d advise you to surrender while you can. Or I will force you to surrender!”

At that point, as much as it pained him to do so, Ash decided to cut his losses. He raised a hand, “I-I-I… I forfeit.”

She nodded firmly and Grapploct let go. By then, Oshawott had fainted and Ash returned his Pokémon. He stood and approached Bea, “Good match. And good luck for the tournament.”

All the while, the front of his cap cast a shadow over his eyes. He turned around and trudged away from the battlefield. Serena made to follow him, but Dawn held her back, “Don’t… Just let him be. He wants to be alone for some time, so let’s just give him some space. Ash will probably re-join us later.”

Bea approached them, “Am I missing something? I know that sometimes I came come off as cold during my battles. I’m working on that, right now.”

Brock shook his head, “It’s nothing personal, Bea, was it? Ash hasn’t been in a good place for a while. He came close to winning a Pokémon League twice, getting in two finals in a row, and lost narrowly. I guess the losses are just getting to him.”

Back with Ash, he took a stroll around the city, just wandering aimlessly. As he walked, he replayed the battle multiple times in his head. He didn’t blame Oshawott for the loss, one bit. He knew that Oshawott was always a little overconfident, and he should have worked on it. Back in Unova, those antics were amusing at best. So, like an idiot, he just let Oshawott keep doing it, and now it has cost him.

He stopped in front of a bakery window display, not that he noticed, as he was still analysing Oshawott’s battle. Ash stayed like that for a while, when suddenly a cheerful voice startled him, “You should try the croissants! They’re to die for! Though I’m a little partial towards Poképuffs.”

He whirled around to see a pretty redheaded girl smiling at him. She was wearing a white sleeveless blouse and black trousers held up by a belt. The girl also wore black-framed glasses over a pair of red eyes, and she completed the look with a small hat on her head.

Ash moved away, “Oh, I’m sorry, was I in the way?”

She shook her head, still smiling, and then noticed his depressed expression. Her smile turned into a frown, “Uh oh… That’s a sad face. I don’t like sad faces. Is everything okay?”

She guided him to a nearby bench and they sat down. He spoke up, “I-It’s nothing. I just lost a Pokémon battle, that’s all. Nothing to worry yourself-”

He was interrupted when she suddenly lunged forward and wrapped him in a hug. Despite the fact that the girl was practically a stranger, the hug felt oddly comforting. She murmured, “Sorry, I’m not usually this forward, but you looked like you could use one.”

Then Ash got a good look at her face and his jaw dropped, “Whoa! Wait… You’re… You’re…”

He glanced around, but they were relatively alone, but he whispered, “You’re Aria, right? The Kalos Queen?”

She shot him a wry smile, “Well… It’s former queen, now. Your friend Serena took the title a year later, and a few months ago, a friend of hers, Shauna, took the title, and she’s the current Kalos Queen.”

Aria winked at him, “It’s okay to talk normally. We won’t get mobbed. I know I’m famous, but people respect my personal space. By the way, sorry for approaching you out of the blue, but I like making people smile. So if I see someone sad, I kind of make it my personal mission to cheer them up. I remember you, by the way. Ash Ketchum, right? My feet really don’t like you.”

Ash chuckled sheepishly, “Sorry if I stepped on your toes too much while we danced.”

She laughed, “I’m just kidding. You were fine. So anyway, where were we? Oh yes, I like cheering people up, so when I saw you all sad, I couldn’t resist.”

He sighed, “Yeah, well… I was having a practice battle with this really strong trainer. I had a plan in place, but it got derailed by one of my more enthusiastic Pokémon wanting a shot. Unfortunately, I couldn’t switch out, and got soundly thrashed.”

Before he could continue, she hugged him again, this time harder. Aria murmured, “Do you want to talk about it, or do you just want some comfort?”

He relaxed in her embrace, “This-this is nice.”

They stayed like that for nearly two minutes before she finally let go. Then a thought struck her and she turned to rummage in her purse. She babbled, “Oh, right! I almost forgot. I have something for you.”

She fished out a Pokeball and he looked at her with a little confusion. Ash asked, “You want to trade? I mean… I only have Tauros up for trade, and no offence, they don’t look like Pokémon that you would normally use.”

She waved him off, “None taken. Actually, this isn’t a trade.”

Aria pressed the button and a familiar Pokémon popped out. Ash’s eyes widened, “Greninja! Wow! Good to see you, buddy!”

Both human and Pokémon embraced briefly. Aria took that opportunity to explain, “It’s a funny story actually. A couple of weeks ago, I was just taking a walk in Lumiose City. Next thing I know, some huge red glowing vine popped out from underground and headed towards me.”

She snorted and pet Greninja, “I probably would have gone splat if this guy hadn’t jumped in and been my knight in shining armour. I recognised him immediately as one of your Pokémon because I think I saw him with you, once. Was just wondering what on earth he was doing here in Kalos. Then this Pokémon called Zygarde came over and spoke to me, telepathically. Imagine my surprise. He said something along the lines of that vine being the last one.”

Aria made a face, “To be honest, the whole ‘tentacle out of the ground’ sounded like something out of a bad hentai movie.”

She stopped and blushed, “Sorry… I didn’t mean to sound so crass. I’m supposed to be better than that. Anyway, Greninja saved me and destroyed the vine. Then Zygarde asked me to take care of him and to return him to you, if we ever met.”

Ash smiled and returned Greninja to his Pokeball. He gazed at it wistfully, “Welcome home, buddy.”

Then he turned to the redhead, “Hey, thanks for getting me out of my funk. I was actually supposed to meet with my friends. We’re going to cheer for our friend Korrina, the Shalour City Gym leader. She’s participating in the Pokémon World Coronation Series. I’m not doing it this year because I wanted to take a sabbatical. Do you want to come with us?”

Aria shot him a beautiful smile, “I would love to!”

Ash eventually re-joined his friends, and it was worth it seeing Serena’s gobsmacked face when she saw him with Aria, of all people. Introductions were quickly made and they all headed inside the stadium. Once inside, they saw Korrina skating to her mark. The blonde girl spotted them and waved frantically. Meanwhile, her Lucario waved, but a little more dignified.

As Korrina’s first match began, Dawn turned to Ash, “Are you okay, Ash? I mean-”

He glanced at Aria, who was talking to Serena, and he smiled, “I’m alright, Dawn. While I was busy moping, I bumped into Aria and she gave me a bit of a pep talk.”

Dawn slyly asked, “Is that all? Was it just a pep talk”

Ash rolled his eyes, “Get your head out of the gutter, Dawn. It was just a pep talk.”

They focused on Korrina’s matches, and the Shalour City Gym Leader looked to be in fine form. She was practically breezing through the competition. The group also noticed that Bea was in the tournament, and was projected to meet Korrina in the final

Speaking of the final, there was a short half an hour break, where everyone was allowed to head out and stretch their legs. Ash and company, along with their new companion Aria were walking, when they heard a voice hollering out. Sure enough, Korrina was skating towards them, “Yoo-hoo! Hi Ash! It’s been forever!”

Ash grinned, “Sure has! You remember Serena, Clemont and Bonnie, right? These are my friends from my visits to other regions. This is Brock, Misty, May, Max, Dawn, Cilan, Kiawe, Sophocles, Mallow, Lana, Lillie, Gladion, Goh, Horace, Chloe and Risa. These two are James and Jessie. And I’m sure Aria over here, needs no introduction.”

Korrina cheerfully greeted, “Nice to meet you guys. So Ash, what’s new with you?”

He replied, “Caught a bunch of Pokémon and I recently got a Riolu.”

Her eyes sparkled, “Really! Can I see him! Can I? Can I?”

Ash sent out his Riolu and Korrina sent out her Lucario. The girl knelt and rubbed behind the Pokémon’s ear. She earnestly said, “You stick with Ash and he’ll make you super strong!”

Ash clapped her on the shoulder, “So, you’re in the final, eh? Good luck! I had a practice battle with Bea, your opponent. She’s going to be tough!”

Korrina nodded, “Got it! Lucario and I have been training as hard we have been. To keep winning and move up the rankings.”

Brock checked his watch, “I think we should get back to the stadium. Korrina’s match starts in 10 minutes.”

The girl cheerfully waved and skated back, with Lucario running alongside her. As they settled back in their seats, Risa asked, “So, who do you think is going to win?”

Ash frowned in thought, “I’m hoping that Korrina does, but Bea’s going to be difficult. I have a feeling that this will be a close battle.”

Sure enough, the battle was fierce between the two opponents. It was a two-on-two battle, where Bea’s Hawlucha and Korrina’s Mienfoo took each other out in a double knockout. Then it was Lucario against Grapploct. This was a tense encounter, with neither side giving any quarter, until Grapploct fired a Liquidation and Octolock in quick succession, the same combo that knocked out Ash’s Oshawott.

When they met up with Korrina afterwards, she wasn’t too torn up about it. Instead, they found Korrina and Bea hanging out, gorging on pastries and ice cream. As it turned out, the two were out on a date. Bea apologised to Ash, but he waved her off, insisting that he just needed to train harder.

The group stuck around Shalour for a couple more days, and then it was time to return to Kanto. Aria had nothing better to do, so she decided to tag along. On the plane back, Ash found himself sitting between Serena and Aria, and Serena was snuggling into his side. Aria smirked, “It was about time you two got together.”

Ash chuckled, “Actually, I’m in a relationship with her, Misty, May, Dawn, Lillie, Lana, Mallow, Chloe, Risa and another friend of ours, Iris. You’re not weirded out by this, are you?”

The redhead actually snorted, “Honey, this is Kalos. Romance is kind of our thing. Multi-relationships are more common here because everyone is so open on the concept of love.”

She leaned over, “I’ll let you in on a little secret. Ever since we had our little dance, I kind of started to have a thing for you. Is there room in your little collective for one more girl?”

Ash and Serena shared a look and grinned before turning back to her, “Welcome to the mad house!”

Chapter Text

Ash suddenly woke up with a start, as loud explosions rocked the house. Curled up on either side of him were Serena and Mallow, who were also startled awake. He groaned, “Seriously! This is the third damn time! I hope to Arceus-”

He was interrupted by his door opening, and all of his friends crowding inside. Among them were Jessie and James, the former who had a green face mask on. She spotted him and mused, “Oh… I thought you had sneaked out for some early morning training, just to piss us off.”

He checked his alarm clock and snarked back, “Seriously? It’s five in the morning! I may be battle-obsessed but I’m not stupid to risk everyone’s wrath! And here I was thinking that you guys were lying about getting fired from Team Rocket and trying to steal Pikachu as usual.”

Just then, there was yet another series of explosions and loud Pokémon sounds. In alarm, everyone rushed out in their night wear. A bizarre sight greeted them in the dim light of the morning sun. A large number of Pokémon, all of whom were Ash’s, had congregated in one spot and were firing attacks one-by-one.

Finally, a massive Thunderbolt from Pikachu hit something, and then there was a bright glow. Something got tossed in the air and landed a few feet in front of Ash and his friends. He peered down to see a beat-up Dewott sprawled on the grass, swirls in his eyes.

He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and deadpanned, “Oh… Seems like Pikachu and all my Pokémon decided to carry out their threat. Somewhere along the way, Oshawott evolved into Dewott. Good job, buddy! Congratulations for evolving. Though did you guys have to teach him a lesson NOW?”

Pikachu squeaked and Meowth translated, “Turns out, they wanted to wait until morning, but Charizard got impatient.”

Ash knelt and picked up his fainted Pokémon before he and Brock treated Dewott’s injuries. There really was no point in going back to bed, so they all freshened up and hung around in their house.

Just then, there was a bit of a stare down between Charizard and Greninja. Pikachu and Ivysaur had to run in to mediate, and Meowth went in for translation purposes.

When he ambled back to Ash, he said, “Ahh well… Looks like your Noivern has been bragging about Greninja being your strongest Pokémon. Charizard took offense to that, so Pikachu’s gone in there to make sure no one does anything stupid.”

Aria suddenly piped up, “I forgot to ask, Meowth. How are you able to talk like a human?”

The Scratch Cat Pokémon grinned, “Well, funny you should ask. A long time ago before I met these lugs, I was just an ordinary Meowth. Then, I met a lady Meowth and it was love at first sight. However, she preferred the company of humans. So I taught myself to speak the human language. Unfortunately, she rejected me because she found it freaky.”

Aria scratched him under the chin and he purred in bliss. She mused, “Sorry to hear that. It’s her loss. But at least you’ll be a great translator for our Pokémon!”

Just then, Misty raised a hand, “Wait… What do you mean that Greninja is one of Ash’s strongest Pokémon?”

Ash shared a grin with Serena, Clemont and Bonnie. He asked, “Do you guys want a demonstration?”

He then hollered out, “Hey Charizard! Greninja! You want to see who’s the strongest between you two?! How about a battle! Charizard, you’re freestyling it, Greninja, you’re with me!”

The two Pokémon nodded firmly before clasping each other’s hands and shook. A few minutes later, Charizard and Greninja stood on opposite ends, with Aria volunteering to referee.

Charizard kicked off with a Flamethrower, which Greninja nimbly dodged. The frog then retaliated with Cut, before Charizard fired another Flamethrower. In Charizard’s arsenal cycled between Flamethrower, Dragon Rage, Overheat and Steel Wing. On the other side, Greninja mixed and matched between Cut, Double Team, Aerial Ace and Water Shuriken.

Just then, one Water Shuriken and an Overheat collided, blowing both Pokémon backwards a few feet. Greninja recovered and it glanced at Ash, and he got the message. Both of them clenched a fist and then tapped into their inner power. Greninja’s eyes glowed and then all their movements were in sync.

Serena and Clemont grinned, the latter operating a small laptop. Meanwhile, Bonnie was practically vibrating with excitement. Even Jessie and James were looking quite excited. Then to the shock of everyone else, Greninja was enveloped by a swirling water vortex, and Ash was yelling at the same time. When the vortex dissipated, Greninja looked vastly different.

It had a small red crest on its forehead, and a red and black patch by its eyes, shaped like a lightning bolt. It also grew black, spiky features on its head, almost resembling Ash’s own hair. Bonnie squealed, “Yay! Yay! Yay! Ash-Greninja is back!”

Everyone who hadn’t seen the transformation before, all had their jaws on the floor. Just then, there were two audible thumps, as Misty and Lana had both fainted to the floor. Lillie knelt and poked Lana, only for the blue-haired girl to twitch. Mallow also tried to revive Misty, only to hear her mumble, “S-s-s-so p-p-p-powerful!”

Then she stopped and sniffed before leaning over and whispering to Chloe, “I think Misty just had an orgasm. I can smell it on her.”

Back with the battle, the fight grew even more fierce. Charizard was actually grinning as he fired more attacks. A Steel Wing attack nailed Greninja on the stomach, and at the same time Ash clutched his own stomach in pain. Risa pointed, “Um… Is that normal? I mean, the attack didn’t even touch Ash.”

Clemont adjusted his glasses and explained, “You see, Ash and Greninja have undergone what is known as the Bond Phenomenon. To put it simply, Ash and Greninja had reached such a stage in their partnership that, their power is that of two becoming one. As long as Ash becomes one with Greninja, and vice versa, they will always be stronger. The only drawback is, that any hit that Greninja takes, Ash feels it too.”

Gladion asked, “Can Ash do it with other Pokémon too? I mean, Pikachu is his longest-serving companion.”

Clemont shrugged, “Honestly, I don’t know. Neither I nor Professor Sycamore have seen any other Pokémon use it. As far as we’re aware, this is unique to Greninja.”

Back with the battle, Ash began pushing even harder. He yelled, “Stronger and stronger!”

Then it happened… Ash felt a tug in his mind and he froze up. He thought in his head, “Oh no! Not again!”

Outside, Greninja also stiffened and froze up. Charizard was just charging up a Steel Wing, when he realised that something was wrong. Moments later, both Greninja and Ash began keeling over. Aria also sensed that something was wrong and rushed over to catch him. Meanwhile, Charizard flew forward as fast as he could and caught Greninja. The frog transformed back into its normal form, and Ash blacked out in Aria's arms.

A while later, Ash came too and found himself lying on Risa’s lap. He grunted, “Wow! I guess I’m out of practice, huh? How long was I out?”

Cilan handed him a mug of hot chocolate, “About 20 minutes. Gave a bunch of us a real scare. Clemont and Sophocles are going over pages and pages of data, wondering what went wrong. By the way, you, Mallow and Risa are needed in Galar. The professor wants to know more about Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing. Your plane leaves in a few hours. I’m going to Cerulean to meet my brothers and scout for a permanent residence for the three of us. Misty’s coming with, since she’s a local, and might know some good places.”

After sometime, Ash felt good enough to walk around like normal. Before long, they were on a plane to the Galar region. When they landed, Ash, Risa and Mallow spent some time wandering around in Wyndon. Apparently, there was a World Coronation Series match going on between Galar champion Leon and Gym Leader Raihan.

The trio bought tickets and sat down to watch. Pikachu hopped on Ash’s lap to watch, and Riolu popped out of his Pokeball to watch the match as well. As the battle raged, Ash observed that Leon had changed up his Charizard’s moves. He also noted that Raihan was a Dragon Type Gym Leader. Ash mentally filed that news away to tell Iris later. They also took notes on Duraludon and Charizard’s changed forms in Gigantamax form.

Before long, Leon had defeated Raihan, and maintained his unbeaten streak. At least that’s what the commentators had said. When they left the battlefield, they spotted a golden statue in the stadium lobby and stopped to admire it. A familiar voice called out, “Oh! Hello again!”

They turned to see Sonia, Professor Magnolia’s granddaughter, “Admiring the statue are we? That’s supposed to be a famous Galar region hero.”

She led them to a table and they all sat down before she explained, “Long ago, a great black storm covered the region. As a consequence, the land was ravaged by gigantic Pokémon. However, they were soon defeated by a single young hero, bearing a sword and shield. This status is supposed to depict the hero of legend. Though it’s mostly just in spirit.”

Sonia then twirled a long lock of her ginger hair, “I’m still not really sure what that storm was. I don’t even know if the legend is true. My concern is where the sword and shield are. Are they connected to Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing.”

They bid farewell and were on their way. Along the way, Mallow caught an Milcery, a Gossifleur and an Applin. Risa caught a Nickit and an Impidimp. Just then a young boy with a fainted Chewtle rushed up and asked for the nearest Pokémon centre. As it turned out, there was a wild Pokémon on a nearby bridge that was really strong.

This fired up Ash, and he sprinted off, with the girls chasing after him. Sure enough, a large Pokémon was ambling down the bridge. It was a Farfetch’d but not one that they were used to seeing. This was a lot darker and bigger, and was dragging a HUGE leek.

Ash checked his Pokédex and saw that it was a Fighting Type and the Galarian form of Farfetch’d. The Wild Duck Pokémon spotted them and then made a ‘Come at me’ gesture.

The boy glanced at Pikachu, “Do you want to take this, buddy? Or give someone else a chance?”

Pikachu indicated that Ash let someone else have a go. The trainer dug into his belt and analysed his choices. He had brought his newly evolved Dewott, Pikachu, Absol, Riolu and a Tauros for trade.

Then an idea struck him, “Okay Riolu! Time for your battle debut!”

The Emanation Pokémon got into a fighting stance. Ash kicked off the battle with a Vacuum Wave, which got blocked by the leek. Farfetch’d charged a Night Slash, but it was very slow. Ash took advantage of that by ordering a Force Palm. Farfetch’d brought its leek down, but Riolu dodged with Double Team.

Then while still on Double Team, Ash ordered multiple Vacuum Wave attacks. Sure enough Farfetch’d was peppered with a barrage of attacks. Then Farfetch’d charged a Brutal Swing, which caught Riolu off guard. Somehow, Riolu was able to struggle to its feet, while Farfetch’d was panting heavily. Then the duck charged up another Night Slash, but Ash decided to strike first with a Reversal. Farfetch’d was laid own on the floor, but still got up, though it looked like it was on his last legs.

Then, the duck raised his leek, ready for another attack. Riolu tensed, but then Farfetch’d’s leek thumped to the ground. Turns out, it had fainted. After visiting a Pokémon Centre, Ash spoke to Farfetch’d, promising to help make him stronger. Just like that, Galarian Farfetch’d became the newest member of the family. To make matters even better, a trainer traded her female Nidoran for Tauros.

Chapter Text

About a few days later, Ash worked hard with his Pokémon, and along the way, Quilava evolved into Typhlosion and learned Lava Plume in place of Flame Wheel. Gible also evolved into Gabite and learned Sand Tomb, which replaced Dig. Finally, Pignite evolved into Emboar and learned Heat Crash in place of Flamethrower.

One day, Brock walked up to Ash, “Hey man, can we talk? I’ve been thinking, that a lot of us want to expand our teams as well. I know that Chloe, Risa and your friends from Alola, don’t have full teams. Misty’s already caught a bunch of Pokémon from other regions, except for Alola, Galar and Paldea. I would also like to expand my teams for the sake of variety. Do you have any recommendations from the Alola region?”

After some time, they had all gathered in the dining room in their shared cottage. Ash and the Alola gang were the centre of attention. The teenager asked, “So… Who wants to go first?”

Misty raised a hand and Lana took that as her cue. She said, “Well, I already have Popplio and Eevee. I've been hoping to catch a Wishiwashi, which is a pure Water-Type.”

James raised his hand, “I have my Mareanie, who is a Water and Poison Type.”

Then Ash spoke “There’s Dewpider, which is… Umm… Do you really want this one, Misty?”

She retorted, “It is a Water Type, is it not?”

He winced, “Water and Bug…”

Her face went pale briefly, before she swallowed. Misty muttered to herself and slapped her cheeks, “Get a grip on yourself, dummy! You’re 19! Get over that stupid phobia. You’re okay with Butterfree, Leavanny and Heracross. You can handle a Water and Bug Type. Not to mention, some other trainers who challenge the Gym could also have a Bug Type.”

Ash waited for her little monologue to end before continuing, “It evolves into Araquanid. Then there’s Wimpod, another Water and Bug Type and it evolves into Golisopod.”

Lana took over, “Finally, there is Pyukumuku, which is a pure Water Type and then there’s Bruxish, a Water and Psychic Type. Do you have any preference?”

Ash held out his Rotom phone and showed her the images of the Pokémon mentioned. The ginger-haired girl tapped her upper lip thoughtfully and then turned to Lana, “How about you and I head to Alola tomorrow and catch them. I’m leaning towards Wimpod and Pyukumuku.”

Lana nodded, “Great! I’ll try and catch a Bruxish and a Dewpider then. Maybe I’ll get lucky and finally catch Kyogre. What about Galar and Paldea?”

Most people’s jaws dropped at that Kyogre declaration. Though Ash and the Alola gang rolled their eyes. Mallow reached over and bopped her on the head, “Enough with the fibbing, you!”

Lana simply stuck out her tongue sheepishly, and everyone anime fell.

Ash consulted his Rotom Phone, “Coming to Lana’s query, in Galar, there’s Chewtle, a pure Water Type and it evolves into Drednaw, a Water and Rock Type. Next up is Cramorant, a Water and Flying Type, which has a few different forms, I believe. Then there’s Arrowkuda and its evolved form, Barraskewda. both pure Water Types.”

He scrolled and then his fingers froze at the two images on screen, “Whoa! What in the name of Arceus is THAT!”

He turned the phone and showed a bizarre-looking Pokémon. He turned the phone back and read, ”It says here that this one is called Dracovish, a Water and Dragon Type. The one after that also looks weird, it’s called an Arctovish.”

Then he moved on to Paldea, “This one is a regional form, though the name is different. It’s called a Wiglet, a pure Water Type. It’s evolved form is Wugtrio. Then there’s Finizen and it’s evolved form Palafin. Weirdly enough, the evolved form looks almost the exact same as its pre-Evolved form, except for a light pink heart-shaped mark on its chest. However, Palafin has an ability to transform into something called a Hero Form. No idea what that is.”

He scrolled further, “OOO! This one is interesting. It’s called a Veluza, a Water and Psychic and it doesn’t evolve. Next is Dondozo, a pure Water Type and no evolution. After that there’s Tatsugiri, which has three different forms and no evolution. That’s about it for Water-Types.”

Mallow revealed that she recently caught Oranguru and a Fomantis in Alola. She also admitted that she left Milcery and Applin in Aina’s Kitchen so that they could help her brother with the cooking.

They elected to avoid Paldea until they gave Galar a thorough exploration. Max was leaning towards catching Pikipek, Yungoos and Komala. Bonnie was busy daydreaming over catching a Cutiefly and a Morellull. She was also excited by the Pom-Pom Style Oricorio and felt that Comfey was cute.

Risa revealed that she had a preference for fast Pokémon, so a few days ago she caught a Tauros, a Ponyta, a Doduo, a Sneasel and a Zigzagoon. Sometime later though, Professor Cerise called out to them, “Hey! I thought you all ought to know, there’s going to be a Pokémon Trading event in Johto! It starts in three days, so Ash, if you hurry, you can make it!”

The day of the event arrived, and Ash was there, along with Goh, Horace and Chloe. Along the way, Goh caught two Pinsir, and traded one for a Heracross. Meanwhile, Ash managed to trade three Tauros, for a Honedge, a Misdreavus and a Mienfoo.

As soon as they got back, Ash gathered all his new Pokémon and began training them. Off to the side, Chloe was watching as he helped Absol and Dewott battle it out. Then he noticed her watching, “Hey! You want to join in? I’m sure Sobble, Butterfree and Yamper will be eager to train.”

She waved her arms frantically, “N-n-no thanks! I don’t think being a Pokémon Trainer is for me.”

He paused and then scratched his chin, “How about being a Coordinator? You can talk to May, Dawn and Serena, if you want. Or even Aria, as she is also planning to enter the Coordinating scene.”

Suddenly Dawn’s voice called out, “Ash! You can help her too! You do have some experience in Coordinating!”

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Oh yeah, right…”

He, Dawn, May, Aria and Serena led Chloe away to a corner of the park, with all of his Pokémon following him. Chloe asked, “So, what’s special about being a Coordinator?”

Dawn took the lead, “The idea is to show off a Pokémon’s looks in a visually appealing manner. Whether it is in how the Pokémon itself looks, physically, or through the moves it performs.”

May chipped in, “The Kalos region’s Pokémon Showcases also serve the same purpose. Though I personally find that concept a little sexist. To be exact, the Showcases only feature female trainers and no males.”

Aria spoke up, “Yeah, I actually asked my former agent, Palermo, about that. According to her, she had been trying to push for Showcases to follow the Contest path, but some of the higher-ups were a bit too traditional. She got involved in a massive row with them and that ended with them threatening to terminate her contract. I had never seen Palermo so mad in my entire life.”

Serena raised a hand, “So what did you mean by Ash having some Coordinating experience?”

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Well… I’m not as good as you guys, but Coordinating has helped me develop some strategy. Hey Dawn! Remember our signature move?”

Her deep blue eyes lit up in delight, “Go for it!”

They cleared a space and Ash turned to his faithful Pikachu, “Okay buddy, you know what to do! Pikachu! Counter Shield!”

With a cry, Pikachu bounded off his shoulder and scampered across the ground. Coming to a stop, he began spinning around on his back like a break dancer. All the while, he shot of a Thunderbolt, which practically cocooned the electric mouse. When he let up the attack and stopped spinning, the Thunderbolt dissipated into sparkles.

Chloe’s green eyes were wide, and her mouth was open, “Wow! That was incredible!”

Ash snapped her out of her fangirling, “Hey Chloe, what moves do Yamper, Butterfree and Sobble know?”

She tapped her chin thoughtfully, “Umm… I think he knows Spark, but I’m not sure of the other moves. I haven’t checked Butterfree and Sobble’s moves yet.”

Chloe called over the puppy and he bounded towards her, with his tongue sticking out of his mouth. The girl pointed her Rotom Phone and scanned his moves, “Hmm… He knows Spark, Bite, Nuzzle and Crunch.”

Ash sucked in a breath and let it out slowly, “Right… We can work with that for now. Girls, you four have got this, right? With three Top Coordinators and a former Kalos Queen, she’s in good hands.”

Aria shot him a thumbs up and he wandered off to train his Pokémon. Iris had called the other day, and she was four days away from Lenora’s Gym. Once again, he gathered his Pokémon for a strategy meeting. He mused, “Okay… So Lenora is a Normal Type Gym Leader. Obviously, I’m not going anywhere without Pikachu. I’d best go with a few Fighting Types.”

He spoke out loud, “Primeape! You’re coming too. I’ll take the Combat Tauros, Heracross, Emboar and Scraggy. Alright you guys! It’s time for some serious training!”

After another week, Ash set off for Unova, following a second call from Iris. The girl had confirmed that she had nearly reached Nacrene city and promised to meet him there. Soon enough he took the next flight to Unova and before long, he found himself in the city and met with the tan-skinned girl.

As they walked, he caught her up on what she had missed in the past few weeks. He then asked her, “So, Brock was wondering if everyone wanted to catch some Pokémon to expand their teams. You interested?”

She replied, “Heck yeah! So far, I only have Fraxure, Excadrill, Emolga, Gible and Dragonite. I need one more for a full team. I was thinking of Druddigon, but they are pretty unpredictable. The Deino line can also be hard to control, once they evolve.”

He tapped his chin thoughtfully and then scrolled through his Rotom Phone. Ash spoke, “Right… So there aren’t many other options in Unova. But in Kalos, there’s Skrelp, which is Water and Poison, but it’s evolved form, Dragalge is Poison and Dragon. You could even go for a Tyrunt, a Goomy or a Noibat.”

She grinned, “Nice! What else is there?”

“Then in Alola, Turtonator is a Fire and Dragon Type. Drampa is a Normal and Dragon. I think you’ll like the Jangmo-o line, they are pure Dragon. Moving on to Galar, there is the Applin line, which is Grass and Dragon. Then there’s two weird-looking Pokémon called Dracozolt and Dracovish. There’s Duraludon, a Steel and Dragon Type. Then there’s the Dreepy line, a Dragon and Ghost Type. Paldea has got Cyclizar, a Normal and Dragon Type. There’s also the Tatsugiri trio, all are Water and Dragon. Finally, there’s the Frigibax line… Uhh.. Are you sure you want this one, Iris?”

She shot him a weird look, “Uhh… Why?”

He winced, “Dragon and Ice…”

Her dark skin turned pale and she shuddered, “Ooof! I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. Now come on! Don’t want to keep Lenora waiting.”

It took them 15 minutes to find the Gym, and Iris allowed him to challenge first. Sure enough, Lenora was waiting for him. The dark-skinned woman grinned, “Well, I’ll be! A little Pidove told me that you were challenging the Unova Gyms again.”

Ash grinned, “Got that right! I wasn’t particularly satisfied with my Gym run. Though I’m not interested in taking on the League again.”

She nodded and fished out a Pokeball, “Good enough for me! Here’s hoping you’re ready! Stoutland!”

Ash called out, “That takes me back! This time though, we’re not having a mirror match! Scraggy! I choose you!”

Lenora smirked, “Going with a Type Advantage, eh? Hope you’re not going to allow that to carry you through.”

He replied, “Wouldn’t dream of it, Lenora! I’ve been training my Pokémon hard for this!”

Lenora’s husband stepped up as the referee and he announced the rules. Ash had the first attack, and he wasted no time, “Scraggy! Start things off with a Leer!”

Scraggy raced up and shot a fierce glare at the dog. The intimidation tactic lowered Stoutland’s defence. Stoutland countered with Shadow Ball, which hit its target. Scraggy was not to be deterred and countered with a massive Headbutt.

However, Lenora ordered a Roar, sending Scraggy back in his Pokeball. In his place, Primeape was sent out, and he looked like he meant business. Meanwhile, Lenora sent out her Watchog and started off with a Mean Look, trapping Primeape on the battle field.

Ash grinned and spun his cap around, “Okay Primeape! Start off with a Cross Chop!”

Watchog answered back with a Low Kick, and the two attacks collided. Then Ash called for a Rage Fist, which sent Watchog flying backwards. He went for another one, but Lenora ordered a Confuse Ray. Unfortunately, it’s aim struck true, and Primeape was now confused. The Pig Monkey Pokémon began wildly swinging with Rage Fist.

Somehow, its wild attacks connected with Watchog a couple of times. And then it happened… After another Rage Fist, Primeape’s body was engulf in a bright light.

Lenora raised an eyebrow, “Huh… Primeape has a third evolution? Who knew!”

Ash and Iris’ jaws were on the floor. When the light died down, Primeape looked a lot different. He raised his Rotom Phone, “Annihilape! The Rage Monkey Pokémon, and the final evolved form of Mankey. When its anger rose beyond a critical point, this Pokémon gained power that is unfettered by the limits of its physical body. This Pokémon is a Fighting and Ghost Type.”

As Ash recovered, Lenora cracked her knuckles, “This is going to be fun!”

The battle raged on, and Watchog was relying on Thunderbolt and Confuse Ray. Eventually, a Close Combat pummelling, knocked it out. Then it was Stoutland’s turn. He started off with a Shadow Ball, but Annihilape was able to dodge.

Ash then ordered a Mega Kick, which connected. However, Stoutland managed to nail Annihilape with a Thunderbolt. That was enough to knock him out, leaving Ash with his Scraggy. The teenager wasted no time and ordered a High Jump Kick, which sent Stoutland flying backwards. Confuse Ray did nothing, and Scraggy finally knocked out the Big-Hearted Pokémon with a Focus Blast.

When Ash was declared the winner, Lenora approached him, clapping her hands. She smiled, “I don’t know about you, but I definitely see a massive improvement! Honestly, if you ever change your mind about taking on the Unova League, you’d be unstoppable!”

Ash sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, “I’m flattered, Lenora, but I’m not going to underestimate any opponent.”

She clapped his back jovially, “Now that’s what I’d like to hear! I’ve seen far too many trainers get cocky after beating me. Now, I suppose your friend Iris is challenging me tomorrow?”

Up in the stands, Iris nodded vigorously and Lenora shot her a thumbs up, “Great! I’ll expect a great battle from you tomorrow.”

As they left the Gym, Ash asked, “So, do you need help coming up with a strategy? And do you want me to stay back and watch?”

Iris shrugged dismissively, “Nah, it’s okay. I like this arrangement better.”

She shot him a sly look, “Gives me some peace and quiet from your typical brand of Ash Ketchum lunacy. Cause you’re such a kid!”

He playfully shoved her, and she shoved him back, “I’ll see you in Castelia City in a few weeks.”

Chapter Text

Some days later, Ash woke up one morning and staggered towards the dining room to fix himself a cup of coffee. Misty also followed him, wearing a loose T-shirt, and a big smile on her face.

Brock and Cilan were up and about, cooking breakfast, waiting for the others to wake. Brock noticed his oldest friends, “Morning, you two! So, how did things go yesterday, Ash? Did you, Misty and Lana succeed in helping you get used to Greninja’s transformation?”

Ash shot him a shaky smile, “Yep! Got it down pat! Think we did too good of a job, cause Misty and Lana decided to ‘reward’ me last night.”

Brock raised an eyebrow, before the implication hit him, “Oh? Oh! I see! Well! Welcome to the club, man! Hope you used protection!”

Ash flushed a brilliant shade of red, and Misty was also blushing, though she did have a proud smirk. She hip-checked her boyfriend, “Best night of my life! This guy’s an Arcanine in bed!”

Cilan shook his head with a teasing smile, “TMI, both of you!”

Soon afterwards, everyone trickled in, one-by-one and settled down for breakfast. About an hour later, the professor noticed some activity on a nearby mountain. Apparently, he discovered that there was an outbreak of Pikachu and he wanted to study the family dynamics. Naturally, Goh expressed his desire to catch a Pikachu.

After a while, Ash, Goh, Horace, Meowth, Bonnie and Risa were trekking through the mountain, while everyone else had assignments elsewhere. About three-quarters of the way to their destination, and Goh and Horace were already sweating buckets. Horace wheezed, “How the heck are you guys not exhausted?”

Ash shrugged nonchalantly, “I’ve been travelling around different regions for eight years. Guess that’s built up my stamina. Bonnie’s also travelled with me through Kalos.”

Risa also spoke, “Well, I was an athlete, back in school. This is pretty easy for me. You two are going to have to get used to it.”

Eventually, they all arrived at the location, and it was pretty much a Pikachu Paradise. There were hundreds, if not thousands of Pikachu, gambolling about, and there were handfuls of Pichu and Raichu as well. Ash could even swear that he spotted an Alolan Raichu floating around. Goh caught a Pichu easily enough, but Pikachu was a bit of a challenge. His first toss missed, and the second throw was batted back in his face. On the positive side, another Pikachu bounded up to him and began fussing over him. It didn’t take long before that same Pikachu became his newest Pokémon.

Just then, Bonnie tugged on Ash’s glove, “Hey Ash! I think that Raichu is looking pretty lonely.”

He looked and spotted a forlorn-looking Raichu, sitting on a ledge and seemingly staring at nothing. Pikachu hopped off Ash’s shoulder, and Bonnie’s Dedenne also bounded towards the lonely Raichu. Meowth followed at a more sedate pace. When they returned, Meowth had a sad frown on his feline face.

He grumbled, “Boy! Kids can be cruel! Turns out, that Raichu got abandoned by his trainer. Apparently, she caught him as a Pikachu, because she liked cutesy Pokémon. Then one day, they were wandering around in a cave, when Pikachu accidentally stepped on a half-buried Thunder Stone.”

Ash and Bonnie winced, guessing what happened next. Meowth continued, “That twerp of a trainer threw a massive hissy fit because her Pokémon dared to evolve. She then released him because she didn’t consider Raichu cute, and she didn’t want a non-cute Pokémon on her team.”

Ash growled, “That’s messed up. I mean, it was an accident!”

He gently scritched Pikachu behind his long ears, earning a coo, “I’ll admit, I always wondered what it would be like to have a Raichu on my team, but I respect Pikachu’s wishes to not evolve, far too much. Plus, I don’t want to hurt his feelings.”

Meowth got a glint in his eyes, “Hey, why don’t you catch Raichu. That way, he’ll finally feel like he is wanted, you get a chance to catch and train a Raichu, and Pikachu doesn’t have to evolve. Everyone wins!”

Upon hearing that, Pikachu bounded off and communicated with Raichu with his electricity. He came running back, while Raichu ambled up to the group. Ash crouched to be at eye level with the final evolved form and pet it. He softly spoke, “Hey, for what it’s worth, your trainer didn’t deserve you. Trust me, I know a thing or two about abandoned Pokémon, because a few of my current Pokémon were abandoned by their trainers. Don’t worry, you’ll fit right in!”

He dug out a Pokeball from his backpack and held it out. With watery eyes and a wavy smile, Raichu tapped the Pokeball and got sucked in. The ball shook once before dinging, confirming the capture. Ash grabbed the ball and struck a pose, “Alright! I just caught a Raichu!”

Pikachu also cheered from his shoulder. Then Ash dug out his Rotom Phone to check Raichu’s move set. He hummed and Bonnie also craned her neck to see. Ash spoke, “So Raichu knows Thunder Wave, Thunder Punch, Light Screen… HOLY ARCEUS! YOU know VOLT TACKLE! Man! Your former trainer is either a moron or not serious about battling!”

On the journey back, he stopped off at a local Pokémon Centre and checked the trade machine. Sure enough, he got a request where a trainer wanted Tauros and was sending a Carvanha the other way. He even battled a few trainers with Pikachu and Riolu, beating them and gaining valuable experience.

Some days later, Ash decided to start training his newer Pokémon. Currently, he was jogging around Cerise Park, running alongside him were Riolu, Tyranitar, his three Paldean Tauros, Growlithe, Absol, Houndoom, Thwackey, Nidoran, Mienfoo, Mimey and Raichu. Keeping pace in the air, were Fearow, Honedge, Gengar and Misdreavus. They stopped at a small pond, and then Ash stripped off his T-shirt and dove in, swimming laps with Carvanha.

This carried on for a while, before he nodded towards Pikachu and Ivysaur. The latter then fired a weak Solar Beam in the air, to summon the rest of his Pokémon. Ash elected to take a breather, and then gathered all his Pokémon. He separated the newcomers from his older Pokémon, then an idea struck him, “Hey, Ivysaur! Why don’t you, Blastoise, Meganium, Typhlosion, Floatzel, Gabite, Emboar, Servine, Annihilape, Dewott and Croconaw, work on getting used to your new bodies and focus on the moves that you’ve learned!”

Ash turned to the rest of his team, “As for the rest of you, I need your help to train the newbies! Let’s see… Pikachu! You can work with Raichu and his electric moves!”

Pikachu flexed his arms, and he bounded off, with his final evolution following him. Raichu didn’t quite have the speed that Pikachu had, thanks to his bigger mass, but Ash figured that he would work on that later. He looked at the new Pokémon, “Alright! The rest of you will be grouped together by typing! So, Boldore, you’re with Tyranitar! Torterra, you’re working with Thwackey! Hawlucha, you’re in charge of training Riolu, Mienfoo, Farfetch’d and the Combat Tauros. Pidgeot, Staraptor, Swellow, Noctowl, Unfezant and Talonflame, you guys are sparring with Fearow. If he starts acting up, you know what to do. Goodra, you are with Dragonite. Butterfree, you’re the only one I know who knows Psychic moves, so you’re working with Mimey. Charizard, Infernape, Torkoal and Incineroar, you lot are working with the Blaze Tauros, Growlithe and Houndoom. Kingler, Lapras, Corphish and Palpitoad go work with Carvanha and the Aqua Tauros. Naganadel, you will be with Nidoran.”

He bit his lip as he racked his brains, “Still need to think about Absol, Misdreavus, Gengar and Honedge... Wait… Melmetal! You go and spar with Honedge! Greninja, I need you with Absol. Oh darn… I don’t have any Ghost Type, aside from Annihilape, and he’s still getting used to his new body. Fine, I guess Misdreavus and Gengar will train with me.”

All of his Pokémon cheered before they split off and did some serious training. Three days later, he was hunched over a table and making notes. Ash murmured to himself, “Okay, Burgh is next, and he’s a Bug Type. Last time, he had Leavanny, Dwebble and Whirlipede. Those last two would have evolved into Crustle and Scolipede by now. Leavanny is weak to Flying Types, as well as Poison, Rock, Bug, Fire and Ice. Talonflame might be a good idea. Crustle is weak to Rock, Steel and Water, so maybe Honedge. Then Scolipede is weak to Flying, Rock, Fire and Psychic. So I’ll take Tyranitar.”

Once again, he flew to Unova and met with Iris again. As they travelled to Castelia City, a thought struck Ash, “You know what? How about we stick together throughout the Gym run. It’s getting a bit annoying, having to fly back and forth, and it’s a waste of money. Once we finish challenging Drayden, then only I’ll fly back to Kanto.”

She shrugged, “Works for me! It can get a bit lonely on the road. I’ve run into Georgia a few times, and she’s annoyed the hell out of me. Hope you can help calm me down or otherwise I might just claw her face off.”

Soon enough, they entered Castelia City and checked into the Pokémon Centre. As they settled into their room, Iris asked, “So, who have you decided on?”

He replied, “I’m going to play it more tactical, this time. Last time, I used Tepig, Sewaddle and Pikachu. This time, I’m taking Talonflame, Honedge and Tyranitar. Yeah, I know they have the Type advantage, but I’m not leaving things to chance.”

Iris snuggled into his chest, “I’ll stick with Fraxure, like usual, then I’ll used Excadrill and my Dragonite.”

With that, the couple fell asleep, with Iris in Ash’s arms. They hung around for a few days before trekking to the Bug Type Gym. Ash elected to have Iris tackle the Gym first, and he would come back the next day. Fraxure had evidently not been slacking, because he made short work of Leavanny. He fell at the hands of Crustle, but Excadrill finished him off. However, he met his match with Scolipede, though Iris countered with Dragonite and eventually won.

The next day, Ash was facing off against Burgh. The Gym Leader kicked things off with his Crustle, and Ash responded with Honedge. His first move was to order a Metal Sound, lowering  Crustle’s Defence. In retaliation, Burgh ordered a Dig, and Crustle burrowed into the earth quickly. Honedge began looking around frantically, but Ash yelled, “Honedge! Calm Down! Remember our training! Just stop and listen for Crustle!”

The Sword Pokémon paused and floated stock still. Then, it heard some rumbling near it, and Ash yelled, “Float up and dodge it!”

Sure enough, Crustle’s attack missed Honedge by inches. Then, Burgh ordered an X-Scissor, which hit its target, but didn’t do much damage. Ash promptly countered with Fury Cutter. Crustle was met with a series of rapid-fire slashes from Honedge, earning a chunk of damage. There was a series of exchanges, that included Crustle’s X-Scissor, Dig, Protect and Rock Wrecker, as well as Honedge using Night Slash and Fury Cutter. Then Ash finished off Crustle with Night Slash.

Burgh smiled, “You’ve gotten stronger Ash. I’ll give you that. Now, Scolipede! It’s your turn!”

The Megapede Pokémon appeared on the battlefield and cried out a challenge. Ash hollered out, “Honedge! Are you okay to continue?”

The Sword Pokémon cried out in assent and Ash reluctantly allowed it to stay on. As Burgh made his move, Ash had to admit that Honedge was a trooper, but he went down after two hits. Returning him, he tossed out another Pokeball, revealing Tyranitar.

The Armor Pokémon roared out a battle cry as it took to the field. Scolipede then fired off a Poison Sting, which Tyranitar tanked. Then he fired off Hidden Power, scoring a direct hit. From there, the battle raged on, until both were panting, but refused to go down. Then, Ash elected to go for a Hail Mary move. He yelled, “Tyranitar! Used Earthquake!”

The Pokémon roared before stomping on the ground, and causing the Gym to shake uncontrollably. The attack was enough to unbalance Scolipede, and flying debris pummelled it until it fainted. Now completely spent, Tyranitar also fainted, leaving Ash and Burgh to their final Pokémon. He brought out Leavanny, while Ash sent out his Talonflame.

A barrage of Razor Wind attacks, missed, thanks to Leavanny’s flexibility and dodging. Ash grit his teeth, because Talonflame got a face full of Hyper Beam. Fortunately, Talonflame shook it off, and countered with a series of Flame Charge attacks. All of them missed or were stopped by Protect, but Ash wasn’t aiming to attack. A Steel Wing and Brave Bird combination, boosted by the increased speed, caught Leavanny off guard. Finally, one final Brave Bird felled Leavanny, handing Ash the win.

The boy pumped a fist in the air, and in the stands, Iris began cheering. He thanked Burgh before thanking his own Pokémon for their efforts. With the Castelia Gym done and dusted, Ash and Iris returned to the Pokémon Centre for some rest for a day or two. From there, they would head to Nimbasa City to face Elesa.

Chapter Text

Ash bit back a sigh, and Pikachu sweat dropped. They really should have seen it coming. Along their journey to Nimbasa City, they happened to bump into Georgia, the self-proclaimed dragon buster. Naturally, she and Iris began bickering, and Ash had to restrain his girlfriend a few times.

The primary sticking points, were Iris’ lack of Dragon-Type Pokémon. Aside from Fraxure, Dragonite and Gible, she didn’t have any more Dragon Types. After Georgia sauntered away after one last taunt, Ash just rubbed his girlfriend’s shoulders, finally getting her to relax. He mused, “Iris, I get that Georgia’s annoying, but you can’t let her get to you like that. Look on the bright side, at least her team hasn’t changed much. And that she doesn’t know about Alolan Ninetales.”

She leaned into his touch and glanced at him curiously, “What’s its typing?”

“Ice and Fairy. Making it completely immune to Dragon types.”

Iris sucked in a breath, “Oof! That’s got to be the ultimate bane of Dragon Types. What about Excadrill and Emolga?”

Ash dug out his Rotom Phone, “Well… It’s damaged normally by Electric Type attacks, and same for Flying. However, Excadrill has an advantage, as Steel Type moves are super effective against it. Alolan Ninetales can also be damaged by Rock Type attacks. Anyway, we’re close to Nimbasa City, let’s go find the Pokémon Centre. I want to strategize for the rematch with Elesa.”

After an hour, they finally reached the Pokémon Centre. The couple checked in, Nurse Joy cheekily whispered to them, “You two seem close! I hope you keep it PG if you’re sharing a room! Can’t believe the number of times Audino has caught some couples together, especially when they share a room. I’ve even starting sending her on patrols around the Centre.”

Ash and Iris blushed violently as they walked away. Inside the room, Ash sat down on the bed, cross-legged. He mused, “Last time, Elesa used Zebstrika, Emolga, and her ace, Tynamo. I’m pretty sure Tynamo would have evolved by now. Let’s see, Zebstrika is weak to Ground Types. I’m tempted to let Palpitoad get his redemption. Or I could use Torterra, Donphan, Gliscor, Krookodile or Gabite.”

Iris mused, “Excadrill could be a good option.”

Ash nodded and then checked Tynamo’s Rotom Dex entry. He grunted, “Huh… Not weak to anything? That sucks. Immune to Ground types? Hmm…. Guess that’s why he kicked Palpitoad’s butt last time. Eelektrik is also immune, and Eelektross as well. I guess I’ll have to go with Pikachu again. As for Emolga, it’s weak to Rock and Ice. So it will be a toss-up between Glalie or Lapras, or even Tyranitar, Lycanroc and Boldore.”

The next morning, Ash stayed behind to train his team, while Iris went to challenge Elesa. She returned a while later, jumping with joy, and the couple embraced each other tightly. They spent the rest of the day, exploring the city, taking in the sights and sounds.

After their walk, Ash and Iris had a small meal back in the Pokémon Centre before turning in. In the next couple of days, Ash trained Pikachu, Donphan, and Lycanroc. He also roped in Palpitoad, just in case Elesa threw in some surprises.

When he and Iris entered the Gym on their fourth day in the city, they saw Elesa waiting for them in the Gym lobby. However, she wasn’t alone, with her were three other ladies. One was a slim dark-skinned woman with black hair, shades of blue highlights and blue eyes, there was also a woman with violet hair and hazel eyes. Though Ash did recognise the last person, “Hey Valerie!”

The model smiled at him, “Hello Ash and Pikachu! It’s been a while! I have to say, I find it admirable that you’re retaking Elesa’s challenge! Have you visited the Galar and Paldea regions yet? No? Well, I’d like you to meet Nessa, she’s a Gym Leader in the Galar region, Water Type. And this is Tulip, Gym Leader in the Paldea Region, a Psychic Type Gym Leader.”

Nessa spoke for the first time, and she had a bit of an accent, “Hello there! Elesa and Valerie have been talking about you a lot. Ellie thinks that you have potential, but have just been bloody unlucky in the leagues.”

Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “No comment?”

The tall woman giggled, “I heard about you re-challenging the Gyms in Unova. I say, do you mind if Tulip and I stick around to watch your match. I’ll throw in something to sweeten the deal.”

Ash blushed a little and Iris cheekily ribbed him, “Heh, heh, I’m already in a relationship with Iris and a few of my friends.”

Nessa tittered again, “Aren’t you sweet. No, I wasn’t referring to joining your little collective. You’re much too young for me. Anyway, if you beat Elesa and the other Unova Gyms, I will personally endorse you for the Galar League.”

He tilted his head curiously, “Endorse me? Is the Galar League different? Cause usually when a trainer registers for the Pokémon League, they are set.”

Nessa shook her head, “It works a bit different in our region. This league is organised by Chairman Rose, who put forward this rule. No trainer can compete unless they are given a letter of endorsement, either by the champion, the Chairman himself, the regional professor, or one of the Gym Leaders.”

Ash grinned, “Awesome! I accept!”

Elesa grinned back, “But you will have to go through me first! Now, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, show me how much you’ve improved!"

She grabbed a Pokeball and tossed it in the air, "Feel the spark and feel the tingle! Watch me mix and mingle! Zebstrika! The bright light is on you!”

Ash grinned, “Zebstrika, huh? Well! Donphan! I choose you!”

Elesa mused, “Interesting choice! I hope this goes better than last time.”

He snarked back, “Way to rub salt in my wounds! Now, Donphan! Use Take Down!”

The Armor Pokémon began charging towards Zebstrika. Elesa struck a pose, “Zebstrika, dodge it and use Flame Charge!”

Zebstrika deftly dodged and activated its fiery attack.

Ash hollered, “Meet it head-on with another Take Down!”

Both Pokémon charged towards each other and butted heads. For several seconds, neither Pokémon gave an inch, but then Donphan’s bigger size managed to push it back, as the flames licked over its body.

Zebstrika was sent skidding back, and Elesa ordered another Flame Charge. This time, Ash countered with Rollout, and Zebstrika was thrown back yet again. Elesa then ordered a Double Kick, but Ash counted that immediately, “Defense Curl!”

The attack did very little damage, and Zebstrika was showing signs of tiring. The battle raged on for a while longer, then Elesa made a mistake. She called out, “Quick Attack!”

With its speed being boosted, Zebstrika thundered over in double quick time. Then Ash grinned, “Okay Donphan, use Hyper Beam! Point blank!”

Elesa paled, “No! Wait! Zebstrika, retreat!”

However it was too late, the elephant-like Pokémon opened its mouth and a strong beam of light slammed into Zebstrika. The force was enough to send it flying and it landed on the ground, knocked out.

The referee called out, “Zebstrika is unable to battle and Donphan wins! Gym Leader, send out your next Pokémon!”

Elesa called out, “Alright Emolga! The bright light is on you!”

Ash raised his Pokeball, “Good job, Donphan! You earned a good rest, Pikachu! It’s your turn!”

Both Pokémon took to the field. Elesa ordered Acrobatics, but Pikachu dodged them with Quick Attack. She ordered it again, and managed to land a few hits. Pikachu got his revenge with a Thunderbolt, and then Elesa went for a familiar strategy, “Emolga, use Attract.”

However, Ash was ready for her, “Okay Pikachu! Time to break out an old tactic, Counter Shield!”

With a sh*t-eating grin, Pikachu began spinning around on his back, and firing a Thunderbolt. Waves of electricity emanated from the mouse, pushing the Attract attack back, and away from it. Emolga couldn’t get away fast enough, and was promptly shocked.

Elesa had a big smile on her face, “Wow! Now that IS a dazzling move! But don’t count us out yet, Aerial Ace!”

Once the Counter Shield dissipated, Emolga struck, sending Pikachu flying through the air. Fortunately, he was able to land, though he was a little unsteady. Elesa followed it up with Electro Ball. Then, Ash got an idea, “Pikachu! Send it back with Electroweb!”

The Mouse Pokémon promptly formed the attack from his tail and sent a massive electric net towards Emolga. Along the way, it collected the Electro Ball, and the trapped Emolga, dozing with two attacks at the same time.

When the light show died down, Emolga was down for the count. Elesa returned her Pokémon, “Well! I haven’t had this much fun before, and so much inspiration. Now, it is time for my ace! Come on out, Tynamo!”

Ash called out, “Okay Pikachu! You still good to continue?”

“Pika!” came the reply. Right off the bat, Tynamo began its hit and run tactics, with repeated Tackle attacks. Pikachu was only smacked around a couple of times, before he wised up and employed his own speedy tactics. Eventually, an Iron Tail from Pikachu felled Tynamo, and Ash pumped his fist in victory.

Iris also ran over and hugged him and the couple danced around. Then they heard the sound of applause, as Nessa slowly approached them. She cheered, “That was brilliant! It was one of the most exhilarating battles I ever saw! All that being said, I’m a woman of my word. After you finish challenging the other Gyms, come and meet me at my Gym in Hulbury and I’ll write you a sponsorship letter. Now, I want to make this clear, this will only happen after the current Gym season ends, the next one won’t start for another six months. So, take that time to really get your team ready and give us a Gym challenge that we’ll never forget!”

The next few weeks passed as a bit of a blur. Ash had his rematch against Clay, his Combat Tauros beating Excadrill, Corphish beating Krokorok, and evolving into Crawdaunt. Finally, Thwackey beat Clay’s Seismitoad after a tough duel.

When he faced Skyla, Lycanroc beat her male Unfezant, and the best news was that she was actually battling him. Gengar also made short work of Swoobat, and then came Swanna, her ace. Skyla had evidently trained it up, as the swan was giving him a great fight. Gengar eventually lost, and Raichu didn’t last long, so it was down to Lycanroc. Skyla hollered, “Okay Swanna! Use Hurricane!”

The attack blew the Dusk form of Lycanroc off his feet. There was a slight struggle, but Lycanroc got to his feet and emitted a spine-chilling howl. Ash heard it and grinned at her, “Hey Skyla! Since leaving Unova, I’ve been doing a lot of travelling, and picked up a few things.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small light brown gem, which he placed on a wrist bracelet. He put the gem in a small slot, “This is the first time I’m using it in a while. Alright! Here we go!”

Ash struck a series of poses, grunting, “Use full power! Continental Crush!”

Lycanroc howled louder and leaped high in the air. Underneath his paws, dirt and rocks all gathered together, to form one gigantic landmass, that nearly blocked out the sun. Then the entire floating landmass dropped down on a visibly exhausted Swanna, who couldn’t dodge. By the time the dust and debris cleared, Swanna was down for the count and Ash was on a roll.

By now, they just had two gyms to challenge. Iris lost in the Ice Type Gym against Brycen, while Ash beat him, with Riolu defeating Beartic, Honedge beating Vanillish and evolving into Doubledge. Cryogonal was a challenge, but Ash defeated him with the Blaze Tauros.

Later on, Iris had a second crack at the Ice Type Gym, and eventually swept it with Dragonite and Excadrill. From there, the two had a bit of a debate, as they had a choice between Roxie’s Poison Gym and Drayden’s Dragon Gym. Eventually, they settled on Ash tackling both, as Ash had never faced him before. Ash beat Roxie with Palpitoad, who soon evolved into Seismitoad. He then used Mr. Mime to defeat Scolipede and Gabite to beat Garbodor. Iris elected to skip it and head straight to Drayden’s Gym.

When they got to the Opelucid Gym, he had been waiting. He said, “So, I am Iris’ last obstacle before the Unova League? Ahh! Ash Ketchum, I had been hoping to face you, one of these days. So, who will face me, first?”

Iris stepped forward with a determined look on her face, “I will.”

The stern-looking man simply nodded, “Very well. Remember several years ago, I told you that I would like you to be my successor in the Opelucid Gym? Time for you to prove that you have what it takes. This match will be a three on three, and only Dragon Types allowed!”

Iris nodded firmly and he started off with an Axew. In response, she sent out her Gible and the battle began. After a tense few minutes, Gible managed to defeat it, but not before evolving into Gabite.

Then he sent out Druddigon, who faced off against Dragonite. This was a fierce duel, with a flurry of attacks, Flamethrower met Flash Cannon, Thunder Punch met Dragon Tail, Dragon Rush just about missed its target, thanks to Double Team. Then Druddigon rocketed forward with a Dragon Claw and nailed Dragonite on the gut. Then Dragonite countered with Ice Beam. The two Pokémon separated before resuming the bout. All the while, Drayden and Iris were calling out attacks or telling their Pokémon to dodge. Eventually, both Pokémon were knocked out.

Drayden gave a single nod towards her in respect, “You have grown a lot since we last met. But you still have one final challenge, Haxorus! Go!”

Iris wasted no time either, “Okay Fraxure! Let’s do this!”

Second evolution faced final evolution, and the stare down was intense. Haxorus made the first move with a Giga Impact. But Fraxure dodged and retaliated with Dragon Pulse. Unperturbed, Haxorus used Rock Smash, which Fraxure was unable to dodge. After recovering, Iris ordered a Psycho Cut, which deal some damage to its final evolution.

As he watched, Ash couldn’t help but bit his nails. Back on the gym field, Breaking Swipe clashed with a Slash attack. Both Pokémon met each other in the middle before being blown backwards. Finally, Drayden yelled, “Haxorus! Finish this with Giga Impact!”

Iris then pulled her ace in the hole, “Fraxure, use Outrage!”

No sooner had she said that, that Fraxure was enveloped in a red aura. With a battle cry, it charged forward as fast as it could. He met the Giga Impact head-on and somehow stopped it in its tracks. Then he began hacking and slashing at Haxorus. Finally, with another loud cry, Fraxure gave one last swipe at its evolved form’s chest, knocking it backwards. The larger Pokémon flew back and thudded against the wall, before slumping forward, knocked out.

The referee raised a hand and gestured towards her, “Haxorus is unable to battle! Fraxure wins! Challenger Iris has won this match!”

In the stands, Ash cheered and hooted, while Iris was frozen on the spot. She softly spoke, “I won. I won?... I won!!! I beat Drayden!”

The stern-looking man calmly returned his Pokémon, as Iris charged forward and began celebrating with Fraxure. He smiled, “I was right about you. Iris, you have come a long way. You are ready to step up as a gym leader, like I knew you would.”

She was still pretty pole-axed, but shook off her surprise. Then the girl spoke, “Master Drayden, I’m honoured that you think so highly of me. Being the Gym Leader of the Opelucid Gym would be a dream come true! But… I’m afraid I have to decline the offer.”

He raised an eyebrow and Ash’s jaw dropped, “Oh?”

“You see? I firmly believe that I have a bigger destiny in mind. Instead of being a Unova Gym Leader. I want to be the Unova champion, I want to beat Alder and be the new champion.”

It dawned on Ash and he gazed at her with new respect. Iris herself was resolutely looking at her former mentor and he locked eyes with her, neither breaking eye contact for a long time. Finally he nodded, “I understand and respect your decision. I know that the Village of Dragons will also support your decision. I wish you well for your goal. Show the world the power of the mighty Dragon Type!”

He handed her the Opelucid City badge and then turned to Ash, “Our match will take place tomorrow, after my Pokémon have sufficiently rested. Before we begin, how many Dragon Types do you have and tell me?”

Ash frowned in thought, “I’ve got five Dragon Type Pokémon. Do you want names?”

He nodded and Ash continued, “I have Goodra, Dragonite, Noivern, Gabite and a Naganadel.”

Drayden cupped his bearded chin, “Goodra and Noivern are Kalosian, right? Everyone knows of Gabite and Dragonite, but I’m not familiar with that last one.”

Ash explained, “Well… Naganadel is technically counted as an Ultra Beast. Mostly found in the Alola region.”

“Excellent! This should be interesting. I will see you tomorrow Mr. Ketchum. Tomorrow will be a five on five battle.”

Chapter Text

The next day, Ash Ketchum stood on one end of the Opelucid City Gym field. Drayden stood on the other end. He called out, “So, Ash Ketchum, we face off at last! I look forward to our battle! Now, Haxorus! Go!”

Ash gripped his own Pokeball, “Gabite! I choose you!”

Both Pokémon were sent out and adopted fighting stances. Then Drayden struck first with Giga Impact, Ash countered with Dragon Pulse. The two attacks crashed and exploded, creating a smokescreen.

Haxorus finally nailed his target with a Rock Smash, but Gabite countered with Dragon Pulse again and sent the Axe Jaw Pokémon skidding backwards. They clashed yet again, trading attack after attack, which included Gabite firing Draco Meteor and dealing heavy damage, as well as his own Rock Smash attack. Eventually, Gabite was felled with a Slash, but not before he encased Haxorus in a Sand Tomb.

Dragonite was up next, and the first thing he did was wrap Ash in a tight squeeze. When he let go, Dragonite was fully focused and soon made short work of an exhausted Haxorus with a Dragon Claw. The next opponent was Druddigon, and this was a fierce battle. Ash powered up with Dragon Dance, while Druddigon used Double Team.

Ash was able to wipe out the clones and nail the real Druddigon with Draco Meteor. The latter retaliated with Thunder Punch and dealt damage, and the two Pokémon traded attacks again. Finally, the Cave Pokémon was downed and Ash took the lead.

Kingdra was next, and Dragonite chose to stay on. However, his stay did not last long, and Ash sent out Goodra. Ash tactically used Bide to weather Dragon Pulse, Hydro Pump and Scald, before unleashing it. Kingdra was severely weakened and then Drayden ordered a Rain Dance.

Ash smirked immediately, as the raindrops washed over Goodra, healing its burn injuries from the Scald. Drayden called out, “I’m assuming your Goodra has the Ability, Hydration?”

Ash nodded and Drayden mused, “Thought so… This will be interesting.”

There were more attacks unleashed before they achieved a double knockout. The next Pokémon was Salamence, while Ash elected to make it a Flying battle with Noivern. This time, Ash went on the offense, with a Boomburst. Salamence was pushed back, but responded with Dragon Claw. Noivern then used Acrobatics to dodge a flurry of Air Slash attacks. He then used his own Dragon Claw, to deal heavy damage to Salamence. This one also resulted in a Double knockout. Finally, they were both down to their final Pokémon, Drayden sent out Hydreigon and Ash sent out his Naganadel.

This match-up pushed Ash to his limit, and in the stands, Iris was looking increasingly tense. Fortunately, Naganadel was a speedy Pokémon and dodged a lot of attacks. However, Hydreigon was able to nail it a couple of times with its signature Tri Attack. A Sludge Bomb steadily chipped away at its health, but eventually, one final Thunderbolt from Naganadel felled Hydreigon,.

Ash Ketchum had won on his very first try. Iris cheered and whistled loudly, while Drayden returned his fallen Pokémon and smiled. He spoke mostly to himself, “This one’s going to go places. Perhaps it’s time I called my grandson. I hope I still remember the number of Blueberry Academy.”

He watched as the couple celebrated and then Ash approached and shook his hand, thanking him for the exhilarating battle. Ash and Iris soon exited the Gym and headed straight for the Pokémon Centre. They had a talk with Lillie and Gladion, who happened to be the only ones back in the house and they promised to pick up Ash at the airport, while Iris would continue training for the Unova League. As it turned out, Drayden offered to help her train for the League and she readily accepted it.

Just as they left the phone area, they saw a bit of a commotion a bit ahead of them. An older teenage boy was clearly hitting on a girl around their age, and she was looking increasingly uncomfortable. Ash spotted some familiar dark blue locks on the girl's head. Iris tilted her head curiously, “Hang on… Didn’t Lillie say that she was in Johto? And is that guy who I think he is?”

Then it clicked for Ash and he elected to step in. The other boy was trying to crowd the girl, “Come on baby! I can show you a good time.”

Suddenly, Ash speed-walked in and sidled up next to the startled girl, who stiffened, “There you are! I was looking for you everywhere.”

The other boy indignantly straightened, “Hey! We were just having a moment! I was just going to score!”

Ash ignored him and half dragged the girl away, and back to Iris. He whispered in the blue-haired girl’s ear, “Just play along. Nothing will happen to you with me around, Salvia.”

She nodded and her body relaxed. Ash slung an arm around her shoulder, a little protectively, “Listen… Shamus, right? I thought I recognised you.”

Shamus sneered at him, “Oh… It’s you… That Tepig still a weakling? I would have gotten rid of it long ago.”

Ash smirked at him, “Don’t worry, he’s just fine. He recently evolved into Emboar, so I say he’s more than fine.”

He scoffed, “Likely story, now back off! I saw this hot piece of ass, first.”

Iris would have slapped him, but Ash held her back, “Hey! Don’t talk about her like that! For the record, Dawn’s my girlfriend!”

Shamus sneered again, “She’s with you?! Why would she choose your shrimpy butt when she can have a Real Man like me! Tell you what, Battle me, and when I win, I get the girl and your Pokémon!”

Ash snapped, “Hey! She’s not some kind of trophy! This is a girl we’re talking about! And really? You’re still pulling that crap after all these years? How many Pokémon have you stolen like that? I’ll battle you anytime, anywhere, but she is off the table, and her too.”

Any further conversation was cut off, when a Pound attack struck Shamus in the back of the head, instantly knocking him out. Behind his unconscious body, Audino dusted off its paws. Nurse Joy was also behind the Hearing Pokémon, with an absolutely disgusted look on her face, “I heard everything. This creep is going away for a long time, if I have anything to say about it!”

Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly with one hand. He said, “Thanks for the help, Nurse Joy. Sorry for almost threatening to have a battle with him.”

She waved him off, “Think nothing of it! I’m just glad your friend is okay. Thank Arceus he didn't try anything funny. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll just go and call Officer Jenny”

The nurse walked away, Audino followed, dragging Shamus’ limp body with her. Now that it was just the three of them, Ash, Iris and Salvia gathered around a table. Salvia was still clinging to Ash as he explained, “So, back when I was at Sinnoh with Dawn, we travelled through this place called Arrowroot Town. I’d like you to meet Princess Salvia, or is that former princess now?”

She spoke in a small and slightly accented voice, “Former… I’ve only been on my journey for a month now. Freesia wanted to accompany me, but I told her I needed to learn to be independent.”

Ash turned back to Iris, “As you can see, she’s Dawn’s doppelganger.”

She spoke up again, “Umm… About that… It turns out, when Lady Dawn and I performed our little switch, father was watching the contest from television back in Galar and he was a bit more observant than I would have liked.”

Her cheeks flushed slightly, “He did give me a bit of a ticking off for the stunt, but understood why I did it. Father then told me something interesting. Dawn and I were actually twins. Turns out, my mother was having trouble conceiving and father was at his wits end because he needed an heir. Eventually, he happened to meet Dawn’s mother, Johanna when she was Coordinating in Hammerlocke City. She agreed to be a surrogate mother. They weren’t expecting twins, to be honest, and our kingdom only needed one heir, so Johanna agreed to raise one of the twins back in Sinnoh.”

Ash and Iris were amazed, “Wow! Now that is very interesting. So, what next for you, Salvia?”

She shrugged, “I really don’t know, if I’m honest.”

An idea hit him, “Hey, so I’m headed back to Kanto tomorrow. Iris over here, is challenging the Unova League. You can either travel with her or come back with me to Kanto.”

She thought about it, “I’d like to come with you to Kanto. I always wanted to visit the various regions.”

Then a thought struck her and her cheeks reddened again, “Umm… Ash… Back when you confronted that boy, you said that I- Sorry, Dawn was your girlfriend.”

Ash looked a little bashful, “Yeah, I had to say something to get that sleazebag to back off.”

Iris ribbed him teasingly, “You didn’t lie, though. He and Dawn are actually dating. So am I, and a few other of his female friends. We can introduce you to them later.”

She didn’t seem fazed, “Oh right! I remembered that polyamorous relationships were fairly common. Would you do me the honour of being in a relationship with me as well?”

Ash and Iris were a little taken aback at the formality, and he said, “Whoa! No need to be so formal! Also, are you sure about this? I mean, we barely know each other. I would love to get to know you before we even talk about being boyfriend and girlfriend.”

She nodded firmly, “I’m sure! I always felt that you were a nice boy, when we first met. It was a little bit of a crush, but after you defended me from Shamus, that only solidified my feelings for you.”

Ash locked eyes with Iris before coming to a consensus. He smiled at her, “Okay… I’ll be your boyfriend. I’ll call the others and let them know. Dawn’s going to be thrilled to bits!”