Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

After having a dream he had mostly forgotten, minus knowing that he was laying in a forest clearing with a beautiful lake in it, Ash has woken up, groggy and still tired. He hugs onto Pikachu and lays there, contemplating. He is now on a… what was it again? Ah yes, a 3 week rest period, begrudgingly so. He knows that his friends are worried about him, and how he has recently been stressed out and overworking himself, but Ash is still upset at this fact, all he really wants to help out as much as he can. He sighs in mild frustration.

“What do you think, Pikachu? About my rest period?” A still sleepy Pikachu looks at Ash, and rolls his eyes. “Ah c’mon Pikachu, y’know I really want to help out as many people as I can, is that *Yawn* really too much?” Pikachu nods, much to Ash’s chagrin.

Pikachu jumps off of Ash as he stands up and stretches, before going downstairs. Ash walks around his house that had been built a year ago in Alola through the combined effort of his friends, family, and him. He smiles happily at the memory, before making some very fine, strong coffee, sweetened with several teaspoons of sugar, and breakfast, that being waffles and honey. He greets Incineroar, who is laying on the couch, and Rowlet, who is sleeping in his old backpack.

“Morning you two.” Incineroar wakes up and hugs Ash, meanwhile Rowlet continues sleeping. Pikachu walks over to Rowlet and gives a small jolt to make them wake up. After this, Ash and his Pokemon sit down, the former unsure what to do.

“Hmm… Well, I’m a little stumped on what I’m supposed to do? On one hand, we can all train, but I’m pretty sure that doesn’t count as relaxing, at least to most. Maybe watching tv?” Ash grabs a remote, and turns on the tv, Rowlet on his head and Pikachu on his lap, meanwhile Incineroar lays on the ground. Lycanroc and Melmetal also walk in, having woken up as well. “Morning you two, wanna watch tv?” They nod.

He can see that the news was playing, international news to be specific. He can see they were talking about the “Faraway” region, a bit of an uncreative name, Ash thinks humorously. Less humorously was the actual news, which the reporter is speaking about.

“As of recent news, the Faraway region has been dealing with an influx of strange Paradox Pokemon, ones that are believed to have come from the vortex in the northwest mountains of the region. It is unknown what these creatures are, outside of that they appear in the night and happen to resemble familiar Pokemon that naturally live in the region. And now, we speak to a citizen of Faraway town for their opinions on the matter.”

The news then cuts to a different reporter speaking to a blonde boy, one that looks very anxious and would rather not be in the news… relatable.

“Hello there young kid-“

“A-actually… I-I’m 16.”

“Ah, apologies. We were just here to ask you of the recent reports of a Paradox Pokemon that has flown here at night, which the champion has dubbed “Soaring Butcher.” Do you have any opinions on them?” The blonde boy was very confused and surprised about the news.

“W-w-wait, y-you mean those s-sounds… the flying figure…… wasn’t a hallucination?!” The boy is now panting, terrified out of his mind, as a Cutiefly tries to comfort him. The reporter was now very concerned alongside her Beheeyem.

“Oh. Well, I thank you for your time. Please have a good day young mister.” The reporter awkwardly walks off, as the screen switches back to the studio room.

“As you can hear, these Pokemon are not only real, but also mysterious and have caused great distress for the local people. As well as this, a cult that names themselves “Team Fae'' has been reported to have visited the region, their goals and actions unknown at this time. However, Champion Henry Rodriguez has requested that any people who do find themselves interacting with one of their members should report to the authorities, and do their best to walk off.” Ash was very concerned for that region, not only do they have an influx of strange Pokemon, but they also have to deal with a strange group that’s apparently Cult ?! Ash considers this news, as his phone then calls. As he puts Rowlet down and Pikachu gets off his lap, Ash goes towards the phone to answer it.

“Yes, hello, this is Ash Ketchum, you need help?” 

“Oh, hello there, I’m so glad you called Ash. This is Henry, though you can call me Hero if you wish. Did you… see the news?”

“Yup, apparently you got some strange Pokemon and a cult in your region, need any help, cus I’m more than happy to do so!” Ash cheerfully states. At this point, he no longer cares about his rest period, there are people who need help, and he will help, because that’s the right thing to do.

“Ah, thank you Ash, I appreciate it. Please, take your time to arrive here, it is a long journey.” Ash chuckles at Hero’s request.

“Don’t worry, I’ll arrive here in a heartbeat. After all, you’re a friend of mine! By the way… did you give your brother his gift yet?”

“Oh right, not yet, actually. I’m waiting for when all my childhood friends get their starters and Pokédex, which happens two days from now. Actually… I’m sure you’ll get along with them well.”

“That’s wonderful. And don’t worry Hero, I promise you I’ll arrive before the afternoon tomorrow! Now have a good day and night!”

“You as well” And with that, Ash hangs up, about to prepare for his journey until he sees Pikachu behind him, crossing his arms and pouting. “Ah c’mon, you don’t have to go if you don’t to Pikachu!”

Pikachu shakes his head, pointing at Ash. He sighs, knowing that Pikachu and all his other friends want him to relax.

“Listen Pikachu, I understand you are concerned about me, but it’s just gonna be one trip, and after that, I’ll request for another rest period. That's good of you?” Pikachu considers, and then sighs, slowly nodding. “YES, thank you Pikachu, you really are my best friend!”

Ash pets Pikachu, and the electric type can’t help but laugh. And so, Ash waves goodbye to all his Alolan Pokemon except for Melmetal, who he brings along.

“Hey Melmetal, I’m gonna need some strong, fluid muscle, that good?”  Melmetal happily nods in response, as the Steel type, Ash and Pikachu walk out of the house, onto the streets of Hau’oli city.

As they walk to the Pokemon center to get some Pokemon from Oak’s lab, someone walks alongside them, one who is short, has fluffy, short blue hair, and is just a bundle of wonderful… Well, all the positive emotions Ash can think of for her. It’s Lana, and she’s walking alongside Sandy.

“Morning Ash, how was your morning?” Lana offers her fist, which Ash replies with a fist pump. Meanwhile, Pikachu waves at Sandy, and purrs happily in response.

“Good, good, just really tired. You know how it is.” Lana playfully rolls her eyes with Ash.

“Yeah, which makes me wonder why you're going on another journey?”

“What do you me-“ Lana puts her hand on Ash’s mouth, shushing him.

“I know what you're like when you wanna journey and help out other people. I can see it in your body language and Pikachu's slight grumpy expression.”

“O-oh… well, I just can-“

“Can’t help it? Don’t worry, I know and understand that feeling. Honestly, I don’t really have much room to talk, given I sometimes push myself too much, and my family and you guys have to step in and help me.” Lana scratches her cheek in embarrassment.

“Yeah, like that time that new saddle for alpacas got broken, and you spent all day trying to repair it by yourself.”

“…Yeah.” Lana and Ash get to the Pokemon center, and they stand in front of their for a while. “Speaking of that, if you do decide to go on this journey, then I’m gonna be calling you every night, no if or buts!”

“* Sigh*   Alright then, I guess I will-“

“And you WILL be honest with me, otherwise I’m calling all of my and your friends and we WILL lock you up in a cozy house where you WILL cuddle with the cutest, most friendly Pokemon imaginable! Alright, Ashy?” ;)

“…Y-yeah.” To which Lana responds by kissing his left cheek.

“Wonderful! And be sure to stay safe on your journey!”

“Thanks Lan. Appreciate it.” He waves goodbye to Lana as she walks off, as he himself walks into the Pokemon center.

—

Sunny stays inside his house, unhappy but safe from the outside world… for now. He can hear a former friend knocking on his door, asking him to come outside. He is alone, Mimikyu nowhere to be found, that is, until they hear their former friend talking to him.

“Oh, hello there Mimikyu. Is it alright if you can convince Sunny to come outside? and all the others really miss him.” 

Sunny can hear Mimikyu talking to Kel’s own Pokemon, an Emolga? Looking into the door hole, he can see that his “Emolga” looks different, yet similar. He can also see that Kel had another Pokémon with him, one that looked doglike, and had light brown fur and 4 rock-like spikes extending from their mane. Kel as well looks far different, much taller, tanned, and wearing an orange tank top and shorts. Kel looks into the door hole, seeing Sunny eye to eye.

“Hey sun, I can see you. Is it… alright if you can open the door?” Sunny considers Kel’s question for several minutes, and, in the end, answers his question.

“Tomorrow.” Kel looks saddened, but then gives a slight smile.

“I see. Well, in that case, I think I’ll prepare for that day. Do you have any new interests Sunny?”

“TM Machine making, you know, those things that can make Pokemon new moves.”

“Woah, that’s wonderful! Do you mind if you can show me some of your work?” Sunny nods, and takes a disc out of his pocket, and puts it through the Pokemon screen door.

“Named Buzzy Buzz. Single use.”

“Thanks Sunny. I hope you have a good day… inside, of course.” Kel walks off, leaving Sunny alone until Mimikyu comes through the screen door. He looks at his companion, and pets the false head of their costume.

“Mmm, I’m scared.” Sunny has had a subconscious desire since his last dream, one that ended not with him being in Whitespace, but one where a tall, monstrous figure looks down on him, telling him to… enter the vortex? That big, swirling hurricane thing in the northwest edge of the region, right? Sunny believes so.

He goes back to his room, and looks at his computer, seeing some of the messages his mom gave him

>Hi Sunny, this is a note from mommy.

There’s some food for you downstairs, and your favorite, microwaved steak. And don’t worry, it’s sourced from Miltank, artificially of course!

Another thing is that I won’t be able to come back until I fully prepare for our move to Paldea, which is in 15 days. I recommend you should go outside and meet your old friends, maybe even go on a journey with them!

Remember, Mommy loves you! Xoxo

-Mom

It doesn’t feel like that, to be honest. Sunny knows that his mom goes to work at 6 AM, and only comes back at 10 PM. And he also knows that whenever he talks to her, she acts so awkward around him, and for good reason. And knowing he will move away soon, likely unable to see his old friends ever again? He feels his face starting to get wet, and noticing this, Mimikyu wipes away his tears with their shadowy hands.

“T-thank you, M-M-Mimikyu. I-it’s fine, I’ll just… continue some of my work.” And with that, Sunny continues designing some TM’s, and drawing on his notebook. This continues for many hours, only interrupted when he needs to go to the restroom or eat food he’ll surely vomit out, until finally, he goes to sleep on his desk, knowing that his journey will start very soon, a journey that may… fix all of his friends' problems.

—

Ash has finally prepared for his secret journey, and he has picked out all of his Pokemon that may assist him. Those Pokemon are, of course, Pikachu, Melmetal, Charizard, Dragonite, Dewott, and Heracross. He can’t help but smile along with his Pokemon friends

“Alright everyone, tonight we’re gonna fly off into a new region to help out a fellow champion. In this region, we’ll find ourselves dealing with this “Team Fae” as well as these Nightmare Paradox Pokemon, you guys ready.” They all respond eagerly, Dewott especially, who is bouncing with excitement. “That's wonderful. Alright then, Dragonite, would you be so kind as to fly us?”

He recalls all of his Pokemon except for Pikachu and Dragonite, and the latter allows Ash and the Electric type to get on top of her. She flaps her wings, and flies off, starting a long journey to the Faraway region.

As they are flying, Ash feels that something… is off. He feels a weird feeling, as if something bad might happen during this journey. However, Ash quickly let’s go of this thought and, as he is tired, he and Pikachu go the sleep, meanwhile Dragonite does the same as she continues flying.

Chapter Text

It was a peaceful, foggy day in a random forest, and Ash and Pikachu were walking through the place, relaxing on yet another Pokemon journey. Ash could think of how rare times like these are currently, the duties of being Alola’s champion And as a World Monarch only just giving him time to kick back and relax a little, let alone journeying with the friends he made along the way. That’s not to say he hated his duties, it’s just… it’d be nice to relax just a little bit longer. 

“*sigh* Y’know Pikachu, I’ve missed days like this, traveling around the world, meeting new people and Pokemon, and doing that in a way that doesn’t have the weight of all my duties, you agree?”

Pikachu looks at Ash and, although worried for his trainer, nods and gives him a reassuring smile. Ash was very glad to have met Pikachu, especially now, as he’s had little time to make new friends, and he was one of the few individuals that knew of all the stress and anxiety he’s been keeping inside. The others who know of this were his mom, obviously, Professor Kukui, someone who’s been a better father than whoever helped out in birthing him, and a good few of his friends in Alola.

As he thinks about this, he hears footsteps from far off, as well as distant piano music from another direction. Kinda weird that someone’s playing piano music in the forest, Ash and Pikachu thought.

“Hey! I like the music you're playing, whoever you are!” Ash yells out, waiting for a vocal response, only to hear the piano music still playing.

“Hmm… guess they must be a little hyper focused on their music. Hey Pikachu, could you perhaps check it out, I don’t really wanna interrupt their music session, and I’m sure the person would be receptive to a Pokemon like you?” Pikachu nods, saying their signature “Pika!” with confidence, as he moves quickly toward the direction.

Ash meanwhile, slowly walks towards the direction. As he walks, he can see the sky slowly turning a reddish color, the trees having much darker bark, as well as words and letters carved out on them. Concerning… but that only makes Ash’s resolve on meeting the person become stronger.

As he walks towards the source, he can hear crying from two sources, as well as… blood!? As Ash realizes this, he hears Pikachu cry out in terror. Now he is running quickly and frantically, both to make sure Pikachu and the mysterious person are ok.

“Pikachu, don’t worry, I’m coming to help you-“ Ash stops mid sentence, as he sees a young girl, likely around his age, hung on a tree, her hair covering all her face except for one eye. She was wearing a white dress dirtied with blood and dirt.

“What the… oh… god.” Ash looks down, and sees Pikachu frozen in terror. Both of them are completely silent, unsure on what to do? Should they call someone for help, should they take the girl's body down from the tree?

Before Ash could consider, he hears Pikachu shriek, and looking behind him, he can see the girls body melting into a black, shadowy sludge, one singular eye gazing at them as it charges right at them and-

“AAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!” Ash has woken up screaming, seeing that Dragonite had just awoken mid flight to see if her trainer was ok. Pikachu was also horrified by the nightmare, and was currently puking off of the Dragon types back.

“*Huff* *puff* I-I’m s-sorry for worrying you, Dragonite. D-don’t worry, we just… had a nightmare haha… ha” Ash sees that Pikachu has finished vomiting, and gently rubs his ears.

“I know… that nightmare was horrifying. B-but… it isn’t real, we’re safe.”

As Ash comforts Pikachu, he thinks about that strange nightmare. He thinks about the girl hanging from the tree, someone he has never seen or met before, as well as the forest he was in. Did this night have anything to do with his journey to the Faraway region, we’re he was given a request by champion Hero to help out with the region's issues? He remembers that some of the carvings on the bark had a word, or perhaps a name, that name being “Mari.” 

As he thinks, he can hear his and Dragonites stomach grumbling, as well as the Dragon type groaning in response.

“Hehe, you're hungry too, huh? Hmm… Well, we are on the mainland now, so I say we can go to a nearby Pokemon center and get some good, nice food and rest.”

—

After half an hour, Dragonite finds a Pokemon center in the “Kaskade” region, and she prepares to land to the clearing the building is situated. He can see that the region was snowing, a unique thing to happen in the middle of the summer, until remembering that they have these “Seasonal” legendaries that manage the weather here. Perhaps he should visit this region again some other time?

“Hmmm… perhaps I could also ask the Hero about this “Mari” person at the center's computer?” Ash says to himself, after he and Pikachu jump off of Dragonites back, who then sleeps once more as a crowd of people take pictures of her.

As Ash and Pikachu enter the Pokemon center, an entire crowd of people surround the two, asking them for autographs, to act as a cameo for their videos, to take a picture of them, among other things he’s heard hundreds of times before after when he defeated Leon at the Masters Eight tournament 2 years ago.

“Haha, c’mon everyone, one at a time, one at a time.” Ash signs whatever the fellow trainers give to him, and smiles and poses for pictures and phone filming. Meanwhile, Pikachu emits some sparks to the people and Pokemon he likes, and flares at the more “creepy” fans of thim and Ash. After that, they go to Nurse Joy’s desk, and Ash waves at her.

“Hello, I hope you’re having a great day Nurse Joy. I would like to use a private computer please.”

“Of course Mr. Ketchum, please make yourself at home.”

“Don’t worry, I *Yawn* will, thanks.” Ash waves while walking to a private room, one where he can talk to Hero without hundreds of people eavesdropping them. Pikachu meanwhile, sits on the desk, taking a nap after being awoken by that nightmare.

After a good minute or two, the screen shows Hero as well as a few of his Pokemon, specifically Blissey, who is scolding Chefetch’d for trying to grab a Pokemon and throw them into a Stewgeist pot. Hero smiles and waves.

“Morning Ash, it’s good to see you today. Although… you look a little tired.

“*Yawn* oh trust me, tired doesn’t even begin to describe it. I kind of, and please don’t laugh about it, had a terrible nightmare… about something.” Ash was comfortable talking to Hero just as much as he was with Iris, as the both of them are young compared to many other champions, having been in their respective positions for 2 years.

“Ah, I see. Trust me Ash, I wouldn’t ever laugh at something like that, especially since I also have that same issue. What was the nightmare about?” Hero gives a comforting smile to Ash, something one could easily consider a caring older brother.

“Well… me and Pikachu were walking around a forest, and we heard some piano music playing. When we walked towards the source, the sky kinda turned red, we heard crying, and when we reached it, we saw a girl hanging from a tree. Next thing I know, she turned into some goopy shadow monster and charged at us! I was wondering if you have nightmares similar to those, or if it had anything to do with me going to the Faraway region?” As Ash says this, Hero starts looking more worried, his smile disappearing.

“Was… t-there anything else in the dream?”

“Well, there were some carvings on the bark that said “Mari.” You had nightmares similar to those?” As Ash states that, he immediately regrets saying it, as he sees Hero looking down in shock and despair, tears running down his eyes.

“Y-ye-yeah… I knew someone named Mari. S-she was… someone significant to me. She… died from suicide 4 years ago, by that very same method. B-but, why would you have that nightmare of That!?” Hero states, sounding in pain. As he sees Ash completely shocked and silent, he starts feeling guilty.

“O-oh, sorry for… bringing that stuff up to you so quickly, I hope you can forgive m-“

“You have nothing to apologize for, Hero. I should be the one to apologize, I brought up a horrible memory just because of my dumb curiosity.”

Both of them sit there in awkward silence, until Ash breaks up the silence.

“Hey Hero, I’m about halfway to the Faraway region, I think I could get there at sunset or whatever time zone you guys will be at that time. Do you have any news about some of those “Nightmare paradoxes” or of this Team Fae?

“Not so far. Hey, by the way Ash, if you ever feel like you have to vent about something that is stuck in your chest, don’t feel afraid to talk to me about it. I know it may not seem like it, but I’m glad I could talk to you about this, so thank you. I hope you have a good rest of your trip.”

“Thanks Hero, see you later.” Ash waves at Hero before they hang up. After that conversation… well it’d be a lie to say he was feeling good after bringing up a traumatic memory and death of a loved one to someone he just recently met a few days ago. As well as this, he is further curious on why he had a nightmare about Mari, as far as he knows, he has never met a “Mari” before. Ash picks up the resting Pikachu, and gently holds him to his chest. He then buys some food and water, and prepares to leave.

“Welp, no time to contemplate, gotta get to the Faraway region. Have a good day Nurse Joy and everyone else.”

“You too, Mr. Ketchum.” Nurse Joy says

“WE LOVE YOU WORLD CHAMPION!” Some guy wearing a Pikachu t-shirt says

“PLEASE MARRY AND HAVE CHILDREN WITH ME!” A young girl screams at Ash, unknowing that he is both already dating someone and that he is Asexual and completely uninterested in that “having children” thing. After seeing that video tape of Kukui and Burnet “getting a baby” he’d rather not imitate anything resembling That! As Ash walks away, Pikachu wakes up, seeing Ash being sad. He pokes and then pulls on Ash’s right cheek.

“Haha- c’mon Pikachu, I’m fine, I’m fine.” Pikachu shakes his head, not believing Ash’s lie. “Alright fine, I feel guilty about making Hero upset, and… well, you know how it is.” Pikachu nods, accepting that answer from his trainer.

Ash and Pikachu walk toward the sleeping Dragonite, and seeing that she’s asleep, Ash decides to recall her into a Pokemon. He instead releases Charizard, who does his signature roar and fire breath into the sky as a form of spectacle, the crowd cheering in response.

“Hah, guess you really wanna have us leave in style, huh Charizard? Well… I agree strongly with that. Let’s fly off!” Ash jumps onto Charizard, and they fly to the Faraway region, making sure to put on a spectacle for the watching crowd.

Hopefully Ash can make it up for Hero after bringing back bad memories.

—

Hero looks on at the three Pokemon, starters that he will give to his good friends. There’s of course the good ‘ol reliable, if unemotive, Rowlet, the shy, antlered Scorbunny, and the serious, protective Totodile. The trio of Poison, Ground, and Grass type Pokemon, an unconventional starter trio compared to other regions, but one that the people, Hero included, here are very proud of. He couldn’t help but gently pet all of them. His Blissey joins in on the petting

”Hahaha, I’m sure my childhood friends will enjoy you guys, and I’m it’ll likewise for you too. Hmm… I do have to wonder who’s gonna journey with who, though?” Scorbunny was easy, Aubrey obviously, she loves bunny-like Pokemon, and Scorbunny is… well, a lapine. But as for Totodile and Rowlet, he is relatively unsure. On one hand, Rowlet is calm-minded like Sunny, but on the other hand, Basil would love a Pokemon that can protect his plants. As for Totodile, well… he doesn’t really know what interests Sunny has these days, but he does know that Basil loves Grass type Pokemon, so he’d likely pick them. But only tomorrow may tell him the answer. He grabs out one more Pokeball, one that is going to be a special gift for his younger brother Kel, and opens it, releasing a scaled Dragon type Pokemon, one that’s determined, fierce, but also curious.

”Sigh I hope you and Kel will get along, Jangmo-o.” He pets the Dragon type, who purrs in response. “After all, he’s always been better at trying to recconect with our friends.” He thinks back to his conversation with Ash earlier, and wonders… could Ash also help them out?

Chapter Text

Ash had finally gotten to Faraway town, a small town within the Faraway region after several hours of flight. During his flight on Charizard, he had taken notice of the strange vortex that was in the northwest edge of the region. Perhaps he could ask the Hero or someone what it is? Well… it doesn't matter right now, as Charizard is finding a place to land, eventually deciding to land in a parking lot, where a store named “Othermart” is.

Finally, Ash had landed, and so far, the town of Faraway looks nice. Theirs beautiful trees, the weather is nice, and he even found a nice, hidden pond with a pedestal in its center, must be a relaxing spot to hang out in-

“HEY YOU, WHO SAYS YOU CAN LAND IN ONE OF OUR HANGOUT SPOTS!?” Ash turns around, and sees a girl wearing red glasses, and a blue hoodie angrily yelling at him. He can see she is accompanied by a Cranados and Shieldon, as well as a man with a strange looking Munchlax, perhaps a regional form, as well as a Slurpuff?

“Yeah, like my little sis said! You're gonna have to battle us.” Ash can see that the gruff looking man wasn’t really as excited to battle, and was more just tagging along by his sister's side.

“Oh, ok. I’m sure you guys already know my name, so what are yours?”

“*Grumble* As if we have to give you ou-“

“The names Vance. My sis’s name is Kim. Nice to meet you Ash.” Vance casually says this as Kim looks at her older brother and pouts.

“Yeah… what he said, now quit acting humble, cus you’re in the Hooligans turf, and we’re gonna kick your butt!” 

“Don’t want me to be humble, huh? Alright, 4 on 1 then, your Pokemon versus Pikachu!” Ash grins happily, excited for his first ever Pokemon battle in the region.

“Heh, I’m gonna enjoy getting rid of that smug grin off of ya! Cranidos, Head Smash! Shieldon, Iron Head!”

Munchlax, Play Rough, and Slurpuff, use String Shot!”

“Pikachu, use Electroweb on Shieldon, Iron Tail on Cranidos, and dodge Vance’s Pokémon’s moves!”

Pikachu Throws out an orb of electric webbing at Shieldon, slowing then down, and then connects Iron Tail on Cranido’s Head Smash, breaking through the move and slamming his tail on the Rock types head, instantly fainting them. Pikachu then dodges String Shot, but gets hit by Play Rough. However, Pikachu is only moderately injured.

“NO, CRANIDOS! Grrrr, I’m not losing! Shieldon, use Iron Head again!” Kim calls back Cranidos.

“Slurpuff, Moonblast, and Munchlax, Protect.”

“Use Thunderbolt on Slurpuff, and use Electro Web to stick Munchlax and Shieldon together!”

Pikachu dodges Moonblast, and blasts Slurpuff with a full-power Thunderbolt, instantly fainting them. Pikachu Uses Electroweb on Shieldon, and throws the Pokemon at Munchlax, breaking the regional forms defenses.

“Yeah… we ain’t gonna win sis.” Vance says while recalling a fainted Slurpuff.

“I REFUSE to lose! Shieldon, use Iron Defense to protect yourself from Pikachu!

“*Sigh* Munchlax, use Stew Blast on Pikachu.”

“Pikachu, aim Electroweb on the lamp pole to dodge and perform Thunderbolt again!”

Pikachu dodges the blast of fluid from the Munchlax’s pouch by swinging onto a lamp pole. Now high up in the air, Pikachu uses a full-power Thunderbolt on the Shieldon and Munchlax stuck together.

“NO, SHIELDON!”

“Called it”

The Thunderbolt connects, instantly fainting the two Pokemon. Ash is the winner!

“*Grumbling* Damn it, I was hoping my fossil dino friends could’ve won.

“Against the World Champion? Sorry sis, there was no shot for us.”

“Y-yeah… I guess so. Pfft, even then, I’m sure our boss might win against his Pikachu!”

“Boss… who’s this “boss” you're referring to?” Ash states while rubbing his head. Even if the battle was easy for him, it was really fun, and the sibling duo seem like fun people.

“They’d be referring to me.” Ash turns around, and sees a Pink-haired girl wearing a varsity jacket, several Trubbish trailing behind her. He can also see she has a bandaid on her right cheek.

“Sup Ashy. The names Aubrey.”

“Uhh… hi, Aubrey, nice to meet you. I see you got yourself injured today, you alright?” Ash takes notice of the bandaged wound on the left part of her stomach, just barely noticing the cut that was on her.

“…Physically, yeah, but it ain’t important. Guess Hero must’ve asked for your assistance?” Aubrey says, while petting one of her many Trubbish.

“Yeah, he did. I don’t really know where he lives though, do you happen to know?” As Ash says this, Aubrey looks away, her Trubbish looking saddened for her.

“Y-yeah, I know… where he lives, though I’d like a battle first. It’s rare for an outsider as significant as you to come to our little region.”

“YEAH, that’s the spirit bestie! Kick his butt!”

“Good luck boss!”

The siblings sit on a bench, as they wait eagerly to see Ash and Aubrey battle.  Meanwhile, her Trubbish walked towards another bench, sitting happily and calmly.

“Hey Aubrey, do you wish for it to be a 1 Vs 1 battle, between Pikachu and whatever Pokémon you have, without any gimmicks?”

“Yeah, isn’t much of a battle if you use 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt on Bunbun immediately, speaking of…” Aubrey takes out a pokeball, and releases “Bunbun” who Ash can see is a Garbodor. The Pokemon roars eagerly, and Aubrey pats the Pokemon by their side, giving them a berry. She looks towards Ash, nodding.

“Alright then. Pikachu, use Quick Attack!” Pikachu charges at the Garbodor Bunbun, hitting them point blank and at full power. However, Garbodor is relatively uninjured.

“Hmm, nice shot. Alright Bunbun, use Belch.” Garbodor sends out a large blast of sludge from one of their arms. Pikachu almost dodges the attack, but gets hit in the arm, cringing in pain in response. Pikachu however, nods at the large Poison type, eager for this battle.

“Nice shot Bunbun, clearly you and Aubrey are a strong duo! But let’s see if you can withstand Iron Tail!” Pikachu slams his tail at Bunbun, seemingly doing much more damage to the Pokemon. Aubrey nods, and slightly grins.

“Hmmm, nice shot. However, Pain Split.” Bunbun shares some of his pain with Pikachu, Healing them as well as injuring Pikachu.

“Haha, I see you're gonna be tanking the hits, huh? Alright, Pikachu, use Thunderbolt and finish this battle.” 

“Bunbun, Stockpile!” Garbodor grabs nearby garbage and other objects, and uses it to partially protect themself from the Thunderbolt. While terribly injured, Ash knows that is not a good thing, and Garbodor may use Pain Split.

“Pikachu, use Quick Attack!” Pikachu charges quickly at Garbodor again, hitting the Pokemon more and more. Although very low in stamina, and barely standing up, Garbodor is still not down.

“Damn…  Garbodor, Belch.” Garbodor fires off more sludge, which seems to deliberately miss Pikachu, weird?

“Huh, guess Bunbun is too weak to aim, but the fact you’re still fighting shows that you're going to be a great trainer!” 

“Hmm… thanks.”

“You're welcome. Use Iron Tail Pikachu!” Pikachu charges at Garbodor, preparing for the finishing blow. However, Aubrey only grins, strangely. That was, until Ash realized…

“PIKACHU, CANCEL THE ATTACK NOW, AUBREY'S PLANNING SOMETHING!” It is too late though, as Garbodor is about to prepare for a powerful attack.

“Bunbun, Stomping Tantrum!” Bunbun slams into the ground, and hits Pikachu with the full power move. Pikachu is blown across the parking lot, and almost falls unconscious, just barely standing up.

“Pikachu… I’m really sorry. I should’ve known better.” As Ash looks embarrassed from making a mistake like that, Aubrey checks her watch, and realizes something.

“Crap! I have church soon. Sorry Ashy, gonna have to cancel this battle.”

“Oh really, alright, that’s understandable then, don’t wanna make anyone late to something important. It was fun battling you!” Ash offers a handshake to her, though Aubrey ignores the handshake, walks over to Pikachu, and gives him a potion, petting the Electric type as he drinks it. 

“Hope Bunbun didn’t hit you too hard little guy. It was nice battling you too, even if it ended in a tie.” Aubrey recalls Bunbun, and pulls out a map from her jacket pocket, giving it to Ash.

“Hero’s house is on this street and address. Good luck finding him, wish you luck.” Aubrey then walks off, waving behind. Meanwhile, the Trubbish jump out of the bench they’re sitting on and follow Aubrey.

“Ah man, I really wanted to see our boss finish you off!” Kim yells out in disappointment.

“Could’ve gone either way too. Oh well, I’m hungry for candy, you coming sis?”

“Yeah, whatevs. See ya Ash.”

The sibling duo walk away, into Othermart. Meanwhile, Ash pets Pikachu, seeing that he is much better from the potion Aubrey gave him.

“Welp, that was a fun battle, however short it was. Alright Pikachu, let’s go find Hero!” As Ash pumps his fist, Pikachu cheers, and climbs onto Ash’s shoulder, and they both walk off towards the address. Aubrey, despite her rough appearance and tone, seemed like a really nice person. Maybe they’ll meet again?

—

Aubrey walks towards the church, and, holding the door open, lets the Trubbish following her come inside. The churchgoers, as usual, silently glare at Aubrey annd her Pokemon and mumble words… rude, cruel words.

”Letting those filth walk in. I can barely comprehend why the preacher allows this.” The Trubbish’s listen to the murmurs, and become frightened. Aubrey was angry at their insults

”Such foul stench, almost as foul as her behavior and appearance.” One Trubbish starts tearing up at these insults. Aubrey was now enraged.

“Such creatures have no right to be allowed in a civilized-” At this point, Aubrey was livid about them mocking her friends, and glares at the churchgoers, being sure to yell out.

”SHUT UP! Mock me all you want, but I won’t allow you to shit on these Pokemon just for not smelling good!” Aubrey yells out, before quickly walking by to the graveyard. She felt upset, not just at the churchgoers, but also at herself, for letting her emotions get the better of her. She takes a deep breath, knowing this will be her last visit to this place before her journey tomorrow.

Bunbun looks back into the church, and sighing deeply, pets all their sibling Trubbish’s. He looks at Aubrey, and gives an understanding nod to her. They all walk towards one gravestone, one that meant everything to not just Aubrey, but many other former friends. She reads the phrase on the gravestone out loud.

”Mari. The sun shined brighter when she was here.” She kneels down to the grave, and silently grieves. “Yeah… the sun did shine brighter…..” She ponders about today and previous days, on why Sunny decided to come out after so long, why he decided to slash her, why Basil ruined the album, why Kel… goddamn them all. God damn them! She feels herself tearing up, which her Pokemon then take notice of. Bunbun sits down with Aubrey in an attempt to comfort her.

“Thanks… for not abandoning me like the others did, Bunbun.” Garbodor nods and makes a gluttoral sound, which she knows full well meant Your Welcome, Aubrey.

As she turns around and walks off, she sees Those two looking at her… Kel…… and Sunny.

Chapter Text

Today was a very beautiful day in Faraway Town. It was Sunny yet not too bright, cloudy but not too cloudy, and the temperature was simply brisk to run around in. Indeed, Jessie thought, if not for their month’s long search for their former boss Giovanni to rebuild Team Rocket, this would be a perfect place to retire in.

“*Sigh* Jessie, don’t you think we’ve been walking for long enough? My legs are killing me.”

“Quit being a whiner, you can walk more James.”

“Not to be rude, but why are we even walking? There are no known connections to Team Rocket or any group associated with them here!” Indeed, Meowth was right, and perhaps Jessie’s anxiety was just getting the better of her.

“UUGH, fine! We can sit on a bench then, read up on the map and where the Pokemon center is at. Meanwhile I won’t have to hear you two whine!”

“WOBUFFET!” Wobuffet states in agreement, as the group sits on a bench in the creatively named Faraway Park.

As they sit in the park, Jame searches his backpack, and sees they have some food left, a few granola bars, chips, and a few water bottles. He also grabs out a bottle cap to stim with.

“Hmm, you think we should get some extra food, just in case?”

“Do whatever you wish, James. We’ll sleep here tonight and move on tomorrow.”

“Hmm… do you think Giovanni might still be alive? I mean, if he was, he would’ve attempted to make some form of contact, right? And if he didn’t and was trapped somewhere, would we even be capab-“ Meowth gets interrupted by Jessie, who now looks mad.

“OF COURSE WE CAN! Giovanni trusted us so much, and we aren’t gonna fail him now! And if he’s truly dead as you said, we’ll rebuild Team Rocket by our lonesome!” Several people looked on at the group in confusion. Wobuffet, meanwhile, covers his face due to social anxiety. Two people, a tall boy wearing an Orange sports clothing, and a much shorter boy wearing more formal clothes approach them, interested in the small group. The tall boy has two Pokemon, a strange one that resembles Emolga, but much larger, and a Midday Lycanroc. Meanwhile the short boy is carrying a Mimikyu with him.

“Yo, you two alright?” The taller boy waves happily at them, meanwhile the short boy looks on. It appears they don’t know what Team Rocket is.

“Oh yeah, we’re just… uhm looking for someone, someone who is very important to us.” Jame waves. As James says this, Mimikyu jumps out of the Raven-haired boys grasp, and tries to greet Meowth, only for him to step back in fear.

“Hey hey hey, I don’t like physical contact!” Meowth shoos Mimikyu away, which he obliges, and Meowth prepares to speak again. “And Yeah, we’re just traveling-“ Meowth is interrupted by the taller boy.

“Woah! You can talk, that’s so cool!” The tall boy smiles happily, and pets Meowth, before he slaps the boy's hand off.

“HEY! You know it’s rude to pet anyone without permission! I don’t even know your name, twerp!”

“Oh whoops, hehehe, sorry. The names Kel, and this here is my best friend Sunny.” Sunny waves at them in silence.

“Ok, good, but you still ain’t allowed to pet me- HEY NOT YOU TOO!!” Meowth says, when James decides to pet Meowth, him yelling in response.

“It’s nice to meet you two. I’m James, and this here is my long time companion Jessie. Oh wait, actually…” James motions his friends to do their famous motto.

“Really James? *Sigh* Alright then.” Jessie stands up, and they prepare their motto.

“Prepare for trouble.”

“And make it double!”

“To protect the world from devastation.”

“To unite all people within our nation!”

“To denounce the evils of truth and lov-“ They get interrupted by Sunny, who speaks.

“You guys don’t seem like the kind of people to denounce truth or love. Actually, you seem pretty honest and caring.”

“Sunny… it’s kind of rude to interrupt their motto haha.” Kel says, slightly embarrassed.

“Indeed it is you twerps. You wanna know how long we haven’t done that motto?” Jessie says, pouting angrily.

“But you didn’t want to do it a few seconds ago Jessie?” James and Meowth tell her in unison.

“Wobuffet!” The Pokemon of the same name says in agreement.

“Even then, interrupting someone is rude!”

“Sorry” Sunny looks down in sadness. To be honest, Jessie feels a little bad now, seeing that this boy looks a little sickly looking.

“Well… just please make sure to let other people finish next time. Anyways, Team Rocket will be blasting off!” Jessie says with utter confidence.

“Indeed, it was nice meeting you two!” James says happily.

“Take care of yourselves.” Meowth says casually.

“Wobuffet!” The Pokemon of the same name waves off, and the team leaves, leaving Kel and Sunny alone in the park.

“Well… they seem like nice people, don’t you think Sunny?” Kel asks Sunny, to which he responds in a nod. Meanwhile, Mimikyu, Jettolga, and Lycanroc were playing around in the playground. Kel later calls out to the Pokemon to come towards them.

“Anyways, let’s go look for Aubrey now. After we confront her and get the album back, we can go on our journey together and with Bas tomorrow!” Kel and Sunny walk out of the park, their Pokemon following

—

After getting to Othermart, the two boys see Kim and Vance, trying to steal candy. Kel could only roll his eyes, upset at those two for trying to steal stuff.

“*Sigh* Don’t those two have money? C’mon Sunny, let’s go battle those two and ask them where Aub’s is.” Sunny nods, as the two prepare to battle, only to see that their Pokemon have been fainted, and are recovering. “Huh… well, their Pokemon have already been defeated, and for a while too.”

The siblings take notice of two, and stare. Kim looks at the two, annoyed, meanwhile Vance just silently shrugs.

“*Grumble* Can’t you see our pals are already fainted?”

“And can’t you see what you're doing is illegal?” Kel snarks at the Hooligan.

”Okay, yeah it is illegal. Counterpoint, the store owner is a jerk and has a creepy obsession with those old world aristocrats in Springfield!” Before Kel can argue back, that women takes notice of Kim and Vance’s thievery, and walks towards them angrily.

”WHAT IN TARNATION ARE YOU DOING BRATS? GIVE ME BACK THAT CANDY!” She orders her Sylveon to forcefully take back the stolen candy, and the Fairy type walks away. She continues to yell. “If you two steal one more time, I AM calling Officer Jenny on you brats!” She walks off, as the two siblings sigh in frustration.

”Well, now that that’s over, how about you tell me we’re Aub’s is?” Kel states, when Kim argues back.

”What, no! We ain’t telling ya we’re the boss is, and quit using that nickname! You ain’t a friend of her no more!” Kim pushes Kel in anger

”And besides, why should we? We lost that candy because of you.” Vance adds.

“Well, in that case, then-… huh, Sunny, we’re are you going?” Sunny walks by the three, and goes to the counter were Candice is. He puts a strange disc on the counter

”Hmm, what is this child?” Candice looks on, confused.

”Sparkly Swirl. Can be used to give your Pokémon a new move.” Candace reads the disc, and sees what it does

”hmmmm, and surely you want something in exchange, correct?” Sunny nods, pointing to some of the candy. “Alright, how much of each?”

”The stuff that those two were trying to steal.” The siblings look on with excitement, while Kel looks on with curiosity.

”*Sigh* Alright, but only this once, since you Were kind enough to give me this new move for my precious Veevee!” Sunny goes and grabs a bunch of candy, and brings it to the counter to be checked out. “Alright, have a good day, smiley smiley!”

Sunny walks back to the three, two bags of candy in hand, and gives them to Kim and Vance. He also puts a few candy he bought for himself and his friends in his pocket. To put it simply, Kel was very impressed with Sunny. He always knew he was good at making these moves, but to the point that store owners would be willing to give so much? Well… he’ll definitely have to have Jettolga put Buzzy Buzz to good use.

“Huh… well, guess we should ask them were the boss is, huh sis?” Vance asks, which Kim responds with a nod. “She’s at the church.”

”The… church? Didn’t think Aub’s was the kind of person to go to church?” Kel states, very confused. “Welp, guess well take your word for it. C’mon Sunny, let’s go and find her.” Sunny nods, and the two and their Pokemon walk off, leaving Kim and Vance very satisfied and happy with their legally acquired candy.

Chapter Text

Having found Kim’s statement to be correct, Kel and Sunny come face to face with Aubrey and her Pokemon at the cemetery. Bunbun tries awkwardly waving to try to mitigate the awkwardness, but it does little to help, although Mimikyu does wave back to the large Poison type.

“Hmm… What the hell are you two doing here?”

“The answer should be obvious Aub’s. I’m really sorry to have barged into your private business like that, but one, Sunny sort of barged in, and second, that is Basil’s photo album!”

“Your… still on about that? It’s none of your business Kel.”

“Not my business? We used to be best friends, and it’s now not my business?”

“Yeah Kel… exactly, we Used to be friends.”

“…” Kel considers, and looks behind Aubrey… at the gravestone. “You know Mari would be sad to hear that, right?”

Sunny notices the gravestone, and starts shaking… feeling bad memories come back. They all take notice of Sunny's stress, and Mimikyu tries comforting their trainer by rubbing on his leg. Kel starts looking guilty

“Really… bringing Mari into this, right in front of her brother? Wow… amazing Kel, just as Dense as ever! I wonder if you even have a goddamn brain?!” Aubrey loudly explains, as Kel and Jettolga try to comfort Sunny as well. “Oh, now you feel bad? I just have to wonder where you and everyone was when I was grieving?”

“Aubrey, shut up, Sunny is stressed ou-

“NO, you shut up! If you had just decided to stay back home, and do whatever with Sunny, everything would’ve been fine!”

“You haven’t even explained why you stole the photo album, at least do so! And we were all kids when she… you know, we were all dealing with trauma!”

“You really think it’s so simple, huh? *Sigh* You’ve always been so simple, and you probably wouldn’t understand why I stole it.” Aubrey states, the situation now intensifying. “You moved on so fast, while I… go to this church every week, trying my best to move on. Did you… even care about Mari?”

“Of course I did! And… I should’ve been there for you, and I’m sorry! But… you CAN’T just steal one of your former friends' stuff, and have your pals bully him, you thief!” As he says this, several churchgoers go to the graveyard, overhearing their argument. Kel takes notice, and starts getting worried. “Wh-whoops.”

Aubrey looks on at the judging churchgoers, and her former friends. She can see that Sunny… looked so miserable, so hurt, so guilty. She can also see that her Trubbish’s, and Bunbun… they were extremely scared, likely for her safety. She can overhear some of the crowd speaking… insults, and mockery, of how her mother must be so ashamed, how she’s been uncontrollable since her dad left, how she’s a criminal… how her Pokemon and friends are such troublemakers, such sinners, such Bullies . She wants so desperately to fight them, to scream, and to just… lash out, but seeing her worried Pokemon, seeing the guilt in Sunny’s face, seeing Mari’s grave behind her…

“…… Take it then.” She throws the album at Kel, which he catches with ease. Then, she runs off.

“A-Aubrey, wait!” But she has run off, ignoring them. With all that said and done, all the churchgoers go back inside the church, leaving the two boys alone, while Lycanroc, Jettolga, and Mimikyu stand there dumbfounded.

“ *Sigh* That… did not go well. Well… at least we got the album back, and-“  He looked into the album, seeing all the pictures were covered up in marker. He could also have sworn that, through his memory, that the ones with Mari must’ve been taken. “W-what? No… did… Aub’s do this?”

It wouldn’t make sense though. Aubrey was stating she was protecting the album, and if she truly wanted to ruin it and destroy those memories, she would’ve done it weeks ago by burning them. He can also see that there is a lot of smudge, as if the marker was trying to be rinsed off.

“Sunny… I think I’m gonna drop you off at my house. I need… to talk to Bas about this.” They walk out of the cemetery and then the church, having achieved their goal in retrieving most of Basil’s album… but still feeling upset and unfulfilled.

—

Aubrey couldn’t believe it. The sheer audacity of Kel and Sunny to just… barge in and not only try to force themselves back into her life when she doesn’t want them, but also have the audacity to just… turn everyone in the church against her! Don’t any of them know she’s trying to protect the album!? Protect the last memories they have of their childhood! And now that Kel has taken the album from her except for a few photos, he’s gonna give it to that… goddamn flower boy, who’s gonna ruin it all over again! If so… fine! Their no longer he friends anyways, they made the mistake of abandoning her in her destitute home….. where all that remains is her negligent mother, a ruined, broken childhood, and a few Trubbish, some of the only individuals she considers friends outside of the Hooligans! It… hurts emotionally, to a point that she can feel tears running down her face.

“God… dammit!” Aubrey lays down on the sidewalk, while the Trubbish that are following her and Bunbun try their best to comfort her.

“Garb…” Bunbun sits next to his trainer in silence, looking at the sunset.

“Bunbun, do you… think I’m the bad one around her, for just trying to protect something that should’ve meant so much to everyone?” Garbodor looks at her in silence, unable to form an answer. Bunbun wishes Aubrey could just… talk to her friends, and try to make them understand, though knows he can’t really explain that to her.

After a while, Aubrey stands back up, only to see someone looking at her. It is a woman wearing a gray robe, and beside her is a large, 3 headed canine Pokemon that Aubrey has never seen before, one colored in white fur with grayish markings.

“It appears deep in thought, child. What seems to be the issue?”

“None of your business. I don’t even know you.”

“Hmm, that is understandable. The names Maria, and I am just traveling through this wonderful town for a short visit, though I can offer some advice for you.”

“Whatever, just say whatever you wanna say, and leave me be.”

“Thank you child. One may find it hard to reach out to others, but eventually, one must come out of their shell in order to achieve what you ultimately desire. It is through cooperation and understanding that one can truly achieve your dreams. I can see that you, deep inside, wish for not only companionship, but to not forget memories and past loved ones you hold so dear within your heart.” Aubrey looks at Maria, surprised to see how she managed to deduct how she thought so easily. “That is all I have to say. I wish you good travels, child.” Maria sits upon her Pokemon, and the Pokemon runs off, leaving Aubrey, her Trubbish, and Bunbun sitting there.

“Hmm… welp, that’s enough advice from a strange woman today. Let’s just go do some training, and after that go back to that garbage dump of a house.” Aubrey, Bunbun, and the Trubbish’s do as the former said, and they train for many long hours, until it starts getting dark, forcing them to go back inside, where a broken, drunken husk of a woman dwells… one that’ll surely either be asleep and sleeping in her bodily waste, or awake and full of slurred anger.

Chapter Text

After helping with a few peoples issues, from fixing a pipe, helping with family issues, as well as complimenting a girl's art, Ash has finally arrived at Hero’s family house. He can see that it's a generally cozy looking place from the outside, and that a strange looking Arcanine is sitting on the front porch. The Arcanine walks towards Ash, curious of his presence.

“Oh hey their pupper, I’m looking to see if Hero is in the house. Is he?” Ash asks, while petting the Pokemons rocky, rough dark gray fur. He should ask Hero about the Arcanine later, after discussing the Faraway regions issues.

The Arcanine barks happily in response, and gently bumps their head on the door. A few seconds later, a woman opens the door, likely Hero’s mom.

“Oh good afternoon Ash, are you perhaps here to talk to my son Hero?”

“Indeed I am, is he here?” Before Hero’s mom could answer, Hero peaks through the front door, and waves at him.

“Greetings, it’s wonderful to see you here Ash. Come inside, my mom and I made pasta and beef stew.”

“Woah, really? That’s great, I definitely will need food after not eating today!” Ash walks into the house, and as Hero’s mom walks away, he can see that Hero is accompanied by his Blissey, who waves at Ash. He can also see he has a starter pokemon case with him, is he perhaps giving them out to someone?

“Oh, I see you're interested in the case I have with me. Haha, these are for my friends for their journey tomorrow, you wanna see the Pokemon?”

“Sure, I’d love to see and pet them.” Hero opens the case in response, showing three pokeballs. He releases the Pokemon, and Ash can see they look very, very familiar.

The first one was a purple colored Rowlet, one that had a pale white face and a stone faced expression on them. The other was a Scorbunny, but they were colored in shades of brown and had tiny antlers on their head, who ran under the table after seeing him. The final Pokemon was a green-colored Totodile, one that seemed to have a light coating of what seems like moss, and had a relatively serious expression on their face.

“Woah, those are some unique looking starters. Regional forms, right? So… which of the two are Fire, and Water type? I’m sure Totodile here is a Grass type.”

“Actually Ash, neither of them are Fire and Water type. Rowlet here is Poison/Flying, meanwhile Scorbunny is a Ground type. The Faraway region has a more… unconventional starter trio, you can say.” 

As Hero speaks, Blissey gently ushers Scorbunny out of the table, and gently picks the rabbit Pokemon up. Meanwhile, Rowlet flies towards the table, and sits there, their expression not changing in the slightest, staring unblinkingly at Hero and Ash. Pikachu sits next to the owl Pokemon, and makes a few funny faces in an attempt to make Rowlet laugh. Their face does not even make a twitch. Totodile meanwhile stands beside the table, and poses dramatically

“Man, Rowlet here doesn’t seem to like emoting, do they? And I gotta say, Totodile here looks to be a responsible fella, and Scorbunny… Well, they look a little shy. But they're all very cute nonetheless, and I’m sure they’ll make amazing companions!” 

“Yeah, they're very good Pokemon, and I’m sure my friends will take great care of them.” Hero recalls the starter Pokemon, and puts their Pokeballs back into the case.

“Oh yeah, I completely forgot. You had issues with these “Nightmare paradoxes” and this Team Fae, right? What type of issues?”

“Oh right yeah. Well, we’ve been getting reports in the region of an influx of strange Pokemon, ones that have never been seen before. For example, in Faraway town, people have been reporting sightings of a large figure flying throughout the town at night, as well as a haunting, echoing sound associated with it. They describe it looking similar to a Togekiss, but its body looks smoother and sharper looking, and its skin is a grayish color.” As Hero explains the Pokemon, Ash grabs a notebook and scribbles the info down.

“Strange, darker colored and sharper looking Togekiss, got it. Is it the only one found so far?”

“No, there are others that have been found, though this one is in this town, and so poses an immediate, possible threat to the people living here. And as for Team Fae… we have been getting reports of this group being found near or in Springfield and Winterview, not harming anyone, but spreading their gospel and doing other, unknown activities. Some have even said they have a base stationed in the region.”

“I see… that’s a little concerning. Have you met them personally?”

“No, it seems as though whenever I arrive, none of them can be found, as if they're hiding away. Very suspicious activity. And that’s why I request your help, because I’ve heard that you’ve dealt with these teams before, even saved the world once against these “Team Flare” people before becoming a champion. I hope I’m not asking too much from you.”

“Naaaaawww, you're not! Besides, a true Pokemon master has to help his fellow trainers. I think I’m gonna stay up this night and see if I can attract the Paradox Togekiss. Are there any behaviors known from that Pokemon?”

“Well… outside of being known to stalk the western part of this street at night, no. But I have decided on a nickname for the Pokemon, which is Soaring Butcher.”

“Pfft, that’s a little edgy sounding, but I like it. Thanks Hero, though I have one more thing I need to ask.”

“Which is?”

“Could you make coffee?” 

Before Hero could answer, two people barged into the house, a tall boy wearing orange sports clothing and a smaller boy wearing a more formal outfit.

“BRO, I MANAGED TO GET SUNNY TO STEP OUT OF HIS HOUSE!” The taller boy said, referring to the short, Raven-haired boy.

“Hello.” Sunny waves at the two. Hero stands there in shock, seeing the short, raven-haired boy. Ash could see that the two boys were accompanied by three Pokemon, those being a Jettolga, a Pokemon he met long ago when Iris’s Emolga evolved, a Mimikyu that was cuddling up to Jettolga, and a Midday Lycanroc. They were looking at Ash in bewilderment.

“Woah Hero, didn’t know you called another champion over! Hey Ash, the names Kel, and I’m Hero’s little brother!” Kel smiles, and then hugs the shorter boy. “And this here is my best friend Sunny!” 

“That’s wonderful, the name is Ash Ketchum, though you probably already know.” Ash offers a high five to Kel, who slightly bends down and gives him the high five to the short champion.

“Fellow short king.” Sunny smiles slightly after saying this and seeing Ash’s surprised, and then happy reaction.

“Hah, I guess so! Oh right, Hero, you’ve been a little silent, you alright?” Ash can see that Hero was looking at something, away from their direction, until turning around in surprise and smiling.

“Oh yeah, I am. I’m just… really surprised and happy to see Sunny again. It’s been 4 years since I last saw you.” Hero pats Sunny on the head, very happy. Ash doesn’t believe that answer, especially after catching a glimpse of bright blue eyes from outside, that quickly disappeared into the trees.

“Nice to meet you, Hero.” Sunny hugs Hero after saying that.

“Soooooo… whadaya two champions talking about, and is there any way I can help?”

“Kel… are you sure you want to-“

“Uh yeah, you barely slept last night bro, you must be exhausted as a Komala!” Kel says though as Jettolga takes notice of Mimikyu’s growing interest in Pikachu, and glares at Ash’s Pokemon in response. Pikachu looks away nervously seeing her reaction. Ash and Kel take notice.

“Oh c’mon Jettolga, I taught you better than to harbor jealousy! Pikachu isn’t gonna take Mimikyu away from you, right?”

“Worry not, Pikachu isn’t interested, doesn’t have the best experience with Mimikyu’s anyways. I do see they seem to like Pikachu though.”

“He is interested, and I am too.” Sunny walks towards Pikachu, and pets the Electric type. “Cute.”

“Thanks Sunny. You seem like a really nice, quiet person. You wanna be friends?” Sunny nods in response to Ash’s question.

“Mmm hmm.” Sunny starts petting Ash’s electric type friend, and starts thinking to himself… thinking about making some TM‘s for Pikachu. Ash then gives a thumbs up to Kel.

“If you wanna, than I’m more than glad to get help Kel… as long as Jettolga’s jealousy doesn’t get in the way.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be sure she won’t do anything rash. And don’t worry about telling me about those Nightmare paradoxes, I already know from Hero telling me. Soaring Butcher, pretty tryhard name to be honest, don’t you think bro?”

“Wow… none of you are gonna live this down, are you?”

“Nope!” Kel, Sunny, and Ash say in unison.

“You wanna come too Sunny, would be a great way to spend your 2 weeks left here before you and your mom move to Paldea!” Sunny nods to Kel’s question.

“Oh, you're moving out, Sunny?” Sunny nods to Ash’s question

“That’s wonderful, don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll enjoy seeing the region, and meeting new Pokemon!” 

“Then we should make up for all the lost time then Sunny. How about we all have dinner together?” Everyone nodded to Hero’s question, except for Kel.

“Actually, I'm just… dropping off Sunny here. I’m gonna go check on Bas for a few, that alright bro?

“Of course Kel, I do hope you te-“

“Don’t worry I already did, I’ll be sure to remind him again. See ya bro, Sunny, and world champion dude!” Kel quickly walks out, Hero chuckling happily at how much his brother cares about Basil.

“Heh… he really does care so deeply for him.” Hero smiles softly, as Both Sunny and Ash prepare to ravenously devour all the dinner. That was… until Hero catches a glimpse of a small, yellow Pokemon… one that walked on 4 legs… one that had multiple pairs of small, blue eyes…

—

Basil sits in his bedroom in quiet contemplation, petting Tarountula on their silk yarn-covered abdomen, meanwhile Nomble sits back, ravenously eating their snacks. He wonders if… the album is still in Aubrey’s possession, or if Sunny and Kel got it. Wait… he realizes, what if they see the marked out photos? What if Sunny remembers? What if they blame Aubrey for I-

“Basil, Kel is knocking on the door, do you want me to open it?” Polly calls Basil from the living room. While nervous, Basil decides what he will do.

“I-I can open it, t-th-thanks Polly.” He walks towards the door and opens it, Kel waving happily at him, but no sign of Sunny. Hector walks towards Basil, and he pets their soft, Sandy fur. The Lycanroc walks around the blonde boy, which makes him softly smile… just for a moment.

“Evenin’ Bas, got your album back.” He hands it over to Basil, which he eagerly takes. “So….. um, you remember our journey tomorrow?”

“Y-yeah, you told me this morning K-Kel. Umm… d-did you take a peek?” Kel nods softly. Basil was now very, very nervous, and it didn’t help that Nomble was glaring at Kel and his Pokemon.

“Yeah… the photos were marked out. Now… I dunno if it was Aubrey who did it, or-“

“I-it was me!” Basil says out loud, surprising Kel. “I-I-I, it hurts looking at th-those childhood memories… a-and, I was dumb enough to mark them out.” Basil hopes that Kel will believe his lie.

“I see…” Kel walks over to Basil, and beckons him towards the couch. The two boys sit there together, and, in spite of the situation, Basil still finds it… comforting? But why? “I’m not mad at you Bas, I mean… I’d be a hypocrite if I was, I made mistakes too.”

“ *Deep breathes* Ok… but really Kel, I haven’t s-seen you making any mistakes. In fact… y-you're actually very mature.” Basil can feel his face heating up after saying this. Meanwhile, Kel’s Jettolga starts snickering, does she know of his feelings?

“Heh, thanks. Well, I’m mature because I made a Buttload of mistakes, stuff I feel a little bad about!”

“Like?”

“Well, one time… I was playing baseball in church, and I… accidentally smashed the stained glass hahaha.” Basil snickers at what Kel said, causing him to cover his face in embarrassment. “Please don’t tell the others haha.”

“Don’t worry… your secret will be kept between the two of us. I-I’m very good… at K-keeping secrets.”

“Oh, really? What kind?” Basil starts getting nervous about Kel’s question, and realizes that… he may have divulged too much information.

“O-oh, u-umm nothing! T-th-there secrets for a reason!” Basil was hyperventilating, and Kel noticed that. He decides to not ask anymore questions, and just rubs his hand on Basil’s back. He can hear Nomble growling, but Jettolga responds by pushing him away, knowing that Basil needs that comfort

“Breathe in, breathe out Bas, as much as you need.” Basil follows Kel’s advice, and steadily calms himself. “You alright?”

“Y-yeah… umm, is it… alright if I can be alone. I’m… actually, no, you ca-“

“Don’t worry, I can leave you be. I can be a little overwhelming sometimes, and I don’t wanna stress you out.” Kel stands up, and waves at Basil. “I hope you have a Goodnight Bas, and hopefully me, you and Sunny can hang out tomorrow, as we’ll only have 13 days left till he moves to Paldea.”

Basil realizes just what Kel had said… Sunny, moving out….. to Paldea?! Wait… b-but… can Basil truly keep the truth all to himself, alone? What if he panics with Sunny leaving, and he…

“No……” He starts taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Cutiefly flies over to try to comfort their trainer, meanwhile Nomble goes to the kitchen to see what Poly is cooking, who is blissfully unaware of Basil’s stress.

“Everything… is going to be okay… everything…… Is going to be ok.” With his grandmas condition getting worse, and with the news of Sunny moving away… he finds the words he is saying to be more hollow than ever.

—

Kel goes back to his house, making sure to pet Hero’s Fire/Rock type Arcanine, who then locks Kel in the face. Lycanroc and Arcanine also rub eachother as a form of greeting, a king Kel smile.

“Aww, aren’t you two just adorable pupper-“

“AAAAAAAGGGGHHH” He hears screaming, Hero’s screaming, and Kel sighs deeply, likely knowing why he is. He takes a deep breath, preparing to see the horrific disaster that is unfolding inside.

“Oh boy. Lycanroc, you stay outside. Jettolga, I’m gonna need your help in catching whatever spider Pokemon is terrorizing my big bro.” Kel gently opens the door… and what he is saying is utterly horrific.

He can see that most of the furniture was upturned, except for the kitchen table, where he can see Hero and Sunny standing on top, shaking with incredible fear. There was food all over the floor. Meanwhile, Ash and Pikachu were trying to beckon the two down.

“C’mon you two, it’s just a Joltik, they aren’t gonna hurt you!” Ash turns around, seeing Kel and Jettolga’s unamused expressions. “Oh thank god, hey Kel, could you convince them to come back down? They are extremely terrified of the Joltik in the living room.”

“ *Sigh* That’s just their arachnophobia acting up. Don’t worry, I’ll have Jettolga catch them.” Jettolga goes around the living room, seeing Mimikyu and Blissey frantically looking for the Bug/Electric type. She goes behind the couch, and seeing the little Pokemon, immediately grabs them.

“Jetto!” She speaks out, alerting her trainer about the Joltik.

“Great job Jettolga, I think that’s a new record for you. Please throw them outside while I calm those two down.” Jettolga flies outside to drop off the Joltik in a far off place, while Kel turns around to see his terrified brother and best friend, and a dumbfounded Ash and Pikachu.

“Does… this always happen?” Kel nods to Ash’s question, while he looks at his brother and Sunny.

“I-I-is it… g-gone?”

“Yeah bro, they're gone.” Hero takes a deep breath as he stands back down. Sunny was still shaking uncontrollably.

“Hey Sunny, you wanna come down on your own… or should I get you down?” Sunny nods, terrified, as Kel grabs Sunny and lays him down on the living room floor.

“Hoooo boy… that’s a huge mess if I’ve ever seen one. I think even my side of the room is cleaner now than this place, bro.”

“Yeah…… you're right. You three can go upstairs, while I and Blissey clean this mess up.” The three wave goodbye to Hero, as they go upstairs, seeing the horrified, silent Mother of Kel and Hero looking on at the incident.

“Sorry ma’am, I uh… didn’t know about your son’s phobia” Ash casually states.

Chapter Text

Dunno what else to say, kinda stopped writing once I started having panic attacks a few weeks ago. Will probably rewrite the fix… but when? I don’t really know. Sorry. :(