Chapter Text
Ash arrived in Alola.
In another timeline, he may have arrived for a short vacation with his mother, but this time, he was on a indefinite vacation. Away from many of his so-called friends, away from his mother’s grief over him, away from Kalos and all the bad memories it brought, away from the league, away from Team Rocket, just...
… Away from everything. That’s all he asked.
He was going to stay with Professor Kukui, who was the regional professor. He never really met the man in person, but Professor Oak trusted him. Bless the old man’s heart, he was probably still one of the few that genuinely cared for him. He wouldn’t trust Ash’s well-being to just anybody. There was his cousin, Principal Samson Oak, but the professor decided it was best for him to go to Kukui’s. As far as he knew, Kukui lived on the beach area, which was quiet and spacious, perfect for all his pokemon to wander about.
Why were all his pokemon going with him to Alola? Well, simple, Ash wasn’t planning on coming back to Kanto any time soon and Professor Oak knew that Kukui wanted to research foreign pokemon from other regions, but the man had other duties in the region that didn’t allow him. The man had decided to contact Kukui and propose the idea that in exchange for studying the pokemon, he had to also provide shelter for their trainer as well as gaining a new research assistant. Plus, there was the Pokemon School on the island that Kukui taught at and the Alolan professor suggested it could be a good change of scenery for Ash. Oak then proposed the idea to Ash, to which he only agreed because Pikachu saw through Oak’s plan and agreed to it.
Pikachu suspected that Oak simply wanted to send Ash to a quiet region, away from all the trauma he had endured the past few years. All things considered, Ash was still hesitant to go, but decided on trusting Oak and Pikachu.
He was tired of his mother pretending that everything was alright. He loved her dearly, she was his mother, and he knew that in her youth she had gone through her own experiences that made her as scared as she is nowadays. Sometimes he suspected a big contributor to that fear was his unnamed father. He never understood why she was so afraid, what she was afraid of, but he never asked, and she never offered an explanation. He understood some things were better left unsaid, but he was tired of her pretending everything was alright; what he needed in those moments was his mother, but she had been too afraid to face reality. That’s why he also needed time away from her as much as it hurt. A part of him knew that Professor Oak would get her to see reason. He always did have a knack for convincing his mother.
However, he guessed that any mother watching her child almost die and sometimes die time and time again could do that to a person. Be afraid. He didn't blame her.
He had grown tired of receiving all those calls and texts after the Kalos Crisis, when he was in such a vulnerable state, demanding explanations he couldn’t give and answering questions he couldn’t deal with... demanding why he lost the League when he was so close. Losing the League didn't matter after everything that happened to him. What that monster did to him and Greninja. A simple “how are you?” was more than enough for him. He only got a few of those from Brock and Misty, his brother and sister in anything but blood. All other friends remained radio silent, except Clemont, Bonnie and Serena who reached out regularly.
Sometimes he wondered if most of his friends were radio silent because they were too scared of getting involved in any crisis he was involved in.
Maybe they feared for their lives. Maybe they were just scared of him. Maybe they didn't want to stick around when he got involved in the worst situations one way or another.
Nice going, Ash.
After Kalos, instead of going to his mother’s house, he went straight to Professor Oak’s farm. He had already spoken to his mother on the phone when he was in one of those rare states of panic... she was silent. He was panicking. Ash couldn’t take it. When the kind professor opened his door, Ash was staring down at the floor with vacant eyes and Pikachu on his shoulder trying to comfort him.
“Can I... Can I stay here, professor?”
The professor said nothing else, other than to embrace him in a tight hug and let him inside. That night, Ash got sick with a high fever and the professor had no doubt had to do with whatever horrible thing happened in Kalos. Traumatic events could have serious physical effects on the body. He had seen the news, he had a general idea of what happened, but he could only imagine what it was like for Ash. Once he was better, Ash had grown quiet, with an aged look in his eyes that no thirteen-year-old should have. His gaze was downward and vacant, Samuel noticed. His pokemon had surely noticed too. Gary noticed when he visited and attempted to cheer him up with a battle. That didn't work. The professor attempted to coax him into talking to him, but he only got bits and pieces. Ash only mentioned Greninja and how much he missed her since she had to stay behind. He mentioned the Bond Phenomenon once, but the professor was smart enough not to ask about it. He mentioned Lysandre once and it sent him into a panic episode. Samuel held Ash until he was a mess of hiccups and tears.
Bulbasaur had taken to walking closer to Ash to keep an eye on him and Bayleef had stopped tackling him for the time being; she was afraid that her trainer’s state could worsen with sudden, even if friendly, attacks. Charizard, never being the soft type, wasn’t trying to walk on eggshells around his trainer, but he still cared. After all, this was the trainer that saved him from what surely would be a terrible fate as a Charmander. He took to the skies and acted as a lookout for any unwanted company or ill-intended creeps. Oshawott attempted to cheer him up in the dumbest ways posible. Getting bit by Gible, creating theater worthy dramas to act out, bothering him about a certain Serena, but none of those distractions worked. Pikachu never left Ash's side.
Ash still trained his pokemon, he wasn’t losing his touch, but after a month and a half of living with the professor and a mother that kept sending delicious meals but no offers to talk, one thing was clear among the residents of the farm: The light that once shined so bright inside him had dimmed.
His eyes did show a bit of positive emotion occasionally, when his phone rang and the caller ID said either Brock, Misty, Clemont and Bonnie or Serena.
All those events led Ash to Alola International Airport.
He looked around for Professor Kukui. Luckily, he had met the man through video calls to recognize him in his shorts, cap and lab coat. The professor waved at him next to his jeep. Ash sighed and Pikachu poked him on the cheek to get his attention. Pikachu pointed at his own smile. The young teen imitated his buddy. Hey, if he was going to start a new life, might as well do it with a smile.
The ride to Kukui's house was silent. Mostly on Ash's part as he took in the views of the island he was to call home for the foreseeable future. Kukui made a turn on a curve and the house was within view. “I must ask. Professor Oak had mentioned you had a whole Taurus herd?” The young professor tried to make some lighthearted conversation.
Ash blushed. “Oh yeah, it’s a long story. I told the professor to hold up on those until I got here. They’re a bit rowdy and I'm not sure about the space.”
"Don't worry about the space, kiddo. I'll explain later.” Kukui chuckled. “I’m just surprised a kid your age has so many Taurus.”
“It’s a long story. But I’m pretty sure they rigged the Safari Zone so they could be caught.”
“You have to tell me about it one of these days. Sounds like a fun story.”
“I will.” Ash chuckled a bit. “I never had the heart to trade any of them. Not until I find someone who would take all of them or none. They’re a whole family.”
“Understandable. I wouldn’t want to separate a family either.”
Kukui parked the car right in front of the house where as soon as Ash got out of the car, Bayleef was suddenly tackling him.
“Bayleef! Bay Bay!” The excited pokemon tackled the boy.
"Pika!” Pikachu exclaimed in surprise.
"Bayleef!? What are you doing here?” Ash questioned as the pokemon hugged him tightly. Not that he wasn't happy to see her, just a bit confused.
Kukui chuckled nervously. “I forgot to mention, Professor Oak sent Bayleef ahead of time because she was trashing his lab in anticipation. I guess she couldn't wait any longer.”
Ash laughed and he gently pushed Bayleef back. "That sounds like you.”
“Well, it’s been quite a day. Let’s get inside. I’ll order some food.”
After showing Ash his room, Kukui ordered two pizzas and went to explain some rules to his new guests. After taking a quick shower and putting on some comfortable pajamas, Ash sat on the couch with a with his pokemon eating their poke-chow and Ash ate pizza as soon as it arrived.
“Ok, so I have some rules.” Kukui said. “Mostly for everyone’s safety. First, absolutely no battles inside the house. I don’t want to burn down the place. Second, I only ask that you pick after yourself, Ash.”
“That will be no problem, professor.” Ash nodded. Despite popular opinion among his acquittances, he was organized. Spending so much time on the road makes a trainer develop those skills.
“And third,” Kukui smiled. “Just have fun in Alola, Ash.”
Ash smiled. “I will, Professor.”
“Oh please, Kukui is just fine.” Kukui insisted, though he had a suspicion the boy would still call him by title.
They were interrupted by a loud bark. Kukui smiled towards its direction. “I guess someone wants to meet you!”
Just then, a small puppy appeared, sniffing the air for the unfamiliar scents. His eyes landed on Ash and with a happy bark and a happy tail, he ran towards the new guest and jumped on his lap.
“Oh, hi!” Ash greeted as he patted the little dog. The puppy started licking him.
“This is Rockruff. He’s one of the Alolan pokemon you’ll meet around. I guess he just wanted to give you a warm welcome!”
Ash smiled. “Nice to meet you, Rockruff.”
“Ruff, ruff!” Rockruff then threw himself at Pikachu, giving him the same welcome.
“Pika! Pikapi!” Pikachu exclaimed happily.
While Rockruff greeted Pikachu, Kukui turned to Ash. “Since there will be more pokemon around when the professor sends yours over, I went ahead and ordered the installation of a barn next to the house. About time I did, anyways.”
“Really?”
“Yep! Since your stay is indefinite, I went ahead with it. Besides, it’s something I’ve been putting off for some time and your pokemon need somewhere to stay. It’s almost done and as soon as it is, your pokemon can come.”
"Whoa, thanks professor.”
"Don't mention it.” Kukui glanced at the clock. “It's getting a bit late, and you must be tired. Let's call it a night and we can go over the details tomorrow before school.”
“Oh, right! School.” Ash looked down at his last bit of pizza.
“Ash? If you're not ready for Pokemon School, it's alright. You can take a few more days to settle in.”
“No, no! It's not that! It's just...” He stroked Bayleef's head. “I've travelled to almost every region and participated in many contests... Am I even fit to go to Pokemon School?”
Kukui inspected him for a moment before smiling softly. “You're worried you might be overqualified, aren't you?”
Ash swallowed the last of his pizza. “More like I'm worried that they'll think I'm stupid for needing to go...” He mumbled.
Kukui had a sneaking suspicion that Ash didn't just mean the students he'll meet tomorrow, there was a lot of baggage in that statement alone that he didn't know what to do with it. ‘ All in its time, Kukui. He'll open-up eventually... ’ Kukui thought, remembering that Ash had gone through some heavy events in the past three years.
“There's always something new to learn about Pokemon every day. Even Pokemon Professors need to do continuing education to keep their licenses. In Pokemon School we teach all sorts of things, and the best part is that you can also share what you have learned in your travels too. My students are excited to meet you.”
“Really?”
Kukui nodded. “In Alola, we don't really have the tradition of going off on a journey at ten years old. Some do it, I know I did, but most decide to stay in Alola and do what we call island challenges instead.” He noticed the spark of interest in Ash's eyes when he mentioned the challenges. “More on that later. They were excited to get to know you. These kids haven't been outside of Alola before except maybe one of them. You can teach them about the regional pokemon you've encountered and in turn, they can teach you about Alola and the pokemon here. That's what Pokemon School is all about.”
Ash shrugged as he hugged Pikachu. “I guess that's fair.”
"What I mean to say is that anybody who thinks that Pokemon School is for dummies then they are fools."
That seemed to get a chuckle out of the young trainer. Kukui smiled. “It's getting late. Let's call it a day. Tomorrow promises to be eventful and in a good way!”
Ash smiled. “Alright! Good night, professor!”
“Goodnight, Ash.” He watched as the boy went to his new room with his Pikachu and Bayleef tagging along.
"Ruff!”
Kukui looked down at Rockruff, who whimpered as he pointed at Ash's direction. Kukui smiled. “Hey, if you want to go with Ash, go ahead!”
Rockruff wagged his tail and ran off. Kukui smiled and headed down to his lab. He had to work on the finishing touches on the Rotom Dex for Ash.