Archive of Our Own ^beta

At twenty-one years of age, with Champion titles to his name and several Leagues behind him, Satoshi Ketchum of Pallet Town (and Alola) was one of the most experienced Trainers out there. 

And let’s not talk about his numerous encounters… with all the possible Legendary Pokémon out there. He still blamed Lugia and the Shamouti Prophecy. And Arceus, of course. This was mostly Arceus’ fault. Lugia was at least nice and dropped in sometimes, to see him.

Coming home from Alola [although, Alola was perhaps more home now than anything, because as much as he loved Pallet Town and his mother… the little house at the edge had always felt way too constricting], just for a bit of break, he’d set off to re-familiarise himself with the Region he was born in.

(Or maybe, he just wanted an excuse to be on the road again and possibly meet up with Lance. He did promise the other Champ to see him, once he was back in Kanto, after all.)

And then… Professor Oak asked him to be ‘so dear and join Professor Cerise in Vermillion City’. Because, apparently, Cerise needed some help.

Looking at the nice lab, Ash  took the steps one by one, scratching Pikachu behind the ear. As a Region’s (or two , technically… but he’d chickened out the first time, when they wanted him to stay at Orange…) Champion he had the clearance to carry two full teams of Pokémon with him at all times.

His Kalos team stuck by him, once he was home from Alola. Only Greninja was missing. And… well, tiny Gibble had evolved into a fearsome Garchomp, who’d done him great service in Alola, as his Ride Pokémon and afterwards, Garchomp stayed too. And surprisingly, Lycanroc had also refused to leave him, when he said he’d visit Pallet quickly.

So with 7 Pokémon on his belt (plus Greninja’s empty Ball, which he’d never taken from his belt even when he set off for Alola) he was ready for whatever Professor Sakuragi dished out today.

He stopped before the door and pressed the doorbell, waiting.

A young woman with maroon hair and green eyes opened the door. “Hello, how may I help you?”

Ash nodded in greeting. “Good day, Miss. I’m looking for Sakuragi-hakase. I come from Pallet Town and…”

The girl lit up. “Oh yes, Tō-san did mention someone was coming. Nice to meet you, I’m Sakuragi Koharu.”

“Well met. I’m Satoshi.”

The Professor’s daughter stepped aside and motioned him in. Ash muttered a ‘pardon the intrusion’ as he passed Koharu and then waited for her to lead him to the Professor.

She glanced at Pikachu perched on his shoulder, as they walked. “You’ve got an adorable Pikachu.”

Satoshi chuckled. “Adorable alright, but do something he doesn’t like, he’ll zap you to Giratina’s Distortion World.”

“Piiika,” the Electric mouse hissed, glaring at his Trainer.

Ash raised an eyebrow. “Come on, bud, we both know you would and you did.”

Pikachu’s ear twitched, but he stayed silent. No need to argue about something, when Satoshi was right. Besides, the girl didn’t need to see them bickering, like children. Both of them were too old for that and… if not before, than the journey through Kalos definitely had his Trainer pulling his act together and being generally calmer and more composed, than ever before. (Perhaps, Greninja’s nature rubbed off on him, through their Bond?)

“Oh, Koharu dear, did you… Oh!” the Professor paused, eyes widening a little. No doubt, the man recognised him, even if his daughter hadn’t.

“Good day, Sakuragi-hakase.”

The man nodded. “I didn’t expect you to be here so fast, but I’m glad you were close and Yukinari-hakase could alert you. Meet my assistants, Kikuna and Ren,” he said, nodding to the two young adults sitting by the two computers. “And my junior assistant-in-training, Gō.”

After the brief introductions and greetings exchanged, Ash looked at the man. “What is it you called me for?”

“Strange things are occurring in Kalos after… what became known as the ‘Kalos Crisis’ and… we fear it might spread…”

Ash froze at the mention of Kalos and four Pokéballs shook on his belt. Pikachu lowered his tail so much it brushed his Trainer’s back. “And? The Crisis hadn’t happened yesterday and it’s still mostly in control no? They hadn’t spread past some spots of Kalos, from what I heard,” he said vaguely. 

He prayed to Lugia, to Giratina, to any Legendary that might listen, that Grenjinja would stay safe. He didn’t do that often. Most Legends either hated him or didn’t give a damn. The only ones who actually liked him were Lugia, Giratina and Tapu Koko. Oh, and the Eon Duo, but… that’s about that. Uh… Solgaleo didn’t count. He raised Solgaleo from the moment he was a little Cosmog. So yea — Nebby didn’t count. Although… he was sure the rest of the world would disagree.

“They hadn’t. Yet. And the sightings are less and less frequent, but… after working together with Professor Sya- Sycamore...”

Ash’s lips curled upwards amusedly at the Kalosian name being almost mispronounced by the Kantonian man. (The others didn’t seem to notice.) Several Regions meant several languages… and well, not everyone was fluent in each and every single one of said languages… so the most widespread and used often, even in science, was Unovian.

So… he was either damn good with languages or this was yet another jab from Arceus… 

However, Hoenese and Galarian gave him headaches and he swore never to try learning them again. One try and fail had been enough, thank you very much. He’d… never live down the epic fail with Bea over his blotched Galarian language lessons… At least, Leon had been gentleman enough not to comment on his horrendous [he knew it was horrendous, no need to sugarcoat] Galarian pronunciation and the other Champ had been courteous enough to switch to Unovian, whenever Satoshi himself was in hearing vicinity.

“... I’d like to know more. Just to make sure everything is going well and the ecosystem is falling back to normal.”

Ash nodded, trying not to show how jittery he was, going back to Kalos. The Region held few nice memories… but if they found… things alright, maybe Greninja would come with him?

“I see. But you’re aware I’m a Trainer and not a scientist, right?” he asked, crossing his arms.

The man nodded. “I know. But I also know you’ve been to Kalos.Yukinari told me enough to know you could lead Gō around the place so he wouldn’t be lost and even help him out, if… a tough situation arises,” the man said.

“Hey!” Gō glared half-heartedly at the professor. “I can take care of myself. Cinderace and I are a good team!”

The Professor nodded, his face a placating mask of acceptance. Ash had to press his lips together firmly, not to smile at the sight. While the Professor didn’t seem patronising at all, clearly, he was concerned enough for his youngest assistant to enlist a world-renowned Trainer.

“I’ve no doubt about that, Gō. But while you have many Pokémon, few of them are truly battle hardened. The Kalos Crisis had been handled by several Gym Leaders’ and other experienced Trainers’ combined efforts, including Champion Diantha. Surely, you cannot fault me for wanting an experienced Trainer, who knows Kalos, to go with you?”

The young black-haired male sighed, understanding settling on his face. “It’s… alright. I get it.”

Then, the man’s assistant finally turned to him and the first thing Ash noted were the startling blue eyes, contrasting the dark hair. “Nice to meet you, I’m Gō.”

Ash nodded. “Name’s Satoshi, but you can call me Ash.”

Gō raised an eyebrow. “Huh… why Ash?”

He shrugged. “A kind-of nickname from my childhood. And while Kanto, Jotho and the Orange Islands have practically the same language, that can’t be said about the rest of the world,” he cracked a grin. “I’ve been to Alola and some of the people there tripped over my Kantonese name… to hilarious results, actually. Even some of my friends from Kalos did, so they stuck to using the nickname.”

“Oh,” Gō blinked.

“And that’s yet another reason I want Satoshi to go with you,” the Professor said, looking at Gō. “I doubt you’re fluent in Kalosian… unless you just kept it a secret?”

Gō had the decency to blush. “Uh, no. I… don’t speak Kalosian.” After a few moments of embarrassment, he looked at Ash. “How many languages do you speak?”

“Kantonese, of course, the standardised, mostly but I know some words in the ‘rural’ that’s Kantonese, but used in Jotho. Unovian, cuz that’s the one you can get by with everywhere, even if you don’t speak anything else. Kalosian and… according to… my… adoptive father? Uh… can I call him that? He’s kinda my Mom’s friend whose couch I’ve usurped for a while… said I’m well on my way to be decent at Alolan. At least, in the standardised Alolan. There are just some corners of the islands that have different words and pronunciation… and that makes my head spin.”

Gō’s eyes went incredibly wide. “You speak four languages?!”

Ash shrugged nonchalantly. “Let’s… call it three-and-a-half.”

“Incredible.”

The Professor patted Gō’s shoulder. “That’s partially the reason I asked Satoshi to come. He’s been to many of the Regions himself and speaks languages well enough, to help you out. Also, he’s a close friend of Professor Ookido, who’s based in Satoshi’s hometown. So Satoshi himself will be reporting this and that to my old colleague.”

The black-haired teen nodded. “Okay… makes sense, I guess.” Gō’s blue eyes found him and he dipped his head. “Thanks for helping me.”

Ash waved him off. “Science is cool, so it’s nice to help out the Professors, whenever I can. So… Kalos… is it?”

Sakuragi nodded. “Yes. Particularly, the area around Anistar City… and most of ‘mountain Kalos’.”

Ash winced at that inwardly. Before… he left Kalos… they’d been hunting some Team Flare members still and they’d been in the forest between Anistair and Lumiose, where he’d left Greninja with Squishy and Z2.

“I see. Not… a safe part to be, out in the wild… but I’ve been in the thick of it, so some remnants shouldn’t cause too much problem,” he told the Professor.

“The help is most appreciated.”

After a draining plane ride — Tapus have mercy… had the ride been this draining when he’d come here with Alexa for the first time? — they got off at the Lumiose Airport. Ash looked around and noted in satisfaction how normal everyone and everything looked. Perhaps… the city was finally done lingering in the Crisis’ crushing shadow?

“So… where to?” asked Gō, looking around curiously. Ash stole the research assistnat a glance, noting he was still speaking Kantonese.

“I know just the way. But first, I want to drop in to see someone, if you don’t mind?”

Gō nodded. “Sure.”

They walked in silence for the most part, Gō’s blue eyes dirnking in the sigths of Lumiose with near-childish curiosity. Ash… envied him. He’d never lost his curiosity, but he’d defnitely lost the childishness him him. 

Pinned, watching form the top of the Lumiouse Tower as the city suffered under Zygarde’s mindless wrath… if not before . Yvetal… Zekrom and Kyuurem, Darkrai wedging himself between the warring titans — Dialga and Palkia — to halt the destruction of Alamos City… Lucario giving his life to save the Tree and Rota..

Ash shook his head, navigating the streets of Lumiose with fading familiarity. “Where are we going?”

“I want to drop by and talk to Sycamore,” he said, the Kalosian name feeling out of place… and weird in Kantonian. The language made the good prof’s name sound like he belonged to a different dimension.

When they finally reached the lab, Ash stepped into the building, nostalgia washing over him.

“Professor Sycamore? It’s Ash! Professor… are you here?” he called in Kalosian, as Gō closed the door behind them, throwing him a curious look at hearing the foreign language.

Sycamore appeared from the main corridor, much better dressed, than on a usual workday. He looked as fine as Ash had seen him before the League finals.

The man’s blue eyes brightened at seeing him, Garchomp, the gentle giant he was purring at the sight of him. “Ash! I didn’t expect to see you! Why didn’t you call ahead?” the man called in a friendly manner, patting him on the shoulder in greeting.

“It was a kind of unexpected visit. After Alola… I got home. Professor Yukinari asked me to go to Viridian and help out Professor Sakuragi,” again, he winced at how the Kantonian names sounded in Kalosian. Tapus’ mercy… he was so glad he had a ‘nickname’ that was bearable in all languages worldwide. “And… that’s the reason I’m here. I’m escording the Professor’s asssitant around Kalos so he can collect some data on the vines and their effect on the ecosystem,” he explained, gesturing at Gō, who nodded in silent greeting

Sycamore glanced at Gō and then back at Ash, slightly amused. “Let me guess. Poor chap doesn’t speak Kalosian, so you’ve been reduced to his guide and translator.”

Ash shrugged. “Kind of. But… this is Kalos. After the things that happened here of course I’d come back to check.”

The Professor looked touched, but also amused. “Even though you have your hands full with your own Region, Champion?”

Ash blushed a bit, grimacing. “The Kahunas and Prof Kukui can handle the place for a bit, while… I’m here. When the time’s right I’ll take flight again and then Garchomp can take me home.”

Sycamore’s eyes glimmered. “So… you’ve a Garchomp of your own now?”

Ash grinned. “Yeah. I got Gibble in Sinnoh years before. Now he’s all tough and grown up. Been my Ride Pokémon in Alola since he evolved and we’ve been training together too, so he’s a nice addition to my team. I… still miss Greninja, but the others with me do a wonderful job in helping keep my reputation as Alolan Champ.”

Sycamore nodded, eyes softening at the mention of the Water starter, who was so special for him, but thrice as special for Ash. “Greninja’s fine.”

Ash’s eyes widened, his breath escaping him in a soft huff at the unexpected words. “He’s… been here?!”

“Briefly. I… actually wanted to call you today, because I think he’s… around here somewhere. Getting rid of the last of those vines. If there are any… or maybe it’s just him being dutiful in making sure the Region’s truly clear. I’m guessing the reason he visited me was because he knew you weren’t here anymore and wanted a way back.”

Ash hummed. “Okay. Thanks, Professor. Then… we’ll look around Anistair in the forest. See if I can find Greninja or… even spot Squish— oh, my bad. I mean, Zygarde. Please, give my greetings to Clemont and Bonnie, but… I regrettably don’t have the time to visit. If I can, I want to find him. Then… I have a meeting with a friend back at Kanto before I have to fly back to Alola…”

Sycamore waved him off. “I’m sure they’ll understand. Just call them at least, until you’re in the same timezone. Good luck, Ash.”

“Thank you. And I will.”

He turned from the Professor, scratching Garchomp and whispering some niceties to the Pokémon in Kalosian, still. Then he looked at Gō, this time making sure to talk in a language his poor companion could understand.

“Let’s go. I… think, I know where to look.”

The Research Assistant gave him a curious look, though it was still obvious he was weirded out by Ash having such an easy time communicating. Ash didn’t give much time for Gō to react. He waved to the Professor and Garchomp, wishing them health and good fortune and then bolted out the door, forcing his companion to do the same.

The forest felt familiar.

That was Ash’s first thought, as they left Lumiose behind at blinding speeds for the endless wilderness of mountain Kalos. 

‘If… Greninja’s visited the Prof… he can’t be far. He’s probably at Anistair… or somewhere around it.’

“True enough…” Pikachu agreed with him, staying on lookout from the top of his Trainer’s head. “How… do you plan on… finding him? While we have an idea where he might be… the area’s vast enough anyway. I know we came here to escort the kid, while he gathers info on the vines… but… if Greninja wants a way back…” he trailed off and Ash frowned thoughtfully.

“Ash? Is everything okay?”

The Champion hummed and then nodded. “Yeah, it is.”

“You just… seemed deep in thought and…”

“I left a friend behind in Kalos, when I headed home to Kanto,” he explained briefly. “The Prof just said he dropped in at the lab a while back, wanting to know where I was.”

Gō’s eyes widened. “Oh! So you want to find him, after… we check out those vines?”

“Hai. I’d… like to try.”

Ash straightened to his full height, eyes glimmering sharply as they walked further into the thick of the forest. “Keep your eyes open,” he said to the younger one. “We’re heading into dangerous territory. This part of the forest is still infested with the vines.”

“Okay,” he agreed, clipping a Pokéball from his belt. “Cinderace, come on out!”

In a flash of blue, the … Ash blinked at the sight of the white-red rabbit Pokémon. 

“A… Galarian starter? I thought… you were a Kanto native?” he asked.

Gō blinked at him and grinned. “Oh yea! I am from Kanto… wait… how… do you know Cinderace is… the Galarian Fire Type starter?”

Ash shrugged nonchalantly. “I used to work with Prof Oak when I stayed more around home. Even helped my childhood friend, Shigeru with one or two Project Mew missions in between breaks of the Island Challenges. And then… My adoptive father, if I can call him that, is also the Regional prof, who hands out their starters. And his wife is also a Pokémon Prof. So between my travels and three Pokémon profs in close vicinity… I can list all Regions’ starters in my sleep, I think.”

“ Cool . Uh… if… I don’t intrude… it sounds… like you’re not… living in Kanto anymore?”

He shook his head. “I’ moved to Alola a while back. But I still come home to see Kā-san sometimes. Otherwise I’m staying with… my ‘Alolan family’ as Kā-san jokingly calls them. But… I know she’s content now that I’m content.”

“That’s nice. What’s Alola like? I’ve never been there…”

Gō bombarded him with questions a mile per hour, barely leaving Ash the chance to answer. Despite only being a few years younger, the researcher was like a five-year-old on sugar rush. (Altough, Ash wasn’t judging much. He was self aware enough to know he’d been like this too, before Greninja had come along.)

A drop in the calm pond.

Ripples in the water.

Ash froze, eyes narrowing. Sakuragi’s assistant  bumped into his back with a soft huff. “Hey why’d you stop?”

Blue ripples spreading and turning the colour of fresh blood.

Ash acted on sheer instinct, the moment he senses the vines underground. After he finally embraced his Aura powers, life… had become easier. Altough he’d been warned that it was an ability he’d have to hone constantly, since his Aura reserves were ridiculously vast for a human.

(Un)Luckily for one Alolan Champion, a certain Island Guardian had been more than willing to help him out, after he was Crowned and decided to stay with his Alolan family. Both because he liked them and because he swore himself never again to run from responsibility and took up the mantle he’d fought for.

He reached for a Ball on his belt and tossed it. The Pokémon appeared in a flash.

“Lycanroc! Use Rock Throw!” he commanded in Alolan. (That was one more thing, why he took to learning at least some of the foreign languages of places he’d been to. The Pokémon native to certain Regions, at least the ones raised in that environment, reacted better to their ‘native’ language.)

The canine Pokémon howled, the rocks forming and then with a flick of his tail, sent towards the ground, just as nasty, black vines broke the dirt path.

Gō’s eyes were wide, as he saw the orange-furred canine hurl large rocks at the creepy-looking black… roots. Vines? Whatever.

‘And… he spoke another language, again.’ he noted. Was that… Alolan? Did this guy command his Pokémon in the… language of the Region they were from?

How cool was that?

The rocks crashed into the earth, crushing and cutting the vines beneath, making them shrivel away, the moment they were separated from the rest. Lycanroc landed on all fours, bright green eyes — exactly the same as the Green Flash, back when he’d evolved so those, who’d been present for the occasion will never forget the magnificent sight, — landed on him.

The Pokémon looked at him. “Lycan, Lycanroc,” he barked.

Ash chuckled and scratched his faithful friend. “Thanks for the help. Say… can you sense these… at least… in some way?” he asked.

Lycanroc tilted his head to the side and then turned away, sniffing around, and probing the earth with his claws, to see if his seismic sense worked.

“Who’s… that Pokémon?” Gō asked, and Ash’s eyes snapped to his human company.

“Lycanroc. An Alola native. More specifically, it’s Dusk form, a Rock/Fairy Type.”

“Oh, looks cool. But… what do you mean ‘Dusk form’?”

Ash’s lips curled upwards a bit. “Lycanroc evolve into different forms depending on the time of day. In daylight, they become a Rock/Normal Type Midday Lycanroc. At night, they become Rock/Dark Type Midnight Lycanroc… and mine’s the rarest form, Dusk. He evolved at sunset and became a Rock/Fairy Type. They’ve got incredibly good smell and as part-Rock Type, they have a seismic sense too.”

Gō’s eyes glimmered with wonder and excitement. “Neat.”

“Lycan!” the Wolf Pokémon called.

The two turned to look at the wolf, who nodded towards the forest. Ash smiled, his Aura brushing the Wolf Pokémon in gratitude and concern. “Good job. Please lead the way, but be careful. These vines can appear at random. I don’t want you harmed. The less… he knows about me, the better I will feel, and that means we have to be careful.” Lycanroc barked in understanding again and jogged a bit ahead of them, while Pikachu and Ash also kept their senses trailed on their surroundings, just in case.

“It’s… cool you can speak so many languages and even command your Pokémon that way.”

Ash hummed. “Not all of them. I have Pokémon from Hoenn too, back at home… and I can’t speak a single word in Hoenese. So…” he shrugged. “I just… let them learn my battle tactics and slowly, some Kantonian, so we could battle together.”

Five minutes into their walk, Lycanroc’s stance changed and Ash felt the brush in his Aura too.

“Lycanroc, Pikachu!” he called again, startling Gō. The vines broke the surface again and this time Gō was less surprised, so he sent his Cinderace into the fray as well.

But the vines were far too numerous. Ash grimaced as Pikachu’s Iron Tail sliced a vine that almost wrapped around him. Gō was skilfully directing Cinderace to cover Lycanroc, whenever the wolf had to jump and thus made himself vulnerable.

“What… how many of these are here?” Gō demanded in disbelief. “Cinderace, use Pyro Ball!”

“Cinder!” the rabbit agreed and kicked a sizable fireball at the spot from where the roots emerged. Smart.

“Lycanroc, keep your distance and use Rock Throw whenever you can. Pikachu will cover for you with Iron Tail!” Ash instructed, as his most faithful Alolan partner leapt into the air with a howl. He didn’t even finish his sentence when Pikachu’s tail was already glowing metallic white, slicking through vine after vine.

Rocks crashed into the earth. The vines retreated on those spots only to emerge a few metres away a few moments later. Ash growled in frustration. 

There was a flash from the corner of their eyes.

The calm pond of Aura rippled and the familiar, cool feeling, washed over Ash like the tide rolling in on the Alola beach.

The dark blue form of a Greninja appeared, saving Pikachu when using… Ash raised an eyebrow at the pair of water knives covered in dark energy. He scrunched his nose, his mind running through Greninja’s move set, as his Pokémon coordinated their attacks wonderfully. 

Greninja fell into a simple rhythm with Pikachu, and Pikachu changed his rhythm so Lycanroc could follow. Ash reached out to them through Aura, giving wordless praise and encouragement at once.

Then his eyes met Greninja’s pink ones, as a water darkened kunai slid through another vine. His eyes widened. ‘Is that… Night Slash?!’

“It is,” Greninja answered in the familiar ‘liquid’ Kalosian. Ash’s breath hitched, as he felt their Bond click into place once more. But this time… the feeling was different. It was stronger, it brought with it… a sort of fulfillment it hadn’t quite done before. “Good to see you and Pikachu again.”

Ash swallowed thickly at hearing… what could only be Greninja’s voice in his head again. He… didn’t remember this happening the first time around. But then again… since Alola, he’s been using his Aura far more actively, than ever before.

Adrenaline and Aura thrummed beneath his skin as Greninja moved again. And there was the feeling of the Bond again, clearer than ever before. The words from before echoed in his mind, the countless times he spoke them. You ready, Greninja? Stronger… and stronger… HERE! WE! GO!

Greninja was enveloped in the torrent of water and a moment later the veil broke, sucked into the sphere on his back to form the massive shuriken. Ash moved with him, like always.

As Greninja stuck with a Night Slash again, Ash did the same. They breathed as one. They shared a vision.

A glance, a command… and the simplest of understandings. They were one again. They were one still, no matter how much time had passed since their last fight side by side.

‘Water Shuriken,’ Ash thought.

Greninja reached behind his back. Ash reached behind his own back, their chests rising and falling in tandem. Greninja grasped the shuriken and his Trainer grasped air. The shuriken was pulled forward and hurled at the vines with easy, practised precision. Ash’s movements were just as seamless and had he had an actual weapon in his grasp… Well, even the most trained residents of Ninja Village would have praised the stance and technique with which he threw the (imaginative) shuriken.

The attack stuck. 

Pikachu and Lycanroc immediately directed their own attacks right at the massive shuriken. The rocks hurled at it by the Alolan Pokémon seemed to push the water weapon deeper into the roots, slicing deeper. And what the Water Shuriken hadn’t sliced through was destroyed by Thunderbolt.

There was a massive explosion that made the ground crack beneath them. Ash looked down and  for a moment, his brown eyes glowed an eerie blue. He saw the red rivulets of energy, like poisoned blood… all dissolve and wherever they dissolved, they left cracks behind.

His eyes went wide. ‘Oh shit! This thing is gonna implode, run!’ he told his Pokémon, grabbing Gō, who cried out in shock.

“This will implode, run before we die!” he barked, as the ground shook and rumbled beneath them. He noticed Lycanroc grab Pikachu in his mouth, leaping  away. The Research Assistant just had enough time to recall Cinderace, before Ash had to jump, dragging the younger male with him.

They stumbled through the forest helplessly as fast as they could as several smaller explosions and tremors rocked the ground. Ash felt nausea wash over him, as the remnants of the vile… Aura came in timed bursts, almost like a radar.

“Run!” he urged Gō, half-dragging the stumbling researcher.

As the biggest wave reached them yet, Ash leapt, dragging his companion with him, unwilling to die, if he’d managed to survive over a decade… of crazier and crazier scenarios. He’s definitely complaining about this one to Arceus .

They fell as the forest floor gave out and  rolled down the rough ground with painful grunts and hisses. Ash could feel branches and rocks bruising and scratching his skin all over. When after a good two minutes, they finally stopped, the Champion barely resisted the urge to puke. His stomach and head were spinning, from the fall as much as from the massive explosion of energy, which was as much the vile one from the roots, as much it was the pure one from their Pokémon’s combined attacks.

After what seemed like five minutes… give or take? He wasn’t sure… the tremors subsided, leaving an eerie silence in the forest.

“Is… it over?” Gō asked, slowly pulling himself into a sitting position.

Ash groaned, shaking his head, as he grabbed his fallen hat. “I… think so.”

“Where… are your Pokémon?”

Ash frowned, looking around. None of the three were here. “ Fuck . They probably took the route they deemed safest, so we got separated.”

“So… we’ll have to… find them.”

Ash stood up, dusting himself off, feeling sore from the fall. However, from the corner of his eye, he spied a tiny cut healing fast enough for him to see with the naked eye. ‘Oh… so Aura’s at work again…’ he mused with a roll of his eyes.

He wondered… if his Aura was truly this strong or… if perhaps some sort of prolonged exposure to the Tapu had done something. Tapu Lele’s scales did heal, after all. And everyone around him in Alola kept saying no one saw the Tapu often… yet they seemed to appear almost regularly , since Ash arrived. Tapu Koko the most, though… the others weren’t so far behind, if he was on their respective islands.

“Yea,” he groaned, looking up. “First… we climb up there and then… go look for them.”

Blue-silver droplets falling into the near-black water.

 Drip. Drip. 

The silver-blue ripples like a radar… a sixth limb reaching for his scattered Pokémon. He saw the forest in tints of black and white, the blue of Aura like a bonfire in the night.

The answering ripples came less than a heartbeat later.

Ash opened his eyes — closing them was more to hide the eerie blue glow that overtook his natural brown, than for concentration. Lucario and Aaron, even though they were… technically dead, wre wonderful teachers. And... Tapu Koko too. But... he was not going to addmit that where the annoying electric chicken could hear. Not in a million years.

“This way,” he said, jogging towards the general direction where he’d sensed his three companions.

“H-hey, wait up!” Gō called, scrambling after him. “How do you even know they’re this way? They can be anywhere. This forest is huge!”

Ash stole the younger Trainer a glance over his shoulder. “Just a hunch.”

Gō groaned in frustration. Ash ignored him.

The first one they found was Greninja, but that was probably because the Ninja Pokémon was as Aura sensitive as Ash himself and the moment he could, he moved towards his long-seen Trainer’s direction. (He wondered… Was this another jab from some higher power? He had avoided Lucario — the entire species — like the plague after Rota. And then he got saddled with the only other Aura-sensitive Pokémon species in the world years later. Not to mention… Greninja’s special… DNA, that contributed to their Battle Bond.)

“There it is,” Gō grinned victoriously, clipping down… what Ash assumed was an empty Pokéball from his belt. “Go, Pokéball!” he cried, tossing the capture capsule.

Greninja’s pink eyes narrowed on the flying object, but he didn’t move. He allowed the red light to envelop him… only for a moment later, it to be broken. As it fell, Greninja gave it a precise kick and sent the device careening into a tree with enough force to break.

Blue eyes went wide in shock. “Wh-what the…?!”

“Looks like that’s a captured ‘mon,” Ash said lightly, barely containing his amusement. Who knew Greninja could be this dramatic? From his memories, the Water/Dark Type was one of the more… reserved kind.

Gō clicked his tongue, eyeing the Kalosian starter with curious interest. “Shame. Looks strong… and… I wonder where its Trainer is then…”

Ash bit the inside of his cheek, to stop himself from laughing out loud. He clipped Greninja’s empty Pokéball from his belt and knelt down, like he’d done so long ago at Sycamore’s lab. Smiling, he sent the Ball rolling towards Greninja.

Gō scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. “Hey… what are you…?” 

Greninja knelt down too, eyeing the Ball. Ash swallowed hard as he felt his emotions rising onto the surface. “Come home with me, please? Can… we be a team again, Greninja?” he asked, slipping into Kalosian for his special ‘mon as easily he slipped on his gloves every morning.

Greninja picked up the Pokéball and walked over to him with soundless, measured steps. Then he pressed the button and the red light enveloped him, sucking him inside. The Pokéball floated in the air for the briefest heartbeat and then it fell into Ash’s waiting hands softly.

The Champion smiled fondly at the ball, his Aura singing with joy and relief at the return of his most faithful Kalosian warrior. “Welcome home, Greninja.”

The researcher next to him shrieked with wide eyes. “That… Greninja was yours?!”

Ash frowned, pointedly rubbing his ear. “Hai. He’s my partner. Now… let’s go. The sooner we’re back at the lab, the sooner I can get on a plane again, to go back to Alola.”

Sakuragi shook his hand with a smile on his face. “Thank you for the help. Please give my greetings to… Professor Kukui as well.”

Ash grinned widely. “Sure will.”

They stood before the lab building, Gō and the Professor side by side, while Ash was ready to leave. The Champion clipped down one of his Pokéballs. “Garchomp, I chose you!”

In a flash of bright blue, his trusty Garchomp appeared, geared for flight, ever since he’d arrived in Alola. ‘Oh… it’s like Sinnoh’s been yesterday… when you were just a little Gibble.’

He stepped over to Garchomp, rubbing his snout. “Please, take me to the airport.

“Garr,” the Mach Pokémon agreed, angling himself so Ash could easily get into the saddle.

“Huh? What… Is that a saddle?” the Professor’s daughter asked, completely taken aback.

Ash chuckled. “Alola lives in harmony with their Pokémon. They use Pokémon even for transport on land, sea and sky. So that means less car and boat traffic on and between the island, which helps preserve their home as radiant as it is. They call them Ride Pokémon. When I decided I’d stay there… I had Gabite transferred to me and after he evolved… I asked him if he’d be okay with this… so he was taught to handle the ride gear,” he said, rubbing Garchomp’s neck affectionately.

“Fascinating,” the Professor noted, as his assistants nodded along.

“Now… I sure wanna visit Alola even more!” Gō said with a grin.

Koharu nodded as well. “Yeah. I think… someone said the… recently crowned Alolan Champion even has a member of the Eevee line on their team! I’d sure love to find out which one.”

Ash laughed and winked at the girl. “Hai. I do have an ‘Eeveelution’, though… she’s one of my less used Pokémon, as she prefers to stay away from battles if she can.”

There was a beat of silence.

“WHAT?! ARE YOU SAYING…?!” Gō cried out in disbelief, as Ash nudged Garchomp.

“Look up Kommo-o News, and look for… Satoshi ‘Ash’ Ketchum,” he smirked.

The Professor and his assistants, who’d long pieced things together, just chuckled at the two ‘children’s reactions, as Garchomp took to the sky, carrying his rider towards the airport.

Gō frantically looked through old news, blue eyes hungrily tearing through the headlines. Until he found it.

Gō’s mouth hung open, his heart rate ridiculously high.

Defeating a Legendary… going through Tournaments, saving the world and earning the respect and praise of every Champion out there in the world.

Mind-boggling.

And… he hadn’t realised.

“Shit… I could have asked for an autograph or something. No one’s going to believe me now, if I say I worked on a project for the Professor with a Champion… GRRAAAH! ”

Gō  groaned in utter disappointment and fell onto his bed, face first.

Ash smiled as he stood barefoot in the ocean, the wet sand soft under his toes, the water lapping at the shore warm in the setting sun.

Smiling, the Champion clipped a Ball from his belt and released the ‘mon. Greninja appeared in a flash of blue, landing in the ocean water with barely a sound.

“Greninja?”

Ash smiled and gestured around them. “I just wanted you to see this. See Alola’s silent beauty. My… our home.”

The Kalos starter’s sharp eyes wandered around, drinking in the exotic sight. “It’s… different, but no less beautiful,” Greninja agreed. “I… can see why you chose to stay.”

Ash cracked a grin. “Wait till you meet all the friends I have. Oh… and my… family too. I’m sure they’ll like you,” he smiled softly. “Plus, I’m a Champion now. A Champion of a Region that has seen no other before me,” he whispered. “It’s… mine . My home. My land. My crown… and now, all these people are my people. They made me feel like one of their own from the day I arrived. Now… I want to return the favour by being their Champion. The one they can turn to for help, for protection… or just a good, old heated battle.”

“I’m… sorry I wasn’t here,” Greninja said.

Ash shook his head. “It’s fine, old friend. You’re here now. Pikachu, Lycanroc and the others… all helped me win it. And I’m proud of them all… just as I’m proud of you for making that decision to stay in Kalos… even if it had hurt for us both.”

“But now, I’m here,” the Ninja Pokémon said. “And I’ll help you protect that crown. And this place, because even without knowing it fully, I know it’s precious to you.”

“It is,” Ash nodded, gazing at the setting sun, as ever so slowly, the slight chill — or at least, the Alolan version of that, — krept in. “Like how all of you are precious to me.”

Greninja nodded.

Their Auras mingled again, not exactly like when they went through with the Bond transformation… yet it was something similar. Something just as strong. It was enough for them to understand each other.

What was precious to one of them, was precious to the other too and they would protect what was precious, always. Together.