Chapter Text
Time zones exist and Alola has the misfortune, or, depending on your perspective, the fortune, of being one of the furthest behind regions in terms of time zones. By the time Ash goes to sleep it’s tomorrow for most other regions.
In addition, Ash sleeps a lot. 10 hours is his standard and 14 is certainly not unheard of. He prefers to actually do stuff during his day- adventuring, training, and just about anything else, and so if he didn’t like sleeping so much he’d probably frequently be lamenting over lost time spent in bed. The fact of the matter is, once he’s awake he’s unable to get back to sleep. However, that doesn’t stop him from, when his body is given the opportunity, passing out for half a day at a time. And he’s a fairly light sleeper when he’s travelling!
So when he wakes up at 10:47am in Alolan time, most of the rest of the world has been up and about for hours, for some parts of the world it’s already tomorrow and they’re back to bed!
So.
Ash gets up, yawns, and greets Pikachu and RotomPhone, who had happily spent the night charging at his bedside (he’s already beginning to find RotomPhone is less… obnoxious than RotomDex. Not that he ever really disliked RotomDex for it, but the different personality is still appreciated when it’s the early morning and he has a fully charged electric Pokémon-device hybrid in his ear.)
He goes downstairs, greets the rest of his Pokémon who uncurl themselves from slumber, then the Professors who’ve probably been up for a few more hours than him as he begins rummaging around the kitchen for his and his team’s breakfast, a far more groggy Pikachu on his shoulder.
Burnet looks up from whatever she’s typing on her laptop, sprawled over the sofa, and smiles at Ash, almost cautiously. “Good morning, Ash. Have you checked your socials yet?”
He hums as he grabs the cereal from the top of the cupboards and reaches down to drag out the giant bags of Poké food kept in lower storage “Oh yeah, I probably should.” The thought hadn’t even crossed his mind, especially since he’d never been in the habit of using them that often in the past.
Kukui, sat at the breakfast bar, with his own non-Rotom phone in hand, huffs a bemused sound “Yeah, you should” with his own awkward grin. It makes Ash feel like he’s missing out on a reference somewhere in the conversation.
Pikachu’s ear twitches at this, and he makes grabby hands at RotomPhone from Ash’s shoulder, who whirs and floats over to the other electric-type. Clumsy paws navigate the interface as Ash shovels aforementioned Pokémon food into their respective bowls, rummaging around for the sanitised scrap metal they keep for Melmetal.
“PIKA!” His Pokémon shrieks in elation which- considering he’s perched on his usual spot on Ash’s shoulder- is a piecing sound straight into his ear. Ash hardly flinches, though, as he notches his head to Pikachu in prompting curiosity, unable to fully turn to face him considering his positioning.
His partner hops onto the countertop and turns RotomPhone around with both hands to shove the screen into Ash’s face ’Your followers!!! Satoshi! We Don’t even know that many people!’
Ash squints, eyes and brain still booting up for the morning and not being helped by the digital screen being waved too close for his his liking in his face, but then he sees it. His Twitter account profile. 1 post. 1 Following. 2340 Followers. Ash is used to the big numbers that come along with crowds, but this feels distinctly different to being a number in a collection of people spectating a tournament. That is 2340 individual people following him.
Ash’s eyebrows go up “Wow! It’s been like…” he pauses. Pikachu reads his mind, then makes the calculation faster than Ash ‘Thirteen and a half’- “thirteen and a half hours!” Ash exclaims “Where did they all come from?” It’s not like he advertised this account, and it’s not like he’s really posted anything worth following for yet. These are all people interested in following him and his journey, which seems ridiculous.
“Well I followed you back from the Official Alolan League account” Kukui announces “And reposted your tweet. Then several other Leagues and Champions and the such saw this and retweeted or replied or followed, and of course other people saw this and followed suit, seeing this as enough evidence that your account was official” Kukui chuckles, waving his hand in an ‘etc’ motion “I guess you guys were worrying over nothing in respect to the verification.”
“Wow, I didn’t think I’d get so many” Ash admits absently, scrolling through his followers list and clicking ‘Follow back’ to all the official looking accounts with the verification tick. Oh wow, that’s all the Champions he knows and each of their respective Leagues. And he thinks quite a few of those other accounts are people he’s travelled with. So many Professors, too…
“Seems they were on it” Burnet comments, then grins a bit more easily “You’re about to get a lot more popular, Keiki.”
“Wow” he says, again, because wow. He’s been in the public eye before, he’s used to crowds. But this feels more raw. He can’t see or control who’s watching him, and there’s actual numbers to articulate exactly how many of them there are. It reminds him of the bigger events in his past, used to being the attention of hundreds of thousands of people. But that was in emergencies or battling. Is he really cut out for this? Being a role model and a celebrity people follow?
‘Hell yeah you’re cut out for this’ Pikachu butts in, a light tail slap to his wrist to knock him out of it ‘Don’t be stupid! If anything you’re overqualified! You’re connected, you’re a great Pokémon master, you’re filled with compassion for this world, the people and Pokémon in it, and this region! You just gotta show that off!’
Ash smiles at his partner’s over-eager kind words, and ruffles the fur at the top of his head, earning a happy trill “Yeah, you’re right buddy. Just gotta get used to it! New adventures always have a learning curve!”
Pikachu makes a sound of confirmation as he’s distracted by the pets his trainer is indulging him in, before Ash gets a nudge at his leg, looking down.
Lycanroc is looking up at him with far too much attitude for a canine, then looks at the Poké food. Ash laughs more carefreely. “Haha, right! Couldn’t forget you guys! Let’s get breakfast started.”
----
“I thought there’d be more” Sophocles frowns, arms crossed. Mallow rolls her eyes “He had one photo, one follower and no verification- I’m impressed he even got that far- let alone two-and-a-half-kay!
“Three, now” Lana says, gesturing to RotomPhone who helpfully displays the exact number of 3429 on Ash’s profile. Ash is amazed that his growth of followers has sped up more than anything. Mallow gestures at it flippantly “See! Tapu be patient.”
“And to think you were the one mocking Mallow for wanting me to be famous” Ash chips in, and the death glare Sophocles sends him is no where near Lana or Mallow’s game, so it slides off Ash easily and Pikachu glares back with puffed out cheeks and paws on hips.
“You already are famous” Lana adds pointedly “And the number’s just gonna skyrocket when you get verified and post and interact more.”
“How’s Instagram doing? We posted there too, right?” Kiawe asks, and RotomPhone spins (with extra unneeded flair) around to him and changes the display to said app “197 followers, Rtz! Professor Kukui did not interact with Satoshi on this app, so the following count is significantly lower but still very impressive given the above.”
Kiawe shrugs with a ‘fair enough’ look, then turns, grinning to Ash “So when do I get an official match huh, Champ?”
Ash grins back with a far wider smile “We can battle whenever you want Kiawe!” He explaims “You’re such a great opponent!”
The genuine compliment from the trainer disarms Kiawe enough for him to forget his original question went unanswered until Sophocles’ smart mouth pipes up “He meant Official, Ash. Publicity stunt vs Pikachu and Turdonator destroying a local dairy farm.”
Kiawe makes a face that’s the closest to a pout he will ever make “It’s okay if it’s my dairy farm.”
“No no no you’re getting it all wrong” Mallow waves her arms around “Ash has gotta battle a fellow Champion as his first match, you hear? He’s gotta have a strong inter-regional start: make all the big news stations. He’s gotta topple Cynthia.”
Lana actually laughs at that “He’s not beating Champion Cynthia” and Ash and Pikachu look at her thoroughly offended at the blatant lack of faith, even if he agrees it would be at best a very close match and a hard fought win.
“To be fair” Lillie adds in “Ash’s first battle doesn’t have to be an all-out six verses six. Although an official match doesn’t class as ‘friendly’, it can be a more amiable one against one with Pikachu for example.” She nods, as if thinking through and confirming the plan in her head as she speaks “Even if he doesn’t win, Pikachu is a very strong battler that Ash is most proficient- and recognisable- with. So as long as he makes a good battle with a strong respectable Champion that he appears to on good terms with, that will be a great announcement that Ash is a serious Champion that should be respected and recognised: but to not be seen as arrogant.”
As the rest of the table agrees, Ash thrums with excitment at the idea. Some of the most exciting battles he’s seen or partaken in have been with Regional Champions. To be able to battle them after he and Pikachu have grown so much…
“Well we need him to battle someone strong so it’s a great statement show, but it also has to be a battle he has a chance in” Sophocles drawls, and Ash quickly zones back into to conversation to be offended again “What! I can hold my own against Cynthia.”
“Sure you can” Lana pats his back with mock condolence, only serving to irritate Ash more, who crosses his arms dramatically and huffs, accidentally mirroring Pikachu’s attitude.
“Fine, who would you want it to be, then” Mallow raises an eyebrow as she leans across the table, and all eyes flick back to him inquisitively. Ash wasn’t prepared for the question and so doesn’t have an answer prepared, and freezes as he thinks. Sophocles rolls his eyes “Let’s be real, Ash’d be happy to battle any of them. If and when he loses he’d still be, like, on a high for a week.”
“Could you blame him?” Kiawe defends Ash before he can nitpick again at the lack of faith in Sophocles’ sneaking in that ‘when’ “Champions are one of, if not the, most respected and competent trainers in their region. Just watching them battle would fire anyone up, let alone having the honour to battle them yourself.” he retorts passionately, only serving to get Ash excited over the prospect of battling any of his particularly skilled old friends. Then he remembers.
“Oh yeah!” He places his hands on the table and attention snaps back to him before Kiawe’s monologue can continue “Someone I travelled with through Unova became the Champion earlier this year!”
“What? Champion Iris?” Sophocles yells, loudest amongst the varying reactions of Ash’s friends, and Mallow truly looks offended “You’re friends with a Champion and you didn’t tell us?”
Ash shrinks a little in his seat and grins “Well she wasn’t Champion when we travelled together” and refrains from adding that he has, in fact, travelled temporarily with Cynthia and is close enough with Lance to meet up periodically to catchup… and he calls Diantha sometimes, too... and has stopped a calamity with Steven Stone… Pikachu’s sideways look at Ash carries a lot unsaid.
“Old friends reuniting as Champions!” Lillie cheers, hands clasped together “How amazing!”
“What a battle it would be” Kiawe adds in intensely “To have travelled with each other would mean you know each other well, as well as each other’s typical battling strategies…”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, how emotional and sweet.” Sophocles waves a hand at Kiawe who seems to be getting lost in his own world at the prospect of such a battle “Go back to how you didn’t think to tell us.”
Ash shrugs a little awkwardly, getting marginally uncomfortable at the confrontation. “I dunno, you didn’t know her and it didn’t come up! She just sent me a letter, is all.”
“I wonder how much you keep secret from us” Lana alludes bluntly, eyes narrowed, and Pikachu shifts on his shoulder, apprehensive on whether to divert the conversation. Luckily that’s where it ends, because Arceus seems to once again grace him with mercy as RotomPhone pops up from where it had been lying dormant on the table, ringing.
That was all the grace Arceus seemed to be willing to spare, however, as his Ketchum luck kicks in and RotomPhone displays big and bright on its screen ‘Wataru (Lance) is calling…’
He might have gotten lucky and had it so that his friends probably wouldn’t have recognised Lance’s Johtan name, but they definitely know his more internationally recognised name which Ash had added to his contact name sometime in early Unova. Ash still snatches the RotomPhone up quickly, as if that’ll prevent them from seeing what they already saw. Honestly, c’mon. Lance is supposed to have good timing.
“Oh it’s, uh, a friend” is the only explanation he gives them before answering the call and pressing it to his ear as they stare at him in mildly shocked silence. It’s Lance, they know it’s Lance, just admit it’s Lance, you’re a Champion now too, it’s fine. Then why are they acting like that. Ash ignores their looks as he recalls a little bitterly why he stopped being so loose lipped on his previous adventures, mustering up all the casual-ness he can as he greets into the phone in Kantonian despite the habit of him speaking to Lance in Galarian (coward) “Hi, Wataru! How are you?”
“Oh! Satoshi!” Lance replies, like he’s genuinely beyond surprised Ash picked up the phone “Lovely to hear from you! Just thought I’d call to check in, considering the world has to be two days short of a global disaster for you to call first.”
Ash breezily ignores the half-exaggerated jab and looks quickly to his friends, trying to convey through a raised eyebrow that he’s not impressed with how caught off guard they are by this, and that it’s not that weird, Mallow please close your mouth “Lovely to hear from you too, Wataru” he drawls.
The Champion only scoffs at this, before changing the subject to what Ash presumes is the real reason Lance called him “Well I just thought I should call ahead to tell you I’m flying out to Alola tomorrow. It had been on my to-do list for a while now- and it would be nice to catch up on my favourite Kanto trainer!”
Ash retorts a quick “I’m telling Kasumi” to avoid having to come up with a more mature response, which Lance laughs at “Oh dear please don’t, she scares me a little. So are you free at any time tomorrow?”
Ash looks around the table again to his friends- who are thankfully back to normal having hushed conversations again- and doesn’t think he has anything scheduled for tomorrow “Yeah that’s all good with me! Just drop by Professor Kukui’s house whenever you want, I’ll be there all day.”
Sophocles’ and Mallow’s heads raise at Kukui’s name, recognising it through what to them is a jumble of foreign words, prompting Lana to pinch both of them in the sides at their relentless nosiness. “Alright then! I’ll see you tomorrow! Try not to get into any trouble before then.”
Ash knows it’s a light-hearted joke, but the truth of it still rings a little painfully true. Not even hours into being a Champion was there another nearly-catastrophic event. He again completely ignores the comment and replies “Yup! Seeya!” And promptly hangs up, RotomPhone floating back to the middle of the table with a pleased “Rtz!”, blissfully unaware of the damage it had dealt.
“So, Ash” Mallow smiles sarcastically, fingers interlocked and resting on the table “What was that about not being friends with Champions?”
Pikachu rolls his eyes as Ash crosses his arms, trying to play it off with childish indignation “I never said I wasn’t, just that Iris wasn’t Champion when we travelled together.”
“Oh you think you’re so sneaky don’t you” Sophocles huffs before the disapproving act wears off and he asks with not-well-hidden intrigue, trying to still act flippant “Well? What did he say?”
“I forget Alolan’s like your sixth language or something ridiculous” Lana mutters before Ash replies to Sophocles “Oh, he’s flying out to Alola tomorrow.”
“Ah!” Mallow squeals in excitement, demeanour completely shifted “The Champion Lance? Can we meet him?”
“Yeah of course” Ash laughs back, trying to downplay the celebrity-obsession with a more casual air, knowing it’s probably only making him look odder for being so unaffected by being close friends with (at least) two Champions. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen him.”
“How do you know him?” Lillie asks calmly, far more casual about it all, and Ash appreciates it. He never liked the weird way people talked about famous people, like it’s a great honour to meet them. They’re still normal people, it just happens that lots of other people know about them. He understands it more if they admire them for what they do- in the same way Ash admires strong trainers- unrelated to how well known they are. He’d be equally as excited to meet someone completely unknown as he would be to meet a Champion if they had the same achievements and skills. Ash is technically famous and they’re not gushing about seeing him for brunch.
Still he casts his mind back “Oh, I think I first met him in Johto! We all helped save a Pokémon from Team Rocket” Ash frowns for a moment and clarifies “Team Rocket the actual organisation, not Jessie, James, and Meowth. Although they were there. It was actually the Red Gyarados that’s on his team.”
“You helped save one of Lance’s Pokémon?” Kiawe asks, impressed, but Ash shakes his head and shoots that down “It wasn’t his Pokémon at the time, he caught it after, Team Rocket was trying to mind control it after they forced evolution.” He waves a hand, getting side tracked “I don’t know him that well, we just run into each other every now and then.” Even he knows that’s at least a half-lie. Lance is probably up there in terms of old friends Ash is best in-contact with.
“Well enough for him to call you” Sophocles comments, and Lana pinches him again “You’re friends with a Champion now too, y’know. Stop being so difficult.”
Ash sends a silent Thank you, Lana her way and goes quiet, hoping a more interesting conversation that doesn’t revolve around his past adventures comes up. It’s not that he hates talking about anything from his past- not when he’s learnt so much and made so many friends- but he doesn’t like how it seems to just be an opportunity for others to see him in a different light. He doesn’t like being othered, or seen as something unordinary. Special, that word he hates so much. He’s someone who’d much rather focus on the present, is all!
But maybe he’s more avoidant about some things than he needs to be, in fear it’ll lead to people asking uncomfortable questions. Where there’s the risk of them connecting dots or figuring out aspects about himself he’d rather other people didn’t know. His friends don’t need to know everything about him, and he doesn’t want to accidentally bring up bad memories. He’d much rather be as happy and jovial as possible. He wants them to see him as someone carefree, never as a burden that they need to cheer up or tread on eggshells around. The less they know about the less favourable events in his past, the less likely it is that will happen. Ash prefers to help than be the one who needs help.
Besides, that’s exactly why he has people like Lance to talk to. People who are already in the know, that he doesn’t have to re-explain everything to. Lance won’t think any differently of Ash when he shares something new that’s happened, it’s just one more event to add to the tally. Lance has long since come to understand the aforementioned reasoning behind Ash often being tight-lipped- especially in more recent years- and never needed to be told to not treat him differently. He doesn’t treat Ash like a kid, but he also doesn’t treat him like a legend. There’s a mutual respect and lack of hero-worship, even if Ash still finds himself looking up to Lance for his abilities in Pokémon Battling.
“Oh!” Sophocles says, turning to Kiawe “Y’know he’s got an exhibition match coming up against Leon?” to which the latter raises his brows in response “Really? Wasn’t the finals only a couple months ago?”
“Not even” Sophocles empathises, and whatever they’re talking about is lost on Ash. He just starts snacking on the food presented to him on the table, again, satisfying himself with a few minutes of mindless indulgence as he phases seamlessly out of the conversation, again, appreciating the attention not being on him for a short while.
----
Dinner has come and gone, people and Pokémon have been put to sleep, and Ash is occupying his bed in his pyjamas, Pikachu half asleep on his lap, curled up over the duvet as he enjoys his pre-sleep nap.
Ash takes out RotomPhone to put it in charge for the night, but pauses before doing so. He sits up as he finds himself wondering how much more his follower count has grown since the morning, and opens the app, navigating more cumbersomely than Rotom or even Sophocles would, but not asking for any help so as not to disturb Pikachu. Fortunately, Rotom doesn’t offer help when he doesn’t request it, so it remains quiet, too.
There’s a bell icon with a frankly horrifyingly large number next to it, and he clicks it, opening a scroll down display of notifications talking about followers and likes and replies and dozens, hundreds, thousands of people interacting with him. Ash sighs, trying to decipher it all. Followers, he opened the app to check his followers, and so he clicks on his profile picture in the top corner- set to be himself and Pikachu from the original photo he posted yesterday- to be brought to his account’s profile.
Melemele, Alola. Joined June XX
25 Following 12.2K Followers
Damn. Over 12 thousand already? Ash isn’t exactly sure how quickly these are supposed to grow, but his other account- which his friends bad been sure to make private already- has less than 100, and he’s had that for nearly a year now. He hadn’t exactly been trying to grow that account’s following, but he hadn’t really with this one either. And yet… 12 thousand in a day? He’s spectated Pokémon Contests with fewer than half of that number of seats. Even for Pokémon battles, any tournament that isn’t an official League will often have less than that many seats available in their stadium, and they’re not always all filled. The biggest stadium he’s been to holds, what, 50,000 people? That’s insane.
And those are people buying tickets to watch something for entertainment. Pokémon performances, contests, battles, they’ve all been watching a competition with several contenders. Ash had posted one photo and a couple sentences, without a real promise for much more, and a dozen thousand people have followed him in little more than 24 hours. Is this what it’s like, being a Champion, being famous? It’s almost claustrophobic, the prospect of so many eyes on him. Not for the purpose of watching how he fairs in a Pokémon battle, but for him. If he slips up it only takes one person to notice, doesn’t it? The idea of being connected online only becomes that much more daunting.
12 thousand people want to follow his journey as a Champion, whatever their reasoning, and although Ash is still excited- he wants people to cheer him on, to discover their own love for Alola and Pokémon battles, and for he and his Pokémon to get recognition for all the hard work they’ve done- it feels way more out of his control this way. A crowd of spectators is one thing, but Ash can way more readily interact with these people who are across the globe. Anonymous viewers become accounts he can click on to get an insight into their lives, to find out their names and interests. The prospect of learning and making friends is greater, but it is equally so for meeting people with worse intensions. He fears slightly for the potential consequences of being so public.
Ash ignores that all for now and goes to one of the two tweets he posted- the first one with the image- and looks at the little icons that line the bottom of the tweet. 236 Replies. A far more digestible number. Still, that’s 236 people talking to him through the internet, 236 people that saw his tweet and took the time out of their day to say something in return.
He clicks to view the replies and begins scrolling through them.
Misty ✔️
@Kasumi_CeruleanGym
Replying to @ChampSatoshi_Ket
Congrats Satoshi! It was about time you won one
20/06/XX 23:21 Twitter for RotomPhone
ChiakiTenu
@Chiaki0234
Replying to @ChampSatoshi_Ket
AH! I just realised Ash is Satoshi Ketchum! I met him and Pikachu a few years back in Sinnoh! Lovely boy, he’ll make a great Champion! I hadn’t heard of the Alola Region until recently, maybe I’ll give it a visit ☺️
21/06/XX 04:12 Twitter for LumPhone
Cena
@VDnanay
Replying to @ChampSatoshi_Ket
This is the real Ash? Cool! Didn’t know he had a Twitter. Where’s Naganadel?
21/06/XX 06:56 Twitter for CheriPhone
Poliyster
@CloyumukuReplying to @Vdnanay
Ash returned Naganadel to Ultra Space after the Exhibition Match, where it came from and belongs. Naganadel is no longer on Ash’s team and we likely won’t see it again.
21/06/XX 06:20 Twitter for KoPhone
Smat
@Tellimwhatchu
Replying to @ChampSatoshi_Ket
It’s good to have some new young names come back to Championship! Ash and Iris as the faces of the Western-most Leagues- what exciting times!
21/06/XX 08:22 Twitter for CheriPhone
~~GiGiRE~~
@underdaCReplying to @Tellimwhatchu
You recon people will start distinguishing Unova and Alola as a pair from Kalos and Galar? Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh had always been grouped together as the Eastern powerhouses, but now that the League is spreading more west we might not have to lump so many culturally different regions together.
21/06/XX 08:40 Twitter for CheriPhone
GORGIEST
@grogeon0nBesides Ash and Iris, Leon and Diantha are the second most recently established Champions, versus the three longest reigning Champions in the East. You make a point about different cultures, but I think the four western regions should stay more closely related in the meantime. The Eastern Regions are very tightly knit together, even disregarding Lance’s situation, often out-casting the younger western regions. Leon and Diantha would make great mentors for the newer Champions and their regions.
21/06/XX 08:55 Twitter for LumPhone
Hi Skitty
@highkites1231Replying to @grogeon0n
Neither of you are actually saying anything of substance. The League Regions aren’t enemies with each other- you’re talking like they’re making alliances at war not like it’s just Pokémon battle tournament winners.
21/06/XX 09:02 Twitter for LumPhone
JEMMA
@DIAMONDSZ52Replying to @highkites123
Say you don’t understand the significance of Champions without saying you don’t understand the significance of Champions. They’re very influential people that are often seen as representatives of their region.
21/06/XX 09:12 Twitter for CheriPhone
~~GiGiRE~~
@underdaCReplying to @DIAMONDSZ52
No I agree with @highkites1231. Champions have lots of influence but it is, at the end of the day, about Pokémon battles. It’s not like they’re entangled with Interpol and sending spies to eachother’s regions. They’re all friendly with eachother? They’re essentially co-workers. I was only talking about how we refer to them as collectives. What’s it with people on Twitter taking one thing someone says and throwing it way out of context
21/06/XX 09:30 Twitter for CheriPhone
Ash rubs his eyes, frowning as he regards the phone screen in front of him. This all sounds an awful lot like politics, of which he’d never been interested in in the slightest. He does what he thinks is right, tries to stop criminals, and tries to stay in Officer Jenny’s good books. The nuance of it all is frequently lost on him. He knows there are laws, and that even when doing something with the right intensions you may end up doing something technically against the law- of which Ash has been a victim of doing many times, albeit usually on a smaller scale that gets cleared up easily- but anything more complicated than that goes through one ear and out the other. People online talking about Leagues and Champions like they’re politicians? Nope, goes over Ash’s head.
He'd never really stopped to consider exactly what being a Champion entails. He thought they kinda just became famous and went around battling other strong trainers. He knows they do, he’s been around other Champions plenty. But is there more to it all? Or are people online just over exaggerating- making stuff more complicated than it has to be. Ash often oversimplifies stuff, he knows this, and has butted heads plenty with people who prefer to look deeper into the nuances of stuff, even when it comes to Pokémon battles. And Ash knows Pokémon battles!
He shakes his head, disregards what he read, and opens another tab on the app. He puts all these thoughts away for him to think about later, knowing there’s a good chance he’ll just forget about it all anyways. If there’s something important he needs to do, Kukui or someone else will tell him. Otherwise, he won’t think about it.
TaylorTalks ✔️
@TaylorTalksTV
Hey Guys! I finally uploaded the full video of a rundown of the full Native Alolan Pokédex! It took a while because I’ve made sure to go really in depth into Alolan Form Pokémon, the distinctions between islands, battle prowess etc. I had to study a bit on Alolan culture too, and on the recent emergence of Ultra Beasts! Alola’s legendary Pokémon are very well documented tho, so there was plenty to talk on for that! Here’s the link!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
21/06/XX 12:02 Twitter for RotomPhone
TaylorTalks ✔️
@TaylorTalksTVReplying to @TaylorTalksTV
This probably would have been more useful to be uploaded before the League, but I had only started editing it at the start of the Conference. And! As far as I know, this is the most in-depth overview video there is out there right now for non-natives!
21/06/XX 12:07 Twitter for RotomPhone
BabyBin
@BlastoiseBlastBoys
All Seven Champions and the Pokémon Teams they won their Leagues with for the first time, a thread!...
21/06/XX 15:45 Twitter for RotomPhone
Unlo
@aztobc
I feel like we should be talking more about the Restored Fossil Pokémon that are coming out of the Galar region…
21/06/XX 19:45 Twitter for CheriPhone
Digi
@DigitalPokck
Tell me why it’s been over a year and the government STILL hasn’t given my family the promised displacement payment! Lumiose City is basically fully repaired by now!
21/06/XX 20:32 Twitter for LumPhone
Elodie
@Elodiancy
After Ash Ketchum became Alola’s Champion and realising most people don’t know who he is I feel like we should really start raising more awareness for the Kalos Crisis and the afte-
Ash closes his phone.
----
“Good morning, Professor” Ash calls as he bounds down the loft ladder, Pikachu leaping from the top to land on Ash’s shoulder at the bottom, the Champion hardly outwardly registering the impact of his partner “Where’s Professor Burnet?”
“Burnet headed into Aether Paradise today” Kukui says. Ash hums curiously as he walks around Kukui, who’s in the kitchen, to grab himself a glass of water “I thought she was gonna be working remotely?”
Kukui shakes his head as he begins unstacking the dishwasher “She’s hybrid working right now, she goes in twice a week and stays there overnight to avoid so much travelling. At the end of her sixth month she’ll work completely remotely with flexible hours” Kukui smiles to himself “She was offered to take a complete pregnancy leave but that woman’s a workaholic, she’d go crazy with nothing to do” Ash sympathises, he feels like he’d be the same if he was a researcher- he knows he’s not much different when it comes to battling.
“Alright, well, we’re all gonna go on a run” Ash says, turning to his Pokémon, who are waking up from where they were sprawled across the living room “Just because we’re Champions doesn’t mean that’s an excuse to slack!” His Pokémon sans Rowlet reply enthusiastically to the proposed plan, and Ash starts navigating the kitchen space around Kukui as he prepares breakfast.
“You training today?” Kukui asks. Ash reaches down to retrieve the Pokémon food after pouring himself a bowl of cereal “Yup! It feels like it’s been forever!”
Kukui laughs at this “Our match wasn’t even a week ago, kid. You don’t slow down, do you?”
Ash hums a sing-song no, holding Lycanroc back by the horn with his foot as he tries to fill his bowl on the floor with food uninterrupted “Seven years and still going strong!”
Kukui replies with his own hum instead of replying, and goes quiet as he continues pottering about the kitchen. Ash gets to eating with his Pokémon, planning out his day. Lance is supposed to visit him at some point, so he’s gotta stay at Kukui’s all day- he doesn’t actually know when Lance is coming. But that’s no problem! He’ll just train with his team! He wasn’t making excuses when he said they’re not going to slack to Kukui. Champions are the supposed strongest trainer in their region, so he’s gotta make sure they keep living up to that title. Plus, there’s nothing better than a day with nothing to do and getting to train with your buddies. He’ll start by setting up some battles between them, then figure out what more specifically they should train for from there.
Kukui goes around picking up the empty bowls once they’re done and stacking them in the recently cleared dishwasher. “I’ll be in the home lab for most of today, okay Ash?” Kukui calls, and Ash shouts back an “Okay!” to show he heard, herding his Pokémon out of the house and encouraging them to jog up and down the southern Melemele beach with him, trying to rile them up for some energy. Lycanroc and Pikachu sprint off first, the former egging on the latter by throwing back some taunts at him.
----
It’s several hours later, and Ash and his Pokémon are still out on the Alolan beach, at it with their training. Pikachu is resting to the side with Incineroar, whilst Ash has tasked Rowlet and Lycanroc to barrage Melmetal with attacks in the attempt to teach it a defensive move. It had insisted to Ash that it believes it can learn Protect, verbalising its want to do so, and although throughout the morning Melmetal has gotten better at tanking hits, Ash still doesn’t think its quite there yet in terms of actually using the move. That of course, doesn’t mean they’ve let up just yet, and he’s been doubling the training objectives by having the others practice exhausting their attacks on Melmetal, training to be able to use the same move over and over for an extended period of time.
Still, Melmetal is clearly getting progressively exhausted and frustrated, so Ash makes the executive decision and finally calls out “Melmetal! I think it’s time we have a break”. The Pokémon turns to him, whining contradictorily both in complaint of the attacks it was taking making it sore, and of them giving up. “We’re not giving up!” Ash reassures, going over to it to pat the Pokémon “Like I said! Just a break, we’ll go back at it once you’ve had a rest so you can use what you’ve learnt at full strength.”
Rowlet flies over and perches on Melmetal’s head, cooing his own reassurances. Melmetal grumbles a low heavy scratchy sound, but at a few more words from Rowlet, it stands proud again with resolution and nods to Ash. “Great! That’s the attitude! Have a proper rest, then. Melmetal, return!”
Ash holds Melmetal’s Pokéball forward, of which it returns to, and Rowlet is forced back into flight as what he was once perched on is made incorporeal. The bird grumbles, showing his fatigue now that his friend’s spirits have been re-lifted, and flutters back to Ash, sneaking his way into his rucksack to commence his own rest. Ash smiles, calling back Lycanroc and Incineroar too, and turns to Pikachu “You tired, buddy?”
“Pika” He replies, bounding over to Ash and climbing back to his rightful perch on his partner’s shoulder. ’I’m tired but I still wish I could keep going’
“I get it” Ash reassures, jostling the shoulder Pikachu’s on “I know we gotta take a break every now and then, but man do I wanna just keep going until we get it.”
’Easy to say when you’re just standing around directing us’ Pikachu jokes, but Ash knows he doesn’t mean it. It’s often been Pikachu himself that reassures Ash what he’s doing during training is just as important as what his Pokémon do. That his input is invaluable. Ash has certainly gotten into his own head too often about the idea of him pushing his Pokémon too far, and it’s often Pikachu recounting the times Ash has pushed himself too far instead for the sake of his Pokémon, and that it doesn’t make him a bad trainer. It comes from a good place, of wanting to see his Pokémon succeed and fulfil their own dreams- not just his own.
“Hey! Ash!”
Ash spins around at the sudden call breaking his train of thought, to see Kukui stood on the house’s porch with a bemused expression “It’s round about lunch time right now! Come back in!”
“Oh! Right!” Ash yells back, realising he’d completely lost track of time. Well, he’d said it was time for a break, anyways. He’s about to start heading back to the house when Pikachu suddenly tears his attention back away from Kukui, announcing he sees something, gesturing wildly upwards with his tail.
His gaze follows Pikachu’s up high into the sky, trying to pierce what got the Pokémon to suddenly react so vocally. There’s a figure up there, that Ash can just about make out, a larger Pokémon heading their way. The blur gains a more parsable silhouette as it approaches, allowing Ash to realise there is in fact a second figure riding the back of the Pokémon, likely a trainer.
For a moment Ash thinks the figure is Kiawe, so used to seeing him and Charizard navigating the Alolan skies, but then Ash remembers who’s supposed to be paying him a visit, and as the blurred shape approaches and becomes more cohesive, Ash realises it is, in fact, definitely not Kiawe, and that Pokémon is definitely not a Charizard.
The person swoops down in a big circle to land in the Alolan sand outside of Kukui’s house, Ash watching in awe at the casual display of strength of the flying Pokémon, and of the presence the Champion of Kanto and Johto demands as he lands.
His Kantonian carries the hint of a Johtan accent “Champion Satoshi!” There’s delighted grandeur in his voice as he hops off of his Dragonite, arms spread wide and face alight “It’s about time I was able to address you as such.” The impressiveness and seriousness of the approach is soon overruled by the joy in the Champion’s voice to see him, and in Ash and Pikachu’s likewise familiar excitement.
Ash chuckles sheepishly as Pikachu waves energetically on his shoulder with his little stubby arms “Hey, long time no see, Wataru!” He replies, long since having learnt (been forced) to drop any honorifics when referring to the Champion, the hypocrite.
Lance still dons his usual cloak, always one for dramatics despite frequently denying it, but now he otherwise only wears a tight burgundy shirt and dark knee-length shorts, having apparently prepared somewhat for the Alolan weather. Pikachu hops off of Ash’s shoulder and runs up to just in front of Dragonite to begin talking her ear off to catch up. Dragonite smiles and engages with the smaller Pokémon amicably.
“First I must take the opportunity to congratulate you in person!” Lance lands a rather firm hand on Ash’s shoulder, and seems to be getting more enjoyment out of Ash’s new status than himself “It’s always exciting watching you battle, you can imagine my elation when you won!”
Ash smiles up at the other Champion, taking the compliment, before adding “Woah! You watched?”
Lance laughs a little “Of course I watched! I’m not a Champion for lack of passion for battle, after all, and I know any League you’re in is bound to be interesting” his expression changes for a second as he regards Ash, a flash of something else in his eyes, something knowing, and Ash tries not to show how caught off guard he is by it. Ever since Brock left he’s gotten less used to interacting with people that know everything about his past and all the implications that come with them.
Lance is one of the few people he chooses to confide in, and as a Champion he has connections that allow him to have an awareness of things that are more hidden from public knowledge. He knows and Ash knows he knows, but he still forgot what it’s like to interact with those that understand or reference deeper implications to something that would seem trivial to anyone else.
But it’s only a moment and then that look is gone, replaced by what is, frankly, the widest grin Ash has seen on his face “Plus it was the debut of the Alola Region’s League, any self-respecting Champion’s gotta keep an eye on the competition, eh?” Lance gives Ash a wink before his eyes flick to over Ash’s shoulders and his eyebrows raise in recognition “Professor Kukui, is it?” he asks, now in Galarian.
Ash turns around, remembering the Professor is also there, and as he looks at Kukui’s face it appears he also just recalled he’s there, too “Ah, yes. Please- Kukui is fine.”
“And just Lance is just fine too” the Champion smiles, before bumping shoulders with Ash “You won’t believe how long it took for me to drill that into this one’s head.”
Kukui rolls his eyes a little and huffs as a smile grows on his face “Oh you don’t have to tell me, I’m still working on that with him” and the Professor seems to ease up a little in the presence of the Champion after the casual introductions “Would you two like to come in?” He asks, looking back to Dragonite as well. Lance smiles, a little surprised.
Ash remembers back in his early days travelling around Kanto and Johto. The attitudes to Pokémon were much different there, although he’s sure it’s gotten better since then. How often he was quizzed on why Pikachu was out of his ball, why he hadn’t evolved him yet if he had a thunder stone. Pokémon, although still respected, were more often seen as tools or pets. Weapons for battle. Displays of strength or status. Of course, it was rarely that dramatic- taking it that literally was more in line with Team Rocket’s morals- but especially compared to Alola, that message was always under the surface, and anyone like him with significantly more emotional bonds with their Pokémon were questioned more.
Ash smiles as he’s reminded once more why he’s so proud to be representing Alola. Pokémon can be at most partners in other regions: here that’s often the very least they are. Family, friends, part of the community as individuals, not as property of their trainers. Even the respect towards wild Pokémon is better than he’s experienced anywhere else.
So Kukui, Ash, Lance, Pikachu and Dragonite are back in the beachside house, Pikachu returned to Ash’s shoulder as he sits on the living room sofa and invites Lance and Dragonite to do so too.
“I must also congratulate you, Kukui, on your establishment of a League in Alola” Lance calls to Kukui as he teeters about the kitchen making iced teas and gathering some biscuit snacks. Kukui grins back without looking up “Well I’d have to thank you as a Kanto’s current representative, then. In my youth I journeyed through Kanto and partook in the gym system, and watching Ash battle some of his Gym Leader friends on a school trip to Kanto were both accomplices in inspiring me to finally contact the League for funding and official endorsement.”
“Mm!” Ash turns to Lance “Kasumi and Takeshi both have key stones now! And Professor Kukui taught me mega evolution is permitted in Kanto Leagues now. Do you have a key stone too?”
Lance smiles and nods “If all’s according to plan, Johto should follow this coming winter. Although, Champion to Champion, that’s not official just yet, so no blabbing.”
Pikachu mimes zipping his mouth shut as Lance raises an arm, scrunching down his sleeve to reveal a bracket with a spherical iridescent stone secured within its design. “Pika-pi!” “Ah! That’s so cool!” Ash melts onto the sofa in dramatic detriment “Mannn, I wish I could use mega evolution.”
Lance gives him a peculiar side eye, glances to Kukui who appears to be none the wiser on the Champion’s accusatorially knowing look, then focuses back on Ash “Oh yes, Satoshi, amongst the many things I’ve come to discuss with you, I should perhaps start with asking who your sixth team member will be?”
“Hm?” Ash asks, looking up, and Lance’s expression calms to something more unreadable “Although Champions are not required to use the same team throughout their leadership- especially if one remains in such a position for an extended period of time- at some point you will be expected to perform 6 on 6 Pokémon battles. To my understanding, Satoshi, that ultra-beast Pokémon you had on your team for the league has been released?” Lance appears unreadable as he asks this, which has flipped the mood a whole 180.
Ash nods a confirmation and Lance keeps going “Do you have any other Pokémon you can use to fill your team?”
Lance knows for a fact Ash has a good few dozen Pokémon he could make his sixth Pokémon. None the less, Ash pauses for a moment, thinking, then says “I hadn’t thought about it to be honest. I want to represent Alola and its strengths as a newly emerging Leagued region. I guess that means I don’t want to use a Pokémon from my previous journeys, especially since I’d rather my team be made up of Pokémon native to Alola. Plus it would kind of skew the dynamics and man… how would I even choose” Ash throws himself back into the cushions.
“Pika” Pikachu whines indignantly, and Ash turns and grins, scratching the Pokémon lightly under the chin “You don’t count, buddy. Besides- Pikachu are native here, you get a free pass.”
There’s a lull in the conversation as Kukui finally sits amongst them and the two adults watch Ash silently dote on Pikachu before Lance speaks up once more “It’s always a pleasant surprise to see how much you’ve matured Satoshi, even if I know it’s come with some prices.”
Ash is honestly surprised at the call out as well as the sudden breaking of silence, and looks at Lance blankly, perfectly hiding any emotion. But he supposes such a face is telling enough as it is. Dragonite makes a low sympathetic rumbling noise. Lance glances Kukui’s way again briefly, who looks confused and cautious, but mildly understanding. At least Ash hadn’t left the poor professor completely out of the loop. Lance only hopes that means he’s gotten better since Kalos. “I’m not going to lie and say being a Champion- especially one in your particular position right now- isn’t an important job. However I know you, Satoshi, more than you like to pretend I do to others or even to yourself. Do not take on more pressure than you need and shoulder it silently by yourself.”
Lance risks another glance Kukui’s way and is honestly relieved to see more curious confusion on his face. He’s going to take it as a sign Ash has been more open and sharing of his troubles, and not as a sign that he’s gotten worse at sharing and in turn better at hiding the pressure slowly cracking at him- leaving Kukui completely out of the loop. Lance looks to Ash, whose face is still schooled, and speaks again before he knows the change in conversation that is coming comes “You have dozens of friends in every region: including the Champions and Gym Leaders of several. We are all indebted to you- but we are firstly your friends. We want to see you and this region do well.”
Lance wasn’t done talking, but Ash’s face splits into a wide grin and he’s already speaking before Lance can continue “Thanks, Wataru! Hey, Pikachu, since me and you are gonna be travelling more again maybe we can visit old friends?” “Pi-Kachu!”
Lance’ll have to take it. “Anyways, Satoshi, my second point is-“
“Oh yeah, Professor!” Ash is talking again, and damn it did Lance try pushing too much? Maybe he should have asked Kukui to leave. Or would have that made the kid feel more isolated? “Lance is always travelling to different regions, I met up with him in Hoenn, once!” The evasive choice of words doesn’t go over Lance’s head. You aided in taking down a world-ending criminal organisation’s plans. Again.
Kukui looks a little shocked to be dragged into the conversation, and his mouth opens a little foolishly, revealing the remains of a half scoffed biscuit before he closes it again “Ah-w- yes I imagine that was quite fun” and then he appears to wince at his own awkward answer. “I imagine it’s a lot easier to commute with such a powerful ride Pokémon” He settles on, instead.
Lance accepts the conversation has officially moved on, and finds sympathy on the Professor by engaging “Yes, Dragonite is a very competent flyer” the Pokémon chirps in happy confirmation at the compliment, her own biscuit grasped between two claws “However I did cross the Pacific Ocean in the comfort of a commercial aircraft” he says with mirth, and Kukui laughs a little less awkwardly “Ah you’re right. I’m so used to travelling between the different Alolan islands I suppose I forget how much further away everything else is.”
Lance smiles back at the Professor, before turning back to Ash, trying to seem as casual and jovial as possible to avoid another evasion via Professor “Satoshi! Now, may I ask for the honours of being your first Inter-Champion official battle?”
With the topic of Pokémon battle having come up, Ash is back to his usual happy self, nearly jumping out of the seat of excitement “Yeah, Lance, that’d be great! I haven’t battled you in so long” “Pika-Pika!”
Lance grins, unable to resist showing how enticed he is by the allure of a battle “I can’t wait, Satoshi. Watching you on television already betrays how strong you are, and that’s nothing compared to a heated battle in person.”
Kukui also jumps in at the opportunity to speak on a topic of conversation they’re all more confident with “I’d be delighted to arrange a formal battlefield and audience for you. I’m still a head of the Alolan League y’know.”
Lance smiles with genuine gratitude at Kukui “That would be appreciated- but I was wondering if we could perhaps perform the battle on an island besides the artificial stadium’s? Your and Ash’s aim to showcase Alola to the world is admirable and I wish to enable it, so I imagine it might be a good idea to exhibit a match elsewhere: no need for it to have to accommodate a full on 6v6 match.”
Kukui’s brow furrows and he hums lowly “I definitely agree with the sentiment, but I don’t know many places that could accommodate many people if you’re gonna want an audience: I’ll have a proper look into it.” Lance nods “I know given the tourism season it would be great for the economy as well. Perhaps you’d generate enough profit to start plans for a second smaller venue.”
Kukui crosses his arms and leans back in his armchair, hand running over his chin as he thinks. Pikachu moves to sit on Ash’s knee and attempts to lean across to the coffee table to grab a biscuit without falling off “A part of Alola’s culture is that Pokémon battles are often a part of nature. Taking on Totem Pokémon and Trials engages in both our traditions and in the local ecosystems. It allows both trainers and wild Pokémon to get stronger without damaging the place with too many man made structures and battle fields.” He trails off for a moment thinking, before sighing and reaching forward for his iced tea “But on the contrary, the whole point of me establishing the League here is for Alola to be taken seriously as a strong competitive battling Region.”
Ash, who’d remained mostly quiet amongst the other adults’ discussion- the more formal conversation a little lost on him- pipes up “Then we don’t have to fight on a formal battle field” Ash turns to Lance “My friends suggested my first battle between Champions should be a 1 on 1 and although you’re crazy strong, if we pick the right place we won’t do major damage.”
Lance frowns and nods “Yes, that’d be fun. Somewhere relatively open that could host us would, in nature, also have the room for an informal audience.” He then turns to Kukui “Are you able to facilitate protective force fields for at least the crowd?”
Kukui nods confidently at this “We have many competent Psychic Pokémon and trainers for an impromptu force field- but I’m sure we could arrange further protective measures for handling a larger audience wherever we choose that to be…”
A smile returns to Lances face once more, the prospect of an official battle being a viable option exciting him again “Excellent! We just need a site, yes?”
Ash turns to Kukui “What about Iki Town? Since it hosts the Kahuna’s Grand Trials it should be able to host our Pokémon battle right? People go to watch them all the time.”
Kukui winces “Kukuna Hala is very traditional about Alolan culture and is the most… insistent we maintain a balance between the League and the traditional trials of Alola.”
“He wants them separate” Lance translates bluntly and Kukui smiles awkwardly and lopsidedly “Yeah… I completely understand why, but I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t been just an extra hurdle in setting up the league. In truth he’s still giving us grief.”
Lance rubs his temple “Still, it’s an admirable cause, and it’s best not to try out our luck so early on in the League’s presence here: I suppose that calls off anywhere else that hosts your trials.”
“Which rules out basically everywhere that can accommodate a battle” Kukui huffs almost petulantly, and looks off to the side bemoaningly “You can see why I just built a new island from scratch” this gets a chuckle from Lance.
Again, Ash speaks up “What about the Pokémon school?”
Kukui’s eyebrows raise and Pikachu grins and nods eagerly, egging Ash on, who continues “I mean, the school kinda represents a large part of my identity in Alola, where I learnt a lot about this region and spent a lot of time with my friends, but also” he addresses Kukui “You have authority both as the head of the League and as a teacher there: and I know it can hold a good battle, Arceus knows how many times Turtonator has blown up there and how many Z-moves we’ve performed.”
Kukui looks at Ash for a moment, processing it, before his eyebrows raise further and a smile creeps across his face “Yeah, Keiki, I don’t know a better place to start with.” He turns to Lance to fill him in “It’s a very open space, and has- admittedly a little shoddy- safety measures set up we can reinforce. Plus you heard the boy on the sentimentality factor.” Lance laughs and adds on in agreement “The press’ll eat it up. That’s great! Helps your image too professor, reinforces your commitment to uphold Alola’s culture if the public is reminded you’re a teacher for Alola’s youth.”
Kukui’s smile turns a little strained, but he shakes past it “Then that’s settled. It’s the summer holidays so it won’t be that hard to get permissions, costs won’t be that high to facilitate an audience: we can have a standing crowd, no need to install seating for a short match.” He nods, grin again turning easy as he seems to reassure himself “Yup, I don’t see a problem!”
“Dra-nite!” Dragonite cheers, clapping her hands in glee. Lance smiles back at her before turning to Ash “That settles it! I’m in Alola for a week, so I’ll contact the League to organise a formal battle request and officially challenge you. Need time to get the people online hyped and advertise the tickets.” Lance grins daringly “You better accept the challenge, Ketchum.”
“Of course!” “Pika-Pi!” The partners grin ear to ear up at the other Champion “We can’t wait.”
Lance smiles and pats Pikachu’s head quickly as the two begin rambling to each other in hushed tones about battle tactics- really? Whilst he’s right there?- before looking up to Kukui and notching his head to the side, indicating wanting a word outside.
The Professor glances Ash’s way, decides the teen will be fine, and stands up “Right, Keiki, I’ll see Lance out and start organising some official League crap. I think it’s lunch time for you guys.”
Ash looks up at his boarder and smiles, completely absorbed in a cheerful mood at the prospect of the battle “Oh! Right! I almost forgot.” Lance begins walking out of the building with an unheard goodbye as Ash rushes to release his Pokémon with a flurry of hungry cries.
The two adults step out of the hut, where the chirping Wingull and waves crashing on the beach overtake the sounds of Ash clambering to give all of his team equal attention and affection.
The door shuts behind them and they’re silent for a moment, admiring the beauty of the Alolan beachfront. Waves sparkling with the reflection of the sun, golden sand and palm trees swaying in the distance lining a lush forest behind them.
Finally, without looking away from the scene, Lance breaks the silence “There’s a lot of ‘Official League crap’ that comes with being a Champion” Kukui looks to Lance, who’s own gaze doesn’t shift. Another long peaceful beat of silence before he speaks again “I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that that’s not exactly Ash’s forte.”
Kukui scoffs and turns back to the scene, sitting down on the edge of his house’s decking. Lance doesn’t join him but Dragonite plonks herself down, legs swinging slightly. “I want to help him. But I know he won’t let me. Or anyone, really. But you’re my best hope.”
Kukui huffs indignantly, dropping his chin into his hand, elbow propped on a knee, but doesn’t retort a denial. Lance folds his hands behind his back, running a nail over the pads of his fingers. “Ash has spent most of his adult life a target. I fear with the incoming public attention it could become so much worse.”
Kukui is barely in the peripheral of Lance’s vision but he sees the man freeze and peer at the Champion through the corner of his own eye. His arm drops as he raises his head “What do you mean a target.”
“You’re a smart man, Professor, and well-travelled” Lance says in leu of an answer “But Ash is more experienced than any stranger could guess. I presume more experienced than all of us Champions combined.” Finally Lance sits down, but he still does not look at Kukui. It feels like a betrayal, to talk about Ash like this when he knows he’s one of few people Ash trusts well enough to voluntarily share information to, but he feels he’s at a cross road.
Kukui has succeeded in capturing Ash as best he can be captured, and he hopes the kid chooses Kukui to be an open ear, too- this time an open ear that’s close enough to do something. To know when somethings wrong when it’s not too late and he’s not half way across the globe “He has made enemies with some dangerous people. Some of those dangerous people are dead. But for all of those that he managed to rid of, several more follow the old head’s lead and take their place. People get bad ideas all the time, but recently those bad ideas have become more and more influenced by Ash himself.”
Lance runs a hand up and down Dragonite’s arm, who sighs happily “I wish the worst Ash has to concern himself with is which Region he can travel to next, and who he gets to battle. But being a Champion involves politics and diplomacy and nuance Ash is not known for. And Ash being a Champion involves the Gods, all the mistakes they make, and the bad people who wish to exploit those mistakes.”
Kukui is stunned silent, and Lance just prays he doesn’t go straight to Ash and starts asking questions, because Arceus knows that ruins everything and the boy will clamp up. He looks at Kukui, a sharp dangerous expression in his eyes “You founded the League that made him Champion. You will protect him, Professor”
“I-o-of course” Kukui stammers out, frowns, then says more resolutely “I’d planned to, anyway.”
“Good” Lance nods “Like I said, there’s a lot of extra nuance and responsibility that comes with being a Champion. I hope as one of the Alolan League’s Heads and as his acting guardian you will guide him through this.” Lance reaches into a pocket in his shorts and pulls out a business card, handing it to Kukui “These are all ways to contact me personally. You will be in contact with me. I refuse to leave you in the dark. I want Ash to succeed and, in extension, Alola. I know you do too. I should be the first person you call. As I said to Ash earlier, I am indebted to him far more than he cares to admit.”
Kukui takes the business card and looks at it dumbly. It’s nothing fancy, just a phone number, email, and social media handles. He looks up at Lance, steely gaze “Of course. I appreciate your insight, Champion”
At this Lance allows him to smile slightly, sliding off the beach house deck as Dragonite follows suit. “Please, Kukui, Lance is just fine.”
And, of course with dramatic flair and swooshing of capes, he mounts Dragonite in perfect sync with the Pokémon making a powerful beat of her wings, soaring them both into the sky at impressive speeds.
Kukui looks at the business card again, scoffs, and stands up, heading back inside the house where Ash is in a heated argument with Melmetal again about eating the kitchenware.