Hello readers, I hope you enjoy this story. This is the first time I've written a Pokémon story that wasn't a crossover with Xiaolin Showdown. That being said, I am taking one character from the crossover series and making her a bit more modern than before. I will cover her backstory and make her fit within the Sun and Moon series, so you don't have to read the other ones. I hope you enjoy this.
It was nighttime in the Alola Region, and the full moon's light bathed Professor Kukui's house, in its gentle care. In the loft area, slept a fifteen year old kid known as Ash Ketchum. You would never guess by his size and childlike manner that he was fifteen, but then some people never seem to leave behind their childlike joy.
Sleeping in the loft with him, was his beloved partner Pikachu, along with Rotom Dex and Rowlet. They had all had a big day earlier. The three of them, along with Mallow, had been trying to follow their classmate Lillie, who had finally been able to bond with her Pokémon, Snowy the Alolan Vulpex, in her battle against Team Rocket. The three of them had celebrated for a bit before he came back to the house.
Elsewhere in the house, Professor Kukui was asleep with Rockruff sleeping at the foot of his bed, contently dreaming about fighting battles and winning. Even the Luvdiscs in the tank had enter a state of sleep, as their automatic features kept them alive as they swam through the water.
Only one person wasn't asleep and they were in the downstairs lab sitting at the computer, working on a report to send back home to the Secret Valley of the Protectors, located in Sinnoh, a few miles from Eterna City. The young lady paused for a few seconds, listening for any noise of any kind before turning back to the computer screen. She didn't want anyone to know what she was up to at this late hour.
The nineteen year old girl was named Trina Chrysalis. She was a member of the secret group known as the Protectors of the Bond. The Protectors ensured that the bond between humans and their heart bonded Pokémon was protected at all cost. They protected human and their Pokémon, environments under threat, and important historical artifacts. Only the best Protectors, were assigned missions to guard special individuals, who destines had a big impact on the entire world.
Ash was one such individual, who had the most important role of all, being the Heart of the Pokémon World. The Heart was a unique individual, whose life force was connected to energy of the world and all the Pokémon in it. The Heart bonded easily with Pokémon, and could heal the hearts of those who had been hurt. Mythical and Legendary Pokémon respected him as he was their chosen hero. He had several unique abilities and while he pretended he couldn't, he was able to understand and speak Pokémon, though he had trouble with certain dialects. It was up to Trina to protect and teach him how to harness these powers for the greater good.
As for the Protector herself, Trina was very beautiful with her long fuchsia hair that reached the small of her back and matched her eyes perfectly. She wore a fuchsia tank, with fuchsia and black capries held up with a yellow belt with a purple buckle, along with short white socks in yellow and black sneakers. Her accessories included a yellow headband and earrings, black sweatbands with fuchsia trim, and finally a purple pendent and watch.
The watch was actually a communicator/minicomputer. At the moment she had linked it with the professor's computer to send her report without it being traced back to her mini one. You could never be to careful when it came to this job. The Protectors had many enemies who would literally kill for the information in her report. Secrecy and caution, happened to be the tools they used to keep everyone safe.
Leaning back into the chair she started to softly type up the remainder of her report, not wanting to have anyone accidentally stumble on to this. It was imperative that no one except Ash and his Pokémon, not counting Rotom Dex, knew who she really was. If someone, such as Professor Kukui discovered that she was a Protector, then Ash would become an easy target for bad people who would exploit his gifts for their own nefarious use.
Cracking her fingers, she picked up where she had left off. "As stated previously we've only been in the Alola region for a few weeks, but already Ash's powers are growing and I fear they might overwhelm him. Since the battle in Luminous City against Lysander and Team Flare, he briefly expanded the power of his Bond Phenomenon with not only his Greninja, but the rest of the team, until we left the Kalos region.
I believe the power is dormant for now. I need to do further tests to confirm my theory this unique ability will only activate in Kalos or with Pokémon from that region. If that is true, then it means that this is another way for Ash to help this region should another disaster like this one occur again.
In place of the Bond Phenomenon, it appears that the Z-crystals here, see attachment at bottom, and the ability to use Z-moves has replaced that power and is much stronger than anything previously seen or cataloged during my mission before. Further studies should be conduct at the Valley's lab. I will send a sample once I find one.
The mythical Pokémon Guardian of Melemele Island; Tapu Koko, actually gave Ash a Z-Ring and an Electrium Z crystal. From the moment he received them I knew for certain I was in for a new challenge. I only spoke for a brief moment with the Guardian right before his battle with Ash.
I asked, "Tapu Koko, I'm not sure why you are interested in Ash, but I ask you not to go full force with him, he can't handle it right now."
Tapu Koko responded, "I wish to test the Heart's bond with his Pokémon and friends. Only then, will I know if he's ready for the next challenge. I will not over do it."
The battle was amazing as the Gigavolt Havoc was one of the strongest ever seen. I was the only who noticed the extra power came from Ash himself; unknowingly using his special abilities in the heat of battle. Since receiving the Normalium Z-Crystal from the Totem Pokémon, see second attachment at the bottom, his power has stabilized and he can channel the Z energy more efficiently.
Since arriving here Ash has joined the Pokémon School and has become a model student and is finally utilizing his full intelligence. Before we left Kanto, I learned from Mimey that he sensed a reset button inside Ash's brain activating itself when he learned about the Alolan vacation that Mimey won.
A thorough look in his head during a dream cycle, revealed that someone had psychically placed a mental block in his mind to prevent certain memories from being recalled. The psychic signatures matched Mewtwo. I believe that when Ash encountered Mewtwo in Johto and was allowed to keep his memories of that visit, because of who he is, the two sets of memories clashed with one another, making his mind reset its every time he visit a new region, resulting in most of his memories, skills, and knowledge about Pokemon, becoming unavailable for a time.
With Mimey's help, we managed to remove the block entirely allowing for all three items mentioned above to be fully retained, making the Heart even more powerful than before. I believe this was the catalyst which this newfound power is coming from because for the first time in years, his mind is completely his own once more.
Because of the increase of power and being around so many people all the time, I'm going to increase the time we spend working on our training regimen and prepare for any type of emergency. Hopefully this will get Ash's abilities under control while learning new skills.
I will continue to send updated reports on the Heart, Z crystals and moves, and the cultural history of the region. These will be valuable treasures to protect and care for back home since there has never been a Protector in this region before.
Protector Trina Chrysalis signing off.
Tapping a few buttons, her message was sent back home. She undid the link between the computers and erased the history and time stamps so Professor Kukui would never know. She got out of the chair and started stretching to work the kinks out of her body. Glancing at her watch she muttered, "Nearly two a.m. I really need to get some sleep soon."
On the floor, a Leafeon got to her feet. She was Leba. She was the heart bonded partner to Trina, sharing their lives together until death. She was a bit worried about her partner. It wasn't like her to stay up so late. "Leaf? Leafeon leafeon leaf?"
Trina smiled as she bent down to stroke Leba's face before tickling her leafy head. "I'm fine Leba. I promise I'll go to bed soon. There's just one more thing I want to do before I go to sleep is all. Can you make up our bed on the couch?"
"Leaf!" The verdant Pokémon ran upstairs to fix the couch for them the two of them. It wasn't the greatest place to sleep. The couch in the loft was much more comfortable than one in the living room area. Leba often wondered why Trina simply didn't ask for a cot or sleeping bag to sleep in the loft. She often slept in the same room as Ash to protect him from any night time threats. However, since their first night here, Trina hadn't pushed the issue.
"Trina's been acting so differently lately. She's more subdued and growing less social. We don't practice nearly as much as we use to. I hope whatever is bothering her will resolve itself," Leba whispered to herself as she finally got the pillows and blanket set up.
A few minutes later, Trina came upstairs from the lab. Not even bothering to change, she slipped under the blanket and fell asleep. Leba removed her shoes before settling on a pillow next to her friend. Glancing one more time at her heart bonded human, she let out a yawn and fell to sleep. The moonbeams gently moved on.
Trina scrunched up on the couch and let out a little whimper as she started to dream. Her hands clenched tightly on the blanket. She rolled on the couch nearly falling off. She wasn't just having a dream, she was having a distorted memory dream!
Trina was running across the valley to her home, she was so excited. Her parents had finally completed their long term mission in Oree and they be a family once more. "Can you believe it Leba? Both our parents will be waiting for us and we'll be able to catch up and have some family fun!"
Leba smiled happily wagging her leafy tail as they reached the small two story house. Like the rest of the buildings in the hidden valley, several crystals had been placed strategically on the roof. When light passed through the crystals it would partially bend before passing through another crystal until the entire valley was invisible from both the sky and the ground.
Trina laughed as she bounced up the new steps and flung open the door. "Mom, Dad, where are you? I can't wait to see you and tell you about what I've been up to!" The teenager looked around, but the house was empty and quiet. It looked like no one had been here in months.
"Mom? Dad? Una? Enzo? Are either of you here?" she called out a bit more frantic. She ran into the kitchen, but no one was in there. She opened the cupboards and fridge to find everything turned to dust. "No, no!"
Suddenly she wasn't in the kitchen anymore, she was in the family room, but all the pictures of her parents had vanished. "No this isn't right, there should be picture of all of us right here on the table."
She knelt at the table frantically searching for the picture, but all she came back with was a dusty frame with broken glass. Scooting away from the picture, Trina started opening drawers and looking behind furniture frantic for signs that her family lived here and her parents were not missing. "My mom's journals are gone. Dad's collection of autographs of famous trainers isn't here either. Leba, did you find any sign of your parent's toys?"
Trina expected an answer, but there was silence. Turning around she saw Leba wasn't there anymore. "LEBA! WHERE ARE YOU?" Scrambling out of the family room, she opened doors to all the rooms and closets, finding further signs that no one lived here.
She came to the last room, her bedroom. When she opened it she was surprised to find everything as she left it. Her carpet was freshly cleaned, the furniture dusted and polished, and the bed neatly made. Her awards hung from the wall shining neatly. Her closet had all workout outfits and gear. Everything she owned was neatly in place.
"Why is my room the only one inhabited?" she asked herself as she walked around the room. She bumped into the dresser and single photo fell to the floor. She picked it up and there was her family. There she was as a young child with her parents smiling at the camera. The Umbreon was sitting next to Trina's mom as the Espeon sat next to her father. The rest of the photo had been altered by her to show Una and Enzo's entire brood and what they had chosen to become later in life.
Leba was wrestling with her twin brother Glen whose icy fur glistened under the light. The triplets, Jorgen, Vanessa, and Ember were in battle stances. Esme and Sylvia, looked happy as in the picture they had just evolved into the eeveelution of their choice. Esme took after her father, but Sylvia had taken the hardest path to become a Sylveon.
Trina smiled at the photo. "My family all together, even if I had to make the picture myself." The photo caught fire as she dropped. Frantically, she tried to put out the fire. Once it was out, the only thing left of the picture was her face. Once again alone without no one by her side.
Trina shot up on the couch, panting hard as she wiped the sweat off her face. Her pallor was near white and she was shaking. Leba was on the floor, having been knocked off by her partner's restless body. She walked over and laid her head in Trina's lap. "I'm okay Leba. I just had a nightmare. I'm fine."
Leba did not look convinced and nudged Trina to look on the floor. Trina had to rub her eyes to make sure she was seeing what she was seeing. Glowing pieces of grass had sprouted from the floorboards. The Protector ripped them out of the floor and threw them in the trash.
The sun was starting to rise in the sky. Checking her watch she saw that she had only gotten about four hours of sleep. "Might as well start breakfast for everyone. They're going to need it." She went into the kitchen to start making a meal, while Leba went outside to feed on the sunlight.
The smell of fresh food wavered up into the loft. Pikachu and Rowlett's noses twitched as they woke up eager to get some breakfast. Pikachu started pushing on Ash to wake him up. "I'm up buddy, I up. Oh my, what is that delicious smell?" he asked with drool coming out of his mouth.
"I don't smell anything. Then again I don't have an olfactory sensor," Rotom Dex stated as everyone headed downstairs. Rockruff was yipping in joy as Professor Kukui joined the group wondering what was for breakfast.
Trina smiled as the others joined her. "Breakfast will be finished in a minute. I hope you like what I made. Go sit down, I'll bring you the food, just stay out of the way right now."
Professor Kukui laughed. "I've learned never to bother someone when they're in the midst of making food." He directed the rest of them to the couch. A few moments later Trina came out with a breakfast tray.
"Today's specials include fresh scrambled eggs, waffles covered in mixed berry jam, and your drink is milk with a side of muffins. Enjoy!" she told them as she laid the plates down for the teenager and adult. All the Pokémon looked at her expecting meals. "Don't worry I've got something for you too."
She returned to the kitchen and placed individual bowls on another tray before walking back to hungry little Pokémon. "Alright settle down, I made each of you a special meal today, complete with beans and vitamins to help keep you strong." Leaning down she placed a bowl of food mixed with some Pokémon beans and topped with carbo vitamins in front of Rockruff.
"Rock Types are good at defense, but you should always be able to keep up with your opponent. As for you Rowlett," she said as she flicked his head to wake him up. "I included some vitamins to help with your defense."
She moved onto Pikachu food to help him increase his special defense and to Leba she gave her some food for her special attack. Finally she brought out a tiny bowl for Rotom Dex who looked confused. "I don't eat food, I'm Rotom Dex. I don't need anything to keep going except maybe a recharge once in a while."
"You maybe a Poxedex, but you are also a Pokémon. We still don't know what your capabilities are. If others of you kind can use appliances to battle with and eat, then you should be able to as well."
Rotom Dex looked at the Kukui who nodded in agreement. They still hadn't figured out everything about Rotom Dex, including if he counted as a Pokémon on Ash's team or if he could be caught. Rotom Dex was a unique life form to learn about.
So Rotom Dex took a small bite. The electricity inside him zapped the food and transformed it into electric particles that he fed on. It was a strange sensation and he liked it. "That was incredible. I've never tasted food before! I must update this information!"
Trina laughed in joy before sitting down next to Ash to enjoy breakfast together. He was amazed by what she had just done. "How did you know that would work? Rotom isn't an average Pokémon, I didn't think it needed the same care as my others."
"Not it, him. Rotom Dex identifies himself with male pronouns and chose a male voice to use to speak." Professor Kukui looked at wondering why she said that. "Rotom are genderless. We know this because Attract or Captivate don't work on them."
"Humans and Pokémon can be transgender or intersex, because we do not fully understand Pokémon anatomy or souls. What can appear to be genderless, does identify with a gender, even if we can't always figure it out ourselves," Trina started to explain. She ducked her head under scrutiny.
"Who taught you…?"
Ash quickly spoke up to avoid any more questions being asked. "It's a theory being tested by some science whiz kids in her home town. They haven't published anything yet, but did share their findings so far with the rest of the town."
"An ambitious project. I hope to read about their findings one day. It would completely change the world as we know it." The humans returned to their meal as Rotom Dex reviewed data related to the subject. By the time everyone was finished with breakfast, he agreed with Trina, he was male, not genderless.
As Ash got ready for school, Trina tried to talk some sense into her charge. Ever since they arrived in the Alola Region the teenager had been putting off his training sessions with Trina, too eager to explore this new region and learning to use Z-moves.
"You need to stop blowing our training off. You're letting your control slip and your other abilities are not where they should be. I can't even remember the last time we had a physical spar. Do you really want to be caught off guard if someone attack you when you don't have any Pokémon?"
"It's not like I'll be attack or snatched off the street here. Alola has nearly no crime rate, even the police say so. No one knows I'm the Heart, including my friends. The local team of criminals is nothing except a group of street kids. I can handle myself."
Trina raised an eyebrow and folded her arms together. "Really, you don't need help? I seem to recall that Team Rocket nearly defeated you when you strayed too far from your friends and me remember? What about when you snuck off in the night to help that Litten? You came home with lots of cuts, some looked infected. If I hadn't patched you up, you might have gotten seriously ill."
Pikachu looked up at his partner and gave him a pleading look. "You know she's right, you haven't practiced or trained with her since you got here. We don't need to work on Z-moves all the time." Ash noticed how he could barely understand Pikachu. Once he learned how to speak he could understand perfectly what his Pokémon were saying and have a conversation. Now, he had to strain his ears to catch all the subtle nuances. He was really out of practice.
"Alright, I promise to come straight home from school today, no matter what. I'll train and practice as long as you want."
Trina nodded. "Good, because while you and Professor Kukui are at the school, I'll set up a schedule for us. Have a nice day at school," she told him. Watching Professor Kukui and Ash leave, Trina started preparing for this afternoon.
As soon as he arrived at school, the group was talking about Lillie and how she was making small steps to allowing the other student's Pokémon to touch her without freaking out. At the moment she was trying to not freak out with Sophocles' overeager Togedemaru rolling around her causing Lillie to get dizzy. Snowy let out a little bark trying to get the electric headhog to stop.
"Come on Togedemaru, you can play with Lillie and Snowy a bit later. We've got some serious data to crunch before class starts."
"I think you may be a little late on that," Kiawe said as Professor Kukui came to the classroom carrying a large book with him. "Alright class, settle down. I know you were expecting that today we talk more about the Island Challenge, but I was inspired by my other house guest to do something different today. We're going to take a look at gender identification and difference when it comes to Pokémon of the same species."
"Other house guest? Oh, he means, what's her name again?" Lana asked quietly.
"Trina Chrysalis, but that's all I can remember," Mallow whispered to her. She remembered the older teen when she gave Ash a tour of the school and that she spotted her a few times with Ash, but they had never had a real conversation.
Lillie leaned in closer. "She came to the estate with Ash when I first brought Snowy's egg home. She's the daughter of a friend of his mom, who she asked to keep an eye out for Ash while he's here in the region. She's nice, but a bit secretive."
"Wonder what she's hiding? If she got the Professor to change his lesson plan, she's got to be super smart," Sophocles added as his eyes literally lit up.
"I don't know what the rest of you are talking about, but it's time we pay attention to our teacher right now," Kiawe hissed to everyone. In the front of the classroom the Professor was smiling waiting for everyone to pay attention to him again.
"Now that I have your attention, I'm going to show you a few examples of gender differences that are easy to spot." He flipped open his book and showed the class pictures of a group of Pikachu, which of course made Ash's Pikachu squeal with delight. Ash hugged him telling his best bud to settle down.
"These pictures were taken in Kanto a few years ago, after scientists were able to get closer to wild Pokémon with camera drones and get better scans and pictures of a group of Pikachus. After reviewing their data, they made an interesting discovery that people had been overlooking for years. Can anyone tell me was that is?"
The students couldn't see it as the picture was passed around. Rotom Dex decided to show a picture of a female next to Pikachu. Finally Mallow raised her hand. "Their tails are slightly different. The female has heart indentation in her tail while Pikachu's tail looks exactly like a lightning bolt."
"Correct Mallow. Another difference, which isn't as clear in the pictures is that the females are smaller and lighter than the males. Why do you suppose that is?"
Kiawe raised his hand and answered, "Usually gender difference are used by males to identify females that are mature for mating. In other cases, the difference could be attributed to who does most of the parenting."
"Those are good answers Kiawe and scientists are currently testing that theory with their research. Now that you've seen a big difference to tell the two genders apart, I'm going to show you another picture, this time the details are subtle so look hard."
It was two Sudowoodos standing next each other and mimicking the local plant life. The picture was circled around the students again. The students still had trouble seeing the differences. "If the picture isn't big enough, I be happy to enlarge it for everyone to see it better."
"Yeah that would really help Rotom Dex. Make it as big as you can!" Ash stated excitedly. As soon as the enlarged picture appeared on Rotom Dex's screen the excitable fifteen year old spotted the difference. "It's the twigs on their heads, the one on the right is much thicker."
"That's correct Ash. Male Sudowoodo have larger antenna twigs. Scientists are confident that the reason for the differences is to show how strong and healthy the males are."
"That's incredible Rotom Dex. Is there a species of water Pokémon that look different from one another?" Lana asked.
"Yes, here's the most famous example is Frillish and its evolved form Jellicent can be found in Unova. As you can see both genders share a general form and have many of the same features, but they are slightly different depending on if the Frillish is female or male.
Despite having obvious differences, they share the same instincts and behavior. Both can become aggressive if something threatens them and they will work as a pair to drive out another pair from their territory. This is an indicator that Frillish might mate for life."
Professor Kukui asked Rotom Dex to settle down before asking Lillie to come up the front with Snowy. The fire type Vulpex that Principal Oak was raising came into the room and stood side by side. Aside from the obvious no one could figure which gender they were."
"Now this is a tough one. A lot of Pokémon have no outward differences to tell their gender apart and that can be tough on a species whose numbers aren't even. The Vulpex population is seventy five percent female, with only a twenty five percent male. Without any outside differences scientists use special machines to scan Pokémon or use moves to reveal gender.
Because a majority of trainers don't have special scanners or Pokémon on them who can use the moves, its best to use your Poxedex to scan it or take it to the Pokémon center where Nurse Joy can easily run tests to determine its gender. Over the last several years, as the scientific community comes to understand the complexity of Pokémon gender and the reasons for differences, one thing has become clear. As partners, we should start addressing out Pokémon with the proper pronouns instead of saying it."
While everyone else was at the school, Trina had decided to do some shopping. They were running low on food and she needed to pick up some building materials if she was going to complete setting up the training area. She had written a list beforehand and was checking it now.
"Okay let's see, we only need a couple more groceries and then we can start looking for some building materials. We'll need a lot of lumber and some tough bags we can fill with sand. I wonder if they have a weight shop we could browse in."
She went over to lady who sold berries asking if she had any unusual berries, such as pinap, bluk, or razz. "I have a few of those. Are you going to making treats for your Leafeon and Rockruff?"
"Leba is my Pokémon, I'm just taking Rockruff on a walk is all. I'm hoping to make new type of berry juice to give to my friends Pokémon and see if they like it," Trina explained as she paid for the berries and offered a tip.
The lady smiled and told her that she didn't have to. "Is there anything else I can help you with dear? You appear to have something on your mind."
"Do you know a place I can get some building material and exercise equipment? I really need to find them soon or I can't set up my training area. It's for my friend Ash."
"Oh the nice boy who helped Litten that one time it was seriously hurt. A very caring individual. You must be a very good friend if you want to help build a training area to help the two of you get stronger."
Trina blushed at the kind words about her for a change. The old lady directed her to a store a few blocks away where a retired fighter sold exercise equipment and building materials to help create different types of training areas.
The owner noticed her right away. He could tell by the way she carried herself, even with bags of groceries, that she was fighter. "Alola, what can help you with today?"
"I was hoping to purchase the items on my list here. I'm planning on building a training area." She handed it to the owner who looked over the list of materials mentally calculating how much it would cost and which would be the best to use. "Do you have a design in mind for this training area?"
Trina nodded and showed him another piece of a paper. The design called for two different obstacle courses, a battle stage, along with an indoor area for the exercise equipment. There were areas to rest and even an aid station. A sparing area for humans was a little different, however the benefits of physical training would help trainers keep up with their Pokémon. All of it would be fenced in with a short wall to allow some privacy.
"This is an ambitious plan. You've got every single detail to scale. I also can see that you took the time to really think about what you wanted and how it would help, but humans and Pokémon to get stronger."
She blushed again and said thank you. The owner agreed to lend her his Machamps to carry the building supplies and help her with the construction of the area. When she asked how much extra that would cost he assured her she only needed to pay for the supplies. His Machamps loved building training areas.
The rest of the morning was very busy as Trina and two Pokémon assisted the Machamps with building the training area. Leba was bringing a bucket of nails to one of the Machamps as Rockruff carried some rocks for the wall.
"Isn't this great. Once this place is finished, Trina will finally have a place she can practice sparring again. She's one of the strongest fighters I know."
"Really? She's seems like a strong fighter and would win most of the time against humans. I doubt she could handle a Pokémon though."
"Don't count her out. Back home, she regularly sparred with different Pokémon and I don't mean just the Fighting Type. She would take on different types except Fairy, since most of them live in Kalos," Leba remarked as she dropped of her load. Rockruff quickly did the same chasing after Leba wanting to know more.
"Has she ever fought a Fire Type before? What strategy did she use and did she win any human vs Pokémon spars?" Rockruff asked eagerly. Another battling session at Clawmark Hill was coming up and he wanted to be strong enough to defeat a particular Magmar.
Leba stopped walking and sat down looking at Rockruff. She could feel his desire to be stronger and win. She had heard about the fights at Clawmark Hill from some passing Pokémon. Leba wasn't interested at first, but if she went there to support Rockruff, then perhaps she could have fun.
"She's battled a few Fire Types including a Typhlosion and a Heatmor. She even once took on an Infernape. You have to understand though that Trina is allowed to wear a special uniform when she fights against different types to help minimize injury to herself."
"I figured that would be the case. So did she win her spars against the Pokémon you mentioned?"
"She wins eighty percent of the time, loses fifteen percent of the time and five percent end is a draw. She won the spar with the Heatmor while ending up in a tie with Typhlosion. She was defeated by the Infernape. That was one of the toughest spars she was ever in. She got burned up a bit and had to spend some time in a hospital before she was ready to go back to sparring. Thankfully, the suit prevented the fire, from scarring her."
"Your partner sounds amazing! Can I join in when you start training this afternoon?"
"I don't see why not. After all a Protector never misses a chance to improve an individual skills to survive."
"Yes! Let's finish building this place so we can spar today!" With renewed enthusiasm, the two Pokémon went back to work helping the Machamps finish their work, so that everything would ready, by the time Ash came home. Half an hour before school was to let out, the entire project was done.
"Thanks again for all your help. I really appreciate it!" Trina told the Machamps, who smiled in delight, before heading back to the trainers store. She surveyed the area. It was exactly like the training areas back home and it would be easy to maintain with Alola's climate. She was eager to get started.
"Ruff! Rockruff, ruff, Rockruff!" Rockruff was wagging its tail and looking up at her with excitement. He looked ready to tackle the entire training area right then and there. He really wanted to get in a good workout before the next fight club meeting.
"I know you want to get started Rockruff, but first thing we need to do is stretch to get ready. You can join in with us after he's done stretching as well." A quick glance around to make sure no one was around before pressing her pendent. There was a small flash and instantly Trina's clothes turned into her red and black training clothes.
She took her stretching stance; her feet shoulder width apart and her knees bent. Next to her Leba and Rockruff copied her stance the best they could. She bent forward with her hands on her knees. Leba moved slightly so her leafs were covering her front knees. Rockruff fluffed up his fur.
The next step was for each of them to round their back with the shoulders curved forward. They each took a deep breath before the next step. They then arched their backs and rolled their shoulders backs. They repeated that exercise five times before they were loose enough to start training.
Checking her watch, Ash should be back any minute so she decided to get some water to cool down a little and waited. After ten minutes Ash still hadn't arrived. "He's just a little late, he'll be here. He promised me."
When another ten minutes passed she walked out of the training area and headed to the house. Maybe he was waiting for her there. Trina went inside checking each room and even going back down to the lab, but no one was there. She even looked for a note with no luck. Now she was getting anxious.
"Where is that boy? I hope nothing bad happened to him," the Protector whispered to herself. She bit her lip, wondering if letting him walk home from school by himself had been the right call. She felt somebody pawing at her leg.
Leba held out Trina's travel bag urging her to take it. "You're right Leba. We need to go find him. Rockruff, could you stay here in case he comes home?" Rockruff nodded and said he would howl to alert her if he was back at the house.
"Thank you. Come on Leba we have a missing person to find." Leba nodded as the two took off to the Pokémon School. Walking the path to the school Trina wondered if Ash had to stay after school for an assignment and didn't have a chance to tell her.
When she reached the school, she took a deep breath before entering the campus. It appeared deserted and she didn't see anyone. "Let's search the building okay. He might still be here."
Trina took the upper levels checking the classrooms and offices. Leba hunted through the different activity rooms and storage closets. Nothing, there was no sign of Ash anywhere.
With no sign of Ash, the duo started checking every place they could think of he might be at. He wasn't at the beach or in town. She checked the forest. She even checked his friends' homes, though that took a while because she didn't have an exact address for most of them.
"If you count the time we waited with the time we searched, it's been almost three hours. Where could he be?" She slumped on the street, tired and hungry. "It should be taking this long. We're supposed to be in tune with one another, so if we're separated we can find each other."
"Leafeon. Leaf leaf Leafeon." Leba licked her friend. She suggested they take a break. There was a small restaurant just up the road. They could get a small meal and something to drink before continuing their search.
"It would be nice to eat meal prepared by someone else. I haven't really had a chance to do so yet. Being cooped up in the house most days, because I'm too old to go to Pokémon School or be invited along on their field trips, doesn't mean I can't treat myself once and awhile," Trina reasoned.
Pushing herself up to her feet, they walked the short distance until they came to the Aina's Kitchen. She took a deep breath smelling delicious food. Leba looked excited. "Leafeon Leba!"
"I agree, the smell is wonderful and I am sure they have special food for Grass Types." Excited they both entered the restaurant eager for a meal. What they saw when they entered shocked them.
Sitting at a table with all his school friends was Ash. He was chatting happily with his friends, while the Pokémon were all eating together. Judging by the amount of dishes and how relaxed they were it was apparent they had been here for a while.
Mallow was the first to notice her. "Hi, welcome to Aina's Kitchen. If you'll have a seat, I'll bring you a menu. We even have one for Pokémon."
"No thank you. Suddenly I'm not too hungry," she hissed loudly. Ash posture shot up and suddenly Ash's Pokémon tried to look small and unimportant. If looks could kill, Ash would have been incinerated the moment, he met Trina's eyes.
At least he looked guilty and ashamed. "Hi… Trina. What are…you…doing here?" Seeing how angry she was he slid down a bit in his chair.
"Looking for you and guess where I found you, where you're not supposed to be! You promised me that you would come straight home for our special training right after school. Instead I find you here breaking your promise." Trina folded her arms across her chest, taking a few steps closer.
Ash started to respond only for her to continue on. "Do you know that I spent all morning and most of the afternoon not only doing all the chores in the house, but I also went shopping and bought all the supplies, for building the training area. That I put my sweat and blood into this project so it would be ready when you got home?"
"I… I mean…"
"When you didn't show up, I got worried that you might be hurt. I searched for almost three hours looking everywhere for you. Rockruff is back at the house waiting to see if you come home so he can alert me that you're there. Do you have anything to say to me?"
"Leafeon leaf leaf Leafeon!" Leba growled at Pikachu, Rowlet, and Rotom Dex reminding them they had also been there when Ash made his promise and they should have forced him to come.
"Pika pika Pikachu."
"LEAFEON! Leaf leaf leaf!" The other Pokémon backed away from the three, not wanting to be near them if Leba unleashed an attack in the midst of her anger.
Ash rubbed the back of his neck and looked at her sheepishly. "I forgot. We talked about gender differences in Pokémon today and we wanted to see if we could find any or be able to distinguish between the two genders. We worked up an appetite out there so we came here to eat."
Trina's eyes twitched as she walked right over and towered over Ash. "Forgot? You forgot?! How could you forget? I mean, you forget about certain things like times of events or needing somethings sometimes, but you never forget promises."
Ash slid out of the chair and stood up. "I'm sorry, I really am sorry. We can train tomorrow. I won't forget again."
"Yeah we could all come over and train. It would be nice to see what kind of training ground you set up," Mallow said, her Bouncesweet voiced her joy. The other Pokémon looked interested in this new training area to practice in.
"I would like to observe your training methods to gain new data," Sophocles informed her. Observing different training methods would help him formulate the perfect training style for each trainer and their Pokémon.
Trina looked at the others and shook her head. Their offer was kind, but if they saw what was going on her cover would be blown. "It's not training with Pokémon or Z-moves. It's a specialized training for certain talents Ash has. Talents you've been neglecting, may I remind you?"
"I haven't exactly neglected them, I just haven't been doing a lot of work with them lately. There isn't a lot of time." He chuckled nervously as Trina threw her arms up in exasperation.
Kiawe tapped Ash's shoulder and spoke. "You know Ash, I have a busy schedule also. I have to work my family's ranch, go to school, and train. It's a lot of hard work, but I make sure to manage my time so I still have room for fun. Maybe I could help with your schedule."
"If you told us what kind of talents you need to practice, maybe we can help during recess at school." Lana added quietly. She was curious about what special talents Ash had.
Ash squirmed before muttering something about that the training had to be done in private if he was to make any progress. He also side stepped explaining exactly what those talents were.
Trina was still upset and angry. "I can't believe the way you've been acting lately. We've traveled through Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos together and you never fell behind like this. You used to enjoy early morning training with me, now all you want to do is sleep in or practice Z-moves."
Lillie spoke up and suggested that Trina join them in their after school activities. That way she could train Ash anytime she felt like it. "You can visit my estate again. I know Hobs would enjoy battling against you and Leba. We could go to events and festivals together if you want."
Trina looked away as her fingers dug into the palms of her hands. She wanted to participate in events or join them as Ash added new members to his family, but a Protector couldn't do that. Protects had a mandate that allowed them only to have their heart bond partner or train the Pokémon back home until their special person came along.
As for festivals and events, her mission was to protect Ash and she couldn't do that very well if she was competing against him. The other problem was again exposure. The Protectors of the Bond might be a secret group, but they had dangerous enemies. They knew what to look for to identify a Protector.
"I appreciate the offer Lillie. Leba does as well. My family has certain rules about entering events or attending festivals. That was the reason I didn't enter the Pokémon Pancake Race, but watched it in the stands."
Now all the Alolan kids were staring at her and wondering what kind of person forbids their kid from participating in events. They obviously trusted her enough to let her go on a journey and watch over Ash. What was the story behind them anyway? Something about the way they interacted was different than just being family friends.
"We're in Alola Trina, its paradise here. I have a chance to be normal for a while. I can go to school and explore the region at the same time. I have friends to hang out with and not worry about them leaving at some point in my journey. Don't you understand that?" Ash demanded angrily.
Both Pikachu and Leba tried to push their trainers apart. They could sense something bad was about to happen, but neither trainer budged. "Why wouldn't I understand that? Don't you think I've been craving something like this forever? Before we met I only dreamed about doing the things we've done together."
"That's right, together. I just want some time and space to myself. Just because you watch over me doesn't mean we have to spend all our time together. We can have separate lives too you know."
"You know it's not that easy, especially with your talents. We're supposed to look out for each other. I'm suppose make sure you avoid trouble. I just want you to be the best you can be." Trina paused, taking a deep breath and clutched her sides. "Please, stop acting like you're the only one that matters."
"Stop lecturing me! You're not my mom or my sister! You just a person doing me a favor!" Immediately Ash wanted to take back what he said. Trina looked devastated by what he said. Even Leba's jaw was dropped and Pikachu couldn't believe those words left his trainer's mouth.
Shedding tears, Trina ran out of the restaurant very hurt by what he said. How could he say those things to her? Did their bond meaning nothing to Ash? Why was she continuing to suffer in silence by a pain that ran deeper than any physical injury?
She didn't hear the group of friends ganging up on Ash for his behavior. Nor did she notice someone peering out at her from the bushes across the street. Said person watched her running away, an evil grin on his face.
By the time she got back to the house she was mentally exhausted. She was crying and didn't want to talk to anybody. Hearing her arrival, Rockruff ran outside to greet her only to take a few steps backwards realizing she was not in a good mood.
"What happened? Did you find Ash? Is Trina okay?"
"She found him and he forget about his promise. He said some hurtful things to her. I don't know why, he's usually not that rude. They have a lot to work on since we'll be staying here for a good while. If they don't, then I fear that their bond might break."
"Anything I can do to help?"
"Perhaps, is there a battle session tonight?"
"I don't know, but if there is one, why don't the both of you come? I think I can convince the Lycanrocks to let you two join. At least I might be able to." Nodding the two Pokemon headed inside to eat.
Professor Kukui noticed later that night the friction between his two house guests. Ash had come home a little late and had tried to apologize for something he said earlier, but Trina turned her back on him saying, he had said enough to her for the day. She grabbed a hammock and stalked out of the house declaring she would be sleeping that night in the training area she designed.
As the door slammed Professor Kukui closed his eyes and counted to ten. "What is exactly going on between you two? This morning you two seemed to be getting along fine and now she doesn't want to do anything with you."
Ash flopped down on the couch and hung his head low. "I broke my promise to her. I was supposed to come home right after school so we could do some special training on some unique talents I have. She spent most of the day setting it up and she came looking for me when I didn't come home. When she found me at Mallow's she was very upset and angry."
Kukui remarked that while Ash forgot some things from time to time, promises weren't one of them. Ash nodded his head telling the Professor that's exactly what Trina had said. Looking down at the ground he admitted that he said things to her that he didn't mean.
"I don't know why I said the things I said to her or acted like a jerk to her. I got a serious tongue lashing from the others about my behavior. I checked out the area she set up. It's amazing. I can't believe she set that up with a little help in one day."
Kukui nodded. He had investigated why there had been so many footprints near his house and was surprised by the advanced training area. It was a true labor of love. It must have hurt Trina deeply when Ash didn't show up for the training.
"So what can I do to fix it? You saw me. I tried to apologize and she didn't want to listen to what I had to say."
"I think she just needs a little time and space. She's obviously upset and is too angry right now to listen. I'm sure in a few days, you'll two have worked out things between you." Ash hopped he was right.
Later that night, Trina was rolling around in her hammock trying to get some sleep when she was awakened by Leba. "Ugh girl what is it? What's going on?"
"Leba! Leaf leaf Leafeon!"
"Really, are you sure? I don't want Rockruff to get into trouble."
"Leaf. Leaf le Leafeon!"
"Well if Rockruff is sure he can get me in, I guess a good spar will help get rid of all this stress and tension. Let me grab my shoes."
Rockruff lead them to Clawmark Hill. He saw everyone was there waiting to begin. Barking loudly he got the attention of the Midday Lycanrock and the Midnight one. He approached them cautiously and started talking to them. Both listened closely as he explained what was going on.
At first the two Lycanrocks appeared to be furious. Not only had he brought a captured Pokémon to their wild training grounds, worse he brought a human with him! Both of them wanted to teach Rockruff a lesson when he pleaded at them to just meet with the two. He would gladly accept any punishment then. Both of them howled for the uninvited guests to appear.
As Trina and Leba appeared, the both walked straight and tall. Even with the growls and jeers as they walked through the wild Pokémon didn't deter them from meeting the Lycanrocks. She stood her ground and looked up at them with Leba standing loyally next to her.
The two Lycanrocks growled and howled at her, wanting to see what she was made of. When the Midnight Form called her a waste of flesh she snapped, "Hey there is no reason to call me names. I may not have fur as tough as rocks, but I am smart, physically strong, and quite capable of taking hits and still going on."
Seeing the shocked expression on Midnight's face Leba spoke up. "Trina can understand the Pokémon language and speak a bit of it. She really has a talent when it comes to certain dialects."
"Interesting, your trainer has a remarkable talent," Midday remarked. She turned her attention to the human girl again. "You can understand us, then you know what we do here. Why do you wish to fight with us?"
"Back home, I would spar with the Pokémon to become stronger and to better understand them. I know I have a disadvantage and that I'll need to use my protective gear to prevent serious injury," she replied curtly. Eyeing both of them she stated her reason for coming that night. "Tonight, I just really need to spar because I'm angry and upset. I rather have an opponent who will fight back against me then destroying a habitat."
The two debated for a bit, but agreed to allow her to fight if she fought one of them while the other fought Leba. If she and Leba won, they could come back, if they lost they would be banished and Rockruff would receive a punishment. They agreed to the terms.
Trina activated her protection suit against rock types and Leba got into her battle stance. All the Pokémon stepped back. They were all eager to watch this match. With a howl the fight was on.
Leba immediately dodged as Midday came after her with Accelrock. Leba jumped up to one of the pillars and released a Magical Leaf attack that hit dead center on the Midday forms back weakening it considerably.
Not to be deterred Midday unleashed Rock Throw. Leba dodged about, but ended up getting a glancing blow to her shoulder. It didn't hurt that bad, but it did slow her down. Ignoring the injury the two females continued to clash over and over again.
Meanwhile, Trina just stood there waiting out Midnight. She knew if she attacked first, she would be hit by Counter and that would hurt a lot. As long as she was patient enough, eventually Midnight would make a move, due to its aggressive nature and thinking she was a weak fighter.
After a few more minutes, Midnight attacked using a huge Rockslide on her. In seconds she noted the speed and the pattern of which the rocks appeared. A normal human couldn't have kept up with them, but then again she was no ordinary human. She dodged left and right, even rolling forward to avoid the attack. She sensed Midnight coming in for a Crunch attack, so dropped down avoiding the attack before spinning and delivering a kick to the back.
It threw Midnight off balance, but he activated Counter, pushing her back and damaging some of her suit. Pounding the ground Midnight unleashed his devastating Stone Edge attack. He expected to see her flying, but again she surprised him.
Trina had grabbed hold of one of the glowing rocks as it pushed itself through the ground and carried her above the battle field. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Leba activate her Protect as Midday unleashed her Rock Tomb. Leba called out a warning as the Rock Tomb attack came at her and Midnight.
Pressing herself up against the rock, she watched as Midnight got hit with the attack. Of course it barely hurt him, but he was disoriented for a few second. She dropped down on him and wrapped her arms his chest pinning his arms to the side. Midnight thrashed about trying to get her off while Midday used Howl to raise its attack power as Leba did the same with Sword Dance. Both Trina and Leba didn't need to talk to know what to do next.
Leba met the incoming Midday form, who was once again using Accelrock. Leba leapt over and used Grass Knot to tie up Midday, but thanks to Midday's momentum kept going through the air.
As she approached, Trina used the weight of her body to swing and stand on the ground before releasing him for a second. Midnight tried to straighten up. The Protector shoved him with all weight sending him tumbling right into the path of Midday. They both hit each other hard enough to knock theselves out. The newcomers had successfully defeated them.
The wild Pokémon couldn't believe what they had just seen. Incredibly, a human had kept up and managed to defeat her opponent with her partner without communicating a single word. The two Lycanrocks admitted defeat and said Leba and Trina were worthy of training her.
"Thank you for this honor. I promise I won't abuse it." As she bowed to the two Pokémon, she smiled feeling like her old self once more.