Hello everyone! I've been watching the Sun and Moon series (both in Japanese and the English dub) and I immediately fell for the pairing of Mallow and Kiawe...also known as Spiceshipping. I'm so excited to be posting my very first story for this pairing!
Because the anime is still fairly early on, I've decided to combine some game elements of Kiawe and Mallow's characters into this story, as well as some of my own head canons.
This is also a future fic, so Kiawe and Mallow are both older in this story. I imagine Kiawe here as 35, and Mallow as 33.
Disclaimer: I do not own Mallow, Kiawe, or any of the Pokémon or Alolan cities mentioned in this story. Any original characters that appear, however, I do!
Under the Alolan Sun
A young girl was staring up at the sky, shielding her eyes as she gazed upwards. She was starting to grow impatient and began shifting her weight from foot to foot, though she didn't bother lowering her head. She did this pretty much every morning, getting up at the crack of dawn just so she could make sure she didn't miss it. Today, however, it was taking an exceptionally long time.
Her straight, dark ash brown hair hung all the way down her back, two strands of red and green hanging in her green eyes. The girl grimaced and kept trying to blow them away, not wanting to move her hand away from her forehead. Even though her arm was beginning to fall asleep, and her neck was becoming stiff, she was determined to keep herself in place.
And then, as if on cue, a large shadow stretched over her, and a familiar Pokémon flew overhead, blocking the girl's clear view of the sky for a brief, breathtaking moment.
She watched the creature as it went on its way, spinning around on her toes to watch it fly towards the mountains. The Pokémon grew smaller and smaller as it flew out of sight, and soon, the young girl couldn't see it at all. Once it was gone, she smiled to herself and began to skip back towards her home, pleased that her morning ritual was now complete. She reached the modest wooden home and ambled up the front steps, swinging open the green door and carefully closing it behind her before scurrying through the living room and into the kitchen.
"Morning, Mama!"
The girl's mother, who was stationed at the stove, looked over her shoulder and smiled at her young daughter. She was a beautiful woman, with warm mocha skin, piercing green eyes, and long green hair split into two separate sections.
"Good morning, Kalili," she replied. "Were you outside watching Koa head out on his deliveries?"
Kalili stopped in her tracks and rolled her lips in. She had promised her brother she wouldn't say anything about him switching his deliveries around. The girl hated to lie, but she also hated breaking her promises.
"Yep!" Kalili chirped, quickly nodding her head. "He and Charizard sure were going fast this morning!"
"I'm not surprised," her mother laughed. "That brother of yours is a speed demon!"
"He also likes to get his deliveries done as quick as possible," Kalili added.
"That he does," her mother agreed.
The sound of light, cheerful whistling soon filled the air, catching Kalili's attention. She spun around and beamed as she saw her beloved Pokémon flitting down the stairs, waving the yellow pompoms of its wings as it hopped and warbled.
"Oricorio!" Kalili called with a giggle, scurrying over to the stairs.
The dancing Pokémon whistled in confirmation, floating up to fly around the girl's face. Kalili's giggles only increased, and she was soon imitating her partner, spinning back into the kitchen on her toes and colliding with the counter, nearly knocking all of her mother's freshly prepared breakfast to the floor.
"Oops!" Kalili gasped, jumping away from the counter.
Her mother sighed laughingly, not even the slightest bit annoyed by her daughter's near accident. "Those turns are looking pretty good!"
"Really?" Kalili asked, her face lighting up.
"Yeah!" Her mother chirped. "I mean, I don't know nearly as much about dancing as your dad does, but to me it looked great!"
Kalili grinned at the compliment. "Thanks, Mama!"
The barely audible sound of the front door creaking open sounded, but Kalili was familiar enough with her routine that she could hear it, and she was especially pleased when she heard a deep voice softly comment, "Sure smells good in here."
Just as she had done when Oricorio came flitting down the stairs, Kalili whipped around and ran towards the front door, her cheerful flying type following after her. That left her mother alone at the stove, giggling to herself.
"Daddy!" Kalili greeted, running straight up to her startled father and giving him a massive hug before he could even close the door behind him.
"Kalili, you're up," her father breathed.
The young girl tilted her head back and raised an eyebrow. "How come you sound so surprised? I'm up early every morning!"
"Yeah, I just thought maybe you'd want to sleep in today," her father replied. "We had a long practice last night, after all."
"No way, I'm not tired at all!" Kalili giggled. "Besides, you know I like to watch the delivery take off in the mornings."
Her father smirked and rubbed the top of his daughter's head. "That I do."
He finally closed the front door and started walking towards the kitchen, though Kalili made sure to follow right after him.
"When can I start making deliveries, Daddy?" Kalili asked.
"Kalili, not this again," her father groaned.
"But I really want to!" Kalili cried. "I want to help!"
"I know you do," he hushed. "But you're too young yet to be flying from island to island, especially with lots of heavy cargo."
Kalili sulked and sped up her pace in order to reach her mother's side. "Mama, tell Daddy I'm ready to make deliveries!"
Mallow looked over her shoulder at her husband and smirked, raising just one of her eyebrows. "Come on, Kiawe, why do you have to be so protective?"
Kiawe furrowed his thick brow. "I don't know, why did our daughter have to end up just like you?"
"Because she's perfect!" Mallow trilled, turning away from her cooking to wrap an arm around Kalili's shoulders. "And I have no problem with her making some deliveries!"
"Mallow, she's 8 years old," Kiawe deadpanned. "I didn't even let the boys start until they were 10."
"Yeah, but they never actually wanted to do it," Mallow reasoned with him. "I think it's great how motivated Kalili is! You should reward her by letting her go on her very first delivery a little early!"
"Not happening," Kiawe sighed, turning around to take a seat at the table. Kalili looked up at her mother with a pout, to which Mallow threw her daughter a playful wink.
"I'll keep working on him," Mallow whispered. "Promise!"
Kalili smiled appreciatively at her mother before taking a seat at the table next to her father. Once she was sitting, Kiawe cast a sideways smirk at his daughter and gently grabbed onto her chin.
"Hey, you know I only say no because I love you," Kiawe murmured, as though he didn't want Mallow to hear what he was saying. "I don't want anything happening to my little girl."
Kiawe was fairly gruff, but beneath his tough exterior, he was extremely passionate, had a good heart and a deep love for his family. He was also incredibly protective; a trait that came from growing up with a much younger sister. Kalili knew all of these things, and she adored her father, but she often wished he would give her as much freedom as her mother gave her.
"I love you too, Daddy," Kalili replied. "But I'm not little anymore! I'm growing up really quick. And I want to help out as much as I can!"
Kiawe smiled sadly. "You don't have to bring up the whole growing up thing, you know."
"But it's true!" Kalili giggled softly.
"I know it is," Kiawe sighed. "And I know you want to help out the family. I'll make sure to find some more things for you to do around the farm that won't scare the heck out of me."
Kalili wasn't entirely thrilled with that response, but she knew her mother would keep her word about wearing her father down, so the young girl chose to simply smile in response.
"Breakfast is ready!" Mallow announced, carrying a plate of grilled fresh fruit over to the table. "You both start with that while everything else cools off a bit more. Kalili, have you seen Kahula this morning?"
A shiver went up Kalili's spine. "Um…nope! He must still be in bed."
"That's not like him," Mallow mused. "I hope he's not sick!"
A loud yawn startled everyone who was gathered in the kitchen. A tall boy walked through the doorway, stretching his arms over his head. The 13 year old boy slowly opened up his tired hazel eyes, giving them time to adjust to the sunlight pouring into the kitchen.
"Koa?!" Mallow gasped.
"Morning," Koa returned through another yawn, lowering his arms to his sides.
"You're supposed to be out making a delivery to Poni Island!" Mallow cried.
"Kahula offered to do it for me," Koa sighed, running a hand through his brown hair streaked with red.
"No he didn't," Kiawe scoffed. "You told him to do it for you."
"Come on, Dad, I never tell Kahula what to do," Koa groaned. "You know he likes making deliveries! He's always willing to trade with me."
"He does not like making deliveries," Mallow calmly argued. "He just hates it less than you do."
"Yeah, but I really hate it," Koa countered, taking a seat next to Kalili and grabbing one of the grilled pieces of fruit. "And he's good at it! Besides, it's really not a big deal. I told him if he did my deliveries for me this morning, I would do his work out in the field this afternoon."
Mallow raised an eyebrow as she glanced over at her husband, who had his hand splayed out across his face.
"I would've done those deliveries," Kalili grumbled, shoving some pieces of fruit onto her plate.
"And I'd give them to you, if Dad would let you do it," Koa chuckled.
"Kalili is not making any deliveries," Kiawe growled. "You're 13, Koa. You should not be pawning your work off on your younger siblings."
"Dad, I already told you, it's trading! No one's losing out."
Oricorio began jumping up and down between Koa and Kalili, chirping melodically. Kalili knew exactly what her Pokémon wanted and giggled, plucking a piece of fruit and handing it over to her now delighted partner.
"Well, you're definitely going to be out in the field today," Kiawe stated. "I've got to go to Mount Lanakila."
"What?!" Koa gasped.
"Oooh, fancy Elite Four business?" Mallow questioned, placing more food on the table.
"I wouldn't exactly call it fancy, but it is Elite Four business," Kiawe replied, his lips bent up into a smirk at Mallow's excited tone.
"Can I please come with you, Dad?" Koa pleaded. The teenager dreamed of following in the footsteps of his father: first being a trial captain, and then later a member of Alola's Elite Four. Traveling up to Mount Lanakila never failed to fire him up, especially when he got to watch his dad in action.
"Sorry, no time," Kiawe responded. "You've got double the field work now that you switched with Kahula."
Koa started to pout, and Kalili couldn't help but to giggle. Koa turned towards his sister and raised an eyebrow, the gears in his brain starting to turn.
"And don't even think about 'trading' with your sister," Kiawe warned, causing Koa's face to fall.
Mallow hummed delightfully and gently held onto her husband's shoulders, bending down to kiss his cheek. "Always one step ahead, aren't you?"
"I have to be," Kiawe chuckled softly. "These kids will leave me in the dust if I'm not."
Once breakfast was all finished, Kiawe headed off for Mount Lanakila on the back of his trusted Charizard; the one that had originally belonged to his grandfather. Kalili and Koa helped their mother clean the dishes and put them away before all three headed outside to start that day's work.
"I have to check on my garden and collect some of the ripe fruits and vegetables to bring to the restaurant," Mallow informed the children. "Want to help me out, Kalili?"
The girl's face lit up and she rapidly nodded her head. "Yeah! I love going into the garden!"
"Ri!" Oricorio chirped, waving its yellow pompoms in the air.
"Great!" Mallow replied cheerfully. "Koa, your dad said the Pokémon need to be fed out in the field. Why don't you start with that?"
Before Koa could respond, Kalili let out a sharp gasp. "Feeding the Pokémon?! Could I help with that instead, Mama?"
Koa groaned, which earned him a smirk from Mallow. "You know, if Kalili helps you out, that little chore will go a whole lot faster! And since you took on Kahula's share also…"
"Alright, fine," Koa sighed once his mother had trailed off. "Come on, Kalili."
The young girl let out a victorious cry and pumped her fist before hurrying after her oldest brother, leaving behind a giggling Mallow. The two quickly made it to the fenced area where they kept all of the farm Pokémon. Groups of Mudbray and Mudsdale roamed about, oblivious to the arrival of Koa and Kalili. The girl breathed out excitedly and hopped up onto the fence, peering out at the ground types. Oricorio chirped and fluttered up, perching itself on the top of the fence. Koa, on the other hand, sighed as he pulled open the fence gate, entering the area.
"Let's go!" Koa called out to his sister. "You said you'd help me."
"I will!" Kalili cried, jumping off the fence. Oricorio followed right after its trainer, the two of them stepping through the fence's opening before Koa closed the gate behind them. "Morning Mudbray! Mudsdale!"
The ground types neighed and whinnied happily at Kalili's greeting. The young girl giggled and ran up to one of the nearest Mudbray, running her fingers through the tuft of black hair between its ears. Koa, meanwhile had walked over to a pile of hay, grabbing onto one of the bales and tossing it to the side. As he went to grab a second one, he saw Kalili petting Mudbray out of the corner of his eye and sighed.
"Kalili!" Koa groaned, causing the girl to look up. "You aren't helping!"
"Yes I am!" Kalili refuted. Smiling at Mudbray, she murmured "I'll be back" before scurrying over to Koa. "Why're you being so bossy this morning, Koa?"
"I'm not," Koa calmly argued. "If anything, I'm trying to help you out! You want Dad to trust you enough to give you deliveries, right?"
Kalili twisted her mouth as she nodded her head.
"Then helping out with all of the other chores on the farm will help," Koa continued, smirking at his sister. "When Dad sees how quickly and how well you can get other things done, then he'll feel a lot more comfortable trusting you with the big stuff!"
Kalili beamed. "Hey, you're right! Okay, I'll stick to feeding them for now!"
She hopped over to the pile of hay, clutching a bale and pulling it towards her. The bundle fell to the ground, being just a bit too heavy for Kalili to carry. Koa made a move to help, but Kalili would have none of it.
"No, I can do it myself!" Kalili cried. "Look!"
Kalili took hold of the bale once again and began to drag it across the dirt, into the grass where the Pokémon were roaming about. She managed to bring it over to the Mudbray she'd just been petting, kneeling down to untie the straw that was holding the bale together. As soon as she'd broken both of them off, the hay fell into a pile. Mudbray whinnied excitedly and began to graze on the hay. Kalili giggled and gave Mudbray's mane another stroke before jumping up to her feet. She spun around and locked eyes with her brother, who was grinning at her.
"I told you I could do it!" Kalili called.
"You did, Kolohe," Koa replied playfully, Kalili's nose scrunching up at the nickname. "Now do it again!"
Kalili nodded just once and ran back towards the hay bales. As soon as she got her hands on the next one, however, a shadow stretched over her, causing the girl to look up towards the sky. Kalili gasped before beaming at Koa, who was busy sorting through the other side of the hay pile.
"Kahula is back!" Kalili announced.
Koa grunted and looked over his shoulder, watching as the Pokémon and its rider landed on the ground. "Great."
Kalili ran over to the other side of the fence, climbing up and leaning over its edge. "Alola, Kahula!"
The boy jumped off the back of his Charizard and patted the creature's head before turning around and heading towards the enclosure. He was tall, especially for an 11 year old, though still a few inches shorter than Koa. Combined with his height, Kahula's dark ash brown hair, the same color as Kalili's, and intense hazel eyes made him appear quite statuesque.
"Alola, Kalili," Kahula calmly greeted once he was close enough to the fence. Taking notice of Koa standing a few feet away from her, Kahula showed off a relatively rare smirk and called, "how are my chores going, Koa?"
"Fine," Koa huffed as he tossed another bale of hay to the side. "How were my deliveries?"
"Easy, as always," Kahula scoffed.
"I'm helping Koa out with his chores and yours!" Kalili announced proudly.
"Why?" Kahula asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Because if I work really hard on the farm, then Daddy will have to let me make deliveries like you and Koa!" Kalili explained, animatedly waving her arms around while Oricorio mimicked her trainer by dancing alongside her.
"Dad's not that easy to convince…" Kahula muttered.
"Maybe not, but he likes to see hard work," Koa replied.
Kahula hummed to himself and looked out towards the house. "Where is Dad, anyway?"
"At Mount Lanakila," Koa sighed. "He had Elite Four stuff to do."
"Oh, and you're stuck here doing double the chores," Kahula teased, smirking at his clearly irritated older brother. "Bet that burned you up."
Kalili frowned. "Come on, guys, don't fight with each other!"
Koa and Kahula exchanged looks and rolled their eyes. Kalili was not a sensitive girl by any stretch of the imagination, but she idolized both of her brothers and hated to not see them get along…even if it was just simple teasing.
"We're not fighting, Lili," Koa assured his sister, using a nickname that she liked much better than the other one. "Just messing around with each other."
"But we'll quit it if it bothers you," Kahula added.
"Yes please," Kalili squeaked.
"Fair enough," Kahula sighed. "I'm gonna head inside to get a drink of water."
"Hula, tell Mama you made it home safe!" Kalili yelled as Kahula began to walk towards the house. "She likes to know!"
"I will, Lili," Kahula called back.
Feeling satisfied, Kalili jumped off the fence and grinned at her oldest brother. "Okay, let's get back to work! If I'm going to show Daddy that I'm ready to go on deliveries, then I've gotta work as hard as I can!"
"Good!" Koa chuckled. "Because we've got a lot of work ahead of us…"
In case you were wondering about pronunciations of the kids' names:
Koa (Ko-uh; rhymes with 'Noah')
Kahula (Ka-who-la)
Kalili (Ka-Lee-Lee)
Koa's teasing nickname for Kalili, "Kolohe" means "Rascal" in Hawaiian. Kalili's other nickname, "Lili" is pronounced "Lee-Lee."
