Notes: Everyone has smart phones and selfies are a thing even though it was still technically the late 90's when the Orange Islands episodes were produced, but I just don't give a frick anymore. And if you can convert physical matter to data I'm sure cell phones and wifi are not that much of a stretch.

Fam Jam

Chapter 1: Rides in trucks with strangers

Okay, so they'd been told to just wait for a few days at the Tangelo pokémon center for him, that it was really nothing and he'd be back in a few days. Just a small detour! Nothing major!

Lies. All no good lies.

Misty noticed that whenever Tracey was trying to spin a lie his face would get all flushed and he'd look anywhere but directly at you. The sky, the ground, a Krabby digging in the sand, didn't matter. If he wasn't looking you right in the eyes Tracey was definitely lying.

Nevertheless he insisted everything was totally fine, nothing to worry about. And that was that. He wouldn't tell them what was so urgent about the text message he'd received and just left them there to rot.

After a few hours (what felt like an eternity to Ash) of reading and re-reading all the magazines in the center and getting mad at the wifi for crapping out Ash had finally had enough. He couldn't take being lied to, he did not want to settle with being bored. He'd already won the Orange League, had the darn GS ball and just wanted to get back so he could get some home cooking and start a new adventure. And for once Misty was totally on board with him, though she was slightly less selfish than Ash and just wanted to know what suddenly turned Tracey into such a secretive person.

"I mean, what's so exciting or bad that he can't share it with us? Right?" Ash grumbled and folded his arms across his chest as they walked back towards the pier. He didn't even know where to start, Tracey could be anywhere by now. In the city they were currently standing in or in any of the smaller towns on the other side of the mountains. Ugh, Ash did not want to walk up any mountains.

"Well, everyone is entitled to their secrets. He seemed to antsy though and that worries me…I hope nothing bad happened." Misty kicked a pebble away and stared across the water. "I just hope he's okay wherever he is."

"More of a reason for us to find him and yell at him! You should be able to trust your friends when you're in trouble! And we're friends, right? Right?"

"How do we even start to look for him though? We only saw him go off in the direction of the mountains but we don't even know if he went that far." Misty pointed out their lack of leads, but Ash was not about to give up just yet.

"Then we look everywhere for him! I mean, the island can't be that big. It's an island! Islands aren't that big…right?"

Misty just put her face in her hands and groaned. "I don't know, Ash."

That's when she remembered something. Right after Tracey received the mysterious text message he'd gone off to make a quick phone call. Misty had overheard him having a conversation, not in any language she knew but one word was used repeatedly and she understood that one perfectly.

"Mama."

"I'm sorry, what?" Ash gave her the strangest look, from his shoulder Pikachu perked up and its ears twitched curiously.

"Pikachu! You know what I'm talking about, right? You heard it with those big, lovely ears! Tracey said mama multiple times, right Pikachu?" Misty scooped Pikachu off Ash's shoulder with one arm (while Togepi occupied the other) and spun the critter around, the creature squealed with delight.

"What are you saying, Misty?"

Misty stopped spinning, her hair a bit of a mess and she smiled. "It might be reaching, but I think Tracey may have gone home. And if that's the case he probably wouldn't be on this part of the island since it's one giant tourist trap. He's gone home to his mother and he's on the other side of those mountains."

Ash didn't seem convinced. "Well how do you know mama doesn't mean something else in whatever language he was speaking, huh? It could have been part of another word or something."

Misty shook her head in disagreement. "Noooo, he was using it how a kid talks to their parents. It was its own word and it was mama."

"Okay, well say you are right. It would take us hours to get over there and it'll be dark by then! And I'm hungry…"

"Darn it Ash, I thought you were all determined to find him."

"That was before I got hungry. Now all I care about is pizza."

XXXXXX

They were going to get nowhere with Ash on an empty stomach so after stuffing his face with an entire pizza and downing what must have been a litre of soda the Ash machine was full and ready to go once again. Now they just had to find a way to get over the mountain quickly. Hitching a ride was the best option to get their before sun fall, so they started back down at the pier where it looked like some workers were getting ready to end their shifts. Maybe one of them was ready to head home and they lived past the mountains!

When they got down in there though they were starting to think it was not the best plan after all, most of these giant men looked like they belonged in prison. Piercings, scary tattoos, cigarettes hanging from their mouths as they glared at the children walking by. Ash and Misty clung close to each other for safety while Pikachu remained alert, giving a threatening tail wag to anyone that looked at them funny or spit at their feet. Of course Togepi was oblivious to any danger, wiggling its little arms and making friendly noises at everyone.

Out of all the men though the scariest one of all was a towering, sickly skinny guy who was just covered in tattoos (even on his neck and hands!), had more metal in his face than they thought humanly possible, had half a shaved head and wore ripped clothes held together with safety pin at some parts. Weirdest of all he wore an eye patch like a pirate that only partially covered a deep scar running down the left side of his face.

They were expecting the nastiest glare of all when their eyes met his one remaining peeper, but instead he broke out into a smile (revealing a gold tooth) and pointed at Pikachu and Togepi. The man gestured some more at the pokémon holding his cell phone up, he seemed to be indicating that he wanted to take a picture with them. Ash glanced at Pikachu, they both nodded at each other then back at the man who hadn't said a word to them yet. The man swung one of his long arms around all four of them, flashed a big grin at the camera and snapped the picture.

Pulling away the man put a flat hand against his lips then forward and down towards them, almost like blowing a kiss. Realizing that they didn't understand him, the man finally spoke but he had the oddest accent. "I don't see lots of those around here. Thank you for…" His words trailed off and he pointed at his cell phone.

"No prob, Bob …" Ash replied anxiously. One second he was expecting to be gutted and now he was being spoken to by some selfie taking weirdo pirate who spoke like he was talking into a tin can with his nose permanently plugged.

The inked stranger then looked concerned. "What…what are you kids doing down here?"

"Oh, uh we're trying to find someone who knows the area to maybe give us a ride to the other side of the island. A friend of ours is kind of worrying us right now and we're trying to find him." Misty took her phone from her pocket and quickly looked through her gallery, the only picture of her friend that wasn't blurry or had him looking away was one of the both of them looking into the camera with not-so-impressed expressions (the photos after that were a series of images involving Ash jumping on slippery rocks trying to catch something, the last was of him falling face first into the water). Misty held the one of her and Tracey up and asked. "Look familiar? We think he lives around here but we're not sure."

The stranger looked at the picture for a moment, went to say something but stopped. Instead he typed something into his phone and showed it to them. "Yeah, I know that kid. He lives just over the mountain, I know his family!" The text said. "I'll even take you right to him."

"Really? That would be awesome!" Misty wanted to hug the stranger, but it was weird of enough that they were already accepting a ride from him. Misty also noticed that Ash seemed wary of him still, squinting his eyes and starring really hard at the guy.

Despite Ash being suspicious the stranger was more than happy to help them out. So they all piled into his red beater of an old truck and started over the mountainous region of the island, taking in the amazing view of the light hitting the water. Once they reach the peak of the mountain one of the tiny towns below came into view, it looked to be a rather hilly seaside town with lots of outlooks over the ocean. In town the main street had a cute cobblestone road, shops with pretty handmade signs and old fashioned street lamps. A lot of the residential houses were not typical of island dwellings, mostly old victorian style houses with intricate woodwork and spires on their roofs. The town was probably one of the original settlements when mainlanders started coming to the islands.

The rust bucket the stranger drove rattled as they came to a stop in front of one of the houses. It wasn't quite as elaborate as some of the others but it still had an attic and a large balcony that went all the way around the house. The walkway leading up to the front steps was lined with a cute little garden and whoever owned the house had quite the collection of novelty garden decorations (you know, windmills, knock-off cartoon characters, cowboy silhouettes…). This gave Misty an immediate mental image of Tracey's mom: Probably small and round, flowery dresses that were a little dated, hair pulled back in a bun, always baking and making sure the house was clean and the garden perfect.

Hopping out of the truck Ash and Misty were surprised to see the stranger get out with them, he nodded towards the house like he wanted them to follow him. Well, he did say he knew the family. Maybe he was a friend?

As they reached the front door they started hearing quite a bit of noise inside the house. Heavy footsteps, some chatter they couldn't make out, some kind of loud music and the occasional laughter or scream. Instead of knocking the stranger just opened the door and waltzed right on in, pausing to hold the door opened for the kids. Ash and Misty cautiously stepped inside.

While the outside of the house looked bright and cheery like something off the cover of a home and garden magazine, inside was a different story. The front foyer was dark with deep red walls and only a single faint light above their heads. All the other light can from candles flickering on the head, shoulders and base of a large statue that appeared to be a humanoid figure with a lapras skull holding it's hands in a praying position. Someone had dressed the statue in fresh flowers recently and sitting as its base were incense that smelled of vanilla and cinnamon next to a plate holding biscuits and mandarins. On the floor next to the statue were what they hoped were fake skulls, most of them gathering a thick layer of dust and cobwebs.

To their right was a set of stairs that simply led into darkness and to their right was a door with the words "NO ENTRY" on them. Between the door and the statue was a hallway that seemed a little brighter than the front entrance.

That's when Ash and Misty finally noticed the stranger was gone.

"Okay, so I think we just broke into someone's house." Ash concluded out loud, wondering if they should make a run for it now before the residents of the house realized they were there.

As they were either about to go exploring or make their escape they heard some footsteps creaking on the stairs, they froze and watched as a larger girl with copper skin and wavy red wearing a long, flowing black lace dress descended carrying a smoking bundle in one hand and some kind of shell in the other. She seemed to be concentrating too much to notice them, but that didn't stop the thick sour smoke from getting into their lungs.

The girl disappeared down the more brightly lit hallway, making Ash and Misty more apprehensive about going in that direction. They were about to make another attempt when two small children with hair the colour of mint gum and giant blue eyes walked arm and arm past them, giving them both a long hard look before running upstairs giggling.

What the heck was this place? Why had the stranger brought them there? It wasn't too late to turn and run out the door…

"I say we keep going." Misty said grabbing Ash's arm before he could try and leave. If these people had their friend they were going to save him.

Ash stuck his tongue out.. "If I die, I'm coming back to haunt you!"

Slowly they shuffled to the hallway and peered around the corner. What they saw now appeared to be a more typical family dwelling. Brightly painted walls of butter yellow, family photos hanging on them mostly of younger kids though they did spot a few in graduation robes and what looked like more recent snapshots. To their right on the wall it looked like someone had been keeping track of the growth their kids over the years, taking a closer look they saw quite a few names: Delaney, Edie, Sadie, Stacey and Tracey.

Okay, that could not be coincidence.

They scanned some of the family photos for confirmation and found a few that sort of looked like their friend except in all of them he had much longer hair that was either pulled back or braided, there was also one of a small kid in a hooded Vulpix onesie that sort of matched but the image was more amusing than it was informative. They just couldn't believe he possibly lived in such a place.

Continuing their journey down the hallway they found two open rooms, one had music blaring from it and the other some strange stomping and clicking sound. In the room on the left they found a massive man with dark skin wearing only plaid Bermuda shorts, circular sunglasses and headphones. He had a giant mop of curly red hair, a long goatee with two braids in it and the lower half of his face was decorated in a curvy tattoo design. He didn't see them because he was too busy rocking out on an electric guitar that wasn't even plugged in as he danced around the room, occasionally thanking a non-existent audience.

To their right was a tiny kitchen that smelled of rosemary and onions, much smaller than they expected for a house of this size. Tending to a large pot on the stove there was a tall girl, also with copper skin but instead of red her hair hers was celery green with blunt bangs. She wore a bandana over it tied at the front made to look like a small set of bunny ears, her short dress was body hugging and made of a leopard print and her shoes were glittering green heels that really didn't seem appropriate for kitchen work but she glided on them like air. On her left shoulder was a tattoo of a heart with a dagger through it, and perched on her right shoulder was a Butterfree that was moving its wings to the beat of the song coming out of a small radio that sat on the counter.

The very end of the hallway opened into a large living room and dining area. The walls in this room were papered in an old filigree pattern of black and white, most of the furniture was either black or black with red accents and the carpet was a dark grey. On the far wall there was a flat screen tv playing some kind of old zombie movie while a tall thin man with scraggly long hair and pale skin lied in a couch infront of it. He was starring mindlessly at his phone and wore a very worn looking 'Iron Magmar' t-shirt, he also probably could have beat the stranger who brought them there in a facial piercing contest.

As they crept through the living room to go take a peek out the back sliding doors Misty noticed more skulls sitting in the centerpiece on the dining room table. She shuddered.

Before they could reach the doors though from seemingly out of nowhere a Sandshrew rolled slowly by their feet and into the hallway. A second later the stranger reappeared, he was with a shorter teenage boy who was also a red head with dark skin but he had the most glorious almond shaped blue eyes and wore a blue soccer jersey. Both him and the stranger were speaking with their hands, the red head almost ran right into them and he seemed upset about it.

"Desert Rose, have you seen my Desert Rose?" He demanded frowning at them, not even questioning who they were. When neither Ash nor Misty responded he made a disgusted sound and shoved by them, the stranger followed but pointed out the back sliding doors before disappearing again.

"What is this place?" Ash finally breathed out, he was so confused by everything in the house.

Stepping onto a cluttered deck out back they were greeted by a massive backyard with a huge vegetable garden. Standing probably about 20 feet away from them in the garden with their back to them Misty spotted the head of a woman that had to be Tracey's mom. The hair was the same mossy green but with touches of grey in it and pulled back into a tight pony tail, as Misty got a closer look though she realized her mental image was a bit off. Yes, the lady was rather short but not quite as plump as she'd been thinking (unless you count the pregnant belly), her strapless sundress was covered in a sunflower and Beedrill print and she appeared just as tattooed as the stranger.

The lady finally took notice of them, she seemed to scan and inspect them from head to toe before she smiled and waved. She hobbled over from the garden and onto the lower steps of the deck, a hand on her large belly. Misty noted a rather prominent scar on her cheekbone just below her left eye. She also had bumper bangs, large brown eyes and was completely barefoot.

"I don't think we've met before?" She asked in a soft, sing-song voice. Her smile was a little lopsided.

"Uh, no. We're sorry to intrude...but someone brought us here saying we could find our friend." Misty anxiously replied, she was starting to fear that they were not in the right place after all, despite all the evidence in the house to prove that they were.

That was until they heard a rustling near some swiss chard and tomato plants. A second later a fearful, wide eyed (but familiar) face slowly came up out of the plants, the woman shot an angry look back at him. Her sweet voice had a bit if bite to it when she spoke to him. "Tracey…I though you said you didn't have any friends to bring home?" Tracey didn't say anything to his mother, his face just turned a bit green and he slowly shank back into the plants. The girl with the red hair and the smoking bundle from earlier walked over to where he was hiding, waved the smoldering plant matter over the spot then kept moving on chanting something under her breath.

The lady huffed and crossed her arms turning back towards Ash and Misty. "I'm sorry for my child, apparently he's a little embarrassed by his family. I told him to bring along any friends he had but I guess he thought it was better to lie."

"N-no, it's okay!" Ash assured her, he jabbed Misty in the ribs gently. "This one is embarrassed by her family a lot too."

The lady let out a deep sigh. "Goodness no! That's still not acceptable. I'll have to have a talk to him later, but for now I think I'll let the little cabbage root in the garden. And cabbages don't get tea!" She shot a bitter look back at the garden.

Ash and Misty were just able to make out a fearful pair of eyes from just beyond the tomato plants.