"Well, the first and largest hurdle will be the expense of the license and registration fees for the both of them. We'd need to find you a guardian or guardians for the journey as well if you decided to pursue becoming trainers and the League Challenge." Samuel Oak laughed softly before taking a sip of his cocoa. "I'm afraid my old bones wouldn't be able to keep up with that kind of long-term travel." There was also the fact that Samuel wasn't even certain he wanted Ash and Gary going on a League Challenge trip even with someone watching out for them, but he elected to not voice those concerns for now.

Samuel trusted Delia and Ash implicitly, but the rest of the world was much more of a question mark, especially since the investigation into what had come to be widely known as the 'Verdanturf Incident' that had left Gary as his sole living blood relative in its wake was still very much open and ongoing. Which was actually another reason for the professor's hesitation- there were certain species of Pokémon that still caused Gary to freeze up a bit when initially seeing them, even just on a television screen, to this day. Very understandably so, Samuel felt, considering what he'd endured, but he didn't at all relish the thought of his grandson stepping into an arena as a trainer and winding up facing one of those Pokémon up close and in the flesh during a match.

Ash blinked and tilted his head a bit in confusion. "A guardian?"

"Indeed- since you're both under sixteen you'd be required to have one if you decided to take on the League." Samuel quirked a brow in Ash's direction. "They have to be an adult, and if they're not your caretaker already they're basically given joint custody of you for the duration of your trip with them. For instance, your mother would need to sign a guardianship agreement with whoever it is if she wasn't going with you, and I would have to sign one for Gary."

Ash's expression brightened. "Oh! Like, if we had to go to a hospital or something it would let them take us, stuff like that?" He then frowned in concentration, the wheels in his head churning. "Hmm...I wonder if Mom could come with us."

"Well, first you gotta decide whether you're gonna go after a Trainer's License or a Companion License, and pass the licensing exam. Nothing else can really happen till then," replied Gary evenly as he polished off his cocoa. "A Companion License is way cheaper, but I think you can only have three Pokémon, and you can't use any of the Training Centers."

Samuel nodded to his grandson. "Companion status also bars any participation in the various Pokémon Leagues. That's precisely why it costs much less for the license itself and for registration, along with only being able to have three Pokémon registered to you at most- it's assumed that your Pokémon are going to be, well, companions, and that you're not going to be making use of any League facilities with the obvious exception of the various Pokémon Centers now and again."

"Eevee and Pikachu both need to rest and put on weight from what Nurse Joy said, too. That'll give us some time to save up and study for the exam!" Ash finished his own cup of cocoa and grinned broadly before giving the other two a serious look. "I wanna ask Eevee and Pikachu about what they want to do, too, if we can figure out a way. Maybe they won't want to battle."

Gary smiled at that. "True- they should both have a say. And, I, uh, think it'd probably be better if we just got you the license. I'm happy to help you study, and I'd definitely love to tag along if you do decide to become a trainer, but well..." Gary closed his eyes and lightly shuddered, not finishing the sentence. Ash and Samuel exchanged a worried glance before Ash wordlessly nodded to Gary, Samuel realizing that his grandson had clearly also thought about the potential of encountering one of the Pokémon that had traumatized him on the other side of a battle. "Not sure I could really focus on the battle itself in a few cases, plus it'll be hard enough to get the money for one license let alone two, right?"

An equal mix of pride that the boys were trying to consider the Pokémon's feelings and relief that Gary's name wouldn't be registered in the League's systems and out in the public eye washed over Samuel. "Well...perhaps I can help with that." There was a mischievous twinkle in the professor's eye. "I've been saving up for a while, and I do believe it the amount I have tucked away right now would be almost exactly enough for, oh, say, one of those licenses and registering them both?" After a pair of wide-eyed, happy looks, the professor pointed up towards the ceiling. "Of course, that can only happen if you pass the exam, so I expect to see a lot of studying going on while Eevee and Pikachu recuperate, hmm? The Trainer's Exam is also much more thorough than the Companion Exam, as a fair warning. I've helped out with both a few times in the past."

A gentle knock suddenly issued from the front door, Samuel answering it after Ash and Gary galloped towards Gary's room and started pulling out different information books and pamphlets on Pokémon. Delia Ketchum, still dressed in the long white cotton apron and old, ankle-length short-sleeved light blue cotton dress she wore while cooking for Pallet House, offered the professor a warm smile as she stepped inside and turned her head in the direction of Ash and Gary's voices rapidly peppering each other with various questions and information about Pokémon down the hallway before Samuel closed the door behind her. "Ah, so Ash is here like I thought, good. I had a feeling after I couldn't find him after I closed up for the night, but I wanted to be sure."

"Oh, yes he is. My apologies for not letting you know, it's been quite the eventful evening actually. Would you like some coffee or tea?" Samuel gestured towards a pair of plush chairs in front of a fire after Delia politely declined and the two settled in across from each other. "Believe it or not, the boys actually stumbled onto a pair of Pokémon tonight, an Eevee and Pikachu. They've been quite busy taking them to the Center up in Viridian after I assisted with catching them."

Delia blinked, her face showing clear disbelief and her tone also confused. "Wait, how is that even possible? Did someone accidentally let one of their Pokémon get away from them or something?"

"Actually, I'm not sure myself." Samuel rubbed his chin in thought. "But apparently from what Ash and Gary were told up at the Center neither of them had a chip, and no owner's reported them missing. They were both in pretty terrible shape as well from what I could tell when I helped to catch them, grossly underweight and like they'd been through quite a few battles without being healed." This was followed by a frown. "I'm almost wondering if they weren't abandoned, but even that would be pretty unlikely considering how much an Eevee, in particular, must be worth. Even back before everything changed, Eevees were fairly rare and commanded hefty sums or pretty high-end trade offers. I can only imagine how it is these days."

"You know, sometimes I think the Alolan Federation was really smart to refuse to join the Global League considering it all," muttered Delia sadly with a shake of her head. "Of course, I was just a kid even younger than Ash is now when everything happened, but I still remember all the panic." She then shook her head before offering Samuel a smile, her tone brightening. "On to more pleasant subjects! I hear what sounds like a Pokémon quiz show going on down there in Gary's room. I'm guessing that they're studying for one of the exams?"

Samuel grinned and returned the smile. "Indeed. I've offered to assist with the cost of the license and registering both Pokémon, but of course that's naturally predicated on Ash passing an exam first. They do have some time, at least, since I'm certain it will be a bit before Nurse Joy feels that Eevee and Pikachu are healthy enough to leave her Center. Gary's...opted to just help Ash and not go after either license himself." The professor sighed and leaned back into the chair. "I can't say I'm not more than a little relieved about that."

Delia offered Samuel a sympathetic look. "Gary still won't talk much about it, will he? I know he's opened up to Ash a little about what happened, but Ash hasn't pushed it for obvious reasons."

The professor shook his head firmly. "No, and I haven't wanted to press the matter either. I'm hopeful that someday soon, he'll be ready and able to get it off his chest fully. Perhaps growing close to Pokémon will even help him work through it." Samuel then perked up, sitting upright. "I'm just grateful that Gary has such a good friend in Ash, and I know that he considers you like a mother to him."

"Well, I definitely think of Gary as my second son as you well know," replied Delia warmly. "I was so surprised when Ash brought Gary home for the first time since I hadn't heard that any new families were moving in, but I'd say they're about inseparable at this point." She vividly recollected a dirt-covered, beaming four-year-old Ash eagerly introducing her to an equally dirty, shy sandy-haired boy half-hiding behind him named Gary six years ago, Delia grinning at the memory.

Samuel laughed heartily. "Oh, I'll never forget that day- I nearly had a heart attack when I stepped back into the front yard and Gary was gone! Then you and Ash showed up at the door with him with the boys looking like they'd been rolling in mud." His brow then raised as there was another knock at the door. "Hmm, I'm not expecting anyone. I wonder who that is. Pardon me." He then answered the door to find a very well-dressed, blue-haired trainer with a Meowth perched on his shoulder and hat in his hand standing next to a tanned boy in orange shorts and a green T-shirt that appeared to be around Ash and Gary's age, the boy holding a single, somewhat dinged up Pokéball and offering Samuel a smile and wave with his free hand. The boy's from the Orange Islands based on his looks, and probably very recently arrived considering how he's dressed. Likely a new trainer just starting the League Challenge and his guardian, then. "Can I help you both?"

"Hello there! Sorry to intrude like this, but Tracey and I noticed that your lights were on as we were passing through." James couldn't have asked for a more perfect opening to try and ingratiate himself with the legendary Professor Oak and in turn, his grandson. "I'm James. I've just become Tracey's guardian after his arrival from the Orange Islands and well, if I'm honest I'm from Saffron and very unfamiliar with these parts. Are we on the right track to get to Pewter City? Of course, considering the time I'm hoping that this is Pewter City and we can find a place somewhere to rest for the night." Meowth deliberately let out a large yawn that he halfheartedly covered with a paw right on cue.

Samuel shook his head before offering a sympathetic smile. "Afraid not- in fact, you've gone the exact opposite way you needed to. Pewter's north a couple hours or so through Viridian City, then Viridian Forest. We're Pallet Town, about as far south as you can get before being forced to hop a boat."

James let out an artfully executed groan of mock disappointment before turning his head to Tracey with an apologetic expression. "Must have gotten us turned around at some point. Sorry about that." He had gotten them turned around, of course- very much intentionally. James glanced around behind him into the evening, knowing the answer already but hoping that his performance would get him what he wanted. "I don't suppose there's a hotel or bed and breakfast type place anywhere close?"

"Well, Delia does run a great restaurant a few doors away, but she's closed at this hour and we don't have any hotels or even motels here." Samuel then waved them inside. "I'm sure we can figure out something for you two for the night. Come on in."

James offered a half-bow along with Tracey. "Thank you so very much."

Tracey wandered down the hallway that he'd heard boy's voices issuing from a few minutes later after polite introductions to Delia and Samuel, curious what was going on and becoming even more intrigued when he realized they were studying for one of the license exams based on what he could overhear. He knocked on the half-closed door, an energetic-seeming black-haired boy answering the knock with a wide smile. He then blinked and stared at Tracey.

"Uh, hi?" The question was clear in the other boy's tone, Tracey beginning to introduce himself before another boy wandered to the open door, his eyebrow shooting upwards as he, too, took in the stranger.

"New in town I'm guessing?" Dark green, somewhat wary eyes flitted down to the Pokéball in Tracey's hand and he gently nudged the raven-haired boy beside him, pointing at the red and white orb and garnering a wide-eyed reaction.

Tracey smiled at them both. "Heya. My name's Tracey. And yeah, I actually just got here tonight from the Orange Islands." He then snickered and waved Scyther's Pokéball. "Sounds like you guys are reading up for the exams, right? I only took the Companion Exam, but maybe I can still help if you want since it kinda sounds like James and I are here till tomorrow at least?"

"Awesome!" Tracey then found himself being softly dragged into the room via his forearm by the shorter of the two. "I'm Ash, and this is Gary," the raven-haired boy continued, gesturing first to himself, then the boy next to him. "We're not sure which exam we're gonna do yet, but we'll take all the help we can get!" Ash finished brightly.

The Orange Islander nodded and settled in on the floor, picking up some of the random stacks of material that were scattered on the floor and studying them. "It's some writing and multiple-choice, but there's also a part where you have to answer questions with whoever's giving you the test. I think the Trainer's License actually involves a mock battle that you're evaluated on too, but like I said I took the Companion Exam." Tracey then quirked a brow. "So which Pokémon are you guys thinking of getting? I have a Scyther myself. He used to be a battler, but his old trainer didn't want to risk him getting hurt as he got older, so I was really lucky and got him with the promise that he wouldn't be battling for some drawings."

Gary and Ash also settled onto the floor as well, Gary shrugging. "Actually, you could say we kinda had our Pokémon chosen for us. It was weird, really." Gary proceeded to relate his and Ash's discovery of Eevee and Pikachu and the subsequent events.

"Huh, that is really weird. I'm glad they're both in good hands and getting better, though." Tracey then picked up a thick book. "I remember there were lots of questions on type matchups, so we should probably start there." The three then fell into an easy companionship, the trio pulling out various books and pamphlets while Tracey tried to steer Ash and Gary towards particular items that he remembered being on the test.

After another hour or two of laughing, banter, review and study, the adults in the living room noticed that the room down the hall had suddenly grown quiet. James was the first to remark on the silence. "Ah, I do believe they've finally fallen asleep in there," he snickered. "You know, you mentioned you haven't found a guardian yet if they do decide to take on the League Challenge. I already have Tracey signed on with me, and he seems to already be getting on famously with Ash and Gary both." James carefully shrugged, trying to be as nonchalant as possible. "It really wouldn't be much more of a hassle to have Gary and Ash tag along with us, if you'd like." James, of course, already had plans to try and steer Ash towards obtaining a Trainer's License since it didn't sound like Gary wanted one, but naturally neither Delia or Samuel needed to know that.

Samuel was still wary, even though James did seem like a genuinely kind person on the surface. "I think it may work out well, but if you'll humor a request of mine first?"

"Of course. What can I do for you?" James had his marching orders, after all- whatever was necessary to become Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak's guardian, and his boss had seemed interested enough in Gary in particular that he knew he couldn't fail this job. The fact that Tracey, who he'd taken under his wing already, seemed to be getting along with them both was a fantastic, unexpected bonus.

"You mentioned that you're a trainer. I'd like to see your Pokémon, if you have them with you."

Odd request, but alright. "Certainly. Let's step outside, hmm?"