Delia twisted as she fell, biting her tongue to keep from crying out in pain as her back slammed into the dirt. Rolling over with great effort and care, she attempted to stand.

This time she did cry out, barely keeping a hold of the bundle in her arms as she dropped to one knee. One hand went down to the leg that had failed her… Shit. There was no way that was going to support her weight anymore.

This was bad. This was very bad. She was already injured, five of her pokemon were dead, and she'd already sent Butterfree ahead to get Samuel. Poor thing wouldn't have been able to carry her son very far anyway, she'd trained her for displays, not anything practical.

And just to top everything off, the people responsible for her current situation were maybe ten minutes behind her at most. She cleared her mouth of blood – it said something about how much pain she was in generally that she hadn't noticed it filling to begin with – and tried to inventory her options.

Her plotting was interrupted by a noise.

She looked up to find a beedrill watching her curiously. It was obviously wild… but anything was better than the group chasing her. At the very worst, her son's death would be less painful this way. "Please," she begged, "Save my son."

The insect started towards her, then stopped. After a moment's hesitation, it buzzed off.

Delia had no strength left after that. Her baby rolled out of her hands as she collapsed. For a brief instant she had hope of the rain slowing her pursuers and confusing her trail – a hope that shattered and took all her remaining capacity for such with it as she realized it was her own tears soaking the ground.

There was a droning noise, steadily increasing in volume. The prone woman wearily lifted her head as the beedrill returned, an ariados in tow.

Hope had already died. Only desperation fueled her pleas now. "His name is Ash. Please, don't let the other humans take him."

It took some maneuvering, but the child was placed on the ariados's back. Both pokemon gave the mother a mournful look.

"I know; I'm too heavy to move. It's alright, I couldn't have come anyway. They'll never stop hunting if they don't find me. At least this way he has a chance."

No more than ten minutes after a pair of giant poisonous bugs vanished into the dark of the forest with the last thing left in the world that she had to live for, her pursuers caught up with her.

"Sir! There's no sign of any other humans. There are pokemon tracks though, looks like an ariados."

"Feh, it'll be a wild one then. Her pokemon are all accounted for. We're done here; the chief'll appreciate the irony of Jack Ketchum's son being devoured by wild pokemon."

"And what should we do with the body?"

"Nothing. She's not dead yet; viper's just waiting for a chance to strike. Just leave her, the kid was the objective and he's already dead. With how badly she's bleeding, she'll join him soon enough anyway."

"Shouldn't we verify the boy's death sir?"

"Oh, so you have a way of tracking an ariados back to its nest in its own territory in the middle of the night in the three minutes we have before an angry Samuel Oak becomes aware of our presence? If you wish to set a record for most suicide methods used at once, be my guest. I for one choose survival. Those who are like minded, follow me; it's best we not linger."

In truth, the good professor had let his training slip slightly, and it took nearly seven minutes before Samuel Oak found Delia. By this point, she was fading fast, almost gone.

As her old mentor cradled her, she gently pressed into his hand the insignia she'd torn from one of her attackers when the night had begun oh so long ago. She tried to tell him what had happened, but couldn't quite find her voice.

"I… Delia, stay with me, I… I can't hear…"

A final surge of strength, and she was able to bring her head level with his, rasping into his ear, "I heard the Voice Samuel, just like you told me once, long ago. I can see it now, just you watch… all our hope… Ash… of the forest."

And with that, Delia Ketchum – finally – let herself succumb.

Beedrill shook her head again. "You heard her Ariados, we can't let humans have him."

"But different humans," the spider shot back at his mate, "Safe humans."

"You remember our time with Janice as well as I do. There'll be some system, and one corrupt person in it…"

"And he'll wind up right back with the people who killed his mother." Ariados sighed. "Fine, but… what are we supposed to do? Neither of our species develops anything like humans."

"No… but." Beedrill halted in midair. "There's one species in this forest that develops almost exactly like them – for the early parts anyway. And a family of them just lost one of their own young."

"That… doesn't really balance out."

"I know. Human babies eat more. But if we help them, at least for a bit…"

"Alright then," Ariados nodded, "To Pikachu Hollow."

The old Seaking was injured and tired just from getting his trainer's daughter away from the sinking boat. And then he'd had to travel through the night, keeping his charge from capsizing in a ship-killing storm.

He'd left the tempest behind miles ago, and finally found land. Not much of it, but an island was better than nothing. Dirt was dirt after all.

He would have likely regretted not paying more attention to the needs of his trainer's species, if not for a slightly more pressing concern.

Namely the gyaradoshunting party that was eyeing him hungrily.

The old fish steeled his resolve. This… this was the single ballsiest move he could think of. But his only other option would be to fight, and if he fought he'd lose, and that wasn't an option unless the child was safe.

"I invoke the rite of the forgotten shoal!"

The gyarados exchanged glances, some of them even backing off slightly before one of them swam closer. "And what young do you pass to us?"

"My trainer's daughter, who is as my own sleeps in the raft I pull. She alone survived the storm that destroyed her ship."

"A human?"

"I am a Son of Cerulean Cape, and I declare she is as my own." It was stretching things, he knew. But there was a –

"Very well. She is now one of ours. Has she a name?"

"Misty. She was born Misty of Cerulean."

"Then she is now Misty of Seafoam. So we declare and so shall we witness to this world."

"And so shall I witness to the world beyond."

And with that, Seaking was swallowed, the rope attaching him to the rubber dingy severed cleanly by the bite.

Lance just stared at the carnage before him. An entire city block in the middle of downtown Goldenrod, shattered. The building the now-defunct organization had been operating out of simply gone.

And walking towards him with steady gait through the flaming wreckage, Samuel Oak.

"Professor…"

"Save the lecture Lance. Save it for the day when your student loses everything she has on your doorstep while racing to beg for your help."

"…Actually I was going to ask you to call me next time. I never met Delia, but Jack was a friend."

"Look, if you guys are gonna eat me, couldja at least kill me first?" the poliwhirl's actions betrayed his words, eyes scanning for an escape route.

Until he saw a splash of red in the middle of a pile of sleeping magikap that was decidedly the wrong shade.

"You fools." It was barely whispered. As if realizing the dissonance between decibels and import, the poliwhirl repeated himself, increasing the former by an order of magnitude, "You fools! There will be no safe place for miles after this! You do not hunt human children! Quick, help me get her back to them before we're all dead!"

There was a cackling laugh, "I take it my grandchildren failed to explain then? The humans have no claim on the girl, she is one of ours by the rite of the forgotten shoal."

The poliwhirl stilled at that. "I… I see. Well, actually I don't, but that's not the point. I take it I'm not about to get eaten then?"

"No. you see, while we are doing our level best to raise her well, the school is aware that there are things we simply don't know how to teach our Misty – for one thing, how to walk."

"Huh, you're actually raising the kid. Completely I mean – plenty of pokemon colonies have half-adopted human children they basically babysit, but… Who'da thunk, another one."

"Another one?"

"Right, you probably wouldn't have heard this far out. I'm actually from a bit a little north of that volcano to the west, and apparently there's another human kid near the coast being raised by pokemon."

"The same as here?"

"Pretty much. In the forest near a town on the coast. I think he's technically being raised by some of the local Pikachu, but to hear the stories, he's basically the whole forest's kid."

"Interesting. Do you think you could lead some of our number there to arrange a meeting? It would be good for her to have a friend like her, even if distance would only permit them to see each other so often."

"Shouldn't be a problem. There's this one huge river that's supposed to run through the area he's in, think there's even a couple gyarados living up that way, so shouldn't be too hard to travel."

The spearow laughed as the relatively weak Thundershock splashed off him. "Tingly." He fixed the older of the two pichu he'd cornered with a look. "A few years and an evolution, you'd be real dangerous. Unfortunately, right now you're prey. Shame you're not bigger."

Which was when he got hit in the chest by a decently sized rock. "So how 'bout me?"

The spearow moved to make a flashy retort, but paused as his chest twinged where he'd been hit. "You… are only just too much trouble to count as prey. Congratulations, you live."

It didn't occur to the spearow until he'd flown away that the human boy had been speaking the same language as the rest of them.

"You're complaining he kept his sibling from being eaten?"

"Arceus no, I'm just worried. He keeps picking fights."

"Never any he can't win though."

"It's only a matter of time."

"Even if he doesn't, you have to admit he'll get a reputation eventually. We need to prepare him for when they come for him."

"And for when he leaves. I know the rest of you don't like to talk about it, but he's going to have to re-enter the human world eventually – peripherally at the very least – if for no other reason than to find a mate. He needs to be able to interact with them, and we haven't been preparing him for that."

"…so …we need to find some pokemon who can teach him how to fight without access to attacks, and we need the most trustworthy human we can find to teach him how to… well, how to human."

Professor Oak gave a wry smile as he trudged up the hill. If he hadn't started training again, he'd probably be gasping for air right now.

The smile turned into a grimace as he recalled exactly why he'd resumed said training.

He froze as he finally reached the clearing the Pikachu had been leading him to. After a moment, he realized he was staring and shook his head, chiding himself. He'd already been thinking about Delia, and a passing resemblance in the boy before him meant he'd jumped to an impossible conclusion. He'd thought he was past this part of the grieving, maybe he needed to give Agatha a call, see if she could help him make sure there was nothing left he could do. He might be able to move on then.

Regardless, he needed to focus on the present.

The boy seemed to be five or six, and was looking at him curiously. Still, he didn't seem to be afraid of Oak per say, and he took the outstretched hand with a mix of hesitation and shyness. "Hello there, I'm Professor Samuel Oak. What's your name?"

The boy made some kind of sound, but it definitely wasn't a name. "Ahhhhhhh, can't talk? Well that's alright, I should still be able to help get you to your parents anyway."

The professor started to lead the boy out of the clearing, but stopped when he found the way blocked. The two pair of pikachu who had led him here had been joined by a second female and all three were glaring at him with sparking cheeks. Additionally they were being backed up by a marill, and he didn't particularly fancy being shocked while wet. "I, ah, take it you don't want me to leave?"

There was no direct response, but the pokemon seemed to calm slightly. Ah yes, he had forgotten the… joy… that these guessing games could be. Sometimes it seemed one's skill with pokemon directly correlated to one's skill at 20 Questions.

"So am I a prisoner then?" A head shake from the male pikachu. Alright, presumably that meant he simply couldn't leave yet.

"You need me to do something then?" Yes.

"Is it related to the boy?" Yes.

"You need me to find his parents." No?

"You need me to find his family?" Sparking said definitely not. He'd thought it might be the phrasing, but… hold on.

"Do you need me to get him away from his family?"

That got a reaction. The boy behind him whimpered and pulled his hand from the old man's grasp. He was halfway to the far side of the clearing before Oak had turned around.

The boy likely would have already bolted, but one of the female pikachu had cut him off with what looked like Agility.

As he watched, the pokemon calmed and comforted… no, he realized, she was mothering the boy. He'd heard about this before naturally, but he'd never witnessed it directly.

"I'm not supposed to take the boy with me when I leave, am I?" No, of course not. He didn't even need a response to that question.

He could see it now, the weathered-but-almost-clean clothes that had been patched with several kinds of string shot, the naturally silent steps in the middle of a forest, the curious gaze – as if he'd never seen another human before – when the professor arrived, and above all, the understanding that was obvious between boy and pokemon.

He was Theirs.

"So what am I here for?"

As if in response, a farfetch'd landed next to him with a… no, with his medical bag.

Ah, that then.

He wasn't sure how these wild pokemon knew – presumably some trainer's pokemon had told them – but a part of the licensing for sponsoring trainers and giving out starters included a requirement that he be able to perform at least a basic pediatric medical check-up.

Oak wasn't necessarily qualified to be a medical doctor himself, but he could at least verify if and when the boy actually needed one.

Twenty minutes later, he was closing the bag back up. "Well, he's basically healthy. He'll need some immunizations, but I can bring those out here later once I get them. I'll also give you some vitamin supplements for him once we get back to my lab. That should balance out any dietary deficiencies. Was there anything else you needed me for?"

His answer was another item.

Specifically, a book entitled Reading with Phonics.

"Ah… yes, that hadn't occurred to me. You… do realize that teaching him to speak, read, and write won't be a simple one-time thing? I'll probably need to see him weekly – though it could be as scarcely as monthly or as often as daily – for a few years at least. And he'll need to keep practicing even when I'm not around."

A brief conversation that he was the only one present not to understand, and then a round of nods. "Alright then. I'll need a few things from my lab and its fairly late in the day. Should I meet you here tomorrow?"

The male Pikachu shook his head and waved his tail twice. Two days.

"The day after tomorrow?" Oak verified. He'd long ago learned to make sure everything was confirmed in these conversations. For one thing, fewer misunderstandings meant he was able to help better.

He also got the feeling that in this situation it would mean him getting zapped less.

The pikachu both nodded at the trio of gyarados and their poliwhirl guide. The female spoke for both, "I think he'd definitely enjoy having a friend like him. We're sorry he couldn't be here for you to meet him yourselves."

"Still, from what the locals told us on our way up here he seems like a decent kid. What's got him busy though?"

"Well if we'd known you were coming we'd have made arrangements, but he's on the far side of the forest now with the rest of the family. A human that we trust has been helping him learn how to talk like they do."

"Really?"

"Yes, it took us some time to decide, but in the end we felt that he needed to be able to function in the human world as well as ours."

"That… makes a lot of sense. Damn, I can't believe we overlooked that for Misty. We'll have to mention that to the elder when we get back."

"By the way, will you be going with them poliwhirl?"

"Well, the kid's walking now. I should probably be there to teach her how swimming with limbs works, but we'll want to wait until summer for that, so I've got a month or two, why?"

"Well, we might have a request, but first we really need to ask; How are you at hand-to-hand combat?"

"Do you really have to leave so soon?"

"I've been here just long enough to realize that I'm not good enough to teach him. Also, Spring's ending early this year, which means there's a girl I need to teach how to swim over the nnext few weeks."

"Do you know any poliwraths then? Anybody who can teach him?"

"Honestly I think you're overcomplicating this. With all the pokemon at the old man's ranch, I'm sure there'll be at least one or two fighting types who could help."

He stared as the other human got out of the water. Sure, his parents had told him that he'd be meeting a new friend who was like him, but actually meeting her…

"Hi, I'm Misty of Seafoam."

"Hi Misty, I'm Ash of the Forest."

"I'm sorry Samuel."

The professor smiled sadly. It was for this very reason that he'd put off calling her for so long. "Don't apologize Agatha, if anything this might help me find the closure I apparently still need. You… are sure though?"

"Yes. The Spirits found no Ash Ketchum among the living. If it helps, that baby hair you gave me didn't call any lost souls, so the remains were at least handled properly."

Samuel was broken from his musings when his latest student arrived. He started to greet the boy – who had yet to give his name – but stopped when he noticed someone else behind him.

The child of the forest followed the old man's gaze to the girl behind him and smiled. "Friend." He said, looking at Oak and pointing at the girl, "Like Me. You Teach?"

It took the professor a few moments to parse the sentence (Most of which was spent on realizing what "Like Me" meant in context.). The speech was broken, not even on par with his apparent age group, but not bad for seven months of talking.

His verbal response: "Of course, will she be joining us every time from now on, or only every so often?"

His mental response: "Shit. They don't have the usual social constraints, so now I have to figure out when it would be appropriate to teach sex ed."

"Okay," Hitmonlee sat up stiffly and located the Hitmonchan and Machoke who had also been caught in the blast. "What did the kid just hit us with? Anybody?"

"Bad day." Hitmonchan threw an arm over his face as he lay on his back.

"I recognize it," Machoke spoke up, "My trainer's in Sinnoh right now, and they've got something that looks kinda like that down there called Aura. Pretty sure that was the undeveloped version. I'm up to rotate back into the team next week, none of the pokemon at the ranch can help him with this, but some of the ones down there might be able to. Don't worry," He turned to the human's adoptive parents, "I'll be discrete. I know the rules, I'll keep the secret. If I do manage to find anyone who'll help, I'll send them to the lab. You can make a decision from that."

The male pikachu nodded, "He needs at least enough training to control it, otherwise he might hurt himself. It's the same as with young pichu, you have to teach them how to channel their inner lightning or they end up hurting themselves. And unfortunately you're right, none of the pokemon we know can teach him this. Just… please, be careful."

"This clubhouse. Storm shelter too. Rain last all night, you use her bed – that one. She no mind."

"Thank you. For helping me out there and for this. What's your name?"

"…Better no tell. Secret. Get back ask Oak. I show way in morning."

"Well I need to call you something."

"Make then… what word… N… Nick-name?"

"Okay, how about… Yellow!"

"What?"

"Well, you're wearing a yellow shirt, and you've got a yellow pikachu with you.."

"Okay… call me Yellow. What you name?"

"Serena."

The raichu stumbled backwards, reviewing the situation. The pikachu had gotten back to his feet, but was paying more attention to that female pichu he hadn't been able to finish with than he was to him.

The annoying part was that he could afford to because of the human between them. Who apparently had Lightningrod. And had already taken out his left eye with the sharp end of the Stick he was holding.

The raichu used the present stalemate for a moment of thought, the turned and fled.

"And where do you think you're –"

"Ash! She's bleeding! Believe me, I wanna gut the bastard too, but…"

"…Right where do we take her?"

"The nest's closer… but the ranch has better equipment."

"They're the same way for a bit. I'll carry her, you run ahead and get one of our parents, we can let them decide."

"And if I can't find them?"

Ash bit his lip for a moment. "The ranch. I can't tell how bad she's hurt, we might not be able to move her twice."

The fact that not surviving the longer trip would mean there was nothing they could do anyway went unsaid by both.

"I'm back Gramps!"

"Oh, Gary, there you are. I'd been looking for you."

"Sorry. I went exploring and got a little lost."

"Ah. Well, looks like you found your way back alright."

"About that… There was this other kid. Talked kinda funny, but he showed me the way back. I'd never met him before though."

"Ahah. I was wondering if he might introduce himself to you, given how much time you've spent here lately."

"Who is he?"

"He actually still hasn't told me his name, but you're not the first young person he's helped find their way back to town. One of the others started calling him Yellow though, and he'll answer to it."

"So what are you again?"

"I am a Lucario."

"Sorry, I just –"

"No need to apologize, we are not often seen this far south. Or even in this region. Itactually took me almost six months to get here from my home."

"Officially I'm here because my kin and I received word of a youth powerful with Aura in this area."

"And unofficially?"

"I'm a member of my kingdom's noble court who has been quietly exiled following an embarrassing scandal."

"Really? I don't mean to pry, but –"

"But you need to make this interrogation seem like a natural conversation and playing the part of the local busybody serves that end. I understand completely."

"Eheh… heh…"

"Worry not, I take no offence. As I said, I understand. Aura alone would make any youth possessed of it a target. To answer your question though, I had a… dalliance was the word the old farts used the most. With a Zoroark that was travelling with a trainer. Bad enough that I polluted my bloodline with that of a dark type, and an illusionist at that, but then he and his trainer – who'd managed with one of the local girls what his pokemon had managed with me – ran off, leaving both the females they'd impregnated high and dry. When I refused to let them take away my egg, I compounded the dishonor further and branded myself a pariah. Honestly if there's no aura sensitive here its fine, I'm just want somewhere quiet to raise the child who should be hatching soon."

"I see." The lucario looked up to see a pikachu had arrived. "I assume the egg is in the bag then?" She asked.

The lucario nodded, shifting unconsciously to remind herself that the weight of the drawsting backpack was still there. "Yes. My unborn child is the only thing I truly had need to carry – I was able to forage for food along the way – so the bag met my needs."

"I see…" the pikachu repeated, lost in thought for a moment before nodding as she apparently decided. "Walk with me and talk with me. Let's see if we can't find at least one of the two things you came here for."

"May, Max, run into the forest. Vigoroth, you go with them. Stay with them and keep them safe."

"But –"

"No! No arguing on this one. They already got your mother, I'm not letting them get the two of you. Now go, all three of you. And… no matter how long it takes, you stay in that forest until I come for you, understand?"

"I…"

"Do you understand May?"

"Yes Daddy…"

Norman watched as his pokemon led his children into the woods, regretting that he had insisted on moving now instead of next year like his wife had wanted.

The man let that regret power his fighting as he did his best to contain the fallout of a criminal organization tearing itself in two. Nine months later, the remnants of the two factions would rechristen themselves Aqua and Magma.

"Professor, what's a pokemon trainer?"

…

Marill sighed and looked to the other mothers in her nest, "In hindsight, we really should have seen this coming."

Ash was excitedly explaining to his brother how as soon as they were old enough they were going to go on a journey, make a bunch of friends, and fix things all over the world. The pikachu in question wasn't quite as enthused, but their sister was staring at the both of them starry-eyed. The little pichu idolized her brothers, and was totally convinced that they could go out and change the world so nobody ever had to get hurt again.

Lance felt his heart sink as he peeked around the corner. He had been hoping to disprove the rumors that a school of gyarados was taking humans, but… wait, the girl they had right now was moving. She was still alive.

There was no time for planning, the pokeball was in the air as quick as a thought. "Dragonite, Thunder!"

The move wasn't terribly accurate, but aiming wasn't exactly a major concern at present. Of the dozens of gyarados gathered in one portion of the chamber, two dropped instantly and three more were hit hard. Lance made his decision quickly, even as he raced forward, trying to cover ground as quickly as possible: Aerodactyl would be at a severe disadvantage, and friendly fire would be too much of a danger for Gyarados in a horde fight like this. Still, he needed to keep something in reserve that would be helpful here… only one of the dragonairs was released to support his heaviest hitter.

A half dozen more gyarados went down in short order, but then… something changed. It was like nothing he'd ever seen before, the wild pokemon formed up and started mounting an organized defense. Not even just the gyarados – he'd really have expected it from a single school like that – but other pokemon as well. A contingent of horsea and seadra, led by a kingdra of all things. Seaking and goldeen would pop up to deliver an attack and then vanish back into the water that he only now realized was far deeper than it looked. Tentacool and tentacruel were similarly making nuisances of themselves, taking every opportunity to slip in a poisonous attack. And any time his pokemon tried to get some distance by rising, they were forced down by the swarms of zubat and golbat infesting the shadows above.

Still, a stalemate meant time to think things through, and his pokemon were more than capable of maintaining against these odds for the time being.

And then everything went sideways.

At first, when Dragonite's most recent Thunder was dragged away to the left, he assumed it was another goldeen or seaking with lightningrod, but his eyes still tracked it out of habit anyway. He took a moment to process what he saw when he did though.

"What. The. Hell." Said the boy. He had apparently just arrived in the company of a half-dozen gyarados, a pikachu, a poliwhirl, and… was that a lucario? "How did a poacher even get this far?"

Any confusion at the nature of the question was quickly shelved. As it happened, a moment's time to process was a moment too long, as the boy – not the pokemon who were with him – exploded into motion. Dragonite was caught off guard too as the human delivered a chain of blows that bore a suspicious resemblance to a Close Combat attack.

The dragon was forced back a step by surprise and gave another so he could regroup. As he came back swinging with elemental punches however, he was again surprised – not only was the child unflinching as fire and ice passed within inches of his face, but he was simply weaving around the strikes – though he was giving ground to do so. After a few seconds of this, Dragonite dispelled the Fire Punch from his right hand and switched to a Thunder Punch in the hopes a glancing blow might paralyze the kid without hurting him.

And that was where things went weird. The boy wove around another Ice Punch and then stepped forward. From inside Dragonite's guard, he reached out and grabbed the electricity covered limb. Before his opponent could even register that, he had spun on his feet, and turned himself into a fulcrum for the now over-extended Dragonite.

In truth, it wasn't so much the throw he was going for as the large dragon tripping over him, and it didn't do much itself. However, the Ice Beams from some of the more battle-scarred gyarados, supporting Dragon Rages from the majority of the rest, and the Dragon Pulse from the kingdra thrown in for good measure had significantly more effect.

Still, Lance's Dragonite wasn't as famous as he was for nothing. The pseudo-legendary picked himself up, charging a pair of ice punches – still determined to put this kid down without hurting him.

And then the lucario struck.

It growled at the human while it used Close Combat to amplify the Force Palms it was slamming home. Dragonite's eyes widened in shock as the boy growled back, but after that he was too busy trying to erode the advantage that momentary lapse had given his opponent.

The boy meanwhile made another move – this time for Lance himself. With the tide quickly turning against him, he released his second dragonair, and, when she found herself busy with the pokemon who had come with the boy, he released his aerodactyl as well. Both calls for reinforcements cost him though – he was barely keeping ahead of the boy when he could bring all his focus to bear.

"Come on! How'd a poacher get all these rare pokemon to help him?"

Lance blinked as that registered. "Poacher?"

WHAM!

This time, it was a throw.

Bruno opened his door, understandably curious about who was knocking. Not many people knew about his mountain cabin after all, and most of them would have called ahead.

He blinked in surprise at who was there. "Lance… what the hell happened to you?"

"You remember I went to check on rumors that a school of gyarados were hunting humans?"

"Yes…"

"The rumors are false. Apparently the gyarados of the Seafoam Islands have been taking care of a human girl for years."

"And so you attacked what turned out to be their nest, they took exception, and this happened."

"Actually… no. It was a pretty even fight until another human showed up – apparently a friend of theirs."

"Oh? Tell me about this trainer who was strong enough to get past your team and do this to you. I think I might seek them out."

"…Bruno… there's no easy way for me to say this. I just got my ass handed to me by a nine-year old boy who thought I was a poacher. You know more about fighting than anyone I know, what do I need to fix."

Bruno stilled at that. "…A child you say? You underestimated him."

"Not hardly, I had just watched him use hand-to-hand to outmaneuver Dragonite."

"…I see… the boy had an unusual connection to the pokemon, didn't he?"

"Yes, him and the girl both."

"…Tell me, were any fighting types present?"

"N… Yes. A lucario showed up when he did."

"And his fighting, was it inhuman, or merely ludicrously skillfull?"

"Ah… the latter. He handled a Thunder Punch without the electricity even phasing him, but with the way he was avoiding ice and fire I'm guessing that was a skill."

"Or and ability… You're sure there was no blue light show?"

"Only from the lucario, why?"

"No, that doesn't… but maybe…" Bruno looked up. "His connection to the pokemon, was it just the lucario, or all of them?"

"…All of them I think. Bruno, is there a point to this?"

"Yes." At first Lance though it was an answer before he realized his friend had become lost in thought again. "Yes, that would do it." The fighter's attention returned to the dragon master. "Tell me Lance, fighting him, did it remind you of me?"

"No, not at all. You have plenty of skill Bruno, don't get me wrong, but I've seen you go at it, you focus on strength. This kid was all speed and precision, raw skill."

"Yes, that would definitely happen if one started that young. Pure power isn't an option, so he compensated. Lance, there is a threshold you will have to cross to get better than you are now – a painful one at that. It is one I have crossed myself, and I suspect it is one this mysterious boy has crossed as well. I've seen you fight too, and the fact of the matter is that the only thing left for you to do is open yourself up to a… different variety of opponent."

"And where would I find these opponents?"

"Well, I would let you ask some of mine, but that might not be a good idea until you and your style have both grown into the new level. So I'd have to say to start with the ones on your belt."

Lance gaped at him.

"I did say it was going to be painful."

"It's hard to believe its been two weeks since he got here."

"Ash has that effect on things." Misty smile at the Elder as he swam up to her.

"Indeed he does. Just looking at the way he's helped you says volumes."

"What do you mean?"

"Misty… When this place was your whole world, you hid your insecurities well. But since you met that boy I have not seen you worry about fitting in even once." He chortled at her surprise, "And I suspect the two of you are going to have at least one conversation in the near future about minnows and krill, and possibly even looking at currents and hunting grounds."

He cut off her blushing protest with an even louder laugh. "Don't worry, I've already seen enough to know what's there. I'm not so old to have gone blind – though I may have seen it even then. Whenever you decide, know that you have my approval and blessing – again, I'm not fool enough to believe you'd wait for permission or want it, so I won't give you that.

"It does make what I have to say next a bit easier though… Misty, my Misty… Little Misty… I have watched you grow for years, and daresay I've been the one in the school most like a parent to you… which is why I wanted to handle this myself.

"Ash is leaving tomorrow, back to his home. I want you to go with him. He's planning to leave on his human journey come spring, and it was already planned for you to be with him until then… Now, you will simply be with him longer."

Misty looked startled at that. "Elder? I… I don't understand, am I being banished?"

"No! Absolutely not! Misty, you aren't capable of the kind of things that would warrant that. But… I've been in discussions these past two weeks, with the other senior members of the school, as well as the elders of the other colonies. Misty… we would have lost that fight, with that older human. Had Ash not shown up when he did, the stalemate would have broken, and not in our favor."

"And I'm the reason he was here."

"I won't insult your intelligence by pretending it didn't come up. But the deciding reason was that this will let you realize your potential better."

"What do you mean?"

"Humans… they can be truly awe-inspiring sometimes. After all, just one of them matched our entire alliance. But to grow fully, you need incredible amounts of space – ideally, the entire world. And that is why we're sending you away, so that you can grow into your potential and then come back stronger than any of us could ever imagine – likely with a group of powerful allies as well."

"Wait… are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"Indeed I am. When Ash leaves on his journey, you are to go with him. You are to travel with him, train with him, grow with him, battle with him, and learn with him. But more than that – which I somehow suspect you might have done anyway – you are also to be a pokemon trainer. This journey is for your own sake as much as for his."

"You… you really think I can?"

"My dear child, I believe that someday the whole world will feel your wake."

Celebi sighed. Whoever had sent that message from the future detailing what Ash would be capable of had been thorough beyond belief. There was no way to undo the message without – in the best case – triggering another ice age. So she had had to correct for the differences.

No matter how sick it made her to have Janice's mother fall ill so the girl would retire early and release her pokemon at the right place and time. Or get the Waterflower parents into position to win a free three hour tour as a door prize. Or cause the accident that led to the Petalburg Gym having a vacancy earlier than it otherwise would have. Or manipulate Archie and Maxie into having their final insurmountable difference of opinion crop up a year early and then deliberately maneuver Caroline so that Norman would be desperate enough to send his children away to keep them safe.

And she still had to do almost all of his later companions. Though at least some would, like Brock, be best left where they were to gain what they needed to help. That was some small comfort at least.

When the time came to do what she now knew she had to do to Dawn though… Celebi was definitely going to need a lot of alcohol after that one. She just hoped she'd be able to down enough on her first try to knock herself out – tipsy time travelers were a very bad thing, which was why she usually avoided the substance like the plague.

Still… After they saved her in Sinnoh, she felt she would have to explain everything… and beg for their judgement. Dawn definitely got first claim on killing her, followed by Max, considering what she'd already done to him, and then… she sighed again as she realized exactly how long of a list she was going to have to make.

She sat there for a moment, silently trying to will a dozen or so blue boxes – or at least one – into existence around her. After a good bit of fruitless waiting, she decided she'd simply have to make do with the little mattress a kind child had placed in the nearest time shrine.

As Gary Oak stood drinking in the adulation of his fans, basking in the glory of being a brand new pokemon trainer, he was scanning the crowd. All of the noise and people seemed to fall away though, as he caught a familiar set of brown eyes.

The eyes were part of an equally familiar boy, who was leaning on a fence with a girl who was nearly as familiar. The surprise he felt was natural – both of them were reclusive at the best of times, and he hadn't seen either one in two months. They had never even told him if they planned on befriending some of the other local kids after he left.

As such, his guard slipped – though not enough to keep him from wincing guiltily as the name slipped unbidden from his lips. "Yellow?"

A/N: There was a foreword, but after I lost count of how many times my computer and the site conspired to erase it, I decided to take a hint.

Some ground rules for this story that I'm going to be keeping myself to:

Ash... wasn't raised as a human. Not entirely. And that's only the largest difference between him and canon Ash. That said, he's still gonna be the same basic person. The reason I highlighted what I did here though... I'm not sure how to make this both delicate and clear (Especially given how much I want to avoid spoilers), but he grew up without the effects of human culture. His contact with humans other than Misty and Professor Oak was severely limited, and the Professor... he wasn't an additional parent for Ash, he was a teacher. He knew full well that Ash was living in a world where human culture didn't exist and trying to live by its rules might be a liability. And quite frankly it wasn't his place to decide what rules Ash lived by.

So he taught Ash (and Misty) basic skills - talking, reading, writing, math, elementary sciences - and he gave him a full knowledge of his own biology since nobody else in Ash's life would have been able to, And yes, he did teach Ash about human culture in little ways, but it was always Ash looking in on humanity from the front window. Human culture was never his. Where I'm going with this: The premise of this story makes it essentially unavoidable that Ash, not having the same ingrained cultural mindsets as other humans, sees things differently and makes different decisions.

I'm going to say it right now, some of those decisions are going to make people uncomfortable.

That's not to say that I'm going to go out of my way to make the readers uncomfortable, because I won't. I just don't want to get four regions in and have people start freaking out because Ash's decisions don't make sense to them, or he takes things further than a kid his age would.

Which brings me to my next point, yes, he is ten at the start of this. And yes, he will age, though not as much as most people and cultures will feel he should for the kinds of things he's going to be doing.

Also bear in mind that all of the above applies to Misty as well, it was just simpler to write one name.

Yes, Brock will be joining them in Pewter, as will all of the travelling companions at their appointed times. No, we won't be seeing any more of them until they do, I just needed to lay some groundwork for the changes you're going to see.

Ash will be catching all of the pokemon he had in canon, though the circumstances will change slightly on a few. He will also be picking up a few extras here and there. He will not be completeing the pokedex. He will be picking up a few Legendaries. He will not be picking up every Legendary. His battling style will be less straightforward and more experienced and effective at first, but he will eventually grow into the same crazy "off-the-wall" methods he's known for. Team Rocket will largely be responsible for this, as I hold they are in canon. (He's so terrible in league matches because over 90% of his combat experience is in situations where there are no rules.)

Speaking of Jessie, James, and Meowth, they'll be here, don't worry. Their roles however... The fact is, they're undersold, primarilly because of Ash. There is a definitive case to be made that they are some of if not the top operatives Team Rocket has. I'm simply going to show that. They will also be picking up one or two new faces along the way.

Ash will be keeping his identity quiet, but it won't be some big secret. From his point of view, if any of the people who tried to kill him hear about him, it'll be after he's ready to take care of himself. I will say that he's underestimating their spies. I will also say that... someone else isn't.

On the subject of Ash underestimating people, yes, Ash will lose some fights.

Finally, fighting. Yes, Ash knows how to fight, no, he's not an Aura Guardian. Not yet at least. He's just starting right now, and while he can pull off some attacks, they're mostly things humans are capable of anyway (Karate Chop, Low Kick, Close Combat). He does know force palm, but hasn't yet made the breakthrough to learning Aura Sphere. Like in other areas, and just like his pokemon, Ash has room to grow and he's going to use it.

Tangentially connected to that last point is a rule that's going to be softer than the others. It's one that he breaks in canon at least once a region anyway, so I can't be too hardnosed about it, but I want this to feel as parallel as possible. In battles, Ash will primarilly be sticking to things that were available at the time he used them in canon.

In other words, no using Steel Wing and Iron Tail to sweep Pewter. I've seen that done a good dozen times, and none of them pulled it off without cheapening the entire thing.

So yes, its a soft rule, and the only one listed here that I'm going to break, but there will always be a story-driven reason for it when I do.

So now that my rules are out of the way, I want to say something about updates. They'll probably come in waves. There's a reason for this. Some of you might be following one of my other stories, and if you are, then you know that those tend to deal primarilly with rather heavy subject matter (Sometimes handled rather farcically, but still). While this story will deal with serious and heavy things (see current body count) it will be primarilly lighthearted and slightly less serious. Largely because of perspective differences, typical stakes, and camera focus, but still.

Basically, this is the story that I'll be focusing on when I get blocked on my others; which will hopefully work better than the last time I tried it due to the different tone.

Anyway, thanks to anybody still reading.

~NPP-VI