Rainbow Guardians

Here's the other story! This one is a bit different in plot and includes an OC. For those who don't like OCs, how can I practice original characters without giving it a go.

Also, I am struggling to decide who I want Ash's father to be for this one. The regions will be done a bit of different order, too. We will skip Hoenn and go straight to Sinnoh then do the Battle frontier. They will then go to Galar, where Ash and Leah split (Spoiler, I know,) and Ash will then go to Alola on his lonesome.

Edit: this chapter was updated on the 10/11/2020. Edits I am making to the chapter, include a little more depth into some of the characters, and more detail here and there. On the whole, I will be giving their pokemon nicknames, except for a few. As, my sister raised a point, you don't call your dog or cat dog or cat, you call it Sam or Luna, so why wouldn't pokemon be the same?
Enjoy.

Ash Ketchum excitedly bound up and down, watching the preview of the Kanto starters. Tomorrow he was going to start his Pokémon journey, and one of those pokémon will be his partner! Everything was packed and ready to go, excluding the few items he couldn't pack until the morning. His alarm clock had been set by his mother, and she had placed it by his door so that he wouldn't break it before the morning, which was a normal occurrence.

Delia Ketchum, the proud mother of Ash, knew her son was liable to stay up late when he was excited, and in turn was hard to stir. She took it upon herself to make sure his alarm was set to go off at half-past seven, with that being enough time for him to shower, get dressed, finish packing and have breakfast before getting to the lab at nine. Back in the day when her older sister had started her journey, it had been seven-thirty to arrive at the lab: much more respectable now.

The Ketchum's had just finished dinner, and Delia was reading a book in an armchair in the living room while Ash was on the floor, reading his 'Trainer Guide for Dummies,' periodically playing with a toy pokéball he had while watching Professor Oak's advertising. Ash wanted tomorrow to be now! He had so many plans for his journey and the Pokémon he would catch on his travels. The planned for his starter to be Charmander, as it would evolve into Charizard, one of his favourite Pokémon.

Charizard was a great addition to any trainer's team. Ash spent quite a lot of time helping Professor Oak when he didn't have an assistant, (which was often) a job where he met lots of Pokémon, including a few Charizard, and heard stories. That was what sold Ash, that and he wanted to prove to Gary that type advantage wasn't everything, as his former friend often boasted about how he was going for Squirtle.

Ash was not much of a reader, he'd be the first to admit it, however, this book he was reading now, his trainer guide, was very interesting. It had been a gift from his mother, and his mother had insisted he read it if he wanted to become a Pokémon Master or a trainer full stop.

The most noteworthy thing about it at a glance as it was at least twenty years old, but inside it was gold. In here, Ash had all the tips and everything any trainer needed to know, including some handwritten notes. After he finally started reading it, Ash, for the first time in his life, found something to read he could not put down. Ash recalled Leaf mentioning she and Gary had read the same book, and they loved it too.

"Ash, I think you should go to bed now," Delia said, looking over to the clock as the show finished.

"But, mum! It is not even nine yet!" Ash whined, glancing up at the clock.

"You have a big day tomorrow, and you don't want to be tired and sleep through your alarm: you might miss starting your journey. Besides, the sooner you go to sleep, the sooner you can wake up again," she pointed out.

"I suppose. Alright: good night' mum," Ash nodded, closing his book and slowly standing up as his mother turned the TV off.

"Night' sweetie," Delia said, standing up and kissing her son on the forehead.

Both then trudged to their bedroom, Ash daydreaming about his grand moment when he won at the Indigo Plateau. He changed into his nightclothes before hopping into bed and attempting to go to sleep. He lay there with his eyes closed until he finally fell asleep, thinking much the same thoughts as before going to bed.

ASH!*((( )))))*ASH!

"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!" the alarm clock of Ash sounded, intruding into his sleep. Ash groaned and turned over: what a rude noise! He didn't want to get up, and if Ash knew any curse words, he would be cursing his mother.
As Ash turned back the stupid thing off, a realisation came to his mind. Today was the day he would start his journey! That made Ash spring out of bed and jump into action, eager to start his quest to become a Pokémon Master.

He went straight to the bathroom where Ash brushed his teeth and showered. After his shower, he changed into the outfit his mum had gotten him for this adventure. It consisted of: blue pants, black shirt with a dark blue and white vest over the top. Then finally the heirloom green backpack, (came from his father's family,) and Ash's favourite hat: the official league expo hat he won two years ago, when an eleven-year-old from Hoenn called Phoebe Irelanda won the Kanto League, following the failure at the Silver Conference the previous year.

Phoebe then returned to Hoenn and won there, unsurprisingly being invited into the Elite Four to succeed one of the current members. Not that she would be officially one of the Elite Four for a few years, as the chosen successors had to have at least two years special training before they could succeed who they were set to replace.

Ash shook his head, getting his mind off that extremely talented trainer and onto his travel plans. He planned to get to Viridian City by evening, but just in case, he was showering this morning, when Ash normally showed in the evenings. Besides, that was his hope, if he was being realistic, Ash knew he'd likely arrive at the city tomorrow morning. Most trainers took a day to get there, it was rare for it to take more or less than that.

Ash's father had apparently taken three days to get to the city, which Ash couldn't believe, not could Leaf when he relayed the story to her. Then again, beyond that, Ash knew nothing of his mysterious father, so maybe it was imaginable? Ash wished his mother would talk about him more, as Ash was inclined to think him the product of a one-night stand: not entirely desirable.

Ash had been to Viridian City once before with Professor and Gary, on a shopping trip, and it was half a day's travel there and back with a car. Cora, a girl who started journeying five years ago said she got to Viridian in a smudge over a day, continuing to strengthen Ash's disbelief of his father's journey time to the city.

After his shower, Ash gave his hair a quick comb in a half-hearted attempt to convince it to sit down. After putting on his cap, Ash gathered up the remaining items he needed to pack, which proved to be harder than he imagined. For example, his trainer guide was nowhere to be found, and he searched everywhere! Eventually, Ash found it behind a cupboard just outside his mother's room: Ash had no idea how it ended up there.

He then grabbed the berries for his Pokémon, which were in the fridge: Oran, lum, Cheri, sitrus, rawst, Pecha and aspear berries were packed, along with a couple of potions and revives his mother had brought when she'd gone to Viridian City last week.

Pancakes were for breakfast, but as Ash went to help his mum bake them, he accidentally spilt the mixture involving the ball smashing, which meant they had to remake it. By the time he had eaten, Ash was walking out the door ten minutes after he was supposed to. He'd tried to tell his mother that he would be fine without breakfast or just an apple, but his mother was having none of it.

After bursting out the front door, Ash quickly ran through the streets of Pallet Town, hoping to not arrive too late. Professor Oak would give him a starter, but by now Leaf and Gary would have already chosen theirs. Ash didn't think either of them wanted Charmander, but he didn't want them to have too much of a head start, and you never know which they will end up picking.

As Ash ran up the stairs to the lab, he almost ran straight into Gary Oak, Professor Oak's grandson, coming the other way. The two boys used to be friends, then something happened which set them apart. By the time Ash next saw his friend, the boy had changed and didn't want to be even around Ash.

"Hehe, Ashy-boy has finally arrived. Bet you overslept: we have barely started and you're already miles behind!" Gary taunted. The brown-haired boy was giving Ash a smug and superior look, and the raven-haired boy did not like it.

"No, actually: Just had a whole heap of rotten luck," Ash said, walking right past, ignoring Gary. As he continued, Ash couldn't help but felt concerned because of Gary's expression, making Ash think the boy knew something he didn't.

Ash arrived at the door to the lab, where he knocked hard. After a few seconds, the door was opened by the current assistant of the Professor, whom Ash did not know not remember the name of. Because he sprinted all the way there, Ash had been catching his breath leaning against the door, meaning he almost fell on top of the said assistant.

"Ah, Ash: the professor is in his lab. I trust you know where to find it," the assistant said, moving to let Ash come in. Despite not remembering his name and the fact the man had only been here for a month, this assistant was very nice and kind to Ash.

"Thank you, sir," Ash nodded to the male assistant. Ash thought his name might have been Rodger or something similar, but he had only been here twice since he started. Ash quickly went upstairs from the house to where the lab was.

"Professor!" Ash cried as he burst into the lab. He glanced around and saw the elderly professor at his desk, typing onto a computer. Ash couldn't be sure, but it looked like he was on the league site, perhaps sitting up the trainer bios for Leaf and Gary.

The white-haired Professor turned around in his swivel chair, looking confused until he spotted Ash. "I hear you have had a few hold ups morning," he stated.
"Yes, Professor! How did you know?" Ash asked in disbelief. How did he know that?!

"Your mother rang to say you were coming, so I was expecting you, despite wondering if you were coming for a while there. Unfortunately, I don't have any starters left," the Professor said, looking embarrassed and sad.

"What?!" Ash exclaimed in disbelief while other emotions rushing towards him.

"Well, there was an ongoing issue with a child from another town getting his pokémon from me. He first was going to come, then he wasn't, and today he just turned up and I only found he was coming five minutes before he arrived: I hate his parents, the type that change their minds' at the drop of the hat. Since you were late and Ritchie wasn't, I could hardly not give him a Pokémon, though: I'm sorry. Gary and Leaf were already here, and you were not: I'm sorry, Ash," Professor Oak said, sounding very sorry, unsure what else to say.

"I understand, I think," Ash said sounding very disappointed. He was trying hard not to cry: Ash had been looking forward to this day for a very long time, and for someone his age this much of a disappointment was a lot to take.
Professor Oak meanwhile felt very, very bad, and immediately tried to work out how to make it right. "Well, I could still give you a pokémon, but… would you mind your starter being a bit different, Ash?" he asked, coming up with an idea. He had just caught Pikachu causing trouble to the local bird pokémon; it was fairly weak, so he thought It suitable for a newbie. His only concern was it had one nasty temper, and the professor was not sure about giving it to a beginner for that reason, but maybe it would be okay. If anyone could get it to come around, it was Ash.

"Yes, Professor! I wouldn't mind one bit," Ash said, instantly perking up. Professor Oak silently sighed: he couldn't think of any other Pokémon to give Ash.

"Well then—" the professor started, but then the door opened, causing the professor to stop his speech.

"Professor, there is someone here to see you," the assistant said, poking his head in.

"But I am not expecting anyone else!" Professor Oak protested, dumbfounded. Who could it be now? There was no one he was expecting, no visitors, no new trainers, no suppliers: nothing. After he was done with Ash, the professor was looking forward to relaxing with a poem and tea, perhaps ringing Daisy to see how she was doing in the Hoenn Region.

"Well, sir, there's this girl: she's a ten-year-old wanting to start her journey, or so the girl said," the assistant said, stepping to the side to reveal a short, light blonde girl wearing rags for clothes. She had green-blue eyes, and stepped through, looked around very nervously. Despite the nervous outer shell, Ash and Professor Oak could see there was a spirited girl beneath.

"Oh no," Professor Oak sighed very quietly.

"I turned ten a couple of days ago: I live in an orphanage and when I heard about Pokémon training, I thought it sounded like fun, and it also seemed the only way to escape the life I had. Please, sir: I would really love to start a Pokémon journey: I travelled for two days to get here," the girl said, pleading. "I have always loved pokémon, but I rarely get to read or meet any for the Head Matron hates them. I know nothing, but I'm keen!"
"Alright, I will find a Pokémon for both of you!" Professor Oak nodded, trying to think of something else to do.

The girl had travelled far, but more importantly, she was honest and keen. Both traits he liked to see in trainers, making him think she was deserving, he had to give her one, too. Professor Oak had now decided that giving Ash that Pikachu (which he had only just captured and had a questionable temperament to boot,) was a bad idea, and would likely only lead to Ash getting put in a hospital.

Now Professor Oak thought about it, he had just the pokémon that would suit the boy, and a pokémon he thought the girl would like. He quickly went off to find them, telling the children he'd be back. He shook his head and wondered why he didn't think of Riolu earlier. While he wouldn't normally give such a rare pokémon to a beginner, seeing that girl and Ash together reminded him of people he had met in his youth, who had had those two Pokémon: fate told him he needed to give them those pokémon.

"I'm just starting my journey, too: I personally thinking loving pokémon is par for the course to be a trainer. I'm Ash Ketchum!" Ash said brightly.

"Hi. My name's Leah," the girl, Leah, nodded timidly. Then she added, "I may be missing something, but it doesn't make sense to go on a pokémon journey if you don't like pokémon."
"What Pokémon are you going to catch? Which gym will you do first, if gym training? Have you decided on a path as a trainer?" Ash asked, asking a lot of questions, bamboozling her.

Poor Leah just stared at him. "Umm, I don't know. I don't know anything about being a trainer really, or gym battles," Leah said shyly. "As I said, I can name a few pokémon and I just heard about gym battling: other than that, I know nothing."

"I know all about it! And I have the awesome book mum made me read! You can borrow it if you like! Why don't we travel together?" Ash suggested brightly. "I can help you!"

"But you have only just met me! Why would you want to travel with a stranger you know nothing about? This could all be a facade for all you know!" Leah cried in disbelief. She couldn't believe this boy was happy and eager to travel with a stranger, and she was not so sure about it herself. She knew nothing about him, and she was always told to be wary of strangers... though perhaps kids were different?

"I don't mind! It would be fun! We will have all that time to get to know each other, Leah!" Ash said, looking confused at her protests. He couldn't understand her problem: people were always meeting up and travelling together, it was half the fun of travelling!

"O-okay," Leah said, looking unsure, but agreeing nonetheless. Ash seemed okay, and he didn't seem the type to be putting on a show to lull her into a false sense of security.

Meanwhile, Professor Oak had returned and had two pokéballs in his hand, but he stopped at the door to listen in. Perhaps eavesdropping was unbecoming at his age, but Oak didn't ponder on that train of thought for too long. He smiled: Ash was such a nice child, and he would look after that girl, Leah.

He was concerned though: he was told the child came from an orphanage, but the clothes were worrying him, along with the fact she hadn't learnt about pokémon when it was mandatory in schools, orphanages and just about everywhere else.

Oak resolved to find the name of the place out and look it up, as they should be better dressed and educated on pokémon than this girl. Lance had been talking about orphanages recently, as a few needed to be reminded how they treat their kids correctly, along with teaching about Pokemon. It was now a law that each child at the age of ten must be knowledgable enough that they could start their pokemon journey if they wish.

"Right: I have them here," Professor Oak said, announcing his presence as he entered. "Ash, I want you to have this one: I think it will suit you perfectly." The professor said, going up to them and handing Ash a particularly red pokéball.

Ash took it as he said, "Are you sure? Thanks, Professor! I wonder what it is?"
"No problem at all, my dear boy. How about you see what's inside?" Professor Oak suggested, suddenly painfully reminded of Delia's sister.

"Okay," Ash said, brimming with nervous excitement. He walked away from the other two, just in case the pokémon got a fright or panicked and lashed out. "Come on out!" he cried, throwing the pokéball into the air.

It released the Pokémon inside a few feet away from him, bouncing off the ground beforehand. What came out was a blue and black Pokémon, about the size of a four or five-year-old child. It's feet and hands looked like paws, and it had a blue tail. After a second, the Pokémon turned around to face Ash, saying, "Ri?"

It looked as though it had a black mask over its eyes, Leah could now see. "Wow! A Riolu! Are you sure, Professor? They are supposed to be very rare!" Ash cried.

"Are you my master?" Riolu asked, approaching Ash. It raised its right paw, and Ash touched it with his left hand. A blue glow surrounded them both.

"Just as I thought," Professor Oak nodded, satisfied with that his hunch that Ash had the Satoshi family's gift.
"What, p, pr, professor?" Leah asked, confused and not understanding what was going on, or what Oak was talking about. She had never seen anything like this before, not that she had seen much: something told Leah that was all going to change.

"Ash's mother's sister and their grandfather were able to use aura, considering their connections with various Lucario: so, I thought Ash would be able to, too, after seeing how he interacted with them at the lap. That we have just witnessed is a rare phenomenon Aura Users create with Riolu called an Aura Bound. It happens when a trainer and Pokémon able to use aura meet and form a connection instantly, it means no matter the distance, Ash and Riolu will be able to communicate, and through Riolu, Ash will be able to understand all Pokémon, if he so wishes," Professor Oak explained.
"Wow, that's cool!" Leah said, wondering if there were other abilities similar.

"Yes, it is. Now, sorry: what was your name again?" Professor Oak asked, looking embarrassed. He was upset with himself, as no more than five minutes ago he heard her name mentioned.
"Leah, sir," Leah nodded.

"Ah! What a fine name," Professor Oak said. He then looked as though he was trying to remember something, or rather, someone from a long time ago.

"I know, Riolu! We are going to be a great team!" Ash said brightly: the professor and Leah had missed the rest of the conversation, as the glow fades away. The two had been discussing the future, with Ash finishing with that remark.

"Well, glad to see you two getting on famously. Now, Leah, time for your starter: take this one, it is a nice friendly Pokémon, according to Professor Rowan from Sinnoh," Professor Oak said as Ash and Riolu turned their attention to Leah and Oak. Professor Oak was holding a Pokéball out to Leah.

"Are you sure I am fit to look after a Pokémon?" Leah asked, unsure.

"You'll be fine: I have seen much worse start their journey," Professor Oak said smiling.

"Okay," Leah said, slowly taking the pokéball. Ash wondered if like Riolu's, the pokéball Leah was holding was nice and smooth.

"Go!" Leah said, taking a few steps away from Ash and the Professor, and releasing her Pokéball, trying her best to copy Ash.

What emerged onto the ground was a medium to small-sized bird. Its body was fairly large, compared to a Pidgey, at least. It was mainly dark grey in colour, with a white patch around its eyes and under its neck. It had a black tail, black ruff around its neck and a bit of black over the top of its head.

It took off, crying, "Starly!"
"Wow!" Ash exclaimed.

"What is it?" Leah asked, bending down to be at the bird's height when it landed again.

"A Starly. They are known for living in noisy flocks, especially when they're after bug Pokémon. They tend to stay in groups or flocks until they reach their final form, Staraptor. It knows a special move called Steel Wing: for whatever reason Professor Rowan taught it that via TM," Professor Oak supplied.

"You said it was from Sinnoh, right?" Ash asked as Leah tried to catch Starly's attention. The Professor nodded. "Okay: if I recall, they have a lot of similarities to the Pidgey line," Ash nodded.

"Hello, Starly," Leah said nervously. Starly was looking at her curiously.

"Starly?" Starly chirped.

"Wow, it was almost as if it was asking me why I was scared!" Leah exclaimed.

"Part of the amazing thing of Pokémon is the first Pokémon a trainer receives has a special bound allowing them to have a natural understanding for their starter. Not to be confused with Aura Bound, which is a true speech understanding, whereas this bond is more along the body language line. Not to mention an aura bound allows a trainer to fully understand every Pokémon, while most people have to learn and guess from experience, and even us experienced trainers make mistakes as a result," the professor explained.

"Wow, sounds amazing. Hey, Starly, I want to try and become a trainer: would you help me? I am going to need a lot of help as I know nothing," Leah asked, bending down to be its height.

"Sta!" Starly nodded, then it flew and landed on Leah's shoulder.

"Wow! Great! Thank you!" Leah said, slowly lifting a hand to gently stroke the bird. It was actually quite a heavy creature, surprisingly.

"Great! Now, would either of you like to nickname your Pokémon?" Professor Oak asked.

"No way!" Riolu said to Ash. It sounded like an angry "Ril!" to Professor Oak and Leah though.

"Not for us, thanks," Ash said, chuckling slightly.

"What do you think, Starly?" Leah asked, thinking it was the polite thing to do. After all, it had a right to decide what everyone was going to call it.

"Sta! Starly!" Starly said: it liked the idea very much!
"Alright, I just have to think of one," Leah said.
"Don't Pokémon have genders? And how do you tell?" Ash asked Professor Oak.

"Well, just come over here, and I will issue a Pokédex for both of you: it will tell you. As a general rule, you can't tell, however, some Pokémon, such as Butterfree, look different if their male or female: their wing patterns are different," Professor Oak said, walking over to his computer, with Ash, Leah, Riolu and Starly following. Then he explained what a Pokédex is to Leah, with Ash asking a few extra questions.

"Sounds useful," Leah nodded, grateful such a device existed.

After pulling two Pokédexes out of a shelf, the professor put one in a machine that looked like a DVD player, then he typed a few things into the computer.

When Professor Oak had typed all he needed to, the first Pokédex popped out. "Here, Ash: open it and see what it says," the professor instructed, handing the device to Ash.

"Thanks, Professor!" Ash said, taking it gratefully. The device was in the shape of an old-fashioned flip-up style mobile phone, just bigger. It was red with black parts, a screen in the middle, a big blue button and a few small buttons on the other side.
"Hello, I am the Pokédex of Ash Ketchum: if lost or stolen, please report. If found, take to the nearest Police station. I am ready to scan my first Pokémon if Ash speaks the voice activation," the Pokédex said after Ash pressed the big blue button.

"Good. Now, point it at Riolu," Professor Oak nodded, waiting to be certain it worked.

"Right: what do you know about Riolu, Pokédex?" Ash asked, doing as the Professor said.

"Riolu, emanation Pokémon, on level beginner level which is five. It knows how people and Pokémon feel by looking at their auras. It doesn't approach dangerous opponents. It's tough enough to run right through the night, and its also a hard worker, but its still just a youngster. This Pokémon is average height and male."

"Wow! That's so cool!" Leah cried, hoping hers would do the same. If Ash kept his book offer open, with that and this device she would learn about pokémon quickly.

"Thanks, Professor," Ash nodded.

"Right, Leah, your turn for your Pokédex," Professor Oak said. He then went on to ask Leah information about her, name, and hometown. She made her hometown Pallet District, to mean she came from that area around Pallet.

"And, here you go," Professor Oak said, pulling out a Pokédex similar to Ash's except it was white instead of red.

Leah did exactly what Ash had done to activate the Pokédex, and it said the same thing as Ash's, except it belonged to Leah Lin. Having to have a surname to be a trainer and not knowing hers or perhaps not having one, Leah decided on Lin: she was not even sure why perhaps just Leah Lin rolled off the tongue so well.

"Right, thanks, Professor," Leah nodded. Then she said, "Let's scan Starly, then."
"Starly, the starling Pokémon, on beginner level which is five. They flock in great numbers, though small, they flap their wings with great power. This Pokémon is female, and larger than average for its level, standing at 1'09 feet."

Starly let out a chirp, and flew off, doing some quite cute things. "Wow! That's so cute!" Leah said, giggling slightly.

"Umm, excuse me, Professor, how do level's work? And why's Starly so large?" Ash asked. He had scanned Starly as well, and at the moment Leah was scanning Riolu.

"What are levels?" was what Leah asked.
"Good questions! That's the level of the Pokémon's experience, a standard outline for us to keep track. Every battle you do counts as experience, so to speak. When you have earned enough points, it will grow up a level. At certain levels, the Pokémon will evolve, which naturally is to do with their maturity. This is what we created to keep track of Pokémon growth and how long until they are due to evolve. Of course, some need stones or certain areas to evolve. Throughout your journey you will see very large and small Pokémon, even if they're the same creature: like us humans, some are destined to be taller or shorter than average," Professor Oak said.

Then he added, for a bit more on levels, "Of course, we use levels for research, but other than that they don't crop up much. The leagues will have a level minimum and maximum, and gyms simply guess your Pokémon's level from your badgers: zero is considered to be around level twelve, one eighteen, two twenty-four, three twenty-eight, four thirty-four, five thirty-eight, six forty-two, seven forty-seven, and eight just above fifty. But generally, there is no need to know your Pokémon's level."

"Does the training affect the life-span of Pokémon at all?" Leah asked quietly.

"Not really, and in fact, studies have shown it increases it if anything. Now, would you like to name your Starly?" Professor Oak asked.

"Yes. Does it's evolved forms keep the star in their names?" Leah asked, and the Professor nodded. "Well, how about Star? Starly, what do you think?"
"Sta!" Starly cried. She seemed to like it.
"I think that's a winner," Professor Oak commented.

"Right, Star it is!" Leah nodded.

"Good, good. Now, we just have to fill out your trainer licences, and we're done," Professor Oak said.

He asked Leah the same questions as earlier, but also had her birth date and emergency contact, (which ended up being the professor,) and then the professor printed out two cards; blue for Ash and red for Leah. "There, you're both registered trainers!" Professor Oak said cheerfully.

"Great! Thanks, Professor!" Leah and Ash said.

"And here: here are six Pokéballs, which should allow you to catch six pokémon. Including your starter, that would mean you own seven Pokémon: when you reach number seven, the newest Pokémon will be traded back here. If you wish to swap the seventh Pokémon into your party, call me from any Pokémon Centre. Eventually, I'll finish the upgrade that allows you to swap a pokémon in your party with a pokémon here at my lab whenever and wherever you like. Take two potions and a revive each, as well," Professor Oak said.

"Wow, thank you! There's a lot to remember," Leah said, concerned.

"It will be fine!" Ash said brightly.

"Is there anything else to learn?" Leah asked, shaking her head.

"I don't think so, professor? Oh! What generation does the Pokédex go up to? Why does it look different from the pokédex the trainers who started two months ago?" Ash asked. For the last year, he had watched all the new trainers get their starters, and took in everything.

"Well, this is a new model: those were updated versions of the just Kanto and they had up to Sinnoh Pokémon. However, you five starting today have gotten the beta version of my new Pokédex, which will register Pokémon in every region up to the Alolan Islands and the Galar Region. Eventually, you will be able to call people with it as well transfer your Pokémon. Bill and I are still working on the software for that, though," Professor Oak said, getting quite excited.

"So, Gary, Leaf and the other boy got one, too?" Ash asked.

"Ritchie is his name: yes, you are all very lucky trainers to be the first ones who receive this dex," Professor Oak said. "Any remarks good or bad, remember them and tell me next time we talk."

"I feel honoured: thank you! Well, we should head off, I suppose," Leah said, feeling nervous but somehow excited, too.

"Yes, you two hurry along before you get too far behind the others," Professor Oak said, trying to hurry them out and get them going.

"Okay! Star, do you want to stay inside your ball or be out?" Leah asked.

"Starly!" Star cried, flying onto Leah's shoulder.

"Riolu, would you like to stay out?" Ash asked, and Riolu nodded.

"Let's go then! Bye, Professor!" Ash nodded, then he ran off.

"Wait! Bye, Professor," Leah said, just gazing after Ash.

"Take these, too: Pokéball belts. What was the name of your orphanage?" Professor Oak said, handing Leah two belts, with six things that probably hold pokéballs. Leah stayed long enough to put one on, put her pokéballs on it.

"Thank you so much, professor! Umm, it was called Sunny Futures," Leah said quickly, wondering why he needed to know. She almost asked him if he knew of anyone called Mars, but she decided against it: there were probably plenty of Mars' in the world, and it wasn't like she knew her surname.

"Thanks," Professor Oak nodded as Leah ran off to catch up with Ash. So much for going together, Leah thought. She hoped this wasn't common, otherwise, it would get old very quickly.

"Hey, Ash! Wait up!" She cried, distressed as she burst out of the lab. Thankfully she had always run around a lot for playtime, and they had done physical sports, too.

!

"Here, Riolu: this is where I live!" Ash exclaimed as they reached Ash's house, coming to a screeching halt outside. The duo had run all the way there, and both were a bit tired, particularly Riolu, who was still quite young and had been spending a lot of time in his ball.

"Ash! You're back!" Delia said, coming out looking excited. She hugged her son, then looked at him happily, happy but nervous he was now a trainer setting off into the world. "My little boy is all grown up!"

"Mum! This is my partner, Riolu!" Ash cried excitedly.

"A Riolu? That's great, honey!" Delia nodded with a bit of delay as if something upset her.

"Err, mum, are you alright?" Ash asked tilting his head.

"Sorry: my sister's starter was also a Riolu," Delia said, shaking her head. "Dad had worked very hard to find it for her."

"I have an aunt? What happened to her? Why hasn't she visited?" Ash asked.
"Now's not the time for that: you are starting your journey with a great Pokémon!" Delia said. "Hi, Riolu, you're part of the family, now!"
"Thank you," Riolu said.

"That's okay. Take care of Ash, okay?" Delia said smiling.

"Ri!" Riolu responded with yes.

"You'll be going off to Viridian City, now, right?" Delia asked.

"Sure are, mum! I am just waiting for Leah," Ash nodded.

"Is she a new trainer too?" Delia asked, and Ash nodded.

"There you are, Ash Ketchum! Please don't do that again!" Leah's voice said. Ash looked back the way of Professor Oak's Lab, to see Leah running up towards him, panting hard. Star was glaring at Ash, looking ready to kill.

"Sorry. Leah, this is my mum! Mum, this is Leah: she has just started her journey too!" Ash said brightly.

"Nice to meet you, M, Mrs Ketchum, isn't it?" Leah asked, doing a little bow.

"Nice to meet you, Leah. You two going to be travelling together then?" Delia said, and the two kids nodded.

As hard as she tried, Delia couldn't help but notice the clothes Leah was wearing: they were basically rags. "Well, we should probably go now. Do you have anything to change into, Leah? They are not really suited for travelling," Ash asked. Delia realised it must be really obvious if Ash noticed it; when it came to though things like that, he was pretty dense. If she was honest, unless it was about pokémon, her boy could be very dense about things, much like his aunt.

"No," Leah shook her head shyly. "I saved up a bit of money because I didn't know if becoming a trainer costed money, so I saved up about five thousand. Now, I am planning on using that for a change of clothes, then supplies, considering no money was needed to sign up."
"You look like you're a similar size to my sister when she started: you could at least take some of her old clothes," Delia said, deciding.

"That's a great idea!" Ash nodded, thinking it seemed reasonable.

"Thank you, but I couldn't possibly accept that! You don't know me, and your offering clothes?" Leah said, disbelieving. No one was that generous, were they? She was always told they weren't and told to be grateful for what she had.

"Well, neither of us are going to need it, and Daphne, my sister, isn't either: so, I'd gladly pass them on to you," Delia waved it off.

"Okay, if you insist. Just a short stop first, Star," Leah said, speaking to her Pokémon.
As Mrs Ketchum turned around and walked back inside the house, she made sure Ash and Leah were following. Delia asked curiously noticing Ash called his partner by its name, "Is Star the name of your Pokémon?"
"It's what we agreed on together," Leah nodded, suddenly feeling quite shy.

Delia Ketchum nodded as she led them both upstairs to the attic. She took them over to a rather dusty old trunk, getting down on her knees and opening it. "Would this be alright?" Delia asked, after sifting through and pulling out what looked like an overstretched long-sleeve yellow shirt, black pants, grey runners and a tatted straw hat.

"That would be great. Thank you, thank you, so much," Leah said, oozing with gratefulness. Leah then took it, admiring it, though she realised she would like like a farmer, not that she minded. Farmers were wonderful, hard-working people, and she knew everyone else wouldn't survive without them.

"No problem really. I was never really sure what to do with her stuff, but I'm glad I hung on to it now," Delia said. Then she pulled a photo album, feeling like Ash deserved to see her.

"This is her right here," Delia said, opening it and pointing at the first photo. It had two brown-haired girls in it, one Ash was pretty sure was his mother, the other one looked like his mum, only with hazel eyes and slightly darker hair. His mum was wearing a pink shirt, purple shorts and pink and purple runners along with a floppy hat. Daphne was wearing a white hat, blue shirt and red skirt. There was also a Riolu hiding behind Daphne, Ash noticed upon second glance.
"You both looked so happy," Leah said quietly. She felt a little awkward here, even though Delia was showing Ash AND her, or so it seemed.

"She had just started her journey then. A year or something later, she came back just before she went to Johto, as mum and dad were dying. For the first time, I left the town. We had no other family, so I tagged along with Daphne and her friends, still being too young to start myself," Delia sighed.

"What happened then, mum?" Ash asked, eager and wanting to know what happened to Daphne.

"Team Rocket was an organisation trying to improve and create technology, however, they were slowly going bad and loved power and money too much, so they turned to crime. It all started in Cianwood City: there was a big battle my sister was involved in, along with her friends, Blue, Red and Green, and they were all killed. I and Daphne's pokémon were sent back here, and I stayed with the Professor, who had been close to my parents, and they all helped each other. Instead of starting my journey as I had always dreamed though, I went to a university, until I ended up returning here. You see, I had no idea about the fight and Team Rocket, I had thought the explosion had been caused by Pokémon in a training accident, so I was scared to start, and blamed them. By the time I found the truth out that they were actually killed by Team Rocket, I had a new life and was engaged to your father, Ash," Delia said, crying.

"I'm so sorry," Leah said.
"Yeah, mum. Are Daphne's Pokémon still around?" Ash asked solemnly, curious to ask about his dad but not bothering as she always avoiding answering before now.

"Yes, at the Professor's lab, including her Lucario: Pokémon can live for a long time, and this was only twenty-five years ago," Delia nodded. She added, "Sometimes pokémon live and see two generations of a family live and die."

"Can I go and visit them someday?" Ash asked, interested and curious of the stories they would tell. He wanted to learn more about the incident, perhaps use it to help police end Team Rocket, and get revenge for Daphne.

"Yes, but not today. You two need to hurry on your way," Delia said. Leah and Ash nodded, then Leah went to get changed: Star flew into the air while she did so. After putting everything on, she pulled her hair back into a low ponytail so she could wear the hat.

When she came back, Leah discovered Ash had found a yellow backpack for her, along with a raincoat. She quickly put all her stuff in it. "Thanks, Ash. Here, your pokéball belt," Leah said, handing it to Ash. Star landed on her shoulder again.

"Oh, thanks!" Ash said, taking it and equipping his pokéballs to it.

"Now, there are a few other travelling items in here: such as sleeping bags and a tent, though if it's not raining, it's nice to just sleep on the ground," Delia said, gesturing to the items further down and giving her experiences.

"Oh, that would be a good idea," Ash said. Both took one, though Ash had to throw it at Leah before she would take it.

"Now, you two better go," Delia said. Ash and Leah nodded, and they headed downstairs.

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"Just one question, mum: is Daphne the reason you know so much and have so many books on Pokémon? Did my trainer book belong to her?" Ash asked as he and Leah walked out the front door.

"Yes, it is, and the book is my families, the Satoshi Family's, heirloom. Now, Good luck, Ash! I love you! Don't forget to change your underwear every day!" Delia said, pulling her son into a big hug, and she kissed him.

Leah giggled at that last comment, while Ash looked embarrassed, and glared at both women. "Good luck, Leah. Now, you two keep an eye on each other and look after you both! And please, be careful of Team Rocket! They might have been doing good once, but they are not now: whatever they tell you is a lie, not to mention they will try and steal your pokémon," Delia said after letting go of her son.

"We will remember that! Bye, Mrs Ketchum!" Leah said as she and Ash went to leave.

"Bye, mum! I'll call you when we get to Viridian City!" Ash said, knowing his mother would have meowths if he didn't.

"Ri! Ri!" Riolu said. He was saying goodbye, not that anyone other than Ash could understand it.

"Sta!" Star called, also saying goodbye. She liked the mother of the human with too much energy and thought she was extremely kind to help a stranger as she just had.

"I'll hold you to that!" Delia called to Ash.

As she watched them walk away, she smiled. "Ash made a good friend. I just hope he doesn't recognise Ash, or their life will be much more complicated then it needs to be," Delia said worriedly. Her ex-husband, she knew, wouldn't take much notice of Ash if he kept out of trouble, but knowing Ash, that was impossible. She turned and walked inside, planning to call a couple of friends, asking them to keep an eye on Ash when he travelled through their hometowns, just to be safe.

Hey, would you like to give me some ideas for Leah's background? I don't mind really. I will put teams at the start of the next chapter. Yes, in this story Ritchie is the other trainer. The backstory is something you have to look forward to: Delia always seemed very keen on Pokémon yet didn't have one before Mimie. Here's a possible explanation. Her maiden name is Satoshi, and Daphne looks like the playable female character from Fire Red and Leaf Green. Leah currently looks like Yellow from the Manga.

Aura will be part of the story and quite important. Some characters will be changed in some way, just wait and see to find out what I mean. Movies done will be: Celebi, Latios and Latias, The Lucario one (wait and see to find out how it works,) the Shaymin one and the Darkrai too. Not sure about Arceus movie, and the first movie won't be written, but it will happen, just along the same lines, or that's my current plan.

How big groups do you want them to travel with? Three, four or five? Ash and Leah will basically always be travelling together. There will be Misty for certain parts, and Brock for Johto, Tracy for Orange Islands, then Sinnoh Lucas, Dawn and maybe Brock. I would maybe had trainers for Johto and Orange. Misty will appear once or twice when they reach Sinnoh. Battle frontier will be Ash, Leah, Dawn, Brock and Maybe Lucas. In Galar Ash and Leah will have an undecided old friend, and Gloria or Victor, depending who the person is and their gender.

Pairings:
I am really sorry, and I know I said this, but I'm leaving Ash and Leah's pairing, for now, no firm decisions, just see where they take me. They won't be paired together, as their relationship is akin to brother/sister. Again, I'm really sorry, but I think this will work best for me. Almost certain pairings:
Misty X Tracy

Dawn X Ash, Gary or Barry

Ritchie X Casey (may not appear or not until semi-established)

Brock X Lucy

Candice X Zoe

Sonia X Leon

Lucas X perhaps Marnie? Not sure, he may be someone I decide to be not entirely straight.

For characters of similar importance as Zoe and Candice, you may suggest pairings of her and same-sex. For those not fond of Same-sex, it will be mostly background, so a little bit of the relationship, but hopefully enough that it won't ruin the story.

Do you want Ash to get Pikachu at a later date?

Please vote on the poll! Feel free to suggest who you think Leah's parents are or who Ash's father is. Neither will have any connection to Tobias or Riley or if Ash and Riley are related, it's like a cousin.

Legendaries: to defeat one you have to be as strong as a champion, or near enough, and to capture them they need to decide that, and you need to appear worthy. Ash and Leah will acquire some overtime, and I know exactly when Ash will get his first one (cough# Latias Latios movie#cough.)

Thank you, and peace!