Hey, everyone! Sentai Red here with another Gaiden Episode!
Originally, I wanted to write one around after Vermilion City, but this one was actually in the planning phase for a while now and I figured, "Eh, why the Hell not?" Now, we won't see another one anytime soon, but there will be more in the works! I'll make more as the story progresses! I have plans for ones with certain characters and I know that'll be fun to write!
Full credit goes to Cherry_Bomb_Bees for helping me come up with some of the ideas in this Gaiden Episode! Please, check out her stuff on Archive of Our Own, where she's currently writing a Pokemon/Animal Crossing crossover. It's a damn good story and I highly recommend it!
Without further adieu, let's make this showy!
Gaiden 2: The Birthday Boy
"Mom!"
A young Ash yelled out. He was banging on the door to his mom's room, attempting to wake her up. He rapped on the door, with every intent to wake his mom up. Today was a special day for the young, energetic boy. In the Ketchum household, this day only comes once a year, and today it has finally arrived. Today, Ash finally turns five years old. Since the beginning of the month, Ash had been counting down the days to his birthday, eager to spend time with the other kids in Pallet Town. He was going to throw a birthday party tonight and invite all the kids over! He had been begging his mom for a couple of weeks to hand out fliers or invitations to give to the adults around town to prepare for his birthday.
"Mom!"
He tried to knock on her door, a little louder this time.
The clock told him that it was 8:30 AM. She should be up already.
After a final knock, the door opened to reveal a groggy Delia. His eyes widened with delight, eagerly to see his mom. He immediately hugged her. She grunted from the impact, before smiling and knelt to hug her son back. He had his head against her neck, his arms wrapped around the nape of her neck. He sighed happily, "Good morning, mommy…" It's always been him and his mom, for as long as he could remember. There was someone else back then, maybe when he was two years old, but he couldn't remember who that was. However, right now, that doesn't matter. What matters for him was to see his mom. "It's my birthday, mommy!" He exclaimed with a toothy grin. He pulled away from her neck to look at her as he said it. His eyes wide and sparkling.
Delia hummed in amusement, nodding at her son's excitement, "Of course it is! Happy birthday, you're becoming such a big boy now!" She kissed his head and stared at him with every ounce of love she could possibly muster. Her only son and he's already five. Just another set of years, and he'll be on his own, traveling the roads around Kanto. That day will hurt her, but today, it's a time of celebration in the Ketchum residence!
"Uh-huh! I'm already getting taller," he dropped himself down from his mom's grasp, running over to the door post that had lines sketched against it, indicating his growth over the years, "I'm taller than a week ago!" He boasted to his mom, standing as upright as he possibly could. He wanted to look taller and more grown up. Delia smiled and grabbed a pencil to sketch another line for Ash, making sure to record his newfound height. He was only two inches taller than the last time they recorded it, but to Ash, that's enough to get excited over. "See! Y'see that, mommy!" He pointed at the new line, bouncing in place.
"Oh, yes!" She humored her son, patting his head gently, "One day you'll be taller than even mommy!"
He looked at her with wonder, "Taller than you? But, mom, you're, like, a giant! Even Professor Oak is smaller than you!" Delia almost snorted, wanting to admonish Ash for being rude about Professor Oak's height. He is right though, she thought to herself. Ash was busy running down the stairs, spinning happily at the fact today is his birthday. "I can't wait for my birthday party!" He shouted out excitedly, bouncing around the living room like a happy Spoink. "Is Gary going to be here?!" He asked his mom, wondering if his friend would show up. They constantly play with one another, but lately, Gary hasn't been showing up to their house for a little while, upsetting Ash.
Delia nodded, walking down the stairs to the living room, "He should be, baby!" She spoke to Gary's parents the night prior, hoping they would bring him over. She had noticed that Gary, out of nowhere, stopped visiting. Even though Ash and Gary would play, it would always be at his house instead, and Ash would have to beg to come in. For Ash, it seemed like it wasn't a big deal, but for Delia, she began to worry. When she voiced her thoughts to the Oaks, they stated that Gary was just trying to make new friends and play with them as well. They assured her that Gary still thought of Ash as his best friend.
Deciding it was best to not focus on anything, Delia went into the kitchen, ready to bake her baby his birthday cake. Gathering her ingredients, she opted to go classical, something that Ash would surely enjoy.
"Sweetie, mommy's going to make you your cake, so why don't you go outside and play with Gary and the others for a little bit? Let them know I'm baking some cake for everyone!"
Ash nodded, yelling back, "Okay!"
He ran out, his toothy grin ever present. He began to run out to the outskirts of Pallet Town, where a meadow lies. This was the perfect spot for him to always play games with Gary and some others. Sure, they would be mean to him and joke about his dad never being home, but he always pushed those jokes away. They never meant anything bad about it! They were his friends! No one would be that mean, right? Right!
As he ran around, searching for the other children, he noticed there were Pokémon playing around. He saw a couple of Rattata chasing one another, playing tag, having the time of their lives. He smiled, watching. He decided to lay down on the ground, watching the Pokémon play. Some Pidgey flew down and stared at him questioningly. When he waved at one, one of the braver ones decided to wave back with a wing, before flying away. He looked astonished. He hardly gets to see Pokémon up close, or even respond back to him! That was awesome!
Continuing to watch, he heard kids' laughter coming nearby. He got up, sitting cross legged. To his pleasure, it was Gary and some other kids! They were all laughing, joking around, or just chatting with one another. Nervously, he swipes his hands on his denim overalls. He hasn't seen Gary in a little over a week, so he really missed seeing his best friend. Gathering enough courage, Ash ran to the group of kids. He waved at them, "Hey, guys!" He greeted them with a nervous grin, hoping they wouldn't mind him coming to them.
One of the girls, a girl with green hair, sighed dramatically and whispered something to another girl, one with blue hair, and the two giggled. Judging by how they eyed Ash, he assumed they were talking about him. He ignored it for now, thinking they were making fun of his overalls. Sure, they're a little babyish, but his mom made them, so he didn't mind them!
Gary faked a grin, feigning his happiness, "Hey, Ashy-boy!" He greeted with faux excitement, one that Ash didn't catch.
Ash groaned, pouting a tad at the nickname, "Gary…" he whined, "I don't like that name! Stop it!"
Ash shook his head, "Uh, so… today's my, uh, birthday, guys!" He started with a small stutter. They stared at him blankly, making him squirm, "So, uh… yeah! I, uh, my momm- mom! Yeah, my mom and I… we, uh, sent out something to your mom and dad's! We're going to have a birthday party at my house! Can you guys come over, please? It'll be fun!"
Gary smacked the back of Ash's back with a gigantic grin, "Of course, Ashy-boy! How could I ever miss my best friend's birthday party! How old are you turning again?"
Surprised at the reaction he got, Ash grinned, "Five!"
Gary grinned back, turning to his posse, "How about that! We're all the same age now! So, I say, let's go and have fun!" He does a discreet gesture, and the other kid's cheer. They all wished Ash a happy birthday, much to his happiness. Ash's eyes sparkled, thanking them all for it. He then looked back over to Gary, who hid a smirk from the boy, and grabbed his best friend's hands. Gary almost looked annoyed but hid it.
"Thanks, Gary! You and our friends are all the best!"
"Yeah, yeah… don't mention it," Gary dismissed.
Ash bounced around happily, "So, mom said the cake will be done in a couple of hours! Why don't we go and play for a little bit!" He looked around and the kids were hesitant to say yes. Gary, clever as usual, faked a groan. He put his arm around Ash's shoulder, leaning against the raven-haired boy dramatically.
"You should have told us sooner, Ashy-boy! I need to shower and get you a gift! So, tell you what! Let's all meet up at your place, and we'll play games there and we'll hand you our gifts! Deal?" Gary bargained.
Ash looked disappointed, but nodded understandably. "Sure! Meet at my place around 5! Mom said she'll get everything set up by then!"
With a wave, Ash ran back home, to begin helping his mom set up the decorations. Gary turned to his friends, and they all began to laugh. Ash, luckily, never heard them as his mind was racing of all the fun activities that'll happen. He ran home as quickly as he could, his excitement at an all-time high! He ran to his mom, hugging her on her sides, much to her surprise. "Mommy, I told Gary and the others!" He explained with a smile.
"And what did they say, sweetie?"
"They said they'll come by later and-and they're going to get me gifts! We're going to play, and we're going to eat cake, and it'll be the best birthday ever!" Ash proclaimed, dancing around, his arms high in the air. All Delia could do was smile for her baby, hoping things did turn out as well as she would hope. With a slight reluctance, she began helping Ash decorate the house, making sure they had everything set up to his design.
From the birthday banner to the balloons, and to the table, and the streamers, and all the small in-betweens. Ash had helped his mom set everything up. He began to play around with some of the unused decorations, his mom laughing at him. He began to laugh back.
When it hit 5:00, Ash had already bathed and got ready. He sat down on the couch, eagerly waiting for his friends to appear. He hummed a song from one of his favorite cartoons, swaying his head and feet in rhythm to the beat of the song. His mom had finally finished decorating the cake and it sat on the table, ready to be eaten. When he was asked if they would like to cut the cake early, he told her he'd wait for his friends to come in, so they can all eat together!
Delia, behind Ash's back, began to call Gary's parents. Afraid of what may happen, she began to phone in some people, hoping her intuition was wrong.
Ring
Ring
Ring
"Hello?"
"Hello, it's Delia… Uh, Mr. Oak, did… Did Gary tell you he was invited by Ash to come to our house for his birthday?"
"I don't think so, Delia. Let me ask my wife," Delia heard Gary's father yell his wife's name, asking if Gary ever told her anything. She waited, her patience running thin. "Uh, so, she said that Gary was invited, but Gary told Ash it would be at my father's lab. Is that not the case?" Her heart dropped. She looked over to the time on the clock and it read 5:38 PM. "Hello, Delia?"
"Oh, uh, sorry…" she bit her lip, "and no, Ash told me that Gary would stop by with all his friends, and they'd be here."
Silence.
"Oh. Let me call my dad and see what's going on. I'll call back."
He hung up.
She began to call all the other parents, wanting to see what their excuses were. To her horror, they all said the same thing. Gary was inviting everyone over to Professor Oak's lab for a party, and they assumed it was for Ash as well. Delia told them all that it was at her house, not Professor Oak's. The parents all began to apologize, telling her they'll punish their children for lying. However, Delia told them that, at this point, it wasn't necessary to do so. When Gary's father rang, she picked it up with haste, "Hello?"
"Delia, I'm so sorry. My father just told me that Gary hosted a party for all his friends to come watch a movie together."
"…"
"Delia, I'm so, so sorry. Listen, he'll be punished for this. This is unacceptable and I can't imagine what Ash is thinking right now. I'll have Gary come by to apologize. You have my word."
"N-No… it's fine. I'll… I'll make sure Ash is okay. Thank you, sir… H-have a good night."
"… You too, Delia…"
The two hang up, and Delia dashed out of her room, going straight to her son. It's 6:15 PM.
"Ash?" She called his name. Her heart breaks in two as Ash was staring out the window, his head against the windowsill. The fire in his eyes dim. His tiny little fists clenching. Unclenching. With a small step towards her son, she gave him a brave smile. He looked back at her, his face so down, a far cry from his usual jolly self. "Hey, baby," she whispered out sweetly, kneeling down to his level, "let's have some cake now. That'll cheer you up."
"… 'kay…" Ash muttered, grabbing Delia's hand, his face staring down to the ground.
She picked him up and sat him on a chair, tucking the chair into the table. The cake had all the candles, ready to be lit. There were five candles. She went to the drawer and grabbed a lighter and walked back with a small smile, "Happy birthday, my baby," she kissed his head. He bit his lips, one eye closed. A small sniffle. She blinked back the urge to tear up. With a shaky hand, she attempted to light the candles. Flick. Flick. Flick. No fire.
"Dammit," she whispered. She once again tried again.
Flick.
Flick.
Flick.
In frustration, she flicked it hard, and a small fire escaped. It burnt her finger, making her drop the candle in response. The lighter exploded on top of the cake, ruining it with its fluid. Shadows covered Ash's eyes; his fists clenched against his denim overalls. His small body began to shake, more sniffles coming out from him. In response, a teary-eyed Delia hugged her son. Before long, Ash began to cry. He grabbed onto his mom's shirt, putting his head against her shoulder. His sobs were painful, as she too cried for him. Her tears were silent.
He cried, coughing into her neck. She didn't care. She rubbed his back, "It's okay… It's okay…"
Ash let out a small wail, unable to hold it all in. She then began to sob, closing her eyes, "It's okay, baby… Mommy's got you," she tried to calm him, and herself, down.
Her son continued crying, unable to speak coherent sentences. He was trying to ask where his friends were and why they didn't want to be here. She didn't answer him. She didn't want to answer him. What hurt her even more was the next question he asked her. Her heart broke when he whispered it out in a choked voice.
"Why does no one want to be my friend, mommy?"
