Alola was a region filled with all sorts of bright, vibrant wonders, Chloe was learning. After waking up incredibly early to catch a ship from Hau'oli City's port, they arrived on Akala Island and headed straight to what she could only describe as a sports stadium. Burnet flashed some tickets to the man at the counter and the five of them were seated with a great view of the ring.
"This is the Battle Royal Dome," Professor Burnet explained, carrying Lei in one arm and pointing with her other. "It's a place where special Alolan-style Battle Royals are held!"
"Battle Royal?" Goh asked.
"It's a special type of Pokémon Battle where four trainers all go up against each other head-to-head!" the Professor explained. "Only one can survive. Only one can be crowned victorious! And only one is as handsome as the man who never loses here!"
As Burnet began to swoon over this mystery man, Chloe looked around, curiously. "Wait… where are Ash and Professor Kukui?" Pikachu was sitting next to Chloe where Ash originally was, but somehow in the middle of making their way down here, they had lost not only him but the other Professor as well. Chloe held Eevee to her lap, and Goh did likewise for Grookey.
As she asked those words, the lights went dark except those lighting up the ring in the middle. Standing there was a balding man with blonde hair down the back of his head and a matching beard. He stood with a microphone and addressed the crowd, wearing a black and yellow striped shirt.
"Howdy, folks! I'm sure that this handsome face is a familiar sight to everyone here, but just in case there's any new comers, let me introduce myself. My name is Viren, and I'm the president of Rainbow Happy Resorts, the company that puts smiles on everyone's faces. You may know us from our Viren Tower resort location from Hau'Oli City, or any of our various other wonderful projects in the Alola Region."
Chloe frowned at the unscrupulous man blatantly advertising to them, and the rest of the crowd seemed to be unimpressed either, with a few boos echoing through the arena.
"Now, I'm here today for a little revenge grudge match," he said, continuing to walk around the ring. "You see, it wasn't that long ago that my boys, the Revengers, would have had an iron-grip on the Battle Royal dome if it weren't for a certain masked man and his sidekick."
Chloe frowned to herself. "Masked man…?" Something about it was ringing alarm bells in her head, but she couldn't quite connect the dots as she listened.
"I've learned that just recently, one part of this team has come back to Alola, so we'll be able to get our revenge once and for all." he turned to the darkness where the trainers would come out. "Do you hear me, Masked Royal? I'm calling you and that little puny Royal out right now! The Revengers will have their revengance!"
"Oh brother," Goh said, rolling his eyes.
"Uki…" Grookey added.
"Wait…" Chloe said, wracking her memory. "The Masked Royal…?"
Spotlights went to the red, Charizard-shaped entrance way that Viren was talking to. Standing in the entrance way were two people, both wearing masks. Standing next to them were an Incineroar and a Lucario, but all four had their backs to Viren before they turned and posed like they were brandishing their claws.
"Enjoy!"
"Incin!"
"R-Rawr…"
Lucario, for whatever reason, wasn't getting into it.
Now that the two masked people were looking towards the crowd, Chloe recognized the taller one as the man from the trophy on Ash's dresser back in Pallet Town.
"This is a trophy of the Masked Royal! After I won the Alola League, I got to have a battle with him, and he's a huge celebrity in the Alola Region!"
"A huge celebrity…?" Chloe asked, frowning as she analyzed the man. He looked strangely familiar, but Chloe chalked it up to seeing the trophy from before. "But then who is that guy…?"
Next to the Masked Royal was a shorter, lankier young man wearing the same mask. While the Masked Royal and the Incineroar seemed in sync as they approached the stage, this second masked wrestler seemed to be dealing with some rebellion from his Lucario.
The Masked Royal climbed into the ring and held his hand out for the microphone, which Viren obliged him. "Listen up, Viren!" the Masked Royal practically shouted into the microphone. "Your dirty tricks and schemes have never once beaten me, and they failed against my young friend as well. Why don't you just give it up?"
Viren laughed, quickly producing another microphone from his pocket. "Because, Masked Royal, your little protégé over there has been gone for how long now? Are we even sure that runt of a Royal can even match up to my new-and-improved Revengers?"
The 'runt' Royal stepped forward. "You bet I can!" he shouted with a voice that carried into the microphone the Masked Royal held in his grip. "You can just bring 'em on and we'll beat 'em!"
His Lucario hopped into the ring and landed in front of this second Royal, glaring at Viren before sending out a warm pulse of Aura that washed over the crowd.
"And what was the name of this brat?" Viren said, pointing a finger at him.
The Masked Royal looked into the stands with a smile towards where Chloe and the others were sitting. "This is Neo Royal," he said confidently.
The Neo Royal nodded. "That's right! I'm Neo Royal and I'm here to help Masked Royal stop you guys from wrecking this place!"
While the crowd murmured something about a name change, Burnet nudged Chloe with her elbow and leaned over. "That Neo Royal is pretty cool, don't you think?" she asked.
Chloe frowned, looking at him closely. There was something familiar about that boy and his Pokémon, but she couldn't quite put a finger on it.
Viren took a few steps back. "So two Masked Royals? Big deal. How can two Royals compete-"
The lights in the entire Battle Royal Dome went out before flashing back on.
"-against all six of us Revengers!"
Standing in the arena with Viren were now five other men, including two that Chloe was sure had Pokémon-themed wrestling outfits on. The Pokémon standing in the ring with them were all snarling at Incineroar and Lucario. Chloe couldn't recognize them all and began scrambling for her phone.
She now wondered why that flying Pokédex was house-sitting instead of helping out.
With her phone's help, she quickly identified the remaining Pokémon as Magmortar, Electivire, Poliwrath, Pangoro, and the Alolan forms of Muk and Golem.
"Six on two doesn't seem fair…!" Chloe said. "How can they try to have a match when the odds are so stacked like that?"
Burnet smiled, holding Lei. "You're right that the odds are stacked, but I wouldn't be so sure in saying they're stacked in the Revengers favor."
"What do you mean?" Chloe asked.
Burnet looked out at the ring, with Lei reaching his small hands out towards the ring as well. "You'll see."
The Masked Royal turned to the Neo Royal. "How about you show me how much you've improved since then?" he said, the microphone catching his words.
The Neo Royal nodded, gesturing out. "Alright, let's show 'em what we've got! Lucario, use Double Team!"
Stepping forward into the ring, Lucario immediately began to split into multiple copies of himself, until the number of Lucario doubles outnumbered the Revengers more than twice over.
Viren gestured forward. "Don't just let them make fools of us! Get them!"
The Revengers' Pokémon all began launching attacks at the illusory Lucario, but each one only seemed to hit a double rather than the real thing.
"Now, Aura Sphere!"
The remaining Lucario all began forming the bright blue, glowing orbs made from the same warm Aura that Lucario had showed off to the crowd earlier. The army of Lucario tossed the barrage of Aura Spheres at the Revengers, exploding with a rush of warm light and heat as the attacks found their marks.
As the smoke cleared, the Revengers and their Pokémon were all on the ground, sore from the attack. The Masked Royal stepped forward again. "As always, my Pokémon and I will defend the honor of this ring from any interruptions by those such as you. Incineroar, use Darkest Lariat!"
The Masked Royal's Incineroar crouched down, gathering energy in his hands before spinning like a top with two blazing claws. The spinning Pokémon crashed into the pile of Revengers, throwing all of them out of the ring back towards the green Tyranitar shaped entrance.
As the Revengers scrambled away, both the Masked Royal and the Neo Royal approached the side of the ring, gesturing to the crowd. "We apologize for the interruption, and we hope the next Battle Royal battles fill your hearts with burning passion!" The Masked Royal said before handing the microphone over to the Neo Royal.
"The spirit of Alola burns strong in our hearts, and we hope it burns inside everybody! Now-"
Both the Royals and Incineroar performed the claw pose again.
"-enjoy!"
Lucario struggled to mimic the pose. Clearly the Neo Royal hadn't spent much time preparing his Pokémon for this collaboration.
"I've gotta say," Burnet mused out loud, "that Neo Royal was pretty handsome, right, Chloe? So brave to face off against those bad men with the Masked Royal."
Chloe felt her face heat up. 'Why is she trying to play up this Neo Royal guy…?' she thought. 'There's only one guy I like…' She shook her head. "He's cool, I guess. But it's not like he's as cool as some people I know."
Goh laughed to himself. "Well, maybe it'd help if you saw him without the mask…" he laughed.
"You're back!"
Rotom floated in the doorway upon everyone's return to the Professor's home in the early part of the afternoon from the Battle Royal Dome.
Burnet put a finger to her lips and shushed Rotom. She held Lei gently in her arms, and the Pokédex took a hint. A gauge with a speaker on it appeared on it's screen, lowering to about 1/3rd its full height.
"Thanks for watching everything, Rotom," Professor Kukui said from the back of the group.
"My pleasure!" The response came out at a whisper. "Oh! I almost forgot!" Though their speech was still quiet, they floated in front of the group and switched their expression from a surprised emoji to a picture of a woman Chloe didn't recognize. She had dark hair and pink glasses, and a kind look on her face. "Miss Wicke called and said there was an important thing she needed to talk to you about at the Aether Paradise!"
Kukui stepped forward, pushing past Ash and Goh. "Is it urgent?" he asked, the tone in his voice shifting towards seriousness.
"It is!" Rotom shouted, still at 1/3rd volume. "She said for me to tell you to come over as soon as you got back!"
A worried look grew across Burnet's face. "I'm a bit worried if Wicke said we needed to head over immediately…"
"Should we head over there, then?" her husband asked.
Burnet's eyes went down to her baby. "Lei just fell asleep… I'm worried if he gets woken up again, he won't be able to sleep after that…"
Everyone fell quiet for a moment, puzzling over the situation.
"The Aether Paradise is a place for Pokémon Research, right?" Chloe asked in a quiet voice, drawing everyone's attention. Once she had their attention, she stepped forward and stood next to Rotom before the rest of the group. "I'm sure they're really nice there, but I can just stay here with Lei. I'm not really super interested in Pokémon Research, anyway…"
She gave a somewhat embarrassed smile. Goh nodded, and Ash and Kukui stepped forward. The Professor moved first and put his hand on Chloe's shoulder. "Don't worry, Chloe, I haven't got Amnesia. I remember that you don't want people Instructing you on what you should do."
She nodded, looking away shyly. "I mean… I bet it'll be a lot of fun to see all the Pokémon there, but I don't want to run into someone who starts talking to me about how great my Dad is."
Kukui, Burnet, and even Ash all shared a private moment to chuckle. 'They probably know someone exactly like that,' Chloe thought to herself.
Burnet then turned to Chloe. "Do you know how to hold a baby?" she asked.
Chloe nodded, holding up her arms. "I used to hold my little brother when he was just a baby."
"I can attest that she never dropped him," Goh added, chuckling.
"If you don't mind babysitting for me, Chloe," Burnet said, gently placing Lei in her arms. "He'll probably sleep the rest of the time anyway, but if he gets up, there's formula in the refrigerator and clean diapers in the diaper bag, just in case anything goes wrong."
Chloe held Lei gently. He felt small and vulnerable, and she remembered in her mind the first time she held Parker, though even back then she had her mother's help to make sure she didn't fall over. "I'm sure I'll be fine. You all better get going, since Ms. Wicke did ask you to come as soon as possible, right?"
"Right," Kukui nodded with a seriousness that Chloe somewhat felt didn't fit him. He turned back to the door. "We can probably grab a quick ferry from the port if we hurry," he said.
Though Kukui, Burnet, and Goh walked back towards the door, Ash watched Chloe closely as she smiled at the sleeping baby. Pikachu put a paw on the boy's face, snapping him out of his stupor. "Pikapi."
Chloe watched Ash as his eyes went back and forth, like he was trying to come up with a strategy for a tricky opponent. Ash hesitated for only a moment longer before turning back to the Professors. "Is… it okay if I stay here, too?" he asked.
Kukui had a knowing smile on his face. "Really? You'd rather stay here rather than see all the Pokémon at Aether Paradise?"
Ash shook his head. "No, it's not that… I just…" he looked back at Chloe, who now stared right at him. "Chloe… you know, she might need some help."
"Don't tease him," Burnet said, though she was smiling, herself. "He's just trying to be responsible, right?" She gave Ash a wink and the boy seemed to grab ahold of that.
"R-Right! You never know when something'll come up. And if I'm here, then I'll be able to help out."
Goh shrugged. "I guess it can't be helped. I'll just have to take all the notes in your place."
Ash rubbed the back of his head, chuckling. "Thanks, Goh."
"I'll be here, too," Rotom said, missing the underlying subtext of what was happening.
The only response Rotom gets is the door closing in front of them, with the two trainers and the Pokémon standing around in a moment of silence as everyone else rushed off without them. Lei dozed quietly in Chloe's arms.
"Thanks for staying with me, Ash," Chloe said, smiling at him gently.
Ash reached his hand to hers and softly squeezed. He didn't say anything for a moment as he held her hand. After a moment, he released her hand, saying "Anytime."
Chloe sat in the rocking chair that she had initially seen Burnet in when she had approached the house, rocking with Lei gently in her arms.
A good distance away, to keep the noise down, Ash was training with the Pokémon he brought from the Cerise Laboratory against his Alolan Poké was still a bit of noise, but the distance combined with the sound of the waves and the wind did a lot for muting the clashing off attacks. Eevee sat on the patio next to her chair, watching the training from a distance as well.
She couldn't hear Ash from that far away, but she watched him shout and give commands, running around. The Rotom Pokédex was floating nearby, giving their input into the situation, Chloe was sure.
They had split into five separate pairs and were practicing their moves against each other. She caught a glimpse of Sirfetch'd blocking Melmetal's metal fist with his shield and Lycanroc staring down Dracovish. Pikachu and Rowlet didn't seem like they were going to do much fighting, but Lucario clashing with Incineroar made Chloe furrowed her brow. "Lucario and Incineroar…"
Her mind went back to what she saw that morning, and the two Masked Royals. 'Why'd Burnet keep trying to see what I thought of them?' she thought to herself, rocking Lei gently as the baby slept. 'I guess the Neo Royal was close to my age… maybe she doesn't realize I like Ash yet…'
There was a part of her that didn't want to admit that there was something that drew her attention to the Neo Royal, but for all her puzzling over the topic, she was no closer to an answer.
Another thought. "Where are Gengar and Dragonite?"
She couldn't hear them, but she supposed they must be fighting above, where her view was blocked by the roof.
It was at this moment, responding to her question asked out loud, that Lei began to stir. He opened his eyes up and looked at the young lady carrying him and blinked his brown eyes in her direction before opening his mouth and unleashing a loud cry.
Eevee responded by beginning to cry as well, and Chloe groaned.
Looking up, she saw Ash freeze and turn around towards her, and the two of them locked eyes. No doubt he could see Lei moving if somehow the crying didn't carry that far. With a flash of several Poké Balls, his Cerise Lab team vanished and he and the Alola team began racing up.
As Ash and the Pokémon scrambled up the stairs, Rowlet landed on the wooden railing nearby, tilting his head at Chloe and Lei.
"What's the matter?" Ash asked.
Chloe giggled. "Well, he just woke up, so I'd guess that he's hungry," she said, amused.
Lei's sobbing quieted for a moment, only for Ash's stomach to growl loudly.
Chloe could barely contain her laughter. "I guess you're hungry, too, aren't you?"
"S-Sorry…" he chuckled.
She walked over to him and handed him Lei. "Well, I can't cook and hold Lei at the same time, so you try to distract him while I get everything going, okay?"
"Got it," he said as the two of them walked into the house, all of the Pokémon following behind them.
As Eevee, Pikachu, and Ash's Alolan team began to sit in a circle and discuss something, Chloe began heading to the kitchen and Ash to the couch in front of the TV and began flipping through the channels. "I wonder what babies like to watch…" he asked out loud.
Rotom sat on the couch next to him. "Do you think he'd like to watch Alolan Detective Laki? We have several episodes from the latest season recorded!"
Chloe frowned as she opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of formula. "I don't think so. He'd probably prefer something with bright colors."
Ever since Ash took hold of him, Lei seemed like he wasn't as upset, but there was an unhappy look on his face until Ash's lazy channel surfing brought up a show featuring a grassy hill and four multi-colored creatures that looked a little like Pokémon standing and talking slowly.
Ash watched the screen, transfixed by it as Lei was.
"Roto-Tubbies?" Rotom asked, a question mark appearing on their screen. Sensing no amusement coming from Ash as he and Lei watched this program, Rotom floated over to Chloe as she continued to gather ingredients for lunch onto the counter.
"Would you like me to help? I know all the steps to cooking a delicious meal!" they asked.
"No, I think we've got it," Chloe said. She turned around and put the bottle of formula in the microwave and turned it on for a short time. While that was happening, she began filling a large pot with water and turned to chop some vegetables and berries.
"Be careful! Knives are very sharp!" Rotom said, displaying a red exclamation point.
"I… I know," Chloe sighed as she began to closely chop the berries. The Rotom Pokédex seemed to float over closer.
'Do they not know how to take a hint?' Chloe thought to herself before dumping the chopped vegetables into the water.
The microwave beeped and Chloe tested the formula to make sure it was warm (but not hot) before carrying the bottle and handing it to Ash. "Do you know how to feed a baby?" she asked.
He was gently bouncing Lei on his knee. The baby seemed happy enough. "Yeah? I've fed a baby Pokémon before."
"Not the same."
"It's kind of the same," Rotom said, floating over towards Ash.
"See? Rotom agrees," Ash said, pointing to the Pokémon.
She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Here. Feed him. Make sure to do it gently, okay?"
He took the warm bottle with a smile. "Right…"
As Ash fed Lei from the bottle, Chloe returned to the kitchen to prepare their lunch. She added water to the pot and began boiling the berries and veggies to soften them up before she added Moo Moo Milk and spices that she picked off of the professor's shelves.
The pleasant aroma of the cooked veggies and the creamy stew Chloe was making began to fill the home, and Chloe began looking for the Pokémon food.
"Oh! Uh, Melmetal doesn't eat that," Ash said as Lei polished off the bottle in his hand. Chloe was holding a bag of Pokémon food not unlike what they used at the lab back home.
"It doesn't?"
"D'ya see a box of bolts and screws in there?" Ash asked.
Chloe looked back in the cabinet. "Yeah, it's right here."
"Get those. Melmetal eats metal instead of regular food."
'That figures,' she sighed. 'But I guess it is Ash's so it makes sense that he'd know something weird like that.'
Filling most of the bowls with a combination of Pokémon food and sliced berries and one with the box of metal, Chloe returned to the pot and began stirring it as Ash sat with Lei on the couch, watching whatever show they were absorbed in.
She tasted the stew and nodded. "This is going to be delicious."
"Uh, Chloe?"
She looked up at Ash, and his face was twisted into a very uncomfortable position.
"Oh no," Chloe said. "Don't tell me he needs his diaper changed."
Ash's grimace was all the confirmation she needed before the stench struck her on her approach.
"I've seen Professor Burnet and Professor Kukui change Lei's diaper over one-hundred and eighty times!" Rotom said.
Chloe frowned. "That's… that's not very helpful information, Rotom," she said.
"But it is!" they protested. "I know where everything you'll need is. All we need is someone to do it!"
Ash glanced at Rotom. "Can you do it?" he asked.
"I don't have thumbs," Rotom responded plainly.
Ash and Chloe both groaned at that one.
"Look," Chloe said, holding out her hands. "I'll just do it."
Ash blinked in her direction but placed Lei in her hands. "You… you know how?"
"I've done pretty well in Home Economics," she said. "This is the sort of thing you learn there."
Ash stepped back, somewhat surprised, gawking at her.
"Don't just stand there," she said, pointing to the stew. "Stir it and make sure it doesn't burn."
Ash nodded at the command. "Right. Got it!"
As he dashed off to keep their lunch from ruining itself, the Rotomdex floated nearby. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Go get Burnet's diaper bag. She left it here with everything else we needed."
The Pokédex saluted her. "I'm on it!"
She carried Lei over to the table in the living room and cleared it off as best she could with one hand before laying the baby down on it. The Rotomdex brought over the diaper bag, and Chloe set to work cleaning the Professor's child and changing him into a new clean diaper before handing the old one to the Pokédex to throw away.
"There you go!" Chloe said, picking up Lei in her arms. "How does that feel?"
Lei giggled as he was held up before burping loudly and continuing to giggle.
Holding Lei closer, she smiled and spoke sweetly to him. "Now now, Lei, you shouldn't take your manners from Ash, you know?"
Lei responded by babbling something and resting his head on Chloe's shoulder. She smiled and held Lei close.
She only looked up when she heard the snapping sound of a camera. Looking up, she saw Rotom turning around and smiling at her. "This one will be a great memory," they said.
Chloe giggled, standing up for Rotom to take a better picture. "I think so, too," she said with Lei giggling. "What do you think, Ash?"
When she looked at him, Ash was lost in thought. He was looking at her, but it was clear his mind was elsewhere. "A-Ash…?"
The repetition of his name brought him out of his stupor. "Oh, uh, y-yeah!" he said, clearly not paying attention.
She decided to have a little fun.
"Oh, so you agree with that then?" she said.
Ash turned his focus to the pot he was stirring. "Y-Yeah, why wouldn't I?" he said. "You're smart, you know what you're talking about."
Hearing that praise come so easily from his lips put her off her footing, and she felt her face heating up.
But Ash had handed her a blank check, and she intended to cash it.
Approaching him she smiled. "Alright, so we both need to taste test it, then," she said.
Rotom displayed a question mark. "What do you mean? That's not what you were-"
"Use the spoon and let me taste it, Ash," Chloe said, standing between Ash and the Pokédex.
Shrugging, he brought the wooden spoon up and held it up for Chloe. She blew on the stew to make sure it was cool enough and took a quick bite.
"Mmm…" she hummed. "It's delicious!"
Ash's mouth fell open. "I wanna try!" he said.
Moving Lei to one arm and taking the spoon from Ash in the other, she got Ash a spoonful of stew and held it up for him to eat from.
As Ash took his bite, Rotom snapped another picture.
Chloe felt a rush run down her spine of fear, wondering if Ash would pull away in embarrassment, or shout at Rotom, but all he did was lock eyes with her and smile, so she did that as well.
"It's really good," he said, chuckling.
Chloe felt her face heat up, looking into his deep brown eyes, and her heart thumped harder in her chest.
Ash reached his hand up and wiped some of the stew off her cheek, and she giggled. This caused him to break into laughter, and even Lei joined in.
The Rotomdex floated there with a question mark on their screen, unable to make sense of any of it.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door. Chloe looked to Ash, raising her eyebrows in surprise. "Are… we expecting anyone?" she asked.
"C'mon in!" Ash shouted, loud enough that whoever the visitor was could hear it, as they began turning the door knob and opening the door.
"Sorry to drop in on you like this, Ash," came Mallow's voice as she stepped inside, the fisherwoman Lana following behind her. Both of their faces were splashed with surprise when they caught a glimpse of the scene before them.
"Hey guys!" Ash said, smiling.
"Hey, Ash." While Lana's words were directed at Ash, her eyes were looking straight at Chloe, and the student from Vermilion could easily see the gears turning her head.
Chloe cleared her throat and put on her biggest, fakest smile. "S-So how can we help you guys?" she asked.
Mallow shook herself out of her shock. "We were making some choices on decorations for the party, and we were wanting a third opinion…" She paused, once again looking at Ash and Chloe, and her expression said only that she didn't believe her eyes.
While she put on a gentle face to make sure the baby in her arms stayed calm, internally, Chloe was shattering. 'Of course we'd get visitors on the day I'm basically playing house with Ash…' she thought, cursing her luck. 'It was going to be a nice day for us to spend some private time together and now…'
Chloe's thoughts, however, had betrayed her, and when she realized that the thing that she was most incensed about was her private Ash time getting intruded on, her face lit up like a red light bulb.
She glanced at Ash, and while he had made no move toward or away from Chloe, the expression on his face was blissfully vacant. It reminded her a bit of how Eevee would smile.
"Y-Yeah," Lana said, trying to break the awkwardness in the air. "Usually we ask Lillie about this kind of thing, but obviously we can't ask her if it's going to be a surprise…" The more she spoke, the less it seemed like her words were landing with any impact, and she, too, quieted down.
Looking like she had stuck a sour Pinap Berry in her mouth, Mallow decided to put the question to the two Kantonians. "Are… Are we interrupting something?"
With confirmation that the suspect situation they were in wasn't going to escape notice nor be politely ignored, Chloe opened her mouth to speak, but Ash beat her to the punch.
"Nope!" he said, grinning in his trademark winning way. Chloe wanted to appreciate his confidence in the face of this, but her mind was already snaking down pathways of increasing embarrassment in front of Ash's friends who, if they didn't have any idea of her feelings for Ash before, were getting more than enough evidence for at least a little suspicion.
Mallow's eyes narrowed. "That's good. Hey, Chloe? Why don't you bring Lei over here and we'll show you exactly what we're talking about…" The taller girl elbowed Lana to communicate her true message, and Lana nodded at the nudge.
Before Chloe could respond, Ash grinned. "Great! I'll get us some bowls ready for lunch, then!" he said. "Mallow, you're gonna love Chloe's cooking! It's amazing!"
Chloe wasn't sure her face could get much redder, but she couldn't bear to look them in the eyes, so she just looked at the floor as she walked over to the girls.
"Great, Ash," Mallow said, smiling as well. "We'll be right back!"
Mallow walked back to the door and with Lana following her behind, Chloe followed their lead and stood on the patio before closing the door behind them. She had a sinking feeling in her stomach as she held Lei close by. The feeling only increased as Lana and Mallow put their hands on her shoulders and leaned in close.
'Oh no.'
"So, Chloe," Lana started. "You and Ash seem pretty close."
The sweat was already starting to bead on her forehead. "Y-Yeah…? I mean, not particularly, right…?"
Mallow's cheerful grin seemed to become a mocking sneer. "Oh really?" she asked. "You all seemed pretty chummy back there. Were you feeding him with that spoon?"
Chloe looked down at her hand. Though her arm supported Lei, the soup spoon she had used to help Ash get a taste might as well have been a smoking gun.
Suddenly she understood what the criminals that Detective Laki apprehended must feel like.
"The two of you were alone, huh? Just a little private date for the two of you?" Lana squinted her eyes and scrutinized Chloe's face closely.
She had been caught red-handed, but still Chloe attempted to deflect. "I-I don't know what you mean-"
Lana pointed a finger accusingly right at Chloe's face. "C'mon, you know you like Ash. It's written all over your face!"
Chloe's stomach twisted in a knot. The guilt burned her face ever redder, and the infant Lei reached up and patted her crimson cheek. "I-I mean, don't you guys? You're friends, aren't you?"
"You seem just a little more fond of him than we are, though," Mallow replied, leaning in. "Maybe you like him enough to want to be his girlfriend."
Chloe swallowed nervously, worrying what sort of Beedrill's nest she had kicked over. 'I'm sunk. If either of these girls already like Ash, then there's no way I'll be able to stay in Alola, much less help with this party… and that's not even considering how Lillie might feel about Ash…!
"I-I-I-"
Chloe stammered uselessly, unable to refute the fact that Ash did make her heart race and her lips curl into a smile whenever she got to spend time alone with him. She let her head sag.
"I'm busted."
Lana and Mallow looked at each other and began giggling while Chloe sighed in defeat. "Look, I'm sorry if we're not going to get along anymore," she said. "I should have known that one of you guys already had feelings for Ash, and… well you all knew him first, right…?"
"Woah! Hold on!" Mallow said, waving her hands. "You've got it all wrong! I mean, speaking for me, I don't like Ash like that."
"I mean, as far as boys go to have a crush on, you could do worse," Lana added, shrugging while drawing loops in the air with her finger. "He's kinda spacey. He's a good guy and a good friend but I'd be worried he'd get kinda annoying if I wanted to go out with him."
Chloe's face burned even hotter than before. "H-He's not that annoying," she replied. "Some of the stuff he does is kinda cute, you know?"
"I just didn't really think anyone would have those kinds of feelings for Ash," Mallow said. "That's why I was so surprised. Ash just doesn't seem like the kinda guy who steals your heart."
"Definitely an acquired taste," Lana agreed. "I'm kinda curious how it started."
Chloe looked at the two of them. "So… neither of you have a problem with me… y'know… liking Ash like that."
"Of course not," Mallow said, clasping her hands together. "In fact, you two are kinda cute together!" she said. "I can't believe someone like Ash would bring a city girl like you home!"
"You do seem like kind of the opposite of what I'd think of when I think of someone who'd wanna date Ash," Lana said. "You're way quieter than he is."
Chloe tried not to frown. "I'll take that as a compliment.
"But does he know you like him?" Lana then asked, her eyes watching Chloe closely.
Chloe turned back and looked at the door. "I mean… I was just starting to think that we'd become good friends," she said, sighing. "I wasn't going to push my feelings onto Ash, you know? It'd be like forcing him to make a move, and I already don't like it when people tell me what to do."
"So, no then." Lana said, and Chloe nodded to confirm.
Mallow hit her fist into her open palm. "Hey, no sweat! We'll just make the party we're planning the perfect place for you and Ash to confess your feelings for each other!"
"Mallow, that's perfect!" Lana said, grinning.
Chloe held up her hand. "Wait a second, doesn't Ash need to have feelings for me first before he can admit them? You're getting the cart before the Ponyta a bit, aren't you?"
"Don't worry about that," Lana said, smirking. "You just leave that to us. We'll set this party up so that you'll be able to get some alone time with Ash!"
"And then you'll be able to have a romantic ending to your evening!" Mallow said.
"What about Lillie?" Chloe shot back, still trying to find a hope for escape. "Wouldn't it be weird if her party was being used for that? She's your friend, too, right?"
Lana shrugged. "I'm sure Lillie won't mind. She does love a good story! Besides," she said, grinning, "it's not like you guys will be hanging out next to Lillie all night! There'll be plenty of time for you two to sneak off and kiss!"
Chloe felt like she wanted to cry, but unwilling to give Lei a reason to cry as well, she put on her best, most stoic expression.
"F-Fine… but if Ash gets mad that you guys are doing something like this, it's on you, alright?"
The two girls smirked to each other. "Don't worry," Mallow said. "I think he'll be thanking us by the time this is all over."
The door to the Kukui's home opened, and Ash was standing there. "Uh, are you guys finished out here?" he asked, blinking his brown eyes at Chloe. "I just… y'know, the food's already ready and-"
"-you're hungry," Chloe said, a smile growing on her lips at his bashfulness. "We're ready to eat, right, girls?"
Mallow threw an arm around Chloe's shoulders while Lana put an arm around Chloe's waist. Both of the Alolans smiled at Ash. "Right! Ready as ever!"
As they all entered together, Chloe sighed, thinking wryly to herself.
'I definitely got more than I bargained for, coming here.'
"Who's the culprit of this case?"
The room went quiet, and the detective turned an accusing finger forward.
"It's you."
Chloe, Ash, and Rotom gasped. Eevee gasped as well, but Lei and Pikachu were hardly paying attention at this point. It had been several hours since lunch and Mallow and Lana had both been gone just as long.
"I can't believe it's the Pokémon Walker!" Rotom said, shaking their wig to and fro. "I thought for sure it was the mailman!"
"I was there with you," Chloe said, still holding Lei up. "But I guess he's going to explain why it's the Pokémon Walker who stole the rare Enigma Berry seeds.
Ash sat with Pikachu on his shoulder and Eevee in his lap. "I honestly can't follow it when it gets like this…"
"Piii-ka."
"You may have thought you could deceive everyone, but you can't deceive Alolan Truth. Alolan Detective Laki! There's never been a case I can't solve!"
As the television droned, the door to the home opened and the Professors Kukui and Burnet, as well as Goh, stepped into the house, carrying bags that Chloe thought came from some take-out restaurant that she didn't recognize.
"Welcome back," Chloe said as Lei began to reach for his mother and father. Kukui went to the kitchen area as Burnet approached and took Lei into her arms.
"Oh, there you are, Lei!" she said, cooing to her son before turning back to Chloe. "Thank you so much for babysitting, Chloe."
"It's no problem," she replied, giggling. "It was tough sometimes but we had a lot of fun today.
Ash, sensing food, had already left the couch and headed over to help Professor Kukui. Goh approached her and smirked. "So you had fun today, huh? I really think you missed out. The Aether Paradise was something else!"
"It's fine," she said to her friend with a shrug. "We got to do a lot today, too, didn't we?"
Rotom floated next to her head. "That's right! And I took some pictures, too!"
Ash and Chloe both froze, and Chloe looked at him with a pleading gaze.
"Y-Yeah but we don't need to see any pictures!" Ash said, stepping away from the food and towards Rotom.
"Oh, I think they're very interesting!" insisted the Pokédex.
Goh frowned, glancing between his two friends. "Yeah… I'm pretty interested, too, now," he said. "Let's take a look at them, Rotom."
Chloe leapt for Rotom, only for Rotom to float away and hover just out of reach. On their screen, they displayed first the images of Chloe and Ash taste testing the food. The next image was of Ash making a silly face at Lei, making both the baby and Chloe laugh.
The next image was of Chloe attempting to brush Ash's hair while he held onto Lei. She was talking, but thankfully for her, the image was silent.
There was an image of Lei crying and both Ash and Chloe trying to figure out what was wrong, panicked expressions on their faces. Then, a picture of Lei sleeping, and Ash and Chloe sitting next to each other on the couch, with Chloe resting her head on Ash's shoulder.
Chloe felt her face burn. 'They're going to think we're a couple at this rate…!' She jumped for Rotom, just missing the floating Pokémon as they continued showing Goh the images.
Her friend had an incredibly self-satisfied look on his face.
The image changed to one with Ash sitting next to Chloe, with his arm around her, and both of them looking a little red in the face.
"Is there something you'd like to share with the rest of the class, Miss Cerise?" Goh asked, teasingly. "You seem like you've been studying pretty hard so far, huh?"
She tried to wave him off. "T-There's nothing to announce. Right, Ash?"
Turning to him, she saw that Ash couldn't speak because he was stuffing his face full of food in an attempt to escape, himself.
He quickly drank down a cup of water and turned to the ladder. "Well, it's time for bed! G'night!"
Chloe frowned. "Ash, that's where I'm going to sleep! Get out of there!"
He chuckled, already halfway up the ladder. "S-Sorry…! I uh, forgot?"
As he laughed, something fell out of his back pocket and landed on the ground by the bottom of the ladder. Chloe went quiet and her eyes went as wide as the plates Professor Kukui was loading their take-out dinner on.
She approached the ladder with Ash still hanging on it, and picked up the thing that fell out of his pocket.
It was a red, green, and blue mask with a blue zig-zag down the middle. Ash froze up, staring down at her as she looked up to him, something very different burning in her emerald eyes.
"Ash…?" she asked with a voice that only pretended at being calm.
"Y-Yeah…?" he asked, swallowing.
"...are you telling me THAT YOU'RE THE NEO MASKED ROYAL?!"
Her volume grew as she went on, and the end of her shout echoed even outside the home into the Alolan moonlight.