Remembering the Past

Alec's POV

Alec was having a battle with Ash and the rest of the group were preparing lunch. Ash was using Pikachu while Alec was using Arco in his normal form. "Arco, use Flash Cannon!" Alec commanded.

"Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Ash commanded. The two attacks meet in the middle and Arco's Flash Cannon quickly destroys the Electro Ball before hitting Pikachu. "Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash commanded.

"Counter with Ice Punch!" Alec shouted. The two attacks meet in the air and Alec made a signal with his hand. Arco got the message and got himself above Pikachu and hit him with an Aura Sphere in Arco's paw before launching the attack that would Pikachu to the ground. The dust clears and Pikachu is seen with swirls in his eyes. "Great work Arco," Alec said.

[Thanks, that was fun,] Arco replied. Clement then announced lunch was ready and the group sits down to eat.

"Hey, Alec, how did Arco use Aura Sphere like that? I didn't hear a command," Ash asked.

"Yeah, that was weird," Bonnie added.

"You didn't hear a command because me and Arco have developed signals to catch our opponents off guard," Alec explained.

"You two must be pretty close if you have that kind of coordination," Serena says with wonder.

"Well, Arco does consider me to be his father," Alec told them.

"Wow, really. Why is that?" Clement asks.

"Oh, now that's a story" Alec states.

3 years ago: Sinnoh Region

Alec and Ethan were walking along the Sinnoh shoreline where the cliffs were and with a very dangerous rocky bottom near the water. Alec then sat down by the edge and started to get some food out when Ethan suddenly ran up to the cliff. "What is it, Ethan?" Alec asked him.

[I think there's an egg at the bottom of this cliff,] Ethan explains. Alec looks over and he sees the egg Ethan's referring to.

"How did that get there?" Alec wondered.

[As much as I'd like to figure that out, it looks like the tides are rising,] Ethan pointed out.

"Well, we're not going to leave it there," Alec said and pulled out a Poké Ball and a Dive Ball and threw them. "Starlord, Lifesaver, I need your help!" Alec shouted and the Staraptor and larger than average Floatzel appear from their respective balls. "Alright you two, you see that egg?" Alec asked them and the Pokémon nod. "I need you two to get it. Starlord, if you can get it from the air easily then do so, otherwise, Lifesaver, you have to get it before the water sends it out to sea."

[You got it, boss,] Lifesaver says and jumps off the cliff's edge with enough distance to get clear of the rocks. Starlord flies after him but a sudden updraft forces him back.

[Lifesaver! These sea winds are a little too difficult at the moment!] Starlord shouts.

[You got it,] Lifesaver responds and swims over to the egg when a large wave suddenly breaks the rocks the egg was sitting on. Thinking quickly, Lifesaver used Aqua Jet and managed to catch the egg before it could hit anything. [Objective secure!] he shouted back up the cliff.

"Good work, now let's get it up here," Alec told them.

[I can use Psychic and bring it up,] Ethan says eagerly.

"I know you want to help Ethan, but you haven't mastered Psychic yet. I don't want to risk hurting the egg," Alec told him. Ethan looked disappointed but nodded in understanding.

[Well, if we're not risking the egg, I think Starlord should carry it up. It's going to be tricky as it is for me to climb back up,] Lifesaver told Alec.

"Starlord, you got it?" Alec asked. Starlord nodded and got closer to Lifesaver who helped him secure the egg in his talons. Starlord then flew back up with Lifesaver scaling the cliff behind him. "Alright, good work you two," Alec said and took the egg from Starlord, which was surprisingly warm considering where it was. "Looks intact, that's a relief," Alec stated after examining it.

[Wonder how it got there in the first place?] Starlord asked himself.

[What matters is that we got out. Although I am curious about what we're going to do with it,] Lifesaver stated.

"Well, judging by how warm the egg is, I think it'll hatch soon. We'll stay here in the meantime and see if anyone comes along looking for it. If not, him or her can come with us," Alec told his Pokémon. The egg then let off a glow.

[I think that egg is closer to hatching than we thought,] Ethan stated. After a bit of waiting, the egg cracked then let off a massive white light. When the light cleared, Alec saw a Riolu in his hands instead of the egg.

"A Riolu. I'll admit I wasn't expecting a Riolu egg, those are pretty rare," Alec said. Riolu then opened its eyes and looked right at Alec. "Hey there little one," Alec said to it.

[Daddy?] Riolu asked with a boylike voice. Alec's face then flushed with surprise and a tinge of embarrassment. His Pokémon however, were completely shocked.

[Okay, I think I'm having one of those weird dreams, because I think the little guy just called the boss 'daddy.' Can you confirm that?] Lifesaver asked Starlord.

[You're not dreaming, and also since you asked,] Starlord said before hitting Lifesaver over the head with his wing.

[Not so hard,] Lifesaver complained.

[Why? I have to get your big dumb ego to go down somehow,] Starlord responded.

"That's enough, both of you," Alec told them.

[Daddy, are they my family?] Riolu asked.

"Look little one, I'm not your daddy" Alec explained. Riolu then looked disappointed. "But, I can fulfill that role if you want me too," Alec quickly reassured.

[Daddy!] Riolu shouted, hugging Alec around the neck tightly, but not tight enough to choke him.

[Hey! Where does that leave us? I didn't sign up to join this team to take care of a kid,] Lifesaver stated.

[Well it certainly would do you some good. Think of it as a special challenge,] Starlord told the Floatzel.

"I take it you want to come with us?" Alec asked Riolu.

[Yes!] Riolu said excitedly. Before Alec could pull out a Poké Ball to catch Riolu, he remembered something.

"What are we going to call you though?" Alec asked himself.

[What do you mean?] Riolu asked.

[Alec likes to give each member of this team their own name. It's quite the honor, to be honest,] Ethan explained.

[So, you three have your own names?] Riolu asked.

[Yeah, I'm Ethan. Over there is Starlord and Lifesaver,] Ethan introduced, pointing to himself then his two teammates.

"I got it, how about, Arco?" Alec asked Riolu.

[I love it! Thanks, daddy,] Arco said excitedly. Alec then pulled out a Poké Ball and tapped it on Arco's head. He then glowed red before going inside the Poké Ball. After three shakes, the ball clicked.

"Looks like we got ourselves a new teammate," Alec told his Pokémon and threw Arco's Poké Ball, summoning the Riolu. "Arco, welcome to the team" Alec greeted.

Present Day

"After that, Arco eventually evolved into Lucario and got a Lucarionite not long after that. That's when I first met Gurkinn: he saw Arco and my keystone and gave me the clues to the Lucarionite," Alec finished just as the group finished lunch.

"Wow, that's some story," Ash responded.

"Yep, Arco is now one of my strongest Pokémon, and as you saw earlier, we formed our own special signal codes," Alec explained. The group then continued on their way to Shalour City. After about an hour, the group heard rustling from the bushes nearby.

"What's that?" Serena asked. Her question is answered when a Drapion reveals itself and starts to attack the group. Clemont shouted something, but Alec couldn't hear him: he was frozen in place as memories of another Drapion flooded through his mind. He was so out of it, he barely registered his own scream of terror before losing consciousness. Alec awoke to find himself against a tree and his friends looking him over.

"You okay, Alec?" Ash asked.

"What happened?" Alec asked.

"Well, when that Drapoin appeared you just… lost it. You just stood there frozen in place and screamed. Me and Ash had to pull you out of the way when it attacked," Serena explained.

"After that, a Noivern appeared and scared it off," Bonnie finished.

"Noivern?" Alec asked. He looked over and saw Echo out of his ball keeping a lookout with Arco. "Echo? When did you get out?" Alec wondered as the Noivern turned to face him.

[When you screamed like that, I realized what was happening and released myself. Gave it the old Boomburst and it ran off,] Echo explained.

[I helped. Don't go taking all the credit,] Arco resorted.

"Thanks, both of you," Alec told them.

"What was all that about, Alec?" Ash asked.

"Remember when I told you I meet Ethan when I rescued him from a Pokémon Hunter?" Alec asked.

"Yeah, but I fail to see how that has anything to do with what happened just now," Ash stated.

"It has everything to do with what just happened," Alec said strongly.

Ten Years Ago: Near Snowbelle City (For the record, Alec is six by this time. That makes him sixteen currently and Ash and Serena are the same age. Clement's the oldest at seventeen and Bonnie is currently nine. Just thought I'd get that sorted out.)

Alec was walking in the forest not far from his house, kicking stones as he walked along the path. "Why does he always have to act like that? 'You don't need a Pokémon because I've prepared everything.' Heh, yeah right. Just because you don't like Pokémon doesn't mean I don't," Alec complained to himself. He then heard rustling from the bushes and a shiny Eevee steps into the open, badly injured. Alec quickly ran up to it just as it collapsed. "Are you okay?" Alec asked. Eevee didn't respond as it just laid there. "I better get you to a Pokémon Center," Alec said as he put Eevee in his arms. A large man then comes out of the woods and sees Alec and Eevee.

"Hey kid, how about you hand over that Eevee for me would you?" he asks.

"What are you doing to do with it?" Alec asked, getting a bad feeling from this man.

"An Eevee like that? I'm going to sell it. What else?" he asks rhetorically.

"You're a Hunter?!" Alec says surprised.

"So what if I am? You're going to give me that Eevee," He demanded calmly.

"No way! I won't let you!" Alec told him.

"If that's the way you want to play it, fine. Drapion, get them!" the hunter shouted as he threw a Poké Ball and the scorpion looking Pokémon appeared. Alec ran through the forest in an attempt to lose it, but Drapion was able to keep up with him. Eevee then woke up and looked up at Alec.

"Don't worry little guy, I'll get you to safety," Alec told him. Eevee didn't listen and bit down hard on Alec's wrist, but he kept moving. Drapion then fired a Pin Missle that threw Alec off balance and Eevee slipped out of his arms. Drapion then used his claw to pin Eevee and lifted it into the air. Eevee then used Swift and loosened Drapion's claw so it could get free. Eevee tried to run, but its leg must have been injured because after a few strides Eevee collapsed to the ground. Alec then stood in front of Eevee when the hunter showed back up.

"No matter how hard you try kid I'm going to have that Eevee, so hand it over like a good little boy and I'll forget you interfered," he offered.

"No way! Eevee doesn't belong to you!" Alec shouted back.

"Alright then. Drapion, Poison Jab!" he commanded. Drapion used the attack and it slammed Alec in the stomach and set him into a tree. Alec was able to remain conscious long enough to see an ice attack hit Drapion.

Alec's eyes opened in a large white room. He sat up to see that he was in a hospital room and had a few machines strapped to him. The door opens and a nurse stepped into the room and was surprised to see him awake. "Oh, good to see you're awake Mr. Kirkland. I'm sure you have some questions, but I'm sure they'll be answered. I'm just going to send a few calls real quick," she said then left the room. Shortly after that, a doctor came in with his father. His brown hair slightly out of place and his business suit a little unorganized, unlike him. His amber eyes then turned to Alec.

"You're alright. Thank goodness," Alec's father said as he stood by Alec's bed.

"What happened?" Alec asked.

"You got lucky," someone said. Alec turned to the doorway and saw Wulfric standing in it.

"Wulfric here brought you here and we were thankfully able to deal with the poison before it did too much damage," the doctor explained.

"What about Eevee?" Alec asked, remembering about it.

"Eevee's fine, he's still in the Pokémon Center," Wulfric explained.

"What were you thinking!?" Alec's father asked suddenly. "You could have been killed! This is the reason I didn't want you anywhere near Pokémon, and you're concerned for the Pokémon that did this to you!?" Alec flinched back at his father's words.

"Mr. Kirkland, I've told you a thousand times, Eevee didn't do anything to your son except bite him, and it wasn't that deep to begin with. It was Drapion—" Wulfric started. Alec then suddenly saw flashes in his mind of Drapion attacking him and he grabbed his head in let out a loud scream. Alec heard voices talking to him but he couldn't hear them and started to shake uncontrollably. A nurse then ran into the room with a syringe and Alec lost consciousness.

Alec awoke and saw his father and Wulfric still in the room. "What happened to me?" Alec asked worriedly. The doctor from before then walked back into the room.

"Care to explain what happened?" Alec's father asked.

"Well, we ran a brain scan and didn't find anything. But if I had to guess, I'd say your son has PTSD," he explained.

"What's PTSD?" Alec asked.

"Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. It happens when someone experiences a traumatic event in their lives and certain things can trigger memories of what caused it" the doctor explained to Alec. The doctor then turned to Alec's father. "I'd recommend you have him visit a psychiatrist, it would help later in life," he explained.

"I'll think about it," Alec's father responded.

"Otherwise, you're free to go," the doctor told Alec. After a bit, Alec exited the hospital with his father leading him to the car. Before he could though, Alec ran up to Wulfric.

"Mr. Wulfric, is there a chance that I could see Eevee?" Alec asked him. Alec's father then caught up with him.

"You are not going anywhere near that monster," he sternly told Alec. He was about to grab Alec by the arm when Wulfric stopped him.

"Look, Steven, you might as well let him see Eevee. He's going to do it anyway, so let's get it over and done with," he told him. After a short drive to the Pokémon Center, Alec saw Eevee in the emergency room still unconscious. Nurse Joy let them in and Alec quickly ran up to Eevee's bedside.

"Is Eevee going to be okay?" Alec asked Nurse Joy.

"Eevee will make a full recovery, don't worry," she said reassuringly. Over the next few days, Alec continued to visit Eevee and one day he walked in and found him awake. "You're awake!" Alec said surprised. As he walked up to Eevee's bed he flinched back from Alec. "Hey, it's alright," Alec reassured.

[Why would a human like you try to help me?] Eevee asked.

"Well, I didn't want… Did you just speak?" Alec asked confused.

[No, I didn't,] Eevee responded.

"Did I just understand you?!" Alec asked, extremely confused.

[You can understand me?!] Eevee shouted surprised.

"This is so weird." Nurse Joy must have heard the commotion as she walked in.

"Oh, I see Eevee's up. I'll just run a few checks and he'll be free to go," she told Alec. A few moments later, Alec was walking out of the Pokémon Center with Eevee in his arms.

"I think we need to tell someone about this. Not my dad, since he'll probably lose it," Alec told Eevee.

[What about that big guy that showed up after you got knocked out?] Eevee suggested.

"Wulfric? Yeah, that's a good idea," Alec said. The two made their way to the Snowbelle gym. When they arrived by the gym, Alec saw Wulfric was leaving. "Wulfric! Can I take to you please?" Alec asked as he ran up to him.

"Hmm, oh, sure. I see Eevee is up, that's good to see. So, what did you want to talk about?" Wulfric asked.

"Well, I was seeing Eevee and he had just woken up. That's when I found out I could understand him," Alec explained. Wulfric looked skeptical but waved Alec to follow him into the gym.

"If what you're saying is true, then I need to test this," Wulfric says as he releases his Abomasnow. "Abomasnow I want you to say something, anything," Wulfric told him.

[Why? I don't understand at all,] Abomasnow said confused.

"Can you repeat that?" Wulfric asked Alec. Alec repeated it and Wulfric turned to Abomasnow who looked stunned. "Was he correct?" Wulfric asked and Abomasnow nodded. Wulfric then looked surprised and turned to Alec. "This is incredible. I've never heard of human's understanding Pokémon before."

"So, what does this mean?" Alec asked.

"I don't know, but I think you and Eevee should stick together," Wulfric says and pulls out a Premier Ball. "I was saving this for a special Pokémon, but I think you should have it," he told Alec. Alec took the ball in his hands and looked at Eevee. He nodded and Alec tapped the ball on his head. Eevee glowed red before going inside the ball. The ball clicked then suddenly opened and Eevee appeared.

[For the record, I don't want to be in one of those more than I have to,] Eevee said.

"Noted. Come on, let's go home," Alec said. He thanked Wulfric and set off along the path that would lead him to his home.

Present Day

"My father reacted to Ethan as well as you would expect, but he eventually caved in and allowed me to keep Ethan. I gave him his name and we've been together ever since," Alec finished.

"So, what happened recently was a result of that day," Serena concluded.

"Yep, and I never received any form of therapy for my PTSD since my oh so wise father didn't think I'd need it," Alec said, his voice filled with spite. The bushes then rustled and the Drapion appeared again. Thankfully, Alec was better prepared for it. He didn't lose it, but he did feel an overwhelming sense of terror. "Arco, Flash Cannon! Echo, Boomburst!" Alec shouted. The two launch the attacks and they make direct hits. "Ethan, Iron Tail!" Ethan jumped into the air and slammed the attack down on Drapion's head. That seemed to do it as Drapion ran off deeper into the forest. The group looks at Alec surprised that the result from earlier didn't repeat itself. "Just because I never received any formal therapy doesn't mean I haven't gotten better about the experience," Alec told them. With that happier note, the group continued on their way to Shalour City.

Decided that you all could use a bit of exposition since why not? Hope you all enjoyed.