"So, Nebby is a rare pokémon called Cosmog and you want to help him find his way back to where he came from?" Asked Ash.
Lillie nodded. "Yes. And because he's really rare some people want to take him for money, So please, don't tell anyone about Nebby" Lillie pleaded.
"Alright" Ash said. "I understand, and I won't tell anyone. You can count on me" Ash grinned at her. Lillie looked at Ash and nodded with a smile. She didn't know what it is but there's something about Ash that made her trust him.
"Hey look, we're here" Ash said as they walked into Iki Town. There they could see not only Professor Kukui but also two other people there. One of them was a boy about the same age as Ash and Lillie. He had dark green hair and dark brown skin. He was wearing a black t-shirt, yellow shorts and an orange backpack. Even though they've never seen him before, Ash and Lillie could tell that he was a really energetic person.
The other person was an elderly man. He had white hair and dark brown skin not unlike the green haired boy. He was wearing a yellow jacket(A/N: I'm sorry, I don't know what it's called), with blue t-shirt under it and white shorts.
"Oh, there's the Kahuna" Lillie said. Ash turned to her.
"That's the Kahuna?" Ash asked. Lillie nodded and walked over to where the Kahuna is. Ash just followed behind her.
Professor Kukui was the first to notice them. "Alola Lillie! What are you doing out here in the middle of the night" Kukui asked her.
"Alola Professor" Lillie smiled at him. "Nebby wanted to visit the ruin but I don't want to attract any attention so I decided to go now, when everyone is asleep" Lillie explained. "We were attacked by Spearows on the bridge but luckily, Ash and Eevee found us in time" Lillie said while gesturing to Ash.
"Oh, Alola Ash! So, you rescued Lillie huh? Well thanks for that. Unfortunately, Nebby likes to run off on his own sometimes" Kukui grinned at Ash. It was only then that he noticed the white bracelet on Ash's wrist. "Ash, where did you get that?" Kukui asked.
Ash saw where Kukui was looking at. "A pokémon gave it to me. According to Lillie that was Tapu Koko" Ash explained. Kukui blinked then looked at Lillie.
"Was it true? Did you really see Tapu Koko?" Kukui asked. Lillie nodded.
"Yeah. It was after Ash rescued me. It just appeared behind Ash and It gave Ash the Z-Ring" Lillie explained.
"Oh? What's this I heard about Tapu Koko?" Kahuna Hala asked. It seemed that he heard their conversation and approached them.
"Apparently Ash and Lillie here saw the Guardian. And not only that, It gave Ash a Z-Ring" Kukui explained excitedly. Hala then looked at Ash with a thoughtful look.
"Well It seems that our Guardian Deity has taken a liking to you. Tell me, are you planning on taking the Island Challenge?" Hala asked.
"Yes, Mr. Hala. I came to Alola to take on the Island Challenge" Ash said, which caused Hala to laugh.
"Well, it seems that you are really determined. I can already tell that you would be a great trainer one day" Hala laughed. "And please, just call me Hala"
"You're taking on the Island Challenge too?" The green haired boy asked. Ash nodded. "That's cool! And is Eevee your partner?" He asked again.
"Hau! you should introduce yourself first before asking questions" Kukui said with a grin. The now identified Hau laughed and rub his neck sheepishly.
"Sorry Professor. I just got really excited" Hau said. He turned to Ash and Lillie and grinned at them. "I'm Hau, the Kahuna's grandson. I want to become a great trainer and surpass my Tutu!" Hau said excitedly.
Ash grinned at Hau. Hau reminded Ash of himself and Ash knew that they were going to be great friends. "I'm Ash Ketchum. This is my partner Eevee" Ash gestured to Eevee. "Vee-Eevee!" "We're going to complete the Island Challenge and then we're going to become the very best!" Ash declared with Eevee crying out his name in agreement. Lillie shook her head at their antics.
"I'm Lillie. It's nice to meet you Hau" Lillie said formally. Hau grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up.
"Well, I'm here to get my first pokémon and start my journey" Hau said. Ash blinked.
"Wait, I've got some questions. One, how old are you? Two, why in the middle of the night?" Ash asked. Hau seemed to be the same age as him, maybe a year younger, but he definitely doesn't look like a ten year old. And also, it was well past midnight by then, why didn't he wait until the next day.
"Well, I just turned 15 last month" Hau confirmed Ash's guess.
"You're probably wondering why he's only getting his first pokémon now right?" Kukui said with a knowing look. Ash nodded.
"Well, you see. Here in Alola, Children starts their journey at 15 instead of 10. Sure, most got their first pokémon at a younger age but they usually leave for their journey when they turn 15" Kukui explained. Ash was surprised hearing this. It seems that Alola is really different from the other regions.
"Yes, that's right" Hala said. "Children can get their first pokémon from their family or they catch it with someone's help, but they could also ask the Kahuna for a pokémon"
"Yeah!" Hau said. "I've been waiting for this my whole life that's why I'm doing this in the middle of the night. Tutu had just finished preparing the pokémons" He Explained.
"And on that note, I think it's time for you to meet your partner" Kukui said.
Hala nodded and took three pokéballs. He threw them in the air and they opened to reveal three pokémons which Ash had never seen before.
The first one was an owl like pokémon. It was mostly round with pale brown fur(I don't know what this color is called, but where I live we call it cream colored). It has a leaf on it's chest, kinda like a bow tie. Ash guessed that this was a grass flying type.
The second one was a black cat. It has red fur patterns on it's body and it has bright brown eyes with yellow sclera. It was obviously a fire type.
The last one looked like a sea lion. It's blue in color and it has a light blue collar around it's neck. It has a white snout a pink ball on the tip. Again, it was obviouly a water type.
"Wow. I've never seen these pokemons before" Ash said. He took out his Rotom Phone and pointed the camera at the bird pokemon.
Rowlet, The Grass Quill Pokémon. A Grass and Flying type. It sends its feathers, which are as sharp as blades, flying in attack. Its legs are strong, so its kicks are also formidable. The Pokédex read out.
"That's pretty cool" Ash said which caused Rowlet to cry out happily. Ash then pointed the phone towards the cat pokémon.
Litten, The Fire Cat Pokémon. A Fire type. If you try too hard to get close to it, it won't open up to you. Even if you do grow close, giving it too much affection is still a no-no.
"Litten huh.." Ash said while looking at Litten. Litten just looked at him without any interest. Ash shrugged and scanned the last pokémon.
Popplio, The Sea Lion Pokémon. A Water type. The balloons it inflates with its nose grow larger and larger as it practices day by day.
"Looks like you're hardworking pokémon" Ash said. He then turned to Hau who was standing on his left side. "So, who are you going to choose?" Ash asked.
Hau grinned at him and turned towards the pokémons. "I've decided a long time ago that my partner will be" Hau paused for dramatic purposes. He then pointed at one of the pokémons. "You, Litten" He walked over to litten and kneeled in front of him. "So, what do you say, will you become my partner?" Hau asked. Litten studied him for awhile but eventually nodded. Hau grinned and picked up Litten. "Alright! You and I are going to have an awesome adventure!" Litten clearly didn't like being picked up and looked as if it was thinking over it's life choices.
Ash grinned at Hau. It reminded him of the day he got his first pokémon. It was the best feeling ever, but now it also hurt him on the inside. Fortunately, Hala distracted him from the memory.
"Take care of Litten Hau" Hala said while over Litten's pokéball to Hau. "He's your partner and you two will have to face many challenges together" Hala then turned towards me and Lillie. "Hmm, why don't you take a pokémon with you, Lillie?" He said which caught Lillie off guard.
"W-what?" Lillie stuttered. "I-I don't think I can take care of a pokémon" She said. Ash turned to Lillie with a frown.
"Why do you think you're not ready?" Ash asked.
"I-I" Lillie stuttered. "I'm always shy and I can't do anything by myself and-" She was going to keep on talking but Ash interrupted her.
"Lillie," Ash said. "You willingly risked your life to save Nebby and I know that not everyone would do the same. If that doesn't mean that you're ready then I don't know what would" Ash said softly.
Lillie looked at Ash with a hesitant expression. "Y-you really think I'm ready?" Lillie asked. Ash nodded at her.
"Pew!" Nebby encouraged Lillie. The pokémon has somehow managed to escape from Lillie's bag.
Lillie looked at Nebby. "Nebby..." Lillie said.
"Pop-Popplio!" This time it was Popplio who said it. It heard everything and it walked(A/N : Can it even walk? Idk, maybe it hop?) over to Lillie. "Take good care of her a
Lillie looked at Popplio, then at Ash, then at Nebby, and then she looked at Popplio again, but this time she was smiling. "Alright" Lillie said as she picked Popplio up in her hands. "W-would you like to come with me?" Lillie asked it. Popplio cried out happily which caused Lillie to brighten up.
"Hahaha. It seems that the two of you are perfect for each other" Laughed Hala as he handed Lillie Popplio's pokéball. "Take care of her alright Lillie" He said.
"Y-yes Mr. Hala!" Lillie said.
Ash watched with a smile as Lillie bonded with Popplio. Ash knew that this would be good for her. Having her own Pokémon would help her become more confident and the fact that it's a cheerful Pokémon like Popplio definitely helped.
Ash was about to go and congratulate Lillie when he saw something that caught his attention. Ash turned and looked at Rowlet. It saw that it was looking at it's two friends in happiness but Ash could also see sadness in longing in its eyes. Ash decided to congratulate Lillie later and walked towards Rowlet.
"Hey," Ash said as he kneeled in front of Rowlet. "Don't be sad." "Row?" Rowlet said as he looked at Ash. Ash smiled at it. "I know that you want to go on an adventure too, just like your friends. But being sad wouldn't change anything. Even if you can't start your adventure today, I'm sure that one day someone will pick you as their partner and together you're going to have the adventure of your life" "Eevee-Vee!"
Rowlet looked at Ash for a few seconds before crying out in determination. "Now that's what I'm talking about" Ash grinned at Rowlet. That was when someone walked up beside him. Ash looked upwards and saw Hala extending a pokéball towards him.
"Well Ash," Hala said. "In that case, why don't you take care of Rowlet" Ash was caught by surprise. Is Hala offering for him to take Rowlet?
"A-are you sure?" Ash asked. Hala nod and extended his arm towards him once more. Ash looked at the pokéball for a second before taking it in his hand. He then turned to Rowlet who was looking at him curiously.
"Well Rowlet, what do you say? Wanna come with me?" Ash asked it. Rowlet let out a happy cry and flew on top of Ash's head. "Welcome to the team Rowlet" Laughed Ash.
"Congratulations Ash! You too Rowlet!" Ash turned and saw Lillie carrying Popplio in her arm, with Nebby, Hau, Litten, and Professor Kukui behind her.
"Yeah! I can already tell you two would become a great partner woo!" Kukui grinned.
Hau, on the other hand, was jumping up and down in excitement. "Hey Ash, Let's have a battle! You and Rowlet against me and Litten! What do you say?" He asked.
Ash grinned and looked up towards Rowlet. "What do you think Rowlet?" Rowlet let out a cry before flying down from Ash's head to the ground in front of him.
"Challenge Accepted Hau" Ash said. Rowlet cried out in agreement.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's battle!" Hau said.
"Wait! I have to see what move Rowlet have first" Ash said. Hau stopped jumping up and down and rubbed his neck sheepishly.
"Right. I also forgot to check Litten's move" He said. Ash, Kukui and Hala sweatdropped at that.
"Let's just check it first then we battle" Ash said as he took out his Rotom Phone/Pokédex once more. Ash saw Hau took out his own pokédex.
"Isn't that a Kalos Pokédex?" Ash asked as he observed the pokédex. It was indeed a Kalos Pokédex, but unlike his old one, this one was smaller and had a blue and green color instead of red and black.
"Yeah it is. My dad gave it to me for my birthday and he already included information on Alolan Pokémon" Hau said.
"I see" Ash said. He opened his pokédex and scanned Rowlet once more.
Rowlet, The Grass Quill Pokémon. A Grass and Flying type. It sends its feathers, which are as sharp as blades, flying in attack. Its legs are strong, so its kicks are also formidable. The Pokédex read out, but Ash already knew that.
This Rowlet is Male. It has the ability Long Reach. It knows the moves Tackle, Leafage and Growl.
"So you know 3 moves already huh?" Ash asked. "Row-Let" Was Rowlet's reply. Ash then turned to Hau who was scanning Litten.
Litten, The Fire Cat Pokémon. A Fire type. If you try too hard to get close to it, it won't open up to you. Even if you do grow close, giving it too much affection is still a no-no.
This Litten is Male. It has the ability Blaze. It knows the moves Scratch, Ember and Growl.
"That's awesome Litten" Hau said. Litten just nodded at Hau. "Now that we know what moves they have, let's battle!"
"Yeah, Lets!" Ash said. He then ran a pretty good distance away from Hau. Lillie, Professor Kukui and The Kahuna went to the side to watch their battle.
(A/N : Play this song if you want to. Also, can we agree that this is one of the best battle theme in S/M US/UM?)
"Alright Litten, let's have fun!" Hau said. Litten went and stood in front of him.
"Rowlet, I choose you!" Ash said. Rowlet spread out his wings and let out a battle cry.
"Litten, we'll start things off with Scratch!" Hau said. Litten's claw glowed white and he jumped at Rowlet and swiped his claw, hitting Rowlet.
"Rowlet, don't back down and use Tackle!" Ash said. Rowlet quickly recovered from the attack and his body glowed white. He then kicked Litten with his talon, sending it flying back.
"Litten, Scratch one more time!" Hau said.
"Counter it with Tackle!" Ash said.
The two pokémon charged at each other. Litten slashed at Rowlet with his claw but Rowlet blocked it with its talon. Litten tried one more time but Rowlet blocked it again. They exchanged a couple more blow before jumping back from each other and stood in front of their trainer.
"Litten, let's try something else. Use Ember!" Hau said. The fur on Litten's back glowed red as Litten fired a small ball of fire towards Rowlet.
"Dodge It!" Ash said. Rowlet complied and flew up avoiding the Ember attack.
"Keep on using Ember!" Hau said. Litten fired another ball of fire at Rowlet who dodged it again. Litten tried again and kept on firing balls of fire but Rowlet dodged them all.
Hau, seeing that this is not working decided to try something else. "Litten use Scratch!" Hau said.
"You use Tackle!" The two pokémon charged towards each other and once again ended up in a stalemate.
"Now use Ember!" Hau said. Litten cancelled his Scratch attack and fired a ball of fire at Rowlet. Rowlet didn't have time to react and was hit by the attack, dealing super effective damage.
"Litten! Don't let down and use Ember!" Hau said. Litten complied and fired another ball of fire at Rowlet.
"Use Leafage!" Ash said. He knew Rowlet wouldn't be able to dodge, so he decided to couter it.
Leaves appeared around Rowlet and flew towards Litten. Some of the leaves was burned by the Ember attack, but most made it through and hit Litten.
"Alright Rowlet, now use Tackle!" Ash said. Rowlet glowed white and flew towards Litten. Just like before he kicked Litten with his talons, sending Litten flying back.
"Litten! Are you alright?" Hau asked worriedly. Litten let out a cry of determination and stood up on his feet.
"Lit-TEN!" Litten said as a red aura formed around him. Hau saw this and grinned.
"Litten let's end this now. Use Ember!" Hau said. Litten complied and fired another fireball, but unlike last time, this one was at least twice as big.
Ash's eyes grew wide in surprise. "Rowlet dodge!" Ash shouted. Rowlet tried to fly away but it was too late. He was hit by the super effective attack and he fell down to the ground with swirly eyes.
"Rowlet!" Ash said as he ran towards Rowlet. "Rowlet you alright?" Ash asked when he saw that Rowlet had woken up. "Row" Rowlet said sadly. "Hey, it's alright. It was only your first battle and you were at a disadvantage. We'll train and we'll get them next time" Ash said. "Eevee vee!" Eevee cheered Rowlet up. Rowlet looked at him and cried out in determination.
"We won't lose either Ash!" Hau said as he walked over to Ash and Rowlet with Litten by his side.
"Bring it on Hau!" Ash grinned.
On the side Lillie was still confused about what had happened. What was that aura around Litten and how did he made that fireball? Kukui noticed Lillie's confusion and explained it to her.
"You're probably wondering what just happened right?" Kukui asked. Lillie turned to Kukui and nodded.
"Yeah" Lillie said.
"Well, let me explain it to you" Kukui said. "Litten has the ability Blaze. It is an ability that would power up fire type moves when the pokémon is badly hurt" He explained.
"So that red aura is the Blaze ability being activated?" Lillie asked.
"Yeah" Kukui said. "Pokémons are really interesting aren't they?" Kukui asked.
Lillie looked at Kukui and nodded. "Yes, yes they are" She said. Lillie turned and saw Ash and Hau walking towards them. Eevee was still on Ash's shoulder but Litten and Rowlet was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Rowlet and Litten?" Lillie asked.
"We returned them to their pokéball to let them rest" Ash said.
"Oh, right" Lillie looked down at Popplio who was still in her arms. "How about you Popplio? You want to return to your pokéball" Popplio cried happily and nodded. Lillie took out Popplio's pokéball and tapped it on Popplio's head, causing Popplio to be sucked into it.
"That was a really great battle!" Hala said. "Both of you were in perfect sync with your pokémon and both of you gave it your all" He laughed. "Ash, you must do us the honor of battling at the festival next week" Hala said.
"The festival?" Ash asked.
"Yeah" Hau said. "The festival of Iki Town. We do it every year as a sign of respect to Tapu Koko. It's really amazing and fun and the best part is the pokémon battle"
"There's a pokémon battle?" This time, it was Lillie who asked.
"Yeah" Kukui answered. "Tapu Koko is said to like battling so we have a battle between to trial-goers to honor that" Kukui said.
"That's right. So, what do you say Ash? Would you do us the honor of battling at the festival" Hala said.
"Sure!" Ash said. "It will be fun, right Eevee?" "Vee-Eevee"
"That's great. We'll see you next week then. But for now, I think it's best we all get some sleep" Hala said.
After saying their goodbyes, Hala and Hau returned to their house leaving Ash, Lillie and Kukui.
"So Ash," Kukui started. "Got anywhere to stay?"
Ash looked at him and shrugged. "I was planning to stay at the Pokémon Centre actually"
"Well, you can stay at my place if you want" Kukui said.
Ash blinked. "Really?" He asked. Kukui nodded.
"Yeah" Kukui nodded. "But you'll have to sleep on the sofa 'cause I've got no spare room, and Lillie's using the loft"
"That's fine professor. And thank you!" Ash said. "Eevee!"
"Well, in that case we should get going" Kukui said as he started walking through route 1.
Ash looked at Lillie and noticed that she was also looking at him.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Come on!" Ash smiled at Lillie. Lillie smiled back as they started walking through route 1.
Meanwhile in the Hoenn region, a boy was sitting in his room in Petalburg City. The boy had green hair and was wearing a pair of glasses. He looked to be around 10 years old. He wears a green polo shirt, gray pants and a pair of green shorts. On his waist was a belt with two empty pokéballs. This boy was Max Maple, son of Norman Maple, the gym leader of Petalburg City.
"What am I supposed to do?" Max asked himself. He started his gym challenge a couple of months ago, and he was going to challenge his dad for the third badge. He had expected a welcome from his parents, maybe a special dinner. But what he didn't expect was her sister being there. She was supposed to be in Sinnoh to participate in the Contests there, but for some reason she was here. And if that wasn't enough, she was here with none other than Ash's Pikachu. She said that Ash had decided to give up on being a trainer and that he entrusted Pikachu to him. But Max knew she was lying. Even with Pikachu agreeing with her Max knew that Ash wouldn't ever give up on being a pokémon trainer and he would never just give Pikachu away like that, so Max refused. He knew that her sister was hiding something, something that involves Ash, his Idol. He was torn between finding out what happen or just forgetting about it and continuing on with his gym challenge.
"Grovlye" Max turned his head and saw Grovyle, his starter pokémon looking at him. "Gro-Grovyle. Vyle Grovyle!" Grovyle said. "You think I should find out what my sister's hiding?" Max asked.
"Vyle" Grovyle nodded.
"Kir-Kirlia" Kirlia said. This was the Ralts that he befriended. As soon as he got Grovyle, who was still a Treecko back then, he went to where Ralts was and asked him to join him. Ralts was more than happy to do so and they, along with Treecko, took on the Gym Challenge together. Eventually Ralts evolved into Kirlia and Treecko evolved into Grovyle.
"You're right" Max said after thinking about it for a while. "Something has happened, something involving Ash, and I'm going to find out what it is"