I rewatched the Alolan League Arc, remembered how much I love Nanu and how much Ash has been through, and this happened. I hope you enjoy it.

Ash was supposed to be asleep.

It had been a long day. Winning the Manalo Conference, finally winning a Pokémon League, had been incredible. Emotional, exhausting, and still so amazing he could barely believe it had happened, but then there had been the Guzzlord, three of them, and fighting to save Alola, and learning that the Masked Royal was Professor Kukui of all people...

Yeah. It had been a very long day.

Ash still couldn't sleep.

His Pokémon didn't seem to be having problems. They were passed out all around his room, or just outside in Melmetal's case. Rowlet snored happily in his friend, while Torracat and Lycanroc had each claimed a corner of the room. Pikachu was curled up on Ash's pillow, and he was so tired that he didn't so much as twitch when Ash rested a hand in his soft fur.

"You get some rest, buddy."

He knew from experience that he wasn't going to be sleeping any time soon. Ash dressed as quietly as he could and slipped from the room.

No one else was about. Ash would have been surprised if there was. He wandered through the silent walkways trying to work out what was wrong with him. It had been a crazy day, but he had had worse.

He was fine. Everyone was fine. No one had died. No one had even come close. No one had got hurt. No one had been tortured, or drowned, or turned to stone.

No one had died. Everyone was fine.

It could have been so much worse. Every time he closed his eyes he saw that other world, the one the other Guzzlord had devoured. Then he blinked and it was Lugia falling towards the sea, and Entei vanishing into light, and Celebi lying still, and Latias returning alone, and Lucario sacrificing himself, and the Creation Dragons fighting, and Arceus screaming, and Pikachu turning to stone...

Ash wrenched his mind away from the memories. He couldn't freak out now. For a second he wished that he'd woken Pikachu, but his best friend had fought hard and needed his rest and that was much more important than Ash's stupid inability to let go of the past.

Ash rubbed a hand over his face and tried not to think about how badly his hands were still shaking. He needed sleep, but he had been through this before and knew it wasn't happening any time soon.

Brock would say he should talk to someone. His mom was here, and Professor Oak, and Professor Kukui, but it wasn't like Ash could talk to them either. Even if he did go and wake them up, and there was no way he was gonna do that after everything that had happened, he wouldn't know what to say. He'd tried before, and it never worked.

The surface beneath him shifted, and Ash realised that his feet had carried him to the dock where he and Kukui had faced down the Guzzlord. His heart clenched, but the only lights in the sky were the stars shining above, and the only sounds were the gentle lapping of the waves, and Ash forced himself to breathe. There was no danger here, not any more.

"Thought you'd be in bed by now, kiddo."

Ash spun round in time to see Nanu step out of the shadows behind him. His enormous Persian padded silently at his side, and Ash swallowed down the panic that had spiked so that he could smile.

"Kahuna Nanu. Sorry, I couldn't sleep."

Nanu quirked an eyebrow. "No need to apologise. It's not like I can talk."

Ash looked down at his shoes, unsure what to say to that. Nanu didn't seem to take offence at his silence; instead coming to stand a couple of metres away and stare out over the dark water. Ash shifted, not sure whether to try to make conversation or just leave, then nearly jumped out of his skin when a furry head brushed his fingers.

"Oh. Hey, Persian."

Persian purred and rubbed her head against Ash's hand, and Ash knelt to stroke her properly. Persian closed her eyes at his touch, and Nanu gave a soft huff.

"Hope you're prepared to cater to her every whim whenever she sees you now."

Ash scratched her under the chin, the way he'd learned Torracat liked, and a more genuine smile tugged at his lips when her purring intensified. "That's fine by me."

His own heart rate was settling as the big Dark-type rubbed against him. She had been a nightmare to battle, but there wasn't a trace of that aggression present now. Nanu watched a moment longer, then eased himself down onto the dock with a grunt.

"Old bones," he said, when Ash frowned at him. "Something for you to look forward to."

Persian rolled her eyes and flicked him lightly with her tail. Ash smothered a grin with a cough, and Nanu shot him a smirk before cocking his head to one side.

"Don't think I've ever seen you without that Pikachu of yours."

"He needed his sleep," said Ash, with a shrug. "No point both of us being awake."

Persian blinked up at him with an expression nearly as searching as her trainer's, then stretched herself out and curled up next to Ash. Ash glanced at Nanu, and received a shrug.

"She likes you. Won't stop her scratching if you stop stroking though."

Persian gave him a glare that shifted to pure bliss when Ash ran his hand through her silky fur. She resumed her purring, loudly enough that Ash could feel it, and Nanu smirked.

"Better. Trained Dark-types before?"

"Just a Krookodile," said Ash. "And, does Torracat count?"

"Close enough," Nanu drawled. "Dark-types, felines, they're as bad as each other."

He leaned back on his hands, head tilted up to watch the stars. Ash watched him a moment, still slightly confused as to what was going on, but Persian was a warm, comforting weight at his side and he could feel his anxiety fading as he stroked her, and it was nice to have someone else around, and Ash finally gave up. He shifted to let his legs hang off the dock, and Persian pressed herself against his thigh, and the tension of the day finally began to ease.

"Congratulations, by the way."

Ash blinked up. Nanu continued to stare out over the sea. "That was a good battle."

An involuntary smile tugged at Ash's mouth as he thought back to the final match. "Yeah, it was a lot of fun."

Even if it wasn't the toughest fight he'd ever had, he and his Pokémon had all enjoyed it. Gladion was a great opponent. Ash would have to challenge him to a full six on six battle one day. Nanu hummed.

"Good. Wasn't sure how it would compare to your last one."

Ash's hand stilled in Persian's fur. It took a moment for him to find his voice. "You know about that?"

Of all the people he had expected to know about his past, Nanu was pretty much last on the list. The Kahuna quirked an eyebrow at him. "We're not completely isolated out here," he drawled. "And League Conference finals are worth watching."

Ash swallowed. If Nanu had seen the Kalos Conference then he had to have seen what happened after, which meant...

"Breathe, kiddo."

Ash sucked in a shaky breath. The spots that had started to fill his vision faded, then Persian leaned in to butt at his chest, and Ash buried his face in her soft fur. Her purring reverberated through him, grounding him in the way that only Pikachu usually did, and Ash squeezed his eyes shut.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

He hated this. He hated turning into such a mess, but thinking about Team Flare after everything that had happened was too much.

There was a heavy sigh, and a hand gripped his shoulder.

"Don't think you're the one that should be apologising."

Ash blinked up. Nanu sighed again, his face even paler than usual in the faint starlight. "Sorry," he muttered.

Ash shook his head. "No, it's..." He swallowed, and tried again. "I didn't think anyone else knew."

He hadn't wanted anyone to know. Alola was supposed to be an escape, some time away from the chaos of the last few years. Team Flare, near-death experiences, Legendary Pokémon, had been the last things he had wanted to think about.

Tapu Koko showing up on the first day had kind of ruined the last one, but he had hoped to avoid the other two.

"Don't think anyone else does," said Nanu. Ash frowned, and the Kahuna shrugged. "Kukui's a busy man. Kahunas are even worse, and Kalos is a long way away."

Ash nodded slowly. Kukui had never mentioned it, and Ash was pretty sure his Alolan guardian wouldn't have been able to keep quiet if he knew, but that didn't answer Ash's question.

"But you know."

Nanu shrugged again. "Habit."

Ash bit back a comment he probably would have regretted, but it must have shown on his face for Nanu smirked before his expression turned serious. "Used to be with the International Police."

Ash's jaw dropped. "What?"

Nanu raised an eyebrow. "That really so hard to believe?"

Ash snapped his mouth shut. "Well, no," he managed. "But I guess, you're a Kahuna. I just always saw you as part of Alola."

"I am," said Nanu. "Now, and for as long as Bulu wants me."

Ash shivered. For a split-second it seemed like he was seeing two people at the same time; the lazy cop who did everything he could to get out of his Kahuna duties, and the man who had been chosen by one of the Guardians of Alola to serve and protect Ula'ula Island, someone with authority even League Champions could only dream of-

Then he blinked and there was just a tired-looking man sitting under the starlight. Ash opened his mouth, but before he could work out what to say Nanu shook his head.

"Anyway," he said gruffly, "I know what happened. And the other stuff."

For the second time in a many minutes, Ash could only stare at him. Nanu sighed. "I've still got contacts in the IPD. People get worried when Legendary Pokémon start acting out." He held Ash's gaze for a moment before looking away. "I'm sorry none of them ever got there in time to help."

Ash opened his mouth, then closed it. His mind was blank. Team Flare was one thing, that had been all over the news, but everything else...

"They...they knew?"

"Not everything," said Nanu quietly. "Not enough." His red eyes searched Ash's face. "Probably not even half the stuff you've actually done."

Ash looked away. He could understand the IPD knowing about the mess at Shamouti, or Larousse City, or Crown City, but things like the Celebi incident... There was no way they could have known about that at the time. Part of him wondered rather bitterly if they did now.

Part of him wondered why it had been up to him and a bunch of other teenagers to saw the world.

Persian gave a soft, questioning growl, and Ash forced himself to relax.

"Yeah," he muttered. "Probably."

Nanu nodded slowly. "I'm sorry," he said. "That should never have been your responsibility."

Ash frowned at him. "I wasn't going to not help," he said.

It came out a little fiercer than he had intended, and Nanu held up his hands. "Not what I said, kid. You did good. Better than most of them could have."

Ash sat back, mollified, but Nanu wasn't done, "Still shouldn't have been down to a ten year old to save the world."

"I was only ten for the first one," Ash protested, and then realised that that wasn't the right thing to say when even Persian frowned at him.

Nanu shook his head. His eyes glinted as he cocked his head to one side. "You ever talk to anyone?"

Ash blinked, slightly taken aback by the subject change, but shook his head. "I just wanted to move on. I had Gym Badges to win, and it was just easier..." He trailed off at the expression on Nanu's face, and shook his head. "There was no point," he said instead. "Mom would just have got upset. I was fine."

"Yeah," said Nanu. "How's that working out for you?"

Ash glared at him. "No one ever noticed," he ground out. "I'm fine."

Nanu raised an eyebrow, looked pointedly round at the empty dock they were sitting on in the middle of the night, and Ash felt his cheeks heat up. "I'm fine," he repeated.

He always was. He had to be. Too many people were relying on him for him to be anything else. A few hours and a new day, and he'd be back to normal.

He was just overtired. That was why he was thinking like this. That was why his eyes were burning. He just needed to sleep.

He really wanted Pikachu.

Persian huffed and stood up just enough to flop into his lap. The weight and warmth made Ash jump, then she rubbed her cheek against his, and Ash buried a shaking hand in her fur.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

Pokémon had always made him feel better. Pikachu was best at it, but Persian was a lot more sensitive than Ash had ever expected her to be. Not that he was questioning it. She was here, and a very good distraction, and for a moment Ash forgot everything else in favour of petting the purring Dark-type in his lap.

"You okay?"

Ash kept stroking Persian, but looked up. Nanu just looked at him, and finally Ash nodded. "I will be."

It was true. There wasn't anything else to say. Nanu cocked his head to one side, then sighed and looked out over the sea. "You should think about talking to someone."

Ash bit his lip. He didn't want to talk about it, talking about it meant thinking about it and that was the last thing he wanted to do, but something in Nanu's voice made him pause. He looked more closely at the Kahuna, saw the rigidity in his usual slouch, then looked at Persian still pressed close against his chest and helping without him having to ask, and something clicked. He opened his mouth, swallowed, and tried again.

"Would it help?"

Nanu stilled. For a second Ash thought he wouldn't reply, but then he visibly relaxed. "It helped me."

Ash swallowed. Persian raised her head and made a soft noise, and Nanu reached over to scratch her ears. "Saw a lot of things," he said. "And I knew what I was signing up for." His eyes met Ash's. "It's worth a try."

Ash looked away, unable to meet those eyes that saw far too much. Persian's paws kneaded gently into his thigh, and Ash took a deep breath. "Maybe. Yeah. I guess it couldn't hurt."

Pikachu would be pleased, at least. Persian gave a very satisfied purr, and Nanu favoured him with a rare genuine smile. "Alola's lucky to have you as her first Champion."

Ash felt his face go bright red. Nanu's grin faded into a more familiar smirk. "Maybe one day you'll show them all what you can really do." He paused. "And I wouldn't mind meeting that Krookodile of yours. Or Greninja."

"I released Greninja," said Ash. "But Krookodile would like a challenge."

It had been a long time since he had a good fight. Ash felt his spirits rise just at the thought. Persian caught his eye and gave a toothy grin, and Ash scratched behind her ears.

"How about it? You wanna fight my Krookodile?"

Persian nodded, eyes gleaming in the starlight. Nanu's smirk softened. "Think you could get some sleep now?"

Ash thought about it, and was slightly surprised to find himself yawning. Maybe talking about things really could help. Nanu nodded. "Go to bed, Ash. You'll need your rest if you're going to battle Kukui tomorrow."

Ash smiled at the reminder. "I can't wait."

Persian gave a yawn that showed all her teeth, and flowed off his lap in one smooth movement. Ash pushed himself upright, then held out his hand to Nanu. The Kahuna took it with a raised eyebrow, and grunted as Ash hauled him up.

"Thanks."

"No problem," said Ash. "And, um. Thank you."

Persian yowled fondly, and Nanu shoved his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, yeah. Get back to bed, before you pass out on the pitch tomorrow."

Ash laughed. "Good night, sir."

Nanu raised his hand in a lazy salute, and Ash hurried back up to the Pokémon Centre. Pikachu's eat twitched as he closed the door, but he relaxed again when Ash patted him.

"Everything's fine, buddy."

Pikachu made a soft noise and rolled over, and Ash sat back on the bed. Through the open window he could see the stars, shining bright and clear over an Alola at peace, and he nodded.

Everything was fine.

Thanks for reading! Any feedback would be appreciated.