Who I Am - Lightning99
Chapter 22:
The Reunion
Ash gaped up the beach at the summerly clad trio, nonplussed. Dawn, her eyes wide and tearing as if disbelieving of reality, stood with a hand to her chest, tensely gripping Brock's t-shirt sleeve with her other hand. Brock only grinned, in the way he had done so many times in the past, a grin of satisfaction and pleasure, his arms folded over his chest.
Ash's heart started palpitating. Each beat was a bomb of euphoria exploding, pulsing in his veins; their serendipitous entrance did something to him he had no idea he needed. Like a stagnated tectonic plate dislodging with earth-quaking force, something shifted inside of him. Something returned to him, some lost part of his heart he hadn't noticed he had been living without. He suddenly felt revitalised; his happiness soared higher than Rayquaza, he felt re-energised after his long day, he felt the pain clinging to him ease, finally beginning to subside. Seeing the friends that hadn't betrayed him made those that did – and their actions – feel as insignificant as a raindrop in the sea.
His friends were his stitches.
Ash had no idea why they had turned up in Alola, but he didn't care, not now that he felt so alive, so renewed. He could hardly contain his rapture; he wanted to scream out loud and run at them, he needed to grab them, to know they were real, to feel their existence. He didn't register Clemont immediately.
Ash made to take a step forwards, but Dawn moved first. The navy-haired girl relinquished the hand she had grasped to Brock's sleeve and dashed forward.
"Ash!" Dawn yelled, clattering into the teen with the force of a Giga Impact, wrapping her arms around him and knocking him to the sand. "You're ok!" she wailed; Ash could hear her tears in her voice.
Ash grunted when he hit the floor, but he just laughed aloud. He must have sounded idiotic, but his heart was controlling his head. He was nothing but a vessel of delight.
"Dawn!" Ash shouted back, sitting up. Wrapping his arms around Dawn, squeezing, he couldn't help but feel relieved that she was real. "It's great to see you!"
"You have no idea how great it is to see you!" Dawn said, breaking the hug. "I can't believe it… We all thought…" Dawn trailed, wiping at her eyes. Then, suddenly, she fixed Ash with a stern expression. She always wore such an expression whenever they argued in the past. Lightly knocking her hand against his shoulder, Dawn said, in a tearful, exasperated tone, "Couldn't it have killed you – again – to call us?!"
Ash laughed. "I wish I could have! My Pokégear is being repaired."
"Of course, it is…" Dawn sighed, scooting back across the sand.
"Ash!" Brock yelled then, charging at him like a Golem using Rollout. He thrust his hand down to him. Grinning, Ash took Brock's hand and the older man yanked Ash's arm, causing him to yelp as he sprung onto his feet. Instead of shaking hands, Brock grabbed Ash into a hug that felt like he was stood between two boulders.
Neither he nor Brock needed to say anything more. Ash felt exactly what Brock felt, that it was more than a relief to see him again. Ash had a feeling of being reunited with family. When they broke the hug, holding one another at arm's length momentarily and grinning as if reminiscent of the bygone six years, Ash saw tears cornering Brock's eyes, much like the tears in his own.
Dawn weaved in between Brock and Ash, nudging Brock aside in the process, and gripped Ash for a proper hug this time, to which he heartily returned.
"What are you guys doing here?" Ash asked.
"Are you kidding, Ash?!" Brock shouted. Ash covered his ears, cringing.
"I guess I should know the answer to that… But you came all the way out here?" Ash asked.
"Of course!" Dawn shouted this time. "We've been depressed these past few weeks! We couldn't just stay home knowing where you were!"
Ash was pleasing to hear his supposed death affected them so much. It reassured him that they were, in fact, his friends. "I'm glad to know you guys care so much," he softly said, reminiscing momentarily on those that didn't.
"Ash…" Dawn whispered, putting a hand onto his shoulder.
"Ash?" said another, third voice. Ash looked up the beach and he frowned, because beyond Brock stood Clemont; Ash finally registered him. Immediately, he was conflicted. His overzealous heart panged when he recalled what Clemont had been involved in, but he had arrived alongside Brock and Dawn, two of his best, most trustworthy friends. What did it mean?
Ash stared at Clemont's unmoving, tense person, locking eyes with his nervous, dejected ones. He turned, glanced between Brock and Dawn.
"It's ok, Ash," Brock said, nodding his head, smiling still.
"There's a good reason. He didn't want to take part," Dawn added.
Ash's tightened chest relaxed. If they trusted him and said so, there must be more to it than he had thought the entire time. Clemont must not have merely discarded his godly opinion of him as he had thought.
Somewhat eased but still tense, Ash turned back to Clemont, smiling weakly. Ash still felt saddened when he looked at Clemont, but he wanted to believe. He wanted to believe that he was the same person. He wanted to believe Clemont was still his brother. He hesitated before he said, "Hey, Clemont."
Ash's words were the pull on the trigger: Clemont clumsily ran at Ash as was his unique running style. He mimicked Dawn's actions, and once again, Ash was knocked down onto the beach. Clemont was crying.
"I'm so sorry, Ash! I'm sorry!" Clemont wailed, scrambling back from his collision. "I'm sorry… I only did it to protect Bonnie…" Clemont hastily explained, his voice quieting with each word.
Ash recoiled. "Protect Bonnie?" When Clemont nodded, Ash felt even more conflicted. What had happened in his absence? Had he gotten everything wrong the entire time? He quickly discarded his thoughts. That wasn't the time to be thinking about such things, not with his friends so close by.
Easing out of the hug, Ash said, "I think I get it. But, uhh, can we talk about this somewhere else? I mean, I'd like to change out of my swimming stuff first, if that's ok."
Brock, Dawn, and Clemont all laughed together, and Brock and Dawn helped the other pair to their feet. "Of course, Ash. Where should we go?"
"We're all staying at a hotel, so that should be the best place," Ash said, suddenly remembering the stunned group behind him.
"We?" Clemont asked.
"Oh, yeah," Ash said, whirling on his heel. He sent an apologetic look at the group behind him. "These are some friends of mine: Mallow, Lana, Kiawe, and Lillie," Ash said, his lips now a never-ending grin.
The walk back to the Tide Song Hotel was very slow but, in Ash's elated opinion, perfect. Brock, Dawn, and Clemont introduced themselves to the Alola group, sharing their names and how they knew him. The Alola group looked sucker-punched at first, and they fumbled to give their names. It was probably the sudden appearance that jolted them, but they quickly settled into joviality. They seemed to bond quite easily after Brock explained that they were friends of his.
"You guys came all the way out to Alola just to see Ash? That really shows your friendship," Kiawe said, folding his arms across his chest.
"Of course. It's only natural that we came. When we received the call that he was seen here, we caught the first plane out that we could," Brock explained.
"Wait who called you?" Ash asked.
"You'll never believe it: Team Rocket," Clemont said.
"Wow," Ash huffed, "I didn't know they made up with you guys, too."
"Was there some sort of reason you were so keen to see Ash again?" Lillie asked.
"Well, umm, yeah. We thought-"
"I completely forgot that we were supposed to meet up," Ash quickly said, stopping Dawn from referencing the fact they thought he was dead. That would only confuse the situation even further.
Dawn glanced quizzically at Ash. He shook his head, trying to tell her he hadn't told them. "Yeah…" Dawn trailed. "We, umm, we were supposed to meet up with him after he returned from Kalos, but by the time we got there, he disappeared. So, we followed him out here. He probably just wanted to get exploring again really soon and forgot about our meeting; he's always been like that, headstrong and reckless."
Ash sighed. He was in a place now where he had come to terms with the whole situation himself, but he didn't know how well he would cope with talking about it, especially to his new friends, even if they would undoubtedly be doting in response.
"In fact, he's so reckless that, when I first met Ash, he jumped off a tree, climbed up a giant robot while being attacked by a bunch of flailing arms, and even got caught up in an explosion when the robot blew up," Dawn explained, laughing to herself.
"Seriously?!" Kiawe asked, glancing at Ash who looked sheepishly back at their shocked grins.
"Well, I did it to save Pikachu so…"
Lillie laughed genially to herself next. "I had a similar first meeting with Ash. He came to my aid when I was in trouble. He saved me and ended up falling down a ravine."
"How come we've never heard that story?" Mallow asked.
"Are you some sort of superhero, Ash?" Lana asked.
Embarrassed, Ash rubbed the back of his neck, looking away. "Ah, come on. I'm nothing like that. I'm just a guy who loves Pokémon."
"It's true," Clemont said, "that's just Ash for you. When I met him, he climbed up a giant tower to save a Garchomp and literally jumped off to catch Pikachu."
"What?!" his new friends cried.
Slightly overwhelmed by embarrassment, Ash allowed the others to continue tattling on his heroics. He threw his arms behind his head and glanced at Pikachu, who was smirking on his shoulder. He grinned too. He wouldn't say it, but the way they praised him was encouraging.
As they turned the corner towards the Tide Song Hotel, Lana asked something that made Ash panic somewhat.
"I am curious though. How come you three acted so emotional when you saw Ash just now? I mean, that was some hug, Dawn. You're not his girlfriend or something, are you?" Lana asked, mischievously flicking her eyes around the group, at Dawn, at Ash, at Mallow.
"Lana!" Mallow cried, sounding exasperated.
"What?! No, no, of course not! We're just best friends. Neither Brock nor I have seen Ash in a few years. We were just very excited to see him," Dawn explained.
"But, umm, how come you were apologising, Clemont?" Lillie asked, a surprising voice; it was rare that Lillie questioned people, but Ash remembered she was very observant.
"Oh…" Clemont muttered, looking down as they walked through the hotel doors.
"We… kinda left on bad terms," Ash said.
"I see," Lillie muttered.
Thankful he missed the bullet, Ash turned away from the group behind him, heading for the stairs. Instead, he connected with a pair of eyes from the settees in the corner of the lobby. It was Hala, accompanied by Professor Kukui and Hau. Ash changed direction and walked towards them, and then he noticed it. Hala's stare was sterner and more forced than a Glare, making him uneasy in his approach. Kukui and Hala were looking at him as if they had seen him commit a murder, while Hau just looked confused. Kiawe was the first to walk over and greet them, then the others followed. Ash was last – except Brock, Dawn, and Clemont – because the adults' eyes unsettled him. They looked only at him.
Kukui and Hala civilly parried the rest of the party when Ash stopped in front of them, greeting them.
"Ash… Is there somewhere we can talk in private?" Hala sternly asked, straight to the point. The air depressed around them, tensing.
"Uhh, sure. We can go to our room," Ash said, turning to Lillie. "Could I have the key please, Lillie?"
"No, no, no need for that. I would like everybody to come with us. This concerns us all. Please lead the way," Hala said.
Slowly, Ash nodded and led the group to their room. Whence inside, Hala instructed everybody to get comfortable while he lay some sheets of paper on the desk and shuffled through them. Most of the people took their seats on the beds, some on the floor. Kukui remained standing, peering out across the balcony until everybody was settled.
The room was a lot tenser now as if it were a Pokémon using Endure. Ash felt like he was waiting for the verdict of a trial: everybody flicked their eyes at one another, questions lurking in their expressions. Ash swallowed thickly, waiting.
A long minute later, Hala spun around, a piece of paper clasped in his hands. He stared straight at Ash again. "Ash Ketchum," Hala said, "who are you?"
"Hala, c'mon," Kukui said, but quietened when Hala rose his hand.
Glancing across all his friends, who eyed him with the same bewilderment he wore, Ash lay his gaze back on Hala. "I–I don't get what you mean. I'm just me – Ash Ketchum. That's who I am."
"I suppose the real question should be are you truly Ash Ketchum?" Hala asked.
"You shoulda just started with that," Kukui muttered.
"What?" Ash asked, bewildered. "Of course, I am."
"I apologise for such an outlandish question out of nowhere, but Kukui and I have come across something that questions that fact," Hala said, flipping the page in his hands around.
Pulled forwards by a single string of curiosity, everybody leaned in to read it, something Ash did very slowly. He read aloud. "Aspiring Pokémon Trainer, Ash Ketchum, found… dead after… Pallet Town catastrophe…" He finished reading in a whisper, his sky-high heart dropping into a pit because he knew that, now they had revealed that piece of information, he had to explain. He didn't want to relive it again as he did in his dreams. Did he have a choice?
"Ash," Mallow said, slowly, "what does this mean?"
"What does the article mean you're thought to be dead?" Lillie asked, confliction flickering in her expression.
"Are you not Ash Ketchum?" Kiawe asked in a low voice.
Ash didn't reply right away. He hid his head in his hands and inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself down because he could taste the foreign distrust. He couldn't believe how quickly his emotions had changed that day, from content to overzealous to depressed. But he steeled himself. Bouncing his knee and tapping his foot, he prepared to tell them.
This was it. The moment he had been dreading for a long time. He knew his friends had to find out eventually, but this was not the way he had wanted them to.
"Hang on–" Brock started.
"It's ok, Brock," Ash said, dropping his hands. He looked grieved behind his mask. "I am Ash Ketchum," Ash slowly said, his voice wavering. The room itself sighed at the unveiling, some iota of the murky tension disappearing.
"That's a relief," Kukui said, taking his seat now. Hala remained standing.
"But what does this mean?" Hala asked, gesturing the sheet.
Ash inhaled and exhaled deeply. This was it. He glanced around the room once more. In the corner, Brock and Dawn gave him sympathy. He smiled weakly.
"When I met Lillie and Professor Kukui I told them that I came to Alola because I was on holiday or something like that. That… wasn't true. I came for a different reason. I–" Ash paused, looked at the ground, gripped a fist.
"What was your reason, Ash?" Lillie softly asked. Ash looked up at her and smiled again.
"I–I ran away," Ash said.
"What from?" Kiawe asked.
"Everything. My previous life, my old friends, my old Pokémon, my home. My Mum…" Ash sighed, wiping at his eyes. "Right. Ok." Ash exhaled. He shook himself, Pikachu slipped down onto the bed. "I came back from the Kalos region after competing in the Pokémon League there. I greeted my mum, everything was fine, it was all good, perfect even. But then I went to Professor Oak's lab and… things didn't stay that way."
Pausing, momentarily, Ash explained as much to them as he felt was needed. He explained the way his friends berated him, how they tried to get him to stop being a trainer, their exact words when branding him a failure, then the attack on Pallet Town. He didn't explain about Serena or the fact that he could understand his Pokémon.
"Repeating it now," Ash continued, "it sounds childish, not something I should be so sad over. I fled my old life just because people criticized me. It's just… they were some of my closest friends. It hurt. It really hurt. Especially when my dream is so much bigger than they knew."
"No, Ash," Mallow muttered, shaking her head, placing her hand delicately on his upper-arm, "it's not childish. I would want to get away if everybody here turned against me."
Ash smiled lightly as thanks for her reassurance. "After the attack, I left Pallet and went straight to the airport and bought a ticket for the furthest region I could find. And I came to Alola, met Samson and Lillie, battled in the festival, and here we are now. I don't know exactly where this headline came from, but my guess is that it's something Professor Oak concocted when I wasn't found anywhere in the wreckage."
"We can explain that," Brock said, raising his hand almost sheepishly. "I think he did it to try and protect himself. If Ash was thought to be dead, all of his bad deeds wouldn't be looked into properly by the authorities."
"Bad deeds?" Kiawe asked.
Brock nodded. "See, for a few of the people that took part, Oak blackmailed them to do it. Clemont here was one of those people: Oak threatened to harm his little sister if he didn't comply."
"Is that the bad situation the pair of you left off on, then?" Lana asked.
"That's right," Clemont said. "When Dawn and a few other of Ash's loyal friends – Gary, Paul, and Barry – confronted Oak, I got the chance to escape. I went right to Brock and Delia – Ash's mother – and explained everything. We got Bonnie out, and got some answers from Oak."
"Really?" Ash quickly asked. That was the one thing he had been missing: answers. He needed to know the reason Oak did everything and why everybody decided to turn against him in such a way.
Dawn nodded. "Apparently, Oak wanted to experiment on or with you for your Bond Phenomenon."
"That's the reason?" Ash asked, feeling slightly underwhelmed. If that was the case, why didn't Oak just ask?
"What's Ash's Bond Phenomenon?" Lillie asked.
"Oh, right. Basically, over in Kalos, I developed an ability with one of my Pokémon called the Bond Phenomenon. We connected on such a deep level that that Pokémon would undergo a physical change as a result and would increase in power," Ash explained.
"Your Greninja…" Kukui muttered, a misty, excited glint in his eye.
"That's right."
"Actually, according to Oak, it's an ability that the trainer has rather than the Pokémon," Clemont added.
"It is, huh?" Ash asked. That would explain a lot of things, such as his ability to decipher Pokémon dialect.
"That was the reason he gave but I don't believe it," Brock said, folding his arms. "It's too generic, too weightless. He could have just asked. That's not a reason to betray somebody's trust and try to ruin their lifestyle. Heck, he's been arrested for something that silly. I can't help feeling like there's something more to it."
"Hmm, maybe there is…" Ash said. "Anyway, that's it. That's everything that's happened to me recently."
Hesitant to do so before, Ash glanced around the room. It was a room of solemn sorrow: his friends looked at him with obvious sadness and sympathy and the room was no longer tense but tangibly depressed. It was so silent in the next few minutes that Ash could hear the waves rolling against the rockface outside the window, that he could hear the distant Hoothoot.
Hala was the first to speak. He sighed deeply, rubbing his eyes. "Firstly, I must apologise, Ash," Hala said regretfully. "I made a wild accusation without knowing anything."
"It's ok," Ash said. "I can understand your caution."
"No, I am an Island Kahuna, I must remain composed at all times. It was unbefitting of me. And secondly, I am sorry that you had to undergo such hardships. I had no idea you were experiencing such a thing when we first met."
Ash weakly smiled at that. He must have hidden it better than he originally thought.
Brock cleared his throat. "Now that that's over, Ash, I think there's somebody you need to talk to. We can talk about the whole Oak situation later, fill you in on more, but for now, take my phone book and go call your mother on the hotel phone. She's been worried sick."
Ash sprang up from the bed, his mood reverting yet again. "You have her number?! Brock, you're awesome! I've been so worried since I haven't been able to contact her. I'll be back in a few!" Ash said, snatching the book and dashing out of the room. He left so quickly for two reasons: to contact his mother as he said, but to get away from the tenseness. Nobody reacted poorly to the situation, but the atmosphere had been taxing. He just needed to get out and have time by himself.
The desk attendant received a real fright when Ash flew through the lobby, shouting about borrowing one of the phones. He flicked through Brock's book and found his mother's name listed in the important numbers section. Punching in the numbers, the phone began to ring. A moment later, the phone beeped, and the screen flashed on, revealing his mother on the other end, glancing away from him.
Ash teared up instantly because of his relief and emotion. She was unharmed for one thing. For the other, he had desperately missed her. His pledge to stay home had been destroyed along with Pallet, and for that, he felt somewhat guilty.
"Brock! Have you found Ash yet?" Delia asked, unaware.
Ash smiled. "Hi, Mum."
Quick as a Ninjask, Delia flicked her head towards the screen and a sound of shattering china made her flinch. She must have been making food or something, but now her attention was away from whatever it was she was doing and back on Ash. Just like him, she started crying.
"Ash! Oh Arceus, you're ok! It's amazing to see you! I've been terrified – heck, I thought you died!" Delia wept, smiling much larger than she had been when they reunited after Kalos.
"It's great to see you too."
Delia then exploded with questions. "Are you ok? You're not hurt, are you? I heard about what happened with Samuel and the rest of them, I'm so sorry. How did you get all the way out to Alola? What have you been up to this past month? Why didn't you contact me?!"
Wiping at his eyes, Ash laughed. "Yeah, I'm ok Mum. It's great to see you. I completely forgot the house number and my Pokégear was broken. Otherwise, I would have contacted you."
"Oh, Ash… You kids are too reliant on technology! I can't believe this!"
With that, Ash spent the next few hours talking with his mother about anything and everything. It was late into the night already, but he relished the time he could spend with her. By the time they ended the call, it was gone one in the morning and Ash was exhausted. His day had been tiring, but beautiful. He returned to his room with a grin on his face.
After Ash left the room, everything remained silent for a good amount of time. If everybody was doing as Lillie was, they were pondering the entire situation.
She had never suspected any such incidents had happened to Ash. He was such a caring, carefree soul that he didn't display anything remotely resembling sadness. Ash had said earlier that such a situation was childish, but Lillie disagreed. She couldn't imagine Mallow, Lana, Kiawe, Sophocles, Hau, and Ash deciding that they would criticise her and decide to go against everything she believed in. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to have been demeaned by her closest friends. Ash had suffered a truly heart-breaking situation.
Dawn, Brock, and Clemont were the first to leave to book rooms for themselves. They left with parting words asking them not to judge Ash for keeping it a secret. They didn't need to; Lillie would never do such a thing, and she knew the others wouldn't either, just as they replied. Hala and Kukui were next, retiring to their lodgings on Akala for the night looking disappointed in themselves.
When the group of friends were the only ones left, they exchanged a few words. Mallow looked despaired as if her heart had been squeezed tightly. She said that she couldn't believe it, that she should have noticed it. Kiawe said the same thing, berating himself for being so oblivious. Lana tried to calm them down alongside Hau, explaining how well Ash had hidden it. But their words got Lillie thinking. She held a secret too. A secret that none of them had even suspected in the slightest. She considered whether she was doing something bad keeping it to herself. Her friends may feel awful about themselves if they found out.
Everybody else decided to leave after they had come to terms with everything, which took about an hour. They decided that the best course of action was to talk with Ash in the morning. That left Lillie alone. She quickly showered again – seeing as the day had been hot and she had been active – and she slipped into bed.
But Lillie didn't fall asleep, not for a long while. She continued thinking, about her situation and Ash's. Despite Hala's prompt, Ash had been strong enough to open up about his problem rather than lying to avoid it. She wondered if she should do the same soon, but the thought terrified her.
Ash returned to the room early into the morning when Lillie had not even started to feel tired. He too took a quick shower and slipped into bed as quietly as he could; Lillie heard him whispering to Pikachu, assuring his partner that he was ok and asking him to keep quiet in case he woke her. Lillie couldn't keep quiet anymore. She sat up and turned towards him.
"I'm awake. You don't have to worry, Ash," Lillie said.
"Oh. How come you're still awake, Lillie?" Ash asked, sitting up too.
"I have just been thinking about some things."
"Does any of your thinking concern me at all?" Ash asked, hesitantly it seemed.
"Umm, yes, a little bit. But it isn't anything bad. I–I just admire your bravery to explain everything. But are you ok, Ash? What you have been dealing with is quite painful psychologically," Lillie said.
"Honestly?" Ash paused to release a sigh. He flopped back onto his bed, looking up at the ceiling with his arms behind his head. "Yeah, I think I am. As much as I wanted to tell everyone, I've been terrified of talking about the situation because I didn't know how people would react. I mean, you saw Hala's face when we first arrived. I don't know what I expected, but you all reacted so nicely to it I can't help feeling happy. Plus, I've got some of my old friends with me, and I know my mum is ok. There's still a lot to deal with, but it's like this big relief has hit me, you know?"
Lillie nodded her head, even though Ash wouldn't be able to see it. "I think I know what you mean," she said. If that was the case for Ash, she wondered if it would be the same for her. "I-I'm just happy that you are ok."
"Thank you, Lillie. You're one of the kindest people I know," Ash said, lying side on to glance over at her. "I think I just needed to talk about the situation and have people around me that would understand."
"Yes, maybe you're right…" Lillie muttered, once more thinking of her situation.
"Anyway, I think I'm gonna head to sleep. I don't wanna be a zombie in the morning."
"Ok," Lillie said, giggling to herself. "Goodnight, Ash."
"Goodnight, Lillie."