Hey, I'm back with another chapter. It's a kind of calm one but at the same time not calm at all but ah, it'll only do everyone in this story a lot of good to have some rest and comfort... when it gets there eventually!
Hope you enjoy reading this chapter!
Ash feels sneaky as he steps out of the bus, it conveniently stops in front of the hospital and once he's inside of it, every little bit of cheekiness inside of him, drained into nothingness. The feeling of being here again, even when he's inside the lobby… it's daunting. His brave face must've crumbled for a bit, a nurse comes to his aid and he grabs her hand.
"My father is here," he manages to utter and no, not even Clair can stop this motherly nurse from getting him to see Lance.
But they can also see he is very upset and that might not be ideal to go see Lance. Also, Ash hopes the man won't mind that he called him that, he just wanted to see him and he'll use whatever means he needs to get inside of Lance's hospital room again. Properly this time, he doesn't want to ask dr. Knight to keep a door open again. So instead of being led towards his uncle's room, he's led into an office and a grey-haired doctor is in there, waiting for him. But then again, this person isn't old, he looks nicely groomed and the purple sheen makes Ash feel like the man dyed it into that grey colour. It suits him, though and the teen would have smiled if only he could muster it. Because Ash can't help but feel like he's in his uncle's shoes this time, as he's about to talk to the doctor about the man's issues, while Lance did it when Ash was admitted here with even more noticeable injuries.
"So, you're his son, I've heard."
"Adopted but yeah, I am," Ash says quickly.
"Mm-hm," the doctor nods. "Is there any reason why the wild, blue-haired lady downstairs makes a point in keeping you from your father, then?"
"If you're asking me what crawled up Clair's ass and died there, I don't know. She has no right to keep me from seeing him," the teen answers, though he can barely keep himself from growling.
But the doctor holds out his hand and while Ash has no idea what the man wants him to do, he keeps silent and tries to compose himself.
"Just so we are on the same wavelength here," the man says and lowers his hand. "I don't condone barely legal activities in hospital but even I will leave the light on in cases like this."
"… You know?"
"Oscar is my partner, so yes, I do."
And the way the man phrases it makes Ash doubt that he means 'partners' as in 'professional'.
"Good for you," is all he ends up saying and while the doctor raises an eyebrow at the response, continues as if nothing happened.
"I'm dr. Starling," the man introduces himself. "I'm in charge of your father's case."
"How is he?"
"Well, he is suffering from-"
But this time, it's Ash's turn to hold his hand up and silence the man.
"I know what he's suffering from, I know what happened for it all to happen to him, all I'm interested in right now, is to hear how Lance is right now."
"… And pray tell how you know all of this, then?"
"I'm psychic," the boy deadpans and the look on the doctor's face is priceless as his entire demeanour falters. "Also, I spend the night with my home filled with guilty people beating themselves up because they know they piled up so many things onto Lance's shoulders and now they've seen him collapse under the weight of it all because he wasn't meant to carry it all!"
"True."
"And then, the cherry on top, I rush back home, suffering from jetlag because I couldn't get from Kalos to Kanto fast enough and then this bitch downstairs blocks me, she blocks everyone who cares about me and it's not fair!"
"Do you want me to remove her from the lobby, Ash?"
"You can do that?"
"I most certainly can, if it wasn't for your persistence, she could have stopped a family member from seeing a loved one. No matter what brought her to the conclusion that stopping you from seeing your father was a good idea, it should not bother anyone else. And the fact that she has barred others from seeing him, tells me enough. And I will give the command to remove her on your say-so as I've heard more logic coming from you than from her."
"Lance didn't ask for me? He didn't tell Clair to bugger off?"
"I think, Ash, you should take my relationship with the person who left the door open as an answer to your first question. And as for the second, I do wish to tell you that any sort of stress should be avoided. If you know what happened to Lance, you know that his condition is serious."
"So it's possible that the mini-stroke can end up in a real, big one?" Ash asks.
"Yes. So I want you on your best behaviour around your father, okay? Don't introduce new concepts, don't talk to him about anything new or stressful, avoid any form of excitement."
"All I will do is tell him I love him."
"That's fine," the doctor says and ends up smiling warmly at him. "I will also make an exception for Pikachu, I've been told that it should not come as a surprise to Lance to see the two of you together."
"The longest time we've spent away from each other was here, inside of this hospital, doctor," Ash says. "I don't suppose I can ask Lance to make a list of the dunderheads I need to tell to lay off?"
"I think it will be a waste of paper, there are an awful lot of dunderheads to tell off in the pokémon league and the police force. Save yourself the effort of finding all of them and spend that time in bed. You seem tired."
"It's hard to fall asleep when you're full of concern and realise that someone out there thinks you're the pariah who got a loved one in a hospital."
"Such harsh words," the doctor chides. "I hope that seeing your father will give you some inner peace."
Oh, it's going to give him a lot more than inner peace, alright. He'll fight anyone who gets in his way… but again, being here, in this hospital… it does things to him. The memories he's made here linger louder than before and more than often, he thinks that it's dr. Martin or dr. Lotus right next to him but no, it's still dr. Starling and Ash is startled by the many doctor names he can just pull up from his memory. Not to mention dr. Deare, who would probably still be very concerned for him, despite everything he's already managed to do.
If anything, though, as he walks alongside this doctor, Ash figures that dr. Knight has had a good place to choose partners from, he might not be interested too much but he's not blind. All the doctors here are easy on the eye, in fact, so is dr. Knight… and now he wonders who approached who, in the first place. But ah, he's nervous, he's not sure if he's going to be able to stomach seeing his uncle unresponsive again. Mewtwo did say to him that, last night, his frustrations and anger made Lugia think of its time as a Shadow creature and that it ended up being worried about him -which would explain why it acted so cute. So if he can't upset his uncle in any way or form, he's better off calm.
"Here we are," dr. Starling says, opening the door and Ash rounds the corner, confident… until he sees Lance look at him.
"Lance!" he breathes out in relief, scuttling over towards the man who tries to smile at him but all his face shows is how tired he is.
"Hello, buddy."
The teen can't stop himself, if they didn't want anyone to go sit on the bed, they should've drawn the railing around it up. So he jumps on it and snuggles closely against the man who is also sitting upwards.
"I'm sorry I couldn't attend your birthday party."
"The next one, then," is all Ash says, trying to ignore how frazzled his uncle looks and focus on the warmth of his body.
Yesterday might have been uneventful but seeing the important man lays so still gave him a scare, alright. But it seems like this sideways hug is bringing Lance a lot of comfort too, he leans into him and isn't Ash lucky his big pokémon still feel like baby ones and wanted to be carried around in his arms? Also, smaller pokémon don't necessarily weigh less and legendary pokémon who shrink aren't lightweights at all. So he's got the muscle to keep his uncle straight despite the pressure. But one thing becomes painfully clear to him, he doesn't even have to use his right hand to check, the doctor made the wrong diagnosis. Ash swallows it right now, though, dr. Starling is still there but he's not going to discuss this in front of Lance.
"You're warm," Lance comments, making the teen turn towards him.
"Maybe we should do this a bit more when you're released, then."
"My dragons won't be happy with me being like this."
"They will just have to deal with it. Besides, they like me, you can sit and watch me groom them."
"I would like that," the man says, managing a small smile this time around. "You came back from Kalos for me?"
"I would come back from the end of the world for you."
"You're not worried about missing anything?"
"Kalos isn't going anywhere."
"If you miss this year, your badges could expire."
"Maybe those same people will have learned some manners by the time I get back there, I see nothing but good things for the future," Ash answers and to his delight, Lance chuckles.
"I'm happy to see you, Ash," he says softly, sounding so fragile and so unlike the strong person the boy grew to admire.
But he's happy to see this side, if not worried about how badly the man's life affected him. Things need to change very quickly, or else Ash will be losing his young father-figure too. And the idea of going anywhere else than Pallet or Mahogany scares him to the point where his heart rate goes a little quicker and his thoughts about that change become too loud to ignore, his stomach becoming one, big knot he doesn't know how to detangle.
"I love you, Lance," the teen says, after a little while of silence.
"I love you too," the man all but whispers and Ash feels like his uncle is about to fall asleep on him, which is fine but dr. Starling probably won't be letting him stay for so long, yet Lance speaks up again. "I want to ask you something, Ash."
"Yeah?"
"Will you take care of Dreepy?"
As random as this request is, the teen finds himself saying 'yes' before thinking about why his uncle would be giving such a valuable pokémon away. Until, of course, Lance explains that Dreepy is part of a challenge he finds himself buckling under, apparently, the little dragon already listens better to Ash than it ever did when Lance asked it to do anything. The tired man tells him Leon is the one who wants Dreepy to be trained the 'beyond-champion' way and Lance admits that he has no idea how to do that when Dreepy doesn't listen to him or how to do that, as he's only been a champion but nothing beyond that.
"If Leon wants to see a pokémon trained that way, Leon should train the pokémon himself," Ash says but he knows he will find out what this 'beyond-champion' way of training means and try it, just to show Leon that he shouldn't tease Lance like this.
It's at least one name added to his list to tell off, too.
"Just take care of Dreepy. I'll talk to Leon when I get better."
Yeah but Ash isn't so sure whether Lance will ever be the strong person from before again. His feelings don't cheat him and he will tell everyone willing to listen that they should respect Lance. So he's also noticed that his uncle has more Flying-types than Dragon-types but that's not something anyone should make fun of, in fact, Ash gets a little upset that nearly everyone inside of his home in Mahogany participates in this little charade. Maybe he should let his pokémon out in the house, Charizard and Heracross are sensitive as is and perhaps Gliscor would like to roam around the house too. That being said, if anyone, anyone at all, asks him how Lance is when he gets back, he's going to tell them exactly how he feels about this piece of information.
Lance also confides in him that he is thinking about doing everything a bit simpler, and easier. And that he is thinking about dropping one of his two jobs. Frankly, Ash couldn't care less, the man wouldn't actually earn less, the state takes so much of the wage Lance earns from the two jobs that he only ends up having a part that about equals what he would get from a normal job with taxes being taken off it. And wouldn't it be a right hoot to go home and tell all those overly-playful trainers that Lance considers quitting as a trainer? He personally doesn't care, all he wants is for his uncle to be okay and for him to have a good life. Ash is getting strong enough to fight his own battles, he dares anyone to stand in front of him and his dreams, plus, he'll go to extreme measures to keep Lance safe now too.
But he remains calm for his uncle's sake, he listens closely and makes the man know that he understands, that he supports whatever decision he makes, and that he'll be there if he needs him. And that's where Lance grabs him in a hug and wishes that he had him near him for longer in his life, that he can't wait to see him grow up and be the rock in his life that he's also needed.
"Just know that, when you get back on your feet, everyone will look at you differently and that this will be entirely my fault. They know what they did."
"All but Steven and Wallace, yes," Lance agrees and why isn't Ash surprised to hear that those two again defy everyone else again?
"Good, I like them a lot too. They are a match made in heaven. While all the rest seems to have escaped from the rings of hell, in some way or another."
Lance chuckles again, Ash feels him enjoy his comments and it brings him a lot of joy to hear him be so alive. So what if the man falls asleep next to him, though? Dr. Starling makeshifts something to keep Lance steady with some pillows, allowing the teen to escape but Ash isn't so sure he wants to leave right now. He does want to talk to the doctor, which is why he follows him outside.
"I am majorly pleased by the development I just witnessed," dr. Starling says but Ash manages to swipe his smile off his face within the following seconds.
"I'm majorly displeased that my uncle got misdiagnosed with a heart attack while he had a heart failure. It stopped, I heard someone say he needed to perform CPR on Lance and I feel it too. Lance died and came back, just like me."
"I… I'll run some tests again, to check if what you say is true," the doctor answers, not bothering to hide his shock at the sudden behaviour change. "But dear boy, you rounded into me so quickly while you acted so calm not that long ago."
"He's ill and we're giving him hope that he'll get better while he won't. I've been there, it's not nice."
The man cringes, he seems to understand where this frustration is coming from and Ash actually witnesses a disastrous mix of documents getting solved right in front of him. The picture of the chart he took yesterday? That was the diagnosis of someone who has been treated for heart failure, in a room two stories above Lance's room as well as several hallways. Dr. Starling is frantically trying to make this wrong right but unfortunately, the man whose diagnosis hung on Lance's bed has already passed away earlier this morning. Ash's heart clenches and hopes for all hopes that this won't happen to his uncle, he prays to Arceus that nothing bad will happen to him because it'll make him unravel.
But no, Lance is okay, the medication didn't bother him, it was just the reason why the man ended up being so sleepy and dr. Starling tells Ash, after having calmed down a little, that the sedation given to him managed to save him… unlike the unfortunate soul who passed away thanks to this tragic mistake. After all, calmness is the best cure for anyone with heart failure but the doctor is on the warpath because this kind of accident is not allowed to happen. So he leaves Ash with a nurse, who ends up bringing him to dr. Knight, who sees to him right away because the boy is long past biting his fingernails and has started chewing the tips of his fingers. In fact, the therapist has to pull his hand away from his mouth and as the man gently winds a tissue around it, Ash notices that he's drawn blood.
He can't help himself, though, he ends up breaking down in front of the man completely. Dr. knight doesn't say anything as he bawls his eyes out, though and that's a good thing, all the stress from these past days, from Lugia's unfortunate shadowfictation to Lance's accident everyone is to blame for, crashes down on him like a waterfall and he just can't stop crying.
"Do you want me to call someone to get you home?" the man eventually asks, when Ash is starting to get so tired that his crying automatically lessens
The boy nods, he doesn't think he can make it home like this but before he can even attempt to say anything, rapid footsteps approach the room and the door slams open not too long afterwards. Dr. Knight jumps up, letting go of the teen in his arms but soon enough, someone else's arms are wrapped around him. Warm, familiar arms.
"That's why I didn't want you near him," Clair's voice says, she sounds urgent and very concerned and despite his body being drained, his eyes tear up again because of all things, she wanted to protect him? "Oh, Ash, look at you."
"If I hadn't been here, he could've died," Ash cries as he buries his face in the woman's shoulder.
"What do you mean?"
"His heart failed, it stopped!"
"But-"
"The man who had the heart attack and stroke died this morning!"
Clair's embrace starts to resemble a bit of a vice grip but Ash can't be bothered, at least it feels real enough. And she meant well! She tried to protect him but that could've been Lance's doom! Ash doesn't know what to do or think, he's shocked and overwhelmed and feeling too much unreal things to think straight. But that doesn't mean his ears don't work, though Clair is being uncharacteristically silent. As he musters the energy to look up, the teen sees his aunt giving dr. Knight a death glare.
"Has he not been in your care for several months, doctor?" she says venomously. "Do I have to spell out to you the number of mistakes I can sue this hospital for? The least of them being so stupid that no one could be bothered to check if the documents put on people's bed end is real?"
"I was not informed of-"
"Cut the crap, I can sue you for letting this kid in yesterday too. Or do you think I'm stupid enough to not have noticed Lance being half naked one time and then carefully tucked in his bedsheets when I returned? All while he himself couldn't move yesterday?"
"It was organised with the best of intentions and besides, I know very well what Ash is capable of. If this mistake had not happened, I guarantee you that his emotional state would have only improved," dr. Knight informs her stiffly, very unlike the teen has ever heard him before. "And if you would like to sue, sue this hospital for the mistake of having misdiagnosed a patient but blame it on yourself that this boy ended up being in similar distress as right now because he wasn't told anything other than the fact his father-figure ended up being hospitalized. All I did was treat my patient like the curious human child he is and if that's something you would like to sue me for, I would like you to tell me what you think I should have done when hearing this boy cry his heart out in pure confusion because his head was cooking up all sorts of theories, including the fact that you were keeping him from seeing Lance out of malicious intent."
Clair doesn't answer the statement, she just brings her arms around Ash in a protective embrace and then says something that the teen will remember forever.
"Ash is the most important boy in my life. I'll go to the end of the world and back to protect him. So watch your back, doctor, I do not take kindly to being deemed a treat to him."
"I can't tell the boy's depression what to think and what not."
"I'm not going to argue with you, you know what you did and that it was wrong, I'm not going to allow you to work it out on me, not while I'm absolutely certain that you know how I feel about both Lance and Ash."
"I feel the same way, after all, I'm Ash's therapist, not yours."
The woman huffs but doesn't say a single thing to dr. Knight anymore, instead she asks Ash if he can stand and upon his confirmation that, yes, he can, she gets up and leads him out of the room. She doesn't say anything to him until she's certain he's strapped safely into her car.
"… Did you really feel that the diagnosis of the doctor was wrong, Ash?"
"I asked a friend what the thingy on Lance's bed end meant but then Will said he needed to perform CPR and that didn't match with what the thingy said."
The curse coming out of her mouth isn't something Ash wants to remember so he doesn't listen to it. Clair curses this hospital for a good few minutes before she starts the car and drives off. And while she doesn't drive as aggressive as her expression betrays she is, Clair does flip off a couple of drivers who seem to have gotten their driver's licenses from lottery tickets. The teen doesn't appreciate the car in front of them suddenly braking either so yeah, maybe it can be considered oddly coincidental that the car's airbags went off without any impact from any side but at least it gets the car from in front of them.
Clair does look at him out of the corner of her eyes but he pretends not to have noticed anything as the car that drove in front of them serves into the emergency lane, clearing the way for them to continue. She doesn't say anything either, she seems to silently stew and well… the things dr. Knight said were all true. But Ash didn't know that Clair felt that way about him, the things she does around him, the things she says near him don't match up with the statement she put out for him to hear.
"You really like me so much?" he asks eventually, once they've crossed the border from Kanto into Johto.
"I do, I think you're a cool kid. And well, you have helped Lance such a great deal and again, this entire thing. If you weren't there, who knows what would've happened to Lance."
"Probably given the wrong medication until they saw it wasn't effective," Ash shrugs. "At least his heart benefited from being calm."
"They were talking about him revalidating at home, is that something you would be up for?"
"Oh yeah, I'm not planning to do anything stressful, I'm intending to groom Lance's pokémon."
"… Good luck, Lance has never been able to do that."
"I'm patient," the teen says and at least this gets a smile on Clair's face.
"Good, I'll get everything ready to get him transferred over, then."
"Are they sure it's a good thing, though? To have him home?"
"Yes, despite everything, he takes more comfort in having us near than he will ever have in the hospital and honestly, I would rather have him out of that place too. Before, I thought that they would be too stiffly around Lance because he's such an important person but to think they'd go ahead and make such a blatant mistake… I hope you didn't tell Lance the hospital made a mistake?"
"Nope, told his doctor after I got out of the room."
"Good. Then you go and rest up when we get home and if you like, you can come with me to do some shopping. We're going to need a lot of things to keep Lance calm."
"There are others at home, though."
"I know, they're pitching in," Clair says. "Though I would like to talk to them before anything, close your bedroom door for me?"
Ash feels like falling asleep right now anyway so he nods, figuring that not even his curiosity would be able to keep him awake. Besides, Pikachu is being very cute and purrs no matter where the teen touches him so once the pokémon lays near him, he's going to guaranteed fall asleep and sleep through an entire argument. So when they get home, Clair goes into the living room which allows Ash to go to his room without being disturbed. Which he does, he kicks his shoe out and then bends over to take the shoe off his left leg, figuring that kicking with his prosthesis isn't a good idea at all. He also takes off his jacket, he doesn't want Pikachu's cable to snag at anything, possibly pulling a rip in his bedsheets or worse, destroy his jacket. He still remembers the hassle of his jacket being repaired when Pikachu successfully chewed off the first cable, after all.
He snuggles into the cushion where his buddy quickly highjacks the spot under his chin, landing there with a purr and keeping up the noise that Ash loves so much. He can feel it vibrate as he puts his hand on Pikachu's belly and it only makes the sound louder. The teen figures that, if he's here to stay for a good while again, he may as well go see professor Elm, ask what this 'beyond champion' kind of training is about and take some of his pokémon back home with him, just for comfort. And maybe to have a bit of fun, as most of the people downstairs seemed to need to learn a bit of respect for Flying-types.
Clair doesn't want to argue, though, in fact, the entire house is silent when she's done telling them all what's happened and why she doesn't appreciate that she found Ash on his own. She, however, doesn't point fingers, she's also very tired because she's sat vigil with Lance ever since he was brought in and still finds it devious that the sole moment she left the room, the teen managed to get in there… and showed such a clear sign of care. Even as Lance's niece, she found herself feeling very uncomfortable, she and Lance don't have a great relationship and yeah, she understands why her nephew told everyone to stay in their own lane. Even if Ash's abilities ended up saving Lance's life, she's in absolute awe of what the teen can do. And seeing that people and their responses to his wonderful but odd self vary from good to really bad, which ends up upsetting Ash along with all his abilities, it's not too farfetched to understand why Lance told everyone to mind their own business.
She does find it very fitting, though, that people have been taking advantage of her nephew for a long time, he should have told everyone off a long time ago and kept it up. But no, he fell into the same role as Atlas carrying the world as soon as Ash stepped on the plane towards Kalos and now he's crumbled under the weight of it all. There's no telling what's going to happen but at least Clair is comforted that Lance now has a scary child who likes him a lot near him and who will possibly tell a whole lot of people to stay away from the both of them. And she has to give it to this colourful lot of people, they've all accepted Ash for who he is, not for someone they've been told he's like. Especially during a time like this, when children are always unpredictable, they have the best of intentions and she appreciates that.
But when she tells them all what Ash did, that he's responsible for having saved Lance's life, a feat she's quite proud of but still feels like that shouldn't have been Ash's job AT ALL, the response is very different than she imagined. No one is threatening to sue the hospital, and no one responds aggressively, and the only two questions that Karen voices are whether Lance and Ash are okay and how the hell the kid managed to do that.
"Well, someone seems to have been loud enough to tell everyone they performed CPR on Lance and Ash put two and two together."
"… I did that," Will admits and seems to beat himself up over it already. "I already did exactly what I promised Lance not to do, shit!" he adds, passionately cursing as he stands up and starts pacing up and down a bit further down in the living room.
"The CPR being mentioned is one thing," Agatha says, clearly very impressed. "But I remember vividly that Lance told all of us that, when Ash called him during that meeting, he was going to see a doctor because the boy made a hint of being concerned over his wellbeing and admitted he anticipated something that would affect him badly. Lance said that Ash described it as 'hellish'."
"Is this the 'seeing-things-twice' thing that Cynthia keeps referring to as being so damaging to Ash?" Wallace asks. "Is he really being told the future by whatever ability he has?"
"Multiple ones, hasn't he?" Karen says, crossing her arms as she sits back. "Now I don't want to imagine what would've happened if Lance didn't make it. My own feelings aside, I think it would've ripped Ash apart from the seams."
"I saw his initial response to the realisation that the person who got the treatment Lance would have gotten ended up passing away because of it, I've never seen him cry as bad as that."
"This isn't right, Clair, he was so happy when we celebrated his birthday too!" Wallace objects. "Why can't the universe leave this boy alone? Why does he always need to be hurt? This needs to change and it needs to change right now."
"And how do you intend to do that, Wallace? Are you going to lock him up too, then? Like Lance tried to do? Ash isn't grounded by an injury any longer," Agatha says and the man shakes his head.
"All we've got to do is be there for him. He needs to realise not only does Lance care about him, but that we also do too. Well, I know I do."
"Don't be daft man, we wouldn't have been here if we didn't," the older woman huffs. "But the thing is, does Ash know we've only got the best in stock for him?"
"Considering he's standing right there in that open door, yeah, I think he does by now," Steven remarks very dryly and when they turn, they indeed see the boy stand there, looking a little awkward, with a very dark pokémon in his arms which does resemble more of a plush toy, especially by the way the teen is holding it but it's not a plush because the tail is wagging side to side very quickly.
"Oh, buddy, you couldn't sleep?" Clair says and approaches him, she's the closest one to him but she had been sitting with her back towards the door.
Ash shakes his head and then holds out the dark pokémon for her to see.
"This is why I thought you wouldn't let me near Lance," he says and the woman looks down at the small pokémon.
"This little thing?" she answers and holds out a finger, which the pokémon promptly licks.
"This is Smog, the shadow pokémon I caught in Courmarine."
She stares as the creature seems to enjoy itself in the arms of the doubtful-looking boy and it doesn't take much skill to see that, if this is really a shadow pokémon, it's already very much purified and happy to be here. But it takes Clair a good few moments to understand that Ash caught it in Courmarine, which is… special.
"Kalos?" she utters. "You caught it in Kalos? Of all places?"
"Yeah," he says. "Professor Brunet nearly had kittens when she heard about it."
"I bet she did," Clair says, still staring at the pokémon. "It's a little tiny, though, isn't it?"
"Well yeah, they can shrink. It's not professor Oak's invention that makes 'em fit inside a pokéball."
"… Can I hold Smog for a moment?"
"Sure," the teen says and the small cuddle monster doesn't seem to care in which hands it's in, it curls in all sorts of bends to get as much of whoever's hands on its body.
And Ash stands there a little lost, he's clearly not feeling like himself and it's odd to see him like that. So Steven motions for him to come sit next to him and when the teen moves, Smog jumps from Clair's arms and toddles straight after him, jumping on his lap when Ash sits down. It quickly settles down, leaning against the teen's chest but the boy's expression is still so empty.
"I called you a bitch, Clair…" he says and the woman pulls a face at that.
"Okay?"
"I really thought you wouldn't tell anyone what was going on with Lance and not allowing me to see him… I… I'm sorry, Clair. I'm sorry I said that about you."
"Buddy, considering you thought that I wouldn't let you see Lance because you had a shadow pokémon, I mean, that's a valid reason, though I don't think Lance will ever be scared of that kind of behaviour and also, I didn't know you caught a shadow pokémon at all," she answers. "Also, I can be a bitch from time to time, so you're not necessarily wrong. But thank you for seeing my side as well."
The teen nods, despite having just acted very maturely, it doesn't seem to have relieved him in any way but Will is still not feeling great that his statement was heard by the boy, all while he never intended that to happen. Ash, however, points out to him that there's nothing he could have done to avoid it, that it was Palkia who took offence to everything that happened yesterday evening. The face Will makes at realising that the ruler of Space is a snitch is quickly overshadowed by the fact everyone feels a little weird knowing that the legendary pokémon here aren't all as tiny and cute as Lugia and that they tell Ash stuff he's not supposed to hear.
"It was the way some were making fun of each other that made Palkia upset," Ash says. "And I agree, it's not a crime to pull a joke but if I'm constantly told that self-deprecating jokes aren't good for me, that I don't need to listen to people making fun of me then why is it okay to make fun of someone who has a lot of bags with them? Why is it okay to joke around if someone has a lot of dragons that are also classified as Flying-types? It's not the end of the world but I think that the special clothes belonging to a special person can't be squashed together like sweats or a T-shirt, they'll need a lot more space than usual. And dragons… tend to have wings, don't they? Do I need to add that to one of the many crimes of professor Oak to make you realise that as soon as a creature has wings, it can kind of learn Flying-type moves and thus, be considered a Flying-type?"
"Yes!" Wallace exclaims happily. "You get it!"
"Just how long has Palkia been listening to our conversations?" Will asks.
"Lance confided me with this, told me that it hurt him on a personal level. So please, can you avoid mentioning this at all costs? It'll help, I promise, I'm taking Dreepy in my care because Lance can't handle it but I can't do more for him except make everyone aware that these small things do get to him. Because if things don't change, he might quit being a trainer completely."
"What!?"
The reaction is expected, Ash knows that this is devious and manipulative because Lance didn't say this outright to him but it's still an option. He said he was going to pick the job that gave him the least amount of stress so if people keep egging him on all the time, he might still choose to be a police officer and not a champion any longer.
"Ash, you're kidding. Please tell me you're kidding?" Karen asks but her expression falters when the teen shakes his head.
"Know that the chance of taking up where Lance left will be presented to you, Ash," Agatha says but again, Ash shakes his head.
"No, it won't. The letter I got from the pokémon league after winning the Orange League made it perfectly clear that no one there thought I was fit to be a Champion and even if the opportunity to prove them wrong arrives, I'm not going to become Lance's successor. You know I'm even less stress-resistant and a lot less tolerant of assholerly than Lance will ever be. And I can cause a lot of damage, have a good thought about wanting me to become a Champion keeping that in mind."
That silences them, while Ash is aware that Champions are people who can cause a lot of damage but not in the literal sense as he means it. They often have political power and if they allow their pokémon to attack someone, their pokémon will simply be terminated. But he doesn't have any say-so over what legendary pokémon do, sure, they often do listen but only because he makes sense, not because he means anything bad to happen. Mostly, he wants to avoid anything from happening but the pokémon themselves? They don't give two hoots about what happens to people, any reason to fight is a good one. Even if Ash is teaching them a bit more about humanity, the people around him, the ones the pokémon listen to, prove his teachings wrong a lot of times.
"Nothing's written in stone yet, though," Will says, the first to speak up. "And at any rate, we're damn lucky to still have Lance at all, it shouldn't matter to us what he does but the sole fact he's still alive, yeah?"
"True," Steven answers and nods. "Considering I don't actually find the jokes at the expense of Lance's pokémon funny, I feel like it will be effortless for me to humour Lance. But at the same time, perhaps I should invite him over for more calming times instead of business."
"I don't know if there's anything I do that he will enjoy," Will confesses. "But I think, at this point, it's not important to think what we can do to help, it's how we need to act that'll have to change, I mean… I didn't think it would've bothered Lance so much but then again, now that I think about it, it was mentioned an awful lot that he had more Flying-types than he has dragons."
Ash doesn't bother poking his nose in this matter, he'll hear the feedback from his actions quickly enough and at least Clair doesn't seem bothered, she does smile at him and thanks him for his honesty, that it's something she needs to learn too. The teen knows that this is a promise that she won't be able to keep, he's not always honest either but that's because he's been raised in an environment where honesty was not rewarded, in fact, no one listened to him, not when it counted anyway. That he was able to tell these adults the things Lance was too embarrassed to say out loud, is nothing short of miraculous and even better, they seemed to have listened. Maybe this petty little thing will be brought to a halt now but little does Ash know that the main instigator of those jokes is his godmother, who now feels very chided but she can't do anything about it, not because the boy made so much sense when he breached the subject.
Clair is still funnily confused to realise that he's still bewildered that he can take things along that he likes, that he's obviously spending time in the house and that he can take drinks and food he likes along too. She's got a big list that has the preferences of the people staying over -turns out that only Steven and Wallace are planning on staying for as long as needed- but that still leaves dinner for today and that involves a lot of personal preferences for everyone. But Clair doesn't mind it at all, she has a smile on her face as she drags the cart through the aisles and somehow, it makes Ash feel like he did good while he acted pretty bad at the same time. There's not a lot that makes sense to him right now and he's still very tired too. Ash wishes he could stop his head from thinking too but well, they get back home in one piece and he's beat by the time they've put everything away. Steven picks up on his tiredness very quickly and keeps making subtle hints that a nap has never killed anyone but Ash has other plans.
"I need to find Dreepy," he says and not even a second later, a very familiar 'meep' sounds out from behind him, signalling Dreepy's arrival… as if it came when Ash called it. "Ah, there you are. Do you want to come with me to see professor Elm?"
The little pokémon turns its head to the side, clearly curious but bobs its head in agreement shortly after.
"At least let me drive you there," Karen offers. "Since I couldn't fulfil my promise to get you to Pewter."
"Oh, thank you," is all Ash says and with Clair's clear order to be home for dinner -since she knew he's missed lunch and that's basically the only thing she's miffed about- he and Karen speed off.
He makes a silent thank-you prayer to Arceus that Karen is a wonderful, considerate driver and has no issues driving from Mahogany to New Bark, she doesn't bother a single driver and has a great sense of anticipating when a random jaywalker crosses. She doesn't even honk at the man but then again, the car next to them, who also goes the same way as them on the two-lane road, compensates by honking the entire way across the street, only resulting in the jaywalker whirling around and giving the driver of the honking car the finger. The teen feels like there was no way anyone who has already given him a ride, including Clemont's father, would have let this slide like Karen just did, she continues as if nothing happened.
Has she just done that to make sure he didn't get upset or is this her way of driving? If it's the latter, he commends her for it, it's impressive how unbothered she is and they do get to the laboratory in record time. And while Ash is aware she's keeping a close eye on him, she seems pretty relaxed… but doesn't want to go to the laboratory with him.
"I have no business with professor Elm," she says. "And besides, it's been a while since I've seen the sea so let me enjoy myself for a bit."
Well, alright, if she doesn't want to talk to the professor, so be it but Ash has a feeling that Karen knows more about the case around Dreepy than he or Lance did. Has Leon actually been playing his uncle hard? Because professor Elm's face changes the moment the teen asks him what this strange named training means… and not for the better, let that be an indication to have different the man looks all of a sudden. Ash is taken aback, he changes his grasp on the pokémon into a protective embrace because the professor looks about ready to breathe fire. It's Pikachu's sparkling cheeks that change the man's gaze at him, the pokémon has taken offence to the silent transformation and Ash is thankful for his buddy's interference.
"Professor? Are you okay?" he asks but the man whirls around.
"Follow me," the man says and Ash does but hesitantly so as the professor hasn't gotten any happier.
He tells the teen to put Dreepy on top of some sort of disc and while the pokémon whines at the loss of warmth, as the disc probably is cold, the professor tells him not to touch Dreepy until he says so. The poor creature looks miserable as it sits there and Ash finds it very unkind that he can't comfort Dreepy when it matters. But it doesn't take long, he can hold the pokémon again soon enough and Dreepy crawls into his jacket, deciding that it feels safer in there. Ash lets it do whatever it wants, he's more interested in why professor Elm is behaving this way.
"Just as I thought," the man mutters darkly.
"Not to be that person but could you elaborate, professor?" Ash deadpans. "You're acting very weird."
"Ash, I love baby pokémon, I've been studying them for over half my life and then to suddenly get a product of Ditto mass breeding in front of me, with no regard for the other Dreepy that weren't as perfect as the one hiding in your jacket! How am I supposed to be glad to see one when I also care about the thousands if not ten thousand baby Dreepy that were created solely for the purpose of creating this one?"
"What do you mean, professor?"
"Look at the screen, Ash."
Ash has already looked at it from the side, he sees words, yeah but how is he supposed to know that Dreepy is a perfect battle pokémon? He didn't create Dreepy, if there's anyone who has anything to answer for, it's Leon but why does the teen feel like the man found someone to house all those Dreepy, if there ever were that many at all? Ash would love to have them over too, he would put them in his Aura world and let them do whatever they wanted… But that's apparently how professor Elm sees it, the entire explanation of the 'beyond-champion' way is filled with chagrin and sneering, it's clear that the man doesn't condone this kind of thing. The leaflet that has some information about the training method is practically thrown at him but Ash doesn't let it change his mind.
"Those thousand baby pokémon will have undoubtedly been passed on from trainer to trainer," professor Elm says, for good measure as if he doesn't think Ash understands him properly. "They will always end up in some sort of trading disaster, they get put into daycares, they might even go in the Global trading centre or worse, the Wonder trade system. And no one will want them, they'll see hundreds of the pokémon's kind and the pokémon will be traded over and over again until the system determines it can't be placed and then terminates it. If that's the kind of business you condone, Ash, take great care of yourself because I won't."
Well… The man's behaviour will surely enable him to go home on time, he walks out of the laboratory after a spectacular ten-minute visit but he has come out wiser than he's entered. Because the teen now knows that Dreep is a girl, she's got wonderful stats, something called a Brilliant Aura and she's got the hidden ability called 'Cursed Body' which Ash will need to look up because he's got no clue what that means. And Lance seems to have handed Dreepy's ownership over to him, he must be feeling better already, probably the result of getting, you know, the right treatment this time, the boy can instantly see a hole in professor Elm's fantasy theory, as Dreepy's moveset consists out of Bite and surprisingly, Sucker Punch. Even the first search results claim that Dreepy doesn't learn this naturally, it's an Egg move and that means neither of her parents is a Ditto. In fact, his research soon shows that one parent should have been from the Ghastly line and then from the Dreepy line.
Also, the best thing he's learned today is that he will never go to talk to professor Elm about training ever again, the leaflet isn't very informative but he learns the name of this 'beyond-champion' way of training, it's called EV- or Super training. Ash can already tell it's going to be hard work but Dreepy is being uncharacteristically silent, she heard professor Elm loud and clear and the man's overly passionate speech may have damaged Dreepy's self-image. No biggy, the pokémon cheers up right away as the teen promises, no, swears he'll go to great lengths to get her as strong as she can possibly get. Dreepy is happy with it, she falls asleep and that's a sign that she's comforted and relieved and really, this sounds like a wonderful project to keep himself busy, or so he figures as he promptly goes towards the beach to find Karen again. It takes the woman a good fifteen minutes until she spots him, seems like she was lost in thought as she lounged in the sand.
"Back already?"
"Professor Elm isn't very happy with me, I think."
"Huh? What do you mean?" she asks, sitting up immediately. "What happened?"
"The professor believes that Dreepy, considering her great stats and everything, is a product of mass Ditto breeding and that it took a lot of other, little Dreepy who all ended up murdered, just to create this one, single Dreepy."
"What a load of Tauroscrap, you call Leon now and ask the man how he got this Dreepy. I don't believe for a second Leon would have the skills to get a Dragapult convinced for such a thing, Pseudo legendary pokémon are not easy to handle and I swear, Leon has the personality impact of a tomato. I bet you that it was Leon's own pokémon who parented Dreepy and that gives me all the more reason the Dragapult would've laughed at the prospect of it and then bit the idea straight out of him."
"… You think he's going to answer my call? What time is it in Galar, anyway?"
"Morning. He'll be up, I promise."
So, Ash dials the number and he's shocked at how fast Leon answers the call.
"Hey! Good hearin' from you, heard about Lance, hope you're dealing okay with it."
"I'm… not. Not actually no, but I'm good, no worries," Ash says, not even wanting to think back on the entire day today, it's one, big mess, from start to finish. "I've got a question for you."
And turns out, professor Elm is a sucker for just assuming that Leon would be giving Lance such a Dreepy, the man's very taken aback by the insulting idea and tells them that the Dreepy now peacefully asleep and oblivious to the entire situation is a single offspring from Leon's Dragapult and Allister's Gengar. A true accident and yeah, these Gym leader and champion pokémon are strong and wonderful pokémon, the chances of the little Dreepy having a fantastic start were high but that's still no reason to jump to conclusions. Ash, of course, apologises, he didn't actually believe a single word professor Elm said because it was a hideous thing to assume from the get-go but he still ended up doubtful enough to ask the original trainer for clarification. And somehow, this gets to Leon, he tells Ash to hold on, that Lance will be back on his feet in no time and that Dreepy will be a strong companion for him and that he ought to train it well.
"I'll super train it," he says and the man is flabbergasted.
"You are? It's going to be a lot of work."
"I've got time."
"It might take years."
"So? I'm fifteen, I've got time."
"Kiddo, it might not work out as you think, Dreepy is meek but when it evolves, it's a dragon in every sense of the word. Better safe than sorry, make sure you have Lance with you at all times, yeah? Especially when Dreepy evolves."
And Karen giggles, Ash belatedly realises his phone is on speaker, she could follow the entire conversation and Leon has now also heard her giggle. He doesn't make a spectacle of it, though, if anything, his interest is piqued as he didn't expect Ash and Karen to be there, together.
"If only you knew what I know, you would know better than to tell Ash that," she says and Leon chuckles at that.
"Aight, I'll hear about it, then. Still, hang on for a bit, I'll make sure this is all clarified, yeah?"
Whatever that means but Ash just rolls with it, he also likes the sea and looking at it for a little while calms him down enough to not be surprised when professor Elm comes running down the beach, right at him. He's completely out of breath, red in the face and his eyes are wide open, it's not the most comforting scene to behold but it's thanks to the smell of the sea that the teen remains calm.
"Professor?"
"I'm so sorry-"
"You should be," Karen pipes up. "Ash came to you for information and the answer you gave him was something that had nothing to do with his initial question. Now, I know he's smart enough to find out what he needs to know without you but did you really have to tell him this while knowing he loves pokémon so much, professor? And do you know how insulting this was to Lance and Leon? To think they would condone such a thing?"
"They could not have known."
"Doubtful, Lance knows everything about his pokémon, he's got an excellent history of care for them and knows perfectly where they came from, even the wild ones. And Leon can be a bit forgetful but he doesn't have a Ditto and again, Dragon-types don't do what you ask them to do outside of battle."
"I'm really sorry, Ash but one of these cases has come to light recently and I couldn't help but think, oh heavens, there are such bad people in the world."
"And you thought I was one of them," the teen answers and professor's Elm entire demeanour falls.
"No! No, no, no, not you, I was confused because you held it as if you loved it and I thought, not you, you would never do something like that."
"Whether it was the first, the thousandth or this Dreepy, I would all hold them as if I loved them as I do love them. Take a look at my herd of Tauros and tell me to my face that you doubt I wouldn't have hundreds of Dreepy floating around here."
Professor Elm doesn't know what to say to that, it's clear he knows he's made a mistake but bless him for knowing when to apologise. Also, has Leon really chewed him out?
"I'm sorry, Ash."
"I know you are, professor," he says. "But you're just as fast to jump to conclusions as any of the regional professors I've met and that's not something that'll make me more fond of you in the long term."
"You better watch out, professor Elm," Karen teases. "He's already gotten one regional professor suspended for assuming."
The man blanches and with vigour, shakes his head.
"This won't happen again."
It's a nice promise to make but Ash isn't so sure whether the professor will hold it up for long. But it's fine now, the teen is glad that professor Elm did tell him about it, even if it was unnecessary but now he knows what to look out for too. Yet, how do you tell that it's a Ditto-created pokémon? There are avid collectors out there who have like, hundreds of the same pokémon around them, Ash also wouldn't mind that, no pokémon is truly the same. Their species could be the same but their behaviour and tastes could vary widely. The teen figures that this Ditto thing is criminal activity and that professor Elm's bumbling way of explaining that to him, was to make him see that there was an issue. Still, he would have appreciated a clearer explanation than just being accused of something.
Karen tells him not to mind it too much, that the professor is an airhead from time to time and that the event that caused him to be so confused, hurt him more than he lets on. Ash asks her how they can check if the pokémon they own is from a Ditto but she comes up empty, tells him to ask someone else about it but heck no, rather the internet than risking to be chided again. Clair gets her wish, though, they're back well before dinner time and Ash doesn't say a damn thing about what's happened, he goes to give Dreepy a much-needed grooming session. But of course, Karen tells them all what's happened and it's Steven who comes to sit next to him when Dreepy is trying to discover why bubbles burst when she puts her nose against them.
"All good?" the man asks and Ash shrugs.
"Most of it, yeah. Some things just suck."
"You're okay, though?"
"Yeah. I bet Karen got a lot of attention with the story of what happened, right?"
"Not as much as you would think, in fact, the moment she told us what the professor told you, the door opening wasn't wide enough for-"
Steven's words stop and as the teen looks up to see what's going on, he sees one of Lance's pokémon approach them. Slowly and silently, which is why Salamence is already so close to them before it was spotted. Ash can see it's not aggressive, though, it's curious as Lance wouldn't be caught dead with a brush, apparently, so it has not seen this extensive collection of brushes before. And Dreepy does seem like she's having a lot of fun inside that bucket of soapy water, chasing bubbles that burst when she catches them, confusing her for two seconds flat before another bubble catches her attention.
"Come here," Ash says, though he can hear Steven inch away from him as the Salamence approaches them very quickly, enticed by the invitation.
The teen rubs his hand over the dragon's head for a little while to decide what brush will feel the best on those very hard scales. He takes out one of the most coarse ones, dips it in the bucket and then starts to rub the brush over Salamence's head. The pokémon's purr is very loud, it can easily be mistaken for a growl but Ash knows the difference very well, this dragon is very much enjoying itself.
"Everything under control?" Steven asks, from a bit further away.
"Why are you scared?"
"I've just seen some things, that's all."
"It's okay, I'll probably groom it entirely now. I don't suppose you could find me another bucket and fill it with water? I have the soap with me."
"… Sure…"
He can tell Steven isn't very comfortable but he's outside anyway and he's got the brilliant opportunity to get this pokémon used to it so Ash will not let this pass just because someone doesn't like what's happening. Salamence even lets him reach its belly, with a different, softer brush because the scales down there are softer too and the purring doesn't let up. To Steven's credit, he doesn't leave but his face shows perfectly how he feels about this. Ash couldn't care less, though, the muck coming from the Salamence makes it all worth it and the pokémon looks so chuffed with itself, it even does a couple of crazy jumps in a bout of happiness. And then, the Salamence comes back to Ash, who initially wanted to dry Dreepy off but that'll have to wait because the dragon drags him along by his sleeve… toward the place Lance told him not to enter. None of the pokémon inside mind that he's there, though but the dragon's sleeping den is revealed to the teen and he cringes because it's nasty.
'Another project,' he thinks as he sees Flygon walk into the place with some grass, to soften the ground underneath where it sleeps.
It's not the cosiest of places either, he doesn't like the look of it and honestly… he expected better from his uncle. When he gets the opportunity, Ash will ask Lance if he can change the dragon's sleeping den to be more comfortable for them, just for the sake of making them happier and like, not needing to destroy the garden to make themselves feel at home. Because they might be Dragon-types and a bit unruly but they're no longer wild pokémon. And unhappy pokémon don't perform their best, plus, they possibly also miss Lance a lot. Even if he didn't take super great care of them but yeah, Ash understands that even if someone doesn't treat you the best, it's still possible to miss that person but he doesn't wait a second before getting the measurement device with the laser he knows Lance owns and measures every little cubicle for each pokémon, making sure to write the weight of the creature sleeping there as well… and promptly goes online to buy massive pillows for every single pokémon his uncle owns.
The company actually ends up calling him when he places his order, they want to make sure it's not a joke but as soon as he answers their questions, they end up giving him a discount… because it's really large order. And somehow, their business specialises in making large pillows which Ash answers that he knows that as that's the reason why he ordered from them. But the man tells him that it means they have the pillows in stock and will be able to deliver them tomorrow, in the afternoon. Which is very fast but Ash isn't deterred by the slightest, it just means he'll have to get into some vigorous cleaning.
"… You did what?" Steven asks, when the boy goes upstairs and tells all of them what he's planning over dinner.
"Ordered pillows for Lance's pokémon to sleep on," Ash repeats simply.
"Do you know how heavy they are, though?"
"Yup."
"It'll be some big-ass pillows, though," Will says but Agatha is looking absolutely delighted by the prospect of it.
"How far does this love for pokémon go, Ash? That you go ahead and care for the pokémon of others?" she asks.
"Fair enough, I'd say," Karen pipes up. "But then again, I'm not going to say it's not a good idea, in fact, if you have the website of the store, I know Liepard would like one of those pillows to sleep on."
"Sure," the teen answers and slides his phone over to her, with the website of the store boldly and brightly coloured on top of his order. "Take a screenshot of it."
The woman does exactly that but soon enough the conversation steers back to the fact they can't believe he would do this without asking for permission from Lance. Ash, however, tells them that, if his uncle takes offence at him treating his pokémon as his own, with as much respect and kindness as he can offer, he will no longer live here and he'll donate the pillows to daycares and shelters.
"Lance has just as much control over his pokémon as he has over me," the teen continues, not bothering to look up because he knows they're watching him but he thinks his food is more important than their faces.
"Clearly but I think this is very charming, I wouldn't think twice about having you over now," his godmother says. "Though, pillows and Ghost-types…"
"The worst that can happen is a pillow fight," Ash answers and the group laughs.
"True," Wallace chuckles. "I'm glad you enjoy Lance's pokémon so much, I heard something growl downstairs but to hear Steven say that it was Salamence purring, really warms my heart. Good for you, Ash, good for you."
"I know," he says. "I don't treat people or pokémon right to get compliments either."
His comment is agreed to very quickly and it also manages to shut up the praise and bewilderment. He doesn't want Lance's pokémon to have injuries from rubbing their scales over such a hard floor either. Pokémon, whether they belong to no one or a champion, should be cared for, no matter what, it's a very simple matter Ash has no doubts over. But when Steven then reveals the pokémon that was revived from the fossil he gave the man before that faithful moment his life went downhill for a good few hours, the teen's mood rises instantly.
"It's an Amaura," the man says proudly, when the pokémon totters off to go greet the teen who welcomes the little dinosaur with open arms. "It's a Rock and Ice-type."
"Ah but you have some Rock-types in your battle team, does this mean you will train it?"
"Her. And yes, of course, I will," Steven says and Ash smiles in response, he's happy his gift worked out for the man who he owes a lot to. "I still feel like this is too much for just… remembering the day you were born, kiddo."
"It's not, you did more than my mother did and that means more than you can imagine. Plus, you've done a lot more than just that, Steven, you've been there for me, you've gone to Kalos and supported me, you always came when I asked you, heck, you even came when I didn't and that's… I like it. A lot."
And then Wallace, who is sitting next to the man, gives his a shove in his side and stares at him.
"You know what you did, you don't have to get Ash to say it out loud," he says and Steven sighs.
"But getting a whole extinct pokémon for that?"
"What did you want, half of it? Come off it, man, if this boy buys pillows for moody dragons, do you think he will not respect you for being nice to him?"
"I get it, I get it. I was just surprised, that's all, it's not every day someone just finds a random fossil on a beach."
"It does get a lot easier when the thing you're looking for lights up, though," Ash quips. "But if you're than thankful for the gift, if you really feel like it was too much, I could use a hand cleaning the dragon den tomorrow."
Wallace barks out a laugh but Steven gives him a foul look.
"If you think I wouldn't help, you're mistaken," he says and turns back to the teen, who smiles at him. "Of course, I'll help, you're not tall enough to reach the upper corners of the walls either and I'm not risking you slipping on whatever you're planning to clean the floor with."
"That's nice, thank you, Steven," Ash says but then focuses on the little dinosaur in front of him. "She's really pretty, isn't she?"
"I'm insanely happy to have her," Steven confesses and as the Amaura totters back towards him, the smile on his face conveys that, yes, he's being honest.
And it pleases the teen a lot too, he knows that giving a pokémon is unconventional and generally frowned upon but the risk he took was calculated and no, he's not bad at math. Not when it comes to knowing what the people he likes enjoy, anyway, both Wallace and Steven also still have the brooches he's given them too so he has a general idea that he can get away with a lot when it comes to presents for them. But it's not something that will be on his mind for long, Ash is really bothered he can't have access to his uncle's opinion, he has no idea if he has done a good thing ordering those pillows but he supposes he'll know that when they arrive.
And arrive they do, no one in the whole of Mahogany can miss it unless they are not paying attention and have all the windows closer so they can't hear the massive truck trying to move into the right position to deliver its precious order. Precious in the way that the people who are delivering it, are aware of what they have on board and what it's meant to do. Ash is surprised at how dainty the packages are, even if they barely fit through the door, it's still meant to fit a pokémon much larger than the doorway. But the mystery is revealed when Wallace is nearly buried underneath a lot of pillow once he cuts open the package, the pillow bursts out of the plastic wrapping with a lot of enthusiasm and the teen is glad they managed to get the den clean before these pillows arrive. But it's a lot of pushing and shoving, with everyone else having gone home and Clair having left for a Gym battle, it's up to Ash, Wallace and Steven to get all these pillows in. And yeah, so the teen made sure each pillow for every pokémon will be able to hold its weight and well… that just means that some of these pillows weigh a ton.
After a lot of sweating, the pillows are in place but the result is wonderful because it doesn't take more than a single minute before all the pokémon have sniffed down their new addition to their 'nest' and have promptly fallen asleep on top of it. Without snoring too and that doesn't rub Ash the right way as he suspects that these dragons did it because they weren't comfortable. He's too sweaty to stay for too long too, he desperately needs a shower and so do the other two men but Wallace is lingering around Ash, confusing him.
"… Is something the matter?" he asks the man, seeing how he's actually followed him to the bathroom.
"You look tired."
"I am tired, aren't you tired too from lugging those pillows around? Or is that just some basic action in your daily training ritual?"
"It's not but I do have some sort of training schedule, more than I would assume from you, Ash."
"So what if I don't work out? Are you coming into the bathroom with me or something?"
"What if you fall?"
"You do know that I'm the reason why there's a seat installed in this bathroom, right? My balance on one leg isn't stellar at all even on dry surfaces, you think I trust myself to stand in a shower, then?"
"Oh…" the man murmurs.
"I mean, you can sit against the door if you want. If you're that worried."
"I think I will do that," Wallace says and instantly sinks down on the floor, against the wall. "You go ahead then, I'll keep vigil."
"Thanks," Ash answers but he's got a fleeting suspicion that the man will be asleep by the time he is finished with his shower.
And it's not as if that wall will do Wallace's back any favours when he falls asleep against it but it was his choice to do this. And while it's a kind thing to do, it still feels alien to the teen so he's not sure what to think about it. Then again, even his mother ended up checking up on him when he'd fallen down the bathtub so maybe there's something bad about falling down in an area filled with hard surfaces. He can already imagine, though but still, Ash is careful to take care of what's left of himself so he doesn't take small risks inside a bathroom.
It also doesn't take long, he's not in favour of long showers, he's not that dirty and Pikachu is inside the cabin too so while he trusts the pokémon with his life, an oopsie is always possible. Hence why Ash gets out of the shower as fast as he can, without bothering Pikachu. And yes, he's right, poor Wallace has indeed fallen asleep but he knows he can't carry the man's weight. Ash isn't even sure whether he can lift the man with his abilities either. Well, not until Mewtwo sneaks up on him, confirming that, yes, he can do it and that it will guide him to learn how to do it. Not before the pokémon gives an apologetic lick on the teen's cheek, though because it managed to scare the living daylights out of him by suddenly appearing right next to him.
"Come on, then," Mewtwo urges him, softly but strictly. "Focus on lifting him, I trust you not to drop him."
Well, that's great but Ash is scared to death, while he manages to indeed lift Wallace's sleeping body, he doesn't make it go high, he would hate to drop him. The boy must've lost some weight after worrying so much after he'd let the man float down the stairs, into the comfortable couch that will make a much better resting place for him. And while he sneaks back upstairs for a blanket, Wallace hasn't even stirred by the time the teen is back, meaning he successfully did it. Ash is chuffed to bits, the house is silent and it's a cosy feeling to know that everyone is living their best life right now. Even Mewtwo, who is back inside of its pokéball again because it felt someone nearby, is purring, clearly as pleased with his successful psychic act as he is
Steven eventually comes down, probably being the presence Mewtwo felt approaching, dressed in a very casual pair of sweatpants and a shirt but he also looks tired. The teen isn't going to deny he isn't either but still, the warmth the man gives off isn't helping his case. Ash lets it happen, though, Steven's arm proves to be a very nice resting place to lean on anyway and it seems like the man is well on his way to nodding off. Not before mentioning that he's still amazed at how much love Ash is showing but again, caring is not something the teen does to get compliments, he's well aware that there are way too many careless people, and empathy is a gift not overly shared any longer. There are too many people who think about 'me' and not about 'them' and it's a damaging period to live in. Ash knows that and it's taken him a long time to let people in, taken him a lot of precious time to understand that it takes time to form a bond with people, just like it does with pokémon. But even so, the bonds he's made these past days, they're already much stronger than whatever he and his mother had. Or what he and professor Oak had.
For someone who apparently cares so much, he's not bothered to show some sort of sign of life either. All that when Ash's number hasn't changed, he's got a nice and shiny phone which helps him a lot… even realising that no messages don't mean anything, other than the fact the other is busy. But professor Oak… He's always been too busy to listen to him. There always was some sort of excuse so the man could get away from hearing him out. And then, of course, surprise when Ash has issues speaking up, after a decade of being shown that whatever he said wasn't important enough anyway.
And as he snuggles against Steven's arm, which ends up snaking around him so now Ash is leaning against his chest -also not the worst place to lean against- the teen can't help but feel like he's found a better crowd to live amongst. Sure, he's changed but somehow, he knows that no one in Pallet would have ever cared as much as these people do. Even if he became solid gold, they'd still find some sort of reason to sell him for the price of dirt, it's one of Pallet's unique talents, to make you feel useless and then praise you when you became what they wanted, a carbon copy of themselves, a nobody who would condemn other nobodies.
'Please stop that train of thought, friend. You have left that place, there is no reason to let your thoughts travel back there when even the thought of going back there makes you feel ill. Call it natural instinct if you wish but while it is possible to love someone who hurts you, the reality is often that you will grow to resent the people instead. And that, my friend, is perfectly natural.'
Ash agrees, of course, he does because he understands. But at the same time, he's still not over his past and probably will never be. Maybe the troubles will ease after a period of being cared for but still, he has his doubts, even if his newest addition to his team comes floating over, landing in his arms and promptly falls asleep there
End of chapter thirty-five