"Pikachu, Rockruff… I think this is it."

Maybe it was the odd silence that'd hung over them, for the past twenty minutes or so, as they stepped through the underbrush of the Akala Outskirts. Maybe it was the faint, nagging feeling that they were being watched. But, something in Ash's heart knew that he'd been moving in the right direction.

Now, it was confirmed, before his very eyes. Ancient structures built of stone framed the dirt path, leading right up to a passageway carved into a cavern. It all looked quite familiar. In fact, it looked just like the Ruins of Conflict that Hala had shown him, weeks go. All down to the last detail, except for the painted patterns on the doorway. Rather than the bright yellows and oranges that paid tribute to Tapu Koko, these were a solid hot pink.

Ash recognized their coloration as the same as Tapu Lele's. He and Pikachu had seen the fickle and flighty goddess with their own eyes, when they'd visited Treasure Island.

But, that raised the obvious question; why was Ash here to begin with? Truthfully, he'd come to clear his mind and pray. Ash, himself, wasn't a particularly pious person; Kanto didn't exactly host a pantheon of gods, the way regions like Hoenn or Sinnoh, or Unova and Kalos did. They had a few mighty and ornery birds, and arguably, the elusive Mew, who was the subject of some religiosity. But it wasn't enough to influence his upbringing. He just hadn't been taught to pray.

Alola, though, was different. Their deities lived among them, and though it was rare, interacted with humans procedurally. They gave their blessings to humans they preferred — and by some WILD twist of fate, Ash had been one of them. Why would he expect anything else? — and even handpicked each island's Kahuna.

But, that brought him back to why he was here. He had a battle scheduled with Akala's Kahuna, tomorrow, for his Grand Trial. He'd met the Kahuna recently; a woman named Olivia, who Lana had previously described as 'capricious.' He still didn't know what capricious meant. She was quirky and clumsy, but despite that, Ash could see an aura of strength behind her. Just a hunch. And when he'd battled Hala, he'd been instructed to pray at the island's respective ruins, first.

"The Ruins of Life." Ash sounded out those words with just a touch of reverence. And, just as he started to step towards the place of worship, one of his companions had other ideas.

"Rrrruff! Rock! Rock-Rock!" Rockruff snarled and yapped, hopping about in place to draw her trainer's attention. "Rrah! Ruff-ruff!"

"Rockruff! What's gotten into you?" Ash frowned, crouching down to lean his weight on his knees. "You've been acting weird, lately… I told you we were going to go pray, remember?"

Rather than answer him, Rockruff scurried off and away from the entrance to the Ruins, instead disappearing down an incline, nearby. When Ash gave chase, he saw her disappear around the bend of a descending stone staircase.

"Agh, what the…!? Rockruff! Get back here!" Ash called out. With no choice but to follow, he sprinted after the pup, with Pikachu taking the lead ahead of him. "You can't just run off like that without telling us what's up!"

But, Rockruff reminded Ash a lot of himself, when he was younger. Rowdy, prone to fighting, and she refused to stay in one place, no matter what anyone had to say about it. She led him down a winding staircase that stopped after the second flight, leading back onto solid ground and greenery.

What he saw at the foot of the steps made Ash gasp in awe. A stone battlefield with ornate paintings, closed in by Akala's mountainous heights on either side. Beyond the stone stage was a colorful spread of yellow and pink flower beds, and a small, mysterious altar that overlooked Akala's crystal clear seas.

At the end of said altar was a brunette, dark-skinned woman in ornate, but remarkably skimpy clothing, overlooking the seas. At least, she had been, until the yapping Rockruff sprinted over to confront the beige-toned canine sitting beside her.

The larger Rock-type sat up and turned to face their younger brethren, tilting his head. He humored Rockruff's behavior, flicking her fluffy, wispy tail to draw her attention. Ash recognized this Pokémon as the Midday form of Lycanroc; one of Rockruff's two evolutions.

"Now, what do we have here…?" The woman sitting at the island's end looked over, eyes widening when they landed on the capped trainer. "Ah! Ash!?" She sputtered in a panic, hopping to her feet to appear at least the slightest bit dignified. "I, erm… Didn't expect you so early! There's something to be said for punctuality, but your battle isn't until tomorrow! Aha…!"

"Yeah. I remember." Ash said, frowning, as he walked over to approach his own Pokémon. He picked her up by the scruff, leaving her to dangle harmlessly with a pout. "You said you had some duties, so we rescheduled. I actually came to pray at the Ruins of Life, but Rockruff, here, decided we were going on a little detour. And, voila! Here we are."

"...Oh! Well, yes, that's…" Olivia went to great lengths to look off, idly scratching her cheek with her colorfully painted teal nails. No matter how much she tried for a straight face, though, that goofy, nervous smile just wouldn't break. "Aha-ha… It's like I said! I have sacred duties to attend to. When I saw you with my own eyes, I could just feel your fighting spirit, and I wanted to battle you right away! But, Alolan tradition always comes first. It's something you'll come to understand, the longer you embark on your Island Trials, I'm sure…!"

Ash squinted, as did Pikachu. She was the type who had a motor mouth when she was trying to cover up a lie, wasn't she? "Uh-huh. With all due respect, Kahuna, unless sitting around is a sacred duty, I'm not seeing it."

Olivia groaned, and fell into a slump as if she were made of malleable putty. "Busted… Has anyone ever told you that you're too good at seeing through people's facades, Ash?"

"I wish I could say they have," Ash said flatly.

"Hmm…!" Olivia pouted, crossing her arms. But, she quickly regained an upright, authoritative posture, and turned away, beckoning him with a wave of her hand. "Very well! Come with me."

Blinking, Ash looked at Pikachu, who shrugged. Seeing no reason not to, he released Rockruff to go badger Lycanroc, and followed Olivia to where she sat, on the edge of the stone altar. The view of the sea below was spectacular, and he could feel the cool breeze brushing over the stubble that was starting to gather on his chin. He sat, idly kicking his legs. "Alright, then. What's really going on, Kahuna? Spill the beans."

"Please, please! You make me sound so old. You can call me Olivia, when I'm off the job."

Ash chuckled. "Alright, then, Olivia! Same question."

Olivia's skin took on a dark flush, as she muttered out her answer. "I… had a date planned for today."

Ash snorted, again, raising a brow. "I know I'm not the expert here, but should you really be breaking up a Grand Trial for something that… well, casual?"

"Oh, but there's nothing casual about love, Ash!" Olivia cooed, linking her fingers together in a manner that struck Ash as familiar. "Love is a divine experience given to us by the gods, themselves! A soul-replenishing endeavor that ought to be seen to its very end…!"

"Seeing that you're here, I take it your experience made it there," Ash said flatly.

To which, the Kahuna slumped over again, looking grief-struck. "You don't have to be so blunt about it, you know…!"

In response, quite inappropriately at that, Ash only laughed.

Olivia shot him a glare, her cheek puffing out in humiliation. "You don't have to be mean, either!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Ash continued to laugh, though to his credit, he finally put a lid on it. "It's not that. It's just… Now that I think about it, you remind me a lot of a friend of mine."

"Oh?" Olivia immediately perked up, leaning in with a gleam of intrigue in her eye. "Do tell."

"See, there's this guy I know. Known him about as long as I've been traveling. And he gets super-romantic like that, too. Hell, he pretty much falls head-over-heels for every woman he meets."

Ash flinched, then, scolding himself internally. 'What did I go and say that for!? I mean… sure, it's true, but Brock would probably kill me if he found out I made that kind of impression for 'im.'

"Oh, does he really!? How interesting!" Olivia cooed. Perplexingly, she didn't look off put at all.

"Wait… what?" Ash stammered, with a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead.

"For someone to keep his heart open so steadily, no matter how many people he meets. No matter how many times he has to move on… To see the beauty in so many lovely ladies, far and wide…! I think that's quite the show of passion from your friend! He must be a doll," Olivia concluded, making all the same sorts of gestures that good ol' Brock would.

"For the love of Arceus," Pikachu muttered, "I think we found Brock, but in the form of a woman."

Pikachu wasn't entirely wrong. She sounded the exact same sort of dumbstruck by love. But, Brock didn't find this sort of luck often — particularly now, when as far as Ash remembered, he'd recently come out of a break-up — so, it only made sense to Ash to keep talking.

"Well, a doll's sure a way to put it, but he's a great guy! He used to be a Gym Leader; actually, now that I think about it, he ran a Rock-type Gym! That's your specialty, isn't it?"

"You don't sayyy?" Olivia cooed, a smile pulling at her lipstick-painted lips. "So, he's a fellow Rock-type aficionado!"

"Heh, yeah. I mean, at least he was. He held the Gym down while his parents were away, up until when he traveled with me. The truth is, though, he wanted to raise Pokémon more than he wanted to battle them! He dreamed of being the world's best Pokémon Breeder."

"And, he's a nurturer…!?" Olivia gasped. "Oh, he must have a big heart.

"Without a doubt!" Ash agreed. He did enjoy talking up his friends, at the very least, and few deserved it more than Brock. "That actually led him to his calling of becoming a Pokémon Doctor. He's still in medical school, right now, working up to it. Did I mention that he's an amazing cook? He basically kept me and my friends alive when we were younger."

"Oh, he sounds like an absolute catch!" Olivia swooned. Were those hearts in her eyes!? "Far better than any of the men I've pursued. Oh, I hope he's handsome…!"

"Handsome? Yeah, I mean like, the guy's a brother to me, but he's objectively good-looking," Ash shrugged. Then, he gained a mischievous grin. "Why? You thinking of making your move?"

"Me, making my—!?" Olivia blushed; brightly enough for steam to pour out of her ears. "Oh, but.. I couldn't, I mean, I…" Uncharacteristically meek, Olivia poked her index fingers together, pouting. "I don't know… I think I'm getting ahead of myself. Would he even like me!?"

"Pahaha!" Ash laughed, clutching his belly. "Oh, man… This is just my personal opinion, but knowing you? He'd fall for you in the blink of an eye. You're a catch!"

"Oh?" Olivia chortled, nudging the young adult playfully with her elbow. "Well, thank you, Ash, I'm very flattered. But, I think I'm just a bit too old for you!"

"Ack!" Ash practically choked on his words, doing a double take. "N-no! I don't… It's not like that at all!"

"A swing and a miss," Pikachu said flatly, wearing an exasperated half-smile.

"Ahem," Ash coughed, folding his arms. "It's not. It's just the truth." Smiling smugly, Ash played with the brim of his red cap. "I just have an eye for quality, with these things."

"Well, that's a relief! I felt guilty having to turn you down," Olivia laughed. She blinked, afterwards. "An eye for quality, though? I never took a young man like you as the romantic type."

"I may not look it, but I've got heart to spare!" Ash boasted, puffing out his chest. "It just so happens that my girlfriends are the greatest!"

"Girlfriends?" The Kahuna frowned, staring Ash down. "I would have never pegged you as the type to sneak around either, Ash Ketchum." That accusation made Ash's stomach flip over.

"Ew, no, no!" He waved his hands in front of him. "I'd never do something like that! There's no sneaking. Agh… Explaining that is getting kind of annoying," he pouted, folding his arms.

"I'm afraid you signed up for that when you became a menage a trois," Pikachu delivered flatly. Even so, he patted his trainer's arm to comfort him.

"True," Ash conceded. "Anyway, it's all on the up-and-up. We're very happy together!"

"Well, sorry about that," Olivia said, poking her fingers together once more. "I guess I do owe you an apology. Still… I have to say, I'm impressed! To have a bond that can allow for more than two…!" She smiled gleefully, then. "Tell me about them, won't you? Spill."

"Gladly!" Ash agreed with enthusiasm. "See, their names are Dawn and Serena. They're both really pretty, and talented as all get-out! Dawn's a Pokémon Coordinator; she competes in Contests to show off the appeal of her Pokémon, and takes part in battles where they fight in style! She's super-peppy, and her confidence is through the roof. She's actually, like, really vain, but in a cute way; she won't get in front of a camera without giving her whole hairdo a thrice-over! But, it really shows. And, Serena! She's a Pokémon Performer, and takes part in Pokémon Showcases! It's like this whole idol thing, where she dances, and bakes, and answers trivia. But she's actually dipping into Contests right no-"

"Ash!" Olivia interrupted Ash, taking hold of her shoulders. "Ash. Breathe. You're turning blue in the face."

And, she was right. Ash hadn't realized it, but he was severely out of breath. Nothing a few deep breaths couldn't fix. "Tha… thanks…! I guess I…" Gasp. "...guess I got carried away."

"Oh, Ash…" Pikachu sighed, shaking his head.

"I should say so!" Olivia chuckled behind her hand. "But, I think that picture is worth a thousand words. You're totally spellbound! Oh, that's so… Wait a minute. Dawn, Serena… I think I've seen them in magazines, before! One with blonde hair, the other a deep blue…?"

"That's them!" Ash cheered.

"Oh, they were just lovely! A couple of superstars," Olivia cooed. She smirked, elbowing Ash again. "Look at you! I'd say it's no surprise you're a Pokémon Trainer, with a catch like that, aha~!"

"Ahaha! Yeah, guilty as charged." Ash grinned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"That does make me wonder, though," Olivia said, coming down from her eccentric gushing. "How do you deal with being apart from them, as a traveling trainer? Aren't you weighed down by that heartache? You must miss them."

"Well, sure I miss them!" Ash replied. "There're totally times where I'd like to give Dawn a high-five, or listen to Serena's voice when I'm having doubts… I definitely think about them. But, I miss a lot of people. And I know that we'll always come back together, just like the others. We're connected by our bonds, and that way, we're always with each other!"

Then, Ash made a face. "Sheesh, you could scribble that on a mushy greeting card… Besides! It's not like I'm alone." He smirked, sparing a glance to Pikachu. "Dawn has Pikachu's own little girlfriend that he has to get back to."

"H-hey! Why'd you drag me into this!?" Pikachu sputtered, sporting a furious orange-red. "But, you're not wrong…" He smiled fondly, shaking his head. "I miss 'punny's huge personality, myself."

"Aww, and Pikachu, too!" Olivia cooed, ruffling the fur atop his head. "All this love in the air… I guess I'm in the minority, here," she admitted, the proverbial raincloud appearing over her head, once more.

"Speaking of that, Ash," she asked. "Your friend. How far away is he? Or, where, rather?"

"Er…" Ash hesitated, looking off. "He's all the way in Kanto, right now."

"Of course he is," Olivia sighed, hanging her head.

"But, hey! No need to worry!" Ash continued, resting a hand on her shoulder. "I'll go ahead and put a word in for you. I've got a strong hunch that he'd cross an ocean, if it meant meeting a pretty face."

"Aww, would you!?" Olivia cheered, pulling Ash into an overbearing, crushing hug. "Oh, you're just the best! Thank you so much, Ash! Thank you!"

"No… problem…!" Ash choked out. "But, hey… Olivia…!"

"Yes, Ash?"

"If you keep that up… I may not make it back to Kanto to ask. Ack."

"Oh! Sorry." Flushed with embarrassment, Olivia released him.

For a moment, they enjoyed the gentle roll of the waves below, and the occasional chirping Pikipek. With the lack of Rockruff yipping in the background, Ash could only assume she'd tuckered herself out.

He looked behind him. The pup was lying on her side, panting, with an amused Lycanroc looming over her. Ash smiled and shook his head.

"Say, Olivia," he resumed. "What happened to your date, today, in the first place?"

"Oh! Well! That's…!" Olivia started to sweat, looking off. "You wouldn't get it."

"Try me."

"...I met him at the pier, in Konikoni. I managed to catch my heel between the boards, and tripped… It knocked both of us overboard." Her face filled with ruddy color. "He left, afterwards."

"That's what it was!?" Ash snorted. "Man, if I met someone that critical, I would've been toast."

"Ah~?" The sulking Kahuna perked up, leaning in with a mischievous smirk. "It sounds an awful lot like you have some embarrassing stories of your own!"

"Hey, hey! I don't know what you're talking about," Ash stammered. The shoe was now on the other foot.

"C'mon! Cough up the gossip for big sis Olivia!" She prodded, poking his cheek.

"Since when were you 'big sis?' I think I missed something! Hey! Pikachu, help me out, here!"

Pikachu watched the ridiculous scene unfold, tutting in amusement. "Are you asking me to shock a Kahuna, Ash? I don't think Tapu Lele would be very happy with you."

"Verrry funny. I'll remember this, Buddy!"

For such a sacred location, a scene that drifted far from piety unfolded, before the gods. A fickle, unimportant squabble between two mortals, over the rising tides and sinking lows of love.

But, what of the faint shower of pink diamond dust, drifting through the breeze, towards Alola's expanding seas? What of the faint, echoing giggle that Pikachu had sworn he'd heard?

"Lele~!"

Well, gods could be fickle, too.