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It's less detailed, so navigation is more annoying. But that's the fault of the website for letting the ads start appearing**

Ohirume: *somber frown* So no one figured out the significance of the referees in the last chapter.

Gem: *confused stare* Huh?

Faux: *sweat drops* Yeah, we don't know what you're talking about.

Seishin: The substitute was Wendy from the Johto episode "Dues and Don'ts".

Gem and Faux: *stare in confusion*

Seishin: … right, you never met. *points at readers while grinning* Figure out who "Charles" is to win!

Omega: *glares at Seishin* What is it with you and fake prizes?!

…

Ohirume: I now realize how much a job can affect writing time. As such, my new posting schedule is … the chapter will be out when it's out.

We're not canceling!

I don't own Pokémon or Ben 10.

.

.

Tranquility Intervals

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"42!" Nurse Joy called out from the front desk, "The guest staying in room forty-two! You're Pokémon are ready!"

A man in a suit walked up to the counter, "Thank you."

After arriving at the Pokémon Center, Ash dropped off his entire team for a checkup and then everyone moved over to the waiting area. Brock, Misty, Electra, and Togepi sat across from Ash.

"So, who are Clie and Mar?" Electra asked.

Ash chuckled, "Clay and Moore. They're main eight Gym Leaders in Unova and Hoenn, respectively. Clay's a Ground-type user and Mr. Moore's a Fire-type user." He smiled, "Giovanni borrowed their Pokémon for the match."

Brock sweat dropped, "And how exactly did you figure that out?"

"Simple." Ash said casually, "Some of his Pokémon were acting on their own."

Misty deadpanned, "Sounds familiar…"

Ash chuckled, "It's different from that." He smiled and raised a finger, "Think about it. Which of his Pokémon didn't follow his orders to a T?"

Brock put a hand to his chin, "Well, Nidoqueen fired off a Flamethrower without command, Camerupt blindsided Bulbasaur with Hidden Power, Flygon seemed to hesitate when Giovanni told …" He glanced at Electra, "her?

Electra nodded, "Her."

"Her to use Outrage on Clefairy," Brock continued, "and Seismitoad outright ignored him."

Misty looked at Brock in surprise before looking down thoughtfully, "Huh…" She looked at Ash with a raised brow, "So, Nidoqueen, Camerupt, Flygon, and Seismitoad were borrowed?"

Ash grinned, "Close. Camerupt, Flygon, Seismitoad, Golurk, and Claydol weren't his."

"Huh?" Everyone else said.

Misty shook it off and frowned, "Okay, from the top please."

Ash smiled, "It's something I realized after Nidoqueen lost."

Brock perked up in surprise, "After Nidoqueen?"

Ash nodded, "She acted without command out of frustration and just Giovanni's voice was enough to scare her. But he didn't chastise Camerupt, Flygon, or Seismitoad for disobeying him in even worse ways. Because he knew telling them off wouldn't have the same effect, if any, or he knew that it might affect his relationship with the other Gym Leaders."

Misty and Brock perked up in realization and Electra's eyes widened. Togepi blinked in confusion.

"But there was one detail that got me thinking about this in the first place." Ash continued, "What did the referee say about the match up?"

Misty raised a brow, "That it could be a ten-on-ten?"

Ash smiled, "Think harder. What were her actual words?"

Misty blinked in surprise and looked up thoughtfully, "Um … she said stuff about it being a special recommendation because of your party limit, the prize if you took the challenge, and that protocol said it'd would've normally been a-" She stopped, and her eyes widened.

Ash snapped and pointed at her, "Bingo. Average eighth badge battles are usually six-on-six. A ten-on-ten is unheard of. Meaning, to allow any of this to happen, he either had to add in Pokémon from one of his lesser Badge teams or he had to call in some recruits from other specialists."

The Gym Leaders stared in shock.

Brock perked up and frowned, "But wait. Counting all of the Pokémon you mentioned, that means he only used five of his own Pokémon. Why would he do that instead of adding four to his usual eighth badge team? Plus, Golurk and Claydol never disobeyed him. How are you sure they were borrowed too?"

"Because that's actually normal for their kind." Ash responded, "The golett and baltoy lines were created by ancient civilizations eons ago for the purpose of being their guardians, companions, and/or servants. They were originally drones but have adapted freewill and consciousness since their creation. But they're natural instincts are still derived from their original programming and gives both of them an incredible sense of loyalty towards the being they view as their trainer or friend." He sweat dropped and smiled sheepishly "Or 'owner' as the almanac put it."

He shook it off and smiled, "They'll always listen to their trainers' orders to the absolute best of their abilities. Even if the order is to listen to someone else temporarily. Clay likely told Seismitoad, Flygon, Claydol, and Golurk to listen to Giovanni during the battle but only Claydol and Golurk took that as an absolute command because of their instincts. They only would've disobeyed Giovanni if he gave an order that contradicted Clay's order."

The two humans, the pikachu, and the togepi stared blankly.

"And him borrowing five Pokémon instead of four?" Misty asked.

Ash shrugged, "Not completely sure, but I'm guessing Type variety. His sixth Pokémon likely would've been a dugtrio, otherwise."

"Huh…" Brock muttered. He smiled sheepishly, "Wow. I didn't notice at all."

Misty smiled, "So, changing the topic a little, any ideas on what the Pokémon you won is?" She glanced away and sweat dropped, 'As if I need to ask.'

'Oh yeah. I thought it over after the battle and managed to figure it out. I already put together a training schedule for them.'

Brock sweat dropped and smiled normally, 'He's probably close to narrowing it down already.'

'Close. I've been thinking over what all Giovanni and the referee said, and I'm compiling a mental list of potential candidates. After I narrow it down some, I'll put together a handful of regimens to cover as many bases as I can.'

"No clue." Ash responded casually.

Brock and Misty snapped out of their daydreams with a flinch and looked at Ash blankly, "What?"

"I have no idea what they are." Ash said with a smile.

The Gym Leaders stared in shock.

"S-" Brock stuttered, "seriously? You haven't even thought about it?"

Ash chuckled sheepishly, "Well, I did at first." He looked down thoughtfully, "Giovanni described them as 'exotic' and 'believed to benefit me' and said that they were picked by most of the Kanto main eight and the champion, himself. The problem is that every aspect of those details is left up to interpretation. Exotic could mean anywhere from the closest foreign region, to the furthest, to a pseudo-variant from a remote island. Benefit could mean typing, body type, or maybe even just the way they move. That many people being involved and giving their input is what scrambles these ideas in the first place through bias and opinions."

He looked at them and smiled calmly, "So, I decided to make it easier on myself and not waste time or energy trying to figure it out. Because it doesn't matter what they are. As far as I'm concerned, they're already a part of the team."

Misty and Brock smiled softly at his answer.

"I guess that's a good a reason as any to not wanna figure it out." Brock said.

"Well, that and" Ash started before smiling brightly and blurting out, "I'm just way too excited about it!"

The other four flinched and stared in surprise at the outburst.

"heh?" Misty muttered.

"Well, yeah." Ash continued happily, "Why wouldn't I be excited about getting a new teammate? I've never had something like this happen to me before." He glanced away and sweat dropped, "Though I'm not sure I'm gonna sleep too well tonight, because of that. I'm hoping I won't get on Soot, Pikachu, and Clefairy's nerves."

"Ash Ketchum!" Nurse Joy called out, "You're Pokémon are ready!"

Ash snapped out of it and smiled at her, "Coming!" He got up and walked over to the counter.

Brock chuckled sheepishly and whispered under his breath, "Y'know … I think that just reminded me that he's the youngest out of the three of us."

Misty sweat dropped and smirked, "Yeah. After all this time, I wasn't sure he could act like an actual ten-year-old."

After a moment, Electra flinched and blurted out, "Wait! Claydol and Golurk are human-made?!"

Some bystanders jerked and stared at the talking pikachu in shock. Brock and Misty sweat dropped and smiled sheepishly, and Togepi looked at Electra in surprise.

.

*The Next Day

"12 more minutes until we reach the lab!" Ash said excitedly as he led the way through the forest, "We're so close!"

Soot sweat dropped while smirking, "You are way too excited about this." She frowned and looked at him, "Though, are you sure you wanna head straight to the lab?" Her eyes narrowed, "Instead of stopping by home first?"

Ash tensed up and smiled nervously, "Uh … good point."

After the group left the Center, Ash brought out Aerodactyl and Pidgeot and had the pair fly everyone to Pallet Town. But not without surprising the Fossil Pokémon with his teammate's evolution. During the flight, Ash jumped off Pidgeot, changed to braviary, and led the way since neither Pidgeot nor Aerodactyl had been there before. A wild pidgey flying nearby almost fell out of the sky from witnessing that.

They all touched down in a clearing on route one and walked the rest of the way as a precaution. After Ash did a clean sweep of the area, that is.

Brock, Misty, and Soot walked alongside Ash with Pikachu, Clefairy, and Electra all in their usual spots, and Togepi was fast asleep in Misty's bag.

Brock smiled at Ash, "So, I know I sound like a broken record" Electra's ear twitched "but do you really not have any idea what the Pokémon you're getting is? Not even a few ideas?"

Ash glanced at him before looking up thoughtfully, "Well … after I finally fell asleep last night,"

"At 2 in the morning." Soot jumped in in mild annoyance.

"…" Ash cleared his throat, "While I was asleep, I started thinking again, and now I think the 'benefit me' part probably means Typing. My team has a pretty big variety of body shapes and maneuverability styles and I have multiple Pokémon for land, sea, and air. Also, heavy-hitters, defenders, and speeders." He crossed his arms, "I guess if I were missing something, it'd be a fish. But I already have two Water-types and the only non-Water-type fish Pokémon are Stunfisk and Tynamo. They're both Electric-types, but Stunfisk is part Ground."

"For types," Ash continued, "I'm missing Ground, Steel, Psychic, Ghost -if you don't count Soot-,"

"Which you shouldn't." Soot added casually, "Still a pure Dark-type."

"Dragon, Ice, and Bug." Ash finished, "But Bug-type might not have been considered since Butterfree is still registered to me. That leaves six types to choose from. In what way, I have no idea. We have coverage for every type except Poison, but a handful of us have Psychic and Ground-type moves, and Koga might've vouched that I didn't need someone to help with that."

Pikachu and Clefairy each had a paw/hand on their head with an uncomfortable frown on their faces. Electra was lying on her front on Brock's backpack; eyes swirling. Soot glanced back and up at her and snickered.

Misty sweat dropped, "Well, that narrows it down…"

Ash chuckled, "Now do you see why I gave up?" He looked ahead, perked up, and smiled happily before running ahead.

Soot smiled and followed. Brock and Misty perked up in surprise and hurried to catch up to them.

They all came up to a hill overlooking Pallet Town just beyond a thick forest. They saw a cluster of farming fields next to various houses scattered all around; connected solely by dirt pathways.

Clefairy and Electra smiled brightly and stared in awe. Pikachu smiled softly at the view.

Soot smiled softly as well, "We're home."

Brock glanced at Ash, "I thought you said twelve minutes."

Ash grinned, "Yeah. Until we would reach the lab. Ten, now." He hurried down the hill, "Come on!" Soot followed him.

The Gym Leaders shared a glance, smiled and shrugged, and ran after their friends.

.

*Pallet Town

Everyone continued down the path towards Ash and Soot's house with the natives leading the way. Clefairy and Electra looked all around in awe. Brock and Misty looked around curiously. A few people and their Pokémon were out in their yards. Some waved as the group passed, but most didn't pay them any attention.

"Wow." Brock said, "I've heard that Pallet Town is pretty rural, but I didn't really expect farmland like this."

Soot chuckled, "We get that a lot. Professor Oak setting up shop here causes people to paint a bit of a different picture when they think of us." She cracked a small smirk, "Pun, somewhat intended."

Ash looked around, "While some of these are personal farms that belong to the house closest to them, most of these are co-owned or community fields."

Misty looked around curiously before perking up and looking at Ash, "Wait, is that how you know how to deal with droughts?"

Ash looked at her in confusion, "Huh?" He perked up, "Oh, right." He shook it off and held out a hand, "Well, kinda. My mom just has a small front-yard garden, so I didn't have a reason to learn about farming beyond the basics." He glanced away and sweat dropped, "Also, Frenzy Plant." He looked at her again, "But I have sometimes seen neighbors doing the Ingrain-Synthesis thing. I came up with the rest of the process myself."

Misty sweat dropped and smirked, "Of course you did…"

Electra continued looking around before stopping ahead. Her eyes lit up and she smiled excitedly, "Insane!"

Everyone else looked at her before looking ahead as well. On the other side of a bridge spanning a river and at the top of a massive hill sat an equally massive yellow building with a pink roof. A curving flight of stairs stretched from the entrance down to a gate, and a large windmill could be seen on the back of the building.

Clefairy stared in awe and Brock stared in surprise.

Misty stared in surprise as well, "Okay, this is a little closer to what I was thinking of."

"Yeah, I don't blame ya." Soot said casually.

Ash smiled, "It's Professor Oak's lab. The ranch is just around the back."

The female Electric-type flinched and looked at Ash in shock, "Wait, that's-" She tensed up and shook her head rapidly, "Um, I mean, that's the pre- pro-fe-sor's lab?!" She smiled excitedly and looked at the building, "Insane! I wanna go see right now!"

Ash put a hand on Electra's head, "So do I, Electra. So do I. But we really should visit my mom, first."

Electra pouted and looked at Ash, "But-" She perked up and stared in surprise when she saw the unnerved smile on Ash's face. She glanced at Soot to find the same expression, "Um … okay."

Misty smiled at her, "Hey, look on the bright side. We all get to see Ash's house."

Electra perked up, "Oh, right." She smiled, 'After seeing Misty's home, I can only imagine!'

.

*Ketchum residence

Electra stared at the orange roofed building blankly, "This is your house?" She looked down the road and back at the building, "But it looks a lot like the others."

Soot looked at her with a raised brow, "Well, yeah. You didn't expect a mansion like James's family, did you?"

Electra sweat dropped, "Well, no, I guess not. But … still."

Brock glanced back and put a hand on her head, "Electra, don't be rude. This is still where Ash and Soot grew up, remember?"

Electra's ears drooped, "Sorry."

Ash glanced back at them with a smile before walking up. He opened the door and called out, "Mom, we're ho- Ow!" A thump sounded out, he stepped back, and put a hand on his head.

Everyone else flinched.

Misty stared in confusion, "What just happened?"

Ash rubbed his head and stared ahead in confusion, "Um…" He reached out a hand and knocked on the … air.

Pikachu groaned, "Agh! Not glass walls again!"

Soot dragged a claw across the wall and raised a brow, "I don't think this one's glass."

"Stay back intruder!"

Everyone perked up and looked inside as a Mr. mime wearing an apron walked into view. They were glaring at them with their hands held out.

Brock looked at Ash, "I didn't know your mom has a Mr. mime."

Soot blinked in surprise, "Same actually." She took a deep breath and shouted, "Grandma!"

Mr. Mime flinched from the outburst.

"Coming!" Delia called out. Everyone looked at the stairs as she hurried down them. She looked at the door and smiled brightly, "Ash! Soot! You're home!"

Ash smiled and waved, "Hey, mom!" He knocked on the forcefield.

Delia perked up in surprise before frowning, "Oh dear." She hurried over, put a hand on the Mr. mime's head, and gestured to the boy, "Mimey, this is my son, Ash." She perked up, "Oh. 'Son' means male hatchling."

Mimey perked up and his eyes widened, "Mime?" He looked at the boy in shock, "Mime?!" He flinched and started waving his hands wildly; dispelling the Barrier in the process, "Sorry! Sorry! I had no idea!"

Ash chuckled and waved a hand as he stepped inside, "Hey, it's alright. I'm not mad. It's actually kinda reassuring that mom has someone so protective of her."

The Barrier Pokémon blinked in surprise before sighing in relief, "Thank you." He walked over to the couch, grabbed a broom, and walked towards the kitchen. He smiled and started sweeping.

Brock, Misty, and Soot stepped inside too, and Soot closed the door behind them. Clefairy and Electra looked around curiously.

Ash noticed and smiled at his Fairy-type, "Go ahead. I know you wanna explore my house."

The Fairy Pokémon smiled and nuzzled his head, "Thank you!" She jumped down and started running around the room. Pikachu jumped down and followed her.

Ash looked back at his mother, pointed at the Psychic/Fairy-type, and raised a brow, "So where did he come from?"

Delia looked at her Pokémon, "Well, first, I'm happy to know Mimey really is a boy. It's hard to tell since his kind aren't single gendered despite the name."

Soot shrugged, "Yeah. I think a gothitelle can sympathize."

Delia smiled at them, "And second, it was this whole thing involving a circus." She raised a finger, "The professor and I helped find him to be a rival for the circus's Mr. mime that quit. But then these poachers tried to take him during the show and the professor's dragonite helped the two of them fight them off. They even got their tank to blow itself up. Their Mr. mime got their motivation back and Mimey decided to stay with me. He's such a great help around the house."

Mimey looked at them and smiled, "Yeah. These chore things are pretty fun."

Soot smirked and sweat dropped, "Well, so long as you like them." She glared, "But approach me with the vacuum and you're going to wish your ability was Filter."

Mimey blinked in surprise, "Uh … it is."

Soot smirked slyly, "Oh, thanks. Now I know not to hold back." Mimey tensed up as she translated for the others.

Brock and Misty stared in shock, 'That's how they're so good in a crisis! It's genetic!'

Delia looked at them and perked up. She smiled happily, "And, Brock, Misty, allow me to officially welcome you to my home."

The pair snapped out of it.

Misty smiled, "Thank you, Miss Ketchum. Your home is lovely."

Brock put a hand on his chest, "Thank you for having us."

Electra looked at Brock curiously before mimicking him, "Thank you for having us."

Delia perked up in surprise, "Oh my."

Soot smirked, "Yeah, I've been giving her lessons."

Delia smiled, walked up, and started scratching Electra under the chin, "Well, I'm happy to meet you, Pikach-" She perked up, looked at Ash's pikachu, and smiled at her again, "I'm happy to meet you, little miss. You look so cute in that outfit. I especially love the necklace."

Electra smiled blissfully, "Chaaa."

Brock smiled, "Her name's Electra. She joined me a little while after-" He stopped and perked up before smiling, "Oh, right. We don't need to stretch the truth or be vague with you."

Delia perked up and the other two Ketchums flinched.

Brock gestured to Electra, "She joined me after we visited her tribe in pikachu form. It was our trial run with the Change Lenses first Lockdown function."

"Uh huh…" Electra muttered aimlessly. She perked up when the chin scratches stopped and looked at Delia.

The room went silent almost instantly. Delia stared at Brock in pure shock before slowly turning to look at Misty. Ash and Soot were sweating nervously. Electra raised a brow, Pikachu and Clefairy looked at Delia in confusion, and Misty blinked in confusion.

Brock frowned anxiously, "Um … did I say something-"

"You know?" Delia muttered in shock.

Misty's eyes widened, "Huh?" She pointed, "W- wait. You didn't know that we-"

"You know!" Delia cried out happily before pulling the pair into a group hug. Electra flinched and grabbed Brock's head to keep from falling off.

"This is wonderful!" Delia cheered, "I finally have people to talk to who aren't scientists!"

Brock stared in surprise before smiling sheepishly, "I didn't expect you to be so excited."

Misty glanced at Ash with a smirk, "Or that you didn't know about us knowing."

Ash chuckled nervously.

"Yeah." Delia muttered, "I'm so happy." She hugged them tighter and whispered something quietly.

The breeder and Water trainer glanced at her in surprise. Ash and Soot sighed in relief.

"Oh, and sweetie." Delia said as she let go of the Gym Leaders; making Ash flinch. She turned to face him and smiled cheerfully, "When were you planning to tell your mother that your friends found out about the watch?" She started walking up to him, "Or that you finished the Change Lenses?" She stopped right in front of him; smile never faltering, "Or that you started working on them again?"

Misty and Brock looked at Ash in dumbfound shock, 'Seriously?!'

Pikachu sweat dropped, "Well it was nice knowing you, Ash."

Clefairy flinched and stared frightenedly, "What?!"

The Electric-type glanced at her with a soft smile and whispered, "Expression."

The Fairy-type sighed in relief and Soot turned invisible back when Delia said 'sweetie'.

Ash started trembling slightly, smiling nervously, and glancing away awkwardly, "I- I, uh- well a lot has happened since Porta Vista and we've been busy training and traveling, a- and it just never really crossed my mind and-"

"Oh, it's alright, sweetie." Delia interrupted happily, "These things happen. Now, what all new forms have you gotten?"

"O- oh, um," Ash stuttered; nervous smile remaining, "n- nothing much. There's Blastoise, Darmanitan, Nidoking, a humanoid slime non-Pokémon we call Acid Armor-"

"Soot." Delia interrupted.

Soot instantly reappeared halfway up the stairs and blurted out, "Baby kangaskhan!"

Ash turned to look at her in shock, "Soot!"

"It's the infant and adult at the same time, with his mind copied over to the other!" Soot continued hurriedly, "His memories recombine afterwards! And he's still male, but people can't know that, so you have to call him a girl while in public!"

Ash just stared at Soot in dumbfound shock, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, and Clefairy all sweat dropped and deadpanned, and Electra was still staring in confusion.

They all heard a quiet squeal and looked over to find Ash's mom covering her mouth with her hands while her eyes shined with glee.

Mimey stared blankly; still holding the broom, "I- What?"

.

**Very Short Skip**

"Ohhhhh!" Delia squealed happily as she nuzzled the Normal-type, "My baby's an actual baby again!"

The infant kangaskhan deadpanned and slapped the blue symbol on his stomach.

Lockdown Mode in-effect. Approximate time until release: 23 hours and fifty-eight minutes.

Delia put her son back in her lap and petted him, "Sweetie, you know checking all the time won't make it go any faster."

The kangaskhan sighed, "kanga…" 'Though I guess I should be grateful I got the minimum.'

Brock and Misty sat on the couch with Togepi still asleep in his meema's bag. Clefairy and Electra were exploring the upstairs with Pikachu showing them around … as best he could since he'd only been there for less than a day before this.

Delia was in the sofa chair -holding Ash- while Ash sat on the ground next to her. His backpack and pokéball belt were laying on the coffee table. Mimey 'sat' next to Delia despite not taking a chair and was looking back and forth between the Ashes in shock. And Soot-

"I did not agree to this." The Bite Pokémon grumbled.

Ash glanced down at her -deadpanned- as he held her, "Yeah, but you should've seen this coming."

Ash glared at the mightyena in the adult's arms, "Now you know how I feel."

Delia smiled happily and patted the larger Ash's side, "Well, I like it. We're like a pair of mommies with their babies." She gasped, "We should do a family photo like this!"

Ash, Soot, and Ash looked at her; deadpanned, "Please no."

Delia pouted.

Mimey sweat dropped and muttered, "This'll take some getting used to."

Misty snickered and looked at Delia, "So is this basically how it was during the baby eevee thing?"

Delia looked at her in surprise before smiling happily, "Sort of." She brought up the deadpanning infant and nuzzled him, "But this is so much better. Kangaskhan may not be fluffy, but I don't have to worry about this one evolving. Plus, I have sometimes wondered what it'd be like to have a daughter."

"I'm still male!" Ash blurted out.

Delia pulled him back into the hug, "I think I'm really gonna like this one."

Ash grumbled and tried to wiggle out of her grip.

Delia smiled, "Aw, the baby's fussy." She put a hand on the side of his head and pushed him into her chest.

"Mom, cut it out! This is-" Ash shouted in protest while trying to push himself away. He stopped and perked up. "is-" He muttered as he visibly relaxed, "u- um…"

Brock and Misty stared in surprise and Ash blushed in embarrassment. Soot and Mimey stared curiously. The shoulder riders were still upstairs.

Delia stared in surprise before smiling softly and petting his back. Ash closed his eyes and smiled softly; tail wagging slightly.

"Huh…" Misty muttered.

Brock stared in surprise before perking up and looking at Soot, "Oh, it's that thing about a mother's heartbeat, right? How babies are usually soothed by the sound of it?"

Mimey looked at the breeder with a raised brow, "Huh?"

Soot looked at the Gym Leaders, "I think, but that doesn't fully explain this. Being soothed by the mother's heartbeat is just a human thing." She looked at the smaller Normal-type, "For a baby kangaskhan, being in their mother's pouch is the closest equivalent, but we've never seen him act like this." She stared intently, "Maybe the young form enforces regressive tendencies under the right stimulus. I.e. Grandma."

Ash deadpanned, "Are you actually enjoying this?"

Ash tensed up and glanced at himself harshly, "N- no." He leaned closer to his mother, "It just … sounds nice…"

Delia let out a quiet squeal in response. Ash let out a low groan in embarrassment before glancing away.

Delia noticed and smiled kindly, "Alright, alright, you don't have to stay here and watch. You can go to the ranch."

Everyone -except Mimey- perked up and looked at her in surprise, "What?" Mimey flinched and looked at everyone in surprise.

Ash perked up, stood up, and smiled, "Well if you're sure about it." He jumped down from her lap.

"Oh, no you don't mister." Delia said as she caught him and put him back in her lap, "You are staying right here." She looked over at Ash, "But there's no reason I have to keep you both here. I can tell you've been anxious to go to the ranch." She glanced at the belt on the table, "And I can guess why."

Ash looked down at his mother in surprise before smiling softly.

"Besides," Delia said before hugging the smaller Normal-type; making him tense up, "you really can be in two places at once, now! I get you all to myself, and you get time with your friends! It's a win-win!"

Ash looked up at her in alarm, "H- hold it! It's not that simple! Our memories recombine when we timeout and doing things too differently gives me a headache. Who knows how bad it could be if we're not even in the same building?!" He looked at himself and his daughter hopefully, "Come on! You agree, right?!"

Ash and Soot stared at him and shared a glance.

Soot looked at Delia, "Okay, Grandma. Dad hasn't been in this form for this long before, so we might wanna try some stuff. For an experiment, see if you can get the baby down for a nap. Meet us at the lab later and we can experiment with food."

Ash's eyes widened in shock, "What?!"

Brock sweat dropped, 'Why do I have a feeling that's not even close to what he said?' Misty deadpanned.

Delia smiled brightly and saluted, "With pleasure."

Ash shivered before raising a claw, "Good luck, little me."

He glared at himself who was putting Soot down.

Ash stood back up before looking up and calling out, "Pikachu! Clefairy! We're heading to the corral! Do you wanna come along or meet us there with mom?!"

"Second one!" Clefairy and Electra shouted back.

"We're exploring your room!" Pikachu followed.

"Yeah!" Electra called out excitedly, "You have a lot of cool stuff in here!"

"Alright but stay out of my bed!" Soot called back before looking at the Gym Leaders, "They'll meet up with us with Grandma. What about you two?"

Brock perked up before smiling sheepishly and rubbing the back of his head, "I think I'll stay for now. I'm still kind of tired from the walk here."

Misty glanced at him before smiling as well, "Yeah, we'll meet you guys there." She smirked slyly, "Afterall, someone's gotta take the pictures."

Ash frowned down at the Water trainer and sweat dropped, "Please don't encourage her."

Soot looked at Misty calmly, "He says he'll Lock into vaporeon with you if you help with poses."

"No, I did not!" Ash whined from Delia's arms.

"He's serious." Soot said.

Misty chuckled and rolled her eyes, "Alright, I get it. But you can't blame me if your mom asks me to hold the camera."

"…" Ash deadpanned, "fair enough." He stood back up, grabbed his belt, and wrapped it around his wrist. He walked towards the door and waved at his friends, "See ya guys there." He got to the door and perked up before looking at either side of the frame, "Right."

He walked over to the patio door, slid it open, and waved back, "See ya."

Soot followed him and slid the door closed behind them.

Ash just stared blankly and mumbled, "They actually left me…"

Delia smiled, "I knew installing that was a good idea." She noticed something and stared in confusion, "Um, Misty?"

Misty perked up and followed her gaze to find her bag shifting on its own. She quickly grabbed it, put it in her lap, and pulled the top open.

Togepi popped out, yawned, and smiled up at Misty, "Morning, meema." He perked up upon not recognizing where they were, looked around curiously, and looked at Misty again, "What'd I miss?"

Delia stared in surprise, looked down at Ash, and looked at Misty.

Misty noticed and deadpanned, "Calm down, he's adopted."

.

*Ash and Soot

The pair walked down the dirt road again; en route to the Professor's place. This time, a lot of the residents and their Pokémon were staring. Ash glanced around and sweat dropped while frowning uncomfortably.

Soot smirked, "Well, what did you expect? Kangaskhan are freaking rare."

"Yeah, I get that." Ash said monotonously before pointing at something, "But that's just unnerving."

Soot raised a brow before looking at where he was pointing. She spotted a nidorino in someone's front yard looking over Ash with a smirk … and then winking. The Dark-type covered her mouth with a paw as she held back a laugh.

Ash sweat dropped, "Soot…"

"Sorry." Soot said before shaking her head rapidly, glaring at the Poison Pin Pokémon, and shouting, "Hey! She's not interested!"

Nidorino flinched and turned around.

Ash sighed in annoyance, "Really starting to regret this form."

Soot snickered, "Well, at least Grandma likes it." Her smile saddened and she glanced away.

Ash noticed and followed her gaze before perking up. He smiled sadly and knelt down, "Alright, go. I know you wanna visit."

Soot looked at him before frowning, "You don't mind? What about-"

Ash put a claw on her head to cut her off, "Meeting our new teammate is not more important than you visiting your mother." He smiled and petted her, "We'll take care of that and the tauros when you get back. But don't rush it. Take as long as you want."

Soot smiled softly, pushed into his claw, and whispered, "thanks, dad." She backed up and smiled cheekily, "Alright. See ya later, Aunty Kanga."

The kangaskhan tensed up as his eye twitched, "Excuse me?"

Soot grinned before turning and running off. Ash sighed before smiling softly. He stood back up and continued down the road.

The Dark-type continued her run towards her destination. After a short while, she came up to the gate and slowed to a halt. She looked over the entrance with a sad smile.

"Wha- Soot?!" Someone called out; catching her attention. She looked over to see a man in a guard's outfit hurrying over to her.

Soot smiled, "Hey, Dave."

Dave kneeled down and smiled, "Hey. I haven't seen you in months."

Soot shrugged, "Yeah, dad and I just got back." She noticed someone coming up behind Dave and looked around him to find another man in the same uniform. She raised a brow, "Who's the new guy?"

The new guy deadpanned and raised a hand, "Uh … Buster. You passed me on my first day… twice…"

Mizuro: *Eyes widen. Bursts out into laughter*

Dave glanced at Soot, "Your last visit."

Soot flinched and smiled sheepishly; still looking at the new guy, "O- oh…" She chuckled nervously, "sorry…"

Buster sighed, "It's fine. The boss vouched for you."

Soot smiled awkwardly before looking at the gate, "So, uh…"

Dave perked up and got back to his feet, "Right, of course." He smiled and gestured to his post, "Go on."

Soot smiled up at him, "Thank you." She started walking.

Buster watched as she distanced herself from them.

Dave noticed and looked at him, "Everything okay?"

Buster snapped out of it and looked at him. He frowned, "Sorry. It's just" He looked at the Dark-type again, "she's the Phantom Child, isn't she? Who's she visiting?"

Dave frowned and looked at Soot again, "A mightyena that belonged to a trainer."

The rookie frowned and looked at him, "Were they close?"

"I don't know all the details." The boss said, "I just heard she really looked up to it. I think it was like a role model."

Buster frowned and looked at Soot sympathetically, "Oh…"

Soot just continued walking. The guards didn't see the sad frown on her muzzle. She shook it off as she continued forward.

She made it up to the headstone and looked around attentively. She put on a small smile upon not seeing anyone.

Soot looked at the stone and sat down, "Hey mom. Dad and I just got back, so I thought you might wanna hear how we've been doing." She grinned, "Just letting you know, there's a lot."

.

*Oak's Corral

Ash undid the latch to the gate and pushed it open as he walked through. He let the entrance swing closed and looked around.

All around the field, he could see countless Pokémon either sparring, relaxing, or just playing with each other.

Some of them had already noticed him and were staring curiously. Ash smiled at them and waved.

"I'm afraid I don't recognize you." A male voice said accusingly. The Normal-type perked up and looked over to find a braviary standing on a fencepost and glaring at him harshly, "What might you be doing here?"

Ash smiled, "Oh, Avian. It's good to see you again."

Avian flinched and his eyes widened upon recognizing the voice, "Wha-" He hopped down and looked over the Parent Pokémon in shock before noticing the blue disk on their stomach, "Ash?" He smiled, "Woah. I didn't even recognize you."

Ash grinned, "I'd be more surprised if you did. You've never seen this form before. Also, Soot isn't here."

The braviary chuckled, "Fair enough." He smiled, "How have things been? I mean, I know you started your journey and heard some stuff from your muk, krabby, and charizard, but I still haven't seen you in forever."

"Well, good to know you already met them." Ash said as he knelt down, "I don't know how much they told you, but we finished the main eight route recently. I only just got back home."

Avian's eyes widened, "Woah really? I think it took Jay over two years to be able to do that in one League season."

Ash chuckled sheepishly and scratched his cheek, "Well, we put in a lot of work." He smiled normally, "Are Leafeon and Monger here, too?"

Avian shook his head, "No, sorry. I think Leafeon said something about a groomer, and Monger's rotated back into Aster's party for a Fighting-type Gym."

Ash frowned, "Aw." He looked at the belt on his wrist, "I was hoping to introduce all three of you."

Avian looked at the belt and perked up, "Is that the rest of your team?"

Ash smiled at him, "Almost. Pikachu and Clefairy are back at my house and will come by here with my mom and friends a little later." His smile saddened, "And Soot's visiting Yena."

Avian perked up and glanced away somberly, "O- oh. Right…" He shook it off and smiled kindly, "Well, go ahead and bring them out. I wanna meet them."

Ash snapped out of it and nodded, "Right. But can you do me a favor and go get Muk and Charizard? There's something I wanna tell everyone."

"I don't think that'll be necessary."

Ash flinched and Avian perked up as they both looked over to find Muk laying a few feet away from them. He smiled and raised a hand, "Hey Ash. Been a while, hasn't it?"

Charizard touched down next to him with his arms crossed and grinned, "Yeah, I saw you coming here and went to get him."

Ash smiled brightly, "Guys!" He ran up and pulled the pair into a group hug.

Charizard chuckled and hugged him back, "Hasn't it only been a few days?"

Muk hugged him as well, "Well for you, maybe."

"Aw, come on. I missed you." Ash said before backing up, "How have things been here?"

"Pretty good." Charizard said with a shrug. He smiled, "How'd the Gym Battle go? Was it an easy win?"

"Hardly." The Normal-type said happily, "It was intense. The whole thing came down to just Soot and Pikachu against his rhyperior. We managed to pull off the Multifaker fake-out and Pikachu finished it with just one Iron Tail."

He smiled excitedly, "And get this. The battle actually ended up being a ten-on-ten. Switching yourself out paid off like how you wanted."

Avian perked up and stared in shock, "Say what now?!"

Muk's eyes widened, "Seriously?!"

Charizard blinked and glanced around at the other guys in confusion before smiling sheepishly, "Uh, cool…" He glanced down at Ash's pouch and looked at him with a raised brow, "Hey, where's the other you?"

Avian perked up in surprise, "Huh?"

Ash looked back at him, "You'll see later." He looked at Charizard again, "He's with my mom too. I'm locked for the next-" He tapped his stomach.

Lockdown Mode in-effect. Approximate time until release: twenty-three hours and thirty-six minutes.

Ash sweat dropped, 'Yeah, didn't think it'd been that long…' He shook it off and smiled at his Pokémon, "Anyway, I'm happy you're already here. There's something I wanted to tell everyone."

Charizard pointed back, "In that case, should I go and get all the tauros too?"

Ash raised a claw, "Not yet. Soot and I will talk to the herd later."

Avian perked up in realization and looked at Ash in shock, 'That entire new herd is his?!'

Muk perked up in surprise, "Huh? Why just the two of you?"

"Before I answer that, let me ask this." The Parent Pokémon responded, "How have things gone with the tauros?"

The Fire/Flying-type smiled, "Pretty well, I'd say. I asked who was interested and taught three of them Flamethrower."

Muk looked at Ash, "Which gave me the idea to do the same. I ended up teaching a pair of them Thunderbolt." He pointed a thumb at Charizard, "Same tauros, in one case."

Ash looked at them, "Well, first, thank you for that. It'll help out a lot, in the long run. But more specifically, do they believe any of the stuff about the watch?"

Muk and Charizard perked up in surprise and shared a look.

Ash smiled sadly, "See? Kingler tried to tell then but most of them think it's a joke. I can't prove anything until I timeout, so I thought talking to all of them while having their strongest and smartest teammate present might make things easier." He tensed up and frowned nervously, "Uh, no offense."

Muk waved a hand, "Oh, none taken."

Charizard chuckled, "Yeah, it'd be pretty dumb of us to challenge Soot for the top spot." He smirked cockily, "At least, as we are now."

'So, he really is still male.' Avian thought while looking at Ash curiously. He perked up, "Wait, 'Kingler'?" He looked at the Flame Pokémon, "You were serious about Krabby evolving?"

Charizard raised a brow, "Why would I joke about that?"

"…" Avian sweat dropped, "Y'know, that's actually a very good question."

Ash chuckled. He unwrapped the belt from his wrist and slung it into the air; flinging all ten pokéballs, "Everyone, come on out!"

Seven of the pokéballs burst open and Pidgeot, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Kingler, Primeape, Aerodactyl, and Arbok appeared. Avian looked around at everyone curiously while the last three pokéballs hit the ground.

Charizard and Muk perked up in surprise. They shook it off and moved over to join their teammates.

Charizard smiled and raised a claw, "Hey guys."

Muk smiled, "Been a while, hasn't it?"

Aerodactyl smiled back, "Happy to see you again."

Bulbasaur looked around curiously before perking up in surprise upon noticing the Bird Pokémon, "Oh."

Everyone else looked and perked up in surprise. Except Aerodactyl.

"Sweet!" Squirtle said excitedly, "You evolved!"

Pidgeot smiled and held out a wing, "Yeah. Not bad, right?" Her smile brightened, "And it gets better." She leapt back and moved into a fighting stance, "Someone attack me!"

Arbok's eyes widened, "Huh?"

Primeape glared and put his fist to his palm, "Don't gotta tell me twice!" He broke into a sprint as a shroud of flames covered his fists. He pivoted and swung Fire Fist at her.

A light blue sheen went over Pidgeot's eyes before her wings caught fire and she crossed them to block the matching attack. Primeape's eyes widened and everyone else stared in shock. Except Ash, who smiled.

Primeape jumped back and stared blankly; fist still on fire, "What the Yvel?!"

Muk perked up in realization and pointed, "Oh, Mirror Move."

Pidgeot shook off the flames and smiled, "Yup. Learned it against Seismitoad." She glanced away and sweat dropped while smirking, "Though, we still ended up tying due to poison."

Squirtle perked up and pointed, "Oh, that's why you didn't battle Claydol." He looked at Primeape, "And I know you lost to Golurk."

Primeape glared, cut off the flames, and crossed his arms, "Hey! I still weakened them and beat Marowak!"

The Tiny Turtle ignored him and looked at Aerodactyl, "So, what about you?"

Aerodactyl frowned, "Lose to Nidoking. Stuck from Giga Impact again."

The Cobra Pokémon frowned and rubbed his throat, "Yeah. That guy was tough." He smiled, "But at least I was able to take down Nidoqueen."

Bulbasaur perked up in realization, 'Wait a minute.'

Aerodactyl looked at him sadly, "What? I not beat anyone."

"Yeah, same." Kingler said somberly, "I tied against Claydol." He shrugged, "Though, I did push them far enough that they had to resort to Explosion."

"Okay, hold on." Bulbasaur spoke up; catching everyone else's attention. He brought out and raised a vine, "Everyone who participated in the Viridian Gym Battle, please raise."

Squirtle and Primeape each raised a hand, Pidgeot and Aerodactyl raised a wing, Kingler raised a claw, and Arbok raised the tip of his tail and protruded a Poison Jab for emphasis. They all looked around and most perked up in realization.

Aerodactyl smiled, "Oh, we all battle. That good."

"But" Arbok stuttered, "H- how did all seven of us participate?"

Squirtle perked up, "Wait, Soot battled too. Ash said he still had her and two others left when I lost."

Pidgeot stared in surprise, "And I could swear I saw Clefairy covered in scorch marks."

Primeape perked up, "So did I, now that you mentioned it."

Charizard blinked in surprise, "Wait, Ash didn't tell you yet?"

Bulbasaur looked at him in surprise, "Tell us what?"

"That the last Gym Battle was a ten-on-ten." Muk said.

Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Arbok, Primeape and Pidgeot flinched and looked at him in shock.

Aerodactyl blinked and leaned closer to Kingler to whisper, "That weird?"

Kingler shrugged, "I guess so?"

Primeape looked at Ash, "Okay, what the Yvel hap-" He stopped and stared in shock. "Uhhh…" He muttered aimlessly.

Everyone finally looked towards their trainer to find him in kangaskhan form … and braviary form? Kingler smiled, Pidgeot's eyes widened in pure shock, and everyone else out of the loop stared in surprise and/or confusion.

Muk chuckled, "Yeah, it surprised me too. Though, at that time, the banette and leafeon were also here."

Arbok snapped out of it and raised a brow, "Wait, I thought you had a vaporeon form."

Ash looked at him, "Yeah, but I scanned an eevee. He and I just chose different evolutions." He smiled at everyone and gestured to the Valiant Pokémon, "Everyone, this is Avian. As a lot of you have probably already figured out, he's the braviary I scanned."

Avian smiled and raised a wing, "Greetings."

Aerodactyl smiled and raised a wing, "Hello."

Kingler raised a claw, "Nice to see you again."

Pidgeot stared in shock, 'He's … identical.' She sweat dropped, 'Okay, maybe that's expected but still.'

Squirtle raised a brow and pointed, "Wait, your name is 'Avian'? Isn't that a little on the nose?"

Avian chuckled, "Yeah, but it's kinda become my trainer's thing. Some of my teammates include a claydol named Clay, a female turtonator named Burst, and a male bisharp named Edge." He glanced away thoughtfully, "And I heard from Spark -magnezone- that he caught a budew but can't decide between Knospe or Rose. 'Cause, y'know, Roserade."

Primeape sweat dropped, "I see…"

Arbok leaned down closer to Bulbasaur and whispered, "What's a knospe?"

"Plant bud." The Seed Pokémon answered.

The Cobra moved back to normal height and nodded, "Ah." After a second, he perked up and looked down at Bulbasaur.

Bulbasaur noticed and deadpanned, "Not the same thing."

"Everyone." Ash announced; catching their attention, "As you all know, we've just finished our last Gym Battle for the Indigo League. It was a long and hard-fought battle and you all put in so much work to get us here." He smiled softly, "Just saying I'm proud … I don't think that'd be enough."

Everyone else smiled as well.

"The League, itself, is about two months away." Ash continued, "A lot of it's going to be tougher than any of the battles we've been through up until now, so we need to be ready."

Primeape clenched a fist and glared excitedly. "But before any of that" Primeape perked up as the Normal-type smiled kindly. "I think you've all earned some time off."

Almost everyone perked up in surprise. Primeape tensed up.

"Given the amount of time we have at our disposal, I've decided on a time frame that I'm hoping you'll like." Ash held up all three claws on his right and held two from his left in front of them, "5 days. For the next five days, you're all free to do whatever you want. Explore the ranch or the town, mingle with the other Pokémon here, or just do nothing and relax."

Squirtle, Kingler, Arbok, and Aerodactyl smiled excitedly. Charizard, Bulbasaur, and Muk smiled happily. Pidgeot was smiling but shot a nervous glance at Avian every so often. And Primeape had been slumping more and more as Ash kept talking.

Ash raised a claw, "But, if you're anxious to train, the bare minimum time off is three days." He grinned, "I need some time to relax, too."

Most of the Pokémon chuckled. Primeape was now looking at the ground.

Ash smiled and clapped his claws together, "Alright. That's all guys. Go have fun."

Arbok looked around, "So, should we talk about the Gym Battle now?"

"Hold that thought." Bulbasaur said before looking at Ash again, "Soot, Pikachu, and Clefairy participated too, right?"

Ash nodded, "Yeah and they'll be here later. If you all wanna relax now, we can meet back up here and talk about the match over dinner."

Squirtle smiled and gave a thumbs up, "Works for me." He then looked up at Kingler, "Where's the lake?"

Kingler pointed a claw out into the field, "Just that way. Come on." He scuttled off and Squirtle followed.

Aerodactyl looked at Charizard, "Know good places?"

Charizard smiled, "Yeah. There's an entire section of this place that's like a rocky desert. There are sunbathing spots all over the place."

Aerodactyl blinked, "Rock dessert?" He smiled excitedly and started drooling a bit, "Yeah. Like sound of that."

Ash noticed his Rock/Flying-type's reaction and sweat dropped, "Um, Aerodactyl… he means 'desert' as in a sandy landscape. The rocks there aren't meant for eating."

Aerodactyl looked at him in surprise before frowning in disappointment, "Oh…" Charizard snorted.

Arbok looked at Ash blankly before staring at the Fossil Pokémon, "You eat rocks?"

Bulbasaur looked up at him, "Yeah. His kind are partly geovorous. Otherwise, he probably couldn't have survived underground for all that time without…" He trailed off before clearing his throat, "yeah…"

Aerodactyl looked at him in confusion, "Without what?"

"Exactly." Bulbasaur said before raising a brow; still looking at Arbok, "I mean, haven't you ever noticed how Brock usually sprinkles dirt or sand on his food?"

Arbok blinked in surprise, "I guess I haven't." He glanced away and sweat dropped, 'Though, that does explain why no one lets him share.' He shook it off and smiled at Charizard, "Anyway, could I join you at that desert place? It sounds nice."

Bulbasaur looked at the Fire/Flying-type, "Mind if I come too?"

Charizard smiled at them, "I don't see why not. Though it's kinda far, so it'd be a lot faster to fly there."

Bulbasaur shrugged, "I'm fine with that." He walked up to Charizard.

Charizard knelt down, scooped Bulbasaur into his arms, and lifted off. The Rock/Flying and Poison-type watched as they flew off before Arbok glanced at his teammate.

Arbok glanced down at Aerodactyl's feet, sweat dropped, and looked in the direction Charizard was flying, "I think I'll just follow from the grou-" He was cut off by Aerodactyl grabbing his entire torso with a hind claw.

"Let's go!" Aerodactyl said excitedly. He lifted off and hurriedly followed Charizard.

"CHA!" Arbok cried out as he was dragged off into the air.

Avian chuckled as it happened. He looked at the Bird Pokémon.

Pidgeot flinched, "Bye!" She turned and flew off. The Valiant Pokémon perked up in confusion.

Primeape turned and started trudging away.

"Primeape," Ash said. The Pig Monkey Pokémon stopped and glanced back at him, "there are Pokémon here -native and exotic- under the ownership of hundreds of trainers from varying levels of skill and experience. Some are strong enough that Soot and I would get annihilated in a two on one."

Avian looked at Ash in confusion before looking at Primeape again. His eyes widened when he saw the Fighting-type staring in bright-eyed awe.

"S- seriously?" Primeape stuttered. He tensed up and glared apprehensively, "Wait… what about that whole three-day minimum thing?"

Ash shrugged and glanced away slyly, "Well, who's to say sparring isn't a form of mingling?"

Primeape snorted, "You're a glitch, y'know that?"

Ash rolled his eyes; still smirking, "Yeah yeah." He looked at Primeape sternly and pointed, "But you know the rules. They have to agree to a sparring match. No provoking them or attacking out of the blue."

Primeape waved a hand, "Yeah, whatever." He turned and looked around intently. He spotted a machamp, glared excitedly, and broke into a sprint.

Avian stared in surprise, "So, Primeape's a battle maniac?"

"Oh yeah. He used me as a punching bag during breaks." Muk said before looking at Ash, "Mind if I stay with you?"

"Sure." Ash said before walking up to collect everyone's pokéballs.

.

**Time Skip**

Ash was laying on his stomach under a shaded tree with Avian lounging in the branches above. Muk was lying next to him and Primeape was a few feet away, trying to find an opponent. Machamp wasn't as strong as he hoped.

The trio had just been enjoying the quiet-

"What the Yvel are you doing?!" Someone shouted in a harsh whisper.

mostly…

Ash frowned and opened one eye to find an adult kangaskhan looking at him in shock. Her baby was asleep in her pouch. Avian and Muk glanced over but went back to relaxing. Primeape didn't hear her.

Ash closed his eye again and whispered back, "Resting. We just got back into town today."

The natural adult perked up in confusion upon hearing his voice. She shook it off and glared again, "I meant why are you lying on your front?! Do you not realize how dangerous that is for your hatchling if it becomes a habit?! And where the Yvel is your hatchling?!"

Ash sighed, "One, I'm lying on my front because it's uncomfortable to lie on my back or side in this body. And two, I'm not actually a kangaskhan."

Kangaskhan perked up in surprise. She glared again, "Well, next time try putting a little thought into the form you choose." She walked away and grumbled, "Crazy ditto. Almost gave me a heart attack."

"So that makes three chansey, a nidoqueen, and two kangaskhan." Muk said casually before looking at Ash, "You sure you don't wanna rest inside the lab?"

Ash sighed, "Yes, I'm sure. The professor hasn't seen this form before, so I'm waiting until-" He stopped and perked up when he heard a metal squeak and looked over towards the gate. Avian and Muk looked as well.

Ash and Avian perked up in surprise as Soot walked through the gate; ears flat on her head.

The Normal-type hurried to his feet and over to her, "Soot? You're back already?"

Soot glanced down somberly, "Um, yeah… Some people showed up, so I had to cut the visit short…"

Ash frowned, kneeled down, and pulled her into a hug. Soot closed her eyes and nuzzled up to him. They didn't notice Avian jump down from the tree, whisper something to Muk, and then fly off.

The pair separated a moment later. Soot looked towards the tree and perked up in surprise, "Huh? I thought I saw Avian."

Ash perked up and looked over as well.

Muk slithered up to them, "He's getting the tauros and thought you two should have a moment to yourselves. And I agree." He started moving towards the lab and held up a hand, "I'll be inside if you need me!"

The meema and hatchling watched before sharing a look and chuckling. Ash walked back over to the tree, sat back against it, and patted the ground next to him. Soot smiled softly, walked up to him, and laid down in his lap.

Ash stared in mild surprise before smiling softly and petting her on the back, "You haven't done this in a while."

Soot closed her eyes as her tail wagged slowly; still smiling, "Well, don't get used to it." She took a deep breath and muttered, "Some quiet time just sounds nice, right now…"

Ash continued petting her, "Got it."

About fifteen minutes passed before the pair felt the ground rumbling. They both flinched and looked over to find over two dozen tauros stampeding towards them with Avian leading the way. The Pokémon in their path ran like Yvel.

Soot sweat dropped, "Well, it was nice while it lasted." She got off Ash.

Ash stood back up and the pair walked towards the herd. Avian noticed and descended. The herd noticed and slowed their stampede.

Avian touched down in front of the Ketchums and frowned, "I wasn't too fast, right?"

Soot chuckled, "Don't worry, you're good."

Ash smiled, "Thanks for taking care of that for us."

Avian smiled kindly, "It was no trouble." He spread his wings, "Good luck." He lifted off again and flew back off into the ranch.

The herd slowed to a halt in front of the Parent and Bite Pokémon. Most stared curiously.

One walked up and raised a brow, "Um, hello. The braviary said our trainer wanted to … 'talk' to us?"

Ash smiled at him, "That's right." He looked around at the other Normal-types and raised a claw, "I'm your trainer, Ash. It's nice to formally meet you all."

A little over half the tauros stared in surprise and/or awe. Partially because some recognized his voice. The rest deadpanned or started sharing unamused glances.

One looked at another and whispered excitedly, "See? He really is the Phantom Pokémon."

The other deadpanned and whispered back, "You're kidding, right? They're obviously just messing with us."

A third one looked at them, "Do you really think so? She- He-" He frowned unsurely, "Um." He shook it off, "This kangaskhan does sound a lot like our trainer. And Krabby did tell us about that watch thing."

A fourth joined the conversation and spoke sarcastically, "Oh yeah, of course. Our trainer has a suuuper-watch that-"

Soot whistled loudly; effectively shutting them up. She sighed, "Alright, you don't believe us. But we can prove it" She sweat dropped, "as soon as tomorrow…" She shook it off and smiled again, "But that's not what's important, right now."

Ash nodded, "The reason I wanted to talk to you all is just to sort some stuff out."

Another tauros blinked in surprise, "Like what?"

"Preference." Ash answered, "Specifically, whether or not you prefer to battle and possibly your opinion on trading. I'd prefer to get to know you all personally, but the fact that some of you think this is an overly elaborate joke might make that difficult or insult some of you."

Most of the herd stared in surprise.

Yet another tauros frowned uncomfortably, "You're thinking of trading us?"

Ash flinched, "What?! No! That is not what I-" He sweat dropped, "Er, well…" He sighed and looked at them, "Okay, look. I'm sure you remember a while back when Kingler -probably- was asking if anyone was okay with being involved in a trade." Some nodded as he continued, "What happened is that we ran into someone who was offering us a Pokémon we borrowed and did well with in a battle and who they didn't fully know how to train. As a result, Arbok joined us, and your herd went from thirty to twenty-nine."

One tauros glanced at another, "That's what happened?"

"Apparently." The other responded.

"What I'm asking," Ash continued; catching their attention, "is if any of you are in the same boa- if any of you would also be okay with that. Y'know, just in case."

Tauros raised a brow, "You actually think something like that might happen again?"

Soot shrugged, "Maybe." She gestured to Ash, "Or you meet a trainer you prefer over him." She smirked, "Crazier stuff has happened to us."

Ash chuckled softly, "Aside from that, I want to know if you prefer to battle or if you just want a quiet life here."

Most of the herd frowned anxiously and others were smiling. Some were looking down thoughtfully.

Ash smiled softly, "Hey, don't worry too much. We're just doing this to sort things out for the time being. If any of you ever change your minds later about what you want to do, all you have to do is tell me. I'll be fine with it."

The Normal-types all looked at him in surprise.

One of the tauros frowned and stared apprehensively, "Wait. If you're really gonna be so lenient about this, why ask in the first place?"

Ash grinned, "Just to narrow things down a little." He smiled normally, "But, seriously, the League is only a few months away and I need everyone who's going to battle to be ready. " His smile saddened, "Also it's a bit of a way of apologizing."

Another tauros perked up and blinked in surprise, "Huh?"

Ash nodded, "The Safari Zone. I'm frankly still not sure how I caught most of you. I was really hoping some of you might have an answer."

The Wild Bull Pokémon frowned and shared some unsure looks.

Soot smiled sadly, "Our main theory is still a psychic taking a prank too far and even doing a memory wipe. Meaning a lot of you probably had even less of a choice than normal about joining us."

Ash nodded, "Which brings up one more option." He smiled kindly, "If any of you ever want to go back to the Safari Zone, I'll call Kaiser as soon as possible."

The entire herd of twenty-nine flinched and stared in shock.

"Y-" A tauros stuttered, "You're serious?"

"Completely." Ash responded without hesitation, "Given the way most of you joined me, I wouldn't be surprised if you had friends or loved ones back at the Safari Zone. Ones you either wanted to stay there with or who you preferred to be caught alongside."

One of the tauros perked up in surprise. Most of the rest stared in surprise and others started looking at the others of their kind curiously.

"That … actually isn't something to be worried about." One tauros said.

Another nodded, "Most of us were already a herd at our old home."

Ash and Soot's eyes widened, "Huh?"

Another nodded, "Yeah. Honestly, we thought we'd all get separated from each other because of trainers and just … thought we had to accept that."

"We never expected we'd all end up with the same trainer." Tauros followed.

Soot stared in shock before frowning, "Wait, what about the guy who got traded?"

"Oh, he didn't have a herd back at the Safari Zone." Another tauros jumped in, "He and I were loners."

"Same." "What he said." "I'm part of this herd but I don't think I'd mind being traded." "Herds just weren't my thing." Four more said; the last while shrugging.

Ash blinked in shock, "So … none of you were in a relationship with someone there? You're not just saying this, so we don't feel guilty, right?"

"Well," One of the tauros said, "I'm actually with a rhyhorn. But it turned out she was caught not long after me and we met back up here. She's with her trainer right now." He raised a brow, "Though, weird thing, she doesn't know how she got caught, either."

The father-daughter duo stared in shock.

After a moment, Soot smiled softly, "Huh. I guess that psychic actually put some thought into their prank."

Ash smiled and called out, "In that case, I'm happy to have you all aboard. Soot."

Soot faced a nearby, clear area, opened her mouth, and unleashed a large beam of black and purple energy. Most of the tauros flinched as the sudden Hyper Beam carved through the ground and left a long, very shallow trench.

Soot cleared her throat and started tapping a claw while humming.

Tauros blinked in surprise, "Um-"

"Give it a minute." The kangaskhan said with a raised claw.

After a minute, Soot nodded, "Okay." She fired another Hyper Beam to the left of the first trench; carving another down the middle of the space.

Ash smiled, "Alright, to make this sorting thing easier for all of us, I'm going to ask each of you to move over to one of the sections that Soot just made. Please pay attention." He pointed at the leftmost area, "Go over there if you want to battle and are okay with being involved in a trade." He pointed to the middle section, "Go there if you want to battle and don't want to be traded." He then pointed to the rightmost, "And go there, if you don't want to battle at all."

The herd all watched curiously as he pointed around. Some were focusing on only one of the areas; choice already made.

Ash frowned, "But before you decide," The tauros looked at him again, "there is one thing I need to be strict about. Just for now. I've said before that the League is soon and that I need the battlers to be ready. So, if any of you decide against battling but change your minds before the League, tell me within the next five days or I'll have to postpone any and all training for you until after the League. Those who want to battle but decide against it later or who want to swap between trade and non-trade are free to do so as normal. Does everyone understand?"

After a moment the tauros began nodding.

Ash smiled, "Alright." He gestured to the areas, "Now go ahead and pick. But no rush. Take all the time you need to think it over."

Most of the Normal-types broke off from the herd and moved over to one of the zones. A few stayed behind and were looking around thoughtfully.

One perked up and looked at Ash and Soot, "Wait, what if we don't want to battle and we're okay with being traded?"

"Then we'll ask around the non-battlers if that comes up." Soot responded, "Though, knowing other trainers, that might be a little more difficult to pull off than the situation with Arbok. I'm guessing it'd have to involve a farm."

"…" Tauros deadpanned, "That's actually fair." He walked towards the non-battle group.

Ash watched him intently, 'Keeping that in mind.'

After a few minutes, the last few tauros made their decisions.

Soot glanced around the groups while whispering, "Hm. So, 13 out of twenty-nine want to battle" She glanced at the second battle section, "and seven of them are okay with being involved in a trade."

Ash smiled while looking round at the groups intently -memorizing their faces- and whispered, "Sweet. That gives us over two full teams." He cleared his throat, clapped once, and called out, "Thank you, guys! We're good! Just like the rest of your teammates, scheduled training starts up in five days! If anyone wants to get a head start, just tell me and I'll put something together for three days from now! Your trainer needs some time to relax, too!"

He pointed at his Pig Monkey Pokémon who was still trying -and failing- to challenge a hitmonchan to a battle, "If you're really impatient, Primeape would be more than happy to volunteer for a match!"

Primeape perked up and looked over at Ash. He then turned his attention to the herd.

Ash waved a claw, "But, for now, you can all go back to doing as you please!"

Most of the herd smiled and stampeded back off into the ranch. Three of the battlers started walking towards Primeape. One tauros yawned and started walking towards the shaded tree.

One of the battlers about to spar with Primeape leaned closer to another and whispered, "So do you really think that kangaskhan is our trainer?"

"Ha." The other laughed quietly, "As if." He glanced back, "But I wouldn't be surprised if those girls were his elites. They seem tough."

The third smiled, "Yeah. Now I'm kind of excited to meet him for real."

Soot snickered before smiling up at Ash, "I'd say that went well."

Ash smiled down at her, "Yeah. Now I can start sorting out-"

"What is going on out-" Someone shouted before stopping completely.

Ash and Soot flinched and looked back to find professor Oak standing in the patio door and staring in shock.

"Right…" Soot muttered. Ash smiled nervously.

The professor hurried up to the pair and looked over Ash. He spotted the symbol on his stomach before looking the Normal-type in the eye, "Ash … when the Yvel did you get this?"

Ash chuckled nervously.

Soot smiled and sweat dropped, "Um, yeah, we have a lot to explain." She straightened up and looked at him, "But, first, there's something we need to-"

"Professor, we're here!" Ash's mom called out from inside; cutting off Soot and catching the trio's attention.

Samuel sighed and walked back to the door, "Coming!" He glanced back at the other two Ketchum's and pointed ahead forcefully.

Ash and Soot sweat dropped while smirking and followed. All three walked through the patio door.

Oak smiled at the front entrance, "Hello, Deli-" He stopped and stared in shock when he saw an infant kangaskhan in her arms with a familiar blue symbol on its stomach. He looked up at Ash in shock before looking across the room at Ash again.

Soot sweat dropped, "Also, there's that."

And then Brock and Misty walked in with Electra on his backpack and Togepi in her arms; respectively. Brock had Ash's backpack slung over his shoulder.

Pikachu and Clefairy walked in after them. They immediately ran up and jumped up to either of Ash's shoulders and nuzzled him. Ash chuckled.

Electra looked all around in bright eyed awe. Everyone else -except Delia- looked around curiously. Mimey chose to stay back at the house and finish with chores.

Oak flinched, smiled nervously, and started sweating terribly, "B- Brock! Misty! Welcome!" He gestured to the Normal-type, "U- um, I'm sure Delia's explained already why she has this kangaskhan's baby and why Ash's pikachu and clefairy get along with hi- her so well. I'm sure Ash can better explain when he gets back from-" He looked at Delia; hoping she would finish for him.

Misty stared blankly before glaring at the adult kangaskhan, "You didn't tell him either?"

Ash shrugged and chuckled nervously. Oak stared blankly before looking back and forth between Ash and the Gym Leaders.

Soot sighed, "And that…"

Delia sweat dropped, "To be fair, I only found out today too."

The professor just continued staring in shock before sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose, "Dear Arceus…" He chuckled weakly, "Next you're going to tell me you've finished the Change Lenses." His eyes widened and he looked up at Ash.

Ash tensed up, glanced away, and cleared his throat. Everyone snapped out of it and flinched when a loud 'MOO' came from outside followed by a crash.

"What the Yvel was that?!" Brock shouted.

"A few tauros are sparring with Primeape." Soot explained before sighing, "Okay, how about we all just go to the lobby, so we can actually explain stuff instead of freaking out Oak with reveals?"

Oak raised a finger and frowned uncomfortably, "Yes, I would appreciate that."

"Um," Misty said with a raised hand, "would you mind if Brock and I let our teams out into the ranch? They've been cooped up all day."

The professor smiled kindly and gestured to the patio, "Oh, not at all. Go ahead."

Brock smiled and nodded, "Thank you."

"mm…" Someone moaned.

Brock and the professor perked up and looked over to find the female Electric-type looking around anxiously.

Brock chuckled softly, "Alright, fine. I know you wanna explore. But remember-"

"No touching without parmesan!" Electra said excitedly before flinching, "Uh, per-mis-sion." She then hugged his head, "And thank you!" She jumped down and ran up to the biggest machine in the room before smiling excitedly.

Oak stared at her in surprise. Brock and Misty made their way outside.

"Okay, no more unexplained crag starting now." Soot said; deadpanned.

Oak sweat dropped, "Honestly, compared to everything else, that's rather tame." He shook it off and held out a hand, "Electra, please only look for now. This is delicate equipment, and I can show you what it does later."

Electra looked back at him happily and raised a paw, "Okay!"

Delia walked up, grabbed Ash's arm, and hugged it.

Ash sweat dropped before glancing down at himself anxiously, "So, what happened back home?"

Ash glared up at himself, "I don't know, and I don't want to know. I fell asleep after you left."

Soot smirked slyly, "Lullaby?"

Ash looked at her in annoyance, "No." After a second, he groaned shamefully, "yes…"

.

*Lobby

Brock, Misty, and Soot sat on one of the couches with Oak and Delia on the opposite one. Ash sat next to the couches, in front of the bookshelf, and acted as a ladder for Electra to look at everything on the shelves up close. Pikachu and Clefairy sat on the coffee table, Togepi was in Misty's lap, and Ash was in Delia's lap.

The group had already explained the situation with the kangaskhan form, i.e. the fact that there were two Ashes, and then moved onto the matter of when the Gym Leaders were informed of the watch.

When they explained, Oak's immediate response was a near scream of "Since Porta Vista?!"

Which prompted Misty to cover Togepi's earholes and scared Electra enough to knock her off the shelves and take the first thing she could grab with her. Thankfully, that 'first thing' was a textbook and Ash managed to catch her.

Now Electra was sitting in Brock's lap and flipping through a hardware catalogue the professor had lying around. Brock made up for not thinking of that sooner by helping her with words she hadn't seen before. Learning that the 'w' in 'wrench' was silent got an awestruck "Insane" out of her.

After things calmed down, everyone moved on to the next subject.

Professor Oak's stared in awe at the Change Lens in his hand, "my word… you really did finish them."

Delia looked at the remaining five in the case on the table in awe. She looked at Soot, "How do we turn them on?"

Soot smiled sadly, "Right now, you don't. Dad can't activate them while he's in Lockdown."

Delia sweat dropped and smiled sheepishly, "I see…"

Misty perked up upon remembering something, "Oh." She looked at Ash, "What about the default setting?"

The adults looked at her in surprise.

Ash frowned, "I already tried it. The trigger's set to my human DNA."

Ash sighed, "Yeah. I need to adjust that."

Soot translated.

Delia blinked, "Default setting?"

Brock smiled and nodded, "An emergency function to turn them on in case something happens. The other requirements are that the case needs to touch the watch and that we say the passcode."

Misty smirked, "The three words Ash and Soot hate the most in alphabetical order."

Delia perked up, "Oh. Lilium, Prodigy, Sweetie."

"Bullseye." Soot said immediately. She frowned, "Still doesn't change the fact that you can't use them for the next"

Ash hit the symbol on his stomach.

Lockdown Mode in-effect. Approximate time until release: twenty-one hours and 40 minutes.

Samuel sighed, "Well that is unfortunate." He smiled somberly and placed the Lens back in the case, "But I've waited this long already. What's one more day?" He looked at Soot, "So I suppose that just leaves one more topic." He glanced at the smaller of the Normal-types then at the adult.

Soot chuckled softly, "Yeah, I get it. New scans."

Electra frowned in confusion before looking up at her trainer and pointing at something on the page, "Brock?"

Brock looked down at her, "Pneumatic. The 'p' is silent."

Electra blinked curiously and looked back at the page, "So many silent letters…" She smiled as her tail wagged.

Misty perked up before her eyes narrowed, "Wait a sec. Which ones did you already know about?"

Oak looked at her, "I'm aware of sixteen. Delia told me about Pikachu and Clefairy, she and I both saw the dragonite form at Porta Vista, I learned about the kangaskhan form- uh, forms, today, and Ash should have gained his sixth non-Pokémon form by now. The day you went to Sunny Town, Ash passively said he had ten Pokémon forms. By my count, I only don't know of two."

Delia perked up, "Oh yeah." She looked at her son, "You said its name was Acid Armor, right?"

Soot sweat dropped and smiled nervously, "We'll get to that."

Brock stared in shock, "So… you've really been kept out of the loop."

Oak stared blankly, "…how many forms does he have, now?"

"You're off by six." Soot answered immediately.

Samuel and Delia's eyes widened.

Delia perked up, "Wait. So, it's not just the blastoise, nidoking, and darmanitan ones Ash mentioned earlier?"

Oak flinched and looked at her in shock before looking at Soot again.

"Three." Soot corrected herself, "The Pokémon you didn't know are butterfree, chansey, rapidash -evolved from ponyta-, and porygon; courtesy of our visit to Franz's place. Speaking of, that's how he perfected the species and most of the reason dad finished the Lenses."

Oak just stared blankly.

Delia smiled brightly and nuzzled her son, "Oh, sweetie, I'm so proud of you! You finally let go of your stubbornness!"

Ash glared angrily and shouted, "Kangaskhan skhan kangaskhan! Kangaskhan kanga!"

"'Most of them were accidents.'" Soot translated, "You can guess the other part."

Delia continued nuzzling him, "Well, I'm still proud."

Sam snapped out of it and blinked, "Wait a moment. That's still only twenty-one. What's the sixteenth Pokémon?"

Ash frowned and shared an anxious looked with himself. Brock noticed and looked at him sympathetically. The shoulder riders all looked at Ash in concern.

Delia looked around and frowned worriedly, "What is it?"

Soot took a deep breath and frowned, "There isn't another Pokémon form. It's another non-Pokémon we call Hammer Arm."

The adults' eyes widened.

"But" Oak muttered, "you weren't gone long enough for a second one to have appeared."

"Right." Soot stated, "Hammer Arm showed up on schedule, but Acid Armor was about half a year too early. New form glitch and everything."

Oak and Delia just stared in shock.

Delia glanced down at Ash worriedly before looking at Soot again, "So what does that mean?"

Soot was still frowning, "We don't know."

Oak tensed up and stared blankly, "What? What do you mean you don't know?!"

"I mean, we don't know." Soot answered, "Dad was trying to think of a reason, but nothing stands out. It just … happened."

Oak stood up and looked up at Ash frantically, "But there has to be a reason, doesn't there?! The surplus of new forms?! The amount of them?! Maybe even the Lenses being completed?! And if this is a change in the watch, there's no telling what else-"

"We're not doing this again." Misty interrupted in mild annoyance.

Everyone else perked up and looked at her in surprise.

"Pardon?" The professor asked.

"We're not doing this again." Misty repeated as she propped her head up with a fist, "Ash already freaked out when it actually happened. I get you two have known about the watch a lot longer, and that this is something sudden and even more out of the ordinary than usual. But freaking out about it and rambling through theories isn't gonna do anything except give Ash another panic attack."

Brock glanced at her, "Don't you think that was a bit much?"

Misty glanced back at him, "We've already had to reassure Ash three times since meeting him. I'm up for it if necessary but this one would've been redundant."

Delia couldn't help but crack a soft smile.

Oak blinked in surprise before sitting back down and smiled sheepishly, "I suppose you're right. I'm sorry for reacting like that." He looked down at Ash, "Still, be sure to come by tomorrow after you've timed out. We might be able to narrow down potential causes."

Ash smiled up at him and nodded, "Got it."

The other Ash glanced away and sweat dropped, 'I just hope the headache isn't that bad…'

Soot smiled, "Can do, Oak." She grinned, "And, hey, that'll give you and grandma a chance to try out the Lenses."

Delia smiled excitedly, "Sounds great!"

Oak smiled happily, "I look forward to it." His smiled turned sheepish and he scratched his cheek, "Now, Soot, I believe you had something you needed to discuss before I…" He trailed off and chuckled sheepishly.

Soot smiled and waved a paw, "Hey, it's fine. We kinda deserved it." She put her paw back down and looked at him calmly, "And, now it's two things since Brock and Misty are here." The Gym Leaders looked at her in surprise as she pointed a paw at them, "We need to set up pokéballs for them."

"Alright." Oak said casually, "That should be simple enough."

Brock looked at him in surprise, "Wait, really? Just like that?"

Samuel looked at him, "Well, yes. It's actually rather simple. I can register the pokéballs to myself and I have the privilege to lend Pokémon to trainers. The conditions are that the lent Pokémon are returned to me within a previously agreed upon timeframe and that they aren't used in any sanctioned events."

Brock raised a brow, "But what about us showing up in our own accounts when we do have them?"

The professor held a hand to the side, "Well, you will occupy a party slot as normal, but your account will have you specially marked as 'lent', so there's no need for a cover story for where or how you acquired the 'Pokémon'. And, given the nature of the watch, your account will show you in the form you're using the moment your account is checked."

Soot raised a brow, "Hey, come to think of it we never actually got a chance to test what shows up if you're human or a non-Pokémon."

Oak looked at her, "I got the same idea and checked when I sent Ash his pokéball a while back."

Misty raised a brow, "Huh?" After a second, she perked up, "Oh right. Sunny Town."

Oak nodded, "Correct." He looked at Soot again, "Ash's human self was shown as a graphical error. I've already asked Franz if he could help me with that when he gets here. We're thinking of making it so your account retains the information of your last used Pokémon form. We just have to make sure people can't use that to fake information with a ditto."

Soot perked up in surprise, "Franz is coming over?"

Ash smiled nervously and sweat dropped, "Well, I can guess why. He did ask me to record the professor's reaction."

Clefairy perked up and looked at Ash in confusion, "Huh?"

The professor glanced at Ash before looking at Soot again, "That's right. He just called yesterday and said he'd be visiting within the next few days."

Everyone in the group -except Electra and Togepi- perked up and looked at each other in surprise. Electra blinked and Togepi looked around in confusion.

"Yesterday?" Brock asked as he looked back at the professor, "Like sometime in the afternoon?"

Oak blinked in surprise, "Um … yes, actually."

"Is there any chance the timing is just a coincidence?" Pikachu said while looking around.

Soot, Ash, and Ash looked at him.

Pikachu sweat dropped, "Yeah, I didn't think so…"

Clefairy tilted curiously, "So, does that mean our new teammate is a porygon?"

Ash looked down thoughtfully, "I mean… being able to access any type -sort of- does cover the 'benefit me' part."

Ash looked up thoughtfully, "And I guess calling a newly created species exotic makes sense. That or he meant cyberspace."

"And Franz did say he needed to get a ditto." Soot said, "The odds of him not having enough to hand out might be slim."

Delia blinked in confusion.

Oak sweat dropped and frowned, "I'm sorry, I only got the last part of that. What's going on?"

Soot perked up and looked at him, "Oh, sorry. So, in our last Gym Battle we were offered a ten-on-ten challenge with a reward in the form of a new, exotic Pokémon for dad. Apparently, it was an elaborate 'thank you' for stuff like the Saint Anne and the tentacruel thing."

Oak's eyes widened in surprise, "Oh. Wow."

Delia smiled brightly and cuddled the kangaskhan in her arms again, "Oh, Ash! Congratulations!"

Ash sighed before putting on a small smile.

Oak shook it off, "Anyway, what was the second thing?"

Soot sweat dropped and smirked, "Whether or not the Pokémon we won came in already. We weren't told what they were."

"Oh…" Sam muttered, "I see…"

After a minute, Misty perked up upon realizing something, "Wait." She glared at the adult kangaskhan accusingly, "Ash, the professor and your own mother didn't know about Brock and I knowing, right?" Her eyes narrowed, "So does that mean they don't know about all the other people either?"

Both Ash flinched immediately, and Soot started sweating. Samuel and Delia flinched as their eyes shaded over.

"Sweetie." Ash flinched and slowly looked up to find his mother looking down at him with a cheerful smile; eyes closed, "What does Misty mean by that?"

Brock sweat dropped, "And that's a 'no'."

Oak took a deep breath ending in a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose, "How many?"

Soot cleared her throat, "Well…"

.

*The Next Day

Delia pulled the thermometer out of Ash's mouth, checked it, and jumped, "65 point twenty-two?!"

Soot deadpanned, "Grandma, that's Celsius."

"… oh." Delia said before hitting a button and sighing in relief, "Oh, thank Arceus, one-forty-nine point five."

Ash smiled tiredly, "I told you it's just a headache."

Misty sweat dropped and muttered, "Y'know, I almost forgot about the temperature thing."

Brock stared in mild confusion, 'Why did she get a dual temperature thermometer?'

After the discussion of "who the Yvel else knows?!" the rest of the previous day went by pretty casually.

In light of the most recent reveal, Delia took her son to the local park. Everyone there who knew anything about kangaskhan avoided her like Yvel and/or looked around for the 'baby kangaskhan's' 'mother' fearfully. Those who didn't know and wanted to pet him were pulled away by their parents. This made Delia realize that she might not have thought this form through. Ash was a little happier, though.

Meanwhile Oak gave Electra, Misty, Brock, and Togepi a quick tour of the lab, and Ash, his team, and Avian talked about the Gym Battle over dinner and explained why said battle happened. The Pokémon were also informed of their new teammate and were excited to meet them.

When Ash timed out the next day, he immediately felt the effects of being in kangaskhan form and nearly fell over. He was now bedridden with a headache. His mom was taking care of him and already called the professor about why Ash couldn't visit today.

Right now, everyone was in his room. Except Electra who asked if she could spend the night at the professor's lab.

Soot phased her head back out of Ash's backpack with the Change Lens case in her mouth and handed it to him.

Ash grabbed the case; gloves in his bag, "Thanks Soot." He placed it on the watch and handed it to Misty, "Alright, default's set. You know what to do."

Misty frowned and took the case, "Thanks." Togepi was frowning as well.

Brock frowned anxiously, "Are you sure you want us to go to the lab without you?"

Ash smiled tiredly and nodded, "We told the professor we'd let him try them out tomorrow." He perked up and blinked, "Uh, today." He frowned uncomfortably and put a hand on his head, "Wow, this might be affecting me more than I thought."

Delia tensed up slightly.

The watch user shook it off and smiled again, "And you guys need to go ahead and get your pokéballs set up."

"I guess…" Misty said somberly, "Still, it doesn't feel right to just leave you behind."

Pikachu smiled and raised a paw; standing on the foot of the bed, "Well, I can stay and keep you company."

Clefairy smiled and nodded; standing next to Pikachu, "Yeah, me too."

Ash smiled at them, "I appreciate it. But remember that I'm mostly gonna be sleeping to sort through everything. If you get bored and change your minds, I'm not gonna argue."

The Mouse and Fairy Pokémon immediately ran across the bedspread, got under the covers, and poked back out to nuzzle their trainer. "Deal." They both said.

Ash chuckled softly and petted them. Brock, Misty, and Soot smiled softly.

Misty smiled and raised a hand, "Then, I guess we'll see you when we get back."

Brock nodded, "I hope you feel better, Ash."

Ash smiled tiredly, "Thanks."

Soot ran up the steps to jump onto the bed and curled up at the foot of it, "Have fun, guys."

The Gym Leaders exited the room. Delia took a seat at the desk, crossed her arms, and laid her head on them.

Ash perked up and glanced back at her in confusion. The Pokémon all looked over too.

"Mom?" Ash asked. Delia perked up and looked at him, "You okay?"

She smiled sadly, "Yeah. I just … thought I should stay close in case you needed something."

Ash frowned, "Well, thank you. But you don't have to wait right here for that."

Soot sat up and nodded, "I can go and get you if necessary."

Delia waved a hand, "Thanks, but I'm fine here. It's more convenient." She looked down somberly, "Plus … it just seems … appropriate right now."

Pikachu and Clefairy looked at her sadly and Soot frowned.

Ash frowned sympathetically, "Mom, you didn't know this would happen. It was an honest mistake and I'm not mad." He moved to sit up, "You don't have to-" He flinched, grimaced, and put a hand on his head.

Delia jumped back to her feet and pushed him back down, "You don't decide that." She sighed, "Sweetie, I know you're not mad and I love you for that. But I know this is my fault. Yes, it was a mistake and, yes, I'm not going to repeat it. But I still did something that's hurting you right now."

"So, Ashton," She smiled sadly, "just let your mother make up for this in some way. Please."

Ash stared in surprise before smiling softly, "Alright, I guess you have a point. Though, to be fair, I tried to warn you about this. Though I also didn't want to be there to see you baby me. Soot and I just decided to ignore me."

Delia chuckled softly and kissed his forehead, "Sweetie, your kangaskhan form is very confusing."

Soot snickered, "It really is."

.

*The following morning

"Mime mime mime." Mimey chimed happily while vacuuming the hallway. He came up to Ash's room and reached for the doorknob before freezing.

'But approach me with the vacuum and you're going to wish your ability was Filter.'

Mimey started sweating and continued past the door, 'I'll just wait until they're not home.'

.

*later; kitchen

Misty sat at the dining table with Pikachu, Clefairy, Electra -raichu shirt-, and Togepi sitting on said table and eating from a large bowl of food. Brock had on a white apron and was working on soup for breakfast and Delia was arranging flowers in a vase.

Ash stretched as he walked through the doorway with Soot beside him.

Delia smiled at them, "Well, good morning you two. Did you sleep well?"

Ash smiled, "Yeah. I memorized my code as porygon before bed and dreamt the whole night figuring out what all potential moves Franz made possible. There's a huge variety, so I'm still trying to decide on a move set."

Soot smiled, "And my answer is simply a 'yes'." She stretched before walking over to the table, pulling back the chair next to Misty, and jumping into it.

Misty looked at Ash with a smirk, "Well you're feeling a lot better."

Ash chuckled before taking a seat at the end of the table, "Hey, I never got to ask. How'd everything go yesterday?"

Misty smiled, "Well, the professor spent his entire first Lens just looking over himself." She raised a hand to Soot, "And, yes, I know Brock and I did the same." Soot pouted as Misty put her hand back down, "And after we gave him a few pointers during the second one, we were able to set up our pokéballs." She sweat dropped and smiled uncomfortably, "Though I have to admit, going into it felt really weird."

"No kidding." Brock said while pouring a bowl with a ladle, "Being inside it wasn't any better."

Pikachu smirked, "Now you know why I hate them."

Electra translated. Delia placed the vase on the table and took the side seat to Ash's left.

Brock walked over and placed the bowl in front of Misty, "Soup's on." He chuckled and walked back over to the pot, "Literally."

Misty smiled, "Thanks." She started eating.

Soot looked back at Brock, "I'll have some of that, too."

"Got it." Brock said; already pouring another bowl. He placed this one in front of Ash, poured a second for Delia, and then walked out into the living room.

Ash looked around before taking his spoon and looking at his mother, "Hey, where's Mimey?"

Delia pointed her spoon back and looked at him, "Oh, he's picking vegetables from the garden." She looked up thoughtfully, "Though I kind of thought it would take longer for him to finish vacuuming. I'm hoping he didn't forget a room."

Brock entered the kitchen again with a water bowl in hand as Soot tensed up, "Oh, uh … he might have skipped our room. Remember when we got home?"

Everyone looked at her before perking up, "Oohhhh…"

Brock shook it off, poured another serving into the bowl, and put it in front of Soot. The Dark-type smiled at him, "Thanks." She started lapping her breakfast.

Delia smiled, "Well, that's a relief. I was almost worried I was overworking him, and this was him telling me he needs longer breaks."

Soot licked her muzzle and smiled at her, "Well, I'll pass it along if that comes up." She went back to eating.

Brock took a seat with his bowl and looked at Ash, "So, anyway, when do you think we should head to the lab?"

Ash swallowed and looked at him, "I was thinking after we're done with breakfast, if that's alright with you guys. If we're gonna be looking for causes for the schedule change, it could take a while. It'd be best to get there early."

"Works for me." Misty said.

Breakfast continued.

.

*Lab

Ash and friends walked up the flight of stairs to the professor's lab. As they got closer, Ash appeared to become more and more uncomfortable. Just before they reached the front door, he grunted and put a hand to his head, "Ow."

Everyone looked at him in alarm.

"Are you okay?" Misty asked.

Brock frowned, "This isn't an after effect from yesterday, right?"

Ash shook his head and reached back into his backpack, "No, sorry. Should've realized this sooner." He pulled out his sunglasses and slipped them on before sighing in relief, "Better."

Misty nodded, "Right, Clairvoyance."

Ash chuckled sheepishly, "Yeah. It slipped my mind after-"

He was cut off and everyone flinched when they heard a metal clang from inside.

"Get back here!" A familiar voice shouted. Everyone -except Ash and Soot- tensed up at the voice. Soot sweat dropped.

"Please! Calm down!" Oak cried out right after.

Everyone hurried up the stairs. Once they reached the top, Soot shifted her eyes, propped up against the door, and fell back down as she pushed it open.

Right as she did, Pikachu and Clefairy jumped down to her back as Ash shot into the building. Everyone else ran after him.

Ash made it to the research area, removed the shades, and glared, "What's going-" He stopped and perked up in surprise.

The inside of the lab was … less of a mess than he honestly expected. A few papers were scattered on the floor and the only thing knocked over was a metal stool. Thankfully, nothing seemed broken.

Professor Oak was panting heavily while lying on the couch and Gary was looking at Ash in surprise. In front of Gary was a trembling nincada who was looking up at the boy fearfully.

The Bug/Ground-type looked over and their eyes lit up before they shot past Gary and jumped into Ash's arms, "Cada!"

Ash flinched and caught them, "Woah!" He stared in surprise and started petting their back, "Um, there there?" He looked at Gary in confusion. Gary just blinked in surprise. Ash flinched and frowned uncomfortably before slipping the glasses back on.

Gary raised a brow, "Um-"

Soot and everyone else came up behind Ash. They all perked up in surprise when they saw the nincada in his arms. Though Misty tensed up and frowned.

Pikachu pointed, "Uh, who's he and why is he doing that?"

Soot blinked while staring in surprise, "A nincada and Yvel if I know."

Oak caught his breath and got back to his feet. He smiled tiredly, "Ash, thank Arceus you got here when you did." Gary looked at his grandfather in surprise.

Ash looked at him, "Well, happy to help, I guess. But what's going on?" He looked down at the Trainee Pokémon, "Did he get scared or something?"

The professor gestured to the Pokémon in Ash's arms; still smiling, "Actually, Ash, I believe this is the Pokémon Soot mentioned."

The rest of group perked up in surprise and looked at Ash. Gary looked back and forth between his grandfather and Ash in confusion.

Ash just stared blankly, "huh?"

.

**Short Skip**

After a quick clean up, everyone moved to the lobby … again. Gary and the professor sat on one of the couches with the group on the opposite. Electra and Togepi were in their respective trainers' laps, and Pikachu and Clefairy sat on either side of Ash. Soot sat on the floor in front of Ash.

Brock sat between Ash and Misty, since Nincada was lying in Ash's lap.

Misty glanced at Nincada while sweat dropping and frowning uncomfortably, 'They just had to choose a Bug-type.'

"So," Soot started while looking at Nincada. She looked at Samuel, "he just came in today?"

Oak smiled, "That's right. While I was feeding all of the Pokémon breakfast, a delibird flew right up to me and handed me a package."

Brock perked up in surprise, "They delivered him with a delibird? Why didn't they just transfer him here?"

"Well, there was a note on the package." The professor responded.

"Yeah!" Gary said in frustration. Everyone looked at him in surprise as he pointed a thumb at himself, "A note that said it was for me!"

Nincada flinched and leaned closer to Ash. Pikachu patted his head sympathetically.

His grandfather looked at him, "It said 'To the promising young trainer from Pallet Town'. While I agree they could have been less cryptic, Soot told me of this situation just two days ago."

Gary's eyes widened, "Two days?!" He looked at the group in shock, "How the Yvel did you make it to Pallet before me?!"

Soot raised a brow, "I was actually gonna ask the same thing. We may have flown home the day after the Gym Battle, but you have a car and had a reason to leave at least a day before us."

Ash glanced away thoughtfully and looked down at the Pokémon in his lap, "Nincada," The Trainee Pokémon looked up at him, "do you know why you were sent here?"

Nincada nodded excitedly and started chattering rapidly.

Soot deadpanned and muttered, "Way too much…" She shook it off, "To summarize, he was raised by a breeder in Hoenn who knows Koga's sister, Aya. He saw our Viridian Battle and heard all the stuff dad said when we were offered the challenge. He says he cheered us on during the battle and has been excited to join us ever since."

Gary looked at Soot in surprise.

Ash smiled and petted him, "Oh, so you were the one watching the Gym Battle from the cameras."

"I guess so!" Nincada said happily.

Soot translated before raising a brow, "Wait, I thought your kind had poor eyesight before evolving."

Nincada looked at her, "Well, I've had time to get use to the surface. Although Compound Eyes helps a bit."

Soot nodded, "Ah." She relayed the message.

Misty glanced at Nincada again before shaking it off and looking at Ash, "So does this mean you're not getting a porygon?"

Nincada looked at the girl in confusion and Gary looked at her blankly.

Ash looked at Misty in mild surprise before looking down thoughtfully, "Hm… maybe?" He looked at her again, "This definitely means a porygon wasn't the prize for the Gym Battle, but Soot did have a point about Franz getting a ditto. Also, this is Franz we're talking about. I think we'll just have to wait and see when he gets here."

Misty shrugged, "Okay, fair."

Brock looked at the Pokémon curiously, "Though, I can't help but wonder why they chose a nincada."

Nincada looked at him sadly; whiskers drooping.

Brock flinched and waved his hands, "No, sorry. I didn't mean it like that. It's just," He looked at Ash, "I understand them choosing a Ground-type, but you said that they might not choose a Bug-type because of Butterfree."

Ash put a hand to his chin, "Well … he did leave just before we got to Saffron, so maybe Sabrina said she read our minds about the situation with him." He smiled down at his new teammate, "Or it could just be because of how your kind evolve." He petted him, "Afterall, you're the only species that splits into two different Pokémon."

Togepi and Clefairy jerked and stared in shock, "Seriously?!" Pikachu and Electra stared in surprise.

Ash chuckled, "Yeah, the Bug and Flying-type, Ninjask and the Bug and Ghost-type, Shedinja." He tensed up and smiled at Nincada apologetically, "I mean, if you want to evolve. If you don't, I'd be more than happy to get you an Ever-"

"No!" Nincada cut him off frantically; eyes sparkling, "I wanna evolve! I'm sure of it!"

Electra translated this time, making Gary look at her in shock.

Ash chuckled and petted him again, "Alright. I just wanted to make sure."

"Wait a freaking second!" Gary blurted out as he jumped to his feet. Everyone looked at him in alarm.

The younger Oak glared and pointed, "What the Yvel are you all talking about?! Who sent you a nincada?! Why do you keep bringing up main eight Gym Leaders like you know them?! What does the newly discovered species porygon have to do with any of this?!"

He pointed at Electra, "And since when could that pikachu talk?!"

Electra deadpanned, "Soot has been giving me lessons."

"…" Gary sweat dropped, "Okay, that checks out." He glared at Ash and pointed, "But what about all the other stuff?!"

Ash sighed, "First, my Viridian Gym Battle ended up being a ten-on-ten with a prize attached. The prize being a new and exotic Pokémon. At first, we thought it would be a porygon because Dr. Schaffer will be here in a few days."

Oak looked up at his grandson, "And, Gary, Ash has technically met every main eight Gym Leader in Kanto. He's acquired all of their badges."

Ash pulled back his jacket to reveal the set, "See?"

Gary just stared at the badges in shock, "Wha- But, h- how did you get a real-" He looked at Ash, "You mean those rumors were actually true?"

Ash closed his jacket and looked at him calmly, "Rumors have to come from somewhere, Gary. Even if the whole truth isn't always what you hear, they're worth looking into."

Gary stared in shock before glaring again, "Well why did you get a challenge like that, and I didn't?! I had ten badges when I challenged Viridian! Was it some kind of secret bonus for just doing the main eight route?!" He pointed at the Gym Leaders in the room accusingly, "Or is it because two of them are your buddies?"

Misty smiled, "Oh, so you do know who we are."

Brock held up a hand, "But, we're not the reason it happened. It surprised us, too."

"It turned out to be because we helped out with a few things in our travels." Ash responded, "Including helping out the local Officer Jenny every now and then. Giovanni, himself, said that the whole thing was practically an elaborate thank you from the League."

Gary flinched and his eyes widened. He groaned and put a hand to his face, "You even got to battle the real Gym Leader…"

Soot smirked slyly, "I guess now we know why they chose the word 'promising' to specify dad."

Misty and Pikachu snorted as they held back laugh. Clefairy giggled and Togepi chuckled.

Ash and Oak looked at the Dark-type, "Soot."

Soot rolled her eyes; still smirking.

"Promising, huh?" Gary grumbled before smirking cockily, "How about this? We'll go outside and-"

Ash's eyes narrowed, "We're not battling for Nincada."

Gary glared, "I wasn't gonna suggest that!"

Ash and Soot raised a brow.

Gary deadpanned, "Seriously. I wasn't even suggesting a battle." He smirked again and held his arms out to shrug, "Besides, I know you'd never take a bet like that, so beating you wouldn't even be worth the effort. I'm just thinking we go outside, show off our Pokémon, and let Nincada decide who's the better trainer." His smirk turned sly, "I mean, you wouldn't object if it decided to join me, would you?"

The professor sighed. The Bug/Ground-type glared. Everyone else deadpanned.

Ash sighed, "Well, you're right about that." Everyone -except Soot and the two Oaks- flinched and looked at him in shock. Ash looked at Gary again, "I won't object if Nincada wants someone other than me to be his trainer." He glanced down at Pikachu and Clefairy, "The same goes for all of my Pokémon."

Clefairy pouted sourly, "Not funny."

Pikachu glared, "Yeah, your sense of humor is terrible."

Ash smiled softly.

Gary continued smirking, "Perfect." He started walking out of the room, "Let's go!"

Nincada looked up at Ash in frustration, "But I don't want him to be my trainer. I wanna stay with you."

Pikachu translated; making Nincada look at him in confusion.

Ash smiled softly and petted him, "I appreciate it. But just think of this as a chance to meet all your teammates in person." He grinned, "They've all been waiting to meet you."

Nincada stared at Ash in surprise before looking at Pikachu, "You speak human, too?"

Clefairy smiled, "Nope. And neither do I, but Ash can understand me anyway."

Ash chuckled, "I'll show you later."

He placed Nincada on the floor as everyone stood back up and started following Gary.

Oak looked at the watch user, "Ash? One thing I've been meaning to ask, first." Ash looked back at him as he raised a brow, "Why are you wearing sunglasses indoors?"

Ash perked up and chuckled sheepishly, "Sorry." He lifted the glasses, tensed up, and closed one eye while forcing a smile, "It's a continuous visual ability from Porygon's Power Integration that I call Technopathic Clairvoyance. It lets me mentally dissect nearby technology in terms of software and hardware to a certain degree. How well depends on how close it is, and I haven't found a way to turn it off, if there is one."

He put the shades back on, sighed in relief, and smiled normally, "I haven't gotten used to the surrounding tech and it's causing a sensory overload. The glasses help weaken the effect for now, but I should be fine if we're far enough away from the building."

Oak blinked in surprise, "Oh." He pointed to the side, "If that's so, after the battle, could I trouble you to-"

"I didn't get a good look, but I think it might be the motherboard." Ash said with a smile, "After I've gotten used to everything, I can find the full cause and maybe fix it with Porygon."

Oak blinked in surprise again before smiling, "Well, thank you. I appreciate it."

.

*Outside

Everyone went out into the ranch and moved a few yards away from the building. Ash's excuse for suggesting this was to 'make room for all of our Pokémon.' They were now far enough away that Ash was able to remove his shades.

As they walked, a few of Gary's Pokémon noticed and went up to their trainer. Namely a doduo, pidgeotto, beedrill, golem, a much larger than average krabby, and a kangaskhan who Ash recognized from a few days ago.

Gary then let out the Pokémon he had on hand. Blastoise, Arcanine, Scizor, Nidoking, Alakazam, and Fearow appeared in a flash and grouped up with their teammates.

Ash glanced at the Parent Pokémon curiously, 'So she's Gary's.' He looked at the brown-haired boy, "Hey just out of curiosity, where did you get a kangaskhan?"

Kangaskhan perked up and looked at the boy in surprise. Her hatchling noticed and looked up at her meema in confusion.

Gary smirked at him, "What? Jealous?"

Ash frowned, "More like concerned. Catching a kangaskhan requires-"

"A mutual agreement." Gary interrupted, "Did you really think I didn't know that? I found it a few months ago and offered it a spot on my team." He grinned and put his hands on his hips, "Of course it saw my potential."

Kangaskhan shook it off, "He offered me a safe place to raise my hatchling and said we didn't have to battle. It seemed like a good deal." She looked over Ash curiously.

Soot smirked and translated; making Gary tense up. Gary's present Pokémon all looked at the Bite Pokémon in surprise.

Brock smiled, "Yes, she speaks human." He gestured to his Electric-type, "Her too."

Electra smiled and waved, "Hello."

Misty raised a finger and grinned, "And I can vouch because I know she said 'hello'." She then looked at Gary with a raised brow, "Didn't you have more Pokémon than this? You said you had around forty-five at Giva, right?"

"Hah!" Gary laughed before putting a hand to his chin, "As if I still have that few. I've got over two-hundred Pokémon from sixty different species. It'd take forever to round them all up."

The entire group stared at him blankly.

"W- why?" Soot stuttered.

Gary looked at her; deadpanned, "I just said it would take-"

"No." Soot cut him off, "Why two-hundred from sixty species?"

Gary smirked and crossed his arms, "You can never have too many Pokémon. That's my motto. The more Pokémon you have, the better you can prepare for a battle."

Soot deadpanned, "Yeah, it's the sixty species part I'm having trouble understanding. I can understand two-hundred Pokémon if you jump regions, but why so many duplicates? I mean, assuming you only have one or two of rarer ones like kangaskhan, that's like 3 to five of each other species in the Kanto Pokéde-" She stopped and perked up. Her eyes narrowed and she pointed, "Wait … are you defining 'species' by Pokédex number or by evolutionary families?"

"Pokédex number." Gary said casually.

"That makes even less sense!" Soot blurted out, "That's- what's even the point of that?! Are you planning to follow in your grandpa's footsteps someday?!"

Gary glared at her, "None of your business!" He turned to the Trainee, held out his hands, and smirked, "But anyway, what do you think, Nincada?"

Nincada turned away, scurried over to Ash, and put a claw on his leg, "Nin!"

Gary flinched. The Gym Leaders and Pokémon all smirked.

Professor Oak smiled sheepishly, "I'm sorry, Gary. But I really don't believe anything will change Nincada's mind."

"And that's the nice way of saying, give it a rest, Gare-bare." Soot taunted.

Gary glared at her, "Stop calling me that!" He crossed his arms and smirked, "And we're not done here just yet. You still have to get your Pokémon, Ashy-boy."

"Alright." Ash said before looking at his hatchling, "Soot?"

Soot opened her mouth as a Shadow Ball with an orange core formed. She raised her head and fired it into the air. The sphere erupted into a massive fiery explosion high above everyone.

Nincada stared in awe, a handful of Gary's Pokémon stared curiously, and the rest stared in shock. Some looked at Soot cautiously. Some of the other surrounding Pokémon stared up at the blast too.

Misty shielded her eyes as she looked up at the cloud of smoke with Togepi mimicking her, "I see your move set's back to normal."

"Yup." Soot said.

Gary stared in surprise before shaking it off and smirking; brow raised, "Do you really think all your Pokémon will just come here because of th-" He perked up and his eyes widened when he felt the ground rumbling. He quickly turned to find an entire herd of tauros stampeding towards them.

"Well, not all at once." Ash said casually.

As they got closer, a few of the leading tauros caught sight of Ash and smiled brightly. Everyone made space as the Normal-types crowded around their trainer. A few started licking his face.

Ash chuckled and went around petting them, "Hey, come on. We met up just a few days ago, remember?"

Most of the herd perked up in surprise.

"HAH!" One blurted out while sneering at another, "I told you so!"

The other deadpanned, "It's. A. Prank. The mightyena speaks human. Of course, she would tell him that stuff to keep up the act."

Soot let out a low groan and all of Gary's Pokémon stared in confusion. Except Kangaskhan who blinked in surprise before looking at Ash again.

Ash sweat dropped, 'Some of them still don't believe us, huh?'

"You hypocrite!" Gary shouted while pointing at Ash accusingly; making some of the group jump a bit and look at him, "You let Soot egg me on about having a bunch of the same kinds of Pokémon when you have…" He raised a brow, "how many tauros is that? Twenty?"

"Twenty-nine." Ash corrected, "It used to be thirty, but we traded one for Arbok."

"They're all from the Safari Zone." Soot said; making Gary look at her in surprise. She deadpanned and raised a paw, "And don't ask how we ended up catching that many. We don't know either." She put her paw back down, "Point is, it wasn't intentional."

Gary stared blankly before looking at Ash, "What does she mean by that?"

Ash frowned unsurely, "All of them kept getting in the way of our Safari Balls. Some in more … unnatural ways."

"Yeah." Misty added on; wide eyed, "One of them flew into a ball that I threw at a poliwhirl."

Brock frowned and rubbed the back of his head, "And right after that, the last ten appeared out of nowhere and were all caught by our last ten Safari Balls simultaneously."

Gary stared at the Gym Leaders in pure shock before looking down in a daze. The professor looked at the Gym Leaders blankly before looking at Ash. Ash noticed ad shrugged.

Gary looked at Ash, "I genuinely don't know how to respond to that."

Ash sighed, "We think it was a psychic playing a prank." He gestured to his tauros herd, "Mostly because none of them know how it happened either."

The herd went through a round of nods; some while frowning.

Ash perked up upon remembering something, "Hey, while we're on the topic, did you ever visit the Safari Zone?"

Gary snapped out of it and nodded, "Yeah."

Ash's eyes narrowed, "Would you happen to know if you visited after we did? And if so, did you catch a female rhyhorn?"

A few of the tauros perked up and looked at Ash in surprise.

Gary raised a brow, "Uh… I caught a pair of male rhyhorn and a female, but I have no idea when you went there."

Professor Oak raised a finger, "I can answer that, actually." Everyone looked at him, "Gary visited the Safari Zone a while before you did. I believe the Pokémon he sent me showed up just under two weeks before all of your tauros."

Gary crossed his arms and grinned, "Heh."

Ash smiled sadly, "Well, it was worth a shot."

One of the tauros stared at Ash in surprise, "Wh- what were you planning to do if he did have her?"

Ash looked at him and smiled; guessing the question … incorrectly, "Trust me. We've actually had crazier coincidences than Gary being the one to catch your girlfriend."

The two Oaks looked at him in surprise, everyone in the group was told about that before, and Gary's Pokémon reacted the same as they have been so far.

Soot snickered, "He actually asked what you were planning to do if Gary did have her."

Ash tensed up and smiled nervously, "O-oh." He shook it off and smiled normally, "I was gonna see if he'd be willing to negotiate a rough schedule, or something, so you two could spend more time together. That or work out a trade, if necessary."

Tauros stared in awe before smiling, "Well, if it helps, she told me her trainer is a male with dark blue hair and black eyes."

Soot smiled and translated.

Ash chuckled and looked up, "Yeah, that would've saved me a question." He smiled at tauros, "Thanks. I'll keep it in mind."

Gary just stared blankly.

"woah…" One of the tauros muttered in shock before looking at Soot, "Can I transfer to the non-trading team?"

Soot just pointed at him and called out, "Dad, we've got a transfer to non-trade!"

Ash looked at her before looking at the tauros in question, smiling, and nodding, "Alright, noted." He looked over at something; still smiling, "Oh, hey Muk."

Gary, his Pokémon, and Nincada perked up and followed his gaze to find the Poison-type lying next to the professor.

Muk raised a hand, "Hey."

Arbok blurred into view and panted heavily. Gary flinched and looked at him in shock as he did.

Pikachu looked at him with a raised brow, "You know you didn't have to rush here, right?"

"It's not that." Arbok continued panting, "Aerodactyl offered to carry me here."

Soot snorted as she held back a laugh.

Arbok noticed the Trainee Pokémon staring at him in awe and blinked in confusion. He looked at Soot and pointed down at him, "Who's the new guy?"

"We'll explain after everyone gets here." Soot said.

Overtime, the rest of Ash's Pokémon began showing up in no particular order. Brock and Misty's Pokémon also got the signal and joined up with their trainers. Though, Basculin had to -begrudgingly- be carried back by Onix and was currently in the pool. Goldeen decided to keep her company.

After they all arrived, Ash introduced them all to Nincada and said that he was actually the new addition; not a porygon. They were all surprised but shrugged it off and started welcoming the excited Bug/Ground-type.

"Wha-" Gary muttered in shock.

Ash looked at Gary with a raised brow, "Are you alright?"

Gary looked at Ash in shock and blurted out, "Are you kidding?!" He pointed at the Fossil Pokémon, "When on earth did you get an aerodactyl?! Don't tell me you actually found a fossil at Grandpa Canyon!"

Ash smiled sheepishly, "Well you're not that far off with the Grandpa Canyon thing." He smiled, "Aerodactyl's the same one who battled that dragonite. He joined me after we all woke up."

Gary just stared blankly before glaring, "You're lying. That was a mass dream."

"It wasn't." Ash said bluntly, "There's a picture of their battle in the Pokémon Times."

"Oh, yeah right." Gary said sarcastically, "Next you're gonna tell me you caught the dragonite, too."

Ash raised a hand, "Actually no. They were gone by the time we woke up." He sighed, "Look you don't have to believe me but as you can see, I legitimately have an aerodactyl."

Aerodactyl nodded, "Ro."

Professor Oak pointed a thumb back at the lab, "Although, I do have a collection of issues in the bookshelf ordered by date."

Everyone perked up and looked at him.

Oak shrugged, "What? Good photographs can be a decent way of collecting information. Even amateur ones can kickstart a topic of research."

Gary pointed at Ash, "Perfect! I'll prove you're lying!" He rushed inside.

Ash sweat dropped, "So you saw the image of … 'dragonite'."

Oak smiled happily, "Oh just me and a portion of the world." He shot Ash a sideways glance, "You were lucky it was a side view." He looked back at the building, "But I believe your mother's punished you enough by now."

Ash chuckled nervously and glanced away, 'I can never tell him about the picture Todd took in Fuchsia.'

"There you are!"

Ash and the Pokémon perked up and looked into the sky. Brock, Misty, and the professor followed their gaze.

.

*Inside the lab

Gary glared intently as he rapidly flipped through an issue of the Pokémon Times. The other two issues were lying on the floor next to him.

He stopped and stared in shock when he found what he was looking for.

"Oh, come on!"

He trudged out of the building with the magazine in hand and walked back to the field. After a second, he stopped, stared in shock, and dropped the issue.

Gary glared furiously and pointed, "You liar!"

"He's not the same one and he's not mine!" Ash protested.

.

.

Ohirume: *shrugs* Yeah, I know "Showdown at the Poké-Corral"-

Seishin: *raised finger* Um, I believe it was spelled 'Corrall'.

Ohirume: *smacks Seishin in the back of the head* I know the episode kept dodging an actual battle despite 'showdown' being in the name, but the more I thought about how to put one in, the more it felt forced.

In the end, I just went with a calm … mostly calm Slice of Life chapter. Which, I like to think felt appropriate after the massive Viridian battle. *gestures to Seishin* Also,

Seishin: *smiles happily* 62/56 - 44 69 64 20 79 6f 75 20 6e 6f 74 69 63 65 20 74 68 65 20 6e 75 6d 62 65 72 73 3f

Ohirume: *sly smirk* Have fun.

…

The new comment response will be posted on "Random-ish stuff on the side" on 02/06/2022 at approximately 11:00 p.m. Central Standard Time.