Alola.
She really needed this tropical vacation, Delia thought as she settled down in the stands of Manalo Stadium. She adjusted the brim of her sunhat and tipped her sunglasses forward, glancing from side to side. On her left was Professor Oak.
And on her right was what looked like a small school. Dozens of bustling children frolicked in the stands, seemingly cheering for both contestants at the same time.
But Delia knew exactly which contestant she would cheer for.
"Challenger Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town!"
Delia waved her arm slightly, calling out to him. Over the din of the arena, it took Ash barely a moment to notice and wave back exuberantly. There was a large grin plastered on his face, and it heartened her to see.
After all, it had been a long time since she'd seen him last.
To tell the truth, she'd been hoping that he would take a break after his latest adventure in Kalos. Rest at home a few days; weeks; months. But it had been a hope against hope, she knew well enough. And sure enough, her son was back on the road, almost as soon as he'd left it.
So, this was where the road had taken him.
She had been pleasantly surprised to receive a note from Ash in the Rotom Mail the day before. "Hey Mom I made it to the finals could you come watch please". An indescribable surge of emotion, of pride, overwhelmed her when she thought of her son. A finalist. Maybe even a winner, this time.
She had a feeling about this one. Call it mother's intuition.
Almost as soon as she had recovered from the shock of getting a note from Ash, she had practically dragged Oak out of his laboratory and ordered two tickets to Alola. There was no way she was going to miss another of Ash's matches. Sure enough, she found herself in the stands of Ash's finals, sat on tenterhooks. And no one was happier than Delia to see her son finally lift a League trophy.
She still harbored some small hope he might come home after the win, spend some family time.
But it turned out, winning the League was only the first step.
"Professor Kukui, also known as the Masked Royal!"
An exhibition match, just for fun. Delia found it a strange idea, but she knew that her son would jump at any excuse to battle.
"Let the battle begin!"
Ignoring the thunderclaps and fireworks of the battle, Delia let her eyes drift over to the side of the arena, to Ash. He was ordering attacks vigorously, with a relaxed thrill. The stadium seemed to fade out of view, the Pokémon clashing in the middle merely a background. She was enraptured by her son's deft motions, seemingly never tiring or even pausing for breath. His hands moved with assurance, and his face wore experience-lines. He was a far cry from the young boy who left her home without his underwear, all those years ago.
One of Ash's Pokémon fell, but her son seemed unbothered. He let out a soft chuckle and a nod. Delia found herself taken aback.
Was this the same Ash?
She had seen his battles before, in Kanto and Johto. There, he grew angry when he lost a Pokémon, even – in his less proud moments – cried. As if defying her memories, Ash put the Poké Ball of his defeated partner back in almost casually.
Could he have changed so much in her absence?
He smiled as he let his next partner out.
"Pikapi!"
Oh, she had been looking forward to seeing Pikachu again. She idly wondered if Pikachu wanted any of the Kanto ketchup she'd brought in her bag for him.
She paused.
Pikachu looked leaner now, crackling with latent energy that she could feel even up in the stands. Maybe it had been dieting. The mouse froze for a moment, ears perking up. Suddenly, it turned to look her in the eye, giving a soft but pervasive "Chaaa!" that reminded her of motherhood.
She appreciated the moment with an unhurried, tropical calm.
A tiny figure in the corner of her eye.
Across from Ash, the Professor readied his last Poké Ball for battle with Pikachu. He curled up his arm then threw it. The ball had nearly left his fingertips when it was smacked down by the figure.
It was a Pokémon, releasing waves of voltage like a power cable. It seemed to want to battle against her son.
She tilted a questioning eyebrow towards Oak. He told her matter-of-factly that it was one of the guardian deities, called Tapu Koko. Deities. Deities; deities. She repeated the word in her head, faster and faster. Her heart raced with pride. Ash was going to fight a god.
"Will Ash accept this change?" the referee asked.
She knew the answer.
"Of course! We're at full power, now!" Her son replied, predictably.
In an instant her vision was supercharged, taking in the entire arena. She was particularly mindful about the dangerous-looking bolts flying off from that Tapu Koko's shield.
Delia was unsettled, but she knew Ash was intimidated by nobody.
"Thunderbolt!" "Nature's Madness."
Two beams of equally incredible power spilt forth from the Pokémon's mouths. A pink beam surged towards Ash. Pikachu darted left, feeling the glow hit just behind its tail. Tapu Koko raised its shield, blocking the electric bolt squarely. The force of the impact punched it back through the air. It held solid for a moment, withstanding lightning-power. When the attack was over, it lowered its shield and roared. Pikachu yelled back, a smile stretching its face.
Ash looked at Kukui with a grin on his face. Their eyes met.
Ash's lips trembled. The Professor snorted. Ash giggled.
And suddenly, they were laughing violently, riotously, the sound carrying easily in the warm tropical air.
Delia had seen many battles in her time as the mother of a prolific – and headstrong – young Trainer. She had never seen Ash look so… comfortable, mid-battle.
It was refreshing.
"Dazzling Gleam."
Tapu Koko moved first this time, building up a ball of opalescent energy. A marble of blue and pink plasma grew in size as the attack charged up. The stadium thrummed with the swirling of the fluid within the sphere of energy. Then, a pulse. The attack bore down on Ash's Pikachu, towering terrifyingly over it and blotting out the sun.
"Electroweb, Pikachu!"
Pikachu spun and let out a tiny net from its tail. The net glowed. It inflated, growing massively, in sudden spikes, until it was large enough to wrap cleanly around the ball of energy. Trapped within the net, Tapu Koko's attack strained to break out. Delia felt her skin tingle as the net seemed to buckle.
The attack exploded, filling the arena with blinding dust.
"Pikachu, now's our chance!"
A tail-blade of iron sliced through the smoke, appearing over Tapu Koko's head. Delia barely had time to see it before she heard the metallic cymbal-clang of contact. Pikachu's tail slammed Tapu Koko downwards, into the dirt. There was a moment. Then, it rose, shaking chunks of rock from in between its shield.
Delia realized belatedly that she had been hyperventilating. A breath. She allowed the anxiety and protectiveness to recede a bit. They were only battling for fun.
"You've grown so much, Ash," Professor Kukui remarked warmly. Delia found herself agreeing.
Tapu Koko floated over to the Professor. Delia thought she saw it pointing at a bracelet of some kind, on its wrist. The Professor shook his head. Tapu Koko looked unhappy. Then, it began to sing, a shrill voice that grew into two and three and four. Gradually, the stadium was surrounded by three more guardian deities: the full set.
They filled the air with a beautiful song, mellifluous and lucid, washing her anxieties away and leaving her recharged. Her lips hummed the notes easily, as if it was her favorite lullaby. She saw her Ash close his eyes as serenely as sleep, breathing with the music. A small smile spread across her face.
When Ash reopened his eyes, both his and the Professor's bracelet were shining.
"It's time, Ash!" the Professor called out, with an inevitability that reminded her of growing up. He began to dance.
"Yeah! Now at full power!"
With that, Ash began to move his limbs. First his forearm and then his leg and he spun around. Was he dancing, too? Delia couldn't imagine her clumsy boy ever trying to dance. Hah. She supposed he would do anything if it was for a Pokémon battle.
They finished their dances.
And the ground trembled and the floor fractured and a yellow headless giant emerged from below and what! and what? and what.
Ash seemed to think this was all perfectly normal.
He tossed his hat into the air and Pikachu leapt into it, the cap hanging endearingly at an odd angle. Tapu Koko rocketed over, assuming its position as the head of the yellow giant. It roared once more.
A yellow fist of light emerged from the ground and it slammed down and the air filled with stones and Ash cried out for 10 volts – no – 10 million volts and Pikachu rose defiantly and Ash pulled his hands towards his body, coiling up like a rattlesnake. The giant thrust its arm at Pikachu and it smashed through tons of earth like paper and Pikachuuuuu and scintillating rainbow bolts snaked outwards and Ash held up the fist at full power like it was the weight of the sky and for Alola and all his love flowed through him and the arm cracked and the giant fractured and she felt the rainbow burn in her soul and Tapu Koko was punched backwards by a full-spectrum blast.
Delia's sunglasses were blown off her face.
Tapu Koko descended gently onto the debris-strewn field, like autumn leaves. It had fainted.
Ash stretched his legs and flopped on the battlefield floor, feeling the tension flow out of his body as if it was a lightning-rod.
There was a pause.
Then the arena realized. Half a dozen children rushed towards Ash, converging in a sudden flurry. Kukui strolled over to join them, reaching a fatherly hand out to ruffle Ash's hair. Ash sat up a little, still dazed. Everyone formed a ring around him: chittering, congratulating, celebrating. His friends. His family.
Maybe, Delia considered, her son was already a little bit home.
Summer's home witnessed
the guardian yield duty to
the rainbow Champion.