There was a quiet hum of the machine inside the Oak lab as the 16-year-old Pokemon trainer Named Ash Ketchum stood in complete silence while staring at the Pokeball that was currently being healed by the lab's Healing Machine. Standing there with his hands in his pockets and mouth tilted into a frown, just couldn't get the image of his friend's previous story out of his head. The thought of a gym leader, a dragon master, someone that Iris looked up to so much, would do something so… so…

"...sh? Ash? ASH!" The young man named Tracy was finally able to pull his friend out of his mind by simply grabbing the boy's shoulder and calling his name. The young trainer looked over at him with a shocked expression and clenched his fist like he was about to throw a punch but quickly relaxed upon seeing that it was his friend. Tracey, noticing the state of the trainer, took a small step back with a concerned expression.

"Sorry… Sorry about that, Tracey. What's up?" The trainer asked while adjusting his cap and clearing his throat. Turning to face the artist and elder researcher who was standing behind him. He turned his head to the sound of the door opening to watch his lifelong friend, Gary Oak, walk into the main part of the lab while shaking the cold off of him.

"Gramps… we have a situation. I… There was… Iris tried to-"

"Clair brutalized Iris' Pokemon to the point that it attacked her. Iris tried to quit the fight and give up but Clair, that…" Ash interrupted his friend before he could find the right words to say. The boy's fists clenching tight again as his teeth grind against each other in his rage. Ash was furious. "That abuser just kept attacking." Ash huffed out, his arm twitchy like he wanted, no, NEEDED to punch something as the young man desperately looked around the room for anything to… to… gah! He didn't know what he wanted to do but he was furious and just couldn't get the image of Iris in near tears whilst describing the clear trauma that she was experiencing all over again in telling the story. Gary just walked up behind the boy and gently laid his hand on his friend's shoulder in a comforting way. While they bickered and fought, they still considered each other family and Gary hated seeing his friend like this.

"Ash, please. You need to calm down. If not for your own sake, then for Iris'. Her seeing you like this will do nothing but upset her more, man. Please, please just go try and sit and relax. Me and Gramps will take care of this. I promise you." The young researcher pleaded to his friend, who merely clenched his teeth more before going to walk towards the main library, slamming the door closed on his way inside, much to everyone's worry, though they recognized that Ash probably just needed time to himself.

"Okay so… I'm sorry, but could you please try to explain in detail, please?" Tracey piped up after Ash had exited the room. He had seen Ash angry before, sure. The boy usually just bottles everything up until he explodes, then goes to be alone with his Pokemon or something, but this… Ash wasn't just mad, he was ready to hurt something, and that thought made Tracey scared of what had happened out there.

"Gary, my boy, what's this about Clair? Clair, the Dragon leader of Blackthorne City? Lance's… niece, if I recall correctly?" The elder Oak questioned while seated in his chair in front of his computer while rubbing his cheek. On the large screen behind him was a video of a rocky area with a lone Dragonite who simply sat on the ground with his arms crossed, almost like a pouty child.

"Cousin, Gramps, and yeah. So Iris tried to challenge her to a battle because that's just what aspiring Dragon Masters do, I guess, but Clair… I mean, Clair fucking brutalized her Pokemon. Her Axew was down in one hit, which should have been enough for Clair to say that Iris wasn't ready, but she also started hitting Dragonite so hard with Hydropumps that Iris thought that her Dragonite was going to drown. Clair just kept attacking after Iris tried to forfeit, apparently, and also wouldn't let her call Dragonite back to its Pokeball because Clair threatened that Iris wouldn't become a Dragon Master if she did that. I mean, isn't there a rule about that? She could get her Gym License revoked for that, right?" Gary managed to finally say without feeling like he was going to vomit just from the sheer brutality of doing that to nothing but a little kid who wanted nothing more than to be like the woman who would so casually torture and traumatize her.

The elder Oak's brow furrowed into one of concern and quickly turned his chair around to face the large computer in front of him. Typing away at the keyboard loudly while speaking. "Not just her Gym License, my boy. This could be grounds for having her entire Trainer License revoked. There are certain rules in place for exactly this scenario, a gym leader using excessive violence, where the law sides with the abused trainer more than anything. Give me a moment, dear boy." Oak said to the two males behind him while working away at his computer.

"If I recall correctly, don't those only apply to official Gym Badge matches? Yeah. I think that Lance made that rule after kicking out all the old gym leaders who were making matches too dangerous for trainers and their Pokemon. If this wasn't a badge battle, then what can we do?" Tracy thought out loud to nobody in particular while Gary walked over to the healing machine to pick up Axew's Pokeball and toss it in his hands a few times. Nothing but disgust was clear on his face.

"Tsch. We can go over to Johto and see how she likes it when you do that to another person's Pokemon… I know that Ash is probably down and, I'll be honest, it's starting to look promising- ah!" The young researcher was interrupted by a stapler being thrown directly at his face by his grandfather who didn't even bother to look away from his screen.

"Enough of that talk, boy. Not in my house! You will simply remain here while Lance handles it. I'm sure that the young man would love to know exactly what his cousin has been doing with her spare time. He will surely take this seriously if it is from me. Have faith in me, my boy." The elder Oak pleaded with his grandson as Tracy helped the boy back to his feet after tripping from stumbling back due to the blow. "Now don't you two have anything better to do? Feeding the Pokemon and cleaning up the mess from that Draco Meteor, perhaps?" Professor Oak turned at the two boys with a small glare. This was a place of research and compassion, not needless violence and vengeance. Professor Oak would be long dead and buried beneath the very land that the Lab sat on before he would ever let this sanctuary change.

Tracy just gives the professor a nervous laugh before grabbing his friend by the arm to lead him out of the lab before he could somehow make his grandfather more angry. Gary just nodded silently as he looked towards the door that Ash had disappeared into, hoping that his friend was alright. "Alright, alright already. I'm sorry. You're right…" Gary admitted before putting back on his coat and walking back out the door into the cold Coralle. Seeing that Iris was still sitting on the bench where she was left, though still being comforted by the three Pokemon thankfully, the young man let out a sigh and started to walk over to her while giving Tracy a glance and a nod.

Iris was currently hugging the Gible to her belly as she silently sat there with the three Pokemon. The Charizard stood off to the side while staring up at the sky with his arms crossed, making his burning tail just coincidentally rest near the young girl so that she could be warmed by the ever-burning fire that rested on the tip of it. The Pikachu sat on the girl's shoulder while continuously rubbing his red cheeks against the motionless girl's cheeks. The Gible was currently resting his arms continuing to look up at the girl to try and wave at her, though it didn't seem to have much effect on her as she just continued to stare into space. Her concentration on nothing being broken by the sound of snow being crunched under a person's foot due to walking.

Looking up with a jolt like she was just slapped awake, Iris just stared at the approaching male for a second. What was his name again…? Gru? Jim? No, It was Gary! He had just introduced himself not but an hour ago! Had… had it really just been that long? It feels like it should have been much longer than that… right? She… had to think, no! She needed to focus! Dragon Masters need to be alert and ready at all times, right? Surely they can't be focused constantly, can they? What about friends or fam-

"Iris?" The younger Oak asked calmly while maintaining a respectful distance away from the young girl. Holding the Pokeball that contained Axew in his hand that was currently outstretched to the girl.

"Huh? Yeah? Oh hey! What's up?" Iris seemed genuinely surprised that the boy had started talking to her even when she was staring directly at him. Setting Gible down gently onto the bench beside her before hopping up with a springy pep to her step. She walked towards the man with a small smile on her face as the Pikachu on her shoulder bobbed up and down with her as much as her gigantic hair. "Oh, is this Axew's Pokeball? Thank you so much! Come on out, Axew!" She said while grabbing the Pokeball before Gary even had the chance to speak. The older boy just took the hand that was previously holding the ball and used it to scratch behind his head with a sheepish expression. The young professor was sure that her troubles from earlier were still bothering her but decided to not address the issue at the moment as Iris went to go hug the now-reemerged Axew.

"Oh, you did so so good, Axew! We'll show him next time, right?" The young girl said before pulling away from the small dragon, who simply gave a big nod with a determined look in the little guy's eyes. The small Gible who stood behind the girl was trying to peek past her to see the Axew but was visibly scared to. The small Gible did not move until the Charizard who was silently standing there for a while merely rolled his eyes and swiped his tail at the shark, causing him to tumble and roll forward a little in surprise. The tiny Axew looked at the shark in surprise before smiling wide and rushing over to help the shark to his feet. Before either Gary or Iris had realized it, the two were playing tag and rushing off to go play in the snow-covered fields. Iris just watches with a smile before reaching into her pocket to pull out two more Pokeballs, staring down at them with a quiet, contemplative expression.

"You can let them out if you want. This is a safe place for any and all Pokemon. You don't need to worry about poachers here. Unless… you want to keep them with you, that's fine. I tend to keep Blastoise in my Pokeball as he just likes to be close to me." The young researcher said with a caring tone of voice, trying not to be pushy with what the girl should or shouldn't do. He watched as the girl threw the two Pokeballs into the sky and released an Emolga and an Excadrill.

"Hey, guys. So we are in Kanto right now because Ash invited us to a festival going on here in um…" She spoke with calmness before carefully looking at Gary, who just smiled and held up two fingers for the girl to see as he crossed his arms. "In two days! So just think of this as a vacation and have fun! You guys deserve it for working so hard for me! I'll be back later with food but go ahead and explore around here! Meet some new friends!" Iris said excitedly to her two Pokemon, who looked at each other with excitement before heading off on their way. Emolga immediately flew off into the sky to head toward the wooded area while Excadrill curled up and began to dig into the ground to head… somewhere.

"You know… We have more than enough food here to care for them. It wouldn't be a problem at all to feed them while you're visiting." Gary pointed out to the girl who simply stared at the direction in which her Emolga flew off. Iris eventually turned to face him with that same, confident smile on her face as he started walking past him toward the lab.

"Thanks, but it's fine. They should be my responsibility, not yours. You're already letting them roam around as much as they like, which is more than enough. I'm sure that they won't want to leave when it's time to go!" Iris said with a laugh as her arms swayed back and forth while walking, only to reach up and scratch under the Pikachu's chin which was still sitting on her shoulder. She tried desperately to sound playful with her tone of voice but deep down, she was terrified of that scenario. She would hate to make her Pokemon depressed, or even worse, make them want to stay here and abandon her upon telling them that it was time to go. Though surely they'd never do that! Ever! R-Right… they won't leave, will they?

Gary, who was walking behind her, didn't say anything at that remark. Instead, opting to remain silent and simply follow the girl back into the lab where the sounds of… grunting could be heard? Both Iris and Gary share a look of confusion before rushing into the main room to find-

"Ugh! Muk, come on… I'm okay! Please get off of me already! My arm is starting to fall asleep, here!" Ash said with his usual, carefree laugh while the male's chest and arms were completely covered with purple… slime? Ooze? Sludge, he was being smothered by sludge. The sludge pokemon, Muk, in particular. Gary rushed over to help his grandfather and Tracy attempted to pull Ash free by his legs while Iris just couldn't help but start laughing at the sight of the larger, sixteen-year-old being completely helpless due to one, cuddly Pokemon. Pikachu jumped off the girl's shoulder and rushed to his trainer, where the Pokemon just began to lick at his face. "Ahh! Not helping, Pikachu! That tickles!" Ash yelled out loudly and tried to wiggle his face and legs away, much to Iris' enjoyment and the researcher's aid.

"Ash! He's just happy to see you! Stop being such a little kid and let him hug you a bit!" Iris said while giggling to herself. Oh, if she had a camera, she would absolutely be recording this right now. However, her giggling would soon stop as the easily excitable Muk would turn its smiling gaze from its trainer towards the new person whom he hadn't met yet. 'Muk…? Muk!' the Pokemon would yell out before pouncing off his trainer and bounding straight towards the dark-skinned girl, who just let out a shriek of terror but couldn't do much else as she got body slammed by the Pokemon.

Ash was watching the scene and couldn't help but let out a delighted laugh as the researchers let go of the trainers' legs and rushed over to help the now pinned girl who was getting nuzzled by the happy Pokemon. He got to his feet with a grunt as Pikachu hopped onto his shoulders. Watching the girl giggle and try to hug the Muk back while her legs kicked excitedly just made him happy. "You are so cuuuute! Ash, why didn't you tell me that you had a Pokemon that loved hugs this much?! Haha! Ah, that tickles!" She yelled out as the trainer and researchers couldn't do much else but simply smile at the girl's love for the Pokemon.


It had taken quite a bit of time to finally peel Muk off the Unova Native and usher the happy Pokemon outside, him turning to give a wave while slithering off to go find some garbage to eat. Iris had to remain seated in one of the office chairs around the lab as she had spent so much time hugging the Pokemon in a weird position that her legs had fallen asleep on her. Everyone else was just walking back into the main room and either sitting in one of the chairs or leaning against a wall.

"You know, ever since you caught that friendly fellow, I haven't had to worry about my trash at all, Ash. Quite the useful little fellow, isn't he?" The elder Oak said with a laugh to his young friend before turning his gaze towards the small girl who was sitting in his usual chair while casually unzipping and zipping back up her coat over and over again to simply give her something to do. "Ah yes, Iris! Will you be joining us tonight or will Delia be hosting you?"

Before Iris had the chance to talk, Ash spoke up. "She'll be with me and mom, Professor. I'm pretty sure that mom would kill me if I didn't come home with her." The sixteen-year-old said while rubbing the back of his head. He looked over at his friend and smiled with a wink. "Besides, we can steal some candy apples after dinner if you're over with us."

Iris was about to say that she didn't ask to be staying anywhere and that she could just stay in the Pokemon center or even outside, bundled up with the Pokemon like she did when she was little, but immediately closed her mouth upon hearing the words 'candy apples' escape from her elder friends' lips. "Nghn… okay fine but only for one night! No more! I can just sleep outside with the Pokemon or at the Pokemon Center tomorrow!" Iris yelled out with some confidence, trying to sound like she wouldn't budge on the issue, though that immediately faltered when all the older males gave her looks that varied between appalled and concerned. "W… what? Did I say something wrong?"

Tracy was the first to speak up, holding a finger pointed to the sky. "Well, first off, Pallet Town doesn't have a Pokemon Center. If someone needs healing or help, they usually just come here and we provide for them. Second off… well…-"

"Yeah, you're not sleeping outside, Iris. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? You could freeze to death out there. You weren't seriously considering that, right? The Pokemon either return to their Pokeballs, sleep in the barn, or go to the caves at night…" Gary said while looking the girl straight in the eyes with concern. That look in his eyes made the girl feel like shrinking back but she refused! Instead trying to stand her ground like a formidable dragon!

"Well, I can just sleep in the caves or barn with them! I've done worse before, I can do it again! Heh. Once, when I was seven, there was a blizzard that went through my hometown that even caved a few roofs in, but I was totally fine outside with the local poke-'

"Iris!" Ash suddenly yelled out, interrupting the girl as he walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder with a smile. "You're not sleeping outside. My mom would actually tear the Corral apart trying to find you. If you think that Gible's Draco Meteor was bad, then my mom can make that look like nothing but a few bullet seeds. Now come on! I wanna show you around before heading back to Mom's! I think that you'll like Pallet Town." He said before letting go of the girl's shoulder and turning to begin walking towards the front door with Pikachu becoming her to come while still sitting on the male's shoulder. Upon walking out the front door, he took a step to the side and immediately leaned against the wall with a shaky breath.

Hearing Iris talk about that stuff so casually brought back some bad memories about his trip through Kanto. Particularly the night when he got separated from Brock and Misty and was trapped in a cave with nothing but his Pokemon during a harsh blizzard. Of course, he made it through the night with the help of his beloved Pokemon, but it's hard not to think of that terrifying experience every once in a while. Pikachu just nuzzled into his trainer's cheek worriedly with a small 'Pika pi?', prompting the trainer to reach up and rub the Pokemon's head as he tried to collect himself. He pushed off the wall and zipped his jacket up as he waited for his friend to emerge from the lab.

"O… okay…" Iris stuttered out before rising from her chair and staring at the boy in stunned silence. It had been a while since Ash, Brock and her had gone their separate ways, so maybe she had just forgotten what it felt like to have someone care for her wellbeing again besides her Pokemon. Shaking her head quickly to try and escape from her dazed state, the Unova native quickly stood up, put her legs together, and did a quick bow like how she's seen people in Johto do."Thank you for your time… and stuff! I will be back to feed my Pokemon later!" Was she doing this right…? She felt silly just attempting it so she immediately stopped bowing and rushed to the door as the three males watched her go, the elder Oak's face being deep in thought.

Who the hell in their right mind would allow a seven-year-old girl to be outside in a blizzard?