AN: First of all, this is a platonic Hanahaki story, so if you're here for romance, this fic will disappoint you.

Regarding the use of Riko and her father, I was simply not bothering with creating OC's. Riko was speculated to be a relative of Ash due to her visible similarities, so I just ran with them. The surname they use is based on Alex, Riko's father's, Japanese voice actor.

I use Riko's Japanese name opposed to Liko for one reason. It gives Ligma vibes. I don't want that.

I do not hate Horizons, I do not use Riko to shit on her and the new Anime, because it replaced the anime. It is kinda difficult to hate an anime you never saw. It simply isn't available here in my country. Even the original anime is only partly available if you don't sail on the seven seas.

Anyway, I am aware that I am missing the accent over the e in Pokemon. I do this because I do not know how to type it in on my keyboard, without switching to a different language, which is just too annoying to do every time I type a word.

Ciao for now,

ABSOL_ute

Ash Ketchum had been feeling sick for nearly two weeks now. A normal occurrence for December. Winter time is sick time. Right now, he feels how it gets worse. To his luck, he had biology now. No, he isn't extremely talented in biology, he is a very average student when his sickness isn't too overwhelming. He just has a very chill teacher. In addition to that, she'll give them an overview of their new topic. These overviews don't require full attention as they repeat the material in more detail over the next few weeks. He needs a break, he fainted in P.E and still feels like shit.

And the teacher herself, Mrs. Adolphi, is very chill. And his class is very trained in making her talk about anything that isn't fully connected to their curriculum or not at all. But until they find an opening to distract her, they have to pretend they listen to Mrs. Adolphi's lecture. Ash sat somewhat in the front, but on the windows and essentially hiding between two classmates.

While most sick students would stay away from the windows, so would his Pikachu, especially in winter, Ash got the feeling he is feeling better in the cold. At least he can breathe more freely. As long as his mother won't get him to the doctor, he'll has to grasp these straws of betterment, even if they make no sense and probably are just an illusion or a placebo effect created by wish thinking.

"Welcome, class! Today I introduce you to our new topic! We will talk about Hanahaki, the Petal disease. The following five weeks, we will discuss each version, one per week and the illness in general.", said Mrs. Adolphi.

Mrs. Adolpi was a well shaped dark skinned woman, often seen wearing dresses. Today she wore an orange cocktail dress. As the school is public and on low funding, the administration doesn't bother to waste the limited money on a dress code and its enforcement. In other words, it isn't uncommon to see teachers in clothes for events afterwards. They won't need to get changed, which saves time. Not that anyone complains about Mrs. Adolphi, she looks great. Albeit, she is also an arts teacher, it is her job to look pleasant.

"Does anyone of you have relatives that caught Hanahaki?", asked Mrs. Adolphi. After no one answered, she said, "Well, I did. My husband. One day, I woke up puking Hyacinths. That piece of Taurus dung cheated on me!" Sometimes, like today, she distracts herself. Most of the time, something about her husband. "Before I rant about that idiot again, I better return to the topic." Sometimes she catches herself, though.

Mrs. Adolphi started to draw Punnett squares onto the chalk board. Because of the low funding of the school, the school used chalk boards. Compared to the school Ash's half sister attends, his is backwards and is rather trashy. Her school uses digital white boards. The different schools is just one way in which Delia and her husband show which child they prefer. They don't even argue it.

Instead of recessive and dominant genes, Mrs. Adolphi filled the square with the four types of Hanahaki. As she probably will ask them questions, Ash asked her, in an attempt to make her talk, "Mrs. Adolphi, don't you want to explain the illness in general to us before we talk about the four variations it has?"

She stopped and turned to Ash. "That-You are right, Ketchum! I nearly forgot. Thank you for reminding me. Hanahaki is a well known illness. While it rarely ends deadly, it is still harmful. Hanahaki is when flowers grow in a person. These flowers are either flowers of a loved ones, no, nearly every time. The only exception being hate roses.", she said. "If you love someone but they don't reciprocate or they love you but you don't return their feelings, their favorite flowers start to grow in their lungs."

"Imagine your crush loves black roses, that would be confusing!", said one of Ash's classmates. A girl called Green, often considered 'one of the boys'.

"Oh, they can be differentiated, Mrs. Clearwater."

"I won't call green water clear, Mrs. Adolphi.", chimed the class clown in. Green threw a paper ball at it. "Mrs. Adolphi!"

"No, you deserve it, Wally.", said the teacher. "Good throw, Clearwater. What I wanted to say, hate roses have thorns, ones that can cut your innards. These can make Hanahaki deadly. They blossom if a person you love, well, hates you. They are not seen as another variant, just something additional that can appear with the other variants."

She drew a rose onto the chalk board and another one with thorns. The ones with thorns was titled as 'hate rose', an arrow pointing to the thorns. The other one was titled as 'someone loves black roses'. "What an edge lord.", said Green.

Mrs. Adolphi put her attention to the Punnett squares.

The horizontal header was titled as 'romantic' and 'platonic'. The vertical header was marked as 'requiter' and 'lover'. She then underlined 'platonic'.

"Many people assume Hanahaki can only pop up with romantic love. Partly because the first cases of Hanahaki were romantic, and partly because of amatonormativity."

"Amato-what now?", asked Ash. His Pikachu was as confused by the term as his trainer.

"Ask Mr. Coin, he's the literature and philosophy teacher. Now, before I explain the four types, does anyone of you have a question?"

"If you don't die, besides the hate roses, why is the illness so feared?", asked the class clown.

"I articulated myself wrong, it can be deadly even without the roses. But because of our medical progress, the mortality rate is extremely small, nearly zero. You can choke on the plant life, if it doesn't die or is taken out by an operation. Albeit.", she explained, correcting herself in the progress. "It has to be taken out after dying, anyway. The flowers die if the love gets requited or you loose interest. Which happens rarely, as our desire for love can be quite selfish."

"I thought we were in biology, not philosophy?", said another classmate.

"Shut it, Hikari! Anyway, another reason for Hanahaki's infamy is the dying of emotions. If the plants are taken out without the cause of the illness being 'treated', it may happen that you stop feeling love.", explained Mrs. Adolphi. "I think this makes the platonic versions worse. Not being able to feel friendship or familial love, this sounds like a terrible existence! But everyone only cares about the loss of romantic love. Stupid amatonormativity."

"Is it possible to have multiple variants at the same time?", asked Green. "My younger sister claimed one of her classmates had two."

"If she is in two one-sided relationships at the same time, it is very possible. If you are able to catch Hanahaki, you will catch it. Newest studies imply that only people with Aura can have Hanahaki. I will not explain Aura, that is the job of your philosophy teacher. Not that he knows much, considering what he teaches." She never not takes a chance to take a jab at her ex-husband.

"What was that? Familial love?", asked the class clown.

"Yes. Often found in children in abusive or neglectful households or orphans whose parents abandoned them opposed to having died or having their children taken against their will.", explained the teacher. "Hanahaki is a very sad topic. And sadly, very popular topic in sick-lit books. Mrs. Clearwater, please put your book away before I confiscate it." Green put her book away. "The only thing I say about the Aura factor is, is that you don't have to be able to use it to catch Hanahaki. Even if you're very weak with it, you still can get Hanahaki. Most people are unaware they are aura sensitive. Only powerful individuals are aware of it. Well, when they catch Hanahaki."

The class started to chatter about Aura. Mrs. Adolphi sighed and opened the window near Ash. She asked to close it when it bothers him. After a while, Mrs. Adolphi managed to make (most) of them focused again.

"The most common variant is when you romantically love someone, but they don't love you. Followed by it's platonic counterpart. Both being treated wrong can cause the inability to love.", explained Mrs. Adolphi, filling in the Punnett square. "The second most rarest is when someone loves you, but you don't. The rarest is the platonic counterpart. These two carry the highest risk of hate flowers, but it isn't unheard of that they pop up in the common variants."

With the open window, Ash felt better. Pikachu didn't, he wanted it closed. Ash felt good enough to chime into the discourse of the lesson. "Mrs. Adolphi, are the romantic variants really the most common ones or do we just assume that because platonic ones are being ignored or not really recognized?"

"This is a great question! I actually have this theory..." She was talking up a storm, half of it being jabs at her husband. His class silently praised him for making her talk and wasting time, mostly though thumbs up. Green looked at him with worry. She is in the same P.E class. She knows he was against being send home. Green doesn't think it is good for him to sit by an open window. She saw the scars. Would she know?

After a while, the speaker in their room started making noise. "Ash Ketchum, please go to the principal's office this instant. Ash Ketchum, please take your things with you." They heard the secretary's coughing and the speaker died down again.

Ash sighed. This is about P.E, isn't it? It would be a wonder if not. He packed his backpack, took Pikachu into his arms and left the room. On the way to the office, he was now the one coughing. No wonder, the floor of the corridor is filthy. Once again, due to the low funding, they can't hire many cleaners. The ones they do hire are overworked. That, or they half-ass it out of spite for the low pay. Or both. Pikachu was bothered by the coughing and jumped off, walking besides Ash. Before he saw a gum on the floor, then he climbed back onto Ash.

Walking into Principal Elm's office, he saw his P.E teacher there. It is because of P.E, of course it is.

"Mr. Elm, Mr. Surge, I..."

"Listen, kid. I let you go because I needed to sort some things out. This is the third time you fainted - in two weeks, mind you - and the first time I saw your injuries.", said Mr. Surge. He is a powerful Pokemon trainer and is a Lieutenant. Until his military service is needed again, he works as a civil servant in other ways. "While you were in Kantonian and Biology, I informed the Child Protective Services and your mother. As well as your father."

"Delia and her husband Alexander are seen as unfit, so you will move to your father. They will pick you up from your mother's place. He already said you'll switch to a school closer to his home.", continued Elm. "You now can go home."

"B-But living with him would make everything worse!", argued Ash.

"According to the CPS, you and Mr. Sakaki have no real contact for years, despite court orders. And before you say he ignores them, according to this writing from the court, you and your mother ignored his attempts at establishing contact. Give him a try, you barely know him.", said Elm. "How can you be sure he's worse than your mother?"

"Does that mean I have to wait that he or his family hurt me before I get taken from him?", asked Ash. He has no contact with his father for reasons. The man hates him, pretends he doesn't exist, he wishes he doesn't exist. He doubts he reached out to the court, that would mean he acknowledged him. People never acknowledge their affair children! His father sure doesn't. Ash is pretty sure his wife won't want him to.

The two teachers didn't answer. In theory, they can't answer with anything but yes. Which doesn't paint a positive picture.

Principal Elm just said, "Satoshi, please go home. You need to rest. Oh, your father took you from our school, so from today, you aren't my pupil anymore."

"D-Do I have to give back Pikachu?", he asked. He got Pikachu from the school as part of the Pokemon trainer classes.

"No, no, Pikachu is yours.", reassured him Elm.

After that, Ash left. He walked out the building to the bikes. He didn't drive his. Not after fainting. And he was thinking. Of course, he is afraid to life with his father and his family. As he is an affair child, he doubts he is welcome. And he has to process he is taken from his school. To be fair, his father lives hours from here, so it makes no sense to attend this school. Maybe he'll be transferred to a better school, so that his father looks better in the public eye. His mom said he cares a lot about his image, so he has a reason to salvage that he has to deal with his affair child.

After a bit over an hour of walking, he already saw his mother's husbands house, a bungalow. In front of it was parked a very expensive car. His step father may afford to send Riko to a private school, but he sure can't afford that kind of car. Not to mention that the garage is too small for such a massive vehicle. Coming closer he saw that someone, three people were at the entrance of the house. His mother, her husband and who he assumes is his biological father. Wait, no, four people. There is someone who looks like a child service worker.

Arriving there, his mother said, "What did you take so long?"

"I had an accident in P.E, I was advised not to be on the bicycle.", lied Ash. Well, it was half a lie. He had an accident of sorts, but it was his idea to walk.

"Well, now you're here, Kawashima-" "Ketchum.", interrupted him Delia, "Satoshi goes by my maiden name, not by my husbands." "Oh, well..."

"Actually, now that Satoshi is under my care and that Delia eliminated her rights, he'll take my name.", chimed his father in.

"If you say so, Mr. Sakaki.", said the social worker. "Satoshi, please pack your things, then you can leave with your father."

"I already packed his things!", said a girl running to the entrance with two bags. She was followed by a Sprigatito. She, like Satoshi – or Ash as he prefers to be called – had black hair, but brilliant blue eyes and pale skin. Different from Ash's tan skin and brown eyes.

"Thank you, Riko.", said Delia proudly, "That is so nice from you."

"I do not trust that you packed everything.", said Ash. "These bags is too small to fit all of my stuff."

His half sister was offended and walked away, her Sprigatito following her, "Than collect your trash yourself. Not like you have much to begin with." She dropped the bag, the bag spilling open.

Ash refilled it and then walked to his room. The social worker and his father wanted to follow him, but Delia blocked his father's way.

"I don't allow you in my house, Giovanni."

"I thought this house is owned by your husband.", said Ash, while walking to the basement. Something can confused the social worker and Giovanni.

"Makes that a difference?", asked the social worker.

"Yeah. Alex at first didn't allow me to be in the house.", explained Ash, "I lived in the shed outside, before a neighbor informed the protective services." The worker noted that down in a notebook.

"And? It is dad's right to decide who lives in here.", chimed Riko in.

Ash opened the door to the basement. Pikachu jumped off his arms and stayed out of the basement. Pikachu too often experienced Riko, and sometimes Alex, locking them into it. The social worker saw the locks on the door.

"Locking from the outside.", he muttered while taking notes. Walking in, he saw that the basement was pretty shit to put it likely. He was sure he smelled mold. In one corner was a mattress, an old used thing. In a beaten down dresser were a few clothes. Some of them with holes. Seeing this, he couldn't fathom why his coworkers green-lit the Kawashima's. While the dresser was nearly empty, Ash took out a backpack and a box out of it. He put the box in it and collected smaller objects, as well as a few books, before putting them into his school back and back pack. The two came out of the basement.

They then were hushed out by Delia's husband, Alex. Before Alex could close the door, Ash asked the social worker, "Do I have to go with Sakaki? He and his family won't be better than the Kawashima's, probably worse."

Now Giovanni was the insulted one. Alex said, "No, you are his responsibility now."

"Never said I'll want to stay with you, I just wonder why we can't skip a step and send me to an orphanage directly.", said Ash.

The social worker asked, "What do you mean? Skip a step?"

"He won't treat me much different, I am taken from the Kawashima's because of that, so it is just a question until I am being taken from him.", replied Ash matter of factually. The Kawashima's closed their door. "So why not skip that? You probably read my file, he is essentially a stranger to me."

Now Giovanni had to say something. "I won't! I and Ariana raised you from your birth, until you were three. We never hurt you in these three years."

"Yeah, but you gave me to mom and cut contact after these three years.", countered Ash. The social worker was taking notes. "And mom said you demanded retroactively child support from her."

"I never-Who told you that?!", asked Giovanni angrily.

"Mom did."

"Of course she did...", he said defeated. "Now get into the car."

"No.", said Ash.

"Why are you assuming Mr. Sakaki would be like that, if you're estranged?", asked the social worker. Giovanni found it odd he brushed over Ash's refusal to go.

"We are estranged for a reason. If mom and her family do that, why shouldn't the Sakaki's? Same situation with the difference that the Sakaki's are rich. Unwanted affair child for one, hated step child for the others."

Giovanni sighed again and pinched his nose bridge. "Where the heck do you have that idea from? Just because the Kawashima's does that doesn't mean we will.", he said annoyed. "Every time I offered to take you and do stuff with you, they never harmed you. Oh wait, you constantly rejected."

"Maybe if your offers won't include your wife and Silver, maybe I would accept.", replied Ash. Pikachu started to get worried. He knows the Kawashima's won't let them in, but his trainer won't get moving to a new place to stay.

"Fine, then we will spend a week alone. No Ariana and no Silver.", proposed Giovanni.

"That would be suicide on my part."

Giovanni sighed again, "Sato-" "Call me Ash. I hate being called Satoshi." "Ash, get in the car, please. Let me disprove your claims."

"No."

"You know,", said the social worker, phone in hand, "I could call the police to bring you to Sakaki's home. Alternatively, I could send you to an orphanage, but that would mean you have to give up your Pikachu and trainer's license until you get adopted or turn eighteen. I can't guarantee you get your exact Pikachu back, then."

"What?!", asked Ash in shock. His mother barely allowed him to keep Pikachu, he won't let Pikachu be taken from him. "Fine, I go with the Sakaki cunt-"

"Satoshi!", yelled Giovanni. His voice was jumping Riko, who had been watching the drama from a window.

"What? That is what I think of you.", retorted Ash. "Already regretting taking me in?"

"Get in the car, Sa-Ash.", said Giovanni, remembering his son's name preference. He can't loose his cool, not in front of a social worker, that is just what Satoshi wants.

Started: 19th July 2023

Edited: 26th August 2023\3rd September 2023

Finished: 20th July 2023

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