The whole group of them went indoors, because having such a big conversation just outside the doors of the Space-Time Towers was a bit too awkward, and thanks to Palkia's help they could fit just fine.

Possibly they would have fit even without her help, but it wasn't clear.

"So!" Dawn began, hugging Piplup and then Turtwig. "I guess you've got some questions about what happened, right?"

"Lots of them," Pachirisu mumbled, curled around Dawn's neck and not looking likely to let go any time soon.

"Time travel, right?" Cynthia asked. "And, specifically, travel to the past. The outfit reminds me of some old illustrations, the Pokéballs would be antiques if you hadn't come with them straight here from hundreds of years ago, and you look older plus there were all those space-time distortions."

"I think time-space distortions is a better name," Dialga said, very quietly.

"And, I guess those two other Pokémon are, other Pokémon I created?" Ash guessed. "Only, I haven't done it yet because I don't remember doing it."

He frowned. "Uh, sorry for not knowing your names."

"No sweat, Dad, we know how your comprehension works," the Suicune-alike said, waving a hand dismissively. "So I'm Walking Wake and sis here is Iron Leaves. And you're right, we haven't been created yet, but, time travel specialists."

Iron Leaves nodded. "We're twins, but I think saying much more than that about how we came about would be spoilers."

"Spoilers?" Pikachu asked. "What's a spoiler?"

"I think I heard of it once?" Ash said. "It's when you're told something out of order, right?"

"Ooh, nice," Walking Wake declared. "That's a much better summary than I would have given."

Cynthia sent out Lucario to translate for her and Alice, and possibly Dawn, since Ash seemed to be a bit too frazzled to keep doing that.

"What happened to you, Dawn?" Turtwig demanded.

"I'm curious about that, too," Ash said. "You just… vanished, so I guess you got sent back in time by a time distortion?"

"I've been looking at what I can find out, little brother," Dialga told him. "I think the time distortion was caused by the fact that… Dawn… had not gone back in time yet."

"Which is about par for the course with this stuff," Palkia said.

"I did go back in time, yes," Dawn agreed. "I landed on a beach not far from where Twinleaf Town would be, in Hisui, without any of my Pokémon – but with a phone that sometimes sent me helpful hints."

"Oh, actually, Dad, can you ask Dawn for that phone?" Iron Leaves asked. "I sort of need to check what's on it so we can send her those hints."

"Iron Leaves would like to have a look at the phone, so she can send you the hints you got," Ash passed on.

It made sense once you thought about it, so long as you were willing to accept that that sort of thing was possible.

Ash thought.

"Thanks," Dawn told her, rummaging in her pocket and getting out a white phone, which Iron Leaves picked up using a pink whirl of psychic energy. "Will I get it back afterwards? I've got some photos on there that Cynthia should see."

Cynthia sat back with a silly grin on her face.

Dawn shot her a fond look. "That's one of the things I've been looking forward to for six months, seeing you react to all the notes and things I took… anyway, I met Professor Laventon and then journeyed around for, well, six months, catching Pokémon and solving the problems caused by, I think, the space-time distortion at that end."

She nodded at Dialga and Palkia. "Which included calming down these two."

"...we were both very stressed out," Palkia defended herself. "By the way, why was she Akari in the past?"

Ash passed that one on, and Dawn chuckled.

"Uh," she began. "Actually, I was tying not to break history too obviously by calling myself by my own name. I didn't want to end up named after myself or something."

Then she pointed at Cynthia. "Speaking of breaking history! That person with the book you've got, Volo, right? I'm pretty sure they're your ancestor or something, and so is someone else I met. Hey, Iron Leaves, can I show her?"

Iron Leaves had been doing something with the phone, and floated it back to Dawn with a nod.

Dawn fiddled with the phone, then held it up for them to see – both Volo, and also their team.

Garchomp tilted her head. "Okay, that's a weird coincidence. Hisuian Arcanine instead of Milotic, but apart from that that could be us."

"Oh!" Dawn added, lowering the phone again. "Sorry, I'm – I've been waiting for this for months and there's so much to – most of my team I left back in Hisui because it's where they were from and they wanted to stay there, but I brought two back with me. Don't forget to say hi, girls!"

The first Pokémon to come out was almost the same as the Sneasel that Ash had met in the past, but with a white-purple body and purple feathers instead of a black body and red feathers.

"Good day," she said, with a bow.

"Are you all right?" Lucario asked his trainer. "Your face hasn't moved in several minutes."

"This is Sneasel, she's new," Dawn explained. "Sneasel, these are the other three Pokémon I have who are interested in doing Contests – Piplup, Turtwig, and Pachirisu up here."

"Oh, she's interested in Contests, huh?" Turtwig said. "...sorry, but what Type are you? I can't tell."

"Fighting and Poison," Sneasel answered. "I know, not the kind you're used to."

"Neat," Turtwig declared.

"Should be interesting to see what you're made of," Piplup judged. "I'm Piplup, I'm the one in charge around here."

"You are not," Turtwig snorted. "Dawn is, maybe."

"He said that to me too, early on," Pachirisu said. "I think he wants to say it to enough new team members that eventually he'll have a majority."

Piplup huffed, turning up his beak.

Dawn laughed.

"I've missed you guys so much," she said, patting Piplup on the head and mollifying him a bit.

Then she sent out the other Pokémon she'd brought back with her, which was much bigger. A big, tough Samurott, with near-black shell armour marked by curved and swirled red markings, the Water-type sat down on her haunches and considered Piplup, Turtwig and Pachirisu levelly.

"So," she asked. "Going to say you're in charge around here?"

Piplup thought visibly.

"When it comes to joint routines, yes," he decided.

Samurott snorted, but seemed amused enough.

Dawn checked something else on her phone, then nodded. "Okay, I think I got everything done… I didn't miss anything I had to do before I came back, right?"

Walking Wake shrugged.

"You're asking the wrong Pokémon," he said. "We were done, right sis?"

"Almost," Iron Leaves replied. "There's still-"

"When you said mom, who did you mean?" Latias interrupted. "Sorry but – I've been wondering that for…"

She trailed off as both the new Pokémon started sniggering.

"Spoilers," Walking Wake declared. "No, seriously, you'll work it out."

"I have to ask this," Dialga said, leaning down. "But since the two of you are capable of time travel… why are there two of you? Did my little brother create you in a pair for some reason?"

"Oh, well, the details are a bit complicated and spoilers, Uncle Dialga," Iron Leaves said earnestly. "But the simple version is, we work as a team."

"Sis here handles the future and I do the past!" Walking Wake explained, thumping a claw into the part of his furry mane that covered his chest. "See, when you're running you can see where you're going, and that's what going to the past is like."

"And when you slice a hole in the world to step through, you're going into the unknown," Iron Leaves completed, making a blade of energy spring from her forehead for a moment. "And that's what going to the future is like."

"Relax, we're trained to do this," Walking Wake added. "We got the help of the best expert there is, uncle – you."

Dialga considered.

"Checks out," he decided. "Honestly this is explaining a lot about why Akari looked so confusing when I saw her."

"When we saw her," Palkia corrected. "She was displaced in time as well as space… actually, can you two do travel in space as well?"

"We mostly do time," Iron Leaves replied. "Sorry, Aunt Palkia. But Koraidon and Miraidon have lots of ways of moving long distances, and Mew can teleport because they're, you know, a Mew."

"Our oldest sister isn't here right now," Miraidon said, finally remembering to revert out of Ultimate Mode and raising their paw. "But she probably could be."

"This is amazing," Alice declared. "After my grandmother helped Darkrai I thought it was special to have heard of meeting one Legendary Pokémon, and today…"

"Your grandmother?" Darkrai inquired.

Lucario decided to translate that as well.

As he did, though, Samurott came over to Ash, and bowed her head.

"I have a request, Son of the Creator," she said. "There is someone who has done a great wrong, but who can be taught to do the right thing with your assistance. I would like you to make sure that will happen, and to make a confession of my own wrongdoing."

"Uh," Ash began, not really sure how to react. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, yeah, that's the last thing on our checklist, right sis?" Walking Wake checked. "At least, the last thing for now."

"Think so," Iron Leaves agreed. "Don't worry, Dad, it's all transfer orbit."

That just made Ash more confused.

"Slang again, sis," Walking Wake hinted. "That's not a saying yet."

"Oops," Iron Leaves said. "Well, anyway."

She gave Samurott an encouraging nod.

"You're going to need Unown, though," Walking Wake added. "You can pick up big sis at the same time, actually, then we can get this sorted out."

Koraidon was pleased to meet Dialga and Palkia, and delighted to meet Walking Wake and Iron Leaves, and that plus Dawn explaining a bit of how she'd had to give Giratina a bit of therapy in the past actually took quite some time.

"It was tricky, but… well, Samurott pulled me though," she concluded. "That and Cynthia's advice, and stuff… you know, about perspective. That's how I was able to realize that Volo was just hurting too."

Samurott glanced at her, then swallowed.

"I think it's time," she said. "Is it?"

"Good enough, probably," Iron Leaves answered, tossing her head. "Ready, bro?"

She held out a hoof, and Walking Wake bumped it with a fist.

There was a blue flash, and they were all in a field.

It took Ash a moment to recognize it. Earth and flowers raining down – no, frozen, held static in the act of raining down. Absol. Hunter J – and, a little distance away, himself and the others.

All unmoving.

"Impressive," Dialga said. "My compliments to your teacher, this is a well handled time stop."

Palkia stifled a sigh.

"Why are we here?" Koraidon asked, curious. "Again, I mean. I know why we were here the first time."

"Because what I want to ask for is the best thing that happened to me," Samurott replied. "And I mean that sincerely. Dawn… she didn't know who I was, but for the first time I had a friend."

Ash realized what she meant.

"...you're Hunter J, aren't you?" he asked.

"I was," Samurott replied, looking back at Dawn again – this time looking contrite, and vulnerable. "I'm sorry, Dawn. I could have found a way to tell you, but-"

Dawn punched her lightly on the shoulder.

"If you're sad about not telling me, I guessed there was something," she replied. "But you've been a good and loyal friend. If a bit… you know. Edgy."

"It might be genetic," Sneasel suggested.

"Watch it, tiny," Samurott said, but she sagged slightly in relief.

"Unown?" Ash said. "What they're talking about, with J being turned into… an Oshawott, I guess? That's something I can do with your help, right?"

"Correct," Unown confirmed. "Do you wish to do this? I assume you want it to happen in frozen time, allowing us to exit this time stop without any visible evidence."

Ash took a breath, then nodded.

"Yes," he confirmed.

AN:

Okay, now I'm done leaving updates that have some of the characteristics of sticks of dynamite.

For a bit.