The flight from Galar to Kanto took them nine hours in total. Of course, Dragonite needed to take two breaks on the way there, but Ash couldn't fault him for that. Nevertheless it was a long journey, and by the time Dragonite landed in the wooded wilds of the Kanto region, Ash decided to take some time to let his pokemon properly recover. At this point his concern had ebbed, and he was convinced that his mother was merely asleep and that she had merely forgotten to re place the home phone on the charger. So he set to work alongside Pikachu and Lucario setting up camp and building a fire. Not long after Ash and his pokemon were tearing into some food that he whipped up for them. Of course, it couldn't hold a candle to the meals his Mom could make. He drooled just thinking of such a thing. Maybe he could get her to make him something special for breakfast? Yeah, he would definitely have to try it.
Ash waited a little while, and soon the sun was starting to rise. He checked his geolocator just to be sure, and sure enough discovered that he and his pokemon were in Viridian Forest. Of course Ash had been through Viridian Forest before, but just as it always is the forest was an absolute maze. "Lucario, do you think you can get up in the canopy and see if you can spot Viridian City?" Ash asked, turning to his partner and ace. "Kar!" His Lucario replied, nodding it's affirmation before leaping straight into the trees. It scaled the closest tree in mere seconds before planting itself firmly on top of it, looking into the distance. It cried out, pointing in a certain direction. Ash, nodding, recalled the rest of his pokemon. He would be home soon.
It was still dark when Ash finally reached his childhood home. Fog had sprung up within the last hour, making visibility a problem. As he rounded the last hill on the way to the sleepy little town he called home, Ash frowned. All the lights were out in the house, even the front porch. Taking his keys from his pocket, Ash made to unlock the front door before realizing that not only was it not locked, but it was slightly ajar. I know we live in a safe town, but Mom has got to be more careful than this! He silently berated, heading inside. Closing the door behind him, Ash stumbled through the dark, nearly tripping and breaking his neck, which, again, was odd. Even with his eyes closed, Ash should have been able to traverse the familiar house. Did Mom move the furniture around? He thought absentmindedly, feeling around the living room for the light switch. Hde found it, flipping it up and turning on the lights. And the room was an absolute mess. Mail and pictures were scattered about the floor, the sofa had been pushed away from the wall and the television screen was broken. Concerned, Ash's gaze darted over to the stairs, whereupon his heart caught in his throat. Here and there amongst the stairs was something red. It was in spots along the bottom floor and patches on the handrail. Suddenly full of energy, Ash dashed up the stairs, and bolted down the hallway. His mother's door was open. She never slept with the door open. No. No. No no nononono. She's fine. She tripped over the T.V. stand and forget to clean up the blood before she went to bed. She's perfectly fine. Mom is fine. He thought to himself, more prayer than convincing argument. He walked in her room, turning on the lights, and fell to his knees in absolute shock. There, beside her bed, was his mother. She was curled in a ball, her beautiful hazel eyes still open and staring at him. Red painted her neck, her sun dress, the ends of her light brown hair. It was pooled around her still, lifeless and pale frame. "No. No. No no no no NO!" Rushing to her side, Ash shouted his plea to the world, but no one answered. He knelt next to her, cradling her head. "Mom? Listen to me- Mom? Wake up! Mom, I need you to talk to me. Mom? MOM! Mom, answer me! Please no, Mom! Don't do this to me- you can't! Don't leave me! MOM? MOM!"