Landing in the outskirts of Viridian Forest, Ash groaned as he climbed off of Pidgeot's back and began to stretch his legs.

"Thanks girl," he said, patting the pokemon on her side. "It's just been a little while since I last flew and I had forgotten how cramped up my legs tend to get while flying." Pidgeot cooed at her trainer, and gently nipped at his hair before beginning to preen herself.

Though he wanted to just flop onto the ground and wait for his muscles to relax, Ash knew that if he sat down then he certainly wouldn't be getting up again. Thinking to himself as he began to set up camp, Ash realized that really had let his muscles atrophy somewhat when he was in Alola.

Now that he had set up his tent and bedroll, Ash sat down outside of it with a satisfied groan, glad that it was still summer so he didn't need to gather wood for a fire. Taking out his pokedex, Ash started scanning through the entries for Primeape as Pikachu curled up in his lap with a happy coo. It seemed, contrary to what he had thought many years ago, that primeape as a species could actually learn a wide variety of moves. Though, it was likely that Primeape had stuck to moves that would help him win fights in the ring, so he probably wouldn't have a massive amount of variety. But really, he wouldn't know until he saw his old pokemon again. Luckily, Ash didn't even have to look up the entries for blastoise to know roughly what his other old friend would know. Since he was working as a firefighter, it was very likely that most of his moveset would be focused around water-type moves, with maybe a couple fighting or normal ones to help him move things around or off of people.

As he thought about the pokemon that he was about to see for the first time in many years, Ash realized that he didn't actually know what moves Pidgeot knew. Turning around and facing her, Ash asked, "Pidgeot, would you mind showing me what moves you've learned? I can always use my pokedex to check but it only shows the four most recent ones that you've used, and not everything you can do. And also, then I can see what moves we should work on when we get back to Oak's lab."

Pidgeot seemed to be amenable to this suggestion, and screeched loudly before flapping her wings and taking to the skies, circling around for a moment before flying a little ways away from Ash and turning toward some nearby trees.

Letting out yet another cry, Pidgeot seemed to flow a brilliant white as she suddenly flapped her wings in tandem, causing what seemed to be a powerful current of air to slash towards the trees. Before this could even hit the trees however, she was already moving once more, this time shedding a massive quantity of feathers towards the ground before furiously flapping her wings once more, creating a gale of wind that began to circle around the feathers. Ash gasped as he saw the attack that couldn't be anything other than a powerful hurricane form, but quickly focused his attention back on Pidgeot, as she had begun to grow a brilliant white. Opening her beak, Pidgeot let out an ear-piercing cry as a hyper beam shot out, piercing the hurricane and splitting in twain.

This final attack had seemed to tire the pokemon out however, and with one final screech, she circled her trainer before gracefully landing beside him. Quickly leaping to his feet, Ash rushed to Pidgeot and nearly tackled her with a hug, cheering all the while.

"Pidgeot, that was so cool! And I would bet those aren't your only moves, right? Just some of your stronger ones." Here, the bird pokemon almost seemed to blush, tucking her head under her wing before taking it out and chirping at her trainer as she nuzzled him with her large head. "That's so awesome. Although it's probably good that you stopped then, since we have quite a ways to fly tomorrow, and I'm counting on you and Pikachu to point me the right way!" Ash excitedly said, before rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "Since I forgot that we had to go north first, of course. I mean now we go east, so I wasn't totally wrong!"

Pikachu and Pidgeot looked at each other in amusement, as Ash quickly began to babble to his pokemon once again, and they all began to settle in for the night.

Touching down outside of the house which one of his oldest pokemon had called home for many years, Ash felt his heart begin to pound its way through his chest, and recalled Pidgeot with nary a thought. Barely noticing Pikachu patting him on the head, Ash walked up to the door almost in a stupor, and was only shocked out of it by the door suddenly opening before he even had a chance to knock.

"Ash!" the giant of a man cried, crushing the teenager in a hug. "It's so good to see the trainer of my star pupil after so many years." Letting the stunned trainer go, Anthony looked at Ash, who was only just recovering from the hug. "You're lookin good kid. Much better than the skinny runt who left Primeape with me so long ago." This statement finally seemed to remind Ash of where he was, and the trainer looked up at the taller man with annoyance.

"Who you calling a runt? I was 10 then, of course I was short! And where's Primeape? I didn't come here just to hear you insult me." With the last comment slipping out of his mouth, Ash winced, before seeing Anthony crack up at his brash attitude, and slap him on the back before turning back into the house.

"Good to see that you have some fight in ya. You'd certainly have to have a bit of fire to deal with that hot-headed Primeape of yours." Raising his voice, he called out, "hey Primeape! Where ya at, ya lazy ape?"

A crash echoed from farther back in the house, before a loud screech was uttered and a furry pokemon came ambling out. Seeing Ash standing next to Anthony seemed to get the pokemon excited, and Primeape let out a shrill cry before launching his muscular body directly at his trainer. Knocked prone, Ash couldn't do anything but laugh and hug his old pokemon back, glad to see him after so many years.

"Primeape! I missed you too buddy. I'm glad to have you back, and excited to see how strong you've gotten!"

The mere mention of his strength and battling prowess got the pig-monkey pokemon worked up however, and the pokemon jumped off of Ash before throwing his fists at Pikachu and moving into what was unmistakably a fighting stance.

"I guess Primeape wants to fight you before he comes back Ash! Come on out back, we've got our training grounds there." Anthony was chuckling as he walked through his house and exited out the back door, Primeape following close behind. Ash and Pikachu looked at each other for a moment before beginning to laugh themselves. They shouldn't have expected anything different from their old friend; he was a prime example of his species after all.

Standing on one end of a dirt training field, Ash grinned as he stared at the bouncing form of his first fighting-type. Primeape seemed to be raring to go, bouncing from one foot to another and occasionally screeching at Pikachu, who stood on Ash's side of the field, cheeks crackling with electricity.

"Hey Primeape, you ready to go?" Hearing a positive response, Ash took a step backwards as he called out to Pikachu. "Start out with a thunderbolt buddy! Let's test him out."

Letting out a small cry, Pikachu darted forward as he shot out a bolt of electricity at Primeape, only for the other pokemon to bounce out of the way. The fighting-type then proceeded to charge forward at Pikachu, before suddenly speeding up, with his fist blasting at the mouse. Without any commands, Pikachu rolled out of the way of Primeape's fist and blasted a wave of electricity at the pig-monkey that was too fast to dodge.

"Good job Pikachu, now back up and prep an electroweb! It looks like Primeape is pretty fast so we need to slow him down. Try to avoid getting hit too; those punches could do a whole lot of damage."

Nodding in response, Pikachu began to shape his electricity into the shape of a web, and then prepared to fire it at Primeape, who was just finishing shaking the shocks out of his fur. Before Pikachu could attack however, Primeape screeched loudly at the electric-type, causing him to flinch slightly, and then charged at the smaller pokemon in a flurry of blows. The two pokemon began a frenzied dance, with Primeape trying his best to hit the more agile pokemon and Pikachu doing his best to avoid getting slammed.

While Ash couldn't tell exactly what the moves Primeape was using were, he could determine that the pokemon seemed to be using many different attacks, rather than just sticking with one. Coming to a decision, he called out to Pikachu, "you're not gonna win like that buddy! Get ready, and when you have an opportunity slam an iron tail into the ground!"

Pikachu didn't audibly respond to this, but Ash saw his ears twitch in response. What actually confirmed that his partner had heard him though, was when, the moment Pikachu had a moment to breathe, he whacked his shimmering tail into the dirt, sending grit directly into Primeape's eyes. Primeape screamed in anger and pain, but even as he was blinded he managed to shoot a foot out and send Pikachu flying with a glowing foot. This momentary victory didn't calm the pokemon down however, and he began to show the rage that his species was known for as he dug his fists further into his eyes. Seeing that his pokemon seemed to be getting quite frustrated, Ash called out to Pikachu, who had been thrown back quite a ways and was just picking himself up from the ground.

"Let's finish this up buddy, but keep your distance. I think he's gonna start thrashing soon and you wouldn't be able to take too many of those blows. Hit him with thunderbolts and electro balls, but keep moving in a circle, don't let him know where you are."

Heeding his trainer's commands, Pikachu began to run in circles around Primeape, shooting out thunderbolts as he went. As he was hit by each bolt of electricity, Primeape snarled and turned in that direction, only to be startled as he was hit from behind. It didn't take long before the fighting-type was looking worn out, but the last shocks had finally helped to get the dirt out of his eyes. Now glaring at the mouse, Primeape screeched once more and charged at the mouse, a faint glow surrounding him as his fists flew.

"Alright Pikachu," Ash called to the mouse, who looked pretty tired himself, "let's finish this with a move we haven't used in a while! Use volt tackle!"

As Primeape got ever closer, Pikachu turned and charged right at him, electricity wreathing his form.

"Pika, pika, pika, pika, pika, pika, chu!"

Pikachu slammed into the larger pokemon, creating a small explosion as his tiny body blasted the larger one back, sending Primeape flying into the dirt. As the mouse panted from the exertion, he looked to see that the other pokemon was unmoving, and had his eyes closed in unconsciousness. Here, Pikachu turned to his partner and gave him a thumbs-up, cheering.

"Good job buddy!" Ash called as he reached into a pocket. Pulling out a miniaturized pokeball, Ash enlarged it and pointed it at Primeape, recalling him and placing the ball onto his belt. Pikachu proceeded to run towards Ash and jump up to his shoulder, earning himself a scratch behind the ears.

"Nice battle you two," Anthony yelled from the sidelines as he walked towards the pair. "Lucky that Primeape's a bit out of practice with traditional battling though. He's a lot stronger than that in the ring, but most fighting types would never use those kind of tactics."

"I'm counting on it!" Ash exclaimed, mirroring his partner's earlier gesture. "If the rest of his moves are as strong as the hit that he got on Pikachu then we'll have no problem." Here he took a different pokeball and released Pidgeot, climbing onto her back as he did so. "I'd love to stay and talk, but I want to get to Saffron before dark, and I want to get Pikachu and Primeape to a pokemon center too."

"No problem there. Just make sure that you shoot me a line every now and then so I can see how Primeape's doing! He's been here for quite a while so I'd to hear from him every once in a while."

"Of course! I'll make sure that I call so that you can talk to him, although I can't promise how often that will be." Waving goodbye, Ash urged Pidgeot to take to the skies as they turned towards Saffron, and Sabrina.

The next morning, as he walked from a pokemon center to the Saffron gym, Ash pondered what he would find at the gym. Last time he had interacted with Sabrina in person had been many years ago, and she wasn't exactly sane when that happened. While she hadn't seemed too off when he had spoken with her on the phone over the years, he still didn't totally know what to expect, and was justifiably nervous.

Steeling himself, Ash took a deep breath and pushed the double doors of the gym open, stepping inside. After only a couple steps inside the gym, Ash reeled back as a figure silently appeared directly in front of him. Taking a second to calm himself, Ash blinked as a kadabra had teleported to him, and was currently reaching out its hand.

"Do you want me to take your hand?" As he asked this, Ash felt something in his mind give an affirmative response, albeit without vocalisation.

Though he didn't have any psychic types himself, luckily, Ash had helped to train a number of them, and wasn't too alarmed by this action. Deciding that it was probably fine, Ash reached out and gently laid his hand on top of the kadabra's, only to immediately be transported to what looked to be a different part of the gym. Turning towards the only other figure within this larger room, Ash noticed the kadabra crossing its arms before vanishing from the room with a small flash.

"Hello Ash Ketchum."

"Hi Sabrina," Ash sighed as he walked towards the older woman, who at present was levitating cross-legged in the middle of what appeared to be a training arena. "Little bit flashy there, but it certainly got me here faster."

Amusement flashed across the gym-leader's face, and she looked towards Ash with a small smile on her face. "I am glad you decided to visit me, and quicker than I expected. I will do you the courtesy of not speaking inside your mind, as I have been told that it can make some uncomfortable."

Ash rubbed the back of his head and looked towards Pikachu, who gave a partial shrug, before replying. "I appreciate the thought, although it doesn't bother me that much anymore. Too many psychics and psychic-types speaking in my head for me to not be used to it by now. But what did you want to talk about? I'd love to see Haunter, but you made it sound like there was something else too."

Sabrina seemed to lose some of her mirth at this, and gained a serious expression before suddenly dropping to the floor as her shadow reached out and pinched her. Rubbing her back in discomfort, she grumbled before standing up as her hands began to glow blue with power. Sabrina reached back towards her moving shadow, and almost reached inside it before drawing out her fist, which was closed around a laughing spectre.

"Well, you did want to see Haunter, so here he is. He's become quite a handful recently, although that may be my fault, as I mentioned that you were going to be visiting and he became excited." Releasing the ghost, Haunter swooped around Sabrina's head for a moment before floating over to Ash. With obvious glee, Haunter dipped down in front of the teen and stuck out his tongue before gripping his eye socket in his hand and wrenching it down, revealing a rapidly circling eyeball. Seeing that he had successfully startled Ash, the ghost-type cackled and grabbed Pikachu in his disembodied hands, looping up towards the ceiling and tossing the mouse back and forth.

Sabrina raised her brow at Ash as he just seemed to laugh at his partner's predicament, and made no move to get him down. Seeing her expression, Ash chuckled. "Pikachu's fine. It's pretty obvious that Haunter is just happy to see us, and he's not making any attempt to hurt Pikachu. If he was, well then Pikachu would just stop him. We may be out of practice, but we're certainly not weak anymore."

"Indeed. In that case, maybe it would be best if Haunter were to travel with you for a time. He does like to spend most of his time in my shadow, and that way you have another pokemon who is ready most of the time."

"Sure, I'd be happy to have Haunter come with me, but what do you mean by having another pokemon ready? Is something happening in Kanto?"

Here Sabrina sighed deeply, before seating herself on the ground and motioning for Ash to do the same. "I have been avoiding this conversation for some time, but it is clear that it must happen now, before events start to begin in force. I have been following your journey for some time Ash, even the parts that are hidden from most of the populace. I believe you are aware of what I am referring to, and the events in Alola as of late are no exception."

Ash grimaced as he looked up, although his usual distraction was still getting tossed around by Haunter. Ash sighed as he leaned back on his hands, before looking back towards Sabrina. "Yes… I am aware of what you're referring to, although I am curious about how exactly you've heard about these things. As far as I know, gym-leaders don't usually have the clearance to hear about many of these events."

Sabrina allowed herself a small grin at these words, and laughed lightly before replying. "Who says I was given clearance? I simply receive flashes of the events in question, and if I don't, well, it's not that hard to gain access myself." Once more becoming more serious, Sabrina leaned forward and stared intently at Ash. "I am aware you are the subject of many prophecies, Ash, and even more aware that you have been in contact with many, many legendaries. They have left their marks on you, in more ways than one. No one else has survived even a fraction of your encounters with legends unscathed. To have done so is both a blessing and a curse. It is clear to you, I am sure, that you no longer have much of a choice in your interactions with the legendaries, and you will be drawn in whether you like it or not."

Seeing Ash nod, albeit unwillingly, in response to her words, Sabrina continued. "It is not fair that you must deal with this on your own, but nevertheless, you must." It was at this point that Sabrina's eyes began to glow brightly, causing Ash to sit up in alarm and Pikachu and Haunter to quickly dive down and hover over Ash's shoulder. Sabrina's voice seemed to take on an unearthly quality as her eyes became unfocused. "Ash Ketchum. Chosen One. The convergence has begun, and once more the fate of our world is in your hands. The hands of time are frozen, and the keepers of power are helpless to act. Only through your actions may we be saved, and though we may help you, it is only through you that we may avoid complete destruction. Everyone's lives hang in the balance, and it is up to you to save them. Good luck."

With these last words, Sabrina slumped to the ground, eyes closed in apparent pain. Crying out in alarm, Ash rushed to her side and lifted her up, only for Sabrina to grimace and push herself upright, rubbing her eyes before opening them.

"Well that was unpleasant. While I knew that I needed to speak with you, I didn't know that was going to happen."

"Are you okay? What was that anyway?"

"That, Ash Ketchum, is what happens when a powerful legend decides to take over the body of a psychic to speak with the chosen one." Seeing that Ash was about to apologize, Sabrina held up her palm. "It is not your fault, although I do wish they would find less painful ways of doing this, as it is getting quite tiresome. However, I must rest now, so it would be best for you to depart." Shakily getting to her feet, Sabrina held out her hand, only for a pokeball to appear in it and a powerful looking Alakazam to teleport next to her.

"Here is Haunter's pokeball, although I warn you that he is not fond of it and will prefer to spend his time in your shadow whenever possible. I only suggest putting him in there during long flights. Now if you wouldn't mind, I must rest. Kadabra," here she snapped her fingers, causing the same kadabra that had teleported Ash to Sabrina to appear, "will take you back to the pokemon center. I will wish to speak with you about what I said in the future, but that time is not now."

Ash scrambled to his feet, and held out his hands for Pikachu, as Haunter dove into his shadow. A chill ran up the trainer's spine as he realized that it would probably take a while to get used to the ghost. Unlike psychics, Ash hadn't had nearly as much experience with ghosts, and he had no real idea of how to deal with or train them. "Thank you for all your help Sabrina, and I wish you a swift recovery." Here Ash gave a short bow, which Sabrina matched with a smile and inclination of her head.

"Thank you. Kadabra?" Its spoon flashing with psychic power, Ash and his pokemon suddenly appeared within the lobby of the pokemon center he was staying at. Kadabra looked at the trainer for a moment before disappearing again, presumably returning to the gym.

Flopping down on the nearest couch, Ash groaned in frustration. As Haunter emerged from his shadow with a grin, Ash put his arm over his eyes.

"Why is it always me?"

Pikachu patted his arm in sympathy. Haunter cackled and pinched his other arm.

A/N:Hey y'all. Apologies for the delay on this one, work has been a pain. Further apologies for any grammatical errors you may find. I had a massive headache today and wasn't able to edit it properly, but didn't want to delay any longer. This also means that the spacing might be a little off, but if it is I'll fix it in the near future. Also, would anyone be opposed to some minor swearing in this fic? Wouldn't be anything severe, but as I'm writing this Ash I find it harder to not just drop some as stuff becomes a little more serious. Might mean I would have to up the rating to T, but that would be it. As always, thanks for reading, and let me know what you think.