"A small token—please accept it."
A graceful woman, gentle in demeanor, handed Lucas a shopping bag labeled "Kanto Specialty."
Her name was Delia.
Her role? Simply that of an ordinary, yet remarkable, mother.
Beside Delia, Ash—wearing clothes painstakingly sewn by his mother—scratched his head and apologized to Lucas. "Sorry, big bro Lucas, Mom insisted on coming along."
"Pika pi."
On his shoulder, Pikachu gave Ash an exasperated look.
After traveling for so long, how was Ash still so lacking in social tact?
Sure enough, Delia frowned, a little annoyed. "You! Didn't I say I'd go back to Pallet Town as soon as I saw you arrive safely?"
"This is the first time you've traveled so far from home!"
Ash knew he was in the wrong and dared not say another word.
Delia truly cared for Ash. When she heard he'd be training in the distant Paldea region before the Silver Conference, she didn't stop him. Instead, she agreed, on the condition that she personally take him there and back.
A model mother, through and through.
Lucas, holding the "Kanto Specialty" bag, smiled and stepped in to ease the tension. "Miss Delia, would you like to come in for a cup of hot tea?"
His gentle interruption made Delia realize she'd lost her composure. She blushed, straightened her hair, and waved her hand apologetically. "No need to trouble you. I have to catch the next flight home."
Ash, however, shifted stances and elongated his tone, "Eh—leaving already?"
Delia shot him a sidelong glance, mildly speechless at her son's contradictions.
He was just wishing I'd leave, and now he pulls this? Oh well—what can you do, he's my own child.
She ruffled Ash's hair and, seeing his puffed cheeks and slight sulkiness, reminded him, "I'll be back to pick you up. Don't trouble Mr. Lucas while I'm gone, all right?"
Ash, who had just started to feel sad, immediately thought his mom was nagging again.
Ignoring him, Delia patted Pikachu's head. "You too, Pikachu. I'm counting on you to look after Ash~"
"Pi~ka."
Pikachu closed its eyes, clearly enjoying the affection.
Delia came and went quickly.
Lucas didn't try to stop her, even though he had plenty of ways to ensure she wouldn't miss her flight. With Dragonite or even Calyrex's help, Delia could easily return safely to Kanto.
But Lucas realized Delia, as a mother, understood her presence might make Ash feel less free. So she chose not to stay.
What a wise and considerate mother.
After seeing Delia off, Lucas led Ash—face alight with excitement—and Pikachu toward the farm.
They hadn't gone far when noises came from Ash's backpack.
Ash hurriedly set it down and called out, "Ah! Larvitar, are you awake?"
Larvitar!?
Lucas froze as Ash unzipped his bag and asked after the small, green Pokémon inside with concern.
Sure enough, it was Johto's famous Pokémon—the base form of the mighty Tyranitar, Larvitar!
Yet, for all the "Desert Tyrant" hype, Larvitar looked nothing like a tyrant now.
Apparently hungry, it clutched its flat belly and whimpered pitifully.
For some reason, hearing these whimpers, Ash and Pikachu actually felt relieved—leaving others baffled.
"Are you hungry? But Brock and Misty have gone home for the holidays…"
Ash and Pikachu, realizing Larvitar was hungry, looked helpless.
All this time, Delia had been taking care of Larvitar—she was the only person (apart from Ash and Pikachu) whom Larvitar would approach.
Not even Brock or Misty had that privilege; whenever they neared, Larvitar would freeze up.
Now, with Delia gone, Ash and Pikachu were like headless chickens.
As they watched Larvitar's cries grow louder, Lucas, finally reacting, walked over.
He knelt down, scooped Larvitar into his arms, and began soothing it like an expert—surprising Ash and Pikachu.
Ash, a beat late, instinctively tried to take Larvitar back, explaining, "Big bro Lucas, Larvitar only gets close to me and Pikachu. If you hold it, it'll…"
Mid-sentence, Ash's hand froze midair.
Larvitar sniffed Lucas, and for some reason, instead of tensing up, it actually calmed down in Lucas's arms, its cries fading away!
"...freeze up." Ash finished, dumbfounded.
He stared as Larvitar snuggled contentedly with Lucas, nearly losing his composure.
Why!?
He and Pikachu had worked so hard to get Larvitar to open up!
But at first meeting, Larvitar was already so close to Lucas?
Ash felt like his world was ending.
So this…is jealousy?
By the long-unused fireplace, Lucas sat cross-legged, feeding warm Moomoo Milk to Larvitar with a bottle once used by Growlithe, the whole process skillful and practiced.
Ash sat on the nearby sofa, emotions written all over his face.
On one hand, he felt Lucas was indeed trustworthy.
On the other, he was, honestly, very jealous.
Imagine a child who's always clung only to you suddenly bonds with a stranger—who wouldn't be upset?
Ash was definitely "defeated."
As for Pikachu? Pikachu sat beside him, downing Moomoo Milk just like Larvitar. The difference: Pikachu's bottle had once belonged to Tropius.
Both the bottle and Moomoo Milk, Pikachu had begged from Lucas and Oranguru, despite Ash's exasperated look.
At this time, Pikachu was a bit chubby, clearly not fully slimmed down yet, so it was especially interested in food.
Soon enough—
Larvitar gulped down ten bottles of Moomoo Milk before finally feeling full. It burped, then fell asleep peacefully in Lucas's arms.
For a Larvitar less than a week old, only sleep could help it grow quickly.
Nutrition was even more vital.
Without parents for protection or special soil to eat, other methods had to be used to nourish it—a costly affair.
But Larvitar's issues didn't end there.
Handing the sleeping Larvitar to Oranguru to be placed in a crib dug out from the storage, Lucas walked more carefully, then sat across from Ash and, feigning ignorance, asked, "Is this Larvitar one of your Pokémon, Ash?"
Ash wanted to nod, but after thinking a moment, he shook his head. "It's my friend. Professor Oak asked me to look after it."
He then explained Larvitar's circumstances to Lucas.
This Larvitar hatched from an egg Ash obtained at the Pokémon Marine Research Center.
Originally, Ash was supposed to deliver the egg to Professor Oak. But along the way, the egg suddenly hatched, and the newly born Larvitar remained asleep, its body cold.
After a rainy night, Professor Oak, Professor Elm, and Delia arrived and healed Larvitar—but a new problem arose.
Larvitar was unresponsive to outside stimuli, as if lost in its own world.
After further events, Larvitar accepted Ash and Pikachu, but remained wary and tense around others.
After registering for the Silver Conference, Ash remembered his promise to Lucas for special training in Paldea. With everyone's agreement, Delia brought Ash to Paldea, while Misty and Brock went home to visit family.
"Professor Oak, upon hearing you invited me, strongly recommended I come to you—said you might have a way… And as soon as we got here, Larvitar took to you."
Ash sounded a little sour.
Pikachu swished its tail at Ash, teasing him.
"Pika pi, Pikachu~?"
Maybe it's just your lack of charm, Ash~?
Ash, who had already developed a close bond with Pikachu, instantly blushed and started horsing around with it.
Lucas watched them, deep in thought.
So this Larvitar really was the one from the anime.
He vaguely recalled Larvitar's backstory.
Born in Mt. Silver, the offspring of a Tyranitar, it was snatched by Pokémon hunters and, through a series of mishaps, ended up with Ash's group, who planned to take it to Professor Elm.
But perhaps due to trauma in the egg and forced separation from its mother, Larvitar's psyche was deeply hurt, leading to clear signs of autism.
Later, Ash's group helped Larvitar recover, even reuniting it with its mother—a happy ending.
Ash's arrival at this moment was almost too coincidental.
Lucas hadn't remembered this arc when he invited Ash, which led to Ash and friends splitting up, rather than heading straight for Mt. Silver.
As for why Larvitar bonded with him immediately, Lucas had no idea.
At least, this wasn't the Larvitar he knew.
"...Troublesome."
Lucas stroked his chin, a bit helpless.
Dwelling on it wouldn't help. Since things had changed, he'd just have to find a way to fix it.
Lucas quickly pushed these thoughts aside, and, while considering future plans, prepared a simple lunch for Ash and Pikachu.
For Pikachu: its favorite ketchup-drenched omelet rice. Of course, the ketchup was the main point.
For Ash, Lucas showed his skills—using spices he'd collected over time to whip up some specialty stir-fried dishes, leaving Ash with a mouthful of flavor.
After all, Kanto and Johto cuisine was mostly traditional Japanese food—the richest dish usually being curry rice. This was Ash's first time tasting such aromatic, spice-laden food, and he couldn't resist.
Once they'd eaten, Lucas prepared to take Ash out.
He'd deliberately scheduled today's class for the afternoon—just so he could bring Ash to Naranja Academy.
Ash had worried about Larvitar adapting to a new place.
But Larvitar, in the unfamiliar environment, slept soundly, not even noticing him. With his recent experience and Lucas's reassurance that newborn Pokémon spent most of their time sleeping, Ash felt okay leaving.
"Charizard, I'm counting on you!"
Ash flipped his cap and tossed a Poké Ball—one that had been sent over from Charicific Valley.
Moments later—
With a mighty roar, the slightly small-for-its-kind Charizard performed its classic skyward flamethrower.
Ash had brought his Charizard, as promised.
Charizard was about to roast Ash, but seeing Lucas, it instantly restrained itself.
That's the guy who used Delibird to beat me up!
Nope, not messing with him!
Before Charizard entered Charicific Valley, it would've challenged anyone. After some setbacks, it learned to respect the strong—and with Dragonite (who looked a hundred times stronger than the Valley's strongest Charizard) eyeing it, it dared not misbehave.
Click—
Lucas pressed the shutter, his camera capturing a shot of Ash and Charizard together.
He looked at the developed photo, a little regretful.
He'd hoped to catch evidence of the "Super Pallet Town Prodigy."
Lucas opened his black Poké Ball, attached a note to the photo, and sent it to Delibird in Johto.
Delibird should be near Ho-Oh's Shrine, probably visiting the Sacred Flame, then heading to the Silver Conference's Athlete's Village.
Lucas's note asked it to take some photos for him at the Silver Conference.
With that done, Lucas mounted Dragonite and called to Ash and Charizard, "Follow me."
Time to let Ash and Paul, these future rivals, meet ahead of schedule.
…
…
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