Ash stretched as he got up and started to follow his old routine of training with Chimchar joining him on his run. Lucario was racing with Feraligatr and Magmar was meditating with Typholsion who was sitting under the tree relaxing. Meganium was inside helping the Chansey care for the younger Pokemon while Eevee, Absol, Abra and Phanphy were playing around. Molly was with Max exercising alongside him and his Pokemon, mostly sit ups and push ups with running thrown in. The two of them were getting along fine from the looks of it so Ash was not worried. In the call to him, Brock was doing the morning shift volunteer hour much to the nurse's relief while Gou was researching in his laptop.
Gou, "Rotom check the cameras."
Toronto, -Sure •bzzz• It will be done. •bzzz• Just a minute.-
Gou frowned, 'Exactly how did Giratina appear in Hoenn without anyone noticing? I don't get it.'
Cinderace muttered, "Ace cinder."
Gou, "Hello Gary."
Gary was looking flabbregister on the video call, :WTF Gou!!! What does this mean?"
Gou had a wry smile, "Good morning to you too and it is exactly what you see."
Gary ran his hand through his hair, :Damn it! I knew Aura Guardians were rumoured to be magnets for Legendary Pokemon. But, I was not expecting it to be this literal.:
Gou, "You are telling me. I am trying to figure out where and how Giratina entered the Hoenn space and border. I checked the border shared with Sinnoh and I only covered a quarter."
Gary, :I will have a look too. Did you start from the North?:
Gou, "No, I started at the South. I am making my way up North."
Gary nodded, :Alright I will meet you half way and have you told anyone else?:
Gou shook his head, "Not yet, though Ash did say he has a video meeting with Lance after meeting up with the Professor. I only hope nothing else happens really, we did not even land and we have to deal with Legendary Pokemon."
Gary, :Indeed. I will talk to Cynthia, I don't know how she will react to this. She has been studying ancient ruins the longest.:
Gou, "She is going to be speechless that's for sure. This is not even Sinnoh."
Gary sighed as he finally calmed down, he had not even changed from his night wear when he saw the messages. Giratina of all things appearing in Hoenn, just what was going to happen that a Legendary from Sinnoh appeared in Hoenn. Then Gou just had to drop another bomb on Gary, which left him speechless. Giratina had actually requested Ash to deal with Groudon and Kyogre personally, instead of dealing with their fellow Legendaries themselves. Gary wanted to bang his head on the table top and curse the Legendary Pokemon out but refrained from doing so.
Gary, :I will talk to Professor Rowan about this too and get back to you. Till then keep Ash out of trouble. Mew only knows how many troublesome situations he is going to end up in.:
Gou, "Please don't jinx me. I already have a headache thinking of Team Aqua and Team Magma.... Ash just returned according to Hypno and Lucario looks pissed off."
Gary, :Oh dear! Better go check on them. I fear your worries just came true, knowing Ash's luck.:
Gou, "Right! I will talk to you later."
Rotom, -No results •bzzz• found.-
Gou, "Thank you for the hard work Rotom."
Rotom, -Welcome.-
Gou, "Get in contact with Gary's Porygon and work together with them. I get the feeling we will need all the help we can get to keep our family safe."
Rotom nodded his agreement while Gou left with Cinderace to check on Ash and an apparently angry Lucario. Gou wondered what happened that Lucario would be angry and went to the front of the centre where Ash was talking to Nurse Jim. On the side were a couple of Pokemon who were being comforted by Meganium who was using aromatherapy. Gou saw the look of fear on the faces of the Pokemon and could make a few guesses on what happened. Those were Alolan Muk, Meowth and Marowak along with Rowlet, Pikipek and a couple from the Kalos region too.
Ash, "I will be talking to Officer Jenny about more information on the Pokemon."
Nurse Jim, "That is most likely the best choice."
Gou asked, "What happened?"
Lucario spat angrily, -We ran into a group of Hunters on the way back from the forest.-
Gou, "You went to the forest?"
Ash shrugged, "It would be less eye catching for my Pokemon to train there."
Gou nodded, "Okay, and you ran into the Hunters there."
Lucario growled, -They attacked Meema thinking they could take Abra and Eevee because of the rare colouring.-
Gou, "Eh? I did not realize they joined you."
Ash, "They pestered Meganium to bring them to the forest where we were training."
Gou, "I see. Did you get a good look at the Hunters? What they look like?"
Ash smirked, "Better still we captured them thanks to a new friend we made there."
Taillow stood tall, "Taiii."
Gou, "Oh! Thank you for helping my friend."
The flying type nodded as he was talking to the young Rowlet who was shivering as Meganium was checking them over. It was a mess in Gou's opinion and he looked at the ceiling to pray for patience and guidance on keeping their enemies away. Gou then talked to Nurse Jim saying he wou get in touch with Professor Kukui the regional Professor of Alolan to check for any missing Pokemon. Ash meanwhile was filling up the form to pay for the health care of the hurt Pokemon and charge it to his account.
Ash, "Meganium, a word."
Meganium, "Ni?"
Ash, "I offered this to Venasaur after he started working at the Pokemon center. So, I am offering this to you as well."
Meganium tilted her head as Ash explained how Venasaur got an apprenticeship under one of the nurses at the centre. He went into details and said, if Meganium took up an apprenticeship she would be able to move around Hoenn, Jhoto and Kanto regions as she had worked there. Meganium had a contemplative look on her face on hearing the details and decided to think about it before making a decision. Max and Molly returned from their training around lunch and surprised by the number of Pokemon who were around Ash.
Gou, "Hunters."
Max, "Seriously?"
Molly, "Like the one from Greenfield?"
Gou, "Similar but these clowns are part of the black market."
Max, "Oh... Should I warn Dad?"
Ash answered, "You should. He can warn the other Gym Leaders. Hoenn is their territory after all."
Max nodded, "Right! Oh, May is on the way to Professor Birch's place to meet us."
Ash, "Alright, if we go after lunch. We should meet her in time for dinner."
Molly, "Works for me. I am kind of excited to head to Professor Birch's place."
Gou, "He will be giving the starters to the trainers tomorrow. I think it will be interesting to see who you will choose."
Max, "May has Honchkrow that she uses to travel, I wonder if she will pick a starter. I know she got a Bulbasaur during her visit in Kanto."
Gou, "She also received a Weedle as a gift, I wonder if the little fella has evolved."
Ash, "Either way, she has a Dark, Flying, Grass, Poison and Bug type in her arsenal with those three."
Max, "I can't wait to see her again. Mom says she has been studying her side of the business the past year."
Ash, "Ooh! Your mom is one of the main suppliers for the coordinators in Hoenn, right?"
Gou, "That is quiet the shoes to fill up. So many people will depend on her once she takes up the mantle."
Molly, "That is pretty cool. I am not sure what I want to do or become."
Ash, "It's okay Molly. This is why most trainers travel, to figure out what they want to do. Not everyone can sit inside a classroom and decide they will take this field and become this type of worker."
Max, "Yeah, I want to travel and write my own thesis on the Pokemon lines I have and become a Breloom line Master along with a few more. I want to take over my father's Gym in the future but I also want to do other things too."
Molly, "I get it. Thank you."
After lunch they left the Centre and headed towards Professor Birch's lab and hoped to run into May on the way. Max was telling them about the first time he met Professor Birch which was after being picked for the regional student exchange program. The man had come to see him and four others off while telling them to keep an open mind and to make friends. Ash, Gou and Molly smiled as they listened to Max's tales about the Professor and it was very obvious the man was very kind and caring.
Max, "May? May, it's you."
May looked up, "Max? Max!"
Max ran to her, "May, I have so much to tell you. You will not believe what happened on our way here."
May hugged him close, "I have a lot to tell you too. My Pokemon evolved to their second form and something happened at home."
Birch came out, "Oh my! This is quite the reunion. Little Max it is wonderful to see you doing well. I am proud of you."
Max beamed, "Thank you Professor."
Birch turned to the two teen boys, "Welcome to the Hoenn region boys and little Lady. I hope the journey has been peaceful."
Lucario sighed, -Depends on your definition of peaceful Professor.-
Birch eyes widened, "Oh! Oh! Professor Oak, Professor Elm and Professor Kukui talk about your speech mastery. But hearing it by my own ears is something else."
May, "Umm.. Ash, could I ask a favour?"
Ash, "Sure, what's wrong?"
May, "My Bulbasaur has been strange lately."
Ash, "Strange? How?"
May, "I have this feeling he was ready to evolve but I think something happened. He is not hurt but he has been a little sad."
Ash nodded, "Let me meet him. I will call Venasaur. Just let me make a call."
May smiled, "Bulbasaur, come join us buddy."
Bulbasaur appeared, "Saur?"
Lucario kneeled down and ran his aura, -He is unhurt physically.-
May, "That is a relief."
Ash returned, "I have someone I want you to meet little buddy."
Bulbasaur tilted his head, "Bulbasaur."
Ash took out the specialized Heal ball, "I choose you Venasaur."
Venasaur appeared, -It has been a while.-
Lucario smirked, -Your aura manipulation to speak has gotten better.-
Venasaur, -I am aiming to become an undeniable Pokemon Doctor. Hello little one.-
Bulbasaur was staring in awe, "Bulba bul bulba bulbasaur."
Birch, "Amazing, fascinating. I hope you do not mind me taking notes."
Ash, "Not at all Professor, but we will need to return to the Pokemon center to spend the night. We were late because we had to deal with a Hunter problem."
May paled, "What?"
Birch broke his pencil, "Hunters? Here? Are you sure?"
Gou nodded, "Yes, we got them detained at the Police station. It was pretty annoying having to deal with them on the first day here."
May, "Max?"
Max, "I am fine. I was with Molly and we mostly stayed close to the Pokemon center."
Molly nodded trying to calm the older girl, "I was trying out the exercises to get used to a training schedule. I plan on getting a Pokemon tomorrow."
May nodded, "Getting a Pokemon for the first time is always amazing."
Molly smiled, "Right?"
Birch insisted they stayed the night at the lab, there were enough rooms for all of them and Ash offered to cook dinner. Max, May, Molly and Gou perked up on hearing Ash offer to cook dinner. The Professor on the other hand panicked a bit and rushed off saying he would go shopping for groceries making Gou snort. While the man was gone they decided to check the rooms out and found two rooms, one had two beds while the other had three. After they settled the Professor returned with four bags filled with groceries and Ash decided to make meatball and cheese pasta, with buttermilk fried wings, roasted vegetables and freshly squeezed orange juice. It was a straight forward dinner and they were hungry, plus the next day would be very hectic.