Now, Gray can’t claim to be as intellectual as his famed grandfather, but it doesn’t take a genius to calculate what exactly transpired.

  1 + 1 = 2. Ash beaming in joy as a pokeball registers a successful capture plus Zapdos nowhere around equals to headaches for Gray.

  Simple math, really.

  “Absolutely not,” he announces with finality.

  “Uncle!” Ash blanches in horror as the older trainer made himself known. He rushes for the ball holding his new friend and hides it behind his back sheepishly.

  “Er… You see…”

  “Ash, no.”

  Irritated, he commands the legendary bird. “Get out, now.”

  Zapdos materialises in a beam of red energy, sharp-beaked face in an expression that could only be described as smug.

  Gray would love nothing more than to put the bird in his place, but somewhere deep inside him, as difficult as it was to discern with the annoyance in the way, he knew that hashing things out with it would be futile.

  Instead, he kneels in front of Ash, placing both hands on tiny shoulders as he tries to find words to get through to the boy.

  “Ash, why did you do it?” He begins, letting the boy express himself first in a bid for more time to think about what to say.

  “I just wanted to ask him to be my friend, Uncle. There’s something there, I feel like he’d be a good friend to me.”

  Inwardly, Gray grimaces. Even in his memories, Ash’s connection with the Pikachu was unmatched. It had also been a point of interest that he had trained a flying type in each region he visited. Zapdos being both was either a stroke of bad luck or the careful pulls of fate.

  He had no guarantees, but he strongly suspected protagonist shenanigans were to blame. Only Arceus knows the full truth, but Ash already feeling a connection to a legendary bird of all things did not bode well.

  The worst part of it was the helplessness. It had only been a day since he began mentoring the boy, but already Gray felt that Ash was too neck deep in the rivers of fate to be pulled out.

  While he couldn’t do much to stop Ash from being buffeted by the river’s currents, Gray could still throw him a lifebuoy, a lifeboat, perhaps even an entire cruise ship if necessary.

  “That’s fine. You can feel like a pokemon would make a good friend, no problem. But must you catch every pokemon friend you make? You never caught Mimikyu, but you’re friends aren’t you?”

  Gray addressed the ghost pokemon who had been trying to dislodge himself slowly from Ash’s chest without drawing his trainer’s attention. He froze when he felt Gray’s gaze on him.

  Sighing, Mimikyu jumped off to land back on the ground with a thud. He crawled away, giving Ash and his trainer some space.

  Ash’s head drooped so low that Gray could only make out the top of his black hair.

  “You’re not even 10 yet. You know you’re not supposed to be catching pokemon!”

  The boy remained quiet and unmoving.

  “Ash!” Gray shouts whilst lightly shaking Ash’s shoulders.

  The boy finally looks up, face showing nothing but pure terror. When he meets Gray’s eye, he flinches back.

  Gray felt a cold rush of water douse him. There was too much raw fear in the boy’s gaze, and while Gray was mad he was certain he had not exhibited so much anger to warrant such a reaction.

  “Ash… Talk to me. I’m angry but I’m not gonna hit you or anything like that.”

  Gray loosens his hold on Ash’s shoulder but doesn’t let go. Ash’s eyes dart to his uncle’s hands before he makes an attempt to relax and begins speaking..

  “I.. I don’t know uncle. I just wanted to catch a strong pokemon so I can be a strong trainer like you and Uncle Blue,”

  Gray patiently listens before formulating a thought in his head.

  “Do you want to be a strong trainer or do you want to be an owner of strong pokemon?”

  “Huh? What do you mean?”

  “Let’s say Zapdos is your first pokemon. He’s strong, for sure. But are you a strong trainer or owner? Did you train Zapdos to be strong? Would you still deserve to be called his trainer?”

  The boy mauls over his uncle’s words, but doesn’t seem to grasp the meaning. Gray elaborates further.

  “When me and Blue started our journey, we started with an Eevee. But you know Professor Oak was an ex-champion, right? Why didn’t he train up a Dragonite for us to take as our first pokemon. He could have done it, right?”

  “… Why didn’t he? Didn’t he want you to be strong from the start?”

  “Being a strong trainer is not just about starting with a strong pokemon, Ash. It’s about teaching your pokemon to be strong too.”

  Realisation dawned on the young boy, finally understanding Gray’s point of view.

  “So if I start with Zapdos, I’ll be like one of those trainers with rich parents that help them get strong pokemon? But they never end up winning the conference so people laugh at them?”

  “Exactly like that,” confirms Gray.

  He chooses not to elaborate on the impact showing up to rookie battles with a legendary bird in tow. Best not to overcomplicate.

  Ash looks to Zapdos, concerned and guilt in his face. “But I already made a promise to Zapdos. Won’t I be breaking a promise then?”

  “No you won’t. Zapdos doesn’t have the time to follow a rookie trainer anyway,” Gray gives the bird a bland smile. He gives a strong warning look that had Zapdos hesitate in protesting against Gray’s claim.

  “You see, Zapdos is too busy. It needs to stay here and protect all the wild pokemon in the abandoned powerplant. If it leaves this place, they’ll be left vulnerable.”

  Zapdos deflates, not wanting to worsen his already ruined streak of being a protector for the area. He squawks at Gray though, a hint of stubbornness.

  “Besides, legendary pokemon are really important to the world. Did you know that Zapdos is said to be the reason for the currents and streams in the ocean? It plays an important role in keeping the oceans of the world running.”

  If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  Zapdos puffs up, making a move to comment, but a warning flair of fairy energy from Sylveon keeps its beak shut.

  “Would you really want to jeopardise all that just to have him as your first pokemon? Mmm?”

  “… Alright uncle. I guess… I’ll release him now.”

  When Ash brings out the pokeball, about to release the bird for good, Zapdos squawks in indignation, no longer able to hold back..

  “Zap, zap-dos!”

  “The ball is registered to me, Zapdos. You sure you want to remain officially captured? I’ll be your trainer in this case.”

  Zapdos eyes Gray steadily, unmoving. Gray feels a current of energy flow through his body, as if a live current just passed through his system. Still, he refuses to flinch, meeting the legendary bird in the eye and maintaining contact.

  Zapdos’ flickers his attention back to Ash, before he confirms with a “Zap.”

  “You do know there’s absolutely no reason I’d give you to Ash, don’t you? Ash simply isn’t ready to be known as your trainer. He doesn’t need that attention or that pressure.”

  Zapdos shrugs, a comical movement that had him raising his whole body up and down.

  In disbelief, Gray snaps. “Fine! Stay stubborn! I’ll be keeping the pokeball, Ash.”

  Ash hands Gray the ball, albeit with great reluctance that he valiantly attempts to hide. He knew not to push the older man further.

  Gray and his team continue with their tasks to repair the abandoned powerplant. This time Ash is firmly told to stay close at all times.

  The boy chooses not to disobey, in his best behaviour after the entire debacle.

  Even Zapdos, in an obvious show of sucking up to the adult in the chosen one’s life, follows along quietly. It converses occasionally with Ash, eager to share some of its own nuggets of wisdom on the pokemon around them, Rotom playing translator and holding a steady conversation with Ash.

  Feeling magnanimous, Gray allows the interaction, choosing not to chime in his own thoughts. Supervising Ash on the sidelines, he felt that the quest to get Ash a companion in Rotom was ultimately a good decision. The electric-ghost found great joy in accessing information from its possessed pokedex and was more than keen to impart it to Ash.

  Nevermind the overgrown and unnecessary yellow chicken that complicated things.

  They managed to finish their tasks as the sun began to set, and Gray was finally able to mount Mega Altaria with Ash. The wild electric pokemon gathered outside the powerplant, ready to bid their temporary visitors goodbye and thanks.

  Zapdos remains perched on a gigantic tree overlooking the entire valley, its beady eyes never leaving Ash. The boy smiles sadly, waving a little goodbye at all the wild pokemon before sending a watery one at the legendary bird.

  Altaria flies high, and slowly but surely disappears over the horizon. Zapdos’ eyes don’t move away from the figure until they can no longer be discerned even with its superior senses.

  Inside, it mauls over its plans to maintain a presence in the chosen one’s life.

  Since his grandson’s return, Professor Samuel Oak’s life had been going on a steady incline.

  He had new species of pokemon to study and more importantly, he would adamantly insist, a somewhat reunited family. Gray’s return patched the rift that had been widening between him and Sammy since the boy’s departure nearly a decade ago.

  They no longer had an icy tension between them that had the pokemon professor wary and treading carefully in his own home. Admittedly, not all was healed, but Samuel Oak was cautiously optimistic. All he had been hoping for was a chance, and now he felt like he had it.

  Gray’s willingness to let his pokemon family be studied was a massive step in the right direction. He had expected the fairy trainer to ice him out completely, so he was pleasantly surprised to find that the years had mellowed the boy out.

  He had yet to contribute meaningfully in any of the actual research, preferring to let his grandfather and his team conduct preliminary testing, but Samuel was almost positive that he would help when asked.

  His grandson had shown no resistance to allusions Samuel and Blue had made about him adding in his two cents to the research, so Samuel was almost confident it was a foregone conclusion.

  Perhaps with a research paper together, Gray would forgive him completely? It was a hope Samuel Oak held on to with a Machamp’s grip.

  He couldn’t help but look to the future with optimism. Now if only Red was still around…

  Immediately, Samuel perished the thought. His overt favoritism for the taciturn boy was a significant reason for his estrangement with his grandsons. He had been fascinated by the boy’s easy connection with pokemon that it had blinded him to the steady falling out he had with his blood grandsons.

  Now, the boy had fathered a child he had never met and was nowhere to be found. Instead, it was Blue who had remained by his side and Gray had returned the minute he was contacted about his granduncle Sammy.

  Hindsight truly was 20/20.

  A ping from a monitor caused Samuel to pause on his musings. He immediately perked up, recognising the sound he had chosen for notifying him of anything related to Gray and his quest to collect badges. Samuel wondered what surprise his grandson had in store for him this time.

  Yesterday the boy had spent an extravagant amount on something Samuel had no idea about. He had also splurged on a stay in an upscale hotel in Pewter City. It had warmed Samuel’s heart that Gray was willing to spend his grandfather’s money, an obvious indicator of their thawing relationship.

  Earlier today, he had captured five Rotoms. Samuel had little idea of what Gray wanted to do with the electric-ghost type, but Samuel was confident his grandson had underlying reasons.

  His persistence in only capturing his fairy team in the past had been a point of contention, as his underpowered team led to an unsurprisingly unremarkable showing in his debut conference. It made for a disappointing watch, especially considering how far Blue and Red made it on their debuts just years earlier.

  Samuel Oak had never been more happy to be proven wrong, considering how powerful and impressive Gray had become. His grandson had a gifted instinct for how to go about doing things, dancing to the beat of his own drum. Older and wiser, Samuel was content to sit on the sidelines and let the fruits of Gray’s labours bloom.

  He prepared himself to be pleasantly surprised at the update on Gray’s journey. He read the notification, once, twice and then thrice for good measure.

  Samuel Oak’s usually quick mind went at a standstill as he tried to repeatedly process what was in front of him.

  A Zapdos? Why in Arceus’ name would Gray catch Zapdos?!

  “Blue, Blue come over here! Look at what your brother has done!!”

  Brock calmly watched his pokemon go about their training, content to supervise without intervention as they repeatedly threw themselves at each other.

  He couldn’t fault them for their enthusiasm since it had been too long since the last match they could go all out.

  The upcoming challenge had been Arceus sent, the news of a personal team gym battle going around Pewter City and reigniting interest in the gym.

  Personally, the idea of letting loose from the restrictions was intoxicating, especially since Brock had been reduced to early level gym badge matches for the past few weeks.

  Already, Forrest had been enthusiastic to report that ticket sales for the match tomorrow were sold out. Pewter City residents had nearly declared the day an unofficial holiday, with many of the longtime residents choosing to make an event of tomorrow.

  Brock had also gotten confirmation of tomorrow’s match being televised, broadcasting live throughout the region. It was apparent that a challenger requesting for a personal team battle was exciting enough of a prospect amidst the usual lull early into the season.

  Brock knew that tomorrow’s match was particularly important for him as a gym leader, as the opportunity to curbstomp a cocky trainer would play a part in reinforcing his reputation. As the traditional first badge trainer, Brock had been reduced to an ‘easy’ badge, nevermind that he rarely even got a chance to show off as challengers didn’t typically challenge Pewter Gym in the higher tiers.

  Wanting to cover all his bases, he did a bit of research on his opponent. Gray Oak was the younger grandson of Professor Samuel Oak and brother to Champion Blue. His bloodline had been intimidating at first, but deeper digging showed that he had struggled in his first conference as a trainer, only finishing in the Top 128.

  He had disappeared for a decade, only coming back recently and immediately challenging the gym.

  Brock would enjoy thinning the arrogance of a trainer who was likely suffering from his own obscurity. Gray Oak representing Pallet Gym, a minor gym, was altogether dismissable to Brock.

  “Go Golem!! You can do it!!”

  “Nooo, Steelix you can beat them!! Hit them hard!”

  Brock’s younger siblings screamed in encouragement from behind the safety barriers, causing a notable shift in intensity between the two sparring pokemon.

  “Alright, alright knock it off. Save your energy for tomorrow,” he scolded without heat. The two pokemon abated, but were still visibly excited as they subtly showed off to their cheering squad.

  Even Brock’s younger siblings had been excited to find out about the match. They would have supported their big brother no matter the type of match, but the idea of seeing his personal team unleash flashier and stronger moves had different appeal.

  The upcoming match truly felt like a life saver in terms of reigniting interest in Pallet Gym, and Brock was confident that a strong showing on his part would lead to better ticket sales moving forward. Already Forrest and Salvadore’s clothes were fraying on the seams. They had kept mum on their struggles to give their younger siblings an illusion of abundance, but even Yolanda, their oldest sister, was beginning to notice the pinch.

  As hard as Brock worked to make ends meet for his family, gym leader or not, being a barely legal adult raising a family of nine was tough.

  By tomorrow, it would all matter not. After all, all Brock had to do to get out of this slump was to beat a cocky trainer who liked weak Fairy pokemon.

  Brock was determined to show off as much as possible, grabbing this opportunity by the reins and using it to propel himself, the gym and his family upwards.