This is something I have been thinking for a while since the main character of the Unova fanfic I'm working on is someone with psychic abilities alongside how one of the drafts for his backstory involves his adoptive mother being a Latias who lives among humans in disguise and has been raising him ever since she had found him when he was a little child, which adds some interesting dynamics and complexities to explore.

I know that these sort of details are pretty vague and thus are better handled in a way that fits the story so I want to do exactly that.

How do you think people with psychic abilities are viewed and treated by others? Granted people with psychic abilities seem to be of a decent number across various Pokémon media and far more numerous than Aura users alongside the obvious existence of psychic Pokémon. Even then, there is still a potential for prejudice towards them.

They aren't super rare like Aura users so their presence is more known and its much harder for them to hide. People could hate them due to thinking they can read minds or control them.

Then you can have cases like psychics with certain abilities like having telepathy or being able to talk to the spirits of the dead be targeted by criminals since those psychics could acquire the testimony of people they killed or telepathy allowing them to convey the words of Pokémon witnesses who normally cannot due to not being able to speak in human language. The most extreme form can be government regulation through means such as laws targeting psychics or regulating psychic populations through sterilization but I don't want to go that route as I want the prejudice to come from a small but still sizable and very vocal minority or individuals who are ignorant or have malicious intent.

For my main character, his story involves dealing with his childhood trauma as well as overcoming his inferiority complex during his journey. When he was a kid, he was bullied at school by Trip and some other classmates who were jealous of his high grades and accused him of cheating in exams by mind reading, which he actually cannot do (or he can but willingly chose not to do so) as his psychic abilities are limited to just vaguely detecting some emotions. Its not just classmates though as there can be some teachers who are prejudiced against psychics and they could have done things like make him sit for his exams all alone in a locked room after all the students had left due to the same mind reading accusation, thus making the boy feel like an unwanted criminal and traumatizing him.

This prejudice results in him growing a strong desire to prove himself without using his psychic power and is quite reluctant to use them unless the situation forces him to do so. At the same time, the way he was treated can also result in him developing imposter syndrome due to doubting his own abilities and thinking that he's nothing without his psychic abilities. He can still face some prejudice during the journey like Trip accusing him of using his psychic powers to cheat when he defeats him in a Pokémon battle.

Me personally I have many but one that I haven't shared here yet is what imma share.

In my universe Bugsy's first pokemon was actually a Ledyba. And his Ledian is widely known for being a menace. Not only bc its nearly twice the size of the average Ledian, but also bc its generally considered to be the strongest of its species.

Bugsy is 16 (Trainers in Johto start at 12 usually) and during the year that would qualify him to become a master he battled Falkner. Its rumored that Falkner's Pidgeot is still deathly afraid of Ledians.

Bugsy is widely believed to have the most potential out of any gym leader to rise to the E4 level. Now thats not counting those who are already there. Koga, Blaine, Sabrina, Erika, Clair, Pryce, and Jasmine are all already there.

Bugsy's Ledian is his most infamous pokemon and is the one who helped catch Bugsy's Scizor (at the time Scyther). His Ledian IS his strongest pokemon, contrary to popular belief.

I don’t mind whether it’s on AO3, FanFiction.net, or Wattpad, as long as Ash is the main protagonist. Longer stories are preferred. I’m particularly interested in fanfics involving canon divergence, time travel, or crossovers. Any ship is fine, it isn’t the main focus of the plot. If the fic is similar to Battle.net, even better.

kind of based off a dorkly pokemon bit but does raise a good question. How would the people of the pokemon world react to someone having the genetics of an Eternal, mutant, quirk user, metahuman, conduit, alien, inhuman or being the offspring of any pantheon like in the Percy Jackson series. I know that any of the evil teams are going beeline straight to them and try to replicate their genes for themselves. but how would the main "good" guys react? Like the will league try to do the same or will they "help" the person integrate into their society. The aether foundation is 50/50 cause how they created the Type null species. Will the pokemon science community have a better understanding or will the person in question will just break them like a sledgehammer to a brittle window.

Can be self insert, overpowered or anything really, I just wanna know if there is a story out there where the mc doesn’t use pokemon for battles, they can for sure have them, but when it comes time to square down, they throw off there coat and buckle down with there fists

I know in Pokémon games, Pokémon can only breed if they share at least one Egg Group and these two Pokémon species I’m gonna talk about I believe share the same egg group but they don’t make a hybrid pup in the game, they just take the species of the mother but since this is a fanfiction AU I’m thinking of building… can my crossbreed work?

Cass is a Houndoom and Boltund Crossbreed and she is an Electric/Dark type…

The Electric comes from the Boltund and the Dark comes from the Houndoom…

What do you guys think she should look like as a hybrid?

Pretty straightforward. The first story in my fic ends with one of the characters asking Jirachi for a wish: to control what can and cannot happen. Jirachi is reluctant to grant such a wish, but ultimately gives in, as it's all part of a greater plan set in motion by Arceus (the details aren't important right now).

But the protagonist has no idea what the Red Chain is, let alone how to use it. As it turns out, though, he's a brilliant scientist. By reverse engineering the chain and drawing on ancient Pokémon knowledge (Mew will eventually appear), he creates a vessel capable of containing such power.

Mewtwo. The ultimate weapon... one that will eventually turn against its own creator, forcing him to seek out the Red Chain once again. But this time, armed with a deeper understanding of the truth behind Pokémon nature, he's going after the real deal: Dialga and Palkia.

26y/o, been pokemon fan since 4 years old, always playing pokemon and rom hacks throughout my life.

Recently discovered pokemon festival of champions fan manga, and wow it is incredible. I'm stoked to read more fiction with pokemon. I know I'm asking in the written fanfic subreddit, but if yall have any other pokemon fan manga recommendations please share too.

My main goal is to read something that is a longer series that I can enjoy at night before bed. Also, be finished series please. Fine with an ash story (no preference), and open to regions 1-5.

I want something emotional that has depth to it, but also enjoy isekai aspects so that's good too.

I also don't want to read something that feels too childish like it was written by a 14 year old. Maturity and depth are valuable to me, but I'm also okay with darker/edgier content.

From my research, good longer series to start with are:

Traveler

Chaos Rising

I will touch the skies

The most evil trainer (funny name, but apparently really good?)

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Silver Resistance 

What would you guys say are the best of these? I've also seen ones mentioned like game of champions, borne of caution, and her rival.

I want something long that has good pacing throughout if possible, and I'm not sure how all of these pace themselves.

The thing the Pokemon fandom is most looking forward to is the return of the Kalos trio. They did return in the anime, but not together. Serena and Clemont were both relegated to separate episodes, which wasn't much fun. Seeing the Kalos trio together is more of a nostalgia hit.

Now there are already many fan stories on this, maybe some are even better, but if you get a chance then how would you re-introduce the Kalos trio? And I also needed some tips for my story, where after winning the World Championship, Ash after 3 years later, revisit the kalos region. Now everyone will be in the 17-20 years old. So what and how will the reaction/interaction take place between them?

Hey guys just got on Ao3 just trying to find some good pokemon fan fics if anyone has any recommendations that would be cool. Please and thank you

AO3 link

Fic's site

Hello! This is a fic I've been working for a long bit, and while the second part is still being serialized, the first part of it is complete and also readable on the fic's site (you can see a fakemon dex and other stuff on there too) ^^ I keep forgetting to post about it on here (sorry, I haven't used reddit in ages), but I reeeally hope you enjoy!!

It's about Ash (timeline/era is spoilers) visiting a new region, Blawsth, with Pikachu after recovering from a serious injury. He did it because he's on the hunt for an undiscovered pokemon Professor Oak is interested in. On the other hand, two new trainers from the region, Jacob and Miley, and their student friend, Sam, decide to partake in a fortune telling card game, the Spade Game, believing that it'll help them find new pokemon for their friend's research assignment and set them off for good luck. Ash eventually crosses paths with Jacob while getting lost in Whabick City, and he invites him to play. However, the people of Blawsth hold the belief that this game is hiding Toshinmac, a pokemon of pure misery and bad luck, but this is said to just be a collection of folktales and legends at the end of the day, and the pokemon is merely a hoax. Ash believes that this is the pokemon he was searching for. The rabbit hole only gets deeper from here.

I was inspired to write this because of playground rumors from the 90s and actual creepy stuff that kept appearing throughout Pokemon media. I did a ton of art for some of it because I thought the fakemon needed a visual aid at least, and I kinda ran wild with it. I'm planning to upload the rest of the chapters to the second part soon, and I have two other parts planned to be posted afterwards. The art is going to get lighter though because I'm currently busy with a different project that needs more attention, so I want to at least have the story to this one be readable somewhere.

BTW I'm, like, bad at socializing and I wasn't sure if this was a good enough introduction as I've always struggled with trying to summarize the whole thing to people I know because I just go off on different tangents for character motivations and plot specific stuff (like, it's such a slow-burn), and I'm never sure if I captured it all right. It's supposed to unravel the more you read. That and I worry I come across as too serious in my writing sometimes. However, I did put a lot of effort into this and really want to show it off to as many people as I can. Thanks!

I like Torterra and all, but from a fight choreography perspective, it’s kinda hard to make a Pokemon look cool when fighting when it doesn’t really look like it can do anything in terms of movement, so I get why the animators would want Torterra taken out as quickly as possible once Turtwig evolved, because why would you want to animate such a stiff-looking Pokemon compared to Ash’s much more flexible body-typed Pokemon at the time?

That being said, is there a way to solve this problem in writing? I’d want to make sure any species can have a cool fight scene, but looking at what happened to Ash’s Torterra, I completely understand why it performed so poorly post-evolution. You can’t really make a Pokemon like that do anything interesting.

Can a porygon or rotom overtake something that has A.I. incorporated in it? Like can a they do the same thing what ultron did to Jarvis in Age of Ultron. or will they be powerless? Can they possess beings like Nimrod, Metal Sonic, The Necrons, Reploids, Terminators, Cortana, Forerunner A.I., Brainiac, any autobot or Decepticon? Like do they force the A.I. out, delete them, or put them asleep until they leave. Does this also apply to cyborgs to like Cable, Raiden, Genos, Adam Smasher, any of the cyber ninjas from Mortal Kombat or Cyborg? or is there a rule on How complicated is the machine/piece of tech is harder to possess is. prime example being possess a 2016 to 2026 phone vs a possessing a robot like a sentinel or suit of armor like War Machine. Are digimon affected as well, or no?

hello!!! I don't know if I am posting my story properly. I'm sorry if so- I'm new to this.

This is my first story and work currently in progress. I know negaishipping might be a relatively unpopular pair, but I think it just fits right. Please join me on this journey! Yes, I'm trying to upload weekly even as someone still in school. If you know anyone looking for a new and still ongoing negaishipping story, please share!

Story: https://www.wattpad.com/story/417795302-lost-and-found

Hi! I've been looking for a pokemon fic for the past few days now, and its about ash defending his Alola Champion Status.

I have read it before and I am confused to why I couldn't see it on my bookmarks.

Okay so, the scene that I can remember was:

- Ash using Rowlet, who won the match, and the crowd called him the "God of Starter" which made Paul so shock that a baby pokemon won against a fully evolved(? Not sure) pokemon.

- I think Ash's Opponent was Tobias?????

I'm not too sure.

(Lowkey saw i put a G in Rowlet and panicked)

Essentially, this character started as an au, turned into an oc. The basic gist is that she's the protagonist of every game, and has to start over with a new identity every region. This will be the story of her journey in the Paldea region.

I eventually plan for her to beat Geeta with only 5 pokemon, one of which being a second stage (drakloak), however it is implied that they are very high level, and she is very skilled with strategy etc due to being pretty much a champion 8 times over. Is this too unrealistic?

I am not disclosing the final team for spoilers, but if I do need to do so to get accurate feedback, lmk and I will add them!!!

Please lmk if you think I should change this (either add another pokemon, or evolve drakloak), or if there are any strategies that could make this setup plausible!!! (Also pls lmk if the flair should be 'feedback request' instead of teambuilding, my first time in this subreddit!)

Edit for clarity because I worded it quite poorly (thanks for the answers so far!) she's basically a merge of Ash and the game protags, so gets very far in first few tournaments/E4 etc, but doesn't become champion until Alola, and was unable to formally challenge Leon because of Rose (or smth, haven't worked it out yet), however does still defeat him in a 'just for fun-ish' battle. So, she is the Alola champion and could be Galar, but other than that, just high-ranking trainer (mimicking Ash, e.g finals in Kalos)

So I had this idea about a fanfiction set in Galar that was going to be inspired by Arthurian legend. The main character, Guineviere, has a team based on the Knights of the round table. Obviously there are too many knights for a pokemon team, so it will only be limited to the most important ones. Even still, there aren't as many knight based pokemon as I thought there were, they are not going to be all a perfect fit, but I tried my best

Team Guineviere:

King Arthur: Aegislash. Pretty obvious, sacred sword, whoever wields it will be king. I also like King Arthur as more of a ghost figure than a tangible presence)

Lancelot: Gallade. Valiant knight, trained by the lady of the lake (Gardevoir), one of the most powerful Knight of the round table

Tristan: Escavalier. The most famous story about Tristan is his love story with Isolde. I like the idea that Tristan is a Karrablast and Isolde is a Shelmet and they exchange vows and Tristan becomes a knight

Gawain: Armarouge. I was actually undecided if Armarouge fitted more Perceval or Gawain, since Perceval is considered the Red Knight, but then I opted for Gawain since one of his main ability is that he becomes more powerful at noon when the sun is up, just like how fire type moves gets boosted when a pokemon is in harsh sunlight. I actually wanted to give Gawain the ability Protosynthesis, but that is only learned by Paradox Pokemon who have nothing particularly knightly about them, sooo. Also the way that Armarouge evolves, with the Auspicious Armour, is kinda similar to the story of The Green Knight were Gawain kept the stash that gave him immortality in his trial. Ok this one is a bit of a stretch but look it's the best I could do

Perceval: Sirfetched. This one is simpler than other. Young boy who inspires to become a knight and becomes one of the best knights ever. Yeah that works, I dunno

These are the most important knights. There is another knight who is like very important but I onestly don't really know what Pokemon to assign them, Galahad, which is the illegitimate son of Lancelot, the greatest knight to ever live, the one who is literally the second coming of Christ and hold the spear of Longinus. I was going to say Iron Valiant since he is the son of Lancelot, but I dunno

Then there are more random pokemon I assigned to various lesser known Knights

The Green Knight: Calyrex. Based on the famous story of Gawain and the Green Knight, it's green, it looks like a severed head, and it's basicly a wizard. I know Calyrex could work as King Arthur too, but, eh

Ywain: Luxray. There is one thing people know about Ywain, and that he has a motherfucking lion. Luxray is like a lion. I've got nothing else

Dagonet: Galarian Mr Mime. He is the Jester of King Arthur, not exactly an important character, but I thought it would be funny to have a Jester

Then there is Corviknight, who has literal Knight on his name, but I onestly don't know what knight he is best suited for. He is kind of generic knight. I was thinking maybe a giant like Galehaut since he can Gigantamax, but I dunno, also Galehaut doesn't really seem to be a Knight of the round table, just a bff to Lancelot

Team Merlin

There are onestly many pokemons that can be associated with Merlin. Alakazam, Delphox, Murkrow, Mismagius, but there are a few other magician that are worth discussing

Morgan LeFay: Hattarene. Literally a witch and a fairy. She is also kinda sort of evil, but not really, so it checks out

Nimue: Primarina/Gothitelle. She is another Lady of the Lake who Merlin is infatuated with. He also knows that she is the one who will cause his death, kinda like Gothitelle knows when someone will die

Then there is Pendragon, which is the Dragon that came visiting Uther, Artthur's father, and then gave him the surname Pendragon. I was thinking it could be either a Dragonite, given the christian motif, or maybe even a legendry, like Zekrom or Necrozma.

I kinda want to add a Dragon to Guinevere's team, but I am a bit out of option, maybe an Haxorus or a Goodra? Doing a Knight based team is more difficoult than one could imagine. Let me know if you have some suggestion, some corrections or something you want to add

A tournament-centric story about Iris on her journey to becoming a Dragon Master and Champion.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/80763706/chapters/212148936

Chapter 4: https://www.reddit.com/r/pokemonfanfiction/s/ewizyvBJKU

| Refraction

While Joey decides to stay and help Lieutenant Damian, Jaden sets off towards Crystal Waterfall and, as he makes his way, he thinks that he should train with his Ralts before facing the guardian. Jaden engages in several battles with wild Pokémon and stops to rest for a bit as soon as he spots the entrance to Granite Passage. He looks around and notices a boy heading towards the entrance. The boy, who appears to be about fourteen years old, seems agitated as he shouts for them to release his sister. Jaden decides to go after the boy.

The interior of the cave is composed of pebbles and rock formations, and is home to Nacli, Roggenrola, and other Pokémon species. Jaden hears a girl's voice and the sound of an argument ahead, and quickens his pace to reach the location. Upon reaching the widest part of the small cave, he spots the same boy from before and two people dressed in light beige uniforms holding a girl.

Girl: Why are you doing this?! Let me go!

Boy: Get your hands off my sister!

The boy lunges at the pair but is quickly interrupted by the man's Dustox.

Suspicious man: It's best not to interfere, or you won't like what might happen.

The boy clenches his fists and becomes agitated. The girl from the mysterious duo closes her eyes and speaks.

???: Let's go, we don't have time to lose.

Jaden: Wait, you're not going to do whatever you want.

Everyone is surprised to see Jaden and Ralts appear in front of the boy.

Suspicious man: And who would you be? Some kind of hero?

Jaden: Almost, but I'm someone who definitely won't allow an innocent little girl to be taken by force.

Suspicious man: What nonsense, Dustox, paralyze them both with Stun Spore!

The bug-type Pokémon flaps its wings and lunges forward to unleash its attack, but is stopped by a psychic attack from Ralts.

Suspicious man: Hm..

Jaden: Ralts, use Hypnosis.

The Pokémon launches a hypnotic beam, but Dustox manages to recover and dodge. The girl, who appears to be two years older than Jaden, opens her light blue eyes and looks at Jaden.

???: What's your name, trainer?

My name is Jaden.

???: Jaden, why do you fight?

Jaden: I've already said, I won't let a defenseless little girl be taken away by force.

???: I see, a cause that you call noble.

The mysterious girl pulls out a Poké Ball and releases her Frigibax.

???: Let's see if you're capable of defending your cause.

Suspicious man: Dustox, use Silver Wind.

Jaden: Ralts, get ready.

Ralts adopts a defensive stance while the attack is launched in its direction. The attack ceases, but soon after, an icy breeze hits Ralts, slowing it down.

Jaden: Tsk, Ralts, Use Disarming Cry on Frigibax.

The attack hits but leaves an opening for Dustox to hit Ralts with a Poison Sting.

Jaden: Confusion!

Despite counterattacks, the numerical disadvantage left openings for enemy attacks to connect.

Jaden: "Damn, even though I have the advantage, I'm being cornered more and more."

Suspicious man: Regretting it? Too bad it's too late.

Both enemy Pokémon advance to attack.

Jaden: Ralts, use Hypnosis!

Although the attack wasn't effective in hitting any of the Pokémon, it was possible to buy some time and separate the attack.

???: Frigibax, use Icy Wind.

Ralts dodges the attack, but Dustox advances alongside, its wings ready to spread poisonous dust.

Jaden: Ralts, Confusion!

The psychic attack once again thwarts Dustox's advance, but Frigibax emerges from the opposite side.

???: Tackle.

The ice dragon's attack sends Ralts flying back several steps. The Pokémon is having difficulty staying upright.

Jaden: Damn!

Suspicious man: Smirk, It's the end for you, "Hero". Poison Sting.

Dustox prepares to deliver the final blow but is suddenly caught in a small whirlwind of flames.

Suspicious man: What!?

???: ...

Everyone is looking in the direction from which the attack came.

Jaden: Wait, Charcadet?

The small fire-type Pokémon positions itself in front of Ralts as Dustox falls to the ground.

Suspicious man: Tsk!

Jaden: You're that Charcadet we helped on the road to Florite, what are you doing here?

Charcadet looks at Jaden with a resolute gaze. Jaden looks at the Pokémon's expression and smiles slightly.

Jaden: I see, since that's the case, then let's fight together once more!

???: Very well, then so be it, Frigibax advance and use Dragon Tail.

The ice dragon prepares to unleash its attack but is surprised when Charcadet is enveloped in a purple black aura and immediately lands a direct hit with Astonish.

Jaden: Charcadet, use Ember.

The attack hits Frigibax, but the Pokémon advances again and manages to land a Tackle this time. Charcadet is thrown back forcefully.

Jaden: Huh, That's strange, that was the same attack that hit Ralts, but why did it seem stronger this time?

???: It's simple, Jaden, Thermal Exchange, my Frigibax's ability allows it to increase its physical power if hit by a fire attack.

Jaden: Hm.

???: Frigibax, move forward and use Dragon Tail again.

Jaden: Charcadet, dodge and use Fire Spin.

The attack hits Frigibax squarely, but activates its ability again.

???: It's useless, Frigibax, Tackle.

Once again, the ice dragon's attack hits the fire Pokémon squarely.

???: Let's finish this, use Icy Wind and advance with Dragon Tail.

The icy breeze sweeps across the battlefield as Frigibax runs close behind.

Jaden Smirks, the girl with blue eyes and light brown hair notices

???: What you..

The ice attack hits, but before Frigibax can use its Dragon Tail, a vortex of flames forms around the Pokémon's body.

Jaden: Charcadet, Ember.

The ember attack hits and intensifies the vortex flames that burn Frigibax, and when these dissipate, they bring the Pokémon to the ground.

???: ...

Jaden: You have a lot of confidence in this ability, which is why you allowed your Frigibax to be hit to gain more raw power; however, despite being a good ability, it leaves your Pokémon vulnerable.

???: Well done, Jaden, looks like you won this time.

The girl raises a hand, signaling for the man to release the little girl. The brothers run towards each other and hug. Jaden smiles slightly.

Boy: Are you well?

Girl: Yes, but I was scared.

Boy: Everything is fine now.

Suspicious man: It looks like we're going back empty-handed.

???: Jaden, I hope your interference in our mission was merely an unfortunate twist of fate. You fight for fragile causes, a single leaf amidst the vastness of a great tree.

The pair turn towards the cave exit.

???: If you truly want to fight, let it be for something meaningful, then don't interfere in Refractus's affairs anymore.

The pair leave the cave and walk towards the horizon. Jaden just stares at the girl from afar.

The silence is broken when the children thank Jaden. He asks if they will need help, but they both reply that they don't and that they are going to the Silver Knights' base. Jaden nods and wishes them both good luck; the children leave waving to Jaden.

Jaden: Hm? You're still here, Charcadet? And your brother?

The Pokémon makes punching motions and then pulls its hands away.

Jaden: I don't understand much about these things, but does this mean you're training separately?

Charcadet nods.

Jaden: I see.

The two walk towards the cave exit, but Jaden stops, and Charcadet looks at Jaden.

Jaden: Joey and I are separated too, so in that case, why don't we become teammates?

Jaden smirks as Charcadet looks at the boy in admiration, then nods in confirmation.

Jaden: Yes!, Then, let's go.

The boy pulls out one of his empty Poké Balls and throws it at Charcadet, capturing it and then releasing it.

Jaden: So now, Charcadet, let's move on towards Crystal Waterfall.

The fire-type Pokémon nods in agreement and walks side-by-side with its new trainer. Jaden, Ralts, and now Charcadet emerge from the cave, continuing their journey ahead. The sun in the sky begins to signal the start of the afternoon after an encounter with destiny.

[To Be Continued]

When they are talking about languages, they call them English, Spanish, Japanese... instead of Galarian, Paldean or Kantosian. Or when they add religious expressions or religious festivities without adapting them, like, what do you mean CHRISTmas?! lmao, Idk, make up a story about a common festivity that emerged because in ancient times a random village started making gifts and being with their family because something random happened, or idk, just call it Delibirdmas xDD

Edit: I forgot, but I also hate harems in ANY type of fic

Edit2: Please don't hate, I'm not trying to insult anyone or say that fics with these aspects are bad....

There were nine known regions in the world.

Nine regions, each with its own history, its own traditions, its own people and Pokémon. Some spanned vast continents; others were scattered across tropical islands. Some were renowned for their powerful trainers, others for their researchers, their breeders, their craftsmen, or the extraordinary ways their people lived alongside Pokémon.

Their cultures differed. Their languages differed. Even the way they trained Pokémon, challenged Gyms, and understood the world could differ so greatly that a traveller crossing from one region to another might feel as though they had entered an entirely different world.

Yet, across all nine regions, one tradition endured.

One principle that had survived the rise and fall of kingdoms, the passage of countless generations, and the changes of a world that never stopped growing.

Every journey begins with a choice.

No child was handed a Pokémon and told, This is yours.

No professor, parent, or League official could decide which partner a young trainer must take. Circumstances might limit the Pokémon available to them. Their choices might be few, difficult, or nothing like what they had imagined.

But the choice itself was theirs.

Always.

Because a Pokémon was not a tool to be issued, nor a weapon to be assigned, nor a possession whose purpose could be decided by someone else. A Pokémon is a partner, a friend, someone who will accompany you for the rest of your lives. The start of a journey was not something someone could decide for you. It was something one chose to undertake, with someone who had chosen to undertake it alongside them.

And so, from the smallest village in Kanto to the furthest inhabited island of Alola, from the ancient mountains of Sinnoh to the bustling cities of Unova, the beginning of a trainer's journey followed the same ancient custom.

A child would stand before their first Pokémon.

They might be nervous. They might be excited. They might have spent years dreaming of this moment, or arrived at it without the faintest idea of what they wanted their future to look like.

They might choose the strongest Pokémon available to them.

They might choose the smallest.

They might choose a partner that surprised everyone, including themselves.

But when the moment came, when the uncertainty gave way and the choice was finally made, the words were always the same.

Across regions. Across generations. Across every road that had ever led a trainer away from home.

Two words, spoken countless billions of times, and never made meaningless by repetition.

“I choose you.”

This is an excerpt from my longfic, I have been planning it for years at this point (on and off for sure), but its something I've just started writing properly and not just spending my time worldbuilding any random charachter who will appear for all of 2 sentences. Actually posting chapters will take me a long time before I'm confident enough to share it (plus life is really insistent on not giving me the time to write) but I couldnt wait and wanted to see what others think of this idea. Hope y'all like it.

In the fic I'm looking for, Ash has won the alola league and is now working with kukui to establish a proper league in alola with gyms and all.

Kukui and others want him to be the champion of the alola. He agrees.

So in a meeting with the champions and Charles goodshow (maybe there were some others idrr) kukui shows clips/videos of Ash's achievements in Alola- defeating Tapu Koko, winning the league, completing island trials, helping and leading everyone against the ultra beasts, receiving the blessings of the tapus to lead the league etc.

Kukui shows all this without ash's face. So no one knows who the to-be-champion is. He shows Ash's alola pokémon battle and how well he integrates into the culture.

I also remember the other champions discussing if he is suitable to take over as a champion or not (the don't know it's ash they're talking about)

It also included ash buying a house in alola for a permanent (or atleast semi-permanent stay)

I read it on ao3 and now I can't for the life of me remember the name.

Please help me find it.

So this idea popped into my head like a week ago and I need to see if this is any good. so we all know how most journey fics goes in the broadest sense possible. The trainer picks up a starter at the beginning. There's a chapter dedicated for each of the new captures assuming they’re not trying to speed run getting all 1000 Pokémon. Otherwise the gap between new Pokémon ranges from the next chapter to several arcs later. Then some strange thought just beamed into my brain and asked what if you just didn’t do that. What if you just got all of your team members as a strange package deal. Basically the Pokémon adopting different species idea from the anime push to the absolute maximum and making the trainer the new addition to the family instead of the founding member.

Originally, I tried assigning a group of Pokémon based off various routes due to being slightly obsessive with the continuity of where Pokémon are supposed to live. then Realize that system would’ve been an absolute nightmare considering that some routes don’t even have a full six Pokémon let alone six I would want to write about. Then I remembered a concept I had for a unovan oc of immigrant origin using Unova Pokémon that weren’t actually introduced in GEN five i.e. regional variance, evolutions, mega evolutions and paradox forms. And decided to hammer that in as a basis instead.

Bridge Villager: I’m terrible with names. I’m just going to stick to general traits for the most part. If you have something better, please comment. Otherwise I’ll have to figure out something else and it will probably just be Batman names. He is a newly licensed trainer still trying to find a starter when he got himself involved with a pokemon smuggling operation by slashing a man’s tires then busting open his truck while the trucker was trying to fix them. He gets the attention of the Pact due to the fact, two of them were in that truck and the fact that he nursed a third one back to health after the trucker threw him off a cliff screaming for help and it broke its arms trying to pick the locks. He gets convinced into taking them as his team after learning the alternatives are to let them back into the wild for the porchers to just grab again or split them all up into different nature preserves. With one of them most likely getting dissected. Opinions about the villager are mixed ranging from pretty cool to kill it like the rest. The mentality mostly becomes that of the former by at least the middle of the story with one exception. He's relatively calm in most situations, even when wildly out of his depth. Also he self isolated to some extent after the death of his friend stone guy.

Pawniard: the first member introduced the Pokémon who started the group and leader. He wants to become a kingambit and left his previous detachment to create his own far before he was ready to evolve which ended in him having zero members for a bit before he started making one consisting of other Pokémon, believing that he figured out a cheat code to how they usually operate, which he sort of did. He is loyal to a fault. At the beginning of the story, having him break his own arms in order to unlock the back of the smuggler truck after being thrown off it. His view on villager is of course pretty positive due to him helping stop the truck and nursing him back to help after he breaks most of his body.

Rufflet: a Pokémon who is seen as cowardly, especially for his species, he was abandoned for being too soft in comparison to his family. Pawniard recruited him first believing he would get a traditional bravery by the end of it only to realize that it lacked the traditional temperament of its species and the ability to fly due to never being taught. He has made attempts before the story started, but all of them ended in failure. He still helps out just in the backline. He is relatively neutral on villager at first, but shifts rapidly due to him, actively knowing how his species operates better than he does due to growing up around them his entire life.

Tynamo: probably the most in favor of villager though absolutely no one knows why. Like all Tynamo he was born alone in a powerful electromagnetic field in the ocean following its senses to the strongest electromagnetic field it could detect. It broke instinct after Rufflet drowned in a failed attempt to fly and kept breaking it when it decided to join the others. He is the most likely to get a reaction out of the villager, usually positive although sometimes he manages to traumatize him.

Petilil-an overly aggressive member of her species, picking fights with whatever she thinks she stands a chance against. It got to the point where the rest of her tribe just booted her out before she brought trouble to them. This ended up with her fighting and unfezant thinking it was an easy fight. Fortunately before it could eat her, the pack decided they wanted to eat the unfezant and manage to knock it out. Embarrassed but grateful she decided to join the rest of them. Her opinion on the villager varies wildly depending on what they’re doing. But mostly rings as neutral at the start.

Galar draumaka: the result of an illegal breeding operation he and his other breedject siblings were forced to adapt in the unova wild and to put it bluntly did not with him being the only survivor. Only making it due to a brutal winter that heavily favored him over everything trying to eat him. He met the others after they broke into a burrow he was using at the time which they needed for Petilil. He was delighted to meet Pokémon who didn’t want to eat him due to the fact he was naturally extremely friendly. He does, however, not like humans in general due to being ripped from his mother‘s arms and him and his siblings being forced to fend for themselves in an environment they really were not supposed to. This extends to the villager for a bit, though he does come around before the fourth gym.

Iron moth: one of the two Pokémon that got caught in the smuggling ring and the youngest member of the pact going by how long they’ve actively been awake. Technically separate from the ones in area zero due to the fact it was made by the beheeyem for an unknown reason. They are notably closer to cyborgs than true robots. Whatever its purpose was it activated too early to do it and ended up being a cyborg Lavesta rather than Volcarona. The attempt to retrieve it got interrupted by the pack, of course with the Volcarona being revered as an unstoppable force Pawniard wanted it on their side by the time it is fully grown. Although a limited version of iron moth in the beginning, it is still buyenlarges. The strongest Pokémon there, though it can’t be used at any official capacity in the beginning due to it being hunted and way too distinctive to use if trying to avoid being noticed along with the next Pokémon.

Hisuian zorua: the other Pokémon that got rescued from the truck and the one who can’t stand humans the most with both its mother and brother getting caught up in separate poaching attempts the mother was outright killed in front of them. The brother got captured and sent to who knows where. A third attempt to capture almost succeeded, but the pack showed up due to the fact, one of the guards had a Bisharp, and Pawniard thought that was a step in evolving into a kingambit. She obviously joins up after that seeing as she has no one else left, and they’re probably the best bet if the poachers come back. She likes pulling pranks primarily on humans which she has a great disdain for. The villager gets the short end of the stick for a while, only stopping around charge Stone Cave. He never take the bait though, which only makes her hate him even more. Although she’s technically the seventh member of the team she almost never participates in any league regulated battles. at first to avoid the people hunting her and moth. then because she realize she would be helping the villager if she actually did anything. she Does help out with fights where everyone else is in active danger but at the moment she probably won’t     participate in any gym battle outside maybe the last

Dick: he is the rival character and has a lot of his personality lifted from Barry though there does not stem from a personal connection more so the fact that he’s pretty much an echo fighter with him having technically the exact same team      as     the villager only the true unova versions the only exception being a rotom. He is a grandson of Alder with red hair to boot. He often had the upper hand due to his pokemon being more orthodox and having to split his focus much less in the beginning. If this character seems familiar It’s because he’s this fic take on Richie hence the name also being a nickname for Richard.

The collector: the leader of the unnamed poachers who are the main villain throughout most of the story. As the title suggests he is a billionaire that collects rare Pokémon of all types, be they shiny, nearly extinct, mutants, or strange hybrids. And employees everyone from random goons to former league finalists to get what he wants. they’re even suspicions that he was funding team plasma during the second era of their organization. Everyone knows that he is probably trafficking several Pokémon but the only ones they’re ever able to find are the one he legally obtains through proper methods and are never able to track any of the others. with it made even worse by several rare and valuable Pokémon under his possession randomly just disappearing without a single trace. Although he has an interest in most rare Pokémon, his white whale is in fact zorua claiming that is the last piece of his missing collection

Stone girl: a student of Blueberry Academy and the sister of the late Stone guy. Her and her brother were trying to figure out why power buyenlarges keep turning into rocks. She’s technically not a trainer but she does have her brother’s team who was once a member of the blueberry elite four before the current interaction and one who was neck and neck with Dayton before his death. She enters the story after villager accidentally fakes his own death before going off the grid so she has to find him to prove her closest friend didn’t just die.

Hugh: probably the only major Cannon character with him sort of being a police officer as in they gave him a badge and let him do whatever he wants. He’s the new gym leader after Drayden had to step down due to team plasma attack this destroying his reputation. He is obviously not a fan of the collector. Couldn’t do Jack about it until he learned of his last real big target, the zorua . Realizing that it was probably going to be cooked along with the rest of the pack in their current state, he tried to capture them, failed several times, and then genuinely lost track of them for a bit. Only to be called into Bridge Village after a smuggler got assaulted by several extremely rare Pokémon and found the pack after they just adopted a random villager. He made sure he understood what’s happening with the ring and what was that steak,                                    had him hide iron moth and zorua in ancient Pokémon balls, discreetly moved them to his hometown to start his journey and then added some fake blood to his house, which was already ransacked, to throw everyone off where the trail where the pact could be. He regularly makes contact with the villager to make sure that he’s still breathing and make sure he doesn't have any encounters with the collector.