After finishing the treatments for the wild Pokémon at Stone Bridge and Dashiwan Valley, the sky had already begun to darken. Ash didn't linger around town and instead brought his Pokémon straight home.
Seeing that, in the span of a single afternoon, Ash's Pichu had evolved into Pikachu—and that he had also added two Shiny Pokémon to his team—his mother Delia and Flabébé were both astonished.
"Son, even though you've discovered a way to help Magikarp learn Tackle using your psychic powers, and have now become the focus of attention for the League and all the major Kanto forces," Delia said seriously,
"you mustn't become arrogant or show off too much. These forces respect you now because of their interests, but once this period of advantage passes, they might turn around and trip you up."
"We're still just ordinary people with no background," she continued. "So don't take advantage of others, don't offend them, and don't get too deeply entangled with them."
"As for the Kanto League—yes, they value you only because of your Trainer talent. Before this, they didn't give our family any special treatment, and that's normal."
"So Ash, don't resent the League for being utilitarian. Now that these forces want to cooperate with you over Magikarp learning Tackle, if you can, give the League some preferential treatment. After all, it doesn't really cost you anything—just some time and the use of your psychic power."
"I heard from your Aunt Miho that the League has secretly stationed people around Pallet Town to protect you and our family. We should know how to repay kindness with kindness."
As Ash listened to his mother talk about the stir caused by the 'Magikarp + Tackle' service on his skill shop—and about the origins of the two Shiny Pokémon—Delia spoke with rare solemnity.
A mother is naturally proud of her outstanding son, but Delia also worried that fame and profit might cloud his heart. After all, Ash was only six years old.
"Don't worry, Mom," Ash replied calmly. "I understand what you mean. I'm not resentful toward the League at all. There are tens of millions of people in Kanto—if they gave special care to every child, that would be ridiculous."
"I just happen to have high Trainer talent, so the League pays extra attention to me. That's only natural. Being valued is better than being ignored."
"Professor Oak came to see me at noon today. Later, when the League asked me to help Magikarp learn Tackle, I already gave them a very generous discount."
"As for the Tsuchihara Family, they specialize in raising Magikarp. The reason they gave me two Shiny Pokémon is because my announcement about Magikarp learning Tackle cost their family several days' worth of profits."
"Of course, since I accepted their gift, I'll give them some preferential treatment in future cooperation. In short, I won't take advantage of anyone or let them suffer a loss."
"Mm, that's good," Delia said, finally relaxing a little.
"Oh right, Mom," Ash asked, "was there something you needed to do when you went to Aunt Miho's this afternoon?"
"Of course there was," Delia said brightly. "Didn't we hire a construction company some time ago for renovations? The shop is almost finished now."
"This afternoon, your Aunt Miho and I contacted flower farmers outside the city. We're planning to discuss supply sources in the next couple of days. If all goes well, the flower shop will be ready to open soon."
"Her shop space is very large, so we plan to divide it into two parts. The front will be a flower shop, and the back will be a flower-arranging training studio. We've even decided on the names."
"What are they called?" Ash asked curiously.
"Hehe— the front will be called 'Ash's Mom's Flower Shop', and the back will be 'Gary's Mom's Flower Arrangement Studio.' Not bad, right?"
"…Huh?" Ash twitched. "Why use Gary's and my names? That feels kind of weird…"
"Because you're adorable, Ash! And your online shop uses your name too, doesn't it? Look how successful it is now."
"...(=_=)"
After dinner, Ash spent some time watching TV with his mother before heading back upstairs to his room.
"Valor, Lumina—do you want to sleep in your Poké Balls tonight, or stay outside?" Ash asked, setting the water basin down on a stool.
"Splash…"
"Glu… Ash, we want to stay outside," the two Shiny Pokémon replied.
"Alright," Ash nodded. Outside of training, he always respected his Pokémon's wishes.
"Spla—Ash, Head Ninja Frog said this afternoon that you can help Magikarp learn Tackle. Can you help me learn it too?" Valor asked eagerly, his eyes full of anticipation.
"That's no problem at all," Ash replied with a smile. "Not just Tackle—even at your current stage, I can help you learn many skills. Don't worry. You two rest for a couple of days first."
"When I officially arrange your training, I'll help both you and Lumina learn new moves."
"Spla—okay!" Valor's eyes curved into happy crescents.
Ash chatted with the two Pokémon for a while longer, learning more about their pasts. Just as he'd guessed—
Valor's timid nature came from being weak and overly eye-catching as a Shiny Pokémon in the wild, which led to constant bullying. That problem would be easy to solve: once Valor learned attack moves and began proper training, his growing strength would naturally build his confidence.
What truly troubled Ash was Lumina.
Lumina's inferiority complex came from her appearance. She believed she was ugly—and that kind of self-doubt couldn't be fixed just by learning attack moves or getting stronger.
"To make Lumina confident about her looks, I need to address the root cause," Ash thought. "Telling her that appearance doesn't matter and that inner beauty is what counts… that's too abstract for now."
"Cosmetic surgery is obviously impossible—and unhealthy."
"Hmm… Maybe I could buy some safe, Pokémon-approved cosmetics and help her with light makeup. But… I don't actually know how to do makeup."
"Looks like, besides Pokémon theory, I'll need to spend some time learning makeup techniques."
"And I'll have to praise Lumina more often, help her slowly build confidence in her appearance."
With that thought in mind, Ash smiled gently at the two Pokémon resting in the basin.
A long road lay ahead—but he would walk it with them, step by step.
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T/N:
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