A Messy Array of Stories, AUs, Covers and Many More

Step into the Galarian Gou AU!

AU Bio: 

An AU where Gou doesn't stay in Kuchiba City, but instead moves to Galar after meeting Mew, where he goes through the events of the Sword/Shield games upon reaching the age of 10, with some changes in the story. Koharu becomes a companion of his while she searches for her true calling in life, and Satoshi becomes his rival alongside Hop, Beedo, and Mary. It was also inspired by the video above. The confrontation at Rose Tower never happened, and the fight against Mugendaina is in Knuckle Gym like in the anime. The positions are switched, though; Satoshi fights Olive, and Gou fights Rose, while the team consisting of Gou, Satoshi, Dande, Hop, Beedo, Mary and Koharu fights against Mugendaina with the help of Zacian and Zamazenta.

Relationships: 

Beedo X Mary, Implied Koharu x Gou, Dande X Sonia, Satoshi x Gou

Characters: 

Gou

-> After meeting Mew, his family is forced to relocate to Galar, where he meets Hop and is pestered into spending more time outside. As a result, his physique is better than before, and he's more sociable. However, he gets flustered really easily and tries to hide it with "pride". His goal as a trainer is to reach Dande, but hesitation and fear of abandoning his original wish of catching Mew holds him back. It is not until he begins learning more about the myths and fights Mugendaina that he realizes what he actually wants; to be friends with all the Pokemon, including Legendaries and Mythicals. Because of this, after he loses to Satoshi in the semi-finals, he takes on the offer of being a research fellow for Sakuragi-sensei and moves to Kuchiba City with Satoshi with all the Pokemon he had accumulated over the months of traveling (He's completed the Pokedex).

Hop

-> He was born in Galar as the younger brother of Dande. He and Gou grew up together, and they became rivals from there, but still remain friends even through that. While seeming brash on the outside, he actually understands his boundaries and doesn't challenge Gou to a battle in every town; instead, he does it when they meet in the Wild Area. He is also less insecure about his status as Dande's brother than before thanks to Gou, who told him that he's who he is, and he doesn't have to follow Dande; he has his own path to go. It also smoothens out the transition to his dream job for Hop, which is something he will always be grateful for. 

Dande

-> He was the Undefeated Champion who lost to Satoshi after the Mugendaina fight during the finals. He's gifted in battle, and it shows in his former title. He's also Hop's older brother, who unknowingly puts Hop under a lot of pressure due to his prestige as Galar's champion. After losing, Dande returns to his hometown and decides to spend time becoming a teacher to future Trainers with Sonia's help. A horrible navigator, he is a goofball who spends time with everyone else, wanting nothing but the growth of all Galarian trainers to be able to compete on the world level.

Beedo

-> He was one of Gou's rivals on the road, and he was sponsored by Rose himself. He was found in the slums and had to steal from various others until Rose found him and helped him learn about Pokemon. However, this led him to try to hide his own insecurities by acting arrogant to others. After meeting Gou, Hop, and Mary, he eventually becomes a rival who travels with Gou and Koharu, making the transition to Fairy-types after meeting Poplar when he is disqualified by his own recommender, who was just using him to get more Wishing Stars.. He doesn't actually join the Tournament after the disqualification, though he does help with the fight against Mugendaina, and chooses to spend time with his Pokemon to make up for lost time and observe his former rival. Despite all the bravado, when face to face with a cute Pokemon, Beedo can never hold back; he always tries to catch it and train it. He wants to train himself to take over Poplar's place as Gym Leader of Arabesque Town. 

Mary

-> She becomes a travel companion to the group of Gou, Beedo, and Koharu, after she tells Team Yell off for following her around like a lost puppy. She can only officially get rid of them once she and Gou challenged and beat her older brother, Nezu, who's the Gym Leader of Spike Town. She was also there to help against Mugendaina, and she and Beedo find love with each other afterward. Eventually, she will take over her brother's position as Gym Leader, but for now, she's content with spending time with her newfound friends. She's the quiet type, but when it comes to her Morpeko, she can't help but gush over him, which is a cute trait on its own.

Koharu

-> She was Gou's childhood friend from Kuchiba City who ended up going to Galar to start her journey with her Eevee. She sasses people on a daily basis, especially Gou, but is also very caring to them. She joins Gou on his journey because she doesn't know what kind of trainer she wants to be but slowly comes to realize what her own dream is; to be a Pokemon Doctor. Because of this, thanks to Satoshi's connections and after helping them fight against Mugendaina, Koharu heads to Nibi City to train under Takeshi. 

Satoshi

-> The Alolan Champion who enjoys traveling, Satoshi ends up traveling alone with his Pikachu throughout the Galar region while battling his rivals, namely Gou, Beedo, and Mary. He was also the MVP for the fight against Mugendaina, summoning the Legendary Sword Pokemon Zacian while Gou summoned the Legendary Shield Pokemon Zamazenta. He ends up being the Champion of the Galar region but returns it to Dande so he can go to Kuchiba City with Gou for the research fellow position. He's a lovable goofball who has always gotten sucked into Legendary nonsense, so at times he wakes up at night in a cold sweat, but he ends up figuring out how to deal with it thanks to Gou's research, allowing them to grow closer after the Mugendaina incident AND Gou's loss in the semifinals. 

Sonia

-> The granddaughter of Professor Magnolia, she is excitable and eager to prove herself, but with Gou's help, she manages to uncover more than ever before. She learns to never stop looking for the answers to questions and also ends up confessing to Dande, which he accepts. After the Mugendaina incident, she decided to help Dande with his new purpose while working as a  Professor. She considers Gou and Hop the little siblings she never had, and usually allows them and Koharu to play with her Wanpachi. She is admittedly disappointed when Gou loses to Satoshi, but seeing him relieved alleviates that sadness for when he leaves Galar to return to Kanto, his Pokemon and Satoshi in tow. 

Rose

-> He was the chairman of Macro Cosmos, who sponsored Dande and gave him the means to become the Champion. He preferred to look at the bigger picture, however, this didn't end in his favour as everyone waved his concerns off. This made him spiral into despair, and he grew mad as he began to take matters into his own hands. He started to go crazy, and he was ready to recreate the Darkest Day to create endless energy for Galar. However, at the end, Satoshi fought Olive while Gou went up against Rose, convincing him that he was wrong, that he had taken it into his own hands because he was being selfish and refused to take into account the destruction it would cause. He then extended a hand out to him, knowing what it's like to be ignored, and gave him a reason to redeem himself. He took it, and helped the team fight off Mugendaina before he was arrested, but only after promising Gou that he will reflect. 

Olive

-> She was Rose's secretary who was in love with him, after he helped her out of her abusive household. She is dedicated to him, and would fight anyone who threatened that dream. For that, she fought off Satoshi who had brought the sword and shield, but she was defeated after his Riolu evolved into Lucario. She is then arrested and taken to jail. She seems graceful on the outside, but she is actually fiercely loyal to Rose and shows her violent side during the Darkest Day. 

Professor Magnolia

-> She is the Pokemon Professor of the Region, the title of which will be given to Sonia in the future. She is strict yet passionate about Pokemon, and even left Macro Cosmos due to how crazy Rose was turning, uncaring of the souls he would hurt along the way. She entrusts the Pokeball with Mugendaina to Sonia and trusts that the Darkest Day would never happen again. She is sad that Gou is leaving, but tells him to learn more about Pokemon and achieve his dream.