Pokemon One-Shots and Headcanons

The Right Trainer 3.0

Ten-year-old Ash Ketchum and his twelve-year-old twin siblings, Leaf and Red, were on their way to Professor Oak's lab to pick their starter Pokemon. He had been looking forward to this day ever since he was old enough to know what Pokemon were, but now all he could feel was a sense of dread. Why was that? Well, just a few days earlier, Ash's mother, Delia, had informed him that he had to help his older siblings continue the family tradition of becoming Top Coordinators. Everyone in their family had been coordinators for years, she told him, and she expected him, Leaf, and Red to be the same. It didn't seem to matter to her that Ash had no interest in Pokemon coordinating at all. He thought it was stupid. Why would anyone bother dressing up their Pokemon or working on combination moves that were supposed to look pretty? Real Pokemon battles were a chance to show off the strength of a trainer's bond with their Pokemon, not a fashion show. It didn't help that Gary Oak, Ash's longtime rival, was going to be going on a proper Pokemon journey.
"Hey Ash, what's wrong?" Leaf asked her brother.
"I don't want to be a coordinator," Ash said, sighing. "I know it's family tradition and everything, but I hate it. It's just...stupid."
"Come on, it's not that bad," Red tried to persuade him.
"You're right, it's not that bad. It's terrible," Ash retorted. "I am not going to wear a suit to every single Pokemon battle or waste my time trying to come up with good-looking moves."
Leaf placed an arm around her younger brother's shoulder. "Come on, Ash. Cheer up a bit," she said excitedly. "We finally get to go on our journey!"
Ash just sighed irritably. "Leaf, if you don't take your hands off me within the next two seconds, you won't have hands."

Froakie sat silently next to Squirtle, observing the unfamiliar laboratory. Somehow Professor Oak managed to be even less organized than Professor Sycamore, which was saying a lot. One time Professor Sycamore had managed to lose a pair of reading glasses two minutes after he put them down.
Oh wait, that was because Froakie took them and hid them behind a potted plant. Never mind, then.
"When do you think the new trainers will get here?" Charmander asked eagerly. "I can't wait to meet them!"
Oh, right. How could he have forgotten? The whole reason Froakie was in Professor Oak's lab in the first place was because instead of the usual three trainers, the Kanto researcher had received four. One of them was his own grandson and the other three were the children of world-famous Pokemon Top Coordinator, Delia Ketchum.
In all honesty, Froakie wasn't looking forward to meeting any of them. He had heard enough stories of Gary's arrogance to know that he would never be the right trainer for him, and he had no interest in performing in contests either. But then again, maybe today would be his lucky day and he would finally meet the trainer he'd been searching his entire life for.
Just then, the door opened to reveal three children, all with dark hair and hazel eyes. Froakie realized that they must be Delia's children, as the girl was nearly her spitting image except for the hair and eye color. The two boys looked as though they could be twins, but one was a few inches taller than the other. The younger boy was wearing a red cap with a white arc on the front.
"Hey Professor Oak, nice to see you," the older boy greeted the aging professor.
"Red, good to see you," Professor Oak said warmly. "How are you three today?"
"I'm all right, Professor," Red answered.
"I'm doing great!" Leaf said in an annoyingly chipper voice. She then wrapped her arms affectionately around her younger brother and said, "Professor, I'm sure you remember our baby brother, Ash-"
"NO!" Ash yelled, startling Leaf and causing her to draw away from him.
Froakie stared at Ash, feeling a strange sensation in his chest. It was almost as though he could connect with him. Maybe, just maybe....
Red seemed to notice where Froakie was looking and grinned. "That's my brother, Ash. He seems really mean, but don't worry. He's not."
Froakie wasn't entirely sure if that was an accurate statement, for at that moment Ash's phone chose to ring. The young raven-haired boy picked it up and said, "Hello, you've reached Ash Ketchum. If you're Officer Jenny, no, I can't be of any service. If you're my mom, I'm not doing any coordinator training, HA! If you're Gary Oak, I HATE YOU! STOP CALLING ME!"
Leaf and Red covered their faces with their hands as Ash stood there with an innocent look on his face. Froakie was trying his hardest not to laugh. He didn't really know why, but he liked Ash already.
"All right, then," Professor Oak said, looking as though he were trying not to show his amusement at Ash's comment towards his grandson. "Who wants to pick first?"
"I'll go," Red offered. He stepped forward and observed all the starter Pokemon carefully. His gaze lingered for a moment on Froakie, curiosity entering his eyes, before he finally turned back to Charmander and said, "I choose Charmander."
"Yay!" Charmander cheered, jumping into Red's arms. Froakie was happy for the little fire-type, but he hoped he knew what he was getting himself into.
"Me next," Leaf said cheerfully. Unlike her twin, she didn't waste any time in choosing her starter. "I choose Bulbasaur."
Bulbasaur leaped happily into her arms, letting out a cry of joy. Leaf hugged her little grass-type and pet the top of her bulb.
"Ash? It's your turn," Professor Oak said to the youngest trainer.
However, instead of looking at the Pokemon, Ash just sighed and walked to the back of the lab.
"Is something wrong?" Professor Oak asked in confusion.
"It's all right, Professor," Leaf said, looking after her brother. "Ash...he's not happy about having to become a Pokemon coordinator. He's been looking forward to his journey since he was three years old, but our mom just told him a few days ago that he can't challenge any gym leaders or enter the Kanto league, or else she'll disown him for going against family tradition."
"It isn't that she has anything against gym leaders or the Kanto league in general," Red said quickly. "It's just that our family has produced nothing but coordinators for years and Ash becoming a Pokemon master would break generations of tradition."
Froakie was shocked that someone could be so selfish. This was supposed to be the start of a big adventure for Ash, but his own mother was ruining that by forcing him to pursue a career he didn't want. No wonder the boy was so miserable.
Deciding that enough was enough, Froakie hopped over to where Ash was standing sullenly. The raven-haired boy looked down at him in surprise as he heard him approach.
"Hey, Froakie," Ash said curiously. "What is it?"
Froakie was surprised that Ash knew what kind of Pokemon he was. Most new trainers had trouble keeping their own regional starters straight, yet here Ash was, able to recognize and name a Pokemon from a different region. He felt his respect for him increase tenfold.
"Don't worry about what anyone thinks. I think contests are stupid too," he told the raven-haired boy. "I think you'll be a really great trainer, Ash."
Ash nodded and smiled at him. It was the first smile he'd shown anyone since arriving at the lab and Froakie was amazed at the change it seemed to have on him. It was as though the anger and resentment he'd been showing before had never existed. Instead, there was just a happy ten-year-old boy, ready to leave on his Pokemon journey.
And still, the strange tug in his chest that Froakie had felt upon seeing Ash hadn't disappeared.
"Ash?" Professor Oak called. Ash and Froakie turned to face him. "Have you decided on which Pokemon you want?"
Ash nodded hesitantly. "I think so," he replied, glancing over at Froakie. "You want to come with me, Froakie?"
Froakie couldn't stop the impossibly large grin that spread over his face as he jumped onto Ash's shoulder. The raven-haired boy smiled happily and pet him gently. It was a nice feeling and made Froakie feel warm and safe.
"Well, that's new," Professor Oak remarked, looking at the little blue frog Pokemon in awe. He was well aware of Froakie's troublesome past and was shocked that Ash had managed to earn his respect so quickly.
Once Ash, Red, and Leaf had received their Pokedexes and their Pokeballs, it was time for the three trainers to leave on their journey. Instead of leaving with his brother and sister, however, Ash thanked Professor Oak quickly before running off towards Viridian Forest.
"Hey Ash, what's the rush?" Froakie asked.
"I'm trying to get as far away as possible so Leaf and Red don't catch up to me. I don't care if I get disowned, I'm not being a coordinator," Ash replied, still running. "They're going to go to Cerulean City for a Pokemon contest."
"What about us?" Froakie inquired curiously.
Ash stopped running and looked over at him with a smirk. "I was thinking we'd challenge the Pewter City gym."