Love in the Time of Tropics

Chapter 3: An Owl

It's kind of nice to be back on my usual schedule, though at the same time incredibly stressful, ha ha. Oh well, hoping this chapter is enjoyable for you: Chapter 3!

Chapter 3

An Owl

"Island Trials?" The words tumbled from Ash's lips in a mess of total confusion. All thought of making it to the Pokémon Center was suddenly pushed to the back burner in light of this development. The excitement automatically imbued his body with energy. Even if he had no idea what Kukui was talking about, or who the man next to him was, it didn't mean a thing. "What're those?"

"You interested?" Kukui asked, a grin on his face. This one was particularly infectious, and Ash found his own stretching his face. He looked to Pikachu, who also seemed to be intrigued, judging by the way his fur stood up on end.

"You bet!" Ash said in response. "Trying new things is always exciting. Does it involve battles?"

"It does," answered the man next to Kukui. He was more soft-spoken than his companion, a thing made obvious from the way he was dressed in slacks and a sweater vest. At least Ash was glad he had managed to discern that he was a guy correctly (judging from his voice); the last time he'd done that had been too embarrassing in hindsight. "I'm Ilima, captain of the trial on Melemele Island."

"Captain of the trail on...huh...?" Ash sounded out, getting slightly confused by the terms being hurled at him. He'd been in Alola for all of an hour and already he was getting bombarded with information. Kukui appeared to catch notice of this and began to laugh heartily, but Ash could tell that the man wasn't making fun of him. Looking at him, his face was too full of pure mirth to be condescending. Kukui raised his hand to briefly remove his white cap and Ash noticed the ring on his finger, but wrote it off.

"Must sound pretty confusing to someone who's not from Alola," the professor said. He placed his cap back on his head, but continued to grin. "How about we discuss it over some lunch?"

"That sounds great!" Ash commented. He was starting to feel rather peckish.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu suddenly said to him in warning. Hearing his best buddy snap at him reminded Ash of where he was supposed to be, and who he was supposed to be with.

"Ah, no! I forgot!" Ash said, turning to face the two men. "Um, I'd really like to know more about these trials, but I have to go meet up with my friends! They're waiting for me, and I promised."

"Not a problem, cousin," Kukui said, waving his hand nonchalantly. The man was so at ease that it put Ash, himself, at ease. For a second, he had to wonder if the guy was actually a professor, or if he was just pulling his leg. Remembering the fact that he knew both Professor Oak and Diantha, however, he chose to accept it as fact. "Heck, how's this sound: I gotta run to the lab, so you and your friends have lunch with Ilima here and we'll talk after. Champion Diantha had a lot of great things to say about you, cousin."

"Um...okay...yeah, sure," Ash agreed, still feeling like he was just a little pressured and on edge to get back to his friends. He looked to Pikachu, who seemed to agree with the notion. Before Ash could stop him, Kukui reached forward and clasped Ash on the shoulder with a grin once more.

"We'll meet up soon, then!" the tanned man said, removing his hand and waving it while he walked down the road. "Get him caught up on everything, Ilima!"

"Of course," Ilima replied, his relaxed facial expression not changing in the least. Ash blinked, watching Kukui disappearing down the streets before rubbing the back of his head. It was one encounter after another in Alola. "Shall we?"