Chapter Text
After knocking on the door of the Aether Estate, Gladion waited patiently along with his Umbreon. After a few moments, the door opened, revealing Hobbes, the family butler.
“Ah, Master Gladion,” Hobbes smiled. “I’m glad to see you’ve come home. How was your Ula’ula grand trial?”
“It was eventful and tiring,” Gladion admitted. “But I succeeded.”
“Well done, young man,” Hobbes beamed with a hint of pride in his voice.
“Thank you, Hobbes,” Gladion blushed. “Is Lillie home?”
“Yes,” Hobbes nodded, taking Gladion’s bag. “Master Ash is here too. You’ll find them in Miss Lillie’s room.”
“Thank you,” he smiled, holding out Silvally’s and Lycanroc’s Pokéballs. “Would you mind taking Lycanroc and Silvally to my room? They’re exhausted.”
“Of course,” Hobbes smiled, taking the Pokéballs before heading in the direction of Gladion’s bedroom. Gladion smiled gratefully before walking towards Lillie’s room, Umbreon following close behind. As they approached, Gladion could hear giggles. Smiling softly, Gladion knocked.
“Come in,” a voice called between laughter.
Gladion opened the door.
What on earth? He thought.
Inside, Ash was standing on his hands, his legs waving around as he tried to keep his balance while Pikachu pulled faces at Lillie and Snowy. Lillie was lying on the ground, her cheeks red and wet with tears. Snowy was beside her, laughing so hard that she had used Powder Snow on a couple of toys. Gladion gave a small smile as he knocked on the door. Lillie opened her eyes.
“Oh, hi Gladion,” Lillie gasped as she sat up.
“Gladion?!” Ash yelled in surprise. “Woah!”
Ash yelped as he fell over, landing on his back. Gladion winced out the loud thud while Umbreon wandered over and started licking Lillie’s cheeks, concerned that Lillie was hurt.
“I’m okay Umbreon,” Lillie smiled. “I’m not sad. Ash and Pikachu are just funny.”
“Bre,” Umbreon nodded.
“Are you alright?” Gladion said as he walked over to Ash, holding out his hand.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Ash smiled as he grabbed Gladion’s hand, allowing Gladion to pull him into a sitting position.
Gladion nodded before sitting on the couch, smiling as Pikachu, Umbreon and Snowy started to play and tickle each other.
“What are you doing home?” Lillie asked happily as she beside her brother.
“Well, I finished another Grand Trial and…” Gladion started to say.
“That’s so cool!” Ash interrupted. “Which island?!”
“Ula’ Ula,” Gladion answered.
“So cool!” Ash cried. “Who did you use? Isn’t Nanu tough? What kind of Z-Crystal did you win?”
“Ash, calm down,” Gladion smiled. “Please.”
Ash’s cheeks turned pink.
“Sorry,” he said softly. “It’s just… I haven’t seen you since the Manalo Festival and we didn’t really get a chance to catch up. So, I got excited. Sorry.”
Gladion gave a soft smile.
“It’s okay,” he said. “Anyway, Lycanroc, Silvally, Umbreon and I are tired so we thought we’d come home.”
“Wonderful!” Lillie said happily. “I miss having you home and I’d love to get to know Umbreon, Lycanroc and Silvally better now that I can touch Pokémon again.”
“Yeah,” Gladion smiled fondly. “So, what were you two doing?”
“Pikachu and I were having a contest to see who can make Lillie and Snowy laugh the most,” Ash grinned.
“Oh, who’s won?”
“Pikachu,” Lillie answered. “He makes the best impressions of Pokémon.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Here, we’ll show you,” Ash grinned before looking at the giggling Pokémon. “Hey Pikachu?”
“Pika?” Pikachu asked.
“Would you show Gladion your faces?” Ash asked.
“Pika!” Pikachu nodded before looking at Gladion.
“Pikachu will do an impression and I’ll say who it is,” Ash explained before looking at Pikachu. “Ready, Pikachu?”
“Pika,” Pikachu nodded before he started making shapes with his face and body.
“Wobbuffet,” Ash grinned. “Popplio, Lotad, Oricorio, Meowth.”
Lillie, Snowy and Umbreon giggled while Gladion smiled, impressed with how accurate Pikachu looked.
“Cute,” Gladion smiled. “But it’s kind of easy to make Lillie laugh.”
“What do you mean?” Ash asked.
“Who do you think kept her entertained when we were younger?” Gladion smirked. “Come here, Umbreon.”
Obediently, Umbreon went to her trainer and jumped on his lap. After whispering in her ear, Gladion gently placed one of his hand on Umbreon’s neck. As he started to gently tap with one finger, Umbreon started opening and closing her mouth in time with the taps.
“Hello, Lillie and Ash,” Gladion spoke through Umbreon using ventriloquy. “Oh, no! I’ve been cursed! Now I have Gladion’s voice and Gladion has mine! Ahh!”
“Bre, bre, bre!” Gladion was now moving his mouth, making his voice high and scratchy as he tried to copy Umbreon’s pitch.
Lillie laughed as she clapped her hands together joyfully, remembering how Gladion use to make Umbreon talk to her when Umbreon was still an Eevee. Pikachu and Snowy giggled and cheer while Ash laughed, his face filled with excitement.
“Wow!” he cried. “How did you do that?”
“When we were younger, we had a nanny who use to do ventriloquy to get us to eat vegetables,” Gladion explained while scratching Umbreon, who purred happily. “She taught me a few tricks before left.”
“Why did she leave?” Lillie asked as she tried to remember the old nanny.
“She had to go back to Unova because of family,” Gladion answered.
“Oh.”
“Gladion, that was amazing!” Ash praised. “That was so cool and funny!”
Gladion blushed with a small smile.
“That’s sweet of you to say,” he smiled. “But like I said, it’s pretty easy to make Lillie laugh.”
“What do you mean?” Ash asked.
“Anything amusing can make Lillie laugh,” Gladion said. “But me, not so much.”
“Seriously?” Ash asked. Gladion shrugged.
“It’s just the way I am,” he said.
“Huh,” Ash said before beaming. “I bet I can make you laugh like Lillie.”
“I very much doubt it,” Gladion smirked while Umbreon nodded. Lillie, Snowy and Pikachu watched with great interest.
“Okay, how about a wager?” Ash asks. Gladion cocked an eyebrow before leaning forward, resting his forearms on his knees.
“What kind of wager?” He asked with interest.
“I have one whole week to make you laugh,” Ash said. “Today is Sunday so the bet starts tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Gladion said. “Are there any rules?”
Ash thought for a moment before grinning.
“I’m allowed to do whatever I want to get you to laugh,” Ash started. “And you have to come to the Pokémon school for the week.”
Gladion leaned back, thinking about what Ash said. A week at the Pokémon School? Didn't seem like a bad idea, especially since he was still trying to figure out how he was going to do the Poni Island Grand Trial when there was no Island Kahuna.
“Okay, I’ll come to the school,” Gladion nodded. “But no scaring me. I tend to fight when I get scared and I don’t want to hurt you.”
“That’s fair,” Ash smiled.
“And what’s the prize for the winner?”
A kiss. Ash thought.
“Whatever the winner wants,” Ash said.
Gladion’s eyes widened as he bit his lip to stop himself from grinning widely. Whatever the winner wanted?
“Deal,” Gladion said, holding out his hand. Ash took it eagerly and shook.
“Awesome!” Ash grinned. “I have to go. I’ve got to get ready. I’ll see you both tomorrow. Come on, Pikachu.”
After Pikachu jumped to Ash’s shoulder, Ash ran out of the room, calling goodbye to everyone he passed. Once Ash was gone, Gladion allowed himself to beam as he hugged Umbreon.
“You seem very happy, big brother,” Lillie said as Snowy jumped onto her lap.
“I am, Lillie,” Gladion grinned. “I need to win this bet, Lillie.”
“Why?” Lillie asked in confusion. “I know you two have a rivalry but he’s just trying to make you laugh. Why is it so important that you win this bet?”
“Because if I win, I can tell him I love him,” Gladion answered shyly.
Lillie gasped before she lit up.
“You have a crush on Ash?!” she squealed. “Since when?!”
“Since he helped us rescue Mother from Nihilego,” Gladion smiled before looking at Lillie with worry. “Is that okay?”
“Of course!” Lillie said as she hugged her brother tightly. “I’m so happy for you and I promise I’ll be there to help you win.”
***
Meanwhile, Ash and Pikachu sat on the couch with Professor Kukui, eagerly explaining the bet and the plan he had in mind.
“Is that okay, Professor?” Ash asked. Kukui blinked before smiling.
“Why not?” he said. “It could be fun to teach the kids about Pokémon and events from other regions.”
“Thank you so much, Professor!” Ash cheered before standing up. “Is it okay if I use your computer downstairs?”
“Of course,” Kukui smiled. “How come?”
“I have some friends I need to call,” Ash beamed before running downstairs.