Hi guys! Hope you're doing well, eating properly, and protecting yourselves.

Remember that megabondshipping oneshot I wrote starring Alain's college mate, Kyle? And the one following that? Well, here's the third one of that series!

If you're confused, basically this is an AU where the norm is that gender means absolutely nothing, and that the Pokemon Regions are in the real world in America and Ash is from China.

Also I added another thing to the AU. I know it sounds silly but I added a thing where scientists found a way for all genders to have children.

I know, weird and confusing haha. Enjoy!

(I just wanna say thanks to those leaving so many positive comments on my announcements. It's great to see people who agree with me in things like that)

(Also my writing is weird so if you think you're gonna judge please click off now)

(Also you may find upsetting)

Alain and his boyfriend scattered to finish getting ready, as they were moments before meeting someone very important.

"I'm so excited!", Ash sung as he pinned a fa-zan into his silky hair.

"I'm glad you're excited", Alain chuckled as he fastened his last button, "But you should know something first-"

"I bet she'll be just as sweet as you! Maybe we could hang out, like me and the Professor do!"

"Well, the Professor is more of a mentor than a dad to me—but that's not the point"

Ash stopped smiling and looked at the older male.

"Alain? What's wrong?"

Alain slowly walked towards the other, looking very nervous. Ash knew he was only like this when it was something serious.

"Alain?"

"...Ash... don't get me wrong, I'm just as excited as you are to meet my mom. But, you should know that she's very..."

"Very...?

"Judgmental. She's kind of old-fashioned, and always says whatever she wants. I guess that's why she ended up with the Professor. He was the only one patient enough to deal with her"

"Kinda funny how you call him 'Professor' instead of 'dad', right?"

"...Ash..."

He could see he was really worried. The only other time he'd showed this much emotion was how angry he was at his college mates. Ash still remembered his saying how much he wanted to kill Kyle.

"Hey, it'll be fine! I can take whatever she throws at me. We've dealt with people being judgey at me before"

"Are you sure?"

"I mean, it'll be a little harder coming from your mom, I'd really like her approval. But we'll get through it if it gets hard"

Alain sighed and his smile returned.

"I'm lucky you're so optimistic"

————

Ash hadn't even finished coming down the stairs when he heard her voice for the first time.

"The decoration in this lab is appalling. I'd get an apartment if I were you", she said with her low, slightly raspy voice.

She sounded and looked very sophisticated, and held her chin high and proud. Well, at least she was confident.

"Mom", Alain started, "This is Ash"

The woman turned around, laying a hand on the shoulder of her red dress. She had piercing blue eyes and dry, maroon lips. Her face as a whole was a little wrinkled. Her light brown hair was tied up with curls at the sides framing her face. 

"Hi! Nice to meet you!", Ash held out his hand.

The woman briefly glanced at his hand before asking, "Have you ever considered a nail file?"

Understanding already what kind of person his boyfriend tried to warn him about, he kept on smiling and drew back his arm.

"You'll call me Ms. Sycamore", she snarled, "And you...I think I'll call you...Rat"

Her husband and the two teens glared at her in surprise.

"That's the Chinese year, isn't it? You should be grateful I'm appreciating your culture"

Alain felt anxiety building up until he saw Ash blink and smile, even though he knew it was forced. He etched his way over to his father and whispered.

"...So many options..."

"I married her for a reason. No one else would, and she used to be nicer than this. Respect your professor"

"I still have to call you that?"

"Get in the car"

————

Alain and Ash sat opposite his parents, holding hands under the table like always.

I should probably explain that part. Since they had two incidents of people harassing Ash in public, Alain told him that whenever he felt the urge to lash out or cry, he should squeeze his hand instead. Sweet, right?

His finger was fractured the other day.

"It really is a shame that we match. I know red is supposed to be your country's favourite colour or whatever, but no one owns red like Renesmee Janssen"

The Professor even had to fake a smile now.

"Haha...you got that right, honey...as you two can see, we're still working on her acting like we aren't married. It's Renesmee Sycamore, sweetie"

"Mhm. Now go get our food"

Sycamore got up and left as quickly as he could, leaving the two poor boys alone with her.

She suddenly asked her son to sit beside her, saying that she felt more comfortable that way. Ash told him not to argue and he went over.

"So. Alain tells me you travelled to America for an adventure?"

"Yes. I wanted to-"

"A-a-a. I didn't ask for details", she interrupted, holding a finger in his face.

Ash nodded and smiled again, much to Alain's relief. They could still reach each other's hands under the table.

"Huh. What a different world it is today. People travelling to this country, wishing for an escape from the wastelands they call home. But even this country isn't really to my liking, with the gender-free society and scientists making everybody fertile. Coming from China, who has yet to accept homosexuals, you'd agree with me, no?"

She was really laying everything down on the table. But Ash wasn't about to be intimidated. Even if they'd have to visit the hospital after this to fix Alain's hand, this was going to be a civil night.

"I kind of like it", Ash said.

The woman stared at him with wide eyes and raised eyebrows.

"That's it? That's all you can say to my political statement?"

"Well, you didn't ask for details", Ash chuckled.

Alain even grinned a bit before his mother's eyes started watching him as well, and he had to quickly cover his mouth.

Thankfully, Sycamore broke the tension by bringing steaming, delicious food to the table, causing Ash's eyes to sparkle.

"Alain tells me you like food. Give me the details", she demanded.

"Well, I was born underweight, and I still am. I have really high metabolism, and it's really difficult for me to gain weight. Even if I don't eat enough for a week, I could lose a lot just doing nothing. So I need to make sure I always eat a lot to at least keep my weight the same"

"Oh. How nice"

'How nice'?! Who responds to a sad story about medical struggles with 'how nice'?!

"You know, I have to say. I know you've heard this before, but you do have the outer appearance of a lady. It's quite a good thing for me, actually. I always hoped Alain would settle down with a beautiful woman"

Alain felt his hand going numb as he stared at his mother with dismay. He didn't look at Ash and notice his smile was starting to fade.

"It was my dream. To be able to meet my son's beautiful, American wife. I myself am Dutch, so I personally prefer those whose people don't eat their own young"

Oh. She was one of those 'believe everything on the internet' Karens. We aren't cannibalists, you swine.

"But to see that my son is with someone who looks like a girl, and used to be, it's quite relieving. Although I don't agree with the whole 'trans' thing"

Even the Professor was trying to give her little signals to cool down. But she was just getting started.

"And I hoped his girlfriend would be a little modest, too. The fact that your dress is sleeveless and far above the knee is quite inappropriate. But I'll let you off. Besides, you are the Rat, and you used to be a girl anyway, so you wearing a dress looks a little less strange than the other men in this restaurant. But I am glad that my wonderful son hasn't been tainted by this new trend"

Hearing that made Ash think back.

"Heels aren't comfortable, and dresses don't really show off my height, you know?"

"Oh, please. As if you'd need heels", Ash laughed, "And if you wear a long dress people can totally tell how tall you are"

He thought Alain wasn't comfortable with that type of clothing because it wasn't his style. But really it was because his mother made him self-conscious.

"I'm working on trying to be confident with my body", Ash explained calmly, "I've always worn baggy clothes because I'm insecure, which isn't good. I also wanted to give you a taste of my culture"

"Hence why you ordered those sorry balls you call dumplings? The only sorry balls around here should be my son's, wishing he wasn't ga-"

"Or the husband of a very beautiful woman, wishing she'd honour his name since they're married!", Sycamore saved, chuckling nervously, "It wouldn't hurt you to call yourself by my last name, Renesmee"

"I'm just so proud of my Dutch name. I'm so proud of my culture. I'm sure you can relate, Rat. Alain tells me the petty encounters you've had with his college mates. Really, they were just joking, and every joke has truth"

Okay, this woman is confusing. Is she trying to say they were saying the right thing or that they were joking? 

"You can tell my son's blood from his height, right? You must be self-conscious about that, too, since teens are like that about everything these days. But I also would like a daughter-in-law with a desirable body. Maybe even some thickness and curves, instead of the bones I can see from your exposed arms"

When people decided gender meant nothing, they didn't say you could misgender people. And jabbing at his insecurities? Geez, Renesmee.

"But I've talked enough about you now"

Ash felt a smile coming on. Finally, he had the chance to talk to this woman.

"So let's hear Alain's thoughts!"

Poor Ash.

"Hm?", Alain hummed, looking cluelessly at the three of them. He's just been focusing on how offensive his mom was being and how red his hand was, not the conversation.

"Oh, sweetie, you weren't paying attention?", she complained before looking at Ash, "You think he picked that up from you? You have a hard time focusing, right? That's probably why you're doing so bad in school"

"Um, mom, Ash isn't doing that bad actually. And he's actually really smart. You should see his Chinese grades. It's just because his English isn't too good yet-"

"I can tell what level his English is, sweetie. I'm having to decipher his accent"

"It's really not that thick..."

"But, anyways, I was asking what your thoughts are, Alain? On your relationship"

Alain looked to Ash, who was faking a wide smile, though they both knew he was. He had to impress his mom, not disappoint his dad and consider his boyfriend's feelings at the same time.

"Uh, well, um, I think that when Ash is ready age-wise, we'll be getting engaged"

"Oh! Isn't that wonderful! You're going to have a nice wedding, aren't you?"

The other three gulped with terror. Oh no. She was so nice with her words, meaning she was about to say something horrible.

"You know, with your revealing clothes, deathly food and viruses? Like the one where we all had to wear masks. But Beijing is used to that already, right? Since they have to deal with pollution. Your country is really screwing up the rest of the world, you know!"

Ash bit his lip. Not only that, but his hand slowly slipped away from Alain's. He was already under the pressure of his mom and dad right there, and for Ash to be there and affect what he says and squeeze his hand? He felt selfish. More than ever since his mom seemed to enjoy making him feel not good enough for Alain.

Alain noticed and tried to make eye contact with the boy, but he couldn't see him.

"Ooh, what's that?", she pondered, standing up and reaching for his fa-zan. Once she had it in her cruel, old hands, Ash felt his heart pounding his chest, begging to be let out so it could punch her.

"Please", he said abruptly, letting the others see how panicked he was, "That is very important to my culture. It belongs to my mother"

"Oh, your mother? So you two share clothes? You should've just stayed a girl, you know", she mumbled on as the ornament dangled from her fingers, "Then again, so many men here who could've been masculine. But instead, they chose to abide by this ridiculous society and cross-dress like it's normal"

Sycamore, once again, tried to save the situation.

"I told you, honey, cross-dressing isn't a valid term anymore"

"Of course not. And this joke of a hairpin isn't even real. It's just plastic"

Alain could tell even if their hands weren't touching that Ash was feeling so panicked at the time, he couldn't move.

"Mom, the hairpin is really important to him"

"And he's that important to you?"

"Yes"

It was late at night and the restaurant was empty except for the four. Their voices echoed through the whole building.

"Huh. No hesitation? Alright then. If that's what you want. To be able to love and cherish an ignorant yellow boy rather than be close with your mother, so be it"

"Mom-"

"You know, even if you did hesitate, or said something else, I would've done this anyway. But now that I know you've betrayed me and the life I planned for you, I feel obliged to do this!"

"Do what?!"

The hairpin met the ground and was impaled by her heel.

Ash gasped and covered his mouth, yet to exhale. The Professor shortly did the same before placing a hand on Ash's shoulder and holding him from moving too much.

"What're you gonna do, huh? Use Kung Fu on me-"

"Mom, stop!"

Alain stood in front of his mother, holding his arms out protectively in front of Ash.

"Enough! It's about time someone put you in your place, and if has to be me, then so be it! Up until now, I've been a giant momma's boy. I used to think we were so different, but actually, we're kinda alike. Just like you, I'm cold and annoying to deal with. But dad chose you, and Ash chose me. Since I told him I loved him, Ash has suffered because of me, because of people in my life who used to influence me coming back and trying to push him away. But he stayed and trusted me. And I've gotten better. I've been smiling more, and being kinder to people. You, on the other hand, haven't changed at all! Ash is my boyfriend. I love him, and if you aren't willing to deal with that then you aren't a part of my life"

She stood still for a few minutes before turning around and walking away. 

Alain now wanted to tend to a broken Ash, on his knees in front of a shattered ornament. He held his shoulders and pulled him close, kissing his head.

"Māmā huì shāngxīn de...", Ash sobbed into Alain's chest.

"You just said...your mom's gonna be upset. Right?"

The younger boy looked up into his blue eyes, the older looked into his tearful once.

"Y-Your Chinese is getting good..."

"Your English is still better"

Sycamore went to find his wife as the two held each other on the floor of the restaurant.

"So...now that you don't care what your mom thinks..."

Alain frowned. He knew what was coming.

"...Can you wear a dress now?"

"Tch. Only if it shows off my height"

Hope you guys enjoyed and I know I'm so cringey haha

I love you guys and all your support <3 stay safe and take care of yourselves!