#i too am a Gryffindor with a Ravenclaw secondary so i can recognize the signs

[sage-nebula]

How do you think Alan would handle the team plasma crisis if he were in unova?

Pre-Flare, or post-Flare? Because that matters, given how Lysandre’s emotional abuse has left him with C-PTSD, a symptom of which is hyper-vigilance (which is why, in To Devour the Sun, the alarm bells start ringing in his head the second he sees Lusamine; that hyper-vigilance kicked in big time). I’ll answer for both.

As a general rule, Alan would not buy into Team Plasma’s doctrine, at least not to the level that they would want him (and others in the populace) to listen. Alan is concerned with pokémon welfare, naturally, and pokémon abuse is something that will absolutely set him off and he won’t stand for, but the idea of separating humans from pokémon wholesale is one that he would find immensely disagreeable. Not only has he grown up in an environment where harmonious coexistence between humans and pokémon is not only treated as the norm, but something to find delight and love in, but prior to Sycamore unofficially adopting him, pokémon were the only beings that were ever kind to him. Even though he was sometimes blamed for things that bunnelby did, the bunnelby were never purposefully unkind to him, and Alan knew they didn’t mean to get him in trouble (and figured that, well, he was a bad kid anyway, so). The houndour destroyed the village after he brought Soot back, but Soot seemed to really love him, and again, that was something he recognized as being more his fault, rather than the pack’s. Though it’s subconscious, on some level Alan is always going to trust pokémon more than he’s going to trust human beings, and he could never see a life where humans and pokémon live entirely separated as being a good one. Not only would he see that as immensely sad for the humans, but he also feels that would be sad for thepokémon. Not allpokémon need trainers, of course, and it’s arrogant to assume that’s the case, but in Alan’s perspective pokémon benefit from companionship with humans just as much as humans do. Again, it’s a mutually beneficial relationship—it’s harmonious coexistence. Thus, while he’s of the opinion that something definitely needs to be done with regards to pokémon rights, welfare, and putting an end to pokémon abuse—and while he knows that there are abusive trainers (and breeders, and coordinators, et cetera) out there, and that they need to be stopped as well—he would feel that separating humans from pokémon altogether is the wrong way to go about it. It’s the most extreme “solution” to a problem, and in the end it wouldn’t be a real solution in the first place since it doesn’t actually work to improve the lives of pokémon, but instead chucks them all back out into the wild without any care or consideration for those who might not be able to survive out there. (Because sure, a pokémon who was captured might be able to return to a life back in the wild, but what about those who were bred in captivity? What about baby pokémon who don’t have poképarents to care for them? What about pokémon with chronic illnesses or disabilities? A pokémon with only three legs instead of four, or an elderly pokémon who is blind, isn’t going to be able to defend themselves from predators and could be easily picked off. And yeah, that’s the circle of life, but isn’t it cruel for humans to chuck a pokémon like that back out into the wild, despite how the humans have the facilities and capabilities to care for them? Alan would feel that it is. It’s irresponsible at best and cruel at worst, and he wouldn’t agree with it.)

So to that end, regardless of where he’s at in his life, Alan would find Team Plasma’s platform immensely disagreeable. It’s funny, because in a way he and N have some things in common, particularly when it comes to the part where they both find pokémon to be more trustworthy than humans (though for N it’s a conscious thought, whereas for Alan it’s mostly subconscious). Both of them tend to prefer the company of pokémon over human beings. But their views still stand in opposition. Alan would feel that even though N’s reasoning for doing what he’s doing isn’t wrong (in the sense that, again, there are abused pokémon and they do need to be rescued and protected), N’s methods for going about it are. And remember, Alan is a Gryffindor; his internal moral compass and need to follow what he feels is Right (while opposing what he feels is Wrong) is what drives him. So if he feels that what N and Plasma are doing is Wrong, he will oppose it, and put a stop to it if need-be. He’ll stand in the way. Of course, the problem for him is that N is also a Gryffindor, and one who is standing on the opposite side of the fence, so there would definitely be a pretty strong clash here, particularly since (at least in the beginning) N refuses to see nuance in the situation and refuses to compromise*. He doesn’t budge on his position. He feels he is Right, and opposing views are Wrong, and that’s that. Alan, obviously, disagrees, which would lead to a pretty solid clash between them.

(*I’m not as familiar with how the anime handled N, so I’m going off game characterization here. N was adamant that what he was doing was Right, and for the benefit of pokémon, and that even if it made humans sad, he cared very little for what made them sad if what made them happy was something so Wrong. N has incredibly strong will, and while Ghetsis had certainly lied to him about what his (Ghetsis’) true aims were, the fact remains nonetheless that N was a passionate believer in Team Plasma’s ideals (or what he was led to believe those ideals were), and as such he would just as adamantly advocate for it, which would lead to him clashing with Alan. Of course, it would also lead to a lot of rising frustration if Alan did come to the conscious realization / admitted that he, too, finds pokémon preferable to people (“If you feel that way, then why can you not see that what I’m doing is right?”), but nonetheless, they would clash.)

I think that, pre-Flare, a lot of Alan’s involvement would lead to him wanting to question / speak out against Plasma demonstrations. Pre-Flare, Alan does still have C-PTSD (from his childhood in Isolé Village) that has shaped his personality, but he also had seven happy years with Sycamore that did a lot to assist him in recovery and healing. That, plus the fact that he doesn’t have incidental trauma from the Flare crisis, means that he wouldn’t have the same degree of hyper-vigilance, and as such wouldn’t go out of his way to investigate Plasma, to put an end to them before they really get started if need-be. As such, while he’d definitely disagree with the dogma, it’d make more sense to think that he’d attend Plasma demonstrations and rallies to listen to what they have to say, and would speak out against Ghetsis (or whoever else was giving the presentation) if presented with the opportunity. He would also speak against them to various members of the public that were gathered around, arguing against the idea that companionship with pokémon is inherently bad, pointing to his own bond with Lizardon as an example for how good it could be, among many other things. If he was still pulled into the larger conflict (with the Tao dragons and all that), then it would be more incidental / accidental, more N-seeking-him-out rather than Alan-purposefully-gets-that-involved.

On the other hand, if it’s post-Flare, the Alan’s hyper-vigilance from his C-PTSD is still in full swing, as his is passionate desire to not ever let something like the Flare crisis happen ever again. Setting aside the potential for him to be the Kalos Champion at this point, not only would Alan still find Plasma’s doctrine to be heavily disagreeable, but he would also get so many alarm bells when faced with Ghetsis, who—like Lysandre—is a child-abusing, silver-tongued manipulator who claims to be doing what he’s doing for the benefit of others (specifically pokémon, in this case). N’s situation is a bit different from Alan’s was, in that Ghetsis has had N raised to believe that he is Team Plasma’s King. In N’s perception, Ghetsis works for him, even if the reality of the situation (which N himself cannot see) is quite different. Therefore, if Alan tried to point out to N that Ghetsis shouldn’t be trusted, that something about this is off, et cetera, N would likely disregard and dismiss him, because Ghetsis may be the leader of the Seven Sages, but N himself is still King. Plasma’s knights are still his. Alan doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

(Of course, N would realize later that, no, Alan knows exactly what the fuck he’s talking about, even if the situations have their differences. N would wish that he had listened.)

There are more differences between Plasma and Flare than there are between, say, Aether and Flare, but the similarities are still apparent enough that Alan would actively try to shut them down, recognizing that burgeoning danger that everyone else dismisses as a bunch of weird people in costumes rattling off nonsense. Thus, even if N does take an interest in him, Alan would still be actively getting himself involved, meaning that the “two heroes” plot would progress on a much more equal track, with both of them putting in the necessary amount of involvement.

That said, if it did play out with the Tao dragons and all that, then I have to say that N would still partner with Zekrom (as he typically does in my writing), while Alan would partner with Reshiram. While some might want to give Zekrom to Alan due to color schemes, it really doesn’t fit; Zekrom is the dragon of ideals, and N is an idealist. He passionately fights for his ideals, and everything he does is based around them. On the flipside, while Alan is a Gryffindor and thus the question that drives him is a question of Right or Wrong, Ravenclaw is his secondary House, and so he still does seek to learn and discover the truth of various matters, whether it’s something in his studies or the truth of a situation. (And I mean, it can’t be surprising that Ravenclaw would be his secondary House. Not only was he raised by a Ravenclaw, but even setting that aside, he’s a researcher / scholar. He’s naturally curious, and loves to learn. He’s still far and away so Gryffindor it hurts, but Ravenclaw is the second House he’d be Sorted into after Gryffindor, definitely.) He’s far more likely to be chosen by a dragon that values truth over one that values ideals. (Plus, Reshiram is a dragon/fire type, and who does that remind us of, hmm? Ah, yes—Lizardon. ;D) So while N would be chosen by Zekrom, Alan would be chosen by Reshiram. That’s definitely how that would play out. (And at the end of it, would Alan and Lizardon unleash a case of pain on Ghetsis? You better believe they would. Ohhh you better believe they would.)

So yeah, that’s how I think it would play out. Note that, post-Flare, certain things about Ghetsis’ demeanor and attitude would give Alan anxiety and incite some trigger reactions in him (as I said, his hyper-vigilance means that Plasma would put him on-guard), but I don’t think that Ghetsis has enough in common with Lysandre, demeanor-wise, for it to be debilitating. (Lusamine’s word choice and attitude are far more similar to Lysandre’s, just as Aether is more similar to Flare; thus, his trigger reactions were a lot worse when faced with the Aether Foundation and Lusamine.) It wouldn’t be pleasant, but then, Plasma are villains and criminals; no one ever said it would be pleasant, it just is what it is.