Ash and his father

In the series, rarely do any of the characters, main or secondary, have both parents explained. I’m not sure of what happened later on in the show, but the only ones who had an explanation for both were Brock and May and Max. Back when Pokemon was still climbing its way to the top, there was a live musical special that introduced the idea of Ash’s mom Delia dating the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni. My friend and I chose to run with that, making Ash’s father secretly Giovanni. We were not the only ones to think this way as evidenced by the stories I have found online, but our take is important to our stories.

The third movie established Delia as a former student of Professor Samuel Oak, and the live special (though not canon with the anime) established that she and Gio used to date. In the past, while she was a student, she got caught up with the mafia-like organization of Team Rocket. It is canon that Giovanni’s mother ran Team Rocket (Madame Boss) and that Jessie’s mother, Miyamoto, vanished while on a mission for her. He simply took over because he really had no choice thanks to his upbringing. Somehow he and Delia met and dated. At first she denied that the organization was as evil as it was, but when she finally allowed herself to see the truth, she was already in too deep. Giovanni was not a physically abusive person towards her or his Pokemon really (maybe emotionally but not hitting). It got to a point where she could not take that life anymore, so she ran away from him and that life. What she doesn’t tell him when she does (because she is unaware herself) is that she is carrying their child. She goes back to Pallet, to her teacher and mentor and stays in that town, where she opens a restaurant and raises her son Ash. This is why Oak is always around and is close to Delia.

When Ash is ten, he sets out on his own journey. Along the way he meets many friends, most importantly Misty. Our series splits off at the end of the Orange Island saga when he returns home to Pallet. His life changes after this, and when he is 16, after a 5 year absence, he destroys Team Rocket as it is known, destroying what his (unknown) father worked so hard to maintain. By this time he has found out that Ash is his son and plans to destroy the boy despite this. Then he is approached by a man named Neo who claims that if Ash is put under the right conditions and grows up, he will build an even more evil empire than his father. He will be unbeatable due to his pure skill and the fact he has his love and friends close by his side. Giovanni works with Neo, which ends up with Ash, Misty, and Tracey in Hyrule on a whole new adventure. Giovanni goes along because he is convinced that Ash will turn to the dark side some time during his journey, which never happens.