Reunion at the Ancient Castle! (Japanese:古城での再会Reunion at the Old Castle) is the 24th episode ofPokémon Horizons: The Series, and the 1,256th episode of thePokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on October 13, 2023, in Australia on May 2, 2024, in the United Kingdom on May 27, 2024, in sub-Saharan Africa on June 20, 2024, and in the United States on August 9, 2024.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
On board the Brave Olivine, the Rising Volt Tacklers revel at the mysterious Pokémon who transformed from Liko’s pendant. Liko’s grandma, Diana, might know more about it, so Liko, Roy, and Friede set off to the Wild Area of Galar to find the castle where Diana is staying. Led by Diana’s Squawkabilly, the Trainers reach the castle and meet up with Diana, who is surprised to see the pendant Pokémon—it appears to be Terapagos, one of the Pokémon who traveled with the Ancient Adventurer Lucius. Meanwhile, Hamber confronts Amethio about his actions and begins to set his own plan into motion…
Plot
Liko getting ready to see her grandmother
Following their adventure in theGalar Mine,Liko,Roy, andFriede have returned to theBrave Olivine with the mysterious Pokémon that emerged from Liko's pendant. With none of theRising Volt Tacklers or even thePokédex recognizing it, Liko, Roy, and Friede head out to ask more from Liko's grandmother. Friede also asksCaptain Pikachu to watch over the airship while they're gone. Meanwhile,Amethio has contactedHamber to reveal that he's been operating on his own. He also reveals footage of the mysterious Pokémon that emerged from the pendant they've been trying to obtain. Hamber is surprised to see this and accepts Amethio's request to resume pursuing their target, which Amethio reveals to be currently headed forHammerlocke. Amethio ends the call, and Hamber starts contacting other Explorers admins.Spinel andChalce are too busy to answer, butSidian andCoral accept the call to head to theGalarregion with him. The two start to argue, but Hamber'sDusknoir scares them back in line as they head out.
Liko, Roy, and Friede arrive in theWild Area, but before they can decide which of the area's numerous castles to investigate, Liko's grandmother'sSquawkabilly approaches them, repeating the words "ancient castle", prompting the trio to follow it. Squawkabilly eventually leads them to what looks like a wall of stone, until aStonjourner moves aside to reveal a secret passage for them. They go inside and Stonjourner moves back to cover the entrance again, leavingZirc andOnia confused about where their targets disappeared to when they arrive in the area moments later. While Amethio arrives to help them in their search, Liko tells Roy and Friede more about her grandmother. She has never seen her more than during brief visits, which she doesn't necessarily even count as proper meetings, the last of which happened a year earlier when Liko was accepted into theIndigo Academy and her grandmother visited her to give her her pendant as a good-luck charm.
Eventually, the three Rising Volt Tacklers arrive at the ancient castle they were searching for. Liko calls out to her grandmother, and is right away greeted by her grandmother'sArcanine and then her grandmother,Diana, herself. Roy and Friede introduce themselves to Diana, while Liko introduces her to her partner Pokémon,Sprigatito. Diana shows them around the castle, which serves as one of her hideouts and as a spot wherewild Pokémon can come and go as they please. Sitting down to talk, Diana reveals that she too had been targeted by the people after her pendant and thanks Liko for keeping it safe. Liko and Friede struggle to explain the situation, but before they can properly do so, the truth reveals itself when the mysterious climbs out of Liko'sbag and moves towards a surprised Diana. Liko explains that her pendant transformed into this Pokémon, which Diana identifies asTerapagos. While she knows the Pokémon's name, she hadn't expected the pendant to be a hibernating Terapagos, even if itsform differs from the recorded form with a big shell. She also suspects that Terapagos used to be one ofLucius's partners, much to Liko and Friede's surprise.
Back at the stone wall, Amethio notices one spot looking off and hasCeruledge usePsycho Cut on it, sending the Stonjourner running off and exposing the secret passage. At the castle, the group eats a meal of canned food and follows it with cups of tea. Liko asks Diana to tell her how she became an adventurer, which she's happy to tell now that Liko has taken her own first step into the world. When she was even younger than Liko is now, she had discovered an old briefcase in her attic. Inside it, she had discovered the pendant and a book written by Lucius about his adventures. This inspired her to start her own journey to learn more about Lucius, but no matter how hard she searched, she never found a single sign of him. 30 years ago, she finally gave up on her search, but still keeps on adventuring, all thanks to the inspiration provided by Lucius. Several months ago, an old friend of hers offered to support her on her adventures, but when it turned out that said friend was associated with a shady organization that was after her pendant, she chose to hire the Rising Volt Tacklers to protect both Liko and the pendant. She thanks Friede for protecting her granddaughter. Roy shows Diana theAncient Poké Ball from which theBlack Rayquaza had emerged. Liko also recounts how some mysterious visions had appeared during their encounters withArboliva andGalarianMoltres, which she now suspects were actually Terapagos's memories. When she asks her grandmother if she knows what "Laqua" is, Terapagos suddenly lets out an excitedcry and moves towards a nearby door. Diana answers that Laqua is the name of the paradise that Lucius sought and leaves to fetch something she wants to show them: Lucius's memoirs.
However, whilst Diana is on her way to retrieve the memoirs, her Arcanine and aBlipbug appear behind a window to warn her that intruders are approaching. Moments later, Amethio, Zirc, and Onia enter the building. Friede sends out hisCharizard, while Amethio calls out Ceruledge, and Zirc and Onia cover Liko and Roy's escape routes. Terapagos notices Amethio and pulls itself free from Liko's grasp, locking eyes with him and letting out a sharp cry.
Two editing mistakes during a scene whereHatenna jumps out ofLiko's hood are made with a few shots involving the latter's hair.
Liko's hairclip is not colored green and is instead her black hair color.
Furthermore, in another frame at the moment Hatenna jumps out of Liko's hood, the bangs of Liko's hair that are held up by her hairclip are not colored in properly.
On Asian releases of the English dub, the series' logo (which is shown at the end of the intro sequence used for international releases) can be seen at the end for one frame before the episode title card is shown.
Liko's hairclip
Liko's bangs
Dub edits
Diana's Squawkabilly's speech is more varied in the dub, while in the Japanese version it mostly repeated the words "Liko" and "ancient castle".
Liko's hairclip
Liko's bangs
