Instead of going toward the next League he can find, Ash decides do a little traveling simply to take a break. But where he goes is the roughest, toughest place known to human and Pokemon alike. Not only is it practically lawless, but the people there have no Pokemon League to keep them in line!

It's a whole new world, with a bad ass attitude, but he's still out to beat'em all!

Pyrite Town Arc

1:Partners, Parties, and Problems!

Professor Oak sighed as he waited for the guest of honor to arrive. Having watched Ash's battle with Alain between Greninja and Mega Charizard. In the aging professor's opinion, it was far more than impressive. Both Pokemon had battled beyond what he knew they were capable of, and despite Ash's type advantage, Greninja had lost, even after unleashing its advanced form.

"Here he comes!" Delia shouted suddenly, smiling as she startled the people around the room. Brock, and Misty hid behind the kitchen wall, while Gary and Tracey ducked down behind the couch. The professor decided to simply stand behind the door.

Outside, two figures were entering the front yard, one of them, obviously, was the young man Delia was expecting. The other one, to her delight, was a young woman around Ash's age with short, sandy blonde hair. "Oh, that boy!" Delia smiled, "He doesn't contact me for yet another year, and he finally decides to bring a girl home!"

"Say what?!" Misty piped up as she poked her head around the corner.

"Misty!" Brock growled and dragged her back to hide, "Not now!"

Meanwhile, Ash was hesitating. The girl at his side looked up at him, "Ash? What's the matter?"

On his shoulder, Pikachu cooed at him and rubbed his cheek against his, sparking just enough to get his attention. Ash sighed and reached up to pet the little Mouse, "It's...nothing, really, just feeling a little tired."

The girl frowned, "Ash, I know something's bothering you." She said, bumping her shoulder against him gently, "Come on, I already told you that you could talk to me."

He looked down at her, smiling lightly, "How the heck do you know me so well, huh?"

She stuck her tongue out at him, "Hey, I've been hanging around you for well over a year, so of course I'm going to know you better than you think." She said, a light blush coming to her cheeks. "Besides, you didn't ask me here to meet your mother just to say I'm just a friend, right?"

Ash just grinned, "Course not, I'm not that dumb."

"Chu..." Pikachu said skeptically. (Translations: "Really?")

Ash just looked at his old partner, "Don't even start, Pikachu."

"Chu pika cha pikachu." Pikachu smirked deviously. (Translation: "I haven't started, yet.") Pikachu laughed and hopped over to Serena's shoulder, nuzzling against her as he had Ash only moments ago as the girl giggled.

Serena scratched the little Pokemon behind his ears just where he liked it, and smiled at her boyfriend, "He's just happy for us, and you know it." She said, smiling, "Now what's bothering you? Don't think your little distraction fooled me, Ash Ketchum."

Ash just rolled his eyes, "Ah, and here I thought I'd get out of it."

"Nope, now talk, or do I have to find a snowball to throw at you?" Serena joked, making him smile as he recalled what had happened in Snowbelle City.

"Nah, I'm never gonna make you cry like that again," Ash promised her, smiling tiredly, "I wasn't kidding when I said I was tired, Serena. I've been traveling for well over six years, and now that I've come home again - "

"You feel worn out," Serena supplied, nodding in understanding, "Well, you have been going nonstop since you started. From everything you've told me, you hardly ever took a chance for a long break to just relax, or even think about what was ahead of you. It was just shoved in your face and you rolled with it like a Sandshrew down a hill."

"And boy am I one dizzy Sandshrew." Ash quipped, making the girl giggle, "You don't have to laugh at that on my account. Even I have to admit it was a horrible joke."

Serena shook her head, laughing louder, "It...it's not that...I was just imagining you doing something like that!" She giggled, "It's just what would happen to you. Remember all of the times you'd trip over your own two feet when you were training with Greninja?"

Ash chuckled, "Hey, come on, I've gotten a lot stronger physically because of that," he said, flexing his arms to show off the new muscle build he'd attained. "Kalos really worked me over, in more ways than one."

Serena nodded in appreciation as she wrapped her arms around his left one, and smiled, "Yeah, and what was it that took you so long to see how I felt?" Serena asked, raising her eyebrow at him.

Ash just grinned and scratched the back of his head, forcing his cap down over his eyes, "Oh, just the fact that a Zygarde nearly crushed me and threw you off of a cliff right in front of me," he said, wrapping the arm she held around her waist, and brought her close, "I knew right there and then that I wouldn't be able to go one if you weren't there with me."

"Uh...huh," Serena fought back a furious blush from the look in Ash's amber eyes that held just a hint of blue, and felt her knees go weak. True, she had become bolder after she and Ash had become official, but...well, one step at a time, folks. "I-If that's so, then why did you wait until you were about to board the boat to ask me to come with you?"

Ash shrugged, "You kidding? I've never...I've never felt the way I do about you, now. I wasn't sure how to do or say anything about it, and honestly, I was a little afraid." He said, gaining a look of confusion from her, "I didn't want to screw up what we already had. I mean, I knew I liked you a lot, but I didn't know I'd feel this...strongly about it."

"And so your idea of a romantic confession was to yell out, just as the boat was about to leave, by the way, 'Serena, let's go!'" She huffed, though, inside, she had been screaming with joy as she had ran and jumped for his outstretched hand as he hauled her onto the boat that would take them away from Kalos. Her mother had been...alarmed to say the least.

Clemont and Bonnie had varying reactions. Clemont had been worried that she wouldn't be able to make the jump, and was fluttering around like a Butterfree for help, while Bonnie just looked thunderstruck with little hearts in her eyes.

And then, after Ash had her safely in his arms, she'd found her courage, if only for a moment, stretching up on her toes, and kissed him full on the lips. It had taken all of a second for the raven-haired teen to return to gesture as Pikachu fell off of his shoulder in sheer shock at the whole situation. The cat calls from Bonnie had been bad enough, but the fact that Grace, Serena's own mother, had roared out that she wanted at least ten grandchildren had shocked the two apart. But not out of each other's arms.

Ash blushed lightly, "Yeah, I'm not much on romantic stuff, huh?" He admitted apologetically, "But I couldn't think of anything else to say!"

"I know something," Serena smiled at him.

Ash waited for a moment, thinking she was going to tell him, but saw that she was going to keep quiet until he gve up and asked, "Well," he said, giving in, "what is it?"

Serena giggled, and threw her arms around his neck, bring their faces closer until their noses touched, "I love you."

"Pii!" Pikachu bounced off of her shoulder, not wanting to get in the way of his trainer, and his mate as he drew her closer for what was going to be their second kiss since the boat incident...if the people waiting for them could have waited just a little longer...

"Nyah, I can't take it anymore!" A familiar male roared as the door sprang open, "Ash Ketchum, you - oops..." Gary's jaw nearly dropped to the ground at seeing the pair jump apart, blushing madly at nearly being caught. "Ah, sorry about that?"

"You'd better be!" Delia screeched as she came out whacked the young professor on the back of the head, "That's what's called ruining a moment, young man!"

Ash palmed his face, "Ah, come on! Who else was watching?!"

With a weak chuckle, Professor Oak and Brock came out, both of them looking at the young man bashfully, while Misty just came out with an oddly amused look on her face next to Tracey, who had his sketch pad in hand.

Serena hid her face in her hands, "Oh, Arceus! This is so embarrassing!"

Delia, her attention diverted from admonishing Gary, for the moment, turned to the girl and all but smothered her in a motherly embrace, "Don't say that, my dear, because you have no idea how happy I am that my darling little boy actually brought a girlfriend home for once!" She gushed happily, holding the girl at arm's length, "How did you meet, and how long have you been together? I have to know!"

"I have to know how she actually managed to land him," Misty said, smiling at her old traveling partner, "Of all the fish in the sea, nothing seemed to be harder to catch than he was." The orangette said, smirking at him.

Ash had the decency to look embarrassed.

Delia giggled and ushered both the new arrivals inside, "You can both tell us all about it while we eat, seeing as Professor Eager ruined the surprise," she said, brushing passed Gary, who looked sheepish.

"Welcome home, Ash," Brock clapped him on the back, "Nice going making it to the top two, but man you were so close!"

Ash nodded, "Yeah, I know, it's the best I've ever done in an official League."

Serena looked back at him, "What do you mean by official League, Ash?"

Delia giggled, "Didn't he tell you?" She asked as the girl shook her head, "My boy's an unofficial Pokemon League Champion of the Orange League, unchallenged for four years running."

"Wow, really?" Serena asked excitedly, looking over at Ash, "How come you didn't tell me?"

Ash shrugged, "Never came up?" He said, sniffing the air as his mouth watered, "Man, if that's dinner I smell, I'm definitely home!"

"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked as he lept back up to his trainer's shoulders. "Chu chu, pikachu?" (Translation: "Is there any ketchup?")

Delia giggled as she led them into the kitchen where the table was set with all of her specialties, along with Ash's favorites. "Serena, I hope you don't mind artificial meat. We're a little sensitive to how people treat Pokemon around here, so we don't eat real meat."

Serena shook her head, "Neither do I. Ash made it a point to always eat at dinners that either did vegan or didn't use Pokemon based products."

"I couldn't touch a Tauros burger if I was starving to death," Professor Oak smiled happily as Pikachu bounced off of Ash's shoulder, and onto his to nuzzle his cheek affectionately, "It's good to see you as well, Pikachu!" He chuckled, tickling the little Electric type under his chin.

"Excellent," Delia clapped her hands together happily, "Then please, everyone have a seat, and Brock, dear, could you fetch a chair for - "

"She can have my seat," Brock said, one step ahead of her, pulling out a chair that was next to Ash for the Serena, "I'll just grab a lawn chair if that's alright?"

"Of course," she said, silently thanking him, her eyes falling on the girl, "Don't be shy, dear, dig in! No one comes to my home without having a proper meal!"

Ash didn't hesitate to start cutting into his meal, a steak, no less, and those around him noticed something. He wasn't wolfing it down like he normally would. Misty reached over and gave his cheek a slight tug. "Ow! What was that for?!" He growled at the Gym Leader over his reddening cheek while Serena grimaced at her.

"I just wanted to check and see if you were the real Ash," Misty said, grinning slightly, "The Ash I know didn't know what table manners were, and here you are, acting like a socialite!"

"Hey, I have manners!" Ash retorted.

Gary snorted, "You had the manners of a hungry Snorlax up until this last trip, Ashy-boy." He said, taking a bite of his own food, and looked right at the young blonde, "So, how did you do it?"

"D-Do what?" Serena asked, blushing lightly under the attention.

Tracey chuckled, "He means how did you teach this wild Mankey to eat like a normal guy?"

"Alright, I get it, my manners were horrible, can I eat my meal in peace, please?" Ash growled, and pointed his fork at Gary, "And if you call me Ashy-boy one more time - "

"What're you gonna do, set Pikachu on me?"

"Not Pikachu," Ash smiled, before taking a bite of his meal, "Goodra, and Noivern."

Gary snorted, grinning crookedly in much the same way that Serena had seen Ash do at times, "I'll behave, but seriously, when did you learn table manners? Both Delia, my mom, and my sister tried, but got nothing!"

Ash simple jerked his head at his girlfriend, "She's a good teacher."

Serena blushed under his praise, "It wasn't that hard." She said, suddenly finding her meal very interesting and quite delicious, "Wow, I didn't know artificial meat could taste this good outside of a five star restaurants!"

Brock came back in and scooted in beside Tracey, "Well, Delia's been cooking longer than I have, but I tend to cook for a lot of people, so we've both got some experience under our belts in make our food taste good to whoever eats it."

Ash laughed, "I thought you helped with the food." He smiled, "There's a difference in the flavor."

Misty smiled at him then, "Just like old times, huh? When the three of us were running around Kanto and Johto together?" She said, thinking back to all of the trouble the used to get into.

Brock nodded, "We were all a little green back then, even me and Misty, and we're both Gym Leaders." He chuckled, shaking his head, "I'll never forget that whole fiasco at the Cinnabar hot springs."

Ash groaned and rolled his eyes right along with Misty, "Don't remind me! That was way more of Misty than I ever wanted to see!"

"I could say the same for certain scrawny trainer, and a pervy Gym Leader I know," Misty said, narrowing her eyes at the two men, "And don't you two dare tell me you both didn't look, because you didn't start screaming until after I did!"

"Wasn't much to see," Ash quipped, giving Misty a once over, much to Serena's ire, "Still isn't." Serena felt better after that while Gary had to hold Mist back from throttling Ash.

Delia giggled at their antics, and patted Serena on the arm gently, "Don't worry, dear, they're nothing more than friends. Misty's been more like my adoptive daughter than anything else. And I could honestly say Brock is Ash's big brother."

"Just from the wrong mother," Brock put in, the table erupting into laughter.

Delia smiled sweetly before turning her attention back to Serena, "But really, dear...Oh, dear, I forgot to ask you your name!" Delia pouted, "I must be getting old if I did something so silly!"

Professor Oak just chuckled, "Come now, Delia, you don't look a day over twenty!" He said, gaining a blush from the woman, who was well into her thirties, "Beside that, we were all a little surprised to see that Ash had actually started a relationship with someone."

"Or was it the other way around?" Misty asked curiously, leaning on her hand, "I can't imagine Ash asking anyone to be his girlfriend...sorry to say he's more than a little dense."

Ash fumed, "I am going to kick all of your asses."

"W-well, the truth is, he did start it," Serena said hurriedly, "And to introduce myself, my name is Serena."

Delia nodded, "Such a pretty name for such a pretty girl," she smiled happily, "Now, how did this happen, and how long has it been going on, if you don't mind me asking?"

Ash sighed while placing his utensils down, "Honestly, it should have been going on for a lot longer," the young man said, "Serena liked me from the start of my trip through Kalos. We met a long time ago at a came you and Dad sent me to."

"And he saved me from an angry Pokemon," Serena put in, smiling at the memory of him chasing off the Poliwag, "He even bandaged my knee with a handkerchief he had with him."

"After that, we didn't see each other for a long time, eleven years, I think," Ash said, looking at Serena's confirming nod, "And we met back up in Kalos. It took a little bit for me to remember her, but I did."

"And you got together after that?" Brock asked, but both teens shook their heads, "Oh, come on, Ash! You couldn't have been that dense if she liked you from the get-go!"

"Misty was right," was all the teen said in his defense, "But I gotta say she grew on me until I nearly lost her a few months ago."

Delia sighed, knowing full well that, as usual, her baby boy had gotten into some ridiculous situation again. "What happened this time?"

Serena took over from there, "An organization called Team Flare tried to use a Legendary Pokemon to create a weapon," she said, shivering at the memory of little "Squishy" turning into something as terrifying as Zygarde. "But they only succeeded in splitting it in half, creating two of them, and in the end, they fought each other, and we got caught in the cross fire because when we found a piece of it, it was tiny and - "

"You're not talking about that little green Pokemon that you showed to me over the video phone, are you?" Professor Oak asked, stunned, "That cute little thing was a Legendary?"

Ash looked at the man, "Why so surprised? Shaymin aren't all that big, and they're a Legendary Pokemon."

"Yes, yes, I know, but that was the first time I'd ever seen anything like it," the man said, sighing, "Ah, well, forgive me for interrupting, Dear, please continue."

Serena sighed, "Well, like I said, it was small, and cute, so one of our friends decided to adopt it until she was old enough to catch it herself." She said, thinking back with a smile at how happy and gentle Squishy had been with Bonnie, and how happy the little girl was with the small Pokemon, "But it was far from the cute little thing it was when Team Flare came after it."

"Turns out the little guy was the second half of a Pokemon called Zygarde, one of the guardians of Kalos," Ash put in, reaching for Serena's hand, clasping it in his, "After Team Flare got a hold of them, it was a total free for all until our Zygarde got control back and fought with the other half, and merged with it." He looked at the girl beside him, a frown on his face, "I was nearly trampled by them, but Serena pushed me out of the way, and got knocked over a cliff. If it wasn't for Clemont's Chespin, I would've lost her."

"And then, just as he was getting on the boat to take to Hoenn, he asked me to come with him," Serena smiled, leaving out the personal details, such as their kiss.

Misty was looking a little starry-eyed at the prospect of something of that manner happening to her, until something occurred to her. "You two took the long route here?" She asked, "The boat ride from Kalos to Hoenn alone takes three weeks, and then about another two if you came straight here from Hoenn." A sly smile crossed her face, making the young blonde nervous as Ash frowned.

"Your point?"

Misty giggled, "Oh, nothing, just wondering if Delia should expect her first grandchild in the next eight months or so?" She said, and wasn't disappointed to see both of them turn beet red as stream puffed up from Serena's head, while Ash's nose dripped slightly with blood.

Delia squealed, "Oh, my goodness! Ash, Serena, is it true!?"

"NO!" Serena squeaked.

"Dammit, Misty!" Ash roared.

"Can't blame a girl for being curious," Misty grinned, "I know if I was stuck with my boyfriend for over a month on a lovely little boat ride, I'd find more things to do than play shuffle board."

Brock looked at her, "Misty, since when do you have a boyfriend? I thought the last guy r-oof!" He felt someone kick his leg underneath the table. "Right, shutting up, now."

"Good idea," Tracey whispered.

=x=

As the day grew late, and the guests took their leave, Ash decided to let Serena have his bed for the night and sleep on the floor. Serena was a it disappointed. Not that she was going to spout it around, but they had been sharing a bed on the boat. Of course, they hadn't done anything improper, but Serena had grown used to sleeping cuddled up next to him.

"It's just for tonight," Ash promised as he rolled out a sleeping bag on the floor. Pikachu was already curling up next to Ash's pillow, his usual sleeping post, and dozing off while Serena released Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon into the room to sleep. "I'll talk to Mom about it tomorrow, though I'm gonna bet that she'll have no problem with it whatsoever."

Serena blushed as she laid out on Ash's bed, sighing dreamily, "She seems so nice. And I like your other friends, too...though you're going to have to tell me about this whole 'Ashley' thing that Misty brought up." She said, seeing Ash stiffen, "Don't tell me that Ash is short for Ashley?"

"Not with me, no," Ash said, blushing slightly as he crawled into his bag, "When I first started my journey, I kind of insulted a Gym Leader's perfume store, and she refused to allow me back in. So I ended up dressing as a girl named Ashley to get in."

Serena looked at him with a smile on her face. "Really?"

"Yup, blonde wig and all," Ash smiled at her, Misty and Brock love bringing that up whenever I get back home and have a new set of friends with me."

Serena giggled, "I can see why. I'd have laughed, too." She said, her shoulders shaking with mirth. "I can just see it now. Blonde with a pink dress, white stockings and black Mary Jane's!"

Ash said nothing.

"Wait, that's what you dressed up in?" Serena asked.

Ash just rolled over as Serena started giggling all over again. "Come on, it's not that funny." He grumbled, and scowled when he felt Pikachu shaking with barely contained mirth while Pancham laughed his glasses off.

"No, no, I think it's cute!" Serena giggled, "I might let you try a few of my costumes on just for fun!"

Ash growled, and sat up, "That does it!"

Serena squealed as Ash grabbed her leg and started tickling her foot, "A-A-Ash! No!" She howled, trying to kick him off of her with her free leg, "I can't stand it!"

"Too bad!" Ash laughed, "Now you'll get your comeuppance!" He grabbed her other leg and brought both of them together under his arm so he could assault both of her feet while the girl squirmed in his grasp.

=|Oak Laboratories|=

Tracey and the professor sighed as they stepped into the labs, the older male taking off his coat, "It's so good to have Ash back, even though it might only be for a little while." He said, smiling as he sat down at his desk, "The data alone from his Kalos Pokedex will prove invaluable."

"And I can't wait to get a few sketches of his new Pokemon," Tracey smiled, "But do you really think he'll be off on another adventure so soon after getting back?"

"It was the same thing that happened this last time, and the time before that," the aging professor said whilst checking his E-mails, and saw something that interested him, "Oh, seems like Professor Krane's sent me something."

"That man over in Orre?" Tracey asked, "I thought that place was a bit too wild for normal trainers and Pokemon Professors?"

The man chuckled, "We Pokemon Professors are the leading people that help most regions become just that. Orre is, and always will be a harsh environment meant for even harsher people and Pokemon. Krane has been trying to establish a League there for a long time, but the people are set in their own ways." He explained, "You see, unlike most other regions, Orre relies on Colosseum battles to keep a revenue flowing, both for their establishments, and for the trainers there. And Pokemon in general are rare in that region because its so harsh, even though the good professor has been working on establishing habitats for a few hardy species, so theft is quite common there, and there is hardly anyone that can do anything about it."

Having said that, the man opened up the bit of mail, and began to read. "Ah, seems like he does need a bit of help." He said, "Apparently a piece of technology has been stolen from his lab, and he needs a great deal of help getting it back."

"What was stolen?"

The professor sighed and leaned back in his chair, "Well, you see, a few years ago, while Ash was traveling through Hoenn, I believe, a machine was invented that could recapture an already capture Pokemon, effectively stealing it from its trainer." He said, looking grim, "Pack your bags, Tracey. We're leaving first thing in the morning. I'll ask Ash to come along as well. If there's anyone that could help in retrieving that machine, it's him."

This is a story I've wanted to do for a while, because I loved the Coliseum games, and I quite like the pairings of Ash and Serena. So, we have a worn out Ash Ketchum, and a happy Serena as his girlfriend about to be off to the rough and rowdy route to Orre, a place so wild that it's almost like a Pokemon style Ok-coral!

Now, for what we will see in this fic. It's rated Mature, so there will be mature themes. Those that know me, know full well I do Lemons, a lot, but with as rowdy as Orre is, don't be surprised if you see other elements. (Not rape, I abhor such things.) Now the Snag Machine, Ash will get it, but whether or not he'll use it is up in the air. Shadow Pokemon? Not sure just yet, but you can give me a few ideas.

Pokemon? I may or may not throw in some little monsters from every region since Orre is a bit of a hodgepodge region. That includes whatever information if can dig up about the new Alola region coming this November for those of us in the US. So let me know what you think of this Fic. Opinions my peeps, tell me how you really feel!

Review, please!