Chapter 1-

As the sunlight started to stir her from her slumber, Serena's blue eyes fluttered open to focus on the blank ceiling of her bedroom. It had been a week since she had come home and decided to spend time with her mother while she decided what she was going to do for the next year while she took a break from performing.

A lot had happened within the last six years, including a five-year reign as Kalos Queen, which she retired the title once she turned twenty due to the unfairness it had become to newcomers that desired to obtain the crown that she held. Now twenty-one, Serena had been on tour with other talented performers such as Aria and other former Queens, she had decided to take a break to spend time with her family and Pokemon.

"Syl?" Serena's sylveon had looked up from the end of the bed it was sleeping on as Serena sat up.

"Good morning, Sylveon." Serena smiled and scratched the Pokemon on the back of its head.

"Veon." It sighed in happiness, pushing her head up into Serena's palm.

Serena looked around her room to see which Pokemon were still asleep. She wasn't surprised when she saw Pancham snoozing away next to her with the small Alolan Vulpix she had caught a few months ago while touring the Alola Region. Pancham thought of the little fox as a baby, and was insistent on always taking care of it until it got used to traveling with Serena and her team.

The young performer stretched her arms and got out of bed. She wasn't worried when she didn't see the other three of her Pokemon. She figured that Delphox was probably helping her mother, judging by the smell of the food wafting through the small house. Espeon was probably sunbathing in the morning sun, while Absol sat nearby making sure that she didn't stray off from the front yard being the protector of the team that he was. Sylveon followed Serena out of her room and bounded ahead of her down the stairs while her trainer went the opposite way into the bathroom.

She splashed water on her face to wake herself up even more and brushed out her short hair. After doing her business in the bathroom, Serena joined her mother and Pokemon on the first floor as breakfast finished cooking.

"Good morning, sleepy head." Grace smiled up at her daughter as Delphox extinguished the flame on her stick that had been under one of the skillets. "I was afraid I was going to have to send Fletchling to wake you up like I did when you were younger."

Serena giggled at the thought. "Yeah, mom. I told you that I know how to wake up on my own now."

She walked over to the cabinets and grabbed the bowls for the Pokemon and set them on the floor before filling them with the food she had made the night before. Once set up, the performer whistled loud enough for all of her companions to hear, and soon they had all scurried into the kitchen excited to see the mountains of food waiting for them.

"You know, one of these days when you have children, I won't be surprised if you have them trained as well as you do your Pokemon." Grace joked as the two of them sat down to eat their own food.

"I don't know, mom." Serena laughed. "That's going to be a long time from now. Besides, I think children are a lot more difficult than these guys. Dad's always telling me how he'd rather spend time teaching the eevee new skills than dealing with Sophia and Sarah's punishment when they do wrong."

One of the things that Serena had gotten used to over the last six years was having her father around. He was shocked when he saw the performance Serena gave when she was in the Master Class finals. His heart was already filled with regret not being apart of her life for so long, but he felt that he could bridge the connection if Grace agreed to let him meet her.

Her father, Sam, was a fairly shy man. He was scared off when Grace had told him she was expecting. He was just shy of twenty, and his fear of children outweighed his desire to be with Grace when she had the child. For that, he was so sorry. When he got older, he had gotten over the fear of family and settled down. He had always felt ashamed and couldn't bring himself to meet with Grace and his unknown daughter when he knew that Serena would question why he'd rather care for his other family than her.

Serena understood, though. She couldn't say she would have done the same as Sam if she was in his shoes, but she understood the fear of failure. She forgave him, and eventually started meeting with him every other month at a cafe until she was ready to meet his wife and other children.

"Are you still planning on going to visit them today?" Grace asked as she took a bite of her food.

"Yeah." Serena nodded. "I haven't seen them in a while, and Dad says that Sophia has been rebelling and is hoping that I can talk some sense into her."

"Their mother won't let them go on their own journeys, right?" Grace asked.

"Yeah, she's afraid that they aren't ready. Sarah would rather stay, but Sophia is determined to not be an eevee breeder her whole life."

"Sounds like someone that didn't want to become a rhyhorn racer." Grace smirked across the table over to Serena, who just laughed in response.

"Yeah, but I didn't have such a strict mother who tried to keep me at home for as long as she could."

"How old are the girls now?" Grace asked out of curiosity. "Surely, they're old enough to be independent trainers by now."

"Sophia is fourteen, Sarah is almost thirteen."

"No wonder your father is so afraid of them." Grace giggled. "Sam has always been uncomfortable with aggressive people, and the early teen years are always the worst when it comes to raising girls."

Serena looked at her mother, hurt by her comment. "I wasn't that bad."

"Mostly because you were so stuck on Ash." Grace teased, causing Serena's face to turn light pink.

"That is not true! We didn't even meet up with each other again until I was fifteen! How does that make my early teen years stuck on him?"

"Be honest with yourself." Grace took another bite of rice. "When you started to become sexually mature, you know where your mind went."

Serena covered her face and groaned. Ever since the journey with Ash, her mom constantly teased her more than usual. She always tried to get Serena to call him or make some sort of contact with him, but the performer refused because she knew that they were both too busy to even try to keep in touch.

Once the two women finished their breakfast, Serena returned to her room and finished packing her backpack to go on to her father's eevee farm.

It was fitting that was the Pokemon he and his wife chose to raise. Her father reminded her of an eevee in so many ways. He was shy like Sylveon was when she first appeared that day in the forest. He was also multi-talented in different areas of training. He could understand any Pokemon from fire types to ice types. Eevee were always the common wanted Pokemon for many trainers, so he and his wife came up with the concept of an eevee farm where any of the Pokemon they bred could choose their own trainer that fit their personality. It was a lot gentler than someone attacking the poor Pokemon at random. It even attracted many wild eevee to join the others on the farm.

Serena smiled down to Espeon when she felt her rub against the back of her legs. She was the peace offering her father let her have when she first visited the eevee sanctuary. This one was small and spunky, and liked to boss the other eevees around. She and Serena even went at it a few times when the Pokemon would attack Sylveon for not falling in line like the other eeveelutions on the farm did. Eventually, the small Eevee warmed up to the trainer and agreed to join them on the road in performances. Once their relationship grew, she evolved into Espeon and stole the show along with Sylveon, earning their first Master Class win together.

Serena knelt down to pet Espeon. "You ready to go home and visit all of your old friends?"

"Eon~" It cooed back in happiness.

A few hours later, Serena had recalled all of her Pokemon into their pokeballs and was ready to head out on the road.

"You made sure you got everything, right?" Grace asked as they said their goodbyes from the front yard.

"Yes, mom. I've done this more than once, you know." Serena giggled. "I'll be fine. Dad's farm isn't that far. I should be there by dinner time."

"You'll call once you've arrived, won't you?"

"Of course." Serena hugged her mom tight and turned to go on her way.

"Mom, please!" A young girl with dark red hair and blazing blue eyes was outside of their home, arguing yet again. "All of my friends have all left for their own journeys! It's not fair!"

"For the last time, Sophia, your father and I are not comfortable with you traveling on your own!" A woman in her late thirties stood with her hands on her hips, the breeze causing her own red hair to fly about. Her brown eyes never gave in to her daughter's pleas.

"Dad doesn't care!" The girl argued back. "He only says no because you refuse to admit that I'm growing up!"

"Oh really? You're growing up? You call arguing with your mother when she says no 'growing up'?"

"Ugh!" Sophia threw her hands up in the air. "You guys are so unfair!"

Serena stood by the gate of the house, awkwardly waiting for her stepmother and sister to stop their quarreling.

The red-headed woman looked up and saw the young performer waiting at the gate. "Oh, Serena, you're here!" She smiled warmly, then looked embarrassed. "How much of that did you see?"

"Don't worry about it, Mira." Serena reassured her as she opened the gate. "Dad warned me about everything when we talked a few days ago."

The two women gave each other a side hug once Serena got to the porch her stepmother was standing on.

"Where's Dad?"

"Where he always is when Sophia is in one of her moods." Mira sighed. "He's out in the egg house, taking care of the Pokemon eggs we found a few days ago."

"Okay. Do you mind if I let my Pokemon out and leave my bags inside?"

"Not at all." Mira nodded and stood aside to allow Serena to come in and take care of her business.

Once the Pokemon were settled, she and her Espeon went to where the eevee eggs were being held, and found her father exactly where her stepmom said he would be.

"Come on, Uly. I told you to be careful around the eggs." The tall man sighed down at his accompanying Umbreon, who was looking back at him completely unamused.

"Dad?" Serena quietly called to him when he didn't notice her and her Pokemon come in.

"Serena?" Sam turned around and grinned when he saw his daughter. He had the same honey hair and kind blue eyes as his daughter. Years of training had allowed him to be fit, and his ratty clothes showed how dedicated to his work that he was. "You finally made it!"

He came forward and hugged his daughter, who gladly embraced him back. Even though she hated how dirty she knew her clothes were going to be when they let go, she was happy to see her dad.

"And hello there, Espy." Sam greeted the Pokemon at Serena's side with a generous head scratch, to which the Pokemon happily accepted with a squeal of delight.

"Mira told me to tell you that dinner will be ready soon."

"Perfect." Sam smiled, as he turned to grab his egg care kit. "Uly, why don't you go on and take Espy to see all of the others?"

The Umbreon rolled its eyes and motioned for Espeon to follow it.

Sam shook his head as he and Serena left the building and locked it behind them.

"Uly seems really annoyed with you dad." Serena observed.

"He's just mad that I won't let him keep guard of his and Flora's egg. He doesn't like that it is in the house with the others."

"Oh! They made an egg together?" Serena's eyes lit up. "I never thought those two would of all the Pokemon here."

"It was a surprise to us, too." Sam chuckled. "A dark and grass type make the most unlikely pair."

"So, you said that you already saw Mira. Have you seen your sisters?"

"Sophia locked herself in her room when I first got here. I haven't seen Sarah anywhere, though." Serena answered.

"Why don't you go get her and tell her it's time for dinner. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at what she's doing right now." Sam smiled.

"What has she been up to?" Serena gave her father a puzzled look.

"Oh, just go on out to the riverside. You'll see what I mean."

Sam went on ahead to the house, leaving Serena very confused. She slowly turned and walked toward the clearing where she could see the form of a few Pokemon and what looked to be a trainer standing in the middle of them.

"Okay, Blitz, use icy wind while Sylver uses fairy wind." The young trainer pointed at the two Pokemon, which jumped up and responded to her calls. "Now Joule! Use thunder wave!"

The three attacks mixing together were clumsy, but had potential. Once they cleared, the three Pokemon and trainer bowed to the five other Pokemon that had been watching, who all cheered in response.

Serena clapped in delight, startling the trainer and Pokemon.

"Wow, Sarah! With a little work, you'd be fantastic in showcases."

"S-Serena?" The young trainer's face turned pink with embarrassment. "How long have you been watching?"

"Not very long. Dad sent me to come and get you for dinner. He said I'd be surprised, and I am."

Sarah couldn't make eye contact with her older sister. She was painfully shy like their father, and being in front of her biggest role model was always intimidating. It didn't matter that they were related.

Serena saw a lot of herself in her younger sister. Even their looks were quite similar. From their honey hair to the blue eyes they both inherited from their father, it was evident that they were sisters, all right. Serena even related to her when it came to her uncertainty of performing in front of other people. She remembered how scared she was when she stared performing, especially at the thought of Aria possibly watching her.

"So, why did you decide to come here? Aren't you going to go on a big vacation?" Sarah asked as they made their way back to the house with the other Pokemon in tow.

"I haven't decided what I want to do, yet. A year is a while, but at the same time I know it's going to fly by and I'll be back on the road with the others again."

Once they made it near the house where all of the other Pokemon were playing, Sarah waved for the others to go on ahead and join them.

"You've trained them really well. Why haven't you asked about performing in showcases yet?"

"Well... Soph has really been pushing Mom and Dad lately. I don't wanna bother them with my ideas because I know they'll say I'm not ready, too. I agree, though, because me and my team have a lot to learn before we're ready to really perform." Sarah admitted.

Serena patted the young girl on her back. "I'm sure you'll be a great performer after what I saw. Your Glaceon was really into that performance you gave too. The others will follow suit when you get comfortable with yourself. You've got this!"

Sarah's eyes lit up. "Do you really honestly think so, Serena? I've been trying so hard to get them to learn that moves aren't just for attacking like Sophia has been yelling at them about."

"You're their trainer, Sarah. They'll go along with whatever you dream up."

Once dinner was finished, Sophia and Sarah had excused themselves to their rooms, leaving Serena alone with Mira and her father.

"So, have you decided on where you're going to go on your vacation?" Mira asked.

"About that." Serena took a sip of her tea and put it back down on the table. "I've been thinking since me and Dad talked a few days ago."

"What about?" Sam raised his eyebrows.

"What would you two think about me taking Sophia and Sarah along with me to travel around Kalos?"

The couple stared in shock at Serena's offer. She was one of the highest paid performers in the region, and yet she was offering to take a couple of teenagers out on a Pokemon adventure? Maybe they weren't hearing right.

"Serena, just because Sophia has been throwing tantrums on going out on her own, doesn't mean you should take time out of your vacation to please her." Mira responded.

"I'm not doing it because she's been begging." Serena insisted. "I'm doing it because I know what she's going through. She's about the same age I was when I decided that rhyhorn racing wasn't something I had a passion for. Sophia doesn't seem like the type to want to be raising eevee for the rest of her life."

"She really isn't." Sam sighed in agreement.

"I don't know..." Mira looked away, unsure of the proposal her stepdaughter was offering to them. "What do you think, dear?"

"I think it's a great opportunity for them to get to know Serena." Sam scratched the back of his head. "Sarah really wants to learn to perform as well, so maybe being around their sister isn't such a bad idea. Plus, she's a responsible adult. You don't have to worry about Sophia getting in any kind of trouble. That's been your fear for not letting her leave, isn't it?"

Mira sighed and nodded. "I guess there's no harm in it... If you're sure this is what you really would like to do."

Serena gave a reassuring smile. "I'm positive."

And so the journey began...

Meanwhile, in Pallet town, Ash Ketchum was saying his own goodbyes to his mother. It had been six years since the last time he was in Kalos, and he felt that after this last adventure he went on, he wanted to go back and see his Kalosian friends. He had heard of their successes on his journies and yearned to see them again.

This time, however, he decided to take a full team of Pokemon along... Also with a friend.

"You ready, Ashy boy?" The excited shouts of Gary Oak was heard from the pier as he approached. "I ain't getting any younger, you know!"

"Yeah, yeah, Gary." Ash rolled his eyes. Gary had never seen the Kalos region before and begged for Ash to let him come along. He was determined to be his grandfather's successor when the time came, and in order to do that, he needed to see and learn about as many Pokemon as possible.

"So where are we going first when we get to Kalos?"

"I was thinking that Lumiose City would be the best choice. I have a friend who is a gym leader there, and I'd love to meet up with him and his sister."

"Sister, huh?" Gary nudged Ash's arm. "So is she the one who kissed you before you left?"

"Wh-what?!" Ash's face turned red. "No!"

Ash brought his hand to his lips. It wasn't Bonnie, but someone else that he hadn't seen since that time...