Chapter 1

Five Months Earlier…

"Serena! I haven't seen you in so long!" Bonnie shouted cheerfully as she ran into her friend's arms. Serena smiled as her short honey blond hair bounced as she caught her young golden blond friend. Clemont panting as he finally caught up to his sister, "Hey Serena, how was your flight?" He asked as he collapsed in front of her. Bonnie puffed out her cheeks in disappointment as she turned back to her brother with a sigh.

"I've been doing fine Clemont," She chuckled as she helped Clemont back to his feet. "How's everything at the gym?" She asked as Clemont dusted himself off a bit. Before the electric gym leader could respond a loud scream echoed through the halls, stopping everyone as a maroon haired girl fell down the stairs and got herself stuck in a trash can. Serena and Bonnie chuckled as they quickly made their way over to the familiar figure. Each taking a hand and pulling as hard as they could to get Mairin out.

"Oh man! She's really stuck!" Bonnie groaned as she pulled as hard as her small body could.

"Bonnie is that you?!" Mairin asked as she tried to squirm out of the trash.

"Yeah and so is Serena!" Bonnie groaned as she tumbled over. Serena panted before taking her other arm and pulling as hard as she could. "Thank you!" Mairin whined as she tried to squirm out. Serena wanted to scream for the other people to help them out but, stopped herself as she knew they were making a bigger scene than it should. A deep groan brought Serena out of her agitation as she glanced to her side. Alain was rushing over to them, clearly embarrassed at what was going on. "Here, let me help!" The black-haired young man offered as he stopped beside Serena who gave a quick nod. Placing his hands on Mairin's wrists the duo counted to three and managed to fully pull her out.

"Thanks for helping her Serena," Alain apologized as he bowed slightly, lowering Mairin's as she fixed up her clothing. Serena felt hot with embarrassment at the scene they had caused. "It's no problem, Alain. It's good to see both of you after all this time!" She replied with a cheerful smile as they both stood back up. It didn't take her long to notice how different her friends looked since the last time they had seen one another.

Bonnie was wearing an oak-red shirt and black shorts with black slides. While Clemont was wearing a dark grey jumper. Mairin had a green beanie, a blue flower printed shirt with red leggings. Serena chuckled at her odd clothing. Alain had shocked her the most with the way he looked, wearing a low-cut black tee shirt with faded blue spots and pure black pants. He seemed the most relaxed out of all of them. Serena had faintly recalled some of the messages that Mairin had sent her, most of them being about how Alain was going to challenge the Championship league for Kalos.

"It's good to see you two again. How was everything in Hoenn?" Clemont asked as he stood in front of Alain and Mairin. The maroon haired trainer happily bounced in her spot as she tried to explain in rapid detail what they had been up the last two years. Serena couldn't help but chuckle as they began to make their way out of the airport. "I heard that you're thinking about challenging the Championship league, is it true?" Serena asked as she walked beside Alain, her bag trailing behind her as he nodded.

"Yeah, I want to become the Kalos regional champion. I'll have to fight the entire elite four in one after another and then beat the champion. I've come back to do some extensive training to get prepared," He informed timidly as he looked down at a bracelet on his wrist. Taking a closer look, Serena realized that it was a Key Stone. She smiled brightly as Alain noticed her gaze, "We found it while we were on a mission with Steven." He informed her as she ripped her gaze away from the beautiful stone.

Embarrassment flooding through her as picked up the pace. Her eyes glued to her brown boots as she felt Alain's eyes stare through her. Serena whispered as Alain easily caught up to her, "I-I didn't mean to stare. I just thought that it was amazing that you were able to find another Key Stone. Were you able to find a Charizardite while you were in the Hoenn region?" He shook his head as Mairin bounced in front of the group finally taking a deep breath as she led the way, "Man I can't wait to see professor Sycamore again! I wonder what sort of research he's accomplished since we've been away," Mairin thought with her usual excited tone as she turned and smirked at Bonnie. "Wanna race there?!" She challenged, stopping dead in her tracks and dropping her bags. Serena watched as both young trainers quickly take off in a mad dash. Clemont groaned as he grabbed their stuff and took off after them, begging them to not run so fast. Serena laughed at the sight as her memories of the old times as the lean, tall young man let out an annoyed sigh, "There she goes again. Should we follow after them?" She could tell he was concerned for their safety and motioned for him to on ahead.

"You go ahead. I want to enjoy the scenery for a bit. I'll catch up a bit later," She replied with another muffled giggle as she watched Alain chase after the trio. A gentle wind tumbled through her short honey blond locks. Following the breeze, she lifted her headed towards the rising sun. Serena let out a deep sigh as she gazed up at the sky. It had only been two years since they had stopped Team Flare from destroying Kalos, along with the rest of the world. Two years since the start of her journey, two years since she reunited with Ash, and only a year since she had kissed him. The heat on her face rising as she remembered the day that she left for the Hoenn. Serena placed a hand upon her chest as she took a deep breath. The Hoenn region had proved to be quite a challenge for her. Some days becoming so unbearable with her defeats, while others made her feel like she had won a marathon.

She shook her head and gently slapped her face. "Some time back home will do some good," Serena muttered as she gripped her bag and made her way towards the streets of Lumiose City. Bustling with life and so much activity Serena couldn't stop joy from rushing through her. Her thoughts fading away as she gazed at all the people and pokemon happily talking to one another. Stopping in front of a beautiful clothing store, Serena let out a small smile as her eyes rested on a shiny blue pendant. "Ahh! That's so gorgeous!" She dotted as she pressed her hands against the cool glass.

"Like that pendant?" A voice asked from an open door. She jumped back a bit her eyes met cheerful dark blue orbs. The girl had seemed to be the same age as her, standing straight up she nodded her head slightly. "Yeah, it's very beautiful. Were you about to buy it?" Serena asked timidly a small hint of disappoint escaping her as the girl shook her head.

"Nope, I'm the one that created it. My name's Dawn," The long-blue-haired informed as she held out a hand. Serena felt her eyes widen. She had heard of that name before but couldn't recall from where. Serena took her hand and shook it, "Hi, I'm Serena."

However, before either of them could say a thing a loud screech echoed through the streets. Stopping everyone in their tracks, Serena looked around rapidly. From the corner of her eye, she could vaguely see a hand disappearing into a dark alley.