It was predictable, but Serena couldn't help feel a little disappointed. She smiled weakly. "It's fine. That was a long time ago."
Ash scratched the back of his head. "Still, talk about awkward! I mean, are we s'possed to catch up over breakfast, or are you just gonna walk off?"
The girl fiddled with the hem of her dress. "I don't have any food..."
His jaw dropped. "What'cha doing out here without anythin' to eat?" Grabbing her hand, he led her over to the trump. "Wait here. I'll be back in a mo."
Not looking back, Ash trotted back into his tent. Serena internally debated whether she should stay or not. On one hand, she was pretty hungry. However, on the other, she knew nothing about this kid, aside from his name, and that once, a long time ago, he had been kind to her. For all she knew, he could have grown up into a utter cretin.
The thought of food, however, was quite tantalizing. Just in case, she released Fen from his pokeball. Almost immediately, the fox curled up on her lap.
Ash reemerged from his tent a couple minutes later, properly dressed this time, with Pikachu perched upon his shoulder. Suddenly, his head shot up, "Wow, what's that?!" He asked, almost star-struck.
The girl frowned, a little confused. "What's what? My Fennekin?"
"That pokemon! I've never seen one like it! It's awesome!" Digging his hand into a pocket, he pulled out a red, well-worn rectangle, and pointed it at Fen.
A blue light shone from the top corner, and a mechanical voice began to speak. "Fennekin: the Fox pokemon. As it walks, it munches on a twig in place of a snack. It intimidates opponents by puffing hot air out of its ears."
The boy's eyes were practically sparkling, and he was getting uncomfortably close to Serena, "Can I battle him? Please?"
Opening one eye, Fen glowered at Ash. When the male refused to back off, the pokemon stood on Serena's lap, and shot steam out of his ears.
The boy leapt back, laughing. "I've never seen a pokemon do that before! He's so cute!"
The fox scoffed, and sent himself back inside his pokeball.
"Oh yeah! I was going to make ya breakfast. Gimme a sec." Once more, Ash returned to his tent. This time, he dragged out a few boxes with him. "There should be something in here to suit'cha."
Serena couldn't help but feel a little relieved that he had some actual cooking equipment with him. When he first offered to cook her something, she'd been worried that he might just be carting around sandwich ingredients and cup noodles. "Do you need any help?" The girl queried, watching Ash set up a portable flame.
"I've got this." He called back. "There's a oran tree across the road. Would you mind bringing me some?"
"Sure thing!" Cheerily, the young trainer skipped over the the base of the tree. Since Fen would mangle any berry he grabbed, Serena elected to do the climbing herself. She had been an adept climber as a child, and hopefully, remained one as an adult. Unlike the tree her pokemon had climbed, this one was spindly, with rough bark and razor sharp leaves. Luckily, the trunk could take her weight, and within a minute, she was snatching the berries straight off the branches. Pocketing her bounty, she descended in one graceful leap, landing perfectly on her feet.
It hurt a little more than she expected, but she kept her balance and hobbled back to Ash. While it was hardly the most impressive breakfast she'd ever seen (After all, Serena was Kalosian), he was doing fantastically for a cook-out.
"I've brought you the berries."
"Put 'em in the porridge, would ya?" He was busy frying eggs and bacon over a small campfire.
Serena looked at the massive vat of oatmeal sitting on the stove. "That's quite a lot for two people." She remarked, chucking the fruit in to stew.
"Huh?" A look of realization dawned on his face. "Oh, right! I'm travellin' with some friends of mine. I don't know if they're gonna be back for breakfast, but I thought, 'better safe than sorry.'"
"Friends?" She asked, hoping he didn't notice her voice's rise in pitch.
"Yeah, Bonnie and Clemont. But Bonnie ran off, so Clemont went after her."
"I see." She forced a smile, casually placing a hand on a pokeball.
"Bonnie's super energetic like that. Sometimes, she makes me happy to be an only child."
"Eh? Are they siblings?"
The boy nodded. "Their dad isn't around much, and Bonnie's a bit young to be on her own, so Clemont brought her with us."
Serena let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, okay." Glancing to the right, she noticed that the oatmeal was ready. "Hey Ash, this porridge looks about done. Do you have any bowls with you?"
"Sure." Reaching into one of the boxes, he asked, "How many pokemon do you have with you?"
"2."
He pulled out two large bowls and 5 substantially smaller ones. "Do you mind serving up? Pikachu's been stirring with the ladle."
Nodding, she took the dishes and set about filling them. The yellow mouse had done a fairly good job making sure the mix didn't catch on the bottom of the pot, something Serena was grateful for. Even a little bit of burn would have made it inedible.
"Oatmeal's served." The girl remarked, calling out Fen and Starman.
"Comin'!" Ash dumped the stuff he was cooking onto a tray and brought it over. "Take whatever you like."
Politely as she could, she took a piece of bacon and started to much on it. "So, what brings you to Kalos?" She enquired.
"'Cause I wanna be a pokemon master." He stated plainly.
"Couldn't you have done that in Kanto, though?"
Ash shrugged. "I could, but I'd have to beat another 8 gyms there to qualify for the league again. "Wait, you've already entered an official league challenge?"
"Yep!" He replied, voice chipper. "I've been in... 6, I think? Yeah, that's about right."
"That's amazing! It sounds like you're doing pretty well."
The boy blushed, rubbing his neck. "Thanks... but it's nothin' special, really. The only one I ever got anywhere with wasn't a real league..."
Serena pouted. "I haven't gotten into any leagues, you know..."
"You will sooner or later. When'd ya start, anyhow?"
"Yesterday."
He snickered. "Well, that explains a lot."
Sticking out her tongue at him, she returned to her porridge. The catch on some of Ash's pokeballs went off, and a Frogadier and a Fletchling hopped over to take their breakfasts.
Serena squinted. They didn't look very powerful... "Did you catch these pokemon recently?"
"Yep. I always start a new team when I'm traveling. 'Cept for Pikachu, of course." He grinned, "It's more fun that way."
Having polished off all the bacon, Fen curled up on Serena's lap and went to sleep. "Pikachu must be really tough, then."
"Usually. He got pretty roughed up in the Unova league though, so I'm givin' him a break. I'm sure he wouldn't mind a practice fight, though."
"Why Ash, are you challenging me to a pokemon battle?" She asked, placing her hand on her heart.
The boy grinned. "I'll go easy on ya, I promise!"
Moving Fen to her shoulder, Serena stood. "Right then! Let's fight! Come on, Starman!"
The zigzagoon ignored her, and gestured to his mouth. The girl smacked her hand against her forehead. "You're just going to sit there?"
Yawning, Starman pointed to his mouth again. "Fine, then." The girl huffed, and walked to the other side of the clearing, ignoring the racoon's furious hissing.
"Since Pikachu's done a lot more fighting, we're only battling til the first hit lands, ok?"
She gave him a thumbs-up from across the field. The pokemon leapt into the arena, and the match begun.
Fen gave it his all, successfully dodging a couple of Pikachu's attacks. After a minute or so, the little fox's inexperience caught up with him, and a well-timed quick attack knocked him out of the match.
"Not bad!" Ash called, strolling across the field. Neither he or his Pikachu had broken a sweat. "A little more stamina and you'll be able to give us a run for our money!"
Somehow, she doubted that, glancing over at her completely zonked starter. She was about to respond with a joke, when suddenly, a yellow-pink blur barreled out of the bushes, screaming for Ash.
In the blink of an eye, a little girl had her arms latched tightly around his waist. She was red-faced, sobbing hysterically. "They took him! They took him!"
The boy was shocked, but hugged her anyways, stroking her hair comfortingly. "Calm down, Bonnie. Everything's gonna be okay." Wiping away her tears, he asked, "What happened?"
Her breath kept catching as she spoke. "Th-th-they took C-clemont! And Meeny-mo! You've godda do sommat, Ash!"
He gripped the little girl tightly. "Who did?"
"T-team R-rocket."
He looked over to Serena, "Will you help me?"
The teen nodded solemnly. "I'll do my best."
"Can you take us to them, Bonnie?"
The little girl nodded, wiping away more tears. "T-they were b-by th-the lake."
After calling back all their pokemon, they scrambled down the path as fast as they could, leaving the camp deserted.
"Shouldn't I get the police?" Serena asked, concerned. They were chasing down kidnappers, after all. "Santalune is only a little further down the road."
Ash had a ferocious scowl on his face. "No need. " He muttered darkly.
As they neared the edge of the forest, she older girl had to wonder just how they were going to find these kidnappers. Who knew how much of a lead they had? But then, they broke through the woods, and she saw it.
There was a huge spider-like machine looming over the lake's heart, almost as high as the cliff they were on. Tubes and pipes jutted out from it at all angles, reaching into the water below, pumping black sludge into the formerly-pristine depths. A crowd of civilians had gathered on the other side, watching helplessly.
"What the hell are they doing?!" Serena shouted, "That's a reservoir!"
Twisting his cap backwards, Ash started issuing commands. "Pikachu, overload it with Thunder!"
Using his trainer as a spring-board, Pikachu launched into the air and brought down a mighty bolt of electricity, striking the heart of the spider.
If it had affected the device at all, it hadn't been enough to break anything. The electricity had pulsed violently through the machine, and then dispersed into the water.
Pikachu flattened his ears, obviously disappointed.
"It... didn't do anything." Bonnie whispered, tears welling in her eyes once more.
"Could we knock it over?" Serena asked. "Something that big might shatter under its own weight."
Snatching a ball off of his belt, Ash released his Frogadier into the water. "It's worth a try! Frogadier, use water pulse on that machine!"
The creature glared at him with beady little eyes, and then ducked under the water. His trainer sighed.
"What was that?" The little girl sobbed.
The boy grimaced. "A try." He grabbed the other ball off of his belt. "Come on out, Fletchling!"
Landing neatly atop his cap, the little bird trilled a greeting. "Think you can knock that thing over with razor wing?"
The Fletchling chirped loudly, flaring out his wings.
"Hit the pipes!"
Wings flashing, the young bird slashed through the legs beneath. Unable to support the weight, the remaining pipes crumbled, spraying sludge and water everywhere as the spider tumbled into the lake.
In its aftermath, a massive wave erupted, sweeping up pokemon, people, and goodness-knows-what else. The only thing that spared Ash and his friends was their high ground. Looking down, Serena could see almost everyone had been knocked back quite a ways. Water-dwellers lay miserably on the shore, sickened by the poison.
Even though the machine was broken, sludge kept oozing out. It wasn't the only thing, though. A porthole on the side burst open, and two figures crawled out on top, smothered in black goop.
"Serves you two right! What did you do with Clemont?!" Ash shouted at them.
"Who the hell is Clemont?" One of them croaked, his voice deep and scratchy.
"Huh? You're not James! Who are you people?"
The woman on the right posed dramatically. "A shrieking whine! A blast from the past!"
"Spinning like a Gyro Ball and moving fast!" The man took over.
"To the moon..."
"...And beyond..."
"...What a blast!"
"Administering justice with lightning speed!"
"Bashing the bad guys, should we feel the need."
"So here's a newsflash from across the wire..."
"The real Team Rocket is now on fire!"
"Cassidy!" Shouted the woman.
"And it's Butch!" Her companion finished.
The duo looked over the the group, expecting some kind of reaction. After what seemed like years of silence, someone finally spoke up.
"Oh god, there's more of them?" Bonnie deadpanned.
Serena looked at her oddly, "These weren't the guys who took your brother?"
The little girl shook her head. "Nah, those guys had a meowth balloon."
"Where's Clemont, then?"
The kid pointed down at the road. "Right there."
Craning her neck, Serena could see a young blond man collapsed on his knees in the middle of route 3. She gasped, "I think he's hurt!"
Bonnie didn't seem concerned, though, "Nah, he does that. He'll-"
"If you're going to ruin someone's hard work, at least have the decency to apologize!" Cassidy cut in.
The woman and her partner sprung from their machine the cliff face.
Ash glared at them. "No."
Summoning a hearty dosage of electricity, Pikachu launched an electro-ball at them, sending the duo flying through the sky. Huffing, the electric mouse crossed his paws.
Charging over, Bonnie crushed the little pokemon into her arms, "You did it! You're so brave!"
His cheeks sparked, and she instantly dropped him. "Oops, sorry Pikachu."
"Chaa~" He replied, tilting his head. Then
Serena blinked. "Wow, that seemed... almost rehearsed."
Ash shot her a weary look. "This happens a lot."
Fletchling swooped down, perching on his trainer's shoulder. "Hey lil guy." He cooed, calling the bird back into his ball. "Great job today!"
"Can we go get Clemont now?" Bonnie asked.
"Sure thing!" Ash replied cheerfully. "Besides, Frogadier is down there, too."
Hurriedly, the three of them descended the trail to the lake shore. Much of the road around the lake had turned to mush, and incredibly slippery mush at that. Bonnie had slipped, and taken Ash with her. The result looked like Serena's mother at an overpriced spa. Not that she was spared this indignity: the ensuing mud tsunami had saturated her smock with all kinds of unpleasantness. On a dark night, she could easily have been mistaken for a victim of a violent crime.
As they closed in on the epicenter, Serena almost tripped over something buried in the mud. It was filthy, almost unrecognizable, coated in black tar. Allowing the others to run ahead, she dropped to her knees to investigate. To her horror, she realized it was a pokemon.
Struggling to keep on its greasy fur, she rolled it over onto its back.. A clutch of eggs, equally smothered in gunk, were held tightly in the creature's arms. Unwilling to risk rinsing them off in the lake, she scooped up the pokemon, and headed for Santalune as fast as she could.
It was far from at running speed, but Serena was able to clear the trail without slipping again. The moment she touched dry soil, she broke into a sprint. The city was close, there had to be somewhere she could get the sludge off of these guys there!
Even from a distance, it was plain to see how busy the pokemon centre was. But she didn't know where else to go. With no other choice, she pushed open the door, and walked inside.
It was a marill. That was what she realized when she started to rinse the slime off of him. A flustered nurse had essentially thrown soap and water at her the moment she walked in, and told her to wash him off herself. By the time she was finished, the bathwater was pitch black. She had to wonder what on earth it was as she dumped the runoff into the tank the centre had for collection.
Still, the centre had been rushed off of its feet, and Serena felt obligated to help. Quite a few of the pokemon were fighting fit and ready to go right away, but it didn't really matter. The lake was filthy, and nothing could live there safely, no matter how good their condition.
A couple hours later, and the young trainer felt that it was about time for a break. Because of her help, the nurses were willing to let her clean up in one of the staff rooms. She had to admit, it felt great to wash the grime off and change into some fresh clothing.
Releasing both her pokemon from their confinement, the young trainer remembered something: "I said I'd make you pokepuffs, didn't I, Starman?"
The raccoon nodded, a little disgruntled. His trainer laughed, and scratched his ears. "But... everyone's been working so hard... maybe I'll make macarons as well."
Fen hopped up onto the counter, a bag of almond flour in his jaws. Serena smiled at the fox, "Let's get started, shall we?"
Cooking with her pokemon was fun, Serena decided, but stressful. Sure, Fen was able to warm eggs up to room temperature super fast, but he'd accidentally cooked the first dozen or so through. Still, Starman was much worse. If she turned her back on him for a second, he'd eat all the batter he could get his paws on. Eventually, after appointing Fen the official guardian of the macaron-dom, she managed to make some progress.
Ten trays later, she emerged with a virtual mountain of treats for everybody. Her macarons weren't quite right, but people seemed to enjoy them anyways. Ultimately, she wound up recalling Starman. The little guy managed to munch his way through fifteen of them before she had to restrain him for his own safety. Retreating to the staff room, she started to work on more confections. The pokepuffs were, unsurprisingly, going like hotcakes.
When she returned with more, she was amused to find Fen trotting around the lobby, distributing the remaining snacks. Thankfully, things had calmed down quite a lot. According to what she'd heard from the nurses, some inventor from Lumiose had re-purposed the spider into a water purifier, and that environmental support groups had been working non-stop to help the victimized wildlife. It wasn't going to be an overnight fix, but they were hoping in a week or two conditions would be safe enough for pokemon to re-inhabit the lake.
Serena couldn't help but wonder, though: where was Ash? She hadn't seen him since taking that marill to the centre. Maybe he'd already gotten Santalune's badge? Mentally shrugging, she decided to check on the eggs she brought in.
Despite a crack on one of them, Nurse Joy had been adamant that the embryos inside were doing fine. The interesting thing was that they were all different species, but none of them could have been the marill's child. It was a female, but not a single one of "her" eggs contained a marill or azurill.
As for the girl herself, she couldn't keep down any food yet, but the general consensus was that she'd be back to full strength after a few days of rest.
Strolling down the corridor, she returned to the room the nurses had lent her for the night, and turned in. She and her pokemon would need all the strength they could get.
After all, tomorrow, they were going to win their first gym battle.
A/N: I'm planning to update every saturday, but I thought I'd ask: Do you think it's better to have longer updates weekly, or shorter updates a little more often?