A/N: Sweet mother of God, over a month?! Well, here it is anyways. I am very sorry for the long delays. :( I've been rewriting and proofreading half of this chapter for the past few weeks using advice from other writers and from my own dissatisfaction of the segment I wrote.

Other than that, there's not much else to say. So without further ado, your next meal is ready. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. If I did, the anime would have Honoo no Tobira (and its English version by Amanda Lee for the English dub) and Akatsuki no Kuruma for the OP and Credits music, respectively, for the second arc of this story. :P Which, btw, will come right after battling Shalour City's own Korrina, if you ask. And no, I do not own either song as well.

Chapter 4: Reunion

With the setting of the sun, twilight approached. The electric rodent can't help but stare at his trainer's brown eyes locking onto the honey blonde girl's sapphire eyes. He wasn't accustomed to see him in such a frozen state and every attempt to shake him out of it was ineffective. Who was this person and how could she have put Ash in this kind of trance? Right at the edge of his vision, he can see the brown-haired lady signaling him to come into the house.

"Pikachu, let's not interrupt their moment," Grace whispered. Seeing what the lady had meant, Pikachu hopped off his trainer's shoulders and followed her into the house.

Serena couldn't believe what she was seeing. She definitely wasn't dreaming and she already knew that he was here in Kalos. But, to unexpectedly show up at her home like this? She hadn't anticipated that happening. The honey blonde girl could only stand speechless and frozen in motion. Just from seeing him in person, she started to lose control of her own emotions and began to feel very strange inside. Whatever it was, thinking about it just made her feel weird.

As Ash's eyes stared into the deep blue abyss, memories together with her rushed down on him like an avalanche. Everything around them began to feel like a dream, but he wasn't dreaming; Serena was as tangible as the crimson roses along the path. It felt odd seeing her again like this; under the moonlight, just the two of them...All of it kind of made him feel all ticklish inside.

At the next moment, all Ash felt was a slight thrust back towards the door and two arms stiffly wrapped around him, and all he can hear were the sobs of the young girl in his hands. He tilted his head down and saw Serena burying her face on his shoulder.

"I missed you so much..." The honey blonde girl whispered.

Serena had longed for his caring arms ever since she had left Pallet Town. Whenever she was sad, hurt, or frightened, Ash was (usually) there for her to keep her calm. After the move, however, all she had was her own room and a blanket to bury herself under. She had no way of consoling herself from her troubles, so she was more than delighted having Ash back.

"Serena...Don't cry," He said as he hugged her back.

Ash wasn't expecting her to rush towards him like that. Watching her behavior towards him, he can tell that she had gone through a lot, and he can't help but feel bad for not being there to comfort her. For better or worse, the weird ticklish feeling grew little by little with every passing moment. There was something oddly familiar about it, but the boy just can't seem to put his finger on it.

Serena slowly lifted her face from Ash's shoulder, still somewhat sniffing and sobbing. The raven-haired boy lifted his right hand over her face, with the index finger wiping away the tears falling from her eyes. The honey blonde girl raised her head, with a little red tinge on her cheeks, and looked at his brown eyes and consoling smile.

"S-sorry about that..." Serena apologized.

"It's alright, Serena," Ash responded, "I'm here for you."

The boy's reassuring voice was more than enough to comfort her. Slowly but surely, the young girl's impulses were consuming her like a parasite. Her soft right hand moved away from Ash's hip and crept its away around his neck. She inched her lips closer towards his, unaware of what she was doing.

Ash, on the other hand, was partially oblivious to her actions; his mind still registering what she was doing. Just from watching her approach him in a somewhat passionate way, something began unlocking itself again. Was it because of Serena? And speaking of her, he couldn't remember her body feeling so soft against his. Just thinking about all of this made him feel all warm and sweaty, even to the point where his cheeks are all red.

Unfortunately for them (or fortunately, however you see it fit), a sound of rushing footsteps were rushing towards the vicinity of the Gabena household. Then, a voice followed, particularly from a young female girl.

"Hey Serena! Mom let me come over for dinner and…Huh?" The girl said.

The honey blonde girl stopped in her tracks and cringed. She had forgotten that Shauna is coming for dinner so that she could talk with her. But since she was so caught up with her reunion, she threw everything aside.

Ash looked over Serena's shoulders and saw a brunette girl about the same age as them. She was a wee bit shorter than either of them and she had one ponytail tied up to either side of her head.

"What are you two doing? Didn't you say you don't want a boyfriend?" Shauna said as she raised an eyebrow.

Serena's eye twitched; did Shauna really think she and Ash were dating? "Ehehe, it's not what it seems, Shauna!" Serena said as she twirled around to speak with her friend.

"I've never seen you around here before, though...But, you do look a bit familiar..." The brunette said, studying Ash in the process.

The raven-haired boy was left dumbfounded by Shauna's response. Now he clearly remembers that he had not seen her at all in any of his journeys, so where could she have seen him? Before he could ask the new girl, Serena sighed and began speaking to them.

"Shauna, this is Ash. Ash, meet Shauna; she's a new friend I made when I moved here," The honey blonde gestured.

"You don't mean your boyfriend in Kanto?" Then Shauna took a moment to think of his name, "Wait a minute...Ash Ketchum, right? I remember now! You were on TV about a year ago! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, Serena! You never told me you are dating the Sinnoh League Champion!"

Now, all she wanted was to bury herself under all the earth below her feet to hide all her embarrassment. Shauna just called Ash her boyfriend! Twice! Although Serena wasn't completely sure how he would feel after being called like that, the honey blonde girl was at the point where her whole face was hot red.

"Shauna, may I talk to you in the training yard, alone?" She said with a slight menacing tone to her voice. "Ash, if you would like to, why don't you join us for dinner tonight? You and mom can go ahead, I'll give Shauna here a little piece of my mind."

"Hey, what are yo-" The brunette was cut off from the blonde pulling on one of her pigtails, "Ow, ow, ouch! Serena, let go of me...! Yooowch!"

Once more, Ash was left silent and bewildered. His mind just couldn't process what had just happened. Well, he did process much of the information, more or less; he was reunited with Serena and he was introduced to her new friend...Truth be told, Ash was left all the more clueless of what had happened.

"Ow, ow!" Shauna yelled as she was dragged along. When they had finally reached the very large backyard that housed the training field, Serena let go off her pigtail, and the brunette turned around with a furious expression on her face. "What was that for?!"

"What the heck were you thinking, Shauna?! That was my friend, whom by the way I have never seen for a long time, and you just embarrassed me right in front of him!" Serena unleashed her fury on her friend.

"What did I do? It's not like I saw you and your boyfriend naked or something."

Hearing Shauna's defense, the honey blonde girl blushed. However, it did remind her of the fact that her friend had called Ash her boyfriend. Twice. Who knows what he could be thinking after that. Once more, just from listening to Shauna's comment, pictures of her Ash topless came streaming into her mind. What was she thinking? She shook her head to erase the images from her mind.

"For the last time, ASH! IS! NOT! MY! BOYFRIEND!" Serena screamed at the top of her lungs.

The young brunette was taken slightly aback from her friend's response. She had not heard Serena talk back at her this agitatedly, not even to her mother. It did make Shauna think, however. After all, she had seen the way they acted around with each other and the intimacy in the air around them was evident. Does Serena really think there's nothing going on between them? Was it really supposed to be just an ordinary friendship?

"Jeez Serena, calm down!" Shauna said. Then she gave Serena a mischievous smirk, "If you don't want him, then I guess I'll have him all to myself. After all, he is kind of handsome..."

"NO!" The honey blonde exclaimed. It didn't take long for her to process what she had just said and her hand shot up to cover her mouth in shock at her own exclamation. Seeing Shauna's cheeky grin spreading across her face sent chills down her spine; she knows that she drove herself to a corner.

"Hm? Then why are you so defensive about it?"

Checkmate. Serena can feel the salty sweat building up and dripping from her forehead and the blood rushing to her cheeks. She knew she had fallen into her trap, but it's too late to get out of it now. If only she had control over her own stupid impulses, she wouldn't be in this exact situation. She desperately tried to come up with an answer; but sadly, nothing came to her mind.

Grace and Ash had already begun eating dinner, since Serena had given them the go-ahead to do so, and that she and Shauna had been out at the backyard for quite a bit. Inside Ash's mind, he's trying to make sense of what had just happened earlier. To begin with it...Actually, where should he start? For one, Serena was acting strangely for a time there, although it didn't last long. And then Shauna came along and things became...Interesting, to say the least. However, the things she had mentioned about his old friend are just a little unnerving. Did Serena have a boyfriend prior to their reunion? If that's making him uneasy, why should it? Shouldn't he be happy for her?

"Ash, are you okay?" Grace said, noticing that his face was straining a little, "You seem a little off tonight. Is there something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I'm completely fine," Ash replied back with a smile. Trying to divert the topic from himself, he continued on, "I take it Serena's the new trainer?"

Grace nodded in confirmation. Of course she would be the new trainer. She had no younger siblings, as far as he knew, and he already established that they were at the right household. Although that begs the question: Why? It has been two years since she should've been eligible to receive her starter Pokémon. But before he could ask, Grace, as if she had read his mind, carried on to answer the unspoken question.

"She was still really down when she turned ten, so she said she didn't want to go on a journey. I think, after all those endless planning you two made during all the afternoons you just sat around and talked, that she didn't see the point in it because it wouldn't be the same."

The thought of her declining to travel sank in. Now why would she do that? Was she really that upset that she would turn the offer down? Thinking that he had ruined Serena's opportunity to travel just because he hadn't been there with her made him feel a little down himself.

"Of course, that's just what I think. She never really liked talking about such things; I guess it hits way too close to home."

Just then, Serena and Shauna entered from the back door, having finished their 'little' chat. The two settled down in their seats, with Serena still noticeably irritated. Oh how this night had turned for her. Well, at least things couldn't get worse, now...Right? Trying to keep all the negativity out from her mind, she started up a conversation with her old friend, something she hasn't done in years.

"Ash? I've been meaning to ask you something earlier," Serena said.

Ash raised an eyebrow and asked, "What is it?"

"What brings you here?"

"Oh, Professor Sycamore sent me here for your Pokémon."

"WHAAAA?!" Shauna intervened, surprised by the revelation. She, too, wanted her own Pokémon, but with the restrictions put on her by her mother, there's not much she can do. "SERENA, YOU NEVER TOLD ME YOU WERE GETTING YOUR FIRST POKÉMON!?"

"Shauna, I was going to tell you, but I didn't even know Ash was coming with the Pokémon today, so that just added on to the complications." Serena tried to ease her, "Maybe you can ask your mom to let you go."

"I've already told you; been there, done that. She still won't let me!"

"Hmm...Why don't you tell her that I'm going as well?"

Shauna sighed, but at least she can try one more time. What's the worst that could happen? "Oh alright."

While Serena and Shauna conversed, Ash can't help but think about why she had declined to travel. All that Grace said to him was her own theory; nothing from the actual source, making him all the more curious as to what Serena had in her mind back then. It just seemed a little out of character for her to feel that down.

The honey blonde girl laid on her bed, face down. Shauna had already left the premises a while ago; the brunette had quite a huge smile on her face when she left. She probably was excited to tell her mom about Serena getting her first Pokémon. Ash, on the other hand, is still down at the kitchen; he had offered to help her by rinsing all she had washed. The two shared stories of what they had done since their parting, although Ash was usually the one talking since he had done quite a lot.

The girl rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, "Five regions already, huh? I've surely missed a lot..."

The night really took quite a toll on her. Little did she expect Ash to be here, and for Shauna to ruin their moment...Well, at least she isn't here anymore. Although, what she had said got her to think for a short moment. Does she really have a problem with her 'taking' Ash from her? After all, they're just friends; there's nothing going on between them...Right?

"No, I shouldn't be even thi-" Then a knock interrupted her.

"Hey Serena, you there?" A masculine voice said and slowly opened the door. The honey blonde girl rose to greet the raven-haired boy poking his head through the opening.

"Ash? What are you doing here?" She said out of surprise.

The boy was scratching his head out of embarrassment; he really should've known better, "Sorry if I'm bothering you but...I was wondering if we could talk for a moment?"

"Oh, uh...Sure, I guess...Err, why don't you sit on the bed with me?" Serena said as she let him in her room. "So, uh...What do you want to talk about?"

"You're twelve years old now, right? I was just wondering; it has been two years since you were eligible to get your first Pokémon, so why did you wait so long to get it?"

The girl was taken slightly aback from Ash's unanticipated question as droplets of sweat formed. She took the time to think; she didn't want to seem weak...But, she didn't want to lie to her best friend either...

"Well...I guess I just wasn't settled to my new home, and I wanted this place to feel like it when I return from my journey. Honestly, it's no big of a deal for you to get so worked up about." It wasn't a complete lie; she just left out her main reason.

The raven-haired boy analyzed her face, "...Serena, I've known you since the day we met, and I can still tell that you're a bad liar."

"Eh?! What's that supposed to mean?!" At this point, Serena's cheeks were drowning in a sea of red and she swiftly turned her head away from him.

"Great job, now you're on her bad side," Ash thought to himself as he sighed, "It's alright if you don't want to say it. Just remember, if you want to talk to me about anything, I'm all ears," The boy smiled at her.

The honey blonde girl looked at the corner of her eye and saw the smiling face that reminded her of their past selves. Listening to the same words he used to tell her, it just shrouded her in guilt; it's not like she wanted to lie to him. Sooner or later, she will have to tell him why she would do something like that. The more she thought about it, the more stressed she would feel, and it didn't take long for her to break.

"It's just...It wasn't worth it," She said, capturing Ash's attention, "Without you, I just don't see the point in it. Traveling the world, all alone...It just doesn't feel right to me. Besides, if I were to go by myself, we wouldn't have seen each other again!" Serena winked at him.

Once it sank in, Ash felt rather glum; it hadn't occurred to him that travelling with her would mean this much to her. Sure, he knew that their plans meant a lot to her, but to go as far as denying the request from the professor himself...The fact that he hadn't been there for her, it just made him feel at fault for all this. Who knows what she had to go through without him...Perhaps there was one way to make it up to her.

"...Why don't you come along with me? You are going to become a Pokémon trainer, right?"

"Actually, I haven't decided on it yet," She stated, surprising the raven-haired boy beside her, "Truth be told, I don't know what I even want to do at all."

"All the more reason to go out and enjoy the world, am I right?"

Serena smiled at his assuring optimism. She leaned closer to Ash's shoulder and wrapped her arms around his right arm. "Thank you, Ash," She whispered as her eyes slowly clasped together.

The boy can't help but blush as her smooth golden hair rested on his right shoulder. He can feel his whole body slowly burning with intense heat that wasn't even there. Alongside the scorching sensation was the rising heart rate. His mind just couldn't understand this feeling. There's just something about it feels like it's trying to ring a bell; whatever it may be, he had felt the same for something or someone before.

Ash looked over at the girl beside him, but it seems that she had already fallen into slumber. He took it upon himself to get her bundled up, so he carried the honey blonde girl – her head on his right arm and her legs on the other – and laid her down the right way on her bed. Lastly, he grabbed the soft white blanket and swaddled her with it. Upon finishing, he got up and headed for the door, and gave one last look at the sleeping beauty.

"Good night, Serena."

A/N: Finally, we have reached the end of this chapter; that took way more time than I wanted. :/ So in this chapter, I tried to lay down the foundations for their relationship. I had quite a hard time to describe the 'unknown' feeling Ash was...Well, feeling, in those intimate moments with Serena. I may have to edit this chapter a few times just because of that. Other than that, I don't have much else to say. Anyways, with that out of the way, let's get on with the questions.

I wish their reunion will be somewhat different from SPR please make it sweeter.

I have tried my best. What do you think of the finished product?

When will be the next update?

Recently, the new updates tend to...Vary in time, so I cannot tell when the next one will come, nor can you expect one anytime soon. Sorry. :/

Can Serena get an Eevee and a Scatterbug? (Its final form is a Vivillon.) It's feels kind of natural for Serena because I think they represent the many options and choices in her life; Eevee has many evolutions and Vivillon has many patterns!

First off, I wanna say that that is an excellent analogy! About Scatterbug/Vivillon, it's on the drawing board, and I am considering it. Eevee, on the other hand, is a definite YES. Some of you will now probably ask, "What Eeveelution will it be?" Nope, not telling you; it's a surprise (not really surprising though, but I still won't tell you).

Will Serena catch any Pokémon in this fic?

Yes. Like I've said in the previous question, Eevee will be one of those Pokémon she will catch. Oh, if I recall correctly, there's a toy that's labeled "Serena's Pancham". IF she will actually capture a Pancham, I am adding the awesome little panda bear to her team.

Now I have a question for y'all. The title, 'On the Road, Again' was, and always has been, a working/placeholder title. I couldn't really come up with anything at the moment of conception of this project. So I ask you guys to give some suggestions for the official name of this fan fiction. I will put up a poll of my Top 3 favorite suggestions, as well as 2 others from my own: Blazing Light and Seeds of Hope. So, let us begin suggesting! **cue Amazing Plan by Kevin MacLeod**

Dat piano tho.

Next Chapter: You are my Rival!