Time for more action! Time for more rivalries! Time for more Amourshipping romance! Most importantly, though, time for Chapter 7!


Chapter 7

A Step

"Are you ready folks?" Harry called, whipping the crowd into a frenzy. Down below, Brock had stepped onto the field along with Dawn, and the two were walking toward one another. Even though neither held animosity in their body language, the two former traveling partners weren't smiling. "It's time for Brock versus Dawn, and it promises a most exciting battle."

"Good luck to you, Dawn," Brock said, his voice carrying to his team's section in the stands. Serena watched intently. Like May before her, Dawn was a Coordinator as well, which made her someone to watch. The honey blonde was certain she could pick up some wonderful tips.

"You too, Brock, and no need to worry. I'm gonna win it," Dawn told him. The two reached out and shook each other's hands before returning to their respective sides of the arena.

"You all know the drill," Harry started to explain for the benefit of the crowd. "You're allowed the use of one Pokémon and a thirty-minute time limit. Let's begin!"

"Togekiss, spotlight!" Dawn cried, tossing her pokeball into the air, from which a Togekiss emerged in a dazzling display. Not recognizing the Pokémon, Serena scanned it with her Pokédex while Brock sent his Croagunk out. Serena frowned.

"Doesn't Togekiss have the advantage over Croagunk?" she asked, surprised at such a type matchup. Clemont adjusted his glasses, leaning in to examine the battlefield.

"It is a rather bizarre choice," he observed. Ash just brought them into another group hug. Serena found that he seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Pikachu hopped from his partner's shoulder to the edge of the stands. Dedenne joined him.

"Pika-Chu! Pika pika chu chu Pikachu!"

"Pikachu's right, guys. Brocko's always got a plan," Ash said with a grin. "Just watch! Go get 'er, Brock. You can tone it down, Dawn!"

"Don't try to tell me to lose, Ash!" Dawn yelled up at him. Ash threw his head back and laughed while the crowd seemed to also find it amusing. Serena's frown was carved in deeper; it was so easy for Ash to converse with his old girlfriends-no, just friends. And she wasn't jealous…definitely not…at least, she hoped she wasn't. She really didn't want to resent Ash's friends just because they were girls who likely knew him better than she did. The bell rang, signaling the start of the battle.

"Togekiss, Safeguard!" Dawn commanded. Swirls of green light surrounded her Pokémon, and Serena could swear that she saw a shield wrap itself around Togekiss, though it appeared more as a halo. Brock and Croagunk stood still, waiting for the move to finish. Dawn took the first move after that. "Now, Air Slash!"

Togekiss flew up into the air, spinning around as a blue glow surrounded it now. Then, as it came out of its spin, it threw a blue ball of energy hurtling straight for Croagunk. Serena was amazed; the simple grace that Togekiss exuded was marvelous, from its perfect execution of its spin to the timing of its attack as it came out of its spin. Brock wasn't giving a command, either. She wanted to cry out for Croagunk to move, but just before she did, Croagunk stepped just a little to the side and the Air Slash whooshed right past him, impacting with the ground in an array of wispy glitter.

"Did…did Croagunk even dodge?" Clemont asked. Bonnie wanted to get closer to watch, so she jumped on her brother, knocking his glasses askew.

"Croagunk, get up in the air with your arms," Brock finally commanded. Croagunk grunted and lumbered forward before slamming both hands on the ground, springing itself up.

"Spin and dodge it, Togekiss," Dawn yelled. Togekiss did as it was commanded, spinning just as Croagunk shot towards it. The buffet of air that surrounded Togekiss made Croagunk's seeming punch miss it completely. "Now, trap it with your wings and use an Aura Sphere!"

"Toge!" the Jubilee Pokémon cried, aiming back for the now free-flying Croagunk. She reached out and grabbed Croagunk by the feet, hanging it upside down as an Aura Sphere formed near her mouth.

Just as it was about to impact, Brock gave his next command. "Now, Poison Jab at Togekiss' mouth."

"Croagunk!" the Poison type Pokémon called, jabbing upward with a poisonous fist from its upside-down position to slam right into Togekiss' mouth. The Aura Sphere exploded and both Pokémon were sent spiraling backwards. Togekiss managed to spin itself into an upright position, while Croagunk did a small flip in midair to land on its feet, looking a little bruised but no worse for the wear.

"Air Slash, again!" Dawn yelled out. Togekiss resumed its spinning, once more entrancing Serena. Togekiss was no less than an artist, and the air was its stage. Dawn was one heck of a Coordinator, that was for sure. Togekiss shot a little closer to Croagunk before letting off its Air Slash.

"Brace yourself," Brock said warningly. Croagunk crossed its arms to defend as the Air Slash was fired off. The edge of the attack reached Croagunk quicker than it had last time, only the Toxic Mouth Pokémon didn't dodge this time. It took the attack as it began to rush through it, the blue swirls of air like blades that carved away. "Now, jump."

"Croa!" Croagunk jumped once again, the power of the Air Slash suddenly carrying it further than it did before, and at a surprisingly quicker speed, despite the reverse direction.

"Holy Miltanks!" Harry suddenly blurted out at the execution of the move. Even Serena gasped as Croagunk landed a Brick Break right in Togekiss' stomach, sending her flying up into the air. Togekiss recovered and spun around to try and get a good attacking angle.

"Make a barrage of Aura Spheres!" Dawn ordered. Togekiss once more began to spin like a dancer, firing off an Aura Sphere periodically. It was like a whirling barrage of blue that glowed effervescently. Since Croagunk was in midair, it couldn't move around as freely, making it a sitting Ducklett, as it were.

"Counter with Poison Sting!" Croagunk opened its mouth and fired off numerous purple stingers in the direction of the impending Aura Spheres. Some of them impacted, causing them to burst in midair, others missed entirely, making the spheres collide with Croagunk. One, however, hit its mark on Togekiss, and the Jubilee Pokémon recoiled, as if in pain.

"The battle's over," Ash observed. Serena wasn't quite sure why he'd say that, since both of the Pokémon appeared to be even. "Togekiss is poisoned."

"But how? Togekiss used Safeguard," Clemont said, before realization settled on his face. "That's what Brock was waiting for. He had Croagunk use Poison Sting in midair to see if Safeguard had worn off yet."

"Croagunk, Venoshock!" Brock ordered. Serena whipped away from her friends to see Croagunk summon globs of purple goo that he lobbed at Togekiss.

"Hurry and dodge it!" Dawn cried out. Togekiss obeyed her trainer immediately, swerving and swooping to avoid the Venoshock attack, until it suddenly flinched from the poison taking an effect on its body. That brief pause was enough for the attack to hit, causing obvious massive damage to Togekiss while the goo sunk into her skin. "No need to worry, Togekiss. We'll use a single attack to finish this: Sky Attack."

"Get ready, Croagunk," Brock said stoically. Below a now shining Togekiss, Croagunk was shaking. Not that she had actually seen it before, but after looking Croagunk up earlier she knew its shuddering was a sign of its ability, Anticipation. A burst of light indicated that Togekiss was ready for its attack and it dived towards the waiting Croagunk. "Just hold on…"

"Come on, Togekiss! You can do it!"

"Go Brock and Croagunk!"

"Yeah!" Bonnie yelled as the two Pokémon were about to collide. Serena's hands flew to her chest, unsure of the outcome of what was about to happen, no matter what Ash had said.

"Now! Poison Jab!" As Togekiss collided with Croagunk, the Toxic Mouth Pokémon jabbed outward with that same purple-glowing fist, hitting Togekiss on its back while the two were carried into the air by Togekiss' Sky Attack. "Finish with Venoshock on its back."

Croagunk, despite being attacked so harshly, retained enough defense to summon one last globule of Venoshock to hit Togekiss. The attack practically exploded and both Pokémon spiraled downward, crashing to the ground in a dust plume. When it receded, Croagunk was slumped over, but very much standing. Togekiss was passed out.

"Togekiss is unable to battle! Croagunk is the winner, and the victory goes to Brock of Team Ketchum!"

"All right!" Ash screamed, throwing his fist into the air.

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered as well. Serena just felt the breath she had been holding exhale at long last. Ash was right; it had been a phenomenally exciting battle and she couldn't wait to talk to the blue-haired Pokémon Coordinator about her Togekiss' air dance. On the field below, Brock had recalled Croagunk while the crowd was cheering wildly. He approached Dawn and her fallen Togekiss, tossing her a Pecha Berry.

"Thanks, Brock, and great job," Dawn congratulated him with a smile. She was a graceful loser as well. It was a sharp contrast to how she had reacted yesterday, crying after her battle. That thought made her eyes fly across the arena to Aria and she sighed a little. She definitely had not exemplified being a Kalos Queen by not smiling for her Pokémon.

"Your Togekiss has gotten a lot stronger," Brock said, kneeling down to make sure Togekiss was okay before Dawn recalled it. The two old friends exchanged a few more words before leaving the field.

"Zat was a most thrilling battle," Pierre said. "Togekiss' movement was ze most inspiring thing I have seen in a long time. If Dawn and her Togekiss were performers, I have no doubt she would be able to compete against Aria for ze title of Kalos Queen."

"Most certainly, but Croagunk was no slouch either," Sycamore responded. "Brock and his knowledge of Pokémon anatomy was impressive. All of those attacks on Togekiss' stomach to test the status of its Safeguard was nothing less than brilliant. Kudos to both trainers."

"Right you are, and now that that battle is complete, let's move onto our second one, which is…" Harry announced as the roulette began to spin. Brock was just rejoining the team as the trainers were selected. "Christopher from Team Brutal against Jessilina of Team Research."

"So, it's Team Rocket next, huh? Has Jessie gotten any better?" Brock asked, almost oblivious to the air of glee around his team. Serena had hardly noticed his return.

"They're definitely more of a pain in the butt now, but who cares? That was awesome, Brock. When did Croagunk learn Venoshock?" Ash asked, his eyes lighting up as always.

"Just recently, actually. It came in handy," Brock responded.

"You can say that again," Serena said, exhaling a little loudly. "You had me on the edge of my seat the entire time."

"Well, let's just count it as a great win for our team and watch the next match." The trainers all laughed and turned back to the arena.

"Greetings fans and supporters!" Jessie cried as she danced onto the arena. "I, the lovely Jessilina am here to put on a dazzling performance for you."

"I see she's still a drama queen," Brock commented sardonically.

"Go, Jessilina, put that poser down!" Serena hardly thought Team Brutal's participant was a poser, not when he looked like a weight lifter. His hair was styled similar to Brock's but his stature was so confident and big that he would have probably dwarfed Brock in comparison. He also seemed to be a man of few words because he didn't even acknowledge Jessie's over the top antics. He just took a pokeball out and stood calmly. Serena's conclusion was that he was the brawns not brains type.

"Let the battle begin!" Harry called out, the bell ringing at the same time.

"Let's shine, Gourgeist!"

"Tyrantrum." Yep, he was certainly a one-word trainer. Both Pokémon appeared on the field and one thing was abundantly clear: Tyrantrum was almost three or four times the size of Gourgeist. This made Jessie and her Pokémon apparently shiver in fear. "Crunch."

"Don't let him, Gourgeist. Use Leech Seed!" Gourgeist spun around, just like Togekiss and launched its Leech Seed outward. Tyrantrum, due to its large size and its current mode of attack, was unable to avoid the Leech Seed. Gourgeist's attack spread upward in its thick vines and surrounded the Despot Pokémon, beginning to suck its life energy out while constricting it tightly. "Now we have the advantage. Seed Bomb!"

"She did get better," Brock said, his face mildly impressed.

"Yeah, you wouldn't think so if she wasn't attacking us and trying to steal our Pokémon once a week," Serena spat distastefully. Gourgeist rose and began firing off its Seed Bomb, the attack flying out in an arc of giant glowing seeds which impacted strongly with Tyrantrum, causing it to cry out.

"Crunch the vines." Jessie was giggling so loudly at her Gourgeist's successfully continued attack that she didn't hear the muted command. Tyrantrum did, though and it struggled through the Leech Seed to bite into the plants, ripping them to shreds that looked like little leaves when it was done with it. Tyrantrum quickly renewed its assault. "Dragon Claw."

Tyrantrum's claws glowed green and long and Jessie and her Gourgeist finally stopped their laughing in time to widen their eyes as Tyrantrum slashed across the Pumpkin Pokémon. Gourgeist flew backwards and it made Jessie start gnashing her teeth angrily.

"Show him that he can't do that. Use Shadow Ball!" Gourgeist immediately obeyed her trainer, firing off a powerful Shadow Ball in Tyrantrum's direction. The large target made it easy to hit. "Now use Dark Pulse!"

"Geist!" Gourgeist cried as it fired off a very powerful Dark Pulse, the eerie dark beam colliding with Tyrantrum's head. The battle's result was still up in the air, but even after a number of successful attacks, Serena still felt that Christopher was holding the edge. He didn't say much, but when he gave his commands, they were to the point and helped him to take full control of the battlefield. It wasn't like Rocky, either though. He wasn't bored. He just seemed focused. It was very different for a member of Team Brutal.

"Rock Slide." Tyrantrum gave a great cry and white portals appeared around Tyrantrum's body. From those portals came a veritable barrage of rocks each of different shapes and sizes, but all off them hurtling towards the unsuspecting Gourgeist at maximum speed.

"Ah, don't let it hit you! Dodge! Dodge!" Gourgeist scrambled to listen to Jessie's commands, floating around desperately to avoid the attack. The rocks slammed into the ground and Serena got a sudden familiar feeling of déjà vu. It was just like yesterday's battle with Rocky, when he had managed to surround Vaporeon with rocks to land the final blow. Jessie was falling for the same trick. One of the rocks hit Gourgeist and it twirled around to recover. Jessie was waiting with a command for it right after. "Seed Bomb!"

"Head Smash." That was the end of the battle. Serena knew it, and she guessed that the rest of the audience knew it as well. Tyrantrum glowed with an eerie blue color as it began charging straight for Gourgeist. Out of desperation, Gourgeist began to fire Seed Bomb more rapidly at the charging Pokémon. When she began to realize that the giant seeds were practically ineffective against Tyrantrum, she tried to flee. Too bad that Tyrantrum had picked up too much speed. The Despot Pokémon slammed into Gourgeist, sending it flying into the stadium wall, where it cracked the actual surface, knocking Gourgeist out.

"Gourgeist is unable to battle. Tyrantrum is the winner, so the victory goes to Christopher of Team Brutal."

"Not that surprising," Bonnie commented with a tinge of boredom in her voice. Serena had to concur. Despite the strong showings the day before, Christopher's cool commands directed at Tyrantrum were nothing short of impressive. The only bad thing about this particular trainer was the way he stalked off the field with cold indifference, not even caring that his Tyrantrum may have caused serious harm to Gourgeist. The Pumpkin Pokémon had broken the wall after all. Still, Jessie had put up a good fight in the end, and even though she was their enemy, Serena thought it was nice to see her looking so concerned after her Pokémon.

"Hm, well…" Harry commented, clearly not able to find the words for the feat of strength he had just seen. Aston had to take the reins for him.

"It seems we're down to the final battle for the day. I'm hoping it's a good one!" Harry cleared his throat after Aston's announcement, clearly hoping to make some comment. He was unable to say what was on his mind as the roulette began spinning and spinning until it stopped on the final two combating trainers for the day.

"All right, give it up for Ariana of Team Performer against Bruce of Team Trainer!"

"Aria's up!" Serena exclaimed happily. How ironic that all three of the female combatants for the day were trainers that did some sort of performance in their move sets. Of course, Serena had only battled against Aria once in a competitive setting, so she was more than excited to see whether she would pull off a victory or not. Like Dawn and Brock, Aria and Bruce went to the middle of the battlefield and shook hands. As Bruce pulled away, he had a light blush actually dusting his face. The name Ariana clearly wasn't fooling anyone. I guess that's the power of a Kalos Queen…I wonder if I became the Kalos Queen, whether Ash would look at me like that.

That didn't seem likely, as Ash was hoisting Bonnie onto his shoulders (Clemont claimed he was too weak and tired to) so that the two could watch the battle. Their eyes were shining so brightly, Serena was certain that Ash had no intentions of looking at her whatsoever. That was perfectly fine with her. She wanted to pay attention to Aria's battle anyway. Before the bell was to ring, Aria looked up into the stands and caught sight of Serena. She sent a wink in the girl's direction and Serena smiled. Seconds later, the bell rang and the battle began.

"Let the performance begin, Aromatisse."

"You're up, Braviary," Bruce cried out, the Pokémon emerging from its pokeball with a cry. "Steel Wing, let's go!"

"Aromatisse, counter with Charge Beam!" Aria called out, making her signature hand movement around her face. Aromatisse fired out the electrical attack from the crackling orb in front of its face straight at Braviary.

"Cut straight through it!" Braviary altered its trajectory so that instead of its body being in the way of the Charge Beam attack, it was instead slicing through it with the glinting Steel Wing. "Follow it up with Crush Claw!"

"Brave!" Braviary cried out as its talons glowed a sudden blue color and it slammed against Aromatisse, sending it flying backwards.

"Reflect," Aria called out. Serena admired her. Despite Braviary quickly taking the upper hand, Aria managed to remain calm and collected, all with a smile on her face. That was what it meant to be a Kalos Queen. Aromatisse obeyed automatically and brought its Reflect up. The Crush Claw's damage was already done, but Aria was very obviously playing a much longer game.

"Well, we're not done, either. Brave Bird!" Braviary flew higher up into the sky as it circled around before it dived straight for Aromatisse, its body practically burning in a brilliant blue blaze. Aromatisse braced itself as Braviary slammed right into the Pokémon, some of the blue glow transferring onto the other Pokémon for a moment. As Braviary flew away, it was shuddering with the recoil from its attack. Aria went on the offensive.

"Fairy Wind!"

"Protect!" The two moves collided in an inevitable stalemate and both Pokémon were completely unharmed. When the Protect faded, Braviary also seemed to have recovered from its recoil and was ready for action again. "Steel Wing, again, let's go!"

Braviary's wings glowed white once more and it dove at Aromatisse again. Aria ordered another Fairy Wind, the pink dust like wind cutting towards Braviary. Unlike the Charge Beam, Braviary was unable to cut through it, but its attack still struck head on. Both Pokémon were starting to look damaged bit by bit. "Charge Beam!"

"Dodge it, and rush in with a Crush Claw!" Braviary avoided the Charge Beam and swooped in on Aromatisse, hitting the Fragrance Pokémon hard with its shining blue claws. Thanks to the Reflect, Aromatisse looked hardly damaged at all. "We'll keep going!"

"You too, Aromatisse! Fairy Wind, followed by a Charge Beam!"

The crowd was whipped into a frenzy by the oncoming flurry of attacks. Braviary would swoop in and land a strong hit while Aromatisse would also send a powerful blow at its opponent. More often than not, Braviary would be able to avoid the hit but in its recklessness, it would sometimes be hit, usually by Charge Beam. The battle was certainly turning into one nail biter of a competition, with no clear winner even close to being decided, unlike the previous two battles. The most elongating factor of the battle was Aria's use of Reflect and Bruce's use of Protect in deflecting damage. Bonnie eventually got tired of the long battle.

"Why hasn't anyone won yet?" she complained, squeezing Squishy a little tighter than it probably wanted. Gary saw fit to educate the young girl.

"Aromatisse has terrible attack, which I suppose is fine if you're a Performer. On the other hand, it also has a great defense. Braviary, likewise, has great attack but can't get enough damage in with Reflect up, but its speed allows it to avoid most attacks," Gary explained. When Bonnie still looked confused, her big brother jumped in to help her out.

"In other words it's a battle of defense and speed because the damage they're dealing is so little," Clemont told her.

"Ooh…Now I get it." Serena and Ash laughed at Bonnie's realization and the honey-blonde turned back to the arena. Both Braviary and Aromatisse were looking pretty tired by this point, but the audience didn't seem to mind that neither one was out like Bonnie did: it was an exciting battle after all.

"Now, Aromatisse, our final performance," Aria said with confidence. "Let's use Charge-"

Ding! Ding! Ding! The bell suddenly cut off Aria's final command, drawing both confusion and a little resentment from the crowd at large. "That's it, folks. Time's up! That means this battle ends in a draw and both teams receive three points."

"Aw…I wanted to see Aria win," Bonnie whined as Ash took her off his shoulders.

"One more minute and she would have," he told the young girl. Serena turned away from where Aria and Bruce were shaking hands one more time to look at her raven-haired traveling companion.

"How can you tell?" she asked.

"Her Charge Beam," Ash answered simply. Serena thought back on the battle and she realized that Ash was right. Charge Beam really hadn't hit too many times, but in that last instant, Braviary was moving slower due to exhaustion and it had used Protect a couple times in a row already. Essentially, if Aria's Charge Beam had hit, she would have won, while Aromatisse looked only slightly tired from the battle's exertion. No wonder she was Kalos Queen.

"Well, that's the end of day two of the tournament," Kalas announced to the crowd as the screens in the stadium displayed that day's points. "If you'll all turn your attention to the points board."

TEAM BRUTAL 17

TEAM TRAINER 11

TEAM COORDINATOR 10

TEAM KETCHUM 10

TEAM PERFORMER 7

TEAM RESEARCH 6

"Hey, we're tied for third!" Bonnie said. She wasn't the only one in the crowd to notice. After only one day, the last placed team had jumped two spots up and was already tied with Shauna's team. Serena suppressed the urge to jump up and down in glee; they were in the running for winning this thing after all.

"We've truly seen some dramatic role reversals today, and I wonder just what kind of competition we'll be seeing in the days to come," Aston said, the absolute joy of watching the tournament evident in his voice.

"Today's performances in battle have been ze most entertaining yet. I hope to see more tomorrow," Pierre stated.

"I'm looking forward to what kind of Pokémon the participating trainers will use tomorrow as well. I'm sure the events will be very exciting," Sycamore concluded.

"And with that, folks, day two is over. We'll see you tomorrow for an action packed day three!" With that, the commentators ended their presentation. Around them, people began to exit from the stadium, seeing no need to stick around for nothing to happen. Ash threw his hands in the air and groaned aloud as he stretched.

"I'm starving. What do you guys say we get some dinner?" he asked. Like anyone was going to say no to that. Realizing that no one was going to dispute his stomach, Ash started walking out with Pikachu back on his shoulder. Serena quickly walked after him as they exited their waiting room and came out into the still packed lobby.

"Hey, Ash!" called the familiar voice that Serena recognized as Dawn's. She and Ash both turned their heads to see Dawn come running ahead of her team (who weren't really that far behind) and give her old friend a high five. "Nice job, today, you guys!"

"We're totally gonna win this thing!" Ash exclaimed while the rest of Team Coordinator caught up. Tierno was the first to challenge Ash's statement.

"Nah, we're only tied, so our team's gonna win," he said back to his rival.

"Before we start blustering about who's going to win, which is us," Brock began, a challenging smile aimed at Dawn, "why don't we all get some dinner first?"

"Definitely…I'm so hungry…" May expressed with a moan, as though the thought of food was too much for her to handle. Dawn shook her head and laughed a little at her companion. May heard it and snapped her head to her blue-haired friend. "What? Is there something wrong with a girl who wants to eat?"

"Not at all," Dawn joked. "You just take eating to a level beyond simple consumption."

"That sounds like a challenge, Dawn," May said. Dawn clearly couldn't help the snicker that came from her lips. It was strange, how these two were turning into different people for a moment. Then again, it made the most sense if they had traveled with Ash. Outside of battle he could be a little dense…okay, a lot dense, but in a battle, his brain worked at lightning speed and he became one of the best battlers she'd ever seen, but you wouldn't know it from how he acted otherwise. Seeing an argument about to start, Serena stepped forward and inserted herself between the two Coordinators.

"Let's not fight, okay? We're all hungry, so let's get food together," she said, as if she were trying to mediate two children. That felt ironic considering they seemed so much more skilled than her.

"Great idea!" Dawn chirped, hooking her arm with Serena's. "Let's have a girl's dinner table discussion! No need to worry about catching up with us, guys."

"Hey, I'm hungry, too!" Ash snapped, but his voice was already fading out of earshot as Dawn dragged Serena out of the coliseum. May was slightly ahead of them, obviously too attracted to whatever scent of food was discernable. Shauna and Bonnie, meanwhile, were taking up the rear.

"Pip! Pip pip lup!" called the Penguin Pokémon on Dawn's shoulder. Serena was surprised to see it outside of its pokeball like Pikachu and Dedenne.

"Oh, all right, Piplup, you can go hang out with Pikachu. Just make sure you're back in time for the festival."

"Are Piplup and Pikachu good friends?" Serena asked. She had never seen two different trainers Pokémon be so close to each other. Not even Dedenne and Pikachu were close enough that they wanted to spend lots of time with each other.

"The best," Dawn giggled with a smile. "They were practically inseparable when Ash left Sinnoh. I don't think Piplup stopped crying for days."

"Oh…" Serena said, hardly realizing her tone was so devoid of emotion. That didn't stop Dawn from noticing it and a frown creased her face.

"So, you're the Pokémon Performer, Serena, huh? Bonnie was telling us all about you last night," the bluenette continued on sweetly. Serena gave a double take for a very brief moment before nodding. "What's it like? I've only ever done Contests, so I'm not sure what performing entails."

"From what Ash tells me, Contests aren't much different than Showcases, only we don't have battles. That would probably be why I lost yesterday." With every step and word, Serena was feeling more and more dejected. Here she was, surrounded by Ash's former traveling companions, who were both stunningly beautiful and were amazing battlers. Not that Serena thought she was ugly or anything, but Dawn and May held a grace and maturity equal to or even surpassing Aria's.

"You really like putting yourself down, huh?" Dawn said concernedly. "Conway gave Ash a run for his money at the midpoint of his Sinnoh League challenge. There is no shame in losing to a stalk-I mean, a guy like him."

"Even Ash loses," May said, holding what looked like a kebob in her mouth. It appeared she had just gotten one from a stand on the street. "You looked great out there yesterday. Heck, you should have seen Ash's face as you battled."

"Since when do you pay attention to Ash's face? I thought all you thought about was your beloved Drew," Dawn teased the brunette. Serena shot a quick look behind her to see Shauna and Bonnie chatting about Shauna's Ivysaur, which was trotting along beside them. They were completely oblivious to this argument…if it could be called that.

"I will have you know that Drew and I haven't spoken…" May stated triumphantly. She then added in a little whisper, "…since we arrived in Kalos."

"Ha!" Dawn shouted, drawing some attention from the street. "Anyway, May is right. Ash was pretty psyched about your battle, I could tell. You must really like him if you seemed so worried about upsetting him."

"Wh-what? Who said that?" Serena suddenly jabbered out, her face turning at least three different shades of red before reaching magenta. Dawn tilted her head and smiled sweetly.

"No need to worry, we've all been there," she said, tucking some of her hair back. Serena nearly stopped walking; what Dawn had just said made her feel like she was walking through lead. "I had a huge crush on Ash myself. I don't anymore. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and it's true in a way, but I realized that I saw Ash as more of a best friend than a boyfriend, you know? So, really, I just missed my best friend."

"I'm…not sure what to say," Serena confessed. Her heart was unclenching, and she felt like she could breathe again. Dawn didn't seem like someone who would lie callously to her just to make her think she would have a chance; Ash wouldn't be friends with someone like that.

"Ooh, that gives me an idea, Dawn!" May suddenly squealed. The bluenette detached from Serena's side to listen to her friend closely, nodding in intervals.

"Sounds great! Okay, Serena, we've decided we'll help you with Ash!"

"H-help me? !" Serena gasped. She was not expecting their dinner time to go this way at all, and it wasn't even dinner yet. "I don't need help. I'm fine with where Ash and I are.

"If you were fine with it, you wouldn't be blushing like a schoolgirl or shutting down every time a girl looks like she's putting the moves on Ash," May said, polishing off the kabob with absolute precision. "Yeah, it's kind of obvious."

"Like your infatuation with Drew," Dawn snickered. May responded by tossing her kabob stick at Dawn's head. It missed, but somehow landed in a nearby trashcan. "Jealousy is natural, but we want Ash to be happy, and we want his other friends to be happy, too. A friend of Ash's is a friend of ours. All you need to do is take a step."

A step, huh? Serena thought to herself. It was such a freeing, yet daunting, thought. "But, I really don't think Ash would…you're all so much prettier and more graceful than I am."

"Nonsense! You have your own charm about you. No one's the same!" Dawn was smiling so brightly that Serena couldn't help but give in to her urgings. "Just look at May. Do you think you could find another girl that could shovel as much food as she does in?"

"One more crack, Dawn, and we might be a team member short tomorrow." That was the first time that Dawn actually giggled nervously at May's threats. And yet, it made Serena smile; they must have been very close friends to joke around with each other like that. "Well, now that that's decided, it's dinner time!"

May tore off again and Dawn took off after her. Serena practically got dragged along with the two until they reached the hotel lobby and dashed into the cafeteria. May had already loaded her plate with burgers, fries, and all manner of sweets. Bonnie was looking at it like her birthday was here, and with Clemont missing, Serena took it upon herself to stop the young girl from eating anything that might give Dedenne or herself a stomachache later. After finding a table, Serena and Shauna started sharing stories about their Pokémon Showcases.

"Showcases do seem a bit different from Contests," Dawn mused. "We're not really evaluated on our dress, though in Sinnoh it is a requirement to dress up for Contests."

"Well, you guys battle, so it would explain how you did so well yesterday, May," Shauna said, tipping a spoon of peas into her mouth. Bonnie blanched next to her.

"Nah, the only reason we're so good at battling is because we traveled with Ash for so long," May admitted. "I think we've both seen him at his best, unless there's something about his Kalos journey that we don't know about."

"But…but your Blaziken looked so elegant, and Dawn's Togekiss was so graceful," Serena cooed, practically gushing over the two Coordinators. "I really want my Pokémon to dance as well as Togekiss did. My Sylveon's no slouch, but I'm sure that with a little training…"

"I'd be happy to train you some time. It took a bit for me to work with Togekiss, but I think that her moves would probably enhance your performance," Dawn agreed. "Plus, I'm sure I could pick up a few tips from you, myself."

"Ooh, can I brush your Buneary's fur, then? It's so cute!" Bonnie gushed with sparkles in her eyes. Dawn just smiled. May excused herself a moment later to use the restroom. As they were finishing off dessert, a bell rang outside, causing Shauna to stand.

"That's the signal for the festival," she informed them. "Sorry, but I promised I'd meet Tierno and Trevor. I'll see you later!"

"Take care, Shauna!" Serena called after her friend.

"We should go and see it, too. The rumor around town is that the Fireworks Festival is quite gorgeous." Serena nodded and called her Pokémon out, eager to see the day's festival with them. Dawn didn't call hers until they got outside, where the honey-blonde quickly figured out why: she had a Mamoswine that was positively huge! "Guys, meet my new friend Serena and her Pokémon!"

All of Dawn's Pokémon greeted her enthusiastically and her own Pokémon returned the favor gleefully. The two girls then headed off for where Dawn said the best viewing spot for the fireworks was. It just so happened to be a hill overlooking the city and near the river as it sat at the foot of the hill. Many spectators for the festival were lining up there, some on blankets and others just standing around. That was nothing to the Pokémon running around gleefully.

"You know…I think we left May behind," Serena chuckled out. Bonnie was too busy brushing Buneary's fur to apparently care about their new brunette friend. Dawn glanced around sheepishly.

"Oh well, she'll just go on another one of her 'expeditions' to find us, I'm sure," the bluenette responded cheerily. Deciding to go with the flow of things, Serena shrugged it off and the two continued to try and find a decent place to take a break. As they were about to find one, Serena noticed that the boys (sans Tierno and Trevor) had joined them on the hill and that May happened to be with them, breathing heavily like she had just run a long way. Serena waved them over but didn't look where she was going. Her foot lodged on a rock just as an angry and bruised Primeape came barreling through. The two forces combined sent her backwards.

It wouldn't have been so bad if the force hadn't turned her into a practical ball that was rolling down the hill. Not that they were far up it, so the distance was very short to Serena's inevitable destination. Sploosh! Serena sat up, realizing that she had fallen in the river and had gotten all wet. Dawn was the first to run up, an apologetic look on her face at having not caught her.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine. Just wet…achoo…and cold, I guess," Serena replied as she stood and waded out of the water. She slipped her vest off, wringing it out as best as she could. Thankfully her hat hadn't gotten drenched, though she couldn't say the same for her feet. She had to take off her shoes and socks immediately.

"Hey, we don't want you catching cold." Suddenly, Serena felt the warmth of Ash's jacket settling on her skin. She looked up and saw him smiling a somewhat concerned smile at her.

"Thanks, Ash," she said, drawing the jacket tighter. She was about to walk away when she caught sight of Dawn's face, a rather insistent look upon it. Steps…Take a step, Serena, she thought, as if it would will her to move forward. She nodded at Dawn while Ash's attention was distracted by a roughhousing Pikachu and Piplup, Dawn's Buneary smiling shyly at the electric mouse. "Um…Ash, do you…do you want to watch the fireworks together?"

"Sure!" he responded quickly.

"Have fun! Hey, Poetry Guy's grandson, have you learned anything new on Mega Evolution?" Dawn said, roaming off to join up with Gary. Serena stood there awkwardly until Ash started moving into the crowd of people. She followed him, well, more like walked side by side with him. For a brief moment, she was reminded of their "definitely-not-a-date" in Coumarine City. It couldn't go the same way this time. She reached out, trying to calm her nerves and managed to successfully clasp Ash's hand.

"Uh…what's up, Serena?" he asked. She looked at him, trying to stop her face from lighting up like a Christmas tree. Ash didn't look uncomfortable, but his own cheeks were tinged pink.

"Your hand's warm."

"Oh…well, so is yours," he said back to her. That made her smile as the first firework was fired off into the night sky. The two turned towards it. "I'm totally going out for our team tomorrow."

"Yeah…you'll win it all, Ash," she said. Ash didn't let go as they continued to watch the fireworks. It wasn't a large step she had taken forward, but it wasn't a baby step either. It was just a step, and they were taking it together. That was what mattered to Serena.


Author's Note: I'm trying to develop the romance at a good pace. I hope you all feel I'm doing a good job of things, particularly from Ash's side of things. Since this story is primarily Serena's point of view I can't always show what Ash is going through, but I hope I'm portraying it well enough (and I will delve into his mind occasionally). On that note, what did you think of my battles? I really wanted to make a good one between Dawn and Brock, and I hope I succeeded. I also hope I did justice to Dawn and May in their interactions with Serena, but that's all up to you guys to let me know.

On that note, a huge thanks as ever to Richtar for favoriting, and to ChE Clarinetist, ultimateCCC, Oobserver, Sentinel07, and Cottonmouth25 for reviewing! Your words are like a salve to my soul that keeps me moving ever apace. As a final word, I hope you enjoyed and will continue on with me to day three. In the meantime, Review and, as always, Dare to Be Silly.