OH BOY HE'S BACK!

Hello everyone, I'm pleased to announce that I'm not in fact dead, nor have I completely forgot about this story. I'm sorry it took me so long to try and get this done, but this chapter was just so hard for me to complete. I had to take a long rest for personal problems, and when I came back I had the worst possible writer's block. This chapter took me forever to write, and I ended up writing pieces for a ton of different chapters in the future instead. But I finally got through it, and I'm releasing this chapter today.

On another note, the poll for "Which Pokémon should be caught next?" is now closed, thank you to everyone for voting. I'm not going to announce the winner on the chapter, because some of you may not want spoilers, but it is still on my profile. Go look at it if you want.

After a long wait, here we go again.

Chapter 10: A Bitter Sweets Rivalry

"Gabite, use Dig once more."

Gabite readied his powerful claws and scratched at the surface of the ground. In a matter of seconds, he had disappeared from sight, leaving a massive gaping hole in his wake. His opponent searched wildly around, its red eyes moving rapidly as it surveyed its surroundings. The ground began to rumble under its feet and Gabite erupted from the ground in a massive plume of dirt and rock.

"Ivysaur counter it with Razor Leaf."

As the Seed Pokémon was lifted up into the air by Gabite's attack, it launched a storm of spinning, sharp leaves from the pink bulb on its back. The torrent of leaves cut into Gabite's skin, forcing him to throw up his arms in order to shield himself.

"Slash, Gabite."

As Gabite landed feet first on the ground, he sprinted forward at Ivysaur, brandishing his sharpened claws. Ivysaur didn't have to time to brace, and was sent flying back into the air by the force of the attack. Gabite catapulted himself into the air after Ivysaur and slammed the grass type back to the ground. Ivysaur crashed into the dirt with a sharp crack, sending a cloud of dust into the air. It slowly lifted itself back up off of the ground, but stumbled over again, too tired to continue the battle. A deep red light enveloped Ivysaur and in an instant the pokémon vanished, recalled back into its Poké ball.

Clemont rushed over and yelled out, "Ivysaur is unable to battle, Ash wins the battle."

Serena cheered turned to Bonnie. She patted the girl on the shoulder and said, "Ash and Gabite have become really strong, haven't they?"

Bonnie returned the smile and replied, "Yeah, they're really good. But I still have a problem with all of the battles that he's been having since Gabite evolved."

"What is it?" Serena asked

"Well it's the trainers he has been fighting against recently." She pointed at Ash who was busy talking to the Ivysaur's trainer, a tall, thin girl with brilliant bronze hair. Her face had very soft features and her big, brown eyes were fixed on Ash as they talked. She gripped her hands together behind her back, pushing her chest out as she rolled her shoulders back and forth. She pulled out a notebook and a pen and gave them to Ash, continuing to stare at him as he signed his name on the paper.

Serena grimaced, "It seems that more...people...are approaching Ash for his autograph lately."

The young, blonde girl shrugged, "He is a pretty famous trainer, I think people are finally starting to learn that he's here in Kalos for another league."

"I know, but why do those people always have to be beautiful girls?"

"Oh c'mon, Serena, you know that you're the most beautiful girl, and you're perfect for him. Plus you also have something else over every other girl."

Serena blushed at Bonnie's complement and asked, "What is it?"

"He knows you, of course. You guys are best friends, and were even before he became famous. He even asked you to travel with him on his journey through Kalos. You two have something that these girls wish they could have."

Serena sighed, "I guess you're right, Bonnie, but it still makes me pretty uncomfortable."

"I mean, it helps that he's also pretty dense. That girl is practically putting her chest in his face and he doesn't bat an eye. He's probably too busy thinking about battle strategies that he and Gabite can use."

"That's a double-edged sword you know, Bonnie."

Ash smiled at the girl in front of him and handed back the notebook and pen, "There you go. That was a great battle, Holly."

Holly giggled, "Thanks Ash, that means so much coming from you." She placed the notebook back in the satchel on her side and ran off in the opposite direction, squealing in glee.

Ash smiled and walked over to Gabite, patting the pokémon on his head. Gabite gave a pleased grumble and lifted his head up to latch his jaws on top of Ash's head.

Ash winced and laughed, "I guess old habits die hard right? Return, Gabite." He pulled out Gabite's Poké ball and recalled the pokémon, leaving just the four traveling companions, Dedenne, and Pikachu alone on the grassy field.

"There's a town nearby, we should go there to fill up on supplies before heading on the road again," Clemont said.

Ash nodded, "Sounds good, Clemont. Serena, Bonnie, you ready?"

Bonnie gave him a thumbs up, "Good to go!"

The nearby town was small, no more than a bunch of spread out ranches with a decently sized shopping area in the center. As the group walked through the forum, they noticed a massive, outdoor theatre situated right in the center of the city. From their vantage point, it looked like the people around were preparing for some sort of contest on the theatre stage. Groups of men were setting up many tables as others tested a microphone system. A small trickle of people began to take seats around in the sloped seating around the front of the stage.

"Wonder what's happening there?" Ash asked.

Clemont just shrugged, "I dunno. We're here for supplies, but be on the lookout for some information about it."

As Clemont walked into a nearby Poké Mart to buy provisions for the group, Ash, Serena, and Bonnie sat on a bench right outside, overlooking the theatre. They watched as the crews began to bring in ovens and kitchen appliances, placing them alongside the dozens of tables around the stage. Another group of crew members dropped off berries, flour, and other ingredients, placing them in a pattern on every table.

"Ovens, mixers, and baking ingredients? I'm really intrigued by what they're doing now," Ash said.

Bonnie shook her head, "I don't know, but all that stuff really is making me hungry."

Serena snapped her fingers and asked, "I've got something for us to snack on while we wait, would you guys like some?"

"Yeah, that sounds awesome," Ash said

Bonnie smiled, "Show us, Serena!"

Serena reached into her pack and pulled out a small wicker basket. As she opened it, the others could see that inside were a dozen cupcake-like treats.

"What are they?" Ash asked.

"They're called Poké Puffs. They're just little goodies for pokémon and humans alike."

Ash reached out and grabbed one of the cakes, one with orange frosting and a small lightning bolt on top. Serena's eyes widened as she yelled out, "Ash, wait don't eat that one!" but it was too late. Ash took a massive bite out of the Poké Puff and his face froze in mid-bite.

Serena gasped, "Ash, that's a Poké Puff for electric types like Pikachu. They're very specialized for the different tastes of pokémon, not yours. It probably doesn't taste good."

Ash beamed, "I don't know what you're talking about, Serena, that was so awesome. You wanna try some, Bonnie?"

Bonnie squealed, "Sure Ash, give it to me."

Ash handed the girl a piece of the Poké Puff. Bonnie placed the bite in her mouth and immediately spit it out. "Gosh, it's so sour!" Bonnie said as she rubbed her tongue to get the taste out.

Serena sighed, "I guess Ash just has the same tastes as Pikachu. Here Bonnie take a refreshing Sitrus berry puff. This one isn't for a specialized type of pokémon."

Bonnie took the treat, a wide smile appearing on her face, and she took a massive bite out of the side of the puff. Her smile only widened, and as she finished the Poké Puff, she said, "Wow, that was awesome, Serena."

Serena rubbed her neck in embarrassment, "Thanks, Bonnie, I'm glad you like it. What about you Ash and Pikachu?"

Ash handed a bite of his puff to Pikachu, who eagerly munched on the soft cake, before saying, "We both love it don't we, Pikachu?"

"Pika Pi!"

"Why don't you let me try one?" A strange voice asked from behind Serena.

Serena turned around to see a similarly aged girl standing before her. The girl had shorter, blue hair with stunning, orange-red eyes. She wore a blue-green blouse with a bright orange scarf tied in the front, hanging down to her waist. Hugging her lower body were a pair of dark blue shorts, tapering off halfway down her thighs. To finish her outfit, she wore an orange headband with light blue frills around it. Next to her was a short, white pokémon with a fluffy, pink protrusion on its head that looked much like a head of poofy hair. On top of its head was a red ball that resembled a cherry to Serena. Around its neck was a collar of red, similar in color to the red "cherry" on its head. Its deep pink tongue hung out the side of its mouth, and it stared at Serena with two equally pink eyes.

Serena shrugged at the girl's request. "Sure, take one," She said.

The girl smirked, "Thanks. Take it with Psychic, Slurpuff."

The pokémon acknowledged as its eyes glowed a brilliant blue. One of Serena's Poké Puffs was lifted straight out of her basket and into the pokémon's gaping mouth. It chewed for a second and nodded to its trainer, who said arrogantly, "Slurpuff says your Poké Puff is moderate at best."

Serena grit her teeth, "And who are you to judge how good my baking is?"

The girl giggled, "The name's Miette, and I'm one of the best bakers in all of Kalos. I'm here to participate in the contest happening here in a little bit over there," Miette pointed to the stage. "And who might you be?"

Serena frowned, "I'm Serena, and I'm gonna beat you in that contest, we'll see who is the better baker."

Ash shook his head, "Whoa, Serena, we need to leave pretty soon. We want to get as far as possible before nighttime."

Serena turned around and whispered between clenched teeth, "I can't let this girl make fun of me like that. I put a lot of pride into myself and my baking skill. I'm gonna do that contest, Ash."

Ash sighed and nodded, saying, "Alright, if you want to do this then I won't stop you."

Miette gasped and held a hand to her mouth, "Wait, you're Ash Ketchum aren't you?"

Hearing his name, Ash looked up and replied, "Yeah I am, why do you ask?"

"Wow, the tabloids said that you were in Kalos somewhere, but I didn't expect it would be here."

Ash confusingly asked, "Tabloids?"

"Yeah," Miette pulled a magazine out of her pack and handed it to Ash. It was the latest issue of Pokémon Illustrated, just out the day before. The picture on the front cover was of him and his Charizard, with a caption reading "Ketchum Conquering Kalos?". Ash turned the pages to the front page article, and Serena and Bonnie crowded around him as they read the article together:

"It looks like the Kanto prodigy, Ash Ketchum, is at it again. After losing in the Top 8 at the Vertress Competition in Unova (a step backwards from the Lily of the Valley Competition in Sinnoh where he took Top 4 after a heartbreaking loss to Tobias and his team of legendary pokémon), he took a bit of time off to continue training his pokémon further, and it looks like he's ready to come back and go for another championship, this time in the Kalos League. In a matter of a few weeks, he has already defeated two gym leaders, and he's making his journey to the third. Could this possibly be his year to win, or will he fall short for the sixth time? We'll just have to wait and see.

Ash Ketchum started his journey in the quiet Pallet Town, the hometown of world renowned Pokémon Professor, Samuel Oak. Unlike any other rookie trainer from Kanto, he did not start out with Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur. Instead, Oak gave the then ten year old boy a Pikachu, the same Pikachu that still perches on Ketchum's shoulder today. This Pikachu is definitely much stronger than any other similar aged Pikachu, and it has the power to defeat legendary Pokémon, even tieing with Tobias' Latios in the Lily of the Valley Conference…"

Ash closed the magazine and handed it back to Miette. He didn't want to read the article anymore, as it reminded him of how close he was to winning a League Championship, only to choke once he came close. This time would be different, he could feel it.

"I can't believe I'm meeting the Ash Ketchum. This is amazing," Miette said as she placed the magazine back into her bag.

Ash gave an embarrassed smile, "I didn't think I was that exciting."

Miette turned to Bonnie and Serena,"That means that you two are traveling with Ash as well. What do you guys do?"

Bonnie was the first to answer, "We're traveling with my brother, Clemont, the Lumiose City gym leader. I'm just tagging along so that I can learn a little about taking care of pokémon before I become a trainer myself."

"That sounds great, you'll definitely be an awesome trainer." She gave Serena an arrogant smirk, "And what about you? What do you do?" She asked.

Serena looked down, "Well to be honest, I really don't know. I was just joining Ash so that I could learn about what I want to do."

Miette snickered, "So you're just one of Ash's groupies then? That's just typical, you're no better than some screaming fangirl, riding on Ash's coattails."

Serena's face grew red with anger, "I'm nothing like those girls. For your information, Ash asked me to travel with him. If anything, you're like one of those girls."

Miette glared at Serena, "Hmm, we'll settle this in the contest. See you there, Serena, unless you're too busy with living in the shadow of your 'friend'." Miette turned to Ash and winked, "I'll see you later, Ash."

As she began to walk away, Serena yelled after her, "I'll show you some moderate at best Poké Puffs, Miette."

Once Miette had left, Clemont walked out of the store, bags in hand, and asked, "Are you guys ready to get going?"

Ash shook his head, "Actually, it seems that plans have changed."

"Huh? Whaddya mean?"

Serena stormed off, muttering, "I'm gonna show her. Moderate Poké Puffs, yeah right. I'll beat her and show her what happens to people that talk to me like that."

Clemont scratched his head, "I think I may have missed something."

Bonnie sighed, "You think, Clemont?"

It didn't take long for Serena to sign up for the contest, although she was kinda regretting it once she was on the stage. The seats around the theatre were completely filled with people, all of their eyes trained on the bakers gathering behind their tables. She looked around nervously and finally found what, or who, she was searching for. Ash was sitting in the first row, slightly left of the center. She caught his eye and he gave her a smile with a thumbs up. That simple gesture was enough to energize her, and all of her anxiety washed away. She continued to stare at Ash until Miette startled her by placing her hands on Serena's shoulder, saying, "He's pretty great, isn't he, Serena?"

"Wha...what?" Serena asked.

"You seriously think that you can hide your feelings? Everyone with eyes can see how much you like him."

"Yeah, everyone except him." Serena mumbled to herself.

"Maybe he does know, but he just doesn't want to break your heart. He's too nice of a guy to say no to anyone."

Serena's face burned with anger, "What did you just say?"

"Good luck, Serena." Miette teased as she walked off.

A tall woman walked up onto the stage and tapped a microphone. She cleared her throat and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our twentieth annual Poké Puff baking contest. Amazing bakers from around the Kalos region have come today so that they may compete against some of the best. This competition will consist of two rounds, a preliminary and a championship round. In the preliminary, every baker will create an array of three different Poké Puffs with the ingredients that we have provided. The top three bakers will then move on to the championship round, where they will make one more treat with ingredients that they must gather for themselves. Now, without further ado, let's get the first round started. You all have one hour, and your time starts now."

Serena tied back her hair and began to combine all of her ingredients in a big mixing bowl. Luckily, the competition allowed for her to use her pokémon as assistants, and Fennekin sat on the table, waiting for her chance to help. Metapod sat on the opposite side, merely staring blankly at her trainer. Serena sighed, sure Metapod had good moves that she could use, but String Shot, Tackle, and Harden were no good in baking. Still, Serena liked the support of all of her pokémon. She looked up from time to time to glance at Ash, Bonnie, and Clemont as well, who were busy watching all of the contestants bake their treats. Ash was the first to glance back at Serena, and flashed her a big smile and a thumbs up. Serena smiled back, just seeing his smile melted away all of her nervousness and doubts. She looked back down and continued to work with a newfound vigor. As she placed her three mixes in the oven, Fennekin jumped off the counter in order to watch the cakes bake, giving Serena the room she needed to make her different icing and toppings. She was so glad that her mother took the time to teach her all about cooking and baking after a long day of Rhyhorn race practice. She was quite adept at it, soon becoming a far superior cook within a matter of months. She didn't know why her mother pushed Rhyhorn racing so much when she was far more talented in activities like fashion, cooking, and dance. Her mother probably wanted her to be a pokémon trainer like her father, whom she had only met a couple of times in her life. The activities she liked weren't of much interest to a normal pokémon trainer like Ash or Clemont, and so Grace probably didn't want her to pursue them as readily. Serena shrugged it off and began to work again, stopping only to wipe the sweat off of her forehead.

The next time Serena looked at the clock, it read only five minutes remaining. Luckily, she had timed herself perfectly, and this five minutes would be little more than adding some decor on the treats. She looked around at all the other contestants, who were busy scrambling to finish their Poké Puffs in time, all except for a few of them. She ordered Fennekin to bathe the edges of the icing to crispen them and fold up the edges to make it look like an edible flower on top of the main cake. She sprinkled some of the cakes with a thin coat of powdered sugar, making the treat look like it had been dusted with snow. As the timer ran out, Serena stepped back to look at her creations, and smirked to herself. There was no doubt, she had done a great job, worthy of even the most skilled of bakers. She looked around at the other creations, and saw a wide variety of different flavors and decorations. The competition was definitely fierce, as they all looked really well crafted. She was angry to see that Miette had made a beautiful assortment that looked like the heads of different pokémon. Serena had to hand it to the other girl, she could definitely bake well.

The announcer walked up to the microphone again and said, "There will be a short intermission while the judges' pokémon will taste and rate the Poké Puffs. Please return for the results of the first round in fifteen minutes."

Ash nodded, "Did you hear that, Clemont. Let's hope that Serena did well." He turned to his friend for a response, but the blond teenager was strangely missing. He looked around to see where Clemont had gone, only to see him running after Bonnie, who was busy trying to hook him up with yet another girl in the crowd. He watched as Clemont used his Aipom Arm to grab Bonnie by the collar and stomp off with her in tow, giggling wildly at her brother.

Serena walked over, her eyes fixed on the brother and sister, before sitting down right next to Ash. She untied her hair and let it fall freely around her shoulders and said to Ash, "Looks like Clemont caught Bonnie trying to find him yet another woman to take care of him.. She's really persistent with that isn't she."

Before Ash could respond, he was interrupted by Miette walking up to them, saying, "Yeah, the next thing you know, she'll be trying to find someone for Ash, unless that is you've already found somebody."

Ash gave the girl a confused glance, "What do you mean by that?"

Miette simply smirked and shot a glance at Serena, who turned away with a grunt, a tinge of pink creeping up on her face. She desperately tried to change the subject by asking, "How do you think you did, Miette?"

"Is that even a question? I'm definitely going to make the second round, and then I'm going to win." She sat down on Ash's side opposite from Serena, scooting herself so close that she was almost on top of Ash's lap.

Serena's face grew even redder as she saw the stunt that Miette was trying to pull. Why is Miette always trying to push my buttons? It's like she's trying to psych me out in the case that we both pass into the second round. I wish I could find something to retaliate with, but she's just got me zeroed in. Serena knew she had to do something, and she pulled herself even closer to Ash, squeezing him in between her and Miette. As their legs touched, Serena felt her face heat up more, she felt as if her head might catch fire.

Serena and Miette stared angrily at each other until Ash finally protested, "Hey can you girls scoot over some? I'm getting kinda squished in between you two." Both girls turned their heads away from each other and slid away from Ash, giving him a decent amount of space again. He could see that there was some serious tension between the two, but he just couldn't determine what was causing it. Maybe it was just the pressure of the competition that made them so aggressive? Yeah that had to be it. He decided that he would try and talk to Serena about it, and scooted closer to her in order to ask, "You doin' alright, Serena?"

Serena leaned over and rubbed her forehead, "No, Ash, I'm just a little stressed."

Ash wrapped his arm around her and pulled her in close, causing her eyes to widen and the blush to appear on her face again. He said, "Serena, you can tell me what's wrong. Is it the nerves, the pressure?"

Serena shook her head, "No, Ash, it's nothing. I'm fine, really."

Ash patted her shoulder and said, "Alright. You know that we're all rooting for you, Serena. Ain't that right, Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu replied. Even though his trainer was very oblivious to real reason that Serena was frustrated, he did try his best to make her feel better. Ash was always trying to help others, that's what made him a great friend and trainer. Pikachu rewarded him by rubbing his cheeks against Ash's ear, giving him a slight jolt of electricity. Ash felt the pleasant shock and rubbed Pikachu's head with his free hand, receiving a happy coo from the Mouse Pokémon.

"Welcome back, everyone. Thank you all for waiting patiently, we are now ready to announce those bakers who will be advancing to the next round."

Serena instantly perked up, "Oh man, I'm so ready to wipe that smirk off of Miette's face."

Ash turned to her and asked, "You're really fired up right now huh?'

"Of course, I can't just sit idly and let someone talk down to me. I'm gonna win."

"That's the Serena I know. C'mon, let's listen for the results."

The announcer continued, "The judges have chosen four bakers to advance to the next round. The first baker to advance is…" she pulled out an envelope and began to read the names, "Jonah, who wowed the judges with his delicious cakes."

Ash looked around as the audience clapped for a middle aged man, who walked to the stage and stopped right next to the announcer and waved at the crowd with a massive smile on his face.

"The next baker to advance is Miette, whose cakes were unanimously the most beautifully decorated of all."

Serena looked away as Miette smirked and made her way up to the stage. As she joined the other baker on the stage, the announcer spoke once more, "Our third baker to advance is Brandon, the master of a delicious, rustic baking style."

Serena sighed to herself. There's only one spot left and dozens of bakers, what are my chances? She crossed her fingers and closed her eyes, until she felt a light touch on her shoulder. Serena opened her eyes and turned to see Ash with his hand on her shoulder once more, and he flashed her a wide smile as the announcer began to speak once more.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to announce the fourth person to move on to the finals. Before we announce it, all of us here at this competition would like to thank all of you for coming out to watch or take part in this amazing contest. Now without further ado, the fourth person to advance is… Serena!"

Serena jumped up out of her seat and walked up to the stage holding her head high in the air. As she passed Miette, she noticed the smirk fall off of the other girl's face. Serena stopped next to the other finalists and waved at the crowd before the announcer began again, "We are going to take a break to allow our finalists to get all of their ingredient and prepare for the competition. They will be given three hours to find what they need in the forests around town, and then they will have another hour to prepare a single type of treat to present to the judges. Please join us for the culmination of all their hard work. Finalists, you have three hours to get what you need and be at your work stations, and your time starts now."

Serena practically leaped off of the stage towards her fellow traveling companions and said, "Let's go guys, I have to beat Miette and we're burning time."

As Serena made her way up the steps towards the forest, Bonnie giggled and shouted after her, "Wait for me, Serena. I'm gonna make sure that you win."

Ash chuckled and turned to Clemont, "Ready to go?" he asked.

"I guess, those two will definitely need our expertise in the area of baking in order to win this contest."

Ash snickered, "That they will, Clemont. C'mon let's catch up."

"What about this one, Serena?" Bonnie asked, holding up a small Oran berry.

Serena stared at the berry for a while and said, "I don't think I'll use it, Bonnie. I think I want my Poké Puffs to be made with some really rare and hard to get ingredients. You should eat it, I bet it tastes good."

Bonnie smiled and popped the berry into her mouth as the group continued on their search. Calling this area a forest was a massive understatement. Most of the foliage around was wild berry bushes and short trees. On either side were massive hill systems, creating large cliff faces that would funnel any traveler into a ravine. On top of each hill were the larger, fruit bearing trees that Serena so desperately wanted to get to. Unfortunately, the cliffs made it a much harder journey than she wanted it to be, and the group had spent the better part of an hour trying to find a way to scale up to the top, to no avail.

"This is taking way too long. There's no way we can scale up these cliffs." Serena moaned.

Ash stopped and thought for a second before saying, "Well maybe we should split up, cover more ground?"

Bonnie cheered, "Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, let's go this way, Clemont, c'mon!"

Before Clemont could respond, Bonnie had dragged him off, leaving Ash, Serena, and Pikachu alone. Ash chuckled, "She's pretty excited to find your ingredients. I wonder why she was so pumped to split up though?"

Serena sighed, she knew for a fact why Bonnie ran away with Clemont. Her attempts to give Ash and Serena some time alone were welcome most of the time, but now Serena was really anxious and nervous about the competition, and she didn't need the added anxiety of being so close to Ash alone. The only thing that could make this worse was…

"Hey, Serena and Ash!"

Serena and Ash turned to find the source of the voice and found Miette standing in front of them, a basket in one hand and a map in the other.

"Miette, what a pleasure." Serena snorted.

"Oh there's no reason to be so coarse, Serena. So, I see that you guys are trying to reach the top of the hills too. I heard from the townsfolk that there are so many rare fruits and berries that are just waiting for us to use up there."

"Yeah, we just can't find how to get up there." Ash replied.

"Well luckily for you, Ash, I have directions to the only point where the cliff face can be safely scaled, would you like to join me?"

Ash turned to Serena, "That sounds awesome right, Serena? C'mon let's go, there's no point in waiting."

Serena nodded weakly. Why is Miette helping me? Is she trying to impress Ash with how "caring" she is? I see through your ruse, girl, but I'm going to show Ash just how resourceful I am. I'll be able to find my ingredients by myself once we get to the top, because I don't need your "help".

They followed Miette around until the group reached a dirt path that led up to a collection of ledges that spiraled up towards a ridge on the cliff face. Ash smirked and said, "Looks like we'll have to climb a bit to get your famed berries. Ladies, whaddya say?"

Miette and Serena glanced at each other and said in unison, "Let's go."

Ash watched as the other two began to race each other up the hill, climbing on ledges and vaulting over rocks to get to the top. They were both so concentrated on trying to beat each other, they didn't notice how fast they were climbing. Ash watched as Serena tried to find a handhold, only to pull off a group of rocks that came careening down the cliff. The rocks would have landed on Ash if he hadn't dodged to the side.

"Watch out, Serena, those could have hit me!" Ash yelled at her from below.

Serena chuckled , her cheeks red from embarrassment, "Sorry, Ash, my bad."

Miette laughed and whispered to Serena, "Looks like the relationship between you and Ash is getting a bit rocky eh, Serena."

Serena glared at the other girl, "Why don't you worry about yourself, Miette?"

"Maybe I should, maybe I should stop saying anything to you and start trying to get Ash for myself. That's a great idea, Serena, the first one you've had all day. Besides, why would he want to go for a girl like you?"

Serena grew furious and yelled out, "That's not what I meant!"

Miette just gave her a mocking smirk and continued to climb, quickly reaching the top in front of Serena. Serena grunted and followed suit, vanishing from the sight of Ash at the bottom of the cliff.

"Don't want to keep them waiting right, Pikachu?" Ash asked the Mouse Pokémon.

Pikachu nodded and pushed his trainer forward, staying on Ash's shoulder as he climbed. Once Ash had scaled the cliff, he found that Serena and Miette were both missing. It didn't take me that long to climb up, I wonder where they went. "Hey, Serena, where are you? Miette?" He turned to his yellow friend to ask, "Where do you think they are, Pikachu?"

Pikachu shrugged and responded, "Pika Pi."

"I guess we should go find them then. Let's go, buddy."

Once the two began to walk into the woods, they heard a loud scream echo through the trees. Ash immediately recognized the voice and shouted, "That's Serena! Something's wrong, let's go get her, Pikachu!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu responded as he jumped down from Ash's shoulder and began sprinting into the forest.

Ash chased after the pokémon, weaving through the foliage of the trees as he ran. Soon, Ash began to hear the soft whir of beating wings rustling through the branches, and the sound was only getting louder.

"I'm gonna show her, I'm gonna do this all by myself, and win."

Serena stomped through the forest as she scanned for berries, her brow furrowed with frustration from her recent "conversation" with Miette. Her lip curled up even more as she felt tears forming in her eyes. She wiped away the tears with her hand, and spoke quietly to herself, "Maybe Miette is right about Ash. Maybe I'm just some random girl following him around, not knowing who she really is. Why should he care about what I do?"

She collapsed against a nearby tree and continued to cry, the tears flowing freely through her hands, "I'm nothing. I'm just a nobody to him."

Serena shook her head, "No, Serena, you are something to him. You knew him as a child, and he liked being around you then."

"Yeah, but that was before he learned that I have no plan for the future, that the only reason I'm traveling with my very own pokémon is because he was here in Kalos. I have yet to do anything for myself, only for a guy who may or may not like me in the way that I like him."

"Oh c'mon, Serena. Don't beat yourself up over some stupid things that a girl like Miette says. She's trying to get in your head, and she's succeeding."

"Yeah, because she's right."

"No, she's not. You better get up and find your ingredients. You need to win this competition, because it's the first step to showing Ash that you are a confident, dedicated human being. Do this, and then we'll work on finding something to work on alongside Ash while he pursues the Pokémon League."

Serena was interrupted by a soft object that landed on her head and bounced onto the brim of her hat. She grabbed the object out of her hat, holding it in front of her face to see what exactly it was that she found. In front of her was a pink berry, shaped like an upside down heart. The surface of the berry was covered in a soft fuzz that Serena felt with the tips of her fingers.

"Huh, is this tree a Pecha tree?" Serena looked up to see a multitude of the small fruits hanging from the branches of the tree. She smiled, wild Pecha berries were very rare in Kalos and were highly sought in the markets in Vaniville Town. All she had to do now was reach them, as all the low hanging branches were already picked clean by wild pokémon.

Serena smiled and placed her feet against the tree as she began to lift herself up amongst the lower branches. She climbed higher and higher, until she was just below the lowest hanging Pecha berries. "This is definitely my lucky day," she said as she vaulted over another branch. She attempted to step on a smaller branch, but it snapped easily and she fell, landing feet first on a lower branch. She sighed in relief, the fall could have been bad if that branch wasn't there, but it was nothing compared to what would happen next. The trees around her began to rustle, and she saw gleaming red eyes burst open all around her. The arms of the trees began to move in all directions, and Serena soon realized that she had woken an entire hive of pokémon, and they did not look happy to be woken by her unintentional alarm. She began to rapidly descend as a horde of Beedrill began to swarm around the tree. The bug pokémon found the human who had woken them from their slumber, and began dive for an attack. Serena bobbed and weaved as the Beedrill lunged at her with their stingers.

Once she came close enough to the ground, Serena broke out into a sprint as the Poison Bee Pokémon gave chase, their wings buzzing and reverberating against the trees. Serena cried out in an attempt to call for help from anyone nearby, as she couldn't fight off all the Beedrill herself. As she ran, she smacked into branches and bushes, and covered her face to protect it from the onslaught of pricking leaves and twigs. Unfortunately, she couldn't see the massive cliff face ahead of her and she stumbled over the edge, only to catch herself on a root hanging twenty feet down from the ledge of the cliff. Serena looked down to see how far it was to the bottom. A feeling of vertigo washed over her as she saw the tops of the trees more than thirty more feet down. She clutched the root as tight as possible and yelled out "Someone help me!"

Serena felt the root pull out further from the dirt wall, and she struggled to keep her grip. She clawed into the soft dirt in order to give herself a hold in case the root gave out. She needed get a better hold fast, or she would fall. "Wait, I know. Metapod, I need you now."

Serena pulled out Metapod's Poké ball and released the Cocoon Pokémon. Metapod sat upon the top of the root, watching her trainer struggle against the wall. "Metapod, you need to use your String Shot to tie me against the wall while I wait for help."

Metapod didn't move, but began to shoot strings of sticky web that wrapped around Serena. The web attached Serena to the wall, and she could safely release the root without falling. Serena rubbed off the sweat collecting on her forehead. "Thanks Metapod, you really saved the day," she said. Though Metapod wasn't at her peak form, she still had her uses while she was evolving, and Serena felt lucky to have such a loyal pokémon.

"Serena!" A familiar voice echoed through the trees above her. Serena looked up to see none other than Ash and Pikachu peering over the edge of the cliff.

Serena laughed and shouted, "Ash, am I glad to see you."

"Looks like you're just hanging out instead of finding your ingredients," Ash joked.

Serena sighed, "Very funny, help me up."

"Right give me a sec." Ash reached into his bag and pulled out a coiled line of rope. He wrapped one end of the rope around the trunk of a tree. He threw the other end over the cliff, letting it dangle right next to Serena and Metapod. He tugged the rope to see if it could hold his weight and began to rappel over the side of the cliff, until he heard the sound of buzzing wings in the distance.

"Oh crap, there's Beedrill coming. Hold on for a second Serena. Pikachu, cover me while I get Serena."

Pikachu gave an affirmative "Pikachu!" from above him, and Ash could hear the pokémon charging electricity in his cheek pouches.

Ash continued his descent as Pikachu began to blast Beedrill out of the sky. Groups of the Poison Bee Pokémon tumbled over the cliff, falling into the trees below. Pikachu was definitely giving them a beating, but the constant droning didn't seem to dull at all. That was when Ash heard Pikachu scream as he was pushed off of the cliff by the Beedrill. Ash threw out his arm to catch his partner, and pulled Pikachu tight against his body. Beedrill began to pour down from the cliff, hovering around Ash, Serena and their pokémon.

"Pikachu, keep going, use Thunderbolt."

"Pika?!" Pikachu shook his head. If he used the attack he would definitely shock Ash.

"Do it, Pikachu. Trust me, I'll be fine."

The Beedrill began to dive at Ash as Pikachu launched another powerful bolt of electricity, knocking down a multitude of the flying pokémon . Ash cried out in pain as Pikachu did so, but continued to descend until he was right next to Serena.

"Let's get you out of there Serena." Ash said through a pained smile.

Serena nodded and turned her head to see a Beedrill coming straight for them. "Ash look out!"

The Beedrill barrelled towards them, and quickly dodged Pikachu's electric attacks. The pokémon readied its stingers as it approached, but it stopped as Metapod jumped up and slammed into it. Serena watched in horror as her pokémon fell to its doom, vanishing beneath the trees below.

"Metapod, No!" She shouted. Her eyes watered up as she waited for a response from the pokémon, to no avail. The other Beedrill began to close in, and Pikachu was way too exhausted to keep fighting.

Ash walked along the wall and covered Serena's body with his own, "Don't worry, Serena. I'll protect you as long as I can."

The Beedrill came closer, and Serena shut her eyes, until she heard a crack echo through the forest. She opened her eyes to see a column of white light burst through the trees, blinding the nearby Beedrill, forcing them to scatter.

"What's going on, Ash?"

"I think it's Metapod. I think she's evolving."

Serena watched silently as a form sheathed in white light ascended from the trees, stopping right in front of her. The white light began to fade, revealing the pink, insectoid shape of a Butterfree.

"Butterfree, you did it. You finally evolved." Serena cried.

Butterfree nodded and lifted herself higher into the air. She turned to the disorganized mob of Beedrill, her eyes glowing a bright blue. The Beedrill seemed to be pushed away by some unseen force, and they scattered in every direction, leaving the cliff in utter silence.

"Ash, what was that. What did Butterfree just do?"

"That was Butterfree's Confusion attack. It's really effective against poison types like Beedrill, so they retreated."

"So Butterfree saved us?"

Ash nodded, "Yes, yes she did."

Serena freed her arms and grabbed Ash in a tight hug, a slight tinge of pink appearing on her face. He had saved her once again. Is there anything Ash isn't willing to sacrifice for me?

"So what do you say we go and find those ingredients now. Or are you content with hanging here?" Ash said nervously, attempting to pull his hands free from Serena's embrace.

"Hey, are you two alright?" Ash and Serena both looked up to see Miette staring at them. Serena chuckled to herself nervously, the position that her and Ash were in was rather suggestive to an outside viewer. She quickly let go of Ash and responded, "Yeah. We're totally fine."

"I heard you scream, Serena. And I see the piles of fainted Beedrill up here. What happened?"

Ash gave her a wide smile, "We'll just have to tell you when we get back onto land. Could you help us up?"

"Wow I can't believe that Metapod...er Butterfree evolved." Bonnie said as she skipped in circles around Serena, Butterfree perched on the top of the girl's head. Ash and Serena had met up with Bonnie and Clemont back in the town, and they were anxiously waiting for the results of the contest. Serena and Ash had picked the Pecha berries that Serena had found earlier, and she made an excellent Pecha berry Poké Puff for the judges, or at least she thought she did. Serena twirled the locks of her hair, and the longer she waited, the more nervous she became.

"At least I tried my best right?" Serena asked her friends.

Clemont nodded, "That's all you can ask for, right Ash?"

"That's for sure. You don't know how good you'll be unless you try. I know you'll win this, Serena."

They all quieted down as the announcer made her way to the stage, "Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for waiting. It's been a long day for the four bakers that made it to the finals, and they all made splendid cakes. However, only one of them can win. That winner is…" She made a long pause as she pulled out an envelope and tore it open. Serena crossed her fingers and closed her eyes.

"The winner is Jonah!"

Ash snorted, "Awww man. I really thought Serena would win."

"That's a bummer." Clemont added.

Serena shrugged, "Well, I gave it a try at least. Winning doesn't matter because I have Butterfree now."

Bonnie smiled, "Yeah, and Butterfree is so pretty."

They watched as clouds of confetti rained down on the stage as the winning baker received his trophy and celebrated with his pokémon. The stands began to empty as people filed out of the stadium. Serena saw Miette approaching out of her peripheral and walked over with a smile on her face. Hopefully this mutual loss would knock her down a rung or two.

Miette was the first to speak, "Serena, I just want to say I'm sorry for what I said earlier."

Serena was taken aback by what the other girl said, "Um… yeah it's fine, Miette."

"Hey, we both did great right?"

"Yeah. So where do you plan on going from here, Miette?"

Miette thought for a second, "I dunno, wherever. I might find a way to make my baking even better than before. The possibilities are endless. What about you."

"I'm heading to Shalour City, so Ash can get his next badge and come one step closer to the Pokémon League. As for what I'm gonna do until then, well I don't know."

"Eh you'll figure it out. I'm sure of it. Friends?" Miette extended out her hand.

Serena smiled and shook Miette's hand and said, "Friends. I'll see you around."

"Yeah, but there's one thing I need to say before you go."

"Huh, what is it?"

Miette smirked, "Ash is quite a guy, you should get your big head out of the clouds before some other girl steals him from right under you. Heck, it might even be me."

Serena's face flushed instantly, "Wha...what?"

"Don't say I didn't warn you, Serena. Bye now!" Miette said as she rushed off in the opposite direction, snickering to herself.

"That girl. She can really get on my nerves." Serena whispered quietly to nobody in particular.

Serena felt a hand fall lightly on her shoulder and she turned around to see Ash standing there with a grin."Hey Serena, what did you and Miette talk about?" he asked.

Serena tried to cover up her reddened face and responded, "Oh nothing, nothing at all. C'mon, let's get a bit farther before dark." She ran out of the stadium followed closely by a giggling Bonnie, still playing with Serena's Butterfree.

Clemont approached Ash and asked, "What was that all about?"

Ash shrugged, "I don't know, and I don't know if I'll ever find out."

Pikachu sighed and shook his head, "Pika pi."

Did you like it? I couldn't get some of the ideas in my head down onto the paper, so I spent a very long time on the last half of this chapter. The benefit of me working on other chapters means I can give you some sneak peeks for what's in store. I'm only going to give you one, but trust me it's very tantalizing:

"What is this place? Where am I?"

"This is a place far away from worldly needs and desires, where the eternal energy of life collects after it has shed another lifeless husk."

"What exactly does that mean?"

"This place is the end of one 'life', and the beginning of another."

"What? What did you do to me?"
"We have absorbed your life energy, your aura, into our own. You are us now, and will be until the zoetic world beckons for your return.."

"Who are you?"

"We are death made living, the caretaker of the mortal coil you call home, and we are the scythe that culls the field once it is ready to provide again. We are Yveltal."

Spooky. What's going to happen? We'll just have to see, won't we?

Thank you to everyone who read this, you're all very awesome and I couldn't do this without you. I will see you in the next chapter!