As we walked along a stream, Serena spent a lot of time gushing about a cave she read about on her Town Map. She suggested we check it out. We walked up to the cave entrance. Crystals were scattered in patches near the entrance, as well as slabs of it on the ground, replacing the grass.

"This is the cave?" Bonnie said.

"Yup!" Serena said.

"Is there something out of the ordinary inside?" Clemont panted.

"I'm not telling! You'll have to see for yourself. Come on!"

Bonnie, Serena, and I entered the cave with Ash and Clemont sighing in defeat as they lagged behind. Shards of white crystals jutted out from the walls, ceiling, and floor, differing in shape and size.

"They call this place Reflection Cave." Serena said as we gawked at the crystals. She and Bonnie walked over to one of the crystals, which was so clear you could see a perfect reflection of yourself in it.

"Wow!" Bonnie cried, placing her hand on the crystal. Her reflection mimicked her. "These crystals are like big mirrors!"

"Incredible! These aren't run of the mill crystals!" Clemont said, adjusting his glasses as he studied his reflection. "Their highly-reflective surfaces do act just like a mirror."

"They're the perfect way to make certain that you're looking your very best." Serena said.

"Hey, it keeps going!" Ash said, staring down another pathway. He ran down it, and we chased after him.

"Be careful, Ash. We don't want you to get lost." I called as I trailed the closest behind him.

"I know, I know." Ash called over his shoulders. We stopped at a dead end.

"Maybe we should've made that turn back there." Serena said. "This place is like a maze!"

"Let's go back." Ash ran ahead of us back down the pathway and turned at the corner. He scurried up a small cliff and disappeared down the path.

"Wait up!" I called. I scurried up the cliff and chased Ash down the path. "Ash, slow down!"

We arrived at another dead end.

"Ash! Rylee!" Serena's voice called. I glanced behind me, but the others weren't there.

"We lost the others. Let's go find them."

Ash nodded, and we jogged down the path. We stopped at a fork in the road.

"Serena! Clemont! Bonnie!" Ash cried, cupping his hands over his mouth.

"Where did you guys go?" Bonnie said.

"Don't move! We'll come and find you!" Clemont said.

"Okay!" I replied. Their voices bounced off the walls, and it seemed like they came from everywhere. It was difficult to pinpoint which path it came from.

I turned to Ash as he walked up to a reflective crystal. The crystal rippled with light and opened like a portal, revealing another Ash. His appearance was shaded slightly lighter than the real one. He reached out, his hand passing through the mirror, and he grabbed Pikachu.

"Hey!" Ash cried. "Get back here!"

Mirror Ash ran down a cave pathway, and Ash jumped through the portal.

"Ash!" I cried. The portal began to close. I lunged through the portal, landing in a somersault.

"Rylee!" I looked behind me as Serena, Bonnie, and Clemont ran towards the portal.

"Guys!" I jumped to my feet and ran over to the portal. Serena reached a hand out to me, but by the time I got to the crystal, the portal had closed. My hands planted against the cold, smooth crystal.

I turned around and looked around while I caught my breath. The cave still looked the same. There was a large opening that led to the outside. Seeing that neither of the Ashes were still here, I guessed that's where they went. I jogged outside. Light poured into my eyes, and I squinted to adjust. I opened my eyes and saw Ash standing in front of me.

"Ash?" I said. My eyes were distracted by the lime green sky.

"Pikachu!" Ash ran down the dirt path. I hurried and ran alongside him.

"Hey, Ash!" We stopped and turned to see Serena with a scowl on her face and her hands planted on her hips. She had the same, lighter shaded appearance as the other Ash. She approached us, her blue eyes set on Ash. "Well, well! Where have you been? Just because I called you a crybaby doesn't mean you should run off! When will you learn to get a grip?"

"Crybaby?" Ash stepped back.

"Look, it's Ash and Rylee!" Mirror Bonnie said as she hurried over to us. "Brother dear, I've located them!"

"Brother dear?" I said. There's no way Bonnie would ever refer to Clemont like that.

Mirror Clemont ran at lightning speeds, passing by us and creating clouds of dust in his wake. He skidded to a stop. "Whoops!" He sprinted back over to us. There wasn't even a drop of sweat on his face. "Ash! Rylee! We've been searching all over for you!"

"What is going on?" Ash said. "Since when did you learn to run that fast?"

"Ha! I've always been the fastest runner!"

"Never mind that! So, where's that Pikachu of yours?" Mirror Serena said.

"It was taken by... uh, by me!" Ash said.

Mirror Serena laughed. "What are you talking about?"

"Maybe you dreamt it up, perchance?" Mirror Bonnie said.

"He's not making this up." I said.

Our mirror friends glared at us skeptically. Mirror Serena stepped forward and examined Ash. "Well... You do look different from the crybaby Ash I know." Mirror Serena studied me. "And you're not as perky as the Rylee I know. That's a relief. Any more of it, and I may throw up."

"Perky?" I raised an eyebrow.

"That means... the culprit is our crybaby Ash!" Mirror Bonnie said.

"Come to think of it, there's a famous legend about the cave that lies right up ahead!" Mirror Clemont said, brimming with so much confidence that it made my eyes hurt. "It states that for every crystal mirror in the cave, there exists a distant, alternate world!"

"That must be what we stumbled in." I said.

"There's also another important point... but I can't remember it."

"Sounds stupid!" Mirror Serena said.

"Regardless, the Ash and Rylee standing in front of us are not the ones we know!"

"And you guys aren't the Serena, Bonnie, and Clemont that we know." Ash said.

"In fact, they're the exact opposite as you guys." I said.

"Hold on! I'm the only me, and anyone who isn't me is not me!" Mirror Serena snapped. She growled and held her head in her hands. "What in the world did I just say?!" She stepped into Ash's face. "Whatever! Here's the deal! If you can beat me in a battle, then I'll have to believe you!"

Ash smiled. "You're on!"

"Ha! I like the kind of Ash who would agree to take on a challenge from Serena!" Mirror Bonnie said.

We found a spacious place for the battle. Mirror Bonnie and I sat on the sidelines while Mirror Clemont refereed. Ash and Mirror Serena stood on opposite sides of each other.

"Prepare yourselves for a one-on-one Pokémon battle!" Mirror Clemont cried. "And... begin!"

Mirror Serena called out Fennekin and Ash called out Froakie.

"Fennekin, use Flamethrower!"

"Froakie, Water Pulse!"

The Water Pulse hit the Flamethrower, evaporating it immediately.

"Use Scratch!"

"Double Team!"

Mirror Serena sweatdropped as Froakie multiplied. Fennekin attacked the fake Froakies, making them disappear.

"Now, use Bubble!"

The real Froakie attacked Fennekin. Fennekin fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Fennekin is unable to battle, so the winner is Ash!" Mirror Clemont declared.

Ash returned Froakie back to its PokéBall and walked over to Mirror Serena. "Now do you believe us?"

Mirror Serena pouted and planted her hands on her hips. "I would never lose to the Ash I know, so I have to. I guess you're Ash from another world."

"What about me?" I said, walking to Ash's side.

"I didn't need any more proof. The fact that I saw you not smiling for the first time ever was good enough. Surprising, too." Mirror Serena said.

"If you're not the Rylee and Ash we know, then where are they?" Mirror Clemont said.

"I'm over here." a timid voice called. Mirror Ash stepped out from behind the trees, his eyes to the ground and Pikachu in his arms. He walked over to us. Pikachu wriggled out of Mirror Ash's arms and jumped into Ash's.

"Well, there's the other Ash..." I said. "So where's-"

"Gotcha!" A pair of hands clamped down on my waist. I yelped and jumped away. I turned around and gasped when I saw Mirror Rylee standing next to Ash. She cupped her mouth in her hand and giggled. "Did I scare ya?"

"Uh..." I sweatdropped. "I guess."

"What happened to you guys?" Mirror Clemont said.

"Well, after Serena beat Ash for the thousandth time- no surprise- the poor boy started crying. He yelled, 'I'm gonna travel alone!' and took off." Mirror Rylee said, walking over to Mirror Ash and slapping her hands on his shoulders. Mirror Ash winced. "I followed after him into a cave, but I lost him. You must've been so scared!"

"I lost Pikachu, too." Mirror Ash said. "When I stumbled upon a mirror, that's where I found it! I grabbed it and got out as fast as I could, but it was then that I found out it wasn't my Pikachu. I'm really, really sorry."

"No problem. I've got my Pikachu back, and that's all that matters!" Ash said.

"Strange things happen, I suppose." Mirror Serena said.

"If you don't mind, I want to know a little bit about your Pikachu."

"To tell the truth, my Pikachu's tough. Wildly aggressive." Mirror Ash said with a small smile.

"Where is it?" I said.

Mirror Ash's smile fell. "I don't know." Tears filled his eyes.

"Don't worry, Ash!" Mirror Rylee said with a face-cracking grin. "We'll get it back. It'll be easy!"

"Yeah! We'll help you find it!" Ash said.

"Really?" Mirror Ash said. "Thank you, Ash!"

The two Ashes shook hands.

"All these Ashes and Rylees are scrambling my brain." Mirror Serena said.

"But how are we going to conduct the search for Pikachu?" Mirror Bonnie said.

Mirror Clemont chuckled. "Leave that to me!"

~TPPOV~

"Rylee and Ash haven't come back yet." Clemont said.

"And that portal closed right behind them. How else are we going to find them?" Serena said.

"It looks like it's up to me. The future is now, thanks to science!" Clemont said, pushing his glasses up his nose. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a Magnemite-styled machine. "Clemontic Gear, on! See, I thought we would encounter a situation precisely like this one!"

"You knew our friends would stumble upon an alternate dimension and get sucked into it?" Bonnie said, her eyes half-closed in disbelief.

Clemont cleared his throat. "Anyways... I call it 'The Other Dimension Converter'! This device makes high-voltage, electromagnetic waves collide, which warps space and time, creating a portal to another dimension! Power on!"

Clemont pulled a switch, and it immediately sputtered and malfunctioned. He cringed and covered his face as his invention exploded.

~RYLEE~

Mirror Clemont finished sketching a lightning bolt inside a circle into the dirt with a long stick.

"I thought we would encounter a situation like this, so I prepared this magic spell! I call it, my 'Magical Direction Finder'!" Mirror Clemont cried. Ash and I sweatdropped as Mirror Clemont walked into the center of the dirt drawing. "By dropping this staff in the center of this circle, it will then allow us to determine which direction to search in! Now! Clemont-cadabra!"

Mirror Clemont dug the staff into the dirt and let go of it. It fell to the ground.

"There! Ash's Pikachu is that way!"

"Excellent, brother dear!" Mirror Bonnie gushed.

"Huh... No explosions." Ash said.

"I prefer that over this mumbo-jumbo." I sweatdropped.

~TPPOV~

"Nooo!" Bonnie cried. "I can't believe you blew it again! Literally!"

"I'm sorry..." Clemont whimpered as he tried to fix his frizzy hair.

"Now what do we do?" Serena said as her eyes shook with tears. "Have our friends disappeared forever?"

"We'll figure this out." Clemont said. "I know Rylee and Ash are furiously trying to get back to our dimension! We'll just have to be patience."

Serena sighed and nodded.

~RYLEE~

"Now where in the world is that Pikachu?" Mirror Serena hissed.

"Wish I knew." Mirror Clemont said, his arms crossed as he walked.

"Even brother dear makes mistakes!" Mirror Bonnie giggled.

As our friends walked ahead, Mirror Rylee and I walked alongside each other. Her permanent smile boggled me.

"So... Rylee..." I said, holding my hands in front of me. "How's your mission going so far?"

"Mission?" Mirror Rylee said. She giggled. "What mission?"

I raised my eyebrow. "Your mission as a Pokémon Knight? What you're doing right now? You know, traveling alongside Ash while keeping an eye out for Team Flare?"

Mirror Rylee giggled again. "I'm not a Pokémon Knight. I wish I was one."

"Wha...? But didn't you go home after your Unova journey to train?"

Mirror Rylee stared at me, perplexed, and shook her head. "What are you talking about? After my Unova journey ended, I went with Cilan to the Johto region."

My stomach somersaulted. "You did?"

Mirror Rylee nodded with a dreamy smile. She stopped walking. "It was so romantic! We kissed at the Vermillion City train station, and I was hooked! Just a few days ago, he gave me this." Rylee gently pulled on a silver chain under her shirt. She pulled out a small, golden heart locket with an emerald in the center. "Isn't it beautiful?"

As I stared at the locket, I noticed something else that made my heart plummet to my feet.

"Is that... a ring?" I said, referring to the diamond accessory on the ring finger of Mirror Rylee's left hand.

Mirror Rylee glanced at the ring and smiled. "Yes! After Cilan gave me the locket, he turned right back around and proposed!" Mirror Rylee shoved the ring into my face. I gulped and stepped back. Oblivious to my reaction, Mirror Rylee lowered her hand back to her side and smiled. "He's waiting back at the Pokémon Center. But enough about me. How's your Cilan?"

The air in my lungs stopped flowing. I turned my back to Mirror Rylee.

"Let's catch up with the others." I said, quickly walking away from the conversation. Mirror Rylee jogged to keep up with me.

We caught up with the others at the edge of a cliff that overlooked the thick forest below.

"Now what am I going to do? I can't stand the thought of never seeing Pikachu again." Mirror Ash said, tears brimming in his eyes. He sobbed. "I'll... I'll... I'll never be the same!"

"Just perfect. Here we go." Mirror Serena murmured.

"Come on, Ash, don't cry." Ash said. "You want to find Pikachu, don't you?" Mirror Ash nodded. "Don't give up, then."

While Mirror Ash wiped his eyes, a claw snatched Pikachu off Ash's shoulder and encased him in a glass container.

"Perfect aim!" James cried.

"Why did they take Pikachu?" Mirror Serena said.

"Because... Team Rocket is a bunch of villains?" I said. "At least, they try to be."

"Huh? Our Team Rocket calls themselves the 'Heroes of Justice'. They're the ones that stop the villains."

"I'd love to hear that motto."

"Ash... That's my Pikachu." Mirror Ash said, looking to the second Pikachu struggling beside the first one in a separate container.

"So, you're a bad Team Rocket?!" Mirror Bonnie said.

"Give us back our Pikachu!" Ash cried.

"Sure! Soon as you grow up!" Meowth said.

Jessie and James called out Pumpkaboo and Inkay. Both Ashes called out Hawlucha. Ash's spread his wings out proudly while Mirror Ash's hid his face.

"Hawlucha, use Karate Chop on Inkay!"

"Use Karate Chop on Pumpkaboo!"

Ash's Hawlucha lunged at Inkay and slapped his wings into Inkay, knocking it back against a rock wall. Mirror Ash's Hawlucha shyly trotted over to Pumpkaboo. Pumpkaboo moved out of the way.

"Hawlucha, look out!" Ash called. Pumpkaboo bodyslammed Mirror Ash's Hawlucha and knocked it to the ground.

"Inkay, use Psybeam!"

As Inkay collected psychic energy at the top of his head, I sprinted over and stepped in front of Mirror Ash's Hawlucha. I swiped my hand in front of me, creating a shield of Protect that blocked the Psybeam.

"Why'd you do that?" Mirror Rylee said.

"Why did I-?!" I said in disbelief. I turned around. "Because I'm a Pokémon Guardian! You are, too! What happened to protecting people and Pokémon?"

"I... I haven't needed to worry about that since my Unova journey..."

"How dare you be so selfish! It's like you don't even care anymore!"

Mirror Rylee's smile faded. "O-Of course I do..."

"Pumpkaboo, use Double Shadow Ball!"

The first of Pumpkaboo's dark energy hit Mirror Ash's Hawlucha and sent him crashing into Mirror Ash. Mirror Ash returned his Hawlucha and started to cry. The second Shadow Ball hit my back. I cried out and fell to the ground.

"Inkay, use Psybeam!"

"Pumpkaboo, Shadow Ball!"

I looked up as Team Rocket's Pokémon floated over me and built up their moves. I braced myself as they fired the attacks.

Footsteps sprinted over to me, and a shield of Protect covered us. Mirror Rylee stood in front of me. She dispelled the Protect and turned to me, her purple eyes flaring.

"What kind of Guardian would that make me if I didn't protect those in need?" Mirror Rylee smiled. She reached a hand out to me and helped me up.

Mirror Clemont crept behind Team Rocket and grabbed the two Pikachu. Meowth turned around.

"Hey!" he cried. "Look, twerp, what're you doin'?!"

Mirror Clemont slammed his foot into Meowth's face and scurried towards us.

"That's my big brother!" Bonnie beamed.

"Whoa..." I said. "My Clemont's not brave enough to do that."

Mirror Rylee chuckled. "That's why I'm glad to be traveling with him. I've got a lot to learn from a boy like him."

Mirror Clemont threw the two Pikachu into the air. Mirror Serena called out her Fennekin, and she freed the Pikachu.

"Your turn, Ash!" I called as Mirror Rylee and I jumped out of the way.

"Ready, Ash?" Ash said to Mirror Ash. Mirror Ash nodded.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" the two Ashes cried.

Both Pikachu used their moves on Team Rocket and blasted them into the sky.

"That was amazing, Ash." Mirror Serena said.

"I was completely impressed!" Mirror Bonnie said.

"I hope you'll consider continuing our journey together. Will you?" Mirror Clemont said.

Mirror Ash nodded with a smile. He turned to me and Ash. "Thank you both. You really saved the day."

"We're glad we could help!" Ash said.

"Let's depart to the Pokémon Center! Cilan's waiting for us!" Mirror Bonnie said.

"Cilan?" Ash said, his eyes widening. "He's here?"

"Not the one we know." I said, quickly and dryly. I turned to the sunset.

"It'll be dark soon..." Mirror Clemont said. He gasped. "I just remembered! According to the legend, people who come from another world can't go back once the sun sets!"

Ash and I gasped. "We'd better get back, fast!" Ash cried.

"Here!" Mirror Ash said, stopping us at the reflective crystal where the portal opened. "This is where the portal was."

"Let me see..." Mirror Clemont said. "I'd say the instability of the mirror is functioning as something of a gate between this world and the other one!"

"But how do we get this mirror to do it again?" Mirror Bonnie said.

"When the mirror opened, it was because I wanted to find Pikachu. When I started wishing for that, the portal opened." Mirror Ash said.

"That might have something to do with it!" Mirror Clemont said. "It might be how we'll get the portal to open."

"You really want to return to your world, don't you?" Mirror Ash said to us.

"Of course." I said. "Our friends are waiting for us there."

"Focus on that thought. If your thoughts are powerful enough, our two worlds might reconnect!" Mirror Clemont said.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I clasped my hands together in front of my chest, closed my eyes, and bowed my head.

~TPPOV~

"Are we ever gonna see Ash and Rylee again?" Bonnie said.

"Of course we will, Bonnie. Don't even ask that!" Clemont said.

"We've gotta hold on to hope." Serena said.

Clemont gripped his backpack straps and stared at his reflection. "Rylee will come back... She's got to..."

~RYLEE~

My mind grew sore from wishing continuously. I heard something shimmering, and when I opened my eyes, I saw the portal opening. There was a void of glittering, purple energy, and on the other side was Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena.

"Ash!" Serena said.

"Rylee!" Clemont said.

"There's two of them?" Bonnie said. "Two of us?!"

"There's no time! Our worlds are moving apart!" Mirror Ash said as the two doorways slowly drifted apart.

"The sun is starting to set." Mirror Clemont said.

"The two worlds are connected by our hopes and dreams."

"Get with it, Serena! Think about how much you want to continue journeying with Ash and Rylee!" Mirror Serena said.

"You, too, Clemont and Bonnie!" Mirror Clemont said.

"Concentrate your thoughts!" Mirror Bonnie said.

The doorways drew closer. I reached out my hand towards my friends.

"Just... a little more..." I said. The doorways separated, drifting apart faster than before. My friends' fingers slipped out from my grasp. "No!"

"Hang on, Pikachu!" Ash said, moving Pikachu from his shoulder to his arms. He stepped back to get a running start. He leaped across the void and landed on the other side. "Rylee, hurry!"

I gulped as the gap grew wider. I took a few steps back. Taking a deep breath, I sprinted towards the doorway. At the very edge, I pushed off my feet and lunged across the void. My hands slapped against the edge of the other side. I dangled in the purple void. My hands slid off the edge.

A hand grabbed mine. Clemont knelt over the edge, his torso hanging into the void. "I got you, Rylee! I won't let you fall!"

"Me neither!" Ash knelt next to Clemont and grabbed my other hand. I gazed up at them with awe. They hoisted me back into the cave. "You okay?"

I nodded and turned back towards the void.

"Hey, Rylee," Mirror Rylee pushed her way to the front of her group of friends, "you never answered my question."

My face fell, and I shook my head. "I'm sorry, Rylee, but I didn't have the same happily ever after as you..." I bowed my head. "I had to say goodbye... to my Cilan."

A pang of emotions struck my heart from saying it out loud: my Cilan. How I wished I could say that with sincerity.

"I'm sorry..." Mirror Rylee said. "Now I feel bad about telling you all my stuff."

I looked up and smiled sadly. "Don't be. You still have a chance." Tears filled my eyes and spilled down my cheeks. "Go. Be happy for me."

Mirror Rylee's eyes shook with tears. She reached up and clutched her heart locket. She smiled. "Thank you, Rylee. You helped me remember my purpose in life. I hope you find yours, too."

The portal closed, and I stared at my tear-stained reflection. I reached up and gripped my locket. A tear dribbled down my chin and hit my fist.

I watched Clemont's reflection as he walked over to my side and rested a hand against my shoulder. We looked at each other, and he smiled.

"I'm glad you're back." Clemont said.

"Me, too." I said. "What would I do without my science geek?"

Clemont blushed. "H-Hey! I'm not a geek! I'm just passionate about it!"

I wiped my cheeks and laughed. This was definitely my Clemont.

And I had a lot to learn from him.