"Can't be arsed with that guy," Ash grumbled, groaning and breathing heavily as he attempted to get back on his feet. "That hurts...oh god."

His feet hurt, his legs burned and he struggled to stand straight. "Could have warned us but oh no, that won't be fun, huh? That idiot!"

"Pika?"

Ash spun his head in the direction of the voice, his eyes widening. "Pikachu?" The rodent Pokémon was standing on the top of a rock a little distance away from him.

His ears perked up and he gleamed when he saw Ash, rushing towards him with a wide smile. "Pika-chu!"

"Where did you run off to?" Ash struggled as he walked forward, but with a few staggering steps, he regained his composure as he jogged towards Pikachu.

Ash slowed down as he approached Pikachu, hoping to greet him at eye level, but Pikachu jumped onto him.

"Don't disappear—" Ash was cut short as Pikachu jumped into his arms. He grew quiet and lost his composure, falling on his knees. "—like that," he finished. He glanced down at Pikachu who trembled in his arms, nudging his face against him as if seeking comfort. "What's wrong?"

Ash began to question the little Pokémon but something caught his eyes. In front of him, a measly distance away from him, Serena was lying on the ground motionless. Before he could understand the situation, something stung his vision. His eyes twitched, then began widening as he looked around. The cave was massive, the ceiling meters above his head. From a massive hole in the ceiling, light shimmered down in the cave and the water pool below gleamed brightly as if the sun had taken shelter inside it.

"Where... Are we?"

Just as quick as the light appeared, it disappeared, leaving the cave in the dark. The shimmering water disappeared, the surrounding turning into an abyss. It took Ash a moment to adjust his eyes but he once again regained his vision. It had become clear to him that he wasn't in the cave they had been traversing through before. He was no longer walking behind Gary and Dawn—somehow he had lost his way. That sounded about as absurd as someone ridiculing his sense of directions. A chill rushed up to his spine when he realised there was no diversion. There was virtually no way he could get lost.

"Then how did we end up here?"

"Pika..."

Ash glanced up at the ceiling one final time, trying to figure out how they ended up in this cave. Though dimly, he could make out dark clouds hovering over them, in the sky. At least that explains something, he wondered and with a final glance, looked back down in front of him, once again recalling the situation he was in.

As if life found its way back into his body, Ash rushed up to his feet then next to Serena. "Goddammit not again..." he grumbled under his breath as he knelt next to the girl. "Serena? Serena!" He shook the girl and breathed in a sigh of relief when she reacted.

Serena groaned, struggling to open her eyes. Ash fell on his back, his chest heaving. Pikachu walked to Serena, nudging on her face as if trying to help her up. It seemed to work somehow as he saw Serena returning to consciousness. He stared at her intently as if looking for something and sighed when Serena winced, the pain finally becoming apparent to her.

"Where...?" Serena muttered out, holding her head as she sat up. She looked around, at rocks, at the sky and then down at the water. As realisation dawned on her, she muttered out, "How...?"

Serena felt something wet touching her hand. She looked down, a chill rushing up to her spine, and saw Pikachu gently licking her hand. She looked over and ahead of him and saw Ash sitting behind him, looking at her.

"What..." Serena paused, then asked, "Where's Dawn and Gary?" She moved, attempting to get back up when her leg jolted and froze. Serena winced, and fell back, gritting her teeth and trying to avoid letting out any voice.

Ash grew alert. His attention darted to her feet and the thought kicked in.

"Don't move."

Ash moved to Serena's feet, trying to figure out where to go from there. "It's nothing." He heard Serena speak, her voice shaking. "I'll manage it—"

"Shut up."

Serena grew silent. She attempted to say something but then sealed her lips shut. By no means Ash was loud but his sharp voice had caught her off-guard. She remained silent, bringing her hands together until Ash grabbed her right foot and an involuntary shriek escaped her throat.

Ash glanced up at her briefly, biting his lips. "Hold it in. I'll remove your shoe," he told her.

Serena braced herself, closing her eyes as Ash worked his hands around her shoe. Though he tried to be careful, he ended up twisting her feet more than once. Serena bit her lips to suppress any voice but the pain was unbearable.

Serena didn't open her eyes until she felt a breeze on her foot. Ash had just taken off her shoe, along with the sock and placed it next to him, his eyes glued on her foot. As Serena wondered what Ash was thinking, she caught a glimpse of her swollen foot. Serena breathed out shakily at the sight, feeling suddenly empty inside. That was going to hurt a lot. "I don't like it..."

Ash sat on his feet, his hands placed on his knees. He shut his eyes as if he was thinking deeply but struggled with it. He couldn't stay still, his aching body reminding on his possible injury. He wished he could cool it down...somehow.

His eyes shot open suddenly. "Of course!" he murmured under his breath but then a look of puzzlement took over him. He looked around but nothing seemed to satisfy before he finally looked down at his sleeve. Ash glanced up at Serena for a moment before he stood up. Turning around he walked to the water body in front of him, his right hand rubbing his left sleeve before a loud tearing noise rang in the cave.

"What are you doing, Ash?" Serena asked, baffled only to met with silence. "Of course," she murmured to herself. Nothing she could do or say would ever get through him. "Why do I even bother..." Serena whispered to herself, feeling Pikachu moving under her hand, snuggling against her palm.

Serena almost jumped when Ash suddenly returned. As she looked up at him, she saw the left sleeve of his shirt torn off. The piece of cloth? In his hand, dripping wet. Before she could understand what he was doing, Ash knelt and squeezed the cloth over her leg.

Serena gasped at the feeling of cool water slithering down her feet, over the swelling. Ash took the cloth and began rubbing it on her feet. "Hold it." He gave her only a moment to prepare herself before he pressed the cool, wet cloth on the swelling. Serena winced and bit her lips. She shut her eyes and felt the cloth elongating along her feet.

When she opened her eyes again, Ash had tied a cold knot over the swelling. He moved his bag in front and began ruffling it as he looked for something inside it, eventually taking out a compression bandage.

Though Serena wondered why did Ash even have it in the first place, her thoughts diverted when she saw him wiping her foot with a dry cloth—a second piece of the sleeve he had torn off before. Immediately afterwards, he began to wind up the bandage around her foot, more carefully than before. Serena continued to look at him work, maintaining silence as he had demanded before. She clutched her hands tight, her gaze softening.

Amid the sound of water rippling in front of her, Serena unknowingly opened her lips. "Thank you, Ash."

Ash paused as he pulled a stretch of the bandage. For a moment, Serena believed she had gotten through his head, only to see him press the remaining bandage over the rest and clipping them together. Serena lowered her gaze. Of course—

"Don't mention it."

His voice cut off her thought and she once again looked at him. Ash didn't look up at her nor did he attempt to repeat himself even though his voice had been low.

With the final pin plugged in the bandage, Ash sighed. He stood up and turned around, his back facing Serena as he slowly walked to the water.

"Why are you like this?"

Ash slowed his pace, then stopped at the edge, staring down in the water. His eyes squinted as if trying to find himself in the still water. A moment passed and he opened his mouth, but all his voices were cut short.

"I-I'm sorry that I'm trying, okay? But I don't know what else to do. Not now and not any other time."

Ash closed his mouth, his eyes squinting. He moved his gaze to his feet, then back at the water, staring intently as if trying to find out how deep it was. Serena continued.

"Every time someone tries to be nice to you, stick up for you or even just be there for you, you decide to be an all-around jerk about it. And when they least expect it, you decide to play nice with them as if you suddenly care now? I don't even know what is going through your mind at all. Why do you try to be two-faced and play two sides?"

"I don't know," Ash murmured. He picked up a stone next to his feet and flicked it over the water."Maybe you tell me."

"I..." Serena breathed in, clutching her hands. "You don't have to make it so grey. Make it black and white. Stick with one. It's not going to kill you."

Ash bit lips, closing his eyes but there didn't seem to be an end in sight.

"People don't like getting mad at you, you know? They get mad at you because you refuse to listen. They get mad at you because they care about you. They don't want to leave you. You're pushing them away. You're not doing anyone any favour, Ash. You're just hurting them and yourself." Serena paused, then added. "That's not what I expected from you, you know?"

"Well then, I guess we're both disappointed with each other," Ash said, quietly but loud enough for Serena to hear him. He heard Serena sigh behind him, soundly agitated. More than ever. "Then again, what do you even know..."

"I get it that it's hard. Trust me, Ash, I do," Serena replied. "I know it's hard to get over them. But that's not a reason to do this. We're not going to end up like them."

"Shut up," Ash whispered.

"I just want to help you, Ash." Serena felt her voice getting progressively louder as if she had found courage. "I'm not them. I'm not going to end up like them."

"I told you to shut. Up!" Ash covered his face, fingers rubbing his eyes. He whimpered and bit his lips.

"Quit obsessing over it, Ash! Nothing is going to change what has happened. Not this or that briefcase!"

"What?"

Ash finally turned around to face her, his lips trembling and hands shaking. Serena sealed her lips for a moment when she realised what she had said. An apology, perhaps—her mind told her a probable solution but it was almost as if she didn't want to listen. It was as if she was overcome with all her courage all at once and instead, she pushed on in a calm, loud voice.

"I heard it from Gary," she said. "The briefcase that your father left behind. I know what you've been doing, Ash, but you have to understand! It's not—"

"Serena!" Ash's voice thundered, his hand raised at her and the cave grew silent, an air of animosity growing between them. Struggling with his fist, he pointed at her, his hand trembling. "You...are treading some mighty thin ice here." His voice wavered. His body trembled. His eyes watered.

Serena couldn't quite make out where did that come from but one thing remained abundantly clear in his eyes: he did not want this conversation to go on. Somehow, she failed to get that one hint.

"I'm sorry about your parents, Ash," Serena said. "But everyone has lost someone or something."

"You have no idea what loss is." Ash gritted his teeth.

"Maybe." Serena paused. "But I know... Nothing you do is going to change anything. Nothing you ever do is going to replace them. Nothing you do is going to bring them back. The best you can do is let your friend—"

Serena paused. Her lips remained opened but no amount of courage could push her to let out her voice when she saw Ash trembling, whimpering—he breathed shakily as a tear rolled down his face to his chin, dripping on the ground.

"You're right..." Ash sniffed, wiping his hands over his eyes. "I guess it was stupid of me to think that things could change but... Maybe nothing needs to be changed. And I'm not an idiot." Ash paused, then added. "I know you're not them, and I sure as hell am not your friend."

Serena felt as if her heart dropped at his words. Her chest hurt. She could barely shake her head, but nothing she did could stop him.

"So stop pretending that you care, that we've got anything to do with each other because we both know how this ends. You and I—we're nothing. We were nothing! We will never be anything!" Ash paused, squinted his eyes, taking a deep breath. "And when we get out of here... We're going our separate ways."

"Get it together. We are not alone." A voice rang in the cave, the sound of footsteps heading their way. Ash looked away from Serena into the direction of the voice but grew alert when Pikachu growled. He looked down at the rodent Pokemon, confused, but his concern soon became apparent. "Find and dispatch them. We have orders to shoot on sight."

Ash breathed in sharply as he looked over at Serena who appeared just as puzzled as he was.

"Move. Move!" Ash whispered aloud, running over to her side. Serena protested, baffled, but Ash hushed her as if he had read her mind. "Don't even think about it," he whispered through gritted teeth as he threw her arm over his neck and wrapped his arm around her waist. He looked over at Pikachu and motioned him to carry Serena's shoe before he began walking, almost running.

Serena grunted but could not complain. She could not still quite figure out the urgency of his actions but remained silent. She briefly looked back and realised two things: the men didn't seem to be in a rush and the water body next to them was larger than it seemed. As far as she could see, there didn't seem to be an end.

"Over here," Ash suddenly whispered. Serena looked into the direction and saw a small opening, darker than the cave they were in. She immediately realised that it was a dead-end. "Hide in there."

Serena crawled through the opening which extended to the right. She moved further ahead, carefully as to not twist her ankle as Ash followed after her. Before she could go on, Ash tugged her arm. She looked back and he motioned her to follow her into the same opening she had seen a moment. Serena obliged without resistance, though, the couple soon realised there was not enough space for the two, at least not with their bags on.

Serena decided to take her bag off but struggled in the narrow space. Ash held onto it from one side and just as she managed to slip both her arms off it, he pulled it towards him and inside the opening, throwing it into a small space. He couldn't have expected the loud noise it made and regretted it immediately.

"Who's there?" a man said, his footsteps nearing to their location.

From the corner of her eyes, Serena saw a flash of the light and suddenly a stroke of fear hit her. Ash quickly tugged her arm and pulled her towards him, her back landing on his front, but twisted her ankle. Serena shrieked, but her voice muffled into Ash's hand. She tried to cover her mouth and unknowingly pressed onto Ash's hand as a tear escaped her eye.

"It hurts! It hurts!" Serena let out a whispered cry only for Ash to press onto her mouth tighter.

"Bear with it," he whispered into her ear and tried his best to stay secluded inside the small opening. Pikachu was hiding between their legs while holding onto the shoe. "Keep quiet," Ash added quietly in her ear again as the noises became louder and clearer.

The man walked over to the opening and flashed the light inside. Ash shut his eyes tightly, feeling as if his muscles were contracting. He pulled Serena closer and, perhaps, tighter than she was comfortable with. Pikachu tried to squeeze through their feet but ended up making more noises and small rocks rolled out of the opening.

"You fucking—"

Ash braced himself at the sound of the man when the sound of water splashing rang in the cave and gun blazed in their direction. One. Two. Three. Ash lost the count of bullets that hit the rock, their shell rolling over to his feet. His heart jumped to his throat and he felt Serena shivering in his arms.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?!" another voice said. "Stop shooting in the wall, it's just a wild Pokémon!"

"Yes, sir," the man responded as he retracted back, barely missing the two teenagers as the light flashed over their shoulders for a moment.

"Waste of my fucking time," the man from earlier growled. He appeared to be in charge of the man who almost shot Ash and Serena. "False alert. I repeat, false alert..."

The voice began fading as the two men walked away, their footsteps echoing behind them, but Ash and Serena remained frozen, still huddled together. It wasn't until he felt Serena holding his hand tightly that he snapped back out of his trance, his grip loosening over her mouth.

Serena held onto his hand as she moved it off her mouth; Ash seemed unfazed even though her tears and saliva drenched his hand. Though he took his hand off her, his arms remained intact, one buried in her bosom and the other crossed over it. His body burned and his eye became dry, his shaky breaths and rapid heartbeats were all that told Serena he was still alive.

"Ash..." Serena whispered in a low voice. "They are gone."

Ash felt a jolt as if he was slapped across the face. His ears still stung from the sound of bullets. Slowly he loosed his arms and Serena carefully moved out of his grasp, then out of the hole. She placed her hand on the rock next to her as Ash slipped out of the opening, too, carrying her bag in his hand.

Serena glanced down at Ash; the raven-haired boy was sweating buckets. He looked so pale and lifeless but somehow carried on. He knelt to take her shoe from Pikachu then tossed it inside his bag without a second thought. As he zipped up his bag, the sound of water splashing once again rang in the cave. Serena looked over at the water and saw something emerging out of the water, a rugged rock-like structure. Serena could have easily mistaken it for a rock had she not seen a pair of eyes glancing over at her.

"What is it..." she murmured to herself.

"Feebas," Ash answered thoughtlessly. He didn't even look at her as he stepped towards it. The Pokémon noticed him but refused to take eyes off the girl. Serena struggled to walk, finding every step difficult to take but managed to make her way to Ash, to the edge of the body, to the Feebas.

Serena knelt in front of the Pokémon looking at her. As their eyes met, Feebas appeared lost, even as Serena moved her hand towards her. She placed her hand on the fin, then ran her hand on the dishevelled body that she almost mistook for rock.

Feebas seemed carefree and had no animosity towards her. Even as the girl ran her hand on its body, it did not seem to care. It was truly lost, staring at the girl. The view could have been spectacular but Ash had numerous thoughts clouding his mind.

"We need to get out of here."

Serena looked up at Ash just as he turned around. As she tried to get back up on her feet, she regretted kneeling in the first place. It wasn't until Ash noticed and assisted her did she find herself back on her feet. As the pair began to walk, Serena looked back at Feebas one final time.

"Thank you," she said. "For saving us."

Feebas disappeared in the water and a stream followed the direction Ash and Serena walked in.