Welcome to the epilogue! Final entry into this short series. :)
Epilogue
Bonnie was bored.
She had just finished pummeling an unprepared trainer in the Lumiose gym. But, as gym leader, it was her responsibility to help the trainer fix their mistakes. After about four hours of demonstrations and explanations, the blonde teenager finally felt she made a breakthrough with this trainer. Hopefully next time they challenged a gym, they would be more prepared, and maybe Bonnie would face them again sometime in the future.
Now she was flipping through the tv channels, looking for something to watch. Her brother Clemont was in a nearby room going over some schematics for a new invention, but Bonnie wasn't paying attention when he was explaining what it would do. Something about city lights.
And it had another dumb name.
Some things never change.
Bonnie was 13 now and was already a well-seasoned traveler. She had taken part in the Kalos league, the Hoenn league, and the Sinnoh league, and placed in the top 8 in the first two and made it to the semi-finals in Sinnoh. It was a good achievement, and now she was taking a break from training and helping her brother plan his wedding to the Shalour City gym leader, Korrina. She never thought she'd see the day when her awkward brother would finally get a "keeper", but he did, and now they were engaged. Bonnie couldn't be happier for him. She liked Korrina. She really seemed to bring awkward ol' Clemont out of his shell.
Bonnie sighed as she kept flipping through the tv channels, nothing in particular catching her eye. Pokémon action movies, romantic flics, game shows, infomercials, Serena, cartoons.
Wait a minute.
Bonnie shot up from her slouched position on the couch and pressed the back button on the tv remote a few times to bring back a channel she had passed.
True to what she saw, her old friend, Serena Yvonne, reigning Kalos Queen for the past three years, was standing on a podium, surrounded by several important looking people. She had a bright smile on her face and looked absolutely stunning in a very formal red dress. Truth to told, Bonnie missed Serena a lot. Somewhere along the way, thanks to Bonnie's traveling around the world and Serena's busy schedule, they lost contact. She didn't even remember the last time she talked to the honey-blonde she once saw as an older sister. But here she was, on the tv, making some announcement.
"Clemont! You're gonna want to see this!" Bonnie yelled as she turned the television's volume up several notches.
"Be there in a minute!" Came her brother's yell from the other room.
Bonnie knew what that meant. It meant he would come in when he felt like it. "Now, Clemont! Serena's on the tv!"
She heard what sounded like metal dropping and her brother yelp in pain, and in a few moments, he came hopping into the room, holding his foot in one hand.
"Serena? As in our old friend?" He asked, his voice laced with both astonishment and pain.
"See for yourself." Bonnie replied, leaning forward as both of the Lumiose siblings listened intently to what the honey-blonde had to say.
"Ms. Yvonne! Congratulations on being inducted into the Performance Hall of Fame!" A reporter yelled up to the podium Serena was standing at. Several important officials and Palermo flanked her on both sides, as well as a few security guards. "That has never been done before. Do you think the added pressure of being a hall of fame member will affect your next performance season?"
Serena's smile never faded as she panned her eyes across the many cameras in the room. "Actually, about that, there's something I wish to announce, and this was the only place I could think of to do it."
All of the reporters tried their best to get closer only to be pushed back by a line of guards positioned around the stage. Their hands holding microphones shot out to try and capture whatever Serena was about to say, and the cameras all zoomed in on just the Kalos Queen so that she occupied the entire television screen.
"Becoming Kalos Queen was my dream for many years." Serena began, her voice steady and strong. "I worked hard and achieved my dream, and I regret nothing about my journey. But, after some time to look over my life and where I stand, I have come to realize that my position as Kalos Queen has come to an end. As of today, I am standing down from my position as Kalos Queen."
A flurry of gasps and a storm of camera flashes engulfed the podium. Questions were being screamed out by reporters desperate to get more information, and Serena stood in silence with a small smile, waiting for everything to calm down so that she could continue.
"Wow…" Bonnie said, leaning back into the couch. "I wasn't expecting that. Serena's so good that I bet she could remain Kalos Queen forever if she wanted to."
"I wasn't either…" Clemont added, still rubbing his foot. "But it doesn't look like she's done talking yet."
They both turned their attention back to the tv as Serena was waving her hands, signaling that she wanted to continue speaking.
"Furthermore, I'd like to add that Palermo has been a real mentor to me over the past three years. Her and I may not have always seen eye to eye, but there is a reason why she has mentored the last several queens. I'd like everyone to give her a round of applause."
Agreeing, the entire room exploded in applause. Palermo shook her head but looked to be unable to hide the small smile on her face. The cameras only spent a few seconds on her though before turning back to Serena.
"Ms. Yvonne! Ms. Yvonne!" A rather belligerent reporter yelled out, managing to get his mic a little closer to the honey-blonde than everyone else. "Do the rumors of you starting a new relationship have anything to do with this sudden departure from the performance world?"
Serena's small smile grew into a large grin and she shrugged her shoulders. "I wouldn't say "sudden departure" from performing. Performing is still my passion, and I plan on staying in the world somewhat. I don't know how yet, but I'll figure that out in time. As for the rumors about my boyfriend, I suppose you could say they are true." She pointed out into the crowd, and every camera in the room frantically panned towards where she was pointing. Up in the stands behind all the reporters with the rest of the civilians was a man wearing a black suit and red hat with strange "Z" marks on his face, and a pikachu perched on his shoulder. Realizing the cameras were on him, he shyly waved and mouthed "Hi mom" to the screen. Pikachu facepalmed and waved to the cameras as well.
Bonnie dropped the remote, unable to keep her mouth from dropping. The Lumiose siblings were silent for a few moments before Bonnie jumped up from the couch.
"Ash! Ash Ketchum!?" She looked at her brother, as if he could confirm what they were seeing. He had a similar look of shock but looked to be unable to speak. Bonnie laughed loudly and pointed at the tv. "I always knew those two would find each other! Took them long enough though!"
"Look! She's not done!" Clemont yelled, bringing their attention back to Serena.
The cameras returned to Serena on the stands after attempting to capture the clamor from the shocking revelation that a celebrity rumor was true for once. Serena was laughing while tapping the mic in front of her to get attention back on her.
"As much as I'd like to stay here and answer questions, I actually have to go. These past few years have been amazing, but life is a journey, and I'm not done yet. I'm going to begin the rest of my journey with the love of my life for now on. I have a phone call to make to some old friends now. Thank you Kalos, for everything! Good bye!"
With that, she ran off the stage, the camera following her until she was out of sight. Bright flashes of cameras followed her, and the recording camera turned towards a man that looked like an announcer.
"Well, you heard it here folks, Kalos Queen for three years, Serena Yvonne, has retired and…"
Bonnie and Clemont sat in stunned silence, not even bothering to listen to whatever the announcer was saying. They slowly turned towards each other and stared for a few moments, before a phone was heard ringing in the other room.
"Clemont…you don't think…?" Bonnie quietly said, voice wavering from excitement.
Clemont gasped and sprinted faster than his sister had ever seen him run into the other room to grab his ringing phone. He emerged a moment later and tentatively held the phone tightly, trying desperately not to drop it from his nerves. With the flick of a button, he answered, and pressed the "speaker" button.
"H-hello?" Clemont timidly answered.
"Clemont?" A feminine voice that they both immediately recognized asked on the other end. Both of the Lumiose siblings smiled wider than they ever recalled before
"Serena!" Both of them yelled.
"Hi guys!" Serena's voice replied with a laugh. "I missed you two so much!"
"We missed you too!" Bonnie screamed. "We just saw you on the tv! You're really retiring?"
"Yep! I had been thinking about it for a long time. It was fun, but a bit too much for me. I've got a new journey in life to begin now."
"Yes, we saw that…" Bonnie said, her face curling into a teasing smirk. "We saw Ash up there. When did you two finally get together?"
Serena chuckled on the other end. You could tell she was smiling by how she talked. "About a month ago or so. It took us far too long to get together, but it's been a dream ever since. I guess you can't rush perfection!"
"Is Ash there?" Clemont asked, holding the phone slightly closer to himself. "It's been a long time since we talked to him too!"
"No, he's probably getting swamped by paparazzi. I didn't tell him I was going to announce our relationship to the world. I should probably go rescue him!"
"Don't let the vicious reporters do too much damage, Serena!" Bonnie added, a great smile on her face too.
"I won't! But hey! There's a reason why I wanted to call you guys. What are your plans for the next week?"
Both the Lumiose siblings looked at each other and shrugged, even though they knew their friend couldn't see. "Well, I'm engaged to Korrina, as you may or may not know. Other than gym activities and wedding planning, we aren't really doing that much." Clemont answered, looking to Bonnie for her approval. She nodded and looked back at the phone.
"Well, Ash and I were planning on going to Alola for a vacation, and we wanted to invite you two! It's been far too long since we last saw each other, and it would be good to get the gang back together again!"
Clemont and Bonnie were unable to hide their excitement as it bubbled over. Bonnie jumped up and forcibly grabbed the phone from her brother's hand, holding it close to her face. "You bet we want to come! I've missed you guys so much! Clembot can watch the gym again! When do we leave!?"
Serena laughed. "Whenever I save Ash from the paparazzi! I think I can see him right now. He's totally surrounded! Well, I'll get him and head over to Prism Tower and we can head over to Alola. How does that sound?"
"Sounds great!" Clemont yelled, hoping that Serena could hear him despite his sister holding the phone. "I need to get some sunscreen though!" He added, his face paling at the thought of the bright tropical sun.
"Great!" Serena replied. "Anyway, I'm going to rescue my boyfriend, and we'll be over in a bit! See you soon!"
"Bye Serena! See you soon!" Bonnie said as the phone call ended. She stared at the "Serena—ended call" screen on her brother's phone for a moment before screaming in delight. She threw the phone at her brother, not caring if she broke it or not, and sprinted to her room in the tower to begin packing. Her brother did the same thing, and in no time at all, they hastily packed enough stuff for a week in tropical paradise. They impatiently waited a little under an hour until they heard a loud crash outside their home. Knowing immediately who it had to be, the siblings raced to the door and threw it open.
Sitting outside their door was a massive Charizard, and on its back were the very formal-looking Ash and Serena. They looked dazed from the flight and the rescue-operation from the paparazzi, but Ash hopped down first and held his hand up to help Serena down, who was still wearing her red dress from the hall of fame ceremony.
"Ash! Serena!" Bonnie yelled, running over and throwing herself at the two of them. They weren't expecting such a sudden hug and almost fell over, thankfully being held up by falling into Charizard's side, who just grunted with a smile.
Clemont was slightly more composed as he ran to join the hug. He didn't knock anyone over though as he wrapped his arms around the whole group.
"I missed you two so much…" Ash said from under the younger Lumiose sibling's tight grip. "But I need to…breathe…"
Laughing, Bonnie released her two friends, but put her hands on Serena's shoulders. Bonnie was only a few inches shorter than her now. "It's been too long, Serena. It's so good to see you again…"
Serena brought Bonnie in for a hug of their own. "You too, Bonnie. I missed all of you." She pulled away, keeping Bonnie in her grip though, staring at her friend's blue eyes. "That's why we wanted you two to come with us to Alola!"
"I don't think I've ever packed my belongings that quickly in my life." Clemont commented, adjusted his glasses so that glare reflected off of them. "Gives me an idea for another invention, actually."
"Not now, brother!" Bonnie yelled, hitting Clemont on the arm lightly. "I don't want you to kill these two after so many years of us not being together!"
The other three laughed and Clemont shook his head with a chuckle, unable to not feel happy with the moment.
"Sorry for the short notice, too." Ash said while rubbing under his nose. "We wanted it to be a surprise, so we kept our relationship and trip a secret for a month. We wanted the old crew to get back together again for one more adventure!"
"Except this won't be our last one, for sure!" Serena said with a wink and a grin towards her boyfriend. "We plan on moving to Lumiose City so that Ash can start a pokémon trainer school. You two better believe you'll be seeing us more often!"
"Yay!" Bonnie yelled with a loud cheer. "Maybe I'll have to delay my next journey through Unova so I can see you guys!" She looked at Ash then with a challenging smirk. "And if I beat the champion of Unova, then that makes me the champion of the region, right?"
Ash mirrored her smirk with his own challenging grin. "We'll see if you can do that. I won't go easy on you, Bonnie."
"I wouldn't have it any other way." She replied before reaching her arm out for a fist bump. Ash looked at it for a second before reaching his own out, his grin never leaving.
Serena reached her hand out and joined them, and Clemont did too. All four of them looked at each other for a few seconds before breaking out into a laugh.
"It's good to be back together, guys." Ash said while patting Charizard's back. "As much as I'd like for Charizard to fly us there, I don't think its safe for him to fly four people over such a long distance. We have a plane to catch!"
Clemont and Bonnie picked up their luggage while Ash and Serena grabbed theirs, which were tied to Charizard's chest. Thanking his old friend, Ash patted Charizard and recalled him back into his pokeball. The four friends then raced off for the airport, giggling and laughing all the way. Their minds were filled anticipation for the journey ahead and how they were happy to be a family again.
And this time, with their experiences in life behind them, they would fight to keep their little family together. One step at a time…
"Tomorrow is the only thing that comes to you even if you don't do anything. Everything else in life has to be fought for, so go out and get what you want!"
-NPC in XY
And there you go. I wanted to add that final quote from an NPC in the XY games, as I've always thought it was a good quote. Hope this story was enjoyable to read! It's odd getting back into writing again. It's been a long time since I wrote anything substantial, so this was like a refresher.
Well, thanks for making it this far! I hope you liked the story. Thanks for reading, and have a good day!
Twilly