Ash's shoulders were tensed as Serena adjusted his collar and fitted his tie. He was dressed up in his best black suit-pants, while Serena wore a crimson red blouse, with a floral patterned pink skirt and fancy golden flat shoes. They were both getting ready for the post-tournament reception. The event would be headlined by the finalists of the tournament - Brock and Misty - who would share a customary dance together. There would be a large dance floor so that others could also join in. A local band would also be performing, in addition to lots of food and general socialising, and everybody was expected to dress their best. Ash was not a fan of these kinds of events, but he'd gotten used to making an effort over the course of his travels, and even more so since meeting Serena, who seemed to be much more fond of them than Ash, even though she could sometimes be a little shy.

Once ready, they met the remainder of the group in the hotel lobby and set off from there, with the sun shining brightly in their faces as they made their way out onto the Main Street, due to it being twilight at that time. Ash was careful to make sure he didn't peek on the other girls, which he was beginning to find challenging, as they'd all gone to a lot of effort to look their best for the event. He noticed Brock brimming with pride as he placed his arm on Sara's shoulder. She was dressed in a knee long black blouse and matching coloured high heels. May wore a light green blouse, pink dress and silver sandals; Misty a purple blouse, red dress and golden slip-on shoes, while Dawn wore a bright blue blouse, white dress and red slip-on shoes. Finally, Bonnie wore a golden blouse, purple dress and pink shoes. Brock, Drew and Clement were dressed in the same black suit-pants as Ash, which was customary for the male guests.

Once they reached the venue, which was located a few streets away, a short distance from the stadium complex, there was already a decent sized line of people waiting outside. Ash noticed there were quite a few couples amongst the attendees. He assumed it was one of those events where it was customary to bring a date, meaning some of those attending were probably friends under normal circumstances. The venue was a fairly standard looking building. It was double storied, with the upper level consisting of one large room, covered by a large glass window. At the far end, there was also a sizeable balcony where a number of tables were set up, which overlooked the town, while palm trees lined the street below.

Once inside, everyone just stood and conversed in a large foyer on the ground level. Ash always hated this part and found it a pain and largely meaningless. He couldn't wait to be seated at his table and begin eating. That way, he would also only have to worry about talking to the people he wanted to talk to. Ash noticed Clement was looking even more uncomfortable, which didn't surprise him.

After almost a full half hour of near-torture, the staircase was opened and everyone began streaming up to the top level in their pairs, in a neat, brightly coloured precession. Some were holding hands.

Once their, they made a right turn into a very large, wooden floored room, lined by one large glass window, where the twilight sun shone through brightly. This was the room Ash had observed from the outside. On the opposite side of the room, about half way down, there was an opening to a short hallway which led to another room. This side was lined by a rather plain looking wall. At the far end lay another window and a door out onto the balcony, while at the near end lay a bar and kitchen area, behind a pull-up screen. The main room itself was covered with many evenly spaced tables. By Ash's estimates there would've been at least 40 altogether, each seating 10 people. On each seat lay a napkin with the name of the attendee who would be sitting in that allocated seat.

Ash and Clement both briefed a sigh of relief when they were finally seated at their table, alongside Misty, Brock, Serena, Sara, May, Drew, Dawn and Bonnie. Ash was also glad they were a full party as this meant they wouldn't have to sit next to any people they were unfamiliar with.

"Hey, just relax will you", Misty fussed, placing her hand on Clement's shoulder.

"I am relaxing", Clement snapped. Misty decided then that it would be best to drop the subject, as Dawn rolled her eyes which didn't go unnoticed by Clement.

After several minutes of casual chatting amongst the tables, Sara was distracted by a youngish looking adult couple who suddenly entered the room. The man wore a stylish blue suit, with black pants and sunglasses, while the girl wore a beige coloured blouse with a snappy long red dress. The man had purple coloured hair, while the woman's hair was maroon tinted.

"What! Not those guys!" She snapped.

"What…who is it?" Brock asked curiously. Sara then tilted his head around to face the couple as they strode across the room to their assigned table.

"Don't you see? It's Jessie and James."

"I don't know Sara", Ash noted. "It doesn't look too much like Team Rocket to me." Sara's face suddenly went bright red, as she began to breathe in and out quite audibly. "I'm not going to say anything…I'm not going to say anything", she repeated to herself several times over, clearly distressed by the group's repeated inability to recognise faces. "Just going to drop the subject."

"Um…haha", Brock answered awkwardly, now beginning to blush with embarrassment.

"Hey Sara", May began, "if we're all really that bad at reading faces, do you think maybe there's a course we could do which might help us?"

"Well", she answered with an awkward grin, "the police do offer courses on facial recognition, but I don't know if they'd be able to help you guys. Sometimes it's just a lost cause. No offence."

"Oh, ok."

Some of the guests began taking an interest in Misty on account of her being the champion, which soon began to grate on Clement's nerves, especially when one young man asked her for a dance, which she politely declined. By this stage, it was nightfall and the fluorescent lights had been turned on, while the dance floor section which lay at the bar/kitchen end of the auditorium was dimly lit by a large disco ball hanging overhead. A decent crowd had begun to congregate in this area, as May and Drew went to join them, with Ash and Serena, along with Brock and Sara joining moments later. Misty asked Clement if he would like to but he was nervous as he couldn't dance whatsoever. However, after a nudge and some reassurance from Bonnie, he and Misty also headed over to the dance floor, with Bonnie in toe.

Drew was a diva on the dance floor and he and May impressed a number of the other couples present with their strong dancing ability. The other male members of the party however were not so impressive but luckily for them, their partners didn't much mind. Ash and Serena were always comfortable in each other's presence, while Bonnie and Misty were helping Clement to learn some dance moves. Brock and Sara were dancing slowly, their arms wrapped around one another, both looking a little awkward, mainly because Sara wasn't the best dancer. Dawn on the other hand had gone and found other people to dance with, and she didn't have any shortage of offers. As far as Ash could tell, she appeared to be enjoying the attention she was receiving and looked right at home in her current surroundings. He was glad to see his friend so happy and relaxed after her recent struggles.

Soon after, Ash decided he needed some fresh air and retreated to the balcony, where several people had already gathered. He was soon joined by Serena, who was also feeling a little worn out. He felt a great release of tension as he was able to retreat from the busy crowd and breathe in the crisp but balmy nighttime air, as he looked out towards the lights coming from the city.

"Pretty nice hey", Serena noted as she placed her hand on his right shoulder, the one Pickachu would normally be perched on.

"Yeah, you bet", he replied pleasantly. "We're pretty lucky aren't we?"

"Yeah", she answered, smiling warmly, "we're really lucky." The two of them paused for a minute, admiring the view, before Serena spoke again.

"So, what next?"

"Man, I hadn't even thought about that. I guess we should just make sure we get safely back to Palet. It should only be about two weeks journey from here."

"I can't wait to get back. I love hanging at your place with you and your Mom. I think I could spend the rest of my life there." Ash smiled at her.

"Yeah, me too, especially if we can keep travelling from time to time."

"You bet", she answered, returning his smile. "You won't hear me complaining." (*)

At the first opportunity - and when it didn't appear socially inappropriate - Clement made a beeline for the bathroom, not only because he needed to relieve himself but also to retreat from all the noise and tension of the occasion. He was worried he was making a fool of himself and that he was disappointing Misty. The way he saw it, if he could get through the evening having made as few mistakes as possible, then he wouldn't have done anything to put his relationship in jeopardy and he and Misty could go back to their usual routine without fear of judgement from others.

After revelling in the peace and quiet of the deserted bathroom, he timidly made his way back down the hall and out into the main room. As he cut across the room, slickly passing between the many tables lining his path to the dance floor, he could no longer spot Misty or Bonnie. He assumed they themselves had headed for the bathrooms. However, a number of the others were missing and the dance floor as a whole seemed significantly less populated than when he'd left.

As he drew nearer he noticed the young couple who Sara had identified as Jessie and James from Team Rocket. This fact was now more obvious to Clement when he saw them up close. For some strange reason he decided he would approach them when he felt a hand on his shoulder: "Hey you! What's happening?"

"Oh, hey May. Well I was going to see Misty but she seems to have disappeared, so I guess I was about to go talk to Team Rocket?" He laughed nervously. "Don't ask me why, I guess because they're the only ones here to talk to."

"Would you believe it, that's exactly what I was coming to do. We can go together." She smiled.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan."

"Hey hey", May Announced herself and Clement as she confidently strode up to Jesse and James, who had been in the middle of what appeared to be a lively tango dance.

"Huh, wha…Twurpett!" Jesse exclaimed. "Why'd you have to go and interrupt our dance. James was doing such a good job. I think your old enough to start learning better manners."

"Oh, sorry", May answered awkwardly. "We just wanted to hang. Most of our friends have disappeared somewhere."

"Well they've obviously headed into the other main room where the press conference is being held", James informed them.

"Oh, great!" Responded Clement. "Thanks for letting us know. I'd better make a dash. Don't want to miss Misty being interviewed. See you guys later", he concluded, as he turned around and ran hastily in the direction of the conference room.

When he arrived the room was already full, so he - along with a few others - had to stand just outside the door and watch as best as he could from there. Clement started to fidget around, trying to get a good vantage point. Finally, he was able to get a half decent view of Misty, who was seated at a desk at the far end of the room, with Brock seated next to her, on Misty's right. The front rows were occupied by the media contingent, which consisted of a combination of photographers and journalists.

A short time later, the press conference was underway. The journalists mostly asked questions about the match, including their respective tactics and their 'feelings' throughout the battle, which Clement thought was quite lame. However, he admired the way Misty handled the questions, with such grace and composure. She noted that battling against Brock had felt natural because she knew him so well, and that although she had doubted a little when she was down to her final Pokémon, she had still felt confident she would be able to execute her plan and on that note, being familiar with Brock had come in handy because she knew his battling style so well, which made anticipating his moves easier.

"What do you have to say to that Brock?" One female journalist asked with curiosity.

"Well, I don't think there's really too much you can say to that", Brock answered, sounding agitated. "Obviously Misty and I do have a good understanding of one another, including battling strategy, so it kind of evens itself out. I think what was more significant was the type matchup, it gave Misty a great opportunity and she took it, and for that I say congratulations to her. Even though it's not easy to lose a final, if I couldn't be the winner, there aren't many people I'd rather see win the tournament than Misty."

Clement noted Brock's honest response. He had come to realise that Brock was someone who called things the way he saw them, but generally tried to do it in a respectful manner. He was also someone who demanded excellence from himself. This helped make some of Brock's behaviour on their journey so far a little clearer to him, although he still wished that their relationship could be better than it was at present.

After several more minutes of tedious questions, Clement decided to get a jump on the crowd and leave the conference just as Misty and Brock were about to give their respective answers to the final journalist's question. As he peered back over his shoulder, he noticed two guys a little older than him, who'd obviously had the same idea. Just when he was about to dismiss them, he was suddenly taken aback by a comment one of them made: "Hey, I think that blonde kid is Misty's boyfriend."

"Yeah, he is", the other answered in a somewhat distasteful tone.

"Wow", the first one replied. "I can't believe a babe like Misty is dating that nerd."

"Yeah", laughed the second. "But from what I gather, it's not really legit. I think she just wants people to think she's dating someone so that people stop asking questions and they happened to know each other through mutual friends and he's the right age, so I guess it made sense to use him to give herself some good pr."

"What do you mean stop asking questions? About what?" The first asked curiously.

"Well, rumour has it she'd been dating some girl from Alola. Another water trainer apparently."

"Misty! No way!"

"So rumour has it."

Clement began to feel dizzy, and suddenly didn't know if he was dreaming or awake. He hoped he was just having a really bad nightmare.

As he reached the end of the hallway, he took a quick glance over at the table where he'd been seated. After seeing it was still unoccupied, he made a dash for the exit which led out onto the balcony. He was in desperate need of some fresh air, as he felt his heart banging louder and louder in his chest.

Once there, he was surrounded by a small group of individuals, as he put his head in his hands and began moaning quite audibly, which didn't escape the notice of those around him. He needed someone to talk to, desperately. But who? All his friends had disappeared for the time being. He'd never felt more alone than he did at that moment and ironically enough, on a week which, until then, had been one of the best of his life up to that point. (*)

With Clement rushing off in a rather childlike manner to catch Misty and Brock's interview, May conceded internally that she was stuck with Jessie and James, although she didn't mind as much as she cared to admit. She had grown more curious about the unusual duo from Team Rocket. For example, what would make them want to join such an organisation in the first place? After all, they weren't the most likely villains. And why did they always stick together? Was it possible their feelings ran deeper than those of mere friendship?

The longer May talked with the pair, the more she started to realise that, despite her initial feelings to the contrary, their respective life paths had been far less a matter of their own choosing than she'd assumed. She was filled in on some of the sad events in their lives which only Ash, Brock and Misty had been aware of up until that point, such as James' disappointing upbringing and forced engagement to Jezzebel; him and Jesse flunking at Pokémon tech, and of course Jesse losing her mother tragically as a little girl, followed by a string of career failures and other disappointments before she and James decided to join Team Rocket.

"Oh, wow. I had no idea about any of that", May spoke sincerely, once they'd finished their collective anecdote. "That stuff must've been really hard, especially for you Jessie."

"Yes, it was", she replied in a somber tone. "And sometimes it still is", as tears began to fill her eyes. "But onward and upward as they say. You've just got to take what you're given and make something of your life, even if it is with an evil criminal organisation." May wasn't completely sure if she was joking about that last part.

"She's right you know", James chimed in.

"Take you for example", Jesse continued, looking at May intently. "You're not quite as glamorous as some of your friends."

"What do you mean by that?" May snapped.

"Oh, please don't get me wrong. I didn't mean any offence", she answered sincerely. You're a very sweet young lady. I just meant to say...well take the twerp, I mean, Ash's girlfriend, she's extremely beautiful and charming. And the black haired girl from Sinnoh, she's absolutely dazzling and so bubbly too. And the redhead, well just look at how energetic she is and how she lights up a room. And then there's you: you're...well...I suppose I'd say the all rounder. You're just a normal, cute girl. In some ways you remind me of myself but I never wanted to admit that there were other girls prettier or more talented than me, I was too proud. Sometimes I think I would've done better in life if I'd accepted my weaknesses and owned who I was. Besides, I think being an all rounder had its advantages."

"She's right you know", James noted. "That's why Jessie and I always get these special missions at work that none of the other employees get." A comment which drew an incredulous look from Jessie.

May really didn't like what she'd just been told. Part of her conceded that Jessie's comments might have been at least partially accurate but she couldn't bring herself to accept that possibility at present, not after the horrible and humiliating experience she'd gone through before starting out on this latest journey, let alone everything that had happened since. It was such an awful experience that she hadn't even plucked up the courage to tell Drew about it yet. She'd tried to avoid remembering at all costs. But Jessie's put down had brought all of those events flooding back. And she wasn't happy: "Jessie, there's one thing I can assure you of, you and I are nothing alike. You're the one who needs to stop living in a dream world", she concluded defiantly, as she turned away and began storming off in the direction of the balcony, tears beginning to pour from her eyes.

"May!" Jessie cried. "I didn't mean to make you upset. May, May!" She continued to shout but May wasn't in any mood, she would've felt too humiliated to face her again anyway. Like Clement only moments before her, she was much in need of some fresh air and personal space in which to drown her sorrows.

Once she stepped onto the balcony, to her surprise she saw Clement, who's body language suggested he was upset about something too.

"Hey", she introduced herself to the sweet blonde haired boy for the second time that evening, once again placing her hand on his shoulder, "what's up?"

"Oh, hey May", he answered soberly. "I'm ok thanks, I just overhead something I wish I hadn't."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Was it something to do with Misty?" He nodded like a wounded puppy.

"Yes, but I don't really feel comfortable talking about it, and I don't even know if it's true but I'm too afraid to ask Misty. She might not appreciate it."

"Well, I don't know exactly what the circumstances are. But what I can say is I've watched you and Misty together and you guys seem so natural as a couple, and trust me Clement, her feelings are genuine. If what you heard really bothers you that much, then you should trust her enough to ask. Every relationship inevitably involves uncomfortable conversations from time to time, so buck up mister. That would be my advice to you", she finished, before smiling warmly at Clement. He smiled back in return before taking a moment to contemplate May's words.

"Ok", he agreed. "I think I will ask."

"Great."

It was then that Clement began to notice there were tears in May's eyes. It hadn't been obvious up until that point because of the darkness.

"Hey, is everything ok with you May?" He asked kindly. May began to shake her head.

"No, not really", she responded, as tears began to fill her blue eyes once more. "I...I went through something really bad not long before I met up with you guys, but it's so horrible thinking about it that I tried to just forget about it but it still makes me depressed sometimes and I think I really need to talk to someone." She was beginning to cry louder and louder, as she began to break down, no longer able to contain herself. "I thought I was getting over it but I'm not. What he did was horrible, he had no right to do what he did, and I thought that he was happy with me. The stupid, pretentious jerk!"May was now having a full blown meltdown in front of Clement and the others who were present on the balcony. Clement grabbed her, wrapping her in his arms. She continued to sob audibly for a considerable period of time, before finally beginning to compose herself. Clement found the situation incredibly awkward but he also felt genuinely sorry for May. So much so that he even forgot about his own problems for a moment.

"Oh May, I'm so sorry."

"Thank you Clement", she sobbed. "I'm sorry to embarrass you like this."

"You don't have anything to be ashamed of."

Clement continued to hug May for a short time before he spoke again: "hey, you remember what you told me just before", she nodded.

"Well, I think maybe now would be a good time to follow your own advice", he noted, before suddenly pointing over May's shoulder. She turned around to the sight of a figure standing in the doorway. He was around her height and had green hair: "Drew", she exclaimed. "Where'd you get to?"

"I was watching the press conference of course. What's going on here?" He asked, sounding worried.

"Well, you've probably figured it out by now. But, um", hesitating as she tapped her fingers together, "I've been keeping something from you. Could we talk somewhere in private?"

"Of course sweetie", he answered kindly. He then took her by the hand as the pair walked off together, but not before May turned around to thank Clement for his help.

Shortly after all of that drama, the remainder of the group - along with most of the remaining patrons - returned to their tables to watch the traditional finalists' dance, featuring Misty and Brock. The dance was a fairly standard timed routine, with each following the other's moves. They both danced with composure, with Brock getting overly enthusiastic at the end of the routine, as he passionately grabbed Misty and began to lean in, momentarily looking like he was going to kiss her before wisely pulling out at the last moment. Sara and Clement exchanged annoyed glances but most of the others just thought it was funny.

"What can you say", Dawn giggled, "that's our Brock."

"Yeah, he sure is Dawn", Ash replied with a smirk on his face, trying his hardest not to laugh. "The one and only." (*)

The following morning Ash was feeling tired. However, he kept hearing Pickachu whining so he finally forced himself out of bed. However, his Pokémon wouldn't stop whining, which made Ash curious: "what you still making noise for buddy? I'm getting up."

A short time later, Ash returned from the bathroom and Pickachu was still not letting up. In fact, it seemed to Ash that it was even more frantic than before. He also noticed that it was staring at the window. All of a sudden, he realised that Pickachu's noises mightn't have had anything to do with him. He then nervously pulled back the curtains. At first he only noticed the overcast morning sky. However, he then looked down towards the street below and saw people running for their lives. Then, moments later, to his left he began to see the outline of a large grey object. It was maybe two miles away as far as Ash could tell.

For a moment he was confused but then the object began to come into clearer focus and all of a sudden, the light bulb went off, as he felt his heart banging against his chest, harder than it had ever banged before. They were back.