Ash woke to the sound of the airplane meeting the runway and was now in the Kalos region once more. He looked out the window and stared at nature before him. It was dark out, but could still see the lights of Lumiose city throughout the snow covered landscape.

"Wow, it's still an amazing sight to see, right Pikachu?" Ash spoke to his partner as he stood up from his seat and walked toward the exit.

"Pikachu!" Agreed the electrifying mouse.

Once he made it out, he felt at peace for a moment. He saw snowflakes with beautiful patterns falling gently down to the ground as he walked down the plane's staircase. The wind whistled as it blew around him. It made him shiver but he shook it off as he headed inside to call a taxi.

"Greetings Monarch!" Smirked the Corviknight taxi man. He was one of the few taxi men to travel to open Corviknight taxi services in Kalos that were originally from Galar.

"Hello sir, one way travel to the city of Lumiose please." Ash smiled as he went for his wallet in his dark blue long coat.

"Hey now, it'll be an honor to fly the world Monarch in my taxi" the taxi man laughed as he opened the door for Ash and Pikachu.

"Oh no I couldn-" Ash couldn't finish his sentence.

"I insist" the taxi man interrupted as his giant Corviknight looked at Ash with curiosity. Ash stared at the Corviknight thoughtfully until it bent down to his height letting him touch the steel tempered feathers. He couldn't feel the feathers directly as he was wearing his signature gloves with one of them having the keystone.

The taxi driver looked at the scenario with amusement. Seeing his Corviknight letting a stranger pet him was a rare sight to see as it didn't like strangers.

"Looks like my Corviknight likes ya." He chuckled. Ash kept on petting the steel armored bird and it started to coo with content.

"It seems so." Ash responded, he felt a gust of wind hit him causing him to shiver up more. The raven pokemon sensed him and flew up swiftly to grab the taxi cab.

"Well I say it's better to go into the cab instead of freezing out here?" The taxi man questioned as he got on Corviknight and looked at Ash. He smiled "There is no need to be humble, just hop in lad."

"If you insist" Ash gave in as he and Pikachu were freezing. The feeling inside was like a warm cabin room and Ash relaxed as he sat down in the cab.

"Alright Monarch, ready to fly?"

"Yes sir." Ash responded as he felt the cabin being lifted up in the air. He heard the flapping of twilight wings and looked out the window to see ground getting smaller every passing second.

"Next stop, Lumiose City!" Shouted the taxi driver.

It took about half an hour to finally see the snow covered buildings of Lumiose city and in Ash's eyes, it was a stunning sight to take in. He can see all the bright lights on every building and could also find decorations on many as well.

"Is there some kind of festival?" Ash questions the taxi man.

"Huh, oh yes there is one, I believe it's called the Lumiose Snow Festival" he paused. "It's about giving and spending time with your loved ones." He finished while fixing his goggles.

'Loved ones huh,' Ash suddenly remembered he won't see his mother for about a month. The thought brought his mood down a little but snapped out of it when Pikachu jumped on the head. He realized he wasn't alone at all as he had his best friend with him.

"Pika?" Worried Pikachu

Ash looked up to his pokemon "Don't worry buddy, I'm fine." Giving Pikachu a reassuring smile.

"Pika." Pikachu relaxed as he bounced off Ash's head to lay next to his lap. In the next few moments, the taxi cab started to descend to the city square.

"Alright Monarch, we made it to the heart of Lumiose City!" The Corviknight caretaker announced as the cab gently hit the ground. He hopped off his Corviknight and opened the cab's door for Ash and Pikachu. The electric type pokemon hopped out first and his trainer followed suit.

Ash looked at the taxi driver and grinned.

"Thank you very much."

The man smiled and gave a thumbs up.

"No problem Monarch, the honor was all mine."

Ash nodded and started to walk off toward the city's shops and restaurants.

"Oh, hey Ash?" Ash turned around to face the taxi man. Ash knew that his name was widely known across the world so it didn't take him by surprise.

"Don't get lost son, I had my share of champions getting lost throughout my time flying around with Corviknight." He laughed out loud with Ash mimicking him right after knowing fully well who he was talking about.

"I won't sir and thank you again!" Ash waved and started to take his stroll around the city to look around and explore. He knew he was supposed to be at Lumiose tower soon but that didn't stop him from having fun.

He continued to walk to see the city back to its former glory before the whole team flare incident. That was a memory he wished wouldn't come back every now and then as it brought some bad feelings but it was as important as it helped him become the person he was today.

He saw fashion shops filled with dresses, suits, and many accessories. He looked at one dress and stared for a minute.

"Serena would love this dress." He thought as he picked it out as he planned to buy it as a gift. As soon as he saw the price he froze a bit but immediately relaxed as he was basically rich now. He went up to the shop clerk to pay for it and once the clerk looked up he gasped.

"You're Ash Ketchum!" He practically shouted making Ash sweatdrop.

"Oh, yes I am, uh...can I buy this dress please?" He said wanting to go before a crowd could form around him.

"Oh yes, my apologies sir, let me get that for you." The clerk apologized as he grabbed the dress to take the price tag off.

"That'll be 96,000 Pokédollars sir."

Ash paid and packed the dress neatly in a gift box and put it in his backpack. He took off and began his small trip throughout the city getting souvenirs for his mother. He bought some cookies to eat and walked past a digital and electronics store with a huge group around it. He got close to see what the commotion was about only to find out it was a broadcast of a live interview on the many TVs on display. An interview with the famous Kalos Queen.

"Hello ladies and gentlemen, my name Lavana and I'll be your host for tonight." The hostess glimmed. She was young and had dark blue hair and was wearing a black suit dress.

"Today we have a special guest on our show so give it up to our Kalos Queen Serena!"

The crowd cheered as the Queen walked up the stage with grace. Ash felt his heart skip a beat when he saw her in a formal dress. It was a gray shaded long skirt that reached her just below her knees with black high socks meeting a pair of dark boots. She wore a long sleeved white buttoned up shirt with a black vest over it and a bright blue tie. She still had her short honey blonde hair but had a blue ribbon tied to it. Ash continues to watch the broadcast along with Pikachu.

"So Serena, how are you feeling about your showcase a week from now at the Lumiose Snow Festival?" Questioned Lavana and the camera then focused on Serena.

"Oh I'm feeling pretty confident because I know me and my pokemon will put out our very best like we always do." Serena smiled proudly.

Lavana hummed as she took a sip of her tea and asked "What makes it worth it? Like what does it feel like to perform in front of a wide audience?

Serena thought for a moment and finally answered. "When I perform I see many people smile and laugh, and when I realize I bring much needed joy to the world, that is what makes it all worth it."

Lavana smiled and asked another question, "I'll be going off script here Serena and you don't have to answer this but uh..why do you wear a blue ribbon everywhere you go?"

That question seemed to startle Serena a bit as she self-consciously touched the blue ribbon.

"O-oh...um..it's a gift from a very special person to me" Serena stuttered, feeling a bit warm.

The audience noticed this and started to gossip amongst each other.

"Does she have a lover?"

"I thought she was single?"

"Whoever she fell for is a lucky person."

The crowd continued to talk about the Kalos Queen's special person. Ash on the other hand almost choked on one of his cookies and started coughing. Ash was loud enough for the crowd to begin to circle around him. Ash finally stopped coughing and looked up to the crowd looking at him.

'Oh great I made a scene.' Ash internally cursed himself as now the people around him will recognize him almost immediately. And sure enough he was right as many took out their phones and started taking pictures and telling the world he was in Lumiose City.

'Maybe I should have gone to the tower instead.' Ash is already regretting his decision to explore the city. Leon was right about the fans. With that he started to run to the tower with Pikachu catching the crowd off guard and couldn't catch up to him as he was extremely fast.

The TV broadcast was still running and before Lavana could ask another question, another person in a suit came on stage to whisper something to her ear. The reaction of Lavana was filled with excitement.

"Ladies and Gentlemen." Lavana began as she looked at the camera with glee. "The World Monarch is in Lumiose City!"

Serena's eyes widened. If the World Monarch was here, that would also mean...

"Ash,"

"Is here..."

Serena smiled.