AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hi again, and thanks for your continued support of the story! I ended up writing most of this chapter while sick with a sinus infection, and was working through a migraine, so hopefully it didn't turn out too badly.

CHAPTER 6
Words Left Unspoken!

Over the next several days, Ash paid more attention to Clemont than ever before. He watched the way he paused to take deep breaths after walking fast; the way he ruffled Bonnie's hair when she smiled at him; the way he hummed his favorite songs while cooking. Everything he did was balanced with such grace and care, he looked almost fragile. His favorite time to watch Clemont, though, was when he was working on his inventions. Whether he was in their bedroom, the living room, or up in his workshop, he always had the same focused expression on his face, and during the times Ash watched him, he had to admit that science was not the only amazing thing happening there.

"What'cha thinking about?" Bonnie asked him on one such occasion, inserting herself in his line of vision. He tried to peer around her to keep his eyes on Clemont, but she only moved to block his view more. "Hello, Earth to Ash!" she sang.

"Oh, sorry Bonnie," Ash said. "Didn't see you there."

She raised her eyebrows at him, obviously not believing him. "There's a phone call for you," she informed him. "Some lady named Jessilyn. Is she a client?"

"No," Ash said, not remembering speaking to anyone with that name before. "What does she want?"

"To schedule a training session with you, obviously," Bonnie said, crossing her arms in annoyance as she waited for a response. "Well? Are you going to take the call, or should I tell her you're busy?"

Ash took one last wistful look at Clemont, who seemed unaware of their conversation and was muttering to himself as he sorted through various screws laying in front of him, and got up from his comfortable spot on the couch. "I'll just take the call now," he told her. "I could always use more clients."

The large standing call screen was only a short walk away, sitting adjacent to the living room. Originally installed for outgoing calls only, they had eventually installed multiple phone lines so that Clemont and Ash could both accept calls for their respective businesses, as well as a line for friends and family to use. While Ash had been against it at first, he found that he really enjoyed not having to go to the Pokemon Center every day to keep track of his clients and their schedule, and he also liked that it let him call his mother and Professor Oak whenever he pleased.

As he approached the screen, he noticed that there was not one person, but three, crowded in front of whichever phone they were using. He assumed the lady in front was the 'Jessilyn' Bonnie had mentioned, and it looked like perhaps her husband and child were also standing with her.

"Hi, I'm Ash," he introduced himself, lifting the earpiece up to take the phone off speaker.

"Well, finally!" the lady said impatiently, then coughed delicately. "Uh, er, I mean, hello!"

"Gee, I'm sorry for keeping you waiting," Ash apologized, sensing that the woman was already angry with him before he had even done anything.

"Oh, absolutely no trouble at all!" She forced a giggle, and her oversized sun hat started slipping down over her eyes, revealing reddish hair tucked behind her ears and presumably tied into a ponytail. "I hear you're a very popular trainer around these parts."

"I sure am!" Ash flashed her his signature thumbs up. "I've had a lot of clients over the past year. Most of them like me to help with training their Pokemon - but I've done some teaching too, and some people just want to battle me! I feel kind of bad charging for the battles, though. Those are really just for fun!" He grinned at them.

"Don't you have a Pikachu?" the lady asked suddenly, leaning forward and peer at him over the top of her sunglasses. Ash privately wondered why she felt the need to cover her face and head so, when it was obvious she was standing indoors.

"Yeah, Pikachu is my Pokemon partner!" Ash said proudly. "He comes with me everywhere. Well...except to the phone, I guess," he stated sheepishly, looking around and realizing Pikachu had not accompanied him.

"Everywhere?" prompted the man. "Like, say, to lessons?"

"Sure!" Ash said, nodding. "It would be kind of hard to train people without having my own Pokemon to help out. But I mean, if you don't want him there, I don't have to -"

"No, no!" The man waved his arms frantically in what Ash guessed was an attempt to apologize. "Please, bring him. We think Pikachus are just the greatest! We just have to have them there!" He left out a disgruntled sound as the woman elbowed him not-so-discreetly, and immediately stopped talking, alternating between glaring at her and smiling at Ash.

"So, ah...I'm not sure which of your...services...would be the most helpful for us." The lady batted her eyelashes at him, and Ash resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. "Which of these is the most...uh..."

"Free!" the child said, in a very un-child-like voice, before both of the adults clamped their hands over his mouth.

"Don't pay any attention to him," the man said, wincing as the child struggled against him. "He's just -"

"Misbehaving!" the woman interjected, and suddenly both her and the man pulled away, cradling their arms as if they had been injured. "Bad, bad Meo- err, I mean Miles!"

"Miles?" the child muttered under his breath, looking upset. But he crossed his arms and did not say anything else, at least anything else that Ash could hear.

Ash scratched his head in confusion. These characters seemed almost familiar, somehow. But where would he have met them before? He was sure he would have remembered a trio so mismatched. "I also do free consultations," he offered, wondering if money was an issue for them. They would not be the first clients he had who were unable or unwilling to pay.

"Ooh, a free consultation!" the man exclaimed, as if Ash had handed him a candy bar. "We'll take one of those, please!"

"Jame...err...Jay!" the woman screeched, and Ash wondered for a second if she was about to hit him with her oversized shoulder bag. But one second later, the trio had huddled together, whispered bits of conversation floating through the phone. And then, as quickly as they had joined together they had separated, all beaming at him.

In general, Ash did not turn down clients. Even ones who opted for a consultation first typically came through in the end, scheduling a follow up and sometimes even becoming a regular client. But the trios obsession with Pikachu made him a little nervous, and he could tell that these were the types of people who had no intention of ever paying. So he did what he did to all clients he didn't want to work with - he made himself unavailable.

"I think it's really awesome you guys want to do the consultation first," Ash lied to them, giving them his best smile. "I have an opening...here, let's see..." he turned around, grabbing the first book-like thing he happened to see so he could flip through its pages, which turned out to be a collection of recipes. "Ah! Here we go. October 31, around 8:00pm."

"But...but that's Halloween…" the woman said blankly.

"I'm sorry," Ash apologized quickly. "Is that an important holiday to you? We can find something else...let's see...how about February 20?"

"That's...next year…" the man pointed out, looking a bit dazed.

"My schedule fills up quickly," Ash explained. "So February 20, how about it?"

"Why, you little -" the woman burst out, and had to be held back by her companions. "We can't wait that long! We demand to be seen now!"

"Sorry to hear it won't work out," Ash said brightly, very glad that he had decided not to accommodate them. "Call me if you change your mind?"

With a short click, he hung up the phone, breathing a huge sigh of relief once the screen had gone dark. "Aw, man," Ash lamented as he looked at the time. "Those weirdos made me late!"

He hurried back to the living room, laughing as he saw Pikachu holding up a wrench for Clemont. "Not that one," he was saying, as the electric type shifted from side to side uncomfortably. "Just the next size down...yes! Perfect! Thanks, Pikachu." He gave the mouse a pat on the head before taking the wrench from him, tightening the bolts on the equipment in front of him.

"Having fun?" Ash asked, and the pair looked at him, not sure which one he was talking to. "Come on, Pikachu. We've got work to do!"

"Late again, I see." Ash's most difficult client, Sable, was staring at him with an unreadable expression. "This seems to be a habit with you."

"It's not intentional, I swear!" Ash held his hands up defensively. "...but it does happen to me a lot." He hung his head in defeat, feeling rather down about his poor grasp on time.

"At least you're honest," the girl said critically, and she tossed her unusually dark blue hair over her shoulder. She paused a moment, then said "I'm waiting," tapping her foot on the ground impatiently.

"Right!" Ash said, perking up almost immediately. "Today, we're going to learn about Pokemon type matches! I thought we could start off the lesson with two different types: Grass and Fairy."

Sable glared at him. "I want to learn about Flying types."

"Okay," Ash said agreeably. "What strengths and weaknesses do Flying types have?"

"They're strong against Bug, Fighting, and Grass Pokemon," she stated proudly. "And weak against Electric and Rock Pokemon. Ice and Steel, too. Oh, and Ground moves don't have any effect on them!"

"Good job," Ash smiled at her. "You remembered everything! And that's why we're not covering Flying types today. You already know everything about the match-ups, so it won't help you."

The girl stared at him, disbelieving. "But..."

"No buts," Ash said. "Tell me the same information, only for Grass."

"Uh...they're weak against Fire," Sable said, after a moment. "And strong against Water."

Ash raised his eyebrows. He knew that there were several types missing from the list, but didn't press her on the Grass types any further. "And Fairy?" he prompted.

"They're the only type worth using against Dragon Pokemon." She tossed her hair back, giving him an even look. "They're also good against Dark and Fighting Pokemon. And...I think they're weak against Poison?"

This answer was more correct than her previous one, and Ash smiled encouragingly at her. "That was good, Sable. You know your Fairy Pokemon pretty well! But you still need some work on the Grass types. Do you know why we're starting with those two?" When Sable shook her head, Ash's smile only grew. "Those are Whimsicott's two types!"

"Whimsicott is useless," was Sable's immediate response, her expression going flat. "I can't believe you tricked me into thinking we were going to be learning about something interesting! If that's all you want to talk about, I'm out of here." She reached over to grab her purse, but stopped in surprise as Ash sat down beside her, getting in between her and her bag.

"I thought you wanted to be a trainer," he mused, stretching his arms out behind him. "You know what skill all great trainers share? The ability to work with what you have, no matter what it is. Did you know that's actually a requirement to enter some Pokemon leagues?" He watched Sable out of the corner of his eye, noticing she was still trying to figure out a way to get to her purse that didn't involve walking around his outstretched legs or reaching over his lap. "They give you a random assortment of Pokemon, and you have to battle your way into the league using the borrowed Pokemon. Partly it's to see if a Pokemon that doesn't belong with you will respect you enough as a trainer, but that isn't usually an issue. What trips people up is using Pokemon with types and moves they aren't familiar with. That's why you need to learn about everything - and the more you dislike a certain type or moveset, the harder you need to study it. That effort that you put into learning those things? It's the difference between a good trainer and a great trainer."

Sable looked down at her lap, considering this. She wanted to be great, not just good. But she also liked having things her way, and didn't like hearing that she might not be able to have both. "What if I don't want to enter the League?"

"Well, that's your own choice." Ash shrugged. "Lots of trainers aren't interested in the League. But that doesn't mean you don't need to study the things you don't like. What if your opponent is using a type you aren't familiar with? Even if you thought you had everything perfectly planned in battle, not knowing what move is up next could lose you the fight." He paused again, watching her think. "So what do you say? Are you going to let me teach you?"

"Yes," Sable responded quietly, her eyes shining with determination. "I want to learn."

"I'm glad." Ash smiled at her, making as if to get up, but then, as if he had remembered something, he turned to her thoughtfully. "There's just one thing, though."

"What?" Sable asked, impatient now that she had decided to go through with the lesson.

"Your attitude towards your Pokemon." Sable gaped at him. "'Useless' is a hurtful word. Did you know Pokemon can hear you when they're inside their Pokeballs? If you want to start working with me, then you owe Whimsicott an apology."

"It...it can hear me from inside there?" She gasped slightly, as if she had never considered before that Pokemon might still continue to have senses while within their Pokeballs..

"You bet!" Ash said, nodding. "I've never been inside a Pokeball, so I can't say for sure, but my partners always seem to know when I need them. I don't think they could do something like that without their hearing - and the strong bond we all have, of course," he said, turning to smile at Pikachu.

"Pika-pi!" the Mouse Pokemon said in agreement, hopping back up on Ash's shoulder. "Pika, pika pikachu," he scolded Sable, electricity crackling around his cheeks dangerously.

"What...what is he saying?" she asked, eyeing him nervously.

"Pikachu is just trying to tell you that apologizing is the right thing to do - and that he might give you more of a reason to be sorry if you don't do it," Ash explained. "You might not have chosen Whimsicott, but you have an obligation to it now."

Sable stared down at the ground, obviously thinking her way through something. When she finally lifted her head up, her expression had softened ever so slightly, and she asked, "May I have my bag?", in the politest tone Ash had ever heard her use.

"Sure," he said easily, standing up to once more give her access to her purse, feeling a bit disappointed. There were other ways he could have handled the situation, he supposed - but he had been so sure that she would listen to reason, and stay. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even notice her reach into her bag and pull out a Pokeball, tossing it in her hands a couple times.

"I'm sorry, Whimsicott," she said finally, her voice stiff and formal with the use of such unusual words for her. "I didn't pick you. But I guess you didn't have any more choice in the matter than I did. So let's try and make the best of it for now." She released the catch on the Pokeball, and Whimsicott came bounding out of it, looking pleased.

"Whim! Whimsicott!" it said happily, and ran forward to hug its trainer around the legs.

"Ugh!" Sable said. "I didn't say you could touch me!" The Windveiled Pokemon drew back, looking hurt, but then Sable leaned down. "I guess you can just this once," she said, giving it a rare smile. "How are you so good at this?" she asked Ash softly.

"Practice," he said, grinning at her. "And some personal experience. I once had a Pokemon partner I didn't get along with too, you know."

"Really?" she asked, surprised. "I'm not sure I can believe that!"

"It is true," Ash said with a laugh. "This was my very first Pokemon, and we didn't get along at all. He hadn't been my first choice for a partner - to be honest, I didn't even know he was a choice. So I wasn't prepared for how to battle with him, or anything. He was stubborn, he hated Pokeballs, and he hated me. I was just a kid," he said rather apologetically. "I got frustrated a lot easier than I should have. But we eventually overcame our differences, and became the best of friends. And truth be told, if I could do it all over again, I would do it the same way, because I just can't imagine life without him. Isn't that right, buddy?" He patted Pikachu on the head affectionately.

"But..." Sable stared at them in surprise. "That Pikachu can't be..."

"But he is," Ash insisted. "One and the same."

"Impossible!" she exclaimed, looking between the two of them. "You two seem inseparable!"

"We are...now," Ash said. "And one day, you might be the same way with Whimsicott."

Serena clutched a set of tickets tightly in her hand, a determined expression on her face. This was the moment she had been waiting for - or at least, the moment leading up to the moment she had been waiting for. After days of checking the mail constantly, the official invitation and tickets to the ball hosted by the Battle Chateau had finally arrived, and she couldn't wait to leave them for Ash. She knew she was taking a bit of risk, planning on just leaving them for Ash to find - after all, there was a good chance that he either wouldn't find them, or would ignore them if he did - but she had to try. Every scenario in which she gave him the tickets ended with him turning her down and trying to partner her off to someone else, just like last time. If he was already holding the tickets, though, she was sure it would turn out differently.

"Hello?" She knocked softly on the closed door of Ash and Clemont's shared bedroom, waiting for a response. "Clemont, are you there?" She knew that Ash had left for a lesson already; his schedule was written down in the kitchen for anyone to see. But she wasn't entirely sure if Clemont was here or not, since she had been been in her room for almost the entire day.

Placing her free hand on the doorknob, she twisted it, popping the door open. "Hello?" she called again, poking her head into the room and holding her breath as she looked around in anticipation. "Clemont?" After scanning the room, she sighed with relief. No one was there.

It was very unlike Serena to walk into people's rooms without permission, or do anything impolite in general. But this was a special occasion, and she wasn't planning on going into either Ash or Clemont's belongings while she was here. She was just going to look for an appropriate place to leave her tickets, and that was it.

She realized, though, as soon as she got past the threshold, that this might not be as easy a task as she had imagined. Frowning at the bits of broken machinery and scattered papers lying on the floor, she walked past the main area of the boys' bedroom and rounded the corner to where they actually slept.

If she had been leaving the tickets for Clemont, it would have been very easy to do so. His nightstand was completely clear, his bed was freshly made, and even his pillows had been covered with the electricity-themed pillow shams she had made for him last winter. If she were to tuck the tickets underneath the folded-over edge of his bedspread, he would certainly notice the ever-so-slightly out of place material and fix it, finding the tickets in the process.

Ash, on the other hand, did not seem to value cleanliness in quite the same way. The covers on his bed were completely pushed to the side, revealing last night's pajamas lying in a heap in the center of the bed. Not only was he not using pillow shams, but the pillowcases he did have on were twisted in such a way they appeared to not even properly fit on the pillow, and Serena couldn't help but shake her head at the uncomfortable-looking bedding.

"Oh, Ash," she sighed, bending over to pick up a book that was laying on the floor, turned upside down and spread open from what had obviously been a fall from his bed. "What am I ever going to do with you?"

"Serena?" She jumped at the unexpected voice, dropping the book back on the ground as she did so.

"Oh, hi, Clemont!" Serena giggled nervously, turning to face the door with one of her best smiles on her face. She clasped her hands behind her back and leaned towards him slightly, hoping she looked innocent.

It wasn't uncommon for Serena to stop by, but rarely did she do so without Ash present. He looked around with a slight frown, wondering if Ash had returned from his lesson already and he had somehow missed him on his way from the elevator to their room. He didn't think it was possible, but he did get rather absorbed in his inventions sometimes. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Oh, no," Serena said with a slight laugh. "I was just looking for something, but it's okay! I'll come back later!" She felt much too embarrassed to explain how she had planned to leave the tickets somewhere for Ash to find - especially since she now realized Clemont had an equal, or possibly even a better chance, of locating them first.

"Oh," Clemont said, visibly relaxing. Ash had probably borrowed something of hers and had failed to return it, something that seemed to happen all too often to those that knew him. "It's okay, you can stay!" After all, he had only decided a change of scenery was in order so he could work on a different invention, and he wouldn't mind the company. Serena had a much calmer demeanor than either Ash or Bonnie, so he wasn't as prone to making mistakes when she was the only one around. "You might want to check out the desk," he said, waving his free hand over in the direction of his mother's old writing desk. "It's supposed to be mine, but he uses it a lot." A lot more than I would like him to, he reflected silently.

"Thank you," Serena said, blushing. She wasn't really looking for anything - well, besides a place to hide the tickets she still clutched in her hand. But at the very least, she could make a show of looking around inside the desk drawers before saying she didn't find anything...and come to think of it, it had been a while since she saw The Ultimate Guide To Fire Moves, a book which she had loaned to Ash last month. "What are you working on?" She asked politely, making her way over to the desk. She had noticed that Clemont already seemed to be buried in an invention, despite having just gotten there.

"It's, uh...something to make me braver," he mumbled, looking at the floor with a blush and pushing his glasses further up on his face. That wasn't the exact function of the machine, but it was all he felt like sharing with anyone that asked.

"Something to make you a better trainer?" She asked, not hearing him properly. "But Clemont, you're already a great trainer! You don't need an invention for that." She giggled, reaching for yet another desk drawer; the one second from the bottom on the left.

Clemont looked up, confused by the miscommunication. "No, I..." he trailed off, looking at where she was reaching for next. "No!" He shouted, jumping up to reach her before she stuck her hands in the drawer. That particular one was his secret drawer. The one he normally kept locked. Except it wasn't locked, because last time he had looked through it he had been interrupted by Bonnie before he could lock it once more.

Too late. Serena's hands wrapped around the handle, pulling it open. A piece of paper, slightly crumpled in appearance from being shoved in the drawer with haste, fell out and onto the floor. He leapt forward, trying to pick it up before Serena saw it. But there was no way he could make it in time. He was still halfway across the room, and her hand had already reached down to pick it up.

"Clemont, I'm sorry!" She said, apologizing as she lifted it off the ground. "I didn't mean to..." she glanced unconsciously down at the paper as she made to hand it to him, and froze. Typically, she could look at personal items such as this without really seeing them. But Clemont had unusually neat handwriting, and Ash's name jumped out at her as it always did when she saw it written. And it was very hard to pretend that she hadn't seen anything when the words I think I love you were written next to it.

From the look on her face, Clemont knew that Serena had seen at least part of his letter. He made a desperate grab for it, snatching it out of her hand. "How much did you read?" he demanded nervously, folding the paper over and over, like he could make it disappear if he folded it small enough.

Serena looked down again at her now empty hand, flexing it once and putting it down at her side. Her face was still frozen in an expression of surprise and even slight horror, and she found herself unable to respond to his question.

"That much, huh," he said unhappily. "I guess my big secret is out." He laughed nervously, forcing his face into a smile that faded as he realized that Serena had not laughed with him, or smiled, or even stopped staring in shock. "Please don't tell him," he begged, though he already knew she wouldn't say anything.

Slowly, the shock on Serena's face turned into understanding, with a strange hint of sadness. Clemont watched the transformation, feeling relieved, when suddenly she snapped at him with anger. "How long?" she demanded. "How long have you felt this way?"

"A...a while, I guess..." The reaction had been totally unexpected, and he shied away from her as he scrambled to put his thoughts together.

"Did you love him when he challenged you for the Voltage Badge?" she pressed. "What about when he won the Kalos League? Did you want to be with him then?" She inhaled sharply, then continued. "Did you know how you felt when you asked us to move in with you?" Her mouth was set in a determined line, her eyes revealing how upset she was.

"I-it's not that easy, Serena…" he tried to explain. "I don't really know...I mean...I've always been fond of him...I just...this isn't very scientific," he said miserably, hanging his head with shame.

"Well maybe that's something you should have put a little more thought into before leaving your feelings written down in the open for someone to find!" She crossed her arms, sticking her head up in the air. If her head was up, the tears that were threatening to come out would not be able to fall.

"I didn't leave them written down out in the open, you opened the drawer and found them!" His hands curled into fists, growing uncharacteristically angry. He couldn't believe she was acting like the victim here, when it was his secret that was in jeopardy now.

"Hmph," she said, annoyed. "So I guess you want me to find a new place to live, to clear the path for you and him, is that it?" She knew that wasn't really the case, and that Clemont hadn't been thinking anything of the kind. But when she got upset, she made wild assumptions.

"Serena!" Clemont said, shocked at her reaction. "I would never ask you to do that! And why would you be in our way? I don't understand." He really didn't. There was nothing holding him and Ash back except...well, him. And Ash. He wasn't even sure that Ash felt that way about him. And he was way too nervous to ask.

"Because I like him too!" She practically shouted at him, clapping her hands over her mouth as she realized what she said, and how loudly she said it. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." she said over and over, shaking with emotion. "I can't do this right now." She walked out of the room, forgetting all about her original plan. She needed time to figure out how she felt about this.

Clemont sighed from behind her. He looked at the over-folded paper, slipping it back into the drawer and remembering to really lock it in there this time. Someday, he thought. Someday he would be brave enough to confess his feelings to Ash. But, like every other day, that day would not be today.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

This is a fairly long chapter, and my, uh, methods of reliably watching Pokemon are kind of gone at the moment, so I decided to leave off the Snapshot this time around. I'll probably only put them in with chapters that need the filler content, or if something is a particularly good match, from now on. Hopefully that's okay with everyone!

Stay tuned for Chapter 7, and thank you for reading / following / favoriting / reviewing!