Hey guys, chapter 2 is out! I wrote this before I posted the first one, 'cause I wanted to see if anyone actually liked it. Since I didn't get any really negative vibes, I'm officially continuing the story. I hope this is long enough, I know the first chapter was a little too brief. If not, let me know in the reviews. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: A Close Call

As the group continues on their walk to Laverre City, our heroes are relieved to see that they have finally made it out of the swamp.

"Ugh, I've got mud all over my shoes!" Serena disdainfully looked down at her mud-covered shoes. "And I think I can feel some mud in my hair too!" She removed her hat and started patting her head, trying to wipe the mud off.

Bonnie laughed. "You're so cute when you worry about you're appearance, Serena!" she said with a big smile.

Ash looked over at her and chuckled. Bonnie's right, he thought. He smiled as he continued walking.

After about 20 more minutes of walking, the usually chipper Bonnie seemed a little out of it for some reason; she was starting to drag her feet behind her as she walked. With an exhausted voice she said, "I'm tired, guys, can we take a break please?"

Clemont slowed down his walk as well. "You know, I think Bonnie is right. A nice little break doesn't sound half bad right now. What do you think, Ash?"

Ash was hesitant to answer because he really, really wanted to get to the city as soon as possible to battle the Fairy-type gym leader, Valerie. But his naturally caring personality put others in front of himself, so he replied, "Sure, Bonnie, we can stop for a little. But not too long, 'cause the sooner we get to the city, the better!" On his shoulder, Pikachu punched the air. "Pika!" he chimed in.

"That's a good idea. I could use a break, but it shouldn't be for too long. I've got many new ideas for some inventions I want to get started on," Clemont said as he sat down and opened up his backpack.

Serena didn't object to the idea either, as she was also physically fatigued. She had also been thinking deeply about many things. Her mind was scattered with thoughts – showcases, her Pokemon, possible costumes for her Pokemon, and of course, Ash. Primarily Ash.

Ash had a lot on his mind as well. As was customary, he was thinking 100% about Pokemon. He thought about which Pokemon he was gonna use against Valerie. This brought him back to the thought of Goodra, which made him sad that he couldn't use Goodra in another gym battle. Although, that thought diminished when he remembered that Goodra would've been next to useless against Fairy types.

Serena sat down next to a tree and glanced over at Ash, who was lying down and looking up into the clouds. She smiled. He's still just a Pokemon-crazed kid...but...I feel like he could be so much more with just a gentle nudge in the right direction... Serena sighed and looked down. But no one here would be able to help me...

Bonnie had fallen asleep, along with Dedenne, who was cuddled up against her. Clemont was busy tinkering around with various metal parts and wires. Serena still had mixed feelings about having them around. Sure, they were great fun and useful to have around. On top of that, they had become good friends. But as good-natured as the two siblings were, Serena felt like they were getting in the way of her relationship with Ash. Well, the fantasized relationship. Serena was working on making it a reality, but an oblivious Ash had yet to really notice any of the hints she'd blatantly thrown at him. Stop being so selfish, Serena. Ash isn't your property, she thought.

Suddenly, Dedenne's antennae perk up and small sparks fly from its cheeks. "Ne ne." The tiny electric mouse looked around frantically, clearly sensing something unusual.

Bonnie looked down. "What is it, Dedenne?"

In front of them, a large, black and white striped Pokemon suddenly came rushing out of the brush, its spiky white mane glowing slightly yellow with electricity.

"It's a Zebstrika!" Clemont exclaimed. "Wow, I've never seen one so up close before. Intriguing!"

"So cute!" Bonnie cried out, as she did whenever she saw any Pokemon.

Serena took out her Pokedex. "Zebstrika, the Thunderbolt Pokemon. When this ill-tempered Pokémon runs wild, it shoots lightning from its mane in all directions."

Ash looked at it closely and knit his eyebrows. "Uh, guys, this Zebstrika looks pretty angry. Look, its got sparks flying all around just like how the Pokedex says."

The Zebstrika stared them down for a few seconds, then suddenly burst forth into a sprint straight towards them. It angrily cried out and randomly let loose a few Discharge attacks.

"Uh-oh, watch out guys! Runnn!" Ash yelled, instinctively grabbing Serena's arm as he turned and ran with her. The group started running as fast as they could, with the enraged Zebstrika close behind.

"Dedenne, use Thunder Shock!" Bonnie cried out as she ran, hoping to buy them some time.

Clemont's eyes widened beneath his glasses. "No, Bonnie, don-!"

Too late. "De ne neee!" Dedenne released the best Thunder Shock it could muster straight at the angry Zebstrika.

Zebstrika, completely unfazed by the attack, roared and began to run faster, quickly catching up to the group. Clemont could feel the hairs on the back of his head rise from the electricity close behind him. Panicked, Clemont shouted, "Bonnie, Zebstrika can have the ability Motor Drive! That increases their speed when they get hit by an electric-type move. It turns out this one has it, 'cause now it's running faster!"

"Oops! Sorryyy!"

Ash took a quick look behind him. The Zebstrika was closing in quick. It was only a matter of seconds before it reached Clemont. "Quick, Pikachu, use Iron Tail!", he ordered. Pikachu leaped into the air, his tail glowing white. "Chuuuu-Pika!" He slammed his tail onto the Zebstrika's head with formidable power. He landed back onto his trainer's shoulder and they continued running.

Behind them, the Zebstrika slowed down a bit, but quickly recovered and started running at full speed again. This isn't good, Ash thought. He glanced at Serena, who was obviously running hard, but what was odd was that she seemed to be blushing at the same time. What the...why would she...never mind, I must be just seeing things.

Zebstrika had now caught up to Clemont, who was hit by a powerful Discharge attack. Bonnie, who was not much further ahead than Clemont, also got zapped. The two siblings cried out and collapsed to the ground.

Ash didn't have to look back to know that they had lost Clemont and Bonnie. He kept a firm grip on Serena's arm, pulling her along as they continued running. Sooner than he had expected, he could feel the sparks flying behind him as the Zebstrika closed in. Without thinking, Ash tackled Serena to the side and they rolled out of harm's way. The Zebstrika couldn't change direction quickly enough and ended up running straight into the swamp, getting its hooves stuck in some deep mud.

Ash opened his eyes. Serena lay on top of him. She opened her eyes and ended up staring face-to-face with Ash. They both blushed and Serena quickly got up, doing her best to brush the dirt off of her skirt. Ash got up with a look of concern on his face and asked, "You alright, Serena?"

Serena smiled that winning smile of hers and nodded. "Yeah, I'm totally fine, thanks to you!" Her cheeks turned a deeper shade of pink.

Ash rubbed beneath his nose with his index finger and nodded. "Great! Now, uh, let's go make sure the others are okay." He quickly turned and started running back the way they had ran.

Serena's smile slowly faded as she started to run after him. Another moment of alone time with Ash. Gone. And it only lasted like 10 seconds. She sighed and kept running.

Clemont and Bonnie had just gotten up when Ash and Serena got there. Bonnie was quicker than Clemont to recover, having been Nuzzled by Dedenne numerous times already. "Oh boy, that was a rough fall." Clemont adjusted his glasses, then cried out in shock. "Oh, no, my glasses, they're broken!" He walked around like a zombie, clearly disoriented.

"Well that's not good. Let's get you to Laverre City quick, so we can replace 'em!" Ash said.

"Sounds like a good ideaahhh!" Clemont said as he tripped and tumbled to the ground.

"Oh, you're so helpless sometimes, big brother!" Bonnie laughed and started walking.

"Bonnie, need I remind you about all the times I had to help you out?" Clemont replied, his voice sounding exasperated. "Alright, let's just go."

Ash glanced at Serena. No one had noticed, but he had blushed a little bit. He himself didn't really know why he did. Shaking it off, he just started walking. Gotta focus on my Pokemon, he thought. But unlike other occasions, his thoughts somehow kept trailing back to Serena. These moments were brief, but they were significant, because for the first time ever Ash's mind wasn't completely occupied with thoughts of Pokemon.

The group continued on their walk. After about half an hour, they finally reached Laverre City.

Well I hope this was more to your guys' liking. Thanks for all the advice and ideas! Hopefully this was long enough? Or should I still make it longer? Also, I'm still kind of confused about what you guys mean by paragraph writing, because most of the good fanfictions I've read have been formatted the way I'm currently writing (I wrote this second chapter before I even posted the first one, so I didn't feel like going back and changing it). Does it mean I should just start writing in straight up regular paragraphs from now on? Anyways, thanks and expect Chapter 3 in maybe a few hours!