A/N: Once again, this chapter is unacceptably late. My apologies, laziness overtook me once again. ENJOY!
P.S.: At the rate of how much reviews each chapter gets every update, it looks like this story will be getting its 100th reviewer for this chapter. Who will it be?...
"You did it, Serena."
"All thanks to you."
"No, it wasn't me. You had it in you all along. I just...jump-started you, that was all."
"But if you hadn't, then I wouldn't have had it within me to bring down Adam. Save that forest, all of those Pokémon, from further destruction and dismay."
"Well...I guess..."
"...J-Jake?"
"Yes, Serena?"
"The thing you said to me, before I went back to the real world...I couldn't hear you, but think I was able to read your lips. I need to make sure. Wh-What did you mean when you wanted me to tell my mom that you said hi and that you were sorry? ...Did...Did you know my mom? And...what were you sorry for?..."
"Serena, I'm afraid I cannot enlighten you with the answers to those questions."
"But why?"
"It will only lead to pain and misery for perhaps the rest of your life."
"But my mom-"
"It's enough for her to bear. But...I can tell you this: yes, I knew your mom. I'll leave it at that."
"And...And you said that you loved me... What did that mean?..."
"..."
"Jake?"
"..."
"Jake?! What did you mean by that?"
"...Goodbye, Serena."
An explosion of the brightest of crimson overwhelmed all of her senses. She tried to scream out for help, but she couldn't. She heard a cackle in the distance...
Serena sat up on her bed, screaming as loud as she could, relieved that sound was finally emerging from her mouth. The cackling was still echoing in her ears...
"Serena!" a voice exclaimed distantly. "Serena, what's wrong?!"
The honey-haired Trainer stared into a pair of auburn eyes. All fear washed away from her in an instant as she realized how close these eyes were.
"Y-Yeah, I'm okay," she replied, trying to compose herself. "I just..." She looked away nervously. "Just had a bad dream, that was all."
Though she couldn't see it, Serena sensed a grin forming on Ash's face. Already did she feel relieved by her friend.
"Ah, don't worry, Serena," he said. "Everyone has bad dreams. There's no need to become worried about them. They're just bad dreams and nothing more."
"Yeah." Serena looked at Ash, whose face was now positioned inches farther from her. "Yeah, you're right, Ash. No need to get worried over a bad dream." Ash smiled at her in response, and she smiled back. Then, she looked out of the window and saw the moonlight creeping through it. "Oh, it's still nighttime."
"Yeah. Better get back to sleep. We don't want Clemont to wake up and see us all sleepy."
Serena could not help but giggle a little, then watch as Ash climbed into the lower bunk of the bunk-bed located on the other side of the room. He laid down on the bed, glanced at Serena to give her one last reassuring smile, and then closed his eyes, falling into slumber. He was surprising quiet in sleep right now; he'd usually make sleeping for her a bit complicated because of his snoring and his occasional mumbling, even if he was in a different tent.
The female Trainer took this time to lie down on the bed herself and look up to delve into her thoughts. Her view of the ceiling was obscured by the upper bunk of her own bunk-bed, and she could hear the calm and tranquil snores of Bonnie, who was occupying said level. Ever since the incident in the forest ended, the little girl had reverted back into her optimistic, happy-go-lucky, Dedenne-doting self, which was a bit of a relief, considering all she had been through.
Nurse Joy was able to put Clemont back into good health, but he was expected to regain consciousness in the next morning, hence Serena, Bonnie, and Ash all staying over at the Pokémon Center located further into the same vast forest that nearly burned down. However, Serena was unsure about doing so, since she knew that Adam, Floyd, Lloyd, and Nick were out there, somewhere nearby, no doubt plotting their scheme of retaliation.
And if there was one thing she could say about them, it was that they were definitely worse than that annoying Team Rocket that follows them around.
Adam's scream of pain and agony suddenly flashed across Serena's mind, and her eyes widened in concern. She didn't know what she exactly did to him, but it definitely sounded like it hurt. And she didn't know how to feel about it. One side of her felt that he deserved it; after all, he threatened all of her friends, all the while treating it like some sort of fun game. But another side felt guilty; the moment she heard his bloodcurdling scream of death, she felt a hint of pleasure and satisfaction, and it was definitely unlike her to revel in someone else's pain and misery, feeding off on it like a life source...
And...what if he died from that wound? She never killed anyone before, and even if it was in self-defense, she couldn't help but feel that she was not any better than him... No... She was way worse than him. He never killed anyone as far as she could tell. She did...and she felt some pleasure from it...
Serena knew she would experience a lot of obstacles that all Trainers were expected to encounter. But to do the unimaginable as a Trainer was NOT on her list. There was no way in a billion years that Serena Yates was an aggressive sadist! For all her life, she was upheld as a nice person! This was against her nature!
Serena closed her eyes, hoping to the high heavens that sleep would take her away and bring her into its euphoric comfort, relieving her of all her worries, but that tactic failed the moment she employed it. As a result, she spent the next half-hour tossing and turning, moaning as her haunted thoughts harassed her.
Finally, she couldn't take it anymore and jerked her eyes wide open. Staring blankly into the upper bunk for a couple of minutes, Serena then sat up on her bed and glanced across her shoulder to look at Ash, who was now fast asleep. Pikachu wasn't curled up on his lap as usual; he has been at the medical room after being inspected for smoke inhalation and battle injuries, and it had to spend the night there along with the other Pokémon...
Including Fennekin...
Instinctively, Serena got out of her bed and walked out of the group's quarters. Looking around, momentarily confused about where the medical room was (she had not been paying that much attention while being escorted into the Pokémon Center), she then walked to her right, down the hallway, where she was able to remember the room's location. Indeed, Serena found herself staring at the sign 'MEDICAL ROOM: CAUTION, RECUPERATING POKEMON!' in a few minutes.
Cautiously opening the door with a slight creak, Serena peeked inside the medical room, where she could see over a dozen Pokémon recovering from whatever brought them to the Center in the first place. It didn't take long for her to spot the large, puffy yellow ears of her Fennekin, sticking up from its bed.
After she looked over her shoulder to see if Nurse Joy or one of her Wigglytuff staff was there, Serena then silently wandered inside the medical room, tiptoeing past other resting beds, recognizing Ash's Froakie and Clemont's Chespin as she passed their own beds, to whom she briefly smiled at.
Upon reaching Fennekin's bed, she gently stroked its fur as the Fox Pokémon slept. Exhaling, Serena then moved her hand to one of its ears, stroking it as well.
"Oh, Fennekin," she said. "You did well back there. You really did."
Fennekin subconsciously grunted softly in response as it slightly shifted its position. Serena exhaled again as her eyes softened even more.
"I know you can't hear me right now, Fennekin. I'm pretty sure you're off in your own world, somewhere in your mind. But nevertheless, I just wanted to say..." Serena exhaled once again, the knot of pressure tightening within her chest. "I am so, so sorry. To tell you the truth, Fennekin...the only reason I picked you is because you, as a Pokémon, would give me further credit as a Trainer, so then it'd be a lot easier for Ash to notice me. I never, ever had any sort of intention of doing any kind of activity with you. I only meant for you to be my Pokémon so then it can enforce my excuse to travel with Ash. I would have chosen a Chespin or a Froakie for all I cared, but I only chose you because you were the cutest of the three starter Pokémon and I had a thing for cute Pokémon, so...yeah.
"But you know what? Ever since you saved me from that Vespiquen back then, I felt that we had some sort of connection. I had this feeling in my gut that we'd accomplish something together, as a team...as friends. But all of those feelings were overwhelmed by my desire to meet up with Ash again. I mean, I have very good reasoning to wanna meet up with him again; he saved me when I was little, when I was in a really deep hole, and I felt like I never had a chance to thank him, no matter how many times I actually did thank him. I feel like I owe him a debt, and I hoped that if I continue traveling with him, I eventually would.
"But...you have no idea how much my desire led to me neglecting you, Fennekin. I barely know you. I mean, the only things I know about you is one attack and you have this habit of grooming your fur so attentively. That's all I know. You have no idea how stumped I was when we were fighting that Delphox. It's a good thing the strategy I cooked up proved to be effective in the end. But...was that out of skill? Or just pure luck? What will happen to us once we battle again? Will my strategy help us out again like it did last time? Or will it fail on us miserably? And what happens if we lose? What happens if it's Adam we're fighting again?
"You have absolutely no idea, Fennekin, no idea of how I never cared at first. I was...I was just being selfish, so caught up in my personal desire. I just wanted Ash to notice me. I was never concerned at all about your feelings, your desires. I never cared about anyone else except me and Ash, and once I did care about someone else, it was too little, too late... Clemont, Bonnie...you got nearly killed by a group of madmen...and lots of other Pokémon too...just because I was too caught up in myself, too selfish... To think that all of you were so close to death because of one simple desire...
"And to make matters worse, I hurt someone. You didn't hurt him. I did. He may have deserved it, but...to think things have gotten THAT far..."
Serena closed her eyes, not realizing that she had been crying until she felt the tears on her cheeks upon making that physical movement.
"I'm sorry, Fennekin," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry, Bonnie. I'm so sorry, Clemont. I'm so sorry Ash. I am so, SO sorry, everyone. I've let you all down. I was being so selfish. I never had a care in the world aside from myself and Ash... Oh Arceus, what have I put myself into?!"
Serena collapsed to her knees, and she found her face at the same height as Fennekin on the bed. Her hand was still on its ear, but Serena barely noticed. Her lips trembled as she continued to stare into the sleeping Fox Pokémon, who was, without a doubt dreaming about its future as...whatever it wanted to be. How in Arceus's name would she know what Fennekin wanted to do in life? All she cared about was her future with Ash...who was just a simple schoolgirl crush...
She could hear the same cackling... She opened her eyes in response.
Even if her sight was blurred by her tears, Serena could recognize them. It was the third time she saw them today; she wondered if she had gone crazy.
The X-shaped markings were levitating loosely in the air at a corner of the room like spirits, the toothy grin accompanying them looking extremely hungry now... It seemed to be some sort of face, one that not even her worst nightmares could ever construct, one beyond her understanding.
Serena blinked, and the markings and the grin were all gone. She stood up abruptly, wondering where the strange spirit of a face had gone.
"Hello?" she called, feeling the fear rising up within her, extinguishing the knot of pressure previously there. "Is someone here?"
"Relax, Serena, it's just me," a familiar voice replied softly.
Serena twirled around and saw Ash stepping inside the medical room, his hands raised in caution. She couldn't help but blush and hope that the lighting in the room wasn't sufficient enough to fully illuminate her bright-red cheeks. She flashed a kind smile towards her friend.
"Oh, hey Ash," she greeted. "I see you're up."
"Yeah, sleep hasn't been friendly to me tonight."
"Why, what happened?"
Ash shrugged dismissively. "Oh, had a bad dream."
Serena was taken aback by his response. Of all the people she knew, Ash was the last on her list of people likely to have bad dreams. It was very surprising...
Ash seemed to know what she was thinking, as he chuckled and continued, "Well, I said everyone has bad dreams. Can't see why I have to be an exception."
"But-But you're so...so...uh..."
"Unlikely to have a bad dream?" completed Ash. He shrugged again. "Can't see why that has to be so."
"It's just that, well, you always just stand up to the face of fear and danger, and blow a raspberry at its face. You are the last person I could think of- no, you're not the kind of person I would expect to be bothered by something simple like a bad dream. You're...You're such a brave and courageous person, Ash..."
She could feel her blush rising, as well as the temperature in the room. The knot of pressure was back, and the strange face faded away from her memory.
"No one's perfect, Serena," Ash replied. His eyes then widened and he let out a soft chuckle.
"Why, what?" Serena asked, confused about her friend's attitude.
"Oh, it's nothing. I just remembered something that happened to me when I was challenging the Battle Frontier."
"Why, what happened?"
"Well, I was intending to challenge the Pyramid King Brandon when I heard from him that there was this orb that contained the spirit of Ho-Oh."
Serena's eyes widened. "No way, really?!"
"Well...that's what everyone thought. But when I went over to the orb to check it out, it turned out that..." Ash's expression darkened noticeably, which further intrigued Serena. "...the legend was wrong. Instead, the orb contained the spirit of a king who tried to capture Ho-Oh. And...I was possessed by that spirit..."
"Oh, no!" exclaimed Serena, covering her mouth with her hands in horror. "What happened?!"
The dark look in Ash's face disappeared, instead being replaced with his usual optimistic smile. "Oh, I had Pikachu use Thunderbolt on me during a brief moment of clarity, which forced the spirit to leave my body and back into the orb. But during my brief possession...I did things that I'd never, ever do..."
"Oh..." Serena placed a hand over her heart, shocked to hear this kind of information from Ash. "I suppose we should stay clear of that topic now-"
"No, it's okay," Ash interrupted, shrugging once again. "I have gotten past that occurrence a long time ago. But what I am trying to tell you from that example is that you can't judge anyone according to what they've done to you to deserve such judgment. I saved you back at the camp when we were young, and judging from what you were saying back then, and also right now, you seem to view me as some sort of perfect, flawless person. No one can be that perfect."
Serena's eyes widened again as she realized what Ash was implying. "You-You heard me?" she asked.
Ash nodded. "Every last word." He smiled. "Serena, if you feel that your debt to me is getting in the way of whatever dream you want to pursue with Fennekin, then you are free to leave us if you wish. Don't ever, ever let anything stand in the way of your dreams, including me."
One surprise after another. "Ash..." Serena whispered, but Ash still smiled.
"It's okay if you wanna leave, Serena," he said. "The only thing I hope for from that decision is that we meet each other again in the future."
"A-A-Ash..." stuttered Serena, unsure of what to decide. She could still feel the temperature rising in her; she was sweating...
"Well, if you can't decide right now, then you can certainly take your time, as much time as you need. It's not like I'm in a real rush to learn the answer."
Serena sighed in relief; it was definitely too much pressure for her to make such a decision. It was getting unbearably hot for her.
"Whoa, what's up with the air-conditioning of this room?" asked Ash as he started swatting air at himself.
"Huh?" For some reason, Serena could still feel the heat rising. She noticed that Ash was sweating too.
"It's really hot in here," Ash replied. "Maybe we should tell Nurse Joy to fix the air-conditioning-"
Just then, they heard a tired groan, and Serena glanced at Fennekin, who was now awake, exhausted, but at full alert. The two then looked around and were quick to notice the other Pokémon in the medical room waking up, one by one, some sniffing the air, others starting to get panicked.
"Pika?"
"Huh, Pikachu?" Ash glanced at Pikachu's bed, which was nearby. "What's wrong?"
Then, he noticed the Mouse Pokémon sniffing the air, and began to follow suit. His eyes widened, and he looked at Serena.
"Uh, Serena?"
"Y-Yeah?" replied Serena nervously as she felt more sweat forming. The heat really was rising in the room.
"Can you smell smoke?"
Before she could reply, she felt the scent fill up her nostrils as well, and she quickly nodded at Ash. Seconds later, the door to the medical room burst open, and the two Trainers watched as Nurse Joy and a Wigglytuff ran into the room, both stopping in their tracks upon spotting Serena and Ash.
"There's a fire at the Pokémon Center!" Joy exclaimed worriedly. "Get all the Pokémon out!"
"There's a fire?!" Serena and Ash shouted simultaneously.
"Yes, and it's getting stronger by the minute! We have to evacuate everyone in the Center!"
Just then, a fireball suddenly emerged and exploded through the doorway, engulfing it in flames. The familiar smell of burning wood flooded Serena's nostrils as she quickly grabbed Fennekin and sprinted over towards a corner, watching as Ash, Pikachu, Nurse Joy, and the Wigglytuff gathered up the remaining Pokémon while the fire continued to spread into the medical room. As she did, she could feel Fennekin struggle in her arms, growling angrily.
"What's wrong, Fennekin?" she asked, looking down at the Fox Pokémon. However, it continued to growl menacingly, failing to respond to its Trainer. She then noticed that it was staring directly at the doorway, as if there was some unseen force of menace standing there.
"Serena, we have to get outta here!" screamed Ash over the loud crackling of the flames.
"Quick, to that emergency exit!" Nurse Joy shouted, pointing to another door a few feet away from Serena.
"Right!" replied Serena. However, as she stood up, Fennekin suddenly hopped out of her arms and began dashing towards the burning doorway. "FENNEKIN!"
She watched in horror as the Fox Pokémon leaped into the flames, and prepared to go after it when she felt someone grab her arm.
"No, Serena!" Joy shouted, her voice barely audible over the flames. "It's too dangerous- NO, ASH!"
The two watched as Ash ran after Fennekin, edging his way through the fire using clear, unscathed areas. As soon as he disappeared in the thick mass of dark smoke, Serena immediately tore her arm free from Joy's grasp and ran after Ash, using the same route as he did to get through the hot fire. She could not even hear Joy's screams and cries of concern for both Trainers at that point, but she didn't care right now; all she cared about was getting to Fennekin and Ash.
"FENNEKIN?!" she screamed over the crackling of the fire. "ASH?! WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?!"
After several minutes of making her way through the flames, Serena found herself in the reception area, which appeared to be the point of origin for the fire, as it seemed to suffer the most damage out of all of the affected areas in the Pokémon Center. The fire was the strongest there, as was the heat. The Trainer felt her sweat drip down her face in hot beads, and she started coughing from the excessive smoke before covering her nose and mouth.
"FENNEKIN!" Serena screamed again between coughs. "ASH!"
She then suddenly heard Ash's voice in the distance, but she didn't know where it was coming from. A wooden beam from the ceiling suddenly fell a few inches from her feet, startling her for a brief moment. Then, she glanced towards the reception desk and spotted the loudspeaker system, which fortunately remained unaffected by the fire. Making her way to the desk, she grabbed the microphone, activated the intercom, and began speaking.
"Fennekin, Ash?" she asked between coughs. "It's Serena! I am at the reception area! Please come back to me! I-I don't know if I can stand all of this smoke-" She was cut short when pieces of flaming wood fell behind her, barely missing her; she squealed in horror. "Please come back to me, please!"
Serena then switched off the intercom and fled the reception desk, just in time to avoid more falling wood and debris as it buried the desk.
"Oh my Arceus!" exclaimed Serena in shock as she nearly ran into a new wall of flames while trying to get back into the medical room. She then tried to get her way through the fire, but quickly realized that she was now barred from reentering the medical room. "Oh no, oh no, oh NO!"
She then ran back into the reception area, only to find the main entrance blocked by a large pile of flaming debris.
"Oh NO!" she moaned. "How am I supposed to get outta here?!"
She then started coughing severely, and as she did so, the Trainer stepped back...and tripped on a wooden beam.
Within seconds, Serena found herself staring at the ceiling as the fire began to spread across it like snakes. She then moved over on her stomach and began to crawl across the floor, still coughing, trying to savor what fresh air was emanating from the floor. It was all too much for her; her world was spinning and fading.
"Gotta...get...outta here..." she moaned.
"I don't think so, little Serena," a familiar voice snarled.
Looking up slightly, Serena found herself staring at a pair of boots. She then looked up slowly, her world continuing to fade.
She barely recognized the neatly-combed, wavy green hair with golden streaks right before she fell unconscious...
A/N: I guess you know who that unknown person was at the end. And...any ideas as to what could be up with that strange face with the X-shaped markings? I'm honestly surprised no one actually seemed to notice it, since that strange face DID appear twice earlier. Hopefully your guesses are good, guys... ;D
I'd like to thank the following for reviewing:
PurimPopoie: I am SO GLAD you loved the battle! There's only so much one can do with one Pokémon that only knows one attack, so it was kinda difficult to try and figure out how I can take advantage of such a scenario. I actually made most of it up as I went along. :P
vanilla869: I previously mentioned a final total of 11 chapters, but I have a feeling that'll be extended with one or two more as things go along.
Lord Zigzagquaza: Thanks, and I shall indeed keep it up! :D
Fireminer: I'll try, but I don't see how I can do that; my writing style mostly depends on the action when it comes to these moments.
Guest reviewer: Actually, it wasn't Clemont who called them; it'd be too convenient if that were actually to happen. As for Ash's Pokémon...yeah, can't.
JZuCuadra: Ooh, it WASN'T Floyd who called the police, I'll tell you that! :O
K9wolf369: Sorry if this chapter was lacking in revenge, but the next chapter will make up for that. :)
chuzzelpuff: Here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoyed. :)
poBBpC: Thanks, and here's the next chapter.
EchoNight99: Maybe you're obsessed with this story because I'm AWESOME? Nah, just kidding, I'm betting it's the premise that reeled you in.
BlueLightningXD: Oh, you'll see about Adam's Aggron...
white tiger freak: Thanks!
Rewile: Like I said in my PM, TR isn't appearing in the story.
Jesus (guest reviewer): Thanks for the review! I'm glad you're liking this story!
taeuknam: No, it WASN'T Floyd! :O
The Storyteller and his Books: Thanks! :D
Guest reviewer: Yes, yes he is...
Can't wait to see who my potential 100th reviewer will be for this story! I'm really on a roll with this! :D
Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!