Heeeeeeeeeey everyone!
*reviewers raises pitchforks and torches*
Yow. Talk about a warm reception. I know, i know, it took Amy fifty thousand years to actually updates this. And I'm sorry. Truly. I just REALLY got into updating other stories and my summer's been hectic as hell with things ranging from the birth of a cousin to the yearly bonfire to a heart attack in the family to being out of town and so on.
But now throw a celebration! Amy is back and updating The Reality of Serenity once more. Now I KNOW what all of you are waiting for. Could this be the chapter in which the truth is revealed?
Amy47101 does not own pokémon. All rights go to their owners.
o.0.o.0.o
The Adventure Saga
The Reality of Serenity
o.0.o.0.o
"Search it out, and find the way:
the point where we can all meet.
The point where we're all the same.
There it lies: the future we seek.
Start from there, and then we'll forge
a world where all can be free.
Free to dream, and free to smile.
Free to be who we will be.
Let's make sure we create...
A world of our hopes and dreams."
"I think that's enough, Seré. Feeling better now?"
"Yeah."
"Go back to sleep, okay? If another nightmare comes, remember that your big sister will always protect you."
"Okay, Mama."
o.0.o.0.o
"You so owe me, Seré." Calem muttered dejectedly as he held open the door to the café they were both in, having just eaten dinner.
Serena happily pranced through Lumiose in her newest outfit; a red pleated skirt with gray, thigh-high socks and a white shirt under a fancy blue vest with a red tie. Over her shoulder was a black strappy purse, on her feet were black bow shoes and on her head was a red fedora, the whole ensemble completed with a black metal star pin. To finish the look off, she pulled her hair into low pigtails.
"No I don't~." she sang out. "I only made you buy me one complete outfit when you owe me three~. You can pay off the rest of your debt when we get to the next town with a boutique."
Calem's mouth dropped.
"That outfit was crazy expensive!" he exclaimed. Serena shrugged.
"To bad~." she sang. Calem's mouth opened and closed similar to a Magikarp's, then he snapped his mouth closed ins a firm line.
"You're evil." he finally said.
"Yes. Yes I am." Serena grinned, looking over her shoulder. "But at least I look gorgeous while being evil." she turned to him. "And at least you look great too!"
Calem rolled his eyes, adjusting his two-tone red bag, bought in Cyllage City, over his shoulder. He now wore a black zip jacket over a white T-shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, with damaged jeans and a black fedora, a red feather accessory sticking out of the band. On his feet were average black sneakers.
"I do suppose I look rather spiffy, don't I?" Calem grinned, hand going to the brim of his hat. Serena covered her laugh with her hand.
"Seriously, Calem? Who says 'spiffy'?"
"A man who's got balls of bronze and swag of steel!" he announced as if he were a squire or something from a disney movie, catching a few odd glances from passing people. Serena rolled her eyes in return. She glanced up as street lamps flickered on.
"Looks like it's getting late. Maybe we should turn it in for the night." she said off handedly.
"I... actually had a better idea."
"Hm?"
He pointed to the Prism Tower in the center of the city, just down the street, where it sat, the dark windows seemingly sticking out against the city now lighting up for the night.
"They're gonna be lighting it up soon from the power outage. Wanna go see it together?"
Serena blinked, slowly thinking things over. Sounded like a pretty good end to a good day. They beat some bad guys, escaped a mob of reporters, managed to find a pokémon center. Then she had dragged him shopping to uphold his deal, which he hadn't complained to much about, considering the price and the amount he bought. Then they went to dinner, which she offered to pay for but he, yet again, paid. Now to see the lighting up of a famous landmark...
Waaaaaaaaait a minute...
The longer and longer she thought about this, the more it sounded like a d-d-d-d-d-d-d-da-!
Nope. She was just going to push that thought out of her mind right now. Not with Calem. No sirree.
"Yeah!" she grinned brightly. "I'm sure it'll be amazing!"
"Great!" Calem grinned, leading her to the square. Before she even knew it, she was being jostled about by people. They, apparently, all wanted to see the tower being lit up as well.
Calem's hand suddenly wrapped around hers. Her face began to heat up, but she forced it down. He was just a concerned friend who wanted to make sure he didn't loose her in a big, unfamiliar city at night. She blinked in surprise as his fingers suddenly intertwined with hers.
"C-C-Calem!" she exclaimed.
"Hey, I don't wanna loose you!" he exclaimed with a grin. The paused, just on the edge of the tower, still hand in hand.
"Okay, C-calem, you can l-l-let go n-now."
He turned to her with a small grin, leaning down to tell her something. He was close, really close, close as if he wanted to tell her something important. Once he was close to her ear, he spoke.
"Nope." he stated simply before standing up straight again. Serena blinked for a moment. That was it?
Why did he like teasing her so much?
"Oh! There they are!"
Calem and Serena turned, and saw Shauna with Trevor and Tierno behind her, grinning wildly as they tried to get through the crowd. Serena smiled, shaking her hand free and waving to them. She had never been so happy for the rest of their group to barge in on them. Hopefully her face wasn't to red...
"Hey you guys! Long time no see!" Shauna waved.
"You guys look so different, I almost didn't recognize you!" Tierno complimented.
"Thanks!" Serena grinned. "What're you doing out so late?"
"We were going to see the Prism Tower." Trevor stated.
"It's supposed to be a grand sight!" Tierno grinned.
"Anyways," Shauna grinned. "I ran after you two like crazy when I spotted you up ahead!"
"And dragged us behind." Trevor stated with a roll of his eyes. Shauna ignored that.
"Know what?" she continued excitedly. "The power's back on here in Lumiose City! Some really bad people were stealing electricity from the Kalos Power Plant… and then somebody came and stopped 'em! They say that they drove the bad people out and Leaf and Gary showed up and stopped the plant from exploding! No one knows who the brave trainers were who drove them out, but they must be awesome!" her arms stopped waving around excitedly as she told the tale. "Who do you think it was?"
"Who knows?" Calem asked with a shrug, shooting a barely noticeable wink at Serena.
"Well, I guess there's someone else out there as strong as you two, Seré and Cal!"
"This is good timing though, don't you think?" Tierno grinned. "All of us getting together. This is going to be like the fireworks."
"Maybe Trevor will become a Daddy again!" Calem grinned, nudging the redhead. Trevor shot him a glare and Shauna stayed uncharacteristically silent, humming something under her breath.
"Aren't you done yet?" the group turned and saw a little blond girl around six or seven, arms crossed and pouting at an older boy maybe fourteen with glasses.
"Not quite..." the boy said, turning back to some sort of circuit board and fiddling with a few things, a huge lamp sticking out of his backpack to provide him with light. "I just have to check on the lighting circuit here."
"Look! It's Clemont!" Shauna suddenly exclaimed. "He's Lumiose City's gym leader! He's also good at inventing things, and he makes all kinds of devices! That's his little sister, Bonnie. Those two are my friends!"
Calem nudged Serena. She blinked at him, then he nodded his head at Trevor, who was glaring at the bespectacled boy. She snickered under her hand.
"Oh, Shauna!" they turned back and saw Bonnie prancing over to them. "It's nice to see you again! Will you date my big brother?"
A moment of silence, then Calem let out a roar of laughter. Not at Bonnie though, but at Trevor, who looked like he was about ready to burst into flames from rage.
"Nice try Bonnie, but no." Shauna giggled. Bonnie pouted for a moment, then turned to Serena.
"Will you date my brother?"
"Hahahaha... no, she won't." Calem said with a forced grin. Bonnie blinked.
"Are you her boyfriend or something?"
"Yep." Calem grinned. Serena, Shauna, and Tierno gawked at him while Trevor continued his glare. Serena, for a brief moment of clarity over her embarrassed shock, wondered if he was even listening to what was gong on. Bonnie blinked.
"Boo." she sighed. "Are... you all here to see the tower? Of course you are!" she smiled. "Sorry, but could you wait a moment?" she jogged over to her brother. "C'mon, Clemont!"
"Are you two really boyfriend and girlfriend?" Tierno asked, pointing at them in shock.
"Of course!" Clame grinned, slinging an arm around her shoulder. "I'm a boy and her friend and she's a girl and my friend. Boyfriend, girlfriend!"
A moment of silence. Serena pursed her lips at the comment.
"Alright, everyone! Everything's ready!" Clemont announced, turning to the crowd holding a small remote. Shauna let out an excited squeal. "The future is now, thanks to science! Prism Tower lighting system..." he pressed a few buttons on the remote. "ACTIVATE!"
At that word, the tower lit up beautifully, shining light over the darkened town square. Some people, like herself, oohed and ahed while other people, like Shauna and Calem, started cheering like it was midnight on new-years-eve. Most were clapping.
"Excellent!" she heard Clemont shout. "My Prism Tower lighting system worked brilliantly, just like all my inventions!"
"Nothing ever changes with you, does it brother?" Bonnie asked with a shake of her head.
"I think you call this feeling being "entranced," right?" Shauna asked, admiration clear in her eyes. "Now, I have another great memory with you all of you! "
"I guess so." Serena smiled.
"Clemont's inventions sure are amazing, right?" Shauna beamed.
"Yeah, amazing." Trevor muttered bitterly. Shauna either didn't hear him, didn't catch his tone, or didn't care, as she kept talking.
"He gave me one to solve puzzles, but it always feels like a shame to use it, so I haven't yet."
There was a moment of silence before Calem let out a loud yawn.
"I'm heading to the pokémon center." he stated. "There's one close to here, right?"
"Yeah." Trevor said, pointing. "Right down the street."
"Thanks." he turned to Serena. "Ready to turn in, Seré?"
"Yeah." Serena said, glancing at the Clemont and Bonnie. "I'll challenge the gym tomorrow."
o.0.o.0.o
Serena rolled out of bed and groaned, wishing desperately that, perhaps, the call from Sycamore to invite her to breakfast was but a fleeting dream along with the linger lyrics of the lullaby in her head. But upon looking at the calls on her Halo Caster history, she realized that her wish was futile and there was Sycamore's call was there, recorded.
She inwardly groaned, falling back on her pillow. She was so tired...
"I should've waited till morning to write down those lyrics." she grumbled, recalling the dream that woke her around two in the morning. She was so excited about it that she didn't fall asleep for another hour and a half. Running a hand down her face, she attempted to shake off her sleep troubles and stood. She stepped into the bathroom, hoping a shower would wake her up a bit. Stepping out and wrapping a robe around herself, she let out her Braixen. The fox stared at her, cocking her head in confusion.
"Can you use Sunny Day?" Serena asked, pointing to her hair. "I have to go somewhere in a hurry." she said. It was a weak excuse, but good enough, it seemed. Braixen rolled her eyes, then summoned the move. A blast of heat fell over Serena, and in a few minutes, her hair was dry. She grinned. "Thanks, Braixen!" Braixen growled something, desperate to get back into her pokéball to continue sleeping. Serena rolled her eyes as she returned her starter. She was never much of a morning pokémon, anyways.
She quickly finished and quickly changing into the clothes Calem had bought her the previous night. Considering she only wore it for about an hour last night, she didn't see much of an issue with wearing it again. They even still smelled new!
Stretching her arms above her head, she let out a huge yawn as she pulled her hair into a ponytail. Slapping her hat on her head, she walked into the lobby and waved a good morning to nurse joy, then out the doors.
"Now which café did he want to meet me at...?" she wondered sleepily as she stared at the information hastily typed on the pokégear. "Lysandre Café... Why does that sound familiar?"
She rubbed her eyes, another rude yawn escaping her lips as she followed the map to the café. She never was much of a morning person to begin with, preferring to sleep until she decided she was bored with sleeping.
Finding the dark red café, she pulled open the door and saw Prof. Sycamore, Leaf, and a familiar face with odd, spiky orange hair.
"Yes, the test should be done by this afternoon. Stop being so impatient, little Leaf!" Sycamore grinned. Leaf's frown deepened. Sycamore grinned. "Ah, the girl of the hour! Come, Serena, take a seat!"
Serena blinked, a bit curious about what Leaf and the professor were discussing, but shrugged it off. Who was the other man? No way would she forget that hairdo. Leaf gave her a passing glance, then pulled up the hood on her shawl and walked out of the small café.
"Well, good morning Serena!" grinned Sycamore. "You remember Lysandre, right?"
"Lysandre..." she trailed off, blinking.
"I don't expect you to remember." Lysandre smiled. "We met earlier on in your journey, so I'm sure you've experienced many other thing outside of meeting me. Remember, in the professor's lab?"
"Faintly." Serena admitted honestly.
"I was just having a conversation with Lysandre about mega evolution." Sycamore said as they all took their seats again. A waitress quickly came and took drink orders, then walked away.
"I would like to congratulate you as well." Lysandre said, eyeing the bracelet on her wrist. "Mega evolution is something I, too, would like to be able to use one day." he paused.
"Thanks." Serena smiled. The waitress came back with their drinks, then took their food orders and walked away.
"You know, I've read once that only those who are descendants of true legends can wield the bond and the power to use mega evolution." Lysandre stated offhandedly. "Knowing this, Serena, do you think that it's merely coincidental that you're wielding that keystone right now?"
"I... never really thought about it, to be honest." Serena shrugged. "All I know is that I fight with all my heart and soul, and somehow, we come out with a win."
"'We'." Lysandre mused. "How many trainers would have said 'I', I wonder, not acknowledging their pokémon's hard work and dedication?"
Serena simply shrugged.
"Actually, Lysandre himself is of royal ancestry..." Sycamore stated. "He truly is a chosen one."
"Really?" Serena asked, turning to look at him.
"True. I'm a descendant of the king's younger brother." Serena blinked in surprise. "That being said," Lysandre said, shrugging. "That story is 3,000 years old, so it might not be entirely reliable."
A pause as the waitress returned with their food. Serena marveled at the quickness, but realized they were literally the only three people in the café, plus at an early hour.
"Anyways, Serena, do you know where the Halo Castor is made?" Sycamore asked.
"No, I don't, actually." she said, glancing at the device hanging dutifully off her new purse.
"They're made in the Lysandre Lab's." Sycamore said. "Lysandre is a great man. He supports Trainers and Pokémon research with some of the profit from the Holo Caster."
"Really?" Serena asked, turning to look at Lysandre, who had all but fallen silent. "That's amazing!"
"People can be divided into two groups. Those who give... And those who take... It's just as how the Kalos region's two Legendary Pokémon gave life and took life." Lysandre finally spoke. "I want to be the kind of person who gives... But in this world, some foolish humans exist who would show their strength by taking what isn't theirs." he scowled into his food. "Team Rocket, the Masked Rockets, Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Galactic, Team Plasma..." he suddenly slammed his fists into the table, causing Serena to jump slightly in her seat. "They're filth!"
A pause. The waitress worriedly stared at them for a moment before returning to her usual duties.
"Long, long ago, the king of Kalos sought to take everything for his own, and he created a terrible weapon." he said. "Then the fire of destruction was unleashed... That is the legend that has been passed down."
"That's... That's horrible."
"So you agree." he stated, staring at his food. "What the king of Kalos did was reprehensible, but... The ultimate weapon did manage to wash the world clean of that era's filth."
"But... But they were still people and pokémon!" Serena exclaimed, suddenly feeling defensive. "Just because they made mistakes does not mean that they should be wiped from the earth!"
"But they were flawed! They corrupted the region!"
"But if it weren't for that corruption, then we wouldn't know the results or the aftermath of this ultimate weapon. If it weren't for trial and error, we wouldn't know how to solve our problems."
"Kalos is beautiful right now!" Lysandre suddenly exclaimed. "There will be no foolish actions if the number of people and Pokémon do not increase. That being said," he pushed his chair back, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet. "The future isn't decided. You can't be sure each day will be like the one before."
"But you can be sure to try your hardest to make it better." Serena muttered. She could feel his gaze on her, before he left some money on the table to pay for the meal and walked out of the café.
"What a passionate person." Sycamore sighed. Serena blinked at him. Honestly, the little speech Lysandre gave freaked her out. "He's just like a blazing flame. Perhaps his pride in his lineage is what makes him burn so intensely." he grinned, pointing his fork at her. "That being said, what Lysandre says is only one way to looking at things... It's not necessarily the truth."
"Of course it isn't." Serena rolled her eyes. "It's a matter of opinion on how you look at different situations."
"Yes!" Sycamore smiled. "But what's truly important is the time you spend together with others! Treasure these moments spent traveling the Kalos region with your Pokémon!"
Serena rolled her eyes.
"Of course, professor."
A pause. Sycamore began humming a familiar tune. She blinked.
o.0.o.0.o
"...In our brief lives,
we've managed to meet.
Treasure this gift,
this precious time that we have.
In our brief lives,
we've managed to meet.
Treasure this gift,
this precious time that we have..."
"Flora?" Serena blinked as she heard a male voice. It was definitely a man and it sound familiar, but it wasn't the man from her earlier dreams. "How's the petite princesse?"
"Stubborn. Won't go to sleep for the life of her."
"Have you tried the lullaby?"
"I just finished the third time singing it."
"Do you want me to try?"
"Don't strain an eardrum when she starts wailing." the woman, Flora, said, passing her off to him. A small chuckle echoed throughout the room.
"Hey, little Serenity. Il est de votre oncle Augustine." another chuckled. "You don't know french yet, do you, petite princesse?"
Then a very familiar humming echoed throughout the room.
o.0.o.0.o
"Hey, Prof. Sycamore." Serena murmured, just realizing she was tightly gripping the edge of her seat as she broke out of the flahsback.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"You still have that old piano, right?"
o.0.o.0.o
Serena stared at the keys on the keyboard, trying to not to pay attention to the fact that literally a small audience had gathered in the room. All of her friends had gathered around, as well as Sina and Dexio, along with Fire, Dayna, and Gary. Leaf was standing next to Gary, looking rather annoyed, like she had something much more important while Prof. Sycamore kept trying to cheer his niece up.
Sighing, she stretched her fingers and began playing the tune to the song she had been remembering in dreams. A few piano notes, soft, then growing a bit. Then...
"You and I were born
right here in the same world.
For this one brief life,
we're beneath the same sky.
The great flow of time.
The wide expanse of space.
We are lucky enough
to share this lifetime we get."
Her voice quickened and the music softened on the next verse.
"We can gain more if we give.
By taking, we only lose.
Let us make this a new age
where we show our gratitude."
The music picked up again and her voice rose a bit.
"There's a fragile bud of hope,
blooming in each of our hearts.
Don't you take that away.
Our dreams are meant to be shared.
Let it grow. Let it live.
Let us see what it will bring.
When we share in our love,
we make a beautiful world."
More notes picked up and her voice rose, reaching the bridge of the song.
"Search it out, and find the way:
the point where we can all meet.
The point where we're all the same.
There it lies: the future we seek.
Start from there, and then we'll forge
a world where all can be free.
Free to dream, and free to smile.
Free to be who we will be.
Let's make sure we create..."
The notes all but softened to nothing at this next line.
"A world of our hopes and dreams."
Similar to the first few verses, the music went steady and true.
"In our brief lives,
we've managed to meet.
Treasure this gift,
this precious time that we have.
In our brief lives,
we've managed to meet.
Treasure this gift,
this precious time that we have."
Slowly, the music faded out as she played the last few notes.
Suddenly, a hand clamped onto her shoulder. She looked over her shoulder to see Leaf there, eyes wide with shock as she stared at her.
"Where did you learn that song?" she finally said. Serena gaped at her. She... she actually spoke! A full sentence! Honestly, she was beginning to think the only person she would talk to was Gary...
"Now, now, Leaf," Gary said, stepping forward and pulling her back a bit. Serena got off the bench. "Let's not scare her."
He said this like she was some sort of rare pokémon people only caught fleeting glimpses of.
"Prof. Sycamore!" the professor turned to his assistant, who looked ecstatic. "The results are in! You... You won't believe it!"
Sycamore shared a glance with Leaf, then both hurried to the assistant. He held out some papers, flipping through some and whispering. Every so often, Sycamore would glance up at her, but for the longest time, Leaf just kept her gaze fully trained on her.
There was a heavy silence before Sycamore whipped around and snatched her in a hug so fast that Serena barely had time to comprehend how he had gotten across the room.
"It's a miracle!" he exclaimed, whipping her around in a circle. "Notre petite princesse était revenue! Notre Serenity chéri! A miracle, I say, a miracle!"
"Uncle." Leaf murmured, gripping his shoulder. "You promised not to overreact."
"I'm reacting as the situation deems fit and this situation deems and overreaction!" Sycamore proclaimed. "By Arceus, we need to call Samuel Oak! No, wait, we should probably call the police! No, that Sara girl! The secret agent investigating missing person cases! You remember her, right Leaf?"
"Uncle..." Leaf growled out, running a hand down her face.
"Who am I kidding, we need to call Flora! Right now! Oh, she'll be absolutely elated...!"
"What's going on?!" Serena finally snapped. "Do you know something about that lullaby? About the strange dreams I've been having? And missing persons? Who's missing? And who's this Flora lady?"
"You... don't remember?" Leaf asked.
"You can't expect her to remember Leaf." Dayna said, gently placing a hand on Leaf's shoulder. "After all, it happened when she was only two..."
"Remember what? Tell me what's going on!"
"Listen, this is going to come as a huge shock to you," Gary said as Sina and Dexio tried to calm the professor down. "But do you remember the long lost sister of Leaf Green? Serenity Green?"
"I... I r-remember there being a huge stink about it when I was ten." Serena murmured. "B-But my Dad said that she's been m-missing for eight years! Said that s-she was probably d-dead and the only reason they were l-l-looking into it was because Leaf asked them to!" she blinked, suddenly catching onto what he was implying. Why Leaf seemed so emotional, why the professor, her uncle, was acting the way he was. "A-Are you s-saying...?!"
"That's right." Leaf said, coming from behind Gary. He politely stepped aside. "You're Serenity Green. And I'm... I'm your big sister."
o.0.o.0.o
HOPEFULLY this makes up for the absence. Extra long and extra dramatic.
ALSO, if anyone is interested in the Pokémon Special Manga and fairy tales, I have begun a story titled 'Bedtime Stories'. It's essentially a cute retelling of famous fairy tales with the Pokémon Special characters of my favorite ships replacing the classic characters. Even if you DON'T ship the characters or even know what the manga is(if not, shame on you go read it right now), if you're into disney princess classics, you should fall in love with it.
With that, there is also a poll up about which shipping should have their fairy tale written next. Please feel free to vote if you haven't.
And with that, I bid you goodbye.
Amy47101 signing off! ^.^