TDBigJ's message: *Wakes up from sleep* Oh whoa, what? Where the hell am I? Oh yeah, that's right, I'm on fanfiction. The second chapter is here, huh? Wow, that week flew by (If I had a dime for every time I said that in my stories). Looks like this story is off to a good start. I'm glad to see that most of you who read one or both my stories are here reading this. You guys make me want to keep writing day in and day out. Like I said before, I'm really looking forward to writing this one. I think this is one of my best ideas to date. I really have nothing much else to say, so let's get to the responding of the reviews, but first, let me go get an Angry Orchard.
Espeon44: Yes, there will be OCs. But I only have one or two planned throughout the story. Thanks for the review!
Wolves22 (Guest #1): Glad you like it. Thanks for the review!
Oliverqueen01: Thanks for welcoming me back. It's good to be back. Yes, a lot has happened in the last couple of months. A lot has happened in WWE as well. I'm happy that Becky Lynch is Smackdown women's champion. Believe it or not, she's my favorite female in the WWE because I see her as an underdog and I always love rooting for the underdog. Yeah, Finn Balor winning the Universal title then having to sacrifice it the following night sucked and it REALLY sucked that Kevin Owens won it. I'm pissed because of that. Yeah, I'm happy there is going to be a Sun and Moon series and I'm planning on watching that. You can't wait to see what follows? Well, you've got fourteen more chapters of it ahead of you so get ready for the ride. Thanks for the review!
Aboz567: I'm glad you liked how I made Ash important to Serena and how I made Ash reach his full potential. I swear, I didn't think that would be easy. Ash definitely deserves to be one of if not the best trainers in the world. Yeah, I'm not trying to make Serena's sixteen years seem like they have been pathetic. I'll just tell you that she's not depressed, I wouldn't go that far. The farthest I'll go is just having her wish her life throughout that time could have been better. Don't worry, her growth as a person will change dramatically throughout the story. I've got a lot planned for this. If you're wanting to know, Ash's wife will end up being an OC because I really wouldn't want it to be a character from the anime as I want him to be good friends with everybody he's made an impact on during his journey when he was young. She will be in two or three chapters in the story. Thanks for the review!
Shadic4566: I'm sorry I made you sad. Yeah, there was a reason I had Bellamy ask that. You'll find out in a bit. Thanks for the review!
DoodleRose (Guest #2): Don't worry, it'll continue on. Glad you love it! Thanks for the review!
Guest #3: Yeah, I can understand why you're mad about Sun and Moon. Thanks for the continued support and I'll stay a true Amourshipper until I die. Oh and I just wanted to ask you something regarding the crossover fic. What do you want the title to be and how long do you want it to be so that way I can add more chapters to what I have done. Let me know, okay? Thanks for the review!
Darkaura808: Thanks. I'm glad to be back. I'm a great author? Aw thanks. You just made my day. I hope you like this story because I personally think this is going to be one of my best stories. To answer your questions, no, Serena didn't become Kalos Queen. I'm wanting this story to be as canonical as it is to the anime with a few exceptions throughout. Ash's wife, you'll find out in this chapter. I won't describe her completely but I will do it fully through the course of the story. Thanks for the review!
Blizzard21: Uh oh, I hope I didn't confuse you.
Guest #4: It's the former. I wouldn't have Pikachu die. He will be appearing in this story just to let you know in case you were wondering. Thanks for the review!
Guest #5: Ha, glad you thought that was funny. That's what I try to do sometimes in my author's notes. Thanks for the review!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or it's characters, they are owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, and… whoever else.
Serena was sitting on her couch with Sylveon sleeping on the other side of the room. It was Saturday and she was sitting on her couch watching whatever popped up on her tv. She really had nothing to do today and she couldn't think of anything so what choice did she have? Training with her Pokemon was only an occasional duty, at least a once a week thing, never more than that.
She had gotten dressed but didn't put on her shoes as she really had nowhere to go. She usually did more on most days but today was different. When she ever had a day like today it was either because she had nothing to do or she chose not to do anything. It was more like the former but she didn't really mind if it was anything else.
Hitting 2:30 in the afternoon and she had been doing this since the moment she woke up and gotten dressed around nine this morning. To her, the past five and a half hours had been slow, half the shows she watched since then were boring or something she just wasn't into, or something she did like but had seen many times and wanted to waste no time right now watching it again.
Many of the people she had stayed friends with when she was ten still kept in contact with her. A few didn't. Clemont once every so often, Bonnie way more than her brother. Bonnie had kept in touch with Serena for the last sixteen years and was really the only one who did it on a constant basis. Bonnie had grown as well. She was only a few years younger than Serena and was now in her early twenties. A year or so ago she had started going out with Max. Max was a little nervous when Bonnie asked him out but learned he needed to be a man. If there was anything he learned from tugging Brock away from random girls a lot when he was little, how else would he start the next chapter of his life, and so far it was going very well for the two of them.
Serena was happy for all of her friends that were in a relationship, whether it was dating or being married. Not everyone was in a relationship though, May was single at this point mainly because she wasn't in the mood to date right now. On numerous occasions she thought she would go out with Drew since he grew nicer to her, but she didn't think he would accept. May was really the only one. Even Brock was in a relationship, he had been going out with Lucy for a while and they actually got engaged a few months back and were planning on marrying in five or six months, they hadn't decided. No one else was really married or engaged at this point, so Serena wasn't alone.
Throughout the years, all of her friends had asked her about Ash, wondering if she would ever see him again. Most of the time she replied just saying that she would hope so. She didn't know when, it wasn't set yet, because even a couple of them hadn't seen Ash at all or rarely ever did, so there was another thing where she wasn't alone.
The shows on tv were getting boring and Serena didn't really have anything to do so she got a blanket off the top of the couch and put it over her and she got in a sleeping position. She kept the tv on but turned down the volume and after putting the remote down, slowly closed her eyelids and drifted off to sleep.
A few hours later, Serena awoke from her slumber. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her left hand. As she tried to regain her vision since it was blurry after awakening, she turned on the info to her tv to check the time. It was 6:39 in the evening.
"Whoa, was I really out that long?" She said to herself. "I didn't expect to be out for four hours." She looked down at her three Pokemon, who were also sound asleep. "You guys must have gone out the same time I did. You guys seem to do that a lot."
A sound came from the other sound of the room, apparently from her laptop. She took the blanket off her and walked over and sat down in the chair and opened the laptop. It was Bonnie.
Serena rubbed the front of her face. "Hey Bonnie, how's it going?"
"Nothing much. I heard Ash was back there in Kanto. Are you excited?"
"Yeah. I guess so."
"What do you mean guess? You're in love with that boy, or should I say "man".
"I am, Bonnie."
"Come on. You've basically told everybody that you haven't seen him since he left Kalos when we were younger. I bet the only thing you want right now is to see him. Am I right?" Bonnie explained.
"Yeah, Bonnie, you are. Sort of. I wouldn't say the only thing." She stated. "I'd really wouldn't want to get into that right now. I'm not really in the mood."
"Suit yourself. Clemont and I actually saw him a month or so ago." Bonnie said.
"I know, you told me after he left."
"Yeah, I should have told you when he WAS here." Bonnie stated with a little bit of embarrassment evident in her voice.
"It's no big deal, Bonnie. I'm not going to scold you for it." Serena stated.
"Okay, but yeah, I should have told you when he was here. It would have given you the chance to see him. Anyway, is he there in Pallet? That part I don't know."
"Yeah he is. Maybe this could be the chance I'm looking for. I could bump into him somewhere, there's just that chance." She explained.
"Could be. Well, I've got to get going. Clemont has dinner ready and he wants me to come there immediately."
"Okay Bonnie, I'll talk to you again soon. Bye."
"Bye."
And with that, Serena closed the window and flipped down the top of her laptop. She sat there for a moment, thinking if something was going to happen anytime soon. She could only guess. There really wasn't much to think over. She thought that would be something to think about later, since she didn't want to over think it. She went back and sat down on her couch, letting the rest of the day go by.
The following morning after getting prepared for the day and having her morning coffee, Serena thought she would head out. She had a couple of things to do so she might as well go out while she had the time. Her Pokemon were still asleep but silently whispered to them that she would be out and about for a couple of hours. Luckily they awoke slightly so they got her message. After that, she went out the front door and locked it and headed off.
After her first errand was done, she went off and headed towards her next one. It was a little farther ways away so it was going to be a longer walk. It was at times like this that she wish she had a flying type Pokemon so she could get places faster, but alas, she had never caught one, and didn't plan on getting one anytime soon, so that was a lost cause.
She looked around and saw that there were many people around. It was Saturday and more people came out on that day. It wasn't a fact but if you looked at it a couple of times every once in a while, you would understand. Most people didn't have to work, some kids didn't have to go to school, etc.
She looked all around her. It was a bright and sunny day but it wasn't that hot. There was a nice chill and that was the way Serena liked it. She has since she was young. It was just the fact that it was nice out without being hot. It was perfect.
Since there were so many people out today, Serena nearly bumped into almost every other person she went past. It was very crowded. She had to apologize to basically all the people she bumped or almost bumped into. It was very hard to travel out today.
Suddenly, Serena's phone vibrated and she pulled it out of her right pocket. It was a text from Brock. He apparently just met up with Ash for the first time in a few months. Ash and Brock were basically brothers, having travelled together for so long in so many regions. If you travelled with someone in four different regions, your friendship has to be close, there was no denying it.
Serena put her phone back in her pocket but as soon as she tucked it away, she bumped into someone and fell to the ground. She felt a hard but quick pain as she landed.
"I'm so sorry." She said to the person.
"It's quite all right." The voice, sounding like it belonged to a male as they got up. "Here, let me help you up." He said, reaching his hand out. Serena grabbed it and the man pulled her up.
"Thank you so much." She thanked. She looked up after she had picked up what she dropped. But she then had a surprised expression after she saw who it was.
"Ash?"
"Serena?"
The two then hugged, and it sure was a long one. Since they hadn't seen each other in sixteen years, it was long overdue. They separated when the hug lasted longer than thirty seconds and people started to stare at them.
"Oh my gosh, it's so great to see you. It's been too long." Ash commented.
"Yeah, I know. Sixteen years?" Serena asked.
"Yeah, but who's counting?"
"So, what brings you back here? I haven't seen you in ages." She asked.
"Eh, I've been travelling around for so long. Since I've been in other regions for a couple months now I feel like I need a month or two to sit back and relax." Ash explained. "What have you been up to?"
"Nothing much really. Since I grew up, I haven't really been able to find anything to do. But believe me I'm looking." She explained.
"Well, go out there and look. There's many things you could pursue." He stated. "So, are you seeing anybody right now?
"No. I haven't really gotten around to that yet. How about you and your wife?"
But as soon as she asked that, the expression on Ash's face changed. Serena could tell something was wrong. Was his marriage struggling? Did his wife do something? Did he do something?
"Ash, is there something wrong?"
"Oh, well, there is no wife." He answered, much to Serena's shock.
"Why? What happened?"
"It's just that… my wife and I divorced about six months back." He responded.
Serena didn't know whether to feel bad for him, or mentally slap herself repeatedly. He had been divorced for six months and she didn't know about it. Did she miss it on the news? Did she miss it on social media? Did it even make the news? She had no idea.
"Oh Ash, I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"It's not your fault. We told the news we'd like to keep the divorce secret and not let the public know. So I don't blame you for not knowing. Not very many people know either." Ash explained.
"Well, again, I'm sorry. I'm sorry it didn't work out." Serena commented.
"It was an okay marriage. We were married for five years so it lasted for a good amount of time."
"Not that it's any of my business, but what caused it to end?"
"It was nothing personal. We just weren't compatible anymore. We tried to make it work but nothing could so we decided so split. The love just went away and we didn't want to be together if we didn't love each other anymore so that was when things ended. I don't really see her at all anymore. The kids see her more than I do." He explained.
"Yeah, I heard you had a couple of kids. A son and a daughter right?" She asked.
"Yeah. They're a couple of good kids. They live with me right now but on occasion they see their mother."
"This ex-wife of yours, what was her name?"
"Her name is Denise. We met when we were nineteen. We dated for a year and a half before I proposed. We got married when we were twenty one."
"At least your marriage had a good run. But don't worry Ash, you'll find your next Mrs. Right eventually." She commented. She secretly wanted to be that Mrs. Right. She had wanted this for almost twenty years. But he didn't have to know that yet. She wanted to tell him how she really felt about him but not right now. Not after she met up with him again and especially not after he told her he had been divorced for six months. It was nowhere near the perfect time. Some other time would have to work, just not now.
"Yeah, I guess so. But I have been working up the courage to put myself out there again, but it hasn't been easy. After being with the same person for seven years it's kind of hard to get into the dating game again. I've just been a little nervous as of late." Ash explained.
"Same here. I've been wanting to put myself out there for a while now but I haven't had the nerve to try it out." That was a half lie. She really hadn't been wanting to put herself out there. Since Ash was married, she didn't want to get ready for the dating scene quite yet, but now that he was single, she could get ready.
"So how are things these days?" Ash asked.
"Oh you know. I'm not really doing much. Since I don't really go on journeys anymore I kind of travel around here with my Pokemon and sometimes I train with them every so often." Serena explained. "So, I see you've been quite the busy one as of late, huh?"
"Yeah. It's a lot of work but it's well worth it. One pro is that I decide what I can do whenever I want. Sometimes I'm offered opportunities by others and I have the decision of accepting or declining them. I pretty much accept them because I always like a good challenge, plus I like giving chances to others." He explained.
"Well, you love what you're doing, huh?"
"Yep. Have you decided what you want to do now that you're older?" Ash asked.
"No, I haven't. There really isn't something I want to do nowadays. But I'm fine with it." She answered.
"Come on, there's got to be something you're interested in doing."
"I'll take some time to think about it." Serena replied. "So how long will you be in town?"
"I thought that I would take a few weeks off to settle down a bit. Since I've been going abroad for a couple of months, I've actually been wanting to sit back and relax for some time. It's been pretty hectic."
"Where do you live these days? I've heard you live in Pallet like I do but I never see you there." She asked.
"I live in a gray mansion up on a hill. And don't worry, not very many people visit me that much up there. But that apparently doesn't fend off the paparazzi." Ash stated with a giggle at the end. Serena couldn't help but giggle herself.
"Dad, where are you?" A voice said from out of sight.
"I'm over here, honey." Ash called out.
And from behind a wall of the nearest building came two little kids, a boy and a girl. They came running up to Ash and both of them grabbed each of his legs.
"Where did you go?" His daughter asked.
"That's what I should be asking you. Where did you two ninjas go? You two were next to me then one second, "poof" you're gone." Ash asked looking down at them.
"We must have turned invisible instead of becoming ninjas, daddy." His son joked. Ash and his two kids shared a laugh, with Serena giggling along.
"So daddy, who is this you're talking to?" His daughter asked.
Ash bent down so he was able to put both his arms around his children. "Remember my good friend Serena that I told you guys a lot about? This is her."
Serena was touched by the fact that he said he told them a lot about her. That part made her happy so apparently he didn't forget about her. She bent down as well to greet them.
"Serena, this is my daughter Bellamy and my son Tristan." Ash pointed out.
Serena reached out both her hands to the two kids. "It's really nice to meet you two."
But as for Bellamy and Tristan, they looked at Serena as a ray of hope. It seemed like she was someone that could have a chance with their father.
"Are you single?" Bellamy asked.
That then caught both Serena and Ash off guard. Ash leaned down towards his daughter.
"Bellamy, you don't have to go around to every woman asking that." He stood back up. "Sorry Serena. It's just that ever since their mother and I divorced they've been wanting me to find another woman to date so they would have a mother figure in their life since Denise doesn't really see them that much."
Serena smiled and giggled nervously. "Oh it's no big deal. They kind of remind me of what Bonnie was like when we were younger."
"Yeah. Hey, if you don't have anything planned, how about you come up to the house? Does that sound good?"
He just invited her over to his house. She didn't know where he lived but now she got the chance.
"Of course Ash. I'd love to." She responded.
"Great! Besides, I think Pikachu would like to see you again too." He stated.
"Pikachu is still with you?"
"Yeah. He's my best friend. I'd never let him go."
"All right then, will you take me there?"
"Absolutely. Come on." And the four of them started making their way towards Ash's house. Serena was curious as to what it looked like. And plus, she was wondering what Pikachu was up to these days.
This day was starting to turn good.
Author's note: Ugh, that Angry Orchard didn't go down well. Oh well, I don't plan on drinking another one anytime soon. I'd rather not consume anything that makes me feel like Charizard is going on a rampage in my stomach. Oh wait, you guys are there? Whoops. Forgot. What do you think Ash's house will be like in the next chapter? Where does he live? What type of house? Well, if you want to find out what happens next, read the preview. You guys know what English is right? Naw, I'm just playing around, but go ahead and read it.
"So, do you have anything planned for the next couple of months?" Serena asked.
"No, not really. I just want to sit back and relax for a while. I really need the R & R." Ash responded.
"Oh come on Ash. I know for a fact that you're still the adventurous type. Don't you even want to go out and do something at least once during your break?"
"Well, maybe something I've seen before, but nothing more."
"Come on, Ash. Where's that spark? Where's that raw energy that you have? I want to see that from you. That's what makes Ash Ketchum so genuine. Am I right or not?"
Ash thought it over for a minute. Whenever Ash was travelling, he had immense energy and never ran out of it for even a second. Serena was right. Maybe going somewhere while he took a two month break didn't seem like a bad idea. But thing is, where?
"All right, I'll do it."
Serena playfully hit him on the shoulder. "Now that's what I like to hear. That's the Ash that I remember."
"I'll think about where to go. I've been to a lot of places in every region, but it wouldn't hurt to see one of those places again."
"And I'm pretty sure your kids would like to see more places across the world too. There's so much to see."
"Yeah, the kids haven't had the time to explore around where they've been going to lately, I'd like to let their curiosity roam free."
"That's good, let your kids come along. I'm pretty sure they would love it. Besides, I think they love being with their father."
"That and they love travelling. But yeah, I'll go somewhere."
"I'm glad to see you're open to this idea. I like seeing that side of you."
"I'm glad. But I'll go somewhere on one condition…"
"What is that?"
"Since you haven't done much in a long time, would you like to come along?"
Author's note: Ooh, what an interesting suggestion by Serena, and by Ash as well. Where will Ash decide to go? Is he doing a favor for Serena? Well, hell I don't know. Oh wait, I do, I'm the writer. Man I've got to stop doing that. In order for you to see what happens next, sit tight, grab a snack and some booze (Or whatever depending on your age) and get ready for the next installment. Until then…
TDBigJ out!
"Penny, you don't want to get into it with Sheldon. The guy is one lab accident away from being a supervillain."
-Leonard Hofstadter