TDBigJ's message: Hey guys, who's up for another chapter? I know I am. Here's chapter eight, and we've officially reached the halfway point of this story. I've had a pretty uneventful week. The only thing that happened in the last week was that my guinea pig died a few days ago. I'm hurt but I'll be okay. One thing I am looking forward to this weekend is some football. My team the Eagles take on my home state team the Seahawks. Ooh, that'll be a game to watch. I'm happy that the Seahawks beat the Patriots this past weekend. That was enjoyable (Sorry for those of you who are Patriots fans). I am still trying to find some motivation to write as I stated last week I kind of lost some of it. Some came back but not all of it. Don't worry, I'll still release a chapter every week, that much I can do. I'll keep searching for something to boost it. Let's get the responding of reviews so you guys don't have to hear all my mumbo jumbo.

Wolves22 (Guest #1): I will consider it. Thanks for the review!

Espeon44: Thanks for the encouragement!

Oliverqueen01: Did you watch the premiere of Sun and Moon? If you did, how was it? They deserved to have the dance. The XYZ writers screwed us over on that one. Yeah, it's nice that Ash thought of everybody and what he's been through with them, one of the reasons I will never write a betrayal fic. I just couldn't see any of his friends turning their back on him, especially a certain few. Thanks for encouraging me. I will try to find some motivation. Thanks for the review!

Oh by the way, what did you think of Edge being on Smackdown back on Tuesday? I remember you saying he's your all time favorite because he's from your hometown. Man, he really grew that beard out didn't he? How do you feel about Survivor Series this Sunday being in your hometown? Just thought I'd ask because they said it was in Toronto and I thought: "Hey, that's where oliverqueen01 is from. What do you think about that? And another thing, who are you rooting for at Survivor Series? Raw or Smackdown?

Shadic4566: Oh don't worry about the misunderstanding. It's no big deal. Glad you like me responding to reviews. I do it because I like to let my readers know I'm listening to them and give my opinion on their thoughts. Yeah a few people thought her kissing him on the lips was too soon, I thought so too after a while. Yeah, I kind of wished I allowed Pokemon at the ball last chapter. Pikachu dancing with Sylveon would probably have been a good moment, since the yellow mouse needs a moment here and there. Sucks that Greninja left Ash, that was uncalled for. The new animation style doesn't really bother me, but I do hope they go back to the original in the next series (If there is one). Thanks for the review!

ManleyTogekiss: We'll see if your prediction is true. Thanks for the review!

AgitatedDog9288: You like them doing that? Some people did too. Thanks for the review!

Pinkrangerfan: It's good they got the dance they deserved. A lot of people seemed to like it. Thanks for the review!

Guest #2: You did? Whoa. Thanks for the review!

Roger1119: Your prediction is close. Make these chapters longer? Yeah, I can do that. I do realize the last chapter was pretty short and I'm trying to make these chapters as long as I possibly can. But I don't think I can update twice a week, it'd be too stressful for me, but I'm happy you love this fic. Thanks for the review!

TheAztecKing: Oh sure dude, no problem! If you want some pointers, I'd be more than willing. You read my story all the time and review it, so I might as well return the favor. Thanks for the review!

Brig nodrm2347: Yeah, I thought it was a little too early for a kiss on the lips. Man, your predictions are almost spot on every time. But are you right this time? We'll see. Yeah, that dance is what we all wanted to see. Like I said before, the XYZ writers screwed us over on that one. Thanks for the review!

Guest #3: Good to know you liked the chapter. The next chapter of the crossover will be out within 2-3 weeks. Thanks for the review!

Mad Ass Dragon: Man, it must be rough working nine hour shifts constantly. Heh, good to know you liked Serena ogling Ash. I didn't know if anyone was going to like that. Thanks for the review!

Darkaura808: Thanks for encouraging me. I need those words to boost my spirits. Ash as an adult serving as a role model just fits to me. Recalling all his companions is something that I thought needed to be put in. Ash certainly has made an impact on all of them. Seems everybody thought the kiss on the cheek was the right thing to do, I'm glad I went that way. Liked that your last comment got you hungry, I chuckled a bit at that. Thanks for the review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or it's characters, they are owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, and… whoever else.

Ash was on his laptop, finishing up an email to Dawn. Dawn had just asked him what he had done recently since coming back from his two month long work schedule. It had been a month and a half since he got back, but hardly any of his friends had asked him about what he had been up to since he got back. He told all of them that he was taking a one to two month break from travelling and accepting challenges. He told them he hadn't done much but did note that he met up back with Serena again. They were all surprised but happy that the two of them reunited. All of them had seen Serena in the past sixteen years, so her meeting up with Ash for the first time in that span was music to their ears.

The one that talked to him most was Brock, since he was one of Ash's best friends and the two of them talked almost every other day. Ash always went to Brock when it came to casual talk and more importantly, romance. Brock occasionally asked Ash if he ever considered dating again, which Ash just promptly answered that he needed more time, but thing is, Ash had some doubt in that response, it had been almost eight months since he and Denise divorced and he felt as if he was just about completely over her. Brock had a feeling that his buddy was over his ex-wife but since the two of them were still friends, there was some skepticism in there somewhere.

Brock had a better idea of romance nowadays now that he himself was married. He had married the Battle Pike frontier brain Lucy before Ash married Denise. Brock learned that Lucy liked him about a decade ago and the two went out for a couple of years until they tied the knot. Now that Brock was married, his view of romance took a turn. He no longer went up to every beautiful girl he saw and flirted with them (Obviously). Ash thought that when Brock got married to Lucy, something changed in the guy. Brock would always give out advice about romance a lot better since he now knew how to do it properly. Lucy must have done something to him that gave him more clarity about romance, and everyone, especially Brock himself, was grateful that this was different now.

Whenever Ash stated when he should ever be ready to date again to Brock, Brock just said that he should wait until he was one hundred percent sure he was over Denise. Ash had a feeling that he was just about there, but at the same time thought that it wasn't. Little did Ash know that all of his friends were conversing about Ash dating Serena. They all knew they would be a perfect couple and crossed their fingers that they would be a thing. Only Ash didn't know she had a crush on him when they were kids, and he still didn't today, even at the age of twenty six.

That was one thing that depressed Serena. Her childhood friend still didn't know she had deep feelings for him after nearly twenty years of them knowing each other. Twenty years. Are you kidding me? How could someone you've had a massive crush on for almost two decades still not know that you did? Everyone else around her knew, why was it the one person she wanted to know the only one who didn't? It was so frustrating. Of course, she didn't want to spill the beans too early to him. Even when they were young she knew she had to be cautious when she was around him and she was talking her affections towards him, being afraid he might overhear her say it. But being shy to tell the one you love so much was another part that was frustrating. She wanted to tell him at one point, but she wanted to do it right, not just randomly.

Back to Ash, he was thinking about soon dating again. He felt it was almost time. Besides, his kids were always pestering him about putting himself back out there again. They wanted a new mom to be around them and be a role model, but Ash didn't know when to do so. Raising two kids by yourself wasn't easy. The kids being happy was one thing but Ash himself wanted to be happy with someone else as well. Sure his kids meant well, but Ash needed to think for himself sometimes.

Of course, there were other people that Ash went to for advice in this sort of situation. Dawn was one of them, even though this email he was sending was not regarding the subject. Dawn occasionally lent Ash some well needed words about his love life. Dawn was one of the first of his friends to have gotten married but she got married after he did and she still was. Dawn was almost like a sister to Ash so he could go to her for some tips whenever he needed to.

Bonnie was one other person Ash got some words from. Bonnie was the second person to know that Serena liked Ash more than a friend. She always was there to lend a hand now that she was so much older and now dating Max, but whenever Ash asked her for advice, Clemont on the other side of the line had to refrain her from revealing Serena's secret, most of the time by nudging her in the arm. Bonnie at the same time knew that she had to keep it a secret, but she could hardly contain herself and almost came close to revealing it a few times, but Clemont was always there to save it.

Ash finished up the email and sent it. He closed his laptop and walked out back and sat down in a lawn chair, looking out into the distance. It was only noon so much of the day was left. Tristan and Bellamy had been upstairs the whole day and had only come down for breakfast earlier. Ash didn't care what they did during the day, as long as it wasn't reckless and that it wasn't disrupting other people. Ash had sent most of his Pokemon back to Oak's lab. Bayleef was the only one he had kept there.

Ash had been on his break for a little over a month now, and he was figuring that one more month would be good enough and then he would have to go back to accepting challenges and doing battles. Ash had done a little training here and there in the past month. His Pokemon had grown a little exhausted lately and that was why he had sent them back to the lab, just to give them a little rest. It was something Ash had to do as a trainer every so often. As a trainer, he had to fulfill every responsibility that came with it. It was something he never forgot in his sixteen years as a trainer. As he got older he got a WHOLE lot more serious about it. He remembered when he was young that he had kept a lot of the Pokemon he caught in each region with him on his journey. He made sure not to overtrain them to the point where he couldn't do a gym battle because they were all worn out from practicing too hard.

As he stared out into the bare blue sky, Ash reflected back on the first day of his journey when he saw Ho-oh and when Pikachu saved him from the flock of Spearow. That was one of the most recalled memories of Ash's tenure as a trainer… The first time one of his Pokemon ever protected him… Pikachu's first ever act of bravery. It was one of Ash's favorite memories of his best pal, the moment they started becoming best friends. Pikachu had his first moment of strength that day, and the future only got better for him. Pikachu learned new moves as their journey progressed and only proved to be Ash's strongest Pokemon, despite his size.

Ash recalled one of Pikachu's strongest moments. Back in Unova when they were trying to save Meloetta from Team Rocket and having them gain the power of the three legendaries: Thunderous, Landerous, and Tornadus. The breaking point of that battle was Pikachu unleashing the biggest ever electro ball to destroy the stature that was releasing the beam for the legendaries. Ash, Cilan, and Iris were beyond shocked when Pikachu's electro ball was twenty times bigger than usual. Ash never thought that Pikachu was going to unleash one that big but he also never doubted him either. That was one thing Ash never did, was doubt his best friend's true strength. Pikachu could defeat Pokemon at least fifty times bigger than him and sometimes without difficulty. The many moves Pikachu picked up a long time ago: iron tail, volt tackle, electro ball, etc. All of them were extremely powerful attacks, but not as powerful as his most used attack (And perhaps Ash's favorite) thunderbolt. That was Pikachu's most generic attack, but it turned out to be his best. Sometimes, the most regular attack could turn out to be the best.

Ash leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a few minutes. He needed to relax his mind a bit. He was all alone out here. Not even Pikachu was out here. He was probably playing with the kids upstairs or he was in Ash's room sleeping. If Pikachu wasn't next to him, that's where he would usually be. Pikachu was like a best friend to Tristan and Bellamy in a sort of way.

As his eyes were closed, he cleared his mind of everything. He wanted to just not think of anything right now, just relax. Ash hardly had any moments like this when he was in other regions battling challengers. Even during his visits when he was not battling it was hard to find the opportunity to chill out for even a few minutes. Ash wanted just one day, one day he could have the house to himself. All alone where he could do whatever he wanted, without interruption. Some days he wished he could just sleep in but that was a rarity for him nowadays. You could say it bothered him, but at the same time it didn't.

Pikachu came out, wiping his eyes with his left hand, apparently a little drowsy from what he had done previously before he came out here. Ash didn't take notice because his eyes were still closed, trying to let the soothing sounds of nature take him away. Pikachu looked at Ash and jumped up onto the lawn chair next to him. He got into a sleeping position and closed his eyes once again and drifted off to sleep, Ash unaware of his presence.

It was rather quiet. People who neighbored Ash weren't outside at this time, it was just him, so no wonder it was so quiet right now. It was partially cloudy with most of the sky illuminated by the sun. Pikachu opened one eye and thought that he would go lay on his trainer's lap, so he hopped down from the chair he was on and walked over to Ash just a few feet away and jumped up onto his lap. Ash wasn't jarred out of his focus though as he kept his eyes closed, but he did smile and rubbed the top of Pikachu's head, making Pikachu know that he knew he was there. When they weren't battling, the two of them would usually be doing this.

"Hey there buddy. You must be tired." He said as he continued rubbing the top of his friend's head. Pikachu cooed as Ash scratched every inch of his head. This was one thing Pikachu enjoyed since the younger days, and loved it whenever someone did it. He twitched his neck a bit as Ash rubbed the sweet spot. That was Pikachu's favorite. Once Ash rubbed that certain spot, it was heaven for the electric mouse. Nothing relaxed him more than this.

Ash moved on from the top of his head to Pikachu's ears, scratching the tips, where Pikachu was sensitive. Pikachu's left arm twitched as Ash gently scratched the black points of his ears and then moving on to the rest of his ears, which were not as sensitive but still felt good nonetheless. Ash then opened his eyes and started rubbing each of Pikachu's ears with each hand. The yellow mouse felt like he was going to melt off to sleep. Hey, a Pokemon needed relaxation too.

"You just sit there and sleep, Pikachu. Get some rest." Pikachu then stretched out his arms and yawned then returned to his previous position. Ash then looked back out into the horizon.

"Sooner or later we're going to have to get back to work and get some battles in. It's been more than a month since we've battled someone, and it kind of feels awkward in a sort of way. I never go that long without a battle. I never even did that when I was young."

It in fact had been a month since Ash had battled anyone, but for the time he was off he kind of needed the break from battling, even though going this long without one battle was not like Ash and he was kind of having a "withdrawal", if you think of it that way. It bothered him a little bit but not to the point where it would ruin his focus. Suddenly, he heard a knock from behind him. He looked and saw Serena standing at the back door.

"Hey, when did you get here?" He asked.

"Just now. Bellamy let me in." She replied.

Ash, now knowing he had company, realized that his time of relaxation was over. He got up from his chair and walked inside.

"I was just relaxing when you showed up."

"I saw that."

The two sat down on the couch. As soon as they did, Tristan and Bellamy came rushing down the stairs, hugging Serena when they approached her.

"Where have you been?" Tristan asked.

Serena giggled. "What do you mean? I was just here the other day."

"Yeah, but it was a long two days." Tristan stated playfully, tightening his grip o Serena's leg.

"Okay you two, go easy on her." Ash said, putting his hand out in front of them.

"I guess they miss me a lot around here every day, don't they?"

"You wouldn't know the half of it."

A few hours later, it had begun getting late. During that time, the kids had actually been down there with the two of them the whole time. For young kids they had good listening skills. When Ash looked at his watch, he realized it was time for the kids to hit the hay. It had been a long day for all of them.

"Okay you two. It's time for bed. Go get ready." Ash told his kids, pointing upstairs.

"Aw, daddy, do we have to?" Bellamy asked, whining a little bit.

"Yes, now please go. It's nine, I want you two to get some sleep before tomorrow."

Tristan and Bellamy sunk their heads and slowly walked up the stairs.

"I'll be up there in a few minutes to tuck you guys in, okay." He called out.

"Actually, how about I go do that?" Serena suggested.

"Oh no, you don't have to. You've done it the last six times."

"It's okay, Ash, I'm fine with it. Besides, it saves you the trouble."

Ash smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "All right. If you're fine with it."

A few minutes later, the kids had gotten in their pajamas and crawled under their sheets. They were still a little reluctant, but they didn't have the need to argue, not like they could anyway. Ash's word was final. Serena came up and properly adjusted the sheets so that they were completely covering the two of them up to their shoulders. Bellamy then yawned, which then convinced her and Tristan that they really were tired.

Serena giggled. "You two look like tired little cubs to me."

"Tired? I'm not tired." Tristan stated, who right after, yawned as well. Bellamy looked right at him. Seeing as he couldn't argue, he just laid his head back on the pillow.

"You two sleep well, and have good dreams too, okay?"

"Okay."

Serena smiled and leaned down and kissed Bellamy on the forehead. She walked over to Tristan, finished tucking him in, and kissed him on the forehead.

"Night Tristan."

But then the next thing that came out of his mouth was sure unexpected, and it wasn't something you would normally hear from a four year old.

"Night mommy."

That stopped Serena right in her tracks. She turned her head to look at Tristan, who was looking right back at her. Did he… did he just call her "mommy?" Serena could have swore she must have just misheard him and he actually said something else, but that was only what she wanted it to be, and it wasn't reality. She flicked the light switch off and closed the door behind her and walked downstairs into the kitchen where Ash was at. Ash turned around with two mugs of coffee in hand and handed one to her.

"Kids asleep?"

"Um… yeah. They're-They're asleep."

The look on Serena's face was a mix of confusion and shock. Ash looked at her and wondered why she looked like that, which concerned him.

"Serena, are you all right?"

Serena didn't answer right away. She was too puzzled as to why Tristan had called her what he just did. She didn't really know how to respond.

"Serena?" He asked once more, finally snapping Serena out of her trance.

"Oh… um… yeah. I'm fine." She replied as she took a sip. But Ash was much smarter when it came to this than when he was younger. He knew from the look on her face that she wasn't fine.

"Come on, Serena, something's up. What is it?"

Serena knew she couldn't shake away from answering, so she might as well tell him.

"It's just that… Tristan… just called me mommy."

Ash nearly spit out his coffee when he heard that. He swallowed but with some difficulty. "He actually said that?"

"Yeah, he did. It's just… I don't know what to say. It got me out of nowhere."

Ash took a deep breath. "I don't know what to say either." That was true. Ash couldn't think of anything to say regarding that. He knew that they were nowhere near that stage but he couldn't help but think that there was something he should do.

"Look, I'll have a little talk with him in the morning. Straighten it out." Ash stated.

"You're not mad at him are you."

"Oh, no, I'm not. But it isn't something he should be saying if there's nothing definite about that yet." He explained.

"I need to go sit down. Think over it for a moment." She said and went over to the couch.

Ash played that over in his head. His son just called his childhood friend "mommy". It didn't sound right to him. The two weren't even dating, so why would he say such a thing.

But thing was, Serena was around the kids more often than Denise was, so he could understand in a way why Tristan said what he did.

But then another thought came into Ash's mind. The kids were so close to Serena since they met her, and they loved being around her and vice versa. Ash liked seeing his kids enjoy being around someone he was close to, and it was only a matter of time that things might change.

If a major change was on the horizon, Ash had some serious thinking to do.

Author's note: Well, looks like things are escalating. I'm even surprising myself right now, and that ain't easy. But is it ever? Sorry this chapter was so short. I will try to make most of the rest of the chapters longer than this. Where do you think things are going to go from here? Only I know. Hehehe! I'm sorry am I laughing to myself? Gee, that sounds like a jerk move. Sorry about that guys. Anyway, there is a big moment in the next chapter. Read the preview if you want to know what it is.

While she went to go do that, Ash went in the other room to think this over. He was unsure if he should ask her. Many things popped up in his head as in what to say. If he was going ask her, he was going to do it right. But what and how?

"I need to find the right words. What to say… what to say…" He thought to himself. "Just one wrong word and I'll screw this up. Don't want that do I?"

He then thought that he was thinking this over too much. This was Serena he was talking about. She wasn't judgmental, but he still needed to be careful with his word choice.

He stood by the back door, looking outside, wondering what he could say. This was a question he hasn't asked in a while, so the concept was a little blurry so to say.

Ash put his hands in his pockets. "What do I say buddy?"

Pikachu shrugged his shoulders. "Pika."

Ash had to think of this on his own. He didn't have the time or want to call Brock. This was something he had to do on his own. For crying out loud he was a grown man. He was almost twenty seven years old and he brushed up on this subject in the last decade, mostly with the help of his friends. His kids weren't around to interfere with this, so that much could be said.

He leaned his head down and closed his eyes, thinking through every possible example as if he was a quarterback studying a playbook. Ash was a smart man in most cases, but in the eight months since his divorce the subject of romance dried up a bit, but he still had a good understanding of it.

Once he thought through everything he could think of he took a deep breath and opened his eyes. He could hear footsteps in the other room, he assumed Serena was done with what she was doing. He turned around and took another deep breath and walked into the other room.

This was it. It was do or die time.

Author's note: Ooh boy, what is the big question he's going to ask her? Again, only I know. Hehehe! Sorry, am I doing that again? *Slaps forehead* Remind me to do that every time I act like a moron. What do you think is the question? What do I think is the question? What is the meaning of life? Where do babies come from? I will answer at least one of those questions in the next chapter. I will see you in a week. Until then…

What do I think is the question? What is the meaning of life? Where do babies come from? I will answer at least one of those questions next chapter. I will see you in a week. Until then…

TDBigJ out!

"Man, this is my third oil change today. Something's wrong with me."

-Crank, Robots