A/N: Ok so Serena has been able to pass onto the second round because of Ash's dark revelation. This worries Serena a lot since she cares about Ash. Things will get a little intense this chapter.
Disclaimer: This will be a very dark turn in the masterclass, in fact probably darker than most masterclass depictions in fanfictions, so be warned…
Disclaimer 2: I don't own Pokemon, "How do you Love Someone", or "When You're Gone"
Chapter 13- Masterclass Tension… Serena vs Paula
At the stands:
"Yea Ash, awesome battle!" Trevor shouted as the clip of Sceptile vs Darkrai played again.
"Pi?" Pikachu raised his ears and ran out of the stands without anyone noticing.
"Where did Pikachu go?" Grace asked worryingly.
"Probably to find Ash," Tierno replied calmly. "He'll be fine."
Walking off stage:
Serena and Ash had not spoken a word to each other ever since the revelation. Infact, as they walked, Ash had clenched fists and what looked like a broken spirit.
The coast was clear and Serena decided it was best to try and talk with the raven haired trainer. Serena got in front of Ash and locked her blue eyes with his auburn ones. Looking into his eyes, Serena saw pain and sadness, it concerned her so much that she decided to try and be gentle with her voice: "Can you tell me what you did when you left Anistar City?... Like, before we met up?"
"None of your business," Ash said coldly while looking away, obviously attempting to avoid eye contact. Serena was absolutely triggered at this, and this sparked her vital signs to rise as she retaliated back.
"What happened Ash?! You don't need to go through this, I am here for you!" Serena snapped while she clenched her fists with undeniable strength. She could not understand why Ash would hide something from her… She felt like a million daggers were piercing her.
Ash just turned around and spoke up without emotion, "Calem and I just… we just helped someone out that needed our help."
Serena did not believe a word as she spoke up with an irritated voice, "Then tell me what 'friend' you helped by battling such a dangerous battle! Why did you do it?!"
"I had to! If I did not then… Then Calem and I would had been killed, just like my mom!" Ash said through clenched teeth trying not to admit why he was going through this at the same time. It was painful for him to admit that he could have been killed, but it made it worse that Serena probably should not have known that...
"Why do you compare yourself to your mother like that! I understand that you must be hurting, but what does this have to do with her?!" Serena exclaimed while her blood boiled. The sound echoed throughout the whole hallway and the words resonated with Ash as he flinched a little as he heard this.
"It's because… my father… was the person I battled," Ash revealed while hiding his eyes in his cap which he had put on after leaving the stage. He had changed back to his normal attire and was boiling in anger and regret for revealing himself… He regretted answering correctly… He probably should have just answered another question right. At the midst of the moment though, Ash did not feel like anything made sense to him, so he still answered correctly. Something he now wishes he could have taken back.
"Why didn't you make peace?! He was your father Ash!" Serena exclaimed at the verge of tears as she said the next part: "If you would have died… what would happen to your Pokemon, your friends...! WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD HAPPEN TO ME?!" Serena burst out in tears at nearly confessing her deepest feelings before looking down and saying in a very soft voice that Ash could barely hear, "What would I do if you died, Ash?!"
Ash just kept his head down with eyes being shadowed.
"ANSWER ME!" Serena suddenly pleaded echoing her voice through the hallways and making her words pierce Ash's broken soul.
Nightcore- How do you Love Someone
Ash just kept his head down and walked around Serena. A million thoughts in his mind, but mostly regret and pain for being remembered about the experience of battling his father. Ash still found significance in what Serena said, even though Ash did not completely understand. He valued Serena and wanted to protect her, so he walked away in order to stop her from getting answers from him.
Momma never told me how to love, daddy never told me how to feel, momma never told me how to touch…
DADDY NEVER SHOWED ME HOW TO HEAL!
Serena just watched Ash walk away in sadness. Tears were running down her cheeks and she was a complete wreck… 'Why Ash, why did you risk your life like that?' Serena thought as she sat in the corner of the hallway and sobbed uncontrollably. Serena then reached into her pocket and grabbed a handkerchief to wipe her tears away… until she noticed what it was.
Momma never set a good example, daddy never held momma's hand. Momma found everything hard to handle… DADDY NEVER STOOD UP LIKE A MAN!
"ARGH! You stinking little bastard!" Serena screeched as she threw the handkerchief across the hallway. She felt lost, she felt lonely, she felt helpless.
With Ash walking to the lobby:
I walked around, frozen. Emotionally broken…
Getting it on…
Getting it on...
Ash kept himself from not bursting into tears for long enough now. He felt like he could break down at any moment. He walked up to the empty lobby since everyone was at the auditorium and there was no one around. Ash then went up to the wall and punched it with all his might unleashing his inner burden.
HOW DO YOU LOVE SOMEONE, WITHOUT GETTING HURT?!
How do you love someone? WITHOUT CRAWLING IN THE DIRT?!
"Dad… Why the hell are you like this?! I tried my hardest to love you and mom and now… ARGHHH! I..." Ash exclaimed as tears rolled down his cheeks and he punched the wall. "I… I…" Ash kept punching the wall in frustration. Who could blame him? Ash had just leveled the magnitude of the problem to someone that did not need to experience the same pain.
So far in my life, clouds have blocked the sun...
"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted as he ran up to the crippled Ash Ketchum.
"What now Pikachu?" Ash asked wiping away his tears.
"Pi pikachu pi pika!" Pikachu exclaimed. Ash did not understand at first, but then Pikachu pointed to the scarf he wore.
"You're right Pikachu, I should not…"
With Serena:
How do you love, how do you love someone?
"Ugh, you little runt!" A voice exclaimed as another girl walked by. Serena looked up to see non other than Paula looking at her with a grin as if she got an idea to pick on Serena. "I see you have given up, you totally are a total loser, I don't expect you flat chested, geeky, out of style bookworm to even make the freestyle round."
I was always the chosen child, the biggest scandal I became...
Serena just clenched her fists to the point that blood dripped from her knuckles since her nails penetrated her skin. Serena stood up with eyes that could kill and stared down her opponent.
Paula seemed amused and grabbed the handkerchief on the ground. Instantly Serena looked at it and her eyes widened.
"You want it?" Paula asked.
Serena just looked at the handkerchief and gritted her teeth harder, "Give it back… right now…"
"You are going to have to get it from me then," Paula smirked as she started walking away with it.
Serena had enough at this point, she ran up to Paula and gave her a strong slap in the hand to make her drop the handkerchief to the ground. Pain seared through Paula as she reacted quickly and grabbed ahold of Serena's arm.
Paula then started twisting Serena's right arm with all her might making Serena wince in pain. Then Paula let go of a dazed Serena and punched her in the stomach knocking Serena against the wall.
They told me I'd never survive...
"Ta ta loser," Paula smirked as she left the scene.
Serena slumped against the wall and sat down in the floor again while grabbing her stomach in pain. Serena then looked towards Ash's handkerchief on the ground and sobbed uncontrollably again. "AHHH Just get out of here you stupid, oblivious Pokemon-Master wanna be!" This time, she threw it against the wall with all of her might accidently hitting her twisted right arm making her wince in a lot of pain. Serena then wept into her hands until a flash of light appeared in front of her.
BUT SURVIVAL IS MY MIDDLE NAME!
"Braixen brai braixen!" Braixen exclaimed as she scolded her trainer.
Serena in a defeated tone said, "What now Braixen?"
How do you love someone… And make it work? How do you love someone, without crawling in the dirt, so far in my life, clouds have blocked the sun...
"BRAIXEN!" Braixen shouted as she grabbed the handkerchief that Ash gave Serena and put it in Serena's hands. "Brai braixen!"
How do you love? How do you love someone?
Serena looked at the cloth and remembered something she was taught a long time ago, by someone. Serena stood up and used the handkerchief to wash away the tears, then stood up with fire in her eyes…
Someone...
"You're right Braixen, I shouldn't…"
Shows Ash on the left and Serena on the right:
"GIVE UP UNTIL THE END!" both trainers shouted with their might that their echoes boomed throughout the hallways.
At the stands:
"The second round will begin soon, where is Serena?" Grace asked as she watched from her seat how the performers all were gathering on the stage.
"I have no clue," Tierno responded.
"I was pretty sure she was with Ash after round one, last time I saw them, Serena was very worried about Ash… Shauna and I grew worried ourselves, but we decided to let them have their moment alone," Calem, who had recently just joined them responded.
"WAIT! There she is right now!" Trevor exclaimed pointing at a figure with honey blond hair walking on stage for the second round. The teenaged girl looked like her eyes were ready to win anything put in her way.
"Finally, ze last performer has arrived!" Pierre exclaimed from the middle of the stage making everyone clap for Serena. Serena surprised the audience because of what she did next.
Serena went up to Paula through clenched fists and stared down Paula with pure anger making Paula recoil. She looked up and forced a smile and did what she did not expect herself to do. "To a great masterclass," Serena forced out of her mouth while stretching out her hand as if to handshake.
Grace, Tierno, Trevor, and Calem were all surprised. The crowd was dead silent at the declaration that Serena had just done hoping that good sportsmanship will come…
The opposite happened:
"As if loser," Paula remarked as she slapped away Serena's hand. Serena winced in pain as it was the same twisted arm, but she shook it off and walked to her spot next to Shauna.
"BOOOO!"
"WHAT WAS THAT?!"
"THAT WAS SAD!"
"WHY DON'T YOU RESPECT OTHERS?!"
The crowd was roaring with boos and hate towards Paula who just stood there emotionless. Paula crossed her arms and made a dignifying, "Hmph!" declaring she was not up to anything thus earning her negativity.
Normal POV in the Stage:
"Calm down!" Pierre started. "Zis will get interesting soon, but for now, I need everyone to be quiet!"
The entire crowd calmed down as Pierre commanded everyone to stop booing.
"Now, let's begin ze second round of our masterclass showcase!" Pierre said as he looked up to his side and grabbed his staff. "It has been decided that there will be a performance battle round! This round includes a performance battle between two performers!"
A battlefield came up and the audience looked at the stage in awe from the transformation. It was a plain field with no formations on it and two trainer boxes.
Serena looked at the battlefield with some intimidation. 'How can I battle?' she asked herself. Serena had not considered herself a strong battler at all and the fact that she was having to have to make the battle look beautiful made her nervous.
"Here we will post who will be battling and when they will battle!" Pierre began. "And our first battle will be…!"
The faces appeared in the screen. Serena looked at her opponent and wanted the entire world to suck her into the ground. Serena then looked at her opponent and her opponent looked back at her with a smirk.
The crowd was silent at the battle that would begin soon. They had not expected this turn of events.
"Ze first battle will be between performer Serena against performer Paula!" Pierre declared. "We will come back to ze performing after zis short break!"
A while later in the Performer's lounge:
Serena sat in the couch while holding her handkerchief in her hands. She was nervous, no… terrified. She was going up against a complete bully and she had to stand up against her. All that was keeping her calm was focusing on that Poliwag pencil sharpener in the table in front of her. It was just the blue color maybe, or the fact that she grew to love Poliwag after a certain encounter, but she still felt the eerie sadness inside of her eating her away.
All the other performers were sneaking glances at Serena with curiosity as to what she was doing although Serena was just looking at her handkerchief thinking. No one had dared to come up to Serena at all, except one performer.
"Serena, are you alright?" Shauna asked her friend as she sat down next to her. "It's about your next match isn't it?"
Serena in a low voice just said, "Not just that."
Shauna immediately noticed the bigger conflict here, "What happened after… After Ash answered correctly?"
Serena looked at the handkerchief and crushed it in her hands, something Shauna noticed. "I don't want to talk about it…"
Shauna realized the distress at this point and noticed something must have happened after the first round, so she decided to not intrude. "Serena, he won't like it if you gave up now," Shauna said in a reassuring tone.
"Who cares, not like anything could change now, he must hate me now," Serena sighed.
"He does not hate you Serena, he just was going through something painful," Shauna revealed making Serena realize something.
Serena then shot her blue eyes to Shauna's olive eyes and said, "You're right, I can't give up just yet."
Serena then got up and ran to the stage to be early for her match. She did not focus on looking at her surroundings as she passed the lobby and kept going without noticing she dropped something from her pocket.
She then looked over her shoulder and saw Ash. Ash looked back at her with blood red eyes as if he had been crying. Serena then clenched her fists and gritted her teeth and kept running in guilt and rage.
With Ash in the lobby (Note that some of the lyrics are different xD… clumsy me):
Ash was just sitting in the lobby… He had the picture of his mother in his hands and thought about his mother. He thought about how he could have changed things.
"Pikapi?"
"It's ok Pikachu, I know she probably would want me to be happy right now," Ash told his electric friend sitting beside him as Ash scratched his head.
"Cha!" Pikachu cooed at the action.
Ash smiled and looked back at the picture. 'I always needed time on my own, I never thought I, would need you there when I cried.' Ash thought. 'And the days feel like years when i'm alone and the bed where you lie, is made up of your side.'
Ash then heard running footsteps through the lobby and stood up to see Serena running through the lobby to which Ash noticed something drop from her pocket. As soon as Serena looked over her shoulder she stopped. Serena and Ash were making eye contact. Serena then gritted her teeth and clenched her fists while running off in the direction she was going, not noticing what fell from her pocket. When she was out of sight, Ash walked up to it and noticed it was the handkerchief.
Ash picked it up and looked in the direction of the hallway that Serena walked through.
When you walk away, i'll take the steps that you take. Can you see how much I need you right now!
Ash then sat back down and looked at both the handkerchief and the picture of his mother. Two of the most important people to him, represented right there. One that is not alive, the other one probably hates him right now. Ash then thought of a song he learned one day. 'When you're gone, the pieces of my heart are split in two, when you're gone, the face I came to know is missing too, when you're gone I need to feel the beat to always get me through the day… and make it ok…'
"I miss you…" Ash said out of nowhere sparking Pikachu to look at Ash.
"Pi?" Pikachu asked concerned.
"Nothing," Ash said as he petted Pikachu. "Just something I remembered." Ash sat there staring still at the handkerchief and picture of his mother.
Serena POV At the Stage Before the Battle:
"Zis will be a one on one pokemon battle between Serena and Paula, performing is key, the person that performs ze best and wins ze battle will move onto ze next round!" I hear Pierre shout.
I look at Paula and notice that she is looking at me with a smirk. I was intimidated, but I knew I could not give up, I wouldn't until the end!
"Go Abomasnow!" I hear Paula shout. I saw as a large Mamoswine roared ready to battle in front of me. Mamoswine spread a large cloud around the arena and made it hail.
"And Paula goes with Abomasnow who uses it's ability snow warning to make a hail storm!" The announcer shouted making the crowd look in awe.
I grew nervous at the next part though, "Abomasnow!" Paula started while grabbing a stone I recognized from Ash. "MEGA EVOLVE!"
I looked at the transformation with awe, it turns out that the mega evolution really appealed to the audience despite my humiliation of Paula… How am I going to top this?
Suddenly a flash of light came from beside me. "POPPLIO!" It shouted in a confident tone
"Popplio, you want to battle?" I ask the small seal as I kneeled in front of him.
"Popplio!" Popplio nodded to me. I was unsure since Popplio had barely hatched from his egg not to long ago, but I decided to use her since she was confident.
I stood up and looked over to the field and exclaimed a catchphrase that only Ash would say while raising my sore arm, "Popplio! I choose you!"
"Pop Popplio!" Popplio exclaimed proudly as she looked up at Mega Abomasnow. I knew the battle would not be easy since I am using a hatched newborn, but I had to make sure I could win with strength and beauty.
I looked at the ref and the ref lowered his arm, "Battle Begin!"
You can play battle music now, Serena (Popplio) vs Paula (Abomasnow):
"Abomasnow, finish this quick use ice beam!" Paula exclaimed.
I looked over and saw Abomasnow it charging up an ice beam and I knew what to do. "Popplio quick, jump into the air while using water gun with a spin to it!"
"Popplio!" Popplio shouted as she spun and created a water gun vortex. I like to call it counter shield and it appealed to the audience at times.
I saw the ice beam begin to freeze the vortex and decided to counter attack as things were going my way.
"Now slide down the ice with a bubble!" I say with a smile. Popplio listens intently as she uses a bubble to float down while being lead by the ice very smoothly. I knew that I had to hurt Abomasnow to actually win, but I decided to be more passive.
Paula decided it was her turn though, "Abomasnow use ice shard make sure it does not get away!"
"Dodge it!" I shout hoping Popplio can get out of the way. Popplio began to dance while avoiding the ice shard with ease which made me be relieved at how Popplio was not getting hit, but my relief was short lived as the ice shard turned and started following Popplio.
Quickly, an idea sprang into my mind, "Popplio make a bubble and put it in front of you!"
"Popp...LIO!" Popplio shouted as she made a bubble that stopped the ice shard and burst into a lot of sprinkles of bubbles.
From the stands I heard oohs and aahs to my performance. Somehow though, I still needed to take out Abomasnow if I was going to win.
Paula grew desperate at this point and began another counter attack while Popplio was taking damage from hail. "Abomasnow use ice beam on the ground!" Abomasnow used the ice beam thus freezing the entire field which intimidated me. I had no clue how to deal with this kind of field. "Now use wood hammer on the ground and make some pillars!"
"Bomassnoww!" Abomasnow hit the ground with a large green hammer like arm and made large pillars of ice come up from the ground. I instantly knew that I needed to be careful as the crown enjoyed this scene as well.
"Now Abomasnow, use wood hammer and hit the pillars to Popplio!" Paula shouted making me panic.
"Popplio quick use disarming voice! Break the pillars in mid air as they fly for you!" I shout with hope while putting my arm in the air.
"PoppLIIOOOOOOOOOOOO!" the pillars are flying towards Popplio, but Popplio makes a strong voice that cracks and breaks the ice thus making a lot of different sprinkles of ice surround everyone.
"Abomasnow, let's finish this! Use giga impact!" Paula exclaims with agitation.
"This is a performance battle what are you thinking?!" I snap in shock looking at the magnitude of the attack that was coming.
"I don't care, if I faint that stupid seal, then I win… and I get Ash," Paula taunted which made Popplio and my blood boil. At Least no one had heard it except me and Popplio, but the anger was now being reflected on the audience.
In the stands:
"What is Serena doing?" Calem asked. Serena had started moving involuntarily which was concerning everyone.
Abomasnow had started glowing yellow and white and was rushing Popplio so this made Grace worry about Serena and her pokemon. The entire audience was at the edge of their seats.
"Come on Serena…" Grace muttered to herself while clenching her fists at the edge of her seat.
With Ash on top of the stands by himself:
Ash looked at the battle as it was getting intense.
Suddenly, he saw Serena doing wave like motions with her arms and shouting, "I WON'T GIVE UP UNTIL THE END! AARRRRRGGHHH!"
Ash recoiled as he saw this. He noticed an aura envelop Serena and her screaming was clearly audible.
Ash also noticed Popplio have an aura. The incoming giga impact was closer though, but Serena had enough time. "ARTIFICIAL Z MOVE! HYDRO VORTEX!"
Ash stared wide eyed like the rest of the crowd and performers and hosts and everyone witnessing the battle as Popplio made a huge water tornado that enveloped Abomasnow in a large watery explosion that made the Abomasnow fall over instantly to his regular form.
Normal POV at the stage:
Serena could hardly believe what had just happened.
"Abomasnow is unable to battle and Popplio performed better throughout the battle so the winner is Serena!" the ref exclaimed.
Serena ran up to Popplio and hugged her, "Popplio you were amazing!"
The crowd roared and cheered as Serena praised Popplio and Paula recalled Abomasnow and left without a trace and anger in her eyes. Paula had her fists clenched as she left the stage with a bad attitude which relieved many people who thought things would go badly.
"And Serena moves onto ze next round! Ze freestyle round!" Pierre exclaims as the crowd claps and cheers. The sound that drowned out the world for Serena at that moment.
A while later in the stage:
Pierre was alone on stage addressing the masterclass, "And we have our final five performers! Which one will challenge Aria?"
The crowd roared.
"Ze Masterclass freestyle is about to begin!" Pierre added.
A/N: Dang, what a chapter, I did say it would be intense so you have to keep that in mind.
If you are still panicking about the approach of this chapter, be patient as the next chapter clarifies some things.
I want to address, that yes, Serena has no Z ring, but why is she able to make an "artificial" Z move do the same as a real one without the crystal or ring? Hehe, only the story will answer that!
Sorry if it looked like Popplio was a male and female at the same time. The seal is supposed to be a female, but I originally had her male because I did not believe she would evolve into a feminine looking pokemon. Also, the story on how Serena got Popplio is for later, don't think she randomly found an Alolan starter in the wild like Ash did Treecko xD!
Anyways, part three will probably conclude the Masterclass, but how will it go? Stay tuned!
This is not the end you will see of mega Abomasnow in this fic. So get used to the concept xD.
Remember to R & R and we will see you all next time! (Thanks for nearly 10k views too!)
Responding to some reviews:
AmourshippingFan: Well, she managed without Ash this time.
NinjaFang1331: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Guest 1: Glad you liked it!