Clemont and I both have Calculus next, so we head out together.

"You know… About that girl earlier…" I begin tentatively.

"Ash, in case you haven't noticed, half our class are girls," Clemont deadpans. "You need to be more specific than that."

"Okay, fine. About Serena –"

Clemont grinds to a halt, and the student walking behind him nearly rams into him.

"Watch it!" he snaps before stalking off.

But Clemont is staring at me. He bursts into laughter. "That's what this is about? Hey, you know, I thought you were totally oblivious to stuff like romance, but –"

"What?" I exclaim. "No, that's not what I – ugh. I just want to ask if you know why she kept looking at me earlier!"

Clemont blinks. We resume walking.

"Huh. She was looking at you? I thought you wanted to hit on her… I mean, it wouldn't be that strange. A lot of guys here have a crush on her." Clemont ponders over it. "Maybe she fancies you?" He gives me a dubious look, then shakes his head. "Nah… That can't be it. No offense."

"None taken."

My Calculus teacher is an overzealous Galarian whose fast ramblings and excited gestures make it impossible to keep up. Until I turn next to me and see Clemont scribbling neat lines of notes at an equally impossible speed, head bowed in concentration. My own notes resemble terrible graffiti art more than anything else.

Next period is Kalos History, where the teacher just instructs us to read pages eighty-one to hundred-and-sixteen of the textbook and fill in the worksheets ourselves. Then she plops down onto the chair, kicks her feet on to the desk and starts scrolling through her phone.

Typical.

I end up copying most of Clemont's answers, even though he warns me that he is comparatively worse at Kalos History than his other subjects.

Chemistry is taught by Mr. Henry, whose tone is drier than the Lumiose Badlands. Halfway through his lackluster explanation on the hydrophobic effect, I feel an intense stare prodding into my back. I crane my neck in time to see Serena ducking her head, burrowing her face into her upside-down textbook. The book does nothing to hide how the tips of her ears are reddening.

When lunchtime rolls around, I've had enough of her strange behavior. Before she can bolt out of the room, I'm standing beside her. She startles, making me feel a little guilty for using my enhanced speed.

"Hi. Serena, right?"

"Y-yep!" she squeaks out.

I smile at her. "Do you want to have lunch together?"

My grand plan to suss her out is essentially just by spending time with her. Surely she'll spill whatever is making her so fidgety around me soon enough? It's not completely out of the realm of possibility for her to be working for the Varyas, though it is highly unlikely.

But not impossible.

An image of Serena springing out of the janitor's closet and gutting me with a knife flashes through my mind. It's a thought so absurd that I almost laugh.

Of all times for Brock's paranoia to afflict me…

Serena hesitates, then seems to make up her mind. "Sure. Just let me grab my wallet."

I end up between Clemont and Serena as we walk down the hallway toward the now deserted stairway. Everyone else has made a mad dash out of here the second the ball rang, so we're alone.

"Is the food at the cafeteria any good?" I ask, hoping the answer is yes.

Clemont makes a face. "The school recently launched a 'Healthier Diet' programme so everything tastes bland now. They even cut down on the amount of sauce for pasta. Can you believe it?"

"Fantastic," I mutter. I turn to Serena, hoping to engage her in the conversation, and ask, "So what are you eating –"

"Have we met before?" she blurts out.

I blink.

There's a light flush on her cheeks, but she stares at me with an uncomfortable intensity. She bites her lip.

"I'm sorry for the sudden question, but you remind me of someone I used to know."

My heart pounds in my ears. I study her back with the same scrutiny she's giving me, feeling sweat roll down my back. If she really does recognize me, it won't be as Ash Ketchum, but whatever fake identity I was using back then – shit. But try as I might, her face doesn't jolt any memory in me.

I force my lips to curve upward into a smile, although it probably looks more like a grimace. "I get that a lot. I've been told that my face is pretty, ah, common."

Her eyes continue to probe into me, and then her shoulders sag. She gives me a wistful, almost melancholic smile. "Yeah, I probably got the wrong person. Your names aren't even similar anyway."

I want to ask her what the name of that person was, and whether she has ever been to Kanto or Johto, but I chicken out. In the end, the matter is dropped and the topic is changed to something else. The only silver lining is that Serena seems noticeably more relaxed around me.

"Oh! Club sign-ups start today. I'm in the Cooking Club and I think Clemont is in the Science Society, right?"

Clemont nods.

"Are you planning on joining any clubs, Ash?" Serena asks.

The answer "No" almost slips out of my mouth before I reply, "I'm thinking about it."

In all honesty, joining an extracurricular activity is not going to happen, considering the intense training that Brock wants to put me through to ensure that I have a fighting chance against the Varyas when they come. Because it's only a matter of time until they find me.

"Come see us," Clemont suggests eagerly. "It'll be fun."

And that's how I find myself accompanying him to the room where the Science Society holds weekly gatherings after school. I've texted Brock, telling him that I would be an hour late. There are only a handful of club members who are all deeply engrossed in their own projects. Clemont leads me to his work station, where there are machinery parts tossed all over the table and some sort of weird multi-legged contraption at its center.

"This," Clemont declares proudly, "is the third draft of the Disposable Multiple-legged Miniature Non-lethal Explosives Device!"

"Uh… The name could use a little work. What's it supposed to do?"

Clemont adjusts his glasses. "When this little latch over here is released, the device automatically generates a ten-second countdown, whereupon the ball attached to each of its legs will explode, or more accurately, self-combust. Non-fatally," he hastily adds when he sees my raised brow. "It's not meant to actually kill anyone. I don't have anyone I want to kill!"

I'm dumbfounded. "The school actually lets you guys work on this kind of thing?"

"Technically, we are supposed to get our project outlines vetted by the teacher in-charge first, but the role was handed over to me, the club president, instead. So… yes and no?"

Clemont has more spunk than I've given him credit for. He introduces me to some of his other inventions, all of which have been horribly named. By the time he's done, my head is swimming with enough information to make me dizzy. And hungry.

My stomach growls. I slap my hands over it.

Clemont chuckles. "Let's pop by the Cooking Club. Serena said they'll be giving out samples of their food."

I come alive again. "Say no more and lead the way, Frankenstein."

Clemont shoots me a strange, almost affronted, look. "Frankenstein?"

"Uh… Because you're super smart and have a high IQ?"

"Did you mean Einstein instead?"

"… Isn't Einstein short for Frankenstein?"

He stops in his tracks and stares at me like he can't tell if I'm joking. I just shrug. He continues walking, shaking his head.

"You're weird."

The Cooking Club uses the same kitchen as that for Home Economics, which is in a separate building. The scent hits me first – a pungent fragrance that makes my taste buds water. My footsteps quicken on their own, and I peep in through the translucent window.

I spot Serena immediately, her long hair tied into a high ponytail and her face scrunched in concentration. I tap on the window. She looks up and double takes when we make eye contact. Dusting her hands on her apron, she runs over to open the door for us.

"What are you guys doing here?" she asks a little breathlessly.

Clemont jabs his thumb at me. "He got hungry."

"I heard something about samples?" I mention hopefully.

She grins. "Come on in. We're making pan-fried dumplings."

"Awesome."

The other students glance at us curiously before returning to their own dishes. The instructor is a friendly guy who flashes us a smile before turning his attention back to helping another student.

Nine dumplings are laid out on a porcelain plate, and Serena carefully drizzles the sauce over it. I stab at one dumpling with a fork and pop it into my mouth. I nearly moan.

"Is it good?" Serena asks, wringing her hands nervously.

"Good? It's the best!"

Serena blushes slightly at my compliment. I guess she gets shy easily.

My phone vibrates. A message from Brock.

I'm reaching in ten minutes.

Guess that's my cue to leave. Clemont decides to go with me to the parking lot where he parked his dad's SUV, but when I ask Serena if she's coming too, she only shakes her head.

"I live in Vaniville Town, so I stay at the school's dormitory."

Brock pulls up just as we reach the parking lot, and I say goodbye to Clemont.

"Anything exciting happened today?" Brock asks while I'm buckling my seatbelt.

What he's really asking is if anything suspicious has occurred.

"Nope."

"Good. When we get home, we're going through your Chest."

I sit up a little straighter. "For real?"

"Yeah. I would have done this much earlier if you didn't break my trust by tricking me into opening it."

I cringe.

Two months ago, back when we were still living in Pallet Town, I had somehow gotten the brilliant idea of sneaking up on Brock when he was asleep and forcing him to open my Chest. Based on what he told me, I knew that we had to both put our hands on the lock for it to open. What I hadn't counted on was a meaty palm slapping the lid shut two seconds after I opened it. Brock's eyes glaring at me in the dark was the stuff of nightmares.

He had been livid, and refused to speak to me for days after that. It was the first time I saw him that furious.

"Although…" His gaze flickers to me before snapping back onto the road. "You don't need me to open it once I'm no longer around."

"Not happening," I shoot back immediately.

A Chest can only be opened in the presence of both its intended Ordained and their Warden – except for the scenario where the Warden is dead. In that case, the Ordained can unlock it on their own. In the event that the Ordained dies, Brock has told me that the contents of the Chest will disintegrate themselves and the lock will open, revealing a hollow shell.

I pray that neither of us has to find out how true that is.

"I'm a realist, Ash," Brock says gently. "I won't be around forever. In fact, it's in everyone's best interest for you to outlive me."

"Everyone except for mine. You're not dying, do you hear me, Brock?"

"… We'll see."

I grit my teeth. The rest of the ride back is filled with silence. I'm not an idiot, although I'm sure Gary would be the first to object. Of the surviving Ordained, I highly doubt all of them still have their Wardens with them. I'm probably one of the luckier ones.

But it's not luck that will save us.

It's strength.

I'll do whatever it takes to make sure everyone I love lives to see the end of the Varyas.

A/N:

Because of the Frankenstein/Einstein line, I actually went to read the summary of the story of Frankenstein, and it was quite interesting. I hope you guys like this chapter and please leave a review!