The Way We Will Be

by TheCartoonFanatic01

REWRITTEN AND REPOSTED! While in Kiloude City for a Pokémon Showcase, Ash and Serena meet a girl who claims to be their daughter from their future. This startling turn of events results in an adventure like no other, and quite perhaps...something a little bit more? AmourShipping, Ash/Serena, SatoSere! R&R!

34. A Date With Destiny

A/N: Here we are, everyone! Yes, your eyes do not deceive you. It is yet another chapter from yours truly! HOORAY! :D :D :D

I'm truly, truly, very sorry for how late this update was. I was originally planning to post it a couple of weeks after the last chapter, but there were a lot of new developments in my job that happened between then and now. In addition, I had to do some major revisions to the latter half of the chapter, and it wound up being longer than expected. Early on with the development of this chapter, it got so long that it actually came to the point where I was forced to split it in two. You'll see why I came to that decision in a moment. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

But even then, this chapter STILL became so long that I had to keep postponing it and postponing it until the act of postponement itself became pretty painful. Oh, woe is me. At least I was able to finish it, and that's all that matters, is that right? ...Right?

In other news, I want to thank Ander Arias for their meticulous observation of my previous chapter, which helped me find something that I missed. I won't be able to fix that chapter with Ander Arias's observation, but I can still salvage it here! See, this is what happens when you leave behind a more detailed review for me! It's quite helpful in many ways!

And in other other news, the newest saga of the anime, "Pokémon Horizons", has just begun airing. I haven't seen the debut episodes yet, but I hear it's looking good and promising so far. I do already like the new direction they're taking with the anime, especially the art-style. It sort of reminds me of a mix of the Journeys and XY sagas. I can only hope they keep up the momentum and make Liko and Roy protagonists worthy enough of taking Ash's mantle. The only question I have right now is whether Horizons is canon to the main series at large or just set in its own universe, because I haven't heard anything to indicate its place in the Pokémon universe. Unless I've been an oblivious, inattentive fool and missed out on something that's making the rounds on online forums...

Alright, I think that's enough unnecessary rambling from me! Let's get on with the long-awaited, long-anticipated chapter. ENJOY!

Edit: I'm putting in this little addendum to let everyone know that I did some minor fixes with a scene that readers have pointed out in the reviews. Thank you for the heads-up, everyone!

P.S. #1: For all FF users reading this who are unaware (and this is VERY IMPORTANT), there's a new account feature for this site called "Email Opt-in". It controls the site's ability to send out email notifications to you. It is disabled by default, so you need to go to your account settings and enable it by clicking "Yes". The site will disable the opt-in by default again after 90 days of activation; in other words, you'll need to return to your account settings about EVERY THREE MONTHS to manually reset it. Without the opt-in, you WILL NOT be getting email notifications on whether any of your favorite stories have been updated or not, or whether an author that you are following has posted a new story or not. Please heed these instructions! FictionPress announced this new feature on their Twitter account, but I doubt news of this has reached everyone!

P.S. #2: For any updates regarding progress on my writing and just life in general, please check out my profile! I try to update it as often as I possibly can with any status update!

P.S. #3: Due to the slowly improving situation regarding the coronavirus outbreak, I am going to have to remind you all about the basic steps you should take if you want to stay healthy, courtesy of my university's reminder emails:

-Wash hands often with soap and water for 20-30 seconds at a time, and/or use hand sanitizer
-Avoid close contact with people who are sick
-Keep your hands away from nose, eyes, and mouth (I can't imagine how difficult this part is probably going to be)
-Eat well, get adequate rest, and exercise regularly
-Get a flu shot if you haven't already and are able to
-Stay informed on the COVID-19 vaccines, get shots if you're able to, and try to get a booster shot if you're eligible

And if you ARE sick (I hope you get better if you are), please be a good sport and save other folks the trouble of getting sick. You can do this by:

-Covering your mouth and nose with your sleeve, elbow, or a tissue whenever you sneeze or cough
-Not sharing food and drinks with others
-Avoiding touching your mouth, nose, and eyes (Again, I understand this is probably going to be difficult)
-Avoiding close contact with others
-Cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and objects
-Staying at home if you're unwell (PRIORITY NUMBER ONE!)
-Staying calm and keeping yourself well-informed (My personal advice)

If you already know this, then great! If you didn't know any of this beforehand, please keep that information in mind as we all go through this trying time. It's a realm of unknowns at this point, and I wish myself and all of humanity well.

P.S. #4: The above coronavirus advisory will no longer be posted on my opening Author's Notes beginning May 11, 2023, coinciding with the lifting of federal emergency declarations in the U.S. However, it will remain on my profile for as long as it needs to be there, and it can be reposted on my Author's Notes should the pandemic worsen again, which is still a possibility. In the meantime, continue to stay healthy and stay safe!

---

Mt. Kiloude

"All repairs to your Alpha Mecha are complete, Parker."

The announcement from Sid brought a wide, malevolent smile to Parker's face. He turned around and made his ascent to the top of the so-called Alpha Mecha, where he found Kay. The woman who was still staring off into the distance, towards the faraway Laurier Maison. In all the years that he'd known her, Parker never saw such focus and intensity radiating off his superior's eyes before. Absolutely everything about her was cold, aloof, and impersonal.

But not today, evidently.

"Did you hear that, ma'am?" the Pokémon poacher asked.

"Yes..." Kay hissed with narrowing eyes. "Ten years. Ten years of my life, gone. All courtesy of those meddlesome kids..." She clenched her fists so tightly that they trembled. "Even though my mind feels as fresh as yesterday, this body of mine has waited, yearned for this moment for ten whole years. Now, I'll see to it that those children suffer what I had suffered tenfold." She finally faced her colleague. "Parker, activate your Beta Mecha. We must deploy all the resources we have at our disposal."

Parker nodded in response. "Yes, ma'am."

With that, the burly man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, charcoal-gray marble. He pressed a small button on it and then threw it high into the air. A second later, holographic images of grid-like patterns started to unfold outward from the marble and in all directions. Nick, Floyd, Lloyd, Sid, Cecile, and their colleagues all watched in shock and awe as these grid-like patterns started to form into a 3D model of something completely unknown to them.

Once the model was complete, solid material instantly materialized in its place. Standing there now, tall and mighty, was a four-legged mecha, which was about a couple dozen feet tall; four tentacle-like arms with menacing pincers for hands dangled from its underside.

"Tonight..." Kay hissed with anticipation, "we HUNT."

---

Laurier Maison
Northern Kiloude City

"That was AWESOME!"

"OMA, I had so much fun with that performance!"

"I'm sooooo gonna sign up for the next Exhibition Showcase!"

Those shouts and exclamations of elation and excitement, and many, many more, filled the dressing room as Aria opened up the doors and led the way back inside. Once the Pokémon Performers and their Pokémon were all inside and moved to undress themselves, Aria clapped her hands thrice to catch their attention. Dozens of pairs of eyes turned towards her in anticipation of what their idol had to say.

"That was such a great Freestyle Performance, everyone!" Aria announced with a bright smile on her face. "I understand that we didn't have quite much time to practice this beforehand, but the fact that we all pulled it off together shows how far each and every one of you have come as Pokémon Performers this past season. You all should be proud of yourselves and your Pokémon."

The Performers looked at their respective Pokémon and laughed, giggled, and chuckled with them. As for Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini, they all simply looked amongst one another and their Pokémon teams and smiled sweetly.

"As your Kalos Queen," continued Aria, "I couldn't be more proud to oversee your growth throughout the season. Even if none of you managed to beat me in battle in the Master Class Showcase, I can tell that you're all one step closer to your dreams. After all, one step forward is better than two steps backward."

The redheaded girl swept her gaze across the small crowd of Performers. As she did, Serena couldn't help but notice how Aria's scarlet eyes fell upon Shauna and Blanche in particular. The honey-blonde then recalled how close the two of them had both gotten in usurping Aria of the title of Kalos Queen.

"And no matter how long it takes, you will get there someday. Just remember, a Pokémon Performer always has to wear a wonderfully radiant smile. That's the way you make everyone in your audience happy. Now then..." With a smooth and graceful swish of her dress, Aria started to depart from the dressing room. "The Exhibition Showcase has officially come to a close. Next up is the outdoor dance party.

"All of you, take a moment to have a breather, say...an hour. Then, dress up in the finest clothes of your choice. You will find them here in this dressing room. Then, find your dates and arrive at the banquet room by midnight sharp. Monsieur Pierre will rendezvous with you here to provide further directions. Don't be late! The night cannot be young without the ever-youthful radiance of all our Performers, after all! Hee hee!"

Serena's eyes widened to the sizes of saucers when she heard Aria bring up the word "date". But before she could make an utterance of protest, Aria had already given the Performers one last goodbye wave and left the room, leaving behind a trail of sparkles in her wake. The honey-blonde turned to her future daughter and her friends in a panic, only to see that Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini were also as stunned as her by the instructions.

"We...We need a DATE?!" Shauna exclaimed shrilly.

"Well, duuuh," Shulin replied. Alongside Blanche and Kazalie, she approached the girls with a disappointed frown. "That's, like, something that everyone and their mother have known since the start of this Exhibition Showcase. You're telling me that you guys don't have dates?"

"Don't look down on them like that, Shulin," Blanche said in a stern, almost maternal voice. Then, she looked at Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini with a sheepish smile. "But yeah, you can't really have a dance party without a partner. I've got a date, Kazalie and Shulin have dates, everyone in this room has dates of their own lined up already...except for you girls, obviously..."

"H-How come you didn't bring it up earlier, Blanche?!" Yancy exclaimed in desperation.

"I thought I did, while we were traveling to Kiloude!" Then, Blanche tapped her chin while recollecting the moment. "But you looked distracted half of the time, so I guess you didn't hear me when I asked. You just mumbled an 'Uh-huh' to me, and I took your word for it."

"Well, that's just great," Shauna grumbled.

"Where, oh where are we gonna get ourselves some dates?!" Nini cried in despair.

"Hey, I've got some brothers and cousins on speed-dial!" Blanche said.

Yancy quirked an eyebrow at her. "You've got...brothers and cousins...on speed-dial...?"

"Well...yeah!" Then, the blue-haired Performer chuckled. "I'm pretty much the only daughter in a family full of boys. We have no shortage of them in my family. They are all here, actually, and Kazalie, Shulin, and I already have some of them as our dates." She pulled out her Holo Caster. "Lemme just call them. I'm sure they'll be willing to-"

"No, wait a minute!"

Serena's shout stopped the group in its tracks. Seven pairs of eyes gravitated towards her and noticed how her blue eyes were alight with realization.

"It's alright, Blanche," the honey-blonde said. "Thank you, but we've already got the perfect dates in mind."

"We...We do?" a confused Miette asked.

"We do?" repeated Yancy. Then, as if her mind was synchronized with her mother's, the image of a certain group of boys passed through her mind, and she reached the same conclusion. "Ohhhhh... We dooooo..."

Then, a new image of a certain tennis visor-wearing boy flashed through her memory. At that moment, her face became as red as a Tamato Berry, and she swiftly clasped her hands over her face in horror and embarrassment.

"We-We DOOOOO?!"

---

Elsewhere in the dressing room, Clarice sat alone in one of the farthest corners. She was slightly slumped over, her face obscured by her cascading dark hair. There was no emotion in her once-vibrant eyes of amber, only hollowness. Perched on her shoulder was her prized Fletchling, the Pokémon that she had relied on after all this time; the Tiny Robin Pokémon was looking at its Trainer with concern, but it knew by now that no amount of squawking or chirping would be enough to drag her out of the brink of despair that she was teetering on. It was not lost to either of them that they skipped out on the Freestyle Performance, but it didn't matter to Clarice.

After all, none of it mattered to her anymore.

"It's clear to me that your mind is stuck in the past, Clarice."

"Clarice, my dear, there's only so much you can do with a tiny, low-leveled Pokémon like a Fletchling."

"My apologies, Clarice, but as long as you continue to keep up that attitude, as long as you continue to let your love for Fletchling, and your efforts to immortalize the memories you have for your mother, determine your strategies in this venue, then I'm afraid you'll never attain the title of Kalos Queen. Ever."

"Um, w-well, ummm...s-since she wasn't d-disqualified outright, i-it appears that Clarice has officially won this round of the Theme Performance!"

"I...I won..." Clarice thought, her mind still reeling with disbelief. "I won my Theme Performance only by a technicality..." She narrowed her eyes. "I won without even getting the acknowledgment of Palermo. Palermo, the producer, the queen-maker, one of the original Kalos Queens! It's...It's like Arceus is taunting me or something! What're you trying to tell me, Arceus?! That I'm...I'm doomed to be a loser, no matter what, and that I should just give up?!"

She buried her face in her palms and started to weep quietly. "What is the point of all of this now?! Why can't you tell me what to do, Arceus?! Why can't you tell me anything?! Why?! I...I don't know what to do anymore...Mom..."

---

Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini regrouped with Ash, Nate, and their group at the Laurier Maison's food court. As soon as they reunited, Serena was shocked beyond belief when Ash dove at her and embraced her in a hug so tight that she feared he was going to break her bones in his overflowing enthusiasm.

"A-AAAAASH?!" she squeaked with reddening cheeks.

"Y-You...You were so...so...GREAT up there onstage!" Ash exclaimed. He was blushing just as fiercely as her, and he was clearly struggling to find the right words to say. "I've...I've never seen anything like it!"

"Yeah!" Selene chirped in agreement. "You were so PRETTY, Mommy!"

"Pichu, pichu!" Pichu squeaked.

"Bi!" Celebi cried happily.

Serena had to forcefully break away from him, and she was dismayed to see the looks of amusement on everyone else's faces, sans Yancy's. With a sheepish chuckle, she pinched a lock of honey-blonde hair between her right thumb and index finger and shyly fiddled around with it.

"We-Well," she said, "i-it wasn't just me, Ash. I-It was all my Pokémon too. A-And all of the other Performers and th-their P-Pokémon."

"We-Well," he replied, "I-I wouldn't know, 'c-'cause I was f-focused on you th-the whole time..."

Serena gulped audibly and couldn't force herself to say anything else in response. As for Ash, the honest, compassionate admission seemed to have killed any motivation of his own to continue. Eventually, the awkward silence was shattered by a smirking Miette.

"Well, then," the blue-haired Performer said slyly, "if you two are done giving each other the googly eyes, it's time for us to carry out Serena's little strategy."

"Little strategy?" Ash asked; he felt slightly relieved to have the topic of the conversation diverted away. "What strategy? What's going on?"

"The Exhibition Showcase may be over for all the spectators and tourists," Yancy replied, "but not for the Performers. The next event is gonna be an outdoor dance party."

"Oh, yeah!" Clemont cried in realization. "I remember hearing about that in the news! So you girls are gonna go to that?"

"That's the plan, but..." Shauna said before her voice trailed off and she shyly twiddled her fingers.

"Basically, we need dates," Miette completed for her in a confident voice.

Clemont's eyeglasses shone with understanding. "Ahhh, you need dates." Then, his comprehension finally caught up with him. "Wait, you need DATES?!"

"Yep. And yes, when I say 'dates', I mean guy dates. Blanche, Kazalie, and Shulin say they have dates of their own, and I gotta assume all of the other Performers have a date of their own. Which leaves the five of us, all dateless and on our lonesomes." Miette then smirked at Ash. "But now that we've got you boys here, we're in the clear! And since you seem to be interested in Serena, Ash-"

"Oh no, if you're gonna ask him out to the dance party in my stead," Serena interrupted harshly, "then you can FORGET IT, Miette! I can ask him out myself, since we're a couple and everything now!"

"Oh, are you now, Serena?" Grace asked. She had an eyebrow quirked, and the grin on her face was mischievous. "Well, go on, then. Ask Ash out to that dance party."

"O-Okay, then." The honey-blonde averted her gaze from the smirking Miette. "I-I will. Just watch!"

Then, she faced Ash, who stared back at her with both anticipation and apprehension. The awkward silence returned and both were simply left staring at one another, hoping one or the other would make the first move. All the while, their faces were redder than the ripest Tamato Berries, and it looked as if they were going to turn to stone from the sheer terror and embarrassment alone. In the background, the others watched with either disappointment or amusement.

Eventually, Selene puffed her cheeks and stomped her way between Ash and Serena. Her impatience was so potent, and so palpable, that people could feel it from yards away.

"Awwwww, this is soooo annoying!" she complained. Then, she looked up at Ash. "Daddy, will you go with Mommy to the dance party?"

"H-Huh?!" Ash exclaimed. Then, he looked at Serena and smiled bashfully. "Of...Of course. I'll go with her."

"And Mommy!" Selene focused on Serena next. "Will you go with Daddy to the dance party?"

"Y-Yes!" squeaked the honey-blonde. "O-Of course I'll go with him to the dance!"

"There!" With an arrogant, self-satisfied smile, Selene put one hand on her hip while her other hand continued to cradle Celebi; Pichu mirrored her movements. "That wasn't so hard, was it, Mommy, Daddy?"

"N-No," Ash replied while rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "I-It wasn't..."

"Th-Thank you for speaking up for us, Selene..." Serena added. Deep inside, she felt immensely humiliated over having a mere seven-year-old acting on her behalf, even if said seven-year-old was her future daughter.

"Ah, well I guess that solves the problem of Serena gettin' a date," Shauna commented. Then, she animatedly patted her own chest in frustration. "NOW WHAT ABOUT US?!"

"Well, you go with Uncle Calem, Auntie Shauna," Selene replied cheekily.

Now, it was the tan-skinned Performer's face to go red. "W-Wi-Wit-With U-U-Uncle C-C-Ca-Calem?!"

"Of course! Who else are you going out with?"

Shauna looked at Calem with despair, only to see him scratching his cheek and chuckling while wearing a faint pink blush on his cheeks.

"W-Well," Calem replied sheepishly, "if that's what Selene wants, then I can't argue with that-"

"NO, ARGUE WITH THAT!" Shauna shrieked in disbelief.

The boy could only chuckle again, and he was joined by Selene and Pichu, who both giggled mischievously. As for Miette, she sighed and crossed her arms while sweeping her gaze across the other boys.

"Alright, then," the blue-haired Performer said. "Which one of you am I gonna take, then?" Then, she laid her eyes upon Clemont, who can only blush helplessly while she smirked. "Well, I guess I've got no problem with guys wearing glasses. Whaddaya say, Clemont? Wanna go to the dance party with me? Or do you prefer Clemmie...?"

Clemont's eyes grew even wider than the lenses of his glasses. "W-W-Wh-Wh-Wha-Wha-Whhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaat?!"

Miette snickered and replied, "I'm gonna take that as a yes."

"W-W-W-W-W-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-W-W-W-W-W-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-"

The girl giggled again and patted Clemont on the back, a little too hard for his comfort. "Awwww, you're just so adorable, Clemmie! We are gonna have so much fun on this dance party! I'd sure like to see your moves up-close and personal on the floor!"

Clemont started to blabber and blubber incoherently, overwhelmed by the abrupt proposal. In an act of pure desperation, he looked down at Bonnie, only to catch her smirking at him alongside Dedenne.

"Help me..." he croaked.

"Sorry, big bro!" Bonnie chirped mischievously. "It looks like you're on your own on that one!"

"Nenene!" Dedenne squeaked.

"I guess that just leaves Yancy and Nini without dates," Trevor commented. He prepared to turn towards Nini. "Nini, who do you-? Huh?!"

He caught Nini holding hands with Tierno and staring deeply into his eyes with a fierce blush of her own, all while Tierno returned the stare with one of his own.

"You wanna be my date for the dance party, Tierno?" Nini asked.

"Of course!" Tierno replied enthusiastically. "You can ask me out to any event, any time!"

Trevor blinked with incredulity. "Ooooookaaaaay... That was...surprisingly easy..." He then turned towards a certain pink-haired girl. "So it's Yancy who's the only one without a date." The amateur photographer cleared his throat. "You know, if you want, Yancy, I can-"

He was suddenly cut off by a ringing sound. Everyone's eyes drifted to Grace, who gasped and started fishing around in her pockets in search of something.

"O-Oh, my Arceus!" the former Rhyhorn racer cried. "That must be Moose calling about Layla! Where's my darn cell...?"

Ash, Serena, and Yancy looked amongst each other in stunned surprise, while Selene gawked at her grandmother in awe. They'd forgotten all about Layla's pregnancy and how she had gone into labor earlier that day while searching for Selene in the Laurier Maison.

"Ah! There it is!" Grace finally pulled out her cellphone and checked the number. "Oh Arceus, it is Moose. G-Gimme a few minutes, everyone..."

She walked off by a few steps, but everyone kept their eyes glued onto her, especially Serena and Meyer. They watched with rapt attention as Grace answered the phone and spoke into it with a wavering voice.

"Y-Yes? Moose? Oh Arceus, how is she?!"

...

"Yes?"

...

"Yes...?"

...

"Oh, my Arceus, no way! NO WAY!"

Serena could've sworn she was about to explode from the spiking alarm she felt in her gut.

"What?!" she cried. "What happened, Mom?!"

"Is it Layla?!" asked Ash. "Is she alright?!"

"I-Is the baby alright?!"

But Grace didn't answer them and just continued to speak into the phone. "Oh, my Arceus, I don't believe it... I...I-I just don't believe it... I-I don't know what to think... Can...Can we see her...?"

...

"Okay... Okay, we'll be on the way, then. I just...gotta break the news to them..."

...

"Yeah... Serena's gonna take it very hard in particular. She was always so close to her..."

Serena gulped noisily with dread. Beside her, Yancy's eyes grew large in terror, and Selene blindly took her sister's hand, unable to understand what was happening and yet able to grasp the possible implications. On her other side, Ash's heart had pretty much stopped beating, and the others watched on, terribly enraptured with suspense.

"Okay..."

...

"Okay. I'm gonna tell them now. This is gonna be tough for everyone to digest..."

...

"Yeah. See you later, Moose."

With that, Grace finally hung up, marking the end of a tense, one-sided conversation that held everyone's breaths. They finally released those breaths all at once while trying to approach the woman.

"Is Auntie Layla alright, Mom?!" Serena cried.

"What happened?!" Ash asked. "What did Moose say?!"

"Is the baby alright?" Moose asked in concern.

"Did she deliver the baby alright?!" asked Yancy.

"What didja mean by you 'gotta break the news' to us?" asked Nate.

"Guys, guys, settle down!" Grace exclaimed.

The former jockey raised her hands and motioned to everyone to lower their voices, which they all reluctantly did. Once the tense, suspense-filled atmosphere had settled down, Grace took a long, deep breath, held a hand over her heart, and finally revealed what she had just learned over the phone. As soon as her voice started leaving her mouth, everyone held their breaths again, expecting the worst.

...

...

...

"Layla's given birth." She looked at Serena with such fond eyes. "Your cousins have officially entered the world, Serena."

---

The doors to the nurse's room opened up, and everyone poured into the room, one by one in an organized line, with the stunned, nervous Serena being first. The first thing she saw was Layla on the hospital bed, extremely fatigued but happy and content nonetheless. By the woman's bedside was Moose, who was sitting on a chair and slightly hunched over; his eyes were red and his cheeks were slightly puffy, telltale signs that he had been crying, even as his lips were formed into the most elated smile Serena had ever seen from him.

And then, her sapphire-blue eyes were drawn to the two bundles cradled in her aunt's arms.

"Auntie Layla..." Serena whispered.

Layla looked up and smiled. "Oh, Serena..." she whispered back in the most feeble voice imaginable; it was almost hard to hear her. "I'm so glad that you're here. Come over here. You too, sis."

She beamed and smiled weakly at Grace as well. Both mother and daughter silently agreed, approaching Layla's bedside with the caution of a Pyroar stalking its prey and the compassion of a Kangaskhan caring for its young. As they got closer and closer, Serena could vaguely see the two bundles in Layla's arms stirring slightly, vulnerable.

"Oh, my Arceus..." Serena felt as if the Millennium Comet had hit her at the speed of light. "Is...Is that...?"

"Yes, Serena," Moose replied serenely.

"Meet your cousins," Layla whispered. "They're miracles, the both of them..."

"OMA, they're so adorable!" squealed a quiet Miette.

"I just wanna pinch their chubby lil' cheeks!" Nini squeaked with reddening cheeks.

"Hush now, girls!" Shauna exclaimed under her breath. "You don't wanna wake them up!"

"Thank you..." Then, Layla looked back up at Serena and Grace. "And I want the two of you to hold them."

"U-Us?!" squeaked Serena. She felt dread bubble up in her stomach like a toxic brew. "Are...A-Are you sure about that?! A-Auntie?!"

Layla nodded weakly but fondly. "Of course... I couldn't think of anybody better to hold them right after their birth. Aside from my husband, of course, and he's already held 'em both."

"That, I have," Moose interjected. He sniffled once. "It...It felt like nothing else. I can't even describe it. And I mean that in a good way, you two. It's as Layla said. They're miracles."

With that, Layla held the twin bundles out to Serena and Grace, beckoning them. Grace smiled with adoration and slowly but impulsively took one of them straight out of her sister's arms. Meanwhile, Serena could only gulp loudly and begin to sweat while she stared down at the remaining bundle. The tiny baby was sound asleep, peaceful and content in the first slumber it ever experienced in its life. A multitude of potential scenarios raced through the honey-blonde's head, each of them worse than the last.

What if it woke up and made a terrible ruckus?

What if she suffered a panic attack from such a responsibility?

What if she accidentally dropped the baby?

What if the baby, her newborn cousin, wound up hating her?

What would any of it say about her future as a mother?!

Before any of those thoughts could overwhelm her, Serena felt a gentle nudge on her shoulder. She looked beside her, an evident glimmer of worry in her eyes, only for that glimmer to vanish the moment her pupils met youthful auburn ones.

"It's gonna be okay, Serena," Ash said encouragingly. "You can do it. I know you can." He nodded firmly and approvingly. "Go and hold your cousin."

"Pika, pikachu!" Pikachu squeaked with a thumbs-up.

"Mm-hm!" Selene vocalized with energetic, eager nods. "Mm-hm, mm-hm!"

"Pichu-pichu-pi!" chirped Pichu.

Serena looked back down at the bundle, just as the baby stirred in her mother's arms and cooed peacefully. With a gulp, the Pokémon Performer swallowed all of her fears and uncertainties, flexed her fingers in preparation...and finally lifted her hands outward toward her aunt.

Layla smiled. "Here, honey..."

The woman held her arms outward too, holding the baby for Serena to take. The bundle met another pair of hands and was slowly, carefully taken away from its owner. The baby stirred again with some slight discomfort, and it emitted a tiny grunt that gave Serena pause. But when it didn't react any further, the teenage girl brought the bundle close to her chest and looked down at its face, mirroring Grace's movements.

And then, Serena felt as if her entire world had changed, upon staring into the baby's face.

"Wooooow..." she said in a low voice of awe. "Is...Is it a boy, or a girl?"

"A girl, dear..." Layla replied sleepily.

"Both of them are," added Moose.

Serena looked at Grace, who was smiling down at her own bundle and gently bouncing it in her arms. She proceeded to copy her mother, lightly, subtly bouncing her own bundle, albeit with some unorganized clumsiness. Eventually, the baby started to stir and babble more, which caused Serena's fear to spike. Seeing this, Grace held out her bundle to Moose.

"Alright, Serena," she said. "Let's swap babies, quickly."

"O-Okay, Mom."

Grace's plan was put into action quickly. Moose took her bundle, allowing Serena to hand her own bundle to Grace before the baby could sense something was amiss and start making a scene with its wailing. Moose then handed Serena Grace's bundle, which she accepted with more happiness and excitement compared to before.

"Wow..." Serena said while looking down at the second baby's face in total adoration. "She's so beautiful. They both are. I've... I don't think I've seen anything like them..." She looked at her aunt and uncle. "Do they have names?"

"To be perfectly honest, Serena," Moose replied, glancing at his wife, "we had a whole slate of names planned, but those were picked out because we were expecting one baby. The moment the second one came out, all of our plans were just thrown out of the window. I...I don't know what to think."

"And I'm too tired to think," Layla added lazily. "I just gave birth to two girls, after all."

"Well, we can't just leave them unnamed by the end of the day," Grace replied in a flat voice, "or Mom's gonna haunt us, Layle. I think we should start thinking of names now."

Layla weakly shrugged. "Well, I'm all ears, sis..."

"Well... Well... Well..." Grace glared at Serena. "Do you have any ideas, Serena?"

"Wh-Wh-Why're you asking ME, Mom?!" the honey-blonde squeaked, having to restrain herself from making an outburst for the sake of her infant cousins.

"You're the future mother here!"

"Yeah, in about five or so years! Why're you acting like I'm already expecting like some-?!"

Grace ignored her and focused her attention on the others. "How about you guys?"

Meyer raised his hands. "Hey, don't look at me! I already expended all MY creative energy naming my two kids!"

Clemont just shook his head rapidly in denial, while Bonnie tilted her head in confusion, something mirrored by Dedenne and Squishy.

"Boys?" Grace asked.

"Sorry, Auntie," Calem replied apologetically. "I'm not the greatest expert in picking baby names."

"S-Same here..." Trevor added.

"Ditto," added Tierno.

Grace sighed in disappointment and shook her head. "Guess it's the girls that have to do all the work here."

"Hey, what's that supposed to-?!" began Meyer.

"I think the names should sound cute, just like them!" Nini suggested brightly. "Like...Amy and May!"

"Swapping letters around is sooo cliché, Nini," deadpanned Miette. Then, she raised her finger, looking like a know-it-all. "I think that since they're twins, the names should stick to a theme! Like...Jo and Zoe! And their nicknames can be Joey and Zoey!"

"You're one to talk about cliché, Miette," Shauna commented with disappointment. "Rhyming names is one of the oldest naming themes for twins that're in the book. It's so uncreative, not to mention lazy writing."

Off somewhere at Mt. Kiloude, a certain red-haired and blue-haired set of twins sneezed.

"Well, what do you suggest, Shauna?" Miette asked haughtily.

"Why, I've got just the perfect names for the two of them! Ann and Anne!"

...

...

...

"YOU'RE GIVING THEM THE SAME NA- MMPH-MMPH-MMPH!"

Fortunately, Tierno and Nini acted quickly, stopping Miette from making an outburst that disturbed the babies from their sleep. With everyone's options almost exhausted, Grace focused on the last group of people she wanted opinions from.

"Alright, you two," she said, looking at Yancy and Selene. "Time to give us some spoilers for the future. What names do we give these two?"

Yancy and Selene looked at one another. Then, the former looked at Nate and Evelyn, and they all nodded at one another with smiles of understanding. Finally, Yancy looked at her grandmother with a wide, bright smile.

"Easy," the pink-haired girl said. "Faith and Joy."

"Faith..." Layla repeated.

"And Joy?" asked Moose.

Yancy nodded. "Yes."

"Where'd we get those names?"

"I..." Yancy paused and scratched the top of her head in confusion. "I honestly don't know..."

But Layla started to beam, looking livelier than she had ever been. "Faith and Joy... Those are perfect names." She gave a look at the bundle in Grace's arms. "Faith, representing the faith that we had in the babies' safe deliveries..." Then, she glanced at Serena's bundle with equal fondness. "And Joy, representing the joy that we are all feeling in this occasion, of new life being brought into the world. Faith and Joy, the two things that we feel together..." She sighed in elation. "I love them, Yancy. I just love them. Thank you..."

Yancy couldn't help but blush. "Y-You're welcome..." She rubbed the back of her head in disbelief. "Ah gee, I can't believe I was the one who picked the names of my own aunts..."

"Hey, it was only appropriate!" Nate exclaimed encouragingly.

"Mm-hm, mm-hm!" Evelyn vocalized shyly. "Y-You've always been g-great at p-picking names! E-Especially f-for the ones y-you love!"

"Yep!" chirped Selene.

Yancy could only chuckle nervously. Fortunately, her embarrassment would be forgotten, for everyone started to partake in the celebrations over Faith and Joy's births. Everyone took their turns in holding the twins, with the obvious exceptions of Selene and Bonnie, both of whom had to be restrained from throwing temper tantrums in the process. The entire time, Celebi and Squishy watched the proceedings in awe and intrigue over the human festivities.

---

Eventually, the celebrations died down, and the entire group departed from Layla's room, wishing her and Moose the best of luck with raising their newborn daughters. In particular, it was extraordinarily difficult for Serena to willingly leave her new cousins behind, but she did so for the sake of the outdoor dance party.

"So, what's next?" Meyer asked. "Do we go back to the hotel so you guys can get dressed up? Or do you guys need to go somewhere for your dresses?"

"Well," Yancy replied, "Aria said that we should go back to the dressing room in an hour. We'll find our dresses there."

"And when was that?" asked Grace.

Miette checked her wristwatch. "...An hour ago."

...

...

...

"Well, get going, then!" Grace started ushering the girls along. "Get going! Don't wait around on our own accord!"

"A-Are you going back to the hotel, Mom?" Serena asked.

"I mean, I guess so. There's really nothing much for us grownups to do here at this point. It's been a very, very, VEEERY long day today, and I'm tuckered out."

"Same here," Meyer added. "I think this old man and old lady need some shut-eye."

"Old lady?" repeated Grace with a twitching eyelid and a smirk. "Don't get ahead of yourself, mister."

"Well, it's true, ain't it?"

"Well, for one thing, this old lady covered your butt while we were battling those goons earlier in the day."

"Oh, really?" Meyer mockingly tapped his chin. "I seem to remember myself doing the butt-covering."

The electrician lasciviously wiggled his eyebrows at Grace, though she simply scoffed at him. Bonnie and Selene gawked at the adults, waiting for the conversation to continue. However, Serena and Yancy caught on to the humor and grabbed the children's shoulders like quick-acting mothers.

"Okay, okay, you two," Serena deadpanned in dissatisfaction. "You can go back to the hotel now."

"We'll call you if we need anything," Yancy deadpanned as well.

"Sure thing," Grace replied without prying her eyes away from Meyer.

"Have fun!" Meyer added, also refusing to avert his gaze from the former Rhyhorn Racer.

With that, the Trainers and the children walked away, while Grace and Meyer walked in the opposite direction. Bonnie and Selene were glancing over their shoulders at the adults and were quick to notice the sparks flying between them as they bore into each other's eyes with their own.

"Alright!" Serena exclaimed. "All awkwardness aside-"

"Let's get on with the dance party!" Yancy completed. Then, she looked at Nate, Trevor, and Evelyn. "Sorry, you guys. I-I know you don't have any dates, but-"

"Ahhhhh, don't worry about us," Trevor interrupted. "I'm sure we can figure out something to do. Besides..." The skin on his face became pale. "I'm pretty sure I don't wanna go back to the hotel right now..."

"Mm-hm, mm-hm!" Evelyn mumbled shyly. Then, she remembered something and stammered, "W-Wa-Wait! Y-Ya-Yancy, I-I thought y-you didn't have a d-d-date..."

Her voice trailed off, but her point had been made. Yancy gasped and covered her mouth in surprise.

"You're right, Evelyn!" the pink-haired girl exclaimed. "I don't!"

At that moment, Ash slyly turned his gaze towards Nate, and the tennis visor-wearing boy immediately felt the attention on him. Brown eyes met auburn eyes, a spark was lit, and Ash could tell that Nate was remembering their exchanges.

"For all we know, you're probably gonna get together with Yancy too. I mean, you met her the same way as I met Serena, right?"

"What do you mean it wouldn't happen? Do you not want it to happen?"

"We're quite alike, and we even have friends who are girls who like Showcases and who happen to be, you know...pretty! Now, I know I'm going to have to m-m-marry Serena if we're going to have Yancy and Selene. Now, I do not know about you, but I see a little pattern..."

And especially...

"Uhhhhh, Ash? ...Why're you smiling at me like that...?"

"Nothing, nothing. I just wanted to say, Nate, that...I approve."

"Approve? Approve of what?"

"Nothing."

"Hey, Nate?" Ash asked mischievously. "Didn't you wanna ask Yancy something?"

"H-Huuuuuh?!" squealed Nate.

"Ask me something?" Yancy repeated, confused. She looked at her crush and blinked at him. "Ask me what?"

Nate helplessly glowered at Ash, who could only smirk at her and shrug innocuously. Serena, Selene, Bonnie, and Miette noticed this and exhibited their own reactions: while the former beamed and grinned at Ash with intense pride, the latter three backed Ash up with playful smirks of their own.

"Go ooooon, Natey," Selene said in a childish, singsong voice. "Aaaaasssssk her!"

"Ask her, Nate!" Bonnie chorused. "Ask her, ask her!"

"Pichu, pichu!" Pichu squeaked.

"Nenene!" chirped Dedenne.

"Bi!" Celebi crooned.

Squishy merely garbled incomprehensibly.

"We ain't got all day, though..." Miette said.

Finally, Nate gulped and rubbed the back of his head. He tried to keep his gaze on Yancy, but it was already proving to be difficult, and his face was turning as pink as her. At that moment, the others caught on to what was happening and gave him smirks of their own as well. The overbearing pressure was proving to be too much for Nate; it was even greater than the toughest Pokémon battle he'd ever been in.

"Yancy," he said, "I could, you know...b-be your...d-da-date. T-Tothedancepartyofcourse!"

He said the last segment in one single breath, but Yancy clung onto every word that flew out of his mouth. Her sapphire-blue eyes grew wide, and she covered her mouth to suppress her gasp of unrivaled surprise, as did Evelyn.

"You...You wanna be my...my...date...Nate...?" she asked slowly.

"Y-Yeah!" Once again, Nate rubbed the back of his head, looking a lot like Ash in that moment. "I mean, that is...i-if you want me to-"

"O-Of COURSE!" To everyone's complete lack of surprise except for Nate's, Yancy grabbed his hands and held them close to her chest, while wearing one of the widest and most excited smiles imaginable. "I'd LOVE for you to be my date, Nate! T-Tothedancepartyofcourse!"

She said the last segment in one single breath, but Nate clung onto every word that flew out of her mouth. His eyes grew wide, but then, he returned her bright smile with one of his own. Everything about that exchange seemed quite prophetic for both Ash and Serena for some reason.

"Sweet!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.

Everyone else looked amongst one another with smiles of approval, Ash and Serena in particular. Selene and Bonnie also joined hands and grinned naughtily and triumphantly at each other. But the only one who didn't join in the secretive-yet-not-so-secretive festivities was Evelyn.

And that was something that Yancy sensed. She looked at her blue-haired friend and saw the glum look on her face. The look triggered Yancy's memories of the events that led to their time-traveling adventure in the first place.

"What. Are. You. Doing. EVELYN?!"

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Yancy!"

"How could you do that?! How could you do this to me?! You know about my own feelings! And yet you're going around smooching Nate without a care in the world!"

"I couldn't help it, Yancy! You know how he is! He's so helpful and encouraging and charming and cute- EEK!"

"GAH!"

"E-Evelyn," Yancy said in sympathy, "I-I'm-"

"It's alright, Yancy," Evelyn interrupted. She tried her best to sound sweet and supportive, but the way her voice wavered told everyone else a different story. "I...I know that this is what you wanted. Who am I to get in the way? I mean..." She lowered her face, but the tears were already obvious. "I don't wanna jinx things again, right...?"

"Look, Evelyn-"

But Yancy didn't get to say anything else to her friend. Without saying another word, a hiccupping Evelyn ran off, leaving behind a small, glittering trail of tears in the process. Everyone watched her go for a brief yet awkward moment, Selene in particular. Then, before anyone could stop her, the little girl ran off after the blue-haired girl.

"Selene!" Ash, Serena, Nate, and Yancy cried simultaneously.

"Selene!" Bonnie called too. Then, she started running after her. "Selene, wait up!"

"Wait a minute, Bonnie!" Clemont yelled.

But by that point, it was too late: all three girls had disappeared into the crowd. And then, once the mass of citizens and tourists cleared up a couple of seconds later, the group of Trainers and Performers was dismayed to see no sign of them.

"They're...They're GONE!" exclaimed a worried Shauna.

"What in the world was that all about?" Calem asked in confusion.

But Yancy faced the others, and they were taken aback by her grim expression.

"I know exactly what that was, guys..."

Unbeknownst to everyone, Parker's Hoppip, Skiploom, and Jumpluff departed from their positions high in the air over the lobby. The trio's cameras had finally finished recording...

---

"Evelyn! Evelyn, please don't run off!"

"Pichu, pichuuuuu!"

"Hey, wait up! Don't go too fast!"

"Nenene!"

But Evelyn did not respond to Selene and Bonnie's calls, further distressing the former. She remembered what happened the last time Evelyn ran off like that, and there was no way she wanted that to happen again. Even so, Selene didn't stop running. She just didn't like it whenever other people or Pokémon got sad or upset. She needed to try and make things better for everyone, regardless if they were trying to take her older sister's crush for herself.

Just like before, Selene followed Evelyn right out of the food court, whereupon the girl made multiple turns and ran down multiple hallways. After a couple of minutes of running, Evelyn stopped directly in the middle of the Battle Maison's east wing. Selene stopped behind her, and she heard Bonnie stop beside her. The two little girls watched Evelyn as she took a deep breath and sniffled.

"Evelyn?" Selene asked. She walked up to the older girl and tugged at her skirt, feeling a sense of déjà vu in the process. "Evelyn, are you okay?"

She was met with no response from the blue-haired girl, only more sniffling, which slowly evolved into silent weeping. As soon as that happened, Selene's lower lip quivered with sadness.

"Please don't cry, Evelyn," the little girl said.

"Yeah, Evelyn!" Bonnie chirped in agreement. "Whatever's wrong, we can work on it together! 'Cause that's what friends do!"

"Dedenne!" Dedenne squeaked.

Squishy just garbled in agreement.

Evelyn gasped, having apparently realized the presence of her company in the first place, and she wiped her tears from her face with her elbow. Then, she turned around and looked down at the two younger girls and their Pokémon. Her eyes were red with tears, starkly contrasting her sapphire-blue pupils.

"I'm sorry, Selene, Bonnie," Evelyn said between sniffles. "I...I just ran off without warning again, didn't I...?" She knelt down and solemnly put a hand on Selene's shoulder. "You know...you didn't have to follow me again."

"But you were sad, Evelyn!" Selene exclaimed, looking affronted that Evelyn didn't want to accept her comfort. "No one should be sad like that! Everyone should be smiling! One less smile makes the whole wide world go sad, after all!"

"W-Well, it's not like I could help it or anything like that..." The blue-haired girl sighed and hung her face low, concealing her shame from the two younger girls. "I...I thought I could try and solve everything if I got Nate and Yancy together, as it was supposed to be... But...But..."

She shut her eyes tightly, trying to prevent more tears from leaking out, even as the sounds of choked sobbing filled the hallway. Realizing this, Selene hugged Evelyn tightly with one arm, an action so quick and unexpected that Pichu had to hop off of her shoulder to avoid being accidentally knocked off. Bonnie swiftly joined in, hugging any part of Evelyn that wasn't covered by Selene's hug; Dedenne also jumped off its unofficial owner's shoulder too.

"It's okay, Evelyn," Selene said soothingly, trying her best to sound like her mother. "It's okay. I know you like Natey too. It was mean of me to yell at you like that, back in our own time."

"But I don't blame you, Selene!" Evelyn screamed between sobs. "How could I have done that to your sister?! How could I have done that to Yancy, my friend since forever?! Just when Nate was getting close to actually liking Yancy back, I just come in like a Mandibuzz and try to steal him away from her! What kind of friend am I if I'm capable of doing that?!"

"I'm...not sure what you two are talking about," replied Bonnie, "but I know this: if friends do something terrible to each other, it can all become better if you just say you're sorry."

Evelyn's sobbing died down, and she looked towards the blonde girl with a glimmer of both confusion and hope passing through her eyes.

"S-Say...you're sorry...?" she repeated.

"Yeah!" Bonnie gave her a grin that stretched from ear to ear. "It's as easy as that!"

"Dedenne!" Dedenne squeaked.

"Pichu, pichu!" Pichu chirped beside the Antenna Pokémon.

But Evelyn sighed somberly. "If only it was..."

"If only it was what?"

Evelyn gasped at the sound of the new voice, and she felt a cold shiver travel up her entire body in the process. The trio looked up to see that someone had overheard their conversation and walked up to them. But it wasn't just any person in Evelyn's eyes.

"Mom...?" she thought.

---

"I don't believe it. Mom?!"

"I...I can't believe it. I-I almost didn't recognize you..."

"I-I'm sorry, b-but...wh-what'd you just call me?!"

"M-Mom, what else?!"

The memory of those words echoed in Aria's mind as she stared down at Evelyn, Selene, and Bonnie. Though the entire conversation struck her as strange, the Kalos Queen chose to put it in the back of her mind for the time being while she remained focused on the completion of the Exhibition Showcase. But now that the event had reached its conclusion, with only the outdoor dance party to worry about now, everything about the strange girl called Evelyn came flooding back into the redhead's mind...

Including the fact that she bore a resemblance to...

"Aria!"

"Mommy!"

"Don't look back, Aria! Don't look back, no matter what!"

"I just took care of your pathetic little mommy, and now I'm gonna take care of you."

Aria gasped and shook her head rapidly. As soon as she did, this provoked Selene into responding.

"Are you okay, Auntie Aria?"

"H-Huh?!" Shrugging off the unexpected title, the redhead chuckled and waved her palms in denial. "Y-Yeah, I-I'm okay!" Then, she stared back down at Evelyn. "But...are you okay? I heard you crying."

"H-Huh?!" In a reaction remarkably similar to Aria's, the blue-haired girl chuckled and waved a palm in denial. "Y-Yeah, I-I'm okay, M- I-I mean, Aria-" Then, she caught herself and started struggling to backtrack and come up with a lie. "N-No, I-I mean-!"

Aria simply sighed and shrugged. "You don't have to pretend I'm somebody else. Your friend here saw through my Ariana disguise already, so it's kinda pointless." She patted Selene, who giggled and cooed at the contact. "Besides, there aren't any paparazzi or tourists around here to witness this shocking revelation, so we should be good."

Evelyn slowly nodded, hypnotized by the full sight of the younger version of her mother in the flesh. "O-Okay..."

"And you know, you really shouldn't lie to someone when they notice you're not feeling fine. Your friends here care about you very much. And I'm sure you've got tons of other people who care for you too."

Aria too knelt down so she could be at the same height as Evelyn. They stared into each other's eyes, with Aria's crimson pupils inquisitive and Evelyn's sapphire-blue ones glimmering with awe and admiration.

"So whatever your problem is, whatever issues that you struck up between you and your friends are, I'm quite sure that apologizing to them is the most surefire solution."

Evelyn sighed and looked away. "You say it like it's that easy..."

Aria quirked an eyebrow at her. "And you're saying it's not?"

The blue-haired girl gently bit her lower lip. "I betrayed my friend's trust. I hurt her, and I hurt her badly. There's just no coming back from that..."

"Only if you don't try."

All of a sudden, Aria felt a strange impulse overtake her, an impulse that she hadn't felt before. It drove her to raise her hand, place her palm upon the top of Evelyn's hand, and begin to stroke her blue hair. This triggered a low but surprised squeak from Evelyn, who otherwise did not resist the gesture and simply accepted it with some sort of childish nostalgia. Everything about it felt strange to Aria, but she let everything take its natural course and continued to fondly and gently stroke the girl's hair.

"If she really is your friend," Aria continued sagely, "then...you must try. Try, no matter what, for the sake of her, and for the sake of your friendship. And you should do it with a smile." She then smiled at Evelyn. "A Pokémon Performer always has to wear a wonderfully radiant smile! That's the way you make everyone in your audience happy! D'you understand?"

The last three sentences came out of the redheaded girl's mouth in such a random, unexpected way. She wanted to shrug it off, but every word that she spoke latched onto her heart and stubbornly refused to let go. She could tell that Evelyn sorely needed the advice, even if she wasn't a participant in the Exhibition Showcase at all, even if she didn't look like a Pokémon Performer to her. But more importantly, she could sense that her own heart needed to hear those words again, spoken in a context as special as this situation.

And to Aria's relief, her suspicions were confirmed when Evelyn slowly, meekly nodded at her.

"Yeah..." the blue-haired girl whispered. "I understand..."

"Excellent!" Then, Aria stood up and held out a hand towards her. "Now, let's go find your friends. There's no better time to make amends than the present, after all, am I right?"

Evelyn stared at the outstretched hand for a moment, while Selene and Bonnie bobbed up and down on their heels with eager suspense and anticipation. After a minute of contemplation, she smiled, took Aria's hand, and allowed the redhead to gently lift her up to her feet.

Just as their hands touched, a memory was triggered within Aria. A memory of herself on the ground, with a familiar blue-haired woman standing over her, taking her hand in the same manner with a gentle smile...

---

Unbeknownst to the group, somebody had been eavesdropping on Aria and Evelyn's conversation, her secretive presence concealed behind an alcove leading to the girls' restroom.

"If she really is your friend, then...you must try. Try, no matter what, for the sake of her, and for the sake of your friendship. And you should do it with a smile. A Pokémon Performer always has to wear a wonderfully radiant smile! That's the way you make everyone in your audience happy!"

Sara Lee withdrew her head back into the alcove and looked down at her feet with a wrinkled brow...

---

Ash lowered his face in contemplation. "So...that's what happened..."

Yancy nodded in shame. "Yeah..."

The pink-haired girl had just finished with her recollection of the events that occurred in her timeline, the very catalyst to the incident with Celebi and its powers over time travel. Nate also looked ashamed and embarrassed over what had happened. In particular, the memory of Evelyn abruptly coming forward and kissing him, without any sort of warning, returned to his mind, evidently burned into it forever. A terrible, awkward silence reigned over the group of Trainers as they absorbed the details of the story.

Eventually, Miette commented, "Jeez. And I thought teasing Serena about her feelings would be a good motivator- OW!"

Shauna lowered her elbow and retracted her scowl while saying, "Well, it doesn't matter now, right? Clearly Evelyn is alright with the two of you going together to the dance party." She looked back and forth between Yancy and Nate. "Isn't that right?"

"But it wouldn't feel right," Yancy replied. "It wouldn't feel the same..." She lowered her face in both realization and shame. "Evelyn had feelings of her own for Nate, feelings that were obvious in retrospect. I should've picked up on them sooner. She was such an insecure girl, more insecure than I was. She had a bunch of sisters whose shadows she was under, not to mention her mother. Then Nate came along into our lives..." She looked at Nate. "You know, you have a way of capturing the admiration of people you inspire, Nate..."

"I would've taken that as a compliment if the context was different..." Nate said, his cheeks dashed with a faint blush.

"Well," Serena interjected, "that doesn't change the fact that the two of you are friends. And if you care for one another, if you two truly care for each other, then something like that shouldn't get in the way of your friendship."

"But what am I gonna do, Mom? It's not easy to walk back on something like that! Not when there are so many feelings at play here! And no offense, Mom, but you've never been in a love triangle before." Yancy lowered her face again. "You wouldn't know what to do to get yourself out of that situation."

The honey-blonde girl took a deep breath and said, "Yeah. Yeah, you're right, Yancy. What you're feeling right now, I've never felt it before. I've never faced a situation like yours. Barring a certain girl."

"I heard that," Miette replied dryly.

"But," Serena continued resolutely, "what I do know is that friendships are valuable. They are something that you can feel deep in your heart. It's as palpable as your love for a boy or for a family member. And if what you feel in your heart about Evelyn is real, if you can truly feel what you feel for Evelyn, then there's nothing the two of you can't do. And that includes making amends."

She looked at Clemont, Bonnie, Shauna, Miette, and Nini with a soft, gentle smile. "I'd know that, because I've got many friends standing beside me right now and hanging onto me here." She patted her hip, where her Poké Balls were. "And I can feel every one of them in my heart. If anything happened that would jeopardize our friendships, anything that I could easily fix, then I'd take the opportunity to fix it, no questions asked."

"Same here!" Ash exclaimed.

"I wouldn't pass up the opportunity for anything else in the world!" Shauna proclaimed.

"Mm-hm, mm-hm!" Miette and Nini vocalized at the same time, with simultaneous nods of their heads.

Yancy stood there in the lobby, absorbing everyone's words and allowing them to sink into her mind like a sponge taking water. Then, she took a deep breath and smiled softly.

"You're right, guys," she said. Then, she sweetly chuckled. "You're always right. What am I to do but listen and follow your advice?"

"Then I guess it's time for you to start doing so," advised Serena. The honey-blonde was now looking over her shoulder. "Guess who just came back?"

With a gasp, Yancy twirled around, her pink hair flowing with the air as she did so. Indeed, Evelyn was emerging from the crowd of attendants in the lobby, being guided along by an enthusiastic Selene and Bonnie. Both little girls were wearing wide smiles, smiles that were matched by Pichu and Dedenne's. Then, to everyone's surprise, another familiar person emerged after Evelyn, Selene, and Bonnie. Serena, Shauna, Miette, and Nini had to restrain themselves from shouting and squealing out loud; while all of the boys' jaws dropped open at the same time.

"A-Aria?!" Ash exclaimed. Then, he caught himself and quickly blurted out, "Na?!"

"I found your sister and your friends in the hallway," Aria greeted with a bright smile. Then, she looked down at Selene and Bonnie and patted both of them on the tops of their heads. "You two sure have a knack for running out of sight from everyone else. You know you're gonna have to work on that." She wagged an index finger at them. "Remember, stranger danger!"

"Okay..." Selene replied, guiltily hanging her head.

"We know, we know," Bonnie grumbled in annoyance.

"Nene," Dedenne squeaked.

Squishy just garbled.

Aria giggled and then clapped her hands together. "Now then, I hear there's some apologizing that needs to be done! Let's say we give Yancy and Evelyn some well-deserved space while they sort things out, shall we?"

Ash and Serena looked at each other, then at Yancy. However, they found their future daughter to be staring at Evelyn with a deeply regretful and apologetic expression, which was reciprocated by the blue-haired girl. In that moment, they knew what their answer to that would be.

"Yeah," Ash replied.

"Let's," added Serena, almost simultaneously.

With that, the others started to walk away from Yancy and Evelyn, though their departures weren't noticed by either girl. They simply stared at one another in awkward silence, with Yancy pursing her lips in discomfort and Evelyn nervously twiddling her fingers. Meanwhile, the others stood near the ticket booths, where they observed the two adolescent girls talking to one another from a short distance.

Though they couldn't hear what was being said between them, the group smiled in unison when Yancy and Evelyn embraced one another in forgiveness.

"Yippee!" Selene cried, hopping energetically in joy. "Yancy and Evelyn made up, Yancy and Evelyn made up!"

"That's a relief," Ash replied with a proud, beaming smile.

Serena heaved out a thankful sigh before adding, "I'm so happy for them. For both of them."

"Well, I guess that resolves that lil' problem," Miette commented. Then, with a sly smirk, she wrapped an arm around Clemont's and pulled him closer to her side, provoking an intense blush from the inventor. "Now then, let's get started with the dance party!"

"YEAH!" the others hollered at the same time.

Unbeknownst to everyone else, Nate weakly pumped a clenched fist while keeping his eyes glued to Yancy and Evelyn.

---

Several minutes later

Ash, Nate, Calem, Clemont, Tierno, and their signature Pokémon stood in the hallway leading to the girls' dressing room, wearing formal attire for the event. Ash and Clemont found themselves wearing the same outfits they donned during Monsieur Pierre's dance party a few weeks ago. Meanwhile, Nate was struggling to adjust himself in his own suit, a hand-me-down that was clearly a half-size too small for his frame. With the boy's discomfort looking more and more obvious, Calem and Tierno unsuccessfully tried to help him and Emboar with fitting in the uniform.

"Dude," Calem said as he continued his ministrations, "all you gotta do is loosen up these ties. It's not that hard."

"Empole, empole!" Calem's Empoleon said.

"And stop hyperventilating, man," added a supportive Tierno. "Cool down, cool down. Seriously, I think you're about to have a heart attack or something!"

"Blastoooiiise!" Tierno's Blastoise added.

"I can't help it, you guys," groaned a red-faced Nate. "Formal parties aren't exactly my thing..."

Nate's Emboar simply gave him an ashy snort of sympathy.

"It's alright, Nate," Ash replied encouragingly, flashing a wide and confident smile at the boy from the future. "Don't sweat the clothes. Just think about all the fun you're gonna have at the party! Think about all the food you'll scarf down!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement.

In response, Calem shot Ash a bemused look. "Really?" he asked. "That's gonna be your highlight of the dance party? The food? Not, you know, my cousin? The one you're supposed to marry in the future?!"

The raven-haired Trainer's face immediately turned red. "W-We-Well, I-I don't wanna think about it too much! D-Da-Dancing with her, i-it's a new thing for me. D-Don't blame me for being nervous!" Then, he realized something and pointed at Calem. "A-And you're one to talk! You look like you're about to pass out from the thought of dancing with Shauna!"

Calem didn't say anything, but the rosy-pink hue blossoming on his cheeks was all that Ash needed to see to know that he was right.

"Guys, guys, let's not freak out over this," Clemont interjected. "We're all gonna be dancing with girls in a matter of minutes, so let's just calm down and approach this from a logical standpoint and accept the fact that...that w-we're gonna be making, y-you know...sk-skin-to-skin contact with...with- OHMYARCEUSI'MGONNABEDANCINGWITHAGIRLI'MGONNAHAVESKINTOSKINCONTACTWITHAGIRLI'MGONNA-"

Bunnelby sighed in disappointment and looked up at its Trainer while he descended into a nervous breakdown. "Bunnelby..."

"So much for approaching this from a logical standpoint..." Tierno deadpanned.

"Blaaas..." Blastoise replied flatly.

Just then, the door to the girls' dressing room opened up with a soft yet resonant thud. Ash, Nate, Calem, Clemont, and Tierno stiffened up and watched while all of the Performers and their Pokémon began flooding out into the hallway, one group after another. The girls immediately started stampeding towards the boys, so overcome with excitement that they had forgotten about their presence. The boys screamed in unison and tried to dodge the small mob, but it was too late. Within milliseconds, they were mercilessly, thoroughly trampled to the floor, every inch of their bodies being stepped on by their various shoes. There was nothing their Pokémon could do to stop the wrath of a horde of energetic, overexcited adolescent girls.

"Agh, agh, agh!" shrieked Clemont.

"Oof!" Calem grunted. "Ow, ow, ow!"

"Hey, watch it!" barked Nate. "OW!"

"Augh, my family je- AUGH!" Tierno squealed.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu squeaked as he tried to get to Ash.

"Out of the way, twerps!" Jessilee snapped harshly.

Fortunately, the trampling didn't last long for the boys. The mob of Pokémon Performers rounded a corner and disappeared, their shouts and squeals of enthusiasm fading with them. When the dust settled, the five boys sat up one by one, revealing various bruises and footprints that adorned their skins and uniforms.

"W-Well..." began a breathless Calem.

"That went well..." completed an overwhelmed Ash.

At that moment, five new shadows enveloped the boys. They looked up, at first with apprehension, but their reactions swiftly transformed into ones of joy when they saw who the new girls were: Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini. Like the boys, the girls had their own partner Pokémon by their sides: Sylveon, Florges, Ivysaur, Slurpuff, and Smoochum.

"Oh my Arceus, Ash!" Serena cried. She then held out a hand towards him. "Here, let me help you up!"

Breathing a sigh of relief, the Pallet Town native took her hand and allowed her to help him up to his feet. But once she did, she exerted too much strength in her yank, causing him to stumble to his feet and nearly fall over. The honey-blonde reacted quickly, embracing her crush in her arms and allowing her body to catch him before she knew it.

In that moment, they were both back in the forest as children, with the roles inverted.

"Awwwww, now isn't that cute?" a familiar voice suddenly asked.

Ash and Serena immediately parted; their faces were so red that one would think they were going to overheat. Miette was looking at them with a sly smirk and an index finger tapping her chin. The others were staring with expressions of pride or adoration.

"I swear," Miette commented, her smirk unwavering, "it's like you two were made for each other or something. You're tied together by a red string so tightly that you two might as well be strangled by it!"

"Now settle down there, Miette," Shauna cut off. "We should be focused on the dance party, first and foremost, not on crushes and romance."

But the undeterred Miette didn't stand down. Instead, she seized the opportunity and redirected her smirk to the tan-skinned Performer.

"Heh heh heh. Says the girl who couldn't stop ogling Calem the moment she set her eyes on him." The blue-haired girl wagged her eyebrows at her friend and rival. "Like you were doing earlier."

It was Shauna's turn to have her face as red as a burning star. Fortunately for her, she was not alone in that regard.

"Wh-Wh-Whaaaaat?!" Shauna and Calem exclaimed at once.

Miette snickered and shrugged at them. "Ahhh, don't worry, you two. You make a great couple anyway, so I'm not gonna-"

"WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!"

To their dismay, the girl's smirk only widened in surprise. "Well, with the way the both of you deny it at the same time, it's a very big indicator-"

"We're not a couple," snarled Shauna.

"Seriously, we're not," Calem added.

Miette winked teasingly. "If you insist, you two-"

"WE'RE SERIOUSLY NOT!"

Serena scowled at Miette and began to threateningly roll her sleeves up when someone else stepped forward. Her blue eyes grew wide at the bold person who dared to confront the blue-haired minx of a girl about her teasing ways.

"C-Co-Come on, M-Miette," Clemont stuttered warily, nudging his date's shoulder. "L-Le-Leave them a-alone. F-Fe-Feelings like that, th-that sh-should be l-left up t-to th-them..."

"Darn right!" Shauna snapped in irritation. She then grabbed Calem's arm and started half-dragging him down the hallway, much to his mild and useless protest. "Now let's get going! We don't wanna miss out on the dancing! Arceus!"

Miette widened her smirk at the tan-skinned Performer, but she seemed to have become content with her piece. Instead, she shrugged in a faux-dismissive manner, even as her smile was still etched into her face.

"Alright, alright, I'll bite. Time to start dancin'." Then, she grabbed Clemont's arm, seemingly tightly; this elicited a squeak of embarrassed surprise from the inventor. "Come on, Clemmie! I never really got to see what moves you had for Monsieur Pierre's dance party, so I just can't wait to see what you have to offer for me!"

"M-M-M-My moves?!" the inventor stammered in fearful uncertainty.

"Of course!" The feisty girl tightened her ironclad grip. "I expect the two of us to set the dance floor ALIGHT with our graceful coordination!"

"S-S-Se-Se-Set th-the da-da-dance fl-fl-floor alight?!" Overwhelmed by Miette's ambition, Clemont shot a terrified gaze at Serena, Ash, and Yancy. "B-B-Bu-Bu-But...I-I-I-I-I-"

"Awwwww, don't give me that!" Miette started half-dragging the hapless, bespectacled boy away from his friends, ignoring his weak protests. "Everyone's a lil' freaked out at first, but when I'm through with you, you're gonna be a master at blowing everyone away!"

Everyone else sweat-dropped as they watched the excited Miette and the mortified Clemont make their departure together. Once the two rounded the same corner as the other Performers and disappeared, Ash looked back at Serena and was met by the sight of her dazzling sapphire-blue eyes. He couldn't help but mentally note how her pupils almost resembled a Sylveon's eyes.

"Well..." he began, before his unsure voice trailed off in apprehension.

"We should get going too," Serena replied quickly, her voice stiff.

Mustering all of the courage in her reserves, the teenage girl grabbed her future husband's arm and held onto it just like Miette did with Clemont's. The fateful sensation of intimate contact, which would've been skin-to-skin had it not been for Ash's sleeve, triggered a chaotic orchestra of thoughts and emotions within both of them. They were both motivated to break apart and try to proceed further with it all as friends, but their gazes were still locked onto each other. And deep within the seas of auburn and blue that the other was seeing, they could also see fires burning brightly and determinedly. Fires that were exhibiting the same message, laying it out bare for them to see and them only.

That they wanted to take this next step to their future together, towards destiny.

To the way they will be.

---

"Wooooow!"

"It's so pretty!"

"So we're gonna dance here?!"

"I couldn't have asked for a better venue!"

"This...This is perfect..."

Serena didn't say anything, unlike Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini. Instead, that single thought raced across her mind as she beheld the dance venue. As promised for so long, it was at an outdoor portion of the Laurier Maison, underneath the evening sky and overlooking the orange Sun as it set behind the Mt. Kiloude-dominated horizon. The honey-blonde looked up at the sky and saw the first twinkles of nighttime stars emerging through the dusk's haze. She felt a twinge of simultaneous terror and anticipation at the sight; it was like the stars were trying to foreshadow the fateful events that were about to unfold.

"Serena?"

Ash's voice pulled her out of her trance, and she looked at him. Her heart leapt with joy a millisecond later when she realized he pulled a chair out of a table for her.

"O-Oh!" Her face turned rosy-pink with giddy excitement. "Th-Thank you so much, Ash!"

Ash nervously wiped his nose; his cheeks were just as pink. "N-No problem."

She sat down on the chair, briefly enjoying the nice luxury leather of the cushion, before watching the other boys take Ash's lead. First Calem, then Clemont, and then Tierno, and finally Nate. One by one, they pulled out chairs at the same table for their dates, gestures that were gladly accepted.

"Th-Thank you, Calem," Shauna said with a blush.

"Y-Yeah," added an embarrassed Nini. "Thanks, Tierno..."

"Why, thank you, Clemmie!" a grateful, enthusiastic Miette exclaimed while clapping her hands together.

Yancy didn't say anything and simply kept her reddening face low while she joined the other girls in sitting down at the table together. Then, Ash, Nate, Calem, Clemont, and Tierno took their own seats beside their respective dates. As for their Pokémon, they all took their places behind their Trainers or beside their feet. Together, the group observed everything that was happening around them at the outdoor venue.

They could see many of the Performers with their dates. Blanche, Kazalie, and Shulin were seated with their dates at a table close to theirs; while Sara Lee, Concetta, and their own dates were seated at another on the opposite side of the venue. Seated alone at their own table was Amelia and her date, a vaguely familiar older man with wavy, neatly-combed green hair that had golden streaks; she was animatedly trying to chat him up while he listened with idle boredom, like an annoyed father having to deal with his daughter's antics. Jessilee was loudly arguing with some of the other Performers over claiming available seats for herself, her Meowth, and a familiar-looking blue-haired man that seemed to be her date.

However, out of all of the Performers attending, Serena couldn't see Clarice anywhere amongst the crowd of attendants.

"I hope Clarice is okay..." she thought. "There has to be a reason why she isn't at the party..."

Even so, the honey-blonde could feel her heart dropping to her stomach in realization.

"My apologies, Clarice, but as long as you continue to keep up that attitude, as long as you continue to let your love for Fletchling, and your efforts to immortalize the memories you have for your mother, determine your strategies in this venue, then I'm afraid you'll never attain the title of Kalos Queen. Ever."

Serena's eyes narrowed with concern. "First I didn't see her with the other Performers during the Freestyle Performance round, and now she's not attending the dance party. Palermo's words had to have affected her very strongly. I mean...I would've felt absolutely destroyed by them..."

Then, the girl exhaled in an attempt to calm herself down and began tapping her fingers against her thigh. "No. I shouldn't think about Clarice right now. I've already got so much on my plate. This dance party, my future with Ash, getting Selene and Yancy and the others back to their timeline, dealing with Parker and his goons... I need to put an end to all of that as soon as possible." At that moment, Serena began rubbing her temples in exasperation. "Oh, Arceus. Just the thought of all that is making my head hurt-"

"Oh, hey there, you guys!" a familiar voice exclaimed.

She looked up and saw a fatigued, familiar-looking Maison employee staring at her and her group. In an instant, she recognized him.

"Oh, hey!" Ash greeted with a bright smile. "You're Aria's friend, right?"

"Y-Yeah," Foster replied sheepishly. "Th-That's me..."

"Your name was Foster, right?" Serena asked.

"Yancy, um, I hope you don't mind me asking, but-"

"They're married in the future."

"Yep, that's, uh...that's me..." With a halfhearted chuckle, the boy then began handing the seated group a set of menus and a pair of baskets with pink cloths draped over them. "Here. You guys are gonna need these baskets. We're giving all the attendants one."

"We'll need these?" Ash took one of the baskets and examined it curiously. "For what?"

He prepared to lift the cloth covering it and check what was inside the basket when a gasping Foster reacted quickly. He bent over and lightly slapped Ash's hand, forcing the raven-haired Trainer to withdraw in surprise.

"Phew!" Wiping beads of sweat from his forehead, Foster glared at Ash in annoyance. "Not until the dancing begins. And don't even think about giving me that look! If anyone realizes you checked the baskets ahead of time, then the higher-ups are gonna have my head."

"O-Okay..." a stunned Ash replied.

"Hey, Foster?" Serena piped up. "Where's Aria?"

"Huh? Aria?" A slightly uncomfortable look appeared on the farmhand's visage. "She'll...She'll be coming out soon. When the dancing starts. For now, you're gonna have to wait." He glanced at the horizon, illuminated by hues of orange and purple from the setting Sun. "We start at sunset."

"At sunset, huh...?" Nate asked.

"Yeah. Anyway..." Foster whipped out a pencil and notepad and flashed them a smile that seemed both kind and forced. "What can I order for you guys in the meantime?"

Remembering the menus, all ten attendants opened them and read through their contents, all the while becoming increasingly impressed by the high-class dishes and their many varieties. Serena couldn't help but watch Yancy and Nate at the corner of her eye; both adolescents seemed a little surprised by the Laurier Maison's menu twenty years ago. Then, she turned towards Ash and Pikachu, only to see them salivating loudly beside her, both of them captivated by the deluxe menu.

Eventually, the group made their orders in a matter of minutes, with Foster jotting down everything on his notepad. Naturally, Ash ordered every single item on the menu, much to the amusement of everyone else and the misfortune of Foster himself.

"Phew!" The hapless Maison employee ran a head across his sweat-drenched once he finished writing down Ash's last order. "That should be the last of it. Oh, my goodness, that took FOREVER." Foster then looked down at the grinning Ash and Pikachu, concern glimmering in his eyes. "Are you sure you're up for eating all of those orders?"

"Am I sure?" Ash repeated with a beaming gaze. "Of course, I'm sure! My stomach's just rumbling like a Groudon thinking about all that food!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement.

Indeed, everybody heard a low but ominous groan coming from Ash's direction. Serena lifted an eyebrow and cracked a smile of slight pride at her future husband, even as everyone else sweat-dropped.

"I, uh...I see..." Foster replied slowly. "W-Well, I hope you've got a hefty tip to back all those orders up."

"Don't worry, Foster," Serena said, recalling her Uncle Dawson and his wealth. "I'm sure we'll make it worth your while."

"I sure hope so. Anyway-"

"Hey, waiter!" a voice hollered, cutting Foster off. Everyone turned their heads and saw the Mightyena Trainer and her date impatiently waving Foster over. "Get your butt over here! We're dying of starvation, and we wanna order!"

"Coming!" replied an exasperated Foster. Then, he glanced at Ash, Serena, and the others. "Your orders will be ready after the dance is over. Good seeing you again!"

The boy then quickly ran off to the other table before Ash or Serena could have a chance to respond. The group momentarily watched with sympathy as the Mightyena Trainer boisterously chastised Foster for his lateness, before Serena's mind started to wander to more pertinent matters. With a wrinkled brow, she looked at Yancy, who was looking around her surroundings in continued amazement.

"Hey, Yancy?" the honey-blonde asked.

"Hm?" Yancy looked at her in slight surprise. "Yeah, Mom?"

"Back in your time, do we...?" She gestured back and forth between herself and Ash. "Do we ever tell you about what happens today? O-On this day?"

"Huh?" The pink-haired teenager's eyes widened in realization. "Yeah... Yeah, you do."

"If it's alright..." Serena blushed intensely, as did Ash. "Could...Could you tell us what you've been told? Is this a very important day for our...our..."

Her blush strengthened further, provoking a snicker from Miette in response.

"Ah, stop being a wussy, Serena," the blue-haired Performer commented. She then patted Yancy on the shoulder, for she was sitting next to her. "She's talking about their relationship, honey. Is tonight the night where they ba-"

"I think I'm gonna have to cut you off there, Miette," Calem interrupted in alarm.

"Huuuuuh?" Miette gave the boy a childish pout. "Whhhhhyyyyy nooooot, Caaaaaleeeeemmmmm?" Then, she smirked naughtily. "We're old enough to know that when a boy Pokémon and a girl Pokémon like each other very much, they ba-"

"WE'RE CUTTING YOU OFF THERE, MIETTE!" Serena, Shauna, and Calem all shouted.

Ash simply looked back and forth between Serena and Miette in confusion. "I don't understand. What happens when a boy Pokémon and a girl Pokémon like each other very much?"

Serena glared at her future husband with a face so red that it looked like it was about to explode. But before anybody, especially a giddy Miette, was about to respond, the group of ten heard a sweet noise nearby.

"Hee hee hee..."

Everyone turned towards the source of the noise, and they were surprised to see Selene standing next to their table, with Pichu perched atop her toque-wearing head and a disguised Celebi tucked in her arms. Bonnie and Evelyn were walking up to them, with the former wearing a smirk as mischievous as Miette's while the latter was looking around at her surroundings with absolute awe. Unlike all of the other party attendants, they were still wearing their casual clothes, which caused them to stand out in the crowd and attract the attention of other guests.

"You're so funny as always, Auntie Miette!" Selene chirped. Then, she glanced at Serena and beamed brightly at her. "Wooooow! You look so pretty, Mommy!"

"Pichu pichu!" squeaked Pichu.

"Biii!" Celebi chirped from the shelter of its Sewaddle costume.

"Selene!" Serena exclaimed with partial delight. "Wh-What're you doing here?"

"How'd you guys get in here?" Clemont asked, his gaze directed at Bonnie in particular.

"W-W-We were invited a-as sp-sp-special guests..." Evelyn stammered meekly in response. As she spoke, the shy girl was clearly becoming overwhelmed from being underneath the suspicious and judgmental gazes of the other Performers.

"Special guests?" Ash repeated.

"Of whom?" asked Serena.

Before Selene or Bonnie could respond, all of the lamps illuminating the dance venue began to darken, provoking a wave of confused and awe noises of reaction from all of the attendants. At that moment, everyone realized for the first time that the Sun had now mostly set, shrouding the environment in encroaching darkness. Once the lamps were dimmed enough to radiate a muted orange glow, a familiar voice echoed loudly and brilliantly in the air, swiftly commanding everyone's attention.

"Beaux interprètes! Distinguished guests!"

A floodlight activated itself, shining upon the center of a vast, empty space in the middle of the venue. There, everyone saw Monsieur Pierre, who had abandoned his signature uniform in favor of an all-white one, giving him the appearance of a guest at a wedding. He was standing gracefully and holding out a hand towards all of the Performers and their dates.

"Welcome!" he cried. "Welcome to the event you've all been waiting for, the event to bring an end to such a beautiful and magnificent Pokémon Showcase season! And that's...the outdoor dance party!"

As soon as he proclaimed the last sentence, fireworks started exploding high in the evening sky, illuminating the venue and all of Laurier Maison with various bright colors. These colors quickly took the shapes of several Pokémon, and not just any Pokémon. The audience was quick to recognize the firework-generated images as matching the Performers' Pokémon, ranging from Serena's Braixen to Shauna's Ivysaur to Sara Lee's Glaceon to Amelia's Dragonair to even Odette's Swanna. Everyone started applauding at the magnificent sight, with some of the Performers whooping and whistling in self-congratulatory impulses. But in contrast, Serena, Shauna, Miette, and Nini could only look at one another and smile with pride over everyone's hard work.

"And now!" Pierre hollered over the resonant popping. "It's time to celebrate all the hard work that you lovely and magnificent girls have put into your performances! And you will do this by..."

He suddenly started twirling around, just as two more floodlights turned on, illuminating the entirety of the empty space Pierre was standing in. Everyone gasped at the sight of it: it was the dance floor, looking very much like the one at Monsieur Pierre's dance party earlier that season.

"Dancing together with your date and both of your Pokémon!" proclaimed Pierre. "In doing so, you will show them the full extent of your beauty, the beauty that you spent the past season cultivating together with your Pokémon! How magnifique!"

"I don't see how that's relevant to our hard work this past season," Miette muttered, mostly to herself, "but okay."

"Shhhhh!" Selene shushed while putting a finger to her own lips, an action that was mirrored by Pichu and even Celebi.

"But!" Pierre announced, silencing the whispering and gossiping Performers. "Before we commence with the dance, I am pleased to hand the microphone over to none other than our Kalos Queen Aria, who has a few words to say to all of you!"

Everyone began applauding again, this time with more vigor, and more of the Performers' whoops filled the air, replacing the fading sounds of the fireworks. At the same time, Ash and Serena noticed movement at the corner of their eyes, drawing their undivided attention. They and the other attendants watched while Aria stepped onto the dance floor, clad in a dress colored in various shades of blue. For some reason, it provoked memories within Ash, memories of his time at the Orange Islands.

"Thank you so much, Monsieur Pierre," Aria said gently, once she took the microphone from the announcer's hand. Then, she faced the attendants, letting her dazzling gaze sweep through the crowd. "Hi, everyone. Good evening. Phew!" She ran a hand across her forehead with a smile. "It's been a long Exhibition Showcase and a longer season, hasn't it?"

Nods and murmurs of sympathy amongst the Performers affirmed her rhetorical question.

"Now you may be wondering, why end this season with a dance party? Wasn't the Freestyle Performance enough of a finisher? Well, you're right, in a sense. The Freestyle Performance was the finisher, but not for us. No, it was for the audience. The audience is the most important thing in a Pokémon Showcase. And I say 'the most important thing' because, well, there's other stuff in a Showcase that is significant too. Such as ourselves.

"And no, I'm not talking about our ambitions or our need for vindication or even our desire to use the stage as a way to conquer the shortcomings of our lives. No, I'm talking about your well-beings, and those of your Pokémon. After all, our Pokémon are our partners, every one of them. Therefore, they're an extension of ourselves. They are us."

Ash, Serena, Yancy, Nate, and the others looked at their Pokémon, and they looked back at their Trainers in agreement.

"Which is where this dance party comes in. It's a way for us to unwind, to fully take stock of the gift that we've been given. And what's this gift, you ask? Well, it's the past Showcase season and all of the experiences that came with it! After all, it was a season of enlightenment, of self-discovery! Without the past season, we wouldn't have been able to learn anything about ourselves, about how we express ourselves, about how we wish to show our visions of the world to a receptive audience! This journey of self-discovery is one that we travel together as Performers, no matter how different our individual experiences are. In some ways...you could say I was able to learn something about myself this past season."

At the sound of Aria's last sentence, Serena's and Yancy's gazes turned towards the redheaded girl, who was still sweeping her gaze across the small crowd of onlookers. However, when her dazzling eyes fell upon the mother and daughter, she stopped, and her smile seemed to glow infinitesimally brighter.

"As my mother Elle once told me," Aria continued, power surging through her words, "a Pokémon Performer always has to wear a wonderfully radiant smile! That's the way you make everyone in your audience happy!"

The memory of Aria's advice returned to Serena's mind, and her eyes turned wide in awestruck realization.

"Her mother," the honey-blonde thought. "That's where she got those words from..."

"At first," Aria said, "I thought that meant I needed to always smile for the audience, to prioritize their happiness above all else, like any Performer would do. But now, after my experiences over this past season, I've come to realize that my smile isn't just for my audience." She lifted a hand and put it over her heart. "It's also for myself."

The excited murmurs amongst the other Performers quickly died down, and the entire audience watched Aria, enraptured by her words. Serena and Yancy in particular held onto every word that was coming out of the Kalos Queen's mouth.

"After all, how can I make my audience happy if I'm not happy myself? A wonderfully radiant smile can only come straight from the heart, not from your ambitions or your shortcomings or your desire for vindication. That, I learned over the past season. I thought it was something that would come naturally from me, but it's clear that I needed that reminder. And thanks to all of you and your Pokémon and your wonderful performances..." Aria's gaze focused on Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini in particular. "I now know this, and I will keep that lesson deep in my heart."

Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini smiled brightly at the Kalos Queen. At the corner of her eye, Yancy could see Evelyn staring at her mother, her blue eyes shimmering brightly with emotion. As for the other Performers, they were confused by Aria's words and started whispering amongst themselves. However, Aria spoke up again, dispelling the gossip.

"And I hope all of you ended your season with something to learn and keep deep in your hearts as well! After all, we're Pokémon Performers! We specialize in happiness! And when it comes to happiness, there's nothing we can't do! And now!" Aria clasped her other hand over the microphone. "It's time to specialize in our own happiness, which we will cultivate through this dance!"

Applause and cheering broke out among the attendants again, just as music started to flood the venue, amplified by loudspeakers scattered throughout the area, closely followed by soothing, feminine lyrics.

"Here comes trouble..."

Ash, Serena, Yancy, Nate, and the others watched as the other Performers stood from their chairs and glided to the dance floor, their dates in tow. Recognizing their cue, Ash, Nate, Calem, Clemont, and Tierno stood up from their own chairs, one by one, and held out their hands towards their dates.

"No mistaking."

Serena, Yancy, Shauna, Miette, and Nini stared at the boys' outstretched hands, some with surprise and others with giddy amusement.

"Serena..."

"Y-Yancy?"

"Hey, uh, Shauna..."

"M-Mi-Miette..."

"Nini!"

"I'd know you anywhere."

All five boys' questions were simultaneous. "Would you like to dance with me?"

"I could sail to the ends of the ocean and..."

All five girls wasted no time with their responses.

"Of course!"

"Find you waiting there."

---

A/N: Aaaaannnnnd fin! PHEW! Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, that was by far the longest chapter I've ever written for this story, and one of the longest chapters I've ever written overall! I sure hope it was worth the wait for all of you guys and gals! At the very least, the chapter's length should make up for the amount of time you all had to spend waiting for it to finally be published!

Anyway, yeah. The next chapter will be the one to show the long-awaited dance. The dance that had been mentioned throughout the story, as far back as Chapter 5. At long last, we're finally at that point! I was originally hoping to depict some of the dance in this chapter, but like I mentioned earlier, it was getting so lengthy that I had no choice but to move everything dance-related to the next part. I know the teasing's been going on for far too long, but there was nothing I could do about it. But at least I've got no more room for stalling and postponing that sequence! It's the next chapter or bust! Now or never! So yeah, keep your fingers crossed for that! :D

Now, I'd like to thank the following people for reviewing:

-NOV1S:

1) Sorry, I'm not sure what Kira Kira is.

2) Is there anything else that you'd like to specify in your review? Anything that you loved about the chapter? Anything that you might have disliked? Any questions or other comments? It'd be greatly appreciated!

-DarkKitten94: Thank you so much! Gotta love those juicy AmourShipping moments! There's just nothing like it! :D :D :D

-Ander Arias:

1) Yeah, the Masters Eight sounds pretty great in concept, but I hear the execution wasn't as much. And yes, I think I can fit something like Ash being the Monarch somewhere into the flow of the story without interrupting it.

2) Thanks again for bringing up Clarice! This is definitely something that I can bring up for her storyline!

3) Let's just say that every trio of named Performers was assembled with a specific purpose in mind... ;)

4) Sorry, this chapter was obviously just the lead-up to the dance. But don't worry! The dancing sequence is up in the next chapter! No more lollygagging from me!

-DragonicFireLord: Well, I'm trying to keep Ash's battling style as accurate to what XY depicted, which is why you're not seeing older stuff like Counter Shield. But hey, you never know. We haven't been fully introduced to the future Ash and his battling style yet... ;D ;D ;D

Well, hope you enjoyed this long-awaited chapter! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!