XY

"Double Team!" Ash's command rang into the sky, a metaphorical starting pistol for the Pokémon at his side. In an instant, Froakie and Fletchling disappeared— Copies of the latter and clones of the former flying through the air at frightening speeds. Colliding, they soon faded into a growing cloud of smoke that hung over the battlefield.

At the center of it all was Ash, coordinating the evening spar with expert direction and an ecstatic grin. Nights like these were what he lived for. Moments like these were what sent his heart racing.

Only two copies remained now: Froakie up high and Fletchling down low. It was time to finish this.

"Crash!"

Fletchling soared and Froakie dived, closing the distance in an instant. The sheer pressure of the former's wings sent out shockwaves, yet it did not disturb the latter's speedy descent. Finally, with a fierce cry that sent shivers even up Ash's spine, the two crashed in mid-air. A plume of smoke and water blew out, signaling the end of the pair's training.

"Whoa, whoa, I gotcha!" Snapping to attention, Ash started backing up, looking up at the plume of smoke for his Pokémon. After a moment, Froakie and Fletchling fell straight down. "Aaaaand, gotcha!"

With a laugh, Ash caught the two of them, holding them close as he cheered.

"That was awesome! You guys are getting this routine down!" he declared, coming to a stop while his Pokémon came to.

"Froa-Froakie!" Froakie answered first, a bit roughed up but no less pumped than Ash was.

"Fleeeeetch." Fletchling stirred then, singing a snide comment at Froakie that he quickly picked up on.

"Froak!?"

At a distance from the intense sparring session, Serena sat, her attention lost in the sight of the three training. She didn't know what it was, but today's performance was particularly dazzling.

The display of movement and speed, the coordination through it all— Serena was never not impressed when she saw Ash at work, but it was moments like these that really reminded her just how seasoned of a trainer he was. His sheer confidence, standing right below the exchange of blows, was captivating.

So captivating, in fact, it distracted Serena from the task right in front of her.

"Fenn!" Fennekin yipped from her spot on Serena's lap, pulling her attention back to their nightly routine: grooming.

"Right, sorry, I'm such a scatterbrain today," Serena explained with an awkward laugh, returning to her thorough brushing of Fennekin's fur. "Ash trains like this all the time— I don't know why I'm staring tonight— I'm sure I'll find some other opportunity to watch— Maybe later tonight when—"

Fennekin rolled her eyes as Serena rambled on and on, eventually prompting a sigh and an understanding yip.

"Huh?" Serena watched as Fennekin hopped off her lap, motioning her head towards Ash with a nod. After a moment, the message clicked. "Oooh thank you Fennekin! Tomorrow I'll give you double the brushes, triple!"

Giving one final thanks, Serena slipped off, leaving Fennekin and the rest of camp behind. Her partner gave her one last smile and another teasing eye roll as she ran off.

With a quick hop and a skip, Serena approached Ash, catching him while he was recalling Fletchling to her Poké ball. It seemed it was time to switch up the training.

"You guys are on fire tonight!" she called out, grabbing Ash's attention just as Pikachu hopped out. Dipping his head back, Ash spotted Serena's approach and grinned.

"Hey Serena! Coming to watch the Ketchum Process™ in action, eh?" he suggested, earning a giggle from Serena as he held his awkward pose and smug grin. After straightening up, he continued. "But nah, this is nothing. You should see how much butt we can kick in a few months!"

Ash turned to Pikachu and Froakie.

"Alright guys, we're gonna do some one-on-one with a special rule," he declared, surprising Serena as he took a step forward. "No Electric moves!"

"Pika!"

"Oakie!"

With that, the two were off, jumping back and giving Ash and Serena room to watch while they began to spar.

"No electricity? That's a bit unfair to Pikachu, isn't it?" Serena asked, watching as Froakie flew forward, going for an early first strike.

"Nah, if Pikachu could use those moves, it'd be over before he could get any real training in!" Ash explained, his eyes jumping as Pikachu expertly leapt up out of the way. "It'd be unfair to him if I did let him do that."

"Right, because Froakie is a Water-Type," Serena noted, the answer coming with the proof in action. Pikachu slammed down onto Froakie, dealing some minor damage before jumping away. If he could use Thunderbolt, that'd be a serious blow. "Jeeze, you really think this stuff through, huh?"

"Course I do!" Ash pumped a fist while Froakie rushed forward, not giving Pikachu an inch. "If I wanna be a Pokémon Master one day, I gotta be on the top of my game when it comes to training!"

"Well, you've certainly got the passion for it," Serena said with an exasperated inflection, watching the sparring continue. Froakie was attempting to keep the pressure up on Pikachu, but was easily outmaneuvered by the more experienced Pokémon. Seemed he still had a lot to learn.

Serena hummed in thought as she watched, pondering if she was ever going to get to hear what exactly a Pokémon Master was, or why exactly Ash was so interested in the title. He was enthusiastic in everything he did, of course, but with this he was a downright zealot.

Pursing her lips, Serena glanced back at Ash, watching him as he stood affixed on the battle. He was following the action perfectly, she realized, not losing sight of Pikachu and Froakie for a second. At that moment, the entirety of Ash's heart was dedicated to this, to his craft.

Serena wished he would look at her that way.

"What do you see in this?" she asked, somewhat quietly, but still breaking the silence between them. To Serena's surprise, that pulled Ash out of his focus.

"Oh man, now that's a question," he noted, scratching his chin as he thought it over. "I don't think anyone's ever asked me that before!"

"Wait, really?" Serena cocked her head at Ash, while he thought it over with a hum. After a moment, he smiled.

"Here, let me show you!" Ash placed a hand on Serena's shoulder, causing her to tense up. As he pointed towards the sparring, he guided her line of sight. "Watch."

Froakie and Pikachu were locked in an intense one-on-one, the former keeping up the pressure with a relentless barrage of Pounds. Yet, Pikachu was cool as ice, dodging each strike with simple strafes. He waited until Froakie faltered and paused, giving him the opening to turn the tables.

Sweeping Froakie's legs with a lightning-fast Iron Tail, Pikachu flipped control of the match to himself, forcing his opponent to scramble back.

"See that? That back and forth? First Froakie pushes forward, then he's on the back foot," he explained, as Pikachu pushed his advantage. "Now watch this."

Rushing forward with a Quick Attack, Pikachu went in for a decisive blow. Yet, Froakie was no sitting duck. Holding position until the very last moment, he leapt away from the oncoming attack, sending a splatter of frubble down in the process. Now gummed up, Pikachu tripped and rolled, suddenly vulnerable as Froakie raced back.

"You try to make a move on your opponent, and they counter." Ash's breath was short, like he was holding it, like the battle held his attention so closely he could barely breathe. Soon it was the same for Serena, as she followed his every word. "So you start thinking three steps ahead—"

Pikachu grinned, jumping to his feet and spinning all in one motion, sending about half of Froakie's frubbles flying out. Yet, it didn't deter Froakie, who merely reabsorbed the returned projectiles.

"Something goes wrong, then you're only two steps ahead." His grip on her shoulder tightened.

Grunting, Pikachu leapt back, flipping several times as he made space between himself and the oncoming Froakie. Yet, when he tried to land on his tail, he just ended up flopping onto the ground. His tail, it was stuck to his back because of the frubbles!

"Then only one."

"Froa!" Froakie slammed into Pikachu, sending him flying back.

"Now you're battling by the skin of your teeth," he explained, as Pikachu rolled away from Froakie's repeated Pounds. Leaping up, Pikachu tried to make room, but Froakie anticipated that and jumped forward in sync. "You're there, with them, for every move, for every near miss—"

"Pika!" Finally freeing his tail from the frubbles, Pikachu swung in a wide arc, forcing Froakie back. Yet, it wouldn't be for long.

Froakie rushed in once more, rearing for another massive blow.

"Chuuu-Pi-Ka!" With a lightning-fast Iron Tail, Pikachu just barely managed to deflect the oncoming attack, sending Froakie's fist rocketing into the ground.

Ash's fist shuddered in time with it.

"You feel it right with them. Every blow they take, every move they make." The battle was reaching a fevered pitch. When Pikachu slammed his tail into Froakie, Ash's leg tensed. When Froakie grabbed onto Pikachu and pulled, Ash's arm did the same move.

Finally, when Froakie swung Pikachu over his shoulder and tossed him, Serena's arm repeated the motion.

"What— What just happened!" she exclaimed, stepping back and looking at her outstretched arm. Her skin shuddered, a shiver running up her spine. She had barely moved a muscle, barely breathed in this whole debacle, yet her heart was racing. Adrenaline had flooded her veins.

"There ya go, you've got it!" Ash exclaimed, running up to her side. "You're not even the one fighting, and you still feel it with them! Sometimes I even end up feeling sore the day after a really tough battle, hah!"

That claim made Serena pause, as her heart rate began to even out.

"Do you always feel like this, feeling what your Pokémon feel?" she asked, her gaze drifting back towards the sparring happening beside them. Ash laughed.

"A little!" he explained, scratching his cheek. "But I guess that's why I love battling so much. I get to feel just as awesome as my Pokémon do! When they're at their best, so am I!"

Ash turned and gave Serena a big goofy smile as he said that, breaking her away from the last of her shock and awe. Despite everything, he was still the same old Ash, even at his most intense.

Yet still, his 'most intense' absolutely floored Serena. She knew the boy loved battles, but this was something else. This was a fix of adrenaline unlike anything she'd ever felt before. His love for battles, his drive to get to the next gym, it made so much more sense now.

It was intoxicating.

"I think I— Ash!" Unfortunately for both Serena and Ash, they soon learned why taking their eyes off an ongoing battle wasn't the best idea in the world.

Pikachu slammed into Froakie in a decisive blow, launching the hero-in-training back at frightening speeds, straight towards Ash and Serena. Before either of them could do anything, Froakie crashed into Ash's side, the latter just barely managing to avoid toppling over as he was sent skidding back.

"Ash?!"

"Whoa! I gotcha!" he declared, coming to a stop before Froakie gave an embarrassed apology. "You did awesome out there buddy, but you gotta stop underestimating how fast Pikachu can hit ya! Next time, we'll try practicing to keep your guard up, alright?"

"Oakie!" With a salute, Froakie hopped off Ash's side, letting his trainer straighten up as he walked off. As Ash stretched off his sudden high-speed frog encounter, Serena approached him again.

"Is it always this intense?" she asked, a bit exasperated.

"Sometimes, heh. Training with Froakie can usually go a bit off the rails," Ash noted, glancing over to Pikachu and Froakie exchanging supportive banter. "But going wild is when things really get going. It's why I love battling! Why I wanna do this forever!"

"I never really thought about it this way," Serena confessed, landing at his side and looking at the same sight. "Or, thought about it much at all, really."

The adrenaline rush had nearly run its course now. Finally, she could spare the breath to laugh.

"Don't take this personally, Ash, but I never would've taken you for someone who's really thought things out this far," she said, giving an awkward smile as she looked at him. "About what you love to do, and what you wanna spend your life doing."

"Heeeey, what's that supposed to mean!" Ash replied, a grumpy inflection in his voice as he got the feeling he was being insulted on some level. That response made Serena laugh, putting him at ease. After a moment, he spoke up. "How about you then? Have you figured out what you want to do?"

The question made Serena pause, catching her by surprise. It was true these last few weeks she was supposed to be 'finding herself' so to speak. But between the incident at the museum a little while ago and now, she hadn't given it much thought.

The feeling of adrenaline was gone now.

"Not yet," she confessed, answering Ash's question. Scratching her head, her voice took on a joking tone. "Who knows though, maybe I'll be the one challenging some gyms next, heh."