Y

"And then, Riot and Merilyn began brawling with one another, with force rather than their words. Under the cover of their battle, I slipped away."

After Serena and the others had rescued Diancie from the clock tower, the group decided to put as much distance as they could between themselves and the Pokémon hunters. They were now at the opposite side of town, sitting on a park bench under the light of a street lamp. It was late into the evening.

"I must ask, however." With her story having come to an end, Diancie turned and faced the group, looking to Serena in particular. "How did you locate me?"

"Ah that's an easy one!" Ash quipped, before proceeding to not explain how.

"As it turns out, neither of those two are particularly inconspicuous." It was in fact Clemont who answered her question. "You could see the flashes of light and noise from their attacks from half way across town."

"Do you know why they want you so badly, Diancie?" Serena stood up from her seat then, crouching down to look Diancie eye-to-eye. Even so long after Diancie had been rescued, Serena's nerves were visibly frayed.

Diancie nodded.

"The one named Merilyn requested that I make diamonds for her," she explained, looking down at her own hands for a moment. She made two fists. "Fortunately… Or, rather, unfortunately, I'm unable to do what they desire of me."

"You can't make diamonds?" Bonnie was never one for subtlety, as she repeated what she heard in plain speak. Diancie tensed, before nodding her head.

"That is why I am here, rather than in my kingdom," she answered, turning away and looking up to the night sky. The stars were out in full force. "I have been sent on a quest to unlock my true powers— By finding the place where All Earth Ends."

Silence took the group, before Diancie snorted and turned back.

"You can see, with directions like those, how I have gotten lost so easily."

A feeling swelled in Serena's chest, one she couldn't parse but could still understand. She stood tall and looked on at Diancie, surprising the princess with her burst of gusto.

"Well, with instructions that vague, and those guys chasing after you, maybe you should have someone to accompany you." Serena smiled, calming Diancie's nerves and her own all at once. "You can call it a… royal escort!"

Looking back to the group, Serena shot her suggestion to the others.

"I think that would be a wonderful idea!"

"Roadtrip!"

Clemont and Bonnie seemed enthusiastically onboard, voicing their support without much reluctance. That just left Ash and Pikachu. Those two hesitated for a moment, before Ash broke into a smile.

"If Diancie needs help finding wherever that place is, then I'm down!" he exclaimed, Pikachu agreeing with a happy chirp. With that, there was only one last person to give their input.

"What do you say?" Serena brought the suggestion back to Diancie, getting down onto her knee as she did so. She couldn't explain why, but something drew her to Diancie, wanted her to help. Whatever the feeling was, though, she was happy to oblige.

Diancie's hesitation disappeared, before she smiled.

"Serena, everyone, I shall grant you permission to escort me on my journey."

Serena paused as Diancie genuflected then, granting her declaration royal legitimacy. Yet still, Serena couldn't help but laugh.

"Eh? Permission?"


Y

"So, how do you know where you're meant to be going?"

It'd been a few hours since the group had embarked upon their impromptu adventure, leaving Avignon and trekking out for parts unknown. In the interest of time, it was decided they would take an overnight bus in order to cover more ground. Now it was late into the evening, with most of the party fast asleep, save for a few quiet voices still talking and listening.

"I do not, fully." Diancie looked out from the bus window, watching the full moon following them close behind. "I feel some force pulling me in certain directions. But I do not know where our journey will lead us."

"You weren't kidding about the vague directions," Serena muttered, a thought going through her mind. From her spot, she could see Ash and Pikachu, fast asleep in the row ahead of her. "Sent out into the big, wide world, and you barely know what you're supposed to be looking for— Jeeze, it's like looking in a mirror."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

Serena hesitated for a moment, not realizing she had spoken aloud at the end there. Still though, she replied.

"I'm, in a similar situation. I left home searching for something, but I don't really know what." Glancing back to Ash once more, Serena bit her lip. "I'm supposed to find what I want to do with my life, but nothing's really clicked."

"I'll admit, I do not understand," Diancie spoke with a surprising tinge of embarrassment to her voice. "Why do you not just do what you want? You want things, no?"

"No, it's—" Serena giggled, the heavy feeling from moments ago fading away. "It's more than that. I mean a goal, a job, something to… pursue. Like how you're looking to unlock your powers."

"Oh! Then I understand!" Thinking it over for a moment, Diancie nodded her head. "Perhaps I could help you then, like you are helping me. Tell me, what do you like to do?"

Serena couldn't help but laugh, Diancie's exuberant attitude lifting her spirits. If only it were that easy. Still, she gave the question the thought it deserved.

"If you promise not to tell, there is one thing."

"A princess never betrays a promise."

"Well… I've been thinking for a while now—" Pausing, Serena gulped, before pushing the thought up and out, into the open for the first time. "That maybe, I'd like to start challenging gyms, like Ash does."

Silence reigned in the bus, Serena's words echoing in her own mind. Yep, she'd just said it. No going back now.

After a moment, Diancie spoke again.

"Oooh, that sounds like it would be a good thing to pursue. I'm sure you would be excellent at it." Diancie was so confident with her declarations. Serena didn't know where she got it from. Even she didn't believe in herself that mu— "Though, I do have one question. What are Gyms?"

Serena paused before she laughed, earning a miffed pout from Diancie. Taking a moment, she broke through her own giggles to speak again.

"Okay, so, Pokémon Gyms are like this…"

So Serena began to explain the Pokémon League, recounting everything she had learned from Ash and Clemont in their time traveling together. As she did so, she gained another attentive listener.

In the row of seats ahead of them, Clemont smiled before settling back in to sleep.


Y

"Woooow! What sort of castle is this!" Diancie hopped and turned, gazing out far in every direction. No matter where she looked, the grand complex she found herself in just seemed to go on and on for forever! "This must belong to a great queen!"

"This isn't a castle, silly." Serena joined Diancie's side then, the rest of the party following close behind as they arrived at their latest stop. "This is the mall!"

After a few days of traveling by bus, the group had decided to take a break to rest and check out the local sights. Serena was especially excited for this stop in Orsay City— The home of the most famous mall in the entire region, the Mall of Kalos!

Bustling crowds of people filled the building, shuffling in and out of dozens of shops in every direction. Across four different levels, the places to visit seemed endless.

"Come on, let's take a break for a while— I've got to show you the boutiques they have here." Serena took Diancie's hand into her own as she laid her offer down. "Shopping is a girl's best friend after all!"

Serena wasn't alone in that thought.

"I wanna go too!" Bonnie hopped forward with an excited squee, taking Diancie's other hand and egging her on. After a moment, Diancie giggled.

"Alright then, I shall permit this excursion," she said, holding that distinctly royal tone to everything she said. Soon, however, it began to slip. "Your princess declares it— Let us partake in the shopping!"

"There she goes, giving us permission again." Serena laughed before she looked at the three stragglers— Clemont, Ash, and Pikachu.

"You guys can go ahead, I've got some shopping of my own I'd like to do." Clemont quickly opted out of the girl's day out, a knowing glint to his eyes as he turned to the last two. "Care to join me, Ash?"

"Nah, me and Pikachu are gonna pass. We're gonna get back outside and do some training." Making a fist and pumping it, Ash grinned. "We gotta be ready to face Korrina!"

"Pika!"

With that, the group split up, the plan for the day set before parting ways.

Only time would tell how close they'd stick to that plan.


Y

If the mall was a grand castle, then the boutique before Diancie was a wardrobe fit for royalty. All around her, aisles and aisles of clothing racks stood, stuffed from end to end with a dumbfounding number of outfits, in dozens of bright colors that just went on and on. It'd be almost impossible to find more than one copy of a single piece of clothing, that's how varied the assortment was.

"Oh wow! Is all of this for us?" Diancie asked, her royal intonation slipping as she looked up at Serena.

"Heh, not exactly." Smiling, Serena crouched down to be level with her. "We can try on whatever we want, but we can't keep more than one or two outfits, okay?"

"Oooh, okay!" Diancie took on a determined grin and nodded. "Then I shall find something truly beautiful! Fit for a princess!"

"Come on, let's go!" Ever the patient one, Bonnie blazed ahead, Serena and Diancie just barely keeping up with her excitement. "I wanna try everything!"

And try everything they did! From stylish sundresses to dashing pantsuits, from silk blouses with pleated skirts to cotton apron-dresses and the accessories to boot— The three of them went through the boutique's stock like there was nothing else to do in the world. All the while, they talked, took pictures, and giggled over some of the more absurd items on selection.

When Serena walked out wearing a dress that looked like an ice cream parlor, Diancie and Bonnie doubled over in laughter.

After a while, though, Serena began to notice something. It was about two dozen dresses in, when she was applauding Diancie's latest outfit.

"Hm." Serena hummed in thought, before what she was seeing finally clicked— Throughout this entire outing, Diancie had been keeping something on, no matter how unflattering it may be. It was the skirt Serena had made for her days prior. That realization made her pause. "Huh?"

"I said that I loved this dress, but would like to try something lighter!" Diancie said, repeating herself and pulling Serena off her train of thought.

Realizing she was being spoken to, Serena stood up.

"Right, yeah. Let me pick something for you then!" Serena smiled as she said that, sorting through the pile of clothes she had at her side. After a moment, she pulled out the perfect choice, a short ruffled dress with an off-shoulder neckline. "Here, try this!"

When Serena turned back, Diancie had already taken off the previous outfit— Everything but the skirt, again. That fact stood out to Serena, as she handed over the dress and watched Diancie approach the changing room.

"You know, the clothes would fit even better if we ditched that bottom," she suggested, her quizzical expression turning into a ready grin. "They'd match better too!"

"Oh! Oh, no. That is quite alright." Diancie paused but did not turn, keeping her back to Serena. "I am quite satisfied with this article of clothing."

Serena's smile weakened.

"I know you like my sewing and all, but I promise you'll like these better," she assured, standing up with another outfit in hand. "For one thing, they were made by people who knew what they were doing."

"Ah, it is not that." Hopping into the changing room, Diancie gripped the privacy curtain and closed it behind her. For a moment, Serena hesitated pushing the subject.

"What is it, then?"

Diancie went quiet, not even going to change from the sound of it. Soon, however, she spoke up.

"Well, I suppose I should be honest, as you have been with me," she began, surprising Serena. The sound of her changing rang out next. "And, since you have seen this before, afterall."

When the curtain parted, the silk skirt around Diancie's waist was gone, revealing what laid underneath. Behind the smooth and clean layer of clothing Serena had made, craggily, hard rock stood. It was a harsh contrast with the rest of Diancie's pristine, crystalline features, making her look almost unfinished, in a way.

Hopping forward, Diancie brought her hands together, and began to speak.

"These clothes we are trying on are beautiful, but they do not cover my, raw features," she explained, looking off to the side as she did. "So, as long as I am stuck with this part of myself, it is better if I try to make do, to make it look pleasing."

A swell of emotion rose in Serena's chest. She stepped forward without even pausing to think.

"Hey, don't say that," she said, crouching down to look Diancie eye-to-eye, surprising her with her sudden approach. "What's all this about being 'stuck' with it? We're not stuck with anything."

Looking at Serena, Diancie frowned.

"I am, though, in any real sense. The work needed to polish this much of myself is so great, and no one in my kingdom could even begin to help me complete it." Diancie stared at her palms before raising them to show to Serena. "They lack hands, you see."

The image of a squad of Carbink trying to work a stone grinder flashed through Serena's mind. She resisted the urge to laugh at that.

Instead, she gave Diancie's rocky skin a quick inspection. The stone was dry and dusty. Typical, considering how it had been neglected, hidden under there. Yet still, through it all, Serena could see something else. The dull stone was like a mirror, in a way.

"Diancie… You and I are a lot alike, I think," she began, her words pulling at Diancie's attention. "I get how it feels, being a 'work-in-progress'. I think it can be really easy to hide things away, and forget to actually get anywhere."

Serena smiled as she took Diancie's hands into her own.

"But girls like us have to keep moving forward, keep trying to become that person we want to be—" Licking her thumb, Serena rubbed some dust and debris from Diancie's lower-half. She revealed some uncut, yet vibrant gemstone sitting underneath. "Because eventually, we get better, and that person shines through."

Diancie seemed struck by Serena's words, words even Serena couldn't believe she had uttered. Yet, to say they came from the heart was an understatement— The advice was just as much for herself as it was for Diancie.

"Do you really believe I can cut and polish my lower half?" Diancie asked then.

"Of course! In fact—" An idea came to Serena, before she stood straight. "You stay here with Bonnie. I have something from another shop you'll love."

Serena's voice exuded excitement, excitement that quickly infected Diancie.

"Okay!"

With that, Serena split from the group, giving Bonnie the heads up before she headed off. As it turned out, the girl had been spelunking through the summer clothes section this entire time.

Watching Serena leave, Diancie smiled, before looking down at the last outfit she had been offered. Perhaps she should give it a try without the skirt.

"This is fine. I can do this." Hopping back to the changing room, Diancie psyched herself up for the attempt. "I just need to keep moving forward."

Diancie gripped the closed curtain of the changing room.

"Keep moving forward." With that, Diancie threw the curtain open, before freezing at the sight that stood behind it.

A man, and his Greninja.

"Yes, keep moving forward, and keep quiet as well."


And so the Diancie arc continues! With a difficult journey ahead of Diancie, Serena and the party volunteer to escort her on her way! As they do, Serena begins to learn more about her new friend *and* herself. What will this revelation lead to!? And what will happen to Diancie in the meantime?!

Find out next time!