Chapter Forty-Eight: Unexpected Development
Serena took a deep breath and nervously looked ahead. This was an important moment, and while she didn't expect any trouble, she was still on her guard. There was still a lot of potential for embarrassment, after all.
("You can do this,") Misdreavus said encouragingly.
Serena gave her a small smile and nodded slowly. "Thanks," she said. She wished Ash was with her to back her up, but he had his own things to deal with.
Steeling herself, Serena resolutely typed in her home telephone number on the screen of the Pokémon Center's phone and pressed the 'call' button. It was finally time to tell Mom about her relationship with Ash. Ash, of course, was a booth over to her right, calling Delia to tell her everything.
It didn't take long for Mom to answer the phone. "Serena! How have you been?" she asked immediately.
"I'm doing great!" Serena replied with a smile. "I actually have a new teammate with me now…"
She stepped aside to give Mom a look at Absol who stood a bit further back, but inclined his head momentarily when he saw Mom looking at him.
"Congratulations," Mom said. "He looks very strong."
Serena nodded fervently. "I think he is. He's with me to…" She hesitated for a moment. She wanted to tell Mom what was going on, but at the same time, she didn't want to worry her too much. "Well, let's just say he's following me for a reason," she said eventually.
Mom sighed. "You're caught up in something dangerous again, aren't you?" she asked, with that piercing look that told Serena in no uncertain terms she'd better tell the truth.
Serena nodded slowly. "Yeah, probably…" she said. "I'm not exactly sure how, but Absol told me I'd play big a role in it. Ash, too."
"Of course you do," Mom said with resigned shake of her head. "Just promise me you'll be careful, okay? Ash as well."
"I promise, Mom," Serena said, and she had every intention of keeping that promise, as much as she could.
("Don't forget the most important news,") Misdreavus said teasingly. ("I can feel your fear, you know…")
"I'm getting to that!" Serena said, already feeling her face beginning to flush a bit just at the thought.
Mom, observant as ever, picked up on the exchange, even though she couldn't understand Misdreavus.
"Something else you want to tell me, perhaps?" she asked with a grin.
"Y-yeah," Serena said with an uncomfortable smile.
This was it. This was the moment she'd both been looking forward to and dreading ever since that first kiss in the tent.
"Ash and I…are together," she said.
She felt her temperature spike immediately, as if Delphox was using her Mystical Fire on her, and she could feel even her Pokémon staring at the screen to see Mom's reaction. Even Absol, who'd mostly seemed confused at why Serena was so nervous about this, seemed intrigued to see what would happen.
Mom's face lit up like she'd gotten an early Christmas present. "Really?! That's great, Serena! Congratulations again, then!" she said. "I was wondering when you two would finally take the step."
"You were expecting it?" Serena asked.
Mom laughed. "Of course I was," she said. "You didn't think I believed you went on your journey initially for another reason than meeting up with him, did you? I know you found your own goal since then, but it was obvious you were after something else as well, and I'm really happy you've found that now."
Serena smiled, and she felt a weight dropping from her shoulders. "Thank you," she said quietly.
"Of course…" Mom said mischievously, and Serena felt a chill going down her spine, "that means we'll need to have a little talk about some things now, don't we?"
Serena groaned, and the weight that had just disappeared seemed to smash back down with a vengeance.
"Mom, please," she said.
"Don't worry, Serena, it's nothing bad," Mom said. She sounded far too happy for Serena's liking. "It's just that you're at an age now where you'll start to have certain interests, and–"
"Mom! I really don't want to have this talk!" Serena interrupted. Her face was on fire, and Misdreavus was doubled over laughing, floating in the air next to her.
"But we have to!" Mom said. "After all, you need to know how to–"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever, I already know, no need to explain!" Serena said.
She wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole, and Mom hadn't even really gotten going yet. Perhaps this had been the disaster Absol had sensed. It certainly felt that way.
"Look, as long as you take care to be safe–"
"Please stop…"
"Serena."
Mom's tone had now gone from joking to serious, and Serena looked up.
"Listen," Mom went on, "I really am happy for you and Ash. And as much fun as it is to see you squirm…there is some truth in what I'm saying. I don't think I need to explain anything to you. You're old enough to know what's what. But I'm still your mother, and I still worry about you. World-ending threats are a bit out of my area of expertise, but this sort of thing isn't, so it's a much more pressing worry for me than whatever adventure you're caught up in now.
"I trust you, and I trust Ash, both in your ability to deal with your new crisis, and in your ability to make a relationship work, but that doesn't mean I don't have certain things I want to say to you. I know that talking about things like this is uncomfortable. You might not believe it, but I was your age, once, and I had to listen to my mom as well.
"I'll spare you the sort of detail she went into, but I do mean this: be careful. I'm not telling you not to do anything. By all means, go wild and experience whatever you want to experience. But don't let yourself be blinded. A small slipup can have consequences you don't want to have to deal with.
"If you're ever uncertain or insecure about anything, then please tell me, and I will do whatever I can to help you. And if you think something has gone wrong, then please tell me that, too. I promise you, I won't be angry, and I will help you. Just promise me you will always be honest about this, okay?"
Serena nodded slowly, taken aback by Mom's sudden seriousness and earnestness.
"I promise," she said softly.
She'd been expecting a cringeworthy story that would make her melt with embarrassment, not a candid plea for honesty and caution, but it was certainly effective, and she was fairly certain she'd remember the speech word-for-word for years to come.
Mom smiled at her. "Good. Then I think I've said all I needed to say. I'm sure you and Ash have plenty of things to do, especially since the Exposition is only a couple of days away, so I won't keep you here any longer. Go on and get practicing, and we'll talk again after the Exposition, okay?"
Serena nodded, still a bit at a loss for words. "Yeah… Thanks, Mom," she said eventually.
"Well then, good luck with your preparations," Mom said. "I'll be rooting for you, as always. I love you."
"I love you too," Serena said, and the screen went blank.
She turned to her Pokémon, who were all looking at her. "I don't know how I expected that to go, but that was…different," she said.
("It was certainly different than how I saw it happening in Celadon City,") Misdreavus said. ("Not quite as funny, but your mom was definitely sincere about what she said. I don't need to be able to feel her emotions to see that.")
("I'm still confused,") Pancham admitted, and Serena smiled.
"It's a bit different for Pokémon anyway, so you'd probably still be confused if Mom did go the embarrassing route," she said.
("I could explain it,") Misdreavus said with a sly grin.
"Don't you dare," Serena said warningly, and Misdreavus laughed.
Ash appeared from the other side of the short privacy screen, looking like he'd just survived an intense interrogation. Pikachu was giving him pitying looks from atop his shoulder.
"How'd it go for you?" Serena asked.
Ash merely groaned, and Pikachu said, ("Ash has learned many things he would rather not have learned. At least, not from his mother.")
He managed to keep a straight face for all of two seconds, and then dissolved into a fit of laughter.
"Thanks a lot, buddy…" Ash said with a sour glare.
"That bad?" Serena asked sympathetically.
Ash nodded, and then he said, "Loads of embarrassment, and then a series of warnings not to hurt you or…y'know…get you…well…"
"Yeah, got it!" Serena said, to spare both Ash and herself from further awkwardness. Then she smiled. "All things considered…it went pretty well, then, didn't it?" she asked.
In spite of himself, Ash gave her a weak grin. "Yeah."
Serena and her Pokémon were on a field just outside of town. After the call with Mom, she'd registered for the Exposition, and now it was time to begin training for it in earnest. She wasn't entirely certain what she wanted to do yet, but she did know she wanted to somehow include the Safari Zone in it, since it was one of Fuchsia City's main draws.
"What really symbolizes the Safari Zone?" she wondered out loud. "We need to come up with a way to show the concept of a safari somehow. We created that field of flowers in Celadon, of course, but we can't do anything too similar to that…"
("Who will be doing this Exposition, anyway?") Delphox asked.
Serena thought for a moment. "I'd like to give Misdreavus a go, if she wants to, to celebrate her return in style," she said with a smile. "And that means Pancham will probably be in, too, since I wouldn't feel right about keeping that from him."
Pancham grinned, then blushed as he realized the implication, and immediately turned his head away. ("Yeah, I guess I can join in,") he said.
Misdreavus giggled. ("Thanks,") she said sarcastically.
"So that leaves either Delphox or Sylveon, then. At least, I think you still want to sit this out?" Serena asked Absol, who nodded.
("Yes. I am not comfortable with appearing to so many people if there is no reason to. Previous encounters have…not gone well,") he said.
("It's really different when you're performing, though,") Pancham said. ("I mean, I used to steal things from people and have my own shows, and they didn't really like it when I showed up…but then I joined Serena, and now they love me.")
("Theft does little to endear one to others,") Absol said. ("Simply by ceasing that behavior you will have improved their opinion of you.")
Pancham shook his head. ("Even before I started stealing things humans weren't exactly nice, you know,") he said. ("Why'd you think I started doing that in the first place? I just wanted to join in with the excitement, but they all just thought I was funny, not cool. If they weren't going to respect me, why should I respect them?")
He looked at Serena and smiled. ("But Serena noticed what I could do. She accepted me, and she's helped me become so much more than I was. Just look at me now!")
He launched himself into the air with a Stone Edge, which he shattered with a Drain Punch, before sending out Dark Pulses while flipping and twirling around, which he gathered into a spinning ball above his head. Then, he jumped up, arms glowing, and sliced through the Dark Pulse ball with his Aerial Ace.
He landed with his arms spread, but the glow around them didn't disappear — and then, it expanded across his entire body, becoming brighter and brighter as he began to grow rapidly.
A few moments later, the glow faded, and Pangoro stood up, now towering above Serena and the other Pokémon. He inspected his huge, shaggy fists.
("Wow, look at me!") he said.
Even though his voice was much deeper than before, Serena could still hear Pancham's personality in it.
She pulled out her Pokédex and aimed it at Pangoro. "Pangoro, the Daunting Pokémon, and the evolved form of Pancham. From the slight twitches of its bamboo leaf, it deduces its opponent's movements. It's eager to tussle but kindhearted toward its companions."
("Look at the size of my arms! And my fists! I could beat anyone with these!") Pangoro said. He threw a couple of excited swings.
("You're so big now!") Misdreavus said, her eyes wide.
She turned to Serena. ("We'll have to find a Dusk Stone for me! I know I'll never be as big as Pangoro but I'm the oldest here; I can't be the only unevolved Pokémon on the team!")
("Technically, I am not evolved either,") Absol pointed out, but Misdreavus ignored him.
Serena, meanwhile, took a step closer to Pangoro, and then looked up to him and smiled. "We'll have to find you bigger sunglasses, I think," she said. Then she cocked her head. "You're so much bigger now…do you think you can still do all those flips and twirls?"
Pangoro's dark eyes widened in shock. ("I have to!") he said, sounding slightly panicked now. ("I still want to perform! I can do it, I promise!")
He leapt up and made a flip, but while he succeeded, he landed far more heavily than before, and struggled to keep his balance.
("Why didn't I think about this before I allowed myself to evolve?!") he said in desperation.
Serena put her hand on his arm. "Calm down, Pangoro. We'll work on it. You'll be able to perform, I promise," she said.
Pangoro looked down at her, and again Serena recognized Pancham's expression in his admittedly terrifying and fierce eyes.
("You mean it?") he asked.
Serena smiled at him. "Of course! I think it's great you evolved, you know. It shows how strong and confident you've gotten."
("Hey, what about me?! Please, let's go and find a Dusk Stone!") Misdreavus said again.
"I thought you didn't like the Mismagius you'd met?" Serena asked in amusement.
Misdreavus shook her head. ("I didn't, but that's different! I can't be this much smaller than my boyfr–")
She cut herself off, but Pangoro had already heard what she wanted to say.
("B-boyfriend?") he repeated, and it was quite funny to hear a towering, violent-looking Pokémon like him sound and look so flustered.
("Um…") Misdreavus said uncomfortably. ("I mean…I…I like you…and I…know you like me…so…") she went on hesitantly.
("But you never said anything,") Pangoro said, and Serena couldn't help but laugh. That level of denseness was usually reserved for Ash and his Pokémon, after all.
("I didn't want to…scare you away, or something,") Misdreavus said. ("I mean, I like scaring you, but not…in a bad way.")
"Maybe I should have a little talk with you now," Serena said with a grin.
Misdreavus glared at her. ("That would be pointless, because Pangoro and I can't procreate no matter what we do,") she said.
She smiled slyly. ("But that doesn't mean we can't have fun…")
And now, Serena was once again the one feeling her face burn in embarrassment, while Misdreavus just laughed.
("I told you Pokémon and humans see things differently,") she said. ("We don't mind talking about things like this, you know.")
"Then why were you embarrassed just now?!"
("Because I didn't mean to say that! Ugh, you and Ash must be rubbing off on me…") Misdreavus said in annoyance.
Serena laughed, but then got serious again. "Alright, then. If we're going to find a Dusk Stone for you, we'd better get back into town. You'll need to get used to your new body as well before the Exposition…"
Again, I'm extremely busy these days. I don't have a tournament this weekend, so I should be able to update a bit earlier than another full week, but we'll see. Rest assured that I'll keep the story going.
So, Serena and Ash have finally told their mothers about the relationship, and Misdreavus has inadvertently spilled her feelings to Pangoro, who, of course, was able to evolve because Absol's in Serena's team now. Yeah, I know that's a game mechanic, but it seemed to fit, and I wanted to do it, no matter how much I might end up shooting myself in the foot with this. We'll see where this goes, because being a pantser, I only have slightly more of a clue than you do. In any case, feel free to let me know what you think, and see you in the next one!