Chapter 113 is finished and one of the longest chapters so far! Have fun reading it since it's the last real chapter before the battling starts.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter and don't forget to vote, comment and maybe even follow!
Now, with further a do, have fun!
Important info: The commentator will be written in Italics.
League scoreboard:
Bold: Trainer/Pokemon name
Italics: Fainted Pokemon
Underline: Resting Pokemon
(Pokeball): Unrevealed Pokemon
For example - Trainer A: Poke1, Poke2, Poke3, Poke4, Poke5 (Pokeball), Poke6 (active one)
Wordcount: 7763
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Narrator: Previously, the opening ceremony kicked off and Ash had the honor to light the beacon that represents the flame of Moltres, standing for the hope and spirit of all trainers. Now, let's join Ash as the format explanation and the match-ups for round one are near.
Ash was now back down on the battlefield, along with all the other trainers. The large screen that was inside the stadium flashed on.
"Now that the beacon is ignited with the flame of the legendary Moltres, we will now proceed with the battle format and the first-round match-ups!"
The trainers turned around to face the screen, including Ash and Pikachu.
"Now, the battles will be as followed. First, we start off with four rounds on four different battlefields which will be decided in the same draw that will reveal your opponent. These battles will be held in the stadiums A, B, C and D. Each stadium is assigned to its custom field!"
(The stadiums the first four rounds will be held in)
"First, we have a forest field. A battlefield where grass and bug pokemon would be at their best!"
Ash looked at the images that were flashed on the large screen.
"Next is the rocky desert field. Although there is some solid ground, don't misjudge the field as the sand could trap you into place!"
He was studying each battlefield precisely to get a clear idea on what he would be battling on and how to use them to his advantage.
"For the third battlefield, we have an ice field! The slippery ground that gym leader Wulfric is master of is definitely a tricky one!"
Ash grinned. He had some experience with ice fields and had already a few ideas he could use with it.
"And finally, at last we've got the water field! Water type pokemon will love this! Having every inche of the battlefield to move around in, aswell as being under water! But for the non-water types, there are several spots to stand on. So make sure you don't fall in the pool!"
Ash smirked. He was getting more excited by the moment. Everything he had worked hard for, was starting on these fields.
"Now. After the first four rounds are done, the remaining trainers will be proceeding to the last sixteen! From this point on, the battles will be held in the main stadium and this round will be a four on four battle and after one side's trainers lost two pokemon, there will be a field change!"
A four on four battle? That will definetly be interesting. Ash thought to himself as the commentator continued.
"Then, for those trainers who make it to the last eight, the quarter finals will battle six on six, all the way to the finals!"
The crowd cheered as Ash was getting everything straight. So first four rounds of 3v3's on four different fields. Then, the last sixteen is a 4v4 and from that on, the quarter-, semi-, and the finals are all 6v6. He thought. "Right! We've got this!" He said to no one in particular, clenching his fist infront of his chest with his famous determined grin.
"Pi- Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed with his trainer, mimicking his actions.
"It is now time for the draw. Who will face who in the first round of the main competition?"
Cards appeared on the large screen, showing off every competitor. The cards turned around, making it unable to see the faces of the trainers on them. The cards went into eachother in the middle of the screen. Participants aswell as the audience were eagerly waiting to see what the first rounds draw was.
The cards shook a few times before going back to their original positions, filling the whole screen. They stayed for a moment like that before finally flipping around, revealing the first round match ups.
Both Max and Bonnie found their opponents quite early. Both battled a kid of the same age as them but from the opposite gender. Furthermore there weren't any noticeable match ups except for two. Paul was matched up against Remo on the ice field and the other was Ash.
Ash gasped as he noticed his first battle would be at the forest field in stadium A against his opponent. They were quickly in making eye contact as they smirked. The other exciting match up was...
ASH...
VS...
CALEM!
"Now, the first set of battles will be held tomorrow! At the pokemon center, you can check out on what time your battle is at. For now, have a great evening everyone!"
(---)
After the opening ceremony finished, all competitors left and went their own ways. As Ash walked out of the stadium, he felt a pair of soft arms wrap around his waist from behind. Immediately knowing who it was, he placed his arms over the soft arms. His warm palms radiated the heat to the soft and tender skin. Ash heard a relaxing sigh from behind him and decided to turn around in the pair of arms.
Once he did, the suspicion of of who he thought it was, was confirmed. He was greeted by one of the sweetest and most genuine smiles he had ever seen. "Hey Serena." He greeted her, taking her into a hug.
Up on releasing from the hug but still holding eachother, Serena started talking. "Hey Ash..." She greeted. "So you start off against Calem..." She said in a soft, almost whispering tone while looking down.
"Yeah." Ash smiled at her. "I can't wait! I'm gonna beat him and win this whole thing as promised!" He sounded determined, facing her.
"That's right. I believe in you and I know that you will go all the way!" Serena agreed with him, smiling brightly. Both stared into each others eyes with happiness. Slowly, they leaned in until their lips connected. They kissed and their lips were matching each others movements. Serena let out a soft moan in pleasure as before they ended the kiss and opened their eyes again.
"How about we get some dinner at the pokemon center? My treat!" Ash suggested with his goofy smile.
Serena's face lighted up. "Sure! I could use some food!" She agreed with the proposition.
Ash, Pikachu and Serena went back to the pokemon center where they got some food from the cafeteria. Sylveon released herself from her pokeball, much to their surprise but they decided to keep her out and Serena got some pokemon food for the fairy type aswell.
Once they got the food, they sat down near a window. It was slightly getting dark outside and both Ash and Serena were sitting by eachother while Pikachu and Sylveon sat at across from them. Pikachu however sat onto of the table while Sylveon only had her front feet on it so that both of then could reach their plates.
Serena noticed that Sylveon was sitting very close to Pikachu which brough a smile on her face. The two were going along very well and shared pretty much the same chemistry she did with Ash.
She looked to her side, seeing thar Ash was already gobbling down his food. A small and soft smile was on her face as she removed her hand from underneath her chin and started eating aswell.
She took a bite and looked once more at the two pokemon. "Hey Ash?" She asked as she swallowed her bite. He looked at her, taking a break from eating so fast. "How did you and Pikachu actually meet?" She asked curiously.
"Did I never tell you?" Ash asked, raising his eyebrow as he sounded surprised. "No, actually not." Serena frowned back.
"It's actually a funny story!" He chuckled. "But I'll tell you later. I wanna check out trainers village with you first!" He sounded determined.
Serena pouted. "But we've got enough time. You haven't even finished your--" She said as she then saw that his plate was completely clean and the food was gone. "YOU FINISHED ALREADY!?" She yelled in surprise.
"Yeah? Does it surprise you?" Ash asked, frowning with his right eyebrow. Serena sighed. "Actually, now I think of it. No, not at all..."
"Don't worry though." Ash said in a gentle tone. "I'll wait until you're finished."
"Then why did you eat so fast then?' Serena questioned.
Ash chuckled. "You know me when I'm getting excited about something..." He retaliated with a goofy grin.
"Can't argue with that." Serena giggled.
Then, an idea popped into Ash's head. "Now we're at the pokemon center, why don't I get us room for tonight?" He suggested.
"Sure. I'll join you in a bit. You can let Pikachu stay with me and Sylveon." Serena agreed before taking a bite of her food.
"Thanks!" Ash thanked her as he stepped infront of her and kissed her forehead. Then, he took off towards the frontdesk as Serena was still processing the affection she got. She smiled at it before continuing with her food.
Once Ash reached the front desk, he noticed nurse Joy wasn't there so he pressed the bell.
*DING*
A door behind the desk opened and nurse Joy came walking out, wearing a gentle smile on her face. "Hello Ash. How can I help you?" She asked.
"Nurse Joy, can I order a room for Ssrena and me tonight?" Ash asked politely.
Nurse Joy shook her head. "I'm sorry Ash but we're completely full...
"Something wrong?" Serena asked as she came walking over with Pikachu and Sylveon by her side. Pikachu had his paw intertwined with Sylveon's feeler.
"Nurse Joy just said that they're completely full for the night..." Ash said to Serena in a defeated tone.
"What!?" Serena shouted in shock. "Where do we stay now during the tournament?" She cried out, hanging her arms in defeat. Both Ash and Serena hanged in a downed manner.
"Excuse me?" Nurse Joy said, rapping her finger on the counter. Both Ash and Serena looked up at her. "Ash, since you're competing, don't you have a house to stay in during the tournament?"
"Wait... really!?" Both exclaimed at the same time, looking nurse Joy in the eyes.
"Yes! When you registered for the league, you received an E-mail on your phone that says which house you have. Let me know the house number and I'll get you your keys!" Nurse Joy said with a bright smile.
Ash took out his Rotom phone and went to his E-mail section he had on it. He never really used it as it was mostly unimportant school stuff that would be sent to him.
Serena looked over his shoulder at the screen too, trying to find the E-mail. "Ah, there it is Ash!" Serena said, pointing to one of the mails.
"Right! Thanks Serena!" Ash said happily as he pressed on it and opened the mail. "Uhm... House 3B." Ash said before he looked up at nurse Joy.
"Perfect!" Nurse Joy said, walking over to a large rack that had what looked like hundreds of keys on it. She went to almost the top row and took off the key that had 3B engraved on it.
"This is your key!" Nurse Joy said, handing it to Ash. He was about to take it but Serena grabbed it before he did.
"Hey!" Ash shouted to her. "I'll keep the key Ash. You're quite good at losing things like these." Serena said, standing tall.
Ash sighed in defeat. "You're right..." He muttered which made Serena giggle.
"Uh... Guys?" Nurse Joy interrupted their small, childish moment, causing them to look at her. "You guys probably already know how to find the trainers village so let me give you the instructions to get to your house." She said.
"Thanks nurse Joy!" Both said. It came in handy that nurse Joy knew the way.
"Alright. Your house number is 3B. That means that your house is standing in block B, the third house. In your Kalos League guide is the route to trainers village and even each house described on a map." She explained.
"Awesome! Thanks nurse Joy!" Ash said excitedly before turning to Serena who just pulled the guide book out of her bag.
"You can also download the map onto your Rotom phones with one of our newly introduced Kalos League application!" Nurse Joy said with a hint of excitement in her voice.
"Awesome!" Ash shouted. "Thanks nurse Joy!" Serena said, ecstatic herself. Having it on her phone was way easier than carrying around a guide book the whole time.
"Here it is!" Aah said, pointing to the picture of a Mega Charizard X and Ash Greninja on the cover.
Serena giggled, seeing the picture. I guess that you and Greninja made quite an impression!" She commented.
"Yeah! I think so too!" Ash laughed as he pressed on the download button. In a matter of seconds, the download was completed and he had the application on his Rotom phone. Serena had done the same in the meantime.
The app had all kinds of information about the Kalos League. It had a map, the battle format with the updated match ups and it had even detailed information about other competitors on for example which pokemon they had used during the preliminary stages.
"Thanks so much nurse Joy!" Serena thanked, bowing in appreciation.
"You're welcome and Ash, goodluck with the league!" Nurse Joy smiled widely.
"Thanks!" Ash grinned, clenching his fist infront of his chest. He turned to Serena. "Let's check out the village in our way to our house!" He suggested.
"Yep! Lead the way!" Serena motioned before taking his hand and wrapping her arm around his. Pikachu was smiling. Although, he wasn't on Ash or Serena's shoulder, he was walking with Sylveon's feeler wrapped around his paw. Sylveon was always a bit shy showing her affection towards the yellow mouse but was now practically snuggled up to him.
The two teenagers and the two pokemon left the pokemon center. It was already dark outside and it was around eight-thirty as they walking through the streets.
"Serena look!" Ash said, pointing towards the street infront of them. "A parade!" He added.
"Wow..." Serena whispered in awe. "It's amazing..."
Ash smiled at her before looking back at the parade. He remembered that they had one when he participated in the Indigo League. Truth was, he felt like a ten year old kid who could get excited about anything.
Serena looked around. Then, she noticed something. "Ash, Look! There are some restaurants there!" She exclaimed, pointing towards the left.
"You're right!" Ash said with much excitement. "Prepare yourself! I'm gonna take you out to one of those in these days!" He added.
Serena blushed heavily at this. "T---Th-Thanks A-Ash." She stuttered. Ash giggled, finding it cute when she had trouble speaking whenever he made her blush.
"HEY! STOP THAT SANDWICH!" A voice suddenly shouted. Ash recognized the voice immediately. But first, he noticed the sandwich which was surprisingly rolling fast.
"I've got it!" Ash exclaimed, releasing himself from Serena as he ran towards it, catching it in a swift motion with a dive.
"Ash!" Serena shouted as she approached him quickly. "Are you okay!?" She asked worriedly.
"Yeah!" Ash reassuringly smiled at her. "I'm fine!" He added. Serena breathed a sigh of relief as he said that while placing her hand on her chest.
"Hey!" The voice shouted as the person came running over. He had red hair which he had combed in a small ponytail. For his clothes, he wore a light red shirt, with a little bit darker red pants. As for his shoes, he wore sandals.
"Thanks for saving my sandwich!" He panted, having his hands on his knees while breathing heavily. Then, he looked up and noticed the person who saved his food. Ash himself was surprised aswell.
"Ash!?"
"Morrison!"
"How are you doing buddy?" Morrison asked. "Good, what have you been up to lately?" Ash asked in return. Both had placed their hands on their shoulders in some kind of bro hug.
"So... You're in the league too huh?" Morrison smirked, looking Ash straight in the eyes.
"You bet! And I'm here to win it all!" Ash said determinedly, clenching his fist infront of his chest.
"Well that's not gonna happen because you won't beat me!" Morrison exclaimed, standing tall with pride.
Before Ash could reply, Serena interrupted. "Uhh Ash? Mind introducing me?" She asked, standing close to him with one arm around his and the other on his shoulder.
"Yeh... Who's that Ash?" Morrison asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Ash chuckled before opening himself to both of them. "Serena, this is my rival from Hoenn, Morrison. We battled each other during the Hoenn League and we've became good friends. And Morrison, this is Serena, my girlfriend and current Kalos Queen." Ash introduced them go eachother.
Morrison's jaw dropped at the new information he learned. "G-Girlfriend... K-Kalos Q-Queen!?" He shouted with wide eyes in surprise. They were lucky that there were no bypassers because is they heard him shout that, Serena would be overwhelmed with people.
"Nice to meet you Morrison!" Serena greeted with a gentle smile while extending her hand. Morrison looked at her with his eyes still wide. He was struggling to exclaim any words as ue gave her a handshake. "I-It's nice to m-meet you too..." He mumbled before he moved his head close to Ash's ear. "Ash... You're girlfriend is beautiful!" He whispered loudly.
Ash chuckled and Serena managed to catch it aswell and giggled. She blushed a bit though as she formed a reply. "Thanks Morrison..."
"I can see why you two get along so well." Serena said. Both boys smiled at eachother as Serena finished what she was about to say. "You both are goof balls!" She giggled, causing both Ash and Morrison fall to the ground in anime style.
"I think we should head to our house..." Ash said, standing up as he got the dust off his shirt. Then, he turned to Morrison. "Where is your house actually?" He asked.
"I don't need any of that. You know me!" He smirked. Ash chuckled. "Still sleeping in trees I see."
"That's right! Me and nature are one Ash, and you know that!" Morrison said proudly. Serena looked confused at him but decided to shrugg it off. "But I've got house 4C if I decide to sleep indoors." Morrison added, earning a nod from Ash and Serena.
The three of them now started walking to the houses. Pikachu and Sylveon followed. Ash and Serena knew that they were with them but didn't really pay attention since the two pokemon were close with one another.
Serena was on Ash's left side, holding his hand in hers while Morrison walked on the other side of them. The sky was fully dark for a while now and the only lights they had came from the parade, the streetlights and the moon and stars.
"So Morrison, what have you been up to since we've seen eachother for the last time?" Ash asked in curiosity.
"You know... Challenging gyms here and there, taking shots at leagues, same old stuff." Morrison shrugged his shoulders as he replied. "What about you?" He turned his head to face Ash.
"Me?" Ash asked. "Oh, I challenged the leagues in Sinnoh, Unova and Kalos before I finally won in Alola." Ash replied with a smile.
"Wait... You say that the you're champion of Alola?" Morrison asked in surprise. Ash grinned. "That's right!"
"Awesome..." Morrison mumbled. He was overwhelmed by all the things that Ash had accomplished since they saw eachother the last time. From a girlfriend to a champion title while his best achievement was second in the Hoenn League last year.
Serena smiled at the two. Both Ash and Morrison shared great memories of the rivalry they had over time.
"This here is block C so I need to leave. Do I see you guys later?" Morrison asked, raising his eyebrow.
"Sure thing! In the tournament where I'll beat you for the second time!" Ash smirked in a teasing way.
"You wish Ash. I've become a lot stronger now!" Morrison sounded confident. "Anyway, I'll see you guys later!" He said before waving them goodbye.
"Bye Morrison! It was nice to meet you!" Serena said as Morrison walked into the direction of his assigned house.
"We should get going too. It's already late!" Ash suggested. "Yeah, you're right! And you still have to tell me about your past travels!" Serena said.
Ash sweatdropped. "You're right. I'll tell you everything you want to know about me." Ash reassured her as the two, accompanied by their pokemon started walking to their assigned house.
Not much later, they arrived in the street. "There it is!" Serena pointed ahead towards a house that looked very neat and simple.
She took out the key and unlocked the door. Once the door opened, simple and comfy, the perfect place to relax after a hard battle.
Ash took Serena's bag from her and placed both of them down near the couch while Serena continued to look around. Occasionally, she called him out to check something out.
The house had two bedrooms. One with two bunk beds. Once they reached the other bedroom, they were stunned with what they saw.
There was a large, 2-person bed with a TV hanging on the wall across from it. Both sides of the bed had nightstands standing there.
"I'll definitely be sleeping amazingly here!" Ash exclaimed with a large smile on his face.
Serena smiled at his enthusiasm. It was one of the many things she admired and loved about him. "You can sleep here. I'll sleep in the other room so you have the best possible rest before the battles." Serena suggested.
"Are you crazy!?" Ash said, giving her a crazy look. She looked at him dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"
"I want you here too! I can't sleep without you anymore!" Ash said, crossing his arms as he stood tall with closed eyes, not wanting to hear any buts.
Serena blushed a bit. "O-Okay... If you really want to..." She said in a flustered manner. Truth to be told, she wanted it as well but she wanted to think of Ash's performance first. He needed to be at his best.
Serena yawned. Ash saw this and smiled. "Why don't you prepare for bed? I'll make a quick call to my mom in order to get the right pokemon for tomorrow." He suggested.
"Okay, don't be late please." Serena said before turning to the bathroom.
"I won't, can't leave you waiting in bed!" He winked with a small smile. Serena blushed so she quickly stepped inside the bathroom and closed the door.
Ash chuckled as be walked to the living room and went over to the transfer machine. He grabbed his phone and dialed his mom. After ringing a few times, Delia's face appeared on the screen.
"Ketchum Residents---" She said before she noticed the caller. "Oh hi, Ash! Are you doing well?"
"Yeah, I'm doing amazing actually! I made it past the preliminaries and I'm now in the main tournament!" He grinned excitedly. "Can you transfer some of my pokemon over please?" He asked her.
"Sure thing! Which ones do you want me to sent you?" Delia asked.
Ash continued calling with his mom for a few more minutes. They talked about what they had been up to while he was at the Pokemon League and transfered the pokemon Ash was gonna use for his battle with Calem.
"Mom, I've got to go now! Serena is waiting for me and I promised I wouldn't make it long." Ash said, wanting to end the conversation.
Delia understood the message he was giving and smiled at him. "Okay honey! Goodluck tomorrow and don't do you know what to d-"
"Bye mom!" Ash shouted, ending the call. "Phew..." Ash sighed, looking down. "Glad that no one was here. That would be embarrassing..." He muttered to himself.
As he stood up, he said: "I'd better go to Serena." With that, he walked to the bedroom. He opened the door silently and saw her laying under the bedsheets.
Looking more closely, he noticed that her eyes were closed. He assumed that she was sleeping so he quickly grabbed his night clothes before getting in to bed.
But as he pulled the sheets on his side up a bit in order to get under them, Serena turned towards him slightly, saying: "Ash? Is that you?" In a sleepy tone.
"Oh... I'm sorry Serena. I didn't want to wake you up..." He apologized.
Serena turned to him with a small smile on her face. Her cerulean blue eyes shined as she looked at him. "Don't worry about it. I was gonna wait for you anyway, remember?" She said.
"Yeah... Sorry for taking so long. Once my mom talks, she can't stop..." He chuckled, laying down beside her.
Serena snuggled up to him, placing her left hand on his chest as she looked at him. She looked up to him, straight in the eyes. A small but genuine smile appeared before she leaned in and kissed him on the lips. It was a genuine and long, loving kiss the two of them shared.
Once they separated from the kiss, Serena asked. "So... You were gonna tell me about how you and Pikachu met?" She asked, drawing circles on his chest with her index finger.
"You didn't forget that!" He chuckled. "Fine, let's see..." Ash said, thinking back at the moment. He smiled as the memories flooded back.
"It started the day before my 10th birthday. That evening, I was way to excited of getting my first pokemon, I couldn't sleep at all. But when I finally fell asleep, I slept so much that I overslept on the big day itself!" Ash laughed.
"Wait? You were late for your first pokemon?" Serena asked, raising her eyebrow.
"Yeah!" Ash laughed. "And you won't believe what I did next that morning!"
"What did you do? Serena asked curiously with an open mouth smile.
"I jumped from my bed and ran towards the lab without even changing clothes or anything!" Ash laughed.
Serena laughed too as she said. "So you ran towards the lab in your pyjamas?"
"Yeah! But it gets worse from there." Ash said, continuing his story. "So, when I arrived at the lab, the last person I wanted to see was there, holding his very first pokemon."
"Gary?" Serena asked.
"Yep!" Ash confirmed. "He was there with a red convertible with stleast ten cheerleaders in it." He said. "And the worst thing is, how he stepped behind the driving wheel! Like seriously? Who let's a ten year old drive a car?" Ash questioned himself.
Serena giggled. "Continue please?"
"Sure! So, I went inside the lab where I saw professor Oak. He looked at me all weird because I was still wearing my night clothes. I didn't care though since all I wanted was my first pokemon.
"So what happened next?" Serena asked.
"Well..." Ash said, remembering it perfectly. "I wanted to choose my starter pokemon but as it turned out, all three pokeballs were empty. So I pleaded to the professor that I wanted a pokemon. He was hesitant at first but eventually gave in. He showed me a pokeball with an electric symbol on it."
Ash smiled as he looked at Pikachu who was peacefully sleeping on the sofa with Sylveon. "I was ecstatic when I got it. So I released it and it turned out to be that little guy over there." He said as he pointed towards Pikachu. "But at first, we didn't get along very well..."
"How? You two seem like inseparable." Serena commented.
"Yeah..." Ash said. "Well, Pikachu was afraid of humans at first. It could be some kind of trauma, I don't know. So when we met, I introduced myself to him and offered a handshake. That was the first time I ever got zapped by Pikachu." He chuckled.
"Anyway, Professor Oak thought it was a bad decision but I had already made up my mind. And reluctantly, he agreed. So I was going on a journey with Pikachu." He grinned.
"So how did you two become friends then? If he didn't like you at all?" Serena asked as her curiosity peaked.
"Haha, it's very embarrassing but I've got to say in my defense, I just started out!" Ash said before he started explaining. Serena looked st him with wonder.
"Okay so, when I left the lab, my mom had my bag prepared and there were rubber gloves in it too. What I did was, I tied Pikachu up with a rope and pulled it right after me, wearing the gloves."
Serena looked shocked at what he said but he continued. "But after a short while, I knew what I was doing was wrong so I untied him again and started talking with him. Only the little rodent didn't budge at whatever I asked him." Ash said.
"So, when I tried to convince him, I saw a pokemon in the corner of my eye. It was a Pidgey in fact. As usual, I couldn't hold my excitement so I wanted to capture it. The only problem was, Pikachu didn't want to help. So when I saw that I was on my own, I tried to sneak up to it, trying to catch it with my jacket."
"And how did that go?" Serena questioned, struggling to hold her laugh.
"Horrible." Ash said, remembering the moment clearly. "I managed to grab it but when it used Gust, I stood no chance at all. Making things worse, Pikachu made fun of me." He said.
Serena giggled, visualizing the situation.
"Anyway, that's when my eye caught hold of another pokemon, a Spearow. This time, I grabbed a small stone from the ground and threw it at it."
"Ash!" Serena gasped in surprise and shock. "How could you!?"
"Remember I just started my journey with a pokemon that didn't obey any orders?" Ash said sarcastically. Serena nodded for him to continue.
"So I threw the rock and hit it. I already started celebrating when it turned around in clear anger." Ash chuckled, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
"It then came in to attack us. Well... it went for Pikachu since I'm its trainer. But it was unfair since Pikachu had nothing to do with it. Luckily, after some struggle, Pikachu shocked it and chased the Spearow away. We both sighed of relief until we hear a loud cry. Immediately, the first thing we did was looking in the direction of where that Spearow flew to. Now, instead of that one, tiny Spearow, was a whole flock."
"What happened next?" Serena asked, showing how interested she was in the story.
"We ran as fast as we could of course!" Ash laughed. "The flock chased us and we ran as fast as we could. While doing so, they caught up to us and started pecking Pikachu. But then... We didn't look in front of us and fell off a cliff, luckily landing in a stream of water."
Serena gasped as she learned this information about her boyfriend.
I managed to grab Pikachu as we went down the stream due to the strong current. Eventually, a fishing hook got a hold of me and the person who pulled me out of the water was nonother than Misty!" Ash smiled, thinking about that his first ever companion actually saved his life.
"So that's how you met Misty?" Serena asked.
"Yeah! But I wasn't very nice to her..." Ash chuckled slightly in embarrassment.
"How so?" Serena questioned, raising her eyebrow.
"When she fished me out of the water, I took her bike in order to get Pikachu to the pokemon center." Ash explained.
Serena looked at him, listening carefully. "So as we were on our way, the flock came back so I had to step on it. But as I did, a few rocks in the road brought me off balance and made me fall. Both of us fell on the ground and Pikachu was severely injured. I have never had so many regrets in my life other than that day..." Ash said in a sad manner.
Serena who still had her hand on his chest now placed the other on his cheek and smiled at him. "Whatever happened that day, Pikachu loves you like no other and you two make the strongest team I've ever seen!"
Ash's sad frown changed into a small smile as he gave her a kiss on the lips. "I know. Pikachu is the best." He smiled. "Now, let me finish the story." He said as he thought back at that specific moment.
"Okay so, we fell of the bike and Pikachu was severely injured. I felt terrible, like I failed in every aspect of being a trainer and we weren't even gone for more than three hours. So I did only what I thought I could do... protect Pikachu." Ash said as he continued.
"I placed Pikachu's pokeball infront of him and told him to get inside. He didnt do it however so I stood up, put my arms wide." Ash said, flashing back to that moment.
Flashback
"Do you know who I am!?" Ash shouted. "I am Ash Ketchum from the town of Pallet! I am gonna be a pokemon master! I can't be defeated by the likes of you!"
The flock of Spearow screeched at Ash.
"Come and get me!" Ash shouted in an angry and teasing tone.
The Spearow flock screeched again as they all took off and flew straight for Ash.
Then, as they came closer, frame for frame, Pikachu looked at Ash with a bewildered look. He now knew that he would give it his all to protect his pokemon. But now, now it was time for Pikachu to protect his trainer.
Pikachu slowly stood up and as the frames went by, Pikachu ran towards Ash. He jumped onto Ash's shoulder, much to Ash's surprise and leaped up high into the air, right in the middle between Ash and the Spearow.
Then, his cheeks started to spark and engulfed itself in electricity. Thunder rained down from the sky and hit Pikachu as it released his most powerful thundershock ever. The whole group of Spearow was engulfed in electricity and a massive explosion followed.
After that, everything went black for Ash and Pikachu.
After what seemed hours later, both Ash and Pikachu woke up beside eachother, looking eachother in the eyes.
"P-Pikachu..." Ash murmured as he had his partner's attention. "W-We did it..."
"Pi..." Pikachu murmured, completely bruised up.
Then a loud squeak was heard. Both looked up to see a large, golden flying bird in the air.
Flashback Ends
"Later, when I journeyed through Johto, I learned that it was Ho-oh who I saw. That day marked the start of my journey." Ash finished his story.
Serena listened to him, bewildered by all the action he had on his first day as a trainer. It was much scarier and much more dangerous than her first day, even though she made it out to be a heck of an experience.
She smiled at him. "Since Brock is the Pewter City gym leader, I already know how you met him but how did you meet May, Max, Dawn, Iris and Cilan? And all your other rivals?" Serena asked, raising her head from his chest in curiosity.
Ash chuckled. "I think that's a story for another time. We should get some rest now." He said.
"Yeah..." Serena yawned before laying her head back down on his chest while hugging his body. "I guess you're right." She said, closing her eyes.
Ash smiled, even though she couldn't see it through the darkness inside the room, she knew he did. He placed his chin on the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her. "Goodnight Serena, I love you." He spoke soft and soothingly.
"Goodnight Ash, love you too." Serena said in a sleepy tone.
(---)
"Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the fiftieth Kalos League! Our opening battle between trainers Ash Ketchum of Vaniville Town and Calem Xavier of Lumiose City will get underway in a few minutes!"
The Rotom drone flew through the air, giving an aerial view of the stadium with no battlefield locked into place yet.
"Are you ready Ash?" Serena asked, standing infront of him as he sat on the bench, mentally preparing himself.
They were in the locker room, right before Ash's battle. Ash had asked Serena to come and join him before she had to go to the stands and watch from there.
Ash opened his eyes and looked at her. Beside him were Pikachu and Lucario, mentally preparing aswell.
"Yeah! With everything there is at stake, I can't and I won't lose!" Ash said with lots of determination. He stood up and faced her. He used his hand to tuck a few loose strains behind her ear. She smiled at she small gesture.
As Ash placed his hands on Serena's hips, she placed hers around his neck, resting them on his shoulders. Both leaned in for one last kiss before the battle. Both Pikachu and Lucario smiled at it as the kiss went on for quite long.
"Goodluck." Serena whispered after they departed from the kiss. "Thanks!" Ash replied with a smile. But then he thought of something. "Oh I almost forgot! I've been meaning to ask you this but can you take Pikachu and Lucario with you to the stands?" He asked.
"RRRAH!?"
"PIKA!?"
Both pokemon shouted with widened eyes. Ash chucked. "I'm sorry guys! As much as I want, I've got my team already set up for this battle."
Both pokemon hung their heads down but reluctantly accepted their trainer's decision. "Sure Ash. But why don't you want them to be at your side?"
"Simple! I don't want to show off all my tricks yet." He explained. Serena agreed and she, Pikachu and Lucario parted ways with Ash who took the last few minutes to get complete focus before his battle.
"I must win! Losing is not an option!" He exclaimed to no one in particular. He knew full well what this battle meant and that he had to give it his all.
"Alright! Let's do this!" He shouted, clenching his fist and hitting his chest with it like Gorillas always before he opened the door of the locker room.
He walked down the tunnel and as he turned the corner, he could see the blinding lights up ahead already, amongst a roaring crowd.
"Our first competitor who is making his way to his position now, feared by a lot of trainers, known for his power. Everyone, please welcome Calem!"
The crowd roared as the young Lumiosian walked onto the the platform and stopped there. He had his eyes closed and waved to the crowd, smiling as he was as ready as ever.
Ash continued his trek. The blinding white light came closer and closer as the stadium was booming with cheers. He wore his usual confident smirk as he continued walking. The announcer just called out Calem and Ash knew that he was next.
"Coming all the way from Kanto, recently moved to our beloved Kalos. This will be his 8th league challenge. He was runner up three years ago and managed to win the Alola League right after. Please everyone, let yourselves be heard for a fan favourite, Alola champion Ash Ketchum!"
Ash smirked composed as he stepped into the light. His eyes had to adapt to the light as it changed into the stadium. As the crowd roared his name, he kept his eyes focused on his opponent who smirked at him.
Finally, Ash made it over to his platform and stopped there.
"I see no Pikachu or Lucario." Calem noticed. Ash smirked. "You're right! I'm not using them today. The pokemon is gonna use have plenty of strength and are all fired up to show you what they can do!" Ash smirked with confidence.
"Right. Bring it on then!" Calem matched his smirk. He also had trained hard since those embarrassing losses against Ash and was desperate to redeem himself not only in battle, but also as trainer. He knew he was a horrible person and needed to set things right.
"Alright everyone! If you look at the large screen, you will be able to see the draw for the field for today!"
The big screen displayed the pictures of Ash and Calem with three pokeballs next to both trainers pictures.
A light surrounded the water symbol before it started spinning around clockwise in a decent speed. After a few seconds, it started slowing down, ending on the grass field.
"And the grassfield it is folks! Let's see what our trainers choose to do with it!"
A grassfield huh? This might help out better than I thought! Ash thought to himself as a smirk appeared on his face.
The referee stepped onto his platform and held two flags in his hand. A green one for Ash's side and a red one for Calem's side.
"This match between Ash from Vaniville Town and Calem of Lumiose City will now get underway. Both trainers are allowed to use up to three pokemon and the battle is over when either side's pokemon are unable to battle. Furthermore, both trainers are allowed to substitute as much as they want and there is no time limit. Understood!?"
Both Ash and Calem nodded in reply. They held their pokeballs firm in their hand. "Alright choose your pokemon and battle begin!" The referee shouted.
"Alright! Let's show them how strong we've become!" Calem shouted as he threw his pokeball high up in the air.
The first time I don't have Pikachu in my starting battle. Let's show him what we're capable of! Ash thought as he gripped his choices pokeball firmly. "Let's win this for Serena! I choose you!" Ash shouted as he threw his pokeball with a lot of power forward.
In the stands.
Serena was sitting amongst her group of friends that consisted of Tierno, Trevor, Clemont, Bonnie, Sawyer, Shauna and Gary. Gary however would come back to them a little bit later. This way, she could support her boyfriend with everything she got and she wouldn't be bothered by paparazzi. May and Max were also watching with them, wishing their friend the best of luck.
Come on Ash! If somebody can do it, you can! I believe in you and never give up until it's truly over! Serena said in her thoughts.
Right next to her sat Tracey, Professor Oak and Delia. Delia had invited the two Kantonians to watch the league with her which they gladly accepted.
Higher up in the stadium were Gary and Alain standing. While Alain was on a complete other side than Gary, he had a good view on the battle. Gary however was about to come back from getting snacks for him and Shauna.
Morrison was watching from the first row. The Hoenn native had sparkles in his eyes, excited as ever to watch his friend and rival battle.
The cloaked trainer was even watching. He was standing on the roof, watching from up above if he could see any interesting trainers.
From the champions box, Diantha, Mr. Goodshow and Professor Sycamore were watching. It was a special set up place for the three of them and other high regarded people in the region, such as Aria and Palermo who were also present. Aria wasn't Kalos Queen anymore but she still had her duties for this year to fulfill.
Lumiose City Pokemon Center
"So how do you think Ash will do? After all, it has been a while since the two of you battled." The dark purple haired man with a pony tail asked. You could say he was a breeder from the first observation.
"We'll see. Along as he doesn't do anything pathetic, he should win Reggie." Paul replied in his usual tone as he didn't pull his eyes off the TV. No... this time, you have to get to me and I will once and for all show you that is was pure luck that you won due to Blaze. So you better don't lose Ketchum! Paul thought to himself.
In Kanto
Brock and Cilan just helped out the nurse Joy of Pewter City with attending to a pokemon. They had immediately returned to the Kanto region after their school year ended but they had promised Ash to watch his battles and support him.
"Let's show us a tasty battle Ash!" Cilan exclaimed as he looked at the TV monitor. "Pan! Passage!" Pansage added.
You've grown so much since we first met Ash. Show them all what you've got! Brock thought.
In Unova
Iris also returned to her home region. She was on her way back to the village of Dragons but still wanted to watch and support Ash during the league.
In Alola
Everyone of Ash's friends in Alola were watching at the pokemon school instead of learning. From the students Mallow, Lillie, Gladion, Hau, Sophocles, Kiawe and Lana, to professor Burnet and Kukui, Rotomdex and aswell as people like Lusamine, Mohn, the island Kahunas and even Tapu Koko who itself was watching in secret so it wouldn't be seen.
"Kggo kggo---" It silently exclaimed in order support the first ever human who managed to beat him.
"Go Champion!" Sophocles shouted. The rest of the group giggled but soon joined in as they chanted: "Champion! Champion! Champion!"
Narrator: As the first battle of the Kalos League is about to start, Ash has to give it his best in order to win. With the support of all his friends and rivals, will he be capable of doing it? Find out as the journey continues!