(Serena's POV)
On my way to history class with Iris, we came across Ash, Misty, Yellow, and Tracey in the hallways.
"Aren't you guys heading to class?" Iris asked.
"Yes, but we got out early after our homeroom scientist practically left us on our own," Misty sighed.
"Um, homeroom scientist, Misty?" I questioned.
"Professor Oak had to take a leave of absence for Gary," Tracey answered. "And for our substitute, one of the staff members is taking over for him."
"Xerosic," Yellow replied.
"Xerosic? What a weird name. Like a name of a boss in a video game," Iris remarked.
"Gosh, I hope not," Misty sighed heavily. "We already had enough of dealing with those kind of people like Team Rocket."
"Wow, I haven't heard about Team Rocket for a while," Tracey pointed out. "I wonder what they're doing nowadays."
"Probably running a suspicious underground restaurant somewhere near us," Iris joked.
While they were talking among themselves, I looked over to Ash, who had not said a word at all and he appears to be lost in thought.
"Ash?" I tapped on his shoulder.
"Huh? Oh, yes, Serena?" Ash responded.
By the look on his face, I knew something was bothering him.
"Ash," I spoke up.
"What is it?" Ash asked.
"... if you have any doubt on your mind, please tell me, okay?"
"Well, okay? But what's this all of the sudden?"
I stood very close to him and held onto his hand.
"I can't read minds, but I know there's something troubling you," I said with concern. "And I'm worried that whatever is bothering you, you'll end up hurting yourself because of it."
A few days ago, Ash triggered the mysterious power between him and Greninja by battling Alain and his Charizard. But after a certain time, he felt some excruciating pain and passed out from exhaustion.
I was relieved that his condition wasn't serious, but the thought of losing him was one of the scariest moments of my life...
"I'm sorry," Ash apologized and squeezed my hand back. "I didn't mean to worry you, but it's nothing for you to be worried about, Serena."
"Are you sure, Ash? You're... not hiding anything, right?" I asked again.
He seemed hesitant but quickly reassured me with a smile.
"Of course not, but it's true that a lot of things happened this week and it's been really hard to take all of that in, especially with Gary, Leafia, and Yellow."
Ash whispered softly enough, so Yellow does not hear him.
"Yeah, I know how you feel, Ash," I spoke softly. "If anything happened to my closest friends, then I wouldn't be myself either. And that's why..."
I looked up at him with the biggest smile on my face.
"... that's why I want to become a Pokemon Performer," I said proudly. "I want to see the smile on everyone's faces, especially yours, Ash."
"Serena..." Ash scratched his cheek. "Your performances will always bring a smile to my face."
My face went red from his compliment.
"Geez, get a room!" Iris interrupted.
"We're going to be late for class, you two lovebirds," Misty teased.
"O-okay," I stumbled over my words due to embarrassment.
We broke eye contact and blushed.
"Remember, Ash," I stood close to him. "I'll always be there for you, no matter what."
I gave him a quick kiss and went to class with Iris.
~~~~~~~~~~
(Ash's POV)
After Serena and the others headed off to class, I slightly touched where she kissed me.
"I have to be more careful around Serena," I reminded myself. "I can't put her or any of my friends in danger."
All of the sudden, my holo caster started ringing.
"Hmm... I got an unknown message, and it's coming from... a PokeGear ID?"
My holo caster can only receive calls and messages from anyone affiliated with Kizuna Academy. And every holo caster has a specific caller ID, but it's strange that I got a caller ID from a PokeGear.
"Could it be him? Maybe he wants to make contact again?"
I anxiously opened the message, and it wasn't from him.
Meet me in the outskirts of the city after school.
The message also marked a location on the map, but it did not specify a name.
"Pi..." Pikachu said with concern.
"I know I'm worried about this too, but I think I might get a lead with this," I reassured him.
I do need to get more leads on this investigation, and I have a feeling that this sender might not be dangerous. But I must tread carefully if I'm going to enter the Pyroar's den.
~~~~~~~~~~
(Third Person View)
At Almia Hall, Leafia was working on her schoolwork to help pass the time, but she cannot stop thinking about Gary.
"Gary... where are you?" Leafia muttered.
Leafia stared at his missing student report from yesterday.
"I have a feeling that the school was responsible for his disappearance," she said before she went silent. "Or knowing Gary, he probably did something to divert the school's attention away from me."
If that's what happened, then it was my fault.
"Well... I'm not going to sit and wait around for him, or even cry about him," Leafia flexed her left hand. "It stings a bit, but thanks to Brock, it doesn't hurt as much as before."
Afterwards, Leafia pull out her phone and dialed a number.
"Hello, this is Leafia Greene, an agent working under the Pokemon G-Men. I would like to enlist the help from a certain officer of the International Police."
After going back and forth with headquarters, she hanged up and smiled.
I need to do my part of the mission, too!
~~~~~~~~~~
(Serena's POV)
During Performer Class, Miette and I practiced the routine that I discussed with her during homeroom.
"You're right! This will actually look great for the performance," Miette remarked.
"Thanks, and if Slurpuff can utilize its' Fairy Wind perfectly, then I think we got this!" I said proudly.
After checking up with our Pokemon, Madame clapped her hands to gain our attention.
"Tomorrow is the big day~" Madame said in a loving voice. "Now this will be an open performance, which means it will be open to the public to witness your progress!"
While everyone in the room was cheering with excitement, I was feeling anxious about it.
"Will you be okay?" Miette asked.
"Um... y-yeah," I nodded. "It's just been so long since I performed in front of a public audience outside of school."
"I'm sure you'll do fine," she patted me on the back. "We'll knock this one out of the park! Or should I say, stage?"
With a smile, I turned to my Pokemon who looked at me with anticipation.
"Braixen, Pancham, and Eevee... let's do our best and make this a performance to remember!" I exclaimed.
Although this will also be Eevee's introduction to a live performance, she is only going to support us in the audience. She is still too shy to dance in front of others, so I will continue to be patient with her until she is confident enough to stand on her own. Just like me.
~~~~~~~~~~
(Ash's POV)
Since I would need to head to the city after school, I skipped lunch and headed over to Professor Sycamore's lab.
"If I'm quick enough, I can probably get something from the vending machines," I ran as my stomach growled.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed and tapped my shoulder.
"What's wrong, Pikachu?" I asked.
Pikachu pointed to a small, green blob floating in the pond, but upon closer inspection, it was Squishy.
"Squishy? Did it run away from Bonnie again?" I stopped to pick him up.
However, it noticed me and jumped out of the pond.
"Hey, wait!" I yelled.
It attempted to flee from me, but it ended up in the arms of a bearded man.
"Whoa! Who's this little fella?" the man laughed.
Squishy squirmed around, but couldn't escape from his strong grasp.
"Sorry about that, but thank you for catching him," I bowed.
"I'm glad to be of assistance," the man grinned. "Hold on, aren't you the young man who jumped off Prism Tower back in the Kalos region?"
"Y-yeah, that's me," I scratched my head.
Is this how people know me nowadays? It feels so long ago.
"Finally, I get to meet the person who saved my son's gym!" the man grabbed and shook my hands like an ecstatic fan.
"Your son's gym? You mean your son is Clemont?" I questioned.
"Yeah, my boy, Clemont! And where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself! I'm Meyer, and I'm a manager of an electric appliance store in Lumiose City."
"My name's Ash, and this is my partner, Pikachu."
"Ah, I see you raised him well," he scratched Pikachu's chin.
Pikachu cooed at being touched on his favorite spot.
"Were you visiting Professor Sycamore?" I asked.
"Yup! I just wanted to say hello while I'm here visiting the kids," Meyer answered. "Did you have business with him?"
"Yeah, we're going over a report that he and my friend did for me."
"Oh, I might've ran into your friend on the way out."
"Huh? But he's staying in the dorms."
"Ah, probably someone else then."
It would make sense for the professor to have students visit him during lunch hours. I just hope we still have time to go over their findings on Greninja.
"Here, you probably didn't have lunch, so take some of this," Meyer gave me a small box of treats. "Just make sure you eat a proper meal afterwards."
"Thank you, Meyer," I said while eating the snacks immediately.
"Well, I'll see you around, Ash! I'm planning to meet up with the kids for lunch."
"Okay, then please let Bonnie know that Squishy will hang out with me for a while," I informed him while Squishy was giving me an intense look.
Meyer gave me a nod and headed towards the cafeteria.
~~~~~~~~~~
As I went into Professor Sycamore's laboratory, Alain came out of his office.
"Alain?" I spoke up.
"Hey Ash, sorry, I'm in a hurry," Alain walked out in a huff.
After Alain was gone from my sight, Professor Sycamore ran out and let out a disappointed sigh.
"There he goes," Sycamore sighed heavily.
"So you did know Alain," I pointed out.
"That's correct, Alain used to be an assistant of mines before going on a journey to check out areas with a presence of Mega Evolution."
"That's pretty cool! Does he still report to you about his findings? His Mega Charizard is also amazing in battle."
"Well, Alain has become a strong trainer, to say the least," he gave a small chuckle. "I was not able to get in touch with him for a long time, so I was surprised when he came by to see me. Though it was not really a pleasant conversation we had just now."
Professor Sycamore seems troubled by whatever happened between him and Alain, but I didn't want to press him if it was personal.
"Anyways, I believe you should have something for me from Calem," Sycamore stated.
"Right!" I pulled out the report from my backpack, which caused Squishy to popped its' head out in annoyance.
"Ah, I see you have Squishy with you as well."
Squishy noticed the hand reached out to it and quickly hid back inside my backpack.
"I guess it doesn't want another check up," I joked.
"What a shame, I have more tests I want to run on it," Sycamore chuckled.
I handed the report over to Professor Sycamore, and he led me over to his office. I also decided to let Greninja out of his Pokeball, so he can listen and understand the transformation occurrences.
"While Calem was writing up the report, I contacted Sanpei's folks back in Kalos because I recalled seeing a monument of a Greninja when I last visited them."
On the screen with the monument displayed, there was a depiction of a Greninja standing in the middle of a battle in a village. However, there was something slightly different about its' appearance.
"I also found this manuscript," Sycamore pulled up his tablet and laid it down.
"This is called Bond Phenomenon," Sycamore explained. "From what I understand, it is a rare phenomenon that occurs when the bond of trust between the Pokemon and their trainer grows. And not only that, a Pokemon's latent skills also applies to the transformation as well."
"Wow, you must be really special, Greninja," I looked over to the amphibian Pokemon.
"I like to believe that Greninja chose you from the beginning because you have the potential to bring out its' true power. It was not a coincidence that you became its' trainer."
As Squishy was already listening to the conversation, it sensed great power from observing Greninja. Perhaps the kind of power it was looking for?
~~~~~~~~~~
(Serena's POV)
During lunch, I was joined by Clemont, Bonnie, Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor. It was only the Kalosian group since everyone else was occupied with the events this week.
"It looks like the Coordinator Class is also participating tomorrow," I pointed out.
"That means we're going to see May, Dawn, Drew, and Kenny perform on stage as well!" Shauna said happily.
"From what I've heard, there is going to be a tag battle between Pokemon Coordinators and Performers at the end," Trevor informed.
"What? We didn't hear this from Madame," Shauna and I looked at each other in confusion. "But it sure does sound fun for both sides."
"I'm totally getting front row seats to cheer for you and the others!" Bonnie exclaimed. "And I'll make sure Ash will be there to support you, Serena~"
"Where is Ash anyways?" Clemont looked around.
"If you kids are wondering, he went to see Professor Sycamore," a voice called out.
The man from before walked up to our table with a smile.
"Daddy!" Bonnie exclaimed as she gave him a hug.
"You too, Clemont!" he pulled Clemont in for a hug as well.
"Dad! You've already suffocated me too many times yesterday!" Clemont shouted.
He lets go of them, and he noticed me and the others.
"Oh, I remember you from yesterday," he smiled as he lend out his hand. "I'm Clemont and Bonnie's father, Meyer. I hope they haven't caused you and your friends any trouble, miss."
"Not at all," I shook his hand. "My name is Serena, and they are behaving well. Bonnie is also like a little sister to me!"
"Hey, Clem," Meyer wiggled his brow and elbowed his son.
"No, she's with Ash!" Clemont became flustered. "Sorry, Serena."
"It's okay, Clemont," I giggled at Meyer's teasing on Clemont.
"Oh, yeah! I also bought some Lumiose Galettes," Meyer took out two boxes and placed them on the table.
"Wow, these are always sold out!" Trevor exclaimed.
"Yeah, I did get some help... hahaha..." Meyer laughed nervously.
"... you asked Clembot to wait in line, didn't you, Dad?" Clemont eyed his father.
"It can't be helped. I had to get ready for my flight here. And I wanted to give you kids something from back home."
"I'm not complaining," Tierno started munching on the snacks. "You better give him a good tune up when you return home, Clemont."
"Ugh, I guess do owe Clembot since he was taking over my gym duties for me," Clemont groaned.
As we finished lunch and ate the galettes, we continued to talk about the performance tomorrow.
"By the way, our first competition starts tomorrow! Would you like to join us, Mr. Meyer?" I asked.
"I would love to, but I'm a busy adult," Meyer said. "And I was pretty much here for official business with Professor Sycamore."
"That's unfortunate," Shauna said disappointingly.
"I might hang around a bit tomorrow, but I do have to return home. I still have a business to run back in Lumiose City."
Once the bell for the lunch period rung, Meyer proceeded to pack up the leftover snacks in individual bags for each of us.
"Take care, daddy!" Bonnie waved.
"I will, Bonnie! Oh, and son?" Meyer lend a hand to Clemont's ear. "When you graduate, please bring home a girlfriend as well."
"Dad!" Clemont exclaimed in embarrassment.
"Just messing with you!" he laughed heartily.
Clemont sighed and shrugged, but he was grateful that his father visited him and Bonnie. Seeing them makes me miss seeing my mother in person.
~~~~~~~~~~
(Third Person View)
After being informed from a spy about Ash, Lysandre and Malva were checking the security footage of Professor Sycamore's laboratory. They see Alain having a small confrontation with Professor Sycamore before the screen switches over to Ash, Pikachu, and Greninja entering Sycamore's office.
"Let's listen into this conversation, shall we?" Malva grinned.
"Proceed," Lysandre replied.
Malva turned up the sound of the security footage, and it replayed the information about Bond Phenomenon that was explained by Professor Sycamore.
"Bond Phenomenon, eh?" Lysandre smirked. "As I expected, this boy is much more worthy than his worthless kin."
"He already stole two of our precious key stones, but it doesn't seem like they were used yet," Malva informed. "Xerosic didn't find a trace of Mega Evolution activated by that Pokemon."
"At this point, it doesn't matter if we capture him or not. He already proved himself to be like those greedy humans in the past."
Soon, Lysandre received a call from Xerosic and answered him through the holo caster.
"We had just located Z2 here on Shinrai Island," Xerosic reported.
"Excellent, did you send out a team to capture it immediately?" Lysandre asked.
"Mable and Aliana are heading towards its' destination as we speak."
"Good work, report back to me as soon as possible once Z2 is secured."
After the call with Xerosic ended, Malva leaned against the wall with a casual smirk on her face.
"Interesting... it looks like Z2 is planning to rendezvous with Z1," Malva pointed out.
"With both of them here, it will be easier to catch them both and put the plan in motion on Shinrai Island as intended," Lysandre stated.
"Will Mable and Aliana be able to capture Z2? Bryony and Celosia were not successful with capturing Z1 last time."
"If their efforts are proven fruitless, we'll send Alain to back them up on Z2's capture. And then we'll eventually have to take Z1 from the student who has it."
"Speaking of Alain, we should keep tabs on him. He may be helping us collect energy from Mega Evolution, but his actions are a little suspect."
Malva went back to the security footage of Alain's confrontation with Professor Sycamore; however, it became static when he attempted to replay the footage.
It's been jammed.
"Yes, he may be doing some things out of turn, including this, but I'm not too concerned about him," Lysandre shrugged.
Lysandre looked over at another monitor display that shows Mairin with her partner Chespie, who remains comatose in a hospital bed.
"As long as Mairin and her Chespin are under our protection, he cannot go against my word. And he still remains blissfully unaware of the Mega Evolution energy system's purpose."