Serena was horrified.
Not because of the television show, but because of what lay ahead, if it was anything like today, she was screwed. Too much had happened in a single day, she met her mother, Ash, and many others whom she did not like specifically like, like the silver-haired hag called Ailsa. Later, as if it wasn't enough, she found out that her father passed away and that she had to join a certain 'academy' which started tomorrow.
These heavy thoughts and the particularly disturbing bed prevented her from getting a good night's sleep. After the silent dinner where they witnessed a disturbing X-rated film, everyone went to their rooms silently, no one talked of what was unveiled. Serena, she went to talk with her mother.
Reconnecting with Grace after years was a good idea, Serena felt a lot better after the talk. They talked for what seemed to be hours, Grace was so happy that Serena had decided to bury the old hatchet, she couldn't be more pleased.
"Thanks," She'd said, "I'm glad we buried the hatchet."
"Well," Serena said as she brushed Pancham, "There was no hatchet in the first place, I'm sure you had your own reasons."
Grace looked affectionately towards her daughter, unable to believe the Patrician Goddess like a child who sat in front of her was her own, her father was a stupid jackass and her mother was not less of one, Grace didn't know whom Serena resembled.
"I don't know what did I do to deserve you," she said affectionately, "trust me, I didn't do a lot of good deeds."
"Aww," Serena coddled, "I'm sure you must've done something right."
Grace went into deep thought, "No," she submitted, "not one that I can remember."
Serena giggled as she remembered her conversation with her mother, it had managed to cheer her up in the darkest of times, unfortunately for her, it was the best it could do, the happy conversation wasn't enough to cure her insomnia.
Serena sighed as she breathed in the summer air of Kanto, it was warm and at the same time refreshing. After being unable to get a good night's sleep, she had decided to wander around the old manor like an old sea widow ghost. Serena didn't know where she was going, the Manor was like a very own labyrinth of corridors. In the end, she found herself face to face with what seemed to be a trap door, taking her chances, she took it and found herself on the roof, overlooking the entire region of Kanto.
Despite being riddled with dust and webs, she found the place strangely soothing. Serena didn't know why, maybe it was because her standards of peace and quietness had looped down, after all, the word wasn't even the local dictionary of Lumious city.
It was nice to have some time alone with her thoughts, unfortunately, the silence didn't last forever.
A soft crunching of leaves echoed in the air, stealing her attention away from herself.
"It's you," Serena said in a disappointed voice.
Ash stopped in his tracts, "You sound disappointed."
Serena sighed as she put on her gayest smile, "It's you!" She chipped in a kalosian accent.
A snicker escaped Ash's lips as he sat down beside her, "I can sense the sarcasm, still, feels good to be appreciated."
Serena scoffed, refusing to look towards him as he uncomfortable settled down next to her, scooting towards the edge of the roof as he suspended his legs.
"Can't sleep?" He asked cheerfully.
Serena scoffed, Why else would I be here? She thought vindictively.
"No, Rabies," She retorted.
Ashton let out a snort, "You don't have to insult me every time you open your mouth," he said with a sigh, "I get it, you're angry."
The logic was solid, Serena couldn't argue with it. She merely smudged her lips and continued staring at the downhill below her where she'd rolled down earlier that day.
Ashton couldn't help but steal glances at the blonde beauty that sat next to him, the aura which radiated out of her was so blinding that Ash feared for his eyesight. It broke his heart to see them like that, silent and still. He remembered the olden days when they used to backpack across Kalos, she was just a naive little girl back then. Easy to love and hard to forget.
But the person who next to him was no girl, she was a woman, headstrong and straightforward.
He wanted to go back in time to figure out what had gone wrong between them, how they became strangers, but he was afraid he already knew the answer... and it was not pretty.
At last, he couldn't take it anymore. "How was your day?" He asked.
Serena looked at him with an expression that screamed of insanity, "Seriously?" She asked in an obvious voice, "I rolled down the hill, almost broke my neck, injured my nails, scruffed my knees, found out about an insane family secret, and that my dad died, how do you think it went?"
Ash was dumbfounded, "Not my best question," he said with a chuckle, "how have you been all these years?"
Serena was dead set on ignoring his question and why wouldn't she? After all, the man had ignored her calls for years. She thought of herself to be a headstrong, successful woman who didn't answer to any man.
Her only problem was, she wasn't so headstrong. For her, Ash was an old wound that refused to heal. No matter how strong she thought she was, she knew that she would always be a naive little girl in front of him.
She hated herself because of it.
"Good," she answered after a long time, "I was the first person to become the Kalos queen for seven years... which is why they passed the rule of change in Queen after consecutive five years–"
"Like Prime Minister?"
"Yeah, after that, Palermo nudged me to sing... and we all know how it worked out."
"Mind-Blowing?" He suggested.
"Yes," she answered with a smile, "I ended my tour yesterday, it was a number."
"Ah, the mishap at the end?"
"Yeah, how'd you hear about it?"
"Phone," he chuckled, "I think it was breaking news of some sort."
"Oh yeah," she replied, "Palermo gave me the press release."
Ash smile as his glance darted towards her, the childish smile on his face suddenly disappeared, the melted into a loving stare.
Was she always this pretty? He asked himself, or is it the years playing a trick on me?
Ashton had dreamt of seeing her again a million times before but somehow he'd never gotten the courage to pick up the phone, he was too afraid of what might not happen that he'd forgotten about what could happen.
"Aren't you gonna ask how I have been?" He said, breaking eye contact.
"Yeah," she answered quickly, "how have you been?"
"Meh," he shrugged his shoulders, "after losing Kalos, I went to Aloha and won and then took it upon myself to travel to every other region again to compete in the regionals again."
"And you won?"
"Not exactly," he answered, "I lost two leagues, practiced a lot more, discovered two mega stones, practiced again, and won."
"You must've been pretty proud of yourself," she said with pride in her voice, "the invincible trainer' people call you."
Ash painfully smiled as he nodded, distracting himself by looking towards the downhill.
"What was that?" Serena asked intuitively.
"What was what?"
"That smile, you're hiding something."
"What?" He bluffed, "I'm not."
Serena raised her eyebrow, "You're gonna lie to me? Tell me."
Ash would've argued but he didn't have any strength left in him to do so. There was something wrong with him, it had something to do with what Serena had said. He was aware of what people called him, 'the invincible trainer' he wasn't gonna lie when he said that it felt good to hear it, but deep down, he knew it wasn't true.
"Alain," he answered, "he's the real invincible trainer."
"What?" She questioned, "I thought you defeated him when you competed the second time."
"I did," He answered, "only because he let me."
"I–I don't understand,"
Ash took a deep sigh, "Before the match, he told me it was going to be his last... that he was going to retire. I then said that I wasn't so sure because he– well, he's him, the strongest trainer I've had the privilege of fighting but he... he said that it was going to be his last, not because he had faith in me as a trainer but because he was tired... of the mob mentality and all, so... he sabotaged his own match."
Ash looked sad, almost as if he was on the verge of crying. He was everything except a liar, Serena was sure of it, she couldn't imagine how he must've felt lying to millions of people about his victory, it was unimaginable, but something she was used to.
"I know how you feel," she said with a sigh, "I never got the chance to defeat Aria either."
"What? But I thought–"
"I did defeat her," she continued, "it was because she let me... Aria was pregnant during the finale, she too wanted a quiet life but she wanted someone worthy to take her place."
"Well," he continued, "at least she thought you were worthy."
Serena glared at him with vindication.
"I'm sorry," he continued, "I– we are just a bunch of hypocrites."
Serena chuckled in response, "Yes we are," She agreed, "a bunch of hypocrites who don't deserve the posts that are given to them."
"Hey," he took her hand in his, "don't say that, you deserve it."
"Well, so do you."
It took the blinding silence for them to realize the awkward position they were in, Ash had taken her hand in his, unaware of the awkwardness it would create. All that was left was the unbreakable eye contact the two shared.
Serena was the most gorgeous person to ever exist, he knew it long before he realized. Her cerulean eyes, her charisma, her intelligence they all credited to the inevitable affection he felt towards her.
As her face shone under the moonlight, he couldn't help but wonder how could anyone be as pretty as her.
"I-I should probably go," Serena said as she got up, "we have a big day tomorrow... the aca-aca—"
"Academy,"
"Yeah, academy," she slumped in a hurry, "good night."
He smiled and nodded as he turned his attention back towards the downhill. Watching her leave the airport was the saddest moment of his life, nobody knew what future lay ahead of them, whether they would stay together or be separated.
He knew that he may not be able to express his feelings to her, not because he feared they might change, but because he knew he'd keep loving her with an accelerated frequency every day.
Sure, he was coward enough to hide his emotions and that he would never forgive himself for it, but something never changes, like his love for her.
For him, she would always be the girl whose picture he carried.
"Hey Ash," Serena called grabbing his attention away from the hill.
"Yeah?" He answered.
She but her lip reluctantly as she fumbled her shirt in between her hands, "Why did you never call me back?"
I was afraid, he wanted to say but the words never came out.
"I was young and cocky," he answered, "I guess I didn't want to get tied down to a place.
The disappointment on her face said it all, she smiled and left as swiftly as she could.
A groan escaped his lips after she left, "Damn it!" He cursed as he threw his fist in the air, clutching his hair until they began to unroot, "why did you have to say that..."
But the moment of gone, there was nothing but the regret of past mistakes that floated the air.
End of Part-1