The platform descended to the corridors below while carrying Ash and his two faithful Pokémon with it. To their surprise, the halls were empty, not a reporter in sight. Ash smiled underneath his mask as he made his way to the locker room, to collect his things. Ash entered the room and sat down on one of the benches.

"Another solid victory, guys," he said turning to his two Pokémon. "Nice job out there, Pikachu. You were great today, buddy."

"Pikapi, Pikachu pika pi chu," Pikachu chirped with a little pride.

"You're kidding me!" Lucario stated as his eyes began to widen at what the electric mouse Pokémon had just said. "That wasn't seventy percent out there! No way, Pikachu!"

"You asked what I whispered in his ear," Ash responded with a chuckle. "I told him to just use seventy percent of his power. Quite frankly, we could have won with just fifty."

"Pika pi chu," Pikachu added with a nod.

"But master, you scolded Giovanni for toying with his opponent," retorted Lucario with a confused look on his face. "I don't understand why you would say that to him, and then, do the same thing. Isn't that a little hypocritical?"

"Giovanni gives his opponents false hope. I, on the other hand, didn't mess around. I just didn't want Pikachu to display his full abilities, just yet," Ash responded calmly to his aura Pokémon.

"If you say so." Lucario looked hesitantly towards Ash.

"One match at a time, Lucario," Ash said as he grabbed his bag. "When we need to, we'll pull out all the stops."

"You mean the other four, don't you?"

"Yes," Ash stated. "I want to keep them in my back pocket, for later. Everyone knows about you and Pikachu. I don't need them to know about the other four, right now."

Lucario looked towards Ash's bag as he began to sense the aura, coming out of four Pokéballs, all shining with passion and desire to fight. "They're getting restless, Ash." Lucario pointed out.

"I'm quite aware," Ash gazed at his bag. He could sense their frustration mounting as well. "I will let them out of their Pokéballs tonight, to get some exercise. A little time to stretch their legs and get moving will do them some good."

"You don't plan on using them until the finals, right?"

"Again, Lucario, one round at a time," Ash gave Lucario another soft chuckle. "If the situation demands it, then I will use them; but to answer your question, I don't believe we will need to use them until Giovanni. Until then, they'll just have to wait. Maybe, they'll come out ten times stronger because of having to be pent up and watching their friends battle, while they sit in their Pokéballs, all day."

The group chuckled at the idea of the four Pokémon being frustrated sitting in their Pokéballs. They were, after all, Ash's remaining four Pokemon from his top team of six. Between Lucario, Pikachu and the other four, Ash was confident that no one would be able to make a stand against him.

"Come on, guys. Let's get out of here." Ash said as he made his way to the door.

---

The door opened and they entered the hallway. Ash and company made their way down the corridor. Ash held his head down and kept his hands in his pockets. He didn't want to talk to anybody, and by keeping his eyes low, he hoped to escape conversations with those passing by. When he was about halfway to the stairs, he heard a yelp, coming from in front of him.

His head popped up, to see who it was that made the noise, to find Serena, regaining her footing, before turning her head to a corner that she was standing by. She said something, but Ash couldn't hear or see whom it was directed towards. Serena's eyes quickly shifted from the corner to the figure walking towards her. She blushed and gave a tentative wave. Ash began to smile, under his mask, before pulling his right hand out of his pocket and returning the wave. He decided to make his way over to her, and with each step, he saw her smile kept getting bigger.

He was about to reach Serena; when suddenly, he felt a tug, on his arm, that leads him into a different direction. He looked to the figure, who was attempting to drag him away from Serena, to find the same assistant, who got him before his first match. The man held a clipboard, with a headset resting, awkwardly, on his head. The man seemed to be in a panic. Ash made an abrupt stop, causing the assistant to stagger back a bit.

"Sir, we have to get to an important meeting, right now!" the assistant said frantically. "Those, in charge, aren't exactly happy that their two Cinderella stories haven't made a single press conference and they expect you, to make this one!"

"But I-uh," Ash began as he took his eyes off the man and focused them back on Serena, who looked a little confused and saddened by his sudden change in direction. "Y-you see there is someone. . . . I-er, I want to talk to and-"

"It'll have to wait, Aaron!" the assistant interrupted as he began to drag the trainer into a different room. "The interview is about to begin and this is not an option!"

Ash looked back to see Serena's head looked down in disappointment, before being dragged into a room full of reporters.

---

(Earlier...)

"You guys are crazy!" Serena yelled to her two friends, who were dragging her across the stadium. "This isn't going to work! It's obvious that he isn't interested in me!"

"Yeah, right," May said sarcastically as she was holding onto Serena's right arm, leading her to the stairs that led to the corridors below. "It's so obvious that Aaron is into you. What with the way that he looks at you, before every match, it's a wonder why you haven't made a move, yet."

"Not to mention what he said at the dinner table the other night," a voice called from behind Serena. It was Dawn. She had both hands on Serena's shoulders as she's pushing her forward. "He was basically asking you out on a date. Wooing you to the best of his abilities. Come on, how can you not like a guy like that?"

"You know damn well why I can't like a guy like that!" Serena shouted towards Dawn.

"Serena, it has been five years," May turned to her friend as the trio began to descend down below. "We know you loved Ash and he loved you back, but you've gotta move on. Plus, Aaron is a hunk!"

"How would you know?" Serena inquired. "He's always wearing that mask!"

"Oh whatever," May argued. "You've seen how tight his shirt is on him. He's toned and it doesn't take too much imagination to picture a handsome devil, underneath that mask."

Serena sighed at the remarks that May was making. She's hoping the man, underneath the mask, was Ash. All the clues pointed to him, but for some reason, she isn't really convinced. She wanted to know, and even though she was resisting, she truly wanted more alone time with Aaron, but not like this.

The trio made their way to a corner, before stopping. "May, how do you know he'll be here, anyway?" Dawn questioned her.

"Well, from Aaron's platform, this is the quickest way to exit the building. I'm sure he'll come this way," explained May as she peaked her head, around the corner, to see who was in the corridor. Suddenly, she let out a squeal. She saw Aaron exiting out of his locker room. "There he is, and he's coming this way!"

"What?!" exclaimed both Dawn and Serena as they made their way to the corner. They both glanced around the wall to see Aaron and his two Pokémon walking, down the hall, towards their position.

Serena suddenly felt herself begin to panic. Her hands began to clam up. Her legs began to feel weak. "I can't do this. This isn't going to work," she said, slowly backing away from May and Dawn.

"Oh no, you don't!" May said grabbing onto Serena's hands. "You aren't getting out of this one! You're going to go and talk to him!"

"Uhuh, not like this guys!" Serena shouted before trying to turn and run.

"Grab her, Dawn!" May shouted. Suddenly, Serena felt two pairs of arms wrap around her waist. She struggled against the combined powers of the two, but it was no use. She begged and pleaded them to let her go.

"Come on, guys! I'm going to embarrass myself!" she shouted.

"No, you won't!" exclaimed Dawn as she and May tossed Serena into the center of the hallway, causing her to yelp.

Serena stumbled forward a bit, before regaining her footing and turning around to the two girls. "I hate you both! I'll get you back for this!" she said to the two coordinators, who were now giggling, behind the corner.

"You'll be thanking us, later," May responded. "But I think you should stop focusing on us, and start focusing on him." She stated this while pointing down the hallway, where Aaron was standing.

Serena turned to the hallway and saw Aaron with his hands in his pockets, standing in front of her, down the corridor. She began to blush. She didn't know what to do exactly, so she just raised her hand and sheepishly waved it towards him. To her ecstasy, she got a wave back, and Aaron actually appeared to be happy, to see her.

Is he really happy to see me? Oh shit, he's walking this way. Yes, I might finally get to spend more time with him! She thought as she saw the trainer make his way over to her with his Pokémon, right behind him.

Then, she saw him stop and noticed a hand grasping his arm firmly. She looked and saw a man, with a clipboard, taking Aaron in the opposite direction. Suddenly, all that joy and excitement, she was feeling, turned to confusion and frustration in her thoughts. Wait, what's happening? Oh, you've got to be kidding me!

She saw Aaron turn back to her, with a hopeful gaze, before being pulled back again by that man. Her head fell and she looked at the floor in disappointment. It had almost worked, but just like that, Aaron was gone.

"Hey, what's wrong?" asked May as she came out from behind the corner. "Hey, where the hell is Aaron?"

"Some guy pulled him into that room over there," Serena motioned to the door where Aaron had gone into.

"Oh Serena, I'm so sorry," Dawn said as she placed a hand on her friend's shoulder to comfort her. "I'm sure you'll get another chance. What's in that room anyway?"

"If I'm not mistaken, that would be the interview room," responded May as her gaze shifted to the door down the hall.

Dawn let out a sigh and said to Serena, "Well, maybe you'll see him later tonight, after dinner."

Suddenly, a light bulb went off in Serena's head. "I got it!" she shouted with enthusiasm. The disappointed demeanor was quickly replaced with excitement and joy.

"Got what?" a confused May asked her joyful friend.

"You'll see," exclaimed Serena as she turned and ran up the stairs. "First, we'll need to head towards a store and get some stuff for baking. Come on, you two! We have to hurry!"

May and Dawn exchanged confused looks, before shrugging their shoulders and running off with their friend.

---

Ash, begrudgingly, entered the room and could hear conversations beginning to stir, as his eyes caught the glances of the people, who filled the room, were sending his way. He stepped through the crowd to the front of the room, where he noticed Giovanni sitting, behind a desk, with a bored expression on his face. Behind him, was a wall that showed a pattern of Silph Corporation's logo, which was used as a backdrop for any pictures taken.

Giovanni glanced Ash and his bored expression quickly shifted to an evil smirk. He let out a soft chuckle as Ash took a seat next to his. Lucario stood behind his trainer and let out a low growl, audible to only those behind the desk, while Pikachu took a seat in his master's lap, as he eyed the Persian that was on the other side of Giovanni.

"Nice of you to finally join us," Giovanni whispered to Ash. Ash didn't respond and kept his eyes focused on the row of people, in front of him. "Oh, did I scare you into silence from our earlier run in?" At this remark, Lucario began to growl louder.

Ash turned to his aura Pokémon and whispered harshly to him. "That's enough, Lucario! Act civilized!" Ash made it sound easy to do, but deep down, he wanted nothing more than to punch Giovanni in the face, while wiping that smirk off his face, in the process.

"My, my Ash, so much reserve, for a young man," Giovanni mocked. He turned his attention to the reporters, as the assistant made the announcement that the press conference had begun.

The first few questions were supposed to go to Giovanni, so Ash got to just sit there and listen to the answers he was giving. Each answer came out with a fake humility and kindness, as he's hiding his true sick and twisted character. Ash had seen Giovanni at his worst. By just thinking about it, makes him sick to the stomach.

Ash's mind began to drift back to when he truly saw Giovanni's madness.

---

Ash stood by the ruins of the doorway, hearing Serena's screams on the other side. His heart ached, but he knew what he had to do. He promised her that he would return, and he aimed to keep it. He turned his vision back to the lobby, as another agonizing cry came from the floor below. Ash couldn't take the stairs, as the path was blocked by the ever-increasing flames.

"Come on, you two! This way!"

Ash ran towards the back of the lobby with Charizard and Pikachu in tow. Ash ran to the back of the lobby; but was sent backward, as an explosion put him, on his butt, revealing a massive hole in the floor. He quickly got up and made his way to the hole. He looked over the edge of the crumbling floor, to see a grey and purple Pokemon encased inside three spinning circular metal rings. The rings emitted what looked like an electrical charge, and the agony it caused the entrapped Pokemon, was obvious.

Ash had to think quickly. He searched the lobby, trying to come up with an idea before his eyes fell on his Charizard.

"Charizard, use Dragon Tail to widen the hole, and then, take us down there!" Ash shouted.

Charizard let out a roar as his tail began to turn green. It spun and slammed his empowered tail onto the ground, enlarging the hole.

"Great job!" Ash shouted while jumping on Charizard's back. "Now, get us down there!"

Charizard jumped in the air, before diving through the hole to the floor below. Charizard hovered over the ground, as Ash and Pikachu jumped off and landed in the destroyed laboratory.

"Giovanni, it's over!" Ash shouted. "Stop this insanity before it destroys you!"

Giovanni turned to Ash while revealing a look of maniac joy on his face. His creepy smile made Ash's skin crawl, while the look of insanity in his eyes, froze Ash and his muscle tense. Giovanni saw the boy and let out a laugh that echoed throughout the remaining portion of the lab.

"You can't stop me now, boy!" he exclaimed. "Soon, I will have weakened Mewtwo to the point where I can finally control its mind and power! Once that is done, the whole world will kneel before me! And I'll start with you!" he said pointing a finger to Ash. "It'll be so sweet to see the hero, who has stopped me so many times in the past, finally bowing down before me."

"I will never bow before you!" Ash shouted back. Charizard and Pikachu both shouted their defiance as well.

"Oh, but it has already begun," said Giovanni with the evil look still on his face. "Persian, use Giga Impact!"

Suddenly, Charizard was sent flying forward into a wall, as a sphere of purple and white followed the fire and flying Pokémon. Charizard let loose a scream of pain, before sending its assailant across the lab and into the adjacent wall.

"Thatta boy, Charizard!" Ash yelled. "Use Flamethrower! Pikachu, use Thunder to try and short-circuit Mewtwo's cage!"

Charizard flew out of the rubble and let loose its fire attack, as it hits the classy cat Pokémon dead on. The classy cat Pokémon cried in pain. Its tail began to glow as it tried to respond with an Iron Tail. Charizard blocked the attack and followed with a second Flamethrower, increasing the damage that was taken by the normal type.

Ash made a run for the control panel. He searched for a way to turn off the cage. Suddenly, he was jerked around. Once around, he felt a fist slam into his face that sent him across the panel and into the wall. Giovanni stood over the trainer. His eyes show that he's intending to kill the boy. He picked Ash up, by his t-shirt, before throwing a punch towards Ash's stomach. Ash coughed up a little blood as the punch landed. Giovanni laughed, as he threw him down on the ground, at the center of the room.

"Ash!" Mewtwo cried through his pain. "He has gone mad! You have to get out of here, while you still can!"

"Quiet you!" Giovanni yelled at the genetic Pokémon. "I am your master and you shall not speak unless spoken to! Get used to it!"

"There are only two things that you're a master of Jack and shit," Ash said as he struggled to regain his footing. "And Jack has left the building."

Enraged by Ash's comments, Giovanni yelled and charged towards the boy. Before he got to him, he was sent flying into a wall by a yellow aura. Ash looked up to see that Pikachu used Volt Tackle to save him.

"Thanks, buddy." Ash managed to chuckle. "I owe you one. Come on, we got to get Mewtwo and get out of here!"

The duo managed to get to the base of the machine while dodging the ongoing battle between Charizard and Persian.

"I don't see an off switch!" Ash yelled in a panic.

"I said, get out of here, Ash." Mewtwo struggled to get the words out of its mouth.

"Shut up!" Ash responded. "I don't leave any of my friends behind! Here, Pikachu! Aim a Thunder attack here!"

Ash was pointing towards the base, where the electrical current made its connection to the rings, which spun to form the cage.

Pikachu let loose its most powerful attack while causing a giant explosion. The explosion sent all those, in the room, flying into different walls. Ash held Pikachu, who was sent straight back into Ash's chest.

Ash slowly opened his eyes, as he searched for Mewtwo and his Charizard. He saw Charizard's head sticking out of the rubble, from the collapsing wall. Ash managed to limp his way over to his faithful friend and return him to his Pokéball.

Ash still held Pikachu, as he looked frantically around for an exit. There seemed to be no one else around. He saw an exit and made his way over to it. The pain was coursing through his body with every step he took. He was steps away from the exit before another giant explosion sent him flying into another wall. His back hit the wall and his head followed in a vibrating motion. He tried to open his eyes, but his vision was blurry and he began to shake. He tried to get up but fell to the floor once again. His vision continued to worsen, but he noticed a dark figure walking towards him. He couldn't tell if it was a man or Pokémon. He tried to look up, but couldn't find the energy. His vision wavered, and then, everything went black.

---

"Aaron. Hey Aaron!"

"Huh. . . Oh uh hey. . . . Sorry about that," Ash said embarrassingly as he scratched the back of his neck. "Um, what was the question?" Ash had been having a flashback, of the incident five years ago, and was awoken by the shout of a reporter, trying to get his attention.

The press conference continued on. Ash answered the questions to the best of his abilities. He began to get annoyed with the questions being asked. Most of them were about his thoughts on being a Cinderella story and how he thought Giovanni and himself would fare for the rest of the tournament.

They wouldn't be asking me these questions if they knew who I was. An annoyed Ash thought. If they knew I was really Ash Ketchum, they would be asking me about my plans, for later rounds, and if anyone had a chance at beating me. If they did, my answer would have been Paul and Trevor, as I knew they would be both tough to beat.

He sighed and continued to answer questions.

---

When the press conference finally ended, he managed to escape without having to talk or walk near Giovanni. He felt like he needed to take a shower. Sitting near him and forcing himself to be civil, towards his enemy, wasn't something that Ash really enjoyed, neither did Lucario or Pikachu.

"We should have finished him off, right on the spot!" Lucario said frustrated that he had to sit through the entire interview as if he enjoyed it.

"Pika pi. Pikachu pi chu pika pi chu ch-pi!" shouted Pikachu in agreement.

"Status quo, fellas," Ash said with a frustrated tone in his voice. "He knows we need to be in this tournament too. That's his plan. He wants us to lose our cool and do something that might get us kicked out. To be honest, I would rather have him punching the shit out of me than having to deal with this, but it's the hand that we've been dealt with."

"Pika pi!"

"You're right, pal!" Ash smiled at Pikachu. "We've been dealt with pocket aces, and all we have to do is not fold."

The trio continued along their path towards the hotel. They entered the lavish hotel and headed towards their room. They had done some grocery shopping earlier, so they had food waiting for them in their room. When their room came into view, they noticed that there was something else in view. When they got to the door, Ash bent down to see a decorative box that was tied together, with a red ribbon, and there appears to be a note, in between the box and the ribbon.

Ash's curiosity was peaked. He picked up the box and examined it, before taking the note and opening it. He smiled as he reads the note.

Dear Aaron,

I'm sorry that we didn't get to talk today, so I decided to bake you a little treat. They're my way of saying, 'nice job', during your battle today. Again, I'm really sorry we didn't get to talk today. It was really disappointing, but I will be in the stands, rooting for you tomorrow!

Love, Serena

P.S. We should take another flight on your Pidgeot I really enjoyed it!

Ash could feel himself begin to blush and a goofy grin was making its way across his face. Suddenly, he heard a few giggles and squeals. He turned to the door, opposite him. Hushing noises could be heard, as he eyed the door. He let out a soft chuckled and entered his room.

He opened the box and saw some of Serena's macaroons inside. He offered one to his two Pokémon, before taking a bite himself. They taste just as good as I remember.