Ash looked at me through his thick eyelashes.

I was in a whirlwind.

So I kissed the boy I used to love two days ago.

I kissed him in the rain. I kissed him on a whim. I kissed him in a daze.

Serena was brash, for a first.

However I couldn't deny just how weightless my chest felt seeing him. Just knowing he was in the same room as me again made my heart trip over itself. Surreal.

Then again, there was so much we needed to patch up. Our relationship had a large gash through it, the size of three years. We still had to stitch it back together. We needed to treat it and let it heal.

I told him that. I said I needed time. That I couldn't just fall into him so thoughtlessly. That I had too much self respect.

Ash understood. He said that we had time. That he wasn't going anywhere. That he was here to stay.

And I was cautious.

But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was my showcase.

Ash and I were backstage in the Queen's designated dressing room. He was sitting casually in a chair that was angled towards me. I felt his stare roam down the bodice of my dress and then back to my face.

The dress was spectacular in every twinkling sequin, blue deeper than the depths of Kalos's nethermost oceans. Riskily huge but stunning all the same. Stella had certainly out done herself this time—and all this for a boy, who was now more of a man. The one who sat directly in front of me now, unkept jet hair, tense jaw and all.

"I can't wait to see you preform again. I used to think about it sometimes, you know, in Kanto. What it would be like to see you perform, I mean," he said. I glanced away from the vanity mirror to meet his eyes.

Being champion of Kanto had made Ash a confident man, but every now and then, he would trickle back into the sixteen year old boy I used to know.

"I would like to think I've improved since last time," I smiled. Ash was fixated on me, his pupils large.

"Queen Serena, you're needed on stage in thirty seconds!" One of the frantic show staff poked her head into the dressing room. I nodded and sucked in a breath that made my nerve endings prickle.

"Wait, Serena," he stopped me just before I could leave the room.

"Yes?"

"I think you look. . .I just wanted to say you look. . .wow," he stumbled. I grinned and  thanked the dim lighting as a small blush ignited on my cheeks.

"Thanks, Ash."

He bid me goodbye with a wave and one of those toothy grins of his.

I shuffled across wooden boards that had been staggered for the showcase tonight. Competition flavored the air in that riveting, unsettling way it does, until I couldn't help but fidget with the fabric of my dress. I had watched girls flaunt their talents since the beginning of the master class from the shadowed shelter of backstage. But now was time for my debut once again as Kalos Queen.

Anistar City was beautiful under the touch of midday but it was somehow more angelic under midnight. The moon cast its velvet silver reign across an audience that had gathered under the sundial tonight to witness the performance.

And somehow, performing under the famous sundial made everything so much more spectacular. So much more indelible. Looking back on the night, all I could see was blurs of fuchsia in my mind.

I guess, in many ways, it was very fortunate that the master class was held in that location. The sundial refracted and manipulated the stage lights so that it cast definite shadows across the wooden floor boards. Those shadows saved my career.

"Del, delphox." A soft, reassuring voice struck my ear drums and I swiveled to face my partner who rocked with nervousness and excitement alike. Delphox was dazzled in pleats of ravishing material and jewels. Her vibrant fur still mocked even the brightest fire.

Fire...

F...i...r....e...

It all burned.

"Ready?" I heedlessly asked, knowing nothing of what was to come. Neither did she as she nodded and yapped in response with a teeth-baring smile.

"Delphox!"

We were going to put on a light show. A fire parade. Smother the entire stage and audience in a gentle, simmering heat. Wash the night in an orange haze. It was meant to be a performance executed poignantly.

"Welcome, our dearest Kalos Queen, Serena!" The warm invitation echoed over the audience in the richest of Kalosian accents—host Pierre. One last thought crossed my mind before I slenderly heaved my dress under the spotlight, and that was my smile. Make it striking, make it worth losing yourself in.

Waves of applause greeted me along with the glare of the stage lights in my eyes. A dark sea of faceless people spread out before me, their cheers like heralding drums.

"Hello to all, my fellow Kalosion people and any visitors. I welcome you to the beautiful sea-side location that is Anistar City. Here, under the watchful eyes of the sundial, I plan to defend my title as Kalos Queen, as I have done for years. But of course, I could not proceed without wishing the best of luck to my fellow performer and challenger, Performer Bella."

Oh yes, my challenger was no stranger. She was still thick curls of dark hair, jealous little smiles and menacing glares. The only difference from when we were sixteen was her words. They were no longer meaningless. She kept her dirty promises with surprising persistence.

Three years ago she had promised to crown herself as Kalos Queen at the dislikes of me and my friend, Elaina. And somehow, she had filled her words with power, performance by performance, until she dripped with substance. That promise, three years ago, while arguing with Elaina, was now her life force, her driving will and the blindfold over her eyes.

I stood to the side after addressing the audience and cleared the stage for Bella's performance. The air was cold as she took center stage.

Bella's Vivillon had striking magenta wings. Perhaps that's the reason I see so much pink when I look back. Those wings fluttered with a certain effortlessness I suppose it blended perfectly with my memory.

"Alright Vivillon, let's begin this final with Fairy Wind!" Bella commanded, her voice still that crawling nasally tone. Her lips became bound by a smile that despite everything, lit up the sundial a little brighter.

There's no excusing talent. And Bella most certainly possessed talent. Years of experience trailed and governed her every move. The fluidity of everything was threatening. My hair was cast in a variety of directions as Vivillon's Fairy Wind dominated the stage. It was a breath of sweetness and I hated that my tongue tingled delightfully under its touch.

I remember the hard look that settled in my eyes, a state that was dead and lifeless. It wasn't very Queenly of me, but I had been fighting Bella off my thrown for quite a while now.

"Glaceon, Ice Beam!" A pillar of blinding blues and whites spiraled skywards and I wondered how far it would travel. The attack was so powerful that it simply got lost in the blind spots of our vision.

"Now Audino, Dazzaling Gleam!" There was too much brightness that suddenly there was no color at all. For a slick second all to be seen was a flash. Dazzling Gleam contacted the Ice Beam at it's base. Fireworks rippled across the stage in a magnificent ombré of sky blue to pearly white. The bursting light show ate up the pillar in a series of technicolored explosions.

And so Bella stood, her face drawn in a smile that resembled more of a smirk as sparks framed her figure. She was all too smug, all too satisfied even though her performance had only just begun. There was so much time left for error and misfortune, nothing warranted her laid back smile. Yet there she stood, completely and utterly assured.

Bella's performance continued exactly the way I predicted, in perfect synchrony. Her Pokemon were skilled, schooled by a skilled trainer. How it irked me, the way she was so good at what she did. But, so was I.

It's so easy to be fond of someone who you haven't seen execute anything but a smile.

I almost pitied the audience, applauding a girl they didn't know. They didn't know the demurs she said or the threats she made. They hadn't heard the soiled things that sourced from the same smile she performed with.

How could someone full of such foulness dance with such grace? I suppose I'll never really know.

"And, finish!" The brunette exclaimed as she struck a final pose while surrounded by Vivillon, Glaceon and Audino. The foursome earned a roaring applause. The ruckus rang in my ears until I heard nothing at all. I don't think I had ever been so nervous for a performance. Not in a long while.

The Kalos Queen was demanded back on stage.

My path crossed Bella as she exited while I entered. Her face remained in an endless smile.

"Good luck, your majesty." She whispered, fingers coiling around my forearm with a forceful grip. Our eyes met and a treacherous electricity passed between our stares.

"Thank you, Performer Bella." I was rather surprised she had settled on greeting me with kindness. Usually when we competed she would spit out an insult about my ability to best her.

Killing with kindness...

I tugged my arm out of her grip and continued to center stage. Applause maintained a steady rumble. I would take Bella's luck and use it dry, until she wished she'd never given it.

My performance was risky and I new it from the start. Using only one Pokemon limited my options into a narrow selection. However, I did not fear this, instead, I accepted the challenge and tested my limits. Being Queen meant my goals were no longer moving up in ranks. Now, I made my own accomplishment points.

Delphox handed me her stick and I grasped it tightly. With the rough surface came an electrifying rush of familiarity. I was reassured. I had practiced this routine a thousand times before. It was perfect.

My Pokemon curled her hand, with it coming the flicker and burning energy of flames. She set the tip of the stick alight. And so, the beginning of the end commenced.

"Delphox, use Fire Blast!" My throat tickled with all the commands to come, revving to show the audience every tremor of our hard work and travail. The fire type drew in a hefty breath and then released it against the burning tip of her stick. Billowing clouds of fire smoked from her exhale, striking the air in the shape of a star. The attack eventually dissipated into minuscule pearls of light that delicately drifted downwards.

Delphox took a second stick from the fur at her rear and set it ablaze. We were two torches against the dark Anistar night. Against the brightness of the sundial.

"Now, Flamethrower!" I demanded as I twirled my stick in circles, the flames leaving a faded light in their wake.

Flamethrower was cast into the night like a ribbon, one dancers use. It coiled in rings upwards, until it peaked higher than the sundial. It was a display of Delphox's power.

Fire had a sound. It sounded like a faint 'woosh' as it was hurled into the air or twirled on the end of a stick. Fire made a sound and I was planning to use it. Fire had a song and I was going to sing it.

My steps against the stage had a sound. They tapped. They echoed off the hollow interior in a perfect baseline.

Delphox's steps against the stage had a sound. They pattered. They were a series of cords played by a claw.

My hands had a sound. They clapped as I tossed the flaming stick in the air before catching it again.

Everything was an orchestra. Everything was choreographed so that it created a rhythm of sounds. Collectively singing. The fire cackled and 'whooshed' . My feet tapped. Delphox's feet pattered. My hands clapped. And it all happened in the most precise moments of time that a song grew of it.

It was a melody the audience could decipher and begin to click their fingers along with. A five point star of Hidden Power circled skywards only to be met with the wrath of Flame Thrower. I twirled my stick in continuos figure eights, taking strides towards the end of the stage so that there was a large expanse available for the big finish.

Woosh. Patter. Patter. Clap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

I'm not sure what exactly made me glance towards the hem of my dress. Perhaps it was the scorching heat, but I doubt it. I was surrounded by so much heat in that moment, the little addition shouldn't have struck me. Maybe I already knew, even then. Even before everything. How? I don't know.

But I did. I glanced down at my shimmering blue gown and found the hem on fire. Burning into flurries of ash. Panic rippled through me as I watched it.

Ignore it. Just finish the set.

Within seconds it was intolerable. The soft, vulnerable fabric caught fire like dead leaves in a dry summer. The flames leaped higher up my dress, threatening to nip at my skin. And now, the audience had noticed.

I screamed, they screamed. Delphox's stick clattered to the ground beside the timber stage decorations, still alight. I stumbled across the stage, barley noticing as the decorations caught fire too.

I could feel the heat now. It was scorching. It was unforgiving. It agonizing.

From there, it was all just a red and pink haze. The red of the fire. The magenta of the sundial. The colors blended together like water paints across a canvas. Cries and screams, mine and the audience's, mingled with all the color until I couldn't distinguish which were my own. Finally, the heat. I could never forget the heat.

Amongst the fear that diffused into my bloodstream was shame in the most pure and crippling form. What had happened? How did my perfect routine end up as smoldering ashes? One of the beauties of our performance was that no matter how many flames we summoned, nothing would ever catch fire. But here I was, swallowed in flames and beginning to blister.

Red. Pink.

Blue gown. Fire.

F...i...r...e...

It all burned.