With a luxurious stretch, I looked up at the clear sky and drank in the rays of the sun that were finally beating down with some strength on me. I could never live in Snowpoint City! I definitely preferred warm weather and taking a boat down from Snowpoint to Veilstone City had been one of the best ideas Bree ever had. Not only was it faster than making the trek on foot, but it also gave my pokemon and me a well-deserved rest after the success we had at the pokemon contest.

A sweet keening sound came from my left and I smiled, standing up languidly and walking over to lean against the boat's railing to look down at Milotic. She had been having a blast streaking through the ocean water alongside the boat the last few days, but that sound meant she was ready to take a break. I blew her a kiss before taking her pokeball from my loop and clicking the button so she would return. Her sleek body began to glow red and then raced towards the pokeball where she disappeared for some rest.

"Eeeeon." A slight shiver traveled along my bare arm as Misteon's wispy tail flicked it when he came and inspected Milotic's pokeball. In the winner's package I received after winning my second ribbon there had been a unique pokeball that the organizer of the contest called a Cherish Ball. It was almost all red with a dark gray band around the middle showing where it opened. The contest organizer told me that it was a pokeball typically used to commemorate a special occasion. I couldn't think of anything more special than saving Eevee's life through evolving him into Misteon, so I caught him using it. That, however, made him very curious about the other pokeballs I had. He often came over to inspect Majestoat's Premier ball and the other regular pokeballs I had used to catch Shinx, Milotic, Absol, and Ponyta.

Wow. I have a full team of six pokemon. The thought caught me off guard as Misteon floated in the air with his ghostly powers, sniffing curiously at Milotic's pokeball. It seemed somewhat fitting to me that my very first pokemon was gifted to me by Satoshi, and then the last one to round out my team came about by our joined efforts to save Eevee.

I wish Satoshi could have stayed with me though, I couldn't help but think as I reached up and gently touched my forehead. This had become a strange habit of mine ever since Satoshi kissed the rim of my beanie when we said our most recent goodbye. It had been so unexpected and yet Satoshi acted like it was the most natural thing in the world. In my heart of hearts, I hoped that meant he had feelings for me, but the majority of my mind knew that being in a relationship with Satoshi would probably be more painful than anything. He still hadn't given me a way to contact him, and I missed him enough just as a friend, I would be miserable if I allowed myself to feel anything more for him than I already did.

Without realizing it, I heaved a sigh and Misteon looked up with a concerned expression. The blue gems that served as his eyes were a little creepy in a way, but I felt like I could still feel the emotions he was trying to express just with the way his facial features were arranged. I let out a small chuckle and reached out to pull Misteon into a hug.

"I'm alright, sweetie," I reassured him while giving him a gentle squeeze. Even now, weeks after he had evolved, I noticed that he was sensitive to physical contact. Since he was a ghost type and could float at will it didn't seem to affect him too much, but I had to constantly remind myself to be gentle with him.

"You finished sunbathing, Serena?"

Bree's happy voice pulled me from my thoughts and I turned, releasing Misteon so he could float in the air next to me and I smiled as Majestoat and Shinx rushed over toward me. They had joined Bree in her training exercises this afternoon, but I'd decided to be lazy and just sit on the deck to soak up some sun. Absol was still dozing peacefully next to the lounge chair I had been laying on and after Shinx greeted me he bounded over to his side and curled up next to him, looking completely content.

"Someday Shinx is going to be bigger than Absol," Bree remarked as she came to stand next to me, looking at Shinx cuddled up against Absol's side with a grin. I tried to picture Shinx as a fully evolved Luxray but then I chuckled.

"Even if he is, I'm pretty sure he will always idolize Absol," I said with a giggle. Bree laughed along with me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder.

"You ready for the Veilstone City contest?" She asked with a smile and I nodded eagerly.

"I can't wait to see Theresa again! And to meet her friends," I said with a broad grin.

Bree chuckled with a fond expression on her face. "Yah, I'll be happy to see Risa again. I got a notification that her Piplup evolved into Prinplup a few days ago so I'm excited to see what moves she's been teaching her," Bree said with a sparkle in her eyes. Whenever she talked about pokemon battles Bree always got excited and a niggling feeling of guilt caused my smile to drop slightly.

"Hey, Bree," I began slowly, catching Majestoat who had jumped into my arms and then deftly climbed up my arm, knocking Bree's arm away so she could rest in her normal spot across my shoulders. "I love traveling with you, but I feel like this whole journey has been focused on me. Don't you have any gyms you want to challenge or anything while we're traveling around?"

Bree blinked at me for a minute before an awkward smile crossed her lips and she shrugged her arms. I had never seen Bree appear anything but confident, but suddenly she looked uncomfortable.

"Honestly, I am trying to avoid the Sinnoh gyms," Bree admitted after a long pause. "After Gardenia asked me to train to take over her gym I was thinking of booking it to another region before I met you."

"Really? Why is that?" I asked in shock, never having thought of Bree as being the "run from your problems" type. Bree chuckled and shrugged, her face relaxing into a normal smile as she met my gaze.

"I love pokemon battles more than anything, but I don't want to get stuck in one spot. Plus, with gyms, you have to have a specific theme to your pokemon and the battles are normally pretty short. I love competing in pokemon leagues and going up against pokemon without being able to plan for what type I'm about to face. If I was a gym leader I feel like battles would get boring."

I nodded my head slowly as Bree explained. After spending these past months with Bree I knew she would definitely get bored out of her mind without something new to challenge her, so it made sense.

"So then why are you avoiding battling against other gyms? Don't you want to compete in the Sinnoh League?" I asked as I reached up and rubbed the back of Majestoat's ear, causing her to let out a low, happy whistle.

"Truth be told, I've already competed in the Sinnoh league twice," Bree explained with a sigh before she stretched her arms above her head." After competing in Unova, Kalos, and Alola though, I was worried the Sinnoh league would seem boring. I'm having a lot of fun going around with you though, Serena! So don't worry about me."

Bree's normal exuberance was back and I could tell that she meant what she said. I was honored that she found traveling with me worthwhile. Honestly, I didn't think I would have improved even half as much without her guidance and help with my training, and she had quickly become my best friend. It was also nice to be around someone who valued family so much. Spending time with her older sister Samantha and seeing how often Bree would send texts or call her other younger siblings showed how much she truly cared about her plethora of siblings. And it made me realize that I'd spent long enough running away from the only family I had left.

When we got to the port of Veilstone City, little Theresa was waiting on the wharf and I could see from the deck that she was bouncing on the balls of her feet with barely contained excitement. Majestoat whistled loudly from her spot on my shoulder and Theresa's head whipped around to see us waving at her. She jumped up and down, waving both of her arms exuberantly and Bree laughed loudly at her little sister's antics.

The two sisters shared a hug when we were finally able to disembark and Majestoat jumped down and raced in a circle around Theresa's Prinplup. Even though Prinplup was taller than Majestoat, she apparently hadn't lost her nervousness and she backed away until her feathered back was pressed against Theresa's legs.

"Silly Prinplup, Majestoat is your friend! Don't you remember when she was a little Roisel?" Theresa asked with a scolding tone.

Prinplup ducked behind Theresa's body and peered warily at Majestoat. I could see a familiar mischievous glint coming into her eyes and I quickly scooped Majestoat into my arms before she could pounce on Prinplup and scare the poor dear.

"Maybe you'll remember this friend," I suggested before pulling Shinx's pokeball off my loop and releasing him.

He let out a mewling yawn as he stretched out on the ground, then his ears perked up and he sniffed over in Theresa and Prinplup's direction. Prinplup's eyes sparkled with excitement and she finally waddled out from behind Theresa to greet Shinx. He seemed surprised that his little friend he gave piggyback rides to had grown taller than him now, but he didn't let it bother him long and was soon having a conversation with his old friend.

Theresa urged us to follow her to where her traveling friends were waiting, but my attention was caught by the familiar red roof of a pokemon center. After debating for a moment I released a pent-up breath and clapped my hands together apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Theresa, but I'd like to call my mom. Can I catch up with you later?" Theresa was visibly disappointed for a second, but then her expression brightened and she nodded her understandingly.

"We'll be at the ramen restaurant on First Street when you're finished, Serena," Bree said with a smile, patting me on the shoulder and giving me an encouraging smile. She knew that I had been struggling with contacting my mom ever since I told her about quitting being a rhyhorn racer. I used the excuse that she hadn't reached out to me so I didn't need to reach out to her, but after months of no contact, I wanted her to see just how happy I was.

"I hope she isn't angry with me," I muttered quietly to Majestoat and Shinx. 

Majestoat trilled quietly and I felt her cold nose nuzzle the underside of my chin. Shinx looked up from his spot next to my legs and he had a worried expression on his face. It surprised me just how sensitive he could be to my emotions and after Majestoat climbed up to lay across my shoulders I bent down and patted his fuzzy head for a few moments.

"Well. No point stalling. Let's get to the pokemon center," I said, more as a push for myself than anything. Shinx and Majestoat let out their own versions of an agreeing noise and we all walked the short distance to the pokemon center I'd spotted.

The video call screens were miraculously empty when I made my way to them although I had to steel my nerves for a few minutes before I could type in my Mom's home video center. A low beeping sounded as the call tried to connect, and I wondered if maybe she was busy with a lesson.

Just as I was about to end the call though, a white burst blinked on the black screen before the image of my mom's face appeared in front of me. We both stared into identical sky blue eyes and I could see the same amount of shock reflected in my mom's eyes that I was sure was in my own expression. After an uncomfortable pause, I finally cleared my throat and lifted one hand up in a poor attempt at a wave.

"H... hi, Mom," I stuttered out, trying to sound cheerful and not let on just how terrified I was. Mom's eyes blinked and she slowly nodded at me.

"It's been a while, Serena. I thought you forgot about me," Mom said with a guarded expression.

I couldn't help but wince at the mildly passive-aggressive comment and I was surprised when Shinx growled slightly from his spot on my lap. My mom's eyes widened in surprise and she focused in on Shinx with guarded curiosity.

"Is that one of your pokemon?" she asked, reaching out a finger and it looked like she was tracing the image of Shinx that she was seeing on her screen. I rubbed his ear soothingly and put on my best smile.

"That's right. Shinx was the second pokemon I caught. I'm... sorry I never called you. But I have a full team of pokemon now and I've decided to become a Pokemon Coordinator. We've already won three contests and we only need two more ribbons to qualify for the Grand Festival," I reported in a rush, the words tumbling out of me faster than I could think of them. My mom sat mutely as I came to an end of my summary and an awkward silence descended between us.

Shinx placed one of his soft paws on the back of my hand and for the first time, I realized that I was trembling. I tried to steady my hands as I waited for my mom to react but the silence still carried on and despair began to make my heart ache.

I should have expected this. I knew how disappointed she was with me, and I haven't contacted her at all even though I promised to introduce my first pokemon to her... Maybe this was a bad idea, I thought to myself despondently. Majestoat whistled sadly into my ear, pulling me out of my sad thoughts and when I looked up I was surprised to see that my Mom's expression had softened into a look that almost seemed apologetic.

"Well... aren't you going to introduce me to your pokemon?" she asked, sounding as awkward as she looked. My jaw dropped from shock but soon I could feel a huge grin stretching my cheeks.

"Oh! Of course! Just a moment," I said, not fully believing that my mom was actually showing an interest in my pokemon journey. I released all of my pokemon, making sure that Misteon stayed safely on my lap with Milotic and Squeaker blocking his view from anyone else.

To my shock and delight, Mom greeted all of my pokemon with a genuine smile and peppered me with questions about how my journey had been going. She seemed relieved when I told her I had been traveling with an experienced trainer and to my dismay, she didn't bring up my retirement from rhyhorn racing even once. I honestly couldn't remember the last time we had a conversation that wasn't based on rhyhorn racing, and I was so relieved to find that she actually seemed impressed with my ribbons.

"Miss Grace? Miss Graaaaace!" a young voice called from the background of my mom's video call. My mom held up a finger to ask me to wait before she disappeared from the screen. I could hear snippets of conversation that made me think this might be one of her younger students coming over for a riding lesson. After a few seconds, Mom came back into the screen and gave me a sad smile.

"I'm sorry, Serena, I have to go now," she explained and I nodded eagerly.

"I understand, Mom. I'm really glad I got to talk to you," I said, surprised that it was actually the truth. To my shock, tears began to well up in my mom's eyes and she quickly looked away and wiped at them. "Mom? Are you okay?" I asked, leaning forward worriedly.

"Yes, of course. I'm fine, sweetie. Just... I'm sorry I was so stubborn. I was really worried about you," my mom said as a few tears leaked out of the corner of her eyes. I could feel myself tearing up too and I had to swallow a few times before I could get myself to speak.

"I'm sorry too, Mom. I promise I'll call you more often. I was just scared that you didn't want to talk to me," I admitted, hanging my head slightly. My mom let out a strange chuckle and when I looked up she looked guilty.

"Honestly, I felt betrayed and was angry for a whole month," Mom admitted while wiping away at the remnants of her tears. "But I realized that the whole point of being a mother is to help you be happy. And if being a coordinator is what makes you smile like you were just now then that's okay with me."

A quiet sob bubbled up my throat but I could feel a true smile splitting my lips and I bowed my head over Shinx and Misteon to my mom. I felt foolish for not having more faith in her ability to forgive me, but I could hardly wait to start this new chapter in our relationship as a mother and daughter.

"Miss Grace!" The petulant voice from before yelled in the background and both my mom and I chuckled.

"I've got to go now, Serena. Stay safe and make sure to introduce Bree to me next time, alright?" Mom asked as she started to stand up.

"Will do, Mom. Have fun with your lesson!"

We shared a smile before the screen went black again and I let out a huge sigh of relief. I suddenly found myself being slobbered by multiple tongues as all of my pokemon attempted to lick away my tears and offer their congratulations. Keeping my mouth closed I tried to stifle my laughter at the kiss attack and hugged all of my pokemon in turn. I then returned all of them, even Majestoat, to their pokeballs so I could leave them with Nurse Joy for a check-up. She took them with a characteristic smile and then I went off to the restaurant Bree told me about feeling lighter than I had in months.

A/N Hello! It was a little strange to switch gears and write in Serena's POV after all of the intense chapters I've been writing lately. I hope this was a relaxing chapter for you