The raven haired boy handed over the filled out piece of paper, no expression on his face. The professor's hand met the paper, and his eyes began scanning over it "It's fine if you didn't finish, you can retake it ne-..." The professors eyes widened upon examining the paper, everything filled out in the short period time the students had been given. His voice slowly muting, left only shocked at the results. The Pikachu wielding trainer turned and headed towards the exit. The professors jaw fell only lower, impossible to even imagine as he found all the results to be correct.

Further away, sitting annoyed, boiling from anger was another boy that had previously had experiences with Ash. Experiences that didn't turn out towards his favor. All of the sudden, the room was filled with the noise of a wooden object being slammed against the back of table. It stood out very aggressively as if the congested frustration built up over time had finally been released. Calem stood at his desk, then ran towards Ash who was at the edge of the room, about to leave. The boy had cautiously grabbed the ticking time bomb, stopping it in it's tracks. 

The raven haired boy squinted and his reactions had nearly kicked in, built into him with no lever to disable them. Although the temptation was to die for, the trainer had gotten a hold of himself and did not do anything. Acting extremely cautious in the situation, to avoid performing the wrong move. A honey blond lifted herself at the back of the room, gazing at the situation with eyes full of worry. 

"You haven't been here for weeks, and all of the sudden you show up. You leave this place as if you own it and do anything you like without any consequences and it's bullshit!" The harsh words rang throughout, and reached the ears of countless. This included the raven haired boy, whose face was now one of annoyance. The partner located on his shoulder could also feel this. Electricity was slashing the air around, yet the other had not took notice of the threat. 

"Calem, that's enough. Return to your seat." The professor commanded in a demanding tone. Indicating to him that if anything escalates he will be deemed responsible for the outcome. Due to the obliviousness of the dark shade wearing trainer, he did not listen to the advice, and ignored it, continuing to push onto the subject. "Hell no! He can't just get away with this. There has to be some sort of punishment for this." The wanna-be trainer had enough courage to act out, yet his true colors revealed only to be jealousy. Jealousy of something he knew nothing about.

The lips beneath the z marked cheeks had curved slightly upward, grinning towards the exit. "Perhaps you can't recall what happened last time you tried something like this?" The voice sent out the threatening warning, the look he gave. One that sent shivers down every part of the body. One carrying a serious expression. One that should not be ignored. "I don't have time for this." The lifeless figure muttered, throwing off the hand on his shoulder. Taking it a step further, knocking the failure of a trainer off his feet and into the table nearby. He grimaced as pain flowed and filled through out. Gasps were let out all across, one however stood out above them all. 

Multiple foot steps were sent towards the boys direction, and then the honey blond girl had bent down to examine the embarrassed boy. "Calem, are you alright?" She said out towards him, but got no response other than a grunt. The girl shifted her attention to the aggressor. He stared her dead in the eye, his eyes closed, shake of the head sideways and a grin was the only expression he had given her before he moved on, facing his back towards everyone else. Once again, walking away from the past.

Walking the empty halls, the sound of rhythmic footsteps bounced off of the bland walls. An echo spreading through out the mountainous range, only stopping when out of hearing range. A sigh was let out by the lonesome person walking the ghost town "I wonder what professor Sycamore needs now..." He said face forward, his eyes on the prize yet still asking the partner located on the left shoulder. "Pika, pikapi." The yellow mouse pokemon let out, raising it's arms. Indicating that he too had no clue about what was of such importance to the professor.

"Guess we will soon find out." The two had finally reached the office, knocking on the wooden piece to gain permission to access the hideout that the professor is often shading himself in. "Not now." The fierce trainer heard a demanding shout come from inside of the room "Professor, the device went off. It's Ash. I'm here to see what the call on the device was about." On the other side of the door, the raven haired trainer could only hear the sound of someone jumping in a panic off of their seat, sound of papers flying around and vigirous typing on a keyboard. Countless footsteps headed towards the door. Eventually the boy and his pokemon were granted permission to enter. 

"Sorry. I had to... clean up a bit before letting anyone in." He stated before flipping the side of a metallic piece above the handle, clicking it into place. The professor checked by pulling down on the bar sticking out on the side, yet as planned it didn't budge. "Alright, please take a seat." The long haired man motioned with his hand to an empty chair, the boy didn't hesitate to nod before leaving for the offering.

"But why the locked door? Something you are hiding?" The raven haired boy questioned, petting his partner who is sitting in his lap taking a rest. "I had already contacted and informed both Astrid and Alain. There is a tournament that is being planned ahead for the school." The professor finished explaining, walking to the window and glaring outside. Some students had noticed him and waved at him, Sycamore raised his hand covered by a lab coat, waving back at the few with a smile on his face. 

Meanwhile Ash's eyes beamed at the suggestion. Excitement entered every particle contained inside himself. He had been longing for a battle since the last with Flint. The moment he had thought of his battle temptations, his mind brought him back to the previous field. When he had finally fallen off of his high horse, down in a pit of nothingness. "And why must this be kept from the public at all costs?" Ash inquisitive, voice filled with curiosity, longing for an answer. 

"We will eventually announce it. But I do not want to take any risks." He began, then paused half way and turned around to face him "You can probably recognize the issues and problems we can potentially face if we announce this tournament at the wrong time. Fortunately for us, last time you were quick to think on your feet and managed to get rid of Team Flare. They chose a poor time to strike, you were at the center of it all and could get rid of them immediately." The professors voice trailed off towards the conclusion, quieter. He raised a hand to his chin, standing out as if he were troubling himself with some sort of issue mentally.

"What are you talking about? I won't be missing the tournament, I'll be there to take care of all the pokemon and if a potential threat arises, I will deal with them the same way I did last time. Of course, I mean Team Flare and not the unprofessional way that Team Galactic was handled." Ash asked the professor and attempting to convince the professor that all would be fine. That there was no need for worry regarding the protection of the tournament. He did not receive any reply, Sycamore was still in his own internal sequence.

"Unless of course, there is some sort of mission I will be sent off to during this tournament?" The confident trainer sent the question his way, disappointment filling his voice after mentioning the idea. It had been very clear that the boy had been excited since the idea was mentioned, and it had only been growing the more details were discussed. The professor of the Kalos region shook his head, finally giving some sort of response "N-no. That's not it, there will be no mission during that time. You will most certainly be in Kalos."

"Alright perfect, then lets get down to the details of the tournament. What will it be like?" Ash leaned in, hoping to be able to hear every single aspect of the event. Sycamore chuckled at the way he was acting, totally unlike his character he thought to himself. The slight laughter had eventually died down, and the screen facing towards the back of the room was turned the opposite direction, allowing the boy's eyes to scan the various descriptions involving the tournament. Contestants, match ups, rewards, rules, team sizes etc. Ash's eyes shined, completely in awe at the opportunity that stood in front of him.

It appeared that Pikachu was able to sense the energy being radiated by his trainer, as the ears of the pokemon twitched and before long it too was jumping around full of energy. Pikachu slammed his fist in the palm of his other hand, giving out a devious grin with electricity sparking about his rose red cheeks. "I can't wait to participate, I'm sure there has to be at least some decent battlers in this building!" The raven haired boy let out, shooting out from his sit and raising his fist in the sky. "Pikachu!" The buddy of the trainer replied in the same manner.

"Sorry Ash, but you can't partake in the tournament." The z marks fell towards the professor, eyes staring at him with confusion. "What do you mean? There's nothing to do in this place. Now you aren't even going to allow me to take part in one of my favorite activities?" Pikachu also complained towards the professor, nearly ending up shocking him as well. Fortunately, Ash was able to prevent that situation. "You are part of the special forces. I need you on your guard at all times. The previous disturbance already caused enough ruckus as it is. Should it repeat itself, it would not look good for us or the KlPA." The professor attempted to explain the situation in a way that he would understand, but the dense headed trainer pushed on.

"Come on professor Sycamore, this is completely unfair. What harm will it do if I join in? Aren't I meant to be a student as well. Word will get around campus that I'm not participating for no apparent reason." The raven haired begged the professor at this point, explaining the scenarios that could unfold from this decision "And besides, didn't you say that you had already contacted both Alain and Astrid about this? If they won't be able to stop the threat, what makes you think I will." Dead silence filled the room, the two pairs of eyes staring directly into each other. Venturing into the deep darkness that lied within. The professor shifted his body backwards 

"No. That's final. We need every member active and present at this event. The full focus of the special forces is to protect, not take part in some game." The cold but truthful words stung the trainer. The cap had covered his face, which was now pointing at the ground. "I also want someone supervising you at all times. That will be Alain. You should know your place Ketchum. Since the last time you carried out things by yourself, we had seen the results and must react to them appropriately." The professor was stern, like a proper authoritative figure should be and maintained his posture to further establish his decision on the situation.

"I get it. I understand." Were the only words that could escape the raven haired boys mouth. He headed for the door, slamming it shut on the way out. "Urggh!" The sound was let out aggressively while pacing down the hall. "I guess we'll just have to deal with what we have access to..." His voice died down towards the end with disappointment "Pika..." The yellow mouse pokemon let out, copying the tone of its trainer. Unlike before when he had been walking to the office, the halls were now booming with noises and students passing on each side. Students moved out of the way to let the raven haired boy pass, intimidated by something that set them off when seeing him.

"Come on Pikachu, let's get out of here. We'll find our own battles, we don't need something organized for us." He suggested as he pet his companion behind the ear, a spot which the electric type really enjoyed, and thus let out a squeal in return "Chaaa". 

The pair proceeded to head to the exit, passing by the cafeteria. Although only to be spotted by another set of eyes. Serena, who was currently on lunch break with Calem on the opposite side, blabbering on about Arceus knows what. In the corner of her eye she spotted him, walking towards the exit with his typical emotionless self that he presented in this environment. Calem had now noticed where Serena was facing, and grew annoyed that she was facing towards that person instead of paying attention to him. Serena kept staring towards his direction, and finally processed what she had seen and wanted to go check on him. She didn't quite get the opportunity during the one period the cold Ash actually attended.

The honey blonde stood up from her seat, and put one foot in front of the other, before she was stopped by a hand grabbing at her wrist, squeezing tightly and showed no sign of letting up. Her deep cerulean eyes met the those of stainless steel variety, and then to the hand that was putting pressure at the top of her own. "C-calem, what are you doing? You're holding on very- tight, and it's hurting- me." The girl yelped, trying to get lose of the grip but Calem payed no attention to her, as she did to him and only at the direction of the mysterious boy. 

"Don't go after him. He's fine, don't bother wasting your time. Sit, come on. I have something to tell you." He finally broke the tension, managing to stay in a positive mood without even bothering to apologize for his actions. The glowing cerulean eyes connected with heat emerging from her wrist, covered in a bright red. She moved her finger to touch it, a stinging pain shot through the nerves upon contact. Causing the girl to wince. 

"S-sorry. I didn't mean to squeeze that hard, I just... didn't want you to leave, something must have gotten over me." The boy apologized, showing sign of regret at what he had done. A sigh was let out of the mouth belonging to the honey blond strained girl. 'At least he had the decency to say sorry. I guess I won't be getting out of this any time soon, I'll talk to Ash later today I suppose' She put mentally, putting her attention back to the trainer of two pokemon. 

Although as much as she tried, she simply couldn't maintain her focus at the table. Her mind constantly escaped out into the vastness of the world, but somehow always managing to find itself returning to a single person at the end of the internal process. "Anyway... So I was ... that ... could ... someplace." Every word let out by the boy sounded a blur to the girl sitting across, merely nodding and commenting an occasional "Mhmm" to make it stand as though her focus was on the conversation at hand, when in complete honesty it was the farthest from the truth.

"Really? Are you serious?" Calem let out, flabbergasted at something that had occurred, but being in her own world, the girl failed to notice but it never bothered her. "Yeah, for sure." Serena responded once more, not having any mind at the question or what it regarded. Eventually, a hand reached for the girl and grabbed her, pulling Serena out of the mess she had created. The two were now running towards the exit "Serena, what were you still doing here? School had already finished, I was looking all over the place for you." The blue haired girl questioned Serena, looking back at her while they were running off.

"Well, actually before you grabbed me and pulled me out of there, I was having a conversation with Calem." Serena put, although didn't show any sign of annoyance, more of a thankful expression. "It seemed to me that one of you was very excited, while the other wasn't really into it." They both chuckled, obviously knowing which one was which. "So where are you kidnapping me this time?" The honey blond chuckled, waiting for a response. "All over! We shall find out where the road leads us!" The energetic Dawn shouted out, pointing down the road.

After a long and tiresome day, Serena was crawling up the steps to her house. Longing for the feeling of something soft to lay on and to rest. Dawn had dragged her all over the region, to and back. Her legs could barely contain themselves, and stood out as if they were to collapse at any moment. With her trembling hands, she managed to place the key in the lock and let herself in. Nearly flopping upon entry.

She took the side of the stairway for support, and placed her bum on the cushioned seat, melting on the spot. "You seem completely exhausted dear, what happened?" Serena's mother, Grace, asked when entering the room and giving her daughter a look of concern. "Dawn happened mom. Dawn happened." Grace chuckled at her response "That girl is always full of energy, maybe you should try being a bit more like here." She suggested giving a wink to Serena, who sweat dropped at the recommendation "I'd rather not, thanks. I don't know how she can do it. But simply trying to be energetic, will drain all of the remaining feelings I have left in my body parts."

Grace had left and went back to the living room. While Serena was undressing her coat and getting rid of her footwear, she couldn't help but notice something. Serena's eye caught the sight of a backpack laying flat on the ground not too far away from her. She reached for it, grabbing it and looking up at the stairway. "Finally, he's home. I guess when he left, he was actually just done and came back here." Serena stated, talking to no one in particular.

She stood up, either ignoring the pain her legs felt or had forgotten about it. Serena walked up the stairs, almost ran up them with the backpack still in your hands. Running down the hallways, she noticed the door hadn't been moved at all since morning. Curiosity was eating away at her, she didn't care what he was doing and opened the door with haste. "Ash, you forgot your backpack down...stairs..." The soft voice of the honey blond faded when she walked into an empty room. She stood there, staring at the empty room. Then at the backpack, back to the ghost town in front of her eyes and finally back to the backpack. 

'Where is that boy now...'