"𝓕𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓲𝓼 𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓭, 𝓫𝓾𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂'𝓻𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻. 𝓯𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓶.
𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓭 𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼."
                                              -𝒢𝓁𝑒𝓃𝓃𝑜𝓃 𝒟𝑜𝓎𝓁𝑒
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"I've won another princess Key today which has made me so extremely happy! The next competition is just two days away and I could not be more excited! Braxien just evolved into a Delphox and I now have an Eevee. Together they're a very good team when performing!"

The night was very lovely as the sky was free of clouds and the air was crisp and clean with a slight breeze blowing through my hair. Nowadays my hair is a bit longer, reaching down below my shoulders which fit me well. Since I travelled on my own I usually didn't sleep outdoors but the next town was still far away and I couldn't head back in the dark... So sleeping under the stars was enough for me. Pancham was here with me, snuggled next to me in order to keep me safe.

After what happened three months ago Pancham became very protective of me which was very cute but a bit troublesome. Then again, after I ran away Pancham was the only one of my pokemon who caught me in my deep depression of tears and suffrage. I was like that for roughly a month but I'm okay now... I admit it still hurts but the truth was... this was for the best for all of us. He must pick up on those painful feelings still.

At least that's what I think. As Pancham sleeps I lay awake, wondering what Ash and the others were up to now. I miss them so much and even now my heart yearns for Ash’s warm embrace even though I never had it to begin... just that childhood nostalgia creeping up on me when I least expect it. It was late, best I go to sleep so I can make it to the next competition... Looking at the moon tonight, it seemed to be so bright... it made me wonder whether they watched it too..."Good night...Ash..."

Meanwhile, at the town I had just left several hours ago there stood a familiar face staring at the moon as I did tonight. Little did I know that in his hand he held my note tightly as he seemed to have reread it several times since I left the group two months ago. Softly he sighs as he leans against the wall of the Pokemon Center he, Clemont and Bonnie were to spend the night in tonight, staring up at the sky glittering with thousands of stars showing off their glory tonight. "Serena..." After a short while Clemont soon emerged from the center, searching for Ash as it was now very late in the night.

"Ash?"

"Over here..."

Following the voice Clemont turned the corner and found Ash with the note in hand and eyes on the stars, completely silent.

"Ash, it's getting really late and it's a bit chilly... don't you want to get rested for your next gym battle in the next town? We'll be reaching it tomorrow Afternoon..."

There was no response from him which left the atmosphere very tense and as quiet as night usually was. Slowly Clemont approaches him, leaning against the wall next to him which causes his muscle shirt to wrinkle as he too looks at the glorious night sky above them and listens to the sounds of the Crickets and Kricketune play their evening sonnet, enhancing the night's beauty.

For a long while there wasn't anything to be said between the two good friends, there was nothing but silence as they savoured the evening placed before them. After a while someone finally speaks, breaking the peaceful atmosphere that was so perfectly painted before them.

"It's very nice tonight, beautiful... wouldn't you say so Ash?" says Clemont as he gazes upon the grassy meadow that surrounds them, revealing the softer colour shades, by starlight, now revealed, "To think that such a beautiful scenery could be so easy to find and to admire yet... we rarely even recognize it's here... It makes me curious as to why now, when all is so peaceful and at rest, that we truly don't appreciate it as we should..." Saying this seemed to resonate feelings in Ash, feelings he was not familiar with... regret... he felt alone yet Bonnie and Clemont were always by his side.

In his mind he was stuck deep in his thoughts, reviewing his actions over the last few months since he first made it to Kalos.

"Do you think that... maybe I wasn't appreciating Serena as I should have been...? I don't know... " Ash's hands flop to his side, clenching the note in his hand tightly as his hair, freed from its hat, covers his face as he lightly bangs the back of his head against the concrete wall over and over.

"Serena said not to go after her... if I didn't share her feelings... but... I don't even know what it is to 'love' someone like that. I love my Pokemon and my friends like if they were family... I just... don't understand what she meant by 'Share her feelings'..." Again silence gripped the air as Clemont thought about a way he could respond with the Kricktune's song changing to a more of a grass whistle sound than a violin from before.

Over the last two months he didn't talk much about this situation since he saw it as something Ash had to figure out on his own. Since the moment Serena joined the party he had always suspected the feelings she had for Ash but he never said a thing, it wasn't his place to do so. However, now he could see Ash was genuinely confused and concerned about Serena that not even his next gym battle mattered to him anymore. Ash had to figure out his emotions but that did not mean Clemont couldn't give him a shove in the right direction.

"Say Ash... how would you describe Iris?" he asks, pulling up the pair of sweatpants he was to sleep in once this was all set and done. Ash's frown becomes clearer as he tilts his head towards Clemont, keeping his eyes covered by his hair.

"What does Iris have to do wi-"

"Just trust me Ash, do it!"

For a moment Ash thinks about what Clemont requests, just leaning there as he sighs. "I don't know... she's loud and obnoxious... kinda a wild girl and loves to mess with me... a cool friend and all... Clemont I don't really get the point to th-"

"Okay, what about Bonnie?"

Ash groans in frustration, seemingly not getting what Clemont was doing or what the point of these questions were but went along with it. He had to have a reason for asking these questions so he put his trust in him. "Well... she's spunky, happy and adores pokemon... She isn't shy about expressing how she feels about things and will speak her mind no matter what... like with Iris, she's a good friend..." he says, thinking about what to say in response to Clemont's odd questions.

"Alright... just one more... What do you think of Serena?"

Ash paused for a long while, his tongue seemingly caught by a Purrloin as he had been caught with his metaphorical pants down. He scrambled through his mind for responses but he found it difficult to find words to put what he thought of her forward. After a few moments Clemont chuckles which breaks Ash's scrabbling.

"It sounds like... you can't describe Serena in just a couple of words like Iris or Bonnie..." He looks back up at the moonlit sky as he lets Ash ponder what he said.

"I think... the day that we and Iris were talking about your friends after your battle Serena had become jealous of how you described all your friends in such a limelight... in her mind she must have thought that maybe she was inferior in your eyes when compared to all these other, wonderful female friends you've known for much longer than her..."

"At the same time she was terrified to tell you how she felt because she feared that you would confirm her nightmares... In the end she felt so alone and isolated from the fear she began to question how much she actually knew about you and whether or not you had more behind that goofy smile of yours... I know you noticed how much pain she was in when she ran off that day from the Pokemon Center... anyone with eyes and ears could see it"

"Of course I noticed! How could I not... I... could see how much hurt she felt in her but I had no idea why... The next day I tried to tell her that if something was bothering her that she could tell me but... I got caught up in Iris that I..." Ash bites his bottom lip, realising where his mistakes were.

"That you left her to her own devices where she slowly began to eat herself away from her pain and fear... that she couldn't even face you anymore... Of course, I'm not putting all the blame on you Ash... I admit that I wasn't paying attention to her either once Iris came into the picture... We're all to blame for Serena feeling so second rate..." Clemont sighs, trying to think of ways he could help Ash realise his feelings he knew were in there, just unable to get through to his thick skull.

"But I can see she isn't second rate in your eyes... I mean, I'm sure if I asked you what you think of Shauna you could describe her easily without hesitation... so I wonder why Serena is so hard for you... I mean, they're basically the same with Shauna just having slightly darker skin and a bit more spunk..."

Ash turns his head sharply to face Clemont as those words angered him greatly. It was so sudden Clemont nearly fell over and the Kricktune ran away in sheer shock.

"BASICALLY THE SAME?! NO SERENA IS NOTHING LIKE SHAUNA! Sure Shauna is spunky and great at Performances like Serena but Serena is more than that! Serena is also an excellent cook who makes pokepuffs and deserts so delicious I can't wait to dig into them whenever she makes them! She's so sweet that she'll hold in her anger for the sake of others and even cry over other's pain! She's so supportive and loving that I don't think I could ever meet a person as selfless and as genuine as her! Yeah, she can be shy at times but Serena can get past that!" Clemont kept his surprised look as Ash continued his rant.

It seemed that he had struck a nerve of some kind but perhaps it was best that he did.

"I look forward to hearing her voice every night, saying 'Good night Ash' and then hearing its wonderful comforting tone again in the morning when she wakes me up and says 'good morning Ash. Did you sleep okay?'

Whenever I feel down I know she'll be there giving me endless support, even through my moments of stupidity. Even if her odd views about fashion are a bit ridiculous to me I still find her very pretty in those outfits... No... Serena isn't just pretty, she's down right gorgeous and caring and kind... She's one in a billion, nothing in this world could possibly take her place... and..." Ash's eyes widened as he came to a sudden realisation of great truth, feeling all these words he spoke flowing through his mouth so naturally that he didn't even need to think. Clemont gives him a reassuring smile which made it dawn on Ash that he had intentionally said what he had said in order to provoke his feelings... and it worked like a charm. The epiphany evading him for so long behind mists was now as clear as the sky above them

"Serena... I... I can't function without her by my side... because I... love her."

Ash's once dead eyes light up like the thousands of stars shining out tonight as he realises his true, deep feelings he felt for the straw hat girl he met in the woods all those years ago. It was then he knew what he had to do, it was as obvious as the day was bright.

"I-I'm going to go look for her! I have to find her and tell her everything!" Ash turns to run off only to be stopped by Clemont.

"Hey Ash, slow down!... We can look for her in the morning since it's really late... better we search well rested and alert right? In the morning we could ask where the next Kalos Queen Performance was and go from there!" Of course, Clemont, being the voice of reason in Ash's word of impulse, brought up a very valid point.

Ash agreed since he knew that was the best course of action and was the best chance of finding Serena as fast as possible. Tonight his mind would rush with the thoughts of her and at tomorrow's first light his legs would rush him to her side again as quickly as Arcanine.

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Thank you! for reading have a nice day!

See you soon with next one

Until byee guys! 😉