Kanto region, Pallet Town…

Called by many as the Town of Pure White Beginning, Pallet Town was a fairly small and quiet place located in the western corner of the Kanto region. The place who saw the birth of a certain trainer who had a grand destiny ahead in his future. This is a story from before he began that wondrous journey of adventures and dreams...

The local Pokémon Professor, Samuel Oak, couldn't help but smile as he saw all the kids gathered around him. It wasn't a crowd to the level of his cousin Samson's Pokémon School, sure, but it still felt nice to see all those future trainers gathered here, in the Oak Summer Camp of Pallet Town, one of the first steps to obtain a Pokémon trainer license. He had worked hard to stop Pokémon from being a constant threat, and he was proud to see the next generations grow and flourish. He quickly put the smile aside and adopted a more serious expression, befitting of the director. His assistant staff stepped back as he took his place on the central stand. He cleared his throat and raised his arms, to call for everyone's attention.

"Welcome, you all! I'm honored to see that you've decided to come here at my Summer Camp. For the next few weeks, you will all have fun and work together, in teams or individually, in an effort to widen your horizons and be better prepared for your future time as a trainer, if that is your chosen career." Oak smiled again. "I look forward to know all of you better, and I hope the same goes for you all."

All of the boys and girls clapped and whistled cheerfully, some of them even jumping in place. Or at least, most of them did.

Lost in the middle of the excitement, there was a young fourteen-year old girl, with long, honey-colored hair and blue eyes, wearing a pink sundress and a large matching sun hat. She pouted and looked to the side. She had no interest in that whole Camp thing; she didn't even want to become a trainer to begin with.

She grumbled. It was all her mother's fault.

Flashback, a couple hours before…

"I don't want to stay here!" The girl scowled the other way, loud enough to attract everyone's glances.

Grace raised her arms in clear embarrassment, then sighed and looked back at her daughter.

"Please, Serena." She crossed her arms. "I told you, I will be busy with the Kanto Rhyhorn Race Cup for the next few weeks, and I really want you to be somewhere safe. Plus, you will have fun."

Serena's expression darkened. "You could bring me along. It's not like you aren't forcing Rhyhorn Racing on me."

"Serena!" Grace frowned.

Serena raised her arms. "I don't want to be here! I don't know anyone else, and I'm not even interested!"

"Serena Yvonne Gabena!"

Serena instantly shut up, lowering her arms and her gaze. Her full name was never good news. Grace took the chance, and stared her down for a few seconds. She closed her eyes, calming down just a bit, as she placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders.

"You can't say you don't like something until you try it. Given we're staying here in Kanto for a while, you might as well enjoy it, don't you think?"

Serena kept her head down, sighing. "I know, but still..."

"Plus, it's always nice to have a Pokémon trainer license ready. It might come in handy for any job you might undertake." Grace nodded to herself. "Or Rhyhorn Racing, who knows."

"Mom!" Serena pouted.

"I didn't like Rhyhorn Racing either at your age. I'm sure you will appreciate it better." Grace winked at her. She turned around and walked off. "See you, Serena!"

Before Serena could reply, Grace hopped on the family Rhyhorn and rushed on the road, leaving the poor girl alone with her bags at the Camp's entrance.

End of flashback.

Serena groaned some more before her eyes went to the ground again, sighing. Moping and complaining was useless: no matter what she did, she would still be stuck there. She looked around, seeing what the rest of the kids were up to. Most of them had already formed their small circle of friends, some simply talked with others. She was one of the few people not interacting with anyone else.

Serena took a deep breath, eyeing the map she was given: her cabin was the farthest east from the stage. Without further ado, she grabbed her bags and moved there, sending some uncertain looks all around her. She was in for some rather rough weeks.

The moment Serena entered her cabin, she quickly tossed her bags on the ground and crashed on the nearest bed, sighing tiredly. She stood still for a few seconds before opening her eyes, checking the place she'd call home for a while.

There wasn't much to say: it was a simple cabin made of wood, with a couple of windows on the side and several pictures of Pokémon and natural scenery hanging on the walls. Even then, Serena didn't find much to complain: she was used to simplicity, and she actually liked the quaint look, even as she was already thinking up on how to improve her corner.

In the middle of her planning the door opened, and Serena yelped and shoot upwards, eyes widened: however, she quickly calmed down. Right outside the cabin were a boy and a girl around her same age, who almost looked like mirror versions of each other; Serena guessed they most likely were twins. They had the same short, bright blond hair and blue eyes, although the boy had a few bangs on his fringe pointing upwards, while the girl's hair was all straight down, and she kept her bangs out of her eyes with a couple of white hairclips. Furthermore, their choice in clothing was quite opposite from each other: the boy wore a green, short-sleeved t-shirt and brown slacks, while the girl sported a red blouse and orange shorts, as well as a big red ribbon in her hair. They both wore the same model of running shoes, except for the color variations, green and red respectively.

Serena rubbed the back of her head uneasily, giving a nervous laugh. "Hello, I am sorry I didn't open the door, I was a bit tired."

"No issue, really," the boy said, shaking his head. "My name is Elwood, and she's my sister, Aideen."

"Hi!" Aideen raised a hand, winking.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Serena." She quickly bowed. "I come from Vaniville Town."

"Vaniville Town?" Elwood blinked. "In the Kalos region?"

Serena nodded weakly. "Yeah."

"That's… quite a distance from here." Elwood rubbed his chin, studying Serena.

Aideen rolled her eyes. "No kidding, Elwood."

Serena glanced at the side, adjusting her sun hat. "My mom had to do something in Kanto, so she sent me here while she was busy."

Elwood raised an eyebrow as he heard that, while Aideen frowned. Serena gulped, wondering what she said wrong. Then, Aideen spoke.

"Your mom sent you here?" She grinned. "Lucky girl! We had to beg our dad to let us come! He kept saying he could've just bought us the license and starters and we didn't need this!"

"Aideen! He wasn't serious!" Elwood scowled at her.

Aideen shrugged. "Dad's a politician. You know he'd do that."

Elwood stared at her wordless, then shook his head, facing Serena again. "I apologize for my sister. At times she doesn't know when to stay silent."

"I regret nothing!" Aideen blew a raspberry in Elwood's direction.

A short glare by Elwood ensued. Serena barely held back a giggle, only stopping when the male twin turned back to her, arms crossed.

"So, you didn't want to be here? Why is that?" He tilted his head. "If I'm not asking too much, of course."

At that question, Serena sent a glance to the floor, rubbing her arm. She sighed.

"Well, I don't know." She met Elwood's eyes again. "It's all been a bit too sudden."

"It's okay. In any case, I hope you will have fun." Elwood smiled her. "There will be a lot to do in the next few weeks."

"Thanks." Serena smiled back.

She and the twins kept talking for a while, getting to know each other more. The twins turned out to be the children of an influential government official and one of the major sponsors of Oak's Laboratory. In spite of this, however, they wanted to carve their own path and become trainers without his help. Relating well to that, Serena told them her own story, and a connection was quickly established.

As they continued talking, Serena's fears started to subside and a sincere smile brightened her face. Maybe she was wrong; maybe this camp would be fun, after all.

As the first week on the camp went by…

After a few days, Serena could safely say it: that camp was not for her.

She had tried, she had really tried, but between a general disinterest of Pokémon training and not knowing most of the kids she really couldn't manage to get in the atmosphere, always failing at the activities or just barely passing. It wasn't completely bad: Aideen and Elwood were nice people and most of the other kids were friendly (save for one jerk that kept making fun of her whenever she failed at her tasks), but the cons far outweighed the pros.

Serena sighed, trying not to get distracted and concentrating on the latest assignment: Pokémon care, specifically bathing. It sounded simple on paper, but when you took into account how many Pokémon couldn't be touched or had specific spots to pay mind towards you realized the difficulties. And that was just about Kanto Pokémon: Serena dreaded how it would've been if it involved Kalosian ones like Espurr or Honedge.

She took a deep breath, holding her wet towel tightly. She could do it: her assigned Pokémon was a Poliwag, a Water-type. What could possibly go wrong? After hesitating, she finally placed the towel on the Tadpole Pokémon's head, trying to rub it, a bit too forceful by accident.

"Poli!"

She was rewarded with a glare and a Bubblebeam in the face. Serena fell back down, and the Poliwag ran off. Several assistants ran after it to catch it, while the other kids laughed at her, even those who made an effort not to do it finally couldn't help themselves. She tried to ignore them raising back up, even as tears welled in her eyes. Then they didn't stop, and Serena couldn't handle the stares.

Unable to stand there for a second more, she ran away towards the trees; away from the kids, the Camp, anything. She didn't even knew where she wanted to go; she just wanted to leave that place.

"I didn't even want to come! Mom, this is all your fault!" she cried. Why did she had to go through all of that? What did she do to deserve it?

She was so focused on her problems that she didn't notice the stone on the ground, tripping on it. She yelled, feeling a sharp pain on her knee: looking at it, she could see it was now redder and bruised. Now alone, she curled up and sobbed, listening to all the Pokémon cries in the forest around her. She just wanted someone close by, someone who'd not mock her, someone that could make all that stupid situation better…

"Hey, are you here?"

Serena froze, worryingly looking up and seeing some nearby bushes shake. She stepped back towards a tree, trembling.

"W-who's there?" she asked.

Opening his way through the bushes, out came a boy with short, messy jet-black hair. She remembered having seen him in passing a couple times before. Seeing him up close she noticed that he wasn't bad-looking: he was quite tall for his age (assuming that he was around the same age as her) and had slightly tanned skin. His most noticeable facial traits were his brown eyes and a couple of lightning-shaped marks below his cheeks, which somehow actually looked kind of adorable for her. He wore a red and yellow, short-sleeved shirt, blue slacks and red and black running shoes. She just kept looking as the boy approached, looking at her with a gentle smile.

"Sorry, I saw you leaving and wanted to see if you were alright," the boy said.

"W-who are you?" Serena asked, blinking and trying to hold back the tears.

The boy's smile widened as he pointed to himself with his thumb. "I'm Ash. I'm taking part at the Camp as well."

Scanning the boy's features, Serena noticed. She had seen the boy once or twice around the camp, but she never paid him much attention. Not until now, at least. He walked closer and observed Serena without a further word, focusing on the legs.

"Did you get hurt?" He noticed the scraped knee, and his expression darkened. "That looks pretty bad."

"I-I can't m-move it." Serena sniffled, passing a hand through her eyes.

Ash kept examining the wound, then smiled and produced a handkerchief and wrapped it slowly around her knee, tying it into a neat knot.

"Here! Now you will heal in no time!" Ash gave her a thumbs up.

Serena looked at the knee, feeling the pain subside. "Thank you."

Ash nodded, then scratched his neck. "I saw what happened. Poliwag are always difficult to deal with."

Serena froze, eyeing the ground again. She clenched her fists.

"I make a mess all the time." She held back a sob. "No one wants me at the Camp anyway."

"That's not true." Ash shook his head. "They were all worried for you."

Serena flinched, turning her head up. Her glance met Ash's own, his sincere and calm expression. He wasn't lying, she could tell.

She quickly turned back down, gulping. "I see."

Ash gave Serena a bright smile. "Come on, let's go back to camp. Can you stand?"

Serena looked at her legs. She tried pulling herself up, only for a sharp pain to bring her back down.

"I-it hurts!" Serena yelled, trembling in pain.

Ash offered her a hand and a determined glance. "Don't give up till it's over! You can do it!"

Looking back into his eyes, Serena felt part of his confidence and determination flow into her as well. She put all her strength on her legs, and after a few seconds she finally stood, on shaky legs but upright.

"See? You made it!" Ash tightened his hold on Serena's hand, eyes moving to the path ahead. "Let's walk back now, alright?"

Serena nodded, and Ash helped her walk one step at a time, always giving her a radiant smile. Serena smiled as well, holding Ash's hand a bit tighter, feeling its warmth. For the whole trip back to the Camp, she didn't let go of his hand.

It took a few minutes to return to Camp with Serena's injury, but she barely realized how much time had passed. Ash had talked with her the whole trek, making her feel calm and relaxed like she hadn't felt in a while.

"Here we are!" Ash said, helping Serena along before smiling at her. "How are you feeling now?"

Serena smiled back. "A bit better, thanks."

"Can you walk on your own now?"

"I think so." Serena nodded, slowly inching away and letting go of Ash's hand. Her feet were shaky and her pose unsteady, but she didn't fall.

Ash's smile widened. "See? I knew you could make it!"

"Thank you." Serena blushed, rubbing her neck and wearing a sheepish expression.

"Oh, you finally decided to come back Ashy-Boy. Did you find the crybaby?"

Serena quickly froze in place, turning towards the voice and finding a boy of her and Ash's age with messy brown hair, wearing a large grin and looking down at the two. She gulped, and instinctively inched closer to Ash.

Ash's smile faded, replaced by a frown. "Gary."

Gary didn't reply, his glance shifting to Serena as she hid even more behind Ash.

He chuckled, facing the boy again. "Oooooh, she's taken a shine to you. Didn't know you were such a lady-killer."

"Don't you have anything better to do?" Ash scowled.

"You're right, one of us has to study hard to get their trainer license." Gary snickered and turned around, arm raised. "Have fun with your little friend here. Smell ya later!"

Neither Ash nor Serena said anything else as he left, and as Serena looked at Ash she could see him looking annoyed, a far cry from how he had acted until then.

After a while she turned back to Gary in the distance, puzzled. "Who was that?"

"An old friend of mine." Ash sighed, casting another glance at Gary's back. "He's more like a rival by now, though."

Serena tilted her head. "Did something happen between you two?"

"It's a long story. Don't mind him, he always makes fun of others."

Serena nodded in spite of her slight frown. She really wished to know what was up between them, but she wasn't going to press the button if he was unwilling to continue.

"Alright." The frown disappeared and she smiled once again.

She observed Gary's back right after, thinking of his words. Did she seriously 'took a shine' for Ash? Well, he wasn't certainly bad-looking and he had been nothing but nice, but he also only met him less than an hour before, and he also didn't seem to even notice what Gary said... Wait, she wasn't taking what that kid said at face value, was she?

Serena blushed and shook her head, turning down. She was seriously running ahead of herself with those thoughts.

Before she could mentally dig herself deeper, a familiar voice popped in.

"Serena! You're alright!"

Turning around Serena smiled again, seeing the twins rushing her way.

"We were worried about you!" Aideen said.

Serena blinked. "Really?"

"Yes, really." Elwood looked down, rubbing his neck. "I apologize if we laughed at you. It was just a pretty funny scene, we didn't want to hurt you."

"It's okay." Serena chuckled, thinking back to the Poliwag. "It actually was pretty fun."

Aideen groaned, frowning. "Oh, come on, don't go saying that just to make us feel better!"

"If it makes you feel better, Aideen was doing just as badly with her Magikarp." Elwood grinned.

Aideen scowled his way. "Look who's talking! Your Growlithe was just squirming to get away from you!"

"At least mine wasn't a Water-type."

Aideen kept yelling and complaining at Elwood, while he kept his calm behavior and snarked back at her. Seeing them bicker made Serena giggle, knowing they'd be the best of friends in no time.

Ash finally decided to intervene. "Hey, you guys. If you want, I can show you how to clean those Pokémon. It's pretty tricky, but once you know how to do it, it's very easy."

Elwood folded his arms. "Sure, I'd like to know more."

"Anything to shut up Mr. Smartypants here." Aideen sneered, while Elwood sighed.

"What about you, Serena?" Ash turned towards her. "Do you want to come along?"

Serena quickly nodded and beamed his way. "Yes!"

And thus all the group walked away together, ready to listen to Ash's tips. Looking at the twins and Ash both, she was now sure things would only get better from now on.

First week of the camp, Saturday…

The camp would take a break on Sunday, so on the day before, Professor Oak and his aides organized one last activity for the participants. Everyone was summoned early in the morning, since this would most likely last for the entire day. The campers were taken to a vast forest grove, full of berry trees of almost all kinds they could imagine, although it was so thick that it could easily become a maze for those without a good sense of direction, and navigating it would be extremely hard without help.

The exercise would be a mix of Pokémon Orienteering and berry gathering. The participants would be grouped in teams of two, and assigned a partner Pokémon to assist them in this task. The goal was to gather some specific types of berries (given to them in a list), and return to the starting point as soon as possible. According to the rules, they could gain extra points for adding other types of berries that were not in the list, but in order to pass this task, they had to gather the mandatory ones: Pecha, Lum, Cheri, Chesto, Rawst and Aspear. For those who were not familiar, fortunately Oak's aides also gave them a glossary with pictures, so they could easily recognize them. As for how and where they would find them… that was entirely up to them.

Serena was quite happy that she managed to get Ash as her companion for this task. It wasn't too much of a hard choice: she didn't know anyone else in the camp, and with Elwood and Aideen teaming up with each other, that only left her the black-haired boy as a potential partner. She was a little insecure at first, but fortunately, Ash put no objections and gladly agreed.

The pair had been assigned a Growlithe as their partner, whose nose came out pretty useful in finding them (apparently, Odor Sleuth had other handy effects than just for battling), and they were strolling around looking to fill out their list. So far, they had bagged Chesto and Lum berries, and they were currently trying to knock down a few from a Pecha tree. The branches were a bit too high to pick them off from the ground or jumping, so Ash commanded Growlithe to use Take Down on it for help. The Fire-type puppy charged at the tree's trunk hitting it hard, but the berries seemed quite stubborn and wouldn't fall that easily.

"Guess we have no choice but to climb up there," Ash said, after Growlithe's third (failed) attempt at knocking the berries down. He kneeled and then cupped both of his hands. "Here, let me help you up."

"What?" Serena didn't get what he meant.

"Don't worry, I said I'd do the heavy lifting, remember?" He insisted.

Serena pouted a little at that "heavy lifting" remark, though she immediately softened her expression, assuming that Ash didn't mean it that way. With him helping her up, Serena managed to get on a branch that had plenty of berries to pick off, while Ash remained down below with the bag open for her to drop them inside. With four or five berries of each type should be more than enough, and they also saved some for Growlithe as reward for his help in finding them. She was ready to reach for the last one when…

CRACK!

"Kyaaaa!"

"Whoah!" Ash dropped the berry bag and rushed to catch Serena. None of them had noticed the branch she had chosen to pick the berries from was actually a bit cracked, and when she leaned forward, her weight caused it to break off. Ash did catch her, but in doing so, they both ended up in a rather… awkward position.

"Ow…" At that little whisper, Serena opened her eyes to find herself having landed on top of Ash stomach. Seemingly in his attempt to catch her in the fall, all he did was serving as a cushion. Lucky for them, there was nobody else around to see the scene, and especially her, since her face went from pale to bright red in a split second.

"Ash, I'm so sorry!" She immediately stepped away, flustered. "Are you hurt?"

"Oof…" Ash quickly got back on his feet, rubbing his stomach. "I think I lost my air for a second, but I'm fine. No biggie. You alright?"

"Uh-huh. I'm really sorry, Ash. *Sigh*, I'm really not fit for this."

"What are you saying?" Ash replied. "We're doing great so far, and it's all thanks to you."

"You're just saying that to be nice to me. What have I done to help?"

"For starters, helping us keep track of the path we've followed so we don't get lost." Ash seemingly had that answer at the tip of the tongue, ready to give it out.

"Yeah, big deal."

"I mean it, those marks you left for us will come in handy later; they'll save us a lot of time when we return." Serena looked at him, her face regaining its normal color, but still unsure. Ash sighed, and decided to make his point across. "Look, let's keep this between us two, but… to be honest, I've never had a great sense of direction. If it wasn't for you right now, I might have gotten lost in this grove, and they'd probably be sending parties to find me. Or I'd have to send up a flare or something."

Serena had a hard time believing that he was that bad. She was convinced that he was just trying to be polite and kind. Still, she had to admit that him saying she had been of help, if only on a small capacity… it actually felt nice.

With the sun on its highest point, the pair stopped to have a small lunch break. They had done very well so far, having managed to gather four of the mandatory berries, and three more additional ones as a plus. They had to give up the Tamato berries for Growlithe, though, since he apparently loved them ultra-spicy. That was fine with them, they didn't want to end with their lips swollen in trying to eat one of those anyway.

They sat under the shade of a tree, while Ash unwrapped the (unusually large) lunchbox he had brought for the two of them. It was pretty packed: it included a large portion of rice, roast beef, egg rolls and some salad. With that size, it should be large enough for at least four people. But not for them.

"Here, enjoy," said Ash as they began eating, or rather devouring the food. He had to be careful on not to eat Serena's part too. He noticed that she was also a big eater herself, although she took her time to taste and enjoy her food, while he pretty much wolfed everything in sight in matter of seconds. A couple times Serena couldn't help but giggle a little. Maybe he ate that fast because he was afraid that someone would steal his meal?

"Thanks for the meal," he said rubbing his stomach. "There's no better food in the world than that of my mom."

"Your mom cooked this?" Serena asked.

"Oh yeah," he said. "I'd recognize her flavor anywhere, anytime."

"She must be a great cook then. This was really delicious."

"She has to be," Ash replied. "She owns a restaurant, so being a great cook is part of the norm for her, to keep the business running."

"I see. I'll have to visit your restaurant sometime." Serena then pulled out of her pocket a small pink paper bag. "Um, Ash, if you still have room for more…"

"I always have room for more. What is it?"

"I baked these in yesterday's cooking class." She took a handful into the bag, to show him a bunch of varied cookies. "Would you like some?"

"Sure, thanks!" Ash extended his hand, for Serena to give him the cookies. There were many to choose from, he went first for a chocolate one, which quickly vanished into his mouth. His expression became of delight upon tasting it. "Hmm, these are pretty good. You really made them yourself?"

"Yeah. I guess it's one of the few good things I can do." Serena sighed. Upon seeing her expression, Ash stopped swallowing the cookies for a bit.

"Is anything wrong?" he asked. Serena looked at him, and his expression of concern seemed genuine. If she could talk to Aideen and Elwood about her problems before, why couldn't she do the same with Ash?

"To be honest… I didn't come to this camp because I wanted to," she confessed. "My mom is currently taking part in a Rhyhorn Race Cup here in Kanto, and since I couldn't stay alone at home, she brought me along for the ride."

"Oh. So that means… you had to stay here until she's done?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "*Sigh*, I'm not even interested in being a Pokémon trainer. In fact… I don't even know what I'd like to do. One thing is for sure… I don't want to go into Rhyhorn racing."

"Sounds like things are a little hard between you and your mom," Ash said.

"You could say that," Serena replied. "Don't get me wrong, I really love my mom, but sometimes… I feel like she doesn't understand me. She's been trying to get me into Rhyhorn Racing for years. Not to brag, I'm actually pretty good at it, but… I feel like that's not what I'd like to do with my life."

"Hmm… can I tell you something?" Ash asked, after trying to think of a way to cheer her up. "Do you want to know why I decided to become a Pokémon trainer?"

"Sure, go ahead." Seemed fair enough that she listened to him, if he did the same for her.

"When I told you that I have a pretty bad sense of direction… I assure you, I wasn't kidding." Ash chuckled a little, if only to get her to smile a bit. He then continued a little more serious. "Anyway, when I was in elementary school, there was this time we went on a field trip, and I went off running on my own, away from the group. A storm broke out and I was so scared that I got lost and I had no choice but to hide in a hollow tree. At the time, I was all alone, and all I could do was cry. But then, some Pokémon apparently heard me. They knew I was sad and scared, and came up to try and cheer me up."

"Oh…" Serena had to admit it, it was quite a moving story. And come to think about it, her first encounter with Ash had actually not been that much different.

"They kept me company until I was found," Ash continued. "Thanks to them, I didn't feel sad, alone, or scared. And then I thought: if I become a Pokémon trainer, maybe I can have more friends like them. Partners with whom I can spend my time, grow together, and become stronger. Over time, that idea grew into something else… into a dream. To travel across the land, searching far and wide for new friends, adventures… and eventually become a Pokémon Master."

"So… that's your dream?" Serena asked.

"Yeah." Ash nodded. "And there's more. There's actually a reason why I decided to enroll for this camp. You see, at the end, you know that there's a written test to apply for a Pokémon trainer license, right?"

"Yeah, that's what my mom told me before she left."

"The point is, if I can score high enough on that test, I'll be able to get a Pokédex from Professor Oak himself. If I can make that… I'll be one step closer to fulfill my dream." He said the last part with a calm determination.

"Wow." Serena couldn't help but admire him. "Good for you. It's nice that you have a dream. I'm actually a little jealous."

"Why is that?"

"Just look at me. I feel so lost here, like I don't fit in this place, and sometimes not even in my own home." She became a little depressed again. "I don't even have a dream. I don't know what I'd like to do with my life. I feel so stupid."

"Hey, don't say that." Ash touched her shoulder. "Look, there's nothing wrong with feeling lost. We all do sometimes. But just like when I got lost in that storm, I found my way back. You'll find your own someday."

"Do you really think so?"

"I know so," Ash assured her. "Look, I might not be good at giving advice, but… think about something you like, put your mind into it, and most importantly, when you finally choose your path, never give up until the very end."

Those last words echoed in Serena's mind: 'never give up until the very end'. Come to think about it, she sometimes had that problem. Even the times she found something she was good at, the moment she made a mistake, she decided to give it up altogether. Maybe too soon for her own good. Rhyhorn racing was a special case, though, since she had grown to dread the potential injuries of such a rough sport.

"Well, shall we continue?" Ash stood back up, feeling refreshed and full of energy after having eaten. "Let's move on, Growlithe! There are still two more berries to go! Lead the way!"

"Grow!"

The fire puppy sniffed on the air, and once he caught the scent, they continued their path. As she ran behind Ash and Growlithe, Serena felt that her spirits had been lifted. It was just a little chat, but… it had its effect on her. Those words were… very inspiring.

In just a matter of two more hours, Ash and Serena had finally gathered all of the mandatory berries, and plenty of extra ones for more points. When they returned, Serena planned to ask the aides if she could keep some of them, to make some sweets. Ash noticed that she seemed quite a bit more cheerful than when they had started. Perhaps that little pep talk worked after all.

However, some trouble laid ahead of their path.

"How is this our fault?!"

"That's your Pokémon, of course it's your fault!"

"What…?" Serena ran off in that direction, followed by Ash and Growlithe. And soon enough, they found the source of the ruckus. Elwood and Aideen, as well as the same white-haired kid who had been mocking her during the whole camp. Elwood was making an effort to restrain his sister, holding her below the armpits while she struggled and yelled trying to break free. The other one was none other than Gary, who seemed between annoyed and amused at the girl's anger. A Munchlax laid on the ground, looking like he was taking a little nap after having a snack, while a Sandshrew tried (futilely) to use his paws to provoke a fight.

"Let go of me, you stupid brother! I need to give him a piece of my mind!"

"Aideen, get a hold of yourself!"

"Hey, what's going on here?!" Ash finally decided to intervene. Serena stood behind him, unsure as to what to do, but ready to back Ash up if needed.

"Well, well, if it isn't our dear Ashy-boy? How're you holding up? Oh, bringing along your little girlfriend?"

Serena turned at Gary after hearing the 'girlfriend' remark, but other than blushing a little, she ignored it as she recognized her two friends, trying to determine what was going on, and how to act. "Elwood, Aideen, what's the matter here?"

"The matter is that idiot who needs a lesson!" Aideen yelled, glaring at the albino-like kid, still struggling to break free from her brother's grip. When she tried to kick him, Serena got in the way and raised her hands to try and get her to stop.

"Aideen, please calm down! Remember, you could get expelled for bad behavior!" At Serena's voice, Aideen finally stopped kicking and struggling, but her angry expression did not subside. Elwood however was finally able to release his grip. Serena had made it.

"Alright, now… can any of you explain what's going on here?" Ash asked.

"I'm trying to tell you guys, if it happened that way, it was an accident," Gary intervened. "They're saying our Munchlax came up on its own and ate over half of their berries."

"Do you have an idea on how much it took us to find them all?" Aideen exclaimed. "Now we'll have to start all over again!"

"It's not our problem," the other kid snapped. "You shouldn't have left your berry bag unguarded, like a pair of idiots. Plus, you can't be sure it was him, if you didn't catch him in the act."

"… say that again, you moronic jerk."

"Aideen." Elwood was ready to restrain her again if needed. "As much as I don't approve my sister's words of choice, I have to agree. We worked too hard to gather those berries."

"So what are you two expecting? That we should give you some of ours as compensation?" Gary half-jokingly suggested.

"It's the least you should do," Aideen said. "After all, it was YOUR Pokémon who ate them."

"Like I said, Blondie, you have no proof," the albino kid insisted. "Innocent unless proved otherwise, isn't that the rule?"

"Look, there are plenty of other wild Pokémon around here. Any of those could have done it, if you really left your bag unguarded," Gary insisted. Everyone remained silent at that, because he had a point. However, Aideen looked like she was ready to jump to rip the albino kid's face off, whom both Ash and Serena noticed had a big of a smug air about him.

"If you're done accusing us, we have to return to the starting point. Come on, Gary."

"You said it, Joshua. Smell ya later, Ash!"

And with that, Gary, and the albino kid (whose name was apparently Joshua) went their own way along with their Munchlax, leaving Ash and Serena with the twins. Aideen was still glaring in their direction, apparently barely resisting the urge to chase after them. It was true, she hadn't caught the Munchlax in the act, but… she was certain that it was him. Meanwhile, Elwood checked the bag for their supplies, surveying how many they had lost.

"How much did he eat?" Aideen finally asked.

"All of the Aspear, Chesto, and Pecha berries," Elwood replied. "There's no other choice, we'll have to go find more."

"Again?" Aideen almost wanted to cry in rage. "It took us forever to find them all, now we have to backtrack for them? That's not fair!"

"We might be able to help you guys," Ash stepped up. "Serena marked all of the spots where we found our berries. We can stop by them in our way back, and you'll find the ones you need."

"Really? You'd do that for us?"

"Um… Ash, I'm not against helping them, but, won't that slow us down a little?" Serena asked.

"It's not fair what happened to them," the black-haired teenager said firmly. "Whatever it was, they don't deserve to be disqualified for something like this. We have to help them."

"Well, in that case, please lead the way. Sandshrew, come with us!" Aideen called out.

Said and done, Ash and Serena had to backtrack all the path they had followed, rather than going directly south in a straight line to the entrance. The advantage was that, with four of them, they had an easier time in picking off the berries for the twins. These stops did cost them quite a few valuable minutes, though, so by the time they reached the starting point again they lost points due to time penalizations, although the extra berries helped in balancing it out. Gary and the Joshua kid apparently had been the ones who arrived back with all of the mandatory berries in the first place, and they seemed quite satisfied with themselves. Ash, Serena and the twins glared at Joshua, but decided not to press any further. They were done and they had passed, if only with a 'good' score, rather than an 'excellent' one as they had hoped.

As the kids left for the following activity, Joshua grinned to himself: sending Munchlax to eat those stupid twins' berries was an awesome idea, allowing him to get the first place he deserved without any pesky rivals to annoy him. Even better, he got to team up with Oak's grandson, and that could lead to him being able to call in some favors later. He cackled: the trainer license and the Pokédex were becoming closer each day.

The following day, at high noon…

At first, Serena thought that the next meeting with her mother would've segued into a string of complaints and attempts to bring her back home and away from the Camp. After the recent events however, she lost most of her reasons to complain, and was simply happy to see her mother again.

After catching up on what they had been doing, mother and daughter decided to take their free day to visit Pallet. It was a quaint town with lots of green and nature, short in historical landmarks but more than full of energy and friendliness. Walking through the wide but busy streets of the town's shopping district brought a smile upon Grace and Serena's faces.

"Lively town, isn't it?" Grace asked, eyeing some shops at her side.

Serena nodded. "Yeah, it reminds me of home."

"This is why I thought this Camp would be a good idea." Grace grinned. "You seem to have had fun so far."

Serena blushed, then quickly turned her glance away, puffing her cheeks.

"I still wish you talked with me about it first." A sincere smile lit up her face right after. "But I can't complain, aside from a few things I had a lot of fun."

"That's what matters." Grace rubbed her stomach, sighing. "Now, what about we continue discussing this over a nice plate? The last race was grueling."

Serena chuckled briefly before grabbing the town map the Camp's staff lent her, observing it.

"Alright, mom." She traced her finger throughout the main street. "There should be a restaurant and bed and breakfast around here called Pallet House, it seems to be pretty well-reviewed."

"Let's go there, then." Grace agreed. Serena checked its position twice, then pointed in the restaurant's direction. Mother and daughter walked that way right after.

As the two moved on, Serena lost herself in thought. Pallet House... she was sure to have heard that name somewhere, but couldn't remember where. It sounded to be something important, though...

While Serena tried to remember, she and her mother arrived in front of the restaurant. On the outside it didn't look particularly impressive, but its quaint exterior with flowers and white walls meshed well with the town's atmosphere. On the right side were stairs to the upper floor, leading to some rooms for the clients looking for the 'bed' part of bed and breakfast.

As the twosome entered the building, they found it just as quaint as the outside, but no less charming for it. Six tables were set up, with four of them already occupied by several groups of people, all talking with each other while waiting to give their orders.

"This place looks great," Grace said as she and Serena took seat in the closest free table, scanning the room. "The owner must work hard to keep this clean."

"Oh, it's an uphill battle for sure, but I have fun with it."

Grace and Serena turned around, seeing a woman on her early thirties with long brown hair saluting them, walking out of the door to the kitchen.

"Welcome to Pallet House! I'm the owner, Delia Ketchum. I hope you'll have a good meal." The woman bowed their way, before flashing a bright, sincere smile.

"I'm sure we will, the menu looks nice," Grace said as he glanced over the provided menu.

Serena however flinched, thinking back at the woman's name: Delia Ketchum.

She blinked twice, then swallowed. "Excuse me, are you-"

"Serena!"

Recognizing the voice, Serena beamed and turned to the kitchen's entrance. "Ash!"

The boy, still dressed exactly as in the Camp, waved at her while returning from a table, a notebook in his hands and a pen on the ready. Serena waved back, holding her smile much longer than she expected.

"Oh, so you are the famous Serena!" Delia smiled. "What a surprise! Ash spent the whole morning talking about you!"

"R-r-really?" Serena blushed, quickly turning her head down.

Ash nodded. "You are my friend, after all."

Serena blushed some more, but mustered a smile of her own while keeping her eyes away. "Thanks."

Delia giggled to herself before placing her hands akimbo and observing both Grace and Serena. "Anyway, what can I bring for you?"

Serena and Grace gave their orders and Delia and Ash went back in the kitchen. As the mother and daughter waited for their food, Serena kept her eyes on the kitchen's door, focusing on whenever Ash came in and out of it to pick orders or serve plates, sometimes with the help of an apron-wearing Mr. Mime. His breath was shallow as he ran up and down the restaurant, but somehow he never lost his energy, the same that always kept him going in the summer camp.

Serena found herself smiling again. Nothing seemed to be able to slow Ash down, and it was a quality she truly appreciated of him.

After a while, Ash finally returned to their table, several plates on his hands and arms.

"Your food will be here in a second, have some bread in the meantime!" Ash said, placing one of the plates on the table.

"Thanks." Serena took a piece of the bread, playing with it in her hand before turning to Ash. "Do you always help your mother?"

"When I can, yes. Mom has only me and Mimey here."

"Oh, I see."

Serena stared at her bread for a bit before placing it back on the table. She took a deep breath and started rubbing her arm.

"Uhm..." She gulped. "Maybe I can help out a bit? I see there's a lot of people left to serve."

"Sure, if you want. Weren't you going to eat, though?"

"Oh, right." Serena rubbed her neck, observing the still empty plates. She took a deep breath and squinted her eyes, then faced Grace without much confidence. "Er, mom..."

Grace looked into her daughter, then closed her eyes. She smirked.

"I understand." She folded her arms. "If you want to help out, do so. You can sit when our plates come."

Serena's grin split her face as she nodded, jolting on her feet. "Thanks!"

Serena quickly took some of Ash's plates and some pages of the notebook, splitting duties with him as Mimey took the plates back in the kitchen. Grace remained at her seat, eyeing her daughter.

"She's quite the hard worker."

Grace turned around to see Delia at her side, observing their children. She nodded, turning towards them as well.

"When she wants, she can be." Grace folded her arms, smiling as she saw Ash rushing to the kitchen, orders taken. "You have raised quite a dutiful young man here."

"I just did my best." Delia smiled back, observing Serena moving to help Ash with a few plates, both beaming. "They seem to be having fun together."

Grace simply nodded. Silence fell between the two as they kept observing their children going in and out of the kitchen, bringing in order after order with almost uncanny coordination.

Noticing at the Mr. Mime popping up from the kitchen, Grace turned back to Delia. "Were you a trainer, too?"

She shook her head. "I studied briefly under Professor Oak when I was younger, but I had to keep the family restaurant going."

"What about that Pokémon?" Grace tilted her head to the Psychic/Fairy-type.

"Oh, Mimey. That's a long story: it was quite an adventure, actually." Delia chuckled, before turning the other way, staring at the window. "Some of my friends told me I should sell the restaurant and try my hand at the League challenge, but I'm probably too old for that. I will be happy just seeing Ash going on his own journey."

"I see." Grace sighed, eyes wandering back to her daughter. "I'm teaching Serena the basics of Rhyhorn racing, but she doesn't seem to enjoy it."

"If she doesn't enjoy it, what's the point in continuing at all?"

Grace grumbled, fixating on Serena again. "She's never been a particularly persistent person. She sometimes gets an idea, then abandons it partway." Her expression turned downcast, sighing. "I'm just worried she will end up unhappy. She needs a Plan B at least."

"She doesn't seem that bad, if you ask me." Delia looked at Serena as well, then back to Grace. "Maybe what she really needs is your trust."

"Who knows?" Grace grabbed her forehead, shaking her head. "I hope she will be happy, at least."

"That's the most important thing." Delia nodded.

Grace nodded back, then went back to Ash and Serena. She smiled. "Say, don't you think they get along pretty well?"

"Yeah, they certainly do."

Delia and Grace shared a glance, barely hiding a grin as they turned back to their children, watching them having fun.

Second week of the camp, Thursday…

Taking a break from the usual activities, the camp was taking a different approach that day. According to the schedule, it was 'Sports Day', meaning that the participants would have to pick at least one sport to play. For some, this looked like a good change of pace. For others, especially those who weren't particularly athletic… not so much.

Serena had chosen baseball after she saw Ash signing up for this in particular. She hadn't actually played it before in her life, but other than Rhyhorn racing, it wasn't like she herself had done sports at all. The other activities available included track and field, soccer, volleyball and basketball, and she wasn't keen on any of those either. Plus, Elwood and Aideen had also signed up for this, so it was more a matter of staying close to the few friends she had managed to make since she arrived. Meanwhile, Gary was nowhere in sight, having chosen to go for fishing instead.

The players were sorted by drawing cards, and they would be split in red and blue teams. Ash ended up in the blue team along with Aideen, whereas Serena and Elwood ended up in the red team. Such a shame, it would be much better if the four of them ended up in the same team. Plus, Serena noticed that the kid with whom they had that… unpleasant encounter during the Orienteering day (Joshua, if she recalled) had ended up in the same team as her. It wasn't much better when it was the time to elect the team captain. An argument broke, and they finally decided to submit it to vote, narrowing it down between Elwood and Joshua. The latter won, having gotten 5 votes from the rest of the members. Just one vote decided, but there was no overturning it.

After she put on the uniform, Serena decided to approach Ash, who had also donned his own, and was warming up in preparation. The Kalosian girl couldn't help but notice… he actually looked pretty good in it.

"Well… looks like we're now in opposing teams," Ash said upon noticing her. He extended his hand. "Let's both do our best, shall we?"

"I guess." Serena shook his hand. "*Sigh*, I wish we ended up in the same team."

"Hey, there's no harm in competing against your friends every once in a while. Just look at them over there."

He pointed behind Serena. Elwood and Aideen were also wishing each other luck, it seemed, although they were a little too far to hear what they were saying. Judging by Aideen's face, she seemed quite flared up for the match. Elwood, while a little more relaxed, also had an expression full of determination. Serena couldn't help but feel a little envious. She wished she didn't have to play under a captain like Joshua, especially when she noticed that Ash too was wearing the captain armband.

"So… they chose you as team captain?"

"Just because nobody else wanted to play pitcher," Ash said with a little resignation. "Lucky for me that I played for the baseball team in elementary school."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and this will make good practice once I become a trainer," Ash said. Serena looked at him in confusion, unsure as to what he meant. He proceeded to explain. "You need to throw Pokéballs to catch Pokémon, right? I learned one or two tricks by playing pitcher, so I can ensure that I never miss a Pokéball throw."

Serena nodded in understanding. It made sense. Even though it was just a game, Ash was making good use of it to learn a handy skill for Pokémon training.

"Attention all players, we're ready to start!" One of professor Oak's aides spoke through a megaphone to call for everyone's attention. He and three others were to act as umpires to oversee the game, and they got the field ready.

"I guess it's time. Good luck," Ash said.

"Yeah, for you, too," Serena replied.

The red team won the bat sorting, so Ash had to take the mound first. First inning, first pitch, and the first batter was up. From the bench, Serena stared at Ash. His expression looked completely different from that of their first meeting: those kind and compassionate eyes had suddenly turned intense, focused and determined. Even so… there was still a certain charm to them, different yet at the same time similar.

"Play ball!" the home umpire declared, and that was the word Ash was waiting for to get started. As if on cue, he opened up with a fastball, right on the very center of the strike zone. "Strike One!"

"Strike?!" the batter protested. "How'd you know?! I didn't even see it coming!"

Indeed, that one had been quite fast, Serena herself almost missed it. Second pitch, another fastball, and this time the batter swung, but did so one second too late, and missed. Two strikes in a row. However, if that was all he could do, third time would be the charm. The third one was fast too, and he was ready to take the swing again, but this time, the ball cut a little to the side, and he missed again.

"Strike Three! Batter Out!"

Opening up the match with a strikeout, not bad. The second batter apparently managed to decipher Ash's fastballs, as he did manage to hit the ball, but sent it to the foul zone. On the third pitch, however, Ash showed that he was more than a single, fastball pitcher. And this time, he sent a curve, slower, but as the ball arched upwards, the swing missed, giving him the second strikeout. Two outs in a row, and the second batter threw his bat to the ground and kicked it in anger.

Third batter up, it was none other than Joshua, who smiled smugly as he stared down at Ash. He seemingly was up to something. Ash, however, didn't pay any mind to him, and taking a deep breath, threw him one of his fastballs… and Joshua went for a bunt rather than swinging, managing to get the ball on the left side of the infield. Not wasting any time he ran off for the first base. The ball fell closer to Ash as he and the catcher dove for it at almost the same time. Ash managed to get a hold of it, but by the time he sent it to first base, the umpire declared "Safe!" He was pretty fast on his feet.

"Serena, you're up!" Elwood taped her on the shoulder to get her to wake up from her… daydreaming.

"Eh? Yeah, I'm coming."

Serena grabbed the helmet and bat and stepped up on the plate. As she found herself staring down at Ash, she silently begged him not to be too hard on her. Ash, on the other hand, seemingly sensed Serena's nervousness, but as much as it pained him, it wasn't like him to go easy on anyone, not even her. They were on a match and in opposite sides, he couldn't back down.

'Serena… I'm sorry for this, but a match is a match,' he thought.

The first two pitches were fastballs, which seemed to come even faster than she saw them from the bench. The third one, she didn't even bother to look, she just let out a girly cry and shutting her eyes hard she swung the bat blindly, hoping for the best… and missed.

"Strike Three! Batter Out!"

She felt extremely embarrassed, her first turn at bat and she ended up with a strikeout. Some of her teammates groaned at her, but she felt a little relief upon seeing Ash smiling at her from the mound, as if he was trying to cheer her up. And it worked, she too returned the smile as she prepared to take the field, with her playing first base. The 1st inning for the red team had ended, now it was time for the blue team to step up to the plate.

The blue team managed to gain a little advantage, in no small part thanks to Ash's pitching preventing any runs (managing to get one strikeout on each of the following three innings). To the surprise of many, the first two runs of the match were scored thanks to a homerun from Aideen, during the bottom half of the 3rd inning, with a runner in second base, thus opening the board and placing the blue team ahead. On the 5th, Joshua managed to hit a triple to center field, and then when Elwood took his turn (at Joshua's request, and much to his own chagrin) performed a sacrifice fly so he could score, thus placing the board 2-1 on the blue team's favor. This didn't sit well with Aideen, who decided to get a little revenge, and during the bottom half of the 7th inning, batting in a run with men in third and second base with a double. For the second half of the game, it seemed that there was a bit of a personal challenge between Ash and Joshua, the latter being the only batter whom Ash was unable to strikeout at least once, and the only one Ash couldn't put out during his play. Serena, who played first base, almost felt guilty for rooting more for the opposing pitcher rather than for the batter in her own team, but considering how much of a jerk he had been during the orienteering (and during this game as well), none of her other teammates would actually blame her.

The red team was in the fight, but their captain's showoff attitude was hampering their efforts. Joshua was a pretty good batter and fast runner, that was for sure, but he wanted to be the one scoring the runs at any cost. During the top half of the 7th inning, trying to place himself in scoring position, he attempted a third base steal, but Ash caught wind of him over the shoulder, and immediately threw the ball, tagging him out and ending the inning. As for Serena, while on the defensive she was mostly decent enough, she was completely lacking on the offensive, as most of her turns at bat ended on a strikeout (and the one time it didn't, it was a foul fly over third base that was easily caught).

"What's wrong with you?" Joshua yelled at her when once again she got a strikeout. "You're the worst batter ever!"

"Hey, I had never played baseball in my entire life!" Serena defended herself.

"Joshua, Serena is doing her best to help us," Elwood piped up. "Besides, it's not like you have done too much for the team yourself."

"What'd you say? And what about that run?"

"You only got that one through MY sacrifice fly," Elwood reminded him. "Plus, you trying to show off and stealing third base didn't help us much, did it?"

Joshua flushed in anger and embarrassment. Elwood had a fair point over there, and he couldn't deny it.

"We want to win as much as you, so please stop being a glory hog and don't do anything reckless, OK?" Elwood asked. Serena didn't understand why the others voted Joshua for team captain. Elwood would have done a much better job at it.

Joshua's behavior against Serena didn't go unnoticed by Ash, either. The aspiring trainer thought the opposing team captain was going a little overboard on his berating, especially considering that, for her first baseball game in her entire life, she wasn't doing THAT bad. If she had ended on Ash's team, he would have at least cut her some slack. He had to give him a lesson.

At the bottom half of the 8th inning, a spectacular diving save from Elwood (playing shortstop) prevented the blue team from scoring two more extra runs to increase their advantage, just as they entered the final inning. At this point, Ash's arm was getting sore and couldn't pitch fastballs as much as he would've like to, having to rely more on the curveballs. The situation looked grim when, after Ash barely managed to get a strikeout, the red team got a triple over right field, and the next batter taunted Ash into giving him a hit by pitch. Only one out, runners on first and third base, they were only two runs ahead, and the next batter up was Joshua. Ash called for a timeout to discuss strategy with the rest of his team.

"So, Captain, what's the plan?" Aideen asked.

"He's their best batter, that's for sure. Didn't take too long to figure out my pitches," Ash replied.

"No kidding." The third base boy agreed. "So what are you going to do? Are you gonna give him the hit by pitch too?"

"No way, I'm not giving him that pleasure, tempting as it is," Ash said. "I think… we should go for a double play."

"Double play? Are you crazy, Ash?" Aideen was quick to say. "I mean, I love a challenge, but…"

"We might have a chance," Ash insisted. "If I keep the ball low, it'll go to your zone. If we're fast enough… we might just be able to pull off a double play in the nick of time."

Like her brother on the opposing team, Aideen was playing shortstop. Joshua had scored most of his hits over second base, so it was a matter of trying to get him to hit a little outside of his usual zone.

"Alright. We'll trust you, Captain." Aideen nodded, and the rest of the team quickly followed suit.

"You guys ready?" Ash placed his fist in the middle of the circle, and everyone placed their hands on top of it. "One… two… three… LET'S WIN!"

The blue team quickly returned to their field positions, and Ash once again stood up on the mound. One way or another, this was going to be his last stand-off against Joshua during this match. He had not been able to put him out by himself on his turn, either by strikeout or tag, he always managed to score a hit, but his own arrogant tendencies cost him and his team dearly, and of course there was his berating of Serena. If Ash managed to score this double play, they'd have a walk-off victory. It was a high risk… but the payoff would be great if they succeeded. Taking a deep breath, he reached for his hat, and promptly turned it backwards for this (hopefully) final play.

"Alright… it's all or nothing…" Everything relied on this final pitch. Hoping for the best, he threw the ball…

PUNT! Just as Ash predicted, the ball went to the left side, right towards Aideen's zone. Joshua tried to run as fast as he could to first base, but the blonde girl managed to get the ball to second base in time, tagging the incoming runner, and the second base boy quickly sent it to first. It was gonna be close…

"OUT!" The first base umpire sentenced the match.

With that single word, the blue team immediately jumped in the air for celebration. They had won the match with a spectacular walk-off. The rest of the team quickly gathered around Ash and Aideen, lifting them on their shoulders as they cheered their victory. Meanwhile, while half of the red team (Serena and Elwood included) accepted the loss gracefully, the other half was quick to throw fits in anger, Joshua especially, who threw his cap to the ground and stomped furiously on it. Those who disagreed with their behavior were wise enough to walk away from them to avoid incurring in their wrath any longer.

With the match ended, the players went to get some cold drinks. Ash went for a couple of soda cans for himself and Serena, who remained seated on her team's bench for a while. She was pretty tired, although not as much as one would expect from a girl who had never, ever in her life, played a baseball match. To get her attention, he touched her temple with one of the cans, making her jump a little for the surprise cold.

"Here," he said. "You must be thirsty."

"Oh, thanks." She opened the can and began drinking. "Ahhh, I really needed that. Baseball is tiresome."

"At least it's over now." Ash sat next to him, and opened his own can. "That was fun. It's been a while since I last played. Though I think I've gotten a little rusty. My arm didn't hurt this much in elementary school."

"You were amazing," Serena said happily. "You deserved to win, someone needed to put that Joshua kid in his place. I couldn't stand him."

"Neither could I," Ash added. "I mean, I understand that he didn't want to lose, but… man, this was just a game, wasn't it? He had no right to berate you that harsh."

Serena agreed with Ash. As they both drank their sodas, she thought the game would have been more fun if she hadn't had to put up with Joshua's berating every time she made a mistake, which was why she didn't mind that her team had lost. And speaking of which, Elwood and Aideen seemingly were done being rivals during the game, and now were back at being the best of friends.

However, there was someone who didn't take the loss of his team in stride. Never mind that he had managed to beat Ash in almost all of the face-offs during the game, but that amounted to nothing if he ended up losing the match. Serena had said it was just a game, but this kid… he didn't like losing, not at all.

"Enjoy your little victory… while you can." He'd do something to get even. Soon enough.

Third week of the camp, Friday…

After having gone through that baseball match, Serena found that the camp activities were WAY more enjoyable than she first expected. It helped a lot that most of the ones that followed were more cooperative than competitive, which she seemed to have a better grasp of: more advanced tips on Pokémon caring, including feeding and grooming. Luckily for her, these went without any more mishaps, and she felt more relaxed now that she had formed a nice, if a little small, circle of friends.

The twins were fun to be around, with their opposite personalities, Serena couldn't help but laugh at the times they clashed and bickered, sometimes over small things like a snack, or which of the two touched shore first in a swimming race at the lake. Nevertheless, she did notice that they were very close to one another, and for the most part they got along. If they weren't competing against each other, they seemed to work very well together.

The main reason she enjoyed her stay at the camp, however, was Ash. It had just been a couple weeks since they had met, and she had already formed quite a strong friendship with the boy. In fact, on the second weekend, she actually begged her mom for them to have lunch at the Ketchum House again. Not only because the food was great (though that helped too), but also because she wanted to have an excuse to see him. She wasn't fooling anyone, but nevertheless, Grace happily complied. She was glad that her daughter had found a good friend.

However, her cheerfulness came to an abrupt end when Thursday ended, and Oak announced that the event for the next day would be…

"RHYHORN RACING?!"

That sport she dreaded so much. She almost fainted on the spot. Now that she felt comfortable in the camp, she was glad that her mother didn't drag her to the track during the competition. But of course, the races came here instead. As it turned out, the junior circuit of the Rhyhorn Racing Cup (the very same her mom was taking part in, no less) had called Professor Oak the day before, asking if they could host a little exhibition race over there, as a way to see if there were any potential prospects amongst the campers. The scientist gladly agreed, and now they were setting up the track.

Serena wasn't particularly enthusiastic that day, but she didn't want her mood to ruin the others'. So she tried not to show it, especially when she saw Ash had decided to give it a shot himself. She saw the boy was already dressed in a blue and black tracksuit, trying to get close to the Rhyhorn he had been assigned for the race.

"Hey," she greeted him. "So, I see you're all set for this race?"

"Why not?" Ash replied. "It actually sounds like fun."

"Yeah, that's what my mom always says. Have you tried this before?"

"Not really, but there's no harm in trying, right?"

Serena couldn't help but let out a smile at that. If anything, she actually felt a little envious of Ash at the time, wishing she could have at least a little bit of that eagerness and fondness for competing. Even if it was for something he had never done before, he seemed unafraid to try, if only for the thrill and some fun along the way. Maybe it wasn't so much envy: rather, it was that she found that quite charming, along with that kindness he had shown with her since they had met. That being the case, maybe there was another way to make the best out of this situation.

"Would you like some tips?" she offered. "My mom has made me practice for years, so I know a thing or two that might help you."

"Yeah, that'd be great."

Serena approached the Rhyhorn to pet it. "There's actually a couple tricks to make them go a little faster. I picked them up from watching some of my mom's races."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Did I tell you she once broke a local speed record?" she continued. "The organizers were quite surprised. The average Rhyhorn usually doesn't go faster than 36 miles, but my mom once managed to get hers to run at 42 miles."

"Wow, sounds impressive."

"I guess it is. Anyway, speed is not the only way you can win. Endurance is important too." The Kalosian girl mounted the Rhyhorn to better illustrate. "You see, if you push them too hard to go faster, they'll tire in no time."

Ash nodded in understanding. It made sense: if the Rhyhorn tired out too soon, they'd fall short during the last legs of the race. It would be pretty humiliating if they collapsed just short of the finish line.

"Here's a little trick to get them to do fast turns."

She tapped the Rhyhorn on the side to get it walking, then once more to go a little faster. After running a little distance, she pulled the ropes to the right at the same time she gave the Rhyhorn another tap. The result was that the Rhyhorn gave a small jump with its hind legs and in doing so gained a small speed boost just as it changed direction. Serena then pulled the ropes back to get it to stop and walked back towards Ash.

"See? If you tap them just when they're about to take the turn, the jump will give them a little boost at the start."

"Cool. And it doesn't sound too hard to do."

"It's not. All you have to do is watch the timing; once you get the hand of it, it's pretty easy to pull off. Just don't abuse it too much: this needs them to make an extra effort and can tire them out easily if used too often."

Serena suddenly stopped as she realized what was going on. Was she really having a conversation about Rhyhorn Racing? And actually enjoying it? However, when Ash asked her more about this technique, before she realized she was giving him a few other small yet useful hints she had picked up from watching her mother and all the forced practice. When Ash went on his own to try them himself before the race, Serena ran off to get a tracksuit of her own and sign up for the competition as well. She figured that if Ash competed, it would actually be fun. Plus, it would be a nice chance to 'redeem' herself after the loss on the baseball match, right?

"Welcome, everyone!" An enthusiastic announcer spoke through a microphone. "At the request of Professor Oak, today the Rhyhorn Racing Committee brings to you a little amateur race for your entertainment. Anyone who wants to take part can sign up, no matter if you've never tried before!"

As the announcer explained the rules and safety regulations, Serena's thoughts drifted. If she recalled correctly, the finals of the Rhyhorn Racing Cup were likely underway right now. Once her mom was done (or rather, after she had won the trophy), she'd have no more reason to stay, so she would most likely come to pick her up. Maybe when she first arrived she would have been happy with that, but now, well, what could it hurt to stay for the remaining week of the camp?

"Is everyone ready? Campers, get to the starting line and prepare for the race!"

That was their cue. She had already decided to compete, so there was no point in backing out. She wondered what could happen if she won or lost this race. No doubt that her mom would be proud of her if she won, but if she lost… well, maybe she would finally see that she wasn't cut out for this sport and would stop pushing her into it… or maybe she'd just push her harder, who knew?

"What's the matter?" Ash asked when she sighed.

"Eh? No, nothing," she lied, though she immediately regretted it. "Who am I kidding? Yeah, I'm not even sure if I should be here competing."

"Well, can I ask you a little favor?" Ash asked. Serena nodded in response. "Please don't go easy on me."

"Why is that?"

"It doesn't matter if you beat me or not." Ash spoke in a slightly serious tone. "Just do your best. Trust me, in any competition, the worst insult you can give your opponent is not giving them everything you have, or letting them win out of pity. You get my drift?"

Serena pondered on these words. Looking back now, maybe that was how he felt during the baseball match. Maybe it was also the reason he didn't show her any mercy, and scary as those fastballs he threw at her were, he just tried to compete fairly, no matter if he was the stronger of the two. Now the roles were reversed, she had a clear advantage in experience.

"I get it. Let's do our best, shall we?" she said with a smile.

"That's the spirit." Ash smiled back. "But I'm gonna win!"

With everyone ready at the starting line, a head judge was standing next to the competitors, with a starting gun in hand. Quite a few spectators had come to watch the race, most of which had taken seats on the starting line, while others chose to look from other spots. It would be an exciting race.

"The rules are simple: It's a single lap around the track. Any of you who attack the other racers or go outside the lines will be immediately disqualified. Is everyone ready?" Everyone replied with a nod or a thumbs up. "Alright. On your marks." The judge pointed the gun upwards. "Get set. GO!"

BANG!

The race was on. Following Serena's advice, Ash chose not to push his Rhyhorn too hard at the start. Several of the other racers, however, instead went for taking an early lead. This wasn't too hard, considering that the starting section of the track was a rather long and straight line. During that stretch, many of the racers actually started feeling like they could win. Ash noticed that Serena wasn't giving out her all just yet: apparently, just like she had told him, she was holding back now and planning go all out towards the end.

The first tight turn was when the real challenge for the rookie racers begun. Most of them had to slow down a little in order to properly take it, wasting valuable seconds. Ash and Serena saw this as their chance, and using the little jump-as-soon-as-you-turn trick, they were able to get ahead. Serena, being the more experienced of the two, managed to pull it off better and quickly took the lead, although she did notice that Ash didn't do so bad, especially for his first time.

The next stretch was a rocky passage where they had to maneuver carefully to avoid crashing into the obstacles. Once again, many of the racers had to slow down, but Serena managed to pass it faster using a few well-timed jumps, almost managing to keep in a straight line, and cutting at least 7 seconds off her time. Ash, while still behind her, managed to save 4 seconds, trying the same technique, although he almost fell sideways when he dodged the last one. He decided not to risk it again afterwards.

Serena was the first to reach the halfway checkpoint, and she couldn't help but feel a little excited. It was weird: she was actually having fun in this race. She was still in the lead, but whenever they managed to reach a straight line, Ash had a chance to catch up slowly but surely, and he had almost made it a couple of times. The Kalosian couldn't help but smile: she had actually thought of going easy on him at first, but there was no need. He was doing pretty well for his first time. But she couldn't let him beat her easily.

'That's weird. Did Ash's competitiveness rub off on me?' Not that she would mind, of course.

They were approaching one of the last turns before the last leg of the track. It passed a nearby zone full of thick bushes and trees, giving a very nice shade to rest, or perfect to hide for an ambush. Surely enough, someone was there, watching the racers through a pair of binoculars as they closed in.

"Here he comes."

One stone and one slingshot was all he needed. Those Rhyhorn were very sensitive when taken by surprise and could easily go berserk with a single well-aimed hit. And the best part, with Ash so close to the lead, he was a much easier target. The bushes were perfect for cover: they wouldn't see it coming, and neither could they spot him in that place. With no witnesses, as far as he was concerned, nobody could blame him for this. It was nothing personal: he just was delivering fair retribution for that loss.

"How do you like this for kicks, Ashy-boy?" He smiled wickedly as he let go of the stone. The kid was finally going to pay.

CLACK!

"RHAAAA!" And with that sudden roar, chaos broke loose. That small stone was enough to get Ash's Rhyhorn to stop dead in its tracks.

"HEY!" Ash yelped. "Whoa! Easy! Easy Rhyhorn!"

Ash tried to pull the ropes and regain control of his Rhyhorn, but just then, another coming in accidentally rammed him on the rear, causing it to run off the track, actually breaking the containment fences.

"Pull back, pull back!" One of the aides supervising the race caught wind and tried to stop the other racers to prevent further damage, and immediately took his walkie-talkie to inform the rest. "Everyone, we've got a situation here!"

Meanwhile, Serena could almost see the finish line ahead, but upon looking to her left side, she noticed that one of the other Rhyhorn had gone off the track for some reason. At first she didn't pay any mind, but upon getting close enough, she could see who its rider was, as he tried to regain control, while the Pokémon just crushed anything in its path without stopping.

"Ash!"

Pulling back the ropes, she turned around and directed her Rhyhorn towards Ash, leaving the race completely out of her mind. Her only concern now was that her friend was in trouble and she had to do something. Ash's Rhyhorn didn't follow his orders anymore, it just wailed, kicked and jumped around wilder than a Tauros in a rodeo. Serena had to keep her distance when it almost attacked her and her own Rhyhorn.

"Ash, what's going on?!"

"I don't know! It just suddenly went mad!" the boy replied, still holding for his life.

Serena then froze. She was already there, the question was: what was she supposed to do now? Ash couldn't just jump off of his Rhyhorn to try and get on hers, and while it was still rampaging, it could easily attack and hurt someone, including them. How could she stop it?

The answer to that came to her when Ash's Rhyhorn finally stopped jumping around and finally chose to run off towards a destination: the outer fence in the finish line, full of seats with spectators watching the race. As much as she hated this sport, her knowledge and experience on it could make the difference. Using the same tricks she had been teaching Ash before, she managed to take a bit of distance and pushed her Rhyhorn as fast as it could.

"I never thought I'd say it, but I'm glad Mom taught me this. GO!"

This was a trick banned in professional and amateur Rhyhorn racing, but since she technically wasn't on the race anymore, it didn't matter. It was basically an enhanced version of the turning trick she had taught Ash before, except that it could be used in straight lines: basically a chain of those mini-jumps (in a smaller angle) for an extra boost. It had been discovered during Grace's time as a rookie, but since many racers began to abuse it to cut off time, the rules were modified to regulate and eventually ban it altogether, due to being perceived as cheating. However, it enabled her to save a bit of distance and time, and catch up. There was no other way: she had to ram into Ash's Rhyhorn to stop it.

"Everyone, get out of the way!" Ash yelled, unable to stop his Rhyhorn. The crowd began running for their lives, not wanting to get hit by a raging stone rhino as it started to literally demolish their seats.

"Ash, get off of your Rhyhorn, I'm coming!" He heard Serena from the side, and the next thing he knew…

SMASH! CRAAAAASH!

Just as soon as the danger had come, it was gone. Serena managed to direct her own Rhyhorn to blindside Ash's. The aspiring trainer, unsure but hoping for the best, jumped off of his mount right when Serena came up and had her own Rhyhorn to knock it away with a powerful ramming attack. Ash's Rhyhorn fell on its back, unable or unwilling to get back up again on its own.

"Ash!" Serena quickly got off to check on him. "Are you alright?"

The trainer looked and touched himself just to be sure. "I think I didn't break anything, I'm fine."

But he wouldn't be fine for long. Of course, once the danger was over, people would gather around the place looking for answers. The other racers, the crowd, and worst of all, Professor Oak. Ash gulped: he knew he was in trouble. Big trouble.

"What happened here?" The scientist took a glance at the damage. It hadn't been small: aside from the containment fences, Ash's Rhyhorn had all but destroyed the seats; fortunately no one had been hurt and the aides were administering a sedative to finally calm it down.

"Looks like one of the racers lost control of his Rhyhorn." The aide who answered immediately looked at Ash. Oak followed his eyes and couldn't believe it was him. How could this happen? Still with a glint of hope, he dared asking the question, even while dreading the answer.

"Ash, was it you?"

The boy let out a sigh. "Yes, Professor. My Rhyhorn did all this. I lost control."

"Ash, were you paying attention while they explained the safety regulations? Look around." Oak gestured at the damage his Rhyhorn had made on its rampage. "You could have hurt someone, or yourself."

"I swear Professor, I don't know what happened," Ash said in full sincerity. "My Rhyhorn suddenly stopped, and when another of the racers rammed it from behind it went wild. I just couldn't control it."

Oak looked into Ash's eyes. He had known the boy for years, and he could tell when he lied (not that Ash would do that, unless it was for a very good reason). He had seen a lot of potential in him, and wanted to do everything in his power to help him in his path of becoming a Pokémon trainer. Oak believed him, or at least, wanted to believe him. The scientist looked at one of his aides, who just replied shaking his head. That said it all.

"I'm afraid you'll have to face disciplinary actions. In the worst case, you could be expelled for endangering the other campers," Oak said forlornly.

"What?!" Ash's eyes went wide, and his jaw almost dropped to the floor.

"I'm really sorry, but those are the rules. Any camper who puts himself or others in harm's way has to be removed immediately."

Ash couldn't believe it. He was going to be expelled. He was about to lose his chance to get a Pokédex and a starter from Professor Oak. His hopes… his dreams… they were suddenly becoming more distant. The worst part, Oak's voice sounded like he knew something was wrong, but since the rest of his aides didn't buy it he was outvoted and had to play by the rules.

He gestured at Ash to accompany him. "Come to my office, we need to talk to your mother."

"Wait!"

Everyone was surprised as they turned towards Serena, especially Ash. The kalosian girl couldn't stand there: she knew it wasn't Ash's fault. He didn't deserve to be expelled and lose that chance to work for his dream. A wonderful dream, she wouldn't forgive herself if he lost it. She had to do something, and she hoped this would do.

"Professor Oak, if… if anyone has to pay for this incident, that's…" She stopped stuttering, her voice becoming firmer. "That's me."

"What? Serena, you didn't…" Ash wanted to protest, but Serena raised a hand and continued.

"Before the race, I… I gave Ash some advice." She was thinking on her feet, but couldn't stop now, so she continued. "You see, my mom is a Rhyhorn racer, so I know a lot of it, and I gave Ash some… intermediate level tips. I thought perhaps it could help him, but I was wrong, he… he wasn't ready for that. I'm sorry, anything he did was only because I told him to. This incident was… was my fault, not Ash's. Please don't expel him."

Ash was left speechless. What was she talking about? All she had done was teaching him the basics and a couple tricks, nothing more. Why was she doing that?

The boy wasn't the only one who was puzzled: Oak and his aides exchanged looks amongst each other, trying to decide what to do. Serena held her hand on her chest, trying to calm down her own heartbeat, and praying that the scientist would buy her story. Anything so Ash wouldn't be expelled.

"What do we do, Professor?"

Oak thought about it, then sighed. "Very well, young lady. You come to my office. Ash, you can go rest for today."

Serena had to hold back her joy when Oak bought it. Oak and the aides left the track with Serena in tow, while Ash and the rest of the onlookers just stayed there, some of them baffled at the exchange, others minding their own business and not paying attention. Ash just went and sat down, wondering what he could do, and what was going to happen to Serena.

Unbeknownst to him, a pair of eyes didn't seem very happy with the result of this exchange. His target had just escaped by the skin of his teeth, clean from his revenge. But then again, that stupid and useless girl had been a major factor in the loss of the baseball match, so he guessed it wasn't too bad of a consolation prize to get her expelled instead. At least he wouldn't have her around as a reminder anymore. It would almost be touching. Almost, if it wasn't so laughable.

Later…

The sun was setting behind the hills surrounding Pallet Town. Mother and daughter were almost ready to return home: they'd stay at Grace's hotel for the night and take their flight to Kalos in the morning. All that was left was to say their farewells.

"I still can't believe you're doing this."

"Well, I was the one complaining of being here." Serena tried to force a smile. "Guess I just got my wish."

"This shouldn't be happening. We both know this wasn't your fault," Ash said firmly.

"Neither was it yours," Serena replied in the same tone. "Ash, you have to keep going. This camp is really important to you, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but…"

"Ash, Ash." Serena raised her hands to get him to stop. "Please listen to me. You have a dream, a wonderful dream. If this can help you achieve it, I have no regrets."

Ash wanted to keep protesting, but he couldn't think of anything else. As grateful as he was to Serena for preventing his expulsion from the camp, the way she took the fall, only to help him… it still wasn't fair. Was there anything he could do?

"I just… I wish I could repay you this somehow. I mean… I'm grateful that you're doing this for me, and…"

"Ash, when I arrived here, I was really angry. I just wanted to get away from everything and everyone. But thanks to you… I really enjoyed my time here, short as it was. Coming here was worth it, just because I had the chance to meet you. That's more than enough for me."

She smiled at him warmly. It was so weird, they had known each other for little more than half a month, but they almost felt like they had been friends for years. Plus, it was so nice of her to do this for him, only to give him a chance to get closer to his dream, expecting nothing in return. But he wouldn't have it, he had to do something for her. She could see it in his eyes. Just as much as she had grown to like his kindness, she had grown to admire his determination, so she had to give him a little push to help him regain it and not to let himself get down for this.

"Look, if you really want to repay me, continue this camp until the very end, and no matter what happens, you pass that test. Do it for me too, alright? Promise?"

She placed her hand on her chest, a gesture that she wanted to make that promise a serious one. Ash being Ash, there was no way he could refuse that: once he made a promise, either to himself or someone else, he'd see it fulfilled, even if it took him a lifetime. Serena had given him a chance to continue chasing after his dream, and not taking it now would be the worst gesture of ungratefulness ever. His eyes once again regaining their spark of determination, he placed his own hand on his chest too.

"Promise. I'll pass that test for sure. For both of us," he finally said, letting out a smile himself.

"Serena, we're ready to go!" Grace called her.

"I'm coming, Mom!" she replied in annoyance. "Sorry. Before I leave, could I ask you for one more thing?"

"Sure, anything."

Serena pulled out a small piece of paper from her pocket. "This is our home address in Kalos. Perhaps we won't see each other for a long time, but… it would be nice if you could write to me every once in a while."

"Wouldn't it be faster using e-mail, or Facebook?" Ash asked a little bluntly. Serena rolled her eyes and pouted.

"Mom won't let me," she confessed. "This is the only way to keep in touch, would it be OK?"

"If that makes you happy, then yeah, why not? Never had a pen pal before."

"Great. Well, that's it, we have to go now. Please say goodbye to Elwood and Aideen for me too. Nice meeting you, Ash."

"Yeah, same here. Hope we can meet again in the future."

With one last smile Serena finally separated from Ash, and turned around to walk towards her mother.

As they walked through the road, Grace looked at Serena's demeanor. While mixed with a bit of sadness, the woman could see that her daughter at least seemed a little happier than when she first came. In fact, she guessed (correctly) that her apparent melancholy stemmed from having to leave early, and the black-haired teenager had something to do with it. Looking over her shoulder, Grace saw he was still there, looking in their direction, and waving them goodbye. Perhaps he would wait until they were out of sight to leave home.

"So… was the camp really as bad as you thought?" Grace asked after a very long silence. Serena looked at her mother, and waited a few seconds before answering.

"No, I guess it wasn't," she admitted. "Mom… I want to say… I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?"

"For the things… well, some of the things I said before," Serena replied. "I admit… I did have fun during the camp."

"What did I tell you?" Grace said with a smile. Anytime she managed to get Serena to agree with her on something was a personal triumph to her. "Still, I want you to tell me the truth. The Rhyhorn race incident… was it really your fault?"

"Does it matter?" Serena replied.

For once, this answer didn't sound defiant. Her expression gave her away, and that was all Grace needed.

"It was the right thing," Serena continued. "He has a dream, and if I can help him attain it... then it's worth it. Also… I hope I can find a dream of my own someday, like him."

Grace looked behind again. She could barely see him, but Ash was still there. No need to hurry, they could still enjoy the walk while they lasted. Serena perhaps hadn't noticed, but if she wanted a dream of her own… that boy over there didn't seem like a bad starting point. He was really nice, and given perhaps three or four more years, he would grow into a very handsome young man. There was a reason she suggested Serena to give him their home address so they could exchange mail and keep in touch, and even though she didn't admit it out loud, in the end she did it. Plus, the fact of her apologizing for their argument when she arrived at the camp was a first. Never ever Serena had said she was sorry for something like that. Maybe it was a sign of their relationship improving? She'd have to thank Ash one day, should it come to that.

"Are you planning on writing him as soon as we're back home?"

"Of course," Serena replied.

"Well, you'll have plenty of time to do so, in-between practices."

"Practices for what?"

"Isn't it obvious? It's time for us to go the advance levels in Rhyhorn Racing!"

"Mom!"

Seemingly, there were still some things to smooth.

Final day of the camp…

Well, that was it. The final stage of Oak's Pokémon Training Summer Camp. All of the attendants who had made it through the hard yet exciting challenges during that month, were called out to Oak's Lab, ready to undergo the final test.

As he took his seat, Ash couldn't help but feel a little lonely, when gazing at the empty chair next to him. While he had never been a person of books and written exams (he preferred hands-on experience on things), this particular test was the rare exception, as it meant the key to his future, to his hopes and dreams. So of course when he first arrived, he was really excited about taking it. But now… he wasn't so sure.

His thoughts drifted around, and they eventually landed on a certain someone. Specifically, a certain Kalosian girl. By this time, she probably had arrived back at her home region. He had to admit, he had taken a liking to her during their brief time together; she was a very nice and sweet girl. At first she didn't seem very happy about being in the camp, and she made it clear, but after some days… he noticed the change in her demeanor. She seemed a lot more cheerful, and opened up to him rather easily. To think it all happened just because he went after her and helped her.

He was still a little sad that she had taken the blame for that Rhyhorn race incident, so he could continue in the camp. Ash wished he could have done something for her, but since she seemed happy just with the thought of the two becoming pen pals, he didn't press any further. The least he could do now was keeping his promise and passing the test for the two of them.

Absently looking around the classroom, he spotted some familiar faces around. Gary was sitting on the first row, looking even more confident than usual (if that was possible). A couple of places to his left (the desks were placed at a reasonable distance from one another, so as to prevent communication between people), Elwood and Aideen seemed to be wishing one another good luck on this test. Lastly, on the farthest right corner next to the window, that kid, Joshua, seemed to be scowling when he noticed Ash looking in his direction. Was he still bitter that Ash beat him on the baseball match? However, his thoughts were interrupted when the door opened, making way for Professor Oak, who was carrying a large stack of paper sheets, and a couple of his aides.

"Good morning, everyone. First of all, I'd like to say that I'm very pleased that many of you have made it through this camp. It's the largest number of applicants we've had in many a year, and with the average results so far, I'm certain that many, or hopefully all of you, have the potential to become fine Pokémon trainers. However, for the final test, and the real prize many of you came here for, you have one more stage to clear."

Oak took a few of the papers from the stack, and handed them to the girl who was closest to him on the front row. She kept a six-sheet set and passed over the rest to the one sitting behind her, and they continued, as the scientist kept talking.

"The rules for this test are as follows. There will be 151 different questions for each of you, each covering a particular toping about Pokémon and basic knowledge you should have to become trainers. An average score of 70% can land you guys a Pokémon trainer license just about anywhere. However, for you to be considered for a Starter Pokémon directly from my laboratory, and a Pokédex, you'll need a score of at least 90%."

Ash received the sheet set with his exam. The time had come. Oak continued, with a slightly sterner voice.

"Despite the security measure of keeping your desks at a distance, I'd like to let you guys know that there are six different sets of questions, and each of you will be given one at random for increased difficulty, and to prevent communication between applicants. Anyone who gets caught cheating, either by talking to another, or using a device to get the answers, such as a smartphone or a tablet, will be immediately disqualified and removed from the premises, and will be permanently banned from getting a trainer license from me. You have all been warned."

There were a few growls around the applicants, but they had no choice. Everyone who had one of said devices would have to either turn it off or pocket it somewhere out of reach, so as to not to have access to it. Ash, of course, didn't have one on himself, so at least on that part, he was clean. Meanwhile, Oak placed a timer on his desk, set for two hours.

"Last thing I can say is, good luck to all of you. Ready? Start!"

And with the push of the button the test finally began. Ash and everyone else quickly grabbed their pencils. At first glance, Ash saw that there were around 30 questions per sheet, and of different challenges, including multiple choice, true-false and completion.

Lickitung's tongue is twice as long as its body: True or False?

Ash was quite certain that it was true, so he marked it as so. Next question.

Which of the following Pokémon doesn't need a Stone to evolve: A) Poliwhirl. B) Vulpix. C) Pidgey. D) Gloom.

Can I use a lifeline? Ash jokingly thought. Easy enough, everybody knew that Pidgey evolves through experience. The exact level, however, he couldn't remember at the time, somewhere around 16-18.

Name three moves Magikarp can learn.

'Like they could learn anymore.' On their own, at least. Splash was the given, of course. Tackle and… there was that time he fished one out of the river and it went using Flail right on his face. And Gary wouldn't let him forget it.

The first ten or so questions were quite easy, Ash wondered if they did it on purpose so as to encourage the applicants a little and get them into it without them getting tense or nervous. Almost reaching the end of the first page, Ash found some berry-related questions:

Mark which of the following berries CANNOT cure status ailments:

– Cheri. – Chesto. – Pecha. – Rawst. – Aspear. – Leppa. – Oran. – Persim. – Lum. – Sitrus.

Hmm… tricky one. Ash was sure that the first five cured a different ailment each, so they were all out. Out of the five remaining ones, Oran was capable of restoring health, but not ailments, thus he marked that one. Sitrus too, in a higher capacity than Oran, but the others… he couldn't quite remember, there had to be at least one more. He skipped the question for the time being, he'd try again later.

First rule of Pokémon Battling. Ten words or more.

This was more of a personal reasoning question. The exam didn't just evaluate knowledge, it also had its bits of personal character testing. In Ash's opinion, the first rule of Pokémon battling would be "each trainer has to fight the other fair and square." Ten words spot on. That should be enough.

Peeking through the corner of his eye, he could see Gary was smiling confidently. Arrogant as he was, Ash wouldn't deny that Gary had as much book as streets smarts, and he wouldn't be surprised if he did manage to score a full 100%. Lucky him. At the other side, the twins were having their own reactions: Elwood was calm and collected, while Aideen tapped her temple with her pencil, frowning slightly. For a little fun, Ash decided to skip to the last sheet and see if the hardest questions were over there. Nobody said they had to answer the questions in numerical order, did they?

Porygon is able to learn Safeguard: True or False?

They got him there. Porygon was a Pokémon of which he knew next to nothing. At random, he chose true, and checked the others.

On average, which is the max running speed of Rhyhorn?

Rhyhorn… he had seen plenty of those during the camp, namely during the Rhyhorn race event. He would have enjoyed it if it wasn't for that… accident, whatever might have caused it. But then, a certain line clicked in his head:

"The average Rhyhorn usually doesn't go faster than 36 miles, but my mom once managed to get hers to run at 42 miles."

'Serena. You saved me on this one.' He mentally made a note of thanking Serena on the first letter he sent her, once she had returned to Kalos.

It seemed he was in the right, several of the questions here were quite hard, such as describing in full the appeal and effect of a certain move. Some of those he had seen, and some others he had not. Still, a couple more of Rhyhorn-related questions were easily answered thanks to the pointers Serena had given him. In a way, even if she wasn't there physically, she was still in spirit, helping him.

Forty-five minutes in, Ash had answered sixty questions. Out of those, he knew for certain that at least fifty-eight were right. He had decided to tackle first the true-false and choice ones, those ones seemed easier, or at least were quicker to answer. Every now and then, Professor Oak and his aides walked around the room, their eyes opened and sharp for any potential cheaters. He was focusing his thoughts, completely ignoring everything else around him, until…

"What is that?" One of Professor Oak's aides blared up. Everyone immediately turned around. The aide was standing next to the Joshua kid at the corner next to the window.

"What's the matter?" the kid said. "Can't I do my test in peace?"

"Sorry, I thought I saw something."

That was the aide's response, however, after they went back, he whispered something to Oak's ear. The scientist replied with a nod, and Ash couldn't help but notice that now his eyes were set on the kid sitting by the corner. Had they spotted something on him?

'Focus, keep your thoughts on the test.' Ash turned his attention back to his task at hand, he couldn't care less what the others were doing.

However, it took less than ten more minutes for the peace and quiet of the classroom to be broken again. Professor Oak walked around the room once again, discreetly approaching the corner where the Joshua kid was sitting. Despite his age, Oak's eyes were as sharp as they were in his youth, and if this kid thought he could slip it through him and get away with it, he was DEAD wrong. Without warning, he quickly grabbed the kid's left hand (which was hidden under his desk at the time).

"Hey!" The kid yelped when Oak suddenly jumped him, everyone quickly turning their attention towards them.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Oak had snatched a smartphone right from the kid's hand. Very small, and relatively easy to hide, but not that easy, it seemed. "I thought I had been clear on the rules for this exam?"

"It's not what it looks like! I swear, I wasn't cheating!" the boy yelled in desperation, blatantly and pathetically trying to deny the obvious. The screen showed that he clearly was using a browser to search for the answers.

"My assistant here said he thought he had seen something off with you, looks like he was right." Oak grabbed the kid's unfinished exam, and read the name aloud for everyone else to hear. "Mr. Joshua Martin, as you have been caught breaking regulations in my Pokémon Trainer Exam, thus you are to be removed from the premises, and banned from getting a trainer license in my laboratory, ever again."

"What?! You can't do that!" the cheater protested.

"The rules are clear, my boy. I'm really sorry I have to do this, but I do not appreciate people who try to cheat their way." Oak turned to one of his aides. "Please escort him out of the laboratory, and call his guardians to let them know this happened."

"Yes, Professor. Come on, kid." The aide gestured for the kid to get up from his seat, but he refused. Having no other choice, he had to grab the kid and remove him forcibly.

"NO FAIR! LET GO OF ME! I SWEAR! YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS! THIS IS NOT FAIR!"

The aide had to literally drag the kid, who started kicking around and wailing all the way to the classroom door, and even after finally getting him out, his yelling and cursing could still be heard inside from the hallway. The reactions were mixed, some of them laughed at the kid's tantrum, while others felt sorry or angry at him for trying to cheat. Ash didn't even know what to make of it, but he was sure about something: if he tried to cheat, he clearly wasn't nearly as good as he made himself out to be. His punishment was well-deserved. Just like Professor Oak, Ash hated cheating, either on himself or on others. That kid's only achievement was having wasted a few precious minutes of Oak's time, and everyone else's.

Fortunately, there were no more incidents like that; the Joshua kid was the only one foolish enough to think he could cheat in front of Oak and get away with it. Everyone else resumed their tests, and the rest of the exam continued quietly. Gary was (unsurprisingly for Ash) the first to finish, still with about 27 minutes to spare. Lucky him. Oak's grandson seemed as happy as if he had won a marathon, and still took a couple of seconds to gaze towards Ash, clearly saying 'beat you again, Ashy-boy'. Ash just rolled his eyes and shrugged, going back to his test. Even after finishing, he took a few minutes to double-check the answers one more time, before handing it over to Oak.

"All done, Professor."

"Alright, Ash." Oak took the sheet set. "I have high expectations with you, please don't let me down."

"I hope I won't." Ash smiled. "Do you mind if I sit over there, close to the window?"

He pointed at the desk formerly occupied by the Joshua kid, now empty, since it was closer to the window. Oak saw no problem with it, he was done with the exam, so as long as he didn't cause any disruption (and Oak knew he wouldn't), he was fine with it.

Ash went and sat over there, gazing at the sky through the window. It was a clear blue, a great day to be outside, and he was stuck inside for a few more minutes. As he gazed at the clouds, his thoughts drifted once again towards Serena. Had she already returned home? Wherever she was, he only hoped that she and her mom were well.

He had done everything in his power, the rest was now in the hands of destiny. Hopefully, he'd done good enough to meet Oak's standards.

A couple weeks later…

That morning, Ash was woken up by a pecking sound on his window. He tried to cover his ears with the pillow and ignore it, but it was very persistent. It wasn't the first time, but he still had a small hope that, someday, it would finally get the message and come back a little later. But that day wasn't today, and he finally gave in and had to respond.

"Alright, alright, here I come," he said, as he got off of his bed.

Walking towards the window, he saw there was a small Pidgey pecking on the glass and flapping its wings, clearly trying to get his attention. Ash didn't receive 'traditional mail' very often, but for some reason, he had the feeling that the Pallet Post Office would always send the same bird to his home whenever there was a parcel for him or Delia. It was always the same, at this very hour, making the noise on his room's window to wake him up.

Fortunately, it didn't go any further than that. The routine was always the same: he would open the window, and the bird would step in with its small bag to deliver the parcel. Ash would then give it a little snack for its hard work, and a few coins as a tip for the workers at the Post Office. As the bird flew off the window again, Ash had to admit that, at the very least, it was very dedicated to its work, and he could admire that. He just wished he didn't come so early to wake him up.

Since it was too early to wake Delia up, Ash decided to take a look at the parcel, just an envelope. He was quite surprised when he saw the sender's address, the very same one Serena had left him before she and Grace left. If his estimation was correct, she might have written it just as soon as she arrived back in Vaniville. He opened it up and began reading it silently.

"Dear Ash:

How are you? Mom was ready to show off her winner's trophy, although most of our friends and neighbors have left on their own vacations, so there aren't many people to talk to right now. I'm feeling a little lonely, to be honest.

You have no idea on how much Mom pressured me to tell her what happened during that incident. I really tried, but I'm sorry, I finally caved. I thought that maybe after that she would stop pushing me into Rhyhorn Racing. I really was wrong, now she wants me to go into the advanced levels! Just for that, I'm not letting her see my letters to you, I swear.

Anyway, by the time you receive this letter, the camp must be over. How did you do on the final test? I'm sure you did well, no matter what. And even if that weren't the case, I'm certain you would find another way. Remember what you told me: 'Never give up until the very end'.

Please send me your reply with the enclosed stamp I left at the bottom of this letter. That way, I will know it's you.

Always your friend, Serena."

At the bottom of the letter, there was a stamp with the picture of a yellow electric rodent, Pikachu. Ash wondered why she chose that one in particular, but for some reason, he thought it looked nice. He immediately went to get a pen and paper, ready to write his reply.

He was happy that his new friend had returned home safely. Hopefully, he'd like to meet her again in a near future. Who knew, once he became a Pokémon trainer, after he had journeyed through Kanto, he'd definitely try his luck on other regions, and Kalos would be no exception.

FIN.