Disclaimer: I do not own, nor will I ever own Pokémon.

Chapter 10

Ash's P.O.V.

The following morning was quite confusing for Clemont who couldn't work out why he was tied to his bed with his backpack on his stomach and an oil rag next to his head.

Actually, he had screamed when he woke up, loud enough that the other's woke up and I snapped out of my meditation. Needless to say, three people fell from height that morning. I fell from my rafter, Bonnie fell out of bed and would have landed on her broken arm if Serena hadn't managed to catch her using psychic powers to catch her, and Gary had bolted upright, hit his head, and rolled of the edge of his bed, ending up face down on the hard timber floor.

"Are we in agreement to never again allow Clemont to eat or drink any form of sugar or caffeine?" Gary asks once he picks himself up off the floor.

"Yes," Serena, Bonnie, and I chimed together while Clemont just stared at us blankly.

"We all swore not to speak of what happened last night ever again. It was traumatising. Be grateful that you don't remember it," I tell Clemont.

"Can someone help me get up, please?" Clemont asked.

"Sure thing, Clemont," Serena said as she got up and went to help Clemont out of his bindings. Once Clemont was untied, he went to stand up, and promptly fell down, thankfully not hitting his head on something hard on the way down. Apparently, he had hit his head on the edge of the bed above him as he stood up.

"Clemont, I thought you were meant to be smart. You just hit your head on something right in front of you," Gary teased.

"Yeah, wasn't my smartest idea, that's for sure," Clemont moans.

"Greninja, use ice beam on the floor," I say as I let out my trusted partner. He uses a small ice beam and I pick up the chunk of ice and put it against Clemont's head.

"Keep this on it, it should help keep the swelling down," I tell him.

"Thanks, Ash," Clemont says as he holds the ice there. The rest of us get ready for the day and waited until Clemont had gotten himself ready before heading to the breakfast hall. The moment we walked in, there were a lot of snickers and younger campers covering their eyes or hitting their heads on the table.

"Serena, what happened last night? I mean, I don't mind seeing Clemont in that state of undress, but that was not what I had in mind," Shauna asked me as she sat down at our table, right next to Clemont, causing Clemont to go stiff and blush completely red.

"We agreed not to discuss it, but a word of warning, don't give Clemont sugar or caffeine, it does not do any good," Serena replied with a sigh.

"That may be something I need to keep a note of," Shauna stated with a giggle.

"Shauna!" Serena gasped.

"Well it's true!" Shauna states before grabbing the chunk of ice off of Clemont and holding it in place for him.

"Thanks Shauna," Clemont mutters. Silence ensues for a few blissful moments as everyone shovels food into their mouths with various levels of grace (Serena using her psychic powers didn't let a single crumb land astray, while on the opposite end of the spectrum, Bonnie probably needed another shower thanks to the copious amounts of food that she now wore). Eventually, Professor Sycamore walks up onto stage.

"Good Morning campers! Today is the second last day of camp, and unfortunately, tomorrow's activity consists of announcing the winners and taking photos, cleaning up camp, and those sorts of things. Today however, we have a multi-battle tournament. Three trainers from each cabin will battle alongside each other as a team. These teams will then battle against each other in a tournament style format. The last two teams standing will face each other and take first and second place respectively. The teams they faced before hand will also face each other to fight for third place. Now, head to your cabins to get your strategies ready. Be ready to fight in half an hour," Professor Sycamore announces.

"Let's GO!" Bonnie exclaims before running off ahead of us.

"Bonnie, I think you should go and have a shower while the rest of us talk," I call out after her. Serena and Gary nod in agreement and Clemont just moans from the loud noise (his head was still sore from hitting his head).

"Okay! I'll have my shower!" Bonnie calls back and I just chuckle. The rest of us continue on our way to the cabin and once there we sit down in the booth in the corner.

"Alright, so who should battle?" Gary asks.

" I don't think I should. My brothers are too strong for a competition like this. I'm not being arrogant, just honest. I have no doubt the trainers here are strong, but I don't think it would be fair for them to have to fight against me," I say.

"Understandable. From what I've seen, your Pokémon are on a level unlike any other that I've ever seen. It is almost like they have absorbed the power of a legendry Pokémon and have maximised its power," Clemont says. "Like a regular circuit being hit with lightning and being able to use its power, it creates something on a completely unknown and unseen. Such power should not be played with for trivial activities," Clemont says, taking the ice off his head.

"So, we're in agreement, Ash shouldn't fight in this activity. That just leaves us three since Bonnie isn't a trainer yet. Next we need to decide what strategy we're going to use," Gary comments. "Any suggestions?"

"Well, Umbreon is the strongest of our Pokémon, so I think she should be in the centre, able to attack all opponents," Serena suggests.

"In that case, Fenekin and Bunnelby will be good to cover Umbreon," I state.

"That makes a lot of sense. As for combining moves, both Umbreon and Bunnelby can use dig, so having them use it at the same time would greatly confuse opponents. Then there could be a shadow ball, hidden power, and mud bomb combination," Gary suggests.

"I'm working on teaching Bunnelby wild charge, but it is coming along slowly. We can get a slight electrical pulse to cover his fur though," Clemont adds.

"I wouldn't rely on that. If it is still being trained it wouldn't be an incredibly smart idea to use it in the incorrect way. Of course, using it in conjunction with tackle would give you an upper hand and the element of surprise, but it would only work the once," I offer.

"He's right. If we need to use it, we'll save it for the finals, when we get there," Gary adds.

"I guess that makes sense. Is there anything else that we can use to our advantage though?" Clemont asks.

"Well, I could use my psychic powers a create a psychic bond between us and our Pokémon, that way our opponents won't know what we're doing," Serena suggests.

"I don't think that is the best idea, Serena. Psychic bonds are difficult to maintain, especially if it is your first psychic bond. The process the two of us have been using is different to a psychic bond, it is more of a projection of thoughts directly into someone else's mind. Psychic bonds are a free-flowing passage and it drains the user heavily while in place. While it is good to be confident, being overly confident can only set you back," I tell my girlfriend.

"I, didn't realise there is a difference between the two," Serena admits.

"Most don't actually. For most psychics, they use telepathy and psychic bonds interchangeably. This is especially true among those self-taught or taught by someone who gives them the false information either purposefully or accidentally. When working with powers, the self-taught are among the most volatile, and, more often than not, easily lose control. That's why it is important to get a teacher when the powers are just awakening, there have been cases of people who have killed family members from losing control," I warn.

"Then it is a good thing I have you to teach me and stop me from making mistakes," Serena replies, leaning over the table and kissing me.

"Ew! Stop! No PDA!" Gary protests childishly making Serena and I chuckle at that.

"You sound just like a child," Serena comments.

"So, watching you two suck each other's face off is disgusting," Gary replies. I lean over to Gary.

"I bet you would find it pleasurable if it was you and Misty doing the 'face-sucking'," I whispered into his ear, making him go bright red and start spluttering.

After that, it didn't take too long to get the rest of the plans sorted out, and I had decided that on top of teaching Serena how to use psychic powers, I needed start helping her Pokémon to learn how to control their own psychic powers.

As we walked towards the stadium that had been put up, I started musing over some different ways to teach Serena, Gary, and Bonnie more about their powers.

Not all the battles were spectacular, as members of one side either wouldn't or couldn't work together, while other battles were marvellous displays of teamwork and power. One of those battles was Team Vivillon vs Team Froakie Semi Final. Team Vivillon was obviously used to working together in aerial battles, but Team Froakie was using burrowing tactics to confuse and attack their opponents.

It ended with Serena and Gary combining their Hidden Power and Shadow Ball respectively to knock out their opponents after Bunnelby had grounded them with mud bomb.

"That was awesome!" Bonnie exclaimed from next to me.

"Indeed. Team Vivillon seems to have experience in working together in aerial battles. However, they still made mistakes, just like everyone," I tell her.

"You NEVER make mistakes though," she comments innocently. I sigh.

"Oh, how I wish those words were true, Bonnie, but even I make mistakes," I tell her. She turns to me with a questioning look on her face, but I wave it away, making it clear that I wasn't going to comment on it.

"We made it to the final round!" Serena squeals as she takes her seat next to me.

"Not so loud next to my ear," I say jokingly while rubbing my ear. Serena laughs at this and Gary shakes his head in his hand.

"You two are so disgusting and cheesy," he complains.

"I bet that you're like this with your girlfriend," Serena fires back. Bonnie giggles at this.

"Gary, I think your pants are on fire from that burn," she tells him with a cheeky grin on her face.

"Hardy har har," Gary says while rolling his eyes.

"Come on, let's go get all of your Pokémon healed. It wouldn't be good for you to go into a battle with tired partners," I suggest.

Gary points at me. "Yes, listen to him, he has a good idea! Now we can stop mocking me!" Gary states all too eagerly.

"If that's how it's going to be, then why don't I tell them why my nickname for you is 'Gare-Bare'?" I tease.

"NO!" Gary protests. "If you tell them that story, then I will tell about the time you almost got eaten by a Gyarados because you wanted to 'catch' it!"

"By all means. In fact, I'll tell it myself. So, I was six years old and had decided, 'I'm going to be a Pokémon Master. To be a Pokémon Master, I need strong Pokémon. There are strong Pokémon at the lake, like the Gyarados. I'm going to catch Gyarados'. So, I snuck out of the house and went to the lake just inside the forest near Pallet town. I fell into the lake, and saw Gyarados right in front of me. I got scared and tried to swim to the shore, but kicked Gyarados in the head accidentally. This didn't end all that well for me as Gyarados decided that I would make a wonderful meal. If it wasn't for professor Oak, I would have been eaten, but instead, I just chewed out by my mother," I recount without any shame. Bonnie giggles at my story, Clemont's mouth is handing open with his eyes buldging, Serena rolls her eyes, and Gary just flops onto the ground and groans.

"There is nothing I can do to stop you right now without digging my own grave, is there?" he asks.

"You are completely correct," I say WAY too chirpily.

"What did I do to deserve this?" Gary moaned.

"If you want to play with fire, Gary, you need to be ready to get burnt," I tell him, being cryptic on purpose.

"Why? I hate it when you're cryptic!" Gary whines.

"Want some cheese with that whine?" Serena asks in a very sweet voice.

"You guys are horrible," Gary states before walking off in front of us.

"I think we took it one comment too far," Clemont says nervously.

"Don't worry, Gary's a huge drama queen, and it takes more than that to get Gary truly upset," I say, especially since I had felt the feeling of joy coming from Gary's aura. He had enjoyed joking around as far as I could tell.

The four of us continued to the Pokémon Centre where Gary was waiting for us.

"You guys are so slow," he teases.

"Well, there is a winner in every race, we just thought we should let you be the winner for once," I say with a smirk.

"How rude! I am the great Gary Oak, no one can hope to beat me!" Gary claims dramatically.

"In your dreams!" Bonnie fires back while giggling.

"We need to do more of this stuff, really," Gary states, "Because I refuse to be outdone by this little magikarp."

"Magikarp evolve into Gyarados, so you're saying that once I grow a bit, I will be VERY strong, so thank you!" Bonnie says earnestly.

"Can't argue with that," Gary says with a shrug.

"So, you weren't upset by the joking?" Clemont asks.

"Nope. You guys are friends, so I know that it is all meant in fun. Besides, I missed not being able to joke around with Ash for thirteen years," Gary replies.

"I though Ash was only missing for ten years?" Serena asked.

"I was. However, about three years before Gary and I set out from Pallet ten years ago, there was an incident and we became rivals. We said a lot of hurtful things to each other during those three years, some of it being outright bullying on Gary's end. There were jabs at family, ability, grades, anything and everything we could think of to try and one-up each other. It wasn't pretty, especially when we got into physical fights since those would end with at least a few broken bones and a lot of lost blood. There was even one occasion when we both ended up in hospital. I won't say I'm proud of what we did back then, but that rivalry was one of the main reasons both of us wanted to become trainers, and look where we've gotten to," I explain. Serena and Clemont both wince while Bonnie just looks at them questioningly.

"I have to agree with Ash there. A lot of the things we did back then weren't exactly 'nice' and we did end up in hospital because of it. I'm not proud of what we did, but it is part of our past, it is part of what makes us who we are, but I won't let it define my future," Gary states with a shrug.

"I don't get it," Bonnie half asks.

"Don't worry about it Caterpie, you don't need to 'get it'," I tell her while ruffling her hair before I suggest we go and get our Pokémon a check-up like we had originally planned to. We decided to sit in the lobby of the Pokémon centre and go over our strategies for the finals while we were waiting for our Pokémon to be done with their check-up.

"How about Umbreon using Flash to confuse them and get them off beat, assuming that they will be using Tierno's rhythmic battle style, followed by a Hidden Power and Mud Bomb combo?" Gary suggests about two hours into the planning session.

"That sounds pretty good, but what if they are ready for Flash?" Clemont asks.

"Here's another option. If Bunnelby uses dig multiple times to create huge tunnel networks, when Flash is put into play, Umbreon can use Iron tail at the same time on the ground to cause a pseudo-earthquake and collapse the tunnels. That would then cause the ground to become extremely uneven on their side of the field but easily traversable on our side. That would make it easier for us to dodge incoming attacks and harder for them to dodge. Overall, it would give us a huge advantage going forward in the battle," I suggest.

"Going on from that, if Bunnelby makes it look like he's trying to hit them during the whole process of the digging the tunnels, then they won't be expecting it," Serena adds on.

"What about using Fennekin's Flamethrower and Umbreon's Shadow Ball to create a small explosion to give the flash enough time to be put into effect. NO! Even better idea! Bunnelby can use Mud Bomb to take out their vision, so the Flash is even MORE effective when they get the mud out of their eyes!" Bonnie suggests.

"Brilliant!" Gary exclaims. Clemont brings out a piece of paper and starts sketching out the plan.
"We should probably start out with Flamethrower to give Bunnelby cover. After that, random attacks to make it seem like we're disorganised may just work as a distraction. From there, we use Mud Bomb as a quick distraction for Flash and Iron Tail to swing the battle field to our advantage. From that, we move to the Hidden Power and Mud Bomb combo," Clemont says as he sketches everything out.

"After watching all the matches, it seems most likely that they will use Tierno's style, but will also use an instant KO like Solar Beam if they can buy Bulbasaur enough time," I chip in.

"So… all we have to do is stop Bulbasaur from charging Solar Beam?" Bonnie asks. I ruffle her hair.

"That sounds about right to me," I tell her.

"So, we have a plan?" Gary asks in confirmation. Everyone nods in reply. "Lets do this then."

We go pick up our Pokémon and in come Shauna, Trevor and Tierno.

"We're here to pick up our Pokémon, Nurse Joy," Trevor says.

"That's odd. I don't remember getting them," Nurse Joy replies.

"Something wrong?" Clemont asks Shauna.

"Yes, our Pokémon have gone missing. The three chefs told us that they had medical training and would give our Pokémon a check-up in the Pokémon centre and that they would give our Pokémon to Nurse Joy when they were done, but our Pokémon aren't here," Shauna says.

"Are you sure? How long ago did you give them your partners?" I ask.

"Hours ago. Right after your match, actually," Tierno informs us.

"That doesn't make sense. If they have had medical training then there is no way a check up should have taken so long," Gary muses.

While the others argued about what was happening, I cast my mind back and focused on the memories with the chefs. There were three of them, one with purple hair, one with magenta hair, and a short one with brown hair. Disguises? Maybe.

"What if they're Pokémon thieves?!" Shauna cried out worriedly. That was when it snapped into place.

"They're not chefs. Thinking back, they match three of the four team rocket members we've been running into lately. We have to move fast, hopefully they haven't gone too far," I say.

"Ash is right, we have to move fast. We'll split up into pairs. Hopefully we can find them before its too late," Gary backs me up.

"Who should go with who?" Tierno asks.

"We need to cover ground fast so Trevor and Clemont as the slowest two members search closest to camp in the forest. Gary and Tierno, you search up along the beach and into the forest from there. Serena and Shauna, you do the same down the beach. Bonnie and I will search the forest farthest from camp as the two fastest members. We have to find those Pokémon, fast," I say. The others nod and run to go search in those directions. I turn to Bonnie and crouch down.

"Climb onto my back. You look around from my back while keep running," I tell her.

"Okay," she replies before jumping on.

"Grab Charizard's Pokéball and let him out for me," I say. Bonnie does. and I tell Charizard to look from the air for team Rocket. "Hold on," I warn Bonnie before I start running.

After an hour of looking, it seemed like there was still nothing to be found.

"We are just going to stop for a few moments, so I can check with the others.

"Have you guys found them?" I project mentally to Clemont, Serena, and Gary.

"No, there's been no luck going down the beach, but Shauna and I are still looking," Serena replied while Clemont and Gary just sent a single 'no' down the connection.

"Any luck?" Bonnie asks.

"No, none so far, but we can't give up hope," I reply.

"Look! Charizard is signalling to us!" Bonnie yells. I wince from the close proximity to the sound and look up. Sure enough, there is Charizard, circling above us.

"Hold on tight," I warn before jumping straight up, using tree branches as leverage, to land on Charizard's back. "Alright brother, take us to the thieves," I ask Charizard. The wind whistles around us as Charizard races towards the Team Rocket members.

"There, that's them just up ahead!" Bonnie tells me while pointing.

"Bonnie, I'm going down there, but I need you to stay on Charizard and go find the others to tell them that I'm engaging with Team Rocket," I tell my student.

"Okay," she tells me before hugging me. "See you soon, I hope." The moment her arms aren't wrapped around my midsection, I jump down in front of the thieves.

"Now, where do you think you are going with those stolen Pokémon?" I ask in a dark tone.

"Oh, shoot, not this guy," the purple haired one groans.

"James! We can do this, we have hostage Pokémon this time!" The lady hisses at him. I decide that I'm not going to play around, and everything turns blue as I start using my psychic powers to throw them against a tree. Then the container they were holding the three stolen Pokémon in was ripped to shreds and they collapse from exhaustion. I turn my head back to the criminals and suddenly they are being thrown all over the small clearing like they were ragdolls.

By the time I'm done with them, I'm surprised that they aren't dead. Giovanni must provide some form of armour for his grunts.

"Gengar, come out," I say while releasing my ghostly brother from his Pokéball.

"Gen?" he asks.

"Take these three somewhere. I don't care where, just so long as it isn't Kalos, Kanto, or Johto," I tell him while pointing to the members of Team Rocket. My brother nods and pulls them into his highway of shadows. Carefully, I bend down to pick up the three exhausted Pokémon and run fast enough to turn water into steam back to camp.

"Nurse Joy! These three Pokémon need urgent medical attention!" I say as I burst into the Pokémon centre.

"Oh dear, they do not look like they are in any form of good condition," the nurse replies and she takes them from me before rushing into the treatment room. I sigh and walk outside of the centre, looking for the others to return.

"I've brought Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle to the Pokémon Centre. Gengar is transporting the culprits out of Kalos at this very moment," I send to Serena, Gary, and Clemont telepathically.

An hour passes before everyone has met back up at the Pokémon Centre and Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno are all pacing nervously as they wait for Nurse Joy to clear their respective partners for tonight's battle.

"Shauna, I'm sure they'll be all right. Nurse Joy is the best at what she does," Clemont says in an attempt to calm Shauna down.

"What if they aren't though?! What if they can't recover?!" Shauna asks him frantically.

"Then they don't recover, but that doesn't mean their lives are over. There are many Pokémon all over the world that live amazing lives even with disabilities. I know you are worried about Bulbasaur, but trust me when I say that Nurse Joy will be able to get him back to full health," I tell Shauna, placing my hand on her shoulder.

"But-!" she starts to protest, on the verge of hyperventilating.

"No," I interrupt her. I grab her hand and place it on her heart. "Close your eyes. See Bulbasaur right in front of you, perfect in every way that makes him who he is. Feel your heart beat. Now, project your heart beat out to your partner and listen as your hearts beat in time with each other. Slow your breaths, and feel him breathing in time with you. Bulbasaur will be okay, all you have to do is keep calm and believe that your partner will be okay," I instruct her. I watch her carefully to make sure she calms down enough that she isn't in danger of hyperventilating. "Good, now open your eyes and continue to believe that Bulbasaur will be okay," I tell her and she does so.

"Thank you," she tells me quietly.

"This is your first time in this position, isn't it?" I ask.

"Yeah," Shauna admits.

"I remember my first time in your position. I was ten, and I'd only just found Treeko injured in the forest. I was so scared and had never seen a Pokémon so badly injured until then, not even Pikachu on the day we got attacked by Spearow. I actually passed out from hyperventilating while my teacher was healing Treeko. When I woke up though, I was in bed, my teacher tending to my wounds since I had hit my head when I passed out, and Treeko was standing next to me, just as worried for me as I had been for him. That Treeko is now the Sceptile I call my brother, and he still bears the scars from those injuries as one of his only weaknesses. It was an experience I won't forget, and while every time is scary, the first time is always the worst," I tell her.

"It's hard to believe that. You seem… so used to everything that happens around you, it's hard to imagine you as anything else, least of all scared," Shauna tells me.

"Well, it helps that I took out my anger on the Team Rocket grunts that stole your partners in the first place. I almost lost control when I saw their condition, but I've had years to train myself to keep a cool head, but I assure you, I used to be an utter idiot," I told her with laugh in my voice.

"I can vouch for that. Before Ash and I started on our journeys, we were both stupid kids, but he was an utter idiot," Gary piped in.

"And you were an utter egomaniac," I fire back jokingly. Gary just wiggled his eyebrows up and down and Serena grabbed his ear and yanked on it.

"You, Mr. Egomaniac, are going to be watched with sharp eyes to make sure you don't cheat on your girlfriend," Serena comments.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, I would never cheat on Misty! Wouldn't even flirt with another girl!" Gary protests.

"You better not," I tell him, steel in my voice.

"Shauna Sana, Tierno Odori, Trevor Trove, your Pokémon are ready to be collected from the front desk," Nurse Joy announces over the loud speakers. The three of them raced to the front desk to embrace with their partners.

"Looks like everything ended up good," Clemont comments.

"Ow, ow, ow, I would say I agree with you, but I'm still being pulled around by the ear!" Gary complained.

"Oh, sorry Gary, I just forgot that I was holding your ear," Serena says before letting go.

"Bye guys, see you tonight for our battle!" Shauna calls out as the three of them race out to their cabin.

~time skip: that night~

"Alright! Time for the final battle of today, Team Squirtle VS Team Froakie! This battle will decide the winner of the entire camp contest as the two teams are currently tied at thirty-three points each. Trainers, please let your Pokémon onto the field," Professor Sycamore announces.

"Umbreon, let's light our way through the darkness!" Gary called out.

"Fennekin, time to set fire to the fuse!" Serena called out.

"Bunnelby, it's time to show what we're made of!" Clemont called out.

"Squirtle, let's boogie!" Tierno called out.

"Charmander, ready for battle!" Trevor called out.
"Bulbasaur, let's sweep them off their feet!" Shauna called out.

"Are all trainers ready?" Sophie asks from the side of the battle field. All six of them nod their heads in agreement, and everyone in the stand leans forwards in anticipation. "Alright, battle… BEGIN!"

"Fennekin, use a wide Flamethrower!" Serena commanded at the same time Gary called out "Umbreon, use Dark Pulse!"
"Bunnelby, use dig just like we talked about!" Clemont instructed a split second later.

"Bulbasaur/Squirtle/Charmander, dodge it!" Tierno, Trevor, and Shauna instructed as one.

The three Kanto starters jumped above the Flamethrower and Dark Pulse, but Bunnelby didn't surface, not that they had any time to really notice that with the onslaught of attacks that Fennekin and Umbreon were unleashing. There was no time for anyone on Team Squirtle to try and start a counter strategy.

"Alright, Bunnelby, use Mud Shot and take out their vision!" Clemont calls out after five minutes of pure chaos causing Fennekin and Umbreon to pause in their attacks.

"Wipe it out of your eyes, Charmander!" Trevor called out.

"You too, Squirtle/Bulbasaur!" Tierno and Shauna called out a second later.

"Umbreon, Flash into Iron Tail!" Gary commanded with glee. The whole area was lit with bright lights, temporarily blinding everyone and when it died down, the whole field on team Squirtle's side was ruined.

"Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!" Tierno tries.

"Not so fast! Knock it back with Psychic!" Gary calls out stopping Squirtle from getting too far.

"You boys ready?" Serena asks with a smirk and they nod in agreement.

"Let's finish this! Use Hidden Power/Mud Bomb/Shadow Ball!" They cried out in unison. The attack was so sudden that no one had time to dodge, and even if they had, the amount of powerful balls of energy that went everywhere on Team Squirtle's side of the field was too much to fully dodge, and it ended in a triple knockout.

"Squirtle, Charmander, and Bulbasaur are unable to battle. This means that Team Froakie are the winners and are going to be inducted into the Pokémon Summer Camp Hall of Fame!" Sophie announced.

"We won! We won, we won, we won!" Bonnie chanted as she danced around on her seat, almost falling off in the process.
"Careful, Bonnie, but yes, we did win," I tell her, ruffling her hair and lifting her onto my shoulders and running down to where the others are celebrating.

"We did it! Our plan worked!" Gary was exclaiming as he ran around in circles, holding up Umbreon in his hands.

"We pulled it off, Bunnelby, we really did it!" Clemont told his partner as he was kneeling on the ground.

"Ash! We won!" Serena called out before tackling me, and kissing me full on the mouth.

"Yuck! I'm right here you two!" Bonnie reminded us from my shoulders.

"Guys, we're going to be in the Hall of Fame. Our song predicted correctly," I mention with a smirk.

"AND WE'LL BE ON THE WALLS OF THE HALL OF FAME!" Clemont sung out (causing everyone to cover their ears from the terrible noise) before stopping. "Okay, now I know why I shouldn't be doing any singing."

"Well done, Team Froakie, you are the newest team to enter the hall of fame. Let's take the photo now," Professor Sycamore announces as Gengar appears behind him. Bonnie can't help but snicker and the professor turns around only to scream in shock, falling on his bottom (and then rolling down the beach) in the process.

"Hello Gengar, you finished with that job, I'm guessing?" I say. Gengar nods his head floats around us for a few moments before jumping into my shadow. "Oi, out of there, I don't want you leaching off my aura right now," I scold him. Gengar does jump back out, with a huge pout on his face, smirks, and then gives me a huge lick, sending shivers up my spine. "Gengar! I thought I just told you not to leach off my aura!" I protest. Gengar shrugs and disappears into his Pokéball just in time for Professor Sycamore to re-join us.

"Let's do this photo now," he attempts again. I snake my hand around Serena's waist with Pikachu on one shoulder and Fennekin on one of Serena's shoulders. Gary crouches down in front of us with Umbreon standing on his head. Clemont holds Bunnelby in one arm and rests his free hand on Bonnie's head while she stands in front of him with her good arm outstretched and supporting Dedenne and Swablue.

"Say 'Summer Time'" Spohie prompts.

"Summer time!" we chime together, and the camera flash goes off.

"Lovely, this should be up by tomorrow morning in the Camp Hall of Fame and we'll give you all copies of it as well," Sophie tells us with a smile.

Fireworks begin to go off and I decided that it would be the perfect time to slow dance on the beach with Serena.

"I thought you said that you can't dance," she whispers in my ear as we move in time with each other. The rest of the world didn't matter. This moment consisted only of Serena, me, and the fireworks.

"I can't. This may be called 'slow dancing' it is really just swaying on the spot with each other, and even a dance-inept person like myself can manage that," I say quietly. Serena giggles softly at that and I decide that I love that giggle. It sounds like soft bells shaking in the breeze. I gaze into her blue eyes and I can tell that her eyes are hooked on mine as well.

"Kiss me?" Serena says it softly, and it is hard to tell if she means it as a question or a command, either way, I lean forward and let my lips meet hers. Her hands reach up to tangle in my hair and my hands ground themselves on her hips as the kiss deepens. When we break apart, we rest our foreheads against each other.

"I wish that this moment could just last forever," I say softly.

"If it did, then everything would be perfect," Serena replies

"Break it up you two, before you traumatise any of the kids in the area," Gary's voice interrupts our moment. Serena and I both turn to face him with a death glare and he gulps before running off. Serena starts laughing and I join in a moment later.

"His face was hilarious, I think he thought that we might kill him," Serena manages to get out.

"I was thinking more along the lines of tormenting him with horrible stories from our childhood in front of his girlfriend," I replied with a smirk.

"Ash, even I know that is simply cruel," Serena tells me jokingly.

The rest of the night is spent with people mucking around on the beach until slowly, everyone makes their way back to their cabins to get some sleep, though the fireworks continue for what seems like hours.

As I rest my head against the support beam that I've made my bed, I look down at Serena's sleeping face and part of me decides in that moment that her parents must have named her while she was asleep after how serene she looks while asleep.

Congratulations on your win, my son, but be wary. Yveltal is close to waking. Father Arceus reminds me, and I take careful note of his warning.

A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for such a long wait, but this chapter was fighting me so much and refused to work, but as you can tell, I've gotten here in the end! Clemont's last Pokémon has now been decided on. He will be getting a Togedemaru! Thank you to everyone who voted.

Now, before I give you the current list of OCs, I would like to give a huge shout out to Pikachu564 who has submitted a lot of OCs to help the story. Anyways, here are the OCs (ones with an Asterisk are mine): Kirby Hoshi, Lucy Meyer, Melody Reae, Rico Bastian, Coral Rodda*, Auriella 'Aurora' Funke*, Nickolas 'Nick' Funke*, Elizabeth 'Lizzy' d'Lacey*, Chrysanthemum 'Crystal' Paolini*, Emma Wilkinson*, Belladonna 'Bella' Black, Summer O'Hearn*, Louana 'Lou' Lowry*, Orion Riordan*, Astrid Rowling*, Thorn Lochel*, Nettle Lochel*, Char Smith, James Morpurgo*, Nathan Small, Riley Houston, Pietro Nimmo*, Caspar Hawke*, Itachi Orihara, Alex Mallinger, Zeke Arachnera, Zero Ice, Soul Matter, Lucki Middling, Data Analogy (Dirk Waltson), Lucky Rose, Zack Exile, Milla Synthesis, Jude Fury, Cindy Mikki, Waddle Spear, Taryn Element, Brooks Element, Kindle Spirit, Ribbon Shard, and Pipin Duffy.

Thanks for reading this, and I hope that it was worth the wait! Oh, and Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you may be celebrating!

RebeccaMagic9