What's up everyone, I know it's been like three years but I'm back with a new story I came up with on a whim. I am quite busy as of late, however, so I will only continue if I get positive feedback. Essentially, if enough of you want more, I'll write more. Thanks for reading! It feels nice to be back.

Chapter 1: Seven Years

It's a beautiful, sunny morning in Pallet Town. The sky was crystal clear, so clear that anyone looking up could see the flocks of Flying-type Pokemon soaring above the houses and hills. Pallet Town was as quiet as ever, and one would never think to believe that one of the world's greatest heroes was born and raised here. As the years went by, word of Ash Ketchum and his heroic exploits reached not only every corner of the Kanto region, but also various parts of the entire world. This was no surprise to anyone, of course, given that saving the world was almost like a hobby for Ash.

Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was unraveling the evil organization known as Team Flare. Team Flare had been running rampant in the Kalos region, plotting nefarious schemes that were all but ethical. It was a long and difficult effort, but eventually Ash defeated Lysandre, the leader of Team Flare, the man who sought to destroy all but himself.

After his adventure in the Kalos region, Ash was left with a tough decision to make. He could have immediately moved on to the gorgeous four islands known as the Alola region, or he could return to a region he had already been through to take on the league there again. He thought long and hard, and after consulting his closest friends and family, he chose the latter.

Part of the reason was because he actually took the loss against Alain a lot harder than he had let on. He had been so close to finally winning a league. He struggled but triumphed against all eight Gym Leaders, he trained relentlessly with each and every one of his Pokemon. And who would be better to be his final opponent than Alain, his toughest rival; it was almost poetic. Ash felt absolutely crushed when he lost, but after the battle he simply put a brave face on and acted like it was fine. "You'll win the next league, I'm sure of it, Ash!" some of his friends had told him. He appreciated this support, but after losing in six leagues straight, such words of encouragement were beginning to mean less and less.

And so, he returned to Pallet Town, as he usually did after a journey in another region. But this time, he stayed there for two years. He needed to reflect on his ambitions, his methods, his short-term goals, his long-term goals. He needed to do more than train his Pokemon, but didn't know what that 'more' was exactly. Luckily, two of his best friends, Misty and Brock, were able to help him sort out the cluttered thoughts in his mind.

After two years of being in the Kanto region, he won the league. Everyone was overjoyed; for once, Ash had a success story that was about more than just friendship and good life lessons. He had a real victory under his belt now. Ash had felt amazing. He felt uplifted and energized like never before, his already strong sense of motivation was reaching its peak because of this victory. Finally, his efforts of reaching his ultimate dream were starting to bear fruit. And he certainly did not stop there. He spent the next year in Johto, and won the league there. He then moved on to Hoenn, and won again. After seven years, Ash won every single league he had ever lost in, Kalos included. It was incredible. He was already widely known as a sort of hero, but after winning six leagues straight, Ash had never felt happier in his entire life. Or so he thought.

Something was missing, and he knew exactly what it was.

After the Team Flare incident, Serena had a lot in her life to move on to. Her Pokemon Performing career was just taking off, sparked by her amazing performance in the Master Class tournament. The ever-captivating Aria had managed to defend her title as Kalos Queen that year, but that did not dampen Serena's spirits at all; in fact, it motivated her to push herself and her Pokemon even harder. The next year, she won the Master Class tournament, earning herself the title of Kalos Queen. The year after that, she defended her title. Unfortunately, she lost her title the year after, and since then has not won it back. This, of course, was devastating for Serena and her Pokemon.

In need of a long break from performing, she decided to travel to the Sinnoh region to try her hand at Pokemon contests, and found that she was quite good at them. This was not much of a surprise, since performing and contests share some common aspects. She even got the chance to meet Ash's friend, Dawn. Dawn recognized Serena's natural talent, and taught her some of the more advanced nuances of Pokemon contests. The two became quite close, both girls discovering that they actually had a lot in common. Serena was fascinated to hear about Dawn's relationship with her mother, Johanna. Dawn spoke of how difficult it was to live in her mother's shadow for such a long time, something Serena could definitely relate to. Dawn was amazed at how Serena went against her mom's wishes and carved her own path for herself instead.

Of course, Serena couldn't stay in Sinnoh forever. Having a break from the stress of performing had been good for her, but she needed to get back on track. She travelled home to the Kalos region, and continued practicing for becoming Kalos Queen again. At that time, that was all she wanted: to reclaim her title as Kalos Queen. Or so she thought.

"Ash! It's time to get up! Hurry or you'll be late!" Delia Ketchum called out to her son. Ash had a flight to catch at noon that day. He was finally going to the Alola region.

"Mmph, five more minutes…" Ash grumbled as he turned over in his comfortable bed.

Eight minutes passed and Delia was still eating breakfast by herself. "Mimey, please go get my son out of bed for me," she said. Her faithful Mr. Mime nodded and walked up the stairs to get Ash.

"Ash Ketchum, you're 17 years old now, you'd think you'd learn to be punctual from time to time instead of oversleeping through everything. Especially after the first day of your Pokemon journey," Delia said.

Ash chuckled as he sat down at the table. "Hey, I don't regret missing out on choosing my first Pokemon. If I hadn't overslept, I wouldn't have met Pikachu," he said, affectionately petting his partner Pokemon.

Delia smiled. "Of course, but you won't always get so lucky. Besides, nothing good can possibly come out of you missing your flight today. Unless, of course, you've changed your mind and want to stay home a bit longer?" she asked, her voice slightly hopeful.

Shaking his head, Ash said, "Sorry, mom, but I've got to go. I can't wait around here any longer...there's so much to see in Alola and I've been missing out on it for seven years!"

"You know, Ash, life isn't always about rushing ahead. Sometimes it's nice to sit back and appreciate what you already have," Delia replied. "Have you taken the time to say goodbye to Professor Oak?" she asked.

"Ah, shoot, I knew I forgot something," Ash said. "I guess I'll have to video call him later."

"And what about Misty?" Delia asked.

Ash didn't even look up. "What about her?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Well, you are still friends, right? I know the breakup was hard, but you shouldn't push her away just because things didn't work out between you two. She's a really sweet girl, Ash, and you've been through so much together," Delia said.

Ash rolled his eyes. "I get that, but I just think I've been around here for too long. I need something new in my life. There's no point in me staying here anyway; I already won the league years ago."

Delia frowned. "There's more to home than just winning a league, Ash. What about me? I'm always here, and don't forget that I miss you everyday you're gone," she said. "It's not easy for me seeing you so happy elsewhere while wishing you were home at the same time."

Ash looked down at his food, suddenly feeling extremely guilty. "Yeah, I miss you too, mom, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that," he said, slowly biting into a piece of toast.

"I know, sweetie. And I know you need to be out there, doing everything that you do. It's good for you...but always remember that your home is here, in Pallet Town," Delia said.

Ash felt confused. "What do you mean? Of course I know this is my home."

Delia sighed. "I meant...well, sometimes I just worry that one day you won't come back," she said, her face wearing a lonely expression.

"What? As in, you think I'm gonna die or something? Mom, seriously, you're being too paranoid. I'm perfectly fine no matter what," Ash said.

"Not that, honey...I know you're safe for the most part. What I really worry about is…" Delia's voice trailed off. She didn't know what to say, there were a dozen ideas running through her head and she didn't want to trouble her son with any of them. "Nevermind, you need to eat and be on your way soon," Delia said.

"Huh? No, wait, mom, what were you-"

"Ash, it's almost 11:00 and we're not even in the car yet. C'mon, let's leave in five minutes," Delia said as she started walking up the stairs.

Well that was weird, Ash thought. Although, maybe I should come home more often than I do. I guess I haven't really been thinking about how lonely my mom must get around here without me.

Delia came down the stairs, saying, "Mr. Mime, I'll be back in about an hour. You ready, Ash?"

Ash stood up and nodded. "Yeah. Hey, mom, I-"

Delia smiled and hugged her son. "We can talk about it in the car, honey. Now let's go."

"Serena! Time for breakfast!" Grace called out to her daughter.

"Ughh, five more minutes, please?" Serena asked.

"Well, alright," Grace answered, growing more worried. Ever since Serena returned from Sinnoh, Grace noticed that she seemed less focused, less motivated than before. Despite what Serena would tell her mom about her goal, Grace couldn't help but feel that her daughter might be starting to lose her way. After all, her goal before all of this was simply to become Kalos Queen, which she already accomplished. Was reclaiming this title really what Serena wanted? Or did she just not know how to move forward to other ambitions?

Serena slowly came down the stairs, rubbing her eyes as she yawned. Her honey-blonde hair was now long again, reaching past her shoulders. "I think today will be a lazy day, I'm so tired," she said as she sat down at the table.

Grace frowned. "That would make today the third lazy day this week, honey. Don't you feel like you should be practicing some more? There's a showcase competition next month, isn't there?"

Serena shrugged. "Yeah, but I feel like I'll be fine. A month is a long time, don't worry," she said as she took a sip from her orange juice.

"I don't know if that's such a great attitude to have, Serena. Especially since you've been in Sinnoh for quite a while," Grace said. "And I know contests are similar to performing, but they are far from being the same thing. You haven't performed in over a year, aren't you worried you're a little out of touch with it?"

"No, I'll be okay, mom," Serena replied. "It's just a Rookie class competition. I don't mean to be cocky, but I'm pretty sure I'm gonna win."

"Just because you say you don't mean to be cocky doesn't mean you're not being cocky," Grace said, chuckling a little. It was nice to see her daughter have so much confidence, but she felt that this was more of a false bravado. She could sense that Serena's mind was elsewhere, somehow, though she couldn't quite figure out what it was just yet.

Out of the blue, Grace asked, "How's Ash doing?"

Serena almost dropped her glass of juice. "Uh, what? I don't know, why do you ask?" she said dismissively.

Grace shrugged. "Oh, just curious. Do you still keep in touch?" she asked.

"Why do you sound like you want me to say yes?" Serena asked, a hint of suspicion in her voice.

"Because I do. I won't hide it, Serena. You two should be keeping in touch, you know," Grace said.

"Yeah, well Calem isn't exactly crazy about me doing that," Serena replied. "Not to mention that it doesn't even matter because I don't think Ash even cares about talking to me much," she said.

"Why do you say that? You guys were inseparable during his whole time in Kalos," Grace said, her face showing that she was becoming even more worried for Serena.

"Well we were traveling together, so of course we were technically 'inseparable' I guess," Serena replied unenthusiastically. "He's probably too busy to talk, anyway."

"You sound disappointed."

"I'm not."

"I think you are."

"Okay, but I'm not."

Grace smiled. "You can be honest with me, you know. All I'm saying is that I've honestly never seen you happier than when Ash was around. I mean, you used to be so grumpy all the time, and suddenly this boy appears and you were always smiling. And don't forget that little kiss you gave him when he was leaving for home," she said.

"Mom, what? How do you know about that?" Serena was suddenly very engaged in the conversation. "I never, ever told you about that!"

Laughing, Grace said, "Little Bonnie told me. That girl isn't so great at keeping secrets," she said.

Serena furiously took a bite of her cereal. "I'm gonna tell Clemont to invent something to keep that girl's mouth shut," she said.

"Serena, relax, I think that's really sweet and it really shows how much you care-"

"Mom, can we drop this? That was seven years ago when I was just a kid okay? It was stupid."

"Don't say that, honey, I know that lately-"

"You know what, I'm done talking about this. I'll be in my room if you need me, unless you still want to talk about this, in which case don't bother," Serena said angrily, getting up from the table. She put her dishes in the sink and marched upstairs to her room.

Grace shook her head. Wow, she practically blew up on me just from saying his name, she thought. What is going on with her?