Chapter 58

The day after May won the Grand Festival and everyone partook in the celebration later that night, Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Dawn, Piplup, May, Max, Clemont, Bonnie, Brock, and Holly all got together and start heading to Pallet Town. Ash video called his mom in advance to let her know they're coming, and she told him she will have the party for May, Dawn, and Serena ready for them by the time they arrive. She also said she reached out to a couple of other people who would like to attend, but when Ash asked who, she just said it's a surprise.

The journey back to Pallet Town is mostly uneventful. May carries her Ribbon Cup with her happily and often polishes it whenever the group is on a break from walking. Max and Dawn rebuke her for the way she obsessively treats her trophy, but she's too much in bliss to care. Brock and Holly often talk to each other about how they plan to go to Pewter City after the party as they walk together. Every now and then, Max yanks their ears, telling them to cut it out for the sake of everyone else.

As for Serena, however, she walks in the back of the group with a sad look on her face. Dawn or May walk beside her and try to have a conversation, and she puts on a forced smile and talks to her friends. But despite that, she's had a downhearted look on her face ever since she had her talk with Grace after the Grand Festival. Ash sometimes turns to her and asks if she's okay, and she gives him a smile and claims that she's fine. He hesitantly believes her, but he can't help but be unsettled from the way she's been acting.

It is a couple of hours past noon when the group makes it to Pallet Town, and Ash excitedly runs ahead of everyone to his house. When he gets there, he sees party decorations and tables set up in the yard with Professor Oak and Tracey, setting up with Mimey.

"Hey, Professor, Tracey!" Ash calls out.

"Pika, Pi!" Pikachu shouts from Ash's shoulder.

Professor Oak and Tracey turn to the raven-haired boy and smile.

"Hey, Ash," Tracey greets.

"Ash, my boy, how are you?" Professor Oak asks.

"I'm fine," Ash says. "Did you guys see the Grand Festival?"

"We sure did," Tracey answers. "In fact, where are May, Dawn, and Serena?"

"Here, we are!" Dawn calls out as she, Piplup, Serena, May, Max, Clemont, Bonnie, Brock, and Holly catch up. "We had trouble catching up with Mr. Wingfoot here."

Ash chuckles and rubs the back of his head while Tracey steps up to approach May.

"Congratulations on winning the competition, May," he says. "That is a big trophy you got there."

"Thanks," May says gleefully.

"I'd like to draw a sketch with you, the Ribbon Cup, and your Pokemon at some point during the party if that's alright," Tracey requests.

"Absolutely!" May replies with stars in her eyes.

"Ah, more attention on her and that trophy. That's all she needs," Max mumbles to Bonnie, earning a chuckle from her.

"Is my mom inside?" Ash asks.

"Yes, indeed," Professor Oak says with a nod. "And so is a certain someone else."

"Really? I wonder who it is," Ash says, interested.

"Let's find out," Brock suggests.

Ash nods in agreement, and together, he, Pikachu, Serena, Brock, Holly, Clemont, and Bonnie all go inside the house. They hear Ash's mom humming from the kitchen while a certain girl with orange hair is sitting on the living room couch.

"Misty?!" Ash and Brock say at the same time.

Serena winces before she puts on a happy face while Misty turns to them and stands up with a friendly smile.

"Hi, guys," she greets.

"What are you doing over here?" Ash asks.

"Your mom invited me," Misty answers. "She thought it would be good to get a lot of our friends to celebrate together. Besides, the Cerulean City gym is closed since the Indigo League is going to start in a couple of weeks."

Ash smiles and says, "Awesome. Glad to see you can make it."

"Pika!" Pikachu says before jumping into Misty's arms.

"Hi, Pikachu," Misty says, giving the mouse Pokemon a hug before turning to Clemont, Bonnie, and Holly. "And who might you be?"

"I'm Clemont. Nice to meet you," Clemont answers politely.

"My name's Bonnie," Bonnie says while holding out her bag. "And this is Dedenne."

"De, ne,ne," Dedenne greets.

"And I'm Holly, Brock's soon-to-be girlfriend," Holly says.

Misty freezes in place and her eyes widen with her pupils as small as pieces of dirt.

"Uh...Brock's what now?" She manages to say.

"You heard her," Brock says proudly while giving Holly a side hug. "We met each other at Hearthome City in the Sinnoh region and met up again at Neon City. We agreed to officially become a couple after she competes in the Indigo League."

Misty blinks in confusion before turning to Holly.

"Did he put you up to this?" She asks. "Is he blackmailing you or something?"

"Nope, I just really like Brock for him," Holly answers without hesitation while she hugs Brock with both arms. "I'm just counting the days until we can really be together."

Serena decides to step in with a smile and says, "It's true, Misty. She's been traveling with us for a while now. The two of them are really crazy about each other."

"You can say that again," Ash says with a toothy grin.

Misty stays in shock as if the world just shattered before her very eyes. She looks at Brock and Holly, who are staring at each other with their arms around each other and blushes on their faces. Misty keeps staring in utter shock as if she's looking at the creepiest bug Pokemon she has ever seen in her life. Everyone else looks at her waiting to respond until she finally blinks and scratches her cheek awkwardly.

"Well...um...I...I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm happy you found Ms. Right, Brock," she says.

"Thanks, Misty," Brock says, looking at her. "I'm very happy to be with her."

"Ash? Brock? Is that you?" Delia calls out from the kitchen.

"Yeah, we're here, Mom," Ash says as he, Pikachu, Serena, Brock, Holly, Clemont, and Bonnie walk over to the kitchen to find his mother cooking. He jumps into her arms as Delia turns to her boy and gives him a one-armed hug.

"Oh, sweetie, it's so good to see you," Delia coos. "And Brock, and Serena, good to see you too."

"You too, Mrs. Ketchum," Brock says.

"Yeah, same here," Serena says with a smile.

"And it's also nice to finally meet you in person, Mrs. Ketchum," Bonnie says.

"Yes, thank you for having us," Clemont says, politely.

"It's my pleasure," Delia says, beaming before turning to Holly. "And who are you?"

"I'm Holly, ma'am," Holly answers. "I'm Brock's soon-to-be girlfriend."

Delia looks at her confused and asks, "What do you mean soon-to-be girlfriend?"

"It's a long story," Brock says.

Delia looks at the two young adults confused before she decides to take Brock's word for it and smiles.

"Well, welcome all the same," she says. "Now I'm going to need all of your help before the other guests arrive. Ash, go help Tracey and Professor Oak outside. Brock, I would love it if you could help me with making the food. And Serena, could you make us some sweet treats?"

"Sure," Serena says with a smile.

"Leave it to me," Brock says.

"I wanna help with Serena making treats!" Bonnie says, raising her hand.

"And I'd like to help with making the other food," Clemont says.

"That's a good idea," Ash says. "Clemont is a pretty good cook just like Brock."

"It's true," Brock says. "We've been taking turns on making meals on our way here from Indigo Plateau."

"Wonderful," Delia says cheerfully. "The more, the merrier."

"What about me? What can I do?" Holly asks.

Brock thinks for a moment before he snaps his fingers and says, "We could use a taste tester once the food's about ready."

Holly's eyes light up and say, "When it's your cooking, count me in."

"Sounds like we're good to go," Ash says. "Come on, Pikachu, let's go help Professor Oak and Tracey."

"Pikachu," Pikachu says as the two of them leave the kitchen.

*******************************************************************

For the next couple of hours, everyone is working on their assignments to get ready. May, Max, Dawn, Piplup, and Misty help Ash, Tracey and Professor Oak with setting up outside while everyone else works on the food. At around 6 in the evening, tables and decorations are set, and the food is being taken outside and placed tables along with plastic dishes and silverware. When Delia carries a large pot of spaghetti outside, Ash looks at it excitedly.

"Alright, my favorite food," he says happily.

"Don't even think about trying to get an early bite, mister," Delia says in a motherly way. "We're not eating until everyone has arrived."

"Aw, Mom, just one little bite," Ash begs childishly.

"Really, Ash? Eating before your guests are all here?" A female voice rebukes. "You're such a kid."

"Axew," says another voice.

Ash's eyes widen, and he turns around to see a girl with dark skin and a large head of purple hair walking toward him with an Axew popping up from her hair and a tall boy with green hair dressed as a connoisseur walking behind her.

"Cilan!!" Ash calls out as he runs over to them.

"Iris!" Dawn shouts as she also runs toward them.

"Greetings, Ash. It's been some time," the boy named Cilan says before noticing Clemont and Bonnie. "Why, Clemont, Bonnie, good to see you."

"Hi, Cilan," Bonnie greets.

"Fancy seeing you here," Clemont says.

"I agree," Brock says, stepping in.

Cilan turns to Brock and smiles, saying, "Hey, I remember you."

"I remember you too," Brock says, smiling, "You're that guy that I stopped a poacher with back in the Johto region."

"You did?" Holly asks, surprised.

"I'm a little lost," the girl named Iris says. "How do you know these three, Cilan?"

"It's a long story," Cilan chortles while rubbing the back of his head.

"Wow, so you, Clemont, Bonnie, and Brock already know each other," Ash says excitedly. "I'm so glad my mom invited you guys."

"Not just them, apparently," says another voice.

Everyone turns to see Professor Sycamore, Alain, Mairin, and Chespie walking down the road to Ash's house with smiles on their faces.

"Mairin!" Serena and Bonnie shout happily as they run toward the short girl.

"Alain! Professor Sycamore!" Ash shout.

"Hello, Ash, nice to see you again," Professor Sycamore says with a friendly smile.

"Yeah, I can't believe it's already been a few months since we've seen each other," Alain says.

"Aw, I missed you guys so much!" Mairin squeals as she hugs Serena and Bonnie.

"We missed you too!" Bonnie says, hugging Mairin back.

Ash shakes hands with Alain and Professor Sycamore before turning to Delia.

"How did you manage to contact them?" He asks.

"Oh, it just so happens that we're here for our research on Mega Evolution," Professor Sycamore answers.

"That's right," Delia says with a smile. "They were briefly investigating here, and we exchanged contact information. And when you kids told me about your idea for a party, I knew I had to invite them along with Iris and Cilan."

"Aw, Mrs. Ketchum, you didn't have to do that," Serena says.

"I know, but I wanted to," Delia says. "It's not very often that so many of my son's friends can all come and spend time together. It's an opportunity too wonderful to pass up."

"Well, I'm glad you did," Dawn says.

"Me too," Clemont says.

"Me three!" Bonnie squeals.

Delia smiles brightly with her eyes closed before she puts her hands together and turns to everyone.

"Alright, now that we're all here, let's get this party started," she says. "Let's all get a can of soda and -"

Suddenly, Serena gasps loudly for everyone to hear and says, "Wait, we don't have everyone. Coovers, Timothy, and Electchu aren't here."

"Who?" Everyone but Ash, Brock, Dawn, May, Max, and Holly ask.

"Oh yeah, Serena's right," Brock says. "She also invited Ash's new rival and his friends to join us."

"Oh, I see," Delia says. "Well, then I'm afraid we're going to have to start without them because it's already getting late."

Ash, Serena, Brock, Dawn, and Holly frown sadly before they silently agree.

"Right, as I was saying, let's get some sodas and May, Dawn, and Serena, you three stand in the middle," she instructs.

Everyone grabs a can of soda and get in a half-circle while May, Dawn, and Serena stand in the middle with their sodas. Delia stands next to them and puts her hand on Serena's shoulder before she clears her throat.

"Tonight, we -"

"Wait!"

Everyone turns to see Timothy, Electchu, and Coovers racing toward them, panting as they run. Ash, Serena, Brock, Holly, and Dawn smile as the two men and the Raichu stop in front of them and take a moment to catch their breath.

"Sorry we're late, everyone," Coovers pants. "We just made it back to town and dropped off our stuff at Timothy's place when we saw your house and all the party decorations in the distance."

"No worries, Coovers," Ash says. "The important thing is we're all here."

Timothy and Coovers nod in agreement, and Brock gives them two cans of soda and gestures them to join the others in the half-circle before Delia clears her throat again.

"Tonight, we celebrate the amazing accomplishments May, Dawn, and Serena have achieved at the Grand Festival," she begins. "All three of them gave it their all and went farther than over three hundred contestants have gone. Dawn was only off by a few points at the semifinals, Serena made it to the finals on her very first Grand Festival, and May won the whole tournament and this beautiful Ribbon Cup."

Delia points at the Ribbon Cup, which is standing on a table before she continues.

"But win or lose, you're all winners in our hearts," she says. "May the experiences the three of you had at the Grand Festival bring all of you closer to accomplishing your dreams."

Then Delia raises up her can of soda and proudly says, "To May, Dawn, and Serena!"

"To May, Dawn, and Serena!" Everyone cheers before they open their sodas and start drinking.

Dawn turns to Serena and May and, with a cheerful smile, says, "To us, guys."

"To us," Serena and May say in agreement.

The three girls clink their sodas together before opening them and drinking them down. Once Delia is done with her drink, she puts her hands together and smiles at everyone with her eyes closed.

"Alright, now that we have that out of the way, let's eat!" She announces cheerfully.

Ash, May, and Iris' eyes widen before they zoom to the dinner table take out plates and began filling them with food. Everyone begrudgingly waits until they can start getting their own food while the three teenagers find a table and already begin to eat. Brock brings bowls of Pokemon food for everyone's Pokemon, and he, Ash, Serena, Holly, May, Max, Dawn, Iris, Cilan, Timothy, Coovers, and Alain all take out their Pokemon so they can eat as well. Brock and Misty take out all of their Pokemon so they can eat as well except for Steelix and Gyarados because they are too big. Sylveon happily eats next to Clemont's Bunnelby while Pancham and Clemont's Chespin happily greet each other before they eat next to each other. After they empty their bowls, they try to make moves on Dawn's Buneary, who is eating next to Pikachu, but the bunny Pokemon harshly rejects them so that she can keep giving Pikachu flirtatious looks. Pikachu is uneasy about the way Buneary is looking at him as usual but tries to stay calm while eating. Primeape almost starts a fight with Odyssey, but Ash and Timothy manage to calm them down after threatening to return them to their Pokeballs without eating if they don't behave. While eating together, Holly, Delia, and Misty ask Brock about how he knows Cilan, and he tells them the story about how they took down a poacher named Amer. Holly is infatuated with Brock's part of the story, and she kept giving him flirtatious eyes much to Misty's unease.

Ash is the first to finish his food and grab a second helping before he goes back to his table with Serena, Professor Oak, Professor Sycamore, Alain, Mairin, Tracey, Coovers, and Timothy.

"So Alain, I see you found another Charizardite," Serena comments.

Alain smiles and shows his bracelet containing another Charizardite X.

"Yeah, it took a while, but I managed to find one," he says. "I feel better using it for my own purposes rather than Lysandre's."

Coovers looks at Alain, surprised, and asks, "You knew Lysandre?"

Alain winces and answers, "I did. He tricked me into collecting Mega Evolution energy for his plans to destroy the world. That's why I got rid of my last Charizardite that I got partly with Lysandre's help. I wanted to start anew without him."

"I see," Coovers says. "So you were there when he and Team Flare attacked Lumiose City.

"

"I was, and I battled against Lysandre with Ash," Alain says before turning to Mairin and Professor Sycamore. "Now, I'm on a better path with the people who mean the most to me."

Professor Sycamore and Mairin smile warmly, and the latter puts her hand on top of Alain's. The two teenagers look at each other with caring eyes until Ash breaks the moment.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me," he says with his mouth full. "You said you guys are here in Kanto for Mega Evolution research?"

"We sure are," Professor Sycamore answers, smiling. "The Anistar Sundial has been providing more locations of Key Stones and Mega Stones outside of Kalos. It seems to want to reveal locations here in both in Kanto and maybe even in the Johto region."

"My, my, my, that sounds like a splendid discovery," Professor Oak says excitedly.

"Sounds like more people are going to find them and be able to mega evolve their Pokemon," Tracey says.

"We can vouch for that," Serena says.

"Yeah, Brock and Misty can mega evolve Steelix and Gyarados," Ash says excitedly. "And Sabrina, the Saffron City gym leader, can mega evolve her Alakazam."

"And I can testify with the Johto region," Timothy says. "Lance and the members of the Elite Four each have one Pokemon that can mega evolve. They did not make defeating all of them easy that way, let me tell you."

"Marvelous!" Professor Sycamore exclaims. "I would love to see Brock and Misty show me."

"I'm sure they've love to show you with a battle," Ash says with a toothy grin.

Serena smiles slightly at Ash's demeanor before she turns to Timothy and Coovers.

"So, were you two able to watch the Grand Festival?" She asks.

Timothy and Coovers stop eating in mid-bite and look at the honey blonde girl apologetically.

"We kinda missed the appeal stage and the first round of the battle stage," Timothy admits. "We caught up with the news showing recaps of the first two days before we watched the rest live. Sorry, Serena."

"Oh, that's no problem," Serena says. "The important thing is that you guys saw me make it to the finals."

"Yeah, great job with that, by the way," Coovers says sincerely. "You should be proud for making it that far."

"Thanks, I am," Serena says before she looks down and secretly frowns, not entirely meaning it.

Ash notices her sudden change of demeanor and wonders what is bothering her. But the moment is interrupted when Professor Oak turns to Timothy.

"So, Timothy, my lad, did you complete the Battle Frontier?" He asks.

"Sure did," Timothy answers, smirking. "Now, I'm in the hall of fame, just like Ash."

Ash overhears Timothy and happily says, "That's awesome, Timothy."

Serena gives a sincere smile and says, "Yeah, congratulations, Timothy."

"Thanks, you two," Timothy says before turning back to Professor Oak. "So now I'm just going to train here at home until it's time to compete in the Indigo League. And believe me, I plan to win this time."

"Not if I win first," Ash claims. "Don't forget, we're going to battle each other at the league."

"Don't worry, Ash," Timothy says, smirking again. "Just don't lose until we get to face each other so I can beat you again."

"Hey, I at least took down Blitzwing last time," Ash says.

"Only because I got too cocky last time," Timothy counters.

Alain raises an eyebrow and says, "I take it, you two are rivals?"

"You bet," Ash says. "It was Timothy who challenged me to compete in the Indigo League after he heard about how I almost won the Kalos League before you beat me."

Timothy turns to Alain intrigued and says, "So you're the trainer Ash lost to at the Kalos League finals, eh?"

"Yes, that's right," Alain says.

"Have you faced Kalos' Elite Four and champion?" Timothy asks.

"I have not," Alain replies.

"Oh, really?" Timothy says in a taunting tone. "Well, I've won the Johto League and defeated their Elite Four and the bi-regional champion, Lance."

"Oh dear, here he goes boasting again," Coovers mutters under his breath.

"Yes, you mentioned that before," Alain says. "Doesn't mean you are stronger than me."

"Perhaps," Timothy says. "But we don't know if we don't find out."

"Is that a challenge?" Alain asks with his eyebrow raised.

"It might be," Timothy answers plainly.

The two of them stare at each other with everyone else at the table interested in where this is going. Finally, Alain smirks back and says, "Alright then, let's have a battle tomorrow. My Charizard against one of your best Pokemon. Let's see how you handle the power of Mega Evolution against me."

Timothy's smirk grows, and he stands up and offers Alain his hand, saying, "I accept your challenge."

Alain grins and firmly shakes Timothy's hand before the two of them sit back down and go back to eating.

Meanwhile, at another table, Iris and May are eating vigorously, much to the unease of Max, Cilan, Dawn, Clemont, and Bonnie.

"Iris, slow down," Cilan says with a nervous chuckle. "If you keep this up, you're gonna choke."

"And so what if I do?" Iris hisses childishly. "I haven't eaten since breakfast because we had to make sure we get here on time."

"I had both breakfast and lunch today, and I feel like I could eat a whole buffet," May says.

Iris smirks in May and says, "That sounds like something Ash would say. What a kid."

"Hey, you're a kid too," May counters angrily.

"Yeah, but you and Ash are bigger kids," Iris says plainly.

"But aren't you all the same age?" Bonnie asks, confused.

Cilan chuckles lightly and says, "Don't trouble yourself about it. Iris does this all the time."

"Yeah, I can testify from briefly traveling with her," Dawn says. "It's better not to let it get to you."

Clemont, Bonnie, May, and Max stare in confusion before they silently decide to let it go and go back to their food. They all eat in silence for several minutes before Max clears his throat and starts another conversation.

"So what do you do, Cilan?" He asks.

"Oh, I'm a Pokemon connoisseur," Cilan says happily. "I like to observe the relationships with people and their Pokemon. But I'm also a fishing connoisseur. In fact, I just partook in a fishing tournament in the Kalos region not too long ago."

"Yeah, we were there when he did that," Bonnie says. "It was quite an adventure too."

"Ugh, tell me about it," Clemont groans before he decides to change the subject. "What about you, Iris?"

"I am a dragon Pokemon trainer," Iris states proudly. "I've been traveling to different regions to challenge other dragon Pokemon trainers. What about you, Clemont?"

"I'm the Lumiose City gym leader," Clemont answers. "But I also like to invent. My goal is to make inventions that will better the lives of people and Pokemon."

Cilan looks at Clemont skeptically and says, "Well, I hope you have made more handy inventions than that electronic fishing pole you made during the fishing tournament."

"Not usually," Bonnie says with a sigh. "Most of Clemont's inventions tend to blow up."

Clemont glares at his little sister and says, "Well, tonight is going to be different because I made an invention specifically for this party."

Max, May, Dawn, Iris, and Cilian look at each other, confused before May asks, "What is it?"

Clemont just chuckles maniacally with his mouth closed and says, "You'll see."

*****************************************

After a while, everyone finishes eating and sighs, completely satisfied with their meals. Tracey decides to take the opportunity to ask May to let him draw a sketch of her and the Ribbon Cup, and she happily agrees. Thus, Tracey finds a spot for May to stand while May and her Pokemon gather together, and they make a pose. Everyone else watches patiently while Tracey carefully draws on his sketchbook, and May and her Pokemon do their best to stand still. It takes about half an hour until Tracey is done, and then he shows it to May, who instantly falls in love with it. She asks Tracey if he can make a copy of it so she can bring it back home in Hoenn, and Tracey happily says he can print a copy for her later.

After that, Holly turns to everyone and asks, "So what should we do now?"

Clemont grins and steps up, saying, "Why don't we dance?"

Delia makes an uneasy chuckle and says, "That sounds nice, Clemont, but we don't have a stereo anywhere."

But Clemont's grin grows at that comment, and he takes out his backpack.

"Leave it to me," he says proudly. "The future is now, thanks to science! Clemontic Gear on!"

Clemont reaches into his backpack and takes out a handheld stereo-looking device shaped like his head. Ash's eyes light up at the sight of the machine while everyone else awkwardly stares at it.

"What in the world is that thing?" Coovers asks.

"This is my Play-Music-Until-We-Can-Party-No-More-A-Tron!" Clemont answers.

"Your...what?" Tracey asks.

"As usual, the name needs a little work," Bonnie says.

"De, ne, ne, ne," Dedenne says, agreeing with Bonnie.

"Okay...so I'm guessing it's some kind of stereo?" Timothy asks.

"Not just any stereo," Clemont claims. "This beauty can play over 3,000 songs, all of which is meant for dancing. Simply push this little guy's nose, and it'll start playing music with state-of-the-art audio speakers."

"Wow, science is so amazing!" Ash exclaims ecstatically.

"Yeah, it sounds like fun," Dawn says. "Come on, Clemont, push its nose!"

Clemont smirks and happily pushes the nose on his machine. Two large speakers appear from both sides of the machine, and a pop song starts to play. May, Dawn, and Iris gasp in excitement before they run over to the machine and start dancing excitedly. Mairin drags Alain over to where May, Dawn, and Iris are, and she happily starts dancing with him, much to Alain's reluctance. Several Pokemon join in with Chespin and Pancham trying to impress Buneary with poor results. Brock and Holly begin to dance together hand in hand, and even Timothy, Coovers, Delia and Professor Oak decide to join in. Ash prepares to join in the fun, but he stops and notices Serena just watching with a wooden look on her face.

"Aren't you going to dance, Serena?" he asks. "It's a lot of fun."

Serena turns to Ash and gives him a soft smile.

"Oh, that's alright, Ash," she says politely. "I'm not in a dancing mood tonight. You go ahead and have fun."

Ash looks at her with a look of concern and confusion in his face. He reluctantly decides to let it go and smiles at her before he joins in the dancing. It isn't long before all eyes are on Ash as he dances weirdly and offbeat. Serena tries to hide a laugh, feeling somewhat better with the way the guy she admires embarrasses himself.

But while Ash is dancing in a goofy way, the machine starts to play the music at a faster pace. Everyone turns to the invention to see smoke and sparks of electricity coming out of it. Clemont panics and runs to his machine.

"Clemont, what's wrong with your gizmo?" Delia asks.

"I don't know," Clemont says in alarm. "It shouldn't be acting like this. I could have sworn that I -"

Before Clemont can finish his sentence, his invention suddenly explodes, covering the whole yard in smoke. When the smoke clears, everyone within close range of the blast is covered in soot, and their hair messed up. Clemont stares at what remains of his invention before he cries softly while Bonnie walks over to him and pats him on the back.

"Back to the drawing board," she says plainly.

"Aw, man, my hair looks ridiculous!" Coovers whines.

"Yeah, makes me glad that I have short hair," Timothy says, trying hard not to laugh at his friend.

Coovers glares at Timothy while Serena, Misty, Max, Bonnie, Professor Sycamore, and Tracey help remove the soot from everyone else. Once they're all cleaned up, Clemont turns to everyone and gives them a bow.

"I'm sorry, everyone," he whines hysterically. "I thought the invention was ready for use."

"It's okay, Clemont," Delia says kindly. "We'll just think of something else for entertainment."

"Delia's right," Professor Oak says. "Now, does anyone have any ideas?"

Professor Sycamore smirks, seeing his chance and steps in.

"I might have an idea," he says, turning to Brock and Misty. "Ash told me that you two can mega evolve your Steelix and Gyarados. It would mean a lot to me if I could see a Mega Evolution battle between you two."

Brock and Misty look at Professor Sycamore, taken aback before they look at each other and smirk.

"What do you say, Misty?" Brock asks.

"I say you're going down," Misty says with a competitive smirk.

"Alright, but let's take this at the beach, please," Delia says in a motherly way.

"Yes, ma'am," Brock and Misty say at the same time.

With everyone in agreement, they all walk together - people and Pokemon alike, all the way to the beach. While everyone finds a place to sit, Misty and Brock take positions several yards away from each other, with Holly standing behind Brock and massaging his shoulders.

"You got this, Brock. You got this," she encourages as she rubs his shoulders.

"I know I do," Brock says confidently before turning to Holly and caressing her cheek.

The auburn-haired woman blushes and giggles in a girlish manner before she finds a spot to sit not too far away from Brock.

"Take him down, Misty!" May calls out.

"Yeah, show him how it's done!" Dawn cheers.

"Wipe him out!" Iris shouts.

"Believe me, I will, ladies," Misty says proudly with a smile and a wink.

Tracey smiles fondly at Misty, and says, "You can win this, Misty! I believe in you!"

Misty smiles back and says, "Thank you, Tracey. I know I can."

Misty backs up her claim with a wink before she turns away just in time to miss Tracy's cheeks turning slightly pink. Clemont stands between Misty and Brock and holds his hand in the air.

"I'll be the referee," he says before he clears his throat. "This will be a one-on-one battle between Brock and Misty! The battle will be over when either side's Pokemon is unable to continue! Are the participants ready?"

"Ready!" Brock and Misty say at the same time.

"Then battle begin!" Clemont shouts.

"Steelix, go!" Brock shouts, throwing a Pokeball into the air.

"Gyarados, let's do this!" Misty says, doing the same.

Both Pokeballs open to reveal two large Pokemon. Steelix and Gyarados don't hesitate to glare at each other competitively while Brock takes off his shirt and vest.

"Time to rock this place!" He declares as he grabs his necklace containing his keystone.

The keystone and Steelix's Steelixite glow, and with a flash, the Pokemon transforms into a Mega Steelix. Delia, Professor Oak, May, Max, Cilian, Iris, Tracey, and Coovers stare at Mega Steelix in amazement, having never seen a Pokemon mega evolve before.

"So that's Mega Evolution," Cilan says in awe.

"I watched it change right before my eyes, and I still can't believe it," Coovers says.

"It's incredible," Iris comments.

"Now, I really wish I can mega evolve my Pokemon," Max says.

Misty, on the other hand, sneers at Mega Steelix before the touches the keystone on her headband.

"My sweet, blue heart, it's time to mega evolve!" She shouts.

The keystone and Gyarados' Gyaradosite glow, and with another flash, the atrocious Pokemon turns into Mega Gyarados.

"Let's not waste any time, Steelix!" Brock calls out. "Use Stone Edge!"

Mega Steelix slams its tail on the ground, and blue pillars appear towards Mega Gyarados.

"Gyarados, dodge, and use Rain Dance!" Misty commands.

Mega Gyarados moves out of the way from Mega Steelix's line of fire, and it roars at the sky. A dark cloud appears over everyone, and pouring rain comes out of it. Everyone watching the battle moves away, so they don't get wet, and Mega Steelix groans in pain from the water landing on its steel-and-ground type body.

"Steelix, use Dig!" Brock shouts.

Mega Steelix quickly digs its way underground to protect itself from the rain.

"Good call, Brock, but ground types are ineffective against my beautiful Gyarados," Misty taunts.

But Brock just smirks at his orange-haired friend and shouts, "Steelix, use Stone Edge followed with Bind!"

Misty is confused until Mega Steelix emerges from the ground next to Mega Gyarados. The water-type Pokemon only has a moment to react before Mega Steelix slams its tail on the ground again, and blue pillars pop up again and successfully hit Mega Gyarados. As soon as Mega Gyarados backs away upon impact, Mega Steelix wraps its body around it and squeezes its opponent tightly.

"Gyarados!" Misty cries out.

Mega Gyarados howls in pain as it tried to move its body around to free itself to no avail. The more it struggles, the tighter Mega Steelix's grip gets. Misty grows worried until she gets an idea, and her eyes light up.

"Gyarados, use Hurricane!" She shouts.

"Huh? Why would she tell Gyarados to do that?" Iris asks, confused. "Steelix is resistant to flying type moves."

"Don't you worry, Iris," Ash says with a smile. "I betcha Misty has a plan in mind."

Mega Gyarados roars at the sky again, and a powerful cyclone of wind encircles around it and Mega Steelix. Both Pokemon are lifted into the air with Mega Steelix keeping its grip on its opponent. But as the two of them are flailing in the air, Mega Steelix slowly starts to loosen its hold on Mega Gyarados. Eventually, Mega Gyarados slips from the iron snake Pokemon's grasp, and it lands safely and moves away from the cyclone.

"Oh, no, Steelix!" Brock shouts.

"Gyarados, use Flamethrower full power!" Misty shouts, smirking.

Mega Gyarados takes a deep breath and unleashes an enormous stream of fire. The fire hits Mega Steelix hard and sends it flying high into the air, out of the cyclone, and crashing several years away from everyone with an earthshaking thud. Clemont runs as fast as he can to the iron snake Pokemon's side and finds Steelix reverted back to its normal form with swirly eyes.

"Steelix is unable to battle!" He calls out. "Gyarados is the winner, so the victory goes to Misty!"

"Alright!" Misty cheers out loud.

"Way to go, Misty!" May shouts as she, Dawn, Iris, and Bonnie run over to congratulate the gym leader.

"Nice job, Misty!" Ash calls out, earning a forced smile from Serena.

Tracey runs over to Misty with a cheerful smile and says, "Congratulations, Misty. You were terrific."

Misty turns to Tracy and becomes slightly embarrassed by his praise.

"Come on, Tracey. You're exaggerating," she says.

"Not at all. I knew you were going to pull through," Tracey says without hesitating.

Misty takes a moment before giving Tracey an appreciative smile.

"What a quick but marvelous battle," Professor Sycamore says cheerfully.

"Indeed, it was," Professor Oak agrees. "Such incredible power from both Pokemon, especially Gyarados with its Hurricane."

"You said it," Max says.

"I'm surprised Misty managed to win without really using any water attacks," Coovers comments. "I guess getting rained on was enough to weaken Steelix."

"That and it's weak against fire attacks," Timothy points out.

"Raichu," Electchu says in agreement.

Brock sadly returns Steelix to its Pokeball just in time for Holly to walk over to him. The tan-skinned man slumps in defeat as he looks at the auburn-haired woman.

"Sorry, Holly. Looks like I couldn't beat Misty," he says sadly.

"That's alright," Holly says with a kind smile. "You're still number one in my book, dear."

Brock blushes at being called "dear," already feeling better. Misty walks over to them and shakes Brock's hand.

"That was a good battle, Brock," she compliments. "I gotta hand it to you, I didn't expect you to use Dig, Stone Edge, and Bind like that."

"You surprised me too with that Hurricane," Brock admits. "But I'll get you next time, Misty."

"We'll see about that," Misty replies with a boastful smirk.

Delia steps in and says, "Okay, does anyone else want to battle now?"

"Well, Alain, and I do, but we're saving that for tomorrow," Timothy says with Alain nodding.

"Oh, I know! I know!" Dawn says excitedly before turning to May. "How about you and I have a battle, May."

"Great idea," May says with a smile. "We haven't battled since the Wallace Cup."

"Oh, boy! I'd love to see you two battle each other!" Bonnie says excitedly.

"Me too," Max says.

"Alright, then let's do it!" Dawn shouts.

Everyone nods in agreement until Brock realizes something and shakes his head.

"Actually, Holly and I should hit the hay," he says.

"Huh? Why's that?" Ash asks.

"Oh, that's right," Holly says, figuring out what Brock is up to. "We need to leave early in the morning for Pewter City. We're going to be there until the Indigo League so that I can get to know the rest of Brock's family."

"Awww, that's so sweet," Delia coos happily. "In that case, I've already set up sleeping bags in both Ash's room for the boys and the guest room for the girls."

"Thanks, Mrs. Ketchum," Brock says. "Good night, you guys."

"Good night!" Everyone else calls out while Brock and Holly leave.

Once the young couple is out of sight, May and Dawn take positions to battle with Clemont still refereeing. As everyone watches the two coordinators battle, however, Serena secretly looks at the direction where Brock and Holly were heading back to Ash's house and sighs sadly. Her mind is still on the matter of where she's going to go after the Indigo League and what will happen between her and Ash.

"I wish Ash and I were more like them," she thinks to herself sadly. "They both feel the same way, and they already have their future together planned. It must be nice to be with the one you like with no problems at all."

********************************************************************************

"We're what?!"

Lucy smiles as Barabra, and her other sisters look at her, surprised. The four of them are sitting together, having just had finished dinner with Lucy's Pokemon at her cabin when she just made an announcement.

"That's right," she says. "I"m closing the Battle Pike so that we can all go to the Indigo League this year."

"But why?" Barbara asks. "This is a sudden decision, Queen Lucy."

"Because I want to see Ash and Timothy compete," Lucy claims. "They are both very strong trainers, and I want to see if one of them will make it to the top."

"But you've never wanted to do that before with any of your other past challengers," one of the other sisters point out. "What's gotten you so eager to see these two compete in person when we can just watch it on TV?"

Lucy pauses for a moment and feels a blush emerging from her cheeks. She strokes her Cyndaquill, who is lying down on her lap, and she stares at its eyes with a fond look.

"It's a secret."