Honedge hovered up to Seth and circled about him in a curious manner.

"Your skill with a blade is très impressionnant, your instructor, whoever they were, taught you well," Honedge observed as it levitate before him.

Okay... Mathilde did say that something like this was bound to happen eventually, once I used my aura enough. I suppose eventually just became right now, Seth mused, taking a deep breath before speaking to Honedge. "Thanks, though if she heard you say that, her head would get bigger than it already is..."

Perplexed, Honedge tilted itself slightly to the right.

"Your instructor sounds rather arrogant by the sound of things," Honedge deduced.

"To a fault... yes. Aside from her whimsical behavior, she's good, and I mean good at what she does concerning the sword," Seth informed the sentient blade.

"Judging by your footwork, I can tell you've endured some hellish training. Movements like those are très difficile without proper guidance. Were I still a living soul, it would have been fun to test the full extent of your ability. But alas, as you can see..." Honedge sighed.

As Seth and Honedge conversed, the others looked on in bewilderment.

"Is anyone else wondering what's going on here?" Shauna blinked, scratching her head in confusion as she tried to process what was happening. "I know they're talking... but I can't understand it. Honedge I mean..."

"Me too. All I hear is Seth talking and Honedge is... well..." Trevor added with a nervous chuckle.

"And here I thought the day couldn't get anymore weird. First Seth fights it, now he's talking to it," Serena stated with a raised brow.

"I think it's pretty cool," Tierno grinned.

"Your companions are quite the talkative bunch aren't they?" Honedge observed, getting a nod from Seth.

Crossing his arms, Seth glanced over at the foursome who were conversing among themselves, no doubt about the current scenario.

"You could say that. Despite their looks, they're all capable trainers," Seth remarked. "At any rate, why don't we discuss the reason for the out of the blue duel?"

Honedge hovered back a bit before answering. "Of course..."

"To be honest, in my former life, I was always compelled to test myself. The stronger the foe, the more satisfaction I felt whether my endeavours ended in victory or defeat..."

"So in short, old habits die hard?" Seth smirked.

"Oui, and not funny," Honedge grumbled.

"Wasn't trying to be," Seth replied. "So, what do you intend to do now that your little escapade is over?"

"Ah, pas si vite! who said it was over?" Honedge said sharply, fixing Seth with a stare. "After witnessing the skills you possess, my desire to fight has been reignited. Letting the chance to see more, slip away, would be totalement honteux!" .

"Are you asking what I think you're asking? because it sounds like you want to come with me," replied Seth with a stern tone.

Undaunted, Honedge pressed the issue.

"That is exactly what I am saying. "It's not just because you are an excellent swordsman. I wish to meet your master and face her in a duel as well!" Honedge declared. "But before I do, I must know the name of my lord..."

"Seth Da Silva," the brunette responded firmly. "And you don't need to call me your lord..."

"Nonsense! if I am to serve as your sword, you shall be known as my lord!" Honedge demanded.

Sighing, Seth conceded to her demands so as not to cause any issues between them. "Alright then. Since I told you my name, what do I call you? as in, what did you used to be called?"

"When I was among the living, I was known as Cerise D'aramitz. But you may call me Cerise. It is a pleasure to meet you, m'lord Seth," the scarlet blade finished. 

"Cerise... I like that. Very well then," Seth paused, plucking a ball off his belt to initiate the capture process. "Welcome to the team..."

"Attends une seconde! you don't plan to keep me locked in there do you? because I have plenty of reserves about that," Cerise protested.

"You're saying you don't want to be captured then?" Seth blinked.

"Not at all! I just don't wish to be cooped up in such a thing. You may use it only if you agree to let me out to be at your side from henceforth," Cerise proposed.

"I understand. Alright then, just hang tight for a moment until it registers that I've caught you. After that, I'll let you out," Seth promised, reaching out to tap Cerise on the hilt, the ball opening up to absorb her inside.

After a few seconds, the ball ceased twitching and the light faded from the center of the ball. Tapping the central point, he released Cerise so she could be free to roam about.

"Tellement mieux! thank you Seth," Cerise sighed in relief.

"Not a problem," Seth replied casually, shifting his gaze over to his friends who were now approaching him with curious expressions on their faces.

"So uh... Seth? Am I crazy, or were you just talking to a Honedge?" asked Serena, flashing him a bewildered look.

Seth gave her a faint smile before taking a deep breath. "This might take a while to explain..."

Allie and Thomas sat on a bench inside the Ambrette Aquarium and looked up at the large tanks containing several Pokémon of the deep. Apart from that was a tank containing mostly Luvdisc, a Pokémon Allie fancied for how cute it was.

"I'd say we had quite an adventure today, didn't we Thomas?" the princess smiled happily.

"You're right about that. We revived a fossil, explored a cave... it's been so much fun," Thomas replied with a bright smile.

Allie nodded and crossed one leg over the other. "So, night will soon be upon us. I trust we have accomodations at the hotel?" Allie inquired hopefully.

"Of course, I wouldn't think of not reserving us rooms," Thomas beamed. "Anything you need, I'll be more than happy to give."

"Oh Thomas, that's so sweet of you. You're quite the gentleman, but I'm certain you already know that. It's why I put you so high on the list," Allie replied, flashing him a brilliant smile.

"And I'm honored, princess," Thomas replied, his cheeks tinting slightly red as he looked back at her.

Allie stood up and stretched. "So, shall we head for our rooms then? I've been wanting to take a nice bath to wash off the sand from the beach."

Thomas rose to a stand and extended his hand to her. "Then allow me to escort you there. I've made reservations for us to dine there as well. We'll have a meal prepared by their chefs followed by dessert if it pleases you."

"Thomas, sweets are something I most certainly cannot do without. You know how to treat a woman don't you?" Allie giggled, taking his hand so they could walk out together.

"So let me see if I have this right here," Serena sighed, rubbing her temples. "Honedge er... Cerise, decided to take a swing at you just because she wanted to fight? I mean, I knew that much, but to learn she didn't have any other motive than to test herself was a bit surprising," Serena finished.

"Does a swordsman need a reason to seek out a challenge? it's common knowledge that we need to sharpen our skills, and the best way to do that is through challenging someone to a duel," Cerise spoke up.

"Cerise... they can't understand you," Seth muttered.

"And why not? I'm-- oh... right. I'm a Pokémon, which means all they hear is my name. Seriously, Arceus, the creator of all Pokémon, who endowed us all with powers that go beyond the realm of possibility, couldn't have, in addition to those gifts, given us the power of human speech!?!?"

Serena and company looked on as the sentient sword ranted on, repeating her name at different intervals of speed, indicating that she was clearly flustered. Shauna had to stifle a giggle just to keep from bursting with laughter.

"Is Cerise okay?" Serena replied while holding in a giggle of her own.

"Of course I'm not!"

"She's frustrated because she thinks Arceus is a lazy Pokémon god..." Seth began. "You guys can't understand her, so she's upset."

Cerise sighed and gave a gesture with her sash towards Seth in recognition of his correct analysis.

"That's always been something I found odd as well. But from what I learned, their speech is different from ours, so what we perceive as their name, is something entirely different to them," Trevor spoke up. "Still, Cerise does have a good point. I can see why she would be so frustrated. I would be too if all I could say was Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, all the time."

"Oh Trevor, you'd still be adorable even if you did," Shauna giggled, causing Trevor to blush profusely.

As Shauna turned to converse with Seth and Serena, Tierno nudged Trevor playfully.

"Dude, she totally thinks you're cute, you should--"

"So! we should really start heading to Ambrette Town right!? come on guys, let's not waste time," Trevor announced, hiding his scarlet face as he marched ahead.

"Right behind ya Trev!" Tierno called out as he followed his friend.

"Wait up you two!" Shauna chirped, catching up to them quickly, leaving Seth and Serena behind.

Serena glanced back at Seth and shook her head.

"I swear, Trevor just needs to come out and confess already," Serena laughed.

"I agree. It's so blatantly obvious he likes her," Seth smirked.

"Ah young love, such a beautiful thing, wouldn't you agree m'lord?" Cerise chimed in.

"Indeed it is," Seth chuckled.

"Not that I understood any of that, but I'm guessing she just agreed with us?" Serena ventured.

"Pretty much. At any rate, we should probably catch up to the others. The sooner we get to the next city, the sooner I can earn my next badge," Seth stated as he began to walk beside Serena.

"I take it Cerise is content to float about like that?" Serena guessed, getting a nod from Seth.

"It would seem so," Seth replied with a shrug.

"If it pleases you, I wish to travel another way m'lord," Cerise inputted, her sash extending from the top of Seth's right shoulder to the bottom right half of his upper body, much like a shoulder strap.

"Wait a second Seth! the sash on a Honedge is-- huh? what?" Serena blinked, taking note that it seemed to have no effect on Seth as Cerise finished her makeshift shoulder strap, securing herself on his back. "But I thought..."

"Honedge can pretty much destroy the soul of an indiviual with its sash. Is that what you were going to say? while that may be true, it is also true that they are capable of utilizing that power as they see fit. It's not an automatic. The dex only gives us information based on what has been researched, however, they neglect to mention the Pokémon's overall control of their powers. Since Cerise does not perceive me as a threat, I'm safe from the effects of that ability," Seth explained.

"Ah... I seem to have forgotten that part. Sorry, it just scared me a bit considering the information I've been given in the past," Serena chuckled nervously.

"My apologies for scaring you, m'lady. I shall endeavour to refrain from that in the future," Cerise apologised.

"Seth? what did she say?" Serena questioned him.

Smiling, Seth gave her a reassuring look. "She said she's sorry she scared you like that. She won't do it again."

"That's a relief," Serena beamed. "Well, shall we go? The others can't be too far ahead."

Without another word, Seth and Serena ventured forth to catch up to the others as they embarked on their journey to Ambrette Town.

It's been quite a while hasn't it? Aloha friends! So as you can see, Seth has acquired Honedge, or in this case, Cerise which means "deep red." It's also of French origin, so that's neat. Now, I will nip this in the bud before it begins. No, Seth will not be using Cerise as an actual sword. Instead, he will call her into battle like usual, only she'll unravel herself from his back in order to do so. Also, I made her shiny because why the hell not? It's an AMAZING shiny. That being said, I hope you all enjoy the chapter. Remember to vote and comment if you feel the desire to, however, I will reiterate that it is of great help to me and countless other authors. Constructive criticism is crucial for us so we can grow. So please, if you can, let me know how I'm doing, okay? Be on the look out for the next chapter, as it is coming out soon!