Author's Note:

Still very busy but I'll try to get some time soon to upload more chapters. Long story, but I've made it a pain to upload these. Anyways, at some point you'll get a barrage of chapters. Hope this satisfies you for a bit.

Ash ran through the forest at full speed. He looked up and saw the moon and realized he must have been running for hours. He knew his friends were probably worried about him, but he had to think of Noivern now. He could worry about catching up later. The thought of Noivern made him run even faster. He hated Team Rocket for this. He knew Nurse Joy could help Noivern, but still he hated them. Hurting Ash's Pokemon was hurting Ash's very soul. He could almost feel it when his Pokemon were hurt. Obviously it was different from when Greninja took his special form, but any of his Pokemon getting hurt could sometimes cause Ash to feel pain.

He noticed a little bit of light up ahead and shouted in relief. He started yelling for Nurse Joy once he saw the Pokemon centre sign and managed to push himself even more to get there faster. He stopped in front of the doors and tried to open them. "Open up!" He yelled, "Nurse Joy I need your help!" He was shouting at the top of his lungs. He couldn't believe it. He'd run all of this way and Nurse Joy was going to sleep during his time of need? Then he noticed a light turn on in a hallway through the window, followed by the main lobby's lights going on. Nurse Joy came to the door, followed by her Wigglytuff. She opened the door and glared at Ash. "Thank you-" he started.

"What on earth are you doing? Do you realize there are sick Pokemon here trying to sleep?" She was whispering, but somehow it seemed like a yell.

Ash looked down. "I'm really sorry Nurse Joy, but I need your help."

The nurse continued to glare at him and looked at Pikachu. "You're Pokemon looks fine."

"No, not Pikachu. It's my Noivern. His wing and leg are hurt. Some Pokemon thieves attacked him."

Nurse Joy's glare immediately went away. "Alright, get in. Bring out Noivern, so we can put him on a stretcher." She looked at Wigglytuff and ordered it to grab the stretcher.

When Wigglytuff returned, Ash let Noivern out onto the stretcher. It looked at him with confident, but weary eyes. "You're gonna be alright Noivern. Nurse Joy will take care of you." He looked the nurse in the eyes. "Anything I can do?"

Nurse Joy looked at Ash. She felt bad for getting mad at him earlier. She could tell he really cared about his Pokemon. "No, don't worry. I'll take care of Noivern and he should be at one hundred percent after a couple of days." She gestured to a lobby couch. "The rooms are all taken, but you can sleep on the couch. I'll send Wigglytuff with pillows and blankets in a few minutes." She took Noivern down a hall and through a door to begin healing him.

Ash sat down on the couch and Pikachu jumped up next to him. "What are we going to do, buddy? Obviously I need to make sure Noivern's ok, but Serena and the others are waiting for us."

Pikachu looked down sadly, clearly not knowing what to do. It glanced around the room, hoping for some kind of inspiration. "Pika!" He shouted. He had just locked his eyes on a computer.

Ash glanced at what Pikachu was looking at and grinned. "Great idea Pikachu, we can email Serena. She'll get it on her tablet." The look of excitement then faded. "But wait...Nurse Joy said Noivern would only be healthy in two days." He looked nervously at the computer and then back at Pikachu. "We might miss the showcase." He sighed and went to the computer to send the email.

Serena woke up and yawned. She looked around the cave. Bonnie and Dedenne were still sleeping, but Clemont was already up and making breakfast. Serena noticed how he kept glancing up at the opening of the cave expectantly. "So obviously he isn't here yet." She stated.

Clemont jumped at the sudden sound of her voice. He turned around and saw her sadly looking at the entrance to the cave. "No, but we shouldn't worry, Serena. You know Ash is going to do everything he can to catch up. Remember, he did this so you wouldn't get behind and could make it there on time. The plan wasn't for him to be here and all of us not make it."

Serena didn't answer. She looked at Bonnie who had started to stir awake. Bonnie was so nice last night. I had no idea she knew. Was I really so obvious?

Clemont sighed in relief as Bonnie sat up, blinking the sleep from her eyes. He was clearly uncomfortable with Serena's upset mood. "Bonnie, good morning," he said. She nodded that she'd heard him, but she was apparently too tired to say anything. She just started to roll up her sleeping bag to put it in her backpack without saying anything.

Serena felt terrible. She was making these two have to rush to get her to her showcase and meanwhile she had abandoned Ash the day before. "I'm so sorry you guys," she said, blinking away tears. "I don't want to rush you."

Bonnie snapped to her usual energetic self. It was a little alarming and Serena gasped. The little blonde girl jumped up and said, "not to worry Serena. I love travelling with you and Ash. You're like a big sister and Ash is like another brother. Going from city to city for you guys is a lot of fun. And I've been able to see so many awesome battles and showcases and Pokemon." She grabbed Serena and gave the older girl a big hug. "And Ash is going to see your showcase. Don't worry."

Serena couldn't help but smile. "Oh Bonnie...thank you."

Clemont looked confused. "You know, Serena, is it really a big deal if Ash doesn't see the performance in person? I mean, he could always see it on a TV or something."

Serena was about to snap at him, but Bonnie just shook her head and rolled her eyes as if to say this brother of mine is such an idiot. Serena ignored the question and packed up her things. She noticed her tablet sitting in a pocket in her bag and a little light flashing on it.

"Oh Serena!" Bonnie shouted. "I think you got a message!"

Serena tried to hide it, but she was excited too.It has to be from Ash. And she was right. She opened up the tablet to see the image of a Fletchling holding an envelope in its beak. The envelope was labelled, To Serena, From Ash.

"Open it!" Bonnie yelled next to her. She had quickly moved next to Serena when she saw the excited twinkle in the older girl's eyes.

"Ok...oh, it's a video message." Serena clicked to open the message and Ash's face appeared on the screen.

Ash looked exhausted and unhappy. His face was all dirty and he had leaves in his hair. Pikachu was next to him and he didn't look much happier. They were clearly in a Pokemon centre, but Serena hoped that was because he needed to use the computer and not because of his Pokemon getting hurt. Unfortunately, Ash's story was worse than that. He explained how he had drawn Team Rocket into the water and how Pikachu had gotten rid of them, but the water had then been too dangerous to enter. He went on to describe how he planned to get across, but his Noivern had been hurt and he had to go to the Pokemon centre. And then the worst part. "Nurse Joy says Noivern will be alright, but unfortunately I'll be here for a couple of days until he is." Ash scratched his head nervously. "I'm really sorry Serena, but I don't think I'll make it to your performance." He ended his video assuring them that he'd try to make it for Serena's crowning if she were to win and again that he was really sorry.

Serena put the tablet away without saying a word. Clemont didn't seem too bothered, but Bonnie knew exactly what was up. Neither of them said anything though and the group ate their breakfast in silence before setting off to travel for the day.

Ash woke up to the noise of the Pokemon centre opening up. Pikachu jumped up next to him, having already been up. It appeared as though Nurse Joy had fed him and actually all of Ash's Pokemon. They were all out of their poke balls and were playing in the lobby. Ash stood up and started to fold up the blankets. "Good morning, Pikachu. Sleep well?"

"Pi-Pikachu," he stated happily.

"Good, I'm glad one of us did." Ash hadn't slept very well at all. He'd been tossing and turning all night. He would get to sleep for a few minutes, but then he'd start dreaming about walking into the performance hall after Serena's showcase. Every time it would be after she lost and she would yell at him, blaming him for not being there. He couldn't get those thoughts out of his head. Pikachu looked at him worriedly. "Don't worry, buddy. Just not used to sleeping on couches. I'm used to the outdoor life by now."

Pikachu accepted the lie on the outside with a smile and a, "Pikachu," but knew Ash was feeling sad about the likelihood of missing Serena's performance. He was also upset about it.

"Well what should we do today?" Ash asked. "I guess we won't be travelling, so maybe we should get in some special training?" Obviously this was the best way to cheer Ash up.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted and some of the other Pokemon shouted agreement as well.

Ash nodded, smiling. "Well, let's get to it!" His stomach growled. "Uh...maybe I'll eat first."

Serena, Bonnie and Clemont had been travelling all day. They had made it to the top of the mountain and were now travelling through a forest, thick with trees and bushes and full of Pokemon. There were especially a lot of insect, grass and flying types. For once it wasn't Clemont who lagged behind, but Serena. They had been keeping up a pretty good pace, but she was still trying to stay back of the two siblings, trapped in her thoughts. She had resigned herself to the fact that Ash wouldn't be able to make it, but obviously that didn't make her happier. But at this point she was now consumed with worry over the showcase. If she didn't win, none of this was worth it. And if she didn't win...she wouldn't have Ash there to comfort her.

All of a sudden a loud noise was heard up ahead in a clearing. It was like a bunch of mini motors or something. The three trainers froze nervously, expecting something like Team Rocket to emerge, but instead they noticed it was only some flying type Pokemon. They continued walking up ahead to see what kind they were.

Bonnie ran forward excitedly to see the Pokemon. "Wow what are these Pokemon? I've never seen them before." It was a large flock of some mysterious and strange Pokemon not native to the Kalos region.

Serena opened her Pokedex and scanned one of the smaller ones. The Pokedex lit up and explained, "Pidgey, a flying type Pokemon and native to the Kanto region. Can also commonly be seen in the Johto region. A common sight in forests and woods. It flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand." She looked at the other type of Pokemon that had landed in the clearing and scanned it as well. "Pidgeotto, a flying type Pokemon, native to Kanto and the evolved form of Pidgey. The claws on its feet are well developed. It can carry large prey to its nest over 60 miles away."

Clemont looked in awe. "Wow, it's so cool to see Pokemon that are mainly only seen in Kanto. I bet Ash would love this."

Bonnie ran up to a Pidgey, exclaiming, "it's so cute!" The Pokemon looked as though it was about to flee but all of a sudden there was a shadow up above and the largest and most beautiful flying type any of them had ever seen, appeared. It landed next to Bonnie and looked at the Pidgey and nodded. Bonnie stared at it completely awed by it. "Wow..." was all she could say.

Serena was also completely stunned by this Pokemon. It was similar to the {idgey and Pidgeotto, but much bigger and much more beautiful. It had calm, powerful eyes and what looked like a mane of red and gold that stretched from its to its back. She scanned it with her Pokedex while Bonnie and Clemont approached it. "Pidgeot, a rare flying type, native to Kanto, the evolved form of Pidgeotto and the final evolved form of Pidgey. It spreads its gorgeous wings widely to intimidate enemies. It races through the skies at incredible speeds."

"Wow," Serena said, "it's so beautiful." Pidgeot appeared to smile at her praise.

"And so calm around people too. I wonder why it is so trusting of us. I assume it's the leader of this flock, but why would it allow us to go so close?" Clemont asked while stroking the Pidgeot, who appeared to love the attention it was getting.

Serena shrugged. She looked into the Pidgeot's eyes and saw such power and beauty she never knew could be in a Pokemon. This Pokemon was clearly special. She looked at her tablet and searched about Pidgey, Pidgeotto and Pidgeot. "Listen to this. Apparently flocks of Pidgey and Pidgeotto will occasionally travel to Kalos from Kanto, but only under a great leader. If a Pidgeot leads a flock, it is said they are able to accomplish great feats such as this long travel and that as time passes the Pidgey and Pidgeotto are able to grow stronger and eventually become independent enough to go on their own. Apparently, Pidgeotto will likely only evolve into Pidgeot with an extremely loyal and powerful trainer and that only the most powerful of these are able to lead a flock. That means this Pidgeot was probably owned by someone before and probably someone really strong."

When Serena finished, the Pidgeot looked her in the eyes and nodded. Clemont looked confused, but Bonnie looked really excited. "So if you don't have a trainer anymore, can we keep you, Pidgeot?" she asked. The Pidgeot looked a little flustered at this.

"Bonnie, its got a flock to take care of. And even if it didn't, he'd probably want to find his trainer again." Clemont said. "Hey, Serena, can I look at the tablet and read more about Pidgeot?" Serena handed him the tablet. He read through it and then looked up at Pidgeot. "It says a Pidgeot is able to locate the general location of its trainer." He pondered this for a moment. "Are you looking for your trainer, Pidgeot?" Pidgeot nodded.

Serena frowned, thinking about why this Pokemon would approach them like this. Then she asked Pidgeot, "do you think we can help you in any way?" Pidgeot gave her its calm, powerful look and sighed. It appeared it didn't know. But, Serena was thinking about when Bonnie approached the Pidgey before and when Clemont was talking about how cool it was for Pokemon from Kanto to be here. She was thinking about someone else from Kanto. "You heard us talking about Ash, didn't you?"

The Pidgeot's eyes lit up at the name and it shouted, "Pidge-Pidgaw!"

"No way!" Clemont exclaimed. "Ash never mentioned he had a Pidgeot!"

Serena was beaming. She knew it was a long shot, but maybe, just maybe... "Pidgeot, we know where Ash is. He was with us, but we got separated." She showed Pidgeot a map on her tablet and explained where Ash was. "You're really fast right?" Pidgeot nodded proudly. "Do you think you could get Ash to Gloria City in three days? You see...I really wanted him to see my performance. He's stuck at the Pokemon centre and can't leave until the morning after tomorrow and he's already behind. Maybe you could fly really fast and help him get there?" She knew it would be tough, even for this great bird, but it was the only thing she could think of.

Pidgeot jumped up into the air. It created such a gust of wind that Bonnie got knocked into Clemont and they both nearly fell over. "Pidgaw!" The giant bird shouted. All the Pidgey and the Pidgeotto answered with happy "Pidgaws" back. It appeared as if they knew that Pidgeot had been planning to leave. He had made them strong and brave and they no longer needed him. Out of loyalty they had travelled with him to find his trainer.

"Thank you Pidgeot!" Serena shouted as the powerful Pokemon whipped into the sky. "We'll see you soon!"

"Alright, Hawluch use flying press! Talonflame, use flame charge!" The masked bird fighting Pokemon leaped into the air and dove towards Talonflame who was surrounded by flames and charging back. They collided and created a big explosion and the both landed calmly to cheers from the small crowd that had gathered.

Ash's Pokemon had become celebrities throughout the day as people came in and out of the Pokemon centre. Everyone was amazed to see a Pikachu in the Kalos region and then quickly warmed to Ash's other Pokemon as well. They'd been training all day and Ash could definitely see differences in his Pokemon and their strength. Hawlucha in particular was having a good training day. Likely, he was thinking of Noivern and how he wanted to impress it when it got better.

"Alright everyone, sorry, but I think we'll have to wrap it up." The crowd sounded disappointed but seemed to understand. One person shouted, "can we see Pikachu's electro ball one more time?" Ash nodded to Pikachu who jumped into the air and let the powerful electrical sphere blast into the ground. The crowd cheered again, amazed with Pikachu's power.

Ash and his Pokemon went back into the Pokemon centre and by what was temporarily "their" couch. "You guys all did a great job. I know we're gonna win the Kalos League with you guys working so hard." His Pokemon all made happy sounds of confidence, including Hawlucha who did his confident pose.

"Excuse me, Ash?"

Ash turned, surprised, and saw Nurse Joy standing behind him, smiling. "Hi Nurse Joy," he said, "how's Noivern doing?"

"Well that's actually what I wanted to tell you. It's great news. I didn't realize how well you must have been training Noivern, but he's much stronger than I thought he was. He's recovering very quickly and I expect he should be ready to go with you in the morning."

Ash's eyes widened excitedly. "Really? That's awesome. I might be able to get to Serena's showcase in time if I fly with Noivern."

Nurse Joy frowned. "Well not exactly, Ash. He may be recovering faster, but I don't want you using him to fly or to battle for at least another day, just to be sure. You'll have to start on foot."

Ash sighed. "Well I'm glad we can go earlier, but I'm probably gonna still miss Serena's showcase. It would've been tight just flying on Noivern, but an extra day walking is basically it."

Nurse Joy smiled. "Don't worry. I'm sure your girlfriend understands."

Ash's eyes widened and he felt his face almost explode with heat and knew he was probably as red as a tomato. "No it's not like that.! She's a friend."

Nurse Joy smirked. "Right. Well, you better eat and then get to bed. You've got a long day tomorrow."

Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were eating dinner at the Pokemon Centre. They had managed to make it just before it closed for the night. The meeting with Pidgeot had energized them all and they had made it through the forest in record time. They were watching the view of the moon and the stars from their table. The Pokemon Centre had a great view from the top of the mountains and they were able to see how high up they were.

"So we should be able to make it to Gloria City tomorrow night. We still have to travel along the mountain for a while, but then it starts to dip and Gloria City is at the bottom." Clemont said, looking at his map.

"Yay!" Bonnie cheered. "And maybe Pidgeot will be able to get Ash there soon."

Clemont looked as if he was about to say something, but stopped. He looked at the map again and then outside. "It looks like it could be really dangerous tomorrow for some parts of the mountain. Bonnie, you'll have to stay close to me, ok?"

Bonnie rolled her eyes and muttered something that sounded like "stupid brother" and then looked at Serena. "And Serena, you're going to get a full day to train before the performance after we get there." She thought for a moment and got a weird, scheming look in her eye. "How are you going to impress Ash during your performance?"

Serena blushed and ignored the question. "Um...uh...Clemont. How come it's dangerous?"

Clemont had been looking at the exchange between Bonnie and Serena with a confused look, but the question snapped him out of it. "Well there are lots of steep hills and thin walkways. It can also get pretty windy, so it will be hard to stay balanced. They have fences and stuff, but we'll still need to be careful. And of course I have my Aipom arm if someone falls."

Bonnie smirked, apparently thinking her brother was overreacting. "What if two of us fall? The arm only grabs one thing at a time."

It's actually a pretty good question, Serana thought to herself. Bonnie's smart for her age. She looked outside and yawned. "Well, I think we should get to bed. Tomorrow is a long day and we need to be rested so we can focus while trekking the mountain."

The others murmured agreement and got ready for bed as well. Bonnie followed Serena to her room. She was, as usual, bunking with her for the night. Clemont went to his own room, looking a little lonely since he usually had Ash with him, but he looked so tired that it wasn't going to matter in a few minutes anyway, since he'd be asleep.

While Serena and Bonnie lay in their beds, Serena thought of Ash and Pidgeot. I can't believe Ash raised such a powerful Pokemon and released it. She then remembered Goodra and that Ash was willing to do anything to make his Pokemon happy, even if it meant separating from them. She was happy that Pidgeot had clearly made his Pidgey and Pidgeotto friends much braver and stronger than they must have been. He'll be so happy to see Pidgeot.

"Serena?" Bonnie asked.

"Yes, Bonnie?" Serena answered.

"Tell me the truth. Do you love Ash?" Bonnie's voice wasn't teasing. It was concerned.

Serena started to sweat. She knew Bonnie suspected. Last night made that pretty clear when Bonnie was letting her know that she suspected something was up. But she had ignored actually telling the younger girl that last night. She didn't want to say it aloud, but at the same time she did. She had thought it was a crush in the beginning, but that was years ago, when she was a little kid who had fallen in a forest. She had thought that maybe she had created an unrealistic picture of what he had grown up to be in her mind over the years, but then she saw him save Garchomp on TV and then leap off a building to save Pikachu. And she had travelled with him so long now, that she knew he was all she dreamed he would be and more.

Serena had been silent for a while and Bonnie suspected she had irritated her friend with the question. "Never mind. It's ok. You don't need to answer." She turned as if to end the short conversation.

Serena smiled. Bonnie knew either way. Bonnie knows...and that's ok. "Yes, Bonnie, I love Ash." She whispered.

Bonnie didn't answer, but smiled as she closed her eyes and went to sleep.