Serena stood with Bonnie and Clemont, along with Officer Jenny and her police officers, near a path leading into the forest. They were beginning their raid on Lysandre Labs. Serena pulled one pokeball out of her bag and another off of Ash's belt. She tossed them both out and released Delphox and Greninja in front of her.

"Greninja!" Greninja said confidently and turned to look at his temporary trainer.

"Ready to go save Ash?" Serena asked the frog-ninja Pokemon.

Greninja nodded and turned, waiting for Officer Jenny's go ahead. Bonnie grabbed Serena's hand and shuffled closer to her. "If we get attacked, Clemont wants me to stay with you."

Serena narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Why doesn't he want you to stay with him? And what do you mean attacked?" She asked.

Bonnie sighed and looked at Clemont who was deep in conversation with Officer Jenny. "He thinks we're gonna get attacked. He says he thinks Lysandre will have been watching us using a special security camera he apparently invented for Pokemon centres."

Serena had to laugh at what she thought was a ridiculous idea. "Come on...Lysandre won't be spying on us."

Bonnie shrugged. "Well you have to admit, this would be something Clemont might know. I guess it's better to be safe than sorry." She looked at Clemont who was apparently now arguing with Officer Jenny. "Although, Officer Jenny doesn't think there's anything to worry about."

Serena was beginning to get worried. "So why would Clemont want you to go with me?"

The little blonde girl smiled and then pulled Serena so the older girl was low enough for Bonnie to whisper in her ear. "He wants you and me to sneak in. He thinks that's safer for me and he thinks it's a better way to get to Ash."

Serena nodded. "Alright that makes some sense I guess." She looked around at all the police. "When are we gonna go?"

Bonnie followed Serena's gaze as the latter looked around at the police. "Clemont says we should go as soon as everyone starts moving. We can get lost in the crowd."

"Sounds like a plan." Serena said. She pulled out Ash's belt and took a pokeball off of it and gave it to Bonnie. "This is Hawlucha's pokeball. I want you to use him." She handed her the belt with the rest of the pokeballs. "Give the others to Clemont. He's already got Pidgeot, but Talonflame and Noivern will be a big help as well."

Bonnie's eyes lit up at the prospect of getting to use Hawlucha. Serena smiled as she watched the little blonde run over to her brother and hand him the other pokeballs. He gave Serena a quick nod and then resumed his conversation with Officer Jenny. Bonnie ran over and released Hawlucha in front of her.

"Lucha!" Hawlucha said proudly as he posed in front of Serena and his temporary trainer.

Bonnie ran forward and hugged Hawlucha. "Hawlucha, you and I are gonna team up to help Ash ok?" She said to the proud fighting-type.

"Haw-lu-cha!" Hawlucha said, doing a different pose with each syllable. He then gave Bonnie a quick bow to acknowledge that he'd listen to her commands.

Bonnie squeaked in excitement and Serena could barely contain her laughter. Hawlucha and Bonnie were becoming great friends and their personalities matched really well.

Serena looked up at Pikachu on her shoulder. "We're almost there, Pikachu." She told the electric mouse. "We'll have him back soon."

Pikachu nodded, smiling. "Pi-pikachu." He said happily.

Serena's head whipped around when she hear a loud, piercing whistle from Officer Jenny, who was now commanding the group to move forward and into the forest. So now it begins. Serena thought. She looked over to Clemont who gave her a quick nod and then she, Bonnie and their Pokemon slipped to the back of the group.

They waited behind some bushes as the group of police and Clemont moved deeper into the forest. Serena then turned to Bonnie. "Clemont didn't mention a route, did he?" She asked, suddenly realizing they really didn't know where to go.

Bonnie shook her head. "Should I try to catch up to him?"

Greninja then suddenly grabbed Serena's hand and looked her in the eyes. "Greninja!" He said, giving her a knowing look.

Serena smiled back. "You'll lead us there?" She asked the frog-ninja Pokemon. He nodded. Serena looked at Bonnie and said, "Let's go."

Greninja was fast, but he made sure to make the pace so that the others could keep up. Serena was grateful as clearly Hawlucha and Pikachu, who was now running alongside Greninja, would likely be the only ones with a chance at matching the powerful water type's speed. A couple of times he stopped and closed his eyes, attempting to lock onto Ash's emotions. Serena was extremely worried at one point as Greninja's eyes widened in what looked like pure terror, but he shook his head quickly and snapped out of it. Whatever that was, Serena prayed it wasn't from reading Ash's emotions.

As they approached a small clearing, they met their first enemy. A Team Flare member, likely scouting for anyone sneaking through like this group. He was a short, fat and bald guy, but he had a creepy smile as he unleashed a Crobat. Serena squinted. It was hard to see the purple bat in the darkness. Storm clouds were coming in, and despite it being the afternoon, the sky was getting quite dark.

The Flare grunt shouted for his Crobat to attack. "Air cutter!" He yelled.

Serena was about to get Delphox to intercept with a flamethrower, but to her surprise, Bonnie was quicker. "Hawlucha, high jump kick!" She yelled.

"Lucha!" Hawlucha leaped up with incredible speed and landed a powerful kick right to Crobat's face and the bat was launched back at its trainer, right as it started its air cutter attack. Unfortunately for the Flare grunt, the attack hit him just before his Pokemon did and the two of them landed at the foot of a tree, unconscious.

They continued to run, following Greninja who immediately started moving once the battle was over. Serena smiled to the little blonde girl. "Great job, Bonnie. You and Hawlucha work together almost as well as he and Ash."

Bonnie laughed. "Thanks, but Ash probably wouldn't have even let that guy throw the pokeball out."

Serena smiled and continued to run. Finally, they arrived at a massive gate, which was intimidating to look at. At eye level, was a sign saying it was electrified, which didn't surprise any of them. However, past the gate was something that made Serena's heart pound with the closest thing to joy she could feel at the moment. The Lysandre Labs building, lit up in the darkness of the storm clouds, was up a hill past this monstrous fence.

Bonnie looked nervous. "How do we get past?" She asked.

Serena looked at Delphox. "Delphox, could you use fire blast?" She asked her fox-like fire Pokemon. Delphox nodded and pointed her stick at the fence and launched a dai-shaped blast of fire at it. The effect was definitely the desired one. The fence exploded and sizzled as it tumbled to the ground. It spat out a few sparks of electricity as it lay there. Serena looked at Bonnie. "It might not be safe to walk on that." She said a little nervously.

Greninja shook his head. Then he suddenly grabbed Delphox and leaped, digging his legs into the ground, before shooting them up with incredible power and speed. He landed gracefully at the other end of the fence, having completely dodged the sizzling and sparking metal.

Serena smiled. "Great job, Greninja." Greninja leaped back over and held onto Serena. Pikachu jumped onto her shoulder and held her tightly as well. Meanwhile, Hawlucha picked up Bonnie, surprising her with his strength. "Ok, Hawlucha, you sure you can do this?" Serena asked a little concerned. Hawlucha nodded and leaped. He slowed in mid jump, but he cape-like wings and glided across, landing safely next to Delphox and he put Bonnie down. Greninja quickly followed and place Serena down. "You two are awesome." Serena said happily.

"Del!" Delphox said, beaming at Greninja.

Serena giggled at Greninja scratched nervously at the back of his neck, just as his trainer often did. "Just like Ash." She said.

Bonnie hugged Hawlucha. "You're so strong, Hawlucha!" She said happily.

Hawlucha smiled and did a pose. "Lucha!" He said proudly.

Serena smiled, but it left her face quickly as she looked up the hill at their next obstacle to rescuing Ash. She could hear a faint ringing sound. Her eyes widened in realization and worry. "They've got an alarm going." She said.

Bonnie nodded and looked seriously at the older girl. "We have to hurry." She said. She looked into her bag at Dedenne and Squishy to make sure they were ok. Once satisfied, she looked at Serena and nodded.

"Let's go." Serena said.

XXXXX

Ash and Mairin were just about ready to try their plan to get out. Ash was waiting to run forward, Bebe was waiting to attack any Team Flare guard and Mairin had Chespie held tightly in her arms. However, their plans changed immediately as the door burst open and Nurse Joy appeared with Wigglytuff at her side.

"Come on! We have to go now!" She yelled at the two young trainers.

Ash ran forward and attempted to get away, but Wigglytuff grabbed him and held him in place next to Nurse Joy. "Let me go! I'm going after Lysandre."

Nurse Joy shook her head and Ash felt intimidated by her dark stare. "No way, we're all getting out of here right now." She looked at Mairin. "Come on, let's go. We need to get Chespie out of here."

Mairin nodded and exited the room. She held Chespie with one hand and grabbed Ash's hand with her other. "Come on, Ash." She said. "We'll get Lysandre later."

Ash pursed his lips in anger, but let Mairin drag him along behind her, following Nurse Joy. His frustration was distracting him and he was barely able to keep up with them as they ran down the hallway and made a couple turns. Finally, they reached the main lobby of the building and saw the entrance. Immediately, his frustration disappeared as he saw two Team Flare grunts waiting at the entrance, apparently watching someone who was approaching. They released their Pokemon, a Raticate and a Woobat.

Ash and his companions watched, hiding behind the corner as the Team Flare members hid behind a desk for their unknowing victims who were now slightly visible through the glass doors. Ash couldn't make them out exactly, because it was starting to get dark outside, as a storm was brewing.

The doors opened and Ash's eyes widened in recognition as he saw a frog-like Pokemon lead a fox-like Pokemon in, followed by two girls. One, a little girl with blonde hair who had a Hawlucha in front of her, the other older, with light brown hair a little above her shoulders who had a Pikachu next to her. They were here. Greninja, Delphox, Hawlucha, Bonnie and, of course Serena. He exhaled in tremendous relief.

Mairin looked at Ash and saw the relief, clearly evident on his face and then she looked back at the people who had just entered. "Are those your friends?" She whispered.

Ash didn't have time to answer. As soon as Serena and Bonnie had entered the room they had entered danger. The Team Flare members emerged from behind the desk and their Pokemon jumped out to surprise the intruders.

One Flare grunt shouted. "We're closed, sweetie, so how about you leave your Pokemon here. Actually, maybe you can stay as well." He was talking to Serena and he had a really sleazy voice.

Ash's eyes widened in absolute fury at the Flare grunt's last words. He couldn't wait any longer. He burst forward with incredible speed, that Mairin and Nurse Joy were barely able to register that he'd gone and that Serena and Bonnie had no idea someone was approaching their battle. Ash jumped forward and the Flare grunt looked back in surprise, hearing feet clap against the ground. Ash tackled him to the ground with such force, the two of them tumbled into the other grunt. Ash pulled back his fist and pounded it into the face of the man who had taunted Serena. He raised it again and repeated. He was lost in his rage. He got up and kicked the man in the stomach, although it was pointless as he was now unconscious. He went over to the other Flare grunt who had hit his head into the desk and was dazed, struggling to get up. Ash again, pulled back his fist and launched it forward into this man's face, knocking him clean out. Ash had never hit people like that before. He'd been in scuffles, but he'd never really fought anyone like this before. He'd never felt rage and passion that made him want to sink his fists into someone's face like this. He stood there panting, as the Flare members' Pokemon stared at him in fear.

"Ash..." Ash looked up. It was her. It was Serena, the most important person in his life. The one he had been protecting. The reason he'd lost control. He realized she was looking at him with fear in her eyes.

Ash started to shake. He looked down at his hand and noticed his knuckles were red, black and blue. A mix of bruising and blood. He exhaled a shaky breath. His hands started to shake uncontrollably. He looked at the unconscious Flare members and felt his stomach lurch. He felt dizzy and his vision started to get foggy.

"Ash!" He looked up, still shaking to see Mairin running towards him. She stopped in front of him and looked at him with a mixture of admiration and fear. "Are you ok?" She asked. She grabbed his hand and looked at his knuckles. Ash winced, but didn't pull away.

All of a sudden there was an awkward silence as Ash and Mairin looked at Serena. Ash saw Serena's jaw was clenched as she stared at his bruised and bloodied hand being held by Mairin. He felt his hand drop as Mairin let it go quickly.

Ash then looked around as another voice called his name. Nurse Joy, bandages in her hand had run up to him. "Here, let me fix up your hand." She said. Ash felt a sting and then some relief as Nurse Joy sprayed something onto his hand. She then wrapped it up in a bandage and let him go. She looked nervously at the unconscious Flare grunts and then at their Pokemon who were still staring at Ash in fear. "You two can go." She said to the Raticate and Woobat. The two immediately fled the scene.

Ash looked over at Serena who had a worried look in her eyes. All he wanted to do was make her feel ok. He manoeuvred around the unconscious Flare grunts and stood in front of her. He decided he'd try to lighten the mood. "Hi." He said, as if they were just meeting up for a movie.

Serena stared back, her eyes still full of worry and fear, but there was a bit of something else there now. Was it anger? Ash resisted an urge to glance nervously at Mairin. He realized that the brief moment of the other girl holding his hand had set something off in Serena.

Ash glanced down and locked eyes with someone else he had been wanting to see badly. He held out his hands and Pikachu jumped up into them and then he crawled up onto Ash's shoulder. Ash looked up and smiled at his best friend. "I'm so glad you're ok, buddy." He said.

"Pikachu." Pikachu said, smiling. He then nodded to Serena.

Ash looked at Serena. "Thank you for taking care of Pikachu."

Serena then blinked and Ash saw, with a rush of relief, her blue eyes become the same ones he realized he'd been longing to see ever since they'd been separated. Happy and loving. She rushed forward, wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. "You're ok." She said and Ash could hear her crying as he put his arms around her.

Ash smiled. He gently held up Serena's face with his uninjured hand. He could feel his heart racing, but didn't let nerves stop him. He did something he never thought he'd understand. Something he never imagined himself doing. He leaned forward, closed his eyes, and pressed his lips to his girlfriend's.

XXXXX

Serena closed her eyes immediately when she realized what Ash was doing. She had fantasized about this moment for a long time. She'd often imagined herself winning the Masterclass showcase and having Ash run up to her on stage and them sharing a kiss to a cheering crowd. Or she would imagine him winning the Pokemon League and running to his number one supporter and kissing her. Or, she would imagine them alone together, in a park after a quiet walk, turning slowly to each other and finally sharing that first kiss. She had never imagined it would happen after Ash had knocked out two evil Pokemon criminals and that it would be in the lobby of a criminal organization's building.

None of her fantasies mattered in that moment, though. She couldn't have been happier as her lips locked with Ash's. She felt them burn like fire and freeze like ice. She felt electricity course through her nerves. She was almost sure Pikachu had shocked her with a thunderbolt, but then she realized that the shock waves she felt throughout her body were nothing like a Pikachu thunderbolt. This was something completely different. It was the awakening of excitement in every nerve and cell in her body. All of the love she had for Ash was felt in that moment. Everything she wanted to say to him was said in that kiss and she could feel that it was the same in reverse, as she felt Ash's love for her course through her body in combination with hers.

Finally, they broke apart, gasping for air. They stared into each other's shining eyes. Serena knew that her jealousy a few moments before was unfounded and that Ash saw no one else the way he saw her. And she knew that she would never see anyone else in the way she saw Ash. Their eyes said it all. They were soul mates.

"Ahem." Serena looked nervously to her side. She'd forgotten she and Ash weren't alone. Bonnie was the source of the noise. "Can you two do that later? I think we need to get out of here."

Ash chuckled. He let go of Serena and looked at both Greninja and Hawlucha, making sure they knew he was happy to see them. He looked around the lobby curiously. "I wonder why it's so empty. Is everyone outside?"

Nurse Joy spoke up, standing next to the girl that had run up to Ash a few moments ago. She was a short, maroon haired girl, with baggy green clothes and a green hat. Serena was shocked at the sight of the glowing, green Chespin in the girl's hands, but decided not to interrupt Nurse Joy. "A lot of them went outside, but many of them are helping Lysandre in the lab." She glanced around nervously. "He seems to be making progress with his latest invention."

Serena didn't know what that meant, but all of a sudden she realized Ash wasn't next to her anymore. He was running back from where he had emerged before attacking the Team Flare grunts. Pikachu was on his shoulder and Greninja and Hawlucha were close behind him.

"Ash!" Serena called. She ran after him. She could hear Bonnie and the girl with the Chespin running after her.

"I have to go help the police." Nurse Joy called. "I can see them battling outside."

Serena gave Nurse Joy a quick wave to acknowledge and rounded the corner, following Ash. She barely managed to keep up as he twisted around corners, apparently knowing the hallways pretty well. She slowed when she saw him standing still in front of a door. Apparently it was locked and Serena noticed it had a card reader so that only Team Flare members could get in.

"What's in there?" Serena asked Ash.

Ash looked back and Serena could see the same look he had when he'd attacked the Flare grunts a just minutes earlier. She took a nervous step back. "Lysandre." Ash said with a voice that had a terrifying edge to it.

Bonnie and the girl with the Chespin arrived. The latter spoke up. "Ash, we can't beat that thing. Lysandre has complete control over it and didn't you say he's made it even stronger now?"

Ash looked at her and Serena was beginning to worry. He wasn't looking like the Ash she loved. He looked overcome with rage. "The Zygarde can do whatever it wants. Lysandre's the one who's going down." He took a breath and Serena was relieved to see a little bit of the Ash she knew enter back into his eyes. He continued to speak to the girl with the Chespin. "Mairin, remember what I told you. He's willing to do anything, and it doesn't matter if we escape now. This ends today."

The girl, Mairin, nodded. "Ok...ok, yeah I get it." She looked at Serena which confused the latter a little bit.

Bonnie shrieked suddenly and everyone looked at her. She was grabbing at her bag as Squishy had started to squirm out. Serena realized Bonnie was terrified of the little green Pokemon running into the lab, but that isn't what happened. Everyone watched in surprise as Squishy hopped over to Mairin and looked up at her.

Mairin looked nervously at the little green Pokemon. She gave Ash a questioning look. "Is that the same thing that Lysandre has?" Ash nodded and Mairin smiled. She knelt down and placed her Chespin in front of Squishy. "You can help him right?" She asked.

Squishy nodded and Serena and the others watched in amazement as he closed his eyes and glowed bright green. He radiated power, but for some reason, Serena thought something was missing. Then she watched as the Chespin's green glow intensified for a moment and then, bit by bit, slowly faded. Squishy glowed extremely bright once more and this time his power was on full display and he started to glow brighter, this time in a white glow. Serena saw his little body grow and shift until he appeared before them in a green and black dog-like form.

Serena and Bonnie were stunned by Squishy's different form, but apparently Ash and Mairin were stunned by something else. Serena followed Ash's shocked look to Mairin's Chespin. It had been comatose in that green glow, but now it was a normal colour, like Clemont's Chespin, and it seemed to be waking up. His eyelids quivered, he feet stretched and his body rolled over.

Mairin gasped and then Serena saw it. The Chespin's eyes opened and he locked eyes with his trainer. "Chespie!" Mairin yelled with unequivocal joy. The Chespin, who Serena realized must be nicknamed Chespie, jumped up and leaped into its trainers arms. "Chespie, you're ok!" Mairin said through tears.

Serena looked at Ash and saw him smiling. She felt a twinge of jealousy, but then she scolded herself, looking back at Mairin and her Chespie. The sight of the reunion was undeniably beautiful. She had to smile too.

Unfortunately, the happy reunion wasn't to last any longer, though. "Ash...I see you've brought friends." Serena whipped around and saw Ash had backed up to near where she was. A big man, with wild orange hair was at the door. She could see the lab behind him. She knew it must be Lysandre. He looked at her and she felt sick when she saw recognition in his eyes, meaning he knew who she was. Then, he looked at Greninja. "So how about we start our experiment?" He said with an evilly, cold voice.