Amourshipping One-Shots

A Moment of Calarity

For once in his life, it all seemed so clear.

It came to him in a dream. The night before, he had been training hard, and while Bonnie and Clemont were really impressed with his hard work, Serena had been pouting almost the entire time. "If you keep getting soaked like that, you're going to get sick!" she warned, her nagging laced with concern.

"It'll be fine," he assured her, drying off his head with the towel she had tossed at him before sneezing.

That night, he had a very vivid dream.

All around him, everything was engulfed in flames. But they weren't the red flames that Talonflame would cloak itself in when it used Flame Charge.

The city he was in was burning to the ground, cloaked in flames of green.

All he knew in this moment was that he was alone.

"Pikachu!" Ash's voice called out. "Pikachu!"

He ran down the streets, looking for his buddy and partner. He had no Poké Balls, not friends, nothing that could help.

He turned a corner and saw that strange group with the glasses, dressed in red suits. The same one he and his friends had encountered before. The reached up, their hands holding Poké Balls, the green flames reflecting off their glasses.

Ash turned and ran away. He had no choice, no way to defend himself. The flames seemed to grow hotter and hotter, and he could feel the sweat start to pour down his face.

"Ash!"

A voice called out to him. It was familiar. Calming, even. Smooth and sweet like honey, with a sweet tang to it like a fresh strawberry.

"Serena?" his mouth worked on it's own. "Serena, where are you?!"

Ash looked around for the source of the voice. "Ash! Over here!" she called. It seemed like it was echoing from everywhere. He began running forward again, hoping to see her, or anyone friendly for that matter.

Then he saw it. Up ahead.

Surrounded by her three Pokémon, Serena lay on the ground, crouching over something. Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon were all firing attacks all around her, knocking back the attacking Skorupi and Houndour that the hordes of glasses people were sending her way. A Dark Pulse to the left, Swift to the right, and a red-hot Flamethrower down the middle kept Serena safe. Ash raced forward, reaching out towards Serena. His friend was in danger, and his stomach clinched. He wanted to keep her safe more than anything in that moment. If only he had...

And that's when Ash's eyes widened, for he saw exactly what Serena was crouching over. Or rather, whom.

Laying beneath her, battered and beaten into unconsciousness, was Ash's best friend. Serena was shielding Pikachu from the attacks with her own body. A Pin Missle escaped from being blocked by Pancham and crashed into the girl's back. Her scream pierced Ash's eardrums and he began running towards her even faster than ever.

Serena kept herself positioned above Pikachu. "Don't worry," she told the Electric-Type. "I'll keep you safe."

"Pi... Pikapi..." he responded, struggling to stand with every muscle in his body keeping him pinned to the ground.

Ash could feel his pulse racing. How dare those guys hurt Pikachu and Serena! He could feel the anger and indignation welling up within him. Forget a Pokémon! Ash was balling up his fists to begin punching through the attackers.

But no matter how hard he ran, he couldn't seem to get any closer.

The buildings around Serena began to crumble as the green flames consumed them. Pancham, Braixen, and Sylveon began to back up towards Serena, their fatigue beginning to show. The attacking Pokémon hordes were closing in on them. Ash reached out towards her, stretching his arm to the limit as if he could somehow touch her from so far away.