Amourshipping One-Shots

A Simple Call Between Friends by Viroro-kun

Ash Ketchum was, without doubt, one of the most remarkable and brave trainers to have ever come from Pallet Town. In the pursuit of his dream to be a Pokémon Master, Ash had taken part in several League Conferences, won the Orange League trophy, conquered the Battle Frontier, placed rather high in several competitions of other kinds, and saved the world more times than he could remember, all with little to no pause between them. He was always eager to jump into the next adventure, and there was little if anything that could put a dampen on his drive and courage.

Then why was it so hard to start that call?

Ash sighed as he placed the phone aside, while Pikachu sent him a disappointed look. Ash shook his head; he sure didn't expect the day to take such a weird turn.

The morning started as normal as ever: like every day since he returned from Kalos, he spent some time with all his Pokémon at Oak's Laboratory, starting from zero and training each and every one of them just as he resolved to do. He still hadn't decided what to do next, but he couldn't afford to slack off, and thankfully Brock, Misty and Tracey were more than willing to help in this regard. It was good to know you could rely on friends when you needed help, while asking nothing in return.

And then, there were other kinds of friends. The ones for which even approaching them was an adventure on its own, for some reason.

It all started in a pretty mundane way: he and his mother just finished dinner, and she had roped him into watching TV together since they barely got to spend time together anymore. Being a good son, Ash obliged and spent the rest of the evening alongside his mother, getting a good laugh of two while discussing the programs they saw. And then, his mother happened to tune on the Contest Channel, and Ash was left speechless.

Knowing the subject matter, Ash fully expected to see Dawn or May pop up on the screen, and was very surprised to see a much different yet familiar face pop up on the screen, apparently a live broadcast of the Slateport City Pokémon Contest: Serena, smiling and striding to the center of the stage, where she tossed a Poké Ball skyward and Braixen gracefully landed on the ground. And then, her appeal began. Braixen danced around the stage as she fired several Hidden Powers, twirling her wand around as she fired a flamethrower at the same time: the blaze surrounded the spheres with honed expertise, without shattering any of them. Braixen continued to dance elegantly all the same, before ending her routine by stabbing the sky with one swift Flamethrower, destroying all the Hidden Powers in a colorful array of fireworks.

Ash couldn't help but be mesmerized by Serena's appeal. It wasn't that different from the Performances she saw her practice and execute with her team throughout their Kalos journey, but in the familiar context of Contests he couldn't help but notice something unique to Serena; May loved gambles and improvisation in her routines, while Dawn favored much more flashy and increasingly elaborate combinations. Serena's appeal felt much more spontaneous, as if she and Braixen had no problem at all coming up with it. No doubt a result of how her Performances slowly evolved with each Showcase she took part in. Contests and Showcases were never Ash's thing, but even he could tell how much his friend had improved.

In fact, he spent the rest of the broadcast cheering Serena on alongside his mother, sure that she would've won the ribbon in the end, and as she slowly made her way to the final round, there was little doubt she would've made it. However, that was when things took an unexpected turn.

The last round consisted of a battle between a Kirlia and Pancham, with both sides trading blows in the most elegant and flashy way possible: Stone Edges shattered Shadow Balls, Protect and Fairy Wind blew away Arm Thrusts, Dark Pulse blocked Psybeam, and several other combinations followed. Of all of Serena's Pokémon Pancham was definitely the more battle-ready, and it made sense to use him. However, the opponent's double type advantage ultimately proved too much for Pancham, even as him and Serena tried their best to make up for the handicap, and the little Fighting-type eventually fell. Serena's bar emptied completely, and victory went to her opponent as the crowd erupted in clapping and cheers.