Love in the Time of Turbulence

Chapter 6: A Dream

That moment that you accidentally start writing "Greninja" as "Gekkouga" because it sounds so much cooler in Japanese, but you're writing in English...Oh well, you won't find those mistakes here! Time for Chapter 6!

Chapter 6

A Dream

"Ready, Pikachu? Greninja?" Serena asked from a room inside Seamus' house. The sun had dawned early that morning, or maybe Serena just felt that way after not really sleeping. They had all returned to the house to rest up for the fight ahead. She still felt a little apprehensive about heading into a battle without Ash by her side, but she knew she'd have to do it if she wanted to rescue him. Besides, both Pikachu and Greninja were by her side in his stead.

"Pika!" Pikachu reassured her, complete with a fistpump and all. Greninja just nodded laconically from his corner of the room. Serena nodded back at him, adjusting her fedora on her head. Pikachu leapt over to her shoulder and Serena briefly looked at herself in the mirror. It was odd to see Pikachu on her shoulder. He belonged on Ash's.

"Serena! We're getting moving!" Bonnie yelled from downstairs. The younger girl had left to go be with her brother during the time that Serena was tossing and turning, unable to find a groove in order to sleep.

"All right!" Serena called back. Making one final adjustment to her hat, and making sure her ribbon was set right, Serena finally left the room. The particular room that Elaine had put her up in was a guest room, while Clemont had used Seamus' room in his absence. It was slightly odd to Serena that they had been so welcome in the house, but as she strode down the stairs, she shook it off. Waiting at the bottom was Elaine with a plate full of toast, eggs and bacon, presumably to make some kind of sandwich with. Clemont and Bonnie appeared to be waiting by the door.

"Did you sleep well?" Elaine asked. Serena nodded, just to elate the woman, swallowing just a little as she took the plate and thanked the mother. "Do be sure to bring my son back."

"Of course," Serena said. As she answered, her eyes were looking at the food on her plate. Was Ash eating well in his captivity? She could barely even stomach the thought of eating food at the moment. Nevertheless, Serena's hands moved unconsciously to put the sandwich together as she looked back up at the worried Elaine.

"I would join you, but I'm no battler," she admitted. "Seamus and I may have been at odds from time to time, but he is my son, and I do love him dearly."

"Don't worry, Miss Elaine," Serena answered, her hands having finally finished putting the sandwich together. "I promise that each one of us will work together to bring Seamus back home safe."

"Thank you," the mother whispered. Without warning, Elaine wrapped her arms around Serena in a hug. The hug was so warm and loving, despite the two of them not being related in the slightest, that it almost made Serena wonder how someone with such a kind and loving mother had turned out the way Seamus had in the past. In that single hug, though, Serena could feel every desire that the mother held for her son, and she knew that she would have to bring Seamus back...if Ash wasn't in the process of doing so already. "Be safe out there, please. In the meantime, I'll do some more research on the Four Gates and see what I find."

"We will." That was all Serena needed to say. Elaine pulled away, grasping the plate in her hand as she did so. Serena was still left with the sandwich in her own hands. Bidding one last farewell, Serena slipped her shoes on and joined Clemont and Bonnie at the door. "Let's go."

For some reason, the two siblings stared at her in surprise as she led them out of the door. Maybe it was her tone of voice, or maybe it was because it was something Ash would say. None of that mattered; she was prepared to do what needed to be done. Regardless, the two of them very quickly caught up to her as they proceeded to the Pokémon Center, where all of them planned to meet up in order to set off.