The Bond

Chapter Twenty: Coumarine City Awaits!

Ash, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie all sat at the table eating breakfast before heading out to start their journey to Coumarine City. Upon finishing, the group said their goodbyes to Gurkinn and Korrina, then left to travel to Serena's next showcase and Ash's next Gym Battle. As they were walking down the road, Ash leaned over and whispered in Serena's ear, "I'm going to go train, I'll see you in a little bit!" He ran off the side of the road and changed into his ninja gear. Frogadier and Riolu, still walking with the group, noticed a salvo of objects flying towards them. The two reacted quickly, working together to deflect all of the objects, which turned out to be berries. Ash came out of the shadows and said, "Good job, you two! Alright, let's get going! Bonnie, would you be willing to hold onto my backpack for me?"

Bonnie nodded her head while saying, "Sure thing! Everyone else is carrying something, so I can do my part and try to help too."

Ash sighed out, "Thanks." He handed her the backpack, then took off into the forest with Frogadier and Riolu. The group worked on their ninja training, doing the same thing as every other time, then started working on specific moves. Frogadier learned smokescreen, so the three practiced locating things without their eyesight. As they were working on this, the three had a flash of vision, just like when Frogadier and Ash had first met Riolu. They were then easily able to see things and navigated with ease. However, this vision only lasted for a short period of time, disappearing when they lost focus. Since they didn't have that nifty eyesight, the trio worked on their hearing, trying to tell where things were around them. When they stopped practicing with a smokescreen, Ash had Riolu train with Frogadier to work on his Force Palm. Frogadier would throw Frubbles at Riolu, and he would have to deflect them with Force Palm. They continued working on this until Riolu didn't miss a single target in rapid succession. Finally, Ash said, "Let's head back. It's lunchtime!"

The three ran back to where the group was, using their refined senses of hearing to locate them. Ash ran up to where they were with his eyes closed, and, while staying hidden and fully knowing the consequences, he leaped out in front of Serena. She screamed and said, "Please don't hurt us!... ASH!!!!" She punched him in the shoulder over and over again, not doing much damage. Ash just let her get all of her rage out, hoping this would be the worst of it. However, from the look on her face, this was far from over.

Ash sighed and said, "It was worth a shot." Frogadier patted him on the back while Riolu climbed onto his shoulder and nodded solemnly.

Serena and Clemont finished preparing lunch and the group sat down to a delicious meal. Bonnie and Ash praised the chefs, giving testament to how great the cooking was. Ash paid extra attention to Serena, still trying to get on her good side. From the cool looks she gave him occasionally, it wasn't working.

Serena was trying to think of ways to get back at Ash while they ate, and couldn't think of anything. She continued to ponder the issue as Ash changed back into his regular clothing and they walked towards Coumarine City. Finally coming up with a plan, Serena smiled maliciously as the group reached their destination. When Ash called out, "Serena, we're here!" she was jerked out of her thoughts and looked around, taking in the natural city around them. The entire city was based on nature, with wooden houses that seemed to grow from the ground. The Pokémon Center, however, was made of regular materials. That was so that injured Fire Type Pokémon wouldn't accidentally burn down the whole building.

The group of four looked out into the field, where they were met with an incredible sight. There was a massive oak tree sitting in the field, larger than any other they had ever seen. Ash walked forwards and said, "Woah, what a sight." He stood there with admiration in his eyes until Serena walked forwards and said, "Shall we get going?" Ash jerked out of his little trance and said, "Sure thing. Let's go."

The group headed towards the Pokémon Center, where Serena walked up to the counter and said, "Hello Nurse Joy, I'd like to sign up for the Pokémon Performance tomorrow."

Nurse Joy nodded and said, "Alright, just place your Pokedex on the scanner and you're good to go!"

Ash walked up and asked, "Nurse Joy, would you mind taking care of my Pokémon? We've been training hard all day." Nurse Joy looked critically at Ash, taking in his tired stance and how he leaned heavily on the counter.

"While I do that, why don't you two go get a room in the back? You look like you could use a rest as well."

Ash gratefully nodded and headed to the rear of the Pokémon Center. Serena walked with him so she could tell Bonnie and Clemont where their room was, as well as get some alone time with Ash. 'It's time for his punishment.' Serena thought. When they reached the room, Serena said, "Hey Ash, why don't you go ahead and change into pajamas, you look a little beat."

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea." Ash walked out of the room after opening his bag and pulling out his Pajamas. Serena quickly grabbed his training outfit, glad he washed it after each training session, and quickly put it on. She stood in the corner farthest away from the light. When Ash returned, he said, "Hey Serena, why are you dressed in my training clothes?"

Serena pouted and said, "How did you see me?"

"Simple. You didn't pull the hood down over your hair." Serena looked down in shock and noticed her hair was indeed sticking out of the hood. She sighed out, "I guess you get away without a punishment this time."

Ash fist pumped and said, "Yeah! Wow... all of a sudden I'm feeling really tired. I think I'm going to go to sleep, will you get Riolu and Frogadier for me?"

Serena nodded and Ash climbed into bed. Serena tucked him in and said, "They'll be fine, don't worry." Ash was already falling asleep, and that was the last thing he heard.

Serena left the room and walked to the counter to see Nurse Joy walking out of the treatment room with Frogadier, Riolu, and Fletchling in its Pokeball, all on a stretcher. She headed over to the nurse and said, "Thanks, Nurse Joy! Ash asked me to take his Pokémon for him since he's feeling extremely tired."

Nurse Joy nodded and said, "They're all feeling better, though it looks like Riolu and Frogadier could use a rest as well. I recommend having them go to sleep right away."

Serena nodded and took the Pokémon to the room where Ash was sleeping. Riolu and Frogadier climbed into bed next to Ash and closed their eyes, grateful for the rest. Ash smiled in his sleep, sensing the presence of his Pokémon. Serena also smiled, seeing how peaceful Ash looked when with his Pokémon. She had had the thought that when Ash was lying down earlier, there had been something missing. Now, seeing Ash sleeping with his partners, she realized that missing thing had been Frogadier and Riolu. The young performer quietly left the room and joined Bonnie and Clemont in the waiting room. They were eating hot dogs Clemont had gotten from a nearby stand, and Serena picked up a hot dog and took a bite.

Clemont looked behind her and asked, "Where's Ash?" Bonnie swallowed and said, "I bet he's asleep. After training today, he looked pretty drained. They went a whole two hours longer than usual, that's got to wear him out."

Serena nodded, explaining, "He was so tired he even said, 'I'll skip dinner, I'm exhausted,' and went straight to bed. I tried sitting in the corner with his ninja suit on, to see if I could startle him, but he saw me anyways. He's off the hook."

Bonnie looked down with a disappointed look. "I wanted to see you punish him! Aw, man. I guess I'll have to wait for next time."

Clemont looked at her curiously and said, "Wasn't the point of this to make it so there wasn't a 'next time'?"

Bonnie nodded and explained, "Even though that was the point, it didn't really work as Ash saw Serena and so this won't have a lasting impact on him. Anyways, when he trains with Sanpei in Ninja Village, then we'll have no hope of seeing him. Not like we do anyway."

Serena, who had finished her hot dog, stretched and let out a massive yawn. "Well, I'm off to bed. I've got a performance tomorrow, and this is the first one Ash is going to see, so I don't want to mess this up."

She walked into the bedroom to grab her clothes to change. Serena laid down in bed with Fennekin and said, "Goodnight, Fennekin." The small fox Pokémon curled up against Serena's side, pressing into her gently. Serena rubbed her side as she closed her eyes, slowly falling asleep.