Welcome to my new story, I called it "Man in the Mirror", you probably think it's odd for a title, but you'll understand as we progress. Just a heads up, this story has no ties to any of the others, it's completely different. I would also like to say that I'll focus more on AW, but I'll start working on this as well, so don't worry fans of AW, I'm still dedicated to that fanfic. I was supposed to be post up the next chapter of AW with this new story, but Thanksgiving hasn't given me the time. I hope you'll be satisfied with this for the time being and I'll post the next chapter of AW ASAP. Now I hope you enjoy this story, it takes a different approach than several other fanfics and is more realistic than AW. There are no bad guys like the M12 or action-packed chapters; nonetheless I really do hope you like it. Ok, so enough of my blabbering enjoy!

Chapter 1: When We First Met

Blaziken and Dragonite eyed fiercely. Neither was prepared to give up the fight and their trainers were sweating as much as them due to the intensity of the fight. May gritted her teeth and looked at the timer; she had less than a minute and fewer points than her opponent. She would have to use her final triumph card if she wanted to win.

Her opponent grinded his teeth and knew May's Blaziken and his Dragonite would fall at any second from exhaustion, but he became determined to win at all costs and would take a heavy risk with his next move.

May clenched her fists and thought to herself, if we don't use this move we'll lose. If we do there is a chance we could win, but because it takes so much power, Blaziken might faint and it might not have been enough to beat Dragonite…either way there's still a chance of us losing. The brunette sighed and placed her hand over her heart, she knew she would have to make a large sacrifice to win and remembered everything she learned in her journey so far, everything she has experienced brought her to this moment and she would not let it slip now.

Her sapphire eyes began to glow with fire and like if Blaziken could feel her spirit, the injured, but the determined Fire-type increased the flames on its wrists. "Blaziken!" the starter roared with confidence.

May's opponent smirked and spoke, "Dragonite, Double Team and finish with Outrage!"

Dragonite stretched out its wings and howled angrily in response. Suddenly, the mighty dragon began to glow red and its eyes also turned into a red color. Around the dragon, four copies of it appeared and they seemed just as violent as the original. Then without a moment's waste jetted off towards Blaziken to achieve victory once and for all. Some of the Dragonite prepared to fire Dragon Pulse and others threatened to hit Blaziken with Dragon Claw.

May closed her eyes and placed full faith in herself and Blaziken, the two seconds she took to get herself took together felt like an eternity, but then it happened. The coordinator opened her bright blue eyes and yelled, "Blaziken, use our Blast Burn Tornado!"

"Blaz!" the Fighting-type declared and leaped into midair. The Dragonite followed right behind it while some of the other copies redirected their Dragon Pulse to its new location. Blaziken glared at the persistent Dragon-types and began to spin at speeds no one had ever seen before.

May smiled with relief as Blaziken spun faster and faster while a violent fire began to generate like lightning bolts. Everyone was in complete awe, even the Dragonite's trainer. As the Dragonite drew closer and so did the Dragon Pulse, Blaziken felt all its fire begin to release and the fires in its wrists became incredibly hot. Its spinning speed had reached its point and the fire starter yelled, "Blazikeeeeen!" A powerful wind got generated that blew everyone's hair and a fiery tornado appeared on the battlefield while Blaziken roared from within the raging flames, its wrists shot out fire like lightning bolts, but much thicker and powerful.

Blast Burn eradicated the Dragon Pulse and quickly exterminated the Dragonite copies. The only target left was the actual Dragonite and due to confusion, the Pseudo Legendary Pokémon was left hopeless and even though it tried to dodge, the Blast Burn was too fast and violent. Like lightning, the fire scorched Dragonite and made it howl in pain. The rest of Blaziken's Blast Burn bolts destroyed several parts of the battlefield, but most of the energy had gotten concentrated on the Dragonite.

The Dragon winced in pain and through the burning fires and the red tornado; it eyed Blaziken, who returned its gaze. Dragonite would no longer endure the pain of Blast Burn and shut its eyes as it dropped on the battlefield while the flames around it faded. The judges who had been observing quickly pressed on their buttons and declared Dragonite unable to battle.

Blaziken let out a deep breath and with the last of its power, landed gently on the ground while May's opponent eyed Blaziken in disbelief. "My Dragonite!" the boy yelled in shock.

The Johto crowd roared in happiness when they realized Blaziken remained on its feet. Many wolf whistled at her; they cheered her name, roared out compliments, and clapped for her victory. May was in disbelief and simply admired the praise she had never received before; this was the last thing she had been expecting. Her eyes then turned to Blaziken, who stood in front of her with a smile on its face.

"Blaziken!" the brunette ran towards the Pokémon and threw herself at it.

"Ken," Blaziken caught the trainer in its arms and embraced her happily.

"Thank you so much. You always stuck by me and today, you helped me win my first Grand Festival. I'm so proud of you, I love you so much. I do," the brunette cried in her starter's feathers and as she repeated her words of love for Blaziken.

The girl would've continued to weep tears of happiness in Blaziken's arms, but the host of the Grand Festival tapped her shoulder and the brunette knew what would come next. The Petalburg girl looked at the host and smiled.

"May, the residents of Johto, our judges, and I are proud to proclaim you as this year's Top Coordinator! Isn't that right folks!" the host cheered.

Her words got followed by cheer that made the floor shake and May continued to find herself overwhelmed by the attention as the host handed her the trophy. Among the audience she spotted the person who she had deep care for, he had helped her find the confidence and skill she needed to get this far. He was one of the closest things in her heart aside from Max and Blaziken. His advice and encouragement guaranteed him a special spot in her heart. No one other than Blaziken had stuck beside her for so long; he had always been there since she first started out her journey. She smiled and felt great feelings of affection for him as he smiled back, Drew…she thought.

4 years later...

"Shame we have to slowly break up like this. It hasn't even been two days and I already want to see Bonnie and Clemont," Serena sighed as she, Ash, and Pikachu walked through the airport.

"Yeah, too bad…" Ash said with a plain tone as they just walked through the airport.

Serena frowned and took a good look at his face; she looked at Pikachu's and saw the same disappointed face on the mouse. She sighed and spoke, "C'mon you two, I know it must have been hard losing the Kalos Conference, but there's always next time right?"

Ash and Pikachu looked at Serena and they put on weak smiles, "I guess, but I feel like this is getting a bit too repetitive. I feel no matter how hard we train, sometimes it isn't enough to make us the winners we want to be and on top of that, Pikachu and I always say goodbye to the friends we've come to love."

"Awww," Serena hugged Ash and Pikachu, "I wish we didn't have to split up, but we have to, if we want to follow our dreams."

"I just wonder when things will finally begin to change," Ash sighed in disappointment.

Serena smiled at him and touched his cheek, "Someday the two of you will win it I know it. Ash, you and Pikachu, and all your other Pokémon are a powerful team, when do you achieve your victory, you will get recognized as one of the best, it just takes patience. Plus, I'm sure along the way you will find someone who will have the same interest as you and won't ever want to leave your side because they enjoy your company as much as I have."

Ash and Pikachu tears in the corners of their eyes, but the two were grinning at her. "Pi," Pikachu licked Serena's cheek while the girl wiped away the mouse's tears and Ash wiped his own.

"Thanks Serena," Ash said with a grateful tone.

"You're welcome," Serena beamed at them. "Now how about I buy us some ice cream before your flight, you don't want to ride the plane on an empty stomach."

"I don't really feel comfortable with you having to pay for our ice cream," Ash commented with uncertainty.

"Don't be silly, it's my treat to you guys for taking me on such a fun adventure," Serena winked at them and Ash sighed with a chuckle, there was no use in arguing with the blonde-haired girl.

They continued walking through the airport aimlessly as they waited for Ash's flight, Pikachu happily ate his chocolate ice cream while Ash satisfied himself with vanilla and Serena licked her strawberry ice cream.

"Thanks again for the ice cream Serena," Ash happily licked the delicious treat.

"Pikapi pi!" Pikachu also thanked the Kalos girl.

"No problem guys," Serena responded with a joyful tone. The girl was happy to see Ash and Pikachu being themselves again for the time being at least…

"You know, Pikachu and I are going to really miss you," Ash told her with a soft tone.

"So will I, I'll miss you guys so much it won't be the same. I hope this time you won't forget about me though," Serena's sweet face turned into a glare when she recalled how Ash had forgotten her when they met up again at the start of their Kalos journey.

"Don't worry, this time we won't. How could we?" Ash chuckled nervously, but assured Serena they would not forget her.

"Good, I just wonder where I'll go from here now," Serena smiled and then looked up at the ceiling as she thought about what to do next in her adventures.

Ash thought the same as Serena, but before he could think deeply about it, Pikachu tapped his shoulder, "Pikapi pikachu."

"Huh, what's wrong Pikachu?" Ash asked the little one, noticing the surprised expression on its face, and followed the direction the mouse was pointing at.

The raven-haired boy's eyes turned to a magazine stand next to a book store and Ash's eyes widened when he took a look at one of the magazine covers. Without even thinking, the auburn-eyed teen ran over to it.

"Ash, what's wrong?" Serena saw him jolt off with no answer and the girl ran after him with an annoyed.

"It can't be…" Ash picked up one of the magazines and took a look at the cover. He blinked his eyes multiple times to make sure he wasn't seeing things, but his vision had not been lying to him.

Pikachu appeared almost as stunned as Ash and just stared at the magazine like a statue. Serena caught up with them and tilted her head in confusion, she took a look at the magazine Ash was holding and asked, "What's wrong Ash?"

"I know this person," Ash easily recognized her, he could never forget her beautiful brown hair or her bright sapphire eyes, there was no doubt in his mind that this was the same girl he met so many years ago.

"You're kidding, you know May!" Serena's eyes widened and picked up a copy of the magazine.

Ash nodded and spoke with a very shocked tone, "Yeah, I know May. We traveled together in Hoenn and Kanto when we were only around twelve or thirteen. We met again in Sinnoh a year later, but we did not hear of each other again until now. I can't believe it." The boy's auburn eyes could move away from the cover, he just kept staring at May's sapphire eyes. He stared at them so much he felt as though the magazine was returning the gaze.

"Wow," was the only word Ash could say as he looked at how beautifully her brunette hair went down and matched the glow of her eyes. She wore a blue blouse that resembled the red one she always wore, but for some reason, Ash found her more beautiful than he originally remembered. That gaze, her smile, the way she placed her hands on her chin and seemed so graceful with the ocean in the background.

"Ash, I think if you keep staring you're going to drool," Serena teased him.

Ash snapped out of his trance the moment Serena spoke, "Sorry," he apologized and smiled sheepishly.

Serena giggled and opened the magazine, "Hey look, they have some information about May here too."

"Really?!" Ash said with surprise and instantly opened the magazine to find a whole page dedicated to May. On the top left corner there was a picture of May in this blue and white dress along with a bandana of the same colors. She had fancier white gloves on and Ash couldn't help but blush when noticed May had the straps of the blue/white dress lowered.

Pikachu couldn't believe how much the girl had developed, as the mouse looked at the picture he could still see the innocence in her eyes, but he could also see the maturity and womanhood reflected in her eyes. "Pipika," Pikachu chuckled as he saw Ash staring, he knew the human was probably finding May very attractive at the moment.

Ash turned his eyes from the photo to the text beside it. There was a whole list of things about May, including her favorite food, favorite movie, etc. What really amazed Ash however, was her list of accomplishments. I can't believe…she did all this…he thought as he read about his friend. He discovered May had won three Grand Festivals, she is considered the world's most beautiful female under the age of 21, a phenomenal performer, and is currently training under the Pokémon Champion Wallace. Among that there were lots of other achievements, there were so many though, it was too much for Ash to read.

"Talk about beautiful, talented, and skilled huh? I can't believe you know May, Ash, this girl is a total prodigy," Serena finished reading the magazine and placed it back on the shelf.

"I couldn't agree more," Ash said with a happy tone. The Pallet boy felt great joy for May and was proud of her accomplishments, but some reason he started to feel butterflies in his stomach as they walked about her.

"You said you were like 14 when you last saw her?" Serena questioned.

"Yep," Ash nodded.

"And you haven't seen or spoken to her since?" Serena inquired.

"Not that I can remember," Ash couldn't recall any moments he had spoken to May.

Serena clenched her fist and spoke with an annoyed tone, "So you haven't spoken to this girl who is probably 18 or more at this point. You had no clue she is involved in the world of celebrities and you didn't even try to contact her even once throughout this whole time?"

Ash could feel a chill run down his spine as he knew where Serena was going with this, "Well…no…" the boy said nervously.

"You idiot, I can't believe no matter how old you get you still forget about your friends like this. This girl is one of the most beautiful girls on the face of the planet, she has accomplished more things in just 18 years than others could accomplish their entire lives and you haven't even spoken to her once since Sinnoh!" Serena screamed at Ash for his carelessness.

Ash felt like hiding under a rock the moment Serena's aggressive tone echoed through his ears. Pikachu on the other hand sighed; "Pikachu…" the mouse accepted his failure to keep his trainer in contact with all their traveling friends.

At age 19 Ash's physical appearance had not changed much since he was 10, but neither did his maturity. Like a child the boy played with his fingers and spoke with a guilty tone, "Its cause…I've...we...ya see…"

"I see you have no excuse," Serena crossed her arms and frowned at him.

Ash sighed and gave up on defending his case. Serena had every right to yell at him, as he remembered May, Ash recalled how he had mentored the girl, he had promised her they'd be friends forever, and swore he would always be there for her no matter what. May be I'm a lousy friend, Ash thought about how he had lost touch with May.

"You know I would ask what your history with this girl is, but I bet it'll just give me more reasons to yell at you in front of all these people. I wonder if you forgot about her as easily as me when summer camp had ended and something tells me, you forgetting about May seems to be even worse than when you forgot about me," Serena instilled fear into Ash with her glare.

"I see what you mean," Ash lowered his head in grief.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu tried to speak his trainer.

Serena's glare faded as she realized how harsh she was being with Ash. She shouldn't be yelling at him, after all, he was like Peter Pan, the boy who would never grow up. His interest in Pokémon and Leagues was just too difficult to turn away from and it had always been one of his priorities. Serena walked over to him as she took his ice cream and hers and threw them away, she sighed and spoke, "I'm sorry Ash, I shouldn't have yelled at you."

Ash lifted his head and she noticed that his eyes were a bit teary, but the boy was grinning, "It's ok Serena, I'll be fine. I agree with you though, I have been careless with my friends, I had forgotten that there are other things that need my attention as well, not just Pokémon and Championships, but friends also."

Serena smiled at him sweetly, "I'm glad you're starting to see it that way, I know there are many people out there who love you Ash and are wondering how you are doing. Your heart is innocent and pure, which is what makes you so unforgettable to others, you just have an aura that feels nice. You're the friend none of us would ever like to let go and I know you don't want to let go of them either. I'm sure all of them kind and supportive towards you, but sometimes our goals can make us forget about everything else."

"But not this time," Ash wiped away the tears forming in his eyes and smiled.

Serena raised an eyebrow and said, "What do you mean?"

"I know I've hit a rough spot in my journey and right now I don't feel as strong as I thought I was. I was planning on dedicating my time to some intensive training in another region like usual, but now I feel like there are some promises I have to keep," Ash turned to the magazine cover of May.

"You mean?" Serena attempted to read his mind.

"I won't make the same mistake I did with you Serena, I want to make things right this time. I made a promise to May and I said I'd never break," Ash made a fist and smiled confidently.

"You're going to contact her?" Serena's eyes brightened and she began to smile.

"That's right!" Ash smiled at Serena.

"Do you have a plan? Do you have a way of contacting her?" Serena asked excitedly.

"Pikachu pika!" Pikachu also became excited with the new spirit Ash was displaying.

The same chill as before passed down Ash's spine and the boy's confidence slipped a bit, "Not exactly," Ash laughed nervously.

Serena and Pikachu were about to throw themselves on the floor, but they couldn't give up on their friends just yet. "Oh Ash," Serena let out a sigh as the boy laughed nervously. Serena looked at Ash with sympathetic eyes, "You know it's going to be harder to contact her since she's a celebrity," Serena said with a soft tone.

"I know," Ash said, but the comment didn't seem to affect his confidence.

Serena smiled over the confidence Ash displayed and said something, "You know Ash. I have a suggestion on how you can contact May."

"Go for it," Ash was all ears.

"May and you are always traveling all over the world, so I think you should send her a letter, it's the best form of contact you guys have at your disposal," Serena told the raven-haired boy.

"A letter?" Ash questioned.

"Yep, a letter is always guaranteed to reach the person it is directed to thanks to the Pokémon Center. The Pokémon Center is the best thing this world has not only because it is the best healing center, but also because it has the best delivery service. Whether you're a celeb or not, everyone goes to a Pokémon Center, I think it's pretty clever don't ya?" Serena explained to him.

"It actually does when you think about it. What should I write?" Ash replied he was clearly considering the thought.

"You'll figure it out," Serena encouraged him and Ash gave her a friendly nod.

"Attention all passengers flying to Kanto must begin boarding now," the announcement rang through the airport as many people quickly began to rush to the gate that was for the plane to Kanto.

"Well guess it's time to say goodbye," Serena said with a sad grin.

"Pi…." Pikachu expressed his sadness.

"Looks that way," Ash returned a sad smile.

"Goodbye Ash and Pikachu!" Serena pulled them into a hug, "I'll miss you guys so much…please don't forget me…if you do…you'll regret meeting up with me again in the future," the girl warned them as she began to weep.

"We won't Serena, we never will, I say it from the bottom of my heart," Ash held her tight and assured her he would not forget about her.

"Pika," Pikachu hugged Serena's shoulder and assured her the same.

"And Ash," Serena sniffled.

"Yeah?" Ash asked her.

"Good luck with May, she's a cute one," Serena wept a bit more and giggled.

Ash raised an eyebrow and spoke, "What do you mean by that?"

"You'll understand later," Serena separated from him and winked at the boy.

Pikachu was a bit suspicious about what the girl meant though, something in the mouse's gut told him that Serena was predicting something, now he was trying to figure it out.

"Good luck in all that you do Serena, we'll meet again soon," Ash smiled at her.

"Same to you Ash," Serena beamed back and then waved her hand, "Bye."

"Goodbye," Ash responded and then the Kalos female jetted off, getting lost in the crowd of people as Ash just smiled. His experience with Serena had been a nice one, and one he won't forget.

His gaze then turned to the large window that gave him a view of his plane to Kanto. Now what should I write? He thought.

May posed in a red dress and posed beautifully for the photographer. "That's it May, you got it," the photographer snapped endless shots of her.

May blew a kiss at the camera with long fancy red gloves and the photographer took another shot. "Alright, one more," the photographer told her.

"Right," May nodded and then got up against the white wall and gazed at the camera with a flirty expression while biting her lip.

"Perfect! We're done for the day May," the photographer declared.

May let out a sigh of relief and spoke, "Thank goodness."

As the photographer walked away, one of May's bodyguards walked towards her. He wore a black suit and sunglasses, his stern face made him a bit intimidating for others, except for May. "May, Wallace called. He wanted to remind you have an exhibition match with the Sootopolis Gym Leader Juan this afternoon."

"Right, anything else?" May sighed as her bodyguard informed her.

"One of the butlers for Princess Salvia's family called to remind you that you have to perform for the royal family in the evening as well, they were pretty strict about it, so make sure you arrive on time," the security guard told her.

May had an annoyed look on and spoke with a plain tone, "Ok, thanks."

"Of course," the bodyguard nodded.

May then walked into her room, she was incredibly anxious to take off the red dress. I can't believe I had to wear this the whole morning, it isn't exactly comfortable, May complained as she walked in the dress. Apart from being a really short dress, what bugged her most about it was the fact that it exposed some cleavage, which she didn't feel comfortable with

May hung her head low as she entered her room slowly, sometimes I wish I had never become a Top Coordinator, the brunette thought.

Hope you liked the beginning to this new story. I don't know how long it'll be; I hope it doesn't become as long as my other stories lol, but who knows. Please REVIEW, PM, ETC, FEEDBACK IS ALWAYS WELCOMED. For those who were wondering, the anime already revealed that Serena and Ash met at summer camp in Pallet, so that's where I got my source from. This chapter was smooth and uneventful so it could introduce the plot; I hope you guys are excited because I sure am about where I'll go with this. Till the next chapter guys!