Hello to everyone who's stayed with me so far.

It has been a very long, long time since I last updated... I know. Haha. I've had some time to think about my life and where it was going over this summer as I'll be entering college in a few weeks. Hopefully to major in both Business (International) and Japanese. Cross your fingers folks!

Anyway, here's that excuse of an explanation of just why I haven't updated in so long!

So in high school, or well... Mine, at least. You have to actually go through this whole process to get your honors. Now, I wanted my honors and decided to go on this journey of self-fulfillment and bullsh*t to receive a cord at the end. Yes, folks, that cord you get to hang around your neck during graduation.

Oh, but before I forget, what exactly did I have to go through to receive it? Well... How about having to apply to get into the list of people trying to get their honors, doing my senior project and having to redo it about 3-4 times because it was "unsatisfactory" (I hate to brag, but... In the end, it was amazing.) having to present said project twice to people I don't know and some other paperwork, projects, and stuff that I want to forget.

I also faced some trouble with registration for college... So, That's everything that I've been trying to iron out in my life. Hehe.

On a side note: It took me at least three weeks to come up with the idea of this chapter. I feel like again, I'm losing inspiration for this story. (As much as I love the pairing to bits!) So please don't be surprised if this doesn't make it past 7 chapters. I do appreciate all of the follows, favorites and especially the reviews. Thank you very much!

Super uppercut to the side note: During this most of my time away I didn't play much Pokémon.

Serena opened the door slowly. Its hinges creaking softly as she stepped into Lysandre's complex, the bag she held weighing down her arms as she slowly closed the door and removed her sandals. Hobbling over to the kitchen she unceremoniously dumped the bag on the counter. Serena sighed as she sorted groceries into their rightful homes and set lunch in the oven to keep warm.

Glancing over to Lysandre who was napping on the couch Serena started cleaning the kitchen. She'd wait a little longer before she woke him up; there was still time before lunch to do some tidying to the surprisingly messy kitchen. Grabbing a towel from a drawer, Serena threw it on her shoulder as she began washing the dishes. It seemed that he had forgotten to wash the dishes and pans from the night before. She crinkled her nose at the greasy pan and poured a handful of soap onto it. Scrubbing and drying, that was the cycle that Serena fell into as Umbreon wandered over to the kitchen to watch Serena.

Umbreon nudged the back of Serena's leg, startling her. The bowl she held fell onto the floor with a crash, breaking into pieces. The shards scattering around the floor as Umbreon jumped back and hissed. Lysandre stirred at the noise.

"Oh no…" Clucking her tongue, Serena tried to jump over the mess to reach for the brush and dustpan.

"Sh*t!" Serena grabbed her leg as she landed heavily on a small shard of glass. Pulling the small glass out of the bridge of her foot, she threw it onto the ground and angrily grabbed the brush, bending over the mess and biting her lip at the pain.

"…. Serena?" Lysandre rubbed his eyes as he strode towards his kitchen. "What happened…?"

Looking down at the squatting girl, Lysandre's eyes widened as she glanced back to him, tears in the corners of her eyes, foot bleeding on the floor as she dropped the brush.

"It's nothing too bad!" Serena stood up abruptly. A jolt of pain shot up her leg, swearing softly she bit her lip again.

"You're- you're bleeding! What isn't bad about that?!" Lysandre stepped forward, sweeping Serena into his arms, she yelped at the sudden movement. Walking to the bathroom, he tipped the toilet cover down with his foot and placed Serena on top of it. "I was having such a nice nap too."

"You could have slept. I would have handled it just fine!" Serena winced as Lysandre roughly cleaned her wound.

"And have you bleed all over my flat? I don't think so, as much as I like you, Serena… Having a scene almost similar to a murderous crime is not something I need." He grimaced as she yelled at the touch of a alcohol soaked cotton ball.

"That would be quite a scene, wouldn't it? Imagine poor Professor if he were to walk in on that!" Laughing through the pain, Serena wiggled her toes.

"Please keep still Serena or I might just prolong this process." Lysandre held Serena's wiggling foot and dabbed the cotton ball against the wound again. "Although, knowing Augustine, he would have quite a fit to see glass and blood on the floor. Probably accuse me of some god awful crime."

"Have a little more faith in people! If anything you and the Professor are such good friends, he'd probably help you hide the body!" Serena laughed. "Truly, Lysandre. If something awful happened to you, I ensure you that Augustine and I would help you."

Lysandre chuckled. "I am quite aware of that. Although, what will I do about my poor dishes now shattered on my kitchen floor?"

"Well… Um, I'll replace that… Eventua-" Serena yelped in pain as Lysandre dabbed a cotton ball soaked in alcohol on her foot. "Jeez, be careful with that, will you?"

Rolling his eyes, Lysandre continued to dab the disinfectant onto her wound. It was small but it was deep, and Lysandre was sure that Serena would be limping for a few weeks.

"There, you're all done." He wrapped her foot with cotton and gauze, letting her stand shakily. "I'll finish the mess, I ironically started. Meanwhile, you rest on the couch, will you?"

Wincing at the pressure on her foot, Serena nodded. "I think I will."

Guiding Serena to the couch, Lysandre grabbed the brush and dustpan, sweeping the broken shards of glass. Grabbing a rag from the sink, he began scrubbing blood off the floor. Serena looked over from the couch at Lysandre cleaning the floor. He'd gotten up; a quiet cracking heard from his knees and switched the faucet on to wash off the rag.

Serena sighed and sank into the couch. Umbreon curled into her lap, purring softly as she scratched his chin. His bright eyes looking up at her in a loving fashion, Serena scratched behind his ears.

"Please try not to scare me next time, okay sweetie?" She scolded lightly. Umbreon yipped happily as she hugged him to her chest. "I couldn't blame you when you're just so cute!"

Lysandre smiled at the yips and squeals coming from the couch. Rummaging through Serena's groceries, he placed the ingredients onto the counter. Looking over the variety of produce that Serena purchased. The Champion's budget sure wasn't small looking at the fresh berries and vegetables.

"Hey!" Serena called over, still holding Umbreon up to her chin. "I can still make lunch!"

Lysandre laughed as she hobbled over to the kitchen, Umbreon in arms and a tight-lipped expression on her face. Obviously she was in pain, but he wasn't about to stop her after seeing the determination in her eyes. Grabbing Umbreon from her grasp, he placed the loving Pokémon on the floor.

"I could help you." He began, but was cut off with a wooden spoon pointed straight at him.

"And have you make a mess of this kitchen again? I don't think so, especially since my foot got caught up in some nasty business." Serena lifted her foot up so that Lysandre could see the gauze wrapped around it; a couple dots of red blooming near the wound.

"Just hand me the vegetables while I get this water boiling." Serena tut and turned on the burner. "I'm going to attempt to make soup, and whether it's good or not, you're eating it."

Chuckling, Lysandre handed her a Tamato berry.

Red coughed. He didn't expect the route to Laverre to be so rainy, the droplets showering down on him in waves. Pikachu took shelter in his jacket while the rest of his Pokémon remained in their Pokéballs. That left him fully exposed to the cold and windy weather, cuddling his trusted partner to his chest protectively. Snow, he could handle, rain was a totally different thing. Not even Charizard could help him in this mess.

Pikachu mewled quietly in his jacket, wriggling his head out to look at the soaked trainer. Red pat the yellow mouse's head, taking cover under another tree when the rain became stronger.

"Sorry buddy…. But, please stay in the jacket. I can't have you getting sick." Coughing again, Red sniffled. "Although, I can't say the same for me."

Pikachu nuzzled his trainer's neck before nestling himself back into Red's jacket. Breathing deeply, Red made another break for the town ahead. They'd been travelling for four days now, the weather progressively getting worse.

Red grumbled, the rain wasn't letting up and the ground was soaked. There was no telling how long it would take him to get to the town and it was quickly getting dark. He'd been in worse for sure, stuck in snowstorms and once trapped at sea. But this… He was supposed to be relaxing for Arceus' sake!

Leaning his back against the tree, Red closed his eyes.

Only for them to shoot open at the sound of his Holo Caster ringing insistently.

Reaching around to his rucksack and opening the pocket that held the device, Red looked at the ID. It was Serena, Red quickly wiped the water from his face and fixed his hat before accepting the call.

"Hey! I waited forever for you to answer! I know you- Woah, what happened to you?" Serena grimaced at his appearance.

"I might have fell in mud and fought through rain to answer this call." Balancing the Holo Caster in the hand holding Pikachu, Red used his free hand to wipe at his face.

"Spare me the dramatics, will you? Haha. I should have told you that the area around Laverre gets quite rainy at this time of the year…" Serena bit her lip to hold in laughter at the sight of the wind-whipped Red.

"That would have been very useful, at the time." He huffed. "What did you Cast for, Serena?"

"I wanted to see what you thought of the Pokéball Factory, thinking you'd already arrived at the town. Though, It seems you're more keen for a hot shower."

"I would like one. I don't think I'm too far from the town. Once this rain lets up, I'll go straight to their Center and rent a room." Red shook his head, beads of water flying off of his hair.

"The forecast says that it might take another hour or two for the rain to stop."

"Lovely."

"Might have been good to stay in Lumiose, looking at how drenched you are."

"Or, you could head over."

"I don't think so. Maybe I'll fly over once the weather clears." Laughing jokingly, Serena yawned. "What about Pikachu? I don't think you'd put him back in a Pokéball."

"He's in my jacket right now." Tilting the display towards the top of his jacket, Red tapped Pikachu. The mouse Pokémon poking his head out, noticing the Holo Caster and chattering to the girl on the screen.

"Happy to see you, Pikachu. Weather's terrible, huh?" Smiling at the Pokémon, Serena waved happily at it.

"He's nice and dry in the jacket, it's just me getting all-" Coughing, Red wiped his mouth.

"Sick now? What will the Officials say back in Kanto?" Chuckling, she sat back in her chair. "It's only two weeks until the Season starts, Red. They'll never let you back out again."

"Eh, they'll survive." Looking between the tree's leaves and the sky, Red noticed that the rain lightened.

"Whatever you say, Red." Serena rolled her eyes.

"Rain's clearing up a bit, I should start heading into town if I want to get there before any cafês close." Sniffling, Red waved at the screen. "See you later, Serena."

"Goodbye, Red." Serena smiled before the connection shut off.

Placing the device back into his rucksack, Red made sure that Pikachu was secure in his jacket before running.

"Good girl, Vulpix! Such a strong girl." Serena cooed at her Pokémon for performing her attacks well. "You've come a long way, baby."

Vulpix yipped at Serena, prancing around her feet before proudly puffing her chest out. Greninja walked over to his trainer, nodding as she smiled at him and squatted. They'd been training for most of the morning and it was about lunchtime.

"Time for a break, guys." All her Pokémon excitedly shouted at the announcement of a break. Walking towards the little mat she had set up to place her belongings on, Serena opened the cooler that held the Pokéfood and her lunch. Setting out the bowls of food, her Pokémon rushed to eat their lunches, munching happily. Serena unwrapped her sandwich and opened her water bottle. The Spring Season was only a week away now; the pressure to be ready for it loomed over her head.

Red had left for Kanto the day before and Serena was a little sad to see her dear friend leave the region. She wished that she could have taken him to see the wonders of the region but was satisfied when the man told her that he had taken his round of Kalos, and would try to make it back after the Season ended. He told her that he would keep in-touch as much as possible, although both of them knew that they would be too busy to think about making calls. Serena longed for travel, something that she couldn't do often because of her title as Champion.

Taking a bite of her sandwich, Serena thought about tactics she could use for upcoming battles. The Elite Four would take care of most of the weaker challengers but it was certain that some would make it past to ultimately challenge her. Vulpix was still undertrained and Serena wasn't sure the little Pokémon would be ready for battle.

She would have to wait and see.

To Be Continued

That's it for now. This chapter was a little shorter than I intended it to be. But school will be starting soon and I wanted to put it out as soon as possible. Who knows when the next chapter will be released?

I kinda do. But until then, I hope that you all enjoy the story and would take a little time to review. :D

I will attempt to write more this week and have something out by the end of the month. Be it a short chapter or a long chapter, I hope that you all will look forward to it!

Once again, thank you very much for taking time out of your day to read this nonsense. Haha.