Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon

Greeting to all reading this, whether you're long time readers or this story just caught your attention. Thank you for all your fabulous reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying this and it brings me joy to read your reviews, so keep 'em comin'. I apologise if I went on too much of a rant last time about Iris. I won't explain any of it cause, that's last chapter. We're now on this chapter and what is Ash planning? Will he win the battle? Will Team Rocket get involved? Well scroll bellow and find out.

Gabite drew close to Pikachu another time and, as Ash watched Gabite's movements, he came up with a plan.

"Pikachu, use Electro ball!" Ash called out as he saw Gabite's fin approaching closer to Pikachu again.

"Pikachu!" replied Pikachu in agreement.

"Electro Ball!?" exclaimed Bonnie

"But… it's ineffective!" called out Clemont. Pikachu jumped in the air slightly and as Gabite's fin passed underneath him, he spun and launched an Electro ball from his tail which impacted upon Gabite, creating a cloud of dust and propelling Pikachu further in the air.

"Nice try Ash, but Clemont's right. Gabite, now!" called out Iris. Gabite responded instantly and rocketed out of the ground as fast as a jet and hurtled towards Pikachu, its claw extended, ready to end the battle for Pikachu.

As Serena, Bonnie and Clemont looked on in anticipation, Iris smiled, confident she had beaten Pikachu and Ash. Ash saw her expression and felt the need to humiliate her, just slightly.

"Pikachu, Electro Ball again, quickly!" he yelled before Pikachu began to spin in the air once again, doing so caused Gabite to miss by mere inches. As soon as it noticed it had missed, a huge ball of lightening escaped from Pikachu's tail and flew at Gabite with force. The Electro Ball hit, the force of it sent Pikachu hurtling down to the floor.

"What!?" called out Iris in confusion and shock. While Gabite didn't feel anything from the Electro Ball, due to its ground typing, it still felt the impact of the attack, distracting it from Pikachu for a brief moment.

"Pikachu, use that momentum then, Quick Attack!" Ash instructed.

"Pika!" called Pikachu before focusing on the ground that was approaching ever closer.

"What's Pikachu doing Clemont?" asked Bonnie, worrying that Pikachu was going to come crashing down.

"Ingenious… Ash is improvising. His bond with Pikachu allows them to co-ordinate… as if they were linked by more than friendship." Clemont pondered before Pikachu touched the ground for a second before the height of the fall propelled him back into the sky. This, combined with quick attack, allowed him to rocket into the air, much like Gabite.

"Now Pikachu, Iron Tail!"

"Quick Gabite, Dragon Claw, quickly!" Iris yelled out in a panic as Pikachu, once again, began to spin, its tail becoming cloaked in a white energy. As Pikachu approached, Gabite's claws also began to glow. Both trainers looked on as their Pokémon drew closer, each of them looking to end this battle with a final move. Gabite swung for Pikachu with its Dragon Claw, however, as with before, Gabite could not land the hit with Pikachu spinning the way it was. Pikachu was now able to get up close and land its Iron Tail on top of Gabite's head, sending it crashing down to the ground. Everyone shielded their eyes as the crash brought up a small dust cloud. As Pikachu landed back to the ground, the dust settled where Gabite landed, revealing Gabite, who had seemingly fainted, lying in a small impact crater.

"You okay, buddy?" asked Ash noticing Pikachu was covered in small scuffs and breathing heavily.

"Pikachu" replied Pikachu confidently before trying to catch his breath.

"Gabite, are you alright!?" called Iris who stepped forward, concerned for Gabite. Gabite let out a small growl in response and began to struggle back to its feet. "Can you still fight?" asked Iris, hesitantly stepping forward more. Gabite went to turn and reply to her but suddenly stopped as its fins began to twitch. Its eyes narrowed as it directed its attention towards the sky. "Wha…" Before anyone could react, Gabite pounded its way into the ground and tunnelled past Serena and into the woods beside the group as fast as it could. Serena cowered a little as Gabite tunnelled past her; bringing up shoots of dirt as it did. "Gabite! What's wrong!?" Iris called out to no avail.

"What's going on!" exclaimed Bonnie in confusion before she and Clemont joined Ash.

"You okay?" Ash asked Serena who was still stood in place. She knew that Gabite wouldn't hurt her but she was less concerned about herself and more concerned with Ash. As Gabite tunnelled towards her, almost in a fit of rage, she remembered watching Ash fall from Prism tower, an act caused by Gabite's evolution, Garchomp. The small amount of fear she just experienced wasn't for her life, it was the same fear she experienced as she watched him fall. "Serena!" She soon snapped of fear and noticed that Ash had come over to her.

"Yes… sorry. It was just a bit of a shock, is all" she said, trying to hide her concern of him through her smile.

"Iris, what's wrong with Gabite?" Ash asked.

"Rayquaza…" Iris muttered to herself before taking off after it. "I'll see you later!" she called out as she chased after her Pokémon. Bonnie and Clemont joined Ash and Serena as Iris disappeared into the thick foliage in front of them.

"We're going to follow her aren't we?" asked Clemont to be met with a cheeky smile from Ash before he took after her. Serena and Bonnie soon followed.

"Come on Clemont! We'll leave you if we have to!" yelled Bonnie playfully teasing her brother's running capability.

"Why does it always have to be running?" Clemont complained before following them into the woods.

In the bushes behind them, Team Rocket began watching the 'twerps' once more. Jessie was the first one to notice the commotion from the field.

"Look, the twerps are gone" said Jessie, looking through a small bush.

"Yeah, but where'd they go?" asked Meowth, joining her.

"Look there, a trail leading into the other side of the woods" said James, pointing to the trail of dirt leading into the woods.

"That Gabite must have left it" deduced Meowth.

"Well let's get after them" said Jessie with determination as she withdrew from the bush and promptly pulled Meowth and James from it.

The gang soon came to a 'fork in the road' so to say, as they could see numerous directions that Iris could have gone. "Where did she go?" asked Serena, noting that the line of brought up dirt caused by Gabite's digging had just ended.

"She's so fast" commented Bonnie before Ash seemingly took off in a random direction. Serena and Bonnie followed behind him. Clemont caught up just enough to see them disappear into the shrubs.

"Is there really a hurry?" complained an exhausted Clemont before deciding to try and catch up to them again.

"Ash, don't want to be too negative, but do you even know where we're going?" asked Serena, trying to be as positive as she could.

"There" Ash replied before pointing to the tree tops a fair bit in front of them. As he did, she noticed the leaves off some of the trees were falling off leading in the direction they were running.

"What is it?" asked Bonnie, confused to what falling leaves had to do with Iris. They soon caught up to the source of the falling leaves.

"Iris, you think you could slow down!?" called Ash into the treetops. Iris, who had been tracking Gabite from the treetops, briefly glanced down behind her to see Ash, Serena and Bonnie.

"What are you doing!?" she asked while still maintaining her course through the trees.

"We… we're following you!" replied Ash who was still chasing after her.

"We want to help!" added Serena, feeling that she needed to.

"No… I meant what are you doing down there!?" asked Iris, still swinging from branch to branch. This question caught the gang off guard, causing them to stop. They were soon bathed in confusion.

"I… We… Could you at least stop!?" he asked her. Iris stopped and turned around to look at them.

"B… You…" she then hid her head in her hand for a second. "I forgot, you do the whole 'running' thing" she remarked before dropping onto a lower branch, and then, onto the ground. "Sorry" she apologised, feeling slightly awkward. Ash, Serena and Bonnie were all bent over, holding their legs and respiring heavily and quickly.

"How… how did you… get so fast?" asked Bonnie between breaths.

"Well…" Iris started, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. "It's kind of my element" she remarked. She didn't want to go through her entire life story at the moment.

"You… you're perfect… for my brother" she said before dropping onto her back in exhaustion.

"Yeah… Where is Clemont?" asked Serena, looking around her. As the gang tried to regain their breath, Bonnie's satchel began to move and twitch. Before long, Dedenne burst its way out of her satchel and rushed towards Iris, who let out a high pitched squeal. Dedenne jumped onto her leg, climbed up to her shoulders and into her hair. Serena couldn't help but crack a small smile now she knew that Iris wasn't as brave as she put on. As Dedenne scurried around in Iris' hair, she was running in place in a panic.

"Dedenne, get out of there!" yelled Bonnie who sprung up on her feet and ran towards Iris in hopes that Dedenne would come to her.

"What do I do? Ash, what do I do!?" yelled Iris, panicking.

"Iris, relax. Dedenne won't hurt you. It's just curious." Iris though Ash was being too calm about this.

"Well tell it to be curious somewhere else!" she yelled back in annoyance.

"DEDENNE! You get out of there, mister. It isn't nice to root around in my sister's hair!" yelled Bonnie, standing with her hands on her hips, taping her foot and pouting.

"Sister?" muttered Ash. Serena heard him and whispered in his ear. "Oh, right" he said chuckling. Suddenly, Dedenne leaped from Iris' hair and into Bonnie's hands.

"What's wrong, Dedenne?" asked Bonnie noticing the scared look upon Dedenne's face. Her question was soon answered, however, as Iris' hair seemed to gain a life of its own for a moment before something leaped out in front of her.

"Axew, Axew" the creature growled as it focused towards Dedenne.

"Axew?" muttered Ash, remembering Iris' companion.

"Axew? It's alright. These are our friends" said Iris, kneeling down to him and motioning towards the rest of the group.

"Axew" called Ash as he ran over. "It's me and Pikachu, remember?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu added. Axew smiled.

"Axew" it said calmly before retreating back into Iris' hair. Though Ash was glad to see Axew again, Iris didn't seem all that happy, a fact that Ash picked up on.

"Iris, is something wrong?"

"It's nothing… I mean, nothing for you to be concerned with." Iris then turned her attention to Bonnie. "I'm sorry about that. I was just caught by surprise is all and Axew didn't mean to scare… Dedenne, is it?"

"Uh huh, it's okay. Dedenne must have sensed Axew in your hair and wanted to see" Bonnie replied, slightly discouraged that Dedenne and Axew didn't 'hit it off'. Bonnie never liked to see people not getting along, even Pokémon who had just met.

"I… I see you also keep your Pokémon close" remarked Iris, feeling the need to cheer her up a bit. Bonnie smiled, knowing that Iris wanted to see her smile.

"Dedenne isn't really mine. Clemont caught him for me" she said, slightly disappointed. Worried that it wouldn't 'impress' her.

"You're not old enough?" Iris asked. She knew Bonnie wasn't old enough but felt the need to ask anyway.

"Well, I think that I'm old enough but my brother thinks I'm 'irresponsible'. When I'm older though, Dedenne and I will be proper partners and we'll be as strong as my brother" she said with determination. Iris couldn't hold back her pride for this girl as a big smile began to form.

"I like your ambition. I was much the same" she said tussling both Bonnie's hair and Dedenne's fur. This only furthered Bonnie's desire to have Iris marry her brother. "Say, where is your brother anyway?" Serena frowned a bit as Ash and Bonnie began to look around. No one appeared to hear her when she asked that same question. Though she didn't want to admit it, she was now feeling a significant 'threat' from Iris. Just as the group began to worry, Clemont appeared from a clearing in the trees and appeared to be floating. When he came into full view of the group, they saw his Aipom arm from his backpack swinging through the trees, carrying him with it.

"Finally…" Clemont said, exhausted, as his Aipom arm lowered him down to the ground. "Why do you have to make it hard for me?" he asked sarcastically.

"Because you're the oldest" remarked Bonnie as she opened her satchel and allowed Dedenne to hop back in.

"Using the trees?" asked Iris, curiously.

"Yeah… Seemed like the easiest way through here. Plus, I'm not the best runner" said Clemont, retracting his Aipom arm into his backpack.

"You know… I'm starting to like you more and more, Clemont" remarked Iris after looking him up and down. She then turned to continue looking for Gabite. Ash and Serena followed, Serena seemingly having missed that last comment. Clemont nervously rubbed the back of his head and chuckled in embarrassment before looking down at his sister who was staring at him with wonder and excitement.

"I… Uh…" Clemont stuttered looking back towards Iris then back to Bonnie. "No" he said sternly before walking on to catch up with the group.

"Iris, why did Gabite, freak out like that?" asked Ash.

"Ugh, firstly; he didn't 'freak out'" she scolded, thinking that Ash was taking the moral high ground because Pikachu didn't run from the battle. "Secondly… I think it's because of Rayquaza"

"Really?" asked Serena, still not able to comprehend Iris managing to track a Legendary Pokémon.

"Yes. Dragons have this way about them and I have a way with the Dragons. When Gible evolved into Gabite, I began to train it in its tracking skills, to be able to 'feel' other Dragon type Pokémon. Most times, Gabite would simply know that a Dragon type was near but… My dedication to battle Rayquaza seems to have tuned its senses. It knows that we could lose Rayquaza's trail easily. It must have felt its presence somewhere and sought to keep it in one place for me to catch up" Iris said, proud of her abilities but trying not to sound smug.

"Wow, that's amazing" exclaimed Ash to which Serena just rolled her eyes. "You can really train a Pokémon to track other Pokémon?"

"Well, when you're devoted to your Pokémon, you can train them to do anything… And they can train you to do anything too." Serena was beginning to dislike Iris more and more. It simply couldn't be coincidence that she managed to track the legendary dragon, Rayquaza, to Kalos where she happened to come across Ash, they very day that they kissed. It just could have been on accident. Maybe she was paranoid. Maybe she was. But, at this point, being paranoid felt right.

They soon reached a point where the dirt pile from Gabite's digging began again, signalling that he was getting closer to the surface. They decided to follow it and, as they ran, they soon saw a hole in the ground where Gabite had emerged.

"Perfect, Gabite will be much easier to track above ground" remarked Iris as she ran ahead of them and out of the other side of the woods. Clemont and Bonnie soon caught up to them.

"What now?" asked Clemont.

"Well, I don't even know where we are" remarked Serena. "Following her got us lost" she added, more quietly.

"What?" asked Ash, genuinely not hearing what she said.

"Nothing." Serena was quick to defend herself. "I mean, we're off course. So… now what?"

"Easy. We follow Iris, find Gabite and continue our battle. Who knows, we may even meet Rayquaza" Ash said with enthusiasm before taking off after Iris.

"Wait up Ash!" called Bonnie who ran after him excitedly.

"Are you okay?" asked Clemont who noticed Serena watching Ash and Bonnie with a serious look on her face.

"What? Noth… nothing. What makes you say something's wrong with me?" she asked nervously.

"Well…" began Clemont, noticing that Serena was really nervous. "…from observations, it seems like your behaviour changes when you're around Ash and Iris. Is everything okay?" asked Clemont, adjusting his glasses.

"Pft… sure. Everything's fine" she said, trying to hold back her nervousness through a faux smile. "I just think this whole thing was planned is all" she said as a passing comment as she made her way after Ash and Bonnie.

"What? What do you mean?" Clemont asked, catching up to her. Serena knew it probably wasn't the best idea but she needed to talk to someone about this and Clemont was the only one she could talk to. She certainly couldn't talk to Bonnie about this. She admired Iris too much.

"Do… do you think Iris is a good person?" she asked.

"I… me? Well, yeah. I mean, she's one of Ash's friends. How bad could she possibly be?" he answered as truthfully as he could.

"Yeah, I wonder…" muttered Serena.

"Why do you ask?" asked Clemont, not hearing Serena's previous comment.

"I… I just don't want her making trouble, is all"

"Why would she make trouble? She seems like a nice girl"

"She might have been. Like, before when she was with As… when she was travelling with Ash. But, who knows what she's like now. I mean the girl travels through the trees!" she said, seemingly making any excuse to be suspicious of her.

"Well… ash seems to trust her… and traveling through the trees is clever… and kinda cool" remarked Clemont who had to take a liking to Iris. "Are you okay with her? I don't wanna accuse anything but everyone seems to like her but you, it seems" he said, not wanting to upset her.

"I just… I'm sorry for putting this on you. I've just got a lot on my mind" she said, feeling as though she could let her emotions out right here and now. She didn't want to, not when she was with Clemont and with the others near.

"Well… if you want my opinion, I recommend some time alone to think when we get settled somewhere. It's obvious you have a lot to think about and being alone to reflect can change the way you see things" he said, placing his hand on her shoulder to console her.

"Yeah… thanks…" was all she could say as she felt that Clemont was being really sincere.

"And if you need to talk, you can always talk to me" he added, feeling she needed more reassurance.

"I know. Thank you for understanding." She sounded surer of herself but Clemont thought she could do better.

"…and don't worry. I won't tell Bonnie, Ash or Iris about this. This is for you to work out." Serena smiled now knowing that she had a friend in this, someone to talk to if she got in trouble.

"Clemont, you are a life saver, I can't thank you enough" she said taking his hand off her and holding it for a moment. "Now come on, they'll be wondering where we are."

So there we are, bonds are beginning to form among the group while others are drifting further apart. Iris has impressed both Bonnie and Clemont and Serena feels more left out than ever. Thank Arceus she can know rely on Clemont huh.

Anyway, you want more; you gotta ask for more so keep the feedback coming and I hope to see you all in the next exciting chapter of The Way to Ash's Heart.

Trust me, it's gonna be good.