The Heart Still Cares

NOTE: This is the first draft of what is to be Chapter 11/12 of Time Only Knows. The spoilers of the previous chapters have been obscured, so you don't need to worry about that. Also forgive me for any typos, grammatical errors or flow errors. The formal release will be improved. Meanwhile, I would love to hear your suggestions for improvements, and/or your comments.

Cool winds blew across Anistar City, but a strong fire of determination burned inside one of its guests. Serena was preparing for her Tripokelon; victory in which would see her with two Ribbons, and only one Ribbon short of entering the Master Class. She had won her first Ribbon in Dendemille Town after a stunning performance with her Braixen and Pancham.

"I can't wait to enter the Intermediate Class! I will finally be one step closer to my dream of becoming the Kalos Queen!" she said at the breakfast table. For the first time, she finished her meal faster than Ash- who was usually the fastest to finish his food; or at least, the first serving of his food.

"We can't wait to see your Performance too Serena! Your performance at Dendemille City was fantastic!" Clemont said.

"Yeaf. I can'f waif to fee it eifer. I'll helf you in every way I can!" Ash said, still busy with his food.

Serena smiled and nodded. She then got up and called out her Pokemon. "Braixen, Treecko, come on out!" The bright flash of light revealed her Braixen and her Treecko, which instantly started off with its trademark jig.

"Okay. Now we are going to practice for our upcoming performance. I want everything to be perfect in it. Let's win this second ribbon and get closer to that title of Kalos Queen!" she said, pumping her fist.

"Brai-xen!" responded her Braixen. "Tree-cko!" her Treecko responded, giving a thumbs-up.

"Great! Now let's get started with the training!" she said, running towards the exit of the Pokemon Center. Her Braixen and Treecko followed suit.

"Wow. Serena is really determined to do well isn't she? She's almost like what you are like before a gym match!" Bonnie said with a chuckle.

Ash's stomach gave a slight leap when she said that. "Yeah. She'll do great. I'm sure of it" he said. Once they were done with breakfast, they spent the next three hours chatting with each other and discussing strategies for Ash's next gym match against Olympia- the Anistar City Gym leader, who, according to Clemont, specialized in using Psychic type Pokemon. At the end of it, when the group felt hungry, Ash went out to look for Serena and call her for lunch. He found her training hard in the park near the Pokemon Center.

He came on time to see Treecko accidentally hit Braixen on its face with its tail while trying to perform a move. The impact knocked Braixen backwards, which cried out in protest while rubbing its nose.

"Treecko! How many times do I have to tell you to keep your tail in check?! How are we going to perform this move tomorrow if you keep making the same mistake?!" she scolded.

"Treecko..." it replied apologetically, looking down.

"Serena!" Ash called out.

She sighed. "What is it Ash?" she asked, in a rather blunt fashion.

Ash was slightly perplexed by her reaction. But he reasoned that she had trained hard and was flustered by the mistakes made by her Pokemon. He calmly asked, "Shall we have lunch?"

She cooled down slightly at the tone. She exhaled heavily and replied with a smile, "No Ash. I still have some work to do. Why don't you three have lunch by yourselves? I'll come a bit later"

"Alright then. How is your training going?" he asked.

"Not so good. Treecko is still making the mistake of not taking its tail into account when it jumps and spins. It keeps knocking Braixen. So I need to work on that" she replied.

"Don't worry. Treecko will get the hang of it soon enough. Won't you Treecko?" he said, patting its head.

"Tree-cko!" it replied happily.

"Okay. See you Serena. Don't push yourself or your Pokemon too hard" he said, turning towards the gate.

"Bye Ash!" she called out, before returning to her training.

"Serena is still training. She told us to have our lunch in the meanwhile" Ash reported when he returned to the Pokemon Center.

"Wow. She sure is training hard. I hope she isn't pushing herself too much. A lunch break wouldn't hurt" Clemont said, half-disapprovingly.

"Yeah. Anyway, let's hit the cafeteria! I'm all for a plate of spaghetti and meatballs!" Ash said, rushing towards the cafeteria.

"Me too! And some ice cream after that!" Bonnie said, following suit.

"What's the rush? Wait for me!" Clemont called out, going in the same direction himself.

They returned to the common area after a heavy lunch. Their Pokemon lounged outside their PokeBalls as well. Serena walked in soon after that, her clothes drenched with sweat with all the outdoor activity. The heat had also picked up towards the afternoon- which was a contributing factor.

"So...had your lunch?" she asked, panting slightly. She was visibly frustrated.

"Yeah. How did your training go?" Clemont asked.

"I still have work to do. I thought I would select my dress for tomorrow, have a quick snack and then head back to train more" she replied. "And maybe I'll have a shower too! I'm drenched with sweat!" she added, feeling her black top. "Ash can you do me a favour? Just give my Pokemon their lunch while I'm away will you?" she asked, calling out her three Pokemon.

"Sure thing! I'll be glad to help" Ash replied, getting up from the sofa. He headed towards the cafeteria, as she headed towards their room. Ash returned shortly after holding three bowls of Pokemon food in a tray. He placed them in front of Braixen, Pancham and Treecko, who began to dig in to their food. He watched them for a while before an idea struck him.

"Hey guys. I'll be right back. I'll take some food up to the room so that it would be easier for her. After all, she must be quite hungry" he said to Clemont and Bonnie, while walking towards the cafeteria again.

"That's thoughtful of him" Bonnie murmured looking at him suspiciously.

He took a tray of spaghetti and meatballs up to their room. "Serena's going to appreciate this" he thought to himself, and smiled at his imagination of what her reaction would be like. He opened the door of the room and walked towards one of the beds, and looked at the crimson dress that lay on it. "She's gonna look amazing in this dress" he thought to himself. Just then, Chespin burst into the room with Pancham chasing it. They circled around Ash, who was beginning to lose his balance. The tray swayed dangerously.

"Guys stop it! Please!" Ash pleaded.

The two stopped, though not as a response to his command. Chespin hid behind Ash's legs whereas Pancham stood in front of him. Chespin made a face, taunting Pancham- which moved forward. Ash desperately looked around to find a place to put down the tray. Just when he decided to place it on the bed, Pancham made a move. Chespin reacted, but almost impaled its thorns against his leg by accident. He yelped in pain. But his mind was instantly diverted by the sensation that his hand didn't feel heavy all of a sudden.

It all almost went in slow motion. Ash watched in shock as the tray fell straight towards Serena's dress- which lay on the bed right beside him. The plate of spaghetti and meatballs fell bang in the middle of the dress, and bounced off the edge of the bed and fell to the ground and shattered. Pancham and Chespin stopped their fight when they heard the crash of the plate. They saw what happened to Serena's dress and scurried away out of the room immediately.

"Pancham! Chespin! Come back here you two! Stop fighting!" Clemont called out and ran past the room to chase them.

Ash stared at Serena's now badly stained dress. He stood rooted in the spot in absolute horror at the sight. He slowly moved to pick up the meatballs, his hands trembling, when a muffled voice came from the bathroom. "What is going on?!" said the voice. The door opened to reveal Serena, who wore a white bathrobe, and had her hair covered with a white towel. She first saw Ash standing at her, shell-shocked; then she looked down to see the broken plate and the spilled spaghetti and meatballs, and finally saw him shuffle a bit to cover the dress. She added it all together, and her annoyance went off the charts.

She sighed, placed her hands on her waist and said sassily, "Ash Ketchum. Please tell me that this isn't what I think it is"

"I..." Ash said, words failing him. He would've gladly traded all his six Kalos badges to have faced a rampaging Garchomp akin to the one he faced at the Prism Tower much earlier at that moment.

"Well?" she asked impatiently.

"Serena...I...thought you would be hungry. Pancham and Chespin..." he stuttered.

"You thought I was hungry huh?" she said, nodding her head. "Perhaps you also thought I was incapable of going down to get my own food?" she snarled.

"What? No! I...I just wanted to help!" he replied.

"Well, Ash Ketchum! Are you happy now that you helped me?" she asked, with strong sarcasm as she walked towards him. She looked at her dress for a while and exploded, "Fantastic! It is ruined now! What am I going to wear tomorrow?!"

"The...laundrette will wash it. It will be ready by tomorrow. Here, let me take it there for you right away" Ash said quickly and stretched his arm to take the dress from her hand.

"What? No! You have helped enough. I'll take care of it myself now" she said, moving the dress away from him.

"But Serena, it was a mistake!" he pleaded.

"What do you expect me to wear tomorrow?! The only other dress I have is that old red one that I wore in Courmarine City!" she exclaimed.

"Serena, I'm sorry!" he apologized profusely.

"Just...go away!" she said angrily, looking away.

"You know what? Fine! I just tried to help you! Is it my fault that your Pancham cannot help but fight with Chespin? I thought you would be hungry and I brought up some food so you don't have to wait much longer. But since you don't want my help, see you later. Good luck" he snapped, and stomped out of the room.

"What did I do to deserve that scolding from her? Was it wrong that I was concerned about her? Seems so!" he thought angrily as he continued stomping his way towards the common area. Clemont, Bonnie and Serena's Pokemon looked in his direction.  

"Ash is everything okay? I thought I heard some shouting" Clemont asked.

"I'm going out. I'll be at the Sundial Park if you need me" Ash said bluntly. He was still annoyed at the fact that she yelled at him that way. "Pikachu, come on" The yellow electric rodent ran towards him and climbed up his shoulder.

Serena soon came to the lobby, with the crimson dress in her hand. She recalled her Pokemon, looked, and walked towards the exit in a huff.

"Serena! Aren't you going to eat something? And why are you carrying that dress with you?" Clemont asked.

"No. I'm not in the mood to eat anything. And about the dress, why don't you ask your friend? Where is he anyway?" she replied haughtily.

"I don't know. He said he was going out..." Clemont replied.

"Hmph. Well, at least he won't ruin anything else!" Serena said.

"Why are you saying that?" Clemont asked. He was growing more and more curious regarding the behaviour of his two friends who usually behaved very nicely with each other.

"He ruined my dress! See?" she said, showing the heavily stained dress to them. She then walked out of the Pokemon Center.

"What's up with her?" Bonnie asked, perplexed by her behaviour.

"She's just frustrated that her training didn't go all that well Bonnie. She'll come around. Don't worry" Clemont answered reassuringly.

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"This dress will make me look like the queen I deserve to be!" a pink haired woman exclaimed, admiring the mannequin in front of her. The mannequin was clad in a silvery-white dress that seemed to shimmer and glow in the sunlight. It was indeed an incredibly beautiful dress.

"But Jess. There's no way we can afford something that expensive in our lifetime!" the blue haired man standing a little behind said.

"But I want this dress! I must have it!" she said angrily as she glued her face to the glass like a starving person would at a bakery.  

"How do we explain to her that we simply cannot afford it?" the man said, pressing his hand against his forehead.

"Leave her to her delusions Jimmy-boy. She'll come around" the Meowth beside them spoke.

"Hey! You three! What are you up to there?" a voice came from the side.

"Huh?!" The three exclaimed as they turned to see the source of the voice. "Officer Jenny!" he exclaimed in unison when they saw who it was.

The woman dressed in the blue police uniform said, "Yeah. I hope you aren't up to any mischief!" The Manectric she had on her side barked.

"What? No! We'll be on our way now!" James said, pulling Jessie away with him as they fled.

"Hmm. This place is getting weirder every day" Officer Jenny said, before shrugging and continuing on her duties.

Meanwhile, Ash walked up the same street. "I was just trying to help! She screamed like as if she had no other dress to wear! She has the other red one! What's wrong with it?" Ash murmured to himself. "And I said sorry! It wasn't even my fault. What's my fault if that Pancham of hers can't stand Clemont's Chespin?" he continued. He happened to turn in the direction of the boutique where the mannequin dressed in the white gown stood.

"Hmph" Ash said, walking away. He finally saw a park where he took a seat under a tree, thinking of the day's occurrences.

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At a distance away, Serena had dropped off her dress at the laundrette, and was making her way to the park where she trained before again. "That dress isn't going to be ready by tomorrow, that's for sure. I wanted this performance to be perfect. All thanks to Ash now that it won't..." she thought to herself angrily. She reached the park, and continued her practice with Braixen and Treecko.

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Ash watched the clouds pass by. It was almost two hours since he came to the park. He lay down on the grass under the shade of the tree. "I guess the frustration that her training wasn't going well made her act that way" he thought. His anger was waning fast, and he was beginning to feel responsible for spoiling her dress. "She did want her performance to be perfect. That's why she bought that dress in the first place" he thought.

"But she shouldn't have shouted at me that way for just trying to help!" his mind wasn't intent on giving up that easily.

"I should've kept that tray down on the table before looking at her dress. I had no reason to carry the tray up to her bed anyway" another part of him thought.

He sighed, and got up. "Come on Pikachu" he said.

"Pi?" came the reply as Pikachu pricked up one ear and looked at its trainer.

"Yeah. Let's go" he said. Pikachu climbed up his shoulder once again, as they set off on the same street.

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"Treecko! Remember to calculate for your tail as well! Don't hit Braixen!" Serena called out tiredly as the two Pokemon were doing their routine. Treecko jumped in response, and spun around. After all the practice since the morning, its tail didn't hit Braixen for the first time. Treecko then performed a Magical Leaf attack that circled around Braixen and itself as it landed on the ground and ducked. The attack then slowly lifted off the ground, and once it went slightly higher up, Braixen used Flamethrower at the Magical Leaf, burning the leaves and making them crumble. They then drifted slowly to the ground like glitter as Braixen and Treecko posed.

"Excellent! We've done it!" Serena said, clapping and skipping in excitement and delight. "Great job. Both of you. Seems like you've finally gotten the hang of that jump huh Treecko?" she said, patting it. Some leaves rustled behind her, and she turned around excitedly. But to her disappointment, nothing was to be seen. The leaves had rustled due to the wind that blew.

She sighed and murmured, "I was too harsh on him. He was only trying to help..." Yet another part of her argued, "But he ruined my dress!" The first part of her countered, "But he took care of me so much when " The second part of her returned, "What will you wear tomorrow? That old red dress?" She was still angry at Ash, although not as much anymore. She felt hungry, and decided that it was enough practice for the time being and decided to return to the Pokemon Center to get some food.

Clemont and Bonnie were sitting in the common room watching the TV with half interest when Serena walked in. She looked around, but Ash was nowhere to be seen.

"Serena! So did your training go alright?" Clemont inquired.

"Where is he?" she demanded, almost having to feign anger.

"Who? Ash?" Clemont asked.

"Yes" she replied curtly.

"Well he said that if we needed him, he would be at the Sundial Park..." he replied.

"Hmm" she replied curtly, though her anger had subsided completely, and was replaced with a small pang of guilt. "I was too harsh on him. I wish he didn't take me so serious when I asked him to go away..." she thought. She then turned to the exit and began to walk out again.

"You're going to see him?" Bonnie asked brightly.

"What? No! I am...going to train a little more!" Serena replied. But Bonnie wasn't convinced. She grinned slyly at Serena, who looked away to avoid eye contact as she walked out.

"Sundial Park...I hope he isn't angry at me still..." Serena thought to herself as she ran towards the famous Anistar City Sundial.

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Ash sat on the bench right in front of the famed Anistar Sundial- the massive purple stone that refracted the sunlight and bathed the area in front of it in a lilac hue. He held a box that rested on his lap; and beside him sat Pikachu. He was lost in thought, but he snapped out of it the moment he felt a tug on the box.

"What?!" he exclaimed, trying to pull the box back himself. The effort was in vain as the mechanical arm that tugged it was successful in snatching the box. He looked up to see an all too familiar Meowth hot-air balloon.

"Oh not you three again!" he said in exasperation. "Give that back!" he snarled.

"Prepare for trouble!" a female voice said, laughing.

"And while you're at it, make it double!" the male voice went.

"To protect the world from devastation"

"To unite all peoples within our nation"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love"

"To extend our reach to the stars above"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth, that's right!" piped in Meowth.

"WOBBUFFET!" chorused the blue Pokemon that was with them.

"I don't care about all that! Give back what you stole!" Ash shouted out, running forward.

"You want it? Come and get it!" Jessie said, laughing mirthlessly.

"You asked for it!" Ash exclaimed, clipping out one of his PokeBalls. "Fletchinder! Bring down that balloon!" he ordered. The white flash revealed a Fletchinder, which shot towards the balloon like a bullet. It poked a hole through the front side of the balloon, and exited through the back.

"Argh!" exclaimed the trio as the balloon crashed towards the ground, kicking up a dust cloud. When they recovered from the fall, Jessie stood up and said, "Can't you let us go for once you twerp?"

"Give that back!" Ash retorted.

"Why should I? Only I deserve this, for I am the beauty without compare!" Jessie said, looking up at the sky.

"Oh God. Here we go again" James muttered.

"We could've been stealing Pikachu instead of that stupid thing..." Meowth muttered in response.

"You popped our balloon, and our escape. Now you shall pay for it twerp! And you will never get this box from me!" Jessie snarled, unclipping one of her PokeBalls. "Pumpkaboo, go!" she commanded. The white flash revealed her Pumpkaboo. "Now use Shadow Ball!"

"Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Ash commanded. The two attacks collided, giving off a small explosion. "Now Fletchinder! Use Flame Charge!" Ash commanded. His Fletchinder covered itself in flames and rushed towards Pumpkaboo, landing a direct hit which did a fair amount of damage.

"Are you going to help me or not?!" Jessie growled at James.

"Alright. Inkay, use Psybeam!" James ordered as he called out his Inkay. The attack landed a hit on Fletchinder.

"Now Pumpkaboo, use Shadow Ball again!" Jessie commanded. Pumpkaboo complied, firing a Shadow Ball towards Fletchinder.

"Pikachu! Stop that attack with Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered. Pikachu managed to fire a Thunderbolt at the oncoming Shadow Ball just on time as it was inches away from Fletchinder.

"Now Inkay, use Dark Pulse!" James commanded. His Inkay complied. The attack hurtled towards Ash and his Pokemon, when a line of fire burst out from the side and nullified the attack.

"What?!" they all exclaimed in unison.

"Serena!" Ash exclaimed in delight when he saw the source of the attack. "Braixen!"

"Not you three again!" she said, looking at Team Rocket.

"Not you again, twerpette!" Jessie exclaimed. "Pumpkaboo, use Shadow Ball on her Braixen!"  she ordered.

"Oh no you don't! Fletchinder, Flame charge on Pumpkaboo!" Ash commanded. Fletchinder rushed towards Pumpkaboo- once again engulfed in flames and landed a direct, and super effective hit. Pumpkaboo was knocked back hard, and crashed on Jessie, who fell due to the impact.

"Now Braixen, use Hidden Power on Inkay!" Serena commanded. Her Braixen's attack hit Inkay squarely as it took James to the ground due to the impact.

"Oh no. We aren't done just yet twerps!" Meowth said, stepping in front of his friends,  ready to attack.

"Pikachu, let's finish this with Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded.

"Braixen, Flamethrower!" Serena commanded.

The combined attacks hit Team Rocket and generated a small explosion which lifted them off the ground towards the sky for the umpteenth time. "No!" Jessie exclaimed as the box slipped out of her hands and hurtled towards the ground.

"No!" Ash mirrored the shock on her face on the ground as he rushed towards the box. He heaved a sigh of relief when he managed to catch it.

"Looks like..." Jessie said as they were taking off.

"Team Rocket..." James added.

"...is blasting off again!" they said in chorus as they went out of sight. "Wobba...wobb!" came an exclamation along with it.

"Thank God!" Ash muttered with the box safely in his hands as he turned around. To his surprise, Serena was standing right in front of him. "Oh! Er..." Ash exclaimed, blushing slightly as he froze in that position.

"They never leave us alone do they?" Serena said, looking towards the sky where Team Rocket had disappeared.

"Yeah..." Ash replied with a chuckle.

"Ash...you aren't angry at me still are you?" Serena asked softly, turning to him.

"What? No! I mean, I was a bit angry before,,but..." he replied.

"I shouldn't have scolded you that way. I was just so frustrated that my training wasn't going that well and I took it out on you..." she said.

"No. You were right. After all, it was partly my fault too. I should've kept the tray elsewhere before going to your dress..." he said.

"I'm just glad you aren't angry at me even now Ash..." she said softly. "What were they after anyway? What is in this box? Why is it so important?" she asked him after a pause, pointing to the box he was holding.

"What? Oh...this. Serena...I'm...I'm sorry for ruining your dress earlier today. I thought I would make amends for it, so I...I bought you this. I just want you to know, I didn't mean for all that to happen. I was just trying to help you out..." Ash said hesitatingly as he handed the box to her.

She opened the box, and was instantly stunned by the contents. She placed the box on one of the benches and pulled out a gown that shimmered and glowed in the light. The gown, which was brilliant silvery-white usually, was now painted in a very light hue of lilac due to the refracted light of the sundial.

"Ash..." she said, looking at him in surprise.

"I thought...you would look great in it Serena...you aren't angry at me still are you?" he asked her softly.

"How could I be?! This...it is beautiful!" she replied, her eyes filled with admiration. She felt deeply guilty for having shouted at him that way. "I'm so sorry Ash. You really did want to help me. I am so sorry I shouted at you that way..." she said, her eyes tearing up slightly.

"Never mind that Serena. Do you like it?" he asked, admiring her sparkling blue eyes.

"Of course I do! But...wasn't this expensive? You need not have bought such an expensive one for me" she replied.

"I'm just glad you like it. And it wasn't that expensive! I got a really good deal!" Ash said, chuckling uncomfortably. It was far from a good deal. He thought back to the moment he purchased the gown:

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"I bet she'll like this one" Ash muttered to himself as he saw the mannequin clad in the brilliant silvery-white gown in the boutique. "Sir, how much is this?" he asked the shopkeeper.

"Oh this is not for sale. It was ordered by someone, and I simply hung it up to prevent it from getting folded for too long" the shopkeeper replied. "You may look at the other range of gowns, sir" he added, pointing to the wide array of colourful gowns beside him.

"But I want that one. Why don't you make another?" Ash asked.

The shopkeeper laughed slightly and said, "Make another? It would take some time! And the order is for tomorrow! I told you, that's not for sale. You may choose any of the others"

"Surely you can make one by tomorrow?" Ash inquired.

"The customer is the sister of a Marquis who lives in Couriway Town. You do know what that means right? They are rich! I am not going to give up that customer!" the shopkeeper replied, getting impatient.

"I'm willing to pay you!" Ash said, growing impatient himself. He didn't see why the shopkeeper couldn't make another one in one day if he hurried up.

"Oh? Then let's settle this with a Pokemon battle. If you win, I'll sell it to you for 150,000 PokeDollars" the shopkeeper said in frustration.

"One hundred and fifty thousand?!" Ash exclaimed in shock. "What is that gown made of?!"

"A material that commoners like you wouldn't comprehend" the shopkeeper replied in rage.

"Fine! Let's battle!" Ash said.

The battle began, and Ash easily overpowered the shopkeeper. "Alright. Pay up 150,000 and you can have it..." he said quietly, bearing an expression on his face like as if he was facing his mother after walking through a marsh.

"Er...just a minute" Ash said as the numbers dawned on him. In the heated argument, he wasn't able to properly comprehend the size of the amount in question. He opened his backpack and looked into his wallet. All the prize money from various competitions, gym battles, etc. that he had saved up and had with him at the moment equaled the selling price of the dress. "She better like this gift for all this effort..." he thought as he handed over almost everything he had to the shopkeeper, who pocketed the money with a wide grin. He packed the gown and said in a poisonously sweet voice, "Thank you, sir. Hope to see you again"

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"Yep. It was a fantastic deal" Ash repeated, giving a wide smile. Serena wasn't fully convinced, however. She knew from his actions that it was far from a good deal.

"A simple sorry would've sufficed Ash" she said, fighting the urge to pull him into a close embrace and to kiss him. She tapped his shoulder playfully and gave a wide smile. "Thank you so much. I love this gown"

"That fully justifies the money spent" Ash thought to himself. "Glad you like it Serena" he told her.

She turned to look at the sundial. "It is so...mystical isn't it?" she asked.

"Yeah. It sure is. Mystical indeed..." he replied, looking at the sundial himself. "How did your training go? Did Treecko get that move right?" he asked

"Yeah. It took a while, but both Braixen and Treecko got the hang of it" she replied.

"You'll do great tomorrow Serena. I know you will. And I'm sure you will look great in that gown. Which is why I bought it for you" he said.

"Ash, I feel really bad about shouting at you that way earlier. It...doesn't change anything...does it?" she asked, hesitatingly as she looked at him.

He turned to look at her. Her eyes seemed more mystical and beautiful than the sundial. "Don't worry about it Serena. You were stressed out. I know you didn't mean it" he said reassuringly, and smiled at her. "Come on. Let's head to the Pokemon Center"

"Wait" she said, holding his arm and stopping him. A cool breeze blew across, sending her hair, which was now growing in length, fluttering. They stood close to each other, looking into each others' eyes. They almost seemed to be able to communicate with each other in silence. "Let's...let's stay here for a while. I...want to sit down for a while after all that hard work" she said. They both knew that they wanted to spend some more time with each other, yet neither of them was willing to say so directly. They sat on the bench directly facing the sundial. No sound was heard other than the gushing of the river, or the occasional rustling of leaves; but the two of them couldn't be happier. They sat in silence, admiring the scene around them, knowing that they were brought even closer by their little argument.

To be continued...