𝒴

The frame of a long-haul bus came to a gentle halt, hydraulics hissing and engine rumbling with steady anticipation, ready to take off again. For it, this was just another stop in its long, winding journey. For its lone passenger, however, this was the start of a new one.

With a swing of the bus's doors, the passenger stepped forth, an intense look in her eyes as she beheld the city center. Aged brickwork streets gave way to beds of flowers and canopies of trees off in the distance. She knew this place. She'd been here before.

"Santalune City... I'm here." With another step to leave the bus behind, the traveler grinned. Her hand began to tremble with excitement, before she hopped into the air. "Serena is here!"

With that, she took off into a run.

"I'm here, I'm here, I'm here!" Serena let the words ring through the open air, filling her ears as she skipped through the city's winding streets. Santalune was her destination, but there was one building in particular she was the most ecstatic to reach: The city gym.

Digging through her jacket pocket for her phone, Serena tapped away until a call began to ring. Soon, two faces appeared on the screen.

"Guys, I'm here! I'm in Santalune!" she announced, keeping her pace as she held her phone up with an excited jitter. "I'm heading straight to the gym now!"

"That's awesome, Serena!" Despite still being on his flight, Ash had no interest in keeping his voice down. Even the harsh shush of an out-of-frame flight attendant couldn't mellow his energy. "You're gonna rock Viola, I just know it!"

"Congratulations on arriving!" Clemont, in contrast, was less energetic— And with his frazzled hair and bagged eyes, it was easy to tell why. He must've just arrived in Lumiose City himself. Despite that, he pulled through with a proud smile that set Serena's heart at ease.

His next few words were less comforting.

"That being said, are you sure it's a good idea to jump straight into things? It's still early days."

His question made Serena falter for a moment, before she picked up once more.

"I guess I am rushing into things— But I'm just so excited!" she explained, hopping into the air just to make the point. She could see the Santalune City Gym in the distance now.

"That's what I like to see! You gotta get in there all fired up, let it carry you and Fennekin to the finish line!" Fire was the right word for it, as Ash's advice just sent Serena's heart racing. It felt like she was already watching the battle unfold, and she hadn't even gotten into the gym yet!

Even Clemont couldn't help but get caught up in it.

"You are in a good position for taking on Viola, since your partner is Fennekin," he noted.

"Because she has a type advantage!" With the gym only a dozen or so meters away, Serena began to recall an item stowed in her bag— The notebook Clemont had given her. On the inside was the type chart that confirmed her thought. "Fire-Types beat Bug-Types! I've been studying on the bus, hehe."

"Exactly!"

Now it was Clemont who was beaming with energy, and, oddly enough, Ash who grew more reserved. As Serena neared the entrance of the gym, he spoke out again.

"I'd be careful. Pikachu had the type advantage against Viola's team too—" he said, eyes falling to the ground. "She's got tricks to make up the difference."

This time, Serena came to a complete stop, her hand hanging onto the door that separated her from the gym itself. Though her memory of Ash's first challenge was hazy, she could still recall how hard he had to train to beat Viola. For a moment, doubt swelled in her mind.

When she looked down onto her phone, and saw Clemont and Ash looking back at her, that doubt was swept away.

"Viola may have tricks. But I have you guys!"

𝒴

The Santalune City Gym was just as beautiful as Serena remembered it. A gilded gallery of photographs led into a practical forest in the middle of the building. There were more varieties of trees and flowers surrounding the battlefield than Serena had seen anywhere else in Kalos.

Yet, what pulled at her attention the most wasn't the grandeur of the gym itself, but instead, the surprising nonchalance of its leader. At a small table under a shady tree, Viola sat, stretching and yawning with her camera in hand and a half-eaten sandwich on the table. It was around noon, Serena realized. She must've been having lunch.

Feeling a sudden rush of nervous energy, Serena looked back towards the gym entrance. Maybe she should go and come back late—

At that moment, Viola managed to stretch back far enough to notice her fretting guest.

"Oh! Hello there! Sorry, I didn't hear you come in." Hopping up from her seat, Viola faced Serena head-on, her eyes to the sky as she took one final stretch. "Yooou must be here for a gym—!"

When Viola finally got a look at Serena, she paused.

"Hey, wait a second. Are you—? Serena! That is you!" Cocking her head to the side, Viola gave Serena a once over. "Wow, I could barely recognize you with that new outfit."

"Hey there!" Serena was still a little nervous, but that was draining away. "It's been a while, huh?"

"I'll say! What are you doing back in Santalune? And where's the rest of your friends?" Tapping her cheek in thought, Viola looked around the gym before she furrowed her brows. "Don't tell me you guys split up."

"Oh no, no! It's nothing like that! Well, kinda." Serena threw her hands up as she tried to think of a way to explain the group's situation. 'They were taking some time apart' didn't make things sound much better. "We're all just, doing our own things right now, including me."

On that note, Serena pulled a lone Poké Ball from her pocket. The sight of it brought a glint to the Gym Leader's eyes.

"So you're challenging the Kalos League too, huh? Well congrats! I'll be sure to make this a memorable experience for you!" Viola did one final stretch, interlocking her fingers and raising her hands high above her head. With that, she reached for her camera. "Just one more thing before we get down to business though."

"Oh?"

"Mind posing for a photo?"

𝒴

"Just so I've got this right, this is your first time challenging a gym, yes?" Viola's question rang back at Serena, as the Gym Leader looked across a handful of Poké balls her attendant was offering her. When Serena answered, Viola took a single ball and approached the field. "Well then! Let's get this show on the road!"

"Yeah, let's!" Taking a strong stance on her side, Serena smiled and held out her own lone Poké ball. She was excited, too excited, in fact. Before Viola could even get to her spot, Serena reared back and tossed. "Come on out, Fennekin!"

"Fenn!" Her fiery friend appeared on the field with a confident yip, as she too stood tall facing Viola. Serena couldn't help but smile at that.

"Thank you so much, Fennekin. For giving this a try for me," she said, looking up from her partner to their opponent. Viola was watching them, giving the pair a wide smile as she tossed her lone Poké ball up and down. This was it, their very first real battle. They were doing it! "Let's show her how strong we can be, Fennekin!"

"Fennekin!"

"I have to admit, the two of you already seem to have a good bond," Viola called, catching the Poké ball one last time and holding it forward. "Guess I'll just have to test how picture-perfect it is! Let's go, Spewpa!"

The Gym Leader's Pokémon joined her field with a surprisingly fierce battle cry— Impressive, considering its unimpressive size.

Still, Serena knew not to underestimate Viola's Pokémon. Ash had taught her that.

"The match between challenger Serena and Gym Leader Viola will now begin! If either party's Pokémon are all unable to battle, the match is declared over!" The gym attendant raised their arm, setting both the Gym Leader and Challenger at the ready. Then, they threw it down. "Now, start!"

"Let's get right into it, Spewpa! Go in with a Pounce!" At Viola's word, Spewpa leapt, hopping across the battlefield with long strides, its speed catching Serena off-guard.

Immediately on the back foot, she countered.

"Dodge it, Fennekin!" With one command, Fennekin skittered to the side and avoided the practiced pounce. With another, she struck back. "Now, Ember!"

"Duck back, Spewpa!"

"Fenne— Kiiin!" A pitched spray of embers blasted from her maw, only just missing the intrepid Bug-Type.

With a roll, it went in for another strike.

"Ember again, Fennekin!" This time, Fennekin landed her shot. Her fire hit the Spewpa dead-on, mere feet before it would've slammed into her. In an instant, it was sent flying by the cinders. "Yes! We got a hit in, Fennekin! We—"

"Spewpa is unable to battle! Serena and Fennekin are the winners!"

"...Wait, what?" Opening her eyes, Serena looked upon the battlefield with a befuddled expression. Sure enough— There was Spewpa, singed and knocked out on the ground, with Fennekin looking on in abject confusion.

Across from them, Viola smiled and began to clap.

"Congratulations, challenger! Your Fennekin and their Ember were an absolute sight to behold!" Her applause was genuine, if a bit patronizing. "With moves like that, you could have a real shot at the Kalos League someday!"

Still blinking, Serena raised a hand to her chest, feeling for what she thought would be a runaway heartbeat. In truth, it was going barely any faster than it did at the start of the battle.

What was going on?

Serena stepped forward and met Viola in the middle of the field. There she and her attendant stood with an astounding item in hand: The Santalune City Bug Badge.

"And this is yours!" Without even a hint of reluctance, Viola offered it forward, leaving Serena the honor of taking it.

Yet, while Viola seemed to have no hesitation, Serena did. She stared at the badge in front of her and, for a moment, questioned whether she should take it. Soon though, she shook her head.

"When I was here last time, with Ash, you had these two incredibly strong Pokémon. Ash had to train really hard to beat you," she said, tearing her gaze away from the badge and looking to Viola herself. At her side, Fennekin looked up with a similar expression. "Why do you only have that Spewpa now?"

Viola was caught off guard by the question, blinking for a moment before she began to explain.

"Well, the point of the Gym Challenge is to simply challenge trainers, to help build their skills up higher and higher. We're still gyms after all." After gesturing to her attendant, Viola produced two more Poké balls to continue her point. "So, Gym Leaders have several teams trained up for different calibers of trainers."

"And Ash..." Like that, Serena realized her answer before she even received it.

"Ash I could tell was a well-experienced trainer from the beginning, so I came at him with one of my stronger teams," Viola explained, making her point explicit. With a kind smile, she put a hand on Serena's shoulder. "You don't have to worry about that though! You're just starting out, with a Pokémon you haven't trained with that much yet. The fact you did so well proves you can accept this badge with pride."

Viola's words sat in Serena's mind, where they dug in, becoming discomforting and impossible to ignore. A small, quiet part of her told her to accept the badge, to get out of Santalune. After all, the faster she accepted it and headed to Cyllage City, the sooner she'd be able to see Clemont and Bonnie and Ash again.

But, she couldn't.

"I'm sorry, Viola, but I can't take this badge," she said, surprising Viola and her attendant, and even Fennekin at her feet. "I'm aiming to catch up with Ash one day, to be a trainer that can challenge him. I can't do that if I accept this."

Viola blinked once then twice, before nodding with a look of understanding. She quickly handed the ball for her Spewpa to her attendant.

"What would you like to do then you think?"

Serena gave the question some thought, before it became clear there was only one answer for her.

"Please battle me again, but this time, use the same team you faced Ash with!" Her declaration was strong, and proud, and a little bit scared. The moment the words left her lips, she felt her heartbeat begin to pick up. She knew what it was getting excited for.

A heart-racing, life-changing battle.

Viola chuckled as she handed the badge back to her attendant, who quickly stepped off the battlefield.

"Alright then, Serena. You're on!"

𝒴

"The match between challenger Serena and Gym Leader Viola will now begin again! If either party's Pokémon are all unable to battle, the match is declared over!"

The attendant's words rang through Serena's mind again, as she stood firm on her side of the battlefield. Across from her, Viola had taken position and was now stretching one final time before their second round would start. Serena wasn't sure what it was, but the Gym Leader looked different this time. She was looser, more confident.

The sight of that made Serena's heart race.

"Alright then, let's try this again! Come on out, Surskit!" Tossing her Poké ball, Viola called out her brave Bug-Type to the field, its arrival heralded with a flurry of light in its wake. With a glare, it looked up at Serena, firm determination in its eyes.

"A!" it cried.

"Okay, we've got this. We just have to keep calm and aim straight, okay Fennekin?" Serena shot her partner a smile and a look of assurance, one Fennekein received with a confident nod. She was just as ready as Serena was.

Serena would have to thank her again, later.

"Now, start!"

"Surround them and use Signal Beam, Surskit!" Instantly, Viola went on the attack, her Surskit racing into an orbit around Fennekin and firing.

"Dodge it, Fennekin!" Pressed into the back foot again, Serena tried to play catch up— But it was too late.

"Fenn!" While Fennekin could easily avoid Viola's Spewpa, her Surskit was something else. It ran circles around Fennekin whilst blasting her with beams of energy.

"Fennekin!" Tightening her first, Serena stood firm, trying to think of what to do next. She couldn't panic so soon, she told herself. Afterall— "Fire-Types beat Bug-Types! Fennekin, use Flamethrower!"

"Whoa, what!?"

Digging her heels in, Fennekin fired off a pillar of crackling flames, catching Surskit by surprise as the fire crashed into them. It was a direct hit! On collision with the wall, a cloud of steam filled the air at Viola's side.

"Yes! A real, solid hit, Fennekin! You did it!" Serena leapt into the air and cheered, putting a grin on her partner's face as she too began to celebrate. Standing proud, Serena looked onto the battlefield and declared, "Fire beats Bug, meaning that move was Super—!"

"A!" Clearing the smoke with a twirl of its legs, Surskit revealed itself, still standing, and not at all worse for wear.

"...Effective."

"The Bug-Type might be weak to Fire-Types, yes, but Water-Types like Surskit resist Fire, canceling out that weakness!" Viola called out, as she pulled on her own pleased grin. "It'll take a lot more than one hit to take us down!"

Serena gritted her teeth, her racing heart almost making her pull away from the battlefield. As Viola's Surskit flew back into action and surrounded Fennekin once more, a fact truly began to set in for Serena.

This was going to be even harder than she expected.