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ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ x

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My eyes flutter open and I cough up water, gasping for air.

I'm alive.

I'm actually alive.

I glance beside the soft, cool grass of the lakebed after my I regain my flow of oxygen to see the princess gazing at me with a curious, yet worried expression on her face.

"A-Are you okay?"

I smile and nod.

Serena beams and softly closes her eyes, sighing from relief.

"I'm glad," She says, twirling her finger on the sweet grass.

I turn my gaze to the night sky, feeling the gentle evening breeze blow through my wet hair.

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Such vibrant scenery...

The calm lull of the lake and the glistening reflection of the stars merge into a beautiful nighttime view.

Feeling the gentle breeze blow through your hair as the moonlight dyes the Earth a soft glow...

It's beautiful.

I turn my gaze back to the princess to meet her radiant cerulean eyes.

Her mouth gapes slightly.

"Ash, your eyes..."

"Wha- Is something wrong with my eyes?!" I say frantically, rubbing them with my hands.

She giggles, the sounds of her joy lifting the leftover tension.

"No, that's not it... It's just that your eyes are starting to sparkle now." She says, gazing at the shimmering reflection of the lake.

"...Before you came here to the palace, your eyes seemed so dull and gray... And now, they're sparkling," She smiles softly, slightly blushing.

I smile as well.

"It's because I realized I have something to live for and protect now, thanks to you,"

She looks flustered for a moment as her blush darkens, but smiles.

"Hey Ash..."

"Hm?" I glance back at her from the sky in question.

She pulls out a piece of cloth from her pocket.

"I'm sorry it got wet, but I've been wanting to return this to you ever since." She said, handing it over to me.

Except it wasn't a piece of cloth.

It was a blue handkerchief.

A very familiar one at that.

"Eh? Wait..." I say as I hold the soft fabric between my fingers, examining it like a detective.

I stop in my tracks as a familiar image comes in sight.

There was a Pokéball sewn onto the corner of the fabric.

This was a handkerchief that I had as a child... but what happened to it?

I drop the handkerchief in shock as I suddenly recall the memories of when I was young.

A certain summer camp...

Where I met a girl in a straw hat.

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Flashback

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It was when I was really young...

Probably around five or six years old at the time.

I was following a cottontail rabbit in the woods when I heard a muffled sob come from behind a bush.

In curiosity, I followed the noise and startled a silhouette beside an oak tree.

As I crawled out of the bush, a girl with honey blonde hair wearing a straw hat came into view.

Except something was wrong.

She was clutching her leg in pain with tears running down her cheeks.

"Hey, are you okay? What's wrong?" I walk towards her and kneel down to examine her injury.

"My leg..." She whimpered as she glanced at her knee.

It was badly bruised with a few smudges of dirt and scratches.

An idea came into my head, and I reached for something in my pocket.

"Hey, don't worry. See this?" I pull out my favorite Pokémon handkerchief, the first and last thing my father had ever given to me.

"This will make it better!" I wrap it around her knee, making sure I didn't hurt her.

"...I-It still hurts,"

"Here, I'll help you up!" I hold out my hand in a welcoming manner.

She meets it with hers, and I pull her up.

The momentum of pulling her up brought her into my arms, where I met her vibrant cerulean eyes with my coffee ones for the first time.

I smile and with her hand in mine, escorted her back to the campgrounds.

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Present

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The princess smiles at me.

"Serena, that was you? The girl in the straw hat?"

She winks.

"I never really got to thank you all those years ago..." She says sheepishly, twirling the silky strands of her honey blonde hair on her index finger.

The evening breeze stirs up, suddenly getting chilly.

Serena softly sneezes from the cold breeze, indicating that it was time to head back inside.

I stand up and brush off the grass from my damp jeans, the princess looking up at me in wonder.

"We should go back inside before we both catch colds," I hold out my hand to her with a welcoming smile.

She places her hand on mine and returns a delightful smile as I gently help her up, taking her back inside the warm confines of the royal palace.

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❝тнє cнιℓ∂нσσ∂ ƒяιєη∂ѕ вєgιη тнє נσυяηєу тσ тнєιя вяιgнт ƒυтυяє, нαη∂-ιη-нαη∂.❞

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ᴇɴᴅ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ x

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Author's Note

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So things are starting to calm down now!

(Before any misunderstandings happen, no, this wasn't a love confession. Yet c;)

A lot has happened in the past couple chapters, amirite?

Anyways, sorry for the shorter chapter!

I originally wrote a lot more for this one but I couldn't find a right place to end it.

But anyways I hoped you all enjoyed! c:

Next chapter will be out soon.

Buh baiiii!

- Squash

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