It was five o-clock and Allie was wide awake, pacing back and forth about the meeting she would be having with Seth in just four short hours. She tried to sleep, but the very thought of having to spend three days with him was unnerving. With a sigh, she flopped onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. With a groan, she sat back up and crossed her arms.

"I was hoping that it would take longer to get to him. What was I thinking putting him so high on the list!?" she grumbled, causing Furfrou to open one eye and glance up at her fretting owner.

"I mean, did I honestly think that it would take longer? just the thorught of this meeting is making me anxious..."

You're welcome, princess...

The very manner in which he had said those words caused her face to burn. Not only that, but she could have sworn that for just a moment, he smiled. Furfrou could almost see the steam coming out of her ears as the heat rose to her cheeks. Why did he make her feel this way? so irritated and yet so embarrassed at the same time? None of it made any sense.

"Do you think it's all in my head Furfrou?"

The canine yawned and stretched before hopping onto the bed. She watched as her trainer paced to and fro before stopping in front of the bed to face her. Looking over at the clock, she sighed.

"I suppose I ought to finish preparing. It will take a while to reach Shalour City so I suppose I ought to fly this time. It's been a while since I've taken any of my team out for a spin so this should be fun. Would you like to come along, Furfrou?" Allie inquired.

Upon hearing her inquiry, the canine immediately began yipping and wagging her tail. An excursion, was she kidding? of course she'd want to go!

"I'll take that as a yes," Allie grinned, preparing her companion's luxury ball. "I'll fix myself up and see what clothes I can prepare for the journey. I'll definitely be needing some essential oils for this trip. I have a feeling I'll be stressed... a lot..."

Furfrou tilted her head in a manner that seemed to suggest that she didn't believe her.

"Don't look at me like that. You know as well as I do that this isn't something I'm looking forward to," Allie said sternly. "Now, would you be a dear and go see if Swanna is awake? she usually is tending to her Ducklett by now. For some reason she gets up earlier than I do."

Furfrou silently hopped off the bed and pranced out of the room upon her trainer's command. Meanwhile, Allie began to get ready for her three day journey with Seth.

Furfrou sauntered out of the palace through her customized pet door and darted into the garden in search of Swanna. Having been sent to find her numerous times, Furfrou knew exactly where to find her, even without sniffing her out. Sure enough, as she trotted along the walkways of the garden, she came upon the fountain where Swanna was bathing her Ducklett. Five little Ducklett were seen around their mother, swimming and splashing one another in a playful manner.

Swanna heard the sound of a loud bark, and turned to see Furfrou. The dignified pooch meandered up to the fountain and began conversing with Swanna, giving her a message from Allie. Nodding, Swanna told Furfrou that she'd be done with her little ones and ready to fly Allie to her destination. Taking off one of her tail feathers, she extended her neck to Furfrou who took the feather by the end into her mouth. With the reply in her teeth, Furfrou hurried back to her trainer.

Several minutes later, Furfrou was in the palace and climbing the stairs to Allie's room. Once inside, she looked around for Allie. Sniffing the air, she deduced that she was in her walk in closet, and pranced inside. She found Allie tying up her hair back, leaving a few bangs to hang down in curls over the sides of her face. Spotting Furfrou in the closet mirror, she turned and knelt down to take the feather from her companion.

"Thank you Furfrou. How are her Ducklett?" Allie asked.

Furfrou gave a happy yip and wagged her tail, signaling to Allie that they were just fine.

Allie giggled. "I see, well that's good knews. How do I look?"

Allie wore a black form-fitting t-shirt with a pair of pink camouflage shorts, along with some black knee-high boots. She had a pair of stylish shades atop her head. Furfrou barked her approval and turned tail to head out of the closet.

"Thank heavens. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have these clothes. Probably getting my good dresses dirty," Allie muttered, shaking the very thought of her prized clothes being stained, out of her mind.

Reaching for her bag, she slipped her makeup inside and glanced at the mirror one more time.

"If you're worried about how you look, don't be. You'll be fine," came the queen's voice from behind her.

Allie jolted at the sound of her voice and turned to face her mother.

"The door was open, I believe I saw Furfrou returning from her trip to the garden. She must've forgotten to close it," the queen laughed, walking into the room to stand behind Allie as she turned back to the mirror to make sure her hair was okay.

"I guess I was just too distracted to remind her," Allie replied.

Her mother giggled as Allie continued to stress over her hair. "For someone who isn't looking forward to their meeting, you sure are fussing a lot..."

Allie averted her gaze and frowned. "Though I may not be too pleased with what I am about to do, I am still a princess and therefore keeping up my appearence is a must, even under unpleasant circumstances."

The queen rolled her eyes and placed a kiss on her daughter's head, allowing her to pull away to pick up her holocaster.

"Of course, we wouldn't want him to think that you were trying to look nice for him now would we?" her mother grinned.

Crossing her arms, Allie pouted. "Mother!"

"Relax love, no need to get so worked up. I merely came to see you off today. Just remember to mind your manners around him," the queen stated somewhat sternly. "I know you aren't too fond of him, but that's no excuse to act childish."

Allie blushed profusely at her mother's statement. Was she right? of course she was. Allie knew her actions were ridiculous, but she couldn't help it. Sighing, she gave her mother a reassuring smile and told her that she would do her best. After a few moments, her mother left the room so that Allie could make the call.

Seth stood by the water as he watched Pawniard square off against Cerise while Combee did his best to fend off the fiery onslaught of Litleo. Tyrunt was consuming a pile of berries that Seth had brought along while Carbink simply stood by Seth and watched.

"Hey... umm... I wanted to apologize for my performance the other day. I know that you were counting on me back then," Carbink spoke up.

Seth glances down at his newest companion with a look that suggested that he understood what Carbink was feeling.

"You really shouldn't be blaming yourself for that. Korrina's Pokémon were just more skilled is all," Seth replied calmly. "It was nothing you did, she just out-muscled us..."

Carbink sighed. It knew that. Sadly, it also knew that in its current state, it couldn't be of much help to Seth. So why did Seth even want Carbink in the first place?

"Try not to dwell on it so much. The more you focus on your shortcomings, the less you will be able to focus on what you can do," Seth counseled Carbink.

The little rock rabbit took this into consideration. While not very powerful right now, it knew that with enough training, it could become much stronger. Resolving to simply watch Seth's team, Carbink mulled the thoughts over in its head. It was then, that a certain ringing sound caught its attention.

Hearing it, Seth put a stop to the training and answered his holocaster. Taking a deep breath, he said, "good morning, princess..."

"Addressing me formally I see. Good to know that you at least have some manners this early in the morning. I trust you are ready to meet me?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Seth replied.

"Well don't sound so excited," Allie smirked. "This visitation only affects how well you do in the competition. It's not that important at all," she added sarcastically.

"Don't worry, I'll try not to act too thrilled to see you," Seth retorted.

Allie frowned as she responded, "I'll be on the beach in half an hour. Do try to be punctual."

Before Seth could reply, she'd already hung up.

"Well she's a real bitch isn't she?" Serena commented from behind.

Seth cracked a smile.

"Arceus, when you said she was a piece of work, you meant it," Serena grunted.

"I did warn you guys," Seth half laughed.

"Yeah, you did. So... half an hour huh? want me to stay and act as pest control?" Serena joked, nudging Seth playfully.

Seth rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Thanks, but that won't be necessary. Besides, knowing you, she'd wind up with a black eye by the end of the day..."

"Hey! I can control my impulses you know?"

"Like you did with Enzo?"

"Thaaaat was a controlled response. Had I not been more calm, I—yeaaaah you're right. Probably best I not stick around for when she gets here," Serena laughed nervously.

Seth gave her a knowing look. "You do know that you guys will be spending it with her too, right?"

Serena averted her gaze and crossed her arms.

"Well... yeah. I mean, none of us have advanced yet so there's that. Ugh... I have to be nice don't I?" Serena groaned.

Seth nodded.

Taking a deep breath, Serena calmed herself.

"Alright, I'll be a good girl, but only because you're my friend and I want you to stick it to those pompous asshats," Serena smirked.

"Thanks Serena," Seth smiled.

"You're welcome. Now, I better skedaddle before she gets here. Maybe I can battle Shauna for practice," Serena mused, turning with a wave before heading off to find the rest of the crew.

It wasn't too long until Seth heard the sound of wings flapping overhead and the call of a Swanna filling the air. Looking up, he watched as she gracefully descended and touched down. That's when two feet hit the sand. His eyes trailed from her knee high boots, up her frame to until pink clashed with sapphire as their eyes met.

"Princess..."

"Seth..."