"Serena, are you awake yet!?" Grace hollered up to her slumbering daughter.

Serena was still fast asleep after a long day of riding her Rhyhorn. She mumbled something in her sleep before pulling the covers over her head.

"Serena!?" Grace called again, getting no response.

A sigh left Grace's lips. She was about to go upstairs herself when a little Flying-type fluttered into the room and landed on her shoulder. The Pokémon was of an orange, white and black coloration. A smile plastered itself on Grace's features as the Fletchling nuzzled her face.

"Would you be a dear and go wake Serena? If she doesn't get up she'll be late meeting her friends," Grace stated, sending the Fletchling off.

The little bird took flight up to Serena's room and hovered over her bed. The honey-blonde was turned on her side with the covers over her head. Fletchling hovered closer and began to tweet to get her attention. Nothing. Well, he certainly wasn't having any of that. Rising up higher, he poised himself to strike, spreading his wings before diving.
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"Calem? Can you give me a hand with a few things!?" Madeline shouted.

Calem was in his new room sorting out his clothes, swords, instruments and other assorted items. Calem and his mother had just moved to Vanville Town from the Hoenn region. With a sigh, he stepped back and looked at how the room was arranged. He frowned as he looked at the many boxes that were still not unpacked. Upon hearing Madeline's voice, he turned and exited the room.

"Coming mom!" Calem replied as he hurried down the stairs.

His mother was carrying a rather heavy brown box and it looked as though she was having quite a time of it. Calem rushed over to help her, picking up the other end.

"Oh, thank you sweetie! That was heavy," Madeline said with a relieved sigh.

"Not a problem mom. Just don't overdo it. You make a habit of that," Calem said with a slight bit of concern in his voice.

"Well someone has to. Ever since..." She paused and looked away.

"I know mom. I miss him too. But still, try to take it easy once in a while," Calem sighed.

"Of course sweetie, I'm sorry," Madeline replied. "So, is your room sorted how you like it yet?"

Calem shook his head. "No, not yet. But hopefully it will be soon. I have a lot to unpack yet," Calem laughed.

"I see. Well, why don't you take a break. Go get some fresh air and meet our neighbors."

"I suppose that's reasonable. Why not? I'm gonna go out for a bit. We've only been here for a few hours but I kinda wanna check out our new home," Calem smiled.
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"MÈRE!" Came Serena's voice from upstairs as she threw off her covers after being pecked repeatedly by Fletchling.

Grace was in the kitchen cooking breakfast when she heard her daughter scream. A giggle escaped her lips as she heard Serena stomp down the stairs.

"Quelle est la grande mère idée?" Serena sputtered, blowing a tuft of her hair out of the way.

"Je ne sais pas ce que vous entendez," Grace stated, feigning innocence.

"Ne me donnez pas ça! I know you sent Fletchling to wake me up. You always do that whenever I sleep in," Serena grumbled.

"Daésolé chérie. Maybe you should wake up when I call you next time," Grace laughed.

"Bon, je vais," Serena replied curtly.

At that point, there came a knock at the door. "Serena, could you get that for me? Breakfast is nearly done and I'd rather not burn anything," Grace requested.

"Oui," Serena replied, making her way to the door. "It's probably just Shauna, Tierno and Trevor. We get our Pokémon today," Serena called back as she opened the door.

As she did, she was met with a pair of unfamiliar blue eyes. The boy she was looking at had jet black hair and wore a blue and white jacket with matching pants and a red cap. Serena's gray eyes widened as she stared at the boy.

"Er...hi, I'm Calem, your new neighbor."

"Serena? Who is it?"

"H-hi...je m'appelle Serena," she replied nervously, reaching up to play with a stray lock.

"Ah, you speak Kalosian. I haven't quite gotten the hang of that yet. My mom asked me to study it before coming here but...it's a bit difficult. Anyway, Serena is it?" Calem replied.

"Oui..." Serena answered, trying her best not to appear nervous.

"Serena? Serena Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?" Grace paused as soon as she saw Calem.

"Bonjour, and who might you be?" Grace inquired.

"I'm Calem, your new neighbor. My mom and I just got here a few hours ago. We had a long boat ride," Calem answered.

"Ah! Well, my name is Grace. You've met my daughter already I see. Don't worry about her, she can be a bit shy, especially around good looking young men such as yourself," Grace smirked.

"Mère!" Serena hissed.

"Sorry Serena, but it's true," Grace chuckled.

Calem sweat dropped at the scene before him. He had just moved to Kalos and already he was put in an awkward situation.

"Calem! I need you!" Madeline shouted to her son, causing him to turn around.

"Coming mom!" Calem called back. "Sorry, my mom needs help with something. Perhaps we'll talk later?"

"I think that's a great idea. Serena is going to meet some friends in a little bit. Maybe you can join her?" Grace inquired.

"Mère? Un mot, si vous s'il vous plaît?" Serena spoke up.

"That sounds like fun. I need to go though, but I will consider it," Calem smiled. He then turned to leave.

"Excellent! They're meeting in Aquacorde Town," she hollered after him.

Serena quickly shut the door and crossed her arms, glaring at her mother. Grace simply smiled and hummed as she walked back into the kitchen.
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French translation:

Mère: "Mother"

Quelle est la grande mère idée?: "What's the big idea mother?"

Je ne sais pas ce que vous entendez: "I do not know what you mean."

Ne me donnez pas ça!: "Don't give me that!"

Daésolé chérie: "Sorry sweetheart."

Bon, je vais: "Alright, I will."

Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?: "What's wrong?"

Un mot, si vous s'il vous plaît?: "A word if you please?"

And there you have it. The first chapter of To Start A Fire. I hope you all enjoy it. I took a different approach to Serena as you all can probably tell. The idea of her speaking another language seemed fascinating to me. Anyway, ciao for now!