Author's Notes:
Hello everyone and welcome back to Alpha and Omega for the latest chapter. All I can say is wow. Last chapter I got more comments in its first day than any other chapter in this book so far. You guys really hate Tierno, that much is clear. As last chapter was pretty intense, this one will be a little more calm, as well as the next couple following it.

One last thing before I let you enjoy this story. I have been asked to do another lemon. I have an idea for a non amourshipping lemon, if my readers want it. Please vote here, majority decides, yes or no. If you don't feel comfortable posting your vote you can message me directly, just tell me what it's about so I know.

And I'm done. If you like my work please vote, feel free to comment, and please share this story with your friends. I now present to you chapter 34, enjoy.

"Alright Eevee, use swift," Ash called out.

The male Eevee jumped into the air and swished his tail, sending five yellow stars with golden sparkles towards a target Greninja cut into a tree. Two of the stars hit the edge of the target, while the other three missed and hit a tree behind it.

It's been two days since the incident with Tierno. Since then, Serena had been saying she was fine, but was seeming distant. Ash wasn't surprised at all by this and had been very understanding, considering what happened. Physically, Serena had actually been closer to Ash, usually clinging to his arm as they walked. And when he needed to have some distance, like when he needed to relieve himself, Serena still stayed very close with all of her Pokémon out. At night, Serena started wearing her night clothes again and had trouble sleeping, waking up several times a night from nightmares of the incident. Lucario offered to help in this by standing guard outside the tent at night, as even in pitch black darkness, he could see the auras of anyone. This helped a little.

Currently it was mid morning, and they had decided to stop and relax by a lake in the middle of nowhere. Ash's hopes were that the serenity of the peaceful lake would help put Serena's mind at ease, at least a little. All that was there, were them, their Pokémon, and multiple wild Pokémon. Out on the lake, several Swanna and Ducklett could be seen on the surface, as well as quite a few other water types both on top of the water, and jumping out into the air. And hidden among them was a Metang, who was levitating above the water and playing with some of the Pokémon.

Serena was sitting under a tree that was near the waters edge surrounded by her Pokémon, looking out onto the lake. Lucario was sleeping inside his pokeball from the long night, while Growlithe and Fearow were staying by Serena. Fearow was perched up in the tree Serena was sleeping under, while Growlithe was laying on the ground mixed in with Serena's Pokémon. Both appeared to be relaxing, but were actually standing guard and remaining vigilant. There was no known risk of danger, but having some of Ash's Pokémon nearby helped keep Serena feeling at ease.

Ash, Greninja, and Pikachu were working with Eevee, as he was now old enough to begin training. Since shortly after the Eevees hatched, the male had been expressing an interest in battling. Today was his first training day, so Eevee was both excited and nervous, as his father was watching. Upon seeing how he only hit the targets edge with two out of five stars, the male Eevee became disheartened.

"Not bad Eevee," Ash praised with a smile.

Eevee looked up at Ash confused. Ash saw this and scooped Eevee up and walked to the tree.

"You see this?" Ash said as he pointed to the two hits on the edge of the target.

Eevee nodded sadly.

"Good," Ash said, then walked to the tree that took the other three hits. "And you see these?"

Eevee again nodded sadly.

"Even though you didn't get all of them to hit the target, this is pretty good for your first time," Ash stated.

Eevee looked at Ash confused.

"How is this good?" The male Eevee asked.

"Because even though these three missed the targeted tree, they were very close. This shows that they were clustered together really well. Meaning if we can work on your aim, you'll be hitting the target with all the stars," Ash explained.

Upon hearing this, Eevee started to feel better, as this showed he didn't do as bad as he thought. He looked up to his father sitting on Ash's shoulder, to see him giving him a thumbs up, making him feel even better. Ash and Pikachu then resumed Eevee's training, which resulted in Eevee's aim improving, and him getting tired.

"Alright Eevee, Pikachu, why don't you two rest for a little. Growlithe, you're up! Time for some Z move training," Ash said as he walked to the tree.

Eevee ran to his mother to tell her how his first training session went, as Pikachu replaced Growlithe on guard duty. Without a word, Greninja also joined the group, as Growlithe didn't need any help from him with Z moves. Ash arrived at the group and started looking around.

"Serena, have you seen my jacket?" Ash asked.

"I have it, I'm almost done with it," Serena replied.

"That's fine, can you throw me my bag of Z crystals in the pocket?" Ash asked.

"Almost done with them too," Serena replied again.

"What are you doing over there?" Ash asked as he looked closer at Serena.

"Well I've been noticing when you use Z crystals in battle, if the crystal you want isn't already in your Z ring, you always are searching through this little bag. So I decided to make some changes to your jacket. Done," Serena said proudly.

She then stood up and walked through the Pokémon to Ash, then handed him his jacket.

"What I did was just sewed in some Z Crystal holders onto the inside front on both sides. Then I placed the crystals in order on your left side, from top to bottom, the Z crystals I've seen you have been using the most to the least. On the right side, I put all the crystals I've learned you can't use because it's for a specific Pokémon you don't have, or none of your Pokémon you have can use," Serena explained.

"Wow Serena, this is great. Thank you," Ash said graciously.

Ash then leaned in to kiss Serena, but she backed away. Ash could see a nervous look on her face, and thought he understood.

"It's ok Serena, I understand. You went through something you should never have experienced. Just know that I'm here for you if you need me," Ash said sympathetically.

Then he started to walk away, but was stopped by Serena grabbing his arm. Ash looked back to see a scared look on Serena's face as she released his arm.

"No Ash, you don't understand, at least not completely," said Serena.

"Then help me understand," Ash replied as he took Serena's hand in his, and held it with both of his hands.

"Yes, what Tierno did is having an effect on me, but that's not all of it," Serena started to explain. She then took a deep breath and continued. "Remember how you found me unconscious?"

Ash nodded.

"I don't think that was something Tierno did, at least not directly," Said Serena.

"You're right, I don't understand. If he didn't do that, then how did you become unconscious?" Ash asked.

"I don't know. While I was fighting him I felt something else, something within me, and then it just released all at once. I remember seeing Tierno flying back, and then I passed out. I think this might have something to do with what William said when we saw him," Serena explained.

"Do you have any guesses on what happened? What that was?" Ash asked.

Serena shook her head sadly, then looked back up at Ash.

"And that's why I'm being so distant. Yes I feel safer around you, and yes what Tierno did affected me. But what I'm really scared about, is what ever happened will happen again, and then you'll get hurt," Serena said as tears came to her eyes.

Ash then quickly took Serena into a tight hug.

"ASH NO!" Serena cried as she started to panic and tried to push away from Ash, but he held on tight.

"Shh, shh," Ash said in an attempt to comfort her. "I don't know what happened, but I am not scared for one second that you would hurt me."

"Not by choice, but by accident," Serena pleaded as she continued to try and push away.

"Are you scared for your safety?" Ash asked.

"No, yours," Serena replied as she continued to push.

"And that's how I know you won't hurt me, even by accident," Ash replied.

Serena in that moment stopped pushing.

"When that happened, you were no doubt scared for your safety. Unless you are scared that it could hurt you, I'm confident that it won't happen against me," Ash explained.

Serena then returned the hug, as tears of relief came to her eyes. Relief that she didn't hurt Ash, and relief that she might be able to be close to Ash again. Ash then kissed the top of Serena's head, resulting in her head shooting up and looking at Ash with a shocked expression. Ash just gave a toothy grin.

"You see, I'm fine. But I won't push you, you set the pace on what you're comfortable with. And with time, you'll be comfortable with more things again too," Ash said.

He then released Serena from the embrace, and started to walk away to continue training his Pokémon, but then stopped and turned around.

"Also don't forget. Through my Aura Guardian training, I've become a lot tougher than I used to be. So if Tierno was only dazed, I highly doubt you could hurt me that much," Ash added.

Serena smiled as Ash once again did what he always did, making her feel better, more confident, and stronger.

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The training with Ash's Pokémon progressed a little while longer, which led them to lunch time. Ash and Serena were preparing a nice lunch for them and their Pokémon. Things were starting to feel normal, and everyone could see and feel it. Ash and Serena were doing some of their usual flirting with each other as they prepared the food, although it still wasn't as physical as it usually was, it was an improvement.

Fearow then made a cry, getting everyone's attention. The Pokémon quickly got up and surrounded Ash and Serena, concerned Tierno had arrived. Serena clenched onto Ash as he moved himself in front of her. Footsteps were heard closing in, a rustling was seen from a bush, then a young man popped out carrying a kayak on his side opposite everyone else.

He was a about the same age as Ash, a little taller, and appeared to be just as fit, with spiky blonde hair, and blue eyes. He was wearing a black tank top, plaid shorts, and sneakers. The kayak was mostly orange on top, with the bottom being covered in black rubber. The man stopped and looked over at the group as he just noticed them.

"Oh hello. Hope I'm not interrupting anything. I didn't expect to run into anyone out here," the man said respectfully. He then noticed Serena hiding behind Ash, and all the Pokémon facing him looking somewhat aggressive. "I didn't scare you, did I?"

"Let's just say, we've had a rough couple of days and leave it at that," Ash replied.

"Enough said. My names Curtis by the way," the man now known as Curtis said.

"I'm Ash."

"And I'm Serena."

"Well ,it's nice to meet you both. Like I said, I didn't expect to run into anyone out here. This lake is pretty far off from the usual trails. Mind if I ask what you're up to?" Curtis asked.

"Just looked like a nice place on the map to stop for the day. What are you doing here?" Ash replied.

"I'm just coming to try and catch some strong water types. Trainers don't come by here often, so I figured this could be a good spot. So don't worry, I don't plan on hanging around. I want to get out there and see what I can find," Curtis replied.

"Ok well good luck to you," Ash replied.

"Thanks. Oh, do you have any water types in the water?" Curtis asked.

"Just my Feebas, why?" Serena replied.

"Well, I'm going to be using electric attacks, so I don't want your Pokémon to get hurt by some stray electricity," Curtis replied.

"Thanks for the warning. I'll tell him to stay close to us," Serena replied.

Curtis nodded, then proceeded to place his kayak into the water and paddled out. All the while Ash and Serena's Pokémon didn't take their eyes off him until he was further out.

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Curtis paddled out fairly far when he stopped. He pulled out a black rod about half the length of a baseball bat and just as big around, with a long black cable attached. He then lowered it into the water and connected the other end to a tablet. He then sent a helicopter drone up into the air and connected the controller to the tablet as well. In seconds, he was getting an aerial view of the top of the lake, and a sonar view of under the water.

"Let's see, what do we have here?" Curtis thought out loud.

He took note of the Swanna, Horsea, Squirtle, Wooper, Quagsire, and a few others above the water. Underwater, he saw some of the same, as well as some Magikarp, and Goldeen. Then he noticed something very large and serpentine passing underneath.

"Jackpot. Magnezone, Thunder!" Curtis called out as he released his Pokémon.

A powerful bolt of electricity hit the lake. Several smaller water types floated to the surface unconscious, but that was all. Curtis looked back at his screen and saw the Pokémon swimming away.

"Oh no you don't! Electivire, Magnezone, Thunder!" Curtis yelled as he released another Pokémon.

Two powerful thunder attacks hit the water, and even more Pokémon floated to the surface unconscious.

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A little ways away, the Sawanna and Ducklette felt the effects of these attacks, and were either hurt fairly badly, or knocked out. The Metang that had been playing with them was unaffected by the attack as he was out of the water. He was now concerned for his friends, and seeing them not moving, became worried. Then using Psychic, he began to lift them out of the water and rush them to the shore.

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While Metang was saving his friends, Curtis was busy with the Pokémon he was after. Following the second wave of unconscious water types rising to the surface, the water started to stir just a couple feet away. Suddenly, a Gyarados burst out the water. It looked around at the unconscious Pokémon floating, which only increased his rage.

"Finally," Curtis said as his target emerged. "Magnezone, Thunder!"

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Back with Metang, he was just arriving on the shore with his first group of friends. He had laid most on the grass, while the fish Pokémon just close to the shore. He was starting to leave, when he heard something that caught his attention.

"Oh no, Ash hurry," Serena cried.

Metang turned around to see Serena running to his friends. Metang quickly turned around to keep Serena away, thinking she was going to catch them, but to his surprise she didn't. Serena arrived at a barley conscious Swanna and immediately started to treat its injuries with a super potion. He then saw Ash and many their Pokémon arrive and begin helping the injured Pokémon.

Metang was confused by their actions. It was true that not many people came to that lake, but when they did they usually captured some Pokémon. But Ash and Serena were more concerned with helping the injured Pokémon, and didn't seem to care about catching them. A flash of electricity came from the lake. Everyone looked to see Curtis and his electric types in a heated battle with a Gyarados.

"I can't believe him. He hurt all these Pokémon and doesn't even seem to care," Serena commented angrily.

"I know, it's horrible. I could see plenty were hurt with his first attack and were knocked out. But then he just hit the water again with even more electricity. It looks like all he wants it that Gyarados. He's probably going to leave the others floating out there once he catches it," Ash replied in an annoyed tone.

Metang heard this, and was surprised that they were essentially on his side.

"Hey Metang," Ash said getting Metang's attention.

"If you going out to bring more of the injured here, be careful. I don't know if you're aware, but you're considered a rare Pokémon a lot of trainers would want to catch. If he sees you, he'll probably go after you next," Ash warned.

Metang nodded in acknowledgment of the warning, and sped off to help the other hurt Pokémon.

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The battle between Curtis and the Gyarados raged on. Gyarados was exceptionally powerful, allowing him to endure these attacks better than most other Gyarados. It looked passed Curtis and saw Metang speeding across his he water. Gyarados knew this Metang, and knew what he was doing, so he was going to do his part and keep Curtis distracted as long as he could so their friends would be safe.

Metang was pushing his speed and psychic powers to their limits. He knew Gyarados wouldn't be able to last much longer, and wasn't going to waste any time.

Metang had just left another group of Pokémon with Ash and Serena, and was speeding back out for others, when the lake became silent again. He looked back towards Curtis to see Gyarados was now gone. Metang knew what this meant, Gyarados was defeated and captured. Metang still had a job to do, so he continued on, hoping not to be seen.

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Upon Gyarados being captured Curtis paddled over to the pokeball, pushing the other knocked out Pokémon near him away with the oar. He arrived and fished it out of the water with a net.

"Good work Magnezone," Curtis praised. "Now let's see if there is anything else worth wild out here."

Curtis picked up the tablet again and checked if anything was around underwater, to find nothing. He then checked above the water to see something jetting across the water. He tried to zoom in, but the picture was too blurry. He then grabbed a pair of binoculars and turned around. Through the binoculars he saw Metang carrying a group of Pokémon with psychic.

"Holy shit, a Metang. Magnezone go hit it with thunder, I'll get over there as quick as I can," Curtis said excitedly.

Curtis then started to turn his kayak around as Magnezone hurried to Metang to attack.

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Metang was hurrying back to shore when he was suddenly hit by a powerful thunder attack. The pain was sudden and caught him off guard, causing him to drop his friends and crash into the water.

Magnezone levitated above where Metang crashed, waiting for him to reveal himself. The unconscious water types were floating beneath him as he searched. Suddenly, Metang shot out of the water and slammed into Magnezone with meteor mash, sending it hurling through the air. Metang then used psychic again to pick up his friends and continued back to the shore. Magnezone recovered and chased after them. It fired another thunder attack and hit Metang, but he endured. It prepared to fire another, but was stopped as it was hit by a powerful fire blast.

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Curtis saw the hit his Magnezone took came from the shore. He looked through his binoculars to see Ash and his Growlithe at the waters edge. Curtis then angrily started paddling to shore, as his Magnezone was coming back to him, too tired to continue.

Curtis ran his kayak up onto the beach about twenty feet from where Ash and Serena were currently. He had already returned his Magnezone, and started stomping towards Ash and Serena who were attending to the injured Pokémon.

"For Mews sake, can't you two listen?! I just told you to keep your Pokémon back so they didn't get caught in the cross fire!" Curtis yelled.

Ash stood up and walked to him.

"First of all, that's not our Metang, I'm pretty sure it's wild. Second, what about all these other Pokémon that you hurt? I highly doubt you were going to capture them all," Ash shot back.

"They're collateral damage. They're wild, they'll be fine. Now get out of my way, if that Metang is wild I'm going to catch it," Curtis replied as he tried to walk passed Ash.

Ash got in front of Curtis and shoved him back.

"If you try and capture that Metang you and I will have more than words," Ash said aggressively.

"You have no rights to that Pokémon, you can't stop me," Curtis said again and tried again to get passed Ash.

Once again Ash shoved him back, this time more forcefully, causing him to fall down.

"You're right, I don't, but neither do you. Right now if you attack it, you endanger not only my girlfriend and I, but all these injured Pokémon. Feel free to get an Officer Jenny. I wonder who she'll side with," Ash replied confidently.

Curtis got back up on his feet and got right up in Ash's face. He stood only a few inches taller than Ash, making him have to look down at him. They could feel the heat from each other's breath. Neither one would back down.

"Out of my way or I go through you," Curtis said through his teeth.

"You might be able to go through me, and that's a big might. But if you do that, my Pokémon will go through you, and I'm pretty sure your Pokémon won't be up for that challenge," Ash replied confidently.

"You really want to start a fight here, don't you?" Curtis said with an annoyed tone.

"I don't start fights, I just finish them," Ash replied.

Curtis began to reach for a pokeball. Ash couldn't see it, but Lucario, who had woken up, could sense it from within his pokeball. Lucario emerged from his pokeball and grabbed Curtis's arm that was reaching for a pokeball. Curtis was surprised and looked at Lucario who growled back. Meloetta then used psychic to pick Curtis up, moved him over the water, then dropped him. The water was shallow, so his was able to sit up, when he did Feebas jumped out of the water and slapped him in the face a few times with his tail fin.

Curtis recovered and stood back up and glared at all of them aggressively. However, he quickly found it difficult to feel intimidating when he had a dozen Pokémon glaring back at him aggressively. He then stomped back to his kayak, picked it up, and stormed off, knowing that was a fight he could not win.

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As the day progressed, the wild Pokémon's wounds were treated by Ash, Serena, and their Pokémon. Everyone of the wild Pokémon were nervous of Ash and Serena at first, but as they saw the Pokémon in good enough shape leaving, and Ash and Serena not trying to catch any of them, they became more relaxed. The Pokémon medical supplies they had were quickly depleted by the sheer number of injured Pokémon, leaving Greninja and Lucario looking for berries to help with.

Metang stayed with them, watching Ash and Serena very carefully as the Pokémon were treated. Human contact was rare at this lake, but they had knowledge of how trainers were. He expected both of them to start catching Pokémon as quickly as they were healed, but they didn't. Ash had even defended them from Curtis, further adding to Metang's curiosity, making him question everything he thought he knew about trainers.

As all the Pokémon were taken care, many left, but some stayed. Some wanted to rest for a little longer, while others were just curious about Ash and Serena. Some of the younger Pokémon that stayed ended up playing with some of Ash and Serena's Pokémon, enjoying having new friends to play with.

As it became darker, dinner was prepared for everyone, bringing Ash and Serena's food supplies very close to depleted.

"So what are we going to do? Even if we share our food with our Pokémon it won't last long," Serena asked Ash after he told her their situation.

Ash brought out his Pokédex, and brought up a holographic projection of the a map of the area.

"I remember seeing a Pokémon Center on the map while we were planning to come here," Ash said as he examined the map.

"There!" Ash said as he pointed on the map. A red dot formed on the location.

"I'd say it's about two days walk from here. Our food should be able to last us that long. There we can replenish all of our supplies, and it'll put us back on the trail to Valencia," Ash explained.

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Come night fall, Ash and Serena were sleeping in their tent, with Lucario sitting outside guarding them. All of the wild Pokémon had left to wherever they slept for the night, except one.

"Why do you remain while your friends have left?" Lucario asked Metang.

"I was curious," Metang replied.

"About?" Lucario asked.

"Why are they allowed to sleep, while you are forced to stand guard?" Asked Metang.

"I am not forced, I chose this. Several days ago, my master's mate was attacked by an evil human. The attack still haunts her, so I volunteered to stand guard every night until she is better," Lucario replied.

"They didn't tell you to?" Metang asked.

"No. My master and his mate are worthy of this level of loyalty, and consideration," Lucario stated.

"What did they do to deserve this?" Asked Metang.

"My master has proven himself an honorable human. I have seen him put others before himself, and put himself into danger to do the right thing. Back when I was a Riolu, he even asked me if I wanted to become one of his Pokémon," Lucario replied.

"What?!" Metang said in shock.

"It's true. My father was his mother's Pokémon and he offered me to him. My father asked him to help train me and make me strong. But my master didn't care what my father said, he got down to his knees and asked me what I wanted. Saying he knew I was strong, and would only take me if that was what I wanted. In that moment, I knew he was worthy of my loyalty, and his actions afterward earned my respect," Lucario explained.

Metang took all this in and landed by Lucario, who looked at him curiously.

"I'll stay and keep you company. Maybe you can tell me more stories about Ash," Metang stated.

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Morning came, and Serena had slept the best she had since the incident with Tierno. She wasn't sure if she was just too tired from taking care of all the Pokémon, if they just distracted her or what, but she was thankful for the peaceful night. Upon exiting the tent, Lucario was seen going through some training movements, while Metang was sleeping by the tent.

"Good morning Lucario," Serena said getting his attention. "Thank you for staying up all night and looking over us."

Lucario smiled and nodded in response to Serena.

"Good morning, Lucario," Ash said as he emerged. He then took notice of Metang sleeping, "what's up with Metang?"

"He stayed up almost all night. I believe he wants to talk to you," Lucario replied.

Since he stayed up so late, Ash left Metang alone, and he and Serena made breakfast. They all ate their breakfast, and while Ash and Serena were packing up, Metang finally woke up.

"Well, good morning, Metang," Ash said as Metang slowly started to raise from the ground.

"Good morning. What's going on?" Metang asked upon seeing almost all of Ash and Serena's things were packed up.

"Well, we can't stay. We need to keep moving to follow our dreams. Besides, most of our supplies were depleted yesterday, so we're going to need to restock," Ash replied.

"I see. Well then it's good that I woke up before you left," Said Metang.

"Oh? Why's that?" Ash asked.

"Yesterday, I knew humans were violent and captured Pokémon like crazy. I knew they were selfish and didn't care about a Pokémon's wants. And today I know you are not any of those things. I would like to travel with you, and see what else I can know," Metang replied.

Ash was a little confused by what Metang said, but he did understand Metang wanted to travel with him. Even though Ash did want to capture a new Pokémon while at the lake, he lost all interest in that after what Curtis did. So he was happy that a Pokémon chose to come with him. Ash removed an empty pokeball from his belt.

"I'm only allowed to carry six Pokémon at a time, so once you are pulled into the pokeball, you're going to be teleported away to a ranch where the rest of my Pokémon are, but I'll bring you back soon. Do you understand?" Ash explained.

Metang nodded.

Ash then held the pokeball out to Metang.

"In that case, welcome to the family," Ash said.

Metang then touched the pokeball with one of his claw like fingers, and was sucked inside. The pokeball shook twice, then dinged before it teleported away to Professor Oak's lab.