Chapter 8: Being Truthful

It's been a day since Ark awoke from his day long slumber. Due to his absence and the injuries of Serena and Cynthia, Ash was made to join another group, so he did not miss out of the explorations. As for the danger trio, they were left behind with their original instructor who was doing indoor activities with them that did not require them to do too much physical activity. Ark was able to join the exploration groups, but he requested to stay with the girls on the pretext that he felt 'light-headed'. Though, it was obvious the Professor knew Arks true aim lay elsewhere.

"I can't believe we have to spend our time sat here"

Cynthia complained as she lazed about on the sofa in the Professors lounge. She was wearing casual tracksuit bottoms and a black vest top with yellow rims. Her budding physique teased Ark as she made no attempt to hide it. Serena was a bit more reserved by choosing a floral red summer dress. She looked adorable especially since red suited her.

"At least we're all together, I think it's fun!"

Serena answered with her trademark smile that was like a breath of fresh air. It was calming and serene, it was completely different from the distressed expression she showed that day. Ark truly believed this expression suited her more.

"Is it really that boring to spend time with me and Serena?"

Ark questioned while trying to make a straight face, one thing Ark has found out about himself is that he enjoys teasing these two. Their cute reactions make him feel a sense of protectiveness he's only ever felt about his mother. Although, the feelings were slightly different.

"You know I do, I can tell you're teasing me Ark"

Cynthia pouted as she easily saw through Arks attempts to get a reaction. These sorts of interactions have been happening between the three since the forest incident. It seemed the girls inhibitions towards Ark had lessened considerably. This can be seen by the fact Cynthia lazes around in front of Ark.

Ark chuckled at Cynthias reaction before moving from his seat and going towards Serena. At the moment, the trio are looking through various book relating to Pokemon. Cynthia is looking at Dragon types and commenting on how majestic each one is, while Serena is quietly reading a book about Pokemon health care. She seemed to be very interested in the different types of luxury care for Pokemon. Ark checked the pages Serena was reading, his face was inches away from Serena's. When she noticed, her cheeks grew red, and she hurriedly cast her eyes onto the page.

"Hey Serena, how come you find these sorts of things so interesting?"

Ark was genuinely curious. He spent most of his time studying Pokemon combat, so he was not well versed in the world of Pokemon Luxury Care.

Hearing Arks genuine question, Serena smiled at the thought that Ark was taking the initiative to find out more about her. She answered with vigor.

"I love the fact that there are so many way to care for a Pokemon and these sorts of caring show results in the form of being able to see a Pokemons inner beauty!"

Ark was completely suprised with Serena's answer. It was really mature despite her young age, so it made the answer all the more powerful. He was so impressed that he was about to tell her how amazing he thought that mindset was until...

"And I hate being dirty so there's no way I will let my Pokemon be unclean!"

Serena finished her sentence with more passion than ever before. It was obvious that this point was the one that mattered the most to her. Ark just shook his head and smiled.

"So Serena what is your goal for the future?"

Cynthia after listening to the discussion between Ark and Serena started to wonder what everyones dreams were. Serena was caught off guard by the sudden serious question but sank into deep thought for a few seconds. After roughly 10 seconds, Serena spoke.

"I haven't found one yet. My Mum wants follow in her footsteps and be a Ryhorn racer but I always get muddy doing that..."

Cynthia snickered as she thought that was a very Serena like reply.

"I see Ryhorn racing sounds super cool, we don't have that in Sinnoh. My dream is pretty simple, I want to be the strongest trainer in Sinnoh!"

Ark smiled as he saw realised that he may be seeing the declaration of a future Champion. Serena saw Ark sitting there quietly and questioned him.

"What about you Ark?"

"My goals? Well I have two but I don't know whether it's appropriate to say them."

Had Ark not been planning on courting Cynthia and Serena, then he would have proudly declared his dreams. However, he was sensible enough to know his dream will be both hard and abnormal, therefore he needs to pick the right time to declare it to them.

"Come on Ark, I said mine. You've got to say yours too!"

Serena fervently nodded along with Cynthias words. they stared at him, preventing any escape. Realising that futile efforts to resist will only make the situation worse, he decided to tell them and deal with the aftermath when it calms down.

"Ok, ok you asked for it. My main goal is to have a huge family unlike any other. A family where me and my wives will always be happy together. My second dream is to be a true pokemon master!"

Ark declared his goals proudly and stood up to emphasise his point. Pure silence covered the room. No-one spoke, no it was more like they were lost for words. This new revelation stunned the two girls. The first to recover was Cynthia.

"So you want to have many wives? Like how many?"

"I want as many as I can! I dont plan to marry just anyone, however I want to marry all of those that I love!"

Ark responded to Cynthia without hiding any of his plans. Some may say he was digging his grave deeper, but to Ark he felt it was only right that the girls know his full intentions before they make their decision in the future.

"Wow! That dream sounds super hard. Wait does that mean you might want me to be your wife? And little Serena too?"

Ark was stunned by her blunt words but he stuck to his honest mindset.

"I do, I feel that I am slowly starting to like you both. I can't call it love right now but I know that in the future I want you both to be by my side!"

Cynthia's mouth dropped wide open. Never did she think that she would be confessed to. So she tried her hardest to process the information. It took a full minute to fully digest everything before she said.

"In the future... if you beat me in Sinnoh and qualify for the Pokemon league then I will agree. Until then I will save myself as a sign of my promise to you Ark"

As Cynthia spoke there was no trace of her usual air-headed personality. It proved to ark how serious she was about this matter. This made Ark smile from ear to ear, a warmth spread in his chest as he realised how truly amazing she was. Not only did she accept him and his absurd requests, she even went out of her way to prove it to him.

As this was proceeding, Serena stared at their interaction while trying to sort out her feelings. On one hand she was happy about Ark having budding feelings for her but on the other hand she was overwhelmed by the idea of sharing her husband. She had never considered such a thing.

Ark noticed Serena's silence so he decided to speak to her before she burst.

"Serena, I know it is weird but that is me. I don't need you to answer now. I will ask you again at the end of camp and if you need more time... I will come find you in Kalos!"

Serena visibly shook at the end of Ark's sentence. The conviction in his words let her know how serious he was about getting a proper answer from her. She bit her lip and grabbed the hem of her summer dress. After taking a few deep breaths, she decided to voice her thoughts.

"Ark, I can't give you an answer right now. I will try to find an answer by the end of camp, but if not then I will also make the same promise as Cynthia. Until I give you a proper answer, I will save myself until I tell you my answer."

"Thank you Serena! That is all I need, I assure you that I will do everything in my power to make such a beautiful flower bloom for me!"

Ark was overjoyed as Serena also made such a deep vow for him even though, she didn't agree to be his. The excitement got to his head and he ended up making the poor girl as red as a tomato.

"Cynthia, Serena. I will say this, by the time my journey takes me to your sides, there may very well be many else by my side but, please know you will both always have a special place in my heart as the two girls who taught me how wonderful a feeling liking someone is!"

Though Arks words were painful for Serena, she smiled as she realised how deep Arks feelings for her actually ran. As for Cynthia, her cheeks were tinged red as she felt his words resound in her heart.

The afternoon continued normally with Ark causing the two to blush more often than before, overall the peaceful afternoons settled Ark's very being and made him forget about all of the complicated things in store for him in the future.

Little did he know, a small surprise was waiting for him...