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AmourShipping

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370Luvdisc.png This article is about shipping.
As hints and evidence for ships are mostly speculation, this page may contain personal points of view.

AmourShipping (Japanese: サトセレ SatoSere) is the belief that Serena and Ash belong in a romantic relationship. The name is derived from the French word "amour", meaning "love". It was chosen as the name because the Kalos region is inspired by France (known for its romantic atmosphere) and Serena has a canonical crush on Ash.

This ship is one of the most popular in the anime, much like other ships involving Ash and one of his female friends, such as Template:S, Template:S, and Template:S. However, AmourShipping is unique compared to these and most other shippings because of the confirmation of Serena's crush on Ash, rather than fans presuming based on hints and inconclusive evidence. Its popularity began before the premiere of the XY series due to the revelation that Serena knew Ash in their childhood. Thus far, it has been a central detail in the beginning stages of Serena's character arc.

Anime evidence

Serena's hints

  • When Serena sees a live news report of Ash trying to calm a rampaging Garchomp on Prism Tower, she silently looks on, seemingly in awe at Ash's bravery. When Ash jumps off the tower to rescue Pikachu, she gasps in fear for his safety. However, this may have been merely general concern, since the news camera never showed Ash's face in full until he was safely on the ground.
  • Upon seeing Ash's face on TV, she ponders whether she recognizes him, having a flashback scene of a younger Ash at the end of the episode.
  • Serena decides to begin her journey after seeing Ash on TV. Upon arriving at Professor Sycamore's laboratory, and before choosing her starter Pokémon, Serena tells the professor that she is looking for the boy who was on the news. Her eyes seem to light up considerably when Sycamore identifies him as Ash.
  • When Serena is walking down the steps in Santalune City, she thinks about how she cannot wait to see the look on Ash's face when he sees her. Then, she has a flashback of a young Ash extending his arm, as if he was offering her his hand. When the flashback ends, she is seen blushing slightly.
  • When she sees Ash battling Viola, she is so overcome with excitement that she runs toward the battlefield, seemingly planning on going directly on there to greet Ash without noticing that the battle is still in progress.
  • Later, when Ash loses the battle, Serena is obviously remorseful and attempts to speak to him, but is further saddened when he runs past her without noticing her, since he is concentrating on his injured Pokemon.
  • When Serena returns Ash's backpack to him (which Ash had left behind at the Gym), she starts to ask Ash something while blushing a little, only to be interrupted by the Pokémon Center bell.
  • When Ash is on the ground from the intense training, dirty after falling to the ground while catching Pikachu and Fletchling, Serena walks up to him and hands him a handkerchief to clean himself up with, showing her thoughtfulness towards him.
  • Serena looks evidently nervous before she asks him if he remembers her. It is interesting to note that when she is seen interacting with her mother, Serena has a sassy and rebellious attitude towards her, but whenever she is around Ash, she seems to be extremely hesitant and nervous, contradicting the personality that viewers have seen from her in prior episodes.
  • After she asks Ash if he remembers her, Serena mentions that they met in Professor Oak's Pokémon Summer Camp in Pallet Town. When Ash remembers attending the camp, she is overjoyed and tells him that she went there as well. However, when he says that he does not remember her specifically, she is visibly disappointed, but instantly cheers up, obviously not wanting to be upset or angry with him.
  • When the group is having dinner after the training session, Serena glances at Ash and smiles at him while he is eating. Since this is directly after him saying that he is sure to win the rematch, this strongly implies that she is admiring his determination and is impressed by it.
  • Throughout the entire Gym battle, her cheering for Ash seems to be in a more enthusiastic way than Clemont and Bonnie. She also keeps reassuring Clemont, Bonnie, and Alexa that everything is going to be okay and that Ash would win, showing that she strongly believes in him. Later, when Ash becomes overwhelmed by Viola's new battling strategies, Serena cries out to Ash that he should not give up (echoing a motto Ash had told her in their childhood). In that scene, the emotions are seemingly emphasized. Her encouragement snaps him out of his panic and helps him win the battle.
  • After Ash asks Serena to join them in their travels, she puts a hand over her heart and smiles before winking at him and accepting the invitation.
  • When Clemont asks Serena why she started her journey, she pulls out the same handkerchief Ash used to bandage her, and shows it to Ash in a second attempt to get him to remember their past. This shows that Serena has kept the same handkerchief Ash used to tie up her knee with after all these years.
  • In a flashback of when Ash and Serena first met as children, Ash bandages Serena's knee and then pulls her up from the ground. She ends up falling into his arms in some sort of hug, and the camera zooms on her surprised face. Then, she quickly pulls away and looks at him, a surprised expression on her face. When Ash is showing her the way out of the forest, she is wide-eyed and blushing. This flashback indicates that Serena developed feelings for Ash after that incident.
  • When Ash identifies Serena as the same girl he helped when he was younger, she blushes.
Flashback of Ash and Serena
  • Ash asks Serena why she went through all the trouble of returning the handkerchief to him and she replies with "I felt nostalgic and wanted to see you". Serena then pouts with blush marks on her face when she says that Ash didn't remember her. This shows that she was slightly hurt that Ash did not remember her upon first glance like she did to him.
  • Serena puts on a pink outfit for Rhyhorn racing and then asks Ash what he thinks of it with a blush on her face.
  • When Serena is on top of the Rhyhorn and demonstrating for Ash how to ride one, she is blushing.
  • When it is nighttime and everyone is sleeping, there is a view of the whole room with Serena's bed shown to be empty. It is then revealed that Serena is in the kitchen baking. At the end of the episode, she hands to Ash a pouch filled with cookies. She blushes and tells him that it is because she is thankful towards him. Then, she has a flashback of her and Ash when they were younger holding hands. After the flashback ends, she winks at him.
  • When Ash falls down, everybody else worries about Pikachu, but only Serena yells Ash's name.
  • When a teacher named Penelope challenges Ash to a battle and states that if she wins, he would have to come with her, Serena freaks out and begins to blush. Later on, when Penelope takes the group to the kindergarten she works at and Serena realizes she misunderstood her, she puts a hand over her heart in relief.
  • When Ash is pushed out of the truck by Team Rocket, Serena quickly runs towards him while shouting his name.
  • Serena and Bonnie are both excited to introduce the idea of the Battle Chateau to Ash. While Bonnie blushes over the possibility of cake, Serena is blushing because she is sure that he would like it. After they arrive there, Serena asks if this is something Ash's interested in, which he answers in the affirmative.
  • Serena is visibly worried when Ash mentions that the video of Aria looks cute before he clarifies that he's talking about Aria's Fennekin. Once the clarification is made, Serena's expression softens.
  • When Serena asks Ash for help with her video and he declines, she is upset. Note that she asks Ash before everyone else.
  • At the end of the episode, Serena specifically asks Ash what he thought of her video with a blush on her face.
  • When Ash and friends were using one of Clemont's machines to randomly decide the two who going in the submarine together, Serena unhesitatingly chose the same arrow as Ash, before either of the siblings could.
  • When Ash is rock climbing in Cyllage Gym, the camera closes up on a worried Serena.
  • Even before the battle between Ash and Grant starts, Serena is very worried. She clasps her hands together which catches the notice of Bonnie and Clemont. She then begins to blush and, at one point, tears up when thinking about how hard Ash has trained.
  • Miette asks Ash teasingly if he has a future bride in mind (in reference to Bonnie asking women to have her brother Clemont) to see how Serena would react. Serena is shown to be paying close attention from the corner of her eye with a frown, and then looks away and pretends indifference.
  • When Ash is holding on the tube to stop the air flow from reaching the mecha so it could run, the camera goes to a worried Serena who yells out his name in concern.
  • At the end of the episode after Ash calls Serena's name, Miette teases Serena about him and says that if Serena doesn't tell Ash how she feels about him, then she will. Serena blushes bright red, but walks away smiling. It is interesting to note that Serena is the only girl to not deny her feelings for Ash when teased about it.
  • When Ash bangs his head against the tree after catching Pikachu, the camera focuses on Serena who shouts his name in concern while clasping her hands together.
  • When Ash tries to go down the transporter after Pikachu, Serena grabs and stops him. Only Serena makes an effort to stop Ash.
  • When Ash is battling Korrina, only Serena is cheering him on, while Clemont and Bonnie are complimenting how strong Lucario is.
  • While everyone's picture is being taken, Serena slides closer to Ash leaving an obvious gap separating them from the others and unlike everybody else, Serena isn't looking into the camera but is looking at Ash when the picture is being taken.
  • After the group photo, Serena stands there admiring her picture with Ash until he calls her to hurry and she turns around with a blush. Viewers who listen closely will hear Serena sighing happily before Ash calls her.
  • When the group is entering the cave, Serena grabs on to Ash, showing that she is scared and uses Ash for comfort.
  • As Mega Lucario is about to uncontrollably use Power-Up Punch on Ash who is protecting Pikachu, Serena yells out in concern.
  • As Ash followed Bonnie to attempted to save the berries that was stolen by a wild Ursaring, Serena says to him "What are you doing?", applying that she didn't want Ash been attacked by the wild Ursaring.
  • Serena is the first person to ask if Ash is okay after saving Hawlucha.
  • After Hawlucha lands a Flying Press on Ash, Serena has a shocked expression on her face and rushes to him (this was group's reaction as well), and is the first to comment on his health that he got hit hard, implying that she wants Ash to take it easy on the training.
  • After the mist covering the battle clears up, Serena is the first one to be seen running towards Ash, worried if he is hurt.
  • Throughout the episode, Serena is immensely worried about Ash, more so than Clemont and Bonnie. When they are in front of the mirror that Ash went through, Serena clasps her hands together and wishes for Ash to return.
  • When the mirrors drift apart, Ash is carried to the other side away from the group. Mirror Serena yells at Serena that if she wants to travel with Ash, her will for him has to be strong. Serena's eyes widen and then she nods her head in determination realizing that if she wants Ash back, she has to try her hardest.
  • Serena saves Ash by grabbing his hand and helping him make it back to their dimension. Even with both Clemont and Bonnie reaching for Ash, it is Serena who manages to reach him.
  • After Ash is safely back in their dimension, Mirror Serena tells Serena to take good care of Ash; Serena smiles and nods her head in understanding.
  • At the end of the episode, Serena asks Ash if they'll always be together from now on (traveling), to which a smiling Ash replies with that she shouldn't even have asked such an obvious question.
  • When Clemont hears a story about a Pokémon that controls trees, captures humans who hurts the forest, and eats them, Serena is extremely worried that Ash is going to be eaten.
  • After Pikachu found Ash, Serena is the first one heard saying his name in concern.
  • Serena is immediately worried and asks Ash if he is okay as he was lying on the ground after saving her.
  • After Ash injures his foot, Serena nurses it with a wet cloth and her hand seems to linger while she is doing so, and is also apologetic to him, blaming herself that she injured his foot.
  • When Serena exclaims how amazing Ash is after hearing him talk about his dream, he looks at her in surprise. She quickly becomes flustered and tends to his foot again to change the subject.
  • Serena asks about Ash's foot (from the injury before) with a concerned look on her face.
  • As Ash makes his way back across after saving Bonnie from the other side, the camera briefly focuses on Serena, who says in concern that he can do it, conveying that she doesn't want Ash to lose his footing and hurt himself.
  • During the entire episode, each time Serena battles, she is usually ordering Fennekin to support Pikachu. This is an interesting hint since she could have chosen to assist Clemont instead or battle more independently like Clemont and Ash did.
  • When Serena recalls how Ash practiced the rhythm battling style the night before, she is the only one who found it amusing as she giggles and calls Ash clumsy.
  • When Ash and his Pokémon are practicing their dancing moves, Bonnie and Clemont start laughing at Ash's clumsiness and Serena tells them to stop.
  • After Clemont's dancing machine blows up, Serena tells Ash that she can teach him to dance. Although the two dancing together is not shown, the scene moves from day to sunset where Ash and Serena have just finished dancing and Ash collapses from exhaustion from a full day's training.
  • While Ash is training Froakie and Pikachu, Serena is the only one who is cheering for him while Bonnie and Clemont only give compliments about the two Pokémon.
  • When Ash tells Serena that it was thanks to her teaching that he was able to participate in a race, Serena visibly blushes. When Ash is going to reveal Serena's goal to Grace, Serena instantly covers his mouth.
  • As Serena is practicing her routine, she gets discouraged but instantly cheers up as she remembers Ash's words.
  • During the race against Grace, when Serena falls behind, she shouts the words Ash told her when they met, helping her win the race.

Ash's hints

  • In the beginning of the episode after Serena says she doesn't know what she is going to do, Ash asks her to travel with them, saying that it was because of her that he won the Bug Badge and that it would be nice if she stayed with them. This is the first time that Ash has asked a female companion to travel with him. It can also be noted that when Ash asked Serena to travel with him, he appears to be nervous which is shown in his voice and when he scratches his cheek; cheek scratching is a classic anime symbolism for nervousness.
  • In a flashback of when Ash and Serena first met as children, Serena hurts her knee. Ash arrives, takes out a handkerchief upon seeing her injury, and bandages it up for her. Then, he holds out his hand and when she hesitates to take it, he grabs her hand and pulls her up, quickly taking her by surprise and making her fall into his arms in a hug. It is noted that during the hug, it is Serena who pulls away and not him. Afterwards, he holds her hand and helps her find her way back to the camp.
  • It can be noted that Ash checked on Serena first and asked if she was okay instead of checking on Bonnie or Professor Sycamore.
  • As the group is looking for Pangoro's bamboo leaf, there is a scene where Ash helps Serena cross a small river by holding her hand. It is interesting to note that the scene was just of Ash and Serena getting across and not the others.
  • When Serena comes out of Penelope's car and asks if Ash is alright, he punches the air in front of him and says he's fine. The punch may have been to impress her.
  • When Serena is in her Fennekin outfit, Ash is seen to be blankly staring at her, possibly out of attraction. His is the only face out of everyone present (an audience including Bonnie, Clemont, Dedenne, Froakie, Fletchling and Pikachu) that has a different expression than the others. It is also worth noting that the camera focuses on just Ash's face at first, showing everyone else a few seconds later.
  • When the Mirror Dimension is splitting apart, Ash makes a great leap across the chasm and grabs on to Serena's hand instead of calling upon one of his Pokémon or Clemont's robotic arm.
  • When Serena begins to fall down a cliff, Ash runs after her and grabs her hand to try to stop her from falling, but ends up falling down with her in the process.
  • When Serena is feeding her Fennekin, Ash is seen staring at her with a smile on his face.
  • When Ash's rhythm battling strategy seems to be failing against Korrina, he turns to look at Serena in the middle of the battle and remembers her words from the previous day's training, which motivates him and gives him an idea that helps him win the battle.
  • When Luxio uses Swift, Ash gets in front of Serena in a defensive position.
  • Ash is constantly checking on Serena to see if she was okay since she is very quiet and appeared upset. When Grace talks about Serena not helping with cooking, Ash speaks up and compliments Serena's baking.
  • When the group see a Malamar and remember their previous encounter with it, Ash puts his arm out in front of Serena to protect her.
  • When a truck is driving recklessly and almost hits them, Ash pushes Serena away from the road so she doesn't get hit. Note that he goes mainly for Serena and doesn't try getting Clemont or Bonnie out of the way despite them being closer to the road.

Other hints

The Valentine's Day poster with Ash and Serena.
The poster from Animedia Magazine.
  • On the second promotional poster for the series, Serena is depicted blushing while looking at Ash.
  • Battling on Thin Ice!
  • After Serena asks Ash if he remembers her, Ash's Pikachu and Fletchling run to Clemont and Bonnie in response, implying that the two Pokémon sensed that this was a sensitive moment between Ash and Serena and that they should be left alone.
  • As Serena and Ash talk, Alexa is seen smiling at the two of them, suggesting that she enjoys seeing the two of them together and even senses a spark between them. However, she could have also smiled as a response to Serena restoring Ash's motivation to train, by quoting a sentence he once said in his childhood, about "never giving up".
  • Before the start of the rematch between Ash and Viola, Alexa tells Serena when she heard Ash and her talking, he needed some inspiration, but she didn't think it'd be from her. This sentence implies that Ash wouldn't have been as inspired and determined to win the battle if Serena hadn't appeared.
  • On the first official character connection table, an arrow is shown from Serena to Ash with the phrase "I love ...?".
    • In the March 2014 issue of Onnanoko to Tame no Kuchikomi & Tōkō Magazine, there is a summary of Serena where among her character description it says that she has special feelings towards Ash. There is also another character connection table with an arrow from Serena to Ash that says "very interested in".
      • The aforementioned magazine also includes a poster with Ash and Serena (Clemont and Bonnie are clearly missing) surrounded by Pokémon and hearts. Serena is holding a heart while looking up at Ash.
  • There is another official poster from Animedia Magazine of only Serena and Ash sitting next to each other and holding drinks.
  • On the official Pokémon movie website for Japan, there is a quiz where one question asks what the dialogue from Serena was at the end of Summer of Discovery! and one of the options is Serena saying, "My dream is, to become Satoshi’s bride… AH! I am embarrassed!"

Movie evidence

Serena's hints

  • During the night after Ash and Diancie make a wish on a star, it shows Serena awake in her tent gazing at Ash adoringly from a distance without him being aware.
  • When Ash is separated from Diancie and the rest of his friends, Diancie expresses her worry for him, but Serena instantly speaks up, believing that he will be fine.

Ash's hints

  • Ash holds Serena's hand as they cross a log together. The interesting thing about this is that it showed Bonnie and Clemont getting across with no problem, so it wasn't necessary for Ash to help her.

Similarities

  • They both wear hats and are based off a playable character from the games: Red and Serena, respectively.
  • Both Serena's Fennekin and Ash's Froakie were originally Professor Sycamore's.
  • Both Ash and Serena had only their mothers make an appearance in the anime: Delia and Grace, respectively.
    • Also, neither of them have any siblings.
  • Both own at least one Pokémon that wears sunglasses: Ash owns a Krookodile and a Squirtle, while Serena owns a Pancham.
  • Their first Fighting types were Primeape and Pancham respectively, both of which have coincidentally stolen Ash's hat.
  • They both know how to ride Ryhorn and Skiddo.

Trivia

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