Pokémon Pokemon: The Delta Chronicles

[OpalSparks]

This fanfiction is a canon-flexible story for the Pokemon anime. The story will follow canon events from the anime, but only to a certain extent. For example, Ash and his similarly-aged friends are not going to be around 10 years old forever. Ash, Misty, May, Dawn, Iris, Clemont and Serena are all around 14, Max will have just turned 10 years old, etc. Furthermore, Pokemon Contests continue to be as they were in Advanced, Frontier, and Diamond & Pearl, having both a preliminary round and a battle round. They will not be whatever Pokemon Journeys had going on with the Pokemon Contests, as I feel that really ruined them in the anime.

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The story will have some dark moments, but I'm not going to go full-blown 2012 edgelord mode with it, so try not to let it scare you off. It will still be quite light-hearted like the anime usually is. Like the anime, I want this story to be appropriate and enjoyable for people of all ages, so there's not going to be any swearing, extreme violence, etc. And as far as shipping goes, I want to make some of the ships open to interpretation, but there will also be heavy leaning into specific ships. For example, Serena will still have strong feelings for Ash and it will be brought up on occasion, but Ash/Serena is not the focus of this story, so, don't expect any heavy shippy moments between them for most of the story. This is Serena's story, first and foremost.

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As far as criticism goes, I'm open to constructive criticism, but nothing about ships, absolutely NO Serena hate, etc. And at the end of the day, this story is really meant just for fun.

 

[OpalSparks]

A young teen stepped out of the airport to find herself in Petalburg City. Her short, honey blonde hair flowed with the wind as she walked on. Her blue eyes complemented her hair nicely. She looked around and smiled a little. “It’s hard to believe that I’m really in the Hoenn region right now.” She said to herself. “I know, I’ll go shop for a new outfit, and then I’ll rest up at the Pokémon Center.”


As the girl shopped around at a clothing store, she picked out a pink blouse with a white overlay and red back-tied straps, a pleated red skirt with a red bow tied at the side around the waist, and a red bunny-ear style headband. Her outfit was complete with red wedged sandals. After purchasing the new outfit, she changed in the fitting room, and then made her way out. “A new region, a new outfit!” She said to herself cheerfully.


“I agree.” A new voice spoke up from behind her. The teen turned to see another girl about her age, maybe older. Her brown hair was spread out, mostly at the front, and her blue eyes shone like sapphires. She wore a tight, red tank top, with a black undershirt that overlapped the front a little. She wore a pair of white shorts, with black short leggings underneath, and a red bunny-ear style headband with white lines on it. She wore green and yellow high top shoes to complete her outfit. She laughed a little bit. “Oh, right. My name’s May. I couldn’t help but to admire your new outfit.” She said.


The foreign teen smiled at May warmly. “Well, thanks. And it’s nice to meet you May, my name’s Serena. I’m from the Kalos region.” She explained. “Are you from around here?”


May smiled, and nodded. “Yep, born and raised here in the Hoenn region. And my family lives here in Petalburg City.” She replied. “What brings you to the Hoenn region?”


Serena smiled at May, looking a bit excited. “Back in Kalos, I participated in Pokémon Showcases. It was a competition where you and your Pokémon would compete for an accessory called a princess key!” Serena explained, showing May all of the princess keys she earned. “I lost at the Master Class tournament against the current Kalos queen. When thinking of what I should do next, I was told about Hoenn’s Pokémon Contests, and so I decided to participate in them!”


May glanced at the keys, hearing out Serena’s reasoning. “I see. That makes sense to me. I’m a Pokémon Coordinator myself, you see.” May said. “I can help you go get registered. The nearest Contest hall is near Rustboro City.”


Serena looked at May. “That would be nice, but I was hoping to rest up at a Pokémon Center for the rest of the day. It was kind of a long flight.” The blonde-haired teen responded. “I’m a little tired.”


May nodded. “That’s understandable! Maybe you could stay the night with me at my parent’s house. That way, I can take you to Rustboro tomorrow.” She suggested. “Well, maybe that was a bit forward…” She said, rubbing the back of her head.


Serena giggled a little bit, and smiled. “No no, you’re fine. But if you really don’t mind it, then I’d love to stay the night. It sounds like it could be fun.” She said.


May looked excited, smiling widely. “Great! Come on, follow me!” She said, taking Serena’s wrist and leading her.


Serena looked a bit surprised as she tried to keep up with May. “Whoa! Slow down May!” She exclaimed, stumbling awkwardly at first. Serena’s first impression of May? She kind of reminded Serena of Ash.

---

Once the two girls arrived at May's house, and stepped inside. May waved at a brown-haired woman in the kitchen, standing in front of a stove. “Hi mom! I brought a friend over!” May called out.


The woman turned around to see May and Serena at the doorstep, removing their shoes. She smiled at them. “Welcome home, May! Now, who might you be?” The brunette woman asked, looking at Serena.


Serena smiled softly at the woman. “Hi, my name’s Serena. I’m from the Kalos region.” She introduced herself. “Somebody told me about Pokémon contests, so that’s why I decided to come to the Hoenn region.”


May’s mother smiled. “Well it’s very nice to meet you, Serena. My name is Caroline, I’m May’s mother. If you’d like, you can stay over for dinner.” Caroline offered.


May smiled a bit. “Actually mom, I was wondering if Serena could stay the night in my room. Please?” She asked.*


Caroline smiled and nodded. “Sure, I don’t mind at all. Anybody you’ve brought over has always been polite.” She said. “So I trust that she will be, too.”


Serena smiled. “Thank you so much, Miss Caroline.” She said, and looked at May. “And thank you too, May!”


Just then, a young boy came running inside. He had dark blue hair that was almost shoulder length, and wore black semi-round framed glasses, a green hooded vest with a white long-sleeved shirt underneath, and black jeans. He excitedly ran up to May. “May! May! I’m back from Professor Birch’s lab! Look at which Pokémon I chose!” He said excitedly, and sent out a Treecko. The grass-type starter looked up at May curiously.


May smiled a little bit at Max’s excitement. “That’s great Max! By the way, we have a guest staying over.” She said, giving the Treecko a gentle pat on the head, and then looked at Serena. “Serena, this is my younger brother, Max. He really loves Pokémon.” She said.


Serena smiled down at Max. “Hi Max, my name is Serena. I just arrived to Hoenn from the Kalos region.” She introduced herself. “I’m going to be a Pokémon Coordinator, like May.”


Max smiled a little bit, and shook Serena’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Serena. Hey, do you have a starter Pokémon from Kalos by any chance?” He asked. “I’d love to see one.”


Serena nodded. “Well, she’s evolved since I chose her, but here.” She took a Poké Ball out of her bag, and sent out her Braixen. “This is Braixen, the evolved form of Fennekin. Fennekin is the fire type starter in Kalos.”


Max looked happy. “Wow, she looks so elegant! Maybe May could learn a thing or two from you about elegance.”


May seemed a bit annoyed by that comment, and thumped Max on the head. “Oh you hush, Max! I don’t have to be elegant, I can be whatever I want!”


Max winced, and looked up at May. “Hey! Take it easy sis, talk about an overreaction! I’m just kidding around!”


Serena looked at them as the two of them argued, and rubbed the back of her head. “I guess not all siblings get along as well as Clemont and Bonnie did…” She said to herself.

---

Having finished dinner, Serena and May were now inside of May’s bedroom, both of them in pajamas. Serena looked at a cabinet, which contained ribbons that May had earned. She noticed one ribbon that seemed to be more like half of a ribbon. “Huh, that’s an unusual ribbon...It looks very different from the rest of your ribbons.” Serena said to May.


May smiled, opened the cabinet, and picked up the ribbon Serena was referring to. “Well, technically, this isn’t even considered a ribbon. This is the Terracotta Medal, or at least half of it. It was the prize from an unofficial Pokémon Contest in the Kanto region.” May explained. “Actually, the reason I only have half of it is because I tied against my friend Ash.”


Serena looked a bit surprised. “Ash…?” She thought for a moment. “By any chance, did he have a Pikachu who hates going into its Poké Ball? And maybe had a dream of becoming a Pokémon Master?” The blonde asked.


May looked at Serena. “Oh my gosh, Serena, have you already met Ash?” She asked. “Wow, it really is a small world.”


Serena smiled. “Yeah, it feels that way sometimes. He actually inspired me to always do my best, and to never give up.” She said. “At first, I only started my journey, because I didn’t want to be a Rhyhorn racer like my mother wanted. But while traveling with Ash, and my other friends; Clemont and Bonnie, I learned about Pokémon Showcases, and decided to become a Performer.” Serena explained.


May smiled at Serena’s story. “That sounds so great, Serena. Well, I’m glad you met Ash, and that he helped you in that regard. Ash taught me a few things too, and helped me get closer to my Pokémon.” May explained.


Serena smiled, and sighed. “So May, is Max going to be traveling with you?” Serena asked curiously.


May smiled softly. “Well, to be honest, that’s up to Max. I wouldn’t mind traveling with him, but if he decides to travel on his own, I’d be fine with that too.” May said.


Serena laid down on one side of May’s bed. “I see...well, I guess we should get some sleep then. We do have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, after all.” She said.


May laid down next to Serena, and nodded. “Yep. Well, goodnight, Serena.” May said with a tired yawn, closing her eyes.

---

The next day, May, Serena, and Max had left Petalburg City, and started traveling toward Rustboro City. Max had Treecko following him from outside of its Poké Ball. Max smiled eagerly. “I can’t believe I’m finally a Pokémon trainer! This is so exciting!”


Serena smiled at Max as she continued to walk with the two siblings. “I’m sure this is especially exciting for you.” She said. “To tell the truth, I originally started my journey because I didn’t want to be a Rhyhorn racer like my mother wanted me to be.” She explained.


Max looked at Serena with a curious expression. “A Rhyhorn racer? How come your mom wanted you to be one so badly?” The younger male asked.
Serena smiled faintly. “Well, she is a famous Rhyhorn racer named Grace. She wanted me to follow in her footsteps.” She responded. “But I didn’t really enjoy Rhyhorn racing myself.”


Max looked amazed. “Wow, your mom is really the famous Rhyhorn racer Grace!? I’m a huge fan of hers!” He exclaimed.


May smiled faintly. “He got really into watching Rhyhorn races about a year ago. From what I’ve seen, your mom does seem pretty amazing, Serena.”


Serena smiled. “Yeah, she is really good at it, isn’t she? But I just wasn’t into it.” She shrugged.


As the three trainers walked, a Poochyena was seen running about. Max looked excited. “A Poochyena! I’m going to catch it!” He yelled excitedly. “Treecko, use Pound attack on Poochyena!” Max instructed.


Max’s Treecko leapt over to Poochyena, and slammed his tail into Poochyena’s side. Poochyena wailed in shock, and fell over. It got up, and growled, running at Treecko and slamming into the grass-type with a tackle attack, causing the Pokémon to slide back a little bit.


Max looked excited. “Good job Treecko! Now use Leer!” He called out. In response, Treecko gave Poochyena a menacing stare.


Poochyena looked incredibly nervous at the expression on Treecko’s face, starting to back away slowly.


Max got a Poké Ball ready as he kept an eye on the battle. “Alright Treecko, use your Pound attack one more time!” Max ordered.


Treecko jumped up and slammed his tail on Poochyena again, knocking the dark-type to the ground. Max threw his Poké Ball at Poochyena, encasing it inside the small capsule. The ball turned a few times, before stopping.


Max excitedly ran over to the Poké Ball, picking it up off of the ground. “We did it Treecko! Thanks to you, I just made my first capture!” He said, picking Treecko up and giving him a hug. The Pokémon seemed delighted.


Serena smiled at the younger trainer. “Nice job, Max! I think you just might be a natural.” She complimented.


May smiled a bit. “I actually agree with Serena, you did a great job catching that Poochyena Max.” She spoke in agreement.


Max smiled as he looked at the Poké Ball that contained his newest friend. He looked back at Serena and May. “Alright, let’s get to Rustboro City!”

---

As the three trainers arrived to Rustboro City, the sun had started to set. May led Serena inside of the Rustboro Contest Hall. “Here it is Serena! You can get registered and receive your Contest Pass right here.” May explained.


Serena smiled and walked to the front desk to speak to the associate there. “Hello, my name is Serena. I’m here to get a Hoenn Contest pass.” The Kalosian trainer explained.


The associate smiled down at the trainer. “Yes, of course. Let’s get you registered.” She said, getting the necessary information from Serena and logging it in. Afterwards, the woman handed Serena a card with a ribbon print on it, as well as a red ribbon case. “Here you go. From now on, you will be allowed to participate in Pokémon Contests.”


Serena smiled as she accepted the Hoenn Contest pass and case. “Thank you so much ma’am.” She said, and looked back to May. “Well May, thank you for helping me. I guess I’ll be seeing you around huh?”


May smiled softly. “Yeah, I guess we will. Good luck.” She said, starting to walk on out. “Oh, and Serena? May the best coordinator win.” The brunette said with a grin.


Serena looked at May, and smiled at her. “Right! I agree!” She said, giving May a thumbs up in response. “I’ll see you at the next contest, hopefully.”

 

[OpalSparks]

Serena walked through Rustboro City, making her way for the docks in order to head to the next town. As she walked along, she noticed a young green-haired boy holding a Ralts in his arm as he was buying a ticket for a ship. Serena couldn’t help but to smile at the sight of the young trainer holding his Pokémon.


As Serena made her way to the booth to purchase her ticket, the green-haired male before her turned around, accidentally bumping right into her.


"S-Sorry miss! I didn't know a-anybody was behind me." The shorter male stammerer awkwardly. He wore a light blue blazer, which was buttoned up, with a nice white shirt underneath. He also wore light green pants, and white shoes. He carried a tan messenger bag that hung off his shoulder, and ended on the other side of himself.


Serena smiled a bit. "Hey, it's okay, I didn't really give you much space to look." She said. "Are you heading to Dewford Town?" She asked curiously.


The male trainer smiled and nodded. "I-I am. I just got a badge from the Rustburo gym...so I am heading to Dewford Town next." He explained. "Oh, by the way, my name is Wally. What's yours?" He asked.


Serena nodded as she listened. "My name is Serena. I just arrived to Hoenn from the Kalos region to participate in contests." She explained. "I just registered for contests at the Rustboro Contest Hall but they didn't seem to be holding a contest there this time." She rubbed the back of her head.


Wally smiled as he listened to Serena, especially when she mentioned being from another region. "Wow, you're from Kalos? Then you must already be an experienced trainer!" He responded with glee. "I'm guessing that you're on your way to Dewford Town for the next contest, right?" He asked.


Serena nodded, smiling. She was a bit flattered by Wally's fascination with her background. "That's correct. Since we're heading to the same place, why don't we hang out on the ferry and get to know each other better?" She suggested.


Wally smiled and nodded. "I'd like that a lot!" He said, and then looked down at Ralts. "Wow, isn't this great Ralts? We're making a new friend." He spoke to his Pokémon, petting it softly. Ralts let out a quiet, but happy cry.

---

On the ferry, Serena and Wally hung out together on the deck, taking in the view of the ocean. Many Wingull flew above the water, while the occasional Magikarp jumped out of the water, before splashing right back in.


"...so, back in Kalos you participated in Pokémon Showcases? My cousin Wanda is a big fan of those." Wally said. "Did you travel all on your own in Kalos?"


Serena smiled softly. "Heavens no. I mean, at first I did but…well, let's see." She thought for a moment. "I left my home, because I didn't want to be a Rhyhorn racer like my mother expected me to. I didn't really know what I wanted to do, but the first thing I did was try to catch up to a childhood friend of mine after seeing him do something crazy on TV." She explained.


Wally smiled as he listened to Serena's story, looking quite interested. He loved hearing about the experiences of others. "So you didn't start your journey with a real plan, but your journey led you to Pokémon Showcases? It's almost like destiny that your friend showed up then." He said.


Serena blushed faintly as she thought back to that day. It's true that seeing Ash's endangering stunt on television is what led her to begin her journey in the first place, and followed up with learning about Pokémon Showcases. If Ash hadn't come to Kalos and done something so insane, she never would have left home to begin with. "...Yeah, maybe you're right." She said.

---

After a while, Wally and Serena arrived to Dewford Town, and left the ferry together. Wally smiled faintly and looked up at Serena. "Hey Serena? I know this is sudden but…would you like to travel together?" He asked. "I want to learn more about other kinds of trainers, and seeing as you're a performer, and soon to be a coordinator…well, I could learn a lot from you." He said, smiling sheepishly.


Serena looked down at Wally, and smiled at him. She nodded. "I'd love to travel with you. It's more fun to travel with friends than to travel alone." She answered.


Wally smiled. "Thank you so much Serena!" He said, looking happy. "Also, would you like to train with me? We both could probably use practice, right?"


Serena nodded. "Right. Let's go practice over there on that vacant beach." She said, pointing to a lonesome looking beach area, before leading the way.


Once they arrived, Wally smiled at Serena. "In Pokémon Contests, you have to battle in the second round, so this will help you out as well." He said, placing Ralts on the sand.


Serena, standing a fair distance from Wally, sent out her Pancham, which still wore her red sunglasses. Pancham landed on the sand proudly, looking raring for a battle.


Wally looked a bit surprised. "A Pancham?" He thought out loud, and used his Pokédex to identify it. "Let's see, it's a fighting type…" He looked at Ralts. "A-Alright Ralts, we should have the advantage in this battle, but don't let your guard down." He said. Ralts just nodded in reply, ready to battle.


Serena grinned a bit. "Alright Pancham, let's start the battle with a dark pulse attack!" She called out. In response, Pancham fired an eerie dark beam at Ralts.


Wally looked shocked. "Ralts, dodge it!" He yelled. Ralts just barely dodged the attack in time. Wally sighed with relief. "A dark type move…who would have known?" He thought aloud. "Ralts, use double team!"


Ralts jumped, and started making copies of itself in order to confuse Serena's Pancham. Pancham stepped backwards, looking around nervously.


"Pancham, focus on the real Ralts! Listen for it!" She ordered. Pancham calmed down a little upon his trainer's call, and stood still, trying to pick up on any difference round him. Once he picked up on Ralts' movement, he charged in it's direction.


"That's it Pancham, now use arm thrust!" Serena yelled out excitedly. Pancham slammed his arm into Ralts' chest, knocking it down, causing the copies to fade.


Wally gasped, amazed by Pancham's abilities. "Ralts, are you okay!?" He asked. Ralts quickly stood back up and nodded. "Alright Ralts, use confusion!" Wally said, pointing at Pancham.


Ralts' horns glowed, as did Pancham's body. Using confusion, Ralts tossed Pancham back, causing Pancham to fall backwards, rolling a little.


Serena looked at Pancham. "Pancham, can you still fight?" She asked. Pancham hopped to his feet, though he clearly took some damage from the super effective psychic type move. "Okay Pancham, use stone edge!"


Pancham jumped up and slammed his paw into the sandy terrain below. Blue glowing rocks suddenly popped up in Ralts' direction, scoring a direct hit against it. Ralts squealed as it was knocked into the air, before landing on the ground, no longer able to battle.


Wally gasped. "Ralts!" He ran over, and picked Ralts up. "Ralts? Are you okay?" He asked. In response, Ralts looked up at Wally, and smiled. Wally sighed. "You did your best Ralts, thank you." He said.


Serena approached Wally, placing her hand on the boy's shoulder. "Hey, you put up a good fight Wally. For a beginner, you already seem to be training your Ralts well." She said. "By the way, is Ralts your only Pokémon?"


Wally shook his head. "No, he's not actually. I caught a Skitty while I was training for my gym battle in Rustboro City. Would you like to meet her?" He asked.


Serena smiled. "Sure! I'd love to! And then I can show you all of my Pokémon too." She answered.


Wally sent out his Skitty, while Serena sent out Braixen and Sylveon next to her Pancham.


Wally smiled. "Let's see here…" He checked Serena's Pokémon with his Pokédex, reading the information on them. "Braixen, and Sylveon huh? Is this all of the Pokémon you have, Serena?"


Serena nodded. "Yeah, this is all of my Pokémon. I guess I didn't really quite focus on catching many Pokémon." She answered. "But each of them are very special to me."


Wally smiled. "Well, they all seem like great Pokémon." He said. Skitty approached Serena, let out a purr and nuzzled Serena's leg. Wally chuckled. "Skitty likes you already, Serena." He said.


Serena smiled softly. She knelt down, and scratched behind Skitty's ears. "What a cute little Pokémon." She giggled.


Wally smiled softly. "When I found it, it looked very exhausted and seemed hungry. So I fed her some berries, and she became my friend." He explained. "And after that, Skitty started following me into Rustboro City, so I decided to catch her. She went right into the ball without a fight." He said, smiling softly. "I never thought my first catch would be anything like that."


Serena smiled. "So, how about Ralts? How did you meet him?" She asked curiously.


Wally smiled sheepishly. "Well…you see, I'm actually from Petalburg City, but recently, my parents sent me to live with my aunt and uncle in Verdanturf Town. My cousin Wanda found a Pokémon egg, and she said I looked lonely, and decided to give the egg to me." He explained, and started petting Ralts. "And when that egg hatched…it was my Ralts."


Serena smiled softly and gently petted Ralts on the head. "I see…well, I'm sure you took great care of that egg to hatch such a strong little Ralts." She spoke gently. "Right Ralts?"


Ralts let out a happy cry as he nuzzled into Serena's hand. Wally smiled softly. "Wow, normally Ralts is very shy…but you seem to know how to make him comfortable." He observed.


Serena smiled, blushing faintly at the praise. "Well, when Sylveon was still an Eevee, she was very shy. During one of my performances, the poor thing got stage fright and fell down off of my arm." She said.


Wally looked surprised. He glanced at Serena's Sylveon, and then back at Serena. "Really? But she seems so calm now. You must be an amazing trainer to have raised such a shy Pokémon to become so confident." Wally said, gently patting the Sylveon on the head.


Serena blushed a little at the praise that the other trainer was giving her. She smiled softly. "Let's go to the Pokémon Center, Wally. Ralts and Pancham could both use a rest after our battle." She said, returning all of her Pokémon.


Wally nodded in agreement as he returned his Skitty to its ball. "Right, let's go." He said, carrying Ralts in his arms as they walked toward the Pokémon Center.

---

At the top of a cave, obscured from sight to most by some of the rocks at the top, a girl in a faded beige cloak had been eavesdropping. She wore a black tank top with red crescent shapes across the chest, gray shorts with a red rope-like belt. She wore thick, worn white leg guards that reached over the knees, and dark gray open toed shoes, with a strange spiraling brace around her right leg. Her short black hair was just barely visible under her hood, and her red eyes shone like rubies with what little light made it through the shade provided by her cloak.


"Well those two sure were interesting. Maybe I should keep a close eye on them." She said to herself. "What do you think, Aster?"


A Whismur that stood next to the young woman's feet looked up at her, and seemed a bit confused.

 

[OpalSparks]

Serena and Wally shared a room at the Pokémon Center, in separate beds. Wally's Ralts slept outside of its ball, in the green-haired boy's arms. Serena, however, slept on her own, her Pokémon sleeping snug inside their balls.


Sunlight peeked through the window, and hit Wally's face, disturbing the young trainer's slumber. He slowly began to sit up, rubbing his eyes. The little white and green Pokémon in his arms woke up with its trainer.


Wally smiled at the small Pokémon, and petted its head. "Good morning Ralts. We're going to do some more training today." He said. Ralts responded by smiling at Wally.


It was Serena's turn to wake up, now. She sat up, and pulled a brush from out of her bag. She began to brush her short blonde hair. "Good morning Wally." She said.


Wally smiled upon hearing Serena's greeting. "Morning." He said, standing up. "I'm going to go get dressed, he said, grabbing his everyday clothes from his bag. He walked to the bathroom in order to change.

---

While Wally trained for his gym battle, Serena was away elsewhere on the beach to train for the Pokémon Contest.


"Braixen, use fire blast, then follow it up with flamethrower!" Serena called.


Braixen used the moves in the order that her trainer commanded, though the combination didn't seem to be anything special.


Serena sighed. "Oh dear…that's not what I had imagined at all…" The blonde teen said, looking quite defeated.


"You should try combining MOVES of different types." A new voice spoke from behind.


Serena turned around to see a teenage girl with a bright red pixie cut, adorned by round, oval sunglasses. She had a maroon tank top, with a short, orange sleeveless vest, left open, light blue jean shorts, and brown combat boots. The redhead also wore a simple necklace with a yellow charm.


"Combine moves of different types?" She asked the other trainer.


The red-haired girl smiled and nodded. "Right. Instead of just using fire type moves, try adding moves of a different type, or having your Pokémon make the moves appear more unique." She continued.


Serena thought for a moment. "I think I have an idea." She said, looking at Braixen. "Braixen, use fire blast, and then follow it up with hidden power! Try to make hidden power surround the fire blast attack!" Serena ordered.


Braixen smiled, pulled her branch from out of her tail, and fired a star shaped fire into the air. She then followed it up with hidden power, making colorful orbs spin around the fire blast in the opposite direction. Once the attacks collided, the resulting explosion was much more appealing and beautiful than the first attempt.


The red-haired girl smiled, and nodded. "That was much better." She said, and extended a hand toward Serena. "Anyways, hi there. My name is Zoey. What about you?"


Serena smiled, taking Zoey's hand and giving it a gentle shake. "My name is Serena. It's nice to meet you Zoey, and I appreciate the advice you just gave me!" The blonde introduced herself ecstatically.


Zoey smiled softly. "It's no biggie. I suppose you plan to enter the contest here in Dewford Town, am I right?" She asked.


Serena smiled and nodded. "Right! It's going to be the first contest I enter!" She answered. "Contests sure are different from showcases, from what I've learned about them so far." She said.


Zoey looked at Serena. "Showcases?" She asked.


Serena nodded. "In the Kalos region, there are competitions known as Pokémon Showcases. There are two rounds. The first round is a different challenge every time, while in the second, you put one a performance." She explained.


Zoey smiled. "That sounds interesting. So does that mean you're from Kalos?" She asked.


Serena nodded. "That's right. I grew up in Vaniville Town." She said. "


Zoey put one hand on her hip. "I see. I'm from the Sinnoh region. I actually won the Sinnoh Grand Festival." She said.


Serena looked amazed. "Wow! No wonder you gave such good advice earlier!" She exclaimed. "So are you competing in Hoenn contests too?"


Zoey nodded. She pulled a case out of her pocket, opening it to reveal a contest ribbon. "I am, and I have already won a ribbon." She explained.


Serena gazed at the ribbon in awe. "It looks so nice. Seeing your ribbon makes me want to win one even more!"


Zoey smiled warmly, putting the case away. "You seem like a nice person. Would you like to have lunch with me?" She asked.


Serena smiled and nodded. "Sure! It sounds like fun!" She agreed.

---

Zoey and Serena were seated at an outdoor table at a small seaside restaurant, each of them having onigiri and lemonade.


Zoey looked at Serena, smiling. "So, what got you into contests, Serena?" She asked.


Serena smiled. "Well, after I lost the match for the title of Kalos Queen, a woman I'd met told me about the contests in the Hoenn region and suggested that I give them a try." She explained. "I wanted to take on new challenges."


Zoey nodded. "I see, that makes sense to me. You kind of remind me of one of my friends from Sinnoh. She also happened to be a rival." The redhead stated. "And seeing as you're entering this contest, you're going to be my next rival, it seems."


Serena smiled. "I look forward to it, Zoey!" She said, finishing up her meal. "Anyways, it was nice meeting you Zoey, but I should probably get back to training for the contest. I guess I will see you there!" She said.


Zoey finished up as well and nodded in agreement. "Right. Also, just because you're a beginner, it doesn't mean that I will go easy on you." She said.


Serena grinned. "And I wouldn't want you to, either." She said to Zoey. "I'll see you next time at the contest." She said, placing some money on the table. "This is my share of the bill. See you later!" Serena stated, leaving now.


Zoey looked at the money before her, and then at the honey blonde teen as she departed. Zoey smiled faintly. "She's not bad. Not bad at all." She said to herself.

---

Serena was on her way to finding a place to train when she happened to run into Wally. She smiled at the boy. "Hi Wally!"


Wally glanced over at Serena and smiled faintly. "Hey Serena. I was just finishing up training for today." He said.


"If you're finished with training, then perhaps you wouldn't mind a battle against me." A new voice spoke.


Serena and Wally turned to see a girl with short black hair. Her red eyes met with Wally's blue eyes.


The mysterious girl smirked at the young trainer. "If you don't mind, that is." She spoke up again, grinning.


Wally rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Well...I guess I don't mind." He responded sheepishly.


The girl nodded. A small Whismur was clinging to the girl's leg, looking nervous. She looked down at the little Pokémon and smiled. "It's okay, Aster, I'm just going to have a battle." She said. She then looked at Wally again. "My name is Zinnia. This Whismur here is Aster." She introduced. "What are your names?"


Wally smiled faintly. "M-My name is Wally. It's nice to meet you Zinnia." He responded.


Serena smiled, giggling at the cute Whismur. "I'm Serena. Aster seems very cute."


Zinnia looked down at Aster for a moment, and smiled, looking back at Serena. "I'm glad you think so." She said, and then sent out a Tyrunt. "I'm going to use Tyrunt for this battle. It's the newest addition to my team." She explained.


Wally grinned. He sent out his Ralts. "Alright then, I guess I'll be using Ralts." He stated.


Serena smiled and sat down on a rock to watch the battle. "This should be exciting!" She said.


Zinnia grinned. "Alright, Tyrunt, use tackle!" She ordered. Tyrunt charged at Ralts.


Wally firmly planted himself onto the sand. "Ralts, use teleport to dodge it!" Wally called out. Ralts managed to vanish just before Tyrunt could hit it, and reappeared shortly afterwards behind it.


"Now use confusion!" Wally called out. Ralts used confusion to lift Tyrunt, throwing the Pokémon over its head.


Zinnia grinned. "Tyrunt, get up and use ancient power!" Zinnia called out. Tyrunt stood up, and launched some mysterious, glowing rocks at Ralts, knocking the poor Pokémon back before it knew what hit it. Tyrunt let out a loud battle cry, somehow looking stronger.


Wally winced. "Wow, I would have never guessed that this was a newly caught Pokémon…" he said to himself. "Ralts, use double team!" He yelled. Ralts got up, let out a cry, and made illusory copies of itself to confuse Tyrunt.


Zinnia smiled. "That's a good strategy, but not good enough. Tyrunt, use ancient power on all of them!" She ordered. Tyrunt jumped in the air, firing the glowing rocks at as many copies of Ralts as it could. Ralts got hit, causing all the copies to vanish, and rolled back a little from the impact. It looked a little worn out.


Wally gasped. "Ralts! Are you okay? Can you still fight?" He asked.


Ralts started to get up, panting. It stood up, let out a loud cry, and started to glow. The Pokémon began to change shape.


Serena watched Wally's Pokémon in awe. "Wow! Wally, your Ralts! It's evolving!" Serena exclaimed.


Wally watched, shocked. He then smiled happily once his Pokémon finished undergoing the change. "It...I-It's a Kirlia now!" He sounded ecstatic.


Kirlia looked back at Wally, and grinned. It stood up, taking on a battle stance.


Zinnia smirked. "Your Pokémon may have evolved and gotten stronger, but it's still no match for Tyrunt. Tyrunt, tackle!"


Wally nodded. "We'll see! Kirlia, use teleport!" He called out.


Kirlia attempted to teleport out of harm's way, but Tyrunt was too fast this time, slamming right into Kirlia, knocking the newly evolved Pokémon back. Without an order, Kirlia retaliated by firing beam of psychic energy, knocking Tyrunt back.


Wally looked surprised, but excited. "Wow Kirlia! You learned how to use psybeam!" He said.


Zinnia looked at Tyrunt and looked shocked. "Tyrunt!? Snap out of it!" She called out to her Pokémon, which appeared to be confused and stumbling.


Wally grinned. "Now's our chance, Kirlia! Use psybeam again!" He ordered excitedly. His Pokémon fired the psybeam attack at Tyrunt, knocking it down.


Tyrunt groaned, looking unable to battle. Zinnia sighed. "Well I guess that's it then." She returned Tyrunt to its ball. "Good job Tyrunt." She said.


Zinnia then looked at Wally, and grinned. "You're a stronger trainer than you look, kid. Keep up the good work." She said, sending out a Salamence. "I look forward to another battle later." She said, hopping up on Salamence's back.


Wally smiled a little, petting Kirlia on the head. "Thanks for the battle, Zinnia." He said.


Zinnia nodded. "Let's go, Salamence." She said to the large dragon type. Salamence took flight, and flew away.


Serena ran over to Wally and Kirlia. "That was amazing, Wally!" She praised him. "Anyways, we should go back to the Pokémon Center. It's starting to get late, and Kirlia looks worn out." The blonde suggested.


Wally nodded, agreeing with Serena. "Right! And then tomorrow, I'm going to challenge Brawly to a battle!" He said excitedly.


Serena smiled, and giggled softly as she walked back to the Pokémon Center with Wally.

---

At the Pokémon Center, Serena sat down at one of the video phones to make a phone call. After dialing the number, and waiting, the video came on.


The camera showed a muscular adult man with brown hair and a beard. He wore a black shirt, grayish blue overalls, and a green news cap.


"Well hello Serena, this is a surprise!" The man said, chuckling.


Serena smiled some. "Hello Meyer. Is Clemont home?" She asked. "I have a question for him." She explained.


Meyer chuckled. "Sure thing." He said, stepping back. "Clemont, phone for you!" He called out.


After a moment, Meyer stepped aside. He was replaced by a teen male with even lighter blonde hair than Serena's, with a lightning shaped cowlick sticking up. He wore light blue coveralls with yellow lines on the legs. He pushed up his round glasses, and smiled.


"Well hello Serena! I didn't expect you to be calling." He said. "How is Hoenn?"


Serena smiled. "It's great, Clemont! But listen, I wanted to ask you something. Can you tell me about the move, ancient power?" She asked.


Clemont smiled and nodded. "It's a rock type attack using prehistoric power. Sometimes when a Pokémon uses this attack, it will become stronger, faster, and resist damage." The blonde male explained.


Serena looked surprised. "Well that explains why that Tyrunt was suddenly so much faster and stronger than Wally's Kirlia." She thought out loud.


Clemont looked at Serena. "Wally? Who is that?" He asked.


Serena rubbed the back of her head. "Oh right. He's a friend I made on my way to Dewford Town. He's a Pokémon Trainer, challenging the gyms in the Hoenn region." She explained.


Clemont smiled a bit. "I see. I hope I get to meet him sometime." He said. "I'm amazed at how easily you seem to make friends with people, Serena. I always have a hard time making friends myself." He said awkwardly.


Serena smiled and giggled. "I don't know what you mean. You became great friends with Ash, and you got along pretty well with many of the people we met on our journey together." She pointed out. "I think anyone that doesn't want to be your friend would have to be nuts."


Clemont sighed but smiled. "Thanks Serena, I appreciate it. Oh hey, you mentioned Dewford Town. Are you staying at the Pokémon Center there?" He asked.


Serena nodded. "That's right. Why do you ask?" She asked.


Clemont smiled. "Before you leave town there, make sure to ask about a package there. I'm going to send you a gift. Bonnie's been wanting to send you something too." He explained. "Of course, the contents will be a surprise."


Serena looked a bit dumbfounded, but smiled. "Thanks Clemont. You and Bonnie really are sweet." She said, looking happy.


Clemont rubbed the back of his head and laughed softly. "It's no big deal, really. But anyways, I have to go. I'm in the middle of making dinner. I wish you luck in Hoenn's Pokémon Contests." Clemont cheered, hanging up now.


Serena smiled and stood up. She walked to the front desk and looked at the nurse. "Nurse Joy?" She asked, glancing at the pink-haired nurse.


Nurse Joy looked at Serena and smiled. "Well hello there. Would you like me to examine your Pokémon?" She asked.


Serena was confused for a moment, but then nodded, handing over her Poké Balls. "Yes, thank you. Sorry, I just didn't expect to see a Nurse Joy outside of the Kalos region." She said, rubbing the back of her head.


Nurse Joy smiled. "I see, so you're from Kalos then? You've come a long way to be here in the Hoenn region. Have you captured any Pokémon here in Hoenn yet?" She asked, taking Serena's Pokémon for examination.


Serena shook her head. "Not quite yet. I've only arrived a few days ago." She explained.


Nurse Joy nodded. "I see. Well, some trainers put together a bulletin board leaving tips about where and how to find certain Pokémon if you're interested." She said, gesturing her hand to a wall with a bulletin board full of notes and pictures.


Serena looked over and smiled. "I see! Thanks Nurse Joy! I'll check it out right away." The blonde teen said, making her way over to the bulletin board.


There were many notes and pictures all over the board. Serena looked around the board curiously. She noticed a picture of an Absol. "Wow...what a tough looking Pokémon." She said.


"A troublesome Pokémon is what it is." A male trainer spoke up. "Everywhere that Pokémon goes, disaster has struck. Those Absol are evil!" He claimed.


Serena looked confused. "Huh? But I've seen a trainer with an Absol before. It didn't seem so evil at all." She said.


The trainer shrugged. "People like you would be the first to get killed by those awful Pokémon." He said, walking off.


Serena glared a bit, and sighed, looking back at the picture. Next to Absol's picture were notes of disasters that happened, and a physical forum of trainers speculating whether it was coincidence or Absol's intentions.


Wally approached Serena, and tapped her shoulder. "Umm, Serena? I-Is something the matter?" He asked.


Serena looked at Wally. "Oh, well...nothing in particular. I was just reading about Absol." She said. "Do you think Absol is really the one behind these disasters?" She asked.


Wally looked at Absol. "Honestly, I'm not sure. But nobody has ever seen one actually do anything to cause those disasters." He said, looking at Serena. "Why do you ask?"


Serena sighed. "I don't know...to be honest, I guess I just don't like when people jump to the worst conclusions about Pokémon." She said.


Wally smiled. "You really care a lot about Pokémon, don't you Serena?"


Serena smiled softly. "Well...yeah." She said. "Honestly though, I just don't like the idea of making accusations without trying to prove them, either." She said


Wally nodded. "Yeah I understand. But anyways, let's go have dinner, okay?" He suggested.


Serena's stomach growled, and she blushed faintly in embarrassment. "Oh...right." She said awkwardly.


Wally laughed a little. "Alright then. We can talk more about Absol over a meal." He suggested.


With the two trainers in agreement, Serena and Wally went into the cafeteria to have dinner.

 

[OpalSparks]

Warm rays of sunshine beamed down on the island known as Dewford Town. The blue seawater splashed against the rocks along the beach. Local trainers enjoyed cold, crisp sodapops that were brought in from the next town over.


Wally, with his recently evolved Kirlia at his side, made his way toward the Dewford Town gym. Serena, an aspiring Pokémon Coordinator, followed Wally in order to give him her support.


Serena smiled softly at the younger trainer. "As long as you do your best, I'm sure you'll win." She said. "Have you thought of your strategy?"


Wally glanced up at blonde teen, smiling faintly. He nodded. "Kirlia's moves will be super effective against Brawly's fighting type Pokémon, but I know it will take more than that." He said.


Serena smiled down at the younger green-haired boy, nodding in agreement. “Right, and I believe in you!” She said, walking with Wally.


Before the two trainers knew it, they had arrived at the gym. It was a large white building with an orange roof, by the edge of a cliff. Wally seemed very eager as he went through the doors.


The first room inside the building appeared to be a training room, full of equipment such as punching bags and treadmills. Sitting down on a bench, sweating, was a young adult man. He had a very light tan, thick spiky blue hair with orange sunglasses in it. He wore a short-sleeve black t-shirt with an orange pattern along the top, and blue capri pants. His shoes were black, with a strange orange dot pattern where his toes would be. He had a pretty lean build.


Wally approached the blue-haired man, visibly confused. “Umm…excuse me sir. Is this the Dewford Gym?” The young trainer asked sheepishly. “Like, a Pokémon gym?” The green-haired boy elaborated.


The man looked up at Wally, and grinned. “It sure is.” He said, standing up. “My name’s Brawly, I am the gym leader. Are you here to challenge me for the Knuckle Badge?”


Wally smiled now, and looked eager to battle. “Y-Yes! My name is Wally, I’m from Petalburg City. I’d like to challenge you to a Pokémon battle!” He explained, nervous with excitement.


Brawly grinned. “Alright then, follow me. The battlefield is this way.” He said, starting to lead Wally toward a door.


Serena started to follow. “Is it okay if I watch?” She asked. “I’m traveling through the Hoenn region with Wally.” The blonde explained.


Brawly grinned and nodded. “Of course, little lady. Anyone is allowed to spectate a gym battle in the Hoenn region, unless a trainer makes a special request not to have spectators.” The blue-haired man explained.


Wally smiled and walked with Serena, following Brawly to the battlefield. The floor was wooden, green in color, and the battlefield was a standard gym battlefield, on dirt. Wally took to the challenger’s side of the battlefield, while Brawly took to his side of the field.


Serena sat down on the bleachers, and sent out all three of her Pokémon so that they could watch the battle as well. “I want you guys to watch this battle. See if there’s anything we could learn from it.” She explained to them. Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon all let out happy cries, and looked to the battlefield to watch.


A referee stepped out to judge the Pokémon match. “This is an official gym match between Wally from Petalburg City, and the gym leader, Brawly. It will be a two-on-two match, and the gym leader may not make any substitutions. The match will now begin!” He instructed, holding out one red flag, and one green flag.


Brawly tossed a Poké Ball onto the battlefield, sending out a Machop. The small fighting-type Pokémon looked raring to go. “Alright Machop, let’s show this trainer how we fight!” Brawly yelled out, full of spirit.


Wally thought for a moment, and sent out his Skitty. “A-Alright Skitty, I know you’re at a disadvantage type-wise, but you can do this!” The green-haired boy encouraged the kitten Pokémon.


Brawly grinned a bit. “Skitty, huh? Interesting choice.” He said. “Alright then, Machop, use karate chop!” Brawly ordered, pointing in Skitty’s direction.


Machop started to run toward Skitty at its trainer’s command, getting ready to deal the first attack that it was ordered to use against its opponent.


“Skitty, dodge it, and use attract!” Wally called out, already prepared to combat his opponent’s attacks.


Skitty jumped to the side, just barely dodging Machop’s powerful attack. Consequently, the fighting-type Pokémon’s attack slammed the ground, throwing dirt up into the air. Skitty landed gracefully, and gave Machop an endearing gaze, firing a heart-shaped beam at the opponent.


Machop, unable to recover fast enough, was touched by the strange beam. The fighting-type Pokémon became very infatuated with Skitty, blushing at the very sight of the normal-type Pokémon.


Serena watched in awe. “I wasn’t expecting that.” She said, and glanced at Sylveon. “It’s kind of like your ability, Sylveon.” She observed. “But instead, as a move.”


Brawly looked a bit distraught. “Machop! Snap out of it and use karate chop!” Brawly called out. However, the fighting-type Pokémon ignored the gym leader’s commands, completely enamored by its pink, kitten-like opponent.


Wally grinned, seeing as he had a bit of an advantage in the battle. “Skitty, use disarming voice!” Wally called out excitedly.


Skitty let out a loud cry in Machop’s direction, blasting the opposing Pokémon with a pink, sparkly wave of sound, knocking the other Pokémon back.


Machop fell backwards, taking quite a tumble. It still, however, seemed very infatuated with Wally’s Skitty, despite the damage the little Pokémon had dealt it.


Brawly gritted his teeth, and clenched his fists as he helplessly watched Machop take damage. “Come on Machop! Use karate chop on Skitty!” He ordered, but to no avail, as the fighting-type Pokémon just stared helplessly at Skitty.


“Alright Skitty, now use assist!” Wally called out. Skitty waved its paw into the air, causing it to glow. Skitty then began to make copies of itself with double team.


Serena looked a bit confused. “But that’s double team…” She said to herself, looking up the move assist on her electronic guide. “Oh I see. So assist allows Skitty to use attacks that Wally’s other Pokémon know. That’s really neat!”


Machop’s reaction to the copies of Skitty was certainly one for the books, as the fighting-type Pokémon looked like it was in heaven at the sight of so many Skitty.


Brawly seemed to be losing his cool, pulling at his hair as he watched his Pokémon make a fool of itself on the battlefield. “Come on Machop! Get it together! Use karate chop!”


Machop finally responded to its trainer, and ran at Skitty for a karate chop attack. The light blue fighting-type Pokémon attacked copy after copy, but without success.


Wally grinned. “Alright, Skitty, now use assist again!” Wally called out, firmly planting his feet to the ground, as he started to feel more serious in the course of the battle.


Skitty and whatever copies of it were left all jumped up into the air, and they all waved a paw in the air, causing it to glow. Assist summoned the move psybeam, and Skitty fired it straight at Machop.


Machop was blown away by the psychic-type attack and knocked down to the ground at Brawly’s feet. The fighting-type Pokémon was knocked out, unable to continue the battle.


The referee looked at the gym leader’s first Pokémon, and nodded when he determined that it could not continue battling. “Machop is unable to battle!” The referee called out.


Brawly picked up Machop’s Poké Ball, returning the fainted Pokémon back inside, and putting the ball away. “Good job Machop, you did your best.” He said, and turned to face Wally again. “I’ll admit, I am impressed that you got the best of Machop with your Skitty. But your luck will end here!” He grinned, tossing another Poké Ball into the air, sending out a Hariyama.


Hariyama landed on the ground of the battlefield with a large thud, causing Wally’s skitty to jump up with shock. Skitty stared up at the much larger Pokémon, and began to look intimidated by the size difference.


Wally noticed Skitty’s discomfort, and took one step forward. “Don’t give up right away Skitty. I believe in you. Just because Hariyama is bigger than you doesn’t mean you’ll lose.” He spoke encouragingly.


Skitty looked back at Wally, then looked at Hariyama, facing the bigger Pokémon with its battle face.


Wally smiled, and looked excited. “Good! Then use attract!” Wally called out. In response, Skitty fired its heart-like beam in Hariyama’s direction.


Brawly grinned. “Hariyama, use whirlwind to blow that attract attack away!” The blue-haired gym leader yelled.


Hariyama used its large orange hands to create a gust of wind to blow away Skitty’s move, as well as the little Pokémon itself, causing Wally’s strategy of infatuation to fail.


Wally gasped, clearly surprised by the gym leader’s countermeasure against attract. “Oh no!” He exclaimed.


Brawly grinned and folded his arms, letting out an amused chuckle. “You didn’t think I was going to fall for that trick twice, did you Wally?” The gym leader asked. “Now I’ll show you the true power of a gym leader! Hariyama, arm thrust!” Brawly ordered.


The large fighting type Pokémon ran at Skitty, readying its large hands in order to attack the smaller Pokémon.


Wally felt a little nervous now, and clenched his fists as he looked at Skitty. “Skitty, you have to dodge it!” Wally begged.


Skitty braced itself, and managed to dodge Hariyama’s first hit, only to get slammed hard by the second hit. Skitty let out a yowl as it was knocked up into the air, and sent flying landing next to Wally. The kitten Pokémon tried to get up, but fell over.


The referee took a good look at Skitty, and nodded. “Skitty is unable to battle!” The referee announced.


Serena was leaning over the railing of the bleachers as she watched the battle with her Pokémon. “Wow, poor Skitty…it just didn’t stand a chance against Hariyama.” She said quietly.


Wally picked up Skitty’s Poké Ball from his bag, and used it to call Skitty back inside. “Nice job Skitty, take a good rest.” He whispered, putting the ball away, swapping it out with the next. He tossed that Poké Ball into the air, sending out Kirlia.


Kirlia landed gracefully on the ground, and looked up at Hariyama, looking at the large Pokémon with no fear or regard of their size difference.


Wally took on a battle stance as he looked at Kirlia. “This battle is riding on you now, Kirlia! Do your best!” The green-haired boy said to the psychic-type Pokémon. “Use double team!”


Kirlia nodded, and used double team to make copies of itself that surrounded the opposing Pokémon. Hariyama looked around, nervous and confused as it tried to figure out which was the real Kirlia.


Brawly gritted his teeth. “Hariyama, use arm thrust! Find the real Kirlia!” He called out in response to the situation.


Hariyama ran around, albeit slowly, and attempted to attack Kirlia as it thrust its arms into several copies.


Wally pointed, clearly excited with this battle. “Kirlia, now’s your chance! Use your psybeam attack on Hariyama!” The young boy yelled.


Kirlia fired its psybeam attack on Hariyama, making a clean hit against the large fighting type Pokémon. The remaining copies of Kirlia faded away.


Brawly looked at his Hariyama, then at Kirlia. “Hariyama! Fight back with vital throw!” Brawly ordered the fighting-type Pokémon.


Hariyama went after Kirlia, and threw its arm in Kirlia’s direction. Kirlia dodged the attack last minute, and moved its palms up to Hariyama’s face, stopping Hariyama in its tracks with a confusion attack, throwing Hariyama back with the psychic attack. Hariyama hit the ground pretty hard.


Wally looked surprised. He had planned to ask Kirlia to use confusion, but hadn’t actually called the attack. It was almost as if Kirlia knew what Wally wanted. “Good job Kirlia! Now use psybeam!”


Kirlia fired a psybeam attack at Hariyama now. However, Hariyama managed to get up and dodge the attack just in time.


Brawly grinned. “Hariyama, use arm thrust!” The fighting-type gym leader commanded, smirking. He looked very invested in the battle.


Hariyama thrust its arms at Kirlia, hitting the psychic-type Pokémon pretty hard a couple of times, knocking it around a bit. However, Kirlia stood strong against the attacks.


Wally looked really excited. “Kirlia, finish it off with a psybeam!” The trainer called out excitedly.


Kirlia jumped back away from Hariyama, and fired a psybeam directly at the Pokémon’s gut. Hariyama stood stunned by the attack, wobbled, and fell backwards.


The referee waited a few moments, and nodded. “Hariyama is unable to battle.” The referee announced, raising a green flag in Wally’s direction. “That means the winner is the challenger from Petalburg City!”


Wally smiled big, and ran over to his Kirlia, who in turn ran to its trainer. Kirlia jumped into Wally’s arms, and Wally happily twirled the Pokémon around. “We did it Kirlia! We just won our second gym badge!” The trainer yelled excitedly.


Serena and her Pokémon ran over to Wally, all of them looking happy for the younger boy. “Congratulations Wally! I knew you could do it!” She spoke kindly.


Wally looked up at Serena and smiled sheepishly. “Thanks Serena, I’m glad to have your support.” He responded to her.


Brawly approached the younger trainer, and smiled down at the boy who had just defeated him in the gym match. “Hey, amazing job kid.” He said, holding out the much sought after knuckle badge to him. “This is for you. You’ve certainly earned it, Wally.” The gym leader congratulated with a grin.


Wally took out his badge case, and smiled as he gently picked up the badge from Brawly’s hand, placing it into the second slot of the case. “Thanks for allowing me to challenge you.” The young trainer said to Brawly.


Brawly grinned, and looked at Serena. “Do you have any plans to battle me, young lady?” The gym leader inquired.


Serena looked at Brawly, and shook her head. “No. I’m in Hoenn for Pokémon Contests. I’m just traveling with Wally.” She answered.


Brawly smiled. “I see. It’s good to travel with friends!” He said. “I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for you at the contest here in Dewford Town, then! I’ll be sure to cheer you on!”


Serena looked at Brawly, a bit surprised, and laughed bashfully. “You will? Well, thank you so much. It means a lot.” She said in response.


Brawly nodded. “Alright then. Wally, Serena, take care! I’m going to catch the waves before it gets to be too late.” The gym leader announced. “See you, dudes!”

---

Later that evening, Serena and Wally were at the Pokémon Center again, both of them in their pajamas, and ready for bed. Serena sat down on her bed, while Wally was already laying down in the other bed.


Serena sighed, looking out the window. “I can’t believe I’m going to be participating in the Pokémon Contest tomorrow…to tell the truth, I’m a little nervous.”


Wally looked at Serena, and smiled at her. “I’m sure you’ll do great, Serena.” The young trainer said. “You seem like a very capable trainer.”


Serena looked at Wally, and rubbed the back of her head. She smiled some. “You really think so?” She asked.


Wally nodded. “I know so! You battled so well against me with your Pancham!” He responded. “Don’t worry too much! You’ll do great!”


Serena smiled, and laid down. “Thanks Wally.” She responded to the trainer. “I’ll do my best at the Pokémon Contest tomorrow.” She said, and yawned. “Anyways, I think we should probably be getting some rest.”


Wally nodded in agreement. “Yeah. You wouldn’t want to be tired during your big contest debut, after all.” The boy responded.


And like that, both trainers got comfortable in their beds, and went to sleep in order to prepare for the next day.

 

[OpalSparks]

Serena and Wally started their day excitedly running toward the Dewford Town Contest Hall, with the participating trainer taking the lead. Once inside, Serena quickly got herself situated in the backstage area while Wally headed for the bleachers to watch the show.

Serena made her way into a changing room, and exchanged her everyday clothing in favor of a cute pink tea-length dress, decorated with a red layer embraced in black accents from the waist down. A red bow-tie at the chest just between the low white sleeves complimented the dress like a bow on a gift. Her black stockings and red shoes brought forth for a more modest appearance. The blue pearl headband, along with the pink ribbon tied in the middle, completed her look for the stage.

Serena was leaving the changing room, when she noticed a white-haired girl struggling at the vanity. Curious, she approached her in order to get a closer look.

The girl at the vanity was trying to tie her hair halfway back in a cute pink rose clip, but was having trouble getting it just right. “Sheesh, I wish my elbows were double-jointed, or something to make this easier…” She muttered in annoyance.

Serena giggled softly, and approached the girl. “Here, may I help you out with that?” She asked softly. “I know what a hassle it can be.”
The other coordinator looked at Serena in the mirror. “Umm…only if ya don’t mind. I don’t wanna trouble ya…” She responded sheepishly.

Serena gently ran her fingers through the girl’s hair, using a brush to brush it back carefully, before pinning the white hair at the center of the back-end of the coordinator’s head. “There, that should do it!” She said with a smile.

The white-haired girl turned her head to check the side view from the mirror. “Oh thanks so much!” She responded gratefully. She started to dab a little bit of foundation on her face. “What’s yer name? Mine’s Opalline.” She introduced.

Serena smiled, happy to have helped someone out. “I’m Serena!” She said, sitting next to the fellow contestant. “Is this your first Pokémon Contest?” The blonde asked curiously.

Opalline was evening out the layer of foundation upon her face now. “No, not at all! Actually, I participated in Pokémon Contests in Kanto and Johto!” She responded. “I didn’t win the Grand Festival at either one of them, though.”

Serena smiled a bit. “I see. This is actually my first one, so I guess I’m a little nervous. They’re pretty different from Pokémon Showcase.” She responded.

Opalline looked at Serena, a look of curiosity burning in her dark blue eyes. “What’s a Pokémon Showcase?” She asked.

Serena placed her hands on the table of the vanity. “In the Kalos region, there is a competition called Pokémon Showcase where girls show off their Pokémon and their moves for entertainment. The first round tests each princess’ capabilities, knowledge, luck…you name it. A princess has to pass that round in order to compete in the second round where she would show off her Pokémon.” She explained. “It doesn’t involve any battling like a Pokémon Contest, however.”

Opalline listened to the new coordinator’s explanation excitedly, while brushing a layer of powder on her face. “Wow! That sounds like a lot of fun! Maybe after the Grand Festival here in Hoenn, I’ll take a trip to the Kalos region.”

Serena put on her short white gloves as she looked at Opalline. “I’m sure you’d love it. You seem to have a lot of energy, so I think you’d be great!” The teen responded, standing up now.

Once Opalline finished applying her make-up, she stood up as well. She wore a mint green tea-length dress with white ruffles underneath. A white ribbon hugged her waist, tied into a bow at her left side. A jade-colored, heart-shaped gem decorated her chest, followed by thick white straps that enveloped her neck, and long, fancy white gloves. She wore white hosing, with mint green heels. She walked to the main backstage room with Serena.

“So, are you traveling with anybody, Serena?” Opalline asked curiously as her eyes scanned the room.

Serena smiled and nodded. “Actually, I’m traveling with someone I just recently became friends with. His name is Wally, and he’s collecting gym badges.” She explained.

Opalline looked at Serena. “That sounds nice. I’m not actually traveling with anybody myself. I’ve always just kind of been by my lonesome.”
Serena glanced back to meet Opalline’s gaze. “Well, there’s nothing wrong with that either. Everybody travels differently.” She responded, smiling softly.

Opalline smiled faintly, and laughed softly. “You might be the first to say that to me. Most people end up wondering if I can even take care of myself.”

---

On the screen, the Pokémon Contest announcer, Vivian, welcomed the crowd and contestants. She introduced the three judges: Mr. Contesta, Mr. Sukizo, and Dewford Town’s very own Nurse Joy.

Serena looked around the room, and noticed Zoey on the other side of the backstage room. She was about to approach her, when Zoey’s name was called for the stage. Zoey left the room to take her place on the stage.

Zoey made her way to the center of the main stage. She wore a white tailcoat with golden accents on the front, light green trousers, and white dress shoes. She pulled a Pokéball encased in what seemed to be some sort of glass with a sticker on it from her pocket, and raised it up above her head. She gave an elegant twirl as she tossed the ball into the air. “Glameow! Curtain!” She called out.

The glass-encased poké ball popped open, with pink ribbons swirling their way from out. A gray, cat-like Pokémon with a springy tail emerged from the flashy ribbon effect with grace. Glameow landed on the ground with its tail, bounced upward, and then landed on its feet. It was dressed up neatly with a green bandana around its neck, decorated with a white bell.

“Glameow, use iron tail, then use thunderbolt!” Zoey commanded. Glameow jumped, tail glowing. Electricity began to flow from the Pokémon’s curly tail.

“Now Glameow, swing your tail around!” Zoey continued. Glameow began to swing its tail around in the air, sending electricity all around it. Iron tail seemed to make the lightning spread out more easily.

“Finish the show with shadow claw!” Zoey called out. Glameow’s paws became enveloped in a shadowy aura as it began to bounce about with its tail, swiping its shadowy claws at the electrifying show it had created. As it attacked the lightning, the stage was slowly blanketed with dark, glittery debris from the collision of attacks.

Zoey took a bow, while Glameow elegantly landed right in front of her. The crowd roared with cheer as they clapped for the performance.
“The way your Glameow maintained elegance while handling all three of those attacking moves really shows the experience the two of you have. Well done!” Mr. Contesta commented.

“You and your Glameow are simply remarkable!” Mr Sukizo followed up, smiling with glee as he looked at Glameow.

“The way the thunderbolt burst with the use of shadow claw was just beautiful! It felt like I was watching a light show!” Nurse Joy spoke last.

---

As Zoey went backstage again, Serena eagerly approached the red-haired girl. “Zoey! I watched your performance! You were amazing!” She exclaimed. “I’ve never seen anything like it!”

Zoey was a bit taken aback. She rubbed the back of her head, laughing just a bit. “Well, you know, Glameow was the real star of the show.” She responded. “I’m glad to see that you didn’t get cold feet.”

Serena smiled softly. “Well, I’d never back out of this. I want to win that ribbon!” She replied with a grin. “And if I’m not in it, then I cannot win it!”

Zoey put a hand at her him, and nodded. “That’s the spirit, Serena. I look forward to seeing you in the second round, so be sure to make it through the preliminary round.” She said, placing a hand on Serena’s shoulder.
Serena smiled, and nodded as she raised her hands upward. “Don’t worry! I’ll definitely make it through the preliminary round!” She exclaimed.

---

After a few more coordinators had their turn on the stage, Opalline was up next. As she made her way to the stage, she energetically tossed a glass-encased poké ball into the air. “Bellossom, sparkle!” As it popped open, many sparkling flower petals burst forth into the air as a Bellossom emerged among them. “Use petal dance!”

While still in the air, Bellossom twirled, summoning a storm of flower petals on the stage to surround itself. “Follow it up with moonblast, but hold onto it!” Opalline called out. In response, Bellossom brought forth a beautiful, dazzling light that resembled the moon above them, illuminating the petals softly.

Opalline smiled as she gazed at the effects her Bellossom had created on stage. “Alright, unleash that moonblast!” She instructed. Bellossom unleashed the moonblast attack, scattering the attack all over the stage. As each tiny beam of light collided with the petals, the petals disintegrated into the air, creating a pink glittery effect.

Opalline’s Bellossom bounced to her side, and the two of them both finished with a cute curtsey as the crowd cheered.
“You made great use of your Bellossom’s varied attacks to show off an astounding combination. It was just beautiful!” Mr. Contesta commented.

“Remarkable!” Mr. Sukizo followed up. He was not exactly a man of many words, especially when judging a contest.

“Your Bellossom thrives when surrounded by beautiful flower petals. It really emphasizes the biology of its species.” Nurse Joy finished up.

Opalline went backstage with Bellossom, and met up with Serena there. Serena turned to Opalline and smiled. “Your Bellossom is really great!” She said, gently petting Opalline’s Pokémon.

Zoey turned to them, and glanced at Opalline. “Bellossom is a great choice for the
preliminary round. It’s a natural born performer.” She commented. “I can tell you put a lot of work into training it.”

Opalline looked at Zoey, and looked amazed. “Oh! You’re Zoey, the girl who won the Sinnoh Grand Festival a couple of years ago!” She observed. “I really loved your performance!”

Zoey rubbed the back of her head bashfully. “Well, I’m just doing what I love.” She responded.

---

After a short while, Serena was called to the main stage. Serena excitedly tossed a poké ball into the air, unleashing her Braixen. “Come out, Braixen!” Braixen landed on her hands, before bouncing up to land on her feet.

Serena grinned. “Use flamethrower to surround me with your flames!” She instructed as she held her hands out toward Braixen. Braixen sprinted to Serena, leaped towards her with arms outstretched. As Braixen’s paws landed in Serena’s hands, Serena tossed Braixen upwards. Braixen snatched up her wooden wand from inside her tail, and started to fire her flamethrower to surround the stage in flames.

“Follow it up with a fire blast above us!” Serena commanded! Braixen landed on her feet, then aimed her wand upwards, blasting a powerful, star-shaped flame up above her and her trainer. “Now, use hidden power!”

Braixen started to spin on one foot as she started to fire bright, colorful orbs into the sea of flames that surrounded. As it performed however, Braixen lost her footing, and much to Serena’s horror, the fire-type Pokémon fell face-first onto the floor.

“Braixen!” She yowled in horror as she ran to her fallen Pokémon. The unseasoned coordinator knelt down to her Braixen, placing her hands on the Pokémon’s back as she helped it up. Serena hugged her Braixen close, rubbing her back. “Are you okay, Braixen?”

Braixen was momentarily stunned, before coming to the realization that she had failed her performance. Upon clarity, Braixen seemed upset about her mistake.

Serena looked at her Pokémon. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m just glad you’re not hurt.” She said, gently petting Braixen’s face in an attempt to comfort the bipedal fox-like Pokémon.

---

Backstage, Serena and Braixen sat on a bench together, both clearly nervous. Serena was watching the screen intently as she waited to see the result. The first coordinator among the top 8 to show up was Opalline. Among the passing coordinators, Zoey showed up about halfway through it. Serena stared in anticipation as she waited to see who the eighth coordinator would be. Much to her disappointment, but with no surprise, the eighth trainer, was not herself.

Braixen looked a bit disappointed and looked down after seeing the result. Serena looked at her. “It’s okay Braixen. We’ll just have to work on it and try again next time.” The blonde declared, rubbing the Pokémon’s back.

Zoey approached Serena, and placed a hand on Serena’s shoulder. “You sure are good with handling grief.” She said. “Next time, get some more practice in. I want to see you at your best.”

Serena looked up at Zoey, and grinned. “Right! I will get better so that I can make it into the battle round with you!” She claimed.

Zoey smiled and put her hand at her hip. “I look forward to it, Serena. I hope to see you at the next contest!” The red-haired teen encouraged.

Serena smiled and nodded. “I’ll be sure to give it my best the next time we compete.” She responded.

---

Serena stayed at the contest hall, moving to the bleachers to sit with Wally, so that she could see how Opalline and Zoey both do in the battle round. She watched in awe as each respective coordinator defeated their opponents elegantly, until Opalline and Zoey were to face one another in the final round.

Zoey tossed her poké ball. “Mismagius! Curtain!” The red-haired girl shouted. The ball opened with colorful stars swirling around Mismagius. As Mismagius took flight, the colorful stars disintegrated into the air surrounding it.

Opalline smiled and tossed her poké ball into the air. “Azumarill! Sparkle!” The white-haired teen called out. The ball popped open, spraying bubbles into the air as an Azumarill emerged fro the capsule.

The announcer, Vivian, excitedly raised her arm upward to the timer, with the opposing coordinators displayed around it. “It’s the final round between Opalline and Zoey! The winner of this battle will be the one to obtain the Dewford Town ribbon! We have five minutes on the clock, starting now!” She announced as the digital timer began to tick decreasingly.

Opalline thrust her arm forward to signify her upcoming command. “Azumarill, use aqua jet while spraying bubble beam around you!” The white-haired coordinator called out.

Azumarill suddenly became engulfed in water as she bounced forward in the opposing Mismagius’ direction, firing a stream of bubbles around itself. Upon the scoreboard, some of Zoey’s points could be seen falling a little bit.

Zoey braced herself, almost as if she was the one that would need to prepare for the opposing coordinator’s Pokémon. “Mismagius, use psychic in order to bring Azumarill’s bubbles right back to it!”

Mismagius took to the air in a dignified manner. The witch-like Pokémon’s eyes glowed softly, along with the bubbles that surrounded Opalline’s Azumarill. The ghost-type ruthlessly sent the opposing Pokémon’s bubbles, now shimmering with psychic power, right back at it, causing Azumarill’s aqua jet to cancel out as it crashed to the ground.

“Oooh! And Mismagius sends Azumarill’s beautiful bubbles right back at it, using its own attack against it! That will cost Opalline dearly!” Vivian’s commentary echoed throughout the stadium, while the scoreboard showed a fifth of Opalline’s points depleting for all to see.

Opalline winced, clenching her hand as she watched her Azumarill pick itself up off the ground. “Alright Azumarill, use ice beam to turn the battlefield into ice!” She ordered.

Azumarill hopped high into the air, and shot a cold, sparkling beam straight for the ground, causing the battlefield to freeze over, as well as create rough pillars of ice.

Opalline thrust her open hand forward with confidence. “Now Azumarill, bounce between those pillars to get to Mismagius, then use aqua jet!”

Azumarill slid toward a pillar, and bounced off of it, jumping to the next with ease. The water-type hopped from pillar to pillar until it had an opening on the Mismagius, who tried its best to keep up with Azumarill. The blue, rabbit-like Pokémon engulfed itself in water as it slammed itself into Mismagius’ backside.

“Wow! What a creative use for ice beam, and what a breath-taking display of Azumarill’s jumping skills! It’s almost like a circus act!” Vivian declared, while some of Zoey’s points depleted.

---

Meanwhile, inside of a tailor shop, where a green-haired male started to approach a desk, he took notice of the Pokémon Contest between Zoey and Opalline battle playing on a television mounted on a wall. He turned to watch, and smirked a little. “Well isn’t that interesting...one of Sinnoh’s past Grand Festival winners is competing in this season’s Hoenn Contests.” He said, glancing down at his Roserade, who stood by his side. “Looks like we’ve got some real competition this time around, Roserade.”

Roserade looked up at the green-haired trainer, and grinned as it nodded in agreement, before proceeding to walk ahead of him.
The green-haired teen approached the desk, and gave the receptionist a polite gaze. “I’m here to pick up the clothes I requested.” He stated.

The black-haired receptionist looked up at the presumed customer, pushing up her pink glasses. “What’s the name for the order?” She asked.
The young man grinned, folding his arms confidently. “Drew.” He answered, meeting the woman’s gaze.

The receptionist looked through her computer, and nodded. “Ah, right. I remember now. Your request was just finished today.” She announced, presenting a box with Drew’s name on it, to the teen.

Drew smiled as he accepted the box. “Thank you. Have a nice day now.” He said as he walked out of the tailor shop, Roserade walking by his side. He looked down at Roserade, and grinned. “Alright Roserade, we’ll just have to show them what a real coordinator looks like in the next contest, won’t we?” The male exclaimed. Roserade let out a confident cry in response to its trainer.

 

[OpalSparks]

The Dewford Town Pokémon Contest battle stage was the current home to an intense contest battle between Zoey’s Mismagius and Opalline’s Azumarill. One after another, a frenzy of beautiful attack moves decorated the stage in the heat of the battle. Only about a minute and a half remained on the clock in the battle that would determine the victor of the Dewford Town Pokémon Contest. Zoey currently held the advantage over Opalline by a few points. Both Mismagius and Azumarill were beginning to look worn out.


“Mismagius! Use shock wave!” Zoey called out, waving her arm in the direction of the opposing coordinator’s Pokémon. In response, the witch-like ghost Pokémon sent a wave of electricity right at Azumarill!


“Azumarill! Use ice beam to freeze that shock wave in its tracks!” Opalline ordered, taking on a stance as if she were the one about to brace for the attack. Azumarill launched a cold, freezing beam of ice at the electric attack, and as ice froze around the electricity, it gleamed beautifully, lighting up the whole stage for a long, few moments, before bursting. Shards of ice fell slowly, shining brilliantly like diamonds. The counter attack dealt massive damage to Zoey’s remaining points, leaving her with very little points left for the remainder of the match.


Zoey was starting to feel as if she were backed into a corner, and began to consider that she may have perhaps underestimated her opponent just a bit. “Alright Mismagius, use double team to surround Azumarill, and follow it up with confuse ray!” Zoey commanded. Mismagius used double team to surround Azumarill with copies of itself, and simultaneously used confuse ray.


Opalline’s Azumarill seemed a bit nervous, losing its grace, causing Opalline’s points to dwindle down. “Azumarill, don’t panic! It’s just a trick!” Opalline called out. “Spin around, and use bubble beam!”


Azumarill managed to compose itself, and twirl around on one foot to fire bubble beam all around itself, and eventually even hit the real Mismagius.


Just as the stage had been cleared of Mismagius’ copies, the timer on the scoreboard let out a loud ding to indicate that the clock had reached 0:00. “Time’s up!” Vivian announced. “The winner of the Dewford Contest is…Opalline!”


Opalline looked a bit exhausted, and a little surprised. She smiled warmly now, and ran over to her Azumarill, hugging the aqua rabbit Pokémon! “We did it Azumarill! You did such a great job!” She praised the Pokémon excitedly.


Zoey approached Opalline, and smiled as she reached her hand out. “I will admit, you caught me off guard. But next time, it will be different.” The red-haired trainer said, smiling. “You better win four more ribbons so that I can see you at the Hoenn Grand Festival.”


Opalline looked at Zoey, and smiled as she took her hand, shaking with her. “It makes me so happy to hear that from you, Zoey! You truly are one of my biggest inspirations!” She said.


Zoey blushed just a little, and rubbed the back of her head, unsure of how to handle that claim. “I’m glad to hear that from another coordinator.”

---

Opalline stood in front of Mr. Contesta, who awaited her with a case that contained the Dewford Town ribbon. The ribbon was a seafoam green, with a bow-tie shape, and a silver medallion in the middle. “For winning the Dewford Town contest, I present this ribbon to you, Opalline.” He said.


Opalline smiled, took the ribbon in her hand, and looked up at Mr. Contesta. “Thank you so much!” She said, and excitedly placed the ribbon into her previously empty ribbon case. The case was a cute pearl pink with a white Pokémon Contest logo on it.


Vivian smiled as she stood next to Opalline. “And with that, our Dewford Town Pokémon Contest has come to a close! We thank you all, coordinators and fans alike, for coming to the Dewford Town Contest Hall!” Vivian announced, as the crowd cheered.


In the crowd, Serena smiled faintly, and stood up, holding her hand out to help Wally up. “Let’s try to catch up with Opalline and congratulate her.” She said. “I’m a little sad that I lost, but…I had a great opportunity to better understand Pokémon Contests by watching them from the bleachers.”


Wally took Serena’s hand, and stood up as she pulled him up. “Alright then!” He said, looking a little surprised by Serena’s mood.

---

Opalline was beginning to leave the Dewford Town Contest Hall. She no longer had her hair braided, and was simply wearing a black headband in it. She wore a simple, light pink blouse with puffy sleeves, and a black suspender dress that wrapped just under her chest before the skirting reached down mid-thigh. She wore black boots with pink accents and shoelaces, with black thigh-high socks. She had a small, rectangular-shaped messenger bag that was printed to look like a love ball.


Serena and Wally had just managed to catch up to Opalline. “Opalline, wait!” Serena called out to her.


Opalline turned around to see Serena. She seemed a bit surprised to see the blonde. “Serena? You’re still here?” She asked.


Serena stopped once she reached Opalline. “Of course! I wanted to see how you and Zoey would do in this contest. You were so amazing!” She exclaimed.


Opalline blushed a little, and looked flustered by the compliments. “Oh…umm…t-thank you, Serena.” She said nervously. She then noticed the younger green-haired male behind her. “Oh? And who might you be?” She asked.


Wally looked at Opalline. “Oh! M-My name’s Wally. I’m traveling together with Serena, except I’m collecting gym badges.” He responded.


Opalline thought for a moment. “Hmm…You seem like a gentle trainer…” She said. “Hey, why don’t you two follow me to the Pokémon Center? I have something I want to show you guys.”


Serena smiled, and nodded. “Okay! I have to go there anyways! I’m expecting a package from a friend.” She responded, and looked at Wally. “Come on! Let’s go!”


Wally smiled and nodded. “Okay!” He said, and followed Serena and Opalline to the Dewford Town Pokémon Center.

---

Once the three trainers arrived to the Pokémon Center, Serena approached the front desk, and looked at Nurse Joy. “Nurse Joy, have any packages arrived for me?” She asked. “My name is Serena.”


Nurse Joy smiled, and nodded. She reached down, pulled a small box up, and set it on the desk in front of Serena. “This arrived from the Kalos region.” She said.


Serena smiled a bit. “Thank you, Nurse Joy!” She said, taking the package to one of the couches in the lounge.Wally and Opalline followed her, both seemingly interested in what Serena received. Serena carefully opened the box, and inside was a Rotom phone with a pink phone case. Next to it was a red bag tied with a yellow ribbon.


Opalline looked surprised. “Wow Serena! You sure have a generous friend!” She said. “That’s a Rotom phone!”


Serena picked up a note with instructions on how to set up the Rotom phone. She followed the instructions, and once the Rotom phone booted up, it floated in the air on its own! Serena looked surprised. “Whoa! Looks like I won’t have to worry about dropping it.” She said. She then picked up the present bag, and opened it. She looked really happy. “Aw! They sent me some Lumiose Galettes! Those are so hard to get!”


Wally looked confused. “What’s a Lumiose Galette?” He asked, looking at the bag curiously.


Serena smiled at Wally. “They’re small round cakes with filling inside. Think kind of like a cookie, but more cake-like.” She explained, pulling one out of the bag. “Here, why don’t you try one?”


Wally smiled a bit. “Thank you, Serena!” He said, taking it. He softly bit into the Lumiose Galette, and smiled warmly. “It’s so good…!” He said.


Serena smiled at Wally, and now handed one to Opalline. “Here Opalline, you can have one too!” She offered.


Opalline smiled as she took a bite. “Wally’s not joking, this really is good!” She exclaimed happily. “Thank you Serena! You’re really sweet!”


Serena smiled, and had a Lumiose Galette for herself. “Clemont and Bonnie are so sweet for this…” She said. She put away the rest of the Lumiose Galettes into her backpack, and put away her Rotom phone.


Opalline smiled. “Oh right! I want to show you guys something.” She said, standing up. “Come on, follow me!” She beckoned.


Serena and Wally stood up, and followed Opalline to one of the Pokémon Center’s bedrooms. As the three trainers walked inside of the room, Opalline led them to a dresser with an incubator sitting on top of it. Opalline picked up the incubator, which contained a blue egg with white spots on it. She showed it to Wally. “I found this egg when I woke up one morning just sitting right next to me, but I’ve got so many Pokémon already.” She explained. “Wally, I want you to take this egg, if you wouldn’t mind.”


Wally looked quite surprised, and looked at Opalline. “A-Are you sure you just want to give it to me?” He asked. “I only just met you!”


Opalline smiled softly at the younger trainer. “If you’re traveling with Serena, then I’m sure that you’re a kind trainer too. I’m certain you’ll take good care of it. And I can tell just by your demeanor that you’re gentle.” She explained. “Won’t you please take it?”


Wally hesitantly took the incubator from Opalline. He looked amazed as he held the incubator close, staring at the egg inside. “It…it reminds me so much of when my Kirlia was still just an egg.” He said, smiling softly.


Opalline smiled and looked pleased. “So you have experience with Pokémon eggs then! That’s even better! I just know you’ll take good care of it, Wally!” She responded.


Serena smiled as she looked at the incubator. “I wonder what’s going to hatch from it?” She wondered out loud. “Whatever hatches from it, I bet it will make a great addition to your team!”


Wally just smiled warmly as he held the incubator close to himself. “And I’ll make sure to take good care of it, and love it, whatever Pokémon hatches from it.”

---

Serena stood outside on the balcony from the room she was currently staying at, in the Dewford Town Pokémon Center. She was currently using her brand new Rotom Phone to video call Clemont.


“I really appreciate the gifts you two sent me.” Serena spoke gratefully as she looked at Clemont through the screen. “You even got a phone case in my favorite color! That was so thoughtful of you!”


Clemont rubbed the back of his head, and laughed a bit. “Oh it was nothing, Serena.” He said, smiling softly. “Where are you going to go next?”


Serena smiled a bit. “Well, my friends and I are going to take the ferry to Slateport City in a couple of days. There’s going to be a contest there in a couple of weeks.” She answered.


Clemont smiled a bit, and nodded. “I’m really impressed with the way you handled your loss in this contest.” He said. “When you lost your first Showcase, I could tell how disappointed you were, despite the way you tried your best to hide it.”


Serena smiled faintly, and nodded. “Well, it was disappointing to lose the preliminary…but it gave me a great opportunity to better understand contests by watching Zoey and Opalline’s intense battle round in the final round.” The teen explained.


Clemont looked a little confused. “I was a bit surprised to see battling when I watched the contest on television.” He said. “I thought the point of contests was to show off a Pokémon’s aesthetics.”


Serena smiled at Clemont. “Well, that is true, but from what I understand, being able to show off a Pokémon’s beautiful moves in the heat of battle is the true test for a Pokémon Coordinator.” She explained. “I think it must take great skill to both battle, and be judged for your Pokémon’s moves, and how they’re used.”


Clemont thought for a moment as he listened to Serena’s explanation of the Pokémon Contest’s battle round. “...I think I understand it now.” He said, smiling. “And now that you put it that way, I must say, it sounds like Pokémon Contests are tougher than I initially thought. I think that a Pokémon Coordinator must be clever to show off cool, and beautiful moves from their Pokémon. It’s more than just cute Pokémon, it’s a true test of skill!” He concluded.


Serena smiled a bit, and giggled. “You almost sound like an expert on Pokémon Contests for someone who is just now learning about them.” She responded.


Clemont chuckled a bit, adjusting his glasses nervously. “I want to learn more about them, so that I can give you my full support, just as I have for you in Pokémon Showcase.” He explained. “Anyways, I’ve got to go. I have to start making dinner. And I’m guessing it’s quite late in the Hoenn region.”


Serena smiled and nodded. “Yeah, it’s already late at night over here.” She said. “I’ll be getting some sleep. Goodnight Clemont.”


Clemont smiled and waved at the camera. “Goodnight Serena. Sleep well.” He responded, before hanging up on the other teen.


Serena smiled, and put away her Rotom Phone, and pulled the sliding door open, stepping into the Pokémon Center bedroom to get some much needed sleep.

 

[OpalSparks]

A couple of days had passed by since the recent Pokémon Contest in Dewford Town. The morning sun beamed down on Serena, Wally, and Opalline as the three trainers ran for the docks to catch the next ferry to Slateport City.


Serena giggled as she looked back at the other two Pokémon Trainers. She noticed Wally starting to fall behind, and started to slow her pace. “Are you alright Wally?” She asked.
Wally panted, and started to slow even more, until eventually, he couldn’t run anymore. He was holding the incubator that contained his newly-obtained egg close to him. “I…am not used…t-to running…!” The young Pokémon Trainer just barely heaved the words out.


Opalline stopped now to check up on Wally. She placed her hand on Wally’s shoulder. “Maybe we should just walk. We’re not running late, anyways, so it will be fine.” She suggested, and looked at Serena. “Right Serena?”


Serena looked at Opalline, and nodded in agreement. “Yeah, you’re right. I don’t want Wally to keel over before we even get to the ferry.” She responded. “We’re almost there anyways.”


In the distance, a slender black Pokémon with long white fur stood on a tall rock in the ocean. It had a blade-like structure on its head, along with a tail to match. It spotted the three Pokémon Trainers, and stared at them almost menacingly.


Serena couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched, and looked around nervously. She looked at the ocean, noticed a Pokémon in the distance, and squinted her eyes. She recognized it from the poster she saw at the Pokémon Center, and looked a bit surprised. She called on her Rotom Phone to try to get a closer look at the Pokémon, but before she knew it, the Pokémon had vanished.


Opalline noticed Serena’s strange behavior, and looked at her curiously. “Hm? What’s up, Serena?” She asked.


Serena looked at Opalline, and rubbed the back of her head. “Er…You see, I thought I saw a Pokémon over there…” She said, pointing at the high rock in the ocean. “...But it’s not there anymore.”


Wally looked at the rock, and then looked at Serena. “Maybe it was a really fast Pokémon?” He suggested, then looked down at the incubator in his arms.


Serena shrugged. “I guess so.” She said. “It’s just…I think it was staring at us.” The blonde teen went on.


Opalline looked at Serena. “Well, no use dwelling on it. We’ve got a ferry to catch, after all.” The white-haired teen responded. “Besides, there are plenty of other Pokémon for us to find along the way!”


Serena glanced down at the shorter teen, and smiled faintly. “Yeah, you’re right.” She agreed. “Thanks Opalline.”

---

It wasn’t long before the three Pokémon Trainers arrived to the ferry going toward Slateport City. As the three of them walked toward the ferry ride they paid for, Serena noticed a couple of familiar faces calling from her from the railing of the ship. Serena gasped, clearly surprised. “Clemont! Bonnie!? What are you two doing here!?” She exclaimed.


Clemont, along with his younger sister Bonnie, looked down at the three Pokémon Trainers. The geeky inventor adjusted his glasses, and looked at Serena. “Well…Bonnie begged to travel with you. And you know I can’t let her go off on her own, so…”


Serena smiled warmly, looking quite emotionally touched as she gazed at her two friends. “So…you two decided to accompany me in the Hoenn region?” She asked.


Clemont smiled, and nodded. “Right. Besides, I told you that I want to learn more about Pokémon Contests, so that I can support you. And I’m sure an in-person experience would be better than just watching you on television.” He explained.


Bonnie smiled happily, placing her Dedenne on top of her own head. “And I get to meet more and more cute Pokémon from another region!” She added.


Serena smiled at the two siblings. “Give us just a moment, we’ll be up there soon!” She called out to them. She led Wally and Opalline to the ferry. Once their passes were cleared, the three of them boarded the ferry to meet up with Clemont and Bonnie.


Serena looked at Clemont and Bonnie, then to Wally and Opalline. “Clemont, Bonnie, these are my friends, Wally, and Opalline. Wally will be traveling with us through the Hoenn region. And Opalline here is a fellow Pokémon Coordinator. She’s joining us for the trip to Slateport, as the next contest is over there.” She explained. “Wally, Opalline, these are my friends from Kalos, Clemont, and his younger sister Bonnie.”


Wally smiled faintly. “I-It’s nice to meet you.” He said to them sheepishly. “Your friend Serena has been really nice to me. She helps me train my Pokémon, too.” The green-haired boy stated.


Opalline gave Clemont and Bonnie a gentle smile. “So you two are from the Kalos region? I’m from Azalea Town in the Johto region.” She greeted.


Bonnie stared at Opalline in awe, and let out a happy squeal! “Opalline! You’re a total keeper!” She exclaimed, and excitedly kneeled down on a single knee in front of the Pokémon Coordinator. “Won’t you please take care of my brother?” She pleaded. Her Dedenne had hopped to the floor, and copied Bonnie’s pose.
Opalline looked down at Bonnie, oblivious to Clemont’s now-reddened face. “W…What do you mean?” She asked the younger girl.


Bonnie stood up, eagerly staring up at Opalline, raising her arms a little. “I mean, I want you to be his bride! He’s a great inventor, and an amazing cook! And you’d be just perfect-” The young girl was interrupted as she was lifted off of the ground, and away from Opalline by a long, mechanical arm. “Hey! What’s the big idea!?” She whined!


Clemont looked quite frustrated, and embarrassed as he gave Bonnie an annoyed stare. “Bonnie, I’ve told you to stop this a million times now! Please!” He begged, flustered and distraught.


Opalline looked awkwardly at the two siblings, then looked to Serena as the two bickered with one another. “Did…she just…?” She asked.


Serena looked at Opalline, rubbed the back of her head, and laughed just a little. “...She does that a lot, much to Clemont’s dismay.” She explained to Opalline. “Don’t take it too personally.”


Wally looked a bit baffled, but smiled faintly, amused by the whole situation. “...What an…interesting way to greet somebody.” He said sheepishly.


Clemont’s face was thoroughly red, and he looked at Opalline nervously, dropping Bonnie from the mechanical arm attached to his backpack. “I-I’m sorry about that! Please don’t take Bonnie too seriously…” The geeky blonde whined, still embarrassed.


Opalline looked at Clemont, and smiled faintly. “You’re alright, Clemont. I’ll just…take Bonnie’s offer as a compliment.” She said awkwardly, and laughed.


Bonnie pouted just a little bit. “But I am serious, Clemont!” She complained, looking up at her older brother, folding her arms.


Clemont let out an exhausted, troubled sigh in response to Bonnie’s nagging. “Bonnie, hear me out here.” He said, placing his hands on Bonnie’s shoulders. “...I appreciate the knowledge that you want to see me happy, but if you keep just asking every girl we meet to marry me, they might not even consider dating me, let alone marrying me…” The blonde teen explained, adjusting his glasses. “...So please…stop doing that?”


Bonnie listened to Clemont, and sighed, looking away as she put her hands at her hips. “Oh alright…” She muttered. “...But you better get your act together, and actually try to meet girls…or boys, if you swing that way too.”


Clemont’s face turned pink as he lost his composure all over again. “Bonnie! That’s none of your business, you know!” He wailed in humiliation. “Can we please drop the topic of my relationship status, right now!?”


Bonnie laughed a little bit, and shrugged. “Okay, okay! Take it easy, bro.” She responded nonchalantly, then turned to face Wally. “Can I see what kind of Pokémon you have, Wally?” The younger blonde asked.


Wally, who had just been standing by awkwardly while Clemont and Bonnie were bickering, glanced down at Bonnie now. “Oh! Uh, s-sure!” He said. Holding his incubator close in one arm, he used the other to send out Kirlia and Skitty.


Bonnie instantly fell head-over-heels in love at first sight with Wally’s Pokémon as she let out a delighted squeal. “Wow! They’re so cute!” She said, excitedly running up to them. “Hi there you two! I’m Bonnie!” She introduced herself.
Kirlia stared up at Bonnie curiously, while Skitty let out a joyful meow. Skitty stood up on her hind-legs, reaching for Bonnie with her front paws. Bonnie gently took Skitty’s front paws into her own hands, and smiled happily. “What a little cutie…I know about Kirlia, but what is this pink one called?”


Wally smiled sweetly at the younger girl. “That’s Skitty. I caught it around the time that I got my first gym badge.” He explained. “She’s very playful.”


Serena smiled softly at the way that her friends interacted. She felt a warm, fuzzy feeling at the sight of them getting along so well. She then looked up at the sky, and noticed that it was getting dark and cloudy. “Oh my…I swear it was nice out just earlier…” She said.


Opalline looked at the sky as well, and felt a drop of rain fall into her hand. Before the group knew what hit them, warm drops of water suddenly showered them. “We should get inside!” She yelled. “Let’s go!”


The group of Pokémon Trainers, as well as Kirlia and Skitty, made a run for it, along with other passengers of the ferry, to seek shelter from the rain. Water dripped from the skin and hair of each of them as the rain came down hard.


“That’s too bad, I was really looking forward to a relaxing cruise to Slateport City…” Opalline said, looking disappointed. “Where did this storm even come from, anyways?”


Clemont stared out at the storm, and folded his arms as he tried to think. “...Maybe it’s being caused by a Pokémon?” He suggested to the group.


Bonnie looked up at Clemont, a bit surprised by that idea. “Do you really think a Pokémon could do this with the weather?” She asked him.


Clemont glanced down at Bonnie. “Well…you know, Bonnie? After what we went through in the fight against Team Flare, I’m convinced that there isn’t anything that Pokémon can do!” He stated. “Team Flare abused the power of legendary Pokémon to destroy Kalos, after all.”


Opalline looked quite surprised. “Really?” She asked. “That sounds quite scary…” She said, looking worried as she looked outside again. “Serena did mention seeing a Pokémon on the way, that seemingly disappeared…”


Serena looked at Opalline, and smiled faintly. “I don’t think it was a legendary Pokémon. I’m sure everything will be fine.” She said softly to her fellow Pokémon Coordinator, trying to reassure her.

---

Meanwhile, outside, the rainstorm grew worse, and more unsafe as lightning flashed through the clouds. Winds picked up, causing the ocean to move rapidly, sending waves crashing into the ferry heading toward Slateport City.


Bonnie squeaked in fear as she lost her footing inside of the ferry ship, barely catching herself on her brother. “Clemont! I’m scared…!” She wailed, tears in her eyes.


Clemont held onto Bonnie gently. “I-It’s okay Bonnie…” He said, glancing at Serena nervously. He clearly wasn’t convinced that what he said was even remotely true.


The ferry ship rocked quite a bit, causing Opalline to stumble to the side, and fall over as well! A Friend Ball fell out of her bag, and started to roll outside. She gasped. “No! My Bellossom!” She shouted, scrambling up to her feet in order to catch up with the Friend Ball!


Serena gasped. “Opalline, be careful!” She called out, raising her arm in the direction that Opalline took off.


Clemont looked toward Opalline, then looked at Serena. “Serena, keep Bonnie safe. I’ll go make sure Opalline makes it back inside safely.” He said, gently prodding Bonnie toward the honey-haired teen. The blonde male went on ahead of them.


Opalline was running after the Friend Ball, getting splattered with the warm rains of the Hoenn region. No amount of the elements would stop her from rescuing her precious Pokémon, however. “I won’t let you go!” She called out.


The Friend Ball continued to roll away from Opalline, until it bounced off the edge, and was about to fly overboard into the stormy seas!


Opalline gasped, and practically hurled herself above the railing on the deck in order to grab hold of the Friend Ball that contained her Bellossom. “Gotcha!” She shouted, but then felt uneasy as she realized she was about to be swallowed up by the harsh seas. She braced herself for the worst, holding the Friend Ball close to herself.


A mechanical arm launched overboard, catching Opalinel by the suspenders of her dress. Clemont looked down at the endangered Pokémon Coordinator with a determined look in his eyes. “Opalline! Grab my hand!” The geeky blonde shouted, rainwater drenching his hair and clothes, weighing him down considerably. “I’ll help you!”


Opalline, still dazed, didn’t register the other Pokémon Trainer’s voice. She felt the tug on her clothes, and looked up to see the mechanical arm extended from Clemont’s backpack holding onto her, pulling her up slightly.


Clemont continued to pull Opalline up using the mechanical arm from his backpack. He reached his arm down over the railing. “Come on, grab my hand and I’ll pull you back up!” The geeky blonde yelled, trying to make himself heard over the crashing waves beneath them.


Opalline looked a bit amazed, and reached for Clemont’s hand. “O-Okay! Thanks, Clemont…!” She said shakily, looking nervous.


Clemont managed to grab ahold of Opal’s arm within his hand. He reached his other arm down, getting a better grip of the Pokémon Coordinator below him. “I’ve got you!” He called out. “Just hold on tight!”


The ferry ship rocked violently, and the rain cascaded, practically creating a water veil around the ship’s surface. As the ship turned the other way, Clemont seized the opportunity to pull Opalline back onto the deck. He lost his footing, and rolled backwards, hitting the wall.


Opalline saw Clemont hit the wall, and rushed over to him. “Are you okay, Clemont?” She asked him, placing a hand on his shoulder.


Clemont looked up at Opalline, and nodded. “I’m fine! But it’s not really so safe out here.” He stated, getting up off of the floor. “Let’s get back inside!”


Opalline nodded, standing up with Clemont. “Right!” She agreed, starting to head inside with the other Pokémon Trainer.


Serena saw Clemont and Opal, and ran up to them. “Oh thank goodness you two are okay!” She exclaimed. “But you’re both going to catch a cold like this…” She said, pulling a towel out of her backpack. She started drying off Opalline’s hair and face.


Bonnie ran up to Clemont, and hugged him. “Clemont, is this ship going to turn upside down?” She asked worriedly, visibly upset.


Clemont returned Bonnie’s hug, trying to help her feel safe. “Everything will be fine, Bonnie. I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you.” He spoke softly.


Wally returned his Kirlia and Skitty to their Poké Balls, and placed them inside of his beige messenger bag. He looked out the window and saw Slateport City’s docks. “We’re almost there, I’m sure we’ll be just fine!” He said, looking back at the other Pokémon Trainers.

---

What felt like hours, but in reality only lasted minutes, the ferry arrived to Slateport City’s port. Clemont, Wally, Bonnie, Serena, and Opalline left the ship along with all of the other passengers. The group ran for the Pokémon Center in order to take shelter from the storm that pelted the surrounding area.


Now that everybody was out of the storm, and the group had a little peace of mind to think rationally, Opalline looked to Clemont. “Clemont…thank you for saving me from falling off of the ferry.” She said. “I’m sorry to trouble you…I just couldn’t let any of my precious Pokémon be lost at sea.”


Clemont looked down at Opalline, and smiled softly at her. “Hey, it was no trouble at all. I’m just glad that you and your Pokémon are both safe.” He responded.


Opalline curiously looked at Clemont’s backpack. “By the way…I’ve been meaning to ask, what exactly is this arm that comes out of your backpack?” She asked.


Clemont glanced back to his backpack, then looked at Opalline. “Oh! It’s one of my inventions, the Aipom Arm. I use it to pick things up that are out of reach.” He explained.


Opalline looked quite surprised. “You made this?” She asked.


Bonnie smiled a bit and looked at Opalline. “You see, my big brother is a great inventor too!” She chimed, which was flattering to Clemont’s ears. “But…many of his inventions blow up.”


Clemont dramatically fell to the floor upon hearing the last part of Bonnie’s statement. He then scrambled up, and looked at Bonnie. “Bonnie! Give me a break! Failure is a stepping stone to success, you know!”


Serena giggled just a bit at the bickering of the two siblings. She turned her attention to the glass doors of the Pokémon Center, and noticed the strange, slim Pokémon that she had seen before boarding the ferry to Slateport City, standing menacingly in the rain. When she began to walk in the direction of the doors, however, the Pokémon took off, immediately out of sight again.


Wally noticed Serena’s odd behavior, and looked at her curiously. “What’s the matter, Serena?” He asked the older Pokémon Trainer.


Serena looked down at Wally now, and sighed. “...Nothing, I guess. I just thought I saw a Pokémon outside, but…it’s gone now.”


Wally looked at Serena. “Huh…well, this storm doesn’t seem like it’s going to let up any time soon, so I think we should get ready to settle in for the day.” He suggested, glancing down at the incubator in his arms. “I’m going to go have a check-up done for this egg.”


Serena thought for a moment, but smiled faintly, and nodded. “Right. I suppose there’s no use in dwelling on it right now, anyways.” She stated. The teen glanced at Clemont and Bonnie. “I’m going to get all of us a room here for the night.”


Clemont nodded. “Alright. I’m going to fix something up for us to eat then.” He responded to Serena.


Bonnie smiled. “And maybe I could brush everybody’s Pokémon! That would make them feel happy and refreshed!” She suggested.


Serena nodded. “Alright then.” She glanced to Opalline and Wally. “Let’s all let Bonnie brush our Pokémon. She loves doing so, and she’s very good with other people’s Pokémon as well.” She told them.


With that, everybody sent out their Pokémon for Bonnie to take care of while they settled in. Although the trip between Dewford Town and Slateport City was rough and worrisome, what’s important is that everybody made it there safely, and could treat themselves to some much needed rest at the Slateport City Pokémon Center. Who is the mysterious Pokémon that seems to be shadowing our heroes? There are many questions that have yet to be answered, until next time.

 

[OpalSparks]

Warm rays of sunshine beamed down on the beachside city known as Slateport City. The marketplace was booming with business from trainers and everyday townspeople alike. The wind brought with it the gentle, salty scent of Hoenn’s ocean. Many trainers and families were either sunbathing or swimming at the beach.


As for Serena, she, alongside Opalline, Clemont, Bonnie and Wally, strolled through Slateport City’s marketplace. Within the marketplace was a boutique with posters that showed off popular Pokémon Coordinators modeling the clothing sold there.


Serena smiled, and looked at her friends. “You know, I love the dress that my mom bought for me when I started participating in Pokémon Showcase, but I think since I’m doing an entirely different competition here in Hoenn, I should shop for a new dress.” She stated, smiling.


Clemont smiled a bit, and nodded. “I think I get it. You want a fresh look for a fresh beginning, right?” He asked.


Opalline looked at Clemont. “Yer surprisingly observant of fashion considering…well…” She blushed a little, and rubbed the back of her head. “Umm…n-nevermind, that would be better left unsaid.” She finished sheepishly.


Bonnie giggled just a bit. “Well, Clemont may not be fashionable, but it’s hard not to be observant when he’s friends with somebody as fashionable as Serena is!” She exclaimed.


Clemont leered at Bonnie, slightly annoyed by her statement. “Now exactly what is that supposed to mean?” He asked, light glaring from his glasses as he looked at Bonnie.


Wally looked at them awkwardly, and laughed softly. He seemed almost nostalgic for a moment, and sighed. “Let’s just go inside and help Serena pick a new dress.” He said to them.

---

The group of Pokémon Trainers stepped inside of the boutique, which was decorated with many fancy dresses and suits. Serena looked around, and her gaze met with a bright, sparkly orange tutu dress, with scarlet accents. It had a brown and black double belt with a rectangular blue gem decorating it. The top had a white blouse underneath, with puffy sleeves decorated with ribbons. She was immediately captivated by this dress as she stared in awe.


Bonnie saw Serena looking at the dress, and squealed. “That dress looks almost like it was tailor-made for you, Serena! It would look perfect on you!” She stated excitedly. Her Dedenne let out a happy cry in agreement.


Serena blushed a little, but smiled faintly. “You think so?” She asked. She then looked at the others. “What do you guys think?” She asked.


Opalline smiled. “You should totally try it on!” She agreed. “I think you could really pull it off!”


Clemont smiled at Serena. “If you love it so much, then maybe you should give it a try.” He agreed.


Wally smiled warmly at Serena, holding the incubator containing his Pokémon egg close to him. “Go on, Serena. Try it on and see how it makes you feel.” He chimed in.


Serena smiled at her friends, and nodded. She took the dress to a fitting room, stepping inside to change. After a few minutes, Serena stepped out of the fitting room, wearing the dress. She showed it off to her friends. “Well? What do you guys think?” She asked them.


Clemont looked amazed, and smiled. “Wow! You really look great in orange!” He exclaimed. “I bet you’ll look especially great alongside Braixen!” He suggested.


Serena smiled. “That’s a good idea, Clemont! Braixen, come on out!” She called out as she tossed Braixen’s Poké ball, letting the two-legged yellow fox out. The two of them struck cute poses together.


Wally smiled as he watched them. “Wow! You two make an amazing team, even outside of battle!” He exclaimed in awe.


Opalline smiled warmly at the duo. “Yer Pokémon really compliments ya in that dress so well.” She stated.


Serena blushed a little from the shower of compliments from her friends, but seemed happy to hear it. “Thanks, you guys. I’m definitely going to buy this dress.” She said, and looked at Opalline. “What about you, Opalline? Wouldn’t you like to try something new?” She asked.


Opalline looked a bit caught off guard by the question. She averted her gaze from Serena. “Well…I don’t know…I…I don’t think any of these dresses are really my style…”


Bonnie seemed a little confused as she looked at Opalline. “Why not? You would totally look cute in one of these dresses. And don’t think I didn’t notice you looking at that one, because you totally were staring at it!” She exclaimed, pointing a finger at a sparkling mint green tutu dress, with a cute darker green heart-shaped gem decorating the top, and a belt with a bunch of chained hearts hanging from it.


Clemont glanced at it, and then looked back at Opalline. “Huh…I think it might actually look pretty nice on you.” He suggested.


Opalline blushed a little bit, and looked nervous. She rubbed the back of her head. “I don’t know…” She said sheepishly.


Serena looked at Opalline, and approached her. She placed her hands on Opalline’s shoulders. “Why don’t you try it on, and pose with me?” She suggested. “It’ll be easier with a friend by your side if you’re nervous.”


Opalline looked at Serena, and smiled a little bit. “...Well…okay, I guess I’d be fine with that.” She said. She grabbed the mint green dress, and entered the fitting room with it. After a long while, Opalline nervously stepped out of the fitting room with the dress on.


Serena smiled and took Opalline’s wrist gently, pulling her closer. “You look absolutely stunning in that dress, Opalline!” She complimented with a wink.


Clemont looked at Opalline, and blushed a little bit as he admired the way the green dress complimented Opalline’s shiny white hair. He pushed up his glasses awkwardly. “It’s…” He began.


“Wow…I have never seen somebody manage to make a dress from this boutique look so hideous!” A new voice exclaimed from behind them.


Clemont, Wally, Bonnie, Serena, and Opalline all glanced at the source of the rude comment. A girl with bubblegum pink hair, tied in long pigtails that reached almost to her ankles, approached the group with a peppy bounce to her step. Her green eyes pierced Opalline with critique, as she placed her hands at her hips. The girl wore a white crop top with a black and gray striped undershirt beneath it, along with a bright pink skirt with black ruffles underneath. She wore loose dark gray socks, and cute bright pink shoes with them.


Opalline looked at the girl in disbelief, not at all expecting such a rude comment. “What’s yer problem?” She asked.


The pink-haired teen giggled at Opalline’s response. “The way your subpar appearance is killing the atmosphere of such a nice store like this is my problem. You don’t deserve such a cute dress, with the way you’re just going to give it a bad reputation.” She sneered.


Opalline was starting to look visibly upset now. “The only thing killing the atmosphere of this store is yer snobby attitude!” She yelled.


The pink-haired teen dramatically gagged. “Jeez, what is with the way you talk? You sound so goofy. And you’re supposed to be a Pokémon Coordinator? You’re not refined enough for such a profession.” She laughed. “You should just give up now!”


Opalline trembled a bit, and stormed off back into the fitting room. Serena looked worried as she raised her hand in Opalline’s direction. “Opalline!” She called out helplessly, with no answer. The blonde teen glared at the other girl, who just laughed and walked off, seeming satisfied by Opalline’s reaction.


Clemont sighed, looking rather annoyed. “What an absolute bully…” He said, folding his arms.


Bonnie looked up at Clemont, and sighed. “Poor Opalline…Maybe we shouldn’t have pushed her out of her comfort zone.”

---

Opalline quickly changed back into her usual clothes, but remained inside of the fitting room, and sobbed. She looked in the mirror, and couldn’t help but to feel bad about her image after what had been said to her.


Serena stood outside of the fitting room where Opalline isolated herself, and knocked on the door. “Opalline? May I come in?” She asked, sounding worried about the other Pokémon Coordinator.


Opalline sniffed, wiping some tears away from her face, although it proved useless as she continued to cry. “...S…S-Sure…” She wailed.


Serena stepped inside, closing the door behind her as she sat down next to Opalline. She placed her hand on one of Opalline’s shoulders. “Opalline…don’t listen to that girl. That dress looked absolutely beautiful on you!” Serena insisted.


Opalline looked down at the floor, still sobbing. “I…I don’t want to get the dress. I-It doesn’t suit me…” She wailed, clearly upset.


Serena rubbed Opalline’s back. “It’s okay, Opalline…” She spoke gently. “If you don’t want to wear it, I understand. But I just want you to know, that there is nothing wrong with the way you looked in it. It was cute on you! That girl was probably just jealous.”


Opalline looked at Serena. “You think so? I mean, there isn’t really much about me for her to be jealous of…” She said, beating herself up.


Serena looked at Opalline. “Don’t talk about yourself like that! You are very cute! I mean, come on Opalline, Bonnie asked you to marry Clemont, and she only does that when she thinks a girl is either really pretty or talented!” The blonde exclaimed, trying to get it through Opalline’s head.


Opalline blushed a little bit now, and started to calm down. “...Is that true? She doesn’t just do that with any girl…?” She asked Serena sheepishly.


Serena smiled at Opalline softly. “Absolutely, Opalline. I mean, I’m surprised you’re not dating anybody! You are a catch!”


Opalline blushed immensely, and she looked quite flustered. “O-Okay Serena, I-I get it!” She practically squeaked.
Serena smiled softly, and gave Opalline a hug. “I’m going to buy my dress real quick, and then maybe you and I could go to the Contest Hall to register for the Slateport City contest coming up next week.” She suggested.


Opalline looked at Serena, and sighed. She smiled softly, and returned Serena’s hug. “Thank you, Serena. I feel a little better after talking to you.” She said, looking at the mirror. “...I just got a little upset because…well, I’ve always had issues with my image. My mother was always complaining about the things I would wear, and would always remind me that she didn’t think I had the looks for it…”


Serena frowned, and looked at Opalline. “Well, she doesn’t sound like a very great mother, no offense…You have your own style, and you should wear what makes you feel good about yourself.” She said.


Opalline looked at Serena. “...Thank you, Serena. You have no idea how much I needed to hear that today.” She said, smiling softly. “Let’s get ready to head on out.” She suggested.

---

Eventually, Serena had changed back into her casual clothing, and after purchasing the new dress, she left the boutique with her friends. “We’re going to the Slateport City Contest Hall next.” She said to them.


Clemont walked up to where Opalline was, and walked next to her. He looked down at her with gentle eyes. “Are you feeling alright?” He asked.


Opalline looked up at Clemont as they walked. “Y…Yeah, I’ll be fine.” She said. “Thanks for checking up on me, though.” The white-haired girl said. “You and Serena are both really sweet.”


Clemont blushed faintly, and rubbed the back of his head. “Well…Serena is sweet for sure, though I’m not so sure that’s the best word to describe me.” He said shyly.


Serena smiled faintly as she looked at the two of them, and let out a small giggle. “Clemont isn’t used to compliments, is he?” She asked Bonnie.


Bonnie looked up at Serena. “Well, not when they’re aimed at him, specifically.” She said. “His inventions on the other hand…that is something he can easily accept compliments for.”


Serena smiled softly, and continued on her way to the Slateport City Contest Hall with the rest of the group.

---

Upon arriving, there was a crowd centered around a very popular Pokémon Coordinator. The Coordinator was a young woman in a sparkly blue and white tutu dress, with fluff that resembled cotton candy around her neck, arms, and blue shoes. Her aquamarine hair was tied in a zigzag-shaped ponytail, and her long flipped-out bangs reached her waist. She had a hairclip with a keystone embedded inside to complete her outfit. An Altaria was flying low next to her.


“Hiiiii ev-er-y-bo-dy! Lisia here! Me and my Altaria, Ali, have come to Slateport City’s Contest Hall for a bit of FUN!” The young coordinator announced to the crowd. “Dazzling! Dizzying!” The Pokémon Coordinator did a smooth twirl on one foot! “Doldrums defying…!”


As Lisia performed her little dance, people in the crowd began to copy her moves, and echo her phrases.


Lisia smiled big, and stopped twirling in order to pose for her many fans. “Lisia’s Miraculous Contest Scouting!” The girl shouted excitedly, giving the crowd a wink!


“Lissi! Scout me to be your next boyfriend!” A young fan within the crowd shouted in response!


“Lisia, can I get yours and Ali’s autograph?” A younger girl in the crowd asked, holding up an autograph card for the Pokémon Coordinator to sign. Lisia smiled at the young girl, and did just as she asked. Ali dipped his talon in the bottle of ink the little girl carried, and pressed it against the card afterwards.


Clemont, Wally, Bonnie, Serena and Opalline all stared at the commotion that was going on in front of the Slateport City Contest Hall.


“Alrighty! I’m going to bring another fantastic trainer into the wild world of contesting!” Lisia announced, looking amongst the crowd. A young boy with light green hair caught the Pokémon Coordinator’s eyes, and she grinned. She approached Wally, and got up close to his face. “You there, watching me with that baffled expression on your face! Hi! Have you never joined a contest?”


Wally looked startled, and stumbled back a little bit. “M-Me? Well…n-no, I haven’t.” He said sheepishly.


Lisia grinned with delight. “That’s just what I wanted to hear!” She exclaimed, grabbing Wally’s wrist. She proceeded to drag along the very confused and baffled young boy to the center of the crowd with her.


Wally felt really tense and nervous, seeing all of the strangers staring at him. He awkwardly looked at Lisia. “W-What is this…?” He asked.


Lisia glanced at Wally, smiled, and then looked to the crowd again. “Let’s get this show on the road! This is the trainer I’m going to scout today!” She said, and then lowered down to Wally’s level. “And your name is…?”


Wally blushed a little, embarrassed to be the center of attention all of a sudden. “Umm…m-my name is Wally.” He answered.


Lisia grinned, and put one arm around Wally’s shoulders, pulling him close. “Wally! When I took a good look, I could easily see that Wally is a powerful trainer, with gym badges of his own already!”


Wally blushed as many people in the crowd stared at both him and Lisia in awe. “Well, I don’t know about powerful, I only have two gym badges.”


Lisia giggled. “Two gym badges is still great! Since you are the lucky Pokémon Trainer to be scouted by me, I’m going to give you a PokéBlock case! And this is a Contest Pass, created specially for this promotion!” The Pokémon Coordinator went on, handing the younger trainer a lure-shaped case, and a card with a ribbon design on it. “I hope to see you in the next Pokémon Contest, Wally!”


Wally looked a bit embarrassed. “Hold on a second, I’m not exactly-” He began to speak up, but to no avail as he witnessed Lisia giving her full attention to the crowd.


“Wally’s story begins today! Yep! And this chapter should be titled…” Lisia began, posing cutely in order to captivate the crowd around them. “A Sudden Encounter! Miraculous Contest Scouting! That’s what I’d call it anyway.” The young Pokémon Coordinator smiled. “Now everybody out there watching, you’d better expect great things out of Wally, because I do!” She announced excitedly. “That’s it for today’s Lisia’s Miraculous Contest Scouting! See you all next time!” The Pokémon Coordinator smiled, and without further ado, she went inside of the Contest Hall, followed by the crowd that had been watching.


Wally just stood behind, flabbergasted at whatever the heck had just happened to him as he held onto the PokéBlock Case and the Contest Pass that had just been handed to him. He glanced at Serena and the others worriedly. “W-What do I do? I’ve never been in a Pokémon Contest…but after all of that, I feel like I have to now!”


Serena blinked, but laughed just a little bit. “Well, I can help you practice. That would be a good start.” She answered.


Opalline smiled a little bit and placed a hand on Wally’s back. “I can help you find an outfit for the Pokémon Contest.” She said to the younger trainer.


Bonnie looked at Wally and smiled up at him. “I think you should at least give it a try! It’s not as if participating will prevent you from challenging gyms.” The young girl pointed out.


Wally looked around at his friends who were encouraging him, and smiled warmly. “Oh alright…I’ll give it a try then.” He responded to them. “But before anything, we should probably go inside and register for next week’s Pokémon Contest.”


Serena smiled and nodded. “Right. Let’s go inside then.” She said, leading the others inside with her.

---

Upon heading inside, Wally, Serena and Opalline all signed up for the next upcoming Pokémon Contest in Slateport City. Serena noticed Lisia, and the pink-haired bully from the boutique earlier.


The pink-haired girl huffed, placing her hands at her hips as she stepped up to Lisia. “You’re so overrated! I just don’t understand what the fans see in you!” She dissed the other Pokémon Coordinator.


Lisia looked at the other girl, and smiled faintly. “Oh, you must be Lovrina. I saw your performance in the Rustboro City Pokémon Contest. Your Delcatty is simply adorable!” The Pokémon Coordinator said, completely unfazed by the insults of the other Pokémon Coordinator.


Lovrina narrowed her eyes a bit, and shot her arms downward in a fit. “Don’t blow me off with your fake kindness act! Nobody is that kind!” She yelled.


Lisia seemingly feigned a look of surprise. “Oh my. Well, you know Lovrina, I just can’t match your energy. It’s not a good look for a Pokémon Coordinator, after all.” She said with a wink.


Lovrina looked quite annoyed. “You are so un-be-LIEV-able!” She responded. “I so hate you right now! Always giving everybody you meet that goofy little smile! It drives me crazy!” She yelled. “I don’t have time for you right now, I have to train for a Pokémon Contest!” She started to storm off, before noticing Serena and her friends. Lovrina smirked. “I hope you two are ready to lose, next week.” She said, before walking out in a catty manner.


Lisia sighed, but smiled faintly. She then glanced at the others. “Oh! It’s you again!” She greeted the group of Pokémon Trainers. “So, Wally? Have you considered my request?” She asked, hands at her hips as she lowered down to the shorter trainer’s level.


Wally blushed a little, somewhat embarrassed. “Umm…yeah. I decided that…I’ll give the Slateport City Contest a try!” He said, smiling a little.


Lisia smiled with glee, and gave Wally a hug. “I’m so happy to hear you say that! I look forward to seeing you in this Pokémon Contest!” She exclaimed, letting him go now. “Anyways, I have to get going. I’ll see all of you later!” The Pokémon Coordinator stated, taking her leave.


Serena smiled a little, and glanced to Opalline. “Did you see that Opalline? That Lovrina girl was most definitely just jealous of you. I mean she really showed her jealousy for Lisia’s popularity just now, didn’t she?”


Opalline looked at Serena, and smiled faintly. “Yeah…I think I can believe it now.” She said, blushing just a little bit. “Lisia seems to deal with her very well…I wonder if she learned that from dealing with others like her.” She thought out loud.


Serena smiled and nodded. “I would bet that you’re onto something there.” She giggled just a bit. “Now that we’re registered though, why don’t we go get something to eat.”

---

On their way to a restaurant, the Absol that Serena kept seeing appeared before the group of Pokémon Trainers. Serena gasped. “Hey! It’s that Pokémon I mentioned before! I saw it right before that storm when we were on the ferry!” Serena exclaimed.


Wally pulled out his PokéDex, and pointed it at Absol. The device scanned the Pokémon, and identified it with ease. “Absol, the Disaster Pokémon. Every time Absol appears before people, it is followed by a disaster such as an earthquake or a tidal wave. As a result, it came to be known as the disaster Pokémon.” The electronic voice described.


Opalline looked a bit surprised. “D…Disaster? Does that mean something bad’s going to happen?” She asked.


“There it is! That Absol has caused nothing but trouble!” Somebody yelled from a distance. “Over here! Let’s run that Absol out of here!”


A group of superstitious Pokémon Trainers began to storm over. Serena looked at Absol, and glared at the group. She immediately put herself in the path between the Pokémon Trainers and Absol. “Hold it! Do any of you have proof that Absol is the one causing trouble!?”


Absol looked a bit surprised by Serena’s actions, and began to observe her, though it backed away a little bit.


One of the trainers from the other group looked annoyed by Serena. “Every time that Absol appears anywhere, disaster follows it! It’s a menace to this city!” The trainer yelled.


Clemont stood next to Serena now. “That doesn’t necessarily prove that Absol is causing trouble. There’s nothing scientific about your claim at all!” Clemont argued.


Serena looked at Clemont, and nodded as she glanced back at the other trainers. “Yeah, he’s right! It’s all superstition! I’m sure there’s another explanation for it!”


Just then, the wind started to pick up pretty harshly, and it suddenly started to get dark as clouds rolled in. Thunder rolled quite loudly.


“See!? Ever since this Absol appeared, all kinds of dangerous weather has been rolling in!” The other trainer argued.


Serena stepped forward, pulling out a Poké Ball. “If you don’t leave this Absol alone, I’ll have no choice but to battle you!” She said. “Have you ever thought that maybe this Absol is just trying to warn you people?”


Suddenly, the wind blew a heavy sign down, and it started to fall toward Serena and her friends. Serena saw it and gasped, frozen with fear. Absol leaped toward the petrified teen, throwing the girl over its back before taking off to protect her. With Serena safe, Clemont grabbed both Opalline and Bonnie’s arms, and used his Aipom arm to grab Wally, and yanked them safely out of harm’s way, although the sign still nicked Clemont’s shoulder quite roughly.


“Oww…! Is everyone okay?” Clemont asked the others, looking at them to check up on them.


Opalline looked worried for the geeky blonde teen. “We’re fine Clemont, but you got hurt!” She exclaimed.


Absol stopped, and let Serena off of its back. Serena looked down at Absol, amazed. “You…saved me?” She asked.


Absol looked at Serena, and nodded. It ran to Serena’s friends to check on them. It sniffed Clemont’s hurt shoulder, and looked back at Serena. It seemed to be beckoning her and her friends.


Serena looked at Absol, and then looked at her friends. “I think Absol wants us to follow it.” She said. “Maybe it needs our help!”


Clemont winced a little as he started to get up. Opalline and Wally both helped him back up to his feet. “You may be right Serena, let’s go!” Clemont responded to the other Kalos trainer.


Serena and her friends all followed the mysterious Absol, wondering what would await them once they arrive wherever the Pokémon was leading them.

---

On a hill with a good view of Slateport City, there was a young man in a black jumpsuit and a short green hooded cloak. With him was a Manectric, an Altaria, and a Shiftry. “Shiftry, keep using Rain Dance and keep those winds up! Altaria, keep helping Shiftry with the winds! And Manectric, use thunder to get lightning rolling!” The man ordered!


Bonnie’s eyes locked onto the Altaria, and she gasped. She tugged on Clemont’s coveralls to get his attention. “Clemont, there’s something wrong with that Altaria…!” She murmured to her older brother. In Bonnie’s view, Altaria was surrounded by a shadowy aura.


Clemont looked at Bonnie, glanced at Altaria, and then to Bonnie again. “What are you talking about, Bonnie?” He asked.


The man in the green cloak noticed the group of Pokémon Trainers and Absol, and smirked. “Oh, I see you brought reinforcements Absol. Couldn’t stop me yourself, so you brought some friends with you? How pathetic…”


Serena glared at the man. “So you’re the one causing this erratic weather! You’re putting people in danger with this reckless behavior!” The blonde teen yelled at him.


Bonnie stepped forward next to Serena. “And what did you do to that Altaria!? Why is it surrounded by shadows!?” She yelled.


Serena seemed somewhat confused by Bonnie’s statement. “What are you talking about, Bonnie?” She asked.


The man looked shocked by what Bonnie said, and glared at her. “Manectric, use wild charge on that little girl!” The man said quite harshly, swinging his arm in Bonnie’s direction!


Bonnie was petrified as she saw the Manectric charge at her, electricity crackling all around the Pokémon’s body.


Clemont gasped, and ran to Bonnie. He grabbed her by the arms, and shoved her towards Wally and Opalline, out of harm’s way, but ended up getting hit by the Manectric. “Ahh!” He yowled in pain as he was knocked back quite roughly!


Bonnie gasped, terrified for her older brother’s well-being. “Clemont!” She called out, visibly upset.


Clemont groaned as he started to sit up. “I-I’m okay Bonnie.” He said, feigning a smile. However, it swiftly became obvious that he was seriously hurt, as when he tried to stand up, he flinched, falling to one knee.


Opalline ran over to Clemont in order to help him. Tears welled up in Bonnie’s eyes, overwhelmed with emotion after seeing her brother shield her with his own body. She glared at the attacker, and stood in front of Clemont. “Dedenne! We’re battling this creep! I choose you!” Bonnie called out.


Dedenne hopped out of Bonnie’s pochette bag, and stood in front of her. The little electric gerbil looked quite angry, perhaps because its friend was hurt.


The man in the green cloak laughed. “You think you can defeat me with that puny little rat?” He mocked.


Serena glared, and tossed a Poké Ball, sending out her Sylveon. “Never judge a Pokémon by its looks or size, you inconsiderate jerk!”


Wally stood by Serena, and sent out his Kirlia! “We’re not letting you get away with any of this, either!” The green-haired boy shouted, though he was clearly a bit nervous.
The man laughed maniacally, and smirked at the Pokémon Trainers. “Come at me, punks!” He dared them. “Manectric, use Thunder! Altaria, use Hurricane! And Shiftry, use Razor Wind!” He ordered his Pokémon!


The three Pokémon began to attack on command! Manectric summoned lightning from the sky, Altaria created strong, dangerous winds, and Shiftry added to Altaria’s winds, making the attack far more dangerous than before!


“Sylveon, use Moon Blast on Altaria!” Serena called out, pointing at the the blue, cottony bird Pokémon!


“Kirlia, use Psybeam on Manectric!” Wally shouted, pointing at the electric dog-like Pokémon that hurt Clemont earlier.


“Dedenne! Use Tackle on Shiftry!” Bonnie instructed, waving her hand toward the wooden Pokemon covered with white fur on its head, and leaves on its arms.


All three Pokémon obeyed the attack orders, while Absol used Pursuit on its own terms, going straight for Altaria’s backside, leaving the flying Pokémon completely open for Sylveon’s attack. Dedenne ran toward Shiftry at high speed, slamming into the Pokémon’s torso, knocking it back! Finally, Kirlia fired a powerful Psybeam at Manectric! All three Pokémon were knocked back, much to the dismay of the cloaked man.


“Why you little brats…! You dare defy me!? The great Kage!? One day, I’m going to manipulate weather so dangerous, that it will wipe out the entire Hoenn region, and you kids will be my first target!” The cloaked man snarled, glaring at the group of Pokémon Trainers.


Absol growled, taking on a battle stance. Serena felt a strange feeling within herself, as if Absol’s emotions were in sync with her own. “Absol! Use Double Team, and follow it up with Pursuit!” Serena suddenly called out!


Absol, without question, obeyed Serena’s command as it surrounded Kage and his Pokémon with illusory copies of itself. While they were all caught off guard, Absol closed in, and used Pursuit on all three of the Pokémon at once, knocking all of them out! For just a brief moment, it almost looked as if Absol had transparent wings!


Kage stepped back, stunned by the loss he had just taken in battle. “What the-!? How could you possibly gain so much power so soon after I defeated you with ease!?” The man yelled, clenching his fists. “You would have lost if it wasn’t for your reinforcements…I’m sure of it!” He sneered, returning all of his Pokémon to their Poké Balls!


Serena narrowed her eyes at Kage. “You lost because you messed with the wrong Pokémon Trainers!” She yelled. “The only reason you won before is because you ganged up on a lone Pokémon! Only cowards fight that way!”


Kage glared at Serena. Remaining winds from the unnatural weather he created blew his hood off of his head, revealing his short, thick dark blue hair. “You better watch your back little girl, because the next time we meet, you won’t get so lucky.” He said, proceeding to run from the group of Pokémon Trainers!


Serena gasped. “Get back here you coward!” She yelled, and was about to take off after Kage, but then glanced back at Clemont. Her worry for her injured friend was the only thing keeping her from pursuing the evil Pokémon Trainer. Instead, she walked toward Clemont to check up on him.


Opalline started to help Clemont up, though her smaller stature made it more difficult to provide the taller teen. “We need to get ya to the Pokémon Center to rest.” The white-haired girl stated, worried.


Clemont clenched his coveralls, trying to tough out the pain he just put himself through before. “You don’t need to worry about helping me, Opalline.” He said, smiling weakly as he tossed a Poké Ball, letting out his Luxray. Luxray immediately could tell that Clemont was in pain, and as Opalline lost her grip on Clemont, Luxray jumped in front of Clemont before he could fall over.


Serena looked at Clemont. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay, Clemont? That Wild Charge attack looked quite powerful.” The blonde teen asked worriedly.


Clemont looked up at Serena and smiled some, nodding. “Don’t worry about me, Serena. If I can take a prolonged shock from Luxray back in Kalos, I can take a Wild Charge from some poorly trained Manectric.” He stated.


Serena sighed, but smiled softly. She looked back at Absol. “Well Absol, the threat you warned us about has been neutralized, so you can go home, and we’ll make sure everybody knows the true cause of those storms.” She said, looking back at her friends. “Alright, we should go to the Pokémon Center now.”


Serena and her friends all started to head back to Slateport City, with intention to go to the Pokémon Center to rest up after the intense fight that just took place. Wally looked at Serena. “That Absol looks intimidating…but it turned out to be a noble Pokémon.” He stated.


Serena smiled and nodded. “Yeah…I’m going to miss it. I hope we see Absol again…” She trailed off, and her eyes widened as suddenly, a blur of black and white jumped right in front of the group.


Absol stood in front of the group, staring at Serena with intense red eyes. It let out a gentle cry, smiling at the Pokémon Coordinator before it.


Serena looked surprised, as she shared the gaze with the Absol that stood in her path. “Absol…” She spoke gently. The blonde teen blinked, and smiled warmly. “Do you want to come with me, Absol?” She asked.


Absol took a step toward Serena, and let out a cry of approval. The white-furred Pokémon stared at Serena, awaiting her next action.


Serena smiled, and pulled a Poké Ball out of her backpack. She pointed it at Absol now. “I’m so happy…Welcome to the team, Absol!” She said, pressing the Poké Ball to Absol’s forehead, pulling the Pokémon inside. The center of the Pokéball flashed a few times, before letting out the iconic ding to let the Pokémon Trainer know that the Pokémon inside had been captured.


Clemont looked at Serena, and smiled. “That’s amazing Serena! Is that your first Hoenn region capture?” He asked.


Serena smiled, and nodded. “Yeah, it is!” She answered excitedly. Unable to contain her joy, she did a cutesy pose, raising the Poké Ball into the air above her! “I caught an Absol!”


Bonnie giggled a bit. “Ash really rubbed off on you, didn’t he?” She pointed out playfully. “You’re acting quite a bit like him!”


Serena laughed a little, rubbing the back of her head. “Well…maybe a little bit.” She answered Bonnie bashfully.


Wally smiled weakly at the others, and looked down at his Kirlia. “They sure are close, aren’t they Kirlia?” He asked the little white and green Pokémon. Kirlia looked up at Wally, and tipped its head to the side.

---

Having befriended an Absol, Serena gained a new addition as well as a friend to her Pokémon Team. How she plans to utilize it in Pokémon Contests could prove to be very interesting. However, the two of them both get the sinking feeling that the encounter with Kage won’t be the last. Who is Kage, and what is he planning? What was Bonnie seeing before that the Pokémon Trainers around her couldn’t? These eerie questions may be answered in the near future.

 

[OpalSparks]

In the battlefield of Slateport City’s Pokémon Center, Serena and Wally were having a practice battle together. Serena was battling alongside her newly acquainted Absol, while Wally’s Skitty was on the other side of the fray. Serena was trying to learn more about her new friend, while Wally was hoping for Skitty to become stronger. Meanwhile, there were three familiar spectators sitting on the bench outside, Clemont, Bonnie, and Opalline. Clemont had a cast around his arm, having been injured by debris caused by the storm created by Kage, the mysterious man in green-clad clothing. In Clemont’s lap was the incubator that contained the egg that Opalline gave to Wally, to keep it safe while Wally battled Serena.

“Skitty! Use assist!” Wally called out to his pink kitten-like Pokémon! In response, Skitty waved its front paw up, shaking it until it glowed. Suddenly, it used the move double team, creating multiple copies of itself to surround Absol!

Absol glanced around, but seemed to keep its cool. It planted its feet onto the ground, waiting for the opponent’s next move.

“Skitty, use disarming voice!” The younger green-haired Pokémon Trainer called out! Skitty, along with its illusory copies, let out a charming cry, firing an eccentric beam surrounded by hearts directly at Absol!
“Absol, use mirror coat!” Serena ordered, waving her arm in their direction. Absol responded by glowing, and as Skitty’s attack landed, the real attack got sent right back at Skitty, hitting the poor kitten Pokémon pretty hard, as it knocked the small Pokémon back.

Wally gasped, looking surprised. “W-What just happened?” He asked, completely flabbergasted by the unfamiliar situation.

Clemont looked at Wally. “It’s mirror coat, Wally! Mirror coat is a move that sends special attacks back at the attacker with double the power!” Clemont explained.

Opalline looked at Clemont. “You sure know a lot about Pokémon moves, Clemont.” The white-haired Pokémon Coordinator observed.

Bonnie looked up at Opalline, and smiled. “Well he should know a lot about Pokémon moves! Clemont is the Lumiose City gym leader back in the Kalos region!” The younger girl explained.

Opalline looked a bit surprised, and looked at Clemont. “You’re a gym leader?” She asked. “But then…if you’re here in Hoenn, what happens with your gym?”

Clemont adjusted his glasses nervously, a bit embarrassed to suddenly be the center of attention. “I’ll tell you about it later, for now let’s watch their battle.” He suggested.

Bonnie seemed just a little annoyed at the way Clemont seemed to brush Opalline off, but Opalline seemed quite indifferent, and smiled, nodding as she watched the battle again.

Wally felt a little bit nervous, and looked at Skitty. “Are you okay to continue battling?” He asked the small Pokémon. Skitty turned back to Wally, and nodded. “Alright then Skitty, use attract!”

Skitty bounced forward, hopped in the air, and with a cute face, sent a beam of hearts at Absol. The hearts surrounded the dark-type, who looked around nervously as the hearts engulfed the Pokémon. However, nothing seemed to happen whatsoever! Absol just looked around, confused, as if expecting something to have happened.

Wally looked confused. “It didn’t work? Really?” He asked out loud. “Then…that must mean…Your Absol is a girl!” Wally exclaimed.

Bonnie giggled a little bit to herself. “I suppose not knowing the other Pokémon can be quite the downside when using a move like that.”

Serena smiled a bit. “Absol! Go after Skitty with pursuit!” Serena called out. Absol leapt toward Skitty, full intent to attack the opposing Pokémon.

Wally felt nervous, as did his Skitty. “S-Skitty! Use tackle!” Wally called out.

However, Skitty stood, looking a little unnerved as it watched the dark-type Pokémon approach with intensity.

Wally grew more nervous, raising his hands in front of him. “Skitty! Use tackle! Please!” Wally begged!

As Absol closed in on Skitty, Skitty suddenly ran forward, and slammed its tail against Absol’s face! Startled, Absol stumbled in the direction that Skitty hit it.

Wally looked surprised. “Skitty…?” He blinked, wondering if he had just imagined the scenario just now.

Bonnie looked at Clemont. “Clemont, I don’t think that was the attack that Wally told Skitty to use.” She said. “I mean, I’ve never seen a Pokémon use tackle like that before.”

Clemont had been observing the battle. “That’s right. It wasn’t tackle. It was actually a feint attack.” He pointed out.

Wally looked amazed, and smiled excitedly! “Skitty! You learned a new attack! That’s amazing!” He exclaimed.

Skitty turned to Wally, and let out a happy cry as it skittered over to Wally, jumping upward into his arms.

As Wally caught his Skitty, laughing and hugging the kitten Pokémon, Wally’s Pokémon egg began to glow inside of the incubator that Clemont was keeping safe.

Clemont noticed, and gasped. “Wally! Come here! I think the egg is hatching!” Clemont said, panicking a little bit.

Wally looked a bit surprised as he turned to Clemont, and ran over to the bench. He placed Skitty on the bench next to Bonnie, and gently took the incubator from Clemont. The green-haired Pokémon Trainer got onto his knees as he placed the incubator on the ground. He opened the incubator, giving the egg room to hatch.

Serena approached the group along with her Absol, and watched as the egg glowed brighter. “I wonder what’s going to be inside!”

The egg gave off one final blinding gleam, revealing a small round green Pokémon with white circular cheeks, and a zigzag tail with a spherical end. Its round, circular ears twitched, and the Pokémon opened its eyes, looking at Wally. “Azu…?” The little Pokémon let out.

Opalline looked quite surprised. “It’s an Azurill! But, it’s…it’s a different color!” The Pokémon Coordinator let out.

Clemont looked at the newborn Pokémon. “That’s a shiny Pokémon! That’s very rare!” He exclaimed.

Wally smiled and gently picked up the small green Pokémon. “Hi Azurill. My name is Wally. Welcome to the world!” He greeted it, smiling.

Opalline smiled, and handed Wally a green Poké Ball with brown and yellow dots on the top surrounding the front. “Here Wally, try this ball!” She suggested.

Wally looked at the strange Poké Ball. “What kind of Poké Ball is this?” He asked the other Pokémon Trainer.

Opalline smiled. “It’s called a Friend Ball. It’s a special Poké Ball that will help you become much closer with a Pokémon.” She explained. “A man named Kurt from the Johto region makes them himself.”

Wally looked at the Friend Ball, looked at Opalline, then smiled softly as he turned to face Azurill again. “Alright Azurill. Let’s you and I become the best of friends.” He said, gently pressing the Friend Ball against Azurill’s head. Azurill happily went inside without a fight, and very quickly the Friend Ball stopped flashing.

Serena smiled warmly. “That Azurill is just too cute!” She said to Wally. “And it sure seemed to like you a lot!”

Wally smiled. He let Azurill back out of its Friend Ball. “I’ll let Azurill out of the Friend Ball for a little while and let it walk with us.” He said, petting Azurill on the head before standing up.

---

Later that day, Serena, Wally, Clemont, Bonnie and Opalline walked through the Slateport City marketplace. The Pokémon Trainers were mostly looking to restock on supplies, though Serena and Opalline were also trying to find Wally an outfit to wear for the contest, since Lisia encouraged the younger Pokémon Trainer to give it a try.

Clemont was using his Aipom arm to hold a notepad in place of his bad arm while scratching off supplies from a list he wrote down prior to leaving the Pokémon Center. “That just about wraps up what we need.”

Serena smiled. “Great! Now we can help Wally pick out something nice to wear for the Pokémon Contest!” She exclaimed.

Wally blushed a little, looking embarrassed. “Don’t you think you and Opalline are making too big of a deal out of this…?” He asked.

Opalline smiled at Wally. “Aw come on, Wally. You don’t want to be the only person in the Contest Hall that’s underdressed. Besides, even if you don’t continue, it’s never a bad idea to have something nice to wear regardless.” She winked.

Wally rubbed the back of his head. “Well…if you say so…” He said sheepishly, looking at Opalline.

Serena and Opalline practically dragged Wally into a boutique to seek out a fancy outfit for the younger boy. They looked at different contest ensembles, until they saw something they thought was just perfect. It was a gray suit with shorts and a long coat, with a black vest buttoned up with golden buttons. Underneath the ends of the coat arms were white ruffles where the wrists would be. The suit had blue accents on the rolled up ends of the arms, as well as the folds at the front of the suit. Around the neck was a red bowtie.
Serena smiled down at Wally. “Go try this on, Wally!” She said excitedly, getting the younger boy the clothing to make up the outfit.

Wally looked a little flustered as he went to a changing room now. After a bit, he shyly stepped out, wearing the clothes that Serena and Opalline picked out for him.

Opalline let out a delighted squeal. “It looks so great on you Wally!” She exclaimed. “You look so dapper in that suit!”

Wally blushed faintly, and rubbed the back of his head. “Do you really think so?” He asked. “I feel like it might be just a little bit flashy.”
Serena let out a giggle, and smiled at the green-haired Pokémon Trainer. “It’s not terribly flashy. Besides, I think it suits you well. Even if you don’t pursue contests, it’s never a bad idea to have something nice to wear.” She pointed out.

Wally smiled sheepishly. “I guess you’re not wrong there…Let me just change back into my usual clothes and I’ll buy these.” He said, going back into the changing room.

After purchasing the suit for the upcoming Pokémon Contest, Wally left the boutique with the others. As the group walked back to the Pokémon Center, a card fell out of Opalline’s bag while she was shuffling through it.

Clemont took notice of the dropped card, and picked it up with his good arm. “Oh, Opalline, you dropped…wait…is Opalline not your real name?” He asked the white-haired girl.

Opalline froze up a little, and nervously glanced back at the group. Panicked, she snatched the card from Clemont’s hand. “Umm…well…”

Serena raised an eyebrow. “Why would you lie about your name to us? Is there something you’re hiding from us?” She asked, looking ready for a possible Pokémon battle.

Opalline stepped back, looking flustered. “Wait hold on! It’s nothing personal!” She let out. “I-I can explain if we just go somewhere more private!”

---

The group had gone to a more secluded part of Slateport City’s beach. They all sat on some rocks formed by the shore.

Opalline sat in the center of the group, and sighed. “...Clemont’s right. My name isn’t Opalline. My real name…is Opal.” She said.

Clemont looked at Opal. “Why did you lie to us?” He asked in a gentle tone, not wanting to further drive Opal’s anxiety of the situation.

Opal looked at everyone, and sighed. “Oh…I know you’re all good people after what we went through yesterday. I’m sure I can tell you.” She started. “...But you cannot tell anybody else. And in the presence of others, I’d prefer if you used the name Opalline.”

Serena looked at Opal, and nodded. “Okay, I can respect that wish.” She said, smiling gently at the shorter girl.

Opal looked a bit hesitant at first. She took a deep breath, and then exhaled in an attempt to calm herself. “The truth is…I ran away from home a few years ago.” She said. “I got a Friend Ball from an old Poké Ball smith named Kurt in Azalea Town, used it to capture an Oddish in Ilex Forest, and I never looked back.” She explained. “My mother wasn’t really nice to me at all…and…she…” She looked like she had just swallowed a bitter pill. “...She…that is to say…”

Bonnie approached Opal, and gently placed a hand on her arm. “...Opal, if it’s too much, you don’t have to finish that sentence.” She said. “I think I understand…you go by the name Opalline to hide from your mother, right?” She asked.

Opal looked surprised, hearing something so mature coming from a younger child. She smiled faintly, and nodded. “...Yeah, that’s why I go by Opalline.” She said to Bonnie.

Clemont looked at Opal. “...I’m sorry for putting you on the spot like that earlier.” He said to the white-haired coordinator.

Opal looked at Clemont, and smiled faintly. “...It’s okay Clemont, I forgive you.” She said. “I was going to probably have to tell you guys sooner or later.”

Wally looked a bit sad. “It must be hard to deal with that…” He said. “...Do you have any other family that you can go to?” He asked.

Opal looked at Wally. “Well, I have an uncle in Paldea, but I was very young the last time I saw him before my mother took me to Johto. I don’t remember his name but I remember him being very fun and encouraging me to make friends with Pokémon.” She said sadly.

Serena gently rubbed Opal’s back. “Well…sometimes the world is a small place, Opal. You just might get to see him again.” She said to her. “I was surprised when I saw a friend from my childhood in Kalos. I had originally met him in Kanto when I was younger.” She said.

Opal looked at Serena. “...Really? That sounds wild!” She responded in disbelief of Serena’s story.

Serena laughed softly. “It may be, but that’s how it happened.” She stated. “Just don’t give up. If you really want it, then I bet you’ll see your uncle again.”

Opal looked at Serena, and smiled warmly at the blonde teen. “Thanks Serena. That really means a lot to me.” She responded, giving Serena a hug.

Serena gently returned the hug, and smiled softly at the shorter teen. “It’s no problem. That’s what friends are for.” The blonde teen said.

Opal let go of Serena now, and looked at the others. Her stomach growled, causing her cheeks to flush from embarrassment.

Clemont laughed softly. “Maybe we should head back to the Pokémon Center and have lunch.” He suggested.

Wally nodded in agreement. “Yeah. I’m getting a little hungry myself.” He said, rubbing the back of his head a little bit.

---

After the group went back to the Pokémon Center for lunch, they all trained together, with the exception of Bonnie as she still wasn’t quite old enough to be a Pokémon Trainer yet. After dark, the group decided to stay the night in one of the rooms. The room had two bunk beds, and had a balcony outside. Overall, it seemed quite comfortable enough for all five of the Pokémon Trainers. Serena and Opal had decided to share a bed while Bonnie slept above them, and Clemont and Wally slept in the beds on the other side of the room.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Serena noticed that Opal wasn’t next to her. She saw the white-haired girl standing outside on the balcony, still wearing a long white night gown with short sleeves, adorned with small pink ribbons around the top. The blonde-haired teen stepped out of the bed, wearing a lavender hoodie with a pink zipper, pink hearts, and pink drawstrings, as well as a pair of pink shorts with ruffles at the bottom. She had a red bow tied at the front of her hair as well.

Opal stared out past the balcony, seemingly deep in thought. She held onto the railing with a somewhat tight grip. She jumped a little when she heart the sliding door open behind her. She turned around, and saw Serena, looking somewhat relieved. “Oh…it’s you. I thought it might be one of the guys at first.” She said.

Serena looked at Opal. “Are you having trouble sleeping?” She asked the shorter girl, standing next to her now.

Opal sighed. “A little bit…” She said. “I’m nervous about the upcoming Pokémon Contest…especially with that one girl…” She stated.

Serena looked at Opal. “You mean Lovrina?” She asked. “Don’t you worry about her, she’s just a bully.”

Opal looked down. “Still…she is very mean.” She said sheepishly, looking up. She looked a bit surprised by the current view. “Oh wow…it’s so bright out…” She said, noting the flashes of light outside.

Serena watched in awe with Opal, and noticed something. “Hey…I think those lights are coming from Pokémon!” She said, pulling out her Pokédex. As Serena held the Pokédex toward the source of the lights, it recognized some Pokémon.
“Volbeat, the firefly Pokémon. Volbeat’s tail glows like a lightbulb. With other Volbeat, it uses its tail to draw geometric shapes in the night sky. This Pokémon is attracted to the sweet scent given off by Illumise.” The Pokédex informed, showing an image of a black and blue bug-like Pokémon with curly antennae, and a red scarf around its neck. It had yellow stripes on its belly. The device then started shifting to another Pokémon. “Illumise, the firefly Pokémon. Illumise leads a flight of illuminated Volbeat to draw signs in the night sky. This Pokémon is said to earn greater respect from its peers by composing more complex designs in the sky.” The picture displayed showed a similar looking Pokemon, but it had a purple scarf around it that sort of resembled hair, a fancier carapace, and short yellow antennae on its head.

Opal looked at the Pokédex in awe. “They’re both so cute!” She said, continuing to watch the Pokémon make light patterns in the sky. “Hehe, a sweet aroma huh? I guess Pokémon aren’t that different from humans.” She said.

Serena glanced at Opal, confused. “What do you mean, Opal?” She asked the shorter teen, waiting to hear her answer.

Opal looked up at Serena, and smiled. “Well, people wear perfume and cologne sometimes when they want to impress others, right? I wonder if that idea came from observing Pokémon like Illumise and Volbeat.” She answered, giggling.

Serena listened to Opal, and smiled some. “You know, I never thought about that. Maybe you’re onto something there.” She giggled.

---

Once the light show created by the Illumise and Volbeat was over, Serena and Opal both decided to head back to sleep. The rest of the week seemed to fly by for the group, as before they knew it, the Pokémon Contest was being held in Slateport City!

Serena, Opal, and Wally were all dressed up for the Pokémon Contest, waiting backstage with other Pokémon Coordinators.

Serena was wearing the sparkly orange tutu dress she recently bought from the boutique the other day. She had some of her hair tied back as well, showing off her face just a bit more.

Opal was wearing the same mint green dress with a white ribbon around it that she wore in the Dewford Town Contest. She wasn’t quite convinced about wearing a flashy outfit like Serena or Lisia, especially after the way Lovrina mocked her appearance.

Wally was wearing the suit that Serena and Opal picked out for him, since Lisia invited him to participate in the Pokémon Contest. He felt just a bit nervous, as he’d never been in a Pokémon Contest before. “Do you really think it’s a good idea for me to participate in this contest?” He asked them.

Serena was about to answer, but Lovrina came waltzing in. “Now what do we have here?” She asked, looking down at the younger boy. Lovrina was in a sparkly tutu dress similar to those that Serena and Lisia wore, but it was purple and white, and just a bit more flowing. She had her hair tied with purple ribbons instead of the usual green bead-like hair ties.

Wally looked a bit nervous as he stepped back a little bit. “P-Please, I don’t want any trouble…” He muttered.

Lovrina giggled. “Trouble? I’m not here for that! I just wanted to say you look oh so cute!” She said, bouncing a little as she held her hands together in glee. “...But that will certainly not be enough to win this Pokémon Contest. As cute as you may be, I’m going to crush you in this contest!” She laughed maniacally as she started to walk away.

Wally was shaking like a leaf, and seemed somewhat relieved when Lovrina walked away. “...Seriously, what is that girl’s problem?” He asked Serena and Opal.

“...Wally?” A male voice called out. “What in the world are you doing here?” He continued with a question.

Wally glanced at the source of the voice, and flinched a little bit upon an unexpected, yet unsurprising sight.

A male teen wearing a fancy ensemble made up of a dark gray rider shirt, a deep purple jacket with black accents and a grayish-purple spiky faux fur decoration over the right arm of the jacket, black sparkling pants, and fancy purple boots with black straps. At the collar of his shirt was a beautiful rose-shaped brooch in place of a tie. His green hair was neatly combed out of his face. A Roserade stood next to the teen proudly.

Wally looked a bit flustered. “Drew? You’re participating in this Pokémon Contest too?” He asked.

Drew looked at Wally. “I feel like I should be asking you that question. You already know I’m a Pokémon Coordinator. I thought you wanted to collect gym badges and take on the Pokémon League.” He responded.

Serena looked at the two boys. “Do…you two know each other already?” She asked them, a bit surprised to see that Wally knew a Pokémon Coordinator other than herself and Opal.

Wally looked at Serena, and rubbed the back of his head. “Oh…Actually, Drew here is my older brother.” He said sheepishly.

Serena looked quite surprised. “You didn’t tell me you had a brother!” She exclaimed, a bit shocked by the revelation.

Drew glanced at Serena and Opal, and smirked a little bit. “Well, I never would have expected this.” He laughed a little. “So the spun out debut, and the winner of the Dewford Contest are friends with my little brother.” He said, ruffling Wally’s hair. “Well, I won’t discourage this. I think it’s healthy for a Pokémon Trainer to explore different paths. Good luck.” He said, and started to walk off.

Serena looked a bit furious. “Did he just call me a spun out debut!? What a smug little…!” She snarled out a bit.

Wally laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head. “S-Sorry, sometimes he can be a little arrogant.” He said apologetically. “...But he’s a nice guy, when you get to know him.”

Serena huffed a bit, folding her arms. “I’d like to wipe that little smirk off his face. Maybe I’ll take the opportunity with this Pokémon Contest…”



It seems as though things are going to get quite heated in the Slateport City Contest, and that doesn’t have anything to do with Hoenn’s climate. Who will be the winner of this contest? Will it be Serena, Opal, Lovrina, or perhaps Drew? Or will we see a surprise winner from Wally? Stay tuned to find out!

 

[OpalSparks]

It was an unusually cold day in the Hoenn region. Even in the winter, it didn’t typically get too terribly cold, but today it was snowing! Today was December 25th, and many houses and buildings were decorated with bright lights, giant candy canes, inflatable Stantler, and more. Drew and Wally’s older cousin, Wanda, invited them and anybody they wanted to bring with them for a Christmas party in Verdanturf Town.
Naturally, Drew invited May, as well as her younger brother Max. Wally on the other hand, was on his way to Verdanturf, after he, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie met up with Opal and Zoey nearby before heading there together.
Wally wore a puffy green down vest with a white long sleeve sweater underneath, with a yellow scarf, white pants, and a pair black snow boots with green accents on the top.
Serena wore a dark pink hoodless jacket with purple accents and white buttons, and an orange scarf around her neck. Her warm pants were gray, and her shoes matched the pink on her jacket. Upon her head, she wore a light pink beanie with a white fluffy puff ball.
Clemont wore a cyan ski suit with yellow accents running along his arms as well as around the collar, as well as around the legs. He also wore green gloves, and dark snow boots.
Bonnie was wearing a cute Santa Claus-inspired dress with a bell and holly leaves at the neck, as well as a Santa hat and a big yellow bow tied in her hair, along with a pair of simple black boots and red pants.
Opal wore a pink and black plaid coat dress, tied with a belt that had a rose gold colored buckle in the shape of a heart. Underneath the coat dress was the skirting from her usual suspender dress, as well as pink leggings and her usual black boots with pink accents and laces. A blue scarf and a black hat with a pink felt rose on it complemented her outfit.
Zoey wore a long sleeve maroon shirt, a short orange puffy vest that was left open, a pair of light blue jeans, brown boots, and sunglasses on top of her head.

---

The group of Pokémon Trainers arrived at a lovely house that was decorated from top to bottom in colorful lights, along with Christmas decorations in the yard, as well as a wreath on the front door.
Serena smiled down at Wally. “Your cousin sure knows how to make a house look festive for the holidays.” She said to the younger boy.
Wally smiled softly. “Wanda and her husband Riley really get into holiday decorations, and they like hosting parties for them too.” He responded.
The door opened, and there was a woman who was dressed up to look like Mrs. Claus at the door. She wore a long Christmas dress that had sort of a bell shape from the waist down, with a belt tied at the waist as well. She had an oversized red bow tying back her long, curly light green hair, and had on a pair of oval-shaped frameless glasses. She smiled warmly at the group! “Wally! You’re here! Oh and these must be your friends!” She greeted.
Wally smiled up at his cousin. “Yeah they are. This is Serena, and these two are Clemont and Bonnie, they’re brother and sister. These are the friends I travel with.” He said, introducing his travel group. “And the girl with the hat here is Opal…line.” He nervously corrected himself as Opal gave him a look. “And then the girl behind her is Zoey.”
Wanda smiled at the group. “It’s so nice to meet all of you. I’m so glad to see Wally is making friends on his Pokémon journey!” She said to them. “Come on in, and feel free to let your Pokémon join in on the festivities as well.” The green-haired woman offered, stepping aside to let everybody inside of her home.
Everyone went inside, and were met with red ribbon garlands all over the walls, a huge Christmas tree decorated with colorful lights and ornaments, with some presents underneath, and a fireplace with a fire already burning inside of it. The walls were a gentle, yet bold shade of purple. In the center of the living room, a mistletoe replacement made with holly hung from the ceiling.
Wanda smiled at them. “Oh, and if you have bought presents for anybody here, go ahead and set them under the tree for later.” She said.
Everybody started to go through their bags, pulling out presents they’d all wrapped for one another, and started to place them under the tree.
Drew, May, and Max were already at Wanda’s house. May smiled and ran over to Serena, hugging her. “Serena! It’s been a while!” She exclaimed.
Serena looked a bit startled, but smiled. “Hey there May.” She greeted, smiling at May’s Christmas dress and short mini cloak, before looking over at Drew and Max.
Drew smirked and flipped his hair a little with his hand. “Well if it isn’t spun out debut. At least you didn’t spin out in the last contest.” He teased a bit. He wore a black turtleneck, with a purple vest zipped up over it, as well as dark blue pants and black shoes.
Serena huffed just a bit. “Oh can it, Drew.” She said with a small pout, folding her arms as she looked at the green-haired teen.
Wally looked awkward. “Come on Drew, let’s not do this right now. It’s a Christmas party, and we should be trying to have fun.” He complained.
Drew shrugged a bit. “Oh alright Wally, we’ll have it your way. I’ll save it for the next Pokémon Contest.” He said.
Max sighed, and approached Wally. “Don’t worry, I know how it is with older siblings.” He said to Wally, smiling faintly.
May gave Max an annoyed look now. “And what exactly is that supposed to mean, little brother?” She asked, clearly a little fed up already.
Bonnie giggled a bit at all of the sibling nonsense going on. She noticed the mistletoe in the living room and giggled, gently elbowing Clemont. “Hey, maybe you’ll get lucky and end up under the mistletoe with a special someone today.” She said, pointing at the mistletoe.
Clemont looked down at Bonnie, then looked at the mistletoe, and blushed quite a bit. “Oh cut that out Bonnie! These are our friends…!” He let out, looking quite flustered.
Bonnie giggled and shrugged, turning her back to Clemont, though she still gave him the side eye. “Oh would you lighten up, I’m just picking on you.” She said with a mischievous little grin.
Clemont just blushed, both flustered and annoyed. “You…!” He then sighed with defeat, as there wasn’t much he could do about Bonnie. After all, no matter how many times he’s told her, she continues to insist on being nosy about his love life.
Serena smiled at the two siblings and giggled a little bit, amused by their bickering at one another. She looked at the mistletoe, and smiled as a little idea hatched in her mind.

---

As everyone was enjoying the party, having some punch, eating comfort foods, talking, and just having a good time, Serena pulled Bonnie aside. “Hey Bonnie, I had a fun little idea.” She said.
Bonnie looked up at Serena. “What is it, Serena?” She asked, looking a bit perplexed by the sudden conversation.
Serena smiled a bit. “We’re going to get Clemont under the mistletoe…with Opal!” She said to her with a little wink.
Bonnie looked at Serena, and had a big grin on her face. “How are we going to do that?” She asked Serena.
Serena giggled. “I’m going to convince Opal to get under the mistletoe by suggesting that something looks weird from that spot, and you just figure out a way to get Clemont underneath the mistletoe with her.” She explained.
Bonnie smiled at Serena with a devious grin. “Oh, I see. I’ll be ready for it!” She promised. “I’ll be waiting!”
Serena smiled at Bonnie. “Sounds good.” She said, and started to head over to where Opal was at. “Hey, Opal.” She whispered.
Opal looked at Serena with a curious glance. “What is it, Serena?” She asked the blonde teen.
Serena smiled at Opal. “I was wanting to show you something.” She said, bringing Opal to the center of the living room. “There’s something weird about this tree when looking at it from this spot, but I can’t put my finger on it.”
Opal looked a bit confused, but decided to try to see whatever it was Serena may have been talking about. “...I don’t see anything.” She said.
Serena looked at Opal. “Do me a favor and keep trying to figure it out. I’m going to grab us some punch.” She said, and fled from the spot.
Opal sighed, and rolled her eyes as she once again tried to figure out what exactly was so weird about the Christmas tree.
Bonnie saw Opal was under the mistletoe, and saw Clemont happened to be in a decent spot for her hand in the scheme. She snuck up behind Clemont, and shoved him toward where Opal was!
Startled, Clemont stumbled, trying not to fall over. “Whoa! What the heck!?” He let out, flailing his arms as he tried his best not to fall forward!
Opal looked surprised, and placed her hands against Clemont’s shoulders in order to prevent him from falling. “Are you okay?” She asked.
Clemont looked down at the shorter teen and nodded. “I-I’m fine…but what was that-” He started, but was suddenly cut off.
May let out a delighted squeal! “Oh my! Clemont and Opalline are underneath the mistletoe!” She exclaimed. As she did so, the others glanced at the center of the living room where the two stood.
Clemont looked confused, and glanced up at the ceiling, at which point he noticed the mistletoe. “Wha…?”
Opal stared at Clemont, her face flushing red. She felt as though her heart was going to pound right out of her chest, either that or sink right down into her stomach. She felt pressure as everybody in the room watched them in anticipation. Unable to think, she practically leapt onto the tips of her toes, her hands firmly placed on the taller boy’s shoulders, and planted a kiss upon his cheek.
Clemont’s entire face turned bright red at the unexpected gesture from Opal, and he could swear his glasses fogged up as he nervously placed his hand over the cheek Opal just kissed.
Opal trembled with anxiety, in disbelief at what she had just done. Without even hearing what Clemont might say next, she ran away in embarrassment, running outside of the house.
Clemont just continued standing at the center of the living room, completely dumbfounded by what just happened. “...Did…did she just…?”
Bonnie threw her arms downward, and pouted at her older brother. “Jeez Clemont! Why didn’t you say something to her!?” She complained.
Clemont snapped back to the present upon hearing Bonnie. He seemed mildly annoyed as he turned to face her. “Why did you push me into her!?” He retorted.
Bonnie huffed a bit. “Don’t answer my question with another question, Clemont!” She argued back to him.
Clemont looked at Bonnie, and folded his arms. “Bonnie…” He grumbled. “You can’t…you can’t just push me into every person you want me to date. That’s going to scare them away.” He said, rubbing between his eyebrows in irritation.
Serena looked awkward, but decided to approach Clemont. “Wait, Clemont, it’s not entirely Bonnie’s fault.” She said to him.
Clemont turned to Serena, looking confused. “...What do you mean?” He asked her, rubbing the back of his head.
Serena sighed and looked at Clemont. “...I…It was my idea, not Bonnie’s.” She admit. “I thought it would be funny if you and Opalline ended up under the mistletoe together…but I didn’t really expect her to kiss and run…” She rubbed the back of her head.
Clemont groaned in disbelief at Serena’s confession. “...Serena, you are almost fifteen. You know better.” He said. “...I’m going to go check on Opalline.” He said, walking to the door and stepping out.

---

Opal was outside, hiding at the side of the house and crying, her face in her knees. Her
hat and shoulders had a bit of melted snow in them already, as it was still snowing outside.
Clemont overheard Opal’s crying, and listened for her. When he found her, he carefully sat down next to her, and nervously placed a hand upon her shoulder.
Opal flinched upon feeling the hand on her shoulder. She looked up, and glanced at Clemont. “...W…What do you want?” She asked, tears rolling down her cheeks.
Clemont looked at Opal awkwardly, and rubbed the back of his head. “...Umm…” He sighed. “...Nothing in particular, I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” He answered.
Opal looked at Clemont, and then looked down at the snow. She didn’t say anything, and just buried her face against her leg. “Hmmph…” She let out.
Clemont thought for a moment, trying to figure out a way to provide comfort to the white-haired teen. “...Listen Opal. I…I don’t mind that you kissed me.” He said, blushing. “...Okay that came out wrong…what I mean is, I understand you were put on the spot. It’s like how I put you on the spot back in Slateport City about your real name, right?”
Opal just blushed a bit, and wiped the tears off of her face with her sleeve. “...It’s a bit different than that…but at the same time, I guess it’s also quite the same too…” She said sheepishly.
Clemont looked at Opal, and rubbed her back gently. “...Listen, you don’t have to do that again, and…I don’t expect you to date me or anything like that. It was just a kiss on the cheek, not the end of the world, right?” He said with a gentle smile.
Opal blushed. Clemont had no idea how awkward he had made the situation with that statement, but at the same time, she was happy that he was trying to comfort her. However, she couldn’t bring herself to tell Clemont how she felt for him just yet. “...Thank you, Clemont.” She said, smiling gently.
Clemont thought for a moment. “...I’m not usually the revenge type, but…Serena was the one who set that up back there.” He said. “...What do you say we give her a taste of her own medicine?” He asked.
Opal couldn’t help but to giggle at Clemont’s goofy question. It just sounded silly coming from him. “...Sure. That sounds like a fun idea.” She agreed to the plan.
Clemont stood up from where he sat, and reached his hands out to help Opal up. Once Opal took his hands, he carefully helped her up to her feet. “But who exactly should we have Serena wind up with…?”
Opal grinned a bit. “You just make sure Serena ends up under the mistletoe, and you leave the other person to me.” She said with a wink.

---

Later on in the evening, Clemont and Serena were having a conversation. Clemont took a sip from the punch in his hand, and looked at Serena. “Yeah, Opal is fine now. But don’t ever do that again, Serena.” He said to her.
Serena sighed, and nodded. “Right, I understand. I’m sorry for making things weird between you two back there.” She responded.
Clemont smiled softly. “Hey, I’ll be right back, I’m going to look for Chespin so I can give him something to snack on.” He said, excusing himself from the conversation as he stepped away.
About a minute later, Zoey approached Serena, and smiled at her. “Don’t think I didn’t see that back there. You plotted that whole thing, didn’t you?” She asked.
Serena looked at Zoey, and smiled sheepishly. “...Yeah, you got me.” She said to Zoey. “I was hoping that maybe…Opal would tell Clemont how she really feels for him.” She said, rubbing the back of her head.
Opal looked at Serena and Zoey, and giggled. “Well well well, it looks like that Serena and Zoey are under the mistletoe now!” Opal exclaimed, loud enough for all to hear.
Zoey glanced upwards, then glanced at Serena, meeting her blue-eyed gaze. “...So we are.” She said to Serena.
Serena felt a bit flustered as she realized the karma of her actions. She was sure Clemont had some involvement in this. “I…I guess we are.” She said nervously, and glanced over at Clemont.
Clemont had a bit of a cheeky grin on his face as he met Serena’s gaze, as if to tell her ‘gotcha’, before taking a sip from his punch cup again.
Serena looked back at Zoey again. “...It’s…just a kiss, right?” She said awkwardly as she looked at Zoey’s dark red eyes.
Zoey smiled at Serena. “...Just a kiss.” She said, and leaned forward. She planted a tender kiss upon the blonde teen’s forehead. As she leaned back again, she winked at Serena, before walking away.
Serena was a blushing mess. Never did she think that Clemont and Opal could be devious enough to dish her mistletoe plan right back at her. She quickly got away from the center of the living room now.
Opal stood next Clemont, and looked at him. The two teens both shared a laugh about their little revenge scheme.

---

At sunset, Wanda walked into the center of the living room with her husband, Riley. Riley was a tall, stocky man with dark black hair. He was wearing a Santa Claus costume to match with his wife, including the hat. The two of them shared a brief kiss under the mistletoe.
Wanda smiled as she looked at the younger Pokémon Trainers. “Okay everyone, I think it’s time to pass presents around.” She said.
Upon hearing that, both Max and Bonnie excitedly ran over. The others giggled at them and followed them, Wanda, and Riley to the Christmas tree.
Everybody started picking up the presents they brought, and exchanging them with one another. Among some of the presents included a Torchic doll for Bonnie from Clemont, a set of Poké Balls made of Apricorns from Opal to Wally, and more.
Drew approached May with a small gift box, wrapped in purple paper and a bright red ribbon. “...I got you something special, May.” The green-haired teen stated, handing the box over to May.
May smiled softly as she gently took the gift box. “Just to be sure, it’s for me and not for Beautifly this time, right?” She asked jokingly.
Drew rolled his eyes. “Yes, of course, quit stalling and just open it.” He said, blushing ever so slightly.
May giggled a little, and carefully tore open the present. She opened the box, and inside was a ribbon with a sun-shaped medallion, embedded with red gems. The ribbon tails were vertical striped with red and white. May looked at the ribbon in surprise. “This…this is…”
Drew blushed faintly. “...It’s the fifth ribbon I won when I battled against you in a contest in Ecruteak City, back in the Johto region. I want you to have it.” He said.
May looked at Drew. “But Drew, this is your most prized ribbon, isn’t it?” She asked him. “You loved showing this ribbon off more than anything, as it was at a contest with a Kimono Girl as a special judge!”
Drew looked at May, and smiled faintly. “Yes, and I want you to have it now, May.” He said. “There’s something a bit more precious to me than that ribbon anyways.”
May looked at Drew, a bit curious. “Oh? And what would that be?” She asked the green-haired teen.
Drew laughed a little, and looked away with a grin. “Well…that’s the thing May. It’s a secret.” He answered with one eye open, looking at her.
May looked at Drew, and pouted some. “Oh come on Drew, just tell me what it is!” She whined.
Drew laughed, and shrugged. “I’m not telling you, May.” He responded simply, but firmly, with a cheeky smile.

As May continued trying to get Drew to tell her his secret, Opal couldn’t help but to giggle at the two of them. She approached Clemont with a somewhat large present. “Oh, I got you something that I thought you might like.” She said, blushing faintly as she handed it over.
Clemont looked a bit surprised by the size of the gift. He started to open it up, and inside was a tool box, as well as some mechanical parts. He looked quite surprised by the gift, adjusting his glasses as if that would somehow help him confirm what he was seeing.
Opal blushed a bit. “I remembered that you invent things. I don’t know much about any of these, so I hope that it’s something useful to you…” She said.
Clemont looked at Opal, and smiled gleefully. “Are you kidding Opalline? This is amazing! I was running low on some of these things!” He exclaimed. “I love it! Thank you so much!” He exclaimed, and without thinking, pulled Opal into a hug.
Opal squeaked a bit, surprised by the hug. “Umm…Clemont. The others are staring at us.” She said, blushing some.
Clemont seemed to just realize what he was doing. His face flushed pink, and he let go of Opal, taking a step back. “S-Sorry! I just…I really appreciate the present, I got a little overwhelmed.” He said, rubbing the back of his head. “Actually, I didn’t forget about you.” He said, handing Opal a present wrapped in white paper and a red ribbon.
Opal carefully took the present from Clemont, and started to open it. Inside of the box was a pink Poké Ball with a purple pattern on the bottom, and a darker pink circle on the top, just above the button.
Clemont smiled at Opal, and rubbed the back of his head. “It's called a Dream Ball. I wasn't sure if you had one or not, but apparently it makes it easier to capture a Pokémon while it is sleeping.” He explained. “Though, I got it for you as sort of a way to encourage you to follow your dreams.”
Opal looked up at Clemont, and smiled. “Thanks Clemont. It means a lot to me. I never even heard of this one though, where did you get it?” She asked.
Clemont smiled a little, happy that Opal enjoyed the gift he got for her. “Well, I met a merchant from the Unova region in Mayville City, and she had one for sale.” He explained.
Serena looked over at them. “You didn't tell me about that, Clemont.” The blonde teen said to her friend.
Clemont looked at Serena, and rubbed the back of his head. “Sorry, I was worried you might accidentally tell Opalline about it.” He said sheepishly.
Serena rolled her eyes just a bit, but smiled. “Okay, fair.” She said. “I probably would have asked her if she knew about it.”

---

Everybody continued to have a good time at the party for a couple hours after the gift exchange. Once it got late though, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, Opal, Zoey, Max and May all decided to go to the Pokémon Center to get some rest, while Drew and Wally decided to stay the night at Wanda’s house to spend more time with their cousin.

 

[OpalSparks]

Things are stirring up at the Slateport City Contest! Serena has met Wally’s older brother, Drew, a Pokémon Coordinator who may prove to be a tough opponent with his vast experience. Wally, who has never considered a Pokémon Contest prior, is participating in his first one ever! Lovrina is stirring up drama, using intimidation and taunting tactics to bring down her opponent’s morale, and Opal is feeling the pressure more than anybody!

The Hoenn Pokémon Contest MC, Vivian, took the stage, with a microphone in hand. Her fluffy light brown hair bounced as she stepped aside, inviting Lisia, a wildly popular Pokémon Coordinator to take the stage with her! “Welcome to the Slateport City Pokémon Contest, with our star guest and special judge, Lisia!” Vivian announced excitedly, taking a break from speaking as the crowd shouted and cheered in excitement, and handed the microphone over to Lisia.

Lisia excitedly took the microphone, and took a glance at the crowd. “Hiiii everybody! Lisia here! Are you ready for a most spectacular Pokémon Contest!?” She called out, smiling with glee at the loud and hearty reception from the crowd. “Then I’m pleased to announce that the Slateport City Pokémon Contest is about to begin! I’m giving the mic back to Vivian here, so that I can judge our preliminary performances!” She announced, handing the microphone back to Vivian, and making her way to the judging table.

Vivian smiled warmly at the crowd. “Alongside our special guest judge, we also have Mr. Contesta, Mr. Sukizo, and Slateport City’s very own Nurse Joy! Now, please welcome our first coordinator of the preliminary round, Lovrina from Phenac City!” The brunette MC waved her hand in the direction of the stage’s entrance, where a seemingly bubbly pink-haired teen approached, with bounce in each confident step.

Lovrina smirked as she looked at the crowd, then held up a Poké Ball encased in a decorated capsule. “Gorebyss, the show is yours!” She called out, tossing the ball into the air! A pink, almost mermaid-like Pokémon elegantly popped out of the capsule, surrounded by many hearts and pink bubbles, which popped and turned into a shimming glitter that exaggerated the Pokémon’s beauty.

---

Serena, Opal, and Wally watched from backstage together. Serena looked curious. “What kind of Pokémon is that?” She asked out loud.
Wally looked at Serena. “That’s a Gorebyss! They’re pretty rare though, I’m a little surprised that she even has one!” He answered.
Opal just stared at the screen quietly, clenching her hands against her dress a little bit. She knew already that Lovrina wasn’t just all talk about her skills.

---

“Gorebyss! Use water pulse into the air, and swim upwards through it!” Lovrina ordered, pointing upwards with her index finger, doing a little twirl that made her twintails hover a bit more.

On its trainer’s command, Gorebyss fired spirals of spinning water currents into the air, and used them to swim upwards. Once the pink fish reached the top, it shot up into the air, water droplets surrounding the mermaid-esque Pokémon.

“Now Gorebyss, use ice beam on the water, and slide downwards!” Lovrina continued her orders, hands at her hips now.

Gorebyss fired a cold, freezing light blue beam into the water, freezing it solid, and slipped downward into the sparkling, frozen spiral.

Lovrina grinned. “That’s good, Gorebyss! Now use confusion on the ice!” The pink-haired Pokémon Coordinator shouted with glee.

Once Gorebyss reached the middle of the spiral, the ice started to glow a faint, almost pastel pink shade, and glimmered. Then, suddenly, the spiral of ice exploded into several, miniature heart-shaped pieces of ice! Gorebyss then landed on Lovrina’s outstretched arm, coiling around it as the coordinator took a bow.

The contest-loving crowd in the audience cheered in awe of the first show of the preliminary round! Vivian smiled with delight. “Now we will hear the thoughts from our judges!” She waved her arm in the direction of the judge’s table.

Mr. Contesta smiled warmly. “A brilliant performance to start the show. It was quite well-done!” He stated, glancing to the next judge.
Mr. Sukizo grinned, looking quite lax. “I agree! It was remarkable!” He stated, making his judgment of the recent performance he’d just witnessed, before turning to Nurse Joy.

Nurse Joy smiled warmly. “I really loved the way the contestant showed off the beauty and abilities of Gorebyss when it used its move to swim upward. It was astounding!” She stated.

Lisia seemed like she could barely contain her excitement, looking like she would explode from anticipation for her turn to judge. “It was a beautiful and exciting performance! I couldn’t keep my eyes off the show!” She spoke excitedly, eyes wide and practically sparkling with glee. “And the clever use of confusion to break the ice was just magnificent!”

Vivian grinned, an excited look on her face. “Talk about an amazing start to the preliminary round, with strong praise from our judges!” She announced! “It may be hard for some contestants to follow up after the first contestant!”

---

Lovrina made her way back into the backstage area, walking with a certain swagger about her as she brushed past Opal and Serena. “Top that, losers.” She taunted them before walking away from them.

Opal glared after the pink-haired girl. She looked at Serena. “If she ends up in the second round, I refuse to let myself lose in the preliminaries. You better make it to the second round too!” The shorter girl was fuming.

Serena placed her hands on Opal’s shoulders. “Calm down Opalline, don’t let Lovrina get to your head. That’s what she wants you to do, to distract you.” Serena stated gently. “But, we will make it into the second round, don’t you worry.”

Opal sighed, and tried to calm down now, knowing that Serena was right. It was unwise to let Lovrina mess with her like this. “Right…Let’s do our best.” She agreed.

---

After a few more contestants performed for the preliminaries, it was Drew’s turn now, as he went out onto the stage. He lifted a Poké Ball encased inside of a capsule, with blue and pink rose petal seals on it. “Roserade, center stage!” The experienced coordinator tossed the ball into the air, and as it popped open, many blue and pink rose petals popped out, and swirled around before exploding into a flurry of sparkles, revealing a Roserade that landed on the stage with great poise.

After hearing loud cheers for what was just the beginning of the show, Drew smirked. “Roserade! Use petal dance!” The green-haired coordinator called out!

In response, Roserade jumped into the air, and started spinning as it spread petals that flew all over the stage. A deluge of pristine flower petals swirled all over the stage, garnering cheers from the crowd!

“Now Roserade, follow it up with stun spore!” Drew ordered with a grin, waving his arm in Roserade’s direction!

Roserade gave the crowd a charming smile as it spread a yellow powder into the mixture of flower petals. The stage sparkled beautifully as stun spore and petal dance filled the air.

“Alright, let’s end this show! Use dazzling gleam!” Drew smirked, watching his Pokémon’s dazzling performance.

Roserade landed gracefully, kneeling onto one knee as its roses shone brightly, before letting loose a bright beam of light into the air. As the light made contact with the stun spore and petals, everything exploded into bright sparkles, cascading slowly all over the stage.

---

Serena, Wally, and Opal were all watching Drew’s preliminary performance on the backstage monitor. The three trainers all seemed quite impressed.

“Wow Wally, your brother may be arrogant, but his performance was really nice!” She stated with a small smile. Even though she didn’t have the greatest impression of the green-haired coordinator, she did genuinely enjoy watching his Roserade’s performance.

Wally looked at Serena, and smiled softly at the older blonde trainer. “Well, he has been participating in Pokémon Contests for a long time.” He responded.

Opal just stared at the monitor, watching as the judges showered Drew’s performance in praise. “That Roserade has quite a selection of moves to pick from, too.” She observed.

---

Meanwhile, among the spectators, Clemont and Bonnie sat together on their own, there to support Serena’s performance. Clemont pushed his glasses up. “Serena has some competition here for sure.” He stated.

Bonnie looked up at Clemont. “We just have to believe in her, Clemont!” She stated insistently. “She was so close to becoming Kalos Queen, I know she can beat anybody here!”

Clemont looked down at Bonnie, a bit surprised by her energy. He smiled some. “I’m sure she can win, but she certainly has some competition here.”

Next up on the stage was Opal. As she showed up on the stage, her mint green dress flowed with each movement she made until she made it to the center of the stage.

Bonnie looked a bit surprised, as she hadn’t actually seen Opal’s contest dress yet. “So that’s what she wears for contests! It’s such a pretty dress! Don’t you think, Clemont? …Clemont?”

Clemont was watching Opal’s stage entrance, having not heard Bonnie at first. He was a bit surprised by how vastly different Opal looked in her contest dress compared to how she was dressed when he first met her.

Bonnie nudged her older brother in order to get his attention. “Clemont! Are you even listening?” She asked.

Clemont looked a bit startled by Bonnie. “Huh? What did you say Bonnie?” He asked, rubbing the back of his head.

Bonnie looked at Clemont. “Honestly, you’re so hopeless sometimes. I was asking you if you think Opal’s dress was pretty.”

Clemont blushed a bit, taken aback by the question that now lacked context. He nervously adjusted his glasses. “I-I was just thinking that she looked really different here!” He stammered.

Bonnie rolled her eyes a little bit at Clemont’s lame answer to her question. Really, what kind of an answer was that?

---

Opal smiled as she tossed an encapsulated Love Ball with a rainbow seal into the air now! “Blissey! Sparkle!” The white-haired girl called out!
The capsule popped open, creating an explosion of rainbows that revealed a pink egg-shaped Pokémon with white fluff on its arms and waist! The Pokémon landed upon the stage with an excited smile!

“Blissey, use egg bomb!” The green-clad Pokémon Coordinator shouted excitedly, smiling at her beloved Pokémon.

Blissey let out a happy cry and tossed several eggs normally meant for attacking into the air for the crowd to behold.

“Now! Use heal pulse on the eggs!” Opal followed up, waving her arm into the air above her, in the direction of the eggs!

The large pink Pokémon sent a rainbow-colored circular pulse of light into the air, tossing the eggs higher, while making them glow in a multi-colored light.

“Blissey, use dazzling gleam!” The coordinator ordered, raising her arms into the air with a large smile on her face.

Blissey let out a happy shout as it created a bright light that spread throughout the air! The light hit the eggs, causing them to burst with a multitude of colors that shimmered upon the stage and surrounding crowd.

The energy from the eggs that exploded in the air spread a feeling of happiness to everybody who bathed in its light.

---

In the crowd, Clemont felt completely at ease, a dumb smile on his face. “Something about Opal’s performance just makes me feel…so happy.” He stated, without a care in the world.

Bonnie seemed very energetic as she stared at the light that shimmered briefly before it dissipated. “I think I know what you mean.” She agreed.

---

Serena took to the stage next, in her brand new yellow and orange tutu contest dress. She tossed a Poké Ball into the air with a heart seal on the capsule. “Sylveon, bring radiance!”

The capsule popped open, releasing a flurry of hearts that surrounded Sylveon as it appeared in the air, the fairy-type Pokémon’s ribbon-like feelers flowing gracefully, before sticking a feather-soft landing. Sylveon wore a dark pink flowery fey-inspired dress with forest-green accents.

“Sylveon! Start the show using double team!” The honey blonde coordinator shouted gleefully!

Sylveon let out a high-pitched cry as it hopped into the air, before spreading several illusory copies of itself throughout the stage!

Serena took a strong stance as she looked up at the many copies of Sylveon above her, arms raised! “Follow it up with swift!”

The pink and white fairy-type Pokémon started to fire star-shaped rays, as well as from its copies as well, creating an astronomy-like show! The crowd cheered, captivated by the skilled performance!

“Sylveon! Now use fairy wind!” Serena called out with a quick twirl, shooting her arm upward into the air!

Sylveon and its copies landed softly on the stage, and used fairy wind, creating a draft of wind with a pink-colored aura surrounding it. The wind made the copies of Sylveon and it’s swift attack fade, while sending the real star-shaped rays spinning upward, before they came falling onto the stage like shooting stars. Each and every star exploded into smaller star-shaped sparkles upon impact, before the sparkles eventually faded.

The crowd sounded bewitched as they cheered loudly at the end of the new coordinator’s preliminary performance! A performance that was far more successful than her debut in Dewford Town.

Vivian, the announcer, took her mic, looking excited! “Wow! That was some performance for sure! Let’s hear what our judges think!” She announced, waving her hand in the direction of the Pokémon Contest judges!

Mr. Contesta looked at Serena and Sylveon with a gentle smile on his face. “It was like Sylveon was creating its own little universe on the stage! It was a beautiful performance!” He commented.

Mr. Sukizo had a jolly grin on his face. “Sylveon really made full use of its double team! Remarkable!” He stated happily.

Nurse Joy looked happy as she placed her hands on the counter in front of her. “It’s clear to me that this coordinator understands her Pokémon’s abilities very well. It was a beautiful show.” She said with a soft smile.

Lisia looked as though she could barely contain her excitement! “That Sylveon is simply dazzling! It really knows how to keep its moves under control! What an amazing show!”

---

Backstage, Opal, Wally and Drew were watching Serena’s performance on the monitor. Drew seemed impressed, considering he had mocked Serena’s debut prior.

“That Serena girl isn’t half bad after all.” Drew folded his arms with a small smirk. “In fact, I think you really could learn a thing or two from her Wally, even if you don’t pursue Pokémon Contests after all.” The older green-haired Pokémon Coordinator glanced to his younger brother.

Wally looked up at Drew now. The younger Pokémon Trainer had his Kirlia standing by his side. “You really think so? Even if I don’t do Pokémon Contests?” He asked.

Drew nodded. “Even contest strategies can be useful in an ordinary Pokémon battle, Wally.” He stated. “I heard that a friend of May’s used battle tactics that were inspired by contest moves in order to win Pokémon battles. And he’s not a bad trainer himself.”

As the two brothers talked about the performance, Opal just watched the monitor in awe of Serena’s performance. She just knew in her heart that Serena would be in the second round, and she was proud of that.

---

The final performance of the preliminary round belong to Wally. The young Pokémon Trainer invited to the Slateport City Pokémon Contest by Lisia herself made his way to the stage, wearing the fancy suit that his friends had picked out for him. He raised a Poké Ball with blue sphere-shaped seal stuck onto the outer capsule. “Kirlia, come on out!” He shouted, tossing the ball upward!

As the ball flew upward, it popped open with several blue spheres of energy swirling around Kirlia as it stuck a neat landing, knelt onto one knee, before it stood up to both feet.

“Kirlia, use psybeam, and teleport, the way we discussed!” Wally called out, waving his arm in Kirlia’s direction.

Kirlia fired a beam of psychic energy, and teleported to another spot, firing another psybeam that connected to the first beam. The white and green psychic-type continued to use these moves back to back. It continued until the beams formed a star shape!

“Kirlia, use double team! Then follow it up by using confusion in order to lift yourself up with the psybeam star!” Wally called out.

Kirlia created four copies of itself, so that there were five of them in total, then used confusion, lifting itself up alongside the psybeam star! Kirlia and its copies slowly swirled clockwise, while the psybeam star swirled counter-clockwise.

The crowd cheered excitedly, enjoying the show performed by the inexperienced Pokémon Trainer. Though Wally was inexperienced in Pokémon Contests, he knew enough about them from watching his older brother perform to understand the basics.

“Now Kirlia, jump through the star, and release its energy!” Wally called out excitedly. Though he wasn’t into Pokémon Contests, he did enjoy an opportunity to show off his beloved Pokémon a little bit.

Kirlia and its copies jumped through the psybeam star, and used confusion to release all of its psychic energy! The star burst, showing the stage with beams of psychic energy that surrounded Kirlia and its copies. As Kirlia stuck its landing, beams of energy caused its four copies to fade one by one.

The Pokémon Contest fans in the bleachers roared with applause, causing Wally to blush a little as he rubbed the back of his head. He never was too sure how Drew could handle a crowd so well.

---

Backstage, Drew was watching Wally on the monitor, alongside Serena and Opal. The green-haired trainer smiled, one hand on his waist. “Wally may not be a Pokémon Coordinator, but I think he’ll pass the preliminaries.” He stated, sounding proud. Though he was arrogant, he did care a great deal for his younger brother, and it really showed.

Serena looked over at Drew, and smiled some. Though she wasn’t currently getting along with Drew, she was at least happy to know that Wally had a sibling that cared about him. “You really do care a lot about Wally, don’t you Drew?”

Drew glanced at Serena. He nodded. “I care a lot for him, actually. So please be good to him.” He stated, with a more serious look in his eyes.

Serena blinked, a bit surprised by the sudden shift in Drew’s mood. She wondered if there was a story behind that statement, but nodded. “You have nothing to worry about. Wally’s been great to travel with. And my friend Clemont cooks balanced meals, so Wally will be eating well with us too.”

Drew locked eyes with Serena for a moment. The two Pokémon Coordinators stared each other down for a moment.

Lovrina started to walk by them, and wrinkled her nose in disgust at the two of them. “Good grief, you two goody-goodies make me sick.” She scoffed at them, walking off.

Opal looked unamused by Lovrina’s statement toward Drew and Serena. “...I really cannot stand that girl…” She said to them.

---

Vivian smiled as she waltzed up to the center stage. “Our judges have made their decision! These are the eight Pokémon Coordinators that will make it to the battle round! They are up here on the big monitor above me!” Vivian announced, waving her arm upward toward the large monitor.

Upon the monitor screen were eight portraits of Pokémon Coordinators that would be in the battle round. Among the eight trainers included Serena, Drew, Opal, Lovrina, and Wally, as well as three other Pokémon Coordinators!

---

Backstage, Wally was surprised to see himself among the top eight coordinators for the Slateport City Contest. Drew just smiled, and pat Wally on the back. “You’re in it, kid.” Drew stated.

Opal smiled, looking happy to see herself upon the monitor. She felt just a bit more confident in herself in that moment.

Lovrina glanced over at them, and smirked as she locked eyes with Opal. “Oh wipe that smile off your face. You’re not going to win this contest as long as I’m in it.” She sneered.

Serena stayed by Opal’s side, and glared at Lovrina. “Knock it off, Lovrina. You’re showing poor sportsmanship!” Serena shouted.

Lovrina waved her hand in their direction, as if literally brushing them off. “Sticks and stones, girly. You’re going down too.”

---

Vivian looked excited as she faced the crowd. “The matchups will be decided at random! Now let’s see who everybody will be facing in the first round!” She announced as the tournament bracket was being generated.

Once the bracket was ready, it was revealed to the entire crowd! The first round matchups had Drew facing off against a girl with pink hair tied in two buns. Lovrina would face a boy with long, messy blue hair. Serena would be facing off against Wally. Finally, Opal would be battling a girl with dark blonde hair.

Clemont and Bonnie observed the monitor from where they sat in the bleachers. Clemont looked a bit surprised. “It looks like right off the bat, Serena is going to be fighting Wally…” He stated.

Bonnie looked a bit worried. “And if Opal wins her first battle, she’ll have to fight one of them too…”

---

Backstage, Serena and Wally both looked shocked to be facing off against each other. The two Pokémon Trainers looked at one another, without a word spoken between them for a few moments, though it felt like an eternity to the both of them.

Wally eventually decided that he would be the first to speak up. “...Serena. Please don’t go easy on me just because this is the first Pokémon Contest I’ve ever been in.” He requested.

Serena looked at the shorter boy, and smiled. She nodded. “...Right. It will be a fair match. No holding back.”

Drew just smirked at the two of them, and laughed a little. “Don’t you hold anything back against her either, Wally. She seems like an experienced Pokémon Trainer.” He stated, turning away from them. “I should get ready, looks like I’m involved in the first battle.”

Opal just seemed a bit nervous. Even if she wins the first battle, she would likely be facing Serena in the second round. She wasn’t sure if she could win against her, but she knew she’d have to try if it came down to it. “...Let’s all do our best.” She said to Serena and Wally.

The two of them glanced at Opal now, and smiled faintly at her in agreement. No matter what, they were going to try their best in this competition.

---

Drew and Lovrina both won their first fights in the battle round, both winning in a landslide as far as points go. The third battle of the first round would be between Serena and Wally, who each took to opposite ends of the Contest Hall’s battlefield.

Vivian looked eager to announce the battle that would soon ensue! “The next battle in the Slateport City Contest battle round will be between Serena from Vaniville Town in the Kalos region, and Wally who was originally from LaRousse City, though he is currently registered under Verdanturf Town! Five minutes on the clock starts now!”

Serena tossed a Poké Ball into the air with a fire seal on the capsule. “Braixen! Bring radiance!” The blonde Pokémon Coordinator called out! The capsule popped open, creating an explosion of fire that burst around the golden fire-type bipedal fox!

Braixen landed on its feet gracefully, pulling its stick out of its tail, ready to battle! It wore a fancy white ruffled top with a big pink bowtie on the front, a pink plaid tutu with a white waistband, and long white socks with pink tips. Its head was topped with a white fedora with a pink ribbon around it, and its long fluffy tail was decorated with teal beads.

Wally tossed a Poké Ball with pink and yellow flower petals on the capsule into the air from the opposite end. “Go, Skitty!” The green-haired Pokémon Trainer called out. The capsule opened, sending out a flurry of pink and yellow petals that surrounded the small pink kitten-like Pokémon. The little Pokémon landed on its feet, staring down the opposing fire-type Pokémon!

“Braixen! Use flamethrower!” Serena called out, waving her arm in the direction of the opposing side!

Braixen ran forward briefly, jumping into the air with an acrobatic spin, firing a beam of fire in Skitty’s direction!

“Dodge it Skitty!” The green-haired trainer called out, and pointed in the opposing direction. “Use disarming voice!”

Skitty just barely dodged the flamethrower in time, and let out a loud, endearing cry, creating a circular beam with hearts that sped into Braixen’s direction! Serena lost a small amount of points as a result of Skitty’s timely dodge.

Serena looked a bit more serious now. She took one step forward, as if she was in Braixen’s place. “Braixen! Counter it with hidden power!” Serena shouted!

Braixen waved its stick in front of it, and, forming several cyan balls of light, before firing them in the direction of Skitty’s disarming voice. Whenever the two attacks collided, hidden power absorbed disarming voice’s power, and the attack was still coming for Skitty’s direction!

Skitty tried to scamper away, but the colliding attacks slammed into the poor little kitten Pokémon from behind. This display cost Wally a lot of points as they depleted hard on the scoreboard.

“Skitty! Can you still fight on?” Wally asked, looking a bit nervous as he looked at his smaller Pokémon.

Skitty slowly got up to its feet, and let out a small hiss, determined to go on! It let out a loud battle cry!

“Looks like Skitty’s not out of this fight yet! It’s just determined to go on! Now that’s one tough little Pokémon!” Vivian announced.

“Alright then Skitty! If you want to keep fighting, then so do I!” He stated with a smile! “Let’s go for the wild card and use assist!”

The kitten Pokémon jumped up into the air, one of its front paws glowing white as it started the ordered attack! It aimed right at Braixen, and fired a water gun attack that was summoned by assist! The unexpected blast of water made a direct hit on the fiery fox, causing some of Serena’s points to be depleted.

Braixen let out a startled cry as it stumbled backwards! Its fancy clothes were all wet now thanks to the Skitty’s attack. It looked a bit upset, but chose to shake off the emotion for now, having learned in the past to keep its emotions in check.

“Braixen! Run for Skitty, and use scratch!” Serena called out, pointing at Wally’s Skitty on the other side of the battlefield!

Braixen started to sprint toward Skitty at a breakneck pace, closing in on the small kitten-like Pokémon!

“Skitty! Use assist once more!” He called out, clenching his hand nervously as Braixen got closer and closer.

Skitty started to back away a bit, paw glowing once more. It took aim at Braixen, and fired a psybeam attack that was summoned from the assist!

However, Braixen swiftly dodged the psybeam, and suddenly, the bipedal fox became engulfed in flames as it closed in on Skitty! The raging flames that surrounded Braixen burned away the clothing that its trainer had dressed it in. Braixen slammed into Skitty, sending the little Pokémon flying into the air!

Skitty hit the ground a bit roughly, slowly stood up to its feet. It stared Braixen down, panting with exhaustion.

The scoreboard above them let out a ding as the timer for the battle hit zero. “Time!” Vivian called, bringing the battle to an end. “The winner of this battle is…Serena, from Vaniville Town!” Vivian announced excitedly.

The Slateport City Contest Hall filled with the cheers of excited spectators, while Wally walked forward to pick up his Skitty.

In the crowd, Clemont adjusted his glasses, having observed the fight. “It looks like Serena’s Braixen learned to use flame charge.” He stated.

Bonnie looked at Clemont, a bit surprised. “In the middle of an official match!? Some timing…” She responded.

Clemont looked at Bonnie, folded his arms, and smiled. “Pokémon can learn moves at just about any time. Even if that’s in the middle of a Pokémon battle, or while traveling.” He explained.

---

Wally had gone backstage with Skitty, with the intention to go change out of his contest outfit. Drew snuck up behind him, and placed a hand on Wally’s shoulder. “Hey.” The older brother let out.

The younger green-haired boy glanced back to see his brother looking at him. “Drew…” He looked away. “Guess I couldn’t win.” He stated.

Drew pat Wally on the back gently. “You gave it your best. And that’s what counts.” He told the younger boy. “Besides, you did great for your first try. Most rookies don’t even make it past the preliminary round on their first try.”

Wally looked at Drew, surprised to hear his praise. He didn’t just throw praise around lightly after all. “You really mean that?” He asked.

Drew smiled a bit as he glanced down at Wally. “Of course. Besides…you’re not a Pokémon Coordinator, are you? You’re a Pokémon Trainer.” He pointed out, placing a hand in one pocket. “Not that there is a rule against being both, but I don’t think Pokémon Contests are your style, are they?”

Wally looked up at Drew, and smiled some. He let out a small laugh. “They’re not, no. But…I still had fun regardless. Serena is…really good!”

Drew smiled. “Glad you had fun Wally. Now why don’t you go get changed, and join your friends in the crowd so that you can watch the rest of the show from out there. It looks better from there than from the monitor.”

Wally nodded. “That’s what I was about to do.” He said. He returned Skitty to its Poké Ball, and went to the changing room to change back into his traveling clothes.

---

Wally made his way into the spectator’s area. Once he found Clemont and Bonnie, he approached them and sat down next to Clemont. “Hey guys.” He greeted sheepishly.

Just after Wally had sat down, the battle that Opal and her Bellossom was involved in had just ended with the timer running out. Wally seemed a little disappointed that he’d missed most of the fight.

On the scoreboard, Opal had a lot more points leftover than her opponent did. Vivian looked excited. “And the win goes to Opalline of Azalea Town!” She announced!

Clemont smiled just a bit. “Looks like Opal’s going to be in the next round too.” He observed. “She’s pretty good too.”

Bonnie folded her arms, looking over at Clemont. “We’re here to cheer for Serena, remember?” She reminded her older brother.

Clemont looked at Bonnie, and rubbed the back of his head. “Well, yes we’re here for Serena, but I don’t see why I can’t cheer for both.”

Bonnie looked at Clemont, and sighed. “What’s the point of cheering for both…?” She responded, her question rhetorical.

Wally laughed a little bit. “I don’t see anything wrong with cheering for both. I mean, I’m cheering for more than one person too…and one of them is my older brother.” He joined in.

Bonnie sighed. “...Oh fine, cheer for everyone for all I care…well, except for that Lovrina girl. She seems so nasty.” She responded.

Clemont laughed some and pat Bonnie on the head. “Oh don’t you worry about that. I wouldn’t cheer for Lovrina if you paid me.”

---

Vivian made her way to the center of the stage to announce the matchups of the next round. “What an exciting round of battles! The next match-ups are as follows on the monitor above!” She announced.

The monitor showed the next round’s matches. The first battle would be between Drew and Lovrina, then it would be Serena against Opal.
Backstage, Drew and Lovrina locked eyes, both glaring at one another. The strong tension between the two Pokémon Coordinators could be felt all over the backstage area, and maybe even beyond those walls.

The second battle round of the Pokémon Contest would be an interesting one for sure.