About Contests, Roses and May

Solidad meets Drew in a Pokemon Center and the two friends chat about their news, plans, contests, pokemon and everything about May - the month of Johto's Grand Festival... And also the name of a certain famous brunette coordinator. One-shot. Contestshipping, MayxDrew, Shuuharu.

"Sol? What are you doing here?"

That voice... Solidad stopped flipping through the magazine pages and turned her head to back. A certain distinguished green-haired boy was staring at her next to the Pokemon Center entrance, with a quite perplexed expression printed on his face.

The peach-haired woman waved hello to her coordinator rival and offered him a place on the sofa; he sat by her side then thanked her with a silent head nod.

"The same as you, I presume... I'm so anxious about next month, Johto's Grand Festival is going to be a blast." She sighed softly, radiant smile welcoming her friend. "Hey, Drew. It's been some time, good to see you."

"Good to see you too. By the way..." Drew flicked the tip of his hair in a smooth move than smirked playfully to himself. "...Goldenrod's contest? I thought a pro like you were done with the ribbon quest."

Although in most scenarios Drew's remark would be just another sarcastic observation, she knew that one was actually a sincere question. The young prodigy coordinator did recognize her skills and respected her as an amazing rival - he was slightly surprised to meet her in that city and assumed she was still battling for ribbons.

Funny how some people act differently around others... Solidad let a small laugh escape from her lips. He stopped grinning in vain just to stare at her with a raised eyebrow, looking a bit confused.

"Hahaha... No, I've got five ribbons already! To be honest, I'm here just for shopping and fun. Rushed my journey a bit so I could enjoy a few days off now in the end of the month. How about you? I presume you're a pro with all the five ribbons in your case, aren't you?"

"Of course..." Drew answered the question in calm and confident voice. He unlocked his ribbon case in an elegant hand wave, displaying five tiny colorful medals. "My reputation does come from my looks AND talent, you know that. Be careful, I am ready to battle you in the Grand Festival."

"It will be an honor to fight against you again, Drew. It won't be easy but I hope we meet again in the finals. I'm sure it's going to be a beautiful and tough match."

"I think so... Hey, this time I've got several new tricks and strategies, my team is better prepared and I refuse to lose the bet I made with May. I'll win this time, Solidad."

The good-natured woman clasped her hands together in satisfaction. Reason number one, Drew's confident attitude always brought exciting rivalry sparks between the two of them; reason number two...

He mentioned that familiar name.

"Oh? So that means you and May are competing to see who's going to win the Grand Festival, right?"

"Exactly. But I am not worried, guess why I'm here today..." He shrugged lightly, trying to sound cool and relaxed. "I am not the one who is freaking out in despair because I desperately need to win one more ribbon before registering for the Grand Festival, you know?"

"She's been recently improving her skills a lot, however... Once a true ditzy, forever a ditzy." Drew sang the words in a malicious mocking tone. "May, May, May... Her month's coming soon but she still sooo late!"

"May will be such a busy month..." Solidad tilted her head to the side. "Everybody will be working all day long on their Appeals for the Grand Festival."

"Everybody but our reckless coordinator girl if she doesn't win this last ribbon today."

For some unusual reason, she didn't bother to disagree with that blunt comment; she was definitely distracted by something else implied in Drew's pestering comments.

"... So you came to Goldenrod today to watch her compete in the Contest?"

Silence.

"Uh... I'm free today, so—" Drew frowned in confusion but quickly regained his confident pose, perfect playful grin shining on his face, "—maybe?"

"Watching Contests is a good experience for any coordinator." He coughed quietly, trying to win some time to give his full answer. "For instance, her recently evolved Glaceon is quite elegant, I want to see its new moves. Eevee's multiple evolutions are fascinating pokemon."

"She did a great job with that Eevee." Solidad observed. "It looks beautiful now."

"Part of that beauty should be credited to me," Drew added while rolling his eyes out. "Poor Glaceon used to run away from May during meal times, can you believe it? It would have sulked in depression if I hadn't corrected May's bizarre pokeblock recipe..."

Solidad's eyes got brighter and wider in a moment of fun enlightenment.

"Oh my, Harley's predictions were right!"

That statement made the boy feel genuinely uncomfortable.

"Harley's prediction?"

Drew blinked in surprise. What... What was that now?

"What did he say about me?"

"Well..." Solidad's answer and unstoppable giggling just completed the nightmarish combo. "... So much like a romantic comedy flick."

"Eh?! What is so romantic about—"

"You're traveling together with May, aren't you?"

The expected answer was supposed to be just a short and simple "yes" - but somehow Drew had to stay silent for a few seconds before saying it without hesitation.

"Oh, that... Haha!" He started to speak very oddly as if he was trying to change the mood in the air. "Yeah, May asked me for some company since she was missing traveling together with her brother and those friends from Kanto, it's not really a burden but I am just doing her a small favor! We kept crossing our paths many times since we were going for the same Contests anyway, plus—"

"You don't need to explain yourself, Drew."

May's unique skill: to drive the 'professional serious guy Drew' completely crazy, even if not present in the situation. No wonder that talking about May was one of Solidad and Harley's favorite method to tease their young and proud friend.

"What's so funny about that?" The green-haired boy crossed his arms in annoyance. "You wouldn't find it funny if YOU had to babysit her."

A couple of Chansey crossed the hall pushing trails full of empty plates while the two coordinators stared at each other in silence.

"I can assure she can get worse than a silly five-year-old kid..." He rolled his eyes out again. "I have no idea how did she manage to travel by herself before we started traveling together. Try being zen and peaceful in my place... It's impossible. I bet you would freak out too."

"It's not that bad... Isn't it?"

"You can watch closely her growth and improvement as well her new appeals and pokemon tricks. Discussing and sharing knowledge is always good, right?" Solidad decided to point out the positive points about traveling together with May. "Plus it's nice to travel with friends. You two got a good chemistry together... Perhaps this is your chance, isn't it?"

In a silent protest against the "your chance" teasing comment, the boy skeptically stared at the Top Coordinator with one raised eyebrow; she just answered it by shrugging her arms and laughing quietly.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Well, what else could he answer?

"We are only rivals. So, what do you think of Johto's Contests?"

Solidad ignored the sudden change of subject and just went with the flow.

"Wearing pretty costumes and trying pokeball seals is so fun! I'm just an amateur but I love working with fashion..." She spoke softly and dreamily, closing her eyes. "I think it's a nice experience, the second rounds are exactly the same as the regular Contests... But I think the Appeal rounds are more complex in Super Contests. Planning the show, choosing a theme and matching yourself with your pokemon... It's a product of practice, creativity and research, you know?"

"Yeah, I think so. To be honest, I like Contests better than Super Contests but I noticed Roserade and the others enjoy watching me in fancy suits... Much more than I expected. I don't know, maybe pokemon have fun watching their coordinators struggle with looks and appearance like they need to do all the time on stage." Drew agreed with a small shrug. "Anyway. I'll probably head to Sinnoh after this Grand Festival, I heard their Contests are very similar to the ones here in Johto."

"Oh... Roselia evolved?" The Top Coordinator smiled with a tone of surprise in her voice. "Awww, congratulations!"

"She asked me to use a Shiny Stone on her last month." Drew grinned with pride, thinking about his loyal and elegant partner. "Roserade is fantastic. Roselia never stopped to impress me and as Roserade she's constantly looking for higher standards... She's still dedicated and beautiful. As always."

Another group of Chansey walked next to the two coordinators, cleaning the few empty tables in the cafeteria hall.

"Roserade..." Holding a pokeball in his hands, Drew elegantly flicked the tip of his hair and smirked. "You'll see her in the Grand Festival. It will be a huge blast."

"Is she your big surprise for the Grand Festival?" Solidad asked in a calm voice, without feeling threatened by Drew's absolute confidence. "I know you've got more secrets under your sleeves."

"It's not just a single flower that wins the contest, but the whole group of perfect roses buds that composes the perfect bouquet, right?"

The green-haired boy smirked once again. Solidad nodded in acknowledge. He was right; the best Top Coordinators in the world had more than one ace pokemon in their line-up... They had the skills and the complete dream team of six pokemon ready to shine on stage.

"Roses are your favorite flower, aren't they?"

"Hard to guess, huh?" Drew laughed in a smugly way. "Yes, they represent to me the beauty of the world as well some precious memories I have. My childhood in LaRousse, my pokemon, some great Contests..."

"Roses evoke both strong and fragile features in their core..." The peach-haired woman clasped her hands then rested her chin on them. "They're a very powerful and meaningful symbol of beauty, love and passion. I can relate them to our lives as coordinators."

"Yeah, I think Coordinating is like breeding hybrid roses... It's hard to conceive a perfect result." The boy cocked his head to the side then added another point to his theory. "Besides the extremely hard work of raising your flowers, before all of that... You need to think about each characteristic you want, consider if these things actually work and look good together, find the right parents... It's not easy. But the results of a flawless job are impossible to describe as well. It's the beauty of perfection."

"And how about May?"

Drew was pretty much aware of what was Solidad talking about - yet he pretended he didn't know it.

"You mean, next month?" The boy watched his senior shake her head in disapproval. "Well, May's after April. I'm not wrong either."

"I'm asking about that other May, Drew."

Again that subject... Why May?

"May is totally the opposite of what I've just said, she's not very good at composing strategies and appeals..." Drew frowned, trying to not picture in his head all the shameful mistakes that his traveling partner made in the last two contests. "Her best skills are, still, instincts and battling. Uh, she's far for being perfect. Why do you ask that?"

"Oh, I'm not talking about the metaphor. Harley told me you always give red roses to May... Is that what you mean by gifting her flowers?"

"Harley..." Feeling a bit annoyed and uncomfortable again, Drew shrugged and answered it in a bland tone. "It's for her pokemon. What now, are you two jealous, you guys want me to give you flowers too?"

"Slowbro would feel so honored... But I think he would eat them and that would be a disaster." Solidad giggled. "I feel myself happy if you keep them to your girl. Isn't she a young rose too?"

"In a sense that her beauty comes from the hope that someday she'll develop and grow up into a beautiful flower?" Drew frowned, shaking his head in disdain. "Nope. Of course not."

"That's harsh." The Top Coordinator sighed with a sympathetic smile. "May does have a lot of potential as a coordinator, Drew."

"Yes, May still growing up and developing her skills... But I think she is past that point."

"Hm?" Solidad blinked, slightly puzzled with that declaration. "Past that point?"

"One delicate small bud that opens into an astonishing blooming scarlet flower... It surprises you by slowly changing its form and turning into something gorgeous." Drew gestured his right hand in the air as if he was grabbing a rose from his jacket. "Yes, May used to be a small timid flower, I guess... But she grew up."

"Chan, chansey!"

One timid Chansey holding a feather duster politely asked the two coordinators to leave the sofa for a second. Solidad moved to another empty seat but Drew just stood up and walked away to the exit.

"I like the magic behind the beauty found at unexpected places," he said it quietly without looking at anyone in particular - as if he was talking to himself for a second. "May is a ditzy by default... But she's amazing. I think she haven't figured out yet but her petals are already out there to be seen by everybody."

"Drew?" Solidad watched her rival leave the Pokemon Center with a gentle expression on her face. "You're going already?"

"I gotta go," the green-haired boy waved goodbye to his friend. "She is going to be on stage soon and I promised her I'd be there to critique her Appeal... See you later in the Grand Festival, Solidad."

The Top Coordinator nodded then waved back to the young teenager.

"Please cheer for her, alright?"

"Sure... Johto's Grand Festival won't be fun if I can't battle and defeat my rivals."

Drew left the Pokemon Center unsure why he didn't keep his mouth shut instead of talking about May... It was nobody's business the fact they were traveling together and how he actually admired her coordinating skills.

On the other hand, it wasn't any 'surprising secret' he respected her. May was the Princess of Hoenn, everybody from the Contest circuit admired her talent! Besides, she was his friend and number one rival. It was okay to praise her progress behind her back... As long as nobody forced him to speak about her in a personal level.

It was hard to dodge personal questions with witty answers all the time - but as long his private feelings were kept as a secret, everything should be okay.

Drew shook his head trying to not think about this odd feeling. He sighed out loud then discreetly smiled to himself, trying to focus on the month May. Grand Festival, Roserade's Master Appeal, Absol and Flygon's double attacks, tickets to Sinnoh for the next season...

But it was hard to not get lost in his mind and find that other May hiding behind his thoughts and dreams.

Heading to Goldenrod's Contest Hall, Drew muttered quietly while looking up to the red sunset sky.

"She's not a small timid flower anymore, Sol."

A/N: Two observations: 1) Yeah, breeding roses isn't easy stuff; 2) I'm not sure if I should tag it as a May/Drew story or a Solidad/Drew story, ffnet character category thing allows only two names...

This is an old story I wrote before joining ffnet... I've just found it in my archives and I thought it was "okay" the way it is (I might polish it better someday later, though), so I decided to upload it for you xD I hope you enjoy!

Cheers!

~ochazuke