"Hello, people of Hoenn! Vivian here, your guide to all things contest related in this beautiful, tropical region of ours! Knowing this, and seeing that I'm on your screen, it can only mean one thing. Pokémon Contests are going to begin popping up all over! The Grand Festival having ended a few months ago means it is time to start working on the next one. This means welcoming a whole new group of Coordinators to the stage and seeing some old friends take another shot at winning the prized Ribbon Cup. Things are going to get interesting real fast!"

"Simon!" A voice called out, causing to the young boy to break his focus from the television screen and look towards the direction of his bedroom door.

"Yea!?" The boy replied back.

"Come to the living room! Your father is back!" The voice said.

The boy was about to hop off of his bed and head towards the living room, but his interest on what was on television was greater, and instead went back to focusing on that.

"So with contests starting up again, it's time to reveal the location for the first one. It will be held in Rustboro City, one week from today."

The boy got off from his bed and stood with excitement on his face.

"That's right, in one week we'll be seeing beautiful performances. Of course, as this is a competition, we'll also be seeing the return of professional judges such as Mr. Contesta and Mr. Sukizo. And to even sweeten the experience more, this time around we'll have people like Contest Idol Lis-"

"Simon!" The voice called again, this time with a hit of irritation mixed in.

The boy noticed the tone and this time made his way out of his bedroom and straight to the living room. After dashing through the hallway and down the stairs, he quickly saw two people standing next to the sofa and coffee table, his parents. In the arms of his mother was a generously filled backpack. The sight of it caused a smile to dance on the boy's face.

"They had it?" The boy, Simon, asked.

His father nodded, fixing his glasses afterward. "Yep, the Poké Mart stocked up on Potions this morning. You're all set now." He said.

Simon's mother handed him the backpack. He wasted no time in putting it on. He focused on his parent with eagerness. "You guy really mean it? I can actually go now?"

This time his mother nodded, causing her swerved chestnut hair to move ever so slightly, something Simon inherited from her. "You can go, Simon." She spoke. "You'll have everything you'll need. Just please call us every now and again. That's all I ask."

Simon let out a quick cheer and hugged his parents. "I promise I will." He said before letting go of them. He then quickly made his way to the front door.

When he opened the door, he took a step outside and was quickly hit with a soft Spring breeze. Simon took a moment to look at the sky. It wasn't completely clear, but there was no worry for rain. The sunlight was slightly visible because of his glasses, his vision similar to his father. He then turned to look at his parents one more time, said his goodbye, and closed the door behind him before running off.

Simon made his way through his hometown, Fallarbor Town, located in the North-West of the Hoenn Region. While not one of the bigger places of the region, the town was well known for exploration, whether it be digging underground for the signs of the past, or examining the sky and searching for the unknown. This was a place for discovery.

Simon himself has come across a few discoveries in his young life. Because of them, he is now off doing what many others have done before him after reaching a certain age. He is going on his journey as a Trainer in this world full of Pokémon.

It didn't take long for the boy to reach the outskirts of the town. Besides the size of Fallarbor, which was actually pretty small to what is expected for the size of a town, running from his home shortened the time. When he had reached this point, he took a moment to stop and think about something. He went through one of the pockets of his jeans and took about a shrunken poké-ball. He pressed the button in the center of it, automatically making it expand to its full size.

"You should be here to see this," Simon said aloud, looking at the ball. He then pointed it ahead of him. "Come on out, buddy."

The poké-ball opened, releasing a bright light from within. The light quickly took form and eventually faded away, being replaced with a Pokémon. A cream color took up most of its coat, with red wrapped around its lower waist and arms. The arms and legs were short and stumpy, with the latter moving slightly as if there was some struggle balancing. On their face, and ears which stretched up had red spots randomly placed. Their eyes consisted of swirls, complimented by a goofy grin.

Simon crouched down, meeting the Pokémon at eye level. "Spinda, today is where it starts for us." He spoke with joy.

The Pokémon, Spinda, began swinging their arms rapidly, signifying their own joy. The movement caused Spinda to present more of a struggle balancing.

A huge grin appeared on Simon's face from Spinda's response. "We're goanna go out there and show them what we've got!" He continued. "We're going to make sure everyone knows us in the contest scene! And our first stop is Rustboro City!"

Spinda grew with excitement, swinging their arms with more energy and even letting out a cheerful cry. All this movement finally caused them to lose control of their balance, making Spinda fall on its bottom. Simon let out a quick chuckle before assisting Spinda back on their feet, and fully standing up themselves afterward.

Simon looked on ahead, his focus on a large mountain in the distance. "Just have to get through this route and that mountain." He said internally. "That's all I need to do. When I get out the other side, I'll take my first shot at becoming Top Coordinator." He corrected his glasses and placed his attention back at Spinda. "You ready?" He asked aloud.

Spinda nodded lightly and the two began moving.

As they began their journey, Simon thought back to when it first occurred, to the moment when he decided to partake in Pokémon Contest.

It was little over a year ago when that moment came. At the time, Simon was eleven. While old enough to obtain a Pokémon, he found himself unsure of which one he wanted to be his first. It wasn't a matter of being picky, but of too many options. However, even if he knew which one he wanted, Simon also had the issue of what he was going to do after. It is not unheard for some children to stick around home even after getting their first Pokémon, but Simon had seen for some time several children leaving Fallarbor Town. It made him feel as if this was something he needed to do.

During a pleasant spring day, the town gained notice in being the location for a Pokémon Contest. The attention of it gained the interest of many, including Simon and his parents, who decided to witness the contest in person and sit within the crowd filled with contest enthusiasts. The atmosphere alone gave Simon some of the excitement that would drive him to his current action. Although, what solidified his decision to become a coordinator came with seeing the performances.

Simon was in awe when seeing the trainers and Pokémon on stage. His eyes followed every movement made by the Pokémon. He heard every command the trainers spoke. The way they worked in harmony was, to the eyes of the young boy, so beautiful. Simon was so invested with the performances, he didn't know until his family made their way home after when they told him he was constantly getting up from his seat and cheering loudly after every participant finished their time on stage. From after that point forward, Simon took up most of his time learning as much as he could about the Pokémon Contest World. He studied on the history, learned of the rules, and never missed one contest broadcasted on television.

There was a sudden thud, just loud enough to get Simon out of his thoughts. He turned around to see the source of the thud. Spinda lost their balance again and had fallen over. Simon smiled and helped his friend up once more.

"I think it might be best if you stayed in your ball for a while," Simon said as he petted Spinda on the top of their head. Spinda smiled sheepishly in response before being sent back in their ball.

Looking at Spinda's ball, Simon now began to think back to when he first encountered his friend. He didn't have to go back that far, only about a month.

As he spent some time unsure of what he wanted his first Pokémon to be, Simon would occasionally visit his town's Pokémon Center, a place that specialized in taking care of weak or injured Pokémon.

While he knew he wanted to be a Coordinator, the young boy also knew he needed to have a Pokémon for it to happen. Visiting the Center, he thought, might help him make the decision. Simon hoped seeing other trainer come and go with their own would give him an idea of what to choose. Often times, however, Simon would talk himself into making a decision, only to suddenly over thinking with a new Pokémon that caught his view.

Eventually, a time came when Simon was about to leave the Center. During this, he felt something bump into him, followed by a thud. He looked to see it was a Spinda that bumped into him and had fallen from it. As he helped them up and asked if they were alright, the Spinda assured they were fine.

Not a minute later did the nurse of the place quickly rushed over, relieved Spinda was fine. Like Spinda to him, the boy assured they were fine. The nurse explained to the boy that she was taking care of Spinda, but as soon as she looked away, they vanished. Simon asked the nurse where Spinda's trainer was, to which the nurse replied that they didn't have one. The Spinda next to the boy was a wild one. Confused, Simon asked why they were in the center then, to which the nurse quickly explained.

The wild Spinda with them was a clumsy one. All Spinda were known to have that issue. They walk around in a wobbly fashion as a result of their short legs trying to support their upper body. That being said, the nurse made it clear that the Spinda with them was a specifically clumsy one, often having a harder time keeping its balance, resulting in them falling over and getting hurt.

Originally, if a trainer happened to run into Spinda and saw them covered in bruises and scratches, they would bring them to the Center, taking them back to the wild when they were healed. It occurred enough times that Spinda learned the route here from their home. If Spinda got hurt, they would make their way on their own, leaving soon after things were fine.

After being told this, Simon came with the nurse as she escorted Spinda out of the Center. He watched as the Pokémon walked off, constantly looking as if they were close to falling over, but getting their balance the last second. The two kept their eye on them until they were too far to see clearly.

From that point on whenever Simon was at the Pokémon Center, he took notice of the Pokémon. He would see them make their way through the front entrance, covered in bruise and scratches as the nurse said, and make their way out after an hour later and completely healed. When they would fall, Simon would quickly help them back on their feet. Spinda always showed their appreciation. It wasn't long before the two became fully acquainted with each other.

With a growing connection to Spinda, Simon soon grew worrisome for them. Any harm placed on Spinda was so far done by their own clumsiness, but Simon knew there was a chance something else could do it. There was a chance Spinda might run into an aggressive Pokémon or person. Having a hard time staying up would actually make things difficult for them if trying to get away.

Simon made his parents aware of Spinda soon after meeting them. When expressing his concern for the Pokémon, they understood and suggested he capture the Spinda, so he could watch over them at home. He didn't have to worry about getting a poké-ball to do so, as his mother luckily had an empty one lying around from her days as a trainer.

The next time he went to the Pokémon Center and saw Spinda, Simon ran over to them. He spoke to them, suggesting they stay with them, to make things easier if they needed to come to the Center. At first, the Pokémon was a bit hesitant about the idea, but after thinking it over for a bit, Spinda happily obliged. Simon used the ball his mother gave him, and Spinda went in with no issue. With that capture also meant Simon finally making his decision on his first Pokémon.

With the memory of Spinda's capture, the young coordinator brought his focus fully back on the road ahead. Not far from him did Simon notice other people, two to be specific. The two faced one another, a distance between them. In the space were two Pokémon. A battle was in commence.

As Simon grew closer to the scene, one of the trainers, a black-haired girl, was about to make her move.