Not the entry you'd expect me to update huh? Yeah...I'll get to something else eventually...for now though, this, hehe. I entered Bulbagarden's Christmas Contest once again this year, and while I may not have won in any of the categories I entered this year, still enjoyed it regardless! Anywho, for the writing portion, we had to choose any - or all - of three prompts given to us. Rather then entering all three, I kept it simple and went with just one that I knew I could write - that one being Christmas in Alola, where we had to write about the general celebrations, events, weather, traditions, etc. that happen in Alola during Christmas. Please enjoy!
xXxXxXxXx
Click click click.
The sound of the young boy's shoes clicked on the ground in Hau'Oli City, trying to locate the shopping center. The young Sun had been spending so much time defending his position as Champion of the Alola Region that he had forgotten to do any Christmas shopping whatsoever. Honestly though, who could blame him? When you practically lived up on top of Mount Lanakila, you kind of lose track of the time. Plus, it NEVER snowed in the Alola region – except on top of Lanakila itself, but it was ALWAYS snowing there anyway, so it was pretty impossible to tell that it as December and that you should start shopping.
All of which resulted in the fact that Sun was now rushing around the islands of Alola, shopping wherever he could to try and find the presents that he wished to get everyone. Let's see now…a new dress for Mom…a scratching post for Meowth…as many malasadas as he could find for Hau…and one of the more expensive items on his list, a sleeker, sturdier, more powerful bow for his friend Moon – which mind you, the boy had to import all the way from the Unova region! But, he knew she would be excited. All that was left now however, was Lillie and Lusamine. The mother and daughter were returning to Alola for the holidays, and were due to arrive later that day. And as for Gladion…he was hard to shop for, so Sun didn't bother with him.
The boy panted as he ran into the shopping center. It was surprisingly not as busy as you would think it would be on Christmas Eve. Regardless, he had to hurry to the store he was looking for – even though he was promised the items will be held, he was still unsure. He walked up to the counter, speaking to the manager.
"H-Hello! I'm here to pick up a pair of items I've reserved!" He said hurriedly.
"Sure, what's you name sweetie?" The manager said standing behind the counter.
"S-Sun. My name is Sun…are my items still here?!"
"Oh! You're the boy who called on the phone earlier today! Yes, we still have those items here for you! Just let me go to the back to get them really quick!"
"Oh, thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to me..."
xXxXxXxXx
Sun let out a sigh of relief. He was now back in Iki Town, all the gifts he bought were now wrapped up and underneath the Christmas Tree. For it being the eve of a major holiday, it was rather quiet in the town for some reason. As Kahuna – pardon, Elite Four – Hala approached the boy, the thoughts racing through his head were that something was going to happen eventually.
"Ho! How are you doing today young Sun? Are you ready for the celebration this evening?"
"Celebration? What celebration?" The boy asked, putting his 3DS with a copy of Pocket Monsters: Omega Ruby into his backpack. He really wanted a copy of Pocket Monsters: Sun Version when the game came out, but had more important things to worry about at the time, which didn't involve playing video games…
"Ho-ho, why yes! Every year we have a little tradition here on Melemele Island! Everyone comes here to Iki Town and gathers around the pedestal here! The young 'uns on their Island Challenge – or at the very least, our most recent participants in it – have a Battle Royal, followed by the Kahunas, and then the victors of those two battles have one with our two regional professors! And once it's all said and done with, Santa himself comes and hands out presents!"
Sun turned his head to the side. That last part sounded a bit…odd. Sun was old enough to know that Santa wasn't real…would Moon, Hau, and the other people his age really fall for it?
"Um…sure. Yeah. 'Santa' shows up."
"Haha! Just you watch boy! He'll show up! And along with those official battles, there are some other ones that happen between our other guests – Trial Captains and what not! Anywho, I'll see you around boy!" And with that, Hala walked off to go deal with other things.
Rolling his eyes at the idea of a 'Santa Clause' showing up this evening, Sun slowly got up, stretching a little bit. That's when he heard a familiar, sing-song voice.
"SUUUUUUUNNNNNNN! There you are you doofus!"
Moon came running up to her friend, tackling him into a hug. They were, quite honestly, the best of friends, even after only knowing each other since their adventures in Alola began.
"Sooooo, what did you get me for Christmas, huh, HUH?! What'd you get me Sun?!"
The boy looked up at his friend, squirming a bit to try and get off of her. She was…a bit too attached to her friend, to say the least.
"How about you tell me first?"
"Okay! I got you a-MMMPPPHHH! Mrgrrgrrr…" The girl was very quickly silenced with Sun's hand.
"I didn't mean literally Moon! You're not supposed to tell someone what you got them for Christmas before they unwrap it."
"But…but…hmph! My family always opens up one present each on Christmas Eve!"
"Really? Interesting…Unfortunately, I haven't really been able to buy you a lot. Being the Champion doesn't quite pay as much as you think." He said sadly. It was a partial truth to be sure, but he had quite a few people to buy for as well…
"Oh…So, I'm guessing you bought me only one thing?" She asked, her usual, happy, cheerful smile fading from her face, tears forming in her eyes.
"Th-That's not what I meant Moon…U-Unfortunately, I had to keep my purchases limited. Everyone I bought for only got one thing from me. Sorry."
He legitimately thought that she was about to burst into tears, before she suddenly started laughing.
"Hahahaha! I understand perfectly Sun! I know what you mean! I'm not even mad, hehe! I'm just happy that you got something for me." She said with a smile, finally crawling off of the boy and standing up. He proceeded to stand up as well, wiping some dust off of his pants.
"Heh. Well you're welcome. By the way, has Hala informed you of the celebration or whatever that'll take place tonight?"
"Oh. My. ARCEUS! Of course! I'm so excited! I've never gotten a chance to meet Santa in my life!"
…
…
…
"…I'm just joking silly, hehe! I don't believe in Santa anymore. I am excited though! Amazing Battle Royals between such amazing trainers! Oh, speaking of which, just so you know, don't go easy on me just because I'm a girl! You'll regret it!"
"Hah! Go easy on you? Last time we battled you had the guts and the strength to challenge my throne! I wouldn't dream of it!"
"Nice to see you remembered! Primarina and I are gonna take you DOWN tonight! See you then!" She said before running off.
Sun paused. It seemed everyone was wanting to visit him and talk to him about something today. Before someone else decided to lay some exposition about the day's events, he quickly ran home, realizing that he only had a few hours to get ready before tonight.
xXxXxXxXx
Sun walked into the center of Iki Town, where a crowd had gather during his absence. The sun had set in the sky, and the party was going strong. At the moment, the Trial Captain Kiawe had taken the stage and was performing his famous fire dancing along with his trio of Marowak. Sun was now dressed up in some lovely attire, wearing a simple, red, v-neck tee shirt, orange cargo shorts, and yellow sneakers. He had gone with the 'setting sun' look for this evening. No hat though – it wouldn't match his look.
He tried to see if he could find any friends, but the crowd was so thick…it was nearly impossible. Shortly after however, Kiawe's dance ended, and Professor Kukui took the stage.
"Thank you, thank you everyone! And welcome to Melemele Island's annual Christmas celebration! Tonight, as usual, we're gonna start things off with our flaming hot Battle Royal between our most recent trainers to take part in the Island Challenge!"
Cheering was heard throughout the crowd, and Sun began making his way towards the center in order to take the stage when his name was called.
"First up, Melemele's lovely princess herself – Moon!" The young girl happily danced up to the stage, waving at everyone. She was wearing a long sleeve, midnight blue top that slightly showed her midriff, along with a purple skirt, and finally, three-inch white heels, her outfit supposed to imitate a rising moon.
"Next, we have the grandson of Kahuna Hala himself – Hau!"
"Woohoo! Yeah! I'm gonna win this and buy me some malasada!" The dark-skinned by yelled as he ran up on stage. He was wearing his normal outfit, as always. And of course he was his usual, happy self.
"Third, we will be having the heir to the Aether Foundation's lovely heiress, Lillie!"
What?! Lillie was taking place in the evening's Battle Royal?! This surprised Sun heavily. But, he didn't have enough time to be shocked, as his name was next.
"And finally, he may not be an Alolan native himself, but he became our region's first ever Pokémon League Champion, here comes Sun!"
The cheering was most definitely the loudest after the boy's name was called, walking up onto the stage and taking his corner. He was position directly across from Lillie, and as such, was unable to speak to her.
"Now trainers, once I leave the stage, release your Pokémon! Each trainer shall use one Pokémon each! The once one Pokémon remains, the trainer who had the most KO's with the least wipeouts will be victorious and move on to the final battle! Trainers…BEGIN!"
"Aw yeah! Time to go Raichu! Show 'em what you are made of!" Hau yelled out, throwing the Alolan form of the famous Pokémon out onto the field.
"If that's what you plan on doing, I guess Primarina will take the field!" Was Moon's response. Despite having a clear weakness against the electric type, she appeared to be extremely confidant.
Sun waited to see if Lillie sent out her Pokémon, whatever it would be. When she didn't, the boy shrugged his shoulders, throwing out his Decidueye.
Lillie stood there, taking a deep breath. "I never liked Pokémon battles…seeing Pokémon get hurt like that…but you three…you've all taught me how you can have battles and train Pokémon without having to hurt them…which is why, I will win this for my partner! Gardevoir, show them what you're able to do!" The girl yelled out, releasing the powerful psychic-fairy Pokémon. A quick glance showed that it wore a necklace with an odd, rainbow colored stone on it. A Mega Stone…
"Hmph. Nice Pokémon Lillie. You won't get to use it though! Raichu, use Volt Tackle on the Gardevoir!"
"Primarina, Sparkling Aria on the Gardevoir as well!"
Sun shrugged his shoulders. They were clearly ganging up on the girl.
"Fine, I'll do it to. Decidueye, Spirit Shackle the Gardevoir!"
Just as the three attacks were about to hit Lillie's Gardevoir, she finally gave a command.
"PROTECT!" She yelled out, grabbing the necklace she wore as well, and mega evolving the creature. Everyone's moves failed just before they hit.
"Fine, if you have Protect, I'll focus on other targets! Raichu, Thunderbolt on the Primarina!"
"What?! How dare you Hau! Primarina, use Surf on everyone else!" "Decidueye, use Double Team to dodge it!"
"Protect yourself again Gardevoir!"
Raichu and Primarina's attacks both connected with each other, with Primarina fainting from the Thunderbolt, though Raichu took a hefty amount of damage from the Surf.
"Decidueye, finish off the Raichu with Spirit Shackle!"
"Gardevoir, help it out with Shadow Ball!"
"What?! Why are you two ganging up on me?!" Hau was so dumbfounded that he was unable to form a command, the double attacks knocking out his Raichu. All that remained was Decidueye and Gardevoir.
"Hmph. Time to end this. DECIDUEYE! USE SINISTER ARROW RAID!" Sun yelled out, performing his respective dance for the move to give his Pokémon energy for the attack.
"Gardevoir…DESTINY BOND!"
"What?! NO!"
It was too late though. Decidueye had already committed itself to the move. As the arrows fell upon Gardevoir, sun hoped that it wouldn't knock it out.
…
…
…
It survived!
"Hmph. Gardevoir, finish it with Moonbl-'
"SUCKER PUNCH DECIDUEYE!"
The girl wasn't able to finish her command before Sun yelled his, dark energy forming around his Pokémon's fist before it lunged forward and hit Gardevoir, finishing it.
"Hmph. That was a risky move Sun. You did good." Lillie said, returning her Pokémon.
"WOOOHOOHOO EVERYONE! That has got to be the most heart-pounding, gut-wrenching, Christmas Battle Royal we've ever seen! With something like that, who knows what the battle between our Kahunas is going to go!"
xXxXxXxXx
The Kahuna battle was relatively uninteresting. A few moves later and Olivia came out on top, beating Hala, Nanu, and Hapu with ease. Now, for the final battle: Sun vs. Olivia vs. Kukui vs. Burnet. An interesting battle, to be sure. But as everyone took their spots, things got even more interesting, as Hala took the center stage.
"Ladies and gentleman, in years past we had our two regional professors – Kukui and Burnet – battle the victorious trainer and Kahuna in this final Battle Royal of the night. This year, however, things will be done a bit differently! May I welcome to the stage, Champion of the Sinnoh Region Pokémon League, Dawn Hikari!"
Sun and everyone else was really perplexed by this. The young girl slowly walked up to the stage, Pokéballs attached to her belt. She didn't say a word, merely standing there, brooding, waiting.
"And now with that out of the way, let the battle…BEGIN!"
"Alright…I can't use Decidueye again…he's still recovering…Toxapex, show them what we can do!" Sun yelled, releasing the poison-water type.
"Hmph. Alright Probopass, time to show them who a real champion is!" Olivia yelled, throwing out the Alolan form of the recognizable rock type.
"Haha! Those are some nice Pokémon there cousin! But neither of them can stand up to my Snorlax!" Kukui yelled, the infamously large Pokémon taking the stage.
Finally, and still without a word, Dawn merely let her Pokéball fall lazily from her hand, Roserade coming out. She clearly had an advantage for this.
"Alright, Toxapex, use Toxic on the Snorlax!"
"Probopass, Earthquake everything on the field!"
"Snorlax, Body Slam on that Roserade!"
"…Roserade, Venoshock the Snorlax…" Dawn said slowly.
Everyone had relatively slow Pokémon on the field, but Toxapex somehow went first, poisoning the Snorlax, followed by Roserade knocking it out with a Venoshock. Probopass came through with Earthquake, doing heavy damage to the two poison types, but neither fainted.
"Toxapex, use Liquidation on Probopass!"
"…Roserade, finish it with Giga Drain…"
Olivia was horrified, not having a chance to attack as she watched her Pokémon get double teamed, fainting after the Giga Drain fully healed the Roserade.
"Toxapex, Blizzard on the Roserade!"
"…Finish this Alolan 'Champion' with a Solar Beam…"
"Haha! I have you now!" Sun said, feeling confidant. But then, his attacked missed…and Roserade powered itself up with a Power Herb!
"What?! No!"
The boy screamed out as the Solar Beam tore through his Toxapex, finishing it off.
Dawn smiled, returning her Roserade and slowly walking off, away from Iki Town, glad with her victory…
xXxXxXxXx
Sun sat off to the side from the party happening in the town. He tossed his Pokéball up and down in his hand, thinking about just how everything went wrong in the battle…how he lost.
"Hey, Sun! You should quit moping around! It's Christmas Eve you know!" Moon said, running over and throwing her arms around the boy.
"Hmph. Yeah, I know…it's just…that trainer…she was so strong…I need to get stronger…"
"Hey, hey! Don't give me any of that! Be cheerful! Lillie's back! It might not be for long, but she's here! You should go talk to her…"
"You really think I should? It's just been so long…and heck, even she's become a strong trainer in that time…"
"Which is why you should talk to her! You like her, right? So why not catch up will you have time! You might not see her for a while…"
"…Yeah, I guess that's true. I'll see you later Moon."
"Hehe, okay! See you then! Don't be late for 'Santa!'"
"Right…Santa…" Sun said, rolling his eyes, regardless of the girl's sarcasm. It took him a while, what with the crowd and all, but eventually he managed to find Lillie. When she felt her friend's hand on her shoulder, she turned, smiling happily.
"Sun! It's been so long! I haven't seen you in months! Though I guess it's kinda my fault, hehe!"
"No, not at all Lillie! You're fine! So, how've you been? How's Miss Lusamine doing?"
"Oh, she's doing fine actually! A lot better! W-We managed to get the trace remnants of Nihilego as well as all the poison out of her, so she's perfectly healthy now! Well, as healthy as my mother is…"
"It's fine. I understand. How're you enjoying the celebration?"
"Oh, I'm actually really enjoying it, hehe! I can't wait to see Santa Clause!"
Sun paused. Did this girl really believe in Santa still.
"…I…I know what you're fixing to ask. 'Why do I still believe in Santa?' Well, honestly, is it really that farfetched? I mean, think about it: You and I summoned the guardian deity of Alola…we've traveled to another dimension, and so many other trainers on their adventures have encountered, defeated, and caught literal gods! So why is hard to think that there might be a jolly old fat man who travels the world all in a single night delivering presents?"
Sun sat there and thought about what the girl said. It honestly all made perfect sense really.
"I…I do guess you're right about that. So many people have done incredible things we never could have dreamed of…"
"Exactly! Though I know that it's not the really Santa who's gonna be he-"
"HO, HO, HO! Merry Christmas everyone! How are you all doing this evening?"
Sun turned, to see who was speaking – and was utterly surprised when he saw what was clearly Hala dressed up in a Santa costume. Who could this man possibly be fooli-
"OH MAN! SANTA'S HERE! ALRIGHT!" Hau's ever-familiar voice resonated, rushing through the crowd to Hala. "Santa, Santa! What did you bring me this year? Oh man, I hope I got an entire house made of malasada!"
"Ho, ho, ho! Young Hau, isn't it? Sorry, can't say I have that for ya! Just not a…structurally sound idea. Plus, even you can't eat all that malasada, hehehe. I did bring quite a few things for you, but I'm not permitted to tell you what exactly it all is! You'll have to find out tomorrow!"
"Ah man! Okay, I understand Santa…"
Sun stared, listening on the exchange as he felt something tugging on his arm. He turned to find Lillie.
"Hehe. He does this every year! And every year Hau is still surprised and thinks that it really is Santa himself! I don't think Hala has the heart to tell him…"
"Heh. Why ruin the boy's fun?" Sun said, not wanting to crush Hau's dreams.
"…You know Sun…just from you being here…this is the best Christmas ever already…"
"R-Really?! Just my presence…?"
"Mmhmm! I like you a lot…and I hope we stay friends a long time…"
"Yeah…I do too…Lillie…"
xXxXxXxXx
Finally, it was Christmas Day. Sun slowly woke up, walking downstairs, and found that company was already over, consisting of Hau, Moon, Lusamine, and Lillie. Gladion was nowhere to be found, and some questioning revealed that he was at Aether Paradise, making sure the place was still running properly while everyone else was at home for Christmas. When asking why he was there, Lillie explained that they held their Christmas with him at the Paradise a few hours earlier.
"Alright then, now that everyone's here, shall we open up some presents?" Sun's Mom asked. No one said no, and as such, the woman began passing out presents.
"Oh wow, sweetie! You got me a new dress for Christmas!" The boy's mother said, holding it close to her.
"Whoa-ho-ho! A box of malasadas! Thanks so much Sun!" Hau exclaimed happily, opening the box and already starting to dig in.
"Oh. My. ARCEUS! A brand new bow?! Sun, how did you afford this?! Wh-where did you afford this?!" Moon asked, surprised by her present.
And lastly, Lusamine and Lillie.
"Y-You two can open them together. Th-They're kind of a pair, hehe." Sun said, smiling at the two.
They nodded, quickly opening their presents. Lusamine had a plushy of the Ultra Beast Nihilego, her favorite by far, and Lillie had one of…Cosmog.
"L-Lillie, go ahead and squeeze it. I think you'll enjoy it.
Pew-Pew!
"Ohhhh! It sounds just like Nebby…a-and it even has 'Nebby' written on the tag for it!" The girl was so happy.
As everyone was laughing and enjoying their presents and having a good time, Lillie walked over to Sun, handing the boy a small, square gift.
"F-For you. I figured I might as well get it for you, since you really wanted it, hehe."
Confused, Sun slowly opened it, and nearly lost his mind when he saw that is was a copy of Pocket Monsters: Sun Version. He couldn't think of anything else to do but throw his arms around Lillie in an embrace.
"Th-Thank you so much Lillie! You don't know how much this means to me!"
"Hehe! Oh, it was nothing! I didn't even get it – Santa told me to give it to you."
"Sant-No, I'm not even gonna question it, hehe!"
xXxXxXxXx
"Ho, ho, ho! I think we did a good job delivering all of the presents this year, my Delibird! I might have to hire more of you next year, make it even faster!"
Hala was sitting inside of his hut, still dressed up as Santa Clause, with quite a few Delibird surrounding him. He had handled delivering presents in the Alola region itself, as he had every year, and the Delibird went around the world delivering the others.
"Hmmm…I am getting a bit slower in my old age, however…I should start training Hau for this so that he's able to take over in a few years, ho, ho, ho!"
Merry Christmas to all, and a Happy New Year!