Chapter 7: Give 'Em the Ole Razzle Dazzle
"So, you've finally returned for me, eh?" Harvey said as he exited his Pokéball. He put on a cofused look when Jake didn't answer. "Wait, where's that cute Poochyena-" He was stopped by Harrison ramming him into a wall.
"Her name… is SHENZI," Harrison said through gritted teeth.
"Harrison," Jake said. "Let him go." Harrison looked at Jake for a bit, then Harvey, then he eased off.
"Why are we even bringing him back?" Eren asked. "He's been nothing but a jerk the entire time he was on the team."
"I wouldn't keep anyone off the team if we had an empty slot," Jake said. "Plus, I need someone who can use HM moves."
"Wait, so I'm an HM Slave now?" Harvey asked. "That's just wrong."
"Do you want to go back n the box?" Jake asked.
"No, but-" Harvey started, but then he huffed. "Fine. I'll be your little Rock-Smasher."
"Great," Jake said, turning around. "Let's head to Mauville."
Unfortunately, when they reached the entrance to Route 110, a large crowd was forming in front.
"What the heck is this?" Cami asked.
"LIVE FROM SLATEPORT CITY," A man with a microphone said. "YOU ALL KNOW HER, THE CONTEST STAR: LISIA!"
Suddenly, an Altaria swooped down from the sky, and from it, jumped a woman in a loud blue dress, with stylized teal hair.
"Hello-oooooooo, Slateport!" Lisia greeted. "And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for, it's time to scout out a new contest star!" The crowd screamed, becoming a sea of "Pick me!"s. "Let's see," Lisia said, scanning the crowd. She looked around, until she saw…
"Hey you!" She called out. "In the red! With the really weird hat!" A stagehand turned a spotlight onto Jake, who froze. "Get on up here!" Her Altaria flew over to Jake, nudging him all the way to the stage.
"Now, can you tell us your name?" Lisia asked Jake, holding a microphone up to him.
"Um," Jake stammered, "J-Jake."
"Jake, huh? Can you tell us about yourself?"
"Well, I'm a trainer."
"Ooh, a trainer! You must be taking the League Challenge, right?"
"Yeah, I've got two badges now. As a matter of fact, I was on my way to Mauville for my third, but this rally was blocking the-"
"I'll just get right to the point," Lisia cut him off, "How would you like to be a contest star?" The crowd roared.
"Um… what?"
"I want you to be a contest star!"
"OK, I don't even know what you're talking about. But I should really be going to Mauv-"
"He'll do it!" Lisia cheered. The crowd roared as Lisia dragged Jake offstage.
"The contest will start in 10 minutes!" The announcer yelled. "We hope to see you all there!"
"Do you not know how to react when people tell you 'no'?" Jake asked Lisia when they entered her trailer.
"Alright, you'll need to put this on," Lisia said, ignoring him and handing him a stack of clothes.
"What?" Jake asked, but Lisia shoved him into a closet. When he exited, he was wearing a red jacket with faux-fur lining on one arm, black pants, a green-and-yellow shirt, red boots, and a red-and-yellow feather in his hair.
"Perfect," Lisia said. "Now, you need to choose a Pokémon to participate in the contest."
"Um, like what?" Jake asked.
"Something acrobatic," Lisia said. "It really needs to move."
"Okay, I think I can do that," Jake said. As he walked outside, he called Harrison over.
"You want me to do WHAT?" Harrison yelled. "No. Maybe you like dancing your little frilly dance, but not me. Get Eren to do it."
"Harrison, come on," Jake said. "I don't want to do this either, but we can't leave Slateport until we do this."
Harrison glared at him, but then relented. "Fine. Let's get this over with."
"Ladies and Gentlemen!" The announcer yelled. "It's finally time for the CONTEST SPECTACULAR!" The crowd cheered once again. "Here are our competitors: From Verdanturf Town, it's Black Belt Arin and his Makuhita, Danny!" A black belt and a Makuhita ran onstage, each making a dramatic pose.
"Hailing from Rustboro city, it's Youngster Joey and his top-percentage Poochyena, Joeseph!" A youngster and his Poochyena ran on stage, making an epic stance before joining the other competitior.
"From Lavaridge City, it's Camper Girl Ami and her adorable Aron, Yumi!" A camper girl and an Aron danced onstage and made a pose so cute that it blew everyone away.
"And finally, from Littleroot Town, the current rising Contest Star Jake and his Tailow, Harrison!" Jake awkwardly walked onstage, waving at the audience, while Harrison flew on, avoiding eye contact with the audience.
"Now, for our three celebrity judges!" The announcer announced. "You all know her, the all-time greatest Contest Star, Lisia and her Altaria, Ali!" Lisia flew in on her Altaria, landing onstage and bowing to the audience before taking her seat.
"He's the leader of the Sootopolis Gym, the ever-fabulous Wallace and his Milotic, Andromeda!" A man with blue hair, a white beret, and a white-purple-and-blue suit that barely covered anything jumped onstage, followed by his Milotic, and they took their seats.
"And finally, Champion of the Pokémon League, the one, the only… Steven Stone and his Metagross, Orson!" Jake and Harrison took a double take as Steven walked onstage with his Metagross.
"Steven, you made it!" Wallace said, grabbing Steven's hand as he walked by.
"Hey, Wallace," Steven said. "And Lisia, looking radiant as ever."
"Oh, you charmer," Lisia said, blushing. She turned to the audience. "The contest rules are as follows: each contestant must have their Pokémon use each of the four moves in their moveset in such a way that it dazzle us three judges and our Pokémon. We will each give a point value from 1 to 10. The duo with the most points will win!"
"First up," the announcer said, "is Arin and Danny!" The black belt and his Makuhita walked onstage.
"Prepare to be rocked to the core!" Arin yelled. "Danny! Bulk Up!" Danny breathed in and out, steadying himself for his routine. "Now, Arm Thrust!" Danny thrust his arm at the ground, launching himself into the air. "Now, Reversal!" Now the Makuhita spun around in the air, hurtling towards the ground. "Finish it off! Seismic Toss!" The Makuhita landed on its feet, causing debris to fly into the sky. He jumped up, grabbed rock after rock, throwing them into the ground to spell out "Lisia".
"Amazing!" the announcer yelled. "Let's see what our judges think." Steven held up an 8, Wallace gave a 7, and Lisia gave a 9. "24 points! That'll be tough to beat! Up next, it's Joey and Joeseph!"
The youngster and his Poochyena ran onstage. "Let's go, Joeseph! Howl!" The Poochyena let out a great howl, piercing the air and causing the judges to cringe in pain. "Now, tackle!" Joeseph ran off the stage, hitting his face into the ground. "Bite!" The Poochyena bit the ground, giving him a mouthful of dirt. "Let's win this thing! Use Tail Whip!" Joeseph wagged his tail.
"O…kay… then…" the announcer said. "Um… judges?" Steven, Wallace, and Lisia all gave a 1. "3 points… better… luck… next time? Okay, next up is Ami and Yumi." A man ran up to the announcer and whispered something in his ear. "Oh, looks like the author has run out of room, so to save time, Ami has left Hoenn. We wish her luck in Sinnoh. Well, it looks like it's time for our final team, Jake and Harrison!"
"You ready?" Jake asked.
"We've got this," Harrison said. "You tell me what to do. I'll handle the rest."
"Let's go!" Jake yelled. "Focus Energy!" Harrison closed his eyes, concentrating. "Now, Quick Attack!" Harrison quickly dashed out of sight, flying circles around the stage. "Steel Wing!" Harrison hardened the feathers on his wings, diving down and slashing them into the dirt, writing an H. "Now, Wing Attack!" Harrison flew up, spinning around until he made a T-pose, eclipsing the sun. He then nose-dove down, bringing his wings forward and creating a large gust of wind.
"Wow!" The announcer cried. "That's sure to get a large score from the judges!" Steven gave a 9, Wallace gave an 8, and Lisia gave a perfect 10. "And Jake wins with 27 points!"
Jake and Harrison stood there with wide eyes. "We… won?" Jake asked.
"Great job, guys!" Eren said, running up with Cami, Milo, and Harvey.
"You know I'm never gonna let you live this down," Harvey said, mocking Harrison.
"Mention this event ever again and I'll tear your ears off with my bare talons," Harrison said through gritted teeth.
"Well, congratulations," Steven said, walking up to Jake. "I was surprised you had actually used the TM I gave you."
"Oh, so this is the boy you were telling me about," Wallace said, walking up to meet Jake. "Enchanted, absolutely enchanted to meet you! I'm Wallace, leader of the Sootopolis gym."
"Oh, I'm Jake," Jake introduced himself.
"Steven's told me that you're taking the League Challenge now. You have 2 badges, correct?"
"Oh, yeah. Just about to go get my third."
"Well, I look forward to when you have 7 badges. Then you'll come challenge me as soon as possible, okay?"
"Well, alright. As long as the plot doesn't get in the way."
Jake and his team finally walked out onto Route 110 after the crowd dispersed.
"Well, guys," Jake said happily, "Looks like we're finally going to Mauville."
"Hey nerd," said an all-too-familiar voice.
"OH COME ON!"
