Author's Note: ...Oh my god. Look in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Why no! It's a long awaited update! Honestly, this is one of the worst Writer's Block holds I've had so far (I haven't update since April)! But, here's the moment you've all been waiting for: Chapter 25 of Tides of the Soul!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, but I do own Ritsu and Nico.

When I caught the sight of the city, I was truly amazed. Blackthorn City was covered in beautiful Dragon-type Pokémon decorations, people were setting up pretty lanterns everywhere, children were running around in their traditional kimonos, and overall, everything was magnificent.

"Wow! The outside world is so wonderful!" Manny beamed in awe, "Is it always like this?"

"I don't think so," I said, "I think that there's some kind of festival going around."

"Ah yes, there is!" an old woman explained as she walked up to me. "You see young lady; every year, Blackthorn City throws the 'Rising Twin Dragons Festival'."

"The Rising Twin Dragons Festival? What's that?" I asked.

"It's a city-exclusive celebration that commemorates the very famous tale that has been passed down from our city's oldest days."

"May I please hear the story, ma'am?"

"Of course! I'd be happy to tell it to you! Come to my house and I'll also give you a kimono for the festival!"

Once we got to the old lady (who's name was actually Hitomi)'s house, I changed into a beautiful pink kimono with a bright red sash and decorated with dark pink cherry blossom flowers. I then sat down at the kitchen table to hear Hitomi's story.

"Long ago, not too long after Blackthorn City was given its name, there lived a young boy with two twin Dratini. The older Dratini's name was Ikari, while his sister's name was Miyuki. Both Dratini were quite equal in strength; however, while Ikari was a regular-colored Dratini, Miyuki was an unusual violet color."

"A violet Dratini?" I asked amazed, "Is that possible?"

"Why yes it is, Young Ritsu," Hitomi said smiling. "Pokémon that are a different color than usual are called 'Shiny Pokémon'. There's an old saying that if you come across a Shiny Pokémon and catch it, good things are more likely to come your way. Now back to the story: Once their trainer discovered Miyuki's unique color, he decided to show everyone in the city. But, while everyone was giving little Miyuki so much attention and adoration, her brother was feeling extremely left out. So, in order to get noticed, he began to train hard each and every morning until he finally evolved into a mighty Dragonair. Although his trainer was indeed amazed by the evolution, it wasn't enough to get himself noticed by the others who were still admiring his sister's elegant violet coat and her own physical strength; despite being not as strong as her brother. Overcome with envy and resent, Ikari unleashed his fury by destroying Blackthorn City and harming thousands. Miyuki desperately tried to step forward and console her brother, but he only responded by attacking her with a Dragon Rage attack. Although she was wounded, Miyuki refused to yield to Ikari's fury. When he attacked her again, she defended with Protect (taught to her by her trainer). No matter how hard Ikari tried to break his sister's shield, it was futile. Miyuki then evolved into Dragonair and dropped the Protect move to try and talk to Ikari. However, Ikari was still blinded by envy and once again attacked with Dragon Rage. Miyuki quickly countered with a Dragon Rage of her own. The blasts were at a stalemate for some time before Ikari eventually submitted to his sister's power. Rather than finishing her brother off, Miyuki simply calmed him down and presumbly told him that no matter how much attention a Shiny Pokémon would get, Ikari would always be special in his own way. Remorseful, Ikari sincerely apologized to his sister and they both used Rain Dance to put out the city's fire. Once the city was rebuilt, the citizens of Blackthorn also apologized to Ikari for ignoring him for Miyuki and promised to acknowledge his integrity as well. In order to do this, they threw the twins a festival to honor their unity called The Rising Twin Dragons Festival. And that, Young Ritsu, is the tale of the Twin Dragons."

"...Wow, that was such a great story, Miss Hitomi!" I beamed.

"I'm glad you think so, Ritsu!" Hitomi responded, "But, I don't think it's correct to call me 'Miss' since I have a husband and two great-grandchildren."

"Really? Who are they?"

"My darling husband Ryuusuke is what we call the Dragon Clan Elder, my lovely great-granddaughter Clair is the Gym Leader of the city, and my wonderful great-grandson Lance is the Champion of Johto!"

"Wait! D-Did you say Lance is your great-grandson?" I asked, blushing.

"Why yes, I did! Judging by the blush on your face, it seems like you know him."

"Y-Yes, I do know him. We both stopped Team Rocket from taking over Mahogany Town together..."

"Really?!" Hitomi exclaimed, "That's amazing! Although, it's quite an unusual idea of a date."

"D-Date?! No no, it's not like that!" I sputtered, "I-I mean... I really do him that way... Oops!" I quickly covered my mouth.

"There's no need to be embarassed, Ritsu," Hitomi insisted, "Besides, if you did end up with Lance, then I'd say he would have made a good choice!"

"Th-Thank you, Hitomi," I said, blushing again. "Well, I guess I'll be on my way! Oh wait, do you want your kimono back?"

"No no, dear, you can keep it! You look absolutely beautiful in it! Just go enjoy the festival's first day, okay?"

"Okay, thank you!"

Seeing that Manny was already out of his Pokéball, I decided to call out the rest of the team for some festival fun. Erin joined me in playing a game called Yo-Yo Tsuri, where the objective is to fish for rotating water balloons with a hooked paper string. While I wasn't very lucky enough to catch even one balloon, Erin actually managed to nab one with a Corsola print in less than ten seconds. Once her balloon was tied to the string (like a yo-yo), I decided to let her keep it since the balloon reminded her of Kairi. Then, I decided to take Louie to a game where you're supposed to pop as many air balloons as you can by throwing darts (there were even balloons covered in pretty glitter that were worth the most points). While Louie had poor throwing skills due to having no fingers, I ended up winning since I kept popping more glittery balloons than regular ones.

"I still think that was nothing more than sheer luck, Ritsu," Louie said.

"No way! I just have really good aim is all!" I giggled as I hugged my large Altaria plush doll.

Later that night, I decided to buy delicious chocolate-covered Nanab Berry snacks for my team (with the exception of Blaze who didn't like sweet foods).

"Wow, Ritsu!" Manny exclaimed as he bounced with excitement in my lap, "This chocolate Nanab Berry is delicious! I've never had anything like it! Oh man, the outside world is so wonderful!"

"Well, it sounds like someone's having quite some fun," a familiar voice said.

I looked up to see that the voice was coming from none other than Lance, who was wearing a dark violet yukata printed with fancy gray smoke clouds. I shyly nibbled on my portion of the chocolate Nanab Berry as I began to blush again.

"H-Hi, Lance," I greeted in a timid tone, "Fancy meeting you here!"

"Hello, Ritsu!" Lance responded, "Are you having as much fun as your Swinub?"

"Yes, I am actually!" I chirped.

I then noticed a blue haired woman wearing a navy blue kimono printed with miniature Deino. I was about to give her a friendly greeting, but the cold glare she was giving me quickly shut me up.

"Um Lance... your friend seems to be giving me quite a glare," I shuddered nervously, "Did I do something wrong?"

"No no, not at all, Ritsu!" Lance assured me, "And Clair's not my friend, she's my cousin!"

"Oh! Well, it's very nice to meet you, Miss Clair," I greeted as I held my open palm out, "My name is Ritsu."

"...Charmed," Clair said as she shook my hand, "And how do you know Clair's cousin?"

"Oh, um... I first met Lance at the Lake of Rage," I explained, blushing, "After I calmed down a shiny Gyarados, he complimented me on my battling skills and-"

"Wait a second!" Clair exclaimed, "You were the one who soothed the Red Gyarados?!"

"Yes, that was me, Miss Clair."

"Ha! You expect Clair to believe that? Look at you! You're so feeble looking and you don't look like you'd hurt a Beautifly!"

"Wh-What?" I gasped with a hurt look on my face, "I'm not feeble! I really did calm it down! Honest!"

"Again, ha! Clair doubts someone who barely even has a chest could pull off such a task!"

"B-But... but..." I whimpered as tears formed in my eyes.

"That's enough, Clair!" Lance angrily snapped as he harshly grabbed his rude cousin by her arm, "Leave Ritsu alone or else!"

"Oh come on, Lance! Are you telling Clair that a stupid little girl like her could have quelled that Red Gyarados? Look at her! She's simply pathetic!"

"ENOUGH, Clair!" Lance scolded with an intimidating glare. "You may not know this, but Ritsu's a very strong, kind, and loving trainer! She's already got seven out of the eight League badges! If you don't believe me now, then you just wait until she challenges you for the Rising Badge!"

"...Very well then," Clair sneered, "Clair will take your word for it for now, little girl. But mark Clair's words; when you challenge her Gym, let's see how 'strong' you are afterwards! When the festival is over, Clair will be waiting!"

After Clair stormed off in a huff, Lance gave me a handkerchief so I could dry my teary eyes. He then sat down next to me and sighed.

"Ritsu, I'm so so sorry for my cousin," Lance apologized, "To be honest, she's like that with anyone she thinks is strong enough to defeat her."

"So what the heck's that Clair chick's deal?" Blaze asked, "I was this close to burning that bitch's face off!"

"Well Blaze, Clair's kind of what we call a 'sore loser'," Lance responded, "Whenever someone beats her in a Gym Battle or even a friendly practice match, she always throws a tantrum and fires insults at whoever beat her. Truth is, she never used to act this way, and I don't know why she does it now."

"And what about the whole 'talking in the third person' thing?" Merida asked, "Has she always done that?"

"Yes actually," Lance answered, "She's been doing that since we were teens. She says that by not using personal pronouns, it makes her feel 'independent'. But honestly, I wish Clair would learn to lighten up on her challengers..."

"Don't worry, Lance!" I assured him, "Once I get some training done, I'll teach Clair a lesson! No matter the reason, bullying innocent challengers isn't right!"

"That's the spirit, Ritsu!" Lance exclaimed, "But, I'm afraid the Gym's closed until tomorrow morning when the festival's officially over, so you'll have to wait."

"Oh..."

"...But in the meantime, why don't you join me in watching the Closing Ceremony show?"

"Y-You want me to join you?!" I squeaked as my face turned pink again.

"Well of course, you don't act like a brat and storm off like Clair after all!" Lance chuckled as he reached his palm towards me. "So, what do you say?"

"I... I'd love to watch the show with you, Lance," I said, smiling as I put my palm in his.

The festival's Closing Ceremony was absolutely amazing. First, there was a fantastic reenactment of the story of Ikari and Miyuki using the Hyper Beam of a Dragonite and the Flamethrower of a Charizard as living puppets. Then, there was a mystical parade full of acrobats and even a giant Salemence puppet that breathed real fire. And finally, the festival closed with a fantastic display of fireworks in the shape of various Dragon-type Pokémon from every region.

"Thank you for watching the ceremony with me, Ritsu," Lance said smiling as we continued to watch the fireworks.

"It was no problem, Lance," I replied, "I had so much fun with you!"

"I had fun too," Lance remarked, "You really are a wonderful girl to be around!"

Smiling, my head unconsciously leaned against Lance's chest and I heard the sweet rhythm of his heartbeat ringing through my ear.

"Oh, are you getting tired, Ritsu?" Lance asked as his face began to turn a light shade of pink.

"Hmm? Oh!" I gasped, lifting my head from his chest. "Yeah... it is getting pretty late, so I guess I'll check into the Pokémon Center very soon!"

"Well, okay then! Goodnight to you, Ritsu!" Lance said as the last firework went off, "And good luck in your last Gym Battle!"

"Thanks and goodnight to you to, Lance!" I responded as I went into the Pokémon Center.

Once I checked into my room and changed into my pajamas, I called my team back to their Poké Balls for the night and reminisced on how wonderful spending time with Lance was tonight.

"Best festival ever..." I sighed dreamily as I drifted into a deep sleep.

Pokémon obtained: None.

Deaths: None.

Boxed/Unboxed: None.

Author's Note: If you're wondering why Clair speaks in the 3rd person, it's because I found out her Japanese name is Ibuki (as in Mioda)! Well, stay tuned for Chapter 26!