What's this? An update? In the same month as the last one?! Blasphemous!
Yes, I got it done :P I liked the storyline for this chapter, so it was a bit easier for me to work on. I also got a lot of it done over spring break, which definitely helped. But, enough out of me. You all want to read about Michelle's next Contest! So, let's see what's happening on the wonderful Seafoam Islands!
LAST TIME: Brandon is kidnapped by Team Rocket, who wants him to give them information on Aiden and Michelle! Brandon refuses, however, and is tortured as a result in an attempt to get him to talk. Aiden and Michelle eventually find their friend with the help of their Pokémon, which results in a blustery battle with Tam Rocket! Immediately after, Brandon's Spearow evolves into Fearow, and the group is free to continue on with their journey! But, a new figure is watching over them from inside of Team Rocket's airship. Who is she? And what does she want?
Chapter 37: Seafoam Fury!
From his spot on the center of his bed, Aiden narrowed his eyes as he watched his sister.
She was sitting in front of the room's vanity, scrutinizing her reflection as she moved her green flower clip around the top of her head, trying to figure out where to put it.
"What are you doing, Michelle?" Aiden finally asked.
"I'm just wondering if I should switch up where I put my hairclip," Michelle replied, not looking away from the mirror. "Tomorrow is a Super Contest, so I have to be dressed up. I haven't had one in a while, and I'm a bit nervous for it."
"You shouldn't be!" Aiden encouraged. "You had the awesome battle with Dad a few weeks back! That should have made you super confident!"
"It did make me feel better," Michelle confirmed with a sigh before placing the flower down on the vanity. "It's just…pre-Contest nerves, you know?"
"I guess," Aiden murmured.
Michelle turned around in her seat and cocked an eyebrow. "Don't you get nervous the night before your gym battles?"
"Not really," Aiden admitted. "If anything, I'm more excited for them!"
"Well then, I wish I could be more like you," Michelle breathed, standing up and breezing towards the doorway. Sensing her trainer's distress, Pichu squeaked softly and jumped up on the girl's shoulder. As she left the room, she brushed past Brandon, who smiled at the girl in passing. Once she was out of the room, Aiden sat up on his knees and shot Brandon a look that confused the young breeder.
"What?" Brandon asked curiously.
"Michelle still seems off," Aiden muttered.
"With what? The Contests?"
"Yeah."
"I mean, I guess you can't blame her," Brandon murmured, looking over his shoulder in the direction that Michelle had gone off in. "It's been a rough go at the last few. Your dad definitely sparked her up, but it's not like he can magically restore her confidence one hundred percent."
"I always thought Dad was magical," Aiden admitted with a chuckle. "Maybe that's why I'm surprised."
"Could be," Brandon laughed, walking over to his own bed.
In that short reprieve, Aiden sat on his bed in silent thought. His brain was swirling, ideas passing through rapidly like lightning. Finally, his eyes shimmered just slightly, and he turned around so he could once again face Brandon.
"I have an idea," Aiden announced.
"Huh?" Brandon murmured, obviously distracted.
"I have an idea," Aiden repeated. "On how to get Michelle fired up."
"Oh boy," Brandon breathed.
"I'm serious!" Aiden cried.
"I'm not doubting you," Brandon promised. "It's just, you know, 'Michelle' and 'fired up' in the same sentence, especially coming from you, usually leads to trouble."
"It's not trouble," Aiden assured. "It's…actually a pretty good idea."
"A good idea? From you?" Brandon asked skeptically. "Not one where something gets lit on fire, or thrown off a roof?"
"No," Aiden groaned. "None of those things."
"Alright then," Brandon sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "I guess I can hear ya' out."
"Great!" Aiden cheered, leaning forward with excitement. "Here's my plan…"
XXX
The next morning, Michelle was ready bright and early for the Contest. She had outfitted herself in her green and white dress reserved for Super Contests, and this time, tried a little something different with her hair: pulling it half up with the flower clip instead of in a full ponytail.
"Good?" Michelle nervously asked Brandon.
"Good!" The young breeder confirmed with a laugh.
"Alright, I'm ready," Michelle decided, letting out a deep breath. She looked down at her shoulder, where Pichu was lounging and swishing her little tail back and forth. "Pichu, you're going to behave for Brandon today while I'm competing, right?"
"Pi," Pichu grumbled, accompanying a clear pout.
"She's a bit grumpy, huh?" Brandon chuckled.
"She doesn't like it when I don't use her in Contests," Michelle explained. "Pichu doesn't really like the concept of sharing. Just like Elizabeth!"
"Chu!" Pichu retorted, earning a smirk from her trainer.
"By the way, Brandon, where's Aiden?" Michelle asked, earning a soft squeak from the breeder. "I haven't seen him all morning! And it isn't like Aiden to wake up early."
"Oh…I'm not sure," Brandon lied only half convincingly.
Unfortunately for him, Michelle was quite like her mother in the sense that she was able to pick up on lying very easily. "You know exactly where he is, don't you?"
"I…well I don't exactly know…"
"Brandon!"
"Fine," the young breeder relented with a disgruntled sigh. "Just…follow me. You'll see when we get there."
Michelle raised an eyebrow as Brandon brushed past her, his shoulders defensively raised towards his ears. Looking down at her own shoulder, Michelle locked eyes with Pichu, who curiously twitched her ears at the rather tense exchange.
"Well, this isn't weird at all," Michelle sighed, looking back up and following behind Brandon.
XXX
When the two finally reached their destination, Michelle was surprised to find that Brandon had taken her to the exact place she was supposed to be at.
"The Contest Hall?" Michelle murmured.
"Yep," Brandon sighed.
Michelle furrowed her brow and looked over at Brandon. "Uh…this is where Aiden is?"
"Yep."
Glancing back up at the building, Michelle felt a sense of wonderment wash over her. It looked exactly like all of the other resort buildings that dotted the island; very modern and a high class appearance. Its sandy colored exterior walls gave the hall the appearance of a sand castle, while the bright sunlight shimmered off of the building's glass dome roof.
"Come on, let's go inside."
Michelle was snapped back into reality by the sound of Brandon's voice. He had already moved ahead of her, towards the sliding glass doors that permitted entry into the Contest Hall. Biting her lower lip, Michelle scurried after Brandon and entered the building along with him, searching around the lobby with her bright emerald eyes.
"Ah, there he is."
Michelle turned her head towards the right, and as soon as she caught sight of her brother, her eyes widened in an almost comical fashion.
"Uh…why is he dressed like that?" Michelle muttered.
Indeed, the boy was no longer wearing his normal clothes, but rather a dark gray suit with white gloves and a matching fedora. He was uncomfortably flexing his fingers in the gloves, staring down at them with confounded brown eyes.
"You should probably ask him that question," Brandon sighed, further bewildering Michelle.
Shaking her head out, Michelle marched over to Aiden, who gasped audibly when he looked up and saw her.
"Hey, Aiden, what's with the outfit?" Michelle inquired, pointing at his formalwear.
"Oh, uh, it's Dad's," Aiden began lamely, tugging at the jacket. "Mom sent it to me."
"Why?" Michelle continued. "And why are you wearing it now?"
"Uh…for the…Contest…"
Michelle's entire face paled. "WHAT?!"
"For the Contest," Aiden repeated, this time more strongly and confident than before. "I decided to enter."
Michelle's pale complexion was quickly turning bright red, and her eyes were blazing just like fire. "Why are you entering the Contest?!"
"Because I thought it would be fun," Aiden replied. "Contests seem a lot different than gym battles, but I kind of think they've got some stuff in common. So, I figured, why not try it out myself?"
Brandon sucked in a deep breath and took a step back. Michelle looked about ready to explode. He had thought all along this whole thing was a bad idea…he had even tried to warn Aiden himself. But the boy was bent on it and wouldn't listen.
"I can't believe you," Michelle mumbled, shaking her head. "You're so ridiculous."
"Maybe you should use some of that anger in your appeal," Aiden advised. "I bet the judges will be able to sense it!"
Believing that her brother was being facetious, Michelle snarled and stormed past both him and Brandon, making sure to smash her shoulder against Aiden's. With Michelle out of the picture, Aiden smirked at Brandon, who silently shook his head in response.
"You must have a death wish."
Aiden rolled his eyes at Brandon's obvious concern. "Please, I know what I'm doing."
"Do you?"
"Yes! Come on, she's my twin. We're practically the same person!"
"Yeah, except you're a guy, she's a girl, and she's a lot more rational than you are."
"Haha, real funny."
"It's the truth!"
"Michelle may be a little down right now, but she's competitive, just like me," Aiden reasoned. "Did you see her face when I told her I was entering the Contest?"
"Yeah," Brandon confirmed. "It looked like the face of someone plotting a strategic murder."
"Nooo," Aiden drawled playfully. "That was the face of someone who's ready to get on stage and do everything in her power to win!"
"You sure are confident," Brandon remarked.
"Of course," Aiden crowed. "Because I know this plan is brilliant! Just watch: Michelle's gonna go all out!"
Brandon sighed and shook his head. "Yeah, all out in rage."
XXX
"Okay, Eevee. I've been promising you this make up appeal for quite some time. I've got full confidence in you that we can win this round with flying colors!"
"Vee!" Eevee chirped, swishing his fluffy tail back and forth.
"But now that my stupid brother has decided to enter the Contest too, it's a bit trickier," Michelle conceded, folding her arms across her chest and huffing softly.
"Ee," Eevee murmured, bowing his head.
"But don't let that get to you!" Michelle encouraged. "He's never been in a Contest before! He's just a battle brained, snot nosed boy who knows nothing about the finesse required in a Contest. Just watch, Eevee. I bet he's going to get on stage and go full out attack mode! And that's not what the judges want to see. As soon as he does that, he'll be toast! And Aiden becoming toast means he'll no longer be a problem for us."
"Vee!" Eevee squeaked, perking up once again.
Michelle smirked at her Pokémon. Of course, she was furious at Aiden for entering the Contest. In fact, Michelle could hardly believe her mother would even support such a plan! Then again, Aiden was notorious for lying in order to get his way, so maybe their mother didn't actually know what he was up to. Either way, Michelle planned on calling her to complain about the whole situation once the Contest was said and done.
But aside from Michelle's outright anger at her brother, she was determined. Determined to beat Aiden for even thinking he could step into her world and challenge her. It lit such a fire in her heart…one that she hadn't even be sure was possible. In a way, it made her feel like her father. Was this what it felt like to have such a passion for one's field? Michelle had loved Contests before, of course. She'd loved them since she was just three years old, when she'd witnessed her godmothers competing in the elegant Wallace Cup. But lately, because of all her loses and her apparent streak of bad luck, Michelle had felt her passion begin to dim. It was probably the most terrifying feeling she'd ever experienced in her life. The last thing she wanted to do was fall out of love with Contests. She had worked too hard and cared too much about them to just give it all up. But now…she could feel all of that passion coming back to her like a rush. It was exhilarating and exciting. In fact, Michelle couldn't wait to get out on stage and show everyone just what her and Eevee were capable of.
Of course, the prospect of beating Aiden was pretty tantalizing as well.
XXX
"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Seafoam Island Pokémon Contest!"
The crowd roared with excitement as Lilian Meridian appeared at center stage. Brandon was part of that audience, but he wasn't as vivacious as the people surrounding him. He was nervous about Aiden and Michelle going head-to-head in what was essentially Michelle's field.
Backstage, Aiden and Michelle watched the scene from flat screen televisions on opposite sides of the room. Aiden could feel the tension between them, but that was exactly what he'd wanted. Sure, it was pretty awkward, but in the long run, he knew it was good for Michelle.
"Today, our coordinators will be competing for the beautiful Seafoam ribbon!" Lilian announced, holding up the prize. It was a bow made of seafoam colored ribbon, with one loop on either side and a single tail hanging beneath each one. The center of the ribbon was accented by a translucent glass charm in the shape of a circle, with a single blue gemstone shining in the middle.
"Wow, it's gorgeous," Michelle breathed, her eyes shimmering. Seeing the beautiful ribbon only gave her more of a will to win, and now, the young coordinator couldn't wait to get out on stage.
"Before we get this Contest under way, we're going to show off one of the best aspects of our Seafoam Contest!" Lilian cheered.
As soon as those words left her mouth, the glass dome above the building began to open up, allowing sunlight to pour into the Contest Hall. Brandon looked up at the sky in awe, while Pichu did the same and twitched her ears.
"An open roof Contest?" Michelle breathed. "That's new."
"Our first contestant of the day is making his Contest debut!" Lilian announced, her voice brimming with excitement and bringing all of the attention back to her. "So, ladies and gentlemen, let's give a warm, Seafoam Island welcome to Aiden Ketchum!"
Not dissimilar to Michelle's first Contest, the crowd was reduced to nothing more than interested whispers. The name was obvious, and they were all bewildered. Both of the Pokémon Master's children in Contests? Well, that didn't seem right.
They just don't understand that I'm only here to help Michelle, Aiden thought to himself, raising the encapsulated poke ball to his face. Not to stamp my name in the Contest book or anything like that.
Smirking to himself, Aiden stepped out on stage with a look of sheer determination. Backstage, Michelle scoffed and rolled her eyes, finding her brother's obvious confidence to be rather deplorable.
"Wartortle, I choose you!" Aiden shouted, throwing the poke ball up in the air.
It burst open, a flurry of bubbles floating up in the air and forming the shape of a large Wartortle before popping and revealing the real Wartortle. He landed back down on the stage, claws raised in the air with an impish grin on his face.
"Wartortle, use water gun up in the air!" Aiden commanded.
The water type tilted his head back and unleashed a spray of water, giving it the appearance of a fountain. Michelle, who was still watching from a screen, smirked and shook her head. She could already tell that Aiden was in way over his head.
"Now, stop water gun and use rapid spin!" Aiden ordered.
Wartortle halted his attack and put his head back down. As the water began to rain down towards him, Wartortle began to spin on stage, the power coming off of his body and crashing against the falling water. It pushed the liquid back into a ring floating directly above Wartortle, only inches off the ground.
"Wow, amazing!" Lilian crowed. "Wartortle has managed to transform a simple water gun attack into a rapidly spinning ring of water! Impressive!"
"What?" Michelle muttered, narrowing her eyes.
"Great job, Wartortle!" Aiden cheered. "Now, finish it up with bubble beam!"
While still using rapid spin, Wartortle unleashed a bubble beam attack, sending the bubbles out in a rapidly spinning ring similar to the water that hovered above him. The bubbles surrounded the water ring and swirled along with it for a few moments before bursting and transforming into a small, indoor rain shower.
"You did it, Wartortle!" Aiden chuckled.
"War!" Wartortle crowed, proudly puffing his chest out.
"An impressive first performance by Aiden and his Wartortle!" Lilian commented as the crowd roared.
Backstage, Michelle scowled. It hardly seemed fair that Aiden managed to dominate the stage on his first try. Of course he had to turn out just like their father: skilled at everything he did.
"Whatever," Michelle grumbled. "I'm still going to beat him."
After returning Wartortle to his poke ball, Aiden waved to the audience and headed backstage once again. On his way down the tunnel, he walked past Michelle, who was looking straight ahead with very focused eyes. He could tell she was still irritated, but Aiden was feeling rather chipper.
"Hey, good luck, Shelly!" Aiden called, his own eyes sparkling.
Michelle glanced over at him for just a second in order to glare at the boy. To show his indifference, however, Aiden just smiled and gave a little shrug. Grinding her teeth together, Michelle stormed ahead and waited behind the velvet curtain, gripping her own encapsulated poke ball in her hand.
"Next up on the Contest stage, we have another Ketchum!" Lilian announced. "Let's all give a round of applause for Michelle!"
The crowd cheered as Michelle waltzed through the opening curtains, beaming up at the audience. From backstage, Aiden watched with a smile on his face. He could tell his sister's confidence was flourishing once again, and it was making him feel a whole lot better about the situation.
"Eevee, curtain call!" Michelle cried, throwing the poke ball in the air.
It burst open to a storm of white confetti, swirling around the glowing form of Eevee. As soon as the confetti disappeared, Eevee came into full view, landing on the stage on all four paws.
"We've got this," Michelle encouraged her normal type. "Use shadow ball!"
"Vee!"
Eevee began jumping from side to side, unleashing a single sphere of dark purple energy as he leaped around. They floated around Eevee like balloons, in a very unorganized though calm fashion.
"Now, use bite!" Michelle commanded.
Eevee jumped up in front of each shadow ball and used his teeth to bite into the sphere of energy. As his teeth sunk into each shadow ball, they burst into sparkles, showering down on the stage.
"Beautiful!" Lilian breathed. "Eevee is creating a glitter show by biting down on shadow ball!"
"I knew I'd light a fire in her," Aiden chuckled as he watched backstage. "She'll thank me eventually!"
"Time for the grand finale, Eevee!" Michelle called. "Quick attack!"
Eevee began to rocket from side to side, running through the purple sparkles as they fell towards the stage. Instead of landing on the ground, the specks of glitter ended up in his fur and caught in the streak of wind that breezed behind him as he ran, giving Eevee a floating cape of sorts that appeared to be made entirely of purple glitter.
"Pi!" Pichu cried excitedly.
"Wow! Amazing!" Brandon marveled.
Eevee stopped running in the middle of the stage, turning to face the audience with a sweet smile on his face. The crowd erupted into loud cheers, earning an amazed smile from Michelle.
"Vee!"
The young coordinator looked down and found her normal type at her feet, excitedly shaking his tail back and forth.
"Eevee, you were great!" Michelle giggled, scooping the little fur ball into her arms. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Ee!" Eevee squeaked, rubbing his head against her chest.
"I knew you could do it," Michelle sighed, burying her nose in the tuft of fur atop Eevee's head. "I knew."
XXX
"Well?"
"Alright, fine. I have to give you credit. Maybe this idea wasn't so bad after all."
Aiden smirked at Brandon's concession. "That's what I thought!"
"What idea wasn't so bad after all?"
Aiden and Brandon both turned around and found Michelle standing just behind them, Eevee still in her arms.
"Pi-chu!" Pichu cried excitedly, jumping off of Brandon's shoulder and instead scurrying up onto Michelle's.
"Hey there, Pichu!" Michelle giggled. "I'm excited to see you, too. But I'm kind of curious about what the boys were talking about."
Brandon snickered and looked over at Aiden, who looked just as proud as he had before Michelle's arrival.
"Shelly, I know you're mad at me for entering the Contest, but I had a good reason for it!" Aiden announced.
"Oh yeah?" Michelle huffed, her irritated expression returning. "And what might that reason be, huh?"
"I wasn't doing it to make you angry," Aiden explained. "I knew that if I entered the Contest, you'd get all fired up! And you were! Your appealing was amazing. I was so impressed!"
At this, Michelle's expression softened. "R-really?"
"Yeah," Aiden chuckled. "You're definitely back!"
Michelle giggled softly, a light blush overtaking her cheeks. "That's…actually pretty sweet of you, Aiden."
"Can't be mad anymore, can you?" He teased.
"Not really," Michelle admitted.
"I warned him not to do it, but I guess it's a good thing he didn't listen!" Brandon chuckled.
"You're right," Michelle agreed. "And besides…Aiden's not exactly a bad coordinator."
"Wait, what?" Aiden murmured.
"You're not a bad coordinator," Michelle repeated. "I actually liked your appeal! You surprised me."
"Wait…really?" Aiden muttered.
"I'm not lying!" Michelle laughed. "Honestly, I was expecting you to get out on stage and totally blow it. Because gym trainers think everything is about power! But you actually had some elegance to your moves. It was a very nice display."
"Thanks, I guess," Aiden chuckled, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't know if I like the idea of being elegant, though. I want to be powerful!"
"Spoken like a true gym trainer," Michelle sighed.
"Either way, that was enough for me," Aiden dismissed. "I just wanted to fire you up! I bet I won't even make it to the battle rounds. Now it's all yours, Shelly!"
"Sorry for the wait, folks. It's time to announce the eight coordinators who will be moving on in today's Contest!"
Aiden, Michelle, and Brandon all looked up at the television screen, which was once again showing off the image of Lilian. She soon disappeared in favor of a purple screen with eight orange rectangles organized in two straight lines. One by one, each rectangle was flipped over, revealing the picture of a coordinator. Michelle was the fourth coordinator revealed, much to her delight. Aiden and Brandon, who were just as excited as the girl herself, all cheered and gave her congratulatory pats on the back. While they were all distracted, however, they nearly missed the revelation of the eighth and final advancing coordinator…
Aiden.
Michelle was the first to see his picture on the screen, and as soon as she did, her eyes widened.
"What is it, Michelle?" Brandon asked after noticing her changed expression.
"Look," Michelle murmured, pointing at the screen. Both boys looked up, and when they saw Aiden's picture, they let out shocked gasps.
"Whoa," Brandon breathed.
"I…made it?" Aiden muttered.
"I kind of knew you would," Michelle mumbled, trying not to sound agitated. "Your appeal was good, after all."
"Yeah, but I didn't think it was that good," Aiden replied, furrowing his brow.
"You're not going to drop out, are you?" Brandon asked.
"No way!" Aiden gasped. "I can't do that! It goes against everything I stand for!"
"I wouldn't expect anything less from Aiden," Michelle chimed in, her voice even and staid. "Because I expect the same exact thing out of myself!"
Brandon smirked and shook his head. "Well, this is a nice change of pace!"
"We can't fight all of the time!" Aiden chuckled.
"Even if it seems like we can," Michelle added with a wink.
"Yeah, seems is definitely the appropriate word," Brandon muttered, earning laughs from Aiden and Michelle. "So are you two going to use the same Pokémon for the battle rounds?"
"Nah, I want to switch it up," Aiden replied.
"Me too," Michelle agreed.
"Are you guys going to tell me which Pokémon you're going to use?" Brandon prodded after an awkward silence.
"No!" Aiden and Michelle chimed together.
"Well, that was very in unison," Brandon whistled.
"We are twins, after all," Michelle giggled.
"Yeah, and we can't tell you which Pokémon we're using in the battle rounds because then Michelle and I will know each other's Pokémon, and it could influence our decision!" Aiden explained.
"You have a point," Brandon chuckled.
"We're just going to go out there and do our best! Right, Aiden?" Michelle asked.
"Yep!" Aiden confirmed. "Like always!"
XXX
As it would turn out, Aiden and Michelle both ended up flying through the preliminary rounds with flying colors. None of their opponents seemed to be a match for either trainer, and before anyone knew it, the finals had arrived, and the match up was set as Aiden versus Michelle.
Brandon, for one, was afraid. Michelle had been okay with Aiden after finding out he only wanted to re-inspire her, but going up against him, and for a ribbon no less, was an entirely different story.
"Now he's just standing in the way of what she wants," Brandon grumbled.
"Chu," Pichu agreed.
"But Aiden's not going to let up just because Michelle is his sister," Brandon continued. "He's got too much pride for that."
"Pi."
"Guess we're just gonna have to sit back and watch," Brandon concluded, leaning back in his seat.
"Pi-chu, pi," Pichu agreed, mimicking Brandon's actions.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we've finally reached the grand finale of today's Seafoam Island Contest!" Lilian announced, earning a cheer from the audience. "And today, we've got a good one! It's a battle between siblings: Aiden versus Michelle!"
At this, the crowd all but imploded. Their excitement grew, and their voices became louder. Aiden and Michelle were staring at one another from opposite ends of the stage, smirking with glints in their eyes.
"No holding back, right?"
That's what Aiden had asked Michelle before they'd gone back out on stage.
"No way. We're both going all out! Most talented trainer wins the ribbon."
That had been Michelle's response. She wasn't nervous to take on her brother…just determined. She wanted to win this battle more than anything.
"Shinx, I choose you!" Aiden commanded, throwing his encapsulated poke ball.
The ball burst open, releasing yellow lightning bolts that showered down upon Shinx as the little electric type landed on the stage.
"Ponyta, curtain call!" Michelle yelled, tossing her own poke ball.
The sphere popped upon, a blast of fire spiraling out of its center. The spiral of flames surrounded the shadowy figure of Michelle's horse Pokémon, disappearing into nothing soon enough and revealing Ponyta in full.
"There's five minutes on the clock," Lilian announced, throwing her arms up in the air. "Begin!"
"You may be my brother, Aiden, but I'm not about to let you get the upper hand!" Michelle yelled. "Ponyta, fire spin!"
Ponyta neighed and opened her mouth, unleashing a swirl of fire not dissimilar to what had come out of her poke ball thanks to its seal.
"Not a chance, Shelly!" Aiden teased. "Shinx, dodge it and use thunder fang, super charged!"
Shinx ran off to the side, away from the intense fire spin. Taking a running leap and flying towards Ponyta, Shinx opened her mouth and revealed two glowing yellow fangs, which elongated as she got closer to Ponyta.
"Amazing!" Lilian marveled. "Shinx is building up the electricity in her mouth to intensify thunder fang!"
Before Ponyta could move out of the way, Shinx bit the fire horse on the back of the neck with her supercharged thunder fang, earning a pained cry from the fire type.
"Ponyta!" Michelle gasped.
Her points on the board began to slip away, earning a low growl from the young coordinator.
"Great job, Shinx!" Aiden complimented Shinx as the electric type performed a little somersault to land back on the stage.
"They're not going to get away with that," Michelle huffed. "Ponyta, take down!"
While Shinx still had her back turned to Ponyta, the fire horse charged forward and rammed her head into the flash Pokémon, sending the much smaller creature flying. Aiden's jaw dropped as his own points dissipated, at which point he looked over at Michelle and scowled.
"That was low," Aiden seethed.
"No it wasn't," Michelle refuted. "Pay attention!"
"Why don't you pay attention to this?" Aiden demanded. "Shinx, spark!"
Blue electricity danced off of Shinx's body as the small electric type jumped up into the air, sailing towards Ponyta and looking quite like an electrical comet.
"I'm so afraid," Michelle sniped sarcastically. "Ponyta, counter it with ember!"
Ponyta opened her mouth and unleashed a brigade of small, fiery sparks that quickly enveloped the electricity enshrouded Shinx. The ember attack proved to be more powerful than spark, quickly burning through the electrical cover and burning Shinx up. As a result, more of Aiden's points disappeared.
"But…how?" Aiden groaned.
"Ponyta, that ember of yours is getting super strong!" Michelle complimented. "But we can't stop now! Take down, again!"
"Shinx, get ready!" Aiden warned as the spark Pokémon struggled to get back to her paws. "Use tackle!"
The two Pokémon charged towards one another, but as Ponyta ran, something strange began to happen.
Her body became engulfed by bright red flames, trailing longer off of her mane and tail. The closer she got to Shinx, the more the fire around her body actually managed to resemble her figure, creating a hazy fire in the shape of a running Ponyta.
"Amazing!" Brandon marveled. "That's flare blitz!"
"Whoa, a new move," Michelle breathed. "And it's gorgeous! Alright, Ponyta! Do it! Flare blitz!"
Ponyta rammed straight into Shinx, the strength of her tackle in addition to the hot flames sprouting off her body causing double damage to the small electric type standing in her way. Shinx once again went flying back, skidding across the stage towards Aiden in obvious pain.
"Shinx, no!" Aiden gasped.
Ponyta neighed and took a step back, red sparks surrounding her body as she winced.
"Ah, recoil damage," Michelle hissed. "I'll have to be careful with flare blitz, then."
"We're a little more than halfway through with this final battle, and already, Aiden only has half of his points left!" Lilian commentated. "Can he recover from Ponyta's newfound attack?"
"Of course we can!" Aiden declared. "Shinx, use bite! Stay close to Ponyta's legs!"
Nodding her head, Shinx darted towards Ponyta, using her small size to her advantage. Ponyta, however, was on guard, standing her ground and glaring down at the little electric type running towards her.
"Ponyta, catch Shinx beneath your hoof!" Michelle commanded.
Once Shinx was close enough, and had opened her mouth in an attempt to use bite on the fire horse, Ponyta picked up her front right hoof and sent it down on top of Shinx, effectively trapping the small electric type.
"Come on!" Aiden cried.
"Nowhere to go," Michelle sang teasingly.
"Yeah? That's what you think!" Aiden challenged. "Shinx, spark!"
Despite being trapped beneath Ponyta's hoof, Shinx still managed to use her electric attack, which thoroughly shocked Ponyta. The fire type wobbled off of Shinx, freeing the electric type who managed to slink away relatively unscathed.
"Ponyta, are you okay?" Michelle called worriedly.
Ponyta neighed softly and nodded her head just once, stomping her hooves on the stage as further affirmation that she was, in fact, just fine.
"Good," Michelle sighed out of relief. "Fire spin!"
Ponyta once again used her swirling fire attack against Shinx. This time, Shinx was unable to escape and got caught in the middle of the fiery vortex, causing more of Aiden's points to vanish.
"Shinx!" Aiden cried.
"Ponyta, let's finish this!" Michelle shouted. "Flare blitz!"
The fire horse charged forward just as she was finishing up using her fire spin attack. Between the speed she was running at and the fire that she was engulfed in, Shinx didn't stand a chance against the powerful attack. Already weakened from the fire spin, Shinx had no time to react to Ponyta's second attack, and was quickly taken down by the sheer power that the flare blitz possessed.
"Ah, no!" Aiden cried.
His points on the board slipped away to nothing, and big red X's appeared on the front of the judges' podiums.
"Shinx is unable to battle," Lilian informed the crowd. "Which means the winner of today's Seafoam Island Contest is Michelle!"
The young girl burst out into celebratory laughter as she ran forward, wrapping her arms around Ponyta's neck and snuggling her cheek against the horse's tan hide.
"You did it, Ponyta!" Michelle cheered. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Oh well," Aiden sighed, smiling sadly as he pulled out Shinx's poke ball to return her. "Take a long rest, Shinx. You deserve it!"
With that done, Aiden walked over to Michelle, the melancholy smile still on his face. Upon seeing him, Michelle separated from Ponyta and returned a sweet, sympathetic smile to her brother.
"Great battle, Michelle," Aiden complimented his sister. "You totally deserve that ribbon!"
"Thanks, Aiden," Michelle replied. "For that, and for the great battle! You did awesome. I was scared there for a little bit, to be totally honest! You held your own."
"I guess you could say that," Aiden chuckled nervously. His previously sad smile having transformed into a smirk, Aiden held out a hand for Michelle to shake. Finding that to be a flimsy offering, however, Michelle instead chose to pull her brother into a tight hug. At first, Aiden was embarrassed and blushed at the action, but after a short moment of deliberation, he chuckled and hugged her back.
XXX
"That's ribbon number three!"
Michelle giggled at Brandon's proclamation, looking down at the brand new ribbon that now resided in her case.
"Just two more and I can enter the Grand Festival," Michelle breathed, her eyes sparkling. "I'm going to do my best!"
"We believe in ya, Shelly," Aiden chuckled. "You'll do great in your next Contest!"
"Thanks, Aiden," Michelle giggled. "But we've got to focus on your next gym battle first!"
"Yeah!" Aiden cheered. "Cinnabar Island, here we come!"
"Ah, I love it when those two get along," Brandon sighed to himself. "Wish it could be like this all the time!"
In case no one got the reference, Aiden is wearing Ash's outfit from the Wallace Cup. It's one of my favorite Ash outfits, personally :P
Brandon just wants Aiden and Michelle to get along like this all the time. Is that possible? Probably not. Guess we'll have to see next chapter!