CHAPTER 37 – TAG, YOU'RE IT!
"Come on, Dawn, don't worry about Ari. I'm sure he's fine."
Brock sat opposite Dawn and Ash at the kitchen table, eating his way through some jam toast he'd prepared earlier. He could see that Dawn was concerned about him. He could see it in her expression; her eyes were downcast, her brow was creased, and her mouth was quivering. Her hands were clenched so tightly around her knife and fork that she was bending the metal, but her breakfast was untouched and cold. It was natural for Brock to notice these things; after taking care of his siblings before he'd met Ash, he'd had to know what subtle things like this meant in the broader scope.
"I suppose…" she grumbled, stabbing at her topmost pancake and staring at it moodily.
"I just heard on the news," said Ash between mouthfuls of cereal. "That Tag Team thing starts today, yeah? The one that Ari and Leoric said they were going in." Brock stared at Ash, wondering if this brazen comment had been used on purpose to get a response out of their friend. But Ash seemed totally relaxed, so he assumed that, like always, it was just coincidence. "So I was thinking," he continued, his voice muffled. "Since my first third-round match isn't until midday, we could go over and have a look-see. I think it'd be a nice experience to watch how two Trainers like them work together in a battle, don't you reckon?"
"Sounds good," Brock agreed, glancing sideways at Dawn, who laid her twisted knife down on the hardwood table. "What do you think, Dawn?"
"Great idea," she mumbled, still staring at her meal.
"Yeah, I thought so too," Ash said shamelessly, grabbing his glass and taking a deep drink of Sitrus juice. "I get to watch how Ari and Leoric battle, Brock gets to… see a good match and have some lemonade," he smirked and shrugged his shoulders at Brock, "and after the match you can ask Ari about… well, about whatever you'd call what last night was. What do you say?"
Brock slapped his forehead in disbelief. For all Ash's supposed innocence, he really had taken note of Dawn's behaviour. And he actually went about it pretty well, he admitted. He can be under-handed when he wants to be, which I guess isn't too surprising considering how he found out that the two of them were a couple.
Dawn's lips trembled at this particular mention of Ari, but otherwise she tried to remain nonchalant as she said, "Yeah, it sounds good. We'll head there after we've finished breakfast, okay?"
A crowd of thirty-five thousand packed Stadium 3 to the rafters; a mass of screaming fans and Trainers moving like one body, cheering on the competitors while they downed fast food and even faster drinks. A loud voice rang out over the deafening sounds, making sure that no-one couldn't hear. "Welcome to the opening doubles match in the famous Tag Team Trophy competition!" yelled the commentator. "And what a show we have in store for you today! One on side we have the undisputed World Champions who triumphed here at the Tag Team last year; ladies and gentlemen, Ari DeVarro from Ecruteak City of the Johto region, and from Hoenn's Fallarbor Town we have none other than Leoric Reiger!"
An ear-splitting roar thundered down from one side of the stadium, crashing down on Ari and Leoric's eardrums and threatening to burst them. The two Trainers grinned and waved at their supporters, who, if possible, cheered even louder. The noise didn't stop, and so the announcer was forced to speak into the microphone even louder than before.
"And banging heads with them today are the extremely skilful European Champions! So without further ado, give it up for Antoine Bergen, all the way from Leeuwarden City in the Netherlands, and Jonathan del Bene, a native of Italy's Pordenone region!" he shouted, to which the crowd exploded with cheers and roars once more. Antoine, a small blonde-haired girl no older than sixteen, smiled nervously and waved at them, while her partner Jonathan, a rugged man in his late twenties, winked mysteriously at his admirers and gave a sweeping bow and wave.
Ari and Leoric met their two opponents at the centre circle of the stadium, which was easily double the size of the ones they'd fought on in the past few days. But that was because of the nature of the Tag Team: twice the Pokémon and twice the action, so it was necessary to be twice the size. Each Trainer shook hands with the other – except with their partner, of course – and as they did, they searched for any chink in the armour, any tell-tale signs that would give them the advantage in the match. But Ari and Leoric had the greatest advantage of all; they had the majority of the crowd on their side, and they knew, of all people, that having the crowd cheering for or against you could make the difference in a tight match.
"May the best duo win," giggled Antoine after shaking hands with Leoric, who smiled back encouragingly. She took her place next to Jonathan, and the two Europeans turned and walked the ground's edge, standing inside their red Trainer's box. Ari and Leoric looked at each other, then laughed merrily as though it was all just a huge inside joke, before making their leisurely way to their green box.
The match's referee, an extremely fit redhead in his early twenties, looked from one team to the other and raised both his flags slowly out in front of him. "This match will be a two-on-two Pokémon battle; each Trainer may use one Pokémon only. If one of a team's Pokémon is knocked out, then the other must continue to fight alone until either it is knocked out, or it overcomes the opponents' Pokémon. When both Pokémon from one team have been eliminated, the other team will be declared the winner."
"Do you understand?" he asked, pointing his green flag at Ari and Leoric, who nodded. "And you?" he said, aiming his red flag at Antoine and Jonathan. They nodded back as well, so the referee swung the twin flags above his head. "Then let the match begin!" he roared, and the familiar siren sounded from the corners of the stadium.
Ari snatched a PokéBall from his waist and threw it out with a cry, "Time to shine, Nirvana!" A huge, round, fluffy pink Pokémon with an egg in the pouch on its stomach popped out of the ball.
"Blii bli!" said the Blissey melodically. Antoine smirked and hurled her PokéBall into the arena.
"Poliwrath, let's show 'em what you're made of!" she shouted, and an equally large Pokémon burst forth. It was a deep blue colour, but it had a large black-and-white spiral pattern on its stomach. It had no mouth – just two hollow eyes that sat atop its head – and long, powerful arms that ended in white four-fingered gloves. It let out a bellow from the depths of its body and flexed its fingers expectantly.
"Kong, I choose you!" Leoric yelled, summoning a Slaking from his PokéBall. It crashed onto the hard ground and lay down placidly, scratching at its fur and yawning widely.
"Man, I wonder if everyone around here gives their Pokémon nicknames…" muttered Jonathan to his partner, who nodded back in agreement. He shrugged and took a PokéBall from his belt. "Come on out, Aggron!" he said. An enormous steel-clad Pokémon thudded down onto the arena; its long tail smashed against the ground, sending shockwaves into the air, and it threw its head back, brandishing the three vicious-looking horns protruding from its front.
"So our opening match of the Tag Team Trophy is Slaking and Blissey vs. Poliwrath and Aggron!" declared the announcer, striking the starter's bell.
"Nirvana," shouted Ari, "use Skill Swap on Kong!" Blissey nodded and turned to face Leoric's Slaking. A strange blue light enveloped Blissey, and from the egg on her stomach a small jet shot out and touched Slaking, who began to glow with a red aura. The colours slowly changed from red to blue and vice versa, until Blissey was the one covered in the red light, and Slaking was bathed in blue. Once the light faded, Slaking jumped heartily onto its feet, beating its mighty fists against its chest.
"Wow, what a high-risk move from Ari!" bellowed the announcer. "By using Skill Swap, Blissey has switched its abilities with Slaking, giving it Serene Grace while taking Slaking's debilitating Truant trait! What strategy could this play entail? Let's watch on and find out if they can prove why they're the world's greatest duo!"
"Truant?" Dawn asked Brock, a worried expression playing on her face.
"Truant is an ability that only two Pokémon have: Slakoth and Slaking," Brock said with a smile. "Because of Truant, those Pokémon can only attack once every two turns. It really dulls Slaking's enormous Attack when it can only use it at half pace."
"So without Truant," Dawn murmured, "Slaking can put full use to its attack, right? Then, what happens to Blissey?" she asked, pointing at the pink-white Pokémon.
"It turns into a bit of a sloth," Ash said smartly, as Blissey propped itself down on its behind. It looked lazily at its two opponents while they eyed off Slaking, who was now jumping around on its feet, over-stimulated from its new freedom.
"Poliwrath, use Brick Break on that Blissey; show it who the boss around here is!" Antoine ordered. Poliwrath leapt forward, tucking its arm in under its shoulder and croaking madly. It extended its arm, ready to strike Blissey's soft belly, but at the last moment a fur-covered hand closed around Poliwrath's wrist, halting the attack. "What the—?!" she gasped.
"Kong, get Poliwrath out of there!" Leoric shouted smugly. A second later Poliwrath was hurled through the air by the overwhelming power of his Slaking, who threw the hapless Pokémon towards its team-mate in an under-arm bowling action. He cheered and threw his hands with a cry of, "Strrriiike!" as Poliwrath hurtled into Aggron, sending them both sprawling across the ground. Slaking grunted and made another bowling action with its arm in response, and the crowd cheered and laughed at the Pokémon's display.
"I'm not sure what you'd call that move," the announcer joked, "but it sure was entertaining! And it must have put a big dint in Poliwrath and Aggron's health!"
"Aggron, stand up!" barked Jonathan, and his Pokémon sprang to its feet, roaring at not only Slaking but Poliwrath for having been knocked down. "Hey! You two are working together, so douse it and use Metal Sound!" he shouted. Aggron growled and thundered its feet into the ground, smacking its tail against the plates on its back. The rub of metal on metal let out a hideous grinding sound that sent shivers down the spines of everyone who heard it, and as the noise grew louder the crowd was forced to cover its ears and grind its teeth.
"Poliwrath, use Ice Beam on Slaking while it's distracted!" shrieked Antoine, trying to make her voice heard over the scraping sound. Poliwrath nodded and fired a bright blue beam of energy from its outstretched hands, which shot towards Slaking and encased it in a tomb of ice.
"Okay, let it down, Aggron," Jonathan ordered. "Now charge that Slaking with Double-Edge!"
Aggron thumped its tail back onto the ground, and the Metal Sound wound down to a low hum as the plates on its back kept vibrating. It shifted them slightly, and the noise stopped altogether. Once the crowd realised this, they took their hands off their ears and began to applaud Antoine's Poliwrath for its move. Aggron growled contemptuously before it let out a bellowing roar and lunged, stampeding towards Leoric's frozen Pokémon.
Ari looked on, his mind turning frantically. He knew that if this barrage kept up, he wouldn't be able to stop it – because Blissey was limited by its new Truant trait – and eventually they would finish Slaking off and come for it. "Nirvana, use Skill Swap again! On Aggron this time!" he shouted.
Blissey slowly stood up as she was enshrouded once more in blue light. Another beam of blue shot from her egg, but this once struck the rampaging Aggron in the small of the back, stopping it as firmly as if it had been hit with a Psychic attack. Aggron shone red, immobilised by the Skill Swap in mid-roar, before it began flashing between blue and red as Blissey alternated at opposites with it. Finally, once Skill Swap was complete, and Aggron glowed blue and Blissey was enveloped in red, the lights faded and Blissey looked on warily as Aggron continued its rampage as if nothing had happened. The Iron Armor Pokémon careened into Slaking, shattering its icy prison and knocking Slaking back thirty feet, where it hit the ground face-first.
"Ooh, what a bone-crunching impact that was! Slaking's sure going to feel that one in the morning!" yelled the announcer excitedly.
"Kong, you alright?!" shouted Leoric anxiously. Slaking rolled forwards and onto its feet, scratching at its armpit before leaning on its knuckles. "Atta boy!" he said proudly, punching the air encouragingly.
"Aggron, use Iron Tail on Blissey!" roared Jonathan. But Aggron wouldn't, or didn't want to, move an inch. It stood perfectly still; the only hint that it was even alive was the slight movement of its chest as it breathed in and out. "Aggron, what's wrong?!" he asked desperately.
"Good work with that Skill Swap, Nirvana!" cheered Ari, making his Blissey clap her hands together gleefully. "Now how's about a Metronome, just to spice things up a bit, eh?!"
Blissey grinned and waggled her hands in front of her body, humming a strange tune while she did so. All four Trainers watched on nervously; Metronome was the most unpredictable attack there was, and there was no way to know what would happen next. "Bli-bli-bli…" she chimed, waving her hands back and forth in an almost hypnotising rhythm. "Blii!" Her hands shone white, and a split second later her body was encased in harsh yellow light. Blissey ran forwards, speeding along more quickly than her feet could carry, and she smashed into Poliwrath, knocking the blue Pokémon backwards into the boundary wall sixty feet away.
"Poliwrath!" cried Antoine.
"What the heck was that?" Jonathan asked wildly, looking on as Poliwrath picked itself up from the ground.
"Unless I'm mistaken, that was a Volt Tackle," answered Leoric, smirking widely. "Good thing Blissey have next to no attack, or else that Poliwrath wouldn't be standing."
"Poliwrath, get ready to launch a Hydro Pump at Slaking!" roared Antoine. Poliwrath growled and flexed its muscular arms, preparing its attack.
"Aggron, once Poliwrath fires, loose a Thunderbolt to join the Hydro Pump!" Jonathan ordered, smiling fiercely as Aggron roared and thumped its chest. The horns on its head crackled with electricity, and the air around them glowed yellow and sparked as Aggron patiently waited for Poliwrath to launch its attack.
"Kong, use Swagger on Poliwrath!" shouted Leoric. Slaking performed a strutting dance of sorts, much like the Taunts that Ash's Corphish and Chimchar had used against their opponents. However, instead of aggravating its opponent, Slaking's Swagger dazed Poliwrath, and its eyes turned the same shape as the pattern on its stomach. It leant unsteadily to one side, shaking the swirls out of its eyes, but as far as Poliwrath was concerned, it couldn't tell which Pokémon was its ally or its adversary. It looked around at Slaking and Blissey, both of whom were standing calmly some distance away, before glancing at Aggron, who was looking back at it, its horns crackling with the energy from its Thunderbolt.
"Polllll…" it grumbled menacingly. Aggron must have been readying that Thunderbolt to use on it! Well, thought Poliwrath, it wasn't going to get the chance. With a bellowing growl it shot out a pressurised cannon of water from the centre of its stomach that shot at its supposed enemy. Following its Trainer's orders, Aggron had no choice but to fire its Thunderbolt at the incoming attack, which did nothing to stop it, but actually joined with the attack and rebounded towards itself.
"Aggron!" screamed Jonathan, but it was too late. The electrified Hydro Pump tore into Aggron, sending it flying backwards and dumping it roughly onto the ground. Aggron's wet and blackened body crackled with static as it struggled onto all fours, roaring weakly and smacking its tail into the earth. "Aggron, can you still go on?" he asked, and his Pokémon nodded its great head and reared onto its hind legs, flexing its fingers threateningly.
"Nirvana, use Helping Hand on Kong!" cried Ari.
"Kong, Focus Punch on Aggron!" Leoric commanded.
Blissey clapped its hands together, striking a high clear note that rang out through the stadium. It kept clapping its hands in a slow, repetitive beat as Slaking cocked its fist and held it, growling as it charged up the enormous store of power it would need for its attack. Blissey's applause grew louder, and the crowd quickly joined in; they couldn't help it. The clapping slowly grew quicker, akin to the applause a cricket bowler gets as he makes his run-up to the pitch. Jonathan could do nothing but watch on helplessly as Slaking tensed itself for the Focus Punch. Aggron was still under the effects of Truant, and it wouldn't be able to defend itself in the slightest until after Slaking had delivered its attack.
"Antoine, do something!" he hissed at his partner. "If that move connects, you're gonna be on your own!"
"Poliwrath!" gasped Antoine, trying to get through to her deluded Pokémon. "Use Brick Break on Slaking, stop it in its tracks!"
Poliwrath stumbled forwards. It looked like a drunkard; its eyes were unfocused, it was lurching around on the spot, and it was swinging its arms wildly at thin air. Finally it calmed itself down and, miraculously, trained its sight on Slaking. Like its target, Poliwrath cocked its fist backwards, readying the blow, but instead of hurtling into Slaking it sent its attack crashing straight back into its face, knocking it off its feet with a strangled cry. The force of its own punch rendered Poliwrath unconscious even before it hit the ground, lying spread-eagled over the bare earth.
"Poliwrath is unable to battle!" cried the referee, and Antoine shrieked in dismay, refusing to believe that she'd ordered her Pokémon to knock itself out. "Withdraw your Pokémon at once, please," he said calmly, and the distraught Trainer resigned to the outcome, snatching her PokéBall from her belt and recalling her fallen Pokémon in a blink of red light.
"Come on, Jonathan, hang in there!" she shouted encouragingly, but Jonathan shook his head in despair.
"Move in for the KO, Kong!" grinned Leoric, throwing his arm forward.
"Kiiiing!" bellowed Slaking, pouncing towards the immobile Aggron with terrifying speed, in an odd-looking three-footed run using its feet and free hand. It leapt into the sky and thundered down with a roar, and with a bone-crunching sound that sent a shockwave throughout the entire stadium, Slaking's fist swung into Aggron's jaw. The massive grey Pokémon flew sideways through the air and was sent smashing into the corner of the battlefield with an explosion of dust and earth.
"Aggron, no!" yelled Jonathan. The dust cleared and he saw his Pokémon sprawled across the bottom of a small hole in the ground, its eyes closed and its body motionless. "Aggron!"
"Aggron is unable to battle! This match goes to Ari DeVarro and Leoric Reiger!" roared the referee, but even before he finished his declaration his voice had been drowned out by the hysterical crowd. Ari and Leoric punched the air in victory and gave each other an over-enthusiastic high-five before recalling their Pokémon and walking out to the centre circle. Once Jonathan returned Aggron to its ball, both he and Antoine joined them to commemorate their opponents' victory.
"Congratulations," mumbled Antoine, grudgingly putting her arm forwards. "You won, and we lost."
"A victory is only worth as much as your opponents," said Ari wisely, shaking her hand.
"And you two are worthy opponents," Leoric grinned, putting his hand out for Jonathan, who smiled back and shook it roughly.
"Until next we meet," said Antoine warmly, shaking Leoric's hand as Ari and Jonathan exchanged a handshake. "We'll be watching you."
"Okay, we'll be sure to perform our best then," joked Ari. "See you around."
"A più tardi," boomed Jonathan, speaking in his native Italian. "See you later."
The two defeated European champions waved one last time at the cheering crowd, beaming at them and thanking them for their support, before they walked arm in arm to the exits. While the crowd emphatically roared and applauded Ari and Leoric for their win, from his spot in the stands Ash could see Jeanne – from Trainer Spotlight – and her camera crew already racing onto the field for the post-match interview.
"Hey," he called out to Brock and Dawn, "let's head down to the tunnel and wait for them to finish up."
Brock nodded. "Good idea, that way we won't have to wait around while the rest of the fans are leaving. What do you think, Dawn?" He looked behind him, but Dawn had vanished. "Dawn?!"
"Down here, you pair of Shuckle!" shouted Dawn, who was already halfway towards the exit. "Come on, hurry up!"
"Alright, alright, we're coming!" Ash yelled, holding Pikachu on his shoulder as he jumped down the stairs to join her. "She's the Shuckle," he muttered to Pikachu.
Ari and Leoric entered the tunnel under the stands, personally congratulating each other on their performances in their win. As Leoric touched on the Metronome that Ari's Blissey had used, he saw Ash, Brock and Dawn waiting at the end for them. Leoric nudged Ari on the arm, pointing over at the trio, and Ari turned to look. He waved happily and ran over to them, leaving Leoric to stroll behind him.
"Good morning, beautiful!" he said, stopping in front of Dawn and putting his arms around her. Dawn returned his embrace half-heartedly, and he pulled away awkwardly, a worried look on his face. "What's the matter?" he asked, his eyes searching her expression for an answer.
"What, so today you're feeling all happy and lovey, are you?" she asked bitterly. She tore herself away from him and stormed off down the tunnel, and in moments she was swallowed up by the darkness while her floundering footsteps echoed off the cold stone. Ari stared after her, surprised and also saddened, but as he turned around he saw that Ash, Brock and Leoric were all purposefully looking away.
"This is because of what I said last night, isn't it?" he said. It wasn't a question; he knew that was the cause of it.
"Yeah, I'd say it's safe to assume that," grimaced Leoric, still looking deliberately at the walls. "But hey, I'm sure you had your reasons for not telling her. Or your best friend, for that matter," he added.
"That's not fair," wailed Ari, stung by the remark. "You can't guilt trip me like that, Leo! I do have my reasons!"
"We respect that," Ash cut in, worried that things might escalate between the two. "Right, Leoric?"
"No, I want to know what this big secret you hid from me for nearly four years is!" he shouted at Ari, his temper beginning to boil. "And how come you just cleared off after I got that little get-together started, huh?!"
"Because I—!" began Ari, but he broke off, realising that explaining his absence would expose his secret. He roared in frustration and kicked the wall, wincing and hobbling as a flare of pain shot up his leg. "I—can't really explain it. It's complicated."
"Too complicated that in all the time you've known me you haven't been able to think of a way to say it?" questioned Leoric. "Come on man, I've always told you my secrets. That's what best friends do. At least have the guts to return the favour."
"No! I can't!" howled Ari, throwing his hat onto the ground and pulling at his hair. To Ash and Brock, standing some feet away, he looked quite deranged. "I'm not going through it all again!"
"Through what?" asked Brock evenly, trying to calm Ari down. "What happened?"
"Something that happened a long time ago," muttered Ari. His face paled, his eyes darkened, and his body shook as though it were being torn by a strong wind. "Now I have to go and find Dawn and set this right. If all goes well, I'll tell you later today," he added.
Leoric weighed his options, wondering if he could keep interrogating Ari about his past, but as he pondered, Brock warningly put a hand on his shoulder, which instantly discouraged him from pushing the envelope. "Fine. Must be a pretty big skeleton in your closet, but fine," he hissed, before Ari turned on his heel and stormed down the tunnel just like Dawn had done a minute ago. But just as he disappeared into the shadows, Ari heard Leoric's parting words, a venomous remark that hit him like a thunderbolt.
"But don't expect me to still be your friend when it's over."
Trivia:
*Slaking's nickname should be of no surprise – it's named after King Kong.
*Nirvana, although originally a Buddhist belief, was chosen as Blissey's name out of a randomly-generated list of Final Fantasy: Tactics Advance weapons – the Nirvana Staff.
*Blissey exchanging Slaking's Truant ability is a tactic used by the Petalburg Gym Leader, Norman, during a double-battle rematch in Pokémon Emerald. (Kudos to BlackShadowKnight for bringing this one up!)
Quiz:
*Which non-legendary Pokémon has the highest base stat total under 600?