Hello again! I'm sorry for making you guys wait for this one, but I suffered a minor writer's block with this one. Nothing too serious though, so I should be able to keep on updating. Well, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, I only own Alice. (God, these disclaimers are annoying.)

Chapter 37

A Fishing Connoisseur in a Fishy Competition!

When the three of us walk out of the Pokémon Center of a small town, we're met with a bright morning sun. Almost instantly, I turn to Cilan.

"How much longer until we get to Nimbasa City?"

"I'll find out." He takes out his small electronic map and opens it up. "Let's see..." Staring at the screen, he replies, "Almost there."

My heart beats faster at the thought of us getting closer to the city. "I can't wait! Pikachu," I turn to my buddy on my shoulder, "we'll make sure we win our next Gym badge there, right?"

Nodding, he cheers, "Pika pikachu!"

The three of us begin walking again, and soon, we come to the side of a river in the town. The river's between two tall structures, so it looks like some kind of gorge.

All the while we're walking, I just keep on blabbering to myself. "Nimbasa City, here we come! We're coming for you, and we don't plan on losing!"

I realize Iris and Cilan aren't walking beside me anymore. I turn around, only to see why.

"Out of the way! Out of the way!"

An all-too familiar perky blonde girl slams into me with all her might, it seems, knocking me into the gorge of a river down below.

The cold water sends shivers throughout my body as I fall into the river. It's deeper than I expected, at least six feet deep. Poking my head out, I shiver as the cold air connects with my wet skin.

"Alice, are you alright?" Iris calls down to me.

"Pika!" Pikachu sounds worried.

"I'm okay," I manage to get out through my chattering teeth, "I'm okay."

"We'll pull you out of there..." Cilan sighs.

I give him a small smile. "Th-thanks."

Once they pull me out, I take off my wet jacket and begin to wave it around to dry it. Pikachu takes my hat off my head and waves it around as well.

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! Really, I'm sorry!"

I sigh, staring at the blonde in front of me. "C'mon, Bianca. Why were you running so fast?"

Bianca's worried expression turns to excited in a flash. "Oh, that's easy! I'll show you... Because of this!" She pulls out a flyer for a fishing competition from her bag.

Eyes going wide, Cilan grabs the flyer. "They're having a fishing competition?!"

Bianca nods as she gives him the flyer, which his eyes scan almost hungrily. "That's right. I was in a hurry so I wouldn't miss entering it."

Once I'm sure my jacket's dry enough, I put it back on. "It sounds like you're an expert at fishing." Pikachu hands my hat back to me, and I put it on my head, petting him between the ears.

She shakes her head. "Oh, no. My first time! I could never do a thing when I was living at home. Now that I'm on my own, I can do what I want! So I thought I'd try it at least once."

To me, fishing brings back memories. For instance, once certain memory contains my younger self fishing by a lake outside of Pallet Town back in Kanto, but my quiet afternoon was interrupted by none other than the smug and thinks-he-knows-everything Gary Oak. The two of us had a little argument while fishing that day. That incident ended with each of us coming in possession of half of an old, broken Poké Ball we each got on our rods.

Memories of Gary come flooding back to me, but not all of them are pleasant. I push them away and try to focus on the present for now. I'll have time to mope about Gary later.

"Well, I've been out fishing before," I tell Bianca, picking Pikachu up. "I'll enter it, too, and catch a whole bunch of Pokémon!"

"Betcha can't catch more than me!" Iris challenges, a playful smirk on her face.

Cilan suddenly jumps up, like he's trying to contain his excitement, causing all three of us girls to stare at him.

"Good! Because it's Fishing Time! Fishing—it's not as easy as you think! No, it's not! Only a slender fishing line connects you with the crafty Pokémon hiding beneath the waves! It's a battle of wits! I'm going to enter the competition, and I'm going to win it!"

Tilting my head, I ask him, "What's gotten into you, Cilan?" He seems so confident all of a sudden.

He turns to me, emerald eyes sparkling with determination and excitement. "What's gotten into me is the fact that I'm also a Fishing Connoisseur!"

On the outside, I'm smiling, but on the inside, I'm mentally kicking myself for forgetting he knows how to fish. Idiot! Remember when you both caught Palpitoad and Stunfisk? "Oh, yeah! I remember now!"

"Is there such a thing?" Bianca whispers to Iris.

She chuckles nervously. "Who knows?"

The four of us walk through the competition grounds, where quite a few Trainers have entered the competition. Up ahead, a booth is seen with a man inside, taking registration forms from the Trainers.

"That must be the registration booth up ahead," Cilan says.

"It sure looks like it," I tell them.

While we wait in line, we fill out the blank registration forms on a table nearby. Writing down my name, I read through the rules and write down Pikachu as my Pokémon for battling. When he sees what I've written, he coos, and I scratch him behind his ears lovingly.

When it's our turn, all four of us walk up to the booth. "Excuse me," I tell the man, "we would all like to enter the competition, please." I hand him our forms.

"Let's have a look." He takes them and glances over each of them quickly. "Everything seems in order to me."

A woman comes up behind him, smiling widely. "And here is your supply of Fishing Poké Balls." She places down a box of Poké Balls with little pictures of fish on them. Everyone takes a Poké Ball, including me. "Once you reel in, battle, and defeat a Water-type Pokémon, please use one of these Fishing Poké Balls to catch it."

"Remember, it can be any kind of Water-type Pokémon, and whoever catches the biggest Pokémon will be the winner," the man in forms us.

"And the grand prize is..."

"Ta-da!"

The two of them step aside to reveal a case containing a golden fishing rod behind them. "The incredible, golden, super-duper rod!"

Everyone gasps in amazement upon looking at the rod. "I've never heard of it, but it sounds great!" Iris says.

I stare dreamily at it, not fully conscious of what's going on around me or what I'm saying. "Then I'll use that one..." I blush darkly when I realize what I just said.

The woman frowns at me. "Nope, no can do."

"I'm afraid you're going to have to make your choice from those rods to my left," the man adds.

Iris glares at me. "You can't use the prize in the competition! What a kid!"

I feel disgusted with myself, and even more to know I've screwed up in front of Cilan. "Oh, shut up," I mutter to Iris.

In the rod room, my eyes scan the selection of rods available. The colors blue, purple, pink, red and yellow stare back at me. Finally, I settle on the only bright green rod, which I only choose because of two reasons: one, it's the one that's mostly similar to the one I have in Kanto, and two, it's the color of Cilan's eyes.

Once I take it off the rack, I go over to Cilan and Bianca, who holds a pink rod. "Have you chosen a rod yet, Cilan?" I ask him.

Smirking, he answers me, "Ha ha ha ha. Have I? I sure have! This one!" He takes out a small, familiar looking purple stick, which he unfurls into a full-length rod. "Feast your eyes! When you're an expert, only a custom-made rod and reel will do!"

Remembering the last time he used it makes me smile. "That's too awesome, Cilan!"

"Truly amazing!" Bianca agrees.

"No duh," Iris mutters from beside me. "Why should fishing be any less annoying?"

The four of us stand at the top of the stairs, where the large river I fell into earlier stands in the sun, along with a watery battlefield.

"That must be where we're fishing," Bianca guesses.

"Wow! Look at all the competitors!" Iris gasps.

Staring at the battlefield, I finally say, "Oh, I get it. Once you feel one in, you battle it over there."

Once we make it to the bottom of the stairs, Bianca smiles determinedly. "Right! Time to catch some Pokémon!" She swings the rod around, the line swaying frantically.

Iris dodges just in time as the line almost hits her. "Watch out with that thing!"

I run over to the edge of the water, throwing my line in. "I'm gonna catch the biggest Pokémon ever, right, buddy?" Pikachu nods from my shoulder, giving me a smile. "And then, won't Cilan be impressed?"

Suddenly, the hood of my jacket is pulled forcefully, and I shriek. I hear Bianca shout, "I got one! And it's a whopper!"

Since my jacket's zipped up all the way, I'm choking. "It's not a whopper! It's me!" I try to scream at her.

"...I don't think it count if I catch you, Alice."

"Ugh!" Could she be any more clueless?! "Can somebody unhook me already?! Please?"

"Okay, hold still, Alice." Cilan sounds like he's trying to hold back a soft chuckle as he unhooks my hood from the line. He lets go of my hood and gives me a smile. "There you go."

I blush as his eyes practically melt into mine. "Oh... Thank you, Cilan."

Bianca comes over to us, a look of guilt spread across her face. "I'm really sorry about that."

I give her a sympathetic look; it seems that all this poor girl does is apologize to me! "Just be careful, okay?"

"I told you I've never fished before, right?" She looks down in defeat. "See, when it comes to fishing, I'm afraid I'm clueless."

"You just leave it to me," Cilan tells her. "I'll show you exactly how the pros do it in the blink of an eye." He turns to the water and starts his explanation. "In the world of professional fishing, there are two ways to cast a line: there's the overhead cast—" He demonstrates the cast by swinging it over his head "—and then there's the side-arm." He swings the line sideways, and Bianca and I nod, both of us taking all of this in. "But before you cast your line, calm your heart rate, and concentrate." After a moment of silence, he swings the line over his head. "Overhead Cast Time!" The end of the line plunges into the water, creating a small splash. "And, with a single stroke, your Water-type Pokémon battle has begun. Once your line is in the water, you wind the reel slowly to catch their attention. Think of it as aging a fine cheese—perfect...savor it."

Bianca and I watch him in amazement and, well, in my case, lovingly. "Wow..."

The tip of the line is pulled a little bit deeper into the water below. "A bite!" Cilan gasps.

"Did you catch it? Did you catch it?" Bianca asks eagerly.

"Reel it in, quick!" I tell him.

"Hurry, hurry!"

He smirks. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Now, beginners, relax. It's not time just yet. You can't rush it, even with a bite. Right now, the Water-type Pokémon is tasting the bait."

Raising my eyebrow, I ask, "Tasting?"

"I wonder what it tastes like?" Bianca murmurs.

"Instead of reeling it in now," Cilan continues, demonstrating all the way through, "give it some time, and once it takes a real bite...you strike!" The line tip of the line goes further into the water—a real bite. "Once it's been hooked, you gently lure it to you as you raise your rod, like removing a soufflé from the oven." He gently reels the rod in, and pulls up. At the end of the line, a dark green fish-like creature with blue stripes soars out I the water, glaring daggers.

I gasp, and my hand flies right into my pocket for my Pokédex. "What's that?!"

Basculin, the Hostile Pokémon. Basculin can be very violent, and red and blue Basculin do not get along well, frequently resulting in battles.

"Watch out, Cilan!" I warn him.

"Oh, no! It's gonna get away!" Bianca frets.

"Fear not!" the Fishing Connoisseur assures us. "It's only part of the dance that is fishing."

All three of us girls look at each other, having our eyebrows raised up in confusion. "The dance?"

"The dance—the even flow—you match your partner's every move," he explains.

Briefly, I close my eyes and imagine myself dancing with him.

Basculin pulls back on the line in the water below. "Touché," Cilan says. "The moment of truth has finally arrived in glory!"

He pulls the rod in, the line with Basculin flying through the air and into the watery battlefield. Basculin resurfaces, glaring daggers at my crush.

Meanwhile, Cilan stares at the Pokémon before him. "That lustrous body, that face, that steely piercing glare...those fearsome teeth... You're quite a prize! Now, it's Catching Time! Pansage, you're up!"

He throws a Poké Ball, and Pansage appears on the battlefield in a flash of bright blue light. Instantly, Basculin spits out a blast of water, hitting Pansage directly and knocking him into the water. A moment later, Pansage jumps up, Basculin's teeth latched onto him. The Water-type turns and shoots another water blast from its tail, hitting Pansage once more.

"Water Gun, followed by Bite, and then using an awesome Aqua Tail? Basculin's good," Iris comments quietly.

"Basculin's got the advantage in the water," I tell her and Bianca. But I don't lose faith that Pansage and Cilan can win this battle.

"Now, Pansage, Bullet Seed!"

Proving he's still got some strength left in him, Pansage jumps up and spits out small seeds at Basculin. While the Water-type recoils from the Grass-type attack, Pansage dives into the water and begins to swim away, trying to reach one of the stands in the field.

"Pansage, you can do it!" Cilan encourages his partner.

Basculin's gaining on Pansage, but the Grass-type swims with all his might. Suddenly, he grabs the edge of the stand and flips upwards, Basculin hitting its head on the solid stand.

"Perfect! Now's our chance! Pansage, Solar Beam!"

Using the sun, Pansage gathers up a bright ball of power at the tuff of his head between his hands, and throws it at Basculin. The Water-type is hit, and it falls onto the stand, flopping around.

"Nice, Pansage," Cilan congratulates his Pokémon. "A job well done. Now, go, Fishing Poké Ball!" He throws the Fishing Poké Ball, and it taps the Basculin, sucking it in. It falls on the stand, and shakes a few times. It clicks, reassuring us the Pokémon has been caught. Pansage grabs the Poké Ball and hands it to his Trainer, who smiles at the Grass-type as he takes it. "A remarkable Basculin, and it's all mine! Now, I'll allow you to mature in my Fishing Poké Ball, letting your many talents ripen into full bloom."

"Cilan's amazing," I murmur almost dreamily to the two girls beside me. "He caught one already!"

"That's what a Fishing Connoisseur does!" Bianca chuckles. "Although, I wish I knew what he was saying half the time."

Iris grips the rod in her hands in jealousy. "Well, he won't be ahead for long!"

Later, Bianca and I stand near the edge of the water, our lines in the blue liquid. Cilan's gone to turn in his Basculin, and Iris is off at another part of the water. Pikachu sits next to me, watching the water below us.

"C'mon, I want a bite!" I murmur to myself. "And boy, won't Cilan be surprised?"

Iris walks up between me and Bianca, sighing. "What a bummer. I guess I'll have to use a rod after all." She throws her line in with a depressed look. She must've tried to catch one the so-called "old-fashioned way," as she puts it.

"Then I will, too!" Bianca says. She throws her line in as well. "Let's fish!"

Knowing I'm probably not going to get a bite any time soon, I pull my line back towards me. I allow myself to rest just for a second before throwing it back in. Almost instantly, something tugs at it from underneath the water.

"A bite!"

Iris and Bianca gasp. "How in the world did you get a bite so soon?!" Iris asks.

The creature pulling at the line tugs even harder, and I begin to lose my footing. "I don't know! But it's a big one!"

I start to fall towards the water, but Iris and Bianca grab my waist, preventing me from falling. Pikachu jumps back onto my shoulder, gently pulling my hair.

"I'll bet this is the biggest one of all!" Bianca cheers. "The winner is Alice!"

My mind is racing as I shut my eyes. What was Cilan telling us earlier? Am I supposed to reel it in instantly?! No, that's stupid! But if I don't, I'll be sucked under!

"I'll take it!"

I feel the two girls let go of me, and someone grabs the rod, their hands placed over mine. I open my eyes, only to see Cilan.

"Don't reel it in just yet," he tells me. "You have to work with the Pokémon—feel it move."

My cheeks flush red, and I'm feeling a bit...flustered. "Um, okay..."

The Pokémon underneath tugs hard, and I start to reel it in, attempting to perform the act gently. The creature comes closer to us.

"Alright, now!"

The both of us pull up on the rod, and a beautiful pink Pokémon soars out of the water, its pink tentacles looking like long sashes to a dress. Its eyes lock onto me as it falls, and I back away. But I'm too late.

The Pokémon falls on me, wrapping its arms around me from the back. The creature knocks Pikachu off my shoulder, and squeezes me tightly. Screaming in pain, I shut my eyes, praying the creature won't suffocate me.

"What is that?" Bianca gasps. Soon, I hear the voice of a Pokédex.

Frillish, the Floating Pokémon. Frillish numbs its opponents with its poison as it binds its victim with its thin, veil-like tentacles.

Fear strikes through me like one of Pikachu's Thunderbolt attacks as I feel a cold yet oddly welcoming-like sensation ripple through my body. "Poison?! Let go of me!" I try thrashing around, but I only end up falling on top of Frillish.

"Alice!" I hear Cilan gasp.

One of Frillish's tentacles wraps around my neck, cutting off my precious air supply. "Get off my neck! You're choking me!"

I feel the tentacles around my body begin to loosen. "Let go of Alice right now!" Opening my eyes, I see Iris and Cilan trying to pull Frillish off of me, but the creature's pink tentacles wrap around their necks as well. It's useless!

"You've gotta let go of me this instant!"

"You've gotta let me go this instant!"

All the while, Frillish giggles uncontrollably.

The tentacles around me squeeze tighter, and I'm about to give up until an idea crosses my mind: Pikachu! He can shock this creature and free us!

I force my eyes to focus on my Electric-type buddy. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika pi..." Pikachu sounds doubtful, like he's worried he may hurt us if he shocks Frillish.

"Do it, Pikachu! It's okay!" Cilan assures him.

"Hurry up, quick!" Iris shrieks.

Shutting his eyes, Pikachu's red cheeks crackle with electricity, and he reluctantly shocks Frillish, along with the three of us. Pain shoots through my body briefly, but I feel Frillish release its grasp on my neck and body. It disappeares as it jumps back into the water.

"Oh, dear! Are you okay?" Bianca asks us. She's answered by a collection of painful groans.

My whole body shakes, and I turn to my yellow baby, who placed himself in front of me, checking to see if I'm okay. "Uh, thanks, Pikachu," I mutter, giving him a pet on the head.

The rest of the fishers gather around us, many asking if we're alright. We all reply with the same answer, trying to shoo them away.

But something else catches my attention. From behind the booth, arguing and surprised-sounding voices can be heard. The fishers and the four of us walk around the booth to investigate.

Behind the booth, there's a flight of stairs that leads to a dock. The man and woman from the booth stand there with two overly stuffed bags, a smaller person next to them.

"Are you guys okay down there?" I call down to them.

They seem surprised to see us, but cover it up with smiles. "We're good!" the woman chuckles.

"Return to your regularly-scheduled fishing!" the man adds.

Bianca raises her eyebrow. "Wait, hat are those bags for?"

"Are those Fishing Poké Balls?" Iris asks. Indeed, what looks like Fishing Poké Balls have been stuffed in the bags.

My hands clench into fists, and I can tell Pikachu's fur is bristling with suspicion from my shoulder. "What do you plan on doing with all of those Pokémon?!" I demand.

"Looks like the twerps blew our cover," the smallest person grumbles in an all-too familiar voice.

The woman closes her eyes and says calmly, "If it's the truth they want, the truth they'll get."

The man smirks at us. "Silly twerps. We were planning on pilfering those Water-type Pokémon from the get-go."

As I'm almost shaking in anger at such a devious action, Bianca asks, "Who are those people?"

"You're strange, indeed."

"We'll answer you as we feel the need."

"We bring the white light of evil into the future!"

"We thrust the hammer of justice on the black universe!"

"While we carve our names into the rock of eternity!"

"The fiery destroyer, Jessie!"

"And, with thunderous emotion, James!"

"Wisest of the wise, Meowth!"

"And now gather under the name of Team Rocket!"

"Our supreme mission is to catch Pokémon from the Unova region and give them to our dear boss," Jessie gloats, smirking.

"Which will ultimately lead us to conquer said Unova region," James adds.

My hands hurt from being curled into fists for so long. "You fooled us!"

"Team Rocket?" Poor Bianca is so lost. "I get it! You're obviously a bunch of rocket scientists!"

"Um, they're not that kind of team," I tell her. "They're villains who steal Pokémon."

Her eyes widen. "They are? So they're a team of thieves!"

"While we're at it, Jess, would you like to catch Pikachu as well?" James asks her.

My arms instinctively wrap around Pikachu at those words. No way I'm letting them take my baby away!

"No thanks," Jessie answers, to my surprise. "Catching Pikachu wasn't on our to-do list, but getting out of here is!" She throws a Poké Ball.

"Right! Come on out, Yamask, now!"

Both Woobat and Yamask appear, ready to fight.

"Who is that?" Bianca asks me, motioning over to Yamask.

"That's a Yamask," I tell her. I take out my Pokédex to give her some information on it.

Yamask, the Spirit Pokémon. A Ghost-type Pokémon, Yamask wanders the ruins of ancient civilizations.

"Those guys never give it a rest, do they?" Iris sighs as I put my Pokédex back in my pocket.

Suddenly, Cilan runs forward, looking furious. "How dare you mock the serious sport of fishing?! It's time for you to feel my hammer of justice! Calling my partner, Pansage!" He throws a Poké Ball, and Pansage appears in front of him, just as furious as his Trainer.

Running to his side, I turn to my buddy in my arms. "Pikachu, you go, too!"

Nodding, he jumps forth, landing right next to Pansage.

"Pansage, use Bullet Seed!" Pansage spits out seeds towards Woobat, but Yamask darts in front and uses its mask to block the attack. "What?!"

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu shoots a shock of electricity towards the two Pokémon, but the shock bounces off of Yamask's mask. "Then try Iron Tail!"

"Alright Pansage, use Bite!"

Pikachu's tail glows, and he smacks Yamask hard while Pansage bites down painfully on Woobat.

Meowth glares. "Let's grab the bags and lam outta here!"

The trio turns, but all of them shriek when they see the bags empty, Poké Balls nowhere to be seen.

"The Fishing Poké Balls are gone!" Jessie gasps.

"Look, over there!" James points over to the water, where the Poké Balls float, all of them open.

"Hey, they're all empty!" Jessie yells. "They've escaped!"

One Poké Ball remains closed. Two pink sash-like tentacles reveal themselves from the water and open the Poké Ball. A Basculin jumps out, diving into the water.

"I'm absolutely sure that's the Basculin I caught!" Cilan murmurs.

The tentacles disappear, and Frillish's pink head pokes out of the water. It smiles at us and giggles.

"There's the Frillish!" I gasp.

"I guess Frillish must've saved all of its friends!" Iris says.

I sigh as I stare at the Frillish. "I guess it's not a bad Pokémon after all."

Jessie glares at us. "Those twerps have ruined our mission!"

"Yeah, those were our gifts to the boss!" Meowth yells.

"Alright, Yamask, Haze, let's go!" James commands.

Yamask blows out a dark black smoke, causing us all to cough as our vision's blocked. Once the smoke clears, Team Rocket's nowhere to be seen.

"Where did they go?" I ask Pikachu. He growls in response.

The roof of the booth behind us opens up, and the trio of villains fly out on their jetpacks.

"Trust me, one day, your Pikachu's gonna be all ours!" Meowth shouts down to me. Pikachu glares at him, and I tighten my grip around my Electric-type protectively.

"Never underestimate the power of Team Rocket!" James warns us.

"You better watch your twerpish backs!" Jessie yells.

The three of them fly off, and the entire booth collapses. My hands form into fists once again. "They got away with their jetpacks again."

"So they really are rocket scientists," Bianca murmurs.

I sigh again. "Not exactly." I'll explain it to her another time.

"Hey, where's Cilan?" Iris asks us.

Turning our heads, we see Cilan digging through the rubble of the collapsed booth, Pansage on his shoulder. "Where's that golden, super-duper rod?" Internally, I sigh. He would go back to look for that. He gasps. "I found it!" It's snapped in two, and his face falls. "But...it's an old rod that was merely painted gold." He sighs once more, and I pay his shoulder in what I hope is a comforting manner.

Later by the water, the three of us prepare to say goodbye to Bianca.

"They cancelled the whole thing because of Team Rocket," I tell her, holding Pikachu, "but I'm just relieved everyone's still in one piece."

"So where are all of you headed to next?" she questions.

"We're going to Nimbasa City," Cilan informs her.

My gloomy expression must've turned into a happy and determined one. "And once we're there, I'm gonna challenge the Nimbasa Gym!"

"Nimbasa City... Right! I need to catch up with you ASAP. I'm gonna win more Gym badges!"

"Well then, good luck!" I tell her. She smiles widely, almost glowing at my words.

"Nothing like the spicy flavor of rivalry," Cilan chuckles.

"You bet," Iris agrees.

Bianca nods. "Great! Time for some intense training! Catch you all later!" She runs off in the opposite direction, but not before turning back and yelling, "Bye-bye, guys!" Then she runs off, disappearing in the distance.

"There she goes..." I murmur, a little surprised by her speed.

"No dilly-dallying for her!" Iris chuckles.

"That's for sure," Cilan agrees.

And with that, the three of us turn and begin walking, continuing our trek to Nimbasa City.

And that's the end! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. It was kinda cute to write. Anyway, I'll update when I can, and thank you again for reading!

P.S. More Sunsetshipping moments to come!