Kristen's mom, Mrs. Manx, plopped down in a lawn chair with a glass of wine. "I still can't believe we're here," she said. "They did it."
"They did it," Ricky's mom, Mrs. Grover, repeated.
The Grover family had brought their RV to the Indigo Plateau. Many other parents and spectators had done the same. The RV park had an excellent view of Victory Road, where other trainers and spectators were rolling up in droves.
"Did that other boy's parents come? Jacob?" asked Mr. Manx.
"No, we brought Jacob," said Mrs. Grover. "It was nonstop Pokemon talk the whole time."
"We brought Sarah," said Mrs. Manx. "Who's Lance?"
"Lance the dragon tamer?" Mrs. Grover said. "You heard about him too, huh?"
"Apparently he's cute," said Mrs. Manx
"Well, I didn't hear about that," said Mrs. Grover with a laugh.
Mr. Manx waved to Percy and Lelia who were walking up the path with lawn chairs and coolers.
"You don't know who Lance is?" Percy asked.
Mrs. Manx turned around at the sound of Percy's voice. "Hey!" she exclaimed. "You found us! And no, I don't know anything about any of this. I never would have thought Kristen would get so into it."
"She got it from our side of the family," said Lelia. Emolga sat on her shoulder and waved.
Percy and Lelia set down their lawn chairs and made themselves at home. "I remember the first time I came up here," Percy reminisced. "I did it alone, back before they actually put a road on Victory Road. You just had to climb the mountain."
"I think our kids have nicer lodging than we do," laughed Mrs. Grover.
"Back in my day, we had to camp," said Percy.
"And thank goodness the times have changed," said Mrs. Manx.
The elevator was packed with trainers. Kristen and Sarah assessed the space left on this round. "Let's do it," said Sarah.
Kristen moved forward, rolling her hot pink suitcase behind her. Jigglypuff sat on the suitcase and looked around suspiciously at all of the people. Sarah had no luggage. She unfortunately hadn't made it to the League this year, but she was tagging along to see her friends compete.
"I'm excited to finally meet Luna," said Kristen. "You've told me so much about her!"
"Yeah, Luna is shy at first," said Sarah, "but I think you'll get along great!"
Most of the kids in the elevator were older and much taller than the two girls. A couple teenage boys were bragging loudly about how strong their Pokemon were, obviously trying to impress two teenage girls who were giggling into their phones, not paying anyone else attention.
"Do you think they have an ice cream machine here?" asked Sarah.
"I'd imagine so," said Kristen. "Most Pokemon Centers have them, so there should be one at Indigo Plateau!"
"I also heard there's a pool," said Sarah.
"Ugh," said Kristen. "I wasn't thinking about that. I didn't bring a swimsuit."
"Boo," said Sarah. "I want to swim!"
"Well, I'm not sure how much time I'll have for that anyways," said Kristen. "I should probably train, right? Especially with me giving Jigglypuff those TMs only recently."
"I'll help you train then," said Sarah. "First, ice cream, then training!"
"Sounds like a plan!" Kristen agreed.
The elevator finally reached their floor. They were on the twentieth floor out of 25. It seemed the newer competitors were put on the higher floors, furthest away from the cafeteria, shop, Nurse Joy, and pool. Age and experience definitely had its perks here.
They found Kristen and Luna's room at the end of a hallway. Kristen slid her key card and cautiously pushed the door open. The girl sitting inside on one of the beds was oblivious to the fact that someone was coming in. She had headphones covering her ears, a game controller in her hands, and was staring dead-eyed at the TV.
Sarah tapped Kristen on the shoulder and said "shhh!" before crawling on her belly towards the girl and popped up in front of the TV. The girl screamed.
"LUNA!" Sarah cried.
Luna removed her headphones. "Move, Sarah! I'm going to die!" She shifted on the bed to stare at the TV and mashed frantically at the buttons. "Hey, sorry, Kristen, right?"
"Yeah," said Kristen, moving her luggage beside the free bed. The decor in the room was pretty plain. The bedsheets were plain blue, the walls were white with some standard paintings of Pokemon. They were graced with an Eevee and a Totodile. She wondered if the lower level rooms had more pictures of evolved Pokemon or legendaries.
"Noooooooo!" Luna burst, falling backwards on her bed. She tossed her controller aside. Kristen didn't know much about video games, but she guessed whatever had happened was not good.
Luna sat up and turned to Kristen. "Hi, sorry again. I'm Luna." She extended her hand, and Kristen shook it. "And this must be Jigglypuff," said Luna.
"Jiggly!" Jigglypuff hopped beside Kristen, introducing herself.
Luna had long, dark hair and slightly tan skin. She wore a yellow tank top and a dark purple skirt. On some people the bright color combo would have looked funny, but somehow it worked on her.
"My two best friends are gonna be friends!" Sarah squealed. "So what now? Ice cream? Training? Oh...should we go look for the boys?"
"Boys? Who needs that?" scoffed Luna. She picked up her controller again. "I brought extra controllers. Kristen, do you play?"
"Oh, no," said Kristen awkwardly. "But you guys go ahead. I think I will go look for the boys."
"Okay," said Sarah, obviously disappointed that Luna and Kristen weren't instant besties. "What are we playing, Luna?"
"Super Lucario Brothers, of course!" said Luna, putting on her headphones. Sarah picked up the second controller and plugged it in.
"Well, Jigglypuff, want to go check this place out?" Kristen asked her Pokemon partner.
"Jiggly!"
Kristen left the room and realized she had no idea how to find Ricky and Jacob in this tower of people. But, she knew her family was going to be at the RV camp, so she resolved to head in that direction. She took the elevator all the way down to the lobby again. The crowds were thinning out now as people were settling into their rooms and starting to scatter out to train. She peeked into the cafeteria to confirm that there was in fact an ice cream machine, then decided to grab a little bag of chips and pop for the trek out to the camp.
The cafeteria was enormous and had two entrances. She exited from the other side into a lounge area with a little Goldeen pond in the center. Sitting all alone and staring into a sandwich was Braden. Not quite the boy she had been looking for, but in a weird way, he was the reason they were there at all. She decided she wasn't going to talk to him when Jigglypuff betrayed her. "Puff!" The pink Pokemon puffed up as if to challenge him. He looked up at that, and his eyes widened.
"Kristen?" he gasped. "You're here?"
"Hi," she said. "Yeah, I'm here."
"What about your boyfriends?" Braden asked.
"They're not," Kristen started, but it was a moot point. "They're here somewhere. I don't know where they are exactly."
"I see," said Braden. "Well, I look forward to beating you all later." Kristen forced a laugh. "I'm surprised you're here. I mean, not that you aren't good, but you seemed kind of behind last time I saw you guys."
"We worked really hard to get here," said Kristen, sitting down on an adjacent bench. "I knew there would be a lot of people, but this is nuts."
"Yeah," said Braden. "I'm not scared though." He took a bite of his sandwich, and Kristen decided this conversation was probably going nowhere. She stood up, and then Braden said, "I'm going to go scope out the competition. Wanna join?"
"Scope it out?"
"You know," said Braden. "If you can try to remember what Pokemon people have, then if you get matched with them later, it'll be easier for you to beat them."
"That's a lot of people," said Kristen.
"It is," said Braden. "You won't remember them all, but every little bit helps."
"Eh, you're probably right," said Kristen. She realized she had no idea what to expect tomorrow, and for the first time felt actually nervous. Not to mention how many people would be watching. If she screwed up, everyone would see it! She wished Ricky were with her, but since she couldn't find him, palling around with Braden couldn't hurt.
They walked out the back door to a huge field where people were sparring with their Pokemon. "Idiots," Braden whispered under his breath. "These guys are all going to wipe out the first round."
"How could you possibly know that?" Kristen asked.
"They're not even trying to be discreet," said Braden. "They don't want to be. They want everyone to see what they have and be intimidated. Don't be intimidated. They're cheap."
"Huh," said Kristen, finding it too ironic that a showboat like Braden who once had a whole crowd follow him into a gym was making that sort of judgment on a whole group of people. Although, she couldn't disagree with his assessment. She immediately noticed the two boys she'd shared an elevator with, and they were being incredibly loud and ordering all sorts of flashy moves. She giggled, and then she remembered how easily Gary Oak had defeated her and Ricky. There were certainly some cute boys here with impressive Pokemon, but they had nothing on Gary Oak.
Two familiar voices interrupted her thoughts.
"Arcanine, use Flamethrower!"
"Haunter, Shadow Ball!"
"Oh no," said Kristen, turning in the direction of the voices and seeing Ricky and Jacob showing off like the rest of them.
"HA!" Braden gasped. Kristen ignored Braden and ran to her friends.
"Kristen! There you are!" Ricky gasped. He saw Braden behind her and scowled. "I thought you were with Sarah."
"I was, but Sarah is playing video games," said Kristen. She smiled as she thought about Luna all cooped up in the room in front of the TV, completely careless about the tournament starting tomorrow. Was she just that confident? Was she trying to lay low, as Braden suggested? Somehow, she sensed that a battle with Luna would be a difficult one. She tried to remember Sarah mentioning a Pokemon Luna used and drew a blank.
"What floor are you guys on?" Jacob asked, recalling Haunter.
"Twenty," said Kristen.
"Okay, we're on the 21st," said Ricky.
"Hey, how about we go train somewhere else?" Kristen suggested. "Maybe somewhere everyone won't know what Pokemon we have."
Jacob blushed. "Hey, that's probably smart. Your parents are staying at the RV camp, right? Maybe we can find a place around there."
"That's probably for the best," said Ricky. "We'll have more room anyways."
"Cool," said Kristen. "Umm, bye, Braden."
"See ya, twerps," said Braden, still scoping out the competition.
Luna and Sarah were still playing video games when Kristen returned, followed by the two boys. Sarah immediately paused the game when they walked in. "Heyyy," she said.
"Oh man," said Luna. "These must be the boys."
"These are the boys," Kristen confirmed. "This is Jacob and Ricky."
"Wait, let me guess," said Luna. She pointed at Jacob. "That's Jacob."
Jacob held up his hands. "Guilty as charged," he said. "Is that Super Lucario Brothers?"
"Still? Have you guys moved at all?" Kristen asked.
"Ummm," said Luna. "Oh, dang, what time is it?"
"It's eight," said Kristen.
"Noooo! Is the cafeteria still open? Is there an ice cream machine?" Sarah asked.
"There is an ice cream machine," said Kristen, "but you better hurry. I'm not sure if they stay open."
"Gah! Let's go!" Sarah exclaimed.
"Shoot, my parents are probably wondering where you are," said Luna.
"Ohhh yeah," said Sarah. "I'm supposed to be with them in the guest tower." She looked around and frowned. "I want to stay here."
"We'll hide you under the bed!" Luna cried.
"Alright, let's go get ice cream. Are you guys coming?" Sarah asked.
"I mean, we ate with our parents," said Kristen.
"But ice cream though," said Sarah.
"That is a very good point," said Jacob.
So the five misfit friends spent a carefree night in the cafeteria before it closed at ten, and then they attempted to get some sleep before the big day tomorrow.
Lance presided over the opening ceremonies. It was a dazzling display of Kanto Pokemon performed by top Pokemon Coordinators. All three of Kanto's native Eeveelutions were featured: Flareon jumping through hoops, Vaporeon creating water fountains, and Jolteon shooting sparks like fireworks. Agatha made an appearance in a tribute to Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar. Next, the League participants were paraded in. Once again, the older participants were at the front.
"Kristen!"
Ricky and Jacob frowned and followed the direction of the unfamiliar voice. Kristen beamed when she saw him. "Harold! Hey! I forgot you'd be here!"
"Forget me? I'm hurt," said Harold. "We spent, what, two weeks together?"
"Yeah," said Kristen. "Harold, this is Ricky and Jacob."
"Oh, this is the guy from the S.S. Anne," said Jacob.
"I am the guy," said Harold.
"Awesome, we vaguely know each other," Luna said as she pushed her new acquaintances forward. "It's our turn. Let's go!"
They filed into the arena. In the audience, Mrs. Manx brought binoculars to her face to try to find the kids.
"There," said Percy. "Where the bright pink ball is."
"Huh? Oh, right, Jigglypuff!" said Mrs. Manx.
Lance continued his commentary: "All of the talented young trainers before you have completed the difficult task of collecting eight gym badges from specialty trainers all around Kanto. It is an especially exciting group of trainers. Two-thirds of the competitors are here for the first time. I would like to personally thank all of you for keeping the spirit of Pokemon alive in Kanto! Ladies and gentlemen, the future of Kanto, and what a bright future it is!" The audience got to their feet. Kristen looked around. Two-thirds were first-timers? That meant she might have a chance of getting further than usual. Or, it meant that Kanto had a whole bunch of kids her age that were just as talented or more, and competition would be harder than ever for her and her friends.
"Over the next week, they will compete for the title of Kanto Junior Champion," Lance continued. "I have with me the current Indigo League Champion and recent competitor in the World Championships in Galar. Ladies and gentlemen, lighting our Indigo League torch today, Candela!"
Kristen had heard of Candela, but she didn't know a lot about her. She looked up to the announcer's box and saw an imposing dark-skinned woman step forward. She held out a Poke Ball. "Moltres, I choose you!" Candela announced.
Gasps and murmurs rippled through the kids assembled and the audience. A magnificent bird Pokemon with flames on its crest and wings flew out of the Poke Ball and swooped over the crowd. Moltres landed on the torch. Kristen thought for a second that Moltres was going to just stay there and be the torch, but then Candela said, "Moltres, Fire Blast!"
Moltres cawed, and a huge fireball burst from its mouth. The flames caught in the torch, and Moltres made another swoop over the stadium before returning to Candela's Poke Ball.
"Wow," Kristen said in awe.
"Let the 46th annual Indigo League Junior Championship begin!" Lance declared to an ecstatic crowd.
The first battle wasn't until after lunch. The trainers rushed back to Indigo Tower to see the newly released schedule. Kristen, being shorter than most, couldn't see past everyone, so she decided to wait for things to calm down.
"I'm going to the cafeteria," said Kristen, tapping Ricky on the shoulder. "The first match isn't until 1, right?" Ricky was staring up at the board, mouth gaped open. "Ricky?"
The group in front of them cleared, and Kristen could see the board. Braden was up first at one. None of them were paired with him yet. She breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't ready for that epic showdown right away. Next, she saw Jacob's name paired with some girl named Emma and wondered for a second if that was Harold's ex, but of course that was absurd. Harold was on the board, then Luna, both with unknown trainers. Then her heart sank when she saw her name. And Ricky's name. Beside each other.
"No," she whispered. "There has to be some mistake."
"It's not," said Ricky. "We're fighting each other. First."
They looked at each other in stunned silence. "Can we get it changed?" she said deliriously.
"No," said Ricky solemnly. "This is it."
"This is it," Kristen repeated numbly. "What if...I'll bow out."
"What? No!" Ricky said, finally coming alive.
"But it's not fair! We're not supposed to fight each other first!" Kristen protested.
"Well, I know it's not exactly what we envisioned for this, but it is what it is," said Ricky. "And I didn't bring you all the way here so you could just bow out."
"Woah, hold on," said Kristen. "Bring me here? Is that what you think?"
"Oh, no," said Ricky, trying to backtrack. "That's not what I meant. I just meant, you know, you wouldn't be here without me. I'm the one who started to teach you everything."
"Yeah, but I could have done it myself too," said Kristen. "You pushed me in the right direction, that's all."
"Uh-huh," said Ricky. "Yeah. That's what I said."
"But that's not what you said," Kristen repeated.
"Well, it's what I meant, okay! Sheesh," said Ricky. "I'm not the one who was about to bow out a second ago."
"Oh, I'm not bowing out," said Kristen. "I'm beating you!"
"Yeah, right! You're good, better than I ever expected, but-"
"BETTER THAN YOU EXPECTED?!"
"Heyyyyy guys," said Jacob, finally reuniting with them after getting separated by the crowd. "Sucks about the first round, huh? Should be a good battle, though! Especially since you guys know practically everything about each other. Nothing better than a match between friends!"
"Uh-huh," said Kristen.
"Friends. Right," said Ricky.
"Oh no," said Jacob. "I missed something."
Jacob joined Sarah and Luna to watch the first battles. Braden and his opponent, an older girl, were calling out their first Pokemon. Braden had a Farfetch'd, and his opponent had a Kingler.
"So," said Sarah, "how's Ricky?"
"Ugh," said Jacob. "Not good. He really doesn't grasp that he needed Kristen as much as she needed him."
"Huh," said Sarah. "That's a really insightful way of looking at it."
"Well, you told her the same thing, right?" Jacob asked.
Sarah and Luna exchanged guilty looks. "We told her boys were stupid and good for nothing," Sarah admitted.
Jacob groaned and dropped his head into his hands.
"But of course, that doesn't apply to you," Sarah said sweetly.
"Holy...DRAGONITE!" Luna cried.
The audience was gasping at the appearance of a rare and powerful Pokemon in the arena. Jacob drew in a breath. "Oh no," he said. "So it happened. It evolved."
"Wait, what happened?" Luna asked.
"Back at the start of their journey, Ricky and Kristen ran into this kid in the woods with a Dratini, and they became rivals," Jacob explained. "Kristen and Jigglypuff beat him at first, but as Dratini grew into Dragonair, it became impossible. That's why it was so important for them to come here. They want to beat this kid again."
"What, really? That's what this is all about?" Luna asked.
"Yeah," said Jacob. "With one of them definitely getting eliminated in the first round, all of the pressure will be on the other to do it. That's the real reason they're mad."
"That's kind of crazy," said Luna.
"Yeah, it is, isn't it? I've been saying that from the beginning, but they don't listen," said Jacob. "And then Koga actively encouraged it, and it was all over."
"I just assumed Ricky was Kristen's rival. I didn't realize this was a group project," Luna laughed. As she did, a huge blast went off in the arena, drawing all of their attention.
"AND THE WINNER IS BRADEN DAVIS OF PEWTER CITY!" Lance announced, clearly impressed with Dragonite.
"What, already?" Luna asked. "What happened?"
"Dude," said Sarah, "so Braden's first two Pokemon got wiped. It was a Farfetch'd and a Ditto. And then he whips out Dragonite, knocks out all three of her Pokemon like rapid fire. It was insane. And they think they're going to beat this guy? He's going to cream everyone!"
"Maybe," said Luna. "Maybe not. His strategy was obviously to lull his opponent into a false sense of security with his first two Pokemon. What remains to be seen is if he's going to use this strategy in a six-on-six battle. It doesn't carry as much weight when you have that many Pokemon on your team."
"True," said Sarah. "It still feels like they're in over their heads."
"Maybe," said Jacob. "I'll say this. I don't know how I'd beat him."
Braden's opponent walked out of the arena in tears. Braden's face bore no signs of remorse.
Kristen and Ricky were eating on opposite sides of the cafeteria. Jacob walked in, and both of them beckoned him over. He sighed and decided Kristen was the easier target.
"Come on," he said. "I'm not letting you guys go on like this."
"Then Ricky can apologize," said Kristen.
"He can't apologize if you're avoiding him," said Jacob. Jacob extended his hand, and she reluctantly took it.
Ricky rolled his eyes as he saw Jacob bringing Kristen over. Sarah and Luna popped into the cafeteria from around the corner. "INTERVENTION!" Sarah cried.
"Noooooo," groaned Kristen. "Guys, it's fine."
"No, it's not fine," said Jacob. "Look, I know we came here with the intent to beat Braden, and that's a great goal, but I really think we're missing the bigger picture."
"The bigger picture is that Ricky doesn't think I deserve to be here," Kristen scoffed.
"What?! Okay, now you're blowing everything out of proportion!" Ricky said. "I never said that! I NEVER SAID THAT!"
"Stop!" Luna exclaimed. "Look, I know I don't know you guys and probably have no business being in on this conversation, but it really feels like we're making up problems to mask the real problem. You obviously care about each other. You came here together."
"This...this wasn't part of the plan," Kristen confessed. "The plan was to make it through a few rounds and hopefully, eventually, one of us would get to Braden."
Ricky nodded. "It sucks that we got paired in the first round."
"And I hate to say it, but there's a part of me that thinks Ricky is right," said Kristen. "If I somehow beat him, and I do get to Braden...I don't know if I can do it."
"But she's the only one of us who's beaten him before," said Ricky. "And yeah, it does make me kind of mad how that happened on the first day she was learning to battle. Like, I was out doing all I could to catch and learn about Pokemon. And then she finds a perfect IV Jigglypuff, and all of a sudden, she's a Pokemon trainer."
"It was all your idea to go to gyms together," said Kristen. "I'm sorry I got good at it."
"And you shouldn't have to apologize for that," Ricky sighed. "The bottom line is, this situation just sucks."
"That we can agree on," said Kristen.
"Can we agree," Jacob said, "that this Braden obsession has gotten just a teensy bit over the top?"
"But...he's our rival," said Kristen.
Ricky nodded. "We have to beat him. That's the whole point."
"Oh, for crying out loud," said Jacob. "Look around. Braden isn't anywhere around. He's not thinking about either of you. Your real rival has never been Braden. Your real rival has been beside you the whole time!" Kristen looked awkwardly at Sarah. "It's you!" Jacob cried in exasperation. "You're Ricky's rival! Ricky's your rival! What did Koga say about rivals? They make each other better. Ricky, you want to make sure Kristen doesn't pull ahead of you. Kristen, you want to prove you can be just as good as Ricky despite starting with a huge knowledge gap. All of this other nonsense is just how you're trying to cope with the fact that you guys care about each other so much, neither really wants to beat the other."
Kristen and Ricky stared at each other. "He's right," said Kristen.
"If we made it all about someone else, we didn't have to think about the fact that one of us was going to eventually surpass the other," said Ricky.
"So this is a rival battle," said Kristen.
"Yeah," said Ricky. "Let's make it a good one. I'm not holding anything back."
"You better not," said Kristen, finally cracking a smile.
It was 4:55. Ricky and Kristen's battle was at 5:00. Jacob found Kristen's and Ricky's families in the stands.
"Hi, Jacob," said Mrs. Manx. "How are they?"
"I think they're good now," said Jacob. "That was quite a shock when they saw they were fighting each other."
Mr. Grover peeked around his wife. "Joe, want to put money on this?"
"One beer," said Mr. Manx.
"Two beers," retorted Mr. Grover.
"Oh goodness," Mrs. Manx said. "This is awkward."
"Nothing wrong with healthy competition," said Percy behind them.
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen," announced Lance, "our competitors have arrived for the 5:00 match. To the east, twelve-year old Kristen Manx from Viridian City. To the west, also twelve-years old, and also from Viridian City, Ricky Grover. Huh. I wonder if they know each other."
Ricky seemed so far away to Kristen. The stadium hadn't seemed so big when it was full of people. The arena felt empty, as well as the stands, since not everyone watched every single one of the opening matches. Kristen felt incredibly small.
"Alright, competitors," said the ref, a young man with sandy brown hair, "choose your first Pokemon."
"Shiny, I choose you!" Kristen called, sending out her trusty Ninetales, formerly a trusty Vulpix.
"Go, Electabuzz!" Ricky declared.
"Ninetales vs. Electabuzz," said Jacob. "No clear type advantage. This is good."
"Shiny, Dig!" Kristen ordered.
"Electabuzz...huh? She taught it Dig?" Ricky said to himself. He smiled. "Hm. Electabuzz! Try to feel where Ninetales is, and don't get hit!"
"Buzz?" the Pokemon asked.
Ninetales wasn't perfect at Dig yet. You could see the bump in the ground where it was coming. Electabuzz was smart enough to figure that out and hopped out of the way. Ninetales popped out covered in dirt.
"Thunderbolt, Electabuzz!"
"Flamethrower!"
Both attacks hit. The respective Pokemon flew backwards. Kristen and Ricky waited with bated breath. Ninetales and Electabuzz both landed on their feet.
"Alright, Shiny, let's give it another Dig!" said Kristen.
Ricky sighed. It felt just like a delaying move to him because Electabuzz couldn't really do anything until Ninetales appeared again. Ninetales popped up right beneath Electabuzz, landing a direct hit!
"Ugh!" Ricky cried. He'd forgotten to tell Electabuzz to dodge. A very rookie move. "Ugh, okay, come on, Electabuzz, use Toxic!" Electabuzz belched poison onto Shiny, and Shiny coughed. Kristen scowled. "Now, finish it up with Thunder!" Ricky ordered.
"Dodge with Dig, Shiny!" Kristen shouted.
Shiny dodged underground. Ricky gritted his teeth. Electabuzz probably couldn't afford another hit with Dig. "Electabuzz, you have to dodge it, and then use Thunderbolt when Shiny emerges!"
"Buzz!"
Electabuzz and Shiny hadn't been that far apart, so Electabuzz barely made it out of the way. He zapped Shiny, and Shiny fainted.
"Ninetales is unable to battle," said the ref. "Electabuzz is the winner!"
Kristen recalled Shiny. "Good job, friend," she said. She narrowed her eyes at Ricky. There was really only one way to go now. "I choose you, Nidoqueen!"
"Nope," laughed Ricky. "Electabuzz, return! Go, Primeape!"
Kristen couldn't say she would have done otherwise. This also meant Electabuzz might recover from the damage he took from Shiny. She wasn't in a terribly good position. "Alright, Nidoqueen, use Earthquake!"
Boom crack. Ever since Sarah's dad had said it, she couldn't call Earthquake without thinking about it. The ground shook with an audible boom as Nidoqueen initiated the move, and then the crack came at Primeape's feet. Primeape staggered to try to regain his bearings.
"Stay strong, Primeape! Use Outrage!" Ricky ordered.
"Outrage?!" Kristen gasped. Since when had he taught Primeape Outrage? Primeape attacked Nidoqueen with full force. "Dodge and use Sludge Bomb!"
Nidoqueen was not the best at dodging, so she still got slammed with Primeape's attack. Primeape then got a massive ball of poison to the face. Both Pokemon staggered backwards.
"Keep up the pressure! Earthquake again!" Kristen called. The trademark boom sounded throughout the stadium, followed by the crack, and Primeape was on the ground.
"Primeape is unable to battle!" said the ref. "Nidoqueen is the winner."
Ricky knew he had to be very careful here. He needed his next Pokemon to faint Nidoqueen, or else he'd be stuck trying to fight Nidoqueen with Electabuzz, and her Earthquake was brutal. He did have one Pokemon on hand with a type advantage, and he kept it around precisely for situations like this, even though it was a little underleveled compared to his other main Pokemon. "Alright," said Ricky. "It's up to you...Krabby!"
"Wha?" Kristen gasped. "I didn't know he brought Krabby! Alright, Nidoqueen, use Sludge Bomb!'
"Swords Dance, Krabby!" Ricky ordered. Krabby took the Sludge Bomb attack in order to complete his Swords Dance. "Now use Razor Shell!"
Krabby's claw became enveloped in water and swiped at Nidoqueen. "Dodge, Nidoqueen! Don't get hit with that water!" Nidoqueen instinctively avoided water. "Use Earthquake again!"
Using this move required Nidoqueen to stay in place. Ricky smiled. "Crabhammer!" he ordered. Krabby's claw emitted a stream of water that bore down on Nidoqueen. Nidoqueen cried as the water hit, and her Earthquake didn't complete.
"Nidoqueen is unable to battle! Krabby is the winner!" the ref announced.
"Oof," said Jacob. "Kristen only has one Pokemon left to Ricky's two. I wonder what she'll do."
Kristen realized this was probably the end of the line. "Alright," she said. "You want to do this, Jigglypuff?"
"Jiggly!" Jigglypuff hopped into the arena from the sidelines. "Puff!"
The audience laughed. "It appears Kristen has chosen Jigglypuff. We don't see very many Jigglypuff in this arena, do we, Candela?" Lance said.
"No, we do not," said Candela. "This will be...interesting."
Ricky of course knew better. "Okay, Krabby, use Crabhammer!"
"Jigglypuff, dodge and use Thunder!"
Jigglypuff was quick. She executed the dodge but missed on Thunder, but everyone heard her make the call.
"Jigglypuff knows Thunder?" Luna gasped.
"It was very important for Kristen to use Jigglypuff in the Indigo League," said Jacob. "So she got some TMs. TMs specifically designed to bring down a certain flying dragon."
"Play Rough!" Kristen called.
"Counter with Slam!" Ricky ordered.
The two Pokemon collided. Both took damage and bounced backwards off each other.
"Thunder!" Kristen said again.
"Razor Shell!"
This time, Thunder hit. Krabby wasn't knocked out, but it was paralyzed. Ricky sighed. "Come on, Krabby! Snap out of it!"
"Finish this with Play Rough!" Kristen declared.
Ricky was about to withdraw Krabby, but it was too late. Jigglypuff made her move, and Krabby was unable to battle.
"Awesome!" Luna said in the stands.
"Our competitors from Viridian are both down to their final Pokemon," Lance announced. "The next knock-out will determine who advances. I think I speak for everyone when I say, what a great showing from Viridian City!"
The audience clapped in approval. Kristen and Ricky locked eyes and smiled. "Don't hold back," he said from across the arena. Kristen nodded. "Come on out, Electabuzz!" Ricky exclaimed.
"Buzz!" Electabuzz flexed as he returned to the arena. Kristen wondered how much strength Electabuzz had regained during the brief rest.
"Ready Jigglypuff?" she asked.
"Puff!"
"Alright, let's go, Play Rough!"
"Toxic!" Ricky ordered.
"Dodge that, Jigglypuff!" Kristen said quickly. Jigglypuff dodged and smacked Electabuzz around with pure fairy power. "Keep it up, Jigglypuff!"
"Now, use Thunder!" Ricky ordered.
Jigglypuff could not dodge this Thunder. Moreover, Electabuzz's Thunder hit way harder than her Thunder. And from either touching Electabuzz or getting zapped with pure electricity, Jigglypuff was paralyzed.
Kristen sighed. "This is not over," Kristen said. "We'll fight to the end. She might not be able to move, but she can still...Jigglypuff! Sing!"
"Oh, no," Ricky said. "Electabuzz, end this with...NO!"
Electabuzz fell asleep. Ricky dug through his pack for an Awakening. Kristen nodded and brought out a Paralyze Heal. They rushed onto the field at the same time to cure their Pokemon's status conditions.
"No moves may be called until both competitors are in the safe zones," the ref reminded them.
"Yes, thank you," said Ricky. "This is fun," he said to Kristen.
"Yeah," said Kristen. "Too bad it has to end soon."
"This is only one league," said Ricky. "We'll both be back, unless one of us wins the whole thing."
"Right!" Kristen agreed. "I'm not using any potions. Are you?"
"Nah," said Ricky. "Let's finish this."
They shook hands before running back to the safe zones. The audience clapped for them. "A great display of sportsmanship from two very promising young trainers," Lance commented.
"Ready, Jigglypuff?" Kristen asked.
"Jiggly!"
"Electabuzz, use Thunderbolt!"
"Play Rough!"
Jigglypuff took the Thunderbolt before delivering a barrage of smacks to Electabuzz's face. Both Pokemon fell. The trainers and ref leaned forward in anticipation. "Neither Pokemon is able to continue," he said.
"We tied? What does that mean?" Kristen asked herself.
Ricky recalled Electabuzz and looked at Kristen in panic, which caused Kristen to panic, because if Ricky didn't know what was supposed to happen now...or worse, he knew what was supposed to happen, and it wasn't good. Like, both of them were out of the League. She dropped to her knees and put her hands over her face.
"Ties are extraordinarily rare in League Conference. As you know, if a tie occurs in a gym battle, then this is considered a loss for the competitor. Since we have two competitors, we must have a winner. The Elite Four will now examine the footage to determine if one Pokemon fainted before the other. Please stand by," announced Candela.
Kristen picked up Jigglypuff, and her and Ricky sat together on the ref stand to wait. Footage of the final blow was played repeatedly on the screens from all angles. Then the camera panned to Kristen and Ricky, waiting anxiously.
"I haven't seen this in a long time," said the ref.
"Of course, this would happen to us," Kristen laughed.
"Yep," said Ricky. "Nothing has gone according to plan so far."
"If they can't determine a winner from that," said the ref, "it will be sudden death. Be thinking about what other Pokemon you'd use."
"Oh, no way!" Ricky gasped.
"That's never happened before," said the ref. "But it's in the rulebook."
"Yep, that would happen to us," said Kristen.
Ricky threw his head back and let out an exasperated sigh.
The Elite Four gathered in a secure room to examine the footage. "Wow," said Lance.
"A Jigglypuff?!" Bruno gasped. "I can't believe we're doing this over a Jigglypuff."
"We can't get held up on the fact that it's a Jigglypuff," said Agatha. "The question is who fell first."
They watched in slow motion. Electabuzz launched Thunderbolt. Jigglypuff got zapped, continued through the shock, and punched Electabuzz multiple times in the face. When Jigglypuff stopped, both Pokemon began to fall.
"Okay," said Lorelei. "Wow." She continued rewinding the fall, trying to determine who hit the ground first.
"Electabuzz finished first," said Agatha.
"And it wasn't over until Jigglypuff said it was over," said Lance. He rewinded the footage and zoomed in on Jigglypuff. "Look at this thing move through the Thunderbolt! Have you ever seen a Pokemon do that before?"
"You can't teach that," said Bruno. "That's all Jigglypuff's natural drive." He laughed. "What a match!"
"So are we all in agreement?" asked Lance.
"I think it's pretty clear, when you break it down," Lorelei agreed.
"There's just no substitute for that desire to win," Agatha said.
The ref brought cookies for Kristen and Ricky. They were about halfway through eating them when Lance returned. "Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen, for your patience. And thank you to our competitors. I want to repeat how rare these occurrences are, and how impressed I and my colleagues were at this match. This was not an easy decision, but it was unanimous. After reviewing the footage, we are pleased to announce that Kristen Manx of Viridian City will advance."
"Oh my gosh!" Kristen gasped. Ricky put an arm around her. "That can't be right."
"It's very right," said Ricky. "The more I watched the replays, the more I realized I had lost."
"Oh my gosh," Kristen repeated. "Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh."
"Are you going to react like this every time you win? Come on!" Ricky said, urging her off the stand. She stepped off in a daze, and the audience roared. She picked up Jigglypuff.
"This is for you," she told her Pokemon. She held the pink Pokemon up over her head, and people started to get to their feet. Ricky laughed. It was all he could do.
People kept stopping Kristen and Jigglypuff to congratulate her. Some wanted her autograph and pictures with her Pokemon.
"I just want to eat dinner," Kristen groaned when the cafeteria crowd thinned. Her family was already done eating and waiting patiently.
"Everyone is going to want to watch your next match," Uncle Percy said. "Or, they're going to want to watch Jigglypuff."
"It's all Jigglypuff," said Kristen. "I'm glad I don't have to battle again tomorrow. Jacob and Luna are up tomorrow."
"Oh, who is Sarah going to root for? That's her best friend, right?" Mrs. Manx asked.
"Her best friend, and her crush," said Kristen. "Should be a great match! I missed Jacob's and Luna's first round matches, so I'm excited to see them."
"We'll probably come out for that, then," said Aunt Lelia.
"This is going to be weird with the Grovers since Ricky is already out," said Mrs. Manx. "He seems to be taking it well, though."
"We're backwards," said Kristen. "We got all that ugly out of the way before the match."
"Good to hear!" said Mrs. Manx. "Well, I think we'll get back to the RVs. See you tomorrow! Love you!"
"We're proud of you, Kristen!" agreed Mr. Manx.
"Thanks, everyone!" Kristen said. Her family left, and she continued eating her hamburger in peace.
Then a familiar voice behind her said, "Play Rough, huh?"
Kristen turned around to face Braden who was sitting at the table beside her. "That's right," she said.
Braden nodded. "Good choice," he said.
"Thanks," she said.
"Well, see ya around, twerp," Braden said.
"Yep," she said as he walked out of the cafeteria. "See ya later." See ya in the arena, Braden. Jigglypuff is ready for her rematch.