"Since these changes mean parts of Chapter 117 need rewriting, there may be a delay on that chapter being published as well."
- Talarc, 23rd September 2020
Well, that probably counts as the understatement of the year…
Last chapter saw the group arrive in Pacifidlog Town, the site of the last contest before the Grand Festival. With their chance to compete on the line, James and Charka and Nicola and Zaggy went head-to-head in the final.
Upload Date: 2nd November 2021
Chapter 117: Victory and Defeat
Pacifidlog Town, Hoenn
7:13pm, 6th September 2006
Twilight had fallen over Pacifidlog Town by the time the contest had ended and spectators had spilled out onto the pontoon streets. The buzz of a lingering excitement had filled the cool September air, as had murmurings about the final battle that had decided the winner.
Then the buzz had faded as the crowds dispersed and people headed off in different directions. In its wake, it left a weary quiet. One which was neither happy nor sad. It was an uncomfortable mix that made it hard to settle down and embrace either of them.
Congratulations and commiserations, the former restrained and cautious, and the latter pronounced and looming, had followed James and Nicola the whole way from the contest hall. Even once they, Richard and Will had reached the restaurant, the foggy atmosphere barely cleared.
James was jovial and smiling, his guidebook open on the page for Slateport City and a flyer for the Hoenn Grand Festival next to his plate. Nicola was quiet and brooding, her fingers tangling and untangling meaninglessly, and her gaze lowered.
The uninformed might be forgiven for assuming that Charka had triumphed over Zaggy and not the other way around. Yet it was the zigzagoon, spawled out on the floor beside Nicola's chair, who bore the spoils of victory: the regal purple ribbon of the Pacifidlog Contest.
Between the victor and the vanquished sat Richard and Will, frequently exchanging glances amidst the conversation. What could they say? What shouldn't they say? This wasn't just another contest aftermath. This was the end of the road and there wasn't a 'next time' to which they could enthusiastically turn to reassure James.
"Come on, guys. You don't have to worry about it."
Richard glanced at James and exhaled. Having his 'permission' to not worry about the contest result should be a relief, but instead it just made him even more aware of his own feelings: he'd wanted both Nicola and James to win, as impossible as that was. Perhaps James really was okay with this loss, but even if he was, that didn't erase how Richard felt. He couldn't stop worrying just because James told him.
"So, what's the plan now?" Will asked. Taking his brother's words to heart, perhaps?
"The Grand Festival," came James's unneeded reply. His finger tapped the open page in his guidebook. "The next ferry for Slateport leaves from Oneron Town, on the next island over. Day after tomorrow."
"Kind of a shame we don't have any spare time," Richard mused. He couldn't do anything to stop his feelings. Might as well try and act like normal. "It would've been cool to explore Pacifidlog a little more."
James nodded. "Yeah, if only the timing were better." He turned to Nicola. "Anyway, congrats on winning the contest, Nicola! And congrats on making it to the Grand Festival."
"Umm!" Nicola, lip quivering, held out her hands towards James and spoke quicker and louder than she needed to. "I need to give this back!"
Resting in her cupped hands was a single, cream-coloured ribbon.
Route 132, Hoenn
11:41am, 7th September 2006
"…Nah. You should keep it."
Those words have been swirling around Nicola's head for the rest of the evening and continued even now. Even as the group marched relentlessly towards their next destination: the ferry in Oneron Town that would take them… take her to the Grand Festival.
Yet even as it played on her mind, bringing the subject back up felt impossible. The results of the contest had created a strange distance between herself and James. Her attempt to return the Ornlay Ribbon seemed to have only widened that.
She walked ahead of the others, eyes gazing at the mountains and the ocean without really seeing them. She occasionally found herself listening to her own footsteps, the soft thud of the worn rubber soles striking the road below.
"Pretty cool view, isn't it?" Will had moved up to walk alongside her without her noticing.
Nicola gave him a brief glance before finally looking at the view. "Guess so."
"Can I ask you something?"
She glanced back at Will. For longer this time. "What?"
"Why did you try and give James the Ornlay Ribbon back?" Will gave her a few seconds before adding, "Don't you want to go to the Grand Festival?"
An unreasonable anger rose in Nicola's throat. What kind of question was that? Was he deliberately trying to annoy her? "Why do you care?"
"Just curious," Will replied. "If it were me, I'd be jumping at the chance to compete."
Nicola's eye twitched. "Of course, I want to go to the Grand Festival!" she spat. "Are you an idiot?"
"Oh, you do?" Will appeared unfazed by her outburst. Somehow that irritated her even more.
"What coordinator wouldn't? I mean, my team and I worked so hard all season to gather ribbons and learn how to perform properly in contests. Of course, I want to show off my pokémon at the Grand Festival. Of course, I want to stand on that stage and show everyone how much I've grown."
"Then why?"
"Because…" Nicola felt her sudden burst of anger fading away as she turned her thoughts back to herself. Deep down, she had an answer. In fact, she had many answers. The problem was how on Earth she was supposed to sift through her tumbling thoughts and express them in a way that made sense.
Will watched her, waiting unusually patiently for her answer. If only he could see into her head and get just a short glance at the chaos inside. Maybe that would help him understand? Or maybe he'd be as confused as she was.
"…It's not fair," Nicola finally uttered.
"Fair?"
"Yeah. It's not fair. Not fair that James gave me a ribbon he earned. Not fair for me to get to the Grand Festival with a ribbon that isn't mine." Nicola exhaled sharply and bit her lower lip. "And it's not fair that he's leaving me to feel this way."
"Fairness, huh?" Will gazed off into the distance again. "It wasn't fair that you got disqualified from the Topacra Contest either though."
"Hey, Will. You're going to compete in a pokémon league next year, right?"
"Yeah, that's the plan."
"When you get to the Kanto League, or whatever league, don't you want to look at the gym badges you won and feel satisfied that your place in the league is because you've earned it?"
"You mean…?"
The corners of Nicola's mouth rose, but there was no warmth in that smile. "It's not that I don't appreciate what James did, it's just that…" A pause and a sigh. "It's not really my achievement, is it? I only won four ribbons, and you saw how close the final was last night. Even at my best, Zaggy and I were only just able to win. How does James not deserve to go to the Grand Festival? Especially when I can just try again next year."
"Huh."
"What?" Nicola turned to Will.
"Just thinking that you really have got some complicated feelings to work out."
"Not going to offer any advice?"
Will snorted. "I mean, I can tell you what I think but…" He turned and shrugged at her. "At the end of the day, this is about you and your team. Don't you need to sort things out with them and with yourself?"
"Yeah. I guess you're right."
"What do you think they're talking about?" James asked, watching Nicola and Will in the distance.
"Dunno," Richard lied. Nicola's sudden request to return the Ornlay Ribbon had been one of the only things on his mind since the previous evening. It was hard to believe he was the only one. He cast a glance sideways at James. He hadn't spoken about the issue since turning Nicola down, but surely it couldn't have passed from his mind entirely.
"Need something?" James asked, noticing him.
"Just wondering," Richard replied. "You were pretty quick to turn Nicola down last night."
"You mean the Ornlay Ribbon?" James's face scrunched slightly, his lips forming a frown. "I mean, I already gave it to her back then. It's stupid for her to give it to me just because I lost yesterday."
"You really don't want it back?"
James let out a sigh and gave Richard a look. "You remember that day, don't you, Richard? How Nicola felt, and how… how I felt." A brief pause. "It was my fault that Nicola was disqualified in Topacra. My fault that she couldn't compete in Lilycove and Nishoa. That's three ribbons she could have won if not for…"
"It's not like you're responsible for what the Ornlay lot did."
"No?" James let out a hollow laugh. "But would they have messed with her if I hadn't beaten Kealy?" He paused to let out a sigh. "Besides, you know that I either wanted Nicola to have it or to have nothing to do with it at all. What good would it do if I took it back now?"
"You could go to the Grand Festival."
"I know that! It's just…" James shook his head. "You saw Nicola and Zaggy's performance in last night's final. What did you think?"
"It was incredible," Richard replied truthfully. "Easily one of their best."
"Exactly." James nodded. "Nicola got banned for crucial weeks for something that wasn't even really her fault, and yet she came back with that." An exhale. "She's the better coordinator. She shouldn't be throwing away this opportunity just because she feels sorry for me."
"Aren't you the same though?"
"What?"
Richard sighed and shook his head. "Poor Nicola gets disqualified and you feel responsible, so you give her your ribbon because you feel sorry for her. Isn't it the same story?"
"It's not."
"How so?"
"It's…" James began before shaking his head. "You wouldn't get it even if I explained it."
"That sounds like a 'yes' to me."
"Well then, what would you do?" James asked, turning back to face him. "What's your advice, o great sage?"
"Don't really know," Richard replied. "But I guess I'd start by really listening to Nicola and to yourself." He let out a soft laugh. "Though I guess you two aren't the only ones this affects."
"Exactly," James mumbled. "The ribbon isn't just ours to trade away. I learned that the hard way." He brushed a hand over Muro's poké ball, which rattled slightly in response. "Maybe we're both going at it the wrong way?"
Oneron Town, Hoenn
6:10pm, 7th September 2006
The debate raged on silently, internally, for the rest of the day as the group reached the end of the island and took the local ferry across to the next. It was getting late in the day by the time they walked into Oneron Town, a sleepy little settlement nestled by the water's edge.
"The first ferry leaves at seven o'clock in the morning," James had said after they'd checked in at the pokémon centre. "Make sure you don't stay up too late this evening."
With that, the group had scattered to do their own things. Richard had gone off to the videophones to call home, while Will and James had gone out to do some training, leaving Nicola to herself and her thoughts.
The conversation with Will had only really helped a little. He was right that it was an issue she needed to resolve herself but… hadn't she already tried to resolve it back in Pacifidlog? It wasn't her attitude that was the problem. How could she convince James to take the Ornlay Ribbon back?
She could barely stand to look at the cream-coloured ribbon anymore. The longer it remained in her possession, the more she hated it. It taunted her, reminding her that she was only getting to the Grand Festival thanks to another's kindness and not her own strength or that of her…
…team!
Belatedly, it struck her that this was something she should probably be discussing with her pokémon. Memories of the rift in James's team came back to her. All this time, she'd been acting like it was an issue for her alone when it affected all of them as well.
"Hey, guys," she said.
Her pokémon, lounging around the room, all looked over.
"What do you think?"
Kipa lumbered over to her and turned his head to one side. Blu flew across the room and landed on his shoulder, also giving Nicola a puzzled look.
"I mean, about the Ornlay Ribbon, you know," Nicola explained as the remaining team members gathered. "What do you want to do about it?"
Mule bumped her nose against Nicola's hand and let out a soft groan. The fire type always had a warm body, but today it seemed much gentler than normal. Behind her, Mushy gave a shrug.
"I know that you've all put a lot of faith in me," Nicola said, reaching out to pat Mule's head. "I asked you all to train as hard as you could for your performances. I told you that I'd lead you all to the Grand Festival, that we'd show all of Hoenn what we were made of, but…"
Tricky let out a bark. Kipa glanced around at his teammates. Zaggy's ear twitched, and he opened an eye to look at Nicola.
"Are you all happy with this? Succeeding with a ribbon that isn't ours, that wasn't thanks to our own hard work?" Nicola bit her lip. "If you want to go to the Grand Festival anyway, then I'll go with what you want. But if you don't…" She took a deep breath and pulled out the Ornlay Ribbon. "Please tell me what we should do."
The pokémon's gazes followed her hand as she reached down and placed the ribbon on the carpet in front of them. Was her message reaching them? It was hard to tell what they were thinking as they stared at the cream ribbon, occasionally sharing grunts and cries.
Nicola found her gaze drifting from one to the other. Blu, elegant and determined, and still carrying the guilt of what had happened in Topacra. Mule, slow in many ways but warm and kind in so many others. Tricky, who had followed her just to watch out for her. Zaggy, the troublemaker. Her troublemaker. Mushy, always calm and controlled. And Kipa, the loyalist who'd stuck with her all the way through.
The exchange of grunts came to an end and the pokémon all nodded. Kipa reached out, covering the ribbon with his massive hand. Then he pushed it back towards Nicola. A final nod. This was the consensus the team had reached.
"Thanks, all of you," Nicola said as she picked up the ribbon. She smiled around at them. "We're going to take the Hoenn League by storm instead."
Mule, Tricky, Mushy and Blu all grinned at her. Kipa reached out and put his hand on Nicola's shoulder. Strange. Nicola hadn't noticed when the slimy film on his skin had started to feel comforting.
Zaggy opened his mouth wide and yawned before burying his head back in Nicola's pillow.
6:38pm, 7th September 2006
"…I thought that last attack was particularly good," Will said as he and James walked back from the public training arenas.
"It needed a little more work," James replied. "You saw how close it was. If we'd missed, we'd have been in a weak position."
"Hmm, I guess I can see that…" Will mused.
A bird's call and the flapping of wings interrupted them.
"Whoa!" James exclaimed as Blu suddenly dropped down in front of him, a piece of paper clasped in her beak. She thrust it in his direction and then took off into the darkening sky again.
"What was that about?" Will asked.
"Nicola." James shook his head as he read the note. "Says she wants me to meet her by the fountain in the centre of town."
"Guess I'll head on back then," Will said. "Make sure you listen to what she has to say."
"You're making it sound like you're in on whatever this is." James raised an eyebrow.
"We all know what it's about," Will replied. "Now you get going," he added, shooing him with his hand.
James glanced back down at the note. "An 'important discussion', huh?" There really wasn't any doubt over what she wanted to talk about. "Suppose we should get this over with," he said as he turned and started walking.
It wasn't that far. Or rather, not far enough. Organising his thoughts properly took longer than that. Perhaps that had also been part of Nicola's plan? It was almost like they were fighting a battle.
He let out a hollow laugh at the thought. This time yesterday, the two of them had been fighting each other to gain a ribbon. Now they were fighting to give one away.
"I'm here!" he called as he approached the fountain.
"I was worried you might've ignored my message." Nicola had been sat on the rim of the fountain. She got to her feet as James got closer. Her pokémon gathered around behind her.
"What do you want to talk about?" James asked, even though he didn't need to.
"The Ornlay Ribbon," Nicola replied, as expected. "You still won't take it back?"
"I mean, I already told you yesterday," James said. "You should keep it, Nicola."
"Why?"
"What do you mean, 'why'? Because you're the one who deserves it more, that's why."
"I'm the one who deserves it, huh?" Nicola looked down at the ribbon clasped in her hand. "But I'm not the one who earned it."
"You didn't earn that ribbon, but you earned the right to enter the Grand Festival. More than earned, in fact. You've got four other ribbons in your ribbon case; each of those is a symbol of how great you've become."
"Exactly!" Nicola whipped out her ribbon case and held it out. "Even though I was bad when I started, and even though I got banned for three weeks, I still won four ribbons and nearly made it to the Grand Festival!"
"Don't talk like you're not going to the Grand Festival."
"I'm not though." Nicola put her ribbon case away and fixed James with a steely gaze. "I want you to take the Ornlay Ribbon back. If you don't, I'm going to throw it into the sea."
"The sea?" James exclaimed. "Don't be an idiot! Throwing it in the sea won't help anyone."
"No, it won't." There was a hint of a smile on Nicola's face. "But didn't you say the same thing when you gave it to me?"
"Th-that was…" James paused and exhaled. "It's just, it wasn't fair. Not on you and your pokémon. I wanted you to make it to the Grand Festival. I want to see you succeed."
"But I want you to succeed too," said Nicola. "Because we're friends."
"I know that you wanted to make it to the Grand Festival. You shouldn't throw that away just because you feel sorry for me!"
"This isn't because I feel sorry for you." Nicola smiled at him. "We were both at our best last night, and I beat you. I know that I have what it takes to get to the Grand Festival next time. Don't you want to compete in the Grand Festival?"
"Well…" James held for a second before bending to the truth. "Yeah, I do."
"Then I don't want to get to the Grand Festival with your ribbon," said Nicola. "That would make me sad." She glanced back at her team and shared a nod with them. "We all agreed that it's better for you to take the ribbon back. It's yours, not ours."
She thrust her hand out towards James.
Several long seconds passed. Both trainers continued looking at each other, even as they became lost in their own thoughts.
Finally, James spoke. "Is it really okay?" he asked. "You're really sure about this?"
"We are," Nicola replied without a second's hesitation.
"Alright." James held out his hand. Nicola dropped the Ornlay Ribbon into his waiting palm. "Thanks, Nicola," he said as he closed his fingers around it.
"No, thank you, James." She smiled at him. "That ribbon saved me after Topacra. I don't know if I'd have won without it yesterday. But it was never my ribbon. It was always yours."
"Yeah, I guess so." James pocketed the ribbon and returned Nicola's smile. "I want to say this again: congrats on winning the Pacifidlog Contest, Nicola."
"Yeah." Nicola nodded. "And congrats on making it to the Grand Festival, James."
To address the elephant in the room, sorry it's been so long without an update. For those not aware, I was hit by a severe bout of depression last autumn which killed all my desire to write. And a desire to write was desperately needed for this chapter.
The original plan for Chapter 117 was for a 'filler' chapter covering the journey from Pacifidlog to Oneron, with Chapter 116 covering the contest and its aftermath. This meant that my decision to end Chapter 116 on a cliff hanger forced me to scrap all the work I'd previously done on 117 and reconstruct it from scratch. Concluding the Ornlay Ribbon Saga was a tricky thing to handle and I knew it was important to make sure I dealt with it properly. I was deadlocked on the planning stage until very recently, when I finally got the necessary spark to pull through and get this written.
I put a lot of effort into thinking about James and Nicola's viewpoints in this chapter and guiding them to a satisfying conclusion through their interactions with each other and Richard and Will. Hopefully, this resulted in an interesting chapter to read.
Unfortunately, this upload is a one-off and not a return to regular uploads. My current plan is to finish writing the remaining chapters for Pokémon Journey: Livvi's Johto Scrapbook and then sweep through Hoenn's chapters before I restart uploads. I can't offer any timeframe for this as it will depend enormously on if and when I feel motivated to write. At the very least, I'm not expecting to upload anything else this year.
The important thing is that I'm not dead, and Pokémon Journey isn't dead either.
As ever, I appreciate any feedback you have for me on this chapter, be it positive or negative. Also, gonna plug the Discord server again: there's a link on the Facebook page, so come join us!
Until next time!
Team Listings:
James Burton:
Active:
Charka (Charmeleon): Male. Naïve. Often scatters things. Likes sweet food. Fire type. Blaze ability. Knows Fire Spin, Swords Dance, Flamethrower, and Slash.
Kacha (Pikachu): Male. Modest. Sturdy body. Likes dry food. Electric type. Static ability. Knows Thunderbolt, Agility, Brick Break, and Volt Tackle.
Muro (Exploud): Male. Careful. Loves to eat. Likes bitter food. Normal type. Soundproof ability. Knows Howl, Stomp, Screech, and Hyper Voice.
Kelaar (Tropius): Male. Bashful. Likes to run. Eats anything. Grass-flying type. Chlorophyll ability. Knows Gust, Razor Leaf, Synthesis, and Body Slam.
Lusk (Dusclops): Female. Mild. Likes to fight. Likes dry food. Ghost type. Levitate ability. Knows Curse, Shadow Ball, Will-O-Wisp, and Shadow Punch.
Richard Winter:
Active:
Naro (Nidoking): Male. Mild. Sturdy body. Likes dry food. Poison-ground type. Poison Point ability. Knows Thrash, Megahorn, Poison Sting, and Double Kick.
Chena (Mightyena): Male. Docile. Capable of taking hits. Eats anything. Dark type. Intimidate ability. Knows Take Down, Howl, Swagger, and Crunch.
Dish (Ludicolo): Female. Gentle. Capable of taking hits. Likes bitter food. Water-grass type. Rain Dish ability. Knows Rain Dance, Growl, Giga Drain, and Hydro Pump.
Arro (Aggron): Male. Naïve. Loves to eat. Likes sweet food. Steel-rock type. Sturdy ability. Knows Metal Sound, Iron Tail, Iron Defence, and Double-Edge.
Vortex (Claydol): Genderless. Lonely. Sturdy body. Likes spicy food. Ground-psychic type. Levitate ability. Knows Hyper Beam, Psybeam, Cosmic Power, and Ancient Power.
Pincer (Anorith): Male. Modest. Good endurance. Likes dry food. Rock-bug type. Battle Armour ability. Knows Ancient Power, Mud Sport, Metal Claw, and Water Gun.
Nicola Hewitt:
Active:
Kipa (Swampert): Male. Quiet. Somewhat vain. Likes dry food. Water-ground type. Torrent ability. Knows Take Down, Endeavour, Earthquake, and Muddy Water.
Mushy (Breloom): Female. Calm. Likes to relax. Likes bitter food. Grass-fighting type. Effect Spore ability. Knows Mega Drain, Mind Reader, Mach Punch, and Dynamic Punch.
Zaggy (Zigzagoon): Male. Adamant. Quick to flee. Likes spicy food. Normal type. Pick Up ability. Knows Belly Drum, Rest, Body Slam, and Dig.
Tricky (Manectric): Male. Quirky. Somewhat of a clown. Eats anything. Electric type. Lightningrod ability. Knows Bite, Spark, Charge, and Howl.
Mule (Numel): Female. Docile. Often lost in thought. Eats anything. Fire-ground type. Oblivious ability. Knows Flamethrower, Earthquake, Amnesia, and Take Down.
Blu (Altaria): Female. Brave. Strong willed. Likes spicy food. Dragon-flying type. Natural Cure ability. Knows Refresh, Dragon Dance, Peck, and Dragon Breath.
Will Burton:
Active:
Toya (Blastoise): Male. Modest. Very finicky. Likes dry food. Water type. Torrent ability. Knows Skull Bash, Bite, Hydro Pump, and Ice Beam.
Turkey (Swellow): Male. Mild. Alert to sounds. Likes dry food. Normal-flying type. Guts ability. Knows Aerial Ace, Steel Wing, Return, and Fly.
Gulpy (Swalot): Female. Mild. Nods off a lot. Likes dry food. Poison type. Sticky Hold ability. Knows Stockpile, Swallow, Sludge Bomb, and Toxic.
Blue (Shelgon): Female. Adamant. Proud of its power. Likes spicy food. Dragon type. Rock Head ability. Knows Dragon Claw, Crunch, Flamethrower, and Double-Edge.
Grum (Spoink): Female. Naughty. Hates to lose. Likes spicy food. Psychic type. Own Tempo ability. Knows Magic Coat, Psychic, Reflect, and Confuse Ray.
Shup (Shuppet): Male. Quiet. Thoroughly cunning. Likes dry food. Ghost type. Insomnia ability. Knows Shadow Ball, Spite, Feint Attack, and Will-O-Wisp.