Making the Cut

The cafeteria was bustling with trainers despite Red waking up extremely early to prepare for the second day of the tournament.

The group was significantly lowered to 64 trainers yet there were more than a hundred trainers left in this room. Red learned it was due to the fact that the losers are still allowed to stay in the dorms and are encouraged to learn from the experience by battling the other trainers. The remaining trainers took the opportunity to challenge the trainers in between their tournament battles.

"Red, I'll be waiting for you at the battlefield for friendlies after your match," ace trainer Henry stopped by Red's table.

"I'll be looking forward to the rematch," Red jovially responded.

"Excellent! Good Luck, today," Henry wished before departing to his table filled with trainers dressed like him.

Red returned to his scrambled eggs and toast. He ate with the usual crowd. Emily carefully sipped her special blend of dark coffee as instructed by the referee. Blue stabbed his pancakes, picking up three slices with his single metal fork.

"Your making time for the losers to fight you again," Blue mocked between mouthfuls.

Emily rolled her eyes, disgusted by Blue's manners. "You have grown a lot more arrogant since you went undefeated yesterday but that doesn't give you the right to act with such indecency," Emily snapped, throwing a napkin onto Blue's plate to wipe away the syrup on his cheek.

Blue grudgingly took the napkin to clean off the syrup.

"It seems we are all going to be in different stadiums, again," Red remarked, recalling the schedule handed out this morning.

"I better go then," Emily said. "I'm in the western Stadium and my match starts at eleven."

"That direction is where most of the tourists visit," Blue commented, finishing his pancakes.

"Which is why I need to head there now so I don't get caught up in the traffic flow," Emily snapped back.

"Then I need to go soon since my match also starts at eleven," Red said, voraciously chowing down his meal.

"Meet up with you guys here later!" Emily said, cleaning up her trash and taking the coffee with her.

Red got up after finishing his orange juice. "I'll be going as well. Good luck in your matches today!"

"You're the one who is going to need the luck. We won't fight today but we better meet up tomorrow for the final eight!" Blue grinned.

Red nodded, knowing this was Blue's way of wishing him luck. "I'll be there to finally settle this rivalry."


Red entered the trainer's lounge, the room where the contestants could enter to chill during the tournament. He returned from the Pokemon Center after facing a few challengers that he met yesterday. The schedule was pushed back an hour so Red took the time to get practice while he waited.

My rescheduled match is about to start, Red checked the analog clock on the wall. He watched on the plasma tv the match that came before his come to a close. The Rhydon stood triumphantly next to his hiker for a trainer and waved at the camera. The crowd was a decent size despite it being the early battles for top 64.

Let's go, Red thought hearing his name called out through the intercom.

"Haydun Mojica, please come to battlefield for your match," the woman over the intercom said in a monotone manner.

Red stopped to scan the lounge. He saw a brown hair teen get up from the lounge sofa. The striking black hat with Pokeball symbol brought back memories for Red. He waited for Haydun to reach the hallway to greet him.

"It's been awhile, Haydun," Red stopped him. "I bet you thought I wouldn't make it this far."

Haydun scratched left shoulder, lost in thought but not for long. "I don't remember your face," he blatantly replied, pushing aside the boy.

Red yanked Haydun's plain white t-shirt. "Wait it's me, Red," he reintroduced himself, pointing to his signature red hat.

"Red? Never heard of you until the lady announced our match," Haydun wiped his nose, rubbing his hand across his khaki cargo shorts.

Red sighed, believing he really did forget.

"Wait a minute…your that kid that fell in that cave," Haydun snapped his figure, reveling in the fact that he remembered.

I guess I never told him my name. Red thought sheepishly. But he did leave me before I could say what it was.

"You're the one I'm fighting this round," he exclaimed, feigning the enthusiasm. "Let's hope that you got a lot better since you got your three measly badges. I entered this tournament for a challenge."

"I'll give you a worthy battle. It's the least I can do to thank you for saving me back there," Red rejoiced in the connection.

"Yeah, yeah, let's not waste any more precious time," Haydun said, jumping out of the way of the returning trainers who finished their match. He took the path that the hiker took to reach his side of the field.

Red took the path that the loser took, hoping his luck won't turn out the same way. He reached the field that was used for multiple battles yesterday. It was repainted and repaired to now handle a single battle at a time. More space was allowed for trainers to strategize and maneuver.

Red took the trainer box in front of him as Haydun entered the arena from the other side. The judge waited for Haydun to take his place before stating the special rules.

"This is a double Pokemon with each trainer allowed four Pokemon. The trainer will choose which four to use for the match. Only one Pokemon switch is allowed to be used throughout the battle. All other Pokemon League rules are in effect including no items, no banned moves and techniques. Is this understood?"

"I got it," Haydun resignedly replied, taking out his two Pokeballs.

"I got it as well," Red replied with new energy.

"If that's the case…then send out your Pokemon!"

On command, Red sent out Gabite along with Vaporeon, the two who didn't get much chance to battle yesterday. Haydun released a Starmie and to, Red's utter surprise, a Venusaur. In a split second, Red registered the synergy those two had with type knowledge alone.

Water and psychic to deal with Fire, Ice and Psychic types, which Venusaur suffers, while poison-grass covers Starmie's weakness to grass, electric, and bug, Red admired the great combo Haydun conjured up for doubles. His own two barely cover each other's weaknesses but he had believed in their companionship to help in working fluently together.

That Vaporeon…so he did manage to evolve his Eevee, Haydun thought to himself, easily impressed.

"Begin the battle!"

"Vine Whip the Vaporeon and burn the Gabite with Scald!" Haydun ordered determined to act first.

"Flamethrower to protect Vaporeon, Gabite," Red countered his opponent. "Vaporeon, help Gabite!"

Shaking his large body, vines shot out from Venusaur's back. The two vines were repelled by the flames spewing from Gabite's maw. Vaporeon jumped directly into the stream of boiling water aimed for Gabite. She absorbed the Scald, rejuvenating her body as the adrenaline for battle finally began to flow.

"Shadow Ball, Starmie! Burning Claw!"

"Burning Claw?" Haydun incredulously repeated. His confusion left his Pokemon venerable for a split second.

Starmie flew backwards after the Shadow Ball connected with it. The star Pokemon flopped on the ground trying to cope with the super effective attack. Gabite needlessly roared before charging straight for Venusaur.

Haydun woke from his daze, entering his focused mindset. "Heal yourself, Starmie! Recover!" he dealt with his attacked Pokemon first before moving onto the defending Venusaur. The opposing Gabite wielded the familiar Dragon Claw but didn't see the component that would make it 'burning'. "Razor Leaf," he confidently ordered, trying to find more information on Gabite's combo.

"Shadow Ball again," Red eagerly commanded to keep the momentum going.

Venusaur lazily spun his massive green fronds, shooting his Razor Leaf. The dozen so of leaves were burned to a fine crisp when Gabite finally decided to let his Flamethrower run loose. Leaping through the flames, Gabite engulfed his claws in fire and slashed Venusaur directly across his wide face. The grass behemoth displayed pain and shock on his wide face.

Starmie wanted to help its comrade but a second Shadow Ball kept it from intervening.

"Get him, Venusaur!" Haydun shouted.

Venusaur grumbled as if it was disturbed from a good nap and nabbed Gabite of the ground with his vines. The dragon struggled to get out and tried to Flamethrower but his vicious jaw was ensnared by Venusaur's extended vine. Gabite felt his strength slowly being sapped by the glowing vines that led Red to believe Venusaur knew Giga Drain.

-My power…is leaving me!- Gabite realized his dire situation.

"Vaporeon, Ice Beam!" Red urged her to help.

-"Don't struggle or I might hit you!" -Vaporeon warned, shaking off the sad feeling if she knocked out Gabite with a stray Ice Beam.

-"Not so fast!"- Starmie interjected, jumping directly in line of fire and countered with Ice Beam.

"Power Whip him into the ground," Haydun felt the momentum was switching over to his side.

-"You did have quite a bit of energy inside of you,"- Venusaur groggily said. The vines coiled around Gabite glowed again green but a much harsher glow radiated from them. Using the impressive strength in his Power Whip, Venusaur slammed Gabite into the ground.

"Get passed Starmie, Quick Attack!"

Vaporeon did so and tackled Starmie onto its back before it could figure out what happen. She gasped at the size of crater Gabite lay in. She instinctively use Wish in an attempt to help her partner in battle.

"Get them both! Sleep Powder!" Haydun bellowed, losing his cool for the urgent moment.

Vaporeon stood before the recovering Gabite. They were close in range for the spores shot from the flower on Venusaur's plant. The white spores floated onto them.

"Dig down!" Red waved him arms frantically.

Vaporeon did so without hesitation and Gabite followed after her. They both avoided the Sleep powder, the spores harmlessly landing on the ground.

"Get ready to Ice Beam and Flamethrower!" Red shouted, hoping his Pokemon will hear his voice underground.

"Both of you stay on alert," Haydun ordered, scanning the area for signs. "Be prepared to attack at a moment's notice."

"Attack!" Red bellowed.

Starmie jumped back believing it could avoid the sneak attack but it never came. It looked left and right, searching for early of signs of a Dig attack. Haydun held his breath, straining his senses to pinpoint the locations. He felt the ground slightly rumble but no attack came immediately.

Moments later, the ground exploded. The earth underneath the shocked Venusaur burst open, with Gabite and Vaporeon jumping out. With their combined strength, they knocked Venusaur onto his side. The duo didn't waste time to attack Venusaur's underside with their respective attacks. Fire and ice was blasted at the defenseless Venusaur, who merely lifted a vine to retaliate. The single vine flopped onto the ground lifeless.

"Venusaur is unable to continue," informed the battle judge after running along the border of the field to make sure Venusaur fainted.

The stadium was filled with enthusiastic cheers. It was an early match so the crowd had energy to spare for the match. The screen displayed the defeated Venusaur before panning over to Haydun looked flabbergasted over the quick defeat.

-"You won't get away with this!"- Starmie hollered, it's red gem flashing white.

He's going for a Hyper Beam in hopes of getting both! Haydun snapped to reality, encouraged by Starmie's energy. He returned Venusaur before he got caught in the blast.

-"Dodge!"- Vaporeon yapped.

Starmie unleashed a devastating white beam from his core. The Hyper Beam was aimed directly at the two opposing Pokemon. Vaporeon jumped but the blast from the attack sent her tumbling across the ground. Gabite, unfortunately slow on reaction for once, took the full brunt of the Hyper Beam.

Starmie's body lurched forward, completely drained of energy. It mentally sighed seeing that Vaporeon escaped the beam but was somewhat encouraged seeing Gabite's limp body flat on his back. He didn't even stood a chance to survive the powerful attack.

-"I'm feeling wooozzy,"- Vaporeon murmured, stumbling about, trying to keep on her four feet. Her tail shifted to far to the right, throwing off her equilibrium and caused her to collapse on her side. Her eyelids drooped and she began to snooze.

Haydun stood their stunned, unable to process what just happen. Even the crowd stood silent from the climatic event.

Red processed what happened, slapping his head for not realizing sooner. "Vaporeon fell asleep due to the Sleep Powder. She rolled onto the spores that missed the first time on the ground," Red explained.

Haydun receded back to his cocky grin. "This is what we needed Starmie! Let me send out my next Pokemon to help you!"

Haydun stopped again to notice a new event unfold before him. A soothing white shimmer overtook Gabite's unconscious body. Moments later, Gabite stood back up, shivering as an abnormal shiver went down his spine.

Was that the Wish ability? Haydun questioned himself, finding the most plausible explanation for Gabite's revival.

"Rejuvenate yourself, Gabite! Dragon Claw!"

Starmie was recharging after the Hyper Beam. Gabite struck down Starmie in its vulnerable state for an easy victory. Starmie collapsed without a single retort. Flopping onto his back, the red core blinked a few times before going completely dim.

"Starmie is unable to battle! Trainer Haydun recall your Pokemon and prepare to send out your next two for the second half of the battle," the ref called out, obnoxiously waving his flag in Haydun's direction. He swiftly turned to address Red. "You are allowed on switch on the battlefield. Will you use it now or continue?" His authoritative stare made Red act quick on his decision.

"I will make one switch," Red decided to use his one switch allowed for the match. Red took out a Pokeball after getting the heads up from the referee. He returned his snoozing Vaporeon and grabbed a second Pokeball of his belt.

Haydun reluctantly returned his Pokemon. He readily chose the next two he had planned to work together. These two can make it happen. He has one Pokemon asleep and an already weakened Gabite, Haydun raised a positive perspective.

The referee made sure both trainers had their picks ready and shouted for both of them to release them.

"Keep it together, Charizard!"

"We won't fail now. Victreebel! Kabutops!" Haydun

Red, again, took the short time to analyze the coverage the new contenders had. Rock-Water for ice, fire, and flying, Red figured the role Kabutops played. While grass-poison deals with ground, fighting, grass, electric types.

"We need to pick up the pace. Rain Dance, Kabutops!"

I guess it's to see how good this TM is that I traded for Calm Mind, Red thought the time was right

"Work together on this! Dragon Pulse both of you!"

Raising his gray scythes to the sky, Kabutops took on a hazy blue hue. The sky darkened as gray rain clouds crowded above the arena. It began with a light drizzle before the heavy rain fell onto the battlefield. Victreebel raised his luscious, green leaves, enjoying the change in weather and the bonus of lowering fire type attacks was greatly appreciated by him.

Charizard grunted grumpily under rain as Gabite gawked at the massive clouds forming together. Charizard tried his best to ignore the rain and ignited the dragonic energy in his mouth. Gabite followed his partner and combined his Dragon Pulse with Charizard's. The result was a massive multicolored beam that wasn't at all affected by the rain and struck both of Haydun's Pokemon.

Haydun jumped back, nearly getting caught in the blast from the Dragon Pulse. He cursed before stepping back into the action. "Waterfall, Kabutops!" he commanded, directing an accusing finger at Charizard. "Victreebel, Leaf Tornado Gabite!"

Red took a defensive position with his strategy. "Charizard, fly! Gabite, Dig!"

Kabutops summoned a geyser of water to flow from beneath him and shot forward at Charizard, growing larger in size due to the rain. Kabutops dove into the stream of water, taking the current straight ahead. Charizard escaped into the sky, feeling this off-putting weather paled in comparison to the vicious storms that Lugia could conjure up. Gabite avoided the swirling vortex of leaves that Victreebel created from spinning his leaves. Gabite dug straight down, waiting for his time to strike the appropriate target.

"Running away won't stop me," Haydun sneered. His Kabutops jumped out of his Waterfall seeing it was futile to chase after Charizard. "Kabutops, Hone Claws. We will have then come to you."

Red waited for Kabutops to concentrate on sharpening his claws to act. "Charizard, close in on Victreebel with a Fire Blast. Let's see of its still super-effective in this rain from that range!"

-"Try and attacking me head on,"- Victreebel croaked in a gruff voice. –"I don't need this rain to defeat you!"-

-"I'm coming for you-you overgrown houseplant,"- Charizard snarled. He arched his back, dive down onto Victreebel and unleashed his Fire Blast once close enough that he believed the rain won't dampened the attack too much.

"Weather Ball!" Haydun's curt order went through.

The Flycatcher Pokemon brought his leaves forward to form a glowing white sphere. He launched it at the fiery star as quickly as it formed. The white sphere adopted a blue hue swirling in a circle and the light soon became clear water. The Weather Ball collided, dispersing in all directions like a popped water balloon. The Fire Blast met its match in the rainy weather and swiftly dissipated.

So it does change according to the weather, Red recalled the last time he saw the technique, feeling silly for not actually believing it could adapt. "Let's see if rain will stop your Wing Attack from hurting!"

Charizard flew straight through the steam cloud and careened towards Victreebel. He knocked his foe down with a precise Wing Attack, using his momentum to deal even more damage. Victreebel flopped on his side grunting in pain. Charizard followed up with a second Wing Attack. Lifting the broad leaf covering his gaping mouth, Victreebel belched out a vile clump of poisonous sludge. The sludge violently exploded on contact, sending both spiraling backwards.

Charizard landed close to Kabutops who just finished honing his claws. The ground beneath Kabutops gave in with Gabite jumping out. The fossil Pokemon was thrown off his feet but he swiftly recovered from the sneak attack and rolled onto his small feet.

"I see you're ready so let's get this started," Haydun beamed. "Icy Wind the lot of them."

Kabutops let out a high-pitch shriek devoid of any cohesive words, sounding more like a blender on a high setting. Stomping it foot, a gust of cold wind rushed out from his minuscule mouth. Gabite shuddered as he took most of the wind as Charizard took a glancing blow.

-"I…really…hate the cold,"- Gabite groused, his body growing stiff. The rain sliding down his scaly skin was now frozen to his skin. The frost spread through his body, rendering him immobile due to it being too cold. He lifted his arms to protect his delicate face just to stop to gawk at the thin icicles forming on his forearms.

"Stone Edge the Charizard, now!"

Stone Edge was a difficult attack to aim from a distance but Kabutop's skill in aiming was increased to the point of hitting a single leaf in a rancorous storm. Hitting Charizard's massive bulk wasn't a challenge for Kabutops, firing the rocks as bullets. The Stone Edge dug into Charizard's back, earning a fearsome roar from the dragon. Charizard's weight shook the ground as he fell but was still conscious.

"We need to get gain some ground if we want to win," Haydun encouraged his Pokemon. "End Charizard's role for the battle with another Weather Ball. Kabutops, the dragon will fall to one more direct hit. Waterfall before the rain dissipates!" Haydun has measured the maximum length the rainstorm Kabutops could conjured lasted and he was sure it was getting close.

"Charizard, break it with a Fire Blast!" Red ordered. "Gabite, don't go out with a fight. You're capable of handling Kabutops in close quarters combat. Dragon Rage into Dragon Claw!"

-"It's-freezing!"- Gabite wailed. He looked for help in his partner, Charizard. The fiery lizard couldn't muster the strength to do a full power Fire Blast. Gabite has fought many times with Charizard, and he could spot the small details in him that displayed his weariness: the heavy breathing, the drooping wings, and twitching muscles in his legs fighting to keep him up. Yet, Charizard stood to fight back despite the large Weather Ball broke through the feeble Fire Blast.

Gabite had his own problem to deal with as Kabutops set up a waterfall directly at him. He felt his insides burn intensely, thawing the frost on him. He took one look back. Charizard was pelted with the Weather Ball, knocked down by the torrent of water. The impact coincided with the moment the rain stopped. The clouds parted, exposing the damp field to the sun.

Gabite's body warmed up as the first rays of sunlight his scales. His body ignited with flames as fearsome as his soul. His insides were burning with vigor after witnessing his friend fall after various blows.

-"I'm not going to let you down, Charizard!"- Gabite roared. He rushed down his foe; the two appendages on his head glow light blue. Then, his entire body was enveloped by the blue aura with the same color streaks. He dashed through the waterfall, tearing it down through brute strength. He slammed headfirst into Kabutops with full force.

Kabutops met the attack with equal strength thanks to his attack boost. The energy released from the collision sent both flying backwards. Gabite promptly charged once his feet touched the ground. Kabutops slashed horizontally, but Gabite ducked below the instinctive maneuver. Kabutops flailed awkwardly after Gabite spat out a Sand Attack directly into his eyes.

Gabite maneuvered through the blind swipes and slashed Kabutops with his own Dragon Claw. Kabutop's speed was back to being lower than Gabite's thanks to the rain clouds drifting away. Gabite dodged a Razor Leaf attack from behind in a way so Kabutops would be the target. The Razor Leaf slashed Kabutop's sides.

-"Gahh!"- Kabutops wailed, collapsing. A shrill cry resonated from the fossil Pokemon before finally giving up.

That had to be a new move! Red thought thrilled. He would have to check later with his Pokedex to discover what it was since the device is forbidden during matches.

Haydun muttered every curse word known to man under his breathe, realizing his blunder could have caused him the match. "Victreebel, Seed Bomb then heal up with Synthesis!" he shouted his order.

"Pidgeot, help out Gabite!" Red bellowed, throwing the Pokeball straight into the air.

Pidgeot landed between Gabite and Victreebel to take the Seed Bomb. The shells exploded across Pidgeot's chest, sending dust upwards. The dirt settled to reveal a confident Pidgeot, sporting his new hairdo.

-"I spent a lot of time caring for these new set of head feathers,"- Pidgeot proclaimed to the disbelieving Victreebel. –"I hate for all that work to go to waste. I can't really be bothered to care for another set of feathers during this tournament."-

Haydun clenched his teeth. "This is not looking good. Victreebel, even the odds. Sunny Day!"

-"I'm going to need more than speed to win this,"- Victreebel unconvincingly said, coughing up a miniature sun.

"Dart Pierce!"

Victreebel heavily relied on his Chlorophyll ability to evade the surprise attack but Pidgeot's shrewd eyes kept up with his movement. Pidgeot slammed into the plant's back, tossing him into Gabite's reach. The Flamethrower seared Victreebel under the intense heat.

Haydun held his breathe. He quietly watched the referee observe his fallen Victreebel drooling out purple acid from his mouth. His Pokemon laid motionlessness for a couple more seconds which was enough for the ref to judge.

"Victreebel is out of commission! Trainer Red Ketchum is the winner!" he waved his flag.

-"That's all for this match!"- Pidgeot gawked. –"Some of the matches yesterday left me battling for my last breathe."-

-"I think I'm my last breathe,"- Gabite gasped, stumbling over to Pidgeot. He clung to Pidgeot, feeling the adrenaline settle with fatigue.

-"Red, return him before he damages anymore of my prized feathers,"- Pidgeot squawked back.

Red chuckled, doing as Pidgeot asked in process. "Having dazzling feathers won't give you a tactical advantage in battle Pidgeot," he reminded him. "But I guess it will affect you if you have to molt again to return your pristine feathers." He turned his attention to Haydun.

"I got to hand it to you, Red. I did not expect to lose this in beginning but that's just a mistake a rookie shouldn't make ," Haydun said, brushing his drenched hair. "If I'm to lose to you than you better win this tournament. Hell, aim to become champion. I won't let this down if you lose to a rookie mistake."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Red accepted it.

Haydun strangely saluted Red with two fingers before taking his leave. The camera watched him leave but returned to Red to relish in the fact that he won.


Red finished his match with a trainer who lost in the first few rounds. Winning the match, Red gave the boy a few pointers on improving.

Red received a sharp tap of his shoulder. He turned to back seeing who it was and turned back to excuse himself from the conversation. He followed Emily, who didn't seem in a great mood, to an empty table in the courtyard. Red lifted the umbrella to get some shade under the scorching sun.

"What is it? You looked really bummed out," Red asked, Emily keeping quiet after sitting down.

"I lost," she grumpily revealed.

Red's nearly shot up from his seat from shock. "Lost? How did you lose?" Red asked genuinely concerned yet needed to sound assuring.

Emily sighed, avoiding Red's stare. "I should have seen it coming but I didn't and let my opponent power up their stats. It didn't stop there when he baton pass it to the next defensive Pokemon who powered up even to the point that I couldn't touch them," she stared at the exit, head rested on her prompt hand. She sadly sighed seeing how stupid it was.

"What round did you lose?" Red asked, genuinely concerned. "Was it top 32 or top 16?"

"It was in the top 16," Emily answered, laying her head on the table. "I had the last match of the day and I let my stupid arrogance get the better of me."

Red reached across the table, laying a comforting hand over Emily's. "It's not that big of a deal. Losing in a large tournament is a letdown but it doesn't mean you're done for in this career for a trainer." Receiving a mix of emotions form Emily, Red reeled his hand back.

"Yo, Red and punk chick!" Blue arrived at the scene with Leaf close behind.

"You made it?" Red asked.

"Of course I did!" Blue boasted in front of his family.

"But that last trainer did give you some trouble in the end. I thought you were going to lose for sure," Leaf mocked, bringing down Blue's ego.

"And what about you Emily?" Leaf approached the bitter Emily.

"I lost to some schmuck," Emily resentfully answered.

Red and Leaf shot Blue a glare, whose mouth was halfway opened with a snarky remark.

"Come on, Blue! It's getting dark, we got to head back to the hotel," Leaf grumbled, waving the card key in her cousin's face.

"Which reminds me; I should get the bracket for tomorrow," Red said.

"I just finished my match so they have yet to figure out the placing for top eight," Emily informed Red. "We can get it tomorrow."

"That's reasonable," Red said. "I will see if I get to face that guy who beat you."

"I hope you do get the chance," Emily softly said.


Emily giggled at the sight. It was the next day and she was already feeling better after her miserable lost. She walked past the pond where two trainers were battling over who owned the Slowbro after it evolved when one trainer's Shellder bit the other trainer's Slowpoke.

It was past afternoon, and they just had lunch with the entire gang including his mother, Daisy, and Professor Oak. Blue left to warm-up for the final sprint for the finish.

"What's with the gawking eyes," Emily snapped her fingers, startling Red.

Red dumbly blinked. "Oh-it's just that it's not every day that I hear you genuinely laugh," he replied with a light smile.

Red and Emily walked the streets sightseeing. The crowd was thinning as people traveled to the main stadium, hoping to get seats with good views of the battles. Red wasn't in much of a hurry seeing that he didn't need to wait in the stadium for his match to start.

"Oh stop, Red," Emily tugged Red by the back of his shirt. They stopped at a single table garbed in a simple white tablecloth. Various makeshift jewelry lay on top of the table. Necklaces with more elaborate gems rested under a glass case.

"It's jewelry that I'm peddling," the merchant behind stand greeted in forced baritone voice, trying to sound foreign. "But this is just not ordinary jewelry. They are specially crafted each embodied with a special ability."

Red has been to enough bargain markets with his mother to know that this man was talking gibberish in hopes of catching gullible people. "Let's go, Emily," he said.

"Wait a second," she urged him to stay. Red tried to explain the kind of man who wanted to swindle her but Emily didn't let him speak. "What is that green feather about?" she asked, charmed by the way the florescent green feather glinted when the sun hit it at certain angle.

Red held his breath, feeling the feather on a string struck him odd. The feather did fascinate him unlike the other miscellaneous ornaments forced together on a string. He watched the salesman unlock the case to carefully pluck the charm off the red velvet cushioning. He handed it to Emily, showing his trust in the customers (another trait Red realized swindlers had).

"It's part of the feather of a legendary Pokemon off the islands in the far away region Sinnoh," he explained in his fake accent. "The locals use these feathers to ward off evil. All misfortune will not dare approach you after you own this. It even gives off beautiful colors when held to the moonlight!"

"I'll take it," Emily curtly said.

"Excellent choice," suddenly exclaimed the merchant.

Red lowered Emily's arm, trying to make her place it on the table. "Let's not make rash decisions," Red tried to knock sense in her.

"It's not for me, Red," she shrugged him off. Handing over the exact sum for the charm, Emily walked off with a dejected Red.

"Let me see your hand," Emily demanded. They stopped at the park reserved for tourists to take a rest from walking around the plaza.

"What is it now?" Red asked, annoyed that Emily roughly took his hand. He tried to back away once he realized Emily was tying the charm around his right hand. "Wait! Emily, that's yours."

"I told you it wasn't for me," she interjected coldly, tightening the knot. "There, a good luck charm from Sinnoh!"

Red paused to admire the gift. Beads of varying shapes and colors crowded the string but the most prominent bead was the pink crescent moon that held the feather in place. The odd feather arched back to scratch his forearm.

"Thanks Emily," Red roughly said astonished.

"It's getting extremely late, Red," Emily grimaced, checking her phone.

"What do you mean? Late for what?" Red asked, still dumbfounded by Emily's kind gift.

"For your match in the top eight!" Emily reminded him.

Red gulped, forgetting to even get the bracket for today. He had no clue who he was fighting today.

"Let's go Red back to the main stadium. We need to make it in time!" Emily pleaded Red to move.

"but I want to get you one-"

"There's no time! You got to go before you get disqualified" she hastily said taking him by the hand and ran through the labyrinth. "I also want to get good seats. I need to find Leaf in the bleachers."

Red focused on the flutter of vivid red hair. The world around became a blur, and his focal point was the ponytail of red hair. It all ended abruptly once Emily's hand released his own. He blinked in disbelief, his other senses coming to as he realized he was inside the stadium, specifically in the hallway to the trainer's lounge. They stopped before a television set displaying the three casters for the tournament.

"Good Luck, Red!" Emily waved to Red, running off into the hallway.

"Wait," Red tried to shout but became conscious of sounding desperate to have her back. Emily didn't come back as he expected. He clutched the hand that Emily used to lead him here, feeling the warmth leave it. He felt the pang of lowliness in his chest, feeling he had something to say to Emily.

I know I have something to say to Emily, Red determined.

Something tickled the back of Red's right hand. He turned it over to realize it was the curved lunar feather dangling back and forth. The colors didn't illuminate as brightly as it did in the sun but it was nonetheless stunning. Red smiled at the impulse purchase that Emily made, knowing she didn't much care of the story of the charm. She cared more to what this charm now meant to him.

Let's put this superstition to work then!

Red heard his name being called up but not his opponent's which he missed. He stopped an employee to ask for directions. He was led to a pair of staircases that led directly to the ground from where he had to take a right and onto large hallway. The open ended hallway directed Red into the dirt arena.

The field was much larger than in the sub-stadiums. Red walked a good one hundred feet to his position. The crowd went into an uproar after Red walked out into to the limelight. The cameras trained on him made the walk take an eternity. Red didn't let the nerves get the best of him and tried to build confidence by waving back at the crowd. The response was a tumultuous cheer.

Red studied the crowded arena, seeing banners for the favorite to win were numerous. He understood the favoritism for he was one of those fans who would watch the tournament and pick who he favored to take first place. This year was no different as flags of Blue's face were scattered about the stadium. Other contestants' faces appear but not as frequently as Professor Oak's grandson. Seeing the clear favorite to win made him smile but he did feel slightly discouraged to not see a single person cheering on him to win the tournament.

No it's not time to be thinking in negative ways don't lose hope! He revved his spirits marched on with confidence towards the trainer box marked for him. A referee was already at the side of the field ready to judge the first match.

The cameras panned over to the other opening to be ready and capture the image of Red's challenger. The crowd cheered once the opponent finally appeared. Red looked up to the screen which had a zoomed in closer.

He stopped cold in his tracks. His mouth hanged low in astonishment. He couldn't believe who he was paired against for the quarter finals of the tournament.

"Why am I fighting you now!?" he yelled bewildered.