"Of course. I'm always wondering what's going on back home, how my siblings are doing, how the Gym's doing; all of it." Brock explains, and he seems to get lost in his thoughts for a moment, a content but sad smile coming to his face as he looks at onto the lakefront.

Casey notices, and without even realising it she reaches out and places a comforting hand on his shoulder. It's like a reassurance. Reminding him that he's not alone. Because he's not, and as long as they're friends, Casey's adamant that him - or Ash and Dawn, for that matter - are never going through anything alone.

And she knows by the way Brock turns to her and smiles that she'll never be alone either."Morning, Dawn. How are you feeling?"


Valor Lakefront - Sinnoh

Casey steps onto the balcony of her shared hotel room with May and Dawn as the sun is barely rising. She slept fairly well the previous night, but once she woke up she struggled greatly to fall back asleep, her thoughts far too preoccupied to even consider getting anymore rest. Besides, she feels as if she's had enough sleep, so there's no need for her to get anymore.

She chose to leave her Pokeballs on her bed because she's certain that her Pokemon will still be asleep, and she's hoping to keep them that way for as long as possible. Dragonair's going to need plenty of rest for today, and she's certain that the Dragon Pokemon won't be able to settle down once she's finally awake. Might as well rest as much as she can now.

Of course, when she first got out of her comfy bed to make her way onto the balcony, she opted to be as quiet as possible, certain that both May and Dawn were still sound asleep. She didn't have much chance to look around her surroundings, which is why she's so caught off guard when she discovers that she's not the only one on the balcony this morning.

"Hey, Dawn." She says, closing the door quietly behind her and taking a seat at the bluenette's side, who seems surprised by her arrival.

"Oh, hi, Casey." She replies simply, and it's clear from the tone of her voice that something's amiss.

Casey knows what's getting to her friend. She doesn't even have to ask.

"Don't be nervous about today."

"I've been trying for ages!" Dawn exclaims, her sudden distress catching Casey off guard, "I'm terrified!"

"Why are you terrified?" Casey asks, calmly.

"What if I make a mistake? What if I tell one of my Pokemon to use the wrong move and it all goes wrong? What if my outfit goes al-?" Dawn rambles, and it's clear that the bluenette's becoming so lost in her own doubts and fears that Casey's gonna have to snap her out of it.

"Dawn! Dawn, relax!" Casey tells her, her hand coming up to the bluenette's shoulder and gripping it gently in an act of reassurance. She continues calmly when her cries cease, "Everything you just said is simply circumstantial and, if I'm honest, rather unlikely."

"You think?"

"Of course! I know you, and I know that even if one of those things does happen, you'll bounce back from it ten times stronger." Casey replies honestly, and she can tell that despite considering her words, Dawn's still doubting herself.

Dawn sighs, and what she says next more angers Casey than surprises her, "I just...I don't have a chance at winning this Contest."

"Of course you do, Dawn! You have just as much of a chance as everyone else!" Casey says, voice passionate. She wants Dawn to stop doubting herself, but she knows that it's not as simple as telling her to believe in herself.

Thankfully, it seems that her words have managed to get through to the bluenette, as she turns to her with hopeful eyes and a slight smile.

"You really think so?"

Casey smiles, "I know so."

Dawn nods, murmuring a thank you for Casey's support before turning towards the horizon as the sun begins to rise. The two girls slip into a comfortable silence, contently watching the sun rise together and temporarily forgetting about the challenges that lay ahead of them for a moment.

"I meant to ask yesterday, but do you want to borrow one of my outfits for the Wallace Cup?" Dawn asks, breaking the comfortable silence with a simple question.

"That'd be great. Thanks, Dawn."

Dawn smiles, "What are friends for?"


"What a phenomenal performance! Dawn and Ambipom make an excellent Contest team!" Marian declares as Dawn and Ambipom wrap up their first round performance.

Casey stands backstage, Dragonair by her side and her friends watching the screen from the other side of the room. Dragonair's kept surprisingly calm throughout most of the day, but Casey's remained vigilant by her side the entire time, ready to jump in and attempt to calm her down at a moment's notice.

Casey herself has felt her own nerves build as the day's progressed. She knows that it's because Pokemon Contests are uncharted territory for her. They aren't the same as Gym Battles, and she knows that watching people competing in them is far different to actually competing in them for yourself.

Dragonair, as if sensing her slight distress, nuzzles her head into the side of Casey's hand affectionately, cooing softly in an attempt to get her attention. Casey looks down at the Dragon Pokemon, a smile automatically coming to her face when she sees Dragonair looking at her with such care and interest.

"You okay, Dragonair?"

Dragonair pulls back, giving her a look that makes her laugh in an instant despite her nerves. To put it into words, it's a 'seriously' kind of look.

"Yeah, I know. But if you're okay, then I'm okay." Casey replies, because even though she's nervous, she's certain that if Dragonair's okay with all of this, then she can and will be too, "So, are you okay?"

"Onto the stage, please welcome our final entrant!"

Of course they had to call us up now!

"Casey, you're up." Zoey says, breaking away from the group and walking over to her and Dragonair, "You ready?"

She's not the closest with Zoey, but her presence right now is actually quite reassuring. It reminds her why she's here.

"Ready as I'll ever be." She murmurs back, turning to Dragonair, "Ready to go?"

Dragonair nods, turning and beginning to head for the entrance tunnel to the stage with enthusiasm. Zoey and the others wish Casey good luck, and she thanks them before heading off after Dragonair. The two of them walk out side by side, passing Dawn and Ambipom on the way, both smiling widely.

"You were great, you two." Casey says, smiling.

"Thanks, Casey." Dawn replies, "Good luck, you two."

Both Dragonair and Ambipom converse as they pass just as their trainers did, and then before she knows it, Casey's walking out onto the contest stage along with Dragonair. The roaring crowds initially surprise her, but she's quick to compose herself when she sees how excited yet calm Dragonair's behaving.

Come on, Casey. You can do this.

"Give it up for Casey from Pastoria City, and Dragonair!"

She rushes towards the main pool of the stage, waving and smiling brightly at the crowd in greeting just as all the trainers before her have.

It's just like competing in the Pokemon League. It's the exact same atmosphere.

She pauses at the edge of the pool, taking a deep breath in an act of composure before springing into action.

"Alright, Dragonair! Jump right into the water!" Dragonair obeys, launching herself gracefully into the air and slipping into the water with ease.

"Now, use Draco Meteor!"

Dragonair shoots an orb of light high up into the sky above the pool, showering the stage in gorgeous glowing orbs. Dragonair's been working on making them look prettier specifically for the contest. As they rain down on the pool, Dragonair expertly weaves in between them all, circling the pool with skill, elegance and grace all at once.

"Wow! What an excellent way to show off Dragonair's agility and power!" Marian praises as the crowd roars in delight.

"Now, Dragonair, jump up and use Aqua Tail on the water!" Casey commands once the meteors cease their assault on the stage.

Dragonair leaps up into the air as requested, water droplets springing up with her and glistening in the strong sunlight as her tail begins to glow brightly. She brings it down onto the water, the force generating a great spiralled gap in the pool that looks beyond stunning. The audience watches in awe as the ripple continues to the very end of the pool, the force ending with a powerful wave colliding with the edge of the pool.

Dragonair, with exceptional timing, lands in front of Casey just as the ripple comes to an end, striking a dazzling final pose as the crowd cheers loudly for her performance.

"An excellent performance to end an excellent first stage here at the Wallace Cup!" Marian declares over the noise of the still roaring crowd, "Give it up for Casey and Dragonair!"

The crowd cheers wildly once more, and Casey waves goodbye to them all as she and Dragonair rush off of the stage and into the tunnel once again. She pauses once they're out of sight, turning to Dragonair with a smile so wide that it hurts her face to hold it there.

"You did it, Dragonair! I'm so proud of you!" She cheers, kneeling down to hug the Dragon Pokemon and not even caring that she's still soaking wet from just swimming around in the pool.

Dragonair nuzzles into her embrace excitedly, and the two remain there for a while until Casey decides that they should probably head backstage to await the results. She almost forgets about the next round for a moment, her pride for Dragonair overriding all other thoughts that may be in her mind.

The two of them make their way backstage, where they are greeted by the eager and excited voices of their friends. Dawn reaches them first, wrapping Casey in a strong hug the moment she gets to her.

"You two were amazing!" She praises as she pulls back, smiling brightly.

"She's right." Zoey adds as she and the others walk up behind Dawn, "What you two did with that Draco Meteor was super cool! I've never seen anything like it!"

"And what you did with that Aqua Tail! That was gorgeous!" May remarks, eyes glistening in awe.

Casey stands there, murmuring 'thank you's' to each of their appraisals as she struggles not to feel overwhelmed. Even Dragonair, who usually loves to be praised, shrinks back behind her legs slightly as the girls continue to rant on, clearly just as overwhelmed as her trainer.

Thankfully, Brock seems to notice their reactions, as the calm and composed boy steps in to take control of the situation.

"Now, now, girls. Let's give the two of them a minute to breath, okay?" He suggests kindly.

The girls shrink back, May and Dawn both flushing red in embarrassment and Zoey looking slightly less energetic than before.

"It's okay, guys. It's just a lot to take in." Casey says quickly, noticing their expressions, "Thank you. All of you. Dragonair and I really appreciate it."

"You guys really were great." Ash adds simply, brandishing a confident fist, "You two will get through to the next round for sure!"

"Sorry to have kept you all waiting. The judges have made their decision." Marian says, everyone's eyes going to the TV screen as her face pops up.

Casey doesn't have to look to know that Dragonair's eyes are doing the same.

"The Coordinators moving onto the second stage tomorrow are..."

The pictures begin to pop up onto the screen one by one, everyone in the room waiting anxiously and hoping that their face appears alongside the others.

"The lucky sixteen you see here!"

She sees Zoey's face, and Ash's, and May's, and to her delight, even Dawn's. But not her own.

She scans the screen more than once before coming to the conclusion that her own face isn't up there alongside her friends.

She sighs in defeat, turning towards her friends and smiling proudly at them all. She can see the crestfallen expressions form on their faces when they realise that she's not moving on as they are, but she's quick to reassure them.

"Don't worry about it, you guys." She says, smiling, "Look on the bright side. You're all moving on to the next round."

She's less disappointed for herself and more disappointed for Dragonair if anything. Sure, she would've liked to have got through to the next round, but it's not as important for her as it is for the Dragon Pokemon. She only entered the contest for her, after all.

She turns towards Dragonair, kneeling down by her side and catching her eye, frowning slightly when she sees the upset glimmer within them.

"Hey, don't be upset. You were great out there, okay?" She soothes, moving a hand up to her head and stroking it affectionately, "I'm proud of you, Dragonair. Really, I am."

"Yeah, you were awesome!" Ash chimes in, his eyes turning to Buizel, whose stood by his side, "Weren't they, Buizel?"

"Bui! Bui!"

Ash and Buizel's approval seems to snap Dragonair out of her sadness, as the Dragon Pokemon looks up at the rest of the group and lets out an enthusiastic cry that brings a smile to all of their faces. Casey turns to Ash, mouthing a silent 'thank you' to him in appreciation.

They may have not got as far as they might have wanted to, but Casey's still beyond proud and glad that they gave it a go.