The Fuchsia City Contest
"Hey guys, wait up!" Ash, Brock and Chloe were all making their way to the Contest Hall when smoke began rising up in front of them with Janine proving to be the culprit as she stepped out of the smoke cloud. "I'd like to come with you, to the Contest I mean! I've always wanted to watch one and I figure it'll be more fun watching with friends rather than being by myself!"
From how Janine explained it to them when they ate at Little Scyther's the other day, it sounded as if Janine was the only one her age around these parts for her entire life! It was a wonder that she hadn't fallen into insanity over the past sixteen years though perhaps growing up with Koga as her father had something to do with that.
"That is if you all don't mind?"
"Of course not, the more the merrier!" Ash excitedly exclaimed.
Normally Chloe would feel threatened by another girl wanting to spend time with them but she trusted Janine, the ninja girl already informed her that she wasn't interested in Ash and didn't feel like somebody who'd lie about something like that. "Of course!"
"We'd be happy to have you with us!" Brock stated with a smile.
Janine smiled at the three before giving them a quick bow. "Thank you, you honor me with your acceptance."
Just then the crowd began excitedly shouting out as a Coordinator made their approach and based upon the crowd's reaction and those cheering the loudest? It was most likely a female Coordinator.
"Oh no." Janine glanced at Chloe and noticed she was tensing up.
"What's up with her?"
"If I had to guess, she probably thinks it's her rival Luna. Luna is... well she's quite rude." Even if Luna deserved it, Brock didn't feel comfortable saying what he actually thought.
"Just once I'd like to earn another ribbon without her presence..." Chloe clenched her fists and gritted her teeth as the forming crowd began moving closer.
Pikachu's ear twitched. "Pika pi!"
"I don't think that's Luna," Ash reassured Chloe as Pikachu's expression appeared to be one of relief!
"Excuse me, mind letting me through? I'll be happy to sign autographs later, I really need to get registered before the deadline!" A hand waved through the crowd and a few fans were kind enough to separate allowing her passage which gave view to a fairly attractive young woman, she appeared to be the same age as Ash and Chloe and was dressed in quite the unusual attire for a Coordinator as she wore a large tan colored jacket that covered the entirety of her upper body along with red knee high boots! Her long dark pink hair stretched down her back while her blue eyes sparked in the sunlight.
"Whoa, whose that? I've never seen her before!" Chloe would definitely remember if she had.
"You don't know? How dare you not recognize the greatness that is Solidad, you should be worshipping the very ground she steps on! She-" The angry fanboy was silenced as Solidad placed her hand over his mouth.
"Now now, all us Coordinators are equal. Winning four ribbons in a row is just a matter of luck and I should be treated no better than anyone else, there's always another Coordinator out there that will prove themselves to be better. Who knows, you probably just shouted at the one who'll beat me here." Solidad released her hold on his mouth. "Now I'd very much appreciate it if you didn't assault my rival,"
"Yes Solidad, so sorry Solidad!" The fanboy bowed although he didn't seem to truly mean what he said as he raced back into the crowd.
Solidad then turned to look at Chloe as she gave her a quick apologetic bow. "My apologies for the actions of my fan, fans can be quite rowdy at times. You're Chloe Cerise right? I recognize you from the Cerulean Contest, I didn't get there in time to compete as I got lost in Rock Tunnel." As she spoke, Chloe noticed that she had an accent. It wasn't anything like Lt. Surge or Gloria's though so it was impossible to place.
"No need to apologize it wasn't your fault," Chloe waved it off with a smile before the two shook hands. "I hope you don't mind me asking but your accent, you're not from around here are you?"
"You'd be correct!" Solidad answered with a bright smile as her thoughts drifted to that of home. "I actually hail from the Hoenn region, LaRousse City to be precise! There's this good friend of mine who won't be ready to participate in Contests for another two years though so I decided to use that time to travel the world and take in the sights like I always dreamed of! Then perhaps when I return to the Hoenn region, I'll be able to summon up the courage and tell Drew-er him how I feel." Solidad's cheeks went red as her thoughts drifted towards a certain green haired boy whom little did she know felt the exact way about her!
"Ah well good luck with that, I know how hard that is!" Chloe giggled.
"Huh?" Ash blinked from confusion while Brock and Janine silently shook their heads.
"And traveling the world sounds fun, I've always wanted to see more of the world so I completely understand why you'd do that!" Who knows how that boy she liked felt about traveling, he may not be as fond of it as Solidad was. Chloe had a strange feeling that everything would work out and Solidad would get with Drew.
Solidad smiled at Chloe's words before her eyes suddenly widened as she realized that the deadline was fast approaching. "Well we have plenty of opportunities to talk later for now I suggest that the two of us get registered so we don't miss out!"
"Oh my gosh, you're right!" Chloe quickly went pale as she realized time was running out. "Let's go!"
"Good morning Fuchsia City, I'm your favorite MC Lilian here once again and today I'd like to show off the remar-"
"Remarkable!" Mr. Sukizo chimed in.
"Yes, the remarkable Fuchsia Ribbon!" Lilian held up a vibrant magenta and violet colored ribbon. "We're nearing the final stretch folks as after this there will only be twenty ribbons up for grabs! So make sure to continue working and training hard if you wish to gain entry to the Grand Festival! Now let's see which of our lucky Coordinators will be starting us off today!" Lillian turned towards the screen as it changed rapidly between pictures of the competing Coordinators before eventually stopping on Solidad.
"Alright, looks like we'll be starting off with one of this year's favorites! Solidad come on out!"
The crowd began to roar and cheer loudly as Solidad quickly walked out from backstage, she waved at the crowd and flashed them a bright smile while her hand tightly gripped a Pokeball.
"Sylveon let's put on a show!" She threw the ball upwards and a heart shaped beam of light briefly appeared resulting in a loud cheer from the crowd.
"What was that?" Janine questioned. "Pokeballs don't normally do that."
Ash shrugged as he didn't have an answer either, simply turning towards Brock as if he expected his friend to do.
"I believe that's called a Pokeball Seal, they're favored by Coordinators in other regions!"
"Ah, that makes sense." Ash briefly nodded before curiosity returned as a pink Eeveelution appeared on the field! "I've never seen that one before!"
"Pika!" Hearts appeared in Pikachu's eyes as he took in the Pokemon's beauty!
"A Sylveon, Solidad must take good care of her Pokemon as Eevee need lots of love and proper care and grooming to become a Sylveon!"
"That's a Sylveon?!" Ash heard of the name but he'd never seen one before!
"Pika... Chaa..." Pikachu muttered as he was lost in a trance.
"Sylveon the Intertwining Pokemon, it sends a soothing aura from its ribbonlike feelers to calm fights!"
"Huh, I wonder how well it performs in battle!"
"Pika..." Pikachu continued to drool over her.
"Too pink for my tastes," Janine huffed
"A Sylveon..." The sight of the Eeveelution was a bit nerving for Chloe as it was a Pokemon commonly associated with skilled trainers.
"Eevoi..." Eevee flattened her ears as a nervous expression formed before quickly switching to that of anger as she saw Pikachu in the crowd, staring at Sylveon with what appeared to be admiration in his eyes. Eevee huffed and turned to look away from the screen as jealousy began rising within her!
"Sylveon use Moonblast then follow up with Attract!" Solidad swiftly ordered.
"Sylve!" Sylveon aimed her head towards the ceiling as the pink energy ball began forming within her mouth. "Syl!" She fired off the attack before quickly taking a seductive stance by Pokemon standards, simply sitting in a cute fashion and lightly tilting her head before giving the audience a wink!
"Chaaaa!" Hearts practically flew out of Pikachu's eyes as a pink energy formed the shape of a heart around Sylveon, while pink dust from the exploding Moonblast attack showered down upon the stage. The crowd cheered loudly while Mr. Contesta, Mr. Sukizo and the Fuchsia City Nurse Joy all showed off their scores with each granting Solidad a perfect 10!
"Incredible, 10 across the board! Solidad started off strong and left an incredible performance for the others to follow up on, will any of them stand strong in comparison? We'll soon find out!"
Chloe remained relatively calm as she awaited her turn, sure Sylveon was pretty impressive but that didn't mean Solidad would be impossible to beat! Eevee on the other hand shook violently atop her shoulder as the image of Pikachu staring lustfully at Sylveon was stuck inside her head!
"Eevoi..." She growled while her ears flattened against her head.
"And wrapping up the appeal round will be Chloe Cerise, come on out!" The crowd cheered loudly in anticipation although it was nowhere near as loud as the cheers for Solidad. Chloe smiled as she stepped out onto the stage and gave the crowd a quick wave, her gaze flickered towards Ash in particular as she reached for a Pokeball.
"Alright Jigglypuff let's do this just as we practiced!"
"Jigglypuff!" Jigglypuff burst from her ball and her eyes shone brightly upon taking in the sight of the gathered crowd! "Jigglypuff..." It was precisely like she dreamed, performing in front of a live audience!
"Use Dazzling Gleam then follow up with Sing!"
"Jiggly!" A colorful rainbow glow surrounded Jigglypuff's body as she broke out into song. "Jiggulypuff jiggaly ly puff! Jigggaly puff jigally..."
The crowd began cheering loudly, bringing a tear to Jigglypuff's eye. Chloe had given her exactly what she always wanted, to perform in front of a large audience without them falling asleep on her! The only way this could get better was if there was an even bigger crowd to sing in front of!
"Unbelievable, Jigglypuff's performance scored a perfect 10!" Lilian cried out as she turned her attention towards the large screen. "Which means that Chloe will be advancing onto the performance round! Just give the system a few seconds to group up our contestants and-Oh look at that, this doesn't happen very often folks but the top two Coordinators will be facing off against each other! Solidad come on out!"
"Huh?!" Chloe did a double take and began sweating nervously. She was expecting to face off against Solidad eventually but she certainly didn't expect it to be right away! 'Okay gotta keep a cool head, everything will be cool. If I lose control of my emotions, this will be over quick!'
"Eevee, let's do this!"
"Eevoi!" Eevee growled out as she leaped off Chloe's shoulder before taking position in front of her trainer, her tail flickered aggressively as she stared at Solidad with narrowed eyes!
"Sylveon let's put on a show!"
"Eevoi!" Fire burned in Eevee's eyes as Sylveon appeared in front of her, the Eeveelution smiled and gave her a friendly wave with her paw only for Eevee to growl in response. "Eevoi..."
"Syl?" Sylveon tilted her head with visible confusion as she didn't understand what she did to tick Eevee off.
"Moonblast!"
"Syl!" The pink energy ball began forming in Sylveon's mouth, the Eeveelution locked her eyes onto Eevee before firing off the attack!
"Eevee dodge it!"
"Eevoi!" Eevee growled as she rolled out of the way, Chloe still lost points though due to the beauty of Sylveon's attack!
"Alright Eevee let's use Shad-"
"Eevoi!" Eevee's eyes reduced to flames, she snarled at Sylveon before stretching herself out as a fierce cry emitted from her throat!
"Oh no! Eevee don't-!"
The sound of wood tearing apart could be heard as a large vine burst through the floor, Solidad and Sylveon gazed upwards as it scaled towards the ceiling. The two remained calm but there was still a bit of visible shock despite them being aware of the move prior to that moment. Large seeds grew out at the top of the vine before dropping towards the ground as Eevee intended on unleashing her jealous fury upon them!
"Mystical Fire!" Solidad shouted with a throw of her arm.
"Syl!" Rings of fire appeared between Sylveon and the massive vine before a large stream of fire burst from her mouth, the fire blast soared through the air before making contact with the vine, burning through it and sending it toppling over right as the seeds began to drop! Sylveon was knocked back by a few explosions but remained standing, Eevee on the other hand found herself crushed beneath the vine as it landed directly on top of her!
"Oh my gosh!" Solidad looked terrified while guilt quickly began filling through her.
"Eevee!" Chloe cried out, panic shined brightly upon her as she raced towards her partner Pokemon. Chloe tried to try the now unconscious Pokemon loose but she was stuck beneath the vine! Chloe gritted her teeth and tossed herself at the vine, summoning all her strength into moving it but found herself unable to make it budge! Mew watched from her usual place and turned herself invisible before descending towards Chloe, she gave the vine a gentle poke and the vine rolled right out of the way! "Huh?" Chloe shot a quick look around before shrugging as there wasn't much time to dwell on the matter, quickly scooping Eevee up before racing off the stage as she made her way towards the exit.
Ash didn't say a word as he immediately rose to his feet and followed Chloe out of the Contest Hall, Brock and Janine swiftly following him. Though Janine did a quick pause and looked around as they entered the lobby, it was completely empty but she felt as if somebody was following them! Janine glanced around and shrugged before continuing her pursuit as she figured she just imagined it.
"Eevoi...?" Eevee found herself in a hospital bed, confusion temporarily struck her before she recalled what had happened shortly before she lost conscious. She foolishly fell victim to her jealousy of Sylveon and violently lashed out, disobeying her trainer's orders and paying for it while also costing them the ribbon! Eevee flattened her ears as she hung her head in shame. "Eevoi..."
"Eevee?" Chloe yawned out. Eevee looked up and saw Chloe sitting at the side of the bed, having most likely remained by her side throughout her recovery despite her wrong doings. Eevee's ears remained flattened against her head as tears started flowing out of her eyes.
"E-Eevoi!"
"Eevee!" Eevee sniffled lightly as she felt herself being pulled into her trainer's arms. "I'm not quite sure what came over you but I forgive you, don't blame yourself for it! We've still got plenty more opportunities to obtain our fourth and fifth ribbons and odd as it sounds... I'm not even mad or upset, I did fear for your safety after what happened but other than that I'm completely empty inside! I-It's strange cause this is the first time we've lost, e-even older trainers and Coordinators get upset and some even break down to tears after their first loss! But I find myself lacking emotion of any kind..." Chloe frowned. "I-I wish I could explain it but I just can't."
"E-Eevoi!" Eevee nuzzled against her trainer while feeling thankful that she didn't blame her.
Chloe ran her hand across the top of Eevee's head for a long while, the two sitting in complete silence before Chloe eventually rose to her feet. "Let's go, the others are probably worried sick!"
"Eevoi!" Eevee gave a swift nod and leaped back onto her trainer's shoulder. As they passed through the doors to the lobby they'd find Ash, Brock, Janine and Solidad all waiting for them.
"Oh thank goodness!" Solidad placed a hand against her chest while emitting a sigh of relief.
"Sylve..." Sylveon's expression made that of her trainer. Despite her obvious relief and guilt, Eevee couldn't help but growl at her.
Chloe gave Eevee a look, it was much quieter in the Pokemon Center than the Contest Hall so she easily picked up on Eevee's growl. She slowly followed Eevee's gaze and found it locking onto Sylveon, she then noticed Pikachu nearby staring at the Fairy type with heart filled eyes! 'Of course, Eevee was jealous of Sylveon!' Jealousy was a powerful emotion that even strong and powerful figures could fall victim to, although she didn't blame Eevee it was nice to know what set her off so they could overcome it next time. 'Wait Eevee likes Pikachu?!'
"Chloe, I'm so sorry!" Solidad got up and did a quick series of bows as she remained full of guilt.
"Don't worry about it, it was an accident." Chloe calmly dismissed it with a light smile before tilting her head. "Did you win?"
Solidad silently nodded, opening her Contest Case to showcase the Fuchsia Ribbon alongside four other ribbons that Chloe couldn't identify.
"Awesome, that means I'll be seeing you at the Grand Festival!"
"Eevee..." Eevee silently growled, vowing to keep her cool next time so that she could beat Sylveon and prove herself to be better in Pikachu's eyes!
"Count on it," Solidad winked. "I hope to see you there!"
"Are you okay, Chloe?" Ash asked. "We're here if you need to talk about... you know." Ash understood how it felt to lose the first time, it was a terrible feeling and could make one doubt themselves and their abilities as a trainer. He didn't want Chloe to suffer through it alone, especially when there was only twenty Contests left before the Grand Festival and she needed to win two of them!
"I-I'm fine Ash but thanks for asking," Chloe forced a smile in his direction. "Well I'm ready to head to Saffron now if you are?"
"Of course!" Ash flashed his usual energetic smile as he turned to face Brock. "What's the quickest route to Saffron?!"
"Well we could rent some bikes and head back to Celadon, from there it should only be a few days journey to Saffron!" Brock stated as he looked at the map on his Rotom Phone.
Janine's eyes darted between them all. "What, you all don't have train passes? You could get to Saffron City within a matter of hours if you ride the Magnet Train!"
"We can?! How do we go about getting those?!" Ash excitedly asked, his face inches away from Janine's as he shook from excitement!
"Well they cost about a thousand Pokedollars a piece," Janine spoke causing Ash to lower his head in disappointment. "However if you know somebody with a golden pass, you can ride for free!" Janine whipped a golden ticket out of clean air!
"Pika...?" Pikachu tilted his head as he wondered how Koga and Janine were able to do that.
"So wait, if you ride with us that means we get to tag along for free? No cost?" Chloe questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Bingo!" Janine nodded her head with a wide grin.
"But what about Koga? Aren't you training to replac-" Chloe was interrupted by Janine who waved her hand dismissively.
"Oh he won't mind if I'm gone, I sneak off all the time!" Janine laughed. "Let's go!" She grabbed Ash and Brock's hands before pulling them out of the Pokemon Center with surprising strength!
"Whoa!"
Chloe silently shook her head, a smile crossed her lips as she followed them out. "See you in a few months, Solidad!"
"See you Chloe and good luck!"
Chloe turned her attention towards Eevee now that Ash and Pikachu were out of earshot. "You like Pikachu, eh?" Eevee blushed before turning her head to avoid Chloe's gaze. "Don't worry, I'll keep it a secret. We'll both work hard and win over the men we love, you'll see!" Eevee flashed her trainer a smile and nuzzled against her cheek.
"Hey Chloe, you coming?!" Ash called out.
"Coming!"
"Hey gramps, has Leaf checked in recently?" Gary questioned, his tone far different than it usually was as he sounded rather anxious and worried rather than calm and confident or cocky.
"Nope, why do you ask?" Professor Oak questioned over the Rotom Phone as Gary walked through the Saffron City streets.
"Just... wondering is all, I haven't seen her anywhere the past few weeks! A few days is normal but she's always close by, it's never been this long!"
Professor Oak smirked lightly at his grandson's anxious tone, it didn't take a genius to know that Gary had feelings for Leaf that extended far past a normal friendship or even that of best friends as he so often claimed them to be. Professor Oak then glanced at his notebook. "Well she did call a few weeks ago to say she was going to challenge the Saffron Gym, it is odd now that you mention it... she usually frequently swaps out her team or has a new catch to show off."
Gary clenched his fists and shot a quick look towards the Gym. "Well I guess I'll stop by and have a word with the Gym Leader, perhaps she knows something!"
"Be careful Gary, I-" Gary hung up and pocketed his Rotom Phone as he marched towards the entrance to the Gym.
"Gary Gary he's our-"
"I'm not here to battle, girls would you mind buzzing off? This is an important matter!" Gary snapped while shooting them all a glare. He didn't want to announce his presence just in case the Gym Leader was behind this, though he doubted it there was always the possibility!
The cheerleaders gasped and took offensive looks before storming off leaving Gary alone, he silently pushed open the doors and flinched as a loud creak was heard but nobody was in sight not even the Gym Leader as the battlefield was completely empty!
"Strange..." Gary walked towards the 'Winner's Wall' and quickly skimmed through the pictures however much to his dismay Leaf wasn't in any of them! He then saw the Gym official's book of battle records, which was restricted to only the Gym Leader and other Pokemon League officials! Gary shot a quick look around before opening the book, quickly flipping through the pages before arriving on the current year. "Hm... so Leaf was here but she didn't win. Weird, she wouldn't just take off like that. She'd keep trying until she won but it's been weeks and there's no sign of a rematch!"
A faint cry could be heard nearby causing him to shoot around before spotting a closed door which appeared to be the source of the noise. Gary silently crept towards the door and pushed it open only to let out a loud shout upon what he saw! "Oh my gosh, Leaf!" He saw Leaf laying unconscious against the wall, the Samurai trainer he and Ash frequently crossed paths with was also there alongside a few others. Gary raced towards Leaf and began poking her shoulder, lightly shaking her as he tried waking her up. "Leaf, Leaf!" He shouted rather loudly and a bit obnoxiously.
"Gary?" Gary jerked up as he heard Leaf's cry, it didn't come from her body however but from somewhere else. Softer too. He turned around and noticed a plastic dollhouse that a young girl would have, with nothing else around he decided to approach and slowly open it before letting out another shout of alarm as action figure versions of Leaf, Samurai and other trainers could be seen leaping frantically from within.
"Help us Gary!"
"Help us, this witch went crazy and put a hex on us!"
"Don't worry you two, I'll find a way to-!" Gary found himself at a lost for words, he tried feeling for his mouth but found his arms locked in place. He shifted his eyes and noticed Sabrina to his right, her eyes shined a bright blue as his world began turning black.
"Never should have come here!"
"So this is the final product, Ezekiel?" Giovanni sat in his tower office, he couldn't help but form a wide smirk as he held the Master Ball within his own hands!
"Of course, fully tested it out myself! I used one to catch a Pokemon my son is friend's with to ensure nobody else does, bit of a waste considering the Pokemon's not exactly rare but what can you do? I love my son!" Ezekiel grinned as he spoke over the Pokecord call, Cyrus' scowling face could be seen on a separate screen while Lysandre's frame filled another. "I have another here at my office and you all should have the remaining three! These are the only ones currently in existence as we haven't started production yet so be very careful with them."
"Hmp," Cyrus carelessly ripped open the present Ezekiel sent him and pocketed the Master Ball without a word.
"Oh come on, I spent all night wrapping it! The least you could do is say thanks!"
Cyrus merely flashed him a murderous look.
"You did a great job my friend, thank you." Lysandre politely bowed. "I'll make sure no harm comes to this Master Ball." He could be seen locking it safely away in a safe while Cyrus and Giovanni seemed to be obsessed with theirs, keeping them close at hand.
"Ezekiel begin production immediately, I want a hundred of these before the end of the week!"
"Will do. Dave!" A man a bit on the heavy side rushed into view, adjusting his lab coat.
"I told you the name's Tabitha!"
"Oh right, forgot I fired Dave last week." Ezekiel quickly dismissed his error. "Whatever, Tabitha I want you to start production on those Master Balls immediately!"
"Yes sir!" Tabitha grunted.
"Good, good." Giovanni clasped his hands together as he glanced towards a framed picture of a long pink feline tail. "Soon you will be mine!"
"And soon you will be mine!" The Masked Man laughed as he spied outside the window, levitating courtesy of Dusknoir. "Attila, Hun prepare the men! We attack tomorrow!"
"Yes sir!"
"And remember, any screwups and you're dead!"
Attila gulped. "Yes sir!"
And another chapter bites the dust, Happy Thanksgiving everyone! And yes, SolidadXDrew will be a thing!
"I really like the premise, but the one thing that will stick with and annoy me is that you had to kill off all the various male protagonists from the games to be used as an example instead of random trainers. I would've really liked to see them be used as measuring sticks for Ash to compete against as the story progresses."
Yeah well they're all blank slates save for Jimmy/Ethan/Gold whom I spared as I always intended on having the two face off in the Silver League. If I go to the trouble of giving them all personalities I might as well just make new ones instead! Hilda gets a pass cause I've always had a weakness for the Hilda/N ship.