A/N: Here goes the fifth chapter, it's a little longer than usual but hope you enjoy it. I recently started a job so my update schedule will probably be slower than it has been so sorry in advance.


It was early in the morning, but Cherrygrove was bustling with activity. Trainers from all over Johto had come to compete in the first contest of the year at Cherrygrove Stadium. With the day finally here, many have decided to practice one last time before it officially began. Cherrygrove beach was teaming with these coordinators trying to finalize their upcoming performances. Amber had woken up early to get her tickets to the contest and was amazed at some of the tricks she saw while she waited.

There was a young woman who was practicing with her Psyduck. It was a yellow pokémon with a rather large head and bill.

"Psyduck, use water pulse then follow up with confusion!" she commanded. The yellow pokémon opened its bill and created a ball of water. It released the ball towards the ground which created a pulsating wave. Before it could move away, however, Psyduck's eyes began to glow a light blue. That blue light enveloped the water and gave Psyduck the ability to control the flow of the water. It used its hands and head to guide the water around its body in a magnificent swirl that reflected the light of the sun and showcased its yellow pelt.

Amber stood awestruck at the display and clapped her hands internally. She turned her head to another trainer with a Cubchoo. It was a small white bear pokémon with a drop of water hanging off its nose. They did not seem to be as prepared as the Psyduck trainer though.

"Come on Cubchoo, use powder snow!" the trainer said in frustration. Cubchoo shook its body, and a few flakes of snow came off its fur, but it was hard to see. The flew flakes that did appear melted instantly melted once they touched the ground. The trainer fainted with a groan and the Cubchoo ran over to console them.

Amber chuckled a little at the scene, "At least it's trying."

Amber then pulled her two pokéballs from her belt buckle and enlarged them. She threw them in the air to release Silla and Torch. Silla flew around in the air the second it was free, and Torch nuzzled against her leg. Amber picked him up and faced him towards the beach and all their pokémon, "Torch look at all these Pokémon, don't they look beautiful!"

Torch shook his head in disagreement and tried to hide in Amber's chest, "They don't want to hurt you Torch, they are all here to perform in a contest. I have a friend competing in the contest today, do you want to sit out with me and watch it? I feel like it's a great space for you to see pokémon not trying to fight you."

Torch looked at the beach filled with pokémon and their trainers. He breathed heavily at the commotion and shivered in her arms. Instead of retreating to his ball like he wanted to, Torch took a deep breath and nodded his head.

"Cynda," he said. He tried to sound confident, but his voice was still wavering.

"That's the spirit Torch," she said as she turned her head to Silla, "Silla Olivia is competing today with Fray, let's cheer her on okay!" Silla nodded her head.

Amber smiled at her pokémon and looked around the beach again, "I wonder where Olivia is though?"

~ Johto Saga ~

"Olivia, you need to hurry up, the contest is starting soon!" Olivia's dad called out from outside her bedroom door.

"I'm coming dad!" she replied.

Olivia took one more look at herself in the mirror to make sure that she was ready. She was wearing a long light blue dress with translucent white ribbons tied around her waist and wrist. On her feet were a pair of white 2-inch platform heels. She wore a necklace with a shrunk-down pokéball attached at the end. Olivia opened the door before her father could knock again.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said with a little jump.

"You look, beautiful darling, your mom is already at the stadium to save us a seat."

"I hope she gets a one, I want the two of you to have the perfect view for when I turn the contest on its head."

"You sure are confident. It's okay if you don't win your first one Olivia."

"Don't even speak that into existence dad, I'm going to show you that I know what I'm doing today. Then you won't have a problem with me going on a journey. You'll see."

Her dad did not know what to say to that, so he just sighed and shook his head, "Come on, we don't want to be late."

Olivia followed her dad down the stairs and out the house. The walk to the stadium was not long but it felt like it lasted forever. Olivia was a bundle of nerves. Her palms were sweaty, and she tried her best to dry them on her dress.

"Don't be nervous Olivia, you got this. You've practiced for this over and over again and have the perfect routine in mind. You are going to be amazing today,' she kept telling herself in her mind.

As they neared the stadium the nerves grew even stronger. Olivia saw the various coordinators that she would be facing. Some of them were new just like her, people hoping to make a debut that will establish their contest career early. Others were far more experienced, and it showed and how effortlessly they commanded their pokémon.

"You got this Olivia,' she thought one last time as she entered the stadium.

"I'm going to go find your mother in the stands, good luck today sweetie," her father said.

The two parted ways as Olivia walked towards the counter. There were three different lines for coordinators to sign in. One by one a would trainer signed in and walk towards one of the many locker rooms. Olivia was so nervous she barely noticed when she was next in line.

"I can help who's next," the man at the concession stand said.

Olivia walked up to the countertop and gave him her trainer I.D. "H-hello. I'm Olivia Pyne. I'm here to compete in the contest."

The man checked a list on his computer for a moment, "Here you are. You are contestant number, 17. You will be in the orange locker room. There are refreshments, a lavatory, and television streaming the contest inside. If you for any reason need to leave the locker room before your time, please tell one of the attendants. If you are not there when your name is called, you will be automatically disqualified. Any questions?"

Olivia shook her head and followed the man's gesture down the hall of locker rooms. She looked at every room's label till she found the one that she was assigned to. She went inside and saw that there were already three other trainers inside. One of them was a young man digging into the refreshments table, his Lickitung was right beside him. Another was a person whispering into their pokémon's ear, a Noctowl. The third person was meditating with her Meditite.

Olivia stood there in awkward silence for a second before she tried to make conversation, "Uhm funny how they call this the orange locker room, it's not even orange inside."

She followed her comment with a hesitant laugh. The meditating woman opened her eyes and gave Olivia a weird look before she continued her meditating. The one whispering to their Noctowl turned their backs, and the man did not seem to hear her.

"So, are you guys excited to finally be competing? I know I am. I mean I've been waiting for this my entire life…" Olivia stopped when she realized nobody else in the room was paying her any mind. Olivia was bumped from the back when someone tried to open the door. She moved aside to let another girl walk in. The girl was wearing a bright red sundress that was slit at the side, and bright red flats.

"Oh my, I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were there," the girl said.

"No, you're good, I shouldn't have been standing right at the door. I'm Olivia by the way."

"Jade," the girl introduced herself with a handshake.

"I wouldn't try to talk to them, they're all pretty quiet," Olivia said when Jade failed to get the other's attention.

"Oh, I guess that makes sense. You don't want to be distracted before the first contest."

"Is this your first time competing?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, is it yours too?" Jade replied.

Olivia nodded her head, "I've been waiting for this my whole life. I can't wait to take home that ribbon!"

"You really think you're going to win on your first try?"

"Of course, I have a guaranteed plan!"

"What number are you?"

"I'm 17, you?"

"16, right before yours. I look forward to watching you!"

"Same here?" Olivia said.

Their conversation was cut short when they heard an announcer from the television. The screen turned on to reveal a young woman with curly orange hair standing in the middle of the stadium. While Olivia and Jade watched from the stadium Amber looked on from the audience. The stadium was full of a cheering crowd as they waited in anticipation. Silla rested on her head while Torch curled up in her arms.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am your master of ceremonies Jillian Meridian and today marks the start of a brand-new contest season in the Johto Region!" Jillian announced and the crowd applauded in response.

"We have 25 contestants here today in the locker rooms. Each one with an amazing pokémon partner they plan to perform with today. Only 8 lucky coordinators will move on to the second round though, and only one will be able to win this!" Jillian said as she held up a pink ribbon in the air.

"This is the Cherrygrove contest ribbon! Coordinators must win five ribbons from our contests around Johto if they wish to compete in the grand festival at the end of the year. In order to move on, coordinators must show the beauty and power of their pokémon. Which will be determined by our judges," Jillian motioned over to a table just off the arena. At the table, Amber's aunt sat along with two other men.

"Those judges are Nurse Joy of Cherrygrove!" Evelyn stood and waved to the crowd.

"I hope everyone shows how much they truly care about pokémon today!" she said before she sat down.

"Chief of pokémon activities in Johto, Mr. Contesta," the younger of the two men stood up and took a bow.

"My father helped to create pokémon contests in Hoenn it is an honor to help them continue in Johto!"

"Finally, the head of the pokémon fan club in Johto, Mr. Masuda!"

"Astonishing!"

"With our judges introduced I would like to take one moment to thank our sponsors. The pokémon fan club, the pokémon league, and the Johto History foundation. Now with everything said and done, let's get on with the show! Our first contestant is Samson from the region!"

The crowd erupted in cheers again as Jillian left the arena. Torch flinched every time the crowd cheered but was slowly getting used to the environment. It didn't help that every time Amber cheered along with them, she tugged a little too tightly to his body. From large double doors in the back of the arena a young man wearing a white suit and tie with a fedora.

He stopped in the middle of the arena and threw out his pokéball. From the white light, a purple creature emerged with two disembodied hands.

"Haunter!" it cried.

"Haunter," Samson shouted, "Let's steal the show early with a will-o-wisp!"

Haunter clapped its hands together and five red flames with a light blue aura surrounded its body. They then began to fly around the arena towards the audience and judges.

"Wow, Haunter has already warmed the hearts of the audience with an eerie will-o-wisp. Everybody be careful to not burn yourself!" Jillian announced. The flames danced around the arena and crowd. Amber looked in amazement when one passed by her while Torch tried to touch it in curiosity.

Samson smiled before he continued, "Now Haunter, hex the flames!"

Haunter's eyes glowed red as glared at each flame. The blue energy around the flames began to turn a dark purple. The flames began to grow bigger with the new energy and multiply around the arena. Before long the five flames turned to at least 15 and were now the size of Haunter itself.

"Finish it all up with a shadow punch!" Samson commanded.

Haunter's two hands shot out in the air covered in shadows as they punched through every floating flame. The punches made them explode and cause little blue and purple embers to fall around the arena. The crowd awed at the sight and applauded as Haunter made a finishing pose next to Samson, basking in the embers.

"That was the perfect use of Haunter's talent," Nurse Joy said. She pushed a button and the screen showed 8.8 points.

"Utilizing the effect of one move to make the other stronger was a great strategy," Mr. Contesta followed. He pushed a button and the screen showed 8.9 points.

"Astonishing performance," Mr. Masuda finished. He pushed a button and the screen showed 9.3 points.

Samson took one final bow before he returned Haunter and returned to the back.

"That was an amazing start with a finishing score of 27. Now everybody it is time for our next performer, Lucinda from Kalos!" Jillian said.

As the next performer came out the audience cheered again. Amber looked down in amazement, but a slight look of worry crossed her face, "That guy was really good, I wonder how Olivia will be."

In the locker room, Olivia looked at the television screen intently. Her palms were sweaty again, but she looked determined, "I've got this."

~ Johto Saga ~

Many more performers followed Samson. Some of them were amazing, like a trainer whose Floette created a beautiful light display accompanied by a sweet aroma that won over the judges and audience. There was another trainer who showcased how strong their Machamp was by bench pressing the judges' table.

Other performances were not as good. One trainer tried to create an electrical wave go through the audience with her Raichu but ended up blowing out the power in the stadium and electrocuting one of the judges. Another performer, the same one with a Cubchoo from earlier, could not even finish his performance. When he tried to do powder snow it failed again and Cubchoo began to cry in the middle of the arena. The trainer had to run out consoling the pokémon as Jillian tried to move the show along.

Whether the performance was good or bad each passing trainer meant it was almost time for Olivia to go on stage with Fray. There was only one more trainer before it was her turn. Olivia looked at the screen as her new friend Jade walked out onto the arena with a confident smile on her face. Jade looked over the crowd before she grabbed her pokéball and released it in the air. The white light landed on the ground to reveal a Chikorita.

"Chika!" it cried as it waved the leaf on its head.

Jade took a deep breath before she started, "Chikorita, get things started with a poison powder!" Chikorita spun its head in circles and a purple powdery substance began to spread throughout the air.

"It looks like Jade has spread poisonous spores around the arena, let's see what she has in store for the rest of her performance!"

"Chikorita use razor leaf to carry the poison powder!"

"Chikorita!" it cried as it waved its head around again. Razor-sharp leaves began to form off the leaf on its head and fly through the air. The leaves flew through the purple powder carrying the purple jet stream behind them. Chikorita kept shooting the leaves through the powder until the stadium was home to zooming leaves with purple streak marks. The crowd grew more interested in the performance as Jade moved onto her next move.

"Chikorita time for Vine Whip to guide the leaves!"

Two long vines emerged from the buds around Chikorita's neck. Chikorita controlled the vines, so they snap at the leaves and snapped them around the air. Instead of the leaves moving randomly they were hit back and forth between the vines in all types of directions. Chikorita kept slapping them around till she began to essentially jungle the powdery leaves in the air. The crowd cheered which made Jade smile.

"Wrap it up Chikorita, slap the leaves to the ground!" Chikorita slapped each leaf to the ground. They landed in the shape of a heart around Chikorita, each leaf connected by a line of poison powder. The crowd applauded as Jade did a curtsy and picked Chikorita up.

"Great use of a limited move pool for such a young pokémon!" Nurse Joy said. She pressed a button and the screen showed 8.5.

"This is a beautiful start for a first-time coordinator," Mr. Contesta said. He pressed a button and the screen showed 8.5.

"That debut was astonishing!" Mr. Masuda said. He pressed a button and the screen showed 9.

Jillian stepped into the arena as Jade walked back towards the locker rooms, "Jade left with a score of 26, amazing for a first-time coordinator. Our next performer is also a first-time coordinator from right here in Cherrygrove City, let's give it up for Olivia!"

"Silla, Torch, Olivia is coming out!" Amber said in excitement. Silla cheered with the crowd and Torch looked on curiously to the stage.

"I hope she does well, especially after everything that happened yesterday," Amber said to herself. Through the crowd and the person behind her heard what she said. A look of curiosity came across his face.

"Excuse me, but what do you mean what happened yesterday?" he asked her.

"Oh nothing, she was just having some trouble with her Snubbull yesterday and lost it. I helped her find her just in time to register," Amber explained.

"Oh really," the man said as he sat back in his seat. His face now painted in disappointment.

Olivia passed Jade on her way to the stage, she had a nervous pep in her step, "You were great Jade!"

"Thank you, good luck out there!"

Olivia nodded her head as she walked out to the arena. The crowd was cheering, and her hands were sweaty once again. Olivia took a quick breath, "Olivia, you got this. This is what we prepared for."

Olivia detached the pokéball from her necklace and enlarged it. She released the ball into the air and Fray landed on the ground. Fray looked around happily at the crowd before she turned to Olivia in anticipation.

"Fray, get the ball rolling with charm!"

"Snubbull!" Fray cried as she jumped up in the air and gave a charming look to the audience. Light pink hearts appeared around her body. The audience was awed at the sight as Fray did more poses to garner affection.

"Great Fray, now thunder fang the hearts!"

Fray opened her jaws which were now charged with an electrical surge. Fray chomped on the hearts that surrounded her, which caused them to dissipate into smaller hearts surging with electricity. The smaller hearts began to gravitate and repel themselves from each other thanks to the energy they absorbed from the thunder fang.

"Okay Fray now it's time…" Olivia stopped mid-sentence when she heard the crowd start to laugh. At first, she thought they did not like her performance and was beginning to panic. Then she saw what got their attention. Snubbull was chasing the back frill of its tail with a thunder fang. The circular motion caused the charged hearts to be attracted to her and follow, causing a swirl of electric hearts.

"Okay not what I planned but that works,' she thought a little irritably.

"Fray get back to it with a scary face!" she commanded. Fray stopped chasing her tail and faced the hearts. Her eyes began to glow a dark red before a shadowy version of her face appeared just before her. The shadow form of her face then grew to the size of the arena. The electric hearts flew together around the large shadow face. The light from the electric surge helped to light the face up so instead of being an intimidating black mass it was brighter with a slight pink hue that resembled Fray perfectly. Then the face dissipated entirely in the hearts which left Fray standing there digging at the ground. The crowd applauded, albeit not as much as with Jade, but they were still impressed with the show.

"What a playful display, it really shows what makes your Snubbull happy," Nurse Joy said. She pressed a button and 8.7 appeared on the screen.

"I think we can all learn to relax and play like Snubbull there," Mr. Contesta said. He pressed a button and 8.5 appeared on the screen.

"Astonishing performance!" Mr. Masuda said. He pushed a button and 8.6 appeared on the screen.

Jillian walked on the stage as Olivia returned Fray and walked back, "That leaves Olivia with a score of 25.8, a tough score to follow through with but not impossible. We only have a few more contestants left before we tally up our totals and head to our second round!"

Jillian called the next person which was the guy from Olivia's room. She passed him on the way back, but they did not acknowledge each other. Olivia looked down as she entered the room. Jade ran up to her and gave her a big hug, "That was amazing, you did really good."

"Yeah, but you did better, look at the score," Olivia said glumly.

"Yeah, but by 0.2 points. This is our first contest it makes sense that we aren't up there with everybody else. We still have a shot though, isn't it exciting?"

Olivia smiled a little at this, "Yes it is, we got this."

The contest continued for the last few contestants. As usual, some were good others were bad, and a few ended up not competing at all. After the last performer, all the contestants were called to the arena floor. They lined up and faced the judges. Jillian stood before them with her microphone in hand and smiling.

"Thank you, coordinators, for performing in our first round. We have tallied up your votes and the eight coordinators with the highest points have been selected to move on to the second round. If you have not been selected do not be discouraged there will be many more contests in the future around the Johto region that you will have a chance to compete in. With no further ado, judges please reveal the contestants moving on?"

The screen above the stadium went blank as eight silhouetted figures appeared. One by one each shadow figure was revealed to be a coordinator. The audience and coordinators waited in anticipation, the air in the stadium was so thick a Scyther could not cut through it. The screen had only two shadowed people left, and Olivia was nervous since her image had not been shown yet. The second to last picture revealed itself to be Jade and Olivia could hear her sigh in relief.

It felt like it took forever for the last image to reveal itself, and Olivia could barely keep herself up straight. The last image revealed itself and Olivia nearly fainted when she saw her picture appear. It took her a while to register it, but she was selected to move on to the next round. The crowd erupted in cheers and applause as those coordinators who were chosen all celebrated in their own ways. Those who were not each said their goodbyes and thanks to the judges as they went back to the locker rooms to get their belongings and either leave or watch the rest of the contest.

The remaining coordinators got back in a line as Jillian explained the next set of rules, "Now the next round is the single-elimination battling round. You will be randomly assigned in a bracket. You and your opponent will have five minutes to either knock out the other pokémon or deplete their battle points. The pokémon with the most points and or is still standing is the winner of the battle and will move on to the next battle. The winner at the end of all the battles will win the Cherrygrove Ribbon. You can switch pokémon between the first and second round, but you do not have to. The pokémon you choose for the second round though is the one you must use in all the battles so choose carefully. We will return after a 10-minute break."

The audience and coordinators dispersed quickly as they waited for the next round to start. Olivia made her way to the main lobby area to see if she can catch her parents but ran into Amber first. The girls gave each other a hug when they saw each other. Torch squealed from being squished and scurried to Amber's shoulder.

"Sorry! Olivia this is Torch. Silla was out too but I put her back in her pokéball, the lights were a little much for her. You did amazing Olivia!"

"Hello there Torch. Thanks, it could have gone better, but I made it. Now it's time for the second round."

"Are you ready?"

"I prepared for this, nothing will surprise me," Olivia said proudly.

"Oh really?" a man said from behind her, "Not even when you lost Fray yesterday?" Olivia turned around in confusion and was shocked to see her dad standing there with his arms crossed.

"Dad, how did you know that?" Olivia asked nervously.

"That's your dad?" Amber said once she recognized the man.

"This young woman told me just before you performed. Why didn't you tell us about that?"

"I didn't want you to worry."

"You can't keep things like that a secret Olivia. I'm going to worry if you're not honest with me. We just don't know if you are ready to go on a journey by yourself if you can't be responsible."

"Dad I am ready, just watch. When I win this, you'll see."

"Olivia just because you win something doesn't mean you're ready."

"But dad!" Olivia was cut short by the sound of the bell calling for the coordinators to return to the locker rooms.

"We'll talk about this later," her dad said as he walked back towards the seats in the arena.

"Olivia I'm sorry, I was just talking. I had no idea he was your father," Amber tried to say. Olivia only cut her off.

"It's not your fault, he's always been like this. I have to get back there, don't worry about me," Olivia said.

Amber looked on as she walked towards the back, "Oh Torch, what did I do?"

Olivia wiped some stray tears from her eyes as she returned to the locker rooms. All the coordinators who moved on to the next round had been moved to the red locker room. Jade was inside watching the screen but turned when she heard the door open.

"Hey what's wrong?" she asked Olivia concerned.

"Nothing, just my dad."

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"No, everything is fine."

The screen turned on to show the arena again as Jillian opened the second round of the contest, "Good Afternoon everybody. It is time for the second round. As I said earlier our contestants have been randomly placed in battles where they need to win to move on. Here is today's bracket!"

"Wouldn't it be weird if we have to battle?" Jade whispered to Olivia.

"Well, if one of us wants to win, we would have to battle anyways," Olivia replied. The bracket appeared on the screen and the girls scanned the screen for their names.

"Oh, look there I am!" Jade yelled, "I'm going up against Hannah, the girl with the Meditite."

Olivia's eyes landed on her face, and they widened, "I'm going up against Samson, the opening act. We're the first battle."

"Remember this is our first contest, it's okay if we don't win today. We have plenty of more chances."

"Don't be silly Jade. I'm going all the way, there is no way I will lose."

"Are you going to switch your pokémon or are you still going to use Snubbull?"

"Fray is the only pokémon I have, but she's going to do great."

The bell chimed and Olivia heard her name called from the screen, it was now or never. She walked out of the locker room after Samson. They headed towards the Arena in silence. The crowd cheered them on as they stepped on opposite sides of the arena. A battlefield had been raised for the rest of the contest.

"Our first battle is ready to start, set the timer!" Jillian called. The screen above the auditorium lit up. It displayed images of both trainers over a yellow bar. Between the images was a big timer that was set to five minutes.

"Trainers reveal your pokémon!"

Olivia enlarged Fray's pokéball and released her onto the battlefield. Fray danced around a little which caused the audience to laugh. Samson enlarged his own pokéball and threw it in the air. From the white light formed a pokémon that resembled a large magnet.

"It looks like Olivia is going to stick with her Snubbull from the first round. Samson on the other hand has switched out his Haunter for a stunning Magnemite. Let that battle begin!"

Olivia did not wait before she made her move, "Fray use charm!" Fray stood there for a while before it gave a charming look to Magnemite. Small pink hears appeared over her head and then appeared around Magneton.

"Magnemite use those hearts along with your charge beam!" Magnemite charged up with electrical energy for a few seconds. Then it released an electrical beam of energy towards Fray, the small hearts followed the beam and hit her head-on. Fray was knocked back and it caused Olivia to lose some points on the screen.

"Fray get up and use thunder fang!"

Fray jumped back to her feet and charged towards Magnemite with electrical fangs. She managed to land her bite, but it did not seem to faze the magnet pokémon much. Samson lost a few points, however. Olivia smiled at that, but it was gone after Magnemite managed to shake Fray off and throw her to the ground.

"Magnemite mirror shot!"

Magnemite began to glow a brilliant silver around its body. The light from the stadium reflected off its body. It not only helped Magnemite to stand out but also cast Fray in a shadow. Olivia lost more points on the screen as Magnemite charged its attack. Magnemite then let loose a ball of the glowing silver energy that hit Fray dead center and forced her back. Olivia lost even more points as a result.

"Magnemite hit Fray with a super effective mirror shot. Samson is really showing off the might and sleekness of his Magnemite. Olivia needs to step up if she has a chance of winning," Jillian explained from the sidelines.

"Fray show him what you got and use bite!" Fray's teeth began to glow dark she ran to Magnemite, but it dodged just in time. Fray landed on the ground with a thud and the dark energy faded. Olivia lost even more points, now at the halfway point.

"Fray slow it down with a scary face!" Fray either did not hear Olivia or decided to ignore her, because she was distracted by the screen. It was showing the battle and Fray saw herself. She began to happily dance on the screen which caused the audience to laugh but lost Olivia even more points.

"Magnemite take advantage and use charge beam!" Magnemite charged with yellow energy and shot the beam towards Fray. It hit her from the back and knocked her down. Olivia's points went down further.

"Fray no! Please get up and use bite!" Fray did not listen though. She began to roll around on the ground to try and get more laughter from the audience.

"Fray, use bite!" Olivia tried to command her. Her points kept going down.

"Oh, it looks like Olivia's Snubbull is not listening. That is going to cost her a lot in points."

"Magnemite finish it with a dazzling swift!"

Magnemite spun a few times in the air before it launched an array of golden stars from its eye towards Fray. The stars hit her and caused an explosion. When the dust settled Fray was lying on the ground unconscious. All the points depleted from Olivia's side of the screen followed by three large red Xs.

"Olivia's Snubbull has been knocked out, which means Samson is the victor and will move on to the next battle!"

Olivia stood there for a little bit. Her face was stoic as she saw that she had been disqualified in the first battle. It took her some time before she returned Fray to her pokéball and walked back to the locker room. Jade gave her sympathetic look as Olivia walked back in. Everybody else congratulated Samson when he followed in after her. Jade tried to console her, but Olivia just shrugged her off.

'I lost. I wasn't supposed to lose. What happened with Fray out there? Why didn't she listen?'

Tears began to form in her eyes. She wiped her face till it was raw and took a deep breath, "This doesn't change anything. Just a small slip up, you can still go on your journey."

Olivia left the locker room and went to the lobby. She could hear from the screens that the next battle had started. Her parents were waiting for her along with Amber. Olivia slowly walked up to them with a nervous smile, "So that did not go as expected."

"I'm so sorry Olivia. You'll win the next one, I just know it," Amber said.

"Thanks."

Olivia looked over to her parents to see what they had to say, "Olivia you had no control out there at all. Fray didn't listen to a word you said."

"I don't know what happened. We practiced for weeks, she just got distracted."

"First you lose her yesterday without telling us, now you lost control of her on stage. Olivia, I know you want this, but you just are not ready to go on a journey."

"But dad-"

"Olivia," her mother interjected, "Your father is right, it's not a good time right now. You just need to stay home for a little bit longer. Till you're ready."

"I'm ready now mom, one mistake doesn't mean anything."

"That's enough Olivia, it's decided. Now come on let's go home. We can watch the rest of the contest from there."

Her father did not give her another chance to talk. The tears returned to her eyes and Olivia clenched her fists.

"I wish I could do something Olivia, maybe if I hadn't said anything earlier, they would feel different."

"No, it's not your fault. They never wanted me to go, they are just using that as an excuse. I'll talk to them though."

"You can always tell them you can travel with me; I'm sure traveling with a future Nurse Joy might make them feel better."

Olivia's face lit up as if she just realized something. She looked Amber deeply in the eyes for a few seconds. Then her frown transformed into a devious smile, "Yeah maybe that's what they need to hear. How long are you going to be in town?"

"I was going to watch the rest of the contest; Torch is actually enjoying himself a little more than I expected. Then when it was done, I was going to pack everything up at the pokémon center then continue on till Violet City."

"Alright, If I'm not there an hour after the contest you can leave without me, but can you wait for me."

"Sure, if you want, I can even come and talk to your parents."

"No, I don't, I'll see you later." Olivia finished before she followed after her parents, with a brand-new smile on her face.

~Johto Saga ~

A few hours later Amber was back at the pokémon center packing the last of her items before she left. Torch was resting on the bed as he waited for her. While she packed Amber was listening to a television broadcast about the contest.

"The first contest of the season ended with a spectacular battle between new coordinator Jade and Samson, with Samson being the victor. No surprise there Samson has always been a talented coordinator, but Jade does show a lot of promise. All Johto coordinators better watch out because rumor has it that the famous Hoenn coordinator from last year, Weston, will be competing in Johto this season. All that means for us fans though, is that we will for sure have beautiful performances and battles to look forward to."

Amber finished putting her last item away and picked Torch up, "Did you like today's contest Torch?"

Torch nodded his head, "Cynda!"

"I thought so. I told you not all pokémon are scary, maybe now you will be interested in meeting other pokémon and eventually start battling."

Torch was not as enthusiastic to hear that, but also not opposed. He shrugged his shoulders as he nested more into her arms. Amber smiled at his more relaxed stance on the issue. She turned the tv off and left the room. Once in the lobby, she was surprised to see Olivia standing there. Olivia was no longer wearing her dress but was now in casual attire. She had on a yellow short-sleeved t-shirt with black jeans and matching tennis shoes. Her backpack was bright pink and designed with various fairy pokémon.

"Olivia, I didn't expect you to be here so fast. I was actually going to eat at the café while I waited."

"Yeah. It was actually easier than expected to get everything sorted out, thanks so much for offering to travel with me."

"No problem actually let's go and eat so we can talk about how this is going to work with the gyms and contests."

"Uhm, do we have to here," Olivia said nervously.

"Yeah, I'm starving, I didn't eat anything at the contest. I'm pretty sure Silla and Torch want to eat too."

Torch nodded his head in agreement.

"Oh, is it possible that we can get the food to go? I just want to get out of here as soon as possible. You know just in case they find out I'm g-I mean just in case they change their mind about me leaving. Don't wanna give them the chance to find me."

"You really think they would do that?"

"Absolutely, that's why I say we go as soon as we can."

"Alrighty, I guess there's nothing wrong with hitting the road early, let's get our food and head out."

"Awesome!"

The two walked over to the café to quickly order their food, "Just to let you know, I currently don't have a tent. Mine got a little broken the other night, it's a long story."

"That's fine. My tent should be big enough for both of us. I got a lot of things for my journey weeks ago."

It did not take long for the girls to get their food from the café. Once it was all secure, they left the pokémon center and started their journey towards Violet City and Amber's first gym battle.

~ Johto Saga ~

Meanwhile back at Olivia's house, her parents were sitting at the table eating dinner.

"Olivia has not been back down since we got here. Maybe you should go talk to her," her mother said.

"She's just upset, tomorrow morning she'll come back down and will realize we're only doing what's best for her."

What neither knew though was that Olivia was not in her room. Instead, it was empty and the window wide open. A rope made from bedsheets and towels led down to the ground. The only thing left was a piece of paper with a note on it, taped to the wall.

Mom and Dad,

You both think I'm not ready to go on a journey, but I know that I am. I decided that I'm still leaving despite what you want. Don't worry about me I'm going with the girl Amber from the contest hall, we will be traveling together. Please trust that I know what I'm doing. Next time you see me I will be a great coordinator and you will finally realize what I am capable of.

Love,

Olivia.


Amber's Team:

1. Torch (Cyndaquil)
Ability: Unkown
Moves: Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Extrasensory

2. Silla (Zubat)
Ability: Inner Focus
Moves: Absorb, Supersonic, Astonish

Olivia's Team:

1. Fray (Snubbull)
Ability: Run Away
Moves: Charm, Bite, Thunder Fang, Scary Face