Battling with Elegance and a Big Smile
Alec's POV
It's been a few days since Clemont went back to Lumiose City to train for Ash's battle with him. During that time, Ash, Alec, Serena, and Bonnie, learned a few things about Cassidy and vice versa. It turns out that Cassidy was a very good cook. Alec could argue that she was better than Clemont, but he wouldn't say that to his face. She even made food for their Pokémon and not the stuff you find in the store, which made Ethan ask, [Can we keep her?] That got Alec laughing so hard that he ended up having to tell Cassidy about his ability to understand Pokémon when she wondered what was so funny.
Currently, the group was in the Pokémon Center in a small city not far from Lumiose. As they waited for their Pokémon, a screen was playing a broadcast on the Showcase in Coumarine City.
"Now, a performance by our talented new princess. So please give a warm welcome to Mademoiselle Shauna, the winner of the Coumarine Pokémon Showcase!" Pierre said. The screen then showed Shauna's performance that won her the Princess Key as Pierre's voice continued. "I'm sure we can look forward to many fine performances in the future."
"Wow! It's so awesome that Shauna's famous now!" Bonnie said in awe.
"She's famous alright," Ash commented.
"Are you feeling alright?" Alec asked Serena, wondering if she was still upset about her defeat.
"I'll be alright. I'll just have to practice hard so I can catch up," Serena said confidently.
"I'm sure you will," Cassidy encouraged.
A chime was then heard and Nurse Joy stepped out with four Poké Ball trays as well as Ethan, Pikachu, Dedenne, and Eve. Cassidy had said that Eve usually stayed in her Poké Ball but was rejecting it for some reason and the Espeon hadn't said anything that gave Alec an idea on her reason.
The group collected their Poké Balls and Serena immediately let out her three. "Fennekin, Pancham, Skiddo, our next performance is coming up soon, so let's train hard," Serena told them. They responded with cheers.
The group went out onto the battlefield that sat next to the Pokémon Center and Serena went through with her Pokémon what she wanted them to do as the others waited. Ash and Bonnie were talking as Pikachu and Dedenne chased each other. "Now might be a good time to figure out what's going on with Eve," Alec suggested to Cassidy.
"That's what I was doing, so be quiet," Cassidy replied.
After a bit, Cassidy started looking between Eve and Ethan then got a small smile. "What's that about?" Alec asked.
Cassidy waved him to get closer and she whispered into his ear. "I think that Eve has a crush on Ethan," she told him.
"What?!" Alec asked, managing to keep his voice down. He looked at the Espeon to notice she made quick glances at Ethan before watching what Serena was doing. "Oh if he feels the same I'm so going to enjoy this," Alec said mischiefly.
Serena then stood up and signaled that she was ready. Before Alec knew it, Inferno let himself out onto Alec's lap so he could watch Fennekin. [Go for it Fennekin!] he shouted.
"Show us how it's done!" Ash encouraged Serena.
Serena and her Pokémon did a small bow before she started her new routine. The three Pokémon ran forward and jumped before landing in a pose. Fennekin and Pancham on one paw on either side of Skiddo, who was balancing quite well on his front hooves despite his size.
"All that practice is really paying off Serena," Ash commented.
The performance continued with the Pokémon doing a bit of a dance with Serena. Pancham and Fennekin then jumped onto Serena's shoulders and into the air, letting out sparkles of Flamethrower and Dark Pulse as Skiddo used Seed Bomb into the sparks, making fireworks.
Pancham jumped after he landed and Fennekin used Flamethrower to make a ring of fire in the air as Skiddo used Vine Whip to make a larger ring that spun in the air. Pancham went between the vines and did a flip through the fire ring, but his tail caught fire as he went through.
In a panic, Pancham started running around. "Hydro Pump!" Alec shouted as he threw out Samurai. The water horse let out the stream of water on Pancham, putting out the fire.
"Are you okay Pancham?" Serena asked as she, Fennekin, and Skiddo ran up to see if he was alright.
Pancham got up and went in front of Fennekin. [What's the big idea?! Are you trying to set me ablaze?!] Pancham accused Fennekin.
[Don't go blaming me for your mistakes!] Fennekin shouted back.
[Come on. Let's calm down,] Skiddo said, trying to be the voice of reason.
[Stay out of this!] Pancham shouted.
"Now stop fighting!" Serena ordered. "It was nobody's fault, our timing was off."
They tried again and when they got to where they stopped, Pancham managed to get through the fire ring, but mistimed Skiddo's vines and got hit in the side by one, sending Pancham bouncing off of Serena and into Skiddo, who fell on top of Fennekin because of the impact.
Inferno immediately ran up to Fennekin and helped her out from under Skiddo. [You okay sis?] he asked her.
[I'm fine,] Fennekin said, sounding pissed. [Watch where you're going you idiot!] Fennekin shouted at Pancham.
[It's not my fault! Someone wasn't doing his thing right!] Pancham shouted at Skiddo.
[Oh. So it's my fault that you ran into my vine!] Skiddo shouted.
[Yeah! That's what I'm saying!] Pancham confirmed.
[Why you little!] Fennekin growled.
"Stop! All of you!" Serena commanded, but Pancham didn't listen as he hopped onto Serena's shoulder.
[You two aren't worth it!] Pancham shouted.
[What was that?! Skiddo and I at least make an effort to make things work! All you do is complain!] Fennekin shouted.
[Oh yeah? Like what?] Pancham asked angrily.
"Alright, let's just calm down before someone does something they'll regret," Alec advised the Pokémon as the group came up to Serena.
Pancham then blew a raspberry at Fennekin and Skiddo and the two fired Flamethrower and Seed Bomb at Pancham, but the playful Pokémon hid behind Serena causing the attacks to hit her.
"Serena!" the humans shouted. The attacks cleared and Serena was slightly singed and pretty pissed.
"I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" Serena screamed, causing her Pokémon to stiffen up with their heads down. "Can you please take this seriously?" Serena asked them, clinching in anger.
"Okay, let's just calm down," Ash advised Serena calmly before turning to her Pokémon. "So you three know what you did wrong?" Ash asked them.
[Yeah, and I'm sorry,] Pancham apologized, sounding guilty.
[I'm sorry too,] Fennekin said.
[Me too,] Skiddo added.
Serena looked at her Pokémon with guilt in her eyes as she realized she'd just screamed at them. "I think I need to take a walk," Serena said as she left with her head hung. Her Pokémon started to run after her, but Ethan cut them off.
[Just let her be. She needs some time alone,] he told them.
Serena's POV
After running off from the Pokémon Center, Serena wandered the town and found herself in front of a store, looking back on what just happened. "To be honest, I think this one suits you much better," someone said to Serena, causing her to jump.
"Suits me?" Serena asked as she turned. She saw a woman with red hair and eyes, wearing black pants, a white shirt and hat, and glasses.
"I thought you were wondering which one of these was better," the woman said, flicking her hat.
"No, you see, I was actually thinking about something else," Serena admitted.
"Don't look so sad. Really, if you keep that look up, you're poor face will stay that way," she told Serena. Serena had a mini panic attack as she tried to fix her face. "Always keep smiling, that's the secret for feeling and looking great."
Serena smiled nervously as the woman got in Serena's face with a big smile. Serena looked at her again and couldn't shake the feeling that she's seen her before. "Why don't we shift gears and do some serious shopping together. I finally have some time off and I know that there are some shops that I've really wanted to check out but it's boring to go by myself. So, please?" the woman asked Serena.
"Sure," Serena answered.
"My name is Ari- uh… Ariana. Nice to meet you," she introduced.
"I'm Serena," Serena answered.
"Great! Now come on Serena, the stores await," Ariana said as she started pushing Serena towards a store.
Ariana brought Serena to a clothes store first where she proceeded to try on multiple things. When she was looking at a green shirt in the mirror to see how it looked, she remembered something. "Of course! You know, I was wondering where I've seen you before. The Showcase at Coumarine City," Ariana said.
"You saw that," Serena said, a bit nervous.
"I wasn't there in person, but I watched it later on Poké Vision," Ariana clarified.
"Well, I really goofed up. I made some big mistakes and got eliminated for it. And today, I got mad at my Pokémon. I feel like a horrible performer," Serena told Ariana.
"Everybody makes mistakes. Nobody ever does it perfectly the first time around," Ariana told Serena.
"But Shauna did. She won it. I really want to be just like Aria, but I'm nowhere like her," Serena stated, looking at the ground.
"Come on. You're looking sad again," Ariana said, getting Serena's attention. "Between these two, which do you think looks better?" she asked, showing two bracelets. One was a jade green and looked like it was made of glass or crystals, the other was red with a gold bit on it and made of leather.
"Let's see…" Serena said, looking at them both. "That one," Serena answered, pointing to the jade bracelet.
"Really? Then this one it is," Ariana said, looking at it. "Wait. On second thought, this one's really cute too. I can't decide!" Ariana complained. Serena laughed at her predicament as it reminded her of herself sometimes.
"See, there's that face," Ariana stated, stopping Serena's laugh. "A Pokémon Performer always needs to wear a wonderfully radiant smile. That's the way you make everyone in your audience happy."
"Yeah. I guess I forgot about that," Serena admitted. Ariana ended up buying the jade bracelet Serena recommended and the two continued their shopping spree.
Alec's POV
Back at the Pokémon Center, Alec watched as Cassidy came out of the kitchen with lunch for everyone, setting down the Pokémons where they could get it. Cassidy's other Pokémon included an Infernape and a Zoroark named Blaze and Illusion. Only Serena's Pokémon didn't come over. Instead, they looked out the window anticipating Serena's arrival.
"You're worried about Serena, aren't you?" Alec asked them. Fennekin and Skiddo nodded but Pancham looked away, acting like it wasn't what he was thinking about but it was pretty clear to Alec.
"I'm sure she'll be back here in no time," Ash reassured them.
"He's right. And if Serena gets back and finds out you didn't eat anything, she'll get really worried," Bonnie said. That got the attention of Serena's Pokémon and they ran up to the food and started eating.
The humans then sat down for their lunch. "I sure hope my big brother's doing alright," Bonnie admitted as they ate.
"So you're worried about Clemont," Ash said, more of a statement than a question.
"Clemont can mess stuff up. So I get pretty worried when he's on his own," Bonnie admitted.
"I'm sure Clemont's fine and giving it his all," Alec told Bonnie, which made her smile a bit.
"You must be worried about Serena though," Cassidy said.
"I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't," Alec admitted.
"Well, why don't after we finish lunch we have a battle," Cassidy offered.
"Sure. I could use the distraction," Alec replied.
Serena's POV
After the first round of shopping, Serena and Ariana stopped at the local cafe that made this town well known. "This looks so good," Serena said, looking at her treat.
"I know. I've always wanted to come here and eat," Ariana admitted.
The two started eating and Serena loved it. "It just melts in your mouth. Right Fennekin?" Serena asked, then remembered that Fennekin was back at the Pokémon Center.
"You two are always together, aren't you?" Ariana asked, sounding like she already knew the answer.
"Yeah. Fennekin and I have been together since I started my journey. Pancham may not always be upfront with me, he's very sweet, and lots of fun. And although Skiddo is the newest member on my team, he puts in so much effort to make up for it. I know they're all doing their best training for Pokémon Showcases but…" Serena started when something she heard caught her attention.
"Here Furfrou," a young girl called out. Serena turned to look and saw the girl feed a Poké Puff to Furfrou.
The sight made Serena tear up. "…maybe they won't want to perform with me anymore. Maybe I really am a disappointment to my brother," Serena finished through her tears.
"They're your friends, aren't they? Do you want things to stay like this? And what does your brother have to do with this?" Ariana asked Serena.
"Well, Alec is a really powerful trainer, probably one of the best in the world. Compared to him, I'm not even worth noticing. Just his sister who can't even get past the first round in a Showcase," Serena explained, failing to keep the sadness out of her voice.
"You shouldn't let yourself think that. If he really is your brother, he'd never be disappointed in you. And I'm sure that anything important to you is something your Pokémon really care about too," Ariana told her.
"You think so?" Serena wondered.
"First off, why don't you apologize to them. Even if you've fought, you can always make up. Which is what makes you true partners, am I right? Second, you won't be able to get anywhere if you are always so worried about living in the shadow of your brother. You've got to step up and say 'I'm my own person, and I'll make my own legacy'," Ariana said.
"Right," Serena said, feeling a lot better.
After some more shopping, it was sundown when Serena and Ariana started heading to the Pokémon Center when she heard an explosion from there. "What's going on over there?" Ariana wondered.
The two rounded the corner that showed the battlefield by the Pokémon Center where the two girls saw Alec and Cassidy in a battle. "Ethan, Dark Pulse!" Alec commanded. Ethan fired the black rings at Eve, who managed to dodge.
"Dazzling Gleam!" Cassidy shouted. Rainbow bursts of light flew out of the jewel on the Espeon's head and flew towards Ethan.
"Stop them with Psychic!" Alec called out. The bursts were surrounded by blue light as they stopped in front of Ethan just before they hit.
"Shadow Ball!" Cassidy commanded. Eve was suddenly above Ethan and fired the ghost-type move at him, connecting and making the moonlight Pokémon lose concentration on the Dazzling Gleam he had stopped, causing it to hit him.
"Ethan! You alright?!" Alec asked.
"Umbre, Breon," Ethan answered.
"Yeah, they're strong," Alec stated. Serena knew Alec could understand Ethan, but Ariana looked a bit confused but shrugged it off. "Night Shade!" Alec commanded.
"Block with Psybeam!" Cassidy shouted. The attacks clashed and caused a small explosion.
"Umbre. Umbreon," Ethan said to Alec.
"You think you can handle it?" Alec asked.
"Bre," Ethan said, nodding.
"Alright then. Let's do this!" Alec shouted as he put his arms into an 'X'. Serena recognized it as the beginning of a Z-move. Alec did the motions to what Serena thought was the Dark-type Z-move. "Blackhole Eclipse!" Alec shouted.
Ethan made a small black ball with a red outline and fired it at Eve. The ball passed her and Serena thought it missed before it made itself bigger and started to pull things in. Serena and Ariana were on the edge of it and managed to maintain their ground.
"Eve, use Psychic!" Cassidy commanded. Eve used Psychic on herself and managed to hold herself on the ground.
"Knock her in with Iron Tail!" Alec shouted. Ethan ran up to Eve and slammed his tail into her chin, sending the Espeon flying into the Blackhole Eclipse.
There was an explosion and when the smoke cleared, Eve was laying on the ground. "Eve is unable to battle! So Alec wins!" Bonnie declared.
Alec and Cassidy went up to their Pokémon as Serena watched. "So, is that your brother?" Ariana asked, pointing at Alec.
"Yeah. That's him," Serena answered with a nod.
"Fennekin!" Serena heard and saw her Pokémon looking at her.
"Serena?" Alec asked with a bit of confusion, then looked and saw her. "Serena! You're back!" Alec said excitedly.
"Hi everyone," Serena greeted.
"Come on you three. No time like the present," Ash told her Pokémon.
"Fenne," Fennekin said.
"Pancham," Pancham added.
"Skiiid," Skiddo continued.
"They are sorry," Alec said, but Serena didn't need him to translate for her to get that.
"Yeah, they feel bad about what happened," Ash added.
"Don't feel bad," Serena told her Pokémon quickly. "I'm the one who messed up, and I'm sorry."
Fennekin ran up to Serena and threw herself into her trainer's arms with Pancham and Skiddo running up behind her.
"Being away made me realize how important you all are to me," Serena told them, feeling tears in her eyes.
"I'm so happy you guys made up," Bonnie said.
"So these Pokémon are your partners Serena?" Ariana asked from behind. Serena turned and nodded. "You have such a good connection," she complimented.
"Who are you?" Ash asked.
"Oh, this is Ariana. We met while I was in town," Serena answered. The group introduced themselves and when Ariana saw Alec fully, she looked at Serena.
"You didn't tell me your brother was the champion," she told her.
"I… might have left that part out," Serena admitted.
"Geez. And I thought I had problems," Alec said sarcastically while looking at Serena.
"It wasn't on my mind at the time," Serena defended herself. Alec merely shook his head in amusement.
Bonnie then started to walk up to Ariana looking like she was going to do her "Keeper" thing, but Alec grabbed her before she could start. "Don't you even think about it," Alec told her.
"Oh come on! Just let me ask!" Bonnie shouted.
"Not happening," Alec stated.
Serena laughed at Bonnie's predicament as Ariana looked confused about what was happening. Ariana then looked at Serena. "So Serena, wanna have a triple battle against me? You might learn a lot by battling with your Pokémon now. And I think it'd be a lot of fun," Ariana requested.
Serena didn't know to respond as Alec put his hand on her shoulder. "I say you go for it. Battling will help you get in better sync with your Pokémon," he advised.
"Yeah! Sounds like a great idea," Ash added.
"You think so?" Serena asked.
"Now that the four of you have made up, show her how much you are a team," Ash stated.
Serena then turned to look at Ariana. "Alright then. I accept," Serena answered her.
The two took up positions on the field with Serena's Pokémon in front of her and Alec stepped into the referee's spot. "You can do it, Serena!" Bonnie cheered.
"Show her what you're made of," Ash encouraged.
"You've got this Serena!" Cassidy shouted. Alec didn't say anything but smiled confidently at her. To Serena, that's all she needed from him.
Apparently not for Cassidy thou, as she walked up elbowed him and he shouted, "Go for it Serena!"
"Thanks for giving me this opportunity," Serena told Ariana.
"No problem. Now, for my Pokémon. Delphox, Aromatisse, and Vivillon!" Ariana said as she released her partners onto the field. Vivillon being a Meadow Pattern.
Her opponent looked pretty tough, but Serena wasn't backing down. "Alright, let's do our best!" Serena encouraged her team.
"Alright then. Battle begin!" Alec shouted.
"Fennekin, use Scratch!" Serena ordered.
"Aromatisse, use Reflect!" Ariana said. The barrier appeared in front of Fennekin, who bounced off. "Delphox, Mystical Fire!" Delphox made a ring of fire before the center fired at Pancham and Skiddo. Skiddo managed to dodge, but Pancham was grazed by the flames, lighting his tail on fire.
"Pancham! Are you okay?" Serena asked.
"Pancham Pan!" Pancham shouted as he put the fire out. Serena looked at Ariana and noticed that the way Delphox moved was like a performance, making Serena wonder if Ariana was a performer at one point.
"Well, how do you like our Performance?" Ariana asked.
"You're a Performer?!" Serena asked in surprise.
"Hey, you didn't tell me everything. I didn't tell you," Ariana said before making a silly face at Serena.
"So this is a Performers battle," Serena said, more to herself.
"And the performance is just getting started," Ariana responded.
"Right. Pancham, use Stone Edge on Vivillon!" Serena shouted. Pancham slammed his front paws on the ground causing stone pillars to rise towards the bug-flying type. Aromatisse jumped in front of Vivillon and used Reflect to block the attack.
"You have to work together Serena. The cooperation between trainers and Pokémon and Pokémon themselves is important in a triple battle. You won't be able to win if you don't work together," Ariana stated.
Serena then looked at Alec and Ash and realized that is what the two boys do. "Alright then. Let's trust each other and work together!" Serena told her Pokémon. "Pancham, use Stone Edge! Skiddo, use Seed Bomb on that Reflect!" Serena shouted. Pancham used Stone Edge to make pillars for Fennekin to hop on while Skiddo's Seed Bomb caused an explosion in front of the Reflect, blinding Armoatisse and preventing it from moving.
Fennekin jumped over Armoatisse's Reflect and fired a Flamethrower towards Delphox and Vivillon. "Counter it with Flamethrower!" Ariana called out. Delphox fired and its Flamethrower overpowered Fennekin's.
"Fennekin!" Serena shouted in worry as Fennekin fell to the ground.
"Aromatisse, Charge Beam! Vivillon, Psybeam!" Ariana commanded. The two attacks fused and rushed towards Fennekin, but Skiddo and Pancham stood in front of her.
"Pancham, Dark Pulse! Skiddo, Razor Leaf!" Serena shouted. The two attacks managed to stop Aromatisse and Vivillon's combined attack, but Serena didn't know what she should do. She was about to give up when she remembered Ariana's words about her smile.
"Fennekin, Pancham, Skiddo, don't worry. I truly believe in you three. You're the greatest partners in the world after all," Serena told them.
That's when Serena heard a new voice. [I… won't… lose,] it said determinedly while sounding exhausted at the same time. Fennekin then glowed blue as she started to change. When the light cleared, Fennekin had evolved into Braixen. Inspired by their trainer's words and the sight of their teammate, Pancham and Skiddo diverted Charge Beam and Psybeam into the sky causing it to explode into sparkles and leaves.
"You see. Your Pokémon answered your heartfelt call just like I said. Your two hearts become one," Ariana said.
[Thanks Serena,] the voice from earlier said, sounding like it was coming from Braixen. But it couldn't be, only Alec understood Pokémon.
"Right. Thank you so much," Serena told Ariana.
"Now this is really heating up. Show me all you've got," Ariana replied.
"Here we come then! Use Flamethrower, Dark Pulse, and Seed Bomb! Perfect partners!" Serena commanded. The three attacks fired with Dark Pulse and Seed Bomb landing in front of Ariana's Pokémon causing dust to burst up in front of them. Braxin's Flamethrower then came in and hit the three Pokémon, causing fireworks to erupt from the blast.
"What you did with those moves was just amazing!" Ariana complemented.
Thank you so much," Serena replied.
"I guess it's time for me to get serious!" Ariana declared.
"Yeah, me too!" Serena shouted as both girls prepared to call out their next moves when they heard ringing.
"Oh no. It's time already?" Ariana asked as she pulled out her phone. "Hello… Yes, I know… I'll be back right away," she said before hanging up.
"I'm sorry guys, but I kind of have to go back now," Ariana stated. Serena was surprised, but her reaction was nothing compared to Ash's, who fell to the ground when he heard that.
"But there's a battle going on," he complained.
"I'm sorry, but we'll have to end it here. You three were great, thanks," Ariana said as she returned her Pokémon.
"Ariana, I don't know how to thank you for today," Serena told her as she came up.
"And don't forget, you have a great smile to show off," Ariana said, giving Serena a wink.
"Thanks, I'll remember that," Serena replied.
"Let's meet on stage someday," Ariana requested, holding out her hand.
"Definitely," Serena said, shaking her hand.
"See ya!" Ariana said as she ran off and the group said their goodbyes as she did so.
[Serena, thank you,] the voice from earlier said. Serena looked to see it had come from Braixen again.
"Um… Braixen… when did you start speaking?" Serena wondered out loud.
"Wait what?!" Ash asked in surprise.
"Hold on, did you understand Braixen, Serena?" Alec asked her.
"I… think so. The first time I heard that voice was just before Fennekin evolved," Serena answered.
"What does that mean?" Cassidy asked Alec, who looked deep in thought.
"I guess it's possible that Serena has the same ability as me, but hadn't unlocked it until now," Alec theorized.
Serena looked at him in surprise. "Pancham, Skiddo, someone say something," Serena told them.
[Okay, did something happen? Did you get hit on the head while you were out?] Pancham asked.
"I understood that?!" Serena shouted.
"It seems you did. This is great!" Alec shouted as he hugged his sister.
"I guess so," Serena said.
After all the excitement of Serena understanding Pokémon all of a sudden, they went to sleep and as they prepared to leave in the morning, a broadcast of Aria was playing on the screen. Serena watched the performance she did in awe, then she saw the jade bracelet she wore and her end pose reminded her of Ariana. That's when it clicked for her.
"Well, let's get going," Alec said when the performance finished, heading towards the door. The group followed him out and Serena knew now that she had just encountered the performer she idolized.