=Chapter 41, Kenna's Cuteness Shines=
*Jacob to Arky*
*Today I'm entering in my first official Pokemon Contest, more specifically I'm entering into the 'Cuteness' Competition. I still remember the first time I entered a contest, but unlike that one, this is for real. The last time I entered a contest it was just to show off the grooming skills of Segan and his salon. This time however, we have to compete in the real thing.*
*According to the rules I'm only allowed to use one Pokemon the entire time, and this Pokemon must be registered under a specific category. For Coordinators they are allowed to use up to two Pokemon depending on the contest, but because I'm a trainer I have to follow the one per trainer rule.*
*Karen is unable to attend this particular event because she has no Pokemon that qualify as 'cute', since all of hers are more along the lines of tough or cool. For me, I planned on Sara being in the contest, but her moves aren't exactly meant for cuteness contests according to Segan. I would have also used Kora but because of her evolution to a Beautifly, she no longer qualifies as 'cute' in the sense that the crowd might like her.*
*As for the other members of my team, Roran and Ivan were out of the picture, and while Coral wanted to help, she was more 'beautiful' than 'cute', and that contest wouldn't be for another two weeks. Latias was a mixture of 'cleverness' and 'coolness', but personally I find her being very shy around other humans to be cute. Harold of course was also out of the question, and he didn't even bother to tell me to not think about it, which I guess is a good thing. I think…*
*This only left me with one option…*
(Jacob's PoV)
[Attention, will the following Trainers and Pokemon please wait at the following doors… Trainer Joseph and Hilda at door one. Luciella and Ted at door two. Jacob and Kenna at door three. Finally Julia and Mistress at door four.]
"Alright guys, wish us luck!" Jacob said as he tried not to get too nervous about going on stage.
He and his team were currently in their assigned waiting room, and had been waiting for their signal to go on stage for the Cuteness Contest of the Fortree Gym. Kenna had been the only option to enter this contest and hope to have a chance to win it. She had replied by being extremely nervous and practically whimpering at him to choose another.
However after a long talk in which he begged her to at least give it a try, saying that no matter how well or badly they did, he wouldn't blame her in the slightest at whatever the outcome was, she finally agreed to try. So for the rest of the night Segan had lavished all of his grooming skills on both Karen and Jacob, getting them both ready for the competition and giving him advice.
For Kenna he had given her several freshly made Pink Pokeblocks, which she loved greatly and also helped calm her down. For him, he had rented a special contest 'costume' for him to use during the contest. Jacob thought it made him look ridiculous, but according to Segan it was a 'necessary sacrifice' for him to enter the contest.
"After all Jacob my boy, contests aren't just about the Pokemon, their also about the Trainer!" He said that morning while helping him into it in the dressing room.
Once he was ready they went to his assigned waiting room, and to pass the time he had released his team to wish him and Kenna good luck. Kenna had a special fireproof fake flower adorning her cheek, and had special pink ribbons and bows wrapped around her legs to add cuteness to her. Segan said that this would make her look even cuter for the crowd, and told him to rely on improving her cuteness rating to the judges by using the moves she had rarely used on their journey.
But that was all before, now he was about to enter the contest with Kenna, and hopefully emerge victorious.
(Good luck Jacob!) Latias said, giving him an affectionate nuzzle before floating away.
(Good luck both of you!) Sara said with a smile from atop Latias' back. (We'll be watching from in here!)
"Stay out of trouble alright?" He said, laughing at the fact that his team would be watching from within the waiting room, due to it having a television that was tuned to the Fortree Gym's contest channel. "Alright Kenna, let's go girl…"
"Pfftb…" Kenna replied, walking beside him nervously as they left the waiting room.
When they left they turned down a corridor and walked to a series of doors with numbers on them, each of the numbers ranging from one through five. Walking through the number three door, he led Kenna through it and onto a very large stage.
Or at least he 'assumed' it was very large, because most of his vision was obstructed by a large red curtain which extended from one side of the vast room to the other, and upwards up to fifty feet. On each of his sides he saw three other trainers, two on his left and one on his right.
Next to each of the trainers were their Pokemon, an Eevee for the boy on his left, a Teddiursa for the girl on his left, and finally a Mawile for the girl on his right. "Nice Ponyta there kid." The girl on his right said, smiling widely as she saw Kenna hide behind Jacob as best she could. "Aww look how cute it is, hiding behind it's trainer like that."
"That is indeed so cuuute!" The girl on his left said, drawing attention to both her and the boy to her left. "Look at how pretty and cute it is! It just makes me want to say kawai!"
"Heh, looks like this will be a nice competition." The guy said with a laugh.
As they talked yet another person showed up and stood in line with them, and he recognized her as the Gym Leader, Briza, wearing the same attire he saw her in before. "Hey everyone, ready to get this show on the road?" She asked them all cheerfully. "First things first, how many of you are first timers to the contest scene?" Jacob raised his hand, as did the girl with the Mawile and the boy with the Eevee. "Alright then here's how it works, at the beginning is what we call the Introduction Round. During that round, you will each pose with your Pokemon in whatever manner you choose, be it a pose, an act, a routine, whatever you wish. Since this is a 'cuteness' contest make sure your pose is cute! After you introduce yourselves and your Pokemon, the crowd will respond by cheering and waving the many glow rods they were given. The better you appealed to them, the more of a response you'll get."
As she spoke a Togetic flew from above and landed next to her, waving at everyone with a smile. "The next round is the Talent Round, during the Talent Round, each of you will take turns performing moves before the crowd to give you appeal. Depending on how well you do, the crowd will respond by cheering or applauding, the better you do the more points you'll score with them. After five 'appeal' rounds, the scores will be tallied up and our judges in the back will give us the verdicts!" Briza said as she took out a small case and showed several Feather Badges inside of it. "Trainers will be fighting for one of these badges, Coordinators fight for the ribbon for the cuteness contests. To win either of them, you simply have to score higher than me! Get ready everyone!"
"Wait just like that, we don't have any time to plan or prepare?" Jacob asked in shock.
"Too late to complain now!" Briza said with a huge laugh, pulling a small microphone out of her outfit and flipping a switch on. "Because without further ado, Let the curtain rise!"
[Contest Music – play until the end of the chapter]
As she finished her declaration, the curtain began to rise up and several spotlights started shining down on them, revealing all of them on stage to the huge crowd of roughly one hundred plus people who could be packed into the gym, with music blasting over several hidden megaphones. Each of the people screamed and cheered as they saw the contestants, and all of them were waving several glow rods of pink, green, blue, red and orange. Instantly Kenna became frightened and hid behind Jacob as the crowd's cheering scared her almost to the point of running off stage.
The other contestants weren't fairing any better as the Eevee, who had no warning like Kenna, jumped into her trainer's shirt to hide. The girl's Mawile fell backward in surprise, causing its larger second mouth to fling forward and break its balance. Only the other girl and her Teddiursa seemed to have had no problem with the sudden start of the contest.
[Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the Cuteness Contest here in Fortree City, let's give a warm round of applause to our host, as always, Briza the Gym Leader of the Fortree Gym!] A huge voice shouted over an intercom, causing cheers and applause from the crowd. [And today competing we have four amazing hopeful Trainers, each of whom is competing for a Feather Badge, but can they show off their razzle and dazzle in a Pokemon Contest as well as they can run and jump in a Pokemon Battle? Let's find out!]
As the announcer finished, Briza walked forward with her Togetic and microphone. "Thank you, thank you all for coming, and without further ado, let's get started with the Introduction Round!" She declared, causing an uproar of applause to sound. "Mr. Announcer guy, take it away!"
With that she tossed her mic away and sauntered over to her position among the other Trainers who were finally getting over the sudden shock of being on stage. [You heard it here folks, let the contest begin!]
(Sara's PoV)
Sara watched from within the waiting room on the funny screen as a large curtain revealed their trainer among several others, as well as Kenna as she nervously tried to hide behind Jacob. Unfortunately her blue flames easily stood out among the pink and light green of the stage and the many yellow lights shining around. Still Sara couldn't help but marvel at humans and their 'technology', with this flat screen box thing, they could watch what was happening live on stage as if they were there.
"Hey look, there's Jacob!" Harold said, using a claw on his hand to point at him on the screen.
"Yes, we can clearly see him Harold." Ivan barked.
"He looks nicer on the television than he does in person, don't you agree Sara?" Coral asked her from below, due to the fact that Sara was sitting atop her head because of how little room there was for all of them in the waiting room.
"What I don't get is why we couldn't go in there as well." Latias asked while she levitated in her normal form. "I mean he is our trainer after all, why can't we join him on stage?"
(Oh you know, rules and stuff…) Sara said, ignoring them all as she gazed at her Jacob on stage.
"Do you think we'll get free food if he wins?" Roran chirped from the side. "I'm getting hungry from all of this waiting."
"You always get hungry!" Ivan barked angrily.
"Well it is hard work to keep my feathers looking 'this' good!" Roran chirped proudly, puffing up his feathers and flexing them.
Everyone giggled while the camera started zooming in on the individual trainers as they began the first stage of the contest, the Introduction Round.
(Jacob's PoV)
[First up is the Introduction Round, alright now contestants, this is your chance to earn some serious points!] The Announcer declared, causing Jacob to scratch Kenna's cheek to calm her down. [When we call your name, proceed to show off yourselves and your Pokemon, razzle and dazzle us with your Cute Pokemon! First off is Joseph and Hilda!]
Joseph the male Trainer nodded and helped his Eevee back onto the stage, and proceeded to walk forward to give off his introduction. The two took a momentary pause before the Eevee started climbing onto his head, curled up into a brown fluffy ball, and winked at the audience.
Instantly the crowd cheered and applauded, waving their many glow rods in waves to go with the 'ooh's' and 'daw's'. Once their applause died down, they returned to their previous position.
[Next up to razzle and dazzle, is Luciella and Ted!]
The next trainer in line, the girl who said Kenna was so 'kawai' walked forward with her Teddiursa. The two stood before the audience, and then went into their 'routine', which involved both of them clapping several times before posing exactly like each other.
The crowd gave them both the same amount of applause that they gave Joseph and his Eevee, and after the crowd stopped clapping they returned to their position as well.
[Let's keep the dazzling and pizazz going, up next to show off is Jacob and Kenna!]
Jacob gulped and stepped forward with Kenna nervously hiding behind him. "It's okay Kenna, just stay calm…" He said, though in truth he had no idea what their pose or routine was going to be.
"Pfftb…" Kenna replied, shaking slightly as they reached the spot they were to go to.
"Alright Kenna, get ready…" He said as he saw the many faces of the crowd waiting while Kenna walked in front of him.
Then several glow rods started waving, startling Kenna with how close they were to the front row of the audience, and in her fear she ran around Jacob and tried to hide behind him. Instantly the crowd cheered, laughed, and applauded at how 'cute' she was, with several giving cries of dawws.
(Sara's PoV)
"Was that planned?" Coral asked as they watched Kenna try to hide behind Jacob, failing miserably but still electing a positive response from the crowd.
"I don't think so…" Roran chirped. "Looks like she just got spooked from all those glowing light thingies."
"She is a nervous one isn't she?" Harold asked, tapping his foot as they watched Jacob and Kenna return to their position.
(She's just not used to big crowds or being stared at by so many!) Sara told them all, still watching from Corals' head.
"Well she had better get used to it, and fast!" Ivan barked dangerously. "If she loses this Feather Badge for our Alpha because she's afraid, she's going to be in big trouble from us!"
Roran nodded in agreement. "What's that supposed to mean?" Latias asked with a glare. "You aren't thinking of hurting her are you?"
While Ivan and Roran were stared down by the legendary, Sara continued to watch the screen as the next trainer went and posed with her Mawile, stumbling slightly but managing to get a respectable applause from the crowd. She wished she were down there with Jacob to help him, she had never been separated from him for as long as she was now. For some reason she felt very afraid and sad when he wasn't there, not to mention alone.
She was very lonely without her Jacob nearby.
(Jacob's PoV)
[And now the moment we've all been waiting for, next up to razzle dazzle, Gym Leader Briza, and Togi!]
Briza calmly and cheerfully skipped forward with her Togetic flying alongside her. Once they were in position, both she and her Togetic went into a spin, with Briza extending her arms out and letting the feathers hanging from her arms flutter and flap, while her Togetic did a mini dance alongside her. They ended their routine with a pose, with Togi landing on top of Briza's outstretched hand and posing like a dancer would on a music box and Briza kneeling as if she were proposing a marriage to a person.
The crowd instantly roared with applause, waving their glow sticks madly at the introduction.
[Now that's what we expect from out gym leader, but don't let that applause fool you contestants, this contest is far from over!] The announcer said as Briza walked backed to her position. [Now that the Introduction Round is over, it's time to get on with the real contest, it's time for the Talent Round!]
As the crowd began cheering and hollering, a large screen television began lowering in front of them and facing Jacob and the others on stage, while a bunch of smaller ones lowered for the crowd to see. As the screens turned on, five pictures of Pokemon appeared on screen, each of them were Togetic, Teddiursa, Eevee, Ponyta and Mawile in that order. Below them were numbers ranging from one through five, and empty hearts around their pictures.
[Alright just a rundown for all of you newbies at Contests, here is how it goes!] The announcer called out in an excited voice. [Backstage we have three judges watching and debating, but while they debate on who is the winner at the end of our contest, we have a Talent Round to begin. Each of our contestants will take turns performing their moves before our audience, as each contestant and their Pokemon make their moves, hearts will be awarded to that Pokemon's scorecard. The more you please the crowd, the more points you score as well, so don't hold anything back, show us all how cute you are!]
[Contestants, follow the order in which you are numbered and ordered, and let the Talent Round commence.]
"Looks like were fourth Kenna." Jacob said to Kenna who nodded nervously. "Listen girl, you've got to stop being so nervous. Don't worry about how well we'll do. No matter what happens just do your best and nobody will think any less of you."
"Pfftb?" She asked him.
"Just relax and have fun, alright Kenna?" He said as Briza stepped forward with Togi to begin their turn. "Even if we lose here, it doesn't mean the end alright? It just means we have to try again next time, and hey, think of it this way. Your attacks may not be strong, but they don't need to be!" He said with a smile. "As long as you put on a good show, you're just as strong as any of these other Pokemon. The same goes for the rest of our team Kenna, you may not have the strongest attacks compared to them, or the same training as they do. But in this setting, all of that means nothing, because this is based on the Pokemon's moves, not how strong or how fast they are."
Kenna hung on every word as the crowd cheered while Togi used a Growl move.
[Not a bad start from the Gym Leader, two hearts on the board for her!]
As Briza and Togi went back to their position, Luciella and Ted walked forward. "Alright Ted, Baby Doll Eyes!" Luciella yelled.
"Teddiursa!" Ted said, before charming the audience with its cute big eyes.
The crowd roared in affection as Ted and Luciella walked back to their position, now with three hearts added to their image. He also noticed that after both Ted and Togi made their moves, a star appeared at the top of the screen. He would have thought more about it, but Joseph and his Eevee 'Hilda' stepped forward to make their move.
"Alright Hilda, Tail Whip!" He shouted.
"Vee!" Hilda said, running forward and turning around to whip her tail back and forth, as if trying to slip up an opposing Pokemon.
The crowd roared and yet another star appeared just as three hearts were awarded to Hilda's card.
"Alright Kenna, it's our turn now." He said, and Kenna nodded and walked forward.
Once they were in position Kenna stepped in front of him and awaited his order, though she looked extremely nervous.
"Kenna… use your Ember Attack!"
(Kenna's PoV)
As she heard Jacob's first instruction, she nervously looked at the crowd, before gathering her strength and unleashing her first attack.
She had hoped to impress the audience with a fantastical display of flames, but all she got was a tiny ball of fire which quickly extinguished before it reached the audience.
This was her big chance to prove everyone, including Jacob, that she was worthy of her place on his team. But as the ball of flame vanished, her only thoughts were of how she was a failure…
"YAAAAAA" The crowd screamed, causing her to look up and see hundreds of pink glow rods swaying in the dark.
*Wait… they liked it?* She asked herself as she looked up at the giant screen, and saw her picture fill with four hearts and another star added to the other two that were there.
"Way to go Kenna!" Jacob shouted happily.
*They really liked that tiny little ball of flame?* She thought as she and Jacob went back to their spot. *But it was so weak… it barely did anything. Yet they loved it?*
Once they reached their spot Jacob pet her head comfortingly. "See Kenna, I told you, it's not about how strong your attack is, but the Pokemon using it." He said to her, causing her to look up at his proud face. "Look, we're tied for the lead now!"
She looked up at the screen again, and sure enough, he was right. As the Mawile took its move, performing the move Fake Tears, she saw that her picture was moved up front with the Mawile's, with the Togetic's picture in last, the Teddiursa in first, and the Eevee's in fourth. The order was decided but she and the Mawile were tied for first now.
*Maybe I found my place… yea… I can do Contests!* She thought happily.
(Sara's PoV)
"Look, Kenna's in the lead now!" Latias shouted excitedly.
"So far so good, let's just hope she can keep this up…" Coral whispered.
"With Jacob guiding her, there's no way she can lose!" Harold said proudly.
"I just don't get why all these Alphas compete with silly contests…" Ivan growled in boredom. "What do these silly contests have to do with battles? True battles are determined with fighting, not these silly displays."
Sara shook her head as the trainers began taking their next turns, with the Teddiursa performing the move Rest, electing a huge uproar of applause from the crowd. Instantly the screen flashed back to the Tediurssa's card and showed not only one heart plus another heart being added to his card, but an additional six hearts as the crowd continued to applaud and cheer. As the six hearts were added, the six stars that were shining vanished and reset to zero.
Then came the Mawile's turn, and it performed the move Astonish, but because the Teddiursa was asleep it had no effect. Kenna was next, and she performed a Tail Whip, getting yet another crowd cheer. The Eevee was up now, and it performed the move Baby Doll Eyes, adding more hearts and stars to the scoreboard. Last was the Gym Leader's Togetic, who performed the move Charm.
As it turned to the Pokemon and charmed them all, all of the Pokemon lost their balance, and hearts began to be deducted from all but the Teddiursa's score. As they all finished their turns, the order was changed again with the Eevee going first, Teddiursa second, Mawile third, Togetic fourth, and Kenna in last.
According to the scoreboard, Kenna was in fifth place behind the Gym Leader now, with the Teddiursa in first, Mawile in second, and Eevee in third.
"Oh no… she's losing her mojo!" Roran chirped sourly. "If she loses it now we're done for!"
(Don't give up on Kenna and Jacob yet, they'll pull through!) Sara said, cupping her hands together and hoping her words were true.
(Jacob's PoV)
"Alright Ted, let's keep our lead and use Rest once more!" Lucielle shouted after the Eevee used a Tail Whip.
"Ted…" Teddiursa said before falling asleep again.
Jacob expected applause but instead the crowd booed and refused to wave the glow rods. [Oh a rookie mistake, using the same move twice in a row, that's going to cost Lucielle some points.] The announcer declared, and sure enough her scoreboard showed that she had netted zero hearts that time.
Not only that, but one of the stars was lost, reducing it from five to four again. "Oh I see, so if a move is used twice in a row, then the Pokemon loses hearts and reduces the stars." Jacob said to himself as the Mawile moved forward and performed the move Fairy Wind, causing a cascade of pink dust to fly around.
However instead of cheering the audience merely clapped in congratulations of the move being used, and no additional hearts or stars were awarded besides the four she got.
Up next was Briza and Togi, and they went forward and performed their next move, "Alright Togi, After You!" She yelled.
"Toge!" Togi shouted, and merely bowed before the audience before extending a hand out to them.
The crowd cheered and applauded, adding an additional heart to the three she received as well as one more star, bringing the stars total up to five again.
"Okay Kenna, our turn." He said worriedly, noticing that he and Kenna were falling way behind the others score wise.
Kenna nodded and stepped forward, and as they did Briza glanced at them, before winking with a confident walk.
"Alright Kenna… uh…" He said as they got into position. "Use… Growl!"
Kenna nodded and turned to the audience, before she took in a deep breath. "Nnnkgh!" Kenna yelled, feebly.
Instantly, the crowd exploded with applause and cheers, waving their glow sticks madly as she growled at them. He heard several girls screaming at how cute she was, and several boys laughing enthusiastically at her cry. It was also reflected in the scoreboard as six hearts appeared on her score card, and while the crowd continued to cheer and applaud, six new hearts joined the six she earned, bringing her up to twelve.
"Way to go Jacob boy!" He heard Karen's voice yell from somewhere in the crowd. "I knew you had it in ya too Kenna!"
With that, Kenna started leaping and neighing in excitement, prancing around Jacob as they walked back to their position.
(Sara's PoV)
(Look at that!) Sara shouted as the hearts just flew into Kenna's scorecard, easily putting her in the lead position, both in score and turn order. (Now the others are all behind her, and the Gym Leader's in last!)
"That's our Alpha!" Ivan barked proudly.
"I can't believe how exciting this is!" Latias shouted. "A battle where the victor is determined by scorecards and not an actual battle? This is exciting! I want to compete in a contest now too!"
"Yea, now I want to as well!" Coral said with a giggle. "Especially if Jacob's the one I'm entering with!"
"Well of course, he 'has' to enter it with us!" Roran chirped.
Something about that last comment made Sara go on edge, but she ignored it as the fourth round of the Contest was under way, and after several more moves, in which Kenna proudly showed off her Ember attack, but lost more of her spirit when both the Teddiursa and Eevee used Charm on her, reducing her hearts by two. Then the Mawile took its turn and used Sweet Scent, causing all of the Pokemon and trainers to pause and take in the scent. Then the Gym Leader took her turn, and her Togetic performed a Growl as well, giving her the hearts that Kenna received as well and bringing them into the third place behind Teddiursa and Kenna.
[This is it ladies and gentleman, the final round of the Talent Round!] The announcer shouted from the screen. [Time for our contestants to put on their A Game, and bring this contest to a close!]
(Jacob's PoV)
Jacob saw that he and Kenna were in the last position again behind Ted, while the Gym Leader was in the lead. He also saw that there were four stars on the screen, meaning he couldn't use the stars to get bonus hearts for him and Kenna.
"Alright Togi, let's show off our stuff and give them all a 'Sweet Kiss'!"
"Toge." Togi shouted, before turning to the Pokemon and blowing them all several kisses.
As each kiss was 'blown' to them, the Pokemon reacted differently, Mistress the Mawile suddenly shuddered while Ted showed no concern. Hilda shuddered slightly but returned to normal. Kenna looked nervously at Togi but after glancing at Jacob, regained her pose and held her stance.
"Alright Mistress our turn!" Julia shouted as she walked forward, but unfortunately her Mawile refused to budge. "Mistress come on!"
Mistress shook her head and refused to move.
[Aww poor Mistress, Gym Leader Briza's Sweet Kiss has left Mistress unable to move!]
"Well it's our turn Ted, let's go!" Lucielle said as she stepped forward with her Ted. "Alright Ted, show them what we can do and give them one final Baby Doll Eyes!"
"Tedi…" Ted said as he performed his Baby Doll Eyes, getting screams and cheers as the hearts flew onto his score card.
As the hearts poured, the stars reset to zero, and all of the hearts put him into the lead now.
"Alright it's our turn Hilda, let's finish this strongly with Return!" Joseph shouted.
"Veee!" Hilda yelled as she ran forward and pretended to smack an invisible enemy with her paw.
The crowd cheered again and five hearts were added to Hilda's score card.
It was now Kenna and Jacob's turn. "Alright Kenna, this is it… our last turn!" He said to her, scratching her on her muzzle and patting her head comfortingly. "Let's finish strong so we have nothing to be ashamed of! And no matter what the outcome, know that I'm proud of you."
"Pffbt!" Kenna said with a confident nod as she trotted forward and into her position.
"Alright Kenna, end this with Tail Whip!"
Kenna nodded and turned around and started wagging her flaming tail at the crowd.
Instantly they started cheering and applauding as hearts started getting added to her score card.
[And with that, the final round of the Talent Round is over.] The announcer shouted. [Now we await the judge's verdict!]
(Sara's PoV)
"So wait that's it?" Harold asked as they watched the screen change to show a smiling face with a 'Be Right Back' sign posted under it. "Now we have to wait?"
(I doubt we'll be waiting long Harold.) Sara said as she climbed down from Coral's head. (It didn't take long for them to decide the last time with seven contestants, this time there's only five.)
"Yes but how do we know if Jacob won?" Latias asked curiously. "Why doesn't the television tell us who won instead of making us wait?"
"Because it doesn't know either!" Roran chirped. "The screen only shows us what's being seen, not the outcome. When they give the outcome they'll show us."
"So how long will it take?" Ivan barked.
"However long it must take Ivan." Coral whispered.
While they waited, they amused themselves by thinking of what place Kenna and Jacob might have placed in the Contest. They all said he would win no doubt, but Sara had been paying attention to the hearts Kenna was getting at the end of each round. If she was correct, it would be close, but she doubted that he took first place.
Which was sad for her, because she really was hoping Jacob would win first place.
[And we're back ladies and gentlemen, with the Fortree Gym Cuteness Contest with the Judge's decision!]The announcer said, catching all of their attention as they saw the Trainers standing next to their Pokemon, and some of them being awarded with the Feather Badge.
Among those was Jacob.
(They did it!) Sara shouted enthusiastically. (They got the sixth badge!)
"Well can you believe it, the only one among us who couldn't hold her own in any sort of battle, ends up winning the most important one today?" Harold said as the camera zoomed in on Kenna's smiling face, beaming proudly as she stood next to her trainer.
[To those who did not succeed, better luck next time, but as our Gym Leader Briza always says…]
Briza stepped forward and joining her were four other Pokemon, the same ones from the previous day. [Just as the Northern Winds bring the scent and taste of victory, defeat is merely one step closer to it!] She said proudly, holding her arms wide.