They walked for several minutes in silence, not even wild Pokémon made any noise. They watched the trees turn from a late autumn to the middle of winter, snow covering the ground in a soft powder. Harry and Iriana breath turn misty in the chilled air.
"Man, the first thing we do when we get to Glacies, buy some heavy coats!" The lavender-eyed girl grumbled.
"Hear that." The emerald-eyed boy muttered in agreement.
"Though you have to admit…this place looks like a frozen picturesque scene."
Said peaceful scene was broken by the sound of fighting and two Pokémon breaking through the snow-covered brush. They had been fighting each other but when they saw the two humans, they made a temporary truce to take out Harry and Iriana.
The first Pokémon looked like a gray shell with two openings. The opening in front revealed bright yellow eyes. Its short legs were gray and extended from the shell's underside; the inner potions of the legs had red coloration. On top of its shell were three ridges. Iriana looked up this Pokémon. Shelgon, the Endurance Pokémon. It surrounds its body in an iron-hard shell to accumulate enough power to evolve.
The other Pokémon looked like a blue robotic life form, with its disc-shaped body and three clawed arms. Its eyes were red and it had a pointed noise. The thing Harry found interesting about it, as he readied his Pokedex, was that the Pokémon had no legs at all, and that it was levitating. Metang, the Iron Claw Pokémon. Its highly developed intellect and strong magnetic force allow it to create powerful psychic energy.
Both Pokémon, the duo noticed, had multiple scars all over them, showing that the two loved to battle and have been doing it for awhile.
"Uh oh…I think they think we're a threat to them." Iriana muttered, seeing the Pokémon glare.
"Let's show them what we're made of." Harry said. "Medieon, let's go, use Shadow Ball!"
"Got it." His companion said. "Kirlia, attack with Psychic!"
Both Wild Pokémon just started to growl, and without thinking, launched themselves at their opponents, which was what became their downfall. Metang was slammed into a frozen tree by the ball of darkness, while Shelgon was lifted high into the air and slammed into the hard earth. As one, both Trainers threw a Pokeball at the knocked out Pokémon, Harry's at Metang, while Iriana's got Shelgon. Both balls shook repeatedly, before falling silent.
"We did it!" Iriana cheered happily and picked up her Pokeball. Harry was silent as he picked up his. "What's wrong Harry?"
"I'm waiting for Kirlia to evolve."
Bemused, Iriana asked, "Why are you waiting for-"She didn't even finished the sentence when Kirlia started to glow. As the Pokémon was changing, Harry murmured 'I was right; it's always with a battle with you.' When the light faded, a graceful Pokémon was standing there. Where Kirlia had a tutu, this Pokémon had a long, white ballroom-like gown with a green underside. Her 'hair' style had changed to curls down the sides of her head. Looking between the slits of her dress, they could see she had long, slender white legs that ended at a point. Her arms were green, the hands connected to the arm with no defined wrist. It had red fin-like horns on her chest and back. On the side of her face were spikes that reminded them both of a masquerade mask. Iriana just stood there speechless, so Harry brought out his Pokedex. Gardevoir, the Embrace Pokémon. Gardevoir has the psychokinetic power to distort the dimensions and create a small black hole. This Pokémon will try to protect its Trainer even at the risk of its own life.
"Wow that is one cool Pokémon." Harry commented.
"Thank you Harry." Gardevoir's voice was like a soothing melody. "Is Miss Iriana alright?" Harry turned to Iriana, to still see her staring at the Psychic Pokémon.
Concerned, Harry voiced Gardevoir's question. "Oh yeah, I'm alright. It's just…Gardevoir are my favorite Pokémon since I was little. I had always wanted to catch one, and now that I have one…it's a little overwhelming to me." Iriana said happily, eyes sparkling in glee. Both Harry and Gardevoir laughed at the Trainer's expense, causing her to blush slightly. "Oh knock it off you two. Come on, we need to get to Glacies to get our Pokémon checked out. I'm sure they're all tired from the trip."
Nodding to the truth in her words, Harry returned his Pokémon along with Iriana and they set off at a quicker pace to get to the final city. The further in the got, the colder it seemed to get. Though it was worth it to see the frozen wonderland that surrounded them.
After twenty minutes of walking, they finally reached the frozen city. They had to stop to stare at the unusual scene before them. All the other cities they've been to were modern, but Glacies was like taking a trip back in time to Feudal Japan. Traditional style buildings decorated with colored paper lamps gave everything a soft glow. People walking around were wearing kimonos or hakamas. The roads, though covered in a light dusting of snow, were simple brown dirt. It also seemed that they came during a party or something, because vendors were everywhere doing something, from games to food to music and everything in between.
"Now this is freaking cool!" Iriana said awed.
"Got that right, let's get to the Pokémon Center and ask Nurse Joy what's going on." Harry said, dragging his eyes away from a duo doing a fire dance.
Luckily, the Pokémon Center was easy to find, even though it was the same style of buildings surrounding it. Even Nurse Joy looked the same, though she was wearing a pink and white Kimono.
"Hello, how can I help you?"
"We need our Pokémon looked over, and we were hoping you could answer a few questions."
Nurse Joy smiled and took their Pokeballs and gave them to Chansey to take to the back. "I'll try my best to answer them."
The duo smiled in gratitude. "Thanks. I guess the first question is, is what's going on?" Iriana questioned.
The pink haired nurse grinned, "It's our Solstice Festival. It's to celebrate the bonding of Pokémon and Humans. Basically it's just to have a great time. You're lucky, the Festival just started yesterday."
"How long does the Festival last?" Harry asked.
"Once week is the normal time frame, though occasionally everyone is just having so much fun that the Festival just goes on. There are games to play, all sorts of food to try out, and there are even contests for both Human and Pokémon."
By now, Chansey had returned with their Pokémon. "Here you go, all healthy and ready to go."
"Thank you Chansey." Harry said. "I have another question. Since the Festival is going on, is the Gym open to challengers?"
Nurse Joy shook her head, "I'm afraid not. All businesses shut down for the Festival, so everyone can have a great time. I suggest you take advantage of it, I know you'll have a blast."
The duo nodded, "Yeah, I think we will. This will be a nice change from traveling and battling. Plus I'm sure our Pokémon will have fun as well." Iriana said.
"We'll stick out like sore thumbs though." Harry said, gesturing to their clothes. Compared to everyone else, they came from the far future.
The Pokémon Nurse just laughed, "You aren't the first ones to come to the Festival and not have traditional clothes." She pointed down a side hallway. "Just go down that way and you'll come to two doors. Men on the right, ladies on the left. Inside are traditional clothes you can have. Between the Festival times and whenever it's not that busy, I go to the store and buy all the clothes I can get my hands on. Pick whatever you like and you get to keep it. And don't worry about your packs; I can keep them here where they'll be safe. I do it for all the other Trainers.
Emerald and lavender eyes lit up. In unison they bowed and said, "Thank you Nurse Joy!" After they grabbed their Pokeballs and raced down the hallway. Splitting up at their respective doors, Harry gasped at everything inside. Every type of color, style and decoration that could be put on clothes was in the room, which resembled a giant walk-in closet. Row after row of shirts, pants, and shoes greeted his eyes. Walking up and down the aisles for a few minutes, Harry just couldn't think of anything to wear. Finally giving up, he tossed out three Pokeballs. Absol, Froslass and Ninetales popped out. What he needed was a woman's touch.
"Okay, since I can't think of anything to wear to the Festival, can you three help out?" Harry pleaded the three female Pokémon. He gulped however, when he saw the 'Look' in their eyes. The type of look that promises a guy being turned into a life-size dress-up doll.
"Let's see, I'll get the shirt." Ninetales said excitedly and ran off.
"I'll go with her so we can get pants to match the shirt." Absol added and chased off after the Fire-type.
"Let's see what we can do with your hair." Froslass said, floating up. She started to play with the messy 'all-over-the-place' black hair. After several moments of trying different styles and the like, the Ghost/Ice Type finally found something she liked. Finding a mirror, Harry had to admit that Froslass worked a miracle with his hair. It was still messy, but it was the kind of 'messy' that other guys spent hours to get their hair to be like.
"It's perfect Froslass, you did a great job." Harry commented, hugging Froslass.
"Harry, we found your outfit." Absol called out. On her back was his outfit, folded up neatly.
"Thanks girls. I'm going to go change real quick." Harry said, grabbing the pile and slipping into the dressing room. Once he was finished, he admired the hakama his Pokémon picked out for him. The shirt was a rich golden color; the edges of the long, wide sleeves were black with gold stitching in the shape of tiny swirls. It had a large black sash with gold stitching on the edges going around his waist, so he kept his Pokeballs there. The pants were a silky black. Simple but elegant looking as well as nice and warm. Stepping back out, Harry slipped on the wooden sandals Ninetales had found.
"You look great Pops." The Fire-type said, nuzzling up to her Trainer.
"Indeed you do cub. I say we outdid ourselves." Absol said smugly, preening.
Harry just rolled his eyes. "Yes, we all know you have superb taste when it comes to clothes. Let's go, Iriana should be done by now."
The teen recalled his Pokémon and walked out of the giant 'closet'. Glancing around, he saw that Iriana wasn't out of the room yet, so he sat down on a stool to wait. Five minutes later she stepped out in her new outfit. The kimono hugged her figure perfectly, going down to her ankles, same with the long sleeves. It was a beautiful white with light purple petals falling. Around her waist was a large purple sash, a few shades darker than the petals. Her hair was done is a loose bun, held with white chopsticks and had a purple flower right above her ear. Her shoes were the same as his.
Laughing, she twirled around; Harry could see that she kept her Pokeballs on the back of the sash. "What do you think?"
"You look great, like you just came from the past." Harry answered grinning.
"You don't look too bad yourself. Now let's get out there and have some fun!" Both teens raced out of the Pokémon Center, waving to Nurse Joy as they did so and started walking around, content to just take in the sights.
It seemed that the whole city was the Festival grounds. They saw all kinds of games being played, from trying to catch fish with a paper fan (Harry tried this, only to get wet and Iriana to snicker at him) to competitions ranging from Pokémon with the strongest attack to how they looked and everything in between.
"Hey, let's try that one." Iriana suggested.
Harry followed her eyes and saw an ice sculpting contest, the winner getting a crystal version of their sculpture at the end of the Festival.
"Sure, sounds fun." Walking up to the person in charge of the contest Harry asked. "We would like to play, are there any rules?"
The vendor smiled and ushered them into the small arena. Spectators were outside a white fence, getting ready to watch the show. "It has to be a Pokémon you sculpt but it can be any Pokémon. It also has to be all of it, not just a head or something. You may also have one Pokémon helping you with this. The contest lasts ten minutes, then the judges with pick the best one. That's pretty much it. Oh, I'll also need to have your names."
"Thanks, I'm Harry and she's Iriana." Harry said and went to stand next to a very large block of ice. There were only three people in the arena. Himself, Iriana and a third girl. She was about as tall as he was, pale and had orange, chin-length hair with a slight curl to it framing a heart-shaped face. Like Iriana, she had a flower in her hair, this one a bright blue, like her eyes. Her kimono was a rich teal that gently faded to an emerald green that mirrored Harry's eyes. Her sash was silver with a thinner emerald sash in the middle of it.
Beside the girl was a short bi-pedal Pokémon that reminded Harry of a mix between a cat and a weasel. Its body was predominantly black, but it had a bright red feather-like growths on its left ear and lower back. It had two large claws on its front and back paws, along with distinctive yellow markings on its face and chest. Someone in the crowd had a Pokedex, so Harry listened to it talk. Sneasel, the Sharp Claw Pokémon. This cunning Pokémon hides in the cover of darkness, waiting to attack its prey.
"Okay, let's see..." Harry muttered, thinking about which Pokémon to use. Smiling at the idea, Harry tossed a Pokeball. "Ninetales, come on out." The crowd gasped and awed at the beautiful fox Pokémon, it quickly changed to coos when Ninetales tackling her Trainer to the ground and started to cuddle with him. "Come on sweetie, we got a contest to win!"
"Okay Pops." Ninetales said with a pout, letting her Trainer get up. Turning around, he saw Iriana already at her Pokémon out, having chose Riolu.
"Ladies and gentlemen and honored visitors, the Ice Sculpting contest is about to being. Competing today, we have our visiting Trainers Harry with his Ninetales." The crowd cheered. "And Iriana with her Riolu." The crowd cheered again. "And finally our own Glacies Naomi and her Sneasel nicknamed Nicky!" The crowd cheered a third time. "The contestants may do any Pokémon they wish. They have ten minutes to complete their statue." While the man was talking, Harry was trying to think of which Pokémon he could do. Thinking of his backpack that had tribal Legendary Pokémon, he picked one of them and began whispering to Ninetales about it, not knowing that Iriana had picked something similar and was murmuring to Riolu what she wanted.
"Trainers may help their Pokémon. Now, ready…set…go!"
The next ten minutes passed by in a flurry of shaved ice and various attacks. Harry had Ninetales control her flames to melt the ice into the general shape of the Pokémon, then he and the Fire-type would work together for the detail. Riolu was busting up the ice into the shape Iriana wanted, and then began to cut and shape the ice. Naomi and Sneasel were a blur of sharp claws and chisel. They were all so focused on their work; they paid no attention to the world around them. The crowd however all began to smile at the irony of their work and waited to see what the Trainers' reactions would be.
"And….Time! That's it! Step away from your statues please." The contest leader ordered.
Gathering off to the side, the three humans tried to catch their breath, the Pokémon doing the same thing. Staring at their statues and then the others, all three started laughing, which got the crowd going too. All three had done a Legendary Pokémon; Harry did Raikou, Iriana did Entei, and Naomi did Suicune.
"Great minds think alike I guess." Naomi laughed out, Sneasel now sitting on her shoulder.
"Got that right." Harry said with a grin, petting Ninetales.
Iriana tilted her head to the side, Riolu being held like a doll in her arms, "They look pretty good don't they?"
The other two nodded, staring at the three Legendary Pokémon statues. All three had regal poses, they just appeared to be frozen for a moment in time, they were so life-like. The judges had inspected all three very carefully and now were debating in hushed whispers. Finally, they stood up and smiled at the three Trainers.
"After careful inspection, which by the way all three of you did excellent job on details, we have decided…that it's a three way tie!" The first judge said.
The second judge picked up, "It's just too close to pick a definite winner, and so all three of you will receive crystal statues of your masterpieces."
The third and last judge walked up and handed the three humans a medal with a snowflake on it. "Well done you three, you've earned it."
The crowd broke out into the loudest roar yet. Harry turned to Iriana and Naomi; both had grins that mirrored his own. "Great job girls."
"Thanks Harry." Iriana said, giving him a one-armed hug.
"Likewise. It's the first time I've ever seen this contest end in a tie, let alone a three-way one." Naomi added, recalling her Pokémon. After the duo returned their own Pokémon, the orange haired girl asked. "Is this your first time in Glacies?"
"Yup, we came here to challenge the Gym Leader Crystal, but the Festival's going on." Harry answered.
"We don't mind though, this Festival's worth waiting to get a Badge." Iriana finished. "So, what else is there to do here?"
Naomi grinned, "Come on, I'll show you."