I do not own Pokemon. Can anyone tell me what a yellow card during a Contest is? I was looking up Contest Battle, saw yellow card, but I can't find out what that is.
Chapter 7: Her First Loss
I had gotten a good sleep the night before, already eaten breakfast, and was completely ready for the second round starting at ten in the morning again. My hair was curled and both Mazey and I were ready for the Contest. I had a ton of poffins from the night before that I had made. Mazey's seal was already on her Pokeball, and I was just about to head out the door, one hour before the Contest started.
"Have a good day of training Shinji!"
"Whatever." I got to the Contest Hall and signed in with half an hour to spare. I talked to some of the other coordinators, some were rude, but most of them were really kind. Riley was there, so I spoke to her a lot. Finally the Contest started up.
"Welcome back people of Jubilife!" The crowd cheered for a moment. "Now it's finally time for the eight coordinators who made it to the battle round to show their stuff! The coordinators have five minutes, points will be deducted when your Pokémon are hit by an attack, when their Pokémon's attack fails, when the opponent's Pokémon performs a particularly appealing move or combination, when the opponent's Pokémon uses their Pokémon's attack to its own advantage or when they receive a yellow card. If one Pokemon faints, the other is the winner of the battle. If you run out of points, your opponent wins. Now let's begin! The first battle is Riley Vs. Ella! And we're off!" The timer started, one second already gone.
"Bella, to the stage!" The coordinator, Ella, threw her ball capsule into the air, releasing a Butterfree (apparently named Bella) surrounded by a yellow star seal.
"We're gonna' blow you to bits, Ralts come on out!" A Ralts appeared surrounded by white confetti, twirling around with it's built in dress.
"Better take out my Pokedex..." As the battle started, I grabbed my device.
"Butterfree, the butterfly Pokemon. It loves the honey of flowers and can locate flower patches that have even tiny amounts of pollen.
Ralts, the feeling Pokemon. If its horns capture the warm feelings of people or Pokémon, its body warms up slightly." The battle was already well underway, both coordinators with the same small amount of points already gone.
"Butterfree, use Sleep Powder!" The white powder flew at Ralts, but Riley only scoffed at it, making no move. The attack hit Ralts, obviously, but before the psychic type Pokemon fell asleep, it glowed an eerie white color, Butterfree soon glowing in the same way. Suddenly both Pokemon fell to the floor, sound asleep. Ella gasped. "H-how did you do that!?" She looked nervous, but tried to hide it with faked anger. Riley simply crossed her arms, waving her hand in front of her mouth, emphasizing her yawn.
"Ralt's ability, Synchronize. Any status condition inflicted on Ralts also affects the opponent." Ella gritted her teeth.
"Bella, wake up! Come on girl, get up!" She yelled at her Pokemon, convincing me that she wanted to win this Contest more than she cared about her Pokemon. I immediately disliked her.
"Ralts." Riley called, before holding out her left hand, showing three fingers. One went down. Two. One. And then zero. Suddenly Ralt's eyes snapped open, quickly getting onto it's feet. I payed little attention to the commentary by Marien, so curious as to know how Riley had done that, as was everyone else, audience and coordinators. "Ralts, use Psychic." Ralts' eyes became visible from underneath his 'bangs', glowing blue. The outline of Bella's body glew the same color, before the limp, sleeping body of the bug and flying type was thrown across the room. Hitting the wall, Ella gasped, her Butterfree whimpering in it's sleep.
"Bella, come on girl, I know you can get up! You can do it!" I had expected Riley to make another move, but instead she just stood there with her arms crossed, her mouth a thin line, waiting, but for what? Ralts too, crossed it's arms, completely complying with it's trainer. The seconds ticked by, only two minutes and forty two seconds remaining, Riley in the lead.
"Ella is unable to make a move, while Riley only stands by! What is going through their heads?" Marien commented. Ella continued encouraging her Pokemon, while Riley continued to stand by. Finally, Bella managed to crack open her eyes.
"Alright, Bella use Silver Wind!" Bella flew upwards, a glittery, silver wind heading straight for Ralts.
"Teleport, then Thunderbolt." Ralts disappeared, completely avoiding the attack, and a Thunderbolt from behind caused massive damage to Butterfree. Suddenly, a beep went off, quickly signaling that the battle was over.
"Maybe not the most thrilling battle, but still well thought out and interesting! And the winner is..." The points board was put up on the monitor, quickly showing us that Riley was the winner. "Riley! Congrats!"
"Not full out attacking your opponent when affected with a status condition, that is extremely honorable and kind!" Mr. Contesta remarked.
"Honorably remarkable!" Mr. Sukizo added.
"Smart using Ralts' ability to your advantage like that Riley, and having your very own special method to awaken him!" After Nurse Joy finished, Riley bowed, and headed backstage.
"And now for our next battle..." Once again, I was last, so it was easy for me to tell who I was up against. The guy that had gone first in the preliminary round yesterday, Trevion. Needless to say, I was nervous. This guy was good.
"And for our final first round of the day, Trevion Vs. Hikari!" The curtains went up on us, and we took our positions.
"A'right, Shieldon, take your stance!" I liked the way Trevion talked, it was uplifting and fun, getting me in the mood for a win! He threw up a ball capsule covered Pokeball, releasing an unfamiliar Pokemon too me, surrounded by small yellow lightning bolts, and the Pokemon looked overly joyful and ready for a battle. Quickly taking out my Pokedex, I got the entry.
"Shieldon, the shield Pokemon. It is outstandingly armored. As a result, it can eat grass and berries without having to fight."
"Alright!" I cried, all pumped up. "Mazey, spotlight!" I yelled, not exactly sure where the spotlight thing had come from... My little grass girl appeared before me, surrounded this time by pink flower petals.
Elsewhere, Johanna Diamond was watching the Jubilife Contest. And as she heard her beloved daughter cry out, 'spotlight', while releasing her Pokemon, her right hand flew to her mouth, a single tear escaping from her eye.
"Mazey, use Razor Leaf!" Several sharp, spinning, flying leaves appeared from the one on top of Mazey's head, hurling towards Shieldon.
"My boy, use Metal BURST!" Trevion called out. Shieldon's body glew a metallic color, as a white orb began to form in front of itself. Razor Leaf hit the orb, doing nothing whatsoever except for making the white orb stronger, two rings of green now wildly flowing around it. Then the attack came at us.
"Mazey, dodge it!" She wasn't fast enough, Metal Burst hit her. We lost a huge amount of points, our attack being used against us. "Mazey, use absorb!"
"Metal Burst!" The same thing was done again, but this time thankfully the attack missed. We were losing points at a considerable rate. Not good, this is not good. I thought to myself, gritting my teeth. I needed a way to get past that attack. "You ain't gonna' attack missy, fine with me! Shieldon, Ice Beam!"
"What!?" I hadn't expected that move from a steel type. The attack barely missed Mazey, but the ice on the stage it had created caused her to slip slightly, giving me an idea. "Mazey, skate!" At first everyone was confused, but she quickly got it, skating around the ice.
"Havin' fun, are we now? Not fo' long, Thunderbolt!" Mazey easily skated around the attacks, Trevion losing points.
"Now Mazey, use Absorb!" This was all part of my plan. Skating around the circle of ice around Shieldon, using Absorb.
"Metal Burst Shieldon!" Exactly what I had planned. Metal Burst absorbed the attack, but Absorb used around the ice and all, created a sparkling, glittering effect, very beautiful.
"Keep it strong girl!"
"Girl, you not too smart there are ya'? Metal Burst just gonna' keep going stronger and stronger!"
"Not for long Trevion..." I muttered. Shieldon's Metal Burst orb was getting larger, stronger, and more unpredictable.
"What the-" Shieldon had lost control of the attack, and it was about to blow. "Boy get out of-" Trevion wasn't fast enough, the attack exploded, the Absorb attack stealing energy from Shieldon and bringing it back to Mazey. No one could see Shieldon at the moment, white smoke hiding him.
"Mazey, use Razor Leaf!" I commanded. The attack dispersed the smoke, also hitting a still standing Shieldon. The steel type was thrown across the room.
"Shieldon my little buddy, you can do this!" Trevion encouraged his Pokemon, trying to get it to stand back up. Though it tried, Shieldon collapsed, unconscious, and with only eleven seconds left on the clock.
"And the winner of our last round of the day is the underdog beginner, Hikari!"
"Using the ice around Shieldon and Metal Burst to your advantage, very smart!"
"Re-markable!"
"Quick thinking along with the true beauty of a Contest, very impressive!" I quickly bowed with Mazey in my arms, muttering a quick thank you before heading backstage.
"Now for a quick recess, before we start the semi-finals!" The coordinators, many of whom looked disappointed, began talking and resting up. I found a semi quiet spot, giving Mazey a bowl of Pokemon food and her newly discovered favorite poffin, a bitter poffin with a hint of sourness. It looked green with yellow sprinkles on top. It was strange how she liked those kind of Poffins, they didn't really coincide with her personality. Though maybe there was a completely different side of Mazey I had never seen...
"You did pretty well." I looked up from Mazey, seeing that familiar red hair.
"Riley."
"Yup. I've known Trevion for a long time, and he's no first timer at Contests. It's impressive that you managed to beat him." I smiled at her.
"Thanks, but you were a lot better than I was. Two things though, first of all, how did you get Ralts to wake up like that, and why did you just stand by when Ella's Butterfree was asleep?" I asked.
"To your second question, it's a code of honor that many honorable coordinators and trainers share. One of those codes is to never attack an opponent harshly while affected by a status condition like that." I nodded, understanding Riley's choice. "And to your first question, a good coordinator never reveals her secrets." Riley smirked and walked off.
"Hm." I said to Mazey. "I like her." Mazey smiled at me sweetly and continued to eat. I poured some water from the plastic bottle I had purchased earlier into my hands for her to drink. Soon though it was time for the semi finals.
"Alright, now the third round begins, and a random generator will match up the four remaining coordinators!" The four pictures of the remaining coordinators swirled around, preventing us from seeing the pictures. Then they stopped, showing us who would battle against who. "Our first round is going to be Hikari Vs. Deloria!" Deloria, an older woman maybe in her fifties nodded at me from across the room, and I nodded back.
Now on stage, Marien told us to begin, and I released Mazey.
"Mazey, spotlight!" She appeared surrounded again by pink petals bursting from her body.
"Rapidash, stage one!" A large horse like Pokemon appeared before us, surrounded by a blue fire seal. I got my Pokedex out.
"Rapidash, the fire horse Pokemon. When at an all-out gallop, its blazing mane sparkles, enhancing its beautiful appearance."
"Crap..." I mumbled, realizing that I was up against a powerful fire type. "Mazey use Withdraw!" I commanded, hoping to increase our defense for the battle.
"Rapidash, Poison Jab!" Faster than I could see, Rapidash's now glowing purple horn stabbed Mazey, throwing her across the arena.
"Wow, incredible speed by Rapidash, not allowing it's opponent any time for a move!" Marien remarked. I gritted my teeth, realizing how tough of a battle this was going to be.
"Mazey girl, you can do this!" I encouraged my grass type, and she managed to stand up slowly. "Use-"
"Rapidash Double Team!" Many Rapidash suddenly appeared, surrounding Mazey. She looked around, thankfully her personality prevented her from freaking out, like most other Pokemon would.
"Alright Mazey, just stay calm, now use Razor Leaf!" The sharp leaves attacked all of the Rapidash, causing them to disappear. All except for one anyways, which had jumped up into the air, right above Mazey.
"Rapidash, Fire Spin!" a vortex of swirling fire from Rapidash's mouth hit Mazey from above.
"Mazey!" I cried out. She barely managed to get on her feet, weakly trembling. "Razor Leaf again!"
"Flame Wheel!" Rapidah rushed Mazey, fire engulfing her. The fire type attack destroyed Razor Leaf, striking Mazey head on. I watched in defeat as Mazey collapsed, unconscious.
"Deloria is the victor after a blazing hot battle!"
"Using your speed and fire to completely prevent the other side from using attacks, very strategic."
"Remarkable!"
"A beautiful battle, I nearly forgot this was a Contest!" Deloria bowed with her Rapidash. I was kneeling down next to my little grass girl, who was sprawled out on the ground, trying to pick herself up.
"Shh Mazey girl, you did great! Just take a nice rest..." I patted her head before picking Mazey up gently in my arms. I saw Deloria backstage.
"You did very well for a first Contest Hikari."
"Thanks, I just kinda' wanted to win..." She nodded her head.
"Yes, well you are only a beginner. And a word of advice, the main reason why you lost today, predictability."
"Predictability?" I questioned.
"Mh hm. Many coordinators teach their Pokemon moves that you would never expect that Pokemon to know."
"Like how Trevion's Shieldon knew Ice Beam."
"Exactly! Also, they keep certain moves unknown to the other coordinators as much as possible. Besides that, you used the same Pokemon the entire Contest." I nodded, realizing that was a bit of a mistake. Though I didn't have any other Pokemon at the moment.
"Well, thanks Deloria, and good luck in the finals!" I congratulated, taking a seat backstage watching the remainder of the Contest. The final round ended up being Deloria Vs. Riley, Riley's Snover against Deloria's Kricketot. Deloria won. I was getting ready to head out when Simone stopped me.
"Ah, Hikari, that was a wonderful performance."
"Um, thanks." I replied.
"Oh, you seem a bit disappointed?"
"Well, yeah. It was my first Contest and all, I guess I was just expecting a bit much."
"Hm, well, there's someone here to congratulate you Hikari." Simone stepped aside, I looked up in order to see who this someone was.
"Mom." She engulfed me in a warm, loving hug. "What are you doing here?" I asked when she finally released me.
"Well, I was watching you during the first round of the Contest, and I couldn't help myself, so I came to Jubilife City right then and there to see you perform in person, and you were excellent Hikari." She looked me straight in the eye, but I looked away, feeling as if I had disappointed her.
"I just, I feel like I disappointed all of my friends and myself..."
"Hikari, very few people win their first Contest. You did extremely well for your first time." I still refused to look at her, and my mom brought me over to a bench and forced me to sit down next to her. She pulled something out of her purse. She opened it up the case, it was old, worn out. "This is one of my most prized possessions," She said, pulling out a Contest ribbon. Though a bit worn out, it was remarkably well taken care of. She opened up my balled up fist, placing it in my hand. I held it up gently, reading the small inscription.
"Alamos Town Pokemon Contest." I read aloud. Mom nodded.
"It was my first Contest Ribbon. Do you know how many Contests I was in before I got that ribbon Hikari?" I shook my head no. "Five." My eyes widened. "Five Contests before I got my first ribbon."
"But-... But you ended up being a Top Coordinator!"
"That doesn't mean I was a natural at first. I was a clumsy, nervous, ametuer with a slight knack for Contests in desperate need of a good scrubbing." I looked up at her with a light in my eyes.
"Just like me." She nodded her head and continued.
"When I finally won that ribbon, it was like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders. I vowed then and there to always carry that ribbon, and never even use it in the Grand Festival."
"It was your good luck charm."
"Sort of, yes. What I'm trying to say here is, well, Hikari you're not always going to win. But you can never, EVER, give up. You are the strongest person I know, and so far, you've never given up on anything. Life is going to get more and more difficult Hikari, and you can't start now. You can't lose that fighting light." She gently kissed my forehead, standing up. I stood up as well, holding out her ribbon.
"Mom, your ribbon." She folded it up into my hand, squeezing my fist.
"I want you to have it. Now, it's your good luck charm. And this is also for you." She took out one large case, larger than normal. "I had it made especially for you." She handed it to me. The cover was interchangeable, with many small slots for me to fill with pictures. For now it only had a few pictures of me, my mom, Glameow, and Jun in it. "I want you to fill it up with as many pictures as you possibly can, now open it up." Opening it, I saw on top was places perfect for putting gym badges, all eight. On the bottom I could put ribbons, up to ten of them.
"Mom... It's perfect!" I jumped up throwing my arms around her neck. Soon her own arms wrapped around me.
"Mom... It's perfect!" I jumped up throwing my arms around her neck. Soon her own arms wrapped around me.
"Your welcome Hikari. And by the way, where did you get 'spotlight' from?" I cocked my head at her.
"Um, I'm not really sure. It just kind of... came out." My mom smiled gently, confusing me even more. "What?"
"Nothing, nothing." After a few more minutes she left along with Simone, leaving me to my own devices. So, with the Alamos Town ribbon safely locked in the palm of my hand, I headed back to the Pokemon Center.
"So Johanna, did you hear what Hikari said during her second round?" The blue haired woman nodded her head.
"Yes, I did. Spotlight."
"You know, you used to say that every time you were in a Contest."
"I know."
DONE! Finally, also, Alamos Town is a real place in the anime with a Contest and everything. I'll probably add a few anime only towns into the story. Sad, she didn't win her first Contest, but yay! A good luck charm!