Beyond the Battlefield: Rule of Thirds
by neptunesxdaughter
PITCH PERFECT AU
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A/N: Okay, so just a quick note before this all begins. Updates are not going to be regular, just when I can. I'm surprised I managed to finish this chapter, to be honest. Development will also be slow, as I want to pace it, I don't want to rush it all as well. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!
"When I said that the costumes needed to be improved, this isn't what I meant…" Dawn said, her nose turned up in disgust. She was right, of course – they had been improved just not to the point of what the girls actually approved of.
Misty couldn't help but laugh at her roommate's reaction as she adjusted the bun she was wearing at the top of her head. They had traded in the weird outfits, and had allowed Jessie to design them new ones. As she had done well at the battle display, despite the setback, they all thought she deserved a break from all of their ridiculing. "It's not that bad. I'd rather be wearing slacks than those stupid skirts any day." She answered, now moving her hands to pull on the white blazer they had all been given.
The jacket also had a large magenta 'R' on the back of them to keep the team colour with them.
"It's all too business-like, though. How are you going to battle when you're so restricted?" the blunette questioned. She was a coordinator outside of her acting studies, truly her number one passion in life, so she really knew all about restrictive outfits and costumes alike.
"It's not that bad. All I do, anyway, is throw a pokéball." The trainer answered, shrugging. "You are coming today, right?"
"I wouldn't miss it for the world!"
"Great! I need all the support I can get. I haven't battled in front of an audience for ages, so this should be interesting. Especially since I'm up second today. I wonder who I'm battling?"
"Can't you have a look at trainer information data online like in a battle conference?" Dawn said in confusion. She knew that in Pokémon League competitions and other League-run conferences, information about trainers and their pokémon could usually be found on that particular League's website.
"No, since it's a private competition that is run outside of the league until national and international competitions. Lucy explained it all to us at the last meeting. Her family is part of a competition called the Battle Frontier which is outside of the League, so I guess that's why she understands how it all works." Misty explained. Her pokémon were all ready to go now, as she had traded her psyduck and Daisy's dewgong for her kingdra and her quagsire. They all seemed pumped for this as they hadn't battled properly in such a long time alongside their trainer.
Dawn nodded. "Oh, okay. Well, we better head off so you're not late."
Misty was practically bombarded with questions by everyone on the team, everyone's eyed extremely wide. She blinked in surprise, holding up her hands. "Hang on, slow down! I'm here, you guys, relax." She said, breathing out a sigh of relief when all of them finally quieted down.
"We had to change the roster since Leaf is sick, so you're up first today instead." Lucy said, gesturing to everyone in the room. "We thought you were going to be late, so that's why we're all a little bit stressed. We were worried that you weren't going to have any time to warm up or anything else."
"Wait, why am I up first?" she asked in a panic. The captain kept her cool, though, as she was suddenly dealing with a freaked out member of her team.
"Sorry, but it was so last minute, you were the first person I thought of when they asked me to re-arrange the roster. It's only a three-on-three battle, anyway, before you rotate with Iris. You'll be okay, I promise."
While she wasn't someone to feel anxious normally, she could feel it building up even more. Deciding to try and calm herself down before it was their turn to battle, Misty nodded and headed out of the room and towards the small training room that was only down the hall from where the girls were staying. As she opened the door, she could hear a voice yell out attack commands and the occasional "Pika!"
She walked in and allowed the heavy doors to slam behind her, which obviously got the attention from the trainer and his pokémon.
"Oh, hey, Misty!"
The redhead smiled and lifted a hand in greeting. "Hey, Ash. Hi, Pikachu." She replied, bending down as the electric rodent came bounding over to her. She patted him on the head gently, which she was rewarded by a cheerful response of the pokémon's name. "Do you mind if I warm up in here for a bit? I'm running a little late, so I didn't have time to earlier."
"Yeah, sure." He grinned, very intrigued by the fact that Pikachu hadn't shocked her yet. He usually didn't react well to strangers, but here he was, as though Misty was someone he knew very well. "Are you battling today?"
She nodded in response. "Yeah, and I'm up first."
"Damn, that sucks!"
"Someone has to do it." She replied, shrugging as she stood back up and enlarged one of her pokéballs. "Corsola, I choose you!"
Suddenly, a bright light erupted from the blue, red and white sphere that Misty had thrown into the distance before forming the shape of the coral pokémon. It chirped its name happily as it bounced around upon being called forth by the trainer.
Ash decided at that moment to voice his thoughts. "It'll be cool to see you battle today. I never had the chance to verse you when you were still a Gym Leader. I got the Cascade badge by beating one of your sisters. I forget her name… Lola?"
"Lily."
"But I have gone to see one of your water shows before! Brock and I saw the mermaid one last."
She couldn't help but turn her expression to one of confusion because of the fact that a guy like him was going to see a water show that her sisters had organised, but with her as the lead. She also didn't understand why she hadn't been introduced to him before if he was such good friends with Brock, considering the two of them went way back as well. "Thanks, I guess. I'm glad you enjoyed it." She responded.
Ash smiled sheepishly when he realised exactly what he admitted too, shaking his hands in front of his face in embarrassment. "I swear I'm not a complete weirdo. Anyway, I should get going. My team is on soon, and I'm one of the battlers."
Misty finally made her way back to the room where the Girls Battle Team were still waiting, all of them hanging about the room in a much calmer fashion than when she had first made her way in originally. She seated herself down beside Serena who was readjusting the sleeves of the jacket so that they were folded up towards her elbows. "Are you all warmed up now?" she asked, while the redhead nodded in response.
"Yeah, I think so. I got my pokémon to do a couple of drills just to get the muscles worked before we have to go on. I exercised them so that I can choose easily when I face my opponent." Misty explained, shrugging.
"Guys, look, the Boys Battle Team is on their last round. That's the guy with the pikachu, isn't it?"
All of the girls looked up at the monitor immediately that was located on hinges on one of the upper corners of the room, where they could indeed see Ash with a pokéball in his hand. "Are they winning?" asked Melody who was now leaning forward in her seat in anticipation. Lucy smiled, obviously proud of their fellow team. As they were both representing their school, it was great that they were both receiving respect for their talent as trainers.
"Harrison ought to be very proud. His team has come so far, especially considering how many people they had to recruit to replace the graduates from last year." The Girls Battle Team captain stated.
"Ladies and gentlemen, here we are on the final round of trainer battle. On the green side, we have Ash Ketchum of the Indigo University's Boys Battle Team. And on the red side, we have Cameron Kotestu from Vetress University's Junior Team!"
"Junior Team? What does that mean?"
"There are some universities who like to keep their members separate, despite the fact they are representing the same university. Vetress is one of them. It doesn't really make sense, considering all collegiate level battling battling tournaments are the same." Leaf explained, shrugging.
Iris wrinkled her nose, scratching the head of her Axew who had just poked its head from her hair. "That's stupid."
"Each to their own, Iris. Each school runs theirs differently."
Their attention was once again drawn to the television screen, watching as a bright flash of light suddenly encased it.
"Pignite, I choose you!"
It was quite a surprise to all the girls when the light faded to reveal the large fire type, its beefy arms raised to flex its muscles. It looked ready to battle, a grin planted as it stared dead on at the hydreigon across from it.
"Is Pignite really that good of a choice? Fire of fighting-types are specially effective against dragon types." Misty said, her eyes wide.
Lucy decided to answer this time. "Hydreigon is worn out from the previous battle against Ash's oshawott. It was a tough little thing, and managed to get a few Ice Beams in before it was beaten. You also forget that pignite is half-fighting type, something which Cameron's pokémon is weak against. So he made a good choice." She explained, keeping her eyes trained intently on the battle. She was so focused – it was almost like she was studying everything going on.
The redhead raised her eyebrow but merely nodded in response, choosing not to reply.
Cameron gritted his teeth upon the reveal of the fire/fighting combination Ash had brought out. It was obvious he knew about the type disadvantage his pokémon had against pignite, and so was growing increasingly worried. "He doesn't seem to have a lot of experience under pressure." Leaf observed, coughing into her sleeve. "He's really nervous now."
"Your pokémon may be stronger against Hyderigon, Ash, but Pignite can't match its speed!"
This was true; considering Pignite's weight. The comment didn't seem to faze Ash at all, though, for he just grinned. "All the more reason to prove that disadvantages don't define who a pokémon is! You can agree with that, right?"
The crowd erupted in loud cheers at the exchange between the two strangers, the camera panning out so that the audience watching on television would be able to see the whole battlefield. It was a normal ground field, nothing special about it. The referee raised the two flags, indicating that the battle could begin.
"Alright, Pignite, we're up first! Jump up and use Brick Break!"
"And Ash's Pignite has opened with Brick Break! I don't know about you, folks, but opening right off the bat with a fighting-type move seems to be a good decision on Ash's part!" the announcer said, sounding incredibly excited.
Pignite nodded, voicing the sound of its name as it pushed on its small legs and jumped into the air, its right am glowing white from what could be assumed the attack beginning to bulld-up. Hydreigon attempted to move, but was so exhausted, that it didn't react quickly enough, allowing its opponent to land the attack on one of its many heads. Somehow, though, it still managed to maintain its composure. It was wincing from the pain it had taken from the hit, however.
This gave Ash another opening.
"Pignite, Flamethrower!"
"Hydreigon, quick! Use Tri Attack!"
A searing jet of flames began to stream from Pignite's mouth, with its opponent barely given any time to dodge. It barely managed to do so, the flames missing it by an inch. Hydreigon responded quickly after by rearing its three heads back, each of its three mouths glowing with a different element. Due to its slow speed stats, Ash's pignite continued to use Flamethrower, clashing the two attacks together. Smoke began to fill the stadium, clouding over the two pokémon. The trainers had covered their eyes to stop it from entering their line of vision.
All the girls were sitting on the edge of their seats because none of them were able to see what had happened, if one of the attacks were stronger and which pokémon had prevailed.
Hydreigon soon appeared. hovering slowly above the dark cloud, looking warily for some sort of movement. The stadium remained silent, eyes peeled for some sort of glimpse of the fire/fighting type. The cloud began to clear away, revealing Pignite. It was standing its ground, glaring up at the hydreigon.
Ash raised his fist in the air triumphantly. "Awesome, Pignite! Use Flame Charge!"
Pignite began to storm forward in heavy steps, its body body being encased in flames. "Counter with Double Hit!" yelled Cameron, watching as his pokémon obeyed, the two heads on the side of its body turning white as it followed Pignite's suit and charged head-on, quite literally.
"I'm surprised Hydreigon is holding out. It's stamina is amazing." Melody said in awe. "It should be exhausted."
The camera immediately zoomed in to catch their heads colliding together, three against one, the two pokémon pushing against each other in almost a test of strength. They both wore determined expressions, though it was clear that Hydreigon's was a lot more tired. Pignite proved to be stronger, for it had the advantage still from the major push it had used to jump into the air, forcing the black and blue pokémon back a few feet. Pignite surged forward forward once more, stomping its foot against the ground, causing flames to erupt from it.
Ash had an incredibly proud grin on his face.
"He definitely planned that ahead. He seems like such a kid, but I'm actually impressed." Iris voiced, causing mumbles of agreement from the other girls.
Lucy now had her arms folded. "Study Ash's battling style carefully. There's no doubt that one of us is going to have to face him in the future."
Hydreigon let out a loud roar as the attack singed some of its body, hovering the slightest bit higher for a sense of relief. Its feet and long tail had smoke rising off them, Hydreigon's face cringing in pain.
"It looks like Hydreigon has taken serious damage from the Flame Charge attack, and the Fire Pledge! Cameron seems to be growing frustrated."
"Hydreigon's still recovering! Use Brick Break again!"
The aforementioned pokémon was having trouble levitating still, slowly floating towards the ground. This allowed Pignite the opportunity to run, gaining power by every moment that passed.
It was almost like it was happening in slow motion. Its right arm was encased in white once more, drawn back as it finally was close enough to Hdreigon to deliver the final blow. The loud sound of skin hitting skin echoed through the speakers, followed by a loud crashing sound of the dragon/dark type hitting the hard ground. Pignite landed back on the ground, tiny flames leaving its mouth as it waited for the verdict.
Hydreigon slowly tried to raise its three heads at the loud encouragements of its trainer, Cameron yelling frantically in the background.
"Get up, Hydreigon! You can do it!"
But it was to no avail. The pokémon was shaking from the damage that had been inflicted on it, finally giving up and collapsing its heads back once more.
"Hydreigon is unable to battle! The win goes to Pignite, meaning the Victory goes to Ash Ketchum! The match goes to Indigo University's Boy's Battle Team! This means they will advance to the semi-finals!" yelled the referee, holding up the flag to Ash's side. The black haired trainer leaped into the air in triumph, him and his pikachu rushing out to congratulate Pignite while Cameron quietly returned his pokémon to its pokéball and gave it a few words of praise.
"That was intense." Serena said, a huge grin on her face. "It was awesome! Ash really knows how to battle!"
"You can say that again." Leaf agreed, standing up. "Alright, guys, we're up next. We should probably head to the entrance and wait for them to announce up. Are you ready for this, Misty?"
"I don't know if I can follow up with that battle, but I'll do my best!"
A loud trumpeting sound echoed through the stadium, causing the girls to jump as they leaned against the wall, waiting for their cue to enter the battlefield. If one glanced out, the field was stretched across the ground with large benches on either side, for people to wait until it was their turn.
"Now it is time for the final battle of the day! On the left, we have the Indigo University's Girl's Battle Team!" yelled the announcer, loud applause following as the girls all followed one another out of the hall. "It looks like we have some fresh faces here, everyone, but there are some members from last year! Lucy, the captain, looks as determined as ever, with Jessie in tow. Will she redeem herself from the horrible incident that happened at the championship last year?"
"Did you really need to bring that up?" shouted the magenta-haired trainer, ready to storm off to find the announcer, only to be held back by Iris and Leaf.
"Calm down, Jessie!"
"Yeah, they could disqualify us if you do something stupid!"
The announcer coughed awkwardly into his microphone, being ignored by the audience as they just laughed at Jessie's antics.
"On the left side," he continued, as the girls waited patiently for their opponents. "We have the Symbol College Battle Team! Only entering with one team, this is the first time entering the collegiate battle team competition!"
Soon emerged a group of six people roughly around the same age of the Indigo University team, led by a man wearing a long white coat and wearing a red paper-boy style hat atop his head. He also had fingerless gloves over the top of his hands.
"His name is Noland. He's going to inherit the Battle Factory from his father, like I am from my father. We're both under the same sort of league." explained Lucy, who stepped forward to go meet with him and shake his hand. "It's nice to see you again, Noland. I expect a good battle."
"You too, Lucy. Don't underestimate us! May the best team win."
She nodded, turning out to speak to her teammates as Noland did the same. "Okay, everyone. Today, we are going to showcase just how strong we are. I have faith in all of you. Do your best out there." She glanced towards Misty, who bowed her head, already heading towards her rectangle at the edge of the battlefield. She absent-mindedly reached for the pokéball clipped to her belt, rolling it in between her fingers as she waited for her opponent.
A young boy, who seemed to young to be apart of a collegiate competition but seemed to hold the experience stood inside the rectangle on his side. He was dressed somewhat formally with a white dress shirt, vest and tie, and green dress pants. The outfit was contradicting, however, as the pants were rolled up and he was wearing black high-top sneakers.
"On the right, we have Thorton! And on the left we have Misty!"
The audience cheered loudly once more, and both trainers raised their hands in greeting. The referee then raised the two flags.
"Let the battle begin!"
A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed it! I decided to leave it as a kind-of cliffhanger. The next chapter will follow right along right from this.
Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter! I apologise for my mistake - I recently edited that error and fixed the chapter so that it makes sense with the change.
Please consider leaving a review, it really helps!
Word Count: 3,369
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