Hello again, TheEnigmatic97 here. Well, before I proceed to (one of the most predictable parts) of the story, let me address the issue from a review of the previous chapter:
[reviewer] EquinoxWolf: "I had trouble reading the performance sections because the author notes and lyrics drowned out what was actually going on. It was just too distracting."
[reply] Well, the moment I saw your review, I was confused at one point. But upon taking another overview of the chapter, I saw what you mean. Although I'm not really distracted by those sections, especially that I'm used to reading my cluttered-up Math notes, I apologize if I was not able to give a pleasant experience to your (and to the others who won't tell) reading. I had limited options on the formatting and kinda saw that this might be a good way to show the section better: Lyrics, Notes in italics and the main narration in the normal typeface. If you have better suggestions, tell me and I'll try to make things better.
Now for this chapter: Results... who would win?
By the way, for those who watched XY080 (And yes, this came too slow): BONNIE KNOWS! (and Ash Complied Serena ~Thanks Minios0903)
So without further ado,
'And the winner...'
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokémon.
"Serena, this is for you." Ash thought before clicking the red button on his glow stick, but with no response
"Huh?" Ash wondered as he clicked the button again
Then he tried to mash the button to no avail
"Pikachu?" (What's the matter?) Pikachu asked his (frustrated) trainer
"It seems like he can't send his vote." Clemont saying the obvious "Look at the screen, Ash's seat number is still glowing red."
The screen is showing the voting status for the showcase. Those seat numbers in green are the ones who successfully sent their vote, and the only one in red, being Ash's seat number, means that there was no vote coming from the seat.
"Sir!" Shauna called one of the staff "One of our friends have a problem here. His voting device isn't working."
"Let me check." He replied before tinkering with the device as the group watched attentively
...
...
...
... (A/N: Red?)
...
...
"Okay, this should work fine by now." He said before handing the device to Ash
"Thanks a lot." Ash replied while picking the voting color "Pink for Serena... okay." and he clicked the button.
"Your vote is in." Bonnie said while pointing at the screen
"Finally that's over." Ash said "Now we wait."
-Lumiose City Auditorium, Main theater, 20:32-
"Thank you for waiting." Monsieur Pierre announced "The votes are in, the scores are in, let's call the performers."
The stage opened up revealing the two performers along with their Pokémon. Two projected keyholes along with pictures of them float above them. This will show the results of the showcase.
"Well Serena," Aria said "This is it."
"Yeah." Serena replied "I'm kinda nervous."
"Although it's not my first time," Aria said "I always feel the same when the results come in."
"Well, my dream is in front of me on a silver platter." Serena said while smiling "No wonder I'm nervous."
Aria chuckled "Only thing is that the silver platter is me."
"Well, this is it." Ash said while looking at the stage. "I wonder what those two are talking about."
"Don't worry Ash." Shauna said "She did great."
"She could win this." Clemont said "I can feel it."
"I have to be strong for her." Ash said
"You know, it's kinda weird for you to say that." Bonnie pointed out
"I don't know, but maybe it is because of her." Ash replied
"Oh right, you're not that dense anymore." Bonnie said
"No hard feelings, okay?" Aria said
"Why do you say so?" Serena asked "We'll always be friends."
"Right." Aria replied before taking a hold of Serena's hand, which was shaking hard "She is nervous."
Serena then looked at Ash who was smiling at her. She knew that Ash had supported her from the start, and he's still there. "Thank you, and I love you."
"Her hands stopped shaking." Aria thought after noticing that Serena and Ash were looking at each other and said "You two do love each other."
Serena blushed lightly "Are we that obvious?"
"Especially after you two revealed it days ago, everyone could pick the pieces up." Aria replied
"Now it's time to show the results of tonight's performance." Monsieur Pierre announced "Here we go!"
Then the counters on top of the two performers started to fill up at the same pace. Aria was not surprised by the fact, with the house divided between two performers, anything goes. Serena, although anxious, was overwhelmed with the amount of votes accumulating for her.
Time passed, and almost everything was counted, including the votes from the judges. Votes being counted gradually decrease, symbolized by the number of glowing lights floating to the performers. The almost everything was counted... then one more vote came... the votes are formally shown.
"And the winner..."
The two performers hear the start of the announcement
"... of tonight's showcase..."
Ash embraces Pikachu tightly due to anxiousness
"... garnering 50.01% of the votes of the audience and a score of 97.99% from the judges..."
"That's interesting." Aria said
"... and leading by 0.01% on both criteria..."
"Wow, is it normal for it to be this close?" Serena asked quickly
"It's normal for this level." Aria immediately replied "There have been closer margins."
"R-really?" Serena asked with shock
"Yes." Aria replied
"... and NEW Kalos Queen, Serena!"
Upon hearing the word "New" the crowd exploded in cheers. The group rejoiced with the announcement. Palermo stood up from her seat and applauded and said before leaving "She did it."
Back on stage, as pyrotechnics sparkled, as the confetti sprinkled, as the rowdy crowd cheered on, there were two performers embracing each other. The short, honey-blonde was crying with tears of joy, as Aria petted her back and said "Congratulations."
Serena couldn't manage to reply, she was still being engulfed by the moment. All she could say was a "thank you" and Aria was satisfied. Aria then took the key off her staff and getting Serena's and placed it there before handing it to her.
"As much as I am disappointed since I was defeated, I am still honored to be defeated by one of the best." Aria announced "Welcome your new Kalos Queen, Serena!"
The crowd cheered on as the honey-blonde performer was still embracing her Pokémon which are overjoyed at their victory. No one could describe how they are feeling. Aria then approached Serena and handed her the staff. Serena wondered where her key is and saw it on the staff.
"It's part of the tradition." Aria said while having a wide smile "See you at the limo later. We still have an after party in an hour, take the stage and thank everyone."
"Thank you." Serena said while wiping off a tear from her right eye.
"SERENA!" Two voices are then heard from the stands, both approaching her, those voices are very special to her "there you are."
"Mom, Ash." Serena took the attention before embracing her mother and her boyfriend "I- WE did it!"
"Congratulations, Serena." Grace greeted and hugged her daughter "I knew you could."
"Now, aren't you going to speak on the mic or I'll be the one who'll do the talking?" Ash asked causing Serena to immediately grab the mic
"Hello, Everyone!" Serena greeted the crowd and cheered in response
"Thank you for all of the support tonight, and for these past few months. Me and my Pokémon wouldn't be able to do it without you guys. Also, let me thank Aria for a wonderful experience, you'll always be the Kalos Queen. And to these guys who are with me from the very start, my mother who supported me and raised me well, to Clemont and Bonnie who made our travels wonderful, to my Pokémon who made my life as a trainer fun. to my rivals, Shauna and Miette, who made me raise my game, I'll see you guys later during the after party, and to this trainer here who changed the course of my life, Ash. Thank you, from my heart, thank you very much!"
The crowd gave another loud cheer in response. The group then exchanged a group hug on stage. The young couple were about to do something else until Ash realized the presence of Grace who just smiled and allowed them to continue their moment.
"Pika..." (How sweet...)
"You said it Pikachu." Grace agreed
"~cham Pancham?" (Where are Delphox and Greninja?)
"Chespin~" (Over there.)
"Dedenne..." (That's not new...)
"Brother, I really need to find a wife for you." Bonnie said while looking at her brother who was smiling at the two
"Please, don't humiliate me later." Clemont replied causing the group to laugh
"Can't wait to see that happen later." Shauna said
"Yeah, I could imagine all the performers getting shocked by her charm." Tierno agreed
"I still can't believe that she still does that." Trevor said
Meanwhile, after the young couple pulled away, they whispered three words to each other, and the exchanged another one to the delight of everyone.
"Marvelous!" another familiar voice has been heard
"Where have you been, Professor?" Ash asked the researcher
"I just went to the comfort room and missed the announcement." He replied "Kinda had an upset stomach so I might miss the party later."
"It's fine professor." Serena said "We'll bring you some food and medicine later."
"Serena, congratulations!" The professor greeted "Thanks for the offer, but I have complete supplies back at the lab."
"Oh well," Serena sighed "We'll just send you some pics."
"Just don't do anything that will worsen your condition, professor." Grace said
"Yes, of course." He replied
"She did it!" A coordinator announced to another group in Pallet Town while showing an article from her phone
"As expected." Another coordinator said "If it's Ash's girlfriend, there's nothing to worry about."
"Piplup!"
"I'm already excited for Kalos." A young boy said
"Just a few more days, Max." A woman in her thirties said
"Okay, I've got the tickets with me." A man said to the group "Are you sure that you'll stay here, Mrs. Ketchum?"
"Well, there would be no one who would watch the house, so I have to stay until Ash returns." She replied
"They'll be surprised when he sees us." Another trainer said
"Axew!"
-North Boulevard, Lumiose City, 21:13-
"I still can't believe that I won." Serena said to the group
"It'll sink in after a few days." Aria replied "Of course the feeling is normal."
"By the way, what would you do if you retained the title?" Clemont asked the former Kalos Queen
"Well, I'll do a few more shows, but I was planning to retire the title afterwards." Aria said "Now that the title isn't with me, I guess I could rest from my busy schedule."
"When are you going to finish your battle?" Ash asked "It's been months since."
"Wow, you still remember that?" Aria asked
"He's kinda battle-crazy, as always." Serena replied while laying her head on Ash's shoulder
"Maybe when the time comes, Ash." Aria said "And oh, good luck with the Elite Four challenge, I heard from my friends that it is quite hard."
"Well, another challenge is good." Ash replied with enthusiasm "Right, Pikachu?"
"Pika!" (Yes!)
"By the way, about the party, every single performer are present, right?" Bonnie asked
"Well, not everyone." Aria replied "But most of us will be there, like always."
"Oh, I can't wait." Bonnie said while looking at her brother
"Oh, here we go again." Clemont sighed causing the group to laugh
"By the way, where are the others?" Ash asked referring to Tierno and the others
"They are bringing Professor Sycamore to the lab." Serena replied "They'll catch up to the party afterwards."
So that's for this chapter. Kinda short in comparison to the previous one, but that's how it goes. I kinda explained this on the footnotes of the previous chapter, so I hope you understand. Well, what else should I say... Oh right, so the next chapter might not come until the end of July, unless I would be able to get the time to type since I have lots of extra-curricular activities to fix and I want my college life flow as smooth as possible before I go back to procrastination. Just check my profile for more updates from me. Who knows? I might drop a few chapters before July ends. And yes, I'll try to stay online.
Now for the next chapter: The group goes to a party, and questions regarding the showcase from the press are answered. PLUS, some moments from our young couple on the dance floor.
So there we go, TheEnigmatic97 here, peace!