Chapter 21:

Vitor's Rematch: Newbie No More!

Rochfale Town

While Ash's group and Professor Bamb'o were in Professor Cypress' laboratory, the Moki twins accompanied Alain and Mairin to the Pokemon Center. Given that Larkspur's helicopter was no longer occupying the battleground, Natalie and Vitor decided to do some last minute training in preparation for the next day's contest.

"Leafeon, Magic Leaf!" Vitor ordered.

"Counter with Sludge Bomb, Minyan!" Natalie replied.

As Leafeon summoned a mass of glowing green leaves that quickly homed on Minyan, the Mischief Pokemon opened its tiny mouth, releasing a wave of dark purple sludge that stopped the leaves on their tracks.

"Now, Aerial Ace!" Vitor replied.

Fast as lightning, Leafeon jumped above the spot where the two attacks had collided, the leaf on its forehead glowing with a white light. Minyan was unable to stop Leafeon from delivering the unavoidable attack.

"Very good little bro, but you made a mistake there!" Natalie called. "Minyan, Poison Fang!"

Minyan opened its mouth, its two tiny fangs glowing purple, before it sunk them into Leafeon's neck. The Verdant Pokemon screamed from the pain caused by the supereffective move, while several glowing green dots flowed from Leafeon onto Minyan, healing the latter a little thanks to its unique Blood Lust ability.

"And follow with Poison Jab!" Natalie ordered.

"Block it with Iron Tail, quick!" Vitor urged.

Minyan's right claw glowed with a purple aura, as it prepared to slash Leafeon, whose tail had grown stiff and acquired a silvery sheen. Jumping back and twisting its body mid air, the Verdant Pokemon delivered a wide swipe with its metallic tail, swatting Minyan's Poison Jab aside. Both Pokemon glared at each other, as they waited for their respective trainers' next orders.

"It's getting a little late. Shall we call it a day and go back inside?" Natalie suggested. "My Pokemon and I could use some food. And yours could use some rest if they want to be ready for tomorrow."

"Alright," Vitor agreed, as he recalled Leafeon, while Natalie did the same. The two siblings then began walking towards the Pokemon Center.

"So, ready to win your second ribbon tomorrow?" Natalie asked, giving her twin a slap on the back, maybe a little too strong for the boy.

"Eh, yea, sure," he replied.

Natalie stopped, and raised her eyebrow. "You didn't sound very confident."

"I don't know what you are talking about. I ooze confidence!" Vitor replied, trying to put on a confident smile.

Sadly for him, Natalie was someone who could read him like a book and didn't buy the obvious deception. She merely sighed and crossed her arms.

"What are you afraid of, Vitor? I thought that after getting your first taste of victory, contests would look less like an uphill climb," Natalie said.

This time, it was the boy who sighed. "Yes, I know, I won once, so winning four more times shouldn't be a big deal. However, when I won my first ribbon I didn't have to fight against Serena."

"Serena? Are you afraid of her?" Natalie asked, unimpressed.

"You haven't seen her in action, sis. She's good. Like, really, really good," Vitor began to explain, his voice carrying some admiration. "You think you have her against the ropes, and bam! She completely turns the tide of the battle with an out of nowhere tactic. She's a veteran of a similar competition, and her Pokemon are both strong and very experienced."

"I haven't seen her fight, but if she's anything like Ash, I can picture it in my mind," Natalie replied. "Anyway, you can't let the thought of facing her intimidate you. I mean, if I plan to win the Tandor League, it's obvious I need to beat Ash. And you saw that Greninja of his in action. But am I going to let that stop me? Hell no! And you shouldn't let Serena scare you either.

"Besides, with the killer strategy you developed, she won't stand a chance," Natalie confidently said. She slapped his back once again, this time making him wince. "Plus, this is the first time I'm going to watch one of your contests live, so you better put on a good show!"

"I'll try," Vitor replied.

"What was that!?" she snarled, placing her fists on her hips as she shot her brother a burning glare.

"I mean... you'll see such an amazing performance you'll remember it forever?" he asked.

Natalie's scowl disappeared into a smile, and nodded. "Now, that's much better!"

…

The very next afternoon, almost everybody headed towards the town's Contest Hall. As usual, Ash, Clemont and Bonnie, accompanied by Natalie joined the line to buy tickets, while Serena and Vitor entered the building directly through the coordinator's door. After an admittedly long wait, the group of four bought their tickets.

Natalie scowled a little upon reading on her ticket that their seats were among the middle rows. "Man, I wish we could have gotten seats closer to the stage. I wanted to see Vitor up close."

"Given how many people come to see contests, one rarely gets the seats they'd want," Ash surmised. "Still, we have a pretty good view."

"Say, does anybody here sell popcorns, hot dogs, or the like? I could use some-"

"Shh! It's about to begin!" Bonnie shushed Natalie, as Jillian walked into the performance area as the spotlight focused on her. The three usual judges also walked to their seats.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Rochfale Town Pokemon Contest! I'm your host, Jillian Meridian," she began, and the crowd exploded into loud cheers. "Thank you! Also give a warm welcome to the judges that will evaluate our wonderful coordinators: Rochfale Town's own Nurse Joy, the Venesi City Gym Leader Rosalind, and the S-Class connoisseur Ambrose Reigns!"

"Huh. So that's why Nurse Joy wasn't at the Pokemon Center this morning ," Natalie commented, as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Let's hope there isn't a medical emergency."

Jillian then went to explain the rules of the Pokemon Contests for those in the public not aware of them. This time, though, she pointed out that trainers would have to use two Pokemon for both the Appeal Round and Contest Battles. She finished by showing the ribbon the contest winner would take with him or her, before introducing the very first contestant, beginning the Appeal Round.

Coordinators walked in and out of the arena one after the other, their Pokemon doing all kind of performances. Some of the Pokemon duos worked really well together, while those not as well trained got in each other's way. Rosalind and Nurse Joy often passed a positive judgment even to those who didn't appear so good, while Ambrose completely tore down the coordinators' display with brutal verbal beatdowns. Even if the shock value was lost after the first contest, his harsh words drew more than one coordinator to tears.

"Man, that guy's an asshole with a capital A," Natalie said, glaring at the connoisseur. "Vitor wasn't exaggerating when he told me about him."

"It was quite the shock the first time we heard him pass a judgment, but in the end, you get used to it," Clemont pointed out.

"Now, our next coordinator, from Vaniville Town in Kalos, Serena!" Jillian announced, as Serena walked onto the stage.

"There she is! Come on Serena, you can do it!" Bonnie cheered.

"Yeah, make them drop their jaws!" Ash added.

Serena turned towards the small ruckus Ash and Bonnie were making, and waved in their direction, before unclipping two of her pokeballs, and tossed them in front of her.

"Selkid, Chicoatl, go!" Serena called, sending out two of her three Tandorian Pokemon.

One of the pokeball produced a flurry of green leaves, while torrential water poured from the other. The green leaves gathered and formed a flower bud, while the water took the shape of a clam. The bud and the clam opened at once, revealing Chicoatl and Selkid, respectively, before they burst into bits of light.

"Sel!"

"Chi!"

"Let's begin! Selkid, Ice Beam! Chicoatl, Grass Whistle!" Serena ordered.

As Selkid built a large block of ice with her Ice Beam, Chicoatl began to sing with Grass Whistle, and ethereal musical notes began floating around them. This continued until Selkid was done with the block of ice.

"Now let's switch! Selkid, Sing, and Chicoatl, Razor Leaf!"

Chicoatl began to bombard the block of ice with slavos of cutting-sharp leaves, as Selkid continued with the song the Green Chick Pokemon was intoning. A wave of "oohhhh" echoed through the hall as they noticed that the block of ice was taking an actual shape. Or better said, two shapes: Selkid and Chicoatl.

"Now, both of you, keep using Sing and Grass Whistle!"

The admittedly crude statue finished, Selkid and Chicoatl continued their duet, as they danced and moved around the ice sculpture of them, with more musical notes floating around. Some people began to hum the same melody the two Pokemon were singing.

"Now for the big finish, Energy Ball and Water Pulse!"

The two Pokemon went to the opposite ends of the statue, formed their attacks, and launched them above the statue. The two attacks met in the middle, exploding into a shower of water droplets and green energy bits that fell above the ice statue and sparkled under the light of the spotlight.

"And done!" Serena said, as Selkid and Chicoatl posed next to the statue.

The public broke into a loud applause, with many cheers thrown in between.

"Yay, way to go, Serena!" Ash shouted.

"You did great!" Clemont added, as he vigorously clapped.

"I must admit, that was pretty good," Natalie said, clapping as well. "Guess Vitor wasn't exaggerating."

"Thanks for a great performance!" Jillian said with her usual gusto. "Now let's see what our panel of judges has to say!"

As per usual, while Rosalind and Nurse Joy praised Serena for clever use of both visuals and song, Serena only got a harsh comment from Ambrose about making ice cream while singing off-key, though Serena did a good job ignoring him. After that, the Kalosian girl left the stage while Jillian introduced the next coordinator.

…

"Good job out there!"

As Serena returned to the Contestant Box, she was immediately greeted by Vitor, who looked rather impressed by the honey blonde's performance.

"Thanks!" Serena smiled in appreciation. "Chicoatl is a recent capture, and I didn't have much time to train her, but in the end it worked out perfectly."

"Heh, I know that feeling. The two Pokemon I'm going to use are also pretty recent captures," Vitor replied, as he held the two pokeball in question. "But I don't want to wait too much before using them, so they can start getting experience."

"Yeah. Training is all well and good, but nothing helps Pokemon improve more than the real deal. Even if sometimes it costs you a contest," Serena said, before she let out a high pitched gasp and covered her mouth with her hands when she realized the implications of what she just said. "Not that I'm saying that you're going to fail the Appeal Round or anything!"

Vitor, however, merely chuckled good naturedly. "I know. Using more inexperienced Pokemon is always a risk for obvious reasons. But even if it doesn't look like it, judges do keep count of what Pokemon coordinators use. And if a coordinator uses the same two or three Pokemon, and even worse, the same one or two performances, they will grant a lower score."

"Makes sense. People will get bored of any spectacle if it's the same thing over and over again," Serena said, nodding. Then, after letting out a nostalgic sigh, she added: "With how Contests roll, it feels weird to think that I managed to make it all the way to the finals of the Master Class Showcase back in Kalos with just three Pokemon."

"So few?" Vitor asked, raising an eyebrow. "Because it's pretty much impossible to make it to the Grand Festival without a full team. And some coordinators use even more Pokemon."

"Well, one only needed three Princess Keys for the Master Class Showcase," Serena began, expecting Vitor to understand that the keys were the equivalent to the ribbons. "When I had two keys, I pretty much had one foot there. Yet my two ribbons aren't even half of the ones I need."

"You have two ribbons already?" Vitor asked, amazed. "So after you beat me in Moki Town, you went to win another contest. You're on a roll!"

"They have some key differences, but once you get the hang of them, contests aren't that different from showcases, and I have some experience battling," Serena said. "What about you? I'm sure you must have won at least one contest already."

"Well, you're not wrong. I managed to finally score my first win after Moki," Vitor admitted a little sheepishly. "But it took me a while."

"Hey, don't feel discouraged. You only got your first Pokemon a couple months ago. And we aren't even halfway through the season," Serena reassured him. "You still have plenty of time to win the remaining ribbons."

"You seem to be very confident in my skills, aren't you?" Vitor asked.

"Why shouldn't I be? I saw you in action twice. We fought against each other not long ago, and you gave me quite the battle," Serena told him. "Just try your best, and you'll do great."

As Serena's words sunk in, Vitor's eyes were filled with resolve, and nodded.

…

"Now, our next coordinator, from Moki Town, Vitor!" Jillian announced as Vitor made his way onto the stage, with the people launching into an applause.

"There he is! Come on little bro! You can do it!" Natalie loudly hollered, as she got up from her seat.

"Go Vitor!" Ash cheered.

As the spotlight fell on the Moki Town boy, Vitor grabbed a pokeball on each hand, before tossing them into the air.

"Costraw, Cometeor, come out and play!" Vitor said.

The capture devices opened, releasing the Pokemon. A purple snake with a mohawk of the same color and a sucker-like mouth emerged among pink fireworks, while a floating rock with a single pink eye inside a diamond-shaped hole, amethyst crystals growing out of its back, and a single arm made of floating stone pieces came out from a storm of golden stars.

"Heh, look at that Pokemon, its mouth is so weird," Bonnie snickered, as she looked at the snake.

"That rock Pokemon... it looks a lot like the Comite we saw on Comet Cave," Clemont commented.

"Perhaps an evolution?" Ash guessed, as he pulled out his Pokedex and scanned the Pokemon in question.

"Cometeor, the Bolide Pokemon, and Comite's evolution. Rock/Psychic. It levitates in the air with powerful psychic energy. The crystals on its body flash many colors when it meets another of its kind." the Pokedex explained.

"Yeah, Vitor caught that guy as a Comite when we crossed Comet Cave. Guess it must have been pretty strong the moment he caught it, since it evolved in no time," Natalie interjected, before pointing at Costraw. "And shortly after that, we met that one."

"Costraw, the Sucker Pokemon. Poison/Psychic. At this stage of development, its telekinetic powers are weak. It instead defends itself by latching onto its foes and sucking out their life force." the Pokedex said when Ash trained it on Vitor's other Pokemon.

"Sucker Pokemon? Heh, that's not very appealing," Bonnie said, finding Costraw even funnier.

"Don't trash talk my brother's Pokemon until you have seen them in action," Natalie chastised the younger girl. "Look, he's about to start!"

Vitor took a deep breath, before looking at his Pokemon, and issuing the first order. "Cometeor, lift Costraw with Confusion!"

"Cooooom..." Cometeor cried in its buzz-like voice, its only eye glowing blue as an outline of the same color appeared around Costraw, lifting it into the air.

"Very good! Now make it spin, and Costraw, use Sludge!" Vitor said.

Costraw threw a stream of purple goo from its sucker-like mouth into the air as Cometeor spun it mid air, creating a purple swirling tornado.

"Great! Now add Thunder Wave to the mix, Costraw!" Vitor added.

"Traw!" the Pokemon cried, as Costraw's body started to crackle with electricity, as it sent electric waves towards the spinning sludge tornado, creating a flashy mix of dull purple and bright yellow.

"Let's keep it up guys! Cometeor, Ancient Power!" Vitor commanded.

A ring of glowing golden orbs orbited above Cometeor, before they grew into large boulders of the same color. Cometeor then sent said boulders towards the spinning tornado of sludge and electricity, making it even more attractive.

"And now for the big finish! Costraw, Cometeor, compress everything with Confusion!"

"Cos!"

"Meteor!"

The two Pokemon's eyes glowed blue, and the sludge, electricity and rocks, which were forming a tornado of lights, quickly compressed into a single ball, which ended up exploding into a multitude of fireworks-like blasts of purple, black, yellow and orange.

"And done!" Vitor said, just as Cometeor gently placed Costraw on the ground.

The public broke into applause. That, alongside the judges' mostly positive evaluation, made wonders to ease Vitor's nerves about doing well with new Pokemon. He returned Costraw and Cometeor to their pokeballs before thanking them, and returned to the waiting area.

…

About an hour later, the last coordinator finished their performance, bringing the Appeal Round to an end. Now, it was time to see which were the lucky coordinators who moved to the next phase.

"And thus the Appeal Round comes to a close!" Jillian announced. "Now, let's see which coordinators our esteemed trio of judges believe they deserve the most to move onto the Contest Battles!"

Everybody held their breath as one by one, the faces of the eight finalists appeared on the screen. This time Serena scored first, while Vitor was fourth. Once all eight finalists were revealed, the rest of the contestants either sighed in defeat, or groaned loudly, lamenting having been eliminated already.

"Yes! We passed!" Vitor cheered.

"See? I told you you'd do great!" Serena exclaimed.

"Not as good as you, though. First spot!" Vitor congratulated her. "And with a Pokemon you haven't used before!"

"Hey, top half with two Pokemon you haven't used before is nothing to scoff at either," Serena countered.

Their attempt to out-compliment the other was interrupted by Jillian's voice, whose announcement caught the attention of those present there. "Now, let's see which opponent our talented coordinators will have to battle against!"

The eight portraits began to shuffle for a few seconds, before they were paired up. Serena was in the second bracket, and Vitor was in the fourth. They wouldn't fight unless the two of them made it to the finals.

"See you in the finals?" Serena said with a knowing smile.

"You can count on it," Vitor said.

It didn't take much effort for Serena to reach the finals. Her choices this time around were Pancham and Minicorn, since the two of them had proven to work very well together.

Vitor, on the other hand, was using Leafeon once again, as well as his Pahar, which had evolved since the last time she had seen it, being now larger, with a row green feathers at the edge of its wings replacing the yellow ones, with a white and red large feather on its forehead and two smaller green feathers to the sides.

"Palij, the Fire Parrot Pokemon, and Pahar's evolution. Fire/Flying. Its curiously-shaped feathers allow it to create friction in the air as it flaps its wings. Sparks trail off of its feathers when it flies." the Pokedex revealed upon scanning the new Pokemon.

Vitor's Leafeon was as good a battler as Serena remembered, being the one taking the brunt of the fight, with Palij playing a more supportive role, helping Leafeon if it was overwhelmed and providing cover fire. Eventually, the two Pokemon carried Vitor to the finals as well, when they would test their mettle against Serena.

…

"Here it comes, the final battle!" Bonnie said, trembling in her seat. "Serena's about to get her third ribbon soon!"

"Hey, don't knock my brother out before the battle has even begun," Natalie chastised her.

Before either could say anything else, they were interrupted by Jillian, the spotlight back on her.

"And now the Rochfale Town contest reaches its exciting climax!" Jillian excitedly announced. "Everybody ready for the final battle?! On one side, we have Serena, from Vaniville Town, Kalos!"

The public cheered, Ash, Clemont and Bonnie being the loudest. Pikachu and Dedenne cheered as well.

"And on the other side, from Moki Town, Vitor!" Jillian continued.

The public cheered as well, though Natalie's cheers were so loud, they threatened to drown everybody else's.

"Five minutes on the clock! Begin!"

"Leafeon, Palij, come out and play!" Vitor said, tossing his pokeballs forward.

The capture devices opened, one releasing a storm of green leaves and flower petals of many colors, the other a tornado or yellow and orange flames. The petals and leaves merged into a single, large flower, before it burst into a thousand bits of light, revealing Leafeon, while Palij came out of the fiery tornado.

"Pancham, Minicorn, go!" Serena said, mimicking her opponent.

Serena's first pokeball released a flurry of golden stars, the Playful Pokemon appeared among them, turning them into golden dust with well-aimed punches and kicks, while the second one produced an explosion of pink mist with pink hearts added in. From the mist, Minicorn emerged.

"Heh, that's funny. Not only are Serena and Vitor facing each other again in the finals, they're even using the same Pokemon they chose the first time," Clemont said, before he amended: "Well, one of them, at least."

~Serena (Pancham, Minicorn) VS Vitor (Leafeon, Palij) ~

"We'll take the first move! Leafeon, Energy Ball! Palij, Will-O-Wisp!" Vitor ordered.

Leafeon formed a green sphere in front of it before launching it, while Palij exhaled several purplish blue fireballs. The two attacks merged, forming a green orb surrounded by a fiery blue aura.

"Very good, Vitor. But we're better!" Serena said, thrusting a hand forward. "Pancham, Dark Pulse! Minicorn, Charge Beam!"

Pancham cupped its paws, forming an orb of pure darkness, before thrusting them forward, the orb exploding into a beam. Meanwhile, Minicorn's horn glowed yellow, as she fired a straight electrical bolt forward. The two attacks merged into a beam of darkness surrounded by yellow sparks, and the combined move clashed against Vitor's, tearing through it and continuing towards Vitor's Pokemon.

"Quickly, dodge!" Vitor commanded.

Leafeon jumped away while Palij flew upwards just a couple seconds before the spot they were in was blasted by Serena's combo.

Vitor lost ten percent of his points.

"And our two finalists begin with a magnificent combo!" Jillian commented. "But Serena's has proved to be the better, thus Vitor is the first one to lose some points!"

"That means nothing! This battle has only begun!" Vitor said, his confidence unwavering. "Palij, Air Slash on Pancham!"

"Pancham, counter with Stone Edge!" Serena replied. "Do it like we practiced!"

As Palij flapped its wings, sending a few blades of compressed air towards the Playful Pokemon, Pancham slammed his paws on the ground, creating a row of rising rock pillars, each one a little taller than the one before, which successfully blocked the Flying-type move.

Vitor's points dropped even more.

"Now, Minicorn, climb onto those pillars and close the distance between you and Vitor's Pokemon!" Serena ordered.

Minicorn neighed in affirmation, and jumped onto the shortest stone pillar, expertly hopping from one to the other.

"I knew you'd do that!" Vitor said in triumph. "Leafeon, Magical Leaf on the Stone Edge! Slash it to shreds!"

"What? Minicorn, quickly, get off!" Serena shouted.

But it was too late. A mass of green glowing leaves made of energy appeared around Leafeon before they were sent towards the stone pillars, shredding it to smaller rocks and pebbles, including the one Minicorn was on top of, causing the foal Pokemon to fall to the ground painfully, before they disappeared completely.

"Minicorn, are you okay?" A worried Serena asked, without noticing her points dropping for the first time.

Fortunately, the Foal Pokemon managed to get back on her hooves, and nodded.

"Press on Leafeon! Aerial Ace on Minicorn!" Vitor ordered.

Leafeon leaped towards the Normal and Fairy-type Pokemon, its tail and forehead leaf straightening and glowing with a bluish-white light.

"Pancham, block it with Thunder Punch!" Serena quickly ordered.

"Chan, pancham!" Pancham cried, as he landed in front of Minicorn, both fists crackling with electricity, and used them to parry the swipes Leafeon delivered with its forehead leaf and tail.

Both Serena and Vitor lost more points, but Serena continued in the lead.

"Pancham, jump onto Minicorn's back! And Minicorn, Fairy Wind!" Serena ordered.

The moment Leafeon's Aerial Ace ceased, Pancham also canceled Thunder Punch, and jumped backwards with several backflips, landing on the Foal Pokemon's back, as Minicorn wiped out a gust of pink mist with sparkles of the same color.

"Palij, get in front of Leafeon and use Protect!" Vitor ordered.

The Fire Parrot Pokemon descended in front of its partner, and created a green energy shield in front of it, and the pink sparkling wind washed harmlessly over it, costing Serena a few points.

"Now Pancham, Dark Pulse!" Serena ordered.

Once again, Pancham fired yet another stream of black and purple energy towards Vitor's Pokemon. Just as Palij's protect vanished, hitting the unfortunate bird and sending it crashing against Leafeon, finishing in an explosion.

"Leafeon, Palij!" Vitor cried. "Are you guys okay?"

While hurt and a little bruised, Leafeon got back on its feet while Palij returned to the air, the two of them ready to continue the battle to the very end.

Vitor's points dropped even further. He had now lost more than half his points, while Serena still had about sixty percent left.

"This will be over soon. Not that I'm trashing your brother, but Serena's playing him like a fiddle," Bonnie said, sounding less like a boast on Serena's half and more like being sorry for Natalie.

"Nene," Dedenne nodded.

"I know Serena's good, but the match is far from over," Natalie insisted. "There's still half the time yet."

"You aren't wrong but... well, Serena has been dominating the match since its beginning," Ash said, trying to sound gentle. "And I'm not seeing Vitor using any tactics he hadn't used before."

Natalie turned towards Ash, and smirked confidently. "Exactly. That's why I helped my little bro come up with a new tactic. One that's going to turn the tables of this match," she then turned her sight back to the stage, her eyes glinting in anticipation.

From the stage, Vitor looked at Natalie, nodding to each other once their eyes met. Vitor's gaze then returned to Serena.

"You've been doing pretty good, Serena. If the match continued like this, I'd surely lose," Vitor shouted across the stage.

"But that's not going to be the case, is it?" Serena replied. "Let me guess, you have a new tactic up your sleeve?"

"Exactly. I'm going to admit it was luck that I managed to reach the finals without having to reveal it. But now that we're here and I tested what your Pokemon are capable of..." Vitor began, before his mouth curved into a gleeful smile. "Palij, Sunny Day!"

Palij cawed in affirmation as it opened its beak, forming a tiny orb of yellow light. It then launched said ball into the air, expanding its size until it was as big as a beach ball. The artificial sun bathed the stage in a bright yellow light, causing Serena and her Pokemon to shield their eyes momentarily until they got used to the more intense illumination.

"And Vitor covers the stage in a light so bright, it almost feels like we're outdoors!" Jillian said, before looking at the scoreboard. "The judges don't think this action alone merits Serena losing points! Will it be enough for Vitor to turn the tides of the battle?"

"You can bet it will! Palij, Incinerate!" Vitor ordered.

"Pa, pa!" Palij cawed, opening its beak and forming a fireball so large, it expanded out of it, before launching it at Pancham and Minicorn.

"Pancham, counter with Dark Pulse! Minicorn, stay behind Pancham and get ready!" Serena ordered.

"Leafeon, Aerial Ace on Pancham!" Vitor shouted.

As Pancham prepared the Dark-type move and Minicorn hid behind him, a yellow outline appeared around Leafeon while its forehead leaf and tail straightened and glowed with a bluish-white light. Then, Leafeon pretty much turned into a blur and smacked Pancham with the super-effective attack before the Playful Pokemon had time to fire his own move. Meanwhile, the empowered Incinerate blasted Minicorn, devoid of any cover.

"Pancham, Minicorn!" Serena cried, as her points dropped to match Vitor's.

"What? What just happened?" Bonnie asked, flabbergasted, ignoring the smug smile Natalie was shooting at her. "I know sunlight makes Fire-type attacks stronger, but how is that Leafeon moving so fast all of sudden?"

"My guess is that Leafeon's ability must be Chlorophyll," Clemont guessed. "Pokemon with this ability become much faster under strong sunlight."

"So that Sunny Day wasn't just for Palij, but for Leafeon as well," Ash said in realization. "Vitor picked those two Pokemon because they would both benefit from Sunny Day."

"Now, that tactic wouldn't have worked as well had Serena used her Braixen," Natalie argued. "But we checked Serena's previous contests, and we saw she used Braixen in her latest contest battle, so the chances of using her again were minimal. Vitor has this in the bag."

"Don't be so sure. That's a very sound tactic, but this isn't the first time Serena has been against difficult odds!" Ash replied, as his eyes drifted towards Serena. "I'm sure she'll be able to overcome Vitor."

…

Back on the stage, the new status quo had allowed Vitor to mark the pace of the battle and move onto the offensive.

"Leafeon, Energy Ball! Palij, Air Slash!" Vitor ordered.

As Leafeon fired yet another orb of green energy, Palij flapped its wings and launched a pair of blades of condensed air into its partner's attack. The two attacks merged into a crescent shaped blast of green and yellow energy.

Serena, however, wasn't planning on just letting the attack land.

"Minicorn, stop it with Charge Beam!" Serena called.

Minicorn's horn crackled with yellow sparks, before firing a yellow electric beam towards the combination move. Even if it managed to slow it down, Vitor's attack tore through the yellow beam with little effort. However, Serena wasn't expecting to stop the combination completely with a single attack.

"Now Pancham, Thunder Punch!" Serena ordered.

Pancham clenched his paw into a fist, which was engulfed in yellow sparks, and delivered a powerful blow to the Energy Ball/Air Slash combo, which, alongside Minicorn's Charge Beam, managed to destroy the attack completely, resulting in an explosion of yellow and green sparkles.

As Vitor's points dropped, Serena got her lead back.

"And now, let's get rid of that Sunny Day! Minicorn, use Fairy Wind around Pancham to shield him! And Pancham, Dark Pulse towards the artificial sun!" Serena ordered.

Pancham and Minicorn cried in agreement, as the latter summoned a tornado of sparkly pink mist around the Fighting-type –putting care to ensure he wasn't harmed by the move– while Pancham fired a stream of dark power towards the artificial sun glowing above them.

"Palij, block that Dark Pulse with Protect! Leafeon, Aerial Ace on Pancham once again!" Vitor ordered.

The Fire Parrot Pokemon barreled towards Pancham's attack, encasing itself inside a green energy bubble just as it successfully intercepted the move. Leafeon wasn't so lucky, as it slammed against the impromptu shield of pink wind protecting Pancham, pushing it back.

Both coordinators lost points, with Serena still in the lead, having a quarter of her points left.

"One minute left!" Jillian reminded the two finalists.

Vitor looked at the scoreboard, and desperation began to settle in as he seemed to realize that his tactic wasn't yielding the results he was hoping for. Still, he managed to calm down, and shoot Serena a look full of resolve.

"You're a really tough nut to crack, Serena. It seems no matter what I try, I just can't defeat you," Vitor said.

"I still think you have the potential to do great things if you try your best," Serena replied, her eyes also glinting with determination. "That doesn't mean I'm not going to do my best either!"

"Alright then, in that case, time to play my last card! Palij, grab Leafeon and fly into the air!"

After cawing in affirmation, the Fire Parrot Pokemon gripped Leafeon by its back with its talons, and showing far more strength than its lithe body would suggest, Palij lifted the Verdant Pokemon into the air.

Ash could see Serena smirking. Ash had used this very tactic against her during one of their spars not long ago, and the girl from Kalos clearly remembered the weaknesses she had found on it. If she was able to repeat what she did against him, then victory would be hers.

"Palij, use Incinerate and keep flying towards them! Leafeon, get ready!" Vitor said.

"Pancham, Minicorn, stay together, and use Dark Pulse and Charge Beam to counter that Incinerate!" Serena ordered.

Once again, Pancham and Minicorn fired their ranged moves, the two attacks merging into a stream of darkness surrounded by lightning, which tore through Palij's fireballs, the additional power they carried from Sunny Day proving to be insufficient to match two attacks at once, and it continued its way towards the Fire Parrot Pokemon and its Grass-type passenger.

With the additional weight of Leafeon, Palij would be unable to dodge, and right after using Incinerate it wouldn't be able to set up Protect in time. The moment the attack struck, Serena would have won.

But Vitor had something else in mind.

"Palij, drop Leafeon and fly away! Leafeon, Solar Blade!" Vitor called.

"Solar what!?" Serena repeated.

Palij dropped the load, and without Leafeon's weight to drag it down, it managed to fly away from the Dark Pulse/Charge Beam combination. Meanwhile, Leafeon's forehead leaf and tail began to glow with a golden light, quickly doubling in size, and soon as it landed, it slammed Pancham with the former and Minicorn with the latter, resulting in twin explosions of golden light that launched Serena's Pokemon in opposite directions.

Serena lost many points.

"No!" Bonnie cried.

"YES! Go Vitor!" Natalie loudly cheered, getting up from her seat.

BZZZZZZ!

"And time's out!" Jillian declared after the buzzer rang. "The winner of the Rochfale Town Contest is...!"

Both Serena and Vitor quickly turned their heads towards the scoreboard. Serena had little over a tenth of her points. Vitor had about fifteen percent.

"...Vitor, his Palij and his Leafeon!" Jillian cried.

The scoreboard changed to show Vitor's picture next to two smaller pictures of Palij and Leafeon, with the word "WINNER!" written under it.

"I won...?" Vitor repeated, as the results of the battle took a couple seconds to set it. "I won! I did it! I defeated Serena! Come here you guys!" Vitor said, and the equally joyous Palij and Leafeon basically pounced at their trainer, knocking him on his butt. The three of them laughed together.

Meanwhile, Serena just sighed sadly. Pancham and Minicorn, battered and bruised, but still with enough energy to walk on their own, practically dragged themselves towards their trainer, both looking at her with guilty eyes. Serena just smiled, and crouched next to them.

"Hey, you guys were amazing, so don't feel bad for now winning, okay?" Serena said, before looking at Vitor. "The last time we fought, I told Vitor that there was no shame in defeat, and that if he kept working hard, he'll eventually reach his dream. Let's apply that to ourselves, alright?"

Both Pancham and Minicorn nodded, before Serena recalled them to their pokeballs. A couple seconds later, Vitor walked towards Serena, and extended his hand at her.

"Hey, great match, Serena," Vitor said, smiling at her.

Serena smiled back, and took his hand. "Congratulations for your victory, Vitor. A well earned win."

"Hehe, thanks. Though, if it's any consolation, you made us work a lot for it," the brown haired boy replied.

"I'd hate it if I was an unworthy opponent," Serena replied. "Let's keep training hard so the next time we meet in a contest, our battle will be even better!"

A few minutes later, Vitor and his two Pokemon were standing on a small podium, the three judges and Jillian next to him.

This time, it was Ambrose who presented the winner with the box that held the ribbon inside. "Congratulations brat. You proved yourself the least awful of this sorry lot."

"Uh... thanks?" Vitor replied, unsure, as he grabbed the Rochfale Ribbon. However, as soon as the prize was in his hand, he pushed Ambrose's barbed comment, letting the euphoria of victory fill his whole body. He raised the ribbon above his head. "Yes! My second ribbon!"

"And thus, the Rochfale Town Contest comes to an end! I hope you have a great time, and see you next time!" Jillian said, officially ending the contest.

…

Two Hours Later, Pokemon Center

After the contest was over, the group bid the Moki Twins goodbye, as they left Rochfale Town and headed for their next destination, Bealbeach City, as soon as possible. The siblings couldn't wait to get there, since that city was where their father worked at the Tandor Ranger HQ, so it would be a great chance to see him and catch up.

Even if it was the group's next destination as well, having both a Pokemon Gym and a Contest Hall where a contest would take place soon, Serena said that after her loss she didn't have the energy to get on the road so soon and wanted to rest first before continuing their journey. Thankfully, the rest of the group was gracious enough to accept her request and delay their journey until the next morning.

So here they were now, at the Pokemon Center. Ash and Clemont were on the adjacent battlefield, having a light spar –Orchynx has been learning how to use Iron Tail, and Ash believed a battle would give her the final push to master such a move–, while Serena was sitting at the lobby, Pokedex in hand, having just retrieved Pancham and Minicorn from Nurse Joy, the two Pokemon being back to full health.

Right now, she was reading the Pokedex's entry on Solar Blade. It was created merely two years before by an Alolan trainer, who took the principles behind Solar Beam, but had his Pokemon release the stored solar energy in the form of a blade rather than a beam. While it sacrificed range, it was more accurate, and the Pokemon's own strength was added to the attack, which was a perfect fit for a Grass-type.

"Hey Serena!" as if appearing out of nowhere. Bonnie suddenly piped in, startling Serena. "Whatcha doing?"

"Oh, um, hey Bonnie," Serena replied. "I'm looking at something at the Pokedex. I thought you were watching Ash and your brother spar?"

"Eh, I was, but they're going easy on each other and it's not as exciting to watch as usual," Bonnie said with a shrug, before she peeked at what Serena was checking on her Pokedex. "Solar Blade? Are you finding info on that because it's the attack Vitor used to beat you?"

"Yes. Well, yes, but not just that," Serena clarified. "It's not just that he used that attack to win, it's that I wasn't even aware that such an attack existed."

Bonnie read the part of the text was was visible on the screen. "Here it says that this attack has been developed recently. So not a lot of people knew about it. Ash and Clemont didn't."

"But Vitor did," Serena countered, somewhat bitterly. She uncounsciously grabbed her blue ribbon. "And he's still a beginner trainer."

There was a moment of silence after Bonnie picked up Serena's upset mood.

"Are you... are you sad that you lost this contest?" Bonnie asked somewhat hesitantly.

"What? Oh no, of course not!" she reassured the younger girl. "Sure, losing is never fun, but I already made peace with the fact that you can't win all the time, and that failure is a part of life."

"I see," Bonnie replied, not all that convinced. "If you say so..."

Serena smiled, and placed a hand on Bonnie's shoulder. "Don't worry about me, Bonnie. I'll be much better after a good night of sleep."

Bonnie didn't say anything. She just smiled back –though Serena could tell her smile wasn't entirely genuine–, nodded and returned to the battlefield in order to continue watching her brother battling Ash, leaving Serena alone once again.

Author's Note: Yep, Serena lost the contest. I think we all know she was due for a loss, given her previous two wins in a row. And boy, it seems that Vitor, despite being a beginner, is improving at such a brisk speed if she's able to defeat Serena so early in their rivalry. Does this mean that Serena will be left behind as the gap keeps growing bigger?

I think I said in the past that I wanted Serena and Vitor's relationship to mimic Ash and Sawyer, with the two of them helping their respective rivals reaching their full potential while still trying to stay ahead of them. That similarty runs down much deeper, since I also wanted to show Vitor as somebody who's really good at coming up with clever tactics and has the foresight to do some research into what Pokemon can do and what attacks can learn rather than mere training, but who is dragged down by his own inexperience. And as you can see, the moment he acquires some experience, he's somebody that can give you a bad time.

Well, now that the contest is over, there's nothing left to do in Rochfale, and our heroes can continue their journey to Bealbeach City, which is a point where the story will get really good (and if you played the game, you know what I mean). But before that, we will see the fallout of Serena's defeat, and what effect it had on her.

Thanks a lot to Viroro-kun, Fox McCloude, John, 61394, and hirowriter for reviewing last chapter, and special thanks to Viroro-kun for his great job betareading this chapter.

And as usual, don't forget to leave a review with your thoughts on this chapter, and see you next time!