I'm not a big fan of Sun and Moon or Journeys. Of course there will always be an audience that can relate to them, but for me XY&Z will mark the end of an era. Sure, Ash is only leaving the anime at the end of JN, but the gyms, the league as we know it, the Champion and Elit 4 system, all of that is gone with XY&Z. So yes, you can tell me that he fights against the members of the Council 4 in the last season, but I think it's such a shame that they didn't do something more special: dedicated rooms, having to chain the different members without a break in between, just to make it clear that this is not a fight against a random trainer, but against the elite of the trainers, and I need more than a title given by a commentator to understand that...
Fuchsias are ringing
Fifty. That was the number of trainers who had entered the competition. Serena was the nineteenth to pass, so there were thirty-one coordinators left. And each of them, like all the others before them, had to go on stage, greet the crowd, perform for about three minutes, and then leave the spotlight to make room for the next one.
Waiting to pass, waiting for the results, always waiting. Did the organizers of this competition take malicious pleasure in playing with the contestants' nerves? Serena was beginning to think so. She missed the qualifying rounds of showcases. They went on stage, performed, and the results were announced almost immediately. It was a fast method that didn't give you time to breathe between the action and the inertia. There was always fear and anxiety, but no time to really be aware of it.
Now Serena had plenty of time to think about her performance. Of course, the only moments that pounded in her head were when she miscoordinated a step or when the attack didn't come at the exact moment she wanted. She counted her mistakes and compared her performance to others. Even without counting Lisia, Serena had the feeling that everyone else was doing better than her.
The girl had the feeling that the temperature in the waiting room had risen again. And it wasn't just because of the firetypes waiting outside their pokéballs. The chatter was getting louder as well. The grand rants and declarations of victory of the beginning had fallen silent. There was barely a comment when a trainer walked by, at best a joke to lighten the stifling atmosphere.
Only Chaz remained true to himself. This boy had a great mastery of the art of persiflage, and he did not hesitate to use this "quality" to bring down to earth the trainers who, a few seconds before, thought they were the kings of the world. No one dared to argue or protest, for no one could deny the talent of the trainer with the sardonic smile.
Serena watched him. The trainer's behavior annoyed her, but she obviously wouldn't be the rebel of the group. In any case, Chaz hadn't said anything about her performance, so she had no reason to make a fuss. At the same time, being ignored didn't make her feel any better either. The trainer looked up at the neon lights dimmed by the dust. She already knew she wasn't going to win, but if she was going to lose, she wanted to do it in a decent way.
The last coordinator waved to the crowd. Serena huffed, she was finally going to be set. She wasn't the only one in this state, everyone was eager to be free of uncertainty. However, the host Vivian Meridian was not yet ready to grant the brave competitors this favor. Instead, she addressed the crowd and gave them a long explanation on how to vote for their favorite coordinators. Ten, they had to choose the ten trainers they thought deserved to advance to the second phase.
"It was easier when it was just the jury," grumbled one coordinator.
"I don't like having my work judged by people who don't know anything about it either," said another trainer. "At least for the second phase, only the jury will judge the performances."
"That's good, because imagine the mess if they had changed that too!"
The word spread, as if complaining would change anything about the results. The Meridian announcer shouted again, breaking the ears of the exhausted trainers. The countdown was over and it was time to show the faces of the chosen ones. The big screen once again drew all eyes. The faces of Lisia and Chaz appeared first, but no one was surprised. Now the people gathered in the small room held their breath, desperately hoping to see familiar faces.
Serena closed her eyes. After all, she didn't want to know. The girl was afraid of her own contradictions, but she couldn't help it. The cries of joy from all over the room were one less chance for her to be one of the chosen ones.
"Charman!" she heard.
Was it her pokemon? At least it looked that way. She dared to open her eyes, all the faces were finally visible. She started with the last one, it wasn't her. She scrolled through the pictures one by one. Still not, still not, and her heart was pounding so hard that her lungs were vibrating. She paused, carefully studying each feature of a face she thought she knew. Still unsure, the girl looked down at her pokemons, their satisfied smiles making it clear that she was not mistaken. Sixth. They were sixth!
"We did it!" Serena shouted.
Her outburst of joy earned her angry looks from the other contestants, but she didn't notice, too busy congratulating her pokemons.
"Well, let's move on to the drawing of lots for the fights," suggested an unchained Vivian, quickly encouraged by the shouts of the crowd.
No sooner said than done, Serena's face fell as a bitter taste filled her mouth when she saw the face of her first opponent.
"Lisia," she said dazedly.
She hoped that someone would come and tell her that this was just a bad joke or a nightmare. Probably it was, she was lying in her bed and dreaming about the competition because of the stress. Soon she would wake up and the world would have the decency not to make Hoenn's best coordinator her first opponent. Especially knowing the promise she had made to a certain salamander.
Serena lowered her head towards her monster, hoping that he would ask her not to face the Top Coordinator. The girl knew that Charmander was not stupid, even if he wanted to, he would inevitably realize the difference in level this time. But her friend was already practicing some stretches, not caring that he was about to be sent directly to the hors combat. Serena brought her hand to her heart, how to tell him... Stand firm and tell him that fighting Lisia is not reasonable, Serena's reason whispered.
"Braixen, will you fight with me in the first round?" the girl asked with a narrow smile.
Serena never thought that it was possible to insult herself so much. But that's what her ego and super-ego were doing, the way she was deflating. Anyway, the vixen did not accept it and signaled for the trainer to talk to the main person. You're not helping me, Serena whined. The girl took courage in both hands and knelt down to talk to the fire reptile.
"I'm sorry Charmander, this fight could be difficult, too much for your first official match..."
The fire pokemon's scream cut her off, and she was surprised by the look he gave her, a mixture of anger and sorrow.
"Believe me Charmander, I have faith in you, but this fight will really..."
"Der!" the pokemon shouted again.
Fire burned in the shapeshifter's gut as he saw those big blue eyes judging his weakness. Lisia was strong, but so what? He was still the Kalos League finalist, the trainer with the unpredictable style. He would find a solution to counter the Top Coordinator, Serena would just have to follow.
"Anyway, it doesn't matter what pokemon you choose, it won't change anything," Chaz scoffed.
Ash raised his eyes to the sky. He did not need the blonde's comments; and Serena not responding, as if she agreed with what he was saying. The exuberant coordinator pretended to look at his gold watch, then said with a fake look of concern:
"You're the first to go. Hurry up and get eliminated so we can start the real contest."
"Chaaaa," Ash hissed.
Serena didn't like the tone her pokemon was taking, and judging by Chaz's reaction, neither did he. His face was pale, his mouth opened and closed as if searching for words, and he had one hand in the pocket of his blue jacket. The trainer was surprised by this reaction, and even more so when she saw that Chaz's expression had changed to one of deep disgust. Not the kind of disgust you feel when confronted with something you don't like, but something more primal, instinctive, like a phobia.
Chaz finally moved, heading for the door. His step was less sure, and his hand did not leave his pocket, as if it were clutching something. He took one last look at the small orange creature and finally left the room under the astonished eyes of all the trainers present.
"What was wrong with him?" Serena asked. "Anyway, Charmander, you..."
He didn't give her time to finish. He walked to the door that was left ajar and entered the corridor that would lead to the field. Serena had just demonstrated her incredible authority in front of all the trainers present, earning her the laughter of her companions. Red with shame, she stood up and left the room to rejoin her pokemon.
Sitting quietly on the battlefield, Ali carefully cleaned her cottony wings. She didn't have much else to do since her opponents were late. Vivian checked her watch, ready to disqualify the competitor if she did not show up in the next five minutes.
Lisia sighed, she didn't really blame Serena for making her wait. On the contrary, she suspected that the young girl was probably hesitating about which pokemon to use against her. If she had to choose, the top coordinator would go with Braixen, despite the type disadvantage. She was the one who coordinated best with Serena in the first trial and seemed to have the most experience. The star of the competitions had to admit that she was looking forward to this fight, she wanted to see what this Serena was worth and if she had the potential to be one of the greatest.
Lisia noticed that the crowd in the stands was quite excited. She overheard a few scraps of conversation and it didn't take her long to figure out what the problem was. Cries of "When is it going to start?" could be heard everywhere. The crowd had forgiven Serena for her first delay, not sure if they would forgive this one.
"You're in luck, Serena. I'm willing to do you a second favor," Lisia joked.
The top coordinator reached into her cotton sleeves and pulled out a headset. She was determined to entertain her audience, and to do that, she had to put on a show. Her altaria immediately understood what she wanted and flew to her trainer to surround her with its cloud-like wings. Lisia reached out to her audience and announced with a wink and a cheerful voice:
"It's time for Lisia's Miraculous Contest Scouting!"
The people stood up, applauded and chanted the name of the Top Coordinator. And in this overexcited atmosphere, our dear Charmander, accompanied by his panicked trainer, stepped onto the field.
There was a great silence when the audience noticed them. Even Lisia lost her rhythm and almost stumbled, but luckily her pokemon was there to discreetly catch her. Charmander was undoubtedly the weakest pokemon in the girls' team, if not the entire tournament. The Kalosian's choice was so strange that Lisia wondered if Serena had understood who she was facing, or if she was playing a bad joke on her.
"Serena, I don't think Charmander is a very good choice," Hoenn's best coordinator tried to smile.
No need to tell her, the Kalosian was well aware of that, but the little monster refused to listen to her, so...
"He's the one who wants to fight," the young girl admitted, her shoulders hunched.
Lisia removed her earpiece, barely believing what she had just heard. A kind of silent plea not to take this fight too seriously and spare the weak reptile unnecessary injuries.
Was this Serena making fun of her? Still, the Top Coordinator could understand that the young Charmander was not an easy character to deal with, or that the rookie coordinator found it difficult to say "no" to her partner. Yes, Lisia would have preferred it a thousand times... at least she would have accepted those excuses. But how could she convince herself of that when the liar's true thoughts were so obvious. Something like, "Whether it's him or one of my other pokemons, it won't make much difference anyway", and Charmander was a convenient scapegoat with his "stubborn character". Great, wonderful, his opponent came to the field without the slightest ambition to win. In short, a great waste of time. To think that the star of the competitions had hoped that this former artist would one day become a formidable coordinator, capable of pushing her to her limits and making her shine like never before. She had made a big mistake. She would never get anything out of a trainer with so little willpower. Lisia sighed, she didn't feel like fighting at all.
"Good! We can start with the first fight. You have five minutes to make your pokemon shine!" the commentator shouted, not wanting to waste any more time.
Ash was ready to fight, Serena much less so. The bell rang, and the Kalosian gave her first command. It was reassuring to see that her pokemon still listened to her, but it was little consolation. The flames the reptile had launched were absorbed by Ali's feathers. The white wings burned, but the bird was unaffected. It flew away, leaving a trail of fire that lit up the battlefield. Serena gazed at the blue monster, without noticing its points coming down at a crazy speed. It wasn't until Ali passed by the scoreboard that the girl noticed that the circle of light under her image had shrunk by a good quarter. Just by parrying Charmander's attack!? terrified Serena.
Ash ignored his friend's panic, more concerned with finding a way to defeat Lisia's partner. It had to be said that the reflection was not easy with that winged monster that kept running at him.
"Look out!"
Serena's scream allowed him to free himself just before Dragon Pulse hit him. Ash shuddered as he noticed the hole that had formed where he had stood a few seconds before. He's aiming at me... It was an obvious statement, and yet the shapeshifter had only just realized its meaning. He tried to control himself, but the fear of an attack did not leave him. He could not think of anything else, and in these conditions, it was impossible to work out a strategy.
Ali landed on the ground. Ash stepped back, panicking at the thought of what the pokemon had in store for him. He was suddenly stopped by an obstacle at his back. Ash jumped and turned quickly before realizing that it was Serena's leg that he had hit.
"Charman!" Ash suddenly remembered and turned his attention back to the winged monster.
But the altaria had not moved from its spot, content to yawn.
"Charmander, we should stop here," Serena admitted.
Ash immediately disagreed, preferring to charge his opponent, hoping that close combat would work better than ranged attacks. Ali looked at the weak little monster running towards him with bored eyes. He didn't care about the claws that came at him and just pushed them away with the back of his fluffy wing.
"Do you mind?" Lisia asked. "After seeing your fear at the mere thought of your friend being left alone, I didn't think you'd let him be ridiculed in public."
Serena tensed and gave the salamander a nervous glance. The reptile huffed and puffed, already reaching its limit.
"I tried to explain to him, but he wanted to fight at all costs!" the girl defended herself.
"Don't blame Charmander!" Lisia reprimanded her. "In fact, you should thank him. He must be the only pokemon who accepts to work hard for a trainer who imagines his defeat before the beginning of a fight."
Serena was stunned. But she couldn't prove her opponent wrong, she had never thought she would win.
"Give up!"
Serena turned to the stands, not knowing where the shout had come from. It had just emerged from the crowd, loud enough to drown out the other sounds.
"You're wasting our time!"
Again? The voice was different, but it, too, came from the people massed in the stands.
"Get out!"
A new shout, quickly followed by others of the same kind. Some people had even stood up to make sure their voices reached the Kalosian. Hearing her pokemon's scream of pain, Serena turned her attention back to the field and hurried to give her instructions. She tried to ignore the boos from the crowd, but the people's anger grew louder. They were booing her, mocking her idiocy, criticizing those who had made the mistake of voting for her in the first round.
"Der!" her pokemon shouted, urging her to give him another command.
But the young girl stuttered, caught up in her own words, which turned into incomprehensible gibberish. Her friend needed her, but she couldn't even articulate properly. This caused the crowd to gossip even more.
Serena could barely breathe, feeling as if the air had become a viscous substance dripping into her bronchi. She threw a desperate look at her opponent, but she was content to reply sarcastically:
"I'll give you one piece of advice: do not waste your time or anyone else's time participating in contests."
Lisia had made sure to articulate each of her words to make it clear that she expected nothing more from her opponent. Serena felt a burning that started in her stomach and went up behind her breastbone until it reached her throat. She wanted to run, to get out of here and never come back. I don't want to compete anymore...
Ash hadn't heard any commands in a while. He turned to the trainer, wondering what she was doing. The fake pokemon's eyes widened. His friend was shaking, her skin was pale, she wasn't even looking at the fight. She was completely panicked. Ash wanted to give her back her confidence, and he had achieved the opposite. But he didn't know what he could do to help her except win this fight. Damn body! Everything would be fine if I had more power!
"Ali, there's no need to make Charmander pay for his trainer's incompetence," Lisia sighed.
The shapeshifter turned to the Top Coordinator. Ali had stopped his attacks and walked nonchalantly back to his mistress. He didn't understand, he was the one who lost, he was the one who lacked strength, so why say something so horrible about Serena.
A shiver ran through the reptile's body. He focused his ears on the indecipherable noise he had ignored until then. The sound vibration hit his eardrum, was amplified by his ossicular chain until it reached his cochlea. The mechanical information was converted into a series of electrical signals and sent to his brain for interpretation. The information circulated for a long time between different areas of the brain until Ash discovered its meaning. They criticized her, said she was an idiot. All the hatred directed at Serena terrified the former human.
He hurried over to the girl, who was clutching her shoulders nervously. She mumbled incomprehensible phrases.
"I am irredeemable."
That was the only thing the girl could articulate. Ash looked at her, not daring to call out to her, too afraid that she would turn her hateful eyes on him. The regular beeping of the timer continued, and cries of relief could be heard in every corner of the room.
If only I had won, you wouldn't have had to go through all this.
"Charmander," Lisia called. "It's not your fault, you can't help an empty shell."
An empty shell? the shapeshifter repeated, stunned, without taking his eyes off the unresponsive trainer. Would winning really have fixed everything? Ash suddenly wondered.
His face burned. He touched the scaly skin of his cheek, it was boiling. He looked up at the spotlights hanging from the ceiling, probably where the heat was coming from. He looked at the false light, and when he turned his eyes back to Serena, small phosphenes remained and disturbed his vision.
Lisia and all those people, they criticized her without even knowing her. Serena had always helped him, even more since his metamorphosis. And they mocked, denigrated the one who had not hesitated to brave the rain to find the weak monster that he was. No, it was not the others' fault. It was him, and him alone. That trainer, disguised as a pokemon, who had only thought about fighting and had ignored his friend's feelings.
The flashes of light that disturbed his retina stopped. Ash left the girl and walked to the center of the field. He scanned the faces of the inconsistent humans, he listened to the buzzing voices, he breathed the air spoiled by the pungent smell of his own attacks.
I wanted to help you. But it was you who took care of me, who protected me, who... let me go with you. And I ignored you.
"Charman," he called softly to his trainer.
He didn't think she would hear him, much less look up to show him those blue eyes filled with doubt and empty of hope. He took a deep breath, she wouldn't forgive him for his behavior, but at least...
Ash screamed. His diaphragm crushed his lungs, squeezing the alveoli until they were empty of air. Gossip died on the lips as all attention was now focused on the weak creature.
"No one laughs at my trainer," the intangible voice of the pokemon had managed to find a perfectly tangible meaning in the minds of the spectators. No one knew what to say, they looked at each other, waiting for someone to dare to reply. But nothing, everyone was deflated, even Lisia did not try to make a comment.
Serena watched the silent stands, perhaps she was the only one who did not understand the exact meaning of her friend's words. But at least she had realized that he had tried to take over her defense. She concentrated on the reptile, whose flame had faded slightly. She still could not believe that this little creature had frightened all these people with a simple scream. "You're really amazing, maybe too much for me," the young girl murmured.
"Cha!" Ash shouted, pointing to the stopwatch that was entering the last thirty seconds of the allotted time.
"Do you think we have a chance?"
He shrugged and nodded that he didn't care.
"If we can shut them up, that's fine with me," he finally said, giving Lisia and the people in the stands a defiant look.
The lizard's words were still unintelligible, but Serena began to smile before breaking the silence with a crystalline laugh. Ash puffed out his cheeks and looked offended to better hide his joy at seeing his friend relax.
When Serena managed to calm the spasms that shook her ribs, she brought her hand to the blue ribbon that adorned her outfit. Charmander always did what he wanted, putting her in impossible situations, but... she felt that he was always watching over her. A kind of warmth that always surrounded her and reminded her that she was not alone.
"Charmander, we don't give up until the end!" Serena shouted.
Ash loved that look, and he was going to make sure it didn't go away. The salamander's flame began to burn brighter. Faced with this renewed energy, the Top Coordinator signaled for her pokemon to return to battle. Ali rose into the air, his wings moving without a sound.
"Do you think you can take him down?" Serena asked with a smile that you couldn't tell if it was nervous or confident.
"Der," the fake pokemon nodded.
"Then use Ember."
Ash felt his face burn. He opened his mouth wide and spat out a stream of flame that turned into a whirlwind of fire that enveloped his opponent. The dragon pokemon landed on the ground, folding its wings around its body and watching the flames swirl around it. It had no doubt that it could pass through them unharmed, but it wasn't going to be satisfied with something so simple.
"You were saving that fire spin as an asset? It won't change anything. Ali, Moonblast!"
Ali spread his wings on both sides of his body. A ball of energy materialized in front of him. All he had to do was release the attack to create a magnificent fireworks display. Suddenly, an orange shape emerged from the wall of flame and stood in front of the altaria.
"How!?" cried Lisia in front of the apparition.
"Scratch!"
The reptile's attack tore the pink ball apart and it exploded into flakes. Lisia's score dropped, she hadn't expected such a counterattack.
The fire pokemon was preparing a new attack under the guidance of its trainer, the deep breath he took showed that he was ready to take them down. Lisia did not move despite the screams of her pokemon, completely bewitched by the alchemy she sensed in her two opponents. The clock's shrill scream startled Ash and stopped his attack.
"And the victory goes to Lisia! Congratulations!" Vivian shouted after a while.
Ash looked at the sign to make sure there was no mistake. But he had to face the fact that Lisia had won hands down. And the crowd did not refrain from cheering.
The shapeshifter did not have the strength to stay upright. He sat down in the middle of the field. He had lost, but this was a different kind of disappointment than the fights in the gyms. This failure was much more bitter, much more irritating. A presence at his side made him look up, and his eyes met his trainer's. She took him in her arms and pressed her forehead against his. Ash froze, feeling the flow of blood accelerate through his scales.
"You fought well for your first contest, I am proud of you! And... thank you for giving me courage," she whispered to him.
Ash relaxed, enjoying the soft touch. He closed his eyes, hoping she wouldn't leave too soon. Lisia watched them, fascinated and amused at the same time.
"I have to admit, it was a good idea to use Charmander," she laughed before leaving the room.
The two defeated were back in the waiting room. The next set of coordinators prepared to go through with their pokemons: nervous, confident, they all raised their hopes for victory, but for the Kalosian, the competition was over.
"Sorry, we lost the first fight," Serena apologized to her pokemons.
Braixen grabbed her trainer's hand, Sylveon wrapped her ribbon around the girl's arm, while Pancham raised his glasses in embarrassment, not daring to come closer. They really didn't want Serena to feel sad for a simple defeat. The Kalosian felt good, and her pokemons supported her, and that was the most important thing.
"I'm sorry too, in the end I couldn't..." Ash said sheepishly, his back arched.
"Serena wouldn't have found the strength to smile without you," Sylveon disagreed, quickly joined by the others.
"Even if you could have avoided waiting the last thirty seconds to defend her," Braixen remarked, making the reptile wince.
Still surprised by the fairy's answer, Ash asked:
"Are you sure she's okay?"
The fairy pokemon stared at the fake pokemon for a moment before wrapping one of her free ribbons around the reptile's arm. Sylveon positioned herself so that Serena could not see the strange circle that had just been created. Ash did not move, concentrating on the strange sensor that touched his scales. He felt diffuse discharges, a kind of electrical soup spreading under his skin. The former human sulked, thinking that being so connected would give him the same abilities as Sylveon. But he had to face the facts, he was unable to decipher this kind of message. Sylveon finally detached herself from the human and the reptile then asked:
"Do you understand?"
"Not really," the shapeshifter admitted.
"Well, it was pretty clear," the long-eared pokemon chuckled.
Ash understood that she would not tell him more. At least Sylveon didn't seem to be angry with him anymore. He turned to the new coordinator, who was smiling broadly. I like it better when you're like this, Ash reassured himself.
They watched the next fights. The final was between Chaz and Lisia, and not surprisingly, the fight ended with the current champion winning.
Serena watched the journalists gather at the entrance to the competition hall. She had had a hard time leaving the building with this human tide blocking the exit in search of the day's big winner. Lisia... the girl had not been able to see her after her match, and perhaps that was for the best.
The sun was about to disappear behind the buildings, a soft breeze caressing Serena's face and causing her hair to fly slightly. She took a deep breath. The mountain, the sea, the vast plain, their scent permeated the evening breeze. Serena was about to leave when someone pushed her from behind. The young girl miraculously regained her balance and quickly turned around to face the person who had made her this bad joke. She was surprised to see a figure dressed in a long coat with a large hat covering his head. The strange person lowered his sunglasses slightly, giving Serena the opportunity to see his face better.
"Li..."
"Shh!" the disguised Top Coordinator interrupted.
The Kalosian glanced nervously at the journalists still waiting at the entrance. To tell the truth, it made her uncomfortable to be alone with her former opponent, especially after what had happened.
"How is Charmander?" asked Lisia.
The one who was involved growled at her, he had not forgotten the hurtful words she had said against her friend.
"Charmander! Don't do that!" Serena panicked.
"Don't scold him too much, he's just trying to protect you," Lisia said.
Serena looked at her monster. He had folded his arms and looked away, as if embarrassed by what the contests star had just said.
"I know. I always get mad at him when he's doing everything he can to help me," Serena admitted, gripping the hem of her dress. "I must be an insufferable trainer.
"I don't think Charmander would go to such lengths for a trainer who isn't worth it," Lisia countered.
The girl did not hide her surprise at these words of consolation. She was sure that Lisia was still angry with her for her poor performance.
"Will I... will I be able to face you again?" Serena asked.
Lisia turned her head to the mountains in the distance. She put her tinted glasses back in front of her eyes and explained:
"I don't want a boring fight."
"I understand," Serena whispered, lowering her head.
"That's why I won't fight you until you qualify for the Grand Festival," the top coordinator added.
Serena raised her head and noticed the hand her opponent was holding out to her. She hesitated to take it, wondering if Lisia was making fun of her.
"Hey Lisia!" she suddenly interrupted.
The Top Coordinator threw herself at the blonde who had just shouted and covered his mouth with her hand.
"Idiot! Triple idiot! What do you think I'm wearing all this stuff for?"
Chaz unfastened himself and pulled on his jacket to smooth out the creases that had just formed.
"Can we go?" he said.
Lisia could not help it. With Chaz around, the journalists would soon notice her. She was about to run away when Serena whispered:
"I won't lose next time."
Lisia smiled. Maybe this girl was the new talent she had been waiting for.
"I can't wait to see it," the Top Coordinator replied as she struck a pose.
The Kalosian was alone with the fire pokemon again. She stretched a little, Serena had gone through a lot of emotions today, constantly wondering if she really belonged here. Now she had made up her mind, she would do everything she could to make sure Hoenn accepted her as a coordinator.
"Lisia is amazing, but we won't be left behind, we will surpass her," the girl said.
Ash watched her. Pride, that was the feeling he had. She seemed to be able to run again without hesitation, to take on the challenges that would be set before her, with the goal of defeating this Lisia.
"Let's go, Charmander," encouraged the girl.
She didn't hesitate and walked forward, while Ash stood motionless and watched her go. He lowered his head, trying to suppress the sadness that was slowly creeping up on him.
"Charmander?" called Serena.
"Der! "Ash shouted back before running towards her.
You shouldn't need me anymore so... I guess it's time to say goodbye.
Lisia was exploring the town with Chaz. The mall was almost empty, the shop windows mostly hidden by thick metal curtains.
"Do you really like it?" the boy asked.
"Oh, oh! Are you afraid she'll steal your place as best rival?" laughed Lisia.
"I'll always be better than her," Chaz replied with a snide tone.
"Not as long as you only want to be seen by others."
The blond man only raised his hands in surrender. However, his expression became more serious as he explained:
"I wasn't telling you about that Serena."
"Then who was it? I haven't seen any other promising trainers in this contest."
"That thing that comes with her."
"That thing? You mean Charmander?"
"Yes... Charmander, as you call it."
Chaz had stopped next to a cracked window and looked at his reflection. Lisia looked at him without saying anything, fearing what would happen next.
"What do I look like?" he finally asked.
"A blond boy, a little taller than me, with a blue outfit and a pretentious smile on his face," the coordinator described.
"What about that?"
Lisia put a finger to her lip, pretending to concentrate before answering:
"A small orange reptile with a flame at the end of its tail that cared more for its trainer than it let on."
"An appearance," the boy murmured, running his fingernail along the crack.
"Chaz?" worried Lisia.
"I looked at it for a long time, concentrated, and still... I could not see the boundary. It had the appearance of a pokemon, the smell, the powers, the characteristics, and yet I... Am I going crazy again?"
Lisia tapped the reflective surface with her fingertip. Chaz turned to his old friend, who was smiling at him.
"You've done a lot of work to get out of that ravine you fell into. Don't fall back in."
Chaz looked at himself in the improvised mirror before he sighed:
"You're right. It's just a charmander with no manners. A small, insignificant pokemon that won't last a second in front of my magnificent Macherie."
"Here we go again," Lisia sighed, not hiding her relief.