Good Love Charm (Advanceshipping, PG-13)

[Gazmof]

Heyhey, welcome to Good Love Charm, my multi-chapter Advanceshipping fic that I've been writing for a couple of years now.

This fic is also posted on Serebii, and it's located here, for those who are curious. I'm posting it here on Bulbagarden since it is coming to a close on Serebii, and it would be nice to get more comments on it before it's totally finished. As a result, I will be posting a new chapter every three days or so until I reach the current chapter on Serebii (18 at the time of writing).

First, some background: This fic takes place just after Dawn's Floaroma Contest during the DP saga, and prior to Ash's Gym battle with Gardenia (since that was how far along the dub was when I first started writing this). As a result, everyone's Pokemon are quite different to what they are currently in the show. That also means that this takes place prior to May's cameo in the Wallace Cup.

Secondly, a short disclaimer: This is an Advanceshipping (Ash x May) fanfiction. If you don't like Advanceshipping, please don't complain about it in your review. I've done my best to incorporate some other shippings as well, but they are mostly hinted at best, and Advanceshipping is the primary focus of the story. I'm all for constructive criticism, but if you're just posting to complain about the feasibility of Ash and May, then please don't bother. Of course I am open to comments from other shippers, even if you are indifferent to Ash x May, so please feel free to let me know what you think of the story.

Finally, the rating: PG-13 for violence, light language, and a bit of innuendo here and there. Nothing too racy, but PG-13 it is. And so... Let's get this show on the road!

~*~*~


​

Chapter List:
Chapter One: The Carnival Rolls Into Town
Chapter Two: Coordinators: Assemble!
Chapter Three: The Reunion
Chapter Four: The Teams Are Set
Chapter Five: Round Three Rumble
Chapter Six: Kisses and Roses
Chapter Seven: May's Confession
Chapter Eight: Nico's Decision
Chapter Nine: May vs Drew? Decisive Battle!!
Chapter Ten: Winding Threads
Chapter Eleven: Precursor to a Change
Chapter Twelve: Team Rocket: Surrounded?
Chapter Thirteen: Midnight Getaway
Chapter Fourteen: Fading Memories
Chapter Fifteen: Homecoming
Chapter Sixteen: The Sleeping Princess
Chapter Seventeen: Drew's Pain
Chapter Eighteen: Ash vs Nico! Battle for May!!

Chapter One:
The Carnival Rolls Into Town​

It was yet another beautiful day in the Sinnoh region, just east of Floarama Town, and Ash, Brock, Dawn and Pikachu were all making their way towards Ash's next Gym battle in Eterna City. In order to get there, however, they would need to go through Eterna Forest, which was still several miles north of their current location. Brock thoroughly checked the region map which lay spread out in his hands as they continued along the path towards Eterna, occasionally flipping it by ninety degrees just in case he had forgotten which way north was.

"Pikachu..." the small mouse commented, poking Ash on the ear nervously.

"Heh, yeah, I know, Pikachu..." Ash whispered back. "Don't worry; Brock's gotten better at reading directions." He then paused for a moment. "Um... I think."

"Pikachu..." the Electric-type groaned back, slumping forward on its trainer's shoulder.

Dawn, meanwhile, was not in the least bit worried about Brock's lack of map-reading skills. The girl with the navy blue hair and white bobble hat simply stared wide-eyed at the orange ribbon in her possession, her eyes sparkling like gemstones as she savoured the delicious taste of victory that had come with her first ever win at a Pokemon contest.

"Heh, you're still pretty excited about your first ever contest win, huh, Dawn?" Ash remarked, slowing down his pace slightly so that he was walking beside the girl.

"It's just..." Dawn muttered, still unable to remove the enormous grin from her face. "It's just such a great feeling! As much as I've dreamt of this, it's still kind of hard to accept it all!"

"Hey, trust me, I know just how you feel!" Ash explained, looking up towards the sky as he spoke. "I still feel that way every time I win a new badge. And that's why I can't wait to get to Eterna city and win my second Sinnoh Gym battle!"

"And I'll be ready to add to my ribbon collection, too!" Dawn giggled, finally returning her contest trophy to its case and placing it in her backpack. "I'm sure you'll do great, Ash!"

"Thanks, Dawn." Ash replied confidently as Pikachu hopped onto his cap for a better view of the hill they were now descending. "I also can't wait to see even more Pokemon from the Sinnoh region!"

The group's attention soon shifted from their conversation as they heard the sound of laughter and cheering from further down the hill. There was a small trail leading off of the main road and into the gates of what appeared to be a large carnival. The gates were decorated with banners and balloons, each masterfully crafted with beautiful and vibrant images of Pokemon.

Beside the gates were two men in clown-like outfits with large flares on their sleeves and ankles, all completely coloured in bright yellow. They were happily handing out fliers to visitors before ushering them into the carnival grounds.

"Oh wow!" Dawn exclaimed excitedly, immediately dashing towards the gate to get a closer look at the action.

"Hey, Dawn!" Ash called out after the girl. "Wait up! Let's go, Brock!"

Brock groaned slightly at this, but nevertheless packed the map into his bag and chased after his two younger companions as they rushed towards the trail which led to the gates.

Sure enough it was a carnival, and from the looks of it quite a large one, as well. Just beyond the white metal gates was what looked like a veritable metropolis of rides and attractions, and hundreds upon hundreds of people were casually wandering between the stalls. In the sky there were numerous Drifloon floating above the proceedings, mingling with balloons and keeping visitors on the ferris wheel entertained.

"I absolutely love carnivals, you guys!" Dawn cried, her excitement impossible to contain. "Can we go in? Come on, please!?"

"Dawn, you know we don't have any money..." Brock sighed.

"That's not a problem!" came the voice of a tall young woman - looking no older than eighteen - with jet black hair and bright, hazel eyes. She was wearing a light-grey business suit and tall high-heeled shoes as well as oval-shaped glasses which glistened in the afternoon sun. "It's free admission for everyone today. The only things that cost money are the attractions."

"Urk!" Brock stammered, before leaping onto his knee and grabbing the woman by the hand. "My dear, do not fear, for no amount of money would ever keep me from gracing your wonderful establishment! Your sheer beauty is worth more than any mere bank note could possibly convey! Men with determination far less than mine have travelled the world, crossed raging seas and walked across bone-dry deserts to find the true definition of beauty, and yet I have found it here, right in the middle of route 205!"

There was an awkward silence at this point, the wind picking up and rushing through the valley as Ash, Dawn and the woman all watched Brock in confusion.

"If it's free I don't see why we can't spend a little time here to rest up," Ash began, walking up towards the young woman, "and besides, it'd probably do us all good to let off some stress from the journey, right?"

"Ash, you're the best!" Dawn exclaimed happily, jumping up and down on the spot. "I'm gonna get some cotton candy, and then I'm gonna try the coconut shy, and then I'll ride in the ferris wheel, and then-"

"Woah, calm down there, missy." the woman laughed casually. "My name's Alisa and this is my carnival. Well, it's my father's, but I help run the attractions."

"It's great to meet you, Alisa." Ash introduced himself as he shook her hand. "My name's Ash, and these are my friends Brock, Dawn and Pikachu."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu greeted the human cheerily as Dawn managed to compose herself, waving to Alisa. Brock meanwhile, was unable to do anything but stare awkwardly.

"It's great to meet you guys, too!" Alisa chuckled, handing each of them a flier. "Our carnival's only in this area for the weekend and there's a lot for you to see, so I'll be sure not to hold you up! If you need anything I'm always inside the main tent. Just tell the guys outside your names and I'll be happy to help you out!"

The group then proceeded to thank Alisa before heading through the gates and into the chaos of the carnival, soon mingling and vanishing together into the crowd.

The carnival grounds were as bustling as any major city in the Sinnoh region; visitors of all ages were happily browsing open-air stalls and lining up for amusement rides. Several street performers were displaying magic tricks and other acts of wonder with the help of their Pokemon, and large tents of every colour adorned the grounds, giving the impression of a thriving, mobile city.

"I wonder if they have any rare Pokemon on display!" Ash thought out loud as the trio continued to make their way deeper into the fairgrounds.

"Pikachu Pika!" Pikachu added excitedly from atop Ash's head.

"I'm gonna go look around by myself, if that's okay with you guys." Dawn suggested, her eyes already drawn to numerous gift stores and souvenir items that they had passed. "Why don't we meet up later?"

"That sounds like a great idea, Dawn!" Ash chuckled. "I can't think of anything worse than having to go follow a girl around a carnival."

"What do you mean by that!?" Dawn growled, almost offended by the naive boy's words.

"Uh, I just mean," Ash mumbled nervously in his defence, "I was just saying that I'd rather go check out other trainer's Pokemon, is all. I'll bet there's tonnes of powerful trainers here, too; just look at all these people!"

"And tonnes of beautiful girls, too!" Brock added, his grin stretching from ear to ear as he stared at the many young ladies passing by.

"Don't worry, Dawn," Ash laughed, "you go off and have fun. We'll meet up with you later."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu squeaked as both it and Ash waved goodbye to the young girl.

Ash then proceeded to grab Brock by the arm, dragging him down yet another path which led deeper into the carnival grounds.

~*~*~​

Dawn was positively overwhelmed by the sheer volume of selection the carnival had on offer as she browsed through the many stalls which lined the dusty roads to and from each tent. There were stuffed dolls and commemorative Pokeballs on sale in one store, cotton candy and chocolate Bunearys in another. It was truly enough to make a young girl's head spin.

After finally willing herself away from the many temptations on sale Dawn decided that the best way to make use of her time here was to see some of the many attractions on display. One tent in particular seemed to call out to her as she wandered further into the carnival: it was coloured a deep, dark red and covered an enormous radius - roughly the same size as a football field - and its front entrance had a curiously short line trailing from it.

Dawn's curiosity was instantly peaked and she decided to get a closer look at the action. There were several trainers outside with their Pokemon, all of them seemingly locked in deep concentration with their chosen partners.

"Must be some kind of battle tournament going on..." Dawn mused out loud as she glanced at all of the trainers before walking into a young lady standing directly in her path.

"Ah!" Dawn yelped in surprise before immediately bowing her head and apologising profusely. "I'm so sorry, I really need to watch where I'm going before I-"

"It's no problem at all, young lady!" came a soft, gentle voice which Dawn had become all too familiar with since she left from her home in Twinleaf Town to start her Pokemon journey just a month or so ago.

Dawn looked up at the woman, who had vivid, pink hair tied up in two buns on either side of her head and was clad entirely in a nurse's outfit. It was none other than nurse Joy - or one of her numerous cousins, at least.

"Nurse Joy!" Dawn greeted, putting a smile on her face as she realised she was in friendly company. "What are you doing here? Are you helping to run the Pokemon Centre here or something?"

"Well, there is that," Joy replied, smiling her typically endearing smile as she spoke, "but I've also been asked to be on the panel of judges for the carnival's Pokemon contest later today."

"Pokemon contest!?" Dawn exclaimed in a mixture of both surprise and excitement.

"Why yes," Joy continued, "that's what all these Pokemon coordinators are training so hard for. It'll be held at three o'clock in this tent, so everyone's putting in as much last-minute training as they can."

"Oh, wow!" Dawn squealed happily, quickly rummaging through her backpack to find her Pokeballs. "So that means if I can win this I'll only need three more ribbons to enter the Sinnoh Grand Festival!"

"Ah..." nurse Joy mumbled, interrupting the rather overly excited trainer that was standing in front of her. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, but this is only an exhibition contest. The ribbon prize isn't a part of the official Pokemon Contest League ribbons."

"Oh..." Dawn sighed, though she quickly brightened up once again. "Well, that's okay! A ribbon is a ribbon and I never say no to a practice contest!"

"That's the spirit!" Joy laughed, entertained by the girl's bubbly attitude. "You just need to register inside the tent. Most coordinators have already registered so the line is pretty short; I'm sure it won't take you too long."

"Thanks, nurse Joy!" Dawn giggled, rushing over to join the back of the line where she opened up one of the Pokeballs she had taken from her bag. "Come on out, Piplup!"

A dim flash of light appeared from the girl's capsule, revealing a small blue baby Pokemon which resembled a penguin. The Pokemon stared up at its trainer curiously, wondering what all the big fuss was about.

"Piplup!" Dawn explained happily, kneeling down next to the Water-type Pokemon and grinning, causing Piplup to nervously back away. "We're gonna enter another Pokemon contest! And we're gonna win another ribbon!"

"Lup?" Piplup enquired, waddling closer to its trainer. "Piplup Piplup!"

"That's the spirit!" Dawn encouraged the small creature eagerly. "We'll prove to everyone why we won the Floarama Town ribbon!"

"Pip-lup!" Piplup added confidently.

Sure enough, as nurse Joy had predicted the registration line quickly dissipated and soon Dawn and Piplup were both standing proudly before the registration counter where a young girl with navy blue hair and thick, round glasses was taking down applicant details.

"Name?" the girl asked with a sigh in her voice. She seemed to be completely bored out of her mind, though Dawn was so confident of her upcoming victory that she paid it no heed.

"Dawn Hikari!" Dawn answered, placing Piplup onto the counter where it stood proudly, pretending to be a famous statue. "And this is my partner, Piplup!"

"Okay." the girl continued, unfazed. "Will that be your battle Pokemon or your appeal Pokemon?"

"Ah, I think I'll have Piplup battle again..." Dawn considered out loud, her grin quickly returning to a more normal smile as she began to contemplate her choices for the appeal round. "Ah, well, I guess I'll enter Buneary for the appeals, too."

"Alright." the girl responded, jotting down some notes on a piece of paper in front of her. "So that's Dawn Hikari, entering with Buneary in the appeal stage and Piplup in the battle stage. Sign here, please."

"Thanks!" Dawn said, quickly jotting down her name and contact details on the contest application form before handing it back to the girl.

"Piplup!" Piplup added, struggling slightly as its trainer picked it back up and placed it on the ground by her feet once again.

"Alright, you're registered." the receptionist explained. "The contest begins at three o'clock, but you should stay around here just in case we need to call you up early."

Dawn nodded happily, accepting her temporary contestant card and placing it around her neck before heading over to the far corner of the tent to formulate her strategy. Casually the young girl placed her backpack on the floor and began to rummage through the pocket which contained her Pokeballs, eventually withdrawing Buneary's and releasing the small, Normal-type Pokemon with the brown fur and large ears out into the open.

Buneary was a small and short Pokemon which vaguely resembled a tame rabbit; it stood on its large, powerful hind legs and stared up at its trainer with its shimmering black eyes. It didn't seem particularly phased by the hustle and bustle of the other trainers who were busy practicing in the tent, and instead simply waited for its orders.

"Alright you guys, listen up!" Dawn announced, kneeling down so that she was at the same eye-level as her Pokemon as they listened intently to her plans for the upcoming contest. "We've gotta pull out all the stops for this contest! It may just be an exhibition match, but that's no reason to slack! Buneary, how about trying out your Ice Beam?"

"Buneary!" the small Pokemon cried out, shooting forth an icy cold ray of blue energy up towards the ceiling of the tent, stopping narrowly before it managed to cause any damage.

"Wow, awesome job, Buneary!" Dawn applauded the creature, who happily hopped to and fro. "You're learning to really control that attack good! Now, Piplup... Huh?"

Dawn's train of thought was broken when she heard another young girl's voice calling out to her own Pokemon. Dawn wasn't quite certain, but there was something about the tone of this voice... The way that she commanded her Pokemon's full attention so completely, yet with such style and grace...

The young coordinator looked over towards the source of the voice to see another young girl, roughly two or so years older than herself, dressed in a light, red jacket and tight black shorts, her brunette hair tied together underneath a vivid red bandana with a white Pokeball marking on the side. She had bright, sapphire-blue eyes that seemed to absorb all the light in the tent, and a fair complexion which was filled with vibrance and energy.

The girl gracefully caught a red plastic disc which came flying into her hand, shortly followed by the girl's Pokemon, a vividly colourful Beautifly that stretched out its wings happily as it landed on its trainer's arm.

"Your Silver Wind has really improved, Beautifly." the girl complimented her Pokemon, feeding it a small purple cube which the creature eagerly lapped up, flapping its wings happily.

"Oh, wow!" Dawn exclaimed as she approached the coordinator, admiring her Pokemon. "That's your Beautifly?"

"Yep, this is Beautifly." the stranger responded, smiling warmly. "It's actually the first Pokemon I ever caught back in Hoenn."

"Oh, so you're from Hoenn?" Dawn echoed, her tone of voice showing how impressed she was. "That explains the clothes. Sinnoh's a lot colder, just to warn you!"

"Heh, thanks." the girl chuckled, allowing her Beautifly to take flight back into the air where it began to shadow-tackle, prepping itself for the upcoming contest. "I've only been here for a little while. This is actually my first contest in this region. My name's May."

May extended her hand warmly, which Dawn eagerly shook.

"Nice to meet you, May." she greeted. "My name's Dawn. So I guess you and I will be facing off in the contest, huh?"

"I'd like that, Dawn!" May laughed, smiling as she did so. "I'm really excited to see all the different kinds of Pokemon that the coordinators here use!"

"Oh, right!" Dawn agreed, before turning to make way for Buneary and Piplup, who were standing by her feet listening to the two coordinators talk. "Well then let me be the first to introduce you to Piplup and Buneary. They're both from Sinnoh, born and raised!"

"Piplup!" the small blue Pokemon greeted May.

"Bun!" Buneary added.

"Aww, they're adorable!" May exclaimed, kneeling down and fondly scratching the Pokemon underneath their chins, causing both to openly blush. "I'll bet they're really strong, too, huh?"

"Heh, you seem to have quite a way with Pokemon, May." Dawn commented as the other girl got to her feet, returning her Beautifly into its Pokeball.

"I don't know if I'd say that..." May answered nervously, rubbing the back of her head with her hand. "I guess I've just been around Pokemon for such a long time now that they're no different than humans in my eyes."

"Huh..." Dawn mused, watching the girl as she returned Beautifly's Pokeball back into the Pokeball compartment on her fanny pack.

"Attention coordinators!" came the voice of nurse Joy over a system loudspeaker which echoed throughout the entirety of the contest tent. "Please enter backstage to begin judging preparations for the first round of the contest!"

"Well... I guess the show's about to begin..." Dawn mused, staring up towards the ceiling of the tent in an attempt to locate the nearest loudspeaker.

"Let's go together, Dawn!" May suggested. "I'd feel a lot happier entering the contest with a friendly face than all by myself."

"Oh, sure!" Dawn agreed. "Me too!"

Dawn quickly recalled her Pokemon into their Pokeballs and with that the two coordinators headed towards the backstage of the tent, where already a sizeable queue of hopeful contestants had formed.

 

[Miles Prower]

I like it! can't wait to see the rest...

 

[DentoSan]

This is very good. I;m not a fan of advanceshipping, but i wont hold that against you. hehe very well written.

 

[Legacy]

Nice fic! Can't wait to read more.

 

[Gazmof]

Thanks for the reviews! I'm glad the fic captures your attention, even though the shippiness doesn't strike up until a little later on. And Korea, thank you for your comments, especially as a non-Advanceshipper. It's always good to hear that my story can be considered good despite the primary 'ship.

Here is chapter two; comments are always welcome!

Chapter Two:
Coordinators: Assemble!​

Dawn groaned as she and May stood in a line which stretched for what seemed like miles through the small waiting hall located towards the rear of the contest tent, waiting for the queue to eventually diminish. There was a cool breeze which flowed through the area; a welcome change to the stuffy heat of the Sinnoh region's midsummer days, but this did little to comfort Dawn as she stood there, bored, with absolutely nothing to do.

"You would've thought they'd at least put some TV on here or that we could watch something while waiting..." Dawn whined, slumping forward slightly as she spoke.

"Heh, well, it's not like it's an official contest or anything..." May replied rather awkwardly, though she couldn't completely disagree with the idea.

"At least give us some free candy or something!" Dawn moaned, massaging her stomach gently in response to its constant rumbling. "I never even got to buy that chocolate Buneary I wanted..."

"Ah..." May sighed, closing her eyes with a heavenly expression on her face. "Chocolate... Would be so good right now..."

"Next in line, please!" came the voice of nurse Joy, quickly snapping the two girls out of their respective daydreams. May sheepishly stepped up to the counter, placing her two chosen Pokeballs down on the desk for the woman behind the desk to inspect.

Nurse Joy took the capsules and placed them on what looked like a small conveyer belt underneath a monitor. They were then moved from one side to the other, causing the monitor to print out several readings whilst flashing in different colours until eventually the machine stopped and Joy returned the Pokeballs to their owner, along with a contestant identification card.

"Thank you for registering, May." the woman said, smiling. "And good luck!"

"Thanks!" May responded, placing the two Pokeballs inside her fanny pack and slinging the card around her neck before wandering over to the other side of the corridor to wait for Dawn's official registration to take place.

It wasn't long before Dawn's Pokemon had been officially qualified for the contest and she hurried over to where May was standing.

"I'm kind of surprised..." May mused as they made their way together towards the main waiting room which had several television screens hanging from the ceiling and numerous large, comfortable-looking red sofas for the gathered coordinators to make use of. "For an unofficial contest this place sure is packed with contestants. And they all look really tough, too..."

"Ha, well, they'd better be prepared to lose, because the Floarama Town contest winner isn't planning on coming any less than first place!" came Dawn's eager response as she clenched her fists tightly, fire burning in her eyes.

"Oh wow, so you've already won a Sinnoh ribbon?" May enquired, looking impressed. Dawn simply grinned and gave her a thumbs-up.

"Yep." the young girl answered. "It's actually my first ribbon. It's the start of great things for me as a top Pokemon coordinator! I wanna equal my Mom, too!"

"Aww, your Mom was a coordinator, too?" May asked, smiling. "That's so cool!"

"Heh, yeah!" Dawn continued with excitement taking over her voice. "This is gonna be so awesome! Oh, I almost forgot!"

"Hm?" May paused, taking her eyes off the competition which surrounded the two of them and returning her gaze to the younger girl. "What is it?"

"Ah, it's nothing..." Dawn chuckled, waving away May's comment. "I was just thinking I haven't even told my friends I'm entering this. But I'm sure they'll probably come and take a look as soon as they hear about it anyway."

"Yeah, I think so." May laughed casually, looking over towards a nearby television monitor as it began to flicker into life, showing the vivid, red stage where contestants would be performing. "This place is tough to miss, even without all the coordinators here."

Dawn and May both fell silent as they listened intently to the words of the announcer being emitted from the room's loudspeakers.

"Thank you contestants for your applications!" her voice boomed. "But due to such a high volume of applicants we have had to implement a 'sudden-death' preliminary round to strip us down to sixty-four primary contestants."

"Sudden-death?" Dawn echoed, her face suddenly forming a much more serious expression.

"Huh..." May wondered, glancing down towards her fanny pack where her Pokeballs were lying in wait. "I know you're up to the challenge, Beautifly."

"Contestants will now have thirty seconds each to perform an appeal with their chosen appeal Pokemon. Those sixty-four coordinators who score sufficiently high enough will go on to the next round. All contestants will be called in alphabetical order, starting with their last names. So without further ado please prepare for your appeals, starting now!"

The crowd of coordinators immediately fell into hushed voices and muffled tones as they discussed this sudden change of events with mixed feelings. Dawn looked up towards May nervously, who just gave an awkward smile.

"Well, I guess I'd better get ready..." she chuckled hesitantly.

"Pretty stupid if you ask me." came the rough, husky voice of a boy looking to be around sixteen years of age. Both Dawn and May turned to face this stranger, surprised by his sudden emergence.

"What do you mean?" Dawn questioned the boy, who smirked.

"Isn't it obvious?" he explained. "Sudden-death appeals are pretty much like a lottery. One slip-up and you're out of there, regardless of your talent as a coordinator."

"Ugh..." Dawn mumbled nervously. "You're not filling me with confidence, you know..."

May frowned slightly at the boy, who had jet black hair which was cut short at the top, growing long into a ponytail which flowed into the back of his collar. He possessed dark brown eyes and sharp facial features, and wore a dark-blue baseball cap which was slanted at an angle, along with a light-grey jacket, black t-shirt and baggy, navy-blue jeans that covered the majority of his sneakers. He had no bag, but the six Pokeballs clipped to his waist seemed to be the only things he needed.

"I don't think, so, really." May argued politely. "I believe in my Pokemon, and I know that they'll perform well no matter how much pressure is on them."

"Ha, that's cute." the boy sneered, removing one of his hands from his jacket pocket and running it through his hair. "Real cute. You must be one of those people who thinks a friendship between a trainer and a Pokemon makes all the difference."

"I don't think so," May replied sharply, "I know so."

"Well then, I guess I'll just have to prove it to you." the boy chuckled casually, adjusting his cap. "I guarantee you that by the end of this day the name engraved on that ribbon will be 'Nico Cyrax'. Trust me on that."

Dawn said nothing, instead deciding to stay as far away from the conversation as possible. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed that the room was slowly becoming more and more empty as coordinators were called out to perform their appeals.

"Now ladies and gentlemen," the voice of the announcer called out over the loudspeaker as yet another coordinator made their way to the main stage, "please welcome Drew Blackthorne!"

The hushed voices and whispering continued to fill the waiting room but May's eyes immediately widened at the announcement of this name, her mind beginning to rush as she stared up at the video monitors in disbelief. Sure enough, there he was; his lime-green hair and matching jacket and lilac pants as unmistakable as ever.

But why was here? Why now? Had he followed her here? Was this his way of getting revenge? Did he want her back? There were just too many questions and none of them could be answered to May's satisfaction.

"Roselia," the young coordinator spoke up, a smirk stretching across his face, "use Petal Dance."

The nimble plant Pokemon standing beside its trainer was coloured a vivid, beautiful green and had a diminutive frame, measuring just under a foot tall. Its hands were not hands, but rather large, luxurious bouquets of finely coloured pink and blue roses, their alluring aroma belying the true power of the Grass-type they belonged to. Upon hearing Drew's command it immediately launched into the air, its root-like feet easily propelling it above the stage where it proceeded to spin its tiny body and launch a shower of vivid rose petals into the contest hall.

"Wow, a magnificent appeal!" came the voice of the announcer, who was seemingly in just as much awe as the rest of the coordinators who stood nervously watching in the waiting room. "This is simply incredible!"

"Just another day in the life of me." Drew sniggered under his breath before raising his arm to convey another message to his Pokemon. "Now Roselia, Giga Drain!"

Roselia nodded to itself, then proceeded to whip its arms, shooting itself down towards the contest stage before shimmering with a faint green light which steadily became stronger and stronger, engulfing every flower petal from the Pokemon's previous attack.

The crowd continued to watch in hushed voices, and even Nico seemed impressed by the efforts of Drew's Pokemon.

Suddenly the petals which now floated steadily in midair came rushing back towards the Pokemon in the centre of the stage, all of which slowly became absorbed back into Roselia. After several moments of rushing leaves and syphoning energy, the stage was clear once again, leaving nothing but a proud Roselia and the ever-confident Drew.

'Wow...' May thought to herself, frowning as she clenched her fists tightly. 'Looks like he hasn't let up since Johto...'

"May, do you know that guy?" Dawn enquired with interest. "You looked kinda awkward when he was performing..."

The girl then paused for a moment, a smile forming on her lips.

"Oh, I get it!" she teased. "You like him, huh? Well, he IS pretty cute..."

"NO!" May yelled, causing everyone in the room to stop and turn to look at the girl. May quickly regained her composure, blushing slightly at the embarrassment of being an awkward centre of attention. "Uh, I'm sorry, Dawn; I didn't mean to raise my voice."

"So you do know him?" Dawn repeated, somewhat nervously.

May sighed a little at this as she contemplated her choice of words, looking up at the television monitor where the next hopeful coordinator was attempting to impress the judges.

"...I thought I did..."

The waiting room had begun to significantly diminish in occupancy at this stage of the rounds and it wasn't long before Nico was called to the stage to show off his appeal. Both May and Dawn watched with interest, curious as to what kind of Pokemon such a mysterious coordinator would bring to the table.

"Next up is Nico Cyrax..." The announcer confirmed. "Please take the stage!"

"Let's go, Vespiquen!" Nico bellowed, launching a red-and-white sphere up into the air which snapped open with a rush of silvery stars. The light from the Pokeball faded slowly, revealing a large, winged Pokemon with a black-and-yellow body and huge, sharp horns protruding from its menacing, alien face.

The entirety of the waiting room seemed to shudder as they watched the appeal unfold on the screen, the creature's many eyes appearing as if they were staring at each and every one of them through the walls, its wings emitting a sinister buzzing noise as it hovered in the centre of the stage, awaiting its command.

"Oh, man..." Dawn swallowed nervously. "Looks mean..."

"What is that?" May wondered out loud, removing a small, red device from her fanny pack which flipped open at the press of a switch.

"Vespiquen," came a monotone robotic voice from the tiny machine, "the Beehive Pokemon. When endangered, grubs from this Pokemon's six-cell honeycomb strike back against its attackers."

"Sounds mean, too..." May agreed, pocketing her Pokedex as she continued to watch Nico's appeal.

"Power Gem, Vespiquen." Nico commanded, clicking his fingers and causing an instant reaction within the Bug-type, which looked up towards the ceiling, causing the large, red jewel embedded in its forehead to glow a deep crimson colour. The room began to darken under the creature's power, when suddenly numerous gems began to appear above the centre of the stage. These gems began to dance around each other, glittering and shimmering in the blood-red ambience of the room.

"Now move into Attack Order!" the coordinator continued.

Vespiquen's wings began to pick up speed and within seconds the entire room became filled with hundreds upon hundreds of swarming insects, blackening and obscuring the many cameras present. The crowd in the waiting room watched in nervous anticipation before finally the cloud of grubs settled, returning to their colony, leaving a beautiful, glittering powder of red gemstone dust which slowly settled onto the stage, sparkling beautifully.

"Wow..." Dawn mumbled. "He's good..."

~*~*~​

"Great job, Nico!" nurse Joy rushed over to congratulate the boy on his appeal. "It looks like you're gonna be through for sure!"

"Heh, I never doubted it." Nico agreed, smiling to himself as he returned Vespiquen to its Pokeball.

"We'd like you to stay in the winner's lounge until the rest of the coordinators have made their appeals," Joy continued, "it shouldn't take too long; in fact we're making pretty good progress."

"That's good to hear." Nico replied as the two of them walked further down the corridor and into a much larger, more expansive room than the previous one the boy had been waiting in.

The boy looked up idly towards one of the television monitors which also hung from the ceiling of this room, where yet another coordinator was already conducting their own appeal. Uninterested by such mediocre Pokemon on display, Nico looked around to see if there was anything else to occupy him while he waited, and saw Drew standing against the far wall of the lounge, his arms folded and eyes closed as if he were concentrating on something in his mind.

"Hey," Nico greeted the fellow coordinator, who opened his eyes only slightly to look at the stranger, "nice appeal you made out there. Your Roselia's pretty impressive for an unevolved Pokemon."

"Thanks." the trainer replied, flicking his green hair back idly. "Though I think you need to work on your form."

Nico frowned for a moment, stunned by what he felt to be a stinging insult.

"...What?" he questioned uncertainly.

"Please," Drew groaned with disdain, looking to the side as he spoke, "anyone can throw a powerhouse Pokemon into the ring and show off some flashy tricks. How many contest ribbons do you even have?"

"As a matter of fact I have three!" Nico snarled, trying his best not to raise his voice. "And what about you, huh? You act so cocky, but how can you expect to even consider a victory when you're using such a small and pathetic Pokemon for an appeal?"

"That's funny." Drew smirked, turning his gaze back onto Nico. "I thought you just said it was impressive."

"Heh," Nico mumbled, a smile returning to his face as he regained his composure. "I guess we'll have to let our Pokemon settle this, won't we?"

"Fine." Drew retorted, watching as Nico walked over to the other side of the room towards one of the vending machines where he proceeded to buy himself a soda.

'I don't have time to waste on insects like you...' Drew thought to himself as he watched the rest of the coordinators in the room do their best to relax and unwind after making their best appeals. 'I've come to this region for something much more precious than any ribbon or trophy...'

~*~*~​

"Ex..." a huge, towering Pokemon in the shape of a palm tree grunted before finally collapsing in the centre of the makeshift stadium, kicking up dust and debris as it did so.

"Exeggutor, no!" came the voice of a young trainer who immediately rushed over to check on his fainted Pokemon.

"Pathetic." an arrogant voice responded, belonging to another male trainer looking to be around fifteen years of age or so. He possessed hair with a purple hue and wore a baggy blue jacket and a matching pair of pants. As he spoke a small Electric-type Pokemon which measured just under two feet tall came waddling over to him, sparks flickering between its conductor-like ears.

"Hey, I almost had you!" the opponent protested, returning his injured Pokemon to its Pokeball.

"No you didn't." the boy corrected him. "My Elekid destroyed you and didn't even have to think twice about it. Pathetic, considering how we had a type disadvantage, too."

The defeated trainer growled, clenching his fists as the victor walked away without a second thought.

"Good job, Elekid." the winner congratulated his Pokemon in his traditionally cold way.

"Kid." the short Pokemon responded, sharing its trainer's confident walk.

"Hey, Paul!" came a voice which called out from behind.

"Ugh, what now?" the trainer groaned, turning on the spot. "Oh, no..."

"Hey, Paul!" Ash laughed, jogging over to the trainer with Pikachu on his shoulder, Brock trailing behind. "What are you doing here?"

"Ash..." Paul replied, trying not to sound too displeased to see the boy. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Dawn just wanted to see the carnival," Ash explained as Pikachu quickly shifted its position and hopped onto his head, "so we figured why not have some fun?"

"Yeah, that sounds like something you'd do." Paul retorted, watching Elekid snigger from the corner of his eye.

There was a pause as a gentle breeze rushed through the vicinity and left a moment of silence between the three young Pokemon trainers.

"Hey, come on! We're gonna miss it!" came one of many voices which spoke in excited tones as a large group of people passed by. Ash, Brock, Paul and Elekid all stared after the group as they rushed past, presumably in a hurry to see some sight or attraction the carnival was offering.

It was then that Brock noticed a colourful flyer falling gently to the ground, dropped and forgotten by the rush of people. Brock wandered over and picked the paper up from the dusty trail, curious to know what all the fuss was about.

"Oh, wow!" he cheered, a smile forming on his lips. "So this must be where Dawn got to - it's a Pokemon contest!"

"What?" Ash answered, wandering over and peering above Brock's shoulder at the flyer in his hands, which included prints of many strong and nimble-looking Pokemon from the Sinnoh region, some Ash hadn't even seen yet. "Wow. It's not official, but it sounds awesome! I say we should go take a look, don't you think so, Brock?"

"Whatever." Paul grunted, turning and walking off down the trail, Elekid stamping along beside him. "Let's go, Elekid."

"Hey, I know!" Ash exclaimed suddenly, grabbing Paul's wrist, a grin printed across his face. "You should come with us!"

"What!?" Paul snarled, doing his best to pull away from Ash, but the boy proved to have an unexpectedly strong grip. "Let go of me!"

"Come on!" Ash joked casually. "It'll be fun!"

"You gotta be kidding me..." Paul groaned, slowly accepting his fate as he was pulled towards the direction of a large, looming carnival tent where the contest was due to start very soon.

~*~*~​

"May Maple, please make your way to the main stage!" came the announcer's voice, snapping the young coordinator out of her conversation.

"Alright, looks like I'm up!" May cheered, her smile lighting up her face as she withdrew the correct Pokeball from her fanny pack and proceeded to dash off towards the main hall and soon came into view on the waiting room monitors, prompting both Dawn and Nico in the waiting lounge to watch the screen closely.

Dawn's appeal had gone extremely well and caused much of the waiting room to grudgingly applaud her talent. Buneary performed a startlingly beautiful dance of Ice Beam and Dizzy Punch, almost guaranteeing the young coordinator a pass into the battle rounds, and now her excitement had channeled itself into a potent combination of both excitement and nervousness as she watched her new friend make her attempt at passing the sudden-death round.

"Beautifly!" May called, twirling on the spot before launching a red-and-white sphere into the air in front of her. "Take the stage!"

Numerous white sparkles filled the screen, eventually being replaced by the figure of the girl's butterfly-like Pokemon which silently and gracefully began to dive through the air, its multi-coloured wings glittering vibrantly for all to see.

Dawn stood in the waiting lounge, watching in awe at the girl's performance; such grace and beauty even put her rival Zoey to shame.

"Alright, Beautifly!" May exclaimed, pointing her finger towards the open stage and smiling knowingly. "You know what to do - use String Shot!"

Beautifly silently acknowledged its trainer's command and began to twirl through the air above the central platform, spewing forth a fine, silvery, silk-like substance which twisted and sculpted itself in accordance with the Bug-type's movements. Soon the Pokemon had finished 'drawing' what appeared to be the rather crude outline of a bow and the silk began to quickly fall to the floor.

"Now Silver Wind from below!" May concluded, raising her arm as a visual signal.

Beautifly reacted at the very instant of its trainer's call, diving down beneath the rapidly deteriorating sculpture before flapping its wings with an intense force, sending a huge blast of metallic powder up towards the ceiling at an alarming speed and covering the silk of its earlier String Shot entirely. The result was an astonishingly beautiful and accurate depiction of the Kanto Grand Festival trophy, even down to the flared ends which looped around behind it.

Dawn and the rest of the waiting lounge could do little but gasp in awe at the Pokemon's achievement, which sparkled with a majestic light before crashing down to the floor and gently disintegrating into a thin veil of silver mist, leaving both May and Beautifly bowing to each other at either side of the stage. Even the mysterious Nico's eyes widened at this achievement, recognising the girl as a worthy opponent. Drew, however, didn't even seem to care as he remained stood against the wall, his eyes trailing the ground, motionless.

'You'll see soon, May.' Drew's thoughts echoed through his mind as his expression suddenly switched to a glare, his eyes watching the viewing monitor closely. 'Very soon.'

~*~*~​

"That's right, ladies and gentlemen!" came the voice of Alisa, the girl whom Ash, Brock and Dawn had met previously outside the carnival gates. "Step right up and grab your tickets for our carnival's official one-off Pokemon contest!"

Ash and Brock had both soon approached the enormous tent which was housing the contest where they both assumed Dawn was waiting eagerly.

Ash wasted no time in joining the queue, though Brock was having difficulty keeping his eyes off Alisa, whose legs seemed to go on forever up towards her hips. She was standing high atop a plinth where everyone could see her, and her formal business suit was now gone, replaced instead by a short navy blue skirt and lightly tanned leather jacket. In her hand she held a small microphone which was connected to some large, black speakers on either side of her, which she was using to give her announcement.

"Man, I hope this line doesn't take too long to go down..." Ash sighed, looking over at Paul who was standing beside him, his glare still evident. He had since returned his Elekid to its Pokeball, and looked ready to throttle somebody at a moment's notice. "Hey, have you ever been to a live contest before, Paul?"

"No." Paul grunted back sharply, folding his arms. "And why would I want to, anyway? Everyone knows coordinators are just cheap knock-offs who couldn't make it in the Pokemon League."

"Hey, that's not true!" Ash protested, frowning a little at his rival's remark. "Dawn works just as hard at her contests as I do at my Gym battles. It's no different from battling, they're just two different styles, is all."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed happily, wagging its tail as it continued to sit lazily atop Ash's head.

"You'd never see me enter a contest." Paul continued, eying the rest of the line with contempt. "And I wouldn't be seen dead in one of those stupid penguin suits."

"You know, I've seen plenty of contests during my adventures." Ash remarked. "And I have a friend from Hoenn who I really admire. She took her contest challenge head-on and I saw what she had to go through. I don't think it's fair to just dismiss coordinators like that. Right, Brock?"

"What I wouldn't give to take Alisa head-on!" Brock replied, his eyes completely glazing over as he continued to stare at Alisa's legs.

"Pika..." Pikachu sighed.

"I know how you feel, pal..." Ash chuckled.

"Remind me again why I'm standing around with you bozos instead of training?" Paul mumbled underneath his breath as the line began to slowly move forward.

Eventually they had reached the ticket counter, with Brock's eyes still locked firmly onto their target of Alisa. Ash and Paul proceeded to collect their passes, and it wasn't until a quick shove to Brock's ribs courtesy of Paul's elbow that their older companion also gained access to the tent.

"Hey you guys!" Alisa acknowledged their presence, lowering the microphone a little and waving to the trio as they headed inside the tent. "Enjoy the show!"

The line that had once been waiting patiently for entry tickets had now formed into a second line that was waiting to be seated in the main contest hall. This process didn't take long however, and soon the hall was entirely packed with eager spectators watching the dimly-lit centre stage with fevered anticipation.

"Amazing how many people they've managed to seat in this place." Brock commented with an impressed tone to his voice. "It's almost as big and as grand as an official contest hall."

"Yeah, Dawn's gonna feel right at home!" Ash agreed. "I wonder if we'll see any powerful Pokemon from Sinnoh!"

Paul said nothing, his hands still folded across his chest and his expression still a scowl. Since he had waited all this time in line he figured he might as well at least attempt to enjoy himself, despite the fact that he highly doubted he could.

The carnival tent was immaculately decorated - red ribbons and blue streamers hung from almost every angle imaginable and overhead were several powerful spotlights aimed directly at the stage, designed to capture the very best of the starring Pokemon and their trainers. The stage itself was a large red platform which was raised several feet into the air to give the viewers the illusion that they were closer to the action than they actually were. In the centre of the platform was the painted image of a large blue ribbon, presumably the trophy which went to the victor of this event.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" came Alisa's voice over the loudspeaker, causing a sudden hush to descend over the enormous room. "Thank you for waiting! And now, the moment that you've all been waiting for! Sixty-four of the best coordinators around battle for your entertainment after a grueling preliminary appeal round... This is it, ladies and gentlemen! Let the battles begin... Now!"

Following this announcement huge loudspeakers on either side of the stage began to erupt into fast-paced dance music which shook the tent, prompting the entire crowd to roar with applause and anticipation as the spotlights which focused on the centre of the stage began to flash in several different neon colours.

"And first up!" Alisa's announcing voice continued. "Kicking off our contest with an explosive start, let's hear it for Melody Westfield and Terry Golden!"

The crowd's volume once again elevated at this announcement as the two opponents headed out onto the main stage to a shower of confetti and the three judges began to take their seats from the very back of the stage.

"Wow, this crowd is pumped!" Brock exclaimed, unable to stop himself from joining in as he noticed nurse Joy taking her judge's seat at the back of the tent.

"Well they should be," Paul grunted, applauding lightly so as not to feel singled-out, "they waited long enough to get here."

"Aww, lighten up, Paul!" Ash laughed. "This is gonna be fun, you'll see!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, causing sparks to flicker from its cheeks as its own way of applauding the contestants.

The battles soon got under way, and the sheer volume of contestants meant that things progressed very slowly in comparison to the flow of a normal contest. Whilst the rest of the crowd seemed happy spectating, Paul soon became disgruntled by the fifth battle.

"Alright, I'm outta here." he announced, standing up and moving towards the nearest exit.

"Oh, hey, could you get me some popcorn while you're up?" Ash asked, causing Paul to groan and exit the main hall immediately.

The inner-perimeter of the tent was almost entirely empty, though the roars of the excited crowd could still be vividly heard. In stark contrast to the contest hall, where Paul now stood was almost completely grey and drab, with several pipes and cables which operated the equipment from several large outdoor electrical outlets running across the length of the floor. Paul sighed, readying Elekid's Pokeball when suddenly he heard something from one of the winding corridors which arched around to the back of the tent.

"The name is Butch!" came a loud growl, before being followed by a heavy smacking sound as if someone had just gotten slapped.

"Quiet, idiot!" a female voice hushed as Paul pressed his back against the outer wall of the tent and peered inside an adjacent tent which seemed to double as a storage room. Piles and piles of boxes, many whose tops had been removed to reveal large amounts of Pokeballs inside, were lying idly around as five figures seemed to be in the process of unloading their cargo.

"Well well well, Jessie, I'm afraid I can't have you three second-rate clowns ruining this operation." the female continued, who Paul could now see from the corner of his eye. She had long, golden blonde hair which fell to her shoulders in two pigtails, and she wore a black, figure-hugging suit with a large red 'R' emblazoned on its chest, along with long white gloves and boots. The man beside her possessed short and scruffy jade-green hair and wore an identical outfit to her, only it was of course designed for a male body.

The other two humans in the room wore outfits which were also identical, save for the fact that instead of being predominantly black, they were coloured white. The female of this pair had long red hair which flowed down to the small of her back in one long stream of colour, whilst the male had pastel-blue hair which flowed elegantly across his face in waves. They were separated by a small, beige-coloured Pokemon with a long, curled-up tail and sharp whiskers which jutted out from its rather plump face. Paul immediately recognised these three as none other than Team Rocket - the bumbling organization that seemed to follow Ash and his friends wherever they went.

"Hey, we were here first!" the woman with the long red hair and fiery attitude known as Jessie snapped back. "You can't just come in here and start ruining our evil schemes!"

"I'll have you know that we were assigned to this mission by Giovanni himself, little miss," the blonde retorted, obviously frustrated, "so why don't you just run off to wherever you came from?"

"Yeah, Cassidy's right!" the man with the green hair, who was known as Butch, chimed in. "If you three mess this job up then we'll all get fired!"

Jessie and her two companions immediately froze at the man's words, quickly huddling into a corner in order to exchange whispers and strategies amongst one another. Eventually they resumed their original positions and the male of the group, who Paul vaguely remembered being called James, decided to speak up.

"In that case we should do our best to work together!" he suggested.

"You've GOT to be kidding..." Cassidy mumbled. "Why would we want to share our paycheck with YOU losers?"

"Because, Cassidy dear," Jessie began in the best innocent voice she could muster, "our darling Meowth has come up with a plan."

Butch and Cassidy blinked in unison at this, staring blankly at the small feline Pokemon which was now standing proudly before them.

"And... What might that be?" Cassidy asked, her expression clearly puzzled.

"Ahem..." Meowth cleared his throat before enlightening his audience. "Imagine the boss taking a lovely stroll through his garden in Viridian city one day..."

Butch and Cassidy both nodded, allowing their minds to wander.

"He's a busy man as we all know, and so he doesn't have time to train his very own prized contest Pokemon." Meowth continued confidently. "So what should happen when he feels like hosting his very own Pokemon contest with his friends during a quiet summer get-together? Why, he'll want his very own contest Pokemon ready to be summoned at a moment's notice to help him secure victory!"

'This boss of theirs sure sounds like a moron...' Paul thought to himself as he continued to listen by the entrance to the adjacent tent.

"After he wins a perfect round in the makeshift contest the boss will look up towards the sky and reflect on his victory," Meowth explained, "thinking to himself 'thanks to the efforts of my favourite recruits Jessie, James, Cassidy, Bunch and of course the ever-so-talented and extraordinarily handsome Meowth I have been able to secure victory on this day, just as I will when I take over the entire world and own all the world's most powerful Pokemon!'."

Silence descended upon the room for a moment as Meowth finished up his story, prompting a look of shock to appear on both Butch and Cassidy's faces.

"Well?" Jessie boasted coyly.

"That..." Cassidy whispered. "That is BRILLIANT!"

"Thank you, thank you." Meowth agreed, bowing as an enormous grin appeared across his face. "You're too kind. No, really."

"Alright then!" Cassidy ordered, pointing towards the many crates which littered the storage tent. "Let's get to work!"

"WOBBUFFET!!" a loud voice added as a beam of light shot across the room, revealing a large, blue Pokemon with a black tail and indeterminable facial features which proceeded to slap its forehead.

"Back in your ball, Wobbuffet!" Jessie scolded.

"Wo~bbuffet!" the creature apologised as Paul began to slide away from the wall and head back towards the main contest hall where the battles were still taking place.

'Trying to steal Pokemon, huh?' he thought to himself, a smile crossing his lips. 'Maybe this contest thing won't be so lame after all...'

 

[Gazmof]

Chapter Three:
The Reunion​

"Oh!" came the voice of Alisa, who was busy excitedly commenting on the progress of yet another contest battle over the tent's loudspeaker. "What an incredibly stunning attack! And Cacturne is the winner! Jaina Rondache moves on to the next round!"

The audience let out another roar as the match came to its end and the victorious trainer and her Pokemon gave a bow in the centre of the stage. Ash, Brock and Pikachu all applauded loudly, whilst Paul simply sat there, his arms folded, a look in his eyes which almost made him seem to be waiting for something to happen.

"And so our next match-up is ready to get under way!" Alisa continued to announce. "Ladies and gentlemen, don't leave your seats, because this next battle between Dawn Hikari and Andy Sains promises to be one heated battle!"

"Alright!" Ash exclaimed upon hearing his friend's name. "Dawn's up next! Come on, Dawn, you can do it!"

A shower of red confetti covered the stage as the two coordinators rushed out, both waving eagerly to the crowd which was cheering with fevered excitement.

"Just listen to the roar of that crowd!" Alisa commented as the two trainers took their positions on opposite sides of the stage and the huge television monitor which hung over their heads had its scoreboard reset. "I can tell that you're just as excited as I am to see yet another incredible contest battle! So, coordinators... On your marks... Get set... Release your Pokemon!"

"Alright Piplup, let's do this!" Dawn yelled, hurling her Pokeball into the centre of the stage and causing it to snap open, leaving a shower of white sparks and stars as Piplup appeared, punching its wings in anticipation of the battle.

"You too, Tangela!" her opponent, Andy, countered, releasing his own Pokeball onto the stage and revealing a Pokemon that could only be described as a mass of tangled green vines with two small feet and a pair of large, white eyes.

"Tangela, huh?" Dawn chuckled to herself, removing her Pokedex from her side and reading up on the creature's attributes as she stood there, contemplating the best strategy to begin the fight with. "Grass-type... Dang... But we're not scared, right, Piplup?"

"Piplup!" the small, penguin-like Pokemon chirped in agreement, frowning at its opponent, who seemed rather unfazed by the occasion.

"Alright then, Piplup!" Dawn called out, her voice booming with confidence as she pointed her finger towards the enemy and issued her command. "Looks like we're going to be the ones to get the ball rolling! Attack and use Bubblebeam!"

"Tangela, Ingrain, now!" Andy returned, causing the Grass-type Pokemon to swiftly obey its master's command, closing its eyes and lashing several vines down into the stage floor. After a few moments the grass which covered the Pokemon's body began to glow as it slowly absorbed nutrients with its roots and causing the vast tide of translucent bubbles that Dawn's Piplup had fired to slide off the creature's body without leaving so much as a scratch.

"Ugh, fine, whatever!" Dawn complained, stamping her foot impatiently. "In that case, Piplup, get in close and use Peck on that heap of grass!"

Piplup squealed in agreement, quickly landing from its previous attack and rolling to the side before dashing towards the Tangela with surprising speed and agility.

"What an incredibly graceful Piplup!" Alisa's voice commented over the loudspeaker. "Its evasions flow seamlessly from defence to offence without a moment's hesitation! Will the stalwart Tangela be able to fend off a super-effective hit?"

"Tangela, Solarbeam now!" Andy yelled, prompting Tangela to glare at its opponent and begin to charge a bright, green energy which seemed to slowly liquify in midair before launching into a powerful, concentrated beam of energy which struck Piplup directly above the Grass-type.

"Piplup!!!" Piplup squealed in pain as the attack met its mark, thrusting the small blue penguin up high above the stage and allowing its limp body to crash with a thud.

"Piplup, no!!" Dawn exclaimed as she watched her Pokemon slowly get back onto its trembling feet. "Are you okay!?"

"Pip!" Piplup growled, glaring at its enemy defiantly.

"That attack means that Piplup and Dawn have just lost a lot of points!" Alisa continued her commentary. "Yet meanwhile Andy's Tangela continues to grow more and more powerful by the second thanks to the effects of Ingrain! What will happen next folks?"

"Piplup, try another Peck attack!" Dawn instructed.

Piplup reacted almost instantaneously, charging straight towards the Tangela, who began to charge another Solarbeam immediately in reaction.

"Dawn, watch out!" Ash called from the stands, getting to his feet with Pikachu standing up atop his hat. "He's using another Solarbeam!"

"Pikachu Pi!!" Pikachu added with concern.

"Your friend isn't very smart, is she?" Paul groaned as he watched the Water-type make its second head-on charge.

'C'mon Dawn...' Ash thought to himself as he watched the action unfold. 'You can do this... Don't get overconfident from your first ribbon... Not like May was...'

"Now dodge and use Whirlpool, Piplup!" Dawn called.

"Pip!" Piplup agreed, suddenly dashing to the side and leaping high into the air, spouting a huge swirl of water from its mouth which collided with the Tangela, engulfing it completely in a torrent of crystal blue.

"What!?" Andy cried in disbelief. "No way! Tangela, use Synthesis!"

There was a moment of awkward silence as the watery vortex continued to spin, slowly pressing down against its opponent with immense pressure until finally the water subsided, leaving an unconscious Tangela lying on the floor.

"And Dawn and Piplup cruise through to the next round!" Alisa congratulated the duo over the megaphone. "Congratulations you two! Now get some well-earned rest before round two begins!"

"Alright!" Dawn squealed with excitement, pumping her fist in the air as she hopped on the spot, causing her Pokemon to do the same. "We did it! Awesome job, Piplup! You're the best!"

"Pip-lup!" Piplup agreed, unable to stop itself from dancing.

"Phew..." Ash breathed a sigh of relief as both he and Pikachu returned to their seats, Ash slumping down low in his chair before smiling at Paul. "See, Paul? Dawn knows what she's doing."

"Yeah, barely." Paul retorted, shuffling in his seat as he waited for the next match to start.

"I was worried that Dawn's first ribbon would have gone to her head," Brock explained, smiling to himself as he watched the next two contestants head out onto the stage - a boy with jet black hair and a light-grey jacket, and another boy with light-brown hair and a red t-shirt, "but she did really well to keep it together against an opponent with a sizable type advantage."

"And now ladies and gentlemen," Alisa continued, "we bring you what is sure to be a stunning match... Please welcome Nico Cyrax and Jose Gellipe!"

The audience burst into applause once again as the two coordinators confidently threw their respective Pokeballs into the arena, showering the stage with brilliant sparks of light.

"Let's go, Glalie." Nico chuckled, eying his opponent with a hint of arrogance as the huge form of an icy, levitating head with bright blue eyes and enormous, sharp fangs appeared before him. "Crush this loser. We've got bigger targets to take care of."

"You can do it, Altaria!" Jose told his Pokemon, an elegant, blue bird Pokemon with large, fluffy white wings which seemed to have the texture of cotton. Altaria flapped its wings high above the stage as it watched the enemy from afar.

"Huh, another favourable type match-up." Brock noted. "Both those Pokemon look tough; this could go either way."

"Heh, reminds me of my Glalie." Ash commented, causing Paul to take notice of him again.

"You mean to tell me you actually have an evolved Pokemon?" he mocked. "I thought you only liked weak ones."

"Chu..." Pikachu glared at the boy, though Ash seemed to ignore him as the battle began to start down below.

~*~*~​

"Dawn, congratulations!" May's voice greeted the young Pokemon coordinator, who smiled in slight embarrassment, rubbing the back of her neck as she turned a light shade of pink. "You were awesome out there! And so were you, Piplup!"

"Piplup Pip!" Piplup thanked the girl, blushing itself as May scooped the Pokemon up into her arms and cradled it fondly.

"Aww, thanks, May!" Dawn smiled happily. "Good luck when you get out there - you're up soon, right?"

"Yeah, I'm one of the last performers." May replied as Piplup happily rocked itself in her arms. "It's been a while since I last performed in front of a big crowd... I hope I haven't lost my touch!"

"I'm sure you'll be fine - your Beautifly was looking awesome during its appeal." Dawn giggled. "I can't wait to see your battle Pokemon! I'll bet its even prettier, right?"

"Hehe," May chuckled as she thought of the next Pokemon she would use in the contest, "you'll just have to wait and see, Dawn."

The sound of a large explosion rocked the television set of the waiting room, prompting both of the girls to look up towards the screen with interest. They were both surprised to find that Nico had already won his match, soundly defeating his opponent's Altaria with a powerful Ice Beam.

"Wow..." Dawn muttered nervously. "He's better than I thought he'd be... He was barely even out there for a minute!"

"Hm..." May mumbled, slowly losing herself amid her thoughts once again.

'He's not the one I'm worried about, Dawn...' she thought to herself cautiously.

~*~*~​

"One potato, two potato..." James muttered to himself as he and the other members of Team Rocket continued to remove Pokeballs one by one from the numerous boxes and shelves which lined the carnival's storage room. Slowly, with his arms full, he eventually got to his feet and began to move towards their storage trolley where the already stolen Pokeballs were being kept, when he stumbled unwittingly into something soft and immobile.

"Wobbuffet." came the reply from the blue Pokemon, as it used its free arm to slap its forehead, the other filled with Pokeballs.

"Ugh, Wobbuffet!" James scolded disdainfully. "Watch where you're standing!"

"Wobbuffet..." the Pokemon sighed.

Suddenly the door to the main tent was opened and a tall man in an impressive-looking suit strode in, causing Jessie, James, Cassidy, Butch and Meowth to jump in surprise.

"Don't worry; it's only me." the stranger said, raising his hand to signal his innocence. He was of average height and build, with dark brown hair and a matching beard and mustache. In his right hand he held a jet-black cane which matched his suit and top-hat perfectly, though he appeared to be in his late forties at most so Jessie, James and Meowth were all a little dubious as to why he would need a walking stick.

"It's good to see you officer Kendrick," Cassidy greeted the man as she hoisted another armful of Pokeballs into their cart, "but as you can see we're a little busy here."

"Yes, so I see..." Kendrick replied, before removing four Pokeballs from his suit pocket. "Actually I just came to give you these. They were delivered from your head office in Kanto just this morning." Kendrick smiled at this. "Your boss works fast... I'd like to meet him someday; he seems like a pleasure to do business with."

"That he is, officer." Cassidy said as she accepted the Pokeballs in her traditionally gracious way, frowning slightly as she examined them closely, before proceeding to hand one to each of the human members of Team Rocket. "And how goes the lock-down of the carnival?"

"As expected, most every visitor has decided to attend the contest;" Kendrick began, unable to help himself chuckle as he spoke, "any stragglers have been ejected from the premises. No-one suspects a thing."

"Perfect..." Cassidy purred, a wry smile forming on her lips. "Give us another half hour and all of these Pokeballs will be accounted for."

"You're going to have to move fast, Cassidy." Kendrick explained, adjusting his tie anxiously. "There are only a few more contest battles left before the first round is over, and it will be difficult to hide our actions from the public for too long."

"Trust me," Cassidy sneered, "with these new Pokemon Giovanni sent us there's nothing any of these pathetic coordinators can do to stop us..."

~*~*~​

The roar of a defeated Ursaring rang through the tent as yet another contest battle came to an end. Ash, Paul, Brock and Pikachu had all been sitting watching the battles unfold for some time now, and now there were only two matches left to be decided.

"Man, there sure are a lot of entries in this contest..." Ash sighed, shuffling awkwardly in his seat and causing Pikachu to hang onto his hat precariously.

"Well, it's clearly not a part of official Sinnoh Contest rules, so anything the carnival administration says, goes." Brock noted, his arms folded as he quietly surveyed the local women on display a few rows down from where they were seated.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your patience!" Alisa's voice boomed over the megaphone once again. "We are now down to the last two matches, the first of which will be between Mark Philanthra and Drew Blackthorne!"

"Alright!" Ash exclaimed excitedly, watching as the two coordinators made their way onto the stage. "I wonder what kinds of Pokemon these two trainers will have!"

Brock, meanwhile, frowned to himself as his thoughts began to echo through his mind.

'Drew...?' he wondered. 'No, it couldn't be...'

Sure enough, there on the left-hand side of the contest stage, was the familiar face of their dear friend May's rival during her Hoenn and Kanto contest circuit - Drew Blackthorne.

"Huh...?" Ash stammered as both he and Pikachu leaned over the edge of the seats in front of them to get a better view. "Is that... Drew...?"

He was dressed as he always was - purple pants with a matching jacket and that same, familiar lime-green hair was recognizable anywhere. He stood with his hands in his pockets as he brushed aside some stray strands of hair - his usual, confident smile hadn't changed one bit as he casually readied his choice of Pokeball.

Drew's opponent, however, was clearly not impressed by the boy's lack of respect, and so immediately sent his Pokeball flying towards the centre of the stage.

"Roserade, come on out!" Mark announced; the crowd watching in silence as the Pokeball split in half and revealed the short, humanoid Pokemon with an enchanting, leaf-green body and colourful bouquets of blooming roses sprouting from each hand.

"Rose..." the Pokemon growled, glaring at Drew.

"Let's do this, Absol." Drew muttered, flicking a Pokeball up into the air and watching idly as it opened up, releasing a bright white light which slowly transformed into the image of a large, intimidating Pokemon with long, glossy fur as white as snow and soft, velvety skin which shared the same shade as the dark, navy blue of midnight. Sprouting from the top of the Dark-type's head was a long, curved horn which bore the same shape as a scimitar's blade and looked almost as sharp as the vicious claws which extruded from each of its four feet.

"Absol..." the creature whispered back, almost as if it was uninterested in the opponent and saw it as no real danger to its chances of victory.

"Huh..." Paul commented out loud to himself. "An Absol... Haven't seen one of those in a while."

Ash, Brock and Pikachu all remained silent as they watched the competitors closely. Both Mark and Drew said nothing, but the looks in their eyes spoke volumes.

"It's amazing..." Brock acknowledged. "Drew's Absol has taken on the characteristics of its trainer down to a tee. Neither of them even look fazed by that Roserade. And I'm no expert on Grass-type Pokemon, but that looks to me like one powerful opponent."

"Yeah, you're right, Brock..." Ash agreed. "But what's Drew doing here in Sinnoh? I thought he had gone to compete with May and Harley over in the Johto circuit?"

"Pika..." Pikachu added.

"So you guys know this clown?" Paul asked, curious.

"Yeah." Ash replied, unable to take his eyes off Absol as the two Pokemon began to exchange blows and the battle timer was started on the main screen. "He was a coordinator rival of one of our friends back on our adventures through Hoenn. But we thought that they had gone to Johto together, and that was only a few months ago..."

"Hm..." Paul muttered, his focus turning back towards the battle that was raging down below.

"Razor Wind!" Drew commanded.

"Magical Leaf!" Mark yelled.

Both Pokemon leapt back several feet towards their respective trainers before slowly charging their attacks - Roserade's bouquets glowed an eery yellow whilst Absol was slowly engulfed by a torrent of vicious, twisting winds. It wasn't long until both the attacks were complete and tore towards their targets, colliding in an explosion of colour and noise in the centre of the contest stage and leaving the audience breathless. The competitors seemed evenly matched.

"Roserade, use Solarbeam!" Mark ordered, pointing his finger directly towards Absol.

"Heh, amateur..." Drew whispered, smiling. "Absol, use Flash, then get in close and finish this off early!"

"Sol!" the creature agreed, snarling and blasting forth an intense flash of white light from the blade-like protrusion on its head whilst Mark's Roserade attempted to gather as much sunlight as possible.

"Ooh, looks like a tactical oversight may have cost Mark and Roserade this match," Alisa announced over the loudspeaker as Absol rushed towards its target, its claws reflecting the steadily growing light of Roserade's oncoming attack, "as Solarbeam requires a long time to charge, especially in an arena as dark as this!"

"Oh no, cancel, Roserade!" Mark stammered, but it was already too late - Roserade felt the sharp sting of Absol's claws rend into its leafy body before it was sent spinning across the stage, eventually landing in an unconscious heap. "Uh-oh..."

"And with that, we have our winner!" Alisa cheered as confetti began to fall from the stage, signaling the end of yet another contest battle. "Ladies and gentlemen please give it up for Drew Blackthorne! I for one am looking forward to seeing him and that Absol in action again!"

"Hmph." Drew sniffed, recalling Absol into its Pokeball and glaring at it before walking off the stage as Mark continued to cradle his Roserade in despair. "I can see you need more training..."

"Wow." Brock muttered, clearly impressed by Drew's performance. "Looks like he hasn't lost his edge at all."

Ash remained silent, staring down towards the stage as his mind raced with questions regarding Drew's appearance in Sinnoh, and just as important - what had happened to May?

"And now it's time for the last of our first round match-ups!" Alisa continued as the confetti was hurriedly swept away by numerous carnival employees and Mark and Roserade were ushered off the stage. "We've all been waiting for it, so please give a warm welcome to two fine young coordinators - Samantha Applejay and May Maple!"

Ash immediately bolted upright in his seat at the sound of this last coordinator's name. Could it really be her?

"Brock, did you...?" he stuttered.

"Pika...!" Pikachu squeaked in disbelief.

"I can't be hearing things..." Brock stammered. "...Can I?"

Sure enough, there, down on the stage before them, came the now too-unfamiliar sight of their close friend May, wearing her usual red outfit and matching bandana. She confidently jogged out onto the stage in her usual, happy-go-lucky way, smiling that same smile that Ash, Brock and Pikachu had come to love after so many months of traveling through Hoenn and Kanto. Eventually she arrived at the foot of the stage and gave a bow to the cheering audience, and her opponent on the other side of the arena.

"Well no sense just sitting here not doing anything!" Ash laughed, getting to his feet and applauding loudly. "Go May! You can do it!!"

Brock and Pikachu both paused for a moment's thought, then swiftly joined in with Ash and applauded and cheered as loud as they possibly could. Though they knew May probably couldn't tell them apart from the rest of the crowd's roars, they at least hoped that the extra boost they provided in volume would help spur her on to an impressive victory.

Paul, however, simply looked at his two companions awkwardly, and secretly hoped that no-one would realise they were together.

"Let's go, Poliwrath!" Samantha yelled, hurling a Pokeball into the centre of the stage with a vigorous spin of her body. "I need you!"

"Blaziken!" May announced, twirling on the spot as she threw her own Pokeball directly towards her opponent. "Take the stage!"

The two Pokeballs released their respective Pokemon in an explosion of light and colour, revealing two large, humanoid Pokemon in the centre of the stage. Towards Samantha stood the burly form of her Poliwrath, a Water-type Pokemon with a navy-blue body and a pearl-white stomach, its muscular arms and legs bulging with power. On May's side stood her trusty Blaziken, her starter Pokemon and first friend on her journey all the way from Littleroot Town in Hoenn. The flames on its tall, red body ignited, making the creature's figure markedly taller than its opponent and no less intimidating. Blaziken clenched its fists tightly and glared down with its sharp, blue eyes, gently shifting its weight into its back leg and assuming a fighting stance.

"Woah..." Dawn gasped from inside the waiting room at the sight of May's Blaziken. "May has a... Blaziken?"

"Fire-type, eh?" Samantha chuckled, licking her lips with glee. "That makes things a lot easier." She suddenly launched her hand towards the stage, pointing her finger directly towards May's Blaziken as she issued her first command. "Poliwrath, Rain Dance!"

"Wrath!" the Pokemon croaked its reply, pointing its arms towards the ceiling of the tent and launching a huge torrent of water up into the air which began to quickly disperse and fall back down to the ground as a quick, harsh rain, causing Blaziken to tense up and lose its footing.

"So she's trying to keep the battle going on for a while, huh?" May spoke under her breath, her nerves not allowing her to smile and enjoy the moment - she always got tense during a contest match, even an unofficial one. Especially when she knew that Drew was watching... "Blaziken, Quick Attack!"

"Ken!" Blaziken replied, leaping up from its position and striking a clean jab straight into the Poliwrath's gut before retreating back to where it once stood.

"Follow it up with Sky Uppercut!" May exclaimed as Poliwrath struggled to maintain its balance after the surprisingly fierce punch. "Let's end this quickly!"

"Oh no you don't!" Samantha growled. "Poliwrath, Counter!"

The two battlers roared against the crash of rain as it came tumbling down and splashing over the stage, cascading in miniature waves down towards where the audience was seated with bated breath. May couldn't help but wince as she watched Blaziken launch a Sky Uppercut towards the enemy, only to watch its wrist be grabbed, the intense fire of her Pokemon's skin unable to even graze the Water-type. Poliwrath appeared to smirk slightly as it twisted Blaziken's wrist into a lock before launching it into the air with a quick spin of its powerful, bulky arms.

"Blaziken, no!" May called whilst Blaziken fell back onto the stage with an enormous crunch, the impact reverberating around the tent. "Are you okay!?"

"Blaziken!" the Pokemon roared as it sprang back onto its feet. "Ken!"

"That poor landing cost May and Blaziken a lot of points," Alisa commented over the thundering rain which continued to pour down upon the contenders, "but it seems like Blaziken is raring to go another round. We're approaching the one-minute mark, folks!"

"Looks like this match-up could've been better for your friend." Paul noted, his arms still folded as he watched the two Pokemon launch into close combat once again. "Blaziken's at a severe disadvantage right now."

Brock nodded sagely.

"Right." he answered, scratching his chin. "Normally May's Blaziken would be able to use its Fighting-type knowledge to work around its weakness to water Pokemon, but since Poliwrath is also a Fighting-type that makes things complicated."

"Come on, Blaziken!" Ash yelled, his face revealing his intense nerves. It was strange and only now that he realised... He never felt this nervous during any of Dawn's contests. Regardless, that simply meant he had to cheer louder than ever. "You can do it!! Come on!!"

"Quick Attack!" May called.

"Submission!" Samantha retaliated.

Once again Blaziken's wrist was gripped tightly by the Poliwrath and soon the Water-type was crushing its body against May's Pokemon, its strong, powerful arms coming close to snapping the creature in two.

"Uh-oh!" Alisa's commentary continued. "Could this be the end for Blaziken? May's points are taking a serious tumble!"

It was only then that the rain suddenly died down, causing Blaziken's flames to ignite brightly once more. Poliwrath continued to apply pressure to its enemy, despite the intense heat which was now burning against its chest with unrelenting power.

"Keep up the pressure, Poliwrath!" Samantha urged, smiling confidently. "Their time's almost up..."

"Now, Blaziken!" May boomed suddenly. "Use Overheat!"

"What!?" Samantha gasped in surprise.

"Ken!!" Blaziken roared, the flames which covered its body now engulfing the entirety of the Pokemon's figure and causing Poliwrath to yelp in pain, signaling an end to its attack as it quickly backed away. Soon Blaziken was a walking inferno and it rushed towards its enemy with unrelenting vigor, punching it up into the air.

"Now Fire Spin into Mega Kick!" May continued.

Blaziken let out another cry before leaping up into the air and blasting the scarred Poliwrath with another volley of fire which wrapped around the creature's body, creating patterns and flashes of orange light which illuminated the tent in stunning fashion. The audience had no time to enjoy the stunning light display, however, as Blaziken followed up with a powerful kick from its enormous foot, driving Poliwrath into the hard surface of the contest stage and remaining silent as its enemy quickly slipped out of consciousness.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner!" Alisa exclaimed excitedly as the spotlight fell over May and her Blaziken. "May's extraordinary comeback had both power and style and it was enough to knock out Poliwrath and put the young coordinator through to the second round!"

The audience cheered and Ash found himself on his feet applauding as loud as he possibly could. Both Paul and Brock eyed him curiously, but Pikachu was more than happy to join in, hopping up and down on the chair, sparks flickering from its red cheeks. May simply waved towards the crowd, smiling happily as her Blaziken returned to her side before the two of them walked backstage together.

"Now folks we will take a quick break before moving onto the second round!" Alisa explained over the megaphone. "Please feel free to grab some refreshments just outside the seating area. I promise you that we won't be long!"

~*~*~​

Making her way towards the waiting room May took a moment to stop and take a deep breath before continuing. Her heart was still pounding after such a fierce battle and it had been so long since she had last competed in a contest with such strong coordinators she was worried that she had lost her edge. Fortunately her Blaziken had come through for her as it always did - it was by far her most reliable team member and she was always so grateful for its strength and commitment to her coordinating career. Slowly she removed its Pokeball from her fanny pack and smiled down at it.

"Thank you, Blaziken..." she whispered. "I could never have gotten this far without your help."

"Hey!" came a familiar voice from behind the girl, causing her to turn and see the face of Samantha, her previous opponent in the contest. "May, right?"

"Uhm, yeah!" May replied quickly, a little shocked to have suddenly been disturbed. "It's Samantha, isn't it?"

"That's right." the girl replied, nodding happily as she adjusted the collar of her cardigan, creating a pleasing contrast between its striking white colour and her golden blonde hair. "Hey I just wanted to say that that was a really great battle. I've never fought a Blaziken before!"

Samantha was a strikingly pretty girl who was quite a few years older than May - certainly approaching her late teens at least - and exuded an air of confidence about her. She wore black, loose-fitting jeans with a brown leather belt and off-white boots, whilst her eyes were coloured a brilliant, emerald green and her hair flowed down to just above the small of her back.

"Oh, thanks!" May replied, her face flushing a slight red at the compliment. "Your Poliwrath was awesome, too; you had me really worried there for a while."

"Heh," Samantha chuckled in response, flicking her long hair back as she did so, "well it seems we still have a lot to learn. I just wanted to say thanks for such a great match. Well, that and I'm a total Hoenn-phile. I'm actually hoping to go and compete over there during the next contest season."

"Oh, that's awesome!" May squealed excitedly. "I've lived in Hoenn my whole life so if you want to know where the best beaches are just let me know!"

Samantha and May both laughed as they began to walk towards the contest waiting room, all the while discussing the different aspects of their coordinating careers and all the different regions in which they had traveled to take part in contest circuits.

The waiting room was a lot quieter when the two coordinators entered, as much of the competition had been thinned from the first round and now only a few trainers remained to compete. Sixty-four competitors had been quickly stripped down to thirty-two within a matter of hours and soon round two would thin the ranks even further. May eyed the clock in the centre of the room nervously but tried not to let her feelings show as she noticed Drew standing directly underneath it, staring at the ground in his typically aloof manner.

"May!!" came a girlish scream of excitement from across the room and before May realised what was happening Dawn was standing square in front of her, hopping up and down on the spot with intense fervour.

"Hey, Dawn!" May greeted the girl happily, unable to help a grin form on her face in response to the younger trainer's infectiously peppy attitude.

"You did it!" Dawn squealed. "You won! Oh my gosh, Blaziken was so awesome!! Is it yours? Well, I mean, of course it's yours, but oh my goodness it was so strong and graceful and elegant and dignified and I've never even seen one before and-"

"Woah, calm down there, Dawn!" came a familiar gruff voice from behind the coordinator, causing Dawn to turn and see her friends Ash and Brock, with Ash's rival Paul skulking close behind. "Save some energy for the tournament!"

May's eyes widened as she suddenly realised who it was that the voice belonged to. There, standing before her after all these months of absence, were her two friends: Brock and... Ash. It had been so long and all she desperately wanted in the entire world right now was to run up to him and wrap her arms around her very best friend with the Pikachu sitting on his shoulder as always. She could feel tears of joy beginning to slowly well up inside of her but she gritted her teeth and kept them from forming; the last thing she wanted to appear as was weak in front of her two friends. She needed to prove to both them and herself that she was a stronger person now and that she could cope with the pressures of journeying alone, with nobody but her Pokemon to rely upon.

"Brock!" Dawn gasped, taken by surprise. "And Ash! And... What's HE doing here?"

The girl cast a glare at Paul, who continued to ignore her, staring up at the waiting room's television monitor which was currently displaying the half-empty contest hall as spectators moved back and forth from the food stalls to the seating area and back again.

"Ah, we met at the carnival and Paul decided to tag along with us..." Brock explained uncertainly, as he wasn't entirely sure of the circumstances behind his presence himself. "When we saw that there was a contest going on we figured we'd find you here... And you've made your way through to the second round, too. Very impressive!"

"Heh, thanks Brock." Dawn giggled, quickly turning to the side to introduce her new friend. "You guys, I'd like you to meet May. She and I met during the appeal rounds. She's come all the way from Hoenn!"

"May..." Ash muttered, uncertain of what to say, though her very presence made any expression other than a smile an impossibility for him. "It's been so long..."

"Y-yeah..." May stammered, unsure of what to say as she continued to fight back the tears that she so desperately wanted to cry.

"But I thought you were traveling through Johto to compete against Drew and Harley in the Grand Festival there?" Brock enquired with curiosity evident in his voice.

"Wait, what?" Dawn managed, shocked at what she was hearing. "You mean you guys KNOW each other? Like... From before I introduced you?"

"Heh, that's right, Dawn!" Ash laughed, May's very presence beginning to invigorate him as it always had during their adventures together. It felt strange to return to such a familiar, yet now uncommon emotion after so long. "May traveled with Brock and me during our adventures in Hoenn and Kanto! We're friends!"

'We are...' May reassured herself in her mind.

"And not only that," Brock continued, "but May is one of the best Pokemon coordinators you're ever likely to meet! She even came in the top four of the last Kanto Grand Festival with that very same Blaziken you just saw!"

"You're kidding!" Samantha gasped in response. "No wonder me and Poliwrath never stood a chance!"

"That's sweet of you to say, Brock!" May laughed, the encouraging words of her friends rousing her from her uncertain state of mind in no time at all. "But I'm far from the best coordinator you're likely to meet, Dawn!"

"Don't be modest, May!" Ash insisted, pumping his fist. "You were awesome out there! Your training in Johto has paid off in leaps and bounds!"

"Pika!" Pikachu added from atop Ash's shoulder.

"Um, well, I..." May coughed nervously, her face turning a bright shade of red as she looked down towards her feet in embarrassment.

There was silence for a moment before Brock quickly spoke up once more.

"So how come you're not in Johto?" he asked. "There's no way the Grand Festival circuit there could have ended this quickly; it's only been a few months."

"Well, I-" May began, but was quickly interrupted by yet another familiar voice.

"It's a long story, right May?" Drew cut in, frowning at the group of reunited friends from a few feet away.

"Ah, that's right;" Brock recalled out loud, turning to face the newcomer, "Drew's here, too."

An awkward silence filled the air as Drew and May stared at each other for a moment, neither saying a word.

"But that just makes this whole situation even stranger..." Brock continued, his tone of voice accentuating his obvious confusion. "Would you guys mind explaining what happened?"

"Whatever." Drew replied, suddenly turning his back on the group and walking away calmly. "It's none of your business anyway."

Paul watched the scene out of the corner of his eye as it continued to unfold, but took no action; instead deciding to remain a few feet away and out of direct association with the rest of the group.

"Well it's nice to see that his attitude hasn't changed one bit..." Brock commented under his breath as the young coordinator made his way back to the wall to await the beginning of the second round. "So May, are you going to elaborate for us?"

"Um..." May began slowly, when suddenly a voice boomed over the megaphone once again.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, the second round will be underway very shortly!" Alisa declared, her voice echoing throughout the tent as the audience hurriedly attempted to return to their seats. "But we have a special surprise for all of you, as the next round will be fought using double battle rules!"

"What!?" Dawn exclaimed in shock. "Double battles!?"

Ash, Brock and May all frowned at this announcement, knowing that such a change of pace would prove difficult to manage for inexperienced coordinators and that the ranks of the contestants would be very quickly thinned out as a result. The group continued to listen intently, interested to know how such a rule would be implemented.

"To keep things fair our computer will now randomize the team selection and partner up our coordinators!" Alisa explained. "Are we all ready for this?"

Every head in the waiting room turned to check on the television monitor which was displaying the main screen above the contest stage as it shuffled what appeared to be a virtual deck of cards.

"Well, good luck, May." Samantha said as she turned to exit the waiting room. "It was an honour battling you."

"Oh, you too, Samantha!" May replied happily, waving as her former opponent headed out the door. "I hope we can do it again some time!"

Soon enough the cards had been shuffled sufficiently and slowly the computer revealed pairs of coordinators who would be teamed up for the next round whilst Alisa confirmed their names audibly.

"...Drew Blackthorne and Dawn Hikari will be up against..." came the announcement, causing everyone to pause for a moment.

"Uh-oh..." Dawn groaned. "Talk about irony..."

May chuckled nervously at this revelation, but her attention soon shifted back onto the announcements as she heard her name being spoken above the loudspeaker.

"And after that match-up our next team will be May Maple and Nico Cyrax up against..."

"What!?" Dawn and May both gasped simultaneously.

"Not that guy!" Dawn sighed. "I'm sorry, May."

"Ah, don't worry about it, Dawn!" May coughed, her eyes searching the waiting room for any signs of her sudden partner. "I'll just have to try my best, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so..." Dawn agreed, her eyes trailing down to the floor. "But man, we really got some rotten luck on those draws..."

"Why?" Ash asked, puzzled by their reactions. "What's so bad about that Nico guy?"

"He's a total jerk, Ash!" Dawn explained angrily, her voice suddenly taking on a tone usually reserved for teachers disciplining their students. "We met him during the appeal stage and he was showing off about his Pokemon and stuff. I don't like his attitude one single bit!"

"Oh." Ash answered blankly.

"Well we'd better head back to the stands to watch." Brock suggested. "Good luck you two; we'll be rooting for you!"

Brock began to make his way out of the waiting room, at which point Paul quickly exited and headed back to his seat. Brock paused, however, when he noticed that Ash hadn't moved from his spot. Quickly he grabbed the boy's arm in an attempt to awaken him from his daydream.

"Uh, Ash?"

"Oh, right!" Ash exclaimed suddenly, quickly coming to his senses. "Good luck May! Uh, you too, Dawn!"

"Thanks you guys!" Dawn squeaked excitedly.

"Oh, and um, May?" Ash coughed, his heart suddenly heating up inside of his chest as he contemplated a few simple words to say while May looked towards him curiously. "Uh, it's great to see you again."

May smiled, her face flushing another shade of pink, though she made no effort to try and hide it.

"Thanks, Ash..." she replied.

With that, Ash, Brock and Pikachu headed back out towards the contest hall to take their seats as Dawn and May began to prepare for their upcoming battles. Drew watched the two from afar, smiling to himself at this latest development, while on the other side of the room stood the young coordinator, Nico.

'Not bad...' the boy thought to himself, his eyes admiring May's legs from afar, a grin appearing on his face as he did so. 'At least I'll have some eye-candy to admire during the battle...'

 

[Gazmof]

Chapter Four:
The Teams Are Set​

Alisa sighed as she made her way back towards the commentary box, preparing herself for the first round of contest double-battles which were due to get underway at any given moment. The inside of the carnival's contest tent was like a maze - numerous corridors and dimly-lit hallways littered the backstage and she was secretly embarrassed by the poor standards the coordinators had to deal with - she had always admired Pokemon coordinators and if truth be told she often wished she could join them up there on the big stage with Pokemon of her own.

Alisa's eyes trailed the floor as she turned another corner and opened up the door to the small commentary room, seating herself in the chair in front of the audio desk and taking a sip of the glass of water which lay idly before her.

That was all in the past now, and she had a good life; she was happy to be a part of her father's carnival and to enrich so many people's lives of all ages. And she got to work with a lot of Pokemon at the carnival too, so she didn't feel at a complete loss.

Just then the sound of a door opening behind her startled her out of her daydream. She was quickly put to rest, however, when she saw her father, officer Kendrick, standing in the doorway.

"Dad!" she exclaimed. "How's the security going? All the coordinators are being well looked after, right?"

"Yes, no troubles to report." Alisa's father replied. "Everyone who was attending the carnival has decided to watch the contest battles."

The man smiled as he spoke, adjusting his top-hat slightly.

"I have to hand it to you, Alisa; this contest tournament was a great idea. It's really bringing in some much-needed revenue for the carnival."

"That's great, Dad." Alisa giggled, smiling to herself as she did so. "Oh but I've really got to go - the next round is due to start any second now!"

"Right..." Kendrick agreed, nodding as he bowed and exited the room, closing the door behind him. "Good luck!"

The man grinned as he set off back down the hallway to enact the final phase of his plan.

'Yes, Alisa...' he thought to himself. 'Some much-needed revenue, indeed...'

~*~*~​

It was time to begin the next phase of the contest and Dawn watched nervously as the rest of the coordinators all met up with their respective partners. Nico had happily taken May by the hand and led her to one of the unoccupied corners of the room to discuss their strategy and soon came the moment that Dawn had been dreading ever since the announcement of who her partner would be: introducing herself to Drew. Slowly she sighed and summed up the courage to walk towards him as he continued to stand uninterested, leaning against the waiting room wall.

The young coordinator was unable to help but admire the boy, who was a few years older than her, though not by much. He was everything her mother had always told her to look for in a boyfriend: good-looking, confident, talented, intelligent and - presumably, judging from his demeanour - rather rich. She would be lying if she claimed to not be interested in him, despite the way he had snapped at her friends earlier. There was something about him that was undeniably intriguing and secretly, though she feared May's reaction, she was looking forward to battling with him.

"H-hi Drew!" she stammered slightly upon her final approach, causing Drew to open one eye and watch her lazily. "I'm Dawn... I'm gonna be your partner in the next round and-"

Drew smiled to himself as he watched her and a plot began to develop in his head. From the other side of the room he could see Nico and May planning their strategy. Every second that a lesser man even breathed the same air as her made his blood boil with rage. Nico had no idea who he was dealing with.

"Hey Dawn!" Drew replied with a cheerful tone, prompting the young girl's eyes to widen in slight shock. "I was gonna come over and meet you myself but I was a little nervous. I saw you with May and the others earlier and I watched your last battle with..." He paused for a moment, unable to help a grin from forming on his face. "Piplup, wasn't it? You were really awesome out there!"

"Oh..." Dawn murmured, her face flushing a bright red and her eyes drifting down towards her feet as she flexed her fingers nervously. "You... You really think so?"

"Absolutely!" Drew returned, running his fingers through his lime-green hair and flashing her a delightful smile. "It'll be an honour to battle alongside you in the next round! Don't worry; I'll make sure Absol performs the best it can. After all, I don't want to make you look bad!"

Dawn was speechless as she gawked at the boy, unable to force her blushing to fade. She stared into his bright green eyes and watched them shimmer, feeling her heart jump a little as she did so.

"Then again..." Drew chuckled, closing his eyes again and leaning back against the wall. "It would be impossible to make YOU look bad."

Dawn had to forcibly stop herself from emitting a loud squeal of delight upon hearing these words. Was this really happening? Was the legendary coordinator Drew Blackthorne flirting with her? Maybe she was just imagining it... Yes, that's right! There was no way such a prestigious and powerful coordinator like him could be interested in a relative nobody like her... Was there?

Dawn had little time to discuss strategy with her new partner as suddenly the loudspeaker began to announce the first of the double-battle rounds.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen! The time for the second round match-ups has begun!" Alisa explained. "First up in our coordinating double-battle is the team of Nico Cyrax and May Maple up against Jaina Rondache and Hal Corner! Please give them a round of applause as they take the stage with their Pokemon!"

The audience could be heard erupting into cheers and Dawn and Drew both stared after May as she and Nico exited the waiting room and headed down the long hallway towards the contest stage where they would be battling.

"Um, Drew..." Dawn began, feeling her heart beat a little faster as she spoke his name. "About the battle..."

"Don't worry about it, Dawn." Drew answered eagerly, adjusting his hair idly with his right hand. "It'll be like a ballroom dance - just follow my lead and everything will be fine."

He then proceeded to flash the young girl a wink, causing her face to flush an even deeper shade of red than it was before. Dawn was unable to help but smile to herself as she thought of their upcoming battle together. Her Mom would be delighted to see this...

~*~*~​

The outermost corridor of the contest tent was once again empty as the entirety of the crowd and audience had now returned to their seats in excited anticipation of the next round of contest battles. In fact the woman who was attending the sole entrance desk of the tent was the only other person in sight. Samantha was pleased that she had some breathing space, as she tended to do her best when she avoided large crowds in small, cramped spaces.

"Hi." the young coordinator greeted as she approached the woman with shiny, golden hair which was tied into two long pigtails that curved down to the small of her back. "I'm Samantha Applejay, I'm here to reclaim my Pokemon."

"Oh, leaving so soon?" the receptionist replied with a bored tone to her voice.

"Well I got knocked out of the last round, so it makes no sense to just sit around and wait." Samantha chuckled, trying hard to suppress a sigh of disappointment. "I just want to get back out there and start training again."

"That's cute, kid." the woman answered, feigning a smile as she did so. "I'll just need you to fill out this form and sign and date here, here and here..."

Samantha silently accepted the ball-point pen which was offered to her and began reading over the details of the Pokemon release form. She hadn't been surprised when she first entered into the contest and discovered she had to submit all of her four other Pokemon to be looked after backstage - it was a common practice amongst official contest circuits. She did not, however, appreciate the receptionist's aloof attitude. Perhaps it had been a long day.

Eventually the girl finished writing her details down and handed the form to the receptionist, who quickly snatched it away from her before looking it over with a critical eye.

"Alright then, Miss Applejay," the woman began as she rose to her feet and walked towards the inside of the hallway, "please follow me and we'll retrieve your Pokemon."

Samantha nodded and began to follow the receptionist through the corridor towards where the contest Pokemon were being kept unable to take her eyes off her pink, triangle-shaped earrings which glittered underneath the faint lighting of the carnival tent. She could hear their footsteps echoing throughout the tent, though this sound was no match for the sheer volume of the crowd's constant cheering from inside the stage area.

Soon the two of them reached a small door which led to a secluded room towards the rear of the tent and the receptionist began to slowly turn the handle. Samantha felt a little hesitant - this part of the tent had been cordoned off for coordinators and members of the public alike and the ill-lighting certainly didn't feel very welcoming. She secretly apologised to her Pokemon for having to leave them in such a dark and uninviting place.

"They're just in here!" the receptionist suddenly spoke up, snapping the young coordinator out of her train of thought. "Please, go right on in!"

"Right, thanks, I-" Samantha began, but her voice quickly trailed off as she saw several coordinators bound and gagged inside the small room, all seemingly knocked unconscious for good measure. "What the? Hey! Let go of me!"

The girl began kicking and screaming as she felt the receptionist grab onto her shoulders from behind and begin to apply a cloth to her mouth.

"Just hold still and be quiet, it'll be easier that way!" the receptionist snarled as she fought to hold the girl in place.

"Elekid, Thunder!" a voice barked, quickly followed by a flash of electricity which forced the receptionist to release the girl and duck for cover.

"What the hell!?" the receptionist snarled, getting slowly to her feet as a man in black uniform with jade-green hair and a bright red "R" emblazoned on his shirt dashed out of the small storage room, Pokeball in hand.

"Need some help here, Cassidy?" the man asked, scowling at the boy whose Elekid had just launched the Thunder attack.

"Heh, perfect..." Paul chuckled, clenching his fists in anticipation of an interesting battle. "I knew if I tailed that girl long enough I'd find out what was going on here."

"Big mistake, kid..." the receptionist snarled, removing her lab coat and revealing a black uniform which matched that of her partner. "Nobody messes with Team Rocket and gets away with it."

"Please, don't make me laugh." Paul retorted snidely. "Elekid, get ready. Looks like this contest thing won't be a complete waste of time for us after all."

~*~*~​

Meanwhile in the centre of the tent May and Nico's battle had begun and the crowd was roaring with excitement. Blaziken and Glalie squared off against Granbull and Torkoal, and it all promised to be a truly exciting match-up.

"May!" Nico called over towards his partner as the battle got underway. "You take the Torkoal and I'll handle the Granbull. Got it?"

"Right!" May agreed. Though she knew Blaziken had a sizable type advantage against Granbull, she knew that in order to win a double battle she would have to cover up her opponent's weakness to fire, and that meant keeping the enemy's Torkoal occupied for as long as possible. "Blaziken, Sky Uppercut on Torkoal!"

"Glalie, Ice Beam on Granbull!" Nico added.

The audience oohed and ahed as they watched the battle unfold, beams of ice and fire blasting into the air with intense power as the four Pokemon collided against each other. Ash, Brock and Pikachu sat riveted as the battle continued, none of them able to take their eyes off the match for even a second.

"Hey, Brock..." Ash managed to turn to face his friend during a brief stalemate between Blaziken and Torkoal. "Do you know where Paul went? I haven't seen him since the start of the battle."

"Pika?" Pikachu questioned.

"Hm," Brock considered, "now that you mention it he didn't say where he was going. Maybe he just left?"

"Why would he do that?" Ash wondered out loud, his eyes drifting up towards the ceiling of the tent which was being illuminated by flashes of deep red and pale blue. "These are some of the most awesome contest battles I've ever seen!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, adjusting its footing on top of its trainer's hat in order to watch the spectacle in a more comfortable position.

An explosion of fire and ice drew the spectator's attention back to the battle, where Nico's Glalie had managed to narrowly avoid damage from an Overheat attack by the enemy Torkoal by using Protect.

"Dammit, May!" Nico cursed just loud enough for his partner to hear. "You're supposed to be diverting its attention away from me!"

"I'm not gonna sacrifice my Blaziken just to keep your Glalie safe!" May protested. "Besides, we're doing the best we can!"

"Well do it better!" Nico growled before turning back to his own Pokemon and issuing some new orders. "Glalie, Double Team!"

The floating head of ice roared in agreement, closing its eyes and focusing as its entire form vanished briefly, before reappearing as several shadowy duplicates which circled the entire stage.

"Now's your chance, Blaziken!" May exclaimed. "Use Overheat on Torkoal!"

"Ken!" Blaziken agreed, clenching its fists tightly as the flames around its wrists ignited with fury. The creature's entire body began to glow a molten red and before either Torkoal or its trainer could react Blaziken had cupped its hands together and generated an enormous fireball which washed over almost half of the stage, engulfing the fire tortoise completely.

"Wha!?" Hal cried, falling to his knees as the flames began to die down and Torkoal was revealed to have been knocked unconscious. "Torkoal, no!"

"Oh, and it looks like that last Overheat was just too hot for Hal's Torkoal to handle, ladies and gentlemen!" Alisa commented over the loudspeaker as the entire audience cheered in excitement. "Such incredible strength, yet both May and Blaziken seem to command it so elegantly! And now it's two Pokemon against one! Can Jaina and her Granbull make a spectacular recovery?"

"No way!" Nico laughed. "Glalie, close in and use Crunch!"

"Glalie!" the Pokemon snarled, rushing towards the enemy and clamping over its hands with its enormous fangs which glistened like crystal. May couldn't help but wince a little as she watched the Granbull roar in pain.

"Now finish it off with Ice Beam and send it out of the ring!" Nico continued.

The Ice-type Pokemon glared into its opponent's eyes and even the towering form of Granbull seemed powerless to stop the creature as it was sent high into the air by an enormous Ice Beam which seemed to generate falling drops of snow with every passing moment the target was airborne. Soon Granbull plummeted back down, landing in the centre of the stage with a loud thud, completely unconscious.

"And we have our first winning team, ladies and gentlemen!" Alisa squealed, excited as a schoolgirl who had just been awarded her Pokemon trainer's license. "It was looking bad for a moment as their points were dropping due to a lack of teamwork, but May and Nico have pulled through and are heading into the next round!"

Both Nico and May met in the centre of the stage and gave a bow to all sides of the audience before returning their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and walking off the stage together, surrounded by cheers and applause.

"It seems like May's really improved." Brock commented as he continued to clap along with the rest of the audience. "And that Nico guy isn't too bad, either."

"Yeah." Ash agreed. "And according to the scoreboard Dawn and Drew are gonna be on right after this next match."

The boy paused for a moment as he considered something.

"Heh, seeing all these battles makes me want to get out there and do some training myself, don't you think, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu Pika!" Pikachu nodded, hopping down into its trainer's lap, who happily scratched underneath the creature's ear affectionately.

"Dawn and Drew, huh?" Brock wondered out loud. "Why do I not have a good feeling about that pairing?"

~*~*~​

"Ha!" Paul laughed as his Elekid effortlessly dodged another attack from the Rocket grunt's Sableye's attack. The dark, shadowy Pokemon snarled and continued to lunge after its enemy, which responded by sending forth another powerful Thunder attack. "You morons are completely incompetent! And you actually thought you'd be able to get away with stealing all these people's Pokemon right under their noses? Pathetic!"

"This kid is really starting to get on my nerves!" Butch commented, growling as he watched both his Mightyena and Cassidy's Sableye regroup near their feet, preparing themselves for another electric attack from Paul's Elekid. "Mightyena, use Shadow Ball!"

"You too, Sableye!" Cassidy added, clenching her fists as she watched the two Team Rocket Pokemon charge towards their opponent; dark, shadowy orbs slowly shifting and forming in front of them as they readied their attacks.

"Heh, bring it on..." Paul chuckled. "Elekid, finish them off with a-"

There was a loud thud and Paul's voice became cut off, causing his Pokemon to turn in surprise. During this moment of weakness Sableye and Mightyena's attacks collided into the back of the Electric-Pokemon, sending it flying into a heap where Paul now lay, knocking it unconscious.

Butch and Cassidy both looked up, curious to know what had happened, but everything soon became clear once they saw their ally, officer Kendrick, standing above the bodies of the boy and his Pokemon, gently polishing the side of his walking stick innocently with a handkerchief.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt anything," Kendrick smirked, "but I was afraid that all that ruckus might have attracted some... Unwanted attention."

"Well, it's appreciated officer," Cassidy began, recalling her Sableye back into its Pokeball, "but I can assure you that we had everything under control."

"Hm," Kendrick mumbled under stifled laughter, "I can see that."

There was a pause before the man turned and headed off in the opposite direction.

"Make sure you throw him in the room with the others." Kendrick explained as he began to walk away. "We just need a few more hours and then all those Pokemon will be ours."

~*~*~​

"And here are Dawn Hikari and Drew Blackthorne!" Alisa's voice boomed as both Dawn and Drew entered the main contest hall and made their way up to the front of the stage, opposite their two rivals, a young boy with spiky blond hair and a girl with a bundle of brunette hair hidden beneath a large, furry cap. "They're facing off against Lee Gondola and Felicia Raquele in a battle that's sure to burn hotter than the brightest Solarbeam! I can't wait to see what's going to happen - our competitors had better be ready for anything! Let's start the countdown!"

"You're not nervous, are you Dawn?" Drew asked the girl standing beside him in a reassuring tone, causing her to blush a light shade of pink before stammering her answer.

"Um..." she replied awkwardly as she tried to avoid eye contact with the boy. "I am a little, I guess..."

"Don't be." Drew answered, his voice soft like the fluffiest pillow of Torchic down as he reached to her side and gently squeezed her hand, causing her blush to intensify beyond measure. "I'm here for you."

"And get set!" Alisa's voice slowly reappeared inside Dawn's field of perception as she gradually came back to her senses. "Coordinators! Unleash your Pokemon! The match clock has started!"

"Go, Absol!" Drew lead the way, throwing his Pokeball down into the centre of the stage and revealing the ominous figure of his Dark-type Pokemon, Absol, which glared apathetically towards the opposite side of the contest hall.

"Right!" Dawn added, throwing her own Pokeball down into the arena. "Piplup, you're up!"

"Piplup!" Dawn's tiny penguin Pokemon chirped as its form slowly escaped the red-and-white sphere that the girl had thrown and took its place confidently beside the towering black-and-white Pokemon which was its partner.

Drew and Dawn both watched as their opponents threw down their choice of Pokemon. The girl, Felicia, had sent out her Camerupt - a Fire and Ground-type Pokemon whose body was covered with menacing craters that steamed with heat. It was a Pokemon that was native to Hoenn, so Dawn was confident that Drew would know its strengths and weaknesses well, since he also hailed from the same region. The boy, Lee, had another Fire-type Pokemon - this time a Magcargo, a fiery, snail-like creature with an intensely hot, rocky shell which gave it the benefit of the Rock-type as well. The four Pokemon all watched each other closely as they waited for their trainers to make a move.

"Two Fire-types, huh?" Dawn reassured herself as she smiled confidently. "That means Piplup's got a great advantage!"

"In that case, I'll let you concentrate on attacking them, Dawn." Drew suggested, winking as he spoke to the girl and causing her heart to flutter as if it were a butterfly caught in a gentle breeze. "Absol and I will distract them and draw their attention."

"Right!" Dawn agreed, brimming with anticipation as she pointed towards the Camerupt on the right-hand side of the field. "Okay Piplup, attack Camerupt with Whirlpool, but keep your distance!"

"Lup!" Piplup responded, leaping into the air and blasting the quadrupedal Pokemon with a torrent of bubbles which quickly spun and contorted the battlefield into a giant vortex whose immense pressure pounded down on Camerupt like a tonne of bricks.

"Oh and it looks like Dawn and Drew have an early advantage as that Whirlpool traps Camerupt helplessly in a cyclone of water!" Alisa commented excitedly whilst Drew simply smirked to himself at the girl's power. "Such beautiful grace and power! Piplup may be small but don't let its size fool you - this little penguin packs quite a punch!"

"Right!" Dawn cheered, jumping on the spot as she watched her Pokemon continue its attack. "Keep it up, Piplup! Drew's counting on us!"

"Wow, Dawn's really in sync with Drew!" Brock exclaimed, though he wasn't sure whether he should be happy about that or not. "It's as if she almost doesn't want to let him down."

"Nah, you must be imagining it!" Ash assured his friend as Pikachu watched from atop his cap, glued to the on-stage action. "I think Dawn just doesn't wanna let Piplup down - look how hard it's trying out there!"

Ash paused for a moment before he clapped his hands together loudly.

"You can do it, Dawn!" he yelled. "Keep on attacking and you'll win this match in no time!"

"Hm..." Brock considered under his breath as he listened to his friend's fevered cheering. "I'm not so sure about that, Ash..."

"I'm not going to let this little girl dictate the playing field all day!" Dawn's male opponent, Lee, exclaimed in retaliation. "Magcargo! Launch a Flamethrower attack at that pipsqueak, now!"

"Heh," Dawn chuckled, smiling confidently to herself, "every trainer should know a Flamethrower's not gonna do much damage to a Water-type... Piplup, keep at that Whirlpool!"

"Absol, dive in front of that Flamethrower!" Drew commanded, prompting an immediate response from his Pokemon. Dawn's eyes widened in shock as she watched the Dark-type dash in front of the oncoming inferno without a second thought, its glossy white coat quickly becoming enveloped in flames.

"Wow!" Alisa's commentary continued over the loudspeaker, awe evident in every syllable she spoke. "What an astounding sacrifice! Drew and Absol - despite the dangers involved - have just risked everything to keep Dawn's Piplup safe! This couple are in perfect harmony!"

"What!?" Dawn gasped, and even Piplup was shocked by the Pokemon's selfless - though somewhat reckless - move. "But Drew, you-"

Dawn quickly felt the warmth of the coordinator's hand against hers as he gripped it reassuringly.

"Don't worry." he whispered into her ear softly. "I won't let anything happen to your Piplup."

"But..." Dawn mumbled, staring at the intense fireball which continued to burn just inches away from her Piplup. "But Absol must be hurt..."

"Absol's fine." Drew insisted. "Right, Absol?"

"Sol!" came the voice of Drew's Pokemon as the flames finally extinguished and its figure slowly came back into view amidst the smoke and ash that Lee's attack had created. Its white fur was badly singed a light-grey and what patches of skin were visible were covered in savage marks and bruises where the flames of Magcargo's attack had cut into it. It panted heavily, but refused to show any sign of weakness to its trainer, growling intimidatingly at its opponent.

"Now, Dawn..." Drew continued, turning to the girl and smiling. "Let's finish this. Together."

~*~*~​

"Drew..." May whispered to herself as she watched the contest battle unfold on the television screen inside the waiting room.

She was sitting alone in one corner of the room, Blaziken's Pokeball in her hand. She was so grateful for everything it had done for her, and whilst she had no doubt of its abilities, she did have doubts about her own - particularly with regards to how her emotions might affect an eventual showdown against her long-time rival, Drew.

Of course she had battled Drew numerous times before, but not since she had left Johto after that incident. She was worried that she might not be able to pull through if her emotions were cloudy. Drew was always so strong and never showed any signs of weakness, yet she... She was different. She knew she was a great coordinator and her results spoke louder than words ever could, but she still felt like she was missing something. She hated being alone, and perhaps that was why she now harboured so much ill-will towards Johto and her time there. She knew she didn't need anyone to help her, so why did she always feel so helpless whenever her friends weren't around?

"Penny for your thoughts." came a voice from behind the girl, causing her to jolt upwards in surprise and turn to see who it belonged to.

Her partner, Nico, stood above her, his expression as blank as always. Silently he took a seat next to her on the waiting room bench and looked up towards the television monitor, where Absol continued to staunchly fend off any attacks which were targeted at Piplup.

"Ah," May stammered in reply, turning her gaze back down to the Pokeball that lay idly in her hands, "I was just thinking about my next match, is all."

"You know you're a terrible liar, right?" Nico answered bluntly, not taking his eyes away from the television monitor which was hanging above them. "You and him used to have something, didn't you?"

"Wh-what!?" May exclaimed suddenly, backing away from the boy. "N-no! I mean, uh... I'd rather not talk about it, if that's okay with you."

"Well you can deny it all you want, but it's so painfully obvious to me." Nico explained, leaning back and stretching his body out of boredom. "Well I'm glad you left him, anyway. He doesn't deserve a girl like you."

"Wh-what do you mean?" May mumbled, slumping her shoulders in a depressed state.

"I know exactly the kind of guy he is." Nico continued, his mouth curving into a slight smile as he spoke. "Rich, good-looking, talented, well-respected... He could have any woman he wants - you know that as well as I do, I'm sure."

May was silent as Nico's words seemed to penetrate through her like a nail being hammered into a wall. She didn't know why she was letting him speak to her like this - she barely even knew the boy - but for some reason she just didn't have the energy to protest as he continued his hypothesis.

"Which is exactly why he doesn't deserve you." Nico said, his eyes idly tracing the action on the screen above them as Magcargo went down to a powerful Water Pulse attack from Drew's Absol. "I'll bet it took him a long time to win you over, huh? Didn't you ever think it was strange?"

"...I don't know what you're talking about." May lied, turning her gaze the other way.

"A good-looking girl like you deserves a guy who's gonna treat you with respect." Nico pressed, his words wrapping around May's emotions like a Seviper slowly choking its prey. "You're just a trophy to Drew, and you know it."

May began to feel tears well up in the back of her eyes and she quickly stood up and dashed towards the exit, mumbling some excuse as she went. She didn't know where she needed to go, but she just couldn't sit there listening to Nico's words any longer; she had to get some air.

Just as May entered the main corridor to head to the restrooms she heard a roar from the crowd and looked up towards the television monitor where Dawn and Drew had just won their contest match. The camera gave a close-up view of the two coordinator's faces; Dawn was wearing an enormous grin, whilst Drew simply smiled in his typically subdued manner.

"Congratulations to our winners!" Alisa's voice boomed throughout the arena, coming through loud and clear on the television set. "What a perfectly matched duo! It's as if they were made for each other!"

"Made..." May repeated, sniffing as tears started falling down her face. "For each other?"

Just then the crowd roared even more as Drew embraced his partner in a powerful hug, which she eagerly returned, and May felt her heart slowly and painfully break inside of her chest. Bursting into tears she sprinted into the restroom and locked the door, falling to her knees and sobbing desperately.

 

[Miles Prower]

Its still great! I want to see more, keep it up!

 

[Gazmof]

Thanks for the comment

Chapter Five:
Round Three Rumble​

The hallway of the contest tent was deserted as usual, the echoing footsteps and blunt roar of the crowd from the main stage the only sounds which pierced the somewhat gloomy silence. Drew stood with his back against the tent wall, eying the red-and-white sphere in his hand. Absol had done its job, yes, but it still wasn't at the peak of perfection that Drew demanded from all of his other Pokemon.

Drew considered his course of action carefully for a moment. The battle had gone almost flawlessly and Dawn seemed to fall for him quickly - much quicker than most other coordinators, it had to be said. Drew chuckled to himself as he thought of the girl with the navy-blue hair and innocent, happy-go-lucky smile, pleased to know that he hadn't lost his touch.

Dawn was without a doubt a very pretty young girl, though her bubbly attitude was a little annoying at times, but such a personality was to be expected from a rookie coordinator such as herself. Drew certainly had to admit that he was enjoying her reactions a lot more than he would have done with most women, and he hoped that the double battle system of the tournament would continue for a little longer so that he might enjoy watching them even more. She almost reminded him somewhat of May.

Drew's eyes eventually returned their gaze on the Pokeball in his hand and his smile vanished as he released the Pokemon that lay waiting inside of it, causing a flash of light to illuminate the corridor and the elegant, white form of his Absol to appear before him.

The Pokemon watched its trainer closely, with eyes that tried not to show too much defiance. It was difficult for a Dark-type not to come across as arrogant at times, but Absol knew that arrogance was one personality trait this coordinator didn't like.

"What are you thinking, Absol?" Drew snarled with a hushed voice, prompting the Pokemon to hang its head in shame. "I thought you had learnt your lesson from the Kanto Grand Festival! You know I don't tolerate anything less than one-hundred percent from my Pokemon!"

Absol said nothing and simply continued to look at the floor in dismay.

"You should have been prepared for that Flamethrower attack a lot sooner than you were!" Drew continued, adjusting his hair idly as he spoke. "I'm just thankful that we weren't against any Fighting-type Pokemon. The last thing I need is for you to make me look bad!"

Absol's eyes trailed the ground and it stared down the far end of the corridor as its trainer spoke.

"Don't make me regret using you for the battle rounds, Absol..." Drew whispered, raising the creature's Pokeball again and retracting it back inside the sphere. "I don't care about this contest. I'm here to bring her back."

~*~*~​

Dawn sat in the waiting room, eagerly swinging her legs back and forth underneath the bench as she rewound the events of the battle with Drew back and forth in her mind, unable to remove a constant grin that was permanently stuck to her face. Piplup watched its trainer curiously as she continued to giggle to herself, unaware of the world around her.

"Piplup?" the small penguin asked, nudging the girl's leg with one of its tiny blue wings in order to attract her attention.

"Hm?" she queried, then grinned again as she saw the small Pokemon looking up at her with its round, endearing eyes.

"Oh, Piplup!" she cooed, sweeping the creature up into her arms and cradling it lovingly. "You were amazing out there! I'm just so happy right now I swear I could burst!"

"Piplup Lup!" Piplup squealed in response.

"And you know, Piplup..." the girl added, looking up towards the television monitors where the final match of the second round of battles was just wrapping up. "You weren't the only amazing one out there today."

"Pip?" Piplup wondered out loud.

"Drew was simply incredible!" Dawn whispered, a deep blush emerging on her face as she scanned the room to make sure nobody was watching. "I still can't believe he even thinks I'm worthy of battling alongside him!"

The girl paused as her heart began to race a little bit faster and she glanced down towards her right hand, her blush intensifying further.

"And..." she stammered under her breath. "I can't believe he... He held my hand..."

"Piplup..." Piplup sighed, not entirely certain of why its trainer was acting so ludicrously. She was beginning to remind it of a certain other Pokemon on her team whenever it came into close contact with Ash's Pikachu...

"Oh, Piplup!" Dawn squealed once again, hugging the Water-type Pokemon even tighter in her arms. "Do you think he likes me? Do you really think an amazing coordinator like him really... Likes me?"

A look of sudden worry struck her face, causing Piplup's eyes to widen.

"Oh no!" she gasped. "Was my hair okay? I didn't mess it up, did I? I just got so excited and I wanna look my best for him and-"

"Hey, Dawn!"

The voice of Ash suddenly jolted Dawn away from her worries and caused her to immediately jump to her feet, turning to face her friend, who was standing behind her along with Brock and Pikachu.

"Pika!" Pikachu congratulated the small penguin in Dawn's arms, who quickly blushed in response.

"Piplup Pip..." it chuckled, rubbing the back of its head with its wing.

"Oh, Ash! Brock!" Dawn coughed, trying to get her bearings and wipe away the blush that had invaded her face. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Uh..." Ash mumbled, uncertain of why the girl had such an unusual demeanour. "Well, don't we always come and see you during a break in your contests?"

"Oh, right, of course!" Dawn replied, obviously flustered. "Um, I was just thinking of the strategy for my next match, that's all!"

"You were really awesome out there!" Ash complimented, pumping his fist with excitement. "I mean you and Drew were in perfect harmony the whole time! It was like you guys had battled a million times before!"

"Well, I was just following his lead..." Dawn muttered, her blush quickly reappearing on her face. "I still have a lot to learn..."

"Aw, don't be so modest, Dawn!" came a familiar voice from behind the girl, prompting everyone in the group to look up and see Drew making his way towards them. "You're just a natural! It took me years to become as proficient as you are in contests. I guess you were just born talented."

"Drew!" Dawn gushed, unable to contain her excitement of seeing the boy once again as she fought the overwhelming urge to leap into his arms.

"Well, that and beautiful, too..." Drew added, flashing a smile towards the girl, who swallowed nervously, her face now entirely painted red.

"Piplup..." Piplup glared at the boy, obviously not convinced by his words.

"You've certainly improved from the last time I saw you, Drew." Brock commented, watching the boy closely. "How many contests did you win while you were in Johto? You couldn't have been there that long."

"Long enough." Drew replied, brushing his fingers through his hair as he spoke. "I got plenty of ribbons while I was in Johto. I'll admit it was interesting to see the different battling styles another region has to offer, but for the most part the contest circuit there bored me."

Brock said nothing, refusing to take his eyes off the boy while he cited his explanation. There was something Drew wasn't telling them and Brock was determined to find out what it was.

"Oh, hey, have you guys seen May?" Ash asked, breaking the silence and immediately snapping Dawn out of her daydream. "I've been looking around ever since we walked in and I haven't seen any sign of her."

The mention of May's name suddenly caused a burst of guilt to explode inside Dawn's mind and her eyes widened as she realised what she had done. She knew that May and Drew had history, and whilst neither of them had yet admitted to it being a relationship, it had become pretty obvious to her that it was. How could she have just continued to let him flirt with her? And the television monitors had been sending it all back to the waiting room for her to see! Would May ever forgive her?

"I should go and find her!" the girl suddenly spoke, kneeling down and scooping up Piplup in her arms.

"Woah, hey, Dawn, wait-" Ash began to protest but was quickly cut off by an announcement from the overhead speakers.

"Attention everybody!" Alisa's voice boomed. "Now that we have concluded the second round there are only sixteen coordinators left in the draw! Time is not on our side and so we are now beginning the third round immediately!"

"What?" Dawn wondered, stopping in her tracks and looking up towards the television monitor where the contest stage was being prepped for another battle. "So soon?"

"The third round will continue to use the double battle system which we had set up in the second." Alisa explained. "Our first match will be Ken Marx and Maria Hawke against the team of Drew Blackthorne and Dawn Hikari. Okay, Ken, Maria, Drew and Dawn - please make your way to the contest hall immediately!"

"But..." Dawn sighed. "May..."

"Come on, Dawn." Drew suggested, offering his hand towards the girl. "We can't keep them waiting."

"Right..." Dawn groaned, walking past Drew with Piplup in her arms.

'I'm sorry, May...' her thoughts spoke inside her mind as her guilt continued to slowly eat at her from inside. 'Please don't be mad at me...'

Ash, Brock and Pikachu all watched the couple leave the waiting room, along with two other coordinators who were presumably their opponents in the next round.

The waiting room was almost entirely empty in comparison to how it had been earlier and Brock stared up at the clock on the far side of the room. Alisa was right about time not being on their side - it was slowly approaching four o'clock and Brock was beginning to feel as though he had forgotten what the light of day looked like. However, the contest was continuing to excite the huge crowd of spectators more and more as the rounds progressed and he was certain that they didn't mind sacrificing a bit of time in the name of entertainment - this was, after all, a carnival.

"Well Ash, we'd better head back to the hall and grab some good seats again." Brock said, causing Ash to nod.

"Yeah, I guess..." the boy sighed. "I just wanted to wish her luck in the next battle, is all..."

"Don't worry, Ash," Brock comforted his friend as they made their way towards the front-stage exit so as not to interfere with the coordinators backstage, "May knows you'd be rooting for her no matter what."

"Yeah, but still..." Ash mumbled under his breath, his eyes trailing the floor which passed beneath his feet as they walked. "I want her to hear me say it..."

Just then Ash felt himself hit something in front of him. Immediately his thoughts disappeared and he looked up, quickly apologising to whomever it was that he had collided with.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I-" both he and May said in unison before pausing as they realised who they had bumped into.

"May!" Ash exclaimed, happy to see his friend again. He still couldn't believe quite how long it had been since they first parted ways in Kanto.

"Pichu Ka!" Pikachu greeted, happily waving towards the girl from the safety of Ash's cap.

"Oh, Ash..." May replied, stammering as she tried to cover her face in as inconspicuous a way as possible. "I'm sorry, I was just-"

"Hey, are you okay, May?" Ash asked, suddenly noticing her bloodshot eyes and her reddened cheeks. "Did you get some dirt in your eyes or something?"

"Um, y-yeah, that's it..." May lied hesitantly, her finger moving towards her eye as if trying to remove a stray eyelash. "It... It must have happened during the battle and it was really bugging me so I went to try and fix it..."

"Well they've already started the third round so you'd better get ready!" Ash explained. "I'm glad I got to see you to wish you good luck!"

"Thanks, Ash, I heard it on the loudspeaker." May replied. "And that's sweet of you, thanks."

"Just make sure you win for me!" Ash laughed, pumping his fist as Pikachu did the same.

"Uh, I'll try!" May agreed, her depressed tone of voice slowly becoming more optimistic as the boy's infectious attitude began to spread to her. "Thanks Ash, I really appreciate it!"

"It's obvious you've really improved since we last saw you, May." Brock added. "Don't worry, we'll all be rooting for you from the stands."

"Thanks, Brock." May smiled as she spoke now, which was always a welcome change. Ash was always amazed at how May's smile would seem to brighten up the colour of the world all around him; even now the waiting room suddenly seemed so much more vivid and alive than it had before she walked in and spoke with that angelic voice of hers.

"Right, see ya!" Ash said as he and Brock exited the waiting room and headed towards the stands, Pikachu waving from atop Ash's cap. "Good luck again!"

'Thanks, Ash...' May thought to herself, her smile having now completely replaced her former frown. 'You're the best friend a girl could ever hope for...'

~*~*~​

"Now, let's once again give a warm round of applause to our next two coordinating teams! Ladies and gentlemen it's Ken Marx and Maria Hawke up against Dawn Hikari and Drew Blackthorne! Are you all up and ready for this!?"

"Alright, Dawn!" Ash yelled from the stands, clapping loudly amongst the blur that was the rest of the audience. "You can do it!"

"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement, static flying gently from its cheeks as it hopped up and down on Ash's lap.

"Contestants, please release your Pokemon!" Alisa continued, marking the official start of the third round of contest battles.

"Alright, then come on out, Absol!" Drew began, launching a Pokeball into the centre of the stage where the familiar figure of Absol appeared.

"You too, Piplup!" Dawn added, motioning for the small penguin Pokemon to make its way up onto the stage beside Absol, which it eagerly did.

Dawn and Drew's opponents, Ken and Maria, began to release their Pokemon also, and Dawn took this opportunity to analyze them as best she could. The boy, Ken, was in his late twenties and had long, blond hair which was left to hang loose around the side of his neck. He wore a dull, brown leather jacket and black pants and had a moth-eaten backpack slung over his shoulder. From the tattered appearance of his clothes and the obvious layer of stubble covering his chin he was a hiker who had just been traveling through these parts, presumably on his way to some faraway contest.

The girl, Maria, however, clearly took much more pride in her appearance. She looked to be in her early twenties and wore a pink uniform which seemed like it would normally be worn by laboratory workers and scientists; it had the same body and definition of a lab coat aside from its rather unusual colour and was adorned in several black-and-yellow emblems which Dawn didn't recognise. Underneath this jacket she continued to wear a dull pink on all of her clothes - even down to her shoes and the sunshades which rested on top of her head, nestled just above her fiery red hair. Dawn was curious how much of Maria's wardrobe didn't contain the colour pink, and made a mental note to ask the girl what stores she shopped at - in Dawn's mind, pink was a colour that could never go out of style.

"Come on out, Rhydon!" Ken roared as the enormous figure of his chosen Rock-type Pokemon emerged onto the centre of the stage, directly opposite Drew's Absol. "It's time to wipe the floor with these guys!"

Dawn swallowed nervously as she sized up the competition. Rhydon was an enormous creature, standing at almost six feet tall even when hunched over. Its entire body was covered in grey, stone plating which resembled armour and at the centre of its forehead a horn as sharp as a digger's drill protruded from its body, reflecting the intense lighting of the contest hall intimidatingly.

"Okay, Phanpy, I choose you!" Maria declared as her Pokeball split in half and ejected the form of a small, elephant-like Pokemon with a long trunk and a pastel-blue body. The creature snorted with pride at its trainer's decision and began to bounce up and down on the spot eagerly.

"Oh my gosh!!" Dawn squealed, prompting Drew to stare at her awkwardly. "That is just the most adorable little thing!!"

"Aww, thanks!" Maria giggled from the other side of the stage. "Your Piplup is cute, too!"

Both Drew and Ken were silent for a moment as the two females began to exchange stories about their Pokemon, acting as if they were oblivious to the enormous crowd which surrounded them.

"Uh, Dawn..." Drew began hesitantly. "Perhaps we should stay focused on the battle?"

"Oh, right!" Dawn agreed, quickly snapping out of her infatuation with her opponent's Pokemon and deciding on her first move. "Piplup, use Whirlpool on Phanpy!"

"Lup!" Piplup chirped, leaping forward and spewing a torrent of blue bubbles from its beak, which crashed into the awaiting Pokemon.

"Phanpy, Defence Curl!" Maria commanded, watching as her Ground-type Pokemon curled itself into a tight ball and did its best to deflect the crushing power of the watery vortex which continued to crash down onto it.

"Rhydon, use Hammer Arm on that little squirt!" Ken ordered, pointing towards Dawn's Piplup, which continued to blast Phanpy with a Whirlpool attack.

"Oh no you don't!" Drew interrupted. "Absol, dive in front of that attack!"

"Ab!" Absol snarled, coiling its hind legs against the floor before launching itself in front of Piplup, shielding the tiny penguin Pokemon from harm.

"Another selfless act of defence from Drew and his Absol!" Alisa commented, almost breathless at the display. "Now that's dedication, folks! But Absol won't be able to shrug that blow off easily - Hammer Arm is super-effective against a Dark-type and though it may have saved Piplup, it's also cost Drew and Dawn an awful lot of points! Was it worth it, I wonder?"

Both Ash and Brock were unable to help but flinch as they watched Drew's Absol continue to be attacked by Ken's Rhydon, the Rock-type Pokemon effortlessly pounding its enemy into the ground with its frighteningly powerful arms.

"Drew, you've got to do something!" Dawn gasped as Absol made no attempt to retaliate at all. "Absol looks like it's in so much pain!"

"Absol's used to it." Drew replied coldly, his eyes scanning the fight for any signs of weakness from either combatant.

Dawn paused for a moment, shocked that she could hear such a thing from a coordinator as high-ranking and respected as Drew.

"How can you say that!?" Dawn exclaimed suddenly, glaring at the boy with piercing, accusative eyes. "Absol's your Pokemon! You can't possibly feel nothing when you watch it getting hurt out there, can you!?"

"I do what I have to do, Dawn!" Drew snapped back, suddenly turning his gaze onto his partner and looking her straight in the eyes. "And so does Absol."

Dawn was silent, Drew's words echoing in her mind, causing her to analyze them over and over again. Though the moment only lasted for a few seconds, it felt like an eternity to Dawn - it was as if she was six years old again, being scolded by her mother. She could remember staring at her feet nervously in the kitchen, her heart pounding, her mother's voice reprimanding her for her clumsiness. All the feelings suddenly rushed into her head and she felt her eyes twitch as she fought back some tears.

"Now hurry up and finish off that Phanpy!" Drew yelled, snapping the girl back into reality. "I can't hold off this guy much longer!"

"B-but I..." Dawn mumbled, her eyes slowly moving back to where Piplup continued to attack with Whirlpool.

"Heh, not so fast..." Ken chuckled. "Rhydon, use Earthquake!"

"Dammit!" Drew cursed loudly, pointing straight at Rhydon. "Absol, jump onto Rhydon and avoid that attack!"

"Wh-what!?" Ken stammered, unable to do anything but watch the ensuing carnage as Rhydon stamped its feet into the ground, causing an enormous tremor which split through the stadium, throwing both Phanpy and Piplup out of the ring, unconscious. Absol managed to avoid the full brunt of the attack, teetering precariously on top of Rhydon's head as it tried to avoid a swift stab from the creature's drill-like horn.

"Now use Water Pulse!" Drew shouted. "Full power!"

"Sol!" Absol growled, leaping away from the Rock-type and flicking its head back, a large wave of water emerging from the blade-like protrusion on the side of its head. The wave crashed into Ken's Rhydon with astonishing force, completely submerging the creature. The entire hall was silent with anticipation until finally the water receded and Rhydon's unconscious body was left lying in the centre of the soaking stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Dawn Hikari and Drew Blackthorne are through to the fourth round!" Alisa's voice boomed, followed by an enormous roar of excitement from the crowd. "What an incredible match! Is there nothing these two coordinators can't accomplish when they're together?"

~*~*~​

The echoing sounds of roaring crowds and fevered commentary could be heard rumbling through the thin walls of the carnival tent, where inside the second storage room the four members of Team Rocket; Jessie, James, Meowth and Wobbuffet, all continued their organisation of the competitor's Pokeballs into carts with which to easily haul their contents off to the boss. Much of the noise in the room, however, was being emitted from the television monitor that was hooked up to the main viewing system in the rest of the tent, giving the team an insight into how the competition was progressing.

"Y'know as much as I hate to admit it I gotta hand it to those clowns Botch and Cassidy." Meowth spoke up as he continued to pour a number of Pokeballs into a nearby cart. "This plan is going so smooth I don't think it'd be possible for even the three of us to mess it up!"

"Wobbuffet." Jessie's blue Pokemon agreed.

James smiled at the thought of finally being able to complete a job well done - it would be an enormous weight off his shoulders and his dignity if they could walk into Team Rocket's Kanto headquarters with a sack of rare and powerful Pokemon slung over their shoulders. Jessie, however, simply sighed as she sat huddled in a corner on the floor, her eyes fixed to the television monitor which was blasting images of another fierce Pokemon contest her way.

"Say Jessie," James spoke up, wandering over to his partner of many years who looked positively miserable, "something the matter?"

"Yes, James..." she muttered, dismay hanging off every syllable she spoke. "This... This whole thing... I shouldn't be stealing Pokemon in a seedy storage room like a tramp searching for scraps! I should be out there!"

She pointed to the television monitor where an electric attack had just engulfed the stage.

"Competing in Pokemon contests like the beautiful and talented maiden I am!" she exclaimed. "I'm sick of this, James! Aren't you? Don't you want something more from life?"

"Something..." James echoed uncertainly as he looked into her eyes. "More?"

"Yes!" Jessie continued, getting to her feet and clasping her hands over his. "I could have everything we've ever dreamed of! I could travel the world entering contests and signing fabulous modeling contracts! You could be my agent and make all the phone calls!"

"And..." James stammered uneasily. "What about Meowth?"

"Meowth?" Jessie repeated, her gaze moving slowly over towards where the small feline Pokemon was standing next to Wobbuffet, both of them continuing to sort through the Pokeballs they had discovered. "He can be my mascot. Him and Wobbuffet."

Suddenly the voice of the announcer spoke up from the television monitor once again, causing Jessie to return her attention to the contest.

"And now ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for the return of Nico Cyrax and May Maple!" Alisa's voice cheered excitedly, prompting the crowd to roar in eager anticipation of yet another enticing match-up. "Their opponents in this round are the fearsome Shizuka Tamaki and Nami Robbin!"

Jessie's eyes widened as the monitor's camera zoomed in on the faces of each competitor one by one, and she could swear that she recognised one of them.

"Wait, hold on just a second!" Jessie exclaimed, grabbing the attention of her colleagues in the storage room. "Isn't that the old female twerp?"

"You mean the one from Hoenn?" James double-checked as Jessie nodded her confirmation. Sure enough the girl on the television screen did indeed look strikingly similar, even down to the same red outfit and matching bandana she wore over her brunette hair. "But why would she be here?"

"Argh, alright, that does it!" Jessie yelled, suddenly pumping her clenched fist into the air, her temperament flaring up so intensely that James was certain he could see fire igniting from all over her body. "I'm getting out of here! I can't just skulk around in the shadows while there's a contest going on! I need to be out there where people can marvel at my beauty and accept me as their true mistress!"

"But Jessie!" James protested nervously - he was always sure to be as cautious as possible when his partner reacted like this. "The cutoff point for registering in the contests is over! You can't compete!"

"Who said anything about competing, James?" Jessie purred, a familiar look of desire flashing in her eyes as she spoke. "I have a plan..."

 

[Miles Prower]

No prob, still like it though...being an advanceshipper myself and all