Chapter Fifty
Once Selena had pacified the crowd… and Team Charm worked their musical magic, the intermission came to a close and the crowd for the Canterlot Pokémon Contest was in even higher spirits than before.
“Seriously… that shaved a decade off of my life,” Seth sighed as he sat backstage, going over the lineup for the second half of the Contest. “Who’s friggen idea was this Contest again?”
“Well, I believe you have the lion’s share of the blame,” Selena smirked.
“Oh hah hah,” Seth deadpanned at her pun. “You were pretty great by the way Selly. I had no idea you could even sing like that.”
“Y-Yeah well…” she blushed and looked away. “You wouldn’t have understood me before.”
“True enough,” Seth said as he closed his eyes. A thought occurred and he needed to make sure. “Vincent? Can you hear me? Are you okay? You were in the middle of that crowd earlier. Wanna make sure you aren’t panicking.”
“I’ve got a little more discipline than that, give me some credit,” the budding psychic ‘thought’ back to him.
“Just checking,” the feline replied. “Okay, now let’s see here…”
Seth stepped out on the stage, masking his frayed nerves under feigned confidence. That said, a few of the Psychic’s present could feel it. “Well, after that spectacular musical performance, here’s to an even greater round of Coordinators,” he said. “First up, we have someone who’s had her share of these in the past. Give it up for Hana!”
A few audience members cheered and clapped at the familiar name as the Pangoro stepped up onto the stage…
Hana had been thrilled at the idea of there being a contest on Equus. After having to leave her home in Johto and needing to move to Hoenn, she had participated in a few contests before. Normally, Hana entered with her Sableye and Delcatty, but since the move to Equus, she had only found her Sableye named Yami. Fortunately for Hana, she had also found her husband Samuel, who had agreed to let her use his Furret in the contest.
“Ready Yami?” Hana asked her Sableye.
“Yep!” Yami replied to the human turned Pangoro.
“What about you Furret?” She asked the small Pokémon next to Yami.
“I don’t know. I’m more used to gym battles with Samuel.” The Furret had been having some second thoughts on competing in contests. He had heard of some going on in the Johto region, but other than that, he had never seen one.
“You’ll do fine. I promise. It’s okay if you’re nervous your first contest. I know Yami was his first time.”
“He doesn’t need to know that!” Yami exclaimed.
Hana laughed at Yami. He was always getting angry at someone mentioning his first contest. He had done well, but they had lost in the final round. While Hana had been fine with the loss, Yami was more of a sore loser.
“Alright you two. It’s almost our turn and I don’t want you two to go out there angry at each other.”
The two pokemon nodded at her, and stood by and they watched the previous contestant finish their performance.
The lights came up, signaling the start of the qualifier. “Alright Yami, start off with Shadow Ball.” Yami created a Shadow Ball, but instead of firing it off, he kept it in front of him to make it bigger. When it was as tall as him, Hana gave her next command. “Now fire it at Furret! Furret, get ready to jump!”
The Shadow Ball was almost at Furret when he jumped on top of the Shadow Ball. Carefully, furret was able to move the Shadow Ball around with his feet.
Hana let out the breath she had been holding. Even though Furret was slightly lighter than her Delcatty, Enekoro, he had still been having trouble with making sure the Shadow Ball didn’t collapse under him.
“Alright Yami! Time for Shadow Ball and Psychic.”
Yami created a normal size Shadow Ball this time and used psychic to hold it in place while he made another. When he had made six in all, he stopped making Shadow Balls and just made them circle around him.
Furret had slowly made his way to the middle of the stage while he stayed on the Shadow Ball, worried that any step he made would make it burst.
“You’re doing great you two,” Hana encouraged, “Yami set the Shadow Balls up around Furret.”
Now Yami moved the Shadow Balls so they made a circle around Furret and the large Shadow Ball. Furret watched as the Shadow Balls found their places and he shifted his body slightly for the next step.
“Fire at Furret! You two know what to do!” Hana gave her signal. Instantly, the six Shadow Balls headed for Furret and the giant Shadow Ball. At the last second, Furret jumped as the normal Shadow Balls collided with the large one and created a small sparkling explosion. While that was happening, Yami had started to make another large Shadow Ball, though not as large as the first. Hana nodded, And Yami launched it at Furret.
“Use Fury Swipes Furret.” Furret turned to see the Shadow Ball coming at him. He panicked for a second, not fully ready. At the last second, he used Fury Swipes on the ball, which broke into pieces and turned to smoke.
“Perfect! Good job you two!”
Once the crowd had stopped cheering, the Judges rendered their comments.
“Your skill and experience certainly shows,” Joy said with a smile. “Though, I take it that Furret there hasn’t been in many?”
“No, he’s normally a fighter, and my husband’s,” Hana said. “I’ve… yet to find my other partner.”
“I see, and I’m sorry to hear that,” Joy said. “I hope you do soon.”
“That said, your skill in handling your Pokémon was good,” Diantha said. “I look forward to seeing more from you dear.”
Hana left the stage with Yami and Furret after hearing the judge's remarks. The second they couldn’t be seen anymore, Yami started to rub Furret’s head with his knuckles. “See, nothing to it!”
“I almost messed up! Try rethinking your remark!”
“I still bet you liked it!”
“Well… Okay, you got me there. It was scary and fun at the same time.”
Hana was about to say something, but was stopped by an Ursaring who came over and hugged her. “Good job Hana! It was wonderful!”
The Pangoro hugged back tighter. “Thanks for letting me use Furret, Sam. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him.”
“True,” He started, leaving the hug. “But you’re still the one who thought the whole thing up.
Are you sure you’ll have another performance for if you make it to the next round?”
Hana poked the ring on her husband’s stomach. “Of course I will! I’ve got some of it planned out already. You shouldn’t doubt me.”
“Alright… Want to go watch the current performers? It might be nice to see what you’re up against.”
“That sounds nice.” Hana told him, smiling.
“It’s nice to see them together again.” Furret remarked.
“It’d be better if we had everyone, but this is good for now.” Yami replied before the both of them followed their trainers.
“Alright… we got this. We friggity diggity got this.”
The sound of chatter and whispers. The sight of hundreds of ponies and Pokemon waiting on their sit. The feeling of their hearts racing about a million beats a second as the clock ticked by. They had prepared for this day. Went over the routine a couple dozen times now, they were well rested, they were ready to take on the challenge and leave the audience dumbstruck.
Still didn’t stop their nerves from rearing their ugly heads...
A small, muttering Mawile stormed around as she tried to fight them back to no avail. Tsuno was her name, and hiding the emotions that tormented her behind curses and groans was her game. A gorgeous short strapless white dress covered her lithe form, held up by a contrasting black belt that hugged her midsection nicely. A second figure simply watched with cold, uninterested eyes that perfectly camouflaged his inner panic. Frederick, a relatively large and scruffy Sylveon, had been forced to tidy up for once in his life and wear a stunning three-piece suit that consisted of a green vest and white undershirt that in his humble opinion, didn’t match him at all.
The unicorn on the other hoof, had somehow acquired her own two-piece suit embossed with golden filigree. Atop her head rested a top hat, and adorning her muzzle was a masquerade ball mask, to help conceal her identity from… a few ponies who most definetly wouldn’t be too happy to see her.
The group onstage finished up as the audience clapped, stomped and cheered. As the judges gave their opinions, a large Luxray approached them. He wore a wireless earpiece, a gleaming silver petryl with a Keystone set in the center of a sun and moon engraving. His upper right leg also had some sort of scarf with a moon and stars pattern tied around it
“Okay guys,” he smiled warmly at them. “You’ve got three minutes, then you’re on.” He already had their lighting requests and had Midnight fly them up to the booth where Bit and Dextra were controlling them.
“Got it! We’ll be ready by then. I… think.” The unicorn nodded with a slightly nervous grin, “There’s… quite the audience huh?”
“Really?” Frederick deadpanned, “You’re just the coordinator, I’m the one that has to freaking dance. You know, the one guy between all of you that had never even heard a song to completion before this.”
“Oh please you know you love it.” The unicorn blew him a raspberry, “Just stop whining and get ready.” She turned to the Mawile and gave her a confident smile, trying her hardest to share her totally-not-fake positive energy with her team. “What about ya, Tsuno? Good to go?” Pockets asked as she tapped her hoof, the 3 minutes turning into an eternity.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. I swear if Steven does not keep his side of the promise…” The Mawile grunted, as she tried to not get her dress dirty.
The pony sighed as she fixed her mask to be on the right spot, putting a face of confidence on, a technique many years of battle had helped her perfect, “Ok then, we have to get moving… Let’s do this thing.”
Seth announced the next performer to appear. “Okay, so next up, we have Pockets and her partners, Tsuno and Frederick!”
And from the side of the stage, a dark-blue coated unicorn with a spikey purple mane emerged, taking small steps, her tail tucked between her legs from nerves, pretty sure that her heavy breathing could be heard all over the atrium.
… Oh. Well the audience seemed waaay smaller when she looked at it from the backstage. This… well, to say she was astonished was putting it lightly. The sheer amount of light nearly blinded her, the fancy decorations almost driving her insane. Yet what really got her to gulp, was the trio of alicorns sitting in a private box all the way in the back of the stage. “Holy horseapples…” She whispered under her breath, her traitorous hooves taking her right to the middle of the stage against her mind’s panic. Her world froze, her eyes wide as platters as she stared at the audience around her, watching her expectantly, waiting for her to give them one hell of a show. Building up courage, she muttered a bunch of nonsense to spook her nerves away, before raising a hoof that forced the entire room to go silent.
These ponies, these pokemon. They wanted a good show.
And by Celestia’s non existent beard was she going to give them one!
The lights went out, the last noise dying out in expectation. And finally, their song began to play.
Two small orbs of magic left the unicorn’s glowing horn, hovering over the stage and circling each other in a beautiful vals at the sound of the violins. Time passed and the orbs began to spread, circling over the unicorn before slowing down mere inches from the ground. And the moment the first verse was over?
A bright flash caught the audience’s attention by storm, revealing both the Sylveon and Mawile taking the orbs’ place. Gaze down, eyes closed, chest heaving from their uncontrollable nerves. And as the violins kept playing, the two began to gracefully make their way towards each other, Tsun’s steps like feathers flowing with the breeze, Frederick’s movements graceful yet full of power and determination, a soft trail of pink left following their every step until they found themselves right next to each other.
“Flash!” The unicorn cried out, a bright flash of pink strucking the room in awe as small pink dust particles fell over the stage, dancing like autumn leaves around the fairies as Frederick grabbed his partner by the waist with his ribbons, her back arching backwards in a perfect arc.
“Fairy Wind, Misty Terrain!”
Frederick’s ribbons stretched out as Tsuno spun away, her body’s weight resting on the very tip of her dexterous feet, glowing petals and ethereal butterflies spawning from the ground beneath her feet as Frederick’s markings began to glow, releasing a soft light blue smoke that engulfed the spinning Steel type, growing larger and brighter into a whirlwind of color and light that engulfed the stage whole until it reached the roof.
“Icy Wind!”
And so, the whirlwind exploded into tiny magical dust by a sparkling gust of cold air and snow, leaving the stage glowing with an aurora of bright colors that completely coated Tsuno’s metallic body even as she was held in the Sylveon’s paws.
The unicorn’s panting drowned out under the blasting sound of violins, a confident grin stretching across her muzzle as she moved under the shadows, a hidden puppetmaster making sure everything worked as intended with her magic. “So far so good… don’t screw this up Pockets. Time to up the ante! Tsuno, time to go Mega!”
Frederick’s ribbons grabbed the Mawile’s hips, before tossing her into the air into a spinning circle that was soon engulfed by several dozen tendrils of light, the fairy’s body shining with a breathtaking palette of golden and magenta hues. The silhouette of her form grew larger,her dress shedding to reveal the shining natural magenta kimono that now covered her lithe form, a second jaw-like horn flowing with the breeze before a bright rainbow blast filled the room to reveal the newly Mega Evolved Mawile smiling upon the crowd.
“Moonblast!” The unicorn cried out before several small pink orbs were emanated from the Sylveon’s shining ribbons as they stretched out to form a glowing heart around the descending Mawile who used the tiny orbs to slowly descend back on stage, landing right next to the male who held her in his paws.
“Enjoying yourself miss ‘this is so fuckin’ stupid’?” He couldn’t help but smirk, their eyes fixed on each other’s as lights flickered around them.
And… for once, the Mawile was speechless, breathless gasps the only thing that came out of her lips. For the first time since this all began it all finally hit her. The beauty of the performance, the beauty of her movements, and… him. Her eyes shone as the Moonblast orbs began to flicker into several shades of pink, covering them from view, encapsulation the two fairies in their silence.
“Show time.” The Fairy whispered, breaking her off her trance as one by one the orbs began to explode into tiny clouds of fairy dust that showered them both, the Sylveon gently grabbing her hands to guide her in their dancing. Spins, pulls, and throws timed perfectly to the beat. She was lost in his every step, following in perfect synch like if her body was made for this exact same reason.
And while not many could see it, the elated expression on the Mawile’s face was simply priceless. And so when her coordinator called for a Flamethrower, she complied with all her passion, spinning in place once again as flames were fired from her two jaw-like horns, causing all the remaining orbs to explode in a shower of orange, pink and white.
“Now let’s get to the good part! Swift, Magnet Rise!” Pockets ordered with a wide smile, they were doing it, they were actually doing it! Frederick stepped back as small pink stars left his ribbons, spinning around the Mawile as the golden hue of her Magnet Rise surrounded her, lifting her from the air as the stars aligned behind her and waved in a sea-like pattern to circle her floating form.
Frederick froze for a few seconds to admire her, breathing in as he prepared for the grand finale. It was now, or never.
He jumped over to one of the stars, making it grow and glow the moment he landed on it before he jumped over to the next one just as the first shattered, then the next, and the next, his movements swift yet graceful as all the energy stars shattered behind him, getting closer and closer to her ecstatic partner.
Tsuno was lost in heaven, dancing like she had never danced before in the middle of the sea of exploding stars, sending constant waves of Fairy Wind to keep the shiny pink dust covering the stage whole. Yet her trance came to an end when the Sylveon’s ribbons held her waist, floating in the air alongside her in a majestic vals not even gravity itself could stop.
“Sorry to interrupt, but we have a show to give.” He smirked with a tiny whisper, piercing into her eyes with a burning passion she’d never seen in his own. A passion that the two shared on that very second.
Tsuno nodded and took a deep breath as her jaws began to glow a peaceful white. Letting go of the male, she aimed up and released two powerful Flash Canons that circled around each other into a flashy, silver helix that collided into one not long after. A bright, silvery starshower fell upon her, the dancing lights slowly descending towards the ground to bathe the stage in a magical glow.
Pockets flashed a grin. This was most definitely not part of the plan but by the gods she loved it anyways! And as soon as the duo reached ground, an idea was born in her head. “Both of you, use Round!”
Even though they weren’t expecting it, they still obeyed without complaint. Large rings of energy left their mouth as they sang to the beat of the music, colliding with each other to form one massive, shining sphere of light that floated over them both.
The sphere exploded into a rainbow blast of light, giving the fairies enough time to get ready for the final act.
“Frederick, let’s do it.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“The sphere, I’m ready.”
A grin appeared on the Sylveon’s face as he grabbed the Mawile in his ribbons before tossing her in the air. He wasn’t going to doubt her anymore. He trust her, and if she thought she could do it well…
He was going to do his best to help her.
Closing her eyes and focusing all of her being on herself, she thought about all the things that had brought her here. All her choices. All her actions. Everything.
And for once in her life, she regretted none of it.
Her eyes glimmered, a wide smile stretched over her lips as she once again used her Magnet Rise for liftoff before releasing a vibrant Flamethrower from her dual horns, quickly following up by a shimmering Ice Beam that circled around the flames, a Flash Cannon following suit as it arched around the other two strings of power circling around her by the magnetic field that held them together.
Filled with confidence, she closed her eyes as her body began to glow, as she formed a shining orb of light in the palm of her hands.
In a second the unicorn caught up on what her plan was, a special move they’d been polishing for weeks even before they even know of the contest. If they managed to pull it off… well.
It would leave the audience speechless.
“Let’s finish this! Tsuno… Shining Metal Burst!”
The Mawile released the orb in a blast of energy that quickly absorbed all the previous moves, the sheer pressure of the move forcing them to explode in a series of bright flashes and ethereal waves of shining colors as she slowly descended onto the stage with everything else surrounding her, Frederick gracefully grabbing hold of her with a heart-shaped ribbon formation which held her and pulled her closer until the two’s bodies met again just as the song reached its end.
Perfect finish.
The audience was silent for a moment, before the hall exploded with applause and cheers. Pockets, gasping for air from all the moving around, managed to look up to catch a glimpse of the princesses clapping, smiles adorning their muzzles as the room’s ligh returned to normal.
Once the applause died down, a spotlight fell on the judges panel.
“Let me be the first to congratulate on a beautiful performance,” Nurse Joy said, the Audino smiling softly. “Your attacks were timed perfectly and I almost forgot to breathe a few times~ Very well done.”
“YES!” Photo Finish jumped up and pointed a hoof at the ceiling. “Such a vunderbar performance. Ze lights, Ze action, ZE MAGICKS!!”
“For Pokémon not your own, your performance held most of the keys for a true professional,” Diantha said. “And I did notice that Flash Cannon was not called out. A little ad-libbing on Tsuno’s part hmm?”
“Oh come on Diantha, really!?” Tsuno rolled her eyes with a groan… before a soft chuckle escaped her breathless lips “Yeah fine fine… sorry. Got a little carried away there.”
“I never said it was a bad thing little one,” Diantha winked. “All in all, this performance was most spectacular. You have the makings of a fine Coordinator Miss Pickett.”
“Heh, thanks. But I just planned it out, the real stars here were these troublemaker.” She chuckled, before firing a devilish smirk at the Kalosian champion’s direction “Although Steven did help out a bit, he sayid he knows what you like.”
Diantha blushed slightly and coughed before regaining her composure. “Y-Yes, well. I’m sure he does. In any case, you kept a cool head and timed the attacks perfectly. I do hope we’ll see you on this stage again sometime.”
“Thanks!” Pockets snorted. She’d caught glimpse of that blush and by the Princesses was it glorious. “Come on guys, time to celebrate!”
And with one final show of reverence, they left the stage.
Tsuno couldn’t stop looking at Frederick as they reached the backstage, that dance just now, it was just so perfect, so intimate, so….
“Holy CRAP!” Pockets interrupted her train of thoughts as she howled in laughter, “You two… that, that was in-freaking-sane!”
“I’m just bloody glad that it ended, if I have to keep wearing this goddamn outfit for another fuckin’ minute, I’ll go insane!” Frederick grumbled as he quickly pushed his outfit away.
The room went cold, Tsuno’s glowing smile slowly going back to a look of pure… utter… disappointment. “Yeah yeah, whatever. It was alright I guess…” She huffed and turned her gaze away, making the very confused Sylveon blink a few times.
“That was more than alright,” Seth said as he walked over. “That was an amazing performance. You three should be very proud of yourselves.”
“Indeed.” Steven’s voice joined in, as he took his keystone out of his necklace and ended Tsuno’s Mega Evolution, “You two were stunning.”
“Oh shush you two, you’re making me blush,” Pockets chuckled with a wink, “Nah, kidding, keep stroking my ego, go ahead.”
“That’s not going to happen.” The lime green Scizor smirked before turning to the Luxray with a bow of his head, “Greetings, I do not believe we’ve met. Name’s Steven Stone. I take it you’re the one behind this fantastic event. I just have to congratulate you for all of this.”
Steven Stone. As in. Steven the Freaking Champion Stone?
Seth could help but stiffen up as he gave a simple nod. “Yes, that’s right,” he said as calmly as possible.
“It’s in fact one of the best contests I’ve seen in a while, and one of my best friends is Wallace himself.” He chuckled, “Excuse me if I didn’t quite get your name.”
Seth cursed his bad luck. He knew he shouldn’t have taunted Murphy. “My name… is Seth Crescent,” the Luxray replied. “It’s nice to meet you, Champion Stone.”
“Please, just call me Steven.” He chuckled with a small smile, “It’s been far too long since I was Champion after all. But in any case, it’s been an honor to meet you, Seth Crescent. Hope to see you sometime in the future.” And with that he walked out the room with a calm, gentle strut. And Seth could see in the corner of his eyes the emblematic silver Metagross he’d admired since he was young, Steven’s faithful and powerful companion. “Come on Layton, we have reserved seats in between the audience, and I’d love to enjoy the rest of the show.”
“Close your mouth pal, a fly’s gonna get in there.” Frederick smirked as he passed by him, followed by the rest of the group.
Seth snapped his jaw shut and frowned. Well, that had been more nerve-wracking than he thought.
Meanwhile, as Tsuno passed by, she saw a female Sylveon sitting nearby just staring at her. And when they locked eyes, she coiled a ribbon around to give the impression of a thumbs up.
“I’m rooting for you~” she mouthed and winked, nodding towards Frederick.
The Mawile’s eyes widened up and she blushed, shaking her head before rushing to the exit. She did not want to think about that, even if she had been thinking about it ever since the presentation, well… maybe even before that.
Meanwhile, Seth had checked his list. There were two more entries left for the day and both were rather surprising. Well… at the very least, this should be good. The ponies in particular should enjoy these.
In the last hour or so Dinky had come to a conclusion. The only thing worse than knowing you're going to perform in front of hundreds if not thousands of ponies, was waiting to do it. Sitting behind the stage hearing the sounds of others performances, the loud applause and the judges thoughts on the routine. Hearing it over and over watching the elation and the joy on the performers faces as they left the stage. All it did was wind her nerves up into a tight knot. What was worse was that she would not be going on anytime soon either. There were still several dozen acts to go on before them, and since they didn't need the dressing room anymore they had given it up to another group to use.
So now there was nothing to do but wait and watch as the other troops milled about discussing their routines, or plans for the near future. She nervously tugged on the scarf around her neck, a rainbow coloured strip of cloth she found in her parents closet. It had been far too long for anypony to consider wearing so she cut it down to a more reasonable size. It was the only this she had chosen to wear as it's trailing edges would catch in the wind.
Every now and then she would see a Pokemon tentatively approach another group, usually it ended with happy exclamations, hugs, and jokes as lost friends reunited. It was a pleasant distraction from her tense nerves, seeing all these new kinds of Pokemon she wished she'd thought to bring her PokeDex.
"Dinky? What are you doing here?" Called a squeaky voice.
"Huh?" Turning Dinky saw Sweetie Belle and a pair of Pokemon tailing her. She recognized the Squirtle having seen him at school but the other Pokemon was unfamiliar to her. At first glance it looked like a flower of some kind, perhaps a Grass-type. "Hi Sweetie Belle." She greeted just happy to see a familiar face.
"I didn't know you were gonna be in the Contest too." Sweetie said glancing around at all the other contestants. "Is this what Pip was talking about the other day?"
"Pip was talking about the Contest?" Dinky asked confused.
"Not the Contest specifically." Sweetie said shaking her head. "Just that you guys were working really hard."
"Well we have." Strike answered matter of factly.
"So what are you guys doing?" Squirtle asked looking between Strike and Veevee.
Strike opened his mouth to answer but was cut short as Veevee Tackled him,"Spoilers!" She hissed before looking nervously at the Fairy and Water-types. "It's kind of a surprise."
"A surprise?" Sweetie pondered.
Dinky sweatdropped,"I... um." She stalled trying to figure out what to say that wouldn't end in her parents pulling her out.
A riotous applause drew her attention and she saw a trio of Pokemon step off the stage making way for the next group. The Luxray that was hosting the Contest glanced at a list as the next act took the stage. "Sweetie Belle?" He called making the filly squeak in surprise. He grinned at her and motioned with his head,"You're up after them."
Sweetie immediately forgot about Dinky and her plans as she paled a little under her white coat."Me!?"
Dinky put a hoof on her shoulder, "Are you okay Sweetie Belle?" Her concern only grew as Dinky saw that her breathing sped up and she began to hyperventilate. "Hey you'll be fine. You guys have been practicing really hard too right?"
The Squirtle and Floette were at Sweetie's side right away trying to confront and soothe her even as the sounds of the act before her began. The comforting presence of her friends started to calm the filly down. Her breathing became more regular and the sweat that had begun to bead on her forehead evaporated. After another minute or so she seemed to have gotten a grip on her nerves. "I'm okay now." She sighed.
Dinky gave her the biggest grin she could, the filly may not have been a close friend of hers, but they were friends nonetheless. "You got this right."
It wasn't a question but a statement that told Sweetie that Dinky believed in her the same as her fellow Crusaders. It made her grin in turn and she pulled the younger filly into a hug. "Yeah we can do this. What's there to be afraid of?" She laughed.
"Thousands of people watching and judging your performance." Strike answered bluntly and receiving glares from Veevee, Dinky, and Sweeties Pokemon as well. "...What?"
"You are so dumb sometimes." Veevee sighed.
"What? What I say?" Strike asked oblivious that he may have just set poor Sweetie Belle into another panic attack.
Dinky glanced back at her nervously but was surprised to find not panic but determination etched on her face. She sighed as she saw the Luxray take the stage again and the judges began their assessment. Sweetie turned to her Pokemon,"You ready?"
"Always." Squirtle answered as the Floette nodded it’s head.
Dinky watched as Sweetie took her place ready to take the stage,"Good luck Sweetie Belle!" She called.
Sweetie Belle gulped as she stared out at the massive crowd. This was… was waaaay bigger than what she was expecting. And her sister wasn’t here to offer some moral support either. She backed up slowly, not willing to go fully out there before she felt someone next to her.
“Hey,” Seth said in a gentle voice. “No need to worry alright? You got this. I bet you’ve been training really hard too.”
“I um…” Sweetie looked down. “Yeah… I have. Me and Squirtle and Floette… we all worked hard for today.”
“Then, you have to go out there and show them,” the feline said as he smiled. “After all, no sense in wasting all that hard work. Just take a deep breath, and remember that you have you Pokémon beside you. As long as you do… anything is possible.”
Sweetie Belle looked at her two partners. Yeah… he was right. Ever since she met them, she really did feel like that. Her and Dinky and Scoots, Apple Bloom too. They all loved their Pokémon.
“Yeah… I got this!”
When the small unicorn stepped out onto the stage, she shied slightly under the spotlights as she looked at the big crowd. They remained quiet for now, something she was thankful for as she walked to the center of the stage.
And in the crowd… she saw a pair of faces smiling brightly. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo!? She didn’t know they’d be coming. She felt her own smile forming as she took a breath.
“H-Hello everypony… er, and everymon,” she said, her voice squeaking a little. “Sorry… I’m, a little nervous.”
Diantha nodded. “It’s alright dear. Take you time.”
“Y-yeah,” Sweetie smiled. “So um… I didn’t know if it was allowed or not. But my friends helped me write a song for today. So um… I’m gonna sing it while we perform for you all.”
That got the crowd to murmur. And Seth picked up that some weren’t so confident, saying that a squeaky little filly was probably going to burst their eardrums. Still, she didn’t hear that and kept going.
“Okay so um… Oh! These are my partners Squirtle and Floette. I, don’t have nicknames for them yet.” She took another breath. “Okay… here we go.”
As her performance started… so did her song.
She bobbed her head as started to sing, her Pokémon following along. Floette used Magical Leaf, the glowing green leaves floating into the air as Squirtle used Bubblebeam. The round bubbles slipping over the leaves, trapping them inside.
And then the objects bobbed along too, following the tune Sweetie Belle was singing.
Up in the rafters, a particular batpony watched on with great intrigue, her Cutie Mark glowing faintly as she watched the budding songstress. “How interesting~”
Then Floette used MIsty Terrain, as Squirtle followed up with Rapid Spin, swirling the mist and floating bubble leaves into a whirlwind that spun around the filly. And as her song started to near it’s end…
A combine Sunny Day and Rain Dance caused the most… interesting effect. The sunshower sprinkled over the stage, creating a bright rainbow that reflected off of the magical bubbles, which caused the rainbow hue to link them, almost like floating sheet music, her pink mist settling as Sweetie Belle beamed brightly.
Almost as bright as the Cutie mark on her flank, a small, tri-coloured shield with a musical note in the center.
In the crowd, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were also smiling. Working on this routine with Sweetie Belle had been hard, but also amazingly fun. Staying up late in the clubhouse, figuring out what moves combined well and even asking people like May for ideas. It made them tingle all over, knowing they could help their friend achieve her dream and live up to her potential… heck, it almost felt like that was what they were meant to do. Help others that needed it.
They were so wrapped up in her performance, they didn’t notice their own flanks shine…
Sweetie Belle panted lightly as she Sat on the stage, her Pokémon rushing to her side. “Whew… yeah, I’m okay guys. Just a little tired.”
“Well… after a stunning performance like that,” Diantha said with a smile. “That was astounding Miss Sweetie Belle.”
And the crowd exploded in cheers as the other Crusader’s rushed up to the stage to be with their friend.
“I must say, are you sure you haven’t done something similar?” Joy asked. “Yes, you started out a bit nervous. But once you started… you were nothing but confidence, timing and grace. A sign of a true star in the making.”
“Absolutely magnificent!” Photo Finish jumped to her hooves and clapped. “Wunderbar! Spectacular! Now zat is how it is done!”
“Oh… um… okay,” Sweetie squeaked, feeling a little overwhelmed. She giggled as her two friends hugged her.
“Also,” Photo Finish smiled. “Congratulations Frauline.”
“Um… on what?” Sweetie blinked as she was led off stage. “Seriously! On what?”
As she stepped off, she bumped into the Luxray as the trio of fillies giggled.
“I think,” Seth said as he gestured to them. “Photo Finish was referring to your new Cutie Marks.”
“New?” Sweetie blinked.
“Cutie?” Scootaloo added.
“Marks?” concluded Apple Bloom as they turned to look at their flanks…
Seth yelped and stumbled back as their combined squeals of joy outdid even Arceus’s Hyper Voice attack. Ahhhh, having super hearing sucked!
“Ohmigosh!” Sweetie Belle squealed happily. “Look, they even match!”
“Coooool,” Scoots smiled. “So uh… you all feel the same thing right?”
“On how good it felt to help somepony else?” Apple Bloom added. “Yeah.”
“I was hoping I could help everyone out there forget their worries and enjoy the show,” Sweetie agreed. “So I guess… that’s what we’re meant to do?”
“Seems like it,” Apple Bloom nodded. “But uh… does that mean? We’re not the Cutie Mark Crusaders anymore?”
That got them to pause as they all looked at one another.
“Heck no!” Scootaloo said with a shake of her head. ‘We could still do that. I mean, helping others discover their own talents is still helping right?”
“Ohhh,” the others nodded.
“Wait… are we agreeing that Scootaloo actually had a good idea and we’re agreeing with it?” Sweetie said, earning a scowl from the petite pegasus, before they all giggled again.
Seth smiled as he headed off to the stage. Time for the last performer.
Dinky fidgeted and tugged on the ends of her rainbow scarf, she was standing out of sight by the stage waiting for the Luxray to call. He stood on stage now near the act that went on before her, playing host with a toothy, but friendly, grin. After what seemed like an eternity it was almost time for her, Veevee and Strike to go on. While talking with Sweetie and seeing how much she enjoyed it had help steady her nerves, she couldn't help but worry. It would only take one grown up panicking to ruin what she had planned.
The Pokemon on stage took a bow and the audience applauded again. Dinky watched them exit and one, a Gardevoir, smiled down at her sweetly as she passed by, wishing Dinky luck. Dinky took a deep breathe in one last attempt to calm herself even as Seth began to announce her act.
“Now, we have our next act, another filly from Ponyville will grace our stage. Please be welcoming for little Dinky Hooves, and her Pokémon, Veevee and Strike!”
Dinky swallowed hard and trotted on stage, squinting at the bright overhead lights. The bright lights actually kept her from seeing most of the audience, though she still strained to spot her family. It was only when she saw a small flare of red light that she found them. Her father and mother sat side by side several rows back, the small spark of light was Cinder puffing out a small flame to signal where they were for her. Seeing her mother wave calmed her nerves more than any breathing exercise.
Dinky closed her eyes taking one last deep breath before looking out over the multitude of Ponies, Pokemon, Griffins and other races that had flocked to Canterlot for this event. She smiled,"Hello Everyone. My name is Dinky Hooves and this is Strike." She gestured to the Electric-type who nodded and moved to the far right of the stage. "And this is Veevee." She turned to the Evolution Pokemon, who gulped and gave a little bow before moving to the far left of the stage. She turned back to the audience glad that the spot lights kept her from seeing more than a few dozen,"And I'd like to show you something pretty amazing." Then she took her first step forward.
Strike snarled, a surprisingly aggressive sound to come from the otherwise gentle canine, and lunged forward sprinting towards Dinky. Nearly all eyes locked onto the Electric-type as his coat sparked and he snapped his jaws loudly. If Dinky saw this it didn't phase her in the slightest and she continued to cross the stage at a sedated pace and talk to the audience. "I've learned so much about Pokemon and made so many new friends since they all came to Equus." The spectators gasped as Strike leapt into the air his jaws wide ready to clamp them down on the small filly.
However his attack was thwarted as Veevee, whom had been almost forgotten considering Strike's behavior, jumped between them throwing up a Protect. Strike bounced off the grayish barrier and landed several yards away with a deep growl. The Protect itself shattered under the force of Strike's impact and sent shards raining towards Dinky. Had the former barrier, retained its solidity the razor shards would have cut her face and gouged her eyes. However once the move broke, the glass-like shards lost any form of substance, making them no more hazardous than a summer breeze. Though the force of the impact created a swift gust of wind that pulled sharply at her scarf displaying the force that Strike had been aiming at her.
Dinky didn't even blink as the phantom shards phased through her,"And I first learned about Pokemon Battles and Contest from a stallion who used to be human and his family. They aren't here today." Strike snarled again and barked as his claws glowed a metallic grey. He leapt again speaking to slash at the small pony with his Metal Claw and again was stopped by Veevee's Protect. As before the move repelled him before breaking and raining razor shards of wraith-like glass passes through her body and the scarf flapped about wildly.
The audience gasped at the attack but Dinky ignored them as well, seemingly lost in her own little world. "But before they had to leave for Griffinhiem they showed us how to battle and taught us how to be a team." She was almost two thirds of the way across the stage and had yet to even glance at the battle that took place beside her.
"The thing is." Dinky began arriving at the forefront of the stage, as Strike barked so loudly he may as well have used Roar. "I've heard some ponies and other races say that Pokemon might still be bad. That they're dangerous." As if seeking to prove just that Strike pounced again his jaws wide and crackling with the Thunder Fang he was aiming to use. Once again Veevee intercepted him with Protect and as before it shattered without even earning a ear twitch from the grey unicorn. "And I guess they can be." Dinky admitted finally turning to look at her two Pokemon partners.
Seth was a little surprised by the unusual display, and the fact that the Eevee had used Protect three times in a rom successfully? That was some amazing luck.
The moment she turned to face them, they both sprinted into a new action. Strike and Veevee circled around each other until it was Strike who stood by the filly, much to the spectators dismay, and Veevee who stood their opposite. To those seeing this odd display the Electric-type seemed to do a one-eighty as he stood defensively between the child he had just been trying to kill and her staunch protector, it was baffling. "But while we were training we discovered something."
Veevee jumped straight up into the air getting about eight feet, she open her small mouth. The audience gasped again as a flash of silver light gathered in her jaws before launching out in a full power Hidden Power. Strike reacted almost instantly and the sparking in his coat flared out into a Thunder Wave. Even the Pokemon watching were surprised when the powerful Steel move stopped dead in the crackling electric field, hanging a foot or so off the ground in a pulsing silver sphere.
Dinky turned just enough to glanced at the shadow that the audience sat in,"The fact is, yes! Pokemon can hurt us if they chose too. But so could the Dragons, or the Griffins or any of the other races that lived here before. What's important is that we trust each other. Because when we do, something beautiful is created." A murmur went through the audience and Dinky smirked to herself before turning away. "Veevee use Iron Tail!" She called issuing the first actual command of the performance.
Veevee didn't hesitate, her tail flashed the same shade of metallic silver and leapt forward. She flipped midair, twisting her body so that her tail was at the forefront of her attack. She struck the orb of her last attack with all her might, there was a loud crack, similar to what one would hear during a sonic boom. The shock wave pulled violently at her scarf and blew hard on the spectators as well making most of them flinch.
However what followed were thousands of amazed and awed gasps. Veevee now stood at the center of the metal energies still held in place by Strikes Thunder Wave. The silver glow spiked out in all directions trying to escape, while inside Veevee stood her fur flowing in all directions like water was pouring out of every pore on her body. The once white eye paint that the audience had assumed was makeup on her closed eyes, glowed a vivid golden colour.
"Strike Quick Attack." Dinky said just loud enough to be sure she was heard. The Electric-type released the move that held Veevee within the metal energies and raced around her in a tight circle. The energy scattered into a million motes of silver light that spiraled up to the ceiling were the gave off a faint electric crack before fading into oblivion. The audience oohed and ahhed that the cyclone of light and gasped again when they saw the once off white eye paint had changed to a flat steely gray colour. In the audience the Doctor was quite pleased that that 38% came through.
Dinky turned back to the audience, Strike on her left and Veevee on her right, the trio bowed and waited. Silence reigned for about four seconds before ponies started stomping their hooves. The Pokemon present applauded however their anatomy allowed them to and several high pitched whistles went out. Dinky couldn't keep the grin off her face as she pulled Strike and Veevee into a hug. It took almost a minute for the applause to stop and as it did they turned to the Judges for their thoughts.
At first, the judges had no idea where to even start with such a display. Her little speech beforehand had completely thrown them for a loop.
“I think you’ve raised an excellent point,” Diantha said to her. “And it was the same back home. We humans didn’t have any powers at all. Even compared to ponies. We had no magic, we couldn’t walk on clouds or push massive boulders… well, for the most part.” She chuckled and looked up. “Pokémon, even the smallest ones could cause injury, if they wanted. But, believe it or not, that didn’t occur often. We worked together. Lived in harmony.” She turned and looked at the Pokémon God, sitting in the box with the alicorns. “Our world wasn’t perfect. But in the end, what world is?”
Arceus sighed. “Fair point I suppose,” he muttered to himself.
“At the same time though,” Joy spoke up. “It’s thanks to that, that we’ve made so many wonderful new friends. Yes, first introductions were… rough. But I look around here and I see ponies, griffons, Equus-born beings of all walks of life and Pokémon together. Laughing, smiling… And that makes me smile.”
“Indeed,” Photo Finish nodded. “You are a wise filly for one so young. I fear you must give your parents quite ze run around no?”
“Agreed,” Doctor mused with a shake of his head.
After that, Dinky was ushered off of the stage where she met back up with her friends from Ponyville, most congratulating her for her performance and for the Crusader’s getting their marks.
“And with that, the Canterlot Contest is drawn to a close,” Seth said with a small smile. “I want to thank everyone for making this possible. For the Princesses in helping me secure this venue. For all the friends and family that help get this dream from just that, to something we’ve all lived. And most of all, to all the contestants that have regaled us with their skills, their bravery in stepping on this stage. And the bond they share with their Pokémon partners. None of this would have been possible without them. So please, stomp your hooves or clap your hands for them.
The thunderous applause that followed made the hall rumble, even Celestia and Luna smiled and clapped.
“Thank you…” Seth smiled.
“And also!” Diantha stood up. “Let us thank Seth here. For coming up with the idea in the first place. He’s worked very hard and overcome some of his own personal problems to insure we’ve all had a safe and wondrous evening!”
“I… didn’t do all that much,” The Luxray said as the hall exploded again. Nonetheless, he smiled and took a bow. “Now, as I said. There are no winners and losers tonight. Everyone here has made a spectacular showing, and I hope that with this… we can revive the competition and open it to an even wider audience.”
Then Diantha took the stage. “Actually, I have an announcement if you may,” she said as Seth blinked, wondering what the heck the Gardevoir is up to. She took the microphone and looked out at the crowd. “I’ve had… a lot of fun tonight. More than I have in quite some time. In fact… I’d like to show another of our traditions. One even bigger than the Contests.” She looked at the Luxray. “Due to, the blindness of others… Seth here never got to complete his dream back on Earth, which was to become a Pokémon Champion. So, in a week’s time… I would like to offer him that chance. With Celestia’s permission, I will hold a Pokémon Battle here in Canterlot Stadium. Me against Seth in a full, six-on-six League Battle.”
“W-What?” Seth blinked, his heart pounding. Was… was that allowed? Could she do that?!
“That said, those that wish to witness this are welcome. Tickets will not be free… but the money will go to various charities helping smooth out the problems caused by the transfer. I do hope that as many of you make it as you have tonight.” And with that, she handed the microphone back to still-stunned Seth.
“So… think we can expect a good show?” Celestia whispered to Arceus.
“Most likely,” Arceus replied. “If Seth’s Charizard is anything to go by, this might actually be a close battle.”
“Hmm, could be fun. I’m curious to see how these battles actually work.”
“I know I am,” Luna smiled with unrestrained glee. “This Contest was most fun, but a gladiatorial bloodsport with Pokémon! Oh yeeess~”
“Luna… I’m about… eighty percent sure it’s not like that,” Twilight facehooved. Mental note, ask Gene and Belle about it when she gets home.
Once everyone left the hall, only a few individuals remained. Not that Seth noticed, he was laying on his back on the stage just… dying.
“So Boss…” Midnight walked up to him. “Everyone’s safely left. No problems so to speak of. And aside from that one kerfuffle… I think things went well.”
“Yup,” Seth said wearily. “Just… yup.”
“Hm?” the attractive batpony quirked an eyebrow. “Everything alright there?”
“Just… processing everything,” he sighed contently. “I didn’t realise how on edge I was until now I suppose. I half expected this place to come crashing down… literally.”
“Yeah, but it didn’t,” she said with a grin. “All in all, things went well. Mission success!”
“Speaking of,” Elesa spoke up. “Seeethy~”
Seth’s ears perked up. “Mm?”
“Wanna do that?”
The Luxray paled. “No.”
“Aw come ooooon~”
“No!”
“Pleeaaaase~ For old time’s sake?”
The large cat groaned. He wasn’t going to get out of this as he raised a paw and clamped it over the batpony’s muzzle. “No. You shush.”
“Aww,” she pouted. She shook him free and giggled. “Nah, that’d be too easy. So, what’s she talking about?”
Seth groaned louder. “Fine…” he muttered. At least she wasn’t asking him to do this in front of him. “I wonder if I even still can?”
Elesa found a good track and started to play. “Only one way to find out~”
Midnight’s eyes widened in surprise and utter glee as her cutie mark glowed…
And with that.
Seth started to sing. After the first part, Midnight joined in with her own vocals. How she knew the words was anyone’s guess. But the two actually sounded pretty good together. Elesa bobbed her head to the impromptu duet as Rika pouted, annoyed she hadn’t thought of it first.
That said, Midnight’s voice was amazing. Her Cutie Mark pulsed with light, glowing musical notes and motes of light falling from them like embers as she danced around the stage with Seth.
And once the singing finally stopped, Seth noticed he and Midnight had drawn a couple on-lookers.
“Didn’t know she was that good,” Lucy murmured to herself.
Well she does have a remarkable voice, the psychic of the pair replied. The Lucario bat the Kadabra upside the head before he could continue that line of thought.
As well as a familiar looking Gardevoir and Gallade... the latter of whom was trying not to laugh.
“I didn’t know you could sing Seth,” Belle said with a grin.
“Yeah well…” he blushed, embarrassed that he hadn't noticed they were there as he looked at Gene. “Yeah yeah, laugh it up swordboy.”
“Sorry, sorry,” he apologized. “It’s not you it’s just... watching a Luxray sing with a little pony gave me the giggles.”
“Aww, I thought it was a lot of fun~” Midnight said as she sauntered towards Gene. “Well well well, what do we have here?” she smirked, showing off those shiny fangs. “Someone who’s good with swords hm? Want to see how I handle a sword big boy~?”
Gene blinked, then smiled. “I guess I could use some help. Luke’s been trying to teach me but he’s busy... also I like your teeth, I didn’t know Pegasi came in night version.”
“Oh goodie, you’re like the foxxy one~” she smiled and winked at Vincent. “So, how about you two come back to my place and I’ll show you just how fun a thestral mare can be cutie~”
“Ap!” Seth pulled her back by the tail, making her “skree!” lightly. “He’s taken Midnight. By his wife there.”
Midnight looked at Belle, then back to Seth. “So? She can join too.”
“....I give up,” Seth sighed.
Belle was huggin Gene protectively, though Gene wasn’t sure why. “What? She’s offering to help with my sword problem.”
“Gene sweetie... not the arms, the...” Belle’s eyes glowed blue for a moment, and the Gene’s face turned red.
“Offer’s always ope-gah!” Midnight groaned as Seth bapped her on the head.
“No. bad bat. Don’t make me get the spray bottle.”
“Party pooper,” the thestral poked her… surprisingly long tongue out.
“... okay well we came to congratulate you Seth,” Gene said, handing the Luxray a... bouquet of flowers?
“I told him that was for plays, but he brought them anyway,” Belle told the confused kitty.
Seth chuckled as Rika took the flowers in her ribbons, smelling them. “It’s fine,” Seth replied. “Thanks for coming. I hope you enjoyed it.”
“Aside from the time it looked like an angry mob was gonna happen, yeah, it was fun,” Gene said with a nod. “I tried getting Belle into contests back on Earth, but someone kept destroying her costume.”
“Calling me a Fairy Princess is one thing, but I am not dressing up as freaking Tinkerbell.” Belle huffed and crossed her arm.
“Hahah, okay… I’m picturing the most pouty lil Kirlia,” Seth snickered at the mental image. He rolled over to sit on his belly. “Whew… Honestly, I’m a bit at a loss as to what to do now. I put so much thought into setting and running this things… now Diantha drops that bomb?” Then a thought occurred. “I don’t even have six Pokémon!”
“I’m sure you can find someone to agree to help you out,” Belle assured him... then she realized Gene was looking at her. “... what?”
“... I mean, we did almost beat Cynthia,” Gene reminded her.
“Are you seriously considering lending me to another trainer?” Belle deadpanned.
“Come on, it’s Seth!” Gene said with a grin.
Ignis scratched his chin and spoke up. “Hey Sass Dragon!” he roared out to a certain Gabite. “Wanna fight a Champion?”
“You honestly think I stand a chance?” she growled back. “Maybe if I evolve.”
“Your ability does make you unpredictable,” Seth agreed. “And Gene, I don’t know if I feel comfortable throwing your wife into battle like that. Much less giving her orders…”
“Ohh, kinky~” Rika and Midnight echoed, making Seth groan and facepaw.
“Alright, point taken,” Gene said... then grinned. “How about Mage then? She’s my second strongest, plus she’s been Belle’s main sparring partner since I caught her. Might give you an edge over Diantha’s Gardevoir.”
Seth blinked. “Remind me who that is again? Sorry… I’m kind of bad with names if I don’t interact with them regularly.”
“My Mismagius,” Gene reminded him.
“Ghost type huh… never battled with one of those before,” Seth scratched his ear. “Might work. As long as she doesn’t mind taking orders from another trainer… plus I’d need her for the week to battle with and get used to my style and other Pokémon.”
“It’s better than her bothering Twilight all day,” Gene shrugged. “She’s been getting... antsy, we’ve never stayed in one place so long and she hasn’t adjusted, a little battling will do her some good, trust me.”
“Well, if you insist,” Seth said. “So that makes five if I can find Drake…” he looked back at Christine and smiled. “You in? You practically family as is, and I’d love to battle with you.”
“Oh sure, just take the Gabite out to battle a champion, what could go wrong,” she deadpanned. “I can’t even hide completely, and the moment she works out my ability, I’m hosed! What part of that sounds like ‘good idea’ to you?”
“Because I’m asking you to trust me,” Seth said. “I know you’re stronger than even you seem to think.”
“I mean… if you’re that scared…” Ignis whistled innocently.
Christine let out a low growl at that. “Say that again,” she dared the Charizard.
I really wouldn’t, if you value your neck, Vincent warned.
“I said,” the fire lizard leaned in close, his height towering over the small blue dragon. “You’re scared. You see something tough and you run away. You have your whole life right? Running. Well, I seem to recall a certain smartass dragon talking sense into me a while back. Where’s she go—”
The rest of his question was cut off with an ‘ack!’ as Christine launched herself at Ignis, grabbing him by the neck, flipping him onto his back with her weight and velocity, and pinning him there with her claws pricking his skin.
“Don’t you ever,” she hissed to him, “call me weak again. I tolerate a lot of things. That’s not one of them.”
“Oh yeah?” the Charizard smirked, that annoying, smug… handsome smirk. “Prove it~”
“You’re on the ground now, flyboy,” she pointed out. “All it’d take is one little Earthquake and you’d be eating those words.”
Then her world spun as the Charizard stood up, holding her upside down by the end of her tail. “Mhm… you were saying?”
She twisted in his grip and blasted his face with a Dragonbreath, determined not to be outdone.
He shook his head and chuckled. “That all? Seth’s morning breath packs more of a punch than that.”
“Ignis… stop teasing her,” Seth said as he had the Charizard put her down. “No-one’s going to force you Chrissie. If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I should be able to make do with just five Pokémon.”
“No, no, I’ll show up,” she grumbled, dusting herself off as she glared at Ignis. “If only to put in more of a showing than this smug asshole.”
“Are you certain?” Seth said. “You’re right you know, this will be far from easy. I’m… not confident I can win this.”
“Well, ah am,” Apple Fritter said as she leaned against him. “Ah know you can do this sugarcube.”
Seth nodded and looked at Gene and Vincent. “Thank you both. I’ll make sure to take good care of your family.”
I think you should be more worried about Ignis than Christine, the psychic pointed out.
“Pfft, nah…” Ignis chuckled. “She’s like an angry lil Lillipup. All bark and no bi—”
And that was him getting cut off by Christine jumping on top of him and targeting a Stone Edge...directly underneath her.
“Ah fu—”
The Charizard copped the blunted stone to the chin, knocking him back and… making him fall, pinning the Gabite under his heavy and unconscious form.
Seth sighed… and then sighed again. “I give up…” he said and looked back at his friends. “So, glad you enjoyed the Contest?”
It was quite the change of pace, yes, Vincent agreed.
“Much better than training all day and night,” Lucy nodded as she stretched a little. “But now I’ve got a cramp from sitting in place too long.”
“I’ve got magic hooves~” Midnight giggled flirtatiously and winked at them.
Really? Is it something unique to Thestrals, or is it a talent you’ve pick-
Lucy cut off that line of thought from Vincent by leaning down and whispering in one of his ears as to the true meaning of Midnight’s statement. It caused him to blush through his fur.
“Aww, no spoiling it, his reactions are precious~” Midnight giggled.
Meanwhile, deciding he was no longer getting involved. Seth headed over to Rika while Fritter was lifting Ignis’s body off of Christine.
“So, guess we should probably start cleaning up huh?” he said.
“Eh, you can leave that to us,” Rika said. “I mean, only Elesa knows how to dismantle that turntable thingie. Bitty and Dexxy have the sound system covered and the rest is just sweeping… which you kinda can’t do cause you’re a quadruped.”
“So are you,” Seth itetrated.
Rika waved her prehensile ribbons.
“...ah,” Seth said with a small nod.
“Why don’t you go and have dinner with Vinny, Gene and their adorable waifus,” Rika suggested. “Take Fritter with you. We’ll catch up later.”
“I uh… you sure?” the Luxray asked, feeling kinda bad about it.
“Mhm, gooo~” Rika said, pushing him from behind. “Guys? Make sure this doofus actually eats something.”
I could use my Psychic to make sure of that, Vincent promised, glad the topic had changed.
“Rule one of responsible psychic use,” Belle said. “No mind control.”
I wasn’t going to mind control him, Vincent fired back. Just...work his jaws if he refused to eat. Or I could teleport the food into his stomach. I have options~
“...the prospect of eating dinner should not fill me with horror and dread,” Seth deadpanned as a shiver ran down his spine. He looked at Gene and Lucy. “How do you handle having Psychic spouses?”
“Belle and I kinda share a brain,” Gene shrugged.
“Honestly, this is Vincent limiting himself,” Lucy sighed. “He’s still getting used to the whole ‘doing things with my mind’ shtick. I have to remind him to reign it in every now and again.”
“Psychics are weird… I am so glad I’m a living lightning storm instead,” Seth said as he stretched in a very catlike manner. “Okay, wanna go eat?”
“Let’s!” Lucy cheered. As Seth got up, a Braixen tackle-hugged him and smiled.
"I found you Big Brother~" Rebecca giggled as she nuzzled the Luxray. "Aaah, you so fluffy!"
"Apparently," Seth said, looking up at her. Honestly, he was exerting a good deal of willpower to not break right now. Crying was so not cool. "I-I'm glad you're okay," he said, his voice cracking slightly.
"Yeah... I am too," the fox smiled as she hugged him. His Meganium mother stood off to the side, using a vine to wipe her eyes at the scene.
Seth exhaled and shook his head lightly to clear it. "Well, in any case. We have a LOT to talk about. Shall we do so over dinner?"
"Sounds like a plan," Apple Fritter smiled. Seeing Seth get his family back, it felt like her heart was about to explode with happiness. Today, truly was a good day.
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Quadruped. bi means 2 quad means 4.
Omg it's alive! Best story/author is back! So excited to read!
the rest is just sweeping... which you kinda can't do because you're a quadruped.
edit: and someone beat me to it while I was reading.
you know it's bad when it's put like that...
also fantastic chapter i hope to see more from this story soon
just finished rereading everything
I will say this is one of my favorite pokemon stories here, i do hope you do continue it
Everyone is Here
Quadruped you mean quadruped
9157776
I see what you did there.
Glad to see someone post in the PokemonXmlp Crossovers. What happened to this? The stories are some of the longest an well written works I've ever read, especially this one.The mane story. But everyone suddenly went quiet, and it drives me nuts.
Never stop writing please, love this story and if even one PokemonXmlp crossover writers returns I would be very grateful.
9156776 9156987 9158076
There. Fixed.
That was a great finish for the Contest arc of this story. My favorite moment was when Sweetie Belle and her Pokemon performed on stage and with her, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo earning their cutie marks.
9160065 - I liked that scene too~
9160399
Thanks! By the way, I hope you don't mind but I do believe that there are some errors that you may have missed that I would like to point out.
9160402 - Sure. Go ahead
Just to mention, if it hasn't been mentioned, the section with the sableye and the furret was already done In a previous chapter.
Anyhow, I love the universe that came from this. Long time fan, first time poster. I really hope you and the others still continue but life does happen, as mentioned in the story.
Always good to see the Newverse still getting updates in. And correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Belle pregnant? I didn't think she'd want to go into battle anytime soon.
This story really makes you feel like Spiderman
9269137 You forgot to >> raven618. Also, shouldn't you edit the passage to reflect what you said?
Oh ok, i understand
The link to the source of the cover art leads to an error page.
9450260 - Yes, I believe the artist shut down his Deviantart account.
This is repeated from the previous chapter.
What’s a petryl?
I just realised that Fairy-types are really common in Newverse fanfics.
I read this entire story because I was interested in the contest arc, more specifically the CMCs getting their cutie marks. While I liked the concept of you progressing the Friendship is Magic storyline in an alternative way, I didn’t like how they got the same cutie marks as in the show because the context felt a lot weaker. In the show, they were all together when they realised their futures; here, they’re... not. I was expecting them to get different cutie marks.
It’s never mentioned that Strike is an Electrike.
To be honest, I didn’t realise I was supposed to hate Jeanne at the end of that one chapter until I read the comments, and I was like, “wait, what?”
9539248
I don’t think humans can be transformed into legendaries.
To be honest, I didn’t like the whole part with Selena getting mad at Joanne. Like, she’s only trying to help, but all of sudden, everyone hates her and I felt bad for finding her likeable. I’ve deleted my comments about this before because I was too used to Reddit culture, where people will mob anyone they disagree with.
9791594
You didn't need to give me a PokeDex description of Ampharos. Elena is one, too.
Love to see this story continue
10224927
Gene was the Gallade. Belle was his Gardevoir.
10224932
...not sure what I was thinking at the time, I blame sleep deprevation
Great story but, 6/10, not nearly enough Lady Fritter screentime
what ever happened to these stories? All of them suddenly went dark/Dead?
10346933
I know what you mean every single one of them hasn’t been updated for at least a year now.
10357234
What do you think happened? I mean even the displaced stories have one or two that update regularly and a few new ones popping up hear and there.
These Pokemon ones all seem to have just... stopped without a reason.
10357827
(A) all they writers are ‘dead’ (B) their busy with work, school, that sort of thing (C) I don’t have anything for this one
10358127
I just find it weird that they all stopped around the the same time
10358142
I sense an evil~ presences behind this
11102752
Unless Rika is talking about dog years, the story says Seth met her when she was young, but she is now 25? +10 or so depending on how old Seth was when he met Rika, and he would be pushing 40
11102837 - Continuity error on my part. Let's just say Pokémon age differently shall we.
11103350
That's fair
Glad to see ya doing well. I read a ton so if ya ever need help lemme know.
Seth never made sense to me. He is a pokifile. He wants to bang Pokémon. He is now in a world where that is not against the law. So what does he want to do? Is he happy? No... He wants to punch a god in the face. He wants to punch the god who brought him there in the face........
Because he didn't do it himself? Because he didn't change the laws of some backward countries? His mindset is just retarded and makes no sense. "How dare you bring me to a world where I can fuck Pokémon and marry any Pokémon that I want to! YOU EVIL BASTARD!!!!!!"
Seriously, this just never made a lick of sense to me.