The Pokemon World Tournament-Multishippping-PG-13

[Clone™]

The Pokémon World Tournament
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Pearl and OCxMay

Hello. This is my first fanfic. It takes place right after Ash travelled through Unova. This is an AU fic, steering away from the anime after the quarter finals of the Sinnoh League. Tobias doesn't exist, so Ash won (like he should have). Ash travelled to Unova with Dawn and Brock. Iris doesn't exist, and Cilan is just a gym leader. This fic is set in Gen VI, so Kalos Pokémon and Mega Evolutions will appear.

Also, the tournament is loosly based on what was in the BW2 games. I have added my own spin to it, so stay tuned for that. There is an OC major to the plot, so be prepared for that. If you ever have any questions about this story, feel free to either leave it in a review, or PM me, and I'll do my best to clear things up.

Enjoy-Cloneblazer12

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the announcer said, “this is the moment you have all been waiting for. The final showdown between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town in the Hoenn Region, and Billy Randall of Saffron City in Kanto. These two outstanding trainers have been through thick and thin to get here. The Champions Tournament has been a long one. After hundreds of trainers and countless battles, these two have gone all the way.”

The two trainers stood opposite from each other. Jake, standing tall and slim, was wearing gray sneakers, baggy jeans, had a black t-shirt underneath a red zip up sweatshirt, and had brown hair covered by a white hat with a blue brim. On his shoulder sat an Eevee. He was clenching his fists covered in black fingerless gloves in anticipation. He looked to be in his late teens.

On the other side of the field was a medium height, yet well-built man in his early twenties. He wore brown shoes, blue jeans, a white tank top, and had black hair covered in a blue beanie. He had white gloves on his hands. Both looked at the ref waiting to start.

The referee took over from there. “This battle between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town representing the Hoenn Region, and Billy Randall representing the Kanto Region from Saffron City will shortly be underway. This is a full six on six match with both trainers being allowed to make substitutions at will, and the match will end when all six of either trainer’s Pokemon are defeated, or if one trainer forfeits. This match will be held on a plain, dirt battlefield so neither side will have an advantage. There will be a fifteen minute break after three of either sides’ Pokemon are knocked out, and the battle will continue after that. Are both trainers ready?” the referee asked.
Both trainers replied with a yes.

“Then please send out your first Pokemon.”

“Volcarona, you’re up!” shouted Billy. A large, white moth-looking creature with six orange wings appeared, ready to battle.

“Shadow engage!” Jake called. Greninja, a frog looking Pokemon appeared. It had a navy-blue body with white spots on its joints and a tongue that wrapped around its neck like a scarf. It struck a battle ready pose.

"And it's Jake's Greninja, known for its ability to change its type by using a move, versus Billy's Volcarona, one of the most powerful bug types in existence. Will Volcarona's power be able to overcome Greninja's ability to play mind games with its opponent?" The announcer shouted.

"Begin!" The ref said.

"Volcarona, use Bug Buzz!" Billy commanded.

"Flash Cannon!" Jake countered.

Volcarona let of a high-pitched screeching noise that caused many people to cover their ears. Meanwhile Shadow's body gave off a metallic glint as it changed into the steel type while emitting a bright flash aimed at Volcarona. Neither Pokemon seemed phased by the attacks due to the resistances.
“Flamethrower!" Billy called.

"Counter with Hydro Pump!" Jake shouted.

Volcarona opened its mouth and spewed flames at the now steel type Greninja. However he soon turned blue and opened his mouth sending a powerful blast of water at the flamethrower. The two attacks met in the middle before the Hydro Pump quickly overpowered it and sent Volcarona flying back.

Damn Billy thought to himself. I need to get Volcarona back into this or he's out for good. "Giga Drain now!" He said, a hint of desperation in his voice.

Large green tendrils shot out of Volcarona's body and quickly grabbed Greninja, draining its health. After each passing second, Greninja got weaker as Volcarona looked stronger.

"Break away using Nightslash followed by Surf!" Jake commanded.

Greninja turned black before a dark aura emanated from his tongue. He then slammed it into the tendrils, breaking free. Before Volcarona could react, the now-blue Greninja swamped the entire field with water washing it in front of its trainer's feet, unconscious.

"Volcarona is unable to battle, Greninja is the winner!" The ref announced. Roars emanated from the crowd in response.

Billy recalled Volcarona into its Poke Ball. "Thanks Volcarona, despite the type advantage and trickery, you were able to take a lot out of it. I couldn't have asked for more." He thought for a second before grabbing a Poke Ball from his belt. "Salamence, I choose you!" He called.
A large dragon with a turquoise body and large red wings appeared. At its sight, Shadow cowered in fear for a few moments.

"Would you look at that folks! Salamence's intimidate seems to have taken effect. Greninja's attack power has been reduced because of it" the announcer boomed.

"Salamence versus Greninja. Begin!" the ref said.

Shadow doesn't have much energy left, but I should at least be able to land a few hits before he goes down, Jake thought to himself. "Shadow use Flash cannon!" He ordered.

"Counter with Dragonbreath!" Billy yelled.

Greninja shot out a beam of light right after taking on steel properties. It met in the middle of the field with the Dragonbreath, causing a small explosion.

"Shadow use Ice Beam!"

"Flamethrower!"

Greninja's body turned icy cold as it shot a beam of ice at Salamence. Meanwhile Salamence launched a flamethrower at the ice beam, easily powering through it.

"Water Shuriken!" Jake called in an attempt to lessen the damage. But it was too late and the flamethrower crashed into ice-type Greninja, knocking it out.

"Greninja is unable to battle, Salamence wins!" The ref yelled.

Jake recalled Shadow. "Thanks a lot bud, you were outstanding out there" he said. "Let's fight fire with fire!" he said to Billy. "Maverick engage!"

A Garchomp emerged from the Poke Ball. It was dark blue with a long tail and a fin on its back, as well as scythe-like appendages on its arms. It's head resembled a hammerhead shark.

"Would you look at that! It's a battle of the dragons! Both of these pseudo-legendaries are extremely powerful, and we're in for a treat now folks!" The announcer said.

"Salamence versus Garchomp. Begin!"

"Salamence, use Dragonbreath!"

"Block with iron tail. Then get in the air!"

Salamence sent a green energy from its maw aimed straight at Garchomp. However, he easily deflected the attack with an iron tail, then began to climb into the air.

"Get behind Salamence, then use crunch!" Jake ordered.

"Slap it away with an iron tail!" Billy yelled.

As Garchomp moved in behind Salamence, Salamence swung an iron hard tail at it. Garchomp swiftly dodged it, then crunched down on the back of Salamence's neck. Salamence screamed in pain.

"Now ice fang!"

Garchomp's teeth became ice cold and seeped into Salamence's neck. Another roar of pain was heard.

"****" Billy said to himself. Salamence needs to get out of there now. Desperate times call for desperate measures. "Salamence use Outrage!" He called in desperation.

Salamence's eyed started to glow a deep red. It began to thrash violently attempting to free itself from Garchomp.

"Release and use substitute!" Jake said calmly.

Garchomp released Salamence from its mouth and quickly vanished, leaving a copy of itself in its place. Salamence immediately took the bait, attacking it with everything it had, rage in its eyes. Salamence continued to attack the substitute, finally breaking it. When it disappeared, Salamence started to hit itself, the confusion effect of outrage kicking in. It never saw Garchomp's Dragon Rush, knocking it out cold.

"Salamence is unable to battle, Garchomp is the winner!" The ref announced.

"We'll folks, it was a risky move to use outrage to break free, and in the end it ended up backfiring, allowing Garchomp to score a KO relatively healthy. Can Billy overcome this setback?" The announcer yelled.

"Salamence return" Billy muttered, recalling Salamence back into its Poke Ball. "I'm sorry, I made a huge mistake and you had to suffer for it. I hope you can forgive me." He took out a third Poke Ball. "I wasn't planning on using you just yet, but I don't really have a choice. Aggron I need you!"

The large steel and rock type Pokemon appeared. Its body was covered in steel armor and had three horns protruding from the front of its head.

"Aggron versus Garchomp, begin!"

"Aggron use metal claw!"

"Earthquake!"

Aggron started running towards Garchomp holding out claws that extended metallically. Meanwhile, Garchomp stomped a foot into the ground, causing the ground to shake. However, Aggron surprisingly pushed through and landed a clean hit knocking Garchomp back.

"And it looks like Sturdy has saved Billy's Aggron!" The announcer said. "However, that hit was extremely effective, and I don't know how much more Aggron can take."

"Earthquake one more time!" Jake shouted

"Aggron jump, then use Heavy Slam!" Billy commanded.

Garchomp slammed its foot into the ground, causing another tremor. However, Aggron surprisingly jumped away in time and crashed into Garchomp, causing massive damage.

"Knock it back with flamethrower!"

"Iron Defense!"

The Mach Pokemon spewed flames from its mouth aimed at Aggron. However, the flames barely did anything as the Iron Armor Pokemon's body glowed silver.

"Now dragon claw Aggron!"

"Block with Iron Tail, then use Brick Break!"

Aggron charged forward, claws extended aiming at Garchomp. It swung at him, but was blocked by the iron tail and swiftly met a brick break to the face, causing it to stagger.

Finish with Earthquake!" Jake said.

Garchomp stamped a foot on the ground, causing a massive tremor. Aggron, still dizzy from the brick break, succumbed to the earthquake and fainted.

"Aggron is unable to battle, Garchomp is the winner!" The ref announced.

"Garchomp has done it again! thats two KOs for it now, and it’s still looking strong! And with that, we will now go into a fifteen minute break."

Well, there’s chapter 1, hope you like it. If you’re confused as to what’s going on, all will be explained next chapter. Please R&R, but no flaming. Criticism appreciated. Like I said before, this is my first Fanfic, so I’m new to this. I'll be adding chapeter two up here tomorrow. It's already up at fanfiction.net, so if you can't wait for it, go read it there.

 

[Clone™]

I know I said that I'd post this yesterday, but things came up. Sorry. Just to be clear, Author’s notes are in bold, and thoughts are in italic. Dialogue is in quotations as usual. I don’t have much to say, other than the fact that the battle will be concluded here. Enjoy .

The break is now over, with both trainers please select their Pokémon?" The ref asked.
"Aegislash, I choose you!" Billy said. The dual ghost steel golden sword-like Pokémon appeared behind a shield.

"Riptide, engage!" Jake said, sending out a Swampert. It was blue, with two fins on its head, a large, fin-like tail, and had orange pads on its elbows and knees.

“Swampert versus Aegislash, begin!”
“Use earthquake!”

“King's Shield!”

Swampert slammed its arms into the ground, causing a huge tremor. Aegislash emitted a blue energy in front of it, protecting it from damage.

“Sacred Sword!” Billy commanded.

“Hydro Pump!” Jake yelled.

Aegislash suddenly changed forms, so that its shield was held in its hand and its blade was exposed. It relished towards Swampert, but it was hit by a powerful blast of water, dealing major damage because of its reduced defenses.

"Follow with mud shot!"

Swampert then shot a few balls of mud at the dazed Aegislash, hitting it again with the super effective hit.

I need to end this quick or Aegislash is out for good Billy thought to himself. "Use Shadow Sneak!" He said.

"Earthquake!" Jake countered.

Aegislash disappeared into the shadows and snuck up behind the Mud Fish Pokémon, dealing damage. Once he recovered, he once again slammed his arms into the ground, causing the ground to shake. Aegislash was hit reappearing from the shadows, unable to get back up.
"Aegislash is unable to battle, Swampert wins!"

"Another victory for Jake, leaving only two Pokémon left for Billy, compared to Jake's five. Will he be able to recover in time? Or will Jake's lead bring him the victory?" Said the announcer.

Damnit! I only have two left. Tyranitar is at a disadvantage, but I need to save Blastoise for last Billy thought to himself. "Alright, Tyranitar go!" He sent out a huge green, lizard like Pokémon standing almost seven feet tall.

"Tyranitar versus Swampert, begin!"

A huge amount of sand started to kick up, starting a sandstorm.

"Would you look at that folks, Tyranitar's sand stream really makes it hard to see!" The announcer said.

"Riptide, return!" Jake shouted. "Maverick, engage!" Jake sent his Garchomp back out, and it immediately vanished in the sand.

"And Garchomp's Sand Veil is taking effect! This is going to make it really hard for Tyranitar to see him!" The announcer shouted.

"Garchomp versus Tyranitar, begin!"

**** Billy thought to himself, now Tyranitar can't even see his opponent. Tyranitar, use Earthquake!" He commanded.

"Maverick, into the air!"

Tyranitar stamped a foot into the ground, causing a massive tremor. However, it didn't seem like it did anything to the invisible Garchomp.

"Earth power!" Jake commanded.

All of a sudden, the ground beneath Tyranitar split apart and a yellow energy sprang up, dealing massive damage.

"I've always wondered why I taught him this move" Billy said to himself. "Use Sunny Day!"

All of a sudden, the sand stopped, and the sunlight got intensely brighter. Garchomp reappeared, showing it to be hovering in the air, a confused look on its face.
"Now ice beam!" Billy commanded, sensing an opening.

"Counter with flamethrower, followed by Earthquake!"

Tyranitar sent out a cold beam of ice, aimed directly at Garchomp. However, it was swiftly overpowered by the amped-up flamethrower. Garchomp then stamped his foot into the ground, causing a massive tremor. Tyranitar seemed like it was about to give in.
This is my only chance[I/] thought Billy. "Tyranitar Hyper beam!"

"Substitute!"

Tyranitar spewed a massive beam of orange energy at Garchomp, however he just simply faded away, revealing the real Garchomp to be in the air.

"Finish with Earth Power!"

Garchomp slammed his foot into the ground, causing it to split apart and radiate a yellow energy under Tyranitar, swiftly knocking it out.

"Tyranitar is unable to battle, Garchomp is the winner!"

And would you look at that! Jake has five Pokémon left as opposed to Billy's one! It certainly doesn't look like he'll recover from this one folks." The announcer boomed.
"Tyranitar return. Go Blastoise!" Billy shouted.

"Blastoise versus Garchomp, begin!"

"You ready?" Billy asked. Blastoise nodded in return. He touched a button on the watch-like object on his wrist. "Alright mega evolve, go!" He yelled.

Blastoise started to glow, and then had a spherical aura cover his body. He broke out, revealing to have a huge cannon on his back, as well as two smaller cannons on his arms.

"Use rain dance!" Billy commanded.

The sunlight was quickly replaced by dark rain clouds, and rain began to fall.

"Now Ice Beam!"

"Counter with flamethrower, then go into Dragon Rush!" Jake said calmly.

Garchomp sent out a massive flamethrower to counter the ice beam shot at him. However, the rain dance was still in effect, causing the flamethrower to be at only half its normal power. The ice beam was significantly stronger, causing it to overpower the flamethrower.

"Hydro Pump!"

Blastoise the shot out a huge blast of water out of the cannon on its back at Garchomp, who was speeding towards it like a bullet shrouded in a blue aura. Garchomp never made it. The hydro pump hit its mark, causing Garchomp to spin out of control like a disabled jet plane, crashing into the ground. He didn't get back up.

"Garchomp is unable to battle, Blastoise is the winner!"

"Maverick return," Jake said. "Thanks for everything, you were awesome." He pulled out another poke ball from his belt. "Riptide, engage!" The Mud Fish Pokémon reappeared, staring down his opponent.

"We'll folks, he's still a long way off, but with the increased power from mega evolving, Blastoise looks strong as ever! Can Billy turn this around and pull off an amazing comeback?" The announcer asked, excitement in his voice.

Swampert versus Blastoise, begin!"

"Blastoise water pulse!" Billy yelled.

"Block it with surf!" Jake countered.

Using the two smaller cannons on its arms, Blastoise senator out an orb of water, stronger than usual because of its Mega Launcher ability. Swampert, on the other hand, countered it by summoning a massive wave of water. Instead of sending it crashing toward his opponent, he held it in place, blocking the water pulse.

"Earthquake!" Jake yelled.

Swampert sent his arms crashing down into the ground, shaking the entire battlefield. Blastoise took damage, but seemed relatively undated by the attack.

"Blastoise use Aura Sphere!" Billy yelled.

"Counter with Superpower!" Jake ordered, a hint of desperation in his voice.

The cannon on Blastoise's back glowed, before sending a blue sphere of pure aura at Swampert, once again powered up from Mega Launcher. Rather than dodging the unavoidable attack like he normally would, Swampert followed his trainer's orders and hit the Aura Sphere with a glowing fist, causing a small explosion. When the smoke cleared, Swampert was still standing, albeit breathing heavily.

There's no way Riptide can defeat that Blastoise Jake thought to himself. But I know that all I need to do is weaken him enough so Blazer can get in there and clean up. It'll take the combined assaults of everyone to do so. He thought for a second longer. "Riptide mud shot, followed by your Hammer arm-Superpower combo!" Jake commanded.

Swampert obliged, shooting out mud from his mouth aimed at Blastoise's eyes, just like he had done before. He then ran up to the blinded Blastoise, slamming down his glowing arms, quickly following up with two powerful punches sending Blastoise staggering back. However, Blastoise quickly recovered, spraying a small stream of water to clear his eyes.
"Hydro Pump!" Billy said.

Blastoise sent out a massive stream of water, instantly knocking Swampert out.

"Swampert is unable to battle, Blastoise is the winner!"

"And it's another victory for Billy's Blastoise!" The announcer said excitedly. "He still has three Pokémon to go, can they win this in a turn of events?"

"Riptide, return!" Jake said, recalling his fallen Swampert. "You did everything I needed you to." He said. "Brain, engage!" He sent out a massive, four-legged Pokémon, blue in color. It had a large, gray X across its face with two deep, menacing red eyes. "METAH!" The Metagross said.
"Metagross versus Blastoise, begin!"

"Start out with a Water Pulse!" Billy commanded.

"Calm Mind, then Iron Defense!" Jake countered.

Blastoise sent out a powered up orb of water, aimed at the Metagross that was clearing its mind of all thoughts. Just as the orb was about to strike it, Metagross's Body gleamed a shining silver, protecting it from major damage.

"Bullet Punch, followed by Thunder Punch!"

Metagross tucked its legs in and shot across towards Blastoise, striking him in the stomach. As it made contact, its fist cackled with electricity, paralyzing Blastoise. He roared in pain.

"If you can move, use aura sphere!" Billy called, a worried look on his face.

Blastoise, with much effort, shot a powered up blue sphere brimming with aura or of its cannon. The shot went wide, but it swung around and struck Metagross in the back. However, it didn't seem to be hurt.

"Psychic, followed by earthquake!"

Metagross held Blastoise in place using its psychic energy, and then slammed its feet into the ground causing a tremor. Normally this would completely exhaust any Pokémon, but Metagross had four brains which allowed it to pull off the impressive feat.

"Paralyzed and being struck by a powerful attack did not sit well with Blastoise. With a tremendous amount of effort, he seemed to snap out of the paralysis, a look of extreme anger on his face.

"Hydro Pump!"

"Iron Defense!"

Blastoise launched a huge blast of water striking the now silver Metagross.
"Bullet Punch into Thunder Punch!"

"Skull Bash!"

Metagross shot forward towards Blastoise, who reared his head back. As Metagross's electrifying fist was about to make contact with Blastoise, he shot forward and rammed his head into the steel Titan, causing massive damage. Metagross still made contact, but it lost a lot of momentum from the hit. It broke away, panting heavily.

"Water Pulse!"

"Calm Mind!" Jake said, hoping to prevent the confusion effect.

As the powerful orb of water shot towards Metagross, it started to clear its mind of thoughts. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. Metagross had a dazed look in its eyes, and just stood there. No one knew what was going on inside its head but Jake. He had a defeated look on his face as the Steel Titan collapsed.

"Uh, Metagross is unable to battle...?" The ref said with uncertainty.

"Basically what happened was Brain got confused," Jake started. "Inside its mind, it shut down its body to prevent damage to itself, kind of like an anti-virus program will on a computer. It'll be fine, but it’s done battling for today," he finished.

"In that case, Blastoise is the winner!" The ref shouted, glad to know what happened.

"Brain return. Thanks, I might not even need Blazer now thanks to you." Jake said. "Shockwave, engage!" A quadruped sphinx-like Pokémon appeared. It was mostly black, save for a blue face, and spiky fur behind its large ears. It had menacing red eyes.

"Luxray versus Blastoise, begin!"

****! Billy thought to himself. I'm not gonna be able to beat him. Blastoise has taken too much damage from that battle with Metagross. Still I wonder if the Blazer he was talking about is the same one that I've heard about.

"Let's finish this with Discharge!" Jake said.

That was all it took. Luxray sent out a powerful wave of electric energy, causing Blastoise to finally collapse out of pure exhaustion.

"Blastoise is unable to battle, Luxray is the winner and the match goes to Jake Smith of Littleroot Town!" The ref stated.

"Great job," Billy said as he recalled his Blastoise. "You were exceptional out there. I couldn't have asked for more." He turned to Jake. "Great match Jake!" He said holding out his hand. "You definitely deserve this victory."

Jake shook his hand. "It was. I hope I can battle you again some point. That Blastoise of yours really gave me a run for my money."

"Eevee!" Billy said.

"What?"

"Eevee! Eev eevee!"

"Huh?"

Suddenly the stadium disappeared, as well as Billy, whose hand he was still shaking. Then, ...

Cliffhanger! Although you can probably guess what happens after this. Next chapter will have more stuff leading up to the tournament. Please review! I'm new to this, so I'd like some of the veteran writers to give me some pointers. Chapter 3 is up at fanfiction, I'll post it up here whenever I can. Anyways, R&R!

 

[Clone™]

So here’s chapter 3. Enjoy

“AAAAAGGGGHHHHH!" Jake screamed, jolting awake. He looked over and saw his Eevee, laughing mischievously while holding an empty Poke Ball. He turned his head and saw Shockwave, his Luxray, had given him a Thunderbolt to wake up, also smirking. He looked at the clock.

"Oh **** I'm gonna be late!"

He bolted out of bed, recalled Shockwave, and started to get dressed. 30 seconds later he was ready.

"Eevee let's go!"

Eevee hopped onto his backpack, which Jake put on and ran out the door, ferry ticket in hand.

"I've gotta get to Slateport for the Pokemon World Tournament!" He yelled while running. "Bye mom! Bye dad! I'll tell you when I've qualified!" He said, letting his ego show a little bit.

"Bye honey, be good!" She replied as he ran out the door.

"Bye son!" His dad called after him, but Jake had already left.

*15 minutes later*

"Where is it?" Jake asked. He looked around before finally spotting his ferry, running towards it.

"Alright! Time to kick some ***!"

Eevee rolled his eyes, used to his best friend's ego.

---

As they got to the ship, Jake handed over his ticket and climbed aboard.

Although it was only a few hours' travel, he was still assigned a cabin. Once inside, Eevee hopped off Jake's shoulder, while he started to "officially" get ready for the day. He still smelled of ash from Shockwave's electrical wake up call.

He showered and got redressed. Once he was ready, he decided to tour the ship, Eevee on his shoulder. He started to walk around, with no particular destination. After walking around for a while, he turned a corner and saw a battle going on. Having nothing better to do, he decided to join the crowd and watch.

On the makeshift battlefield, there was a tall, buff man in his mid-twenties. He wore a pair of black sneakers, black sweatpants, and a blue tank top. In front of him was a powerful looking Poliwrath. It was a blue, tadpole looking Pokemon with menacing eyes with a white belly covered by a black spiral going clockwise.

On the other side of the field was a boy in his mid teens. He was of average height, with a slim build. He wore sandals, gray shorts, and a red t-shirt. He was commanding a Bouffalant. The pokemon looked like a bull, with four muscular legs, yellow eyes, and had two horns protruding out of an afro.

"Bouffalant, Head Charge!"

"Grab his horns, then go into submission!"

Bouffalant's afro glowed with a red energy, with an orange circle at the front. It charged at the Poliwrath. Poliwrath, however, was able to catch the charging afro-bull by the horns. He then jumped, Bouffalant still in tow, and then rolled around causing damage to both Pokemon. Bouffalant came off worse, panting heavily from the super effective attack.

"Finish with DynamicPunch!"

Poliwrath ran towards the Bouffalant with a glowing fist. It struck Bouffalant square in the face, scoring a clean KO.

"Bouffalant is unable to battle!" one of the spectators, acting like a referee, said. "Poliwrath is the winner and the victory goes to Jim!"

"Hah. That's three victories in a row!" Jim exclaimed. "Is there anyone who can beat me?"

"I'm up for it," Jake replied.

Everyone turned around to the newcomer.

"Think you can beat me pipsqueak?" asked Jim.

"Based on the fact that you're an overconfident bastard, I KNOW I can beat you," Jake replied. "How does a one on one sound?"

"Fine by me," Jim replied, angry at Jake's comment. "Got a name?"

"Jake. Jake Smith."

The person who was the ref for the previous match volunteered to referee again. Both parties agreed.

"This will be a one on one unofficial match between the challenger, Jake Smith, and the challenged, Jim Brady. Each trainer will use one Pokemon. The match will be over when either side's Pokemon is unable to continue, or by forfeit. Are both trainers ready?" he asked.

He got two nods in agreement. "Then please send out your Pokemon."

"Conkeldurr, let's roll!" Jim shouted. A large, bulky fighting type appeared. His light brown body had two, short legs, and his upper body was supported by two massive concrete pillars. His face had a red nose that looked like a ball.

"Talon, engage!" Jake sent out a Braviary. He had a massive wingspan, and his body was mostly covered by blue feathers. His back and top of his wings were red, and he had white feathers surrounding his head like a crown.

"Braviary versus Conkeldurr, begin!"

"Take it out with a stone edge!" Jim commanded.

"Into the air and use Air Slash!" Jake countered.

Conkeldurr summoned three rings of stones around his body, before swiftly sending them at Braviary, however, he was too quick and was able to easily dodge and sent several slashes of air at his opponent.
"Block them!" Jim shouted.

Conkeldurr lifted his concrete pillars into the air, and held them in front of the attack, significantly reducing the damage taken.

Damn, Jake thought to himself. I need to get those pillars away from Conkeldurr. I've got it!

"Bulk up, followed by Aerial Ace!"

"Stone Edge!"

Braviary took a deep breath, enlarging his muscles before diving down at his opponent. Conkeldurr sent dozens of sharp stones at Braviary. They hit, but he powered through and slammed into Conkeldurr.

"Now gust!"

Braviary quickly started flapping his wings at the dazed fighting type, causing him to lose his balance. One of the concrete pillars flew out of his hands, landing several feet away.

One down one to go! "Use air slash, aim for the hands!"

"Ice Punch!"

Braviary sent a slash of air at the hand holding the pillar. However, Conkeldurr's one free hand glowed white and slammed into it, destroying the attack.

"Now Rock Slide!"

"Fly away!"

Conkeldurr slammed his one remaining concrete pillar into the ground, summoning a wave of rocks at Braviary, but he was well out of range.

"Razor wind, followed by Crush Claw!"

Braviary flapped his wings, causing a huge amount of wind to kick up. He then flew towards the distracted Conkeldurr, talons glowing. He struck out, causing Conkeldurr to drop his remaining concrete pillar. He looked like he was struggling to stand without the support.

"Finish with Brave Bird!"

Braviary climbed into the air, then quickly dove towards the ground, a blue aura surrounding his body. He then sped towards the defenseless Conkeldurr, crashing into it. Conkeldurr didn't get back up.
"Conkeldurr is unable to battle, Braviary is the winner! The victory goes to Jake!" The ref announced.

"Great job Talon. Be a sport and get his pillars please," Jake said.

Braviary obliged, retrieving the two concrete pillars and placing them next to the fallen Conkeldurr, who was beginning to wake up.

Jim, on the other hand, looked like he was going to blow a gaskit. "I can't believe I lost to some scrawny little Bastard!" He fumed. "Conkeldurr return." He recalled his fighting type and stormed off. "This isn't the last you'll see of me," he muttered.

Suddenly the loudspeakers cackled on. "Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking, we are arriving at Slateport Harbor and will be docking in ten minutes. Please gather your belongings and prepare to exit the ship in an orderly fashion. Thank you for sailing with us."

Jake went over to the sidelines, where Eevee was waiting for him. "You ready to go bud?" he asked.
"Eevee!" came the reply.

"Alright hop on!" Jake smiled, lowering his shoulder.

Eevee complied, taking up the comfortable spot on his friend's shoulder.

"Once we dock, we'll head over to registration, then go walk around. Sound good?"

Eevee nodded.

The ship had arrived at the port, and the two started to debarked from the ship, heading towards the Pokemon Center.

So another battle. I feel like they make great filler, plus I enjoy writing them. Next chapter will introduce more main characters, as well as explain Jake’s personality a bit more. Anyways, Please Review! I can't change anything if no one tells me what I can improve on. Another thing, if you have a ff.net account, feel free to submit an OC for the tournament. No legendaries and limit one pseudo legendary per character. And please try to mix up what Pokemon he/she has. Anyways, see you next time!

 

[Clone™]

This chapter introduces some new characters. Let me know what you think of the dialogue, as that's gonna be my main concern during this chapter. Anyways, Chapter 4 everyone!

The two headed towards the Pokémon Center. Once they got there, Jake walked over to Nurse Joy.
"I'd like to register for the tournament please," he stated.

Nurse Joy nodded. "Just fill out this paper work, and you're good to go." She looked up at him. "You-you're Jake Smith right?" she asked.

"Yep"

"Congrats on winning the Hoenn League! I'm sure you'll do well in the qualifiers."

"Thanks Nurse Joy. Can you also look after my Pokémon for me?" He asked.

"I'd be happy to."

"Thanks. I'll be back in a bit, I'm just gonna walk around for a bit." He handed her five Poke Balls, keeping one with him.

(A/N Eevee doesn't have a Poke Ball, as he's not officially captured. More will be explained later).

"See ya later!" He smiled.

He walked out and started to stroll around. As he was walking, he heard two people arguing up ahead.

"Leave me alone Drew," a girl shouted.

"Why? Don't tell me you're not still interested" came the reply.

"That was four years ago, and you blew it. LEAVE ME ALONE!" She shouted.

"Whatever," the green-haired teen turned around and walked away, flicking his hair.

"Uh, sis, people are starting to stare," said a boy, noticing the people turning their heads at the fiasco.

"Ugh! I hate him! He just doesn't seem to get it!" she exclaimed.

Jake walked up to the group, seeing a green haired boy walk away. He then looked at the girl. No way! He thought to himself. That voice! that figure! but the dead giveaway has to be the bandana. She always wore that bandana, not to mention she looked good with it on!. Taking a deep breath, he spoke up.

"Get what?"

Both the girl and the younger boy turned around at the newcomer.

"No freakin way!" The girl exclaimed, surprised at the sight.

"Miss me May?" Jake smiled.

"It's been way too long! How have you been?" She replied.

"I've been doing well. I'm not a fan of talking out in the open, wanna head to the Pokémon center to talk?"

"Who is this guy May? And why does he look familiar?" The boy stared at Jake for a moment. "Wait you're Jake Smith right?" he asked.

"The one and only."

"Max, I wouldn't really expect you to remember him, but he used to come over to our house all the time when we were little. We were practically best friends. You were six when he left to become a Pokémon Trainer," said May.

"Speaking of Pokémon, I've heard you're a coordinator now?" Jake asked. The trio started walking back to the Pokémon Center. "So that means you've gotten over your fear of Pokémon, right?"

"Yep!"

"Who'd you pick as your starter?"

May smiled. "I'll just show you. Blaziken, take the stage!" she exclaimed.

A tall Pokémon with powerful red and yellow legs, with cream colored feathers jutting out from its head appeared. The feathers also wrapped around its upper torso, giving off the impression of a vest. It had a red beak.

"Blaze." It said.

"Meet Blaziken!"

"Hey Eevee," Jake said, turning towards the Evolution Pokémon on his shoulder. "Should we introduce our friend?"

"Eevee!" He exclaimed, nodding his head.

"Alright then," he said, pulling out the one Poke Ball he had with him. "Blazer, engage!"

Out came a Blaziken, with a series of sparkles, but this one was different. His body was a darker shade of red, and the hair-like feathers were white instead of cream.

"Wow, a shiny Pokémon?" Max asked.

"Yep. Professor Birch said that he'd never seen anything like him before, and he wanted to make sure that I wanted him, but my decision was final, and he's been my strongest battler ever since. My other Pokémon are with Nurse Joy right now, since they need to be in tip-top shape for the qualifiers tomorrow. You're entering too, right Max?"

"Yeah! I'd never pass up a chance to be world famous!"

They had arrived at the Pokémon Center and walked in.

"Hey Nurse Joy!" Jake said.

"Hey Jake! You're Pokémon are all ready to go for tomorrow."

"Thanks." Jake collected his Poke Balls and put them on his belt. He recalled his Blaziken in the process. He turned towards May and Max. "I haven't had lunch yet, wanna come with me? We could catch up some more."

"I'd love to! Whaddaya say Max, you in?"

"Sure, seeing as though I don't really have a choice. I know a great place to eat up ahead." He stepped forward and walked out.

Jake turned towards May. "Who was that guy back there? He seemed to be giving you a hard time back there." He asked.

"Just some guy I dated a few years ago. One of the worst mistakes I've made, and now he won't leave me alone, especially when we compete against each other."

"So he's a coordinator too?"

"Yep."

They arrived at a diner and walked inside.

"Hello, and welcome to the Giant Wailord!" a waitress said. "Is it just you three today?"

"Yeah, just us."

"Alright then, follow me." She led them to a table, and handed them menus. "I'll be back in a few minutes to take your orders. What would you like to drink?"

"I'll have a Pecha berry Soda please," said Jake.

"Same as him," said May.

"I'll take some Oran Juice please," said Max.

"Certainly," she said. "I'll be back in a few minutes with your drinks." She turned and walked away.

"So how have you been doing in your gym quest Max? Jake asked.

"I've gotten all eight from Hoenn, but lost in the semi quarter finale at the Hoenn League. Some guy with a Salamence was able to take out half my team, and I wasn't able to recover."

Jake chuckled. "I remember that guy; Maverick was able to take him out after I lost Shadow to him."

"Wait, you were in the Hoenn league!?" Maxed asked, a surprised look on his face.

"I WON the Hoenn league. I faced the guy who beat you in the finals. His Aggron didn't go down easy, that's for sure."

"So it WAS you who won," May said. "I wasn't sure, but I saw it in the newspaper."

"Yep. I came back after coming in the top four in the Kalos League." He replied. He laughed again. "There is some tough competition out there, but I definitely enjoyed every moment of it."

"So have you been to all of the regions yet?" May asked.

"Yep. Hoenn, Johto, Kanto, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos, in that order. Now I'm back here for the qualifiers of the World Tournament."

"I've always wanted to compete in the Sinnoh contest circuit!" May said, a dreamy look in her eyes.

"I saw some of those, they definitely like to dress up for those. While we're on the topic of contests, how have they been going?"

"Are you ready to order?"

"I am. Order what you want, it's on me guys." Jake said. "I'll have the roasted Farfetch'd sandwich."

"I'll have a large bowl of ramen please," May said.

"I'll have the Ducklett legs please, with a side of fries," Max stated.

"Certainly, it won't take very long," the waitress said before walking away.

"Back on topic, how have your contests been going?"

Well, in my first circuit, back here in Hoenn, I got into the top eight, I then got to the top four in the Kanto grand festival. After that, I split up with Ash and Brock and decided to compete in Johto. I placed second there. I finally got my first win after coming back to Hoenn. I've been off the circuit for a while, but I plan on going to Sinnoh after the tournament."

"Sounds like you've had some accomplishments!"

"Yeah, I guess," May replied, slightly blushing.

"Don't be so modest. The top eight in your first run? That's pretty good. Plus you've won a Grand Festival. Not many coordinators can say that!" Jake replied, smiling.

"But some will brag about it," May muttered.

"Don't worry about that guy, he's old news. Focus on the present, and don't dwell in the past."

"Okay!" She exclaimed. She looked over and saw that the food had arrived. "Yay food's here!"

They looked over, and sure enough, there food had arrived amidst their conversation. They started eating.

"This is really good!" Max exclaimed.

Jake thought for a second. "May, you mentioned an Ash right?"

She looked up at him, taking a second to swallow the ramen in her mouth. "Yeah. Ash Ketchum. Why?" She asked.

"I've always wanted to meet him. I remember hearing about his achievements right before I left for my journey. I'd definitely like to battle him someday." He replied.

"Knowing Ash, you'll probably meet him at the tournament. I'm sure he'll qualify, and I'll introduce you to him."

"Sounds good." Jake said.

They soon finished eating. "Are you sure you want to foot the bill?" Max asked.

"Yeah, I don't have a problem with it. It's nice to catch up with old friends.

"Are you sure? I'd be more than happy to split the bill." May said.

"This ones on me." He paid and they walked out.

"Don't worry though, since you offered, you can buy us ice cream! Jake winked.

"You sly little..."

"Who's this? You're new boyfriend?" A voice from behind them said.

May turned around, her cheeks turning a little red. They went from red from embarrassment to red in anger.

"What the hell do you want Drew?" She fumed.

"I wanna know who this guy is. Making you pay for ice cream for some guy you've just met."

"Here we go..." Max muttered under his breath.

Jake stepped in.

"For your information, I've met her before. I don't know what your problem is, but I don't like your attitude you little ****. She's asked you to leave her alone, and I suggest you do so."

"Drop the tough guy act, you don't know what you're getting yourself into." Drew sneered.

"I guess I'll have to show you the hard way then. Three on three. No time limit. I win, you leave May alone, and do not come near her again. You win, and I'll leave and let her settle this herself."

"You got yourself a battle then," Drew replied.

"Hey, don't I get a say in this!?" May yelled.

Jake leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Don't worry, I know who he is, and there's no way he'll beat me." He stepped back, speaking louder this time. "Besides, you'll love the look on his face when he gets crushed. Mind holing Eevee for me?"

"Sure," she sighed. "Max, be the referee please."

Max looked annoyed. "Why am I always dragged into this?" he muttered under his breath. "Okay sis, only so he'll get off your back."

Edits: I added a little bit in, right before Jake meets up with May, so it would flow better.

Well there's chapter four. The introduction of May, and Max, with some Drew bashing included. Sorry Contestshippers, but I'm an Advanceshipper, so I can't pass the opportunity to bash Drew. I had him in here because I needed the best way to introduce May. I found this to be the easiest way. Moving on. Next chapter will introduce Ash, and follow his posse for a while. Sorry, but this battle will be on hold for a while. End of spoilers. Please let me know what you felt about the dialogue, I felt it was a little weak, but my opinion is vastly biased. Hope you enjoyed it, and I still need OC submissions! Please R&R!

 

[Clone™]

So this chapter introduces Ash. Just to be clear, this story will have a skewed timeline for a while, until later in the story. Some of you may be disappointed by the end of the chapter, but more about that later. Without further ado, here’s chapter 5!

"Ash, wake up!"

"Mmhmmmhmhmph"

"Pikachu, wake him up!" Said the feminine voice, smiling mischievously.

"Pika!" Pikachu walked up to Ash. "PIKACHU!!!" Pikachu let off a bolt of electricity, instantly jolting the poor teen awake.

"WHAT THE ****?" Ash yelled, surprised at his electrical wake up call.

"You're gonna be late for the ferry, Ash," a bluenette said.

Ash looked at the clock. "Oh ****. Dawn, can you get my bag? I'll be in the bathroom changing and getting ready. I'll be out in five."

Dawn sighed. "I guess so, just hurry up. I don't want you to be late."

"Okay, mom," Ash replied. Dawn blushed at the comment.

Ash headed towards the bathroom. "I'll be waiting for you when you get out!" Dawn exclaimed. "Brock and your mom just finished cooking breakfast."

Ash opened the door slightly, peeking out, shirtless. "Why didn't you say so?" He closed the door again.

Dawn's face turned red at seeing her crush shirtless, glad he couldn't see it.

Not even thirty seconds later, Ash reappeared, carrying his singed clothes and wearing a fresh change of clothes.

"Time to eat!" He exclaimed.

"Pika!"

"Piplup!"

They walked down to the kitchen, and immediately perked up to the smell of pancakes.

"These smell great mom, Brock!" Ash exclaimed.

"Just try and leave some for us, please" Brock chuckled.

"Like that's gonna happen," Dawn commented.

"These taste as good as they smell, too!" Ash muffled mouth full of pancakes.

"Ash, what did I tell you about talking with your mouth full?" Delia scolded.

"Sorry."

After eating, Ash, Dawn, Brock, Pikachu, and Piplup all headed out the door to make their way to the ferry, which would take them to Vermilion City.

Once they got there, they heard a familiar voice behind them.

"So you're headed to the Tournament too, Ashy-Boy?"

Ash turned around. "Gary!? What are you doing here?" He asked.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm going to the tournament. After traveling through the new Kalos Region, I decided to try my hand at a tournament again." Gary replied.

"If we battle, I'll have you know that you're going down!" Ash said.

"Here we go..." Dawn sighed.

"And as much as I'd like to battle you right now, I need my Pokémon to rest for tomorrow." Ash continued.

"What's this? Ash using his head? Who are you and what have you done with Ash?" Gary mocked.

"Cut it with the smart-*** comments. Let’s just get on the boat."

The group arrived at the ship and climbed aboard.

"The trip is gonna be a few hours, so what do y'all wanna do for the time being?" Brock asked.

"I don't know, maybe we could walk around and tour the ship?" Dawn suggested.

"Seeing as we have nothing better to do, why not?" Ash replied.

The group started to walk around the ship. As they were walking, they heard sounds of a battle going on. Ash instinctively followed the sound. He arrived at a battle taking place.

On one side of the field was a tall girl with an hourglass figure. She had on blue shorts that only came down a few inches from her waist, and a pink tank top. She wore her brown hair in a ponytail. She was commanding an Infernape. It had an orange body, with white feet and torso. It had golden pads on its joints, as well as a flame flowing from its head.

Upon seeing her, it took all of Dawn's strength to hold back Brock, as to not interrupt the battle.

On the other side of the field was a boy who looked to be no older than twelve. He wore blue skinny jeans and a simple black t-shirt. He wore a blue hat covering his short, blonde hair. In front of him was a Meowstic. It was a male, due to its primary blue coloration. His arms and legs had no visible hands or feet respectively, and his head was feline in appearance.

"Meowstic, psyshock!"

"Dodge, then use Shadow Claw"

Meowstic's eyes glowed a bright blue, and seemingly out of nowhere three orbs of psychic energy appeared and shot towards Infernape. However, Infernape swiftly dodged them and charged towards Meowstic with her arm reared back, her hand glowing in a dark and purple aura. She then struck Meowstic square in the stomach, sending him flying back. He didn't recover.

"Meowstic is unable to continue battling, Infernape is the winner and the match goes to Susan!" The person acting as ref stated.

"Wow she's amazing Brock exclaimed.” I could stare-UUUGGGHHH!!!" Before he could finish, his Croagunk appeared, giving him the old Poison Jab to the stomach, dragging him away even before he could make a scene.

Dawn giggled at the sight. "Same old Brock."

Ash walked up to the girl, who was recalling her Infernape. "So you're Susan?" He asked.

"Yep. Susan Blalock from Viridian city."

"Cool. I couldn't help but notice that you're Infernape looked really strong out there. Care for another match?" He asked.

"Sure, I could use the warm up for the prelims tomorrow." She replied.

"Uh, what happened to the 'I need to save my Pokémon’s energy for tomorrow' that you said earlier Ash?" Dawn asked.

Ash blushed a little in response. "Like she said, it’s just a warm up. Besides, I wanna see how we'll my new team member will do since he evolved." He turned towards Susan. "One on one?"

"Sure."

Brock, appearing out of nowhere, offered to be the referee. Both people agreed.

"Same old Ash, can't keep his nose out of anything that involved Pokémon battles," Gary remarked.

"I know, but that's one of his best qualities!" Dawn defended.

Gary gave a knowing smirk. "Whatever you say, Dawn."

"This will be a one on one practice match between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, versus Susan Blalock of Viridian city," Brock started. "Each side will use one Pokémon, and the match is over when that Pokémon is unable to continue. No substitutions will be allowed. Are both trainers ready?"

Both nodded yes.

"Then please send out your Pokémon. “

"Altaria, let’s go!" Susan cried. A Pokémon that had a white body that seemed to be made of cotton appeared. She had blue feet and tail, and on her head seemed to be two flowing ribbons.

"Perfect." Ash said. "Garchomp, I choose you!"

Out came the Mach Pokémon, it was dark blue with a long tail and a fin on its back, as well as scythe-like appendages on its arms. Its head resembled a hammerhead shark.

"Ah, a battle of the dragons, I see." Susan commented.

"Since when does Ash have a Garchomp?" Gary asked Dawn.

"Remember that troublesome Gible he caught in Sinnoh? Ash decided to bring him with him when we travelled to Unova, and after evolving early on into Gabite, he evolved again during the Unova league," she recalled.

"Ah."

"Garchomp versus Altaria, begin!"

"Altaria, Dragonbreath!"

"Counter with flamethrower!"

The green energy coming out of Altaria's mouth was matched by the flames emerging from Garchomp. The attacks caused a mini-explosion in the center of the field.

"Cotton Guard, followed by Double edge!"

"Counter with Iron Tail!"

Altaria summoned the fluff from her body, creating a cushion of sorts. She then swooped down towards Garchomp, leaving a streak of yellow light behind her. Garchomp had his iron tail at the ready, and when Altaria was about to crash into Garchomp, he swung at her with his tail and sent her flying back. However, the extra cushioning from the cotton guard protected her from any real damage.

"Garchomp, Dragon pulse!"

"Counter it with ice beam, then fly up into the air!"

Garchomp opened his mouth, and a turquoise ball of energy shot towards Altaria. She emitted a beam of ice, causing the attack to freeze over. However, the dragon pulse continued its way towards its target, striking a clean hit, the damage being multiplied by the ice. Altaria immediately showed signs of fatigue.

"Use roost!" Susan said desperately.

"Big mistake. Garchomp, Draco Meteor!"

As Altaria landed to rest her body, Garchomp prepared to fire the most powerful Dragon type attack. An orange glow appeared from his belly, before aiming his mouth straight up and firing off dozens of red comets into the air. The defenseless dragon type could only watch in horror as they made their way down to their target. She cried out in pain as she was stuck numerous times by the meteors. Finally succumbing to the pain, she fell backwards, knocked out cold.

"Altaria is unable to battle, Garchomp is the winner, and the victory goes to Ash!" Brock said.

"Great job Altaria, you were wonderful out there," Susan said, recalling her fallen Pokémon. She looked up at Ash. "Great match. I hope we get to face each other in the tournament."

"Me too," he replied, recalling Garchomp in the process. "You were excellent out there buddy, I'm proud of you. Take a nice long rest."

"Attention passengers, we are arriving at Vermilion City. We will begin debarking in ten minutes, so please make sure you have all of your belongings with you. To those of you participating in the Pokémon World Tournament, I wish you luck."

"We'll guys," Ash said, "the first thing we need to do is register." He looked at Brock. You never told me Brock, are you gonna enter?"

Brock didn't seem to hear him, as he was busy staring at Susan, who was walking away.

"Hello? Earth to Brock?" Ash asked, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Huh? What?"

"I asked if you were gonna enter the tournament."

"Now that I think about it, I don't see why not. I'd like to try my hand at battling again. It's always nice to take a break from trying to become the world's greatest Pokémon Breeder."
"Okay, first things first, we need to register at the Pokémon Center."

They disembarked from the ship, and started walking towards the Pokémon Center.

Dawn spoke up. "How exactly does this thing work?" She asked.

"Basically, there are qualifier rounds, each being held in each region. They narrow down the number of trainers down with one on one matches, which is further narrowed down by additional double battle rounds and then the real 'World Tournament' kicks in. then everyone is separated into groups, each based off of the seeds you placed in based on how well you did in the qualifiers. Due to the sheer amount of participants, each group has its own little mini-bracket, and the top sixteen from each group advance. After that, it's a whole lotta brackets. The whole thing is expected to take about a month, maybe more," Gary explained.

"Sounds complicated."

"It's not as bad as it would seem. Considering the qualifiers start tomorrow, they should end in about a week." Ash added.

Saying no more, the group headed into the Pokémon Center.

"We'd like to register for the tournament, please." Ash said.

"Certainly!" Nurse Joy replied. "Just fill out this paperwork, and you'll be good to go."

After registering, the group decided to split up, Gary going his separate ways, while Ash, Brock, and Dawn decided to eat lunch.

"Bye Gary, see ya tomorrow!" Ash called.

"Bye Ashy-boy!" Gary smirked.

Yes, I know, another battle on the ship, how original. But I spent a long time thinking about what I could write while they were on the ferry, and a battle was the only thing that came to mind. Next chapter will still follow Ash, so you’re still gonna have to wait until later between the battle between Jake and Drew. Anyways, I’m still accepting OCs, so please send them in! Please R&R and see you next chapter!

 

[Sethern]

I noticed that this didn't have any comments yet, and I know how that feels. Trust me, it feels like no one cares, but we do.

So to start off, I can tell what the pairings in this are. (Mainly because you tell us.) even though I don't particularly support the Mai pairing in this, I'll roll with it for a while. As I said before on the Advanceshipping thread, a good fic is a good fic, and shouldn't be critized because of the pairings. I enjoyed how much is going on at once, instead of just a few people, you're doing a ton. Also, I don't think you new to use the much profanity, you're going a major contrast from tha Anime to this. I could get it every once in a while, in an intense situation, jus don't over do it.

Now for some things I have noticed. A few of these chapters probably could have been combined. Instead of a bunch of small you could do a few longer ones. 2 the first three chapters seemed almost all filler material. I didn't detect many mistakes, so it seems like you look over your stuff, so good job on that.

I also like how you aren't really rushing into things. I've seen fics end prematurely because they rush things and have nothing to write about. Remember don't take things too slow, (which I can tel you aren't) that just makes it less of a shipping fic, and more boring. Try finding your sweet zone. (And it's not too late to change your pairings all you'd need to do is edit your first post.)

Above all, write for you. Say everyone hates it, but you love it, keep writing. I hope this helps.

 

[Clone™]

I noticed that this didn't have any comments yet, and I know how that feels. Trust me, it feels like no one cares, but we do.

So to start off, I can tell what the pairings in this are. (Mainly because you tell us.) even though I don't particularly support the Mai pairing in this, I'll roll with it for a while. As I said before on the Advanceshipping thread, a good fic is a good fic, and shouldn't be critized because of the pairings. I enjoyed how much is going on at once, instead of just a few people, you're doing a ton. Also, I don't think you new to use the much profanity, you're going a major contrast from tha Anime to this. I could get it every once in a while, in an intense situation, jus don't over do it.

Now for some things I have noticed. A few of these chapters probably could have been combined. Instead of a bunch of small you could do a few longer ones. 2 the first three chapters seemed almost all filler material. I didn't detect many mistakes, so it seems like you look over your stuff, so good job on that.

I also like how you aren't really rushing into things. I've seen fics end prematurely because they rush things and have nothing to write about. Remember don't take things too slow, (which I can tel you aren't) that just makes it less of a shipping fic, and more boring. Try finding your sweet zone. (And it's not too late to change your pairings all you'd need to do is edit your first post.)

Above all, write for you. Say everyone hates it, but you love it, keep writing. I hope this helps.

First off, thanks for the review! Second, I'm not gonna change the pairings, because I honestly don't want to. Regarding the chapter length, yes, the first three were mainly filler, but it picks up later. I have this up to chapter 13 on fanfiction, and the later chapters are longer than the earlier ones. As for pacing, I don't want to rush through it, because then it would get sloppy and hard to follow. I have language in ot because I feel that it fits, after all, this is PG-13, so language is somewhat common (mainly in battles). They are teens after all, and teens cuss. A lot. Although this is somewhat based on the anime, I don't plan on it falling perfectly into the anime world. Once again, thanks for the review, it makes writing this fic all the more worth while.

 

[Clone™]

Here's chapter 6!

As the group was walking, they came across a diner called The Epic Scyther.

"This looks like a good place to eat!" Dawn exclaimed.

The group walked in, and a waitress showed them to a booth.

"What would you like for drinks?"

I'll have an Oran Berry soda please," Ash said.

"Pecha juice for me please," said Dawn.

"I'll have water," Brock said.

"Certainly," she said before walking away.

"So Ash," Dawn said, turning towards him. "Who are you gonna use for the prelims tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure," he replied. "I'm leaning towards Garchomp, since the first rounds are one on one, probably Pikachu as well. Maybe Scrafty, since he hasn't battled in a while."

"You do realize that you can look up your opponents before the battles right?" asked Brock.

"I know, but where's the fun in that?"

"The fun is actually getting past the prelims so you can get into the qualifiers." Dawn replied.

"I guess so."

They turned their heads after hearing a cough from the end of the table. Having their attention, the waitress was there with their drinks.

"Here are your drinks, are you ready to order?" she asked.

Everyone nodded.

"I'll have the Farfetch'd Sandwich, with a side of Clauncher claws please," Ash requested.

Dawn rolled her eyes. "I'll take the Corphish wrap, please."

Ash shot her a glare.

"What? I like it."

Brock spoke up. "I'll have the Tauros burger, medium well please, with a side of fries."

"Certainly. It'll be ready in about ten minutes."

"So Brock," Ash started, sipping his soda. "Who are you gonna use?"

"Based on who I face," he replied, "I'm probably gonna go with either Crobat or Swampert. It's been a while since they've been in a real battle, so I'd thought I'd give them a shot. If all else fails, I can always rely on Steelix or Golem."

"So just like old times then?"

"Just like old times."

"Pikachu, you ready for tomorrow?" Ash asked, looking over at his trusty electric type, who was busy licking the ketchup bottle at the table bone dry.

"Pika! Pika Pikachu!"

"Thanks. I know I can count on you buddy."

"Think you can save some for me? I've got a burger, and everyone knows that burgers and ketchup go together," Brock asked, a little nervously.

Pikachu sent him a menacing glare in response.

"Or not. It's always nice to have a change," Brock gulped.

Both Ash and Dawn laughed at the little escapade. They looked over, and noticed that their food had arrived.

"Here you go!" The waitress said, handing them their food.

"Thanks!" All three exclaimed in unison.

They all dug in, with Ash sucking everything down like a human vacuum.

"Jeez, the way he's eating, it's like he's never eaten before," Dawn commented.

"Ith noh thah badth, I jus reawee hungree," Ash said, mouth full of food.

"Can you please TRY to act decent out in public? You're embarrassing me." Dawn stated.

Ash swallowed his food, then took a swig of his soda. "Jeez, the way you're acting, you'd think that I was your boyfriend or something."

Dawn blushed at his comment. "No! It's..it's.. just-" she stuttered, her face turning even redder.

Brock cut in. "What she's trying to say is that you need to work on your manners. This really isn't how the Sinnoh champ should be acting in public."

Dawn, regaining her composure, mouthed a thank you to Brock. He nodded in reply.

"Come on, that was like two years ago. Besides, I only got runner up in Unova."

"Now you're just being modest. You know that winning the Lily of the Valley conference was and still is the highlight of your career as a Pokémon trainer." Dawn said.

"I guess so."

---

After that, the group continued to make small talk, and they finished up eating, with Ash footing the bill.

As they were walking, they came across a mall.

"Let's go shopping!" Dawn squealed.

"Ugh. I just wanna walk around." Ash groaned.

"Actually, I think that's a good idea." Brock said. "Dawn and you should go shopping. As for me, I have to get some supplies."

"No. Brock. Don't do this to me!"

"Oh come on Ash, it'll be fun! Besides, I'm gonna need someone's opinion on how I look when I try things on."

It was Ash's turn to blush this time. "I guess so. But you owe me." He turned towards Brock. If looks could kill, Brock would be dead in a heartbeat. "As for you, Brock, we'll talk about this later."

"Good. Then you can thank me."

Ash stared at him, a confused look on his face. "Why would I thank you?"

"All in due time Ash, all in due time."

"Whatever. Pikachu, let's go."

The group split up, with Brock going one way, and Ash, Dawn, and Pikachu heading into the mall.

After going from store to store, they came across one that was chock-full of ladies clothes.

"Let's go in here!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Alright, but after this, you're buying me ice cream for dragging me in here." Ash groaned.

"Silly Ash, you do realize that it's the guy who's supposed to treat the lady to ice cream, not the girl."

"Yeah, but after buying lunch and dealing with this, I think I deserve a break."

"Oh alright," Dawn conceded.

They walked in, and Ash instinctively walked over to a bench, while Dawn browsed through the clothes.

"I don't get it Pikachu, he said, turning towards his partner. "Between her hair and clothes shopping, she acts like the world will end if it's not right or we don't go. I don't even remember May getting this worked up. I mean sure, she still messed with her hair and her bandana, but she definitely didn't go to this extent. And Misty didn't even care at all. She just put her hair up in that side ponytail and called it a day. Neither of them were this crazy like Dawn is."

"Pika pikachu pik Pikachu, pikapi."

"I know I'm never gonna understand girls, but still, it just seems so pointless."

"Pika." Pikachu agreed.

Ash looked up, and was awestruck at what he saw. Dawn had on a tight pink mini skirt with a matching navy blue tank top. She changed her pink boots out for a pair of white sneakers, and kept her signature pink beanie with a slanted Poke Ball on it.

I hope he at least compliments me on how I look Dawn thought to herself. "So, what do you think?"
"It-it looks go-od." Ash stuttered.

"Just good?" she inquired, a hopeful smile on her face.

"Alright you look amazing!" Ash quickly put his hands over his mouth, turning beet red and surprised at what he had blurted out.

Dawn could barely hold her excitement in. It's about damn time he took notice of me, I'll have to thank Brock later. She looked up at him. "Glad you like it." She smiled. "And I'm glad you're finally growing out of your denseness..." She muttered under her breath.

"What was that?" Ash asked, still red in the face.

"Nothing!" She said quickly. "I'm gonna go ring this up after I change."

"Okay."

Ash looked down. Why is my face so hot all of a sudden? And why do I feel my heart beat ten times faster? And why are there butterflies in my stomach? he asked himself mentally.

Pikachu, seeing his best friend acting like this, was worried. "Pika Pikachu pikapi?"

Ash looked up. "Don't worry Pikachu, I'm fine. I'll talk to you later."

Dawn came back, still smiling from before. The smile turned from one of happiness to one of mischief. There's no way in hell I'm passing up this opportunity, she thought to herself. "What's wrong You're your face is redder than a Magmar."

Trying to regain his composure, Ash looked at her. Noticing her back in her usual attire, he calmed down enough to talk normally to her. "I'm fine. And about that ice cream you promised me earlier?"

"Oh alright," she replied. "But this is a one-time deal, capice?"

"Deal."

They walked a little further until they came across a small ice cream shop. Aunt Annie's the sign read.

"What would you two lovebirds like today?" The man behind the counter asked.

Both Ash and Dawn blushed at the comment.

"We're not a couple." Ash stated.

"My bad," the man replied, with a little smirk on his face.

"Anyways, I'll have a triple-chocolate sundae with caramel and chocolate fudge with sprinkles please." Ash requested.

Dawn nudged ash with her free arm. "Come on, I'm gonna go broke with an order like that" she whispered.

"Not my problem you spent all your money on clothes." He replied.

"Whatever." She spoke up. "I'll have a vanilla cone dipped in chocolate please."

"Certainly. Coming right up."

After receiving their ice cream, Dawn paid and they found a booth to sit at.

"Thanks Dawn." Ash said, mouth full of ice cream.

"Don't mention it. And for the love of Arceus please keep your damn mouth closed when you're eating!"

She scolded.

"Sorry!"

---

They finished up eating and decided to head out to find Brock.

"Hold on, I'll just call him on the Pokegear with my Pokenav." Ash said.

"Oh yeah, I forgot you had that."

Ash dialed a number and waited for Brock to pick up. "Hey Brock. Yeah. I was thinking we could meet up at the Pokémon Center. Yeah. Uh huh. It was fine. I'll talk to you there. Bye!" He hung up and turned to Dawn. "We're gonna meet up at the Pokémon Center."

"Okay."

They walked a short ways, with Ash slightly behind Dawn.

"Is it just me, or does Dawn look different?" he asked his faithful companion.

"Pika? Pikachu pikapi."

"I don't know, something just seems a little different about her buddy, but I just don't know what it is."

"Pikachu."

"I'll figure it out eventually."

They arrived at the center, only to find a bored looking Brock.

"About time you guys got here!" He exclaimed.

"Sorry Brock." Ash replied. He looked at the clock on the wall. "It's almost dinner time. How about we get a bite to eat at the cafeteria, then crash for the night here."

Upon hearing this, Nurse Joy piped up. "Sorry guys, but the center is booked out."

"WHAT!?" The three exclaimed.

"Yes, I can only suggest that you book a room at one of the hotels. I'm sorry, but the tournament has drawn a lot of attention and a lot of trainers have decided to stay the week here."

"We'll I guess we're gonna have to find a room then," Ash said. "Thanks Nurse Joy."

"Take care. We hope to see you again!"

The group walked outside, a little down upon learning that they would have to pay for a hotel.

"Let's book a room, then get something to eat." Brock suggested.

"Sounds like a plan."

---

The group entered the hotel and walked up to the lady behind the desk.

"Can we have a room with three beds please?" Brock asked.

"Sorry, we don't have any left. The best we can do is two king sized beds." She replied.

Brock turned towards the two teens. "I say we take it. We can figure out sleeping arrangements later."

"Sounds good," Dawn replied.

Brock turned back around. "We'll take it."

"Certainly. It's room 401 on the fourth floor."

"Thanks."

The group headed towards their room, taking the elevator. When they reached their room, they were quite surprised. It had two king sized beds on opposite sides of the room, a big plasma TV, and an arm chair. The TV was positioned so that you could sit on the beds and still be able to see it.

"Wow, this room is really nice, thanks Brock!" Dawn exclaimed, putting down the clothes she bought.

"Yeah, this is definitely high class." Ash added.

"No problem. Now what are we gonna do about sleeping arrangements?"

"We'll, since you're the biggest, and you're paying for the room, I think you should get one bed." Dawn said.

"And you should get the other one, Dawn. It wouldn't be fair for you to sleep on the floor." Ash said.

Dawn smiled, a thought popping into her head. "Who said anything about sleeping on the floor? We can share the bed! It's big enough so that it won't bother either of us, plus you'll need the rest for tomorrow."

"But-"

"No buts. It's decided. Brock gets one bed, and we share the other."

Brock smirked knowingly. "Sounds good Dawn, let's eat."

The group headed out, ready for dinner.

There it is, chapter 6, mostly filler. The tournament starts soon, so don't worry. Hope you liked it. As always, R&R!

 

[Clone™]

Here’s chapter 7, it goes back to Jake, and his battle with Drew is here. Enjoy.

"This will be a three on three battle between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town, and Drew Hayden of Larousse City. There is no time limit, and substitutions are allowed by both sides. Are both trainers ready?" Max said.

Both nodded.

"Then send out your first Pokémon.

"Go, Absol!" Drew cried.

A white, quadruped Pokémon that had a black face with a scythe going upwards appeared.

"Perfect." Jake stated. "Blazer, engage!"

A shiny Blaziken emerged. He had orange feet, dark red legs, and white feathers coming out of the back of his head, giving the appearance of hair. The feathers also wrapped around his chest, giving off the impression of a vest. His arms were skinny compared to his thick legs, and had three claws.

So he's starting out with his strongest Pokémon May thought to herself. He definitely is going all out, just for me. I mean, just look at his face, pure determination for facing someone he's never met before.

"Blaziken versus Absol, begin!"

"Blaze Rush!" Jake commanded.

"Blaze Rush? What the hell is that?" Drew asked himself.

Before either could react, Blaziken shot forward; his body covered in flames, and struck Absol square in the body

"Counter with Razor Wind!"

"You know what to do! Close Combat!"

"What the hell!? Blaziken can't even learn Close Combat!" Drew was flabbergasted. How the **** does this **** happen?

"I know, that's why it's a combo. For a coordinator, you seem awfully surprised." Jake stated blankly.

"Argh!" Drew was outraged. Being shown up by some punk *** kid, a trainer nonetheless. Who does he think he is?

Meanwhile, Blaziken effortlessly dodged the Razor Wind, then kicked Absol's legs out from under him. He then followed with a series of double kicks and Sky Uppercuts, mercilessly striking his opponent with no let up, sensing the importance of the battle.

Soon it was all over and Absol collapsed after the merciless attacks.

"Absol is unable to battle, Blaziken wins!"

Wow, he showed practically no mercy to Drew. And on top of that, Blaziken wasn't even hit by a single attack! May thought to herself. She turned towards Eevee, who was sitting on her shoulder. "He's really good, isn't he?"

"Eevee!" He smirked.

"Absol return. Go, Flygon!"

"Flygon versus Blaziken, begin!"

"Earthquake, now!"

"Ice punch!"

Flygon slammed his foot into the ground, causing a massive tremor. However, Blaziken used his powerful legs to easily avoid the attack, before slamming his ice cold fist into Flygon, freezing one of his wings. Flygon fell to the ground, unable to continue flying.

"Follow up with another Ice Punch! Then finish with High Jump Kick!"

"Flygon, get out of there!" Drew panicked.

Blaziken slammed his fist into Flygon again, this time immobilizing his legs, and preventing him from moving. Blaziken then backed up before jumping into the air and hitting his knee into Flygon. It proved to be too much, and Flygon collapsed as well.

"Flygon is unable to battle, Blaziken wins!"

Drew was flabbergasted. He had lost two Pokémon without landing a single attack. On top of that, Blaziken seemed to only get faster and faster. "Flygon return."

"Give it up. I know what your last Pokémon will be, and frankly you have zero chance of beating Blazer. I don't want to hurt your Pokémon any more than I have to." Jake said coldly.

"Give up? GIVE UP!? Never. Not to some punk *** trainer like you. I don't know who you are, but you're dealing with the winner of the Hoenn Grand Festival here. I'm not giving in to some low life trainer who thinks he can just waltz in and steal my girl. Roserade, let's go!" He shouted.

"You're girl? It doesn't seem like it. Not the way she's acting. Blazer, lets finish this up. Blaze Rush into rapid fire Fire Punches!"

"Leaf Storm!"

Immediately, Blaziken burst into flames before shooting towards Roserade like a rocket. He crashed into his opponent, not even flinching at the leaves fired at him. He then quickly followed up with a series of fire punches, so fast it looked like nothing but a continuous streak of flames.

"Finish with Blaze Kick!"

Blaziken reared back, then struck Roserade square in the chest with a fiery foot, causing him to fly back, crashing right in front of Drew.

"Roserade is unable to battle, Blaziken wins!" Max cheered. "The winner is Jake Smith of Littleroot Town!"

Jake walked up to Drew, who was busy recalling his Roserade. "A deals a deal. Get the **** outta my sight. Now."

"What are you gonna do? I'm the ****ing winner of the Hoenn grand festival! I'm not a nobody like you." He sneered back.

"Drew," May piped in. "You're gonna regret this," she said softly.

"Regret what? He can't do nothin, and you shouldn't be hanging around this loser anyways." He turned back towards Jake, only to see a fist flying towards his face, knocking him to the ground.

"One, she wants you out of her life, so I'd suggest you do so, if you know what's good for you. Two. You're talking awfully big for someone who was swept. Three, I'm the mother ****ing winner of the Hoenn league, *****. So don't you dare call me a loser again. And if May even mentions that you're bothering her, you'll walk away with more than a bloody nose next time." Jake turned towards May, who was taken aback. His demeanor immediately changed to a caring tone. "We should get going. I'm sure he won't be bothering you again."

"Okay."

The four walked away, including Blazer, leaving an enraged Drew holding his nose. "You'll regret this, Smith." He muttered.

As the four walked away, Jake recalled his Blaziken. "You were exceptional out there." He said. "I knew I could count on you to take care of assholes like him."

May turned towards Jake, a sad expression on her face, handing Eevee back to him. "Thank you. You don't know how much this means to me, now that he's finally off my back."

"Don't mention it. Anything for an old friend." Jake smiled.

"Seriously, he had been stalking me for years. Ever since I made the mistake of agreeing to go out with him the first time, he's treated me like ****." May said, tears forming in her eyes. "I seriously can't thank you enough." She then surprised everyone, even Jake by pulling him into a tight hug, tears streaming down her face.

Jake was shocked. His childhood best friend, after only meeting up with her a few hours ago, was already crying into his shoulder. "Take your t-ime, let it all out," he stuttered.

May started to calm down, and looked up into Jake's auburn eyes. "Thank you, again. I feel much better now."

"If you ever need someone to talk to, you can come to me." He replied.

"Wow sis, I never knew that it was this bad," Max said.

"Please don't even get me started." May replied, coming out of the hug with Jake.

He let go, although somewhat reluctantly. I've just met back up with her, yet she seems, different. I don't know why I feel this way, but I definitely enjoyed that hug, even though she was practically bawling her eyes out. Unbeknownst to him, his face was redder than a Magmar.
Eevee turned to him, rubbing up against his chin. "Eevee!" He said, smirking coyly.

Jake turned to him. "What do you mean my face is redder than a Magmar?"

"Eev. Eevee. Vui!"

"We'll talk about this later." He turned towards the other two, however, Max decided to poke fun at the situation.

"Jake likes May. Jake likes May!" He taunted, grinning.

Jake took the bait. "What, no I don't!"

May smiled, playing along. "Oh, so you don't like me now, whatever happened to, you can come to me if you need to talk to someone?"

"Wha-no that's not what I meant! I-I-I do like you, just not-not like that." He stuttered, his face beet red.

"So that's why your face is redder than a Magmar?" She asked, giggling, obviously feeling much better.

"Even now, several years later, you still know how to get on my nerves," Jake pouted. "Now, if I recall correctly, you said that you'd get us ice cream before this whole thing happened." He smirked, regaining his composure.

May smiled. "I remember. I also remember where a great ice cream place is, too."

That smile, it always got me. I love seeing that smile. Oh crap, did I just say love? Oh no, I think that just explained why I was blushing like a mad man earlier. Once again, his face turned red.

Once again taking advantage of the situation, Max decided to poke fun at Jake again. "You thinking about May, Jake? Huh? Got the hots for my sister?"

"Max leave him alone." She turned around, only to find Jake walking away, his head turned towards Eevee, who was trying to comfort him.
"Go up to the shop. I'll catch up to you in a minute."

Max smirked. "Okay sis, I don't need to see that anyways."

The only reply was a smack to the back of his head. "Shut up."

May caught up to Jake. "Hey, what's up?" She asked.

"Nothing." He lied.

"Jake, it may have been a long time since we've last talked, but I know when you're lying to me. Come on. You offered to talk to me if I ever needed to talk to you. Now I'm offering the same thing to you."
"Sorry, but even if you were-are my best friend, it's something between me and Eevee. You know that I hate to keep you out of the loop like this, but it's really something between just me and Eevee."

May nodded. "Thank you for being honest. But at least tell me this, does it have anything to do with what Max said back there?"

Immediately Jake turned red. "I don't know. We just met back up a few hours ago, and already he's saying that I like you? What's his problem?"
"Max will take any opportunity to try and embarrass me, even at the cost of other people's embarrassment." She smiled. "Come on, let's go back and get that ice cream I promised you. Think of it as my way of saying thank you for everything you've done today for me." She held out her hand.

There it is again. That smile! And on top of that, she already suspects something! I know I've known her my whole life, but I just met back up with her a few hours ago, and I'm almost positive I have feelings for her. Jake thought to himself. He looked up, seeing May's hand outstretched. "Okay," he conceded, smiling as he took her hand. "Let's go, you lead the way."

She smiled back. "Just like old times."

They finally arrived, meeting up with Max in the process.

"Took you love birds long enough." He smirked.

"Oh cut the crap Max," Jake said, his confidence restored. "There's nothing going on between us, just two old friends catching up."

"Oh really?"

Max looked down, with Jake following his gaze. "What, is it required that two people holding hands be a couple?"

"Yes."

Before he knew it, May had smacked him in the head again. "Cut it out Max. Otherwise there's more where that came from."

"Okay."

The trio walked in.

"What can I get for you guys?"

"I'll have a vanilla cone, please, extra-large." Jake requested.
"That's it? You don't have to be modest cause I'm paying you know."

"I'm not. That's why I said an extra large."

She smiled. "Fair enough. I'll have a large Nanab berry split with chocolate fudge please."

"And I'll take a peanut butter sundae with caramel and whipped cream please."

"Certainly, coming right up."

After a few minutes, the trio received their ice cream. After May paid, they sat down. Deciding to strike up a conversation, May spoke up.
"So you never told us, how did you lose in the semi-finals in Kalos?"

Jake chuckled. "Long story short, my two aces, Maverick and Blazer, were not in the line-up because the girl I faced before in the quarter finals really gave me a run for my money. Between her Dragonite and Empoleon, I almost lost. Both Maverick and Blazer beat them respectively, but they were too tired to battle the next day."

"So how did you lose though?" Max inquired.

"Alright. It started out routinely, with Shadow, my newest and probably the best Pokémon I could ever ask for as a lead, went against the guy's Hitmonlee."

"Shadow?"

"Oh right, Shadow, my Greninja. His ability is Protean, which allows him to change his type based on the moves he uses. Anyways, he beat Hitmonlee fairly easily. His Scizor, not so much. He eventually won, but was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, so I recalled him, and sent out Talon, my Braviary, against his Staraptor. Unfortunately, he got a lucky hit on his wing, which ultimately led to his defeat. I sent out Pharaoh, my Cofagrigus, which was able to pull out the win. His Zoroark, disguised as a Tyranitar initially, defeated him, but lost to Blade, my Gallade. Blade lost to his Tyranitar, and Titan, my Tyrantrum, drew with him. That left his Charizard versus Brain, my Metagross. Unfortunately, mega evolution was allowed that late in the tournament, so between that and the type disadvantage, Brain finally fainted. Shadow, having been exhausted from his battle with Scizor, lost fairly quickly, giving him the win."

"Wow," May said. "Do you think that if you had Blazer you would have won?"

"Yes. Not only is he the strongest I have, I also found a stone called a Blazikenite, which, along with my mega ring on my wrist, allows him to mega evolve. I rarely use it, mainly because I don't need to, but he always pulls through when he mega evolves. That's why I won the Hoenn league. He was able to get me out of a pinch when my opponent's Aggron took two Pokémon before he took him out."

"The same Aggron that beat me?" Max asked.

"Yep"

"Wow. I'd sure like to hear more of your stories." May commented.

"Well, I guess I could, I have done a lot since we last talked. But under one condition."

"What?"

"You tell me what you've been doing for the past few years."

"That's it? I'd expect more than that with the way you said it like that."

"Nope. That's it. I wanna hear your stories since we last talked."

"Okay, deal!"

Jake then began recalling stories of his travels. They had long finished their ice cream, and Max had grown bored and resolved to entertaining himself with Eevee, who had decided to let his friend go on uninterrupted. May, on the other hand, listened intently, clearly impressed with how Jake had some of his Pokémon, leaving one in particular left.

"How did you meet Eevee, and why does he stay outside of his Poke Ball?" May asked.

Upon hearing this, Eevee hopped over to Jake, rubbing up against him affectionately.

"Well, it's a long story, right bud?" He said, looking down at his friend.

"Eevee!"

"Alright, I'll tell her." He looked up at May, and made eye contact with her sapphire eyes. He spaced out, thinking about her again. Those eyes, they're beautiful. No. No. No. I can't be thinking about her like that, she's my best friend. Right? It would be weird. Damn. Now it's gonna be somewhat awkward for me now that I realized that I have feelings for her. I wish she felt the same way...

There he goes again! May thought to herself. He zones out when he makes eye contact with me. Maybe Max was right, between the blushing fit earlier, and him getting really defensive around Drew, he might actually like me. Not that that's a bad thing, I mean he's cute, plus he's a really nice guy. May started to feel a weird sensation inside of her chest. Oh great. I remember feeling like this. Back when I travelled with Ash. I always felt like this around him, but he was so DENSE! He wouldn't know what love was, even if a girl flat out proposed! It doesn't matter. That was then, and I've moved on. Now that I'm feeling this towards my old friend, I hope this doesn't make things awkward between us. Man, it would really be nice if I had a girl to talk to about this stuff. I know Dawn would be all over it. Speaking of Dawn, I wonder if she's still traveling with Ash. I don't know, maybe if Max qualifies, we'll meet up with them at the tournament. It would be nice to see them again... but now I think I'm starting to like Jake, although I'm not complaining. I'll see how this plays out. Worst comes to worst, I get a new boyfriend out of this.

"We'll isn't that sweet," Max smirked, glancing at the two teens who were snapping back to their senses.

"What?" They both said in unison.

"Both of your faces are beet red. You, uh, you know, thinking about each other?"

"N-no!" Both replied, once again in unison. They looked at each other, and sure enough, their faces were redder than a Tomato Berry.

"Anyways," Jake cut in, quickly changing the subject. "I met Eevee a few months after I started traveling on my own. I had just beaten Winona, and back then I kept Blazer out of his ball.

*Flashback*

"So we won the feather badge Blazer!" Jake exclaimed. "You were awesome! Especially evolving just so you could beat that Swellow! You're the best Pokemon a trainer could ask for!"

Blazer smiled at the comment, gloating at the praise he had received. All of a sudden, he swore he heard something. "Blaziken."

"You hear something?" Jake asked. He strained his ears, listening intently. He then thought he heard a faint cry.

"Blaze. Blaziken."

"Yeah, I hear it, too." He pulled out a Poke ball. "Grace, come on out!"

Out came a Gardevoir. She had two, long skinny legs that ended in points, covered by what looked like a white gown. She had a red horn protruding from her chest and back, and had two green arms. Her face seemed to be covered by what looked like green hair.

"Grace, do you think you can find where that sound is coming from?"

She nodded, and her eyes started to glow white. She then floated towards a particular direction, beckoning the other two to follow. They ran after her, hearing the now district cry of an Eevee getting closer by the second. Suddenly, Grace stopped, and looked up. There, trapped in a net was a young Eevee, obviously in pain.

"Don't worry, little guy, we'll get you out of there," Jake calmly said.
"Blazer, cut through that net with Sky Uppercut. Grace, keep him from falling with your Psychic."

The two Pokemon did as they were told, with Blazer easily cutting through the net. Grace gently caught the Eevee using her psychic powers and carried him over to Jake's outstretched arms.

"Don't worry, you'll be safe with me." He whispered to the Eevee.

"I wouldn't count on that, bub." Said a voice from behind him.

Jake turned around, seeing a man wearing gray pants, along with a black shirt. He had menacing blue eyes and had a Poke Ball in hand. "Hand back the Eevee, and no one gets hurt."

"I don't think so." He turned towards the frightened Eevee, who buried his head into Jake's chest in fear. "Don't worry," he whispered. "I've dealt with poachers before, they all act tough and hide behind their Tyranitars. He won't be a problem."

"Big mistake. Tyranitar, grab that Eevee!"

Out popped the seven foot green reptile. He immediately charged forward, aimed straight at Jake.

"Blazer intercept with Sky Uppercut! Follow with Close Combat!"

Blaziken immediately charged forward, his fist glowing blue. He got in between Jake and the Tyranitar, striking a devastating blow to his jaw. Without missing a beat, he immediately followed with a series of double kicks and sky uppercuts, causing the Tyranitar to stagger back, exhausted.

"What the hell are you doing? Hyper beam now!"

"Just as I expected. Protect, followed by High Jump Kick!"

Tyranitar opened his mouth, emitting a powerful beam of orange energy aimed straight at Blazer. However, it simply bounced off a protective barrier. Immobilized, he could only watch as Blazer came flying in, leg outstretched, and being struck square in the stomach by his knee. He collapsed, the four times super effective move proving too much.

"Get out of my sight, or you're next." Jake said coldly.

The poacher didn't move, aside from recalling his fallen Tyranitar.

"You're choice. Fire punch now!"

Blazer, having developed a hate for poachers along with his trainer, complied without mercy. He struck the poacher in the chest with a flaming fist. Causing him to fly back and slam into a tree. The last thing the poacher saw before losing consciousness was Jake pulling out a rope and tying his arms around a tree.

Jake pulled out his Pokenav. "Officer Jenny? Yeah. I have a poacher here who was trying to capture an Eevee. Yeah. Route 120. Yeah. He's near the path tied up. Yep. No problem. Bye." He turned towards the Eevee, who was still snuggling up to him. "You wanna come with me, don't you?"

The Eevee nodded.

"Okay then, let me just get a Poke Ball then." He reached into his backpack and took out a Poke Ball. Upon seeing this, the Eevee slapped it away from his hand.

"What? I thought you wanted to come with me?" Jake asked, surprised.

"Vui. Eevee."

"So you're saying that you wanna come with me, just not as a capture?"
Eevee nodded, jumping up to his shoulder. He then rubbed against his face affectionately.

"Alright then, but I'm definitely gonna need to teach you some defensive moves so you're not captured." He pulled out another Poke Ball from his belt. "Thanks for the help, Grace, take a rest." He recalled Grace, before looking over at Blazer, who was staring at the unconscious poacher. "Come on bud, he's not going anywhere, and Officer Jenny is coming to arrest him."

Blazer turned towards his trainer, before conceding and walking away, conversing with their new friend.

"Wow. I have to say, I never expected you to have had such a history with poachers." May said.

"Yeah, they get on my ****ing nerves. They think that they can just come in and take Pokemon from their homes. Catching them in a Poke Ball is one thing, but taking them away to be sold to Arceus knows who is beyond terrible."

Max, changing the subject, piped in. "Guys it's pretty late, and it's almost dinner time." Sure enough, the clock read five thirty. "What do you two wanna do?"

"I say we eat!" May exclaimed. She turned towards Jake. "You wanna come with us? I know you've always had a knack for food."

"Sure."

The group headed out of the ice cream shop to find a place to eat. They came across a restaurant that wasn't too crowded, and walked inside. A waitress showed them to a table. After taking their drink orders, she walked away.

"So, Jake. Why don't you have a Sceptile? You have the other two Hoenn starters, so why not a Sceptile. After all, he is the best one." Max asked.

"Well, to be one hundred percent honest with you, I never really got a chance to catch a Treecko. I received Blazer as my starter, and I rescued Riptide from a waterfall when he was just a Mudkip. I've come across some Grovyles in my travels, but it's not the same as raising one from its first evolutionary stage. Besides, a Sceptile's best quality is its speed, and Shadow does this job, as well as playing mind games with my opponents, which is why he's earned a permanent spot as my lead. Nothing beats being able to hit fast and confusing my opponents in the process. As for Sceptile being the best starter, no. Hands down its Blaziken all the way. A Blaziken will take out a Sceptile any day of the week."

"Not everytime." Max taunted. "Right May?"

"Oh come on! That was one of the best battles I have ever had! Besides, Blaziken had just evolved, and Ash's Sceptile had a lot of time to train with Ash." May replied, reminiscing about the day in Terracotta.

"What happened?" Asked Jake.

"On the last day that I travelled with Ash, we came across a poster for a contest in Terracotta Town. We both decided to enter for fun, since he had just beaten the Battle Frontier, and I had just finished the Kanto contest circuit. We both made it past the appeals round, and we battled each other in the finals. After a long, grueling battle that went from a contest battle to a league battle, we ended up tying. When they couldn't decide who to give the ribbon to, Ash's Sceptile used leaf blade to cut the ribbon in half. He keeps one side of it, while I keep the other."

"Wow. That ribbon must really mean a lot to you, right?" Asked Jake.

"Yeah. I use it to remember all the fun times I had traveling through Hoenn the first time, as well as Kanto."

"Now I really want to meet Ash! If his Sceptile can draw with a Blaziken, he must be really good!"

"He is." Max defended.

Changing the subject, Jake turned to Max. "So, I'm assuming you chose Treecko as your starter? Who else do you have?"

"Yep. I have Sceptile, Swellow, Gardevoir, Slaking, Salamence, and Absol."

"Pretty impressive team you got there. Have any others from other regions?"

"Yeah, but I mainly use my Hoenn team for battling in tournaments and stuff."

"You don't switch it up? I mean take it from me, I have three Pokemon that I use in almost every match. Even then, the other three members are switched out constantly so as to keep my opponent second guessing what I'm gonna use. Hell, even my lead will always mess with my opponents' minds. No matter what they do to prepare for Shadow, 99 times out of 100 I will start off the match one zero. You can't limit yourself to the same six Pokemon every time. It'll just allow your opponent to read you like a book." Jake said, going on a mini rant.

"He's got a point Max. If you use the same Pokemon every match, you're already at a disadvantage." May added.

"I guess." He turned towards Jake. "Tell me something though. You said you switch your Pokemon out constantly, save for a few. Doesn't that mean that those who you switch out aren't as strong as the ones you keep with you at all times?" Max asked.

"Yes, they may not be AS strong as the ones I keep with me on rotation, but even so, all of my Pokemon are at a high level. I train with them every day. Today is an exception since I ran into you, but even then, I still battled twice today."

Who else did you battle?" May asked. "I thought you only beat the pants off of Drew?"

Jake smiled. "I also beat the pants off of some cocky son of a ***** on the ferry ride over here. I knocked him right off his high horse. To say that he was a sore loser is an understatement to say the least."

Unbeknownst to them, the waitress had already brought them their drinks, and had proceeded to wait for them to finish their conversation. Slightly annoyed, she spoke up. "Are you all ready to order?"

All three looked up.

"Yes. I'll have the boiled Krabby please, with a side of potatoes." Jake said.

"I'll have the roasted Farfetch'd please. "Said May.

"I'll have a Tauros burger, medium rare. And a side of fries too," said Max.

"Certainly, it'll be ready in ten minutes."

As the waitress walked away, Jake asked the inevitable. "So are we gonna split up after this? Don't get me wrong, it was really nice seeing you again, but after this, I gotta book a room at the hotel to get ready for tomorrow. Although, I would like to meet up with you guys in the morning."

May looked slightly disappointed by this, but she understood. "Yeah. We were gonna book a room, too, so we could walk over there together. We can meet up at eight thirty tomorrow morning for breakfast. That should give us plenty of time to eat and get to the stadium before the matches start."

"I'm with you on this one sis."

"Alright, it's decided then." Jake turned towards May. "If, for whatever reason, Max doesn't qualify, which I'm sure he will, would you like to accompany me to Driftveil City? I'm sure we won't have to worry about that, but I'd just like to know." He said the last part with a slight blush on his face, glad the dim lighting hid it from May.

"I'd love to!" May exclaimed. "But, as annoying as he is, he has talent, and I don't think we'll have to worry about that. But yes, I would love to go with you if worst comes to worst."

"Cool."

The group noticed that their food had arrived, and they dug in, with Jake and May shoveling down their food.

"Some things never change." Max sighed.

"Vui," Eevee agreed.

The group finished eating, with May and Jake agreeing to split the bill, and they headed out to the hotel. After checking into their rooms, which were conveniently right next to each other, the bid each other a good night.

Jake walked in, slung his bag off of his shoulder, and practically collapsed on his bed. "Man," he said to Eevee, who had since curled up in a comfortable spot on the bed.

"What a day. First, I battled some egotistical asswipe, then I bumped into my best friend from when I was a kid, then I had Blazer put her overbearing ex into place. On top of that, I found out that I more likely than not have feelings for her! Is it wrong of me to think of her like that? I mean I know we haven't seen each other in like six years, but I feel like it's wrong to like my best friend like that. What do you think?"

"Eevee. Eev. Eevee vui eev." He reassured.

"Really? You think that she might feel the same way? What makes you say that?"

"Eev. Eevee eev. Vui eevee."

"Yeah, I noticed her blushing too, but I thought that all girls did that from time to time."

Eevee rolled his eyes. "Eevee. Eev."

"NO!" Jake shouted. "I don't wanna tell her how I feel. We just met back up only a few hours ago. Plus, if she doesn't feel the same way, then it'll be awkward for us, and I don't want that to happen. She was a big part of my life at one point, and I want her to refill that role. Tell ya what, if you help me out with finding out for sure, I'll tell her how I feel. But ONLY if I'm 100 percent sure. I don't want to risk my friendship with her over this."

"Vui." Eevee agreed.

Jake scooted over to where Eevee was laying and gave him a big hug. "Thank you. I know I can count on you for any of my emotional problems. I owe you one."
Upon hearing this, Eevee smiled mischievously.

Jake took immediate notice of this. "Uh oh, what did I get myself into this time?" He asked rhetorically.

"Eevee!"

"I was afraid of that. Anyways, it's getting late. I wanna be able to get up on time, without having you get Shockwave to electrocute me. Got it?"


Eevee nodded.
"Goodnight!" He said, turning off the lights and climbed in under the covers, snuggling with Eevee.

"Vui," he cooed back, snuggling back into his friend's chest.

About the battle. Yes it's one-sided. Yes Blazer swept Drew's team. Yes it may seem like he's a bit OP. But don't worry, there won’t be another battle this one sided for a long time. The way I see it, he was able to sense the importance of the battle, and thus went a little over the top. Another thing, Blaze Rush. It's simply a priority fire attack, like shadow sneak or aqua jet. Nothing fancy. Plus I like the name. Close Combat was already explained, just a series of Sky Uppercuts and Double kicks in rapid succession, Jake called it Close Combat. And some shippyness, I hope it wasn't too forward. If so, my excuse is distance makes the heart grow fonder, however lame it may be.

This chapter provides a little more backstory, most notably on how Jake came across Eevee. I wonder why Jake doesn't leave Blazer out of his Poke Ball anymore? Hmm. Anyways, that was a long chapter, but it was fun to write nonetheless. Next chapter will officially mark the beginning of the tournament, sticking with Jake and May. Thanks for reading, and Please review!

 

[Sethern]

You captured my thoughts into that last authors note. Yeah I was thinking jake is overpowered. Is he based off of your game character? If so, that explains the OPness, because all game characters are OP.

I see you took some if my suggestion into consideration. I noticed you used less profanity, and it had more distance to it.

I notice two things about us.

1. We are both improving on our skills, more fluidity and structure.

2. We have used many of the same Pokemon. All of my favorites. Or at least a lot of them, so fun, those ones are some of the most awesome ones there are.


I enjoyed it and keep up the good work.
Random challenge from Seth! Next chapter have an at least 3 part dialogue with only. Words that start with vowels. Or have no words that start with a vowel in the conversation. You know, just something to exercise your writing skills. (Try the only vowel one first).


I look forwards to the future chapters.

 

[Clone™]

Chapter 8

You captured my thoughts into that last authors note. Yeah I was thinking jake is overpowered. Is he based off of your game character? If so, that explains the OPness, because all game characters are OP.

I see you took some if my suggestion into consideration. I noticed you used less profanity, and it had more distance to it.

I notice two things about us.

1. We are both improving on our skills, more fluidity and structure.

2. We have used many of the same Pokemon. All of my favorites. Or at least a lot of them, so fun, those ones are some of the most awesome ones there are.


I enjoyed it and keep up the good work.
Random challenge from Seth! Next chapter have an at least 3 part dialogue with only. Words that start with vowels. Or have no words that start with a vowel in the conversation. You know, just something to exercise your writing skills. (Try the only vowel one first).


I look forwards to the future chapters.

First off, thanks for the review, I appreciate the support. Next, Jake is in no way affiliated with my Game Character. He's just an OC that I find fun to write about. Next, don't worry about him being OP, becaust what you may think of him now is completely different than what will come down the road. A battle like the one with Drew is gonna be a rare occurance, so don't come to expect those. As for the challenge, I can't do that. Like my sig says, I'm up to chapter 23 on fanfiction, and I won't rewrite anything.
---

That aside, here's chapter 8!

Jake, as usual, was late getting up. Eevee had to nudge him for several minutes, but even that didn't work. Just as he was about to release Shockwave for a repeat of yesterday, there was a knock on the door. Seeing that Jake wasn't going to answer it, Eevee took it upon himself to answer it. He jumped down from the bed and walked over to the door.

"Jake!" May said. "Are you coming or what?"

"Eevee!" Came the reply.

"I take it he's not waking up? Alright, Eevee, see if you can slip the key card under the door. I know how to wake him up." She instructed.

A few moments later, she saw a key card slide under the door. She then unlocked the door and walked in. "What's up Eevee? Obviously not Jake, but how are you doing?" She asked, scratching him on the head. "Oh, he's gonna hate me for this. I know it," she said to herself. She walked over to the bed and looked at Jake. He is cute when he sleeps she thought to herself. Oh well, I'm gonna get a kick out of this. She walked over to the side of the mattress, and she lifted it up, sending Jake tumbling over onto the floor.

"What the ****!?"

"Good morning sunshine!" May said, doing her best to keep from bursting out in laughter.

"Oh. Morning May," Jake said groggily. "Wait, how the heck did you get in here?" He asked, finally realizing what had happened.

"You have Eevee to thank for that. He slipped the key card under the door, since you wouldn't wake up."

Jake glared at Eevee, who was hiding behind May's legs. "Thanks a lot bud." He said sarcastically.

"Jake, it's almost nine o'clock. You gotta be at the stadium in an hour. We were supposed to meet up for breakfast. Max already ate, and it's been killing me waiting this long to eat."

"Alright, I'll meet you down there in five. Let me just wake up properly and fix the bed."

"Okay, just hurry up. I don't want to have to wait any longer."

After watching May walk out, he turned to Eevee. "You know, I don't appreciate you waking me up like that."

"Vui! Eevee."

"I guess you're right. Thank god this wasn't a repeat of yesterday. I hate having to wake up like that."

He stood up, fixed the bed, and put his hat on his head. After putting on his shoes, Jake walked out of the room to meet May, Eevee hitching a ride on his shoulders. Walking down the hallway, he turned to his friend. "You wanna help me see if May likes me back today?"

"Vui."

"Alright. Here's the plan. Just cuddle up to her, try to get her to talk. I'll be over getting something to eat, taking my time."

"Eevee?"

"I know, it's not that much of a plan, but if you have a better idea, tell me."

Eevee sighed. As much as he hated to admit it, Jake's crappy plan was the only thing they had to go on. "Vui."

"Thought so. When we get back to the room, tell me what she said." He looked up, noticing that they had arrived at the cafeteria. "Hey May!"

"Took you long enough." She smiled. "I've been waiting for almost ten minutes now!"

"Calm down! I'm here now aren't I? I'm gonna leave Eevee here while I go get something to eat."

That's a bit weird. Usually Eevee stays with Jake wherever he goes. Oh well. At least I'll have someone to talk to while he's gone. May thought to herself.

Watching the two converse, or at least May talking to Eevee, Jake went to get some food, making sure to take his time. After waiting a good ten minutes, he headed back over towards them.

"...yeah, I don't think I would mind that at all. After all he is a really nice guy and he's—"

"Hey. Who's a really nice guy?" Asked Jake.

May looked up, blushing slightly after realizing that Jake had heard her speaking, not knowing how much he heard. "Oh nobody." She lied. "I was just talking to Eevee here. Even though I don't fully understand him, he makes great company."

"That's part of the reason I keep him around."

Eevee looked up at him, a smirk on his face.

Thanks bud Jake thought to himself. He smiled at them both, letting Eevee know he was in the clear. Upon seeing this, Eevee hopped over to Jake, eager to see what he had brought him to eat.

"So, Jake. You never told me yesterday. Why don't you keep Blazer out of his ball anymore?" May asked, striking up a conversation.

"Well, I don't really have an answer to that. I guess he prefers to stay in his ball. I mean, he started staying in there more often after he had evolved into a Combusken, and then after Eevee started traveling with me, he only came out to eat or battle. I don't think he likes walking a whole lot, since when he was a Torchic he rode on my head."

"You don't think he might be jealous that Eevee is always with you?"

"No. I'm sure. We had a talk about it, and he was perfectly fine with Eevee staying with us. I know when he's lying, and he was telling the honest truth when he said that. In all honesty, I think it might be because of all the attention he draws."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean he's a shiny Pokémon. Most people have never seen one before, and even less have captured one. When he was a Torchic, although it was noticeable, people overlooked the fact that he was a shiny. Why? I don't know. But when he evolved into Combusken, people started to take more notice of his different colors. Although he's a bit of an attention *****, I think the final straw was when Team Rocket tried to take him from me, claiming that the boss would want a super rare shiny Pokémon. After that, he started to stay in his ball more. Although I have every bit of faith in him, and he knows with all of his heart that I would never let anyone take him from me, I think it got to him."

"Wow. That's actually king of sad. I remember a trio from Team Rocket was always after Ash's Pikachu. They never gave up, even after hundreds of failed attempts. Even after all of that, Pikachu still stays out of his ball to this day. The fact that Team Rocket trying to take Blazer away from you got to him is sad. Are you sure that that's all that happened?"

At hearing this, Jake's eyes started to tear up a little. "No, not exactly. It took me two ****ing weeks to track them down. TWO WEEKS." Jake started to sob, tears now flowing down his face. "When I finally found those assholes, it took Grace's Psychic to stop me from killing them right then and there. As much as I hate to admit it, it's a good thing she stopped me. I had found him in a cage that was electrically protected, which prevented him from using any fighting moves to get out. And it was apparently fire proof, too. He was in really bad shape when I finally got to him. I can't believe that there are people in this world who can not only steal other people's Pokémon, but also abuse them. Just for money!"

Jake was full on crying now, and May had pulled her chair up next to him, putting her arm around his shoulder trying to comfort him.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't know it was this bad. If I had known, I wouldn't have asked."

"Don't be," Jake said, starting to regain his composure. "I've never told anyone this, not even my parents. I feel much better, now that I've told someone."

"If you ever need to talk to someone, my offer still stands." May said, smiling at Jake.

"Thanks, May. You're a great friend."

"Any time Jake. Any time."

After sitting like that for a few more minutes, May holding her arm around Jake comforting him, they finally finished eating.

"I'm gonna go take a shower, where do you wanna meet back up, the lobby sound good?"

Jake asked.

"Yeah, me and Max will meet up with you there."

"Alright, see you in twenty minutes."

At that, the two walked back to their rooms.

When Jake got back to his room, he took a quick shower, got dressed, then looked at Eevee. "Alright, after all that back there, spill it. What was May talking about when I came back in?"

As Eevee started to recall what May said, in the other room May was thinking to herself, waiting for Max to finish getting ready.

Wow. I never knew that Jake had a history with Team Rocket like that. And even though he mentioned that he wanted to kill them for what they did, I can't help but feel bad for him. I guess this explains why Blazer seemed to ruthless in that battle yesterday against Drew. All that aside, I know he left Eevee with me to spy on me, and I know Eevee is going to tell him what I said about him. I just hope this won't make things awkward between us. Yes, we've been best friends since we were kids, but it's been six years since we last saw each other. And frankly, I don't think that it would be wrong. Even though he didn't say it out loud, he practically told me that he now sees me as more of a friend, and I can't help but feel the same way. He's caring, he's smart, he's good-looking, and on top of all that, he'll go to hell and back to find one of his Pokémon, even if there's no guarantee that he'll ever see them again. I just wonder what he's gonna do with what Eevee tells him. He's definitely not dense like Ash was, jeez, I kept on hinting, and hinting, and hinting at him, yet he barely noticed me! Yes, we were best friends, but whenever I said that maybe we could be something MORE than best friends, what did he say? Oh yeah. Bestest friends! How dense can you get? I feel bad for any girl who wants to try and go after him. They're gonna be in for a rude awakening. I hope I won't have to make the first move with Jake, I mean it might take him a minute to realize that I like him, and I know he has balls because he asked me if I wanted to accompany him in the case that Max didn't make it, but I can't help but feel that I might have to give him a little push to get the ball rolling—

"Hey sis, you ready?" Max's voice rang out, causing May to lose her train of thought.

"Yeah, I'm coming. Just let me get my bandana on, and then we can go wait for Jake in the lobby." She called back.

Meanwhile in the other room, Jake was shocked at what Eevee had told him.

"What?" He exclaimed. "You mean she told you that I would make a good boyfriend?"

"Vui."

"Alright then, I can't help but think that she figured out our little ploy. I hope that she isn't trying to embarrass me though."

"Vee! Eevee vui eev!" Eevee shot back, not hearing one bit of what Jake was implying.

"I know bud, I don't think she would ever do something like that to me, I know that she knows that I would never talk to her again if I did that. Now the real problem is, how, and when, do I ask her?"

"Eevee!"

"Good idea! After we qualify, I could pull her aside and ask her then. Between what you told me earlier, and the good mood I'll be in after qualifying, it'll be the perfect time! Alright, time to go meet up with them in the lobby. I just don't know what to say to her until then. And hopefully Max won't give me a hard time."

Jake smiled, knowing that this was going to be the best day of his life. Walking down to the lobby, he scratched Eevee in his favorite spot behind the ears. "Thanks bud." He whispered.

Eevee cooed in response.

----

The group met up, and headed out to the stadium. They arrived there after a short walk and headed over to the registration desk.

"Do you have your registration cards with you?"

"Yes, here you go," Jake and Max said together, handing their cards to the lady behind the desk.

"Alright, you're good to go!" She said, handing them a new set of cards. "You both are in group D. Good luck!"

"Thanks, they both said.

Jake turned towards Max. "Don't worry, even though we're gonna have to battle each other, we can both advance. We just need to win three battles each, and we're off to the prelims." Jake said, reassuring his younger companion.

"I know. Just don't expect to win when we battle." Max said, smiling. "My first match is in thirty minutes. When's yours?"

"I have fifteen minutes. It's against some guy named Jack Schuette. That gives me about five minutes to look him up; although I'm pretty sure I know who I'm gonna use."

Jake headed over to a computer and typed in the name.

"What does it say?" May asked.

"Hmm. It says here that he's 10 years old, his starter was a Mudkip, and he made the top 128 in this year's Hoenn league. Man, I can't help but feel bad for him."

"Why?" May asked.

"Because, I have a good six years' experience on him, and this is only his second major tournament. I've participated in seven leagues, and have won twice. Both here in Hoenn."

"Oh, yeah, I guess this is a little one-sided. Even Max could probably beat him."

"Wait a second, ah. I know who I'm gonna use now."

"Who?" Both Max and May asked.

"Come here and look for yourself."

As they looked on screen, their eyes widened. "Wow. That's impressive!" They both exclaimed in unison.

---

"This will be a one on one battle between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town, and Jack Schuette of Fallarbor Town. The winner of this match gets two points, a tie is one point each for both trainers, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine who chooses their first Pokémon at random. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes." Jake said.

"You betcha!" Exclaimed Jack.

They looked at the scoreboard. After alternating between red and blue, it landed on red, which happened to be Jack's color.

"Would the red trainer please send out his Pokémon?"

"Alright, Hydreigon, I choose you!" Jack shouted, a triumphant look on his face.

A blue and black dragon appeared. He had three black appendages on each side of his back, which appeared to be wings. He had two legs, which appeared to be shredded at the bottom. The most noticeable thing however was that his two hands were actually mini heads.

The ref looked at Jake. "Would the blue trainer please send out his Pokémon?"

"Just as I expected. Grace, engage!"

Out came his Gardevoir. She had two, long skinny legs that ended in points, covered by what looked like a white gown. She had a red horn protruding from her chest and back, and had two green arms. Her face seemed to be covered by what looked like green hair.

"Oh come on. A psychic type against a dark type?" Jack said, a little shocked at the choice of Pokémon.

"For someone of your level, I would have at least expected you to have gone with a type advantage, since I did choose first."

"Just wait and see boy, wait and see." Jake replied.

"Gardevoir versus Hydreigon, begin!" The ref shouted.

"This kid's gonna be in for a rude awakening, right guys?" May asked to Eevee, who Jake had left with her, and Max.

"Yep. He won't even know what hit him, although I have to say I'm pretty impressed that he was able to get a Hydreigon. Based on what I've heard Jake say, they are very hard to raise."

"Vui." Eevee agreed.

"Hydreigon, let's start out strong! Use dragon pulse!"

"Grace, wait for the attack to finish, then Dazzling Gleam!"

What is he thinking? I know Gardevoir usually have a good special defense, but why is he not ordering her to dodge? Jack thought to himself.

Hydreigon opened his largest head, sending a green orb of energy shooting towards Gardevoir. Gardevoir stood there, waiting for the right moment. The orb hit its mark, causing a small explosion right on top of Gardevoir, however, it didn't seem to do a thing.

"What the hell? Why didn't that work?" Jack asked, shocked at the outcome.

"Now!" Jake shouted.

Gardevoir's eyes glowed pink, and she emitted a pink ray of light at her opponent. Not hearing his trainer order to dodge, Hydreigon hovered in place, taking the full force of the attack. The attack hit its mark, and the four times super effective attack caused massive damage.

"Alright, we can come back from this, use Crunch!"

"Counter with Ice Punch!"

Hydreigon floated over to Gardevoir, and crunched down on her neck with his two mini heads. Showing obvious signs of pain, she reared her fist back and struck him in the chest with an ice cold fist, sending him flying back, crashing into the ground in front of his trainer.

Dang it, I have to go out strong if I want to beat this Gardevoir, no matter how high her special defense is, she won't be able to take a "DRACO METEOR!"

"Just wait, then use moon blast on my command!" Jake countered.

What the hell is he thinking!? Surely he knows that even a Gardevoir can't survive the most powerful dragon type attack!

Hydreigon's stomach started to glow, and he aimed his three heads into the sky, and emitted dozens of mini meteorites into the air. They came crashing down, with many of them hitting Gardevoir cleanly. When the smoke cleared, Gardevoir was still standing, looking unfazed by the attack.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Jack screamed, flabbergasted that Gardevoir was unhurt. "Did you call for a protect?"

"Nope. I'll explain after I win. Now Grace!"

All of a sudden, a pink moon appeared in the sky. Gardevoir then started to glow pink, and the moon shot a pink energy wave at Hydreigon. It struck his entire body, and he collapsed, unable to withstand the powerful attack.

"Hydreigon is unable to battle, Gardevoir is the winner! The match goes to Jake Smith of Littleroot Town!"

"Hydreigon, return." Jack said, still shocked at the outcome. "Spill it. NOW."

"Alright, calm down. First, I want to congratulate you on to your Hydreigon, he's clearly been raised well. As for why dragon pulse and Draco Meteor didn't work, it's because Grace is part fairy type." Jake explained.

"Fairy type?"

"Yes. It was recently discovered, and some Pokémon were found to have been part fairy type. The type is completely immune to dragon type attacks, hence why she was unaffected. Plus they're resistant to dark type moves, so Grace was only hit neutrally by that Crunch attack. They're also super effective against dragons, as well as dark types and fighting types. That's why it only took a couple of hits to take out your Hydreigon. Four times super effective moves are really hard to survive. You should be proud of him for withstanding three super effective hits."

"Wow. I've never heard of the fairy type before."

"Don't worry about it. You still have a long road ahead of you. Losing to the Hoenn league victor is nothing to be ashamed of." Jake held out his hand. "Good match."

Jack shook it. "Good match."

After recalling Grace and meeting back up with May and Max, May spoke up first.

"Wow. You completely owned him. The match was in your control the entire time!"

"Yeah, well if he knew about the fairy type, it could've been a completely different match altogether. I took a gamble, and it paid off. I was lucky."

"Oh come on, don't be so modest!" May exclaimed coyly. "You won, and you only need to beat two more trainers to qualify!"

"Yeah. At the rate you're going, you'll be qualified in no time! And I'll be right there with you!"

"Speaking of which, your match is soon, right?"

"Oh crap, I got ten minutes! I won't even have time to look up my opponent!"

"What's his name? I can look him up on my Pokenav for you."

"Barry Jenkins."

"It says here that he's from here, Slateport. Here, don't drop it."

"I won't." Max replied, taking the Pokenav and looking at it while they were walking towards the stadium.

May and Jake stayed back, letting Max take the lead.

"So..." May said, trying to start up a conversation.

Ahh screw it. I was gonna wait until after, but with Max preoccupied, I have a chance without him interrupting Jake thought to himself. "So, is what Eevee told me true?"

"What do you mean?" May asked innocently.

"That you said that I'd make a good boyfriend."

"I don't know," May said, flirtatiously. Wow. He's already making a move. Just go with the flow May, and let nature take its course.

Jake blushed at the response. Aha! So it's true! Time to seal the deal! "Well, if you don't know, maybe I could sway your opinion over dinner tonight?"

"You're smooth. I'll give you that. But what about him?" She replied, pointing to Max.

"Crap. I don't know. As much as I'd hate to leave him behind, I don't really want to listen to his teasing."

"Tell you what. Let's skip the dinner, and after Max is in bed, we can go see a late night movie. That way we can have some alone time, and Max doesn't have to find out."

"Alright deal." Jake replied. YES! YES! YES! My first date! I really hope I don't screw this up. The last thing I need is for her to be turned off by me, right in the middle of a tournament.

Eevee looked up at his friend, a proud smirk on his face. He snuggled up to Jake, as a way of congratulating him.

"Come on, we can talk more while watching Max's battle." May said.

"Okay, but can you do me a favor?"

"Yeah?"

"Please don't tell Max, at least not until its official. I don't think I could deal with him if something went wrong."

"Nothing will go wrong!"

"Please?"

"Okay, fine. I won't tell him."

"Tell me what?" They both looked ahead, noticing Max had turned around. "Don't tell me you two are doing anything inappropriate behind my back."

Both blushed at the comment.

"Nope, we were just talking about how we know you're gonna win this match." Jake said quickly.

"Uh-huh. Suuure. Anyways, I found out what Pokémon Barry is probably gonna use, and I have the perfect counter for it."

"Mind filling us in?" May asked.

"Wait and find out."

---

They arrived at the stadium, with Max hurrying off onto the field, and May, Jake, and Eevee heading into the stands.

Jake held out his hand, and May took the hint, grabbing it. They found front row seats in the relatively empty stands, since not many spectators came for the qualifiers.

May spoke first. "So, what movie do you want to see?"

"I wanna see that new action flick, Starmie Wars." Jake replied. "I've already seen the first one, and it looks even better than the first!"

"Ugh. I was thinking something more romantic, you know, a chick flick. Like Celebi, the Time Traveller. You know, the one where Celebi has to travel through time to find true love." She squealed in excitement.

"Eevee. Eev."

"You're right. Maybe we could compromise. The Snorlax Games just came out, that's supposed to be an action flick with romance in it. How about that?"

"Okay!" May conceded. She knew that was the best she was gonna get. Even after six years, she knew Jake was as stubborn as they came.

"Look, Max's match is starting." Jake said.

----

This is a one on one match between Max Maple of Petalburg City, and Barry Jenkins of Slateport City. Each trainer will use one Pokémon, and there is no time limit. The match will be over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. The Winner gets two points. A tie is one point each, and a loss is zero points for the loser. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yep!" Max stated.

"Yeah." Barry said blankly.

Both looked at the scoreboard, and it stopped on blue.

"Barry Jenkins, please send out your Pokémon.

"With pleasure. Tyranitar, stand by!"

The seven foot green lizard appeared, striking a fighting stance. Sand immediately started to whip up.

Shielding his eyes, the ref looked over to Max. "Would the red trainer please send out his Pokémon.

"Sandslash, I choose you!" Max shouted.

A hedgehog looking Pokémon appeared. He was a light brown color, and he had brown spikes sticking out from his back. He had two sharp claws coming from each arm. He immediately faded away into the sand.

"Damnit! ****ing Sand Veil. Oh well, I'll just have to draw him out." Barry said to himself.

"Sandslash versus Tyranitar, begin!"

"Tyranitar, start out with a stone edge! Cover the whole field!"

"Dodge it with dig!"

Tyranitar created three rings of stones around his body, and shot them all around. Although nobody could see him, both trainers knew that Sandslash had burrowed himself deep underground.

"Earthquake!" Barry commanded.

"Strike it, then go into a crush claw!"

Tyranitar reared one of his feet back preparing for an earthquake. Before he could slam it on the ground, Sandslash emerged, knocking him off balance. He immediately struck him with a glowing claw, sending Tyranitar staggering back. He then vanished into the sand again.

"Damnit! How the **** am I gonna hit him?" Barry said, angry at his disadvantage. "Tyranitar, ice beam. Aim all over the place!"

"Dodge it! Then use brick break when you get the chance! Don't rush, take your time!" Max said calmly.

---

"Wow, Max has this in the bag. That Tyranitar has no chance." Jake said.

"I know it looks like it, but are you sure? That ice beam could hit Sandslash, and the super effective move will deal a lot of damage." May said.

"No. Trust me, Maverick does this all the time." He chuckled. "As long as Max has Sandslash use hit and run tactics, he'll win this for sure. He's got this in the bag."

---

Back on the battlefield, Tyranitar was spraying a cold beam of ice into the sand, aiming everywhere. Suddenly, Sandslash struck him with a glowing claw, dealing massive damage with the four times super effective move. Tyranitar, being completely fatigued, was on the brink of collapsing.

"Earthquake!" Barry shouted.

"Dodge, then metal claw!"

Tyranitar slammed his foot on the ground, causing a massive tremor. After the shaking died down, Barry smiled.

"I think we got him!"

All of a sudden, a glowing claw struck Tyranitar in the back, dealing massive damage. Tyranitar, unable to take any more, fainted on the spot.

"Tyranitar is unable to battle, Sandslash wins! The victory goes to Max Maple of Petalburg City!" The ref shouted.

"Tyranitar, return." Barry said, his face red with anger.

"Good job Sandslash, take a rest bud," Max said. He looked up at Barry. "That was a great match!"

"Maybe for you." Came the reply, before he walked away.

Coming down from the stands, May and Jake congratulated him.

"That was awesome. The way you battled was exactly how you should have. Using your opponents' abilities against them is a great strategy!" Jake congratulated.

"Yeah Max, that was awesome!" May exclaimed. "Who are you facing next, and when is the match?"

Max looked at his card. "Great. It's against him," he pouted, pointing at Jake. "We battle in an hour. On a side note, is there a reason why you two are holding hands?"

Realizing that they may be found out, they both let go, slight blushes on their faces.

Changing the subject, Jake turned to Max. "Don't worry, we still have two more matches after this one. If either of us loses, we still have a shot at advancing. No matter what happens, let's keep it friendly, okay?"

"Okay."

"Let's go get something to eat real quick before the match, I'm starving!" May exclaimed.

"I'm with you on that one!" Jake laughed.

"Alright then, let's go!"

The trio headed off to get a quick lunch, with the two males thinking about the upcoming match.

----

So there it is, chapter 8. If you think that Jake made his move too early, again, my excuse is distance makes the heart grow fonder. Also, this story is more about them BEING in a relationship, rather than them BECOMING a couple (that's Ash and Dawn). This marks the official start of the tournament on Jake's end, and next chapter goes back to Ash.

Hope you all enjoyed this, and are enjoying your winter break if you're still in school. As always, read and review everyone!

 

[Clone™]

I’ve been nominated for best multishipping fic. If you feel like this deserves a vote, then please do so. Also, please note that every chapter I post is at least a month old. My Fanfiction account has this story, and I post updates there much more frequently. These chapters pale in comparison to my newer chapters, so if you want to read it there and get ahead, link is here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9854051/1/The-Pokemon-World-Tournament
I also have a link in my sig.

That aside, here’s chapter 9.

"I'm starving!" Ash exclaimed as they were walking inside.

"Hold your Rapidashes. The food's not going anywhere." Dawn said.

A waitress showed them to a table, and took their drink orders.

"So, do y'all wanna just call it a night after dinner, or what?" Asked Dawn.

"I was planning on getting a little training done before I call it a night. I want to make sure that everyone is good to go before tomorrow, since I probably won't have time in the morning." Ash replied.

"Ugh. I was hoping we could do something together." Dawn sighed.

"You could be my sparring partner." Ash suggested.

Dawn, realizing that there was no better option, conceded. "Sure! I'd love to!" Man, I wish he would do something that I want to do. Like go see that new chick flick, Celebi the Time Traveller! I know! Tomorrow I'll wear my new outfit! He seemed to like it yesterday! That'll get his attention, but before that, at least we'll be sleeping in the same bed!

"Uh, Dawn, your face is red again." Ash said, snapping Dawn back to her senses.

"Oh, no need to worry! I was just thinking."

"Thinking about what? Or more importantly, who?" Brock asked, smirking knowingly.

"Nobody! I wasn't thinking about Ash!" Immediately after saying this, Dawn covered her mouth, her face beet red.

"What? Why were you thinking about me?" Ash asked, cluelessly.

Jeez, he has it bad! Brock thought to himself. Alright, I'm gonna have to intervene. He may not realize it yet, but based on what dawn told me about earlier, he's developed feelings for Dawn. It'll just take some outside help before he realizes it. I hope Dawn doesn't mind though.

Why is he so damn dense!? He's denser than lead. I made a slip up, and he's absolutely clueless! I didn't want to have to do this, but I'm probably gonna have to get Brock involved. I hope he doesn't mind she glanced over at Brock, who seemed to be deep in thought. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Brock, snapping back to his senses, nodded. "We'll be right back Ash, Dawn needs to talk to me about something."

"But-''

"Alone."

"Okay. Just hurry up please. I don't want to have to keep the waitress waiting."

"Will do." Brock turned to Dawn. "Let's go."

"I wonder what that was about," Ash said to Pikachu. "They just got up and left, all after I asked why Dawn was thinking about me. Did I do something wrong?"

"Pika," Pikachu replied, rolling his eyes.

"And why was Dawn's face so red? Is she sick or something and that's why Brock wanted to talk to her?"

"Pika. Pikachu pikapi. Chu pika."

"What do you mean Dawn likes me? I like her too! I mean, she is my best friend after all!"

Pikachu was on the verge of slapping Ash right then and there. He was tired of his trainer's denseness, and after watching two potential girlfriends slip away, he didn't want to see Ash miss out on a third.

"Pika!" He said mischievously, a plan forming in his head.

"What was that?"

"Pika," he replied innocently.

---

"I don't get it Brock, how can he be so dense? I practically blurted out that I liked him, and he thought nothing of it! He's so clueless!"

"Well, this is Ash we are talking about, so it's no surprise."

"What do you mean?"

"This isn't the first time this has happened. Misty was first. Although he was only ten at the time, she made it pretty clear that she liked him as more than a friend. Ash being Ash, he completely overlooked it."

"Wow. I'm guessing May was the other?"

"Yep. Ash was older than when he met May, and so I thought that maybe he would've caught a clue. I don't know, maybe he grew out of it a little bit, but not by much. In all honesty, I seriously thought that she would have gotten through that thick skull of his. But no such luck. I honestly think she made it even more obvious than Misty, but it didn't matter in the end. We went our separate ways, and the last we saw her was the Wallace Cup. Speaking of which, I'd assume Max, her little brother, is entering the tournament, so maybe we'll meet back up with them in Driftveil City. Back on topic though, it's obvious you like him, and I don't want to see him break a third girl's heart by simply being oblivious. So that's why I'm offering to help you get with Ash. It's obvious that with some outside help, he'll finally realize that he has feelings for you."

"Wow. You know, I was gonna ask you for some help, Brock, but it seems like you read my mind. I just hope you know what you're doing."

"Trust me. They don't call me the love doctor for nothing."

Dawn rolled her eyes at the comment. "Which is why you've been rejected by every girl you've fallen for."

"Hey! Come on!"

She smiled, knowing that she had found his weak point. "Alright, what do you have in store?"

"Well first, since you mentioned that he was practically speechless when you showed him your new outfit, we can start there. Just start wearing it from now on. That should get him thinking, and make things easier for us."

"I was thinking the same thing! What else do you have planned?"

The two conversed for another ten minutes, and when Brock told Dawn what he had planned, she agreed without any hesitation.

"You know, this may actually work!" She exclaimed.

"I hope so, otherwise he's a lost cause." Brock said.

"I don't even want to think about that."

The two walked back inside, to see Ash looking bored as ever.

"What took you two so long, I mean I know that Dawn might've been sick, but couldn't you have at least let me help?"

Oh jeez. He thought I was sick? Arceus, please help him. At least by the time this tournament is over, Brock will have helped me pair up with him. Until then, it's gonna be a long road. Dawn thought to herself.

She looked up, and noticed that the waitress had returned switch their drinks.

"Sorry about the delay, there was a hold up in the kitchen. Are you ready to order?"

"No need to worry!" Dawn said. "And I think we're ready."

The trio ordered their food, and the waitress left.

"So, Ash, who are you gonna train with tonight? I was thinking of using either Mamoswine or Whimsicott."

"Definitely Scrafty. He always performs well after a good warm up. Garchomp already battled today, so I think he's ready. I don't want to hurt either of your Pokémon, so Typhlosion is out of the picture. So that leaves Pikachu, Crawdaunt, and Boldore."

"How about Scrafty versus Whimsicott, and Crawdaunt versus Mamoswine?" Dawn suggested.

"Sounds good."

"After that though do you wanna see a movie or something? You know, to wind down after training. I heard that Celebi the Time Traveller is out. It looks really good based on what I've seen of the previews."

"Aww, a chick flick? I wanna see the new Starmie Wars. You know, something with action and not that lovey dovey stuff."

Wow. I'm surprised he even knows what a chick flick is. Brock was right. He really is starting to grow out of his denseness. It'll just take a little push. Dawn thought to herself.

"How about you two compromise?" Brock suggested.

"What do you mean you two? Aren't you coming Brock?" Ash asked.

"No, sorry, I have things to do. Maybe next time. But I heard that the new Snorlax Games is out. It's got both action and romance in it."

Ash turned towards Dawn. "I don't see why not. You up for that?"

"Yes!" She squealed. Thank you Brock! she said mentally.

"Hey, our food's here!" Ash exclaimed.

Sure enough, there food had arrived amidst the excitement.

"Let's eat!"

---

"You ready Dawn?" Ash asked. "Even though this is just a practice match, I'm not gonna go easy on you!"

"I wouldn't want you to. Where's the challenge in that?" Dawn replied.

"Alright, Crawdaunt, I choose you!"

Ash yelled, throwing out a poke ball. A lobster looking Pokémon appeared. He was mainly red, with a cream underbelly. He stood on two feet, and had tiny arms coming out of his stomach. He held his two large pincers up menacingly, and atop his head was a yellow star.

"Mamoswine, spotlight!" Dawn called, throwing her poke ball. A massive brown Pokémon appeared. He had four thick legs, and two large tusks coming out from each side of his face, which was a combination of blue and white.

"Ladies first," Ash said tauntingly.

"Alright, let's start out with Ice Armor!"

"Dragon Dance, now!"

Mamoswine began by forming an ice shard in his mouth. But instead of shooting it at Crawdaunt, he swallowed it, and icicle formed on his back, giving off the appearance of spikes.

Meanwhile, Crawdaunt started dancing around frantically, with a red and black energy surrounding him.

"Crab hammer!" Ash shouted.

"Counter with hidden power!"

Crawdaunt, using his newfound speed, rushed up to Mamoswine, preparing to strike him. However, Mamoswine was prepared, and an electric energy surrounded him. When Crawdaunt struck, his claw smashed through the energy surrounding the Twin Tusk Pokémon, and broke through the ice armor. Crawdaunt wasn't unscathed though, as his body started to spark from contact with the electric type hidden power.

"We can come back from this! Use Ancient Power!" Dawn shouted.

"Break through it with Rock Smash! Then grab hold of his tusks with Vice Grip!" Ash countered.

Mamoswine created a glowing ball of energy, and he released it aiming straight for the Rogue Pokémon. Just as it was about to hit, Crawdaunt smashed it into pieces with a glowing claw. He then charged ahead, using the speed he gained from the Dragon Dance to run faster. He then grabbed ahold of Mamoswine's tusks.

"Get free Mamoswine!" Dawn shouted, worried for her Pokémon's well-being.

"Now throw it!" Ash shouted, sensing a victory.

Mamoswine shook his head violently, trying to shake Crawdaunt free. Crawdaunt held, and he then threw Mamoswine, causing him to land on his back. Crawdaunt looked at his trainer eagerly, waiting for the finishing command.

"Alright I think that's good enough." Ash said.

"What?"

"Look, it's obvious that Mamoswine can't take much more, and I don't want to hurt him. Besides. It's just a training match, and I'm not trying to hurt your Pokémon. Come on. Let's start the Scrafty versus Whimsicott match, and then catch that movie."

"You're right, sorry." Dawn recalled Mamoswine, and threw out another. "Whimsicott, spotlight!"

A brown Pokémon appeared. Her most noticeable feature was the cotton that came out of her head, giving off the appearance of hair that covered his entire back. She had green ears that curled. And pupil-less orange eyes.

"Crawdaunt, good job, come back. Go Scrafty!"

An orange Pokémon with a dark red Mohawk appeared. His mouth appeared to be in a never ending frown, and he had loose skin that resembled a hoodie on his neck. His tail and legs were covered by the same baggy skin.

"Since you won the first round, you can go first!" Dawn said.

"Okay then, let's start out with a Headbutt!" Ash commanded.

"Slow him down with a Cotton Spore!" Dawn countered. "Follow with razor leaf!"

Scrafty charged towards Whimsicott, head lowered. Whimsicott shot dozens of balls of sticky cotton on the ground on Scrafty's path, causing him to slow into a snail's pace. She then shot dozens of razor sharp leaves at Scrafty, causing small cuts to form on his skin.

"Alright, try to use your Shed Skin ability to get out of there, then use crunch!" Ash shouted.

"Don't let him! Use charm, followed by Giga Drain!"

Scrafty's outer skin started to fall off, and was immediately replaced, allowing him to get free from the Cotton Spore. He then charged towards Whimsicott, preparing to crunch down on her. She retaliated by moving around cutely, causing him to drop his guard. Immediately. Afterward, Whimsicott's eyes glowed, and green tendrils grabbed Scrafty, draining his energy.

"Checkmate!" Dawn exclaimed.

""Alright, you win. Scrafty return!" Ash conceded.

"Good job, Whimsicott! Take a rest!" Dawn said, recalling her Pokémon. She looked up at Ash. "We better get going. The movie starts in less than an hour."

"Right."

---

"Two tickets for Snorlax Games please." Ash said.

"Certainly, it's the fourth theater on your left."

"Thanks."

The duo walked to get popcorn, but noticed the line was long.

"Hey Dawn, I'll wait in line, while you go find us some seats, okay?"

"Sounds good!" She replied.

Dawn walked off, heading into the theater. I can't wait! Brock's plan is going well so far! Time to go into phase two! she mentally cheered. She found two seats, and ten minutes later, Ash and Pikachu walked in, holing two drinks and a large popcorn. As he sat down next to Dawn, he spoke up.

"I got you a Pecha berry soda, I hope you don't mind!"

"No! Not at all. Now shut up, the previews are about to start."

About halfway during the movie, during a scary part, Dawn, to Ash's surprise, clenched onto his arm. Even when that particular scene had ended, she still clung on to him.

There's that feeling again. I wish I knew what it is. First when Dawn showed me her new outfit, and now when she's clinging on to my arm. I don't mind it, actually I kind of like it. I just wish I knew what it is. Ash thought to himself. He looked over at Dawn, whose eyes were glued to the screen. I wonder if she has that weird feeling too. I don't know, maybe Brock will know.

The two stayed like that for the rest of the movie, Dawn holding on to Ash's arm, and Ash, surprisingly, moved instinctively closer.

---

"Wow! That movie was great!" Dawn exclaimed. They were exiting the theater, and she had settled to holding Ash's hand.

"Yeah. It wasn't bad." Ash replied. I wonder why Dawn is still holding my hand. Oh well. I don't mind. So I won't say anything.

"Oh come on, admit it, you had fun."

"Okay, you got me, it was pretty fun. Come on, let's get back to the hotel."

The two walked back, and after about fifteen minutes of walking, they finally got to their room. As they opened the door, they heard snoring.
"It sounds like Brock is asleep, so let's keep it down." Ash whispered.

"Okay," she replied.

The two walked in, with Dawn heading over to the bathroom to get ready to change first. Ash, on the other hand, went over to the bed and plopped down.

"Man. What a day!" He said, looking over at his faithful companion.

"Pika. Pikachu pikapi."

"Yeah. Listen. Tomorrow, I wanna talk to you alone. I don't know how long Dawn will be in there, and I don't want her to hear what I want to say to you, so you think you can wake me up early?"

Pikachu nodded in reply.

"That aside, are you ready for tomorrow? We got a big day ahead of us. We win three matches in the qualifiers, we go to the prelims!"

"Pipikachu! Pikachu replied, just as excited as Ash.

Dawn walked out of the bathroom. "Hey Ash, I'm done in there. You can use it now."

Ash looked up. He saw dawn wearing an oversized t-shirt, and short shorts, before she climbed under the covers.

"Alright. Be right back. Don't hog the covers please. There's plenty of room."

Dawn giggled. "No need to worry!"

Ash walked into the bathroom, and five minutes later he had changed into his black t-shirt and boxers.

Man, I can't help but feel a little awkward about sleeping with Dawn. Thank god the lights are out. I don't think I could deal with her seeing me in my boxers. Ash thought to himself. He then climbed into bed.

"Hey Dawn?"

"Yeah Ash?" She replied, wondering what he was going to say.

"I just wanted to thank you."

"What do you mean?"

"I had a really great time, and I enjoyed going to the movies with you."
"No problem Ash." She replied. "Good night."

"Night Dawn."

Ash was lying on his back, while Dawn was on her stomach, facing towards Ash. He's so cute when he sleeps. It was fun going to the movies. Even though he didn't know what was going on when I was clinging to him, the fact that afterwards he didn't seem to mind me holding his hand means that I might actually have a shot with him.
At that, she drifted off to sleep, hearing the sounds of light snoring right next to her.

Unbeknownst to them, however, a yellow rodent was ready to put his plan into action. He waited to make sure that the two teens were asleep, and then pulled each of their hands out, intertwining their fingers. He chuckled to himself, waiting to see the looks on their faces when they woke up. He found a spot near the foot of the bed and lied down. He quickly succumbed to his tiredness, drifting off to dreamland.

There it is, chapter 9. Hope you enjoyed it. Like I mentioned above, this fic has been nominated for best multishipping fic in the Oscars. If you feel like this deserves a vote, then by all means, go ahead.

Also, like I said above, these earlier chapters are pretty bad IMO, but let me know what you think in a review.

Next chapter starts the actual tournament.

 

[Sethern]

To start off, I can tell throughout writing this your ability to write has increased. If you say the future ones are better, good job. I'm noticing less and less grammar/spelling mistakes as you go on. There are still a few but less frequently now.

This was my favorite part.

Pikachu was on the verge of slapping Ash right then and there.
It got me. So keep up the good work.

 

[Clone™]

Chapter 10 everybody! Enjoy.

----

Brock was the first to awaken. When he got up, the first thing he heard was light snoring coming from Ash. When he looked over, he smiled at what he saw.

On the other bed, Ash was asleep lying on his back, with his arms by his side. Next to him, Dawn was cuddled up to him, probably from moving in her sleep.

I wonder what Ash will think of this when he wakes up. Brock thought to himself. He looked over at the clock, which read 8:15. I'm gonna go get some breakfast in the lobby. I'll just let these two sleep in some.

At that, he walked out and closed the door, which had the unexpected consequence of waking Ash up.

Ash looked over, and was taken aback at what he saw. Dawn was cuddling up to his arm, still fast asleep. His cheeks immediately started turning red. There's that feeling again. Man it always seems to happen around Dawn. I really wish I knew what it means. Realizing that he wouldn't be able to move without waking Dawn, he sighed. I can't move without waking Dawn up, I know! I can look up some of my opponents for today. Although I don't know who I'll be facing yet, I can still size up the competition! He looked over, and saw his Pokenav on the bedside table. He used his free arm to try and grab it, but it was just out of reach. Damnit. Wait, I'll just get Pikachu to grab it for me! He looked over at his sleeping partner, and used his foot to nudge him awake, which caused him to stir.

"Chaaa!" He yawned. He looked over at Ash, and smiled at seeing Dawn cuddling up to him like that.

"Hey buddy, have a nice sleep?" Ash whispered.

Pikachu nodded.

"Can you be a pal and grab my Pokenav for me please. I don't want to wake Dawn up, and I want to see the competition for today."

Pikachu nodded, and went over to the bedside table, and grabbed the Pokenav. He walked over and placed it in Ash's outstretched hand.

"Thanks buddy, you're the best!"

"Pika!" He cooed back, curling back up to ago back to sleep.

"Hmm. Let's see..."

For the next ten minutes, Ash looked up various people, all potential opponents from the Kanto region.

Hey I know! I'll see if Max is entering too! At that, he scanned through various trainers from Hoenn, and he stopped on a particular name. Jake Smith. Says here that he's won the Hoenn league twice. His starter was a Torchic from Professor Birch. Hmm. Just like May. Placed top eight in Johto and Kanto. Top four in Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos. Kalos, I definitely got to go there after the tournament. I've heard that there's a lot of cool Pokémon out there. And something called Mega Evolution? What is that? Anyways, this guy seems to know what he's doing. I'd definitely like to battle him. Ash ranted mentally. He continued scrolling, until he found Max. Aha! So he is entering! Maybe we can battle, just like I promised him all those years ago! I would definitely like to see what Pokémon he has—

Dawn started to stir, causing Ash to lose his train of thought. He looked over, just as she opened her eyes. As soon as she realized what was going on, she started to blush furiously. "Sorry about that Ash!" She said, clearly embarrassed. "I guess I must've rolled over in my sleep or something."

"No need to worry Dawn, I don't mind. It was actually kind of nice," Ash replied, not knowing what he implied.

Am I losing my mind? Dawn thought to herself. I could've sworn I just heard him say that it was nice. Maybe he really is turning over a new leaf. She got up, and started to go into the bathroom to get ready for the morning. "Thanks for not waking me up." She said, before walking into the bathroom.

"Don't mention it," Ash replied, not realizing his face was beet red.

Upon seeing this, Pikachu started having a fit of laughter.

"What?"

"Pika. Pika pikapi."

"What do you mean my cheeks are rivaling yours in color?"

"Pika."

"Oh, what-ever."

Thirty minutes later, Dawn came out, wearing her new outfit. Once again, Ash was speechless.

She really does look good in that. And once again, I have that feeling in my chest. I hope I'm not getting sick.

"How do I look?" Dawn asked flirtatiously, doing a little spin.

"Great!" Ash said, face turning red. "Now come on, I'm starving!"

At least he complimented me, if only for a second. And he blushed! This is progress! Brock was right! Maybe he isn't as dense as we originally thought.

"You coming?" Ash asked, snapping Dawn back to her senses.

"Right behind ya!"

Ash and Dawn headed down to the cafeteria to eat breakfast, and bumped into Brock on the way.

"Hey Brock, when did you get up?" Asked Ash.

"About 8:15. I saw you two still asleep, so I decided to get something to eat before you decided to eat everything," he replied, casting a knowing glance towards Dawn.

"Oh come on. I don't eat THAT much," Ash said.

"Yeah you do." Dawn said quickly.

"Alright, I'll meet up with you guys at the stadium. I wanna get a head start on reading up on my opponents." Brock said.

"See ya then!" The other two said.

----

"Come on Ash, you're gonna be late!" Dawn called.

"Can you please let me finish getting dressed? I don't wanna walk out in my boxers in public!"

Dawn blushed at the comment. "Alright, but we gotta be at the stadium in twenty minutes!"

Two minutes later, Ash opened the bathroom door, ready to go.

"Come on Pikachu," he said, holding out his hand so his friend could climb aboard.

"Let's go!" Ash exclaimed.

----

"Registration card please." The lady behind the desk said.

Ash handed her his card.

"You're in group P. good luck!" She said handing him back his card.

He turned to where Brock was, who was busy scrolling through stuff on a computer. "What group are you in?"

"I'm in group E. my first match is in fifteen minutes," he said, looking up.

"Cool. Mine's in half an hour, so there should be plenty of time for me to see yours. Do you know who you're gonna use?"

"Yep. Based on what I've read, I'm fairly certain that she's gonna use what I think she'll use."

"Mind filling us in?" Dawn asked.

"Oh come on, where's the fun in that?" he asked, before running off.

"Ugh. I hate waiting." She replied. She then turned to Ash. "So, who are you facing?"

"Some guy called Styles Kaizu. Says here his starter is a Glaceon. Keeps to himself and it says his parents were killed by Team Rocket. Dang, I really feel bad for him."

"Yeah, I never knew Team Rocket got that violent." Replied Dawn. "What do you think he'll use?"

"I doubt he'd use Glaceon in his first match. Gyarados would be at a disadvantage because of the lack of water. Hmm. I think I've got it."

"Let me see." Dawn said.

"Here." He handed her his Pokenav, which was stopped on a particular Pokémon.

"I'd bet my lunch that he's gonna use this guy," he said.

"That's a pretty bold statement for you, but I think you're right. Come on, Brock's match is about to start."

Ash and Dawn had gotten there just as the referee was making the pre battle statements.

"This is a one on one match between Brock Harrison of Pewter City, and Laura Jennings of Vermilion City. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. The winner gets two points, a draw is one point apiece, and the loser gets none. The scoreboard will determine who will select their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes."

"Yep!"

They looked at the scoreboard, and saw that it landed on the green trainer, which was Brock.

"Would the green trainer please send out his Pokémon?"

"Crobat, come on out!"

A purple bat-like Pokémon appeared. He had two long, thin wings near the front of his body, and two slightly smaller, yet similar looking wings where his feet would have been. His face carried a never ending frown.

"Would the red trainer please send out her Pokémon?

"Accelgor, let's go!"

A gray Pokémon with a pink head emerged. She seemed to have cloth wrapped around her body, which ended in two streamers that flowed behind her body. Her head had a black star shape on it, and a menacing look on her face.

"Accelgor versus Crobat, begin!"

"Accelgor, let's start out with Agility!"

"Crobat, chase it with Pursuit!"

Accelgor started to move swiftly, getting faster by the second. However, Crobat was right on her tail by using Pursuit. He eventually caught up, striking Accelgor in the back.

"Use Quick Attack!"

"Stop it with Heat Wave!"

Accelgor shot towards Crobat, borderline invisible. Crobat started flapping his wings, causing the temperature of the air to rise drastically. Accelgor, being weak to fire type attacks, crashed into the ground, fainting on impact.

"Accelgor is unable to battle, Crobat is the winner! The match goes to Brock Harrison!"

"Great job Crobat, take a rest."

"You too, Accelgor." Laura looked up at Brock. "That was a great match!" She said, before walking away.

"Wow Brock! It looks like you still got it!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Yeah, well what do you expect from a former gym leader?"

"Nothing less." Ash replied. "Come on. My match starts in ten minutes."

Ash headed over to the other battlefield, with Dawn and Brock going into the stands.

"So Dawn, how'd you sleep last night?" Brock asked, smirking.

Dawn blushed. "It was fine. I guess I must've rolled over in my sleep or something. But when I apologized, guess what he said to me?"

"What?"

"He said it was nice. I don't think he knew what he was implying by that, but that's progress. Right?"

"You know, he may not be as dense as I originally thought. It'll just take a little push to get the ball rolling. Just remember what I told you last night, and you should be fine."

"Alright. Hey, his match is starting," Dawn said, turning towards the field.

"This will be a one on one match between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Styles Kaizu of Lavender Town. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. A win is two points, a tie is one each, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine randomly who chooses their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?

"You betcha!" Ash said excitedly.

Styles nodded in response. He was about average height, with an athletic build. He wore black van slip ons, white skinny jeans, and wore a black jacket with white cuffs. His mouth was covered with a bandana, and he wore his hood over his head, covering most of his shaggy silver hair. On his face was an x shaped scar on his left cheek.

They both looked at the scoreboard, and it landed on red, which was Styles.

"Would the red trainer please send out his Pokémon?

"Go, Rhyperior!" A bulky orange and grey Rock and Ground type appeared with a menacing look on his face.

"Just as I thought. Scrafty, let's go!" Ash shouted.

"Scrafty versus Rhyperior. Begin!"

"Scrafty, let's start out with a Zen Headbutt!"

"Rock Polish, then get out of the way!"

Scrafty charged towards Rhyperior, his head lowered and glowing blue. Rhyperior slammed his fists together, causing his body to glow white. He then easily sidestepped the attack with his newfound speed.

"Earth Power!"

"Scrafty, you gotta dodge that!"

Rhyperior slammed his fists into the ground, causing the ground to split and a yellow energy came out. Scrafty tried to dodge, but he was too slow, and took damage from the attack.

"We can come back from this!" Ash shouted. "Bulk up, followed by Drain Punch!"

"Keep it back with Rock Blast!"

Scrafty took a deep breath, tensing his muscles. He then charged towards Rhyperior, preparing to strike. Rhyperior held out one of his hands, and started shooting rocks at Scrafty. Many of them hit their mark, but Scrafty powered through the not very effective attack and slammed his glowing fist into Rhyperior, draining his energy. This seemed to allow Scrafty to gain a good portion of his energy back.

"Now use Crunch!"

"Protect, followed by Iron head!"

Scrafty then tried to crunch down on his opponent, but hit his head on a protective barrier. Rhyperior then slammed his head, gleaming like metal, into Scrafty's stomach, causing him to fly back.

"Scrafty, use Scary Face, followed by Payback!

Scrafty complied, making a scary face at Rhyperior, canceling out the earlier Rock Polish. He then started to glow with a black energy, which rushed towards Rhyperior, dealing double the normal damage.

Damn, this guy is good. Scrafty can't take much more of this. I can't risk high jump kick, because if it misses, Scrafty is cannon fodder.

"Use Low Kick!"

"Block him in with Rock Tomb! Follow up with Megahorn!"

Scrafty charged towards Rhyperior, preparing to deal a devastating blow, but was suddenly trapped inside of a wall of rocks. Unable to move, he could only helplessly watch as Rhyperior dealt the finishing blow with his glowing horn. Scrafty flew back, crashing in front of his trainer, out cold.

"Scrafty is unable to battle, Rhyperior wins and the match goes to Styles Kaizu!"

"Great job Scrafty, take a nice long rest." Ash said. He then looked up at Styles, who was congratulating his Pokémon, recalling him on the process. "That was a great match!" He exclaimed.

"Yeah, it was." Styles replied, before walking away.

"Wait a second," Ash said.

Styles stopped, turning around. "What?"

"I'm sorry about your parents. Even though it hasn't been to that extent, I've had my fair share of Team Rocket encounters. However, you can't expect everyone to act the way they do. I just want you to know that."

"I'll keep that in mind," Styles said blankly, before walking away.

"That was a great battle! Too bad you lost though," Dawn said.

"Don't worry, I still have three more matches today. I just need to win all of them and I'm in!" Ash replied enthusiastically.

"Who are you facing next?" Brock asked.

"Some kid named Al Price." Ash replied, typing the name into his Pokenav. "Ah. I know who I'm gonna use. My next match is in ten minutes."

"Sorry Ash, my next three matches are right after each other, so I won't be able to see yours." Brock said.

"Don't worry about it. I understand. I'll catch up with you later then." Ash replied.

"I think I'll stay and watch Ash," Dawn said.

"Alright then, I'll see you two later," Brock said before running off.

---

"This will be a one on one match between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Al price of Four Island. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. A win is two points, a tie is one each, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine randomly who chooses their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

Both trainers nodded. They both looked at the scoreboard, and it landed on red, who happened to be Al.

"Would the red trainer please send out his Pokémon?"

"Charizard, go!"

An orange dragon-like Pokémon appeared. She had a cream under belly, and large wings, the underside of which were blue. At the end of her tail was a never ending flame.

Would the blue trainer please send out his Pokémon?"

"Just as expected. Crawdaunt, I choose you!"

The Rogue Pokémon appeared, ready to battle.

"Charizard versus Crawdaunt, begin!"

"Let's start out with Air Slash!" Al shouted.

"Dodge with Dragon Dance!" Ash countered.

Charizard flapped her wings swiftly, sending three blades of air at Crawdaunt, who was dancing out of the way frantically surrounded by a red and black energy.

"Now Bubblebeam!"

"Pop those bubbles with Dragon Claw!"

Crawdaunt opened his claws, and fired a rapid beam of multi colored bubbles at Charizard, who did her best to fend them off, popping many of them with her glowing claws. However, many bubbles still hit their mark, causing massive damage.

"Get in there close with a Brick Break!" Al shouted.

"Counter with Crabhammer!"

Charizard flew over to Crawdaunt, her claws glowing white, and lashed out, only to be met with her opponent's own glowing claw. Unexpectedly, Crawdaunt then used his one free claw to strike Charizard square in the chest, sending her flying back.

"Charizard, Flamethrower!"

"Bubblebeam now!"

Charizard opened her jaw, and let loose a massive jet of flames. It was met in the middle of the field by a stream of bubbles, which caused a small explosion, dealing damage to both Pokémon.

"Finish with another Bubblebeam!" Ash shouted, sensing a victory.

That was all it took, Charizard was trying to recover from the previous attack, and was hit by the new one, which dealt massive damage, causing her to collapse in exhaustion.

"Charizard is unable to battle, Crawdaunt is the winner and the match goes to Ash Ketchum!"

"Great job Crawdaunt! Take a nice rest." Ash said, recalling his Pokémon.

"You too." Al said. He walked up to Ash and held out his hand. "Great match."

"Great match." Ash replied, shaking his hand.

The two walked their separate ways, with Ash meeting up with Dawn.

"Great job Ash! Only two more wins to go and you're in!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Yep! I hope Brock won his matches. I got another one in half an hour against a girl named Jessica Lawrence."

"What do you wanna do until then?"

"I just wanna relax. I've already figured out who I'm gonna use, and I'm pooped from two battles in one hour."

"Well, we can't go back to the room, because by the time we got there we'd have to leave again." Dawn stated.

"Nah, I'm just gonna go on the bleachers and lie down for a bit. You can keep me company if you want."

"Sure, seeing that I have nothing better to do."

"You could go watch Brock's matches." Ash suggested, finding a comfy spot and lying down.

"Nah, by the time I find him, they'll probably be over." Dawn replied, taking a seat next to Ash.

"Suit yourself. I'm gonna try and take a quick nap. Could you wake me up in twenty minutes please?" Ash asked, pulling the brim of his cap down.

"Alright," she sighed. I was hoping we could do something together, but I guess two battles in a row is a somewhat daunting task. She looked up into the sky.

I just wish I could talk to someone about all this. I mean Brock is great and all, but I'd just like to have some girl talk. Maybe in Driftveil, May and Max will be there. It would be great to see her again, and I'm sure she'd listen to what I have to say. That would definitely take a load off my chest. She continued sitting there, thinking up various scenarios of where Ash professed his undying love for her over and over. So much that she almost forgot to wake up Ash.

---

"This will be a one on one match between Jessica Lawrence of Saffron City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. A win is two points, a tie is one each, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine randomly who chooses their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes!" Jessica exclaimed.

"Ash nodded in response, feeling refreshed after his nap.

The scoreboard landed on green, who happened to be Ash.

"Please send out your Pokémon," the ref said, looking at Ash.

"You ready, bud? Time to get in there!" He said, looking at Pikachu.

"Pika!" Came the reply, his cheeks sparking in anticipation.

"Would the red trainer please send out her Pokémon."

"Jigglypuff, let's do this!"

A small, round, pink Pokémon appeared. She had a little tuft of fur on her forehead.

"Jigglypuff versus, Pikachu, begin!"

Wow. I would've expected her to at least go with an evolved Pokémon. I guess she underestimated the fact that Pikachu's just a Pikachu. No matter. As long as I can avoid Sing, this should be a fairly short battle. Ash thought to himself.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Wait for it, then use Doubleslap!"

Pikachu shot forward in a streak of light, slamming his body into Jigglypuff. She quickly recovered, and started to repeatedly smack Pikachu over and over.

Maybe I was the one to underestimate her.

"Pikachu, get away with Agility, then use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu dashed out of the way, then sent a massive bolt of electricity, dealing damage and paralyzing Jigglypuff.

"Finish with Volt Tackle!"

"Jigglypuff, you gotta move! Get out of the way!" Jessica shouted, panicking on the inside.

"Pikapikapikapikapika-PIKA!" Pikachu shouted. He started running towards the immobilized Pokémon, surrounding himself in an electric energy. He then slammed into Jigglypuff, knocking her out cold.

"Jigglypuff is unable to continue battling, Pikachu wins and Ash wins the match!"

"Great job buddy!" Ash said to his partner.

"Good job Jigglypuff," Jessica said, trying to hold back her tears. "Take a good rest." She whispered. She then walked away.

"That was a great battle Ash!" Dawn congratulated. "Even if it was against some lousy Jigglypuff."

"Oh come on," Ash defended. "Some trainers are just beginners. It's obvious that she doesn't have that many battles under her belt. She looked like she was ten. She probably just started out this year, and entered the tournament for fun."

"I guess you're right. When's your next match?"

"My next and last match for the day is in fifteen minutes. It looks like another beginner. Between him, Jessica, and Styles's talent, I think Styles and I be the two moving on in this group."

"Okay, do you know who you're gonna use?"

"Yep. I just need to make a quick call to Professor Oak's lab, then I can get my new team member."

"Who's it gonna be?"

"You'll see. Come on, I don't want to be late."

---

"This will be a one on one match between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Ben Lloyd of Lavender Town. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. A win is two points, a tie is one each, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine randomly who chooses their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

Both Trainers nodded.

The scoreboard landed on green, who was Ben.

The ref nodded over in Ben's direction, signaling him to call out his Pokémon.

"Venusaur, let's get ready to rumble!"

A massive green quadruped appeared. The most noticeable thing about him was a massive flower that covered his entire back.

"Would the red trainer please send out his Pokémon."

"Just as expected. Staraptor, let's go!"

A bird Pokémon emerged, immediately taking flight. His body was mainly gray, with a zig zag pattern on his chest. He had a gray crest with a red tip on the top of his head.

"Staraptor versus Venusaur, begin!"

"Staraptor, Aerial Ace!"

"Block it with Vine Whip, then use Sludge Bomb!"

Staraptor climbed, before diving straight at Venusaur, surrounded by white streaks of air. He then disappeared right before hitting Venusaur, appearing behind him, causing a good bit of damage. Venusaur retaliated by grabbing him with his vines, then spitting a glob of poisonous goo at the immobilized bird.

"Staraptor, break free with Close Combat!"

"You can take it Venusaur! Razor leaf!"

Staraptor immediately lashed out over and over, trying to get free of the vines. While doing this, Venusaur shot dozens of razor sharp leaves, causing small cuts to form on Staraptor's skin. He was finally able to break free, albeit coming off worse from the assault.

"Get some distance, then use Air Slash!"

Block it with your Vine Whip!"

Damn, this kid is better than I thought! Ash scolded himself mentally. Staraptor is getting tired, I just have to gain some distance and allow him to roost. Finding the opportunity is going to be a problem though.

Staraptor backed up, leaving a significant distance between the two, then sent several blades of air straight at his opponent. Venusaur tried to block them with his vines, but instead ended up hurting himself. The super effective attack caused massive damage, and Venusaur started panting heavily.

"Roost, and wait until I give the signal!"

"Prepare your most powerful leaf storm! Hit him when he's vulnerable!"

Staraptor landed, glad to be able to regain his energy, still alert. Meanwhile, Venusaur's flower started to glow, and a few seconds later he let loose thousands of leaves aimed at the defenseless flying type.

"Dodge with Fly, then go into Brave Bird!"

Staraptor reacted quicker than Ben had expected, and rapidly gained altitude. He then dove down, covering himself in blue flames, leveling out just before he hit the ground. He then slammed into Venusaur, causing a small explosion. When the smoke cleared, Venusaur was fainted in front of a heavily panting Staraptor.

"Venusaur is unable to battle, Staraptor wins and the match goes to Ash of Pallet Town!"

"Great job! You deserve a rest, use Roost, and let me know when you're good to go!" Ash instructed. He turned to Ben. "I underestimated you, great match!"

"Great match," he said, recalling his Venusaur.

"That was awesome!" Dawn exclaimed. "That last Brave Bird was incredible!" She said, turning to Staraptor. He smiled in response, looking less worn out by the second.

"Yep! I'm in the qualifiers!" Ash exclaimed, striking a pose, with Pikachu and Staraptor joining in. "I guess you're feeling better?" He asked his bird.

"Staraptor!"

"Alright, return! You deserve the rest."

"So what are you gonna do now?" Asked Dawn.

"Well, first I wanna find Brock and see how he did. Then I wanna relax for the rest of the day. Tomorrow I'm gonna train, since I get the day off."

"Sounds good. Let's go find Brock!" Dawn exclaimed.

"So I'm in, how did you do?" Ash asked Brock.

"I qualified. Swampert and Steelix really pulled their weight. They deserve to have the day off tomorrow." Brock replied.

"Speaking of which, what are you gonna do tomorrow?" Asked Dawn. "Typical Ash over here said he's gonna spend the day training."

"I don't know, I'll think of something." He replied.

"I know what I'm gonna do now!" Ash exclaimed.

"What?" The other two asked, taken aback by Ash's sudden outburst of enthusiasm.

"Eat lunch!"

Dawn rolled her eyes. "I guess we could eat. What do you say Brock, you up for a quick lunch?"

"Considering its almost five o'clock, wouldn't we be better off eating dinner?"

"Even better! After all that battling, I'm not gonna turn down a full-fledged meal!" Ash exclaimed.

"Come on guys, I know a place where participants and their guests eat for free." Brock replied.

"They might change that policy after Ash is done eating there." Dawn replied, a triumphant look on her face.

"Hey, that's not funny!"

At that, the trio headed off to eat.

---

So a lot of battles this chapter. At the time of writing, it seemed like a good idea. Looking back on it now, it wasn't. There won't be anymore chapters with fifty battles in it again.

Styles Kaizu belongs to Saiyan Styles on Fanfiction.

Next chapter goes back to Jake and May. It will probably be posted next week or so, I don't know.

 

[Sethern]

Well to start off. I think I'll go with good, then bad, and good again.

I can tell that your writing is getting better. Less and less mistakes. So that's good. I also thought your battles were interesting. I agree with your author note, how things can seem good at the time (I also speak from experience.) I still thought they were interesting, I wouldn't do as many, but interesting.

Now just for a few technical adjustments.

"This will be a one on one match between Jessica Lawrence of Saffron City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. Each trainer is allowed one Pokémon, and the match is over when either side's Pokémon is unable to battle. A win is two points, a tie is one each, and a loss is zero points. The scoreboard will determine randomly who chooses their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes!" Jennifer exclaimed.

In this you use two different names for the same person. Jennifer and Jessica. I assume it's supposed to be Jessica, mainly because that's what you use later on, but that might have just been a spell check/autocorrect thing.

Also I would close your bold in the authors note.

Just a few small things here and there, I pointed out some of the more major ones I noticed though.


Moor good news. I enjoyed your length for this chapter, and I find this is a fun story to read. Keep up the good work.


Bask in my humble glory. Sethern out.

 

[Clone™]

Fixed. Honestly, I think at the time of writing, my brain thought Jennifer because of Jennifer Lawrence (note to self, never make names that sound similar to celebrity names).
Thanks for pointing that out.

And like I mentioned before, there aren't any more chapters with this many battles.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Sethern]

I can't blame you, I mean, who doesn't think of Jennifer Lawrence from time to time.

And since sometimes I give out random challenges, here's one or you.
Have a character (who does a considerable ammount of things) not talk at all te next chapter you write. I think thinking I okay, just not talking. It doesn't have to be a main character, just someone. (I understand that you already have future chapters already out on fanfiction, but for an in progress one.
Feel free to do it or not, it's your choice.

 

[Clone™]

Chapter 11. It is back to Jake and May. Enjoy

After eating, the trio split up, with Jake and May going one way (of course Max questioned the two) and Max going another, so the two males could prepare for the match.

"So who are you gonna use?" May asked.

"I don't know. Blazer should be able to handle Max's counters to him, since he might expect me to use him, but then again, he might be prepared for that. I think I'll play it safe and go with Shadow, since he doesn't have any weaknesses when I play him right."

"Knowing my little brother, I wouldn't doubt that he's preparing for that." May replied.

"I don't doubt that either. Most people prepare for Shadow, since everybody I face knows I'll use him, but they still can't predict how I use him. It's all about strategy."

"There you go again, acting smart, just like you used to," May giggled.

"You don't seem to mind," Jake said, smiling back at her. "I don't mean to be rude by this, but who do you want to win?"

"Well, Max is my little brother, and no matter how annoying he is, I still love him. But you, on the other hand, are my soon-to-be-boyfriend. That doesn't make things easy." She said, poking Jake in the stomach playfully.

"So you'll remain indifferent then?" Jake asked, trying not to laugh.

"Nah. I think I'll root for you. You seem to be the lesser of two evils."

"Thanks, that really makes me feel better." Jake replied sarcastically. "Come on, the match is gonna start soon," he said, holding his hand out.

May took it. "Want me to hold Eevee for you? It would be nice to have some company up in the stands."

"Sure. Come on let's go!"

The couple walked off, heading to the battlefield.

---

“This will be a one on one battle between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town, and Max Maple of Petalburg City. Each trainer will use one Pokémon, and the match is over when one trainer's Pokémon is unable to battle. The winner gets two points, the loser none, and a draw is one each. The scoreboard will randomly determine who goes first. Are you both ready?"

The two trainers nodded.

They looked up, and saw that Max, the red trainer, had to send out his Pokémon first.

The ref nodded over to Max, signaling him to send out his Pokémon.

"Sceptile, I choose you!"

The Forest Pokémon appeared. He was green, had a tail that looked like the leaves of a palm tree, six yellow balls on his back, and two small blades on each of his wrists.

The ref then looked over at Jake.

"Please send out your Pokémon."

"Before I do that, I just want to say that no matter what happens, we should still remain friends. I had a feeling you would pick your starter, so I want to show you what I meant earlier. Shadow, engage!"

The Ninja Pokémon appeared striking a fighting stance.

Greninja versus Sceptile, begin!"

I would've thought that he'd go with Blazer. Then again, I did suspect that he'd go with Shadow, since he's so unpredictable. No matter, I just have to outspeed him. Sceptile is second to none when it comes to that.

"Sceptile, Quick Attack!"

"Flash Cannon!"

Sceptile immediately turned into a streak of light, and in a blink of an eye, he was upon Greninja. However, Greninja was prepared, and he fired a silver beam of energy at the oncoming attacker, his body gleaming the same color. The unexpected attack hit Sceptile, stopping him dead in his tracks.

"Brick Break!" Max yelled.

"Extrasensory!" Jake countered.

As Sceptile was about to slam his glowing fist into Greninja, he suddenly felt his body stretch, causing him to lose focus and scream out in pain. Greninja's body had turned pink, and his eyes glowed, using psychic powers to attack Sceptile.

Damn, he's always one step ahead of me. No wonder why he said you never know what to expect with Shadow. He's completely unpredictable! Wait. He always goes for the type resistant to the move I use. Maybe I can work around that and use that to my advantage. Another scream of pain snapped Max back into reality.

"Sceptile, get free and use Fury Cutter!"

"Mat Block, take your time, and strike back with Night Slash!"

Sceptile, with a tremendous amount of effort, finally broke free of Greninja's psychic grasp. He then started to rapidly slice at his opponent with his wrist blade glowing in a yellow energy. Greninja, turning maroon, pulled up a patch of grass, effectively blocking the attack. Waiting for the right moment, he turned black, swinging his tongue, glowing with a black energy, at his opponent, striking him when he least expected it, knocking him back a few feet.

"Ice Beam now!"

"Detect!"

Greninja's body turned ice cold, before opening his mouth and emitting a beam of ice at his opponent. Sceptile swiftly dodged it, thanks to Detect.

"Iron Tail!" Max said, a plan forming in his head.

"Water Shuriken!" Jake countered.

"Switch to Leaf Blade!"

Sceptile started by swinging his iron-hard tail at Greninja, who retaliated by sending dozens of blades of compressed water at him. Before Greninja could react, Sceptile switched to a Leaf Blade, slashing back the blades of water. He closed the distance, bringing down his glowing wrist blade on top of his opponent's head, catching both Jake and his Pokémon by surprise.

"I have to congratulate you Max." He said. "You're the first person to have figured out my strategy, and still be on your first Pokémon. However, just because you can play around the resistances doesn't mean you'll have an easy time winning."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Max said, gloating about his luck. Man, I'm the first? It can't be that hard to figure out what he's doing, can it?

While Max was still deep in thought, Jake ordered Shadow to use an Ice Beam. Sceptile, not hearing his trainer give him a command, took the attack head on, freezing one of his legs to the ground.

"Hey, no fair!" Max yelled, snapping back to reality.

"I told you, you have to be prepared for everything. You're not the first to have fallen for this trick."

"You mean others have actually figured a way around your strategy?"

"Yep. And when I tell them that they're the first, it gives them a false sense of overconfidence, which leads to them lowering their guard. Now, let's continue the battle, shall we?"

"Alright then, get yourself free with a Brick Break!" Max commanded, angered by Jake's trickery.

"Finish him off with another Ice Beam!"

Sceptile was busy freeing himself from the ice, so he didn't see the second Ice Beam hit him, causing him to fly back. Miraculously, he stood back up, glowing with a green energy, anger on his face.

"Alright, Overgrow is kicking in!" Max exclaimed. "Leaf Storm now!"

"Dodge and strike it with a Shadow Sneak!"

Sceptile let loose thousands of leaves, aimed straight at Greninja. However, he disappeared into the shadows, and reappeared behind him, striking Sceptile in the back. That proved to be the final straw, and Sceptile collapsed.

"Sceptile is unable to battle, Greninja is the winner and the match goes to Jake!"

"Shadow, you were excellent!" Jake congratulated. "I expected nothing less of you. Take a good rest now."

Max, on the other hand, wasn't taking the loss very well. "Good job Sceptile. Return." He turned towards Jake. "You *******. How could you trick me like that!?" He demanded.

Jake sighed. "I told you, you have to be prepared for everything. If you lose your focus in battle, then your Pokémon will sense this and lose focus too. Trainers do this all the time, try to get into your head. Shadow and his Protean ability is my way of doing it. Some people try and overwhelm with pure power, others with speed. Some like to taunt their opponents when they lose. Breaking down your opponent mentally is not only a great strategy, it's widely accepted nowadays. You just need to find your own way of doing it." Jake replied.

"That still wasn't very cool," Max said, calming down a little.

"You'll understand in due time."

The two walked off the field, tweeting up with May.

"That match was awesome!" May exclaimed, hugging Jake tightly.

Jake blushed at the gesture, hugging her back. "I thought we weren't going to tell Max," he whispered into her ear.

"Sorry! I couldn't help it. I'm just really happy for you, that's all."

Upon seeing this, Max smiled. "I knew it. May's got a boyfriend, May's got a boyfriend!" He taunted.

"I guess the cat's out of the bag!" She said innocently.

"Yeah, I guess. Max, since you seem to be in a better mood, when's your next match?" Jake asked.

"In fifteen minutes. I gotta go, see you lovebirds later!" He said, running off.

"You're right, he does seem to be in a better mood. On a side note, Eevee here was completely glued to the battle, have you ever considered using him to battle?"

"Yes, I have, and even though he enjoys watching them, I don't think he particularly likes the thought of battling for himself. I've told him that if he wants to give it a shot, he's always welcome. He has yet to take me up on that offer. Right bud?"

"Vui!" He cooed back, snuggling into Jake's neck after hopping off of May's shoulder.

"Another thing, why has he not evolved? I know he doesn't battle, but still, with the bond between you two, he surely should have evolved into an Espeon or Umbreon, right?"

"Normally, yes, but he's made it very clear to me that he wants to stay the way he is, and I have no problems with that. Besides, I don't think I'd be able to carry either of those two on my shoulders. To be sure, I keep an Everstone in my bag as a back-up."

"Doesn't that prevent your other Pokémon from evolving too?"

"No because an Everstone can only be used by one Pokémon at a time, and currently, Eevee is the only one who has touched it."

"I see. When's your next match?"

"I've got an hour to kill, what do you wanna do until then?"

"I don't know."

"On a side note, are you still up for that movie tonight? I mean, you don't have to sneak out, now that Max knows, so we could do something else if you want."

"Nah, I wanna see a movie with you. That way you can protect me from the scary scenes!" She said playfully.

"Alright then, since we have an hour to kill, why don't you tell me some stories of your travels?" Jake said, smiling.

"Alright then, what do you want to know?"

"Well, I heard that after splitting up with Ash, you went to Johto. How about some of your adventures there?"

"Uh, mind if you ask me about something else?" May asked, her cheery demeanor quickly changing into a more depressed one.

Crap, I forgot about him Jake mentally scolded himself. "Yeah, sorry. Where did you go after Johto?"

"Let's see, I was planning on going to Sinnoh afterwards, but after finding out that a certain someone was going there, I decided to go back to Hoenn and compete there a second time." She replied, her tone changing back to a more cheerful one.

"How did that go?"

"It went well, since I already had five ribbons, I only entered contests to keep my skills up. I placed second in the Grand festival the first re run, and then I won the next year. I didn't compete last year because I decided to go to the Orange Islands to just relax."

"Congrats on winning! How did the Orange Islands go?"

"They were Awesome!" May exclaimed. "The beaches were everywhere, which was always nice."

Note to self, if I get a day off, take May to the beach, she seems to like it Jake said mentally.

"And on top of that, there was an island with pink Pokémon!"

"Pink Pokémon? What the hell?"

"Yeah. Apparently, the berries they eat there are unlike any others found elsewhere. The pink juices, if eaten enough, turn the skin pink!"

"That's actually pretty cool!"

"Yeah. It's also quite amusing to see a normally menacing looking Rhydon completely pink! Can you imagine that?"

Jake thought for a second. "Nope, can't say I can. Sounds like it's a sight to behold!"

"It is, trust me."

"So tell me May, do you ever plan on going to Sinnoh?"

"Yeah. I was planning on going after the tournament, but now that I'm with you, I don't want to take away from your gym quest."

"Don't worry about that. I've been to all the regions, and I'd be happy to accompany you to Sinnoh. I never told you this, but since I won the Hoenn league, I can challenge the Elite Four. I can use the time off to train for it. Besides, it's my second favorite region after Hoenn. Like they always say, there's no place like Hoenn!"

"You're so punny!" She replied, looking deep into Jake's auburn eyes. "And challenging the Elite Four? That's gonna be the toughest set of battles yet!"

He returned her gaze, but quickly looked away.

"Sorry, but my match is gonna start in ten minutes. Can you believe we sat here talking for almost an hour? Time sure flies when you're having fun, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it sure does." May replied, slightly dejected. Man, I thought we were having a moment. Oh well, maybe tonight. At least we'll be alone.

Damn, I hated interrupting that moment, but if we were talking for any longer, I would've missed my battle! Maybe I can make it up to her later tonight, she seemed a little down at the interruption Jake thought to himself. Mind keeping Eevee company for me?" He asked.

"Yeah, sure." She replied. The next thing she did took Jake completely by surprise. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Good luck!"

"Thanks..." Jake said, a little stunned.

Eevee couldn't help but laugh at the situation, hopping onto May's shoulder.

"I guess he's not used to that, huh?" May said to Eevee.

"Vui," he agreed.

---

"This will be a one on one match between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town, and Jimmy Lee of Lilycove City. Each trainer will use one Pokémon, and the match will be over when either side's is unable to battle. A win is two points, a loss is none, and a tie is one apiece. The scoreboard will randomly decide who choose their Pokémon first. Are both trainers ready?"

Both nodded.

God, this gets boring. I've said the same thing twenty times today, and I still have ten more matches after this. Damn the Pokémon League and its formality rules the ref thought to himself.

The two trainers looked up at the scoreboard, and it landed on red, which was Jimmy.

The ref nodded in his direction.

"Haxorus, let's do this!"

A brownish yellow dragon type appeared. He had two massive foot claws, and a small head with two scythes on it.

So he went for pure power, with above average speed. He definitely won't match his speed, but he can take the hits like a champ!

Would the blue trainer please send out his Pokémon.

"Pharaoh, engage!"

Cofagrigus, a possessed golden sarcophagus, appeared, with four ghostly hands emerging, and an evil grin on his face. Despite all of this, off the battlefield, this particular Cofagrigus was really affectionate.

"Cofagrigus versus Haxorus, begin!" The ref shouted, a little overwhelmed at the two powerhouses.

"Let's start out with Dragon Claw!"

"Wait for it, then hit back with a Shadow Punch!"

Haxorus charged towards Cofagrigus, holding out a glowing claw. Cofagrigus just stood there, waiting to strike. Haxorus scored a clean hit, which was followed by a quick Shadow Punch to the face.

Why did he let me hit him? Jimmy asked himself mentally. His confident demeanor quickly changed when he was hit with realization. ****, Mummy ability. Rivalry won't work anymore, so Haxorus isn't as powerful as he would have been. No matter, I just have to beat him down to a pulp.

"Haxorus, use Earthquake!"

"Shadow Ball. Keep your distance!"

Haxorus happily complied, slamming his foot on the ground, causing a massive tremor to shake the arena. Cofagrigus barely seemed phased by the attack, and retaliated by sending a slow, but steady stream of Shadow Balls at Haxorus, each one making contact.

"Block those with a Dragon Tail!" Jimmy yelled. "Then go into a Dragon Dance!"

Perfect. He's now in a world of hurt! Jake mentally cheered.

"Pharaoh, wait for him to finish, then use Power Split!"

****! At least I'll keep the speed increase, but now I have to play it safe.

Haxorus's tail glowed, before sending the Shadow Balls flying wide. Once he finally felt a let up, he danced frantically, surrounded by a red and black energy. Cofagrigus retaliated by sending a pink energy at him, raising his attack while lowering Haxorus's in the process.

"Good job, now Shadow Punch!"

"Counter it with Thunderpunch!"

Cofagrigus sent two shadowy fists at Haxorus, instead of dodging, he retaliated by punching the fists with his own, which was cackling with electricity. This caused a small explosion, sending him flying back. Haxorus got back up, albeit with much difficulty.

"We can come back from this! Earthquake now!"

Time to pull out my trump card! "Trick Room! Followed by Shadow Ball!"

As Haxorus prepared to slam his foot Down on the ground, the battlefield was suddenly surrounded by a glowing grid. Before he could finish the attack, a Shadow Ball came seemingly out of nowhere, knocking him back.

"Use Dragon Claw!"

"Astonish!"

Cofagrigus seemingly teleported right in front Haxorus, smashing two of his ghostly hands on each side of his head, causing him to flinch.

"Now finish with Shadow Punch!" Jake commanded, sensing a victory.

"Retaliate with Outrage!" Jimmy yelled, although he knew that the match was over.

Cofagrigus slammed two fists into Haxorus before anyone could blink, knocking him out cold.

"Haxorus is unable to battle, Cofagrigus wins! The match goes to Jake!"
"Great job Pharaoh!" His Pokémon replied by giving him an affectionate hug. "Great match Jimmy, that Haxorus of yours was really strong."

"Thanks. That Cofagrigus of yours sure knows how to take a beating. I gotta go. See ya!" He replied, before running off.

Jake walked off the field to meet up with May.

"Wow, that battle was awesome!" May exclaimed.

"Thanks," Jake replied, finally breaking free of Pharaoh's death grip. "Good job bud, take a rest." He said, recalling the ghost type.

"Ugh, ghost types creep me out!"

"They're not all that bad, once you get to know them."

"Sorry, but the day I became a trainer, a Duskull scared the living crap out of me, and I ended up crashing into a tree. After that, I've never been able to take a liking to them."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"Don't be. Come on, one more battle, and you and I can have some alone time."

"Sounds good, I gotta be there in ten minutes." Jake said, holding out his hand.

"Who are you gonna use?" She replied, taking it. The two started walking, hand in hand.

"So long as it's not an Azumarill or Talonflame, I'm gonna go with Blazer."
"So basically, you're saying that you want it to be a quick battle?"

"No, not necessarily."

"Uh-huh. Suure."

---

"This will be a one on one battle between Jake Smith of Littleroot Town, and Barry Jenkins of Slateport City. Each trainer will use one Pokémon, and there is no time limit. A win is two points, a loss is none, and a draw is one each. The scoreboard will determine randomly who picks first. Are both trainers ready?"

Both nodded, looking up. It landed on blue, which was Jake. The ref nodded in his direction.

"Blazer, engage!"

Out came the shiny Blaze Pokémon, striking a battle ready stance.

"Bad choice," Barry said. "Swampert, let's go!" He shouted, after receiving the signal from the referee. Out came the Mud Fish Pokémon, staring down his fellow starter.

"Blaziken versus Swampert, begin!"

"Let's start out with an Earthquake!" Barry yelled.

"Jump and dodge! Then use Double Kick!"

Swampert slammed his fists into the ground, causing it to shake. Blazer easily avoided the attack by jumping to the air, using his powerful lower body strength. As he descended, he angled his body so that when he landed, he delivered two kicks to the top of Swampert's head.

"Rock Tomb! Swords Dance while he's trapped!" Jake commanded.

"Break free with Superpower! Then hit 'em with a Hydro Pump!" Barry retaliated.

Blazer stomped his foot on the ground, trapping Swampert with a wall of rocks. His wrists then flared up, glowing in a purple energy, and he began dancing frantically, keeping an eye on his opponent. Swampert, on the other hand, used his glowing fists to smash through the rocks trapping him. He then sent a massive stream of water at Blazer. Blazer was ready, and quickly sidestepped the attack. Swampert expected this, and readjusted his aim, scoring a clean hit. Blazer didn't seem too hurt by it, but instead he flared his wrists up in response, seeing a worthy opponent facing him.

"Don't worry about it, use Blaze Rush, followed by Sky Uppercut!"

"Swamp him with Muddy Water!"

Blazer covered his body in flames, then he sped towards his opponent like a bullet. After tackling him, he sent Swampert flying with a Sky Uppercut. The Mud Fish Pokémon retaliated by sending a stream of murky water at Blazer midair. He tried to roll out of the way, but it managed to hit one of his legs, causing him to grunt in pain.

Damn, it's been awhile since I've faced someone this good. Not since Kalos at least. I can tell Blazer is really getting into this.

"Close Combat!"

Wait, what? Blaziken can't even learn Close Combat! "Counter with Hammer Arm!"

Blazer started assaulting Swampert with a rapid series of punches and kicks. Swampert tried to hit back with a Hammer Arm, but he was too slow, and tripped over a Low Kick.

Swampert's about to get up soon, so I better finish this quick. Jake thought to himself.

"Swamp the whole field with Surf!" Barry yelled.

"High Jump Kick!"

Swampert summoned a massive wave, covering the entire field with water. Blazer jumped, not only dodging it, but also going into his deadly High Jump Kick. He hit Swampert square in the face, knocking him out.

"Swampert is unable to battle, Blaziken and Jake win the match!"

"Great job Blazer, take a rest," Jake congratulated, recalling his Pokémon. "That was a great match!"

"Yeah, I guess." Barry replied, before walking off.

Jake walked off the field, to be congratulated By May.

"Wow, that was great!" May exclaimed.

"Thanks. I could tell Blazer really got into it."

"Eevee!"

"Yep. I truly think he did have fun out there. It's been awhile since I've seen him battle someone like that."

"Hey, let's go find Max and see how he did."

"Sounds good." The two walked off, hand in hand.

---

"Wait, what?" Jake asked, making sure he heard Max correctly.

"I didn't qualify. That guy Jimmy beat my Slaking with his Metagross. I lost, so I can't move on." Max replied, tears in his eyes.

Oh no May said mentally. She then asked the inevitable. "What are you gonna do now?"

"I think I'll stay for the rest of the qualifiers, but I'm not gonna go to Driftveil. I think I'll go home after that."

"You gonna be alright by yourself?" May asked.

"Sis, I've been traveling on my own for three years. Just because Dad asked you to accompany me during the tournament, doesn't mean that I can't take care of myself," he replied, starting to regain his composure. He turned towards Jake. "Win this for me and my sister, okay?"

"I'll do my best!" Jake replied.

"I think I'll leave you two alone for the rest of the day." Max said dejectedly, before walking off.

Jake turned to May. "Man, I can't help but feel bad for him." He said.
"Yeah, but knowing him, he'll be over it in no time. Come on, let's get a quick bite to eat before the movie."

"Okay! What do you say Eevee, you wanna come with us?"

"Eevee!"

"Alright then, let's go."

---

The young couple had just walked into the theater, when someone got Jake's attention. He turned around to see a man in a suit.

"You need to put your Pokémon back in your Poke Ball."

"What?" Jake asked, making sure he heard the man correctly.

"I said that you need to put your Pokémon back in its Poke Ball."

"Eevee doesn't have a Poke Ball."

"How can your Pokémon not have a Poke Ball?"

"Technically speaking, Eevee is still wild. He decided to come along with me, and he sits on my shoulder wherever I go."

"Not in here, he doesn't."

"Can you show me the rules where it says no Pokémon allowed?" Jake asked, starting to get angry.

"Look right over there." The man replied, pointing to a sign. Sure enough, there was a sign that read, "All Pokémon must remain inside their Poke Balls at all times. No exceptions."

"Alright then, come on May, let's go." Jake said, lightly pulling her towards the exit.

"Coming." She said.

As the two walked out, Jake turned to May. "I'm sorry, but I don't go anywhere without Eevee. We can go find another theater if you want, surely there's more than one in a city as big as Slateport."

"Don't worry about it, I understand. As for the movie, I don't really care. As long as we're together, I don't mind what we do." She replied. That was a letdown. I was really looking forward to seeing that with him. Oh well, I'm sure we can find something else to do she thought.

Oh man, now what am I gonna do? I honestly have no idea what I'm supposed to do in this situation. He thought for a moment, a cheesy plan coming to mind. He hesitated for a moment more. Ahh, screw it. It may be cheesy, but it's all I got.

"Hey, I just thought of something! Come on!" Jake said, dragging May with him.

"Alright, alright I'm coming! Calm down will ya?" She replied. I wonder what he's up to she thought.

They were walking for about ten minutes, until Jake finally stopped. They were on a beach, with a view of the setting sun. "Since we can't see the movie, I guess we could just sit here and watch the sunset instead?" He said, a little hesitation in his voice. Jeez, this is so cliché. I hope she doesn't just burst out laughing at this he thought to himself.

"Sure, I'd love to!" She sat down, beckoning him to do the same. Eevee decided to give them some space, so he walked a few feet away and curled up for a quick nap.

Well, this is romantic, no matter how many times this has been done. I guess I can let it slide this time she thought to herself.

Jake sat down right next to her, putting his arm around her shoulders. "I know that this has been done thousands of times before, but this is all that I could think of." Jake said, still a little hesitant.

"Don't worry, no matter how many times this has been done before, I haven't done this with anyone else before. Besides, I've always found the sunset to be beautiful." She replied, resting her head on his shoulders.

"Not as beautiful as you." He replied. Man that was so cheesy! I really need to work on what I'm gonna say during moments like these.
May looked up at Jake and smiled. "Awww. That's sweet of you to say!"

"That's a relief." Jake muttered under his breath.

The two said no more, watching the sun set behind the horizon.

When it finally disappeared, only leaving a faint orange glow behind, May spoke up. Here's that moment I missed out on earlier. I'm glad I waited, this seems like the perfect place!

"So, do you wanna make things official?"

"I thought we were already official. What do you have planned?"

"This." She leaned in, turning Jake's head towards hers, meeting her lips with his. Jake was taken aback for a second, but quickly followed suit.
Their first kiss was a bit awkward, as it was both their first time at doing so. The two held it for about a minute, before finally breaking away. Afterwards, both felt their faces heat up and their stomachs tingle.

Over on the side, a certain brown Pokémon was watching from the side, smirking at what he saw.

Jake broke the silence first. "Wow. I don't think I've ever felt this way before." He said, still blushing. "Not that I don't like it, it feels...good."

"Wow. You're really bad at this." May giggled. "Don't worry though, it's a learning curve for the both of us." She said, leaning back into his shoulder.

"What? I didn't think it was that bad. A little awkward yes, but not bad." Jake replied, a little disappointed.

"Relax, I was talking about what you were saying. As for the kiss, it wasn't bad, but I think we could work on it," she replied, snuggling into his shoulder.

Wow. I know I already said this aloud, but that felt...amazing! Awkwardness aside, I don't think that was a bad first kiss. Jake thought to himself.

That was great! I don't think this night could get any better! For a first kiss, that wasn't bad at all! May said mentally.

"So I guess it's official now?" Jake asked redundantly.

"Yeah."

The two sat there, unmoving for a long time.

Jake started to doze off, when he noticed May was asleep. Knowing that they couldn't stay outside, he nudged her awake.

"Come on May, you fell asleep, and we need to get back to our rooms."

"Huh? Oh yeah, right." She said groggily.

"Come on," he said, helping her up. "Eevee, let's go!"

Eevee, upon hearing his name, perked up. Seeing his friend telling him it was time to go, he quickly hopped on his shoulder.

The three walked back to the hotel, barely awake.

---

"Alright, see you tomorrow!" Jake said, before heading off into his room.

"Good night!" May called back, unlocking her door and going inside.

Jake did the same, and practically collapsed on his bed, taking just enough time to take off his hat and shoes.

"What a day!" He said to no one in particular. I qualify for the prelims, and I get a girlfriend! More importantly, my first kiss, too!"

"Eevee?" The Evolution Pokémon asked.

"It was awesome. I can't really describe the feeling, but it felt great. Anyways, I'm sleeping in tomorrow, since I have the day off. Don't. Wake. Me. Up. Period dot. Good night!" He finished, quickly falling asleep.

So that was chapter 11. Now that I look back on it, the Swampert-Blazer battle was way too one sided. Surviving two super effective attacks? Sorry about that. I don't think I portay him as OP in later chapters. Also, the shipping scene. Sorry if it was cliché. I wrote this over two months ago, and that’s how I wrote back then.

Don’t forget that I have a link to my this fic on Fanfiction in my sig. Chapter 30 is up, and my later chapters are better than the ones I have up now. Like I mentioned before, this fic was nominated for best Multishipping fic, so if you want to vote for it, I’d really appreciate it.

See you next time.

 

[Sethern]

Since I've typed similar reviews before, I'll do something different, parts of the chapter I liked and didn't like.

One thing I liked, is how even though you did something cliche, you basically said what you were thinking. It's cliche but it's all you got.
I didn't mind Blazer's OPness, if it's the best Pokemon of a league champion, it's expected to be awesome. I think I've done my fair share of OP Pokemon.

What I didn't like is how it doesn't seem like some Pokemon can think for themselves. What I mean is Max's Sceptile was being attacked, and he jus took it because there wasn't an order not to get hurt. If I were a Pokemon, I would try to stay safe, unless my trainer specifically told me to soak up the attack I would try to dodge.
Say in real life you're a boxer. You have someone telling you exactly what to do. Would you still dodge te punches?

Okay that's my main gripe. Other than that, good fun chapter.

I was going to say something about you advertising for best multi shipper but I decided against it.
Also just because people aren't reviewing doesn't mean they aren't reading. I just find people here don't review like on some of the older fics. Just take a look at how many views it says you have.

 

[Clone™]

Chapter 12

Valentines update. Fitting, isnt it?

Here's Chapter 12. Enjoy

Jake woke up feeling refreshed for the first time in a few days. He got up, said good morning to Eevee, and was about to leave to eat breakfast. When he got to the door, he noticed a slip of paper on the floor, picking it up and reading it.

Hey Jake. I went out for a little bit. I'll be back at around eleven. Max said that he was going to go spend the day at the museum, so that'll give us some free time. I wrote my Pokenav number at the end of this note just in case you wanted to call me.
See ya soon!
May

Jake looked at the clock, which read 10:15.

Alright, I have about 45 minutes to spare until May gets back. That should give me plenty of time to get ready for the day. Eating, showering, the normal routine.

"Hey Eevee, you up for a day at the beach? I was planning on taking May there for the day since the tournament doesn't pick back up until tomorrow."

"Eevee!" He replied, nodding his head in excitement.

"Good."

At that, he went down for a quick breakfast, then came back up to shower, changing into a pair of blue swim trunks with a large Poke Ball on the right leg. He threw on a white tank top, and fixed his hat on his head, wearing it backwards as usual. He made sure to bring a few towels and various supplies, and put his Poke Balls in his bag. He looked up at the clock, which read 10:55. After having Eevee climb on his shoulder, he headed out the door, bumping into May.

"Hey," Jake said. "I was just gonna see if you came back."

May eyed him over. "Here I am! I'm assuming you want to take me to the beach?"

"Yeah, based on what you said yesterday, it sounded like you really enjoyed going."

"I love the beach! Just give me about fifteen minutes to change, and we can go!" She exclaimed, running into her room.

Fifteen minutes later, she came back out. She was wearing a red bikini bottom, with her hip pack around her waist. She also had a white t-shirt on, covering her top. She was wearing her signature green bandana on her head, with two locks of hair floating downwards over her ears.

"All ready to go?" Jake asked.

"Yep! I decided to bring my Pokemon with me. It's been awhile since they've all been to the beach." She replied.

"Same here. Come on, I know a great spot that's usually not that crowded." He said, holding out his hand.

"You're the boss!" She replied coyly, taking his hand.

Wow. This definitely feels different than when we're wearing gloves. Skin on skin contact feels much...warmer. Jake thought to himself, leading May to the beach.

---

"Wow!" May exclaimed. "You were right! This is a good spot. There's no one here!"

"I told you." Jake replied, setting down his bag and taking off his shirt, revealing a body that had some muscle tone. Upon seeing this, May blushed slightly. Eevee hopped off to find a comfortable spot on the sand.

"How did you find a place like this?" May asked, also taking off her shirt. She was wearing a matching red bikini top that showed a little cleavage to go with the bottom.

Jake took notice, blushing. Damn, she looks good he thought to himself.

"Well, I had just beaten Brawny, so I decided that the best place to go next would be Mauville, so I had to make a stop here in Slateport. I missed the ferry, but a nice fisherman said that he was going to Slateport anyways, so he dropped me off at a dock about a quarter of a mile from here, so I walked along the beach and came across this spot, which is on the way to the city."

Jake recalled. He started to put on sunscreen, using the spray on type. "Could you get my back for me please?" He asked.

"Sure, if you get mine!" May replied, spraying Jake's back.

He returned the favor, and pulled out his Pokeballs. "Hey everybody, I thought we could use a day off! Come on out!"

Out came Grace, Blazer, Riptide, Talon, Pharaoh, and Shadow. He caught the balls, putting them back in his bag. "Don't go too far, but other than that, relax and have fun. You guys earned it."

Immediately, Pharaoh enveloped Jake in a ghostly hug.

"Alright, have fun guys!" He said, breaking free of the death grip.

"Haha. Alright everyone, you come on out too!" May laughed, releasing her Pokemon.
Out came Blaziken, Beautifly, Glaceon, Venusaur, Blastoise, and Ampharos.

"Guys, meet Jake, my boyfriend. Have fun, and don't go too far!"

Blaziken, having already met Jake, went to go talk with Blazer. Glaceon came up to Jake and rubbed against his legs, as a way of saying hello. Eevee, upon seeing one of his evolved forms, was quick to make his presence known, striking up a conversation with her. Beautifly landed on Jake's head, her signature way of saying hello, while Blastoise and Venusaur merely greeted him briefly, before walking off. Ampharos was last, a little hesitant to meet the boy, a look of distrust on her face.

"What's wrong with Ampharos?" Jake asked, a little overwhelmed by the attention, yet still concerned about the glare he was receiving from Ampharos.

"Honestly, I think it might have to do with Drew. Don't ask what happened, but let's just say that she doesn't trust boys who get close to me because of it." May replied, her voice a little down. "But don't worry, she'll warm up to you eventually. Just give her time and show her that you're not a bad person."

"I'll keep that in mind." He said. He then looked Ampharos straight in the eyes. "I don't know what happened between those two, but I can assure you that it won't happen with me."

"Anyways," May said, breaking the tension. "Everyone seems to be getting along."

She was right. Eevee and Glaceon were chatting up a storm. Beautifly flew off of Jake's head and took to the sky with Talon. Venusaur was talkimg with Grace. Blastoise, Shadow, and Riptide took to the water, seemingly to play a game of some sorts. Blazer was talking to his female companion, with Blaziken listening intently. Pharaoh was breaking the ice with Ampharos, who was still keeping an eye on Jake, yet still enjoying the company of the ghost Pokemon.

"So, what do ya wanna do?" May asked.

"I guess we could go swimming." He replied. Now that we're here, I honestly don't know what to do. I really should have thought this through.

"Lighten up. You don't have to act so nervous around me. Just be yourself. Like the old times," May smiled, trying to ease Jake out of his uncertainty. "That's not a bad idea." May took off her bandana, letting the rest of her hair flow down to her shoulders, combing out the wrinkles with her fingers.

She's right, I shouldn't be acting so nervous, after all, she is my girlfriend. Jake thought to himself. "Sorry. I've never been good with girls." He admitted.

"Well you didn't seem to have a problem talking to me beforehand." She replied.

"I know, but we were best friends before. Even if it was six years since we last spoke. I guess I just need to get used to calling you my girlfriend, that's all." Jake said.

"Don't worry, we're here to have fun! Come on, let's get in the water!" She exclaimed, pulling Jake by the hand towards the water.

--- (Pokespeak)

Off in the water, three water Pokemon were watching the whole fiasco.

"Wow," Blastoise said, looking at both Shadow and Riptide. "Your trainer seriously needs to work on his female interaction skills."

"I know. He's a great trainer, an even better friend, but when it comes to girls, it's almost like he freezes up." Shadow replied.

"Give him a break, it's his first girlfriend, and it's a whole new experience for him. He just needs a little help, that's all." Said Riptide.

"Yeah, and what do you want us to do about it?" asked Shadow.

"They are coming in the water to swim, so we could help your trainer out a little, after all, he seems like a nice guy, definitely better than the ******* who was with May beforehand," Blastoise said.

"What happened between those two?" Riptide asked.

"Sorry, but my lips are sealed. If May doesn't want to tell Jake yet, then I'm not gonna tell you. Back on track, I think I know how to get those two a little closer, so listen up."

"What do you have in mind?" Shadow asked.

"This." Blastoise said, revealing his plan.

--- (End Pokespeak)

Back on the beach, Jake was being dragged by May towards the water. "Hey, slow down! You're about to pull my arm off!" He yelled.

"Calm down you big baby! It was you're idea anyways!" She replied cheerfully.

They finally reached a nice spot, wading in until they were treading water.

"So now what?" Jake asked.

"I don't know," May replied, with a mischievous grin on her face.

"Uh-oh, I don't think I like where this is going." Jake said, a sweat drop forming on his face.

Before either of them could react, Jake was suddenly pulled under the water without warning.

May started to panic. One moment she was talking with her boyfriend, the next he was pulled under water. "Jake! Jake!" She yelled, trying to spot him. She tried to dunk her head under the water to see, but was held back by an unseen something. Or someone. She tried to break free, but to no avail. She tried turning her head, but it too was held in place.

"Help! Help!" She yelled, trying to get someone's attention. But since there wasn't anyone around, thanks to the secluded area that Jake had picked, no one heard her cries for help. However, the Pokemon on the beach recognized who was holding May back, so they didn't do anything.

Underwater, Jake was able to open his eyes, filled with fear, but he relaxed when he saw Shadow gripping him with his tongue.

Wow. I never knew he was this playful before. Still, its a bit unnerving knowing that you're being help by a tongue. I wonder what he's up to he thought to himself. He then saw Riptide, who looked like he was giving a thumbs up.

Uh-oh, what do they have planned for me this time? he asked himself. He was starting to run out of breath, and motioned upwards to let his Pokemon know that he needed to breathe. They acknowledged him, slowly bringing him back to the surface.

May was beginning to cry. Why did this happen? We weren't bothering anyone. It was just supposed to be a fun day with my boyfriend, and he gets pulled under, and someone has me pinned down so I can't move. she was full on crying now, tears streaming down her face. Behind her, a certain blue turtle was grinning, knowing what her reaction would change to in a few seconds. He gave the signal by wiggling his left foot underwater.

Suddenly, Jake resurfaced, gasping for breath. May saw this, and immediately felt the grip on her loosen. She didn't care, all she did was wade in the now chest high water over to her boyfriend, quickly smothering him with a tight hug.

"Oh my Arceus, I thought I lost you!" She said, burying her face into Jake's neck, still sniveling.

"Don't worry, I'm fine!" He reassured her, looking past her at the three water types, giving them a look as to say, "I'll talk to you about this later."

Silently, though, he was thanking them for what they did. He had caught on to their little ploy after Riptide had given him the thumbs up, knowing that they were only trying to help. Thanks guys, I owe you one he said mentally, before hugging May just as tightly as she was him.

"What happened?" May was finally able to blurt out, after a good ten minutes of trying to calm down. "While you were underwater, I was pinned back and I couldn't move! And how did we get this close back to shore?"

"I don't know May" Jake lied, not wanting her to know what really had happened. "I guess I must have caught a rip current or something. As for you not being able to move, I have no clue, but I can assure you that if something bad had happened, Riptide, Shadow, and Blastoise would have been here in an instant," he reassured her, still holding on to her tightly.

"I guess you're right. Still, I wish I knew what was holding me back," she said, looking deep into Jake's auburn eyes. Immediately she felt her chest heat up.

Jake returned her gaze feeling his chest heat up as well, before taking the initiative and leaning in. May followed suit, and soon they shared their second kiss, a little less awkward than the first one.

--- (Pokespeak)

Off to the side, the three water types were watching the two teens interact.

"I told you it would work" Blastoise said.

"Damn, I didn't think he had it in him," Shadow said, surprised at Jake's initiative.

"I told you, he just needs a little help, that's all." Riptide said.

--- (End Pokespeak)

After about a minute, the two broke off.

"I promise, I won't let anything happen to you." Jake said, still holding May in his arms.

May was a little stunned. Wow. He really does care about me. As for him making the first move, I could get used to this. Oh well, I feel much better now. "Aren't you a smooth one?" She said flirtatiously. "Come on, it should be lunch time just about now, and I brought food." She said, still in Jake's arms.

"You got me at food," he grinned. The two waded ashore, with Jake's arm around May's waist, and vice versa. She led him over to where her fanny pack was, and pulled out two sandwiches.

"I made these myself, I hope you like it." She said a little nervously.

"Don't worry, I love sandwiches. On a side note, I brought some Pokemon food, so I can fill everyone's food bowls and we'll be good to go." He replied.

Soon, everyone was eating, with Jake and May chatting.

Everyone was enjoying the meal, talking amongst themselves while eating. Ampharos seemed to have warmed up to Jake, as she wasn't giving him a death glare every time she looked at him.

Blazer was the first to finish, with May's Blaziken close behind. They started to have a sparring match, and soon there was a small crowd watching.

Jake smiled. "It seems like those two hit it off well, huh?"

"Yeah, it looks like those two are having fun!" May replied.

"Hey Blazer!" Jake called, drawing his starter's attention. "Don't wear yourself out, I need you for tomorrow's double battle!"

Blazer nodded, continuing his sparring match with Blaziken.

Soon, Jake and May had finished their sandwiches, and they were laying back on their towels.

"What do you wanna do now?" May asked.

"Well, we could go swimming again." Jake suggested.

"I don't know, I don't think I could deal with having that whole ordeal happen again."

"Don't worry," Jake reassured her. "I can guarantee you that it won't. But if you don't want to, then I guess we could do something else."

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"How about a game of beach volley ball?" Jake suggested. "I have one in my bag, I just need to get it out. I know there's no net, but we could figure something out. We could get the Pokemon to join in if they want."

"Sounds good!" May exclaimed. "Who's up for a game of beach ball?" She shouted.

Shadow, Riptide, Ampharos, Blastoise, Glaceon and Eevee all walked up, wanting to take part in the game. The others were still watching the two fire types spar with each other.

Ten minutes later, Jake had the volley ball ready, and was busy getting everyone organized.

"Please try not to pop it," he said. "It's resistant to Pokemon attacks, but it can only take so much. Other than that, have fun!"

The Pokemon nodded in agreement, and Jake stepped over to his side.

Jake, Shadow, Riptide, and Eevee were on one side, and May, Ampharos, Blastoise, and Glaceon were on the other.

"Don't think that just because you're my girlfriend that I'll go easy on you!" Jake taunted.

"I wouldn't dream of it!" May replied, a determined look on her face.

Jake served the ball, hitting it high into the air. Before it could hit the ground, Glaceon slapped it with her tail, to be returned by Shadow's tongue. Blastoise hit it up with his head, and May sent it over to the other side. Eevee dove for it, barely keeping it off the ground. The ball flew up, to be punched over to the other side by Riptide. Ampharos hit it back with her tail, and Jake dove for it, barely missing.

"Great job!" May exclaimed, giving Ampharos a hi five.

"Your serve," Jake stated, tossing the ball over to May.

She caught it, and quickly hit it into the air. Shadow was the first to get to it, sending it shooting across the makeshift field. Blastoise was able to stop it with his bulky body, allowing Glaceon to make a clean return. Eevee was able to headbutt it into the air, allowing Jake to spike it over to the other side. Ampharos dove for it, but narrowly missed, giving Jake's team the point. The group of eight continued playing like this, exchanging points, with no team gaining an advantage. The two fire type starters stopped their sparring match, interested in the intense game. Soon everyone was watching, their heads moving back and forth following the ball. This went on for a good two hours, before they decided to call it quits. Both sides were panting heavily, tired from the intense game they had played.

"What do you think guys, who won?" Jake asked.

Grace spoke up, pointing over at May's team.

"Yay!" May exclaimed, happy about her team's victory.

"Damn, I'm sorry guys, I really thought we had that." Jake sulked.

"Ahh, don't worry about it, we had fun, that's all that matters, right?" winked May, walking over to him.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Lighten up! It doesn't matter who won, I just enjoyed playing with you!" She gave him a playful slap on the back.

"Yeah, you're right. Man, I'm hot. I think I could go for a swim, you wanna come?" Jake asked, his demeanor changing to a more cheerful one.

May hesitated, before giving in. "Sure. I could use some cooling off."

"Don't worry, Shadow and Riotide will be right there with us, right guys?" He said, looking over at his two water types. They nodded in response.

"Well, I guess with them there, nothing bad will happen. Blastoise, you coming?"

The blue turtle nodded, heading into the water.

"Come on," Jake reassured her, holding out his hand. May took it, and they waded off into the water, the three water types trailing behind them. They went in about chest level, before May's nervous mood changed into a more playful one. She started splashing Jake, laughing in the process.

"No fair! I wasn't ready!" Jake shouted, splashing her back. The two continued their splash fight, both laughing at each other. Suddenly, Jake and May were both lifted off their feet by Riptide and Blastoise respectively.

"Hey! What gives!" May shouted, intrigued by her Pokemon's sudden move.

"Yeah what's this all about?" Jake asked, also wondering what the two water types were up to. Suddenly, realization hit him. Uh-oh, this must be another one of their attempts to get me and May closer, I wonder what they have planned this time? he thought to himself.

"Wait a minute, where's Shadow?" May asked.

"I don't know, but wherever he is, I'm sure it has something to do with their little plan." Jake replied.

"I'm not sure I like where this is going." May said. She then noticed that the two water types were right next to each other. Riptide then flipped Jake off of his back, causing him to land on Blastoise. He then said something in his native tongue.

"What did he say?" May asked, helping Jake up onto Blastoise's shell.

"He said that you should hold on to me, while I hold on to Blastoise." Jake replied, getting a good grip on the shell.

"Why?"

"I don't know, but I think it might be a good idea. "These two seem to have a plan in mind."

"Alright," May conceded, wrapping her arms around his waist, confused as to what was going on.

Suddenly, they saw what looked like a slide made of ice up ahead. Upon closer inspection, Shadow was using his Ice Beam to make the final touches.

"I see." May said. "These three are planning on sending us down that slide."

"Yeah. I gotta admit, it looks kind of fun!"

"Indeed it does!" May gripped Jake tighter in anticipation, causing Jake to blush.

Man, what is up with those three today. I guess they're just really happy to see me with a girl, I guess. As for this, I definitely like the feeling I get when I'm this close to May.

May felt the warmth of Jake's body pressed up on her skin, causing her to blush as well. These three must really like seeing Jake and I together. I've never known Pokemon that go out of their way to make sure that their trainer is having the best time possible. Jake must really have a deep bond with them if they're going to these lengths, so I better enjoy the moment!

Blastoise had reached the now-completed ice slide, and suddenly leaped out of the water. He then slid down. On his back, Jake and May were completely enjoying themselves.

"That was fun!" May exclaimed after they had landed back in the water.

"Yeah it was! Let's go again!" Jake replied. Upon hearing this, the three water types smiled, knowing that their plan had worked once again. Blastoise took them down the slide a few more times, each time May gripping Jake tighter than the last, before finally heading back to shore. They finally reached it, when they noticed the sun was sitting fairly low in the sky.

"It's getting pretty late, I think we should get going. I wanna eat dinner, and I didn't bring any with me." Jake said, walking to get his towel.

"Yeah, you're right." May replied, drying herself off with her towel.

The two quickly got dried off and redressed before they started packing up.

"Alright everyone, I hope you enjoyed your day off. Tomorrow we gotta big day, as we got two double battles tomorrow." He then turned to Grace. "I'm sure you're happy to hear that I'm gonna be using you and Blade in the first round, right?" He asked with a sly smile.

Upon hearing the name, Grace's ears perked up.

"Thought so."

"Who's Blade?" May asked.

"My Gallade, and Gace's mate. Their teamwork is exceptional when I use them in double battles, since they share such a close bond." Jake replied.

"Cool!" May said, pulling out her Pokeballs. "Alright, I hope you all had fun, but it's time to go! Return!" She then began recalling her Pokemon, who were finishing up their temporary goodbyes. Ampharos was the last go be called back, and Jake could've sworn that he saw her give him a quick smile.

Jake then pulled out his Pokeballs. "Alright, return guys! I need you all to rest up for tomorrow!" He recalled his Pokemon, placing the Pokeballs in his bag. He lowered his hand, allowing Eevee to climb on his shoulder.

"Did you have fun?" He asked.

"Eevee! Eev. Eevee!" He exclaimed.

"Glad to hear it."

Jake walked off back to the city, holding hands with May, a content smile on his face.
When they reached the hotel, Jake spoke up. "You wanna head out for dinner?"

"Yeah, sure. I gotta shower and get ready first, I'll knock on your door when I'm ready to go, kay?" She replied.

"Sounds good! Don't take too long."

May rolled her eyes. "Never rush a girl when she's getting ready." She said intensly.

"Okay," Jake cowered back, intimidated by the sudden change of tone.

The two walked back into their respective rooms to get ready for the evening.

"Man, today was fun, and it's not even over yet! I still have the whole night left!" Jake exclaimed, walking into the bathroom. Then he stopped, remembering one of the day's events. He pulled out two Pokeballs, and enlarged them. He called out two Pokemon. In front of him, the Mud Fish and Ninja Pokemon appeared.

"So, mind telling me what you were doing earlier today? I know you had good intentions, but you scared the **** out of May!" Jake scolded. His two water types looked down in shame.
"Hey, I know you were trying to help, but maybe you should stick to doing things like the slide. You know, not trying to scare my girlfriend to death?"

The two Pokemon nodded, knowing they messed up.

"Now, whose idea was it?" Jake asked.

Both Pokemon shook their heads, and spoke in their native tongue trying to tell him it was Blastoise who came up with the idea.

"Wait, so you're saying that one of May's Pokemon came up with the idea? Blastoise is the culprit?"

The two Pokemon nodded.

"Next time you see him, tell him to not scare the **** out of May, okay? Look, I'm not mad at you, but please don't do anything like that again. Okay?"

They nodded once more, before being recalled back into their Pokeballs.

Jake then proceeded to shower, putting on a pair of khaki shorts and a blue polo shirt, dressing up slightly nicer than usual for the occasion. He wore his signature hat backwards on his head.

"And now, we wait." Jake said, petting Eevee.

He continued sitting there for about five minutes, before suddenly realizing something.

"Crap! I forgot to call Mom yesterday!"

At that, he grabbed his Pokenav and dialed a number.

"Hello?" A woman said.

"Hey mom," Jake replied.

"Oh hi son, how are you? Did you make it to the next round?"

"Yeah, I qualified yesterday, so I had the day off today."

"What did you do?"

"I went to the beach."

"All by yourself? Come on Jake, when are you gonna meet someone? You're sixteen! You should be—" Jake's mom ranted on.

"MOM!" Jake shouted, cutting her off. "You didn't let me finish. And to answer your first question, no. I went with someone."

"Oh, who?"

"M-my girlfriend." Jake stuttered.

"Oh! Who is she? Is she cute? What's her name?" His mom asked excitedly.

"Yes she's cute. Do you remember May Maple, from when we were kids?"

"Oh, yes. I remember her. You two were close. So you finally got the balls to ask a girl out I see."

"Yeah." Jake said blankly.

"You two aren't doing anything you shouldn't be, are you?"

"No! Mom. We're not. Jeez."

"Just making sure. What are you doing now?" His mom asked.

"Well I called you while I was waiting for her to get ready. We're going out to dinner."

"Ah, so my son is finally learning the kinks of the dating world."

Jake heard a knock on the door.

"Mom, she's here. I gotta go. I'll call you later. Love ya! Bye!"

"Love you too, son. Take care!"

His mom hung up, smiling at herself. "About damn time!" She said.

---

Jake walked up and opened the door. When he opened it, he saw May wearing her black biker shorts, her red and orange shoes, and a sleeveless orange skirt. She was wearing her all too familiar bandana on her head, and her hip pack on her waist.

"Ready to go?" She asked.

"Yeah, I just need to get my bag, then I'll be good to go." He replied.

Jake swung his backpack on his shoulders, letting Eevee hop on. He then proceeded out the door to where May was waiting, holding hands and walking to find a place to eat.

---

They arrived at a restaurant, not too fancy, but not too shabby either. They were shown to a table, and the waitress took their orders.

"So," May started. "Can you tell me the story of your first capture?"

"Yeah, if you tell me yours." Jake replied.

"It was about two days after I left home to start on my journey, and I was headed to Petalburg City, to say good bye to you, before continuing on.

--- (Flashback)

"Hey Blazer, you wanna meet my friend May?"

"Torchic!" The shiny Torchic replied.

"Alright then. Petalburg City is right past route 102. Then we can go to the Gym!"

The young trainer was walking along the path, with a shiny Torchic sitting on his shoulder. As they were walking, they heard a noise.

"You hear that?" Jake asked.

"Tor!" His starter replied.

They continued walking, when they came across a young Ralts.

"Cool! A Ralts! Lets see what the PokeDex says.

"Ralts, the Feeling Pokémon. It can use the horns on its head to read human emotions. Ralts rarely shows itself to humans, but may occasionally approach when it senses positive or happy feelings." The PokeDex stated.

"What do ya say, you ready to battle?" Jake asked the Torchic.

"Chic!" Blazer replied, hopping off his trainer's shoulder, striking a fighting pose.

"Alright, let's start off with Peck!" Jake commanded.

Blazer complied, charging towards the small Psychic type with an elongated beak. The Ralts took a defensive stance, before letting off a menacing Growl, causing Blazer to stop in his tracks. The Ralts then proceeded to lift Blazer on the air with her Confusion, and threw him into a tree, causing him to faint on impact.

"Blazer!" Jake shouted, rushing towards his fallen Pokemon. "I'm gonna get you to the Pkemon Center, don't worry, it won't be long!" He started running in the direction of Petalburg, his starter cradled in his arms. Unbeknownst to him, the curious Ralts decided to follow him.

Jake had just reached the Pokemon Center.

"Nurse Joy!" He called frantically. "Nurse Joy, Blazer here was thrown against a tree by a Confusion attack, can you please make sure he's okay?"

"Certainly, I just need you to recall him into his Pokeball." She stated calmly.

Jake complied, recalling his Pokemon.

"It'll be a few moments, so please wait in the lobby."

"Okay," Jake said, trying to calm down.

He sat there for ten minutes, before Nurse Joy reappeared.

"Your Torchic is fine. He was probably surprised by the impact, he is fighting fit and good to go," she stated sweetly.

"Thank you. Blazer, come on out!"

He opened the pokeball, and the shiny Torchic appeared.

"Just in case you didn't know, that Torchic is different than the others." Joy explained.

"What do you mean?"

"Normally Torchic are orange, but this one is yellow. It's known as a shiny Pokemon, they're very rare."

"I think I remember Professor Birch say something like that, but I guess I wasn't paying attention." Jake recalled, nervously scratching his head.

"Don't worry, if you ever need help again, please don't hesitate to come back! Goodbye!" Nurse a joy waved.

"Bye, and thanks for everything!" Jake called back. "Alright, time to go say goodbye to my best friend." Jake muttered to himself.

He walked for about ten minutes, before finding the gym. He then walked inside.

"Hello, anybody home?"

"Jake!" A voice called out.

Jake turned around to find a girl wearing a red bandana, a red shirt, black biker shorts, and a white mini skirt over the shorts with a yellow hip pack.

"May! How are you?"

"F-fine!" She stammered.

"What's the matter?"

"Th-that thing!" She exclaimed, pointing at the Torchic on his shoulder.

"It's just Blazer, my Torchic. Don't worry, he's friendly." Jake tried to reassure her.

"Can you PLEASE put it back in its ball? You know I don't like Pokemon!"

"Alright alright, I will." He turned towards the Torchic. I'm sorry bud, but she doesn't like Pokemon."

Blazer had a hurt look on his face as Jake recalled him. "Don't worry, you can come back out after I leave" Jake reassured his fire type. He then turned towards May. "So I came to tell you that I'm starting my Pokemon journey. I wanted to say goodbye to you, since it will be awhile until I pass through here again."

"There you go, always in a hurry, you've been talking about going on your Pokemon journey for as long as I remember. You must be excited, right?"

"Hell yeah! This is the most exciting week of my life! I left a few days ago, and I'm on my way to Rustboro City to challenge the first gym there."

"Good luck!"

"Thanks. I'm gonna have to go soon, though."

"You're leaving already? You just got here!" Don't you think you could stay for a little while?"

"Sorry, but I want to at least make it through Route 104 by nightfall. I'll see you later."

"Oh, well good bye then." May said sadly, closing the distance between the two.

"Good bye, I'll see you when I challenge your dad in a few months, okay?"

May then hugged her best friend. "Okay. You'll keep in touch, right?" She asked, a sad tone in her voice.

"Yeah, I promise." Jake reassured her, returning the gesture. After a few minutes, Jake finally pulled himself free of May's grip.

"Bye!" He said.

"Bye!" May replied, a hint of sadness in her voice.

He then walked out, sending out Blazer again. "I'm gonna miss her," he said dejectedly, before walking off. He headed out towards Route 104, when he heard a sound behind him. He turned around, seeing a Ralts.

"Hey, is that the same Ralts from before?" He asked. The Ralts nodded. She then sent an image into his mind using telepathy.

"So you wanna come with me?"

Again, the Ralts nodded.

Alright then, Blazer, get in there!"

His starter happily complied, eager for a rematch.

"Let's start out with Ember!"

Blazer sent out dozens of small flames from his beak. Many of them struck their target, dealing damage. The Ralts retaliated by Growling at Blazer, causing him to cower.

"Don't give in! Use another Ember! Followed by Peck!

Blazer complied, sending out more flames from his beak. He used them as a distraction, coming in close and rapidly striking the Ralts with his elongated beak. This proved to be too much, and the Feeling Pokemon fainted. Jake threw a Pokeball, and after a few tense moments, the capture was complete.

He held the ball in the air. "I caught a Ralts!" He yelled, excited about his new Pokemon. He then pulled out his PokeDex and scanned the ball.

"This Ralts is a female. Her attacks are Confusion and Growl." It stated in its robotic voice.

"I think I'll call you Grace." Jake said, before continuing on his way, face beaming with delight. Blazer happily followed right behind him.

--- (end Flashback)

"Wow. So on the same day you came to say goodbye to me, you caught your first Pokemon?" May asked redundantly.

"Yep! Grace was my first catch. To this day, she remains one of my strongest battlers."

"Wait a minute, what ever happened to you keeping in touch with me?" May demanded. "You promised me that you'd keep in touch, and you never did!"

Jake felt a sweat drop form on his neck. "Uhh, sorry? I guess I got all caught up in my training. Besides, when I did call, I found out that you had left to travel with Ash. It wasn't until two days ago that I was able to see you again."

"You're lucky that you're cute when you're nervous," May said playfully.

"Uh I guess?" Jake stammered, not knowing what to say.

"Relax, our food's here, so let's eat!" May exclaimed, taking a bite of her dish.

"So," Jake said, swallowing a bite of his food. "How about the story of your first capture? Who was it?"

"It was my Beautifly. I caught her as a Wurmple after learning that they evolve into Beautifly."

--- (Begin Flashback)

May, Ash, Max and Brock were all walking along a path, when suddenly a Wurmple dropped down from above.

"What's that?" Ash asked, pulling out his PokeDex.

"Oh wow, it's a Wurmple!" Max exclaimed.

Ash scanned the Wurmple in his PokeDex.

"Wurmple, he Worm Pokémon. Wurmple live primarily off of sap from trees. The suction cups on its feet keep it from slipping," The robotic voice said.

"Hey May, don't Wurmple evolve into Beautifly?" Max asked.

"I think so. I'm gonna catch it! After all, it is kinda cute! Go Pokeball!" She shouted, throwing a Pokeball.

The ball shook, before Wurmple reemerged.

"May!" Ash exclaimed. "You gotta battle it first!"

"Oh yeah," she replied. When she looked back over, the Wurmple was running off into the bushes.

"Hey guys," Brock said. "Why don't we all stop for lunch?"

"You all can stop for lunch, I'm gonna go catch that Wurmple!" May exclaimed before running off.

She trailed the bug type to a dirt road, when she suddenly heard shouting from ahead.

"Get out of the way Twerp!" A red headed lady shouted.

"Yeah, you better start running!" Added a blue haired man.

"Dere's a buncha Beedrill headin dis way!" Screamed a talking Meowth.

"Team Rocket!" May exclaimed, before seeing the swarm of Beedrill behind them. She started running out of fear. "Why am I getting dragged into this!? I didn't even do anything!" She screamed, running for her life.

"Shut up and run!"

The four continued running, until suddenly they fell off a bank! The trailing Beedrill continued in a straight line, oblivious that their prey had dropped below.

When they finally gathered their bearings, Team Rocket jumped up and started reciting their motto.

"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie exclaimed.

"And make it double!" James added.

"To protect—"

"There's Wurmple!" May interrupted, before running off.

"Hey, no one interrupts us like that!" Jessie yelled, trailing May. Her two companions quickly followed suit.

May had finally cornered Wurmple, so she sent out her Torchic. "Torchic, let's go!" She exclaimed, throwing out a Pokeball. The small orange fire type appeared.

"Seviper, get in there!" Jessie yelled, sending out her poison snake.

"Hey! I saw Wurmple first!" May yelled, anger starting to swell up in her face.

"So what?" Jessie retorted.

"So I should be the one to catch Wurmple!"

"I don't think so! James, call out your Cacnea!"

"But—" James argued.

"Now!"

"Okay, Cacnea, let's go!"

A small green cactus like Pokemon appeared. It immediately turned around and gave James a prickly hug.

Both Pokemon gained up on Torchic, when suddenly out of nowhere a Heracross appeared, blocking the two advancing Pokemon.

"Heracross, Fury Attack!" A voice shouted.

The Stag Beetle Pokemon complied, and his horn glowed white, before rapidly striking the two Pokemon. The two crashed into Team Rocket, sending them blasting off.

"Thanks." May said.

"No problem. Two on one isn't fair. My name's Franklin." Franklin replied.

"I'm May. I'm trying to catch a Wurmple."

"I could help you if you want."

"Really? You'd help me?"

"Sure, as a park ranger, it's my job to help people. I know a spot where Wurmple run rampant, come on!"

"Okay," May said, before following Franklin.

The two walked through the forest, before coming up to a towering cliff.

"Come on, it's just up here!" Franklin said.

"Up there?"

"Yeah, come on, don't be scared. I'll be right here."

"Okay!"

The two started climbing the cliff. About halfway up, May's foot slipped and she started, to fall, screaming.

"Gotcha!" Franklin said, catching her hand with his. He pulled her up to a safer spot.

"Thanks," May said weakly.

"Don't mention it."

They finally got up the cliff, when Franklin mentioned how hungry he was.

"Hey look, Pecha Berries!" May exclaimed. She then climbed up the tree, knocking a few down. "Here, have some!"

"Thanks."

The two ate Pecha berries, before Franklin noticed a Wurmple.

"Hey, there's a Wurmple! Go try and catch it!"

"Alright, Torchic, lets go catch that Wurmple!" She exclaimed, sending out her starter.

Torchic popped out, before slamming into Wurmple.

"Alright, go pokeball!" May shouted, throwing a red and white sphere. The ball struck the bug type, sucking it inside. After a few tense moment, it popped out.

"May, try an Ember attack. It's super effective!" Franklin encouraged.

"Okay then, Torchic, use Ember!"

Torchic opened her beak, sending out dozens of small flames, striking the bug type. This caught the Wurmple by, surprise, and it fainted.

"Now, go Pokeball!"

May threw a second Pokeball, and this time a ping was heard, signifying a completed capture.

"Alright, I caught a Wurmple!"

--- (End Flashback)

"Wow. That's pretty exciting," Jake commented.

"Yeah, I was thrilled when I heard the ping! It's definitely one of the most satisfying sounds out there." May replied.

"I hear ya. What happened next?"

"Me and Franklin returned to the group. It turns out that he had a twin brother! Anyways, Team Rocket attempted to steal Wurmple from me, but we foiled their plans once again."

"God, I hate Team Rocket. I'll never forget the two hardest weeks of my life because of them." Jake stated angrily.

"Relax, I'm sure that you're so powerful now, that even the boss of Team Rocket would be scared of you!" May said sweetly, trying to ease the tension.

Jake smiled. "Thanks May, you always know what to say to bring me to a better mood. It's one of your best qualities."

May smiled back. "Anything to see that cute smile of yours."

The couple continued eating, making small talk in the process. When they were done eating, Jake footed the bill and they walked back to the hotel hand in hand. When they got back to their rooms, they decided to head in early, as Jake had a big day tomorrow.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Jake said, pulling May into a hug.

"See ya," she replied, returning the gesture.

"Good night!" Jake said, walking into his room.

"Good night," May replied, walking into her own room.

Jake slung his bag on the bed, before starting to get ready for bed.

"Man, today was awesome!" He exclaimed.

"Eevee! Eev eev."

"Oh come on, you were there the whole time. You know nothing out of the ordinary happened tonight." Jake replied, walking into the bathroom. He began his nightly routine. Ten minutes later, he walked out, ready for bed. He looked at the clock, which read 8:30.

"Man, I'm crashing in early. Oh well, I gotta get up early anyways." He said to himself. Eevee hopped up onto the bed, making himself comfortable in Jake's arms.

"Vui!" He cooed, before drifting off to sleep.

"Goodnight Eevee," Jake replied, thinking about the day's events. Fifteen minutes later, he was fast asleep.

---

So there it is, chapter 12. The scene where May caught the Wurmple was completely canon.

Until next time, see ya.