"You won't get away from me, Aipom!" Goh exclaimed, dashing through the forest and chasing after an Aipom that was using its tail to swing from tree to tree. "Quick, Drizzile! Use Water Gun!" He said to Drizzile, who sat on his shoulder and avoided incoming trees. Sobble had evolved just recently, but it had been hard on Drizzile, who had been hoping to evolve directly into an Inteleon.
"Drizz-Ile!" Drizzile exclaimed as he sent a powerful spray of water at the Aipom. Hitting it directly, Aipom fell off of the branch it was running on and hit the ground before pulling itself up and angrily staring at Goh and Drizzile. "You won't get away!" Goh passionately yelled, pulling out an empty Pokeball.
He flung the Pokeball at Aipom and watched as the Aipom angrily sent the Pokeball right back at him using its tail. "Woah!" Goh exclaimed, quickly dodging the incoming Pokeball. "Fine! Guess we'll have to fight! Use Sucker Punch!" He yelled to Drizzile, who hopped off of Goh's shoulder and made his way behind the Aipom, punching it in the back with his dark hand.
"Great job!" Goh exclaimed. "Now finish it with Water Pulse!" Drizzile held out his hands in front of him and sent a pulsating wave of water that impacted Aipom and sent it flying back, knocking it out. Goh picked up the empty Pokeball and gripped it tightly. "The future is in the palm of my hand!" He shouted as he sent the Pokeball flying towards Aipom, hitting its forehead with the Pokeball.
The Pokeball absorbed Aipom and fell onto the ground, shaking rapidly as it did so. Goh and Drizzile watched in anticipation as the ball continued to wiggle around, teasing them with the capture. The shaking stopped and the forest went silent as a small click was produced from the Pokeball. "Aipom has been registered to your Pokedex-bzzt!" Goh's Rotom Phone chimed from his pocket.
"Yes!" Goh exclaimed, punching the air. Drizzile turned around and gave Goh a sly smile that he tried to hide. "That's another one!" Goh said happily, running over to pick up the ball that Aipom was in. Putting it into his bag, he pulled out his Rotom Phone. "Rotom, how many more Pokemon do I need to fill up the Pokédex?" Goh asked his Rotom Phone.
"Pulling up data-bzzt!" Rotom Phone chimed. After a moment, a small list of thirty 30 Pokemon appeared on the screen. "I've got thirty more Pokemon..." he whispered to himself. A few Pokemon stood out to him on the list, such as Drizzile's final evolution, the entire evolution line for Grookey, and a Greninja. Goh flinched as he saw the Greninja, feeling painful memories floating back to the surface of his mind.
"These last thirty Pokemon are gonna be hard Drizzile," Goh said quietly. "But we've just got to push forward like we always have!" He added determinedly, clenching his fist. Drizzile made a small smile and put his webbed foot in the air, agreeing with Goh. A small alarm suddenly went off on Goh's Rotom Phone, surprising Goh and Drizzile.
"What the-?" Goh exclaimed, quickly opening his phone. His eyes grew wide as he read the notification on his phone. "Son of a Bidoof!" He shouted. "Chloe's performance is going to happen in five minutes!" He quickly brought out Drizzile's Pokeball and returned him. Reaching for another Pokeball in his bag, Goh muttered, "I can't just keep on forgetting my girlfriend's Performances like this."
He tossed the Pokeball and it opened, revealing his Flygon that he had caught back in Hoenn six years ago. Of course, he had so many other flying types that he could use, but Flygon had always been extremely helpful to him, so he never felt the need to switch him out. "Let's get back to Lumiose City quickly!" Goh exclaimed. They were currently in Kalos for Chloe, but Goh had managed to sneak in some extra Pokemon catching in the meanwhile.
"Fly-gon!" Flagon exclaimed, leaning down so Goh could hop onto his back. Flapping his wings aggressively, Flygon launched upwards and began heading towards Lumiose City. I'm the closest I've ever been to Mew, Goh thought to himself as the wind struck his face. I'll make sure I achieve my goal!
{—}
Chloe's hands were shaking, as they usually did. It's just another Performance, Chloe, she told herself nervously. It's not like you're battling Serena for the title. She tended to get way too nervous before a performance, but once she got onto the stage, she was able to perform to the audience as no other Performer could. Everyone but Chloe could agree with this fact.
"Eev-Vee!" Chloe heard a Pokemon cry from behind her and turned around. It was her Eevee, which she had received from Professor Cerise a few years ago. "Hey, Eevee," Chloe said as Eevee snuggled up into Chloe's arms. "Eev!" Eevee exclaimed as she stared up into Chloe's eyes. "You ready for our performance?" Chloe asked, petting Eevee softly. Eevee nodded and smiled before snuggling back into Chloe's arms.
Chloe stared at the ground, lost in her thought as she continued petting Eevee. Sure, it's not a performance against Serena, but won't the next one be? A nervous feeling began to arise as she realized something. I have two Princess Keys right now, so that means if I win this Showcase, I'll soon be performing directly against Serena.
Chloe brought her head up as she realized somebody had decided to sit right next to her. She looked as another Performer sat down with her Pokemon, a Sunflora, and began messing with its outfit. "You've got to stop messing with your bow tie, Sunflora," the blonde-haired Performer said, frustrated. "Sun..." Sunflora responded apologetically.
Chloe said nothing as she watched the Performer struggle with the bow tie, which had become crooked due to Sunflora messing with it. "Ugh!" The Performer grunted, setting her hands down on her lap. "I can't fix it..." she whispered to herself. Chloe tapped the girl on her shoulder, causing her to bring her head up in shock.
"I can fix it," Chloe stated politely. The girl, who Chloe now noticed had brown eyes to complement her dirty-blond hair, stared at Chloe before giving a soft smile. "Can you?" She asked happily. Chloe nodded and gingerly grabbed the bow tie. "It's just been moved around a bit, that's all," Chloe explained while straightening it out.
She removed her hands and proudly revealed a fixed bow tie to the Performer, who grinned and bowed her head to Chloe. "Thank you so much for helping me out!" She exclaimed gratefully. Chloe smiled and waved her hand. "Don't worry about it," she responded. "I'm Chloe, by the way," she added, sticking out her hand for the other Performer.
The girl grabbed her hand. "I'm Florence," she said, shaking Chloe's hand. "Sunflora's also thankful that you helped him out." Florence? Chloe thought to herself. And to have a Sunflora with such a name is fitting. Eevee hopped on Chloe's lap and smiled at Florence. "This is Eevee," she said. "My partner Pokemon."
"Hi, Eevee!" Florence gleefully exclaimed, reaching down to pet Eevee, who jumped off of Chloe's lap and hid behind her on the bench. Chloe saw Florence's shocked face as Eevee dodged her hand, so he quickly explained, "Eevee's not a big fan of new people, so don't take it personally." Florence smiled and shook her head. "No biggie," she said nonchalantly.
Chloe was about to ask how many Princess Keys Florence had when the door to the stage opened up, revealing one of the workers who helped direct the Performers to the stage. "Marie, Jade, and Chloe, you're up for the next round," the worker announced to the room of Performers who were all preparing for their round. Chloe watched as the worker closed the door before turning back to Florence.
"Looks like you're next," she said, turning her attention back to Sunflora's outfit. "Good luck," she added. "Thanks, you too," Chloe responded as she stood up and grabbed Eevee. As she made her way over to the door, she thought to herself, I've got to make sure I do my best. She grabbed the door handle and opened it to reveal the hallway that led down to the stage, where Chloe would hopefully receive her third Princess Key.
{—}
Goh quickly ran into the empty lobby of the Performance Hall, grabbed a voting device, and frantically looked around for the doors that led to the seats. He found them and began trying to open them, only to find them locked. An older woman who looked tough appeared from the bathroom and walked over to Goh. "They're about to start the first performances," she said quietly. "So they've locked the doors until all of the Performers are finished."
Goh looked at her in disbelief. "But, I have to get in there! My girlfriend's performing and I can't miss her!" He slumped his back against the door. "I've missed the past few performances and she's gotten really mad at me." He put his hands on his face and sighed as he closed his eyes. The woman chuckled and put a hand on his shoulder.
"It'll be alright, young man," she spoke. "If this girl truly cares for you, then she will find it in her heart to forgive you." Goh brought his head up and stared out the window at the setting sun. "This has happened too many times," he croaked, ignoring the woman's words. "She's going to get angry with me because this is the fourth time this has happened." The woman shrugged her shoulders.
"Doesn't matter how many times someone messes up," she said. "As long as they try to fix their mistake, the other person should always forgive them. Goh sighed and nodded his head, realizing the woman was correct. He knew Chloe would forgive him, but he told himself adamantly that he had to fix his habitual behavior soon or she would truly be upset at his absence.
Goh and the woman stayed quiet for a few more minutes until the doors were unlocked and opened up by the person monitoring the doors. "The auditorium is now open," the monitor said, gesturing towards Goh and the woman. They thanked him and walked through to the many available seats.
"Enjoy the rest of the show," the woman said, giving a small wave to Goh. "You too," Goh responded, before realizing something. "Oh! I never got your name!" he exclaimed. The woman turned around and smiled as she took off her sunglasses. "Palermo," she said simply before walking down the stairs in search of a seat.
Goh smiled as he watched her make her way down and began searching for a seat. He eventually settled on a nearby seat that was surrounded by nobody, which Goh found himself extremely comfortable in. He was still shy around people, to the point where the Professor was shocked when he found out Goh and Chloe were dating.
He settled down in the chair and mindlessly watched the rest of the performances, none of them standing out to him. He wished he could've been able to see Chloe's, as he knew she had been working so hard on her new routine. His mind wandered about Chloe, his completion of the Pokédex, and other things as the final round of Performances ensued. He felt himself dozing off when heard a phrase that jolted him awake.
"And now, time for ze results to see which Performers will be advancing to ze next round!" Monsieur Pierre announced to the crowd. Goh watched as a handful of Performers walked out onto the stage, Chloe included. He breathlessly admired her and Eevee's outfit, which was a simple dress for both of them. They'll advance to the next round! I know they will! He thought to himself.
"Please cast your vote using ze devices that were handed out to you!" Monsieur Pierre said while using his device. Goh quickly voted using the one he had grabbed from the lobby and impatiently watched as each Performer's bar raised in a race to get the most votes. Come on! Everybody needs to vote for Chloe! He thought as he anxiously waited for the final results.
{—}
Clemont sat in his cabin room, typing furiously on his computer, trying to desperately make sure that his company was doing fine without him. He wanted to take a few days off to travel with Bonnie to her last gym battle in Kalos, so he had done so and both were currently in a shared cabin in Snowbelle City, home of the gym leader Wulfric.
Clemont sighed as he finished sending the last email he needed to send and closed his laptop. Checking the time, he was annoyed to see that the clock read 3:24 in the morning. Knowing he would stay up a bit longer, he grabbed his glasses and jacket for a quick trip out on the cabin balcony. He stealthily got out of the bed and made his way around Bonnie, who was sound asleep on her bed, dreaming about her gym battle.
Clemont open the creaking door and stepped into the hallway that lead into the lobby. He remembered the last time that he was here was around 6 years ago when Ash had run away in an attempt to understand why he had lost against Wulfric. Clemont quickly dismissed the memory and everything that had happened after that, as it would ultimately lead to the harsh reality that Ash had been missing for six years.
Upon opening the cabin doors, Clemont was met with an extremely cold wind gust, so he decided against going outside and simply sat by the fireplace near its warmth. Thinking about Ash had brought up other thoughts. Specifically about Serena and how she had reacted to Ash's disappearance. Everyone has been incredibly disappointed and upset, but Serena had been oddly motivated by his lack of presence.
He rubbed his hands in his eyes as he tried to remember when the last time she had contacted any one of them was. It was almost three years since she had beaten Aria and claimed the title of Kalos Queen. She called on her own and essentially bragged to Clemont that she didn't need Ash to go further in her goal. He tried to tell her that she was twisting things, but she had hung up long before he could get any words out.
Another sigh left his mouth as he recalled this scenario. Things were much different once Ash left. No one knew where he was or what he was doing, but they knew that he was alive for one reason. Ash's Aura readings were still active from six years ago, but they couldn't trace it since there was no other Aura to bond to, as both Greninja and Lucario were gone.
Clemont shook his head and stood up, deciding that he would probably need sleep for the next day, as he didn't want to disappoint Bonnie on her final Kalos gym battle. He slowly made his way back to their room and silently crept into his bed, avoiding awakening Bonnie. It would be nice to have you back, Ash, Clemont thought to himself as he drifted to sleep. For everybody's sake.