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-Your POV-
Sighing, I attempted to relax my shoulders, but my thoughts were still racing. I was far too nervous. Was it because the Pokemon battle was against Gladion? I don't see a reason why it should... but it doesn't explain why I'm biting my lip and frantically searching for a tactic to beat him, then throwing it out of my mind. It's not like if I win it would hurt him or offend him.
'Get a grip, (Y/N)!' I tell myself.
I quickly shake my head to clear unnecessary thoughts, then push the curtain to the side and step out of the tent.
The sun burns into my eyes as I walk up into my designated place to stand when batting. Across from me, I see Gladion, who turns his head to look right at me, and my cheeks redden, though I blame the tropical Alolan temperature.
Our eye contact is broken when Hala starts to explain the rules once again, and I look away, still a bit apprehensive about the upcoming battle. I could tell that Gladion was too, he was looking a bit more edgy and unapproachable today than usual. Right, now we're going to have to battle each other.
"Second round, last battle – Gladion against (Y/N)! The battle may begin!" Hala declares, and the crowd goes wild.
Oh, I suppose it's because this is the deciding battle for who will win the Full Power Tournament. I better stop over thinking first, if I want to win.
"(Y/N)!" Gladion shouts across the stage to me, and my head snaps up to look at him, "I hate weak people, so show me a battle that proves you're not going to go easy on me. Let's give it our all! I'm not taking no for an answer."
"Alright!" I suddenly grin, an urge of confidence sweeping over me. I can do this. I fling my first Pokemon out onto the platform, and Gladion does the same.
My heart is thudding in my chest, but I manage to happily exclaim, "You first, Popplio!"
"Now. Crobat." Gladion says firmly, without hesitation in his voice.
I tuck a strand of stray (h/c) hair behind my ear, and raise my hand to the air, "Popplio, start by using Baby Doll Eyes!"
The announcer says, "That attack harshly lowered Crobat's defense! It'll be much easier to deal more damage on Crobat, which I'm sure will come in handy for (Y/N)'s Popplio!"
"Crobat, use Toxic!"
"Shoot," I mutter, knowing fully well that the move Toxic poisons the opponents and it will harm them significantly more each turn.
I still could find a way out of this, I really wouldn't get down with depressing thoughts. A carefree and toothy smile spread across my face, much to my astonishment. I could do this.
-Gladion's POV-
So annoying.
As much as I want to win, I can't help but cringe at the thought of battling her. (Y/N). No reward would be worth beating her, which is a thought I'd never think in my life. Ah well, I'm still not going to go easier on her.
And (Y/N) won't stop smiling at me like that, she is such a cheerful person compared to me. She'd never like me back the way I like her.
I blink, refocusing on the battle currently happening, and (Y/N) grinned widely across at me, in a somewhat comforting way.
She commands her Popplio, "Use Bubble Beam!"
I tune out the announcer's obnoxious comments and see as a blast of bubbles crashes into my Crobat, mercilessly bringing it's health down to a zero, causing it to faint and return to its Pokeball. I bite my lip and silently bring out Lycanroc, much to (Y/N)'s surprise.
"You're using your ace Pokemon already?" she asks with a tilt of her head.
"Yeah," I reply and turn to intently concentrate on my midnight form of Lycanroc with a firm frown as I notice the poison on Poplio taking a small toll, "Use Night Slash,"
"Dodge it, and quickly use a Pound!" (Y/N) says without a single hint of hesitation.
Her little blue seal swiftly evades my Lycanroc's sharp claws, and races toward and tackles it, which makes Lycanroc flinch, making it (Y/N)'s turn to attack once more. But before she had the chance to command her Pokemon, Poplio glowed a bright blue, and slowly changed form. The audience goes absolutely crazy, as if evolution was the most exciting they could witness.
"Amazing!" (Y/N) eagerly shouts, jumping up and down with adorable excitement. "Now, Brionne! Shake off that poison and use Rain Dance!"
Rain Dance not only causes it to heavily rain but also enhances the power of Water Type moves, which were already super effective against my Lycanroc. I was in big trouble. And to add to that, the Toxic was no longer in effect.
But I could still probably land an attack before that happened. "Lycanroc, Stone Edge."
Rock spikes up from the ground and rushes to slam into (Y/N)'s Brionne with much force, but the Pop Start Pokemon surprisingly withstands the powerful attack. (Y/N) wastes no time responding, "Now use another Bubble Beam!"
The attack hits, boosted by the pouring rain, and I think I'm completely done for, but my Lycanroc is still standing, miraculously. It's a perfect chance for me to land one last move, "Lycanroc. Crunch." I command.
My Lycanroc's jaws snap down on Brionne, and it's knocked out, leaving (Y/N) with one last Pokemon, and me with two more. She looks disappointed but not willing to give up as she tosses out an Ultra Ball, revealing her closest Pokemon, Leafeon, who looks just about to send me to ruin with its pretty features. (Y/N)'s beautiful hair whips around her face as rain sends more and more of the crowd home and she commands her next move, "Leaf Blade!!"
The attack slams into Lycanroc, and it's down to one-on-one. Our last Pokemon. These next few moves will decide the battle.
-Your POV-
Wiping more water off my face, I abruptly notice my surroundings outside of the battle arena. The majority of the crowd deserted us, I really rained on their parade, for real. I didn't think they would leave, but even the announcer toned it down significantly. Good thing though, I could spot Hau, Lillie, and my brother, Sun, still standing there.
Clenching my fists, I try to shove down the excitement bubbling up as Gladion sends out his last Pokemon, Umbreon.
I can't help but suddenly burst into laughter, "It's Eevee evolution versus Eevee evolution!"
"Stop being so cute, it's not fair."
"Wha-?" I'm about to ask him to repeat it, as I feel that I hadn't heard correctly, but his Umbreon used Swift, an attack that most definitely won't miss.
It hits my Leafeon, but I hold on. "Okay then, it's our turn! Use Giga Drain!"
The announcer shouts into his microphone, and I'm wondering if he ever gets tired, "That move not only deals plenty of damage to the opponent but fortunately also heals the user!"
Gladion furrows his eyebrows, clearly concentrating. "Dark Pulse, Umbreon."
"Don't let it hit! Use Protect!" I chirp, but Gladion isn't amused as a shimmering wall defends my little Leafeon from harm for a turn. "Alrighty! Let's finish this, Leafeon!"
Gladion's eyes widen as I confidently grin even wider if possible, then spread my arms up and to my sides.
"Solar Beam!"
My Leafeon takes a moment to absorb an extremely large amount of sunlight as the Rain Dance comes to an end and the sun breaks free of dark clouds. Then, Leafeon aims at Umbreon, who is caught without a command and it shoots a beam of raw energy straight at the dark-colored fox.
Tears of happiness well up in my eyes as the first clears and all that is left standing is my Leafeon. As I reluctantly return Leafeon to its capsule, Hala declares the results to the dwindling crowd, and I glance worriedly over at Gladion. I had won, but what is he feeling at the moment?
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Word count: 1459 words
Author's Note:
Oh my Arceus, I can hardly believe that it's already chapter number thirty! It seemed not long ago that I just started on an undeveloped idea of a girl moving to Alola and meeting an edgy dude named Gladion. Anyway, thanks so much to everyone who has read this so far, and I hope you're enjoying it! I don't plan on ending the book just quite yet, so don't worry! There's more Gladion from me in store!
Thanks again, and see you soon!
- Lillian