"Wrap this up with [Brick Break]!" Dawn called out.
Piplup ran forward, raising his little flipper as it glowed red, and ran toward his opponent, a Starly. The little bird tried to flap away, but Piplup jumped up and chopped down, sending the small bird slamming into the ground and getting knocked out.
Marian raised her hand, "And Starly is unable to battle, therefore Piplup and Dawn are the winners and will move on to the next round!"
The crowd started cheering as Dawn picked up Piplup and spun with him, "We did it! We're going to the finals!" Dawn said, looking ecstatic.
Piplup happily raised his flippers, "Piplup!"
Dawn laughed as she hugged him tightly, "You were amazing!"
Piplup puffed out his chest proudly, clearly enjoying the praise.
Then she looked up at the crowd and over where Ash was still waving those glowsticks like a professional. She let out a chuckle and started walking back to the backstage area. As she did, she looked toward the screen where the next match was being displayed.
She saw her name at the top, and across from it was Kenny.
Dawn's smile slowly turned into a cheeky smirk, "Oh, perfect."
Piplup looked at the screen, then back at Dawn, "Piplup?"
Dawn clenched her fist, "Looks like we're getting our payback sooner than I thought."
She walked into the back room where Kenny was leaning against the wall and let out a breath while keeping a smirk, "Well, Dee Dee, I guess you really did make it all the way to the finals."
As he said that, Dawn flinched again. Even when she tries not to, that nickname is still horrible, but she took a breath and puffed out her chest, "Ye of little faith. I said I was gonna get my payback, and I mean it, so you better believe it."
"Oh, I believe it alright. I believe I'm gonna get my first ribbon against you in the finals," Kenny still said smugly.
"Well, we'll see about that." Dawn crossed her arms, "I'll just have to beat you even harder for that!" she said with a grin.
Kenny blinked a few times, then shook his head and put on his smirk again, "Just try it. You know I started months before you. I'm probably way stronger."
"Yeah, well, I trained for one whole week with Ash," Dawn said proudly.
Those words almost felt like a hammer that hit Kenny over the head, but when he stood up and was gonna ask her to elaborate, Marian's voice spoke through the speakers, "Now calling Dawn and Kenny to the stage!"
Dawn quickly turned on her heel and put her arms behind her back, "Guess that's it. Better catch up, Kenny." She stuck her tongue out and quickly ran out first.
Kenny's hand was out like he was gonna try to grab Dawn's arm, but it slowly clenched around nothing as it fell to his side. Slowly, he clenched it and took a breath before going out next.
Soon after, Kenny walked onto the stage a few moments later, and the crowd immediately started cheering as both contestants took their positions.
Marian stood in the center, holding her microphone, "And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the final round! Dawn and Kenny will now battle it out for the Floaroma Town Contest Ribbon!"
The crowd cheered even louder.
Dawn smiled confidently, reaching down and grabbing a Poké Ball, "Alright, Kenny. Let's settle this."
Kenny smirked, "You really are serious about that payback thing, huh?"
"You have no idea."
Marian raised her hand, "Trainers, prepare your Pokémon!"
Dawn held up her Poké Ball, "Show time, Piplup!"
"Let me show you how it's done then," Kenny said as he pulled out a Poké Ball and threw it out with a spin. When it opened, Prinplup jumped out.
Dawn smirked and pointed toward Prinplup, "Alright, Piplup. Let's show him what we've learned."
"Piplup!"
Marian raised her microphone, "And with both contestants ready, the final round of the Floaroma Town Pokémon Contest is officially underway!"
The moment she said that, both Dawn and Kenny threw their hands forward.
"Piplup, use [Bubble Beam]!"
"Prinplup, [Bubble Beam]!"
Both Pokémon fired at the same time, streams of bubbles flying across the stage before colliding in the middle.
The bubbles popped against each other, creating a sparkling cloud of water that covered the center of the field, and as an added bonus, it did look quite pretty.
Dawn grinned, "Alright, Piplup! Push through it!"
"Piplup!" Piplup charged forward through the remaining bubbles.
Kenny smirked, "Prinplup, [Metal Claw]!"
Prinplup rushed forward as well, his flippers turning silver. The two Pokémon met in the center, and they clashed, Piplup's beak against Prinplup's metal wings, and they clashed again and again.
Dawn clenched her fist, "Piplup, don't let up!"
Kenny pointed forward, "Prinplup, keep pushing!"
The two Pokémon continued struggling against each other, their attacks grinding against one another as they started going even faster.
"Come on, Piplup!" Dawn called out, "You can do it!"
"Piplup!" Piplup grunted as he pushed harder, his little beak grinding against Prinplup's metal-covered flippers.
Kenny smirked, "Prinplup, don't let that little guy push you around!"
"Prinplup!"
Prinplup suddenly pushed forward with all his strength, knocking Piplup backward.
"Piplup!" Dawn called out as he stumbled back, catching himself before falling over.
Kenny pointed forward, "Now, [Metal Claw]!"
Prinplup charged forward, his flippers glowing silver again.
Dawn quickly reacted, "Piplup, [Bubble Beam]!"
Piplup spun around and fired a stream of bubbles directly at the charging Prinplup.
"Prinplup, keep going!"
Prinplup powered through the bubbles, popping them against his body as he continued forward.
Dawn grinned, "That's what I was hoping you'd do. Piplup, jump!"
Piplup immediately jumped into the air, causing Prinplup's [Metal Claw] to swing underneath him.
"Now, [Bubble Beam] downward!"
Piplup fired a stream of bubbles straight down. The bubbles struck Prinplup on the head, pushing him down slightly as the water exploded around him.
Kenny gritted his teeth, "Prinplup, shake it off!"
Prinplup shook himself and quickly looked up.
Dawn pointed forward, "Now, Piplup, [Peck]!"
Piplup dove down, his beak glowing as he spun through the air.
"Prinplup, [Metal Claw]!"
Prinplup raised both flippers, and the two Pokémon collided in the middle of the stage. After the impact, Piplup was sent flying backward, while Prinplup stumbled back several steps.
Dawn clenched her fist, "Piplup!"
Piplup landed on his feet, sliding backward before stopping himself, and then he ran back forward.
"Come on, Piplup!" Dawn called out as she ran forward with him.
"Piplup!"
Kenny narrowed his eyes, "Prinplup, meet him head-on!"
"Prinplup!" Prinplup charged forward, his flippers beginning to glow silver again.
The two Pokémon rushed toward each other, neither slowing down. Piplup jumped up, bringing his glowing beak forward as Prinplup raised both of his metallic flippers.
"[Peck]!"
"[Metal Claw]!"
The two attacks collided with a loud clang, Piplup's beak grinding against Prinplup's metal-covered flippers. Piplup grunted as he pushed harder, his little feet digging into the ground while Prinplup leaned forward, trying to overpower him.
But as they clashed, Dawn's gritted teeth slowly turned into a smirk, "You fell for it~ [Whirlpool]!"
Kenny's eyes widened, "What?"
Piplup's beak stopped glowing, and instead, a small swirl of water suddenly appeared around him. Because the two Pokémon were practically touching, Prinplup had absolutely no time to react.
The whirlpool expanded around Piplup and immediately wrapped itself around Prinplup at point-blank range. Then Prinplup started spinning out of control as he was taken up into the whirlpool.
"Prinplup!" Kenny shouted as he watched his Pokémon get carried upward.
Dawn grinned, "Now, Piplup, jump up and use [Ice Beam]!"
Piplup gave a determined cry as he jumped into the air, then immediately fired a beam of freezing energy downward at the wave beneath him, creating an ice surfboard.
Dawn grinned, "Now, [Surf]!"
Piplup landed on the surfboard, then leaned forward as the wave carried him upward, riding across the wave as he followed after Prinplup's spiraling body.
Kenny looked up at Prinplup, who was still spinning helplessly inside the [Whirlpool], "Prinplup! Get out of there!"
Prinplup tried to fight against the current, but the spinning water kept him trapped.
Dawn's grin grew wider as she pointed directly at Prinplup, "Now, Piplup! Hit him!"
Piplup leaned forward on his icy surfboard. He rode the wave straight toward the spinning Prinplup.
Kenny's eyes widened, "Move!"
Prinplup finally managed to break free of the [Whirlpool], but the moment he did, Piplup came flying toward him, and Piplup slammed the side of his icy surfboard directly into Prinplup's face.
Prinplup was sent flying through the whirlpool's side and shooting out into the ground of the field. But then, as he tried to get up, Piplup surfed off the whirlpool and into the sky. As he did, the whirlpool dispersed, and Piplup went down directly toward Prinplup.
Prinplup tried to raise his flippers to block, but it was no use. The ice surfboard came down like a hammer and shattered against him hard, and at that moment, Piplup jumped forward, pulling his head back as his beak started glowing.
Dawn raised her hand, "Let's finish this with one more [Peck]!"
Piplup's head came down, and he slammed it against Prinplup's head hard just as the buzzer for the time rang, signaling for them to stop. For a second, nothing happened, but then Prinplup's legs gave out, and he fell backward and landed on his back with spirals in his eyes.
Marian raised her hand, "And that's it! Prinplup is unable to battle! Dawn and Piplup have won the final round!"
The crowd immediately erupted into cheers, and Dawn jumped up excitedly, "We won!"
She ran over to Piplup and picked him up, spinning around with him, "Great job, Piplup! We did it!"
"Piplup!" Piplup said proudly as he was being spun around.
Across the stadium, Ash was still going absolutely crazy with the glowsticks, "LET'S GOOOO!" Ash shouted from the crowd.
Buneary was beside him, waving her pom-poms just as enthusiastically, while Pikachu and Pachirisu were making little sparks shoot from their cheeks like miniature fireworks.
Verity stood next to them with both hands over her face, "I don't know these people," she muttered.
"Start cheering and I'll stop your punishment training," Ash said without blinking.
Verity immediately snatched the glowsticks from Ash and started waving them excitedly, "That's what I'm talking about! That's what we're here for!"
—
Eventually, Dawn was awarded the Floaroma Ribbon, which she was ecstatic about. When she held it up, people took dozens of pictures of her holding up her new ribbon. This made number two.
Eventually, she got to head backstage and went back to the changing room. But since Ash told her to probably not use her usual outfit since, you know, she is getting famous now, Dawn went into her bag and pulled out her Spring outfit.
It was a white button-up shirt that she put a pink long-sleeve sweater over. Then she put on a longer plaid-pattern skirt, and finally, since Ash stole her usual hat, she put on one of her spares, a light-blue beret with a ribbon.
Once she fixed herself, she walked out of the changing room while she was thinking about how she was gonna get out of here. She sure hopes Ash doesn't threaten people again, though she can't lie, having a bodyguard like Ash isn't the worst thing by any means.
But as she walked, she stopped when she saw Kenny around the corner, leaning against the wall, very obviously trying to act nonchalant. Then he noticed her and waved, "Yo, good work. I guess you really did win, huh?"
Dawn smirked, "I told you I would."
"Ha, well, I guess even now you are stubborn like that," Kenny muttered.
"Huh?" Dawn blinked.
"Nothing," Kenny said as he looked down, then he looked up at her, "So I wanted to ask y-" But before he could finish, around the corner, a little Ralts peeked his head around the corner and scurried up. Dawn immediately recognised that Ralts.
"Oh hey, it's Ash's Ralts!" she said happily, running past Kenny and going down to pick him up, "Hey, you little cutie! What are you doing around here?"
Ralts flailed a little in panic, but then he quickly delivered what he came here for, handing Dawn a little piece of paper.
Dawn lit up and took it, "Hey, it's from Ash!" she explained, looking happy right in front of Kenny. As she opened it, the letter basically told her that when she is ready, ask Ralts to teleport her out.
Meanwhile, Kenny, who was watching how Dawn reacted, clenched his hands and looked away. He let out a breath and started walking.
Dawn heard his footsteps and looked back, "Wait, weren't you gonna tell me something?"
Kenny raised his hand and waved over his shoulder, "Nah, it's not important. I've gotta go catch up anyway. You better not lose to anyone until I do," he said, walking around the corner.
Dawn blinked a few times, then she shrugged and looked down at Ralts, "Okay, take us to them!"
Ralts nodded, and he raised his hands as they both began glowing. Then they teleported away.
When they reappeared, Dawn slightly stumbled. Wasn't her first time teleporting, but she was by no means used to it. But as she stumbled, she felt someone catch her before she fell.
"Yo, Dawn, don't pass out on us," Ash's voice said. Then, when Dawn opened her eyes, she saw that Ash was there in front of her, giving her a grin.
Dawn blinked a few times before looking around, "Huh…?"
Then she realised Ash was holding her up, "Oh." Dawn quickly stood up straight, brushing herself off, "I'm fine!"
Ash raised an eyebrow, "You sure?"
"Yep!"
Verity walked over from behind him, crossing her arms, "She looks like she just got off a roller coaster."
"I do not!"
"You kinda do," Ash said.
Dawn puffed her cheeks, "I'm just not used to teleporting!"
Ash shrugged, "Fair enough."
Dawn huffed, then she remembered, and she grabbed her ribbon and held it up to Ash, "Check it out! That makes number two for me!" she said proudly.
Verity leaned over to look at it, "It actually looks really nice."
Ash nodded, "And you know what that means."
Dawn looked at him, "What?"
Ash reached into his bag and pulled something out.
Dawn's eyes widened. It was her hat, "Hey!"
Ash grinned and held it out toward her, "You earned it back."
Dawn immediately grabbed it from him and hugged it to her chest, "Finally!"
Ash laughed, "You know, I was starting to think you weren't gonna get this back."
"You were holding it hostage!"
"Exactly. And you won."
Dawn smiled as she touched the brim, "I can't believe that actually worked."
Verity shook her head, "I can't believe she actually went along with it."
Ash shrugged, "Motivation works."
Dawn pointed at him, "Don't get any ideas about doing that again."
Ash gave her an innocent look, "What? I would never."
Both Dawn and Verity looked at him, and he kept that smirk on his face that just told them, 'Do something about it.'
They both sighed in unison, and Verity looked over, "Soooo, Dawn won, so you know what that means, don't you?"
Dawn lit up, "Oh right, we're gonna celebrate again!"
"You know it. I already picked things out," Ash said, rubbing his nose, but then he opened one eye, "But of course I'm open to suggestions from our resident winner~"
Dawn grinned, "I know exactly what to do. Come on, guys." She ran up and grabbed Ash and Verity's hands and started pulling them along with her.
And Ash and Verity laughed and followed along.
—
{Meanwhile with Ashtwo}
D was sitting at the docks with a leg over the other, just waiting as he was checking his phone. Next to him was Matori. They were out here to wait for the second batch of Team Rocket who were arriving today, and since Ash had nothing to do at the moment, he went along.
And before you say it, no, he can't go and find Hunter J, since he is waiting for her to lay out all of her bases for him. Since that little tracker he put on her was going to get him all the things he needed, then he could deal with her. But hey, that's for later, and Hunter J may be a big problem, but it is not the biggest problem.
Also, after he dealt with all that, D kept track of the Valley Windworks after the International Police left, and the Pokémon that live nearby slowly started going back, which was great, since he found a clan of Elekid around the area. So D went to go pick one up, and let's just say he found his favorite. Then he went ahead and sent it over for the main body to use.
But other than that, the only thing of note was that after he came back from said mission, Matori hasn't really talked to him about it, which was weird considering how much she usually tries to poke into it to make sure that everything went well. And D could tell there was something that she wasn't telling him, but that was normal.
So he just leaned back and waited, but when he closed his eye, he heard the horn, and when he opened it, there in the distance, he saw a black ship in the cover of night approaching the dock area.
And on the edge, there he could see a few people, such as his squad, Enid, Jay, Helena, Domino, Annie, and Oakley, along with some other people of note, such as Orm on the ship.
D let out a sigh and pushed himself off the crate he was sitting on, "Well, looks like the easy time is over," he muttered low enough so that only Matori, who was next to him, could hear.
She didn't answer, but he could swear he could hear Matori groaning since this meant she would have to deal with so much more paperwork.
The moment it stopped, the side of the ship opened.
The first person to step off was Enid, carrying a large bag over her shoulder. She looked around before spotting D and giving him a small wave, "Yo."
D raised a hand, "Hey."
Jay came down next, followed by Helena, Domino, Annie, and Oakley. The group looked around the dock, taking in the new surroundings.
Domino stepped off the ship and immediately looked around, "This is the Sinnoh branch?"
D shrugged, "For now."
She stared at him, "That's it?"
"Yep."
Domino looked at the half-finished buildings in the distance, then back at D, "...You weren't kidding."
Matori sighed, "The permanent facility is still under construction."
Annie stepped off the ship behind them, carrying a few cases, "Well, at least it has a roof."
D looked at her, "Mostly."
Annie paused, "Mostly?"
D pointed toward one of the buildings, "There's a hole in that one."
Oakley slowly looked over, "...Why?"
"Construction."
"That doesn't answer my question."
D shrugged, "Anyway, welcome to Sinnoh," he said, completely brushing past her question.
Enid walked over and looked at D, "So, what have you been doing while we were gone?"
"Stuff."
Enid stared at him, "...That's it?"
"Yep."
"D."
"What?"
"You know that's not an answer," she said blankly.
D's one eye curved like he was smiling under the scarf, "It's the only one you're getting."
Jay walked over and patted Enid on the shoulder, "I feel like you knew this was coming." Then he walked past her and put an arm around D, "So, bro, since you're our expert now, how about you show us around Sinnoh!"
Matori cut in on that cue, "Actually, no, we have work to do. With the alleged work that Galactic has been doing in Sinnoh, we need to mobilize if we want any chance of claiming a foothold here."
"Aww, and there go my plans of sightseeing," Annie said dejectedly.
To which Oakley sighed into her hand, "Annie, please focus. We have actual work to do."
"And you've got a love life to fix, your point?" Annie jabbed back, but Oakley quickly covered her mouth and glared at her.
Matori cleared her throat, "Anyway, you can all do whatever that is later. D managed to gather us a connection to the black market. We will start there. Split into teams, and be sure to wear something other than your uniforms. We don't want Galactic learning about us too soon. It would be a problem."
Jay immediately grinned with his arm still around D's shoulder, "Well, we already know who we're going with, so what do you say, bro? Ready to do this again?"
D let out a slow breath from his nose and nodded, "Let's get to work. I already have our target."
Helena let out a little mopy sound, "I was looking forward to relaxing after Hoenn…"
"You know you should know by now we don't ever get a break," Enid said, stretching her arms behind her back.
"Hey, I'm excited, but if you don't want to, then I'm sure me and D can make do on our own~" Domino winked and ran off after where Jay was dragging D.
Helena immediately got up, "I-I-I, w-wait!" she said, running after them too, and the rest followed.