Serena looked at herself in the mirror, deciding whether or not her outfit was going to impress the judges. It's too late to turn back now, she told herself. I've just got to go out there and show everyone what I'm made of.
She grabbed the final piece of her outfit and applied it near her neck. The ribbon. Even when changing her outfits' themes, she still made a way to incorporate her most prized possession into them. Braixen, who had just finished putting on a pink bowtie, smiled at Serena; their outfit was a contrasting pink and blue design, and it was something Serena was quite proud of.
Smiling back at Braixen, Serena had a determined look on her face; she was eager to not only win the whole contest but to prove to Drew that she was competent. She wasn't about to let some stuck-up snob with a superiority complex come along and snatch up all of that hard work and time put into her performances.
Just as Serena finished her final touches on her outfit, she heard a knock on her door, followed by a muffled voice. "Serena, you're up next," said the voice, presumably belonging to a woman. Serena presumed it was a worker coming to retrieve her. "Thanks!" Serena responded. "I'm almost finished!"
As Serena stuffed the extra clothes into her bag, Braixen walked over and softly touched Serena's arm, sensing her nervousness. She smiled at her partner Pokemon, who had spent enough time with her to know her to her core. "We've got this Braixen," she confidently said. "Brai!"
She began to close her bag but saw that the crystal's glow was seeping from beneath her pile of clothing. She sighed and quickly dug for it; she didn't want something to happen to it, so she thought it would be best to have the crystal on her just in case things got out of hand. She tucked it away in her performance outfit and walked out of the dressing room.
Serena walked through the main coordinator waiting room, where many coordinators were anxiously waiting, either for their turn to perform or for results to be announced. Ignoring the people around her, she walked toward a set of doors that lead to the main walkway for the stage.
Just as she was about to open the door, they were opened by someone on the opposite side. The darkness from the walkway clouded her ability to recognize who the person was until she saw the color of their hair.
It was Drew, fresh off the stage. Both he and his Pokemon, which was a Roserade, had a confident look on their face. He looked at Serena and scoffed, before walking out of the room and into the main lobby. She was fed up with this attitude and began storming her way over to him, but May's earlier words stopped her in her tracks
"Let's both go out there today and show him who's boss!" May's supportive words echoed in her head. She couldn't lose her cool now, not when she was trying to get her fourth ribbon against May. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and made her way through the doors, entering the dim hallway.
She and Braixen walked up to the entrance and stood there, waiting for their cue to enter. The worker who sat by the entrance looked and smiled briefly while the current Coordinator was performing. "Wait until your name is called, then head out," The worker informed Serena, who nodded and clenched her fist.
"And next up, from the Kalos region, Serena!" boomed the announcer's voice. The worker signaled to Serena to enter the stage. Walking through the curtain, she saw a large crowd and made her way to center stage. As she took another deep breath, Braixen glanced at her and nodded.
"Braixen, use Fire Blast!" Serena commanded, pointing towards the open space on stage. Braixen pulled out her stick, and let out a fiery burst of energy which created a star-shaped flame.
They had rehearsed this entire sequence of moves many times; she was confident in Braixen's ability to execute them flawlessly. "Now, use Hidden Power on the Fire Blast!" she exclaimed. Three blue spheres formed around Braixen's stick, getting fired directly at the Fire Blast. The result of this collision was a mixture of red and blue flames, which intertwined with each other and created a spectacle for the viewers.
YOU ARE READING
A Journey's Link
Fanfiction'A Journey's Link' is a tale about Ash and Goh, as they continue their duties as research fellows at Cerise Laboratory. Meanwhile, Serena has been pursuing her dream as a Pokemon performer, and is learning more about how to perform at greater levels...
