After the Match

“Amber, could you spare a moment to answer a couple questions?” you stop realizing that Dede Devin, the top reporter from all of Kanto and Johto, wants to interview you. You would recognize her teal hair from anywhere, her braid hanging over her shoulder.

“Oh, yea of course!” you happily respond, pulling up your phone camera to make sure your hair looks fine. Dede and the cameraman hurry to set up the shot, positioning you next to her in front of the camera.

“Dede Devin here with Amber of Pallet Town who just won her way into the second round of the Rookie Tournament. How do you feel?” she says before putting the mic in your face.

“I feel amazing, it was one of the greatest moments of my life,” you answer with a sense of pride.

“That’s always great to hear, so many young women seem so down about their pokemon journeys. So it’s not often that we see a trainer come out of Pallet Town, and this year there are two of you in the Rookie Tournament. Do you feel like your opportunity to grow up near Professor Oak gave you an advantage in starting your journey?”

You hadn’t really considered it too much, the Professor never gave you any special training. However, maybe growing up beside Blue and having him as your rival might have increased your drive to succeed, not that you would ever give Blue any praise aloud, let alone on television. “It’s hard to say, this is the only life I know. I wanted to be a trainer to follow my parents and I’m sure I’d still be here even if I hadn’t grown up in Pallet beside the Pokemon Lab.”

“Well put, I’m sure we’re all excited to see more of you but it sounds like the next match is about to start, so we’re all out of time. Back to our coverage of the Rookie Tournament,” she says directly into the camera.

“And we’re gone,” the cameraman says lowering the lens.

The older woman turns to you, “You were great, battling and on camera. I can’t tell you how many rookies just freeze up.” You’ve watched the Rookie Tournament from home for so many years, so you know she’s right.

Dede and the cameraman start ignoring you, looking at their phones and watching the next match on the screens they had set up around the stadium. You leave them be, making your way to your friends. The crowd is going crazy as Cindy introduces the next set of trainers, but your focus is on your friends. Their faces light up when they see you. “Woo, future Top Rookie in the house,” Yuruki cheers pulling you into the seat next to her. “No offense,” she says looking towards the others.

“She’ll have to beat me first,” Jack playfully laughs, “But seriously good job out there. Bellossom looked great out there.”

“I’m still a little surprised we made it in,” John jokes gesturing to himself and the boys.

“Oh, stop you’re all great,” you reassure him, leaning across Yuruki to give him a kiss.

“Yea, except even if I make it past round 1, I’ll be up against Jack’s fire types in the next round,” Roger laments over his positioning.

Jack just shrugs, “Tough luck, bud.”

“Carlos’s Quagsire can’t take much more of Piloswine’s relentless attacks,” Cindy comments on the current battle. The Piloswine continues its volley of ice shards.

“Fair warning, she’s actually really distracting once you get down there,” you warn the others.

Yuruki starts laughing, “Cindy never stops talking, the only way I found to shut her up is to give her something else to use her mouth for. And oh boy, does she know how to use that tongue.” She leans in to lick your face. The mental image of Yuruki and Cindy together makes you feel a small bit of jealousy before you start thinking of yourself joining the two of them. “I’m going to go grab some snacks,” she says standing up to go find a food stand.

“I’ll help,” Humphrey follows her.

Daisy is staring off into space. You reach over giving her a nudge, “You okay?”

She comes to, looking around, “Oh yea, it’s just if Yuruki’s plan works, I-I might find out who my dad is tomorrow.” Of course that’s what she’s thinking about. When the bracket was released last night, you saw that all of you were on the first half. Which meant that tomorrow none of you would be battling, the first round being split between two days. So Yuruki decided that would be the perfect time to sneak into the criminal organizations secret hideout.

“We don’t have to do it,” you remind her. A part of you dreads the thought of going up against Team Rocket. Ashley and her goons easily overpowered the three of you in an alley, who knows what will happen if you get caught in their base.

“I have to know,” she looks at you. “You don’t have to go,” you can see the tears starting to form in her eyes.

You make your way over to her, “If you’re going, I’m going.” You hug her tight, reassuring her. “I just want to make sure it’s what you really want. But let’s enjoy today and watch some matches.”

She laughs, wiping away her tears. The group settles in watching Carlos lose to Fred, your next opponent. Yuruki and Humphrey return with a tray filled with nachos, soda, and beers for those that don’t need to still battle today. “Let’s see who’s next?” Cindy starts, ready to bring in the next set of challengers.