An invitation from Violet and Blue’s prize.

Silence hangs in the air for a brief moment as you recall Pikachu, and in this moment you take in everyone’s reactions. Daniel looks mildly disappointed, though not necessarily in your performance, just in the fact that things didn’t end in your favor. Kayla sighs and slumps in her master’s arms, clearly lamenting your rival’s victory. Violet sits on a nearby stump, chin propped in her hands, with a small confident smile on her lips. She doesn’t seem surprised by this outcome in the slightest, and her eyes twinkle as she gazes upon the victorious young woman from Pallet Town.

Blue herself looks slightly stunned, as if she can’t quite believe what’s just happened… And then the moment of silence ends. “YES! WOOHOO! We did it, we DID IT!” She shouts in elation, before rushing up to her wounded and paralyzed Nidorina, who she scoops up into a tight hug. “I’m so PROUD of you! You and Clefairy both did an amazing job!” The busty blonde squeezes her tired Pokémon against her chest, smiling brightly, just as she had done with her Squirtle after beating Brooke.

‘Heh, she really does treasure her Pokémon…’ Any feelings of personal disappointment or irritation become incredibly muted as you watch your rival celebrate her victory. Not an insult or barb to be heard, just pure joy and affection for her Pokémon… This is Blue. You take another glance at the Vermillion pair out of the corner of your eye, and now it’s their turn to look stunned, to look like they can’t believe what’s happening right now. You’re sure they expected the sandy-blonde to be vicious towards you, given how she’s been acting up until this point. And while you wouldn’t necessarily have been shocked if that were the case, this is more in line with what you thought might happen, given how well you know her and everything you’ve seen from her up to this point. When her walls are down, and she doesn’t feel a need to act prickly towards you… she really is very sweet.

You start approaching the brown-eyed girl, shooting another glance towards her idol along the way. The purple-haired young woman’s small smile has grown incredibly wide as she watches your rival’s affectionate display, and her gaze briefly flicks over to you as you walk up. All she does is give you a quick wink before shifting her focus back to Blue, and you genuinely have no idea what that was about, but whatever. As you finish closing the gap between you and the ecstatic blonde, you clear your throat and speak. “That was a good match, Blue. Congratulations.”

“Thank you! I really-“ She begins her response warmly, then stops herself short while blinking in surprise. As if she’s only just realized who she’s talking to, the victorious girl does her best to drop her happy expression and switch it to a scowl. “I mean, sure, if you can even call that a match. Nerd. ‘Bout time I got some ****, dipshit. Hope you’re ready to go on a losing streak, perv, ‘cause I’m winning every battle from now on!”

Okay, she is trying so hard to seem irritated with you that it’s actually just cute. Still, you should probably wrap this up quickly so that she can drop the act and go back to celebrating with her Pokémon, and maybe Violet as well. Time to lose some money… “Right, right. Either way, congratulations. Now, let’s just handle my loss fee so that we can-“

“I’m not taking your money.” Blue says dismissively, still clutching Nidorina in her arms. “Don’t need it, don’t want it, didn’t ask, don’t care. Bye!” The sandy-blonde spins on her heel and tries to begin making her way over to her idol, but you reach out and grab her by the shoulder.

“Wait! Blue, you won, you deserve-“

Again, she cuts you off. “There’s nothing in the rules that says I have to claim a prize of some kind. This isn’t a forfeit during an official match, and even then, I’m the girl here. Unless we agree on something else, the only prize I can claim from you is money, which I don’t wanna take. And I don’t feel like working out some other prize, since whatever Lady Violet’s giving me is the real prize here.”

This is a very… kind gesture from your fellow Pallet trainer, but it also twists your chest with guilt. She’s only doing this out of pity, because you told her about your financial troubles back in Pewter. Plenty of trainers go through stuff like this though, you don’t deserve special treatment. And it wouldn’t feel fair, considering the forfeits you’ve claimed from her.“Blue, please, you don’t need to-“

You’re apparently not allowed to finish sentences now. “No. I don’t care what you say, I’m not taking your fucking money, loser. Does that bother you? Sting your pride? Not my problem. Now let me go, I need to claim my actual prize.”

“It’s not about pride, it’s-“

Aaand interrupted again. “Red, look; I am not going to lose sleep over however much money it is I’m not taking from you. What will make me lose sleep is wondering whether or not you’ll be able to stock up properly on stuff for you and your Pokémon, and whether or not the money I would take could be a difference maker. So just stop. I’m not claiming a victory fee, and that’s that. Deal with it.” The brown-eyed girl glares at you defiantly, and you don’t see any room for give in her expression.

You can’t believe it. Even you, who knows by now that Blue doesn’t hate you as much as she seems, cannot believe this. She really is just worried about you, about your financial situation. Even if she’s trying to cover that up by acting like this is for her benefit, so that she doesn’t have to worry, the truth is obvious. To you, and to everyone listening. Daniel looks shocked, but he’s also looking over your rival with a new appreciation in his eyes. Kayla’s expression is a mix of confused and irritated, as if she’s bothered by how unexpected Blue’s actions are to her. You’re sure that she thought she had the blonde girl all figured out, but her perceptions have just been shattered. And Violet… looks about the same. Smiling and watching, warm affection for her fan in her gaze. None of this seems to catch her off-guard in the slightest.

You let go of Blue’s shoulder, and give her a soft smile. “Okay, Blue. You win… Thanks.”

“Whatever, dork.” Pink blush creeps into her cheeks as she turns away from you, and goes to continue walking over to the young woman from Cinnabar Island, before noticing that she has stood up off of her stump and started approaching the two of you.

“Bravo, bravo! Well done to the both of you!” The amethyst-eyed girl says, clapping her hands and grinning ear to ear. “That was such a joy to watch. Both the battle, and the heartwarming scene after~.”

You and your rival both blush, and the sandy-blonde starts to stammer. “I-I-I… Th-That wasn’t… W-We…”

“Oh, hush dear Blue, it was adorable. That’s all I’m saying.” Violet reaches up and pinches the younger girl’s reddening cheek. “Now then, I’m sure you’re excited for your prize, but there’s another matter I’d like to take care of first. Is that okay?”

“Huh? Oh, sure. What is it though?” The blushing girl asks.

The famous trainer turns to you. “I’m running a little short on time here - by which I mean I am already late - so I’m going to need to speed through this a little. How many badges do you have, Red?”

Blinking in surprise, you answer her question. “Just one. I’m on my way to Cerulean for my second, same as Blue.”

“I see, I see… Another question; would you say your two friends over there are as skilled of trainers as you are?” The purple-haired young woman inquires, looking over at Daniel and Kayla.

Your answer is immediate. “Definitely. Better, honestly. They both have two badges already.” Why does Violet want to know these things though?

“Hmm… You two, care to join us?” The older girl calls out to the Vermillion pair, who have been listening curiously this whole time. Once Daniel makes his way over to join you all, still carrying Kayla, Violet continues. “Four young trainers… Two who meet the requirements, two who will soon… Okay!” She nods to herself, apparently having come to a decision on something. “I have a proposition that I’d like to make all of you. Blue, dear, you remember that I told you I needed to be in Vermillion City after this, yes?”

Your rival nods. “Yeah, that’s why you had to be in a rush. What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Everything, dear. You see, I received an interesting job offer recently, which I accepted. An offer to MC a Beginner Level Tournament happening in Vermillion City, one week from tomorrow. And I think that the four of you would make wonderful participants in said tournament, if you’re interested. So, I would like to invite you all to take part. What do you say?”

You’re taken aback for a moment, because you had simply not been expecting this. But… a tournament, your first tournament… That would be amazing, for so many reasons. Getting your name on the map as a career trainer, potential prize money, the thrill of the competition, meeting new trainers you’ll compete against… There’s only one issue. “Um, Beginner Level Tournaments are for trainers with 2-3 badges, right? Blue and I only have one each, so…”

“Yeah, but it’s eight days away! We can win at least our second badges by then!” Blue says excitedly, eyes gleaming at the prospect of her first tournament. The tourney being MC’d by her idol probably makes the idea even more exciting for her.

“Plus, even if Kay and I win our Cascade Badges, we’ll still be fine to enter at three badges each. So no issues there.” The blue-eyed boy adds in, also grinning at the prospect of competing.

“Yup! And… It’d be nice to visit home. It’s only been a couple weeks, but still…” The brunette says, smiling to herself as she imagines getting to see her hometown again.

“Well, that’s three in favor, at least. So, what do you think, Red?” Violet asks, raising an eyebrow at you. “It’s a small-scale tournament, so there’s only eight slots available. I wouldn’t recommend waiting and seeing; if you’re interested, you should act now.”

“…Alright then. Like Blue said, we should both be able to beat Misty and make it to Vermillion in time. So count me in!” You reply confidently. This is way too good of an opportunity to pass up, so you have to make the most of it, and of the Cinnabar girl’s generosity. A week to get to Cerulean, beat Misty, then get to Vermillion… plenty of time!

The beautiful purple-haired young woman smiles widely. “Excellent, that’s four out of eight participants already! I’ll go ahead and sign you all up once I get back. Make sure you all show, okay? It’d make me look bad if you didn’t~.” After the four of you all tell her that you’ll definitely be there, Violet turns her gaze back squarely on Blue. “Now, as for your special prize for winning that battle… you already have it!”

The brown-eyed girl stares at her idol in confusion. “I… do?” The older girl smirks, then brings a hand up and uses a single finger to tap on the breast pocket of the purple coat that your rival is wearing. You all hear the faint sound of something hard being impacted, and Blue looks down in surprise. “Oh, I didn’t even realize… What’s this?” She asks as she pulls something out of her pocket. It’s a thin, rectangular piece of plastic, like a credit card or ID card of some kind.

“A membership card, for the St. Anne-Marie in Vermillion City, dear.” Violet answers, getting an immediate reaction out of your friends from Vermillion.

“Daaamn! You weren’t kidding when you said this was a special prize!” The golden-haired boy says with a whistle.

“You were just… carrying that around with you?” The green-eyed girl asks Violet incredulously.

“Indeed.” Is the famous trainer’s only response, as if this isn’t a big deal to her, before speaking to her fan once more. “Blue, dear, you look a little lost. Do you not know anything about the St. Anne-Marie?”

“Um…. No. Sorry…” The Pallet girl admits, blushing in embarrassment. You’re just as lost as she is really, though that’s about to change.

Before Violet can reply, Daniel actually pipes up with an explanation. “It’s a big party cruiser that sits in the Vermillion City docks a lot of the time. The party’s are a lot of fun, when you can actually afford a ticket. My sister took me there for my last birthday… A lot of fun, like I said.” He grins as he repeats the ‘fun’ part, and now you can’t help but wonder what exactly goes on at those parties.

Violet smirks at the buff blonde. “Glad to hear you enjoyed yourself on my ship. She’s a point of pride for me, personally.”

………There’s an extended pause as everyone takes in the purple-eyed girl’s words and digests them. ‘Her’ ship. Did you hear that right? HER ship!? When you look at the other three younger trainers present, you see mirrored expressions of shock on their faces as well, so it's not just you. Even the Lady Violet super-fan that is Blue seems floored, and she eventually blurts out “You own a boat!?”

The older girl chuckles, a massive grin forming on her face. “No dear, I own a ship. There’s a difference. Heehee, I always love the reactions I get from that part, and yours did not disappoint.” Violet closes the short distance between her and Blue, then wraps her arms around the sandy-blonde. “I’ll be spending most of my free time before the tournament this coming week on my ship. That membership card allows you onto the ship without a ticket, as frequently as you wish, and also marks a cabin on the ship as yours. So please, come visit once you make it to Vermillion. It will be a good opportunity to get to know each other better, which I want to do oh so very much. Please, won’t you come visit?”

“I-I… Yes?” Blue responds, still looking utterly flabbergasted.

Her idol chuckles once more, then kisses her on the forehead. “Wonderful. I look forward to it immensely… But for now, we must part, since I’m already running late as it is.” The Cinnabar girl steps back from her befuddled fan, and addresses you all. “I’m happy to have met you three as well. Hopefully Blue isn’t the only one I get to know a little better, at some point. I look forward to seeing you all compete in the tournament next week, so do give it your bests.” You’re all still a little too stunned to make much of a reply other than nodding as Violet pulls out a Pokéball. “Good luck on your way to Cerulean, and do try to get along with each other. Now then, Gardevoir!”

The purple-haired young woman releases her elegant psychic and fairy type, white dress fluttering in the wind. The appearance of the Hoenn Pokémon barely even registers as a surprise to you at this point; the woman owns a ship. Violet takes her Pokémon’s hand, then gives you all one final smirk. “Farewell for now, everyone. Do try and pick your jaws up off the floor sometime soon, yes? It’s getting dark, so you might lose them if you don’t hurry.” As she chuckles at her own joke, she and her Gardevoir vanish in a flash of white light, Teleporting away and leaving you all shell-shocked.

Violet, from Cinnabar Island… Wow.

Word from the author: Wanted to address this since I’m sure it will come up; the St. Anne-Marie. This is indeed the S.S. Anne as it is known in the English releases of the games, or rather the St. Anne as it is known in the Japanese versions of the games and both versions of the anime. I’m not entirely sure why it was changed to S.S. in the English games, maybe trying to avoid religious context for some dumb reason? As for why I’m using ‘St.’ and have it as ‘Anne-Marie’… You’ll find out later, from Violet. :)