As the morning sun began to swim its way into the morning, bringing orange to a dark blue sky, I run my fingers through my hair, untangling my locks. That was the first time I've slept in a sleeping bag, let alone a tent.

Mami said it'd give me a good taste of being a Trainer, to set up our tents in the middle of the Lumiose City streets, even though people passing by that night threw some change our way as we slept. I woke up to some stranger trying to steal it.
To get away from the city that just never sleeps, I went back through the gates to Route 4.

Teddiursa was sleeping in my bag so I went alone to clear my mind. Route 4 wasn't at all long, especially since Jack and Mami had bikes they could reassemble that fit in their bags. I could probably be back home in less than half an hour. Not that I'd do that, obviously.

"Whoa!"

Disrupting my thoughts is a boy I don't know, which isn't surprising seeing as how my list of aqaintances is a sticky note with two names. The boy, like people I've seen at the Rosalia fountain, skates by me, doing all kinds of daredevil flips and spins.

I sigh to myself as he passes by."Some people just have way too much energy for the morning."

A cold breeze tugs on the hem of my T-shirt, making my cheeks flush over with warmth. Better get back before I catch a cold, I say internally as I head back, hugging my arms.

When I arrive at our tents I see Jack wide awake gnawing on a granola bar, less dressed than I am. "Isn't it a bit cold to be dressed in nothing but your boxer shorts?" Not to mention the fact that this city is really crowded to begin with.

"Huh?" Jack looks over at me, his eyes widening."Oh, no!"

"It's okay." People lie to make their companions feel better, right?

"You saw my hair!" I'm left bewildered as Jack rushes to cover the top of his head, which isn't at all what caught my attention. He leaps into his tent and appears again faster than I can blink, his black hat perched on his head.

"I didn't really see... Never mind."This is an awkward situation, but I've seen worse on TV. At least he wasn't busy shaving his legs in a fountain.

"Do you even remember me?" When I first met Jack he was about to pass out, making me wonder if I'm not another stranger to him.

"Of course! You're Gina, right?"
"What an amazing skill..."
"You two are up!" I barely hear Mami over the loud sound of her unzipping her tent, and when she emerges from its light purple covering she's already dressed.
"Wow!"

"Here you go, Gina!" Before doing anything else she hands me an orange jacket.

"I'll get changed then." She doesn't hear me, however, lecturing Jack about being slightly indecent when people could be watching.

I slip into my tent and get changed, all with extreme difficulty. I finally manage but come out with my hair a mess, similar to the bedhead I had earlier. Luckily I packed a brush.

"Ursa!" Teddiursa greets me with its cheery grin, helping me carry my night clothes out of the tent.

"We should grab a bite!" Jack yawns with a stretch, his hand rubbing his now covered stomach."I could go for a meal."

"Then let's check out one of the cafés!" Mami's suggestion reminds me of being back home, despite home being right within reach. However, since this is Lumiose City, I doubt my hometown's cafés can compete with their luxury.

"Let's find a good one outside!" Mami leads the way as if she knows the streets well, though I notice her frequently pulling a map in front of her face.

"Over there!" Mami yanks me and Jack to a set of outside tables, where thankfully we're the only customers there.

We take our seats, and as my eyes scan the menu for something familiar Mami puts something on the table. I look up for a brief second to see what she put down, not very interested. A Pokeball.

"It's a Fennekin!" She explains energetically. "We've been meaning to give it away!"

Thanks." Deciding on a crêpe I put down the menu and open the Pokeball to please an imposing Mami.

"Fen?" A cute yellow and orange Pokemon appears, curiosity on its pointy face as it stares up at me.

"Ursa!" Teddiursa gives it a friendly greeting, but Fennekin growls at it and nudges the Pokeball, indicating that it'd rather be inside. I put it back, shrinking the ball and putting it in my bag, not eager to own this Pokemon.

"You can use it in Contests!" I don't see why Mami couldn't just take the grumpy Pokemon herself, but I don't push the issue. It's too early for all that.

"Ready to order?" The waiter appears, wearing a smile as bright as the sun.

"I'll take a fruit parfait," Mami humbly answers.

"One of your crêpes, please."

Jack lifts the menu from his face, displaying his bewilderment."Crêpes? Parfaits!" He puts down the menu and nods to the waiter."I'll take a grilled cheese."

"In a moment, then." The waiter grabs our menus and heads inside.

Once the waiter's out of earshot Mami stares at Jack with a teasing grin, leaning on the table with her head in her hands."Too fancy for you?"

"Kalos is so weird!" He doesn't even try to hide it."I can't pronounce most of the stuff on the menu!"

Mami giggles, and I find myself smiling slightly. I think this region is weird, too, but I bet I'd have those feelings anywhere.

"Where'd you say you were from? A lot of water, beaches... Hoenn?"

"No, not Hoenn," Jack corrects her, clearly offended. "It's Al-"
He's cut off by a well dressed boy that appears, who seems to know them both.

"Miss Mami."The boy takes Mami's hand, planting a kiss on it that makes her blush.

"Trick!"

I look him up and down. Something about this guy really annoys me. Teddiursa glares at him, too, picking up on my strange feelings.

"And who is your lovely friend?" The boy notices me, and before I know it he takes my right hand. Teddiursa snarls and nearby other women are swooning over this clown.

I leap out of my seat and snatch my hand away with defiance.

"What the heck are you doing, you creep?!" The women near him gasp, and Mami covers her mouth with shock.
"Gina..."

Trick chuckles, and when he stops his expression makes a swift 180° to seriousness."You'll pay for that." He snaps his fingers, and two more people arrive, both of them giving me the same vibe.

"So this is where the rats decided to show their faces," the girl says, instantly making me hate her. She flips her light brown hair, her overconfidence making me cringe.

"We gonna battle these worms or what?" Her friend is just as pompous, the red gleam of his eyes displaying the same thing.

"Care for a battle?" Trick asks politely, though I can see well through it. All three of them are a bunch of pompous jerks with huge egos, irritating me to the core.

"Your food is ready!" Breaking the silence is our waiter who appears with our meal. Then he jumps at the sight of the people standing next to us, our food hopping off the tray to land on the street with a sickening squish sound.

It'd be absolutely hilarious if that was these guys' food, but it was ours, making me even more ticked off.

"What the heck is-!"

"Ursa!!" Teddiursa runs off the table to the mess, tearing up at the ruined food.

"This is some-urgh!!" I struggle to keep myself calm. I can't lose my cool in front of these tools now!

"Kai."

"Jocelyn." Both Mami and Jack seem way less sure of themselves with these three in their presence, shrinking back in their seats with looks of uncertainty.

"Don't tell me you're afraid of these, these...." They insulted us, ruined our food, and now they want to show off in a battle!

"Gina, you don't know?" Mami's eyes are full of disbelief until she explains that the three are in magazines, giving her a depressed look afterwards.

"Jocelyn was the heroine in 'Mega Blaziken Girl', too," Jack adds.

"I don't care about any of that." Why would that be so impressive? "Any idiot with money and a camera can do that junk!"

"You've insulted us for the last time!" I'm completely unfazed by Trick's anger, and even more unfazed by him and his friends taking out their Pokemon. A Grovyle, Pignite, and a Combusken.

"Then let's do it!" Mami's energy returns to her as she enlarges Piplup's Pokeball and releases the small blue Pokemon.

"All right!" Jack, completely onboard, lets Gardevoir out, but the feminine Pokemon is more interested in nuzzling her Trainer than participating in a battle.

"Then we'll beat you clowns again," Kai says with a boastful grin plastered across his face, making me want to punch him in it.

"I guess I can..." Jocelyn looks up with a flighty look in her eyes, as if pondering whether or not she has the time."Oh, well. Stomping the rats won't take long, I'm sure."

"They're our rivals, Gina." Mami hugs my arm, and for once I'm not at all bothered by the close contact. "But now that we have you with us we're an even team!"
Like I bring that much hope...

Trick's team walks onto the empty street, motioning for us to follow. Our Pokemon follow us as we take our positions, several meters from our opponents.

"Those annoying faces..."

Jack taps my shoulder, the look he gives me pleasantly reassuring. "Think about the looks they'll have when they lose!"

Mami, at Jack's left, gives me the same look."We'll get them for sure!"

"A battle with the Amazing Three!" People flood in, fully awake and eyes ready to see a battle. Most of the spectators, however, seem to be rooting for our opponents.

"Let's get this over with," Jocelyn scoffs, brushing her hair with her fingers."I have somewhere to be."

"Oh, this will be over in a minute." Trick gives me an evil grin, but I'm not about to stand down. "I promise."

"Stop talking and let's go, then!" Mami hisses, starting the battle.

"Pignite, Flame Charge." Kai commands his Pignite to make the first move, the moderately tall orange and black Pokemon stomping its feet at its Trainer's order. Pignite rushes forward, its body enveloped in flames.

"Dodge, Gardevoir!"

Gardevoir spins out of the way, but Kai has Pignite follow up with a quick Rollout attack. "Gardevoir!"

"Hey, Piplup! Bubblebeam!" Mami's Piplup springs to action, sending furious bubbles at Kai's Pokemon, who rolls out of the way just in time.

"Oops."

Bubblebeam lands on Gardevoir instead, making the elegant Pokemon slightly irritated.

"Mami!"

"Don't worry, Jack!" Mami winks.

"Dig." Somehow a level of ground is created, allowing Grovyle to burrow its way into it.

"Enough of this, rats!" Jocelyn points to Teddiursa. "Hi-Jump Kick!"

"Heck no!" I try to plunge myself into the battle but Jack grabs my arm.

"Wait! You can't interfere!"

"Oh, yeah..."

"Oh, no you don't!" Mami send Piplup to guard Teddiursa with Bubblebeam, but Combusken leaps into the air. "Bubblebeam!"
"Piplup!"

"Leaf Blade." Grovyle emerges in front of Piplup, slicing her attack with green blades that jet out from its elbows. Piplup narrowly dodges the oncoming attack, but is apprehended by Combusken, who grabs her from behind.

"Leaf Blade." Trick is calm and collected as he gives the order, angering me even more. I have to stop him, quick!

"Charm!" I blurt out one of Teddiursa's moves, not too sure of what it does.

"Teddiursa!" Teddiursa holds its face and dances, pelting Grovyle with big pink hearts.

"What the heck?" But the move stops Grovyle from attacking.
"Psyshock!" Gardevoir's body is surrounded by a purple light, and she points an arm to Combusken.

"Combusken, dodge it!" Combusken ducks out of the way, releasing its grip on Mami's Piplup.

"Rollout!" Pignite rolls on the ground, picking up more speed as it gets closer.
"Peck!"

"Use Peck, too!" Piplup and Combusken move out of Pignite's path, their beaks clashing like swords.

Grovyle looks over at Teddiursa, its elbows glowing."Leaf Blade!"

"Gardevoir, go!" Gardevoir lifts the green Pokemon with Psychic, protecting Teddiursa.

"Thanks, Jack!"

Jack gives me a sheepish grin "No problem!"

"Gardevoir!" He tears his eyes away from me at the sound of his Pokemon's cry, and I hesitantly turn to see Gardevoir struggling to stay up after being hit by Rollout.

  "Piplup!" On Mami's side Combusken seems to be the one who's winning, Piplup an easy victim to her foe's attacks.

  "Leaf Storm!"

  Pignite rolls away again to let Grovyle finish things up with a whirlwind of sharp leaves.

Teddiursa tries to dodge but bumps into Piplup, who bumps into Gardevoir, and all three are caught in the attack.

  "Piplup!"

  "Teddiursa!"

  "Oh no! Gardevoir!"

  "That's all the rats wrote!"
  "An easy win."

  "I told you you'd regret it."

  Just like that we lost. We lost to those jerks! This is why I wanted to stay home. Over the years I guess people like this still exist, proving to me that the world isn't all that worth seeing.
  "Teddiursa..."

  Mami drops to her knees in defeat, sadly retrieving her Piplup. The crowd cheers for the victors, ignoring us.

  "Return, Gardevoir." Jack's voice is stale with disappointment, and he tugs on his hat to hide his face.

  "Let's go to one of those Pokemon Centers." It's not much, but it's all I can offer. If I can't console myself than what good could I possibly be to someone else?

  A pink haired woman with a kind and pretty face takes care of our Pokemon, having her Wigglytuff return their Pokeballs on a tray.  Jack, Mami, and me sit on one of the couches to sit and reflect. I'm hungry, tired, and upset, but not as much from losing the battle to losing to them.

  "We should train more, I guess." Mami's offer barely gets through to me, my mind already fogging with clouds of clustered thoughts.

  "I guess we could have used better teamwork," Jack sighs, his Gardevoir hugging him.

  "You can train your new Fennekin for the Contest!" Mami says, trying to keep a bright face. "I heard it only goes for Coordinators."

  "Coordinators, huh?" Come to think of it, didn't Mami say I reminded her of a Coordinator or something? No, it was that I "screamed" Coordinator. "What made you think that I'd be interested in that, anyway?"

  "Coordinating? Well, it was because of how you watched my battle against Viola."

  "What?" I couldn't have looked that interested, could I? It was just a battle, after all."A reason as dumb as that couldn't have been enough."

  "Couldn't it?"

  I look up to see what she meant, but Mami gets out of her seat. "I can show you how to put on a great performance, and I'm sure you and Fennekin will love each other!"

  I rub my head, reflecting on what felt like an entire day, even though I've only been up for around an hour. I got a new Pokemon, one I doubt I even want, battled and lost to some "rivals", people I had learned are Trainers you hate more than whoever you're stuck with, and now this.

  "Sure." I'm not even sure about this whole Contest thing, either. What if I see Anri?

  "Well, then I guess now is a good time to rest up a bit before training," Jack yawns.

  "Okie dokie!" Mami grabs my hand."We'll be outside using the battlefield. "

  As Mami lures me outside, I think even more about the possibility of meeting Anri. I've seen all kinds of Top Coordinator reports and documentaries, all to see if she was featured. For some reason I've never been able to let go, even though I'm sure she's already forgotten about me.

  If I do see her one day, us having to face each other on the same stage... I'll have to do it. For what's been a long time I've had this leash around my neck, the owner being my past. This matters to me more than any jerks I just met.

  "Since Fennekin is a Firetype Pokemon, she'll know a lot of special attacks instead of Teddiursa, making her a prime choice in the Appeal Round."

  As Mami begins to explain Contests and the Appeal Rounds, I come to a final decision. I'll have to deal with Anri one way or another, or else I'll never have any closure. I have to get rid of the problems of the past if I even want to consider moving forward. To stop myself from choking I'll have to sever this leash.