There was a surprisingly sparse number of Coordinators lounging in the green room while waiting for the last few trainers to give their appeals round performance. Glancing around, I briefly wondered how I had even gotten here. It seemed like the last week had flown by in the blink of an eye. I hadn't realized that there was a contest scheduled in a small town that bordered a large expanse of the Milinda River until Theresa had sent me a message asking if I was planning to enter it. This contest was especially unique because in the appeals round it was required that you use a water type pokemon and do your first round in the river, while the battles had to be with a different pokemon in the contest hall.

I had been hesitant to enter since Feebas didn't know any moves except Splash (which was kind of useless) but I also didn't want to let any chance to practice pass by me. Not to mention that Bree had somehow convinced Aryan to come hang out with us for a few days and he mentioned he'd like to see another contest.

As another trainer left the green room to take their turn for the appeals round, I couldn't help but smile when I remembered back to the INSANE battle that I witnessed between Aryan and Bree. I released all of my pokemon to let them watch and I think we were all grateful by the end of it that I chose to be a coordinator instead of a professional trainer. It was amazing the trust and determination each of Aryan's and Bree's pokemon had shown in the battle... But I hated seeing their pokemon get so hurt. At least in contest battles, the point was to be the most beautiful instead of the most powerful. If you could get the perfect balance of beauty and power though, that's what made a really great Contest Battle in my own opinion.

Traveling with Aryan and Bree together was SO MUCH FUN! Those two were constantly jabbing at each other and I honestly thought I was developing ab muscles from how often and hard I was laughing. Aryan had been impressed at hearing that Satoshi had begun helping Shinx learn Magnet Rise, and with his help, Shinx was eventually able to do Magnet Rise all by himself without Absol supplying electricity from his Thunder Wave. Honestly though, I tried not to mention Satoshi too often when Aryan was around. When I had explained how his Pikachu had been the one to demonstrate Magnet Rise to Shinx, he got a strange glint in his eyes. He peppered me with several odd questions, mainly about where Satoshi said he worked and the clothes he'd been wearing. It made me extremely uncomfortable and Bree had whacked him on the head and told him to stop interrogating me. His strange intensity faded after that and he apologized, but I was careful to avoid bringing him up when Aryan was around.

"I wonder why Aryan got so worked up about Satoshi like that," I muttered into Majestoat's fur as I held onto her loosely against my chest. She was keeping me company in the green room until it was my turn, but I knew I would have to eventually return her to her Pokeball. I didn't think that Majestoat disliked being in her Pokeball, but I selfishly wanted to have my pokemon out and with me whenever I could.

When it was finally my turn, I kissed Majestoat's head before returning her and followed the worker out of the small Contest hall to the riverside. Temporary bleachers had been set up along the river's edge for the event and I smiled and waved at the audience as they politely clapped for me. Two shrill whistles echoed out from the stands and I chuckled, knowing exactly who those were from. It wouldn't have surprised me if they weren't competing to see who could whistle the loudest.

I followed the worker out to a small, floating platform at the edge of the rippling water and I gave a quick curtsy to the judges. They nodded at me with friendly smiles and I stepped onto the platform. It immediately began to move, causing me to wobble. I got my balance back though and stood with my feet a little wider apart to steady myself until the platform had taken me out to a designated spot of the river where it was deep enough for even the biggest of water types to swim comfortably.

Taking a steadying breath, I reached for Feebas's Pokeball which was covered in a blue-tinted capsule. "I know this is your first time performing, sweetheart," I whispered to Feebas inside the ball, "but let's just have fun okay?"

The Pokeball shivered slightly in my hand and I grinned, knowing that she had heard me.

Without preamble, I tossed the Pokeball up into the air. As the Pokeball opened, streams of frothy white bubbles spewed out, bubbling up almost like the spout from a Waylord, and there, bobbling at the top, was my Feebas. Even though her appearance hadn't changed since the day Aryan helped me fish her out of a river, my affection for her had skyrocketed and I had grown to love her. Polite applause came from the audience as Feebas rode the bubbles down and into the water. I caught her Pokeball and tucked it into my skirt pocket before holding one hand up and away from my body. I'd added a single red glove to my hand to make the performance pop just a bit more.

I started with the first trick I ever taught Feebas. Spinning slowly on my anchored platform, Feebas followed my hands. At first, just her dorsal fin could be seen, but then slowly she began to jump higher and higher out of the water, following my hand motions as she gained speed. When Feebas was jumping so high that her dorsal fin brushed up against the palm of my gloved hand, I crouched down on the platform and Feebas dove straight down into the river. I could hear a few uncertain claps and I chuckled when I realized some people might think we were done.

I stood up suddenly, snapping my fingers with my hand that didn't have a glove on and Feebas burst from the river, flipping midair over my arm and going back down into the river. I swooped my hand through the air to the other side of the platform and snapped twice this time. Feebas burst from the river with more strength than her little body looked capable of, and she sailed through the air, flipping twice over the top of my head before diving safely back into the river on the other side of the platform. Now there were several cheers coming from the audience and I grinned when I thought maybe everyone was starting to see how adorable Feebas really was.

For the grand finale, I dipped my gloved hand into the river and dragged it all the way around the platform. This was a bit of a risk to do since Feebas had only pulled off this move once before, but she had been doing so well I felt confident that she could nail it. When I raised my dripping fingers from the water Feebas leaped out of the air with a mighty splash and sailed up, this time spinning in tight 360's the entire time she was in the air.

Just as she reached the apex of her leap though, her body began to glitter with shimmering light. I felt my mouth drop open in shock and a collective gasp came from the audience behind me. I watched in amazement as Feebas's body stretched to more than 6 times her old length. Her awkward, blocky fins disappeared, replaced by a supple, fan-like tail and two fins that sprouted from the sides of her head that almost looked like hair. As her body completed its unbelievable change, I saw her falling down right for the platform and I quickly scrambled to the edge to try to make room for her. Her large body landed surprisingly gracefully, but the weight kicked the platform backward, making me lose my footing entirely and sending me tumbling toward the river.

I squeezed my eyes shut, getting ready for the watery embrace, but instead something wrapped around my waist. Opening my eyes, I saw beautiful blue and red scales fanning out in front of my face and looked down to see that Milotic had caught me with her tail and was holding me suspended less than an inch from the water. I breathed a sigh of relief at her impeccable timing and she eased me back onto the platform with her. She smiled at me with a serene and elegant expression and I could hardly believe how beautiful she looked. The sounds of cheering pulled me out of my reverie though and I grinned up at my newly evolved friend.

"Let's give a bow, Milotic," I said with glee. 

Milotic let out a musical hum and lifted her head. I watched in shock as an orb of blue water began to materialize a few inches in front of her mouth. It grew larger and tendrils of water began to spin around the main orb, making it look ethereal almost. With a quick "Milo!" she launched the water orb up into the air where it burst apart and rained down on the both of us gently.

I spun around in delight at this unexpectedly beautiful display and then sank down into a deep curtsy toward the audience. Everyone was clapping and cheering exuberantly and I couldn't keep the smile from my face as the platform unhooked itself and began to float towards the shore. Milotic slithered from the platform and onto the ground with a gentle "shushing" sound as her scales glided over the blades of grass. We took our spot in front of the judges' podium and the audience slowly quieted down.

"Well, I think all of us are dying to know what the judges made of that performance!" Marian exclaimed exuberantly into her microphone before turning the time over to the judges.

"Remarkable!" Mr. Sukizo said, as was customary. I smiled at him before looking towards Mr. Contesta who was bound to have something a little more detailed to say.

"I must admit, I was surprised you chose your Feebas and didn't call out a single move throughout the appeals round. But even before it evolved, your Feebas's strength and her love for you were evident in how readily she followed your silent commands. It was obvious that she trusted you deeply, and I am thrilled to have witnessed the beautiful transformation that trust resulted in," Mr. Contesta said with a small golf clap, smiling widely at me. I could feel tears of happiness beginning to gather and I quickly cleared my throat to try and get a hold of myself.

"I agree. I thought it was an absolute joy to watch Feebas perform so splendidly throughout the appeals round. And seeing how gorgeous she has become under your tender care I can only repeat my dear friend Mr. Sukizo. Remarkable!" Nurse Joy said with a wide grin. I bowed my head in thanks and I felt some water droplets fall onto my back. Looking up, I saw that Milotic was also bowing her head in thanks for the praise and I grinned widely, reaching over and hugging her tightly.

I returned Milotic before practically skipping back to the green room. Several of the trainers who had performed before me crowded around congratulating me on Feebas's evolution. I thanked them excitedly, explaining that I had NO idea that she was even close to evolving and I couldn't contain my glee. After the last performers took their turn, I was amazed to see my picture first in the line-up for the battle round and I shook my head in wonder. Honestly, I didn't think I had much chance since Feebas didn't even know a real move at the beginning of the appeals round. Yet I was thrilled that I could compete in the battle rounds and I hoped that I would make Bree and Aryan proud.

Even though Shinx had improved by leaps and bounds on his Magnet Rise move, there was still about a 30% chance that it would blow up in smoke when he attempted it, so I decided to let him sit with Bree and Aryan to watch this battle round. Instead, I registered Majestoat as my battle partner. Under Bree's guidance, and the not-so-gentle coaching of her grumpy Whimsicott, Majestoat had also learned a new move and I was eager to test out her increased power in her evolved form.

My first two battles were a breeze. Quite literally. Majestoat's Fairy Wind was by far her most versatile move and she could use it to attack or to boost herself out of sticky situations. I was genuinely shocked at how quickly the second round went. Majestoat was hardly winded, but I still took her to Nurse Joy to have Chansey heal her up so she was 100% ready for the last battle round.

When I saw the pokemon we were facing though, my heart dropped into my stomach. Standing on the other side of the battle stage was a girl around my age with silky platinum blonde hair and an air of indomitable confidence. She had released a Quilava, which was the second stage of one of the starters from the Johto region if I remembered correctly. But being a pure fire type meant that this was NOT going to be a quick battle for Majestoat.

"You will have to watch out for Fire types now since they resist Fairy types and are super effective against Steel types." Bree's words of warning after Majestoat evolved came back to me and I frowned uncertainly. Bree had tried to give me a strategy to use if I ever came up against this, but from the flames spouting fiercely from the Quilava's head and tail, I realized that there wasn't much chance of overpowering it before it could hit Majestoat.

"Maj majes."

I blinked, yanking myself out of my inner worries, and glanced down at Majestoat beside me. She had lifted herself onto her hind legs with her tail swishing against the stage floor and she gave me a happy grin. I could feel myself relax at Majestoat's ease and nodded while reaching out and rubbing the tip of her ear.

"Let's make this a beautiful battle, okay?" I said with a grin.

"Majestoat maj!" she replied with a trilling whistle. She then bounded forward, taking her place in front of me, and we waited for Marian to count us in. As soon as the battle began, both my opponent and I threw one hand forward.

"Use Misty Terrain, Majestoat."

"Will-O-Wisp, now!"

My heartbeat quickened as I saw the ghostly flames leaving Quilava's body and begin making their way in an elegant pattern toward Majestoat. However, Majestoat stood serenely with her eyes closed and her face upturned as the gems on her earring, crown, and even her crystal claws glowed with shimmering pink light. Before the Will-O-Wips reached her, the light in her crystals burst out, covering the entire field in a dazzling pink mist. As the Will-O-Wisps closed in on Majestoat, the pink mist drifted up and gently surrounded each of the flames, keeping them from reaching their target.

I sighed in relief, super grateful that Bree's Whimsicott had been able to teach Majestoat Misty Terrain. It was a move that made it so the pokemon who released it was protected against any status conditions. Since Will-O-Wisp was an attack that's only purpose was to cause the opponent to be burned, Majestoat was protected for as long as the mist held up.

"Hmph. That's a cheeky move. No matter. Quilava, use Flame Charge!" my opponent said with a grin.

Quilava let out a war cry and his entire sleek body became engulfed in flames. The flames did nothing to the mist, but they created a beautiful shimmering effect as he rushed forward toward Majestoat.

"Let's do a Fairy Wind jump, Majestoat," I instructed, wishing that Bree could be by my side to give me some advice right about now. 

Majestoat jumped up while giving a whistle and calling a strong gust of Fairy Wind. The wind picked up her light body and sent her sailing over Quilava's charging body. I gasped when Quilava planted his feet and launched himself from the stage, sailing straight up for Majestoat.

"Look out, Majestoat!"

At my warning, she twisted to the side, but Quilava still managed to smack her hind leg with his head. The Fairy Wind died and Majestoat spun erratically through the air. Somehow she managed to right herself before hitting the ground though and she landed firmly on her feet. She shook her back leg that had been hit by the Quilava and turned with an all too familiar glint in her eye.

Uh oh, I thought to myself, recognizing the mischievous expression and knowing that I might have just lost control of the battle.

"Majestoat," I called out cajolingly, hoping that she wasn't thinking what I thought she was. She turned to look at me, her eyes gleaming with mischief. I couldn't do anything but sigh when, without my direction, she began running straight towards Quilava, who was awaiting his next command.

"Use Flame Charge again, Quilava," my opponent called out to her pokemon. 

Quilava's body once again burst into flame and he began charging straight for Majestoat. Both pokemon were determined and it looked like they were about to meet in a head-on collision.

"Majestoat, get out of there! Beautiful movements, remember!" I called out to Majestoat as she kept leaping straight towards Quillava, looking like this was a wonderful game she had just discovered.

She didn't use Fairy Wind as I hoped though. Instead, seconds before she was about to meet Quilava head-on, she skidded on her side causing the mist to stir and part slightly around her. She then breathed out a small whirl of Fairy Wind directly under Quilava's feet. Suddenly on unsure footing, Quilava wobbled and Majestoat righted herself. She swiped her long tail out, sweeping Quilava's feet from under him and causing him to crash onto his side inelegantly.

Well... I guess that works, I thought to myself with chagrin. "Go in for a Lick attack, Majestoat," I recommended, hoping that she was satisfied with the mischief she had caused.

Apparently she was because she eagerly bounded over to Quilava, who was still stunned to find himself with his chin on the stage, and stuck out her tongue. A ghostly tongue that was way larger than her real one extended and lapped right behind Quilava's ear. The pokemon shuddered and I groaned to try to keep myself from laughing when Majestoat extended her tail and ticked Quilava's nose teasingly. He sneezed, lighting his head and tail on fire once again and Majestoat scampered back with a whistling giggle.

Laughter roared through the audience and I shook my head with a tired smile. Majestoat's true nature was coming through in this battle and I was glad that at least the audience was enjoying her prankster-like habits.

"Get up and use Ember, Quilava!" his trainer called out, apparently NOT amused at being taken lightly. Quilava jumped back to his feet, opened his mouth, and spewed out small bullets of flame towards Majestoat, who had been prancing around gloating near him.

"Misdirect it with Fairy Wind, Majestoat!" I called out to her. This time she did as I suggested and used a small whirlwind of Fairy Wind to intercept the oncoming super effective bullets, redirecting them safely to the side. "Follow up with Metal Claw!"

"Flame Charge, again!'

My eyes widened in shock when Quilava burst forward even faster than he had been previously. Majestoat barely had a chance to cover her paws in metal before Quilava barreled right into her tummy and sent her flying. She rolled through the pink mist helplessly, but I breathed a sigh of relief when she shook her head and got back onto her feet, although a little slower than usual.

I was about to give another command when I looked over at Quilava and felt my eyes narrow in confusion. Quilava was stumbling around, looking almost like he was drunk or something, and he kept shaking his head back and forth. When he opened his eyes I stepped back in shock to see that his irises, which had been a reddish-brown color, were now vibrantly pink and... Heart-shaped!

"Quilava? What's gotten into you? Use Flame Wheel!" his trainer called out to him, looking frustrated. 

Quilava ignored his trainer though and looked over towards Majestoat with quite literally hearts in his eyes. Majestoat had sat on her haunches and cocked her neck to the side, looking at Quilava with interest as her nose sniffed at the air feverishly.

"Oh no! Folks, it looks like Quilava has fallen in love with Majestoat? But Majestoat didn't use Attract, which means that Majestoat's ability must be Cute Charm! How adorable!" Marian gushed into her microphone and I cocked my own head to the side.

Cute Charm? What's that? I wondered.

Quilava was skipping merrily over towards Majestoat, completely oblivious to his red-faced trainer as she kept shouting instructions at him. Majestoat bounded over towards the besotted pokemon and tapped her nose with his before turning and scampering away, wiggling her tail as if daring him to catch her. I watched the two pokemon romping about in the fairy mist and wondered just what I was supposed to do with this development.

"Finish it off, Serena!" a loud voice called from the stands, jerking me out of my confusion. I glanced towards the audience feeling myself blush slightly while wondering if Aryan was laughing at me, but I turned back to the battle and shrugged.

"Majestoat, use Fairy Wind on Quilava," I called out.

Majestoat looked over her shoulder at me with obvious glee in her expression at this wonderful game she was playing. She did listen to me though, turning and blasting Quilava straight in the face with a Fairy Wind. The lovesick pokemon was tossed back a few steps but got back up and continued trotting toward Majestoat with pink hearts in his eyes.

"Try to finish it with Lick attacks, Majestoat," I called out. It was the only move that she knew that wasn't resisted by him after all.

My precocious Majestoat wiggled her rear as Quilava closed in on her once more. Her eyes glittered with enthusiasm as she leaped straight at Quilava, knocking him onto his back, and began showering him with ghostly licks. Just before the buzzer was about to sound Quilava finally stopped moving and Majestoat got off of the poor thing's stomach.

She rubbed her forehead gently against the exhausted creature's face, eventually nudging him awake. When his eyes opened they were no longer heart-shaped and he slumped back to the ground, covering his face with his paw in obvious embarrassment. I quickly ran out and pulled Majestoat away to stop her from pestering the poor thing and looked over at his trainer, who had also come onto the stage to fetch her pokemon.

"I'm sorry about that," I apologized bashfully, looking down at her mortified fire type.

"He'll get over it," she said after a small pause. A small smile tugged at her lips and she reached out and rubbed Majestoat's head fondly. "Besides, how can you stay mad at such a cutiepie?"

We both laughed and I waved to her as she returned Quilava to his Pokeball and strode off the stage. I felt a little bad about how that final battle went, but I gratefully accepted my second ribbon to the happy cheers of the audience. To celebrate my success and Milotic's evolution, we all bought tofu dogs, trimmings, and things to make smores and celebrated with a forest tofu-dog roast.

Aryan and Bree could hardly stop laughing when going over my last battle, but I was grateful when Bree explained what Cute Charm was. Apparently some pokemon had an ability where if a pokemon of the opposite gender physically attacks them there is a chance that they will fall in love with them and become unable to listen to their trainer. I made sure to add this new discovery into Majestoat's pokedex entry and was surprised when I got a message from Professor Rowan almost immediately thanking me for updating the information. I was toasting a marshmallow to make my fourth smore when Aryan leaned back and sighed contentedly up at the darkening sky.

"Man, this has been a blast," he said with a grin up at the sky.

Bree glanced over at me with a small smile and I smiled happily over at her. She still hadn't told Aryan her feelings for him, but we had several whispered conversations late at night and I knew she thoroughly enjoyed seeing him again.

"I almost wish I didn't have to go back," Aryan remarked with a small chuckle and Bree's head snapped up.

"You're leaving?" she asked with obvious unhappiness. She quickly cleared her throat and looked off to the side in embarrassment as Aryan cast a teasing grin over in her direction.

"Awww, Bree are you going to miss me? That's cute," he teased with a laugh, tossing a marshmallow at her head and laughing even harder when it bounced off her forehead.

"You're just a good battle partner, that's all," Bree huffed, launching two marshmallows toward him in revenge. He easily caught both of them in one of his large hands though, causing Bree to puff out her cheeks in a pout.

"I'll give you that. I haven't had a battle like that in forever," he agreed with a wide grin, patting his Pokeballs clipped to his belt. His expression turned serious though and he shrugged. "I've got an appointment to get back to though, so I'll have to leave first thing in the morning to get back to Oreburgh in time. I was shocked at how much ground you girls have covered."

"Well, we're trying to get to Snowpoint City before the contest scheduled there so Serena can compete. Plus, it's been forever since I got to see Samantha, so I'm pretty motivated" Bree explained with a wistful grin. Aryan's smile returned and he tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"I had forgotten that Sam was up in Snowpoint. Maybe I should drop in on her," Aryan said with a grin and held up an arm with a laugh when Bree sent a barrage of marshmallows his way. "I'm teasing. I don't hit on married women," Aryan said with a laugh and Bree sank back onto the grass with a hmph.

"Thank you for traveling with us when you're so busy, Aryan," I said sincerely, and he turned a gentle smile on me.

"I'm glad the timing worked out, Serena. And I am really glad I got to see your Feebas evolve in person. That was incredible!" 

I chuckled as I recalled how Aryan had helped me fish out Feebas from the river what seemed like eons ago and I returned his gentle smile.

Time always seemed to speed up when I was enjoying myself though, and soon it was time to say goodnight. When I curled up in my tent surrounded by Majestoat and Shinx on their pillows I smiled happily and couldn't help but be grateful for how wonderful my life had become.

A/N Well... that turned out to be longer than I was expecting :P What did you think of the evolution though?! I'm sorry if it seemed sudden, but writing about training sessions really isn't that fun so this seemed like the best way to do it :P I hope you enjoyed a break from Team Galactic intensity