The water danced into the air at the matching kicks of the swimmers. The chlorinated smell wafted into Daisy's nose as she drew in for a deep sigh. Her two younger sisters were wrong, again.

"No ladies," Daisy began. The swimmers' heads surfaced to look at her as her voice boomed through the underwater speakers. "It's right ballet leg, left ballet leg, right flamingo, then tuck into the pop-up." She drilled the movements with her arms, demonstrating what their legs should be doing. "Not pop-up into tuck."

"What difference does it make, sis?" Lily asked. "We'll all do the pop-up to the same count with or without the tub."

"It matters because we have to compete tomorrow. We don't know what we're up against either, so we have to be perfect," Daisy answered.

She sighed. Maybe she was being too hard on them; they weren't performing to their best ability after such a long practice. "Alright, let's do one more swim through of the routine, then we'll call it a day."

"Sounds like a plan," Lily said, her voice suddenly re-energized.

The sisters met on one end of the pool. Violet and Lily pulled themselves out of the water while Daisy ran over after pressing play on the music. The sisters began their synchronized swimming routine with their deck work—the shortest portion of the performance that takes place on land. The three dived into the water together after doing their flashy movements on the land. They didn't side dive since they had agreed early on that the move was too stereotypical.

The practice went mediocre at best. Daisy constantly felt her sisters bump into her as they spun and danced through the water. Their lifts barely got the flyer to, well, fly. Violet simply flopped into the pool instead of gliding through the air as choreographed. Hybrids—the eye-catching, in-water parts of a routine that featured intricate, upside-down leg maneuvers—were lackluster. Normally the most exciting parts of the dance, they were too splashy to be seen, and someone kicked Daisy with every move.

It was all a disaster.

The trio struck their dramatic end poses as they eggbeatered in place. Daisy panted, and she could hear her sisters heaving for breath too. As graceful as it was, synchronized swimming was a sport at heart.

"Oh my Arceus, I'm exhausted now," Lily said. She dipped under the water as she removed her cap. Her pink hair streamed after her.

Daisy did the same, sinking into the deep water. Her own blonde hair swished around her. She swam through the diving well to the steps, pulling herself up the ladder on tired legs.

"Alright, be here by 7 AM, full makeup and hair," Daisy said. The sisters groaned. She ignored it. "We'll have warm-up and do one final run through before the crowds are allowed in at 8:30."

"Are you sure we have to be this perfect? We don't know what we're up against," Violet pointed out.

"That's why we have to be perfect," Daisy countered. "They might be professionals like us or just some twelve-year-old on a badge quest. Plus, we're doing this for Misty."

The two didn't offer a counter to Daisy's last sentence.

"7 AM sharp," Daisy reminded. With that, she took off for the locker room.

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The sun cast orange rays into the darkening sky. Daisy locked the door to the gym behind her. Lily and Violet were still in there, but they could get out, just not in. She figured it would be easier to slink away now than to deal with her sisters' complaints.

Daisy turned around from the vibrantly painted building. The roof had always reminded her of a pink and yellow circus tent. It wasn't like the sisters had had any say in what the building looked like, they simply had taken it over from the previous owners. If they would have had any say in the matter, the building would have turned out much different. It would have been more flashy and modern compared to the 90's circus aesthetic.

"Luverin, come out," Daisy sighed. The Luvdisc popped out in a bright flash of light. The girl scooped the heart-shaped Pokémon up into her arms and began her walk home.

"I'm worried about tomorrow. I'm not even sure why," Daisy admitted. "Lily, Violet, and I have a plan if we lose to this mysterious solo act. We technically can't hand over control of the gym no matter what the outcome is. That requires multiple battles, video recordings, and far too much paperwork from the league. It was a hassle handing it over to Misty, and that was with proper procedure inside of the family."

As she arrived at a crosswalk, she was reminded why they couldn't refuse the challenge in the first place. An obnoxious sign that poisoned the town hung on the lamp post. It advertised a shadowed figure, obviously a woman based on the curvature, that claimed she was going to take on the Sensational Sisters in a synchronized swimming duel for control of the gym. The news had spread quickly through town. Hating to disappoint, the sisters had agreed to the challenge. However, they were only using it as a publicity stunt, not as an actual challenge.

"Even if they do win, we can't legally hand over the gym. We'll just tell them it was a joke and that we're not gym leaders. That's Misty's job. Oh, I wish she was here right now," Daisy groaned.

The youngest sister had left months ago on another adventure. She had commanded Daisy to watch the gym for her, but not to take any challenges. Misty was strict about the fact that she was the only sister in charge of gym leader duties, even while absent. Daisy and the other two were only figureheads. Charged with simply collecting names and phone numbers, the trio of sisters had turned away many challengers, telling them to come back when Misty returned. The problem? People with seven badges were starting to reappear, writing their names and numbers down a second time.

When she recalled the evening that Misty left, Daisy realized it was less of a commissioning and more like a mother scolding her kids. The youngest sister obviously didn't trust Daisy and the others to do a good job. She had even gone so far as to call them "airheaded bimbos." Daisy grimaced and looked down at her feet as she remembered Misty's exact words.

"We'll do fine though, right Luverin?" The water type gurgled in response. The reassurance was comforting compared to her memories. "Yeah, you're right, we will. People come from all over the world to watch us. We have nothing to fear from one puny challenger."

Then why did her stomach churn when she thought about tomorrow?

Arriving at home, she released Luverin from her arms before digging around for her keys in the fading sunlight. The oncoming night wind provided motivation for her to find them quicker. She unlocked and opened the door. The Luvdisc floated in excitedly as Daisy flipped on the lights. They had precious few moments in the quiet house before Violet and Lily showed up.

"Now, the real question: do I gel my hair tonight or tomorrow?" Daisy asked. She gathered the necessary supplies. A mug, a pitcher for water, a paintbrush, and a packet of gelatin.

A surprising thing that the sisters had started doing recently was putting their hair up into a bun with gelatin to hold it in place. The flavorless variant of the dessert provided shockingly rock-hard hair that didn't fall apart in the water. A team from the Unova region had given them that tidbit.

Luverin provided the answer by using Scald into the cup Daisy had just retrieved from the cabinet.

"Tonight it is," she laughed as she prepared the mix.

After finishing her hair, she left out two other packets and mugs for when Lily and Violet showed up. Skipping her usual TV shows for the night, Daisy opted to go to bed early since she had to be up at the crack of dawn. Luverin snuggled in with her.

"We're going to be fine, right girl?" Daisy asked Luverin for the millionth time. The Pokémon simply hummed a response. "I'll take that as a yes."

She laid in bed for a while longer, staring at the wall. Her bun prevented any comfortable sleeping positions other than her side. The door outside opened and slammed shut, and voices started up in the living room. Bags rustled, and Styrofoam boxes shuffled past each other into the fridge.

"The crowd tomorrow is going to be huge," Daisy heard Violet say.

"I know, I'm a little nervous," Lily said. "Don't tell Daisy I said that though," she quickly added.

"I wouldn't dream of it. We're nervous, but she sounds outright scared."

"Yeah, I think it's just because of what Misty said before she stormed off last time."

The two were silent for a moment. "Yeah, you're probably right," Violet eventually said. "Hey, look, she left gel out for us."

"Bleh, I hate that stuff. Stupid Unovans and their tricks," Lily groaned.

Daisy drowned out the rest of their conversation. She left them to chit-chat in peace as she rolled over to face the other wall. They were going to be fine; they had to be.

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The crowd roared with affection as the announcer began his spiel. The sisters listened from behind the diving tower. They were still damp from their practice earlier that morning.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today is a special day! A mystery soloist is challenging the Sensational Sisters to a synchronized swimming duel. The two acts will be scored on the same one-hundred-point scale by our team of seven judges. As of right now, the challenger has yet to make her appearance, but the Sensational Sisters are all fired up for their performance."

Daisy noticed that he conveniently left out the part about potentially losing the gym.

"Let's give a warm welcome to Cerulean's very own Sensational Sisters: Daisy, Lily, and Violet!"

The three stepped out from the shadows. Spotlights focused on them, and their sequined outfits glistened in the light. They wore identical suits covered in spiral patterns. Each spiral came to completion on a large, glittery flower that rested on the girls' right hips. The only difference was the base color of the suit. Daisy's was yellow, Violet's was purple, and Lily's was pink. Each suit matched the color of an individual girl's hair, which was in turn matched with a faux flower glued into their solid bun with more gelatin.

"Ladies, heads down," Daisy ordered. The three looked down at the ground. "Five, six, seven, eight!"

On eight, they stood up straight as a board and looked up into the crowd. They began to waltz around the pool. Everyone cheered as the sisters passed. Occasionally, the three threw in choreographed waves and air kisses. Anything to keep the crowd energized.

The girls completed their parade at the end of the pool away from the diving tower. They got into their beginning pose and waited for the music to begin. Daisy stood in the back with both arms raised to the sky, her head following their direction. Lily and Violet were in front of her in warrior pose to both sides.

A bow pulled across violin strings to begin the song. The sound was crisp across the speakers. The sisters stood up straight and did a pirouette to the left. They landed in arabesque before diving in. They disturbed the still water at three pinpoint locations.

Ripples obscured the crowd's vision of what they were doing. Under the water, the sisters counted along to the song in their heads. They were prepping for their favorite part of the routine: an explosive lift to set the scene for what was to happen next. Violet stood atop Daisy and Lily's arms, waiting for the sisters to push.

The violin picked up, and Daisy shouted the command to go. The drowned cry signaled for the lift to go up. Violet flew through the air as the music changed to an upbeat remix of a well-known classical song. As the sisters came up with three consecutive thumps in the song, the crowd cheered for the successful lift. Daisy could only imagine what it looked like.

The three eggbeatered so that their chests were high above the waves. They began their arm work as they continued to tread water. Daisy began the chain of events by swinging her arms in a fan above her head. Violet and Lily followed her movements. With her leading arm, Daisy stroked onto her back and waited for the cue in the music when all of them would begin the next motion.

Then, the beat signaled the beginning of the worst part of the dance. Right ballet leg into left ballet leg, then a quick switch into right flamingo. Daisy watched in surprise as their legs moved as one, perfectly in sync. Then, the tricky part.

The sisters all curled up in unison into a tub position, spun underwater, and popped-up together. They all grabbed hands and laid down into a side crawl. They spun around in a circle, then folded down into the hybrid. To Daisy's pleasure, she only felt mist spray her legs. No contact with the other swimmers.

The rest of the routine went just as well. Everything seemed to go without a hitch. The three moved as one unit, awing the crowd with their graceful yet powerful movements. They finished with another lift that sent Violet flying into the air before they moved to tread water in a position similar to how they began the performance; Daisy pointed both of her hands to the ceiling, and Violet and Lily held their arms parallel to the water. The music came to a flourishing end.

The crowd went wild as the Sensational Sisters swam to the edge of the pool. They climbed out and stood in the most visible spot on the deck. Daisy's chest screamed for breath, but she kept her breathing steady, holding her graceful demeanor together. Her sisters did the same to her left and right. They linked arms, looking at the judges' table often in hopes of a score.

"Alright, that was the Sensational Sisters: Daisy, Lily, and Violet," the announcer said. At their respective names, the girls waved to the crowd. "They earned a score of 83.4. Again, that was the Sensational Sisters."

They continued waving and smiling at the crowd for as long as the announcer allowed it. "Up next, we have our challenger. Let's give her a warm welcome."

Polite applause met the hooded figure as she stepped from the shadows. Nothing as crazy as when the sisters stepped out moments ago. Her outfit was much less glamorous too, very industrial. She wore a simple black swimsuit, nothing flashy that would have caused her to stand out. The girl raised her chin to the silent crowd, then said something stunning.

"I forfeit!"

A gasp passed through the arena. Daisy stood there stunned. An 83.4 isn't that shocking. Or has this stranger been playing us? she wondered.

"You can't forfeit. What's the big idea here?" Violet demanded.

"The big idea was to get you three to perform your A-game again." The stranger dropped her jacket's hood now. Daisy and the rest of the crowd gasped at the identity of the challenger.

"Misty?" Daisy asked in a loud voice. "What are you doing here?"

"It's time that I return to be a proper gym leader again. I was away for too long," Misty explained.

"Yeah you were you—"

"I'm not done, Daisy. Let me finish," Misty interrupted. Daisy shut her mouth. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry for storming off last time. It was childish of me."

Daisy dropped her eyes to the ground. Words hung on her lip that she didn't want to say. She forced herself to say them anyway. "I'm sorry too. You were right to get mad at us for handing out badges to every random trainer that walked in. We tried to be more professional after you left, but we just aren't as good at battling. We can only perform."

Misty glared at them before letting a smile play at her lips. "Yeah, you all suck at Pokémon battles," she laughed.

"Hey!" Violet shouted.

"However," Misty quickly continued. "You three are great synchronized swimmers. But, you haven't been performing to the best of your abilities lately. I know, I came in to watch your show a few weeks ago when I issued the challenge. I was worried that it might have been because of our fight. People said that you three haven't been the same since I left. I figured that the threat of competition might help you improve again on the fly."

Daisy found her anger melting away at Misty's explanation. It was hard to stay mad at her youngest sister. She was suddenly made re-aware of the crowd as a technical crew member handed her a microphone. Daisy spoke into the mic. "I forgive you Misty."

"Me too," Violet added.

"Me three," Lily tacked on after Violet. "I just hope you can forgive us too."

"Thanks," Misty said. "And, yeah, I forgive you too."

The crowd fawned.

"Now," Misty began, turning to face the population with microphone in hand. "Let it be known that the Cerulean City Gym is taking badge challenges once again!"

The crowd roared, so Daisy quickly reached for the mic before it became too loud for her to add on. "Let it also be known that we will be performing more routines like that at regular times throughout the year."

As the crowd celebrated the return of Misty and the words of Daisy, the four sisters hugged.

"It's great to have you back, you little punk," Daisy whispered to Misty.

"It's great to be back, sis."