638: A Grand Fight For Winning!
Dodgy Synopsis
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644: Kecchaku Raibaru Taiketsu! Hikari Bui Esu Nozomi!
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So it's finally come down to what we long suspected would be the case - Zoey vs Dawn in the Final of the Sinnoh Grand Festival! Which one of these two ridiculously young girls will reach the apex of their entire career before they've even really started, leading into a spiral of depression and self-destructive behaviour as they desperately try to recapture the fleeting glory of youth? You'll just have to wait and see, Gentle Dodgers, because for now the only thing on their minds (well, Dawn's skirt is also on Zoey's mind) is that this is....
We're straight into the battle, 5 Minutes on the clock and Dawn is using Piplup and Togekiss against Zoey's Glameow and Gallade. The twerps are watching in the stands, so is Team Rocket, Nando and even angry little Ursula. Both waste time thinking about each other and their journey to get to this point, and then finally get ready to start. Ash, meanwhile, is far more interested in this new Pokémon he hasn't seen before, and checks it out with his Pokedex, learning that Gallade is an alternate evolution of Kirlia that has far less fetishist cartoon porn made about it than Gardevoir.
Brock points out that while Dawn has never battled a Gallade, Zoey has never battled a Togekiss, and Johanna points out that this makes them even..... wait a second, Johanna!?! Yes, Dawn's mother has got off of her ass and headed up to Lake Valor to watch her daughter compete in the Grand Festival, having apparently only decided it was worth the trip once she made it to the Final Contest. Brock and Ash quickly make way for her to sit, and the camera focuses on her ass for some reason (oh we all know the reason) as she settles down between them.
Piplup jumps onto Togekiss' back, and the fat middle aged former dancer leaps into the air and uses Aura Sphere in conjunction with Bubble Beam. Ash and Brock are impressed but Johanna just has a small frown on her face, as Zoey reacts with a Shadow Claw/Psycho Cut Combination to slice through the Aura Sphere at the centre of the Bubble Beam, turning it into a cloud before Gallade leaps into the cloud and cuts the bubbles up to create a spinning circle of light, costing Dawn points.
Realising she needs to go on Offense, Dawn has Piplup circle about and fly directly at Gallade and Glameow, pulling up at the last second to catch them by surprise. Piplup tries to take advantage of the distract with Hydro Pump, but Zoey sends Glameow in with Fake Out, clapping it's paws in front of a surprised Piplup in lieu of an attack, the shockwave sending it back. Johanna is full of praise for the girl who ISN'T her child, saying its "brilliant" how Glameow reacted instantly at Zoey's call.
Dawn has lost a quarter of her points already but Zoey has lost nothing, and Brock explains that Fake Out ALWAYS causes an opponent to flinch which is why Piplup couldn't pull off Hydro Pump. Up in the stands, Jesse and James (who once again is straight up just wearing his Team Rocket uniform in public) are delighted at the attack, and insist that Meowth learn it RIGHT NOW!
Gallade uses Vacuum Wave, but Togekiss dodges (surprising Zoey, who comments it is "surprisingly" fast, leaving unspoken the fact it's a huge fatty) and uses Air Slash to score a shot on Gallade. But for some reason the Judges rule that Gallade's move that missed entirely was just as good as Togekiss' move that hit, and Zoey and Dawn lose equal points.
Gallade uses Signal Beam, Glameow uses Iron Tail to catch it, and then flicks around and creates an aurora-coloured ribbon of light. But Dawn is remarkable cool about it, and orders a Whirlpool that Zoey instantly tries to shatter. But Togekiss throws an Aura Sphere into the Whirlpool and when it combines with the thrown ribbon of Signal Beam/Iron Tail, they explode into sparkling fireworks.... and once again the Judges rule the moves "equal" despite Dawn orchestrating the entire thing and uses Zoey's attack against her.
Gallade does a little dance with glowing blades to build up its power, but Dawn has Togekiss spin about in a pretty display of Safeguard, and for the first time Zoey loses points that Dawn doesn't. Ash isn't sure why Dawn would use a protection move at a time like this (remember, as far as the poor boy is concerned, you send in one Pokémon to beat in the skull of the other till one of them can't move anymore) and Brock points out Dawn is probably concerned about possible status changes. Johanna, though, thinks that both girls are feeling each other.... out, you filthy bastards.... to try and come to grips with the team the other is fielding.
Glameow rushes in with Shadow Claw, sparking the floor as it rushes, but Dawn is unsure why an ineffective move like that is being used on Togekiss. She has Togekiss use Sky Attack, Zoey has Gallade use Psycho Cut, and Dawn responds with Piplup's peck... but Johanna warns that Dawn is falling into Zoey's trap by concentrating on Gallade. Psycho Cut and Peck hit and cause a blinding light, and Glameow (with its back to the source of the light) leaps over Togekiss, bounces on its springy tail and lands on Togekiss' back as the light fades and Dawn is finally able to see again. Glameow is holding onto Togekiss' back, and as Togekiss flies about trying to shake it off, it costs Dawn points because the glamour and grace is gone from the fat, gone to seed dancer that is Togekiss.
Johanna explains to Brock and Ash that in a Contest like this, the Coordinator must keep complete focus on BOTH the Pokémon they are using and BOTH the Pokémon their opponent is using. Dawn has been focusing one on one rather than two on two, and now Togekiss is suffering as it panics and forgets to "perform", just trying to get the cat off of its back. But then the unexpected happens... Zoey makes a mistake!
Safeguard!
Yes, Zoey has had Glameow use Thunderbolt but it has activated Safeguard, and now Togekiss is safely inside a stable bubble of protective energy, exhilarating Fantina who leaps up to try and get some attention on herself. Zoey loses points but once again Dawn does too, and now there are only two minutes left and Dawn only has a quarter of her points while Zoey still has almost half of hers.
Piplup moves in to help Togekiss but Gallade gets in the way, using Vacuum Wave.... but once again Dawn surprises Zoey by having Piplup roll through the air out of the way of the attack (a move long since perfected by working in conjunction with Ash), leaping up high into the air and using Hydro Pump to blindside Glameow and knock it off of Togekiss' back.
Togekiss soars freely again, catching Piplup on its back, and Zoey loses points while Dawn does not, a rare occurrence so far in this battle. Zoey clenches her fist for a moment, impressed and surprised by Dawn's innovation, and then once again calls for Psycho Cut. This time, Gallade sends rings of energy flying across the battlefield, but once more Togekiss spins clear of the attack, momentum and gravitational force holding Piplup in place (as well as stubborn clubby little paws) and Zoey loses more points.... Dawn is doing so well that Johanna actually has a small smile on her face! Not so Kenny, who stands scowling as he watches HIS rival competing with HER rival on a television in some far off Pokémon Center for losers who couldn't even beat nameless/faceless make-up-the-numbers Coordinators to make it through to the second round. Other characters who encountered Dawn along the way are watching as well, as we close in on the one minute to go mark and Dawn and Zoey's points are now remarkably close - Dawn on 25% and Zoey on maybe 30-33%
Zoey tells Gallade to separate Togekiss and Piplup, the rings chasing after Togekiss, causing Piplup to have to leap clear. Dawn takes advantage though, telling Piplup to use Whirlpool while Togekiss flies zip and pulls up in front of Gallade, Glameow and Zoey to distract them. Zoey sees through the distraction though, and Glameow's Iron Tail catches the Whirlpool and spins it in place! Piplup looks on furiously from Togekiss' back, pissed off that its move has been taken advantage of, but things get worse as Gallade uses Vacuum Wave and shatters the Whirlpool into a pretty display to Zoey's benefit.
Dawn loses more points, but she's more determined than ever after fighting back so hard, and uses a Sky Attack/Peck Combo to... HOLY SHIT!
The vey LOOK of the move itself cuts down Zoey's points, making them tie up equal on points with 20 seconds to go. Gallade leaps onto Glameow's tail and absorbs a Thunderbolt, taking in the power and buzzing with energy as it leaps up with Psycho Cut and prepares for an all or nothing gambit against Togekiss and Piplup's Combination. It fires rings of Psycho Cuts at the approaching Pokémon, they crash through it, absorb it, take it, come through it and all four Pokémon land safely and stand facing off as time runs out, the final points are removes and.... and.... and.....
ZOEY WINS!
Goddamn! By the barest of margins, Zoey has just barely pipped Dawn at the post by a fingernail, the winner of the Grand Festival is Zoey! She's Sinnoh's Top Coordinator, and Dawn is "only" the second best Coordinator in the entire Region at the age of 10 years fucking old.
Zoey hugs Gallade and Glameow, then looks over at Dawn who has picked up Piplup and has Togekiss beside her. Dawn looks up at the scoreboard, over at Zoey, thinks about how she tried her hardest and didn't quite make it and.... she's okay with that! Zoey gasps happily when she sees Dawn smile at her, she wins Top Coordinator, doesn't lose a friend, and the dream of maybe slathering her in ice cream and doing horrible, horrible, horrible, beautiful things to her body remains alive!
One person, however, really doesn't take it very well. Jesse bites into the barricade in a fury, she TOLD the twerpette not to lose after beating her and she did... so the hell with this, ripping her clothes off (hey hey!) she declares it's "back to the salt mines" and in Team Rocket uniform, storms out of the Arena along with James and Meowth, leaving behind with a sad camera shot her Jesselina costume - ready to get back to what they do worst - be villains!
Zoey is presented with the trophy and Fantina once again tries to get the attention on her, while Marian wraps things up and the Grand Festival is, once again, over. Dawn heads backstage and gets changed, then steps out to meet the others and discovers for the first time that Johanna is there. She hugs her mummy happily and asks if she saw the battle, then apologises for losing. Johanna tells her she was delighted with the way she battled, she's very proud and happy, and then Dawn gives her back the ribbon she gave to her way back in Twinleaf Town, telling her how much it meant to her but she always intended to return it after the Grand Festival. Now she has her five ribbons, great friends, and she's ready to move on and try harder for next time. She asks if she is being a little sappy but Johanna tells her it's all just perfect, and tells her she's happy to discuss the battle in depth with her now, thinking she might like the advice of a former Grand Festival Winner to talk about the good things... and the bad things.... and the close calls. Nurse Joy arrives and tells Ash that she has received a message from Volkner - he's ready now for his Gym Battle with Ash, and if Ash can win that then he qualifies for entry into the Sinnoh League Championships!
A little later, Dawn and Zoey stand together and watch the sun set over Lake Valor, Zoey telling Dawn that it still really hasn't sunk in yet that her career has peaked at such an early age. Dawn asks her what she intends to do next and Zoey tells her that she's heading back to Snowpoint, since Candice insisted she get straight back there in order to "celebrate". She rather sheepishly tells Dawn that Candice said it was totally cool if Dawn wanted to come along and "celebrate" with them too, but Dawn gets the wrong end of the stick and explains that while she'd love to, she has other things that she needs to do. Zoey ALSO gets the wrong end of the stick, asking if Dawn means "cheering" for Ash, and when Dawn agrees, Zoey tells her to go cheer her heart out. They say their goodbyes, and then Zoey heads off for Snowpoint and Candice, where they're going to cheer each other's brains out all night long.
God Bless America.
Nando arrives to congratulate them both on their battle, saying that now he has lost the Grand Festival it's time to focus for the time being on Battling. He has his 8th Gym Battle to complete, and then it's on to the Sinnoh League, but first he wanted to say goodbye. They all part ways, and Dawn calls out all of her own Pokémon, telling them that they did a fantastic job and her dream is still alive, she knows now that she has what it takes, she held her own and almost beat the girl who is now Sinnoh's Top Coordinator, making her the second best currently in the region. For a first year that's pretty damn fucking good, and she intends now to go on and she WILL be a Top Coordinator.
The question is, Gentle Dodgers, will we ever get to see it?
| BEST QUOTES |
 "That move is an absolute must! Learn it now, Meowth!" |
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