Pokemon: The Queen of Kalos

A Moment of Lumiose Victory

Oh my gosh guys, I'm suuuuuper duper sorry for the multiple-weeks late chapter! I had a performance that sapped all my time, and although the prep was hectic, it's finally over. Which means... a new chapter, finally! I hopefully won't have to delay another chapter like this, at least for a long while, so without further ado! Here it is!

~

Ash took Zenith's hand as she helped him up easily. The black-haired boy hid the slight blush on his face as he adjusted his cap and let Pikachu jump onto his shoulder. He turned to the honey blonde grinning in front of him, almost losing himself in her eyes before a voice jostled him from his thoughts.

Serena was panting heavily as she jogged after them. "Ash! You shouldn't have run ahead withou-" When she saw him and Zenith gazing at one another, she stopped, a frown forming on her face as she slowed down. They immediately looked away to see her instead, with the two's faces also falling.

Zenith looked away. "See you inside."

Ash gave Serena a glare before turning to chase after Zenith, with the former honey blonde groaning as she began to run after him. Red, Bonnie, and the other girls weren't far behind.

Already, the two were back together, smiling and laughing, as a voice met them. "Welcome to Lumiose Gym!"

"Clembot!" Zenith exclaimed, running up to give the robot a grin. "I take it you're finally fixed!?"

"Yes indeed! Clemont is very good at working with machinery. I'm all ready to take on challengers!" His mechanical voice replied with a thumbs up. Not a moment later, said blond appeared form around the corner.

"Anything's possible with the power of science!" Clemont said proudly. "Welcome to my gym, everyone!"

Bonnie immediately ran up to him, tackling the blond. "Big brother!"

He groaned before returning the hug. "Hey, Bonnie." Then, the two stood up and Clemont fixed his glasses as he faced Ash. "So, I take it you're ready for a Gym Challenge?"

"You bet!" The boy replied with a fist closed in determination. "My Pokemon and I have been training for a while! We're totally ready!"

"Just say the words!" Clembot prompted, gesturing to the closed doors behind them.

Ash turned his cap backwards. "Alright! I challenge you- Clemont- to a gym battle!"

The glass doors opened, and the blond scrambled inside. Bonnie enthusiastically lead everyone except Ash to the stands, where they could sit and watch, while the black-haired boy entered the battlefield. Zenith prepared to stand so she could cheer, but Crystal's words came back to her.

Not... cheer him on...?

She sighed. She wanted everyone else to be able to hear the battle, but at the same time, she wanted to reassure Ash. She noticed Chespin- Zenith assumed he wasn't picked for the battle since he wasn't an Electric-Type, though she noticed Bunnelby was released on the field- sulking as he took a seat, though Bonnie was quick to pick him up. She sent the Grass-Type starter a weak smile before looking down into her lap.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Serena releasing Braixen, Bonnie letting Dedenne out, and her sisters releasing their starters to watch from beside them.

Without any stimulus aside from her trainer's sorrow and her fellow starters being released, Zenith's Gardevoir appeared at her side, reassuringly patting her shoulder. The honey blonde gave her Pokemon a thumbs up, letting her sit beside her. She pulled another Pokeball from her belt and released Espy.

"You're in need of some grooming, and I should busy myself as not to get distracted by the heat of battle and yell...," she reckoned aloud, taking out a brush and began to stroke the Pokemon's fur.

Meanwhile, as she dedicated herself to brushing Espy's fur, Ash and Clemont's battle had begun and was waging. He looked up, but noticed Zenith was completely absorbed in something else, not even looking up to watch the battle.

His heart fell and he nearly missed telling Pikachu to dodge an attack from Bunnelby. Why isn't she watching? Ugh, I can't worry about that, I need to win! But still...

The nagging at the back of his mind remained even after he set his thoughts aside.

Zenith victoriously set her brush down, admiring Espy's shining fur. She had done wonders on it, and pulled a red ribbon from her bag to tie around the Espeon's neck for good measure. However, she hardly spared a glance up, seeing Bunnelby knocked out before averting her gaze, though she could hear Serena behind her.

"Ash seems to be really enjoying this!"

With a deep breath, she looked up again, locking eyes with him. She repressed the (very strong) urge to cheer for him and looked back down. "Yeah, he's been looking forward to this battle for quite some time," she replied quietly, feeling guilty.

Ash shook the despair from his eyes as he looked down to his Pokemon. "Well! Pikachu, we won that one, but now it's getting real! Right, buddy?"

"Pika!" The Pokemon replied with a strong nod.

"Okay, Ash! My next Pokemon is Heliolisk!" Clemont called from the opposite side of the battlefield.

Ash looked to his partner and they exchanged a look. "Alright, return, Pikachu! My next Pokemon is Goodra!" The former electric mouse returned to the perch on his shoulder as the pink goopy dragon appeared.

Knowing she'd accidentally cheer if she watched for much longer, Zenith sighed as she reached into her bag, pulling out her sketchbook. Art always helped her mind, so she decided to design a new performance outfit for herself, and once that finished, all six of her teammate Pokemon. A bright flash of light from Heliolisk briefly interrupted her, but she did her best to ignore it.

Finally, once she had the whole thing done- and the battle still wasn't over- she put the book away and tuned into the battle. Ash was cheering since he defeated Heliolisk and she had to repress the grin and accompanied chuckle from erupting.

Why is it so hard for me to stay serious? I can always do this for performances, so why can I not now of all times?

She rested her head on her arms, watching in dismay as Clemont's next Pokemon- his Luxray- demolished most of Ash's team. He was left only with Goodra, which she immediately noticed was paralyzed, to fight. His face was already showing dismay and even defeat, and he looked almost ready to give up.

Her Zenith instincts kicked in, and suddenly her sister's words didn't mean a thing. Throwing her bag to the side, she leapt up and ran to the railing, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice. "COME ON ASH, YOU CAN DO IT! I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU TOO GOODRA! KEEP ON FIGHTING! I KNOW YOU CAN!"

Everyone in the gym was shocked, and she noticed Ash turned to her with a shocked grin. However, the effects were immediate, and his fighting spirit was back. She refused to sit back down as she watched the rest of the match, watching as the Dragon-Type managed to defeat Clemont's strongest Pokemon with ease, and noticed Ash's confidence sky-rocketing again.

Behind her, a certain platinum, blue-highlighted blonde was chuckling at Red's side.

When Ash was announced the winner, everyone ran down to congratulate him, but Zenith was the first, lifting him clean off the ground in a hug, full of joy and laughter. "Ash! You did it!"

Afterwards, as she triumphantly led the group after her to buy Ash an ice cream to keep her promise, she privately apologized the Crystal. However, she only smiled and winked, not like Zenith knew what she meant by that.

They're more than just friends... I think they're best friends, Crystal thought wryly.

~

Crystal's plan was finally put to the test, but it seems Zenith can't stand not cheering for her best friend. Or... are they more than that?

Until next time, I must bid you all adieu.

Zenith S. Sawyer