May Pokemon - Tumblr Posts
I have a pokemon headcanon that has to do with the lack of battles and guys in Kalos contests.
And it is that Ash wanted to participate in these contests, but they rejected him for being a man and also that they explained to him that there were no pokemon battles here like in the other regions and that it had to do with the beauty of the girl and how she coordinated with her pokemon
Needless to say, he's been complaining a lot to Dawn and May, they were complaining too. I mean, it was incredibly unfair that only girls were allowed to do that.
Pokemon for the Pokegirls
This is pokemon that I think the girls should have/kept. Also, this is set a couple years in the future, hence the different clothes
Headcannons: Pokéguys with affection
I was in a Valentine's Day mood, alright? 💗
Ships: Poke, Contest, Ikari, Wish, Geekchic, Oldrival, Handyman, Fourthwheel hints
… and Brock
WARNING: LONG POST
Ash
— Ash is legitimately good at flirting — but the thing is, he doesn’t even know he’s flirting.
— He and Misty are walking through the Kanto snow all bundled up, and Ash notices Misty rubbing her hands together and shivering.
— “You cold, Mist?” Ash asks, and before she can respond he just. Takes her hand, locks their fingers together, and puts her hand in his pocket.
— Misty damn near has a heart attack, sputtering and turning bright red. Before she could say anything though, Ash continues on, holding her hand as they walk.
—He’ll also be complimenting her, saying “Wow, Misty, you look beautiful with your hair down!” or “Misty, you were incredible battling that Pokemon today!”
— Misty feels like a little girl talking with her childhood crush (okay, maybe that comparison was a little too accurate …) so the only thing she can respond with are stuttering half-insults before fleeing in shame.
— Ash is a very physical person. Always has been, always will be. He’ll be slinging an arm around her shoulder, walking close so that their bodies bump, pull her into a side hug, even arm wrestling her. The touch is so casual, but it’s so often that Misty can’t help but psychoanalyze every interaction.
— Poor Pikachu has spent many nights with Misty’s face cuddled in his fur to hide her blush. He’s had his ear talked off with Misty’s ramblings of “—does he even know he’s flirting with me?! Is he even flirting?! He’s gotta know! Or am I just making it up all in my head again? Is this psychological warfare or something?!”
— Misty doesn’t know if Ash is flirting with her, if he even knows if he is, if he’s even aware of what he’s doing. Misty gets so flustered she becomes angry that she’s so flustered. She wants to beat him with her mallet for making her so embarrassed; another part doesn’t because she likes the Butterfree he puts in her stomach.
— Ash Ketchum is so impeccably smooth at flirting and pulling moves he isn’t even aware; he just thinks he’s being nice and friendly. He has a trail of hearts behind him after all his travels and he doesn’t even realize.
***
— Brock is a little ways behind them, watching with pure shock.
Drew
— Roses. It’s always roses with those two.
— When Drew would give roses to May ( *ahem* sorry, Beautifly) it was a mocking. The flowers were filled with taunts about how her Pokémon were carrying May to victory.
— Then as Drew starts noticing May, his roses become fleeting — everyone knows what red roses meant. How could Drew give out roses when he didn’t even know who he was really giving them to?
— Drew fell in love with May, and May fell in love with Drew, and there was a trail of roses between them like a timeline.
— When they date, they are the most lovey-dovey couple in the room. At first, all of their friends were happy that they got together, but soon they grow sick of the constant PDA
— Honestly, whenever Max walks into the room and see May and Drew in there, he just straight up walks right out. May gets so offended, but she quickly forgets her brother’s disgusted face when Drew pulls her in for a kiss
— May and Drew have started dating, and May finally drops the bomb about meeting her family. Drew instantly gets flashbacks of Max’s judgey looks, know-it-all expression, and suspicious eyes from Hoenn and almost regrets dating May.
— Apparently, May has been holding off the meeting for quite a while, but has finally conceded. Caroline is sweet and welcoming, swooning about May getting a boyfriend and gushing how handsome he is. Max is still as skeptical as ever, but has softened to the idea of Drew thanks to his traveling partner, Bonnie.
— And Norman … May left Drew and her dad in the same room for less than a minute, and when she came back Drew spent the rest of the time subtly hiding behind May
— When Drew asked May to marry him, he made it this big extravagant proposal. He led May on a scavenger hunt, each rose with a romantic letter on where to find him. When she finally found him, she had a dozen red roses and a ring on her finger on the beach of Slateport City.
***
— Brock is a little ways behind them, watching with pure jealousy
Paul
— Reggie is the first one to notice the way his brother is always touching Dawn. It’s so subtle, Dawn doesn’t realize it; Reggie doubts that even Paul realizes he’s doing it. But for someone who has been raising his younger brother all his life, it’s so obvious.
— Paul is usually adverse to physical touch, so seeing Dawn and Paul interact is like a slap to the face. His hand is barely touching her hip as he guides her to where they’re going. When they sit together their shoulders brush. He leans down to Dawn’s level to lowly talk in her ear. Not to mention the way Paul looks at her —
— Reggie honestly can’t believe his eyes when he sees them together for the first time. He can’t help but tell Maylene, and of course he confronts Paul with some teasing.
— Whenever someone asks about Dawn and Paul’s relationship, Reggie cheekily replies, “They’re an affectionate couple.” Paul always scowls darkly.
— Dawn had no idea until Maylene lets it slip. At first, she just stares and laughs, because the words Paul and affectionate don’t even belong in the same sentence.
— But then Dawn suddenly realizes: she is always the first one to initiate contact — through a held hand, a hug, or a kiss on the lips ...
— But Paul was always the one to let it linger. He never pulled his hand away, he would let her hug him (sometimes he would even lean into it), and he would even kiss her in private.
— Dawn was always the one who pulled away first: becoming embarrassed if someone would walk in on them or pulling away to look at a cute store.
— She immediately sets out to do an experiment of her own: to see how long Paul could deal with physical affection.
— One day Paul is laying on his couch doing whatever, and Dawn sees the perfect opportunity. She strolls over, stands over him, and just … clambers on top of him, resting her head on his chest and fitting her body snugly between his legs.
— He was effectively pinned down. Paul went stiff with surprise, and Dawn honestly expects him to push her away and mutter complaints under his breath as he stalks away.
— After a moment, Paul sighs and drapes his arm around her waist, going back to whatever he was doing. Dawn’s heart leaps, and her belly does a dozen backflips. She honestly can’t believe she’s getting away with this.
— But this was only half of the challenge. Now, Dawn had to wait and see how long he would tolerate her. So she settles down, closes her eyes, and falls asleep to the feeling of Paul’s warmth and even breathing.
— When she wakes up, hours have passed. Paul’s hand is still on her waist, she has drooled a little bit in his shirt, and he was undoubtedly uncomfortable from sitting for so long.
— Still, it is a testament on how much he truly likes her when he says nothing about his discomfort when she wakes.
— For some reason, he distinctly feels like he’s passed a test when Dawn sees that he’s still there and kisses him
***
— Brock is a little ways behind them, watching with pure disbelief
Cilan
— Chilli and Cress absolutely adore Iris. She’s sassy and blunt and determined, and a perfect fit for Cilan. Chilli loves going back and forth with Iris trading sarcastic quips and Cress appreciates her blunt honesty
— She’s practically a part of the family, inviting herself over to the gym and spending weekends there. Half the stuff at their place is practically her’s, and she shows absolutely no shame in that fact.
— When all of their friends know they’re dating, they are simultaneously surprised and not in the process. It’s just that Cilan and Iris are so different, one a sophisticated civilian and another a animalistic wild child. But they just fit together, so well that none of their friends can ever imagine seeing them with another person.
— When Ash hears that they’re dating, he is beaming. Because while he’s happy that all his friends found their significant other, none of them have gotten together with their traveling partner (except for Serena and Clemont, but that comes later)
— Ash feels like a proud matchmaker because he says Iris and Cilan would not have gotten together if it weren’t for him. Iris calls him a little kid.
— Cilan shows his love through words of appreciation, which never fails to embarrass Iris.
— Whenever his Dragon Master wins a battle, he showers her with praise for her and her Pokémon. It’s like his evaluation times, filled with so much fervor and passion.
— Iris always gets so embarrassed, especially if her friends and rivals are there teasing her, but she secretly likes the attention and the praise she gets from Cilan (he is her boyfriend, and a World-Class Pokémon Connoisseur)
— Sometimes when she gets particularly embarrassed, she just marches over to Cilan in the middle of the battle, yanks him down to her height, and kisses him hard to shut him up.
— It always works (Cilan turns bright red and dazed, and to Iris’s satisfaction, he always, always shuts his mouth afterwards) but they don’t know that Iris’s kisses inadvertently fuel Cilan to go on his rants.
— So in actuality, does it really work?
***
— Brock is a little ways behind them, watching with pure awe
Clemont
— Clemont has always admired Serena ever since their traveling days, but he would always push aside his feelings when he saw the way Serena looked at Ash.
— Back then, he had low confidence and even lower social skills. There was no way he can compare to Ash. So he pushed aside his feelings and focused on being her friend instead, supporting her and working to improve himself.
— It took a long time for Clemont to work up the courage to ask Serena out. She was trying to get over her crush on Ash, and they were both too busy focusing on their dreams
— One day, Serena went with Bonnie to cheer Clemont on in a super important Pokémon match. Clemont won, of course, and right before his final move Serena is struck.
— Clemont’s face was bright with electricity and his eyes were clear with confidence. Serena is struck, because she just realized Clemont wasn’t that geeky kid with low self-esteem and inventions that blew up anymore. Clemont was grown, and Serena feels like she is seeing him for the first time.
— It wasn’t just how he looked (Serena was mature enough to admit that Clemont looked … well, amazing during the battle), it was his confidence.
— It wasn’t the Ash type of confidence — bold, brash, and brave. It was the Clemont type of confidence — intellectual and sharp, confident in knowing he would win because Clemont was a lot of things, and no one could ever say he wasn’t smart.
— When Clemont wins, he immediately turns to Serena and Bonnie with a bright smile. Bonnie is beaming and bouncing on her feet, and Serena finds herself blushing with her heart pounding faster than the time she kissed Ash.
— Ever since then, Serena can’t get the stupid feelings out of her head. Her crush on Ash feels childish and far away compared to Clemont.
— Clemont is shy and awkward, but he is sweet and charming. Serena has always known this, but now it’s in a whole new light. She can’t help but notice all these little details about him, like the way his hands move when he talks, or the way he pushes up his glasses and the way his eyes light up.
— Whenever Clemont is working on an invention, Serena finds herself genuinely trying to listen and help. Whenever she stays over, she offers to help Clemont with the cooking.
— They go out to see the lights on top of Prism Tower, Serena teaches Clemont to properly dance, and they spend late nights in the gym just enjoying their companionship.
— At first, Clemont is frustratingly oblivious, blinking innocently and awkwardly laughing whenever they seem to have a romantic atmosphere lingering around them. Serena wouldn’t label it as Ash-Level-Oblivious, (because, frankly, nobody can ever be denser than Ash) because back when she had a crush on him, she was actively trying to hide it.
— Clemont, however, for all his bright intelligence and love knowledge (mostly stemming from Bonnie) can’t figure out for the life of him that Serena was flirting with him. She didn’t know how much more obvious she could get!
— (Just last week, Clemont’s father, Meyer, wouldn’t stop smirking knowingly and last month, Misty had thrown her a half sympathetic-pitying-understanding look when she and Ash came over to visit.)
— Clemont hasn’t noticed Serena’s flirting, but he has noticed that she’s been acting strange. With him, specifically. It’s almost as if she’s flirting with him, but obviously she isn’t because they are just friends.
— Clemont’s heart already skips beats whenever Serena dresses up, and he sometimes gets tongue-tied when she smiles at him, and his face feels very warm whenever she hold his hand but — they are just. friends.
— Clemont doesn’t want to give himself false hope and he already feels like he’s betraying Serena’s friendship with his stupid infatuation he’s had since they were kids.
— (But still … still …)
— Clemont can’t help but compare what Serena is like now to when she had a crush on Ash. He can’t help but notice the longer hours she spends at the Lumiose Gym, even when Bonnie’s not here. He can’t help but notice the way she smiles at him, holding him close as she teaches him how to dance. He can’t help but notice how her eyes sparkle when she looks at him, shining brighter than they ever did when she looked at Ash.
— Bonnie is totally oblivious to the growing tension whenever Serena is over at the Lumiose Gym, or to the stolen moments the two seem to have that she unassumingly walks in on. Serena’s always been close to the family, and she and Clemont are friends.
— It’s Max, Señor Skeptical, Mr. “I hate romance, why focus on love when you can focus on Pokemon” Maple, that has to tell her what’s going on (seriously, he thought she was the love expert) and she flips out.
— She then immediately plots to get them together (mentally planning their wedding in the process) and drags Max along in the mix despite his protests
— She does everything she can to create romantic atmospheres for Clemont and Serena (Max told her that proposing to Serena for Clemont would only scare her off).
— Clemont and Bonnie argue over her schemes and Max is standing behind her, mentally trying to communicate with Clemont his utter sympathies.
— Finally, after a long uphill battle, Bonnie triumphs by embarrassing Clemont enough to make him ask her out.
— Clemont is red and stuttering through his whole proposal, and Serena, having figured out what he was planning on asking her a while ago, just decided to put him out of his misery and kiss him, blushing pink.
— Clemont is breathless and dazed afterwards. It was so cute, Serena finds her gut clenching hotly and her biting her lip to hide the enormous smile growing on her face. It was definitely worth it, waiting this long.
***
— Max and Bonnie are little ways behind them, and Bonnie throws her arms around Max in celebration
Gary
— Gary Oak has known Leaf Green since childhood. She had grown up with him and Ash. They were the trio of Pallet town. Gary spent days at his Grandpa’s lab with her and Ash and nights at Delia’s house for dinner.
— Ash and Gary were rivals, but him and Leaf were something else. Ever since they were kids they were always arguing, going back and forth with each other.
— They go separate ways as their journeys take them on separate paths. Gary becomes a successful Pokemon researcher and Leaf has traveled all over the regions.
— Years have passed when he runs into Leaf again by complete chance.
— At first he can’t believe his eyes. How on earth was this gorgeous woman the bratty girl he grew up with? It’s the same for Leaf. Gary has always been a know-it-all as a kid, but when did he grow into this handsome researcher? She had always brushed him off as that guy who cared more about his hair and girls.
— They catch up and it’s like no time has passed. They still bicker and argue about every little thing under the sun, but now Gary is finally able to label the tension between them.
— They get kicked out of the place they’re in, and when he gets home, he has the biggest, goofiest smile on his face that — quote Misty — “makes him look like an idiot” and Leaf’s number in his pocket.
— Professor Oak knows right away that his grandson has met Leaf, and tells him to invite her over to Pallet Town. Oak has always had a soft spot for Leaf; ever since they were kids he could see that she’s the only one for Gary.
— Before Leaf is suppose to come over, everyone can tell that Gary is nervous. He does his best to not show it, obviously, but he was surrounded by the people who knew him best. Gary keeps running his hands through his hair and the Pokémon are particularly skittish (Pokemon reflect their trainers, after all). Ash, Tracey, and Misty tease him relentlessly while Delia and Oak look on in amusement
— When Misty meets Leaf she instantly likes her: Leaf is strong and stubborn and determined. She is striking and vivacious, and the perfect match for Gary. She’s honestly the only one who could put up with him.
— Misty and Leaf get along great, and when they meet up they constantly make fun of their boyfriends. They are both fierce battlers, and often challenge each other to battles whenever they see each other just like Gary and Ash in their younger days.
— Gary and Leaf spend time together, exchanging snarky flirty comments with each other. They both like to drive each other wild with their teasing and their friends are crazy with the thought “oh god, will those two ever get together?” They’re both hot, and they know it.
— Sometimes Gary gets pulled away with work, so Leaf joins him whenever he’s on a research dig. She brings warm coffee and offers insight to what he’s missing and fights back a smile whenever Gary geeks out about his findings (she finds it cute how his eyes light up when he rambles — even though she has no idea what he’s saying).
— Leaf absolutely wears the pants in the relationship, because there’s no way she’s letting Gary dominate their relationship. Gary is not willing to admit he’s whipped for Leaf but he is. And everyone can see it. Gary would ruthlessly make fun of everyone for their girlfriends wearing the pants in the relationship, but it’s the exact same with Leaf. He’ll be stubborn, pout, whine, and complain, but will ultimately do her bidding. Everyone is amused.
— Leaf likes the fact that Gary is smart, and is able to hold an intelligent conversation. Back when they were kids, he would go on these spiels of Pokemon facts and would rub the knowledge in her face. It made him very punchable. Now, Leaf can’t help but be immensely attracted to Gary whenever he goes on rants of his research findings.
— With Gary, he likes how Leaf can keep up with him. Gary can never really get bored with her like he does with other girls because Leaf keeps him on his toes. Their banter keep him up for days on end, and her flirting makes him wild. Her strength and perseverance makes his heart jump in admiration. She makes him want to be better.
***
— Brock is a little ways behind them, watching with pure annoyance
Tracey
— Tracey met Daisy through Misty when she invited him to the Cerulean Gym, and the first time he saw the eldest Waterflower sister his heart skipped a beat
— He had only heard of Misty’s sisters through her long rants over the phone, so he had a (less than appealing) idea of who they were — even though he had tried his best to remain neutral
— But the first time he saw her, his fingers itched with the urge to sketch as he shook her hand. They didn’t say anything beyond greetings before Misty came in and dragged him away, he found he couldn’t stop thinking about her the whole visit
— He had to go back to Pallet Town eventually, and he finds himself drawing distracted sketches of Daisy when he’s supposed to take notes.
— He can’t help it. Usually when he’s struck with inspiration, he sketches it down instantly. With Daisy he didn’t get the time to do that, so it made sense why he couldn’t get her out of his head
— That’s what he told Gary anyway, when he caught him drawing a sketch of Daisy’s face. Gary merely shakes his head, calls him and idiot, and sends him packing for Cerulean City before he can even blink
— Tracey’s heart is beating unusually fast when he asks Daisy if he can sketch her, and a flattered, surprised, beautiful grin crosses her face (he immediately starts drawing it down)
— They spend a lot of time together, and Tracey finds out he can’t get enough of Daisy. They end up talking about everything under the sun, sharing secrets and sketches with each other.
— Tracey is fascinating and unlike anyone Daisy has ever dated. Daisy is much more that she appears, and Tracey wants to peel back every layer to see her true beauty
— (picture Jack and Rose from the Titanic. They definitely do the draw-me-like-one-of-your-French-girls when they start dating. )
— Tracey feels denser than Ash when he realizes that the feelings he associated with sketching Daisy were actually for Daisy herself.
— Tracey stays around Cerulean City for a while, using the excuse of checking out the water Pokemon and helping with the plumbing so Misty doesn’t get suspicious
— Misty is definitely suspicious of the way Tracey turns red whenever Daisy makes a flirtatious comment, or the way her sister seemed to brighten whenever she heard he was around or coming over
— It took her a while to corner Tracey and demanded answers, but he finally admitted to it. Misty instantly accepts him, but she makes a show of threatening him if he hurts his sister
— (all of her sisters boyfriend’s have to pass the “Misty Test”. Misty refuses to be around douchebags (minus Gary) and to have to deal with her sisters crying after a failed date or broken heart. The Misty Test has scared off multiple suitors, but her older sisters are ultimately grateful despite their complaining of not as much boys around the house because of Misty’s Gyrados)
— Daisy ends up asking him out because Tracey was too much of a coward. She laces their hands together, kisses his cheek, and tells him to pick her up at 5.
— Tracey ends up staying the night
***
— Gary is infinitely smug, and Professor Oak merely shakes his head with amusement
Brock
— Brock has been a sad, sad boy watching all his friends grow up and fall in love — and yet Brock can’t seem to find his special lady! He is a successful Pokemon doctor, a great breeder, a good cook, and shoots the best one-liners, if he does say so himself.
— Brock becomes so desperate he actually goes to the guys for help … and it goes exactly as expected. Ash is clueless, Paul says nothing, Drew is unhelpful, Clemont was shy, Tracy was nervous, Gary was Gary, and Cilan was just overall confusing.
— Then he goes to the girls for advice, and while their insight was helpful to an extent … that was it. He went to Misty, May, and Dawn, listening to their offhanded remarks on who liked Brock back (it was a pathetically short list) while wearing face masks and nail polish.
— Brock was about to resign himself to a lonely, loveless life of a bachelor before he came across an offer.
— Bonnie, satisfied that her brother has found a suitable wife in Serena, offers her help in the matchmaking business — and drags Max along with her.
— Arceus, it pains Brock to take orders from Max’s smug little mouth, but he finds equal petty retaliation by pointing out how easily Bonnie bends Max to her bidding
— It takes a while for them to get in sync with each other — Brock was chasing after every other girl and Bonnie was eager to help by doing the exact same thing. Max was the one with the only brain cell when it came to girls
— The trio bond through terrible rom-com movies for “research” — Brock chose the movies, Bonnie got the snacks, and Max would rather die than admit that he actually liked the dramas
— Between Bonnie’s sweet blue eyes, Brock’s cheesy (but romantic) lines, and Max’s intellect, the trio soon have this matchmaking thing down in the bag
— They find him a perfect match and send Brock in (“— just be yourself, cheesy one-liners come later —”) and it’s a huge success. Brock has swept her off her feet and he can hear Bonnie cheering from outside the Pokemon Center’s window
— Brock is right where he’s meant to be, glowing with happiness.
***
— He isn’t done yet, though. He still has to get Max back for all the ear-pulling he did back in Hoenn.
Of butterflies and roses
Summary: Drew hadn't fallen for May first; he been struck, curious about this doe-eyed girl in a bandana — distracted, fumbling, so very nervous —and her Beautifly. Drew liked to pay attention to people, how they got to who they were. It helped him in contests, to weed out who would be the real competition. Drew saw May playing with her little frisbees and thought, “She wouldn’t make it.
But now — now, Drew leaned forward and stared as May stumbled onstage and proceeding to blindside the audience with her plastic frisbees; with five Stringshots, a Gust, and one beautiful Silverwind.
A small smile made its way onto his face.
“Huh, what do you know?” Drew said to himself. “That wasn’t too bad at all.”
***
Or: a love story about surprises and realization
***
When Drew first sees May playing on the beach with her plastic pink frisbees he thought she was a joke.
Contests were a serious thing and they weren’t for the faint of heart. Drew has seen many bright-eyed amateurs bounce on stage to perform their shallow appeals before running off in tears when they lost. Drew knows this girl will be no different.
Because her idea of an appeal was pathetic and lame. Her performance lacked flair and finesse, and was much too shallow. She had no style, baseless confidence, and her naïveté was going to get her as far as her performance will.
Beautifly sends a Gust at the frisbees, and the girl daintily catches two of them on a spin as her friends cheer.
Drew watches in amusement as the third sails right over her head and catches it.
***
The girl passes the appeal round and is matched up with Drew right off the bat.
After their first meeting, she is determined to beat him and win the contest, and Drew scoffs at the fairy tale. He has more experience than she could ever hope for under his belt, and he can’t wait to beat her.
In the end, he leaves her in tears on the stage. She’s slumped to the ground by her Beautifly, her lips pressed into a wobbly line as tears glass her eyes. Drew gets a sudden sense of deja vu as he stares at her; he’s reminded of his first loss — his very first loss against Solidad. He remembers the feeling of defeat and devastation and turns away.
At least in his first contest he made it into the finals. With her, it seems like she barely trained for the battle round at all. (He is a little bit disappointed — he was hoping she would put up as much of a fight as she did their first battle.)
With this loss, Drew would see what type of person May would be.
Would she give up like many others have when they faced him, or would she stand up and try again?
***
Drew takes his loss against Robert hard, but moves on by training harder and winning another contest. He tells Solidad about him in one of their weekly calls, but carefully leaves the girl he’s met out of it. He still hasn’t decided on what type of trainer she is, and there will be no point in telling Solidad about her if she never shows her face again after defeat.
He spends his time training Roselia and Trapinch, searching for a new partner for his team, and winning himself another ribbon before heading to Fallarbor Town for a contest. He’s heard the competition is going to be steep.
Occasionally, he thinks of the girl in the bandana and her Beautifly, but it’s a thin, fleeting thought he easily dismisses in his busy days.
***
When Drew sees her training in Fallarbor Town, he feels something startling and surprising in him. His eyes are immediately drawn to her and he can’t help but make his way over to her to tease her about her botched up combinations — (because really, how can a coordinator not know about combinations?)
Based on their first meeting, May doesn’t like Drew. He’s arrogant and criticizes her and offers nothing good to say about her combinations. Drew shows off his newly acquired ribbons and tells her she has no shot of winning a competition this steep.
He walks away, mouth uncurling into a grin and hopes the fire he’s sparked in May will be enough to make this contest a memorable one.
***
It's Drew who loses in the Fallarbor Contest, and normally he would be upset about that if it weren’t for the fact of who won.
May won the Fallarbor Contest, and with nothing but her own skill and talent. She took the same combinations he made fun of and turned them into something elegant and powerful. She and Beautifly beat Grace and won the ribbon — her very first ribbon — and May’s never looked more alive and in sync with her Pokémon.
Drew feels reluctant admiration, pride, and (strangely) joy press into his gut and leave a tingling sensation throughout his body.
May finally did it; and although Drew still thinks that she wouldn’t have been able to beat him if they were paired up in the first round, her fight against Grace almost deserves a congratulations.
***
It was Roselia’s idea to keep giving May roses, and Drew went along with it. He doesn’t know why exactly, but Roselia is very intuitive and reminds him of Solidad, who is spending her off-season in Kanto training.
He feels like the roses are falling into some sort of routine of theirs, and strangely enough, Drew likes it enough to not want to think about what it means.
“I suppose this rose is for Beautifly, right?” May spins the flower between her fingers and teasingly asks. Her smile is light and playful and Drew feels his stomach suddenly knot in on itself at the sight. He’s not quite sure what to think of that.
“Yeah, something like that.” He keeps his response vague and puzzling before turning away before she realizes that the rose is just as much for her as it is her Pokémon.
***
Drew starts to talk about her to Solidad at around the second contest she wins. That’s two times May has defeated somebody who has beaten Drew, and he is fascinated. He talks to Solidad about their first meeting, how she totally blindsided him with the sudden Silverwind in their first battle. He talks about the first contest she won, the Pokémon she used, and is completely, totally, utterly unaware of the knowing look Solidad has in her blue eyes.
“Looks like you have yourself a rival, Drew,” she interrupts with a grin.
Drew scoffs. How can May ever be his rival?
***
It’s a while before he sees May again, but almost against his will he keeps his ear against the ground for her. He hears she wins the Lilycove Contest and the Purika Contest — after a bit of difficulty, apparently — but hasn't heard anything else.
It’s six weeks until the Pokémon Grand Festival and Drew is just out training his Masquerain when he hears someone call his name. He turns around to see May and her friends waving at him so he makes his way down the cliff to them.
May shows off her four ribbons and informs him that she’ll be entering the Pacifidlog Contest with the same happy-go-lucky smile and bright blue eyes. And because Drew doesn’t not like how she looks at him and he doesn’t like how he doesn’t like it, he makes fun of her enough to challenge him to a battle. It doesn’t get far before a trio calling themselves Team Rocket burst from the ocean and proceed to vacuum them into a giant mechanical Magikarp before exploding.
This is what he gets for spending time with May, Drew thinks as he stares out at the foggy ocean. He and May had woken up on the beach alone, together, surrounded by wreckage and with no idea where the others were. Thankfully, Roderick comes and saves them from their incessant bickering, and they set off to find May’s friends.
Admittedly, Drew is a bit excited to have landed on Mirage Island of all places. Few people have managed to set foot on the land, and it was crawling with liechi berries. That’s why when Drew finally spotted them so close to the cliff, he wasn’t as careful as he could've been.
The earth gives out beneath their feet and as they’re falling the only thought Drew has in his mind is that he’s probably going to die. May grabs onto Bellsprout’s vine, and Drew can tell as she grasps his hand that it's not going to save them.
May’s grip slips and they both hit the water, hands still firmly locked with each other. The current rips them apart and Drew desperately surges to the surface, gasping for air.
“May!” He calls, using whatever air he has left in his lungs. The water is stinging his eyes and roaring in his ears, but he’s still desperately searching for the brown-haired coordinator.
He spots her up ahead, choking on the spray of water and being submerged again and again before Drew swims forward and grabs her arm. Her blue eyes find his green ones, and they’re big and wide and scared as she fights against the current. They struggle to stay above water, Drew trying to support May as much as he can before they hear Roderick’s yell above the buffeting waves: “There’s a waterfall dead ahead!”
Fear freezes his veins. If they weren’t going to die, then they certainly would now. There isn’t any time to think straight before it’s on them, but May tightens her grip on Drew as panic seizes them both and Drew clutches her wrist as hard as he can before they go over.
They slam against the bottom, the impact sweeping them apart before Drew falls unconscious.
When he wakes up it’s nighttime, but the first thing he sees is May’s worried face and big blue eyes. She’s crouched over him, and when he opens his eyes her face breaks out into a big, relieved smile. Drew doesn’t know what happened or where he is, but he does know his heart is doing acrobatics in his chest right now and he feels dizzy with the knowledge that May probably saved his life before the Wynaut did.
The Wynaut are nice and thoughtful for wild Pokémon, and with them Drew and May find themselves becoming more at ease from their near-death experience. May releases all her Pokémon and goes to play with the Wynaut while Drew sits to the side and watches with a small smile on his lips.
The May in front of him right now is totally unencumbered and free. Her smile is big and her laugh is bright and for the first time Drew is able to see her in the light that she is a girl, not just a coordinator. This is the first time they are together outside the context of contests, and that means that the girl he is looking at right now is the real May. Normally when they met May would put up a front and talk all big for the sake of their rivalry, but not now. Now, she is completely natural.
Almost against his will, Drew feels a powerful emotion grow inside him as he watches her.
***
May has grown — slowly and steadily, with the help of her friends and Pokémon. Drew sees her start to win contests, learn strategies, her trust in her Pokémon becoming more prominent with every move she calls.
Alongside his admiration, there is something new and exciting that pulse in his veins now, and it makes Drew determined to win. Solidad calls it competition from across the phone line in Pewter City, and Drew actually feels like laughing.
Because, him? Competitive about May? It hasn’t been that long since she was stumbling through coordinating and trying to figure out combinations. But then, he realizes, it has.
May has grown into coordinating, training her partners and catching new Pokémon. Drew thinks that she can make it into the Grand Festival, and looking deeper, he thinks that he wants to face her there.
Drew knows that Solidad can see the realization on his face and quickly hangs up before she can tease him.
His Vibrava had evolved into a Flygon a while ago, and Drew has a sudden idea about who he wants him to train for.
***
It’s not a surprise to see her at the Grand Festival, but Drew is never going to admit it. May lights up when she spots him and is quickly running towards him with a bright smile. Her enthusiasm makes him smile and as she snatches his rose almost petulantly, he feels the strange emotion bubble up again.
Unfortunately, Harley shows up and May is instantly swept up with his bravado and false promises. Drew already knew she trusts easily and is unfalteringly kind, but Harley was pushing it and May is totally unaware. She almost blows her chances at competing in the Grand Festival battle rounds.
Frustration bubbles up, and Drew knows it’s unreasonable, but May doesn’t get it. She’s made it all the way here, and she was talented, but she still doesn’t get it. To be a coordinator one had to trust in themselves and their Pokémon, and find their own style to make their own Pokémon’s appeal shine through.
And May didn’t get it.
Fortunately for her, she manages to impress the judges enough to pass the appeal round and win her way through the battle rounds — until she’s matched up with him. They face off against each other in the third round of the Hoenn Grand Festival; and as they stare each other down from across the pitch, Drew recalls their first battle. He hasn’t had a real contest battle with May since then, and although Drew knows how it’ll end he still wants to see how she’ll react.
Drew calls out Roselia and Flygon. May’s never seen his Pokémon before, and when he tells her that he raised his Flygon specifically to battle her he can tell she is both flattered and scared.
Drew makes the first move and the battle is on.
***
In the end, it isn’t Drew’s time as Robert comes out on top in the Grand Festival Finals, but it was a good battle and Drew gave it his all. He learned a lot from battling Robert and was already coming up with combinations for next year.
He impatiently waits his way through the closing ceremonies and as soon as the party starts he disappears to the beach to practice with his Pokémon. They train for about an hour before someone stumbles upon them, and Drew turns when he realizes it’s May.
She’s confused about why he’s still training and Drew is reminded that it is her first season of coordinating. He gives her advice before heading on his way, but can’t help but leave her with one last thing.
“I’m hoping to see you back here next year too, May,” he says. “You were good.”
She stares at him, gaping slightly. (Has he really never complimented her before? It seems like she takes up most of his thoughts to not have.) Her sapphire eyes are wide as the seabreeze tousles her hair. He’s suddenly aware of the waves crashing against the shore and the stars shining in the night sky. Drew can barely hear the sounds of the party drifting towards the beach.
For such an open space, it feels so entirely intimate in the moment. May looks beautiful in the moonlight, and the realization of what that means strikes him.
Drew walks away from her, feeling as though someone once so out of his reach becomes touchable for just a slither of time.
***
Drew goes to Kanto for the next contest season and is surprised to see May already there. She’s still as rose-scented, sun-kissed and vibrant as she was in Hoenn and Drew is unable to withhold the realization that he likes her. He really, really likes her.
The realization follows him throughout Kanto, so he throws himself into contests and combinations to avoid thinking about it altogether. His Pokémon notice, but Roselia is the only one who knows and Drew can sense her disapproval. He ignores it — they’re rivals above all and Drew values that — her — more than his feelings.
Still though, he can’t help but go see her. Drew knew so little about her. He could easily spot her voice out of a crowd, but he wanted to hear her stories. There was still so much to May that he didn't know. Drew never really minded being a mystery to the average person (sharing parts of himself was something he was naturally against), but with May he wanted her to know him.
He wondered if she had similar thoughts about him and if part of her wanted to know more.
Drew gathers his five ribbons and heads to the Grand Festival. He’ll see her there.
***
Drew meets up with Solidad the morning of the Grand Festival.
When they first met, Solidad had beaten him and Roselia in the final round of their first contest and then invited him out to lunch afterwards. Although Drew had his reservations, he still went.
Solidad explained that she had a season of experience over him, and that her battle with him had to be the most grueling one she’d ever faced. She was impressed with his performance and wanted to see him again in another contest.
As they competed together more throughout the season and their respect for each other grew, he started to open up to her more and meet up with her more often. It's only natural that Solidad is now his best friend.
They have run into each other a couple of times in Kanto, and had carefully shared contest information and have appropriately planned out their routes so they didn’t meet up at every contest. Still, Drew had looked forward to the towns where their paths were scheduled to cross.
“So, what did you think of May?” Drew asks a bit too casually as he sips his tea. He’s not really a fan of the taste, but Solidad loves it so he drinks without complaining.
“I like her. She’s really sweet and friendly. The total opposite of you,” she says with a teasing smirk.
“Uh huh, sure,” Drew rolls his eyes. “Do I even want to know what you two said about me?”
Solidad’s eyes twinkle. “That’s between girls only. Whatever May says is completely on her own volition.”
“Great. She’s definitely going to rub something in my face now.” Drew takes another sip of tea and struggles to not make a face. Solidad does the same, watching him with calm blue eyes.
“I’m a bit sad you haven’t introduced me to her earlier though,” she speaks up suddenly. “Seeing how much you talk about her. I can see why you like her.”
Drew chokes on his tea, and for once it wasn’t because of the taste.
Solidad knows. She's probably always known, Drew rationalizes, but the knowing smile the older coordinator wears cements the fact that nevertheless, Solidad knows.
But then again, if Drew had really wanted it to be kept a secret, he wouldn’t have introduced them in the first place. But Solidad was his closest friend and Drew liked May (enough to give her advice, give her roses) and he had wanted the two of them to meet.
“She — uh, I, uh — ” Drew stammers. He feels uncharacteristically embarrassed and it throws him off his game. “I — ”
“It’s okay, Drew.” Solidad thankfully cuts him off. “You don’t have to explain yourself. I’m actually glad you’ve found someone like May. She’s good for you.” Drew’s face burns and Solidad’s face softens as she observes his flustered reaction. “Just … don’t let your feelings get in the way of your performance, okay?”
Drew scoffs at the thought. “Don’t worry, I won’t,” he reassures her.
He may like her, but they're still rivals.
***
It’s a surprise when he sees Ash and Brock come to talk to him instead of Solidad, but figures she’s probably having a talk with May after he snapped at her.
Guilt twists in his chest as he thinks of her hurt expression before he ignores it and turns to face the sunset. Don’t let your feelings get in the way of your performance, Solidad had said. Drew internally scoffed. She should have said, “Don’t let her performance get in the way of your feelings.”
Seeing her perform with her Munchlax … it shook him. For so long, May had always been the one behind him, chasing after him. It didn’t hit him until today that … she can pass him. She can beat him.
She had changed; she was a threat. He had changed; he was no longer untouchable.
And that scared him.
“Look, I said it was on my mind, alright?” Drew snaps.
“I know that Drew,” Ash clambors down to join him. Pikachu hops down his shoulder.
“Solidad’s having a little talk with May right now. I think it would be a good idea to do the same thing,” Brock says. Drew hmphs.
“You know …” Ash breaks the silence, rubbing Pikachu’s head. “Watching you out there earlier made me think about all the rivals I’ve faced in battle over the years. I never talked to them about how they trained or anything.” Ash turns to face him. “We deal with that on the battlefield.”
Drew can’t help but stare, shocked at the comparison. It's no secret that a lot of competitive battlers don't take coordinators seriously. They saw it as more of a glorified beauty contest than showing off the strength of the Pokémon with appeal. Not to mention, coordinating was more seen as a feminine form of battling, with its emphasis on beauty and combinations.
For a while, Drew thought Ash was one of those battlers — that’s why he challenged him to a battle in Fallarbor Town. But no, Ash is here drawing comparisons from his battling to relate to coordinating. To him and May.
Ash and Brock are here, telling him in their own way that they understood him. That they took his side.
Drew relaxed. “I hear ya,” he chuckles. “We’re rivals, May and I.”
Somehow, that seems to sum up everything and nothing at all.
***
It’s the Kanto Grand Festival at the Indigo Plateau, and it's Drew up against May in the quarterfinals. He walks onto the stage and hears the cheers so loud it makes his ears ring. The atmosphere of the stadium is electric, and Drew keeps his head straight.
His eyes wander across the field to May and he sees the determined glint in her eyes that Drew knows is reflected in her own. Two years, two regions, and two talented coordinators.
They’ve been ready for this their whole lives.
***
In the end, it’s only one of them who can win, and after a long, grueling battle, the winner is decided.
The screams and cheers from the stadium are overwhelming so Drew closes his eyes and takes a breath, steadying himself.
The battle was incredible. May was incredible.
She is still standing there, staring up at the scoreboard in disbelief and unable to believe what it reads. She’s surprised, shaky from the battle, but happy-ecstatic and Drew is proud to have lost to her. It's been two years since they met, since he first saw her on the beach of Slateport City with her plastic pink frisbees, and since then she’s been surprising him ever since. They’ve both changed since they first met; the final battle an accumulation of everything they learned on their journey.
Absol slowly makes his way to him, head already bowed in defeat. His Pokémon took his losses harder than Drew did, but this time the trainer wasn’t feeling bad about this one at all.
Absol looks up in surprise when Drew reaches forward and rubs his head. “Thank you, you fought hard. You're the best, Absol.” Absol lights up at the praise, gratefully pressing his head into his hand.
Drew turns to notice May’s gaze on him, questioning and uncertain. She’s worried about how he’ll take the loss against her, and suddenly the feelings Drew has tried to keep from fully consuming his heart come forth.
It’s because she surprises him. She’s surprised him from the very beginning — from the first time they met, the first time they ever competed, the first time he truly saw her — and she kept on surprising him, whether it be her skill or her passion or her love towards people and Pokémon. Drew hadn’t fallen in love with May; he was struck, stunned by the care and awe he has for her. She completely blindsided him and turned his world upside-down. He never would have imagined that the girl he had met on the beach would turn into one of his greatest rivals.
Drew’s eyes soften, mouth pulling into gentle smile as he nods. It’s okay. He lost, but it was to May and he is okay with that because she more than deserves her victory. May beams at his approval, throwing her arm around Combusken in celebration.
Drew watches for a moment longer before closing his eyes and turning away, smiling.
***
Drew doesn't stick around after the festival. His bags are packed and he’s headed out. Drew has no new destination in mind, so he just travels around Kanto, exploring the parts he didn’t get to see before. He spends two months just wandering, training and discovering himself. His mind is on May, and coordinating, and on where to head next for the next Grand Festival.
Drew finds a beautiful lake — a glittering expanse of blue in front of him — with plenty of open space to practice some tricky appeals he has been working on. He calls out Roselia and Masquerain and they work on some doubles appeals for around an hour before Drew gives them a rest. Roselia wanders along the shoreline, looking happy and relaxed while Masquerain flutters around the lake.
Suddenly, to his surprise, Roselia runs towards her trainer, exclaiming happily. Drew blinks, alarmed, before he hears a familiar voice speak up behind him.
“Hey, Drew!”
Drew turns to see Solidad approaching with Slowbro, a smile on her face.
"What are you doing here?" Drew asks before he can stop himself.
Solidad laughs. "Jeez, it's nice to see you too."
Drew smirks and waves his hand at her. "You know what I meant."
"Well, am I not allowed to want to see you?” Solidad asks gently. “You practically ran away from the afterparty of the Grand Festival, and I’ve barely heard from you.” She settles on the grass right next to him as her Pokémon goes to greet his.
Drew runs a hand through his hair and winces. “Sorry. I've been busy.”
Solidad shakes her head. “Typical of you, isn't it? But don't you think you’ve trained enough?”
Drew shrugs and says nothing; she knows what his answer is. They both watch as Roselia comes forward and Solidad rubs her head. “So, have you decided on where to go from here?”
“I think I’ll head to the Johto region next.” Drew says. “What will you do?”
“Johto too, I think.” Solidad turns to meet his gaze. “Just because I became a Top Coordinator doesn’t mean I want to stop. I want to keep coordinating, traveling, and winning. I want to be a master coordinator and be accepted into the Ribbon’s Syndicate.”
Drew smirked and closed his eyes. “Yeah, you’re not the only one, you know.”
The Ribbon Syndicate was a big ordeal for coordinators alike. It was a private, special organization that only coordinators with a legendary status could call their home. Members would finally earn that sought after "Master" status and finally become a part of the world's elite, setting an example for all young coordinators alike.
Solidad smiles. It’s quiet for a while, both of them watching their Pokémon get along before she speaks. “I gave her your rose, you know. She caught you as you were leaving, right?”
Drew tenses, before he relaxes. “Yeah. Thanks for giving it to her. I … couldn’t give her that one in person.” It feels entirely too honest than he meant it to be, so he avoids Solidad’s eyes as she studies him.
When Drew had first given roses to May, it was a mocking. The flowers were filled with taunts about how her Pokémon were carrying her to victory. Then Drew had started to notice May, and his roses became fleeting — everyone knows what red roses meant. How could Drew give out roses when he didn’t even know who he was really giving them to?
But now this one was different. After everything — their fight, their battle, the final leg of their journeys — the rose held a different meaning now. It is a confession of his affection, respect, and awe for her.
It was the only genuine rose.
And they both knew it.
“Here,” Solidad holds out a shrunken Pokéball and Drew takes it. He glances down at it and blinks.
“This is Butterfree’s Pokéball,” he says, surprised. “Why are you giving this to me?”
“Because you need it,” she says simply. “You’ve done enough reflecting, Drew. You need to get out of your head, and the best way to do that is with a new partner. He’s yours now.” She stands up as Slowbro wanders towards her and returns him.
“Where are you going?” Drew is still reeling.
“To Johto,” Solidad raises a brow as if to say ‘obviously’. “And you’re going to Fennel Valley.”
“What’s in Fennel Valley?” Drew is scared to ask.
“You’ll see.” Solidad smiles.
***
Drew does end up making his way to Fennel Valley and runs into May. As soon as he sees her, he understands why Solidad sent him here instead of going to the Johto region first.
Drew feels like he’s seeing himself a week ago. May is lost, out of sync, and confused. It’s a mental thing he’s seen in himself and other coordinators stuck in a rut, and Drew tries to pull her out of it.
He challenges her to a battle, his heart beating faster when he sees the fire relight in May’s eyes.
They’re talking outside later — May sitting beyond the fence while he leans against it — and Drew tells May he’s going to Johto. He studies her reaction, trying to see how she’s feeling, and watches her eyes lower as she leans against the fence with him. “It’s pretty there, right now,” she says.
Drew gazes at her. She’s looking at the sunset, how the pinks, reds, and golds reflect off the mountains. The sprawling region in front of them looks beautiful, but Drew can’t seem to take his eyes off May. There’s no moonlight this time — May’s dripping with the sunset glow, chestnut hair waving in the wind, azure eyes deep and Drew feels like his heart is going to crawl out of his chest looking at her.
He really, really loves her.
Harley interrupts, as he always does, and soon he and Drew have to leave. May calls out goodbyes behind him as he walks away, and Drew raises a hand in return.
Life insists on — they’re rivals, May and him. They will always come together. As frequently as roses bloom, they will meet each other, again and again.
First Meetings
Summary: May and Drew meet for the first time, and it goes about just as well as you expect it to.
……… | flirting, fighting, and explosions. Not necessarily in that order. |
DREW
………
Drew against the bridge that was facing the shoreline and watched. The girl in a red bandanna was flinging frisbees at her Beautifly — and failing.
“Amateur,” Drew said in his head. The Beautifly had just failed to complete the move Silverwind. “You’re too nervous, Beautifly is sensing it.” He thought.
“You’re not on the same wavelength. You’re rushing your commands.” Drew recited in his head. He watched the three guys cheer up the girl that had just sunk to the ground in defeat.
A rugged boy around Drews age with messy raven hair and a red hat was encouraging the girl enthusiastically, a Pikachu by side.
“Whatever,” Drew let out a breath and closed his eyes, flipping his green hair from his face. That girl could try her hardest to perfect Silverwind, and those guys can keep on being her personal cheerleaders, but by the end of the contest he was going to end up on top.
“WATCH OUT!” a feminine voice suddenly shouted at him.
A lazy smirk glided along Drew’s mouth like an unwinding ribbon, and he didn’t move a muscle. Drew held out a hand and let the frisbee fly right into it. The cold, hard plastic pressed against the palm of his hand as he heard the girl footsteps against the sand as she reached the front of the bridge.
“I’m sorry,” she panted when she came to a stop.
Drew leaned against the banister and spun the girl’s frisbee around his finger, scoffing, “Please don’t tell me you’re planning on entering the Pokémon contest with the cheesy act like that.”
Drew almost jolted when the words came out of his mouth. He was almost about to apologize before he stopped. He was Andrew Hayden, and Andrew Hayden never apologizes.
Eyes still closed, Drew tossed the toy at the girl's feet and jumped off the bridge, navigating his way to the girl and her personal cheerleaders with ease. Now closer, Drew could feel her offense rolling off her more than the waves behind her.
“You have no finesse. No moves.” Drew continued. The mean words wouldn’t stop rolling off his tongue.
“Hey, who are you to tell me that!” The girl raged on like a Toros.
“If you must know, I’m Drew.” The said person did a cocky flip of his hair, smirking. “Pokémon Coordinator.”
Drew let his eyelids rise and came face to face with the most stunning pair of blue eyes he had ever seen.
………
MAY
Green Guy opened his eyes, and May felt caught off guard when she faced the most stunning pair of eyes she had ever seen.
They weren’t emerald, exactly — they were a lighter, softer shade of green that May would no doubt ponder about later at night. But right now Green Guy — Drew — stared back at May with a strange expression on his face. His pupils are dilated, and May couldn’t help but feel self-conscious as his eyes drank in her every feature.
May felt, as accurately as possible, like a Goldeen out of water.
“Really?” Ash's voice cut through the tension, and both coordinators snapped out of it. “That’s just like you May!” Ash exclaimed happily.
Drew cringed like the very thought of being related to May was painful and Max and Brock practically fell to the ground.
“Please, no comparison,” Drew flipped his hair and held out his hand in front of him, as if he couldn’t bear the sight of them. May looked ready to order Torchic to use Ember on the arrogant excuse-of-a-coordinator.
Drew continued insulting May as Beautifly flew down and elegantly perched herself on her head, tilting her head with curiosity. “You and your Pokémon here,” the green brat addressed May, “you have no style.” He turned his head away from them pridefully.
And … that’s it.
With an animalistic growl, May dove for the boy, literally ready to tackle him in her rage. Luckily, (for Drew sake, everybody but the two thought) Brock lunged forward in the nick of time and grabbed the girl by her forearms, successfully preventing May from her attempts of murder.
Drew didn’t flinch as May struggled to get out of her friend's grip.
“HOW DARE YOU! YOU CAN MAKE FUN OF ME ALL YOU WANT, BUT DON'T YOU DARE MAKE FUN OF MY POKÉMON — MMPH!?”
Drew pressed his hand against May’s trap to prevent his eardrums from being injured. He tossed her a careless smirk, amused and not at all intimidated by her temper.
May squirmed angrily in Brock’s death lock. This guy — this arrogant, cocky, grass-headed guy — had the audacity to touch her after insulting her and Beautifly? He must be joking.
“Whoa, just calm down little girl. I know you want a piece of this —” Drew gestured to his body with his other hand, “but I’m not interested in children.”
May got immense satisfaction when Drew actually took a step away from her as she went in for the kill again, dragging a shocked Brock along with her. Pikachu quickly shot off his partner's shoulder to grab onto the leg May was prepared to kick with. Beautifully quickly dropped back down on the brunette’s head to calm her down.
May took a deep breath, shutting her eyes for a second. She focused on the comforting weight of Beautifly weighing down on her neck before releasing her breath.
“Who are you calling little? We’re the same age," May retorted.
Drew simply ignored her comment and flipped his hair, purposefully ticking her off further.
Max jumped into the conversation, sensing his sister was about to blow again. “May, don’t listen to him," he said, sweating at the way May was eyeing Drew like a Mightyena would pounce on its prey.
“Yeah, why don’t you show us all your great Pokémon,” Ash butted in.
Drew rolled his eyes and answered snootily, “Why, what good would that do?”
Drew flipped his majestic (please note the sarcasm) green hair and locked eyes with May again. “I think,” he continued slowly, “that you all should be on your way.” Drew didn’t take his eyes off the blue-eyed girl as he jabbed his thumb behind him to the five-star hotel none of them had noticed before. “This is a private beach reserved for people like me staying at that hotel.” Drew tilted his head to the side, slightly challenging May — challenging them all — to argue.
May dragged her eyes from the fancy hotel to the boy standing a few feet ahead from her.
She hated him.
Rivalry burned in the pit of her stomach and she made sure she channeled all that heat into the glare she was giving him.
“Let’s go,” Ash broke the silence, grabbing May's wrist and tugging.
“Pika,” Pikachu, who was still at May’s feet, agreed and jumped on Ash's shoulder as the latter turned away and walked in the opposite direction.
“Yeah,” Brock said, unlocking May from his death grip and following Ash. Max followed the others, not before glancing nervously between the two coordinators who were in the middle of a face-off.
“Would you stop glaring at me like that? You look like a Gible,” Drew broke the silence as soon as the boys left.
“No,” May snapped back, anger evident in her tone. Beautify flew off her head and hovered above her.
Drew ran a hand through his hair and let it rest for a moment on her. Then he flipped his hair out and walked right up to her, not stopping until he was inches away from her. “I’ll see you at the contest, May,” he said teasingly, daring her to push him away.
May felt her hands ball up on instinct and her face burned with anger and embarrassment. The girl willed her feet to move, but to no avail.
That’s right,” May heard herself say. “You’ll see me win.”
Drew’s smirk grew wider and he leaned closer. Sapphire and emerald eyes burnt into each other. Both coordinators just stood there, staring at each other, standing in each other’s personal bubbles until May finally had the strength to pull away. Both watched each other like a hawk as May backed away from Drew scowling.
“Come on Beautifly, let’s go,” May finally said.
“Beautifly,” her Pokémon agreed.
Still, the trainers would not move, nor remove eye contact.
Finally, Drew turned on his heel and left, heading back to the hotel he had previously pointed out earlier. May and Beautifly stood and stared at Drew’s retreating form and May was left to ponder what had just transpired, blinking.
“What in Arceus’s name just happened?” May thought bewilderedly. Beautifly startled her out of it by landing on her head once more and May smiled at her Pokémon.
“I’m going to pound that arrogant piece of green hair into the battlefield when I win that ribbon,” May murmured to herself.
The young girl turned around and broke into a sprint, shouting, “Hey Ash! Let's have a Pokémon battle!”
love,,,,,them,,,,,