Trainers' Legacy (Private)

(Hey Galdr, I decided to post this in the actual RP section. I figured that our PM boxes would get pretty crowded if we did it like that. Besides, this will probably be easier to read back over.)

Lights. Balloons. Banners and costumes. If any town handled festivals well, it was Ever Grande City. A young man wandered through the crowded streets, mere minutes before the New Year celebration began.

The young man was Malcolm Rendall; trainer, coordinator, champion, and party enthusiast were but a few words that could describe him. His long green hair had been cut in front since the tournament he'd held nearly a year and a half ago, though he kept what was still long in a ponytail behind his back.

He looked down at the invitation that had been sent to him and many other trainers. It occured to Malcolm that this must be how the trainers had felt on the way to Legacy Island for his tournament.

Dear Trainers,

In honor of the new year, the Pokemon League has decided to hold a festival in Ever Grande City. The festival will include games, costume contests, and it will all be centered around a tournament beginning the minute the new year starts. Trainers participating will be required to wear costumes and use aliases to add to the mystique of the tournament. We hope you will come and celebrate with us!

From,
Pokemon League

Malcolm smiled. It had been awhile since he'd had a challenging battle. This was going to be fun. He approached the signup sheet for the tournament, writing his name sloppily, as well as what costume he'd wear and his alias. He had to think on the last one, but was satisfied with his decision. The receptionist looked at hia form. "Welcome to the tournament, Shadow Poacher." She said. He nodded, bowed and headed for the Pokemon Center, deciding to use his room to change into his costume.

(Moved it because of PM)

---

Dear Trainers,

In honor of the new year, the Pokemon League has decided to hold a festival in Ever Grande City. The festival will include games, costume contests, and it will all be centered around a tournament beginning the minute the new year starts. Trainers participating will be required to wear costumes and use aliases to add to the mystique of the tournament. We hope you will come and celebrate with us!

From,
Pokemon League

---

Inga Virote, a beautiful, long haired girl from the desert region of Orre, had received this [very same] letter. Another tournament she thought, her olive green eyes overlooking the letter once more. Ever Grande City was in the Hoenn region, where it housed the Elite Four of aforementioned region. This was, by far, the farthest she had ever been from her homeland, and felt a stinging giddiness develop deep down. Her long, blonde hair grew a few inches since the last, eventful tournament, and even a few shades lighter if one looked hard enough. However, she had her flowing hair tied in a bun, and she allowed her bangs to cover her left eye. The newest thing going on about her; she had beads in her hair, kneaded in long strands of golden locks that hung from in front of her ears.

She laughed silently to herself as she stepped towards the table with the signup sheets, and wrote in a fancy, cursive writing. Her costume and alias were well-thought out and she knew she'd have to contain her childish laughter until the end. Another person that was behind the table smiled at her and she nodded to him. Where was a decent place to change? The Pokemon Center might be crowded... she thought, swinging her large, black bag across her shoulders. ...Might be the ONLY place to change for Trainers. She lightly sighed as she quietly skipped to the aforementioned building, bypassing many trainers that were in the way.

(I just put it in Detailed because our posts are usually on the longer side.)

Malcolm smiled as he pulled out his costume after entering his room. He looked at himself in the room's mirror, trying to decide how to style his hair for the costume.

He nodded upon reaching a conclusion, heading into the bathroom to get ready. When he emerged, his hair was jet black and out of its ponytail. He carefully donned his costume, pulling on the dark blue muscle shirt and a black jacket and pants. He pulled a pair of blue and black gloves on, and similar boots as well.

Malcolm took out a small box and opened it, revealing large, yellow contact lens. He smiled and carefully put them on before reaching into his bag, pulling out a bottle of hair gel and a comb. He pulled his hair back, messily combing it into a mane befitting the Pokemon it was styled after.

Malcolm stepped back and looked in the mirror, smiling even wider. He could hardly recognize himself as he placed small, white, pointed caps on his canines, making them more animalistic. "Alright." He said, as he put on his Pokeball belt. "Let's go!" He turned and left the room, locking it behind him as he headed outside.

Miraculously, Inga was able to rent a room in the Pokemon Center. Her room was on the second floor; quite convenient for her taste. She strolled into her room, locked the door behind her and opened her bag. Unraveling her hand-made costume, she grinned sloppily, hoping it wouldn't make her stand out. She called out a Pokemon- Smeargle- as she untied her long hair. "Smeargle, I need for you to paint my hair red, and the edges black." The paintbrush Pokemon nodded and got to work, already knowing what to do.

After about half an hour, Inga's hair was done; the edges were lightly curled, and the majority of her hair was red with black tips. She carefully tied the tip of her hair in a blue bangle-like ornament, resumed dressing into her costume. It was almost tight fitting, but comfortable nonetheless. She once again asked her Smeargle to paint her face all black with red markings; the Pokemon obeyed, laughing all the while at her Trainer's costume. If one didn't know any better, she looked like a real Pokemon.

"Well! I'm all done. Thanks, Smeargle." she grinned, fitting the last part of the outfit onto her face. "Let's get to the festivities and all outside!"

"(Yeah!)" Smeargle chirped in Pokelanguage. Being returned to her Pokeball she went, and Inga- taking precautions to bring her Pokemon along- left her room, locking the door tight. She trotted down the stairs, earning gaping stares from other, nearby Trainers, being commented on when they realized she wasn't a real Pokemon.

Exiting the Center, she endorsed herself in the festival.

(Yeah, I know they're really long. XD )

Malcolm smiled as he walked around the festival, taking in the sights. While he had been Champion of Hoenn up until recently, he didn't ever stay in Ever Grande too long, instead prefering to sate his wanderlust.

He then happened upon a game stand, prizes lining the wall. The owner of the stand turned around and smiled at the young man. He was dressed like a Kecleon, painted skin and all.

"Welcome, my friend!" he said, arms wide. "An excellent costume! Would you care to play my game here?"

Malcolm looked around the stand. The back walls were painted enthusiastically, to say the least. Stripes, zigzags, and blotches of paint randomly covered the game area.

"So what's the game?" Malcolm asked curiously. The man smiled andreleased a Pokemon from the ball in front of him. A real Kecleon, to be exact. "The game is simple;" the man explained. "My Kecleon will camoflauge itself to match the wall. If you can find him five times in one minute, you win!"

Malcolm smiled, interested. "Alright then," he said, crackling his knuckles excitedly. "Let's do it!"

The man pulled a rope, and his Kecleon ran behind the curtains to hide. "Aaaand . . . Go!" The stall owner said, starting the timer.

Malcolm's eyes scanned the wall for anything unusual. He saw nothing, but then noticed something move. "There!" He shouted. Kecleon uncamoflauged, and the stall owner added one point to the counter as he pulled the rope again.

"There!" Malcolm repeated, seeing the Kecleon's stripe. And a third time. Fourth.

With ten seconds left, the young trainer's searched passionatelt for any signs. The stall owner snickered, shifting Malcolm's attention back to him. He smiled and reached forward at the man's torso . . . Pulling away the Kecleon that had hid itseld using its trainer's stripe. The man smiled. "Winner!" He shouted, Kecleon jumping excitedly.

Malcolm pumped his fist in joy. "Yes!" He shouted, scanning the prize shelf. The man turned and took Maalcolm's chosen prize off the shelf, giving it to the trainer.

Malcolm smiled as he held up his prize; a set of ball capsules and stickers. "And remember," said the man. "You can always come back for a rematch!" Malcolm smiled and nodded, heading to the food area so that he could sit down and try out his prize.

Inga gingerly strolled to a game in particular. It was a young woman in a Clefairy costume, however she had huge, red glasses on. Funny. "Welcome to Clefairy Says!" She chirped, noticing Inga approaching. "Would you like to play?"

"Of course!" Inga happily replied. "How does the game work?"

The Clefairy costumed woman laughed and began, "You send one of your Pokemon out and they have to sit here," she indicated at a small desk, ", and with you, they must memorize the dance steps that my Clefairy will create with her Metronome technique on the black board. If your Pokemon gets all the dance steps right in the allotted time, you win!" Inga's face lit up; cooperating with her Pokemon in fun games was always mirthful. "But! There's a catch!" the woman added.

"Catch?"

"Yup! The Trainer must ALSO dance with their Pokemon. So, if you or your Pokemon mess up a dance move, you both are wrong! So, you'll have to be careful!" Inga's face fell a little, but that wasn't going to worry her. Three other participants; a man in a Gallade costume, another male in an Empoleon costume, and a young woman in a Charizard outfit, approached. The first one sent out his Bulbasaur, the second sent out his Raichu, and the third sent out her Delibird. Inga rolled out a Pokeball and sent out her Zorua.

The four Pokemon stood behind their appointed desks, with their trainers standing behind them, a few inches away, and, "Ready? Begin!" the game master shouted cheerfully. Her Clefairy, also adorned in red glasses, tapped the chalk board behind her, grabbing the attention of the Pokemon.

"(Watch carefully!)" she instructed in Pokelanguage. She tapped the board once, and four dance moves appeared for only a few seconds! Inga realized she wasn't good at dancing and her Zorua looked nervous. "D-don't worry, Gen. We'll... just have fun, OK?" The black fox nodded, still nervous about dancing, especially in the public. When the dance steps vanished off the board, Clefairy tapped her desk with a long, baton. "(Quickly now! Memorize and get ready to dance! Twenty seconds!)"

The Gallade dressed man and his Bulbasaur were ready, the Empoleon garbed male and his Raichu struggled a bit to remember but they were ready. The Charizard lady and her Delibird were prepared. Inga and Gen, barely got ready, but had already memorized their dance steps. "(Ready... set... GO!)" Clefairy said as she turned on a stereo that had nostalgic music playing as background music. The trainers and their Pokemon moved in perfect unison; left, right, right, and left!

(XD)

(Lol, I remember that game! My sister used to be awesome at it. I was more partial to Topsy Turvy. Undefeated!)

Malcolm reached for his Pokeball belt, deciding upon a particularly old friend. He opened a ball capsule and placed the ball inside. He smiled and stuck several fire and smoke stickers on it.

Once satisfied, he turned to what he had ordered. The trainer licked his lips hungerly as he stared down at the four cheese garlic pizza. He sent out his Pokemon, allowing them to eat and energize. As he ate, he looked at his watch. About ten minutes until the tournament began.

"Alright guys, return!" He told his Pokemon, recalling them to their Pokeballs. He decided to head down to the fairly large, open arena. pther people also gathered, sitting in the bleachers around the field. Realising how his breath must smell, Malcolm unwrapped two pieces of chewing gum and popped them in his mouth, savoring the icy, minty flavor.

(Oh yeah, did you ever find that Goo Goo Dolls song?)

(Uggh Topsy Turvy. XD I was never good at that one. Dig, Dig, Dig and Run Rattata Run from the first one I was good with. I never mastered Stadium 2's games D: Clefairy Says my sister owned that. I would always lose ;_; XD)

The first round went well; nobody got the dance steps wrong. The second round added two more dance steps to it; the participants readied themselves again, and grooved with the beat; left, right, right, left, down, left! Unfortunately, Bulbasaur missed the down step and he and his Trainer were out of the game. "Aww! That's OK, pal. We tried and had fun!" he told his Pokemon who nodded. They stayed on the sidelines to watch the others, and apparently cheering for his friend dressed in the Empoleon costume.

The third round added two more dance steps, and once again, the Trainers and their Pokemon got ready. Inga trembled on the inside, as she knew people were watching; left, right, right, left, down, left, down, right! Too many rights! Apparently, the other two participants remained in the game, so now the next round was going to be a little harder.

Fourth round added two more steps, and was now a total of ten steps! Yikes! Left, right, right, left, down, left, down, right, up, down! The woman in the Charizard outfit and her Delibird both messed up, and were out of the game. The final round consisted of the Empoleon man and Inga. Raichu and Gen glanced at each other with overconfident faces, naturally telling the other they were going to win. "Okay~! We have ourselves a Sudden Death!" the game master said giddily, "Okay Trainers, this time you have to close your eyes and your Pokemon will be the ones to read you the dance steps. During that time, you must perform all the dance steps correctly. The one who does wins!"

Inga flinched visibly; this wouldn't bode well. A small crowd had gathered around the game area of Clefairy Says, and the participants closed their eyes. Clefairy tapped her baton the desk, telling the other Pokemon to pay attention. The dance steps were new this time: up, down, up, left, right, left, down, left, up, right! Gen and Raichu grumbled complaints as time was now pinned against them; thirty seconds!

Gen barked at Inga, and Raichu nagged his Trainer to move in the right direction and hurriedly. They, the humans, were doing terrible at following commands. The Pokemon sighed in defeat as time was closing to a stop. "(And stop!)" Clefairy instructed, making the two Pokemon flinch and groan. That wasn't enough time to get their idiot, loveable Trainers to dance the right way.

In the end, both failed, but got consolation prizes for trying the Sudden Death match. The small crowd laughed and clapped at their attempts before scattering away. Inga got a stuffed Snivy plush as her choice and snuggled it. She absolutely loved the Pokemon plush, and allowed Gen to play with it. "We best get something to drink and rest. All that dancing got me too excited." Inga breathed as she spotted a lone snack stand. She trotted over to it, and ordered a hefty sub sandwich and a bottle of water. Out of their Pokeballs were her Pokemon, excited to see the large sandwich and dug in. Inga chugged a few gulps of the chilling liquid down her throat; it was refreshing and tasty. "Wonder how much longer until the tournament..."

As Malcolm went over his recently developed strategies, he watched a group of costumed children and their Pokemon playing together. The trainer smiled, the kids reeminding him of when he was their age.

Suddenly, a voice came over the festival's speaker system. "Attention, all trainers participating in the ne year's first tournament, please report to the battlefield to be briefed on the rules. All participating trainers, please report to the battlefield."

Malcolm looked up at the sound of the announcement. He smiled and stood up, tsking in a deep breath. "Here we go!" He said, laughing as he made his way to the battlefield.

Not much longer she waited, a voice over an intercom, she assumed, told the participants to come to the battlefield. Would they still have to be dressed in their costumes? "Aye, we can finally go~" she said with a musical tone to her voice. Her snacking Pokemon greedily finished their meal and were returned to their Pokeballs. She carried the Snivy Plush with her. There were at least a hundred people heading for the same place; it was getting rather crowded as she continued to make her way to her destination. She truthfully admitted that Ever Grande City was... too grand for her taste. The place was packed!

As he waited for the tournament host to make his/her appearence, Malcolm watched as trainers filed into the battlefield. He saw a young man dressed as a Blaziken, and a woman as a Bellossom. A pair of younger trainers were dressed as Plusle and Minun. And there were many others, too, many with elaborate costumes or outfits they probably sewed at home.

But one trainer in particular caught his attention. As Malcolm combed through his black-dyed mane with his fingers, he noticed a young woman, probably around his age, walking in. She wore a black and red costume, and she had dyed her hair red. Paint decorated her face, and a large bead tied her hair near the end.

Malcolm shook his head, snapping out of it. He didn't want to be caught staring at anyone. He carefully readjusted his contacts, blinking several times to get his bearings.

People were coming and going about all over the place, running into others and rambling insults, pushing other people out of their way. Was city life always like this? The lashing of profanity made Inga miss the quaint peaceful, but dry Orre.

She breathed a deep sigh, moving out of the way of taller folks, and swerving around incoming, talkative others. Four girls dressed as Sawsbuck of the different seasons commented on Inga’s costume, dragging her attention from watching closely. As the four females left to their own business, a man in a Wailord suit bumped rather rudely into her, almost knocking her down. “Uh, EXCUSE me!” the man huffed irritably, as he kept going muttering about ‘people in my way’. Inga narrowed her eyes in the direction the boorish man went and kept her eyes focused. She definitely didn’t want to experience that again.

Another person came by, dressed in a Weavile costume approached her from behind. “Hey there, sweet cheeks!” he commented. Inga turned her head to greet the man, calling her out of her name. “…Hi?” she lightly uttered.

“You look lost here, so I wanted to come over and say hi!” he chirped.

“…Thank you. I’m not lost, though. Just waiting for the tournament to begin as is everyone else here.” She replied, smiling gingerly. The Weavile dressed male grinned toothily and remained positioned by her. “Okay. I’m waiting myself. I think I’ll stand here and wait with ya so you won’t be lonely.” Inga merely shrugged her shoulders, not minding if he stayed. However, a certain Pokémon of hers was not excited about the new male being near his trainer.

Malcolm couldn't help but watch as the young woman was bumped and shoved by the irritable crowd. She clearly wasn't used to the hustle and bustle of the city.

He then saw a guy dressed as a Weavile walk up to her. He seemed about as smooth as sand paper, and just as pleasent. He heard the man call her 'sweet cheeks'.

That teared it. Malcolm didn't even know the woman, but he hated seeing her spoken to like that. He didn't know why, but he found himself walking over to them without thinking.

"Hey!" He shouted, stepping in front of the Weavile-dressed man. He crossed his arms, yellow eyes narrowed. "She said she wasn't lost. And besides, I doubt she's lonely. She's a trainer. She's got Pokemon."

Malcolm, despite his evident irritance, was still confused. Why was he reacting like this? He took another look at the woman. Why did she seem so familiar, all of a sudden?

“So, hot—I mean young lady. You’re here for the tournament?” asked the creepy Weavile man.

“Yes.”

“You sound rather young to be here. You look more like a fif—”

“I’m old enough to be here to participate. Age doesn’t matter, sir.” Inga intercepted, her tone of voice remained the same. Her olive green eyes captured the man’s brown ones and he blushed a deep crimson. This woman was definitely hot, and he wanted to be as close to her as possible. Before he could utter another word, another male’s voice snapped at him. The pair turned to find another costumed man coming up to them, his arms crossed and he looked upset. After listening to this man’s rambling, the Weavile dressed guy narrowed his brown eyes. “Well! She might not be lost now, but maybe down the road, she will be. So, I’ll volunteer to help.” He shot back. Ugh, a commotion.

“Still. Being a young woman all alone, even with Pokémon… well it might not be safe!” he said again, trying to defend his position. Inga lowered her eyes as the sign of concern; these two didn’t need to argue! This was supposed to be a tournament of, to her, fun. Why fight and banter?

“Please you two, it’s okay.” She said, stepping between them, her eyes onto the Weavile guy. “This gentleman,” she indicated Malcolm, but didn’t know it was him, “is right. It’s true, I do have my Pokémon with me… And, well this place is just really huge compared to my home region. I’ll be OK by myself. I do appreciate your help, though.” The man sighed in defeat and lowered his temper. To get upset near a beautiful lady wasn’t his kind of motto. “Very well then… But, if you ever need anything, just come find me! I’m the only one wearing this costume! The name’s Benjamin.” He quaintly took her hand, shook it, then left.

Inga turned to the costumed Malcolm, and smiled. “Thank you, sir.” She laughed lightly, “I’m not so much to really stand up for myself in these, huge city places. The buildings all look the same to me.”

(Uhh . . . WTF is a contact lens add doing in our RP?)

Malcolm nodded in satisfaction as 'Benjamin' left, defeated. "Damn, I can't stand people like that." He muttered quietly. It was true - partially, at least. He wrinkled his nose in distaste before realising that the woman was speaking to him.

He listened to her thank you. "Uh, no problem." He said somewhat akwardly. "Sorry for causing a scene; I don't know what came over me. Something about that guy rubs me the wrong way."

He turned to look at the woman, smiling. "Oh yeah, I didn't catch your name. I'm Malcolm, Malcolm Rendall." He introduced himself, the exchange with Benjamin making him forget to use his alias. "What's yours?"

(Just a spammer. I got 'em already. I noticed too and I'm like WTF too)

“It’s okay, you did what you felt was the right thing to do. So, I’m grateful.” Inga responded, lightly censuring how the Weavile costumed guy abruptly left without her giving him her name in exchange. She assumed hasty men were like that.

When the man gave her his name, she was taken aback; Malcolm Rendall? That name sounded so familiar, she could have slapped herself a few times. However, she didn’t. That was the name…of her apparent crush. Was this guy using it as his alias? The Malcolm she knew was quite popular, since he had traveled around. Assuming it was his fake name for the tournament, she smiled casually. “Kainoa Martel.” She replied, using her alias name, just like him. “It’s nice to meet you, Malcolm. I can’t help but feel I’ve heard that name somewhere before, but it could be me and my imagination.”

Malcolm smiled, more at ease as she accepted his apology. He listened to her introduce herself. "Kainoa Martel?" He repeated. "That's a nice name."

He thought about what she said, about his name sounding familiar. He chose to avoid mentioning that, prior to his recent resignation, he was the champion of Hoenn.

Suddenly, a man stepped onto the stage near the battlefield. "Ladies and gentlemen, the first round match setups have been decided; please turn your attention to the display if you are a trainer.

Malcolm smiled. "Finally!" He said excitedly. "I'll see you around, Kainoa. Gonna go see who I'm up against! Hope we get to battle!"

(Freaking spammers. Can we get that deleted?)

(Deleted and scrubbed off.)

“Thank you.”

She took notice of Malcolm, having a strange feeling she had met him before. Those eyes… At least, the shape of them. They looked strangely familiar. She couldn’t put her finger on it. She ended her quick examination of him when her thoughts were interrupted by a spokesman. When he announced that the tournament’s setup were ready, she grinned mellifluously. “That’s great. I’ve been waiting for this!” she laughed audibly. She chuckled when Malcolm exclaimed excitedly as well, then bid his farewell. “See you later then! I hope to see you too!”

However, she didn’t have a chance to find a nearby display; a plethora of Trainers had barged ahead of her to find their names and their opponents. I guess I’ll wait patiently. she decided, standing to the side while others bypassed her in a hurry.

(Thank you)

Malcolm ran his finger across the air, searching for his alias on the massive display. Finally, he found it. "Shadow Poacher vs. Night Watcher" it said. He looked around, wondering who it could be.

Suddenly, the announcer spoke up. "Oh, wait a moment." He said, reading a paper someone had given him. It appears that there has been a last minute surprise twist to this tournament; every battle will be a double battle, so trainers, find a partner quick!"

Everyone began scrambling to find a sufficient partner after hearing this, running to find their friends or strong-looking trainers. Malcolm just stood there, surprised. "Wasn't expecting that." He said simply, muttering quietly. "Wonder what they're planning?"

Some trainers had finally shuffled their way from a nearby display screen, and Inga shimmied herself through some people to have a look-see. She took a glance, squinting her eyes til she saw her alias! “The Halo vs Kainoa Martel. …who the heck is ‘The Halo’?” She wondered almost aloud. Thankfully nobody heard that comment. She shrugged and once again, shimmied herself through the suffocating crowds of trainers. “…Probably is someone who likes halos.” She thought.

Not a minute later, the spokesman had announced something; a last minute change for double battles? Now THIS was unexpected. “Talk about late.” She narrowed her eyes in slight annoyance. Now, she would have to find someone who looked reliable. She spotted many groups of people huddling together, laughing and picking who got to be with who. It wasn’t long until the Weavile, also known as Benjamin, came up and approached her. “Hey cute stuff!” he said, blushing, and Inga ignored his apparent ‘nickname’ for her. “You don’t have a partner yet do you?”

“No. I don’t yet.” she replied, matter-of-factly.

“Well, how’s about you team up with me? My Pokémon are smooth and devoted! They won’t let yours down.” Benjamin chirped, winking. “So how about it, sweet cake?”

Inga sighed, but she felt she couldn’t refuse. It seemed like everyone had a partner anyway. “Well… As long as you don’t… call me those…odd names.”

“Sure thing cupcake—oops! I mean… what is your name?”

“Kainoa Martel.” Inga replied, a slow, simpering smile playing upon her lips. Deep down, she wondered if Malcolm had picked anyone; if that guy was her crush’s “fan” then being with him would have been more pleasurable than with Benjamin.