GC137

==Synopsis==
Rachel and Andre fail do perform as the other anticipated.
==Summary==
The Hoenn Grand Festival begins and the second day of battles have begun. On the large screen, Evyr commands Flygon and Solrock to advance to the quarterfinals. Andre commands Chinchou and Manectric in a repeat of his previous round's victory. Rachel continues to use a Helping Hand strategy with Minun, who teams with Skitty. They prove a strong duo to advance Rachel to the quarterfinals. Rachel is composed in victory because in the afternoon she will have to face Andre, as determined by the tourney tree. 
Rachel makes sure her Pokemon are treated and she talks to Justin about the upcoming battle against Andre. Rachel remains calm and shares she intends to perform with Marshtomp and Minun. Andre primarily uses light tactics but they are often based on electricity. Marshtomp being a Ground-Type and Minun having Volt Absorb will be the perfect counter. Justin begins to speak up but says nothing. Rachel asks what he wants to say. Justin retracts his previous gesture and says he actually has nothing to say. He eagerly awaits her performance.
Evyr is in the first quarterfinal battle. She commands Solrock and Roselia against the disguised Courtney, whose Ninetales' Drought works perfectly in Evyr's favor to award her a clear victory into the semifinals. 
After the standard intermission, Andre and Rachel are called out. Josephine is extremely excited for the battle and she remembers watching Andre and Rachel battle between Manectric and Skitty during the Maisie Island Contest from home. 
Rachel calls on Marshtomp and Minun as planned while Andre chooses Mantine and a Glameow, which surprises Justin. Andrew asks how Andre would be able to put on light-based appeals with those two Pokemon. Justin does not believe Andre can, which is the point. Andre is self-aware of his own strategies. If his opponent will anticipate them, as Rachel planned, he can easily use Pokemon the opponent would not have been prepared for. 
Surprised but unfazed, Rachel starts the battle by having Minun and Marshtomp combine Discharge and Rock Smash. Mantine blocks the wild electricity with a barrier of Aqua Ring, and when Marshtomp attacks, Glameow flinches him with Fake Out. 
Despite the setback, Rachel is invigorated. She has Minun strike Glameow and Mantine with Encore. Andre had his own plan, which is now foiled. Justin notes that Rachel abstained from having Minun use Encore in her first two battles, specifically for this moment, so Andre would not prepared for it. Now, Glameow and Mantine are stuck performing Fake Out and Aqua Ring, which prove useless. Marshtomp uses Mud Shot to make Glameow slip in mud, and Minun strikes Mantine's Aqua Ring with Spark to make dazzling sparkles before breaking through and landing a powerful blow. Andre remembers Encore from his battle against Skitty but thought Rachel abandoned the move once it had backfired. 
Andre's Pokemon overcome the effects of Encore after the attacks. Mantine blackens Rachel's Pokemon in a Haze. Glameow then glows pink, jumps into the black fog, and strikes Minun and Marshtomp with Play Rough, allowing him to equal the scores. 
Minun and Marshtomp then combine Helping Hand and Water Pledge. Mantine begins to swerve around the water pillars, but due to Helping Hand, Water Pledge is too large and powerful, causing them explode on Andre's Pokemon. However, Glameow is much faster and jumps around the pillars perfectly, getting close to Rachel's Pokemon. Glameow stuns them with Attract, replicating Rachel's tactic with Encore. Glameow wraps Rachel's Pokemon in her tail and tosses them into the air where Mantine explodes an Air Slash onto them. The attack snaps Minun and Marshtomp out of attraction.
Continuing their performance, Mantine fires a Signal Beam and Glameow performs Iron Tail. The Signal Beam strikes Glameow's tail and Glameow spins her tail creating a spinning whirlpool stream of rainbow energy. She then fires the Signal-Tail combination. Rachel calls onto Minun who uses Spark. Instead of colliding with the attack, Minun skids along the combination in an electric dance to control it. Marshtomp then erects a single pillar of water with Water Pledge to destroy the contest combination in a shower of sparks. Minun leaps into the appeal and shines, and the scores are equal again. 
Mantine and Marshtomp collide with Air Slash and Mud Shot, results in a small explosion. Minun dashes through the smoke with another Spark. Glameow repeats her Iron Tail and catches Minun, which is what Rachel wanted. While bound to Glameow, Minun then delivers a powerful Discharge, electrifying her before the clock expires. 
When the time is called, Glameow and Minun separate. Andre and Rachel look at the clock to see Rachel with five more points than Andre, winning her the battle and advancing to the semifinals. Rachel thanks her talented Pokemon for an incredible performance. Andre recalls his Pokemon and shakes Rachel's hand albeit bitterly and leaves while Rachel absorbs the cheers from the crowd. 
The quarterfinals continue and Chazz is among the final four. Rachel and Evyr understand and accept that they will face off in the semifinals. 
At the stadium's Pokemon Center, Rachel recovers Marshtomp and Minun. Justin applauds Rachel for delivering a performance and strategy he did not expect from her. Rachel makes a joke about surpassing Justin to which Justin says she long-since surpassed him as a Coordinator in Sootopolis City. Before they can continue Andre collects his Glameow and Mantine. Glameow needed extra treatment since Minun's Discharge paralyzed her. 
One final time, Rachel tries to make amends with Andre, and she's understanding why that even though he's person whom she met four times at most, he represents a shift in her mindset and career, not as a Coordinator but as a performer. Rachel says she does not not need Andre to change his opinion of her. Instead, she thanks him for being direct and harsh with her. Otherwise, she'd be feasting off of someone else's talent instead of sharing her own with her the world. 
Andre quietly replies to acknowledge that Rachel is in the semifinals of her first Grand Festival. A fraud can only go so far and a fraud cannot do that. Andre says he will remain on site, watching the semifinals and the finals the next day. He then walks away. Rachel notes to Justin that Andre did not wish her good luck. Justin says that it's probably the best she'll get. Rachel believes it's enough, and she's looking forward to her semifinal against Evyr.
The next day the semifinals and final day of competition has begun. Evyr and Rachel stand on opposite sides of the outdoor stage in their contest costumes, illuminated by the open sun. 
==Major Events==
*Evyr, Rachel, and Andre advance to the quarterfinals of the Hoenn Grand Festival
*Andre is revealed to have captured a Glameow
*Evyr and Rachel defeat Andre and Courtney, respectively to advance to the semifinals
*Rachel and Evyr are set to battle in the semifinals
For a list of all major events in this anime, please see Major Events (Grand Conquest). 
==Characters==
===Humans===
*Justin
*Rachel
*Andrew
*Evyr
*Andre
*Josephine
*Lisia
*Chazz
*Juan
*Courtney (disguise)
*Mr. Suziko
*Mr. Contesta
*Nurse Joy
*Coordinators
*Audience
===Pokemon===
*Eevee (Justin's)
*Marshtomp (Rachel's)
*Minun (Rachel's)
*Jigglypuff (Rachel's)
*Skitty (Rachel's)
*Shuppet (Rachel's)
*Aipom (Andrew's)
*Roselia (Evyr's)
*Flygon (Evyr's)
*Manectric (Andre's)
*Chinchou (Andre's)
*Mantine (Andre's)
*Glameow (Andre's)
Category:Episodes with Contests
Category:Grand Conquest
Category:Grand Festival Episodes