Sinnoh Grand Festival

A week had passed since the Arrowroot Contest and the gang was now in Lake Valor. Ash and Dawn were happy about their arrival because it wasn't long before the Grand Festival started. Right now the gang was at the lakeside resort, attending a meet and greet for coordinators. 
Coordinators that won five contest ribbons had gathered there and everyone helped themselves to the food that was served. Rhonda, the Sinnoh TV reporter was interviewing the coordinators. Right now she was interviewing Nando. When she saw Ash and Dawn, she wasted no time interviewing them as well. Of course Dawn had to check with a mirror if she looked nice for it.
After the interviews, the gang conversed with Nando.
"When I first met you I couldn't decide on whether to compete in contests or gym battles." Nando said. "But thanks to you suggesting I do both I found joy in doing both. I am truly grateful for that." 
"How many gym badges do you have?" Ash asked.
Nando showed off his badge case and revealed that he had seven badges. Two of them were from different gyms.
"Wow, so you only need one more badge like Ash and I do." Tomo said.
"Then I hope we'll meet up again in the Sinnoh League." Ash said.
"Same here." Nando said.
During the rest of the meet and greet, the gang met up with their friends who also arrived at Lake Valor. First they met Kenny, who of course teased Dawn like usual. Next, to Dawn's dismay, they met up with Ursula who acted proud and snobbish like usual. Then at last they ran into Zoey who was pleased that Ash and Dawn made it. She looked forward to facing them in the festival. Of course there was a conversation between Ash, Dawn, Kenny and Zoey that both of them wanted to win the Grand Festival. Ursula just acted proud thinking they were all acting like young children, but the truth was she also wanted to win this festival but didn't admit it.
That night...
Dawn had all of her Pokemon out; Piplup, Ariados, Buneary, Wormadam, Pachirisu, Mamoswine, Cynadquil, Cherrim, Drifloon, Togekiss, Chatot, Clefairy, Phione, Mesprit and Smoochum. Prof. Rowan gave Dawn special permission to let her have all her Pokemon with her. 
"Everyone this is it." Dawn said to her Pokemon. "The Grand Festival starts tomorrow."
The Pokemon were excited to hear this.
Dawn showed off Johanna's old first ribbon to her Pokemon.
"I am going to work extra hard to honor this." She said. "Ash, Brock, Tomo and all of you it's because of you that I've made it this far. Thank you."
"Now it's time for you to put everything you've learned from the Pokemon contests into the Grand Festival Dawn." Ash said.
"You're right Ash." Dawn said.
She turned to all of her Pokemon.
"I know all of you are in great shape and ready for this. So let's give one big final push." All her Pokemon cheered, excited for tomorrow.
The next day...
Ash and Tomo were outside with Pikachu and Growlithe.
"Well today is the start of the Sinnoh Grand Festival." Ash said.
"I can't wait for it to start." Tomo said. "Do you think you'll win this Grand Festival Ash?"
"Well after coming in second place at the Kanto Grand Festival, I may come in first place in this one." Ash said.
"Don't be so sure about that Ash." A voice said.
It came from Kenny; he heard everything Ash had just said.
"I'm afraid that the one who will win the competition is me."
"Oh we'll see about that Kenny." Ash said.
"You and I can settle our past contest challenges here Ash." Kenny said.
"I accept that." Ash smiled.
This was true; Ash and Kenny did have a score to settle with each other, especially since they battled each other a few times during contests.
"Since you're out here, where is Dawn?" Kenny asked.
"She's been going crazy since this morning." Ash said. "But Tomo and I ran away before she could let us have it."
"I hear you. That's Dawn alright." Kenny laughed.
Ash was right about Dawn going crazy. She was having a hard time trying to get her hair right because of her nerves. Brock had to ask for Zoey's help to calm her down. Zoey had to talk to Dawn about her nerves and remind her that their Pokemon were the stars of this competition.
Later on it was the start of the Sinnoh Grand Festival. First up of course were the appeal rounds. The venue had three stages for the appeal rounds; a blue stage, a green stage and a red stage. 
"108 coordinators made it to the venue." Marian explained.
"The performances will be double performances." She added.
This was why there were three stages.
"Here are the judges." She then proceeded to introduce the judges, but instead of one Nurse Joy there were three. 
Adding to the surprise, Fantina would judge the Sinnoh Grand Festival as well. As Fantina was a top coordinator, she was eager to judge the competition.
As there were three stages, two judges were to be on each stage. Mr. Contesta and Nurse Joy were on the blue stage. Mr. Suziko and another Nurse Joy were on the green stage and Fantina and the last Nurse Joy were on the red stage.
Ash and Dawn were in the waiting room with the other coordinators. Dawn's dress that Johanna sent her was a light yellow dress with a reddish-pink ribbon sewn to the chest, a orange sash at the torso area, white ruffles, opera length white gloves and white pumps. There was a matching ribbon in Dawn's hair. Ash was wearing a new outfit courtesy of Delia. He had dark blue trousers, a navy and dark blue long coat, a grey waist coat, a white shirt, a black belt and two black boots. Zoey and Kenny had different outfits as well; Zoey wore a long green tunic dress with green trousers and shoes and Kenny wore a bluish-green suit that made him look like a prince. Tomo and Brock were in the stands with Pikachu and Piplup joining them; they weren't going to be used for the preliminary rounds which is why they were in the stands. Johanna and Delia were watching this on TV back at their respective homes.
Soon it was the start of the appeal rounds. Ursula was up first on the blue stage and she sent out two Eevee with song seals. Dawn was amazed Ursula had two Eevee and looked them up on her Pokedex.
To start off Ursula had the two Eevee use Iron Tail; the Eevee whacked each other's tails with Iron Tail like they were in a sword fight. Next the Eevee used Hidden Power and silver bubbles were floating around them. To everyone's surprise Ursula took out a Fire and Water Stone then threw them at her Eevee. One Eevee caught the Fire Stone and evolved into Flareon. The other one caught the Water Stone and evolved into Vaporeon. Ursula's tactic was to show off her Eevee's evolutions on stage. Because of their evolutions, Flareon's silver bubbles had turned red and Vaporeon's silver bubbles had turned blue. Everyone loved it; even Ash, Dawn, Kenny and Zoey were impressed.
"I've never seen this happen in a contest before." Ash said.
"Even I wouldn't have thought of something like that." Kenny said.
"Tactics like that will only work once, but I have to admit it was very impressive." Zoey said.
"Ursula is a lot tougher than the last time I saw her." Dawn said.
Next it was Nando's turn on the green stage and he used his Altaria and a Kricketot.
"Perish Song and Sing." He ordered while playing his harp.
Altaria left a trail of golden dust and sparkles while flying around and Kricketot let out a lot of song notes while singing. The gold dust and sparkles made the notes glow, while giving off a musical performance.
"Trust Nando to make his appeal round a musical." Tomo said.
"His technique is high level." Brock said.
Next it was Ash's turn on the red stage and he was using Ambipom and Mothim.
"Silver Wind." He told Mothim.
Ambipom punched the Silver Wind with Focus Punch. The Silver Wind created a lot of silvery particles after being hit by Focus Punch. Next Ambipom created one big star with Swift and Mothim hit the big star with Psybeam. The big star turned into a shower of stars. Ash and his two Pokemon raised their arms together in a pose.
"Brother was great." Tomo said. Pikachu agreed.
After Ash's turn there were performances from other coordinators. Soon it was Zoey's turn. She was on the blue stage and a pool appeared. The stages were set to have anything a coordinator would want for their performances like a watery field or a sand field or have any equipment they desired. Zoey was using her new Lumineon and Gastrodon; Lumineon had evolved from her Finneon. 
"Aqua Ring, Water Pulse." Zoey told her Lumineon and Gastrodon.
The Aqua Ring and Water Pulse attacks created three rings of water and Lumineon and Gastrodon jumped through them as a trick. To finish it off the rings floated onto the surface of the water and transformed into water spouts. Zoey jumped onto the middle water spout and Gastrodon and Lumineon jumped onto the side ones for a finishing pose.
"What a way to show off water type Pokemon." Ash said.
Next it was Kenny's turn on the red stage and he was using his newly evolved Empoleon and his newest Pokemon Floatzel. To start it off, Floatzel used Aqua Jet and Empoleon used Hydro Cannon. Hydro Cannon hit Aqua Jet and turned it into a waterfall. Next Floatzel used Razor Wind while it was still in the waterfall, and the Razor Wind fused with the water creating many flying disks made of water. Then Empoleon cut the disks with Metal Claw, creating a watery mist. To finish it off Empoleon fired Flash Cannon while Floatzel used Whirlpool. The two attacks countered each other creating a rainbow colored wave of energy. 
"Kenny's become a lot more impressive." Ash said. Dawn agreed.
To finish it off Empoleon used Hydro Cannon and Floatzel used Water Gun. The two attacks collided with each other, creating a very splashy ending.
Finally it was Dawn's turn and she was on the green stage. She was using Cyndaquil and Smoochum. To start it off, Smoochum jumped as high as she could and released Ice Beam while spinning around. She ended up creating a frozen roller coaster. Next Cyndaquil used Flame Wheel to roll up and down the roller coaster with Smoochum sliding behind him. Next up Cyndaquil used Smokescreen while Smoochum got ready to use Ice Beam again. The smokescreen covered both Smoochum and Cyndaquil. Of course having both Pokemon covered was usually a mistake, but Dawn had a plan. Cyndaquil released the smokescreen with his flames and Smoochum was revealed to be in a frozen Poke Ball. The smokescreen was used to make the design of a Poke Ball. Everyone liked the frozen work of art, especially Nurse Joy and Mr. Suziko.
After that it was time for the judges to choose which coordinators had passed the preliminary rounds. Only 32 coordinators were to enter the battle rounds. A few minutes later the results were shown. Ash, Dawn, Zoey, Kenny, Nando and Ursula made it to the second round, to their joy.
That evening
The gang had a conversation with Zoey and Kenny.
"I'm glad we got to the second round." Dawn said.
"No doubt we'll be battling each other in the second round." Ash said.
"I hope to battle either one of you in the final round." Kenny said.
Zoey thought the same thing too.
So the preliminary round was over, but there were still the battle rounds to go in the grand festival.
The next morning
Ash and Dawn decided to do some last minute practicing with their Pokemon before the battle rounds of the grand festival started. Ash was going to use Staraptor and Gliscor for his first battle so those two were warming up their attacks. Dawn was taking turns with all her Pokemon; switching her Pokemon with Prof. Rowan now and again.
Zoey, Nando and Kenny heard all the training and came to see the gang.
"Well, well, well I see you and your Pokemon are excited this early in the morning." Kenny said.
"That's because we're getting ready for round 2 of the grand festival." Ash replied.
"I look forward to seeing what you will do during the contest battles." Nando said.
Zoey was happy to see Dawn losing her nerves now.
Later on it was time for the battle rounds. All 32 participants that made it were in the waiting room for the results. 
"I'm going to use Mamoswine and Pachirisu for the first battle." Dawn told the boys.
"I take it you intend to use the ice chandelier, right?" Ash asked.
"Right as always, Ash." Dawn smiled.
Just then Ursula appeared. As usual, she made snobbish and rude remarks to Dawn.
Ursula believed she would never make it to the final round. Dawn didn't like her attitude at all and neither did Ash, Tomo and Brock.
"I'll show you, just wait and see." Dawn angrily said.
Suddenly the pairings for the first battle round were announced. Mr. Suziko, Mr. Contesta, Nurse Joy and Fantina were going to judge the battles together. 
"The first set of battles are divided into 4 blocks; A, B, C and D. There will be 8 contestants in each block." Marian explained.
When the first 8 results in block A came out, it was revealed Dawn would take Ursula on first. Ursula didn't mind; she thought this would be a good opportunity to get back at Dawn for defeating her in past contests.
It didn't take long for the battle rounds to start. Dawn and Ursula took their places on the battlefield. Dawn released Pachirisu and Mamoswine with a star and line seal. Ursula released her Gabite and Flareon with a party and flame seal. Fantina was excited to see how the contest battles would turn out and couldn't stop talking excitedly.
"Please settle down." Nurse Joy asked Fantina.
Ash, Zoey and Nando had their eyes glued to the screen to see what would happen next.
"Discharge." Dawn told Pachirisu.
Ursula had her Gabite block the move because it was part ground type. Dawn expected that though. She had Mamoswine use Take Down on Gabite. Pachirisu's electricity surrounded Mamoswine and when it tackled Gabite, the electricity surrounded Gabite shocking Flareon after Gabite crashed into it. 
"Sandstorm." Ursula told Gabite.
Mamoswine wasn't affected, but Pachirisu was.
"Mamoswine, use Blizzard to cancel out the sandstorm." Dawn said.
"Oh no you don't." Ursula said. "Flareon, use Scary Face."
Flareon leaped into the sandstorm and showed off a scary face. The scary face appeared in the sand and freaked Mamoswine out stopping it from using Blizzard.
"Wow Scary Face really scared me. It was something out of a horror movie." Tomo said.
"Ursula's battle style is impressive." Brock said. "Dawn's in for a rough battle."
"Pachirisu, Super Fang. Mamoswine, Ice Beam." Dawn ordered.
Ursula had Gabite use Double Team and the Gabite copies surrounded Pachirisu and Mamoswine, catching them off guard. Flareon then used Shadow Ball as the shadowy ball hit Mamoswine and Pachirisu. Things weren't looking good for Dawn.
"Please get up Pachirisu, Mamoswine I know you can do this." Dawn said.
Pachirisu and Mamoswine could keep going, but they were injured.
"Try and try again all you want." Ursula rudely said. "But all that will do is cause you to lose and me to win. After all it's your job to make me look good."
Dawn growled angrily; she didn't like what Ursula was saying one bit.
With how things were going, it didn't look good for her especially since Gabite was still using it's copies to surround Mamoswine and Pachirisu.
"Dawn is going to need to think of something otherwise she'll lose." Brock said. Tomo nodded in agreement.
Dawn decided to go all out since it was apparent she wouldn't get anywhere with this.
"Pachirisu climb on Mamoswine's back. Mamoswine use Earth Power." The two Pokemon did as they were told.
Thanks to Earth Power, Gabite's copies were thrown off balance. 
"Quick Pachirisu, Thunderbolt. Mamoswine, Superpower." Dawn said.
Mamoswine kicked Gabite really hard and Pachirisu proceeded to shock Flareon. 
"That was a risky strategy using Earth Power on the stage." Nando said.
"Yes, but it was the only way to deal with Gabite's copies." Zoey said.
With Gabite and Flareon down, Dawn decided now was the time to use her new move; the ice chandelier. 
"Mamoswine, use Ice Shard." She ordered.
The ice shard formed a sphere of ice around Pachirisu.
"Now Pachirisu, use Discharge." Dawn said.
Pachirisu made the ice sphere roll around like a ball while running and then used Discharge to light it up. The judges were amazed with the ice chandelier move and so was Kenny, Zoey and Nando. Ursula couldn't believe her eyes because she had never seen anything like this. This didn't mean she would lose though.
"Gabite, Dig. Follow Gabite, Flareon." She ordered. 
Gabite dug a hole and Flareon went into the hole. It caused Pachirisu to miss Gabite and Flareon and crash into the wall, causing the ice sphere to break. Then Gabite and Flareon emerged from the hole and Flareon hit Pachirisu with Shadow Ball. Dawn tried to have her Pokemon attack but Gabite continued using Dig and it was easy for Flareon to attack Mamoswine and Pachirisu after coming out of the hole with Shadow Ball.
Things were looking bad again; Dawn was blocked by Ursula's attacks again and her points were nearly gone. She really needed to do something otherwise she would lose. But then she noticed the holes and quickly came up with a plan.
"Pachirisu crawl into the holes and Mamoswine use Ice Shard." She said.
While Pachirisu jumped into a hole, Mamoswine got ready to fire Ice Shard at the holes. Ursula saw this as a chance to have her Gabite and Flareon attack Mamoswine. Mamoswine wasn't defeated though and he used Ice Shard on the holes. Pachirisu ended up in another ice sphere and used ice chandelier again. Mamoswine gave it a boost with Ancient Power and with that Pachirisu was able to repeatedly attack Gabite and Flareon before they could do anything. Ursula wasn't giving up though.
"Gabite, Sandstorm. Flareon, Fire Spin." She ordered.
Dawn had Mamoswine give Pachirisu another boost with Hidden Power and Pachirisu tackled Gabite and Flareon really hard before they could use their attacks. Ursula was just about to give her Pokemon another command, but then they fainted.
It was a really close call because Ursula had more points than Dawn, but Dawn was the winner of the battle. The judges were impressed with how the battle turned out. Even Kenny, Nando, Zoey and Ash were happy that she won. Now it was their turn to do well with their first battle round.
Ursula wasn't happy with her loss. Dawn went to visit her in the dressing room.
"You did great during our battle." She told her.
Ursula was happy with the comment and enjoyed their battle as well; she didn't want to admit it though.
"That win of yours was dumb luck, that's all." Ursula said haughtily. "I hope your dumb luck continues."
Then she left to decide how her journey as a coordinator would go now.
'Ursula is still Ursula.' Dawn thought.
Ash, Nando, Kenny and Zoey won their battles in the first round as well so all five rivals made it to the top 8. But there were still many more battles to go before it could be determined who would be the top coordinator.
That evening
Ash and Dawn took a breather with Tomo and Brock.
"Dawn, you, Mamoswine and Pachirisu did a great job in your battle." Tomo said. "And Ash, you did a great job with Roserade and Luxray."
"Zoey, Nando and Kenny also won so there's no telling what will be in store next." Brock said.
It was true because now Ash and Dawn made it to the second round and there was still some competition for them in the grand festival.
The next day
It was time for round two of the battle rounds, but Ash was in for a surprise. He was up against Kenny. Right now they were having a conversation in a dressing room.
"Ash, you and I will finally settle the score." Kenny said.
As he and Kenny were tied when it came to defeating each other in previous contests, they decided to see who will finally beat who during their battle in the second round.
"I look forward to it Kenny." Ash said.
Kenny did too. Dawn, who was eavesdropping on their conversation, felt nervous about this; she had no idea who to root for Ash or Kenny.
It wasn't long before Ash and Kenny faced each other in the second round. Kenny called out Empoleon and Breloom, and Ash called out Roserade and Vigoroth. 
"I remember Kenny beating Ash in the Floaroma contest when Roserade was a Budew and Ash beat Kenny in the Solaceon contest with Vigoroth." Brock said. "That's why he's chosen those two. This is his way of settling the score."
Kenny understood Ash's decision as well and was looking forward to this. Dawn looked on nervously while she watched the screen with Zoey and Nando.
"Leaf Storm, Flamethrower." Ash told his Roserade and Vigoroth. 
Kenny had Empoleon counter Flamethrower with Hydro Cannon and had Breloom use Seed Bomb to fight against Leaf Storm.
"Empoleon, use Metal Claw on Vigoroth. Breloom, use Force Palm on Roserade." Kenny told his Pokemon.
"Vigoroth, use Crush Claw. Roserade, use Mega Drain." Ash said.
Vigoroth charged at Breloom and scratched it across the chest while Roserade drained some of Empoleon's energy.
"To counter Empoleon and Breloom's moves, Ash had his Pokemon switch opponents. He is a impressive battler indeed." Nando said.
Zoey agreed and Dawn already knew that. 
"Knock Roserade off with Steel Wing." Kenny ordered. "Breloom, paralyze Vigoroth with Stun Spore."
The paralysis gave Breloom a chance to use Force Palm. Ash was losing points.
"That's not good." Brock replied grimly. "Vigoroth won't be able to fight back because of the paralysis."
"At least Roserade wasn't paralyzed." Tomo noted.
"Yeah, but it can't take on Empoleon and Breloom by itself." Brock added.
Dawn looked on worried in the waiting room.
Ash then had a idea.
"Vigoroth, splash yourself with Water Pulse." He said.
While paralyzed, Vigoroth managed to splash itself with Water Pulse, soaking it. After shaking the water off, it was no longer paralyzed.
"What?!" Kenny gasped in shock.
He was confused as to why Ash had Vigoroth use Water Pulse on itself, but seeing it no longer paralyzed was even more of a shock.
"Ash used the water from Vigoroth's Water Pulse to remove the paralyzing powder. He learned that from Misty in the past." Brock recalled.
"Yeah, I remember her Staryu and Starmie doing the same thing." Tomo added.
Zoey, Nando and Dawn were impressed with his strategy as were the judges. 
"You really know how to battle Ash, but you aren't going to beat me that easily." Kenny said.
"Empoleon, Hydro Cannon. Breloom, Energy Ball." He ordered.
Roserade and Vigoroth didn't have time to dodge, so Ash decided to counter.
"Roserade, use your Energy Ball on Breloom's and Vigoroth, use Blizzard on Hydro Cannon." He said.
The two Energy Ball's collided, setting off fireworks. As for Vigoroth, the water cannon was frozen solid by Blizzard, creating a big ball of ice.
"Vigoroth, grab that ice ball and throw it." Ash said.
Vigoroth grabbed a hold of the big ice ball and threw it at Empoleon.
"Quick Empoleon, use Steel Wing on the ice." Kenny said.
Empoleon shattered the ice ball with a metallic wing, but then Vigoroth charged while it was distracted.
"Focus Punch Vigoroth." Ash said.
Vigoroth punched Empoleon as hard as it could with a glowing fist. Kenny was losing a lot of points.
"Ash used the frozen Hydro Cannon as a distraction to make it easier for Vigoroth to attack Empoleon. That's Ash for you." Brock said.
"My brother is so cool." Tomo smiled.
Pikachu, who had been in the stands the whole time, couldn't stop cheering for it's trainer. Dawn couldn't stop being amazed with his battle style. Even Zoey and Nando were impressed.
"Ash is a real battling type of trainer." Zoey said. Nando agreed with her.
Right now Ash had more points than Kenny, so he had to do something or he would lose.
"Alright Empoleon, use Whirlpool and ride it with Breloom." Kenny said.
Empoleon created a whirlpool and surfed on it towards Vigoroth and Roserade with Breloom on it's shoulder. Ash knew his Pokemon wouldn't be able to dodge, so he went on the attack. 
"Roserade, Leaf Storm. Vigoroth, Thunderbolt." He said.
Roserade and Vigoroth attacked the whirlpool, breaking it apart. Empoleon leaped off the whirlpool and charged straight towards Roserade and Vigoroth alongside Breloom. 
"Watch out Vigoroth, Roserade!" Ash shouted.
Roserade and Vigoroth charged forward to retaliate.
Time was up though. Everyone looked at the score board to see who had won. The result was Ash winning with slightly more points than Kenny. So Ash would advance further. He was happy and thanked his Pokemon.
"Phew, that was a close one." Tomo sighed.
"Yes it was." Brock agreed. "Ash and Kenny gave it their all. This battle helped settle the score."
Kenny was a bit disappointed that he lost.
"You guys did a great job." He told Empoleon and Breloom.
He was happy to battle Ash once again. Dawn was happy about his victory, but felt a bit nervous with Kenny's loss. Ash and Dawn met up with him in the dressing room; Kenny was getting ready to leave.
"Are you not staying for the remainder of the grand festival?" Dawn asked him.
"No, I'm going to prepare myself for the next grand festival." Kenny said.
"Oh, are you going to travel to another region for that?" Ash asked.
"Hmm I might do that." Kenny whispered. "For now though, I'll return home and train myself and my Pokemon."
Ash and Dawn nodded.
"Hopefully you guys do well." Kenny wished them luck in the remainder of the grand festival then left. Another rival was out of the competition but there were still two left to deal with.
After Ash defeated Kenny, Dawn (Smoochum and Wormadam), Zoey (Gastrodon and Lumineon) and Nando (Sunflora and Altaria) defeated their opponents in the second battle round. Next came the third battle round and Ash (Infernape and Torterra), Dawn (Drifloon and Cherrim), Zoey (Leafeon and a newly evolved Mismagius) and Nando (a newly evolved Roserade and Sunflora) defeated their opponents. Now it was the semi-finals and Ash, Dawn, Zoey and Nando were the only coordinators left in the grand festival.
Before the results were posted Brock and Tomo met up with Ash and Dawn.
"I can't believe we made it to the semi-finals already." Ash said. "It feels like it went by so fast."
"I know what you mean." Dawn nodded in understanding. "And now I'm nervous about who we'll face next."
"That's understandable." Brock told her. "I mean, you two could either battle Zoey or Nando or even each other during the semi-finals."
Dawn already knew that she would face Ash during the grand festival, but she was still nervous about who she would face next.
"Chin up Dawn." Ash said. "Even if we do face each other, let's just have a great battle and enjoy ourselves." 
"You're right Ash." Dawn smiled. "Let's battle with no regrets."
Ash agreed.
Soon the results were posted. The semi-final battles were Ash and Zoey in the first and Dawn and Nando in the second round. 
"Woah, so I'm battling Zoey huh?" Ash said.
He hadn't faced Zoey since their battle in the Jubilife contest, so this was a surprise.
"And I'm going to battle Nando." Dawn said.
She had never battled Nando before, not even when they first met him, so this was their first contest battle.
Just then Zoey and Nando approached the group.
"This is it." Zoey said. "We made it to the semi-finals."
"We sure did." Nando agreed.
Zoey stared at Ash.
"Ash, you and I haven't faced each other since the Jubilife contest." She said. "Back then, I was against those who competed in both gym battles and contests because I didn't believe they could take either seriously. After you defeated me in that contest though I realized how mistaken I was. During my journey I found out people learn from gym battles and contest battles and how Pokemon can bring out their true strength in anything they do."
"So that means you really do understand that there's nothing wrong with people competing in both gym battles and contest battles." Ash said.
"Absolutely." Zoey nodded. "So Ash, give me everything you have during this battle."
"I will." Ash said.
Nando turned to Dawn.
"Dawn, this is the first time you and I have ever battled each other in a contest. I'm looking forward to this." Nando said. 
"Same here Nando." Dawn replied.
It was now time for the start of the semi-finals. Ash and Zoey took their places on the stage. Ash called out Gliscor and Metagross and Zoey called out her Glameow and a Gallade. Her Kirlia had evolved.
"Figured Zoey would use Glameow." Tomo said.
"It's her no 1 Pokemon after all." Brock added.
"Gliscor, Quick Attack. Metagross, Bullet Punch." Ash told his Pokemon.
"Glameow, charge at Gliscor with Shadow Claw. Gallade, dodge and use Magical Leaf." Zoey ordered.
Gliscor and Glameow's attacks collided, while Gallade avoided Metagross's punches and aimed leaves at it. 
"Metagross, fight back with Metal Claw. Gliscor, use your tail." Ash said.
With metallic silver claws, Metagross sliced up the leaves and Gliscor managed to pinch Glameow with her tail.
"Ash really knows how to fight back." Zoey said.
"Glameow, Shock Wave. Gallade, Psycho Cut." She ordered.
Psycho Cut and Shock Wave merged to create electrified crescent blades.
"Gliscor, counter with Night Slash." Ash said.
Gliscor struck the crescent blades. She was still struck by the electricity, but she was unaffected by it due to being part ground type.
"That was a really smart idea." Brock said. "Night Slash is super effective because it's a dark type move. And Gliscor's a ground/flying type, so Shock Wave doesn't affect her."
"Yay Ash!" Tomo cheered.
Nando and Dawn were amazed with his strategy.
"Ash is definitely one impressive trainer." Nando said.
"He certainly is." Dawn agreed.
Zoey was impressed, but she wasn't willing to give up just yet.
"Alright Glameow, use Iron Tail. Gallade, Signal Beam." She said.
"Gliscor, Metagross. Time for the rocky counter shield." Ash said.
Gliscor released a lot pointy stones and Metagross levitated the stones around them to make them act like a protective shield. Signal Beam was broken apart and Gallade and Glameow were hit by the stones.
"Oh no." Zoey said.
She had seen the counter shield before and knew how difficult it would be to fight back against it.
"I think Zoey's in trouble." Tomo said.
He was right because she was losing more and more points courtesy of the rocky counter shield.
"Gallade, Magical Leaf. Glameow, Shock Wave." Zoey said.
Gallade's leaves and Glameow's electricity somehow managed to push the stones back.
"Okay Metagross, Meteor Mash. Gliscor, Night Slash." Ash said.
Metagross and Gliscor lunged at Gallade and Glameow, hitting them really hard before they could do anything. Zoey was just about to give them a command, but the last attacks were too much for Gallade and Glameow and they fainted. Ash won the first round of the semi-finals.
"You really gave it your all against me Ash." Zoey said after returning her Pokemon.
"I did say I would." Ash smiled.
"Even though she lost, Zoey seems to be taking it well." Dawn said.
"Because Ash gave her a great battle and showed her that someone who competes in gym battles can do a good job in contests too." Nando said. 
It was true. Zoey was aware that people can learn many things and triumph in both gym battles and contests.
Next it was Nando and Dawn's turn to battle. Nando was using his Kricketune and a brand new Pokemon, a Lopunny while Dawn used Ariados and Chatot. Lopunny and Kricketune gave a dazzling performance while battling. Lopunny was dancing around like a ballerina while Kricketune was playing and singing like a musician. Dawn decided to counter Sing with Uproar, making it look like a battle between sound.
"This is going to be a battle of performances." Brock said. "Especially since Nando's Pokemon have been dancing with their attacks." 
Piplup was becoming concerned about Dawn. 
"Don't worry Piplup, it will be okay." Tomo said, comforting Piplup.
Piplup hoped it would be.
"Lopunny, Jump Kick on Ariados. Kricketune, Slash on Chatot." Nando ordered.
"Quick Ariados, use your webs to dodge Lopunny. Chatot, fly out of the way." Dawn said.
Ariados used String Shot to pull itself up to the ceiling before Lopunny could kick him and Chatot managed to fly away from Kricketune.
"Alright Chatot, use Aerial Ace. Ariados, Pin Missile." Dawn said. 
Chatot flew forward while sharp needles followed it. Chatot charged into Lopunny and made it fall back towards Kricketune and then the sharp needles struck both Pokemon. Nando was impressed but he wasn't giving up so easily.
"Kricketune, Silver Wind. Lopunny, Blizzard." Nando ordered.
Time was up and Dawn had slightly more points than Nando, so she won this round. 
"Phew, that was a close one." Tomo sighed.
"You're right because at first it looked like Nando was going to win." Brock said. "Dawn didn't give up though and really gave it her all."
Piplup chirped out to say 'she did'; he had faith in his trainer now. 
Nando thanked her for a charming battle.
"Good luck in the final round." He said.
"Now Dawn is going to face my brother." Tomo said.
"It was bound to happen sooner or later." Brock said.
Dawn and Ash were thinking about that too.
That night
Dawn stared up at the moon with Piplup. The final round was tomorrow.
"Thinking about something Dawn?" A voice asked.
It was Ash; he had come out to get some air with Pikachu.
"I was just thinking I can't believe I made it to the finals of my first grand festival." Dawn said. "I thought I wouldn't make it this far."
"It's because you believed in yourself and your Pokemon this whole time." Ash said. "When you first started out as a coordinator you didn't have faith in yourself, especially your depression following the Solaceon contest. But after everything that happened, you really found faith in yourself and your Pokemon."
Dawn smiled because she believed his words.
"Another thing I'm thinking about is you and I will face each other in the finals tomorrow." She said. 
"It was going to happen eventually; at least it's the finals and not the middle of the competition." Ash said. "Dawn, how about you and I give each other a great battle tomorrow with no regrets and may the best coordinator win."
"Yes, let's do that." Dawn said. "But Ash, I have a condition for our battle tomorrow."
She had something planned for the final round.
The next day
It was time for the final battle round of the Sinnoh Grand Festival. Everyone was excited to see who would win the last round. Zoey and Nando were in the audience to watch Ash and Dawn's battle. Kenny and Ursula, who were no longer near Lake Valor, watched everything on TV. Delia was watching as well back in Pallet Town; she had been watching the Sinnoh Grand Festival the whole time. Ash and Dawn took their places on the battlefield and Marin gave the signal for the battle to start. To the surprise of everyone watching Ash sent out Pikachu and Azelf and Dawn sent out Piplup and Mesprit.
This was Dawn's plan; she wished for herself and Ash to use Azelf and Mesprit because they hadn't been in a Pokemon contest before and she also suggested that she and Ash use their starter Pokemon, Pikachu and Piplup as well. Ash agreed because this would be a contest battle they would never forget. They had talked to Azelf and Mesprit about their plan and the two legendary Pokemon didn't mind competing against each other.
Brock and Tomo were surprised because they had no idea this was planned.
"I don't believe it!" Brock gasped.
"They're using Azelf and Mesprit. Wow." Tomo said.
"That is surprising." A voice behind the boys said.
It was Johanna. Brock and Tomo were surprised to see her.
"I came here to watch Dawn's final battle round in person rather than on TV." Johanna said. "Since those two are using legendary Pokemon it will be interesting to see what Azelf and Mesprit will do."
"Feel free to sit with us." Brock offered.
"I can't wait to see what Azelf and Mesprit will." Tomo said.
"Me either." Brock added.
"Mesprit, Psybeam. Piplup, Bubble Beam." Dawn told her Pokemon.
The bubbles circled around Psybeam. 
"Azelf, Psybeam. Pikachu, Thunderbolt." Ash told his Pokemon.
Thunderbolt circled around Psybeam and it created a lot of fireworks.
"Ash and his Pokemon really know how to counter moves but I know how to as well thanks to watching him all the time." Dawn said. "Alright Mesprit up."
Mesprit started to fly around gracefully to distract Azelf and Pikachu. Pikachu and Azelf stood guard to brace themselves.
"Now Piplup, Hydro Pump." Dawn said.
Piplup fired a torrent of water that hit both Pikachu and Azelf.
"Pikachu and Azelf were hit." Tomo said.
"Mesprit's distraction gave Piplup the chance to attack with Hydro Pump." Brock noted.
Ash made the next move.
"Pikachu, Iron Tail. Azelf, Thunderbolt." He ordered.
While Pikachu's tail changed colors, Azelf struck it with a thunderbolt, turning it a light yellow color. They were using a combo attack.
"Pikachu charge!" Ash commanded.
Dawn decided to counter with a combo attack too. 
"Piplup, Whirlpool. Mesprit, Confusion on the whirlpool." Dawn ordered.
Mesprit made the whirlpool charge straight towards Pikachu. Pikachu used his powered up tail to break the whirlpool apart. Dawn was losing more points than Ash was. 
"Use Mist." Dawn told Piplup. 
Mesprit was going to move around the mist while invisible. Because of the thick cloud and a invisible Mesprit, it was hard for Azelf and Pikachu to see Mesprit and Piplup.
"Is this alright?" Tomo asked.
He remembered that coordinators had to be careful when covering their Pokemon.
"It's all right to use smokescreens and mists during a contest battle." Johanna said. "As long as it's for a good reason and it all depends on how you use them in a contest battle." 
"Pikachu and Azelf, stand your ground." Ash said.
Pikachu and Azelf stood close together and braced themselves for whatever Piplup and Mesprit were going to do. Just then Azelf fired Psybeam and to everyone's surprise, Mesprit was hit. The mist cleared up and Mesprit recovered from it's attack.
"What just happened?" Tomo asked.
"I reckon Azelf was able to detect Mesprit which is why it attacked." Brock said. "Remember Azelf, Uxie and Mesprit are able to sense each other no matter where they are."
"Oh yeah, I nearly forgot that." Tomo said.
Dawn was starting to feel a bit worried.
'Okay, so if my strategy of hiding my Pokemon and sneaking up with surprise attacks won't work, I'll just have to have my Pokemon attack head on.' She thought. 
"Okay Mesprit, use Future Sight. Piplup, use Whirlpool." She said.
While Mesprit was releasing power for Future Sight, Piplup sent a whirlpool towards Pikachu and Azelf.
"Quick Pikachu, Thunderbolt." Ash said.
Pikachu broke the whirlpool apart with a thunderbolt, making Dawn lose more points.
"Dawn had Piplup use Whirlpool to distract Pikachu and Azelf while Mesprit used Future Sight." Brock said. "That could be trouble for Ash because we don't know when Future Sight will hit."
Tomo couldn't help but look on nervously.
Ash knew Future Sight wouldn't be easy for him to handle as he had seen the attack in action before. It wasn't going to stop him though. 
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt. Azelf, Swift." Ash said.
The two Pokemon unleashed their attacks.
"Piplup and Mesprit, Whirlpool and Swift to counter the attacks." Dawn ordered.
"Quick Pikachu, charge in with Volt Tackle!" Ash commanded.
Pikachu managed to charge at Piplup with electricity surrounding his body while he was distracted.
"Piplup, are you okay?" Dawn asked.
Piplup was still standing, but he was injured.
'I need to do something to turn this around.' Dawn thought. 'The Future Sight attack hasn't come yet so I need more time.'
"Alright Piplup, use Bubble Beam. Mesprit, use Confusion on the bubbles." Piplup released a lot of bubbles and Mesprit used Confusion to control them. This made the bubbles circle around Pikachu and Azelf. This was a issue because thanks to Mesprit controlling the bubbles, Pikachu and Azelf couldn't escape even if Azelf managed to fly away.
"That's a clever move; using Confusion to control the bubbles." Brock said. "Pikachu and Azelf will have a tough time dealing with that."
Johanna was impressed; she could see how much better Dawn was at battling. Ash was also impressed because this was a contest move he had never seen before.
Suddenly Azelf started calling out to Ash and a light began to appear from the ceiling.
'I hear you Azelf.' Ash thought. 'Future Sight is coming. Alright let's use this.'
"Pikachu, Azelf, counter with a double electric counter shield!" Pikachu and Azelf started spinning around while using Thunderbolt. The counter shield broke alll the bubbles apart and when Future Sight came the shield was able to break the attack apart.
The crowd was impressed and cheered for Ash. Even the judges were impressed.
"Wow that was amazing." Tomo said, surprised.
"I'm not surprised he was going to counter the attack like that. After all, he's full of surprises." 
Johanna was also impressed and could see for herself he was a expert when it came to battles. Zoey and Nando were impressed as well.
Just then the time for the battle was up. Ash and Dawn quickly looked at the board to see who had won. The board revealed Ash had more points than Dawn and he won the battle, making him the winner of the Grand Festival.
"Yeah!" Ash cheered, hugging Pikachu and Azelf. 
The Pokemon were happy too. Piplup and Mesprit were disappointed with their loss because they really wanted to win for Dawn.
"No need to worry." Dawn said. "You both were great out there, especially since we were battling Ash who is a lot stronger than we are."
Dawn herself felt disappointed that she didn't win, but she was happy for Ash.
'Congratulations Ash.' She thought.
"I can't believe Ash won." Tomo said.
"He's a top coordinator now." Brock smiled.
Delia, who had been watching the grand festival on TV back in Pallet Town, was happy for him and wished him a lot of congratulations.
So in the end, Ash won the Grand Festival, and received the title of top coordinator. He was presented with the Ribbon Cup by Fantina. The cup was gold with a small red ribbon and a big brown case. The whole audience clapped for him.
"Congratulations Ash." Fantina said. "That battle was magnifique and you were amazing. I couldn't be happier if I won myself."
"Thank you so much." Ash said.
He, Pikachu and Azelf were happy about their victory.
After that Dawn changed back into her normal clothes and Johanna, Brock and Tomo were waiting for her. Dawn was surprised to see her mom because she didn't notice her presence in the audience.
"I saw the whole performance from the beginning." Johanna explained.
"Sorry I lost mom." Dawn apologized.
"I am very proud of you dear." Johanna said. "Your battling was great."
"You, Piplup and Mesprit were really cool Dawn." Tomo said.
"It was indeed a brilliant battle." Brock said.
Dawn was happy to get so much praise, despite losing, and Piplup felt prouder than ever. Dawn gave Johanna her old ribbon back after she gave it to her; after everything she had been through, with her five Sinnoh ribbons and all her wonderful Pokemon and friends, she felt like she didn't need it for luck anymore. Johanna was happy her little girl had become a lot stronger than when she first started out.
"There's a lot of things I would like to discuss with you about today's performance Dawn." Johanna said. "The good, the bad and the close calls. It couldn't hurt to get a little observation and advice from a former top coordinator."
Dawn was more than happy to receive advice from her mom.
Just then Nurse Joy approached the group.
"Tomo, I just got a call from Volkner, the Sunyshore gym leader." She said. "He said he's ready to challenge you and Ash and he also said you two can come whenever you're ready."
"Finally Ash and I can challenge Volkner and obtain our last gym badge." 
"We'll share the good news with him once he's done being interviewed by the reporters." Brock said.
"Ash is going to be occupied with those reporters for a while, trust me." Johanna said.
Johanna was right because he had a lot of interviews with reporters and photographers, and he received a lot of phone calls from old friends and rivals, who wanted to congratulate him for winning the Sinnoh Grand Festival. He even got calls from Delia, Prof. Oak, Gary, Tracey, Misty as well as May and Max. By the time he was finished; it was rather late. He met up with the others in the Pokemon Center; Zoey and Nando were also there waiting for him. 
"Congratulations Ash." Zoey said. 
"Thank you." Ash smiled.
"You and Dawn were truly magnificent Ash." Nando said. "And I look forward to seeing you at the Sinnoh League."
"I look forward to that too." Ash said.
"Oh that's right." Tomo recalled. "Nurse Joy told me Volkner is ready to have a gym battle with us."
"Great, we'll head to Sunyshore City as soon as possible." Ash said.
"Well I certainly wish you luck with that Ash and I do hope one day you and I will have a contest battle again." Zoey said.
She was going to return to Snowpoint City to work out a strategy for her next Pokemon contest. Candace also had plans to celebrate her competing in the grand festival. Nando still had one more gym badge to obtain, just like Ash. 
"See ya." Nando and Zoey said goodbye to the gang and left the Pokemon Center.
"Well it was certainly fun here, wasn't it Dawn?" Ash asked.
"Yes and after all this I will work hard and become a top coordinator." Dawn said.
The Sinnoh Grand Festival had come to a end. Now it was time for the gang to continue their journey so Ash could obtain his last badge and enter the Sinnoh League.