Focus Blast, Vacuum Wave, Ice Punch, Heal Bell
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Ai, bedecked in a gorgeous new blue dress that exactly matched her mew's fur, fidgeted with Kumiko's masterball nervously. She knew that the mew had the routine memorized and could perform it well; she had drilled him endlessly and had accounted for every possible mistake in her mind. The routine was perfect. The only problem was that Kumiko had never performed in front of so many people before… The baby pokemon was likely to get distracted. Ai had known about that particular hurdle from the beginning, though, and had prepared for it. But no matter how many times she told herself that, she could not banish the snakes that squirmed in the pit of her stomach.
"Ai Bennet with Kumiko!" the announcer boomed over the microphone, and the curtains raised.
Ai's stomach vanished entirely, snakes and all. But years of practicing her poker face and lies saved her; she beamed around at the audience as she walked onto the stage as if she did these sorts of things every day. The spotlight nearly blinded her, which she was a bit grateful for, because she couldn't easily see how crowded the marketplace was. By the sound of it, though, the show had turned out a full house.
Still grinning and trying not to blink, Ai shouted her peppy starting line, "It's your time to shine, Kumiko!" and tossed the masterball into the air.
Kumiko burst into the air, and his eyes grew wide immediately. So many people! So many scents and sounds! He wanted to investigate them all, but there was Ai just below him, and he remembered how important this was to her. He paused, posed in midair to show off his smooth curves and immaculately groomed, cloud-soft pelt. Anyone could see that he was healthy and well looked-after.
It was time to begin, before Kumiko lost his self-control in all the excitement. "Focus Blast!" Ai shouted. This was the key to their success; Kumiko was only a baby, after all, and would ordinarily never be able to pull off an entire, complicated routine without getting off task. But he was a psychic pokemon, after all, and could take his mind into his own paws.
Kumiko stood up straight in midair and closed his mismatched eyes. His tiny brows drew together slightly as he concentrated with all his might. Power began to radiate from him, creating a pale halo around his entire body. His lustrous fur became even brighter. Then, quite suddenly, Kumiko put his forepaws together and hurled them up above his head; a concentrated ball of energy flew upward, into the open sky. The ball of white light was rocketing with such speed that it seemed it would soon vanish from sight altogether.
"Vacuum Wave!" Ai shouted swiftly, but with no trace of panic; she had practiced the timing of this enough to know that they were doing fine thus far.
Kumiko's forepaws began to dance, and then to become a graceful blur. It was unclear for a moment what this was achieving, until the Focus Blast slowed down—and then started zooming back toward Kumiko! The motion of his paws had pushed out all the air in front of him, creating a vacuum. The ball of energy picked up speed and it appeared that Kumiko was going to be injured by his own attack!
"Ice Punch, now!"
Kumiko soared, one glowing paw outstretched and curled in a fist. It connected with the concentrated Focus Blast attack. The surge of energy from the two attacks meeting created a blinding white light, causing Kumiko to appear as only a black silhouette to those looking up from the stands and judge's box. What was happening? Had Kumiko gotten hurt after all?
The light faded, and there were audible 'ooh's and 'aah's from the crowd. The Focus Blast had shattered on the impact, and large shards had frozen into soft, downy petals of pure energy. They drifted down slowly, like hundreds of fairy lights, with Kumiko floating down with them. He was unscathed; not a hair was out of place. The glow from the blue diamonds around him reflected off his shiny fur, turning him into a living disco ball. There was only a final touch left.
"Heal Bell!" Ai sang; her heart beat quickly. They were almost done, and so far without a hitch.
Kumiko smiled sweetly down at his audience before opening his mouth. The music that came from the legendary pokemon's voice was unearthly; a heartwarming song that healed the soul and soothed the mind. The snowflakes and mew seemed to shimmer and sway in time with the music. Kumiko's song swelled, filling his listeners with liquid warmth and contentment. Then it began to fade; slowly and surely, just as Kumiko's toes touched the stage and the last, fading sparkle vanished, the final note rang poignantly through the silent stands.
A pause.
And the audience erupted into applause.
Even the normally grim Ai was clapping along with them, smiling with tears standing in her eyes. This run-through of Kumiko's show had been his most impressive. Together the shiny mew and the girl in the blue dress took their bows and departed to await their score.
