Chapter 2
The Opening Ceremony
Tammy and Alex raced through the entrance doors into the Arena. They saw the trainer’s area and walked over to the spot. As they walked over they saw the huge crowd that came. The people were filling in the rows. They both went down the steps into the Trainer’s Quarters. The Trainer’s Quarters were full of different Pokemon Trainers. They were all chattering and excitement filled the air. “Hey, Alex, have you ever been in a competition like this before?” Tammy asked him. He just shook his head and stared around. The crowd was loud and talkative. “Over here!” said Alex pulling Tammy over to the side. He had spotted the check-in desk. “Hang on!” Tammy said. She pulled her arm away. After looking at the crowd once more she started to follow Alex. At the sign-in desk a young woman greeted them cheerfully. “Ma’am, is this where you sign in?” Alex asked politely. “Why, yes it is! What is your name?” she asked as she looked at the paper that had the names of the people who had signed up. “Alex Burnes,” he replied. “And my name is Tamara, or Tammy, Dicks,” Tammy chimed in. She watched as the woman looked at the paper. After checking them both off she smiled. “You are both here! Now, go over there where it says entrance and get in line. The ceremony will start soon. “Yes, ma’am!” they both said at once. Tammy and Alex walked over to the entrance into the arena. There were five different lines to stand in. They went in line 1 and 2. Soon, a large burst from a trumpet sounded out in the arena. The crowd silenced at once and a man walked out into the arena. The arena was huge and packed full of people. He walked to the center of it. It was shaped in a bowl, so everyone could see. He took the microphone and started to speak. “Hello everyone and welcome to the 18th Annual Pokemon Competition of Champions which is held here in Asher’s City as you all know. I am the Head of the competition and I welcome each and every one of you to this year’s Pokemon Competition of Champions!” The whole crowed cheered and clapped at this point. “Now,” he continued on. “All the trainers will come out. A total 120 trainers have made it here today. Let’s give them a hand!” The crowd cheered again and the lines started to move out altogether. Tammy and Alex brought up the rear. They waved, along with everyone else, to the crowd. Whistles shot through the air. Finally they silenced. “Sure is a big crowd, huh?” Tammy murmured to Alex. “Yeah,” said Alex staring at everything. He spotted canons next to the Mr. Callaway, the Head of the competition. They must’ve been part of the ceremony. Sooner or later they would go off. “And now we will begin our ceremony!” Mr. Callaway ended. He stepped backwards a bit and the crowd cheered. Soon, the lights turned blue and red and yellow and orange and other colors, too. The crowd went silent again. The lights started to blink different colors. Music was played in the background and the lights started to dance around on the arena floor. Lasers pointed to the ground and started to make pictures. “Look, Alex!” Tammy said. She pointed in the sky. In the sky was a Pidgeot holding a banner that read: 18th Annual Pokemon Competition of Champions. It circled about 20 times. This took up 20 minutes of the time. Tammy started to feel real bored. All of a sudden the lights went off and the lasers quit. The crowd cheered. Tammy glanced at her watch. It said 10:40 am. “And now, we will get to introduce the trainers here today. Let’s begin, shall we?” As he finished saying that the first trainer came up. “Hello,” she began saying into the microphone. “My name is Lily Cofer. I’m 12 years old and my favorite Pokemon is Butterfree. My first Pokemon was Bulbasaur. My favorite color is green and I love bubble gum! I assure you all that I will win!” she concluded. After more and more people went up it was then Alex’s turn. He got up to the microphone and started. “Hey! My name is Alex Burnes and my favorite color is blue. I am 11 and a half years old. I love Arcanine and my first Pokemon was a Squirtle and I like movies. I am a very talented Pokemon trainer and I hope to win!” he finished off. The crowd laughed and cheered. Finally it was Tammy’s turn. She was last to go. She wondered what the crowd would think when she would say her first Pokemon was a Houndoom. Everyone else had Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Chikorita, Totadile, Cyndiquil, or Pikachu. These were all choices for you when you begin training. But Tammy had a different story. She walked up to the microphone and started. “Hello! My name is Tamara Dicks, but everyone calls me Tammy. I’m 11 years old. My favorite color is orange and I love any fire-type Pokemon. My first Pokemon was a Houndoom and I really hope I win today. So please cheer for me.” She stepped away from the microphone. The crowd cheered immediately. Tammy smiled and went back in line. Her watch said 11:59am. One minute until the beginning! She glanced at Alex who was looking at the ground. “Now, it is time to begin our competition!” Mr. Callaway said. The crowd whistled and cheered. The canons blew off and confetti and streamers danced in the air. The competition was beginning!
