EmeraldSky
Make the Colors in the Sky!
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- At the arcade, playing DDR with Ash
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Episode 85: The Screen Actor's Guilt
"The good news is, your shoulder wasn't too badly injured during our run-in with Team Rocket during the balloon race." Brock assured Ash as the group departed a clinic a few days later.
"That's a relief--you did smack it pretty hard on the gondola side, so I was worried you broke something." Misty was equally relieved Ash was none the worse for wear.
She was about to say more when a throng of screaming teen girls ran down the street. "What's going on?" Brock wondered.
"Maybe an idol or a band's in town!" Misty suggested as she led the way down the sidewalk, making sure to keep the girls in view. "Hope you guys packed your autograph books!"
"What idol or band do you hope it is?" Brock asked.
Just then, a red haired man in black met the group and handed Ash an odd yellow ball. "Would you be so kind to hold onto this?"
"Okay?" Ash replied as he accepted the ball, a little confused.
"I'll be back for it later, okay?" the man assured Ash as he dashed off, leaving his hat behind.
Piqued, Ash unwrapped the yellow ball to find a small purple humanoid Pokemon with pale blonde hair dozing inside. He took a moment to read up on the tiny Pokemon as it woke up and kissed him on the cheek:
"Smoochum, the kiss Pokemon. Its lips are the most sensitive parts on its body. It always uses its lips first to examine things.
"That explains why it kissed me..." Ash mused as the Smoochum kissed Misty, then climbed from the bundle to retrieve the dropped hat.
Brock was surprised when the Smoochum plopped the black fedora on his head. "I'm glad you think I look nice in this, but this isn't my hat, sweetie." he assured the Smoochum.
The screaming horde of girls suddenly rounded the corner and crowded around Brock. "Wow! I didn't know Brad could play guitar too!" a girl called, noting Brock's guitar case.
"Sing us a song!" another girl pleaded.
"Okay, one at a time!" Brock demanded as he looked for a suitable place to perform. "Give me a second to tune, and then I'll take your requests."
He froze when a third girl called "Hey wait a second, that's not Brad at all!"
"But, I was all prepared to sing..." Brock sighed as the girls disappeared down various sidewalks.
"You'll get your chance to play, don't worry!" Misty assured Brock before a TV on display in an electronics store flashed an image and the name of the man from before. "Hey...that's the young star of the TV show 'Midnight Snow', Brad Hughes!"
Just then, a sleek black limo appeared by the curb, prompting the Smoochum to babble happily as a man Ash presumed to be Brad's manager requested for him to climb inside the elegant vehicle. "That has to be Brad's limo--let's follow it so we can reunite Brad with his Smoochum." Ash suggested as he motioned for the others to follow him...
---------
When the group arrived at a TV studio some time later, they found the main entrance blocked off by screaming girls. "No dice going in the front door...so there must be a back door or stage door we can use." Brock mused as the group looked for a way inside.
Inside the studio, Brad was nearly in tears. "But I can't go on the show without my beautiful Bianca..." he pleaded.
"But Smoochum's too girly for a star that mainly appears in adventure shows." Brad's manager explained. "Why not pick a Lucario, or a Braxien if you must choose something feminine? That way you could broaden your appeal to both boys and girls."
"No...I only became a star because Bianca believed in me, and gave me the confidence I needed to get to where I am today." Brad explained.
"All right...let's search the studio for Bianca, then." the manager assured Brad as the two of them departed to the first floor.
---------
"Good thing we didn't go through with the tree idea." Misty mused as the group made their way into the studio. "Besides, that tree branch didn't look close enough to reach the window..."
Just then, Brad emerged from a stairwell and smiled when he found Bianca in Ash's arms. "Oh, thank you for looking after Bianca for me." he smiled. "Can I trust you three to look after her in the green room while my segment of 'Sunshine Golden Day' is being filmed?"
"Okay." Ash replied as they followed Brad to a green room near a particular studio, unaware that Team Rocket had followed them inside while disguised as security guards.
Just then, Brad's manager and a producer arrived in the green room. "Oh, are you three guests too?" Brad's manager asked.
"We just had the guest before Brad back out, and so we need someone to fill that time." the producer explained before noticing the four stripes on Brock's vest. "You must be a storyteller--would you and your friends like to perform on the show?"
"I would be honored, but we haven't really prepared anything..." Brock confessed.
"That's okay--just pick a few of the tunes and stories your audiences ask for again and again." the producer assured Brock. "You have about ten minutes before the fill-in segment starts, so take your time picking some songs and stories!"
---------
Applause filled the 'Sunshine Golden Day' set as Ash, Misty, and Brock arrived on the stage. "Thank you!" Brock called as he acknowledged the hosts.
After finding the notes he needed to start on, Brock started playing the jig "The Hearthome Pilgrim" while Ash and Misty danced to the guitar and the show's house band. While Misty was clearly the more experienced dancer of the two, she also made sure Ash knew when to lead and when to follow as the band and Brock transitioned into a second jig. An autoharp filled in the highs around Brock's guitar, a fiddle, a mandolin, a Pokeflute, and a whistle, creating a melody that resonated through the room, prompting many in the crowd to clap along.
The crowd applauded the end of the second tune, then Brock started the first story that came to mind. "In a certain country there lived a great king, who had an only son--we'll call him Alex--who had long desired to be known as a great hero. When he had come of age, Prince Alex began to think about marrying, and he asked his father where the most beautiful princess in the world lived."
Excited murmurs went up at this. "So the king took Prince Alex to the royal gallery, and showed him hundreds of portraits of ladies and princesses from all over the world." Brock went on as he played a majestic melody. "After looking them all over very carefully, Alex came to the portrait of Mina, the daughter of a powerful king of the desert, and knew in his heart that she was the one for him."
"Aw"s go up at this. "So he asked his father's blessing, and permission to travel to the court of the desert king, to ask for Princess Mina's hand...."
---------
"Here, Bianca..." Jessie cooed to the Smoochum backstage. "Come to mama..."
[No! You're not my mama!] Bianca retorted, aware of the cage Jessie held.
Just then, Meowth managed to open the curtains, revealing him and his human companions to the group and the audience, who gasped in horror as Bianca cried [Help meeeeeee! This lady's not my mama!!!!]
"I'm coming, Bianca!" Brad called as he dashed onstage in an attempt to save Bianca.
"Weezing, Tackle the man in black!" James commanded, but balked as Brad rolled out of the way.
"Arbok, use Poison Sting!" Jessie called, but gasped as Brad evaded Arbok's poisonous tall. In all the confusion, Weezing slammed into Jessie, making her drop Bianca.
Brad made a desperate jump, and caught Bianca in his arms to the roar of the crowd. "There now...Daddy's here." he assured the tiny Pokemon as the group unleashed their Pokemon to battle Team Rocket.
"Luce, shock Arbok with a Shockwave!" Ash commanded.
[HAH!!!!] Luce cried as she unleashed a huge thunderbolt, making Arbok faint. Angered by his companion's defeat, Weezing unleashed a massive Smokescreen, clouding the group's vision and making the audience cough and sneeze as they rushed to clear away the smoke.
"Mina, clear the air!" Ash commanded, smiling as his Pidgeot cleared away the smoke with a huge Gust.
"Bianca, give these hoodlums a Sweet Kiss." Brad smiled, setting Bianca on the ground.
Ash noticed an open window as Bianca dazed Team Rocket with her kiss. "Okay, bud--aim to send Team Rocket out that window."
[You got it!] Tintri smiled, unleashing a massive Thunderbolt that sent Team Rocket blasting off once again.
The crowd applauded what they thought was a sketch, but then Brad addressed the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, what you just saw was not an act. Those hoodlums really did want to take my dear Bianca, and with the help of these brave storytellers, we managed to defeat them!"
The crowd erupted into more screams and cheers as the group took a bow, as well as enthusiastic chants of "We love Brad! We love Brad! We love Brad!" when Brad and Bianca bowed themselves...
---------
"Well! Seems Brad is starring in the new adventure drama 'The Warmth of a Frozen Kiss' with Bianca." Brock smiled as the group passed the same electronics store a few days later, where the opening sequence of the show was playing on a TV.
"I know--the show became a hit overnight, and now, all the girls have Smoochums." Misty smiled as she watched more of the opening scene depicting Brad as a paladin.
"I'll never forget going on 'Sunshine Golden Day'." Ash grinned. "Even if Team Rocket tried to ruin the episode!"
"Well, the producer said we were always welcome back if we wanted to perform again." Brock assured Ash as the three friends departed down the road and into the setting sun...
To Be Continued...
"The good news is, your shoulder wasn't too badly injured during our run-in with Team Rocket during the balloon race." Brock assured Ash as the group departed a clinic a few days later.
"That's a relief--you did smack it pretty hard on the gondola side, so I was worried you broke something." Misty was equally relieved Ash was none the worse for wear.
She was about to say more when a throng of screaming teen girls ran down the street. "What's going on?" Brock wondered.
"Maybe an idol or a band's in town!" Misty suggested as she led the way down the sidewalk, making sure to keep the girls in view. "Hope you guys packed your autograph books!"
"What idol or band do you hope it is?" Brock asked.
Just then, a red haired man in black met the group and handed Ash an odd yellow ball. "Would you be so kind to hold onto this?"
"Okay?" Ash replied as he accepted the ball, a little confused.
"I'll be back for it later, okay?" the man assured Ash as he dashed off, leaving his hat behind.
Piqued, Ash unwrapped the yellow ball to find a small purple humanoid Pokemon with pale blonde hair dozing inside. He took a moment to read up on the tiny Pokemon as it woke up and kissed him on the cheek:
"Smoochum, the kiss Pokemon. Its lips are the most sensitive parts on its body. It always uses its lips first to examine things.
"That explains why it kissed me..." Ash mused as the Smoochum kissed Misty, then climbed from the bundle to retrieve the dropped hat.
Brock was surprised when the Smoochum plopped the black fedora on his head. "I'm glad you think I look nice in this, but this isn't my hat, sweetie." he assured the Smoochum.
The screaming horde of girls suddenly rounded the corner and crowded around Brock. "Wow! I didn't know Brad could play guitar too!" a girl called, noting Brock's guitar case.
"Sing us a song!" another girl pleaded.
"Okay, one at a time!" Brock demanded as he looked for a suitable place to perform. "Give me a second to tune, and then I'll take your requests."
He froze when a third girl called "Hey wait a second, that's not Brad at all!"
"But, I was all prepared to sing..." Brock sighed as the girls disappeared down various sidewalks.
"You'll get your chance to play, don't worry!" Misty assured Brock before a TV on display in an electronics store flashed an image and the name of the man from before. "Hey...that's the young star of the TV show 'Midnight Snow', Brad Hughes!"
Just then, a sleek black limo appeared by the curb, prompting the Smoochum to babble happily as a man Ash presumed to be Brad's manager requested for him to climb inside the elegant vehicle. "That has to be Brad's limo--let's follow it so we can reunite Brad with his Smoochum." Ash suggested as he motioned for the others to follow him...
---------
When the group arrived at a TV studio some time later, they found the main entrance blocked off by screaming girls. "No dice going in the front door...so there must be a back door or stage door we can use." Brock mused as the group looked for a way inside.
Inside the studio, Brad was nearly in tears. "But I can't go on the show without my beautiful Bianca..." he pleaded.
"But Smoochum's too girly for a star that mainly appears in adventure shows." Brad's manager explained. "Why not pick a Lucario, or a Braxien if you must choose something feminine? That way you could broaden your appeal to both boys and girls."
"No...I only became a star because Bianca believed in me, and gave me the confidence I needed to get to where I am today." Brad explained.
"All right...let's search the studio for Bianca, then." the manager assured Brad as the two of them departed to the first floor.
---------
"Good thing we didn't go through with the tree idea." Misty mused as the group made their way into the studio. "Besides, that tree branch didn't look close enough to reach the window..."
Just then, Brad emerged from a stairwell and smiled when he found Bianca in Ash's arms. "Oh, thank you for looking after Bianca for me." he smiled. "Can I trust you three to look after her in the green room while my segment of 'Sunshine Golden Day' is being filmed?"
"Okay." Ash replied as they followed Brad to a green room near a particular studio, unaware that Team Rocket had followed them inside while disguised as security guards.
Just then, Brad's manager and a producer arrived in the green room. "Oh, are you three guests too?" Brad's manager asked.
"We just had the guest before Brad back out, and so we need someone to fill that time." the producer explained before noticing the four stripes on Brock's vest. "You must be a storyteller--would you and your friends like to perform on the show?"
"I would be honored, but we haven't really prepared anything..." Brock confessed.
"That's okay--just pick a few of the tunes and stories your audiences ask for again and again." the producer assured Brock. "You have about ten minutes before the fill-in segment starts, so take your time picking some songs and stories!"
---------
Applause filled the 'Sunshine Golden Day' set as Ash, Misty, and Brock arrived on the stage. "Thank you!" Brock called as he acknowledged the hosts.
After finding the notes he needed to start on, Brock started playing the jig "The Hearthome Pilgrim" while Ash and Misty danced to the guitar and the show's house band. While Misty was clearly the more experienced dancer of the two, she also made sure Ash knew when to lead and when to follow as the band and Brock transitioned into a second jig. An autoharp filled in the highs around Brock's guitar, a fiddle, a mandolin, a Pokeflute, and a whistle, creating a melody that resonated through the room, prompting many in the crowd to clap along.
The crowd applauded the end of the second tune, then Brock started the first story that came to mind. "In a certain country there lived a great king, who had an only son--we'll call him Alex--who had long desired to be known as a great hero. When he had come of age, Prince Alex began to think about marrying, and he asked his father where the most beautiful princess in the world lived."
Excited murmurs went up at this. "So the king took Prince Alex to the royal gallery, and showed him hundreds of portraits of ladies and princesses from all over the world." Brock went on as he played a majestic melody. "After looking them all over very carefully, Alex came to the portrait of Mina, the daughter of a powerful king of the desert, and knew in his heart that she was the one for him."
"Aw"s go up at this. "So he asked his father's blessing, and permission to travel to the court of the desert king, to ask for Princess Mina's hand...."
---------
"Here, Bianca..." Jessie cooed to the Smoochum backstage. "Come to mama..."
[No! You're not my mama!] Bianca retorted, aware of the cage Jessie held.
Just then, Meowth managed to open the curtains, revealing him and his human companions to the group and the audience, who gasped in horror as Bianca cried [Help meeeeeee! This lady's not my mama!!!!]
"I'm coming, Bianca!" Brad called as he dashed onstage in an attempt to save Bianca.
"Weezing, Tackle the man in black!" James commanded, but balked as Brad rolled out of the way.
"Arbok, use Poison Sting!" Jessie called, but gasped as Brad evaded Arbok's poisonous tall. In all the confusion, Weezing slammed into Jessie, making her drop Bianca.
Brad made a desperate jump, and caught Bianca in his arms to the roar of the crowd. "There now...Daddy's here." he assured the tiny Pokemon as the group unleashed their Pokemon to battle Team Rocket.
"Luce, shock Arbok with a Shockwave!" Ash commanded.
[HAH!!!!] Luce cried as she unleashed a huge thunderbolt, making Arbok faint. Angered by his companion's defeat, Weezing unleashed a massive Smokescreen, clouding the group's vision and making the audience cough and sneeze as they rushed to clear away the smoke.
"Mina, clear the air!" Ash commanded, smiling as his Pidgeot cleared away the smoke with a huge Gust.
"Bianca, give these hoodlums a Sweet Kiss." Brad smiled, setting Bianca on the ground.
Ash noticed an open window as Bianca dazed Team Rocket with her kiss. "Okay, bud--aim to send Team Rocket out that window."
[You got it!] Tintri smiled, unleashing a massive Thunderbolt that sent Team Rocket blasting off once again.
The crowd applauded what they thought was a sketch, but then Brad addressed the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, what you just saw was not an act. Those hoodlums really did want to take my dear Bianca, and with the help of these brave storytellers, we managed to defeat them!"
The crowd erupted into more screams and cheers as the group took a bow, as well as enthusiastic chants of "We love Brad! We love Brad! We love Brad!" when Brad and Bianca bowed themselves...
---------
"Well! Seems Brad is starring in the new adventure drama 'The Warmth of a Frozen Kiss' with Bianca." Brock smiled as the group passed the same electronics store a few days later, where the opening sequence of the show was playing on a TV.
"I know--the show became a hit overnight, and now, all the girls have Smoochums." Misty smiled as she watched more of the opening scene depicting Brad as a paladin.
"I'll never forget going on 'Sunshine Golden Day'." Ash grinned. "Even if Team Rocket tried to ruin the episode!"
"Well, the producer said we were always welcome back if we wanted to perform again." Brock assured Ash as the three friends departed down the road and into the setting sun...
To Be Continued...
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