Chapter 46
Happy People (Epilogue)
Several months passed after Sabrina and Will's wedding, and the 2008 Pokémon League Tournament took place, this time including those in the Sinnoh League. All of the gym leaders from each region as well as all of the Elite were invited to the tournament, as well as other trainers who had qualified as well. The trainers were seeded by a committee of Pokémon experts, who attempted to place them in order of their skills. In the 64-trainer tournament, there were four #1 seeds, reserved for the four best trainers; Giselle, Sabrina, Lorelei and Cynthia received them. Will, after stepping down from the Elite Four, found himself ineligible for the tournament, forced to gather eight badges in order to re-enter the tournament in the future.
Those four trainers easily cruised through their first two matches each; as did some who did great last year such as Silver, Jasmine, Flannery and Gary. After defeating Misty in the first round, Liza shocked Lance in the second round with her Solrock, before going down to Joe. Jasmine and Silver each made it into the third round as well, joined by Flannery, Giselle, Lorelei, Sabrina and Cynthia.
Giselle cruised past Flannery and Cynthia defeated Jasmine, each reaching the semifinals. Joe defeated Lorelei in a shocking upset, making to the semifinals. Sabrina battled Silver for the final semifinal match; she ended up coming up just short against him for the second straight year, and Silver advanced to the semifinals against Joe.
Sinnoh Champion Cynthia had taken advantage of her opportunity to go as far as the semifinals, but she was ousted from the tournament by Giselle, who once again reached the championship match. Silver ended up against Joe in the other semifinal match, who had collected several new Pokémon upon his recent graduation from Pokémon Tech. Joe used his new Pokémon to upset Silver in an epic Pokémon battle that lasted nearly four hours.
So improbably, it was Giselle against Joe for the Pokémon League championship. And while Joe was just satisfied with proving that he was a worthy member of the Elite Four, Giselle would not be satisfied without another championship. It was that will of hers that caused Giselle to win her second straight league championship, over Joe, becoming the Indigo League's first repeat champion since Agatha won back-to-back titles in the 1990s.
Contrary to what most people thought, Giselle's head did not explode from arrogance after this latest victory. Instead, the two-time Pokémon League champion found herself humbled when it was revealed that Joe had surpassed all her scores at Pokémon Tech, now considered their best-ever student. She ended up devoting herself to her training more than ever, knowing how Joe was close to surpassing her. She also began to really appreciate the gem of a boyfriend she had in Joe, treating him with much more respect. In return, her relationship with him blossomed… to an eventual marriage two years later.
But the marriage that occurred much sooner than expected was the one between Silver and Jasmine. The two had their wedding ceremony in a small chapel in Olivine City, only inviting those who had become close to them through their journeys- including Janine and Falkner. Janine was happy to see Silver marry Jasmine, as her attitude towards him had become one of great respect. This was mainly because only a week after Sabrina and Will's wedding, Silver took out the time to visit her in the slowly-growing Violet City, and talked out every bit of grief that they both felt from the losses of their parents. By crying with the girl who tried to kill him multiple times, the two became close friends.
The young married couple of Silver and Jasmine moved into Jasmine's house in Olivine City, starting a Pokémon grooming business. And while Jasmine's shy, gentle personality never changed, she became surer of herself and less fearful, as Silver helped her gain emotional strength. He also became much less brash and much more caring, but never losing his sense of humor. His rivalry with Gold was one that continued in Pokémon training, but not in anything personal between them. And by now, Whitney became completely trustful of him, unlike the way she was in the past.
As for Whitney and Gold, they remained a couple, although they did not marry until several years later. They helped in the revival of Mahogany-3, which was a completely different place than the old Mahogany Town; it was a futuristic city with many tall buildings. People from around the Pokémon world moved there, and Gold became a much-visited gym leader. It didn't change Goldenrod City's place as the heart of Johto, however; Whitney was able to make herself a stronger gym leader, and she moved up Johto's gym leader rankings to third place, behind Jasmine and Gold.
Janine and Falkner were also involved in a rebuilding process, as they helped revitalize the formerly destroyed Violet City. They were helped much by Silver and Jasmine as they turned the city back into a thriving one. They ended up making it into a great city, and Janine and Falkner shared a close relationship (and yes, they too ended up marrying in the future).
As for others who had been involved in the fight against Team Rocket at one point or another, there were the various people in Hoenn, such as the couple of Winona and Wallace, who got married in an elegant ceremony in Lilycove City. They were joined by their close friends Flannery and Steven, who became a couple, after Flannery's former boyfriend Tabitha moved away with his friends, Maxie, Archie and Shelly, the three remaining members of the former Team Magma and Aqua. They formed their own Pokémon research group, and used it for good this time. Liza, meanwhile, became the strongest gym leader in Hoenn, and she was moved up to the Elite Four after Drake decided to retire, allowing Tate to run the Mossdeep Gym alone.
There were also the various people in Kanto who were involved at one point or another. Erika ended up starting a relationship with the more mature Brock, while Misty completed her training with Lorelei and returned to her gym, to take over full control from her sisters, where she began actually having serious Pokémon battles at the gym. Lt. Surge returned home to Vermillion City, where he met a different Officer Jenny and started a relationship. And as for Gary and Melody? They continued to take frequent trips to the Shamouti Islands, much to Melody's dismay, although it seemed that she actually secretly enjoyed the trips in a way.
And finally, there was the newly married couple of Will and Sabrina, living in Saffron City. Sabrina continued her job as a gym leader, while Will continued working at Silph Company, moving up the corporate ladder, until he was named vice-president of the company. He helped Silph finally successfully launch the Master Ball project, although these Master Balls could not steal Pokémon the way Team Rocket originally intended. Sabrina continued to be ranked as the best gym leader in Kanto, but she refused to attempt to join the Elite, as she was happy living in Saffron City with Will. They built their own house, which ended up being a second mansion, very similar to Sabrina's parents' home. They lived very happy lives there, and eventually Sabrina gave birth to a daughter, which she and Will named Roxette.
After all their adventures together, things ended up peaceful in the Pokémon world, with everything working out for those who fought off Team Rocket. The Elite Eight ended up as four happy couples, all very successful trainers, and certainly, very good people.