That night, everyone turned in to get some sleep. Bonnie lent Poppy an extra sleeping bag since there weren't enough beds in the room. However, the "not so little at the moment while being in this world" troll was having trouble falling asleep. She tossed and turned, but was unable to let sleep overcome her. She got up, put her hood on, and went outside for a little fresh air, unaware that Serena saw her leave from the corner of her eye. Poppy found a bench to sit on as she sat, looking up at the starry night. The soft, evening breeze was able to help her relax a little, but she still felt tensed up. She couldn't tell if it was nerves about herself or for Serena, hoping she does well. She looked around before pulling down her hood and gazing at the moon. She started to sing in an effort to relax, like back home.

Poppy: Stars shining bright above you, night breezes seem to whisper,"I love you." Birds singing in the sycamore tree, dream a little dream of me-,"

Suddenly, Serena came out, saying,"You feeling ok Poppy? I saw you get up and leave. Is everything alright"? As she sat down next to her, Poppy said,"I'm ok, or will be once I can relax. I guess I'm still not used to this world yet, but I'll be fine. Singing has always been my go-to whenever I felt nervous or sad about something." Serena seemed to understand as she says,"I can relate. I'm a little nervous about performing well in the masterclass tomorrow." Poppy smiled, saying,"You'll do great. I know you're going to be the best performer out there." That seemed to make the Vaniville Town native better as Poppy then got a great idea. She pulled out her ukulele, which luckily grew when she grew earlier and began to play a familiar melody. Serena couldn't help but stifle her laughter as Poppy looked at her, saying,"Come on. I know you know this song. It reminds me of the night we met."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Poppy: Hello darkness, my old friend. I've come to talk with you again. Because a vision softly creeping left the seeds while I was sleeping. And the vision that was planted in my brain still remains. Within the sound...of silence.

Serena: In restless dreams, I walk alone. Narrow streets of cobblestone. 'Neath a halo of a street lamp, I turned my collar to the cold and damp. When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of neon light that split the night. And touched the sound...of silence.

Both: And in the naked light, I saw. Ten thousand people, maybe more. People talking without speaking, people hearing without listening. People writing songs, that they never got to shared, and no one dared. Disturbed the sound...of silence.

"Fools" said I, "you do not know. Silence like an illness grow. Hear my words that I might teach you. Take my arms that I might reach to you." But my words, like silent raindrops, fell. And echoed in the wells...of silence.

And the people bowed and prayed. To the neon God they made. And the sign flashed out its warning and the words that it was forming. And the sign said "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls. And tenement halls." And whispered in the sound...of silence.

Once Poppy finished strumming on the ukulele, Serena sighed, saying,"You know something? I do feel better. Guess singing was what I needed to calm down." Poppy smiled while putting away her ukulele and said,"That song is my favorite. My mother and father sang it to me at night as a lullaby when I was a baby. Remembered every word since then. Once I learned how to sing and taught myself that song, my father would always compliment that my voice sounds just like my mother's did." When Poppy's tone of voice dropped a bit, Serena placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder while saying,"I'm sure, wherever your mother is now, she'd be very proud of you and all that you've done." That seemed to make her feel a lot better as a small yawn escaped from her mouth. That made Serena giggle while saying,"Now, I believe we should get some sleep. After all, we ALL need to be wide awake and fully energized for tomorrow anyway. Alright," as a sleepy Poppy got to her feet and nodded, saying,"Now, I'm tired. Let's go back inside and get some sleep," as both females headed back inside the pokemon center for a good night's sleep. By morning, at the performance stadium, people flooded inside as our heroes found good seats to watch the show. Poppy had her hood on while she sat next to Bonnie. She was really excited to watch Serena dance and perform. Once the masterclass was about to begin, Monsieur Pierre came out on stage, explaining the rules to everyone watching in the stadium or on TV.

As he continued to talk, Poppy whispered to Clemont, asking,"So, what exactly is a pokemon showcase? Is it like a big dance competition or something"? Clemont whispered back,"It is a special kind of contest where performers compete by doing dance routines with their pokemon while showing off the bonds with one another. A normal showcase consists of two rounds, where if you win both, you earn a princess key. If you collect three keys, you become eligible in participating here, and whoever wins the masterclass earns the title of Kalos Queen." Poppy seemed to understand as she quietly whispered,"Thanks Clemont," while thinking You got this Serena. I believe in you. Soon, all the performers who were going to compete appeared on stage as the audience broke in applause. Everyone cheered extra loud when they saw Serena on stage with her faithful partner Braixen. Poppy smiled bright as luckily, Serena could see from where she stood and smile right back. Then, Pierre announced the entrance of the Kalos Queen, Aria, as she and her Delphox came down the steps and said a couple of words of encouragement for the competitors today. Poppy paid close attention, thinking So that's who Serena has to beat in order to win. She can do it!! Go Serena!! Before long, the match ups were set for round 1 as Serena was going up against Sara Lee, and one of her rivals, Miette. This was going to be an intense match up, but everyone felt confident that Serena would easily move on.

As luck would happen, when it was her group's turn, Serena and Braixen put on the best performance and got to move on to the next round. All of her friends cheered for her first round win while Miette wished Serena good luck continuing on. Poppy felt extra happy,"You got this Serena!! Win it for all of us"!!! Serena was lucky enough to hear Poppy's cheers and held them dear to heart. The next two rounds flew like clockwork and soon, it was time for the semi-finals. Serena was going against her top rival Shauna and another formidable opponent, Jessilee. Jessilee went first, putting on a mysterious yet exciting performance. Shauna was next, resembling a dancing fairy in midair. Serena was last to go, using Pancham and Sylveon this time. Her performance was beautiful as everyone danced and moved so gracefully. However, something happened that almost costed her if not for Sylveon saving her in time. When she did a one hand handstand, she hurt her wrist doing so. Even though Serena ended up winning and got to go on to the finals to face Aria, Poppy knew that an injury like that could make putting on a stellar performance really hard. With that, Poppy got out of her chair and headed towards the room where Serena would be waiting in. Inside, Serena took off one of her gloves, looking over the injury and wincing slightly in pain. Her pokemon looked over in concern as Serena tried to reassure them, saying,"It's ok. I'm just fine." Suddenly, a knock on the door made Serena hide the glove and her wrist behind her back while saying,"Yes. Come in." When the door opened, it turned out to be Poppy as the troll closed the door behind her before facing Serena, taking off her hood.

She walked up to Serena, saying,"Show me your wrist. I want to see how bad it is." That surprised her a bit as she asked,"How did you know"? Poppy simply replied,"By your movement after the performance," before looking at the injured wrist. She held it close as Serena tried to make a fist, but couldn't. The pain was too much to bear. Poppy gave a solemn look while saying,"This is bad. You can't even make a fist. How are you going to perform if you're hurt this bad"? Serena panicked slightly before saying,"I don't know. But I am not going to forfeit out of the finals. I've come too far to quit now! I'm not giving up till the very end"!! Both females looked at one another in worry before in unison, their Hug Time bracelets chimed. They looked at their bracelets before at each other again, with Poppy saying,"I don't want you to lose, but I don't want you to get anymore hurt than you already are. I have an idea," before pulling out some long, thick vines from her pocket. She began to wrap it around Serena's wrist, saying,"I learned this from a friend back home. This bandage should be able to hold your wrist and keep it from getting worse. But only for this performance. Have it get looked at afterwards, pinky promise"? Serena smiled and nodded, saying,"I pinky promise," as they locked pinkies before hugging each other tightly. Poppy gave an extra squeeze, saying,"That's for good luck. Now win this for the both of us Serena," as Serena gave a determined look, saying,"I will...for everyone who's ever supported me"!

Poppy was able to put her hood back on and rush back to her seat just in time for the finals to begin. Serena and Aria were both announced towards the audience, everyone anticipating who will win the title of Kalos Queen. Serena was to give her performance first, then Aria since she is defending her title. When Serena went first as she and their pokemon danced their hearts out, putting everything they've learned in this routine. The bouncy flamew, the fairy wind tornado, even the stone edge stairs. The big finale was when her pokemon combined fairy wind, swift, dark pulse, and flamethrower to create a huge flower that blossomed into tiny specks of glitter. When she shouted,"Finished," and they posed for the audience, she got a huge round of applause from the audience, including her friends, as they cheered really loud. Poppy smiled brightly, feeling extra proud for Serena giving it everything she had. After her turn, Aria was next to take the stage as she was performing with Delphox, Aromatisse, and Vivillon. Turned out she was definitely not Kalos Queen for nothing, making beautiful movements with her pokemon while they did intricate combinations. With a mighty fire blast from her partner Delphox, Aria was finished with her routine, receiving a loud ovation as well. Considering both performers gave it their all, this was going to be a close call for Kalos Queen. Once it was time for the voting to begin, Serena's friends voted for her as the lights were a mixture of green ( Aria ) and pink ( Serena ). Soon, all the votes were casted as the spotlight moved around the stage, ready to cast light on the winner. With a decision made, Pierre says,"The revered title of Kalos Queen goes to...Performer Serena!!!! A new Kalos Queen has been granted upon us tonight"!! The audience broke into loud cheers as everyone celebrated the fact that Serena won, and by the slimmest margin of votes as well.

Serena didn't respond right away because she was lost in a deep state of shock. What snapped her back into reality was seeing the happy looks on her pokemon as she said,"We did it...WE DID IT!!!! WE REALLY DID IT"!!!!!!!!! She hugged her pokemon tightly as they all had happy tears flowing and smiles as wide as stone walls. Ash felt really happy that Serena had accomplished her dream, Clemont and Bonnie both hugged one another in sheer excitement, and Poppy jumped from her feet, shouting,"I KNEW SHE COULD DO IT!!! YOU DID IT SERENA!!!! WOOHOO"!!!! She had the urge to take her hood off, grab her cowbell, and break into a huge song and dance number. However, she decided against it, keeping it for later. Aria was a little disappointed, but happy for Serena. She deserved to win this. When Klefki was about to give Serena the tiara, Aria decided to do it, placing the tiara on Serena's head while giving a huge smile. She said,"Congratulations Serena! You were great out there! I had loads of fun today! Let's meet on the masterclass stage again sometimes." Serena shook her hand while saying,"Thank you Aria for making it so much fun. Let's do it again sometimes." Once the masterclass show came to an end, Serena returned to the room she originally waited in and saw the doctor, who was on standby. The doctor was able to treat her wrist, telling Serena to take it easy with it for a couple of days. Once the doctor left, Poppy was waiting by the door, asking,"How do you feel Serena"? Serena smiled, saying,"Better. Thank you for asking Poppy." That made her smile as Poppy then grew serious, taking off her hood and saying,"Be more careful next time!! You were lucky that I knew about making bandages to help with sprains. What if you've gotten a more serious injury? I...I can't bear to see you get seriously hurt Serena." Serena could tell how Poppy felt as she says,"Look, I'll admit it, I wasn't thinking straight when I got hurt. But, I didn't want to give up on something I've worked hard for since starting my journey. In the beginning, I didn't even have a serious goal, other than to leave my house. But then, I met Ash, Clemont, Bonnie, Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon, my friends.

They helped me find my goal and I just didn't want to disappoint them, or anyone else. I especially, and I do mean this, didn't want to disappoint you Poppy. Since you and I had our adventure, I realized that you're someone very special to me. I've never felt this close to anyone, not even Ash and well, don't tell him I said this but, I have a crush on him," before blushing a little. She continued with,"Anyways, I wanted to win, not just for them, but for you too. I don't think I would've made it and won if not for everyone's support and your support." Poppy felt truly touched as she says,"Oh Serena...," before the two hugged each other tightly. Suddenly, they heard footsteps as Poppy put her hood back on and hid behind Serena. It only turned out to be Grace, Serena's mother, who came to see her and congratulate her on the win. Serena got up and hugged her mother as Poppy watched from the bench. Grace seemed to take notice of her as she says,"Serena, who's that with you"? Serena turned, saying,"This is my new friend, Poppy. Poppy, this is my mother, Grace." Poppy smiled and waved, saying,"Nice to meet you Ms. Yvonne. Serena has told me a lot about you. You are even more pretty in person." Grace smiled at Poppy, saying,"Why thank you," before saying to Serena,"How are you feeling honey? Is your wrist ok"? Serena nodded, saying,"I'll live. I just need to take it easy for a couple of days." Soon, Grace had to return back to Vaniville Town, but not before giving Serena her well wishes. Once she was gone, Poppy told Serena,"Your mother is a nice person. She's really lucky to have you for a daughter," as Serena smiled back, saying,"Like how lucky I am to have you for a friend," as they both headed out to meet with the others.

Meanwhile, behind the Gloire City pokemon center, a portal opened up and out popped Branch, who landed on the ground, inspecting the new world in. Before he could realize it, the portal closed, meaning for now, he was stuck here, not that he needed to go anywhere else. Once he got a good look at his surroundings, he took a deep breath and said,"Poppy, I hope you're here sonewhere," before beginning his search for Poppy.

Not bad so far huh? I made Serena win the masterclass because I felt she really deserved to win it in the series. So, how will things turn out? Will Branch find Poppy? What's the status between Serena and Ash? More importantly, when are those two trainers going to kiss?! Anyways, stay alert, stay healthy, and practice social distancing. Till the next update my friends.