"i have to admit, i am a bit biased, since i've always wanted to see one of your concerts live," tobias comments. "but if i'm to be honest with you, here wasn't the place i wanted to see it. like, you're a real performer, there's no doubt about that, but did you even read the prompt? theme performances are supposed to create a valentine, and you just kinda…stood there and sang while your pokémon fired off a ton of flashy moves. i would've given you a higher score if you'd chosen freestyle instead of theme, because i can sort of see how the lyrics of the song could be used to represent a grudge? but even then, when you do a performance onstage with your pokémon in a contest or a showcase, you need more team involvement. you need to engage with your pokémon on a deeper level than i saw you do here. so, for your score, i'm giving you 5/10 in aesthetic mastery, 0/10 on adherence to theme, and 6/10 on originality for the way you used telepathy. this brings your total to 11/30."
"thaswaytooharsh!" ursula cries. "sweetieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee…thas…way too harsh!"
"wait. did you just call me sweetie?"
"IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH THAT?" ursula screams, followed by another enormous hiccup.
"you know what, fine, whatever," tobias says. "call me what you want. i'm not gonna argue."
"okay, sweetie," ursula simpers. "anyway, sweetie…it was nice…and creepy…and i loved how it was scary bunot too scary! aesthetics gets…" a pause. "8/10. you didnreally fit the theme, though, s…s…sorry, i'm giving you a 0. but…" HIC. "i thought it was super original. so, another 8/10. that means my score is…"
"16/30," zoey says. "as for how i'd score your appeal, i do have to agree with tobias there. i've never been fond of the showcase way of putting the human performers before the pokémon ones, and while i'm trying to be nicer about it, i guess? i still felt like you were way too much in center stage. i want to say, though, you're really great at creating a vibe. so for that, your aesthetic mastery gets you 6/10. now, you really didn't answer the prompt at all, so for adherence to theme, you're also getting a 0 from me, i'm afraid. and for originality…i admit, i kinda cheated and looked up some of your previous performances before the show, and i think this one had something special to it. but since valentine's day is kind of the opposite of what you do, i would have encouraged you to try something new. 5/10. that means your score from me is 11/30. like tobias said, you're a real performer. i can tell you have the ability to command a crowd. it's just…not the sort of performance that people usually do for those types of events. if you want any advice for how to improve in coordinating, please feel free to ask."
"fine," ursula tries to let out a huff, but hiccups in the middle of it--sending her jolting out of her seat. "zo…go right…afucking…head. jus'…mark it down 'cause you dunlike me."
"tobias marked it down, too. he did it before you said anything about it, and i was agreeing with him. you might as well accuse him of shafting you through this too…not that you should," she says quickly, not wanting ursula to get any ideas--
"that's 'cause i looooooooove tobias," she said, grabbing his arm and dragging him toward her, letting her head loll onto his shoulder. he sits there staring ahead sulkily, like a cat being held who wants to be put back down.
"ursula, you've really had too much to drink," zoey says. "i strongly urge you to stop judging."
"IT'S INTERMISSION AFTER THIS! I'LL BE FINE!"
"well, we can't argue with that," tobias says with a shrug.
"i don't know," zoey says. "i think we should put off the rest of the contest until tomorrow, when she's sober. better yet, the day after tomorrow, when she's not hung over."
"look, i'm sure she'll be fine if we extend the intermission. give it twenty-five minutes instead of fifteen?" tobias suggests. but he doesn't want her to be fine. he wants her to come back still drunk, still inhibited--just to embarrass her all the more.
"that sounds like a plan," zoey says, and goes around the table to beckon ursula backstage. "come on. let's get you some water."
as ursula hobbles offstage with zoey supporting her, tobias goes to bonuses.
"you get a +5 for using psychic," he says. "and……that's just about it. whew, that was fast. this means your total is……"
high up in the harmonias' private box, ezra turns to ghetsis, his handsome features forming a look of concern.
"shall we stop the contest, my son?" he asks.
"no," ghetsis says. "let her stumble."
