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Section #26
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The time was 8:35 PM on the clear and tranquil Friday night when the massive S-5 finally touched down in the launch bay of Mack and Aura’s secret underground laboratory. In only a matter of minutes, the Seismic Generator was unloaded from the Heavy Carrier, strapped to the hard, metallic floor of the massive launch bay and was then covered with a large, heavy blue tarp. All had seemed normal when Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre, Lucca, Simon, Gremlin, Lucca and David said their goodbyes to K-1 and Central before they left the lab and headed up towards Warren’s basement. After making sure the weapons and equipment were stowed away and everything was going well, Mack and Aura said goodnight to their robotic friends, boarded the elevator and were on their way up to the basement as well. “Well?” asked Aura with a yawn, “Shall we go to bed now?” Mack smiled at his beautiful mate. “We will after we check on something,” said Mack as he lead Aura up the basement stairs, “When we landed, I noticed the kitchen lights at the church were left on.” “I wonder what’s going on over there?” asked Aura as she and Mack walked through the hallways of the mansion and soon, they were on their way to the church. However, the Guardians were being watched closely. Alexander carefully peered out the blinds of one of the large, front windows of the mansion. He closed the blinds and glanced at his lovely wife, Aurora. “Is everything set?” asked Alexander with glee. Aurora giggled and smiled at her husband. “I just led Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David to the back rooms,” said Aurora with delight, “Plus, everything is laid out for the Guardians in their bedroom. We’ll have to lead them there as soon as they get back.” Alexander chuckled warmly. “Have we got a surprise for them!” said Alexander with excitement as he embraced his wife. Little time had passed when Mack and Aura arrived at the church and entered through one of the back doors into the dark cafeteria. The tables, chairs and the floor were sparkling clean with not a trace to tell of the celebration that had taken place just days ago. Aura couldn’t help but think back when she and Mack were married. Then, there were the joyful days when Fredrick and Sakura had been married and then, just yesterday, Enrique and Anna had been joined together as well. The Guardians stopped in their tracks when they heard a loud belch from the kitchen. “What was that?” asked Aura. Mack frowned as he held out his right hand and started to focus a ball of light in it. “I think we may have a rodent infestation…” said Mack quietly. He let go of Aura’s hand and silently walked up to the kitchen door. In an instant, Mack threw open the double-jointed door, ready to blast whatever was intruding in the kitchen with a blast of destructive light. Instead, he allowed the energy to dissipate and vanish when he laid his eyes on the intruder. “Oh, my!” laughed Aura as she walked into the kitchen behind he mate, “Looks like there was a rodent infestation!” “William?” asked a bewildered Mack, “What happened in here?” William was smiling and lying against a cupboard with his belly bloated. There were cake crumbs and frosting all through the Pikachu’s normally yellow fur as well as all over the surrounding floor around William. William let out a loud hiccup as he sluggishly opened his eyes. The fat Pikachu squeaked lazily as he slowly stood up on his feet. “Oh…” said William with a content smile, “I just had the time… of my life…” William flopped onto his face. Aura, concerned for William, carefully took him up in her arms. “Are you okay, little cutie?” asked Aura softly. “…I’ll…” stammered William, “I’ll be alright… in the morning…” “He’s just fine,” said Mack with a grin, “It looks like our little friend decided to help himself to what was left of Enrique and Anna’s wedding cake.” “Best… day… ever…” said William with a loud yawn. Aura laughed to herself as she set the Pikachu in one of the kitchen sinks. With a sprayer, some warm water, soap and in about ten minutes, Aura managed to get William cleaned up. He was sound asleep as Aura and Mack worked together to get William dried off with a few kitchen towels. “Well, what do you think happened?” asked Mack. “I remember hearing something about how Anna was going to reward William for what she put him through yesterday,” said Aura with a smile as she held William in her arms, “I think this was our little friend’s reward.” “That sure takes the cake, doesn’t it?” asked Mack with a grin. Aura giggled and stroked William’s swollen belly a few times. “Ooooh…” moaned William, “What happened to me…?” “He’s waking up?” asked a bewildered Aura. “Why would I be asleep at this hour on a Friday night?” asked William with a loud yawn, “Man… what happened to me?” “I think a wedding cake got the best of you,” chuckled Mack. “Is that all?” asked William with embarrassment, “Oh. I forgot all about that…” “Well, let’s get you home and in bed,” said Aura softly. “But I’m not tired!” complained William. Despite the Pikachu’s protests, Mack and Aura left the church with William and were soon back at the mansion. The Guardians were pleasantly surprised when Alexander and Aurora greeted them once they had entered through the front door. “Welcome back, Mack and Aura!” said Alexander with delight. “Yes,” said a happy Aurora, “I’m so glad to see you and your friends all back home, safe and sound.” “After all that happened today, I’m thankful and quite amazed that we’re unharmed, too,” said Mack with a yawn. Alexander and Aurora’s happy smiles were replaced in an instant with looks of bewilderment when they laid eyes on William. “What happened to him?” asked a confused Alexander, taking a good, long look at the stout Pikachu. “Not much,” said William with a smile, “Enrique and Anna just let me have the rest of their wedding cake.” “You ate it all in one day?!” exclaimed Alexander. “That he did,” said Aura with a smirk. Aurora giggled to herself and glanced up at Alexander. The Gardevoir nodded his head and smiled in reply to an unspoken request. “Now then,” said Alexander with a pleasant tone of voice, “My wife and I have a little surprise for both of you.” “Please forgive me,” said Mack, yawning again, “I don’t meant to sound rude, but can’t this wait until tomorrow?” “Oh, no,” said Aurora cheerfully, “This can’t wait for long. We left some presents in your bedroom. How about we show them to you?” Mack glanced at Aura: she just smiled at him. “Let’s go see what they got for us,” said Aura sweetly. Mack shrugged his shoulders and smiled at his lovely wife. “Well, a wise husband always puts his wife first,” said Mack tenderly as he held Aura’s right hand, “Okay, Alexander, Aurora: Please lead the way.” The two Gardevoirs smiled as they turned around and led the Guardians through the mansion. “Hey,” said Mack, “How about we take a shortcut through the ballroom?” Alexander and Aurora glanced at each other nervously, doing their best to hide their fear and uneasiness. “We…” said Alexander nervously, “We need to stay out of the ballroom for now. Warren is having it deep cleaned.” “At this hour?” said Mack with a raised eyebrow, “Who would Warren hire to polish and deep clean the wooden floors around here after 9 o’ clock?” Aurora giggled nervously. “Paul is quite the handyman,” replied Aurora. “Good point,” said Mack, “After all, Paul did help Aura and I get the kitchen fixed up after William and Gremlin blew it up.” “I wish you would all quit bringing that up,” griped William. Now that Mack and Aura suspected nothing, Alexander and Aurora carefully lead the Guardians down the long hallways and eventually upstairs. The leisurely walk came to end right outside the Guardians’ bedroom. “Okay,” said Alexander, clapping his hands once, “Now, I want both of you to please close your eyes for a minute.” “This is a surprise,” said Aurora with excitement. Aura smiled and closed her eyes. Mack was skeptical, but he still did as his in-laws had politely asked. The Guardians heard their bedroom door slowly creak open. “Now, we’ll guide you into your room,” said Alexander as he gently held Mack’s hands and lead him into the room. Aurora did the same for Aura and they had the Guardians, who still had their eyes closed, stop in just the right spot. “Okay…” said Alexander as he and his wife let go of the Guardians’ hands, “Look now.” Mack hesitated, especially after he heard Aura gasp and then yell with sheer delight. “This can’t be good…” thought Mack as he finally opened his eyes. The male Guardian looked on with disbelief at his father and mother-in-law’s gifts: a pair of elaborate ball gowns were laying spread out over the bed. “They’re so beautiful! Which one is mine?” asked Aura happily. “Yours is the sky-blue one,” replied a smiling Aurora. “The dark green dress is for you, Mack,” said Alexander with a friendly smile. Mack had only just gotten used to wearing his wedding dress, but now he was going to have to don a ball gown as well? The two ball gowns were almost identical: each dress had long sleeves, a very full, flowing skirt, layer upon layer of soft petticoats under the skirt, decorative embroidery, stand up collars, a large bow with trailing ribbons on the back of the dress just above the waist and laces on the back to close the bodice. Aura’s dress; however, also had puffed sleeves, pale blue petticoats under the skirt, plus the fabric sparkled and shimmered brightly in the light while Mack’s dress only shimmered and had light green petticoats for added lift. “Is something wrong, Mack?” asked a perplexed Aurora while her daughter gleefully wrapped her arms around her new dress, holding it tightly against her body and feeling the soft fabric. “Aura said that green was your favorite color,” said a shocked Alexander with a frown, “Do you not like it?” Mack looked up at Alexander as if his father-in-law had gone completely bonkers. “Dad?” asked Mack with fear; “Is there something I should know here?” Alexander chuckled warmly. “I really don’t understand why you are so afraid of the clothing we Gardevoirs think is perfectly normal,” said Alexander. “I think it’s just culture shock,” giggled Aura. “How can I put this?” said Alexander as he picked the extravagant dress of the bed and tenderly handed it to Mack, “Just think of it as the gown you normally wear when you dance with Aura in the ballroom almost every night here in the mansion, except this dress is much more extravagant, especially for the party that’s going to start in about ten minutes.” “A party?” asked a very nervous Mack, holding his new dress up at an arms length, “What kind of party?” “A very nice, relaxing and fun party,” said Aurora, trying to reassure her son-in-law, “This is going to be the first weekly meeting of a group my husband and I started many years ago.” “That’s right, my dear,” said Alexander happily, “From now on, every Friday night, the Ballroom Club is going to meet here at Warren’s mansion. Of course, our friendly mayor loved the idea.” “So, what happens at this… Ballroom Club?” asked Mack nervously. “Simple,” replied Aurora with delight, “The Ballroom Club is all about married Gardevoirs and Gallades spending a night together just dancing, enjoying some fine food and having fun with their mates. Unmarried Gardevoirs and Gallades also come here for a nice date as well.” “Plus,” said Alexander, “Every Gardevoir and Gallade will be wearing beautiful and traditional garb for the evening.” Mack let out a heavy sigh. “Why do so many Gardevoir traditions have to involve dresses?” grumbled Mack as he glared at his new, shimmering green gown. “You wear one every day Mack,” giggled Aura, “It doesn’t seem to bother you at all.” “Good point…” said Mack with another sigh, “I guess as long as I don’t draw a lot of stares or get laughed at, I should be fine.” “Well, if you’ll please excuse us, Aurora and I need to get dressed for the evening. We hope to see you in the ballroom soon, especially since Agatha was so kind as to cater the banquet for us,” said Alexander. “This is just like old times,” said Aurora with a blissful sigh as Alexander put his left arm around her, “Having a wonderful, romantic night of fine food and graceful dancing…” “I’ll come with you guys,” said William as he leapt out of Aura’s arms and onto the floor. “That’s fine, William,” said Aura happily, “We’ll be down soon.” “Very good,” said a happy Alexander as he led his delighted wife out of the room, “See you then.” As soon as Alexander, Aurora and William had left the room and closed the door, Aura started to get undressed, eager to get into her new, fluffy gown. “Just think Mack,” said Aura, deep in bliss, “Everyone is going to see all those dance moves we learned over the last few years.” Mack kept his eyes glued on his green ball gown. He glanced at the bed and saw a pair of green, shimmering slippers that completed the ensemble. Aura had light blue slippers to go with her dress. It did not take long until Aura had slipped on her new dress and its matching shoes. “Come on, honey!” giggle Aura, “Time for you to get ‘Dressed’ too!” Mack sighed heavily, yet again. “That’s not funny, Aura,” said Mack with a scowl. Nonetheless, he started to get undressed; bracing himself for what could very well be a very long night. Soon, the time was 9:30 and several dozen Gardevoirs and their mates had arrived at the mansion in stunning, colorful dresses. They waited eagerly in the large ballroom for the party to begin. At the back of the ballroom and in front of the large windows that faced the mountains, stood all the members of the royal family, minus the Guardians. Anna could not have been more delighted. “I just love it!” said Anna with sheer delight, twirling in her sparkling pink dress with pale pink petticoats under her skirt, “It’s so soft and fluffy! Best of all, it’s pink!” “I’m well aware of your favorite color,” giggled Angel in her sparkling black ball gown, “After all, who do you think spent the last several months making all the gowns for this event?” Ramirez smiled as he stood next to Angel with an arm wrapped around her, wearing a dark green ball gown. Around the ballroom, it was very obvious that all the dresses had, in a way, been color coded: bright colors and shimmering or sparkling dresses for the females with darker, plain dresses for most of the males. All female Gardevoirs were also wearing gold or silver bracelets, anklets, earrings and necklaces with gemstones to match the colors of their dresses. The guests were all talking amongst themselves, waiting for when the Guardians and some other special guests would arrive. “That reminds me,” said Angel, “Ramirez, would you excuse me for a moment? I need to go check on some of our guests.” “Go right ahead,” said Ramirez. Angel smiled and walked through the group of Gardevoirs and through the double doors on the opposite side of the ballroom. The master Gardevoir seamstress walked through the mansion corridors, upstairs to one of the unused bedrooms and gently knocked on the door. “May I come in?” asked Angel sweetly. She pressed her right ear against the door just in time to hear a heavy sigh. “You can come in,” said a familiar and very nervous voice. Angel opened the bedroom door and giggled with glee. “You all look so handsome!” said a delighted Angel. “I really don’t think so,” said Eric with a look of fear on his face. Alvin, Eric, Cecil, Andre and David knew they were in deep, deep trouble as they stood in a line, wearing identical, shimmering, dark blue ball gowns. “The ladies are going to think you all look downright fabulous!” giggled Angel with excitement. The ball-gown wearing Gardevoirs and Mewtwo said not a word for several awkward moments. “Someone please remind me how we got tricked into this?” asked a very nervous and very scared Andre, “This is like one of my worst nightmares come true!” “You think you’ve got it bad?” snorted David, “Whoever heard of a Mewtwo in a dress?! Sheesh!” “Now, now, boys,” said Angel with sinister smile, “Remember: Glacian ordered all of you to don the traditional ballroom dancing attire and to join the rest of us in the Ballroom Club for a night of dancing and fun. After all, you are all citizens of Olympus and must obey the king’s orders.” “I should have stayed home and become a psychiatrist instead of joining Cipher!” complained Andre, “Then none of this would have happened and I wouldn’t have been ordered to cross-dress!” “Would you rather have a pink dress instead?” snapped Angel. Andre became quiet in an instant. “It could be worse, Andre,” said Eric with a sigh. “How?” demanded a sullen Andre. “We could have been ordered to learn ballet,” replied Eric. “I’ll take tights over this dress any day!” griped Andre. “Is that so?” asked Angel deviously, “Do you know what the traditional attire is for Kirlia and Gardevoir ballet dancers?” “I don’t think I want to know,” said Andre, but Angel ignored him and walked up to him. They stood eye to eye. “Kirlias and Gardevoirs tend to dance the same way, so they dress the same way,” said Angel, grinning at the nervous Gardevoir, “It all starts with a pair of white, satin ballet slippers…” Andre was shaking with fear. “You can stop now!” said an increasingly-terrified Andre. Angel said nothing as she wrapped her arms around Andre. “And then…” said Angel in a sinister tone as she spoke in Andre’s right ear, “You have a white dress with a very full skirt, cut several inches above the ankles so your cute slippers can be seen easily. Your dress is covered with lovely embroidered deigns…” Despite their predicament, Eric, Alvin, Cecil and David could hardly contain their laughter as Andre shook and sweated profusely with mounting terror. “Let… me… let me go! You’re gonna give me nightmares!” screamed Andre. He tried to run for it, but Angel kept him close with a strong embrace and continued to speak to the frightened Gardevoir face to face in a most unpleasant manner. “…Then you have long, decorated sleeves and a collar that goes all the way up to your neck,” said Angel with an evil smile, “A white bow with trailing ribbons, just above your waist, accents the back of your shimmering dress. There is layer after layer of soft, fluffy and white petticoats under your skirt.” If there was time that Andre wished that just once, he could disappear without a trace, this was it. “The satin and the fluffy tulle feels so wonderful on your body,” said Angel, “And finally, you’re locked into your pretty dress with white laces on the back of your dress with bronze loops. Then… at last… your transformation into a male ballerina IS… COMPLETE!!” Andre screamed as Angel erupted with foul, horrifying laughter. Angel held Andre close to her body, laughing the whole time at his face as the male Gardevoir desperately tried to squirm out of her tight embrace. Ramirez was standing outside the bedroom when he heard the bloodcurdling scream and Angel’s evil laughter. Ramirez had followed after Angel to let her know that the Guardians would soon be arriving at the ballroom. He was glad he had gone after Angel after all. “What on earth is she doing in there?” thought Ramirez as he threw open the bedroom door. “Hello, Ramirez,” said Angel nonchalantly and with a smile as Andre was still screaming and trying to get free from the sadistic, female Gardevoir’s arms. “I see everyone is ready to go,” said Ramirez with an appreciative nod, looking over the other Gardevoirs and David as a grin spread over his face. “Someone save me!!” shrieked Andre, “HEEEEELP!!” “You’re not going anywhere!” laughed Angel, “Now, you have to DANCE in the ballroom!” Andre continued to howl and scream. “Get a grip, soldier!” snapped Cecil, “It would appear that ballroom dancing is going to be far less worse than ballet!!” Andre finally stopped screaming. “Oh,” said Andre as he finally stopped struggling. Angel slowly let Andre free from her bear hug embrace. “Is everyone ready to go now?” asked Angel with a sweet smile. “Yes!” said the wide-eyed Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David all at once. Ramirez laughed quietly to himself. “Well, let’s get out there and on the dance floor,” said Ramirez, “Mack and Aura should be coming downstairs any moment now.” The relief Guardian was correct as Mack had finally gathered enough courage to show his face in public as he wore his shimmering, dark green dress. Aura was leaning against her handsome mate and smiling blissfully. “You’re enjoying this too much,” said Mack, glancing at his delighted wife. Aura just flashed Mack a smile as they walked down the hallway and towards the ballroom. Meanwhile, Agatha had just finished the preparations for the banquet. The master chef admired the three large tables, covered with fancy food, all while keeping a close eye on Gremlin and William. “Don’t you two burglars even think about stealing this food,” said Agatha with an evil smile on her face. “No need to remind me,” said Gremlin with a loud gulp, “I’m going to wait until after everyone else has been served.” “I’m not hungry anyway!” said a fearful William. “Very good,” said Agatha, glancing at Simon as he stood on her left, “Thanks for the help.” “Anytime,” said Simon with a polite bow. Just then, the large double doors of the ballroom swung open as Mack and Aura stepped into the ballroom. The Gardevoirs and their mates erupted into loud cheers and applause, clearing a path so the Guardians could go join the rest of their family at the other end of the ballroom. At that same moment, Ramirez and Angel appeared from the opposite doors with Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David in tow. Mack was blushing from embarrassment, but he soon started to laugh loud and hard when he saw the ex-Cipher members smiling and blushing nervously in their own ball gowns. The crowd became quiet as Mack, Aura and the rest of their friends stood behind Glacian, wearing a dark purple ball gown, and Gloria, donning a shimmering and sparkling bright red gown. The two monarchs, wearing their golden crowns, stepped forward, hand-in-hand. “I wish to welcome all of you to the first weekly meeting of the Ballroom Club!” announced Glacian with a bright smile. Again, the Gardevoirs and Gallades cheered and applauded. They became silent the moment their queen started to speak. “This is a time for dancing and just having fun and relaxing with your mates,” said Gloria happily, “We hope you will all join us here each Friday from now on to dance with us.” “Now, I believe it is time we got this party underway,” said Glacian as he turned his gaze to a small Gardevoir orchestra in the back, left corner of the ballroom. The Gardevoir conductor smiled and nodded his head as he faced the Pokémon musicians. Glacian faced his beloved wife, held her right hand in his left hand and then tenderly placed his right hand on Gloria’s waist. Gloria giggled as he placed her left hand on Glacian’s right shoulder. The band’s conductor started to move his baton and instantly, fine music filled the room. Glacian and Gloria started to dance in time with the music and only a few minutes passed before every Gardevoir and Gallade in the ballroom was dancing with their mates. Ramirez and Angel couldn’t help but stare at each other’s faces as they drifted about the ballroom together, deeply in love. “Less than a year to go Angel,” said Ramirez tenderly. Angel blushed and smiled at her mate to be. Gremlin and William sat still on the sidelines, watching the Gardevoirs and Gallades as they danced in their stunning and beautiful attire. Gremlin was just waiting for the right moment, for he had a special present for Enrique and Anna. “What’s that big book under your arm for?” asked a curious William. Gremlin grinned at the inquisitive Pikachu. “You’ll see,” replied Gremlin with a soft cackle, “This is something I whipped up just for the newlyweds.” Gremlin pointed at the two delighted Gardevoirs in pink and dark red ball gowns. As for Andre and his comrades, they had hoped their ordeal would soon be over, but Glacian had other ideas. After the first several dances, the Gardevoirs eagerly lined up to partake of a fine, late-evening meal. It was at this time when Glacian made his intentions fully known to the nervous Gardevoirs and Mewtwo. “Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David,” said Glacian softly as the nervous male Pokémon got in line for some of the fabulous food, “I would like all of you to come with me for a moment.” “Okay,” said Eric, shrugging his shoulders. Somehow, he and the rest of his ex-Cipher friends had managed to avoid going on the dance floor or even drawing much attention to themselves for the last half an hour, but that was all about to change. The four Gardevoirs and David followed Glacian and Gloria to the furthest area of the ballroom where they saw five smiling female Gardevoirs in a line against the wall. Glacian smiled as he turned around to face his guests. “I think it is high time you all started to get more comfortable around the opposite gender,” said Glacian with a friendly smile. “Is this some sort of a blind date?” asked a worried Andre. “As a matter of fact, yes,” replied Glacian, “You may not remember, but out of compassion, I did welcome all of you in as members of the Olympus royal family. Therefore, due to the fact that our family has dwindled down over the years, it is the duty of every member of the royal family to find a mate.” “You’re not going to marry us tonight, are you?!” asked a terrified Andre. Glacian and Gloria laughed while the single female Gardevoirs blushed and giggled at Andre’s outburst. “No Gardevoir or Gallade is ever going to be forced to marry!” laughed Glacian, “Nonetheless, I want you to all be courteous and try to have a nice evening with these nice, young ladies.” The five female Gardevoirs smiled and offered a curtsy. “I’m Sandra,” said the Gardevoir in a light green gown. “My name is Ariel,” giggled a Gardevoir in a bright red gown while the Gardevoir in the middle of a group, wearing a bright yellow gown said, “My name is Jenifer.” “You can call me Serene,” said the Gardevoir in the light blue gown while the Gardevoir in the bright pink dress said with a cheerful voice, “My name is Victoria. Nice to meet you!” “I’m Elizabeth,” said the last Gardevoir on the far right, donning a light violet ball gown. Though they were extremely nervous, Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David bowed politely out of respect towards the delighted female Gardevoirs. “They already know who you are,” said Glacian as the two groups of Gardevoirs and one Mewtwo stood up straight once again, “Now, how about each of you young ladies pick out a dancing partner for the night?” In less than a minute, Elizabeth had decided to dance with David, Sandra chose Alvin, Ariel picked Eric, Jenifer decided to chose Cecil while Vitoria stood next to Andre as he nervously trembled uncontrollably. “Very nice!” giggled Gloria. Glacian smiled at the Gardevoirs and their dancing partners. “I want all of you to get to know each other and have a great time dancing together. Maybe some of you will want to dance together next week?” suggested Glacian. The female Gardevoirs smiled as they held hands with their new acquaintances. “So,” said Victoria as she eyed Andre, “Have you ever danced before?” Andre shook his head back and forth in reply. “No, I haven’t,” said Andre bashfully. “Well then,” said Victoria sweetly, “How about I show you? The next song is about to begin.” “Okay,” said Andre, shrugging his shoulders. Glacian was delighted when he saw the five couples join the rest of the Gardevoirs and Gallades on the dance floor for another waltz. Simon, having witnessed the entire ordeal that had just unfolded before him, was very thankful that he was just a visitor and not a citizen of Olympus. “I’ve got my eyes on you, King,” thought Simon, glaring at Glacian from the other side of the ballroom, “You’ll not have me under your thumb, ordering me into a blind date with some random love-struck Gardevoir.” Glacian met Simon’s eyes from across the room, and although he didn’t speak, Simon got the impression that Glacian was laughing at him. Unnerved by this, Simon made a hasty and unnoticed retreat behind the service tables. “Well?” asked Gloria, winking at her husband, “What are we standing around for?” “Indeed,” said Glacian with chuckle, “I think we’re the only Gardevoirs not dancing right now. That is a problem we must remedy at once.” “Indeed we should, my dear Glacian,” said Gloria with a blissful smile. With that, the Gardevoir king led his queen onto the dance floor. The hours ticked by and midnight was soon approaching. During one of the last dances, Mack and Aura finally noticed that their ex-Cipher friends had actually come onto the dance floor and they were each dancing with a nice female Gardevoir. Mack and Aura carefully twirled and seemed to glide over the dance floor towards Glacian and Gloria. “Are you trying to get those guys mates, or something?” asked Mack with a grin. Glacian grinned back at the Guardian as he danced with Gloria. “Maybe…” was Glacian’s reply in a sinister tone of voice. When the clock finally struck 12, the Gardevoirs and their mates enjoyed one last, slow dance together. For Andre and his friends, this night had started out to be one of the worst they could remember, but now, even Andre was no longer nervous and was actually having a good time with Victoria. “You’re actually a pretty good dancer,” giggled Victoria with a bright smile on her face, “I hardly had to teach you anything.” Andre blushed deeply while Victoria erupted with warm laughter. Just then, the Gardevoir conductor waved his baton for the last time of the night as the last dance came to a slow and pleasant end. Again, Glacian addressed the crowd of now-tired dancers. “I want to thank all of you for coming and making the first meeting of the new Ballroom Club a wonderful success!” said Glacian loudly as his voiced echoed in the massive ballroom, “I hope you will all join us next week. Best of all, this club is going to meet at six o’ clock in the evening next time, so we can all enjoy more time dancing together.” “You all have a wonderful night and anyone who wants to spend the night here in the mansion has Warren’s permission to do so,” said Gloria. With that, the Gardevoirs and their mates said goodbye to one another before leaving the ballroom and walking out of the mansion before teleporting back to Olympus. Only a dozen or so male Gardevoirs took their mates up in their arms and then carried them away towards the empty bedrooms in the mansion. Little time passed before the royal family, as well as Angel, were now on their own in the massive and quiet ballroom. Eric, Alvin, Cecil, Andre and David bid their friends goodnight before escorting their new dancing partners out of the ballroom. Glacian was delighted to see his ex-Cipher friends had actually enjoyed the night dancing with the five young female Gardevoirs. “That was the most fun I’ve had in so long,” said Aurora with a blissful sigh as she leaned against Alexander. “Indeed,” said Glacian with a smile and a yawn, “Looks like our little weekly dancing group is going to do very well.” “You know we’re looking forward to next week,” said a happy Fredrick as he held Sakura close. “Now then,” said Glacian, turning to face Mack and Aura, “What did you find in Alvin’s old facility?” Another half an hour dragged on as Mack and Aura told Glacian all that had happened from finding the facility stripped of raw materials, weapons and equipment to discovering soldiers in black armor. “That’s the story,” said Mack, growing more and more tired. “We really don’t like what all transpired today,” said Aura with a frown, “Everything in Alvin’s nightmare came true.” “That is most troubling,” said Glacian in a series tone of voice, “At least you managed to secure the Seismic Generator. I’m glad to know that horrid weapon is in good hands now.” Gremlin looked up and noticed that the crowd of dancing Gardevoirs had dispersed. Now was the time to unveil his surprise for Enrique and Anna. “Either way, there is nothing we can do for now,” said Glacian, “We’ll just have to be extra vigilant until we learn the identity of our new adversaries.” “There’s no point in worrying,” said Simon with a long yawn while he stretched his arms, “There’s no reason why we can’t relax and get some rest in the meantime.” “Before you all go to bed,” said Gremlin happily, “Maybe you should take a look at this first!” The Sableye had what appeared to be a large and thick book under his left arm. “Oh!” said Anna with a smile, “What do you have there, Gremlin?” The smiling Sableye motioned for everyone to gather close to him as he handed the book to Enrique and Anna. “Gather ‘round, everyone!” said Gremlin with triumph, “And bear witness to my belated wedding present for Prince Enrique and the beautiful Princess Anna!” “Go ahead,” said Enrique as soon as Anna had the heavy book in her hands, “You can open it.” Anna smiled and slowly opened the front cover. She laughed at the first picture, covering the entire first page. “What’s this?” asked Alexander as he took a closer look. The picture showed Sakura and Anna with another, very nervous female Gardevoir who was dressed up as a bride. “Hey! That’s Alana!” laughed Ramirez as he wrapped his left arm around Angel, “I know that wedding ensemble anywhere!” Simon did his best not to blush or draw any attention to himself as the group of smiling Gardevoirs gazed at one picture after another from the day ‘Alana’ had come to visit Gardev. “That turkey dinner was the best I’d ever had,” remarked Glacian, “I wonder who the lucky Gardevoir or Gallade is who will have her hand in marriage?” Simon glared at Gremlin. “What?” asked Gremlin, trying to pretend he was innocent. “How did you get those pictures?” demanded Simon angrily. “Simple!” cackled Gremlin, “I hid in the shadows and used a great digital camera that Paul let me have in return for dealing with the rodent problems at his store.” “You scared them all away, didn’t you?” giggled Angel. Gremlin looked up and grinned at Angel. “Sometimes I’m just too much!” said Gremlin, turning his gaze upon Simon, “You should have been there, Simon! I’m sure you and Alana would have been lovers in no time!” “How… how dare you!!” sputtered Simon while Anna laughed. “Thank you so much, Gremlin,” said Anna with immense delight, “I shall treasure these pictures forever.” “Heh!” scoffed Gremlin, “You’re just getting started! Keep flipping through that book. The rest of those pictures are from your wedding.” For several more minutes, the group of Pokémon eagerly looked through the large photo album. Without being seen, Gremlin had captured such sweet moments as Enrique and Anna, trading bites of wedding cake, the bouquet and garter toss as well as the young couple’s first dance together as mates. “You’re a natural photographer!” said Anna with immense joy, “Thank you so much!” “You’re very welcome, princess. The album is for you and Enrique to enjoy,” said Gremlin with a polite bow, “Now; may I please borrow it for a moment?” “What?” said a baffled Anna, “I’ve only had this photo album in my hands for a few minutes and you want it back already?” “Not for long,” said Gremlin and he got on his knees and looked up at Anna with pleading eyes, “Please?” “Alright,” said Anna with a grin, “You can borrow it.” Gremlin walked back to the other end of the ballroom and opened the photo book right in front of William. “Look here William!” said Gremlin in an excited tone of voice, “There was this sweet little female Pikachu at Enrique and Anna’s wedding! You and her surely would have liked each other a lot! You could have danced with her, too!” William growled with anger as weak static bolts lanced off his red cheeks. “Gremlin!!” shouted William with embarrassment and anger. The group of Gardevoirs and other Pokémon erupted with laughter. “Now the evening is complete!” said a laughing Glacian. “I agree,” giggled Gloria, “Now, Glacian my dear, how about we spend the night here in the mansion?” “Works for me,” said Glacian as he took his smiling and blushing mate in his arms. He took a few steps forward, glanced back at the married members of his family and then said, “Follow my lead!” With that, Alexander, Mack, Fredrick and Enrique took their lovely wives up in their arms and proceeded to carry them out of the ballroom. Now, only Ramirez and Angel remained in the ballroom. Warren had gone to bed hours ago and Agatha was just finishing cleaning up the food and dishes. William followed slowly after the royal Gardevoir couples, muttering under his breath and wishing he could forget all about what had happened on Enrique and Anna’s wedding day. Ramirez smiled and embraced Angel one last time for the night. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then, won’t I?” asked Ramirez. “At the same coffee shop, I hope?” asked a happy Angel. “Of course,” said Ramirez as he held Angel tightly, “You have a good night, my love.” “You too, Ramirez,” said Angel with delight, “Just think Ramirez. Soon, you and I will get to go to bed and sleep together every night.” The Gardevoir lovers blushed and hugged each other one last time. They jumped when they saw a bright flash. They laughed when they turned their heads and saw Gremlin standing a few yards away with the camera aimed at them. “See you tomorrow,” said Ramirez with a smile as he released Angel from his embrace and slowly left the ballroom with a smile on his face, “I want a copy of that picture, Gremlin!” “Yes, sir!” said Gremlin with a salute. Angel followed after Ramirez and Gremlin tagged along. Once outside, Angel watched her mate to be as he spread his wings, flapped them vigorously and then flew into the night sky, flying off towards Mt. Ivory. “Looking forward to having wings, eh, Angel?” asked Gremlin. Angel laughed with delight. “Oh, yes!” said Angel as she twirled with her black dress sparkling brightly in the moonlight, “You’re right on, Gremlin.” “That’s what I thought,” said Gremlin, “So, would you like me to take pictures at your wedding, too?” Angel gasped and quickly looked down at the smiling Sableye. “You mean it?!” she asked with hope. “Of course,” said a grinning Gremlin, “It would be my pleasure.” “In that case, do you think you could do me a little favor?” asked Angel sweetly and with a friendly smile. -83- The next morning, the Gardevoir seamstresses were back in Angel’s shop and back to work. Now that wedding season was over, the young female Gardevoirs could finally take it easy. It would not be until the next spring when the demand for wedding attire would be very high demand once again. During the summer, the seamstresses would work from dawn ‘til dusk together on an average of 200 or more wedding dresses per year. “It sure is nice to have a break,” said Victoria with a smile. “No kidding!” giggled Ariel, “Now we won’t have to work so hard and so fast until next wedding season.” “Speaking of weddings,” said Jenifer with a blissful smile as she picked up a large piece of the soft and strong white Gardevoir satin, “I think Glacian set us up with some nice men.” “I think so, too!” said Victoria as she blushed, “Andre was so sweet and such a good dancer, as well!” “I can just close my eyes and see me and David, that handsome Mewtwo, as we twirled for hour after hour in our lavish ball gowns…” said Elizabeth with a blissful smile on her face, “He even said he wanted to dance with me next week!” “The same thing goes for Cecil and I,” giggled Jenifer, “He looked so… wonderful in his shimmering, dark blue dress.” “Maybe our new boyfriends will trade in those ball gowns for wedding dresses next year?” asked an excited Victoria. The five female Gardevoirs laughed out loud. “Well, maybe that will happen… just maybe,” said Jenifer with glee. At that moment, they heard the bell at the front door of the shop ring. The five seamstresses gasped when they saw Angel slowly walk into the large shop, still wearing her sparkling black dress. Angel smiled at her coworkers as she sat down in a chair at one of the workstations. “Good morning, everyone!” said a delighted Angel. “Good morning, Angel!” said the other five Gardevoirs happily. “I see you all had a wonderful night last night with your new boyfriends,” remarked a smiling Angel. “Say, where were you last night, Angel?” asked Victoria, “We didn’t see you anywhere at the dance.” “I’d like to know why you’re still wearing your ball gown,” said Sandra, “Though I must say it looks very cute on you.” “I just didn’t want to take off this lovely dress after such a wonderful evening. I was there at the dance, alright,” said Angel with a sly grin, “But maybe you all were too busy with your new love interests to notice me and my date.” The female Gardevoirs blushed deeply and giggled happily. “Say, who did you dance with?” asked Jenifer. Angel smiled as she stood up and shook her fluffy skirt a few times to even out the black petticoats underneath the sparkling fabric. “I have an idea. Why don’t you all come back to my office with me for a moment?” asked Angel with a friendly smile, “I have something special I want to show all of you.” The five eager seamstresses nodded their heads, stood up all at once and then followed Angel to the back of the huge sewing shop. They were wondering just what kind of surprise their boss had in store for them. Angel whistled a nameless tune as she turned the brass knob on her office door. Sandra, Victoria, Ariel, Jenifer and Elizabeth all gasped when they saw what was hanging on the back wall of Angel’s office. There was a pair of wedding dresses on white hangers. The two dresses were exactly like what Mack and Aura now had, except the groom’s dress had hundreds of small emeralds and diamonds to accent the exquisite embroidery while the embroidery on the bride’s dress was covered with a few thousand shiny black garnet stones and diamonds. The shimmering and sparkling wedding dresses were absolutely stunning and beautiful. Angel smiled as she stepped in front of the five delighted Gardevoirs to take another good look at her handiwork. “Angel, these are amazing!” declared Victoria. “Those dresses are surely fit for royalty!” giggled Sandra. “Say,” said Ariel as she glanced at Angel’s back, “Who are these wonderful dresses for anyway?” Angel stared straight ahead as an evil smile spread across her face, unseen by her coworkers. “Didn’t I tell you? I must have forgotten,” said Angel. Now, she was finally going to get back at the seamstresses for all the years they had hounded her about getting a husband. “Tell us what?” asked Elizabeth eagerly. “I’m getting married next summer,” said Angel, still with the mischievous smile on her face. “You’re getting married?! That’s wonderful!” exclaimed Sandra. “Who’s the lucky Gardevoir?” asked Victoria. “Or did you find a wonderful Gallade to marry?” asked Ariel as a grin spread across her face. Angel giggled sinisterly. “I’m going to marry Prince Ramirez,” said Angel, savoring her imminent revenge, “The Guardian of Gardev.” Angel glanced over her left shoulder: the shocked and envious looks on the seamstresses’ faces were priceless and something the young Gardevoir would remember for the rest of her life. Especially since Gremlin was hiding in a dark corner of the office, completely unnoticed, taking pictures with his new camera. >The End...< >To Be Continued in "The Village Guardians Chapter #3- The Lost Love"< And so concludes the latest chapter in The Village Guardians Anthology. I hope you have enjoyed this story and are looking forward to the next chapter, although I am contemplating not posting it at Pokecommunity. We'll see what happens. See you another time. |
It’s really rare to find five fan-fic masterpieces in a row written by the same author. The length of the stories alone should be enough to tell you that the series written by Dr. Mack Foxx is something to behold.
*Spoiler Alert* The following text contains spoilers so just stop right now if you have not read Foxx’s fan-fics (or read on I don’t care xD) It was nice to see how Mack (the guy in the story not the author xD) was not just another God-modded, stereotypical main character that is in so many other stories. He also is not just another beginning trainer that knows nothing about the Pokemon world (in these stories, Mack already has many badges, trophies, etc.) which is a little thing that sets these stories apart from others, even in its early settings. There is also a very strong sci-fi feel to the fan-fic (what’d I do for a plasma rifle xD) which is also a nice change. Well, I guess I’ll start off with the most important thing in a great story, the characters. Characters such as Mack and Aura do a very good job at providing action to the stories (such as when they fused in the first story), and characters such as William and Gremlin provide the much needed comic relief that is done so well (we all got to laugh, right? xD). Characters such as Mack and Aura are also great because they also are good for romantic scenes (even though some people don’t want to admit it, a story would get boring if it was 100% action and 0% romance). There are many elements of foreshadowing in this series (if I DO actually have to point out that the bouquet/garter tossing of a wedding foreshadows the next, then you must be blind o.o). Also, there were numerous cliffhangers that made the series one of those things that you can’t put down till you finished it. There was a vast amount of attention to details, but not enough so that the whole story became overinforming. This makes the story easily imaginable, but not boring. In addition, there were many symbols that showed the good vs. evil archetype such as Mack and Aura having the ability to use light. There’s a whole lot to love in this fan-fic series xD. My personal favorite was the time when William and Gremlin blew up the kitchen trying to steal pies. Frankly, I was a bit worried for awhile when Mack fused with Aura (admit it, I know that you were thinking something along the line of, “Wait, isn’t that Gardevoir a female and that fox a guy?!?!”), but I was glad when it all worked out in the end. Also, NOT ENOUGH ENRIQUE =O. You focused to much on Anna (the Alana scene and the training), and left Enrique out of the series almost completely =(. Eh, I guess you can fix that now that he is in the Royal Knights. I really enjoyed reading this fan-fic series and would recommend it to anyone who likes Pokemon, action, or someone who just likes a good story to read. |
Thank you very much for the review! It's been over two years since the last time I've received feedback of this caliber at PokeCommunity.
I must say, I greatly appreciate that you also took the time to review my entire series. I'm very glad you got a lot of laughs as well as enjoyed the combination of the action, suspense, romance and sci-fi genres. I do agree with your point that I have not used the character Enrique very much in my stories. Not to worry, he's going to be showing up a lot more in later chapters. I've been working very hard on these stories, for nearly 3 years now and I'm delighted to see that I do indeed have fans at this forum. I shall definitely post the third chapter of The Village Guardians Anthology, The Lost Love, at PokeCommunity as soon as it is complete. Again, thank you very much for the great review and I certainly hope you will enjoy the next novel-sized piece of my fan-fiction series. ^_^ |
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