Happy Valentine's Day, all! Make sure you all take advantage of the candy sales tomorrow :D Thank you very much to Guest and SailorCandy for your reviews of the last installment! Toby will definitely be making an appearance at some point, just not this soon. I was looking forward to writing this particular oneshot, but then it ended up being harder to come up with something than I'd expected. See you all for the next holiday! Enjoy!
I do not own Metal Fight Beyblade.
Jack stepped back to admire his work. Pink streamers dripped from the ceiling or were otherwise wrapped around the railings of stairways. Jack had also discovered a discount pink tree on sale after Christmas that he'd purchased on a whim, then dragged through the streets of New York City all the way to HD Academy. Now, the neon tree stood proud where their Christmas tree had once been, decorated with hearts of varying sizes and colors dangling from each artificial branch.
Jack carried his special paints Dr. Ziggurat provided him down the hallway. The paints were washable, designed for use on walls without causing lasting damage. Jack wasn't fond of having his work erased, but it gave him the opportunity to paint something new where the old had once been, so he tolerated the restriction. He stopped midway, examining the wall before dipping his hands into a container that housed a particular vivid shade of pink. He began painting a large heart. Once it was complete, he started adding orange and red flames around the edges of the heart. He moved on to the next section of wall. After he finished sprucing up the halls, Jack felt HD Academy would finally be properly ready for Valentine's Day.
Damian appeared down the hallway, a look of disgust growing across his face. Jack ignored it. The two of them had both been at the academy for several months now. Jack cared little for Damian's constant disdain of Jack's desire to bring festivity to each holiday, but he accepted it. Damian was simply not a creative. He was inherently incapable of understanding Jack's genius, and for that Jack pitied him.
"Don't you think this is a little much?" Damian asked, leaning against the wall. Jack didn't bother telling him the heart his shoulder pressed against was still wet. The red would add some color to his generally boring white cape.
"Hardly," Jack scoffed. "I haven't nearly had enough time to bring this place up to my standards, but this will have to suffice for now."
"This is completely over the top. You're completely over the top. I still haven't forgotten about what happened two weeks ago," Damian said darkly. Jack cringed.
After the new year, Dr. Ziggurat had informed his top three students that a world championship competition for beyblade would be taking place, making the three of them busier than ever. While in a fervor of disarray, Jack had nearly forgotten about Groundhog Day. He'd barely been able to forgive himself for the indiscretion.
On the second of February he'd woken in a panic, realizing he'd made a horrible mistake. Luckily, he'd inadvertently woken up at four in the morning. Immediately, Jack set out to righting those wrongs. It was too late for him to appropriately decorate, but there was still something else he could do. The construction paper groundhogs he'd planned on making would have to wait until next year.
Jack had raced to Damian's room, ripping the covers from his sleeping form, sending Damian flying off his bed.
Before Damian had a chance to respond, Jack had dragged him over to the TV and the two of them sat in front of it for hours watching ads for diet supplements, workout equipment, and varying other infomercials until Punxsutawney Phil was brought out. Jack squealed as the groundhog stepped out into the early morning.
Damian had kicked up a fuss the entire time, which annoyed Jack. How he could be so uncouth on such a glorious day was beyond him. In retaliation, Jack had tied Damian to a chair with duct tape around 4:30 to prevent him from leaving. By 7:25 when the ceremony was set to take place, Damian had stopped fighting back, staring at the screen with dead eyes.
Jack dragged himself out of the flashback. "Please, Damian, you and I both know that was absolutely necessary. And the groundhog didn't even see his shadow! We don't have to endure six more weeks of insufferable winter. An early spring is sure to come as the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil foretold!"
Damian looked at him disbelievingly. "Sure, Jack, whatever you say. I still don't understand why you had to drag me into it."
Jack rolled his eyes. "Damian, we have been over this. Groundhog Day is an important American tradition. Zeo has clearly been under a lot of duress lately. I simply could not justify waking him up. Besides, I knew you would appreciate it much more than he ever would."
"Zeo's going to be under a lot more duress soon if I have anything to say about it," Damian muttered.
"Oh, cheer up, Damian! Valentine's Day is right around the corner!"
Damian started to walk away. "Jack, Valentine's Day is nothing more than a day for companies to sell overpriced flowers and tacky cards. It's overrated."
Jack smiled benignly as he continued painting. Damian was always so bitter. Some love in his life would surely fix that. Jack would make certain Damian would have a fantastic Valentine's Day.
Jack added some silver sparkles. A small idea was slowly growing in his mind.
Zeo launched his bey. Ever since Dr. Ziggurat had announced the Beyblade World Championships were set to start in a few months, practice hours had been steadily increasing. It had yet to be confirmed, but Zeo was fairly convinced he, Jack, and Damian would be the ones chosen to represent the American team. HD Academy was one of if not the most prestigious beyblade academy in the United States. It only made sense their bladers would be selected.
That being said however, Zeo had been subjected to a few more arrangements. Zeo had been exposed to the system previously, but now Dr. Ziggurat was scheduling him to use it on almost a weekly basis. Zeo grimaced. He strongly disliked the arrangements, but he wasn't about to say anything. Not with Toby's health on the line.
Zeo peeked over at the group practicing in the small circular arena next to him. Three girls shouted out commands to their beys, paying him little attention. Zeo reset his bey and resumed practicing his launches.
Zeo was used to the other students giving him little notice. Zeo, Damian, and Jack were generally kept separate from everyone else, and even had access to private arenas to train in if they wanted. Still, it got lonely from time to time. He didn't really have time to interact with anyone else.
A pink and silver blob exploded in front of him, jarring his thoughts. Zeo yelped, and stumbled backwards.
Jack beamed down at him. Jack was covered in sparkling silver tinsel from head to toe. Zeo had learned long ago to stop asking questions.
He groaned, returning to his feet. "Jack, what is it now?"
Jack's hair shook from side to side, tinsel falling to the floor. "Zeo, I have been struck by a most wondrous idea!"
Zeo took a step back. "I'm sure you have. I need to go-"
Jack grabbed Zeo's shoulder. He motioned to the nearby girls. "Are you aware of the holiday mere days away?"
Realization dawned on him. "No way, Jack. I have way too much going on in my life for a girlfriend." Zeo looked at the girls again from the corner of his eye. Sure, they were kind of cute, but Zeo wasn't about to let Jack get him tied up in a new mess.
"No, no! You misunderstand me! I'm talking about Damian!"
Zeo's jaw nearly dropped. "Damian? Jack, are you serious?"
Jack looked affronted. "Absolutely! Don't you see this is fantastic? Damian is always causing mischief and has no appreciation for the finer things in life. Introducing love into his life will clearly make things much better for all!"
Zeo highly doubted it. He wished he could lock himself in the room for the next few days and wait out the storm.
Over the course of the next few days, Jack jumped on Damian every chance he got, pestering him with question after question.
Jack had assigned Zeo the job of scoping out the available girls at HD Academy, since Damian was less likely to answer Zeo and more likely to prank him. Zeo had only agreed to help Jack in his quest for one reason: Jack had gone to Zeo's room and threatened to douse it in glitter and cover the walls with glow-in-the-dark stars from floor to ceiling if he refused.
Zeo tried to look at it from a positive angle. If the plan worked, maybe things between Zeo and Damian would be better. Damian would have less time to dedicate to tormenting Zeo if he was busy with a girlfriend. It also gave Zeo a chance to meet new people.
Zeo was back in one of the training rooms. He saw two girls battling against each other and moved closer to them, trying to act casual.
One of the girls looked at him, locking him in a piercing stare. Zeo turned away, but the girl didn't break her gaze. Her hair was dark, almost black. She marched over to Zeo.
"Can I help you with something?" She asked, eyes flashing. Her friend came over as well. The second girl had brown hair, with two pink braids framing the sides of her face. She didn't say anything.
Zeo stammered. "Uh, no, everything's good here."
"There's like, six empty arenas here. Why did you move closer to me and Anastasia?" The dark haired girl continued.
"I'm Zeo," Zeo introduced, flailing. This was so not going as planned. He was going to give Jack hell for this later.
"Calm down, Helena," Anastasia said, stepping in front of her friend. Her voice was fairly soft. She gave Zeo a small smile. "It's really not that big of a deal."
"I'm really tired of all these male bladers thinking they're better than us just because we're girls," Helena complained. "That's why we joined the academy, remember? So the next time they challenge us, we'll crush them."
Zeo had started to inch back towards the exit nearest him while the girls talked. Just then, Jack burst into the opposite side of the room.
"Oh, Zeo!" He cried. Jack ran all the way over to Zeo. "Come with me! I've finally figured it out!"
Jack forcibly escorted Zeo by the arm all the way to the elevator then to his room, leaving both girls looking a little lost and uncertain. Jack peered outside to make sure no one was looking, then locked the door. Zeo's face darkened. The last time he'd been in Jack's room the artist had decided to use his face as a canvas.
Zeo sat warily in a chair. Jack quickly applied some vivid pink lipstick. He took out a plain white envelope, then kissed it, leaving a colorful mark. Zeo watched on in confusion and fear. Next Jack took out another envelope, and two sheets of white paper. He handed one to Zeo, along with a black marker.
"What's this for?" Zeo asked cautiously.
"Just write down what I tell you!" Jack instructed. "Now, tell me about those two girls, Zeo."
"Uh, sure. The girl with the pink and brown hair is Anastasia and the girl with the darker hair is Helena. Anastasia is kind of shy and Helena is kind of…not."
"Hmmm," Jack pondered. "I wonder which would be best for Damian."
Probably neither, Zeo wanted to say, but he knew he had to go along with this for just a little longer. There was no point in invoking Jack's wrath.
"Aha!" Jack snapped his fingers. "I've got it. Let's get to work!"
Jack was definitely up to something. Every time Damian found himself alone, Jack was suddenly there, bombarding him with a series of nonsensical questions. Damian didn't understand what Jack was possibly trying to get at when he asked Damian what his favorite species of marine mammal was.
On Valentine's Day, Damian woke up, already dreading what was to come. The night before, Jack had taken over the kitchen, baking sugar cookies in the shape of hearts with red and pink frosting, complemented by matching sprinkles. Jack had alluded to the fact that he planned to do some more cooking, and Damian did not want to be present for whatever the pink-haired blader had in mind.
Damian opened his door. On the floor, he noticed two cards. He picked them up.
The first one was from Jack. It was a Valentine's Day card with a cat on it holding a heart saying "You're Pawesome!" Jack had signed his name three times in different colors. Damian threw the card in the trash.
The second card was in an envelope. Damian flipped it over, and saw it had been kissed on the back. Before opening it, Damian looked around the hall, but he saw no one was there.
Damian pulled out the card inside. He discovered that, rather than a card, there was a letter waiting for him. In an elegant, flourishing script it read:
I have been waiting a long time for this. Please, meet me tonight at eight on the first floor of the academy near the doors. Bring this.
The letter was not signed, but a temporary tattoo of a bey was taped to it. Damian frowned. He flipped the letter over, hoping to find more information, but there was none. Dr. Ziggurat had alluded to the fact the Damian, Jack, and Zeo might soon be getting new beys with the world championships looming on the horizon. Maybe this was for a meeting with the person coming up with the designs. Obviously the designer would want to meet with Damian to get a clear idea of what type of bey would work best for him, right?
Either way, at eight o'clock tonight, Damian would have his answer.
That evening, Damian made his way down from the top floor ten minutes before eight. He held the bey tattoo in his hand. It seemed bizarre, but if Damian had learned anything from Jack it was that artists had a tendency to be eccentric. Anyone creating a specialized custom bey would likely be similar.
A girl with brown hair descended from a nearby staircase. She had a pink braid on either side of her face. She seemed to be looking for someone. Damian paid her little attention.
Damian crossed his arms five minutes after eight, slightly frustrated. Where was this guy? It wasn't that late, but there were definitely other things he could be doing. Damian should have confirmed with Dr. Ziggurat that the letter was indeed from the bey designer.
"Um, excuse me?"
Damian realized the girl he had seen earlier was speaking to him. She looked confused. In her hand, she also held a temporary tattoo of a bey.
"Is this from you?"
Damian looked down at his own tattoo, more confused than ever. "I-"
"Ah, there we all are!"
Jack appeared in the elevator, springing his way over to the two. "I apologize for the delay, I got a wrapped up in a project earlier and completely lost track of time! It's amazing how deeply the mind connects with the arts when one fully embraces them."
Without another word, Jack grabbed both Damian's and the girl's shoulders, pulling them back into the elevator. He hummed on the way up.
Once they reached their destination, Jack hopped out of the elevator gleefully, still hauling the other two by their hands. Finally, Jack stopped in the kitchen.
Zeo was pouring two drinks by the refrigerator. He set them on the table.
The table had been decorated with a pink tablecloth. Red lines and hearts had been drawn all over in it, by means of what Damian suspected was a Sharpie marker. Two large paper-mâche hearts were on opposing sides of the table. Silver balloons circled the table.
"Anastasia, so glad you could make it!" Jack trilled, a gleam in his eye. He pulled one of the chairs wrapped in streamers out, giving the girl no other choice but to sit down. Damian was squished into the chair on the other side of the table moments later.
Damian struggled to process what was happening. He had never seen this girl before in his life. There was absolutely no way she could have been the one to send him that note. Something was very amiss here, and Damian now knew exactly who to blame. The pieces were slowly coming together, although he didn't fully understand the reasoning behind them.
Zeo stood awkwardly in the corner. Damian didn't exactly know why he was there, other than putting drinks on the table. He could've just been passing through when Jack requested his help.
Jack had donned a white chef hat, and with a flourish he whipped the lid off a plate of spaghetti in the middle of the table. He motioned to Zeo, who quickly brought over two side salads Jack had forced him to make.
"Now that dinner has been served, I shall serenade you with a song I wrote myself!" Jack suddenly produced an accordion out of nowhere and began to sing.
Damian grabbed Jack's arm, interrupting him. Jack gave him a reproachful look, and returned to playing the accordion.
Damian's left eyebrow twitched. "Jack, I'm going to give you thirty seconds to explain what the hell is going on here."
Jack beamed a smile. "Oh, Damian! Is today not Valentine's Day, one of the happiest days of the year for lovers? You could surely benefit from the many rewards love reaps! And so I took it upon myself to become HD Academy's very own cupid!"
Damian sat very still, almost disbelieving. His lip curled back. Anastasia gripped her seat tightly, looking down at the plate of pasta in the center of the table nervously.
Jack continued, oblivious. "With Zeo's help, I conspired to bring you and the lovely Anastasia together! Here we are, in utter bliss! I can feel love's energy surging through this room! Isn't it absolutely wonderful?"
Zeo inched towards the door. Now that Jack had openly implicated his involvement to Damian, he was no longer safe. Damian would get back at him for this, make no mistake.
"Just think!" Jack cried. "In ten years, when the two of you are married, you can look back on this perfect day, your first date when everything in the universe aligned with your closest friends right by your side! What a beautiful memory this will be!"
"I'll kill you!" Damian pounced toward Jack. Jack stumbled back, taking several balloons with him as he landed partially in the sink. His accordion crashed to the floor.
"How dare you!" Jack said angrily, his chef hat now askew. "After I went to all this work, just for you! I did this to make your life better and THIS is how you repay me?"
"Come with me," Zeo instructed. He took Anastasia by the hand, half-pulling her out of her chair where she sat frozen, cowering. Damian threw a frying pan at Jack.
Zeo and Anastasia made it into the hall unscathed. They heard a clang as the pan crashed to the floor, followed by several more large bangs. He quickly led the girl to the elevator, pressing the button to take her to the bottom floor. Zeo would have preferred to go with the girl, but he had a feeling he was going to be needed in their upstairs apartment to help clean up the mess and explain things to Dr. Ziggurat. His absence would not go unnoticed.
As the elevator door closed, Anastasia looked at Zeo with wide, terrified blue eyes. There was no denying she was pretty, but Zeo got the feeling none of them would ever be seeing her again.