A few weeks had passed since the news that Danica was carrying twins. It was now only a few days before the big gender reveal party. All the appointments with Nurse Joy had gone well and the twins were growing healthy and right on schedule, much to Danica and Blaziken's delight. While Blaziken was on set shooting a solo scene, Danica was taking her lunch break to go to the store to look for cribs. She was browsing through the selection when she felt someone tap her shoulder.

"Excuse me?" a voice asked her.

"Huh?" she asked as she turned around. Her eyes widened when she saw a woman in a business suit and a man in a t-shirt and jeans behind her. The woman was holding a microphone as the man held a large TV camera on his shoulder, pointing it directly at Danica.

"Hi! I'm from the TV News and I was hoping to ask you some questions about your upcoming movie! And of course the news about your big pregnancy!" she exclaimed. Her cameraman started recording and several other people began to notice the commotion and a crowd began to form around Danica. People began snapping pictures of Danica over and over again.

"Ack!" Danica yelped, rubbing her eyes from the multitude of flashes. "Stop that! I won't answer any questions about the movie! Much less about my pregnancy!"

"Just a few questions!" the reporter insisted. More people began to notice all the commotion and ran over, the crowd soon becoming a full mob of paparazzi and surrounding her with flashing cameras and people bombarding her with questions.

"Ah!" Danica gasped. She tried again to shield her eyes and started to run towards the door, trying to escape. She managed to find her way to the door and out of the store, but the crowd quickly followed her out. Danica gasped when she saw them hot on her tail and got right back to running from them as quickly as she could. But even with her headstart, the crowd was gaining on her. And it certainly didn't help that she was carrying two good-sized babies inside her. As she ran, Danica pulled out her cell phone, dialing the movie set as fast as she could. "Come on...pick up...!" Blaziken had actually just walked into their trailer as the phone started ringing. Recognizing Danica's number, he picks up the phone with a smile.

"Hey, honey. Find anything good?" he asked.

"Blaziken! I need help!" she yelled.

"What?! What's wrong?! Are you ok?! Is something wrong with the babies?!" he asked in a near panic.

"No! I'm being chasing by the paparazzi! I need your help!" she explained.

"I'm on my way! Where are you?!" he demanded.

"I'm going down Main Street! But I don't know how long I can stay ahead of them!" she informed him.

"Heading towards the house! I'll meet you on the way!"

"Okay!" she nodded. Blaziken immediately dropped the phone and ran outside the trailer. A look of pure rage and determination was in his eyes as he used the fastest Quick Attack he'd ever done in his life and ran right into town, heading right for his mate. Within a matter of seconds, he could see the mob of people following her and had nearly caught up with her. Seeing that, Blaziken summoned another burst of speed and only stopped when he was between the crowd and her. He glared daggers at the crowd who skid to a stop, recognizing the anger from him almost immediately. Danica stopped running and watched in shock, never having seen him so angry before.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" he yelled. To emphasize his point, he slammed his foot down on the ground, launching a major Earthquake attack and shaking up the entire crowd. Several people screamed in fear as others lost their footing and fell over. Danica watched in awe until Blaziken scooped her up bridal style. "Hold on tight!"

"R-Right!" Danica nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck. Blaziken used Quick Attack again and ran off, leaving the crowd in the dust while they were still shaken up from his attack. Danica held onto him tightly as he ran. He ran back inside their home and locked the door behind them. "Oh man...that was horrifying..." Blaziken gently set her down on the couch and knelt down beside her.

"Are you ok? Were you hurt?" he asked carefully.

"I'm fine…thanks to you…I…I've never seen you act like that…" she admitted.

"No one hurts my family. Not our babies, not you. And if that's what takes to protect you, so be it." He assured her, earning him a blush from her.

"Wow…"

"I love you, Danica. Always."

"I love you too Blaziken." The two shared a small smile and a tender kiss, just enjoying each other's company for a few moments and allowing the adrenaline of the chase to wear off. After a moment, Blaziken finally sat beside Danica, allowing her to lean into his side and him to put his arm around her.

"What did they want anyway?"

"Basically the same thing they always are. All wanting me to spill my guts about the movie and the babies while taking pictures of me every two seconds…" she explained.

"Mandibuzz…" Blaziken muttered, likening the people to the Bone Vulture Pokémon.

"Yeah..."

"Honey I'm so sorry..." he apologized.

"It's not your fault…it's alright..." she replied.

"No, it's not... it's not alright at all…this is the 3rd time in two weeks...and one of these times you're going to get hurt..." he countered. Danica looked down quietly. She knew he was right, but she had never been one to pose a conflict. And she knew her fans meant well, even if they often went way too far. "I won't let that happen...this has to stop."

"They've never tried to hurt me..." she reminded him.

"Most won't I agree. But it's only a matter of time before someone crosses that line. Whether by accident or on purpose, it doesn't matter. Our gender reveal party is in a few days. I don't want it crashed by paparazzi."

"Right..." Danica sighed. Blaziken hugged her gently and Danica reciprocated quietly. The two stayed quietly in that position for a few moments, until Blaziken planted a kiss on her head.

"I love you..." he whispered.

"I love you too..." she responded. Blaziken lifted her chin with his talon and gently kissed her again. And just as before, Danica kissed him back. As they kissed, she took his talons and placed them on her stomach. Not breaking the lip lock, Blaziken gently stroked her tiny baby bump in an attempt to comfort both her and the babies somehow. Danica moaned softly in response before both slowly pulled away for air.

"You mean the world to me..." he told her.

"You mean everything to me..." she replied. A few more days passed without any incidents, so the couple had some time to get ready for the party. By that afternoon, everything had been set up and everyone had arrived, enjoying the long overdue family reunion.

"Hi, honey. Everything looks great." Caitlin said, waving her daughter over. Danica smiled and walked over.

"Hi Mom, Dad. Thanks so much for coming." Danica smiled.

"Oh sweetie we wouldn't miss this for the world." Andy assured her.

"How are you feeling? Any nausea?" Caitlin added.

"I'm alright right now. Honestly, I'm too excited to think about much else right now." Danica giggled.

"I can certainly understand that." Andy responded.

"Of course. Finding out your babies' genders is a big deal." Caitlin nodded. Danica giggled again as Darkrai floated over to them.

"Hey, Gramps." Andy chuckled.

"Hi, Great Grandpa!" Danica smiled, giving him a hug.

"It's wonderful to see you looking so well, Danica." Darkrai replied, returning the hug.

"I just wanted to thank you before we got started with the reveal." She explained.

"Thank me? Whatever for my dear?" he asked in confusion.

"For what we talked about a few months ago. Had you not been there that night, I might've given up on having kids. I might not ever have had the chance to be a mother. So I wanted to make sure you knew how much that meant to me." She explained.

"I see. Well then, I'm glad I could help. And I'm glad you had the chance to have a family of your own." Darkrai replied, giving a small smile. Danica smiled back when Blaziken came outside and carried a pokéball piñata outside. He hung it up over a low hanging tree branch and adjusted it to the right height. Just as he was about to let Danica know everything was ready, he noticed Linoone flirting with Bellossom over near the snack table, getting dangerously close to knocking over a punch bowl.

"Guys be careful!" he called, running over and moving the bowl to a less precarious place on the table.

"Sorry man." Linoone chuckled.

"What are you two doing anyway?" Blaziken asked.

"N-Nothing!" Bellossom blurted out, blushing hard.

"Right. Nothing at all." Linoone winked.

"Got it. Message received." Blaziken said, rolling his eyes. He looked over to Trropius with a pleading look. "Can you please keep an eye on them so they don't do something…inappropriate during the party?"

"Sure thing." He nodded.

"Thank you." Blaziken sighed in relief.

"Um…Blaziken…?" a voice spoke up from behind him. He turned around and his eyes widen when he saw Gardevoir behind him.

"Oh…Gardevoir…hi…" he replied, unsure of what to say to her after having not spoken to her for so many years.

"I…I wanted to say…I'm sorry…" she said quietly.

"A-Apologize…?" Blaziken asked.

"Yeah…no matter how much I was hurting…I shouldn't have skipped your wedding…or stopped talking to you for years…" she sighed.

"I never wanted to hurt you Gardevoir…"

"I know…I just got so caught up in…well you…when we first met I thought that we'd make the perfect couple…you were so handsome…and you were so kind…I thought if we could just be together…I'd never have to be alone again…I guess I just forgot that you don't need to be in a relationship to be ok…and that you never were obligated to return my feelings…" she explained.

"I see…" he nodded.

"I hope…we can be friends again…?" she asked timidly.

"Of course we can." Blaziken smiled softly. "And we'd love it if you'd stay for the party."

"I wouldn't miss it." She replied, finally giving him a small smile. Blaziken smiled back before turning to the rest of the crowd over by the piñata.

"Alright, everyone. Blue confetti if they're boys, pink confetti for girls. Who should bash it open?" he asked.

"Hold it steady for me and I'll break it open!" Danica giggled.

"You got it." Blaziken smiled as he handed her the bat. Danica smiled back as she took the bat and Caitlin placed a blindfold over her eyes.

"Go for it, honey." Caitlin said. Danica nodded and with a little guidance from Blaziken, she walked over to the tree and took a big swing with the bat. With near pinpoint accuracy, she hit the piñata with the bat and it explodes open. Both pink and blue confetti poured out all over the lawn, causing everyone to cheer excitedly.

"I'm having both!" Danica screamed excitedly. Blaziken smiled and hugged her happily, spinning her around in the air and making her laugh.

"I'm so happy!" he exclaimed.

"Me too!" she giggled. Blaziken hugged her tighter as their friends and family surrounded them excitedly, causing Danica to smile even more.

"This is so perfect!" Andy grinned.

"It sure is!" Caitlin cheered.

"Congratulations." Darkrai nodded.

"Congrats man!" Linoone pipes up.

"That's wonderful." Gardevoir agreed. Blaziken hugged his mate again when Danica all of a sudden noticed a flash of light out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh great..." she groaned.

"What's wrong?" Blaziken asked in confusion.

"Paparazzi..." Danica whispered, nodding her head towards the fence. Blaziken followed her gaze and spotted the reporter just as he ran off.

"I'm on it." He assured her. He put her back down on the ground and ran after the reporter with Quick Attack, catching up in seconds and cutting him off. The reporter accidentally ran right into Blaziken's tall legs, stopping him cold and making him fall onto the ground. The young man looked up at Blaziken in fear as Danica caught up with them and watched. Blaziken grabbed the camera from him and then punched it with Thunderpunch.

"P-Please don't hurt me!" the man begged.

"I'm not going to. But I'm going to tell you something that I want you to pass along to every reporter you know. I want all of you to leave our family alone. Danica loves her fans and wants everyone to enjoy her work. But coming after her like earlier this week and now taking pictures at our private events is inexcusable! She is still a person and needs her space! So you all will leave her alone! Or you'll answer to me! Is that clear?!"

"Y-Yes!" he stammered.

"Now get out of here." Blaziken ordered. The frightened man ran off as fast as he could as Danica smiled a little. Blaziken walked back to her and walked her back to the party.

"Took care of it?" she asked.

"Yup." He nodded.

"Good." She smiled. Blaziken kissed her head and they smiled at each other as they returned to their party guests. A few more months passed and Danica's stomach continued to grow. As they followed Nurse Joy's instructions carefully and to the letter, their little ones grew bigger and bigger. And as thrilled as she was that the babies were ok, her now massive stomach was not very comfortable. She had even had to go on hiatus from work because it was getting too hard to hide her stomach in the shots. One quiet afternoon, she was finally semi-comfortable as she laid on the couch, letting out soft groans as she tried to get more comfortable. Blaziken walked into the room and noticed her struggle and gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Hold on honey. I'm coming." Blaziken assured her. He sat beside her and began to massage the knots in her neck. Danica smiled a little at him as she relaxed a little.

"Thanks…."

"You're doing great. Just one more month. Then they'll be here with us." He assured her.

"Right...just wish there was a position that was comfortable…" she sighed. Blaziken chuckled and kissed her cheek.

"Speaking of our little ones, have you thought of any names?" he questioned. Danica managed to give a small and coy smile.

"I sure did." She nodded.

"Oh? Tell me." He insisted.

"Not a chance. It's a surprise." She replied, shaking her head.

"Oh come on now. Why keep it a secret from me?" he laughed.

"Because I want it to be a surprise for everyone. I think it'll make it more fun." She giggled.

"Heh. Alright. I guess I can live with that." He chuckled. He gently stroked her baby bump, letting her give out a happy sigh. Blaziken cradled her in his arms and she snuggled up to him in response. "Need anything?"

"I'm good." She replied. "For now." Blaziken held her close and the two just enjoyed each other's company for a while, being with Blaziken somehow always made her feel better. That was until she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and screamed loudly, startling Blaziken.

"Danica?!" he gasped, looking at her in panic. Danica held her stomach in pain and grit her teeth so hard she couldn't respond. "What's wrong?!"

"I-I don't know...!" she cried, trying to stifle another scream. Blaziken felt his instincts take over as he picked her up bridal style.

"We're getting you to the hospital!" he informed her. He used Quick Attack and headed to the hospital as fast as he could go.

To be Continued...