A/N: Alright, here's the next chapter! I really hope you all enjoy it and review! :)
Chapter Sixteen
There's Nothing Better in the World Than Being Loved
Not For How You Look, But For Who You Are.
"C'mon, big guy, time to get up," someone said softly, gently shaking him awake.
"Huh...?" Moaned the one being shaken, as one eye slowly fluttered open. When it recognized the face of the perpetrator, he realized where he was. "Oh... right..."
"Awake yet? The kids are eager to get started tearing open their gifts, and their parents won't allow it until you're down there."
"Just me?" Arceus asked, confused at this as he stood up and stretched, following Aromi out of the room and to the stairs.
"Yeah, since you're the last one to wake up," Aromi explained. "I'm sure you usually sleep in, but you're with us today so you'll have to deal with it."
Arceus nodded understandingly, and smiled when, upon their arrival, the younger children were allowed to tear open their presents without pause. As per usual, pretty much everyone got themselves a hand-knitted sweater made by Mrs. Weasley. Aromi wondered silently what his family thought of what he'd gotten them, although he knew what the Pokémon on his team would like and hence the reason he got them.
He grinned his slightly-evil grin when Kyashii opened her second present – the first was from Lucario, her mate and it was a simple jewel she really liked. Either way, upon opening the second present, her face flushed furiously. Before Lucario could take a look, his trainer shoved an equally-sized box into his paws, indicating he should open it. Nozawa ignored Ron's cry of protest, as his grin grew when the fighting/steel-type's present was opened and the Pokémon's face flushed. Even so, the two of them smiled at it and to their trainer.
"Aromi... thanks," Kyashii said, smiling happily.
"Put them on and show everyone," Nozawa suggested.
The two, both blushing, turned to each other. Then, Lucario took his out of the box, and gently placed it around Kyashii's neck, before allowing his mate to do the same to him. Then, they revealed what their trainer had gotten them – two very special, nigh-on-impossible-to-damage charms that contained a beautiful picture of the one they loved. Lucario had received the charm containing his picture, and a little "anonymous" note saying to give it to his target of affection, and the same went for Kyashii.
"Hey you two, there's one more thing," Nozawa winked, looking at the ceiling.
Everyone followed his gaze and some of the girls immediantly sighed. Sitting right above their heads was a mistletoe – and so there was also one above the heads of Sara and Rikku. All four Pokémon gave him varying kinds of looks, before the two couples gave their love a quick, affectionate kiss. Arceus, sitting by the one who invited him, was curious.
"How long ago did you plan that?" Arceus asked, whispering.
"I set up the mistletoe just a moment ago with a charm and the necklaces I bought weeks ago," Nozawa whispered back, before speaking louder. "There's more to those necklaces than meets the eye; they have a tracking charm. If you ever get lost, simply ask it to locate the one you're looking for – and it will point you to them."
The two that were currently wearing these charms smiled at this, nodding gratefully, as the blush persisted on their cheeks. After forgiving his professor for cutting ahead in line, Ron opened his own gift. Soon enough, the line went around to Arceus.
"You can go on, I didn't get anything," He said, shrugging at this. He was used to it at this point, so it didn't matter to him.
"Nuh-uh," Nozawa countered, pointing to a large box with the powerful Pokémon's name on it. "You've got one right here."
Arceus blinked, and when he saw the name on it, he failed to hide his surprise. Then, using his abilities, he opened it quickly, and was slightly confused at what he saw. It was a large clock, with many different pictures and hands on it. It certainly didn't look like a regular clock.
"What... what is it?" Arceus asked the trainer who'd invited him, surprised he'd gotten this item so quickly.
"What, you thought I went out during the night to get this?" Nozawa said. "I asked Algida some time ago what you'd be doing for the holidays and finding out you'd be alone... I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't leave you to go through Christmas alone; so I bought this ahead of time. I got the idea from Fred, when I asked how his mom seemed to always know where he was.
"This is a special clock, Arceus," The young man continued. "It shows you the whereabouts and status of each and every legendary Pokémon in existence. I asked Algida for help coming up with the hands and stuff, that's how I knew how many to have placed. Sure, some of the words were changed to be the names of the regions, but it still works the same."
Arceus was, for the first time in a long time, left speechless. This clock was huge. Several charms had shrunk it down and made it lighter, but surely the normal size was enormous to fit so many creatures on it. Before he knew it, the alpha had tears welling up in his eyes as he watched the hands hold steady and the moving pictures look about, giving extremely quiet versions of their roars.
"Nozawa... thank you," Arceus said quietly. This was one gift he would truly treasure for ages to come.
As the morning wore on, it soon proved to those who only barely knew the older trainer how well he knew his team. He had gotten for Algida a necklace with a charm of Palkia on it. Despite how much she verbally denied it, Aromi knew better; he could tell how much she cared for the spacial deity. For Sara and Rikku, he had gotten charms showing each other, and for Espeon, he'd gotten her a charm with an empty picture holder.
"Why's it empty?" Espeon asked, confused.
"As soon as you find the one you love and confess it to them, the picture will appear there," Aromi explained, making the psychic-type smile and thank him.
"Wow, professor," Hermione said, at last unable to hold back. "I had no idea you were so good at finding just the right gifts for people. At first I thought it was lame with how few you'd bought, but..."
"Well, it may look like it was easy, but it sure wasn't!" Aromi said with a chuckle. "Arceus was the toughest, because I don't know him very well at all. That's why his gift is from both me and Algida – I needed her help fixing it up. The rest were a bit easier because of how well I know these guys; when you know someone as well as I know them, it's not that hard to get them a gift that you know they'll treasure for a long time."
"Aromi..." Kyashii began, smiling softly. She was purring and blushing from how Lucario was sitting so close to her, but of course, he was blushing from this as well. "You've really outdone yourself this time... really."
Aromi shrugged, saying it was the least he could do for his family. It was then that Harry realized something – the older trainer had yet to open anything.
"Professor, you haven't opened a present yet," Harry commented. Aromi shrugged again, the rest of the people in the room just now realizing it as well, even though they had all opened their entire stacks.
"I don't mind," Aromi admitted. "I'm more interested in the reactions from what I give rather than what I get. I can't explain to any of you how important it is to me to see someone enjoy the gift they receive."
"We understand how you feel," Espeon said, stepping forward as she pushed a modestly size box towards her trainer. The faintest of blushes was on her cheeks. "That's why the team asked the Headmaster to help us get this."
Nozawa blinked. He carefully picked up the box and opened it, and gasped slightly at the inside. It was a charmed necklace. Pulling it out to look carefully he noticed how it had six different little Pokéballs hanging off the chain, all of which holding moving pictures of the team. Underneath the photos were words, in a manner similar to Arceus' clock.
"This way, if we ever get seperated by accident or something," Espeon explained. "You'll always be able to keep track of us. It's also got a charm so that if you need to find someone, you simply ask it to find them."
The young man was silent as he stared at the gift for a few moments. The psychic-type watched as he put it down, worried he didn't like it – but then she was surprised when she found herself in a powerful hug and a 'thank you' was whispered into her ear. After a couple of moments, the hug ended, and soon enough, after a couple more touching gifts from team to trainer – like a little photo of them all posing in front of the Hall of Fame, or a basket of Gracidea flowers – the group of people prepared for brunch, having, by popular vote, skipped breakfast in favor of opening presents. As Aromi was about to head into the dining room, Arceus stopped him.
"Aromi..." Arceus began, unsure of where to begin. "I... when you invited me, I was kind of surprised... I never thought you'd have thought far ahead enough to get me something... and..."
"Don't, Arceus," Aromi said with a smile. "Don't worry about it. I did it because you're a part of our family. Algida considers you family, which by extension, makes you my family as well. There's really no other reason."
Arceus nodded at this, kind of surprised at this. Then, after the human-suddenly-turned-friend had entered the dining hall, the alpha Pokémon smiled to himself.
Who do I turn to when things are broken?
Where do I go when I'm feeling alone?
Who's always there with arms wide open, it's you.
Yeah, it's you.
"Arceus, I need your help with something," Aromi suddenly said, watching Algida from upstairs. The other Pokémon on his team had gone into hiding, aside from Espeon whom was sleeping on his bed. The temporal deity was just chilling by the stairs.
"What?" Arceus asked, coming upstairs, where he'd been relaxing by the beautiful tree. When the trainer motioned for them both to be quiet, the legendary Pokémon became slightly confused – especially when he held out a small box. "What is that?"
"It's a present," Aromi explained. "From Algida to Palkia."
"Wha—are you crazy?" Arceus hissed. "Do you have any idea how much they hate each other?"
"Ha! 'Hate each other', my foot. The necklace Algida's now wearing? Got a picture of Palkia in it. You saw how much she blushed from that. You know as well as I do that beneath all that bullcrap, they love each other."
Arceus sighed quietly, nodding. He knew it all too well. It was the same between Kyogre and Groudon.
"Why are we talking about this?" Arceus asked. He blinked when Aromi held out a mistletoe on a string.
"I'm going to tie this to the stair railing above Algida's head," Aromi began, before quickly explaining his plan. Arceus grinned at this – not only was it the perfect revenge, it would be nigh-on-perfect to get the two of them together at last.
Where do I hide when it's dark and stormy?
Where do I run to when it's all too much?
Who gives me hope when I wake each morning, it's you.
Yeah, it's you.
Huh...? Algida wondered silently, waking up as the air shifted in front of her. Why is there a portal opening up right in... front... of... No. It can't be!
It was. Palkia's portal had opened up right in front of her. He would be here in seconds – there was no time to hide the necklace! Her heart began to beat at a mile a second, as the spacial deity stepped out of the portal and closed the opening. When he spotted Algida, he scoffed.
"So you're the one that called me here?" He said, his voice monotone.
"Huh?" Algida said, tilting her head in confusion. She then felt something slide off her head and then slide off her foot where it had first landed. Looking down, they both spotted a little box with what looked to be her telekinesis-made writing.
"What...?" Palkia asked, confused as he picked it up gently. He opened it before Algida could stop him; her heart, if possible, began to beat even faster. It froze when the spacial deity's breath hitched and a small blush appeared. "D-Dialga...?"
He showed her what he'd gotten, and swiftly realizing the perpetrator, Algida snapped her head up to glare the target to death – but froze at what she saw instead. Trying to see what she was looking at, Palkia followed her gaze, and also froze in place. Directly above their heads was a mistletoe. They both quickly found their gazes locked to the floor, but knew that with that thing above them, they could either do as tradition demanded, or probably suffer the wrath of whoever put it there. In other words, Murphy's Law.
Algida, feeling as though her heart was beating faster than should've been legal, looked up and found Palkia soon doing the same. Before he could do anything, he found the temporal deity's blushing countenance only millimeters from his before being on the receiving end of one very nice kiss. They pulled apart shortly enough, having finally cut through the falsehood that was their hatred for each other. A quiet clapping got their attention, and they looked to see Aromi at the base of the stairs, both he and his partner-in-crime, Arceus, smiling. The death glares they received merely made them laugh as the two dispersed to hang out for the day.
"Well, uhh..." Algida began, turning back to Palkia. "Merry Christmas."
"...Merry Christmas," Palkia returned, smiling slightly, before placing the necklace around his neck.
"That necklace... it's charmed," Algida said. "My trainer made one for both of us... if we ever want to find each other, we just as for the necklace to point us in the right direction."
Palkia nodded, smiling at this, before gently leaning forward and kissing the target of his affection a lot more deeply than before. Once he pulled away, he heard words he never thought he'd hear.
"P-Palkia... c-can we, err... g-go someplace p-private...?" Algida asked nervously, afraid of rejection once again.
"I-If you want..."
Within moments, both of the legendary Pokémon had vanished into a portal, off to have spend some quality time together. Aromi was sitting by Espeon, smiling as she purred from being petted the way she was. Aromi told her what he and his partner-in-crime had done.
"Hmm, and how long ago did you plan that?" Espeon asked, curious.
"I got Arceus to help me set it up only a few minutes ago," Aromi shrugged.
"Nice," Espeon complimented.
Aromi grinned and before Espeon could move, she suffered a quick, five-second noogie.
"Ack!" Espeon exclaimed, pulling away. A glare that only got her an evil grin, and then she took a few moments to clean her messy fur. "Jerk."
"Brat," Aromi countered all too easily.
In an instant, however, Espeon forgave her trainer – because at that moment, he'd begun petting her. Purring happily, she came over and quickly curled up in his lap.
"Quick to forgive, I see," Aromi chuckled.
"Yeah, well, you really know how to pull my strings," Espeon explained.
Then she blushed, realizing the secondary meaning in those words. Thankfully, her trainer didn't say a word. She silently cursed to herself, realizing how perfect this moment was. Shutting her eyes tightly, she tried to force up the courage to say it.
"A-Aromi... there's..." She began to say, looking to the floor, hoping to find some courage there.
"I know," Aromi interrupted gently.
Espeon's head snapped up so fast, one would think her neck would snap. Oh if only she knew how long he'd known. Either way, however, they both failed to notice as the psychic-type's necklace finally filled in with a picture on its own.
You were there for me in my darkest days,
You cared for me when I've lost my way.
My guiding light, you always pull me through,
I believe in you.
Yeah yeah.
Arceus was looking at the clock the trainer had given him. He watched as the pictures of Dialga and Palkia were still in that one spot labeled 'Home' and had been there for quite some time. Oh, how he would treasure this gift for many years to come. He looked over to the spot on the couch he was laying down by, and spotted a boy with messy black hair.
"Harry, right?" Arceus asked, getting a nod.
"Yeah," Harry said. "You're really liking that clock."
"Well..." Arceus began, looking at the device as one hand, Giratina's, shifted from Distortion World to Sinnoh. "Yeah. My family's always getting into trouble. I keep telling them to not look for it, but it always find them."
"Kinda like Harry," Absol cut in at that moment. Harry looked pseudo-insulted, and the dark-type smirked. "I swear, I should put a tracking collar on you."
"I'd put one on if you did the same," Harry said, smirking at Absol's affronted look.
Arceus chuckled. It reminded him of how his own family interacted. Out of nowhere, one evil grin came upon his countenace. The clock noted how Groudon's image had moved from 'Home' to 'Battle'.
"Harry, I need your help with something," Arceus said quickly.
"Huh?" Harry asked, surprised.
"You know those necklace charms Aromi bought? Can you get a couple?"
"Uhhh... how soon?"
"Like, really quickly."
Soon enough, Harry had retrieved Hermione, whom helped to create the necklaces using the charms and spells she knew so well. Then, with that evil grin still plastered on his face, he noticed as Rayquaza's image began to move from 'Home' to 'Battle' as well. Arceus told the two teens thanks, before he vanished in a portal – and returned very quickly.
"What'd you do?" Harry asked, confused. Arceus's grin widened, as he opted to open a little viewing window for them.
When I stumble and fall, you take my hand.
When I don't have a clue, you know what to do.
When nothing makes sense, you help me to understand.
It's true.
They watched as Rayquaza, with his own dark smirk, appeared at the battle raging between Groudon and Kyogre, and with an immense roar, got them to stop. Then, he spoke.
"You know, Kyogre," Rayquaza said, handing Groudon a small box. "If you really wanted to get this out, you could've just said something instead of asking Arceus to ask me to deliver this."
Kyogre's face was, at first, that of confusion – before realization crossed her face and it changed to that of horror. Her expression confused Groudon, before he gingerly opened the box, and was surprised by what he found inside. Before he said anything, however, the sky deity cut in.
"Of course, Groudon's just as bad," Rayquaza shrugged, handing Kyogre the other box.
Groudon's face showed his absolute horror as well. Of course, they looked at each other with shock and surprise upon finding what was inside the boxes. It went from 'bad' to 'worse' as Rayquaza spoke once more.
"Hey, how come you two are fighting right here?" Rayquaza asked, almost evilly.
Oh how that prank-loving legendary was loving this. The two confused Pokémon looked up, and froze at what was there. Right above their heads was a little outcropping from one of their attacks, and hanging down from it, was a beautiful mistletoe.
It seems like forever, it's been you and me.
I know who we really are.
Sometimes I wonder, where would I be without you.
Arceus was grinning quite a bit, as Harry, Hermione, and their Pokémon were struggling to hold back their laughter as the sent went on. The view closed moments later, and they all let out what they'd held in. The two teens complimented the legendary in front of them on his on-the-spot quick thinking. Aromi, with Espeon in his arms and purring very happily, was confused as he came down the stairs.
"What happened?" He asked, curiosity overwhelming him. He and Espeon laughed at the answer. "So, Arceus... when are you heading back?"
"Probably tomorrow," The alpha Pokémon answered, smiling at how happily the little psychic-type was.
Aromi nodded at this. He was going back to Hogwarts tomorrow, as well; he had some things to prepare for the second half of the school year. If only they all knew what kind of chaos would be going on during that time...
Credits: Quote is courtesy of me. Song lyrics from "I Believe In You", closing credits song from "Zoroark: Master of Illusions".
A/N: I really am grateful that you all have kept up with this story, but I'm even more grateful when you review, so please do so! ^_^