Part CLIV: The Belles of the Ball
"Alright so we have a fair few pairings checking in at the same time so one sec while I make sure I've got who's with who." The assistant at the reception desk in the vast, marble floored, ornate entrance hall said as they reached it. "I want to make sure that I'm right. The performers, or at least girls who've appeared in a Showcase and thus have a performer card, are Serena, Miette, Shauna, May, Misty, Bonnie, and Lyra do I have that correct?"
"Yes." Serena said speaking for them as they all gathered at the table having come straight here upon entrance while Brock and Lucy went off somewhere else as they were getting ready and entering separately apparently. "All the girls here have done at least one Showcase in the last two years."
"Got it." The assistant said with a nod. "And with them, in the order I just said, are Tierno, Owen, Trevor, Clemont, Ash, Max and Khoury, right?"
"Again correct." Serena said smiling at the skilled assistant who was patiently and efficiently doing her job.
"Ok you are all sorted." The assistant said as she checked off names and noted the dates before handing out a series of cards, one per person, to each of them. "Please take these and keep them on your person, you will need them later."
"Of course." Serena said knowing exactly what they were as she, and Miette had both had the luck of the draw the year prior. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." The assistant said with a smile before gesturing to the side. "Please go and select your outfits for tonight and when you're ready head to the ballroom but make sure that you are there before the start of the event, you don't want to miss that."
Serena just nodded and led the rest of them away from the table and to the room that housed all the rental outfits. Once there the girls all marveled and gushed over the dresses, even the ones who weren't as into them as the others like Lyra and May, while the boys just looked around completely confused. The room was almost entirely dresses of different colors and styles.
"Um where are our options?" Ash asked as the girls began to look around at all the dresses and eying up which ones they wanted to try on though they would have to coordinate as a group first so that none of them were matching. "All I can see are dresses here."
"While I know you look good in one Ash does have a point." Misty said causing a few raised eyebrows that weren't getting answers just yet as there were more important things to deal with then the story of Ash in a maid outfit during one of their side adventures in Sinnoh. "Where are the guys' options? Serena, this is your show so tell us where."
"Well, the guys actually only have one style, one of the perks or disadvantages of being male I guess is the limited creativity with formal wear at these thing." Serena said pointing to a small section in the corner. "It's just a matter of colors for the guys."
"Well, this is for the performers who are all female so that makes sense." Max said adjusting his glasses. "And we don't mind the same style, makes for some sense of uniformity other than the colors."
"Wear blue Ash." Misty said as he looked over. "I will probably go with it as well or pink as they're my colors and we haven't decided which of us gets what color, but I want you in blue. It looks best on you."
"Can't argue there." May said as Miette and Serena nodded in agreement at that. "It is Ash's best color."
"Alright, come on guys let's go." Ash said and the other men present all nodded before heading over to the male section other than Owen who seemed to be on pack horse duty for Miette until she found her dress but was told to stay back while the girls decided who wore what color. "This shouldn't take long for us."
"Ladies, we should at least make sure none of us are in the same color and preferably not the same dress style." Serena said to which they all nodded, that would be a fashion faux pa for sure. "So, I suggest we all go with what is best for us and, um, maybe a sense of priority based on our interactions with this seen. Misty, while you are one of the up-and-coming performers you are still a Top Coordinator making Contests your thing so I'm sorry, but you'll have to go with pink not blue tonight. Miette's going to go with it, and it does look really good on her while I know you look great in pink."
"I understand and will go for it but a lighter shade than my usual preference as this is a more formal event and hot pink isn't the best shade of pink for such an event." Misty said willing to give Miette blue as she was the performer here. "What about everyone else? I know that both Serena and May look great in red."
"Serena is the performer, so this is for her more than me." May said. "I will let her choose. That said we all know that Lucy is a guest of honor as a personal invitee of Aria so I think it would be best if we all avoid purple, especially dark purple, as that woman rocks that color like no one else."
"Thank you May, I think I'll go with red if that's ok." Serena said while the rest all nodded at the Lucy assessment. "It looks great on me and is my favorite after all."
"That it does." Misty agreed. "Ok May, what about you?"
"Orange like my top when I was in Johto, I went with pink last year to match my Kalos top only a bit lighter, so I want to mix it up with something new and I'll admit that I can't pull off pink like Misty can." May said before looking at Bonnie as orange was the girl's color the year before, or one of them at least. "Bonnie can you look for something more yellow this year, it looks great on you, and you did do that cute orange and yellow number last year."
"Of course, though I'm going for the same style." Bonnie said. "I really like the young, pretty, princess look."
"I'm going with green because of my Ivysaur." Shauna said surprising no one. "And I look good in it."
"That you do, I tried green for the Coumarine Contest and while it looked nice it just wasn't me." Serena said to which Miette nodded in agreement. "I'm more of a vibrant red or mix of white and light pink girl."
"That just leaves Lyra." Misty said looking to her friend and realizing that she wasn't sure what the girl's formal color would be given her lack of girly attire and mix of red, white, and blue with a hint of black clothes. "What color are you going to go for?"
"Silver." Lyra said already seeing the dress she wanted as it had caught her eye right from the start. "It was that or gold and with yellow and orange already called I'll go with silver, it's one of my favorite colors and I can accent it with gold if I want."
"Alright then let's get ready ladies." Serena said clapping her hands. "This is going to take a fair bit of time so we should get a move on right away."
She wasn't wrong as it took a good 3 hours for all the girls to find the right dresses in the styles they liked in their sizes and then sort out the corresponding accessories. Meanwhile the guys didn't need to take too long as they had the same outfit regardless though Owen was the last to get ready due to having to carry all of Miette's considerations until she found the dress she wanted.
All the guys presents were wearing a proper tailcoat of a set color with gold edging in the collar and the edges of the cuffs with a stripe of gold in the middle of the tails. The cuffs themselves were the same color as the waistcoats they wore with pants that were the same color as their coats only muted in a sense and a shade or two different that came down to their calves. The only thing similar between the jackets was that they had a black center with ornate golden buttons on the right side that didn't actually do up.
To complete it they had on smart black shoes with high white socks tucked into their pants and a colored ascot at their throats that went with their outfits. Lastly they wore white gloves as all the attendees wore gloves though the girls had more variety to match with their chosen dresses. As such it was just a matter of looking at the color schemes.
Ash had listened to Misty and gone royal blue for the coat and red on the cuffs and waistcoat with blueish gray pants. Clemont had stuck with the same as the year before in an off green coat with gold cuffs and greenish pants. Khoury, at Lyra's insistence, had gone with a gold jacket and silver cuffs and amber pants. Tierno had opted for a red jacket with purple cuffs and reddish gray pants. Trevor was in black with white cuffs and dark gray pants. Owen was in light pink with black cuffs and dark pink pants that were. Lastly Max was in a purple jacket with blue cuffs and light gray pants.
To top it all off they all had gone with different ascot colors. Ash had gone with light blue, Clemont with lilac, Tierno with a pale pink, Khoury with an opaque one that looked a bit like crystal, Max had a blood red one, Owen a pinkish purple one, and Trevor had gone with an orange one that clashed horribly with his hair. They all looked good, but they were nothing compared to the girls as each looked beautiful or in Bonnie's case cute as she was a too young for that assessment.
Serena led them out and to the ballroom where the guys all gasped at their appearance and Tierno had hearts in his eyes at his date and it was easy to see why. That was because after some consideration, Serena had gone with the same as the year before and it looked good on her.
She was wearing a bright red, sleeveless dress that was high enough to avoid showing any cleavage while hugging her bosom and waist just right before expanding in a smooth, large but not too large, shirt portion that had an overlap in it bordered with a dark red frill. Under it was a lighter red underskirt that all came down to her ankles. She topped it off with a dark red sash tied in a bow on her hip, a matching choker around her throat, white gloves, and a simple red bow in her hair rather than a headband.
Of course, Serena wasn't the only one looking amazing, the others were just as well done. As with Serene, Miette had opted to repeat the year before, but not after checking out some other options, and knew that she looked good.
Miette was in royal blue dress a shade lighter than her hair with a high bodice that covered her shoulders leaving only the tops of them a little upper chest bare and held there by a green stone in the center. The dress had matching sleeves that came to her elbows before a pale blue ruffle and was slim through the waist before extending like Serena's. However, Miette didn't have a belt of sash or ruffle, just a pair of black lines that came down and expanded with it.
To accessorize, Miette had a pair of light, almost white, blue gloves that came up to her elbows leaving no skin on her arms exposed, and a simple blue headband with a light blue ruffle and blue flare things on the edge. It was a really good look on her and showed off how the performers took this seriously. In that vein Shauna was no less impressive.
The final of the three finalists from the Master Class the year before had kept her hair as was though did have an ornate floral design in it in the left side that looked like a miniature open Venusaur flower. How she'd found it was anyone's guess though as none for the girls had noticed one such accessory lying around when they were sorting out their own outfits.
As for her dress, Shauna had gone for a green full-dress thaw was mostly light green with puffy arms and weird sleeve things after it ended on her biceps, slim through the waist and with less of a flair than the other two. The bodice was a light green with a dark green bow at the center and a strap down the middle that was darker than the main dress but not as dark as the bow.
Shauna had accessorized her look with a simple set of pale pink pearls at her throat and white gloves. Overall, it was certainly a good look for her and really showed off her femininity that normally wasn't as obvious with her usual outfit though it was clear that she was no stranger to wearing dresses.
Of course, even with the performers knowing how to look at a Kalos, Misty couldn't let herself be outdone by them and her contest pedigree from Sinnoh where dressing up was an art form meant that she went all out as well. For her dress Misty had chosen a sleeveless light pink dress with a simple bodice a shade darker and held there by a white rose-like flower design, all done so that her locket could rest on her chest for all to see. The dress itself was narrower than the others, though just as long, with a cut up the left side to show a dark pink, ruffled underskirt.
As for her hair and accessories, Misty had opted for a simple hair down with no frills look but did put a pink ribbon like bow on one side as it was like a Contes Ribbon with elbow length pale pink gloves to tie the whole thing together. They did seem to be a bit much but with the scar on her left forearm Misty felt like it was for the best.
The last of the girls with either Showcase or Contest pedigree was May in her bright orange dress that looked great on her. She'd gone with a similar style to Serena with a sleeveless dress that had no bodice and was high enough to hide even her ample cleavage and slim through the waist before flaring out in a smooth skirt portion with no ruffles or cuts to show the underskirt making it a simple yet elegant orange dress. She completed it with a lighter orange sash at her waist tied in a simple bow on her hip with a blood red stone set into it.
For her accessories, May had opted to keep the choker she wore with her Key Stone in it, orange gloves that matched her outfit and a simple green headband with an orange bow on one side to hold back her short brown hair. It all looked good on her and even though May wasn't usually one to dress up she still liked to do so on special occasions like this and felt good doing so.
Next to May and looking adorable in her dress was Bonnie. While more girly than some of the others Bonnie was like Shauna in that she didn't show it as much in her everyday style though that was also in part due to her age more than anything else. Now, when she had the chance to rent a dress, she did and she'd gone for the same style as the year before, she'd loved that style, only this time in shades of yellow that worked great with her hair and Dedenne in his dark yellow bow tie in her bag rather than yellow and orange like the year before.
Bonnie was in a conservative dress with a dark yellow top part with a high bodice and puffy short sleeves that came down to her biceps leaving her arms to her wrists exposed where she wore simple white gloves. The dress flared out at the hips in a slight ruffled style over the simple skirt part that was a band of sunshine yellow over a band of dark yellow that met the top part before the final strip of sunshine yellow at the hem with a slight ruffle. Unlike the other dresses it wasn't floor length, so Bonnie's red shoes were just visible under it.
She'd finished it with a floral ribbon and the center of her chest and one on the tuft of hair she kept sticking out, something she'd not changed despite Misty's offer to style her hair if she wanted something different, in the same floral color as her Flabébé's flower. It all worked great for her.
The last girl present was Lyra and of all of them she looked the most different in a dress as it was the first time any of them except Khoury had seen her in one. In fairness, the slightly sparkling silver number really worked for her.
The dress itself was a simple, elegant, ballgown style similar to Misty's in the narrow fall of it to the floor without sleeves however there were no cuts in it or ruffles though it was narrow around the waist and accentuated Lyra's bust to fit her form. It also was full to her throat in a halter style to keep it up with an exposed back and a heart shaped cut in the center that made it the only dress present in their group to show off a hint of cleavage. She'd accented it with silver gloves that came up to her elbows and a gold headband with a silver heart on one side.
"Wow, you all look great." Ash said though he was looking at Misty the entire time causing her to blush, as well as May, Serena and Miette though he didn't notice that they were doing so as the girls came up to their dates while Ash began to try and adjust his ascot. "Though these things are a little tight."
"You're just need to get used to it, it's not something you usual wear and it's a formal affectation that seems to be unique to Kalos." Misty said coming up to Ash and taking his arm though only Lyra also did that with Khoury the rest stood with their respective dates for the night. "You look dashing though Ash, really suits you."
"She's not wrong." Miette called out. "Great color choices for you."
"Thanks Miette." Ash said as usual completely oblivious to anything deeper that may be in Miette's words. "I do like blue, so it does suit me."
"I'll admit, I was expecting the Pokémon to be more made up." Max said as his Gardevoir went over to help Dedenne put of Bonnie's bag as he was escorting her for the night. "Their accessories are pretty simple, but it works for them."
The Pokémon weren't dressed up. Rather they either wore a bowtie, most but not all in blue as some like Frogadier had gone with pink to avoid clashing with his skin tone, if they were male and simple silver tiara with a red stone if they were female somewhere on their head with many different sizes available. It all worked well for the Pokémon.
Other than Pikachu, Buneary, Frogadier, Slurpuff, Gardevoir, Dedenne, Piplup and Sylveon, Blaziken, Serena's Delphox, Owen's Obstagoon and Max's Simisear were all out as well with Blaziken escorting Delphox and Obstagoon Simisear. The rest hadn't bothered to let their Pokémon out, but a glance around showed an Inkay with a Gourgeist, a pair of Meowstics other performers had, and several other smaller Pokémon present with their respective trainers as various other pairs were milling around the spacious and richly appointed ballroom.
Their group had gathered at one side by the catered food on tables on the marble floor that edged the fine room as it was the best place for their large group. Then, before they could continue, the lights dimmed and that got their attention as the girls had arrived just before the official start of the party. They all looked around until a set of spotlights appeared and began to move around the room before showing the half landing of the stairs in the back of the room that led up to the balcony. They all looked to it and saw who was waiting on it.
Two pairs with 4 Pokémon behind or around them stood atop the landing looking down on them. One was Pierre holding the hand in the proper escort style of a short but attractive pink haired girl maybe a few years older than most of the girls in attendance so early 20s wearing a stylish and elegant white dress with a pale orange center, high collar and opening at the front showing just a hint of cleavage with elbow length sleeves over a ruffled pale orange underskirt. She wore white gloves just past her wrists and had a tiara with a green center stone in her hair at the point where her high ponytail was.
Behind and to the left of them was a Delphox like Serena's only this one carried herself, and they were presuming it was female by the tiara it wore, with much more experience and poise holding one end of Pierre's Klefki's unraveled loop while the latter had a tiny blue bowtie on under his face thing. It was almost comical given the sizes, but they were all professional in the way they stood there, so no one questioned it.
The way the girl held herself, smiled a genuine and radiant smile as she looked out with her eyes briefly pausing on Serena and twinkling slightly, and overall exuded her confidence had everyone in the room smiling at her mere presence as it lit the whole room up. Though Ash and Misty didn't know who the newcomer was at first they were hearing the whispers and quickly put it together. This was Aria, the Kalos Queen, the top performer in the region, the very best of them and the ideal that all current performers strove to reach.
Just feeling and seeing her presence for herself, Misty finally understood what Serena had meant about Aria's intangible factor that made her so good. It was palpable, and this was without seeing her perform which meant that when she did it was going to be something else.
This was who Serena was chasing to achieve her goal of one day taking the crown of Kalos Queen from Aria. Misty had to admit it was going to be a tough challenge but apparently Serena was considered to have the potential to surpass Aria one day which said something to the honey blonde's own level of skill.
The only person present not fawning over the arrival of the Kalos queen was Jessie, in full Jessilee persona, who was at the food table on the other side of the room, her arms crossed as she glared at the woman who she would defeat for the title of Kalos Queen this year. Jessie had gone with the same style dress as Miette only hers was a standard purple with a lilac underskirt and dark purple center thing and matching lilac gloves, the only time she'd wear them as they were proper for this event.
Next to her and looking as fed up and worn down as always by Jessie's antics, was James, as Jamison, in a brown tailcoat and dark green cuffs with a white ascot, Meowth in a matching attire to pretend to be human next to him. He knew he was in for it, but it was as he looked at the group on the landing that he noticed it. They'd missed it in Jessie's rush to get into the building, register and find the perfect dress but an old twerp was up there with a strange twist to his usual appearance.
That was because Brock, in a bright orange tailcoat with similarly bright green cuffs that looked very garish and a royal purple ascot, stood awkwardly there at the other end while his Croagunk in a black bowtie stood next to him escorting a Seviper in a tiara. Next to Brock, her right arm through his left and thus on Pierre's right, was a smiling Lucy though she did look a little uncomfortable up there. Ash, Misty, May, and Max who all knew Lucy were stunned to see the battle enthusiastic and deadly Pike Queen look so, well, feminine but it was a great look on her.
Lucy was wearing a Kalos style ball gown of dark purple that came up to her throat in her usual halter top style leaving her arms exposed though she wore matching purple gloves that came to past her elbows in the old wrapping style she had used before she started dating Brock and as such her ring wasn't on. The dress hugged her in all the right places and showed off her impressive bust and athletic waist where a black sash tied with a dark purple bow on her hip was. The skirt part flared out like most and had ruffles of black in bands around it. It was all very Lucy despite being more feminine than her usual attire.
As with Aria, she wore a crown of sorts but while Aria had opted for a tiara, Lucy wore a jet-black circlet around her head that didn't connect in the center but was flanked by what looked like fangs with small red rubies just before the top and purple stones set equidistant around it. It was a crown suitable for a woman like Lucy, deadly, not overly feminine, and yet elegant in the same way while paying homage to her style. To complete it Lucy wore black lipstick and eyeline with dark purple eyeshadow to really show off her colors.
Lucy and Aria were the Queens after all, so it made sense for them to wear such crowns, an option no performer had in the accessories available, though few knew that Lucy used that title as most didn't know who she was or why she was here. It was certainly more girly than she usually went for, but Lucy liked it and had even brought the circlet that Scott had once gifted her for her title should she ever need it, for which she was now very grateful as Pierre had asked that she wear a tiara or circlet due to her title.
"Ladies et gentlemen." Pierre said as the lights settled on the group on the landing. "Zank you all for graciously attending my dance party today."
With that he let go of Aria's hand before gesturing to her with his now free hand as she stepped forward the light catching the earrings and necklace that she wore well. Clearly this was all part of the opening of the party.
"Et now for our special guests." Pierre said. "I am 'onored to introduce our Kalos Queen, Aria."
"Nice to see you everyone." Aria said in an upbeat tone that had all the girls smiling and gushing over the pinnacle of what they were all striving for as she looked out and returned the girls smiles with her own smile. "I see many performers new and old here tonight and look forward to meeting you all throughout the course of the evening."
"Et zis year we 'ave an even more special guest as a last-minute addition." Pierre said as Aria stepped back and gesturing to Lucy who stepped forward taking Brock with her as the spotlight fell on them. "One of ze other Queens of ze world who Aria ran into by chance in Snowbelle ze other day et invited to zis. She 'as come 'ere all ze way from Kanto to visit our region, ze Pike Queen of ze Battle Pike on ze Kanto Battle Frontier, Queen Lucy."
"Thank you all for having me tonight, it is truly an honor to be invited here and to share this special moment with all of you in a world that I am not familiar with but look forward to learning more about from the women who call it home." Lucy said in her soft tone smiling at the slightly surprised crowd that was starting to come around to the new arrival. "I will explain more about who I am and what I do to any who wish who I am and what I do but for now please share your culture and traditions with me as I look forward to experiencing them all with you."
With that Pierre took Aria's hand again and stepped forward before the men led the women down the stairs in unison, the spotlight following them as their Pokémon too followed until they were on the carpeted dance floor. Once there the women turned to the men and assumed the traditional starting position with them.
The attendees had formed a semicircle there and as the music began to play they stepped back so that Aria and Lucy could have the first dance of the night with their escorts in a simple Kalos waltz that Misty was now grateful she'd taught to Ash. As this was happening Delphox and Klefki also danced together, a spotlight on all 3, somehow making the dance work despite their size and physiological differences. Only Croagunk and Seviper didn't as the latter couldn't give her physiology.
It was a simple and elegant dance that really suited the formal Kalos style. Brock and Lucy looked amazing and the love between them was clear while the simple professionalism of Pierre and Aria was a good contrast though their height difference was noticeable as Pierre towered over Aria. All the girls but Jessie just gushed over the dance as it went on and Misty's earlier assessment of Aria was drastically increased by the way the woman gracefully danced, smiling all the time in a way that all could feel.
"She's wonderful." Misty whispered her eyes wide. "The way she moves, her poise and presence, it's palpable to behold. If she can battle then I wouldn't doubt she could become a Top Coordinator if she tried her hand at it."
"Words can't describe what Aria is." Serena said. "She's been Kalos Queen for a few years now, one of the best since Palermo herself, and Aria gets better every year. She's in a league of her own for us, I learned that when I faced her and that is what I, we, are all aiming for."
"Aria is our ideal." Miette said smiling at the dance. "She is who we all strive to be."
"I can tell." Misty said as the dance continued, the pairs easily avoiding each other. "And I haven't even seen her perform. That is something I am looking forward to at the Master Class no matter what happens."
The girls quieted down as the dance came to an end with a flourish as Pierre and Aria finished with an elegant joint pose while Brock dipped Lucy before kissing her in front of everyone causing her to go bright red, but she returned the kiss passionately. Even with knowing that they were a couple the surprise of it shocked Ash, May, Misty, and Max as it was still something they didn't expect to see before their own eyes given all the times that Brock had been rejected.
The pairs held their poses for a moment before the lights came back on and the moment ended as the attendees clapped at what they'd just watched. The pairs rose and Brock and Pierre offered small bows while Aria and Lucy curtsied though Aria was clearly better at it than Lucy, and the applause stopped.
"Et now ze dance floor is officially open." Pierre said as the music resumed. "Please 'ave a lovely time."
With that the music began to play a simple Kalos waltz and Misty smiled. Serena had been right, all that training with Ash to ensure that Machamp knew what he had to do for the Anistar Showcase was going to pay off as she walked up to her boyfriend.
"Come on Ash, let's dance." Misty said with a smile taking his hand. "And you will not embarrass yourself thanks to our training."
"Right, I know what to do." Ash said taking Misty's left hand in his right and putting his left on her waist as she placed her right on his upper arm and they began to waltz at a steady pace through the dance floor.
"I know she's not trying to make us jealous or show off but still." Miette said to Serena and May who were with her as Bonnie grabbed Max to drag him out onto the dance floor as she finally got a chance to dance at this while Gardevoir picked up Dedenne for a dance. "I wish I was there with Ash."
"Same." May admitted. "The one time I was at a dance event with Ash he couldn't partake because he was the guest of honor due to winning the battle tournament that day at the palace we were visiting, long story, so he was in a seat the entire time but there is the partner change dance."
"True we should be in position when it happens to ensure we get a dance with him." Serena said. "And thanks to Misty's need to teach Machamp, via Ash, he knows how to dance. I feel like without that it might have been painful for her. I did say she'd get some use out of it and this was what I meant."
"Just painful in a different way but no reason we can't have fun." Miette said as she walked over to her date for the night. "You'd better know how to dance because I will not be made a fool of here."
"Um…" Owen said.
"Right let's go, listen and lead me, and don't step on my dress." Miette said grabbing his hand and dragging him out as they passed Lyra and Khoury who'd been on the dance floor since the start, and no one had noticed.
"Clemont, let's dance." May said causing Clemont to go stiff with nerves but he accepted her hand and let her lead him out, he would at least be better this year than the year before and he was aware of May's crush on Ash, so he knew it was purely platonic. "Good, just relax, you know who I like and can't have so this is just as friends."
"Right, I can do this." Clemont said as he took May's hand and hip and led her in a rigid waltz but not as bad as the year before.
"Serena my beauty, shall we dance." Tierno said as Shauna finally led Trevor out to the dance floor having gotten a quick bite to eat first.
"Of course, Tierno but remember this is a waltz, not one of your usual break dance things." Serena said taking his hand and letting him lead her out happy to have a date that actually knew what he was doing even if she wished it were Ash with her, but she'd get a dance later with him she was sure of it so long as she positioned herself correctly. "Slow and steady."
"Will do." Tierno said as they assumed the position and began to dance.
Ash and Misty were a little more enthusiastic in the dance, showing their love as they waltz through with Ash showing an unusual ability to not mess up, but all that training had really helped. Only two other couples were as fluid, one was Serena and Tierno though that was more due to the latter actually knowing how to properly dance and really enjoying it with his crush that he'd win over one day, the latter was a bit of a surprise to some.
Jessilee, who they hadn't noticed at first, was waltzing through the dance floor with an elegant grace and stunning smile that showed off her mature charms as she practically led her partner, the man who everyone assumed was at least her manager, and given the dance maybe more, across the dance floor. The way they were dancing they were getting as much attention as Ash and Misty were though the moment that Jessilee noticed she got a little too enthusiastic and spun her partner around too much not that see seemed to notice his plight.
At the same time, the Pokémon were all dancing around, some, mainly the bipedal ones, like their trainers while the smaller ones did their own things, Miette's Slurpuff being as enthusiastic as Jessilee with Ash's Frogadier, and Buneary doing her own slow dance with Pikachu while ignoring the actual dance while Piplup had a ball of a time with Sylveon who was just loving the dance in the place she'd evolved and really showing Piplup what she loved to do, platonically of course.
It was a fun, light hearted, and good evening and it was only going to get more fun as the next part of the dancing drew near. Those who were here the year before were ready for it while the newcomers were in for the surprise that was a tradition at these sort of things.
That moment came when the music slowly began to die down before stopping at the end of the waltz song. Misty would have continued dancing, she was in her own world dancing with Ash like this, but he was too observant and stopped the moment the music did. This caused Misty to look around, noting that all three of her rivals were oddly positioned near her and on her left side, before everyone looked to Pierre where he was at the bottom of the stairs.
"Alright, everyone form up into circles." Pierre said. "It is time to change partners."
Ah that explained it to Misty, and she smiled at the boldness of the trio. She was no longer the insecure girl she'd been when she'd started dating Ash and had to deal with her first rival in Dawn who's love rivaled her own and who's jealousy and anger exceeded what a pissed off Gyarados could produce.
Now she was confident in her relationship with Ash, she had faced down 6 rivals, 3 were present right now and 2 traveled with her with every day while a 4th was on her way for a visit during the Wallace Cup and triumphed over all despite the challenges. She was Ash's and he hers, she knew it so if the others wanted a taste of what it was like to dance with him then so be it, they could enjoy it as well.
They did this with the Pokémon forming the circles in the middle, the experienced ones showing the newcomers where to go, while the humans made the outer circle. The men were on the outside, they wouldn't be changing in the dance, while the women were before them with the three in question behind Misty so that they'd be the first 3 up.
Ash was just having a good time, any subtext or feelings other than Misty's were naturally lost on him which added to Misty's feeling of confidence and security right now. As such he didn't notice who was near him, but Misty did and smiled at them as she glanced over her shoulder at the girls.
Naturally, Miette, the most assertive and confident of the 3, had placed herself and her partner for the night, Owen, next to Ash while May had managed to slide in next to her with Clemont. Lastly Serena had done so, her timid nature causing her heart to beat at this chance, and she didn't even notice that Pierre and Aria were behind her as she focused on what was to come during this part of the night.
"Alors, music s'il vous plaît." Pierre said and the next song began to play, and he snapped his fingers. "Et we're off."
The first part of the dance was with the original partners and the performers with experience at this event showed those the others how to do this dance. It would take a few goes but in the end it would become more fluid.
First they stared a bit apart from each other, the men held their partner's right hand in their left in the classic waltz style, with elbows bent. Then they came together quickly before taking a step back at arm's length with only their glove covered palms connected for a second. Then they stepped in again, hands raised high, and the girls spun under them a full rotation. Then, to finish the went into a full waltz hold to spin around before a final ending in the original position with a slight bow before the women moved on in the circle.
Surprisingly, it only took a few goes for it to be perfected as Misty enjoyed the first with Ash before moving onto the next in line with a smile as Miette took her place. Ash just grinned at her and held out his hand which Miette took smiling back at him glad for this moment with her unrequited crush, and they performed the routine, smoother than before as Ash was starting to get used to it, before it ended, and Miette moved on happy to have had her brief dance with Ash and even more envious of Misty. Her feelings for him were definitely getting stronger.
Next up was May who smile warmly at Ash as she took his hand, and they too did the routine. This was the only time she'd get it and she enjoyed it fully as Ash showed he'd really learned to be coordinated with Misty as she spun before the waltz turn and bow. Misty was certainly lucky to have won the race for Ash, May would need a clearing day with Serena soon to calm herself and she knew Serena would need it as well as she was up next.
Ash, in his classic oblivious fashion, just smiled back at Serena and held out his hand as she stepped forward. Of the three she was the most nervous for this as her crush was the longest lasting though probably not the deepest of the unrequited ones present. Still, this was her one good chance to get a dance with Ash and with a little shake in her hand, and because she had to as the circle was moving, she too took Ash's hand and stepped forward with him.
As with the others, Ash was a perfect gentleman, enjoying the dance with his friend and performing it as it was supposed to be performed, completely clueless to the feelings of the blonde he was currently dancing with or her flushed cheeks as they took the waltz position and spun around.
Serena savored every second of this knowing that when she spoke to that Sabrina woman, and at this point she was going to because she needed to speak to someone outside the Ash rival girls circle about her unrequited love, she'd tell her about all this and how she'd felt. Hopefully she'd be able to at least help her find a way to deal with what she was going to and give her an unbiased and objective opinion on the situation.
Alas it was over almost as soon as it had begun, and she bowed to Ash before moving on to the next in line which happened to be Max for the next part still flushed for having danced with Ash just as Max was after dancing with his sister. Ash for his part just held out his hand and didn't realize who'd taken it until an excited and encouraging voice spoke to him.
"Dancing not hard, right Ash." The new girl said, and Ash looked over and for once was surprised as he saw the stunning woman with lots of dark pink hair and red eyes holding his hand, he hadn't realized that she was in the circle or that she knew his name. "In fact, it's easy once you get the hang of it."
"Aria." Ash said amazed as he began the next dance with the Kalos Queen herself, the woman who all the performers present looked up to and he could tell why form her confident poise and simple enjoyment of what was going on. "You know who I am?"
"Of course, I do, I am the Kalos Queen, so I am kept in the loop on all major Pokémon developments." Aria said as they began to dance. "That and I do have an Aromatisse, so I too benefitted from your reveal of fairy types, and I have you to thank for that. Had you and Misty not started the ball rolling on it we might not have discovered the change as quickly as we did. In fact, my own Aromatisse was the second one used to confirm the type change."
"Oh well I didn't do much, more a series of odd instances." Ash said as they came together, and Aria did a spin under his arm. "It all started because of Misty's Togekiss shrugging off a dragon type attack from Dawn's Gyarados."
"True but it was your Porygon2 that sealed it from what I read in Professor Oak's paper confirming the new type's emergence and which Pokémon had change to or added it." Aria said with a smile. "So, thank you for what you did. Now relax and have a good time, I feel like tonight will be one to remember. Last year's was and this year we have someone like you here so anything could happen."
All Ash could do was nod at the woman as the waltz turn thing ended and they bowed before Aria moved on to a startled Max who hadn't expected to be dancing with the Kalos Queen either. Ash was still reeling as he held out his hand a purple gloved one, from a higher angle than expected, took it.
"Try to not be distracted Ash." A familiar, soft, voice said, and Ash turned to start again as he realized Lucy was now dancing with him as the next round began. "I'm not good at this or the most coordinated woman in a dress so you need to be on your game. I saw how you and Misty were, I'll have to ask her for tips as Brock is way better at this than I am, and I want our first dance to be perfect."
"Huh?" Ash asked as they extended before coming together so that Lucy could spin which was odd given her height over him. "What do you mean?"
"First dance after the wedding of course." Lucy said with a smile as they moved into the waltz turn. "But that is in the future, enjoy tonight, it may not be my scene but it's still fun and there's more to come. Somehow I feel like you will be in the center of it, Arceus seems to have taken a special interest in you Ash if even half the stories Brock has told me are true."
"Um ok." Ash said still reeling from it as Lucy moved on to Max who was now stuck dancing with the woman he'd inadvertently denied being with Brock for a while though Lucy was as graceful as ever with him and Shauna took Lucy's place next to Ash.
The dance continued for a few more partners, all ones Ash didn't know, before it finally came to an end with the song. Ash had been about to dance with Jessilee, who while she wasn't a fan of having to dance with the king of all twerps was willing to put it to the side as this was her night to show off her own beauty and how she'd be the next Kalos Queen. Thankfully, the music ended so there was no need for it.
"Huh, well that's it." Ash said as the music ended and Pierre moved back to the steps his cane with his Klefki back on the end again like he usual was held aloft.
"Alright let us begin ze first of our two main events tonight, our enchanting tag battle." Pierre said much to the surprise of those who hadn't been here the year before or in Ash's case excitement because, well, it was a Pokémon battle, so he wanted in on it. "Zere are no Pokémon battles in a Pokémon Showcase so consider zis a special treat. Et, to cap off ze night, after our tag battle our illustrious Queens will engage in a double battle against each other to see which Queen is ze best at battling."
That really got everyone's attention as Aria turned to Lucy and smile at her, Lucy returning it though hers was much more predatory, like a snake about to strike but one that Aria didn't back down from. That was going to be a battle as Aria had the grace of a performer seeing as she was the best of the best in Kalos at that while Lucy was an offensive powerhouse in battle. Few knew that Aria herself was a skilled battler so that only added to it. Of course, the tag battle came first, and Pierre had to announce who was going to be in it.
"All our participants for ze tag battle will be chosen at random." Pierre announced. "So please, raise ze cards zat you received at ze reception desk et hold it up to ze light. If a mark appears then you are one of our lucky participants."
All the attendees did just that and held their cards up. Misty knew at once that Ash would have a mark, it was fate or the will of Arceus for something like this to fall right onto Ash's head and sure enough she noticed a tiara mark appear on Ash's card almost instantly. He let out a grin at that, he'd get to battle today which made this party even better. Misty, however, did not have a mark on her card. Naturally though, Arceus was not done with their group just yet.
"Again?" Serena said as a bowtie appeared on hers.
"Huh well I missed out last year." May said with a bowtie appearing on her card as well. "So, this will be fun."
"Alright." Miette said as her card produced the second tiara marking her as the 4th competitor and Ash's partner for it. "I'm against Serena again and I get to battle with Ash. This will be so much fun"
"Wait a minute." Misty said her eyes wide as she looked at the marks that now all could see on the four cards. "Ash, Miette, Serena, and May, seriously? What are the chances of that happening? Arceus really must be having a good time with this right now."
"Misty, this is Ash we're talking about." Brock said appearing beside her though he'd be the judge for the first battle at least. "So pretty high given the way things work around him."
"True and he's with Miette so that's a strong team especially as he'll probably use Frogadier given how he was Slurpuff's date." Misty grumbled, she may be secure in her feelings for Ash and around her rivals but her 3 rivals that were present and Ash all getting the marks was a lot to handle, she'd be keeping a close eye on this one. "What else could come from this?"
"Anything, this is a battle, and it is Ash." Brock said. "Expect the unexpected when it comes to him."
"Take your places." Pierre said with a smile as the participants were now chosen. "Ze battle begins next."
