章 117: Special Chapter : Spencers' Christmas [2/2]
"Stephanie just told me. Is everyone alright?" She asked with a worrisome voice.
"Yes, don't worry. Scarlet got everything under control within seconds."
"What a relief. I did briefly see her on my way here. She looked a bit upset."
"Don't worry about it. That's just how we are with each other nowadays. She says something, I say something, she gets angry, I get angry, then rinse and repeat."
"Doesn't sound like a very healthy relationship."
"We're used to it, so it's okay. That's just how we are."
"Anyhow, I'm guessing that you lost control over your power a little. Oh, and congratulations on your evolution."
{Thanks, and yeah. I didn't realize how much stronger I got just by evolving. Normally, a pokémon tries out their new power after evolving, but it kind of slipped my mind since I was late to help for breakfast.}
"I see."
At that moment, a cook left the kitchen.
"So?" Helene asked.
The employee then stopped to answer Helene. "The damage is minor, but a few appliances don't work anymore. It should be fixed for lunch though."
"Understood," Helene said before the employee went on his way. "Well, looks like there won't be breakfast this morning."
{Again, I'm terribly sorry.} Dusk apologized while bowing forward.
"So, the only option left is to have breakfast outside. What do you say? Do you feel like having a nice brunch at the fanciest restaurant in Oxgard?"
Dusk then rose up and looked at Max with a surprised face.
"We… would like that," Max answered.
"Wonderful. Let me go make a reservation then." Helene said before leaving them.
"And me, I'll have the perilous mission of waking the girls up," Max said before sighing and heading to the main staircase.
{Maybe I should come too, just to increase your survival chance a little.} Dusk said, walking next to her master.
"Thanks. Any help is welcome."
When on the second floor, both entered the girls' room.
Max lightly clapped his hands. "Alright, girls, I know you want to sleep, but there was a slight change of plan for this morning."
{Rhhhhaaaa! For fuck's sake.} Scarlet growled loudly while madly getting on her back. {I just want to sleep. Is it too much to ask?} She added, dropping her right forearm on her face.
"Don't be so melodramatic. I think you're gonna love what's coming." Max said as the rest of the girls were sitting up on their beds.
{If it's not under my blanket, I doubt it.}
"Well, I mean, it could-" Max said before being interrupted by Dusk, who put a hand on his left shoulder.
{Just announce it. It could go on for a while when she's like this.}
{Your solidarity is always appreciated, Dusk.} Scarlet said with an annoyed tone.
"*sigh* So, since the kitchen was unusable this morning, Helene suggested we go brunch at the fanciest restaurant in Oxgard."
{Why? What happened to the kitchen?} Bonny asked, rubbing her eyes.
"Well…" Max started while looking at Dusk.
{It's my fault. I lost control of my power and set the kitchen on fire.}
{Wait, for real?} Sally said, surprised by the affirmation.
{And there's us, who were casually sleeping while something could have gone horribly wrong.} Aurora said.
"Oh yeah. We were totally planning on letting you burn here if the mansion were on fire," Max jested with rolling eyes.
{Not cool, master. You know I have a weakness against fire.} May said, playing along.
"Hahaha. Good one, sweetie." Max laughed lightly. "So, what do you say?"
{Do we really have a choice?} Scarlet inquired.
"Well, you can always skip breakfast if you wish, but I don't really recommend it."
{*sigh* Sleeping, or not being hungry. Quite the dilemma.}
"Are you serious?" Max said with a raised eyebrow.
{More or less. I know you won't let me be hungry, so…} Scarlet sat up as well. {Might as well go along with it.}
"You have two whole ass weeks to sleep in. One day less won't kill you."
{The chances are low, but never zero.} Scarlet said while standing up, shortly followed by the others. {So, are we going right now?}
"Helene was on her way to placing a reservation before we got here, so I believe we have a bit of time to prepare."
{Prepare?} Bonny repeated while doing some stretching. {Why? We are ready right now.}
"Oh no, you're not. We're going to an uptight fancy restaurant, so no way you're going like this."
{What do you mean by that, exactly?} Scarlet questioned, obviously offended.
"First of all, you all have a morning breath to deal with, same for me. Next, you guys look like scarecrows with your wild hair and fur. And finally, a bit of perfume could do us a favor."
{Do you want us to have some make-up while you're at it?} Scarlet said, still upset.
Max grabbed his chin while looking at Scarlet. "Hmm…"
{Wait, don't you dare even think about it.} Scarlet threatened.
"Too late. I'm already imagining you with some eyeliner and very light makeup. We should definitely try someday. You are already gorgeous and beautiful, but I wonder if we can go even beyond that."
{In your fucking dreams, jackass. I don't want that superficial shit near me.}
"So closed-minded."
A second later, Helene appeared in the door frame.
"Everything is set. We're leaving in an hour and a half."
"Alright. Thanks again. I was about to make us a bit presentable."
"What a coincidence, I was about to ask just that."
"Way ahead of you."
"Hehe. Alright. I'll leave you to prepare then." Helene said before leaving.
Max then clapped his hands once. "Alright, girls, let's make ourselves a bit more decent looking."
For the next hour, the girls took a turn in the shower and were being groomed by Max. In the meantime, Aurora went to go fetch Luna, on Max's demand, since she was invited as well. To Max's surprise, she saw it a bit like a game, so she didn't mind getting on the superficial side a little bit. Then, ten minutes before leaving, the gang went to the main hall, ready to leave. A few minutes later, they got joined by Helene and Mike.
"Wow," Helene said, looking at them intriguingly. "You all look gorgeous."
Having the best products in hand, the gang was almost glowing. Bonny's fur was shining and not a single knot could be found on her. Same with Aurora, but her metallic spikes shined a little along the way, even if it was something that lucarios aren't usually into. The same goes for Sally and her crown-like ornament on her forehead. Having no fur, May mainly got her skin smoothed a little with her maw's teeth shined a little too. Dusk and Luna got the basic fur treatment, but it was a bit more work since their long fur tends to have knots more easily. And then, there was Scarlet, the one who put the least effort into it. She did, however, put a bit of it into her hair, looking more beautiful than ever. Max simply took a shower and put a bit of gel in his hair to pull them down a bit. And in addition, all were smelling good.
"I almost didn't recognize you."
{Don't exaggerate. We didn't do much.} Scarlet said.
{Speak for yourself. On my part, I did suffer to look this good.} Bonny said.
"Come on, now. It wasn't that bad. You just had one big knot."
{You pulled on it for almost an entire minute.}
"I did manage to get it though."
{True. You almost ripped half of my fur away, but you did.}
{So much for the tough and strong girl.} Scarlet nagged a little.
{Shut up. That's a pain you'll never understand.}
"Please, girls, no bickering. We're here to have a good time."
"Indeed. So if everyone is ready, we can leave." Helene said.
"We're ready as much as we can," Max said.
"Great." She then turned to Mike. "See you there in a moment."
"Of course," Mike responded with a light bow before leaving them.
The rest all headed towards the main entrance door.
"He's not coming with us?" Max asked, finding it odd that Mike showed up just to disappear a minute later.
"We're going to the same place, but someone had to drive off all of our employees, so Mike is gonna take care of just that."
"I see. Wait, all the employees, like the maids, cooks, and such?"
"Why, yes. They also need to eat, which is hard without a functional kitchen."
"I mean, I didn't mean it that way. It's just that there's gonna be a lot of us."
"I reserved two of their biggest tables, so we should be fine."
Now outside, one of the maids was waiting for them near one of the Spencers' winter cars, which was looking like a hummer, but longer. Once everyone was in, the driver put the vehicle in drive and headed into town. Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at a very fancy-looking restaurant. After parking, they entered the building, where they got intercepted by a receptionist.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we don't really accept pokémon inside."
"Why?" Max asked, already a bit upset.
"It's the house policy. We usually tolerate them in the outside area, but-"
"But it's minus twenty degrees outside, and none of my pokémon are an ice-type, so…"
Briefly, Helene put a hand on Max's right shoulder. "Let me handle it." She told him before taking Max's place.
"Far from us the idea of going against your rules, but our kitchen is unusable at the moment, so I was wondering if you could make an exception this time."
"Sorry, ma'am. I'm sorry to hear that, but if I make an exception, I'll have to do it for everyone else."
"I understand. However, we are not exactly, um… I don't like using that word, commoners. I am Helene Spencer, and I would like to have the two tables we reserved, please."
The receptionist then briefly looked at his small computer.
"Helene Spencer. We do have a reservation with that name. But the rule about pokémon still applies. Feel free to order for them so they can enjoy a meal at home."
{"And eat on the floor while you're at it."} Scarlet said telepathically, sounding impatient.
Like most people, the receptionist was thrown off-guard by a gardevoir being rather aggressive and confused him for a short moment.
"O-Of course not. I just-"
A well-dressed man suddenly appeared next to the receptionist.
"Good morning everyone." The man greeted them. "I'm the manager here and couldn't help but think that maybe that was a problem here?"
"Oh lord, no. I didn't want to create such a thing. I was just nicely asking this gentleman if there was a possibility that I, Helene Spencer, could enjoy a nice breakfast with my pokémon friends."
The manager's face then took a whiter tone. "H-Helene Spen- S-Sure. Right away. Sorry about him, he's new here. Your tables will be in the blue area. Please, come on in."
"Much appreciated." Helene nicely said before lightly bowing her head and getting past them.
Perking her ears up a little, Bonny heard the two behind them speaking.
"What do you mean I'm new here? I've been working here for two years now."
"I just saved all our asses, idiot. The Spencer family is one of the most wealthy families in the whole country. If they wanted to, they could buy our franchise and fire all of us."
Upon hearing that, Bonny couldn't help but smile a little.
{Having lewd thoughts again?} Aurora asked, noticing her.
{Not this time. It just feels kinda great to have the bigger stick for once.}
{I don't know if inspiring fear is something to be proud of, but I get what you mean.}
As the group was walking towards their assigned table, most people here were staring and some even glaring at Max's pokémon.
{I can't say that it makes me very comfortable though.}
{Forget about them.} Bonny said. {We're here to have a nice meal and a good time. Let's focus on that.}
{...You're right. I used to be pretty self-centered, so I guess I can go on that side just this once.}
{Atta girl.}
The place was really huge with a high ceiling. So huge that the restaurant was divided into four. The green, the blue, the red, and the yellow area, which were identifiable by the walls' respective colors. After reaching their assigned place and taking a seat, the group waited for Mike's group.
"This place is astonishing," Max said. "I can't believe we missed it until now."
"It's not a very hidden building, so maybe you were just not paying attention."
"Possibly. Thanks a lot for earlier, and for bringing us here too." Max said while bowing his head.
{"Yes, Mrs. Helene. Thank you very much."} Scarlet said, doing the same as Max, although a bit more reluctantly.
The girls then all did the same as well, thanking her.
"Oh, dear. It's my utmost pleasure. I couldn't just let you go hungry."
{"You weren't forced to bring us to the fanciest restaurant of all time, so that's that."}
"Well, I mean, I really don't want to offend you, but I doubt it's something you could afford before on your own."
"It's okay," Max reassured her, waving a hand dismissively. "You're probably more than right. This place must be expensive as hell."
"Indeed, but you'll truly understand when seeing the pricing. However, the quality comes with it. Prepare to be amazed."
"It's that good?"
"Yes. Even our own cooks can't achieve that. They're not very far behind, but here… It's like stepping into another world."
"Wow. I wish I could afford it so I can come more often."
"We can come here as much as you want, but I don't really recommend it."
"How so?"
"The taste and quality are divine, but with the amount of grease, salt, calories, and such contained in most of their meals, I would advise against eating here regularly. Once in a while is fine, but not too much. You mostly come here for the ambiance and letting yourself go a little."
"I see. Well, you know what they say: too much of a good thing is still too much."
"Precisely."
A short moment later, a waitress came to give everyone a menu.
"Anyone wishes to drink anything before ordering?" She asked the group.
"Water for me for now. Same with them." Max said before pointing at his pokémon.
"...Okay." she acknowledged, not looking too happy about having pokémon inside. "And for you, Mrs. Spencer?"
"Just a small martini for now."
"Right away."
"Oh, and you can bring the menu for the other table as well. Our friends will join us soon."
"Sure thing." The waitress said before leaving.
"Isn't it a bit early to drink alcohol?" Max said, looking at Helene almost suspiciously.
"For the rare occasion that I come here, it's a little gift for myself. And drinking in the morning isn't something new to me."
"What do you mean?"
"In my younger time, I kind of had a drinking problem."
"Really? It's hard to imagine that from you."
"Well, let's say that a career in modeling can be very stressful at times, so I needed something to let out the steam."
"I see."
"But I'm not as young as I used to be, so I'm careful. Also, having a husband that doesn't like drunkard women is an additional motivation."
"You don't say," Max said, amused.
{"I have yet to understand why humans are so enticed by that poisonous crap called alcohol."} Scarlet said. {"It's expensive, it stinks, humans make awful decisions and act stupider than a slowpoke when drunk, and you have a painful and annoying hangover the day later."}
"Everything you mentioned happens when you start to have a drinking problem," Helene said. "We, humans, still keep our heads when we moderate our consumption."
{"Why the need for that in the first place? Most of the time, humans go drinking to run away from their problems instead of facing them."}
{It reminds me of someone.} Aurora commented.
{I'm sorry, did I ask for your opinion?} Scarlet said, glaring at the lucario.
{I didn't mention any names.}
{...Whatever.}
"You know a lot about it for someone who never touched it."
{"You don't need to touch and taste deadly mushrooms to know about them. You just need to do your research."}
"Fair enough."
"I can understand your reticence towards the likes, Scarlet. Even some humans see it with a bad eye. However, I always say that to have a true opinion on something, you need to do the experience yourself."
{"Wait, are you suggesting that I should ingest that gross liquid?"}
"I mean, it's not like it will kill you just to try once. Actually, it might. Can a gardevoir deal with alcohol?"
"Strangely enough, alcohol is one of the rare things that most pokémon and humans can share together. Very few species can't tolerate it."
{"Like which pokémon?"} Dusk asked, curious.
"I don't remember. It's a fact that I heard a very long time ago."
"I believe the internet could help us with that. Anyway, what would it cost you to try, love?" Max said, looking back at his gardevoir.
{"My pride, my neurons, and probably my health eventually."}
"*sigh* As soon as she activates her drama-queen mode, there's not much we can do after that point."
{"Besides shutting the hell up, not much indeed."}
"Come on, now. Since when are you sensitive to some friendly bickering?"
{"Since that time you should know that I hate it when you call me like that, especially in front of everyone."}
"Sorry, love. I didn't mean to insult you or just be mean. But, in all honesty, you kind of… acted a bit like…"
Before he could finish, Scarlet turned to glare at him, telling him to choose his next words carefully. Max simply stopped while briefly raising his hands defensively.
"Please, Scarlet. That's no way to act with your loved one." Helene said.
{"He asks for it when he does things that he knows I hate."}
"That's no better, I agree. You two should work on having interactions without hurting each other." Helene suggested, making the gardevoir sigh loudly. "But for now, let's focus on having fun, shall we?"
"That, we can do. Isn't that right, love?" Max said, looking at his gardevoir.
Seeing that she was obviously upset, Max grabbed her left hand, locked their fingers together, and stared at her with loving eyes.
{*sigh* I guess so.}
Max gently tapped on Scarlet's left thigh, making her smile a little. "Awesome."
Shortly after that, Mike joined the group with all the employees so they could order. After a delightful and high-quality feast, the group was now leaving the restaurant on their way back to the mansion.
"Helene?" Max called out after they had just exited the building.
"Yes?"
"Do you think you can help me with something?" Max asked, motioning her to move a bit away from everyone else.
Noticing that, Scarlet got very curious about what her mate could ask of Helene. She wasn't jealous of the woman but was just wondering. Eventually, her curiosity was too strong, and she fell into the temptation.
{Just a sneak peak…} she mumbled to herself.
Using the link they have for each other, Scarlet spied on a glimpse of their conversation.
"...You see, I don't want them to find out what I'll get them, but I have no idea what I could give them. So, I was wondering if you could help me. Also, being a woman yourself, maybe you could give me clues on what could please them."
Not wanting to know more than she should, she stopped the mind peaking.
{Oh my…} Scarlet said louder than she expected.
{What is it?} Bonny asked.
{Well, I don't know if I should say it…}
{You already said too much, so spill the beans.}
{Alright. I shouldn't have, but I peeked inside master's mind and—}
{You shouldn't, indeed.} Aurora interrupted. {You said it yourself that you don't want to abuse your power like that, especially with all of us.}
{I know. I just couldn't resist. I had the feeling that it was something interesting, and I was right.}
{*sigh* the deed is already done anyway, so… What did you find?}
{I stopped before knowing too much, but… master plans on shopping gifts for us with Helene.}
{Gifts!} May said enthusiastically. {I love gifts. Well, when it's not expired and very cheap poke food.} She added with a less enthusiastic tone.
{Seriously. I still wonder how you managed to go this long without ripping the head of that asshole off.} Scarlet said, discouraged.
{Sometimes, I do wonder too. I guess I just don't have it in me.}
{Not a bad thing if you ask me.} Aurora said.
{That's awesome! I never received any gift.} Sally said.
{Same here.} Bonny said.
{Besides pain, I never received much either.}
{I guess that Christmas isn't something that wild pokémon celebrate very often.} Luna said.
{You tell me.} Scarlet said, looking at Max, who was still talking with Helene.
Her eyes then drifted to the right, where she saw Mike talking with a maid before heading towards the driver's door.
{...I think we'll need some help too.} The gardevoir said before teleporting next to Mike.
{*sigh* What is she plotting again?} Aurora said, looking at Scarlet discussing with Mike.
{Something nice I feel like.} Luna responded.
{For once.} Bonny added with a tiny grin.
{I dare you to say that in her face.} Aurora said, softly nudging the lopunny with one elbow.
{Eh. As if I'll tempt the devil uselessly.}
A couple of seconds later, Scarlet teleported back to her previous place.
{So?} Aurora asked.
{I'll say it where I'll be sure not to be heard.}
{*sigh* Alright.}
"Thanks, I'll do that. Alright, girls. Ready to head back home?" Max said to his companions.
{Coming.} Scarlet said with an innocent smile.
Then, until they all arrived at the mansion, everyone in Helene's vehicle acted innocently. However, besides Scarlet, the girls were pretty much still in the dark. When home and stopping in front of the mansion without parking, the girls exited the vehicle.
"Alright, girls. Sorry to say it at the last minute, but Helene and I need to do some shopping in the city." Max announced with his head outside the passenger window.
{Really? You don't need us?} Scarlet said, faking being surprised.
"It's fine. Helene needs my help with something. Human things, you know."
{Oh. Human things. Those can be important. I don't see the point in insisting then.}
"Sorry for leaving you behind."
{We'll survive. Take care.} Scarlet wished while waving goodbye.
"Sure. Be back in a moment." Max said, pulling his head back in before closing the window.
As they were leaving, Scarlet kept waving at them until they were out of sight. With perfect timing, Mike's car stopped exactly where Helene's car was.
{So? Ready to enlighten us now?} Luna asked.
{Soon. I'll tell you as soon as we're in the car.} Scarlet said.
A short moment later, the maids and employees all exited the minibus-like vehicle before Scarlet took the front seat. Confused, the rest of the gang looked at each other before getting inside the vehicle as well.
{"Thanks for helping us, Mike."} Scarlet said as soon as Mike drove back outside the property again.
"No problem, Miss Scarlet. Besides, I think you'll need someone to pay for you."
{"Oh, right. The money thing. I didn't think about that."}
{Ahem.} Bonny vocalized, getting impatient.
{So, now that we know that master is planning on giving us gifts for Christmas, I thought that maybe we could do the same.} Scarlet explained while looking back at them.
{Us? Giving gifts to master too?} Sally said, briefly looking at the others.
{That's… actually a good idea.} Bonny approved.
{Oh my! Master is in for a nice surprise.} Dusk said while lightly clapping her hands together.
{That's the least we can do if he gives us gifts.} Luna said.
{That's a fantastic idea!} May exclaimed.
{I'm on board for that, but are we allowed to do that? I mean, going to human stores freely and taking stuff.}
{That's why Mike is with us. He's gonna be our chaperone and pay for us since pokémon don't have money.}
{It's not like we have pockets to put them in any way.} May joked, making the girls laugh.
5 days later
Today was Christmas day. From the start of the afternoon until late at night, Helene hosted a family and friends gathering so they could celebrate before all left so they could spend Christmas with their respective families. After a nice feast, Max and his girls, Helene, and Dimitri were sitting in the living room, where a giant decorated Christmas tree was standing in the room with multiple presents under it. Naturally, Aristide made sure to be available that day and was also present. Since all employees took a day off to celebrate Christmas with their families as well, the group was all alone in this huge mansion.
"...Not only did I trip, but I almost fell on the judges' table. That was so embarrassing." Helene narrated.
"Yikes. And you weren't even in the modeling industry for that long too." Max said.
"For a moment, I feared that my career was over at that very moment."
"But you persevered, Honey," Aristide said with a wine cup in hand. "It wasn't easy, but you managed to make it through."
"If I knew what kind of stress was ahead, maybe I would have chosen another path."
"Every path is stressful in some ways, so it wouldn't have been much different."
"I guess you're right. Anyway, I believe it's time to unwrap the presents."
"Yiipi!" Dimitri exclaimed, with May and Sally getting excited.
"Who's gonna be Santa Claus and distribute the gifts?" Aristide asked.
"Exceptionally, maybe Max could do it this year." Helene proposed.
"Good idea," Dimitri said.
"Are you sure? I've never done it before."
{"It's easy. You just get up, take a gift and give it to the one it belongs to."} Scarlet explained.
"I knew that, thanks."
{"Then move and do it."}
Max stood up. "*sigh* You and your impatience. Eager to have your gift, huh?"
{"Yes, but I'm more eager to see you unwrapping your gift."}
At that, Max shortly paused.
"Aww. Isn't that cute?" Helene said in awe.
"That's weird. Usually, people are eager to get their own gift."
{Not when you love someone more than material, little pup.} Luna said. {Most of the time, we prefer seeing the one we love happy than receiving stuff.}
"...Makes sense," Max said, blushing a bit. "*ahem* First one." He added after grabbing a gift. "...Helene, from her husband."
{What a good start.} Dusk said, smiling while Max walked near Helene to give her her gift.
"Oh, I wonder what it will be this year," Helene said happily before starting to rip off the wrapping paper.
A moment later, Helene was holding a simple white box. After opening it, she pulled out a glass sphere with a weird black and orange flower head encased inside. A flat surface could be seen on a side so it could hold onto a desk and such.
"Oh my. It's pretty."
"That, honey, is a Viscera Lompa, a very rare flower that is rumored to be blessed by Xerneas itself."
"Xerneas…? Fascinating! It's a lovely gift. Thank you very much, my love!"
"It was quite the effort to get one of those, but all was a trifle of to please you, honey," Aristide said before both he and Helene quickly kissed.
"Bleurg!" Dimitri said in disdain.
{Eh. Pretty sure he will change his speech in a few years.} May said.
{He will need someone like us to help him discover the beauty of loving a female pokémon.} Bonny boasted.
{Okay, girls. I know that only Max can understand us, but let's try to not get too inappropriate.} Luna requested.
{Yeah. I admit it was a bit off the chart.}
"Alright. The next one is… for May, from me."
Max handed the gift to his mawile.
{Yay!}
Eagerly unwrapping it, May pulled out a huge and hard but still squishable ball made out of metallic strings.
{It's… what is that?} May asked, a bit confused.
"I know how anxious you can be sometimes, so I got you a stress relief ball specially for pokémon like yourself."
{Really? It's a bit too big for my arms.}
"You're supposed to chew on it with your maw."
{Oh. Let's try it.}
May then grabbed the ball with her maw and started chewing on it. Despite a little annoying sound, May seemed to enjoy it as her body became a bit more relaxed.
"So?"
{It's amazing. It's like I was shoving all my bad emotions inside it. It feels really good.} She said with closed eyes.
"Glad you like it. I was 98% sure you would."
{I do. Thank you very much, master.}
"My pleasure. Now, the next one is… Dusk, from me again." Max said while handing another present to his delphox.
{Ooh! This is so exciting!} Dusk said, briefly shaking her hands from side to side before grabbing the long gift.
It took her a bit of a moment since she didn't want to break the wrapping too much, which slightly annoyed some of the girls. When done, she opened the box and revealed a straight, very well-carved, and thick stick.
{Oh my… I… didn't expect that.} Dusk said, looking at the stick that was in her hand.
The stick was just a bit longer than Dusk's, made out of rather dark wood and very straight with some carving at the base for a better holding.
"A stick?" Dimitri said, looking at Max.
"Not just a simple stick, but a finely worked stick from a moghan tree."
{Oh. That's interesting.} Scarlet said.
"I don't get it," Dimitri said, looking at his parents, confused by the apparent boring gift.
"Braixens and Delphoxes channel their power through a stick they bond with. It's a vital tool for them." Helene explained.
"Ah, I forgot about that."
{"And from a moghan tree, which is pretty uncommon, resistant, and malleable, allowing a better energy channeling."} Scarlet explained.
"I see," Dimitri said, faking to understand what she said.
"It means she will be a bit stronger with that stick alone," Max said, seeing through him.
"Oh. That's pretty cool actually."
"Indeed. Do you… like it? Was it a good idea?" Max asked Dusk, who was staring at the stick.
{I… It's more than that. I love it so much that I'm just a bit lost for words.} Dusk said with her tail waving around.
"Hehe. You scared me for a second. It may not come from the First Tree, but it's a decent material."
{The First Tree? What's that?} Bonny asked.
{"A legend fabled amongst humans."} Scarlet started to explain, knowing that everyone was curious about it. {"From what I've learned so far, humans and even some pokémon believe that that tree, located somewhere in our world, was the first tree to ever grow, creating life and giving pokémon their power. In our current situation, my guess would be that a stick made from that tree would make Dusk absurdly stronger."}
{Damn!} Bonny exclaimed. {Having a stick from that tree must be the dream of all Delphoxes.}
{Without a doubt those who believe in such a tree.} Aurora said.
{Pretty much all of the world's lands have been discovered and seen, so such a tree would probably be more well-known by now.} May pointed out.
"True, but there is still mysterious stuff that we still can't comprehend out there, so maybe it's in a place almost impossible to access."
{That's very plausible.} Luna said.
{In any case, I'm very grateful. Thanks a lot, master.} The delphox said, looking at Max with passionate eyes.
{What's gonna happen to your old one?} Sally asked.
{As soon as I'll unbind myself from it, it will more or less become a regular stick with no magical property, so there's not much we could do.} Dusk explained.
{Using it as firewood maybe? It will be thematic.} Bonny said.
{Nice idea.} Scarlet praised.
{I guess I could. I just evolved, so I didn't really have time to grow attached to it.}
"If it's okay with you. Alright, the next one is… Aristide, from Helene." Max said, handing the gift to the man.
"Oh. What could it be?" Aristide said, putting down his cup to grab the gift.
When done with the unwrapping, he pulled out a gold and silver watch from a small box.
"Would you look at that?" With a small smile uncharacteristic of him, he asked, "How did you know mine was nearly due?"
"A woman knows that kind of stuff," Helene said proudly.
"Ah... Glad that you do, honey. Thank you." Aristide said while changing his old watch to the new one.
"My pleasure."
"Okay. Next is… Oh. For me, from—"
{"Are you okay with keeping that one for last?"} Scarlet asked before teleporting the gift back under the tree with her power.
"Well, I guess I will," Max said with a tiny smile. "Next one then. This one is for… Bonny, from me." He added while giving the gift to his lopunny.
Bonny began to unwrap it. {Oh. Can't wait to see what you offered to the sexiest of the group.}
When done, Bonny pulled out a simple but generous bag with multiple green pallets inside.
{...Is that…}
" Lightly spiced spinach candies. Your favorite."
{...I mean, I do love them, but…}
Despite trying her best, Bonny couldn't hide a faintly disappointed face.
{Don't worry, girl. Your real gift awaits you upstairs.} Scarlet reassured her.
{My real…}
{Yes. But for now, just act like you really enjoy it.}
{I… of course. Thanks, master! You know me too well!} The lopunny said before giving Max a strong hug.
{Don't overdo it either.} Scarlet said with rolling eyes.
"Oh. I was a bit skeptical at first, but she seems to really like it." Helene said.
"I know how to make their heart flutter," Max said while petting his affectionate lopunny.
{Our pussy too sometimes.} Scarlet jested, forcing Sally to try concealing a sudden burst of laughter.
{*sigh* So glad that the language barrier is still a thing.} Aurora said, facepalming.
{It was kinda funny though.} May said, still giggling.
{That's Scarlet for you.} Luna said, shrugging her shoulders.
"Okay, next one. This one's for… me as well, and from Helene. A bit unexpected. Quite the big and heavy one too."
"For now, you're a family member, so of course, you'll have one," Helene said.
"Hehe, fair enough."
Inside the gift were a few sets of clothes, shirts, and pants, for winter as well as for summer. With them, a brand new pair of shoes.
"Damn! You went all out with that." Max said, impressed by the quantity.
"It's barely anything. I just noticed that your old clothes were getting tattered."
"Quite a bit indeed. I don't recognize the brand though. Allitech."
"It makes sense. It's a brand so expensive that only the biggest and wealthiest enterprises can manage to sell it."
{"Why is that? It seems like any type of clothing."} Scarlet asked.
"In appearance, maybe, but Allitech specializes in quality-of-life technology. Their textiles, for example, are one of the most durable materials in the world. They are mostly used in the military, but a civilian wealthy enough can put in an order for some things such as clothes from them." Aristide explained.
"I see. Kinda nice to have clothes that will last for a long time." Max said with a smile.
"If you're careful enough, it can last for a lifetime."
"Sheesh. That's quite the gift. Thanks a lot." Max said, looking at Helene.
"My utmost pleasure," Helene replied.
After putting his new stuff back inside the box, Max grabbed another gift.
"To Dimitri, from his beloved parents," Max said before giving the rather undersized gift to the kid.
"I wonder what it is," Dimitri said, a bit disappointed by the size.
Upon unwrapping it, Dimitri was holding a USB key.
"I… I'm not sure I get it."
"Wait until you see what's in there," Aristide said.
"What's in it?"
"Your mother and I thought if you want to become a pokémon trainer, later on, we had to make sure you're prepared enough."
"That… makes sense."
"So, inside that key is all the information you might need as a pokémon trainer."
"Information?"
"Yes. Like the type of pokémon in a specific region, their diet, their preference, and how to care for them. Everything you need to know is in there."
"Everything, like, everything everything?"
"I had to dig a little, but yes. I believe that most of the human knowledge about pokémon is stored in there."
"Holy damn! You're one lucky kid!" Max said, feeling a bit jealous.
"Oh wow! It means that with that, I'll become a better pokémon trainer than anyone else?!"
"That only depends on you, but you sure will be ahead of any trainer that will begin," Aristide said.
"He might even have the advantage over some veteran trainers," Max said.
"Oh my god! That's huge! Thanks, mom and dad! That must be the best thing I've ever received!" Dimitri exclaimed in joy.
"Like any responsible parents, we're a bit worried about letting you travel the world by yourself, but with that knowledge, it will calm our anxiety a bit," Helene said.
"You don't need to worry, mom. Nothing will ever happen to me."
"That's precisely the kind of thinking that can put you in trouble," Aristide warned. "Being unaware of the danger around you could be very bad. If you think that you can approach a metapod carelessly, the information in that key will teach you otherwise."
"Sure thing, dad," Dimitri said, rolling his eyes.
"Alright. Next gift please." Helene suggested.
"Sure thing. This one is for… Luna, from me." Max said, handing the present to his zoroark.
{I hope you don't plan on giving a gift to each one of us every Christmas. You're gonna bankrupt yourself.} Scarlet said.
"This year, Helene proposed to help me financially so I could pamper you a bit, so we'll see when we get there."
{Suit yourself then.}
Thanks to her huge claws, it took Luna just a few seconds for her package to be open. From inside, she took out a rather large bottle of perfume.
{Oh. I didn't expect that.} Luna said, examining the bottle thoroughly.
"I know how much of a seductress you are, so I thought that it could help your game a little."
{Eh. As if she needed it.} Scarlet said, making the girls chuckle.
{Scarlet has a good point. Are you sure it doesn't imply something instead?} The zoroark said, looking at Max suspiciously.
"What do you mean?"
{Are you trying to say that I smell?}
"What?! No! Not at all."
{It could help with your post-wilderness trip though.} Scarlet mentioned.
Luna then looked at Scarlet with a raised eyebrow.
"She's exaggerating. But your nice fur smell does fade a little after your night patrols."
{I see.} Luna said, looking back at the bottle.
"You still do though. I'm not complaining. I mainly thought that you would like to enhance your already strong sex appeal."
For a moment, the gang thought that she might have taken it wrongly. Fortunately, she smiled.
{Well, I do appreciate the thought. Thanks, master.} She said seductively to Max before dropping the bottle on a nearby coffee table. {I will keep that advice in mind.} She added, briefly looking at Scarlet, who just did a thumbs-up.
"So, the next one is… Aurora." Max said, giving the present to his lucario.
{From you I guess.}
"You guessed that one right." Max jested.
Briefly rolling her eyes with a smile, Aurora unpacked from the box a bluish crystal on a stand for stability. At first glance, the thing was maybe around ten inches tall.
{Wow. That's quite the thing.} Aurora said, a bit impressed.
"This crystal is supposed to help with your aura management, like soothing it and such. I'm not a hundred percent sure about it, but worst case scenario, it's gonna be a nice trinket to meditate near."
{Why are you so unsure?}
"Err! Helene could confirm, but it seems that even the vendor didn't know much about it either. He was pretty vague with my questions."
"Maybe she was just new to the store," Helene said.
{Anyhow, I guess there's one way to find out. It is a pretty rock though.}
"Indeed," Max replied while grabbing another gift. "This one is for… Scarlet."
{Hm. I hope you got something worth my standards.} Scarlet nagged playfully.
"If it's not, there's a unique place where you can put it."
{Might be fun, depending on what it is.}
{I hope it's not a cactus then.} Bonny said softly to Sally, who muffled a chuckle.
When done unwrapping, Scarlet pulled out a small but rather thick book.
{'The ultimate compendium of the most scathing comebacks for the idiots who try to outsmart you'.} Scarlet read. {Huh. That's actually solid. That's a nice find. Thank you.} She said, looking at Max with a grateful smile.
"I know how much you love to feel superior, so the moment I saw that book, I knew it was made for you."
{You are aware that you're just gonna give her more ammo to destroy you, right?} Bonny commented.
"Come on, she's a nice girl. I'm sure she will use the knowledge in that book diligently."
{Oof! That naivety almost destroyed half of my brain cells.} Aurora said.
{Which means you almost dropped to just a few hundred.} Scarlet replied.
Aurora looked at Scarlet with a raised eyebrow.
{It was one of the first pages.} Scarlet said, her book opened in her hands.
{That's exactly what we're talking about.}
"Hehe. Try to see this as an opportunity to improve your repartee."
{Didn't really need it, but whatever.}
Smiling, Max stood up and grabbed yet another gift.
"And we're down to a few left. This one is for Sally, from me again."
{Are you sure you can afford all of this?} Dusk asked.
"Don't worry about that."
{Oh gosh! I can't wait to see what I got. That will be my very first Christmas gift.}
"But surely not the last."
Eagerly unwrapping her gift, Sally pulled out a nice and shiny soccer ball.
{...}
"I'm sorry, Sally. You're the one I know the least since you joined us very recently, so I went to something I thought you might like. Is it an okay gift?"
{...No, it's not.} Sally said, making the girls look at each other. {It's not an okay gift, it's an awesome one!} She said, hugging the ball tightly.
"Phew! You scared me for a moment. I thought I might have insulted you."
{There is no such thing as being insulted with a gift.}
"Well, it depends on what's inside the said gift, but mostly, I guess so. Glad you like it."
{I love it! My first gift from my boyfriend! I'm very grateful for that.}
"Hehe. Happy to hear. If it interests you, there are smaller gifts further down the box."
{Huh?}
Moving the paper around, Sally discovered a tiny softball made from fabric.
{What is that?}
"It's a hacky sack. You probably won't need it, but it will help you practice your precision and coordination differently than a regular soccer ball."
{Well, there's always room for improvement as they say. Haha.} Sally said a bit shyly.
"True. There should be one last thing at the bottom."
Moving the paper some more, Sally pulled out two grayish-white wraps from it.
{Huh? What are those?}
"Some ankle wrapping. Again, I doubt it will be that useful, but I remembered the time when you twisted your left ankle a bit once when we were at Togetheart. I thought it would help prevent that, even just a bit."
{Oh. That's pretty cool actually.} Sally said happily.
{And I have the feeling you will be very stylish in that.} Scarlet said.
{I agree.} Bonny followed.
"Same. I really wasn't sure if you would like those gifts, so I compensated by giving a bit more, just in case."
{Come on, master. I might not be the smartest, but I know that it's the attention that counts. I would have loved anything you gave me.}
{Unless it's an unpinned grenade.} Scarlet joked.
"Heh, that would be an explosive way to say I love you."
{You don't say.} Aurora said with a tiny smile.
{I'm very grateful, master. Thanks a lot.} Sally said before standing up to give Max a warm hug.
"Aww. That level of affection between a pokemon and its trainer is always heartwarming." Helene shared.
Sally broke the hug to sit back at her place. "Well, I guess the only one left is me," Max said, grabbing his gift again. "To me from… 'his girls'. I think Ji might be pissed if she saw… M'kay."
At this moment, all of his pokémon began to stare intensely at him.
Max briefly stopped to look at them before continuing. "Geez. No pressure at all." He jested.
When done, Max saw that he also received a book. However, it was a bit heavier. The cover was made of red leather, but nothing was written on it.
"An untitled book, huh? Is it a suggestion to start a diary?"
{It would be nice from how messed up you are in your head, but no. It's something way more interesting.}
"Oh. I wonder what it could be." Max said, opening the book to the first page. "'The totally accurate encyclopedia of Max's princesses'. Oh. Interesting indeed."
["Just in case you don't know what it means, it's a handwritten book that regroups all the information one might need about all of us. Our hobbies, favorite things, hated stuff, our measurements, etcetera. There are even pictographs showing where we like to be petted and where we don't."]
"Really? Damn!" Max exclaimed before turning the pages.
At first, it was obvious that Scarlet learned to write just to make that book, mostly noticeable by the sloppy writing. However, as he turned page after page, he noticed a small improvement every twenty pages or so.
"Wow. That's a really complete logbook. It's very detailed and there are even a few things I didn't know about."
["I know that you mostly already know a big part of it, so it's more about being a reminder than anything else."]
"It's a great gift. Thanks, Scarlet. Thanks to all of you." Max said to his pokémon, smiling.
{You're utmost welcome.} Luna said with a seductive smile.
"Well. There's the end of our little gift unwrapping." Helene said after clapping her hands once.
"So it's time to say it!" Dimitri said.
"You're right. Three, two, one."
"MERRY CHRISTMAS!" Everyone said in unison.
So yeah, that was my first happy Christmas eve for a while now. After the gifts unwrapping, we watched a movie before we all went to bed. No need to say that some of the girls wanted to give me a more personal gift that night. In the end, I didn't really sleep the entire night. Oh, you're probably wondering what was Bonny's actual gift, right? Well, I simply got her the best female sex toy available on the market. That thing had so many options that I forgot most of them, but Bonny's a big girl. She can figure things out on her own. Honestly, I've never heard of a girl so happy about a gift that they almost cried. It was expensive but worth it. So yeah, merry Christmas to everyone!
Bonus Gift:
By Chief Reviewer
MAD-JI
The following week Mad-Ji was back at the Spencer mansion to continue training with Max and the girls.
{Well well Nemako, I hope you had a good rest and your bones recovered because I can't wait to hear them breaking again} Said the military Gardevoir after taking a puff on her cigarette.
{Now on the floor and start paying me 200 abs…}
"Ehh… Mad-Ji could I talk to you for a moment?"
Annoyed by the interruption, Ji took another puff on her cigarette and sent a shadow ball straight into Max's abdomen, knocking the human to his knees and gasping for air.
{Ara Ara, are you already missing suffering, interrupting me like that, you piece of shit?}
Catching some of his breath, Max tries to explain himself, before he was annihilated by the Gardevoir's wrath.
"No, that's not it, let me explain…"
"It's just that you weren't present at Christmas here at the Mansion, so I kept a gift that the girls and I bought as a form of respect and thanks for accepting to train us."
{Ahhh how cute! These mindless idiots think they can soften my training by bribing me with a gift… I thought you all had mental problems, but now I've realized the truth! You don't have any brains at all...}
{Now you'll feel what's the punishment for trying to bribe a decorated officer} Said the angry Gardevoir as she readied a larger shadow ball in one of her hands.
"Stop! you got it all wrong, we have no intention of trying to bribe you, in fact, we wouldn't be crazy to do so. We just really wanted to thank you." Max yelled as he held a wrapped box in his hands, fearing for his life.
{To thank? See what I think of your "thank you"...} Ji's eyes began to glow in a bluish tone, at the same time that the box began to levitate from Max's hands towards her.
However, in the middle of the way, the present stopped and was levitating in mid-air.
"Ji please at least open the present, for the Christmas tradition, and I mean if you don't like it you can crack my skull with it!"
Upon hearing the proposal the Gardevoir stopped and taking another puff on her cigarette said:
{Interesting proposal of yours, but I think maybe I should open the present "using your skull" that would make everything more interesting.}
"I don't know if Scarlet would approve of that" Max replied
{Pff pussy… OK I'll open it}
Floating the package in front of her, Ji removes all the Christmas wrapping, revealing a square box covered in antique leather, with two gold metal latches on the top and bottom.
releasing the two locks, the box opened in the middle, revealing the inside, all adorned in blue velvet, a bottle in the shape of a Mr. Rime skull containing a golden and slightly greenish liquid inside, and a lid sealed with a very old wax-like appearance.
The expression on the Gardevoir's half-face changed in disbelief at what she was seeing.
{NO FUCKING WAY! Is that what I'm thinking?}
"If you're thinking that this is a bottle of the famous, but ultra-rare and expensive Galarian whiskey made with special herbs and aged for 70 years in the Crown Tundra region. So yes, you got it right."
{B-But how… Did you find it? It's one of the rarest drinks in the world. The only person I've ever seen who owns one bottle is the Aristides…}
"Well, you know the six degrees of separation theory! So Helene knows a guy who knows a guy that knows another guy, and when I least expect it, I have this bottle in my hand."
{Ahem, I, I will accept your gift, it would be impolite of me to break the Christmas tradition. BUT, don't ever think that it will change anything between us or that I will take it easy on the training of any of you understood?!}
"Loud and clear ma'am"
{Good now on the floor and pay me 400 abs}
"400? But earlier you asked 200… oof"
Another shadow ball hit Max's abdomen
"Understood ma'am 400 will be".
The afternoon passed with Mad-Ji applying her training three times as hard, pushing Max to the limit again, again and again, leaving the human with a lot of bruises, small cuts, and a twisted elbow, and ankle.
{I think we can call it a day, I need you alive tomorrow and your stench is starting to make me nauseous. Now get that stinking carcass out of my way. Be prepared 'cause tomorrow will be worse.}
Being only able to nod, Max turns towards the entrance of the mansion and walks along, holding his left arm and dragging his right leg because of his ankle.
while Max slowly dragged himself towards the entrance, Mad-Ji watched the human and after taking another puff on her cigarette, she said:
{Merry Christmas to you… scumbag.} After that she disappeared along with her gift.
Max tried to express a smile, but all the pain prevented him from expressing any emotion.
Later that night, after everyone else was asleep, Mad-Ji was in her room and took out of her things two small cups and a crumpled photo. Serving a dose of her new drink in each of the glasses, she placed one of them in front of the photo on top of a small table facing an open window, while she drank the other glass.
Finishing her drink, Ji holds the photo in her hand and stares at it in silence for a few minutes.
In the photo, we see the faces of twelve soldiers, humans, and pokémons, among them a Gardevoir with a serious expression on her immaculate face. But ten of the men in the photo had black crosses on their faces. Leaving only the Gardevoir and another human soldier without the mark. Below the photo, the inscription "Battalion 303"
{I'm sorry men, I'm sorry I couldn't get you all out of that hell alive, but I promise I'll never fail anyone again, not even that naive young man, I won't lose anyone under my care...} Said the Gardevoir as she rubbed one of her hands over the deformed part of her face and ran a finger over the photo of her battalion.
After another puff on her cigarette, Ji takes the second glass of drink that was in front of the photo, and emptying it at once said:
{Merry Christmas men! Semper Fi and carry on…}
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