A Tortrombdo Valentine's Day

Tortrombdo Glacier, 6 AM

A cool morning breeze blew through the Tortrombdo Glacier as Carina the Glaceon smiled, walking past some of the huts that were already ready for the party later that evening.  She and her husband were taking the day off, since it was Valentine’s Day, and the Glaceon grinned.  She had a present ready for him, and she was eager to relax and have fun.

The Glaceon smiled when she saw her husband walking toward her, a bright smile on his features.  Fuego the Chandelure grinned when he saw his wife, and the two shared a warm embrace.  “Morning, sweetheart.  Happy Valentine’s Day.”  The Chandelure said as the two shared a warm kiss.  

“Thanks, hon, Happy Valentine’s Day to you too.  So what’s going on today?”  She asked with a grin.  

“Nothing much, but I asked the chefs if we could have breakfast together, and they were more than happy to oblige.  Wanna grab some food?”  

Carina grinned as the two walked into the Great Hall.  The Glaceon smiled as the familiar smell of freshly cooked Walrein and Shellder stew filled the hall, one of her favorite dishes.  The two sat down at a lit table, where they had juice and their stew ready.  “Thanks, sweetheart.  This is delicious.” She smiled as she took a sip from her glass of juice.  

“Yeah, this is great.”  He smiled at her after taking a bite out of his meal.  “You look gorgeous, sweetheart.”  

The Glaceon blushed happily as she looked at her husband.  “Thanks, hon, you look quite dashing yourself.”  

“Thanks, sweetheart.  Nice thing is there’ll be music tonight so we can dance.”  Fuego chuckled, causing Carina to giggle in response.

“That’s going to be fun.”  She grinned at her husband.  “I can’t wait to hit the dance floor.  That’s gonna be awesome.  That, and singing.”  

Fuego smiled brightly.  “You know it.  I can’t wait to see what the party’s gonna be like.”  

“You mean aside from the usual teasing between the squadrons?”  Carina replied with a laugh.

The Chandelure snickered in amusement.  “Yeah, that should be interesting since the squads have the day off.”  He raised his glass and smiled.  “To a great Valentine’s Day.”

“Cheers!”  The couple clinked their glasses together and looked at each other for a second before they started laughing.  “How many ‘mon are going to be asking us for help today?”  Carina giggled after she took a sip from her glass.  

Fuego started laughing as well.  “Not sure, but I have a feeling we’re going to be busy.”  The Chandelure and Glaceon both laughed as they continued to eat and relax in the Great Hall.

Outside, things were already fairly hectic.  Jari the Valiant had given his squad the day off since the ‘mon that trained them were busy, and he was already looking for things to wear despite not having much of a wardrobe.  The Feraligatr was going to be spending his first Valentine’s Day with his girlfriend, Thora the Bastion, who had gone out to the water for an early morning swim.  He wanted to be ready for the dance, but sighed and shook his head before laughing to himself.  “It’d just be best if we just had a good time.”  The Feraligatr chuckled to himself before he walked down the glacier toward the empty harbor.

He dove into the cold waters and started his early morning swim.  It didn’t take him long to realize that he wasn’t alone in the waters, and sighed immediately.   A very familiar chatter was heard over the sound of the water, and he shook his head.  Thyra the Impish was out in the water again, and he knew that poor Thora would probably be trying to hide from the endless questions from the Corsola.  

Much to his shock, Thyra was not talking to the Lapras that she constantly questioned.  Brodir the Prinplup, one of Jari’s closest friends, was in the water, listening to the Corsola’s constant questions.  Jari made his way over to try and help his friend, but Brodir waved him away, snickering to himself.  He already had a plan for embarrassing Thyra, and he knew that keeping the Corsola away from his commander would be a much deserved break for many Pokemon.  Jari nodded his thanks as he swam away.  A stunned shout reached his ears, and he grinned as he imagined the smirk on Brodir’s face, who knew how to keep the Corsola quiet.  

A few minutes later, he found Thora the Bastion surfacing after a short dive.  Water splashed everywhere as the Lapras surfaced, and Jari grinned.  “Enjoying yourself?”  The amused Feraligatr asked with a smile.  

Thora’s face instantly reddened.  “H-hey Jari.  What are you doing here?”

“Just wanted to relax and spend the day with ya.”  The Feraligatr replied with a shrug.  “Oh, we have to thank Brodir for helping us out.  He kept Thyra busy long enough for me to get out here.”  

“Yeah, he deserves it.”  Thora replied with a laugh.  “I’m just a little worried about tonight.”

The Feraligatr chuckled in response as he leaned his arm on Thora’s shell.  “Yeah, I was wondering what to do until I figured it’d be best if we just had fun.”  He said with a smile as he nodded at his girlfriend.  “So where’d you want to go?”

“Check out the reefs.  I’d like to see what they’re catching these days.”  

The Feraligatr smiled.  “Yeah, I think there’s a nice place not far from here where we can visit.  Lanturn inhabit it, and it’s a very unique place to take a look at.”  

“I’m in.  By the way, what’s up with Olsen?  He was redder than a Tamato Berry when I saw him this morning.”  

The Feraligatr burst out laughing.  “Oh, my squad and I set him and Red Three up.  Bjartr had given them some “orders” that I had written, and they were stunned when they found themselves in a restaurant after reading the order I sent to them.”  

Thora laughed.  “That explains a lot.”  

“Oh man, the teasing was epic.”  Jari snickered as he swam through the cool waters.  “Even Red Two got in on the teasing.  It was hilarious.”  

“I’ll make a note to join in the teasing later tonight.”  Thora replied, and Jari laughed in amusement as the two commanders dove under the surface.  They headed deep underwater, and despite the sun being above them, the water soon became hard to see in.  Then Jari noticed some light at the bottom and grinned.  

“This way, it’s over here.”  He said, kicking as he began heading for what appeared to be some underwater caverns.  A very curious Thora followed, and noticed that the light coming from the hidden caverns was brightening.  “Almost there, just follow me.”  The Feraligatr said as he turned slightly, entering the hidden caverns.  

The two surfaced for air and Thora’s jaw dropped.  The caverns were partially submerged, and were linked together.  Large gemstones sparkled as Chinchou and Lanturn passed through the caverns freely, not worrying about the arrival of the two Tortrombdo commanders.  “How’d you find this place?”

“Went deep diving and happened to see the light coming from here so I decided to check it out.  Never fully explored it, so you and I can go check it out together.  What do you say?”

Thora grinned.  “I thought you’d never ask.”  She climbed up onto some of the smoothened rock and looked around, impressed.  “Where should we go first?”  

“I’d say follow the gems.  Probably our best bet.  They keep shining brightly.”  Jari replied, and Thora nodded.  The two commanders smiled as they heard the familiar sound of water in the upper parts of the caverns, and stared in awe at the scenery around them.  

Meanwhile, Fuego and Carina were enjoying some spectacular views of their own.  The two had decided to walk along the glacier together, and the Chandelure and Glaceon smiled happily as they looked at the ice that surrounded the Tortrombdo.  “I love this place, it’s so incredible.”  Carina said as she looked at the large glacier.  

“Yeah, I know.  It’s always amazing when you come here.  Especially during the winter when the snow covers it.”   The Chandelure replied.  He looked over at his wife and smiled.   “Though the ‘mon here are incredible.  I’m glad we’re here.”

“Yeah, it’s amazing.  Especially now that we can dance.  I think we’ll be having some fun on stage tonight as singers.”  

Fuego laughed as the two continued to walk.  “How many love songs do we know?”  The two burst out laughing as they walked across the glacier.  

“Quite a few.  I think that dance floor is going to be busy tonight!”  Carina giggled as she looked at the falling snow.  “So our theme songs, we’re gonna have Open Arms for William and Isla.”

“Good thing Jari’s band’s going to be helping us out.”  Fuego replied as he and Carina walked across the glacier together.  “We’re going to have some good songs for sure.”  

Carina smiled as the two continued their walk together across the glacier.  The day was already a happy one for her, and she knew that when the party started, it would be all the more exciting.  

Back in the underwater caverns, Jari was searching for a possible gem that he could pick up without Thora noticing.  The two had shared many stories during their exploration of the caverns, ranging from Jari being able to stop Thyra from talking to the hilarious antics involving the squads.  “I still think Bjartr is mad at us for not letting him use the kitchen.”  The Feraligatr snickered.

Thora burst out laughing in reply.  “Let’s see, how many bags of flour has he destroyed?”  

“Oh, I lost track.  Remember the frosting one?”  

“How could I forget?”  She grinned at him.  “I swear I didn’t think there would be that much frosting in the Great Hall.”  

“Well, it tasted good.”  Jari snickered and winked at Thora, who blushed when she remembered him calling her ‘sweetheart’ after drawing a heart on her cheek after it had been covered in frosting.  

“I’m gonna go and check out the lower level over there.  I think I saw something.”  Thora said, pointing with a flipper toward a darkened part of the caverns.  

“Alright, I’ll meet you there in a few.”  Jari replied as the Lapras made her way deeper into the cave system.  Jari grinned as he looked around before spotting a large circular purple and white gem.  He quickly began using his claws to break the gem down until it looked like a heart, and put it away.  He was glad that he remembered what certain gems were and how they were given as gifts.  

Meanwhile, Thora had gotten herself lost amidst the deep underwater caverns that were linked together.  The Lapras was having a hard time finding an open area where she could get her bearings.  The cavern’s tunnels were fairly small and dark, and she wondered how she was going to find her way out of the tunnels.  Eventually, the Lapras spotted some light orange stones that seemed to shine.  She decided to follow the occasional gem until entering a large subterranean watery area.  She surfaced and spotted a loose sunstone, which she remembered as being a stone that offered protection.  She couldn’t help but smile as she picked up the stone and began working on it.  She smiled to herself as she looked at the stone, knowing full well how much Jari protected everyone he cared about, and she realized that it’d make a great gift.  

Jari soon dove into the deeper part of the caverns, and knew that finding Thora would be relatively easy.  They always took care of each other, and he knew that he’d be there for her whenever she needed help.  He smiled as he thought of the Lapras, and he continued a steady swim through the caverns until reaching the same subterranean area that Thora was in.  The Feraligatr turned and laughed as he swam over to the Lapras.  “Somehow, I had a feeling I’d find you here.”  

“Yeah, I had the same thing when I was working on this.”  Thora replied with a chuckle as he climbed out of the water and sat down next to her.  “Found this and it reminded me of you.  Figured that it’d fit if I gave you a stone that symbolized protectors.”  She said, handing him the bright sunstone that she had polished for him.  

He smiled as he leaned against her.  “Thanks a lot, Thora.  Funny thing is, I was thinking the same thing when I was working on this after you went exploring.”  The Feraligatr chuckled as he pulled out the gem and handed it to her.  “Since you are the medic, you deserved a stone that symbolizes healing.”  

Thora smiled as she took the stone, her face reddening.  “Thanks, Jari, this means a lot to me.”  

“Anytime, Thora.  Happy Valentine’s Day.”  He smiled before leaning up into a kiss.  “Should come here more often when we have some time off.”  

“You’re telling me.”  Thora laughed as she nestled her head on Jari’s arms.  “Speaking of time off, what about Red Squadron?”  

The Feraligatr snickered.  “They got the day off.  I want to see what Olsen and Svana do today.  I think my squad already has bets going.”  

Thora burst out laughing, grinning at her boyfriend.  “And it took some fake orders to pull this off.  Screaming Wind, that’s awesome.”

“Oh man, we were laughing hysterically when Olsen came back.”  The Feraligatr grinned.  “We gave them a teasing to remember.”  

“Should we wear what we wore last time?”  Thora asked as she relaxed.  

“Yeah, don’t see why not.”  He laughed.  “I want to know what Olsen and Svana are going to do before the party.”  

It was late afternoon when a very nervous Svana the Swellow spotted Carina walking past her, dressed in a bright red dress.  “Carina!  I-I need a favor!”  

“What’s up, Svana?”  The Glaceon asked, glancing over that the worried Swellow.  

“I need help figuring out what to wear for the party tonight!”  

The Glaceon laughed as she walked with the Swellow to her hut.  “Alright, so what kind of outfits do you have?”

“Nothing much aside from a few simple dresses.”  Svana replied with a sigh.  

Carina looked through the dresses and shrugged.  “Go with what you think looks good, Svana.”  The Glaceon chuckled to herself.  She and Fuego both had had hunches that ‘mon would be asking them for help before the party, and they both were busy helping other ‘mon before the party at the Great Hall started.  

“Would this look good?”  Svana asked, pulling out a bright yellow dress before glancing at it again and setting it aside. “Nah, too bright.”  The Swellow continued to dig through her wardrobe, and she turned around to see Carina giggling at her.  “What’s so funny?”

“Why are you so worried, Svana?  It’s your best friend.  I just find it amusing that you’re here worried about dresses instead of just having a good time at the party.”  

“I…I guess I want to look good?”  Svana sighed softly as she looked at another dress.

Carina smiled as she walked up to the Swellow.  “Svana, you and Olsen have gone through so many things together I can tell you that it won’t matter what you wear.  Just have a good time.”  The Glaceon said, glad she had already dressed for the party.  “I mean, Fuego and I are going to be either singing or on the dance floor all evening!”  

Svana looked at her outfits and smiled.  “Thanks, Carina.  I think I’ll go with this one.  I’ve always liked the orange.”  She said, pulling out an orange and white dress.  “This is one of my favorite outfits, so I think I’ll wear this.”  The Swellow stepped aside and put the dress on.  “How do I look?”

Carina grinned as she looked at the Swellow.  “Great, you’ll really make an impression tonight!”  

“Thanks again, Carina.  I really appreciate it.  Wonder how Olsen’s doing.”  The Swellow said.

Meanwhile, Fuego was laughing as he spotted a nervous Olsen sifting through different outfits.  Olsen wasn’t faring any better compared to his wingmon.  “Olsen, you look more nervous for this than any other thing I’ve been here for!  What’s wrong?”  

The Staraptor stuttered over his words as he tried to make a decision regarding his outfit for the party.  “I-I don’t know, Boss.  I want to look nice for this, but I’m worried about what outfit I should wear.”  

Fuego grinned at the Staraptor as he nodded to the suits that the Normal and Flying type had.  “Olsen, you and Svana are best friends, and you guys just need to relax and have a good time tonight.”

“Well, considering what Jari and Bjartr did to set us up, I wouldn’t be surprised to see those two watching us all night, along with a few other interested ‘mon.”  Olsen replied, and Fuego laughed.  

The Chandelure chuckled as he looked over at the Tortromdo aerial commander.  “Did you and Svana have a good time?”

“Yeah, we had a blast.”

“Then why would this be any different?  Just relax and have fun.  Don’t worry about all this other stuff, just worry about enjoying the party.”   The Chandelure said with a chuckle.

Olsen looked into his wardrobe and nodded.  “Thanks, Boss, I appreciate that.”  He found a black suit with orange and yellow trim between two other suits and smiled.  “I think she’ll like this one.  It’s a nice suit.”  The Staraptor said before putting on the suit.  “Is it time for the party?”

“Yeah, it should be starting soon.  The chefs are already preparing dinner.”  

“Sweet, I’m looking forward to it.  Thanks, Boss.”  The Staraptor said as Fuego left the hut and walked toward the Great Hall.

The Chandelure smiled as he saw familiar faces entering the Great Hall.  He knew that Gunnar the Ashbringer, the Absol speed commander, would be getting teased frequently today, and shook his head.  Fuego saw his wife in her bright red dress and smiled as the two embraced happily.  “Hey, sweetheart, how’d it go?”

“Good!  Svana was worried, so I had to help her out.”

Fuego laughed and shook his head as Carina looked at him with a giggle.  “Olsen was the same way.  Took a while for him to pick out a suit.”

The two laughed and walked into the Great Hall, smiling as they saw their best friends William the Great and Isla the Dark already seated at one of the tables.  The Shiny Mienshao and Mightyena smiled back as Fuego and Carina went to a table and sat down.  “Looks like those two are going to have a fantastic Valentine’s Day.”  Carina chuckled, and Fuego nodded as he looked around the Great Hall.  

The two turned and heard snickers from a nearby table, and Fuego and Carina both burst out laughing when they saw Jari’s squad already placing their bets regarding Olsen and Svana.  The smirk on Anna the Pidgeot’s face also caused many of the Tortrombdo to chuckle as well.  

It didn’t take long for the other couples to enter the Great Hall.  Jari grinned as he wore a familiar suit alongside his girlfriend, who was wearing a bright blue dress that matched her date’s tuxedo.  Jari grinned when he saw the grins from his squadmates as he and Thora took their seats.  The two had grins on their faces, eagerly waiting for Olsen and Svana to enter the Great Hall.  

Svana was the first to arrive, and Thora smirked when she saw the Swellow wearing the bright orange dress that she had picked.  “I think Olsen’s jaw is going to detach itself from his face.”  The Lapras commented, earning her snickers from other nearby Pokemon, including Jari.  

Olsen was the next to arrive, and instantly the ‘mon in the Great Hall burst out laughing as Olsen and Svana’s jaws both dropped when they saw each other.  Jari nearly fell off his chair and was trying to wipe tears from his eyes, and the Feraligatr’s squad was grinning.  Anna was laughing as she grinned at her two best friends.  

“I think that’s the first time Olsen’s ever been left speechless!”  Jari yelled, earning him roars of laughter from everyone in the room.  Olsen and Svana shook their heads as the Staraptor walked forward to greet his best friend.  

“H-hey, Svana.  You look gorgeous.”   The Staraptor stuttered.

Svana’s face was so red that Thora swore it would have matched Olsen’s feathers.  “T-t-thanks, Olsen.  You look fantastic yourself.”  

“Are there any tables left?”  Olsen wondered as he handed Svana a bouquet of flowers.  “Found these earlier today.  Happy Valentine’s Day.”

The crowd erupted in cheers as Svana smiled and took the bouquet, nuzzling Olsen softly in response.  “I love them, Olsen, thank you so much.”

“Y-you’re welcome, Svana.”  Olsen said as his face reddened.  The two spotted an empty table and took their seats amidst the cheering from the others in the Great Hall.  

Once the two took their seats, Svana took a sip from a glass of water.  “Wow, they weren’t kidding that this was going to be a party.”  

“I wonder what the music’s going to be.”  Olsen chuckled, knowing that Jari’s squad would be in charge of playing the music again.  “Nice outfit.  It looks great on you.”  

“Thanks.  Yeah, I decided to go with this because it looked really nice.”  Svana replied.  “So where’d you get these?”  She asked, looking at the bouquet.  

Olsen laughed.  “They were growing not that far away, so I picked a few.”  He grinned.  “So who’s going to end up on the dance floor tonight?”

“A lot of ‘mon, most likely.”  Svana replied with a chuckle, causing Olsen to grin.  

Olsen glanced over at a nearby table, and saw Jari and Thora grinning at him, and the Staraptor rolled his eyes.  “Why don’t you two kiss instead of watching us?”

The Feraligatr and Lapras snickered and grinned before leaning across the table for a kiss, earning them roars from the crowd.  “Nice try, Olsen!”  Jari roared with laughter at his friend.  

The food was soon passed out, and an eager Svana and Olsen dug into their meals.  “I have to say, the chefs outdid themselves tonight.”  Olsen said after taking a bite out of his filet.  

“You’re telling me!  This is delicious!”  Svana said as she took a sip from her glass of water.  

Meanwhile, Fuego and Carina were happily sharing a warm meal together.  The Chandelure and Glaceon smiled happily as they took bites out of the meal that they had requested, and Carina grinned as she looked at her husband.  “I can’t wait to hit the dance floor.”

“I know what you mean.”  After the two gave each other their handcrafted Valentine’s Day gifts, they shared a kiss before looking out at the stage.  “What say we get this party started, huh?”  Fuego asked with a grin

Carina giggled as she and Fuego walked up to the stage, where Jari’s band was already set up and ready to play.  “So, what song should we do first?”

“Not sure.  Let’s see if we have any takers for the dance floor.”  Fuego chuckled as he looked out over the room.  “Evening everyone!  I hope you are all having a great time tonight!  Any requests to start us off?”  

It didn’t come as a surprise that one of the first songs that was requested was the classic dance song Footloose, which got almost everyone on the dance floor as Fuego and Carina happily sang the lyrics together.  After a few requests, the crowd started chanting for Olsen and Svana to hit the dance floor.  

Olsen’s face reddened as he looked over at his best friend.  “W-w-would you like to dance?”

Svana blushed and smiled at her best friend.  “Sure, I’d love to, Olsen!”  

The two stepped onto the dance floor as the crowd roared, with many yelling for classic dance songs.  Eventually, Jari and Thora exchanged glances and grinned.  “Eye of the Tiger!”  Thora yelled from her seat, and immediately the crowd burst into cheers.  Jari stepped up and took the microphone as he and his band began singing the classic dance song as everyone cheered.  

Fuego and Carina both grinned as they walked onto the dance floor for another dance song.  The two smiled and shared a warm kiss as they danced together to “Dancing In The Moonlight.”  It had been a great Valentine’s Day, and they both knew that the party was only beginning.