Equestria. Magehold. Day.
The preparations for Fantina's show were being made. 2 days ago, It had been planned out and by now, the stage had been set. Made by the children who have some rather impressive creative skills, this stage for the Fashion Show had a mixture of the dreadful aura that Magehold possesses, giving it some familiarity. But thanks to Fantina's influence, a bit of brightness had been sprinkled in.
"Miss Fantina...Can I talk to you?" A little vampire walked up to Fantina.
"Sure. What is it, little one?"
"Um...Do we have to dance with this fashion show? Cause...you were teaching us how to dance last time."
"Oh, well...Dancing is sure to wow the crowd. Especially if it's something unique. But you all don't usually dance here at Magehold from what I've heard. If not, ever."
"Yeah, but...that's a bit embarrassing. We suck at it and it wasn't all that much fun for me."
"It was for me!" A filly vampire raised her hoof, excitedly shouting as she would prefer to dance at the Fashion Show.
"Me too!" All the fillies seemed to be eager for this. They rather enjoyed the thought of dancing as it was something they've never really done before. The small session they had with Fantina gave them a taste of what was possible.
"Aww...Do we have to?" The colts weren't too fond of it though. Both sides would babble and chatter, expressing how they felt about it.
"They don't approve of dancing, but we can show them just how amazing it can be!" Fantina pumped her fist, eager to show the vampires how wonderful dancing can be. After all, the teachers scoffed at it and there was a high possibility that everyone else did. Fantina wished to show them how enjoyable dancing could be, even if it was for a moment. "They don't have faith in us, but I say otherwise."
"But can we really get it done? The show's nearly here." A colt asked as the Fashion Show was nearing at this point. The schedule was only for two days and by now, they've managed to get everything done except the moves.
"Of course, we can. With me as your teacher, you can learn quickly. But, here is something important to know, my little ponies. Dance in whatever way you feel like. You don't have to be elegant and graceful with it."
"We don't? But you dance so beautifully Miss Fantina. We would love to dance just like you do." A vampire filly uttered as she and a few others wished to be as skilled as Fantina, even if it would take a long time to reach this level, especially for ponies who were exempt from knowing about dancing until two days ago.
"Thank you, but something like this still takes some time." Fantina kneeled to face the little vampires. "If only we had more time to perfect some of these moves. But we can work with what we have."
"Can we use magic?! Will that make it easier?!" The colts all said, going for the easier route. And that was by using magic to get ahead.
"Well...I won't stop you from doing that. The important thing is that you must always have fun when dancing." Fantina passed on some lessons to them about dancing, going beyond just being graceful. Enjoyment was a big factor in it. "Each of you have untapped potential when it comes to dancing. For you girls, you have an elegant Swanna in you, waiting to take flight. And for you boys, a fierce Pyroar is waiting to prance. Let's give an example. Laughjack? If you would?"
"M-Me?" A colt by the name of Laughjack stuttered as he was picked out of his classmates.
"Mhm. Then again...You aren't exactly tall enough for me to dance with." Fantina chuckled. "If only I had a tall enough dance partner for me and you. Ah!" The Hearthome City Gym Leader would then dig into her pockets, taking out one of her Poke Balls. She had the answer. "Appear, my friends!" Out of her Poke Balls came Dusknoir, Gengar and Mismagius. Pokemon that were both large and medium-sized. And yet, they still weren't enough to match the small size of young ponies. Fantina would try and make it work despite these differences.
"Dance with the Pokemon? Are you sure?" Laughjack asked.
"My Pokemon sometimes take after me. They have their own way of dancing and as Ghosts, they can get creative." Fantina winked, promising that her Pokemon could give out inspiration. "Gengar the others will tutor you. I will perform physical dancing compared to what they can do."
"I'm still not tall enough so..." Laughjack shrugged, believing that he would be able to avoid embarrassing himself by dancing with Fantina.
"Here!" Not if any of his cheeky classmates have anything to say about that. A vampire quickly shot Laughjack from behind, using her curse against him.
"H-Hey!" The curse affected Laughjack's small body, quickly changing his hooves. Everyone laughed as Laughjack suddenly grew taller with this Curse Magic, increasing his height rapidly. "Oh...this is awkward."
"I can work with this. Come, Laughjack." Fantina would hold her hooves out as Laughjack was tall enough to dance with Fantina at this height. Granted, it was only his hooves that have been lengthened. His entire upper body was still the same, making him look mutated. "Just place your right hoof on my waist and follow my movements.
"Ooohooo~" When Laughjack's elongated hoof touched Fantina and Fantina would grab one of his hooves, all the boys would coo and whistle, already revelling in Laughjack's awkward situation.
"This is the worst..." Laughjack groaned while Fantina would guide him. "Oh well. At least it's with Miss Fantina, so it's not all bad." He grinned as he felt somewhat lucky to be dancing with everyone's favourite teacher at this school.
Gengar, Mismagius and Dusknoir would also show off their own unique way of dancing, using their Ghostly attributes to do so. Dusknoir would twist and turn his body which wasn't too outlandish for the children. Their curses could perform various tricks that could create some form of dance. Granted, they wouldn't be as elegant as Fantina, but Fantina truly wanted them to dance in the way they find most unique instead of making them as talented as a Roserade or an Oricorio.
The students would follow the Ghost-Type Pokemon, seeing how erratic their moves were and yet they were still interesting to watch. The Pokemon would even use their moves to bring their dance moves to life. The children would use their curses to try and do the same, seeing what they could come up with.
All of this dancing had yet to be noticed by anyone else within the school. Not even the teachers have seen it and they would rather not due to how much they disagreed with it. However, they could hear the sounds of dancing nearby. Hooves being tapped on the floor constantly, the sound of magic flickering and most importantly, the sound of children laughing. They would shake their heads after hearing this. They didn't even need to see it.
As for those following Fractured Note's orders, promotion for this show had been spread out. Bat-winged papers were sent across Magehold as they carried a dark aura when they flew. The vampires across Magehold would notice the winged papers, grabbing them to read what was promoted.
"Magehold's Junior Fashion Show?" A vampire read out. "What exactly is a Fashion Show?" Due to being in Magehold for so long and having little interaction with the outside world or even experiencing other activities, the concept of a Fashion Show seemed rather alien to them. They knew about fashion since Opal Vivacity makes sure to dress better than anyone just for the sake of vanity. But a show? Not at all.
However, it did catch their interest. Seeing the children perform in this strange event was a good way to kill time seemingly. And thanks to how Fractured Note ordered the promotion papers to be worded, keeping in line with that Magehold dread, it would draw them in.
Speaking of Opal Vivacity, she was one of the few vampires who knew about fashion shows. Mainly because of how much she went out into Equestria in secrecy, acting as a spy and gathering as much information as possible. It's how she came to know about Pokemon after all.
Sitting in her manor, drinking grim but to her, delicious henbane drink, she would grab one of the Bat-Winged Papers to see what it entailed. "What?!" Opal almost spat out her drink. "This Fashion Show thing is actually going through?!"
"Ooh! Sounds interesting!" Merry Dread had her own paper, entering the same room as Opal Vivacity. Both had different reactions to this revelation.
"That brother of mine...!" Opal Vivacity already knew who was already behind this approval. Her older brother Fractured Note. Grizzling her teeth, she would crush the paper with her bare hooves.
"Is this like those Pokemon Contests they have?" Merry Dread wondered. "I have to check this out. What about you, Opal?"
"Obviously, you would want to view it. But something like this is nothing but a time waster when we have more important things to do. Not to mention the impact it will have on the children. We need them to be powerful vampires when they grow up. There are other universes out there are after all and we cannot afford to falter. Besides...who else besides you would want to view something like this? The teachers have already made it clear that they wouldn't."
"Everyone else doesn't see it that way." Merry Dread said, looking out of the window to see droves of vampires flying towards the school. Opal would rush to the window, spotting these vampires who were also holding the promotional papers. "If you'll excuse me...I'll be with them." Merry Dread would soon depart, leaving Opal behind.
"Tch. Ridiculous." Opal narrowed her eyes sharp eyes. "The only reason this is happening is because most of these vampires have been too comfortable for all these centuries, living carefree without having to do anything else. The previous Lich Kings and Queens never made a move on Equestria or anywhere else. But her majesty, Rosa Maledicta is different. She can at least go the distance."
The fashionable vampire despised how the normal vampires were. Compared to her and other vampires who were chosen to take missions and cause as much chaos as they can, a majority of vampires simply lived their lives without much of a care in the world. Being only in Magehold for years with no worries of having to attack somewhere or go into battle definitely affected them. But not Opal and other vampires.
"And that brother of mine...how could he approve this?" Opal was more confused by the fact that Fractured Note would even go through with this. The average vampire, she could understand. But her older brother, who was the servant to the Lich Queen, was outlandish.
"Wait...Is he doing this out of spite!?" The fashionable vampire gasped, realizing why Fractured Note might've approved this. This could be another case of sibling squabble but it was clear that Fractured Note was already ahead. Vexxed by this, Opal would decide to visit the Fashion Show. And as a fashionable pony, she wished to see how disastrous this could turn out for Fantina's class.
The time for Fashion Show had begun. The vampire's all entered the courtyard of the school to see the stage itself. The left side of the circular stage was an assortment of bat wings and a dark aura that would ominously flow, followed by the flicker of eerie eyes that were masked in the darkness.
And on the right side, where Fantina's side would show, a bright purple aura would flow instead. And with the massive Heavenly Maiden Cherry Blossom Tree Fantina created, those cherry blossoms were around the aura in contrast to the wings and eyes. The Cherry Blossoms were something that the vampires did not mind, simply because of the fact that it stunned many of the vampires who once saw it.
"Bonjour, my little ponies!" Along came Fantina, twirling in to make her entrance. "Welcome to this Junior Fashion Show! Prepared by the wonderful children from my class and with help from Fractured Note, we can bring you this show. This is something special that I believe you should all watch. And with the children...just watch the fun they can have from this."
Hearing Fantina's announcement, Opal would stand from afar when watching this, crossing her hooves with a disdainful look on her face. Meanwhile, her other siblings would watch from different angles when listening to Fantina. Fractured Note watched from a balcony over at the castle while Merry Dread was within the crowd.
"There will be some dancing involved. Keep in mind, they are not the most graceful dancers, but they know how to make things interesting." Fantina winked. "And they will be joined by my lovely Pokemon. And by the end of it, we will have a Pokemon Battle just for the fun of it. So enjoy!" Fantina would then jump back, allowing the children to take the stage
And what of their clothes? What could a vampire pony possibly wear as fashion? Well, influenced by Fantina and her Pokemon, the clothes that the little vampires chose were incredibly bombastic and messy. The first group of vampires to show up wore clothing that resembled some Pokemon. A Skarmory, Ludicolo and a Seviper respectively.
"Check me out!" In a fashion show, usually, words from the models themselves are never said. But since these were children and their first time being in a show, they were bound to blabber and speak whatever they had on their minds. These kids had no filter after all. The girl in the Skarmory dress would show off, twirling on the spot with a single hoof.
And when twirling, the wings on the dress were made to perfectly resemble Skarmory's wings. Perfectly. With her own magic, she managed to make them actual spikes as they would then fly off her costume when she performed this spiralling dance move that made her move across the stage.
The spikes would erratically fly out, going over the heads of the vampires. Normally, this would be seen as highly dangerous, but despite living rather peaceful lives for centuries, the vampires never lost their dangerous side. This entire civilization was proof of that. And with these spikes flying around, one of the would latch onto the Ludicolo costume, pinning the other vampire against the wall.
"Ugh..." The filly vampire wearing the Ludicolo clothes groaned after being pinned against the wall. "Nice aim..."
"Whoops. My bad. I didn't think they'd fall off so easily." He giggled, holding up his spikes.
As such, laughter would ensue. Already, this was amusing to the vampires. Seeing a slip-up from the children was rather enjoyable. And of course, the spikes were greatly enjoyed as well.
"Alright, it's my turn. This is how snakes usually dance!" The colt wearing the Seviper outfit would take his turn. His entire body was within the suit to the point where he looked serpentine. Replicating the movement of a snake, he would slither on the floor, to the best of his abilities. However, he barely got anywhere, staying in the same spot and just wriggling. "If I could just...move."
"Here, I'll help." The boy wearing the Skarmory outfit grinned, chiming in by throwing one of his spikes at his fellow vampire.
"Oh!" The vampire in the Seviper outfit would grimace as that reaction managed to make him move. The Skarmory-clad vampire would throw more spikes near him, just to make him move some more. And it was working, surprisingly. He started slithering and wriggling, evading the spikes with close calls. More and more, the crowd would laugh as they found this hilarious rather than beautiful. But that was a merit in its own right. So far, they were not dazzling at all but their antics as vampires are what made them amusing.
"Okay, it's my turn! You three have shown off enough!" Moving through the curtains were long stylized Dodrio heads that were made to have a more menacing look compared to the original Pokemon. These heads acted as hands as they grabbed the two vampires wearing Skarmory and Seviper clothes.
The vampire wearing it would drag them away, making the duo scream as they wished to show off some more. The one wearing the Ludicolo clothes would still find herself stuck on the walls as no one had let her down yet. That is until Dusknoir came through. The Gripper Pokemon phased through the walls, removing the spike and freeing her.
Fantina's Pokemon would finally make an appearance. And they would carry some style with them. Joining Dusknoir were Gengar, Drifblim and Mismagius. To add some music for this fashion show, Mismagius would start chanting incantations in a melodic tune.
With these incantations, she would affect the area. Massive mouths would appear out of thin air via Mismagius' incantations as they all had bright grins. More importantly, they had the fangs of vampires, just to keep with the theming. And with her power, Mismagius would make the mouths laugh, going with the beat of the sound she made.
Now, this show certainly had wonder to it. And adding to that wonder was Gengar, who managed to make an illusion that enlarged his body. With his round body enlarged, it looked like Gengar had multiple mouths on him. He fit perfectly with the various sharp fangs in the air, laughing along with them.
As for the next group of children, they would start dancing to the best of their abilities. Using their magic, they would form a light show, using their respective auras. Their spells would even pass through, mainly affecting their classmates. They would wear clothes of the different types and fittingly, their curses would respond to these types well. For those who wore Sharpedo clothes, a Curse Magic would affect their bodies, making them wobbly. Much like water.
For those with Fire-Type outfits, someone would start a fire underneath the others, making them prance frantically from the rabid flames that suddenly spawned. That was one way to get them to dance. Other elements would be thrown out depending on which type was seen as they would rapidly fly across the stage with Drifblim being in the middle of it, unphased. Next to the beautiful showcase from the Pokemon, the chaotic and erratic mess from the children was playing out.
It was a bizarre contrast between beautiful and messy. And yet, it was still brilliant to watch as the crowd would continue cackling, laughing, wheezing and even slapping their hooves. Some would even spot their own children in the fray, mucking about. This went on for minutes but not for too long. The number of students in Fantina's class wasn't that abundant after all. It would be a short fashion show, but a worthwhile one.
"Hmph. It's already a disaster." Opal confidently smiled, believing this to be a failure of a show due to how it was going.
"Are you sure about that? Those were laughs of enjoyment." Appearing behind Opal Vivacity was Fractured Note, startling his little sister.
"Brother!" Opal gasped. "This is only possible because of you, isn't it? You approved of this just to spite me, didn't you?"
"Did I? I just found Fantina's idea to be amusing. But you certainly don't. They do as you can see by their reactions." Fractured Note nudged his head over to the crowd. Opal Vivacity would take a closer look at the crowd, seeing how much they were reacting to this.
They preferred how disorganized this was. While Fashion Shows are usually clean and straightforward, this was neither of that. But that added to the charm of it.
"How can this be?!" Opal's jaw dropped. "Why has this been happening recently...?"
"It's a lot like the tree that Fantina made. The ponies here are looking for something new. Centuries here will do that to you and wit the Black Crusadae not yet executed, this is a nice way to kill some time for them." Fractured Note said before swaying his head to avoid an incoming lightning bolt. "Plus, the chaotic nature of it fits, doesn't it? Fantina knows us and what we enjoy. That much is clear."
"Hmph." Opal crossed her arms. "Ridiculous. How could she pull this off? Honestly, I could do better since I know what actual fashion looks like. It should be me running that show. Not that I would want to run it in the first place."
"And now! Let's begin our battle! And the one to take part in that battle with me!" Fantina jumped in the middle of the chaos as this show was nearing its end.
"Well, if you're feeling that bitter, how about an explosive ending?" Fractured Note suggested. "Battle against Fantina and you could maybe scratch that itch."
"I was already planning to do so when I heard about that part. I'll make an explosive end alright." Opal held out her own Poke Ball. Fractured Note was hoping for this but her sister already had it in mind before he suggested it. "Embarrassing her is what I plan to do."
Opal Vivacity would approach the stage, going through with what Fractured Note planned. Just as the children were readjusting themselves, they would grimace upon seeing Opal Vivacity appear. There was a bit of silence when this Fashionable Vampire appeared. All the other vampires would make way for her as Opal Vivacity certainly carried an air of importance due to her reputation.
Watching this from afar was Ebony Rhyme who would prefer to stay away from everyone else. When watching this show, she would stand up to see Opal Vivacity approach Fantina.
"Well, Fantina. You've certainly surprised everyone again." Opal stepped onto the stage, flipping her massive mane. "First the tree and now this."
"I have, haven't I?" Fantina giggled. "This has been an enjoyable show for everyone, as you can see. But what would make it better is a battle. Everyone loves those after all. And how about having another one of these next time? What does everypony think?!" Fantian raised her arms, wanting to hear the reactions from the crowd.
And it was a thunderous reaction. They all loved it for how chaotic it was. The vampires would most definitely love to see another one of these shows again. Whatever it ends up being. Fashion or not. And of course, the one they could trust to deliver was none other than Fantina. After all, she's surprised everyone twice in a row. From the Heavenly Maiden Tree to this Junior Fashion Show.
"W-What...?!" Opal gasped as everyone approved of it. Without a doubt, this was bound to happen again, much to her chagrin.
"Splendid! I shall plan out what we shall do next time. Maybe next month or a few months. Or even next year. So...do you doubt me now, Opal?" Fantina put on a proud and cocky smirk that agitated Opal Vivacity. "
"I don't doubt you, but I am looking forward to crumbling this and whatever you have planned next!" Opal would suddenly throw out a Poke Ball, summoning her Salazzle into the fray.
"Salazzle!"
"Hm. Then...Mismagius! Appear!"
"Mismagius!" Phasing through Fantina, Mismagius would show herself. Everyone gasped as the final part of this show was about to play out. A Pokemon Battle. And it would be between these two which was rather surprising. The crowd got one more surprise and it was in the form of what some would say 'A Dream Match'.
"I'll make this quick! Crush them, Salazzle! Use Dragon Pulse at once!"
"Sala!" Out of her mouth, a beam in the shape of a dragon would fly out viciously, baring its fangs at Mismagius.
"Mismagius, Dark Pulse!"
"Mismag!" Mismagius would respond with her own beam. That would be Dark Pulse. However, Salazze was targeting both Mismagius and Fantina. With smiles on their faces, Fantina and Mismagius would gracefully twirl, evading the pulse in unison, making everyone wow in amazement. And to add to that amazement, Dusknoir would uppercut the pulse into the air, making it explode to create some draconic fireworks.
"Huh?!" Opal bellowed while looking up at the Draconic Fireworks. Even during a battle, Fantina found a way to dazzle everyone.
"Behold! We shall be the ones to end this quickly!" Fantina pointed at Opal as Mismagius would finally unleash Dark Pulse after evading the Dragon Pulse.
"Sa! Salazzle!" The beam of darkness reached Salazzle, engulfing her completely. The beam would tear through the floor of the stage before then carrying Salazzle off of it. The dark beam passed by Opal making her move to the side as it managed to clip her massive hair.
Everyone watched as the Mismagius made the beam fly into the air, which in addition, brought Salazzle into the air. Salazzle found herself airborne while trapped within the Dark Pulse as Fantina and Mismagius were ready to make a show out of her.
"And finally...!" Fantina raised her fingers which prompted Mismagius to send Salazzle higher. "Finition!" Fantina snapped her fingers which made the Dark Pulse combust immediately, finally dealing damage to Salazzle.
Stunningly, it was a one-hit Ko. The last batch of fireworks went off. And that was with dark fireworks which surprisingly stuck out despite how dark the skies constantly were. Opal's jaw dropped. Fractured Note and Ebony Rhyme had smiles on their faces while Salazzle dropped to the stage floor, fainting after just one attack. "Salazzle..."
"And that is all," Fantina called this all to a close. "Thank you for watching!"
"I-Impossible...One hit...?" Opal Vivacity backed away before falling off the stage, being a bit too close to the edge. After dropping just like her Pokemon, the crowd of vampires applauded this wonderful show that they got to witness. It may have been short but it was stunningly enjoyable and humorous.
The children would all gather, hearing the applause that was thrown their way. Fantina and her students would all take a bow after granting the many vampires a good show, just as promised.
"And that will do." Fractured Note nodded his head in approval while looking at his defeated sister. "I think more of these will work."
"Curse it!" Opal got back up, quickly returning her Salazzle. "Fantina! I'll remember this! You can't just embarrass me like-" But she was cut off by the thunderous sound of the crowd cheering. Her voice had been drowned out and yet Fantina could still hear her. "Ugh!"
Annoyed and frustrated, Opal Vivacity would walk off as she found no reason to be here anymore. She's already embarrassed herself and with someone as beautiful as her, she'd rather not.
"Thanks, Fantina..." Ebony Rhyme also knew that Fantina did this for her by extension, dishing out some payback as Fantina was a good friend to her. It didn't quite get rid of the insults, but it scratched an itch for Ebony Rhyme.
The Fashion Show was a success. Behind all the darkness of Magehold and even the wicked acts that they were getting up to outside of Magehold, lay a semblance of happiness. And that happiness was being revealed by none other than Fantina. Though she may have been taken away from her home, stripped from most of her memories, the lovable and eccentric part of Fantina never died out.
Whether that was intentional by the Lich Queen Rosa Maledicta or not was unclear. But either way, it was a part of Fantina. And hearing the happy sounds of Magehold made her rather hopeful of what could come next As the journey continues.
Chapter 59 End.