The Next Day
"You'll be able to hold any missions for me tonight,
correct?" Magnolia asked, leaning against the wall. "...Why? I have a little
gala at the Sateaux Embassy to attend...Right, that's the one...You will? ...Thanks
a bunch, Sara! See you!" Magnolia hung up the phone with a wide grin on her
face. "Well, today's the big day, Sys...Sys-op, are you listening to
me?"
The pink Kadoatie paid her absolutely no notice.
Face buried in a Starberry, she murmured an incomprehensible reply. She then
sat up. "Oh, right, that's today, isn't it?"
"Yes, tonight! 7:30 at the earliest." She paused,
glancing at her Chet Flash clock. "D'you think I should be fashionably late?"
"Eh, I suppose," replied Sys-op. "I wouldn't
suggest getting ready for it too late, though."
"You're right!" Magnolia replied. "That means
I should start getting ready now!" Magnolia darted to the bathroom before Sys-op
had a moment to protest. The sound of running water was quickly present.
"Magnolia, you just took a bath!" Sys-op
called. "An hour ago!"
"You can never be too sanitary, Sys-op!"
Sys-op shrugged and began chomping at her Starberry
once more.
Forty Minutes Later
Agent_Magnolia slammed her bedroom door behind
her as she hopped into the bathroom clad in a pink towel. "I think I should
organize my makeup around now," she said to herself, rummaging around her wooden
cosmetics shelf and finding two shades of lipstick. She turned to Sys-op, hoping
to decide on which one to wear. "Which one do you think works better--Mocha-Choca
Mauve or Bon-Bon Rouge?"
"W--I don't know!" Sys-op replied. "Call
Tiira_Misu!"
Magnolia complied, quickly reaching for her telephone
and dialing Tiira_Misu's telephone number. She waited for a few seconds before
the phone was answered.
"Tiira_Misu speaking," said a familiar voice.
"Hey, this is Magnolia," Magnolia replied. "I
was w--"
"Neither, pink looks much better on you," Tiira_Misu
interrupted.
Magnolia paused. "H-how did you--?"
"Oh, you mean that's what you were going to ask?"
questioned Tiira_Misu with a giggle. "I just guessed! But, seriously, pink lipstick
is perfect for you."
"Uhh--okay, then," Magnolia answered. "Thanks,
Tiira!"
"Any time! See y--ICHI_DERU, WHAT ARE YOU DOING
TO THAT SOUFFLÉ?! TURN THE--NO!" *BEEP*
Magnolia hung up the telephone quizzically. "O-kay.
She says pink, so I'll go with pink." After applying her makeup, Magnolia was
prepared to put her dress on. It took a bit of time figuring out how to put
it on, but Magnolia was quickly in her ball gown. After a few hours of perfection,
Magnolia had slipped into her shoes and was covered in jewelry. Sys-op was a
bit miffed at the fact that she wore a pink bow on her tail.
"Do I HAVE to wear this thing?" asked Sys-op.
"I bet all of the other petpets will be wearing WHITE bows, at least!"
"Be quiet, Sys-op." Magnolia spent a few minutes
checking her appearance in the mirror when Sys-op looked at the clock.
"Magnolia, we're going to be a little more
than fashionably late," she warned. Reluctantly leaving her place at the mirror,
Magnolia turned to follow Sys-op out the door. She explained to Chaska what
was going on and left her to guard the household.
This was going to be a long night.
The Sateaux Embassy, 77739, Rainbow Lane
Magnolia took one more look at the tall building
at night. The fountain in front of the embassy was circled in lights, making
it appear more stunning than usual. The gates at the front of the embassy were
opened, but Magnolia was still intimidated by the idea of a building packed
with so many rich, powerful people at once.
"I do hope I don't make an idiot of myself,"
said Magnolia, walking down the dirt path around the fountain. "I mean--this
is a once-in-a-lifetime event!"
"Don't worry too much, Mag," replied Sys-op.
"I'm sure you'll be fine." A crowd of various members of the press were gathered
around the entrance, and a red, velvet carpet met the end of the fountain. Magnolia
felt extremely uncomfortable strolling down the carpet, but before the door
was a long line of well-dressed pets of all species. A pink Kacheek stood by
a podium, greeting guests and asking their names. Two Grarrls standing by the
door kindly ushered those whose names were not on a reservation list away. Magnolia
was vaguely reminded of the Gourmet Club.
"Good evening," the Kacheek greeted as two Kougras
approached the podium. "You two are looking very nice tonight. Last names, please."
"Loraine, sir," said the first. The Kacheek searched
around the list for a second before letting them into the entry hall.
"Have a wonderful evening--NEXT!" Magnolia was
jerked to the front of the line. "Good evening!" said the Kacheek. "May I commend
you on how lovely you look tonight? Last name, please."
"Ch-Cherry, Magnolia," she replied, quivering
nervously.
"Ah, there you are. Have a good evening. NE-EXT!"
Magnolia stepped in, viewing the grand entrance hall uneasily. The whole crowd
seemed to stare at her as she descended down a staircase and into the room.
To say the least, Magnolia was feeling much more uncomfortable than important.
The orchestra played lively as a white Cybunny
greeted her. "Hey, Magnolia--I didn't know you were coming here," she said.
"Oh, Peach. Thank goodness--one familiar
face," Magnolia replied with a sigh of relief. "Where's Noelle, anyways?"
Peach pointed to a table by the window where
Noelle stood, busily chatting with a few others. "Taro and Natalie came along
as well, but I don't know where they are." Peach led Magnolia down another short
case of stairs as Noelle caught sight of her. She quickly walked towards them
to greet her.
"Magnolia, you made it!" Noelle exclaimed. "How
are you?"
"N-Nervous...kind of..." Magnolia replied. "A-and
you have get-togethers like this every year?"
"Oh, no, silly. The annual ball being held here
is rare, so normally I don't attend these things," answered Noelle. "Half the
people who do attend annoy me anyways."
Soon after a few minutes of conversation, Natalie
was found in a group of ten or so guests. "And so, I say to the Tonu: What do
you mean blue cheese?" The group burst out laughing. Magnolia sighed;
Natalie always did that.
It wasn't long before the hall was filled with
groups waltzing. Magnolia, who had been given waltzing lessons from a blue Lenny
named Crêpe Cherot not too long before the ball, was well-prepared. Magnolia
had been set up with Crêpe Cherot by Natalie, and he had proven to be a very
eccentric choreographer. Where Natalie got to know a choreographer from, Magnolia
would never know.
And so, everything went perfectly for the most
part, until Noelle had a warning to give. "Oh no, he's coming in," she murmured,
hiding behind Magnolia.
"Who is?" asked Magnolia quizzically. The most
recent guest to arrive was a tall, friendly-looking red Kougra. "You mean him?
He looks nice."
"He's a close acquaintance of mine, actually,"
she replied. "Meet Didier Lacrette. The epitome of annoying. He seems to have
this strange condition involving taking a fancy to each girl he sees every five
minutes. And, since he's known me longer than anyone, I seem to be the one he
likes most. Oh, he saw me; hide me! HIDE ME!"
And he had indeed seen her. Magnolia remained
in front of Noelle, attempting to look inconspicuous as Didier advanced. "Good
evening," he greeted. "Say, you wouldn't have just seen a yellow Aisha around
here, would you?"
"Eh--of course not!" Magnolia quickly replied.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh. Well, thank you either way," he answered,
turning to leave.
"Is he gone?" asked Noelle.
"NOELLE!" Didier quickly turned to face Noelle,
who had too abruptly come out of hiding. "THERE you are! I knew you were here
all along! Come give your best friend a hug!"
"NO! Go away!" Noelle cried, scrambling
away from Magnolia. "I don't WANT a hug!"
"Nonsense! I won't take 'no' for an answer!"
Noelle, not wanting to make a bad impression on the guests, kept from running
away from Didier, but still avoided him by walking quickly. She had soon avoided
him, but that most likely was not for long.
So, the ball went as planned once again, until
it was Magnolia's turn to dance with Didier. He was the first one to make a
comment. "You look very stunning tonight," he said. "What did you say your name
was?"
"I never said my name, but Magnolia,"
she replied, nearly having her foot crushed by Didier. "Have you danced before?"
"Why, no, my sweet Magnolia. That is such a pretty
name," he told her, stepping on her foot for the third time in a row.
"Ugh, how corny do you get?" Magnolia
asked. "I--uhn--mean--ouch!--seriously--ooh!--I'm not--eugh--your sweet--hey,
watch it!--any--OUCH!--thing!"
"Absolute--"
"--OUCH--!"
"--Nonsense!" Didier finished, missing Magnolia's
foot by an inch. "You're the only person I've met who comes close to dearest
Noelle. You've charm and grace and--"
"Will you stop squishing my feet already?!"
Magnolia whispered harshly, stepping away and backing into the next guest.
"Err--may I cut in?" asked Taro.
"YES!" Magnolia exclaimed, standing up.
"But I thought he was supposed to--"
"I don't care; now MOVE!" Magnolia cried, pushing
Taro away from Didier, who had already become preoccupied with the next guest.
The night once more progressed as planned, and
Magnolia, now having a new dancing partner, was quite relieved.
"I didn't know you danced," said Magnolia.
"You can compliment Natalie on that," Taro replied. "She set me up with this
weird guy who choreographed music scenes in movies."
"Crêpe Cherot, right?" Magnolia asked.
"How do you know him?"
"Don't ask. Please." Magnolia glanced at the
window, having seen something quickly glide past, but decided it was nothing
and turned away.
"You're wearing a very lovely dress," Taro commented.
"Thank you! Er--you too!" Magnolia replied.
"What, I'm wearing a lovely dress?" asked Taro
jokingly.
"N--I mean--I didn't mean a dress--but
you look nice." Magnolia coughed. At least the first time she made an idiot
of herself was with a friend. "I was a bit worried about this dress--I mean--I
spent a while preparing for this--so--it doesn't look bad on me or anything--?"
"No, it looks fine. Your hard work paid off,"
he replied. "Actually I was--"
CRASH!
"AUUUUUGH!"
CRASH! SPLAT!
"NOELLE!"
Magnolia quickly turned to Noelle to see what
had happened. The yellow Aisha who had looked so perfect moments before was
covered in punch and crackers. Apparently, something had crashed through the
window and surprised a guest near the table, knocking over a bowl of punch and
plate of hors d'oeuvres and spilling them all over Noelle. Magnolia covered
her eyes as the rest of the food crashed to the ground and guest ran all around
in confusion and surprise. Everything was ruined. Magnolia looked to
the floor. It seemed that the culprit was--
"Chaska?!" Magnolia cried, seeing the
tiny faerie on the marble floor. "Ch-What are you DOING here?!"
"You KNOW her?!" asked Noelle, shaking her dress
free of a few drops of punch. "She's the one responsible for all of this!"
"I know, and she had better have a GOOD excuse
for it, too!" Magnolia cried. "Chaska, we're going home, and you have a whole
lot of explaining to do."
Magnolia's House, Later that Night
Magnolia frowned crossly, arms crossed, dressed
in a nightshirt that read "HAPPY CAMPER" in bold letters. And at this point
in time, she was no happy camper. Chaska and Sys-op sat meekly on the
vanity in front of her.
"Now, Chaska," she finally said. "I'll ask this
once--and only once: WHAT IN THE NAME OF JUMPING JUPPIES POSSESSED YOU
TO COME IN AND RUIN ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DAYS OF MY LIFE?!"
Chaska stumbled backwards into the vanity's mirror.
"W-well--I didn't mean to
ruin it--honest! I--"
"SPILL ALREADY!" Magnolia exclaimed.
"EEP! OKAY, OKAY!" Chaska sighed. "I w-went outside...pondering
my situation--how I would make it back to Faerieland safely--and s-so, this
big, HUGE Eustabee comes out of nowhere--actually, I think it was next door--and
he chases me all around town! I tried to get away, but I could barely make it
to safety, even flying. I was just flying blindly in fear and I didn't notice
the window up ahead--and I crashed through it! This Shoyru standing by the window
sees me, and she says, 'OH, HEAVENS!' and she backs into a table and flips a
bowl of punch and plate of hors d'oeuvres and--well, I guess you know what happened
then."
"I sure do!" Magnolia replied. "And I don't want
you going outside again until I tell you that you can, Chaska. When I'm at work,
stay inside. When I'm at home, stay inside. When I'm out shopping, stay inside.
When I do ANYTHING, stay inside! AND THAT'S AN ORDER! NOW GO TO SLEEP BEFORE
I CHANGE MY MIND!"
Magnolia buried her face in her pillow and turned
out the lights. Sys-op sighed as she crawled into bed. Having a faerie living
in the household was going to be anything but easy.
The End | 
