Sapphire gawked at the mirror in front her. Her alluring, majestic eyes were wide as saucer plates. Her mouth was agape as a Loudred. She could feel her left eye twitch in horror.

"See, I told you, you look beautiful!" She heard Crystal complimented her.

"Wow Sapphire! You look amazing!" Yellow chimed blissfully, clapping her hands.

"Of course, she is wearing one of the finest dresses my dear friend made." Platina flashed a small smile as she remembered her friend – Valentino.

Sapphire flinched to hear Blue say, "You will definitely tango your way to the bedroom with that outfit, dear."

The feisty brunette gulped heavily. She wasn't wearing her usual trainer attire, nor was she wearing her typical grass-knitted tank and skirt.

No. Tonight, she was wearing a sultry, aqua-coloured tango dress. The front of dress was slightly cut upwards, revealing her slender legs and knees. It was sleeveless and shapely, but there bestowed a single line of pearls hanging on her neck, holding the dress on her body. All in all, the dress accentuated her curvy body. Her hair was free from her hat. And thanks to Yellow, a small single blue rose was neatly attached to the far left side of her hair. Once she saw herself on the mirror, Sapphire tried very hard not to scream. She only had a few make up on – thank Arceus for that. Only a dash of eyeliner, mascara, and a dab of blush and powder did the trick.

Other than that, her beauty came for her natural self.

The trembling brunette managed another gulp. She sighed mentally, mourning on how the hell she got stuck into this mess.

O.O.O

Ruby gasped and panted. He sat on the grassy ground, letting the drops of sweat trickle down his forehead. Finally, he did it. He actually vine swung from tree to tree. The young man could not imagine the horror once he saw dirt and trails of Wurmple droppings on the vine he held. But thanks to a certain childhood sweetheart's bet, he sucked up all the trauma and disgust, and sway from tree to tree.

While vine swinging, Ruby then had to face the fear of falling from three storeys high.

He grunted to hear laughter. Ruby looked upwards, seeing Sapphire sitting and cackling on a tree branch.

"Hah! Not bad for a sissy." She guffawed again, fisting the tree in glee.

The dark brunette stood up, quickly dusting off some dirt and grass from his pants and shirt. Red ruby eyes glared sharply at his friend. "I am not a sissy. And I so can handle a measly activity of vine swinging."

"Yeah. Without the occasional crying like a little girl for help." Sapphire laughed again. Her stomach churned at the constant laughing, but it was worth it.

Ruby scowled at her joy. But then a sly smile slowly crept up his face. "So," He crossed his arms against his chest, staring at the girl. "I've done my part of the bet. I proved to you that I can do things that you are so fond of. Now it's your turn."

Her laugh decreased to mere chuckles. Sapphire glanced at the smirking boy. She huffed bitterly and jumped off the tree. "Fine. I'll do some sissy contest thing with my Pokémon. I'll show ya that I am also not afraid of doin' one of yer stupid sparkly things."

She was surprised to hear laughter from him though.

"Oh Sapp," He chuckled amusingly. Ruby walked a few steps forward, eyes shining in a cunning gleam as he looked at her. "Who said anything about you doing a Pokémon contest?" The boy stopped a few feet from her. Sapphire was getting a tad agitated, but she stood her ground. Her heart began to race to see the 'evil' smirk on his face.

Leaning forward, Ruby growled, "I have something different thing in mind…"

O.O.O

"I hate this…" She cursed mentally as she walked to the ballroom. The other female Pokédex owners were in their respective dresses; all courtesy of Platina. If it were for Sapphire, she wanted to run away from it all. She wanted to escape and hide in the woods and never coming out.

But for the sake of her ego and her pride, she forced herself to walk forward.

Finally, they entered the huge ballroom. The hall was big and beautiful. It was decorated with majestic, colourful stained glass windows. The ceiling was made out of thick glass, letting the moon and stars act as limelight to the dancehall.

And once again, it was all courtesy of Platina.

"Oh look, there are the boys." Blue giggled coyly. Hearing those words, Sapphire snapped her head forward. Gasps almost burst out of her mouth to see the young dashing men, all in their respective suits.

But that didn't catch her attention.

What did catch her attention was the single young man in the middle of the group, all dressed in jet black. His pants were black. His suit was black. His hair was hatless and combed to the back, revealing his faint scars. The red tie he wore was an eye-catcher, giving him a pop of colour to his crisp outfit.

Hands rested behind his back, he opened his eyes; revealing two, hungry ruby eyes that can shake a woman.

Sapphire could feel air cutting off from her.

Suddenly, she felt her body being pushed forward. The girl glanced at the back. Blue waved playfully and smirked.

"A-aren't ya guys gonna come too?" Sapphire asked dumbfoundedly.

Blue shook her head, still smiling joyfully. "Nope. This is your 'fight'. We're just the audience."

"W-wha…" She couldn't believe it. Not only did she fell for Ruby's bet, but now she had to do the bet with all her friends watching.

Before Sapphire could yell in disbelief, she felt her hand being held. The brunette quickly gawked forward. Her eyes widened to see the man responsible for all this was standing right in front her.

And to make things worse, his boyish grin was melting her rage.

"Shall we?" Ruby asked foxily, keeping a sly grin. Calmly, he lifted her hand and kissed the back of her palm. The small act caused a huge wave of heat slamming into Sapphire's face. Out of reflex, she quickly retracted her hand and gripped it near her chest. The dark brunette chuckled innocently.

The girl growled under her breath. I am gonna kill you…

With a smile, Ruby stretched his arm towards her, his palm opened for her to reach. "Shall we dance?"

Sapphire wanted to choke Ruby so bad now. But keeping her sanity together, she took one sharp breath and gripped his hand. In less than a second, she felt her body being pulled closely to him. The brunette's left fingers intertwined with his right fingers. Not only that, but she could feel his left hand softly pressing against her back. Eyes avoiding his sneaky gaze, her right hand awkwardly held his shoulder.

All sorts of emotion were crashing down on her. But one thing was certain: Sapphire wasn't going to give up.

The music began to chime in the hall.

And just like that, the two started to tango.

The game had begun.

The couple swayed inside the ballroom. Their legs swooned on the sleek slippery dance floor. Sapphire's hips swayed left and right. Her sapphire-studded heels clicked simultaneously as she moved. Ruby was pleasantly surprised. He knew the girl would take up his offer but he didn't know Sapphire was a dancer at heart.

Or in this case – a seductive tango dancer.

The two twirled around the hall. Her left leg raised and kicked to her side and back. As each minute passed by, her confidence began to kick in. Hey I ain't half bad.They skipped a step to the left and a step to the right in seconds. Sapphire eyes peeked down, looking at her feet in perfect harmony.

From afar, the others gawked in awe. Gold almost drool at the sight of Sapphire and their dance moves while Red blinked in stupor. Blue giggled amusingly and clapped her hands. She knew most of them would think that Sapphire has two left feet. So since the barbaric brunette took Ruby's bet, Blue had insisted on teaching her.

She was impressed though. Who knew one can learn so fast in less than a week?

Ruby bit the insides of his cheeks. He knew the girl hated all kinds of 'feminine' stuff. And tango was the most passionate, most beautiful, most feminine activity that he thought Sapphire would die rather than doing it.

But here she was, dancing with him, as if she had done this for a living.

Taking one fast breath, he pulled the girl closer. Sapphire was stunned, but kept her moves steady. Her eyes were round to see his face was mere inches closer.

"I thought you said you can't handle all the feminine stuff…" Ruby breathed huskily. The petite brunette flinched to feel his breath swiftly caressing her face. But what stunned her more was his gaze. Never had she seen such ferocity; such intensity in his ruby red eyes. It gleamed like a hungry predator, hunting for its prey. The look he gave Sapphire, it was the look of the most intimidating, fearsome trainer she had ever met; the look of the man she fell in love with.

Pursing her lips tightly, Sapphire murmured, "I learn, ya ingrate." On impulse and into the beat of the song, her right leg rose up and folded behind his back.

Upon hearing her words, Ruby flashed a sensual smile. "Oh really?" He leaned forward, resulting with her leaning backwards. She gulped heavily as the tips of their noses touched. Sapphire shivered to feel his hand slowly trailing behind her back.

His smile. His voice. His eyes. All were giving Sapphire a good kick in the hormones section.

Luckily, he retreated backwards as they still swayed in swift movements.

Ruby pushed Sapphire and released his grip. Knowing what she was doing, Sapphire twirled three times. Her heels clicked and tapped to the beat. Her dress twirled and swirled like the wind. Her hands were raised to her neck level. From the eyes of her friends, she looked like a seductive angel; nothing like the feisty hot-headed Sapphire they've always met.

From the eyes of Ruby, she looked like hisseductive angel; who was born for him and him only.

Sapphire twirled towards him. Biting back a smile, he held the girl's waist and lifted her up in the air.

W-whoah! Obviously, she didn't know tango meant you had to be carried. The young man spun around, clicking his heels together. Looking down, Sapphire could see the smirk in his eyes.

And of course, she took it as a challenge.

As Ruby moved his arms down, Sapphire took the chance and wrapped her legs around him. It stunned and baffled both Ruby and the others. But the dark brunette sucked one fistful of air and kept dancing. Both his hands rested on her back while her hands ruffled his hair. Subconsciously, Ruby let his hands wander to her bare legs. His fingers rhythmically tapped her soft skin, making her shudder. Their foreheads touched; hypnotized by each others' gaze.

The girl slowly moved down, letting her legs caressed his back, and trailed it down to his bum. Her legs then coiled with his right leg, still resulting with her being lifted in his arms. Now it was Ruby's turn to gulp heavily as her touch began to send a lascivious tingle down his spine.

The song was nearing its climax. The beat strung faster; more sensuous than before.

And just like the song, the couple was feeling sensuous each minute too.

Finally, her feet tapped to the smooth ground. Her heels tiptoed and shook majestically. The feeling of wanting to defeat Ruby. The feeling of wanting to prove to him that she can do things he likes. The feeling of keeping it together. All of it was slowly slipping away.

All replaced with the feeling of want and hunger.

The song was getting faster. Their twirls were getting eloquent. The moonlight shined elegantly on the frantic two.

And as the beat reached its ending, the two stopped.

Their bodies pressed together. Their chest pressed against each other. Her hands were pressed at the back of his black, now messed-up hair. Ruby leaned forward, his palms resting on her back and neck. Their foreheads collided with each other. Their lips – opened and heavily panting – were a mere inch apart. She could feel his rapid breathing. He could feel hers.

Ruby eyes glued to her sapphires. She saw a glint of lust in his eyes. And he saw a shine of want in hers. Slowly and unwarily, the two moved closer, wanting –needing– to close their distance to a whole…

Suddenly, claps echoed inside the ballroom – breaking their pleasurable trance.

"Brava Sapphire! Brava Ruby!" Blue cheered out loud. Minutes later, the room was filled with claps and whistles. Both their heads gawked at the audience. Green groaned bitterly. Blue had ruined the moment – again.

Sapphire blinked dumbfoundedly. She then looked at the man leaning on her. Her eyes widened the second she realized what was happening. "Kyaa!" she screamed. Without haste, Sapphire released her grip from Ruby and pushed him away. The young man was stunned to see her acting that way. The brunette fumbled terribly, twiddling with her fingers. Her face was a full shade of red. What just…?She couldn't even bring herself to think right.

"I- Bye!" And just like that, Sapphire turned around and ran off.

"W-wait!" Two blinks later, Ruby chased after her.

"Aww. The show is over." Blue sighed amusingly. But she couldn't help but giggle in sheer enjoyment. The others grinned cheekily, still a bit baffled about Sapphire's ability to dance.

Blue eyes staring mischievously at the green-eyed man next to her, Blue purred, "So, care to dance?"

O.O.O

Sapphire sat quietly, eyes staring at the lake. How could I…? How did I…?She was supposed to prove Ruby a point. She was supposed to laugh whole-heartedly the moment Sapphire saw the disbelieving face he gave her once she showed him she can dance.

She didn't expect to be enthralled by him.

"Sapphire…"

The brunette snapped her head to her left. A huge jolt of emotions slammed into her to see the man in her mind was squatting right next to her. "Gahh!" His presence shocked Sapphire, causing her to jump and almost fell into the lake.

Luckily, a pair of strong hands quickly held her waist.

Remembering how he touched her; how she touched him, Sapphire quickly slapped his hands away. "K-keep ya hands off me."

Ruby blinked dumbly, but then regained his smile back. "Look, I…you were amazing back there."

She froze in shock. Sapphire gawked at the young man smiling at her. "W-what?"

"You were great." Ruby coughed meekly and scratched the back of his head. "Actually, you were kinda amazing. I didn't know you can dance so…vividly."

Once again, she could feel the warmth in her face. Huffing sourly – which came off as abash – Sapphire stared at the lake. "Well, that's what ya get for bettin' on me!"

The dark brunette chuckled sweetly, making her heart race each minute. "Fine. You win."

Her eyes sparkled in glee to hear her victory. Staring at Ruby with such a joyful gaze, she shouted, "Really?"

Ruby nodded, still flashing a wide smile. "Yes really. Besides," Before the petite trainer could react, Ruby softly held her chin, lifting her up to meet his gaze. "I already got what I want…"

Sapphire shivered at the touch of his fingers and at the sound of his voice. Her face was not only hot, but now fuming with embarrassment, it can boil an egg. "S-stop playin' with me!" She swatted his hand away and flailed crazily.

Ruby laughed blissfully and waved his hands in a form of defeat.

And right above them, the moon shined elegantly, marking the beautiful night of the frantic two.

END.