Valentine’s Day Raffle—THE WINNERS
“C’mon, Mary, give me a smile,” prodded DJ Ben, playfully sticking his fork at her. He speared a meatball and tried to feed it to her, but Mary shook her head.
“I just can’t help but feel as if something’s wrong,” she replied, her voice earnest. She looked down and crumpled the napkin on her lap. Ever since her borrowed pudgy Pidgey left on their mission—Dasher and Dancer and Comet and Cupid… even Blitzen—an overwhelming feeling of dread came over her. DJ Mary glanced back up at her date, who stared at her curiously.
“Well, I mean—if something went wrong, it’s certainly not your fault. Those Pidgey are professionals, like us. They know what they’re doing.” Ben smiled and plopped the meatball in his mouth, moaning with pleasure. After he swallowed, Ben leaned back in his chair and held his stomach. “Oh, god! I forgot how good these were! Are you going to eat that—?”
Mary used her utensil to swat Ben’s creeping fork away. He laughed and focused on his own plate. She stuck out her tongue at him and finally ate a bite out of her spaghetti. Ben was right, this is marvelous! But was he also right about the Pidgey? Had they even made an around-the-world trip like this before?
…What if the wind carried them off-course? What if one of them was seriously injured?!
DJ Mary snapped to attention, realizing that she was breathing exceptionally hard. The hand holding her fork was shaking. Ben was kneeling by her side, wetting his napkin in his water.
“It’s going to be okay,” he murmured, gently resting her hand on the table. He then dabbed the damp napkin on her forehead and on the back of her neck.
“I’m f-fine. Really,” Mary forced a laugh. Ben grunted and went back to his chair when she insisted she was all right. They spent the next several minutes in silence, Ben watching her like a Braviary. Under his watchful gaze, Mary reluctantly ate the rest of her meal.
When she was done, Ben checked his watch. “We should head back to the office,” he said, moving to help her out of her seat. “It’s nearly time for your big announcement. I’ll even hold your microphone—for moral support.”
Back inside DJ Mary’s booth, Mary sat at her chair while Ben completed the rest of the preparations. With a wink and his signature smile, DJ Ben closed his eyes, clapped his hand over his face, and pointed at the list of participants entered into the raffle. He held up a finger to Mary and counted, “Eenie, meenie, miney, moe. Catch a Persian by the toe. If he hollers, let him go… my mother… said to… pick the very best one… and you… are… not… IT!”
Ben did this three more times until all of the winners had been chosen. “Here you go, Mare,” he said with a grin, handing her the names.
Mary couldn’t believe what she just witnessed. Well… she could. She really could. “Thank you, Ben,” the DJ replied, struggling to hold back a giggle. What a doofus!
Ben winked and shot off a finger gun. “Knock ’em dead.”
As promised, as soon as Mary went to turn on the microphone, Ben held it, too—effectively holding her hand. “Good evening, ladies and gentleman!” Mary announced, putting on her most professional airs and ignoring her silly co-worker. “The time has finally come to announce the raffle winners! You’ve waited all week for this, so here it is! I’m pleased to announce…”
DENNIS, SHAUNTAL, and SIEBOLD—Congratulations! Your names were the first to be drawn in the raffle. You may now pick one (1) shiny Pokemon as your very own, so long as it is an Normal, Psychic, or Fairy-type. There is no need to wait for the other winners to make their pick; everyone can choose whichever type they desire, regardless of what other types were chosen.
GALE—Congratulations! Although you weren’t part of the Top Three winners, you will still receive a prize. Head on over to DJ Mary’s booth at the Radio Tower to claim your reward; she has something very special for you.
