With the fight between Ian and Lana resolved, we move onto the next match! Ayame vs. Gerard, who will win? This should certainly be an interesting match for Blake, that's for sure.
KedharS: I think she prefers the term "Man-Toy".
Rosealine gold: No one can say.
Aquahaze675: Teachers have a tough schedule, they can't devote all their spare time to looking after students.
Tambry96bj: Lana may be a smidgeon traumatized later.
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 520
It was a lovely day for Ayame to be curling up in front of the toilet of her waiting room and puking her guts up.
While she wasn't the only person throwing up that day, she was doing it for what might have been the oddest reason.
"How come I'm totally fine… before a meet… or before… a Pokeathlon…" Ayame gurgled, throwing up again. Her stomach always acted up when she was nervous. She was feeling queasy, and she leaned over and began hurling again.
"You're even cute when you're throwing up, wow." Blake's voice from behind her caused Ayame to jump with a start, her head shooting up. She picked up a towel and wipe her mouth, turning to stare in shock at her boyfriend.
"Blake?! What are you doing here?!" Ayame protested. She must have looked a mess! The fact that Blake was looking at her, that he had seen her throw up, that just made her even more embarrassed and anxious, and that made her want to throw up all over again. Her stomach made a gurgling sound and she turned around again, falling to her knees, and threw up some more.
"You're nervous, it's fine," Blake said, kneeling down next to her and rubbing his hands soothingly on her back. "Aya, calm down, it's okay. You're going to battle against Gerard, but it's not going to be something to get this worked up about, okay? Yeah, he's an ass, and yeah, he's strong, but you shouldn't care that much. It's just a tournament, right?"
Ayame hacked a little more, and then sat upright again, wiping her mouth. She turned to Blake, her eyes bleary.
"I want to punch him in the face," she muttered. "It might not matter, but I want to win."
Blake laughed. That sounded like his Aya.
"Let's just stay calm, okay?" He said, giving her a side hug and rubbing her back a little more. "You always get so worked up, you know. And even if you're adorable while you're puking-"
"NO ONE is adorable when they're puking," Ayame replied.
"Fair enough, maybe it's just adorable because it's you," Blake wondered. Ayame lightly punched him in the shoulder.
"You can't kiss me when I'm throwing up, you know," she said, shaking him off and rising to her feet, wiping her mouth off. "Vomit mouth isn't an impression I want to leave you with."
"Match 6, Ayame Toujou vs. Gerard Alkwest will beginning soon," Lila's voice broadcast over the announcing speaker. "Competitors, please report to the battlefield, your match is beginning!"
Ayame glanced at Blake, giving him a shaky smile.
"Wish me luck," she whispered.
Blake smiled back and flipped her off. "Always."
Ayame threw back her head and laughed, flipping him off in return as she left.
…
"Read the room, dude. A touching parting doesn't work so well if you follow me out," Ayame laughed, jostling Blake in the side as he caught up with her.
"Hey, I gotta get back to my seat, you know," Blake laughed. "And this way, I get to wish you good luck for as long as possible."
Blake reached out and took Ayame by the hand. Her hand was still cold and clammy, her earlier anxiety raising up. He wiped her sweaty hand, not bothered in the slightest. She reached one of the entrances out into the stadium, and glanced at him.
"I'd ask for a good luck kiss, but you know," Ayame chuckled.
"This work?" Blake asked, lifting her hand and gently kissing it. Ayame turned bright red at the gesture, fumbling a little. She pulled her hand free and hyperventilated a little.
"D-dooon't DOOOOO stuff like that!" She wailed, the dopey smile on her face saying otherwise. She swatted him a few times for good measure, turned, and headed out onto the battlefield, flipping Blake off as she went.
Blake laughed and called out after her, "good luck Aya!" He turned and headed for the stands, feeling a warmth in his chest at getting to lift her spirits. He wasn't sure if Ayame was going to win or not, but he was going to cheer for her louder than anybody.
He had to run to do it, but Blake made it back to his seat just in time to see Ayame take her spot across the battlefield from Gerard. In the time they had been apart, Ayame had calmed herself down. Well, mostly anyway.
"Darn, you made it back," Cynthia joked, tucking her legs up onto her seat so Blake could squeeze by. "I was hoping you'd stay in her room or something. Now we have to listen to the world's most annoying cheerleader."
"I think it's sweet," Callie replied.
"I'm going to cheer my heart out," Blake said. When he got to his seat, he didn't sit down. Instead, he turned to the battlefield and cupped his hands in front of his mouth.
"AYAAAAAAA!" Blake shouted, completely breaking the feeling of quiet anticipation that had been building up in the audience. "GOOOOOD LUUUUUUUUCCCK! YOU'VE GOT THIS!"
Ayame nearly fell over in embarrassment, and that was how Blake knew he had done a good job at cheering for her.
And Blake wasn't the only one cheering for Ayame, either. Olivia was in her viewer box with the other members of her group, the ones who were high enough up in the inner circle to get a spot, at any rate, and she was cheering just as loudly as Blake.
Celia laughed, cheering Ayame on as well, just… not as vocally as the Empress was doing it.
"Well, Ayame certainly has some support," Lila joked. "How lucky to have such a devoted fan."
Ayame's face got red again, and she refocused herself so she was just staring straight at Gerard, not looking at Lila at all.
"You never cheer for me like that," Akira pouted in mock disappointment, recognizing Blake's voice. He glanced at Dakota, who turned to him wearing a calm smile.
"No, I boo you though, and that's the best you deserve," she replied. Akira rolled his eyes.
"Okay, enough about Ayame's overenthusiastic boyfriend, before she pitches over in embarrassment," Lila snickered, seeing that Ayame's head was steaming. "Okay! The sixth match of the first round of the Phantom Cup! Ayame Toujou vs. Gerard Alkwest! Begin!"
"You seem to be having fun," Gerard coldly replied, giving Ayame a stony glare. "It must be nice to have such a loving and supportive boyfriend."
"You should get one," Ayame sarcastically replied. "Maybe then you won't have to keep girls locked up to compensate for your loneliness."
Gerard didn't have a response to that, instead stating: "if you have time to flirt, then you have time to focus on the battle. It won't help you win, of course… but it will at least make your loss seem less pathetic."
Ayame's eye twitched.
"You should be more respectful to your seniors," Ayame said, taking a pokeball from her waist. "Or at the very least, less of a prick."
"Yikes, this is really getting vicious," Lila said, shivering a little. "Come on, guys, we don't need to make this such a big deal, right?"
"I don't care," Gerard said, ignoring the idol. "Tank, go."
Gerard sent out his first pokemon. His pokeball opened, and from with a massive Bastiodon emerged, landing on the ground with a thud, the entire stadium shaking under his hulking weight.
"His Bastiodon is tough," Reiner noted. "It's a powerful pokemon to start with."
Ayame wasn't that impressed.
"Dana, go!" Ayame shouted, throwing out her first pokeball as well. From within the tiny ball, a round pokemon emerged, floating up into the sky. Dana was an Eldegoss, which meant that most of her body was a large, round ball of cotton and pollen, which stuck up out of her head, which was tiny in comparison. The rest of her body was covered in brownish-green leaves, looking less like a pokemon with a large cotton ball on her head and more like a large cotton ball with some leaves attached to the bottom.
"Gerard's first pokemon is a bulky Bastiodon!" Lila announced. "In contrast, Ayame has chosen to use a very delicate and fragile looking pokemon, just like her gentle maiden's heart!"
Ayame flipped Lila off in response.
"Hey! You can't flip off the announcer, Aya! That's a foul!" Lila snapped. Ayame flipped her off again in response.
"This is what I meant by taking this seriously," Gerard growled. He was starting to get irritated. Even though he was a far better trainer than Ayame Toujou could ever hope to be, and she wasn't even paying attention?! The fact that she wasn't taking this seriously was irritating him. It reminded him of how Kanone Harker had made a mockery of him, and he wasn't about to be mocked a second time, especially not by someone like Ayame Toujou!
"Tank!" Gerard shouted. "Stone edge!"
"Bastiodon!" Tank roared, stomping his stubby legs on the ground angrily. Massive chunks of rock tore up out of the battlefield and Tank charged forwards, sending the rocks towards the grass pokemon as he advanced.
"Dana!" Ayame shouted. "Use cotton guard!"
"Eldegoss!" Dana purred, shaking her head. Cotton billowed out of the massive pompom on her head, round and soft cloudlike spores swirling around her in a protective shield, the rocks burying themselves in the stuff but not hitting hard enough to break through.
"Don't underestimate Dana's cotton!" Ayame chortled. "Her Skill and Stamina attributes are amazing right now, she won't let attacks through that easily!"
"Nice!" Lila cheered. "That Bastiodon might be bulky, but Dana seems to be the better defender right now!"
"Eldegoss's defenses are definitely surprising," Akira agreed. "You wouldn't think such a slim pokemon would be tough."
"That's fine," Gerard scowled. "Stealth rock!"
Tank launched more stones up into the air, but rather than firing them at Dana, he instead sent them out so that they hovered around her, floating ominously above the battlefield, ready to pierce any pokemon who made any sudden moves.
"Gerard's Bastiodon has set up a trap all around the battlefield!" Lila gasped.
"That's going to make moving difficult, stealth rock is going to also keep Ayame from switching her pokemon out carelessly," Akira observed.
"Dana, use rapid spin," Ayame ordered. Dana raised her leafy hands and curled up into her pompom, which began spinning. The whirling ball of cotton shot blasts of pollen out that blew away the stones floating around her as she bounced off of Tank's armored head, pulling to a stop.
"That won't work, either," Ayame smiled. "Now, Dana! Use sunny day!"
"El!" Dana chirped, curling out from under the ball of cotton. She began shining, and launched a small flare up into the air that illuminated the late afternoon sun, causing it to grow even brighter, the whole battlefield turning nice and warm.
"A grass pokemon in the sun! It seems like Ayame is borrowing her tactics from Alcea Vermeil!" Lila marveled.
Olivia scowled.
"Tank! Use screech!" Gerard ordered.
"Bastiodon!" Tank opened his large mouth and let out a shriek that caused Dana to wince, her body wilting slightly at the stinging sound. As she weakened, Tank charged forward, his feet digging heavy holes in the ground.
"Oh, no! Gerard's Bastiodon is charging!" Lila gasped.
"Bastiodon!" Stones began flying around Tank, and he fired them at Dana.
"Ellll!" Dana wailed, trying to protect herself with a barrier of cotton, but this time the rocks were too strong to be repelled. They burst through the cotton, smashing it into wisps of pollen, and struck Dana head on, catching the grass pokemon in a barrage of rocks that sent even more cotton up into the air, settling down on the field.
Dana hit the ground, and hit it hard.
"Dana!" Ayame shouted frantically. Dana had been able to protect herself with the cotton, but it wouldn't be enough now that she had been hit. Her defenses were strong, but her health was pretty low, and Tank was approaching the prone pokemon fast.
Well, not that fast.
In fact, one might even call it "slow".
"Eldegoss took a hit, but it's taking Bastiodon a long time to capitalize on it," Dakota said, surprised. "I imagine it must be slow, but this slow? Really?"
"Dana's got a little trick up her sleeve," Lila smiled. She felt good, knowing what was going on in a battle for once. "Just watch her. She knows what she's doing, and so does Aya. Err, I mean, Ayame."
"Elde…" Dana bounced back up, panting, turning her attention to Tank as the pokemon approached. He was even slower now, getting slower and slower until he was practically standing still.
"Tank!" Gerard shouted. "What are you doing?!"
"He's having a hard time moving," Ayame smiled. "He's used to being slow, but we've slowed him down even more with Dana's cotton spores. Whenever she takes damage, she sprays cotton across the battlefield. Soft, and sticky, making it hard to wade through, just watch."
Ayame pointed at the ground, where massive bunches of cotton had bundled up around Tank's feet, slowing him down and keeping him from pushing through. He was practically frozen. Each step was like wading through molasses, except it was soft and fluffy and clung like static instead of being icky and sticky.
"Now, Dana! Since he's frozen in place, hit him with some more cotton! Use cotton spore!"
"Eldegoss!" Dana shook her head again, a curtain of cotton raining down on the battlefield, shaking swirling around Tank until it buried him in a blanket of cotton.
"Bastiodon!" Tank struggled, trying to break free, but it was hard because he was used to smashing through things, and cotton wasn't good at being smashed. Wherever he pushed and pulled, the cotton would continue to cling.
"This is why Dana is one of my go-to pokemon for Speed Events," Ayame smirked. "Her cotton is amazing at slowing pokemon down, it clings all over and makes it nearly impossible for a pokemon to keep up the pace!"
Gerard scowled.
"…Yeah, most people would call that cheating!" Lila called out to her. Ayame flipped her off again, Lila was really getting on her last nerve.
"It's within the rules!" Ayame shouted back. "Read the handbook, pokemon can use their natural abilities to aid them!"
"Still sounds like cheating," Lila replied.
Gerard was only getting more frustrated now.
"Tank! It's just cotton! Use metal burst to get it all off!"
"BASTIODON!" Tank roared, his body shining with a metallic glint. He released a blast of energy out from around him, blasting the cotton away as he lumbered forward. His speed was drastically reduced, but he was capable of advancing at this point.
"Now, Dana! Weather ball!" Ayame shouted.
"El!" Dana nodded, firing an orb of red light from her mouth. While Tank had been blinded by the pollen, Dana had repositioned herself to be floating over his head, and she hit him in the back with the sun-boosted move.
"Bastiodon!" Tank cried out in pain, nearly falling over.
"Nice! Ayame's really holding her own!" Lila cheered.
"Yeah! Way to go!" Blake shouted from his seat, ecstatic that Ayame was actually winning against Gerard.
Gerard was less enthused.
Tank is too slow, he understood. But that doesn't mean that we're not able to win!
"Tank!" He barked. "Don't let your lack of speed slow you down! Use stone edge again!"
"Bastiodon!" Tank sent another storm of massive stones at Dana, barraging her again. Tank's speed might have been slowed, but that didn't mean that the stones would be. Even if the Bastiodon couldn't use his body very well, he could still fling boulders around.
"Dana!" Ayame shouted, her Eldegoss crying out in pain as she was nearly knocked out of the air. "Use synthesis!"
"Eldegoss!" Dana said, nodding. She began to shine, her leaves glowing green as she began absorbing energy from the sun.
"Bastiodon might be getting slowed, but he's still letting out some devastating attacks," Lila noted. "But it looks like Dana is able to withstand it! And she's able to heal herself with synthesis!"
"Eldegoss!" Dana chirped, nodding to Lila.
"Thanks to the sun, Eldegoss is really able to hold her own," Akira agreed. "Being able to restore that much health with one synthesis is really good, and since she's a grass type, she's the perfect pokemon to fight against Gerard's rock pokemon."
"I'm sure I'm not the only one who was thinking 'wow, Ayame Toujou can actually fight'," Dakota said, smiling.
"Dana!" Ayame called. "Now, get him with your solarbeam!"
"Eldegoss!" Dana shouted, gathering up light and firing a compressed beam of sunlight at the injured Bastiodon.
"Tank, protect," Gerard ordered. A barrier of silver light appeared around the hulking pokemon, shielding him from the destructive effects of the solarbeam. "You're getting yourself off to a little bit of a roll here, but don't be so haughty that you think I don't understand how to fight you, Ayame Toujou. At the end of the day, however skilled your pokemon are, they're still just amateurs."
"You're getting your butt kicked by an amateur," Ayame smirked.
"You… you don't know anything," Gerard said, narrowing his eyes. "Nothing about what it means to truly be a powerful trainer. But don't worry. I'll instruct you accordingly."
Elaina checked her phone. Going off the schedule, Gerard should be fighting right about now. Against Ayame Toujou.
She wasn't sure what she was supposed to be feeling, if she was being totally honest. Ayame… Ayame was someone who she didn't like very much. Certainly, she wanted Gerard to win. But at the same time, she knew that Ayame seemed like a genuine person…
If possible, it would have been nice if Ayame and Gerard just never fought in the first place.
But there was no sense in hoping for that, it was happening right now. So what should she be hoping for, then?
Elaina wasn't really sure.
It wasn't that she liked Gerard. She appreciated him, she cared for him, how couldn't she, after all he had done for her? But that wasn't the same as liking him, of course.
But she was going to root for him. Especially if that meant rooting against Ayame, the girl who had won Blake's heart, a prize that Elaina wished for so desperately.
So she was going to be rooting for Gerard, of course she was. After all, he was-
A knock on the door called Elaina too attention. She paused. She had been about to flip on the television to watch Gerard's match, not thinking that he would be using Shadow Pokemon. She knew that she'd had a conversation with him about it, but she didn't believe he'd ever go through with it.
But those were thoughts for another time. She needed to go see who was at the door.
Elaina rose from her bed and slipped on her mask, walking over to the door.
When she saw who it was, he eyes widened in surprise.
So who could it be that has come to see Elaina? And will Ayame be able to keep up her early lead against Gerard? We'll have to find out next time!