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Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 38

Sango had nearly finished up her morning run when her phone began ringing. She slowed to a stop and pulled it out, holding it up to her ear.

"Yeah, Sarge, what is it?"

She paused as Erik began speaking, her eyes widening in surprise.

"No way. No way! I did? I got in? No way!" A big smile broke across her face. "Yes, I understand. Thanks so much!"

She hung up the phone and turned to Silver, smiling.

"Silver, guess what? I made it! I got in! They accepted my application!"

"Castform!" Silver beamed, Sango reaching up and pulling him in for a hug. Letting him go, she resumed her jog, humming joyfully to herself. When she reached the dining hall, she looked around for Blake, or Cynthia, but she couldn't see either of them so she sat by herself and began eating her breakfast. She'd just finished up when Kitty sat down next to her.

"Oh, hey, Sango," Kitty said, smiling. "Can I sit here?"

"Sure!" Sango chirped. "Kitty, guess what?"

"What?" Kitty asked.

"So, two weeks ago I sent in application to take the Pokemon Ranger Probationary Test," Sango explained. "Wait, let me explain, that's a test where, if I pass, then I obtain a Pokemon Ranger Probationary License, which means I'll have the opportunity to work in the field with actual Pokemon Rangers. Now, normally, freshmen aren't accepted, but-"

"…They accepted your application?" Kitty guessed. Sango nodded vigorously.

"Uh-huh!" Sango said. "And if I manage to pass the test in three weeks, then that means I'll get to participate in actual field experience before the end of the year! It's so great! Oh, by the way, do you know where Blake is?"

"Um, no, why?" Kitty asked.

"Well, because I've gotta tell him, of course!" Sango exclaimed, smiling. "I mean, I'm sure he'll be thrilled, don't you think? I mean, what an amazing opportunity, right? I can't wait to see what his reaction will be!"

"I heard Blake mention he was going to be spending the early part of the day training," Kitty said, "so maybe he's training somewhere?"

"Oh, maybe the forest outside Bulbasaur Dorm?" Sango guessed. "That's where he usually goes to train."

"Oh, good idea," Kitty agreed. She finished eating, setting her fork down. "Wanna go?"

The two put their trays away and left the dining hall, heading toward the Bulbasaur Dormitory.

"So after we tell Blake, then I guess I should let Cynthia know too," Sango said. "I mean, I don't want to distract Blake from his training, but isn't it a good thing to share your happy news with your friends?"

"Yeah, I think if you want to tell him that badly then you should," Kitty agreed. "He'll be happy for you. It'll probably make his day."

"You think so?" Sango asked.

The two walked passed the dorm building and the sound of pokemon fighting caught their ears. Soon enough, they arrived at the large clearing where Blake was training.

"Weiss, bullet punch!" Blake shouted. Weiss raised his pincer and launched a barrage of punches, knocking every bullet seed out of the way.

"Whoa, Blake, that was awesome!" Cynthia cheered. "Tristan, are you gonna take that? Let's try again! This time, alternate your attacks, 'kay?"

"Bre!" Tristan nodded. He turned back to Weiss and opened his mouth, firing several bursts of bullet seed attacks at Weiss. Weiss responded by countering each one with a bullet punch, the seeds exploding in midair. However, one seed managed to worm its way past Weiss's defenses, hitting him in the leg, knocking him off balance.

"Hah! What do you think of that?" Cynthia asked, turning to Blake, smiling triumphantly. The two of them were standing side by side watching their pokemon spar. She slapped him on the shoulder and turned back to the battle. "Okay, Tristan, just like that, only this time try to hit him with two seeds!"

"Weiss, make sure you catch them all, got it?" Blake asked.

"Scizor," Weiss said. They exchanged another barrage of attacks, this time Weiss managing to hit each of them out of the air.

"You were saying?" Blake asked, turning to Cynthia.

"Rrr, we'll show you!" Cynthia said, pushing him in the shoulder, chuckling, Blake shoving her back with a grin on his face.

"Oh, there they are," Kitty said, smiling. "Hey guys!"

"Wait, Kitty," Sango said, placing a hand on Kitty's shoulder. Blake and Cynthia turned to the two of them.

"Oh, hey, Sango! What's up?" Cynthia asked, walking over to her. Blake followed after her.

"Oh, no, nothing," Sango said, glancing at Blake, shaking her head. "I just came here to wish you guys good luck on you training, that's all…"

"Hm?" Kitty asked, turning back to look at Sango. "What?"

"Oh, really?" Cynthia asked, hugging Sango. "Thanks!"

"Yeah, that's all, really, we just wanted to wish you guys good luck," Sango said, smiling. "We'll leave you alone, right, Kitty?"

"…Sure," Kitty said, nodding, following Sango back from the clearing. She caught up to Sango, grabbing her arm. "What was that?" She demanded.

"Let's wait," Sango said, shaking her head, frowning. "I mean, Blake has a lot on his mind right now, after all. This would just distract him. I don't want to bother him, y'know? Let's… let's just forget it for now, k? He needs to train." She increased her pace and rushed away from Kitty.

"Sango…" Kitty said, looking after her friend. A frown crossed her face and she ran back to the clearing.

"Oh, Kitty, what's up?" Blake asked, turning back to greet her.

"Blake!" Kitty said, glaring at Blake. Her adorable face was scrunched into an angry frown, much to the surprise and confusion of Blake and Cynthia.

"Uh, Kitty," Cynthia said, reaching out to her friend, "is everything okay?"

"Not now," Kitty snapped. She pointed a finger accusingly at Blake, and then pointed it after Sango. "Blake, go after Sango, now."

"What? Why?"

"Now." Kitty insisted.

"Uh, okay, see ya, Cynthia," Blake said, heading out of the clearing.

"Run!" Kitty yelled. Blake ran. The minute he was gone, Kitty let out a sigh and collapsed to the ground.

"What's up?" Cynthia asked.

"I… I just got really mad at Blake, didn't I?" Kitty asked, cradling her flushed face with her hands. "I… I didn't know I could be so…"

"Aggressive?" Cynthia asked. "I don't know, maybe it's your-"

Kitty raised her head and shot Cynthia a dirty look. Cynthia smirked.

"Well, if it's not that, then I think it's a good thing," Cynthia said, helping Kitty to her feet. "But what happened?"

"It's complicated," Kitty sighed, shaking her head. "If you ever took anything seriously you'd understand."

"Stupid, stupid," Sango sighed, kicking a chunk of dirt down the field. "Blake and Cynthia are busy, why was I thinking about distracting them?" She ran her hands through her hair.

"What's going on?" She muttered to herself, shaking her head. "I mean, they were so happy to see me, weren't they? So of course they'd be happy to hear about the good news… But after I saw them I don't even feel happy for myself now…"

She kept walking, and looked down at the clod of dirt lying in the grass in front of her.

"Erg, those idiots!" Sango exclaimed, kicking the dirt clod as hard as she could. It went sailing through the trees, where it hit something with a "pwif".

"What the heck?!" A voice exclaimed, Sango jumping back in surprise.

"Wh-what? Hello?" Sango asked, running toward the sound of the voice. A man was prone on the ground, dirt in his face.

"Careful," he warned, "someone out there is throwing dirt clods at people…"

"No, no, that was me, sorry, can I help you up?" Sango asked, kneeling down next to him.

"Nah, I'm fine," the man said, standing up, brushing the dirt out of his hair and giving her a smile. He had brown hair and tanned skin, and was wearing an Alolan print shirt and khakis. "Although, you could help give me directions."

"Directions?" Sango asked, confused.

"Yes, I'm looking for the Pokemon Academy," the man said. "I traveled a long way here."

"…This is an island," Sango said, frowning.

"I know, quite a journey," he said, nodding.

"Why are you here?" Sango asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

"W-wait, I'm not someone suspicious or anything, I'm just lost," the man said, holding his hands out defensively, trying to defuse the situation with a smile. "Just show me the way to get to the main office and it'll be fine, okay?"

"That's just what a suspicious person would say," Sango said, frowning, reaching into her pocket for her phone. "Silver, keep an eye on him while I call this in, 'k?"

"Cast!" Silver said.

"Wait, seriously, I promise, I was invited here!" He said. "By the headmaster!"

"If you were invited here, then you would have been brought to the island by boat or helicopter or plane, and then escorted to the main office," Sango accused. "You wouldn't be wandering around in the woods. Are you a pokenapper? Or are you hiding out from someone?"

"Look, I was supposed to catch a helicopter to get here, but I wanted to travel here on my own, please, you gotta believe me."

"Hello, security?"

"Sango!" Blake's voice rang through the forest, Sango whirling around. She hung up the phone, looking incredulously at Blake coming through the trees.

"Blake?!" Sango asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Sorry, I just came here to-" He walked up to her, and as he looked at her his voice went quiet and he stared in shock.

"What?" Sango asked, confused. "What is it?" She realized he wasn't looking at her, but past her, and she turned around to the intruder. "Oh, him? Yeah, I caught him wandering around unaccompanied. He said he was a guest, but I think he's here to steal pokemon from the school. I just called security on him."

"Kanone?" Blake asked, his eyes widening. "What are you doing here?"

Sango blinked. "Kanone?"

"Yes. Kanone, my brother."

"Brother."

"Yes."

"Whose brother?"

"Mine."

"Your brother."

"My brother."

"Him."

"Him."

"He's your brother."

"Yes."

Sango's mouth fell open and she turned to the man, Kanone, who shrugged, smiling.

"Ohmygod, um, Kanone… I'm so so sorry," Sango exclaimed, flustered, jumping back and bowing apologetically. "I-I thought you were… and I said so many rude things, and I-"

"Don't worry about it," Kanone said, smiling, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You were just doing your job after all, miss…?"

"Oh! I'm Sango, Sango Akana," Sango said, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Well, Miss Sango, it's a pleasure to meet you. You know, I've heard a lot about senior students in the Pokemon Ranger course, but I had no idea how professional they were," Kanone said.

"Oh, um, actually, I'm a freshman," Sango said, smiling up at him.

"No… Really?" Kanone asked, opening his mouth in shock. "You could have fooled me."

Blake rolled his eyes.

"Wow, um, thanks," Sango said, looking down, her cheeks turning pink. "You, you really think that I was acting like a professional Pokemon Ranger?"

"Oh, definitely," Kanone said, smiling.

"Kanone, what are you doing here?" Blake asked. Kanone ignored him and continued talking to Sango.

"So, now that we've cleared up that whole intruder mess, would you mind showing me how to get to the main office?" Kanone asked.

"Oh! Of course," Sango said, nodding.

"Pokemon Academy Security!" A loud voice broke their conversation, the three turning to see several Pokemon Academy Security members walk up to them. "We received a report about an intruder on the campus, is this him?"

"No, no, that was all a misunderstanding," Sango said, shaking her head. "I was the one who called it in."

"Yes, I was actually invited here by the headmaster," Kanone explained. "My name is Kanone Harker, and I was invited to serve as a guest commentator for the final matches of the tournament going on."

"Wait," man at the head of the security team stepped up to Kanone, his eyes wide. "Are you the Kanone Harker? Like, the real thing?"

"The one and only," Kanone said, nodding.

"Wow! I must say, sir, my son and I are such big fans of yours, it is an honor to meet you!" The man gushed. Kanone held his hand out with a smile and the man took it, shaking hard. "Man he is going to be so amazed when I tell him I got to meet you in person!"

"I'll do you one better," Kanone said, smiling. "How about an autograph?"

"Seriously?" The security head asked, surprised. "Like, for real?"

"Yup," Kanone said, nodding. "In fact, I'll sign an autograph for anyone here who wants one, how does that sound?" In a flash the supposedly professional security force degenerated into a mob of adoring fans that crowded around Kanone while he signed various objects shoved into his face. Sango took the opportunity to slip free of them, stepping up beside Blake.

"So that's your brother?" Sango asked.

"Yeah," Blake said, nodding, not taking his eyes away from him.

""I was actually supposed to be here earlier, but I ended up getting lost trying to find my way to the main office." Kanone's voice rang over the clamoring of the security team. "I don't suppose one of you could show me around?"

"Well, of course!" The security head said, nodding. "It wouldn't be right to have a celebrity like you wandering around out here by yourself! Until we get to the main office, you can consider us like your own private security detail, sound good?"

"Why, that would be just fine," Kanone said, nodding. The crowd began walking back to campus, leaving Sango and Blake behind. Kanone turned back, however, raising his hand and waving.

"See you again sometime, Miss Sango!" Kanone called back, smiling.

Sango lowered her arm and turned to Blake. With the cloud of celebrity faded, she finally took notice of the conflicted expression on his brow.

"Is… is everything okay?" She asked, reaching out to him and laying a gentle hand on his arm.

"Yeah, it's fine," Blake said, shaking his head. He turned back to her, and she saw the discomfort get pushed aside as he forced a smile to his face. She immediately forgot about her frustration from earlier, and all she wanted to do was find some way to cheer him up.

"So, um, Kitty told me to come find you," Blake said, "is everything okay?"

"…She what?"

"She said that I should go after you," Blake explained. "She seemed really upset about it."

"Oh, yeah, no, it's nothing," Sango said, shaking her head. "By the way, I have some good news."

"Oh?" Blake asked.

"Yeah!" She said, nodding. "Listen, so I was talking to Erik, you remember, the Sarge, and he said that even though I was a freshman he was willing to let me send in my application to take the Pokemon Ranger Probationary Test. And guess what? They accepted me! That means if I pass the test then I obtain a Pokemon Ranger Probationary License, which means I can work with real Pokemon Rangers!"

"Seriously?" Blake asked, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Yeah," she said, nodding.

"That's great!" Blake said, smiling. "So you might actually get to intern with Pokemon Rangers?"

Sango blinked in surprise and then a smile broke out across her face.

"Yeah, I know, right? I mean, it's not a sure thing, but it's still really cool! The test is in three weeks, so I've really got to crack down and study. Most of the people who will be taking this test will have been studying for, like, minimum of one year, so I mean I definitely might not pass. And of course there's the fact that only 15 people can pass, but I mean I still think I can do it! I just have to study really hard!"

"I believe in you," Blake said, smiling. "I think you'll be able to pass. Heck, you might even score the highest knowing how serious you are about all this.

"Yeah, and even if I do fail, I just have to send in my application again in two months."

"Plus, if you think about it, most of the people you'll be going against will have already failed this test before," Blake added. "And you haven't failed once! Which means you'll be going in fresh, ready for anything!"

"…You don't take many tests, do you?" Sango asked, shaking her head, smirking.

The two said nothing for a few seconds.

"So, um, do you have to go back to Cynthia and get more training done?" Sango asked.

"Nah," Blake said, shaking his head. "I'm almost done. In fact-"

Suddenly, Blake's phone began ringing.

"Yo."

"Blake!" Cynthia's voice shot through the phone, Blake holding it as far away from his ear as he could.

"Geez, Cynthia, what is it?"

"Blake! Did you hear?! Your brother is on campus! Kanone Harker! He's here! On campus!"

"…Yeah, I heard," Blake said, sighing. "So?"

"So?! I'm done with training and I'm going back! I need to meet him! You should totally set us up to meet! I want to fight against him! Blake! Blake! BLAKE!"

Blake sighed, shaking his head, hanging up on Cynthia, Sango chuckling.

"Well, we might as well go back," Blake said. "Sound good?"

"Sure," Sango said, smiling. While her good news had certainly cheered him up, she still thought that Blake was looking kind of down. Then she had a great thought.

"Hey, Blake, did I tell you about how I kicked a dirt clod in your brother's face on accident?"

Indeed. It was a tale for the ages.