Here's a new chapter, with some build up for a new mini-arc! Kitty's harmonia starts to lead her in a rather… "rocky" direction, let's say. Remember to review!

KedharS: The nature of humanity is a strange one. Is Misato human? A robot? A mixture of both? Is she really sentient, or just programmed to think she is? She certainly has emotions, but could those emotions be programmed? And even if they are, does that make a difference? These are the questions I hope to uncover with her character. Come for the Pokemon, stay for the philosophical discussions on human nature and free will.

Hellraiserphoenix: Satsuki is always a part of Akira, no matter what. And Serefina's gonna try to get Dakota to NTR him away from her. How mean! :(

JoshGamerV: Apparently, you're not the only one. Which is surprising, because I feared it would be rather obvious, and was trying hard to hide it.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 135

"So, how did your day go, guys?" Cynthia asked. Blake and Kitty were hanging out in the common room of Bulbasaur House, next to each other on one of the couches. Cynthia was sitting in front of them on a chair, like a detective interrogating a suspect. Sango and Julia were also there, Sango reading through a ranger magazine and Julia lazily feeding her Seedot, Percy, some berries.

"Rough day," Kitty sighed, shaking her head.

"Lot of stuff happened," Blake agreed. "Our training is a bust."

"Darn, that sucks," Cynthia said, nodding sympathetically. "And… what is she doing here?"

Cynthia pointed a finger at a certain curly-haired sophomore, Kate glowering back at her from an armchair, a book on pokemon archaeology in her hand.

Kitty and Blake glanced at each other, and shrugged. They both pointed at Julia.

"Julia?" Cynthia asked, glancing over her shoulder to look at the brunette accusingly.

"Hey, don't look at me," Julia said, shaking her head. "Kate wanted to hang out."

"Why, we aren't friends," Cynthia said, confused.

"Rude," Kate scoffed. "I'm here to hang out with Blake, we're friends, right?"

"Yeah, of course," Blake said, nodding. "I don't mind if you want to hang out."

"I don't mind either," Julia said, shaking her head. "What about you guys?"

Kitty shook her head, and Sango shrugged, not taking her eyes off of her magazine.

"Well, fine then," Cynthia shrugged, Kate sticking her tongue out at her.

I know I asked to tag along spur of the moment, but what do I do now? Kate wondered, shaking her head. I just wanted to get to know Blake better… For her highness's sake, of course! To figure out if there is anything I can learn about Blake to help her figure out how to put an end to this engagement! Not because I want to spend time with him and get to know him better for myself, or anything! No, this is all for her highness's sake!

"Okay, but last time one of your skanky friends-"

"-Hey!" Kate interjected.

"Sorry, sorry, one of you skanky acquaintances wanted to hang out, she ended up squatting in our room," Cynthia said, frowning. "We just moved Kitty out and Sango back in, we don't have space to house another random girl."

Kate shot her a dirty look, Cynthia winking flirtatiously at her.

"Claire slept on the floor for a little bit in our room," Blake suggested. "Kate could too if she wants to stay over."

"Wha?!" Kate's face turned bright red. SL-SLEEPING WITH BLAKE?! THAT CANNOT HAPPEN, NO MATTER WHAT!

"Geez, why are you freaking out?" Cynthia asked, confused.

"I'll go to my own dorm, thank you very much!" Kate exclaimed, shaking her head. "I'm not planning on spending the night, no matter what!"

She shot Blake a disapproving glare, much to his confusion. She then crossed her arms over her chest.

"You lay one hand on me, and I'll scream!"

"I won't lay a finger on you, don't worry," Blake comforted her. It did not have the intended effect.

"What, I'm not good enough for you or something? Mr. 'Gets Fed Lunch by a Senior'? Mr. 'I'm Engaged to Lady Vermeil'?"

Blake's eyes opened wide and his mouth fell open. Realizing what she'd said, Kate turned pale and threw her hands up in front of her mouth.

"What. The. Fuck?" Sango looked at Kate, then at Blake. Her face was a mixture of shock and outrage, with more than a tinge of sadness to go along.

"Sorry, I must have misheard you, did you say 'engaged'?" Cynthia asked, scraping the inside of her ear with her finger. "Blake is engaged? With Vermeil? Alcea Vermeil?!"

"It's complicated," Blake sighed.

"Screw complicated," Sango said, tossing her magazine to the floor and storming up to him, jamming an accusing finger at him. "What's this supposed to mean?! Are you getting engaged? Are you… are you in love with Alcea? Is that why you rejected Ayame when she asked you out?!"

"Wait, what?" Cynthia whirled to Sango, and now it was Sango's turn to hold her hands over her mouth in shock. "The senior with the nice ass?! The one who he asked out? He turned her down?!"

She turned back to Blake. "I mean, I guess if you had Alcea in your back pocket that makes sense, but then… wait, she also said you were on a lunch date with a senior, right? Who was that?"

"Ayame Toujou," Kate replied.

"So you rejected her, then had lunch with her, all while you're engaged to be married with another woman?! What's the matter with you?! I don't remember raising you to be the kind of degenerate who plays around with women's feelings!" Cynthia wailed in mock distress. Blake glanced helplessly at Kitty, who shrugged in response.

"This is ridiculous," Julia sighed, shaking her head.

"This is why I don't date," Kitty whispered. Julia nodded in agreement.

"You said it, girl."

"I don't want to discuss my dating life with the three of you," Blake hissed. "Kate, is this why you came here? To completely destroy my social life? Because it looks a lot like that's what's going on here, you know?"

"I am so sorry," Kate said, shaking her head. Her cheeks puffed up. "But it's your fault for seeing so many women, you know."

"Listen, this is all a big misunderstanding, I already told you that! I don't want to date anyone right now, and I certainly don't want to get married!" Blake said, shaking his head.

"Cool, that's fine, so if you and I wanted to go upstairs and casually have-"

Blake flicked Cynthia on the forehead before she could finish that thought. She held her hands over her chest and sighed, mimicking a broken heart.

"So why are you really here, then?" Sango asked Kate. Kate frowned, and looked away. "I mean, you don't hang out with us normally, so why…?"

"Because I don't want to be replaced!" Kate snapped.

"Eh?"

"Take a look!" Kate said, pointing an accusing finger at Blake. "I heard all about it from Julia, Ayame is totally imposing on my turf! We both started out as the rude, abrasive upperclasswomen who are the number two to a powerful female trainer, and we both have a ton of baggage stemming from isolation! And while we were initially hostile to Blake, he comes in and helps us realize how we can move past our problems and become the happier for it, and then we both fall-"

Kate coughed, having gotten off track.

"A-anyway, I'm not about to let Ayame replace me, you got that?!"

"Replace you how?" Sango asked suspiciously.

Kate glanced at Blake momentarily, and then turned away.

"N-never mind that."

"It's fine, Kate, there's no way Ayame could replace you," Blake reassured her.

"R-really?"

"Of course," Blake said, nodding. "When Ayame's issues were resolved, she became a kinder and friendlier person around us. Whereas you've still remained toxic and abrasive. You're totally different, don't worry."

He gave her a thumbs up in assurance, while Kate gave him an irritated leer in return.

"Hearing that doesn't really make me feel better," she muttered. "Whatever, I'm leaving."

Kate stormed out of the building, ruffling her hair in frustration.

Stupid, stupid! Why do you have to be so stupid, saying something that… stupid?! But… he did say that he's not interested in dating right now… or getting married… so I guess some good came out of this. …For her highness's sake, of course! Him not wanting to marry her is a good thing for her sake, certainly not because I want to…

As she considered that line of thought, her eyes grew wider.

That's it! If I want to break off their engagement, then I just need to seduce Blake away from her highness! Yes, that is the only option!

Ignoring the various issues with her thinking, like the idea that Blake wasn't interested in dating anyone, as he'd clearly stated, Kate decided on a game plan for tomorrow. She called up Alcea, and informed her of the great news.

Alcea calmly listened to Kate outlining her plan. She pinched the bridge of her nose, an act unseen by Kate, and suggested the sophomore go get a good night's sleep. Missing the pity in her idol's voice, Kate gleefully agreed, hanging up the phone.

Operation Seduction is a go!

Blake felt a chill run down his spine for some reason.

"I'm still a little confused about why she was here," Cynthia said, frowning. "Whatever. You guys hear from Nick and Reiner? Nick's probably still training, but I thought Reiner would be back by now so we could go get dinner…"

"Reiner's going to see a movie," Blake said, smirking. "With Nikita."

Cynthia's eyes widened and a smirk crossed her face.

"Well, well, I'd say don't wait up for him, then…"

As if on cue, Reiner walked in through the doorway.

"Oh, you guys are hanging in the common room?" He asked.

"What are you doing here?" Cynthia demanded.

"…I live here."

"I think she means 'why aren't you getting all hot and heavy with your girlfriend?'" Sango giggled. Reiner rolled his eyes.

"My relationship is none of your business," Reiner said.

"C'mon now, I'm starving here," Cynthia whined.

"Amuse yourself with Blake's love affairs, then," Reiner suggested, heading upstairs to his room.

Cynthia rolled her eyes and sighed.

A beep from Julia's phone broke the awkward silence that had resulted.

"Oh, hey, it's Kate. She said she left her book here by mistake."

"Is this is?" Kitty asked, holding up the big book Kate had been reading, left forgotten in the valley between the armchair's arm and seat.

"Wait, let me see that…" Kitty handed the book to Blake, whose eyes looked over the cover in surprise.

"'Deciphering the Mural of Stow-on-Side and Other Historical Landmarks'… A book on Galarian archaeology?" He flipped through it, his eyes shining brightly. "Wow, even the Watchtower Ruins, this is great!"

"Oh, right, I forgot you're a total nerd about this sort of thing," Sango teased.

"Hey, this stuff is important," Blake said, glancing up at her. "We can learn a lot from stuff like this! Knowledge of ancient civilizations and their cultures has helped us develop methods of interacting with pokemon that are still used today!"

"Yeah, I guess so, by the way, speaking of ancient pokemon, I forgot to tell you guys that I ran into some Relicanth during my test!"

"Whoa, seriously?" Blake said.

"Dude, it was awesome! They used ancientpower and nearly buried us in rubble! But they also helped us get out of there, too, and- wait, I forgot!"

"Huh?"

"Hold on right there, guys, I have something I need to show you!" Sango turned and rushed upstairs, leaving the rest of them rather confused. After digging through her luggage for several minutes, she returned, panting, holding a strange object wrapping in a towel in her hands.

"Take a look at this," Sango said, gesturing for her friends to come in close. She unwrapped the towel to reveal a white stone. It was smooth and round, about the size of a tennis ball, and seemed to practically be shining. "I found it in a shrine on the island. The shrine collapsed, but I managed to get this out. I'd kept it in my luggage, but I forgot about it until now. What do you think?"

Blake took the stone from her hands and looked closely at it. It didn't seem to be an evolution stone, but it certainly gave off energy like one…

"That stone…" Kitty's voice was a soft whisper, but in the echoing silence of the empty common room, it still drew their attention. She looked… unnerving. Her eyes were dull and clouded over, like they had lost all focus. She reached for the stone, her body moving slowly, as though she were struggling against unseen hands. "I can… hear it… it's… calling me…"

Her fingers curled around it and suddenly the stone began to shine, light flashing in Kitty's eyes. Her hair bristled and she began shaking, the light from the stone moving into her hand, and then up her arm, and soon her entire body was engulfed in light, so bright that everyone needed to shield their eyes.

"Kitty!" Julia cried, reaching into the light and grabbing onto the girl.

Blake, who was still holding onto the stone, tried to tug it out of her grasp, but her grip was like iron. Unnaturally strong for a girl her age.

"Blake…" Kitty's voice came from within the light, but with a strange tone to it, like hearing a yell from far away. "It's… it's washing me away, I can't, I…"

"Kitty, you need to let go," Blake ordered her, tugging harder on the stone. "You need… to… let… go!"

Blake pulled as hard as he could with one hand while pulling her arm away with the other direction. Kitty's fingers slipped from the stone's smooth surface and the light immediately vanished, Blake falling back into a chair while Kitty landed on top of Julia. The stone rolled across the ground, coming to a stop in the corner.

"Ugh…" Kitty muttered groggily, blood trickling out of her nose and ears. "Wha happen…?"

"Kitty, are you okay?" Julia demanded. She glanced at her Seedot. "Percy, can you… I don't know… use, like, synthesis on her?"

Percy nodded, and began glowing green, trying to heal Kitty… somehow. It didn't seem to work.

"Thanks anyway," she sighed. "Kitty, are you-"

"I'm fine," Kitty gasped, blinking a few times and sitting up, getting off of Julia. "Sorry, I just kind of… zoned out…"

"That wasn't 'zoning out' that was a freaking lightshow," Cynthia said, the concern in her voice clear. "Are you sure you're okay?!"

"I, yes, I…" Kitty reached into her shirt pocket and withdrew her medicine bottle, popping a pill into her mouth. "My… you know, it just…"

Blake helped Kitty lay down on the couch, and then went to retrieve the stone from where it had rolled.

"Kitty, I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to… I…" Sango was babbling, not having intended to do anything close to this. "I shouldn't have even brought that thing back with me, I knew it would be a problem, but I…"

"We need to bring this to Professor Reinhart," Blake decided. "Tomorrow, after classes are done. He might know something about this, he's had some experience with relics in the past."

Sango nodded her head glumly.

"What… what was it?" Kitty asked, shaking her head. "I remember… it was like a voice, calling out to me, and then…"

"If anything, this proves what we were talking about before," Blake said, glancing at Kitty with a look of concern. "We need to work on getting your harmonia under control. You were able to let go this time, but if something like this happens again…"

"He's right," Cynthia agreed. "Kitty, we don't want you to get hurt!"

"But… I've been trying," Kitty wailed. "I don't… I don't know if I can do it by myself!"

She began sniffling, tears welling up in her eyes. Julia sat down next to her and laid a comforting hand over hers.

"I know," Blake said, biting his lip in frustration. "I guess we don't have a choice, we're going to have to go to Oscar. We need to find someone who can teach you how to control harmonia… we can't question his motives, that isn't as important as your health."

"But if he's trying to use her, then…" Julia's tone was a mixture of cold anger and fear. Blake didn't feel any better about the situation.

"But we don't have any choice," he said, shaking his head.

"Um…" Sango raised her hand, everyone turning to her.

"I… I know someone who has harmonia… she has it under complete control. She's a little eccentric, but I trust her completely… if we ask, then maybe she'd be willing to help Kitty, too…?"

Blake and Kitty glanced at each other, their eyes wide with hope. Was it possible?! If so, that was exactly what they needed!

"You, you think so?!" Kitty asked hopefully.

"I-I'll ask, but I'm sure she'll say yes," Sango said. "We can go see her tomorrow, after we give that stone to the professor."

"Sounds like a plan," Blake agreed. The three of them arranged to meet up tomorrow, while Cynthia and Julia looked on in concern.

"I'm going too," Julia said. Kitty shook her head frantically.

"No, I-I don't want you caught up in this. Please, just… trust me, okay?"

Julia's expression was pained, but she nodded her head anyway. Cynthia wanted to help too, but if Julia wasn't invited to the party, then she doubted she'd be, either.

"If you guys need anything tomorrow, just give us a call, okay?" Cynthia asked. "If it's all of us, we can put the beatdown on this teacher of yours if she goes all tornado-y on you!"

Blake shot her a dirty look over the obvious implication of Elaina, but Cynthia either didn't notice or chose to ignore him.

Kitty swallowed, wiping the dried blood off of her lip. Yesterday had been training as usual… Today had been a complete worry… and now, tomorrow… Tomorrow she'd apparently be meeting her teacher.

I wonder what she's going to be like? Kitty asked herself, her anxious heart pounding in her chest.

She's… quite a girl, let's say that, Kitty. Good luck.