This chapter, Sylvia and Akira have their first real conversation. But certain surprises mean… it might not go exactly as you'd be expecting. Something's going to happen that even Sylvia might not see coming. Enjoy the love drama!

Number13teen: Yeah, Elaina's Minior is one of her best pokemon.

Hellraiserphoenix: Akira and Sylvia's confrontation might not go the way you expect, though.

Aakareo Kokokuhikari: True, it's certainly not in Akira's character to be seduced. At least not by Sylvia.

JoshGamerV: It going to go a lot more wrong than you expect.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 156

Sylvia hummed as she walked into the school infirmary. It was well past visiting hours and the sky was already dark, but that was no big deal, at least not to her. Of course, the desk was still staffed by a lone nurse, who looked up at Sylvia questioningly.

"Is there something wrong?" The nurse asked, Sylvia shaking her head.

"No, no, nothing like that, I'm just here to visit my dear friend Akira Saroyan," she replied. "Isn't that right, Specter?"

"Shuppet!" Specter said, bobbing up and down.

"…I'm sorry, but visiting hours have been over for some time," the receptionist replied. "We can't just let you go visit him like-"

Sylvia held up a finger, wiggling it from side to side.

"That may be the case for normal students, but I have… special permission."

Sylvia reached into her purse, and withdrew her ID card, walking to the desk, and slid it across to the receptionist.

"As the personal apprentice of Professor Luna Lunark, I hold certain responsibilities in this school," Sylvia replied. "I think if you run my credentials, you'll find that I have the authority to attend to students within the infirmary at all points for the furtherance of my studies on medicine and potions."

The nurse looked up Sylvia's ID number and discerned that yes, indeed, Sylvia did have special authority usually limited to doctor and nursing students that were juniors and seniors. She did not understand why this would be the case, but it most certainly was. The nurse hid her initial surprise behind a professional smile, brushing her pink hair out of her face as she rose from her seat, returning Sylvia's ID.

"You are visiting Akira Saroyan, yes? I will escort you to him," the nurse responded, glancing behind her. "Just to ensure that you don't get lost."

"…Why, thank you," Sylvia said, smiling. The nurse led her to Akira's room, but he was clearly in no position to receive guests. All he was doing was sleeping peacefully in his bed, barely visible in the light from hallway.

"…Here's his room, but I don't think he'll be able to do any talking right now. Please don't wake him up, our patients do need their sleep," the nurse replied. "When you've finished your business here, I would appreciate if you left everything exactly as you found it, thank you very much. Are you sure you want to stay here, though? He won't be very good company."

Sylvia stepped into the room. Specter followed after her, barely visible in the darkness. Sylvia glanced around. Her eyes widened in surprise, and her smile grew wide.

"No worries," Sylvia replied. "I'll just pass the time by speaking with his other visitor."

Other visitor? The nurse thought, staring at Sylvia in confusion. Sylvia glanced back at her, her smile imperceptible. Odd girl…

"W-well, I'll be leaving now," the nurse said. "Oh, and we don't allow pokemon out of their pokeballs in the rooms!"

Sylvia sighed, recalling Specter as the nurse hastily closing the door.

Sylvia loved the fact that the light in the room faded away, swathing her in darkness. Nothing could be heard but the shallow breathing of a sleeping Akira. She was alone now… or was she? Sylvia walked deeper into the room, stepping up to Akira's bedside, unseen in the dark room.

"Well, it's just me now," Sylvia purred. "I know you're there. So why not come out?"

An ominous light flickered behind Sylvia, bathing the room in an eerie glow. Sylvia turned to see the shimmering image of a young girl in a red yukata decorated in gold flowers. The girl had black hair in a short bob haircut and golden eyes that seemed to shine with an ethereal glow. A jagged scar marred the pale skin of her face, running down over her left eye and breaking into two parts.

"You… can see me?" The ghostly child asked quietly. Sylvia nodded her head.

"I'm not exactly what you would call normal…" Sylvia murmured, walking over to the spirit. "As a trainer of the ghost types, I've trained my abilities such that I now speak to ghosts quite regularly. But now that I see you, I find myself wondering what exactly you are… an actual ghost? Or a delusion of Akira's, given physical form?"

She glanced at the pokeball on Akira's bedside table. "Or maybe even an astral projection of some kind… quite fascinating."

"I'm Satsuki," the girl replied.

"Hello, Satsuki. My name is Sylvia. But you didn't answer my question."

Satsuki smiled, and giggled.

"I had initially come here for something else entirely," Sylvia said, glancing behind her to look at Akira, "but now that I've found you, I think that there might be something even more interesting I could do."

Satsuki narrowed her eyes.

"What business do you have with him?" She demanded. Sylvia's only response was a smile.

"Nothing that concerns a guardian spirit such as yourself. But since you are here, I suppose I could be tempted to do you a favor…"

"A favor?" Satsuki looked at Sylvia with confusion. "What sort of favor could you do for something like me?"

"Oh, it's no large favor," Sylvia purred. "I was just curious, for someone like you to be so attached of Akira, he must be someone very precious to you, isn't that right? And yet as a normal human, he can't even sense your presence."

"When he got his injury… for a time, he could see me," Satsuki replied, the sadness in her voice clear. "But as he's recovered… slowly, he's begun to see me less and less… now, he can't sense my presence at all."

Sylvia nodded her head sympathetically. "That must be very hard."

"But even so… just watching over him… it makes me so happy…" Satsuki clenched her hand over her chest, staring wistfully down at Akira. "Even if he just thinks I'm a hallucination… or a result of brain damage… if I can watch over him like this…"

She let out a sigh.

"It was my own dumb decision that brought this about. Regretting it now is stupid."

"Maybe so… but wouldn't you still like to do something about it?" Sylvia asked, stepping in closer to the young spirit.

"Do something… like what…?" Satsuki asked, clearly confused.

"You already know I can see you," Sylvia purred, walking behind the girl. "Do you think that's the extent of my connection to the spirit world?"

"What do you mean?" Satsuki asked.

"What I'm saying… is that my body is a perfect medium for ghosts and spirits such as yourself."

Satsuki's eyes widened.

"W-wait, do you mean…"

"I you wished… I would be willing to let you use my body for a short while," Sylvia offered. "In my body, you could do all manner of things… what do you think, Satsuki? Would that be something you would like?"

Although her body was not corporeal, Satsuki felt a chill run down her spine. She shivered.

"…Do you… really mean that?" Satsuki quietly asked, glancing back at Sylvia her eyes were pleading. Sylvia's smile widened. This girl… she didn't know the whole story behind what was going on between her and Akira… but it seemed like she could use this to get some quality entertainment out of her desperation. She had initially come here to rouse Akira, and seduce him, potentially spending the night together, or at the very least, bother him and see if she could coax out a sign of any feelings for Dakota, something that she could use to further entertain herself when she ran into the newspaper girl… but she hadn't expected something like this. This revelation certainly warranted a change in plans.

"Of course," Sylvia purred. "I think that allowing you to experience the real world… and experience a physical body… that would be something I expect to be unbelievably interesting."

"Y-yes! Please!" Satsuki pleaded, her eyes glistening with hope. Sylvia's smile widened. She held out her hand to the little girl, her eyes shining in the spectral glow of the ghost girl. Satsuki reached out and took Sylvia's hand, the light in the room intensifying, the spirit fading away completely, the room returning to blackness, leaving only a blonde in an elegant black dress with black lace standing in the shadows.

"I'll loan you my body, sweetie… you can use it as you wish. Now that we're sharing a body, I can feel your connection to Akira… the strength of your feelings… fulfill them as much as you like with this body of mine."

Unseen in the darkness, a smile crossed the girl's face. She stepped around the bed, and headed out of the room. Getting used to walking after so long, she slowly moved down the dimly lit halls, stepping into the restroom. With a flip of the switch, she was bathed in a light so bright she had to shield her eyes for a second, blinking as she got used to having real eyes for the first time in so long.

Looking at the sink mirror, Satsuki stared at her reflection in awe. She hadn't been able to tell in the darkness, but this girl… she was beautiful. Satsuki stepped closer to the mirror, brushing her lovely blonde hair behind her ear. She reached up to her face, tracing her fingers over her cheek. Her skin was flawless, unmarred by scarring. It made her want to cry tears of joy and regret. A body… a real body… a body that wasn't a wreck, like her old one had been. A body with such a pretty face, and such beautiful blonde hair flowing down her back, nothing like her normal hair had been.

She glanced down at her body as well. It was the body of an adult (well, an older teenager, but same thing to an 11 year old). She placed a hand to her chest and squeezed. So this was what it was like to have boobs. She spent a little more time fondling herself than she was proud of, but there was really no helping it. She needed to get a good feeling of what her body was capable of, obviously!

She walked back to Akira's room, feeling out her body in movement some more. She entered the room, stepping into the darkness. She flipped on the light and walked over to him, gazing down at him with real, human eyes.

Satsuki smiled. She had seen Akira's sleeping face many times in the past, but now he was an adult. It gave her a different feeling to see him. She stepped closer to him, her heart (she had a heart!) beating in her chest.

Satsuki leaned down, and placed a kiss on Akira's lips.

"I've wanted to do that for so long…" Satsuki said, tears falling down her face. "I'm so glad… to see you again…"

She sat down beside him and reached out her hand, intertwining her fingers with his. She held his good hand tightly, feeling the warmth of human contact for the first time in years. His hand was so much larger and reassuring than the small and adorable Akira of her memories. He really had grown up. I wish I could have grown up beside you, Akira...

Akira woke up the next morning with a yawn. He tried to move his arm to stretch, only to realize that he couldn't. He sat upright and glanced down, seeing that his hand was not only being held by a girl, but her head was also resting on her arm as she slept, pinning his one good hand to the bed. What the heck was going on here? He was completely confused about why and how this girl was in his room.

This… is Sylvia Driscoll, right? Akira vaguely remembered her. He didn't really have any relationship with her, so why the heck was she in here snoring away?

"Oi, Sylvia," Akira said, pulling his arm a little more insistently, shaking her awake.

"Wha… been so long since I slept…" The girl Akira recognized as Sylvia yawned, blinking wearily. She laid eyes on Akira and her face brightened, her eyes widening with joy. "Akira! You're finally awake, huh?"

"Sylvia, what are you doing here?" Akira demanded, glaring suspiciously at her. It didn't make any sense for her to be here.

"Akira…" She said, her eyes tearing up. She opened her arms and hugged him, much to Akria's confusion. "I'm so happy to see you! I'm so glad, finally, finally I can…"

"Hey, let go of me!" Akira said, struggling against her.

"Akira, why…" Akira looked at the blonde in confusion. Her face… it looked like she'd had her heart ripped out of her chest. Why?

"I see… you don't recognize me like this…" She looked like she was about to cry. She looked down at her hands. "Even though we could finally be together… I guess… you've always been a dense fool… but then, that's just another thing that's so great about you… I can't even be that mad."

She looked up at Akira, a sad smile on her face.

"I don't think you'd believe me if I told you… but even so, I'm happy… just being here like this, for as long as I can. Since I've always loved you, Akira." Akira felt her hands wrap around him as the girl leaned her head against his chest, a content smile on her face. "Even if you don't recognize me… I'm sure you can feel that it's me. This warmth… this is what I've missed for so long…"

Akira's eyes widened. It couldn't be… it just couldn't be.

"Wait, Sylvia…" He said, placing his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him with her sparkling black eyes. It couldn't be… but it was. Those eyes… the way they looked at him… this wasn't Sylvia. It was…

"Akira…? And… Sylvia? What?" Akira whirled to see Dakota standing in the doorway, her face pale and twisted into an expression of disbelief.

"Dakota…" Akira gasped.

"I… see…" Dakota said, trembling, tears falling from her eyes. "So you two… were like that… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you…"

She dropped the takeout boxes she'd been carrying and ran from the room, crying.

"Wait, Dakota, this isn't-!"

"Dakota?" Satsuki gasped, glancing at the doorway. "Wait, no I'm not, I…"

"That's long enough, I think, don't you? It's time I had my own body back."

Satsuki blinked, feeling herself slipping away. Like a puppet with her strings cut, she no longer had control, of herself or anything. Her arms could no longer feel Akira's warmth flowing into them. No longer staring at Akira through Sylvia's eyes, she floated over his bed, cut off from the physical world once again.

"Sorry to cause an incident," Sylvia purred, dropping her arms and getting off of Akira, batting her eyelashes at him. She stood up, and stretched.

"Poor Dakota. You're such a heart-breaker, Akira," Sylvia stepped around the bed, glancing at him with partially-lidded eyes.

"Sylvia… before, what was… was that-?"

Sylvia clicked her tongue and waggled her finger from side to side.

"It's none of your business," she said, her eyes twinkling. "But I certainly got my fill of entertainment. I've got a busy schedule to get to, I must be going."

Sylvia glanced at Satsuki's saddened face, unseen by Akira. She gave her a wink.

"I hope it was good for you, sweetie. If you'd like to play again, then you just have to come and ask."

Satsuki winced, the guilt in her face obvious. But she didn't have it in her to be upset at Sylvia. It was Satsuki's own greed that had hurt the redheaded girl who loved Akira. Sylvia had given away her body, and Satsuki couldn't even feel the gratitude to thank her for it after everything that happened.

"Quiet," Akira growled. "I didn't do any playing with you."

"I wasn't talking to you, Akira," Sylvia purred. "Rather, I was talking to that cute little golden-eyed girl in the red yukata. You know the one."

Akira's eyes widened and his face went pale.

"Either way, give me a call sometime," Sylvia called over her shoulder, exiting the room. As she left, she ran into Serefina.

"Sylvia Driscoll?" Serefina asked, shocked. "What are you doing here? Where's Dakota? I thought she was coming by to…"

Serefina's eyes fell on the discarded food containers and she put the pieces together.

"How could you?!" Serefina snarled, tears in her eyes.

"Me?" Sylvia asked, holding her hand over her chest in mock outrage and shock. "I've done nothing! I was an innocent bystander! If there's someone to blame here, blame it on lover boy over there."

She dismissed Serefina with a wave, strolling down the hall as Serefina glared after her with impotent rage.

Satsuki… Akira… Dakota… The relationship between the three of them is quite intriguing. I wonder how much enjoyment I can wring out of it. Sylvia licked her lips, exiting the infirmary and greeting the morning sun. So for now… I suppose it's only right to go explain to Dakota the truth about what happened. After all, it certainly wasn't my fault that Satsuki was hugging him. She deserves to know the truth.

Sylvia giggled, already anticipating the expression on Dakota's face. From what she'd gleaned out of Satsuki, the redhead, at the very least, knew of the ghostly girl, and that would be good enough for her purposes.

Yes, being honest with her really is the right thing to do.

Sylvia and Akira finally have their face to face confrontation… but not quite in the way you were expecting, I'm sure.