Now that Blake and Ayame are an official couple, what will the response be? Let's see the fallout to this momentous occasion! Especially since you all seem kind of ambivalent about it.

We've got a decent amount of votes in the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Semi-Finals! The current lead runners in the polls may surprise you! The shakeup really makes me realize how a girl may be in many people's top 5, but not necessarily in their top 3. So I'm certainly feeling more than a little surprised Looks like the girl I'm pulling for isn't going to win, but that's fine. They're all wonderful girls! There have still only been a few votes, I'm sure there are more of you that want to vote! If you want your best girls to make it to the final round and beyond, then make sure to get your votes in! You have 3 votes, make them count!

Semi-Finalists: Cynthia, Ayame, Sango, Kate, Marion, Alcea

Pokemonking0924: It's going to be hard, but hopefully Ayame and Gwen will both be able to move forward into the future.

Aquahaze675: It was a tough road, but yep. Blake found the path that he wants, and it's Ayame.

Badoobadoop: Thankfully, his feelings won out over his fear of bringing her pain. Which is good, because the two of them deserve a chance at being happy.

Tambry96bj: Well we'll certainly see someone's reaction here.

Thunder Fire: Someone takes Cheershipping seriously? #Doubt

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 286

The night had passed and the storm had reached its end. The sun was slowly rising on the horizon, witnessed by two people sitting on a bed, staring out the window together.

"Wow, it's already morning," Blake said.

"We really spent the whole night talking," Ayame yawned. She hopped out of bed and walked over to the window. She looked back at Blake, a smile on her face. "I told you, didn't I? The world would keep going, the sun would rise, and it would be a brand new day."

Blake looked up at her, and smiled back in a way tt made her heart skip a beat. That twinkle in his eye was just so adorable she couldn't help herself.

"I'm really tired," Ayame said, stretching. "Plus I've got classes today… ugh, what about you? Now that you're bck you must have some stuff to do, right?"

"Actually, not really," Blake admitted, shaking his head. "We had to come back early, so we're still technically off for our other classes. Honestly I don't know what the plan is going to be for our class schedule."

"…Huh…" Ayame blinked. She held her hands in front of her face, steepling her fingers against each other. A small smile passed her lips.

"Well, um… since you aren't doing anything today… maybe I could cut class? That way, you and I can go and hang out together… all day?" She looked at him hopefully. Blake's face turned bright red and averted his eyes.

"W-well, we don't want you to skip class, right?" Blake asked. "The teachers might get mad at you, you know."

Ayame's face fell.

"You… you don't want to go out on a date with me?"

Blake blushed.

"N-no, it's not that! It's just, um…" He lowered his head and his voice lowered with it. "It… it's embarrassing, you know?"

Ayame smirked. She sidled up over to him, leaning down, a nasty look in her eye. She began poking Blake in the cheek.

"Oooh? Are you embarrassed about being seen out in public with your girlfriend?" Ayame teased. "Aww, how cute…"

Blake grabbed her hand.

"Maybe I'm embarrassed because if we spend time together I won't be able to hold myself back… and making out with you in public is a little too much for our real date."

Ayame turned bright red and she leapt back, her heart pounding in her chest.

"Don't say stuff like that! That's embarrassing! Super embarrassing! Fucking incredibly embarrassing!" But she was already picturing the two of them kissing on a bench in the middle of campus, now that he had put the image in her brain. She let out a wail.

"Good," Blake said, nodding his head like the matter was settled. "Let's not forget which one of us teased the other ferociously at the beginning of our relationship, shall we?"

Ayame hissed at him in response.

Blake sat up, and stretched. He glanced at her flushed face and felt more than a little embarrassed himself.

"L-look," Blake mumbled, glancing away from her. "If… if you want to go on a date today, I guess… I guess that would be okay?"

"Oi, don't go all tsundere on me, fucker!" Ayame jabbed an accusing finger at him. "That stuff is off limits when you're dating for real!"

"Looks who's talking, you were all tsun all the time back on our first date, or did you just forget that?" Blake teased.

"That… that was different! Besides, I made up for that on your birthday, right?" Ayame said. "I'm totally different from back then, you know?"

"It's a pity," Blake sighed. "You were really cute back then, when you were putting up a fight. That tsun was adorable…"

"A… adorable?" Ayame blushed, fidgeting nervously. "I… sh-shut up you!"

Ayame pushed Blake backwards, the two tumbling onto her bed.

"Moving a little fast, huh?" Blake smirked. Ayame scowled at him.

"It was a fucking accident!" She snapped. "Don't misunderstand!"

Ayame leapt out of bed, shooting daggers at him.

"H-how long are you going to be here, anyway?" Ayame asked.

Blake looked at her in confusion.

"I thought you wanted to spend the day with me?"

"W-well, yeah, but…" Ayame looked down at the fluffy pink bathrobe he was still wearing. "Plus, I need to change into something more presentable, and, well…"

"I won't mind," Blake replied. She shot him a dirty look.

"I'll change in the bathroom, thank you!"

"I guess you're right, I do need to change my clothes," Blake admitted. "Where'd you put my phone? I can get Reiner to deliver me a change, considering my old ones are, well…"

Blake glanced at the pile of ruined clothing in Ayame's hamper.

"Here," Ayame said, tossing Blake's phone over to him. He slid the screen open and his face went pale. There were about 50 messages from Kate, Sango, Reiner, and Nikita, as well as Cynthia, Nick, Julia, and Kitty. Even Alcea had sent him a message, worried about him. Blake shook his head. His fugue state the night before… it seemed like he had a lot of apologizing and clarifications that he had to do. He let out a sigh and messaged Reiner, apologizing and asking for him to bring a change of clothes over to Ayame's room.

"Wait, you're having him come here?" Ayame asked. "Are… are you sure that's a good idea, for him to, you know…"

"What? You wanted to keep it a secret?" Blake asked.

"W-well, I mean… I thought you did?" Ayame asked. "Cause, you know, I'm a senior and all…" Actually, she was feeling a little concerned for what would happen when Sango heard about it. As far as she knew, the girl hadn't even had a chance to confess. She did feel a little bad, but at the same time, Blake had made his choice. Sango was a good girl. She would understand.

"I don't want to keep it secret," Blake reassured her. "It is a little embarrassing, but… I'm not embarrassed of you. I love you, and I don't care who knows it."

"D-don't just say stupid fucking stuff like that with a straight face!" Ayame shouted, covering her face. "It's embarrassing! I-I can't handle stuff like that you moron, you know that!"

"I know, that's why it's adorable," Blake teased. Ayame stuck her tongue out at him in response, slightly less amused. She opened her mouth to fire back a response, when the two were cut off by a knock on the door.

"What, Reiner here already?" Blake asked, shifting to an upright position on the bed. "That was pretty damn fast."

Ayame shrugged and walked over to the door. It was pretty early in the morning, she didn't know who would be calling on her at this hour. She turned the doorknob and pulled the door open to see who was standing on the other side of it.

Olivia was standing in front of the door, a closed-eye smile on her face that made Ayame's blood run cold. She gulped, her face going pale.

"Hi, honey," Olivia's eyes opened into narrow slits that sent another wave of fear through Ayame. "I'm home."

"Boss…" Ayame managed to stutter out. Olivia could see past her, into the main section of her room, which meant that she could see Blake, sitting on her bed, wearing her bathrobe. "Um… this isn't, we didn't, I mean, uh…"

"It's not what you think!" She managed to get out.

"Ayame?" Olivia's voice was as cold as ice. She was using Ayame's full name rather than calling her Aya, so Ayame knew that this wasn't something good.

"Get out of the way."

Ayame gulped, taking several steps back as Olivia stormed past her. She shot Blake an even icier glare, Blake jumping out of bed immediately. For a second he was afraid Olivia was going to stab him. She was clearly not pleased.

"Olivia, this is…"

But Olivia wasn't paying him any mind either. She walked past him and knelt next to the wastebasket by the bed, digging through it. Ayame and Blake glanced at each other in confusion. What the hell was she doing?

"Boss, what are you doing digging around in the garbage?" Ayame asked.

"I'm looking for the used condoms."

Ayame's jaw dropped.

"WE DIDN'T USE THOSE!" Ayame sputtered. Olivia raised her head and glanced up at her, rising to her feet.

"Then you did it…? Aya, I thought your judgment was better than that. Haven't I been telling you that you needed to use-"

"WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT!" Ayame protested. Her fear had worn off, and she was now getting in Olivia's face. "WE JUST TALKED! THAT WAS IT!"

Olivia blinked. She turned her head to Blake, who was still wearing Ayame's bathrobe. Then she glanced at Ayame's laundry basket, which had Blake's clothes mixed with the outfit Ayame had worn the night before.

Olivia looked back at Ayame.

"Sure. You 'just talked'."

Ayame and Blake glanced at each other. Their expressions of mutual guilt spoke for themselves. However you sliced it, it did look pretty bad.

"Boss, I mean…"

"Look Aya, just because my skin might be as soft as a newborn baby, that doesn't mean I was born yesterday," Olivia said. "You honestly want me to believe that the two of you spent the night together and NOTHING happened?"

"It's true! We didn't do anything!" Blake confirmed. "All we did was stay up talking! All night. We didn't even get to sleep."

"Didn't get to sleep? Yeah, I'll bet you didn't," Olivia dryly replied.

"Olivia!" Ayame exclaimed.

Olivia rolled her eyes and walked over to the bed, pushing Blake aside. She yanked the blankets and comforter off, and began inspecting them.

"What now?" Ayame sighed.

"I'm looking for blood, obviously," Olivia said. "You're a virgin, so if you did, well, you know, then I'm sure there would be some amount of-"

Ayame nearly tackled Olivia.

"There's not any blood! None! Because we didn't! Do! Anything!"

"Then what's he doing here?" Olivia demanded. "You have Blake come over to your room for a 'talk' that lasts all night? Well I'm sure that must be something riveting. Go on, please, I'd love to hear just what you and he were 'talking' about."

Olivia sat down on Ayame's bed and looked up at her, balancing her chin on her hands. Ayame glanced at Blake, and then back at her friend. She cleared her throat, still a little flustered. But Olivia was her best friend, and she wanted to share the good news with somebody. So she told Olivia exactly what was going on.

"Well, you see, the thing is, Blake and I, we're… we're boyfriend and girlfriend now!"

She'd said. She'd said it, and now it was real. Just knowing that made Ayame's face light up like a bonfire, and she had to resist the urge to break out in a big dopey grin. It was true, it really was true! She and Blake were girlfriend and boyfriend!

Olivia looked less enthused about that.

"…I see."

She rose to her feet and walked over to Blake. "I see…"

Blake didn't like the look in her eye. Olivia stepped up to him and wrapped her hand around the back of his head, pulling him close so she could whisper in his ear without Ayame overhearing her.

"So you think you can take my sweet Aya away from me, is that it?"

Blake was a little taken aback by this. What did she mean by "taking Ayame away"? Wasn't Ayame her friend?

Olivia grabbed Blake by the collar of the bathrobe, and shoved him against the wall. She stepped up to pin him against the wall, leveling a furious glare at him.

"Ow! Hey!" Blake grunted, his head hitting the hard wall with a little more force than he was comfortable with.

"Boss, what the fuck are you doing?!" Ayame demanded, stomping over towards the two of them. But she was frozen in place when Olivia turned her gaze in her direction. In fact, she nearly recoiled back in surprise.

"Stay right there, Ayame," Olivia growled. "No, go and sit down on the bed. Blake and I need to have a chat in private."

"Uh…" Ayame didn't really know what to say, so she shut her mouth and sat down obediently on her bed.

"Plug your ears and hum," Olivia added. Ayame obediently complied.

With that settled, Olivia turned her attention back to Blake.

"Listen you little shit," she hissed, keeping her voice low so Ayame wouldn't be able to hear what she was telling him. "I have been trying to turn her over to my side for the last four years. Do you understand me? You don't get to have her. She's MINE. I love her, more than you ever could. She's still fooling herself into thinking that she's interested in guys. So you just cut with the bullshit and leave us to our own devices, do you understand?"

Blake didn't understand even a little bit.

"I thought… but you said you wanted me to make a decision…" Blake sputtered. He knew that Olivia had Ayame's best interests at heart, at least that was what she'd always told him. She was the one who wanted him to respect Ayame's feelings and determine whether or not he could reciprocate them. And now that he had, what, she suddenly wasn't okay with it?

"That wishy-washy attitude of yours is the problem," Olivia hissed. "It was going perfectly! You rejected her, just how I knew you would! And that heartbreak? Given enough time, I could have molded that into her giving ME a chance! I've been trying to get with her since we were freshmen, and I'm not about to let you get in the way of that just because you had a sudden flash of whimsy and want to try and see what it's like!"

Olivia leaned in closer, pressing her arm against his neck.

"I want you to look me in the eyes. Do I look like I'm playing around right now?"

Blake rapidly shook his head. No, she looked like she was angry enough to murder him.

"That's right. I'm not. Aya is mine. You go off and go play with your little friends, and leave her to me. Do I make myself clear?"

Blake swallowed. Well, he swallowed as best he could with the painful damage done to his throat, alongside Olivia's elbow digging into it and choking him.

Olivia leaned back, giving him room to breathe. Her arm fell to her side, Blake coughing as he tried to take a few breaths before answering her.

"…Not a chance," Blake spat out. He returned Olivia's glare with one of her own.

"What did you say?" Olivia demanded.

"You might be trying to convert Ayame so you can be with her, but I don't care," Blake replied. "I'm in love with her. I want to be with her."

"You weren't in love with her a week ago," Olivia shot back. "What? You had some magic revelation and now you think you want to be with her? Sorry, not buying it! I'm not going to let you ruin years of hard work just because your fickle heart changed its mind on some half-assed whim! I'm the one who Aya belongs with, not you!"

"This isn't some whim!" Blake cried. "I just… I finally realized that I'm in love with her, and I want to make her happy! Ayame, she…"

Blake felt betrayed. He'd thought that Olivia would support him, that she would want the two of them to be happy. But no, apparently she was just being selfish. She'd never wanted him to be with Ayame at all, she was just using him to hurt her. And knowing that hurt him.

He sighed and lowered his head. There wasn't anything he could say.

"There's a good boy."

Blake felt a hand pat him on the head. He glanced up to see Olivia's smiling face looking back at him. All the animosity was completely gone.

"Who's a good boy? You are, yes you are! Good boy…" Olivia hummed, scratching his hair.

Blake wanted to die. It had all been a bunch of bullshit. He couldn't believe he had fallen for something that stupid. Olivia didn't have feelings for Ayame, she was just trying to see whether or not his feelings for her were genuine. His face grew hot.

Olivia snickered, turning back to Ayame, who was still humming, and gave her a wave.

Ayame dropped her hands. She was confused. Olivia looked… happy? Yes, definitely happy. She wasn't upset anymore.

"Ayame, I'm so happy for you," Olivia smiled, glancing back at Blake. "He's a good one. And he really likes you, I can see it in his eyes. I hope that the two of you can be happy together."

Ayame blinked, stunned. She blushed, and nodded her head. "Yeah."

"Well, I'll leave you crazy kids to it," Olivia said, heading toward the door. She paused, reached into her purse, and tossed Ayame a small box. "Better make sure you use those, don't want anything bad to happen."

"OLIVIA!" Ayame wailed, her face turning bright red. "We aren't doing stuff like that yet!"

"If you say so!" Olivia called back as she walked down the hallway, humming to herself.

Well, the two of them got Olivia's blessing, that's nice to hear.