What does Claire want with Ayame and Sango? How will she react to the news that Blake has a girlfriend? We'll see!

We've got a decent amount of votes in the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Semi-Finals! We're reaching the end, so get in your votes! The frontrunners right now may surprise you, there's a dark horse in the top 3! Make sure to get those votes in, so we can see who makes it to the final round! All the girls are trying their best, let's see who will pull out the win!

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

Aquahaze675: I think that's a reasonable assessment.

Thunder Fire: Don't worry, I don't plan to make the fishing contest a big thing.

EESDESESESRDT6: She's a nice breath of fresh air sometimes.

Tambry96bj: Neither. She's not a student yet. But she's the same age as Blake.

Rosealine gold: Don't worry, other characters will be returning soon.

Mercury – Mercuraneous: She wouldn't start a fight? Are we talking about the same Claire? If Ayame doesn't hold to her high standards, things could get messy.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 290

"Mmm! This is delicious!" Claire cooed, taking another bite of her donut. It was covered in mint chips and slathered in honey, and oozed blackberry jelly from the center. The three girls were sitting in the mall food court, in front of a shop that offered strange donut combinations and for some reason was open 24/7.

Sango and Ayame were seated across the table from the chesty girl, more than a little perturbed. Donuts were in front of both of them, but they weren't eating. In no small part due to the fact that Claire was treating them.

Because she picked out the flavors.

Ayame had taken a bite of hers and had promptly spit it out. It was covered in white chocolate sauce, diced cherries with coconut flakes, and instead of a hollow core, it was filled with a special filling just like Claire's.

"Something wrong?" Claire asked, looking up from her donut. "You don't like it the flavor? I thought it would be good."

"Yeah… I'm not a fan of coffee…" Ayame said, shaking her head. That's right, the filling in the donut was coffee-flavored.

Who the hell mixes white chocolate, cherries, coconut, and coffee?! Ayame silently demanded. That stuff is revolting! Who the hell can eat it?!

"What about you, Sango?" Claire asked, turning her head towards Sango, who hadn't even touched her donut. She wore a concerned look on her face. "I've never known you to be the kind of girl who'd turn down a meal. Is everything okay?"

"Uh… it's just…" Sango glanced at the donut, which was covered in bacon, cheese, and marinara sauce in a bizarrely revolting combination. Sango felt a little sick. Who the hell would put something like this on a donut?

"…I'm not that hungry right now."

"Come on, we're girls!" Claire laughed, slapping the table. "Girls have a second stomach devoted entirely to sweets! There's no need to worry about something like your weight, just gulp it down, no biggie!"

Yeah, that… Ayame glanced at Sango.

…Is NOT what our problem is. Sango agreed, glancing back at Ayame.

In the first place, these aren't even really sweets, they're disgusting! Ayame and Sango agreed immediately.

"Well, no sense in wasting good food," Claire shrugged, reaching for Sango's donut. "If you don't want it, mind if I have it?"

"…Yeah, sure," Sango said, nodding her head. She was more than a little unnerved. She's actually going to eat that revolting thing?

"It's delicious!" Claire said, biting into the bizarre donut, marinara running down her chin. She reached her napkin up and wiped her lips, smiling. A few more bites and it was reduced to crumbs, much to the shock of Ayame and Sango.

She actually ate it! The two girls gaped in shock.

"Mind if I have yours as well?" Claire asked, glancing at Ayame with big, shiny eyes. She batted her eyelashes like an innocent.

"Uh… go ahead," Ayame said, pushing the donut towards the girl. This donut, at least, was less openly nauseating than the one she'd just finished off, but it still didn't seem particularly appetizing. But Claire devoured it just like the first.

…

"Wait, why are we here casually eating donuts?!" Ayame demanded.

"Yeah!" Sango realized, scowling at Claire. "What's the big deal, Claire? You come up and have us all go out for food?!"

"What, you guys were busy?" Claire blinked. "Can't hang out with your friends? Wow, that's so cold… I'm hurt."

Ayame and Sango rolled their eyes.

"What are you even doing here, Claire?" Sango sighed. "How'd you even get back? Is our school's security so bad nowadays that you can keep weaseling your way in? Gotta say, that's quite an embarrassment."

"How rude!" Claire huffed. "I'll have you know that I came here on completely legitimate terms, thank you very much!"

"Uh… what are you talking about?" Sango asked, raising her eyebrow in confusion. Ayame also didn't understand. While she didn't know Claire as well as Sango clearly did, she could see that she was definitely an odd sort.

"Look at this," Claire said, reaching into the pocket of her bright blue blouse and withdrawing a small thin card, presenting it to the two girls. "You see? I didn't sneak in anywhere! I'm here on official business!"

Sango took the card from the girl's hand and turned it over, Ayame peeking at it over her shoulder. The two girls' mouths fell open.

"Pro… Prospective Student ID?!" Sango gaped, unaware such a thing even existed. Claire nodded her head, smiling smugly at the two.

"There, you see?" Claire repeated, the condescending tone in her voice driving Sango and Ayame up the walls. "I'm here on a temporary student visa, to explore the campus and get to know more about the school that I plan to be transferring into! And you accuse me of sneaking in? How rude! You should treat your prospective students better!"

Claire was quite good at pissing people off. Ayame and Sango could quite definitely feel it. Her smug, higher-than-though attitude made Sango want to smack her. The girl might be her friend, but she was still a total bitch.

"…Fine, fine, you're on campus on official business," Sango sighed. "A little heads up would have been nice."

"Well I thought you guys were going to be absent for a while," Claire shrugged, taking her temporary ID card back from Sango. "I actually called ahead, but Cynthia said you and Blake were on a field trip in Galar. Sucks that I couldn't postpone my visit, but I guess you guys were here anyway. So now we get to hang out! I can't wait to see Blake!"

Sango looked down, a little uncomfortable. Claire blinked.

"Something wrong?" Claire asked, confused. "Now that you mention it, why're you guys back so soon? Something happen?"

"Well, that's…"

"That's none of your business," Ayame said, interrupting Sango's explanation. She shot the girl a look telling her to keep quiet, a look that did not go unnoticed by Claire. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the two girls. Her expression turned sour. Claire wasn't one for having things be kept from her, especially not when they looked as troubling as they did. Sango was clearly hiding something that was making her uncomfortable.

"I brought you guys here to talk about something else," Claire admitted, sliding her eyes from Ayame to Sango, "but it looks like that my other business will have to take a backseat. I want to hear what happened."

"And I told you that's none of your fucking business," Ayame repeated, scowling at the girl. Unlike Sango, she didn't feel all that attached to Claire, if anything the girl was a bit of a nuisance. She certainly didn't want her prying into Blake's past.

"No, Ayame, it's fine," Sango said, shaking her head. Ayame turned to Sango with a surprised look on her face. Sango was cool with it? Well, she did know Claire better than Ayame did, maybe the girl was more trustworthy and compassionate than she let on?

"Come on, just tell me already!" Claire whined.

…Nah, that ain't it.

"Are you sure?" Ayame asked. Sango nodded.

"This… this also involves her, in a way," Sango admitted, turning her attention back to Claire. Claire could see that there was something serious in her eyes, something that made her concerned. She was probably talking about…

"Or more specifically… I'm pretty sure that she knows all about it," Sango clarified. "Or at the very least, the part that should remain silent."

Claire scowled.

"I'll share what Blake told us," Sango said, glancing at the girl. "Since I'm pretty sure you've already heard this story before."

"…Yeah," Claire said, nodding. She had an expression on her face that Sango couldn't quite read, like a mixture of apprehension, sadness, and relief. "That's about all Blake's past contains, alright. You can see why I wasn't all that thrilled to talk about his sister before. She's a rather sensitive subject, as I'm sure you know."

Ayame and Sango both knew that full well. Now that Ayame thought about it, of course she'd know Blake's past.

"But that still doesn't explain why Blake told you all that stuff," Claire said, not liking the picture that was forming in her head about what happened. If what she suspected had actually come to pass, then Blake was probably in really bad shape right about now. "Don't tell me… on that school trip of yours, Guinevere… did she really…?"

Sango nodded her head, and explained the rest of the story to her. She'd already told Claire what Blake had shared with them, and now she filled in the blanks, telling the girl all about what had gone down in Galar.

By the end of the story, Claire didn't have a very happy look on her face. She was seething, and whether it was with anger or sadness, neither Sango nor Ayame were entirely sure. It was enough to make them both very uncomfortable.

"…Where's Blake?" Claire finally asked. She wiped her eyes, before turning her attention towards the two girls. They could both see the flecks of tears in the corners of her eyes glistening in the dim lights of the mall.

"He needs me right now!" Claire cried, leaping up out of her seat, the chair falling back with a clatter. Her face was hot with desperation and she looked at the two of them with desperation. "You don't understand, what he's going through, it's got to be-"

"I know exactly what he's going through," Ayame said coolly, not letting Claire's outburst get the better of her. The pained look on Claire's face was matched with a calming, even smile over Ayame's. She shook her head. "You don't have to worry. Blake is okay."

Claire blinked, her breathing returning to normal as she let Ayame's words sink in.

"R-really?" She asked quietly.

Ayame nodded. "Really."

Claire calmed down a little more, glancing to Sango next for confirmation.

"Really?"

"Really," Sango agreed, nodding her head. Neither girl appeared to be lying. Claire was stunned. Knowing Blake's relationship with his sister, something like this would have broken him down. But according to these girls he was doing fine.

"Really…" Claire murmured, shaking her head. She couldn't fully believe it, but she still regained her bearings all the same. She leaned over and grabbed her fallen chair, picking it up and setting it back upright, sitting it back down. Claire took a few deep breaths, returning to her composed look. She glanced at the two girls. The look in her eye had changed, and she was now looking to the two for answers.

"Can you… tell me what you mean by that?" Claire asked. She glanced at Ayame. "More specifically… can you tell me what you two were talking about earlier?"

Her eyes turned accusatory.

"Specifically, what's this about my dear boy having a girlfriend?"

The air in the mall turned ice cold, and the look in her eyes sent a chill down Sango and Ayame's spines. Ayame was particularly nervous, even though there was no rational reason to fear this girl who was more boobs than muscle. And yet she still got the chill of staring down a disapproving mother-in-law at a marriage interview.

Sango glanced pointedly at Ayame.

Go on, tell her.

What do you mean tell her?! This girl looks like she wants to fucking eat me! Ayame exclaimed in a mental projection at the blonde.

That's your job as a girlfriend. Face it like a woman with pride. Sango nodded back at her.

Easy to talk without any skin in the game! Ayame silently protested. Right now I feel like my life is in fucking danger!

Sango smiled and gave her a thumbs up.

Go on and die. I'll take care of Blake. You don't have to worry, he and I will be happy together.

Fucking bitch! I knew I should have told you to step off him! Ayame joked back, the two girls sharing a giggle.

Excuse me, can you please not leave me out of the telepathic conversation, you two? Claire scowled, intruding her way into the girls' psychic talk.

S-Sorry… the two apologized, bowing their heads to the angry girl.

Claire crossed her arms in front of her large chest and puffed her cheeks out. "Okay, good then. How about you girls talk, then?"

Ayame nodded her head.

"I'm currently dating Blake," Ayame said. "Since last night. Or maybe this morning. It happened around then."

Claire processed this. She turned to Sango.

"Really?"

"Not this again," Sango sighed, slapping her palm against her forehead.

"Last night, Blake came to me on the heels of what had happened on the trip," Ayame explained. "He told me the whole story, including what had happened… before. And not only that… he told me how he felt. That he was… in love with me!"

Ayame's face turned bright red, and a big, dopey grin spread across her face. She cradled her cheeks in her hands, squirming in her seat.

Claire looked like she wanted to barf.

"What's with this sappy teenage love drama?" Claire scowled. "Ugh, you're so lovestruck it's sickening. More importantly, Sango…?"

"Uh, what?" Sango asked, a little stunned at being brought into the conversation.

Claire wore a look of concern.

"Are you… okay with this?" Claire asked, glancing pointedly at Ayame. "You know, things… going this way?"

"What, because she has feelings for him?" Ayame asked.

"Well just come right out and say it, why don't you?" Claire scowled.

"I thought you overheard the conversation," Sango said.

"Just bits and pieces," Claire replied. "Just enough to hear that one of you was dating him. But I didn't expect it to be you, Ayame. I was certain he would be more interested in Sango. No offense, of course. She just has something that you don't."

"What's that?" Sango asked.

"Blonde hair," Claire replied.

"…What does hair color have to do with it?" Sango dryly replied.

"Yeah, Blake loves me for me, my hair doesn't matter," Ayame agreed.

"Well his mom and sister are both blondes, so you know how it is," Claire said, shrugging. "I expected that would make him more likely to fall for Sango than for you, that's all."

"Great so I look like his family member? What makes you think THAT would work?" Sango scowled. That wasn't a very amusing thought.

"Well, I mean, he's more than a little too… 'attached' to his younger sister, so… you know," Claire shrugged.

"…Yeah but that's different from having romantic feelings for her," Sango said. "Their family. There's no way he'd be attracted to his sister."

"…Yeah, absolutely no way," Claire said, averting her eyes. "No way someone would actually be attracted to their adoptive sibling… to a sickeningly excessive degree… to the extent that they would stare threateningly at other girls who got close to him… absolutely no way whatsoever, no, definitely not… ahahaha…"

Claire's face turned pale as several particular memories flashed back through her mind. Ayame gulped. That was a rather terror-filled expression.

Claire regained her composure a few seconds later and turned to Sango and Ayame, shaken free from her flashbacks.

"And Blake's really… doing okay?"

"He's smiling," Sango said, nodding. "In a way that I didn't see before. Even when he was hanging with us… it was like he was holding something back. But with Ayame… it was like he could finally be the Blake he was hiding behind the smiles. And smile for real with her, you know? So while what he went through was hard… he seems a lot happier now than he was before. And I think a big part of that is that he finally found someone he could trust. And in turn, he was able to trust us, as well."

Claire nodded.

"Blake's smile used to be so honest and bright," she reminisced, her smile brimming with nostalgia. "But when his mother was hospitalized and his sister was sent away, everything changed. Then, when his sister went missing, I thought for sure that I'd never get to see that innocent smile again. So if what you're saying is true… I couldn't be more thrilled."

She turned her attention back to Ayame.

"But just so we're clear, you can't make him sad, you got that?" Claire ordered. "He's my boy! My precious, sweet boy, and I'm not going to let you hurt him."

Ayame scowled.

"Like I would! I love him, you know! You think I want to see him cry any more than you do?! He's my boyfriend, so don't pull this 'you better be good' crap, I'm going to make him so happy he won't even remember his past!"

"Hah! We'll see about that," Claire snorted. "As if your feelings could be compared to mine. You've only known him a few months, I've been his friend for years, ribbon girl!"

"Like that has anything to do with it," Ayame replied. "He and I have a connection! I love him so much I can't say his name without breaking out into a big, dopey grin!"

"Hah! Like that's anything new, even Sango was like that!"

"Hey!"

"Just face it, Ayame, you might like him, sure, I'm fully aware that your feelings are the real thing. And if he likes you back, then I'm thrilled, honestly. But you've got a lot to learn when it comes to being a good girlfriend."

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Ayame asked, her anger fading away and being replaced with curiosity.

"For starters, what's your cup size?" Claire asked, taking out a pen and notepad, staring seriously at Ayame.

Oh, right, Sango remembered, sweat-dropping. Claire was that sort of person…

"What does that have to do with-?!"

"If you're going to be dating my boy, I'm gonna make damn certain your bodies are compatible," Claire answered. "This is serious stuff! You're older than he is, so I need to make sure you won't impart any weird fetishes on his impressionable mind."

"I don't have any weird-!" Ayame sputtered, her face bright red.

"Look, all I'm saying is that you have a long way to go," Claire sighed. "I'm glad you make him happy, really, I am. But every relationship starts out this way. If you want to make it last? Then you'd best be prepared. It takes a lot of effort to make a relationship work."

Claire reached into the pocket of her blouse and withdrew a pair of glasses, slipping them onto her face. She flashed Ayame a coy grin and winked, touching her cheek with her finger.

"Luckily for you, I happen to be an expert on Blake!"

And now the training arc begins! Will Ayame rise to the occasion?

No. Don't worry, I'm not doing something that dopey.