The party begins! But first, we must see the girls' dresses! Remember to vote!

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 for the final day, 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

Rosealine gold: Maddi doesn't want to wear a dress, sadly.

ConfusedCradily: Don't worry, Blake's not that kind of man.

Duskzilla: Welcome back, good to see you again! Might take a while for you to get caught up, though.

Thunder Fire: Didn't want to push things too far.

Tambry96bj: Always nice to play around with character archetypes. Kitty as a punk and Julia as a goth loli are both interesting spaces to explore, they'd both look adorable I'm sure.

Regular guest: Thank you so much, I appreciate your mercy for my bad jokes.

Aquahaze675: Olivia really is amazing, definitely. As for the girls' reactions, well, we'll just have to see that for ourselves right now, won't we?

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 295

"Well now, girls, are you ready to come out?" Olivia asked. She turned her head to peer over her shoulder at Blake, Reiner, and Nick. Ayame was accompanying them too, though still unable to look in Blake's general direction in a way that Olivia had to laugh at. "The boys are all out here waiting, ready to show them the dresses you picked out?"

"Of course!" Cynthia said, throwing the door open and strolling out of the closet. "I'm happy to go first, what do you guys think?"

Cynthia's dress was a deep crimson that matched her hair. The shiny fabric clung to her slender body, wrapping around her tight hips and over her modest chest. The neckline was low to reveal her cleavage, and held up by thin straps to put her pale shoulders and collarbone on display. The bottom of the dress was made of a ruffled hem at her ankles, giving an air of volume to the sleek dress. It was fairly modest, not gaudy at all considering the wearer, but Cynthia's exuberance suited it fairly well, Blake noted. Her hair was brushed straight as well, another rarity.

"So what do you think?" Cynthia giggled, spinning around to show her low backline, causing the ruffles at the bottom of the dress to flare up slightly. "Is it me?"

"Pretty good," Blake complimented her, Nick and Reiner nodding in agreement. Cynthia did a little curtsy, stepping aside to allow the next girl through.

"The others are a little shy," Cynthia said. "But they'll get around to it eventually. If they want to wear those dresses to the party, they'll have to get used to the eyes of boys looking at them."

"Shut up!" Julia barked from inside the expansive changing room. She stormed out, glaring ferociously. She stuck her leg out and cocked her hip to the side, placing her hand on it to pose. Even her austere expression didn't detract from her beauty. She wore a dress that was a dark midnight green, reaching down to her mid-thigh to reveal her long, slender, tan legs. The color of her dress really made her skin shine, and her light blue eyes pop. Her dark hair danced around her waist, and the curve of her body made her figure stand out even more, even though the dress itself was rather plain. Julia made the plainness work for her, by showing its beauty.

"Not bad," Reiner nodded. "No need to be embarrassed."

"You look good," Nick added.

Cynthia grumbled. The boys were fawning over Julia more than her.

"It gives you a nice, cool look," Olivia agreed. "Still, I must say I like your hair up more than down. You've got such lovely smooth hair, are you sure you wouldn't want to put it in a ponytail?"

"Absolutely not," Julia rejected her.

Olivia sighed, shaking her head. She twirled her finger in the air. Julia grumbled and turned in place so everyone could see all the sides of her short dress, before walking out of the way to make room for the next girl.

The next girl wasn't coming out, however.

"Only the shy ones left, huh?" Olivia said. "Sango, I picked that dress out especially for you, you know, just like your last one. Can't you at least show it to me?"

A long sigh echoed out of the changing room. Sango walked out with all the poise of a drunk. The dress she wore was a silver-blue color. The skirt was flared at the hips, though not as much as a ball gown would be, just enough to be figure-concealing as Sango didn't really want to accentuate her athletic appearance. Normally, the dress was designed to reveal the shoulders and cleavage like Cynthia's was, but Sango was more modest than her, and chose a light-colored shawl to wrap over her. The white color blended with the silver nicely, and the material of the dress itself seemed to be shining in the light. The shawl also did a good job of concealing Sango's chest, or lack-thereof, which was something else that she was thankful for.

"Um… is it… okay?" Sango asked, looking down in embarrassment. She glanced up at the others. "Blake? What… do you think?"

She didn't mean anything by it, it wasn't like she was looking for his approval or anything, right? She just knew that Blake was the kind of person who would give his honest opinion about how she looked, even if she only kind of wanted to hear it. She glance at Ayame, but thankfully the girl didn't seem to be looking at her suspiciously or anything.

"I think it's pretty nice," Blake replied. "It suits you."

"O-oh," Sango said, her cheeks flushing. "Th-thank you."

She was angry. She was trying to get over him, and he goes and says something like that?! She wanted to get over him so badly, so it would stop hurting!

"Don't you think, Ayame?" Blake asked, turning to his girlfriend.

"You look nice," Ayame agreed, nodding. "Still, it's a little… frilly?"

"What's wrong with frilly?" Sango pouted.

"It makes it hard to see your body," Ayame replied.

Sango pulled the shawl a little tighter around her shoulders.

"…Exactly."

"Come on, don't be like that!" Ayame said, walking over and clapping her on the shoulder. "You've got a really athletic figure, you know, you should be proud of it!"

"…But I want to look feminine," Sango whispered. Ayame didn't really know what to say to that one, removing her hand.

"Sango, you look cute," Olivia said. "But now, we've got the two I've been looking forward to. Our shy little wallflowers~"

"Kitty? Nikita? Who would like to come out first?"

No response was heard.

"I-I'll go…" Kitty's meek voice could be heard. She tentatively stepped out of the changing room, her pale skin flushed with embarrassment. Her dress was in a style she was accustomed to, all lace and ribbons and ruffled, flared skirts. But the color was something new. She normally wore harsh blacks and crisp whites, but this outfit was a deep, royal purple that brought out the color in her pale skin, accompanied with a matching headband holding her bangs back. The dress and accessories were lined with a deep midnight-shaded lace, with black bows going up the sides. It was also slightly fancier than her usual Gothic Lolita outfits, which was interesting. Kitty was usually the most fancily-dressed of their group, odd considering how shy she was, so her wardrobe change wasn't a huge step up. But while her other dresses were more casual (as casual as they could be, anyway) this one was more high-class. Maybe due to the fabric, or the cut, or the fact that it didn't bounce around as her dresses so often did, but rather moved like liquid silk, but the atmosphere she was giving off right now was that of a young daughter from a rich family preparing for an evening ball, rather than the normal shy girl in fancy clothing that she usually gave the feel of.

"Aww! You're as cute as always!" Cynthia cooed, pulling Kitty into a big hug. "I just love that color on you!"

"Very nice," Olivia said, nodding in agreement. She cracked a smile. "I knew that black was a little too harsh on such beautiful, pale skin like hers. A deep, rich violet brings out the color quite well. A nice ruby or strawberry red to go with her eyes would also be lovely."

"Um, Julia… wh-what do you think?" Kitty asked, blushing, looking up at Julia hopefully.

"I think it looks cute," Julia agreed. "Just like what you always wear! You really love those frilly things, don't you?"

"…Uh-huh," Kitty said, nodding her head glumly, clearly hoping for something a little more substantial from her friend.

"Well, that only leaves one," Olivia called out.

Reiner gulped, his heart beating in his chest. What would Nikita look like, he wondered? He hadn't seen her dressed up before.

"…I don't want to come out," Nikita said quietly.

"Come on, my eyes are perfect and my taste is impeccable," Olivia rolled her eyes. "I know you look gorgeous, don't you want to show your boyfriend?"

"…It's embarrassing!" Nikita called back.

"Don't be embarrassed by beauty, take pride in it. Seize it. Make it your weapon, and carve others apart with it," Olivia replied, not taking any of this "shy beauty" crap. "Come on, a body like that is too lovely to hide behind a lab coat."

Nikita took a deep, long breath, and stepped out of the changing room. The dress she wore was a bright metallic gold, making Nikita's dark skin shine and her amber eyes sparkle. The dress clung to her curvy figure, crossing over her chest and around her neck to emphasize her sizeable breasts. She took shaky steps forward, completely unused to walking in high heels. Her dark hair was tied up on the side of her head into a ponytail, and glistened.

"Do… do you like it?" Nikita asked, her eyes focused on Reiner. She wasn't sure what she wanted him to say.

"…Damn," Julia said, giving a low whistle.

"See? It's nice," Kitty said, nodding.

"Told you," Olivia laughed. She tilted her head back to look at Reiner. "So, what do you think Mr. Boyfriend?"

"…Amazing…" Reiner gasped out. His jaw was wide and he couldn't restrain the desire in his eyes. It made Nikita feel a little hot in her chest, seeing him looking at her like that. She gulped, and resisted the all-too-familiar urge to shrink away, standing tall instead. This gave the unfortunate effect of thrusting her chest out, which made Reiner avert his eyes in embarrassment Olivia snickered at the two shy little lovebirds.

"Well, this looks amazing," Olivia smiled. "You five look gorgeous, and the gentlemen, well, I'm sure they look nice, too, but I don't care too much. The eight of you are really going to be a smash at the party tomorrow night."

The girls all looked at themselves and smiled a little, feeling slightly more self-confident. If a beautiful girl like Olivia was saying something like that, then it must be true. Done for the evening, they headed back into the changing rooms to take their dresses off, and change back into their normal outfits, ready to put their dresses away for the following night.

Ayame stopped Sango before she entered the changing room, lowering her voice as she addressed the girl.

"Hey, the party tomorrow…"

"Yeah?" Sango asked.

"Can you, um… make sure there aren't any girls sniffing around Blake too much?" Ayame begged. "He's a strong trainer and I'm sure there will be a lot of suspicious types sniffing around, trying to get him to team up with them so that they can go far. And I'm worried that… well…"

But you're not worried about me sniffing around him, eh? Sango wanted to comment, but wisely kept her mouth shut.

"I'll do my best," she said instead.

The following night, the night of the party, the group of eight made their way to the Meloetta Ballroom. No pokemon were allowed, so Silver was left behind, which made Sango feel a little lonely, but there was a mission to accomplish. The ballroom was in the same building as the main auditorium, on the second floor. Students in all manner of fancy dress were entering the building in clumps, which made everyone feel a little more secure to have a group of their own. It would feel a little awkward to be going to a party like this alone.

Luckily, the elevator was a perfect fit for all eight of them. They made it to the second floor, and took a good look at the hall laid out before them.

"…Wow," Julia said, raising her eyebrow. Normally, the Meloetta Ballroom wasn't used, unless there was overflow for an event in the auditorium. It would be used again, two weeks from now, for the official Winter Dance, but right now it brimming with more life than the students had ever seen. Long tables were laid out, covered in food and drink, room enough for people to sit and chat when they weren't mingling with others. The room had not been set up to dance, much to the relief of the shyer students, since the purpose of this party was to serve more as a meet-and-greet.

Meanwhile, on the far stage where a DJ or a band WOULD be stationed, were two figures that Blake was getting entirely too used to seeing. Darla Drake and Lila Seelie were announcing the details of the coming tag tournament, which signaled that they had arrived a little late to the festivities.

"…Whenever you defeat a team, that defeat will be recorded in your personal devices," Darla explained.

"What does that mean, Darla?" Lila asked.

"It means you have to have a lot of matches," Darla explained. "We'll be recording your progress, counting your ratio of wins vs. losses. And the four teams with the best ratios by the end of the two weeks will enter the elimination round, until we can crown one tag team champion! Doesn't that sound like a blast?"

"Definitely, Darla!" Lila agreed.

"So you heard it here, folks! Team up with whatever other first year meets your fancy, and see if you and your chosen partner can make it to the final round, and emerge victorious to be crowned as the best tag team couple!"

"That sounds like a blast!" Cynthia said, nodding eagerly. She whirled around to the others, her eyes shining. "Blake! You and me, let's team up!"

Blake blinked.

"Really?"

"Yeah! Sure, I want to fight you myself, but come on! You and me would make the best team ever! Don't you think? We can go all the way to the final round, together!"

Sango wasn't sure if this counted as "keeping strange girls with bad intentions" away from Blake, but she thought it might apply. Before she said anything though, Cynthia corrected herself.

"Think about it, okay? In the meantime, I'm gonna go mingle! Mingle mingle mingle! Meet some new folks, make some new friends, you know how it is!"

Cynthia gave Blake a wink.

"Better pick me fast, or else someone might steal me away~"

"…Right," Blake nodded, Cynthia skipping off to go talk with the other first years.

"Sango!"

Sango heard a familiar voice, turning her head in surprise. "Aidan!"

Her friend from the ranger classes walked up to her, waving, a smile on his handsome, tanned face. He wore a suit that clung to the bulging muscles on his body, making all three of the boys in the group feel slightly inferior in comparison.

"You're hear too?" Sango asked. "How's Arion?"

"He's doing fine, he sleeping in for the night," Aidan laughed. He scratched his curly brown hair sheepishly, looking at Sango's outfit. "Wow, that dress, you look great!"

"You like it? Thanks!" Sango said, twirling around. "I'm not usually one for dresses though."

"Looks like those two have a good mood going," Julia whispered to Blake. "Want to go give those two some space?"

Blake nodded in agreement. But before they could clear out, Sango brought him over to introduce him to the others (reintroduce him in most cases). Apparently, she had no wish to speak with him alone this evening.

"So what are you doing here?" Sango laughed. "You aren't going to be joining in the tournament, are you?"

Her expression turned serious.

"Are you?"

"No, no, just meeting up, mingling with the other freshmen, you know how it is," Aidan laughed, shaking his head. "What about you guys? You going to join in? Blake, you're a battler, right?"

"Blake would like to team up with his girlfriend, but she's not eligible," Sango teased.

"A girlfriend?" Aidan asked. "What, she's not a battler?"

"She's a senior," Sango explained. "Ayame Toujou."

"Her?" Aidan asked, surprised. A coy smile crossed his face. "Yeah, they were pretty close on the trip, I remember. How's she doing, by the way? Did everything…"

"She's fine," Blake said, smiling. "Healthier every day."

"That's a relief to hear," Aidan said, nodding. "Still, I'm surprised, I thought you would end up with that girl… what was her name? The quiet one, Caelia?"

"Caelia and I… it's a little complicated," Blake laughed. He cared about her, but they weren't really that close of friends.

"Is she here?" Sango asked, looking around uneasily. She wasn't very comfortable around Caelia, but she didn't know why.

"She's a first year, so I'm sure she's around here somewhere," Blake said, nodding.

"What about the rest of you?" Aidan asked. "You guys planning on joining in the tournament?"

"Absolutely," Reiner said, nodding. "I'm planning to win the whole thing."

"I think everyone here is, besides Nikita," Julia said. "And Sango of course."

"Actually… I'm going to join, too," Nikita said.

"Really?" Reiner asked, surprised and a little excited.

"So you guys are all going to team up with each other? Sounds like a good idea," Aidan nodded in agreement. He turned back to Blake.

"Still, you never told me who you were going to team up with, Blake," Aidan laughed. "A lot of people have been talking about it, you know?"

"What? Really?" Blake asked, surprised.

"Yeah, you and Cynthia both got really far in the Fall Festival Tournament," Aidan said. "Folks are all lining up to get a chance to ask you to team up with them."

As if on cue, Blake felt the eyes of dozens of students staring at him from all directions. He felt like he was being eyed up like a delicious meal, everyone waiting to get a bite. Sango grew more vigilant as well. She wasn't looking forward to having to fight off all of his prospective suitors.

"Cynthia thrives on attention like that, she must be loving it," Reiner said, glancing over at where Cynthia was standing, surrounded by a crowd of students fawning over her like a princess. Oh yeah, she was certainly in her element alright.

Reiner turned back to Blake.

"You on the other hand…"

Blake rubbed his temples. He didn't want to have to put up with rejecting offers all night, especially considering her already knew who he wanted to team up with.

"In that case, it's probably best if you choose someone fast," Aidan advised. "Otherwise, they'll smell blood in the water and pounce on your talents."

"You should be happy," Julia snickered. "You always hate being seen as 'Kanone Harker's little brother', now everyone's pursuing you for you."

"Doesn't make me feel better," Blake scowled. "Besides, I've already decided who I'm going to team up with for this tournament anyway."

Sango opened her eyes wide with surprise.

"Really? You already decided? Who?"

Blake turned to the person he wanted to team up with.

"This might not make a lot of sense… but do you want to team up with me for this tournament?" He asked.

Who did he ask, I wonder? We'll have to find out next chapter, when the party continues!