Let's put the couple going through some problematic issues in their relationship aside for now! This chapter, we'll focus on some other toxic issues going around the school… and unfortunately, some of those toxic issues might be in a literal sense!

KedharS: And Andy. Don't forget her, she's not interested either.

Aquahaze675: The Phantom is certainly making moves, that's for sure.

Hellraiserphoenix: How interested remains to be seen. For now, she's just a shipper.

Thunder Fire: Definitely not a good thing.

JoshGamerV: According to my lawyer that promise was not legally binding, I'll see you in court.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 464

Kate wasn't in the best of moods.

This wasn't an uncommon occurrence, but unlike her just general default feeling of irritation, there were some reasons that she felt miserable.

For one, she wasn't exactly happy about what had gone down between her highness and the Empress a few nights ago. It was still rubbing her the wrong way. Alcea… her highness had been forced to kneel before the Empress in order to beg for support!

Just thinking about it made Kate want to punch somebody. Her idol, her beloved Alcea Vermeil, had shown her weakness. It didn't lower her image in Kate's eyes at all, but…

It made her feel sick to her stomach that such a wonderful girl would have to debase herself like that, to someone like the Empress.

If that was the only thing she was anxious about, that would be one thing. But it wasn't. This semester was looking to be a rather challenging one for her.

She was taking Pokemon Type Specialization. It was a class offered in the second semester of the second year, for anyone who was looking to not only enter the Battle Course, but specifically the path leading towards being a gym leader. That wasn't to say that it was a class exclusively limited to those planning to enroll in the Gym Leader Course. Anyone who had taken Type Advantages could enter the class, of course, along with Introductory Typing Basics. And, in fact, many people who did not plan to become gym leaders but still wanted to take the… "field experience" part of the course would often do so, simply because of how important an opportunity it was.

Her highness was one of those people. She didn't have any plans to be a gym leader (or, if she did, she did not inform Kate as such) but she had still taken the class anyway. And the reason for that was a simple one.

For two months in the spring, March and April, students in the Type Specialization class would be taking a study abroad with a gym leader, a practicum to help build up their specialty in a certain type. That was the real reason why people signed up to take the class, honestly. Getting to train under a gym leader for a practicum, even only for two months, would be a major growth for a trainer who sought to specialize in a given type.

As for Kate, well…

Last semester she had already been planning to sign up for Type Specialization just as Alcea had last year, to enter the same practicum that her highness had, and work with Erika, a Grass Type gym leader in Kanto who Alcea had gotten along quite well with, for obvious reasons. That had been back when she was trying to assert herself as a Grass trainer and copy her idol, when she had been lying to herself about what she wanted.

Then, Blake had shown her that she was wrong, and now she found herself embracing who she really was. Which put her in a whole different conundrum, if she was being honest with herself. Now, she was entering the class not as a Grass specialist (which, in hindsight, she never would have been able to pull off) but as the Poison specialist that she was.

That was what was making her nervous. Because no matter how hard she tried to assert herself, no matter how much she had grown in confidence since those days, she couldn't escape from the fact that she was putting herself in the same situation that she had been in all those years ago, showing her love of Poison types directly to her classmates. In Type Specialization, you had to announce the type you were specializing in, and you needed at least three pokemon of that type in your party to even enroll in the course.

Which meant that people would very likely be looking at her like she was a freak for loving Poison Type pokemon. And as far as she'd come, she couldn't shake that anxiety.

So Kate tried to keep her head down and her sour expression up as she walked towards the classroom, heading for the back.

She never made it there, because a Shuppet flew in to cut off her path, startling her and making her fall back, to her horror and the other students' amusement.

"Going my way?" Kate glanced at the student sitting in the back row, right where Kate had been trying to walk towards.

Her blood went cold.

Sylvia Driscoll.

Her last… "encounter" with Sylvia Driscoll had not gone well. She had been stricken with some sort of disorienting attack and passed out in the woods, just for trying to follow her. And she wasn't looking for a repeat performance.

"Kate Nomia, right?" Sylvia purred, her eyes glimmering with a dangerous sharpness. "Alcea Vermeil's bottom bitch."

"B-bottom-?! That's-!"

"Well you definitely aren't a top, in spite of what your sharp tongue would have us believe," Sylvia smirked. Kate turned red in a mixture of indignation and embarrassment, and was about to give the girl a tongue lashing before she rose from her seat and pressed her finger against Kate's lips in a single fluid motion, whispering "shush".

"Here, take my seat," Sylvia murmured, picking up her bag. Her eyes had already slipped past Kate and landed on something or someone behind her, and whatever or whoever it was, was clearly a more interesting plaything than Kate, much to her relief.

Kate didn't like Sylvia. At all. And not just because the girl had made her vomit all over the forest. Since she'd known her the girl had always rubbed her the wrong way, and recent events had put things in startling clarity.

Deep down, somewhere, buried in the depths of her subconscious so deeply that it never even crossed her mind, she had known the kind of person Valerie Chiester was.

And Sylvia was the exact same way. She sickening feeling in her gut whenever she spoke with Sylvia was exactly the way she felt now when she thought about Valerie. They were both scheming manipulators with no concern for anyone around them, who treated people like toys for their amusement and hiding their real selves behind a mask of affability.

As someone who had worn a mask of her own for so long, she could recognize when someone else wore one. But Valerie and Sylvia's masks… Kate had been completely fooled by Valerie. And she had no idea about Sylvia. Whatever was beyond the cheery, laissez-faire attitude that she put on around others, Kate couldn't see it. And that frightened her. She had no idea what Sylvia wanted, and that was probably exactly how she wanted it, ironically.

At any rate, she was glad that Sylvia had found a new "toy" to occupy her time with.

Akira's face shifted into a stony glare as a certain blonde girl sidled up to him, batting her eyelashes suggestively.

Sylvia Driscoll, fucking Sylvia Driscoll.

"Hello, my darling," Sylvia purred, stepping up to him and placing her fingers on his chest, slowly spidering them up his chest. He pulled away from her fingers like they were tipped in acid, not wanting the girl anywhere near him.

Sylvia pouted, but her eyes were still shining.

"No 'hello' kiss?" She cooed, fluttering her eyelashes again. "You know, for old times' sake?" She sidled a little closer to him, rolling her hips through her fluffy black dress, tilting her head enticingly. "It might be fun…"

Akira narrowed his eyes into a glare, clenching his jaw. Sylvia could feel the rage emanating off of him, biting her lip eagerly as she watched him seethe.

"Sylvia…" She waited until she heard him speak to interrupt him, the warning tone in his voice carrying the perfect timbre that brought a smile to her face.

"Oh, come now Akira, you can't seriously still be mad about that whole newspaper thing," Sylvia sighed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Really, Akira?"

"'That whole newspaper thing'?" Akira asked, clearly restraining himself from jumping down her throat. "By 'that whole newspaper thing' do you mean when you nearly tried to destroy Dakota's Newspaper Club by driving Mirar out of the Eight Leaders and trying to seize control of the club in the name of the Phantom? THAT 'whole newspaper thing'?"

Sylvia blinked, her smile unmoving, completely unfazed by his angered tone of voice.

"Yeah, 'that whole newspaper thing'," Sylvia confirmed, displaying absolutely no remorse whatsoever, as was her usual attitude.

"Leave me alone," Akira grumbled. He pushed past her and headed deeper into the classroom, where he realized, to his chagrin, there were only two seats open. Right in the back of the room, and more important, right next to each other. Sylvia's distractions had led the rest of the students to fill in in the meantime. And they were all sitting in the front, clearly none of them wanting to sit anywhere near Sylvia.

Akira felt his shoulders slump, the energy draining from his body.

"I just love sitting in the back row, don't you?" Sylvia asked, patting him on the shoulder as she passed him by.

She skipped down the row, plopping down right next to a girl with short, scraggly hair at the end of the row. The sour look on her face and the way she pulled away from Sylvia and Spectre as the girl sat down told him all he needed to know about her. She knew about Sylvia's… "nature" just as well as he did. Maybe even more.

Akira groaned, walking the slow walk towards the hangman's noose, also known as the seat next to Sylvia, where he would be subjected to even more probing at her hand.

This class was going to be a nightmare. It was a necessary step for his education if he was really aiming to be one of the Eight Leaders (which was looking more and more like the direction things were shaping towards, considering Sylvia's little coup last semester had unceremoniously ousted Elaina from her position instead of him) so he had taken it.

Well, that, and there were… other motivating factors as well.

"So Akira, are you really still mad at me for what happened with Dakota?" Sylvia started the conversation up again, the laughter in her voice like a dagger plunged deeply into his ear. He didn't want to talk about this with her. He didn't want to hear from her, see her, he didn't want to breathe the same air as her after everything she'd said and done.

"Of course I am," he growled.

"You realize that it's all thanks to me that you're dating Dakota, right?" Sylvia smirked. Akira scowled at her, hating the fact that he couldn't deny that she was right. If it wasn't for her Machiavellian manipulations, Akira and Dakota might not have gotten together at all.

Some days, Akira wished he could be so lucky, but that was beside the point.

"Now, if Kate had asked me for help?" Sylvia laughed, turning and slugging the short-haired girl in the desk on the other side of her in the shoulder, the girl scowling back at her. Sylvia ignored her. "Trust me, she'd be dating Blake Harker right now!"

The short-haired girl, Kate, turned to Sylvia, her face flushed with what looked like a mixture of rage and embarrassment.

"You-!" She hissed, but Sylvia had already moved her attention back to Akira.

Sylvia's expression softened as she turned to him. She almost looked emotional, sympathetic, which was a strange look for her.

"What about Satsuki?" Sylvia asked quietly.

The hatred Akira felt towards her only grew stronger.

"You don't get to say her name," Akira snarled. "You leave it alone, Sylvia."

Sylvia blinked. She knew she had crossed a line. For once, she did leave it alone. Maybe it was some lingering sympathy after channeling Satsuki that made her choose to respect Akira's wishes, or maybe it was the thought that he might throw her through the window, she couldn't quite be sure. But she had been genuine when she asked, Satsuki was someone who concerned Sylvia, she had been rather… close with the spirit, after all. And she just wanted to make sure that everything was okay.

But she did drop the topic. Some things were more important than her entertainment, as few of those things as there might be.

…

"So, what about Dakota? Things going okay between the two of you?"

Well, THAT mask of sympathy lasted for all of a second. Sylvia never really changed, after all.

"We're doing just fine," Akira said coldly, putting on a fake, sarcastic smile in the hopes of driving her off and just getting her to shut the hell up.

No such luck, of course.

"Is she putting out?" Sylvia asked, classy girl that she was. "You guys have been dating for a few months now, right? Since November? Or was it October? Can't remember. Anyway, isn't it about time to be giving her the… 'full scoop' as it were?"

Akira rolled his eyes.

"Our relationship is perfectly fine," Akira informed her. "You can just leave it alone, okay? We don't want you bothering us. At all."

"Well, if you're interested in… spending some time… 'experimenting' with things that your little girlfriend won't do with you, I'll be HAPPY to lend a helping hand." Sylvia glanced pointedly at his crotch. "And… other parts."

"Drop. It."

Sylvia, finally, dropped it.

"…So, you excited for class?"

Unfortunately, she didn't actually shut her mouth.

Akira tried not responding. That would probably go well, right? Sylvia would get bored if she had to carry a conversation by herself.

"I'm looking forward to next year, myself," Sylvia continued. "When we're working in the Eight Leaders together? You and me, partners in crime, that's why you signed up for this class, right? Forgive me for saying, but you don't seem like you're taking this course for credit towards your major."

Well, she wasn't wrong about that, anyway. If Sylvia was anything, she was perceptive. He wasn't about to throw her a bone and admit she was right.

"That's very diligent of you, getting used to Water Type pokemon for your time in the Eight Leaders," Sylvia pondered, nodding her head. "…Unless, of course, there's some other reason that you want to sign up for this course..."

Akira tried very hard not to let on that she was right. It wasn't EXACTLY the reason that he wanted to take the course. He wanted the knowledge of working with his "specialized" type of pokemon (necessary for being a member of the Eight Leaders) and he did look forward to travelling abroad, working at the practicum with a gym leader. As someone who had lived his whole life in a small town and dreamed of the world outside, he wanted to see more than just this island. He wanted to show the world to his pokemon.

The world to Satsuki. In whatever form she was in.

But those weren't the only reasons he wanted to take the course. But he was absolutely NOT going to tell Sylvia Driscoll of all people what that reason was.

Unfortunately, Akira was a crummy poker player, and she spotted the lie on his face immediately, even when it was only a lie in his heart.

"There is, I can see it in your eyes," Sylvia purred, leaning in closer to him. Her Shuppet's laugh echoed around her.

Akira glanced at the door, praying that Professor Kashita would finally come into the classroom and start the class, so Sylvia would finally shut the hell up.

He wouldn't be so lucky.

"Maybe you're looking to get a little work in with one of the gym leaders," Sylvia mused. So much for Akira's theory that Sylvia would shut up if he didn't respond. It was clear that she was spinning some sort of story without his input. "You know, getting your… 'whistle wet' in some foreign pools, as it were?"

Akira shook his head, slumping over, slamming his forehead lightly against the table in frustration. Yeah. Of course she would go there.

"I know you're not the… 'type' to be interested in what Wallace has to offer," Sylvia giggled. "No, no, so that leaves two options that come to MY mind. Are you more interested in the tomboyish mermaid? Or that raging wave of a model…"

He wasn't going to dignify that with a response, just like how he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of speaking to her at all. She was completely wrong about his motives, but that didn't mean he was going to let her bait him.

He'd had enough of dancing to Sylvia's flute when he went to go save the newspaper club, he wasn't about to get played again.

"…My money's on Misty," Sylvia decided, staring at his face. He may not have been letting on that she was right, but at this point it didn't really matter, not as far as she was concerned. The important part was that she was getting amused by needling at him, she didn't even need to be right. "Yeah, definitely Misty."

She glanced around the room, as though anyone was actually eavesdropping on this asinine conversation, before leaning in conspiratorially, her eyes flashing with excitement. She lowered her voice into a hushed whisper.

"You do have a thing for spunky, headstrong redheads, after all…"

Akira flinched this time, Sylvia pulling back, a big smile on her face. Now THAT was the reaction she was looking for! She'd touched a nerve, now she just had to find out where. She didn't actually think he was going to try and hook up with the gym leader of Cerulean City, that would be ridiculous. No, but there was something else there…

Akira refused to acknowledge that Sylvia's guess about where his first choice for his practicum would be located was right on the money. Just not for the reasons she had mentioned, he just thought it was the best place to go.

But as usual, Sylvia was a Snubbull with a bone.

While Akira was worrying, Sylvia was setting her genius brain to work on a task whose importance was far below the energy she was putting behind it. Akira had reacted to something. And if it wasn't Misty, then…

She smirked. She'd figured it out. His flinch when she'd mentioned redheads had been the last piece to the puzzle.

Akira didn't want to talk about Dakota? That was fine, made perfect sense he wouldn't want to gossip about her to Sylvia. But it didn't explain why he was so shifty about going abroad. This wasn't some study in tourism, no… it was clear now, so clear, why he was so defensive, and so tense about Dakota that he had shut her up immediately. He had signed up for this course to go abroad. Putting him off campus for a few months in the spring. And it was now obvious that he was running as far as he possibly could away from something. Or someone. Someone whose vindictive nature was as well-documented as her penchant for pettiness and exaggeration (read: lying), and the influence that came with an iron grip over the flow of information thanks to her position in the newspaper club. Making a girl like that into an enemy would put most people running.

Sylvia looked sympathetically at him.

"You and Dakota broke up?"

Akira and Dakota are splitsville? Is this toxic power couple really broken up? Or is Sylvia just overthinking things? What will come from this? And most importantly…

What does Dakota have to say on the matter?