Blake and Ayame's date has gotten off to a sweet start! But where will it go from here? Hopefully our favorite couple will be able to have some fun on their Valentine's Day date together, and make some memories!

Also, thank you to everyone who read my story "The Heir to the Dragon". I would appreciate if you continue to read and support it in the future! You can get there through my profile! The story is finally completed! Thank you for reading!

The Semi-Final Round of the second Pokemon Academy Best Girl contest has begun! Which three of these six girls will make it to the Finals? So far we've only got a few votes in, so show your support for your best girl and vote on the poll in my profile! We want this competition to be close, after all! Who's going to win?!

Semi-Finalists: Ayame, Sylvia, Marion, Sango, Elaina, Valerie

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: I feel like some of those statements may not necessarily be the truth.

KedharS: I hope it will be just as sweet as the two of them deserve, let's find out!

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 667

Over the course of their lunch, Blake and Ayame had finally gotten back into the swing of things. This was their first date since Blake had returned, and while they were both nervous due to how alluring they found their partner, they were finally able to interact casually with one another, laughing like before by the time they left the restaurant.

Ayame was still feeling pressured. She really wanted today to be special. If everything went as Olivia had planned, this was going to be the day that she would finally lose her virginity with the boy that she loved more than anyone.

But she didn't let that anxiety get the better of her. She resolved to not focus on her worries, and instead focus on the date itself. While that would be lovely, she wouldn't worry too much about what would happen at the end of the date. Instead, she would focus on making the date the best that it could be!

"You seem to be in a good mood," Blake laughed, flashing her a coy smile. Ayame blushed, giggling a little. "I didn't know I was such good company."

"You're the best company I could ask for," Ayame replied with a bashful grin. "Like, above the fortune 500 companies, that's how good of company you are."

Her analogy made Blake burst into laughter, which Ayame found both funny, but also a little irritating. So she responded by swatting him on the arm, and the two of them shared a laugh.

"So are you ready?" Blake asked. Ayame nodded her head, and took his hand in hers. They were going to the pond up near the mountains where the Luvdisc Fishing Day event was being held, in order to fish up some Luvdisc.

Ayame was so hoping that it would go well. The rumor was that if a couple managed to fish up a pair of Luvdisc, they would be happy together forever. She hoped so desperately that they would be able to pull it off, and that it was true.

Ayame didn't want to think about it, but she wasn't as confident in her relationship with Blake as she presented herself. These past two weeks had proven something very, very real. She had learned that sometimes, no matter how hard she might try or how much she didn't want to lose the boy that she loved, there were circumstances outside of her control that might force the two of them apart. And honestly?

That was something she'd been worried about deep, deep down, since even before Blake had vanished. It was just that incident that had forced her to accept that truth.

While she had never expected that they would be torn apart in such a literal sense, with Blake being physically dragged into another world like he was, she had known that there would be turmoil to face in their relationship. Namely, the fact that Ayame was graduating very soon. And while that might not have been the same as her getting dragged away by some monster tablet, it was definitely something that could threaten their relationship if she wasn't careful.

She wanted to believe that the two of them would make it through that adversity. She took a deep breath, and let it out. That's why she wanted this jinx. It would salve these feelings of anxiety that were scraping at the edges of her heart, and convince her that the two of them would make it work, no matter what.

I know that it's probably not real, she forced herself to acknowledge. She was just fooling herself, really, trying to convince herself that if she could find something to guarantee their future together, then she wouldn't feel uneasy about things anymore. That was the same reason why she had asked Blake to hold onto that ribbon. Just another good luck charm for their relationship.

She took another deep breath, exhaling softly, and squeezed Blake's hand. She didn't want to let him go. She was too afraid for the two of them to not be parted; it had been like that all night last night, and today on her date, she hadn't let his hand go until their food came. She was terrified that if she let go, he would be gone. That was something that she just couldn't bear. She needed Blake by her side, and she was going to pull him along with her if she could.

That was why she wanted Blake to believe in the jinx, why she wanted to ask him about it, just to let her know that he wanted to fish up their Luvdisc too, for the sake of their future. Even if it was just some false reassurance, she wanted to hear it from him. She hoped that he would be able to comfort her, or even that he felt the same as she did. Something to remind her that their relationship really did have a future together.

Maybe that's why I want Blake to have sex with me, to convince myself that we'll be together, Ayame wondered. She gasped, and quickly shook her head. No! Don't think like that! It's not about that at all! It's because I want to be with him! I want the two of us to be together like that, because I'm in love with him! I'm ready for this, I'm not going to let anything convince me to back off!

Her resolve reinvigorated, but still shaky, she turned to Blake and felt a tinge of pain in her heart. But seeing his smile made it all okay. He looked at her like he didn't have a care in the world, and she wished she could have that confidence.

"Blake, do you really believe in the jinx?" Ayame asked cautiously. She hoped that he believed in it as well, even though it was kind of a hard thing to accept.

"I think that if we have the dedication to fish up those Luvdisc, then that would mean that he have the strength of will to make sure that we stay together forever," Blake replied, squeezing her hand tightly in reassurance.

Ayame burst out into a scarlet fever. No way, that was just the absolute most perfect thing to say! And he was totally right, it didn't matter whether or not the jinx was real! They would make it real with the force of their will, that was all there was to it!

"That's what I want, too," she agreed, nodding. She flashed him a toothy smile. "But we won't get anywhere like this. So let's get a move on already, we've got some Luvdisc to fish up, we've got to hurry!"

She let go of his hand.

She didn't mind letting it go now. She knew that it would still be there for her to take hold of later. She stepped forward and turned back to him, flashing a grin. Blake blushed as he saw Aya's face light up with joy.

"Let's get going!" Ayame laughed. "I'll race you there!"

Blake shook off his feeling of floatiness at the sight of her smile, and gave her a smile in return. He loved the sound of that!

"A challenge? I'll have you know I spent the last two years running in a desert, you know!" Blake informed her. Ayame smirked back.

"Oh? Well, let's see who can get there first, then!" She turned on her heel and dashed forward, startling Blake.

"Hey! That's not playing fair!" Blake shouted, chasing after her. They were both impeded in their running by the fact that they were laughing all over themselves. "Get back here!"

"All's fair in love and waaaaar!" Ayame called back, glancing over her shoulder and flashing him her middle finger. The two ran towards the lake, eager to start fishing.

Ayame wasn't wearing her running shoes, but she was still victorious in their little race to the lake. For a moment, she suspected that Blake had let her win; after all, these weren't exactly the kind of clothes that she should be running in! They weren't the sort of clothes that she should be fishing in, either, but that wasn't a big deal. She was just grateful that she had won. Had it been a victory she had been handed?

She decided that it didn't matter. Even if he had let her win, she was still happy about it, she had won! And now they could get to fishing!

Ayame turned to call back to Blake, ready to brag about having gotten there first, when she paused and did a double-take. She whirled around and looked at the water, shocked.

The happy mood she had gained in her triumph evaporated in the face of the crushing reality standing in front of her.

Ayame was a senior, but she had never participated in the Luvdisc Fishing Day event. After all, that was for people who were in couples, or people who were still looking for that special someone. And until Blake had appeared in her life, Ayame had been neither. She had resigned herself to the fact that she would die without love, so she hadn't given it a second thought.

But looking at the lake, she still knew what it was SUPPOSED to look like! There were supposed to be long wooden pathways set out over the water for people to fish, and they should have been packed with students casting out their lines and mingling with one another.

But they weren't. No one was fishing on the water, and only a small handful of people were there, gathered around the shore. The wooden bridges that Ayame had seen in the photos of previous events were also gone, and there was nothing to set the lake apart now than how it looked on any other given day.

Ayame's heart sank in her chest and thoughts of calling out to her boyfriend escaped her. She walked numbly towards the water, confusion and worry filling her.

What's going on? She wanted to demand answers, but she was too anxious for the words to reach her lips. So instead she asked the question of herself, trying desperately to come up with some explanation for what was going on here. But she couldn't come up with anything. Where is everybody? Why aren't people fishing? Did something happen?

Ayame's fears were right on the money. Something had indeed happened earlier that day, and it had cast a pall over the fishing day.

As Ayame got closer, she could make out the faces more clearly. She was surprised to see that it was mostly people that she knew. Marion Rivers stood out the most, considering that this was her event after all, and for once she was neither fishing, nor smiling.

The others clearly weren't feeling all the good, either. Sango and large, muscular boy that Ayame vaguely recognized but didn't remember the name of were loading wood boards onto a truck, clearly packing things up. Standing off to the side were Nick and Callie, Callie's face twisted into a look of irritation and Nick looking more dejected than anything.

But the real shock came from the sight of Cynthia. Ayame had needed to pause for a second to confirm that it really was her, because she couldn't see the girl's face. Cynthia was crouched down in the grass with her back to the water, knees tucked up to her chest and her face buried in them as she hugged her legs tightly. Ayame had no idea what had happened to make such a normally peppy and upbeat girl curl up into a ball like this, but she was having a really bad feeling.

It was Marion who caught sight of Ayame first.

"Oh!" Marion gasped, her eyes widening slightly as she looked up from her fishing rods. "…Ayame Toujou."

"Marion Rivers," Ayame cordially greeted the other girl. She and Marion weren't exactly on friendly terms. Certainly, the fishing enthusiast got on with most everyone, but on Ayame's side of things, the girl was still one of the Daevas and that meant that she was an opponent of the Empress. But she kept it polite, considering how she had no real animosity with her.

With the exchange of pleasantries completed, Ayame asked the question that had been burning a hole in her gut. "So what's going on here?" She asked, her voice doing a poor job of hiding the desperation she felt. "Are you guys packing up?"

Marion's face fell, and that was answer enough for Ayame. But she quickly forced on a peppy smile and shrugged her shoulders. "We have to close up a little early, the school said so."

Ayame couldn't believe it. No! That wasn't fair! "But… but why?" She demanded. "I just got here, and I wanted to participate! You can't close up now!"

"The school said we had to," Marion admitted, clearly not any happier about it than Ayame was. "Unfortunately, there was a little bit of an accident," she added, giving a look like "what are you gonna do?"

Ayame gasped. "An accident?!"

"I can handle this," Callie said, her voice serious. She walked up to Ayame just in time for Blake to join the group, just as confused as Ayame was.

"What's going on?" Blake asked.

"The lake is closed," Ayame grumbled. "Apparently, there was an accident."

"Someone fell into the water," Callie explained. She took care not to mention who it was, no need to cause any unnecessary stress. "She nearly drowned. We just got a call that said she was going to pull through, but still. After an incident like this, safety comes first. We had to shut the event down." She turned to Marion, her eyes wet with remorse. Then, she turned them to Ayame. "Sorry, guys. I know how much this meant to you."

Marion was taking it considerably better than Ayame, which was a surprise. Sango was in awe at the sight of Marion wearing her smile like always, talking about the premature closing of the event like it was no big deal.

It was a big deal, and Sango knew it. She knew it, because she had worked hard on this, and had seen just how hard Marion had worked, as well.

Marion might have a bad habit of fishing at inopportune times, and had certainly blown off work more than once or twice, but she had really given it her all on this one. Sango hadn't been there for previous Luvdisc Fishing Days, but she had a feeling that they hadn't been as meticulously planned out as this one had.

It made sense, of course, because this was Marion's last hurrah.

She was a Senior, after all. She was graduating in the spring. Which meant that this was her last event. The last time she could hold a fishing event for the school. Sango had no doubt that in her years here, Marion had hosted many events just like this, but this was going to be the last one.

Marion had really pulled out all the stops, even if she had made use of Sango to do it. The fact that she was even here at all was a testament to her dedication. She was supposed to be working with Pokemon Conservationists, but had used her vacation time to come back here, and stay here for two whole weeks just to throw this event.

It was her last event, and it was clearly special to her. Sango just knew that Marion had wanted this to go perfectly.

Instead, someone had almost drowned, and the event had been shut down prematurely, and that was that.

No more fishing days for Marion, no more holidays to celebrate how fun fishing was. She would still love it all herself, of course, but this had really meant a lot to her, and even though she was smiling Sango could see her pain.

Sango had put a lot of work into this too, she had done so much. And for it to just come to an end like this, it really wasn't fair.

I put my all into this, and I'm devastated. I feel like it was all one big waste, Sango thought bitterly. And I don't like fishing nearly as much as Marion does. I can only imagine how bad she must be feeling right now, giving how much love she put into all this, catching all those Luvdisc.

Sango wouldn't let it end like this. Working with Marion like she had been, she had learned a surprising amount about the logistics to holding an event like this. As she packed away the materials in the truck to be taken away to storage, she vowed that this wasn't going to be the last time that she saw them come out.

If she had to, Sango was going to hold this event again next year. And she was going to invited Marion to it.

It wouldn't be the same, since Marion wouldn't be a student anymore, but it would be something. Hopefully it would be enough to make up for how much she had lost today.

Sango turned towards Cynthia and felt a pang of sympathy stab her in the heart as she saw the state of her friend. Cynthia was normally so full of energy, but right now she looked like her favorite pokemon had just died.

She probably feels guilty, Sango realized. If she hadn't pressured Caelia into trying out fishing, then none of this would have happened.

Of course, no one had sent one word of bitterness Cynthia's way, and truthfully Marion shared in some of the responsibility as well. But that was clearly a cold comfort to the other girl, whose guilty conscience was doing just fine in torturing her on its own.

Ayame was devastated herself. Like Marion, this had been her last chance, and she'd missed it. She had been hoping to share this time with Blake, so that the two of them could fish up pokemon together, but now here they were, with nothing to show for it. No Luvdisc to catch. It was like a big beacon alerting them that their relationship was in trouble; she wasn't one to read too deeply into signs from above, but this felt pretty damning.

Ayame felt like crying.

But then she felt Blake's hand over hers, and she felt anxious feeling of nausea in her stomach lessen slightly.

"Hey, Marion," Blake spoke up, surprising the green-haired girl. Marion looked curiously at Blake.

"Yeah? What's the up, my dude?" Marion chirped.

"Is it okay… if we still fish?" Blake asked. "I mean… I know that the event's closed and all, but… I mean, you guys haven't taken the Luvdisc out yet, right?"

He pointed at a large, empty tank of water in the back of another truck.

"I mean, we aren't supposed to," Marion said, shaking her head.

"That's darn right you're not!" Callie snapped, crossing her arms indignantly in front of her chest, startling everyone by the ferocity in her voice. She waited until all heads were turned towards her before she continued. Clearing her throat, she added, "as a member of the Eight Leaders, I serve as a representative of the Pokemon Academy Faculty, and it's my responsibility to make sure that this event is shut down. No fishing at all."

"What?!" Ayame exclaimed. That wasn't fair! "But… But you can't just say that we're not allowed to fish! It's not like I'm going to drown or anything!"

"The school was very clear," Callie calmly replied, her face burning with resolve. "Students fishing on this lake has been deemed as a hazardous activity. If you appeal, that ruling will probably be overturned, but until then no fishing."

Her tone brokered no arguments. Ayame wanted to protest, but there wasn't really anything that she could say.

"Come on, Callie," Nick said, placing his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. "They're our friends, can't you just overlook this?"

But Callie wasn't persuaded. "It doesn't matter that they're my friends, Nicky," she replied. "It's my responsibility. No one is fishing under my watch. Do I make myself clear? I don't want to see anyone fishing while I'm here!"

Everyone nodded glumly, they understood. The matter was closed.

"Good," Callie said, nodding.

After a pause, she continued, "now, since my boyfriend already caught me a Luvdisc, ensuring our future together, we must be getting on with our date. We have a lot to do before our dinner reservations, we can't hang around here all day. Let's go, Nicky!"

Callie grabbed a confused and startled Nick by the hand and pulled him after, pushing past Ayame and Blake.

She glanced back over her shoulder and gave Blake and Ayame a wink, causing wide smiles to break out across their faces. Her message clearly delivered, she departed the lake with her boyfriend, knowing that whatever a certain couple might be getting up to behind her back, there wasn't anything she could do about it.

Aww, nice job, Callie! Looks like Blake and Ayame will get to fish after all! But still, I feel bad for everyone else, especially Cynthia. Today's been pretty rough for her.