We're continuing to explore the aftereffects of what happened to Dakota. We've seen how Sango, Cynthia, Blake, and Ayame are doing, but Dakota's injuries clearly had some wide-reaching issues. What will happen? Will everyone be okay? Are some people taking it harder than others?

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 Pokemon Academy Best Girl 2 Finals are up and running! Who do you think is deserving of the title of Best Girl in the second year of the contest? Cast your votes! We've only gotten a few votes so far, and I know that a lot of people are reading, so come on guys! The poll's in the profile, who do you think deserves to take the crown?

Finalists: Sylvia, Marion, Sango

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: Just for your sake, I will not be referencing any movies. You're welcome!

Thunder Fire: Well, there probably are some. We'll have to find out. Probably not any of the major cast, though. But I think Dakota's parents are probably not all that enthused with the school's ability to keep their students safe.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 702

Kitty sucked in a breath of air as she stared at the door to Julia's room. Why was this so difficult for her to do?

Maybe it was because Julia had always seemed to strong and cool to Kitty. Kitty wasn't sure how she should reach out to her in a situation like this.

"Kitty, you know you don't have to do this, right?" Nikita asked. Kitty's escort was standing a few feet down the hall for encouragement, while also being at a far enough distance to let Kitty have her space, and her privacy.

Kitty was grateful for her friend's support, but no, this was something that she had to do. She just wished she knew how.

Frankly, Kitty hadn't ever expected to find herself in this situation. The girl locked up in her room right now just wasn't anything like the Julia she had come to know this year.

It had started off better. The day after Dakota had been attacked, Julia had seemed normal enough, if a little shaken by what had happened. Kitty assumed that everything was okay with her. But afterwards, Julia had started to go downhill. She had locked herself up in her room and refused to come out, not even accepting any visitors. According to Sango and Cynthia, not even her roommates were exempt.

Apparently, Julia spent the time they were sharing the room with her with her blankets pulled over her body, curled up in a tiny ball.

Kitty understood that feeling quite well, she was just surprised that Julia was the kind of girl who would do something like that.

Julia was always so tough and cool! Kitty looked up to her, it was hard to imagine that she would be so shaken by this, even though the events had frankly scared Kitty a lot, as well.

She just wanted her friend to be okay, but she didn't know what to do.

So the only thing to do was knock on the door and try to get her friend's help.

"Julia?" Kitty asked timidly, knocking as hard as her tiny hand could.

She didn't get a response.

"Please, Julia? Are you there?" Kitty asked, knocking even harder.

Still no answer.

Kitty's heart ached. She wished she knew what was wrong with her friend.

She should have expected this, in hindsight. Julia had shut down quite seriously when she thought that Blake was dead. She had managed to keep going, but apparently that had taken a serious toll on her mental state, and now Kitty was starting to see the effects of that.

She should have paid closer attention to her friend. Maybe then she would have caught that Julia was just putting on a tough exterior for her sake. But right now, she had ended up screwed over by this whole mess.

Kitty felt like crying, but she couldn't. This wasn't the time to be sad! Well, not any more sad, anyway. She was going to help Julia somehow, she needed to!

But first she had to get into this stupid room!

"I have an idea!" Nikita said. "We'll have to find some way to pick the lock of the door and get inside. Too bad Cynthia's not here, I hear she can pick locks."

"I have a hairpin," Kitty offered, reaching up and taking a pin out of her hair. "I hear we can use that to pick locks!"

Nikita nodded eagerly, walking over to the smaller girl. "That's perfect, Kitty! We can use that to get inside!"

"…Okay, but how?" Kitty asked.

Nikita paused. She was a good girl, if a little mischievous. She'd never picked a lock before. "Um… I'm not sure."

The two stared at each other, trying to speculate what they should do. With zero experience between the two of them at picking locks, they needed to come up with some way to get in.

"Well!" Nikita declared, stepping up to the door, "I always say that the way to get ahead is by doing, after all!"

She never said that, she was much more of the theoretical study sort of girl. But Kitty didn't need to know that.

Experimentation required boldness, though! Nikita inserted the hairpin into the doorknob. She twisted it around and then pulled it out.

"…Somehow, I don't think that worked," she sighed. She had barely moved it, she hadn't even heard the click. She turned to Kitty with a glum look on her face, shaking her head.

Kitty sighed.

Maybe… maybe it was a good thing, that they couldn't get in? After all, breaking into the room was really rude, even if it was for the sake of her friend. She frowned, and shifting awkwardly as she thought about how to help her friend.

Why couldn't she come up with something?

Nikita knew that it was wrong, but she was starting to get a little miffed at Julia for locking herself up like this. It was annoying.

"What are you girls doing here?" Nikita and Kitty turned to see Reiner and Nick walk up to them, looking confused. Clearly, they were going to go get some breakfast, and were surprised to see the girls standing outside Cynthia, Sango, and Julia's room.

"Oh! Reiner!" Nikita said, surprised. "We're trying to get into Julia's room. Kitty's really worried about her, since she's been locked up in there the whole time. But unfortunately, neither one of us are used to stuff like picking locks."

"I need to talk to Julia," Kitty insisted. "It's important! She's in really bad shape! I want to help her, do you know how I can do that?"

Reiner and Nick glanced at each other. Then Reiner turned back to Nikita.

"…You know, you guys can just go in, right?" Reiner asked.

Nikita and Kitty blinked. "Huh?"

"Cynthia probably didn't lock the door," Reiner explained. "She's been pretty worried about Julia, too. So a few days ago she decided not to lock the doors when she left, in case someone wanted to come talk to her when they were out. So you two can just go in."

Kitty wasn't sure about how she felt about that. Leaving the door unlocked while there was a killer going around? That would probably make Julia even more frightened.

But she didn't have time to be concerned about that, she was too grateful to Cynthia for doing that! Now she could go inside.

"Thanks!" Kitty chirped. She turned to the door and twisted the knob. Nikita really should have tested it instead of giving up immediately, it would have saved them time.

"Glad we could help," Reiner said, he and Nick heading down the hall. Nikita waved goodbye to them and turned back to Kitty.

"Good luck," she whispered, giving Kitty an encouraging smile. She wanted things to go well for her friend.

Kitty gave her a smile in return. "Thanks, Nikita," she said, heading into the room.

It was a rather strange-looking room. The sections that Sango and Cynthia had set up for themselves were fine, and moderately clean. Well, Sango's was moderately clean, anyway. Cynthia's was as sloppy as usual.

The startling thing was Julia's portion of the room. Julia was even more of a clean freak than the diligent Sango. So the sight of her clothes strewn all over the place and food cartons littering the floor was a strange one. Another action not normal for Julia.

Kitty began to worry that there was something seriously wrong with her friend. She turned to Julia's bed, and the Julia-sized lump curled up in it, not responding to her presence. Kitty wasn't happy. She took a deep breath, and shouted at the top of her lungs, "JULIA!"

The blob in the blankets stirred a little, but she didn't get up, much to Kitty's irritation.

Kitty was a nice girl. Ask anyone who spoke to her for even a second, and they would say that Kitty was the sweetest, most precious little cinnamon bun to ever set foot in the Pokemon Academy. But even Kitty had her limits.

And that limit was seeing her best friend shutting down and not being able to do anything to help her. That was something that Kitty was simply not going to accept. She walked over to the bed and climbed onto it, jumped, and did a diving tackle right onto an open section of the bed.

The bed bounced and a startled Julia kicked out, flinging the blanket off in surprise.

"Fuck! Kitty! What the fuck?!" She exclaimed, nearly falling off of the bed. "Why the fuck did you do that?!"

"Julia!" Kitty cried, her face brightening slightly. But when she saw the state that Julia was in, she immediately took on a more negative feeling.

Julia looked messed up and tired. Her hair was twisted and tangled and her face was pale and blotchy, like she hadn't gotten any sleep in months. Kitty realized just how tough this past month had been on her friend when she saw that look.

Immediately, Kitty began to question whether or not she had been a very good friend for Julia. Julia always seemed so tough and cool, but right now, kneeling on her bed and staring at Kitty like she had seen a ghost, she looked like a scared girl.

She wasn't that much older than Kitty was. Maybe it was wrong of Kitty to put such expectations on her friend.

"Julia? Are you okay?" Kitty asked timidly. Julia gave her a sour expression.

"Just leave me alone," she muttered, reaching for the blankets. But Kitty stopped her with a tight hug that surprised the other girl.

"It's okay, friend," Kitty assured her, hugging the girl as tightly as she could. "I'm here."

"Get off," Julia said, shoving her friend off of her and climbing out of bed. Kitty wasn't sure what she should do now. Her friend was so… Kitty just wanted to help, but Julia was insisting on keeping her at a distance like this.

Kitty wanted to know why, but she didn't want to pry.

"Julia, I just want to help," Kitty said timidly. "You're my friend…"

"Thank you, Kitty, but I don't need your help," Julia insisted, shaking her head. "I'm just a little bit exhausted right now."

Kitty didn't believe that. She wanted to help her friend, but her friend wasn't really being that receptive of help. She wore a scowl on her face, and climbed out of bed herself.

"Come on, Julia, I know you're scared, but aren't you always telling me that I should be tougher?" Kitty asked. "You're so brave and cool, you don't need to act like this! Just let me know what I can do to help, and I-"

"What do you know?" Julia snapped. The tone of her voice startled Kitty, the small girl stepping back in surprise. She wasn't used to that much vitriol from anyone, much less one of her best friends. She didn't know how to respond.

Seeing the look on Kitty's face, Julia immediately softened. "I'm sorry, Kitty, you don't deserve that," she apologized. "I'm just… this is a really tough situation for me right now, so I ended up taking it out on you, I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Kitty said, accepting her apology as a matter of course. She had been the one to barge into Julia's room when the girl had made her insistence on privacy blindingly clear, after all. Julia had the right to get a little snippy with her. "But still. I want to help, Julia. If you need anything…"

"I don't," Julia said coldly, shaking her head.

Kitty wasn't going to let that one go. "No, I don't believe that," Kitty said, shaking her head. "You've been locked in your room all week. If you don't need anything, then tell me, when are you going to come out?"

"When I'm ready!" Julia said. "What I do with my time is none of your business, Kitty."

"It is my business!" Kitty insisted. "You're my friend, Julia, I care about you, and if you're hurting then I want to help, the same way that you helped me!"

"The way I remember it, you didn't want my help then, either," Julia bitterly recalled. She immediately regretted saying it when the words left her lips. That wasn't fair to Kitty, and the hurt look on the other girl's face spoke volumes. But it was too late to take back.

"…Yeah, I know," Kitty admitted, looking down sheepishly. "I pushed you away. But I was wrong to do that, Julia, and I think you're wrong to do this! Don't you?"

Julia knew that Kitty had a point. But she just didn't understand.

"I just… it's complicated, Kitty," she said.

Kitty walked closer to her friend, reaching over and placing a comforting hand on her arm. "If it's complicated, then you can tell me, Julia. I'm your friend. I won't think badly of you, I promise. I just want to help you, that's all."

Julia smiled, kind of. Kitty's kind words made her feel a little better. But there wasn't really anything the other girl could do.

"I just need some space," Julia said. "While I work out this whole mess. It's been a really tough month, and I need some time to myself. Is that okay, Kitty?"

Kitty could understand Julia's words, but she didn't believe the other girl when she said that was what she needed. That seemed more like Julia was running away, not like she was actually trying to improve her condition.

"Are you sure that's what you need?" She asked timidly, suspicious but wary to press the issue. "I think that your friends might be able to help a little…"

Julia shook her head. "No, no. I'm sorry, but… no."

Kitty felt her heart sink when she saw the sad expression on Julia's face. She wanted to do something for her friend, but Julia kept putting up walls around her heart, not letting anyone in. It stung that she wouldn't open up to Kitty.

This must be how she felt, Kitty realized. The feeling that a friend you care for was going through something difficult was hard to get past.

Kitty felt miserable for two reasons now. Not only because Julia was clearly hurting, but also out of remorse for how she'd treated her friend.

"Can you at least tell me why you locked yourself up in your room?" Kitty pleaded with her friend. "If you're scared…"

"I'm not scared!" Julia snapped, her face saying something much different. "I'm not!"

She was scared. "Do you think that the killer might be out there?" Kitty asked. "Because… because I'll protect you next time, I promise!"

It was such an absurd thing to say that Julia lost her voice for a second, staring dumbly at Kitty.

Kitty turned bright red. "W-Well… I mean… that's what these special protocols are for, to protect us, right?" She began rambling, trying to come up with anything that might make her friend feel better. But Julia wasn't biting.

"I'm not scared about getting hurt," Julia muttered. "You don't understand! I don't want to lose someone again!"

"Lose someone… again?" Kitty asked.

Julia scowled. "Shut… Shut up! Just get out of here, I don't want you to see me like this!" She turned away from Kitty with a humph, and Kitty realized what the problem was.

Julia was trying to be tough, but she was clearly scared. Scared of something that she wasn't comfortable bringing up, not even to Kitty. But Kitty had seen the look of terror on her face, and could see the way her shoulders were trembling.

She thought back to the beginning of the week, when Julia had been acting like everything was normal. Even back then, something was off about her, and Kitty was finally starting to see the signs of it seeping through the cracks.

I was so bitter and upset with Julia for coddling me and not seeing me for who I was… and I took that out on her, Kitty remembered. But… am I really that much better?

Julia had seemed so tough and cool when Kitty first met her. But right now…

Kitty couldn't remember the last time she had seen her friend this nervous and vulnerable. It had to have been back when Blake had disappeared, right? When they first thought that he had been dead, or never going to come back.

Dakota wasn't in a very different situation.

"Julia… did something happen?" Kitty asked quietly. She walked closer to her friend and placed a hand on her arm.

"Get away from me!" Julia shouted, swinging her arm wildly to shake Kitty off. The look of fear in her eyes scared Kitty, and she stumbled back and fell on her butt.

"S-Sorry…" She whispered, shaking. She hadn't expected an outburst like that.

"O-Oh! Kitty… I-I'm sorry, I just… sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry…" She crouched next to her friend and hugged her. Kitty could feel Julia trembling as she held her close. She hugged her back.

"It… It's okay," Kitty said, patting her friend on the back. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to startle you like that. And also…" Her voice broke. "I'm sorry for bugging you like this. I just… I'm worried about you, Julia… you're my friend. Just like how you… were worried about me…"

She thought that Julia didn't see her, that Julia was treating her unfairly. But maybe she had been treating Julia equally unfairly. She had built her friend up to be this awesome and cool girl who didn't have any problems, but right now she could see that wasn't the case.

I spent so much time trying to catch up to her… I couldn't see what I was chasing. Did I end up putting too much pressure on her? Trying to make her live up to my expectations… It wasn't fair to her. She never let on, but… maybe she wanted to be vulnerable around me, too.

Kitty didn't know for sure. She was just guessing. Maybe this was just more of the same, projecting her expectations onto Julia. But she wanted to be a friend. A real friend. And that meant she had to stop seeing Julia as unshakable.

And when her friend needed comfort, Kitty was there to give it to her. Julia was shaking in her arms, and that was okay. Kitty leaned back, looking Julia in the eye.

"It's okay, Julia," she assured her with a sweet smile. "I don't mind. Everyone needs to let it out sometimes, right?"

Julia's eyes started to water. She sniffled and nodded, a whimper escaping her lips. She pulled Kitty back into the hug and began to cry, soaking Kitty's shirt. Kitty didn't mind, and hugged her friend closer.

She didn't know what it was that was bothering Julia specifically, but that didn't matter right now. All that mattered was being there for her friend.

Aww, how nice. Kitty's here to take care of Julia and comfort her. Hopefully, they can start to really get to know each other.