With the issues of Darla and the Draconids now finally resolved, matters turn to something else of importance! There are other issues going on at the Pokemon Academy than just Darla and the Empress's faction, so let's return to one of those issues that we left behind earlier!

KedharS: She's definitely earned it.

Pokemonking0924: Thanks, it's been a lot of work getting to this point!

Guest: That would be nice, but sadly I don't think it's going to work out quite like that.

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: There's certainly a lot more things to come. For now, I hope you'll settle for a nice little breather chapter, and a bit of comedy.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 794

While Darla was dealing with her issues with the Draconid people, and passing her test against Reed, no one had gone to the beach in order to see what was going on. So for all the majority of the student body knew, it was just the beginning of spring's stormy season.

But that wasn't the only thing happening under the nose of the other students. While it may not have been as crucial as Reed's test, there was another issue that was currently being addressed that would certainly be considered important.

Namely, Alcea was playing hostess to Kanone Harker, and she had absolutely no idea what sort of tea he liked!

Desperate to avoid letting on how flustered she was, Alcea led Kanone to an open seat at the table (everyone else in the Gardening Club had been hastily ushered out so she could attend to their guest in private) and Alcea began to prepare tea.

"Is there any brand you would prefer?" She asked, trying to keep from sounding nervous. Luckily her years of experience with behaving like a proper lady had suited her well for a situation like this, and she acted as though nothing were wrong as she went to begin searching through her selection of tea leaves. "We have-"

"Which is your favorite?" Kanone asked, flashing her a charming smile. "You'll be drinking with me, yes? I'll be happy to drink whatever you're having."

Alcea's fingers twitched and her heart skipped a beat. She swallowed the nervousness in her throat and hoped she didn't gulp audibly. "O-Oh, is that right? My favorite, is it? Oui, that should be lovely then, I'll prepare it immediately."

Her hands were shaking as she began to steep the tea, overwhelmed by Kanone's gesture of generosity. Of course, she was taking his actions in the most positive light possible, even knowing that he probably didn't care much for tea in the first place and was simply humoring her.

She decided not to care about those sorts of things, and focus on brewing the nicest cup of tea he had ever had!

She set the tea and let it brew, and returned to the seat, her head held high and her confidence returned. She was Alcea Vermeil, heiress of the Vermeil Family, and she wasn't about to let any sort of nervousness get the better of her!

Why was she so nervous, anyway? Kanone Harker was quite an excellent trainer, but it's not like something of that sort would make her weak in the knees! She knew many talented trainers, like the Commander, and Gabrielle, and even Kanone's own brother, so something like that shouldn't be so important!

But none of them had that smile that just made her heart do flip-flops, it just wasn't fair! Why did he have to be so… ugh!

She knew it was undignified for her heart to flutter like this while around a man. What would Kate say about her acting in such a manner?!

…But then, Kate had gone to the mainland to visit that store, hadn't she? The one she'd invited Alcea to accompany her to, before Alcea had had to regretfully inform her that she needed to make preparations in the garden to get it ready for when she'd eventually lost…

Right, so Kate wasn't here right now. And not to mention, she'd invited Blake along as well, Alcea had just gotten a text from her on the matter. So if Kate was busy fawning over her crush, even if he did have a girlfriend, who was she to call Alcea out for doing the same thing?

…Not that Alcea had a crush on Kanone Harker or anything. After all, he was nearly a decade older than her, and he'd never be interested in a schoolgirl.

"…Please excuse me, I must freshen up," Alcea said, rising from her seat. Kanone raised his eyebrow in curiosity.

"Well, that's quite interesting," he said, giving her an amused smirk. "Didn't you invite me in to debrief me, so I wouldn't walk off and go start trouble?" He rested his chin in his hands and gave her a playful smile, wiggling his eyebrows. "Are you sure you should be heading off on your own and leaving me to my own devices, I wonder? What if I were to sneak off while you're taking care of your… other business?"

Alcea flushed a little, but she kept her composure. "There is nothing to be concerned about," she assured him. "I have full trust that you, as my guest, would not do something as discourteous as to leave before tea time, is it?"

Kanone gave her a catlike smile in response. She accepted that as good enough, and trusted him to stay put while she left the clubroom and headed down the hall.

Kanone might not take things seriously, but she knew that he would keep his word, and that he would at least humor her enough to stay put.

Alcea stopped off in the restroom and made sure to fix up her makeup so that she looked perfect. She wasn't like Olivia Himeko, trying to primp herself up to show off to other people, at least not most of the time. She wasn't… it wasn't like she was making herself look nice for Kanone's sake or anything like that, not at all.

She just… was concerned about her appearance, that was all this was. It was natural to want to look her best in front of her guests!

She also took the opportunity to change out of her gardening clothes. Luckily, she kept a change of uniform here in the club, so it would be easy to dress up semi-nicely. It wasn't as nice as the dresses she wore for fancy events, unfortunately…

Wait, not that there would be anything that would merit such a change in wardrobe! It was just one of her idols, someone she looked up to and respected, it's not like she needed to be dressed to the nines for his sake or anything, her school uniform was more than good enough!

…Except, did it always look this tight on her?

Alcea studied her appearance in the mirror a little closer. Yes, her clothes were starting to get a little tight, especially in the chest area. Had she gone through another growth spurt? That was going to make things a lot more frustrating.

With a sigh, she nursed her brow and imagined the irritation of having to get all of her clothes retailored, as well as having to purchase new bras. Well… maybe not. It wasn't so tight as to be constricting, not yet anyway. Perhaps she could get more life out of this uniform yet if she tried to ignore the way it pressed against her.

In the meantime, well…

Alcea looked down at her chest and her mind wandered to somewhere that it absolutely had no business getting close to. For a brief instant she contemplated popping open a button and letting things breathe.

Guys like that sort of thing after-

WHAT THE HELL DID HER BRAIN THINK IT WAS DOING WHILE IT THOUGHT SHE WASN'T PAYING ATTENTION?

Alcea banished those lurid thoughts the second she was aware of them. She… She hadn't seriously been considering…

No, no, that was absolutely ridiculous! There was no way that she would actually pop a button or two on her uniform to show off her cleavage in front of Kanone Harker of all people! Or anybody! Her body was a treasure that she took exquisite care to maintain, like a precious flower, not something to be… paraded around!

"But what's the value of a flower if it goes unappreciated by the eyes of others?" The Empress's voice was sickening in her ear, and she quickly banished the tempting whispers of the devil from her thoughts, calming herself back down.

Although… it's not like I'm actually doing anything with lewd intentions, right? Alcea tried to convince herself as she studied her reflection and wondered just what it would look like if she did show off her chest a little. I'm just… letting things breathe a little, that's all, because it's more comfortable for me because my clothes are too tight right now… is it?

She could hear Olivia's laughter in her ears, mocking her, chilling her to her core as she asked her, "hey, what's the big deal? It's just a little skin, after all!"

It was very tempting. Alcea could almost let herself be convinced if not for the fact that she wasn't that kind of girl, and that the thought of doing what Olivia wanted her to turned her stomach. But the idea of Kanone looking at her… no, no, of being more comfortable in her uniform, it was a rather attractive thought… if only someone could convince her otherwise, then she would feel a lot more comfortable about-

"What do you think you're talking about?!" A loud and obnoxious voice came to her rescue. Kate had stepped into the conversation now, and she was NOT happy. "Her highness isn't the sort of person who would show off her body like… like some floozy! She's a dignified and respectable lady whose beauty should be admired from afar!"

Yes! You tell her, Kate! Alcea nodded in agreement.

It was a rather surreal situation, to say the least. If someone was to walk into the restroom, they would see Alcea standing there, admiring herself in the mirror with a complicated expression on her usually-composed face.

What they wouldn't see, however, was the war that was currently being fought just out of sight between Kate and Olivia.

The two women were standing on opposite sides of Alcea, arguing with each other over whether or not Alcea should pop the top button on her blouse, and how many buttons she should unbutton after that one. And poor Alcea was caught in the middle of it.

"Beauty is meant to be shown to the world," Olivia scoffed. "Someone who looks like that shouldn't be hiding her looks away from others. She should unveil that chest of hers and display it proudly so everyone can get a good look!"

"No, she shouldn't! She looks just fine the way she is! Milady, your beauty is like a flower, definitely, but that doesn't mean you should just display yourself for anyone! A flower is supposed to be lovingly cared for in a garden or a vase, not flung every which way!" Kate assured her with a confident smile.

Alcea found that argument to be a lot more convincing than Olivia's was.

"The job of a good wardrobe is to make the body beneath it shine; to highlight its beauty as best as possible," Olivia calmly explained. "And the best way to do that is to show a little bit of temptation with your skin, especially when her chest is that large."

"Of course that's what you would be concerned with!" Kate exclaimed. "You're just lusting after her highness, aren't you?! Well, it's not just perverted boys that I'll protect her from, you know, it's also from predators like you, you wannabe Empress!"

"My, just because you're a figment of Alcea's imagination that doesn't mean you have any right to speak that way to me, little girl," Olivia snarled. "I'm the Empress, you silly girl! The real you wouldn't be nearly so brazen! Or do you think that just because it's your little queen's body that might be endangered, that you should step in? Would you be so staunchly defending your own body if it was a boy you liked who you were showing it off to, I wonder?"

Kate's voice caught in her throat. "Th-That's…"

"Although," Olivia continued, giving a look over Kate's body and sighing disappointment, "I don't think any boy would be interested in a figure like that…"

Kate gasped in shock, her face turning white. She turned to Alcea, unable to believe what she'd just heard. "Milady!" She wailed. "You… You don't really think that about me, do you?! You don't think that I'm… unappealing, right?"

Wait, what?

Oh, that's right. She'd almost forgotten.

These were figments of Alcea's imagination, not the real girls. Although certainly, this conversation would probably be fairly similar to the one that would occur if the two of them were actually in the room, that…

No, no, she was just imagining what Olivia would say. That didn't mean she actually thought that boys wouldn't be interested in Kate's body, it just meant…

Well, it meant that she thought Olivia would think and say that, that was all. She wasn't such a mean person, Kate was lovely just the way she was!

"Well? Are you done stalling?" Olivia demanded, placing her hands on her hips. Clearly, Alcea's projection of Olivia was getting impatient, and was rushing her to make a decision about what to do with her clothes. "We both know that you really like the idea of Kanone Harker looking at you and seeing a gorgeous woman. We both know you'd like to be with him, and respect him as MORE than just a pokemon trainer. So why are you sticking around in here when you could be out there, showing him what he's missing?"

That was… quite a vulgar way to put it, Alcea thought. And she certainly wasn't looking to just… throw herself at him! Nor was she certain that she… wait, wait, no, this was all wrong, why was she even thinking that way right now? The lewd Olivia kept putting those thoughts into her head, and they weren't thoughts she wanted there!

Alcea just wasn't ready to make that decision just yet.

But she needed to make one, and soon. The tea would be ready any minute now, and Kanone would certainly be wondering what was keeping her.

So she weighed the issue fairly. There were certainly merits to showing a little more skin, ones that weren't lewd. She turned towards Kate to see what she thought. But Kate wasn't exactly much help in that regard, either.

"Milady, I believe you're perfect just the way you are," Kate assured her, crossing her arms and shooting a sour look towards Olivia. "Even if she doesn't think so. So with that in mind, just get rid of that Empress and make the decision we both know you want to make, okay?"

Great. So they were both pressuring her to make a decision. That wasn't the kind of feedback she was looking for. An angel and a devil were at war in her mind, trying to convince her of the proper course of action, and both of them were forcing a decision out of her.

Not that it was a difficult choice or anything. Alcea was just feeling a little embarrassed by how crass Olivia was being.

But of course she was going to side with Kate.

Kate was absolutely right, there was no need to parade her body around for Kanone Harker's sake- no, no, wrong.

There was no need to parade her body around because her uniform wasn't that tight. And she certainly didn't want to give Kanone the wrong impression and make him think that she was trying to seduce him with her body, that would be a humiliation she would never be able to live down. If Kanone thought that she was some tramp and not the lady she was…

She didn't want to think about that possibility, so she was just going to ignore it. After all, there was no way she would dress like that.

And even if she would dress like that, what would it even do?

Kanone was famous, he was a star, he had women lined up across the world ready to seduce him for just a taste of that fame.

There were absolutely women who would throw themselves at him, wearing far less than she was contemplating, it was completely reasonable to assume that.

…

Alcea hated those women, and wanted to hurt them.

Badly.

Not for any reason she could allow herself to acknowledge consciously, she just did.

So obviously she was going to side with Kate, why was Olivia even bothering to debate the issue? She should go back into Alcea's thoughts where she belonged, or disappear from those, too, which would be even better.

Of course, Olivia wasn't just going to sit back and let herself be poofed out of existence so easily. With a new strategy in mind, she turned her smirking face towards the phantom Kate, and extended a hand to her.

Olivia cradled Kate's cheek and tilted her towards Alcea, her eyes shining with deviant glee. "Don't you think you're arguing a little too fervently, Kate?"

"Wh-What?! O-Of course I am!" Kate sputtered. "After all, this is her highness's dignity we're talking about here, there's no way I would allow her to parade around dressed like a-"

"A slut-t?" Olivia asked, dragging out the "t" at the end with a click of her tongue. "You think a slut is someone who dresses like that? Well, I have news for you, Kate, Alcea, there's nothing wrong with showing a little skin in front of someone you like. Everyone does it, it's normal. It certainly doesn't make you a slut."

Really? Was that true? Alcea considered what the Empress had just said. …Well, it was something that her subconscious was telling her, so maybe there was a kernel of truth in that statement after all, Alcea had to admit. Showing off skin, she'd done that before, in some of her finer dresses, and that hadn't made her a slut, so maybe it wasn't out of the question.

Kate could see that Alcea was starting to waver, and tried to shake herself free of Olivia's grasp.

She failed. "You're wrong!" She proclaimed. "Even if it won't mean that her highness is a slut, it's still not something she needs to do, she's pretty enough-"

"But you want to see it, don't you?" Olivia purred. "After all, Kate, you might say you like the boys, but even then, haven't you always had a bit of a soft spot for your dear 'highness'? Your 'queen of queens' as you call her?"

Kate swallowed.

"Wh-What?" She asked, averting her eyes in the most obvious tell in the world. Alcea silently groaned, of course she couldn't hide her thoughts from herself, that was pointless.

"Just think about it, Kate, having Alcea take down one button, or two, or even three? Getting to see all that skin, imagining what she would look like… it's tempting, isn't it?" Olivia asked, stroking Kate's cheek.

"W-Well, I mean…" Kate was starting to become a little less sure of her position. She glanced at Alcea with heat in her eyes, and-

…Okay, Alcea's thoughts were starting to go in a really weird direction. She quickly banished the both of them, buttoned up her collar as high as it would go, and stomped out of the bathroom.

Whatever embarrassment awaited her outside, it was certainly going to be a lot better than what she'd left behind in there.

Aww, nice to see a little peak into Alcea's thoughts, getting herself all flustered. Will she be able to get through this conversation with Kanone with her dignity intact? What will the two of them have to talk about? We'll have to find out!