Our crew had made it to the beach! But what fun will we get up to there? Some people want to go fishing, while others want to have a swimsuit contest! And some of our group find themselves stuck in the middle, not sure which way they should go! But how will things shake out in the end, I wonder? Who will go where?

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: I think it will be, yeah.

KedharS: Marion loves water activities for sure, but the one she cares the most about is fishing. So of course if the choice was between fishing and something else, she would choose to go fishing. She's just that kind of girl.

JoshGamerV: Or it could be the other way around, people going fishing with Marion to get out of the swimsuit contest.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 895

In the end, none of the guys wanted to go fishing with Marion and Hiromi. Celia and Jessie were obvious, but the big surprise was Maddi.

"Maddi! You're coming fishing?!" Marion gushed. She was over the moon that Maddi wanted to take part, she'd been trying to get her fishing with her since Hoenn!

Maddi did not look enthused. She had agreed to go on the fishing day with Marion simply because she knew what would happen if she didn't. Even though Rui had given her the okay to sit out the swimsuit contest, she didn't think that Vic was really okay with it. She fully expected that, when things go started, she'd feel pressured to join in with the other girls. VERY pressured.

And that was not something Maddi was interested in doing.

Plus, participating in the swimsuit contest or not, she had a sinking suspicion that an event like that was going to attract people. A lot of people. Maddi wasn't really the kind of person who cared about stuff like this, but even she wasn't blind. She knew that the girls she was with were very attractive people. Olivia, Alcea, Donoma, Lila, Darla, they were the sort of girls who would turn heads. Any one of them was pretty enough to be the most beautiful girl in an ordinary group of students, and they were all together.

So yeah. This was going to be something that caught people's attention. And that meant there would be all sorts of pickup artists coming to hit on the girls. And when they got turned down, Maddi expected to find herself swept up in the atmosphere and getting hit on a bit herself.

And she was NOT going to be in a situation like that. Not a chance.

So between being stuck with a crowd of hot dudes drawing in every loser on the beach to hit on them and going fishing with Marion for a few hours, the answer was obvious. Marion, at least, would leave her alone once she got a fishing pole in her hands.

So Celia, Jessie, and Maddi were in for fishing. Callie was tempted to go for many of the same reasons Maddi was going, but decided to hold back.

The reason for that was her friendship with Alcea.

Alcea was tempted to go with Marion, because she wasn't all that interested in a swimsuit contest. While she definitely had a figure worth flaunting, unlike Olivia, the attention of others to her body wasn't something of particular importance to her.

Olivia loved the spotlight on her, and her beauty was just another way of getting people's attention. But Alcea was different. She wanted to be admired for her skill as a pokemon trainer. Even though she knew she was beautiful, it wasn't something that dominated her actions.

So she was considering giving the swimsuit contest a pass, because she thought it sounded like a big hassle.

But then Olivia confronted her.

"Well now," Olivia sneered, "don't tell me that Alcea Vermeil, the Queen of Queens, is backing down from a challenge? I thought you were bolder than that."

Alcea's eye twitched. "Backing down, is it?" She mused thoughtfully.

"Yep," Olivia sniffed. "Tell me, do you think you can compete with a figure like mine? You were pretty good in the Miss Pokemon Academy Contest, I'll give you that much. But when it comes to who can pull off a swimsuit better, well…"

Olivia leaned forward in a way that emphasized her chest. "I think we both know whose job it is to make things look good on her."

Alcea could tell quite clearly that she was being baited. And she had no interest in taking the bait. She didn't care about what other people thought of her appearance, or competing with Olivia. When she had so many more important things on her mind, like the issue with the Phantom and the problems with Gerard, something as stupid as a swimsuit contest wasn't worth her consideration.

And yet for some reason, she didn't want to back down.

It was a well-known fact at the Pokemon Academy that Alcea and Olivia had a serious rivalry. But in Alcea's eyes, it had always been a one-sided thing. She and Olivia had no overlapping interests, after all, so to Alcea there was no real point in competing with one another.

Usually, Alcea would dismiss a challenge like this, because there was no purpose in it. But right now, something was rubbing her the wrong way. Maybe it was because in the past few months Olivia had really been stepping up in her antagonism towards her, or maybe this was just the straw that broke the Numel's back. But whatever the reason may have been, the fact was that Alcea had decided enough was enough.

If Olivia wanted a challenge, then Alcea would give her one. At least then, the girl might shut up and leave her alone.

Alcea glanced at the Commander and Vic. There was another reason she was going along with this foolish idea as well. Part of her goals for the day was to get closer to the Commander's inner circle so she could ally herself with his group and get his support to help fight against the Phantom and Gerard's alliance.

And even though it was due to a manipulation, Alden and Vic had decided that their group was going to take part in the swimsuit competition.

If Alcea objected to that in spite of Vic's insistence, there was a very good chance that it would majorly sour her standing in the group, or at least, Alcea's standing with Vic. And since she was already in a rather tenuous position, that wasn't something she felt particularly motivated to do.

So she decided that it wouldn't kill her to join in.

"…Oui. I'll take your challenge, Olivia," Alcea said, pulling her lips back into a smirk. "I hope you won't regret it, is it?"

Olivia was a little taken aback. She thought that she would have to rely on a much harder sell than that. But she wasn't going to question it. If Alcea was in, that was good enough for her. She quickly smiled with excitement.

Finally! She had the opportunity to fight Alcea on her own turf!

Callie had watched this entire exchange in silence. She didn't think that Alcea needed her help or support or anything, but at the same time, it was clear that the other girl didn't really WANT to do something like this.

But she was going through with it anyway. Callie decided that if Alcea was tough enough to do something she didn't want to, then maybe she could, as well?

That line of thinking lasted all of two seconds. Nope. She might have been against the idea like Alcea had been, but Alcea at least had the tools to complete the job. Callie wasn't going up there inviting people to look at her when she had a body like this, not a chance.

…Of course, if Nick was here, then that would be a different story.

But no, he wasn't, which meant that Callie was left with the situation of sitting awkwardly on the sidelines with the boys to provide an encouraging friendly face to Alcea.

It was better than fishing, anyway.

Giselle was also participating in the swimsuit contest. She wasn't as enthusiastic as some of the other girls were, but it would be an opportunity to compete with Olivia. She was still a little bothered by the fact that the Empress didn't know who she was.

So by joining a contest like this, well, maybe it would finally get a little bit of attention and approval from her? Giselle was at least hoping that would be the case, anyway. Besides, she may have been a little reserved, but she was a member of the Appeals Course. She could handle this no problem.

The biggest surprise of all, though, was the fact that Chloe was joining in. When she'd meekly agreed, everyone thought they had misheard at first. Alden even took her aside and told her that if she didn't want to do this, she didn't have to, and let her know that he would talk to Vic and get her off the hook if she wanted.

Chloe shook her head.

She said that this was something she wanted to do. She expected that she'd die of embarrassment, and honestly, she was lying through her teeth about the "wanting to do it" part, too.

But she felt like it was something that she needed to do.

Chloe was shy. There was no two ways about it. She was burdened with a crippling fear of judgment from others. Even with pokemon, she tried to shift the focus onto her own pokemon instead of herself, because she hated having the attention of others.

But she knew this was something that would have to change eventually. She couldn't continue just being the sort of girl who hid away from her problems, especially now that she'd been roped into joining the Commander's group.

Chloe didn't know him, or anyone else, all that well. And to her wary eye, they seemed like they were still a little suspicious of her. But if this was going to be a long-term thing, then she would have to get better about hanging around them, which meant that she would have to keep working hard at stuff like this.

So she would do her best for the group, and hope she wouldn't die of embarrassment. That was where her thinking was leading her at the moment.

…Oh, she was definitely going to die of embarrassment. Especially being compared to girls like Olivia and Alcea. But it was too late to back off now, the fishing group had already left.

Olivia watched them go, and sighed. She couldn't believe it.

Ayame had gone with them.

She'd been counting on Ayame joining in, but her friend had told her that she wasn't interested in participating in a swimsuit contest.

"Sorry boss, but there's only one person who I want to show off my swimsuit to," Ayame had said. Then she turned bright red and made that awkward half-smile of hers.

Olivia nodded in agreement. Ayame really was a sweetheart. Still, it would have been nice to compete with her.

So the fishing party of Marion, Hiromi, Celia, Jessie, Maddi, and Ayame made their way down the beach to a little cove Marion had found, with a rocky outcropping overlooking the waves. It was the perfect place to snag a bite in secret.

Of course, no one really expected to catch anything. As Marion had explained, the runoff into the ocean from those mining incidents all those years back had spoiled the ecosystem of the Orre Region all the way down to the water itself. The shores were far from a hospitable environment for wild pokemon to be found.

But Marion had insisted that it was fine. As she passed out fishing poles from the car she said that even if they don't catch anything, they would still be able to enjoy the feeling of connecting with nature and becoming one with the waves.

Maddi, who saw this whole thing as one big excuse, just grabbed her pole and headed out to it. Meanwhile, Marion continued to explain that even if this wasn't a good place for pokemon to be found, it wasn't like the odds were zero.

"Most of the pollution has been fixed due to conservation efforts," Marion explained. "While it's still not safe for pokemon, there's still a good chance that we can run into some of them that are passing through the area on their way to other places. And who knows, in a few more years, maybe there really will be a boom in fishing around these parts!"

She was always an optimist, even though she knew how bad the damage was. But she chose to look on the bright side, and imagine that they would be able to catch something!

Hiromi just smiled. They hadn't caught anything at all yesterday, and they'd had twice as many people fishing. She didn't have any illusions about their chances. But Marion was right. It wasn't about catching pokemon, it was about connecting with nature.

And as a former Pokemon Ranger, that was something she could support.

"Hey mom?" Ayame asked, startling Hiromi.

"Yeah? What's up?" Hiromi asked as her daughter approached her. She wasn't expecting to be called out like that.

"Can we, um… fish together for a little while?" Ayame asked hopefully. "There's… something that I wanted to talk to you about."

Hiromi thought about it for a moment. It was her job to be here as a chaperone to all the kids, while Rui watched the other group. She couldn't just go off with her daughter alone and leave them unsupervised, even if Ayame wanted to talk to her in private.

But at the same time, the look on her daughter's face was serious.

Hiromi glanced over to where everyone was setting up to fish. Celia and Jessie, who were used to fishing, were already casting their rods like experts. Which left Maddi as the sole target of Marion's attention, much to the other girl's irritation.

"Marion!" Hiromi called over. "Can I leave this up to you for now?"

"You got it! I'm the countable-onner you can find, so count on me!" Marion cheered, flashing her a thumbs' up.

Hiromi smiled, and turned back to Ayame. "Okay, sweetheart. Let's go over here, then. What did you want to talk about?"

Hiromi let Ayame to a part of the coast just a little further away from the other girls. It was close enough where she could still keep an eye on them and make sure they weren't getting into any trouble or watch out for anyone who would bother them, but far enough from the group that they wouldn't be able to overhear the conversation.

Ayame sighed. "It's, um… it's about being a Pokemon Ranger, actually."

Hiromi was a little taken aback by that. Of all the things she expected her daughter to want to talk about, that wasn't one of them.

"Uh… okay, let's sit down and you can tell me all about it," Hiromi said, dangling her legs over the rocky ledge as she cast her line out over the water.

Ayame sat down and did the same.

"…So… I have this friend…" She began.

"Aya, we're too old for this game, if you want to ask me something you can just admit that it's about you," Hiromi laughed.

Ayame shook her head. "No, mom, a real friend. And she's… studying to be a Pokemon Ranger, just like you are."

"…Okay, sure, go on," Hiromi said, interested to see where her daughter was going with this.

"Well… my friend, she's just…" Ayame sighed. Not even she was sure what she'd wanted to ask. "It's like… so after breakfast, I was really thinking about all the stuff you and Marion and Mrs. Carver were saying about the environment."

Hiromi nodded. That made sense. Ayame was a very caring girl, after all, she always had been. So hearing that kind of conversation must have been pretty intense.

"And like… it just made me realize that this friend of mine… she's really going into that world, and it's going to be tough," Ayame explained. "And she, well… she always tries her best, but she's also a really big optimist, so… I'm worried."

Hiromi sighed. She understood the problem now. This friend of Ayame's who wanted to become a Pokemon Ranger, from the way Ayame made her sound she was probably one of those types of ranger candidates. The kind of person who went into the line of duty with starry eyes filled with hopes and dreams, expecting to be able to save every person and pokemon and stop climate change with a little elbow grease.

In short, she was a blind fool.

"Well, I'm glad that you're concerned for your friend," Hiromi smiled, reaching up and patting her daughter on the head. It was a motherly gesture that she so rarely got a chance to do, ever since her little girl stopped being so little. "She sounds like a really sweet girl."

Ayame grinned bashfully. "She is."

"And you're worried that she's going to get disillusioned with being a Pokemon Ranger, after hearing the stuff we were talking about today?" Hiromi clarified.

Ayame nodded sheepishly and Hiromi sighed.

"Ayame… I think you're overthinking things a little too much," she informed her.

That was an answer Ayame wasn't expecting.

"Uh… huh?" She tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"This friend of yours, have you ever actually talked to her?" Hiromi asked. "You know, about your concerns? Or is this something that you just thought of today?"

Truthfully, Ayame had been worried about Sango's optimism for a while now. When she and Blake had started dating, Sango had said she was cool with it. But for some reason, Ayame got the vibe from her that she was a little bothered. Which made sense.

At one point, she and Sango had been rivals. But while Ayame had been able to confess (multiple times!) Sango had never gotten that opportunity. That door was shut and locked before she'd even had the chance to try the knob.

So maybe Ayame was just being a little paranoid, thinking that because Blake was such a great catch, of course Sango would be bothered about it. And it definitely wasn't the case that Sango's perky attitude was a total crock, either. The girl was a genuinely happy person.

Ayame was just worried that she wouldn't stay that way.

"I… I haven't," Ayame admitted. "I guess I'm… just being a little overprotective. But my friend, she's… been through some rough stuff, and she really likes being a Pokemon Ranger. Or, well, a Probationary Ranger, anyway, and I'm afraid she's going to have a bad time."

Ayame didn't tell her mother that Sango's own mother was also a Pokemon Ranger, or that she'd lost her life on the job. That wasn't her place.

Hiromi was taken aback herself. "So… she already has a probationary license?"

"Uh… yeah. She took a test for it and everything, she's even done some field work," Ayame said.

That brought out a laugh from Hiromi and a shake of her head, which was a reaction that surprised Ayame.

"Sweetie… don't worry. This friend of yours, she knows what she's doing. They don't just give probationary licenses to anyone, you know," Hiromi assured her. "I think you're just working yourself up over nothing. Trust me, she'll be fine."

Ayame sighed in relief. That was good to hear. "Thanks, mom. That makes me feel a lot better."

"If you want, you can still go and have a talk with her about her job and stuff," Hiromi suggested. "That would probably make her day."

She knew that she would have been thrilled if Ayame had come to her to talk about her duties as a Pokemon Ranger, but that was neither here nor there.

Hiromi finished with one last suggestion. "And if you want, you can always give her my number! I'd love to talk with a prospective ranger!"

Ayame laughed. "Okay, mom, I'll do that. Thanks again."

With her worries cleared, Ayame was free to fish to her heart's content.

Aww, a nice little mother-daughter bonding moment. But enough of the touching feelgoods, onto the swimsuits!