Fast forward to spring break and the trip to the Hoenn Region! We meet our mysterious eleventh guest and everyone meets up in the morning to set out for the airport! But what will the trip be like? Will there be any tension before they leave? Has everyone finished packing their bags? There's a lot of things to worry about, but hopefully the issues can be resolved without any major concerns!

The Final Round of the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Contest 3 has begun! Get the votes going in soon! There are three girls in the finals! Who's going to win? Chloe? Cynthia? Or Vic? One of those girls will become the third best girl, so get those votes in as soon as possible! You've only got one vote this time, so make it count!

Finalists: Chloe, Cynthia, Vic

KedharS: She seems to be doing okay so far, which is good.

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: Could be anybody. We'll have to see.

Hyphenman: Blake being there makes Caelia go along with just about anything, remember the escape room? And she was in a way darker place back then.

Jjjdunk1: Gonna break through all of her walls, for sure.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 1033

It was the first day of spring break! The campus, which had felt like a deserted island before today, was now filled with activity as the remaining students took boats to the mainland in order to catch their flights back to their homes.

One of those students was already waiting at the pre-agreed-upon meeting place when Cynthia arrived, with Blake, Nick, Reiner, Sango, Julia, and Kitty in tow. They were all talking excitedly, but there was tension in the air as they approached.

Nick and Reiner in particular were hesitant.

"Are you sure it was a good idea to invite her?" Nick asked worriedly. "I mean, it's not like I think she's frightening or anything, but…"

"She's dangerous," Reiner said, frowning. "And yeah, I don't have anything against her personally, but it's still a little surprising that you guys would actually want her to come."

"Hey!" Sango snapped, scowling. "Be nice! I'm sure she's really trying her best, okay?"

"She… she is!" Kitty nodded. "She's a good girl inside, she's just, um…" Her voice trailed off and she sighed. There wasn't really anything she could say to convince them.

Julia cleared her throat. "I don't have much of an opinion either way, but you guys probably shouldn't talk like this on the actual trip, okay? What if she heard you? How do you think that would make her feel?"

"And besides!" Cynthia declared, coming to a stop and putting her hands on her hips, "it's not about any of you! It's MY decision, and I've decided that she can come! End of story! She really needs friends, and I'm gonna do my best to make friends with her, okay?"

Even as she said that, though, it was clear that there was hesitation in her voice. She glanced cautiously at Blake. Blake wished he could be as sure as he sounded, but he wasn't. He was worried himself. But even so, he couldn't let those worries control him. Otherwise, he never would have extended the offer he did.

"Guys, shush. She's over there," Blake hissed. He really hoped she hadn't overheard anything. Fortunately, their guest was so frozen with embarrassment they probably could have been speaking right in front of her and it would have gone in one ear and out the other.

Cynthia was the first to rush up and greet her, as this was her trip.

"Elaina! You made it! And you're pretty early, too, I guess you must have been looking forward to this!" She grinned.

Elaina flinched, her eyes shooting to Cynthia as her face got red. "Ye-Yes! Yes I am! Th-Thank you for inviting m-me on this trip!" She bowed her head frantically, her whole body shaking from being put on the spot like this. Part of her wanted to put on her mask and never take it off, but it had already been shattered. She looked desperately to Blake for a way out.

Blake just forced an awkward smile onto his face and waved. "It's, uh… good to see you, Elaina," he said. "I'm glad you decided to come."

Another jerky nod from the brunette. "Y-Yes!"

The others were stunned. The Elaina Bishop standing in front of them looked nothing like the leather-clad girl they'd come to associate her with. She was wearing a sun dress with a frilly white skirt, covered in pink and yellow flowers. It had sleeves made of transparent cloth. Altogether it went entirely against the image she had previously cultivated.

But Sango recognized it immediately.

"Hey! That dress!" She gasped, walking over to get a closer look. "I remember that! You bought it when we went shopping, right Elaina?"

"O-Oh, Sango! Yes, that's… that's right," she nodded. She fumbled around with her fingers and smiled a little. "I just, um… I don't have many other clothes, so this was what I picked out." Indeed, it was clear that Elaina was packing rather light. She only had the one suitcase, and it was pretty small. Maybe enough for a week in the Hoenn Region, but probably not.

Cynthia shook her head. "Elaina, Elaina, you don't understand. Hoenn isn't just some tourism spot. You need the best clothes, you see?"

"I-I do?" Elaina turned pale.

"Did you even pack a swimsuit?" Cynthia scoffed.

"A-A swimsuit?!" Her pale face turned bright red and she unconsciously wrapped her arms around her body as if she was trying to hide from the leering eyes. "That's… I don't… what?! Why would I need one of those?!"

Cynthia let out a long sigh. "Elaina… we're going to the beach on this trip, okay? And you'll need a swimsuit. But that's okay! We'll stop off at the Slateport Market and go clothes shopping! We'll stuff that suitcase with a brand new wardrobe!"

"Um… uh…" Elaina's mouth flopped open and closed like a Magikarp as she stared dumbly at Cynthia. Not having had any friends before, she had no idea what to make of what Cynthia was saying, and her brain was starting to short out.

Meanwhile, Nick and Reiner were completely lost. Cynthia and Sango were chatting up Elaina like it was nothing. As if she hadn't done serious damage in pokemon battles in the past. It was like they were treating her as if…

As if she was a normal girl, Reiner realized. He felt like the biggest asshole in the universe. Elaina had been through some really hard stuff. Some serious issues that Blake had managed to help her through. And here he was, acting like she was still someone to be terrified of. He was such a jerk… he glanced helplessly at Nick, and could tell that the other boy felt the same. Even worse, in fact, because Nick wasn't nearly as much of a jerk as Reiner was on a regular basis.

Kitty on the other hand just beamed at Elaina, silently glad that the other girl was in a much better place than she had been the last time the two of them had crossed paths. Julia felt similarly to Kitty, though without the harmonia insight. She was just happy that her friend wasn't going to be targeted by her or anything.

"Yes, yes," Cynthia nodded thoughtfully. "We'll definitely need to test out how your body feels…" A lascivious grin crossed her face, and she reached her hands out towards Elaina and made a groping motion.

Elaina was shocked. Blake grabbed Cynthia by the collar and practically yanked her off the ground as he pulled her away.

"What are you doing?!" He exclaimed. "Were you seriously about to GROPE Elaina like that?! This is exactly why Serefina is uncomfortable around you!"

"I was just kidding, geez!" Cynthia groaned, shaking her way free. "And come on, you can't tell me you wouldn't want to see her in a swimsuit!"

"R-Really?" Elaina turned to Blake, but where he expected to see outrage he only saw mild surprise instead.

"N-No, it's not that," Blake said, shaking his head. "I mean, it's not like… well, I think you would look nice in a swimsuit, but I… I'm not into that."

"He means he likes asses," Cynthia explained.

"NO, I mean I'm not into cheating on my girlfriend!" Blake exclaimed.

Cynthia rolled her eyes. "Oh please, there's nothing wrong with a little ogling. Haven't you ever been to a zoo before? You can look, just don't touch."

"I don't want to do stuff like that! Period! Aya's the one for me!" Blake exclaimed.

"God, you are dull," Cynthia groaned. She socked Elaina lightly in the arm. "Don't worry, we'll pick you out a suit that's sure to make Blake's heart throb with excitement! Not to mention other parts of him," she added with a snicker.

Elaina was as red as a rose. "That's… I don't… it's not like I want something like that!" She sputtered in disbelief.

In spite of the awkwardness, Blake couldn't help but smile. This really had been the right choice. Elaina had reacted with shock, anger, confusion, disbelief, and, ultimately, resignation, when he asked her, along with Cynthia, if she wanted to come on their Hoenn trip.

He didn't know what had convinced her. Maybe she had regrets about rejecting the invitation to Cynthia's party the other day? Or maybe it was because she genuinely had nowhere else to go for the break. But whatever the reason, she'd agreed, however reluctantly, to come along, and he was happy she was here.

Elaina needed people like Cynthia and Sango in her life. She'd been isolated from others for so long due to their fear of her abilities and her own self-loathing, and hadn't had the opportunity to make real friends. But those two were amazing at it. He knew he could trust them to accept Elaina without hesitation and make her feel welcome. It was what he was counting on, and even though it had only been a few minutes it looked like it was working.

"So who else are we waiting for?" Julia asked impatiently. The sooner they got going, the better.

Cynthia checked her phone. "I wanted to call Caelia, but she doesn't have a phone… not that I blame her."

Blake nodded in agreement. Knowing what he knew about Caelia and her condition, a touch phone would be practically worthless for her. And she wasn't a very social person anyway, so who would she call?

Sango sighed. "Well… I mean, we just got here… and by that, I mean Blake just got here, so I would guess…"

She turned and looked down the path they'd come down. Caelia was peeking out from behind one of the trees.

Sango slapped her forehead and sighed.

"Caelia!" Cynthia brightened, running to drag the girl over to join the rest of them. "I'm glad you could make it!"

Caelia didn't reply. The bag on her back was even smaller than Elaina's suitcase, and while Blake didn't know for sure, he suspected that she was planning to wear just that ratty hoodie and whatever was under it on the trip.

"So we're just waiting for Aidan and Will, then?" Sango asked, checking her phone. "Okay, Aidan says he's going to be a little late since he had to get a carrying case for Arion for the plane. What about Will? Anyone heard from him?" She looked at Reiner as she said this because he was the one who was closest with the withdrawn boy out of everyone there.

But Reiner had no idea. And he wasn't exactly in the mood to check in with the guy and see what was taking so long. So he just shrugged.

Then, as if following Sango's cue, Will made his presence known.

"Um… hey. So I guess this is the place to meet, then?" He asked awkwardly, walking up to their group with a strange look on his face.

In contrast to Elaina and Caelia, he was carrying two large suitcases in his hands, full to nearly bursting. He was also wearing a large backpack. He looked like he was packed to stay in Hoenn for months, not just a week. Clearly he'd been looking forward to this trip a lot more than his casual attitude was letting on.

"Glad you could come!" Cynthia grinned. "I don't know if you've met everyone, but here are all my friends! Guys, this is Will! He's coming along, too!"

Will didn't feel comfortable being put on the spot like this, but he swallowed his pride and went around making introductions. Then he came to Elaina. He felt defensive when he looked at her due to how pretty she was. By far the most attractive girl there. And she was a stranger! He would have remembered if he'd seen a first-year this hot.

"So, uh… hey there," he said lamely, holding out his hand. "I'm Will Harmond, nice to meet you. So you're one of Cynthia's friends, huh?"

Elaina stared at Will's hand like it was an Ekans poised to bite her. She flinched and her eyes shot up to meet his. "Wh-What? Yes, that's me. I'm… well, 'friend' might be pushing it, but… she did invite me, yes."

After a few seconds, she realized that she'd never given her name, or even shaken his hand. Once again she reached out to him, but once again, she hesitated.

What if… what if he didn't WANT to shake hands with her? After all the horrible things she'd done, it would make perfect sense that the guy wouldn't want anything to do with her. And he didn't even know her name. He had NO idea that the girl standing in front of him had hurt so many people. She started to shake.

"I… I'm…" She just couldn't get the words out. She'd resigned herself to the judgment of others when she'd stepped out onto campus today, but most of the people who were looking at her did so because she was so hot. This was her first real "outing" after her… outing, and she was terrified thinking about what would happen if people figured out that she wasn't just another pretty face, but was actually the person responsible for hurting all of her fellow students. Now that she was thinking clearly, she couldn't feel anything but fear.

No, what are you doing? She chastised herself, realizing her hand was shaking. That was why you were hiding behind that mask in the first place. You were so afraid of being hated for who you were, that you thought it would be easier to hide from the world. But you aren't hiding anymore. Isn't that the promise you made to yourself? That you'd step out into the world and try to be somebody? Let them hate you for who you are, so you can find people willing to accept you for who you are?

It was a terrifying prospect to be sure. But one she was certain was necessary.

But her hand still refused to move. She was still gripped by fear.

"Come on, Elaina, shake his hand already!" Cynthia grabbed her wrist and jerked her arm up, and she felt her fingers wrap around Will's. At the same time she felt the warm contact of another human being, she saw Will's face twist in disbelief.

"…El… aina? Elaina?!" He sputtered, his hand frozen in place. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. But now that he was getting a better look at her hair, and her body…

"Elaina Bishop?!" He exclaimed, twisting his hand back. Elaina flinched like she'd just been slapped across the face.

I knew it… just as I'd feared… she wanted to cry. This was exactly what she'd expected to happen, wasn't it?

Then something she never could have expected happened.

"Yeah, Elaina Bishop!" Cynthia snapped, stepping in front of her with her hands on her hips. "So what? She's my friend, and I invited her. Do you have a problem with that?"

Will blinked, still caught off guard. He shook his head from side to side. "N-No, it's not that," he mumbled. "I just… well… I was surprised. Sorry."

Elaina blinked. That was… surprising. When was the last time someone had ever apologized to her? Just Blake and Sango…

"That's… no, it's alright," she stammered out in confusion. "I was just… caught off-guard, I guess? I didn't expect to… it's just…"

"Great!" Cynthia clapped her hands together to dispel the tension. "Everyone's getting along again, just what I like to see!"

Elaina allowed herself to relax slightly. Maybe… maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. She'd hesitated to step foot outside, but here was a guy who knew what she was capable of, and didn't seem to care that much.

She glanced at the others. Would it be possible for more of them to…?

Her focus was on Julia. Of everyone here, Elaina probably owed her the largest apology. After all, Julia had received the full force of Elaina at her most unstable, and she'd beaten the other girl and her pokemon badly.

But Julia's expression was completely neutral. Still, she seized the opportunity, taking the longest few steps of her life to stand across from the other girl.

Julia was surprised. She didn't expect Elaina to confront her directly. It was clear she wanted to say something, but she was having trouble doing it.

"Julianna… I…" She stammered out, but Julia cut her off.

"Please, just Julia," she said, holding up her hand in front of Elaina's face to silence her. "What do you want?" She hadn't meant to come off as snippy, but to meet their boat this morning they'd had to go without breakfast. Of course, the end result of that was Elaina looking rather flustered and upset, so that wasn't very good either.

"I just… about… before…" she mumbled, glancing down, her face burning with shame.

"Let's just not talk about it, okay?" Julia sighed. She'd already moved past that whole mess months ago, and Elaina bringing it up now would just be more trouble than it was worth. It wasn't like an apology would change anything anyway.

But it was Kitty who came to her rescue.

"Elaina," she said, staring up into the other girl's eyes, startling Elaina enough to attract her attention. There was a big smile on Kitty's face.

"Y-Yes?"

Kitty's smile widened. "I'm glad that you're doing better," she said. "You were in a really dark place before, but now… now you're not."

Elaina's harmonia was still rough. It continued to rage like a hurricane in spite of all of Blake's efforts. But Kitty could see that wasn't the end of it. It wasn't the dark chasm devoid of hope that she'd seen before. The wind was gentler now.

And for Kitty, that was an incredibly good sign.

Aww, that's good! Elaina's making her first appearance in public after losing her mask! And so far it's going pretty good. There are a few complicated issues to iron out, but nothing too troubling. Hopefully everyone will get along okay and the trip will be fun for the whole gang!