Here's another chapter! We're officially on a break, which means we can switch to the romcom part of the story! And what's more dramatic than possibly realized feelings… and love rivals?

EeviumZ: I'm not technically accepting OCs, but I'd still love to see it in case I find a spot to use them later.

Jay Hayden: Well, you may enjoy this chapter, then.

Tambry96j: We'll find out eventually.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 64

As far as Blake was concerned, any day off that required waking up at 4:30 in the morning was not, in the technical sense, a day off. Much to his surprise, as he left his room that morning and Sango stepped out of her bedroom, he could see that his believes may actually have been shared.

"Hey Blake, ready to go…?" Sango yawned.

"Well, this is a surprise," Blake said, his eyes widening slightly. "Usually you're the eager one."

"Yeah…" Sango said, rubbing her eyes. "I stayed up really late last night talking to Julia… I barely got any sleep…"

"What were you talking about?" Blake asked.

Sango yawned, stretching.

"Oh, y'know… stuff… I wanted advice, but Julia suggested that I might have feelings for-"

"…"

"What kind of trick questions are you trying to get me to answer this early in the morning?!" Sango exclaimed, her face bright red. "That's cheating! Cheater!"

Since Blake and Sango were both tired that morning, the two walked toward Floette Fields in relative silence. They began their caretaking duties, with Sango distributing the pokemon food into the different feeders by type, while Blake checked the coats of the listed pokemon to make sure there weren't any health issues. They were responsible for a large amount of pokemon, so their tasks were long and tedious. It was early morning by the time they were wrapping up, and Sango had grown more alert in that time, paying closer attention to her work partner, her mind going back to the conversation she'd had with Julia the night before.

"Hey Sango," Julia interrupted in the middle of Sango's statements.

"Yeah?" Sango asked.

"You talk about Blake. Like, a lot. A LOT." Julia commented.

"Do I?" Sango said, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah, you do. And with all this stuff you've been talking about involving him, I just gotta ask." Julia coughed, looking Sango right in the eyes. "Sango… do you… like Blake?"

"Hm?" Sango's eyebrows raised, confused at what Julia was saying. "Well, yeah. Of course I do, why would you…"

Sango's eyes widened as she realized what Julia meant by "like", and her cheeks turned pink.

"I-I don't think about Blake like that…" she said, looking down. "Stuff like that… I don't really pay attention to those sorts of things. I mean… we're friends, right? That's… that's all…"

"…" Julia considered this, staring at Sango appraisingly. Sango fidgeted, a little uncomfortable by Julia's accusatory gaze.

"…Well, fine then." Julia shrugged. "If that's all it is for now, then I guess I'm just overthinking things."

"Yeah, maybe…" Sango mumbled.

"Things will probably look better in the morning," Julia yawned, rolling over in her bed. "For now, just get some sleep. You have to wake up early tomorrow, yeah?"

Sango glanced at her alarm clock, which read 1:34 in bright red. Her face paled.

"Ah, how have we been talking this long?!" Sango cried.

"Turn the lights out and shut it," Julia mumbled into her pillow as Sango jumped out of bed and slapped the lights down, desperate to get at least a few hours of sleep. As tired as she was, though, her mind was plagued with thoughts of Blake, and she couldn't find herself relaxed enough to drift off.

Julia was just misunderstanding things, Sango thought, returning to her task at hand in the present. Blake and I are just friends. It isn't anything… like that. Stuff like romance, it's all just a waste, after all…

"…Go. Hey. Sango. Are you awake?"

Sango's eyes snapped open, getting used to the daylight as she refocused on Blake, whose face was right in front of hers.

"Uwaah!" Sango cried out, hyper-aware of Blake, stepping back at the same time she pushed forward, Blake stumbling over.

"Hey!" Blake said, standing up.

"S-sorry," she said, wiping her eyes. "You just kinda… surprised me."

What's wrong with me?! Sango yelled internally. Damn it! It's all Julia's fault for putting that stuff in my head! That's why I so freaking conscious of him!

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. Just… gotta get this over with, is all. Then I can get back to sleep. Yeah, I'm just not rested, that's it. So I'm thinking strangely. Yeah.

"So, um, what did you want?" She asked, trying to keep her breathing even.

"I just wanted to ask if you could hear that," Blake said.

"Hear what?" Sango asked, straining her ears to hear. As if on cue, the faintest sound was caught on the wind, like the notes of distant, solemn song.

"It's like music, right?" Blake asked. "Weird. We're the only ones who should be out here this early, right?"

"Yeah," Sango said, nodding. "I'm just about finished, here. Want to check it out?"

Blake nodded, and the two went further toward the forest, where the sound seemed to be coming from. As they got closer, the sound became clearer. It was obviously music now, a relaxing, soothing melody that seemed to draw the both of them in. Approaching the source, Sango felt reinvigorated, as though the music was healing her anxiety. Blake felt a similar draw, though tinged with an air of familiarity and nostalgia, as though everything would be alright.

The two stepped into the clearing of the forest near the lake's edge, laying eyes on the source of the music. It was a girl, sitting upon a stump. Sango's eyes widened. She was beautiful, like a forest goddess should look. She wore the school's uniform and it seemed to glow, amplified by her beauty, while on Sango they were just clothes. She had long, shiny brown hair that seemed to be gently blowing in the wind, and two fringes framed her rosy, heart-shaped face. Her eyes were closed, and her soft lips were pressed against an old, wood-carved flute, on which the soft and haunting melody was played.

Gathered around the girl were several bird pokemon, apparently also having been drawn in by the music.

Blake realized he was holding his breath. He let it out in a soft hum, which was unfortunately just loud enough for the girl to catch over the music, her eyes snapping open in realization. They were bright blue.

"W-what?" The girl gasped, whirling her head around to see Blake and Sango. When her eyes landed on the two of them, they widened, and she gasped. The bird pokemon flew away from her, no longer entranced by the music, leaving the three of them at the side of the lake.

"Wh-who are you?" The girl demanded, standing up. The fearful look in her eyes made it seem as if she was about to flee, and she clutched her flute against her sizable chest, hiding behind it like a weapon.

"Oh, sorry," Sango said, snapping out of her reverie. "See, um, we're students here, like you."

"…Oh…" the girl said, letting out a breath as she calmed down. "S-so you two were coming here… to, um…" Her cheeks turned pink and she looked down, embarrassed.

"NO!" Sango said sharply, the girl flinching. "Oh, sorry, um, we're working as caretakers on campus, and we were just kind of drawn in by your music. It was quite beautiful, you know. You're very talented! Heck, you were even attracting wild pokemon!"

"Oh, thank you," the girl seemed to have calmed down, her body relaxing. She turned the flute over in her hands and looked down on it, smiling. The "I've been playing for a while… since I was little…"

"So what were you playing out here for?" Blake asked, approaching the girl.

"Oh!" The girl said, glancing at Blake for the first time. "Well, I mean… playing my flute in an empty room by myself wouldn't be any fun, now would it?"

She smiled kindly, glancing up at the sky, brushing some of her hair behind her ear.

"But being out here, with all the wild pokemon… I thought this morning was just too beautiful to resist."

She giggled, before realizing Blake and Sango were still staring at her, and she blushed.

"Oh, please forgive me, I don't even know your names," she said.

"Oh, right!" Sango said, laughing. "Sorry about that, I guess we got ahead of ourselves! I'm Sango, and this is Blake!"

"You can call me Elly," the girl said, smiling back at her.

"Well, Elly, thank you for the performance," Sango said, smiling. "I'm sorry we interrupted you. We'll get out of your hair now."

"W-wait!" Sango and Blake turned back, Elly looking at them, her eyes tinged with a mixture of anxiety and desperation.

"Um… it's just…" Elly fidgeted, looking away. "I… I don't get to talk with many people… so, um… if it's okay with you guys… could I come along for a little bit? I-I promise I won't get in the way or anything! I just, well…"

She fell silent, looking expectantly and hopefully at Blake, and then Sango.

"Sure!" Sango smiled. "Of course you can come hang out with us, Elly!"

"Really?" Elly asked eagerly, her gorgeous smile radiating with joy.

"Yeah, we just finished off our caretaking duties," Sango said. "So we don't really have anything to do. Although, Blake should get some training in for his match tomorrow, so I guess we could do that…"

"…Match…" Elly pondered. "Wait! Are you in the tournament?"

"Yeah," Blake said, nodding.

"Wow, then you must be a very strong trainer," Elly said. She smiled bashfully at him.

"Well, you're a trainer too, right?" Blake said. "That's why you're at this school, after all."

"Yeah," Elly said, nodding. "I want to be in the battling course, but, well, I don't actually do that much battling… see, every time I have a pokemon battle, well…"

A wave of shame and guilt crossed her face as she looked at the ground.

"…It doesn't really go that well."

"Well, in that case, I could give you some battling tips, you know," Blake suggested.

"Oh yeah! Do you have any pokemon with you?" Sango asked. "I'd like to meet them!"

"No, sorry," Elly said, shaking her head. "I wanted to give them some time to rest up in my room. I wasn't planning to be out this long, after all."

"Huh, oh well," Sango shrugged. "Anywhere in particular you want to go?"

Elly glanced back down at the ground.

"Well, actually, um… I haven't been around campus very much…" She murmured.

"Huh?" Sango asked, confused.

"I stay… in a private dorm… I don't have any roommates… and I take classes online, so… I don't ever really leave…"

"Seriously?" Sango asked. "But, I mean, you must eat in the Snorlax Commons, right?"

Elly shook her head.

"I get my food delivered."

"Wait, wait," Sango said, shaking her head, frowning. "So you're telling me that you just spend all day cooped up in your room? You don't go to class, you don't go hang out with friends, and let me guess, you don't have a club, either?"

Elly nodded sheepishly.

"I'm not very good with people," Elly admitted, sighing. "When I was younger… every time I made friends… they'd all leave me before long, so I just sort of…"

Her voice grew quieter and quieter and she looked down.

"No good!" Sango said, shaking her head. "No good at all! That's it!"

Sango grabbed Elly by the wrist, turning to Blake.

"Hey, Blake, I know you need to get some training done today, but I'm gonna bail, okay? Elly and I are gonna be spending the day together!"

"Huh?" Elly gasped. "No, no, I just wanted to, you know… for a little bit, I didn't… I…"

"You're a first year like us, right?" Sango cried, whirling around to stare fiercely at the brunette. "If all you've been doing is locking yourself away since the year began, then that means you don't have any friends here! And that's not okay!"

"It… it isn't?"

"No, of course it isn't! So starting now, I'll be your friend, got it?"

Elly nodded meekly.

"You know what, count me in too," Blake said.

"Really?" Sango asked, surprised. "But don't you have to practice for your match with Cynthia?"

"Yeah, that match is important," Blake said, glancing at Elly, "but I wouldn't feel right, you know? Besides, two friends are better than one, right, Elly?"

Elly looked him in the eye and blushed, nodding.

"Th-thank you, Blake," Elly said, smiling shyly. "O-oh, and, you too, Sango. Thank you!"

"…Yeah," Sango said, nodding, glancing between the two of them with a strange hint of irritation. He didn't have to seem so eager…

"So first off, I think we should go to the Campus Mall!"

"Mall?" Elly asked.

"Yup!" Sango grinned.

Elly stared at the interior of the largest building on campus with her mouth wide open.

"Surprised, huh?" Sango asked, grinning.

"This is where all students come when they aren't doing anything, usually on weekends," Blake explained. "It's got all sorts of stuff! There are shops for pokemon goods as well as stuff for humans, restaurants, even a movie theatre.

"Wow…" Elly said, stepping forward. "I'm not used to being around this many people." She covered her hands with her face, flustered. "So, um, what should we do first?"

"Well…" Blake and Sango glanced at each other.

"…We didn't eat, so we wanted to get breakfast."

"Breakfast, huh?" Elly said. A loud rumble erupted from her stomach, causing her face to turn bright red. "I-I guess I could eat…"

The three shared a laugh.

"So what should we get?" Blake asked. "I'm kind of in the mood for Chinese."

"Nah, then we'll just be hungry again in a hour," Sango said, walking toward one of the signs. "How about something with a lot of calories? We could get burgers."

"I'm fine with that," Blake agreed. "What about you, Elly?"

"I'm hungry enough that I could eat ten," Elly said, smiling.

"I like the way you think," Sango grinned, draping an arm over the girl's shoulder. "I think you and I are gonna be good friends."

Contrary to what she had said, Elly only got one burger, although she made it double. Sango, on the other hand…

"Um, Sango, is that… okay?" Elly asked, glancing at the pile of burgers stacked up in front of the blonde.

"Just ignore it," Blake sighed, sitting down next to Elly. The three of them were at one of the tables in the mall's food court. Blake, like Elly, also chose a rather conservative amount of food. "That's just how she is."

"I skipped breakfast," Sango explained. "And dinner last night! I'm famished!" Sango inhaled another burger, wiping her mouth with a napkin. "Mm, that was good."

Elly began giggling.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Sango asked, frowning.

"Nothing, it's just… I haven't ever eaten with friends like this before," Elly smiled. She placed a hand over her chest. "It feels so… good."

"Well, Elly, today's your day," Sango grinned. "So what do you want to do next? Anything you want! Want to see a movie? Or maybe some shopping?"

"Oh! Um…" Elly glanced at the shops surrounding the food court. "Maybe… could we go clothes shopping?"

She glanced down at her uniform.

"I-I don't have many clothes besides my uniform." A pained expression crossed her face, as though she was remembering something painful. "So I just wanted to maybe get an outfit, something special so I could remember today, you know?"

"Sure thing!" Sango grinned. "I mean, I personally don't get the appeal of shopping for clothes, but whatever you want, Elly!"

Blake, likewise, was not exactly thrilled about clothes shopping. But he bit back his remarks, and smiled. Sango led Elly to the nearest clothing store on the map, and Elly was once again amazed, this time by the vast selection of clothes.

"Wow…" Elly gasped. "I… I didn't even know there were this many types of clothing available…"

"Come on now," Sango chuckled. "You're not serious."

Blake noticed that Elly's face once again took on a pained look.

"Is… is everything okay?" Blake asked.

"Yes, it's just…"

"If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to," Blake interrupted her, placing his hand on her shoulder. "We're friends, right? So you don't ever have to feel pressured into revealing anything like that. You can tell us anything when you feel comfortable. After all, even friends have one or two things they're hiding from each other, right?"

Elly beamed gratefully at Blake and smiled, nodding.

"So, Elly, what kind of clothes did you want to buy?" Sango asked. "Or do you want to just browse?"

"Um, I was thinking… maybe a nice sun dress, and a…" She glanced at Blake, before leaning in close to Sango and whispering in her ear. "And a bra… My old ones… don't fit me that well…"

Sango glanced down at Elly, taking note of the girl's large chest.

"Okay, Blake!" Sango grabbed Elly and turned to him. "We're gonna go get her a bra, so you stay far away, got it? No peeking."

"Sango…" Blake looked at her, stunned. "…You know where the bra section is?"

"Even I wear a bra, damn it!" Sango cried, holding her arms over her chest.

Blake didn't really have a lot to do in the meantime, so he just searched on his phone. After about fifteen minutes, Sango and Elly returned. Elly's cheeks were bright red, and Sango had a look on her face like she had lost her faith in humanity.

"Hey Blake…" Sango muttered, looking at him with dead eyes. "I'm gonna go… think about some stuff. Take care of Elly for a while..."

She walked off into the distance, mumbling.

"Um, is Sango… okay?" Elly asked timidly. "I, um, I told the attendant my… er, you know, size, and then when Sango helped me clip it on in the changing room, she just, kind of… started acting like that."

She looked up at Blake, her eyes tearing up.

"Did I… do something wrong, again?"

Blake nodded sympathetically, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay, Elly. You didn't do anything wrong. Don't worry about it. We all have our own crosses to bare."

Aw, poor Elly. Hopefully with Blake and Sango as her friends, she'll come out of her shell!