Olivia's about to go out on another date, only for Ayame to interrupt her! With a request for… what!? Help with a crush?! Is Olivia even qualified to provide Ayame with advice about how to seduce men? Hopefully Ayame will be able to get some help, if not… things might get even messier! And how's Blake going to react to her running away like this? This whole situation has quickly escalated into a giant mess, that's for sure. Remember to review!

The Elimination Round of the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Contest 4 has started! Make sure to get those votes in, we've only got a few so far! You can vote for up to 5 girls, so make sure your favorites have a chance to shine!

Nominated: Alcea, Ange, Ayame, Caelia, Callie, Chloe, Cynthia, Dakota, Donoma, Elaina, Gabrielle, Joyce, Kate, Maddi, Misato, Nikita, Rui, Sango, Sylvia, Vic

KedharS: That's just the kind of guy he is.

Arbiter8991: Maybe.

Hyphenman: No, he really can't. And no, it's not a continuity error. Olivia just goes through a lot of women, as you know.

Tambry96bj: If you have to say it that many times, it's time for some self-reflection.

Aakareo Kokokuhikari: Congratulations.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 1346

Olivia was in a foul mood. Her first date had been a major bust due to how boring the girl was, and she'd called it early. That had given her enough time to get back to her room and schedule another date with a different girl- but before she could head out for that date, Ayame burst back into her room with a frantic expression on her face.

And so, rather than going out on a date with a cute girl, she found herself listening to Ayame's inane request for help.

"So let me get this straight." Olivia massaged her temples in frustration, unable to believe what she was hearing. Or, well, reading. She took another look at Ayame's notebook to make sure she had the story right. "That boy, Rei, a guy you have known for, what, half a day? At most? That's the guy you have a crush on?"

Ayame nodded demurely. Olivia's eye twitched.

I knew this girl was shy… but seriously? Is she that naïve? She falls for a guy that easily? After a single day? Olivia didn't like Ayame that much. Frankly, she didn't have much of an opinion about her either way, but she tended to not like girls with low self-esteem.

But there was something there… maybe Olivia could mold this little wallflower into a beautiful rose after all?

Thinking about roses made her want to throw up. She remembered a certain redheaded girl and felt her heart ache; putting those memories aside, she decided that she would at least let Ayame study at the feet of a master when it came to seduction.

"First up, put the notebook away."

Ayame stared at her, confused.

"I have no intention of helping you out if you won't talk to me woman to woman," Olivia explained. "I know you're shy. But what? Are you going to go on a date with him, and not even say a word? No. Not a chance. That is a waste of my fucking time, because the date would implode. And I don't like having my time wasted, you feel me?"

Ayame nodded obediently and put her notebook away. She looked at Olivia in awe, and Olivia had to admit; she liked the feeling.

"Great. Now, first step of seduction? Brush your hair out of your face," Olivia ordered. She needed to see the damage. Ayame had mentioned several times (through notebook) that she'd been teased mercilessly for her masculine appearance, so Olivia needed a clearer look at what exactly she was working with.

Unfortunately, the other girl wasn't exactly ready to play ball.

"Wh-What?!" Ayame gasped, her jaw dropping.

Olivia scowled. "Are you arguing with me? You realized that I gave up my date to help you out with this, right?"

"Y-Yes! Sorry, Olivia!" Ayame gasped, standing up straight.

"You'll listen to everything I tell you, then?" Olivia asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "I won't help you if you're just going to chicken out at the last moment, understood?"

"Yes!" Ayame nodded vigorously. "Thank you so much, Olivia!"

"And another thing. Since I'm going out of my way to help you out, I think you should show me a little bit more respect. So starting now, I want you to call me 'boss', is that alright with you?"

"Yes, boss!" Ayame nodded again.

Ooh. I like the sound of that. Olivia was still in a bad mood, but she couldn't help but smile at hearing the taller girl address her with such respect. This girl's really desperate, isn't she? Well, fine. I can't make any promises, but I can at least be a good roommate and help her out a little.

"So come on, let's see that face of yours. Show momma what you're working with," Olivia said, snapping her fingers.

"Right, I'll do that right away, boss!" Ayame nodded, tucking her hand over her forehead and lifting up her bangs to show Olivia her face. She winced, remembering what had happened earlier. She completely thrashed Claire… if I show her my face, which looks even more masculine, then she's probably going to insult me as well…

Ayame knew that she was risking more bullying coming her way by revealing herself to Olivia like this. But she was just that desperate. Every time she thought about him her heart would skip a beat, and she was worried she wouldn't even be able to eat properly with her mind filled with thoughts of him, let alone train for the upcoming track meet.

And yet, Olivia wasn't laying any harsh words on her. In fact, the other girl was staring blankly at her, her face practically unreadable.

"Um… boss?"

"FINE! That's fine!" Olivia snapped loudly. "You can hide your face again!"

"R-Right, boss!" Ayame snapped her hand down to her side and let her hair fall back into place. She stood still as a statue as Olivia paced the room, finally turning away from her. That made Ayame wince. She was so ugly the other girl couldn't even look at her.

Meanwhile, Olivia was trying to come to grips with what she'd just seen.

What the hell?! What's with that face!? Olivia covered her own face, refusing to let anyone see that she was blushing like hell. That girl's a total freaking hottie! Why the fuck was she hiding her face all this time?! Because some guys picked on her?! Are they crazy?! No, no, wait, I think I got it. They were probably embarrassed for liking the tomboy so they teased her like crazy, but deep down if she had asked any of them to be her boyfriend they all probably would have been falling over themselves to say yes.

Olivia wondered if this feeling was love. That thought lasted about two seconds before she beat it out of her head.

Nah. I just want to bang her.

Unfortunately, judging by the course of their conversation, and the absolute lack of any lustful stares coming from the other girl in the semester and a half they'd been roommates, Ayame was almost-certainly straight.

What a pity… I could show her all sorts of things…

Instead, Olivia decided to do the noble thing, and help Ayame out with her love life. She was going to make that adorable shy tomboy into a real, take-charge woman. Someone styled after herself, just maybe without the great fashion sense.

This is going to be so much fun! She giggled to herself, licking her lips.

"B-Boss…" Ayame was still squirming behind Olivia, not sure what to make of this. Did Olivia want to help her anymore or not?

Then, when the blonde turned around and Ayame caught sight of the look on her face, she felt a shiver run down her spine; she wasn't sure she WANTED Olivia's help anymore, after she saw that. But that was just her hesitation talking; of course she wanted Olivia to help her.

She just didn't know what kind of "help" she would get.

"Let's start with something simple," Olivia decided. "Cutting those bangs of yours."

Ayame paled. "B-But… no!"

Olivia raised her eyebrow and put her hands on her hips. "No?"

She couldn't believe that Ayame was actually standing up to her like that. "Didn't you say you'd do whatever I asked?" Olivia demanded.

But no, Ayame was serious about this apparently.

"I don't want to cut my bangs," she growled, and Olivia felt her heart skip a beat. It was then that she realized how much more powerful Ayame actually was. What Olivia had dismissed previously as lankiness was now the obvious muscles of a runner. And that fierce look in her eyes, piercing through her bangs, was the stare of someone who wasn't about to back down. Not at all like the shy girl of just a few minutes ago, who had needed a notebook to communicate.

Olivia should just say fuck it. After all, she'd only agreed to help out Ayame on the condition that the other girl listened to everything she said.

But that was before Olivia had seen Ayame's face. She had a crush on the girl, no two ways about it. Even if Ayame wanted her to stop helping, she wouldn't at this point.

"…Why don't you want to cut your bangs? Or at least give them a trim?" Olivia asked, keeping her voice low so the other girl wouldn't get startled.

Ayame bit her lip and averted her eyes. That shyness had returned now that Olivia was being more compliant herself.

"I just… I don't…" Ayame shook a little, and Olivia realized there must still be some trauma left over there.

"Are you afraid he's going to see your face, and not think you're pretty?" Olivia asked, reaching out to gingerly wipe the tears in Ayame's eyes. The tall girl nodded, a few steps away from straight-up bawling her eyes out.

Olivia sighed. What a mess.

If he turns her down, then he's a damn fool, that's for sure, she thought bitterly. But guys could be stupid like that. "Listen, I know that boys used to tease you for looking like a guy-"

"Like you did, with Claire?"

"Who's Claire?" Olivia asked. That name didn't sound familiar to her.

"…The girl who was with Rei earlier. Marion brought her." Ayame's voice wavered, feeling even less seen. Olivia had forgotten that other girl completely.

"…Oh, right. Her." Olivia's bad habit of deleting girls from her contacts that she didn't find attractive had extended to her memory as well. This "Claire" girl had been forgotten practically the second she stepped out of Olivia's line of sight. "…I'm sorry I said all that stuff. I should have known how it would affect you, given your… past."

Olivia hadn't really cared back then. But something about Olivia reminded her of an injured pokemon, and she wanted to take care of it.

Is this my maternal instincts kicking in? I thought I didn't have something like that. Just the thought of "maternal instincts" was enough to make Olivia feel sick to her stomach given her history with her own mother. But she dismissed that, as well.

"Well, look," Olivia said, leading Ayame over to the mirror. She set the other girl down in front of it and lifted her bangs, so Ayame could see her reflection.

Ayame didn't know what she was supposed to be seeing. She saw herself, and her boyish face. Was she supposed to do something?

"Um, boss…" Ayame tried to look back at Olivia but the blonde had no intention of letting that happen. She practically glued her hands to Ayame's head and forced her to look forward.

"See that girl in the mirror there?" Olivia demanded.

"Yes!" Ayame practically shouted, not sure what else she was supposed to do.

"What do you think of her?" Olivia asked.

"SH-SHE'S… she's ugly and boyish?" Ayame whimpered, starting to cry.

"Nope! That's wrong!" Olivia swatted her on the back of the head, to Ayame's confusion.

"But-"

"All those boys who said they were ugly because you were a girl who looked like a boy? Forget about 'em. They didn't know shit. You're a boyish girl, yeah. Who gives a crap? You can look hot as fuck even with your masculine features!"

Ayame took a good look at herself in the mirror, and blinked.

"…But Olivia you said that boys were all ugly and unattractive."

Olivia felt another arrow piercing her as her own words were flung back in her face. She practically coughed up blood.

"Y-Yes, well… that's not important right now."

Olivia sighed. Okay, I think I might be a bit too harsh with my words sometimes, she considered, taking a good look at herself in the mirror and doing some self-reflection. Maybe it would be better if I moderated my opinions just a little bit more, instead of shoving them in everyone's faces. That would probably be best for everybody.

But of course, the future Empress didn't let herself stay down for long. "Anyway, as I was saying, what's important is getting you to understand that just because a girl looks like a handsome guy, that doesn't mean she's not attractive! Got that? Nod if you agree!"

Ayame nodded.

"Say 'yes, boss'."

"Yes, boss."

"That's my good girl." She kissed Ayame on the top of her head. "Now, let's see what we can do to make this boy go 'wow'. Okay?"

Meanwhile, the boy in question was seriously considering running after Ayame. Sango had to use all her strength to hold him back.

Luckily, Sango was a bit of a monster when it came to stuff like that, and Blake still felt sore from the Pokeathlon.

"You…! Can't…! Go…! After…! Her…!" Sango hissed through clenched teeth. "You're just going to scare her off more!"

Blake scowled, but he knew she was right. Whatever had happened, Ayame had been pretty badly startled. He didn't want to upset her even more.

"…Fine… You're right," he admitted, settling down. "We can deal with this mess later."

It was a pretty big mess, all things considered. He wondered if he had made things worse. Normally, he would be beating himself up right now for messing everything up with Ayame, but he was surprisingly composed as he returned to fishing.

Maybe the reason I'm not worried is because I know what happens to her, he considered as he cast out his line again. After all, I know that she turns out fine…

He thought about the way Ayame was when he first met her. Aggressive, spiteful, rude, and altogether hateful towards boys. It had taken a lot of hard work to melt the ice frozen around her heart, and even more time and work to rebuild her damaged self-esteem.

…Okay, well, maybe not "fine", he admitted.

"…Rei…" Sango placed her hand over his, and he felt a strange ache in his heart. Every time he heard that name, it happened. Why did he even choose that name in the first place?

It's my real name… and yet, when I use it…

It was like his heart was one fire. Not in the sense of heartburn, but like an actual burning-hot poker was being shoved through his chest.

"It's fine," Blake said, smiling at Sango through the pain. It's probably just a coincidence… a remnant from my past, that I've forgotten. He still had that severe burn on his chest, to go with his other scars. Maybe that was the source of this ache. But he pushed those thoughts aside too, and focused on the girl in front of him. Because in spite of his assurance that everything was fine, Sango clearly didn't believe that everything was fine.

She offered him a shaky smile in return.

"Well… if you say so…"

Sango returned to fishing, looking at Blake out of the corner of her eye. She was no fool. She knew that everything was most certainly NOT fine. After all, Blake was a mess.

In spite of what he says, I can tell he's having a tough time with this. After all, that's Ayame, the girl he loves, and she just ran away screaming because he came on too strong. That's not going to mess up the timeline or anything, right?

Sango composed herself.

No, that's crazy-talk, she assured herself. We can't change the past, right? So all this had to happen. And it's going to happen again.

That helped her relax. Almost as much as fishing. And…

"Great! I'm so glad you guys are doing okay!" Marion chirped. "Don't worry! I'm sure Aya's doing just fine!"

"Aya?" Sango and Blake looked at each other. To Marion's eyes they must have seemed confused by the nickname, but the truth was that they were mentally comparing notes. Ayame only let her closest friends use that name, and Marion…

Have they even shared a single conversation? Sango silently asked Blake.

Has Marion used that name in the present? Blake silently asked Sango.

But of course neither were actually telepathic, so the questions they asked each other with their eyes were returned with blank stares.

"It's just a nickname I call her," Marion chimed in. "But like I said, she'll be fine. She's not usually this squeamish."

"Really? She did seem tough earlier when she stood up to Rei, is she like that all the time?" Sango inquired. She tried to reconcile the Ayame she knew in the present with the shy girl she'd seen earlier. She was having a pretty tough time doing so, frankly. Unlike Blake, Sango hadn't been privy to as much of Ayame's sensitive side.

"Only when you get her angry enough," Marion said, waving her hand. "See, she's got a really big track meet this weekend that she's been training for, so she's been kind of on-edge for a while now. That's why I invited her, so she could relax!"

Marion glanced at Blake with just the faintest trace of a smirk on her lips.

"…But it seems that had the opposite effect," she teased, and Blake blushed.

"Yeah, uh… sorry about that," he apologized, averting his eyes.

"Aww, no need to apologize," Marion said, shaking her head. "Things are just a little tricky with Aya right now, that's all. But trust me, she likes you."

Blake didn't need Marion to tell him that.

"Well, that's a relief," he said, trying to pretend like he was pleased to hear the news. Ayame liking him in the past didn't really matter if she had no memory of him in the future.

"…But next time, ask her out AFTER the big meet, okay?" Marion suggested, winking at Blake.

Sango groaned and rolled her eyes.

Well, things are getting interesting now! Ayame's getting some help from Olivia to completely remake her image! The only question is whether or not she'll listen to the fashion model's advice! As for Blake and Sango, they're still dealing with a bunch of shit… hopefully they can do as Marion suggested, and relax! The fishing should help with that, at least.