Thread: Pokemon Academy Year II: Second Year Rhapsody

I just caught up with you. It took a while, but I'm happy that I did. Else I would've missed the awesome character development that was taking place here.

I loved the fact that Reggie's 'shadow' was the one that knocked some sense into him. It was a nice twist, especially the conversation. While the shift in Reggie's personality was a bit sudden, it was a welcome one and it was about time, if I may say so myself.

I was pleased with the newer chapters and I wish you luck writing the newest chapters.

Reggie's personality hasn't changed as much as him just trying hsi best to try and change it. He's sitll insecured about things but he's no longer scared of making a change for it.

Finally finished reading the chapter, I'll admit, the pacing was pretty good since each time I had to stop reading I was upset instead of feeling relieved. The end to the chapter was quite romantic, though I wanna know who our resident rich boy will go after now. I believe Azure shall be more important soon. As always grammar is an issue, but the mistakes are rarely too big to completely detract from the story. One last thing, this season, I could see Reggie winning the best character award now

Do you really think so? I hope so too :)

That was some great character development.

I gotta hand it to Reggie for finally gathering his courage in order to confess his feelings to Miko and seeing him act more confidently was also a treat. Though I have this feeling as if Reggie isn't done with character development yet, something else will happen, I can feel it.

The battles were also terrific, really descriptive. Keep it up!

Overall, a really good chapter. I'm sorry it took me so late to catch up! ^^;

Nope, he's definetily not done yet.

Nice character development chapter with Reggie finally mustering up the courage to confess his true feelings to Miko, not to mention the Chigon reunite scene and apology. The scenes between Azure and Martin were pretty cool and probably my favorite part of this whole chapter.

The description was good too.

Not a major complaint, you might wanna proofread a little a bit more before releasing the chapters. I found few grammatical errors, nothing too bad though.

So, yeah overall it was a solid chapter. You're defiantly improving quite a bit.

I'm glad someone commented on Martin, he was a one shot villain but I actually had a lot of fun writing him, and Azure for that matter.

@Chaosj2; @AetherX; @Thabet; @Gym Leader Byron; @Instrutilus; @System Error; @Tsutarja; @Cosmos; @BlueNostalgia;

Chapter 15: First Date and Epilogue

Johann stared at the TV screen with a lack of interest, not really finding anything that he could even begin to deem interesting to watch. “So boring.” He muttered before he turned to look at Carey who was in turn glaring daggers at him. “I’m not giving you the remote,” he pointed out dryly.

“But why!?” Carey whined. “You’re not even watching!” she screamed once more, her arms flailing around childishly.

“So?” Johann raised an eyebrow. “Hey Val! Is Reggie done yet? I wanna make fun of his ass!”

“Don’t be so rude.” Valerie scolded as she walked into the living room. It had been two days since Reggie had confessed his feelings towards Miko and even though the two were together in theory there was still something missing, they hadn’t had their first date. “Reggie finally confessed to her but if this date doesn’t go well then it wouldn’t have mattered,” she said, her tone of voice becoming a little sadder. “He’s been worried about what to wear or how to act.”

“I just remembered.” Johann scratched his chin in thought before looking at the roof. “This is Reggie’s first date, isn’t it?” he asked; his eyes looking at his sister. “Do you think I should watch over him and help him out from the dark.”

“You know you can’t do that.” Valerie shook her head. “We can’t be there to support him on everything.” She sighed before she sat down her hand grabbing her brother’s so as to calm down her nerves. “He’ll just get mad at you if he found out anyway.”

“You guys are worrying too much.” Valerie and Johann turned to look at the woman that had walked into the living room. She had long brown hair that went down to her neck, blue eyes similar to Reggie’s, and seemed to be in her late forties. “Reggie will do fine, I’m sure of it.”

“But Aunt Ailene, you know Reggie’s barely able to even talk to girls.” Johann nodded. “Besides, shouldn’t a mother be worried in this type of situation?”

Ailene shook her head at him before smiling. “Worrying about it will do no good and if Reggie sees me worry then he’ll just get even more nervous.” She explained. It seemed like she really was sure and confident about her son as there was not even one hint of hesitation in her voice. “On the other hand, his dad is even more worried.”

“I can see how Uncle Roger would be worried.” Johann deadpanned before sighing. “He’s always been overprotective of Reggie.”

“Yeah, but he has to learn that he won’t be a kid forever.” Ailene noted before she sat down next to her nephew and niece. “That’s why I told him to try and help Reggie with this.”

***

“I really suck when it comes to clothes.” Reggie frowned and stared at the mirror that was in front of him. There was a pile of clothes all around the bed, all rejected outfits for his first day. At the moment he was standing in front of his mirror with nothing but a pair of jeans.

He stared at his reflection, looking at his thin built with a faint sign of muscle on his stomach. He sighed to himself in defeat. Could he actually impress Miko? He didn’t have nice clothing, nor was he muscular or anything. “I think this was a bad idea.”

“You just need something different from your usual.” Reggie turned his head around to look at his dad who was standing by the door way.

Roger Damon had short black colored hair that was combed back, along with a skin that was of a darker shade of white and black eyes. His face had rough features which was topped by some wrinkles that were already visible; giving him a sort of threatening expression.

Reggie felt himself become even more nervous once he saw his father standing on the doorway. “Dad...hi.”

“You don’t have to be so nervous.” Roger looked away, a slight frown on his face as he walked into Reggie’s room. “Your mom told me that you had trouble picking out your clothes so I thought I could help you out.”

Reggie just stared at his dad. No matter how he thought of it he had always had trouble with him, his dad had always been strict and the fact that he always compared Reggie to Alex was something that bothered him. Or at least, that was what Reggie thought.

Roger looked at the clothes that had been thrown around on the bed. “Well, you gotta be a little tidier, make sure to clean this before you g...” Roger stopped himself mid-sentence, he had gone there to help his son; not to make him more nervous. “As I was saying, this girl, she’s one of your friends, right?”

“Yeah.” Reggie nodded his head shyly. “We kissed a couple of days ago during the Christmas Tree Lighting but this is our first date.” Reggie rubbed the back of his head nervously. “I’ve had a crush on her since last year, you see, so I’m really nervous. I mean, I just want to impress her.”

“First of all you have to show her confidence,” his dad said sternly before he sat down on the bed. “If she doesn’t think you’re confident then there’s no way she’ll even fall for you. Sure, you may have kissed but the trick to having a girlfriend is keeping her with you, after all.”

As much as he regretted it he actually had to say his dad was right; he hadn’t thought about what would happen after Miko and him began dating, after all. “Did you decide where to go?” Roger asked.

“No...” Reggie looked away. “I don’t really have an idea.”

“My suggestion is that you go with something simple.” Roger nodded his head and crossed his arms. “Normally, guys would go for fancy but a girl who really wants to go out with you for you should be able to enjoy a simple date without a lot of expenses.” Roger explained sagely; this was actually aside that Reggie knew of his dad very well, while he was a good man he did have the habit of being a bit...too cautious with money. “Take her star watching, talk to her, get to know things you didn’t know, then eat something simple that you both like that isn’t too expensive.”

“Dad, are you sure that works?” Reggie chuckled nervously.

“It worked with your mom.” Roger nodded his head once more and crossed his arms. He stood up from the bed this time though, almost as if he had thought about something. “As per clothes, I actually bought something for you, I was planning on giving it to you for Christmas, though.”

“Clothes, I bet?” Reggie deadpanned, his dad wasn’t one for big presents; though he wasn’t one to be picky about his presents to begin with.

A few minutes later Roger came back into the room. He was carrying a white shirt with black stripes going across it horizontally. He handed the shirt to Reggie. No words were uttered as the two stared at the shirt. “Try that, it’s not your style, I know, but that’s exactly why it could work.”

Reggie felt the fabric of the shirt, it was soft and thin around his fingers. His dad was right, though, if he wore something different from his usual then it was sure to get Miko’s attention. With that he decided to put discussion aside and put the shirt on over his chest.

Roger smiled at his son, a look of pride on his face. Even if he didn’t show it he really was proud of Reggie, something that he always tried to tell his son but...things wouldn’t work like that. “Reggie...I’m glad to be your father.” Reggie turned to look at his father, shock and confusion on his face as he tried to process what he had said.

“Y...you are?” he stuttered.

“I know I don’t show it,” Roger said quietly; his head staring at his son as he tried to get rid of his usual stern expression. “You know I’ve always been bad when it comes to expressing what I really feel and that bothers me so I tend to get mad quickly.” He pointed out. Reggie just stared at his father’s face, noticing that he actually seemed to be nervous about what he would say.

“Listen when you were younger and I got mad at you when something bad happened or when you gave up, it wasn’t because I had disdain towards you.” Roger shook his head and kept staring at his son. “It was because, as a father, it pains me to see my son sad it bothers me to see you give up on things just because you can’t do it when you can clearly do it.”

“But...” Reggie stopped himself mid sentence, his eyes gazing at his father hesitantly before he kept talking. “You...always compared me to Alex, ever since I was a kid.”

Roger nodded his head. “When I did that it wasn’t to make you feel inferior...Reggie I’ve always believed in you. Ever since you were a little kid I always believed that you would achieve something great,” he smiled at his middle son and patted his shoulder. “When I compared you to Alex it wasn’t because I liked him more, it’s because if he could do it then I know you could do it even better.”

Reggie didn’t say anything. The whole revelation was shocking to him, he never had a proper talk with his father ever since he was young and it was all just so different for him now. “When Alex was small I did something that my dad did with me when I was a baby, he lifted me on the palm of his hand so that I would stand on it. When I tried to do it with Alex he ended up falling on the couch; he wasn’t hurt though.” He said, his face frowning a little at the memory.

“But you did it, you stood there and laughed and smiled at me as if you had just climbed the world.” He smiled proudly at Reggie. “That’s when I knew that you would accomplish something some day, that you’ll literally stand at the top of the world.”

“Dad...you...” Reggie muttered. A smile crossed his face, even if he had still been traumatized due to all the bad memories with his dad just knowing that he was indeed proud of him was enough for him to feel relieve about the date. “I’m sorry that I misinterpreted your feelings.”

“It’s okay Reggie.” Roger nodded his head. “I need to work on that.” He said before he stood up and turned around to look at Reggie. “Now, finish getting ready.” He smiled. “You have a date to attend to.”

“Actually.” Reggie smiled. “I think I just got a good idea for our date.”

***

Reggie looked over at Miko carefully, his face becoming even more nervous with each passing second as he looked down at the lasagna that was on his plate. He was actually starting to regret his idea. His face began scanning the table once more, seeing that Carey was now talking to Miko while Roger and Ailene talked to each other.

“Nice.” Johann muttered form next to Reggie, his voice actually sounding sarcastic. “Exactly what was the big plan?” he wondered curiously.

Even though his father had given him some ideas already Reggie had figured that this one wasn’t so bad either. So with that he decided to call Miko and tell her that they would have dinner with Reggie’s family; at least that’s what Reggie thought as a good plan at the time.

“I thought it would be nice. You know, Miko meets everyone properly and, well, I thought it would help me out, but...” he glanced towards Miko once more, she actually seemed to be having form, if the smile on her face was of any indication.

“I think it was a good plan.” Valerie smiled. “During a first date you usually get nervous about lots of things, like not messing up or what to do to make the date go right,” she muttered. “This way she’ll at least be entertained and you’ll have more time to think of what to do and say when you’re alone.”

“Sadly, that’s just the problem, you just don’t know when you can be alone in this type of situation.” Johann sighed.

“I’m sure there’ll be a chance.” Valerie patted Reggie’s shoulder happily before smiling. “I’m just glad you guys are finally together.”

“I don’t know about you, but I think we should stop muttering or otherwise they’ll start asking what we’re talking about.” Johann muttered to them.

***

“We’ll be going to bed now, good night Miko, and I hope we can see each other soon.” Ailene smiled at Miko before she began to walk upstairs.

Roger looked at Reggie for a moment, the two had been sitting on the couch while Miko and Ailene were talking in the kitchen. “Good luck, son.” He patted Reggie’s shoulders before getting up and following after Ailene.

Reggie sighed, his eyes looking at Miko; who had gotten up from the kitchen and was walking towards him. “I can tell you’re nervous Reggie,” Miko giggled before she sat down next to her.

Suddenly Reggie felt her left arm warp around his right one, causing Reggie to blush and look at Miko nervously. Even after he had all that time to think of an answer for how to deal with the situation he was still drawing a blank. He stared at Miko’s eyes, they seemed...cheerful; was she actually happy with how things turned out?

“You don’t have to be nervous about anything Reggie.” Miko shook her head at him before leaning forward and kissing his cheek. “Your idea for our first date might’ve been strange but at least it’s original… and I had fun.” Miko chuckled. “I’m just glad that I’m able to spend time with you again.”

“What do you mean?” Reggie wondered, a curious and confused expression crossing his face.

“Over the last couple of months I feel like we just haven’t gotten a chance to talk to each other.” Miko’s expression actually became a little sadder as she said this; her tone lowering as well. “I felt like you were afraid to talk to me, of course now I know what it was but it bothered me that you just didn’t want to be with me anymore and that you were ignoring me.”

Reggie looked down at the couch, his fingers grabbing ahold of the fabric as he let Miko speak. “Even after we joined the Newspaper Club I felt like we never talked, like you were hiding something from me, of course I...I’m also sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry over anything Miko.” Reggie shook his head at her. He didn’t think that Miko would actually have had all those feelings though, all the time he had always thought of how he felt but never considered her.

“I guess that’s why I said yes to Kevin when he asked me out.” Miko nodded her head. “I didn’t think you would mind cause I thought that you didn’t like me anymore.”

“I did like you Miko.” Reggie pulled Miko’s arms closer on instinct, his eyes looking at hers. He was still unable to believe it, that the two could actually be sitting there like that, enjoying each other’s comfort and company. Reggie leaned closer to her and kissed her, their lips locking once more.

No matter how many times he did it he always got the same feelings… comfort, safety. “I bet everyone else is going to be surprise when we get back to classes.” Miko laughed.

“By the way...um...I’ll apologize ahead of time for any mess ups I might make.” Reggie pointed out haltingly. He didn’t have any experience with girlfriends, after all. “I might mess up here and there.”

“It’s okay.” Miko giggled. “I’m dating you cause I want to I know that you’re not experienced with girls.” She nodded her head sagely.

“So now what?” Reggie wondered while looking down at Miko. “Are you gonna go back home?”

“Yeah.” Miko nodded her head in agreement before patting Reggie’s cheek. “Don’t worry, we’ll talk through text and email then we’ll see each other when we got back to school.” She reassured. Reggie didn’t know what to say to this. He wanted to keep hanging out with Miko now that they were finally together but he also knew that he couldn’t keep her in Celadon throughout the whole spring break.

“Okay.” Reggie nodded his head in understanding.

***

Azure groaned, his body felt heavy and weak, and he felt like he had been dropped from a tall building. He groaned once more, his body moving up so that he was sitting now.

He looked around at the hospital room that was around him. He was only able to remember up to the point when Martin had shot him. “Damn it, that was really bothersome.” he muttered with a grunt before turning to the door of his room.

Thomas was standing on the doorway to Azure’s hospital room, two other policemen standing alongside him in turn. “Do you guys not know that it’s creepy to watch a minor while he’s sleeping?” Azure snickered while looking at Thomas.

“True, but that doesn’t really count for someone that’ll turn 18 in a couple of months.” Thomas muttered before he began to slowly take out a cigarette and sit down on the chair next to Azure’s bed.

“You can’t smoke in a hospital.” Azure pointed out dryly. He didn’t really like the fact that Thomas was seeing him, especially cause he knew that now that he had been incapacitated he had no other choice but to pay for his mistake.

“It’s electric.” Thomas replied before he took a whiff from the electric cigarette. “Not as good, but healthier at the same time.” He stared at Azure for a moment; almost as if trying to intimidate the young thug even more. “So I’ll cut right to the chase here, we figured that you don’t know anything that could be of help to us considering that you were the lowest of the grunts.”

“Hey!” Azure exclaimed; clearly insulted.

“However you still joined a dangerous organization like Memento Mori plus you’ve committed quite a few crimes that you’ve been hiding away.” Thomas stated before grabbing his cigarette and take it out of his mouth. “So you can still be sent to juvi and since you’re turning 18 in a couple of months, prison is not something that I would pass off.”

“But there is another option.” Thomas looked at Azure attentively. “You are still young and I figured that I could at least give you another chance considering that there are worse people than you that have been given this treatment.”

“What is it?” Azure asked simply.

“I’m going to give you the option of joining Rogue Academy.” Thomas pointed out to Azure; who in turn gasped in disbelief.

“That criminal academy, I rather go to prison!” Azure hissed.

“It’s a reformation center, though I admit that our work in that academy has been getting a bit messy, but we’re working on that.” Thomas stated nonchalantly, not really paying attention to Azure’s tone of concern. “Point is that if you go to this school you won’t really have to be put in a cell all you have to do is behave and once you get out you’ll do a little community work and get your trainer license taken for a couple of years.”

“Can’t you just do that now?” Azure frowned.

“I would if you hadn’t joined Memento Mori, but since you did this these are your only options.” The two continued to stare at each other, neither of them willing to give the other their chance to take victory in the discussion. “This idea was suggested by Reggie, I would’ve just thrown your ass in jail for all I care.”

After hearing the mention of Reggie, Azure went quiet. He remembered how he had stood up for him back at the warehouse; even after all of the things that Azure had done to him he still protected him. He frowned a little, the fact that he owed Reggie his life was something that bothered him; but he didn’t have any other choice that he could take. He turned to look at Thomas and sighed. “All right, I guess if I’ve got nothing else.”

“All right then.” Thomas nodded his head. “You will start once you are let off, you will also be given a ‘warden,’ a normal student that has joined the academy to take care and make sure that the other students follow the rules,” he explained.

***

Celadon Suite Hotel. This hotel is known as the tallest and most expensive hotel that one could go to in Celadon and it was one that had garnered a lot of fame and prestige for housing political figures, famous trainers and actors.

On the penthouse suite of the hotel a man looked down at the glimmering night life that had started below him, the lights of the buildings and houses creating a perfect combination between light and darkness. “Oh, you’ve got Luvdisc Bourbon, that’s a really rare kind, isn’t it?” he heard a female voice from behind him.

“Yeah well, when one dedicates themselves to my line of work you tend get the chances to some luxuries.” The man stated, his hand brushing that the black colored suit that he was wearing. His long black hair stretched down to his neck and his black colored eyes looked down at the city with a gleam of curiosity. “Even if Martin got captured he was merely a puppet for this scheme, the real deal was in the shadows and our mission was a success.”

“You are a prepared man aren’t you, Mr. Jabber?’ the woman’s sensual voice spoke once more, causing a small chuckle to escape the man’s mouth.

“That all goes back to my line of work.” Jabber stated before raising his hand, looking at the mark on his right hand. The mark was that of a wolf-like beast gaping its mouth open, black colored horns coming out with a number four written in the center of the hand.

“Now do you want to stare at the city or do you want to come play with me and drink the bourbon.” He felt her arms wrap around his shoulder and her chest press against his back. She showed her face to him her violet colored eyes gleaming, a sight that matched well with her beautiful long chestnut hair and her tight red ballroom dress.

“You make quite a good point, Ms. Clarice.” Jabber snickered playfully at her before giving her a soft kiss on the lips the two of them forgetting the view of the city that laid below them.

“Hmm...excuse me, lovebirds, but I’m still here.” Jabber raised his head, ensuing a growl of annoyance from Clarice as they both turned to look at the virtual screen that displayed on the left wall of the room. “You shouldn’t set a call if you’re gonna get it on...not that I mind if that’s your thing, though.”

On the other side of the screen was a man with tan skin, his green eyes staring at the two of them and matching the grin on his face. He had messy black hair that was done in a mullet; though the top part of it couldn’t be seen due to the black colored hat he was wearing. He was also wearing a black colored short sleeved jacket that hugged against his chest. “Memento Mori’s Sins, number four, Jabber, and number six Clarice.” He snickered.

“Number 2, Noah?” Jabber played along, a small grin crossing his face; something that seemed to annoy Noah in turn. “Sorry I cut you off, what was it that you wanted to talk about?”

“Well, I thought you should know that we finally decided on the new number 3 agent.” Noahs tated begrudgingly. “He’s the man I told you about, the one I found in the forest back in May.” He explained as a look of realization crossed Jabber’s face. “I hope you’re not mad though, considering you’re still 4.” He teased.

“I am not mad.” Jabber shook his head before chuckling. “I mean, I’m staying in the highest suite of a five star hotel, I’ve got the best booze you could ever ask for and one of the most beautiful girls I could’ve ever known with her arms around me. What is there to be mad about that?” He laughed before grabbing a hold of the glass and taking a short sip from it. “I’d rather have this than being send around on jobs like some useless lapdog.” He smiled.

Noah just stared at him, clear disdain and anger in his eyes. “You suck.” He groaned before the screen vanished.

“Nice, nice, I never liked that guy anyways.” Clarice stated before she took a bigger sip from the glass. “So I was kind of curious about something.” She cooed before she began trailing her fingers up Jabber’s chest; ensuing a playful grin from the man. “Are you only fearsome when it comes to your job?” she asked, her lips puckering up and her face looking at him sultrily. “Man of Greed.”

“A lust for knowledge and a lust for love I see.” Jabber chuckled. “But no, no I’m not.” He shook his head before pulling Clarice into yet another kiss.

The clock is ticking and time is starting to run short, soon very soon, time will stop and give birth to an age of destruction...an age of death.

Memento Mori.

End of Chapter 25
Next Time: Reggie Vs. Tyson, Win with one Shot

The beginning of this was pretty good (much anticipated, for sure), but the end was AWESOME. My responses:

“All right then.” Thomas nodded his head. “You will start once you are let off, you will also be given a ‘warden,’ a normal student that has joined the academy to take care and make sure that the other students follow the rules,” he explained.

Warden? I'm sensing the approach of a new character (or an old one, now that I think of it).

He had messy black hair that was done in a mullet; though the top part of it couldn’t be seen due to the black colored hat he was wearing. He was also wearing a black colored short sleeved jacket that hugged against his chest.

Just say black, it's less wordy.

“Number 2, Noah?” Jabber played along, a small grin crossing his face; something that seemed to annoy Noah in turn.

THAT'S MY NAME! And that's about where our similarities end... :P

The clock is ticking and time is starting to run short, soon very soon, time will stop and give birth to an age of destruction...an age of death.

Memento Mori.

"Remember your own mortality" That's powerful. I feel like this building up to the death of a major character, or just a lot of death in general. Nicely done overall, but I'm expecting a mind-blowing climax.

Considering it's the end of the first part I might as well give a hint, yes it is an old character.

Force of habit, sorry about the black thing.

Well you never know xD so far we only know a bit about Noah and the fact that he likes to call himself Noeh rather than Noah as it was displayed in the epilogue of Dragon's Roar.

It's building up to something, but you'll have to wait till it finishes building things up for now.

DUN DUN DUN........................du du du dunnnnnnnnn......................dun dun

Things are building up, everyone is on top of the world, so somebody has to come crashing down. I'll be honest, I'm not one for romance driven chapters............but it was bearable. I recommend you read your chapters over before you post them (I know its horribly boring but you gotta do it) since your typos are starting to get more common. I'll let you find them so that you can get used to reading your chapters over not because I'm lazy

I think something bad will happen to Azure soon, something MM related........as for Clarice, glad to see her moving up in the world

Well, screwing Jabber kind of helped on that xD

as for what you said about Azure well that's not something that I can confirm since he won't be appearing for a while after this chapter, we'll be going back to the academy from the next chapter onwards.

The clock is ticking and time is starting to run short, soon very soon, time will stop and give birth to an age of destruction...an age of death.

I really like this line.

Memento Mori, heh, I wonder what will happen. :O

It was a solid chapter, to be honest. I like how you fleshed out Reggie's Dad a bit more as well as gave more development to their relationship. I can relate to having a father who doesn't show his emotions much so that was neat, in my opinion. Miko and Reggie are a cute couple and I'm really hoping you take the best out of possible reactions to their new relationship back at the academy. I won't comment much on the plot, but I can see some foreshadowing. Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

Keep it up, man!

Yeah I don't know if I'll actually do too many reactions. Mostly cause Reggie's friends wouldn't be too surprised, though the rest of the academy probably would.

Personally I wanted to do this chapter not cause of the date but cause of the scene focusing on Reggie and his father now that Reggie knows that he's got his dad's approval he can really move on from the scared child he was before.