Pokèmon Academy 《Pokèmon Watty Awards 2014 Entry》

Chapter 2: Hoenn

          The bluenette stared into her closet, her forehead crinkled in a frown. "What should I wear today?" she mused aloud. "Pip!" Piplup cried, pointing a flipper at an outfit. "Well, if you say so!" said Dawn, smiling down at her Pokèmon. She quickly changed and stretched. It'll be my first day at Hoenn Academy, she thought. I wish I had my friends with me. "DAWN!" Johanna yelled. "Hurry up! The bus is here!" Dawn scrambled around her room, grabbing her bags. "Coming!" she called. In her rush, Dawn tripped over something and fell with a grunt. She turned her head too see what had caused her fall. It was a framed photo of she and her childhood friend, Kenny. The glass pane was cracked, and Dawn picked it up with a twinge of regret. "DAWN!" her mother screamed. Dawn stuffed the photo into her duffel bag and dashed out the room. She planted a quick kiss on her mother's cheek and waved at Glameow. "Bye! I'll make sure to write every day," she promised. Outside, the bus driver honked the horn. Dawn skipped down the front step and hopped onto the bus. "Bye, Dawn! We'll miss you!" Johanna shouted. Dawn waved until the bus turned the corner and slumped in her seat with a sigh. I hope Platz had better luck than me, she thought.

              There weren't much people on the bus, and the few that were there were mainly old people. Dawn took pictures of the scenery that flashed by. Time passed quickly, and soon the bus pulled up in front off the airport. "Finally!" Dawn exclaimed, relieved. She sprang from her seat and headed to her terminal. The plane was going to take off soon, and Dawn made it to her seat just in time. "626 will be taking off now," a woman announced. "I repeat, 626 will be taking off." The plane shook as it rose into the air, and Dawn gripped the armrests tightly. The other planes didn't shake as much on my journey, she thought, eyes squeezed shut. She steadied her breathing and relaxed. Dawn tried to sleep, but it was no good. There was way too much turbulence. "Argh! Forget it," she sighed. She pulled out the picture of Kenny and studied it closely. It was taken during her journey at a lighthouse, after Kenny had asked her if she would travel with him. None of her friends knew; not even her mother knew. Piplup tugged on her skirt. "Piplup?" he asked worriedly. Dawn realized that her eyes were blurred with tears. She swiped them away with the back of her hand. I will not cry, she told herself. Not over Kenny. But still, she couldn't help but wonder if she would ever see her best friend again. She put the picture back in the bag and zonked out a few minutes later.

                                                                        ★★★

                 Dawn was awoken by a bumpy landing. She looked out her window and saw some Beaunifly up in the air. "Yes! Finally here!" she cheered. The blue sky was filled with white fluffy clouds, and the air was crisp and clean. It felt like Hoenn had arranged all this to welcome her. She twisted and turned her head, marveling at all the sights and people. She wasn't looking in front of her, though, and a minute later she crashed into somebody. "OW! Watch where you're going next time!" a boy's voice groaned. Dawn was too dazed to reply. "Sorry," she muttered. "Are you ok?" she heard the boy ask, then a sharp intake of breath. Dawn looked up to see what had startled him, and right there in front of her stood Kenny. The two stared at each other for a few moments, then Dawn tackled him with a hug. She let go just as quickly, and started to bomb him with questions. "What are you doing here?" she asked, crying and laughing at the same time. Kenny replied,"I'm here to take the new students to the academy." Them he shyly added,"Are you here on vacation? You-you could say at the academy while you're here." Dawn gently thumped him on the back. "I am going to the academy," she said, beaming. Kenny broke into a huge grin.

                    "That's great!" he said. "Um, Dawn, why are you still crying?" "I don't know!" she replied, still a bit teary-eyed. Kenny sighed. "We better get to the bus," he said, jerking his thumb in the direction of a large blue shuttle. "Blue! My favorite color!" Dawn squealed. Kenny's eyes lit up. "I know it is, DeeDee!" he teased, flicking Dawn's shoulder. Dawn rolled her eyes. "All right, that's it," she growled. She chased Kenny through the airport, ending up next to the bus.

                     They both lay on the ground, gasping for air and laughing. "Come on, it's almost time to go," Kenny said, grabbing Dawn's bags. They climbed into the bus and took a seat near the front. "So how long have you been going to the academy?" Dawn asked. "For a while now," Kenny sighed. "You sound like you don't wanna be there," Dawn noted. Kenny didn't answer and signaled for the driver to take off. "Hello?" Dawn waved her hand in front of his face.

               Kenny jumped. "Answer my question!" Dawn demanded. "I like it there; it's awesome!  But-" he hesitated. "Kenny, just tell me," Dawn said firmly. "Fine!" he grumbled. "But don't say I didn't warn you." Kenny took a deep breath and continued. "Ursula goes there," he mumbled. "WHAT!" Dawn screeched. "Dawn, calm down! You're making a scene!" Kenny hissed, ducking his head as people stared at them. "This school year is going to suck," Dawn muttered, falling asleep in her seat.

                                                               ★★★

                 "Is Kenny back yet?" Drew whined, glancing at the clock. "Shut up, Drew!" May growled. "He should be back soon," Ash replied. The bus pulled up in front of the school as he finished speaking. The new students poured out of the bus, chatting loudly. "Can you guys see him?" Lyra asked standing on tiptoe and peering over the mass of heads. "Yeah, he's right over-" Drew broke off, staring wide-eyed and mouth opened. "What? What? What?" Barry yelled, jumping up and down in frustration. "Look!" Drew pointed.

                 Kenny was helping a groggy Dawn down the bus. "No way!" Barry gasped. "You know what this means, right?" Lyra said, grinning broadly. May and Misty squealed,"IT'S MATCHMAKING TIME!" Ash facepalmed himself while Paul, Drew, Gary, Barry, Khoury, Cilan, and Trip groaned. The group approached Dawn and Kenny, who were chatting away. The girls pulled Dawn into a giant group hug, while the boys pulled Kenny aside.

                "Dude, you sure you're ok with this?" Barry said in a low voice. Kenny nodded. "As long as she doesn't know, I'll be fine," he responded, then shouted,"C'mon, what are you guys waiting for? Let's get to school already!" The junior dexholders filed through the large double oak doors. "You're back!" Iris exclaimed, running down the hallway to meet them, then screamed,"Dawn! What're you doing here?" "I moved here! What else?" Dawn replied. A kid called Leo suddenly dashed up to them. "There's a meeting put in the pavilion!" he panted, then ran off again, probably to tell someone else.

              "What's the pavilion?" Dawn asked. "It's the gathering place for announcements and parties, stuff like that," Ash explained. "Wonder what Birch wants this time?" Lyra mused. "Dunno," Khoury said, shrugging. "Only way to find out is to go there, right?" Everybody nodded in agreement, and headed out to the pavilion. Professor Birch was standing in the middle, fiddling with a megaphone. After a few minutes, he finally got it to work. "To those new students, welcome to a new school year," Birch's voice boomed out over the courtyard. "I am Professor Birch, the principal of this school. We will be having a welcome back party on the twenty-fourth, but for now you're free to explore the school. Have a nice day." As soon as Birch finished talking, the students had disappeared.

                "Birch's speech is the same every time," Gary sighed. "I can't wait to see the school!" Dawn exclaimed, hopping up and down excitedly. "Well, then today's your lucky day, miss," Ash said, dropping into character as a tour guide. "Yes, ve are 'aving a one day special tour of zee school, for your pleasure only, no?" May asked, adding an accent to her voice. "Right, let's get started!" Kenny proclaimed with a big smile on his face.

                                                                         ★★★

Skyla (me): Ugh, my chapter was so boring this time.

Kenny: You got that right.

Red: Oh, just shut up.

Skyla: AAAHHH! What are you doing here? It's not your turn!

Red: I got bored of waiting.

Crystal: It wasn't my idea to drag us all here!

Blue: Teehee!

Green: Pesky woman...

Yellow: Skyla doesn't own Pokèmon!

Skyla: -.-' Thanks... Anyways, catch you guys next time!

Dawn: Bye!