Start of a Beautiful Rivalry [Benji]

[Akihito Kamakura]

It was nearing midday and Aki thought it would be nice to let Penelope his Fletchling stretch her wings. He released her from her ball, she soared high in the sky and then hovered above his head. "Feel better?" Aki asked Penelope, she nodded and took off again. Thinking who else he should bring out. Oscar the Druddigon would be too big, Abigale the Absol would just startle people. Razor the Doublade would just stare into space. Theodore would just try and fight everyone and everything. That just leaves Drago the Fraxure. He first starter and his best friend. But he had been acting funny ever since he evolved. Been more aggressive and not getting along with the other team members. But that could just be because he's still getting used to his new power. Reaching into his bag and releasing his Fraxure. Drago appeared and greeted Aki. "You ready buddy?" Drago nodded and they set down the Boardwalk.

It was a beautiful day, few clouds in the sky and he could tell Penelope was enjoying stretching her wings. Drago had gotten used to his new tusks and he knew to keep his distance from objects. After about thirty minutes of walking down the Boardwalk they stopped and got something to drink. A fruity drink that Aki had never had before. It was really good and refreshing in the heat. Finding a bench to sit and rest on he set his bag down on his left and Drago had climbed up and sat on his right. Penelope had seen him stop and sit down. She dove and came to rest on his bag. "You having a good time girl?" He asked the tiny bird. She tweeted as to say yes. Aki smiled and petted the Fletchling. He took some of his mothers pokemon food and fed some to Penelope and then put some in a dish for Drago. They sat there watching the different people and Pokémon walk by. Some kids were enjoying the weekend off, such as Aki was. He was in a gray T-shirt and pair of jean shorts and flip flops. He wasn't going to wear his stuffy school uniform on the weekends. He was going to enjoy his last day of the weekend before class in the morning.

[Benji Aldaine]

It was the last day of the weekend and Benji was going to enjoy it. Decked out in a black tank-top and khaki shorts, he headed off to the boardwalks to stretch his legs and get out of the academy. His Pikachu Finn was comfortably sitting on his shoulder, his Eevee Castiel trotting right next to him, his Bagon Zayne trailing behind, and his Hawchula Camila flying above them. He'd like to have all his Pokemon out but the others were either too big or not good with crowds. There were alot of people out today, many of them students from the academy who were most likely enjoying their last day of freedom as he was. The sun was shining brightly above in the clear sky and soaked into his skin. He dreaded having to go to classes tomorrow but a Pokemon Academy wasn't as bad as a regular school so it was okay.

As he was walking he noticed a Lava Dormer sitting on a bench who looked really familiar. He had a few of his Pokemon out as well. The closer Benji got he realized it was Akihito. The boy he had beaten in the tournament. He had actually won the whole tournament, and he was sure Akihito was probably a bit mad that he hadn't won and got beaten. Even though Benji was humble he still felt like bragging but that wouldn't be the best thing to do. Akihito was kind of a big guy so he surely didn't want to start a fight. Benji was quick and fast, but not really on the muscle side of things. Shrugging, he headed over to him and stopped a few feet away. "Hey, haven't seen you since the tournament." Camila was circling overhead, not wanting to land. Finn was still on his shoulder just staring at Akihito. Castiel sat next to Benji, while Zayne stayed a distance away. It was as if his Pokemon knew the tension between these two. "How are you taking the defeat, good I hope, cause y'know someone had to lose right?"

[Akihito Kamakura]

He looked over when he heard a voice say something about the tournament. Well it WAS a nice day until now Aki thought as he saw it was the Mana Dorm student, Benji. He hadnt seen him since the award ceremony for the tournament. But did have a couple classes with him. "Yeah it has been that long. But we'll see each other in Ms. Brennans Breeding class." He said, his eyes darting from the Pikachu on Benji's shoulder, to the Eevee then to the Bagon that was behind them. He had his Bagon egg in his bag this time. He had forgotten it when he was with Alice at the mall. Hopefully it'll hatch soon.

Benji hit a nerve on some level. It wasn't the fact that Aki lost the battle it was the fact that he could've won if he had use a different move. He was trying to use the same strategy with Benji's Tyrunt as he did with Mielis Horsea. But he didn't get the flinch and that's when Missy the Nosepass lost her advantage. "Yeah, it kinda sucks. But in my opinion the wrong person won. I'm just mad at myself on the loss." Drago and Penelope watched with caution as the two boys exchanged words. Aki didn't want to start a fight on boardwalk. He also knew as soon as something starts Headmaster Wright would know. Even though battling and rivalry's are permitted but that's only against Pokémon not human on human fighting. He rather not get in trouble with the Headmaster. "I see that you've got others than the Zorua and Tyrunt. I have a Tyrunt myself now, found its fossil and revived it." He said with a since a pride in his voice.

[Benji Aldaine]

Benji's eyes glinted with a bit of anger at Akihito's comment. He crossed his arms as he smirked slightly. "The wrong person won? Sure you made a mistake not using a stronger move, but even then you might have still lost. Do you think I don't deserve it? I fought just as hard as you did to get to the finals and I think I deserved that win. The right person won, maybe you are too much of a sore loser to understand that." He finished in a rush, his voice rising with anger. He glanced around as he noticed people staring at them. This definitely wasn't the time for a fight, or argument. He didn't feel like getting in trouble, or having someone report them. Taking a deep breath he shook the pissed look in his eyes, yet he wasn't sure if it worked. Something about Akihito just got under his skin. Maybe it was the aura of innocence he wore, but he knew you couldn't judge a book by its cover.

"Yes I have many other Pokemon, I've been catching a lot of them lately. I have twelve in total, and will most likely continue to get more. I guess I like collecting." He grinned slightly for a moment. "My Tyrunt is a Tyrantrum now, but that's cool that you have one. Mine was great for the tournament." His eyes flashed with a bit of arrogance but only for a moment. "If you think I didn't deserve to win, we'll have to have a rematch one of these days. Though, not any time soon. I'd rather we both get stronger and to are best potential so we can have a true battle."

[Akihito Kamakura]

Staying calm and not showing that it wasn't getting to him. He looked up and Benji and spoke in a calm voice. "By that I meant that I think I should've won. But I do think you deserve it because you were the smarter out of the two of us. I should've had Missy my Nosepass use a different move but alas my mistake cost me the battle." He didn't lie to Benji. He did think he deserved to win, heck everyone in he tournament thought they deservedto win. SSome were in it to prove something like Meili and him. Others were in it to just gain he experience for their team.

Hearing Benji talk about his Tyrunt evolving into a Tyrantrum, Aki got a little worried. They were powerful and sturdy Dragon type. And then the prospect of a rematch was thrown onto the table. Drago perked up and the sound of that. "Calmer Drago(calm down Drago)." He said in his native language. He hadnt had to use it much while at school but he had been speaking it to his Pokémon some and they were beginning to understand it. Drago relaxed and continued to eat. "That sound like a wonderful idea."

[Benji Aldaine]

As Akihito spoke, Benji began to calm down. He could feel his anger vanishing and he let out a deep breath. Akihito had given a good and respectful answer. If he had retorted back instead this could have turned out bad, and Benji really wasn't in the mood to fight. In fact he rarely ever fought or argued with anyone. Maybe it was just the testosterone or dread of school the next day that was getting to them. "Well, at least you learned a lesson. You'll be smarter next time." He said it with a calm voice, trying to alleviate the tension that was still lingering in the air. It wasn't like he wanted to make an enemy with Akihito, he didn't want to have any drama like that while he was in the academy. Yet a friendly rivalry wouldn't be bad would it? Rivals could be civil, so they really didn't need to fight. Hopefully their personalities wouldn't clash too much though, because one wrong word could send them in the wrong direction.

He titled his head slightly at the unfamiliar language Akihito used towards his Fraxure. "What language is that?" He said curiously, at least this way they could change the conversation. "Yeah, one day when we get better and our team gets stronger we'll have a rematch. Then we can decide who is truly better." Benji looked up for a moment, imagining an epic battle with fully evolved and very powerful Pokemon. This would definitely be something to look forward to. "Anyway, what are you doing out here? Enjoying the last day of freedom?"

[Akihito Kamakura]

Nodding to Benji and he commented on the answer he gave. It was the truth the reason he had lost was because he had used the wrong move with Missy. He had gone over the match numerous times in his head and it still stung that he didn't use Earth Power. It was noticeable that Benji was calming down a bit. Aki wasn't going to show how perturbed with this conversation he was. He was just trying to enjoy a nice outing with his Pokémon. Looking up at the other boy as he asked what language he had spoken to his Fraxure. "Oh, its Kalosian. I'm from Lumiose City in the Kalos region, I've been trying to train my Pokémon to take commands in it." He paused for few moments then continued. "I would've thought the accent gave it away." His accent wasn't as think as his parents or even most of the people from Kalos but he did have one.

He took a drink of the fruity beverage he had. It was kind loosing its ice so it was kind of water now. Aki was going to finish it but it wasn't going to as enjoyable now. But it was going to be nice to have a rival, something to motivate him to trainhhis team. His mind was brought back to the moment when he was asked what he was doing on the Boardwalk "Just enjoying the last day of the weekend before class tomarrow. Also I wanted to give Penelope here a chance to stretch her wings." As he said his Fletchling name he petted her head and she cooed."And you?"

[Benji Aldaine]

Ah Kalosian, he thought it had sounded vaguely familiar. Scratching his head he let out a short chuckle. "I'm from Unova, Castelia City to be exact, and I really didn't get out much before coming here. So I'm not very good on pinpointing accents. I'll try to remember that one though. You only have it slightly so I didn't really notice." He titled his head thinking for a moment. Did he have an Unova accent? He couldn't really tell since he had spoken this way all his life, so he just shrugged and enjoyed a nice cool ocean breeze as it drifted over the pier. This place was so much better than his hometown. Back there it was just super tall buildings, loud streets and pollution. This place was much more free and peaceful, he didn't really want to go home ever. Whenever he graduated from the Academy he would probably go off and journey to all the regions and settle down one day. Probably not in a big city though, he never liked those and was glad to be out of it.

Benji nodded. "Yeah same here, good to get some fresh air before being stuck in a classroom again." His Hawchula finally came out of the sky and landed on his other shoulder. Having two Pokemon on him was a bit heavy but he didn't mind. "I'd like to have all my Pokemon out, but the others are a bit too big and probably wouldn't get along with others." He glanced at Akihito, noticing that the slight hostility was still there. They had both pushed buttons with eachother and he really didn't want bad blood between them. "Sorry about my attitude earlier, I just get a bit defensive at times. I'm up for a friendly rivalry though, that should give us inspiration to keep moving up right?"

[Akihito Kamakura]

Unova, that's the region that his Fraxure is from. "I've heard about Unova, that's where Drago here is from. Well his species at least." He said finishing his drink and tossing it in the trash next to the bench. It had been a hot one and he could feel the cool breeze comming from the water. Penelope opened her wings slightly to feel the wind through them. He chuckled at the sight and patted her head. He liked his Pokémon every single one of them. Even the Ditto he caught.

Just when he was going to answer a Hawlucha landed on Benji's other shoulder. He could tell that he had a lot of wait on him now. Aki didn't have to wonder if it was Benji's Hawlucha because wild Pokémon don't normally sit on peoples shoulders. "I have the same problem. I don't think a Druddigon would go over well with people. Or my Absol would cause a panic. Then I have Theodore, my Bulbasaur. He'd try and fight your Pokémon, and mind all at once." He chuckled thinking about Theodore trying to fright everyone. Then the conversation got serious again. "Hey, don't worry about it man. I should've kept my comment to myself. And yes a friendly rivalry would be great. It would keep us both thriving to be better."

[Benji Aldaine]

Benji blinked then nodded. "Even though they are from my region I'd never really seen one until recently. They are fascinating though." His Hawchula seemed to be bored and flew off his shoulder. It landed near Akihito's Fletchling and looked at it curiously. His Pikachu crawled off his shoulder as well and went to play with Zayne and Castiel seemed to be curious so joined those two. Benji rolled his sore shoulders, glad to have the weight off of them. He took a seat next to Akihito and leaned back, enjoying the warm weather. In the back of his mind he remembered some notes he had to study tonight and groaned. Well, he didn't need to worry about those until later, so no use getting himself down about it.

He looked over at Akihito and chuckled. "Yeah I know what you mean. My Tyrantrum would be way too big and probably break things...that I don't have the money to pay for. My Trevenant would most likely scare the hell out of people along with my Escavalier. My others would be okay but I find it hard watching over so many at one time, I'd be afraid they'd wander off or get into trouble y'know? That's why I only have a few out today." He paused as he listened to Akihito's final comment. Maybe he had the wrong idea about this guy when he first met him. He actually wasn't too bad, they just got off on the wrong foot. "I know how it is when you just speak your mind, believe me I've done it before. Yeah I can't wait. Maybe we'll meet in an Expert tournament one day." 

[Akihito Kamakura]

He knew how that was about seeing a Pokémon from his own region for the first time after getting to the Academy. Which is odd because his mother was a breeder. He had seen most of them but some were rare and not even his mother had seen them. He had seen them on TV and in books at the professors lab when his sister got her starter. She had pick Fennekin, he was a cute thing. He hadn't seen many here but he did see a girl with a Chespin.

Aki watched as his Hawlucha flew over and sat on the bench next to Penelope. She looked at the other flying Pokémon, tweeted something and flew off. Akihito raised an eyebrow "Uh, okay" He said about the situation between his Fletchling and Benji's Hawlucha. Then he watched as the other three of Benji's pokemon started playing. Drago looked up at Aki and he nodded saying Drago could go play. Seeing Benji sitting down next to him. Listening to him explain about his Pokémon that weren't crowd friendly. "Yeah, I hope we do. We were the talk of the Beginners Tournament."

[Benji Aldaine]

Benji smiled as the two birds seemed to get along and both flew off. It seemed their Pokemon were having a good time. He stretched his arms high above his head and let out a contented yawn. "Really? We were?" After he had won the tournament he hadn't really heard much talk about it. But that was to be expected since Benji tended to keep to himself most of the time. Though it wasn't surprising since their battle had been pretty epic. "That's really cool, I guess we're kind of popular in a way then right?" He nudged Akihito with his elbow and let out a hearty laugh. "Well let's continue that trend. When we meet in the Expert tournament one day, let's make it a battle no one will ever forget. We'll be in the history books!" He joked as he leaned his head back and just stared at the clear sky. He was glad he came to the academy, best decision he ever made in his life.

[Akihito Kamakura]

Aki watched as Benji's Hawlucha followed his Fletchling. Then he turned nodding to Benji at his bewilderment about hem being the talk of the beginners tournament. It wasn't much talk but it was some. Also he wouldn't call them popular per say but every now and then Aki got congratulated on taking second. "Yeah, it just may get me a date with someone." He said thinking about you person in particular. She was all he thought about. He kind of was glad he didn't face her in the tournament, there was no telling what he would've done of he beat her. Aki chuckled at the statement Benji made. It wasn't going to be even harder when they join. The Experts tournament next time, hopefully they will have fully evolved teams and full move sets by then. "Just remember, I won't go easy on you like last time" Aki let out a laugh nudging Benji.