Pocket Monster University

After the shower, I tried drying myself off with a slight burst of heat, recalling the technique I’d used in the battles, my body vanishing from the mirror in a cloud of steam. Fast… but left my hair sticking up in every direction. I used some water from the faucet to comb it back down, then looked to get dressed.

All of my clothes had been moved, so I got dressed in an old red t-shirt and jeans.

“Hrm…”

I remembered the shirt being loose and comfortable, but now the short sleeve was being stretched out by my biceps, and when I raised my arms, it’d show some of my newly chiseled stomach muscles too. It’d only been a week and already my old clothes weren’t fitting like they used to.

How much had I changed?

As soon as I asked the question, I remembered. That app on my phone. I took it out, then had a look at my stats.

“Huh…” A lot had changed since the last time I’d taken a look. I’d gained four levels. My psychic skill was at a +4 now, and Toughness had gone up to three. Corruption was at… negative 30%? What did that mean?

Plus the new abilities. Bursting Flame Style… what the hell was with that name? What did it mean by ‘propulsive force’? It seemed easy enough to figure out. But then there was Endless Evolution. Something told me this was the hidden skill I’d had from the start, revealed.

So did that mean that everyone else was stuck with only a few abilities, and I was the only one who’d keep getting new ones? I wondered if that was my father’s ability too…

I felt an urge to just lie in bed and try to take all of this in, but I wasn’t ready. Too many questions. I glanced over at the pokeball holder. Three pokeballs. Who was in the third one? Yang wasn’t one of those either. I needed to find her.

But before that… Sabrina.

I shuddered, remembering that dream. It’d been so… horrifying? Hot? I couldn’t decide if it was exciting or disgusting, and until I did, I wouldn’t be able to get rid of this restless sensation. I needed to see her. I didn’t know if that was to talk to her or to try and dominate her, and I didn’t think I’d know until it was too late.

The teacher’s dorms were on the other side of the campus. The building was a blend of practicality and comfort, only two stories tall but stretching wide like a large mansion, the rooms divided up into large apartments.

As I approached the entrance, he noticed the walls were made of a sturdy, red brick material and the roof was a mix of red tiles and wooden beams. The design was simple but welcoming, with large windows letting in ample light and a cozy wooden porch that wrapped around the front of the building.

Stepping inside, I was greeted by a warm, inviting lobby that was both functional and stylish. The walls were lined with shelves of books, and comfortable sofas were scattered about for relaxation. In the center of the room was a large fireplace, surrounded by plush armchairs, perfect for getting cozy on a cold evening.

“Hey there, champ! Feeling better?” Curled up on an armchair near the fire was Flannary, looking cute in her long pajama pants and an oversized t-shirt. She’d been reading something on a computer tablet, then lowered it to wave at me.

“Yeah, like a new man,” I answered. “Don’t suppose you know where Sabrina’s room is?”

That got her attention. Flannary put the tablet down and leaned forward in her seat towards me. “Oh? Has you under her spell, does she?”

“No.” If anything, it was the other way around. Or should be. Would be. “I just wanted to talk to her. She gave me a crash course in psychic training before the duel, and I wanted to thank her.”

Flannary’s impish smile told me she only half-believed me. “Room 203. Just be careful around her, alright? She’s never been particularly malicious, but she does love to play around with handsome boys like you.”

I headed towards the stairs, gave her a wave. “Thanks for the advice.”

As I climbed the stairs, I started to feel some sweat on my palms. My breathing was getting faster too. I couldn’t remember feeling any anxiety over the duel with Terry, but this…? I was walking into a lion’s den. It’d taken me days to catch up and barely be able to handle a version of her with a sliver of her own psychic power. The real thing would be on an entirely different level. I’d left a trigger inside of her, but it was one that’d take time.

That dream though… I couldn’t deny how much I wanted her. Wanted to dominate her. Prove my superiority. Make her into my submissive…

“So, are you going to stand there all night, or are you coming inside?”

She took me by surprise, sending me crashing into the hallway wall, banging the back of my head. “Gah! How’d you…”

Sabrina was standing her doorway, looking right at me. Dressed in a skintight, slightly transparent tubetop, an off the shoulder fur jacket, and hip-hugging jeans, she looked more like a cougar on the prowl than a respectable teacher. “Psychic. Bit of future vision that told me you might show up, and fretting as much as you were, could hear your internal monologue from outside the building.”

“Uh…”

If she was reading my mind, did that mean she could hear me thinking about the tri—

Baseball. Cold showers. No, I wasn’t trying to not think horny thoughts; I was trying to avoid thinking about how I had planted a—

Hot sex! With Sabrina! God, how sexy she’d look on her knees right now, worshipping my cock. That dream had kept her in my head, and being this close to her, it was easy to remember why I’d been so attracted in the first place.

Sabrina cackled like a witch. “Oh, come on. I don’t sound that sinister, do I? And I was just impressed. Honest! It’s good to keep your surface thoughts focused on something vivid, and you might be a little dull, but you really have quite the imagination when it comes to sex, huh?”

“Reading my mind without permission isn’t sinister?” I shot back.

She laughed, then clapped me on the shoulder, pulling me in close. I had a good eight or so inches on the teacher, and it still felt like she was looming over me. “It’s just who we are. Psychics like us face more temptation than anyone else. Our powers want to corrupt us. And you know what? They do. But do you know what the trick is to not going over the edge?”

Damn it, I didn’t know if I was more scared or turned on right now! She smelled great, and that view of her body kept reminding me of the training we had together, how good it had felt to have a version of Sabrina obedient to my will. Which was not the thing to be thinking of right now!

When I didn’t answer, Sabrina continued, “Read my mind.”

That sounded like a trap.

“It’s not a trap. Promise.”

One of the things Sabrina had taught me during my little coma was how to control my mind reading power. I didn’t have enough control to have used it in that match when there were so many people focused on me, but with the two of us alone in the hallway, it was another story. That’s because it wasn’t so much that I was trying to read Sabrina’s mind as I was listening for her thoughts. Expanding my awareness.

It did come with some drawbacks though. The more I expanded my range of mind reading, the more psychic power it required, the less could be used on defense. Plus, the more I expanded my range, the more obvious I was to other psychics. Which spoke volumes when I considered that Sabrina had sensed me when I was still outside while I hadn’t even realized she was behind the door until it opened.

All of which meant there was little point in keeping a defensive position. It’d be like hiding under a desk to avoid a meteor the size of New Texas.

<There. Not so scary, is it?> Sabrina’s voice came in loud and clear inside my head. <Keep listening. Peek into everyone’s thoughts. When you know someone is telling the truth, you know that you can trust them. When you disagree with someone, you can see their perspective. When you come into conflict, you understand what has brought them there. If everyone was able to listen like we are, things would be a lot more harmonious.>

I wasn’t convinced. “That sounds like an excuse you use to justify the invasion of privacy.”

Sabrina shrugged, took a step back from me. “Might be. But I still believe it either way. After all, you can’t lie with your thoughts. Or at least, I’ve never met anyone who could.” Her eyes flashed as she smiled at me, a predator again. “So let me ask… what is it you’re trying to hide from me?”

Panic. I glanced towards the stairs, but no. Running wasn’t an option. She could—

<I wouldn’t bother with telekinesis. Much easier to just tell your body to stay still.>

Yes. That. Exactly. But I was only stalling for time, keeping my mind occupied so I would think about the hypnotic trigger I’d given her copy, how it would slowly work on breaking down her—

“Oh… well, I didn’t know you had that kind of talent, Mr. Krimson. Interesting. Ambitious. Very stupid. But as they say, all’s fair in love and war. So why don’t I…”

“So. This is Krimson’s son?”

Sabrina jumped like a startled cat, rushing towards me and turning back to her doorframe to look at who had just interrupted our conversation. “Don’t sneak up on me like that!”

“...wow.” The word left my mouth without thinking.

Clearly dressed for comfort, the woman would have looked incredible even if she was wearing a garbage bag. The plain black shirt she wore fit snugly around her waist but had a cutout big enough to drive a truck through, all of it taken up by the most distracting valleys of cleavage I could remember. She had on the tiniest pair of shorts too, and they did a perfect job of drawing attention to her wide hip and thick thighs and long legs. She looked older than Sabrina, but only in ways that made Sabrina seem childish, immature, and awkward. While this woman… she was a platonic ideal of feminine beauty.

“Gck..!” A sharp elbow stabbed into my side, and I could feel Sabrina’s annoyance at the comparison.

<Don’t be drooling over Cyn> “Doesn’t exactly live up to your expectations, does he?”

“Well, appearances can be deceiving.” Now the blonde’s eyes were on me. “Ben, right? I heard you already won your first duel and were moving into the sophomore dorms.”

I grinned back at her. Between Sabrina, Wicke, and now her, I was starting to think I might have a thing for older women. “It’s all been a bit crazy. Hard to think it’s only been a week since I came here.”

Odd though. I could hear Sabrina’s thoughts just fine—a jumble of guilt, panic, wanting to get rid of me as soon as possible—but there wasn’t anything coming from her. I really wanted to know if she’d be interested in some fun though. Maybe if I pushed a little harder.

<Don’t. Don’t! Seriously, do not.> Sabrina said it loud enough inside my head it was starting to ache. <That’s Cynthia Shirona. World Champion. Headmistress of the school. She could crush you like an ant. And… she doesn’t really approve of psychics like us… abusing/making mischief with our powers.>

“Well, it’s only going to get crazier from here. Trust me.” She glanced towards the guilty-looking Sabrina, then back at me. “Rina and I were watching movies together tonight, but if there’s some business going on between you two, please, don’t let me intrude.”

Rina? I was going to remember that.

But first… what should I do?