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PokéSync: B2 — 35. Buddy Bond
🕑 Added 2022-09-28 07:20:24 +0000 UTCPoV:
1: Rhea (Our Blonde, Awkward Bombshell MC!)
Pokemon Map I Loosely Use For Visual Aid: The distance between areas might be different, some cities are somewhat incorrect, a few routes have been labeled incorrectly, and some cities aren't listed, but it's the best I've found.
Google Document (You Can In-Line Comment)
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2:12 p.m. July 6, Monday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event)
Events: The Joint Kanto and Johto Indigo Summer League have concluded; Saria Surge has become the new Vermilion Gym Leader, converting it to a Fairy Gym. It will be open for challenges on the 10th.
Our girl started her journey on the 9th of June—she’s been a Trainer for 27 Days (26 officially; 27 since getting Maya and Nova).
Recovering at Ash’s sudden arrival, Rhea smiled as Mya held up a hand in greeting Pikachu as Amira and Lori’s Pokemon did the same.
“We’re just going to meet my friends. So, umm, what should I do to control my abilities?”
Ash chuckled, making a dismissive gesture with a pearly smile. “No need to rush things; I’m not sensing that it’s that dangerous at the moment. Let’s have some fun and get to know each other before getting into any of that. Yo, Amira and Mallory, right?”
“Pika-Pi?”
Roxy, Gables, Mya, Serenity, and Amber jumped over to meet the yellow Pokemon as their Trainers responded.
A grin spread across Lori’s face, holding out a hand to shake Ash’s. “You can call me Lori. First question, can you dance?”
“Oh, totally!” Ash laughed. “I may not be good, but, hehe, I’m not above making a fool of myself.”
Amira cleared her voice and moved to mirror her teammate, taking Ash’s extended hand. “It’s a pleasure. Which way was it to Hannah and the others, Rhea?”
Realizing she was trying to get them back on track to get away from those that had stopped to stare or take pictures from afar, Rhea motioned for them to follow, feeling better after Ash’s comment regarding her Aura.
“This way… Uh, is there anywhere you want to go before we head out?”
“Nope! I’m just happy to hit the road; it’s been a long time since I’ve traveled around Kanto like this,” he whispered, fondly staring around the streets of Cerulean. “It changes so much every year… You know Pallet was a tiny thing when I was a kid. Rocket’s really changed over the years and contributed a lot—it’s nice.”
Amira smiled at his compliment.
They made their way through the streets, Ash telling them a story about his first time on a boat, which just so happened to be the famous St. Anne; Amira was shocked he’d been on the historic wreck and hurricane that traveled inland, forcing Lance to break it up before doing too much damage.
Rescue hadn’t been available due to the surprise storm, nor were the Rangers aware of where it sunk, and she was even more stunned by the sudden mention of three names—Jessie, James, and Meowth.
“You know Jessie, James, and Meowth?” Amira asked with interest. “I used to love to play with Wobbuffet and Meowth as a kid; Jessie used to babysit me.”
“No way!” Ash snickered. “Yeah, you could say I have a… spotted history with the Rocket Trio.”
“Pika-pi…” the yellow rat sighed, shaking his head.
“Who?” Rhea asked, enjoying the casual pace and conversation.
“Just some goofballs,” Amira responded, wearing a fond smile. “They used to come by and dress up for my birthday; they work for my grandpa, but my mom likes them.”
“Pika-pi-pika!”
“Haha! Goofballs is right,” Ash mused. “Yeah, they’ve got good hearts…”
“Pika…”
“Yeah, and bodies of steel! Anyway, yeah, it was a crazy time.”
Rhea listened intently to the story of him going through his own Bronze-tier journey; Gyms weren’t the same when he was a kid, but they did follow the basic principle of matching Pokemon strength—it more relied on the Gym Leader’s experience than a device, though.
She thought their start was rocky, but Ash’s adventure never seemed to stop, silencing them in awe as they listened to him recount his journey from taking his 3rd Badge—the Thunder Badge—from the legendary war hero himself; Gyms were far more brutal back in those days, and Pokemon could end up in a terrible state, which Lt. Surge was feared for.
Pikachu recounted his own epic battle against Mino—Surge’s Raichu—to the other Pokemon to their enthrallment in learning how to channel electricity using his tail.
Ash’s next adventure was enjoying a trip on the St. Anne—a luxury cruise—courtesy of the Rocket Trio, taking them around Vermillion Bay to Maiden’s Peak and its festival; they’d planned on using Route 10 to pass through Gringey City to reach Saffron, but fate had other plans.
A little under an hour passed on their journey outside of the city, with them asking about details as they traveled through the streets, and Rhea lost track of time; there was so much depth and vibrance to Ash’s life.
Amira questioned his connection to the Rocket Trio; it didn’t surprise the redhead as much as Rhea thought when she learned they’d obsessively stalked Ash to steal Pikachu—she could see it.
What did cause them to hold their breath was when Ash revealed all of them had been trapped in the sunken ship, knocked out by the turbulent storm outside, and how they had to work together to make it out.
Their makeshift raft was then swept away by a group of Gyarados—courtesy of James’s temper—and they’d landed on an island of giant, mechanical Pokemon that Amira recognized as an old Rocket amusement park long since abandoned.
Between a mutated Apex Tentacruel—again, trouble caused by the Rocket Trio—leading an army of Tentacool to finally making it to Maiden’s Peak, they had quite an adventure before having a tearful goodbye with his buddy Butterfree, who found love in a beautiful pink mate.
Ironically, they had an experience with ghosts before even making it to Lavender Town, having a brush with death at the hands of a Ghastly—Brock almost had his soul stolen—and there was a legend about a woman waiting for her lost love to return. He hoped they could stop off there again on their journey since it was nearing that time again.
Pikachu wasn’t the biggest fan of dealing with spirits, but he agreed it would be nice to finally get an answer if the legend was true or if they could put a rest to the old story as just an unusually powerful Ghastly.
On the other hand, Lori wasn’t so hyped to deal with Ghost Pokemon; it was one thing when they were her sister’s, but she knew the dangers revolving around the spiritual Pokemon.
Rhea was interested in the reportedly 2,000-year-old story—give a few years—Ash recounted, involving the woman’s lover who was sent off to war, never to be heard from again.
Amira focused more on the timeline, connecting it to the Hoenn and Lental meteor showers and how legend had it, a few Apex Pokemon pooled their power in the latter’s region to create a shield around the whole region, protecting them. She wondered if there was a connection to the war mentioned in the story.
Ash didn’t have the answers but was happy to see if they could get answers from a spirit, making Lori shiver; she was used to the Pokemon Type, not human ghosts.
Their conversation came to an end before he could finish his story, as they met up with Jay, Hannah, Sam, and Jade. Rhea had to giggle as they took one look at Ash and Pikachu, walking with them, and nodded, just accepting it.
Leaving the checkpoint, Rhea kept herself a little distant with everyone talking; Ash was pulled between conversations, discussing various places and people her friends asked him about. She kept her focus on Mya and tracked her connection to Nova, far to the south.
Her Mawile seemed to be having the time of her life with Tera and the others, playing a game of kicking a tennis ball Ash produced from his backpack; the electric rat had a lot of skill with the item, and they took turns passing it to each other, seeing how long they could keep it in the air.
Mimi, Jade’s Pichu, was enamored by Ash’s lightning bolt and squealed when he began using their abilities to keep the ball in the air, focusing on control and accuracy.
Rhea counted each bounce with a smile; naturally, Alice was vibrating in her pokeball, wanting to join the new game; she assured her Buneary that she’d get her chance with Pikachu on their journey.
Hands held behind her back, Rhea waved at travelers going the opposite way and saw several battles happening along their journey through the evening. Pulling up her Trainer App, she frowned while looking at their request for a battle screen, being totally empty, despite the many possible contenders in the area.
I guess all our recent battles have scared a lot of Bronze-tier Trainers off. I was hoping we’d have at least a few, and I don’t want to pick on anyone…
Scrolling through the Trainers, she was surprised to see Sam’s group had won a shocking amount of battles in their first month—over twenty each—and they had an excellent win rate. Her friends had also obtained their Bronze Boulder Badge.
Going to their social media feeds, she watched the matches, and Jade noticed, scooting over to comment on her match using Orin, her Pidgey.
Throughout the hours, Ash swapped between conversations and parties, making Rhea laugh every time he tried to redirect the teens to talk about their own journey before the girls flipped it back to him.
The sun drew lower and lower in the sky, but it was hardly noticeable with the enthralling tales he had; every city and trail had a personal history for Ash. It was hard not to when he seemed to have an endless number of adventures to pull from and people he knew.
Just to relieve some pressure from him, Rhea brought the discussion to Apple City and the alien Clefairy, which sparked a whole new discussion revolving around his many brushes with Extraterrestrial Pokemon.
The topic of their current path—Route 5—pulled them into another tale when they’d tried to pass an old rope bridge that snapped—something Ash chuckled happened way too often to him—and carried Former Gym Leader Brock into the river below.
He pointed to Blue Forest, far ahead of them in the distance and beyond the small rest stop they’d be stopping at as the sun descended; he explained there was a place called the Hidden Village beyond the woodlands, and if they continued on Route 5, they’d reach it in the next few days.
Amira was quick to show she knew her history, telling them that the Hidden Village had been renamed Meadowview Village due to the expansion and farmsteads, which had become a huge support for Cerulean’s economy.
The farming village was at the fridge of Cerulean City State’s borders, further helping to develop the roads between the various City States that used their produce. Hannah seemed interested in the extra information, but everyone else was waiting for him to finish his story.
Ash knew Melanie, the mayor of the area, who ran the non-profit ‘No Pokemon Left Behind’ initiative, which helped abandoned Pokemon readjust to the wild and function without the Trainer bond again.
Rhea latched onto the story, observing all the forest and water Pokemon on their path through the northern field zone before the forest; according to Ash, many were Pokemon that had been released, and they substituted their Trainer bond with a new family support system, helping the many crops of the area thrive.
Eventually, the Pokemon would say their goodbyes to Melanie and the other volunteers, returning to the mountains near Cerulean. Rhea had no idea there was such a wholesome effort that took place in the area.
Another fascinating development came from Ash revealing Blue Forest was where he’d rescued his legendary Charizard; the area had been notorious for abandoned Pokemon in the past before the awareness regarding the bond addiction was so widespread, and the Charmander had been abandoned by someone named Cross.
Ash paused after mentioning the name, drawing Rhea’s curiosity as he smiled, saying they reconnected later and worked things out; he’d gone through his own rough times and, at one point, almost abandoned Pikachu after losing to Cross.
Pikachu ran up his Trainer’s back to pat the back of his head, and Ash pulled around his backpack to draw out a radiant, large rainbow feather that made their eyes grow big; Rhea had flashbacks of Viridian Forest when the Legendary Pokemon shone his dazzling light across all of Viridian City State.
He passed it between them, explaining how it showed the heart of those that touched it; it lost its sparkle when those of malicious Aura held it. Rhea cheered inside when it retained its luster between her fingers, and all her friends had similar reactions before returning it to his bag.
Amira cleared her throat, drawing their attention as they came to the town. “My mom told me stories that Ho-Oh only gives those feathers to a select chosen… She has one, too.”
Ash glanced back at their shadows in the fading light with a small smile. “Chosen for what?”
Rhea giggled as Amira’s face blanked; Ash had been testing her knowledge on their trip, challenging her to exercise her brain, which the redhead enjoyed, but it seemed he’d finally stumped her.
“What were you chosen for?” Jay eagerly asked. She’d been fangirling the entire journey; being an Alolan girl, seeing as he was one of the few to have beat Royal Mask and was technically the Alolan Champion.
“A journey,” Ash laughed. “Everything great comes from the journey, not the destination. It always ends too quickly,” he whispered, stopping outside the small, walled community with their cottage-like inns and small houses.
He turned around and motioned to Rhea, “Mind if we walk and talk real fast while everyone else heads to the Center?”
They all blinked.
“Center?” Rhea asked, looking toward the trademark red-roofed building down the center of the road. “Our Pokemon didn’t really battle today.”
“Yeah?” Sam questioned. “They played a lot, but why would they need to go to the Center?”
Ash winked and held up a finger. “Rule one of any journey—if you get a chance, always use the Center—oh, and, as my mom says, make sure you have clean undies! Haha!”
“Pika-pi…” his Pokemon facepalmed and shook his head, causing them all to chuckle.
“Seriously, though,” he continued. “You never know when you’ll need to be 100%, and Pokemon always sleep better with a good recharge.”
“Really?” Rhea asked, following Pikachu’s happy nods as their Pokemon questioned the electric rat on how it helped.
“Playing and energy use may require more time to restore than their energy matrix, but there are hidden elements and stress that can be relieved through the Center’s restorative technology,” Ash counseled.
“Well, I’m sold,” Lori grinned, moving to slip Rhea’s backpack off.
“Hmm?”
“I’ll take it to the inn. Talk to you in a bit! Oh, Amira, do they have a hot spring here?” the Unovan girl asked, jogging after their party, waving Ash, Pikachu, Mya, and her off.
“Have you seen how small this place is?”
“True…”
Taking a deep breath, Rhea let it out and followed Ash on a slow walk through the fields; hands in his pockets, the man wore a soft smile as Mya walked beside her.
“So… how is my Aura?” she tentatively asked.
“Hmm.” He looked her over. “Well, you certainly have a huge inner amount of untapped Aura, and from what I’ve sensed throughout the day is that your Aura spikes every so often. Can you guess when?”
Her blonde braid swung with her head’s motion. “It’s dangerous?”
“Mmh… That’s a complicated answer,” he whispered, his vision shifting to the sky with his partner. “You know, you aren’t just affecting your friends with that Pressure Helping Hands combo, and, heh, your Mom told me about your other Abilities, too.”
“Other… Abilities? No…” she groaned, not wanting anything else added to her plate. “How stacked did my mom make me?”
Ash was silent for a minute, drawing Rhea’s gaze; he didn’t appear concerned by the revelation, and there was a calming spirit about his unconcerned attitude.
“Is it… not that bad?” she tentatively asked.
He shrugged as Pikachu jumped down to talk one-on-one with Mya, Alice still seething for a turn. “What do you think Aura is, Rhea? Your aunt is one of the leading practitioners of the art. Have you ever had anything beyond the general application of it?”
Rhea slowed to a stop, realizing throughout her entire school life, she’d heard what Aura can do but not so much on its base understanding. “I know Lucario are super in sync with their Aura, and it’s like… the essence of all living things, but other than that…”
Pikachu ran ahead and closed his eyes, holding his hands together in a zen-like state as Mya and Alice watched intently; a light blue glow surrounded him as he closed his eyes before motioning for Mya to try to attack him.
She’d seen similar exercises done with her aunt’s Lucario, yet never with any other Pokemon; Mya jumped forward, eager to test out the strange power. Pikachu easily dodged her Mawile’s attacks with his eyes closed, dancing around her attacks.
“Aura’s not only an offensive tool or even a defensive,” Ash whispered, holding up his hand to create a small bead of blue energy.
“No way…” Rhea mumbled, closing in to study the glowing sphere. “My parents said you were an Aura Guardian and that you could use it like Lucario can… Can I do that?”
Ash chuckled and pushed his hand toward a patch of malnourished wheat; it sank into the soil, producing a radiant shimmer that spread, invigorating the plants and making them grow.
“Aura is life… but life is the base shape of all matter.” He motioned to Pikachu as the electric rat slid in range of Mya’s lunges, tail striking her chest.
A shock ran through Rhea’s connection to her Mawile, making her jump with Alice; they’d all felt it, and Mya froze, falling onto her face as the Aura around Pikachu faded.
“What was that?” She touched her breast; the tingling feeling of a dead leg branched out from her core to the rest of her being, and the chilling part was Alice and Mya felt it, as well. “You… attacked our spirits—all of us?”
Ash crossed his arms as Pikachu explained to a recovering Mya. “A pokeball connects you to your Pokemon—especially a Master Ball—and so, your Helping Hand ability is also spread through them.”
“That’s… insane,” she mumbled, shivering at the tingles passing through her nervous system; she paused as a flash of light condensed into a Venomothwith Nova and Ambrosia on his back.
“Pwee!” Nova cried, jumping to her. “Pwe-pwee?!”
“I’m fine,” Rhea reassured, realizing her concerned Eevee, nuzzling her cheek, had felt the shock all the way across the region.
“Pwe?”
“Pika-pi.”
“Pwe-pwee?”
“Pi-pika-pi,” the electric rat reassured, helping Mya up as she rubbed her chest with a low groan.
“Mhm. I’m totally fine.”
Ambrosia and Torry hovered over to speak to Pikachu as they began moving again, Ash taking her to the plants he’d restored.
“Aura can be used for just about anything you can dream of if you master it, but you know you’re not alone with Pokemon Abilities?”
“You?”
“Hehe. Your father, the League, Champions… Anyone who’s become a Grandmaster unlocks a particular trait that resembles a Pokemon Ability, and, just like Pokemon Evolution, each tier you break through, you gain another unique feat… Aura is unique, though.”
Rhea recalled what she’d learned from school and her father’s explanation; Sabrina’s words to the world were fairly popular, and she was often quoted. “Anyone can become a Psychic. Not everyone can utilize Aura… but why is that if everything has it?”
Ash nodded, kneeling to study the wheat. “Mhm. It’s a good question. Psychic power deals with a strength of willpower, while Aura is something far more… fundamental. Think of willpower as a subset of Aura; so, anyone can tap into that element, but diving deeper seems to require a key to unlock that door, which is transferred through Aura.”
It clicked in Rhea’s head. “A parent’s Aura to the child?”
“That’s the theory, but… I don’t buy it,” he smiled, rising to his feet to turn to her. “Pikachu and Greninja can use Aura without access to the Move. My theory is that the true purpose of Aura is to bind people and Pokemon together—everyone—on a level even more fundamental than a Master Ball.”
He closed his eyes and motioned to Ambrosia and Torry, who chirped and launched toward him, and Rhea’s gut tightened in fear as they illuminated white, attempting to Tackle him; the Low Champion-tier Pokemon were a blur, yet Ash predicted every zig-zag combination attack they did, eyes illuminated a light blue.
“It’s not only their minds or actions you’re reading like a Psychic… you’re reading their soul… their very instinctual action that transfers to the rest of their mind and body. Hehe. You wouldn’t believe it, but there’s actually a delay.
“Thanks, Ambrosia, Torry,” he said, raising his hands to tell them he was done as he spun around another speedy assault.
“Faw-faw!”
“Pwee!”
“That’s incredible,” she whispered; not once in her life had she seen someone dodge Pokemon like that, much less Champion-tier, even if it was only Tackles.
Nova waved at her mom, practically bubbling over with excitement to tell Rhea about her day, but restrained herself to allow Alice to join Mya; her Buneary didn’t even wait a second before launching at the yellow Pokemon.
Pikachu entertained the hyper-active bunny, doing cartwheels and backflips, using his tail, arms, legs, and even his ears to get around Alice’s six-limbed attacks.
Ash watched them, the orange sky fading lower. “My point is… Rhea, Aura isn’t just some trick you learn overnight; it’s something personal that you experience through a shared bond, understanding the truth about reality through resonating with those you care about the most.”
He reached down for Pikachu to flip onto his arm, escaping Alice before rubbing the grinning Electric Pokemon’s head. “Pikachu has never been fond of pokeballs, and I owe my life… everything to my best bud in the world.”
“Chu!” he reciprocated, using his tail to expertly flip Ash’s trademark hat into the air and land on his head. “Chu-chu. Pikachu. Chuu.”
Rhea’s vision fell to her two Pokemon, glaring at each other. “You’re saying my ability to control my Aura comes from getting closer to my Pokemon?”
“It’s not as simple as just being friends,” Ash chuckled, drawing them back toward the village as Elaine’s Pokemon returned to their Trainer. “Resonating Auras is what builds your understanding of the principle, which… sadly, pokeballs inhibit—in my opinion.”
“Wait… but I need my Master Balls,” Rhea returned, looking at Nova’s capsule. “If I don’t have them, Mya, Alice, and Nova will die—they need my energy—and normal pokeballs aren’t enough.”
“Uh-huh, which, haaa… is something your mother told me,” Ash mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. “Fortunately, we came up with a solution, but it will be rough on you girls… So, Pikachu and I are going to have to work you girls into it!”
“Which is?” Rhea asked, fiddling with Nova’s pokeball.
He motioned to the ball in her hands. “Five minutes before bedtime, release all your Pokemon, and play the game Pikachu’s been teaching them.”
“Us, too?” Rhea questioned, eyebrows furrowing.
“Yup!” Ash laughed, bouncing the tennis ball with Pikachu. “Feet, hands, head, elbows… whatever! It’s great fun when you get in sync, knowing exactly what your partner’s going to do, and if one fails, you both fail. It’s a total team effort.”
Spotting the inn that Amira booked, she saw her friends hanging outside of the Center, not that far away. “I… want to grow stronger, and I tried that already, but how does that help me get closer to my Pokemon—will it allow me to go without their Master Balls?”
“No. No. No,” Ash shook his head.
“Pika-pika.”
“This is only stage one. Master Balls aren’t inherently bad,” he added, throwing Rhea for a loop after his earlier statement. “All my Pokemon besides Pikachu use a pokeball, but my bond to them isn’t subject to that… You know, I can have more than six Pokemon out at a time?”
“Huh?!”
Rhea stopped dead in her tracks; it was such a fundamental reality—something pounded into them since children—that it sounded like a total lie. “How?! Not even my aunt can do that?”
“Mmh. Not necessarily true,” he chuckled, jabbing his thumb at Pikachu on his shoulders. “You can only have six pokeball bonded Pokemon out, but Pikachu and Greninja aren’t bound by that… We’re Buddy Bonded—technically, it’s called Aura Bonded, but my name’s cooler—and that is what your mother wants me to prepare you for with your new Pokemon she’s going to introduce to you soon.”
He halted on the side of the road beside her. “I wanted to talk to you about this one-on-one to let you know what I thought would be the best way forward and that this is a process; it’s not going to happen in just a few days.
“Buddy Bonding isn’t like a pokeball, where you spiritually link… It’s deeper and draws out abilities no other type of item or energy can reproduce.”
Ash tightened his hat around Pikachu’s head with a fond grin. “It’s the type of bond that can even anchor your friend’s spirit to bring them back to life. What do you think?”
Laughter bubbled up within Rhea’s chest. “Are you kidding me? It sounds amazing! Why don’t you do it with every one of your Pokemon?”
“Don’t need to,” Ash shrugged. “Pokeballs are only an initial inhibitor; they still have a great purpose, but they do make it nearly impossible to find that first initial bond that allows you to tap into not only your Aura but your buddy’s. Once you get that first taste, it’s like riding a bike!”
“Cool… Can I tell my friends about it, too?”
“Of course! It’s no secret—at least, I don’t want it to be… eh-heh… the pokeball industry, though… Yeah… I’m kind of censored on all social media platforms, which is why I don’t post to them.”
“That’s even more insane,” Rhea mumbled, knowing Amira would sink her teeth into that one. “You’re one of the most popular and strongest Trainers in the world?”
“Not when it comes to ones and zeroes!” Ash roared with laughter. “I’m just glad my trusty buddy helps me with the technical stuff.”
Rhea gave a start when a Rotom Phone spun out of his bag. “You have a…”
“Hmm? Oh, the whole Galactic-Rotom scandal… Yeah, it sucks, but my buddy here’s been with me forever. Right, Bud?”
The phone slapped his hand with an electrified chime that made Ash wince and trip, falling on his face.
“Pika-pi-pi-pika!” the electric rat snickered, hopping off his tittering and laughing Trainer.
Rhea hurried to his side, helping him up. “Are you okay?!”
“What the—” Lori and the others ran over upon seeing the sparks that flew out.
“Haha. I’m good! Haaa. Takes me back, huh, Pikachu?”
“Pika!”
Ash seemed to be completely fine as he joined them in the Center as Rhea filled her excited teammates in on everything the legend revealed; her friends were just as shocked as she had been at the revelation that the legendary Trainer could have more than six Pokemon out at a time.
Heading to their rooms, they followed Ash’s instructions outside before heading in to retire, following the electric rat’s lead; it was tough, especially for Amira and her other four friends, but Lori somehow took it like a champ, surprising even the Unovan girl.
Rhea saw it like stretching or working out; they were building up some other kind of spiritual muscle. Just to add more stress, she had Nova transform into a Glaceon, which had her staggering and dizzy—probably not the best move—but it was a learning experience.
One thing was for sure when she got inside, Rhea was more than ready to collapse into her bed and pass out. Shortly after a rushed end-of-night sleep routine, that’s precisely what she did; this was going to be a rough next few days, and tomorrow morning, they had their battle with Sam and the others in a four-on-three.
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Comments
Bast
Thanks for the chapter!
