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His own face grew stiff. He thought that his words would assauge his friend, but it seemed like it opened the flood gates. Alas, he hadn't told the other boy what he wanted to hear. That was the way of things. One had to often accept defeat more than they would like to admit. Where he had money and autonomy beyond what Hideo could aspire, if he lacked these things he would likely be right in the same spot. His time in private schools in Galar revealed plenty of children in gilded cages.
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''If you have a road that's open, a path of least resistance, take it,'' he suggested, tightening his hug a little in an attempt to display a little support. ''Then, once you're legally an adult, Arceus help you, you can move with more freedom to wherever you want.'' Of course he couldn't help but find fault with Hideo's parents for foisting this desire for learned helplessness upon him. It definitely got the bitter sludge flowing through his vains.
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''And when your folks become old and infirm, put them in a home. Let them taste the restraint they make you drink of.'' A dark suggestion, but one Andy made with no shame. ''Ribombee!'' Came a cry from the direction of the estate. Looking over both their shoulders, Reginald was zooming down the length of the steps with a long feather duster in hand. The bee stopped short of the two, and for a moment the young Blackadder wondered if something had happened.
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That is, until the duster was raised overhead to strike Andy across his.
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''Ribombee! Ribom! Ribombee!'' Loosing his friend to cradle the blunt force trauma and get up to step away from the belligerent bug. ''Bloody fucking hell! What the fuck Regi!?'' It thrust the duster at Hideo's teary face before brandishing it at Andy again. ''Ribombee!'' Epitaph cackled in the background as the boy looked from his guest to his assailant. ''I didn't do anything to make him sad, you fucking busybody!'' A likely story.
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Reginald raised the duster again.

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Andy noticed a dreepy was in the trees. It smelled the ghost wind. It was dreepying. Andy makes a gesture at his gengar, the Epitaph. Epitaph uses a hypnosis. While it is doing that hypnosis, Andy uses a pokeball. He catches the dreepy probably.

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The masked rider was giving him a run for his money, but money was one thing the boy didn't lack for. Given that he rarely took Spectress on more intense maneuvers, she was having trouble keeping pace with their foe. Still the pursuit was exciting if annoying. Andy held on to his dragon steed and the bare flesh of his knees and elbows cooled by his dragapult's ghostly physiology. Perhaps he should look into a saddle.
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''Can you get a grip on him Taph?'' A difficult ask at this speed and distance, but even a little pull could aid in closing the distance. The slightest tufts of white smoke appeared around the young trainer as the gengar tucked within his shadow attempted to grasp at their masked stranger with poltergeist. Alas the foe then disappeared into the trees. His chocolate eyes narrowed but to no avail.
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It seemed he had been given the slip.
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''Shit.'' It didn't help that several shapes and voices were moving through the canopy. Even besides his masked assailant, he wasn't alone in here. Some shit is going on Perhaps it was some League op, or maybe the fabled Team Rocket everyone liked to worry over, despite the fact that he had never seen one in the flesh. Suddenly a dazzling display through the leaves and bellowing cry of the tropius draws his attention.
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''There we are.'' He pressed at his mount. ''Go!'' The dragapult weaved through the foliage to burst into the open, the boy taking in the scene. The leafy white pokemon was bereft of its rider and was under assault by the dark monkey. That must have been the fucker making all the racket It wasn't a pokemon he recognized. Where was his mystery rider? Had the dark chimp dealt with him?
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''Draaah!'' The savvy yellow eyes of his dragapult picked out a small spinning motion in the periphery of her vision. Andy followed the slant of the creature's winged head. ''There's the bastard.'' Andy smirked. Given their actions the boy was beginning to doubt the stranger had the best of intentions. ''Shake him up.'' The dragapult flexed as she wriggled through the air. ''Draaa!''
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Two dreepy projectiles appeared in her cranial ports before the dragon darts were projected at the tropius. Meanwhile the Galarian eyed the masked man to gague his reaction as Spectress' pretty babies rocketed to harass the offending flying palm tree.

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The Mountain of Pyre. Andy's camp home. More ghost looking here on Pyre Mountain. Andy goes with pokemon. Fist fighting wild ghosts goes bad. He knows from that trevenant time. A incense is used for ghosts because that's all Andy cares for. He puts it out and waits for pokemon to come look at ghost smell.
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The end.

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''I'm going to have to take you to a Galarian stadium fight one day if bigger is all you're into.'' The mattress ruffled as he shifted a bit on the bed. ''I don't know you would bother hanging around me if such were the case, however'' Maybe he was taking the posh thing a little too far, or perhaps it was just his pure blood showing through.
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''And if you haven't heard of Sharpedo-nado, mate, don't worry,'' he said switching gears back once again. ''You ain't missing much.'' Forget the movie. Doug seemed to be needled enough at his accusation of perversion. Grinning devilishly, he had to press things just a little further. ''Pure are you? Excellent. I could use a sponge bath tomorrow morning. Glad to hear you're up to the task.''
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He didn't mind the wait for the meat. After all, it seemed like he would be plenty entertained in the meantime. Andy wondered if one day he should attempt to invite Hideo for an outing like this, but then his parents would probably never allow him to go camping on a place like Mt. Pyre. Perhaps if he included Doug anyway, they would acquiesce, but for now it was only a hopeful plan.

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At the command the child sort of acquiesced. The gaps in his chomps became shorter, but still there, or off to one side, or he snuck one in. All the while struggling to fully grasp the new tea ingredients, he finally got hold of the milk. Having to use both hands, he dumped a little in, lighting the color. The sugar was applied much more liberally.
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''Yes,'' he answered the first query, stirring the concoction with his finger before sticking it into his mouth to suck off the excess, bits of food clinging to it as he extracted it. ''He gave me a book.'' The boy's words began to slow. Was he going to get Epitaph into trouble if he told the truth? ''It was a sad book, mummy.'' The toastie was then lifted for a sample.
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Would that satisfy her curiosity he wondered?

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''Dᶰrͦaaͪaͣaͬhͫ. Dʷrͥˡaˡgͨaͦhͫ.ͤ Pͧᶰuˡlͤˢlˢll. Dʸrͦaͧgaͣpͭuͭlͣtͨᵏ.'' The dragapult tried to assuage the centiskorch's concerns. The chain of the dhelmise's anchor clanked a couple of times to promise harsh reprisal for any foolish moves. Even wailord's had trouble tanking an anchor shot. It seemed like the interloper's butterfree would be doing the negotiating.
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''Dͪrͤaͥˢgᶰuͦhͭh. Pͪuͤuͬlͤll,'' she stated the obvious. ''Pͪuͤuʷlͤᶰtͭ! Dͭrͦaaͣaah. Dᵖrͣaͬgͭʸ. ᶰDͦrͥaͩgͤaͣpʷuͪuͤᶰulͪtͤ. Dͬrͤaͭaͧaͬᶰhˢ.'' The creature explained, before her yellow eyes flicked to the unknown child. ''Dˡrͥᵏaͤˡaʸgˡuͥhͭpͭˡuͤlt. Pͦᶰuͤulͥˢ. Pͣuult. Dͨrͦaͫᵖaͣᶰaͥaͦᶰh.'' Meanwhile, the banette nuzzled at the child's hands, grabbing at it with his floppy arms.
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He wanted to be picked up.
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''Yͫaͦnͭmͪeͤgͬa! Yͫaͦnͭmͪeͤgͬa!'' Ravana buzzed out of the darkness to light near Celia, chirping happily. After all, she had once been one of the woman's pokemon before she was Andy's first ever charge. ''Yʸaͦnͧ. Yͣaͬaͤn! Yaͣˡnͥmͮeͤga!'' Red compound eyes also settled on the centiskorch. ''Yͫaͣnͪmͦeͬgͧa! Mͪeͤˡgˡaͦ! Yʷaͪnͤmͬeͤgaͪaͣaͮaͤ! Yʸeͦnͧmᵇeͤgͤᶰa!?'' Even if the humans couldn't understand, they had to see she was excited.
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Before any other pokemon came to chatter, a ominous light came alive in front of the hut, further lending to the ghostly fires that glowed atop the bones of each Alolan marowak. It grew and shifted like a dark wind before popping and dissipating to reveal Andy Blackadder himself, and his attendant pokemon, a white gengar, a drifblim, and a red duskull.

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''I'd die if I only ate uncooked meat, Doug.'' Needless to say, extra crispy was often the flavor he got when cooking anything that wasn't instant. But his guest didn't need to know that. It was odd. Normally he got upset with people who mothered him as if he couldn't survive on his own, as if that wasn't exactly what he was doing now.
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''Yes, the newfangled 'moving pictures' are quite popular with the youth these days, old boy,'' Andy teased in a posh tone. The way the older teen had worded it made it seemed like a movie was some advanced technology that was just for the societal elite. ''You mean like Sharpedo-nado?'' He tried to contain his scoff at the other trainer's movie desires.
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Andy preferred flicks with more depth.
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''It would be easier to see the tele that way,'' he quickly made an excuse for his earlier suggestion, but his rosy cheeks didn't lie. He frowned at Doug's quip. Somehow he imagined that this event was going to be butt of a few jokes for some time to come. Maybe he couldn't have had Epitaph answer the door and just pretended he wasn't home until he got better.
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''Pretty sure my back isn't my ass, perv.''

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When he heard someone call his name he immediately thought it would be Doug, or perhaps Hideo. The tone of the voice was familiar, yet much more feminine than either of those. Swiveling his head his chocolate eyes combed the crowd. It didn't help that a good portion of the attendees were people he was at least familiar with.
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And then he saw her.
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''Alison?'' It was more a question for himself than his sister, given the low volume of it, for his ears alone. Sauntering over as if he were traversing some dream, as the distance between the two lessened it didn't seem like he was mistaken. Her fiery ginger hair was a deeper shade of red than even Aedan's. ''Groudon on a crouton, what the fuck you doing here?''

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Fortree, a city not visited since his 'date' with Hideo Kino at the closing of the past year. He had made a fool of himself in a karaoke bar and eaten krabby sushi with the other boy. And this was partly why he was here today. Recent misadventures had reminded him of the experience, and most importantly of that sushi. So he had returned to feast upon it again.
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Nothing seemed out of the ordinary first. Without his friend's much better sense of direction, he quickly got lost in what was to him a tangled web of bridges and tree houses. What fanciful dribble this place was. Why couldn't they have built their houses on the ground like normal people? Shrieking from the canopy was also halting his progress.
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''What the fuck is that racket?'' His chocolate eyes combed the trees as his gait halted again. The residents of the city were also starting to take note of the cries as well. He wasn't the only one looking for the source of the noise. Then Andy saw something move in the sprawling sea of fauna, a black humanoid creature swinging on the trees.
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''Some kinda chimp...?'' Leaning on the rope railing to get a better view, his dragapult, Spectress, squinted her suspicious yellow eyes over his shoulder. His stare was only disturbed when someone flew overhead, the movement catching the boy's attention. At first he though it was some curious trainer, or a League lackey. A detail triggered scrutiny of his own however.
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What is that? A mask...? His age old friend, paranoia, tugged at the cockles of his heart. He slapped at the cool, slick flesh of his pokemon. ''Come on Spec, let's go take a look too.'' A guiding finger was pointed. ''Follow that asshole, and stay as low as you can.'' At first she resisted such a suggestion. ''Draaaa.''
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''If it gets hairy, we'll fuck off. Now stop your bitching.'' Her narrow eyes squinted further as he climbed onto her back and the two awayed.

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Somehow he had a feeling it would be Hideo Kino that showed up before anyone else. That lust for freedom typically generated a promptness not shared by many his age. Unlike Doug whose autonomy often made him scarce and tardy. As the two walked up, Epitaph made to gesture at the boy's seeing eye pokemon, but a harash glance from his trainer belayed the action. Now wasn't the time for that foolishness.
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''But of course.'' For a brief moment, Andy considered trying to put on some fake accent or voice in an attempt to fool his friend, but decided that might be a little too cruel and sidetrack things. ''Who do you think is running this circus?'' It wasn't long after his chocolate eyes slotted another boy he had met stumbling along. It was his admittedly cute, if clumsy, ginger friend Aedan Quigley.
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''Aye,'' he answered. ''An entire stack of them even.'' Would Aedan peace it together? He wished Epitaph was wandering closer so he could have made a wager, even if the gengar rarely held up his end of any loss. Either way, he would skip on an explanation and allow the two present to introduce themselves proper. Doubtless there were going to be a slew of introductions, at least if his flyers had done their job.
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Distracted from their current prattle by the sound of footfalls thundering towards then, Andy, and likely everyone else in mile radius looked to the source of the noise: a blond rode a golurk towards them. Hadn't he seen this guy before? Sometime around New Years? He couldn't remember if he had met Arashi Akiyama. The mount wasn't a bad idea, and he had a golurk as well. The prospect was only kicked around momentarily before dismissed.
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That's a little too lazy, even for me He thought to himself. After a nice landing, he had to admit, the newcomer got right down to business. He didn't even introduce himself. Before identification could be requested however, a female showed up. Andy thought he might recognize her too, but he wasn't precisely sure where he had seen her, or if he and Ruby Walker had even met.
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''Aye, if you're here for the youth hunt you're in the right place, lassy.'' Seeing that an obvious group was forming, his glistening, pale gengar slid over the bricks to come stand by his trainer's side. Throughout all of their time together Andy had never entertained this many guests before. And yet more came as a much smaller girl approached the forming mob. At glance he guessed she was around Hideo's age.
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Wonder if he'll be all shy and blushy around her. A glance was cast at the boy for a quick gague of reaction. ''That's right, Miss Eris.'' He would let a little charm trickle out unless Eris Halla proved to be a total brat. There was only room for one of those around here. And then once again a distant noise drew his gaze to the road that ran into the west gate. He recognized the driver as they drew near, but what was that truck?
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''Waiting on you,'' he answered the straw hat stranger. ''Make a pitstop by the junk yard? I thought you were bringing some proper League equipment. With air conditioning.'' That was the most important part. The state of the vehicle looked like the age old two forty-five AC would be all that was available. John Sullivan asked for names again, so he halted his complaining long enough to allow for it.

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Looking up at the announcement, Andy was reminded of the games back in Galar around this time of year. He'd been made to egg hunt in order to socialize with other kids. There was a level of dislike for such a thing. Epitaph typically ate every egg they found, the bastard, so he always ended up losing to one or more other children. That being the case however, meant that the gengar was fairly adept at it.
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Though with this crowd competition would be steep.
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''Gengar?'' The white gengar materialized from his shadow, hungry for a chance at egg consumption. Breathing through his nose, Andy considered denying him. He didn't wish to stay over long, but what could it hurt. The ghost pokemon put on his best pair of puppy dog eyes, causing his trainer to huff again. ''Fiiiine.'' The rotund spikey spirit ball threw his stubby arms up in celebration before floating off.
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_NLf0ZgR

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