Well... this chapter has only just been finished.
Anyway... I actually have something to say in response to a certain review, mainly involving explanations:
Here is the full review:
I like the story very much, but I dislike it, when something like "stronger" or "strongest" or "best" or something similiar is used.
Especially by person like Rin who said herself that she wasnt to keen to share and should know the advantage of being an unknown quantity.
Furthermore in my personal memory of fate, the part were Saber is saying that Shirou could beat her. Feels somewhat strange.
From the view of Saber it is a lie, as Shirou can not beat a Servant and maybe not even Rin in a physical fight.
From the point of view of the persona cast it seems to come out of left field, for Saber to talk about Archery and exploiting weakness.
Furthermore is Shirou an AU Character, because as far as I can remember he couldnt cast the reality marble without Rin and I cant seem to remember him exploiting many weaknesses.
But I know only the anime so i might missed something.
Okay, I will explain the situation concerning Shirou's strength.
In each route they focus on a different aspect of Unlimited Blade Works, in Fate they focus on it's defensive abilities, in Unlimited Blade Works they focus on the Projection aspect of it, and in Heaven's Feel they focus on the Sympathizing aspect of it.
In Fate, it is revealed that Shirou's body can be turned into a mass of swords to allow it to take hits from Servants without suffering too much damage, the Sympathizing aspect is also hinted to when he uses Caliburn to deflect Berserker a few times.
In UBW, Shirou comes to figure out how to 'project' the weapons as close to perfectly as possible, with the lowest Prana cost possible, eventually culminating in the complete projection of the Reality Marble, whether or not he can project it without Rin isn't clear, since he was using just a trio of Circuits until he projected the marble in its entirety, at which point, all of his circuits were activated. Then the Sympathizing aspect is further hinted to via Archer and Gilgamesh, with Shirou barely being able to match a massively weakened Archer and then clashing with a full power Gilgamesh who is twice as strong as Archer at his best.
In Heaven's Feel, Shirou learns to pull out the full potential of the weapons he uses, with the main point being when he uses Berserkers weapon and outright copies Berserkers strength when doing so. Then in one of the bad endings, he digs too deep into Archer's memories and uses Kanshou and Byakuya to their fullest in order to temporarily defeat a corrupted Saber with unlimited Prana.
As for the part about Shirou being able to defeat Saber, it is not a lie. Saber may have held that belief, however that was before learning Shirou had a reality marble, and reality marbles completely change the playing field even if they're not fully manifested.
Without realizing the true power of UBW, Shirou managed to fight on par with Gilgamesh, some will claim that Gil wasn't going full out, but the same could be said for Shirou due to his lack of understanding when it comes to the Sympathizing with the weapons to draw out the skill and strength they were wielded with in life.
As for exploiting weaknesses, Shirou automatically has a complete understanding of a persons style provided he can see their blade even once... he knows every habit they've picked up and how to exploit them, it is all a matter of realizing he has that knowledge.
And in this fic, there has been a good 3 - 6 months since the Grail War, in which he has had plenty of time to figure out about his ability to Sympathize with the blades.
As for manifesting UBW completely in this particular story... he isn't capable of doing so on his own yet.
I hope all of that has answered your questions.
Yū couldn't stop himself from releasing a sigh as the lunch bell rang.
The previous day had been much less painful than the one before, with Saber and Shirou teaching him and Yosuke proper form for weapon handling.
It would certainly take some time to get used to it but that was only to be expected given their lack of prior training.
It also gave them a chance to continue healing from the previous beating.
Saber may have been right about recovering enough to move normally, but they most certainly still had sore spots all over their bodies.
Chie had also proceeded to seek out instruction on hand to hand combat from the group, something they had learned was Rin's speciality.
So the previous day had included Chie getting almost as many bruises as he and Yosuke had the day before… after Shirou had managed to convince his girlfriend to teach the other girl some actual martial arts.
It was obvious that Rin wasn't anywhere near as happy with teaching as Shirou and Saber were.
Even so, having Saber teaching him sword forms, Shirou teaching Yosuke dual wielding knives and Rin beati-teaching Chie hand to hand, he was sure they'd do better the next time they entered the shadow world.
But it was certainly worth noting just how skilled at fighting the group they were learning under was.
It made him dread the idea of facing their shadows.
"So… how are you feeling Satonaka?" the voice of Yosuke cut in and he found his attention turning to the brown haired girl who was currently laying face down at her table.
"… I think Tohsaka hates me."
He found himself unable to refute that claim.
Mainly because he got the impression that Rin only really cared about Shirou and Saber.
Sure, he had seen her being nice to Nanako, but even then, it felt more like she was going through the motions more than actually liking the girl.
And he was sure it was only because she was Shirou's family.
Either that or he was just being paranoid.
"Yeah… she definitely hates you," Yosuke commented with a tone that denoted a feeling of defeat before he spoke up with a slightly hushed tone, "so, are we going into the TV today?"
Yū found himself giving a firm nod as soon as he saw Chie's head leave the desk and show an expression of eagerness.
"All right!" the girl in green said without any hesitation.
Their decision made, Yū found himself internally hoping they managed to save Yukiko that day… it would certainly take the pressure off them.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
Shirou couldn't stop himself from thinking about Yū and the boy's friends as he sat in class.
Even if he wasn't entirely convinced that the group was truly just wanting to learn for self-defence, he already knew that the murderer didn't use such mundane methods.
And if they put what they were taught to improper use, he, Saber and Rin were all far beyond human capabilities and more than capable of putting them down.
In the end though, regardless of what the group did, there was still the question of when the killer would strike again.
That was the most frustrating issue in the entire situation.
The fact that they had no idea who was going to be targeted next was still putting him on edge.
They were still using a familiar to keep watch over the person that had discovered the previous body, but if they hadn't been targeted yet, then the idea of them being killed to keep them quiet was looking slimmer and slimmer.
Beyond that, there was the issue of identifying what it was that had gotten the women targeted in the first place.
Right now, there were too few samples to get a good reading on why there were being targeted.
It could've been a case of Konishi managing to catch a glimpse of the killer and them deciding to get rid of her, they could've been targeted because they were both female, they may have had a mutual acquaintance that hasn't been identified, it could've been that they were both targeted because the killer saw them both on TV, they could've been targeted because they were the focus of a police investigation or it could've simply been pure coincidence.
There was no way for them to figure out which factor caused them to be targeted.
Meaning they would have to wait until there was another victim before they could start narrowing down the reasons.
And that was frustrating beyond compare as far as Shirou was concerned.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
Chie couldn't stop herself from feeling her heart race as school finished.
Today they were going to try and save Yukiko from the castle in the TV world.
She just hoped that the combination of her aid and the small bits of training Yū and Yosuke had gotten off of Saber and Shirou would help them get through the castle.
According to the weather reports, there shouldn't be a risk of fog for the rest of the week, but leaving Yukiko all alone in the TV world, without food, drink or a safe bed to sleep in was not something she wanted to risk.
She just hoped she wouldn't slow the group down due to her tiredness from getting her ass kicked by Rin the previous day.
It was certainly a shock when she had had her match with the older girl… she had always thought she was one of the strongest fighters in the school, she trained her body, practiced the moves she saw in the movies and generally tried to keep herself in the best shape she could.
So be so easily beaten by someone who was only about a year older than her had stung her pride.
Especially since she had previously heard talk of the 'girl that had just transferred' quickly making her way to the top of her year.
So she had previously dismissed any sense of jealousy she might have had with Rin's beauty and intelligence with the thought that at least she'd beat the older girl in a fight.
Now she didn't even have that.
At least she had her persona and Rin didn't have one… beyond that, the mere thought of having to fight the shadow of someone who was already as strong as Rin seemed almost terrifying.
She shook her head clear.
Right now, saving Yukiko came first.
"So, we're going to save Yukiko right?" she decided to ask Yū, who simply gave a firm nod in response as he rose from his seat.
"Yeah, so let's grab our stuff and meet at Junes," the grey haired boy commanded easily, causing her to offer a confident smile in response.
She had just gotten her hands on a set of shin guards and boots just for this and was more than happy to carrying them in her bag just in case.
"I've already got my stuff," she admitted, earning a nod of confirmation from Yosuke as well.
"Yeah, but then again, our stuff is probably easier to hide than yours," the DVD murderer stated to Yū.
That was definitely something she hadn't considered.
While she just had leg-guards and Yosuke had knives, Yū had a full sized sword that he needed to hide from prying eyes.
And that was nowhere near as easy to stow away in a schoolbag.
"Don't worry, I'll catch up soon enough," the other boy responded without too much trouble even as he finished packing his stuff away and started moving towards the exit of the classroom.
He had needed to do something similar the previous day too.
If anything, that would be the real giveaway to the older group that they weren't using their weapons for self-defence.
But the idea of being caught out for having them in class was probably a worse possibility all things considered.
Even having their weapons in their bags was a risk around the teachers.
Especially given that their homeroom teacher was King Moron himself.
The mere fact that Yosuke hadn't snapped and stabbed the asshole to death already was proof that the boy had more self-control than she gave him credit.
But that didn't change the fact that they'd have to wait for Yū to get his blade before they mae their next journey into the TV world.
"Yeah, see you soon Yū-kun," she said her farewells to the other boy without thinking, even as the grey haired teen left the room.
"Well I'm off," the brown haired schoolboy quickly acknowledged and she proceeded to start following him as she tried to mentally prepare herself for the battle to come.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
"No."
Shirou found himself turning down a pair of boys wearing the Yasogami High Uniforms.
They were trying to get him to join one of the sports clubs.
Apparently they had learned about his record in Archery and had also overheard Hanamura talking about how he practised martial arts.
So both of the boys were attempting to recruit him into their respective teams.
"Come on, it'll be fun," a boy with long dark hair and a soft complexion said without any hesitation.
"And you're supposed to be good at this sort of stuff right?" the other boy, this one with much shorter brown hair and a bandage on the ridge of his nose said immediately after that.
"Sorry, but I don't really do any sports anymore," it wasn't a lie… after he quit the Archery Club, he found that there was always something more productive he could be doing.
Especially since knocking a ball around didn't help with his goal of saving as many people as he could.
"Oh? Is Emiya-kun being lazy?"
He found himself releasing a sigh as he turned to face the girl that was soon going to officially be his fiancée.
"I'm not being lazy," he stated bluntly, "I'm just sure that there are more productive things I could be doing instead."
"Such as?" Rin asked and he blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.
"Getting a job."
"Denied."
The sheer speed with which she responded to his statement made it clear that she had already anticipated him.
The surprised sounds from where the two athletes were only made it more obvious that they surprised.
"I think a job is more important than joining a club," he decided to say without delay, earning a shrug in response.
"The last time I checked, we weren't so hard up on money that we needed to work," she pointed out and he found himself both agreeing and disagreeing.
"It's still better to get more and not need it than need it and not have it," it was a simple philosophy, probably one of the most widely spread ones in the world… but it wasn't wrong.
"It doesn't change the fact that I want you to try and meet new people," the brunette stated firmly before releasing a sigh, "look… just give it a shot and if you don't like it, then you can simply quit."
"I have to feed Saber," he decided to point out, earning a raised eyebrow from the girl.
"And there'll still be plenty of time to do that later," she proclaimed, "so instead of worrying about that, why don't you just loosen up and try to enjoy yourself."
Her words almost brought a frown to his face even as she moved closer to his ear and whispered something that made him look away from her eyes.
"And if you do have a good time, try to keep your guilt out of it."
That statement brought back memories of their first date.
A trip around the Shinto district of Fuyuki… and of how fun it was.
And then how his mind automatically rejected it as soon as he realized he was having fun.
How he had failed to enjoy the end of that date due to an inability to accept that he could possibly deserve to feel such contentedness.
"Yeah," the slimmer of the two boys stated with a grin, " at least give the clubs a shot before you say no."
He wanted to say no again.
But he couldn't.
Not with Rin being so focused on him giving it a shot.
"… fine," he relented even as he looked at his partner, "I'll try them out."
The smile he received from Rin made him decide that it probably was the best choice he could make.
Even if he failed to enjoy the sports, he would at least give it his all.
He just hoped doing so didn't get in the way of their investigation into the murders.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
The world within the TV was just as Yū remembered it.
The entrance retained the appearance of being a TV studio and the glasses the group had all been given by Teddie cut through the fog like they always did.
And once again, they found themselves being led to the rather large castle that currently played host to the heir of the Amagai Inn.
"Well come on! Let's go!" Chie's enthusiasm was almost infectious, but she'd already gone running ahead before.
"We're coming, just don't go running off on your own again," he told her with his tiredness at the whole situation and the couple of training sessions under the group from Fuyuki.
"Yeah, you may have a persona now, but it's still better if we all stick together," Yosuke's words were just as tired as his own.
"Yeah yeah," it was obvious that Chie wasn't really taking the situation seriously, "just hurry up already!"
With a despondent sigh, Yū found himself and Yosuke moving towards the door while Teddie remained a fair distance behind them.
The moment they opened the door and entered, Yū found himself staring with his jaw dropped.
That wall was definitely not there the last time they had entered the Castle.
"Uh… what's going on?" Yosuke sounded confused as well.
"It seems that the layout of the castle has changed," Teddie sounded almost puzzled as well.
But in the end, it didn't make that much difference at the moment.
"Meaning things won't get easier if we take longer," he decided to point out, "so let's hurry and save Yukiko-san."
The expressions of agreement he got from the others were clear and he immediately started to rush forwards with his blade held in the grip Saber had taught him, ready to face down any shadow that tried to attack the group.
He opened every door he came across, wondering where the stairs to the next floor would be, occasionally finding what appeared to be treasure chests containing some random items that he was sure he'd seen in the real world before.
Like the Peach Seeds.
He had no idea why there were there, but they were an okay snack if they got hungry.
The Shadows themselves weren't much of an issue, back when they had previously entered the castle, they had been capable of overpowering the ones they came across with the aid of their persona's.
But now…
"Seriously dude," Yosuke's voice called out with amusement, "this is even easier than it was with our personas before."
"Yeah," he acknowledged with his own amusement.
The sheer ease of which they were now dealing with these things after experiencing a spar with Saber and getting a little bit of formal training was unbelievable.
"That's not fair!" Chie's voice cut in, "how come you can beat them so much quicker than me?"
"Huh… because our weapons are sharp?" the brown haired boy's response was clearly uncertain, then again, given how he had already experienced Chie's displeasure, it was only to be expected.
"Yeah, cutting through them is obviously going to be easier than kicking them to death," he found himself adding his own opinion to the mix, even if only to make sure Yosuke could still have children later in life.
The sigh of frustration that the girl in green gave in response to that made it clear that she hadn't really thought about the efficiency of the greaves when she decided to try and use them as weapons.
Pocketing some of the pieces of Shadow that remained, he found himself urging the group onwards, hoping to find the stairs that would lead them to the next floor.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
Rin couldn't stop herself from releasing a sigh as she waited at her current residence.
Narukami, Hanamura and Satonaka were clearly late.
Not that she really found it that surprising… there was clearly something up with the group after all.
People normally didn't walk around with bladed weapons hidden on their person.
And even if they were doing what they said they were with them, it didn't change the fact that they were a bunch of idiotic children with potentially lethal weapons.
The only reason she wasn't treating them as suspects already was due to the fact that the killer probably didn't have need for weapons like that.
"Where is Shirou-onii-chan?" the voice of Nanako spoke up and she found her attention drawn to the girl who Saber had brought over after picking her up from school.
Saber definitely seemed to be trying to be as good for the girl as possible… probably due to her regret concerning how her relationship with Mordred ended.
"Emiya-kun is staying behind to check out one of the sports clubs," she proclaimed easily, causing Saber to frown.
"As much as I believe Shirou is overqualified for such things," the blonde started to say, "I doubt he would choose to join one of his own volition."
She honestly couldn't deny that statement.
Shirou may have joined a club with long term benefits to his abilities, but joining simply for fun was probably asking too much of him.
She hoped she was wrong and he would join, but she wasn't holding her breath on that possibility.
"I just asked him to give them a chance," she admitted, "I doubt he'll actually do anything with them… but it can't hurt to try."
"Oh," Nanako sounded almost surprised by that before going quiet.
The mere fact that she didn't make any comments about Narukami and the others told her how little the girl really interacted with the group.
She had to repress a smirk at that.
If the girl was growing more attached to Shirou then it would definitely hurt her if he got himself killed.
It certainly looked like her decision to come here was starting to pay off.
XXX Mysteries Beyond The Fog XXX
Okay… Yū could definitely say that this was weird.
To think they'd come across Yukiko's shadow without having any idea where the real Yukiko was currently located.
The worst part was the way the Shadow seemed almost too excited with their presence.
Then there was the fact that what appeared to be a TV title had simply become visible in the air above the Shadow.
That was the really confusing part.
However, right now, they were simply moving forward once more, practically mowing through any shadows that got in their way.
The worst part however, was the simple fact that they kept hearing Yukiko's voice reverberating throughout the castle.
Then there was the most recent floor.
"Seriously? Why are we teleporting all over the place?!" Chie sounded infuriated by the floors ability to ignore where they were supposed to be going and sending there to other places on the same floor.
"I don't know!" Yosuke's voice was clearly annoyed with her question and Yū found himself looking at where they had ended up this time.
The area looked familiar and he considered it as the others continued to argue.
Then he turned around.
"Come on," he commanded, causing the other two persona users to stop bickering and follow him.
"What are we going to do partner?" the other boy asked and he found himself not entirely certain himself.
"I'm not sure," he decided to be honest with the situation, "but I've got a bit of an idea… I just have to confirm it first."
Eventually they came across a door and he took another step forward, waiting to be teleported once again.
Only nothing happened.
The smirk that graced his lips at that was clear to the other two.
"So what's going on?" Yosuke asked and he found himself turning just to inform the other boy about the scenario.
"The teleportation is based on moving through a certain area," he explained, "so if we go around the other side, it won't catch us."
"That… seems pretty badly designed," Chie's words made it obvious what she thought of the situation.
"Unless it's only meant to delay," he offered the girl in green, "Yukiko's shadow seems to want us to follow her so it would make sense for her to create this with a way through."
"The real question is, 'what was she preparing while we were going around in circles?'," he decided to point out.
"I'm going to say a really big shadow," Teddie said even as the bear like creature looked at the door.
"I take it you can sense one beyond there," Yū found himself asking, earning a full body nod off the creature, "I thought as much."
"Well then, I guess we'll just have to hope our training works out," Yosuke responded to the news with a hint of nervousness in his tone.
"Y-yeah," Chie seemed to be more nervous than Yosuke, then again, she hadn't really fought a major shadow before, so this would be a new experience for her.
"Let's go," he was the member of the group that had the most experience facing off against more powerful shadows, so he took the lead.
Immediately he noted that Yukiko's shadow was there waiting for them… with a mounted knight-like shadow wielding a lance in its left hand standing directly behind her.
The knight-like shadow was massive and also had a design that made it clear it was meant to be a black knight, what with all the spikes that protruded from its armour, the way it was black underneath the dark grey armour and the fact that its horse shared the same colour scheme.
As for the horse, the mere fact that it had no legs and simply floated in mid air was proof that it was just an extension of the shadow.
"My Prince wouldn't lose to guards such as this right?" the words of the Shadow came out and without any hesitation, the Knight-like shadow pounced forward.
"Scatter!" he called out even as he moved out of the way of the lance that the Shadow tried to impale him with.
Immediately he swung the weapon to try and cut through the foe, noting that despite the shadows appearance of having armour, it was still just a shadow and his blade could cut it.
"The armour isn't armour!" he called out even as he moved to the side to avoid another thrust from the lance.
Even if the armour wasn't truly armour, it didn't change the fact that the shadow was dense and clearly more durable than the other shadows they had faced up till then.
He noted the way Chie kicked at it's mount, managing to make it flinch back slightly in response even as Yosuke moved to cut into it from behind.
That didn't stop it from rearing its lance back for a thrust at him once again.
He waited to move, hoping he timed it correctly as he watched the weapon speed towards him.
Leaning to the side, he found a smirk adorn his face as the beast overextended itself and proceeded to tumble forward past where he dodged to even as he brought the blade through the area it was moving through, cutting a large gash into it.
Admittedly, he didn't expect it to finish off the Shadow, but it was definitely good for them to inflict some serious damage on their foe.
The fact that it also left the Knight open to the entire group to maul was simply icing on the cake.
With all three of them now assaulting it while he was on the floor, it failed to hold out for long before dispersing into the black mist that all shadows seemed to do, dropping a key that looked to be made of glass that Yū quickly picked up and put in his pocket just in case.
"If you really are my Prince, then we will surely meet again," the voice of the shadow Yukiko sounded out around them, "I am but a trapped soul… I cannot leave this place even if I wished…"
Then she chuckled in a way that he could only describe as malevolent.
"Well… that was easy," Yosuke stated with a frown, "I thought it was meant to be strong."
"It was strong," Teddie clarified, "but Sensei just kept dodging it so it couldn't do anything."
"Yeah… I guess you've got a point," Yosuke admitted before releasing a sigh, "I just wonder how much further we've got to go."
"I can't sense her… so I'm guessing a bit," that response from the blue bear like creature obviously got a negative reaction from the other boy.
"Well, we won't get anywhere if we just stand around," he commented even as he felt the fatigue of being in this world slowly continuing to hit him.
If they left now, then they would just have to start from square one and he didn't feel like that was worth the effort of both getting out and returning.
"Yeah, let's go," and with that statement from Chie, the group quickly started to make their way to find the next set of stairs.
XXX Mysteries Beyond the Fog XXX
Shirou found himself waiting around as the basketball team ended their training session.
While he would have preferred to have spent his time somewhere else, he wasn't going to just ignore something Rin asked of him.
The boy with the bluish hair was staying back after the practice in order to put away everything.
"Do you want a hand?" he found himself asking as he walked over to help out.
"Nah, it's fine," the other boy responded without any hesitation, "you've not even really joined the club yet, so it wouldn't be fair to make you tidy up after us."
He quickly proceeded to ignore that as he started to help tidy up.
"Uh… didn't you hear me?" the other boy asked and he simply nodded.
"Yeah," he acknowledged before giving a simple shrug, "but I prefer to help out whenever possible."
"Heh… you know, it would be nice if someone like you joined up," the other boy said with a good natured smile, "being left with the clear up every time can get a little tiring."
That statement made Shirou frown.
It was one thing to always leave clearing up to someone like him, he practically existed to help people out after all.
But to just push it onto someone else every time was a different matter all together.
"Well… I guess that'll change soon," he stated without any real inflection in his tone.
"I doubt it," the blue haired boy's response made it obvious that he found the idea ridiculous, "I've been trying to get them to help out all last year."
"I wasn't talking about them," Shirou's response was made without any real thought behind it.
"Wait, does that mean you're planning on joining?" the other boy immediately made that conclusion and he simply let out a sigh.
"I don't know," it was true, he was sure there were other things he could spend his time on and a small warm-up like the club would be wouldn't really do much for him.
But helping clear up after the club wasn't something he was going to reject as easily.
"But I'm more than happy to help clear up," he decided to say simply.
The sigh in response wasn't something he had been expecting.
"Sorry, but it wouldn't feel right if you're just staying to help me," the other boy seemed to reject the notion and Shirou found himself stalling at that.
He was so used to Shinji constantly pushing those sorts of tasks off onto him that he hadn't even considered the idea of someone not wanting to take advantage of him.
"What's wrong?" the other boy sounded confused and he decided to just be blunt.
"Sorry… you just surprised me," he acknowledged before continuing, "most people are happy to let me do that sort of stuff for them."
"Well, I know what it's like to have to deal with others not pulling their weight," the other boy responded without hesitation, "and I don't want to take advantage of someone like that."
"Though I wouldn't say no to a hand if you joined up," the light hearted laugh the other boy gave after saying that made Shirou understand that it was meant more as a jest.
However, the boy clearly hadn't expected his statement to go over quite the way it did.
"Okay," his statement was quick and seemed to catch the other boy off balance, "I'll join up."
"W-what?" the confusion the other boy displayed made it clear that he hadn't expected it, "just like that?"
"Yeah," as much as he hated to admit it, this was a result of his need to help others.
"… do you know how to shoot?" the dark haired boy asked even as he passed a ball to him, something he managed to catch with an ease born of keeping up with Saber in their spars.
Looking towards the hoop, he found himself entering his Archery Mindset, flowing through the necessary steps before launching the ball from his hands.
While the ball may not have been an arrow, and his hands may not have been a bow, it didn't change the fact that his mindset was very good for hitting a target.
So when the ball fell straight into the hoop, he felt not surprise or even any sense of accomplishment.
After all, he had known since before he made the shot that it would go in.
"Not bad, let's try again," the other boy seemed more than happy to test him and he found himself shooting a few hoops with the boy he still hadn't gotten the name of.
And that's it for now.
Shadow out.