Disclaimer: Zatch Bell is copyrighted to Makoto Raiku (characters, series, and concepts). The only things I own that are currently revealed in the story are E, Nylon, Shine, Angelica Tsukoro, Curtis Herrakoro, Gretchen, Harumi Kisamaru. Izo Uramori, Myriam Schwazden, Mystrael, Metallix, Professor Linda, Orion, Jade, Shine, and Zale Schwazden.
Chapter 10: Rivalry Renewed
"Shall we fight together? At full strength?"
Kiyo smirked as he looked on ahead, "Seems like you got over your dilemma there." Angelica nodded as she too looked ahead, "You and Zatch inspired me. My trauma has hampered E for far too long, and I couldn't let jerks like Zale and Shine prove us wrong. Ugh, I feel like an idiot for letting something so…trivial happen to me."
"Zatch…thank you." E said graciously, almost to tears himself, "You and Kiyo gave Angelica the will to overcome her trauma. For the first time ever since becoming her opponent, I can fight without worry!" Zatch was already crying as he nodded repeatedly, "N-No problem! It's what friends do!"
Shine peeled himself off of the wall painstakingly and landed on the ground. That last blast actually hurt a lot. But before he could take a step forward, he heard something crack and then something shatter. Shine froze up as he looked at his left claw. Astoundingly, the diamond armor around it had broken, and in its place was his blood-drenched normal arm. There was also a crack in his armor above his left, and it started leaking blood.
"Just our luck…the diamond armor Shine gains in Go Diamonruk has gotten weak enough to the point it can crack. Every time there's a crack in that armor, that signals an injury to his actual body." Zale thought.
Shine could not believe this! His former weakling of a rival actually did that to him and one of his most effective spells. He couldn't do something like that a millennium ago! What made today so different? "AHHH! WHY YOU!" Shine roared in aggravation as he charged again, eyes set on E. Zale opened his mouth to say something but closed it as he thought, "Well, we all have to experience a painful life lesson sometime in our lives."
"Zakeruga!" Kiyo shouted. Shine was so concerned with E that he forgot that Zatch was his opponent too. The Lightning Blonde unleashed a beam of electricity for Shine that caused him to wail in pain as he was sent skidding back to his bookkeeper.
"Why...this can't be!" Shine huffed as he shot back to his feet. "Shine, don't you think it's about time we do things differently?" Zale proposed, walking up to his Mamodo partner. "But!" Shine wanted to object, but his emerald eyes caught Zale's crimson glare again. He stayed quiet, and his facial expression even reverted back to the austere one he had before the battle begun. "…Okay, got it. I'll leave the level of spells to you then. Let's go." Shine said as he faced his opponents again with dignity.
"They did it again…" Kiyo muttered under his breath.
"That's just their way of communicating, Kiyo, as it seems."
Kiyo looked around confused after hearing the foreign voice in his mind. "Kiyo, it's me, Ang. I'm using telepathy to communicate with you. It's much easier this way." Kiyo looked at the dark-haired girl beside, "Telepathy? Whoa. That's something else, Ang."
Zale finally stopped putting heart energy into the Go Diamonruk spell, and Shine reverted back to his original form—the two injuries he got were sustained however. "Kiyo Takamine, Zatch Bell, Angelica Tsukoro, and E. We have acknowledged your strength, and we are going to fight you seriously now." Zale announced, "However, that isn't necessarily a good thing, and you'll see why soon."
Shine extended his uninjured arm out as Zale recited, "Diamzuga." Shine's arm crystallized into a diamond cannon, and it then fired a powerful, white aurora beam. "He's finally bringing out more spells! Careful, you two!" Kiyo advised the two Mamodo as they dodged the beam, all the while telling Angelica their game-plan telepathically.
Zale took a fistful of Shine's quills and lifted him up, "Diamzuga." After chanting the spell, Zale began to move Shine around quickly but erratically. As a result, the aurora beams were discharged at different directions virtually at the same time. "Heads up, Zatch!" Kiyo alarmed as Zatch began dodging frantically to avoid the blasts. Angelica casted Aruk spells in her mind and E constantly teleported to avoid being hit.
In the midst of this confusion, Zale noticed Zatch was inching closer to a big piece of rubble and got an idea. Quickly, he made Shine aim his diamond cannon toward that piece of rock, and he fired the Diamzuga beam. It connected and multiple pieces of rubble obstructed Zatch's movements. "Zatch!" E exclaimed and began floating to help out his friend.
Zale put Shine down as he said, "Now, let's attack him with a wide-ranged spell. Can you life your injured arm, Shine?" Shine nodded, "Sure I can." The black-haired male then recited, "Raja Diamzuga." Shine lifted up his injured arm, like he said he could, and clapped both his hands together. Both arms crystallized into a larger diamond cannon and fired a much larger aurora beam.
"Whoa, it's bigger than before!" Kiyo commented. "Leave it to us." Angelica said before reading her next spells, "Aruk! Teoieshun!" E teleported in front of Zatch and allowed another Ieshun field to surround him. This time, E shot it out in the form laser-like beams. Raja Diamzuga and Teoieshun clashed and cancelled each other out in a resultant explosion.
"Oh man. Now I see why Ang and E were so scared of battling. They have so much power under their belts as well…" Kiyo thought as the explosion died away. Shine was having similar thoughts. How the heck did someone like E gain so much power? When they fought one thousand years, he was only familiar with Ieshun, Aruk, and Ieruga. Even now, they increased dramatically in usefulness and power.
"KIYO!" Zatch shouted to his partner. While everyone was occupied with the Raja Diamzuga-Teoieshun clash, Zatch had successfully gotten up close and personal to Shine. "What?" Zale and Shine exclaimed at the same time. "Back away, Zale!" Shine shouted before elbowing his partner away.
"Zaker!" Kiyo recited the spell. Zatch gripped a fistful of Shine's white fur and unleashed a powerful spray of lightning that engulfed Shine instantly. Zale, outside the attack radius of Zaker thanks to Shine, gritted his teeth as he watched his partner endure the hit.
Zatch finished unleashing his Zaker spell. It certainly added to the damages Shine had received previously. Blood spots tarnished his white fur, predominantly around his head and shoulders. "Get back!" Shine yelled as he aggressively kicked Zatch in his gut. Dauntless, Zatch grabbed onto the anthropomorphic porcupine's leg. "L-Let me go!" Shine demanded, shaking his leg repeatedly.
"Sora Iera!" E appeared behind Shine and sliced him on his back with a whitish energy blade. Some of Shine's quills, along with blood, splattered on the ground after the attack. Zale narrowed his eyes, no longer accepting these two scoring hits on Shine, "Ganjasu Orudiamzu."
Suddenly, a large crown of diamond spikes surrounded Shine, causing E and Zatch to be propelled away—but not before sustaining damage from the spikes. Then, diamond stalagmites began repeatedly erecting from the ground starting from the crown. "Zatch, E, move it!" Kiyo advised the two. Zatch began running away from the stalagmites while E floated away. Two separates rows of rising diamond stalagmites followed a target each, homing in on their path and everything.
"Aw, great, how do we deal with something homes in on both Zatch and E?" Angelica asked, her mind racing to find a solution. "I'm working on it," Kiyo responded, thinking of a solution himself, "I just didn't expect Shine to have great crowd-control spells, too. He's got practically everything—offense, defense, coverage, assist, and long-range!"
Kiyo watched Ganjasu Orudiamzu do its work and the two Mamodo avoid the stalagmites threatening to impale them from underground. Shine was currently encased in a crown of diamonds to protect him, and Zale was left unguarded but Kiyo didn't know if Shine, Zale, or both of them could reroute the paths of the stalagmites.
Suddenly, the dark-haired male got a flash of insight, "That's it!" "Zatch! E! Make those spikes run into each other! Start heading each other's way!" Zatch and E nodded in response and made sharp u-turns, now heading toward each other. The diamond stalagmites followed them as if they were magnetized to the two.
"Wait for it…Wait for it…" Angelica and Kiyo thought simultaneously, waiting for the right moment. Zatch and E headed at each other at full speed, almost appearing as if they were on crash course for each other.
"NOW, ANG!" Kiyo shouted.
"ARUK!" Angelica recited.
At the right moment, E teleported both himself and Zatch, and their pursuing rows of stalagmites collided into each other. All of the diamond stalagmites in the field and the crown surrounding Shine disappeared instantly. Zatch and E reappeared on the battlefield, smiling at their success.
"Zale…" Shine paused to pant, "…how much heart energy do you think you have left?" Zale answered, "I used too much for Go Diamonruk; I knew it was a mistake. But I have just enough for two coverage spells and then our strongest spell."
"Another coverage spell then." Shine requested as he jumped toward Zale. "Alright. Then, we'll go from there." Zale said as he extended out his free arm as Shine landed on it. "Ha!" Zale grunted as threw his arm up as Shine jumped, the extra boost sending Shine almost to the ceiling on the spacious room.
"Ariza Diamzen." Shine extended his hands out in front of him and released a white, blue, and red aurora that covered a good portion of the ceiling. Then, heavy diamond stalactites began falling from the aurora and to the ground.
"Shoot! He's got stuff for the air, too?" Kiyo shouted in disbelief. "Zatch, get close to E!" Angelica yelled to the blonde boy as she accumulated heart energy, the puce spellbook giving off its usual purple glow. "Ok!" Zatch replied as he positioned himself closer to the psychic Mamodo. "Gigano Ieshun!"
E created a large, dark purple dome on the field, with him and Zatch in the middle of it, with a pink outline. This giant psychic field guarded against the majority of the falling stalactites, but Ariza Diamzen was more powerful than Ganjasu Orudiamzu and elicited a struggle for supremacy between their casters.
"Kiyo, do something. I don't think Gigano Ieshun can last any longer against their spell!" Angelica pleaded, "Plus, I don't want to have to waste too much heart energy!"
"Working on it." Kiyo responded as his eyes examined every portion of the scene before them. An aurora in the ceiling was causing powerful diamond stalactites to fall, and the only protection from it was E's Gigano Ieshun. Getting out of its range introduced the risk of being crushed to death. So, Kiyo knew he couldn't send Zatch straight for Zale and nab the spellbook. So there only option was…
"Zatch! Look up! Look at the aurora!" Kiyo instructed, pointing directly at it. When the blonde Mamodo did that, the fourteen-year-old shouted, "Zakeruga!" Zatch's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he fired another concentrated beam of electricity. The Zakeruga reached all the way to the aurora and disappeared within it.
Whatever Kiyo was planning, it was doing the trick. The reaction was occurring within the aurora until it diffused into nothingness. "Alright! It worked!" Kiyo exclaimed, smiling. "Great job, Kiyo!" Angelica remarked in an impressed tone.
"I don't believe this," Shine said under his breath as he began falling from the air, "They're countering each of my spells…How can I turn this around?" E noticed Shine was beginning his descent and that he still had Gigano Ieshun up. "Don't let your guard down!" E moved so that the psychic field around him did as well and slammed Shine with it. The intense pressure created a dusty implosion that engulfed as E backed away as the spell went away.
"That had to hurt." Kiyo snickered. "Nice one, E!" Zatch cheered as the psychic Mamodo joined his side. "All in a day's work." E remarked but his green eyes were more focused on the dust that surrounded his former rival.
Shine was lying on the ruined floor after sustaining damage from Gigano Ieshun. He was a wreck and wondering how did he get reduced to this state. Shine managed to sit back up when he heard someone say: "It's odd." The Millennium Mamodo looked to see it was no other than E before him. "What is?" Shine inquired with an unfriendly snap. "One thousand years ago, it was the other way around; me on the floor, injured and bloodied, and you standing up superiorly."
Shine felt one of his synapses pop. That was the sort of talk a winner would give a weak loser. He was definitely not weak! "Shine, do you believe in miracles?" E asked. "What about them?" Shine responded austerely. "You should—you're basking in the glory of one. It doesn't matter if you're weak or strong at the start, it's the end of it all that matters. You have to put yourselves in the right situation and surpass all expectations. And you can't forget there are people with you, guiding you as you go. In the end, you become strong after all."
"…Hm!" Shine placed his palms and soles of his shoes onto the ground and jumped back, landing beside Zale. "Well, that I think I'll admit to. One can grow stronger in the right situations," Shine extended both of his hands as he continued, "Which is why I want to skip to where I show you my real power—my strongest spell! Do you mind, Zale?"
"Not at all. After all, I want to see whose ideals are better." Zale answered as he began accumulating heart energy, manifesting as an extremely bright white glow emanating from the blizzard blue spellbook. "Zatch, get ready. We have to hit them with our best spell." Kiyo said as he began gathering enough heart energy that would activate the spell. The thing that worried him the most was that Zale actually opened his spellbook for the first time. It gave him a sort of idea of just how powerful Shine's most powerful spell would be.
"Ang, do you and E know what your most powerful spell is?" Kiyo asked, not taking his eyes off either Shine or Zale. Angelica looked at the floor and answered softly, "I have an idea of what it may be…but, I've never actually used it. I'm not aware of its effects or anything like that."
"Now may be the best time to figure that out." Kiyo suggested, "However, let me and Zatch go first. You and E follow up." Angelica nodded, "Alright." She then contacted E telepathically, "E, did you get that?"
"Loud and clear." E responded telepathically as he inched himself behind the Lightning Blonde. "Time to see if you guys possess actual strength to back up your words!" Shine declared, grinning ferociously as his emerald eyes glinted.
"Dioga Diamzu!" Zale recited, pointing forward for dramatic effect. Both of Shine's hands were enveloped in whitish-blue light. The light intensified immensely, its luster rivaling that of every single kind of gemstone in the finest of mines. From this light, a glorious, blue, diamond Griffon came out. The powerful, beautiful but deadly creature released a battle cry as it gave its flight toward its targets.
"Bao Zakeruga!" Kiyo read the fourth spell with much passion and fervor. Zatch's eyes rolled to the back of his eyes as his mouth unleashed the legendary electric dragon that was named Bao. Bao released a thunderous roar of power, baring its enormous yellow fangs as charged at its opposition.
Dioga Diamzu and Bao Zakeruga clashed and a struggle for supremacy instantly came forth. The both spells were virtually identical in power; the decider in the winner of this struggle depended on which spell had more endurance.
Some seconds after the clash began, that decider began showing—Bao Zakeruga was starting to be pushed back by Dioga Diamzu. "Come on, fourth spell!" Kiyo yelled, the red spellbook shining radiantly, "You can do it!"
Angelica pensively watched the clash between the lightning dragon and the diamond Griffin. She knew she was supposed to follow up with her spell, but she wasn't sure if it would produce the desired effects—after all, she didn't know how it worked.
"You're not having doubts, are you? That's not why we're here, Ang. We're here to win." E spoke to his bookkeeper telepathically. Angelica nodded lightly, but gasped inaudibly when she realized something: E had actually called her by her nickname for the first in their partnership! Tears of joy built up in her eyes but were left unshed as she quickly flipped pages in the puce spellbook until she found what she wanted—the spell gained during that battle against Dr. Riddles and Kido.
Angelica took a deep breath before she inserted all of her heart energy into the spellbook, manifesting as a powerful purple glow that rivaled the glow from the red and blizzard blue spellbooks in the vicinity. Kiyo looked at Angelica out of the corner of his eyes hopefully, "Go for it."
"With this…I put the past behind me." Angelica declared in her mind, her onyx eyes showing off that newfound strength of hers. "Dioga Teoieshun!" E raised his arms up and created a very large dark purple orb with a pink outline. Inside the orb, thin silver circles started to stir around. As this occurred, the orb was emitting highly pressurized and dense energy, affecting almost everything in the vicinity. The roof collapsed from the pressure and the floor and walls were fissuring. Even Dioga Diamzu and Bao Zakeruga were affected, but that was more seen in the former.
The diamond Griffin started to grow weak from the dense energy created by Dioga Teoieshun. Pretty soon, Bao Zakeruga was gaining supremacy as it slowly pushed it back. "What density!" Zale commented, placing his free arm before his face as a means of protecting it. "Dioga Diamzu along with Bao Zakeruga, I think, are growing weak from it…" Shine said in disbelief, "E had this kind of spell in his arsenal?"
The thin silver circles out of nowhere stopped, forming a cruciform orbit. Apparitions of all nine planets in the solar system took respective spots on the cruciform syzygy. "It's done!" E announced, finding it an absolute chore not to lose consciousness while maintaining the powerful Dioga-class spell. "You mean…that wasn't the whole spell?" Kiyo said in disbelief. Even Angelica was shocked; if she still had her trauma, she probably would have needed therapy after seeing Dioga Teoieshun in action.
With a loud grunt of effort, E threw the giant psychic orb. Dioga Teoieshun assisted Bao Zakeruga in its struggle against Dioga Diamzu. It quickly become obvious that there was indeed strength in numbers; the diamond Griffin was losing to the electrical dragon and the sphere of psychokinesis.
When Shine noticed the first crack in Dioga Diamzu's structure, he knew it wouldn't last that much longer. He shouted to his bookkeeper, "Zale! I remember you saying that you had enough heart energy for one last coverage spell, right? Then use Ganjasu Orudiamzu to protect both you and me when Dioga Diamzu breaks!"
Zale looked at his Mamodo partner disbelievingly, "You don't honestly believe that's going to work…" Shine shot a powerful glare at him as he argued, "What choice do we have?" Again, the two were communicating somehow through simple glares; only this time, Zale was the recipient while Shine was the giver. The Swedish male nodded in understanding, "Okay. I trust your power, Shine."
After more seconds of harsh struggling, the combined power of Bao Zakeruga and Dioga Teoieshun overcame Dioga Diamzu, with it shattering into minute diamond crystals, and began making their way lethargically for Zale and Shine. "GO!" Kiyo shouted at the top of his lungs. "FINISH THEM!" Angelica yelled.
"NOW, ZALE" Shine screamed instructively, intending to use the last of his strength to protect him, Zale, and his spellbook from harm, "Got it! Ganjasu Orudiamzu!" A crown of diamond spikes enveloped Shine and Zale. The stalagmites rising from the ground circled around his crown, making sure it would have enough bulk to survive against Zatch's and E's most powerful spells.
"Shine…Shine!"
Shine shot open his eyes at the sound of his bookkeeper's voice. He saw that he was laying down on the floor, and Zale was kneeling down beside him. "Z-Zale…what happened? Where's the spellbook?" Shine questioned, sitting up abruptly but instantly tensed up with pain.
Zale placed a comforting hand on the back of Shine's head, showing him the blizzard blue spellbook, "It's fine. You're still in the battle to decide the King of the Mamodo World." He answered. The room that was the battlefield was nonexistent. The roof was gone and so were the majority of the walls, and it was a wonder why the floor hadn't caved in yet.
It was then Shine noticed the condition of his Swedish bookkeeper. Zale's upper clothing was ragged and disheveled, and he had a blood stream running down the left side of his face. Knowing Shine was going to ask, Zale explained to him, "You had passed out before Ganjasu Orudiamzu broke. I used myself to shield you and the book. Thankfully, Bao Zakeruga and Dioga Teoieshun had weakened enough to the point my human body could take them."
"Zale…" Shine mumbled quietly. He certainly appreciated the bookkeeper he got in this fight as opposed to the one he got one thousand years ago. That person would not have bothered like Zale did. "…You're certainly learning." He remarked, smiling a genuine smile. Zale smiled back but it disappeared when he heard people approaching them. Zale stood up, allowing Shine to lean on his leg for support, and saw that the victors of the battle were before them.
"Kiyo Takamine, Zatch Bell, Angelica Tsukoro, and E…" Zale declared, "We're impressed…Perhaps you all do have what it takes to defeat Zofis and destroy the Stone of Moonlight. And we were wrong, you guys aren't weak at all; you're actually tough."
Kiyo grinned as he responded, "Didn't we tell you that a number of times already?"
"Listen up!" Shine spoke authoritatively, "Zale and I will withdraw for now. However, this won't be the last time we meet. Now that we've recognized your strength, Zale and I are going to get stronger. I may be a Mamodo from one thousand years ago, but I see this as a second chance at becoming King—something I was robbed of back then."
"You guys are leaving?" E asked, blinking. Angelica scratched her head in confusion, "Wh-what about Zofis?"
"We don't care about Zofis and never did." Zale answered, "In fact, when Zofis and his bookkeeper approached me in Luxembourg one day. I didn't want anything to do with him until they showed Shine. Through his eyes, I could tell we were similar and experienced bitter trials. I couldn't leave him, so I pretended to pledge absolute allegiance to Zofis so he wouldn't manipulate my heart."
"Enough of this banter." Shine proclaimed, "In the meantime, you all better keep those books safe because I'll be back to burn them! And if anyone says they're going to do the same, tell them Shine and Zale Schwazden said 'hands off!'"
"Oh great…" Kiyo groaned as Zale and Shine turned to leave. As if he needed another Sherry and Brago or Bari and Gustav calling dibs on his spellbook.
"Zale. Shine." Angelica spoke firmly, stopping the two from leaving and everyone turned their attention to her, "Let me tell you two a little something about change—it's not a punishment, it is reality. Everything around you changes, for better or for worse. It is the way we as rational creatures interpret change that dictates its effects on us. Here's an example…Me. You guys communicate ocularly, right? Can't you tell from my eyes that I changed?"
Zale did indeed notice the drastic change in Angelica's eyes from when she first entered the battle compared to now. In fact, there was a new spark in them that almost intimidated him. His eyes shifted uncomfortably because he was getting another mental image of him in a weak and insignificant state—the one he was in during that fateful day.
"And it's all thanks to E. Ever since, I met him, he's done nothing but good for me, and now I'm back to my regular self thanks to him," Angelica looked off to the side as she finished up, "Keep that notion of "change" in your minds, will you?"
Wordlessly, Zale reached into his pockets and took out two small fragments of the Stone of Moonlight. "I will. Here." He tossed them to Kiyo and Angelica who each caught one, "They'll replenish your heart energy." Shine then said to them, "Give Zofis our regards and please kick his ass."
Without another word, Shine and Zale turned back around and resumed their departure. "Thank, Shine and Zale!" Zatch said to them graciously. They did not respond, but they did raise their hands up in a parting manner before disappearing. Unbeknownst to them, Myriam and Mystrael were following them, ready to settle things.
"Ang, that was beautiful." E commented earnestly. "Now, Shine and Zale really will become stronger," Kiyo announced, "Not because of their amount of training but because of what all four of us told them."
"Well, so will we!" Zatch proclaimed determinedly, "I need to get strong enough so that I can defeat a team like them on my own." E nodded in agreement, "You're right, Zatch. One day, it will be just two Mamodo standing and their bookkeepers in one last battle to decide the King. If it's any of us, we need to prepare for it."
"And I'm sure you guys will." Kiyo told them, smiling. Angelica smiled and nodded in agreement, now fiddling with her braids for some reason.
"ZATCH! KIYO!"
Zatch, Kiyo, E, and Angelica blinked in confusion before looking at the source of the multiple voices. Sunbeam, Ponygon, Curtis, Gretchen, Izo, and Nylon were finally caught up to them. Upon seeing Angelica and E for the first time in the battle, the latter four unrestrainedly said in shock: "E? Ang?"
"Hello. Nice day out, isn't it?" E responded, waving at them. "Hey, guys." Angelica greeted sheepishly, still messing with her braids.
"Oh my god! You made it!" Curtis said merrily, grinning jocundly. "And here, I was beginning to worry!" Izo said ecstatically, unable to keep back his smile. "Looks like you got your fair share of fun, E." Gretchen said, elbowing the psychic Mamodo playfully. "It's good to see you!" Nylon said, grinning and playfully patting E on his back.
"Ah, so you two are Angelica Tsukoro and E that Kiyo and Izo everyone else about, huh?" Sunbeam said, approaching the two while extending his hand, "Nice to meet you two! My name is Kafk Sunbeam and this is my Mamodo, Ponygon." Angelica shook the blonde engineer's hand respectfully, "It's a pleasure, sir."
"Alright, guys, let's move on." Kiyo said resolutely, turning to face the next door that will lead them further up, "The more time we dawdle, the closer Zofis is getting to accomplishing his goals."
"He's right." Sunbeam voiced his agreement. "Meru meru." Ponygon nodded.
"'Ey, I got more my homies in this fight now. I am ready and waiting to go!" Curtis said confidently. "Says the guy who still can't walk on his own." Gretchen said, grinning slyly. "Aight now, Gretchen. You pushin' it." Curtis warned her, glaring at her with his pale pink eyes.
"Well, I have no clue why we're still standing here. Let's go!" Nylon stated as he start walking forward, the others following suit.
"Er...uhh, give me a second, guys." Angelica stammered nervously, now fiddling with her braids more quickly. Izo turned and gave Angelica a confused as he asked, "Why?"
"Ah-ha! Got it!" Angelica announced. She had been removing her hair out of the braids, and with a flip of it, her hair had returned back its long, natural, wavy length. This finalized her ambition of putting the past behind her and the end of her trauma forevermore. "Sorry, I was getting rid of the braids." She apologized sheepishly as she caught up with her team.
"Bleck! Long hair…" Gretchen groaned tomboyishly as she continued walking on ahead with Sunbeam, and Ponygon. "Wow, your hair is so pretty!" Zatch complimented innocently, "It looks better than Tia's!" Kiyo chuckled as he went to follow those three ahead, "If she was here to hear that, she would've strangled you, Zatch." Zatch's eyes dilated in fear as he gulped, thinking about the many painful times Tia had wringed his neck. Silently, he followed his bookkeeper.
Angelica and E followed behind, the former's brownish-black hair flowing behind her. Izo could not help but stare as his classmate walked by. It had been so long since he had seen Angelica's hair at full-length, and she looked so resplendent in his eyes.
"What'cha starin' at, Izo?" Curtis asked knowingly, grinning his infamous grin. Izo cursed all the gods in the sky, for he had forgotten he was supporting his other classmate. "Nothing." Izo responded, trying to maintain his dignity as he followed. "Mmhmm. Yeah ,whatever." The ecru-haired gamer snickered.
"Don't make me drop you."
"Aight, I'll stay quiet…"