Whitewing

Disclaimer: I donr17;t own Pokemon. Only the idea and OCr17;s.

Author Notes:
-- This will be used for scene breaks and for when the story switches to another character, but it does not mean that a new section of the story has started.
= = = = = = This will identify where each paragraph breaks.
(Character thought)

Disclaimer: Donr17;t own Pokemon, never have, never will. Only the idea and OCs behind the story are mine.

= = = = = =

Chapter 9

Three more days passed and school was once again proving hard for Alex, the new string of attention he was getting was thankfully getting easier to put up with and the disappearance of Johnson and the others quieted things down a lot. As usual though, there were those that worked harder then ever to find out why Johnson was there. Alex also managed to get a small security camera, courtesy of Imperial Crafters who owed Johnson a favor. They even had it installed and set everything up for Alex and Aelita, even adding a program to both of their phones to allow them to view the camera at any time as long as they had a signal. The mystery of who broke in though was still just that a mystery. Things had once again settled into the usual routine. On Friday though, both Alex and Aelita had been called down to see Luna during their last period class, which wasnr17;t that bad since it was just their gym class. It turned out that Johnson had also been talking with Luna about everything, and she gave them a quick run over of what they would need to do in order to make sure that they could get into a set of driving classes. Everything was simple enough though, keep up their good grades and keep up their good habits. As long as they didnr17;t cause any problems, they would easily be able to get into the driving school, and obtain their licenses before summer even ended. There was of course the fact that even if they got a car or two, they still wouldnr17;t be able to drive it to school, which was already fine with them as had always walked as it was. While all of that proved a simple meeting, it was the next meeting of sorts that caught Alex off guard.

His phone alerted him to a new e-mail, his presence had been requested at the Suicune Falls Park Office. A bit confused, he started the trip there instead of heading back to his place.

It took a while for the walk there, but at last, they arrived at the park, the guard at the entrance greeting them happily having already been told that Alex was to be expected. The marill even pointed Alex to the office as they walked up.

The office was a large building, built around a massive oak tree. Half the building itself was actually nothing more then a giant tree house and it got Alex thinking about a few more possible ideas about how to fix up the bathhouse. With so many trees around the bathhouse, it would be easy to set up some sort of deck or similar construct in the branches and several new ideas spawned in Alexr17;s head as well as he walked up. Walking into the building, he could already see the owners, a pair of vapereon, the Devlar17;s talking with each other by the desk. r0;Oh, Alex, itr17;s so nice to see you again.r1; Grace stated as they walked in. r0;Johnson said that you had a something to discuss with us, ar30;r1; She turns to looked at her husband trying to figure out what it was again.

r0;You claim to have found a bathhouse and seem to want to take us up on our offer of letting you move onto the park grounds.r1; Victor finished.

r0;Johnson told you about the bathhouse?r1; Alex looked at them.

r0;He told us a bit.r1; Victor nodded. r0;Wer17;re kind of interested in it ourselves from what he told us, but you did find it first and already started work on it.r1;

Alex nodded. r0;I hope you donr17;t mind.r1;

r0;Why not at all. Wer17;ve known you since you moved here and your17;ve been a very good kid. We even made the offer of letting you set up on the park grounds remember, we could always use another caretaker like you.r1; Grace smiled and got into the cabinets, pulling out some cookies. r0;Would either of you like any?r1; She asked. Alex shook his head, but Aelita was happy to try a few.

r0;Wow, these are good.r1; Aelita said after trying one, a nice sweet mix of peanut butter and chocolate.

r0;Thank you, I just made them this morning.r1; Grace smiled back.

r0;Well, I suppose that we should over the terms of this deal then. I donr17;t see any problem with letting you set up a house on the mountainside. It would even help us out a bit.r1; Victor stated. r0;There would be a few conditions involved, but Ir17;m sure we can all agree to them.r1;

r0;So, you two are ready to allow me and Aelita to move into the bathhouse after we finish with the repairs and add a few things?r1; Alex asked.

r0;Of course we are, I thought we made that point.r1; Grace said as she pulled up a few more chairs so that they could all sit down. r0;Therer17;s nothing to big, but I would like to clear up a few things.r1;

r0;Of course.r1; Alex replied.

r0;For starters, we would like to ask that you have a guest room or two put in that some of our caretakers could use from time to time. It would be nice if we had a place for our caretakers to stay when we have them walk over the mountain instead of having to camp out on the mountain all the time.r1; Victor explained. r0;I know itr17;s a big mountain, but our family did buy the place and we intend to keep this park well maintained, especially the mountain.r1;

r0;Ir17;ll be sure to make a note of that.r1; Alex pulled out the ESE that Johnson had left with him to draw up a few possible floor plans for changing the bathhouse a bit. r0;Anything else.r1; He asked writing a note on the side to put in guestrooms.

r0;Why yes, Johnson said that they were hot springs at this bathhouse?r1; Grace asked.

r0;Well, there are four huts where hot springs were dug up yes, but only one of them is still standing. Ir17;d have to check and see if the others are still salvageable.r1; Alex explained.

r0;Ir17;d like to ask that you keep hot springs open up a bit. Ir17;d like to offer their use to the caretakers around the park. Itr17;s a stressful job at times and even if itr17;s just for the weekends, Ir17;m sure a nice dip in the water would do them good.r1; Grace smiled. r0;It would be your call if you let others use them, but Ir17;d like to ask that you try and salvage them all and let our caretakers use them for free.

Alex nodded again. r0;I think thatr17;s very reasonable as well. It is your mountain and its understandable that your17;d like use of any hot springs your17;d find on it.r1;

Aelita nodded as well, in agreement to everything so far. r0;Also, we would like a second drive cleared up to your place, Johnson said that he had one route ready to be cleared, but it led straight off the mountain.r1; Victor added. r0;Wer17;ve been thinking about clearing out a path all around the mountain for a while, to help us watch over the place and try to keep up with poachers, but we never did follow up on it. At one point, we did have a drive planned out and this bathhouse is actually not much of a detour from what we had planned.r1; Once again, Alex and Aelita nodded to this.

r0;Our last request is probably the biggest though. We know that your17;re likely to work with Johnson after you get out of school, but wer17;d also like to help keep watch over the mountain while your17;re here. Itr17;s a big mountain like we said and we only send some of our caretakerr17;s up around the mountain everyone once in a while.r1; Victor continued.

r0;Is there anything else we need to know about this deal?r1; Alex asked.

Both Mr. and Grace looked to each other before looking back at them. r0;I think thatr17;s it at the time. Ir17;ll need to look into having a friend of mine write up a written contract though to verify everything here. As for payment, I think that if your willing to pay for everything to repair this bathhouse, set up a pair of guest rooms for our caretakers, and pay the fee to install power, water, and sewage lines, then Ir17;ll say that you paid enough to live there.r1; Victor told them.

r0;Itr17;s a deal sir.r1; Alex held out his hand and Victor readily shook it.

r0;Very well, as long as you keep us informed of the progress of the bathhouse, just fix it up as you can.r1; Grace smiled.

r0;I do have one more question though. It would be separate from the deal we just made, but do you have any plans for the current place your living?r1; Mr. Delva asked. r0;I know a friend who is planning on moving back to Nenwill in a month or two and her17;ll need a place to live. Her17;s not much of a fancy person, but being a sandslash, he likes his homes underground and I think he might like a place like the one you have.r1;

r0;I guess thatr17;s a possibility. I wasnr17;t entirely sure what I was going to do with the place anyway.r1; Alex replied. r0;Ir17;ve still got at least two more rooms to add to the place, maybe a third.r1;

r0;What all do you have in it right now?r1; Victor asked.

r0;I have the living room, kitchen, dining room, bathroom, and one bed room set up, and just added a small closet not too long again.r1; Alex explained. r0;The bathroom is the only completely furnished room though, but I do have electricity hooked up to all the rooms so far, and the kitchen has a full set of counters.r1;

Victor nodded thinking about. r0;And what kind of rooms were you thinking about adding?r1; Victor asked.

r0;I was going to add a second bedroom and store room since the place wonr17;t have an attic or garage. I was also thinking of adding an open patio like spot along the side of the house right into the cliff side.r1; Alex explained. r0;But if you say a sandshrew may want it, then they probably wonr17;t be interested in the patio.r1;

Victor nodded. r0;Ir17;ll let him know that you may have a place up for sale then. I offered him a place on the park, but he said her17;d try to find an underground place first.r1; Victor smiled.

r0;Would you like to stay for dinner though, if your17;re going to be staying on our mountain, you might as well be family.r1; Grace smiled as she asked them. r0;Itr17;s getting close to that time anyway and we would love the company.r1;

Alex looked up very surprised by this offer, and Aelita quickly responded for him. r0;Thatr17;d be very nice, thank you.r1; She smiled lightly bumping Alex to get him to respond.

r0;Yes, thank you.r1; He added.

Alex remained mostly quiet over dinner, as usual, but Aelita did push him to make some conversation over the dinner that Grace prepared, enjoying herself as she talked with the Devlar17;s. They had a lot more questions about the bathhouse and Alex was happy to answer them, but when the questions ran out and the conversation changed, that was when Aelita had to keep directing comments right at Alex at times to keep him talking. She knew that he wasnr17;t the most talkative person, but she smiled knowing that she could get him to talk some every once in a while at the very least.

Even after dinner, Aelita agreed to stay and talk with the Devlar17;s for a while longer, even keeping Alex in the conversation a bit before it was time for them to leave and head back to Alexr17;s place. Having gotten back so late though and already having dinner, Alex sat down to do a little bit of studying before he went to bed. Tomorrow, Alex had already set up plans to go looking around for furniture for the bathhouse. Aelita was eager to start looking over furniture as well, and had even shown a major interest in the Dragonian culture, the group who seemed to have built the bathhouse.

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The next few following weeks were rather busy. During the week, almost every class was talking about finals and the like. The weekends were filled mostly with Alex and Aelita planning out details for the bathhouse. This included such things as buying light fixtures and other small easy to carry things up the bathhouse house for now, but there was still plenty to do otherwise, doubly so with the upcoming finals. Through a lot of hard studying and preparations though, Aelita was able to say without a doubt that she wanted to attempt the advanced survival final. Samuel had been expecting such and having known that she would want to try it, he had signed the paper the day he got it.

It wasnr17;t until the third week that things changed a bit and Alex officially got the paper work from the Devlar17;s saying that it was okay for him to live there and could begin proper work on the bathhouse. With that small detail taken care of and the okay in hand, Alex dished out the money for a sub branch of Imperial Crafters to come out and cut down the few trees that needed removed for now. In addition, he had them lay out a full gravel driveway, which given the length of the drive, was understandably a two day job taking up most of that week end.

The following Monday, Alex and Aelita were asked to stay behind for a minute with most of their teachers, with the advanced survival class final starting tomorrow, they were given heads up about what they were missing. Luckily, Alex was the only one to be missing a test, or as he called it, a graded review for his independent living class.

That same night, Andrew showed up as well. At Alexr17;s request, he had shown up to watch over the bathhouse now that the drive was done and Andrew had kindly volunteered to even watch over a crew who would start setting up power, water, and sewage lines up the bathhouse house as well.


--

Tuesday morning was rather different from most mornings. Like normal, they woke up at their usual time, got their showers, and had their usual breakfast. Rather then head to school early though, Alex stayed back a bit, did a large check up on the weather as well as make one final check list for Andrew to go over with the bathhouse. With that out of the way, they made their way to the school, each with a duffel bag rather then their usual schoolbooks and homework though. Both of them had packed up roughly the same things, a pair of t-shirts and shorts, as well as two pairs of jeans and heavy shirts. Samuel had also kindly given them a pair of powerful LED flashlights, which even doubled as lanterns to a degree. The final thing that had with them was their pound of berries they were allowed to bring. Alex had spent some time gathering a nice big bag of yoshama berries while Aelita brought a pound of sitrus berries.

With everything gathered up, the two of them left for school, arriving a few minutes before the school bell rang out. Rather then head for their classes though, they went to the back to the bus turn around. Miss Rise and Luna Hope were both there as the students started to gather. Just as the last of the students showed up, a rather tall murkrow also showed up with a large clipboard in his hands.

r0;Everyone gather round, bags over here.r1; Miss Rise announced as the group started to deposit their bags in front of her. r0;Mr. Williams will do a quick roll call.r1;

Everyone gathered around the murkrow as he quickly called out names. With that done, everyone got onto the buses. As expected, it was a long ride over there and the group didnr17;t arrive until midday. As the buses rounded the last corned around the mountain the complex where the survival dome was. Even from a few miles away, the sheer size of the dome was impressive, a web of metal and glass, but even as they reached the entrance they still couldnr17;t see inside.

As they drew closer though, they could see the rest of the facility, including a second much small dome hidden behind the larger one. A second set of busses also pulled up behind them as they arrived. Upon getting out, everyone was informed that two schools would be taking the test at the same time as they were led out back.

A large pavilion was set up for them when they arrived giving them their last warm meal until the test was over. In that same hour though, everyone was allowed to talk back and forth, as well as decide who would be teaming up with who.

Once their hour was up though, the group was gathered up again into a small dome connected to the real one. The group could see all sorts of various plants scattered around, several other people in lab coats greeting them as they passed and entered a large room where all of their bags had been set out for them to collect.

Once again, Miss Rise, Luna, and Mr. Williams were all there as well. In addition, The principal of the second high school, a marill, and the schoolr17;s advanced survival teacher, a blastoise were standing there as well. r0;Everyone gather around. Make sure you come with the group your17;ll be staying with. Itr17;s not required, but we do highly recommend that you at least pair up in groups of two, no more then three per group though.r1; Miss Rise announced opening up a large box next to her with Mr. Williams. Alex and Aelita, mostly at Alexr17;s request had decided to just stick to the two of them as group. Once everyone from the other classes had found out Alex was there, many of them had tried to force their way in as their third group member, which was what ultimately led to Aelita deciding to agree with Alex.

With everyone lined up in their groups, Mr. William spoke up this time. r0;The devices you are about to be handed are our from of tracking devices. They come with two separate clocks, one listing the actual time, and a second countdown timer showing the remaining time until your test is over. In addition, there are a few other features.r1; He held up a small watch like device for everyone to see. r0;If at any time you feel that you are unable to continue with this test, or find yourself or another badly injured, you can press the red button on the bottom.r1; He tilted the device back a bit to point out the bottom he was referring to. r0;All of these watched had GPS chips in them, so we will be able to track you for the most part. You may all help each other, but like we said no more then three mons per campsite. In addition, this device will be the key to the lockers your about to use. Every thing over then what you are allowed to take on the test with you will be locked up. This means no cell phones or anything else.r1; Mr. William stated rather firmly, earning a few complaints around the group. r0;Finally, yes, this dome does have many feral pokemon in it. They are not food and any attempts to hurt them can result in an immediate failure to your exam. There are plenty of berry bushes all around the dome. You can all go a few days without a hot meal.r1;

Once Mr. William was done talking, Miss Rise was the next to talk. r0;All right, groups step up one at a time to collect your beacon.r1; She stated. r0;Once you have your beacon, head over to the lockers and put everything that is not part of the test away. Inside each locker, your17;ll find a nice large waterproof hiking pack filled with the rest of your supplies. Once you have everything for the test, wait by door over here.r1; She pointed a rather large circular door behind her. Unlike the rest of the dome, which appeared to be of some sort of filtered glass no one could see through, the group could clearly see where they would be spending the next three days for the first time. Even Alex was impressed with some of the tress he could identify from a few trips to the Johto region with Johnson.

The group was a bit slow to get their beacons though; each one had to be turned on and paired up with the group members of the others who they were paired with. While this was happening, groups who had already picked up their beacons went over to the lockers to get their hiking packs as well as put away everything that they wouldnr17;t need for the test. It took about another hour, but at last, everything was done and everyone was wearing a beacon.

Everyone was given a few last minutes to prepare as Miss Rise and Luna as well as their counterparts for the second school walked off into a side room to change into their gear and get everything they would need. Luna seemed to have caught the attention of most of the group, even surprising Alex when she walked out with a full hiking back and matching clothing, even having her own hiking boots, a massive change from the simple dresses and suits she often wore at the school. Once they were back, the doors to the jungle opened up and everyone was walked inside. Just walking in alone, everyone could feel a small jump in temperature compared to the room they were just in and it was very wet. It was a very good thing that Alex and Aelita had come prepared wearing a pair of nice hiking boots where many of the other students had worn tennis shoes, a mistake on their part. Looking off to the side of the entrance, Alex and Aelita could both see the few small pools of water Samuel had told them about.

r0;Alright, the test begins as soon as these doors close.r1; Luna stated. Behind the group, a pair of red flashing lights signaled the door was closing. Everyone watched as the door closed, then above it, a large red timer started up showing 3 days remaining and already starting to count down. At the same time that the count down started, everyoner17;s beacon also beeped, sharing the same countdown. r0;Spread out, find a campsite, and set up. The rain starts in three hours, donr17;t be caught off guard.r1; Luna smiled. r0;Aside from just surviving, the extra tasks you have to complete have all been randomized and are in your hiking packs.r1;

Alex quickly started walking along the north side of the wall with Aelita. Everyone else also started spreading out as the test started. Alex did make a bit of hurry though, having studied the map, wanting to get to the place that he and Aelita had picked, but still wanted to get there early in case they had to make a few adjustments.

It took about an while for them to reach to the spot they had chosen, some of the terrain a bit slow to travel over, but they had gotten nearly to the back of the dome. A large pond was behind them, surrounded by trees, several of them very large with a thick canopy between them, and a good lack of under brush made their select spot very good. The only problem was that there was no visible berry patch in the immediate area. This was okay with Alex though, at times when setting up camp with Johnson, the nearest berry patch could be up to a mile away. Of course, this was very different then camping out with Johnson; Alex didnr17;t have time to test any of the gear he was given to see what kinds of things worked best. That hardly slowed them down though.

Alex and Aelita quickly looked at their watches though. By the time that they had really looked at the site, they were already two hours into the test Alex didnr17;t really like that. They opened up their backs and Alex quickly pulled out the tent that he had been given and had to laugh a bit. He unfolded it and could see a few good-sized holes. Aelita quickly pulled out his list of things and right at the top of the list of things he needed to do in addition to survive the three day timer was fix his tent. She had to laugh a bit herself as she pulled out her tent, which was not littered with holes. She smiled as she went to work finding a way to hook the two tent frames together while Alex went about trying to find a fix to his tent, looking around for some thick bits of underbrush with large leaves to try and make patches out of.

It took a short time for Alex to get back. By the time he did though, Aelita had managed to get both tent frames connected, and had her tent on the frame, but before she could get Alexr17;s side of the tent up, the rain started. It was heavy start and stayed heavy as Alex quickly rushed under Aelitar17;s side, grabbing his bag and getting that under cover as well. The rain was quick to reveal a few trouble spots with their idea of combing the tents though. The corners were not doing well to keep out the heavy down pour and even with the canopy of trees around them, the rain was barely slowed around them.

Alex did point a few spots though that seemed to be getting less rain then most of the area and wanting to keep a dry spot to sleep as well as store their things. He quickly put on his back as Aelita put on hers and they carried the frame over to the new location. Of course, the plan was flawed at best and halfway on the trip over, the frame came apart in the middle. From there, it was a quick run to move their broken frame to its new location, using the half that was still good to keep their packs and everything else dry. They quickly went to work trying to fix their tent as they got soaked. It was a long process as with the rain making things even harder, but at last, with the two of them, they managed to fix the tent frames. Some of the extra rope they were given went into making it extra strong as well as provide an extra support beam for the tent.

Patching up Alexr17;s side of the tent took some work though. Luckily, both of them had been given a fair bit of heavy sewing thread and a few needles. Alex could only so much though with them. He managed to find enough thick leaves to make a few patches, poorly sown though given that the leaves were wet and were not that strong. He layered them up though, then sewed them into place over the holes in his tent, then to try and help keep the water, took a bunch of small twigs with plenty of leaves and tried to make a top for the tent.

Alex didnr17;t like the cheap work he did, but he was already cold and quickly got into the tent with Aelita. She had already pulled out a pair of towels starting to dry herself off as best she could for now before wrapping herself up in a blanket. About the time that Alex started to dry off, Luna had walked up to them.

r0;Alex, why so wet?r1; She grinned a bit knowing which lockers had contained r16;damagedr17; tents to begin with. She had no need for an umbrella, the rain hitting a very thin barrier over her keeping her dry as she walked up to them.

r0;Oh, hello.r1; Alex nodded his head to her as he got under the tent to dry off.

r0;Hmmm, off to a slow start?r1; She asked looking at the patch job he had done. r0;Itr17;s not what Katherine would have done, but it seems to be working enough.r1; She said.

r0;Katherine?r1; Aelita asked not sure who that was.

r0;You know her as Miss Rise. I know sher17;s not to big on students calling her that though, always wanting to be called Miss Rise in class.r1; Luna told them as she looked around and checked their location. r0;Very nice spot by the way.r1;

r0;Thanks.r1; Aelita smiled. r0;What are you doing over here anyway?r1;

r0;Checking up on a few groups, those with tents like this.r1; She replied. r0;Katherine decided to cover the south end of the dome and Ir17;ll watch over the north end.r1;

r0;Yea, we had a bit of a rough start.r1; Alex stated. r0;Just need to find a berry patch or two though and we should be able to ace this.r1;

r0;There is more to this test then just camping out.r1; Luna reminded him. r0;You both had a set of objectives and places to mark.r1; She pulled Alexr17;s sheet out from the edge of the tent, making sure to keep it dry as she looked it over. r0;Hmmm, looks like you got a hardest of the randomized tests.r1; She smiled. r0;Fitting that you would get it. It should at least make you work a bit for the grade.r1;

Alex sighed a bit, but still had to smile. r0;I understand. If it was just camping out, then itr17;d be very simple for me, much easier then what Ir17;m use to doing with Johnson. Still, I donr17;t think this will really compare though.r1;

r0;Wer17;ll see.r1; Luna handed him back his sheet. r0;Well, Ir17;ve got to go check on the few groups in this part of the dome. Lucky for you two though, you seem to be a bit isolated, which means you may have a berry batch or two to yourselves. Ir17;ll check up on you tomorrow then, I donr17;t think your17;ll be needing much help.r1; She waved to them as she started walking off.

r0;Wer17;ll be waiting then.r1; Aelita called out as she left and walked into the brush using her mind to gently clear a way.

r0;Well, Ir17;m already rather wet, guess I might as well just walk around for a bit, see if I can find a few berry patches.r1; Alex stated looking through his bag finding a poncho and putting that on to keep somewhat dry, still wearing a large towel around his shoulders and back to try and warm up a little. He also grabbed the lantern that Samuel had loaned to him incase it got dark early.

r0;Are you sure?r1; Aelita asked since the rain looked a bit rough still.

r0;If this rain forest is as good as they say, wer17;re liable to only get another few hours at best of good weather while we are here.r1; Alex countered. r0;You remember that Miss Rise said that they loved the rain in this place and I saw a few flowers on the way over here that only do grow nicely in near constant rain.r1;

Aelita nodded at his point and decided to check her bag for now, looking through the things they had and what her objectives were. Alex decide that it would probably be a good idea if he took his sheet with him as well in case he happened to find anything while he was walking around, making sure to fill up their canteens before going anywhere though.

--

It didnr17;t take long for Alex to find a few thick berry bushes, although, he did have to make his way through some thicker underbrush to get them. He grumbled a bit though finding out that if he had gone around the brush another ten feet, he would have found a good path through them already. He was off to a rough start, but he stuck with it. As he looked over his sheet though, he did mark off the find a food source objective, flipping the sheet over to show a small map of the place.

Looking around, he went to find a landmark of some sort to try and mark the berries on the map, but couldnr17;t find any. He walked around the berries for a few, finally finding a large boulder, also marked on the map and guessed his location based on it. Flipping it back over though, he quickly looked the sheet over again finding a rather odd objective.

r0;Locate, name, and mark the location of four separate pokemon you encounter.r1; He stated. A small rustling in the tree above him got his attention, he knew there was a pokemon up there, but he couldnr17;t make it out. At the very least, he marked the spot a second time, this time for the tree. Her17;d hopefully find out what kind of pokemon was in the tree later on, but for now, he let it be. He was getting cold and fast, and started making his way back to Aelita and their tent.

Alex walked back what he thought was the same he had walked down to get to the berry patch, but ended up a bit east of the pond, still able to see the tent, but coming up behind it. The jungle was a bit thicker then he gave it credit for, but he wasnr17;t too worried, by tomorrow, he should have a good layout of the land. He walked back up to find Aelita studying her list of objectives that she would need to complete during the test as well.

r0;I found a berry patch.r1; Alex said laying his sheet down so that she could see where he marked the spot on the map. Aelita nodded and looked it over. r0;Itr17;s a bit of a walk, but itr17;s not that far and itr17;s large.r1; He told her.

r0;Well, thatr17;s good.r1; Aelita smiled. r0;What kind of berries?r1;

r0;Itr17;s a mix of a sitrus, oran, and cherri berries from what I saw, but I didnr17;t inspect it fully.r1; He took off his poncho and began to strip down out of his wet clothes, drying off completely before getting into a pair of shorts and T-shirt. He wrapped himself up in his sleeping for a bit as well to warm himself back up as he starts to wring out his clothing in a corner of the tent that seemed to be getting wet anyway. It took him a while to get his clothing mostly dry before finding a few limbs that were hanging under the tent to let them stay on over night.

They still had at least an hour of light left by the time that was done though, so they two of them decided to do a minor bit of exploration around the pond hoping to find and name a few types of pokemon. This plan didnr17;t work so well, although they did hear a few pokemon around them, they couldnr17;t seem to be able to see any. At one point though, the rain was coming down extra hard. Luckily for them, they were in a relatively dry spot when that came though and managed to wait out the small bit of heavy rain before making their way back to their tent.

Alex and Aelita both dug into the berries they had brought with them for dinner that night, the two of them sharing a sleeping bad that night as well.

--

The next morning was a nice sight, the rain had slowed considerably and their tent was for the most part, still dry, even though one of the patches had given out and would need replacing. Alex was quickly to take advantage of the light drizzle and woke up Aelita. Both of them got ready soon enough, and Alex led her to the berry patch he had found. Along the way, both of them were able to identify what pokemon Alex had heard when he discovered the berry patch. A pair of sleeping spinarak were just barely visible in the tree and both of them were able to mark down where they had found it. After spending a good sum of time collecting the various berries around the berry patch, they headed back to their campsite and started work on a fire pit as well as repairing the broken patch in the tent. With the light drizzle, work was a bit slow, but they were able to get a fire pit dug and covered enough that the rain would hopefully let it burn.

The repairs on the tent however were not so easy, the drizzle didnr17;t last long enough for Alex to finish sewing the new patch into place before it started coming down hard again, undoing most of the work he put into it. Aelita had to hold Alexr17;s poncho over him and the hole while he did his best to patch it again. Alex was once again thoroughly soaked by the time it was done, the poncho doing just enough to really cover the hole, but not cover Alex. Once again, he was forced to dry off and change clothing, wringing out his wet clothing. Aelita helped him as well, even getting a good idea. She find a nice long stick nearby with a split tip and stood it up in the on the edge of the tent, in one of the spots where it was relatively dry and then hung a rope across the tent with the stick supporting the middle bit. r0;Now we have a clothes line.r1; She smiled and Alex kissed her for the idea, leaving his still slightly damp clothing on the line.

The next hour was spent making other minor improvements to the tent and trying to get a fire going. All of the wood around them though was damp like their clothing, so it was proving a bit hard since neither of them knew any fire type attacks. That didnr17;t stop them from getting a bit creative though. Alex knew a few the plants around them burned really well, all they needed was a good spark. While Alex was gathering up a few of the leaves from the select plants, Aelita started putting a nice line of stones around the fire pit. They wouldnr17;t want anything to get out of control after all.

As Alex came back, he started worked on a making some wood chips. At the very least, the chips he made would be dry and hopefully help start their fire as well. It took a little bit, but Alex placed the chips in the bottom of the pit, adding only a few of the leaves he had collected for now. With those in place, he reached into his bag, pulled out the flint and tinder, and gave it a few tries to start the fire. He got plenty of sparks from it, but after ten minutes of trying, he popped his wrist.

Aelita took over from there and thankfully got them their little fire in the first few tries. She smiled and not even a minute later, Luna had shown back up. r0;Hello you two.r1; She smiled as she walked up.

r0;Luna.r1; Alex nodded.

r0;You two seem to be fairing well. One of the few groups with a fire going without a fire move.r1; She smiled leaning over to get into the tent with them.

r0;Yea, we started it.r1; Alex told her as Aelita reached around and pulled out some berries.

r0;At least you got the fire going and it looks pretty easy to maintain.r1; Luna stated taking a seat next to it. It wasnr17;t too big, but it was still warm and she liked that.

r0;Yea, as long we donr17;t set our tent on fire, then it should last.r1; Aelita smiled offering her a few berries, but Luna shook her head.

r0;Ir17;m good.r1; Luna said as she looked around inspecting the tent. r0;Well, I can see that you had to replace one patch at least.r1;

r0;It broke sometime last night.r1; Alex informed her as he went to fill up his and Aelitar17;s canteens again.

r0;At least the new patch appears to be holding.r1; Luna said looking it over a bit more. r0;Interesting use of the thread, braiding it like that to act as a support before putting it on.r1;

r0;When your supplies are limited, sometimes its best to spend the little extra to make sure its done right.r1; Alex replied. r0;Of course, this is a bit different then what Ir17;m use to.r1;

r0;Ir17;m sure.r1; Luna checked her canteen seeing Alex come back with their canteens filled up. r0;No doubt Johnson tests everything he buys.r1; Alex nodded. r0;And how are you holding up Aelita?r1; She asked.

Aelita thought about it for a few before answering. r0;Itr17;s a bit rougher then I though, we havenr17;t seen any pokemon other then a few spinarak, so wer17;ll need to do a bit of exploration to finish everything up. Wer17;re kind of hoping for a break in the rain though.r1;

Luna nodded, that was understandable. r0;I see. Donr17;t get your hopes up though and if you do get your break in the rain, make the most of it, I doubt it will last.r1;

Aelita and Alex both knew that true. r0;Yea, the last break didnr17;t last long enough and I got soaked trying to fix the tent again.r1;

r0;It most certainly seems dry now though.r1; Luna looked it over again to prove her point.

r0;It took some work, but we do have a dry place to sleep.r1; Aelita smiled. r0;Of course Alex was the one to get most of the work done. Ir17;m not sure how I would do in here without him.r1;

r0;Donr17;t under estimate yourself Aelita.r1; Luna stated. r0;You do have one of the highest scores in all of the advanced survival classes. Ir17;m sure Alex would be happy to try and convince Johnson to take you on as part of the team. I heard you did on your first run. I can only image your17;ll continue to do well working for him.r1; She smiled. r0;Well, at least until you find your time is needed elsewhere, Ir17;m sure your17;ll be waiting a child at some point.r1;

Aelita blushed a bit, but nodded. r0;Thanks, but how did you know I was on a run with him?r1;

r0;Johnson likes to keep me informed, just in case you guys end up spending an extra day out there and canr17;t show up in time for school.r1; She stated. A heavy rustling in the brush next to them caught their attention as they all over, a pair of treecko fall through the bushed playing. r0;Well, that makes two kinds of pokemon you have seen.r1; She smiled as both Alex and Aelita quickly checked the spot on their map, in addition to writing down the pokemon. r0;Ir17;d better get going though, I still have a few camps left to check up on.r1; She said before getting up and walking off. The treecko finally noticed them though and once again hid in the bushes as Luna walked off.

--

Alex and Aelita waited a while longer for a break in the rain, but it never came though. The two of them got dressed and did a quick close up of their tent. Once they were ready, they started their bit of exploration. They still needed to list two other types of pokemon they had encountered in the dome, but they didnr17;t seem to find many where they were. The pokemon, while still making a bit of noise around, remained out of sight as they walked around. Luna was right though; it did take them a while to run into anyone else, but all they came across was an empty camp sight. Aelita recognized one of the shirts left out to dry on a nearby tree branch though and quickly opted to get away from the sight. It belonged to one of the guys who had tried to join their group who had succeeded in getting slapped by Aelita when trying to suggest that Alex was worthless and seemed to have a grudge against him.

Alex was all for the idea, quickly moving on. It was still early afternoon though and that meant that they just started really exploring. Of course, they still had to be careful not to get lost.

Wandering around for a bit longer, they across another good sized pond. Seeing another berry patch along the shore of it, they both moved up figuring that it would be a nice spot to get a snack. As they approached though, it was Aelitar17;s turn to get soaked, a large, but not really powerful water gun had been through from the pond, a vapereon quickly revealing itself as it quickly swam up to the shore.

r0;I guess that patch is taken.r1; Alex laughed a little bit seeing how soaked Aelita was now. Aelita gave him a small glare, but couldnr17;t help laughing a bit herself as the vapereon laid down right by the berry patch, almost looking like it had stuck its tongue out at her. The two of them moved on, Aelita no longer caring about staying dry since she had been soaked anyway. They both marked down the vapereon on their sheets and continued on passing up the berries looking for anther berry patch for a snack.

The two of them walked along for another hour, with only partial luck at finding berry patches. Although they had found a few more, the variety of berries they had found wasnr17;t exactly what they liked or were similarly taken by other mons. They did manage to not only find and list four separate pokemon on their sheets, they had passed twelve now and were just marking down number thirteen, this time a sleeping ariados.

As they turned to start walking back to a patch of belue, nomel, and grepa berries that had passed about ten minutes ago. Neither Alex or Aelita really liked the choice of berries they had come across aside from the first patch by their campsite, but grepa berries were a good fall back for now and so they sat under a tree for their small snack. They chose the right time though to take cover however as the rain really started pouring again for a while.

Alex and Aelita talked a bit, but as the rain finally dropped back to the usual heavy pour and they got up, Alex had a bit of trouble, his leg was acting up again. It took them a much longer time to get back to their camp and it was a very good thing that they had brought their flashlights with them as it was already dark by the time they got back. Things werenr17;t all good when they got back, a large set of tracks had shown that their camp site had been the obvious sight of some pokemon who liked to explore almost everything they hand.

While Alexr17;s backpack and things had been left alone for the most part, Aelitar17;s clothing had been scattered about the tent, most of it a wet, leaving her just a single dry outfit. This did not go well with her as she whined a bit, not happy, but it was over and done with, Alex helping her gather her things back up and hang them up to dry. Luckily, aside from being wet with just a bit of dirt, her clothing was easily hung up and wouldnr17;t need a real wash to be worn again.

After about an hour cleaning up their little camp, mostly due to lack of light, they finally fell asleep again.

--

Aelita was the first to wake the next day, as usual to the sound of heavy rain. She got up slowly, deciding to go get some berries and make it a bit easier on Alex. She got dressed and put on her poncho before heading out, making it halfway there before she ran into a few sleeping pokemon. She smiled checking the area to make sure she could mark them on the map when she got back and got a good number of berries for breakfast before heading back.

What should have been an easy trip quickly turned into a lousy morning though when Aelita tripped over a branch hidden in the light underbrush, only to fall face first into a large, very muddy puddle. Her poncho hardly protected her this time as the nearly liquid mud quickly seeped in through the top of the poncho. She was not amused as she got back up grumbling a bit. She decided to just take off the poncho as she walked back, flipping it inside out to let the rain rinse out the poncho while also hoping that the heavy rain would help rinse her off a bit.

By the time she got back, Alex was up, stretching a bit when he finally noticed her. r0;Aelitar30;r1; He looked at her all covered in mud.

r0;Not my idea of a good way to start off the morning.r1; She replied handing him the berries. r0;I need a bath.r1;

Alex quickly looked to the large pond behind them. r0;A little mud wonr17;t hurt it, and Luna did say that we were the only ones around here if you want to try it. I havenr17;t seen any pokemon in it, so it should be good.r1;

She looked at the pond herself. She wasnr17;t exactly welcoming of the idea of bathing openly like that, but with all the mud she was now wearing; she didnr17;t have a choice. The rain hardly rinsed it out of her fur; she could feel that in some spots it was getting deeper.

In the end, she sighed a bit. r0;Keep an eye out for me.r1; She said softly, a bit annoyed.

Alex quickly nodded, pulling out a towel for her and some of her dry clothing, setting that all off on the side. She slowly got undressed right on the edge of the pond before slipping in. The water was cold; not that it was surprising. She shivered just a bit as she slowly forced herself in deeper, finally getting up to her waist. Alex was true to his word though, keeping an eye out as she looked back at him.

She worked a bit fast to try and scrub the mud out of her fur. For the most part, it worked well. Most of the mud hadnr17;t been too deep into her fur, but there were a few spots where the rain had helped the mud get deep into her fur. Not all of it was easy to get though, there was even a spot where she could feel it right on her actual skin between her breasts and that spot irritated her a lot. She growled a bit after even a minute, she really couldnr17;t clean that spot.

The sound of something moving through the brush quickly got her attention as she turned, quickly ducking down to her shoulders. Alex was already moving to where they had heard the sounds, but before he got there, a pair of mons form the other school taking the test, a prinplup and a nuzleaf both walked up. r0;I told you there was a fresh water pond up here, just the right size to go for a swim.r1; The nuzleaf said before looking at the pond and the head sticking out of it.

r0;Finally.r1; The prinplup didnr17;t even bother looking before running and jumping in only noticing Aelita right before he jumped in.

r0;Hey, whatr17;s the big idea.r1; The nuzleaf demanded seeing Alex rushing over. r0;This was suppose to be a private spot.r1;

r0;Canr17;t you guys at least look before you jump into the water.r1; Alex yelled at the prinplup as he surfaced.

r0;Who the hell are you?r1; The prinplup yelled back. r0;What makes you think I have to look before I go for a swim huh? Itr17;s not like you own the place.r1;

r0;Yea, whatr17;s the big idea telling us what to do.r1; The nuzleaf quickly walked up to Alex as if sizing him up.

r0;Get out.r1; Aelita screamed as the prinplup quickly swam over to. The prinplup ducked under the water again only to surface next to her.

r0;Hey Jake, guess who decided to take a little skinny dip.r1; The prinplup laughed.

r0;Ir17;m trying to take a bath.r1; Aelita growled quickly pushing him back as she swam to the shore where Alex had a towel ready.

r0;Here, use mine to cover up.r1; Alex quickly gave her his towel, which she quickly pulled into the water to cover herself with before getting out.

Aelita quickly rushed for the tent, closing both sets of flaps to try and get some privacy while she dried off and got changed.

r0;Whatr17;s the big idea you two, donr17;t you have any manners?r1; Alex growled as the prinplup got out of the water.

r0;Hey, your17;re the idiot who chose to camp next to a swimming hole.r1; The prinplup countered. r0;Ir17;ll swim where ever I like. I may just even set up camp here.r1;

Alex quickly pointed his own tent out. r0;We already set up here and you know the rules. There must be at least a good five hundred feet between campsites, the first group to set up has the right to any one spot.r1; Alex stated quoting some of the rules. r0;Ir17;m sure Luna would be rather irritated if she showed up to find you two causing problems.r1;

r0;Oh, whatr17;s she going to do?r1; The nuzleaf asked. r0;We just came here for a bit of swimming, its not our fault that you friend got caught without any pants on.r1; He laughed.

Aelita finally came out of the tent rather angry now. r0;You could have at least looked to see if you were alone before just barging in like that.r1; She yelled, a bit of mud still on her face, she didnr17;t have a chance to get completely clean, the spot between her breasts now itching badly from some of the dirt rubbing against her skin under the fur.

The nuzleaf laughed a bit more. r0;You should have known better then to fall in the mud.r1; He smirked taking a step back as he laughed, only to fall back himself.

Alex had to laugh a bit himself; even Aelita had a partial smile. r0;What was that about falling knowing better then to fall in the mud?r1; Alex grinned.

r0;Shut up.r1; The nuzleaf shouted at them rather annoyed himself.

Aelita growled a bit as she quickly went back to the tent before she started a fight. Although normally quiet and calm, she wasnr17;t in the best of moods and she could just tell that that nuzleaf would push her to no end.

r0;Hey babe, where you going?r1; The prinplup laughed as he swam over to the shore. r0;I just want to look.r1;

r0;Leave my mate alone.r1; Alex quickly yelled at him.

r0;Oh calm down.r1; The prinplup waved his hand in Alexr17;s direction as if shooing him off. r0;Ir17;m just having some fun.r1; He then squirted a bit of water in his face laughing again.

Alex quickly growled in anger, but another set of rustling leaves caught their attention as a floatzel walked into the area with a bikini on and carrying a pair of towels. Like the nuzleaf and the prinplup, she was also from the other school, and like Alex had a rather angry look to her. r0;Whatr17;s the idea of this.r1; She stated rather loudly. r0;Must you dirty fools bother me at every pond. Shoo, go, I must have a bath.r1; She stated. r0;Pack up and leave.r1;

r0;What?r1; Alex looked at her rather angry now. r0;Me and my mate already set up camp here.r1; He once again pointed to his tent as Aelita stuck her head out to see what was going on.

r0;Oh pipe down drama queen.r1; The prinplup smirked as he turned and took a seat near the shore, but not leaving the water.

r0;You twor30;r1; The floatzel quickly growled at nuzleaf and the prinplup. r0;Canr17;t you two jerks find someone else to annoy.r1;

Before the fight could get much worse though, the rain once again picked up and hard, this time even having a number of tesla coils Miss Rise had told them about start up. A few bolts flew in the air around them for a second as the floatzel shrieked out quickly running for cover while even the prinplup and the nuzleaf both hurried back to their camp. Alex made a mad dash for his tent as well.

As he was running though, he noticed the floatzel hiding under a tree, still getting wet, but refusing to leave. He growled a bit, but ran over to where she was. r0;Shouldnr17;t you be heading back to your tent?r1; He asked a bit concerned.

r0;I set up about a half a mile east of here, the other side of the lake near the rattata nest.r1; She said. r0;Its got next to no cover around it aside from a small group of trees.r1; She replied.

Alex grumbled a bit but motioned for her to follow as he dashed back to his tent.

As soon as he walked in though, Aelita quickly gave him a confused look as he brought her with him. r0;Her camp is a little ways off.r1; He pointed back outside to the rain again which was getting worse. To make matters even worse, the three of them turned when they heard a small tearing sound as Alexr17;s patch once again tore under the heavy rain. r0;Oh come onr30;r1;

The floatzel whined a bit herself as she dried herself off as best she could with her damp towel while Alex quickly got up and went back outside to try and fix the tent again.

As Alex started work on the tent again, Aelita and the floatzel talked with each other. It a was long hard bit of work for Alex, but after an hour and having to improvise a bit, finally just deciding to sew one of his towels into the tent along with a few of the extra patches he had made just in case.

Finally done, Alex stepped back into the tent. r0;Ir17;m sorry for earlier.r1; The floatzel said as he walked in, quickly offering him a towel. r0;My name is Joanna.r1; She smiled.

Alex looked to Aelita who just smiled back. r0;Its okay, we talked a lot.r1; She smiled. Alex just shrugged a bit as he quickly laid back after he got dried off.

r0;I didnr17;t mean to snap at you like that earlier, but this was the only pond on the map that was left.r1; Joanna told Alex. r0;The other three around my camp have all been taken, one by a rather protective vapereon, and the other two have become large swimming holes for a lot of the other guys.r1; She said.

r0;I can understand that.r1; Alex nodded.

The three of them talked for a little while, until a break in the rain finally showed up. r0;If you two still want a bath, you may want to hurry up, the rain has calmed down, but I donr17;t think it will last.r1; He told them as he walked back into the tent having went out to get some berries since they had eaten what they had brought with them already.

Aelita smiled and kissed him lightly. r0;Thanks for doing so much of the work here.r1; She quickly got a towel and some spare clothes as both her and Joanna went out to try and take their baths again. Alex once again volunteered to watch over the pond, Joanna blushing a lot at his comment, but Aelita reassured that he wouldnr17;t look if she didnr17;t want him to.

This time, both of them had their chance at a bath, and while it was a bit cold, they both managed to get clean this time uninterrupted.

Once they were done, Aelita talked with Joanna a bit more before Joanna decided sher17;d better get back to her camp site while the rain was still light. The rain didnr17;t bother her too much, but the lighting as well as all the extra mud the rain would bring did not sit well with her.

It didnr17;t take long after she had left though that the rain started back up. Having a strong feeling that it was only going to get worse, Alex made one last trip out to grab as many berries as he could for them to eat that night. It was a rough walk, having fallen twice in the rain on the way there. He didnr17;t take a bath when he got back though, not with the lighting out. There was another small break in the rain though, which Alex used to take a very quick bath to deal with the worst of the mud.

--

The rest of the day was mostly spent under cover as the rain only seemed to get worse, with lots of lighting to boot. Watching the storm from the cover of their tent, Alex had to admit that he was very impressed with the place, to replicate such weather conditions so nicely. This time though, Alexr17;s new patch for the tent held up, the towel much stronger and with the leaf patch under it, keeping most of the rain out.

The rain continued on well into the night as well. Alex had volunteered to stay up for a while, babysitting a fire he had just barely managed to start. With all of the wet wood around them, Alex was lucky to find enough dry wood to start a fire, which he used to slowly dry some of their clothing as well as dry some more wood to burn later.

Alex had stayed up a long portion of the night, looking over the camp before finally passing out.

= = = = = =

The final day of the day of the test started off just like last night, heavy rains and Alex and Aelita just decided to stay in their tent. They had most of their objectives done as it was, the only thing that they had left to do was find a few nests, which they had trouble finding. Alex mostly blamed on the location. When he first picked the spot based on the map he was given, he had assumed that there would be plenty of berries around.

Still, they started to pack up as they woke up. Alex was doing fine, but in the middle of pulling down things off of the clothesline Aelita set up, Alex got his foot stuck in a small thing of roots. He went to turn, but his foot didnr17;t turn with him as he fell onto his side. He yelled out as Aelita quickly rushed over to him.

r0;Alex, are you okay?r1; She asked rather worried.

Alex went to get up, but quickly found himself on the ground again, his leg was acting up and big time.

Aelita quickly pulled his pants leg up and took his shoe off while he was busy keeping his leg elevated and straight, easier said then done on the not so even ground that he clothesline was next too. Alexr17;s leg was already swollen and Aelita put her hiking pack under his leg before grabbing a towel and dipping it in the pond before bringing it back and carefully wrapping Alexr17;s leg in the towel.

r0;Ir17;llr30; be okay.r1; He stated slowly, still in pain helping wrap the leg as both of their beacons started flashing.

r0;Three hours remaining.r1; The prerecorded messaged started playing. r0;You may now start disassembly of your camps and begin your walk back to the exit.r1; A small light on the edge of the beacon light up pointing them in the direction of the exit. In addition, the rain quickly started to slow down to light drizzle now.

r0;Well, at least thatr17;s some good news.r1; Alex smiled a bit. He tried to get up again, but it wasnr17;t going to happen then.

r0;You sit and rest that leg.r1; Aelita stated rather firmly. r0;You did a lot of work here, now let me take care of sum.r1; She left him her pack to rest his leg.

Alex went to argue, but just looked at him and he stayed quiet, she was just as stubborn as he was at times. Doing it alone though, it took Aelita about an hour to take everything down and put their things away in addition to burying their camp fire making sure it wouldnr17;t light itself up again.

While Alexr17;s leg had calmed down a lot by the time that Aelita had finished, he still had a bit of trouble getting up. He still managed to get up on one leg with ease, but walking on his right leg was a bit hard. Aelita found him a good walking stick though and they started walking back. It took them a fair bit longer to get back however; they still had a good ways to go when their beacons sounded again. r0;Attention. Your test is now over.r1; The beacon stated in the same recorded tone as before. r0;You may now exit the dome. You have two hours to make it to the exit. If you require assistance, please press the emergency call button now.r1;

Aelita looked to him as the device finished its message, but he shook his head. r0;Itr17;s not the much further, I can make it.r1; He said as he started walking again, carefully walking around a large berry patch.

Aelita gave him a slightly worried look, but merely helped him along. It took another half-hour for them to reach the door that led out of the dome, a few more groups around them as well. In addition to Mr. Williams, Miss Rise and Luna were both there, along with their counterparts. Seeing Alex come walking up with a walking stick, Luna quickly walked up.

r0;Alex, are you alright?r1; Luna asked taking his pack.

r0;My leg is acting up. I twisted it while taking down our tent and my leg followed along.r1; Alex explained taking off his beacon handing that to Mr. William along with Aelitar17;s.

Luna placed a hand over his leg, and closed her eyes, checking it herself. r0;I donr17;t feel anything out of place, but you take it easy.r1; She said. r0;You can both take a ticket for use of the showers. In the meantime, there is a full buffet set out, go get something warm to eat.r1;

Before either of them could make comment though, they heard a small beeping noise coming from Mr. Williams. r0;Excuse me, Miss Hope. I think this is one of your students paging us.r1; He held up a pad to her showing her a map of the place. r0;It belongs to Dexter Jones, you said he might be a bit slow at a few things.r1;

Luna nodded. r0;Ir17;ll go check on him.r1; She vanished in a flash of light as Miss Rise walked over. r0;Come on, letr17;s go.r1; Miss Rise helped him out of the jungle dome into the control dome where several other mons were busy putting their bags away and gathering up their personal belongings that they had put away at the start of the test. Many more were busy getting something to eat while there was a small line near the bathrooms.

Alex took some time merely resting his leg, deciding to wait a bit before grabbing a ticket to get into the showers, but Aelita was in a bit of hurry to get in the shower, grabbing hers before she even set her pack down.

The rest of the day was fairly easy, a few mons getting check ups for minor injuries, Alex being one of the worst that he could see. He could however tell that there were some mons missing, but it was impossible to tell right now whether or not they just hadnr17;t shown up yet or had to be pulled out early from the test.

By the end of the day though, everyone was out and accounted for, everyone had a good warm shower, and had been fed. The busses left a little late, but it was a quiet ride back, and Andrew was waiting for them at the school. From there, it was back to Samuelr17;s house for a late dinner and bit of talking, but both Alex and Aelita decided to call it night early.