I awoke with a startled breath.
Something poked my cheek.
"Ahjussi?"
Ivy's face hovered inches from mine, finger extended.
"...That's weird."
Before I could process the dream, my gaze drifted upward.
A blue, translucent window floated in the air.
[READY FOR A QUEST?]
ACCEPT / DECLINE
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I stared blankly at the floating text.
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"…A quest? Seriously?"
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Ivy tilted her head, squinting. "Mister, are you okay? You're staring at nothing."
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I rubbed my eyes. The words didn't fade.
Nope. Definitely not a dream.
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[QUEST: Have a Nice Day]
Objective: Spend a peaceful day outside with ???.
Reward: ???
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"…This has to be some kind of joke," I muttered.
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"Shopping!" Ivy suddenly grinned. "You promised we'd go today!"
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"I- wait, when did I promise that?"
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"You did," she said with all the confidence of someone who absolutely made that up just now?. "Just now."
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Oh wait I think I remember Saying we go shopping yesterday...
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I sighed. "Right. Guess I have no choice then."
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I reached toward the window. And Tap accept.
"Accept."
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The letters shimmered, dissolving into sparkles.
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[QUEST ACCEPTED.]
A faint ting! echoed in my head.
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Great. My first "quest" after meeting a literal dream goddess… is to go shopping with a kid I picked up in a dumpster. (Ohhh, See what I did there??? Heheheheh)
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…Still, her smile made it hard to complain.
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Si Hon stretched, groaning as his back cracked. "Alright, before we go anywhere…"
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He glanced toward Ivy, who was already standing near the door barefoot, her toes curling against the floor
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"…We should eat first." I said
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"Breakfast?" Her eyes lit up instantly. "Do you have pancakes?"
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"Do I look like someone who makes pancakes?" i muttered, already heading downstairs.
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She followed him, her steps soft against the wooden floor, humming something that didn't have a melody but somehow sounded happy.
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The house was quiet too big for one person. Si Hon opened the fridge, half expecting nothing but bottled water and expired milk.
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"Eggs and rice it is, I'll just buy some later. Since we're going out anyways" i said.
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Ivy peeked over the counter. "You cook?"
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"Barely."
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She giggled. "Then I'll help! I'm good at stirring!"
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I raised an eyebrow. "That's… oddly specific."
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As we worked in the kitchen well— i worked while she mostly talked—the awkward silence began to melt.
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"So," I said after a while, glancing at her. "I don't think I even asked your name yesterday."
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"It's Ivy!" she said proudly, puffing out her chest a little. "And you're Mister…?"
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"Si Hon."
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"I'll just call you Mister Si!" she declared with a grin.
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"…No."
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"Why? Well what about mister Hon?"
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No response.
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"Ahjussi?"
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"Hmmm... That sounds old. But sure? That works"
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The smell of fried eggs filled the air, and for the first time that morning, Si Hon almost forgot about the floating text box and the dream goddess.
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Right now, breakfast with a barefoot kid felt more real than any of that.
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They sat by the small kitchen table, plates steaming with fried eggs and rice. Ivy swung her legs beneath the chair, humming between bites.
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I watched her eat—tiny bites, but fast, like she hadn't had a proper meal in a while.
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Well surely she didn't lol, I cackle in my mind.
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"…Hey," I said between mouthfuls, "how old are you, anyway?"
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She looked up, cheeks puffed out with food. "Ten!" she said proudly after swallowing.
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"Ten, huh." I leaned back, glancing at the faint blue system window still hovering above the table.
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"not six or seven?" The words [QUEST: Have a Nice Day] glowed softly, like it was quietly judging me for eating instead of adventuring.
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Tsk, this makes me remember vesper.
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"Ten years old and already part of my first quest," I muttered. "Lucky you."
(Sarcasm thing like yk. Si Hon: "Out of all the people who could've been part of my first quest… it's a barefoot ten year old I found in a dumpster. What a great start!")
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Ivy tilted her head. "You're talking weird again, ahjussi."
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"Right, sorry." I rubbed the back of my neck. "You sure you're not secretly thirty? You act like an old lady."
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She gasped. "Do not!"
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"Yeah, yeah." I chuckled, eyes flicking back to the window. "So… where were you before I found you?"
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Ivy stopped swinging her legs, Her spoon hovered mid-air.
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"…Um."
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She looked down at her plate, poking the rice with her spoon."I don't really remember."
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"Don't remember?" I asked.
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She shook her head slowly. "It was dark. Cold, I think. And… there was humming. Like a song, but I couldn't see who was singing."
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Dark and cold... Of course I picked you up in a dumpster... With a Filthy clothes... And it was night and cold...
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I glanced at the floating system window again, still there, glowing softly like it was listening.
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"…Right," I muttered, forcing a smile. "Well, guess that's over now. You've got breakfast and a quest. That's better than a dark alley, yeah?"
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She nodded quickly, smiling again, though her eyes lingered on the air beside me, like she saw something I couldn't.
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We finished eating in silence after that. Ivy hummed again, but quieter this time, like her mind was somewhere else.
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When the plates were empty, I leaned back with a sigh. "Alright. Let's clean up and get ready."
----_--- -_- —_—
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Time skip...! Si Hon looked outside the open window Seeing a Beautiful blue sky.
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It feels good to be alive right now...
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Then Steam rolled out from the bathroom door. The faint smell of expensive shampoo drifted into the hallway.
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I didn't even bother checking what she was doing in there. Probably used half the bottle, maybe the fancy looking soap too. Whatever. I could just buy more.
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Sighing. "Don't flood the place," I called lazily from the couch.
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"Okay! Ahjussi!" came her muffled voice, followed by the unmistakable splash, splash, splash.
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Yep. Definitely flooding the place.
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When she finally came out, her hair was damp and shiny, and she was wearing one of my old oversized shirts. I gave to her, it practically swallowed her whole.
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"It's so big!" she said, spinning once and nearly tripping over the hem.
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"Yeah, that's kinda the point," I muttered, grabbing my wristband from the table. "We're buying you something that actually fits."
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She grinned. "Can I pick the color?"
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I groaned. "Fine, but no pink explosion. I have limits."
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"Pink and yellow!"
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…I regret Eve—ry—thing.
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She giggled, already skipping toward the door.
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...
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"..."
"..."
The walk to the mall felt longer than it actually was.
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Maybe because Ivy couldn't walk five steps without stopping to point at something.
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"Ahjussi, look! A dog!"
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"Yes, I see it."
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"And that car — why's it red? Are they rich?"
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"…It's just paint."
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Every few seconds, another question. Every few steps, another distraction.
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Slndifbdisjdh I'm going to die!
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By the time we reached the mall entrance, I'd answered questions about birds, traffic lights, clouds, and why stores had glass doors, Dumbass.
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The mall's air-conditioning hit like a blessing. Bright lights, glossy floors, the faint sound of pop music playing overhead.
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Ivy's eyes sparkled like she just walked into another world.
"Whoa… It's so shiny!"
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"Yeah. Welcome to capitalism," I muttered, pushing my hands into my pockets.
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We passed by rows of stores, clothing?, toys, snacks. (He, Didn't see it.)
Naturally, she pointed at everything.
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"Ahjussi, can I get that?"
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"No."
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"What about that one?"
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"No."
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"Then… maybe this one?"
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"…Still no."
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Her cheeks puffed. "You're no fun."
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I sighed. "You said we're shopping for clothes, right? So we're getting clothes... No stuffed animals, no candy, no—"
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I paused when she gave me that look, head tilted, big green eyes shining with silent pleading.
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"…Fine. One candy."
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She cheered like she just won the lottery.
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I bought her one lollipop, after she's done munching on it. I thoughts of going on the second floor.
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The escalator hummed quietly as we rode up to the second floor.
Ivy leaned over the handrail, staring down like she'd just discovered magic.
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"Ahjussi, it's moving by itself!"
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"It's an escalator," I said, grabbing her before she leaned too far.
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"It's alive," she whispered dramatically.
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"Sure. Don't make it angry."
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She gasped and immediately stood straight.
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The second floor opened up into a blur of lights and chatter, food stalls, clothing stores!, and something loud echoing from the far end.
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Flashing colors. Electronic jingles.
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An arcade.
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Shit...
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Ivy's head turned that way like a magnet.
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"Ahjussi…"
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"No."
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"But—"
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"No."
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She clasped her hands together. "Just one game?"
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I sighed, staring at her big green eyes.
… Skd#msnsj#@$)$;(#!... Damn it.
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"Fine. One game. That's it."
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The moment we stepped inside, she was gone, a blur of tiny footsteps racing between machines.
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Neon lights reflected off her hair as she darted from claw machines to rhythm games, eyes wide with pure wonder.
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I leaned against a nearby wall, pretending not to smile.
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She didn't even know how half of these worked, but she looked like she'd been waiting her whole life to see them.
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She pointed at a claw machine filled with plush toys. "Ahjussi! That one! The bunny!"
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"Of course it's the hardest one."
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I slipped a few coins into the slot. The claw jerked to life, slow and wobbly. Ivy pressed her face to the glass as I guided it.
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Left… right… down—
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The claw caught the bunny by the ear… and dropped it halfway.
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I groaned. "fucking! This is Rigged."
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Ivy blinked. "Fu-" I looked at her. "What's rigged mean?"
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"It means this machine hates me."
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She giggled. "Then I'll help next time!"
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She didn't even care we lost. Her laugh echoed between the flashing lights and electronic jingles.
For the first time in a while, I caught myself smiling too?
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Wait no... Scratch that...
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I Sighed. Maybe this was part of the quest? Me smiling that is heheh alright!
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Then Ivy raised her fist in triumph.
"I—did—it! Look, look, Ahjussi!"
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She held up a tiny plush—barely the size of her palm. It wasn't even the bunny. It was a weird round blob with button eyes.
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Still, she looked like she'd just saved the world.
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"...That's a jellybean," I muttered.
"It's a bear!" she said proudly, hugging it to her chest.
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I smirked. Sure, kid. If you squint hard enough.
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She turned to me, grin sharp as her eyes sparkled under the arcade lights. "Your turn!"
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"Eh?"
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"You said one game. But we've been playing alot... and you played mine, so now it's your turn!"
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"That's not how logic works," I muttered, but she was already dropping another coin in.
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The claw descended again, slow, dramatic, and as rigged as ever.
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"Come on," I whispered, locking in, guiding the stick like it owed me money.
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It caught something—
the claw twitched—
and to my shock, it actually held on.
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Ivy gasped. "You did it! You did it, Ahjussi!"
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The prize dropped with a soft thunk.
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I stared down at it.
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A massive, round, smiling sunfish...
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"…That's not the bunny."
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Ivy blinked. "It's a fish."
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"…A big one."
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She snorted. "You're bad at bunnies."
"Don't push it."
Still, as we walked out of the arcade, her hugging the tiny bear-blob and me awkwardly holding a huge sunfish like some kind of loser, i couldn't help but laugh quietly to myself? I guess...
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Maybe this "quest" wasn't so bad after all.
(Ahhhhh that's so CLICHES!!!! Anyways cya nexty!!!)
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(Oh gosh!!! I love this chapter so much!!!! Rahhh to bad I still don't have some Viewers well I do have 2k? But uh... I'm sure they just missed lick this one and Left...)
(Sorry for late pose ... Wait I mean post it's because I was busy of SCHOOL... man I'm crying that's why!!! But as a apology I made it 2k words!!! Hehehhe)
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