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“Overnight Flight Bui-Lay” by SignificantOtter (part 1 of 2) [18+]
19th September 2022 • The Voice of Dog • Rob MacWolf and guests
00:00:00 00:28:21

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[18+] While visiting a country that holds onto the backwards ideas of Pokemon as pets and unequal partners, a buizel named Calla struggles to make her own independent way. When her flight home is delayed, she must rely on a human stranger, Avi, to help her through the discriminatory customs of the Kanto airport. However, the two soon find themselves sharing a more intimate connection.

Today’s story is the first of two parts of “Overnight Flight Bui-Lay” by SignificantOtter, who writes about Pokémon and kobolds under their penname BuiTales, and has been published in anthologies such as Fang 9 by Furplanet. You can find more of their stories as BuiTales on Sofurry.com or mentioned on their twitter, @RunningOtter.

Read for you by Khaki, your faithful fireside companion.

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https://thevoice.dog/episode/overnight-flight-bui-lay-by-significantotter-part-1-of-2-18

Transcripts

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Today's story concerns adult subject matter for mature listeners.

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If that's not your cup of tea,

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or there are youngsters listening,

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please skip this one

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and come back for another story another time.

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You’re listening to The Voice of Dog. I’m Khaki, your faithful fireside companion,

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and Today’s story is the first of two parts of

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“Overnight Flight Bui

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-Lay” by SignificantOtter,

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who writes about Pokémon and kobolds under their penname BuiTales,

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and has been published in anthologies such as Fang 9 by Furplanet.

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You can find more of their stories

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as BuiTales on Sofurry.com or

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mentioned on their twitter, @RunningOtter.

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Please enjoy “Overnight Flight Bui-Lay”

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by SignificantOtter, Part 1 of 2 Calla stared at the digital board perched on the wall of the Kanto airport.

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Her brow furrowed,

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as if she could will the blinking letters and numbers into the words she needed to see.

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She fought to keep her propeller tails still

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as they buzzed with anxiety.

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There was no neon yellow text reading Unovan Airlines flight 8114.

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Castelia International Airport. Terminal 2.

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Gate 30. 10:37pm.

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She checked her phone again.

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Her stomach turned like a washing machine.

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New aches stiffened her back and neck.

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Clear as day, the booking read 10:37am. The flight that was supposed to bring Calla back to her soft, cushioned bed and heated pool had left nearly eleven hours ago. She groaned and shifted her backpack to redistribute

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the weight across her shoulders.

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It suddenly weighed far too much.

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Flights were busiest in the early afternoon,

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and now the purposeful crowds that flocked between gates were petering out.

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The ticket counter only had a line two long,

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a man with an Orange Islands t-shirt

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and a woman with her mightyena.

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Calla shot the other pokémon a quick,

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judging look, and then glanced away.

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He looked back at her with confusion but didn't say anything.

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He didn't deserve the animosity, of course,

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but Calla was in a foul mood.

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On top of missing her flight,

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the day's fun included

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having to go through three separate taxi drivers to find one willing to drive her to the airport unchaperoned by a human,

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the check-in counter attendant

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cooing over her and her

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'adorable little suitcase' as if she were a child,

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and a condescending security guard loudly calling her representative in Unova

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to verify that he actually had sponsored her plane ticket,

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rubbing in the fact

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that she wasn't able to book one

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on her own. The woman at the counter was a middle-aged human with brownish hair and a sense of style from ten years before.

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Calla brushed down her fur and stepped forward until she stood a meter back from the desk.

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There, she could see past it despite her three-foot stature.

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“When will your human be back from the restroom, honey?"

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she asked. Calla cringed but did her best to stay polite.

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As much as she wanted to lash out, she swallowed the venom that threatened to spit from her mouth

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as if she were a seviper.

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“I missed my flight.

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When's the soonest I can reschedule for?"

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she asked. At the same time, she held out her phone with the human translation jotted neatly down on a notepad app.

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Text was far easier when the attendant only heard a “Buizel bui. Bui bui buizel bui," from her.

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Some humans were adept at understanding pokémon speech.

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Calla couldn't rely on that.

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“Oh, honey! I'm so sorry.

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There's a flight tomorrow at nine.

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Would that work for you and your human?"

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Calla fumed for a moment,

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taking a breath to still herself

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before tapping furiously on the pad.

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This time she didn't echo the written words with her own voice.

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They would certainly have reflected her frustration.

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“Nine in the afternoon, or nine in the morning?

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I don't have a human with me. I have a remote sponsor in Unova.

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Here is the documentation and the number you can call to confirm." “Oh!

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Well, isn't that just funny.

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Times sure do change,

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huh there… Calla? Isn't that just marvelous? Trying out a trip on your own, without your human! He must be very trusting.

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trusting." Calla gritted her teeth.

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“Nine in the morning

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or nine in the afternoon?" she typed.

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“Oh! Bless you, you've had a long day, haven't you?

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Nine in the morning, dear.

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dear." After squeezing her eyes tight

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and then opening them again,

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nothing had changed, so Calla nodded and wrote,

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“Change me to that flight. 9 AM to Castelia." “Sure, darling." The attendant tapped away at her screen.

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With the whirring of machinery, a thick paper ticket inched out of her printer.

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Calla accepted it, then hurried away.

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Her shoulders ached with anxiety.

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She just needed to power through another day,

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and then everything would be over.

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She could be back in her home in Driftwood City,

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buy bread from the ponyta baker who always gave her the freshest loaves,

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practice harp with her human instructor

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who never treated her any different than his human clients,

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and hack away at online programs for her remote job

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where her aptitude with computers was the only thing about her that mattered.

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At least in a hotel room she could get away from all the dogged eyes and horrible, awkward interactions.

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Although Calla loved seeing the sights and tasting the food of Kanto,

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she was more than ready to be far away from their attitudes towards pokémon that seemed to lag fifty years behind the more modern parts of the world.

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The Dreams of Kanto was the only transit hotel nestled in the international terminal.

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It served as a tiny,

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overpriced place for delayed or connecting travelers to sleep

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without having to go back through customs and security.

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The rooms were cramped,

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but free of the blaring overhead announcements

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that made sleep in the chairs at the gates difficult.

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Gentle, golden-yellow light bathed the small, plush lobby.

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A set of desks cordoned off by a decorative glass wall sat opposite from a cushioned sitting area.

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The man at the desk counter

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was young with light bags under his eyes

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and a finger that kept tapping impatiently against the coarse wood.

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“What do you mean it got declined?"

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demanded the man currently being served.

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He was tall and young with a mop of brown hair.

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“There's two hundred on the card!

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That's plenty for a single room.

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room." “I'm sorry, sir," the man behind the counter said,

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clearly not at all sorry.

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“The card is showing a balance of fifty-two.

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-two." “But that's how much I had yesterday!

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Silph Co. was supposed to refill it.

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Can you like,

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put credit on it? Or just bill me tomorrow? They'll definitely refill it.

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it." Doubt had crept into his words.

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“That's not our policy.

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We take credit cards, but this isn't a credit card.

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card." The unfortunate customer stammered,

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standing there at the counter as if some act of Arceus might suddenly blast more money into his card.

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Finally, after a pointed stare from the attendant,

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he took the card back,

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spent an awkwardly long moment struggling to slot it back into his wallet,

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and then went over to the lounge.

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“Please be aware that we have a twenty-minute complimentary period for non-guests to use our lounge.

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After that, we will have to charge you.

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Next." “Oh, for fuck's sake!"

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Calla approached with a bleary expression.

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The receptionist wasn't putting on a fake smile and cheery facade, so she was happy to avoid the charade herself.

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She typed up then held out,

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“One room, checking out tomorrow.

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Here are my documents.

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How much?" She reached up to plop her passport,

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ticket, and pokémon identification form onto the counter as well.

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“One hundred ten, and I'll need your human's signature,"

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came the human's flat reply.

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Calla's chest tightened.

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“I…" she started, then paused.

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“No, you fucking don't.

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I have my pokémon identification papers there with the address, phone number, and passport number of my sponsor.

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That's everything you fucking need!

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You don't need a damn signature from some fucking human

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who I'm paying to sit by a phone to tell you that yes, I'm fucking traveling by myself.

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Yes, I fucking have every right to be here. And yes,

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my sponsor who I purchased

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is fucking okay with it!"

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He stood there and stared at her,

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listening to her outburst of “Buis!" and “Buizels!"

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with a blank expression.

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“Ma'am," he started,

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“communicate any questions you have in a comprehensible language. I need a physical human signature. We're a private company, and it's within our rights to request one.

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one." A growl rose unbidden in Calla's throat,

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but she quelled it.

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So, the asshole understood at least some of what she said.

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Just like the man before her who she'd eyed with condescension,

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she stood sputtering for a minute before swiping her documents from the counter

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and storming off to the lounge.

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“Please be aware that we have a twenty-minute complimentary-

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-" “I fucking get it!"

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Calla barked back.

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She sat down on a couch

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that was more spring than cushion.

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The brown-haired man furiously typed at his phone an empty armchair away.

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She slumped against the back, which at least helped with the stress aches in her shoulders.

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“What a dick, right?"

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he muttered, just loud enough for her to hear.

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“Turns out my company forgot there was a day of travel after the actual trip.

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They cut off my stipend yesterday.

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And the finance guys are out of the office and won't be back for another eight hours.

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hours." Calla shook her head in

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a mild acknowledgment.

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She thought about leaving it at that.

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She was so done with humans for the day.

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But she couldn't resist an open avenue to vent at least one of her pent-up frustrations.

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She pulled out her phone

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and began to tap, but the man stopped her.

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“It's cool. Just talk to me.

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I'll tell you if I didn't get something.

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I'm Avi, by the way.

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way." “Calla," the buizel said,

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tucking her phone back into the side pocket on her backpack.

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“And sure, fuck that guy.

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Stick up his ass like a damn Sudowoodo.

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I've got everything I need!

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I wouldn't be in the Zekrom-damned airport if I didn't have a valid pokémon identification form!

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I've stayed in hotels

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every damn night of this trip, and sure, some were jerks about it,

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but none of them tried to pull such a

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bullshit stunt on me." Calla's paws gesticulated wildly in frustration.

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Her tails furiously spun behind her.

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“Woah!" Avi said with a laugh,

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ducking his head with an embarrassed smile.

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“Sorry there. I know I said I didn't need any writing, but I guess my friends go easy on me. But I think I still got the gist.

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gist." He scratched the back of his neck.

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“Sorry. Geez. I can't imagine having to get someone else to sign everything for you.

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Like you're a child. Must be exhausting." Calla nodded. Weirdly,

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as Avi voiced sympathy for her feelings,

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her urge to vent started to fade.

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She shook her head.

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“I just want a damn room.

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Some peace and quiet.

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quiet." “Yeah, I get it. Me too. Shit, I've been up for twenty hours at this point. I want a pillow under my head and a few fleeting hours of sleep. But the check isn't coming in until tomorrow when I've got my flight,

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and the company decided on this stupid prepaid thing rather than a credit card like any normal, sane creature would want." Calla sighed. She took her propeller tail into her paws

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and fiddled with the joint where it split into two ends.

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“You know… fuck, I really hate asking this. But it's so obvious, and—" “No!

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I know," Avi butted in.

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“I just, I didn't want to sound like a pervert or anything. I'll be happy to sleep on the floor if you want me to. But it'd be great to share a room. Yeah."

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Calla's brows could have risen right up off her face.

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“Uhh, I was going to suggest I pay for two rooms. You sponsor mine,

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and you pay me back tomorrow.

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tomorrow." The human's face flushed beet red.

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That was one serious advantage to fur.

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For all the drawbacks of grooming it, fur effectively hid both the blush tinging her own cheeks

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and the heat burning her ears.

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After her initial embarrassment,

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she wanted to snicker at the horror on Avi's face.

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It wasn't any sort of disgust,

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which she very much appreciated—she saw plenty of that regarding human and pokémon relationships

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in less-progressive media.

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Instead, his face was frozen with the dread of waiting to learn just how badly he fucked up. Though, as she thought about it,

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his idea really wasn't that bad.

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The guy had been friendly.

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They were both exhausted.

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Her bank account was running in the red after all the hoops she had to go to for the trip.

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It wouldn't hurt to save some money and let this guy crash on her floor.

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Plus, with her pokémon abilities,

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she wasn't worried about him trying something untoward.

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“Wow. I don't know why

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I didn't think of that first, I just

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—uh," Avi stammered.

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“Two rooms of course. That's fine.

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I'll pay you back tomorrow and—" “Hey,

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look, I could definitely stand for a cheap room after all those Kanto prices.

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You can spend the night with me.

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You've got enough on that card for dinner, right?

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I'm no expert on human rituals, but from what I hear,

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you shouldn't just sleep with a lady without buying her dinner first,"

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she said, grinning

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as his face flushed even redder.

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Her own heart beat a little faster.

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“Oh. I uh. I didn't—Wow,

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I mean," “On the floor.

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floor." “Fuck.

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Right. Sweet Shaymin, sorry."

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Calla grinned and said, “So,

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are we getting out of here or what?" ***

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After Avi signed for the room

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and Calla paid for it,

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she led the man out into the well-lit, nearly empty hallway of the Saffron International Airport.

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She tucked the room's keycard in her pouch

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and began the hunt for a restaurant that was still open.

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Unfortunately, that list was limited to several dimly-lit refrigerated kiosks

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with prepackaged sandwiches and salads sold by bleary-eyed cashiers,

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three fast food joints,

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and a cafe whose terrible coffee Calla already had the displeasure of experiencing.

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“Tacos are romantic, right?"

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Avi asked with a grin.

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He seemed to have gotten ahold of himself after his initial nervousness wore off.

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“Romance is a very important part of that exotic, human ritual you were so curious about.

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about." “Now, this romance of yours, doesn't it usually include a bottle of wine?"

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“Lucky you, I snagged this at the duty-free store earlier,"

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the man said, shuffling his backpack around

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to retrieving a bottle of sparkling wine sealed in a plastic bag.

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“Now, I know girls like a bad boy, and let me tell you—it's tax fraud to open this here before I get to my destination!"

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With a waggle of his eyebrows,

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he dug his fingers into the plastic and,

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with way more difficulty that Calla thought it should take,

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stretched the plastic until it tore.

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He hoisted out the bottle

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and unwrapped the foil around its neck.

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“Every girl's dream date," Calla said, laughing into her paw.

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“Cheap tacos and bubbly.

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bubbly." The pop echoed through the late-night corridors.

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A man startled at his terminal,

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then turned back to his book.

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Wispy mist rose from the bottle.

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Avi tilted it to pour into two disposable plastic cups.

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The first flimsy cup toppled right over,

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splashing onto Calla's fur.

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Avi immediately tilted the bottle back up.

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He jumped up. “Oh! Oh shit, I'm sorry, Calla. I forget how light these damn things are!

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Do you need to—" “Change?"

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Calla asked, interrupting him.

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She laughed as she retrieved a handkerchief from her pouch.

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“What fur color do you think would look good on me?

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Maybe instead of orange, I'll put on a blue fur coat?

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Or one of those rare gold colors!" “That uh,

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that was pretty dumb, wasn't it?"

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Avi said with a nervous laugh.

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“So… do you need to wash out that fur or something?

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I hope it's not too much of a pain to deal with!

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I'd hate to try and get that stuff out of my hair.

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hair." “Don't worry about it! And hey,

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I wear clothes sometimes.

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Kanto folks just give me weird looks about it.

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So, whatever. I just go naked around here.

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Fur hides most everything important.

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important." The handkerchief dabbed up most of the small spill,

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though she patted down the bit that had pooled on the table with a napkin.

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“Liquids don't stick well to my fur.

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It probably only got on the outermost bit, and that'll be easy to rinse out later.

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But now." Calla stood the cup back up and steadied it between her paws.

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“I need some damn wine.

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wine." Avi poured her glass of wine,

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and then carefully filled his own cup.

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They ate their tacos, which tasted of salt,

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freezer-burned cabbage, and mystery meat,

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and talked about Avi's job at Silph Co.

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where he studied the physics behind ghost typed pokémon.

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He chatted excitedly about the difference in composition between pokémon such as sableye and the more gaseous gastly.

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As much as he tried to dumb it down for her non-physicist mind,

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most of it flew over her head.

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Calla, in turn, talked about her own job.

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She'd recently worked with a company building a website for pokémon speech recognition training for humans.

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She carefully broached some of the challenges of attending meetings that were dominated by humans.

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Then, as Avi commiserated with her,

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she waxed on about the weird treatment she received

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even when the company naturally attracted people who wanted to communicate effectively with pokémon.

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By the time the conversation had died down,

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Calla was shocked to find that almost two hours had passed.

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The tacos had been reduced to crumbs long ago,

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and the poor sparkling wine was hopelessly flat.

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But Calla was happy,

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with a flush hidden by the fur of her cheeks

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and the feeling that she could keep talking to this man for hours more.

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They capped the sorrowful remains of the sparking wine with plastic from the

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torn duty-free bag,

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a rubber band, and plans to finish it off

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right before their flights.

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Then made their way back to the transit hotel just a few gates away.

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The hotel room was tiny.

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Calla immediately felt bad about asking the man to sleep on the floor.

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He was over twice her size.

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The twin-sized bed was grand and spacious for her,

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but even it would barely fit him comfortably.

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Next to the bed was less than two feet of floor width,

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and the length was cut off by a nightstand on one side.

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At least the luggage shelf on the other side was raised,

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so his feet could slip underneath.

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Calla helped lay the spare blankets onto the floor.

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With the pillow set up for him,

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it didn't look terribly bad, but Avi still had to bend his knees up and head slightly down to fit in the small space.

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They took turns freshening up at the communal washroom down the hall. Calla thought about a shower but decided she'd rather wash up in the morning for her flight.

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So, she returned to tuck herself into the covers and then

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splay herself out on the comfortable mattress.

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Avi contorted himself to fit in his makeshift floor bed.

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“Do you mind if I turn off the lights now, Calla?"

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he asked. “Sure." Avi twisted himself up into a squat,

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and then stood. He flicked off the lights.

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Just a dim blue glow from the switch remained.

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The sounds of him shuffling back down in the darkness

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ratcheted up the guilt twisting Calla's gut.

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As fucking angry as she was about humans in general right now,

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Avi was a really cool and thoughtful dude.

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He was nice to talk to,

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smart, respectful,

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and best of all, he treated her like a real person,

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not some talking cartoon pet.

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He didn't deserve to wake up cramping,

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his back sore, just in time for an uncomfortable flight

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squished into a too-small airplane seat.

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“Get the fuck up here, Avi," Calla said.

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The shuffling stopped.

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Silence continued for half a dozen heartbeats.

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“What?" he finally asked.

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He sounded nervous.

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“You don't need to sleep on the floor.

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Just get into bed with me.

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It's fine." “You aren't

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going to sleep on the floor, then?"

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he asked. Calla considered it.

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There was plenty of space down there for a person of her small stature. But… Sweet Shaymin was this bed so damn soft and nice after such a long day.

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“No. Is that a problem?"

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“I uh…" he hesitated.

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Then, the mattress strained as the man's weight tugged at its springs.

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“No, I don't mind. Do you mind? I just,

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I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

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His hand found her side,

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then shifted just behind her back so he could lower himself down.

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Calla, of course, was right in the middle of the bed.

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She scooted forward to offer him space.

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“You're not going to make me uncomfortable. It's fine.

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fine." Finally, the covers tugged down

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enough for Avi to awkwardly shift himself underneath.

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As soon as his legs were in,

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Calla realized just how little space there was for the two of them. Calla didn't like sleeping up against the edge of beds.

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She preferred to sleep towards the center.

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However, even tucked tightly against the sheets on the far third of the bed,

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Avi's left shoulder dug into her arm.

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Of course, the human had to be as cramped as she was, if not more so.

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His tense arm made it obvious that he was trying hard not to move. Calla figured that the guy was horrified at the chance he'd do something inappropriate by shifting.

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Or maybe he just didn't want to stretch his luck.

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“Sardines in a can, huh?"

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Avi joked with a strained laugh.

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His shoulder twitched.

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Calla sighed. “Are you a cuddler?"

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“Huh? What do you mean?"

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“When you sleep. Do you cuddle things, people, whoever?"

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“I… yeah, I guess I do.

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I'll do my best, though!

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I can try and curl towards the side. Maybe if

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we untucked the sheets more it'd be easier?

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I worry I might slip out of the bed, though…"

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“Would you have an easier time…"

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Calla hesitated, trying to figure out what to say that wouldn't sound so leading.

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Then, she realized her hesitation only made the implication worse.

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She was very glad that her fiery blush was well-hidden.

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“Spooning me?" “Oh—" Avi said through a sharp intake of breath.

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“I just, uh, I wouldn't have thought that

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—" “Look, dude," Calla said, cutting him off.

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“I want you comfortable.

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I'll like it. You'll like it.

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No fucking harm in it.

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it." “But aren't you—" “I'm not worried about you trying anything,"

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Calla said flatly.

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“Not only are you the last boy I'd expect to get handsy, but even if you did make a move,

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I could beat the shit out of you with one paw tied behind my back.

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back." Slowly, the warm mass of human behind her shifted.

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Calla sighed in relief,

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moving back from the tight pressure where the covers met the mattress.

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The human's arm wrapped around her side,

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pulling her against the bunched-up fabric of his t-shirt.

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Smooth skin tickled the fur of her lower back.

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His fingers nestled in the fur under her neck

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as his elbow rested over her hip.

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Warmth radiated from him.

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“I uh, to be clear,"

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Avi started. His voice vibrated through the pillow.

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He audibly swallowed.

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“I'd never try anything with you. Not in a million years.

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years." For some reason, that sort of hurt.

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Calla's chest tightened.

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“I… just humans for you, huh?"

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“No! I mean, I really like you. I mean, if we matched on Tinder or something,

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then for sure, uh—" Avi stopped.

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He swallowed again.

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He shifted his hips so that her rear pressed against his thigh instead of his crotch.

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Calla's heart pounded.

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She hoped he couldn't feel her beating heart with the hand that cuddled up around her chest.

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Because she could certainly feel his own hammering heart against her back.

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“You're attracted to pokémon?"

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she asked slowly.

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Not to make sure he understood her

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'buis', but to ensure that she herself didn't say anything stupid.

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She realized with a furious blush

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that he'd tilted his hips away for precisely that reason.

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A pause. “Yeah." Calla shivered.

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The heat from her cheeks

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flushed through the rest of her body.

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She focused hard to keep her tails from involuntarily buzzing.

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When she opened her muzzle,

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she couldn't help but ask

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in a quiet voice,

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“I'm making you hard?"

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A longer pause. “Yeah.

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“Yeah." Before she fully realized the words that were coming out of her mouth,

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Calla said, “You can be handsy if you want.

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want." “You're… not going to beat me up with one paw tied behind your back?"

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He only half sounded like he was joking.

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Calla shivered. Her tails fluttered with her nerves.

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Was she really going to do this? Fuck a man she'd met hours before?

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And a human? She'd been so frustrated with humans and their thickheadedness this whole trip.

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She'd nearly lost her mind at all the obnoxious ignorance in the airport alone.

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But Avi was understanding.

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He was cautious and considerate,

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and she could tell that he meant it.

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He acted so genuinely interested in her life and her job.

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He even enjoyed her dry sense of humor.

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Most importantly,

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when he looked at her,

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she could tell that he saw a person.

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“Not if you aren't into that," she said with a weak chuckle.

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Avi chuckled too.

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Warmth blossomed inside her chest

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to wash away some of her nerves.

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The man's hand shifted through the fur of her belly.

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It was so big, so warm.

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She'd had sex with a few pokémon outside her egg group before,

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mostly furred ones,

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and was used to the way a paw would hang over her side as the pokémon bucked into position

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or how she'd duck underneath a scaly belly

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to nuzzle into a male's musky cockslit.

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A human's smooth skin was so warm and intimate

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with how it parted fur while sliding down her belly.

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The way his clothed chest

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pressed to her back was reminiscent of a fur coat

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acting as a layer of separation.

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“Take off your shirt.

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shirt." Calla said. She then

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paused, feeling a bit odd about giving the poor man orders.

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He'd been pushed around plenty that night.

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“Please?" Avi paused,

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but then his hand left her chest

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and shuffled with his clothing.

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Her skin felt cold without that hand against her fur.

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Sudden longing washed through her.

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He hadn't even really touched her yet.

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Not anywhere that counted.

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The buizel regretted her decision

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only until the warmth of Avi's bare chest

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pressed against her.

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Then she shuddered,

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reveling in the warmth,

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the feeling of such intimate connection with his body.

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His hand returned,

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this time lower. Fingers shifted over her belly,

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through her fur. For a moment,

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Calla wondered what he wanted.

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Then, with a jolt of desire that caused her tails to thwap thwap against the tightly tucked sheets,

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she realized he was hunting for her nipples.

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The thick, water-resistant buizel fur could make that difficult,

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especially in the dark.

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Her shoulder ached a little from the awkward angle

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as she shifted her paw from underneath her,

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but she tried not to make any noise that would give her discomfort away

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—nothing that could ruin this moment

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and dissuade the gentle giant from exploring her body.

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She settled her paw carefully over his fingers,

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guiding them to her uppermost row of teats.

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A shiver of excitement

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arced her back as his fingers dug through her smooth,

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thick coat and closed around a nipple.

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A squeaking gasp

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escaped her maw.

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She shifted her hips and realized

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just how wet she was for him.

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This was the first of two parts of

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“Overnight Flight Bui-Lay”

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by SignificantOter,

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read for you by Khaki,

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your faithful fireside companion.

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Tune in next time

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to find out whether Calla beats up Avi with one paw tied behind her back!

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And how her night with Avi transforms

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her frustrating airport experience.

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As always, you can find more stories on the web at thevoice.dog,

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or find the show wherever you get your podcasts.

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Thank you for listening

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to The Voice of Dog.

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