Thaliawen "No, I don't think that be nice," Tania made a face, wrinkling her nose. If Daddy had to wear the hat forever--and ever, and ever, she would miss the chance to play with his hair. Or tap on his head! "He might get angry." Gluing a hat to somebody's head was certainly grounds to kick someone out!
"Not too much," Brenny said. It was one of those things; soon after losing Cecily he had wondered if there were anymore like him. He'd eventually learned, from others' surprise at his having a sibling, that it was an uncommon thing. "I think I will," he smiled at the scientist, "Karma liked hearing she was pretty. I think Tania needs to hear it too. She's even more rare than one of those blue mews!" He hesitated; maybe he was a god, according to that definition. "I don't," he said, with a shake of his head. "I think there must be someone causing legendaries to appear. Maybe its the same Pokemon who makes the stars appear. If there are eggs, though, there should be parents..." The celebi boy knew he'd come from an egg: but where had that egg come from?
MoogerMint Karma struggled to hold the laugh in for a moment, as it seemed that Tania took the joke seriously -- that just made the idea that much more funny! "No, I was just joking! That would be more like a practical joke, but we want him to actually like it. Or at least be forced to wear something crazy for a few hours because we made it out of the goodness of our hearts," the ditto stated with a knowing nod, hand over heart to emphasize the preposterous point. To be honest, Karma just wanted the doctor to look ridiculous for the rest of the evening; zhe didn't mind if he never wore it again after tonight, just as long as they got to see it on him! That's why they picked such clashing colors, wasn't it?
Grayson grinned, nodding his head, "I think you should, too. Tania has seemed to be pretty down lately. That might cheer her up." Despite being potentially teased for the compliment, Brenny seemed unfazed by the possible outcome; how brave! He wasn't sure he fully understood his comment about Tania's rarity, however, but decided not to pursue the answer -- Tania was a gem in her own right as it was. "I don't know anyone else who can do what you can, either," the man agreed, "Though nowadays, I don't know anyone that can do anything you kids can, that used to be pokémon." He pondered the idea of where the eggs came from, but there were too many unknown variables at play. "I think it might depend on the pokémon... I always thought your parents were the forest you came from. Maybe there's some alternate reality where everyone comes from..." he guessed, though the last one was merely a jab at science fiction, to indicate the futility of guessing.
Thaliawen "Oh, good!" Tania was pleased with this explanation. She liked the concept of gluing someone's hat to their head, but not Daddy's. "I think he will like it. It'll be very pretty and it comes from us. He loves everything we make him!" She was sure of it!
"Maybe you don't hug her enough," Brenny suggested. He knew he'd feel down if Connie didn't hug him regularly! "Or maybe she misses her brother. Tristan, you know. Maybe I could bring him over for her to see. He's staying with Dea. Like Timmy and Krissy!" He paused, considering Grayson's words, "You're right, Uncle Grayson! There's no one who can do what we can do. But you can learn all the things I can do, when I learn them. I can't do much yet, just magical leaf and time traveling. Daddy can't do either of those, but he can do other things." The celebi boy made a face. His parents were the forest? He supposed that made sense, sort of. "Maybe. I think its more like a time stream."
MoogerMint Karma wasn't so sure Grayson would really like the hat all that much -- he seemed to have an aversion to the bright colors Karma liked to pick for zher own clothing all the time, after all -- but zhe decided not to voice this opinion. It seemed like Tania's mood was much too fragile lately for such things, as if she was afraid of something bad happening at the first sign of discrepancy. Not to mention Karma didn't want her to take it wrong, as an attack on color choice! Despite first thinking that Tania was a prankster, it seemed that that might not have been the case, for she didn't seem to understand sarcasm. Karma was going to have to be more careful with word choice! "Mm... more ribbon?" Karma asked nervously, scraping a fingernail against the underside of the ribbon in order to make it curlier.
Grayson stifled a laugh and shook his head, "No I hug her plenty." Well really, it was more that Tania hugged HIM plenty, but he always hugged her back -- he'd never had such an attention-craving kid around before! More solemnly, he nodded his head at Brenny's next option, "That's very possiible. I've thought about that as well, but it seems to be a sore spot to her to speak of her previous living arrangements. I wouldn't want her to have a panic attack..." ...again. She was happy right now, but he had his attention on the things she said she needed, or hinted at. She was still confused and needed the time to heal, but if having her 'brother' over helped with that, then maybe it should be brought up again? As he scribbled some more notes down in observation of the surroundings' pokémon interactions, but snickered in reaction to the celebi at his side, "This is true. And you will let me know whenever you learn something new, won't you? Speaking of which, I've ever seen you use that move... will you show it to me? I'd like to see how it compares in your current form." Even in the past, he wasn't above studying his time-traveling compatriot! "Ah, but I was thinking about the fairy tales I used to read to my daughters. Sometimes something would be born from the area they were meant to protect, as a kind of defense mechanism if you will. While yes, they were fairy tales and therefore not real, such stories often have a little truth to them, but how much of it is false is not always obvious. I thought, perhaps, there was a little more truth to them," he explained, even if he didn't truly believe it. Part of being a good researcher was leaving these possibilities open, even if they were unlikely.
Thaliawen "Blue!" Tania decided, holding up a length of blue ribbon. She beamed at Karma. "Do you think he'd like blue? Oooh! I know, we can glue a hat to Brenny's head later! Let's make him one too!" While Tania was cautious about pranking Grayson, she wouldn't have been around Brenny or any stranger who might pass through. Ha, gluing a hat to Brenny's head would be priceless!
"Are you sure?" Brenny playfully rose an eyebrow, studying Grayson. "Hugs are healthy, you know, Uncle Grayson." He demonstrated by wrapping his arms around the man. "I can arrange it," he promised. "I'll have Tania see Tristan and see if that helps any. Then she might be happier, and people being happier is always good!" He paused at the man's question, considering it. Finally, the celebi smiled. "Stand back, then," he said. He took a step forward, eager to show off. He always was around Grayson: being observed was fun! He shot a flurry of leaves glowing in multicolored light forward. He turned to glance at the scientist. "Stories? I'll have to read them. Maybe there really is some truth in them."
MoogerMint Karma's smile returned more readily the more Tania's excitement clung to the air. At least she was having fun now! The ditto-child offered a quick nod, finding blue to be adequate even if zhe was still unsure as to what colors the scientist prefered, let alone when paired together with other colors. There was some mild hesitation when the mew considered pranking Brenny. While Karma was sure that Grayson wouldn't hate them if he was pranked, zhe didn't want to lose the friendship of someone who wasn't here as often! "Do you think... he wouldn't get mad if we did that?" the child asked tentatively, "He'd know we were just playing around, right?"
Grayson shrugged at the question, but patted Brenny on the shoulder with a chuckle as the boy hugged him, "Who knows if it's enough, but I figure if she needs more then she will tell me. I'd be happy to oblige if it helps her feel better. I know she's been through a lot." Of course, he would keep his eyes open for points in time that it looked like she needed a hug and wouldn't say anything, too, but that could oftentimes be missed... especially when one was a workaholic. "I think we should get her opinion on whether or not seeing her brother might help. I wouldn't want to assume, or make her feel worse for it. Maybe we can ask in a way that doesn't tip her off as to what we're going to do, so it can still be a bit of a surprise..." he considered, tapping his scruffy chin thoughtfully. At the posed instruction, Grayson scooted back, still held in a crouch as Brenny shot off a Magical Leaf move. He watched for a few moments before scribbling some notes down. After a moment, his eyes lifted from the clipboard and he reached for one of the conjured leaves to clip it onto the page, "It doesn't look like it's much different, all-in-all, but it still looks like there are different movements required to use it. Not too surprising when you take into consideration that you are built differently as well, and may use different parts of your body to get it to work just as effectively. Do you notice anything different with the move than you might have before your change?" The scientist scribbled a bit more text down, offering a bit of a pause before he nodded, "I'm sure we've still got the books stored somewhere. I'll have to dig them up and let you borrow them next time!" Who knew, maybe Brenny would really enjoy the fairytales, and might be able to find something that the man had missed!
Thaliawen "I don't think Brenny can get mad," Tania said, shaking her head. "But it'll be a nice prank! Brenny won't get mad at us!" She took Karma's hand and squeezed it. "I promise. Want to prank me instead?"
"You can never have too many hugs, Uncle Grayson! They're a special gift that comes from your heart, and you know what makes them even better? They're free! You never have to pay for hugs, because everyone has an unending supply. I'll never run out of hugs for you. Or Daddy." He paused, nodding. "We can ask if she misses him. Then, if she says yes, we can take her to see him! She'll be so surprised!" The celebi beamed at the idea. Reuniting a pair of siblings was important to him. Tania needed her brother, and he needed her. "I could never do it as a pokemon. I leveled up as I grew and learned, i think. When I first used it, it was an accident. I was just angry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone." He wrapped his arms around Grayson. "Yay! Me and Daddy can read them!"
MoogerMint Karma paused briefly to think on whether or not Brenny had the capacity for anger, but without the past memoties to back up such assumptions, zhe wasn't so sure zhe wanted to try testing such luck. They were friends with Brenny, sure, but he seemed even more touchy, and easily-upset... was this a good idea after all? However, reconsideration came quickly enough when Tania asked if Karma wanted to prank her. Wide-eyed, the ditto shook zher head, "No, we work better as a team!" Well... that answered that little dilemma. If Tania was so sure that Brenny wouldn't get mad, Karma didn't have the grounds to doubt her. "Okay, we'll prank Brenny. What do you think we should do?" zhe considered. Maybe something with the gift that Grayson was going to give him when they both got back?
Grayson chuckled at Brenny's obvious naivete, but in this case, the scientist knew the young celebi to at least be partially correct on the matter. He'd never really dealt with a traumatized child so much before, but over the course of the past couple months, he had found himself in charge of not one but TWO of them. It was almost overwhelming, or would be if he wasn't so stubborn about doing things right. "Just remember that not everyone likes hugs..." he warned, a slight cringe at the thought of Brenny randomly hugging any of the more... antisocial of their clients, "But in Tania's case, it's possible. Giving too many, unwarranted, may devalue it some, though, you know? I don't want to smother her; that could do the opposite of what we'd want. May even spoil her." There came another laugh at that, for that was something that could very well be unavoidable. He nodded to Brenny, finding his idea to be a good way to still surprise the young mew while also reuniting her with that who she once called 'brother.' However, verbal responses were pushed to the back of his mind for the moment as he wrote more notes down on Brenny's use of Magical Leaf, attention retrained, "That's fascinating... that means you can still learn and grow like a pokémon in your current form." Never mind the hurt that the celebi seemed to be feeling about harming another, but that all seemed to be the normal outcome of using any pokémon move. He was caught by surprise by the sudden hug, but smiled and pat the pixie-boy lightly on the back of the head, "It's no problem. You just ask whenever you want to borrow anything from me, I'm sure something can always be worked out!"
Thaliawen "I think it should be a hide behind the door and shout boo prank. Brenny doesn't seem very tough. I think it'll scare him." The mew girl wrapped the ditto in a hug. "Not a mean prank, he'd probably cry, and that might make Daddy mad. But shouting boo is fun!" She beamed, releasing her hold on the ditto child to demonstrate. She stretched out her arms over her head to appear taller, then cried, "BOO! See? It's fun!"
"I know, Arashi doesn't like hugs!" Brenny made a face at the memory of that meeting. "He says I'm a god, you know. He didn't like me much, I think. But mostly I think he was scared. I don't think he'd ever been hugged before." Arashi certainly hadn't seemed to understand Brenny: anymore than Brenny had understood him! "I dont think hugs can be devalued..." He considered this thoughtfully. "Maybe if I gave them to everyone, instead of just the special people I become friends with..." Huh! That was something to consider. Would Daddy's hugs ever be less special? Don't worry about that," he assured Grayson with a grin. "She was already spoiled, before I brought her to you." He paused, beaming at Grayson's words. "I think so. Eliot learned bounce after I caught him. He's my magikarp. I bet he'd like the stories too!"
MoogerMint Oh, so they weren't going to try to glue a hat on Brenny's head, should they choose to prank their mutual friend? That was a relief! Karma's grin was quickly replaced at the suggestion, "Mmn, you're right! I think that would be a fun prank, and not one that would make Brenny get mad!" The ditto returned the hug that Tania offered and giggled at the displayed instruction, "Ooh, you're good! So where do you think we should hide, to scare him best?" Blinking, Karma scanned the laboratory room, feet stationary as zhe twisted, "Maybe one of the cabinets... but they're a bit far from where they disappeared into the past..." How were they to jump out at the two of them in a scare attempt when they would probably be reappearing in the middle of the room? From behind a counter?
Grayson gave a smile and a slow nod when Brennen had relayed that he knew that not everyone liked hugs, happy to hear that he was learning such things out of experiencing them for himself -- a much better teacher, at times! "You might be on the right track there, with him. Sometimes it can be difficult to observe and do nothing, but time gives people the ability to reflect easier on times past," he concluded, blinking once in surprise before chuckling, "Though I'm sure you'd know that better than most, hm?" The explanation about how people viewed hugs, however, was a bit more difficult when it came to the value... "You are absolutely right. I think, for some people, hugs couldn't be devalued. I think it depends more on how a person views them. I do know, though, that if someone likes getting hugs, but isn't subjected to them very often, they feel like something more precious than they would to someone who gets them all the time. It's just like with many other things that are taken for granted by someone... Or, say, like certain food. If you don't like something like... like green beans, you're not going to want them." It was a... semi-decent analogy, at least, but he probably could have done better if not speaking on the fly. His concentration on that advent was broken when Brenny had stated that Tania had long since been spoiled, laughter tearing through the thought process, "Maybe you're right, maybe you're right... I'll see what I can't do about hugging her more often, then. I'll see how she takes that." That didn't mean that the man wasn't going to discipline her where necessary, but he didn't have to be cold about it. With a nod, he made another note about other poké-kids (he was sure that's who this Eliot was!) learning moves past their star-induced evolutions, though he shook his head in amusement as he wrote it. Brenny caught another pokémon? Now that had to be one of the most bizarre things he had heard yet!
Thaliawen "Let's hide behind the counter!" Tania beamed, she was good at being scary, wasn't she? The shadow mew was pleased that Karma had noticed. "You hide on that side, and I'll hide on this one." She moved to the left side of the counter and hunched down. She giggled, and put a finger to her lips. "They should be back soon."
"Sometimes its easier to be in the past than to reflect on my own experiences," Brenny mused. "I don't have to worry about my sister, or whether Connie's happy and not overworking. I think sometimes he forgets how to have fun. I worry sometimes..." he hesitated, looking away from Grayson for a moment, "That's why I'm going to look for a job as soon as I can. So I can earn money and he doesn't have to worry about it. He tells me he's happy, though..." Brenny trailed off, a note of doubt in his tone. "It's easier to go some when where all that stuff doesn't matter. Maybe I'll bring him sometime, and see if he likes it." He paused, nodding in approval. "Good. I think she'll like that, Uncle Grayson," he seemed to be glad to end his thought process, studying the scientist before smiling brightly. "Did you know there's an Archen over there with eggs? In the tree there!"
MoogerMint To either side of the counter, in order to spook Brenny? That was an idea that Karma hadn't considered. "You sure they won't see either of us, if we do that?" the ditto asked, moving over to the spot indicated and slowly lowering into a crouch, arms wrapping around hovering, folded knees. Zhe didn't doubt Tania's evaluation, but zhe wanted to know the specifics before anything actually happened!
Grayson thought about the elaborated train of psychology a moment, letting his attention drift. "To live without worries... I think everyone wishes they could do as much. Alas, if you want to get anywhere, it's not going to be so easy... and taking shortcuts isn't always right. I like to think that life was meant to be hard. Everyone has it hard, after all, it's just a different kind of 'hard' for each individual," the scientist considered aloud, ending his words on a sigh. It at least made things a little easier to think of them in such a manner. With a smile, he directed his attention back to the small celebi, his voice sounding with a hint of a tease, "Well, it seems to me you've already got a job secured... going to be looking for another one?" He scribbled a few more notes down before continuing on with the conversation, "You know, some people just have difficulty opening up, or admitting certain things. You might be correct in thinking that he's not telling the whole truth, but that doesn't mean he's lying, either. You just have to be perceptive. Be a scientist, Brenny!" Well, at least in a way. With a minor jolt, Grayson processed the information that Brenny had suddenly seen. He was already murmuring a comment before he even moved to crane his head, "An archen? Those are unusual to see on their own, but with a nest..?" And he was off again, mindset of the studious researcher back in place as he inched closer, glancing up every so often from the pages on the clipboard as his pen etched black marks across the grainy papers.
Thaliawen "Nah, he won't see us. I think when they come back they will both be busy talking." She beamed at the concept of possibly startling Grayson and Brenny. "It'll be fun! And if we scare Brenny too much, we can hug him! Daddy too."
"I don't think getting away from things that make you sad is bad," Brenny considered, "If you never did, you'd always be sad. Everyone would be. It'd be a terrible world." Brenny shook his head. "I think Connie is trying too hard, and that makes him unhappy. But he won't admit it." They'd promised, a while back, that all they needed to be happy was each other. To see the other smiling. Brenny wasn't sure that was entirely true; of either of them. "I think that might be it, Uncle Grayson. I don't think he'd lie. Not to me. But I don't--" he worried about Connie. He wanted to help more, to grow and take some of the weight off Connie's shoulders. "Do you think, when I grow, that I can be his Daddy and he can come visit you? That'd fix things! I know it would." He paused, beaming up at the scientist, "Really? The job's really mine?" He wrapped his arms around Grayson's waist. "Good! I'm the best there is at that job!" He pointed up at the archen, incase the scientist hadn't seen it. "Her eggs won't hatch today," he added, thoughtfully, "But maybe they will next time."
MoogerMint Karma considered Tania's response for a bit, but it didn't take anyone of high IQ to realize where the truth was in that assumption. Knowing Grayson, it was all too certain; knowing Brenny, it was all too likely. As the mew-girl relayed the ability to make good of the situation in the event things turned south, Karma grinned broadly, "Oh I like that idea! Yeah, let's do it! I can't see anything wrong with that idea!" They both liked hugs, after all, and Tania and Karma weren't meaning any harm! Giggling, Karma hugged zher knees tighter in excited anticipation.
Grayson gave a soft sort of smile for Brennen's sentiment, but couldn't urge himself to say anything on the matter. If only sadness were that easy to avoid... They said it built character, that it made a person stronger, but the man only felt weaker for it in the end, for he could do nothing to prevent it but wonder what he could have done differently. "Most people can't focus on a single part of life and be happy with everything because of it, as much as that would be helpful," the man stated, "but having something there that always makes you happy, that really helps." Therefore, it wasn't so much a lie that Brenny and his parental figure were struggling with as it was a want for that to be the only thing that really mattered. He was startled by Brenny's bizarre question, though, and after a moment, attempted to contain the snicker, "He can visit, but the roles in a family aren't... they can't be reversed like that!" Oh he was amused... but he also didn't fully comprehend the kind of relationship the two had. With a swift nod, he responded to the posed question about his acceptance, returning Brenny's hug, "I don't see why I shouldn't hire you. I think this about sums up the benefits of having you on the team, don't you?" Following where it was that the celebi indicated, Grayson took a closer look at the nest, perhaps a little too close for the archen's comfort in his intrigue. "Next time..." he mused at the word usage, scribbling more notes down as the child explained.
Thaliawen Tania beamed. Good, so Karma liked the idea! That made it a good idea, as far as the shadow mew was concerned. "Maybe after Brenny has gone, Daddy will tell us about what the past is really like." She'd heard stories of course: but it was different, hearing it from someone who'd experienced it first hand! "I bet there's no one as good at pranks as us, even back then!" She boasted, grinning at her sibling. "We're the best pranksters the world's ever seen!"
"I think that's because most people don't have that one thing that makes them happy," Brenny mused, aloud. He studied Grayson, then smiled. "You have your science. That makes you happy. It keeps you busy and interested, and when you find something interesting, like an archen nest, you can't help but write about it, no matter what else has bothered you. You have that, Uncle Grayson. But you also have me, Karma and Tania. If science ever failed you, we'd be here to help and make you happy again. I promised Daddy I'd always be happy if he was, no matter what else has bothered me. Sometimes the bad things go away when I'm around him. Sometimes they don't, and I pretend. Cecily never really goes away. But nightmares do. Sometimes, its easier to pretend all there is in the world is Daddy. Sometimes its easiest to pretend I don't have a sister at all. And it's even easier--" he paused, lowering his voice, "Pretending that I'm the only celebi, and that I was sent here to help Connie, and everyone else I've met. So I do help them. I want to make sure everyone's happier than they were before I met them." Saying this, he paused, glancing up at the scientist. "Why not?" He asked, baffled. "He's been my Daddy for a long time. I could make a good one and take care of him for a while!" He did hesitate, before looking away from Grayson and up at the archen in her nest. "I am the best at what I can do," he said, a smile crossing his features. "You'd never find another time traveler!"
MoogerMint Karma nodded to Tania's wonder as to whether the scientist would tell them what would happen once things settled down, "I'm sure he would if we asked about it. It can't be that big of a secret, if it's all in books! I wonder how far into the future Brenny can go..?" Maybe Karma could ask if zhe ever got better in the future... and if zhe did, what caused memory to behave as it should. With a smile, the ditto considered Tania's bet, "You think so? I haven't really pranked much before..." That wasn't to say that Karma didn't want to learn to be better, but to already be at the top was stretching it a little! Unless there was perhaps an excellent prank that Karma was a part of and just... didn't remember?
Grayson watched Brenny curiously, wondering if the celebi had something in mind with his train of thought. "Well, when you get yourself a job, you need to make sure it's one that you can fully enjoy. Science is a hobby, so to be able to integrate it into a way to earn a living as well makes it all the better. I wouldn't say it was the thing that makes me the happiest, but it does keep everyday moods uplifted," he explained with a nod in understanding. However, when it came to excaping that which was more pressing... such as a death... sometimes it only helped him dwell on things, and made the job less enjoyable. It was what had caused him to miss out on so much else, that which he held more dear, and for that he couldn't truly be as happy as he would have otherwise wanted. It seemed, though, that Brenny had a loose grasp on the concept, even if he might not have fully understood it at the moment. The celebi was young, though, and as full of curiosity as he might have been, it didn't help him understand things that a more mature mind with a backing of experience could comprehend more adeptly. "Sometimes pretending is the only way we can move past that which bothers us. It's nothing to be ashamed of, plenty of people do it. As long as you can acknowledge that it is not the truth when you really need to, I don't see that being a problem," he explained. Pretending how things have always been this way or that, it made it easier to adapt to. At Brennen's confused question on why he couldn't switch roles on Connie, Grayson chuckled, "You seem to have missed the fundamentals behind what makes a parent a parent... You'll understand in time, I'm sure." He didn't think he could explain it in a way that the celebi-boy could agree with at this point, for it was not the simplest subjects to explain to a child of adoption! As he scribbled down a few more notes, inching around the archen to get a different view, he snickered and bobbed his head, agreeing with Brenny's sentiments, "I can't say I could find another, let alone as willing!"
Thaliawen "Dunno. But he's a celebi, and time travel is their special ability. So probably as far as he likes. I wonder if he'd tell us anything about the future, or if he'd seen us there! Maybe he's met our grandchildren or something!" While Tania wasn't sure she approved of having grandchildren, the idea that Brenny could have met them was an interesting one! "This will be your first prank then!" Tania beamed. "It'll be great!"
"There are lots of things I enjoy," Brenny mused. He pondered the thought for a moment, seeming to mentally list his favorite activities. "But there's only one, I think, that I could fully enjoy. I like it better than any other thing in the world." More, even, than spending time with Connie. More, even, than playing with others. "Is there a job where I can make other people happy, Uncle Grayson? Any type of person. I really like art, and I like cooking, but those things only make the people who experience them happy, and that doesn't last long." He paused, glancing at their surroundings. "No," he agreed, "I think your family makes you happiest, like mine for me. Karma and Tania make you happy, and so do Dea and Fluff and everyone. You have a big family, Uncle Grayson! I'm part of it too." He listened to Grayson's explanation, only frowning when the scientist said he'd missed what made a parent. "I don't know. Maybe he's more like a big brother, like Karpi. But I didn't catch him, he caught me!"
MoogerMint "Maybe we should ask him, after we scare him, about time traveling into the future," Karma suggested curiously. Despite the hidden agenda more readily on zher mind, the overall thought was still intriguing. A face was made at the mention of grandkids, but it melted into consideration, even if it seemed to bring up many more questions than what would ever be vocalized on the matter. Karma's grin quickly enveloped zher face as Tania more or less accepted the efforts to walk the ditto through full pranking this time around. "Okay! This should be really fun!" the child agreed, anticipating the chance even more with every passing moment.
Grayson listened as Brenny went on with what made him happy, splitting his time and attention between his observations on the archen and the conversation that was being carried out with the celebi-boy. However, he had to pause in his writing to think up a proper idea to respond to the child with. "Most jobs have the chance of making others happy, depending on how you carry them out. The majority of jobs deal with customer service, where you would be interacting with clients on some level. However, the jobs that might make people the happiest... most of those would likely fall under categories of volunteer work," he thought aloud, shaking his head after a momentary pause, "However, when you speak of affecting more people than those who experience it firsthand... I suppose you need to be more creative. Perhaps writing a book, or creating some architecture. It really all depends on what way you would want to make people happy." People could be rather finicky, after all! With a smile, Grayson nodded, fully agreeing with Brenny's assessments that family was what made the scientist the happiest: this, he would not deny, for it was as plain as day. Even a family friend could be placed into the encompassing label of 'family.' "Oh he caught you, did he? Are you sure you didn't catch him first?" he teased. Either way, they were both playing off a more abstract description of the term!
Thaliawen "Yeah, let's ask him!" Tania agreed. "I wonder if hes ever been to the future! Oooh, if he hasn't, maybe we can ask him to take us the first time! I bet it's exciting! I wonder if they'll have better pranks in the future..." she paused to think about it before shaking her head. "Nah, they couldn't. Our pranks are the best! What would you like to do in the future, Karma?" She asked, curiously. "Is there something you'd like to see?"
"I make you happy by taking you back in time," Brenny mused, "And I could make other people by volunteering! I help Dea sometimes, that makes her happy! And I like giving things away. I could make things for people who really need them!" Like the eevee girl he had met, and Arashi, too. He could give them food and things they needed to survive. Truffles had certainly been happy when he'd bought her that sandwich! "I don't think I could write a book," he mused. "Not a good one, anyway. Daddy told me we were writing a book together, and that we decide the endings. But that's our lives, not a real book. And I can't build anything," he added, considering the thought. "Well, I suppose I haven't tried. But I can draw, and I can cook. I'm really good at making friends, too!" He beamed at the teasing, "We caught each other!" He decided. "Like Karma and I caught you!"
MoogerMint Karma laughed at the idea, more out of excitement than finding it preposterous, "Yeah, that could be fun! I wonder if he can take more than one person? I hope he can!" It sounded like it'd be the most exciting outing that they'd have ever gone on, even without the lack of a memory to back such assumption up. "I dunno... what could we do in the future that wouldn't mess it up? Or is that only something that happens in the past?" the ditto asked. Just looking around the future seemed like it would be fun enough, but doing something more than that, zhe wouldn't be against it if it was possible!
Grayson nodded as Brenny continued to make his verbal lists, this time in response to what he could do to make more people happy. "If you can think of a way to do things like that for more people, then maybe you'll find exactly what it is you're looking to do. You know what different people like, depending on how they live, and what they tend to appreciate. Now you just need to apply that knowledge to a broader view to find the answer you seek," he explained, "It doesn't have to be anything I've suggested, either. Those are all ideas that others have implemented to do similar to what you're looking to do. You don't have to follow them, you can carve your own path." With a snicker at Brenny's assertion that he and Connie had caught each other simultaneously, and the supporting metaphor, he couldn't help but ask, "So you caught one another in pokéballs at the same time?" Made of rubber?
Thaliawen "I bet he can!" Tania assured Karma, beaming. She paused and thought. "I think that's only in the past. You can't really mess up the future, because its already happened. Maybe you could mess up the future's future, but only because it'd be the past to the other future..." She pondered this a moment before giggling, shaking her head. "I think we can explore it! Maybe we'll make a friend or two. Or find someone to prank."
Brenny wasn't really listening, and his gaze had drifted from Grayson's face to the ground. He was blinking slowly. He rubbed at his eyes stubbornly, with one hand. "I think I know how to make people happy, Uncle Grayson," his voice had lost some of that endless enthusiasm, "I'll be myself and do what I can to make them happy." He rubbed at his eyes again, frowning. Stupid time travel. He supposed with great power, came great need to sleep, but he didn't want this to end! He was having fun, and Uncle Grayson was so excited to be studying ancient Pokemon in their natural habitat. Surely he could hold out a bit longer. "Not in pokeballs," he muttered. "I caught Daddy in my heart. And he caught me in his."
MoogerMint Karma giggled, also thinking that Brenny could but wanting to be extra sure before assuming such things. This was going to be so fun! Once Tania started explaining why she didn't think they could mess anything up by fooling around in the future, Karma's confusion seemed to multiply. For a few moments after the mew had concluded, the ditto was still mouthing things out and counting on fingers to try to unweave the knot. Ohhh... FURTHER in the future! "Yeah, exactly, that's what I meant!" Karma exclaimed suddenly, "I dunno if it would do that!" Time travel sounded like risky business! "It'd be sad to make a friend and not be able to see them much again, though..." zhe considered, for they wouldn't probably see that friend for a good few years... and then, they wouldn't even know each other, "But pranks could be fun!" Apparently making enemies was different...
"That's what I said," Grayson commented from his scrawlings on the page, confused until Brenny's tone registered. Ahh... understandable. He finished up making some quick notes and clipped the pen to the top, inching away from the archen before trying to stand up fully again, to keep from scaring the prehistoric bird. With a chuckle, he commended, "Maybe you should be a poet, when you refer to it in such a manner." He reached his hand out to the celebi-child again, "Okay, it sounds like we should be headed back. Come on, we'll get some apple cider at the lab, that should recharge you." It wasn't alcoholic, after all, so it should work! "We'll come back some other time. Can't have you passing out before you open your present and get youself home, now can we?" he chided with a wink.
Thaliawen "We'd see them again, as long as we don't go too far into the future," Tania was sure of it! The shadow mew scooted closer to Karma and took zher hand. "You know, my past was not so good. But I think my future is. I have you, and Daddy, and you light things up for me. I think your future must be good, too. And if its not, I can fix it for you. That's what sisters do!"
Brenny looked up, taking Grayson's hand. "Maybe," he said, "I caught you in my heart, too, Uncle Grayson. And Karma. Pokeballs can catch Pokemon, but hearts catch everyone--" he stifled a yawn behind his hand. Oh, he'd been caught. "Back?" He echoed, shaking his head. "No! There's more for you to see! There's this weird plant Pokemon and--" another yawn escaped him. "And we can see it next time," he decided. He'd almost forgotten about the present! He beamed, nodding. "Let's go home."
MoogerMint "True..." Karma considered, "But I wonder how far into the future Brenny can go?" The pink-marked child hadn't been expecting Tania to come closer, and was surprised when she took hold of zher hand, even if zhe didn't jump about it -- there was nothing currently dangerous in here, after all! Karma's smile glowed at the sentiment, "I'm not worried about the future. Even if I can't remember other things, I can't forget you or the doctor. We can make all the rest of the days good!" Neither one of them started out their lives on the best of notes, but it didn't have to stay that way! Karma prodded back to Tania's hiding place suddenly, determination and mischievousness once more restored with a giggle, "Hurry, get back to your hiding place before they see you!"
Grayson's comment about Brenny being a poet wasn't unfounded, but he was amused to consider the possibility he might only be so openly romantic about it when he was half-awake. "You're right, they catch something different altogether," he agreed, "Pokéballs only trap the body, but hearts keep hold of the soul, right?" It was an interesting thought, at least. Grayson had managed to grab hold of one of Brenny's flailing arms, particularly the one that wasn't trying to mask a persistent yawn, ready to get going. "Yeah, there's always next time. Plenty of next times!" the man nodded, "But we can only take things one step at a time." And currently, that step was ending, leading into the next.
Thaliawen "Dunno," Tania said, hurrying back to her hiding place. She was quiet for a moment, and then smiled. "Maybe he doesn't even know," she said. "The future goes on forever, its much larger than the past. Maybe he can only go as far into the future as the past allows." It was a strange thing, she decided, time travel. Strange, and fascinating. "They won't see us!" She declared, putting a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle. This would be the best prank ever!
There was a flash of color: almost identical to the one before their journey had begun. This time, however, they seemed to be racing forward. Colors blurred together as they went. The celebi boy had his eyes shut firmly, but opened them once they hit solid ground. "We're here!" He announced, glancing about the lab. He wondered if he'd overshot the day. He didn't see Tania or Karma. Had they been taken away when Grayson hadn't come to care for them?
MoogerMint Karma watched as Tania scurried back over to where she had been hiding previously, curiously considering. "If he doesn't know, then maybe we can help test how far into the future he can go!" the child suggested, fascinated with the prospect, "I wonder what it's like, a million years in the future?" Of course, Karma's estimation on how long the world had been around was immensely off, but the idea of it all still had the same sort of fire lit under it. With a mischievous grin still in place, Karma crouched down further on the balls of zher feet, hands propped on knees for balance, trying to become a smaller target to see. They wouldn't see what hit them!
Despite the dizzying effects, Grayson couldn't keep his eyes closed through their journey back home, to their own time. He considered how difficult it must have been to time it to the right point on the timeline, but thought it best to ask later, when Brenny would be less fatigued. In the meantime, he was fully capable of enjoying the view. With a chuckle at Brenny's exclamation upon arrival, he grinned, "We are! Thank you for that, Brenny! Now let's just get you some--"
Karma winked at Tania, indicating that now was the perfect time to jump out, before the two of them started looking too hard for the two children. Jumping out from behind the counter, the ditto mimed what zhe had seen Tania do before, arms outstretched, "BOO!" No wonder the mew-girl liked doing this, it was exhilarating!
Thaliawen Brenny hid behind Grayson at Karma's sudden appearance. There was a long moment, and then his head emerged. He blew a raspberry at zher. "Hey, no trying to scare me!" He protested.
Tania chose to spring then, but a giggle had given her position away. "BOO!" She shouted, throwing her arms up into the air. She raced to Grayson. "Did I scare you? Huh? I did, didn't I?" She wrapped her arms around his waist. "I thought that wouldn't take long," she complained, "But it took forever!"
MoogerMint Karma laughed at Brenny's reaction to the prank, steadying zhimself on solid ground from the bounce. With a grin, the ditto scooted around to be in better view, so that the scaring wouldn't continue. "Gotch'ya! We got you good!" Karma exclaimed, but the grin told of the good-natured attempt... or as good-natured as a prank could be, "We made hats!" They weren't up to no good, really!
Grayson jumped at the sudden sound and appearance of the two kids, his hand wrenched to the side as Brenny hid with it still holding grasp. "C-Careful!" he stuttered as Tania tackled him, worried she might accidentally smack Brenny on the other side. He ruffled her hair after he caught his breath, smiling, "You little rascals, you did!" He pulled her into a hug about her shoulders, "I'm sorry, it's kind of hard to judge time when you can flit around to any point on the line. We weren't gone too long, were we?" He was kind of worried, by an outside view, that they had been missing for a couple hours; that wasn't his intention at all!
Thaliawen Brenny released his hold on Grayson to go up to Karma. He pouted. "You cheated," he complained. He pulled zher into a hug. "Don't worry. Scaring me doesn't turn you into a monster. Yay! You made hats? I want to see!" His lack of energy seemed to have disappeared. "Are they nice hats? Ooh, I want to make one too!"
"Not long," Tania admitted, having not yet released her hold on Grayson. "Long enough though, for us to make hats and plan to prank you! We did a good job, too!" The shadow mew beamed. "I saw you jump. You really were scared, weren't you? Next time you go, Karma and I want to go too! We do. We want to visit the future and see everything! Karma wants to meet her grandkids. Oooh, they'd be your great grandkids!" Tania made a face, "That makes you really old in the future, Daddy. Nevermind, I don't think it'd be fun, if you're that old."
MoogerMint Karma's mismatched eyes grew wide at Brenny's harsh conviction, hands raised quickly and shaking zher head, "No no no, it was a prank! You're supposed to catch people off-guard!" Was there some other rule to this game that the ditto was unaware of? Once the celebi assured that he didn't think of Karma any differently than before, the momentary shock was almost immediately replaced with a grin, "Oh, good!" Zhe motioned to the hats that were spoken of, pointing eagerly with rose-disted fingers, "Yeah, awesome hats! Out of construction paper and ribbon! We couldn't find the glitter glue, though. And we kind of ran out of material to make many more..." It sucked, because Karma would have been happy to decorate the entire laboratory with festive hats...
Grayson chuckled at Tania's enthusiastic, honest reply, more relieved than anything else; there was no telling if they had really overshot their destination, but Brenny seemed to be quite adept at locating the correct spot on the timeline. "Yeah, it looks like you both have been pretty busy while we were out! Were you practicing?" he grinned, indicating how well they seemed to be able to scare the two time travelers. "We'll see about taking you some time, but you would need to go through rigorous testing. Brenny would have to be the one to deem whether you are fit to travel or not yet," he stated firmly, teasing. In all honesty, he didn't know if the young celebi would be able to handle them all at once like that, or whether Tania and Karma wouldn't get into dangerous situations without constant supervision... so it was best not to promise anything of the sort, even if the questions the two seemed to harbor would be quite interesting to investigate, "This is for research, not play. I don't think I'd want to see myself that old, either, honestly... Now, I'm going to go get some apple cider for everyone. Tania, can you go grab Brenny's present? It should be in the closet, wrapped in a coat."
Thaliawen Brenny considered this for a moment, before pouting. Not enough materials? Lame! "They are pretty," he complimented the ditto child with a smile. "Make me one after you get more!" Maybe making one was out of the question, but taking one home was something entirely different! He looked around the lab, pausing. "Maybe we can do an experiment sometime," he mused. He doubted Grayson would allow it: but science wasn't that much different than cooking, was it? You were following a recipe, weren't you? "I saw a recipe on how to make slime once! Cornstarch, water and food coloring! We could make it all sorts of pretty colors, like you!"
"A little," Tania admitted, "Karma needed to practice some. But I showed her how to scare you properly! And we did!" The mew girl beamed. The smile faded as Grayson mentioned testing. It had the intended effect: if his intention had been to cause Tania to make a face and shake her head. Maybe this time traveling thing wasn't worth it! Rigorous testing? Hm. No, definitely not worth it. She didn't want to waste time being tested, when time could be spent pranking! "Maybe we could visit the past instead?" She asked hopefully. "Sure!" The mew girl obediently left to go to the closet. She picked up the bundle at the bottom of the closet, returning with it. "Make sure to put extra cinnamon in mine!"
MoogerMint Noting Brenny's pout upon realization that there was not enough supplies for him to make his own hat, Karma wasted little time in deliberation before snatching one up and offering it gleefully to him, "Here, have this one!" Maybe it would make up for the fact he couldn't create one, at least for now. Upon hearing of the celebi-boy's desire to run experiments, the ditto looked dubiously at him, curious. "Slime? What does that do?" zhe asked; regardless of its purpose, it did sound like Brenny knew what he was talking about... and it sounded like it could be a lot of fun, too! Clapping hands together, the androgynous child cheered, "Oooh, tie dye?" Never mind that a combination like that could turn the nastiest shade of grey...
Grayson grinned, happy to hear how well Tania seemed to be adjusting to living in such a different arrangement than before, already sounding at ease. "Well aren't you the most supportive sister you could be?" he complimented, giving her another squeeze, "Ever thought of being a teacher?" While the fading enthusiasm the mew-girl had to the idea of going through a testing phase for time traveling amused him, he tried not to let it show beyond the smile that had already been present on his face as he moved toward the break area for the glasses and cider, "It's possible, but either way it's still time travel, and Brenny has authority on who he thinks he can bring." He wouldn't have minded taking them along, if Brenny was capable of it, at some point... just as long as Tania and Karma behaved themselves a little more than they were currently willing to elicit. He heard Tania's request, grabbing the cinnamon shaker and setting it onto the tray with the mugs as he brought them out for everyone. He set it on the closest counter so that everyone would be within reach, indicating with a tilt of his head that Brenny should open the present, now that he was back.
Thaliawen Brenny beamed, immediately placing the hat upon his head. "Thank you!" He said, wrapping his arms around the ditto child. He released her after a moment, seeming to pause in order to consider her question. "It doesn't do anything. It's just slime. It's fun to touch, though! The book I read with the recipe said so! And it said you can put food coloring in it to make it pretty!" He grinned. Tie dye slime would be fun! He noticed Grayson was back: with mugs of hot cider! He would have to make some for Connie later, the scent alone was wonderful! He hesitated, glancing to Tania. He took the coat wrapped bundle and started to open it. Yay, a present! He'd been looking forward to this: but was it really a fair exchange? A physical present was better than having a brief glimpse into the past!
"I'm the best sister," Tania boasted, immediately. Teacher? The mew girl made a face. Weren't teachers people who made up a whole lot of rules that were no fun? She stuck out her tongue at the idea. "No, I'm going to be a prankster scientist! That's the best job for me. I'm going to make things explode and it'll scare people. It'll be fun!" She allowed Brenny to take the bundle, reaching for a mug. She took the cinnamon shaker and shook it twice over her mug before setting it down, then sampling the cider. "It's good!" She announced. Even if Brenny couldn't take her back in time, at least she had Grayson and Karma in this time. That was more than she'd had in the past, anyway! She took Grayson's hand with her free hand. "We don't need to go," she said. As long as they had each other!
MoogerMint Karma gleefully returned the hug, glad that Brenny liked the hat, "You're welcome!" The idea of making slime, even if it wasn't for something altogether useful, was definitely an intriguing idea, though. Perhaps Tania and zher could use it in some pranks, even! At that thought, Karma was all the more eager to try it, "Okay, then yeah, we should do that! It sounds like it could be fun to try! Maybe we can make a bunch, of all different colors." The colorful child giggled at the thought, moving closer to the counter to grab a mug of cider and watch as Brenny opened his gift.
Grayson snickered and shook his head at Tania's declaration of her preferred job. He'd never seen her all that interested in many things science-related, though she had pretended to be interested a few times in order to get him away from his research. Or, rather, to get his research away from him. He wasn't about to doubt her, though; maybe she just needed the right incentives, and perhaps she was actively looking! "Don't drink it too fast, we don't want any tummy aches now," he instructed, taking a mug for himself as he sat down on a stool at the counter. He grinned at Tania as she assured the man that she didn't have to go time traveling, but shook his head, "I'm not saying you can't, I just think it's too early to tell. Besides, they are Brenny's abilities; he'd be able to say better than I could." Even if he was nervous about her and Karma taking a trip to some other time... Turning attention back to Brenny's unwrapping, he prodded, "Well?" He knew the celebi had been waiting long enough.
Thaliawen Tania sipped at her cider, heeding Grayson's warning. Yes, a tummy ache would be terrible after such a great day! She hesitated, before studying Grayson for a long moment. Hm... He wasn't saying she couldn't go, but he wasn't saying she could. She sat on the counter closest to him, and releasing his hand, shook a finger at him. "No," she said. "This time is the best time. All of us are together and happy. Other times would be fun to visit. But none of them will be as good as this one!"
Brenny opened his gift and held it up triumphantly. "A car!" He exclaimed, perhaps having forgotten that he'd requested one. "Thank you, Uncle Grayson!" Delighted, he started to open the package. After admiring the toy for a long, silent moment, he carefully tucked it into his pocket. He wasn't willing to risk losing such a treasure!
Premise:For one who appreciates the brighter spectrum of color, there's an awful lot of black-and-white characterization to situations.
MoogerMint Crew
Sparkly Pants
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MoogerMint Crew
Sparkly Pants
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 8:54 pm
◉ Independent Initiative ★ Retraining the basics
Although forgetting things was what the young child-ditto seemed to specialize in, there were differences between words exchanged between meetings that may as well been first encounters, and those exchanged by those Karma was constantly exposed to. Order was a constant goal for one whose mind was so shattered, so void, but when things didn't go just as planned, there was some wiggle-room for those few individuals with reserved attachments. This was precisely the reason why Karma would never take slow progression as grounds for a broken promise, though tempted to many a time before. People forgot... Karma, of all people, knew that fact more than anyone else around here.
That did not lessen disappointment, but it did irritation. Grayson still had not fixed Karma's memory problem. Tania still had not taught zher the first thing about transformation into a mew. Due to this, Karma had also been prevented from doing what zhe promised and teach Tania to read.
It was just as what many a patron of the laboratory Karma had overheard saying before, and with a slight sigh was said once more within the same walls, "If you want something done, you have to do it yourself." People were just too busy, they had their own priorities, and many times those priorities seemed contrary to everyone else's. In essence, everyone was selfish in some regard... but then again, Karma was not an exception to this rule, so there wasn't truly any fault to be had.
"Augh! Karma, would you please cut that out!?" a female scientist exclaimed in reaction to the extra eye that appeared on the ditto's forehead. This was nearly a daily occurrence by this point, and because of that, Karma easily related this woman to being that one scientist-lady that really didn't like eyes in strange places.
Zhe jerked zher head up to see her down the hallway, but knew who the voice belonged to before eyes even grazed her form, smile brimming. "I'll cut it out when you stop reacting like that!" the child teased with a giggle. The woman was ruffled, but it was all part of the daily ritual, almost a game.
The scientist shook her head and continued down the hall, in an effort to walk past the transformed pokémon, as had been done many a time before. However, Karma broke routine after a moment of thought, following the woman down the way zhe had just come from. The shadowing action didn't catch her unaware, but it wasn't something that happened every day. The feeling of someone looking over her shoulder as she worked, eyes down on the clipboard in her hand, was still not a welcome sensation, though. She didn't break stride as she conferred, "Karma, was there something you wanted?"
"Mm, yes!" the young kid confirmed almost immediately, "Will you help me with something?"
Her pace did not slow, "Help you with what?"
"Well, you don't like it when I transform with the eyes and all, but I can't really transform anything else," Karma explained, the pout not evident on zher face but obvious in the guilt-trip of zher tone, "I wanted to try to do something else. Tania mentioned I would make a good mew, and since we're supposed to be sisters, it made sense to me!"
It was at those words that the scientist stopped in her tracks, slightly befuddled by the choice language. Sisters? Karma never considered zhimself to be one gender over the other before. Apparently the shadow mew's decision to refer to the ditto in such a manner was rubbing off, for the blue-haired child's temperament towards preference still didn't seem to impact actions. Or choice of clothing, for that matter...
This did pose quite an interesting point of observation, though. There was little deliberation before she clipped her pen to the top of her paperwork and slid it to her side, fully attentive, "Alright, Karma, I will accept your proposition." It sounded like it would be less of a creep-factor, too!
★ ★ ★
"You're an imaginative kid, Karma. This shouldn't be too difficult for you, you used to transform all the time before," the woman continued on after the child's third failed attempt, "What do you think you're doing differently this time that you hadn't been doing before?"
"Other than the fact I wasn't human before?" zhe grumbled, heaving a sigh before seeing about forcing another chance.
"Maybe you're trying too hard... Try relaxing a little more before doing that again. This is meant to come naturally."
Karma nearly griped about it, but zhe was the one to request the advice; there was really no reason not to try and pay attention. What was the worst that could happen anyway? The child rocked and flopped backward into a seat. Letting go of the frustration gave zher time to reflect, and conclusions unveiled that it did seem like the best course of action after all. Emotions too often muddied thought processes, making things once difficult now impossible. There was nothing to be upset about; this was merely a talent that needed refining.
Progress was slow, but it was vastly improved when Karma discarded emotion over the practice. Transformation was not very different from when the child was within a more pliable pokémon form, but there were stronger restrictions. With the appearance of flesh, Karma became aware that the skin could not be altered as readily as the patches of pink residual to zher previous body. This was the main obstacle that seemed to be in the way of appearing in the manner that zhe was working towards. Regardless, these were supposed to be baby steps, not huge leaps and bounds.
The young scientist leaned in closer to the top of Karma's head, tugging slightly at a pink protrusion that formed at one side of the head. The small, fleshy horn-like growth twitched in reaction to the touch, as any naturally-formed mew-ear might. "Very good, Karma!" she hummed slightly, pulling back again with a smile, "I think you've got the ears down!"
Large, rounded eyes looked hopeful up to the taller woman, "Really? You think so?" Hastily, Karma reached up to poke and prod at zher own transformation a little to solidify this acceptance, for zhe didn't want to be happy unless this fact was absolutely sound. They still seemed a little too small... but that was alright, that could be fixed with practice. The hard part was just learning to form the right shape in the first place! Zhe was almost shouting in delight, "Aaah, you're right! I did it!"
The woman giggled at the child's exuberance, "Congratulations, Karma!"
"It's not perfect, but I'll practice. I'll practice a whole lot! Do you think I'd be able to do the tail, too?" zhe continued quickly, hyperactive energy seeming to roll off of zher with the excitement as zhe tried to look behind zher where a tail might sprout from, spinning a little at the effort.
"Currently, it seems you can only transform the pink markings on your skin, unless it is a superficial transformation, like the eyes. With practice, you might be able to use your whole body, like you could before, but I'm not sure," she observed, walking slowly around to gather any further visual information, "You appear to have a limited range with it at current as well, so any tail you tried to form would probably be too small to be accurate. I am not sure if these limitations are a permanent effect of your evolution, but it is a testable theory."
Karma turned to look at the scientist again, face scrunched slightly in minor irritated confusion. After a moment, zhe blinked, "So basically... I won't know for sure unless I keep practicing?"
"Precisely."
"Can do, scientist-lady!" the ditto stated stiffly, as a soldier might. With a broad grin, Karma tackled the woman, arms wrapped tightly about her waist, "Thank you so much!"
★ ★ ★
Level: 13 --> 23 KARMA has improved TRANSFORM
[[ Word Count: 1,319 ]]
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:34 pm
◉ Roleplay #10 ★
Title:If You Feed an Oshawott a Sandwich (messenger RP) Participants:Declan & Karma (with Tania cameo) Stages:Child (All) Status:Complete!
Premise:Because the fastest way to a person's heart is through their stomach... 'stray cats' included.
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint The sun had been obnoxious lately, its rays beckoning the bored child to come out and play. Karma never really understood this phenomenon, for the warmth of the burning star in the sky did not always guarantee a better time than an overcast day, but this lack of knowledge didn't help stave off the persistent longing for the fresh air of summertime. Neither did the fact that none of the scientists seemed too keen on babysitting the ditto as zhe asked to go outside... or the rules not to go out alone, for that matter.
Creeping out the back door, Karma swept over the surroundings with a glance from side to side, making sure the coast was clear. Sliding the shoulder bag closer to zher back, the beaming child adjusted the hat that sat atop zher head and scooted out the door, making sure it shut quietly. Oh so pro! Getting past the first few lines of defense was one thing, though, and the dusty blue-haired kid knew it, so that mouth was going to have to stay shut for a bit longer. That was alright, Karma knew how to play quiet!
Thaliawen The sudden appearance of the ditto child frightened Declan. He'd been hoping to sneak inside to steal someone's lunch. He had been able to do so just once, but he hoped it was worth the risk. Who knew? Maybe his trainer was in there, waiting for him! Maybe the blue haired child would go away so he could grab something to eat. The oshawott boy ducked behind a nearby tree, watching Karma warily. Would the child leave soon? Declan inched closer to the lab door: and so, closer to Karma. His stomach gurgled audibly. He hoped the blue haired person hadn't heard him! What would happen if they had? Would they catch him? Feed him, maybe? The risk was worth it, he decided. He moved out from behind the bush and wrapped his arms around Karma. Yes. This person would feed him, and be his trainer!
MoogerMint Karma was absolutely oblivious to the oshawott sneaking around the back of the laboratory, despite raised attention to the chance at getting caught. After all, zhe wasn't supposed to be out here, and despite the bending of such established, local laws of the building. With a bit of hesitation, the brightly-colored child decided that zhe would just have to do something to make up for it later, for it was wrong... but then, wasn't it wrong to never allow zhim to set foot outside on such a nice day? Maybe that was a good enough workaround to avoid any repercussions.
"Eeep!" Karma suddenly jolted as the young oshawott's arms wrapped around zher slight frame, "I'm sorry, I was going to stay right here, honest!" Once the flailing had ceased, the ditto peeked around zher shoulder, only to find that zhe was caught in the embrace of someone that zhe didn't quite recognize. Oh no... was this someone else that zhe had forgotten? "Y-You scared me!" Karma prompted, though still nervous that this was a person that the child should know.
Thaliawen The oshawott hesitated, blinking for a long moment. He seemed to be assessing the situation. "Scared me!" He mimicked, tightening his hold on the ditto child. "Sorry! Eep!" Were these things he was supposed to understand? He puzzled over the words: they seemed familar, at least some of them. Had his trainer used them before? "Cake?" He asked hopefully. He'd come to understand that word quickly enough! Cake was food, wasn't it? He'd heard someone in the lab request it. He released Karma to circle zher. Hm... No food? Maybe they would have to break into the lab together! Yes! That was a brilliant idea! "Eep! Cake!" Yes, this eep person; whoever zhe was, would make a fine trainer. As long as Karma brought him something to eat!
MoogerMint As the young oshawott began repeating what Karma had said, the ditto stiffened, the words unexpected in zher ears. At first, there wasn't much more than confusion, sidling slowly into a question as to whether or not the unknown poké-child was mocking the one he had ahold of. The way the words were spoken, though, they didn't sound like they were derisive in tone... so then, was this a game? That must have been it! As Declan walked into view, Karma tilted zher head, confused. "Cake? What about cake?" zhe asked. That seemed utterly random to the ditto; it had been a very long time since zhe had even thought of the treat. As much as Karma tended to like sweet foods, it was not a commonality, considering most of the scientists in the lab did not want to have to deal with the shenanigans of a hyperactive child or two in their midst. With a slight frown, mismatched eyes squinting a little in thought before zhe placed a hand on zher chest, "Karma!" No, zhe was pretty sure they had not met before; this was just too strange.
Thaliawen "Cake?" Declan repeated, more insistantly. He tugged on the ditto child's arm. Surely zhe had something to eat? Wasn't she willing to share with him? The oshawott studied his surroundings, considering the possibility. He gave her his best cute face: causing his eyes to widen slightly. He didn't seem to understand the meaning of the ditto pointing to zherself and, instead of registering that zhe was introducing zherself, said, "No Karma. Cake!" He tugged on zher arm again. "No Karma, cake! Cake, cake, cake!" He released zher arm, only to wrap his around the ditto once more. Now, would she get him something to eat? He'd asked nicely, even!
MoogerMint The pleading face that the oshawott offered to Karma at the insistence of cake confused the ditto more than it helped zher understand Declan's predicament. Zhe was confused and slightly nervous about such a random encounter, and as the young boy began tugging on zher arm, Karma's attention focused on the words more than their arbitrary nature, and zher tone saw encroaching irritation, "I don't have any cake!" What, did he really think the ditto was just going to reward him for this sort of behavior? It was rude! Where would zhe even carry something like that? It would get squished in zher shoulder bag! Karma was utterly baffled by Declan's demands and shows of affection.
Thaliawen Declan hesitated for a long moment. He studied the ditto child, considering zher words--or at least, what he understood of them. He seemed at a loss for words--which was an easy thing, with his limited vocabulary. He swallowed. Oh. No cake. This person had no food, after all. He would have to sneak into the laboratory and see what he could find. "Don't have any cake," he repeated, more to himself. No cake. He moved towards the lab door, pressing his face against it. Maybe if he stayed like this, someone would see him and offer some sort of substance!
MoogerMint Karma held onto any further words with a slightly held breath, still teetering around the edge on how to feel about this encounter. Instead, the ditto studied the oshawott's reaction to zher slightly busted fuse. He seemed to understand what zhe said, and didn't press the matter further... Karma nodded a little as Declan repeated the ditto's explanation, but flinched as he seemed to try to muscle his way through the door, around to the front. Karma followed around to the side, but didn't near the front -- zhe wasn't even supposed to be out here, and had been planning to stay at the back! "Hey!" Karma hissed, trying to be quiet yet simultaneously regain his attention, "Hey, don't do that, you'll get in trouble!" What made him think anyone in there had any cake? It wasn't anyone's birthday, as far as zhe knew!
Thaliawen Declan turned to stare at Karma. He studied her with a blank expression, before going to her side. "Cake?" He asked, hopefully. He put his hand to his stomach: perhaps zhe had some and wasn't sharing! Didn't zhe know his situation--no, zhe couldn't. He hadn't told zher. But how could he? He held up his empty jelly bean sack and peered inside. "Cake?" He was hungry! And she wouldn't let him go inside!
MoogerMint Karma was relieved once Declan moved back to stand beside the ditto and out of immediate sight, and to commemorate it, zhe leaned zher back heavily against the side wall and sighed audibly with relief. By then, full attention was back on the strange oddity of an oshawott, and action began being taken into consideration alongside the words that came from the boy's mouth. He was still insisting cake, but it was less demanding, as though trying to make zher understand. The sadness seemed out of place for the lack of a celebratory treat, so... The ditto blinked, tenseness released as zhe realized an important detail, "Ohhh... is that all you can say? Cake... food? Food! Are you hungry?" To indicate what zhe meant, the child placed a hand to zher own stomach and rubbed it, making quiet growling noises and wiggling zher fingers for effect. Like that?
Thaliawen Declan hesitated, blinking at the newly provided word. "Food?" He repeated, inquiringly. "Food! Cake?" He hadn't quite grasped the meaning: but then, the ditto child used a word he was familar with. He had often heard his trainer complain of that ailment. "Hungry!" He echoed, dropping the empty jellybean bag and scooting closer to Karma. He leaned against the wall, mimicking zher. "Hungry, hungry, hungry! Cake!"
MoogerMint Each and every word and action that stumbled off of Declan was scrutinized as Karma tried to decipher the boy's motives and, most of all, what exactly he was meaning to say. It grew more and more apparent that he was struggling with communication, but it still seemed as though the ditto had hit the nail on the head, so to speak. As Declan moved against the wall beside Karma, zhe popped forward and pinned him lightly in place, hands at his shoulders, "Okay, you stay put! Staaay, I'll be right back, okay? I'll get you some food, just stay!" Oh zhe so hoped he could be trained to do that, even if it was just temporarily!
Karma inched off towards the back door again, glancing back a couple times and giving a stern 'stay put!' look to make sure Declan kept himself rooted. Once the door was within grasp, Karma moved as close to a bolt of lightning as zhe could, as long as zhe also remained as silent. The break room was closer to the back than the fridge was, so after noting that nobody was in the room, Karma snatched the first, relatively-large food item that zhe could spot and sped out the back door once more. It wasn't until the ditto-child was back against the wall next to the oshawott-boy that zhe actually took a better look at the plastic-wrapped sandwich in hand. Well... that could work, and it would be simple enough to replace! With a smile, Karma held it up to offer to zher acquaintance, "Food! Hungry?"
Thaliawen Declan stayed put as instructed: eagerly awaiting what he figured was a promised meal. He felt like dancing! The ditto child had understood after all; had understood and was providing! He beamed upon Karma's return, immediately reaching for the sandwich. He studied it for a moment, and then, without removing the plastic wrap, attempted to take a bite. He pulled away, blinking. Blegh! This didn't taste like food! He made a face to show his distaste, and offered the sandwich back to Karma. "Bad cake."
MoogerMint Karma grinned back as Declan seemed to understand what it was the ditto had been trying to say, not only with the hunger factor but staying put during the entire time zhe had been gone as well. However, it wasn't until the oshawott bit into the sandwich, plastic encasing and all, and attempted to give it back that Karma realized what had happened. "Oh, no you're supposed to take that off first!" the ditto explained in a hurried fashion, taking the sandwich to demonstrate. As the plastic wrap was removed, Karma offered it back to Declan with a reassuring smile. Glancing back down at the flimsy material in zher other hand, zhe half-stifled a snicker; zhe'd never seen someone try to eat that before!
Thaliawen Declan took the sandwich again hesitantly. He studied it, turning it over in his hands twice, before taking a bite. He chewed thoughtfully, finally rewarding Karma with a grateful smile. "Good cake!" He announced, mouth still full. "Good, good cake!" He took another bite, and finding it as good as the first, beamed and quickly inhaled the sandwich. Finished, he wrapped his arms around Karma. "My cake."
MoogerMint Karma clapped zher hands together excitedly as Declan approved of the meal. In a very strange fashion, zhe might add... "Not cake, that's a sandwich! Saaaand-wiiiiich," the ditto attempted to correct by sounding out the syllables slowly enough to be mimicked. Dual-colored eyes blinked slightly at the young oshawott's manners with a full mouth, but decided that teaching table etiquette could come at a later time. Despite the rectification of his vocabulary, the nickname he had opted to give the ditto, Karma had no urge to change. Cake? Actually, that sounded about right... zhe was as colorful as a decorated cake, and would hope to be considered just as sweet! With a giggle, zhe wrapped zher arms around Declan in return, "Just don't eat me, okay?"
Thaliawen "Not cake?" Declan echoed, wide eyed. He stared at the remnants of the sandwich, as if it had tricked him somehow. "Not cake! Saaaaand-dich! Sanddich, sanddich! More sanddich!" The oshawott boy held out his hand expectantly. He'd keep it for later. He'd gotten used to carefully rationing his food: a second sandwich might last him a day or two! "Not eat," he agreed, tightening his hold on the ditto child. "My cake. Good cake. Not eat." He pulled back to study zher for a long moment. He hesitated. This person had no pokeballs! How would zhe catch him?
MoogerMint Well, it... wasn't QUITE the right pronunciation, but it was good enough -- definitely a gold star effort for someone who didn't seem used to speaking aloud yet! Karma giggled and nodded, clapping zher hands together once as way of encouragement, "That's right, it's a sandwich!" Maybe he was a quick learner? Who was to say how many other things he could pick up on! However, the ditto flatered a bit as Declan seemed to ask for more, a worried expression knitting across zher face as zhe shook zher head slowly, "I only grabbed the one... I didn't know you were starving!" Well that was terrible foresight on the matter! The squeeze of a hug seemed to be another route of apology, as much as it was to accept the gratitude, but zhe still felt bad about not helping to adequately fight off his hunger, even if zhe had to temporarily steal in order to solve the problem... As a matter of fact, why was he out here anyway, in such poor condition? "Where are your parents? Or trainer? Or... home?" Karma asked, a bit puzzled.
Thaliawen Where were his parents? A good question, Declan thought. His egg had been taken to a professor's lab to hatch and raise until he was ready to be his trainer's first Pokemon. "Trainer!" He recognized that word. He wrapped his arms tightly around Karma. "You! My cake! Trainer! You mine!" Yes, he'd found the perfect trainer after all. "No more sanddich. More you."
MoogerMint Karma tilted zher head as zhe watched Declan struggle with the posed question, wondering what was going on in his head. Did he understand what zhe was asking, or was the ditto asking too much? It didn't seem the answer would be so obvious, though, as the little oshawott hugged Karma again, causing the ditto's surprise to manifest as the sudden pressure-released air escaped from zher lungs at the squeeze. Boy, he really liked hugs!
Zhe patted him on the back with a sheepish laugh, one that was quickly silenced as Declan named the blue-haired child his trainer. Karma was definitely flabberghasted, if not flattered, but... a pokémon... owning another pokémon? Zhe was about to clumsily refuse the offer, but then it dawned on the young ditto, and the excitement was quick to return, "Ohhh... you're like a little lost kitten!" Aaah, how adorable! But oh no, how was Karma supposed to deal with this turn of events? Zher eyes darted around the landscape, remembering the workshop building further behind the laboratory building with a start. Oh, perfect! "Okay, do you think you can be quiet? I can't bring you inside... but I might be able to hide you," zhe considered. Was it really right to do that to him, though? He wouldn't be able to go anywhere that way, staying cooped up in that place... but maybe just for now? Or maybe it would be best to ask Tania for some advice...
Thaliawen "Quiet," Declan agreed immediately, catching onto the word, but not the meaning. "Quiet, quiet, quiet!" He repeated, beaming at Karma. He didn't mind being hidden, he supposed. Inside the lab seemed nice; they had food; but if the ditto child promised to bring him food regularly, he certainly didn't see a problem with it. "Hide!" He agreed, hiding behind zher to demonstrate. He understood that word! "Hide, hide! Cake?" He moved in front of Karma to study her. "Cake hide?"
MoogerMint Karma fidgeted slightly in a panic, quickly putting an index finger to zher mouth to emphasize the silence that was required of the situation. "Shh! No, be quiet! Like this!" the ditto-child whispered, "Can you do that?" It was a learned trait, but one that Karma was hopeful he could catch onto with relative ease. At least he understood what hiding was, and with a sheepish but creeping smile, Karma nodded to encourage that behavior more, "Yeah, I can hide for a bit, too." Just so long as he was able to be quiet in the meantime! Motioning for him to follow, the zhe rounded further to the back, off a little across the backyard. Zhe had to take careful note that nobody seemed to be near the back window to see where it was they hid, but once that was established as being clear, Karma took hold of the oshawott's wrist and led him quickly to the back of the workshop.
Thaliawen "Shh? Shh!" Declan echoed, in a not-quite whisper. He was delighting in the words he was learning, in such a short amount of time, too! "Quiet!" His voice fell into a whisper, and he added, "Sanddich, quiet?" If he was quiet, would he be rewarded with more good food? He followed Karma cheerfully. "Hide sanddich, quiet sanddich." It was starting to sound like a good deal! "My Cake hide. Hide! Quiet hide."
MoogerMint Oh yuck, whenever people emphasized the volume of their sound effects, they always seemed to spit a little... Karma made a mental note to bring that up at a less frantic time, along with other notions of etiquette, at a later date, there was no time now! Zher face turned a bit more solemn, starting to see more problems with this little idea of zhers than there was positive things to address. He was still hungry? There would be no way that Karma could grab something else, not until dinner... Zhe didn't want him to starve. Flinching, zhe removed zher hand from his person and pulled it toward zhimself, fidgeting slightly, "Maybe this isn't such a good idea..." He seemed pretty high-maintenance; zhe was pretty sure, at this rate, that zhe wouldn't be able to care for him to the point where he was comfortable!
Thaliawen "Good idea," Declan whispered, reaching for Karma's hand. He studied zher earnestly. He seemed to be trying to reassure the ditto. He couldn't understand english entirely, maybe, but he could recognize facial expressions and tones. Karma had lost zher enthusiasm. "My Cake. Good idea." He glanced around, before adding, "Hide?" Inquiringly. "Good idea, hide."
MoogerMint With a startled perk at Declan's hand at zher own, Karma blinked a bit in mild disbelief. Did... did he actually understand what zhe was saying? He didn't seem to be messing with the ditto, but he also didn't appear to understand what was going through zher mind, either. It was obvious he was trying, though. With careful consideration, Karma decided to leave the ultimate decision about what to do to the side for now, and just observe how things went from here. Carefully, zhe opened the back door to the workshop and peered inside. Nobody was around, as was expected -- they only really needed something out of here when they were running unusually low on certain supplies, or something big was happening. "I'll hide with you for now," Karma decided, waving him inside; it would be as good a gauge as any!
Thaliawen Declan went into the workshop, and glanced around. Hm. Thus was as cozy as his pokeball had been, he supposed. Much bigger: there was certainly room for him to move around! He beamed at Karma to show his graditude. "Hide with," he agreed, beaming. He sat on the floor of the workshop. What now? What did one do when hiding?
MoogerMint Glancing back to Declan as he sat on the floor, Karma giggled and motioned him back up. There were some things in here it was probably best that he didn't get into, so might as well show him while nobody else was around. Pointing up to the shelves full of various supplies, Karma determined the level of danger most of the items posed, but a lot of them also just... would have been best not to move. So after a bit of silence, Karma reiterated before zhe even started speaking a word, "Don't climb on these when you're in here, okay? And don't take things off of them. Um..." There was careful consideration for a moment, a frown creasing zher expression before opting to show instead. With one arm, Karma reached for a beaker on one of the lower shelves, and then swatted at the reaching hand with the other arm, do indicate that was a no-no. Turning around more, zhe spun zher finger to show that they were probably all like that, at least to be on the safe side. "Hm, I'll have to leave the back door unlocked..." zhe concluded, realizing it would be a bad idea to have no way out, if he were to be staying in here. Turning to the back corner, a few empty cardboard boxes sat in a disorderly stack, and Karma waved over toward them, "That's a good spot! Let's try it!"
Thaliawen Declan glanced up at the shelves indicated as he stood. "Don't climb on these," he echoed. "Don't take." He nodded to show he understood, watching as the ditto child reached for a beaker and then swatted at her hand. Hm. That meant "Don't touch" didn't it? It seemed like everything in the room was a don't touch item. He went to Karma's side. "Good spot!" He parrotted. "Good spot."
MoogerMint Karma's grin broadened as Declan seemed to catch onto what zhe was trying to relay with much less delay than previously. So he understood it better when someone showed him, did he? Zhe could do that! It still seemed like it would be pretty boring in here for the little guy, though... Karma was sure that something could be done about that if they were able to think a bit on the matter. With an eager giggle, the ditto nudged Declan toward the stack of cardboard boxes before taking the lead, sliding behind them and pushing a few in the center carefully forward for more room. "Oh neat, this could be a really good clubhouse!" zhe chirped happily, finding this all very exciting, "Come on, help me build a fort!" No, zhe didn't think he'd understand those strange words, but the careful actions that Karma was employing to the results may have. Lead by example!
Thaliawen "House?" Declan echoed, failing to grasp unto the entirety of the phrase. "Good house!" He exclaimed, happily sitting in the center of the boxes. He studied his surroundings for a moment, before he beamed at Karma. "Good house," he said again. He didn't understand what she wanted him to do, and hesitated. "Fort?" He asked, blinking. What was a fort? How did one make a fort? Instead of attempting to do so, he leaned against Karma and gave an exagerated yawn. Building a fort sounded tiring!
MoogerMint Karma turned zher shoulders, craning zher neck to spot Declan as he clambered between the boxes behind the ditto and seated himself on the concrete floor. Karma's hands were around an empty cardboard box by this point, attempting to dislodge the cumbersome object from where it stood, like pegs in a game of Jenga. "Yeah, we gotta build it. Make the walls better at keeping out the enemy!" the child explained with a bit of a grunt as the box was pulled, causing two more to come tumbling down. Karma squeaked and jumped slightly at the sound, but the boxes seemed to miss the both of them. The sound, however, was slightly more harrowing; hopefully nobody overheard!
Thaliawen "Nemy? Declan asked, eyes wide. What was an enemy, and why were they keeping them out? Oh well! He stacked a box carefully on top of another. "No nemy!" He declared, beaming at Karma. The smile slid from his face as the boxes fell to the floor. He promptly hid behind Karma, quivering. Was that an enemy? It sure was loud! He took the scalchop he kept on him, and held it up, preparing to use razor shell on the boxes. Hm. They weren't moving. He poked one experimentally with his free hand. Was it alive? It didn't seem as if it was. When someone else entered the room, he stiffened, and turned slowly towards the door. "Nemy?" He asked Karma, quite seriously. He'd fight the enemy to protect Karma!
The enemy in question was Tania. The shadow mew girl hesitated at the door, before calling, "Karma, are you in here? Are you okay? I heard something fall." She moved further into the storage, looking around. "So this is where they keep all the dangerous stuff!" She grinned.
MoogerMint Startled by the sudden quiet crash, Karma turned to see the toppled-again boxes, quickly scanning the area for the oshawott that fled from view. Reeling back a little as he pulled out his scalchop, the ditto shook zher head vigorously and gave an imperative whisper, "No attacking, that would make too much noise!" The cardboard boxes were empty, at least, so they didn't make too much noise if they didn't run into anything on their trip down to the concrete floor! The dangerousness seemed to multiply as the front door to the warehouse was opened, causing Karma to flinch and pull both zher and Declan back from view.
The voice was familiar, but the words still instigated a slight fear response from Karma. How did she know that zhe had snuck out? Did anyone else know that zhe wasn't inside anymore? Oh no! Nervously, the child emerged from view, but held one arm back a bit to signify to the oshawott to stay put. "I'm okay, please don't tell anyone!" the child squeaked. Karma was, after all, not allowed to go outside by zhimself.
Thaliawen "No attacking," Declan seemed disappointed. What was an enemy for, if not attacking? He pulled a face at her, apparently disgusted with her priorities--certainly "no noise" was less important than making sure enemies didn't get his cake? He hesitated when Karma seemed to know this new enemy, and instead of heeding zher, stood. He blinked a moment. Hm. That girl looked a bit like he did, didn't she? He considered the thought for a moment, before beaming. Maybe she had something to eat, too! He glanced at Karma, before wrapping his arms around zher. "Cake! Good?"
"Course I won't tell," Tania immediately agreed. She was always up for causing trouble, and Karma sneaking out certainly qualified! Telling would spoil it. "We can say you were with me all along," she suggested. "Then we can come back out tomorrow--hey, who's that?" The mew girl had noticed Declan. "A new friend?"
MoogerMint As Tania neared, Karma felt a welling of panic begin, and the hand zhe was using to keep Declan at bay attemtped to push him back at the stomach. Why wasn't he hiding? This was bad! If he was found on the very first day, there was no way zhe could keep him! A soft squeak emerged from the ditto as the oshawott, instead, wrapped his arms around the one that was holding him back, and Karma's attention instantly redirected to the young boy, immediately alerting to his presence without meaning to. "Shh!" zhe whispered, despite it being too little, too late.
As Tania attempted to look at the one hiding behind the cardboard box fort, Karma turned back to the shadow mew, expression pleading as she asked who it was. "D-Don't tell!" Karma repeated, "I found him outside. He's got nowhere to go, and I'm trying to get him to stay put and keep him secret. If anyone else finds out, they might get rid of him!" That's what they did at pokémon labs normally, after all -- Karma and Tania stayed because they were special cases. With a sigh of defeat, Karma pulled zher arm out that Declan was latched onto, in order to give a visual. "You're good at keeping secrets. Will you keep this one, too?" zhe asked cautiously.
Thaliawen Tania hesitated. She could see Karma starting to panic. "I won't tell," she responded immediately. She glanced at Declan. He did look awfully thin. "I won't tell," she repeated, moving to wrap Karma in a hug. "He'll be our secret, okay? Don't worry!" She didn't think Grayson would get rid of anyone who needed help, but if Karma thought he might, and Karma had known him much longer than Tania had, who was she to argue? "We'll take care of him together," she assured Karma. "Okay?"
MoogerMint As the fear gripped hold of the young ditto, zhe shook zher head in reply, only half-listening to the consoling words that Tania was trying to offer in the effort to calm her sister down. It wasn't until the girl pulled Karma into a hug did it start sinking in: she wasn't going to play any sort of mean-spirited prank. They were siblings, and this secret was theirs to share with one another. In a way, they could be playing a prank on the science staff... a stealth game, to see how long they could keep Declan hidden, but what would they do once he was discovered? Reflexively, Karma's free arm rose to hug the mew-girl back, nodding at her shoulder, "Mmh, okay. It'll be our secret, between sisters."
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:38 pm
◉ Roleplay #11 ★
Title:Guilty Under Ditto Law (messenger RP) Participants:Theo & Karma Stages:Child (Theo) & Child (Karma) Status:Complete!
Premise:The law is law for everyone, pokémon and human both!
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint "Karma, hey knock it off! I don't want to bring you home all mucky!"
The ditto-child wedged a rainboot free from the mud beneath a stomped puddle. Zhe nearly yanked only zher foot free of the galoshes instead, but regarded the scientist's command with little more than a flash of a glare over a shoulder. No fun, these scientists didn't know how to have any fun! It wasn't like Karma was so fragile, and it wasn't like the Doctor was going to be angry at them if Karma was the one that played hopscotch with standing water.
However, this didn't mean Karma was going to disobey the order, but zhe didn't have to like it. It finally stopped raining, and zhe hadn't even been able to run around in that, either. Pulling the hood of zher raincoat back, the blue-haired child sighed. Well, so much for dressing in preparation for the weather, the coat wasn't even wet!
Most of the park equipment was soaked, and Karma didn't feel like trying to use any of them only to get frustrated and fail. So instead, the brightly-dressed kid meandered along a trail that wrapped around the park. Zhe watched some passersby on the other side of the street as zhe strolled. The majority of the ones that still attempted to brave the unstable weather didn't wear anything particularly interesting, but zhe did pay attention to some sweater designs and bright colors as they came, and counted the cars as they drove on their way. Unfortunately, there was considerably less traffic than normal, so there was only so much that would keep the ditto entertained until a new idea entered zher mind instead.
Thaliawen Theo had headed towards the supermarket, intending to grab a sandwich or two. He had just met someone who needed sandwiches more than he did. Someone he was sure didn't know much about life as a pokeperson (of course, he couldn't judge, he knew just as little). He made his way past the clothing; he'd grab something there, later. Maybe a jacket for the yanma; he had a feeling the kid didn't pay much attention to the change of seasons. Just as he didn't seem to notice the dangers of weather. He didn't notice the colorful looking kid as he moved past; he had a goal; food. Then he could meet with Dart on sixth street.
He reached the deli, hesitating as he studied the sandwiches. Which were best? How many could he stuff into his bag without being noticed? He grabbed one and hurriedly stuffed it into his bag. He took another one. It didn't seem like anyone was watching; maybe he'd get away without any trouble this time!
MoogerMint It wasn't every day that Karma saw another pokémon-turned-human, let alone one that was wandering the streets. Zhe knew it wasn't entirely unusual, especially these days when more and more were sprouting up all over the land, but it still caught the child off-guard. Zher eyes immediately spotted the small wings sprouting from the boy's back, catching the curious ditto's attention. However, that one single focal point was quickly overruled as zhe continued watching as zhe walked, as the boy grabbed some of the sandwiches on display at the deli and proceeded to stuff them in a bag.
Karma flinched, hesitating the slightest bit, as though disbelieving. It wasn't every day people were so... blatant about it. Theo had likely not seen the young, if colorful, child, but that thought didn't seem to enter zher head. Surprise quickly dissolved into a frown, and the ditto stormed over. "Hey!" Karma called over, trying to flag the teen down as the distance quickly dwindled between the both of them, "Hey, you need to pay for that! What are you doing!?" That was against the law!
Thaliawen Theo looked up in surprise as he was addressed. He'd never been addressed by someone so young sounding. He blinked in her direction. Pay? What was that? What did he have to pay, and why? Before he'd changed, he'd been able to take whatever he pleased, and no one had said a word otherwise. He took a third sandwich and opened it, taking a bite. "Eating," he said, mouth full. "You? What are you doing?"
MoogerMint Karma reached Theo's vicinity just in time for the teenager to take a bite out of a sandwich he had stolen from the vendor's display, and zher face suddenly turned a little more horrified in reaction. "H-Hey, stop that! You didn't pay for that!" zhe scolded, lightly swatting at his arm in emphasis, "You need money to pay for that, you can't just take it from someone! It's rude, and against the law!" Was he just teasing zher? Was it because he thought he was above all that? Just because he looked older didn't make it right!
Thaliawen Theo stiffened, eyes widening in surprise as she swatted at him. "You have no right to tell me what to do," he said, haughtily. Who did this kid think she was, anyway? Some snob? What was money? How did one get it? "I don't have any money," he said, stuffing the rest of the sandwich in his bag. He stared at the ditto child for a long moment, before making a face. "Law?" he echoed. "So, you're telling me I can't take these things from someone, but they can take pokemon homes? Don't you think food should be free for everyone?"
MoogerMint Karma bristled at Theo's response, immediately confusing the tone for one that felt he was above the law because he was older than zhe was, or perhaps just had ego enough for it. Despite zher run-ins with pokémon that seemed just as ignorant of how society in the city was supposed to work, it didn't cross zher mind that maybe Theo might have fallen into the same category. This was a flip of the coin, the inverse, of Karma's perceptions on the subject -- zhe was assuming that, because he was older and therefore found his star long before zhe had, that he should know all this even better than the child did.
It also did not help that breaking rules like this, when results led to bad consequences and habits, was not something that Karma let off the hook so easily. Even if he didn't know what money was, it should have been obvious that one good turn deserved another, right? One offered food, and in return, they got paid for it, to use on something they needed as well. "You can't just take things that don't belong to you! These were made by someone so that they could get money, that's how it works around here!" zhe tried to explain, despite the frustration. No no, he wasn't supposed to put that in his bag! Karma's frown sharpened, though there was confusion underlying the look, "I don't think the person who made that sandwich did anything more than make that sandwich to sell. He didn't take anything without paying for it!" Another assumption, but it helped get the point across. Hopefully. What was this hoothoot on about anyway? Who took pokémon homes?
Thaliawen Theo didn't understand, and not understanding was starting to make him angry. He crossed his arms. "I don't know why," he said, irritably. Why shouldn't he take the sandwiches? He needed them, as much as anyone. And surely the person who'd made them wasn't lacking in funds; certainly he wasn't living on the streets, as he and Dart were. "Everyone takes something without paying for it," he said, frowning slightly. "But I'm sure the humans will put an end to that, too. They charge for water, already, and I bet they'll charge for air soon. Neither were made by any human!" Humans, one of Theo's least favorite things, were almost as frightening as thunderstorms. "You're weird. You look like one of us, but you're one of them. And you're taking their side!"
MoogerMint While Karma was still frowning in agitation, the look was getting progressively more confused. What was this boy on about? Zhe didn't understand this kind of logic. "Wha? N-No, no, people don't just take things unless they're criminals!" zhe retorted, wondering where he could have heard something that sounded so absurd. Karma was taken aback by the way the hoothoot's mind was working toward denouncing humans as a singular entity. "Charge for..?" zhe began, jolting with a start before the frown sprung back to life. He knew what it meant to pay for something after all! Grabbing one side of Theo's bag, the young ditto yanked at it as though to make a point. "Give it back, it's not yours! If you were trying to make a living selling people sandwiches, you wouldn't want people stealing it from you, either!" zhe demanded. Was it really so bad to be like a human? Pokémon seemed to act in similar fashion much of the time, it seemed!
Thaliawen Theo thought, personally, that humans were criminals. They claimed things that weren't theirs, didn't they? Forest land, they cut it down for whatever they liked. They polluted water and made it bad to swim in, and worse to drink. He certainly wasn't! He'd never stolen anything he hadn't properly deserved! Well. He'd never stolen more than what he needed to for survival. Especially as he had changed during the winter and stormy months. A few sets of clothing, some food, blankets. Necessities that hadn't been necessary when he'd been a pokemon. "But I need it," he said. "I need it, I haven't any money, and I need the food. Everyone's got to eat, and there's this kid..." He hesitated. Why was he telling the ditto kid this? It was clear she had no idea about the difficulties of the world. Probably thought the whole world was butterflies and rainbows. He snatched his bag back, frowning. "Look," he said, angrily, "It's mine, I took it. And maybe one day I'll pay for it, but not now. There's a kid waiting for this sandwich and I'm not giving it back!"
MoogerMint While Karma had not latched onto Theo's bag too tightly, it was still enough to tug at it and get zher point across. In fact, zher grip loosened as the teen's tone stopped being so barbed, giving him ample opportunity to snatch it back when he turned once more to his agitation. Karma's fingers snapped shut on the air as the fabric slid from zher hands, surprise once more standing aside for zher own irritation. "You're not the only one in the whole world that needs things, you jerk!" Karma snapped in protest, "The world doesn't revolve around you! Not everyone is the same!" Why did he insist on stereotyping everyone in such a negative light? There were plenty of good people out there! At least he didn't seem to be as selfish as he seemed, but he was really walking a thin line there... "Don't be stupid," Karma sighed irritably, unlatching zher shoulder bag, "If you promise to put those back, I'll..." Another sigh; he wouldn't follow those instructions unless the terms were presented first, zhe could tell. "Never mind," zhe corrected, reaching into the bag and fishing around for something that seemed stuck behind a notebook, "Look, hold out your hand. I'm going to give you something if you promise to put those back."
Thaliawen Theo froze. He had never been called a jerk before. A pest, yes. A villain, yes, thief, yes. What was a jerk? It didn't sound like a pleasant thing to be. The hoothoot immediately became defensive. "I know that," he snapped, "And I'm not a jerk!" He wasn't sure how to respond to the next thing she said; of course the world didn't revolve around him. The world was his home, and he took care of it; and it was giving him a hard time. Not everyone was the same? That was a concept he hadn't thought of considering. Hm... Maybe she was right. She certainly seemed human, but he knew that she wasn't. Humans weren't pinkish. "I'm not stupid, either," he protested immediately. He didn't want to put the sandwiches back, they were good, and he knew Dart would enjoy them. "I promise," he said, holding out his hand. Maybe he could get away with whatever she gave him, AND the sandwiches!
MoogerMint Karma may have been tempted to roll zher eyes at Theo's defensive retort, but zhe refrained from exacerbating the situation with the gesture, instead ignoring the comment; there was no real use in arguing when they both thought they were right. However, the comment about not being stupid could be easily clarified, "I didn't say you were stupid, I asked you not to be." No, he was probably rather intelligent, which set Karma's nerves on edge a little more than normal. Zhe couldn't help but think this was a terrible situation zhe had just gotten zhimself into, and the negligence to caution zhe was exerting on the predicament didn't help. After all, Karma wanted to believe that Theo would give the sandwiches back. There was only the briefest of hesitations when the teen held his hand out, as though scrutinizing his honesty. The child pulled a lunchbox from the bag and, snapping it open, grabbed a couple of sandwiches zhe had been saving -- one for zher, and one to sneak to Declan. Karma could always get some later, though zhe hated fibbing about losing them. "Take these instead, I'm not trying to sell them like the man that works here," Karma instructed, face scrunching slightly as zhe remembered the sandwich he had already bitten into. Maybe... zhe had enough change to pay for that? What a dilemma...
Thaliawen Theo snatched up the sandwiches in an instant, stuffing them into his bag quickly. He heistated for a moment. She seemed to be assessing his character; and though he would have liked to take all the sandwiches, because he knew they would need them within the week. He handed her the two sandwiches he'd taken from the deli with obvious reluctance. "There," he said. "You can have these, but I'm keeping the one I already started on." He added, "This doesn't mean I won't take more another time," he said. "Dart and I will need more food, and you can't always bring some. We haven''t got any money, and these people have plenty to eat. I only take what we need to live. You have plenty at home, I bet!"
MoogerMint There was a quiet sigh of relief when, as Theo grabbed for the offered trade, he decided to uphold his end of the bargain. Karma had realized a little too late that trust was not something that should be so easily given, especially when he had been intent on stealing the items from the start, but zhe was glad to note it wasn't something that would carry over to verbal agreements. At least, for now it would. "Yeah, I don't think it would go over so well if you put the one back that you already started eating..." Karma agreed, zher reluctant expression looking almost pained, until it transformed once more into a glower, "You know, you earn your own luck. Do bad things, and it's going to come back around to bite you. Do good things, and it tends to be better." The ditto paused a moment, ignoring Theo's assumption that Karma was loaded, especially when zhe felt what little zhe had stored in zher coin purse before continuing with the explanation, "...Do you know what that's called?"
Thaliawen Theo had no idea what Karma was on about. His expression said that clearly; he thought she was crazy. There was no way doing good things made good things happen. He'd been good all his life, and bad things had happened to him. His family had died. He'd become...whatever he was. He'd been starved, he'd had to find ways to find food, even if they were less than good ways. "Bad things always seem to happen to me anyway," he said. "By your logic, I must be a horrible person. But my parents didn't deserve to die. And I didn't deserve to lose my home. And I didn't deserve to be like this. I've been good." He didn't care what it was called, whatever it was, it was a lie.
MoogerMint Karma scowled impatiently at Theo after his response, but it was accompanied by a brief pause before the ditto even tried to counter it. "Stop thinking so selfishly..." zhe muttered then sighed, "It's about what you do. Bad people do bad things to good people. You just gotta be patient, eventually things will look up. Those bad people will have bad things happen to them because of it." Zhe wasn't sure zhe wanted to keep talking to Theo at this point, though. While his history may have been tragic, he wasn't taking anyone else in the world into account. He didn't have the worst life, why couldn't he just try to be a little more optimistic? Apparently he thought he was a good guy, but these actions were not what good people did. Karma pointed to the stand in emphasis, "Stealing is bad. Try to weigh how many good things you do to how many bad things." Karma hadn't had things easy either, but zhe wasn't about to compare; it wasn't like he would listen to zher anyway.
Thaliawen Selfish? Theo made to protest, and then hesitated. His eyes narrowed. He wasn't sure how to react to Karma; she wasn't taking the fact that bad things had happened to him before he had done bad things. He'd only stolen so he could survive! Who was she to judge, anyway? She probably had everything she'd ever needed, or wanted, for that matter. She didn't seem to understand how hard life was. "Stealing is bad," he agreed, "But only if you steal it for personal gain. I'm doing it to keep myself, and in this case, others, alive. Whatever bad stuff that's put on me, I think it's good stuff, because I'm helping others!"
MoogerMint Karma watched Theo, studied his movements and reactions, and determined that he was processing what the ditto had said. Even if he disagreed, at least it was a start, and not one that the child had anticipated. Zhe could be patient, though, and displayed this by crossing zher arms. The first words that the hoothoot had said were unexpected, and zhe almost faltered a bit at them. The addition to the statement was met with a frown, but it was more out of consideration than adamant disagreement. Well that was... certainly very grey terms there. Huh. "But you're stealing from someone who doesn't deserve the bad actions," zhe stated haltingly, "Isn't that just like how things happened to you?" This was confusing! Worried, Karma glanced back to the deli, noting that the one in charge of the stand was still distracted, "There are other ways to get what you want! You're a big kid, you can do more things than I can."
Thaliawen Theo considered the ditto's words. He hesitated. She was right; the person selling the sandwiches didn't deserve losing the chance to earn money, just like he didn't deserve to have lost his home. "Yes," he said. "I didn't deserve it, either," he hadn't. His family hadn't. They hadn't done anything wrong, it wasn't fair; but what if that was the case with this shop keeper? What if he didn't just yell at Theo to be mean? "Like what?" he asked. "I don't know anything about being like this."
MoogerMint Hearing the consideration in the teenager's voice, while a relief, couldn't help but keep Karma on tentative edge, as though waiting for his prior irritation to resurface. Just as precaution. Zhe nodded zher head as Theo began connecting things together, "Yeah, a lot of bad things happen to people who don't deserve it. That's why the people that do things like that are bad. Well... usually... I'm sorry you had to go through that." Obviously Theo was not all bad, he just seemed a little misguided. Blinking, Karma attempted to think up of ways that Theo might be able to afford sandwiches the legal way, "Well... on cartoons, sometimes a character will pay for something by working for the place, like cleaning dishes, stuff like that? They don't tend to let kids do that. Um... there are some other things I've heard other people do for money. Like tutoring, or acting, or babysitting. You just gotta be creative!" The ditto offered a sheepish smile at that, "Though... I'm not all that used to being like that, either. I've never been an older kid."
Thaliawen "It was hard," Theo said, "But I've made my living this way, just getting food and the stuff I need. I don't take anything I don't need. Just blankets and clothes. When I first changed, I didn't have anything, not even something to wear. It was cold, and people clothes out on tables in front of their house. I think they were giving them away or something. Anyway, I took some stuff that fit and put it on. No one was out there. I was scared, I had just gotten away from the mess when I found my star, and my parents--" he hesitated, looking away from Karma. Why was he telling her this? Why did he suddenly feel the need to explain and defend stealing the stuff he'd needed to survive? Why did he suddenly feel bad about stealing, anyway? "Cartoons?" he echoed, blinking. He'd never seen one; what was a cartoon? "I don't know how to work," he said. "Tutoring? ...Babysitting?" he stiffened at the idea. Did humans really sit on their young? "That sounds cruel. Is that a punishment?"
MoogerMint Oof, Theo's situation was definitely a difficult one to process. On the one hand, what he was doing was still considered stealing, but on the other... what other choice had he been offered, after he had transformed, when not under the protection of a trainer? He couldn't very well walk around naked and expect to stand against the elements... that and it just wasn't decent. But what about now? "Well, when you can, I think you should still ask a person before you take something of their's. Some people are nicer than you might think; even if they can't give you something, they might suggest something that would work better, or a person that could help out. You know, pokémon aren't the only ones that sometimes find themselves in a bad situation like that. Some humans have the same problem, and they can get help as well," the ditto suggested, another frown appearing at an afterthought, "Though... I don't know where that is..."
With a start, Karma realized that zhe should have known better than to assume that Theo would have any idea what zhe was talking about, at least when it came to purely human aspects of daily life. "Oh! Cartoons, they're like drawings that move on a television. Um... television is a box, it gets signals to... entertain people," zhe attempted, scratching at zher head in an effort to explain it better, but it was hard to explain something that was just always there. The ditto fidgeted a bit uncomfortably, "Tutoring is when people teach someone, one-to-one, usually about something specific." There was a pause, confusion written across Karma's face before Theo's misunderstanding became clear, where a smile broke out instead, "No, not like that! Babysitting is when an older kid or an adult looks after someone else's kids when the parents have to go somewhere." Okay, zhe had to admit, that was funny.
Thaliawen Theo had no will to argue with a girl who'd given him what quite possibly was her lunch. "But you're not one of those people in that situation, are you?" he asked, fretfully. What if she was and he was taking her only meal for the week? What if she struggled as much as he did? What if she had a little pokemon kid to feed, too? He immediately offered the sandwiches back, awkwardly. "You don't have to give these to me if you need them," he said. He didn't want to take her food, not now after she'd told him others were in the same situation; she seemed to know quite a bit about it, too
Cartoons were something people watched on television which was a box of some sort of signally magic. Huh. And it entertained people. What a strange thing to be entertained by, a box. He didn't comment on it though, what if Karma became offended? "Oh, I see. Tutors are like parents. Mine taught me to fly, you know," he said, casually, "But I can't any more. My friend and I are going to try and fly again some day." He hesitated. "Humans have funny names for things, don't they? You think it'd be easier to say 'babywatching' instead."
MoogerMint "Hmm?" Karma was perplexed by the question, but it didn't fully register to the child until Theo was already trying to give the sandwiches back. Zhe flinched back a little, "Ah, oh! No, I'm not like that. You need those more than I do!" Karma could always just make some more at home, though it might be difficult to explain why zhe needed to make more sandwiches, especially with the reluctance to lie. It was kind of awkward, to admit, in a way, to being better off than the person in front of zher. Fumbling a bit with a coin purse, the ditto emptied out the contents on the table for when the owner of the stand returned, to pay for the sandwich that Theo had already bitten into. Zhe hoped it was enough...
Karma nodded zher head as Theo made the correlation between parents and tutors. He wasn't too far off, zhe considered, though it was still a bit of speculation on zher part. Parents seemed like a rather foreign subject, other than something zhe could possibly observe. "Yeah, tutors are like that, I think. Some of them aren't family, but know a subject or two really, really well, so that they can teach it to others. Is there something that you know a lot about?" zhe asked curiously. Then again, Karma wasn't really sure zhe could even teach a person anything decent... what skills did zhe really have worth teaching, after all? The ditto really wanted to ask what it was like to fly, but stopped zhimself, thinking better of bringing up a subject that he couldn't really do any longer. Theo's name suggestion had the child smiling, though, "Yeah, that would make a lot more sense. Maybe they used to sit on kids in the past... or maybe it started out as a joke, I don't really know!"
Thaliawen Far from offended, Theo seemed relieved that Karma wasn't one of the people she'd been talking about. He'd been worried he was taking her food from her; he hadn't wanted to do that. He knew what it was like to be hungry. "Well, thank you then," he said. How could he repay her? With money? He didn't have any. By doing something nice? What? He'd have to consider that later; not here.
Theo considered Karma's question, before shaking his head. He knew a lot about berries, he supposed, which ones were good to eat and which weren't; he knew a lot about flying, he knew a lot about building nests; these were pretty useless, in this human place. "Nothing humans would be interested in learning," he said. "What about you?" he asked. "You must know more than me." He nodded at the explanation of babysitting, smirking. Maybe they really had sat on their young. Dart would probably be amused to hear that.
MoogerMint Karma nodded as way to accept the gratitude, though was silently hoping it would be the last time he needed to be bailed out for stealing. For some reason, zhe didn't think that would be the last of it -- old habits died hard, as it were, but perhaps the ditto was able to enlighten him some on the matter. "Just remember to ask next time," zhe tried. There had to be nice enough people around here to help if they could, right?
The ditto's expression was one of careful disbelief, if only because zhe was sure that Theo would have known plenty more than someone younger than him. At least, Karma had thought that until Theo turned the question instead to zhimself. Huh, there probably wasn't really anything zhe could really offer to anybody, either... at least that couldn't be taught in a single afternoon. Karma shook zher head, "No... I know some things, but they're not really helpful." Karma could do arts and crafts... it wasn't something that a person without even the smallest bit of creativity couldn't do. Karma flashed a sheepish smile, as though to apologize, "I suppose we both have a lot to learn."
Thaliawen "I bet you know lots more than I do," Theo mused, when Karma said she didn't know anything useful. "Lots more. About being like we are," he gestured at himself, and then at the ditto. He shrugged. "I don't know much about this surviving stuff, but I'm doing the best I can." He hesitated, before adding, "Maybe we can teach each other something." He paused, "I think I should get going now, though. I have a kid to feed, and you probably have someone to get back to, too. Maybe we'll meet again!" Hopefully not when he was in the middle of getting lunch.
MoogerMint Karma was about to shake zher head, that zhe didn't know nearly enough about what it was that they had become, but zhe held zher ground. Maybe... maybe it was possible that the ditto did know more, after all, but not just because of zher own experiences. Karma had help, and helped out others that needed it, and together they made sense of the world from a pokémon's perspective. "I still have a long way to go as well..." zhe winced, "...but maybe some day, I'd be able to give better advice. You can learn a lot from others." Theo's surviving skills were more from experience, but those views had unfortunate need to adapt, something he was certainly still in the process of accomplishing. There was still a lot out there, it seemed, that they still had to adjust to. It didn't seem like a bad idea to teach one another about alternate sides of society.
"Oh, um, good luck!" Karma called after the hoothoot, flinching before his words fully registered. Someone to get back to... ack! The scientist was going to be so mad that Karma had wandered out of the park!
Premise:What a delightful gathering of people here against better judgment, mmmyes.
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
Thaliawen It wasn't every day when Grayson was able to play, and Tania had decided to take full advantage of the weekend. The mew girl had latched herself to her father's arm, beaming up at him. "Daddy! Daddy, I'm kidnapping you. No more work today, Daddy, we're going to have a tea party. You can help us kidnap the scientists and we'll have everyone come! We can dress them up--" at this thought, the girl paused. She seemed to be considering something. "Let's get you dressed up, Daddy. You have to look nice for the party!"
MoogerMint Grayson jumped slightly as Tania grabbed onto his arm, her boisterous declaration snapping him out of his busy work of staring into space. He lowered the coffee mug so that he didn't accidentally spill any of the contents, blinking in confused silence before his mind caught up. The coffee may have normally helped with the reaction had it not been a slow Saturday morning. "Dressed up?" he asked as Tania led him away, frowning slightly at the notion of deja vu, "You mean like a toga?" They hadn't had any dresses his size the last time this had happened (luckily enough), but he wasn't sure if she meant something more suitable for his gender...
On the other side of the lab, Karma was tugging at the arm of the intern tasked to look after the ditto on the majority of zher outings, the one that kept being spooked by zher abilities and taught the child to work with zher abilities to a greater extent. It was really the only other employee in this place that Karma really grew much of an attachment to, so it was only common sense that she be dragged into this formal get-together for some tea! "Come on, it'll be fun, really!" She tried to refuse, being a very busy person on the clock, but Karma knew better: none of them were here because of the necessity to work, but the desire to. It was the weekend!
Thaliawen "No, you'll have to dress like a boy," Tania said, making a face. She seemed to think the fact that they lacked dresses Grayson's size was regrettable. "But there's a nice top hat you can try. It'll be nice! And we've got you a date, too. Karma's supposed to be bringing her." Never mind that Grayson was married. In tea parties that sort of thing didn't matter. "I'll make you look really handsome, Daddy. No more work. It's a weekend, and that's supposed to be when your work week ends, you know! But you just keep working!" Her grip on his hand tightened slightly, pausing in leading him onwards to frown up at him. "You should take more time to rest and play with us, Daddy."
They hadn't made it far before the mew girl caught sight of another scientist. The young man had noticed Grayson being lead away, and had attempted to keep out of the girl's line of sight, moving to bend down behind the counters. No such luck. "I see you, Allen!" She called, shaking a finger in his direction. "You're working, so you'll have to play with us!"
MoogerMint While it was a bit of a relief that he didn't have to try to squeeze into a dress, Grayson was more amused by how disappointed Tania sounded when she said so. However, at the mention of a date being set up, he raised an eyebrow. He wasn't going to try to insert the logic into her statement about already having a wife and kids, for he knew this was under the umbrella play that was the tea party. She was just being imaginative! "Well this is where I work," he chuckled, "so I work when I'm not busy. That doesn't mean I can't join your tea party, though." If only because it was the weekend -- this sort of behavior would be less tolerable during the week, but after so long staying here, he was sure that both Tania and Karma knew that. They probably planned it this way.
Karma could see Tania dragging the doctor along behind her, and went to wave at the mew as though to silently say that zhe was here now, too. However, before the ditto had, zher hand was pulled back to zher chest, watching as Allen had attempted to avoid their sights by ducking behind the counter. Not only did the maneuver not work, but BOTH of them saw that. Pouting, Karma backed Tania up on their case, "Yeah, come on! You'll have fun!" Zhe didn't understand how they could all want to work more than play a game -- it didn't make any sense! Dragging the young intern Rosabel with zher, Karma snatched and tugged lightly on Allen's sleeve, "Come on, we're kidnapping you as well!" Rosabel could only offer an apologetic, if frustrated, smile to her coworkers.
Thaliawen "That's not how it should go," Tania said, with a shake of her head. Grayson liked work far too much; when he wasn't busy, he should have been resting. "No, you're not supposed to agree to being kidnapped! You're supposed to fight it! What if I were a real kidnapper, huh? Then you'd be in trouble. You could be in danger, you know!" The mew was aware that while she, Karma and Grayson weren't particularly dangerous, other people could be. Sometimes it was fun to pretend she was one of them. "Next time, you're going to be my date, Daddy," she informed him. "Next weekend! But this weekend, Rosa is."
Allen grinned. It seemed he didn't mind joining in the kids' game. "Alright, alright," he agreed, moving to ruffle Karma's hair as the ditto child pulled on his sleeve. "Kidnapping? But, but I've got a job! A wife!--" He hadn't, but they had fallen into make believe. "What will you do to me?"
MoogerMint At the realization that Tania so graciously pointed out, Grayson hesitated for just a split second, eyes falling on Tania's arms wrapped around one of his own. Alright, needed to get into character. He gave a light snicker, "Kind of difficult to do when I trust you, isn't it?" Oh well, it wasn't as though he were supposed to be taking this seriously, Tania wanted a struggle. He gave a feeble attempt at trying to shake her off his arm, twisting his head back as though to call for help, "Oh the humanity!" It was difficult not to break character when he was so amused, though. He grinned at the young mew and nodded, "Aww, next weekend? Well I look forward to it."
Normally the tousling of hair would irritate Karma, for it usually meant that a person looked down on the young ditto as being merely a kid, but zhe knew better this time -- Allen was not a wildcard when it came to participating in games. He was nice. Especially when he played the parts so well! With a giggle, zhe blew the hair out of zher face, "The worst torture of all! You will have to participate in a civil and dignified tea party!" Yanking the both of them along, Karma caught up with Tania and Grayson in little more than a few steps, "And I don't want to hear any excuses!" The words may have been stern, but Karma wasn't the best at keeping the laughter out of zher voice.
Thaliawen Tania was pleased with the amount of fight Grayson provided, but he wasn't strong enough to get away! She held on tightly to his arm, beaming all the while. "You'll never escape!" she declared. "Never ever, we've got a special thing planned for you and you're going to come no matter what." She was equally pleased, when he said he looked forward to their date next weekend. "You'll have to dress up better then, Daddy. Not just a hat. Maybe a suit. Or we could find you something pretty. I could put a bow on you. I've got a blue one." A blue ribbon was certainly manly enough for him, wasn't it? She released his arm for a brief moment, as she went into the closet in the back to fetch the hat. She returned, offering it to him. "See? It's a top hat, and boys wear those to tea parties."
llen's eyes widened in dismay. "The worst torture?" He listened, his face becoming somber by the end of her description of the tea party. He gave a shudder. "Not a tea party! How could you? Have you no mercy? And being civil?" He made a face, as if being civil towards his peers was the thing he least wanted to do in life. "But, but, I want to go home!" he protested. "I want to be free, far away from tea and parties!"
MoogerMint Tania's gleeful demands made it difficult to try his hand at seriousness, "Woe is me, what has the world come to?" Grayson was not one to have taken studies in drama and it showed, but it didn't mean he wasn't about to put forth a little effort. As they made their way into one of the back rooms, he paused and looked around a bit to see what Tania might have had in mind. "A suit is a little on the expensive side to bring to a work area..." he considered, rubbing his chin at the thought of the ribbon, "Hmm, are you sure you can make that look good on me? Would it match my eyes?" Honestly, he didn't really mind if he wore one -- it was probably the better option. Taking the offered hat, he spun it around horizontally at the brim for a quick inspection before he flipped it onto his head, moving it side-to-side in order to get it to sit right, "Well? How's it look? Does it make my head look fat? I feel more proper already!"
Rosabel was rather surprised at the amount of effort her coworker was able to put forth on command. Did he have younger siblings or something? Karma was ecstatic about his performance, and managed a cackle in response, as though zhe were playing the part of the super villain, "Struggling will only make it worse! Once we're through with you, you shall never look at tea the same way again!" What exactly did zhe mean? Zhe had no idea, but it was still amusing. Pulling the two scientists into the room as well, Karma shook lightly at Allen and Rosabel's sleeves in indication to Tania, "Have anything for the two new captives?"
Thaliawen "I can make anything look good on you, Daddy. You're very handsome," Tania assured him. "Even a dress, but there aren't any dresses good enough for you here. One day we'll find one, though, promise. Then you can be pretty just like me and Karma!" There wasn't a dress that would fit an adult male in the lab, but she was sure there were some out there, somewhere! She beamed. "You look very nice! Doesn't he, Karma? He looks like a tea party guest already!" The mew girl hesitated, studying the two hostages for a moment. She grinned. "I've got just the thing!" she declared. She dove back into the closet, pulling out a silk flower. She offered it to Karma. "See, if you put this in Allen's lab coat, he'll look like a proper gentleman! And Rosa's a girl, so... Hmm... There aren't any dresses big enough, huh?" She sighed. "But maybe we'll improvise!"
Allen turned to Rosa and winked. It was fun, allowing himself to be taken into the children's game. He hadn't done this in years. "I think Rosa looks perfect the way she is," he said. While he enjoyed the game, he wasn't sure Rosa would like to be dressed up. "She's beautiful." It was all pretend, wasn't it? He didn't really fancy her, did he? "No, not that," he added, wrinkling his nose. "I'll do anything!"
MoogerMint Fiddling further with the top hat on his head, Grayson took one more look around, glad that he wasn't about to be stuffed into any of the more... feminine options at the metaphorical table. They didn't really look all that comfortable. He smiled at Tania as she reassured him that he looked just fine, "Well then if I'm handsome, that just proves how good you are at doing the job, huh?" Hey, he could compliment, too! He tilted his hat down a little, as a greeting, "Now where is this lovely event taking place, m'lady?"
"Wh-What!?" Rosabel exclaimed at Allen's compliments, taken completely off-guard. In all the fluster, there was no real retort she could make outside of the single word, let alone one that hadn't been stumbled over. Karma's attention had already drifted toward scrutinizing the articles of clothing that were present in the room, and it wasn't until Rosa had realized it that she managed to find her voice, "H-Hey, knock that nonsense off!" She knew it was an exercise in futility, but it wasn't a hazard to try either way.
Karma had giggled at Allen's charade, impressed with his skill at acting a part on the fly. While he was distracted, the colorful child reached up to deftly slip the silk flower retrieved from Tania into his front pocket. Turning attention back to the clothes, zhe nudged zher sister, "Hey, what about one of the scarves? She could wear it like a shawl instead!"
Thaliawen "Of course," Tania agreed, immediately, in reaction to the compliment. "Karma and I are the best at this, you know." She took Grayson's hand, beaming. He certainly could play the part, couldn't he? "This way," she said. "Next time, you have to bring brownies, this time we've only got crackers," she made a face, clearly regretting the fact that they were so limited in goodies. Or perhaps simply, that they were lacking brownies specifically. She led Grayson to a small table where a tea set had been laid out. "See? It's nice, huh?"
Allen was amused by Rosa's reaction; so amused he broke character for a moment to glance away and chuckle. It seemed she wasn't used to being complimented, he'd have to work on that. If something so simple could cause her to become so flustered... But no, it was a game, wasn't it? He didn't have any reason to want to compliment her daily, to make her feel special. ...But he wanted to, all the same. "A shawl might be nice," he said, glancing towards Karma. "You'd best hurry and take us to the tea party, we're going to get restless and antsy otherwise. We might escape!"
MoogerMint If there was one thing that Tania had plenty of, it was ego, and it was also apparently large enough to share. This amused the scientist more than it deterred -- in fact, it was probably a good thing that Tania had so much confidence, all things considered. "Alright, brownies next week," the man humored her, "Or would you rather have tea cookies?" He let the young girl lead the way to the station that was set up for such an event to occur, studying it as though he needed to see it from just the right angle, "Nope... nope, I think it's just about perfect there. Only thing that would make it better is to have people sitting at the table." Pulling one of the seats out, he offered it to Tania, "Madame?" It seemed it was easier for him to play the gentleman than a captive.
Allen's reaction to Rodabel's distress had her ears burning in embarrassment. She was making a fool of herself, wasn't she? It wasn't as though she had really ever been to a tea party before, at least that she could remember! She watched as Karma bounded for a pale scarf at Allen's agreement and quickly whipped it around the woman, having little room to decline. "There we go, all better!" the ditto cheered, grabbing both scientists by the sleeve and tugging them along to the table zhe and Tania had prepared, "Come on, or we'll be late! For a very important date!" Watching too many cartoons? Naaah... maybe just a little.
Thaliawen "No, brownies are best with tea," Tania insisted. Tea cookies, what were those? Brownies went best with everything, so the mew girl was certain they'd be good for a tea party. "You brought the best brownies ever, last time! Remember? But next time, we get to have more than one." Tania sat as Grayson pulled out a chair, giggling. Yes, he was the perfect prisoner! She'd never heard of a polite captive before. "Thank you," she said. "Daddy? I think I like you best as Daddy, instead of as my captive." Daddy was, naturally, a position for only the best. "So you have to sit by me."
Allen noticed Rosa's distress, a little too late. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey," he said. "It's best to go with the flow, with this sort of thing." He gave her a reassuring smile. "But never fear, I'll protect you from these villianous fiends!" He said the last bit for Karma's benefit. "It won't be long before we can escape." He allowed himself to be tucked towards the table. "Late? Oh no! We can't be late!"
MoogerMint Grayson snickered slightly at Tania's determination for brownies over the next weekend; he was fairly sure that chocolate and tea did not usually mix all that well, but he knew it was likely a losing battle to argue otherwise. "I remember," he responded with a nod, "Serenity made them, you should thank her when next she visits." As Tania gleefully took her seat, he pushed her chair in slightly and sat himself down in the spot next to her. However, her comment had the scientist chuckling again, and he hugged her about the shoulders with an arm, "Well alright, if you think so. Then I will just have to help you in holding others captive, in that case." Despite initial impressions that one may get, Grayson could be quite mischievous.
Rosabel flinched slightly as Allen clapped a hand on her shoulder, if only because she had not been expecting it. With a huff to brush the reaction off, she pushed her glasses back up on her nose and held her clipboard tighter. "That may be so, but this isn't what I signed up for," she grumbled. Noticing that Dr. Willows was also made to be part of this little charade, however, she knew she had no way around this matter. She shook her head at the theatrics, though it was not difficult to see it as amusing. Her response came as a retort all the same, "What, do you intend to dig us out with a plastic spoon?"
Karma was having a blast, and playing the part of the villain was surprisingly fun when under the knowledge it was just for play. "Mwahahaa, unless you turn into one of uuuuus!" the ditto cackled, bringing the two up to the tea table. Standing at alert, zhe stopped and tugged both sleeves of zher captives over to the chairs, "Sit! Sit and enjoy, or else!" Teatime of evil, it sounded like it would be a good title for something.
Thaliawen "Mommy made them?" Tania asked, raising an eyebrow. She'd never asked, but she'd always figured Grayson made them. "When will she visit?" she asked. "Will she bring more brownies? They're the best brownies ever! Can she teach me to make them, can she? I'll make them everyday! Every day, forever. Then we'll always have enough brownies. And you can't make me just have one, if I make them!" She was pleased with his reaction, nodding solomnly. "Yes, you have to help. You have to help, they trust you! It'll be the best deception ever, they'll think you're my captive, but really you're my partner!" The mew girl apparently approved of her father's mischievious streak!
"We're in a lab, we always deal with what we didn't sign up for," Allen grinned. "Pokemon are like that. There's always something new showing up. Or some new ability." Kids were the same way. Especially kids who had previously been pokemon. Allen still found that concept odd--odd, and fascinating. Could they use their abilities, despite the change? Could they use moves? Were the moves different now, now that they were children? "Alright, alright! We'll sit and enjoy, we'll sit enjoy! Please don't hurt us!" Allen sat in a chair, as directed. He wondered what the "Or else" was.
MoogerMint It was strange to hear Tania talk of Serenity as a mother figure, mostly because she did not visit the laboratory all that much, but it was endearing all the same that she had managed to wiggle her way into the comfort of family, and Grayson smiled at that. "She'll visit when she's got time to, and if she doesn't bring the brownies then I will, so don't worry," he snickered, mulling the thought of Tania baking brownies over, "It probably wouldn't be a bad thing to learn to make them yourself, but we don't exactly have an oven here..." At Tania's suggestion of cooperating jointly in the kidnapping, the man thoughtfully rubbed his chin. "Brilliant!" he remarked, quietly as the others approached. He winked at Tania as the rest of them sat down, but otherwise gave no hint at what he was doing, "Ahh, so they captured you both as well?" They'd be none the wiser!
Rosabel huffed in annoyance at being dragged into this, but in a way, she knew that Allen had something there. "Babysitting is not something that people normally associate with being a scientist, though," she grumbled half-heartedly. However, it wasn't until she took up the position that she caught wind of the fact that many pokémon were somehow turning more human-like in looks and nature, so it wasn't as thought she could have anticipated it, aside from the high interest factor. She sighed, relenting as she seated herself where directed. At least it wasn't really torture, and she did like her tea... "Okay, but only because it's the weekend. Otherwise I'd have my hours to worry about."
To be perfectly honest, Karma didn't know what the else could have stood for zhimself. Perhaps doodle on their faces with some markers, or glue a silly hat to their heads... so it was a good thing that they decided to bend to the threat and sit down. Perfect! That would mean this tea party could be well on its way! Karma took a seat as well, practically wiggling happily in zher seat. "Be sure to be on your best behavior, this is a formal affair!" Karma stated, grabbing the tea cups and setting them down, one-by-one, in front of the captive guests.
Thaliawen "We'll have to get one," Tania said, determinedly. "Or I could visit somewhere with one." Was there a such thing as public ovens? There were public bathrooms and public pools, and ovens weren't really that different, were they? "We could bake together, make something really good. You, me and Karma! And maybe some of our other friends." Like Declan, whom she would avoid mentioning until Karma told her it was safe to tell Grayson about him. She beamed as he agreed with her idea. Kidnapping scientists was fun, especially with Daddy on their team! "Course we did, we're the best scientistnappers ever!"
"They never mentioned kidnapping in the contract, though," Allen said, thoughtfully. He hoped to remind Rosa that while they were midgame, there was no such thing as babysitting. These were vicious, villianous people! ...Who wanted to take them to some sort of tea party of the damned. "I wonder if we'll be covered by our insurance, should things get ugly..."
MoogerMint Tania's idea was not a bad one, all things considered: there were such things for children that could have been compact enough to keep in the laboratory. "Hmm... I think we could come up with something," Grayson agreed, knowing full well he had already come up with something. With a smile, he nodded in response to her exuberance at the idea, "That sounds like a neat suggestion. We'll figure it out soon enough." It was amusing how well she could keep distracting herself from her own goals, and with a snicker, he reached for the cup that Karma set in front of him, "But we have more pressing matters to attend to. I say, I can't think too clearly when held captive under two individuals that are so cunning." They would never be able to guess he was working for Tania and Karma in this caper!
Rosabel turned slightly, snorting irritatedly in response to his retort, but she was not about to shoot down the point. She saw no benefit to this game of pretend, but she really had no other options at present. So she would play the part of the disgruntled kidnap victim -- at least that wasn't too big of a leap for her. With a sigh, she relaxed a bit, taking note of the teapot, "So... what sort of tea is it that you are insisting we ingest?"
Karma busied zhimself by pulling a fake mustache out of zher bag and adjusting it to zher face idly. The child had never actually had a tea party before, so this was going to be an interesting endeavor. "I am ready, m'dear," Karma spoke slowly, sounding as though zhe were pretending to be sporting sophisticated jowls.
Thaliawen "Really?" Tania was delighted. If Grayson thought they could come up with something, they would! He was pretty clever, after all, even if he was a bit silly. Maybe being a bit silly made one more clever. She'd have to study that. She couldn't give away the fact that he was not merely a victim in the grand scheme of things, and so could not hug him in front of Allen and Rosa, so instead she smiled. "Great!" she declared. "The tea is ready!" She took up her own cup, studying it for a brief moment. "It's the best tea ever," she informed Rosa. "It tastes like fruit! And it's not bitter at all, like coffee." Tania had found, after taking possession of a scientists' forgotten cup of coffee, that it was not worth the trouble. Blegh. "I'm the most cunning of all!" she agreed. "With Karma. She and I are tied! We're The Cunning Sisters! And now you have to drink tea with us. It's not poisoned, you know." She did seem delighted with Karma's mustache, clapping her hands at the display. This was the best game ever, why hadn't they thought of it before?
Allen snickered at Rosa's sound of irritation, he was quite amused. She really was adorable when she was irritated, wasn't she? ...That was his character thinking, he was sure of it. "You're only a kid once," he said. "I imagine you did things quite similiar." He was hoping her stick in the mud demeanor was only due to her internship. How to get her to relax a bit... It'd be a challenge!
MoogerMint Grayson leaned his elbows on the table and interlaced his fingers, resting them under his nose. He grinned from under his posed obstruction, something that Tania was likely the only one to notice, sitting at his side. Oh he was indeed in the loop, but it was easy enough to sway onlooker's interpretations of this fact. Instead, he focused on the matter at hand and sought to satisfy curiosity that could be contributed to either side of the equation. "What sort of fruit?" he asked, reaching for his own cup and drawing it near.
Rosabel made a slight face at the mention of the flavor, but let it drop even easier. She was indeed more a coffee-person, and sweet things weren't as appetizing to her. She knew she should have guessed, however, considering it was more the choice of the children, and kids did like sweeter things in general. Maybe she could find some green tea at a later point... Without even looking at Allen, she scooted her own cup closer by the small dish it was seated upon. "And that time that I was a kid has come and gone," she stated flatly. She hadn't been one for tea parties when she was young either, however -- more the kind of child that would go searching for tadpoles with a beach bucket and shovel in the creek out back. Oh well, either way, she could endure this.
"Sure it's poisoned!" Karma chimed in, completely disregarding the disguise for zher normal tone under the fake mustache, "It's poisoned with loooove!" There was a giggle, the ditto hoping that someone tried to take a drink before zhe had completed the statement. Momentary horror was hilarious.
Thaliawen Tania noticed Grayson's expression and grinned. It seemed he had something up his sleeve, or maybe he was just enjoying their plot. "Peach," she said. "It's the best! Peach tea goes good with cookies, and brownies, and all sorts of goodies. But we don't have brownies today. Next weekend we will!" She was sure of it. She'd already requested that of her father, but it was better to remind him. What if he forgot? She glanced at Karma when the ditto said the tea was poisoned. She was about to interrupt and insist she'd just informed them that it wasn't, but hesitated long enough to hear the rest of the phrase. She disolved into giggles. "Yes, love!" she agreed.
"Poisoned?" Allen echoed, careful to mask his amusement. He gave Karma an alarmed expression. "Oh. Wait. Love?! Love's the worst poison of all! Blegh!" He smirked at Rosa. "I like to visit that time, once in a while. You should try it."
MoogerMint Grayson nodded as though he were doing so simply to indicate that he heard what was being said but not actually processing. He was sure Tania would know otherwise -- it was part of the act. He understood that he was bringing brownies next weekend, but to others he may have appeared that he was just going with the flow for now, much like the tea party itself. Oh how misled these captives were...
Karma's grin felt as though it couldn't be bigger, especially when not only jad Tania agreed to the type of poison, but also that Allen was blowing the effects way out of proportion. Zher laughter offset the image conjured by the fake mustache, an accessory that the child seemed to have forgotten zhe was wearing altogether. Like a good host, zhe got to work pouring the 'tea' into the teacups that were set before each present individual. This whole scenario that they had brought up together, it was already a lot of fun, even before the party had begun. How much of this would Karma even remember after today? Would there be any trace left of it at all? The smile slowly faded, overshadowed by the focus of the task at hand as zhe busied zhimself with the teapot -- it was difficult to see that zhe was rattled at all.
On the other hand, Rosabel still seemed as adamant as ever to keep all her spoken lines reserved for sarcasm. She rolled her eyes some at the conversation after nodding her head in thanks for the tea. A little more sweet than she was used to, but it wasn't bad, she supposed. She snorted at Allen's suggestion, "Did you ever really grow up at all?" It was a tease, she wasn't really irritated, but her lack of humor up until that point may have offered an adverse impression.
Thaliawen Tania, perhaps alone of the group, felt a bit of unease as she glanced over to Karma. She had so far failed to keep the promise she had made when she'd first come to the lab. Tania had promised to help Karma with her memory and while the ditto hadn't forgotten her, she wasn't sure that was much of an improvement. She reached for Karma's hand, intending to give it a reassuring squeeze. If she had to, she would write everything that happened today down for Karma's benefit. "Hey," she said, "Look! We have three captives!" She hoped to cheer Karma up. "And we kidnapped them without any help from anyone!"
Allen pretended to think about Rosa's question, tapping a finger against his chin. "Nope!" He said, gleefully. "Nope! I never did!"
MoogerMint Karma set the teapot down, lowering zhimself back into zher seat as Tania's hand reached out and grabbed the ditto's hand, as way to encourage. Oh... had it been that obvious? Zhe tried to smile back, squeezing back once in reply, but it still nagged at zher. It always did. Karma sat briefly in silence, mulling over the words as zhe watched the two new captives seem to one-sidedly squabble, but shook zher head a little. "Hey Tania... do you think there's any way we can convert the captives?" Karma asked, a little awkwardly, "Bring them to our side? Um... ah, minions!" Zhe was trying to play the evil mastermind, but it was a bit difficult when weighted with worry.
While Rosabel expected his particular response to have been the most accurate, she was certainly not expecting him to admit to it, least of all with as little delay as he presented. She frowned slightly, having taken a taste of the tea only to have it freeze in front of her. Was this guy for real? How was she even supposed to respond to that? Setting the china down, she grumbled, "Oh hush, you, and drink your poisoned tea already." This was just... weird.
"It's good tea!" Grayson agreed with a smile, encouraging the captives to partake in what the little invitation was all about anyway. Sure, he could pretend it was poisoned all the same, but as an undercover agent, there was no reason one way or the other to detract them from drinking. He allowed Tania the time to talk to the one she deemed sister, keeping full attention dialed back in order to not draw too much attention.
Thaliawen "Yeah!" Tania agreed, beaming at Karma. Not only was she eager to cheer Karma up, but the idea was brilliant. "That's what the poison in the tea will do," she said. "After they drink it, they'll suddenly have an unexplainable urge to join us with tea time every weekend! We'll be the tea party club! Yay!" she moved from her seat, standing up and making her way to Karma. "You're the best!" she declared, hugging her.
Allen took a sip of his tea, grinning at Rosa's reaction. He couldn't resist, her reaction had been priceless. "I'll take a coffee with you later," he suggested. "You seem more the coffee type."
MoogerMint Karma jumped slightly as Tania elaborated on their plans, pretending that the entire situation had been pre-planned since the beginning. The ditto's smile grew from its tentative beginnings, finding this idea to be masquerading with enough "evilness" as it was belying a solution to Karma's hinted fear. "So it really is poisoned with love!" zhe giggled, "Then we'll all be part of the same team!" In a way, Tania was right -- this way, tea time would come as a scheduled event, and the repitition would keep the child from forgetting about it. Zhe hugged Tania happily, "Nuh-uh, you are!"
Weekly? Rosabel's nose wrinkled at the thought of being dragged to do this same thing every single weekend. Carefully, her eyes slid over to Grayson, who still looked like he was having way too much fun with this. Lovely. With a sigh, she took another taste of the tea. She was worried about her position, if she was just spending her workday playing games with children, but if her boss saw nothing wrong with the set-up, was there really anything she should be worried about? So this was just the average day at the Pokémon Lab... she supposed she could deal with that, if she got used to it enough. It didn't seem that Doctor Willows was going to mark her down as goofing off when on the job. This was research, in a roundabout way, wasn't it?
Her concentration was detracted by Allen's suggestion, continuing along the line as still being as difficult to respond to as ever. "Shameless, aren't you?" she considered, setting her cup down, "Are you proposing to take me out?" That didn't quite come out the way she wanted... but, despite hesitation, it still requested the same information.
Thaliawen "Right!" Tania agreed, beaming. "We'll all be on the same team! A tea team! That's what we'll call it. And Daddy will help us I bet. He's smart and he knows all the best meeting places. We can't always meet here! It'd get boring! In the summer we could meet outside, maybe invite a few friends." Tania was hinting to Karma that Declan might have enjoyed being invited to a tea party as well. Even if he couldn't talk, even if he was a boy. "We're both best!" she announced. "We're both captain now. Daddy can be co captain and Rosa can be secretary." she hesitated, noticing the exchange between Rosa and Allen. She rolled her eyes at Rosa's response. "Of course he's asking you out, dummy! He's always looking at you!"
Allen seemed to go red, eyes averting from those sitting there to the table. "I suppose I am. As co-workers we should get to know each other better." How awkward. He couldn't believe Tania would say such a thing!
MoogerMint Grayson attempted to stifle the laugh that threatened to come out at the unexpected name of the club, though there was no indication of any sort of disapproval. However, he was still intent on carrying on the charade that he was still captive and not co-conspirator, so kept himself quiet lest he blow his cover from behind the teacup.
Karma squeaked a bit at the idea, liking how well it fit into their plans for the day -- or for every weekend in the future, from the sounds of it. Repetition of this magnitude, zhe was sure not to forget it if it was a common occurrence! "I like that idea!" the ditto approved with a clap, zher fake mustache falling from zher face. Glancing to the rest of the people seated around the table, Karma pushed the idea out, "That alright? I mean, you are our captives and all... but still..."
Taken aback by Tania's rebuttal, Rosabel huffed, though composed herself, "Tania, the adults are talking." Granted, calling Allen an 'adult' was really stretching things. He seemed to take his response in stride, that much she could give to him. It was almost enough to pardon embarrassment. "I suppose we could," she considered, "Though the rec room would be just as good a place as any." It didn't have to be 'out' anywhere, after all, that's just what she had been inferring.
Thaliawen Karma was happy again! Success! Tania gave a bright smile. "We can invite others, too. Eventually. Your friends and mine, like Brenny! He could be our captive too!" The mew girl was rather surprised by Karma's question, but she supposed it was only right. They were only pretend captives, after all. "Daddy's okay with it," she decided for Grayson, sure of it. She had seen his smile behind his teacup long before she'd suggested the club's name. She glanced over at Rosa, shaking her head. "No," she said. "The captives are talking. And I'm telling you Allen is always looking! Because he likes you!"
"Well. Er. I thought we might try that place in town. It's not that far from here," Allen did his best to ignore Tania, glancing away from the girl. "We could sit and talk. We might be tempted to talk work related things if we stay here."
MoogerMint Grayson gave a slow nod in response to Tania's assurance; he had no reason to deny the games when it was the weekend anyway. How often was it that he had to be reminded not to overwork himself by family anyway? At least this way, he could argue that he wasn't.
Karma gave a tentatively growing smile. Maybe they really could have friends join in these club days as well, that would make it extra fun if they could! Maybe Karma would be able to remember all these friends with the increased visits, too... Zhe twiddled zher fingers a little nervously about it, but zhe sure hoped it would be okay! "Mmn, yeah!" the ditto agreed. It would be so much fun!
Rosabel snorted at Tania's reply and took another sip of the tea, thinking that the mew-girl was just a tad naive for thinking as much. Allen's suggestion didn't make much sense to her either, though. Weren't they discussing things strictly because they were coworkers? That's the only thing she could see that they had in common, after all. "You have something to discuss that isn't work-related?" she asked, setting her empty cup down.
Thaliawen "Well..." And for a moment, it seemed like he had nothing whatsoever to discuss with her, and yet everything all at once. "Well. The key to a good work place is companionship, right?" he asked, cheerfully. "Er. We could talk about pokemon, or the weather, movies, hobbies. Tea." He glanced over to Grayson and stood up. "I'll pull my car up front. How about that? It's about lunch time already, if our captives will release us."
Tania crossed her arms. "Fine," she grumbled. "Karma, come on. Let's go play outside!" They could tell Declan all about their new club!
Thaliawen There was a Furret in the lab. Or outside the lab, depending on when Allen looked. It seemed to have discovered something fascinating: doors. And with that discovery came an apparent urge to go in and out.
Allen was amused enough with the Furret's antics that he paused in his work to watch. Huh. He'd never seen a pokemon so excited about something before. Well, perhaps the two children that lived at the lab: they seemed pretty enthused about tea parties. Maybe he could catch the creature and show it to Rosa-- she'd like it, wouldn't she? Women tended to like fuzzy cute things.
MoogerMint With a boredly frustrated sigh through pursed lips, Karma slid further down against the lab table zhe was using as an arm rest. Fingers still tangled in a bright lime string and elbows resting at the edge of the surface, Karma's body sunk further, causing zher arms to tilt slightly further upward. Tedium, while distracting, got stale after countless fruitless efforts. However, as the doors began opening and closing, quite audible from the otherwise quiet inside of the pokémon lab, zhe flinched and struggled to right zhimself back up and leaning on the counter top. What was up with that? Zhe turned the frowning, curious glance back to zher tied fingers, only to jump up straight. "Rosa!" Karma gaped, spinning suddenly and swatting the intern with zher hands unintentionally on the pivot, "Look, look, it's London!"
"K-Karma, watch it!" she stressed, shaking her head after the momentary stiffness passed. Releasing a held breath, Rosabel nodded and pat Karma on the shoulder, "Good job, kiddo. Now go see who is playing Red Light, Green Light with the door, will you?" Was Tania trying to set herself up for another prank or something?
With a swift affirmative, Karma hastily made zher way to the front door, first seeing Allen on the other side of the glass door and smiling, raising zher fingers slightly in an attempt to wave some fingers in greeting. The idea was quickly sidelined once the nimble furret was spotted, and Karma jumped back a little, wide-eyed. The young ditto had never even interacted with a dog before, let alone a giant furry windsock!
Thaliawen Allen had given up research as a lost cause, something that was rather unusual. He tended to stay on task unless something distracting (like being kidnapped by two adorable children) took place. This was one of those times. It wasn't everyday one saw a pokemon bursting into the lab, and then out of it. He'd pulled a pokeball from his pocket. He'd never actually caught a pokemon before, he'd been too invested in studying once he'd gotten old enough. "Don't be frightened, Karma," he reassured the ditto once zhe came into view. "That's a Furret. He won't hurt you. Why don't you invite him in?" They could still communicate with pokemon after they changed, couldn't they?
MoogerMint In that first moment, Karma had backed zhimself all the way into the closest counter, pressed into it and nearly tempted to climb on top. That pokémon... was it wild? Wild pokémon attacked people that came into contact with them, right? That was basic knowledge, something that many a trainer that passed through places like the laboratory was told before venturing on -- knowledge that Karma was sure zhe had heard at least once a week. Worriedly, the ditto's eyes lifted, fixed onto Allen as he moved closer. "Is it... yours?" Karma gingerly asked. If it was a tame one, then it was likely not to attack, as Allen said. Karma only knew one skill!
Thaliawen "No," Allen said, "It will be though. Don't worry, Karma." he was surprised to see Karma so cautious: he hadn't expected a pokemon to be frightened of another. But then, wild pokemon tended to attack domesticated pokemon... He moved closer towards the door, and as he did so, the Furret stopped what it was doing. It stood on it's hind legs, as if scouting for danger. Seeing none, it seemed to decide to investigate its surroundings. It moved towards Allen, curiously, before taking hold of a clipboard off the counter.
MoogerMint It was probably because Allen had told the kid not to worry that Karma hadn't actually jumped onto the counter, as though to flee from a mouse, but regardless, zhe remained still and tensed, as though awaiting an attack. As Allen moved and the furret paused his game with the doors, the ditto feared the furret would turn on the scientist instead. "Be careful!" zhe squeaked.
However, the furret's preoccupation with the clipboard blindsided the young ditto, causing defenses to fall momentarily in favor of confusion. It was then that it started registering to zher: he was just as curious, wasn't he? Mischievous, but it looked to be all part of a game. Or a dare, that was a possibility as well. At least, it seemed similar to the games that Karma had played before... or zhe thought zhe played, at least. Quickly, Karma fumbled for a piece of pink construction paper, fingers still loosely laced, and folded a quick paper airplane. "Hey, fuzzy thing! Look look, lookit this!" Karma called, hoping to distract it a different direction and give Allen more time to do... whatever he was going to do. Zhe released the paper airplane to glide down a different hall, though not too far, and quickly spun zher attention back to the young scientist, a sharp nod to do whatever-it-was now!
Thaliawen The furret, predictably, noticed the brightly colored thing before he was invited to look. It darted in the direction it was thrown, bouncing towards it happily. This was fun! And the person who'd thrown it was brightly colored too!
Allen took his chance. When the furret was busy with the paper airplane, he tossed the pokeball he'd been holding. He wasn't quite crossing his fingers, but the anticipation was written on his face. What was he supposed to do if he caught it? What if he didn't? He didn't have a pokemon to battle it. "Karma, go find Tania. She's probably bothering Grayson."
MoogerMint Karma watched as the pokéball clattered to the floor, Allen attempting to capture the rampant furret. Before it was able to conclude whether it was a successful catch or not, the ditto's attention cut back to Allen. With a sharp nod, the ditto affirmed the instruction and dashed off. Passed a confused Rosabel, jostling through the conversation between an older scientist and his apprentice, the antsy child slid into the doorway, swatting a hand to the door frame and cutting briskly into whatever conversation Tania and the doctor were trying to have, "Tania! Tania, we need your help with something!" Zher eyes hooking onto Grayson, zhe offered the briefest of apologies with a coughed out, "I didn't break anything this time, honest! Tania just has to see something!" A flick of a smile later, Karma was grabbing the mew-girl by the hand and tugging her along, back to the entrance where Allen and the fuzzy windsock were currently residing.
Thaliawen "What is it?" Tania demanded eagerly. Were they going to prank Rosa? Maybe she'd transform into another scientist and see how long it took for her to realize it was her. Karma had gone out of her way to summon her, though, so she didn't think it was a simple plot to prank their favorite scientist friend. "Tell!" The sounds of rather undignified excitement sounded from where Allen had been. He'd moved to pick up the pokeball, apparently forgetting that he was in fact the adult in the room. He stared for a moment, not sure what to do. Then he let the furret out of it's pokeball.
MoogerMint Instead of answering Tania's demands for an explanation, Karma opted to let the situation speak for itself. Of course, it didn't help that Karma didn't know how to explain what had just happened. Home invader? Door-hopscotch? There was some Fetch in there, but that hardly would have been worthy of mentioning. "Allen's got something!" zhe finally said as they neared the front door. The ditto stopped in the doorway abruptly, peering around for any sign of the furret before zher eyes landed back on Allen brightly, hopeful, "...You got it?"
Rosabel had watched as Karma dragged Tania past, the ditto seeming to have been pacing back and forth through the lab. What had that racket been? Her eyes narrowed toward the hall, as though awaiting Karma to come back through it again. Well... at least it was quiet enough to work more efficiently now...
Thaliawen What did Allen have? Was it good? Tasty? Chocolate? It turned out, it was none of those things. In fact, it wasn't even edible, which might have been a disappoint to the mew if Karma's excitement hadn't been so infectious. What was so exciting about a pokeball? They saw those on a regular basis. "What's he got?" she demanded, when Karma inquired as to whether Allen had got it. Got what? Did he have a pokemon in that ball? She was delighted when he let the furret out. It was a fuzzy tall thing! Maybe she'd be able to teach it how to prank.
Instead of pranking however the furret in question had discovered it's tail. It started after it, round and round, finally catching it in it's mouth.
MoogerMint Karma only tugged a little on Tania's wrist in response to the girl's insistence, a silent instruction to see for herself instead of letting someone tell her; it was more exciting that way! Though Karma was still a little on edge about it, zhe was generally prone to believe that Allen had things under control. He was the adult, after all, and his job seemed to direct him toward knowing quite a bit more about pokémon than the average human. The furret didn't seem hostile when he released it from its confines -- quite the opposite, actually -- but its hyperactivity had the ditto backing into the wall once more. "How much sugar did he get into?" zhe complained, worried.
Rosabel, in the meantime, was considering getting annoyed again. Obviously, something was going on over there, but Karma hadn't come back to say the kid had taken care of it? She sighed, frustrated, but got back to work. It was still more quiet than it had been, even if the curiosity in the back of her mind was now driving her up a wall.
Thaliawen "Probably a whole bag," Tania responded, observing the Furret's behavior. "A really big bag." She'd never met a pokemon so energetic. She watched as the furret bounced on all fours, blinking. "So you caught it?" she asked, looking to Allen. "What are you going to do with it? It's kind of weird. In a fuzzy cute way."
The furret in question had lost interest in the people in front of him, instead going for what was--what was Karma doing? The colorful thing was leaning against the wall! He wanted to try that too! He moved beside her, standing on hid hind legs and leaning against the wall. "This is fun!" he declared. "Come play with me!" In his enthusiasm he'd bumped against the wall. He moved away, blinking at the sound. Huh. The wall made noise when bumped! He tapped it with his paw. That was a quieter sound, but still entertaining! "What is this place?" he asked. "There's no trees in here!"
Allen was amused by Karma's reaction to the furret. He chuckled. "About as much as that celebi friend of yours does daily," he said. He'd heard that that particular child had gotten Grayson to play tag.
MoogerMint Karma nervously tugged off the lime green string from around zher fingers, the Eiffel Tower long since having been demolished in the excitement. The child couldn't help but feel anxiety set in when around new individuals, human and pokémon alike, and it didn't help matters that, every so often, they shouldn't have been perceived as 'new encounters' at all. This time, however, Karma knew better. The furret was obviously wild, for if it had been a trainer's pokémon, it wouldn't have been running so rampant without any supervision. Karma's eyes went wider at the answer to zher posed question, and awkwardly the ditto pressed on, "How... how much does the celebi tend to have?" His name was on the tip of zher tongue, but that was beside the point... Karma didn't remember interacting with someone this hyper in the recent past!
Zhe flinched a bit as the furret came bounding at the ditto as soon as it was released from capture, but it was only a bit of a mild, half side-step as its voice reached zher ears. It just wanted to play... just like Declan, just like Tania, just like any of the other non-adults that zhe could remember interacting with. That was odd -- in Karma's time transformed, that notion started to feel more like a human reaction than a pokémon's when introduced to unknown surroundings. Maybe Karma had been human for too long, but as far as memory was concerned, it wouldn't have been surprising. "Play... what sort of thing?" zhe asked, feeling somewhere between nervous and confused, if a bit curious. Why would a pokémon come barging into a building so far into town if it had never seen walls before? "Are you lost or something? You're pretty far from the forest!"
With the sound of heavy bone hitting walls suddenly, Rosabel accidentally fumbled with her pen and dropped it. Actually, it was more like she accidentally threw it across the table, and the reaction had her tense. Her jaw clenched to keep herself from cursing, she rose from her work and tried to shake it off a bit. With a slow breath, she moved toward the entrance, attempting to hold back her frustration as much as possible. "What the heck is going--?" she began, cutting herself off once her eyes landed on the giant ferret, and she halted dead in her tracks, "What the heck is that!?" Of course she knew it was a pokémon -- a furret, to be precise -- but why it was here and causing a ruckus was another thing entirely!
Thaliawen Tania considered Karma's question. She was a bit surprised by the ditto's failure to remember Brenny's name: he was there often enough! "Probably a lot," Tania mused. "He's that kind of stupid. All sugared, all the time. If he weren't..." She made a face. "If Brenny wasn't always like this, he'd actually sound smart! Some of the time." That'd been hard to admit. Harder than she had thought It would be. "We could teach him games," she suggested, looking over at Allen. It was his pokemon, after all.
"There's all sorts of exciting things in here! I saw something fly! Oooh, you're the one who made it fly! Do it again, do it again! How did you do it? I want to see!" The furret pressed his nose up against Karma, as if expecting her to produce a paper airplane like a caterpie produced stringshot. "Not lost! No, not lost! Got bored! Nothing to play with in the forest! Pinecones don't roll enough and the pidgey fly away if I knock them down from the trees! Can you fly? No, you haven't got wings. Are you hiding them? The furret pulled away slightly to study Karma, pausing to take a breath. "No not hiding them. No wings! Are you going to make more flying things now?"
"A furret," Allen said, glancing at Rosa. Ah, the person he'd most anticipated telling! He was amused by her question: he'd understood it, too, but that didn't mean he was going to answer her immediately. "And he's mine!" he said delightedly. "I just caught him!"
MoogerMint Karma looked concerned at the way that Tania spoke of Brenny. Didn't she have fun when he came to visit, too? With an awkward shuffle, the ditto looked back at the furret, longer than the child was tall. "What sort of games should we start with?" zhe asked, a question posed to Tania and, by extension, Allen as well. What would be alright, for the sake of keeping things intact from damage but that would captivate the furret's curiosity? It seemed that it was possible to do so without much effort at all, as the barrage of questions came raining down. Karma teetered a bit in thought, trying to condense the answers into a more manageable response. "I can show you how to make a paper airplane, but I don't know if you can..." zhe murmured, looking at the furret's paws; no thumbs, but maybe he was resourceful enough. Blinking, Karma considered that the pokémon likely was not very old, if home became so boring so suddenly. However, the question of wings had Karma on edge again. Zhe was upset that zhe couldn't transform to the same extent that zhe used to before finding zher star that transformed the ditto into the child of today, "I used to be able to. Maybe I can again some day..." Instead of dwelling on that point, however, Karma grabbed another piece of construction paper from zher shoulder bag, sliding down to sit on the floor and proceeding to show the little guy how a paper airplane was made, using zher thighs and knees as a table and making light conversation as zhe did so, "So, what's your name? I'm Karma."
Rosabel eyes slid to Allen at the sarcastic response, and her face squished into a frown in response to it. "Of course I know it's a furret, what do you take me for?" she snapped, eyes moving back to concern herself with what it planned to do next, "I meant what is it doing in here, running amok?" His further response surprised her, however, and she leaned back a little, sighing as she relaxed a bit, "What, so now you're looking to become a pokémon trainer, too?" She was amused, she could admit, but at least it wasn't without.... some logic behind it that the furret was here. "It'd better not break anything..." she warned as an afterthought.
Thaliawen "Tag?" Tania suggested, shrugging. She had a feeling the fuzzy windsock was faster than it looked, though, with it's short legs and long body. "Not hide n seek," she added, quickly. She wasn't sure she wanted the furret out of her sight. What if it bothered Grayson? Made a mess out of his things or caused general mayhem? "Maybe we could go outside," she suggested. Less things to break out there.
Allen gave a nod. It was probably best they play outside: he didn't want to see anything damaged, any more than Rosa did. "Well you asked," he teased his coworker. "I'm not sure what it was doing, but its certainly not running amok now." He hesitated at her question, shaking his head. "No. But he'll be good company at home." He missed having a large family, it was too quiet at home. The furret would certainly solve that problem!
Paper airplanes? That was what those flying colorful things were called? The furret watched attentively as Karma grabbed a piece of paper. He followed suit, grabbing it with his teeth. Instead of a paper airplane however he ended up making a slightly damp pile of blue shredded paper. Oops. "You could fly?" he asked, excitedly. "I never could. See? No wings!" He hesitated, pressing up against zher again. "I'm Eirian. Make more Aper Pairplanes!"
MoogerMint Karma glanced up from where zhe was situated near the floor, nodding to Tania in agreement. The child didn't move yet, however, wondering if the furret would even agree. It didn't sound like he had ever been indoors before, or at least inside a laboratory, which felt odd to the ditto if only because that was the only real environment that felt safe; not everyone spent there life in a place like this, though. "Would you rather play outside?" Karma asked, followed closely by a giggle. Eirian's paper airplane looked like it had battled with the much larger pokémon and lost! "You'll get the hang of that eventually, you just need some practice. That's okay, though, I have lots of paper!" Never left home without some to accompany the ditto, that was for sure!
Mulling on the thought of flight, Karma took a reactionary glance over zher shoulder, as though expecting there to be wings there. "Well, I'm a ditto. I used to be able to transform into a lot of things, so I could make wings that I could use. I can't transform like that anymore," zhe explained with a bit of a sigh, but shrugged it off and offered a smile instead, "but I'll practice. Maybe some day I can do that again." Aper pairplanes? Okay, zhe had to admit to liking that name, and laughed about it. "Sure I can!" Karma agreed, folding another one before a consensus was reached about a game and gaming environment, "We can fly them outside, too, if you'd like." If only they had a kite, zhe thought Eirian would get a kick out of that!
Rosabel shoved her hands in her pockets, shaking her head with a sigh, feeling rather cross. What, was she supposed to be babysitting again today? Honestly... "Out, out with you! It's not a matter of whether you want to or not, no rough-housing in here," she shooed the lot of them, moving toward the front door and opening one side of it. Turning her attention back to Allen, she made a quizzical remark, "Do you call the lab your home, then?" It seemed odd that a wild pokémon would wander so far into town, uncaptured, and happen to make its way here, only to make a ton of racket. She was almost sure that Allen had caught it before coming to work, and happened to release it inside.
Thaliawen It sounded like they had no choice. Normally, Tania would have protested, would have gone to Grayson for support in allowing her to play inside. Normally, she didn't have a pokemon twice as obnoxious as Declan. She took Karma's hand. "Come on. We can introduce Eirian to my imaginary friend! They'll get along!"
"Fly them outside, fly them outside!" Eirian didn't seem to mind the setting, as long as he had someone to play with. "Lets fly them! Lots of them! I like them! Make more, make more!" Eirian dashed outside, ignoring the presence of Rosa as he passed. "Imaginary friend?" he inquired. The concept was New to him. When Tania followed him out, she made a shushing noise. "My imaginary friend doesn't like grown ups! You gotta keep it quiet or else!"
Allen frowned, glancing at Rosa. "No. Well, it's sort of a home. That furret came in here and I caught it. I wouldn't bring a potentially destructive pokemon into a lab. With my research." Did she really think he wouldn't have thought that through? "I only let him out again so Tania could see him. Karma seemed pretty excited."
MoogerMint Karma perked at Tania's suggestion of Eirian meeting the so-dubbed 'imaginary friend,' knowing full well who she meant. Zhe was also well aware that the adults took this statement at face-value, so did not seem worried about the suggestion. "Yeah, I think you're right," the ditto-child agreed, taking another look at the furret beside zher before rising to zher feet. "Come on, I can make more paper airplanes out there, too. You can play with them better when the wind is blowing!" zhe giggled. Of course it was harder to steer them that way, but the challenge was half the fun! Karma followed the excited furret out the doors, happy to be able to get a bit of fresh air.
"Oho, so you really do worry about work sometimes," Rosabel jested, noting how Allen's tone was taking a more sour note. She hadn't been sure just how seriously he was capable of acting, so it was nice to be able to see the hints of it. "Well that was nice of you and everything, but that would best be done outside, next time." Despite the fact she was scolding, the fact that she was amused underneath it all wasn't completely absent from her tone. Waving a hand in the direction of the door, she got them back on track, "Well, we'd better make sure they don't do anything regrettable while they're out there. Come, now."
Thaliawen Allen didn't seem to appreciate the jest. Not at first, anyway. He frowned for a moment longer. "Yes," he said, "And you worry about it too often. Come on, come to coffee with me. There's this nice cafe down the road a bit, and we could talk." He wanted her to say yes, he wanted her to. "Maybe we could see the town sometime. Take a walk-- it's getting nicer out by the day."
Eirian was delighted: he got paper airplanes that flew, he had new friends, and someone had caught him! That someone was bound to have something to play with. "Wind? Play better?" he echoed. "Make it be windy! We'll play more! Lots of them, pretty flying things!"
MoogerMint Rosabel scoffed a bit at Allen's response, heading through the door if he wasn't going to go first. "Of course I worry about it, why shouldn't I? I haven't exactly secured a job here," she sighed, crossing her arms and leaning against the outside wall of the laboratory, watching as the kids and furret played in the yard. It was a few moments before she felt she gathered the situation completely, at least enough to respond, "So you think you'd get along with me better outside the work setting, huh? I think you'd be disappointed. I'm not much more agreeable anywhere else." If he didn't like her like this, what made him think that could change? She was not anything above socially awkward, and working in the lab just felt like she was immersed in her own element. She wasn't sure what she should do.
Karma folded a lemony yellow page as zhe walked out into the yard, a vibrant highlight under the rays of the sun. There wasn't much in the way of wind, it felt like, but there was enough of a breeze that made it possible for the paper airplanes to fly semi-unpredictably. Zhe released the miniature hangglider in Eirian's direction, wondering if he would be able to catch it, much like playing frisbee with a dog. "It's got so much room to fly out here!" the ditto grinned, "Tania, we should build a kite sometime, I bet Eirian would really like that!" Declan, too, for that matter. Briefly, Karma's gaze trailed over the shed where he was hidden, and quickly the attention shot to Allen and Rosabel behind them, as though they would have been able to read Karma's thoughts about someone being hidden in there. But they were just chatting, and watching. Waving over, Karma seemed to change the subject for zhimself, "Hey, you guys should join in! We can play Keep Away or something!"
Thaliawen "You shouldn't worry. I think you've got it in the bag. You're brilliant, you know. And the kids like you." That had to count for something. They were pokekids after all, and they were researching pokemon. In a way, it gave pokemon a voice, he supposed. "That's not it," he said, shaking his head. "I want to get to know you better. I already like you." So she hadn't guessed, when he'd asked her to coffee before. "I think you're sweet and kind. And you're beautiful."
Eirian took off after the bright yellow airplane, bouncing and attempting to catch it. He failed to do so, until the airplane came to a halt on the ground. He leaned down, studying it. "Get up!" he insisted. "Fly again!"
"We should," Tania agreed with a smile. Building a kite would be fun! And as long as they weren't being supervised by adults, Declan would be able to join in as well. "Lets ask Daddy later, maybe he'll help us make one."
MoogerMint Rosabel fidgeted slightly, restrained by her crossed arms. This was awkward, she wasn't quite used to praise, being the antisocial bookworm that she was. It didn't help that she wasn't even sure what part of her that Allen was referring to. These were aspects of her that he saw while in the workplace? But what about when she wasn't on the clock, would he still feel the same way? While, to her, she acted the same no matter the context, she wasn't very sure that it wasn't a matter of perspective. "Sweet and kind are not words that people often associate with me, are you sure you have the right person?" she grumbled, but her face was noticeably pinker, "...I suppose coffee couldn't hurt."
Giggling at Eirian's antics, Karma made zher way over to where the bright yellow plane had come to a full stop. "Yeah we could make one all rainbow or something!" the ditto chimed back with a smile, lifting the folded paper up and tossing it again to glide off in a different direction, "Rainbow, and streamers! It'll be so pretty!"
MoogerMint Ever since the poké-children had begun reaching out and interacting with the scientists more, with the pranks and tea parties, it seemed that restrictions became a little more relaxed, for there was always the assumption that someone was looking out for their well-being, if not everyone. Even if Karma was looking out for Tania, or vice versa, tabs were kept at any given time. The more lax structure gave them a little more breathing space, and more room to do things they otherwise couldn't on their own, like with board games or arts and crafts.
It was also this slack that allowed Karma to slip away from the confines of the lab, as long as zhe stayed on the property. Tania knew where the ditto had gone, and she was also the only one that knew of the specifics... which is exactly how Karma preferred it. Declan was a secret, a special secret shared between just the two siblings.
As the child neared the door to the shed, zhe pulled out a sandwich, wrapped in the cling wrap that had become so familiar with the meal. Zhe poked zher head in and took a glance around before closing the door behind. "Declan want a sammich?" zhe called into the room, waving it slightly as though the smell could penetrate it's wrappings enough to reach the little oshawott, "It's Cake; it's safe!"
Thaliawen Declan poked his head out from where he'd been resting. "Sammich?" he echoed, beaming. He was always ready for something to eat, always ready to see Karma! He hurried towards her, and instead of making a grab for the sandwich, wrapped his arms around Karma. "Cake! Happy!" He wanted her to know how happy her visits made him: more than when the other one came. "Play today, Cake?" He looked hopefully towards the door.
MoogerMint Declan's immediate response back to Karma's call had the ditto smiling, at least until the young oshawott ran over and hugged zher tightly. The smile briefly disappeared in favor of surprise, and came back perhaps twofold. Karma returned the gesture, careful not to smoosh the sandwich, "Yaay, I'm glad to see you, too!" With a tousle of his hair, the ditto mimicked the glance to the door before turning back, semi-serious-looking. Zhe went looking for a corner of the cling wrap to get it started, but was sure that Declan could unwrap it himself now. "No play until you eat your food, or you're going to get tired too soon!" zhe instructed, handing over the sandwich, "And then yes, we play. Um, but out the back. There's more room over there." And more room to stay hidden, but that was beside the point -- it was more fun than a flat patch of grass that the yard was, after all!
Thaliawen Declan had no arguments, it seemed. He took the sandwich and unwrapped it, and after a moment, took a bite. "Good sammich!" he declared, mouth still full. "Good, good sammich." He didn't waste anymore time talking, and proceeded to devour the sandwich. "Cake! Done!" He announced. "We play now! We play now? Out back?" The oshawott was excited to get outside. Maybe he'd see something exciting! Find something tastier than a sandwich (though he doubted that). "We play Cake! We play... What we play?" He asked. Did zhe have a game in mind?
MoogerMint While Karma was aware that it was usually considered poor manners to speak with one's mouth full, zhe couldn't help but grin as Declan did so, fully enjoying it in his own way. "Yaay, good! I'm glad you liked it!" the ditto chirped, moving to the door to take a peek out and make sure they weren't currently being watched. Karma was fully intent on letting Declan stretch his legs and play outside, there was still only the one door to the shed, which faced the laboratory across the yard. "Yep, we play outside!" zhe answered, ushering the little oshawott out before closing the door behind zhimself and leading him to the other side of the building, "It's more fun out this way anyway." Glancing around the place, Karma hummed a little in thought, "What about... we go exploring? I bet we could find something neat!" Zhe was kind of hoping to find some tracks or other signs of life other than human, though zhe knew it was unlikely within the borders of town. That didn't mean they couldn't play pretend either way!
Thaliawen More fun out that way? Declan beamed. He liked the sound of More Fun. "Sploring?" he echoed. Was that part of the more fun Karma had mentioned? "Sploring!" he agreed. He didn't recognize the word, but he was certain that whatever it was, it'd be great! His Cake had suggested it, after all. "Neat!" He echoed. "Find something?" His eyes grew wide: now that was something he recognized. Tania had told him about trying to find something: the mew had seemed anxious. "Good something?" he inquired. "Sammiches?"
MoogerMint Karma was unsure whether Declan didn't know what exploring was, or just didn't know the word for the activity, but it made the ditto a little worried. What did he used to do for fun before? He was chipper enough that there must have been something, but zhe was fairly certain that asking about it would only earn a confused expression. Oh well, either way, he was sure to have fun now! "Yeah, we'll find a good something!" Karma agreed with a bob of the head, giggling at his hazarded guess, "No, silly, people have to make sandwiches, they can't just find them! They don't grow on trees!" Grabbing his wrist, zhe tugged him along a little, "Lots of things can hide in the grass, or trees, or anything! And if we don't find something, we'll just pretend we did, it'll be fun!"
Thaliawen "Yay! Good something!" People made sandwiches? Declan stared in disbelief. That meant someone had been making them for him! "Cake make?" he asked. "Cake make sammiches! Good sammiches!" He allowed her to pull him along. "Pokemon hide in grass," he informed zher, matter of factly. "In trees?" he asked. Bird types hid in trees, didn't they? "Can't fly!" he protested. How were they going to find the things that hid in trees if they couldn't fly up to see them?
MoogerMint Karma nodded when asked if it was the ditto that had made the sandwiches, for that was often the case. It was easy enough to pester the scientists in the lab for food, but they were often grumpy when it happened too often -- learning to make a snack on zher own was the obvious next step, especially when determined to prove independence. "I can show you how to make them sometime, too!" zhe added; that would make for an interesting picnic! "Oooh, you're right, pokémon do hide everywhere," the ditto agreed, scanning again a little more nervously before pulling at the logic, "Though I don't know if there will be too many in town. Who knows, though? Maybe we can find some footprints or something and track them!" Could even make some friends, if it went down that way, too!
Thaliawen Declan was delighted at the idea of being able to make his own sandwiches. He gave Karma's hand a squeeze in thanks: yay, soon he'd be able to make his very own! He wouldn't have to wait for Karma or Tania to show up with a meal. "Yay! When? Soon? Later?" Declan's clock had three times: now, soon, and later. "I hide!" he announced, moving to hide behind Karma. He released his hold on zher hand, giggling in delight. "No tall grass to hide in, but I hide! Cake hide me!" Oooh, footprints? And they'd track hiding pokemon? "Happy!"
MoogerMint Karma blinked, a little confused about when to show Declan how to make a sandwich. He just ate, he can't have been hungry again so soon! "Later, I don't know if I can sneak out of the lab with all that stuff without making the sandwich first anytime soon. We'll make it a picnic. Tania could help, too!" zhe tried to explain. Maybe zhe shouldn't have brought that up aloud, zhe wasn't sure the oshawott would have his mind on the game now. "Hide?" Karma's voice seemed to stagger as Declan let go, "You want to play Hide and Seek instead?" Well, it would at least herd them in the direction of the trees, which made for better cover and an environment that Karma was not so used to, which was where zhe wanted to go anyway. With a slight nod, Karma followed, "Okay, let's hide you!"
Thaliawen "Later, later good!" Declan beamed. And Tania too! Oooh, maybe she'd bring some of those brown square things! Those were tasty, almost as good as sandwiches! Almost. "She bring treats?" He asked, hopefully. "Ball?" A ball to play with would be fun! And he could share it with Karma! "I hide you look. I pokemon! Come find! I go RAWR! And you go 'Oh no bad guy!'. Then hugs. Hugs best. We find lots pokemon by hiding!"
MoogerMint Karma grinned at Declan's enthusiasm for just about everything. It was a relief, to be honest, that he was not so easily disappointed! "Ahuh, she will. We'll have a picnic and bring food things, it'll be fun!" the ditto explained, fairly certain the boy wouldn't know what a picnic was but telling him anyway. Hey, once they actually arrived to that day, he'd learn what it was first-hand! That tended to be the easier way of learning things, right? To be hands-on? "Aww, okay. So I should cover my eyes while you hide, then? How long should I give you?" Did he know how to count? Had anyone taught that to him? To be perfectly honest, Karma couldn't remember what all they had gone over and what Declan still needed to learn. With a sharp nod, the child covered zher eyes, "Sounds good! Go hide, go hide!"
Thaliawen "Yay! Fun!" Whenever and whatever this picnic thing would be, Declan was excited for it. He beamed at the promise of food things. "Close eyes," he agreed with a nod. He considered her question for a moment, holding all of his fingers. "This many," he said. While he may not have known how to count, he'd come to discover if he held up his fingers to Tania, he received more than one of what she was giving him. "I hide!" he said, once he was sure Karma had zher eyes properly covered. He didn't go very far: he never liked straying far from Karma when they were together. He knelt behind a large tree stump and giggled. Karma would never find him here!
MoogerMint It seemed that every time Karma conversed or played with Declan, he was making improvements with his speech and knowledge reservoirs by leaps and bounds, and the acknowledgment of this made the ditto grin all the bigger behind the hands that were now obscuring zher vision as the oshawott took off to hide. "One... Two..." Karma began, counting slowly so Declan had more than enough time to locate a good hiding spot, just in case, "...Ready or not, here I come!" Karma's hands fell slowly as zhe blinked against the sun from temporary darkness, attempting to locate a shock of blue in the green all around. First notion was to look around the trees, as they were the largest structures in the landscape behind the shed, but not the trunks of those no longer standing at full height. It took a bit of time, leaning over the sides of the small patch of trees and looking every which way before one of Declan's tails was caught by the rays of the sun. "Oooh, I gotcha!" zhe piped up, pouncing on top of the trunk to peer over the other side, "That was a good spot, I didn't think you'd be that close!"
Thaliawen Declan was so pleased to see that Karma had found him, that he'd forgotten that he'd been hiding from zher. "Yay!" he cried, wrapping his arms around zher. "I hid good! Now it's your turn! You hide, I count!" he couldn't count very high, though... That wouldn't be fair, Karma wouldn't be able to hide. "I count twice," he decided. He covered his eyes with his hands. "Hurry I find you!" He began to count, slowly as Karma had. "One! Two! Three! Five!"
MoogerMint With a giggle, Karma hugged the joyful oshawott back once his hiding spot had been revealed, still seated on the severed and flattened end of the stump. "You hid very good!" zhe agreed, releasing zher grip after the praise had been given. The ditto slid off zher perch, dusting off a bit and looking around the vicinity real quick again, "Okay, I'll hide! No peeking!" Karma was fairly certain zhe could not hide as deftly as Declan, the bright hues of zher natural tone greatly contrasted with the surrounding area, but that did not mean zhe wasn't about to give it the old college try -- it just meant that there were less places available to zher. If only zher transformation capabilities came back to better force, zhe could try for a camo look... As it stood, only the trees were really big enough to block the child from view without risk; there was a large stone further out, but Karma wouldn't have been able to tell if zhe was fully obscured from view behind it's lopsided shape. Trees were fine, and Karma could more easily play around with Declan that way, too, moving bit by bit to stay out of his line of sight if he neared the correct tree.
Thaliawen Declan continued to count, sometimes skipping numbers, sometimes making up others. He was on eleven (after skipping up from nine) when he opened his eyes. Where had Karma gone? He looked through the bushes, and paused for a moment. Karma was pretty colored, so maybe zhe was hiding in a pretty colored place. Like flowers! Flowers had pretty colors. He looked around, hoping to find a flower patch the same color as Karma. No such luck. Maybe zhe was hiding up in a tree? Like a bird. Birds hid up in trees when they weren't flying in the sky. He veered his gaze upward. "Cake?" he asked. How was he going to get up there?
MoogerMint As Declan looked about the play area, Karma scooted around the tree's trunk to keep it in between the two of them, and more aptly hide from immediate view. There were few things that could do as much out here with one so... vibrant, but it seemed to be working quite well, at least! However, the young oshawott seemed to have gotten himself stuck on an idea, one that was close but not quite there. While this would have usually procured an obstacle in their game, Karma did not really care who was the 'winner' when they were just out here to have some fun. While his eyes were stuck to the canopies, the ditto attempted to sneak up on him, only looking to bounce into sight as zhe pounced, wrapping arms around the boy's shoulders, "You summoned a Cake!"
Thaliawen Declan didn't notice Karma behind him until zher arms were wrapped around his shoulders. He turned to give zher a proper hug. "Yay! Cake!" he was always thrilled to see the ditto, even when zhe was supposed to be hiding from him. "My Cake. I win! New game! Cake picks! Pick, Cake!" After all, new games were the best games. Especially when he could share them with Karma. "Splore?" he suggested. They hadn't found anything exciting while playing hide n seek, apart from each other.
MoogerMint Karma laughed as Declan's priorities still seemed to be where they should be, "You do win! Congratulations!" After returning the hug, the child pondered on the idea as to what to do. When zhe had suggested exploring, Declan seemed to react almost instantaneously to comparing it to a game of Hide-and-Seek. Was he asking if Karma wanted to play another round of Hide-and-Seek, or was he aware that they were two different things? "Did you see anything interesting when you were looking for me?" Karma asked, directing the scope in an alternate manner. Peering back around the nearest tree, zhe glanced toward the patchy ground, "Did you see any weird footprints?" Maybe they could even track something down!
Thaliawen "No," Declan replied. He hadn't seen anything interesting, except Karma, who was always interesting with zher colors. "No footprints." he hesitated. He seemed to be looking at something behind Karma. "Something interesting!" he pointed. The grass behind zher was moving slightly, as if a breeze had swept through it, though there was no wind. "Moves!" His eyes were wide: what did they do now?
MoogerMint Still pondering how far they could run with the idea of exploring in an expanse none too large, Karma could only hope that imagination would carry the weight of any idea that might fall a little short. Despite the touch of distraction, the ditto smiled when Declan reaffirmed that he did not see any footprints, without trying to clamber around the bulky word. He was really learning fast! However, it was in that moment of glee that Karma missed the disruption of grass from behind them, and jumped when Declan pointed it out from over zher shoulder, "Ack, where!?" First thoughts, before seeing what it was that was causing the grass to move was that they might have been caught, then a more cautious optimism that perhaps Tania was trying to play a prank, or set one up. When it became obvious it wasn't any of those options, Karma took a hesitant step against a tree, seeing if they needed to hide. It couldn't have been very big, whatever it was! In a hushed command, Karma motioned for the oshawott to get closer to the ditto, "I don't know what it is, let's just watch for now. It must be little!" Was it hurt? Maybe it just wanted to play, too, or even didn't know they were in the area when it went looking for food! Whatever the reason was, Karma hoped it was not angry, at the very least!
Thaliawen Declan moved close to Karma. Though he wouldn't have admitted it, he was rather frightened. He'd been in battles before, and they hadn't all ended well. "Little." He agreed, seemingly not at all reassured by the word. When a budew stepped out of the grass, the oshawott calmed. It wasn't an electric type! Good. Grass types had an advantage over him as well, though, and he didn't move from Karma's side. "Little and green."
MoogerMint As Declan inched a little closer to the ditto, Karma felt a little safer knowing they were within reach of one another should they need. Regardless, Karma was more than a little nervous to find what may have been sifting through the grass, hoping it was just a large worm or something. When that theory failed to uphold the prediction, it only left the child feeling a sense of deterred confusion. Karma had never seen a budew before, at least recently enough to have remembered the encounter, and glanced at Declan for a reaction, in case he might have known. He looked relieved, but zhe wasn't sure why. Was it harmless? "Do you know what it is?" zhe asked, hesitant, "Is it nice?" There was no use taking drastic action when they weren't sure which direction the situation tipped toward!
Thaliawen "Pokemon?" Declan suggested with a shrug. He didn't know what it was, except for it's color and size. "Isn't mean," Declan decided. The budew hadn't attacked yet. It didn't look like It wanted to, either. It seemed just as surprised to see them as they were to see it. And it wasn't an electric type. "Safe!" he declared.
MoogerMint Pokémon? That was a good point... they were all pokémon here. There were no humans. Just so long as the little guy was not violent to others, as per random encounter, it should be safe, right? Karma gave a nod once Declan deduced that it was not mean -- the young ditto would take his word on that, either way. Easing zhimself down into the grass, to loom a little less over the small pokémon, Karma motioned to get Declan's attention, "Do you have any more of that sandwich left?" There was another one in zher bag, to leave Declan with later, but it didn't seem right to crack that open yet. With a frown, zhe realized it was not apparent that the budew could even eat that, "Or maybe we should try to find some berries or something..."
Thaliawen Declan beamed. He handed the last piece of his sandwich to Karma: he'd intended to save it for later, but what if the budew needed it more? If nothing else, Declan understood what it was like to be hungry. "You can talk," he said, but it seemed he was talking to the budew. "Nice," he gestured to Karma. "I'm nice too. Want food?"
MoogerMint Intrigued, Karma watched as Declan attempted to converse with the little budew. It seemed to be just as unsure and hesitant as they were, at least at first! Karma motioned for Declan to crouch down as well, offering half of what was left of Declan's sandwich from earlier. Taking the portion zhe kept to zhimself, the ditto ripped off a piece of the bread and held it out, showing Declan as though they were out feeding ducks by the lake. "It's okay, you don't have to be scared!" zhe encouraged softly. Blinking, zhe tossed the bite to the ground so the pokémon didn't feel forced to eat out of their hands. With a slight tilt of zher head, Karma thought aloud, "I wonder, is it lost?"
Thaliawen The budew took hold of the dropped bit of sandwich immediately, stuffing it into its mouth. No longer seeming bothered by the two new comers, it reached towards Karma for the second piece. "Dew?" it asked, hopefully. Was that for it? It was tasty, whatever it was!
Declan was frowning. Despite the budew not being a threat, and having wanted to help it, he now felt a strange sense of dejavu. This was almost exactly how Karma had caught him. He moved between the two. "No, mine," he informed the budew.
MoogerMint Karma flashed the little budew a smile, happy that it seemed to be greatly enjoying its snack. What was it doing way out here? Where was its trainer? Such speculative thoughts were cut short as Declan cut in, physically and vocally both. "Eh?" zhe blinked, confused, "Wh... What's the matter?" The ditto didn't get what the problem was, frowning in zher attempt to decipher. The problem was, however, that Karma could not recall any details of zher first meeting with Declan -- he had become so ingrained in life that recalling to a time before he was there was almost impossible. So much had happened since then, and daily trials were not as easy to remember as those that they revolved around. Stumbling at it, Karma instead raised zher attention back to Declan and smiled again, "Ohh, do you want to feed him?" Zhe offered the sandwich piece back to the oshawott so that he could use that same tidbit to feed the budew instead of sacrificing what he had stored for later.
Thaliawen Declan seemed almost puzzled by Karma's confusion. Zhe didn't seem to understand that he didn't want to have to share zher love and affection. "My Cake," He said, by way of explanation. "Not budew's Cake. Declan's Cake." He did take the bit of sandwich though, and held it out to the budew. As long as the small green pokemon wasn't planning on stealing Karma away, Declan didn't seem to mind him. "Here. Sammich for you.
The budew took the piece of sandwich, stuffing it into its mouth. It turned away from the two children then, as if planning to leave.
MoogerMint Karma's face increased into a deeper frown of confusion as Declan tried to explain himself, as though zhe were scrambling to try to find and pick up the pieces to a glass bottle that lost a battle with the floor. It wasn't until zhe remembered that Declan primarily called zher Cake that it was starting to make sense -- he couldn't have been annoyed about sharing food he mislabeled as 'cake'! "Aww, I'm not gonna stop being your Cake!" Karma giggled, rising back up to zher feet and giving the irritable oshawott a hug, "Never ever!"
MoogerMint Crew
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MoogerMint Crew
Sparkly Pants
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:07 pm
◉ Roleplay #15 ★
Title:Two Can Play (messenger RP) Participants:Brennen, Tania, & Karma Stages:Teen (Brennen) & Child (Tania & Karma) Status:Complete!
Premise:Have at thee! Nobody is safe from the dreaded Super Soaker!
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint Karma peered around the corner, zher back to the outer walls of the Pokémon lab and eyes boring through the transparent glass of the front doors. One hand on the grip and one on the pump, the ditto's water gun was secured to zher person. They weren't supposed to go inside while playing with these, but that didn't stop Karma from thinking about it anyway. Watching as one of the scientists walk by the front door, off to work in some other part of the building, the poké-child wondered aloud, "I wonder, what if we stayed outside when we shot inside?" They technically weren't breaking any rules that way, were they?
Pulling away a little, Karma turned zher attention back to the outside surroundings. Were zhe and Tania on the same team or different teams this time? Zhe couldn't remember.
Thaliawen Tania had thought about the same thing, if she were honest, and she didn't like to be; what if someone came close enough to the door for them to attack without going inside? What if Grayson did, or Rosa? Allen was no fun, he probably had a water gun hidden in one of his pockets, somewhere. She'd shot a rubber band at him the other day for him to do the same when he went on his coffee break. "Let's do it," she said, grinning at Karma. "If Daddy or Rosa come near we'll doubletag them."
She paused, glancing at Karma. Oh, right. She shot a stream of water at the ditto before taking off, giggling. "Can't get me!"
Brenny had spotted the girls playing, and hoping to avoid them, made his way towards the lab. He wanted to look his best when asking Grayson for a job; he'd grown, finally, and he couldn't wait to show Grayson! "Intruder!" Tania declared when she spotted him, preparing her gun. "Karma, we have an intruder!"
MoogerMint Karma's face lit up in an unbridled grin as Tania agreed with the idea, an excuse to cause extra mayhem without having the repercussions. At least, that was the ideal of the situation. Maybe they could coax someone to come closer, or maybe--
Karma's attention was cut short as Tania reminded the ditto whose side she was supposed to be on with a quick spray of water from her own artillery. "Ack!" zhe sputtered out with a bit of a giggle, "I'll get youuu!" Karma dug zher toes in the grass for more traction, having long since abandoned zher shoes outside the back door, and took off after Tania. The chase came to an abrupt end as a new target was spotted, Karma's water gun raising to take aim before zher sister had even given word, "Shoot first, ask questions later!"
The trigger finger was a rather itchy appendage when it came to war games. Karma had seen the overly green individual and knew who the victim was right off, having been frequent company in days past, but it wasn't until the scope was lowered did the young ditto notice something else about the now soaked celebi. "Oooh, Brenny... did you get bigger?" Karma gaped.
Thaliawen Tania was giggling; after soaking Brenny, she'd turned on Karma to soak the ditto as well. "Hah, you can't let an intruder distract you!" she crowed. "I'm gonna win!" She glanced at Brenny when Karma asked if he'd gotten bigger. She shook her head. "If he has, it's not by much!" she teased, going over to stand beside Brenny. She was shorter, but not enough to keep from teasing him. "Did you come to play with us, Brenny?"
Brenny didn't have a gun, or he may have attacked in retaliation. "Hey, I wasn't planning on getting wet before talking to your dad," he pouted. "I did, and I've gotten wet, too," he complained, glancing down at his clothes ruefully. Huh. Well, if he explained, he was sure it wouldn't count against him. "Is your dad inside?" he asked. "I'm going to ask him if I can have my job now."
MoogerMint Karma yelped as Tania turned her barrel on the ditto. Shielding zher face from the backsplash, zhe choked out a, "Uwaaah, I thought we were on the same team here!" A weak excuse, surely, but Karma tried to adopt it nonetheless. Never mind that they weren't really keeping score, or had a means of scoring points, but that was beside the fact.
Whiping stray, soaked hairs from zher face, Karma turned back to the both of them as Tania attempted to measure height differences. While no vocal reply came out about Tania's defense against Brenny's growth spurt, Karma laughed about it. "You should play with us, yeah!" the young ditto agreed, "You're almost ready right now, since you're already wet!" He seemed kind of irritated with that fact, though, and Karma didn't understand why. Didn't he like games?
Turning zher head to face the door again, zhe glanced back, "Yeah the Doctor is in there." Zhe rocked a little on zher bare feet before turning back to Brenny, "Hey, when you're done talking to him about that, can you get him to come closer to the door?"
Thaliawen "I'll play with you after I talk to Uncle Grayson," Brenny promised with a smile. "Thank you! And sure, I'll send him out." He wiped excess water from his face and headed towards the lab. He entered. "Uncle Grayson! I'm ready to work now!"
Target gone, Karma now had Tania's full attention. She pumped her gun in preparation before sending a jet of water her way. She giggled and took off.
MoogerMint "Yeah, after, after!" Karma assured; zhe knew it came after whatever Brenny had wanted to do here in the first place. Seemed over-dressed for a visit. Was something important happening today? The ditto frowned, trying to grab understanding out of the scene. Turning back to Tania, zher expression lent to the query of whether zhe had forgotten about something again or not, but was only met with another stream of water as response. "Aghk, that's cold!" the ditto complained, wringing out zher sleeves with a swipe of the hands vertically to the air, "You're not gonna have any left for Brenny and the doctor!"
Grayson was flipping through a clipboard of data, comparing what was present in a study over the course of a few weeks' time. While Brenny's sudden booming voice didn't startle him as it did the other, unaware staff nearby, it did leave the scientist a little confused. "Eh... what?" he blinked, noting the soaked exterior the celebi bore, "Ah! Careful where the water gets!" Most things in the immediate vicinity were not in danger should they get wet, but it didn't hurt to be sure.
Thaliawen Tania shook her head at Karma. "Boys are weird," she said, indicating that she had no further understanding of the situation than Karma did and setting her gun down. Karma was right, she needed to save her remaining water to soak Brenny. "Especially that one." She paused and held her hand out to the ditto. "Lets have a truce," She suggested. "You and me against Brenny and Daddy."
"I wasn't wet before they targeted me," Brenny protested, but took a step backwards in order to ensure his wet clothes wouldn't soak any thing important. "One moment." He seemed to concentrate, disappearing and after a few seconds, reappearing in dry clothes. "There we go. You promised I could get a job here once a grew. Well, I've grown!"
MoogerMint Karma tread on the thought a bit, but was only able to come to the decision that anyone and everyone was weird. Maybe it was because zhe didn't have a very strong grasp on gender identities. Either way, zhe nodded, for in this case it was true. With a grin, Karma grabbed hold of the offered hand with a soaked one in return, "Okay, truce. We're gonna have to figure out how to catch them by surprise, though!" There was a slight temptation to get Tania back at the moment, but the truce had already been agreed upon. What was the point of a truce if one didn't abide by it?
Picking up his coffee cup, it dawned on Grayson what had happened to the poor celebi as he neared the laboratory, "Ahhh, I see. Those two take their games very seriously." And as such, he knew to steer clear of an open battlefield, himself. He raised an eyebrow as Brenny blinked out only to quickly return with dry clothes, "Hmm, handy." He took a drink and then set the mug down, his surprise once more returning, "You grew?" It wasn't a very drastic change, not the kind he had been anticipating from past research into the matter, but upon comparing his current height to things in the room around him, it was apparent that there was, indeed, a difference from before. "Hm, most people grow over a span of time. You would be... what, the equivalent to a thirteen-year-old, now?" He seemed to be taking notes as the thoughts spilled out of his mouth on the subject, but his attention was still set more to Brenny than the tablet he was scribbling on.
Thaliawen Tania pointed to a bush with her free hand. "Lets hide there," she suggested. "Daddy will never see it coming." She bent to pick up her gun and led Karma over to it. "When he comes out, we'll attack."
"I noticed," Brenny said. But he'd had a way around it. He didn't want to make a bad impression on Grayson when asking for a job. "I guess? I don't know. There was this funny potion thing I found too." he shrugged. He wondered if that had stunted his growth. He certainly hadn't neglected to eat his vegetables. "That's old enough to work, I hope. I'm stronger now too."
MoogerMint Karma jumped to the designated waiting area with barely a nod of acceptance, so wrapped up in the thrill as zhe was. Once in place, the child giggled, excited, "Think he'll fall for it this time?" Well, if nothing else, maybe they could at least get Brenny again once he left.
"Potion?" Grayson asked, taken completely unaware. There were potions? Or was the boy exaggerating? "Do you still have the container?" Maybe he could run tests on it, if the celebi-boy was so sure it did something to him. "Hmm..." the head scientist tapped the end of a ballpoint pen against his chin in thought before setting the clipboard to his side, "Technically, thirteen would not be old enough to get a job. However, the type of work you would be doing does not necessarily fall under the same clause. It would be more like a field trip, so to speak... and we would likely be going on your terms instead of giving you a strict schedule." He put the pen down, atop the clipboard it was being used on, "The terms will likely change later, for something closer to a work shift. And, of course, you would still be paid for your efforts in either case." He smiled, lifting his coffee mug back up, "We will still need to file some paperwork, and we can discuss the transitions to a regular work schedule, but... well, when can you work?"
Thaliawen Tania nodded with certainty. She was always convinced Grayson would never discover her pranks. "We'll get him!" She said. "Maybe Rosa too. I hope she comes out."
"Yeah. I found it, tried it, I guess it wasn't soda." He made a face. "Didn't taste all that good. Yeah, I have it. It was in the house, so I assumed Eliot had left it for me." He frowned slightly when Grayson said he wouldn't be technically able to get a job at his age, but brightened as the man continued to speak. "Oooh. We can go anytime, literally. I can make it whatever time you'd like to go and come here," he said, when the scientist mentioned a schedule. "I can start right now, if you like!" Well. The celebi was certainly enthused to start working.
MoogerMint Karma's grin could have split zher face in two, nodding in agreement. Zhe couldn't wait! They weren't often successful in pranking the man, but the both of them were resourceful. That luck was sure to run out on him eventually, they just had to be patient for the time being! Wiggling comfortably behind the brush, tilting zher head to easily peer past the snarls of limbs in the greenery, Karma decided to strike up conversation while they waited, "So what do you think Brenny stopped by for? He didn't seem so interested in playing with us. It's weird!"
Despite the interest in the results of what a potion like that was capable of, if it had caused Brenny's stunted metamorphosis, it was still concerning. What if the potion had further drawbacks that might not have been immediately evident? What about in the long run? Regardless, it wouldn't do to stew over worry right now; he seemed to be in his normally high spirits despite the dousing he was greeted with upon arrival. "Well do be more careful next time, with strange liquids. It could easily be a prank," Grayson responded -- an especially true statement for the state of affairs within the laboratory. He smiled at the enthusiasm that Brenny displayed, but honestly hadn't expected any less from the cheery child. No, cheery teenager. "Excellent to hear," he confirmed, rifling through some paperwork before deciding he didn't have what he needed with him. "Ah. Well... should we get started on the paperwork, then? I'm not sure... when would be the best time. Ah... hm, a week from now? Would that be alright? Do tell me if there's ever a day that you can't make it, for prior engagements or anything." Grayson was not ignorant of the fact that Brenny likely had countless friends. Even with all the time at their fingertips, one was bound to get run down if they had tried to do too much!
Thaliawen "Probably to do something boring," Tania said. She wrinkled her nose. "He had a serious face on. And when Daddy or anyone has that face, it means they're about to do something that's no fun." She grinned at Karma, "We'll never do that. Grow up and be serious like adults are. I'd rather do nothing all day."
"I'll never take anything unless I know what it is first," Brenny promised. He'd learned his lesson. "That's true. You should be careful, too. Tania seems to be rubbing off on Karma." Or was it the other way around? "Lets start on the paperwork," he agreed. "A week from now?" The celebi considered that. "Yes, that's perfect. That gives me enough time to tell Connie. He'll be so excited!" He beamed at Grayson. "Of course. I can pop in days before things happen and warn you that I won't be here. I'm excited to work with you!"
MoogerMint Karma hovered on the idea for a bit, but there was rarely ever a time to question Tania's intuition on the matter. Any matter. "Think he outgrew fun, then?" the ditto asked, slightly worried. Did they lose themselves a playmate to the downfalls of maturity? "Mmn," Karma bobbed zher head in reply, "Being adult doesn't sound fun at all. I don't want to be anything more than what I am now. Well... except with certain things." Of course it would be nice to remember things more than once in a blue moon, but zhe figured that was a given.
There was a wash of immediate relief Grayson experienced upon hearing that Brenny refused to try anything unknown again after his mishap with the potion. Perhaps it was a good learning tool after all... just so long as nothing else happened that wasn't already evident. "Ahh, it is an unavoidable outcome, with how often those two are around one another," the scientist sighed, shrugging as laughter danced across his face, "However, there are also innumerable benefits that they both gain from it. I believe the good outweighs the bad. It's not as thought their worse habits are really anything beyond harmless pranks." Truthfully, would either one of them have had anything near as fulfilling a childhood without one another? With a chuckle, Grayson picked up on Brenny's thought processes in the celebi's confirmation, "This is true, and the fair warning would be much appreciated." The boy's enthusiasm was certainly a real driver toward getting the loose ends tied up where the job was concerned, so he wasted little time in attempting to locate the paperwork, shuffling through the pages to quickly glance at what all was needed. Placing them on the table, slightly wadded at the top from the perusal, the man got out a pen and slid it closer to the small teen, "Alright, we'll walk through this. I have the time, and I will point out where a signature or initials would be needed. I will have to talk with your guardian before you can officially start, per law, but I don't foresee that being an issue." He smiled, "It will be fantastic to have you on board."
Thaliawen Tania shook her head. "Not even daddy's outgrown fun. I think grown ups just need reminding of how to do fun. We'll remind Brenny!" She took Karma's hand. Certain things; like her memory, she guessed. "If we do grow up, we'll never forget fun, because we'll always have each other."
"They're happier than they would have been alone," Brenny said with a nod. That was something he understood. "I will, I promise." He watched Grayson shuffle through papers; bleh. He couldn't imagine working with so much paperwork. He took the paperwork and looked it over. "You have to talk to Connie?" He complained. "You'll have to see him this weekend. He's always at work. Can't I be my own guardian today?"
MoogerMint A spark at the light bulb moment flicked across the ditto's eyes, zher grin widening and a swift nod given, "Ah, you're right! They just need to make time for it, between all the boring grown-up stuff they do." It seemed weird to have to schedule in fun, but at least it was not a concept that was lost as a person aged. Karma turned to Tania as zher hand was taken, and zhe flashed a grin, "Of course! I don't think that's something I'll ever forget, fun and having it with my sister!" Despite the normally touchy subject, Karma seemed to be beyond feeling down today. How often was it that they got to attack adults with water guns, anyway?
"I had no doubts that you'd understand. Very astute; you are correct," Grayson replied, his smile having not wavered. He noticed Brenny's aversion to the filed paperwork and chuckled as he attempted to read through it himself, "Don't worry, it's mostly just red tape -- things you would expect in a job but nonetheless must be put in writing to avoid loopholes and people saying they were unaware of what exactly they were expected to do... and not do. I don't think you'll have any problems, however. It's a rather lax environment, and projects will likely be discussed before they are enacted. I don't anticipate anything dangerous, either. You'd be surprised how many people try to wiggle out of their assigned duties out there, though." Taking another swig of his coffee, he waited for Brenny to have his fill of procedure, "Meeting this weekend would be fine, I understand obligations. This is one of the reasons why I set the start date for a week from now, and if I must push it back further, I can do that as well, but I realize how much you're looking forward to it." No use putting it off further, if there was no need to!
Thaliawen Tania smiled. "I promise never to forget, either," She said. She released Karma's hand. "I hope Brenny doesn't take too long. I want to get daddy."
As Brenny had expected, the paperwork appeared to be exceedingly boring. He pushed it back towards Grayson slightly. He'd been about to ask what the scientist meant by red tape, but Grayson explained first. "Nope, no problems. I know my job, Uncle Grayson. I take you back in time, whenever you want to go, and make sure you get home safely in your right time after you're done. Ooh. And I can show you things I've seen before." He didn't think he'd be able to wiggle out of things, his job was fairly key to Grayson's being able to go back in time. "No, don't move it back further. I'll tell Connie about my job and his meeting you after work tonight and we'll be ready by the weekend! Maybe if we finish I can speed things up a bit."
MoogerMint Karma giggled at Tania's swift sway of conversation directing, though glad it stayed along a positive line. "Yeah, I hope he doesn't take too long, either," zhe sighed, fidgeting a little, "My knees are going to get sore!"
Grayson was happy to hear Brenny taking things in stride -- he really did seem to be trying to act more mature, now that he was a little bit older, "Excellent to hear. You should make a fine employee." The celebi seemed ecstatic about being able to share the things he had experienced while traveling back in time, which could easily provide for a direction to start if scenario in the lab studies did not. "Well don't get ahead of yourself," the man laughed at the young teen's enthusiasm, "There will be plenty of time for everything, just pace yourself." Setting his coffee down again, Grayson rifled once more through the papers to locate the places where signature was necessary, "I told you you didn't need to read through it all. Nobody's going to try to pull a fast one on you using this." He knew well enough that Brenny trusted him, which would only help to speed up the process that much more -- he was sure Brenny was counting on that much as well.
Thaliawen "If they do take forever, we can soak them extra for making us wait," Tania informed her sister with a nod. "We can run around if they do. Waiting is boring! Want to go see Declan and then come back and get them?"
The celebi fidgeted. He didn't seem to like staying still; pacing himself was something he'd have to work on! Brenny waited for Grayson to indicate where he needed to sign. He was interested in the job, but reading that paperwork would have taken ages. He was glad the scientist was making it easier for him. "Nah. You're not Tania," he said. And he doubted very much the mew would have been able to sit still long enough to have read it. "Are you excited to explore, Uncle Grayson? Do you have a time in mind?"
MoogerMint Karma giggled, "Yeah I like that idea. I've still got most of my water to use on them." Zhe verified the statement by pumping the plastic gun a few times, awaiting the time when they were to pounce. However, zhe shook zher head at the suggestion, "No, we could miss them if we do that... and he'd be in the open to spot. They're not supposed to know about him!" The whole situation with the young oshawott was a touchy one -- it was seem as against the rules to Karma, and therefore extra precaution needed to be taken in order to keep the secret just that.
Grayson started marking the places that needed a signature with an X in red pen, sliding the pages over to the celebi as each page was skimmed. It wasn't an excessive amount, and some of the parts, the scientist could fill out for the boy. After all, much of the lingo could be confusing, but Brenny was still considered a bit of 'outside' work. The rules were fairly lax. "Ah, but of course I am excited. A chance of this magnitude, it doesn't appear very often!" he smiled, finishing the paperwork that was necessary, "You come in whenever you feel up to it tomorrow morning. We can work out the details then, unless you have a good idea what would work best for you without having to wind yourself up in the fabrics of space-time."
Thaliawen "True," Tania sighed. A promise was a promise, and she'd promised to help keep the oshawott a secret. "Do you really think Daddy would be mad, though?" she mused. Grayson had kept her, after all. "After we soak them we should see if Rosa will play with us," she quickly changed the subject. They were both fond of Rosa: Tania found her particularly easy to tease.
Brenny signed each spot Grayson marked. "Good," he said, flashing the scientist a smile. "It wouldn't be as much fun if you weren't!" The celebi considered that, hm. "I'll come tomorrow morning," he said. "I have to check my calendar. I haven't done that in a while..."
MoogerMint Karma fidgeted a little, mostly in response to zher unsure stance on the matter than the actual subject that Tania drudged up, "I don't know if he would be mad, but I don't want him to be. Where else could we keep him safe? The lab isn't very comfy to most people." There was a faint memory of Grayson being angry before, but it was more of an unconscious feeling that was being recollected as opposed to the conscious memory of subject cause and effect. Anger was scary. Despite that tension, Tania was a professional at changing the subject to something much more cheerful, and Karma stifled a laugh at the suggestion, "Yeah, let's do that!"
Grayson chuckled, taking the pages back and doing a bit more detailing, on which sections he could fill out -- mostly physical details and past work experience... the boring stuff. "You can bet I am excited. I'm sure the others will be as well. You might make them jealous," he teased. Tapping the pages on the desk to straighten the stack, he pulled himself back up, "Well, that should take care of that for now. I will be looking forward to working with you, Brenny!"
Thaliawen "Well, I am pretty awesome," Brenny said, when Grayson said he might make other people jealous. "But I think it's you who'll make people jealous, Uncle Grayson! You get to go back and time and see anything you like. Any time you like. And you get to spend time with me." He beamed at the scientist. "Come outside with me. Maybe we can go some when!"
"I'll go get Rosa after we get Daddy," Tania promised, smiling when she saw she'd successfully cheered Karma up. "I'll tell her I have a new trick to show her and she'll come outside then you attack."
MoogerMint "Ahh, I see you have your fair share of humility with you still," Grayson razzed, shuffling the papers back together and tapping the end of the stack on the surface of the table, "I suppose they will be a bit jealous of us both, to some degree. With your energy, you can only really send one person back with you, correct?" He had to make sure his notes were correct before assuming anything; regardless, it was going to be as much fun as it was educational. Humming a little, Grayson leaned back a little at Brenny's suggestion, "Hm, now is that your request or someone else's? The time travel shouldn't occur during work hours until you actually work here, Brenny."
While Karma was still smiling, she considered the offer with a slight swaying of zher shoulders, "Do you think she'd actually follow you, though? What if she's in the middle of something?" The ditto blinked, then turned to face Tania, zher face scrunched into a frown and head tilted slightly forward and an index finger wagging, "Not now! You know I have work to do, go bother someone else!" It wasn't that difficult to mimic the workaholic that was Rosabel.
Thaliawen "I can take two," Brenny assured him. "So if you wanted some guy to take pictures or another guy to take notes while you have all the fun, you could." He grinned. "Tania asked me to have you come outside. But don't tell her I told you. She might get mad at me."
"I'll tell her Allen did something stupid and she'll be too curious to not look," Tania beamed. "Maybe I'll say he brought his furret again and he's made a great big mess." She giggled at Karma's impression of Rosa, it was spot on!
MoogerMint Karma could never seem to keep a straight face, so as soon as the impersonation was over, zhe was back to grinning just as brightly -- especially when the both of them were scheming more hijinks! "Oh! Yeah, that should work!" the ditto laughed, "She can be such a stick-in-the-mud, she never plays along... but Allen would! She'd never suspect we were fibbing!"
"Ahh, very good to know. That could come in handy, having more eyes for investigation," the man took mental note, "Who's to say the observation isn't as fun? I'm sure you could take your own set of notes and give a fresh perspective, too, if you wanted!" Setting down the paperwork and writing utensils, Grayson thought about Brenny's odd third-party request. He tapped at his chin in thought, then seemed to come to a decision, "I'll tell you what. Tell them I'm a little tied up at the moment, but I'm sending a representative." He held up a finger, indicating Brenny to wait a moment, and moved into the other room to pull someone out. "Here, Brenny, take Rosabel," he directed, pulling her away from her work and nudging her toward the celebi, "Brennen needs some help outside, it shouldn't take you longer than a moment." He hardly left the intern with any chance to react out of bewilderment, but his poker face was impeccable. He knew what the two kids were doing out there.
Thaliawen "Yay! I get to be a scientist and a timetravel buddy!" Brenny was pleased. "I'll plan to bring a notebook and a pencil! We can compare!" he beamed. "I don't think Tania will like that," he warned, shaking a finger at Grayson. "Hi Rosabel, I'm Brenny." And he was really, awfully sorry for what was about to happen. He took her hand and led her outside. "Uncle Grayson is busy, but he sent out a representative!"
Tania complained immediately. "Awww! We had a whole plan!" and popped out of the bush. She pumped her watergun and attacked.
MoogerMint Grayson smiled at Brenny's enthusiasm at trying his hand at note taking, "I look forward to it! You can learn a lot from the practice!" While the scientist didn't see Brenny wanting to stay along the track of being a scientist, Doctor Willows could see the benefits -- not just on his own end, but the celebi's as well. While he was still young, it was invaluable to learn, to ease into the workforce and learn of the responsibilities therein. Brenny never seemed the irresponsible sort when it came to similar matters, but it didn't hurt! As soon as the young teenager led Rosabel toward the front door, the man snuck off again, but towards the back...
It took Rosabel a few moments to find her voice with the speed that confusion hit, so until then, her reaction found home in the frown on her face as she attempted to decipher an answer herself. As soon as she was able to pull herself together, as the door opened to the sunshine outside, there was not much that she was able to sound out before Tania and Karma burst from the bush they were hiding behind and dousing her with water. The shock was plainly evident on her face as, once more, she was stunned to silence, arms held out a bit at her sides as though it could help her from becoming too wet, the water trickling from her fingers. "W-What is the meaning of this!?" she blinked, temper switching gears, "You rotten kids!"
Karma giggled as she joined Tania in the prank, just glad that they were able to prank somebody with their deception. True to form, though, Karma was careful to take note that zhe'd have to make it up later; in the meantime, it was all in good, harmless fun! "We got you good!" the ditto hopped a little, water gun pulled back and nozzle pointed to the ground. However, just when zhe had relaxed, Karma shrieked and hopped out the front of the bush before zhe turned around. Grayson had snuck out the back to grab a water gun of his own, and proceeded to ambush the kids from behind. "Ack, Doctor! We'll get you!!" Karma laughed, readying zher own gun again to pump the water back at the man.
Thaliawen "Hey! We're not rotten!" Tania protested. "We asked Brenny to bring out Daddy, not you!" No mention that they'd been planning on pranking Rosa anyway. She grinned and shot another blast of water Rosa's way. It was fun, attacking someone who reacted as much as Rosa did! She was blasted from behind and turned to accuse Karma before noticing the ditto had been attacked as well. She pumped her gun. "Daddy!" She cried, sending a stream his way. "You're supposed to be on our team!" His prank was rather impressive, though. He had sent Rosa to represent him and still came out! "You won't win!"
Brenny hadn't expected Rosabel to get angry. He made a face at Grayson when the scientist came out. "I take no credit for this," he informed the soaked Rosa. "It was Uncle Grayson's idea not mine!"
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:41 pm
◉ Growth Reaction ★
Title:Getting Into Everything (messenger RP) Participants:Tania & Karma Stages:Child (Tania) & Teen (Karma) Status:Complete!
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Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint Despite being more of what one would call a 'morning person,' this didn't save Karma from waking up feeling awfully groggy. This was, however, considered a normal start-of-the-morning symptom, at least until the ditto was able to eat some breakfast and get moving. It usually didn't take zher too long. Unfortunately, this seemed like a particularly bad day. Grumbly and wrapped tightly in a blanket, Karma could only get so far as sitting up before wanting to flop back over into bed. Things felt strange, and zhe was apt to attribute it to a poor night's sleep. Maybe zhe had been tossing and turning? Zhe didn't quite remember doing that, but that didn't necessarily mean anything.
It took a bit of effort, but Karma was finally able to slide out of bed and meander to the break room, where most of the food was kept in the laboratory. At this point, Karma's actions were more muscle-memory than deliberate assessment. When zhe reached to turn the light on, stifling a yawn, zhe was taken by surprise when zhe smacked zher head on an overhanging cupboard. Karma coughed out an "Ow!" before wrapping arms over the top of zher head and crouching down. Okay, okay, zhe was awake now!
Thaliawen Tania slowly opened her eyes, scowling at whatever had woken her. While Karma was a morning person, Tania tended to be the opposite unless experiencing nightmares--or if Grayson was present. She was always eager to see him, even if it meant waking up early. She blinked sleep from her eyes and looked around. "Karma, what's wrong?" she asked. She pulled blankets off her bed and over her as she trailed after her sister.
MoogerMint Karma's eyes were pinched shut as zhe urged the throbbing of zher head to stop, commanded with a grumbly sort of whimper. Despite having the sound of rubbing hair against the formation of a bruise in zher ears, Karma was able to -- just barely -- hear Tania asking what was wrong from the other room. Karma didn't usually like to wake zher sister up until Karma zhimself was fully awake and eager to play, so it came as a pleasant surprise that she sounded less groggy than normal. Then again, zhe supposed that could have made a loud noise outside the confines of zher skull... "I hit my head on the cupboards!" Karma called out. It was only until after the words had escaped zher mouth did zhe notice how strange that sounded. While it was possible to injure zhimself in such a fashion before, it wasn't usual that it came without having started to climb the counter for something out of reach. Odd.
Thaliawen "How'd you do that?" Tania asked, frowning in confusion. She entered the kitchen. She took a step backwards. Huh. An invader? But Karma had said she'd hit her head on the cupboards, and this person certainly seemed to have done that. Tania stared. "Hmmm," She said. "I know why you hit your head. You're bigger."
MoogerMint Peering up at the offending cupboard from under zher shroud of arms, Karma tried to figure out what exactly happened through the pounding of zher head. Nothing seemed off in here -- the cupboards were not lower than normal and there was nothing on the floor to have offered a boost in height. Maybe it had always been possible to hit zher head on it when not paying attention? It had never happened before, though...
Karma didn't notice that Tania had entered the room until the young shadow mew had said something. Glancing to zher sister, eyes wide and blinking in confusion, Karma too a few seconds to process this. "Bigger?" zhe asked, before attempting to visually scrutinize the response, a single arm lowering and tugging at the tighter fit of zher pajama shirt, "But how? This isn't what happened last time..!" One more tug, then Karma froze, frowning, "...right?" While the ditto did not recall the exact scenario that led to the change from ditto to poké-child -- zhe didn't remember the star, but something felt different this time nonetheless.
Thaliawen "Yeah, it is," Tania assured her sister with a smile. She reached Karma and wrapped her arms around the ditto. "You don't remember, but I changed and grew. You found me and saved me from freezing." A little exaggeration never hurt anyone, and besides, it wasn't like Karma remembered the event to correct her. "And I know you did, too. You've grown again!" Wouldn't daddy be surprised? Hey! Now they could reach things that'd been put out of their reach. "We can prank even more now!"
MoogerMint Nervously, Karma glanced about the room as zher second hand slowly dropped from zher head, but it was an unfocused stare, as though sifting through zher mind in an attempt to locate some misplaced information. It was a common deliberation that often came up empty. Karma didn't remember the star found last time, for either one of them, but remembered it being different than this growth in a more general sense. Tania's hug pulled Karma back from zher futile search, and the ditto reciprocated, still attempting to remember then but less adamant about it -- at least Tania could remember. "Oh, was that it?" zhe asked, perplexed. Had zhe written about that day at all in zher journal? "But now I'm even less like a ditto," Karma complained, the point more blunted in zher dazed state, "How's anyone gonna recognize me now?" Zhe hadn't been all that happy about it the first time, zhe was sure...
However, upon Tania's suggestion, Karma perked up a bit, "Prank even more? How? Like what?" Climbing things, they were able to get to higher places, but now zhe supposed zhe didn't have to go to so much effort. Were there other pranks Tania had in mind? Karma was so curious!
Thaliawen Karma seemed pretty worried, despite Tania's attempt to distract her. The shadow mew gave her another hug and shook her head. "I recognized you," she said. And she was the most important person. "And Daddy will. If he doesn't, I'll hit him till he does. But he will. And Declan will. Everyone important will. And anyone who doesn't is dumb." She grinned at her sister. "We can use your height to reach things daddy put up so we wouldn't reach them. And we can do more grown up things! Ooh now you can pretend to be a scientist with me!"
MoogerMint Karma pouted a bit as Tania stated that there were still some people that might recognize zher, as though adamant about zher belief that people wouldn't recognize the ditto now, but it was more playful than anything, "But you guys are with me all the time, of course you'd know!" In the end, though, perhaps that was all who really mattered anyway. So what if the random trainers or such that came through every so often didn't recognize Karma -- chances are, Karma wouldn't have recognized them, either! It was when Tania called all the others dumb that Karma finally broke the pout, replaced quickly with a giggle, "Yeah I suppose you're right. You knew who I was right away! And you always know what to say, too. Thank you; you're the best sister."
At the suggestions, Karma rose to zher new height, steadying zhimself for a bit and adjusting to the change in perspective. It was still kind of dark, but as they had both only recently woken up, natural night vision was still in play. "Bah! I could so turn into a scientist before, if I really wanted to!" a bold-faced lie, but it was more a game by this point. "Oooh, what do you want me to try grabbing? Hurry, hurry, before anyone gets here!" zhe insisted -- the lab didn't open for another ten minutes or so, but zhe couldn't be too careful when trying to be sneaky!
Thaliawen Of course she was right. Tania beamed at Karma when the ditto brightened. She liked when the ditto was happy best. "You're the best sister too," she said, giving her a hug. "But now you'll be tall like a scientist so Daddy will fall for it," Tania explained, grinning at her sister. "Maybe Daddy's mug? He'd miss that!" They both knew how much Grayson liked his coffee. "Won't Daddy be surprised when he finds we're awake already! He'll never suspect us if we pretend to be sleeping still!"
MoogerMint Karma returned the hug that Tania gave, resisting the urge to attempt to pick the girl up as part of an exercise in curiosity to see what all had changed. The idea of a prank, however, took precedence when put on the table, and the teenaged ditto was eager to put it into play. "Aww, but you could always change height!" zhe corrected, "But now I don't have to worry about that so much, if I keep getting better. We could do it together!" Tania had always been better at transforming than Karma, since they both had found their stars, but Karma was determined to get back the power that had been suppressed early on. Tania could still help with that, right? At the suggested possession, Karma quickly perked, moving instantly toward the coffee mug. "Oh, good idea! The doctor is sure to see that missing when he first comes in," zhe agreed, able to reach the cupboard knob without having to brace zhimself on the counter top, "Where should we hide it?" The ditto was almost hopping as zhe snatched the mug, having returned the cupboard door back to its prior position and offering the ceramic cup to Tania.
Thaliawen "You will keep getting better," Tania assured Karma with a smile. "I'll keep helping and together we'll be the best at transforming ever! Daddy will never be able to tell us apart, unless we want him to!" She paused, considering where to hide the mug. "In our room. Daddy will never think to look there!" She took the mug and hurried to her bed, quickly putting it under the covers.
MoogerMint Karma's grin expanded at Tania's assurance, of which zhe had not doubted one bit, "Yeah, we can only get better with practice, right? One of these days, we'll be so good that it will be impossible to tell the difference!" Perhaps that was a little of an exaggeration, but in some instances, it was probably easily truth. Hesitation appeared merely as a side-effect of surprise at how quickly Tania's groggy morning demeanor could shift the placement of energy, as the mew appeared fully awake and eager as soon as the prank was within their grasp. It was a momentary thing, however, and Karma was quick at the heels of zher now-younger sister. As Tania hid the mug underneath her own covers, the ditto hastily hopped into zher own, pulling the sheets up over zher nose and curling legs up in order to appear smaller than zhe apparently now was. The waiting was the hardest part about these games! "Remember, don't say anything, and try not to laugh!" Karma instructed somewhat less-than-helpfully -- holding the laughter was also a very difficult part of the pranks!
Within minutes, Grayson was at the front door to unlock the laboratory, but it seemed like far longer to the fidgety ditto. He didn't enter the break room right away, either: there was the coat to put away, the lights to turn on in the front part of the lab, he even started up the coffee long before he actually went looking for his mug. Karma could hear him quietly grumble and close the cupboard where the mugs were usually kept, and then proceed to look in the other cupboards around the room. Zhe clapped zher hands to zher mouth as she heard the fridge door open. This was hard! How long was he going to look for that thing before checking in here!?
Thaliawen Tania tried to heed Karma's advice, and not giggle, she really did. She climbed into her bed and pulled the blanket over her head to stifle them, but it didn't help nearly as much as she wanted it to. Pranking Daddy was always so much fun, and it was early, and he was never going to figure out who had his mug anyway. "I can't help it!" she whispered to Karma, catching her breath.
"He'll never figure it out, anyway," she assured Karma. "He thinks we're still sleeping!"
MoogerMint Karma pulled the sheets tighter against zher mouth, hoping the pressure against it would help keep it held shut better. The longer it took Grayson and the more random the place it sounded like he was looking, however, was only working against holding the prank more of a surprise. While Karma's mouth was still shut, zhe still couldn't help but giggle quietly, as though trying to hold in a hiccup.
It wasn't difficult to hear the stifled laughter in the silence of the complex -- the walls practically funneled noise. It took very little time for Grayson to deduce where he should probably be looking. Standing in the doorway, an arm braced at the frame, he looked in, "Alright... what did you two do with it?"
Thaliawen Tania looked up when Grayson came in, uncovering her face and grinning at him. "Good morning, Daddy," she greeted him. "We didn't do anything, did we Karma?" She climbed out of the bed, going to hug him. "What are you looking for, maybe we can help?"
MoogerMint Watching as Tania hopped out of bed, far more awake and coherent than she normally was at this time of morning, Grayson knew something was up. His glance was suspicious, but not irritated, "Uhuh, is that so? Then what were you two giggling about in here?" Smiling, he tousled the mew-girl's hair affectionately nevertheless.
Karma refused to get out of bed, though, and bound the sheets tighter about zher head. "Mn, no. It's too cold," zhe stated, grasping at straws in order to stay hidden.
Thaliawen "Because Karma changed," Tania supplied, with a giggle. It was true, Karma had changed--but that hadn't been what'd made them laugh. "Karma, come out and show Daddy so he can see! Then we can help him look for his mug! And after, we can kidnap him for tea party!" That was the best part of stealing his mug; he had to do what they said to get it back, that was the rules! "Come out!"
MoogerMint Karma squeaked at the blunt reply, head still wrapped tightly with the blanket and wide eyes turned back to them. However, with Tania's carefree take on the whole ordeal, the young ditto was able to push zher usual bashfulness aside for a moment; it just took a little extra effort. Zhe popped up suddenly with a slightly uneasy grin, "Ta-daaah!"
Grayson blinked -- that was... entirely unexpected, actually. Karma even let off with another snicker, considering this to be a pretty good prank as well, in a way. They caught him so off-guard! "Ah, is that how it works?" the lead scientist started, talking as though he were taking notes, "I mean, the initial transformation was fast, but I didn't think it would keep progressing to such an extreme s--" Cutting himself off by pretending to clear his throat, he backed off with the inquiry once Karma flashed him a playful pout, the ditto's way to scold him about being too much like a scientist when this was not meant to be another one of his studies. His own smile replaced, he turned himself in order to speak with them both, "Sorry about that, it seems I really do need that coffee. Now, wherever do you two think it could have gone?"
Thaliawen Tania stuck her tongue out at Grayson, giggling at his interest in the change. She'd knew--well, hoped that that would distract him. She looked to Karma and gave the ditto a thumbs up; this had been an even better prank than hiding his mug, he was so surprised. "Karma's a teenager now!" she beamed. "Now we can reach EVERYTHING." Like scissors, and markers, and anything put up out of reach. She dug under her covers and offered the mug to him. "Now you have to play with us."
MoogerMint Grayson raised an eyebrow at Tania's information divulging, "So that's what you're planning, are you?" In all honesty, though, the pranks they pulled were never anything dangerous, or really caused any harm. Of course, that didn't mean they always were going to be that way... but he was willing to offer the benefit of the doubt where it seemed to fit the pattern.
Karma bounced a little in place, gleefully, before sliding out of bed to follow Tania's footsteps back to the scientist, mug in hand. Was the doctor really going to play with them? He laughed in response, taking the cup and leading them off, "Alright, but after I fix some coffee, and only until people start coming in."
MoogerMint As the sweltering heat of Summer passed into Autumn, the mornings started easing more and more toward colder weather. Despite this, it was still a gamble to bring a coat, and by the afternoon it was always warm again. It was a long span of a warm front, they were saying. Nevertheless, Karma was always intent to put on many layers, despite practicality, or whether they even matched, but still could not bring a scarf to the park with zher. Bummer.
Seated in the grass, Karma was never one to mind getting clothes dirty when it was more fun to ignore the downsides. The ditto tore off another chunk of the slightly-stale bread loaf and held it out over the water. Zhe flicked zher wrist slightly to get the attention of the meandering ducks wading in the park's pond; they were still not sure about coming too near the people that wandered these parts. With a smile, Karma tossed the chunk a little further out, and they were quick to snap it up before the others in their group. This would have been a lot less fun had zhe sat further back, on the bench provided. Instead, Karma sat cross-legged in the damp grass, the loaf in zher lap and a step or two away from the edge of the water.
Thaliawen Theo had stolen a loaf of bread just to ensure the hungry ducks got something to eat. He could relate to them; and while he was sure Dart would tease him about it. He didn't care. Theo knew what it was like to be hungry. He sat on the grass next to a girl and sent a smile her way. "Hi, I'm Theo," he introduced himself.
MoogerMint Theo's appearance seemed to come out of nowhere as Karma was enjoying the rare silence of the park morning, causing the ditto to yelp and jump back haphazardly. Zhe didn't expect anyone to be here, let alone so nearby. Once it registered that the boy was just trying to be friendly, Karma attempted to straighten zher composure and fumble with zher sleeves nervously. Well that was embarrassing... but then, he was also very forward, which Karma was not exactly used to outside family. "Uh... yeah, um... hi," the lanky ditto stumbled on the words, outwardly keeping attention on the ducks while keeping tabs on what the other was doing. The flaws of the introverted. Tearing another piece off the main loaf, zhe took zher time in responding, but it was more out of uneasiness than it was a cold shoulder, "...I'm Karma. You're out to feed the birds this early, too?" Small talk, not Karma's strong point...
Thaliawen "Yeah," Theo gave a bit of a grimace. "I wake up when the sun does, it beams in my face every morning since my brother and I live outside. It's kind of awful. The sun in my face, not the living outside. But I figure the ducks here need food just as much as my brother and I do. So I brought them some." He smiled at her, shrugging. "Why are you out so early?"
MoogerMint Despite Karma's nervousness, it was actually quite a relief to find the hoothoot at zher side was more on the talkative side. He didn't seem bothered by Karma's timidness, or overreaction, which in turn helped the ditto shrug it off zhimself. Of course, before Theo's correction to his statement, Karma had considered it actually had been living outside that bothered the hoothoot -- Karma hadn't really met another pokémon that grew up wild, at least that zhe could recall. What was one to say about that, who had grown up living with a human family? Zhe focused attention toward feeding the ducks, contemplating on how best to respond, "So... you've lived outside your whole life?" It was really nice of him to consider the ducks, even though Karma was sure that other park-goers did the same in an effort to relax. Tearing off another piece, zhe fiddled with the crust on the outer side, "I like getting up early. Most people don't, though, so it can get boring in the mornings." Not to mention it gave Karma some time to reflect on what all zhe could even remember from days prior. It was depressing to come up so short every day...
Thaliawen "Yeah, mostly," the hoothoot smiled. "We have some shelter, I made one out of blankets I got." he was careful not to say stole. He had met a girl who'd made it clear mentioning how he shopped was a bad idea. He tossed another piece of bread to the ducks. "It'll get cold soon and then my brother will appreciate the shelter."
MoogerMint "Blankets?" Karma blinked, perking a bit, "Oh neat, so it's kind of like a fort, then?" Despite the hardships that Theo had likely had to deal with, the ditto couldn't shake the feeling that living in a blanket fort could actually be quite fun -- the disadvantages just weren't registering at the moment. Never mind the fact that Theo had likely taken them, if he couldn't afford a place to stay in the city as it was. He looked about old enough to be able to land a job, so why think negatively anyway? Zhe watched with a smile as the ducks gobbled the food as it floated along the chilly surface of the pond, "Yeah, and the ducks won't be around much longer either. They leave when it gets too cold." It was interesting, Karma was curious what it would be like if someone were to follow the warm weather and never have to experience temperatures that were too cold. Then again, they never got to experience the fun that snow could bring, or the comfort of being wrapped in layers of fabric!
Thaliawen "Yeah, sort of," Theo agreed, despite never having built a blanket fort. "Its a bit warmer than it would be out in the cold. And I'm sure I can get us enough hot food. And warm clothes... I need to work on that." He went quiet for a moment, considering. "I'll miss them, the ducks I mean. Its fun coming to see them. They're smart though. It gets really cold and they need to find somewhere warmer. They don't have coats."
MoogerMint Karma nodded in response to Theo's explanation, realizing the misstep in speech as the boy's words trailed off. Awkward silence seemed to be Karma's forté. "I think you can do it," Karma stated, despite the fact that zhe knew nothing about him, "See, you look out for others. Like the ducks! You like helping others?" If he liked helping, then surely finding work shouldn't be that difficult! Of course, using the phrase that he needed to 'work on that' was what he meant, right? Grinning, Karma tossed another piece of bread to a duck as it chanced swimming by a little closer, "Oh, they do have coats! The feathers, see? The water's really really cold, but it doesn't bother them!" It really was quite the anomaly, Karma mused at the subject, "But don't worry, they'll be back. They always come back!"
Thaliawen Theo smiled gratefully. "Really?" he asked. How would he be able to stuff a warm enough coat in his bag? It'd look like...well, like he'd stuffed a thick coat into his bag. "I do," he said. But places interviewed and they wanted people to wear nice clothes and they wanted their workers clean. He couldn't guarantee his cleanliness at all times, he lived on the streets. Not every public bathroom had a shower. "Yeah, but feathers aren't really warm for cold breezes and stuff."
MoogerMint Karma nodded a bit, but then held still, as though on second thought. "Well, I don't really know you, so I suppose I couldn't say for sure," the ditto corrected, "But I've been told people can do anything they put their minds to, and I've no reason to believe otherwise." Maybe Karma was being childishly optimistic, but that didn't seem like it could cause any harm! Zhe blinked at the explanation of what feathers could and could not do. While zhe was prone to believe him -- he had feathers himself, after all -- it still seemed a bit confusing. Karma tilted zher head up toward the sky, "But isn't it cold up there?"
Thaliawen Theo smiled, nodding at the thought. "Maybe they can. All I've thought about lately has been taking care of my brother. He's kind of reckless," he lowered his voice, looking around as if expecting Dart to spring from some unseen hiding spot. "I'll try being more ambitious." He paused, looking up at the sky. He missed it. "It's a different kind of cold than what winter brings."
MoogerMint Karma gave Theo a curious look, wondering if his experiences with his own brother were very similar to Karma's experiences with zher sister. There was one thing that was definitely different, though -- it sounded as though Theo were the one looking out for his brother, whereas Tania and Karma looked out for one another as equals. Maybe it was just assumption that way, though. "Sometimes it's easier to look after others if you join them. It can be more fun that way, too!" the ditto nodded matter-of-factly, "So you can see, when you're always thinking like that, it makes it easier to do things that help." Zhe lowered zher eyes from the sky and rubbed at zher nose; the wind was still a bit chilly. "Oh. Well that makes sense," zhe considered, "One's more wind and one's more wet?"
Thaliawen Theo considered that. Huh. Easier to help if he joined Dart in his adventures? Maybe. He was fairly sure she wasn't encouraging him to join in on Dart's reckless behavior. "Yeah," he agreed. "Maybe." He worried about Dart quite a bit, maybe it would be better if he went along with. "Sort of," he agreed. "Food grows where it's warmer too. Birds that don't leave die sometimes."
MoogerMint "Well, it's worth a try, at least," Karma encouraged, "Maybe you could teach your brother better things to do than being reckless that way. Make a game of it, even!" Games made everything more enjoyable, after all. Karma rested zher hands on the partial loaf of bread in zher lap, watching as the ducks bobbed for pieces. A small smile spread across zher face, "Well, even if these ducks stayed here, I don't think they'd starve. We'd be here to keep them nice and fed!" Wow, deja vu to Declan right there, but it wasn't entirely different!
Thaliawen Theo smiled. He hadn't thought about that. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll try that. It'd be better if he learned to be less reckless, at least." He doubted it'd work, Dart would probably just include him in on the reckless plans of the week. "It's worth a shot." He threw a piece of bread to the ducks. "They'd probably be alright, with us to help them."
MoogerMint Karma beamed brightly, "It couldn't hurt! Might bring the both of you closer, too." It seemed odd that the two boys did not already do all those things together, but it was equally likely that Karma was just merely blessed with a sister like Tania. Well, of course she was, but perhaps in this particular way as well! Zhe giggled as a duck righted itself from almost toppling over after the piece of bread that Theo tossed out, "Do you come out here to feed them often?"
Thaliawen "Yeah, it might," Theo was all for bonding with his brother. He smiled at her. "I'm not much for being a public menace, but spending more time with him would be great." And maybe they'd be able to snag more food that way. "Yeah, most days," he said. "Whenever I can get some bread. People watch sometimes, or the aisles' too crowded."
MoogerMint Public menace? Well, Theo's brother was definitely starting to sound like a handful. It was either that, or Theo was being a little too uptight about it, but it was easier to assume the former at present. "Well he needs to learn what is and what is not okay, then. People can't just go around being mean to others, it's going to come right back around and smack them in the face!" Karma stated with a slight huff. It was a simple enough rule to understand! Zhe was sure that Theo would probably agree with that, he seemed logical enough in that respect. "Watch..?" Karma repeated, confused for a moment. Oh, wait... was he shy, then? "Well I'm sure they can't eat all the bread in one morning. They'd be stuffed! Besides, if you and me are both feeding them, other people might do it, too. I don't think they'll go hungry."
Thaliawen "He's not really mean," Theo said, "He doesn't know any better. He's been wild all his life, so you kind of need to take that into perspective," he shrugged. "I try to help him understand things, though. I don't understand everything either though. Humans are bizarre." He paused, seeming to realize he shouldn't mention how he acquired food. "Yeah. I don't like people staring." He smiled at her, "Yeah," he said. "They'll never go hungry with us around."
MoogerMint Karma seemed perplexed at what exactly Theo meant when he started reiterating. While zhe was starting to understand, zhe also decided it was probably best not to assume things, even though the temptation was sometimes indecipherable. "Hmm, what do you mean that he's a public menace?" zhe asked to clarify. Karma had run into very, very few pokémon that had been wild. In fact, Karma couldn't remember anyone that had. "Well, being bizarre isn't that bad," the ditto jabbed, "I think you're pretty weird, too." It just meant a person was unique! Or an entire race was, in this case. With a smile, zhe watched as the ducks gobbled up all the pieces of bread from the water and honking for more. Zhe crouched down a bit, as though trying to resituate how zhe was seated to stare the ducks in the eyes. "Oh, don't be a glutton, you've had plenty already! This bread is for later!" Karma chided, keeping the loaf of bread in zher lap. It was a big one, zhe hadn't been expecting to use it all up over the course of a single morning, even more so with others feeding them, "You're going to get fat if you eat any more!"
Thaliawen Theo paused. It was probably best not to tell the pretty duck feeding girl about what they got up to. She might decide they couldn't be friends. "I just mean he makes messes for me to pick up," He said vaguely. "You know, he thinks girls have cooties." Subject changed, he smiled at her. "We're all weird, huh?" he shrugged. "I think you're weird." He watched the ducks, smirking slightly. They really didn't know how to share.
MoogerMint "Ohhhh," Karma responded, realizing the word 'menace' was used lightly, in this case. Maybe zhe had been reading one too many Sunday comics. "Well that's good, I thought it was something worse than that," zhe stated bashfully, a little embarrassed, "At least that isn't too hard. I think family usually has to help with that." Karma seemed to remember the tales of cooties, even though they always seemed ridiculous. It was obvious they weren't true! But then, maybe it was like playing a game of Cops and Robbers? "That's silly," the ditto stated, "But then, a lot of games are kind of silly, when you think about it." Karma grinned as Theo called zher 'weird,' which inevitably broke into a laugh, "Well thank you for the compliment!" Teasing aside, he didn't seem like a bad egg at all; he was really nice, as a matter of fact!
Thaliawen "Sometimes he is worse than that," Theo admitted. "But what can you expect from a little brother?" He shrugged. "Do you have any siblings?" he asked. She seemed to know a lot about family. Maybe she had a large one? "Yeah," he agreed. Except Dart actually believed in them.
MoogerMint Karma giggled at Theo's tone as he clarified the ups and downs with his relationship with his brother; it definitely sounded accurate, with how some people could act! "Yeah, I have a sister," zhe confirmed with a nod, thinking a bit on that before continuing, "Well, she's the closest I am to, but I'm around people a lot. We're like one big family!" While most of the lab technicians weren't family, they were treated somewhat similarly, or as similarly as one could with coworkers assigned to the same laboratory -- to Karma, there was no real difference, because there was no other experience. Tania was the only other one that stayed with the ditto after-hours. Well... her and Declan, even though he was not staying in the most ideal of places.
Thaliawen "I'm not around people much," Theo admitted. Seeing as they lived on the roof and for the most part avoided being caught by humans. "I come out during the mornings and sometimes late at night." To steal food and supplies they needed to survive. "It's nice having a sibling. Is she your little sister or is she older than you?"
MoogerMint Karma seemed surprised that Theo was not around others very much. He had been the one to start the conversation, and in a public place, too! "Really? You're pretty good at talking to others!" zhe commented, "But... I suppose there aren't usually that many people that come out around those times, huh?" At least it hadn't stunted his capability! Karma rocked a little, leaning back to sit straighter despite the slouch, "Uhh... I'm not sure, actually." Well this was awkward. "We both found stars and transformed, but I grew first, so I'm older there. I'm not sure before that, though," zhe attempted to explain. The doctor made it sound like Tania was much older, but Karma didn't even know how old zhe was...
Thaliawen "I have to be, with my brother," he grinned and shook his head. "But I talk to others too. One time Dart brought this celebi home. It was pretty neat. He talked so much though." Theo hadn't thought he'd ever meet some one who spoke as enthusiastically as that boy did. "That's hard," he said. "I think Dart's younger because he's kind of stupid. He doesn't know things about the world I do. Maybe ask her?"
MoogerMint "Well talking with family is a little different than talking with strangers!" Karma giggled, though zhe could understand what he meant -- it was still really good practice! "A... a celebi?" zhe blinked in reaction. That couldn't have been the same Brenny, could it? Despite all pretenses, the world couldn't be that small, could it? Theo's blunt assessment of his brother's age based on intellect had the ditto laughing all the more, though zhe tried to quiet that one down a little more, "I suppose that's one way of looking at it. I don't think it matters to me who is older between us though. I've just kind of been thinking of it like we're the same age. You know, like best friends!" The one-upmanship, to that extent, was not really all that necessary, for both Karma and Tania found the same things to be entertaining, and regarded one another with a sort of assumption that they were both on the same page with everything.
Thaliawen "Yeah. His names Brenny?" Theo shrugged. "He and Dart met one night when he stole my flashlight." He looked to her, smiling. She was really rather pretty, with her bright colors. It caught his attention. "That's the best kind of sibling," Theo said, smiling. "Dart and I are best friends too. I take care of him a lot, and sometimes he annoys me, but he helps me out too."
MoogerMint Karma blinked, surprised into silence for a second before cutting through it zhimself, "Woooow, really? Heh, small world." Or small city... but technically, that was the world to the young ditto. "Stole?" zhe verified, but correlating it to siblings kept the notion away from dipping into the 'bad' side of the spectrum, "So were they pulling a prank, then?" Karma noticed the ducks starting to lose interest in the two of them, now that they seemed to be done with feeding time. Zhe thought that they must have been so full, but they almost seemed to be guilt-tripping the two teens about it, and the thought brought a bemused smile to zher face. Holding the loaf in place at zher stomach, zhe rose to zher feet and dusted the hem area of zher jacket off, having been using the longer garment to sit on. "Well, I don't know if people can always get along with others one-hundred-percent of the time, but that doesn't mean you like each other any less. I think you've got a healthy enough relationship going," zhe grinned. "Anyway, I should probably get going. The others might be awake enough now to start worrying," Karma rolled zher eyes a little at that -- it was mostly the other scientists that couldn't stop doing that, even though zhe knew zher way around the place, "You have a good day! Or well, err... sleep well, I suppose?"
Thaliawen "Yeah, he took it without asking me. Dart's always pulling pranks. I don't know Brenny well enough to know whether he was pranking or just being dragged along." Theo stood. He wasn't sure he wanted Karma to leave. Not yet, anyway. "Hey, wait. Meet me here again sometime? I'm always here around the same time. So if you'd like..." Maybe they could hang out again? He felt they'd already become friends.
MoogerMint Karma thought about it a moment, musing at the idea. It seemed amusing that both of their siblings were pranksters! Brenny wasn't really the type, though, "Brenny is pretty nice, I don't know if he would prank... but he does like to play games, so maybe." Not only that, but tastes changed, especially when around others for extended periods of time. Straightening up, the ditto paused a moment, surprised that the hoothoot wanted to meet again. The nervousness started welling up inside again, and after a moment of offhandedly scuffing a shoe in the grass, zhe responded, "Umm... yeah, I think that should work. I have all this bread left, and I like it out here at this time..." But would Karma even remember to? Would zhe be able to convince people to let zher come out here more often? Well, it was worth a shot, at least, and Theo was really nice! "Okay, but make sure the ducks don't get too full or they won't be able to get out of the water!" zhe teased, waving him off, "See you later!"
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:58 pm
◉ Roleplay #17 ★
Title:If A Robber Falls in the Forest (messenger RP) Participants:Declan & Karma Stages:Child (Declan) & Teen (Karma) Status:Complete!
Premise:Nobody messes with my partner!
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint It had taken some effort to give the scientists the slip, but Karma finally got zhimself some breathing room. It wasn't everyday the resident ditto hit teenhood, and even though they weren't the type of people that would poke and prod zher to run tests on how this all worked, they were still very interested in what exactly happened. Zhe knew it wouldn't do them much good -- zhe knew about as much as any one of them about it, after all! Truthfully, though, it wasn't the focus of today's activities. Once shift started, Karma was pretty much left to zher own devices, but it was more interesting to think that zhe was able to sneak out.
In zher hand, Karma held a sandwich, cut in half and wrapped in cellophane. The ditto had made it for Declan, but now the young teen stood at the door to the storage area where the secret oshawott was staying hidden. Zhe had a feeling this was going to be awkward... but then, maybe zhe was just being nervous for nothing? Karma sharply inhaled and held the breath as zhe pushed the door open and stepped inside. Zhe waited until the door fully closed under its own power before Karma said anything, peering through the dark to spot the stack of cardboard boxes to the back. "Declan?" Karma called out, heading toward where zhe had last seen the boy, "Declan, I've got a sammich for you!"
Thaliawen Declan was instantly suspicious of the taller than Cake person coming in. It wasn't Tania, she was small; and this person knew his name. He poked his head out from behind a box he'd been coloring behind. "Not Cake!" he decided aloud, eyes narrowing slightly. This person had brought him a sammich though... He scampered over, took the proffered sandwich and sat on a box. He started to unwrap it. "Hn. Not Cake is nice! Thank you for sammich!" He smiled at the Not-Cake person.
MoogerMint Karma froze when from the shadows emerged a young oshawott with a fiercely skeptical look. Surely Declan would notice who zhe was, right? His denouncement made the newly-grown ditto flinch, and the nervousness resurfaced all the more intensely. What was zhe supposed to do to link the child-Karma to this new incarnation, when Declan barely realized he wasn't fully a pokémon anymore either? Karma remained indecisive on the manner to which to respond back as he took the offered sandwich and proceeded to unwrap it to eat. "But..." zhe started, pretending to huff about it, "But I am Cake! I just got bigger! You remember getting bigger, too, don't you?" At least he was still enjoying the sandwich, so even if he didn't want to agree, they were still on good footing.
Thaliawen Declan studied Karma carefully. He put a finger to his chin and scratched it, as if in deep thought. "Not Cake is...Cake?" he asked suspiciously. Bigger Cake? What sort of thing was that? Trainers weren't supposed to evolve! But it did look like Cake... Still the same colorfulness he so admired. "CAKE!" he hugged Karma around the waist. "Why bigger now?"
MoogerMint Karma nerviously chewed at zher bottom lip as Declan tried to come to a decision as to whether Karma was really Karma or not. Zhe was sure there were other ways zhe could try to convince him, but... did zhe really look so much different? That insecurity quickly evaporated when Declan hugged zher, replaced by bubbling relief. Hugging him back, Karma took a little time before answering the posed question, and by then zhe was sitting on the floor; it was strange to be so much taller. "Do you remember when you got bigger? You used to see things at... uhh, this height?" Karma asked, trying to gauge the height of the average oshawott with a hand hovering over the floor, "And then suddenly, you can see over these boxes without having to climb on them!" True, he hadn't been in this room before he changed, but the stack of boxes he hid behind were still taller than he would have been. Truthfully, Karma had forgotten that Declan did not see zher as a pokémon, but rather, as a human.
Thaliawen "Evolved," Declan nodded. He remembered when that had happened. It'd been just after he'd received that large bag of jelly beans. "Cake evolved too! Yay! Bigger Cake!" Declan took a bite of his sandwich, taking his seat on the box again. "I'll get bigger too? Don't want to!"
MoogerMint "Heh, yeah, I evolved, in some sense," Karma laughed sheepishly. Dittos weren't supposed to evolve, which only made this whole development all the weirder. It was a good thing the ditto was good at rolling with things, zhe supposed. A light smile appeared on zher face, trying to give off a more calming effect, "You'll get bigger, but not until you're ready to. It'll be alright! I'll still be your Cake!"
Thaliawen "Good. Always my Cake." Declan finished his sandwich and smiled happily. "No matter how big. But try not to be too big, Cake!" He hugged her. "Can we play out today?"
MoogerMint Karma laughed, hugging Declan back once he was finished with his meal, "I'll try not to get too big, okay. I can at least promise that much." Rolling to sit back down, Karma considered what sort of play they could do. Zhe was still unused to this gangly figure that sprouted overnight, but that didn't make zher any less stubborn to keep things as they always had been. "Sure, we can play outside, we just gotta stick to that side of the area," zhe specified, pointing to the backside of the storage facility. The laboratory may have had a lot of windows, but there were always things to block the view. While Karma was sure playing with someone new in full view was probably nothing alarming -- kids stopped by all the time, usually trainers -- it was still a precarious thing to do. Maybe soon, when everything wasn't hitting the fan. Standing up, Karma brushed off any loose dirt, "What did you want to play?"
Thaliawen "Anything," Declan said. He was always happy to be in Karma's presence, he didn't mind what they did. "No more paper," he added, looking towards the boxes he'd emerged from earlier. Could she bring him more? He took her hand. "I love playing with Cake! What does Cake want to play?"
MoogerMint Karma looked over to Declan's hiding place, a visual for the request he gave, "Oh sure, I'll get you lots more paper after we play." It was inside, after all, and zhe didn't really want to go back in there and try to sneak out again so soon. Zhe swung the arm now held onto Declan's, back and forth as one might when walking, "What about cops and robbers? The robbers can be imaginary -- just pretend!" Zhe wasn't sure he really knew what that was at all, but it might have been worth a shot. They could always change what to play!
Thaliawen At the promise of more paper, Karma was rewarded with a bright smile. "Cops and robbers?" he echoed. Pretend robbers? That meant they weren't really there, didn't it? They'd played pretend before, hadn't they? "Yeah! Cops and robbers!"
MoogerMint Karma's grin broadened as the ditto led the young oshawott outside. Karma hadn't really played this game with imaginary enemies, but it didn't seem like it would be a good idea for the both of them to be on opposite sides. "Okay, let's pretend the bad guys, they stole... hmm..." the teen considered what they might be fighting against, finally landing on what was likely the most over-used context, "Okay so they're holding up a bank. Oh! And they've got hostages! We should rescue them!" Perhaps generic, but no less fun. Karma held zher hands together, as though there were a rifle in the center, "You ready, partner?"
Thaliawen Declan seemed thrilled, imaginary villains or not. He pulled his scalchop out and held it up, indicating that it would be his weapon of choice. "Hostages!" he didn't know that word, but if the bad guys had them it probably meant something bad! "We should rescue them! Ready! Yay, we're rescuing hostages, Cake!"
MoogerMint Karma giggled at Declan's choice of firearm before fully immersing zhimself in the game. Once outside the storage area, the sleight ditto pressed zher back against its outer wall, as though sneaking around the bank's inner walls, attempting to get the jump on the robbers. Still holding the imaginary gun with one hand, Karma lightly tapped zher lips with the side of an index finger, speaking in a hushed tone, "We gotta be quiet. They don't know we're in here, and we don't want the bad guys hurting the hostages." Zhe slid to the edge of the building and leaned forward, trying to see down a make-believe hallway further toward a patch of trees -- what was supposedly to the back vault. Karma squinted, "I don't see them but I think I hear them. They must be down that way."
Thaliawen Declan happily followed, mimicking Karma's every move. He pressed himself against the storage shed, pressing his finger to his mouth. "Gotta be quiet," He agreed. "Hear them? Bad guys go away!"
MoogerMint Karma nodded in response, neck craning the other way to make sure that there weren't more people down the 'other hallway' -- or really, nobody coming to find the both of them outside back here. "Coast is clear," zhe confirmed, backing into an adjacent, invisible wall and sliding sideways, further back in the yard. Zhe came to a stop, peeking around another false corner, but only for a second. Karma waited until Declan came up before pointing around zhimself as zhe explained quietly, "They're right around there, we're gonna have to be careful. Have any plans to get 'em?"
Thaliawen "Coast is clear, coast is clear!" Declan echoed. Despite not knowing what that entailed exactly, it was exciting! He followed zher happily. He held up his scalchop and waved it to indicate that was his plan. "Bad guys get time outs!"
MoogerMint Karma stifled the laugh at Declan's result for a plan. Holding up the 'gun,' the ditto added, "I suppose that is one way of putting it! I don't think they're gonna go down without a fight, though, so make sure you're ready!" Karma waited a little on that thought before adding, "We can tie them up, maybe then we can give them a proper time-out." Still, the thought of prison being the adult form of 'time out' was a particularly amusing one.
The lanky ditto hopped forward, back now facing the opposite direction as Karma readied for charge, "Hold it right there" Karma blinked, and lowered zher make-believe ammunition, "They're getting away, after them!"
Thaliawen "I'm ready!" Declan rose his scalchop to demonstrate readiness. "Tie them up, tie them up! They get time out!" The oshawott was pleased Karma had agreed to his plan. "Hold it right there!" He echoed, following Karma's lead and turning to see what she was facing. "Getting away!" These imaginary villains were fast and sneaky! He chased, and pulled out invisible ropes. "Got one, got one!" he announced.
MoogerMint Despite the fact that zhe was pretty sure Declan was only half-understanding most of this game, he seemed to be adapting to it fairly quickly. Perhaps this was a really good way to learn about how things were structured out in the real world? At least, for a pokémon, that seemed adequate enough -- Karma was rather sheltered as well. With a quick grin back, Karma observed as Declan pulled an invisible rope out, "They won't be able to get away when we're working togeth- aah!" With a quiet yelp, Karma cut zhimself off as zhe tripped on a clump of uneven grass, catching zhimself enough to land on elbows instead of zher face. "Owww..." Well that was embarrassing.
Thaliawen When Karma fell, Declan's scalchop extended into a blurred sword. His expression had darkened, but he seemed just as surprised as the tree nearest him began to tip. His eyes widened and he hurried to Karma's side. "Oops," he muttered. "Cake okay?" he asked.
MoogerMint Karma eased zhimself up to sit on zher feet, hearing the creaking and rustling of the tree's boughs but unsure from where it was originating. Karma's head was already a little dizzy, so it took a couple of seconds for zhimself to right zher head to the world at hand. Zhe was about to respond to Declan's concern when the leaning tree, still immediately nearby, increased in volume and velocity. Wide-eyed, the ditto scrambled back up and yanked Declan out of the way, despite the tree not falling in their direction. "Eep!" zhe braced for the sound, now frozen in place, "W-What happened?!"
Thaliawen "Sorry," Declan said, apologetically, and then looked towards the tree. He stared. "Cake, I did that," He confessed, holding his scalchop guiltily. "Didn't mean to. Was worried about Cake. Cake okay? Not hurt?"
MoogerMint As the tree stilled itself, Karma stared on in bewilderment at it, as though expecting it to do something else now that its world had turned sideways. Zhe didn't respond to Declan's explanation right away, but when zhe gathered enough of zhimself to turn back to the oshawott, zhe realized how worried he was. Instead of reprimanding, instead of complaining or whining, Karma instead gaped, "Woooow, you did that all by yourself? I didn't know you were so powerful!" Wait until Tania heard about this! Lifting up an elbow, Karma brushed off some loose grass; other than the green road rash, there didn't seem to be too much that hurt. "Not hurt! Cake is fine! Cake turned green a little, though," zhe stated, showing him an elbow with a smile.
Looking back to the tree, the ditto laughed, "Well I don't think the bad guys are going to put up much of a fight now, knowing what you could do to them if they decide not to surrender." Leaning over, Karma whispered, sneaky-like, "Don't tell them that you wouldn't actually hurt them. I know you wouldn't hurt them, but they don't know that!"
Thaliawen Declan's eyes widened. Wasn't knocking a tree over at least deserving of a time out? He was just as bad as those villains! "Powerful?" He echoed, doubtfully. He hugged Karma then, at the reassurance that zhe wasn't hurt. "Love Cake," he said. "Cake green now? Only a little. Still pink! Still blue!" He beamed when they seemed to still be continuing the game. "Bad guys better surrender," he agreed. He nodded at Karma's suggestion and announced, "Bad guys, I'm gonna hurt you!"
MoogerMint Declan's concern over being labeled as the ones the both of them were after was lost on the young ditto, still impressed by the feat. Even if Karma had thought about matters in a touch more detail, it could easily have been shrugged off as self-defense, or more closely, defending another. That wasn't the way those that were bad acted, at least insofar as Karma knew. Zhe giggled at the hug, surprised but eager to reciprocate the action, "Yeah, just a little more green! It'll come off." Standing back to zher feet and swatting free zher knees, Karma looked back to where the imaginary crooks were stationed, "I don't think they're going to try anything bad anymore. I'm pretty sure they don't want to be stuck under a tree!" With a grin, zhe held zher hand out to Declan to shake, "A job well done, partner!"
Thaliawen Reassured more by Karma standing than he'd been by her words, Declan began to smile. "No more bad stuff," he agreed. Even bad guys wouldn't want to get squished. "I love you, Cake! Yay!" He took Karma's hand and shook it. "No more bad guys, what now?"
MoogerMint "Yeah, we took care of them good!" Karma agreed, swinging their arms once zhe had finished shaking Declan's hand, now back to reality from make-believe. "Ah... hmm..." zhe thought about the posed question, looking around curiously. While it was still not too dark to play another game, Karma was getting increasingly concerned that others might get worried if they had noticed the missing tree, or had heard it fall to begin with. Perhaps it was not best to chance things, in this case. "I dunno, the others might be getting suspicious," zhe admitted finally, "How about we take it easy. I'll go get you a lot more paper and we can color inside, okay?"
Thaliawen Declan sighed. He nodded in understanding though; they'd go back to the shed where they wouldn't be seen. "Okay, Cake," he agreed. More paper was always good, it was a good time waster! "Don't want others getting worried. C'mon, we color!"
MoogerMint Crew
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MoogerMint Crew
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:20 am
◉ Roleplay #18 ★
Title:The Oshawott`s Out of the Bag! (messenger RP) Participants:Declan, Tania, & Karma Stages:Child (Declan & Tania) & Teen (Karma) Status:Complete!
Premise:It's not a matter of adoption versus the pound, but it sure feels like it.
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
Thaliawen There was someone coming in, Declan had heard them before the door was even opened. He poked his head out from behind the box he'd been hiding behind. "Cake?" He asked. This wasn't their normal lunch time, he didn't think, but maybe she'd come to see him anyway? Maybe she wanted to play? "Cake, look I drew you a picture!" He looked around, paused, and ducked back behind the box. Oh. That wasn't Cake!
MoogerMint Rosabel neared the storage facility detached from the rest of the lab. She kept a list in her head of all the supplies the other scientists had requested to be retrieved, playing repetitively for accuracy. It was dark beyond the door, though, and she nearly stumbled n the dark. She nudged a box out of the way with her foot and fumbled for the light switch. As her hand landed on the switch, she heard a voice emerge from the far side of the building, her breath catching in her throat. She was pretty sure none of the others were in here -- she was the errand girl, as the intern -- and that was no rat...
Standing stiffly, she flipped the switch before the footsteps got to close, but it seemed they had retreated in the opposite direction. Her eyes narrowing, Rosabel stood her ground, "Come out here and show yourself. Nobody should be in here!" She hoped it wasn't someone likely to put up a fight... she hadn't exactly thought about that before the words left her.
Thaliawen This woman was scary! Declan hesitated in obeying, peeking out to look at her. He slowly shuffled out behind the boxes. She didn't seem the type who wouldn't tell. Would Karma get into trouble? Would he be sent away? He sniffed at the thought. "What're you gonna do to me?" he asked. He took a step forward. Maybe this was some kind of joke? Tania could shift forms, was this one of her pranks?
MoogerMint As she stood still, silent anxiety had Rosabel ready to tear for the door if it started to look dangerous, calling out to whoever was in the storage facility. What inched out from behind a stack of cardboard boxes to the back of the area wasn't what she was expecting, but she was still on edge. Sure, it seemed like it was just a kid, but that didn't always mean they lacked a degree of danger. At least she was still larger, so that could always work in her favor. That didn't explain what he was doing here in the first place, though. He was obviously hiding from something, but as a poké-child, she couldn't reason why he was hiding from a pokémon laboratory, right across the lawn. Unflinching, she jabbed an index finger to the concrete floor in front of her, "What do you think you're doing? Come here! This isn't a place to be playing games!"
Thaliawen Declan slowly inched over to Rosabel, frightened. Karma had warned him, more than once. Don't be seen. Be quiet, keep out of sight. Was this woman what his Cake had been so afraid of? "Live here," he said, softly, looking back towards the boxes. "Not playing. Am sorry." He took a step back then, and studied the woman before him. She didn't seem the type that'd forgive him if he hugged her.
MoogerMint Rosabel frowned at the broken English, but more importantly the contents of the response, "No, you don't live here. This is not yours. I don't even know how you got in here." She sighed, frustrated but no longer apprehensive at the meek display. Instead, she grabbed at his wrist in order to bring him inside the laboratory; this was not her problem -- let the full employees handle this mess. "Come with me," she instructed, "I'll find someone who can figure out what to do."
Thaliawen But he did live here! Why wasn't this woman listening? This was his home. Cake had brought him here, she fed him here, he slept here. "Do live here," he argued. "Cake brought me." He flinched as she took his wrist, and he tried to pull away. "No! Don't take me!" He didn't want to be taken away, he didn't want to lose Karma.
MoogerMint Frustrated, Rosabel opened the door to bring Declan to the laboratory, even if she had to pull the boy along. "I don't care who told you what, but it's also not anyone named Cake's place, either," she refuted. Ugh, she sure hoped that that didn't mean they had another stowaway in that building. The boy's refusals and fighting back only proved to irritate Rosabel all the more as she made slow progress toward the main building, nearly stumbling through the door as she reached it. "I've got a little problem, can someone get over here and help?" she called in, her waning patience evident in her voice.
Thaliawen Declan was dragging his feet, trying to keep as far away as he could from the laboratory. It was no use, though. This woman was bigger than he was, and stronger too.
Allen went over to the door immediately; partly in curiosity--what'd upset Rosie this time? And partly because he was eager to help. He paused as he assessed the situation. "Rosie, calm down," he said. "You're scaring him."
MoogerMint Rosabel wasn't sure she was glad or not that the person first to the scene was Allen, but she had little time to decide before he came to a simple conclusion. She flashed a glare his way, making sure the kid was insider the doors before she released her grip on Declan's wrist. "Well I'm not a babysitter, I shouldn't be expected to know how to take care of kids!" she growled, crossing her arms. No, in all honesty, she was glad he did come over; she did know that even though she was not the best with kids, he was pretty good with them. Her expression softened, and she continued, explaining what happened, "He was apparently living in the back of the storage shed. I don't know how long he's been there. Someone was hiding him." Her look was contemplative but stern, "I can think of a few people who would do something like that..."
Thaliawen "No, you shouldn't be," Allen agreed. "I'm sorry you ran into this situation--" He began, and then added, "But I'm glad you did. Who knows what could've happened if he'd stayed there? Something might've fallen on him." He put a hand on her shoulder, and another on Declan's to keep him in place as she explained. Allen's expression became closed, and He looked around for Grayson. "I have a feeling you might be right," he muttered. The kids, of course. "Grayson, we have a situation."
Declan tried pulling out of Allen's hold, but it was firm. He was really caught, wasn't he? Where was Cake, anyway? "Cake?" he called. She lived her, didn't she? She lived in the laboratory. "Cake, I'm scared!"
MoogerMint Rosabel still wasn't convinced that it was a good thing that she herself found the boy hiding out in the storage facility, but was in agreement that it was good that he was found before anything hazardous happened. Despite all that, she was at a loss as to what could be done about the situation -- kids shouldn't be let loose in a laboratory like this, let alone three of them! She had a feeling in her gut that she knew what the answer would be, and prepared for it the best she could once Dr. Willows was called for.
Luckily, Grayson had not had his hands full at the moment, and was able to respond with little delay; it seemed urgent enough, either way. Once in the room, he blinked a bit in silent confusion at the scene presented. Obviously, it revolved around the poké-boy, but what resulted in him coming in here anyway? His usual spark of curiosity only intensified when he spotted a second tail instead of the normal one, but he tried to brush that curiosity aside for another time. "What's going on?" he asked, incredulous. Declan's fear had the man crouching a bit, so as not to tower over him, and spoke softer, "Hey there, little guy, there's nothing to be afraid of. What brings you here? Erm... and who or what is 'Cake?'"
Thaliawen "Rosie found this boy in the storage shed," Allen began. He studied the pokeboy before him, frowning in concern. "We don't know how long he's been there, but he seems to think he lives there." Which led him to believe the children were involved. Had they harbored a wild pokemon and kept him a secret when he transformed?
Declan watched as a third person wandered in. This one vaguely resembled the drawings Tania had produced of a creature named "Daddy", but only vaguely. Nothing to be afraid of? He looked into Grayson's eyes, his own wide and starting to well up. They didn't know who Cake was. Maybe this wasn't where she lived after all. "'Nia?" he tried.
Tania heard that. She swore in the background and poked her head into the room. She spotted Declan, and noticed the three adults around him. ...well. This wasn't good.
MoogerMint Rosabel nodded at Allen's explanation of the very little amount of information they had on the situation at hand. "He was in the back, behind all the cardboard boxes," she added, "We, ah... might want to do something about those." They didn't want this happening again, after all... however it happened this time.
Grayson frowned at the knowledge, a look of concern rather than anger. He noted how nervous and distraught the boy seemed to be, and offered a smile, "Hey, it's okay, don't worry. We'll get everything straightened out." It didn't seem as though he was a very talkative guy, and seemed to have a limited language at his disposal. He wondered why that was. As though he hadn't understood Declan's request, or perhaps because of it, Grayson turned his head to call down the direction of the hall, "Hey, Tania? Karma? Could you come here for a sec?"
Karma had noticed Tania wander off towards the entrance but had been slow to follow behind. Before the head scientist had even called for them, Karma had reached the edge of the doorway to sneak a peek at what all the commotion was, tugging at Tania's clothing. "What's going on?" zhe asked in a hushed tone before zher eyes fell on Declan. The ditto's complexion paled as zhe looked around at everyone, as though trying to locate a directive hidden in someone's expression.
Thaliawen "Yeah," Allen agreed, nodding at Rosabel's words. They'd definitely want to move those boxes and prevent this from happening again. How had they failed to notice a small boy living in the shed?
Declan wrapped his arms around Grayson, holding onto the scientist tightly. "Don't send me away," he said. Cake had said he'd be sent away if seen, and he couldn't very well ask three adults to forget where he lived. Not when they seemed so upset about the situation. "Don't send me away. Please." He didn't seem to notice Karma, or at least he didn't call out to her. How could he convince these people to let him go back home?
"I think we're in trouble," Tania observed, looking to Karma. "We'd better go talk to Daddy before he gets mad." She took Karma's hand and led the ditto out to Grayson. "Hi, Daddy," She greeted, as if there wasn't an oshawott attached to the scientist.
MoogerMint Rosabel stayed silent through the interaction. She wasn't supposed to be part of this, but she hoped this didn't mean there would be three kids running amok all day, every day, now. When had the last employee venture through that storage building anyway? Had it really been that long?
Grayson was taken aback by the sudden embrace, but probably more so by his repeated requests. Send him away? What was he doing here in the first place, and what was he hiding from? "There there, settle down. Don't worry, we'll get everything squared away," he hugged the kid back. While he couldn't say for certain whether he could promise something with so little details, that didn't mean he was going to do something that seemed like it would endanger the kid, either. Turning to Tania and Karma as they entered the room and drew nearer, he motioned to the oshawott-boy, "Do you know anything about this?" Of course, he was referring to the situation, as his tone told, his attention needling and tuned to detect any fibbing that might occur.
Karma fidgeted restlessly; this was exactly what zhe had been fearing would happen -- at least, of anything that zhe could currently recall. Tania was right, they were going to be in big trouble, but the ditto had no idea in what manner that might be. And unlike Tania, Karma couldn't play it cool, and panicked instead, "Stop! He's got nowhere else to go!"
Thaliawen Everyone squared away? Declan didn't let go of Grayson, even after the reassurance. He only released his hold when Karma was near, and bolted for zher instead. "Cake!" he clung to zher. "I'm sorry, Cake. I'm sorry."
Tania looked around the room. She sighed. "Yeah," She admitted. "Karma's his trainer. She found him all alone. He'd been abandoned and was starving. And I think he found his star after he was left. But he doesn't know he's a person. I don't know. But don't be mad, Daddy. We took really good care of him. We feed him every day and he's learning how to talk!"
MoogerMint Karma wrapped zher arms around Declan's shoulders protectively as he clung to the teen, but was otherwise still scared stiff. What little zhe had blurted out to the boy's defense was all zher frantic mind was able to coherently conjure. Tania's explanation allowed the ditto to gather zhimself, and zhe added to the cluttered anecdote with some input from the opposing side, "Don't send him away! People keep saying that it gets too busy in here, and there's not a lot of room for us, but look! He was living here just fine! He wasn't in the way at all!" Karma hugged him tighter, "He likes it here and he's got nowhere to go! It's not his fault!"
Rosabel placed a hand to her forehead in annoyance. She knew she had been one of those people to complain about the work conditions, and while it was unlikely, it might have been all her fault in that regard. Ugh, it figured something would come back around and bite her sooner or later on the job...
Grayson rose back upright once Declan was in what appeared to be more comfortable hands, turning to face them. He appeared puzzled, "Why didn't you come to me sooner about this? I'm not a tyrant; I'm sure we could look for a solution together. What you did was reckless, though. He could have gotten sick, or hurt, or who-knows-what out there; that was dangerous!" While he wasn't lacking in faith in the two of them, they were still just kids, at least mentally.
Thaliawen Declan clung to Karma and nodded at her words. Yes, he'd kept out of the way. Yes he liked it there. He didn't have anywhere else to go and Karma was his trainer. He loved her. "My Cake," he said. "Love Cake." He looked back to Grayson. Karma was upset. He could feel it in her grip on him. This Daddy person was upsetting her! He frowned and made a move as if to reach for his scalchop, but Tania grabbed hold of his wrist.
"No," She said, sternly. She released his wrist and looked to Grayson. "I wanted to. The day I found out Karma had him, I did. But she said no. She said you'd send him away." Tania wrapped her arms around Grayson. "I know you're not mean, Daddy," he'd helped her when she'd needed someone, after all. And he loved them both despite the pranks they pulled on him. She looked down at her feet as he began to list what might've happened. "We didn't really think about it."
MoogerMint Tania was much quicker and more perceptive to what Declan had been planning to do in that instant, but as soon as it was pointed out with a quick maneuver to quench it, Karma attempted to pull Declan to the side so he had no direct line of sight with which to attack. It was a gentle move, as though to make him stumble that direction instead of yanking him. Karma's teeth were clenched under zher mask of lips, refraining from saying anything further for fear of crying with the effort. It even seemed like Tania was against zher.
"That is exactly why you shouldn't have put yourselves in the positions of adults," Grayson countered, "You don't think about the consequences of something like that. You're kids, you shouldn't be put into that position anyway. You can't be both child and adult, it doesn't work like that." He seemed confused that the both of them would have thought the scientist would kick him out without considering the angles, though. It was obvious the boy had an attachment to the both of them, but whether friend or family, that sort of relationship could continue, in a manner of speaking. Maybe it was getting a little cramped with them all living at the laboratory themselves, but he was sure there was some way of going about that to make things easier on everyone. "I'm not heartless, I'd try to come to a decision that would keep all parties happy. Sure, that might mean compromise, but such is life," he sighed.
Thaliawen Declan paused. Tania had stopped his attack, and Karma was moving him. He shuffled that way, and studied his hands. "Sorry, Cake," he said, and turned to hug her. "S'all my fault. I thought it was you." He hadn't meant to be caught. This man didn't seem to want to send him away, though, even if he was upsetting Karma.
Grayson was right. They'd tried to take care of Declan on their own, and while they'd had some success, they hadn't thought about the risks. Well, apart from the risk of Declan being taken away. She backed up and moved to take Karma's hand. She gave it a squeeze. At least he didn't seem TOO angry. She was surprised. She'd expected the consequences of hiding a person in your shed to be more dire than a lecture. "I'm sorry, Daddy," She said, after a moment. "We're sorry."
MoogerMint Karma hugged Declan a little haphazardly in zher clutches and shook zher head. While the ditto still didn't trust zhimself to speak, zhe hoped the action would convey enough -- it wasn't Declan's fault. It was bound to happen at some point, Karma knew that, regardless of how careful they were about secrecy. Tania seemed to grasp the teen's hand as zher arms were wrapped at Declan's shoulders, and it sparked a short-lived pang of fear that someone was trying to pry the oshawott free of zher grasp. Karma's tension slackened as Tania gave the hand a comforting squeeze; it was going to be all right, it had to!
Grayson sighed again at the apology, but it was not out of frustration. "I know, and it's not like things can be changed. Things like this, it can sometimes be learned from better by experiencing it than by being told," he rationalized, albeit a bit weakly, "At least it didn't come to something bad having happened before you learned, and... well, you're right, you did do a decent job, but..." He didn't really need to go on, did he? He let his voice trail off -- they knew where they had wronged, and they weren't going to do anything like that again. It likely set Declan back a bit, being acclimated to the world around him, but at this point it couldn't really be helped. They were still pokémon, after all, and they were doing what trainers often did to their kind; it was an easy blurring of the lines there.
The man looked at Declan, and then back to the two 'siblings,' his expression offering a mild smile, "Now come on, I bet he's hungry after all that."
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2016 12:24 am
◉ Roleplay #19 ★
Title:When Life Gives You Tomatoes (messenger RP) Participants:Declan, Tania, & Karma Stages:Child (Declan & Tania) & Teen (Karma) Status:Complete!
Premise:I'm pretty sure that... doesn't go into cake mix...
- - -
Roleplay:Under spoiler
MoogerMint With the coming of the hotter seasons of the year, temperature had been wobbling between averages every few weeks or so. Today seemed nice, but anything outside of a water fight left the ditto lacking in wanting to play outside. Perhaps zhe was just feeling lazy, it was hard to say. Therefore, when the suggestion of writing and doodling came up, Karma was easily swayed for the activity. It was much cooler inside, after all!
One of the workstations was clearned off for the kids to use; infrequently were all the tables in need of occupation for... sciency-things anyway. Despite this, Karma opted to work on the floor, scattering a mish-mash of gel pens to doodle little pictures with. Zhe would usually use markers or colored pencils, as the range was much easier to obtain, but it was nice to change it up every so often. Karma started resenting this decision when, upon scanning over the sprawled spectrum, zhe realized zhe did not have a working light blue. Huffing, zhe rolled them around, as though the action would uncover a color zhe knew was not present. "Don't have light blue, either..." zhe grumbled aloud, trying to decide what else zhe could doodle with the colors they had. Another half-finished picture...
Thaliawen Even Tania was reluctant to go outside. It was hot, even though it looked nice; even though it was sunny and tempting to go outside. She'd tried; but either the story about heat being attracted to black was true or it was simply too hot to run around outdoors. She flopped herself next to Karma. "If you color lightly with the regular blue and smear the ink with your fingers before it dries it'll turn out light and pretty," she suggested. She took a piece of paper and began drawing a heart with a red gel pen. "I'm making this for you," she informed her sister. She began coloring the inside of the heart with a purple gel pen.
It was Declan who seemed to resent the change in weather most. He had been trying (and failing) to be sneaky in his attempts to cool off. He'd only recently discovered that water came from facets; well, at least, he'd only recently learned how to utilize them himself. He'd been caught by Allen; sinks weren't for playing in. "Why don't you go find something to do outside?" Allen had suggested. Instead the oshawott frowned and laid on his stomach between Karma and Tania. "Hot!" he complained, looking to Karma. He took a green gel pen and looked for a piece of paper. He sat up and took several from the work station that'd been provided for them, and laid back down. He began to scribble on the page.
MoogerMint Karma stared at the revelation that Tania had provided, unaware of this sort of flexibility when it came to pens; zhe had always just thought of them as less-runny markers. Eagerly, zhe snapped up one of the darker blues and tested this theory out on a blank spot outside the picture's contents. Messing with it a bit, zhe still thought it was a little too dark than what zhe had been hoping for, but was still pleased with the results nevertheless -- it would just have to be later in the day in zher picture. "Ohh that's cool. Thanks, sis!" zhe beamed happily.
The ditto's attention quickly averted toward Declan as he flopped on the cool ground near them. Giggling, Karma patted the boy's shoulder, "It's cooler if you stay inside. Maybe we can go outside tomorrow!" Karma was hoping for that very same suggestion, honestly -- it was more fun with more space.
Thaliawen Tania smiled, pleased that she'd been able to help. "I like when my fingers turn all glittery from smearing the ink," she confided. Especially with the gold or metallic pretty gel pens.
Declan looked sceptical. Cooler tomorrow? But that wasn't today! "Too hot," he complained again. He set his green pen down and selected a red, continuing to scribble.
MoogerMint Karma nodded vigorously in agreement to Tania's statement, rubbing zher own fingers together. Doing the same with the fingers on zher opposite hand, zhe then proceeded to streak them across zher own cheeks, under zher eyes, "You can use it like facepaint, too!" Oh, though then zhe would have to wash it off later, before bed... oh well.
"It's not too hot in here though," Karma offered. Heck, zhe was far more used to doing things inside anyway... not that zhe wanted to go back to those days now.
Smearing the sky into a blue hue, the ditto's stomach decided to offer input to what they accomplished this afternoon as well, chiming in with a growl. Pausing, Karma sighed and flopped zhimself closer to the floor, "Buh, I'm hungry..."
Thaliawen Tania laughed and ran her hand over the heart she'd drawn. Some of the purple ink hadn't dried and appeared on her fingers. "Look! I'm a purple monster!"
Declan made a face. That was true. It felt much nicer in here than out there--but out there was so much more fun! "Hungry!" he agreed, immediately. "I'm hungry too!" He pushed himself into a sitting position. "Sandwiches?"
MoogerMint Karma giggled as Tania showed off her purple hands. "Purple monster or not, you're still my sister!" Karma stated matter-of-factly, sticking zher tongue out afterward as though to one-up with a, "So there!"
Declan's suggestion of choice of food was not surprising, yet was fairly routine; it was a good thing that there were a wide variety of sandwiches. "Probably, I don't really know how to make much else," the ditto confirmed before turning back to Tania, "Are you hungry, too?" They could all help then, and nobody would be left out!
Thaliawen Tania giggled and reached over to give Karma a hug. In doing so, she smudged some purple ink on her sister. "I'll always be your sister," she promised. "No matter what color monster I am!"
"Best sandwiches," Declan said. "My Cake makes the best sandwiches ever!"
Sandwiches, again? It seemed that they'd been eating sandwiches much more often since Karma had found Declan. "Lets make cake!" Tania suggested. "Daddy got me this little oven, and making cake is easy!" It wasn't any different, was it? Just bigger!
MoogerMint Karma received the hug with no resistance, careless about the extra color on zher person. "Of course!" the ditto agreed, happy to hear that. They would be sisters forever, and nothing was ever going to change that.
At first, Tania's suggestion confused the teen, especially directly after Declan's assertion. How could they replicate another one of zher? Oh wait, no... she was talking about food! "I don't know how to make cake," Karma stated uneasily. Zhe knew that Tania was eager to break in that Easy Bake Oven, but there were steps to take before diving in! Cautiously, Karma considered it, "Well... did it come with a cook book?" Even if it hadn't, though, surely it couldn't be too difficult to look a recipe up, right? How hard could following those instructions be?
Thaliawen "I know how to make little cakes," Tania offered. "Big cakes can't be that hard. Besides I know what to put in big cakes. We need eggs and flowers...no flour I think. The white stuff. And sugar and all sorts of things we think will be good in cake!"
"I want sandwiches," Declan protested. He didn't want to eat Cake! He was pretty sure Karma didn't taste good.
MoogerMint "Oooh... so you're our cookbook, then!" Karma exclaimed. How could they go very wrong when someone here had already made it in the past? Never mind the fact that Tania had corrected herself over a mistake that would have most people questioning capabilities, no. Sliding off zher stomach and onto zher legs, the ditto considered the necessary ingredients, "I think we have some of that here, for special occasions..." There should still be plenty!
Karma's expression turned more concerned when Declan voiced his displeasure for the idea. Zhe was fairly certain that he knew what cake was, and nicknamed the ditto as such because it was tasty... but Karma kind of liked the idea of having some cake! "Maybe we could fix cake for dessert, and sandwiches for lunch?" zhe attempted to accommodate.
Thaliawen "No, we're all cook books!" Tania decided. "I think salt would be yucky in cake. Do you think daddy has some cake recipes? I bet we can decide what's bad to put in cake if we see some suggestions."
Declan wrapped his arms around Karma, distressed. "No cake!" he insisted. "Love Cake, not eat cake."
MoogerMint "B-But I've never baked a cake before, you have," Karma quickly responded with a shake of zher head. How could zhe be a cookbook when zhe knew of no recipes? Salt, though, didn't sound like a good choice of ingredient, that was for sure. "Well, we could look! There has to be something!" And if they couldn't get a physical cookbook, maybe one of the other scientists knew how to cook!
Karma moved to rise in search of everything, but was hampered by the young oshawott. Zhe was amused that he had been confused similarly to Karma zhimself had, and laughed. "No, no, we're not going to eat me! I wouldn't taste good!" zhe corrected, patting one of his arms in a comforting manner, "You know what cake is! Tania doesn't call me Cake!" Sister, yes, but not Cake!
Thaliawen "Doesn't matter. We can make things up as we go," Tania said, happily. "We can put chocolate chips in it or pudding in it or anything you want!" She considered that there night not be cookbooks. "If we can't find any we can make Rosie help us!"
Declan brightened at Karma's words. Oh. The other kind of cake! "Good. Only my Cake." He took Karma's hand. "To the kitchen!"
MoogerMint A smile slowly crept back onto Karma's face -- maybe Tania was right. Maybe baking a cake is easier than zhe thought! It always looked a little complicated to make things from scratch, though. Perhaps there was a cake mix in the cupboards? "Okay, let's give it a try!" zhe agreed with a swift nod.
Grabbing hold of Declan's offered hand, zhe made sure Tania was coming as well with a hand squeeze at the air, as if to grab her. While the lab was not ordinarily used to cook things, it had to be made into a more living arrangement, now that there were those that did not leave at the end of a long day of work. Customarily, there were mostly things that one did not require much preparation outside of a sandwich, and even though people didn't expect any of them to cook anything, there were still a small selection of more complex ingredients, such as those for baking. Maybe they could even learn to make brownies or cookies one of these times, and not have to rely on people bringing them to work to share. Rifling through the cupboards, Karma attempted to locate things that the other two might not be able to reach so easily. "I found the chocolate chips!" zhe hollered to them, head still resting inside the confines of the cupboard.
Thaliawen "Great! When it's done we can share with Daddy!" Tania cheered. She took Karma's hand and happily went along with her.
Declan looked around and noticed when karma took out the chocolate chips. He immediately held out a hand as if waiting for a handful.
MoogerMint Karma went to toss the bag of chocolate chips to the table when Declan held out a hand expectantly for some chips. The ditto, however, took this as a sign to help and, with a smile, placed the bag in his awaiting grip before looking for more items to pull out.
Peeking out from the side of the cupboard, Karma pondered what else they might need for this adventure. Zhe grabbed a few things that were confirmed to be needed, and some things that might possibly be needed -- really, just whatever was in reach. Upon returning to the table housing all the ingredients, zhe inspected the back of the bag of flour more intently, "Hmm... well this has a recipe for cookies, but not cake." Peering back up, zhe looked for direction, "So... any idea where to start?"
Thaliawen Declan had the bag of chocolate chips! Delighted, the boy pried the bag open and took a handful, stuffing the majority of it into his mouth. He took another handful before Tania seemed to notice what he was doing and took the bag from him.
"These are for the cake!" she said, sternly. She took out a large bowl. "I think flour first. Then the chocolate chips so Declan doesn't eat them all."
MoogerMint Watching as Tania started the process, Karma scanned the ingredients to take note of where everything was. Seeing the decimated bag of chocolate chips had the ditto worried, though -- he already had so much sugar, was adding to it going to make him sick? Zhe supposed maybe they could fix sandwiches while it was cooking, though, so that could help... and Karma zhimself really wanted cake, anyway...
Tearing the top of the bag of flour off, Karma began shaking some out into the large bowl, caught by surprise by the large puff of white dust that sprouted like a mushroom cloud. Coughing a little, the ditto waved a hand to disperse it from zher immediate space, "Eh... that enough, you think?" Boy, this was going to be messy!
Thaliawen Tania was delighted by the puff of white that followed Karma putting flour into their bowl. She giggled. "Well! I think that's enough flour," She said, wiping some of the dust off of her face. She poured in the rest of the chocolate chips and then took out a bag of sugar. "I know you're supposed to measure it but I don't know how," she admitted. "How much sugar do we want?"
"Lots!" Declan said. It was his answer to any question that started with "how much?". "Lots of sugar!"
MoogerMint Karma frowned in concern in reaction to the query about sugar. Zhe didn't want people getting sick eating this thing! "The chocolate is a lot of sugar... we need more on top of that?" zhe asked. Could chocolate even ever be... not-sweet? Peering into the bowl of white, speckled everywhere with chocolate, zhe pursed zher lips and tilted the bag of sugar to pour some out, less quickly this time to avoid another dust cloud, "Tell me when to stop!" Either way, this was pretty fun! Zhe was sure they'd come out tasting great!
Thaliawen "Yup! Cakes need sugar," Tania assured her sister happily. "I think that's enough. It needs baking soda and eggs. I think that's how you get it to rise anyway. Do you think four eggs would be enough?"
Declan reached into the bowl and snagged a now sugar coated chocolate chip. He plopped it into his mouth and beamed.
MoogerMint Karma was not about to question it, for Tania seemed to know much better how to make a cake from scratch. Hopping up a little, the ditto rushed to the fridge, "Oh, I forgot about eggs!" Zhe hadn't thought to look for ingredients outside of the cupboard, and while digging through the appliance, also grabbed some milk and water. Arriving back the the table with zher hands full of forgotten materials, zhe set them down and flipped the egg carton open, snagging two eggs in each hand. "Maybe," zhe considered aloud, "How's it supposed to look when we've mixed it right?" The only thing that was coming to mind was cookie dough, but zhe was fairly certain that they did not need to fix a sheet of dough for a cake...
Thaliawen "Its supposed to look thick but not too thick. Not like cookies. Then we pour it into a round pan and put it in the oven at three fifty. I think. Or three seventy five... I don't know which." She looked at the materials provided and paused. Milk? Well. Milk and chocolate went well together, didn't they?
"THESE!" Declan declared, holding up a bag of walnuts. "These. Good for cakes?"
MoogerMint Karma followed the given instruction as best zhe could, making more of a mess in the process. Who knew it would be so messy? At least the consistency was about right, from what Tania was saying -- you definitely couldn't use cookie cutters on this thing. It was kind of weird to think that it would become so spongy, like a cake usually was.
Zhe hummed a little in thought, "Well... 350 and 375, there isn't a real big difference. We'll just cook it longer if it's not right, that should work!" Turning to the offered walnuts, Karma took them with a smile, "It should be! Good for cookies, too!" The two really were pretty similar, weren't they? Showing Tania the bag, zhe took tally, "Want some in the cake?"
Thaliawen Declan went to the fridge. He opened it and while Karma was making a mess, he was adding to it. Perhaps encouraged by the ditto's acceptance of the walnuts, he began taking out more things to put into the cake. Three bananas made their way to the counter, as did butter, a jar of peanut butter, a graham cracker, and a bottle of ketchup.
"That'll be good," Tania agreed. Chocolate chips and walnuts did tend to do well together. ...What was Declan doing? KETCHUP?! "Ketchup doesn't go in cake!" she protested. But the oshawott was already standing over the cake batter with the bottle of ketchup. "Is good," he said, removing the lid and squirting some in. "Good For cake."
MoogerMint Karma was slightly distracted from the ketchup mishap, looking over the other ingredients on the table and half-heartedly attempting to dust off some of the flour from zher person, which only made it worse. Trying to find a towel, the ditto came back just in time for Tania to futilely scold the young oshawott against ketchup. Karma wasn't quite sure how to react to that. On one hand, it... might taste alright? On the other hand, zhe was fairly certain there was no ketchup-flavored cake, and probably for good reason. Karma's heart sank a little, but zhe tried to be more optimistic. "Well... maybe it'll still be alright?" zhe considered, peering into the bowl and coming back out with the most bizarre smell of banana and tomato, "Ugh... maybe if we added more chocolate..."
Thaliawen "More chocolate," Declan agreed, immediately. He held his hands out in hopes chocolate chips would be put in them. "Chocolate good! What else?" he asked.
"How about you just watch?" Tania grumbled. Declan gave her a look. "CAKE! Tania mean!"
MoogerMint With a giggle at Declan's expectant look, Karma gave him a few more chocolate chips before dumping more into the mixing bowl. Tilting the bag back upright, the ditto peered over to see how the mixture looked now. It... didn't really look like any cake batter zhe had ever seen...
Blinking a bit as the arguing began, Karma first looked to Declan, then to Tania. "Uhh... I dunno, I think we're about done now," zhe negotiated, "There anything else we need to put in before we put it in the oven?"
Thaliawen Declan was thrilled, and happily ate the chocolate chips given to him. He hugged Karma around the waist once he was finished. "Good cake!" he announced. He looked at the batter. "All done?" he asked. "All done!"
Tania looked into the bowl and smiled. "Perfect!" she declared. "It's time to put it in the pan!"
MoogerMint Karma reciprocated the hug that was given, all with smiles, as they all judged how fully-formed the cake batter was. It didn't take long, and Karma felt glad that at least Tania thought it looked good enough to be called 'batter' in the first place.
Once zher hands were free, Karma moved to the dial on the oven and slipped some oven mitts on. "I gotta do the stuff with the oven, I'm the adult here," zhe stated, feigning importance; Karma never did feel like zhe had grown any older, after all, but at least it was one way to divvy up the roles! Besides, zhe'd have felt bad if anyone got burned!
Thaliawen "Let's make daddy try it with us when it's done!" Tania said, and stepped back. Karma was in charge now! "Declan, I think it'll be the best cake ever," she said, hoping to distract the oshawott. It worked. Declan turned and beamed.
"Share with Doctor?" he asked. "Doctor! Doctor! We're gonna share cake with you!"
MoogerMint Karma moved over to pour the mix into the pan, though with oven mitts on it proved to be a bit messy. Struggling juggling it, zhe eventually made it into the oven with decent results, only to smear a little batter on zher face once the oven door was closed, in a motion to wipe a stray strand of hair away.
"We could do that," Karma agreed with a nod, still unsure about how it was even going to look, let alone taste. Zhe shook zher head when Declan attempted to alert the scientist to the plan, snickering, "No no, he's busy, he can't hear us in here. We'll bring it to him when it's out!" Well... maybe he could hear them, Karma wasn't sure, but he can't have known what they were attempting to make! Now, however... now was the waiting game. With a sigh to fill the silence, Karma thought about it, "Hmm... sandwiches while we wait?"
Thaliawen Declan seemed to tune out most of what Karma said; looking up only when zhe said the magic word. "Sammiches?" he asked, hopefully. He went up to zher and attempted to reach the batter on zher face. "Cake messy," he informed her, when he realized he couldn't reach.
"Sandwiches sound good," Tania agreed. She grinned at Declan's enthusiasm for them. His favorite food was simple, but it made him so happy. "We can invite Daddy in when the cake's all done."
MoogerMint With the consensus in, they started next with the fixing and eating of sandwiches. It was a comparably easier task to make the lunch food than it was to fix a cake, and even faster to eat it with a grumbly stomach. Karma was finished with zher sandwich with time to spare before the timer went off. Switching on the oven light, zhe scrutinized the baked good, "Hmm, do you think it needs to cook longer?" How did they know when it was thoroughly cooked? It still looked spongy on top! Regardless, the ditto once more donned the oven mitts and gripped the handle of the stove in preparation, awaiting the chime.
Thaliawen Tania peered into the oven, over Karma's shoulder. "You've got to put a knife in it. If it comes out clean it's done! But if it doesn't, it's not. I read that in a book! When do you think we can frost it?" She moved and climbed up on a counter to look for a tub of frosting. "Do you think we have any good flavors?" She found one, and paused. She read the label and hopped down from the counter. "Chocolate frosting! Perfect!"
Declan reached for the chocolate frosting, and frowned when Tania held it above her head. "Cake!" he complained. "Nia won't share!"
MoogerMint Karma pulled the cake out of the oven as Tania went to grab some frosting, nodding in agreement at the suggested flavor, "Yeah, we've got chocolate chips in the cake, that should go!" Whether or not that would go with ketchup, though, zhe couldn't say... but chocolate made everything better, right?
Pulling out a butter knife, Karma went to check the consistency of the baked good, giggling at Declan's whininess, "It's for the cake! You can have some when you get your piece, okay?" He really liked chocolate, it seemed! Sliding the knife out of the middle of the cake, the teen proudly proclaimed, "It's done! Now we just gotta put the frosting on and cut it up." Zhe reeeeally hoped it was tasty... it looked quite lumpy!
Thaliawen "Okay! We'll put the frosting on and then we'll all try some!" Tania agreed happily. "Karma, you want to put the frosting on?" The ditto was the oldest, after all--and Declan would eat it if she offered to let him do it.
"Okay," Declan agreed reluctantly.
MoogerMint Karma blinked, pulling out multiple spatulas, "Why just me? We can all help!" Frosting wasn't dangerous to do for a kid, after all, not like scalding one in an oven or chopping things up was. However, zhe didn't seem to think about Declan doing something else when given a spatula, in his unending greediness. Zhe grinned, "It'll be ready faster this way!" And with that, the ditto set the rest down, popping the top off the frosting and grabbing the contents with the end of a spatula.
Thaliawen "Okay!" Tania agreed happily. She took a knife out of the silverware drawer. Declan looked puzzled when she handed him a rubber spatula. "Its not for eating," she explained, and gave the oshawott a stern look. "Not for eating, okay? Not till they're all frosted."
"Not for eating," Declan echoed, looking at his spatula doubtfully. "Okay!" he said then, and dipped his spatula into the frosting.
MoogerMint With all three of them working on it, it wasn't long before the entire face of the lumpy cake was coated in a relatively thick layer of frosting. Karma leaned back to observe it better, but was quick to exclaim zher verdict, "Perfect!" Well that was a bit of a mess, but it looked like it could be pretty good!
Making sure Declan wasn't sulking about being barred from trying the concoction thus far, the ditto leaned towards him with a scrutinizing expression on zher face. "Ah! Declan... you have a little frosting on you. Right..." zhe booped him on the nose with zher still caked spatula, "...theeeeere!"
Thaliawen It looked like a cake, at least! Tania smiled brightly. "It looks good!" She declared. "Can we have Daddy try it now? Please?" It was cool enough by now, wasn't it?
Declan giggled as he was booped and tried to reach the frosting with his tongue. Failing to do so, he swiped it off his nose with a finger and stuck it into his mouth. "Yummy!" He said, delighted. He looked to Karma expectantly. Could he have more frosting?
MoogerMint Nervously, Karma hesitated. While it did indeed look good, zhe still wasn't completely sure, with all the added ingredients. Once more feeling quite a bit self-conscious, zhe attempted to hold back the idea. "Hmn... maybe we should try it first, before we share," Karma suggested, slicing the off-kilter cake into sections. It was a lot of ketchup, and Karma was pretty sure zhe had never had cooked ketchup in a chocolate cake before. Pulling out a relatively large piece and putting it on a plate, zhe set it down for everyone to try, holding up enough forks for everyone present.
Thaliawen Tania hesitantly took a bite of the cake. She swallowed quickly and forced a smile. "Its great!" She lied. "I'll cut a piece for Daddy and take it out to him."
Declan took a bite. He immediately gagged and wrinkled his nose. "YUCK!" he cried, and went to the garbage can to spit.
MoogerMint The differing responses had Karma all the more concerned, of course, but it was hard to tell. Visibly puzzled, zhe attempted a bite for zhimself. At first, all zhe tasted was the frosting, but it didn't take long for the other, conflicting flavors to come to light. Zher face contorted, and zhe put a hand to zher mouth, so as not to promote zhimself to spit it out, too. "That's nasty," Karma stated flatly from behind the palm before zhe could swallow it. Zhe shuddered before contemplating something else, biting at the prongs of the metallic fork, "Well... I suppose we could prank people with it." Maybe they needed to have another tea party, but somehow get everyone here to participate. It sounded like it would be pretty funny!
Thaliawen Tania was thoroughly amused by Declan and Karma's reactions to the cake. She snickered. "I bet we can get Allen and Daddy to try it," she suggested. "I don't know if Rosie would. She might yell at us. That'd probably make Declan cry..." Declan still seemed a bit timid around Rosie.
"Yuck," Declan wrinkled his nose again. "Make Doctor eat it?"
MoogerMint Karma hesitated a moment at the narrowing of targets for a prank, blinking a moment before setting zher fork down. "But what if we just left it at the front desk, with a letter that said that it was for the employees?" zhe suggested, not really sure if zhe'd like to have been present in the immediate line of fire. Besides, nobody would know it was from them -- it looked relatively normal, for a cake, and they hadn't exactly done it before! But then, the teenager also didn't want to be a wet blanket about it, and began cutting more slices.
Thaliawen Tania frowned slightly. But then someone was liable to get angry and they might steer that anger towards Grayson. She shook her head. "I want Daddy to try the first cake I ever made," she said. She took a small piece and put it on a plate. "Its Declan's fault it tastes bad, anyway." She headed out of the kitchen.
Declan scowled. "Not my fault!" he called after the mew, crossing his arms. "Who we prank, Cake?"
MoogerMint Karma still didn't really like the idea of pranking those closest to them with something like this. After all, they might not want to try it when they attempted to make one even better! With a pout, the ditto watched Tania walk off with a piece for the professor. No, the people Karma wanted to prank were the people that zhe wasn't very fond of, which turned out to be mostly the pokémon trainers that stopped by.
Turning to Declan at zher side, zhe picked up the plate of lop-sided cake, "We're gonna prank the people in the front. C'mon, it'll be fun!"
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