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Title: About Time (messenger RP)

Brenny felt as if he had waited all year for this day! And he had--well, part of the year! An entire month! For a young celebi, it was almost a lifetime. He'd made a deal with his favorite scientist and adopted uncle, Grayson. One hotwheels car for a trip back in time! It was a fair trade, he was sure of it. He didn't understand that time had always been something the human face had striven to manipilate, or that there were several books on the very subject. He knew that he could do it-- and that Grayson seemed interested in that fact. And that he hadn't been able to purchase Grayson a gift. So he made his way to the lab, knocking on the door. He let himself in. "Uncle Grayson, Karma, Tania! I'm here!"

MoogerMint
"Oh, oh, Doctor! Doctor, um... ah, Brenny's here!" Karma chirped, a quick scamper toward the front door a ways and a bright smile upon zher face.

Running with scissors was never the best of ideas, but that thought didn't seem to enter the young ditto's fractured mind during the spent distance from zher spot on the floor to the front. They were safety scissors, sure, but a lesson was a lesson nonetheless! Grayson made his way over more slowly, coming up behind the pink-marked child and snatching the scissors from zher hand with a narrowed stare. He waved them slightly as though they were an extension of a finger used to scold, "What have I told you about doing that?" Turning back to Brennen, his stern expression immediately evaporated into a much more cheerful grin, "Merry Christmas, Brenny! I hope it wasn't too far out of the way for you!" It didn't seem to be snowing, at least.

Thaliawen
Tania hadn't been far away from the scissors escapade, but instead of scolding her sister, she gave Karma a thumbs up when she thought Grayson wouldn't notice. "Don't worry!" She assured Karma with a whisper, "He hasn't consfiscated mine yet!" Brenny beamed. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Grayson! I came to give you your present! You still want it, right? I can take you to any when you want,and it'll be like we were never gone when we get back."

MoogerMint
There was a brief time where Karma decided to wear a pout. It didn't last long, with Tania's encouragement, and the ditto soon found zhimself giggling at the plot. However, zhe shook zher chalky blue head and responded at the same volume, "Still shouldn't run, that was my fault. Maybe he'll be nice and give them back later..." Karma wanted to finish the santa hat zhe had been cutting out of the construction paper! Even though it was green... Zhe kept unmatched eyes focused on the plastic scissors in the scientist's hand, and maybe keep glaring until such a time where they were given back.

It took a moment to remember what it was that Brennen was referring to about a gift, precisely, if only because it was no traditional holiday gift. "Oh! Most definitely, Brenny!" he hastily responded, ushering the boy to come in further and make himself more comfortable, "I've got your gift all ready to go as well, but I'm not sure... was that all you really wanted?" It didn't seem very fair a trade, but what else could he really offer up?

Thaliawen
"You can borrow mine to finish your hat," Tania offered, handing Karma her pair of safety scissors. Even if the ditto had decided against running with them, the shadow mew thought that the possession of the object Daddy had taken was still amusing. "You can make me one too, if you like! I like blue best." Brenny followed Grayson inside, beaming. He paused, then shook his head. "No, there's one more thing I want from you, Uncle Grayson." He said, wrapping his arms around the scientist's waist. "This!"

MoogerMint
Karma gleefully took the offered scissors from Tania, but not so obnoxiously as to alert the retrieval to zher trainer. There was a chipper smile offered in return, and a giddy nod, "Oh sure, I can make you one, too! I'd be happy to!" The ditto-child got started on the project almost immediately, doodling a pattern of a hat on one piece of dark blue construction paper before adding a second onto the back, carefully snipping through both at once. See? No running! Karma could behave! Sort of...

Grayson had moved closer to the nearest counter, trying to think as to where he had stored Brennen's gift. While distracted, the celebi's grip around his waist met with no resistance. He snickered as the boy latched on, bending his torso slightly as an awkward way to return the hug then, "It still doesn't seem like enough, but it works for now. Should I give you your gift before or after we test this ride out?"

Karma glanced up from the slow-cutting job zhe had tasked zhimself with, removing the safety scissors from the paper so as not to accidentally cut somewhere unwanted. "Are you going somewhere?" the child asked curiously. Were they just going to leave zher and Tania behind?

Thaliawen
Tania beamed, watching Karma closely. She scooted closer to her sister. "You're the best hat maker ever!" She informed her, cheerfully. "Can you show me how to later?" Maybe hat making was even more exciting than it looked! "After, we can work on your shifting ability if you want," she said. Her own ability had become a much slower process since growing, but that didn't seem to to bother the mew much. Any more, anyway.

"After!" Brenny said, after a moment of thought. "If you give it to me now, I might lose it and I'll never find it again. Someone else in that time will, and the course of history will be completely altered! They'll have hot wheels millions of years before they should." He paused, and added, "you know Uncle Grayson, there is something we could do with my ability to go through time. I'll remind you when I'm bigger! But that would be a good present, yay!"

MoogerMint
With the safety scissors still lowered, Karma peered over the edge of the hat that was taking shape, half-popped from the construction paper body, attention locking on Tania. While still concerned where the others were headed off to during a time that was supposed to be a celebration, and spent with family, a distracted grin was easily upon the ditto-child's face at the shadow mew's eagerness, "Sure I can! Then you can be the best hat maker, too! I can show you now, if you want!" Zhe flipped the pages over to show the dark purple crayon guidelines that zhe had previously doodled on the surface, only to have zher face melt slowly back into caution, "Well... yeah, maybe later. And later for the shifting, too! And the reading! Oh, and cocoa! Cocoa sounds nice!" Rambling was just one of many side-effects of an anxious mind.

Grayson nodded, agreeing with Brenny's deductions, "That's precisely what I was thinking, though I wasn't sure if you still wanted to open it first and leave it. Best to do it all at once, huh?" He chuckled at the basis for time-alterations, finding it both amusing as much as it was interesting to hear coming from a child that appeared so young. There was no reason to complain there, that much was certain! At the indication that there was something else that Brenny could do, Grayson's eyebrow quirked in interest, "When you're bigger? Who would this be a present to?" A proposal that definitely got his curiosity piqued.

Turning to Karma and the question posed, the doctor frowned, wondering what they were supposed to do. He remembered that Brenny had said they could hop through time, and then back where they started from as though nothing had happened. He wasn't sure how accurate a projection that was, though... how close to the designated time they left would it be? Or place? Regardless, Grayson made an educated guess, "Stay put, we won't be gone long. You probably won't even notice we've left." Turning back to Brenny, he started, "So how accurate are you able to move through time? Would we be landing in the same place we left, just in a different time period? Have any good suggestions on where to go first?"

Thaliawen
"Really you could?" Tania beamed. She scooted her chair closer to Karma's and hugged her. "You're not just the best hat maker ever," she decided, "You're the best sister too! Okay, show me how to make a hat! We can make one for Daddy even! And he'll have to wear it, because its a present." She paused, taking Karma's free hand. "Don't worry. Daddy won't be gone long. And next time we can shift into things he'd need to take! He'd never know we stowed away!"

"Yup! There's lots of fun in opening a present!" Brenny decreed, before hesitating. "But you can't open yours, Uncle Grayson. Doesn't that make you sad?" He looked up at the scientist, concerned. "Oh. It'd be a present to both of us! You and me, and even my Daddy. When I'm bigger, I'm going to look for a job. And maybe.. Maybe if I'm really good at it, and you like it, I could take you back in time regularly?" He asked hopefully. "You could study ancient Pokemon in their natural habitat any time you wanted." He paused, listening to Grayson answer Karma's question. "We'll just be gone a second," he said, glancing towards the ditto. "Very. If that's where you want to go! Do you have a time you'd like to visit? Its your present, after all."

MoogerMint
"Ah-huh, of course I'll teach you! We're supposed to be teaching each other all sorts of things, aren't we?" Karma exclaimed, excited to be able to teach anything of importance, even if it was only to make a silly construction paper hat. Pondering a moment on which colors to grab for Tania to use in an effort to make the scientist a hat, the ditto-child leaned over to partially whisper, "We should make it as obnoxious as possible, if he HAS to wear it..." An impish grin appeared after the suggestion, pulling two different colors out of the pile and handing them to Tania, and then sliding the box of crayons over, "First you need to draw the body of the hat, but just on one of the pages! It doesn't matter which one you pick." With a giggle, Karma kicked at the empty space in front of zher gleefully at the idea, "Oooh, what should we transform into so that he wouldn't notice? A clipboard? Labcoat? Briefcase? Oh, not wait, the doctor doesn't use one of those... Safety goggles?" Could they even go transparent? Or that small, for that matter?

Grayson thought on the subject for a moment before shaking his head, "No, I get to unwrap it. It's a portal we're traveling through, right? That will be like unwrapping it, because we'd be unwrapping the past." Poetic, but that was beside the point. He seemed surprised that Brenny would be bringing something up like a job, especially when he still looked and acted under a full decade old. After the momentary blind-sided shock, there was little that needed to be assessed to deduce that it was probably a really good idea... "When you're older, I could see that being a possibility, yes. We'd be helping each other out that way, that's for sure... I don't really see a downside to it, as long as you were able to take your job seriously," he commented, a slow smile creeping onto his face to let Brenny know that he didn't think the celebi would be a troublemaker about it. "What time..." the man thought on the hanging question, but shook his head, at a loss, "I was merely wanting to see how it worked, so I hadn't exactly decided on a time. Do you have any suggestions?" He flinched a little, the hint of a frown on his face, "Just as long as we go somewhere I'd be unfamiliar with. Something that doesn't have to do with the city's history..."

Thaliawen
"Oooh!" Tania hadn't thought about that, grinning. She did so love conspiring with her sister. "Maybe purple!" She exclaimed, looking over the colors. "I don't think Daddy should wear pink. That color only looks good on you." She beamed at the ditto child. Before the shadow mew had met Karma, she had claimed to have a strong dislike of the color. "I could transform into a book, or something..." She considered, thoughtfully. "I don't think Daddy would notice. And after we got to where he was going we could turn back and surprise him!"

Brenny beamed. So Grayson did get to unwrap his present after all! Just not physically! "You're right!" He agreed, smiling up at the scientist. "You'll get to see the colors of time, too. That will be like the wrapping paper! When you move through time, images blur together and make a sight truly beautiful. You'll be the first human to ever see it! Well, at least with me. I've never taken anyone through it." He paused, listening to Grayson's response to his question. "Really?" He asked with a smile. "Having a job would help Daddy! He could be home more and we could get a bigger place to stay and--" he stopped, beaming at Grayson. He wrapped his arms around the scientist. "I will! I promise!" He considered the man's question thoughtfully before brightening. "I know when we can go!" He announced, "We can go to when ancient Pokemon lived here! But we'll have to be careful. Some of them are dangerous."

MoogerMint
Taking careful consideration of the sheets of paper that were grabbed, Karma placed a purple-colored piece in one hand while the other gripped onto an orange sheet, offering them for Tania to use for Grayson's hat. Taking a crayon in hand, Karma demonstrated the proper hat-doodling technique by going over the dark blue zhe was using to make Tania's, "Just like this, on one piece. If you try to draw it on both pieces, they don't usually line up so well when you try to put them together." It was a trial-and-error that the colorful child was all too familiar with. At the suggestion of transforming into carry-on luggage, the ditto-child flexed the fingers of a hand, offering the appendage a frown. "I can really only do stuff like this so far..." zhe sighed, holding the palm out and blinking an eye through the creases of patchy skin, "I used to be able to do so much more before! Now I can only do small transformations..." Not only that, but they tended to creep the other scientists out even more than when Karma had attempted to mimic their own likenesses, with varying degrees of success.

Grayson snickered at Brenny's exuberance, glad the kid was getting so excited about the whole advent. "Ahh, is that what you mean when you say 'the colors of time'? Sounds disorienting; did it take you long to get used to traveling in such a manner?" the man asked, wanting to know before he had to wrestle with the same. With Brenny's future job secured, it didn't come as too big a surprise when the celebi hugged the scientist, especially with the excitement he had been exibiting throughout the day. Chuckling, he leaned over slightly and rubbed the child on the back as substitute for a hug, since he couldn't reach enough not to make it awkward, "I don't doubt that promise, Brenny." It was about that time he decided that it would probably be safer to test this new form of traveling while OUTSIDE, to prevent any sort of mishap... and indicated that by pointing toward the door and moving in the same direction, small steps until he was sure that Brenny was following. "I think that is a terrific idea of a place to start. Do you know some of the more dangerous ancient pokemon are, so we can be extra cautious if we run into them?" Grayson concurred. He wasn't particularly concerned that they would run into any, but then that may have just been his reckless eagerness talking.

Thaliawen
Tania followed Karma's instructions, beaming at the ditto child. "It'll be the best hat ever!" She announced. She took a crayon and drew a hat shape, grinning. "Thank you for teaching me," she said gratefully. "I'll teach you to shift, don't worry! Before I learned to, I couldn't shift at all! You're doing much better then I did!" She beamed at her. "And you know when I first came here. I couldn't shift then either. But now I can again. You just need motivation and encouragement! And I'll give you both! I promise! I'll show you how to shift and you can teach me things you know and we'll both learn so much!" The shadow mew was thrilled, and continued to draw the hat shape she'd started. "Want to cut it out for me?" She asked, hopefully.

"Well, there's lots of colors," Brenny said, almost defensively. It was hard to explain the sight time travel provided. "I don't know," he admitted, "I've only gone back in time a few times. But I don't think it bothers me. Just like it doesn't bother you to study. That's your ability," the celebi boy flashed Grayson a bright smile. "But if it disorients you, don't worry. I'll take care of you, Uncle Grayson. And I'm sure you'll get used to it." He followed Grayson outside cheerfully. "Well, I know Tyrunts and kabutops are dangerous. And those scary big ones with the big heads.... Last time, I ended up in between two of them while they were fighting and..." The celebi's eyes widened in memory. That had been scary! "Let's avoid being seen by the ones with the big heads." He took Grayson's hand. "Are you ready, uncle Grayson? I have the time clearly pictured in my head. We won't get lost!" He took a glance around, studying their surroundings. "Hold on tight, Uncle Grayson. Don't get scared, and don't let go." There was a flash of light where they had been, and suddenly, the two were in a vortex of color. "You're seeing all the times gone past," Brenny confided, "But we're moving so fast, all we see is color."

MoogerMint
Karma surveyed as Tania drew the outline of the hat on the construction paper. "I don't mind teaching you how to do things. I don't get to do it very often, so it's pretty fun!" the child grinned, excited with the opportunity, "We've got plenty of time to teach each other things, though, so there's no big rush! We're just gonna have fun with it, 'kay?" Karma didn't like stressful things, and while living with Grayson, the ditto had learned that many things had the potential to stress a person out -- some of them pretty strange! However, if it was supposed to be fun, stress shouldn't play a factor at all. The ditto blinked, disbelieving that Tania ever had a problem shifting, "Really? It never seemed like you had a problem at all! How'd you relearn it so fast?" Was Karma just that dense that zhe couldn't figure it out on zher own, or just that broken of an individual? Hmm. Grabbing the safety scissors from beside the child, Karma brushed the thoughts to the side, "Sure, I can cut it out, just don't tell the doctor I did." After all, zhe wasn't even supposed to have these back in possession! The blue-haired child raised both sheets of paper, back-to-back, up to zher eyes and carefully began demonstrating, "The trick is that you need to also cut out little tabs, so you can attach the pieces together, otherwise the hat will be smaller than you drew it."

Grayson snickered at Brenny's reflexive response, "Yeah, that's what I meant. So many colors whizzing past!" Though it didn't hurt things if he had to close his eyes for a bit to keep from getting dizzy, as long as he experienced a bit of it. "Hmm..." he thought about Brenny's correlations to a human's innate abilities, skills, and it clicked just as easily, "That does seem to make sense. It's a skill you're born with, and you merely fine-tune it. Though if you were never sure how that skill came to pass, that would indicate a genius level. Most people remember where they started out." Simply liking something didn't mean one was good at it from the start -- Grayson, at least, had to learn to read first! When the celebi offered to keep a look out for the man, he gave an amused smirk as they exited the building, responding to Brenny's grip, "Here, just take hold of my hand when I'm not writing anything down and we won't get separated, alright? I'm sure together, we can take even those pokémon on no problem! But yes, it would probably be best to avoid them if at all possible, for now. Unless we can observe their behavior without being seen." He'd hate to have something happen to the little guy on his behalf... With a stern nod, Grayson responded in affirmative that he was ready for the trip, tightening his hand hold on the celebi a little tighter in assurance and tucking his clipboard securely under his other arm. As they entered the timestream, the scientist winced in reaction to the light, slowly opening his eyes as Brenny began explaining what was going on before they shot open. His head turned in every direction, but his hold on the child's hand remained strong, "Wow... this is amazing, Brenny!" He was silent for a few moments longer, trying to spot the moments hidden within the whirling flashes of color to no avail, "There are no words to describe how incredible this is..." How was he even supposed to make a report? Never mind that, for now, for once he was much too distracted to attempt writing any of it down.

Thaliawen
"I just had to stop being sad," Tania explained, "When Brenny brought me here, I was really sad and afraid you guys wouldn't want me. Like my first family. They didn't. They kicked me out... But now I have you! And Daddy! And that made me happy again. Really, really happy. I couldn't shift very well. It was a slow process every time. But I think the happier I got, the faster it got. So maybe if I make you really, really happy, you'll be able to shift again!" The mew child beamed. She would help Karma with shifting. Then they would both be happy. She drew tabs on the hat as instructed. "I think Daddy will look very pretty in this."

"There's words," Brenny mused, "But I don't know them yet. I think I like calling them colors of time, though. You can't really see anything but color." He beamed up at the man, delighted that Grayson was enjoying his gift already! And this was just the beginning-- just the wrapping paper! He was even more pleased when he noticed that the scientist seemed too busy watching to write. "They change all the time," he added. "We're almost there, Uncle Grayson. Be ready to hide behind something."

MoogerMint
Ah, that was right, Tania had mentioned that her first family wasn't there for her anymore. Karma fidgeted a bit, wanting to ask but not wanting to upset the mew-girl anymore. It was in the past, where it should stay. Besides, it already felt like Tania had always been here! "I can't remember when you weren't living here, too, but... that sounds like it'd be a lot more sad," the ditto considered, "Why would I have any reason to be sad now?" Shaking the hesitation off, Karma gave the other girl a quick hug despite hands being full of various materials, "I'm glad we were able to make you happy again! Don't worry, you don't need to be sad anymore." With a bright grin, Karma followed the marked tabs as the raven-haired girl drew them on, cutting the pages until they were two slices of a very colorful hat, "Yaay, this should work very well! It's definitely turning out very pretty. Now we just gotta glue it, or..." Karma blinked, realizing that neither Brenny nor Grayson were there any longer. There was a bit of nervousness, but zhe tried to reuse the energy towards being more productive, "Well, they're not here. Maybe we can use the stapler instead." Grayson didn't like them using sharp or otherwise dangerous materials, but they were careful enough!

The scientist was still fairly distracted, at least to turn in the celebi's direction, but he held on to every word. "I think... I think I understand why you call it that now," he agreed, "That might just be the most appropriate description of it, though it seems to fall short on really emphasizing the beauty." Or maybe he was overestimating what others might think; regardless, it seemed that Grayson and Brenny were on the same page, at least. It was only when Brennen had indicated that they were nearly to their destination that his attention turned back to the child's figure, hand still clutched. "Ah, we should be on the same page with that. Do you think we should try to duck left or right, since we're... well, attached at the moment?" he chuckled.

Thaliawen
"I wish I couldn't remember when I wasn't living here too," Tania said, enviously. It would've been so much easier to live in the moment like Karma. Her whole life seemed like the phrase hakuna matata. But then, she forgot the good things, too... "You always make me happy, Karma. You're my sister." She smiled at her. "I'll never be sad, with you! Hey, I bet I count as enough supervision to use the stapler!"

They were there. There was not a cloud in the sky, it was a vibrant blue. The sun beat down on Brenny, so he had to shade his eyes with a hand. "I guess its midsummer," he muttered. He gestured to a tree with an incline of his head. "This isn't what grows in my forest," he mused. "Hey look! A tyrunt! I wonder if its friendly!" He had forgotten his plan to hide upon meeting one. "Hi, I'm Brenny!" The tyrunt responded, growling. "No, I'm not trading with you. Sorry. I don't eat meat." Brenny glanced at Grayson. "He wants you for supper. Let's run."

MoogerMint
Karma fidgeted slightly at the words, "Don't say that... I heard that even when bad things happen, they help us become who we are. We learn from the good and the bad, and can become better people for it." This slight understanding didn't come from experience, though, and the idea that the truth possibly contradicted this was not ignored. However, Karma sure hoped it was true! At least then there would be something good to come from suffering, "And that way you know how to deal with it in the future, or help someone out if they are in a similar situation. Like... like not being able to transform!" Less touchy subject, but along the same lines! The ditto grinned, "I'm glad I'm good for something! You make me happy, too, Tania. You're so much fun to hang out with!" With a quick glance about the laboratory room, Karma nearly stumbled out of zher seat to grab the stapler once it was spotted on another counter top, hopping back with it safely enclosed in the child's hands, "I agree! So the stapler it is. That way, it can hold together better, too!" Once seated back down, Karma slid the stapler toward the shadow mew, "You wanna try stapling the tabs together? I bet you could line them up!"

Grayson found himself wincing and closing his eyes once more as soon as they stepped from the whirlwind of color the foray through time brought. He had thought the transportation would have been disorienting, but no, it wasn't until it was abruptly halted that the man became dizzy. He staggered slightly as Brenny wandered, his hand still held tightly despite the fact he was distracted trying to block some of the sun from his eyes. Maybe he should have brought sunglasses! "Brenny, what..." he managed, eyes peering down after a moment of having them mostly shut, "...What are you doing? Didn't you just say we should avoid these at all costs?" Either Brenny was explicitly trying to get him killed, or he was carrying on with a prank...

Thaliawen
"But I don't like bad things," Tania said. She didn't want to be whatever things made her to be. She wanted to stay the way she was! "I suppose. But the good things make us who we are, too. Without good things, I wouldn't be your sister!" The mew girl beamed at this. "I like making you happy, Karma. You and Daddy." She took the stapler carefully. Despite her love of trouble, she didn't particularly want to make Grayson upset. "I think I can," she said, lining the paper up. "And I staple them like--this?"

"Well, I just remembered I met a tyrunt that was friendly. But he's in our time, not this one. He really likes popcorn and movies. I had him at my house!" Brenny thought it was quite exciting, having had a dinosaur in his apartment. He doubted Connie would have approved--but Kyllian hadn't eaten anyone, so it was alright! "Don't worry," he said, "All my moves are strong against these Pokemon. And if you're in danger, I'll get mad. Then they just happen. I didn't mean to hurt anyone the first time, but they tried to take Mei and I got mad." He demonstrated by letting a sharp stream of colorful glowing leaves towards the tyrunt. "I'll protect you, Uncle Grayson."

MoogerMint
Karma shook zher head, an agreement and disagreement both, "I don't think anyone really likes bad things unless they're, um... spiteful?" Yeah, that was the word. The ditto knew that bad things had had to happen for Tania to come to live in the laboratory, as a sibling, too... but zhe couldn't recall what negative occurrences had happened in order to lead to that point, and was afraid to ask. How often had zhe asked in the past? Had zhe ever asked at all? Eyes monitored the shadow mew as she took hold of the stapler, arms resting atop the tabletop and elbows holding up Karma's torso as zhe tipped forward slightly out of restlessness. "Yeah, just like that!" the ditto chirped, "Just be careful not to get your fingers. It's looking great already! Now we just gotta decorate it!" Once more, the child slid from the seat in order to gather materials that might work. There was never a lack of markers, there were some gel pens... but those didn't always show up the nicest on construction paper! With a bit of an exasperated huff, the vibrant child asked, "Tania, do you remember where the glitter pens are?" Maybe they could even use some of that tinsel...

The surprise on Grayson's face wasn't hidden, blinking back slight confusion at the sudden memory lapse, from terror to amiability in a matter of minutes. He toyed with the idea that Brennen might have ADD, but that would have to be a test for another time... "You know, Brenny, wild pokemon often act... differently than tamed pokemon," he warned. Sure, he was curious too, but this was just obnoxiously irrational behavior! He hesitated, trying to pull the boy back, his hand still latched onto the celebi's, "Let's just back up slowly. I'd rather avoid provoking anything, if I can help it. L-Let's just... observe from a distance, like I had suggested." He couldn't learn very much if either one of them was knocked out!

Thaliawen
Tania beamed, making sure to be careful of her fingers. "The glitter pens?" She echoed, blinking. She thought about the question. Mm... Where had she last seen them? "They're not with the markers?" She asked. She moved to look, blinking. "Hey, I think Daddy will be back soon. Maybe he knows, if we can't find them!"

"Good point," Brenny muttered, taking a step back. He sent another round of magical leaf in the tyrunt's direction, following Grayson's lead and backing up slowly. "But I protected you, see?" The celebi protested, once they were at a safe distance. "I protected you. You're safe, Uncle Grayson." He hesitated, turning to his left. He stiffened. "There," he said, pointing. There was a kabuto lurking in the bushes. That was strange, Brenny didn't think they normally came out of their caves. Ah well!

MoogerMint
Karma peered around the vacant countertops in the laboratory, but most of them were spotless, considering many of the employees were out on holiday. "No, they're not with the other pens, I checked there first. I don't think anyone would have taken them... but someone might have put them in the wrong spot if they were left out," the ditto explained, blinking once and then grinning, "I suppose we're going to have to go out on a scavenger hunt! The other pens don't show up very well on construction paper. Well, except some of the gel pens, but... the doctor would look fabulous in glitter." Oh yes, the idea had the child almost cackling at the thought.

"Ah!" Grayson flinched as Brenny launched a barrage of leaves at the carnivorous pokémon, quickly following the retreat while the tyrunt was distracted, "Was that really such a good idea?" Despite the inflections he may have placed on the question, it was an honest one -- Brennen seemed to know when others were serious or merely making a darkly-colored joke. The man glanced back toward the direction they escaped from nervously, but he didn't hear it rampaging after the two of them... He reacted just the same when Brennen's worried voice reached his ears, half-expecting the tyrunt to be hidden within the foliage the celebi was indicating. Instead, his curiosity almost immediately kicked the fear to the side, "Hello, what have we here?" He inched closer to the kabuto, but not close enough for sudden attack to be feasible, "Is there a beach around here, in this time?" Had the ocean of their time moved outward over the eons?

Thaliawen
A hunt for glitter pens? Tania liked that idea. She smiled brightly, going to a drawer to study its contents. "I think Daddy looks best in blue glitter," she decided. "Maybe pink though. I don't like pink, but Daddy might look good in it..." Unable to find the glitter pens in that drawer, she moved to another.

"The beach is just over that hill," Brenny said, by way of explanation. He pointed. "There's all sorts of sand dunes. You have to be careful around the coves though. There's an aerodactyl that has a nest in one of them. Its not very friendly. I only just got away last time, I don't think if it grabbed you and flew off, I could save you. Its weak to grass type and water type moves though..."

MoogerMint
Karma shuffled through the drawers on the opposing side of the room from where Tania was searching in order to cover as much ground between the two of them with a lessened likelihood of accidental overlap. "You think so?" Karma snickered, attention still almost fully on their conversation and less on the hunt itself, cumulating in less productivity altogether on locating the lost items. Karma had no qualms about color choices, but it was still amusing to think about the clashing colors when Grayson always seemed at a loss with Karma's own vibrant color choices. "Well I trust your judgment. Blue and possibly pink it is!" the child stated matter-of-factly, almost tearing a drawer right out of its alcove on accident if it hadn't been firmly latched onto its rails. With a slight pout, Karma pushed it back in, "Any luck yet?"

Grayson tried to adjust his position to see the beach beyond the thick foliage that currently blocked the view, but it was too extensive to see over from where they stood. "Fascinating..." he murmured in thought, eyes turning back to the kabuto that hadn't tried moving, "And this is where the city will be built in a few thousand years?" It was amazing how much the world around them changed over the course of time -- Grayson didn't recognize the landscape at all! "So Brenny, do you frequent this time in history?" he continued with the questions, detracting Brenny's nervousness with thought-provoking conversation... and just a little reassurance, "Don't worry, I won't go anywhere you don't think is safe." Though an aerodactyl nest... oh how he would have loved studying something like that! Maybe on a ledge, from afar, for now could work.

Thaliawen
"I can't find them anywhere!" Tania crossed her arms, leaning against the counter. "Do you think Daddy somehow knew we would want to decorate him with glitter and hid them?" She frowned at the thought. Daddy was certainly smart enough--but was he sneaky enough to hide something from her?

"Things change in a few thousand years, Uncle Grayson," Brenny informed him, matter of factly. "I think the ocean must have mostly dried out, or maybe it moved to where it is in our time. Do you think it likes it there better?" He paused at the second question, beaming up at his favorite scientist, "I frequent all times, Uncle Grayson! But this time is a good time for getting away from the city. Even though there's lots of dangerous Pokemon in this time, there's a lot of peaceful ones too. They haven't seen humans before though, most of them. So I don't know what they'd do to you if they did. Do you want to go to the beach? There's lots of lapras there. They're friendly. I talk to them."

MoogerMint
Karma's attention seemed to divert to a corner of the laboratory for a moment, pulling at the shelves in zher mind for an answer. "I don't think he would have done that. He only takes things away if I've been misbehaving with them or something, and I don't remember doing anything with the glitter pens that he didn't like..." the ditto relayed, glancing up to the cupboards. With a little bounce, zhe hopped onto the counter, seating zhimself back down before pulling the doors open, "Maybe they were hidden in one of these..." They had to be around here somewhere! Maybe they were in the closet? Did anyone leave them in a coat pocket or something?

Grayson grinned, glad to know that Brenny knew that the world changed and evolved, much as any living being would over the course of time. "This is true, but I was referring to how drastic a change it was. I knew the oceans receded, but was unaware to how much of an extent they had," he explained, examining the area as he spoke; it almost seemed as though it were a different part of the country altogether! He nodded at Brennen's explanation of what happened, but chuckled at the following question, "As far as I know, the ocean doesn't have a mind of its own." It also sounded as though the volatile nature of the pokémon in this time weren't unlike those that were found in their own time, though the appearance of two unknown creatures such as the two of them might pose problems if they weren't careful. Humans existed in this time, sure, but likely not anywhere near here if it was so populated by the wilds. "Are we able to bypass the sand dunes with the aerodactyl well enough to reach the beach, then?" he asked, wanting to confirm before they did anything that could put either one of their lives in danger.

Thaliawen
"Maybe!" Tania agreed. Instead, she climbed up onto the counter, feeling she might get a better view of the lab from up there. Hm. If the glitter pens weren't hidden away, and they weren't in the drawers--had Daddy taken them home on accident? What would they do if he had? They would have to scold him somehow. Mm... Maybe make him go out and buy more. Tania would make sure he got just the right colors! And maybe he'd let her pick out a dress! With that in mind, the shadow mew continued her search, but at a slower pace. Hmm. They could take advantage of this situation!

"Once, the whole world was covered in just water. So the ocean didn't really move that far at all, comparatively!" Brenny beamed. "The city we live in is an awful small place, if you look at the whole world, and the ocean only moved to the beach." He paused, frowning slightly, "Sure it does, Uncle Grayson. If anything has a mind of its own, its water. It shaped the world. It makes craters and glaciers and valleys. It doesn't listen to anyone. Not rocks or plants or anything. It can tear all of that apart."

He gave Grayson's hand a reassuring squeeze. "We'll be fine. Just don't go anywhere near its cave! Its not very friendly, but it doesn't come out unless its hunting, and it isn't hunting time or the other Pokemon wouldn't be out."

MoogerMint
"I don't think there's anything in here that we can use..." the ditto mumbled after a few moments of digging through the cupboards, "They mostly just keep the equipment up here." Out of the reach of children's hands, most likely, but Karma had always been a bit of a monkey. After a moment of thought, the ditto-child blinked and slid zhimself around to face Tania on an opposing countertop, "Hey, wasn't the doctor helping us out earlier, getting everything set up? I'm sure we had grabbed the glitter pens then..." Zher expression turned into a mild frown, "I bet he put them in his pocket when we were carrying everything over and forgot to take them out!" It sounded like something he'd do! Sighing, Karma hung zher legs over the edge of the counter and swung them a bit, "So... what do you think we should use instead?"

Grayson almost countered Brenny's explanation by saying that the whole idea of the world being completely covered in ocean was mere speculation until he remembered where he was and who he was speaking to. Brenny, of course, would know for certain one way or the other, if he had curiosity enough for it! "Brenny, you make it sound like I don't do my research," Grayson laughed. A person couldn't call themselves a scientist if they only looked at the small picture! He had merely been amazed at being witness to it -- it was one thing to be told something, but quite a different matter to see it for oneself. With such an imaginative kid on his hands, though, he didn't think he could explain everything that he meant by his words, of tectonic shifts, polarity, and gravitational effects. Instead, he merely snickered at Brenny's grasp on the ocean.

"Ahh, so the cave has the dunes in it? Well that should be easy enough to avoid," Grayson agreed, readjusting his hold on Brenny's hand, "Well then I think we shouldn't have anything to worry about. I'm ready when you are!" He took one last look at the kabuto in the bushes, but it hadn't moved; there was a good chance the two of them would only disturb its slumber if they stuck around.

Thaliawen
Tania paused, the thought had never occured to her. "I think you're right!" She declared, frowning slightly. Accidentally taking the glitter pen did seem like something Grayon would do! He was getting old after all! She sat next to the ditto child, swinging her legs playfully. "Hmmm! I bet there's other things we can use to make it pretty. Is there any shiny paper?"

"Come on then!" Brenny exclaimed, leading Grayson to the beach. There weren't any people there: there'd be plenty of Pokemon for Grayson to see, and perhaps to befriend! Maybe one of the ancient Pokemon would be friendly! He led the scientist towards the water. "Uncle Grayson, what would people do if you caught a Pokemon from this time and brought it to ours? Would they hurt it?" He frowned in concern. "You wouldn't. I don't think you would, you're too nice. But don't catch any, alright? You can make friends with them."

MoogerMint
It was yet another nail in the coffin, the doctor shouldn't have gone off on that little time-traveling trip! It didn't matter that part of that determination came from a touch of jealousy, Karma would chock it up to worry. With an irritated huff, the ditto swung zher legs in order to better initiate a launch from the countertop, landing gracefully on feet a few inches down. "I bet we could find some other paper; we have the glue for it already..." zhe contemplated, pointing to some drawers near to Tania, "Check in there! If it's not there, then there still might be something in there we can use!" Meanwhile, Karma checked in a few drawers zhimself, readjusting a stapler to one hand to see past it.

As he was being tugged along by the small celebi, Grayson kept his eyes on the scenery about them, taking mental note of the pokémon that inhabited this particular area. He stumbled slightly as they neared the water, sand grabbing at his shoes in the moisture, but maintained upright status. He offered a reassuring smile at Brenny's request, "No, I'm not going to capture anyone here. The scientists wouldn't hurt them, but it would be cruel to take them from their lives here. It would be too jarring an experience; they know this time and this place!" Being thrust into a place so much more advanced than what they had grown to know, forcibly, and then having to stay there... it seemed rather cruel! He pulled his clipboard back out in front of him with his free hand, crouching down to place it on his lap as he faced the wild pokémon in the field, "I'm just seeing how they all interact together, in this time. I want to see if there are any differences to what is common in our time. It already seems there is a larger population of a few of them... and a smaller population with a couple others. Perhaps that is because of the extinct pokémon's hunting habits..." He bit at the end of his pen thoughtfully, already assessing the research material in front of him before he had adequately finished his reassurance of Brennen's fears.

Thaliawen
Tania hopped off of the counter, moving to the drawers indicated. "Here's some paper," she said, holding up a sheet victoriously. "Its not shiny, but I bet we could make it look nice all the same. Daddy should be home soon. Then we can make him wear this hat!" Determined as ever, Tania formed a fist with one hand. Daddy would dress up with them! He needed a make over, anyway!

"They're very different from when we're from," Brenny observed, "Did you know people say an arceus created the world? I can't go that far back in time, not yet. Maybe never. But I think it would be terribly exciting to see the world being made. The Pokemon that created all Pokemon." The celebi boy smiled wistfully. Oh, to have that kind of power! Then he could have formed just the right Pokemon to make Connie happy. "I agree with you," he added, "Taking someone from the things they know and love is wrong. Uncle Grayson, do you think there's a celebi in this time?"

MoogerMint
Karma pulled out some ribbon crammed in the back of the chosen drawer as Tania located some decorative paper. With a grin, the ditto-child cheered at the mew's proclamation and, in response, held up zher own discovery, "I think we shouldn't have any problems making the hat pretty. He'll wear it because we made it for him! With love and care and... we can always threaten to throw a fit if he doesn't. But he would." It was more of a tease than anything, for Karma didn't throw trivial tantrums and Grayson wasn't so full of himself to turn down a gift from a family member based only on the fact it was... extremely gaudy. Karma's grin grew, imagining it on his head as zhe brought some materials back over to the work counter, "Now let's get back to work!"

Grayson nodded in agreement at Brenny's assessment of the pokémon, taking notes between the chatter. He grinned at the thought of the arceus creating all of pokémonkind, but there was certain scepticism on the matter, "I know what they say, but I still suspect the stories were embelished. Maybe you can draw your own conclusions if you met Eilam, but he seems like any other pokémon would, if a bit wise beyond his years. I think the problem is that we don't have all the puzzle pieces yet, but that's what I'm here for." Blinking, the scientist looked around for a forest, but they were still much too far displaced from one, even in this time, "There is supposed to be a celebi in every time, isn't there? Well... you weren't born yet, so it's very probable." He flinched at the thought, then turned to look at Brenny, "Did you want to try to find it?"

Thaliawen
Tania beamed at Karma's statement: yes, they could make the hat pretty easily! Especially with Karma's love for colors and her own fashion sense! "Maybe he'll wear it forever!" She exclaimed, excitedly. Everyday wear! "I'm good at throwing fits," she mused. She sat next to her sister. "We'll make this the best hat in the world!"

"Maybe there's more than one arceus, and together they made the world. Maybe each one of them made just one part. Just like there's more than one celebi or more than one mew. Tania isn't the only one, she told me. There's pink ones, she said, and blue ones. I think she's jealous of the blue ones but she's pretty the way she is." Brenny's expression was thoughtful. He'd met Eilam: the older legendary had seemed quiet and modest. Not at all like he, himself was! Why, if he'd had the power to create an entire world, he would've told someone. "Arashi told me legendaries are gods. He said I was the god of the forest. I don't think so, though. I think I just take care of it." He hesitated at the question, before shaking his head. "No, I just wondered. Legendaries don't have parents, do they? They just appear."

MoogerMint
"Hmm..." Karma scanned over the glue, wondering if they could find any rubber cement, "...Maybe we can make it so that he HAS to wear it forever?" A giggle erupted from the child, indicating that it was a joke but amusing to thing about nonetheless. "I don't think we'll have to throw a fit if he sees how much work we put into it, though," the vibrant child concluded with a nod, unrolling a length of ribbon, "We'll make it look great! Now where do we start?" Ohh, Karma was so eager!

Grayson tapped the end of the pen against his chin thoughtfully, "You know... it's very possible there could be more than one. Most people assume there is but one of the majority of legendaries, but just because we haven't seen them doesn't mean there aren't more. You've really put a lot of thought into it, haven't you?" Well it was really no wonder; if Grayson were a legendary, chances are he'd be thinking about the mysteries surrounding his own kind, too. He smiled at Brennen's compliment of Tania, "You know... I'd say that you should tell her that sometime, but she might end up teasing you about it. I think it would mean a lot for her to hear that, though." Despite not knowing who Arashi was, the question had adequate grounds to cover, "It depends on your definition of what a god is. To some people, it can be a unique individual with an immensely abnormal amount of power. Do you know anyone else that can travel time but a celebi? I don't know where they come from, though, no. If you're right about there being more than one of each legendary, then I suppose it's possible they have parents... but to my knowledge, most of them are classified as being genderless and therefore unable to have children..." He really didn't know the answer to that one, but wanted to know the same!