knock on wood ● open

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CLOSE TO TRAGEDY

"And stay out!"

Oh, woe was a child whose brain seemed to not be attached properly, who suffered the wrath of the day and age's harsh cruelty, who was not known for her efforts, and - most importantly - got kicked out of department stores for jumping on the mattresses they were selling. After all, how could one live without the glorious spring the main part of a bed could gift to them? It would be a sad life indeed, not being able to partake in the wonders known as "jumping on the bed", especially when one needn't worry about rats or bugs hiding in it or have to smell it first just to make sure that someone hadn't had an accident earlier in the week that made the entire scenario that much more disgusting. No, instead, they lined them up for the people - fresh! clean! the ideal jumping pillow! -just to taunt them, daring them to take of their tennis shoes and leap across them until something breaks... and even after that. But not any more. Not after security comes and ruins all the fun for you.

Winter was a chilly season, but the moderate climate near the coast made wearing nothing but a light jacket not a problem. The weather had been warm out as of late, regardless, the snow melting and proceeding to evaporate with great haste, leaving the ground as barren as it had been moments before. But those were the downfalls of living in a city as large as Eirenhyre where feet trampled the flakes of powdery goodness into smithereens before they even got the chance to live for a full twenty-four hours. Despite the snow, though, no one could deny that the highly populated area was one to behold and quite pretty to stare at for a while, too. And, again, the warmer temperatures than the more northern cities made it possible for her to not be frost bitten with nothing but her normal attire on - a long sleeved, hooded shirt with short overalls and thigh high socks. Ah, what a wonder it was indeed.

However, the scene in front of the department store - you know, the one mentioned earlier? - was not as much a wonder than that. A young woman - aw, heck with it, Lyra Madeline Castiel, not a young woman was being kicked to the curb by quite the frustrated man, standing in the doorway with eyes ablaze with hatred and nostrils flaring like nobody's business. And that was the situation in a nutshell. By this point in time, anyone could have guessed with the pig-tailed breeder was up to there: saw a giant store, when to go shop, found the mattresses, started jumping on them, broke junk up, and got kicked out by a very angry manager on the threat of having security come and carry her out. Needless to say, things did not look good for either of them. And to think - all she wanted to was to have a little fun for once!

"B-but, mister! Ya' don't understand! I helped save the world from Team Imum! Can't I jump for a few more minutes?"

An invalid argument. Surely, she had offered her assistance in the final strokes of Lyeant's great war, but she'd ended up doing more harm than good on some instances and that was a title almost anyone in the region could boast about. Nearly everyone joined together and rose up against the threat. Therefor, demanding one had to right to jump on mattresses we not backed up whatsoever by the infantile prospect of aiding in battle against the region's darkest threat. For all she knew, the man she was talking to had done more than she had. However, even had these demands been supported correctly, there was still little chance of her getting in. The man had already left by the time the words had started spilling out of her mouth and, in response, the front door was shut rather forcefully, only proving that he was, in fact, quite as upset as she had assumed.

"No respect for us foreigners now a days, huh?" the Johto woman said, corners of her mouth furling into what looked like a pout. Getting up off of the ground - hitting her rear end on it did not feel good and would most definitely leave a mark in the morning - she began walking forward once more, trying to look for a new place to entertain herself while also loosing herself in thought. So, if I wanna open a Day Care, first I gotta find a good place to - Her train of thought, though, was brought to an abrupt halt as she ran smack dab into something skinny, tall, and hard. "Oof!" she cried, staggering backward and falling once again on the pavement after making contact with the lamp post. At that time, her head was in a daze, and, being as dizzy as she was, she didn't even put in the effort to get up.

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OR BEEN CLOSE TO FOLKS WHO HAVE

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She didn't mean to laugh at the girl, especially not right in front of her, but the whole scene, playing out right before her as if ripped from a comedy was priceless. Shizuka tried to avert her gaze and cover her mouth, but her shuddering silent giggles probably gave it away. "...I'm sorry..." She tried to apologize between breaths, hoping that she hadn't offended the girl too much. The girl's accent reminded Shizuka of people she had met who claimed to be from Johto. And then the girl got up, began walking, and ran into a lamp post. Now Shizuka was more concerned for this girl's health and safety than amused by the awkwardness of it all. "Are you Okay?" She asked, beginning to walk over in case the other girl needed help.

She had her illusions turned on, of course. She was in public society now. Showing off her heritage only caused trouble for everyone and everyone who was even a bit close to her. Over her Vulpix ears was a green, wool square hat with innocent kitty ear-shapes for her own to fit into. Over her vibrant red fluffy six tails was a tight illusion, turning each one completely transparent. She wore her usual black tunic-ish thing with a matching skirt over white shorts as usual. On her shoulder sat a proud meowth, staring with a disdainful smirk at the pig-tailed girl before them. "Mrrroww...<What have we here, a commedian?>" Shizuka's meowth, Sakura meowed scornfully.

Shizuka had come here only out of curiosity. One reason was to see the famous skyscrapers. Another was to travel to the edge of the entire Lyeant region. The third, and most important, was, hopefully, to meet up with Sora here. She hadn't seen the Umbreon gijinka in a while since the battle against Team Imum. The war had brought the two together to fight off the evil organization, but also had sent them across the entire region in their separate ways in order to protect the region. Last time she had seen him, they had agreed to meet here once the entire war was over, and each had succeeded in their missions. Shizuka had actually hoped to challenge the gym leaders. It had been her first goal all along, but with the recent times demanding more attention to the rising powers, Besser and Minder, she expected that that would have to hold off for even longer.

Although they, of countless other trainers had also fought Team Imum, they had never really met. Shizuka reached out her hand to the other girl, offering help.

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ooc;; I've wanted to thread these two and see what happens ^^;
words;; 429
tags;; Lyra~!

The wind howled in his ears, sending his hair whipping around. Sharp green eyes still managed to pierce cut passed wind and spot the skyscrapers steadily growing. Silently, he urged his flier to go faster. Muscles in the monstrous bird tensed and the sound of beating wings grew strong enough to punctuate the air over the wind. The cold air was finally beginning to cut through his clothes, but that was expected given how high up he was and the increased speed. He was only wearing a light underclothes and his torn up green track suit. However, most of the cold was warded off by the sun blazing strongly over head. Another breath drifted from his lips, turning to a crystalline mist as it drifted away and mingled with the clouds they soared by.

He allowed his mind to drift amongst the clouds as they approached. How long had it been since he’d been to a city? Perhaps a year, not that he minded. A year of wild battles, training, and surviving. He couldn’t put this off anymore though. Supplies were needed and the down time would do his pokemon some good. His team were becoming a bit more wild over the months. It didn’t bother him that they were vicious, but it might bother others if they tore their pokemon apart during an official battle. That was something that he would rather not deal with if he could avoid it. In fact, he himself was becoming a bit wild after so long. His hair was down past his shoulders, his clothes were worn, and he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t miss hot showers.

Hresvelgr, the large Braviary he was riding, suddenly gave a sudden cry that pulled the breeder from his thoughts. So this was it, huh? His return to the cities? Will found himself wondering if he should feel anything more. There wasn’t any nervousness, happiness, or even relief. However, oddly enough, a few faces that he’d seen before his seclusion flashed in front of his eyes. He frowned slightly. Surely he didn’t miss their company. However, Will would admit to himself that it would be easier to tolerate them instead of any other new annoyance. Pushing the thoughts out of his mind, he guided Hresvelgr into a dive. As the ground rushed up to meet them, his Braviary maneuvered masterfully out of the dive with the aid of powerful wings.

Will jumped off before the pokemon came to a complete stop and as a result skidded across the ground with his knees bent. Standing, he brushed a bit of frost off and stretched before young woman a few yards off caught his eye. A strange statement in and of itself because rarely did anyone catch Will’s eye. For a second, he thought he was just imagining things, but the girl didn’t disappear and she looked awfully similar to another that he’d met in the past. He shook his head in amusement and even let out a low rumbling chuckle. To think that out of all the ghosts he could have seen, it would be her. Still he shrugged off the amusement and started to walk toward her. Maybe he’d help her up, even if she wasn’t who he thought she was. Maybe.

Before Will could take his first step though another young woman was already helping the one on the girl. She also gave a sense of familiarity. The man merely shrugged it off though. Ghost of the past were just that, the past. So he started a slow pace that would take him passed them to both sate his curiosity and get to the store behind them. Just as he did Hresvelgr landed on his shoulders curiously, the massive bird pokemon eyes the two sharply even as he was broken down by a red beam and returned to his pokeball. Will continued unhindered, slowly and steady but with nearly silent footsteps.

The man must have looked quite an odd sight. Red hair falling passed his shoulders and in front of his eyes. Torn up clothes that looked to have seen much better days a lifetime ago. Added to the show his pokemon put on, people anyone would have given him quite a wide walkway. Will almost missed the power that he could have over normal people that went on their boring lives. Pathetic, but a maybe he’d be able to sucker some cocky chump of a trainer into a battle for some quick cash. After food...and a hot shower.

HAVE YOU EVER FELT A PAIN SO POWERFUL

Fate had a funny way with picking out the worst possible times to through the low mortals it controlled into particularly interesting situations, regardless if they were to be dubbed "good", "bad", or something in between. For instance: on a decently joyous day where the sun is bright and one feels as though they were walking on air, horirble news of a family member falling ill with a fatal disease could strike out at any time. And, thus, a wonderful mood was crushed, stomped on, and set on fire in a chemical explosion. Or, in other poorly chosen words: owned by destiny. In a similar manner, the roles could be reverse. A bad event - saddening, maddening, embarassing, anything of the sort, really - could give way to a good event. However, this often led to the better after taste being overlooked and the full extent of a blessing being tainted by a foul outlook on the event due to what had happened just moments before. And, yes. If you hadn't already guessed it, that was what was about to happen right then. But we'll get to that in a bit.

The frist thought that reached Lyra's mind when she collided once more with the unforgiving ground was a much anticipated ouch. Honestly, it was as though they were opposing sides of a magnet. Twice in a row? Seriously? And not even five minutes had passed since whatever higher being was up there had sent her stumbling to the hard pavement! Not to mention that her head was throbbing from where she run stupidly into the black, metal object before her, causing her head to do cartwheels and any hope of forming a coherent thought to form banished for a few seconds. Once she'd recovered - for the most part, that was - another thought struck her like a speeding bullet in addition to the new found pains. Someone... was laughing. Words were being formed, as well, going hand in hand with the oh so quiet chuckling. Actually, no. Scratch that. They'd already happened just before she was struck down by the universe, her mind being too preoccupied to have registered them and actually remembered them until that point in time. Her neck pivoted as she tried to track down the source, hoping, praying they were laughing at someone else. Or, at least, with her, not at her.

As three simple words - "Are you okay?" - struck her eardrums, the brunette deduced that she had, in fact, found the woman who had hardly caught her attention just moments before. However, what had appeared to be an apology just before and the concern that dripped from the other female's mouth made it hard to feel any resentment or embarassment from providing unintended amusement just moments before. As her eyes finally managed to completely focus, she began taking in the stranger who had approached her. Another brunette with - surprise! - brown eyes like her own. Her outfit, she had to admit, was pretty cool looking, too, though the hat looked a little out of place, what with the cat ears and all. For a moment, she pondered if those were real ears when she brushed the thought aside with a giggle of her own, realizing just how pathetic that sounded and scolding herself a bit for even concieving such a thing. To answer the question, she replied, "Yeah, I think I'll be fine." She flashed her teeth at the elder human in the most pleasent smile she could muster, trying to make up for the rather foolish event that had just transpired. Remembering her manners - she didn't have them all down pat, but she was certainly making an effort - she added, "Thanks for the concern, though! I'm Lyra! What's your name? Ya' know, if ya' don't mind sharin', I mean."

It was for the first time that she noticed the normal-type Pocket Monster that had perched itself on the stranger's shoulder, cat-like in appearance and horribly familiar. A Meowth. It would be a crime of her to forget; she, herself, had such a creature in her possession. For just a moment, she pondered offering to reveal her own feline Pokemon so the two could, perhaps, converse with one another when it shot her a snarky sort of purr. Lyra was no Pokemon Whisperer, of course, but it was pretty obvious it was mocking her and her childish display. Face turning a little red as she realized just how much of a fool she'd truly made of herself, she shot back with no scorn whatsoever in her tone, "Hey, hey! So I forgot to watch where I was goin'! Big deal! I'd like ta' see you try to dodge that huge thing without knowin' where your walkin'." As a hand was extended to her, she remembered she was still sitting down, accepting to help happily and hoisting herself to her feet. "Thanks! Sorry 'bout the scene and everything. Guess I forgot they don't like it much when I try ta' have a little fun stores." It was when her hand was brought to the back of her head, scratching it awkwardly as she tried to briefly explain the situation when her chocolate eyes caught sight of someone not far away, ironically headed in their direction. They looked oddly familiar, though, for a few heartbeats, she couldn't remember why. It didn't take her long to put two and two together, however.

"Will!" Brushing past the only person who seemed bothered to help her, throwing a tiny sorry for bumping into her as she passed, the young woman tore off in his direction, hardly managed to skid to a halt in front of him in order to prevent a collision. Had it been Gold or Crystal, she might have thrown herself at him in a hug. However, if she recalled, much like Silver, he probably wouldn't have taken to kindly to her being so close to him. Instead, she flashed him a huge smile, hopping into a monologue of her own. "It's really you, right? Remember me? Lyra~! Wow, your hair's gotten so long! You should really think about getting a hair cut! Actually, I should probably think about getting mine styled to. I haven't really done anything with it in a while, you know? But, still! And it's so messy, too! Your's, I mean, not mine. I remember when it was shorter an' stuff, and-" It was at this point in time that she had, unconciously taken a few strands of the red locks between her fingers, rubbing them back and forth when she figured she was probably invading his "personal bubble" and took a few steps back, ducking her head in the slightest bit of shame. "Um... I've missed you?"

The woman she'd just abandoned finally caught her attention and, feeling horrible for a spit second, she waved the brunette over. "Sorry about that! This is my friend, Will! Will, this is... Um... Well... Someone who cared enough to help me up off the ground!"

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SO HEAVY YOU COLLAPSE?

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History wise, they had so little in common except for the fight against Team Imum. But they had never met before even during the battle against Team Imum. Time seemed to tick by as Shizuka continued to hold out her hand to the other girl. Although in reality, many long seconds may have gone by, the two young brown-eyed brunettes' minds were in a totally different world. After a long five year period, they would meet each other for the first time. Timelines, fate, and destiny were weird like that. What was most weird was what really happened eventually in reality. Shizuka just hoped that this poor girl really was feeling alright, especially after falling twice, then running into a pole. Or something else was wrong.

She then realized that the pig-tailed girl must be still not feeling well from running into the lamp post in the first place. She also felt a bit sorry for the poor girl now. Inside her wool hat, though it was a very subtle movement, her vulpix ears drooped in sympathy. She hadn't actually gone through an experience like being kicked out of a mattress store for jumping on the beds, falling on the ground, running into a lamp post and falling down again, but she sure did feel familiar with the feeling like as if the world and all its cruel fate was against her no matter what she did to right her mistakes and wrongs. She was never a smooth talker nor a smooth actor. Neither was she any good at conveying her emotions, so she had always had a hard time getting others to read her correctly.

She still felt bad for laughing in the first place, and it was an action she could never take back. It wasn't even her nature to make fun of people, and on the contrary, she often sought to find sympathy for other people. But the most expression she ever really revealed was when she silently giggled at a hilarious joke, or softly giggled in a desperate attempt to dampen the awkwardness in situations that she created herself much more often than she liked. How she would ever try to fix her first impressions was a very far away goal to reach, and Shizuka would likely only create more problems that she would have to fix in her efforts to try and correct her mistakes, though she still continued to desperately try each time. She could only pray for forgiveness at times like these.

After what may have seemed like a long time to anyone reading this, or Shizuka's thoughts, or even watching the situation, Shizuka finally met the girl's brown eyes directly, and receive her full focus. Shizuka noticed the brunette's gaze wander over her outfit, and then a bit more on her hat, though she was confident whether for good or bad that there was little reason to worry that the girl might suspect much. As long as she kept her ears relatively still, most people would have little reason to suspect anything else. And with Sakura up on her shoulder, she could simply be taken for a cat lover. She also could be being too overconfident in the security of her identity. If anyone had the idea to suddenly pull her hat off, the mess would be a great one to try to fix.

Shizuka smiled in return. She had never heard of a person named Lyra, but that was to be expected at this point. She hadn't met this person before either. Still smiling politely, Shizuka nodded her head in the similar way that people dipped their heads in a subtle equivilent of a respectful bow - a polite nod of acknowledgement. "Lyra?" She hadn't yet broken her habit of repeating people's names just to make absolute sure that she had heard the name right and was pronouncing it correctly. Once that quick check was done, she went on to introduce herself. At least it was a good relief not to have to keep referring to Lyra in her mind as "the girl" or "the brunette" or "the pig-tailed girl" anymore. Despite being very visual, Shizuka was always careful not to be caught staring at anyone, though to her annoyance, she had been scolded plenty of times by some people to give eye contact. Due to this, Shizuka tended not to actually memorize people as easily by their appearances as quickly as she should have.

Even now, though she had noticed their existence before, Shizuka began to truly wonder how Lyra got her pig-tails to do that. She herself had her own ahoge, sometimes on better or worse hair days, two or three ahoge hairs that seemed to defy every lay of physics, gravity included. But never before had she come across hair that, in a ponytail, curved upward completely and independently. But like every other person in this world, she knew better than to seriously wonder just exactly how hair does the things it did. "I'm Shizuka." She answered, though possibly a second or four late in reply. She had only been giving very subtle glances at Lyra's anti-gravitational pig-tails, being as cautious as she possibly could to not be caught staring. But it was too risky to think Lyra could have gotten used to the stares at her pigtails from the people she met. Though Shizuka could often be over confident, she was almost too careful with things that she knew had greater risks.

"I'm actually from the Sinnoh region." Shizuka introduced herself further. Though she was famous for unintentionally ending conversations and causing awkward moments, she had enough experience in introductions to know what kinds of things were usually said, and was quick to try and continue the dialogue before the awkward moments began settling in. By now, Lyra seemed to notice Sakura who had perched herself curiously on Shizuka's shoulder, and had for a while become a natural presence there. Shizuka was just as used to Sakura's more often than naught opinionated commentary from the siamese cat as if she had lived with it and gotten completely used to it, and she had. Sometimes she was so used to pretending not to understand what Pokemon were saying that she didn't actually think about what was coming out of her meowth's mouth. The reality was made pretty clear as Lyra suddenly - though only to Shizuka who had barely noticed that Sakura had spoken in the first place it seemed that sudden - gave an exclamation right back.

Now Shizuka felt even more ashamed that she had just acted as if nothing had happened when her own pokemon had just insulted a stranger that they had just met, and her eyes widened in horror, though the word horror is much too harsh a word. A better word would be a word with half the strength of the word horror. Shizuka was mostly just surprised and caught off guard in the realization of it all. And then her desperate, but often futile instinct to right her wrongs kicked in. With a look of horror - again the meaning should be halved in power - at her pokemon, though her eyes were full of humiliation, she softly, though frantically exclaimed, "S-Sakura! Come on, be nice!" Shame filled her mind again, though; wasn't she a hypocrite to tell her meowth to be nice when she had just a few moments ago laughed herself? She was still cautious though to keep her words sounding as if she only could read that Sakura was being mean in the first place. Not that she could understand clearly what Sakura was saying. She still couldn't come up with a better phrase than "Be nice!" for that matter.

"...I-I'm sorry, uh, about that..." Shizuka tried to apologize for Sakura, though she wouldn't mind at all if the apology could also be taken for her laughing earlier as well. She often did that, where she would give an answer with two meanings, both of which she could be satisfied with. She never got a happy ending when she expected only a single meaning out of her words. But Sakura also had her own pride to defend, and a mouth to strike back with, even if it would have just been better if she didn't. <I could dodge it with my eyes closed!> It was the truth though, since technically, Sakura could smell the metal, and soon feel it with her whiskers. Although her meow was innocent and simple, her reply, if you could understand her, was anything but innocent. Shizuka showed little to no signs that she knew what Sakura had really said.

Why did Shizuka even offer to help like that when she didn't even have the upper body strength to do much? Courtesy and good manners was the excuse. But luckily for her, Lyra hoisted herself up easily, and probably wouldn't have needed Shizuka's help anyway. To Lyra's comment, Shizuka only smiled and gave a very polite chuckle. "Hehe... yeah..." Her other common response of acknowledgement was "I guess," but at this point she was just trying her best not to be offensive anymore. Even if in her mind, no, especially if in her mind, she was honestly thinking that, logically, of course most stores didn't appreciate it when you jumped on their furniture. But then Lyra seemed to change topics, or subjects, quickly, and seemed to catch sight of something else of interest. Soon Shizuka found out what it was. She turned as well to see what it was, though was brushed past by Lyra before she could register anything.

Will? It was most likely the name of the person that Lyra was running toward. Though as Shizuka looked curiously at the red haired man, she began to wonder why she was getting the I've seen this person before vibe. Shizuka remained silent, though her watching gaze was actually looking more closely at the newcomer. At least in this situation she had enough reason to watch in that general direction without being rightfully and boldly accused for staring. Throughout the whole reunion between Lyra and the red haired man that was obviously a friend of hers, Shizuka was searching her memories for the links to the feeling that she had met this person before. Even when Lyra waved her over, and she began to slowly walk towards them, she was thinking deeply. Then she found it. Her gaze snapping back to Will, she blinked in amazement. "You're...!" That's right, she had never gotten his name back then when he had helped her and the ninetails girl out from their collision. "...That person who helped me and the ninetales pokemaniac that one time..." She murmured aloud softly, remembering that whole event clearer and clearer. It had been a very long five years, though now it seemed like only last week.

Then she remembered her manners, though it was a little too late, she at least knew she had to introduce herself to this person sooner or later. "Oh, uhm... I'm Shizuka. You were Will?" Again, she was repeating the name of someone whose name she had just learned, and there was no true intention of making it seem like she had just ignored that Lyra had already told her that this was Will. She couldn't break the habit to make absolutely sure she had heard right and was pronouncing the name right. But she may have only been setting herself up for confusion and misinterpretation of her words. She had met this person before. The memory was clear enough. She wondered if he remembered her, though she was easily able to accept if he didn't remember her. But he certainly looked a whole lot different from before.

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ooc;; the words and stuff are all jumbled ;w; 'swhat happens when my muse is not at its best... x'D
words;; 1955 WHAT IS THIS!! Well at least I have proven that anyone can write a big post if you just try. But wow. I don't even know what happened just now...
tags;; Lyra and Will~!

Will would have ignored them. The man would have drifted by like a ghost and. He would have put them to the back of his mind no matter how much their likeness resembled those he may or may not have known in the past. After all he was here for supplies and then it was back to the wilds. Wandering. Alone and secluded unless necessary. It should have been easy, but why did the images continue to plague him now? The appearance of the two girls had only made it worse. He should just walk away and quickly before they noticed him. Yet, even though he knew he should. Even though there was an inkling in his mind of warning that sense was overshadowed by a vague sense of curiosity. So the man slowed.

Carefully, he glanced around not to appear too suspicious. One step at a time, he was closer to passing them. However, one word caused him to come to a halt. His own name. Not any of the titles he'd given himself. Not a shadow of his name to make lies easier. His name: Will. He turned toward the sound to see a bundle of energy bounce up to him. The scene gave him a memory of another like it and he found himself unmoving. So it was her. Lyra, he remembered her name correctly. A girl full of complexities hidden under a simple exterior and mindset. She'd interrupted her chat with the other girl to make a quick greeting to him. Honestly, Will was surprised that she had remembered him. Surprised and the slightest bit at ease. The young man would even venture as far as to say that he might have been glad.

He still considered her an ally. If sometimes grudgingly.

For a moment, Will though that she would crash into him. He tensed, anticipating it and ready to absorb the impact with minimal damage. The breeder even stayed his hand from lashing out in an instinct driven by years of self preservation. But the collision did not come. Lyra came to a sudden stop in front of him. Close enough for him to reach out and touch her, but not enough to invade a sense of personal space. He watched her, studied her, as she gathered herself. Glancing over her form, he noted that the years had changed little in terms of outward appearance. The same gravity defying pigtails, the same clownish hat, the same taste in clothes. Not that he could compare, his own were the same he had set out in years ago.

The breeder continued to study her, glancing from her head to toes as she let out a steam of words. Not that he completely ignored her, his mind still set aside the information flawlessly from both ears and eyes. How should he respond to her? The little human interaction had made his acting a bit rusty, well certain parts of it at least. Then again, the terrifying visual that he put on for hunting team members wouldn't be proper for this situation. Lyra didn't deserve that. At least, he hoped that she didn't. Plenty of factors could have influenced her. The most he could look forward to was that she still wouldn't be classified as an enemy. Reasons were sound in the mind of the reasoner, but them being on opposite sides didn't sit well with him.

His expression was curiously blank when he started to respond simply because he was so unsure what he should let through. But his words stayed in his throat when she closed the slightest bit of distance. Enough for her to take a few locks of hair and toy with them in her own sense of curiosity. It wasn't uncomfortable, but he eyed her with a little more interest now. When she realized what she was doing and tried to correct the action she'd most likely seen as invasive the interest still lingered. Was that a normal thing that most people did? He'd seen it in pokemon or an action similar. Their coats could point to clues on health. But the last words to escape her before she called over the other one struck him. She 'missed' him? Him? That raised more questions than he cared to take notice of.

As the other girl walked up Will took a chance. When in doubt honesty often played off a role in how statements were taken as well as how they were said. He prayed it didn't backfire and make him out to be a fool. "It's good to see you again, Lyra." For a moment he smiled a small smile, then it was gone. A brief look at what lurked within the depths of his mind. The gentler side of his psyche. Then he turned to take in the third member of their group. She also wore a hat that seemed much too large, but with a different sense of clothing overall. Still, something about her features had Will curious. Younger than himself, petite, and unassuming. But the way she carried herself spoke of more. Something hidden. With a Meowth riding on her shoulder.

A Meowth...He'd seen few over his travels and this one was even more familiar than the girl. A little cat that almost found itself on the wrong end of a blaze because of that cocky countenance it prowled along with. Then a memory flashed behind his eyes. The gijinka girl. But where was the other one? Judging by the outburst she also recognized him. Will met her eyes, trying to get a glance into her soul like he'd done with pokemon. Did pokemon interaction fair better with her than those of humans? If only he could study her...but gijinka were touchy creatures. Small world for such a large region two people he'd met years ago in the same place. "Right, the pokemaniac," he said easily. "Yeah, I'm Will." The grading sense of annoyance got pushed back. It wasn't Lyra's fault that she gave his name fore often than he did. And it would soil an interesting reunion if he got angry over it. "I see you still have that Meowth with you, has it learned any manners?" He tried to pull back those words, but they were said. It was an honest inquiry, but after it left his mouth the sound of it being insulting became more apparent. Not that Sati would mind, she probably still wanted to roast that thing on a spit.

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OOC Notes: A bit quick paced and a little shoddy because of my time constrains (connection is acting cruddy as well).
Words: 1110-ish minus notes and whatnot. I could add more fluff, but i was more worried about actually posting in a reasonable amount of time.
Tags: Lyra and Shizuka. Post for me, you favorite god commands it!~

I'VE NEVER HAD TO KNOCK ON WOOD

Guilt shadowed the taller woman's features and Lyra couldn't help but feel as though it were she, herself, who had done something to upset the brunette before her.

Really, it was kind of silly to instantly jump to the conclusion that, when a worried expression befall another's face, you were the one to blame. There was no real evidence to prove why she looked to troubled and who was the blame, further more, so the mirrored sympathy and guilt passing over her was rather... unexplained. Er. Sort of. I mean, there wasn't much to find wrong in the act of toppling over oneself and getting hurt in the process. Okay, sure, it was kind of foolish - nevermind, scratch the "kind of" and put "completely" in its place - and did bring on slight worry, amusement, or indifference from others, but was it enough to cause a person to look as tormented as this? It wasn't as if she looked absolutely traumitized, but something was obviously bothering her and, chances were, it was brought on by this little "accident" that just occured not far out from the department store. Of course her first reaction was to think she, herself, had slipped up.

Over the past five years, Lyra had certainly gotten better about her... er, how to put it... level of stupidity? When she was younger, she was cute and naive. She matured at a normal rate and was like any other ordinary teenage girl, slight variables here and there as per usual, but virtually nothing wrong with her. Then Ethan died and mental block and yada yada yada and... mental state? Yeah, not so good. After the whole Team Imum fiasco and with a little help from the other Johto trainers, she managed to get back on her feet, thankfully, retaining the happy-go-lucky and pretty naive and oblivious personality while toning down on the sheer lack of knowledge. Reading people was still a skill she had yet to master - far from it, really - and she struggled to fathom reasons why people would feel the way they did as well, but she decided to put her skills to the test. Think of possible reasons as to why she had upset someone without really even doing anything. After some hardcore brain storming, the brunette managed to come up with two options.

One. The strange girl was overcome by guilt due to the fall, possibly blaming herself, and couldn't bare to see her, hurt, on the ground. A little overdramatic about the whole thing, maybe? Like she would know. She wasn't inside this person's head. That would explain why they were to offer a hand to hoist her up in moments to come, but she didn't know that yet so that clue didn't really help at the time. Two. The event triggered a flashback! You know, like in the cartoons on television she'd watch from time to time! This was also something she suffered. Going back to the whole recovery process, while the majority of the flood gates of the painful memeories she'd initially stored away were openned with time, most of them bursting at once with closure and acceptance, there were still smaller pathways to be cleared and these happened all the time. Little things would remind her of life in Goldenrod City and bring her back to that time, the river of her mind flowing a little smoother with one less obsticle to manuever around. Maybe the same with her? Was she remembering something hurtful from her past?

If that was the case, there was nothing Lyra could do. It would be rude to snoop around in other people's personal lives as she had relearned. That left her with option one. Of course, through careful questioning, she could always find out without prodding into dangerous areas if two really was correct. "Don't worry, miss!" she chirped with a smile, keeping an eye on her reaction. It could tell her bucket loads if she could effectively read the emotions and whatnot. ... Goodness, she was going to fail and fall flat on the ground. Metaphorically this time, thankfully. "I'm fine, promise! Nothin' you did wrong." It seemed like only seconds passed before Lyra was up on her feet and introductions were being passed around. After learning the pig-tailed girl's name, the stranger repeated, "Lyra? to which she replied with a nod of her head and another smile. She passed those out like candy. "I'm Shizuka," the female - oops! She wasn't the female anymore, was she? Shizuka. Hm... That sounded Chinese. Japanese? Korean? Pig Latin? One of those Asian languages. She never was very good at distinguishing them. "I'm actually from the Sinnoh region," Shizuka explained. Eyes widening in a mixture of excitement and shock, she shot back, "Really? That's so cool! Actually, I'm not from Lyeant, either. Have you ever heard of the Johto region? I come from Newbark Town there. I've been here for a few years, though, so it's more of a home to me now than back there."

Following the pig-tailed little miss' encounter with the normal-type cat accompanying the taller of the two, a shocked expression fell upon her face and she commanded frantically, "S-Sakura! Come on, be nice! ... I-I'm sorry, uh, about that..." She couldn't help but blink blankly up at her, the sort of meow from the Pocket Monster hardly registering in your ears as you wondered why she was getting so flustered over what seemed to be nothing. She was sweet, but she was a little odd, was she not? Of course, she, herself, could be classified in the same manner. But even this display seemed to fly by like a speeding bullet, making way for their third group member's sudden entrance. After brushing by her new friend - er, well, hopefully they would be friends soon; friends were always a pleasure - the brunette couldn't help but feel a little guilty, but what was done was done. Nothing she could really do about it.

The exchange between she and Will was... different. From what, exactly, you might ask? Well, during their first encounter, he talked as little as he did now, simple sentances, usually one or two being used in response to her stream of jibberish. And, she would admit it, shortly after first meeting him, she had dreamed up different ways that they would someday meet again. Not in a creepy way of sorts - she did the same for all the people she conversed with, wondering if they would meet again and how it would happen. But, those times, he seemed sure of how he was going to react. What he was going to do and say. He seemed slightly... hesitant? Was that the word for it? She couldn't quite pinpoint it exactly. He never responded to her ramblings, which was quite alright with her. They only contridicted the level of maturity she liked to believe she'd built up. He also did nothing in her obvious invasion of personal space as she unconciously fiddled with his hair. Did he really not care? Part of her had thought he would snap at her or something. Her somewhat awkward smile faded again as she tried to pinpoint exactly what was wrong with this picture, only breaking out of her thoughts with his own words. "It's good to see you again, Lyra." What was that? Just for a second, it looked like something completely alien to her. Was that... a smile...? A genuine smile. Sure, it vanished as soon as it had appeared, but it was definately there. The nagging doubts washed away with ease after that and, flashing her own honey sweet grin and resisting the urge to throw herself at him in the form of a hug - again, invasion of personal space, Lyra - she exclaimed, "And you, too, Will. I guess we've got a lot of catching up to do, huh?"

Of course, said catching up would have to wait. She hadn't even noticed, but Shizuka had walked up during their little exchange and appeared to have come to a sudden realization at that moment. "You're...! she gasped, blinking in what appeared to be awe. "... That person who helped me and the Ninetales Poke'maniac that one time..." After a brief moment, she added, "Oh, uhm... I'm Shizuka. You were Will?" Oh, so these two knew each other? Well, then, her little introduction was kind of unnecessary, wasn't it? But that was alright. She was curious as to see how this would play out. "Right, the Poke'maniac. Yeah, I'm Will." For a split moment, the pig-tailed woman couldn't help but feel a little guilty. Maybe he didn't want to introduce himself? Maybe he didn't like strangers knowing who he was? Note to self, she reminded herself sternly, Let Will introduce himself next time. However, his voice cut her out of her own thoughts. "I see you still have that Meowth with you. Has it learned any manners?"

Giving the two a moment to continue their exchange, a sudden thought came to mind. "Oh, hey! Since we all know each other sort of and we're all here, why not hang out? I mean, I haven't talked to ya', Will, in forever and you, Shizu, sound like you'd be a lot of fun ta' hang out with. I mean, if ya' both are busy an' stuff, I understand, or if you don't want ta' do anything, but..."

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BUT I KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS

[/justify]

[atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding:0; margin: 0; background-image:url(http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc436/AmberLehcar/ShizukaTable.png);background-repeat:repeat-y;width: 500px;height:650px;] "So i'm tired of all the pain" 'Of the misery inside' "And I wish that I could live" Feeling nothing but the night Sakura [style=width:350px;background-color:darkred; padding: 1px;] Sakura growled at Will. Just like before, Will seemed to be either angry at something or really annoyed for some reason. Shizuka couldn't guess, but that was the same from before. Even then, Will had never smiled at all from what she remembered, and acted as if he were really agitated. She couldn't put her thoughts into words, and neither could she put her feelings into thoughts. It was difficult to explain, but that angry mood that Will seemed to always put out intimidated Shizuka enough that she didn't want to ever get on his bad side. Will didn't seem so pleased today than he did before, but she wasn't one to read facial expressions like a pro either. For all she knew, Will with a frown could be Will in a very good mood. Lyra and Will were obviously well acquainted. Shizuka only know Will from that one time way back then, and even then, she had tried to get away as soon as possible for fear of her secret identity being discovered. She had tried to cover for the ninetales girl by going along with his description of her as "the pokemaniac", but now it appeared that Shizuka was being viewed as a pokemaniac too! Well, the new hat probably didn't help that out, but it was better than the extra effort of hiding her ears all the time under a spell of invisibility. She would always have to hide the vulpix tails, but she could get away with hiding her vulpix ears under her hat. Shizuka wouldn't exactly describe herself as a pokemaniac either. She loved to catch pokemon and had gotten a rather decent size of pokemon in her PC, but she just had her own team of pokemon which fought and defended her from dangers like Team Imum, and of course battled with her in an occasional pokemon battle against the random trainers she met on the road. Although her oddly colored charizard often attracted the attention of pokemon lovers, at the same time, Neji scared away just as many people. Shizuka was never comfortable with all the attention, and thus tended to have Sakura, her meowth, out of her pokeball when walking around town among society. The meowth's smaller size was convenient as well, and Sakura really enjoyed getting to see all the sites from Shizuka's shoulder. "Yeah, I've heard of the Johto region." She replied, making an effort to uphold the small talk before the conversation died on her behalf. "I came here around five or six years ago." She tried to drift away from that topic now, realizing that she wasn't prepared to give a story on how or why she came here, because the reasons for her coming here would lead to her identity as a gijinka, spelling more trouble. Luckily for Shizuka, Lyra seemed to change topics just as quickly as she had hoped for this moment. She noticed Lyra blink blankly at her as she scolded Sakura's rude behavior. "Uh...I try to teach my pokemon not to ... make rude noises to people." That explanation dropped the bomb on stupid. Now Shizuka was almost sure that she sounded like either a freak or a complete weirdo. Shizuka's face flushed in self shame. Phrases that came out completely wrong, or something else to that effect, happened to her all the time, but they were never any more pretty the more they happened. "I-I mean like, they know it's mean to hiss and growl at people..." Shizuka needed to stop talking before the situation got any more awkward, but she willed herself to at least try to make amends for her lack of skill in word choice. Shizuka didn't really have anything to say, nor could think of anything worth saying now, but she didn't mean to stand there awkwardly as if she were feeling left out, which couldn't be helped since she didn't know these two people nearly as much as they knew eachother. From what she did remember about Will, though, not too much had changed in personality. He didn't talk much, and seemed to just be a non-smily sort of guy. Lyra obviously didn't seem to mind that at all, and to her surprise, the serious guy didn't seem to mind either. Maybe this was one of those rare situations where, ironically, the person most unlike another gets along with that person the best. "Oh, uh..." How to explain this in the miliseconds she had left before the brief pause was too obvious that she wasn't actually a pokemaniac? "A-actually, I'm just a pokemon trainer." ...Not a pokemaniac. Hopefully saying that would sort of in a way indicate the thought. Oh yeah, of course if Will had remembered her even in the slightest, a guy like him who had seemed so irritable on that day would have remembered Sakura who had been trying her best to be the most irritating to the serious guy. Shizuka also was reminded again that Sakura was getting famous for her, er... lack of manners, or tendancy to speak, or meow, her thoughts without hesitation. Well, just as predicted, "<Whaddaya mean by that? I remember you, too, you know! Your cyndaquil's still gonna get it!>" Sakura happily growled back at Will without a second thought. Shizuka tried this time to act as well as she could that she couldn't really understand the exact context of Sakura's words, and tried to give Will a small apologetic look. "Um, well, a little bit." She could also take the blame for not training her pokemon to behave properly. At Lyra's next proposal, Shizuka nodded slightly and shrugged. "I don't have anything else to do, so..." So in a needlessly humble way, she meant that she was for the idea. o o c || sheesh I am so not here x'D time traveling within a post... ...and I think Lyra'd be the taller one, being 5'8", and Shizuka being 5'5" xD w o r d s || 956 t a g s || Lyra and Will~! [/style]

The smile seemed to bring out the correct response from her. Better than he thought, the unease faded from her shoulders ever so slightly. Good. Will would have hated to scare her off with an honest display of affection. The thought brought about pause. Affection? Perhaps that was too strong of a word. Maybe acceptance should be used in its stead? If so why did 'affection' fit in so much more easily? Especially, when she returned a smile of her own. One that held nothing but sheer honesty and warm. Will could appreciate such a sight now more so than ever. Upon their first meeting he would have looked over it as nothing, but after so long of encountering aggression and fear from others...well...the warm that she managed to shine with made the monster beneath his skin more at ease.

The slightly high pitched growl of the Meowth quickly distracted him. Snapping his head in the cat pokemon's direction he glared at it, matching the gaze effortlessly. Just like that the beast that lurked in the back of his mind slammed back full force. A low rumble built in his chest, bubbling in his throat until it tumbled from his lips before he realized he was responding with a growl. The tone was deep, guttural, and held the slightest traces of a warning in it. The sound cut off after a moment, fading along with the intensity of his glare at the meowth. Hopefully the message was clear enough. Will was the dominant one here and technically didn't even need his pokemon's help to flatten the creature with a punch that would make his Hitmonchan proud. Though maybe he'd hold off that course, Sati would be happy to toast the cat.

It wasn't uncommon for trainers to understand the quirks of their own pokemon as they tended to spend so much time with them. Will, however, was a breeder and breeders had a knack for developing a sort of sixth sense on pokemon in general, not just their own. And the man could feel that the little nuisance of a meowth was well on its way to becoming a burn mark on the ground. "Still so full of itself, I see," Will made a point to speak directly to the meowth."Shame Sati's out of your league now, it'd be funny to see her knock you own a few pegs," As a human he could have known how accurate of an answer he gave on the line of thought, but it didn't matter much as he was sure that the comment would rile of the creature anyway.

"She must be a hassle to keep up with," Will said as he turned his attention to the Shizuka. "But if she wants a battle with Sati anytime, let me know. I don't think Sati would kill her." The young man talked as if it was the weather instead of the life of another pokemon, a friend to a trainer, as if it was nothing. No, Sati wouldn't kill it. Will might have to convince her to not horribly maim the cat, but Sati would be sure that the meowth lived with knowing that Sati won.

He nodded at Lyra's notion of 'hanging out' and 'catching up'. Just what had occurred during his time away? Team Imum was most likely nonexistent and if it was then it was nothing on its former "glory" and he used that term lightly. More importantly, how had people been changed by it? Will's gaze once more turned to Lyra. How had she been changed by it? He pulled his gaze away from her again.

"Maybe somewhere we can let out pokemon out?" He offered lightly. His team wasn't used to long periods in their pokeballs anymore and were probably restless already. Absently, he brushed a bit of frost that he'd missed earlier and shoved his hands in his pockets to dig out a protein bar. It wasn't a hot meal, but it would do. Besides the meal wasn't going anywhere. Taking a bite out of it, he waiting for them to lead the way. They surely knew of this place better than he did.

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,background-color: fafafa; border-radius: 35px 35px 35px 35px; border: solid 10px #edf1f5; width: 400px; height: 400px;] brick by boring brick SHE LIVES IN A FAIRY TALE TOO FAR AWAY FOR US TO FIND, FORGOTTEN THE TASTE AND SMELL OF A WORLD THAT SHE'S LEFT BEHIND When Lyra woke up that morning, surely the last thing on her mind was the idea that she would get to spend her afternoon in the company of an old friend that she dearly missed – well, alright, perhaps some wouldn't exactly consider their relationship as a “friendship”, but she was pretty sure she knew Will well enough to assume that this was the closest to friendship he'd get if he kept acting the way he did – and a kind young woman with whom she hoped to spend time with again. Really, all she woke up to thought-wise was the fact that she needed to put food in her stomach and that she always had wanted to jump on some mattresses in town. She thought she saw that in a movie once, actually, which may have been the source of her desire to be so childish. Regardless, when it finally hit her that this wouldn't just be an encounter that lasted a few minutes before all parties were forced to go their separate ways, that they'd actually get the chance to hang out like she would have with friends if she had any more, she almost leapt for joy right then and there. In other words, she needed to get out more. Shizuka seemed rather lost in thought upon the arrival of their third party, taking a good amount of time to think over a reply, the situation, or anything else her mind could have conjured within that span of time before finally replying to her comment on Johto. She said, “Yeah, I've heard of the Johto region. I came here around five or six years ago.” Well, what a coincidence! That had been about the same time that the brunette, herself, had hopped on that ship and sailed from her humble home to a region promising adventure and, later, death. Not that it was really so big of a deal, guessing as there was a surge in migration to said region during that time – really, her arrival was just a single number in statistics in the thousands – but it was still enough to get her excited that they shared another thing in common. “Woah, hey, me, too! I'd tell ya' about it, but you'd probably get bored, huh?” That was only a fraction of the truth, though. Lyra still wasn't the best at reading facial expressions, as has probably been mentioned numerous times, but that didn't stop her from seeing something twist on the taller woman's face that was not exactly the most positive thing in the world. Whatever the reasoning, it didn't seem that she wanted to get wrapped into a conversation about her travels to Lyeant. That was another thing they had in common; she didn't think she'd be able to handle telling her about how she only came to the region in order to run and hide from her problems back at home like the coward she was. Thankfully, she'd changed the subject just in time to wipe those thoughts from her mind. “Uh... I try to teach my Pokemon not to... make rude noises at people,” Shizuka explained hesitantly, face turning all sorts of shades of red as though she thought she'd done something wrong with that explanation. Lyra couldn't really tell if she had said something wrong; she was still confused about why she was apologizing in the first place. Had her Meowth done something wrong? “I-I mean, like,” she tried to correct not long after, “they know it's mean to hiss and growl at people...” That didn't shine much light on the situation. Okay, well, maybe a little bit. Apparently the cat-like Pocket Monster has hissed or growled at her while she wasn't paying attention? Darnit! She promised herself she would be more aware of her surroundings! She'd have to work on that more while she was alone. “Nah, that's fine! I get whatcha mean! Ya' don't even have ta' be sorry, ya' know? My feelings aren't hurt at all.” Hoping to help the other brunette feel more at ease, she pulled out a Poke'Ball from her pocket and held it out. “I actually have a Meowth, too~! Maybe your's wants ta' meet her?” At this point in time, the over-all wearing girl turned back to Will. He didn't have anything to say to her, sadly – even the shy girl seemed to have more words for her – but that was okay. She was no mind reader and he was pretty much the hardest person to read she'd ever met, but he seemed to be thinking about something. Okay, well, he seemed to be thinking a lot. But he was looking at her and it made her feel kind of... weird, honestly. He sort of paused, a slight tense she was lucky enough to catch that made her uncomfort turn to a mixture of worry and guilt. “Did I... say somethin' wrong?” she asked almost hesitantly, smile fading and head leaning closer to his personal bubble. He suddenly turned his head to Shizuka's Pokemon, Lyra figuring it was the growling sound that had caught his attention, and a rather... rabid noise escaped from the back of his throat. It didn't take much to scare a girl like her, so it wasn't much of an accomplishment when his own growl of sort caused her to flinch a bit and take a step back. “Oh, uh... A-actually, I'm just a Pokemon trainer,” the more mature of the females corrected quietly and she chose to focus her attention on that rather than the frightening noises escaping from her friend's mouth. The Meowth let out another growl of its own, something that almost sounded like a challenge or a taunt, and she wanted to cover her ears and leave. Fights were not on her agenda today. “Still so full of itself, I see. Shame Sati's out of your league now; it'd be fun to see her knock you down a few pegs.” Turning to Shizuka, the red-haired male said, “She must be a hassle to keep up with.” The pig-tailed breeder knew that her own Meowth could be a bit of a trouble maker, but she made a note to never let her do something so bad it ruined reunions. Or something. The felines could be hard to keep in line, though, so that night be some feat to complete. Thankfully, the fighting was taken out of the equation with her request to go somewhere to hand out. Shizuka was the first to respond, nodding and saying, “I don't have anything else to do, so...” She didn't even have time to train her chocolate eyes on their third party member before he suggested, “Maybe somewhere we can let our Pokemon out?” “Yeah, yeah! I think I saw a park down that way. Lots of room for 'em to run around. It's not too far away, either! Plus, they have swings~!” Realizing she'd gotten a little too excited, she coughed nervously, but moved to link arms with him, anyway. Feeling like the trainer would feel left out, she also extended an arm to her. “Well? What are ya' waitin' for? Let's go~!” 1240 words shizuka and will sorry for the wait!

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[atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding:0; margin: 0; background-image:url(http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc436/AmberLehcar/ShizukaTable.png);background-repeat:repeat-y;width: 500px;height:650px;] "So i'm tired of all the pain" 'Of the misery inside' "And I wish that I could live" Feeling nothing but the night Sakura Ha! I'd like to see Sati try!! She was no mind reader, and she wasn't very good at reading other people and much less making actions to compliment the situation, but Shizuka could at least sense the tension that the negative energy from Sakura and Will created between everybody, and she was also feeling rather desperate to cease the tension and negative emotions underneath the friendly reunion. But if she were to try to hold Sakura in check by putting her back into her poke all, she knew that she would surely pay for it later seven fold. The prissy Siamese feline always made sure that her revenge was sweet and she was given everything she deserved and she was pleased with the results. Okay, that probably made little to no sense at all, but to summon it up, Shizuka knew that Sakura would, even thou she was the Pokemon and Shizuka was e trainer, make Shizuka regret putting her into the poke all for reasons such as punishing her or maybe apathetically ignoring her feelings and treating her like a dog needing to be muzzled. Sakura had her reasons for what she did. Even if they didn't seem fair for anyone else. But it was her independent, self sufficient personality at judged the world and made her own decisions that Shizuka loved and respected about Sakura, even if it got them both into trouble. Sakura promptly made a face at Will, the corners of her mouth widening as if she were laughing, and meowed, <Ha! I'd like to see Sati try!!> Shizuka would have meant to say to Sakura then that Will was most likely right, and had probably trained his cyndaquil into a typhlosion by now, and Sakura would have been no match for Sati, and that she would be better off not provoking Wll or his Pokemon any further, but of course saying such a thing right now would give her away or at least raise too much suspicion about her being able to understand Pokemon speech. So instead she just looked at Will and apologized, "S-sorry about Sakura." with an honestly ashamed expression. There wasn't much she could do to help it, so she was glad when the subject changed. But still, Shizuka considered Will's offer to a Pokemon battle, beginning to think that maybe it would be good to let Sakura experience a humbling defeat for once in a while. Maybe, hopefully, it might teach her to know better next time she decides to taunt somebody much stronger than herself. "Uh, okay...yeah that sounds good." Shizuka answered Will's battle offer. But of course in the middle of a public street was no place for a vicious Pokemon battle. That event would wait for now. On a brighter note, not that the previous paragraph was all that unhappy, Shizuka was relieved that Lyra understood her at least enough to jump to the right conclusions and forgive her and her Pokemon. It made her life a little easier. There was much less explaining to do when the other person actually understood what you were trying to say. Shizuka had gotten too used to having to futilely explain the meaning behind her words, only for the other person to still not get it. She often cursed her limited vocabulary for that. either that or she hated on the language itself. All this happened on a daily basis in her head. So she often imagined that people wouldn't think of her as so shy and quiet if they could see what went on in her mind and how she viewed the world.though it was likely that most people wished for such an impossible, inconceivable power anyway. Such a thing probably wouldn't even be able to help world peace either. It was all futile, wishful thinking that never ended, instead going in an endless cycle of wishing, regretting, and still wishing again. The mention of another meowth caught Sakura's attention, distracting her from her quarrel with Will. Hey, that might be cool! To see another of her species - it wasn't rare, but it wasn't always so common either. Sakura was interested. More intrigued by the idea was Shizuka, who saw the opportunity to find at least a little something in common with someone else. "Y-yeah, we could let them meet! I think Sakura would like that..." She replied, smiling amongst her nervousness. She hadn't interacted with people in this way in a while. But if she and Lyra could potentially be friends, she would be too happy for words. Since Sora had mysteriously disappeared, seemingly from the face of the earth, Shizuka hadn't found anyone else she could consider a close friend and ally except for her Pokemon. It was a lonely lifestyle, but a person could get used to that if forced to. Not that he or she would ever be expected to enjoy it, but that it was a bearable thing. It was another thing that Shizuka thanked Arceus for: that she had Pokemon to keep her company. It was hard to stay not happy around Lyra. The energetic girl's cheerfulness was contagious. Just as Lyra mentioned the swings, Shizuka couldn't help but feel some of Lyra's...um...childish excitement, and think to herself right away, Swings? YUS!!! Even if the thought was sarcastic and not serious in the least, the happiness in the thought was not forced. She wasn't really as interested in the swings as Lyra was, but she was more than thrilled to be able to get a chance to hang out with these interesting people some more. Maybe they could be friends. Maybe. Shizuka always hoped on those kinds of wishes. And then also maybe they could develop understanding of each-others' strengths, weaknesses, fears and goals with an exciting Pokemon battle. Maybe Sakura could get over her need to put herself up and Will down by being beaten by Will's Pokemon. Shizuka's wishful thinking imagined a bright outcome for it all. It usually didn't turn out that way, but she never stopped hoping. Unable to find anything more to comment on or say in reply, Shizuka just simply nodded and said, "Uh-yeah!" and followed after, finding herself joined into the arm link, but not unwillingly. As silly as it may have looked, she was just eager to be a part of something, doing something together with others like what friends did. o o c || Woo w o r d s || 1057 t a g s || Lyra and Will~!