bravenewworld | (no subject)

[ A: action -- library; Rangers offices ]

[ What Raine would give for a proper night's sleep. But her way of managing through the lack of it is keeping busy, which means taking on an early shift at the library, mostly making sure books are in their proper places (and that certain people aren't building forts with them, not on her watch), and taking mid afternoon trips over to the Ranger offices to deliver research notes and finally begin the task of looking into her tiny corner office and... acknowledging the fact that she has one of those.

And that this room needs to be cleaned and... refurnished and all that fun stuff. B a f f l i n g.

This was the true purpose of having coffee at the ready throughout the day. Her newly-evolved Espeon has been staying nearby, though ducking away when sounds became too loud. Has Raine even eaten, yet? Probably not. ]

[ B: action -- lake shrine ]

[ She doesn't really want to be out here, but someone high up insisted that she take a break, and it so happened that she's had a moody pokemon on hand that seemed to need a change of scenery anyway.

... And, by the size of the pokemon in question, a rather large purple lapras, shrouded in its own mist, the Lake Shrine seemed a suitable enough location to visit. It was peaceful and the shores didn't have as many waves as the ocean.

For her part, she was allowing the Lapras to explore on her own, and some of her other pokemon to wander around. A bulbasaur, happiny and togepi play nearby, watched over by a Petilil. It's a peaceful group. Almost too peaceful. And yet, from where she's situated herself, on a blanket, far enough from the lake and the shrine itself so as not to disturb it, Raine's got her books and paperwork with her even though she's probably supposed to be relaxing, or something. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What's up?

[It's not like Chop Suzie to get distracted in the middle of training. Elaine follows the Mienfoo's gaze until she spots Raine, then she stands to her feet. Uh. How's she going to explain this...]

[Thankfully Raine seems perceptive enough to recognize it for what it is, and not some weird hobby where Elaine asks her Pokemon to beat her up.]

That's right. She's got talent out the ears, but always recoils when it comes to actually letting one of her blows land. I thought she might find it easier if she tried hitting a willing target, but no dice.

[Raine nods, taking in the explanation. It wasn't too difficult an inference to make, particularly from Suzie's body language.]

I see... has she been like that since you met her? It sounds like she's afraid to hurt anyone, so she could have had an experience that's affected her badly...

I think so. At first I thought she just didn't like to combat other Pokemon. But it's objects, too. And me. I don't know what to do to coax her out of it.

[She sighs, placing her hands on her hips.]

Maybe I should just leave her alone. If she doesn't want to use her moves, I don't want to force her.

Well... forcing her won't help either of you. Even if you do find a way to learn what it is that gave her that block in the first place, she still might not want to utilize those skills. Especially if she seems resistant to even breaking objects...

[She looks back to the pokemon in question.] She did trust you enough to allow her to bond with you in the first place, whatever those issues are. Respecting that is part of that bond, don't you think?

[Chop Suzie stares back. ... And strikes an elegant pose so she can show off her grace and strength. If it isn't obvious why Elaine chose her, that impeccable form should be more than adequate proof.]

I can't argue that. It seems she's still willing to try, but I don't know... Not all Pokemon need to have some sort of combat ability to travel with their trainers. I'm fine with it.

But I don't know if she's fine with that. The need to grow is definitely there.

[She nods, smiling at Suzy before returning her gaze to Elaine in some thought.]

It seems like you have to find out what she does want, and build from there. I don't know of anyone I can recommend directly... but Union does have a lot of people willing to assist others with issues like these. If you find someone who can talk to her and find out what she's thinking, that'll bring you a step closer to working out your problems.

Perhaps so.

[Elaine has to admit that it's not easy to seek other people out for help. She's spent so many years managing just fine on her own. But it's getting easier. So far the Unionites have proven to be kind and helpful. She's a little envious she didn't get to grow up there instead.]

I'm Elaine, by the way. Thanks.

In any case, that's the best I can suggest... what you both choose to do is up to you of course.

[She knows all too well how difficult it is to trust others for that sort of thing, but she's been in Union for less than a year, herself. Enough time to gain some perspective on that, at least, even if she was still hesitant in other ways.]

It's good to meet both of you. My name is Raine.

[Elaine holds out her hand in greeting.]

I'll have to keep thinking about it. Maybe she'll do better with stationary targets, like dummies and flower petals.

[Chop Suzie's ears prick at this, and she begins meowing frantically, tugging at the hem of Elaine's jacket.]

Hm? Oh...I'm not sure where we can find cherry blossoms this time of year. I suppose we could try to find some of those cherry Pokemon. Cherrim, right?

[She looks to Raine. She seems like she might know where to find cherry tree blossoms, if there are any this time of year to be found.]

[She shifts to take the offered hand to return the greeting with a small nod, and then takes her questions further into consideration. Being in Union for close to a year and associated with the library and now the Rangers had certainly given her a lot of information at her fingertips. Not bad for an outsider from Sanctuary...]

Hmm... well, for flowers in general, there's a small area to the north of the Verdant forest that they refer to as the flower grove, which has blooms all year round, so that might be what you're looking for. The Pokemon that you're thinking of, however, tend to gravitate to the plains areas northwest of Union, though that's closer to Gigan territory.

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good lord I lost this notif i am sorry

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