The Start of Something? [Annie]

[Tanya Christianson]

Eventually, after a hectic day of experiencing everything the place had to offer, Tanya finally headed back to her room in the Wave Dorm, taking a moment to appreciate the atmosphere of the dorm before heading to her room. It was like some sort of water paradise, comforting for a girl who came from Hoenn, which was predominately filled with water.

Once she had entered Room 3, she stood and looked out at the beautiful beach view that was outside her window. She could really get used to living in a place like this. She enjoyed the breeze that flitted in through the window, basking in it's chilliness and relishing the refreshing feeling it gave her.

After that, she quickly moved towards one of the beds and dropped onto it, wrapping herself in the covers and enjoying the feeling of having a room for once. Looking around the room, she noticed that there was an extra bed. Two people per room? This could be interesting.

Sitting up, she looked expectantly at the door, waiting for someone to enter through it. It was only a matter of time and she had that luxury for now.

[Annie Prince]

The day had been a long one, and Annie was ready for it to be over. She had attended her first classes and tried out a few other things which would likely become part of her routine, and now she was worn out from it all. Clinging to her equally exhausted Snorunt as if the little Pokémon were some sort of talisman to keep her from falling over, she trudged into the Wave Dorm common room and headed for the girls' side. Her schedule said that she had been assigned to Room 3, so she opened the door marked with the number 3.

And froze. Her roommate was that same Tanya girl who had annoyed her during classes. The one who didn't seem to understand the concept of personal space. Annie stared at her, her disbelief verging on horror. She didn't like this one; she didn't expect this one would understand much of anything she said.

In her arms, Dušana chirruped nervously. Annie had to agree with the sentiment.

[Tanya Christianson]

When the door opened, Tanya let out an audible gasp and leapt out of her bed, leaving behind a messy trail of bed sheets. Who would've thought that out of everyone in the school, Annie, the first Wave Dorm girl she met in her time here, was going to be her roommate? Maybe it was like fate or something. If so, she wasn't sure whether to thank it for giving her an opportunity or curse it for picking someone who already didn't like her.

"Hey there! Looks like we're going to be roommates, huh? What a coincidence." Tanya mused in a light tone, giggling to herself as she moved over towards the window and looked out of the view to the beach.

She knew she didn't make the best of first impressions with the other girl. That was probably due to the fact that her excitable personality alongside the fact that she was starting out at a new school meant that she had enough energy to support two people. Since they were roommates though, Tanya knew that she had to get her to feel comfortable around Tanya. 

It only took one look on her face to know that her assumptions were right in that her first impression was not a good one. What could be a way to diffuse the situation? She thought about it before coming to the conclusion to just act naturally and not pump herself full of energy this time around. For that reason, she decided to start things off by making a light joke.

"You look like you've seen a ghost or something. Is it something to do with how I look? Is there something in my hair?" She was determined to be nice to Annie though. They were roommates and roommates should be good friends if she was going to have a good time at the academy. She couldn't help but wonder how hard the other girl was going to make it for her though.

[Annie Prince]

Annie blinked and stared at the other girl. Tanya had leaped out of her bed and started laughing about how they were going to be roommates. Laughing? Annie failed to see what was so funny about it. And did the girl not notice the dismay written on her face? Admittedly, perhaps that would be for the better--

"You look like you've seen a ghost or something. Is it something to do with how I look?"

Annie sincerely wasn't sure if Tanya was joking or just that oblivious. She considered making a break for it, running away and demanding that the Wardens assign her to a different room, but the thought was even more exhausting than that of living with this girl. It had been altogether too long a day already, and no matter what, it looked like it was shaping up to be even longer.

At length, Annie forced herself to walk into the room and sit down on the empty bed. Her tired feet welcomed the chance to rest. Cradling her Snorunt close, she gave Tanya an exhausted look. "Do you still have so much energy?" she asked.

[Tanya Christianson]

So the joke fell flat. A feeling of exasperation washed through her body, but she didn't let that show. She continued to smile at her roommate, even though she had made it painfully obvious that she didn't like the circumstances she was in at the moment. The feelings came from how she was going to be friends with Annie, since it didn't seem like she was going to make it any easier for her.

When Annie moved towards the empty bed, Tanya moved back towards hers, gathering up her sheets and putting them back haphazardly on the bed before she sat down on it. Crossing her legs, she made sure she focused her attention on Annie, hoping to be as welcoming to her as possible. She was bound to see a more friendly side eventually.

"Not as much as before. I've been so busy today with all the exploring and people meeting I did. I think I just wanna chillax now." Tanya replied honestly, resting her head in her right hand. "You must've been busy as well. After all, it has been our first day and everything."

Seeing that Annie had her pokemon out, Tanya felt comfortable with taking Daniel's pokeball and releasing him. Jumping up onto the bed, Daniel sat down next to Tanya and gave her a very expectant look. Knowing what he wanted, Tanya started to stroke his head, causing the Buneary to let out sounds of pleasure from the petting. Tanya continued to speak to Annie while petting Daniel, knowing that he was enjoying the treatment that he was getting.

"You enjoying your first day in Grey Garden Academy? It's a pretty awesome place in my opinion."

[Annie Prince]

It continued to surprise Annie how readily forthcoming Tanya was about everything. True, it would have been pointless to pretend that she hadn't been busy, but the sheer talkativeness of her... Tanya seemed to be an "open book," as the saying went, and Annie felt rather odd about the difference between them. Either Annie was strangely secretive, or Tanya was weirdly open.

The other girl asked if she was enjoying her first day at the academy, and Annie considered the question for a few moments. What would be polite to say? What would be true? What would be the best path to navigate between the two?

"It's very different from home," she admitted finally, unconsciously touching the scars on her face as she considered the ways in which it was different. "I'm glad of what we're learning."

Annie shot a measuring look at the other girl. They were so different, in every way from hair color to how much they were willing to talk. Perhaps the question she wanted to ask was a bit intrusive, but it slipped out anyway.

"Tanya, how old are you?"

[Tanya Christianson]

Luckily for her, it seemed that the tide of the conversation was going well. Annie didn't completely shut down any methods of communication, a thing that was good. It meant that her roommate didn't despise her. She wasn't 100% sure if she thought Tanya was tolerable, but she could probably find out about that with time.

"I know what you mean. The academy is so big that I keep on getting lost." Tanya said, trying to project an open body language towards Annie by uncrossing her legs. "The lessons here are pretty awesome, aren't they? Better than your average run-of-the-mill school most certainly in my books."

Tanya raised an amused eyebrow in response to how the roommate was interacting with her. She was a little weirded out, feeling like a specimen under a microscope, but she didn't raise any objections. She encouraged Daniel to move in between her legs in order to get a better petting position, with the Buneary responding in kind as he sat down in between her legs.

"Me? I'm 15 years old." Tanya answered, laughing awkwardly due to being a little taken aback by the question. How old did Annie think she was? "Since you asked me, I might as well ask you the same thing. How old are you Annie?"

[Annie Prince]

Tanya seemed remarkably comfortable, and part of Annie just wanted to curl up and be shy together with her little Snorunt. Instead, she remained seated on the bed, her back as rigidly straight as if she had been pressed against the wall, petting Dušana's icy little hat. The Pokémon seemed to be tentatively warming up to the situation, figuratively if not literally, and that calmed Annie a bit.

Luckily, Tanya's next comment didn't require more response out of her than a nod. Yes, the academy was big; yes, the lessons were more fun than anything taught at an ordinary school. Annie felt almost like she could get used to this.

When Tanya gave her age, Annie couldn't help raising an eyebrow. They seemed so far apart in age--Annie would certainly have guessed that she was a few years older at least--but evidently not. Perhaps it was only that Tanya's energy and passion for life reminded Annie of her little brother, three years younger, that had made her think that their ages would differ. Asked her own age, Annie simply replied, "The same," and left it at that.

The silver-haired girl was unsure if she wanted to keep talking, since there didn't seem to be anything else to do but she had no idea what there was to talk about with her new roommate. Both of them were holding Pokémon in their laps, it was true. That thought reminded Annie that she had translated her Pokémon's name when they had met earlier. It had made the most sense at the time; she still doubted that Tanya would be able to understand (or, for that matter, pronounce) the names she had chosen for her little companions. But would she find out that there were other names? It seemed like that was very possible if they were going to live in the same room. And then what?

Hesiantly, after a long pause, Annie said awkwardly, "Just... so that you're not surprised, each of my Pokémon has two names." No reason to explain any further than she absolutely had to, though doubtless she would have to answer some questions about such a revelation.

[Tanya Christianson]

She didn't think too much about Annie's raised eyebrow. If she did, Tanya would probably worry much more than was necessary. Still, she was curious as to why she asked the question, but decided not to press the issue. She probably would take offense if she asked her and it wasn't like she cared too much, she was more confused than anything.

Tanya didn't really know what to say next though. The conversation sort of trailed off on it's own, leaving her to mindlessly pet Daniel while she waited for something to come to mind. She didn't want the rest of the day to them just awkwardly looking at each other. That would suck. At the moment though, she wasn't sure what to talk about. Thankfully, Annie interjected something, quashing the awkward air for a moment.

"Two names?" Tanya asked, the validity having two names floating around in her head as she looked up. Wouldn't having two names be somewhat complicated for the pokemon? She never really knew how smart they were. Maybe that was being offensive to pokemon though.

"Is there a specific reason like they have two names?" Tanya then asked, curious about the conversation and drifting her eyes back to face Annie. She stopped petting Daniel to cross her left arm over her while resting her head on her right arm again. She thought it was a little odd to have two different names, but didn't judge too much. She was mostly curious about Annie's revelation.

Daniel on the other hand jumped out of his trainer's lap and moved towards Annie and her Snorunt. Once she got a little bit closer to the two, the Buneray looked up towards the other trainer's Snorunt and gave her a wave, smiling and looking like he wanted to play with her.

[Annie Prince]

Tanya seemed surprised at the idea that Annie's Pokémon had two names, but as near as Annie could tell, it was a harmless sort of surprise. That came as a relief; Annie was still trying to sound out this strange girl and determine what would be good to say around her.

When Tanya asked after "a specific reason," Annie's mouth twitched, almost turning into a smile.

"First they have names for me to use, their real names. But... no one would understand those names, so I gave them other names by which to introduce them to others." That was one way to state the truth. Annie didn't know when she had started caring whether or not this girl hated her--perhaps it had been, reasonably, when she had realized that they would have to share a room--but she found that she didn't want Tanya to think that badly of her.

This strange train of thought was interrupted by the little brown Buneary approaching her and waving hi. Annie stared at it for a few moments, while Dušana peered nervously over the protective circle of her arms. Then the Snorunt turned to hide her face in the Trainer's uniform. Annie reached down and gently patted the Buneary in apology. "She's shy," she explained quietly to the friendly Pokémon. "You'll have to give her a while to get used to you."

[Tanya Christianson]

"Oh, I guess that makes sense." Tanya said, shrugging her shoulders and then looking over towards Daniel. While he did enjoy the patting, he also seemed disappointed in how the Snorunt rejected his hello. After smiling innocently at Annie, she moved back towards Tanya and jumped into her lap. She giggled lightly when Annie said that Spirit was shy, finding the Snorunt adorable.

Once Daniel was back in Tanya's lap, she went back to patting his head softly. As she did so, she went to look for the next avenue of conversation. Thinking back to classes, she remembered that she asked something to Annie during Breeding 101. Due to the lesson starting, she didn't think she got a response from her.

"Hey, remember in Breeding 101? Ms. Brennan started the class before you could answer my question. Mind if I ask where you come from?" Tanya inquired, looking expectantly at Annie as if waiting for a response.

[Annie Prince]

Tanya accepted Annie's explanation and seemed to find what she said to the Buneary (whose name was Daniel, wasn't it?) to be amusing in some way. Annie glanced at her to see if her roommate was laughing at her, but she didn't seem to be mocking.

To Annie's mild surprise, Tanya repeated a question she had asked earlier, but in a milder way: "Mind if I ask where you come from?" She seemed politer, now--certainly a pleasant change.

The pale-haired girl considered the question for a moment. "Veilstone City, in Sinnoh," she replied at last. No reason not to say so, at any rate. Old, faint memories flashed through her mind, supplying more information that seemed too much to share. She barely remembered her birthplace, beyond a few scattered images in her mind: a warm bedroom with yellow walls, streets blanketed thickly in pure white snow.

Shaking her head to bring herself back to the present, Annie added a question of her own, "Where did you say you were from, again?"

[Tanya Christianson]

Tanya was chocking this up as a personal victory in her book. She had managed to make pleasant conversation with her roommate who started out with a less than amicable relationship. If she kept this up, she could eventually be friends.

"Oh that's cool! I met someone here from Sinnoh as well. She lived in Eterna City and she's a pretty cool person." Tanya mentioned, thinking of the Nature Dorm girl she made friends with that day. "Then again, she was also a bit of an airhead."

Daniel jumped off the bed and explored the room a little, looking around the area and poking things with his arms, curious about the area he was in. Tanya smiled warmly at him, finding his actions adorable.

"I come from Hoenn, in Fallarbor Town. It's in the northwest and it has a contest hall. My mom is a contest judge there." Tanya recounted, her mind briefly drifting back to her family. "What about your family Annie?"

[Annie Prince]

"Eterna City..." Annie repeated the name musingly. "That's on the other side of Mount Coronet from Veilstone. I've never been to that side of the mountain." She had never gone further from Veilstone than Lake Valor, except when leaving Sinnoh entirely--not even to visit Hearthome or Sunyshore or Pastoria. It occurred to her that she ought to write to Michael about that, and ask him to describe those other cities he had occasionally visited. It seemed that she would need to know more than the vaguest theoretical geography of the rest of Sinnoh in order to carry on some kinds of introductory conversations here. And how strange, that she had needed to come all the way to Hoenn in order to learn more about Sinnoh. If she met the girl from Eterna City whom Tanya had mentioned, she didn't want to look stupid not knowing enough about the rest of the region, even if Tanya's judgment was accurate.

Tanya was obviously much more local to this area than Annie. Fallarbor Town wasn't one of the places that she had read about, but Tanya's brief description made it sound nice enough.

Then Tanya asked about her family. It was an innocent question, one Annie had more or less expected, but it still hit her like a fist to the gut. She folded in on herself slightly and replied tonelessly, "They're not very interesting." It was a lie, of course. The problem was that they were much too interesting, in ways that Annie could not imagine trying to explain. Her mother was dead, her brother was the light of her life but now he hated her, her father favored her over her brother in ways that could have killed her and nearly did--how could she explain all that? Even if Tanya believed any of it, rather than accusing her of making it all up for sympathy, she would probably pity her. Annie didn't want pity.

[Tanya Christianson]

"Oh." Was all that Tanya could say in response to how Annie reacted. She probably stepped on a land mine there. Maybe something was up with the family? Whatever the case was, she probably shouldn't say anything. She wanted to know though, she wanted to peel away the layers that she knew Annie put up. However, the resistance she was meeting was going to be hard to deal with. She knew she could face it though.

Looking outside the window, she didn't realize that nighttime had fallen. Come to think of it, they probably had been talking for quite some time. She was also feeling a little tired and the rest of the signs indicated that the best course of action was probably finishing up for the evening. At the same time though, she didn't want to end the night on that note.

"It's getting pretty late, so I'm like going to go to bed now." Tanya stated as she picked up Daniel's pokeball and put him back inside. Letting out a yawn, she neatened the blankets a little bit before tucking herself underneath them and trying to find a comfortable position.

"Hey, if you ever want someone to talk to, you can always come to me." Tanya told Annie, turning towards her and giving her a cheery smile. "I mean, we are roommates after all. If stuff's getting you down, it's probably better to talk about it than keep it bottled in, y'know what I mean?"

And on that note, Tanya closed her eyes and let herself drift off into sleep. After the tiring day she had, it was almost welcoming.