Tricky Cheeky [Karin]

[Seria Floria]

Seria had been engrossed in reading more of her mother's incredibly thick diary, she recalled she had started reading in the library but she ended up getting up and walking out, still reading. She hadn't realized it, but she actually found herself walking to the athletic fields, but she was so engrossed in her reading material that she probably wouldn't notice she would be walking right into somebody. At the moment, she was reading the stories regarding Giratina and the Distortion World. Seria wanted to talk in-depth with her mother about it, but she said that Seria should just read it in her diary and then form her own opinions about it. As she read it, she was getting enamored about how it was possible to even have such an entirely new dimension. "Wow... Was there really a Pokemon like this?" Seria muttered to herself as she continued idly walking while reading her diary.

It sure would be a shame if she collided into someone while walking.

[Karin Norling]

Ahh, talk about familiar places. The fields weren't in use for classes at the moment, so Karin had taken a detour through them on her way back out to the dorms. They'd gotten quite a few additions since she was a student, and what fields and facilities Karin recognized had all been renovated since then as well. It was a sure sign that the school was growing, and getting better over time. She wondered as she looked over the baseball fields if she could suggest some additions of her own. Maybe a ski slope for the snowy peaks, or a hockey rink indoors. Something for those more inclined towards cooler weather.

While she was trying to picture that, though, she felt someone bump into her. She spun around out of sheer surprise, but relaxed again when she saw that it was just a young girl. A Nature Dorm student, from the looks of her uniform. Pretty cute, too, but she let the thought pass without comment or further consideration. Akira would be so upset if she started flirting with the students, even harmlessly. Instead, she simply gave the girl a gentle, but admonishing, "Hey, careful where you're going." Then, her eyes fell on the book in the girl's hands. "Whatcha reading? It must be pretty good if you didn't notice anything else around you."

[Seria Floria]

Bump! In her gross absorption in reading the book, Seria ended up thudding herself into another person. Finally looking up and shaking her head, obviously in embarrassment, she fidgeted and looked at the person she bumped into; a woman who had several years on her from how mature she felt and seemed, she must be one of the Wardens, Seria thought as now she suddenly realized the situation and started to fidget a little. "Oh, oh, I'm very sorry, I was just so..." soon, she had to re-organize her thoughts when the person she bumped into asked her what she was reading. "Ah, ah, er, I'm reading my mother's diary! My parents would often travel around the world learning more about legendary Pokemon, and my mother would write in her diary all the things she learned about them... I was reading about the Pokemon Giratina, you know? I'm very sorry to bump into you, ma'am..." Seria bowed politely after stepping back and dusting herself, keeping her diary close to her.

Actually, the young lady herself did look like she would be nice to talk to, Seria thought, but she barely knew her. Then again, perhaps it would not hurt to engage in a chat given the circumstances of their encounter.

[Karin Norling]

Oh? Now there was a Pokemon name Karin hadn't expected to hear from a student. It was one she had first heard from a former student, and then occasionally seen indirect reference to in Sinnoh mythological texts. And one she'd had the privilege of seeing herself, even if she still wasn't entirely sure whether that experience had been a dream or not. The world, at least, was real, but whether her first experience of it was or not...that was a different story. The fact that this girl even knew the name came as a surprise. It was just a shame that she wasn't in Mana Dorm. People with an interest in ancient legends and the bizarre locales often associated with them were exactly the kind she wanted in her dorm.

"Now there's a name I don't hear often," Karin said. "Most of the time, it's just a vague reference along with a statement that its name shouldn't be spoken. What does it say in there? Can I borrow it for a moment?"

[Seria Floria]

Seria blinked as the lady before her expressed interest in seeing what was in the diary. Usually, people wouldn't care too much, or they would ridicule her for her interests. "Most of what's written in here talks about the Distortion World, mostly mentions about how the 'reverse world' of this place disobey the laws of physics, or some such, and how it's supposedly the resting place of the Pokemon, Giratina... but I mean, maybe it's better if you read it for yourself," Seria nodded as she passed the open diary to the girl. Once she would look at it, she'd see sketches of what Seria's mother thought the area actually looked like, coupled with sketches of Giratina's forme within the Distortion World. Overall, it would come as very interesting material to anyone who wanted to know about such a Pokemon.

"They say it was banished for its violence and that it simply watched over this old world from the Distortion World, but what do you think of that?"

[Karin Norling]

Oh...wow, that was surprising. This girl was much more knowledgeable than Karin could have expected. To know not only Giratina's real name, but about the Distortion World as well, a person would have to have access to a lot more material than what Karin had had when she first took an interest in the subject. Fortunately for her, she'd had an advantage over most people ever since then. Still, she accepted the diary and red over what was presented there with interest. It contained a number of sketches as well, all artists' impressions that were...not quite accurate but did have the right idea. "Hmm...it's not perfect, but someone was very well-read, and put a lot of effort into these. If I had paper on me, I could sketch what I remember, but...oh."

She hadn't actually realized she'd started talking out loud until catching herself. She looked back up at the girl, completely unperturbed by that fact, and continued off the last thing the girl said. "Well, you can probably figure out that I already know a few things about the subject. I can't say anything for sure about it being banished, but its violence is pretty real."

[Seria Floria]

Aaaaaa ohmigosh SHE KNOWS SHE KNOWS SHE GETS IT Seria's mind started going pretty much nuts at this point as she heard the woman say some things as she looked through the diary pages. oh mi gosh Seria started fidgeting and getting a little bit flushed as she shook her head and tried to snap herself out of it, trying to calm herself down from initial excitement. "'Scuse me? You're telling me you've actually been inside? Is that even possible? Am I dreaming? Have I just met someone who totally went there? That's like, so amazing and cool! I wanna hear everything you know! That really means a lot to me, if you did!" Seria started flailing excitedly, like a young kid who just got a new toy. Of course, it was at this juncture that her parents' initial plan to get her to snap out of her delusions of grandeur just pretty much fell flat on its face.

In literally the first week of class. Seria totally heard what she just heard, with almost a straight face, and what especially did catch her ear was that the Warden before her said she could try to sketch what she remembered, which meant that at some point, she was definitely there!! And she could recognize it somewhat from Seria's mom's sketches!

[Karin Norling]

Whoa. Whoooa. Karin could understand excitement, and in fact she probably would have reacted very similarly when she was this girl's age. But wasn't this a bit much? Still, she couldn't help but laugh at the girl's reaction. This was definitely the kind of person she wanted in her dorm. Maybe it wasn't too late to work out a transfer? ...Nah, better let that work itself out naturally. Either way, the girl had just asked her to tell everything she knew. That was a bit of a tall order, especially considering the dubious nature of some of it and the fact that she'd promised not to spread that part around, but she could at least talk about some of her adventures.

"Well, let's see, do you know Turnback Cave at all? It's a cave in the middle of Sendoff Spring, off of Route 215 in Sinnoh. Pretty hard to get to, but the real trouble is once you get inside. I ran across it some four years ago, and had no end of trouble finding my way around. It seemed like no matter what I did, I'd end up back at the entrance again because of spacial distortions. It took me something like a week of failed attempts before I managed to find my way to the end. That's where I saw Giratina, slipping back through a tear in the world." She stopped there, in part to take a breath, in part for dramatic effect. Never let it be said that Karin couldn't play the part of a storyteller.

[Seria Floria]

Seria didn't realize how excited she was until the lady spoke, and it was then and there that she finally managed to calm down. Truth to be told, Seria never really found anyone aside from her parents who even had a major interest in such matters, so to be able to find one, let alone someone who claimed to even see one as well, made it clear to her that it was possible to achieve her goal. The Turnback Cave was mentioned, one which Seria had actually been to once a couple of years ago. But her parents could never solve that mystery. They got close, but they never managed to catch the ferocious Dragon Pokemon. The way the story was told was quite amazing to Seria, as well.

"Wow... That's so cool. I mean, I've been there too, with my parents, but we never managed to see it. It's really like a maze in there. So it's really an amazing feat that you managed to make it in the end," Seria blinked and looked at the lady, now with less putzy excitement and now with more a sense of quiet admiration for her. "Um... By the way... I'm Seria! ...May I know your name?"

[Karin Norling]

"I don't know how amazing it really is," Karin said, laughing awkwardly. "I just kind of threw myself at it constantly until I lucked out. There were actually a couple nights in that week or so where I didn't sleep. And, well...truth be told, I did manage to get through that tear in the world myself. But I was about at my breaking point by then, so I couldn't stay long. And I didn't dare chance trying to go back after all of that. If nothing else, Akira would've killed me."

Actually, Karin shuddered to think at how Akira had felt during the whole time where she'd been gone in the first place. She'd ducked out of the trip pretty early on when they started running into Gastlies and Duskulls in the first few rooms. Never mind that Karin thought Duskulls were kind of cute, Akira had a much harder time handling them. And she hadn't expressed it but...Karin got the feeling that she was really frustrated by the time all was said and done.

"Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Seria. I'm Karin. I'm one of the wardens over at Mana dorm." Yep, if the girl's expression was any indication, she'd just gotten herself a fan.

[Seria Floria]

Karin explained how she just sorta threw herself at it until she got lucky, and even attempted a few all-nighters, and thus managed to get inside. But she didn't stay very long. Regardless of the circumstances of her entry, the mere fact she was able to get in was enough for Seria. "Wow... Still... The thing is, so many people kept telling me that it was impossible for me to ever get the chance to get close to the habitat of a legendary Pokemon... so for me to hear that from you, it gives me some hope." Seria nodded, smiling at the Mana Warden who introduced herself as Karin. Seria's eyes were glimmering with admiration, and she looked forward to learning more from her.

"It's nice to meet you too Miss Karin! It looks like some interesting stuff is in the area of the Mana dorm, so I'm gonna go check it out sometime. I really wanna see if I can learn more stuff around here because it's my dream to meet a legendary Pokemon~" Seria flailed a little bit in excitement.

[Karin Norling]

Karin blinked. 'Impossible'? Who even said anything like that anymore? Boring people, that was who. A lack of imagination and being too grounded in reality wrought by the discouraged, that's what that sounded like. It reminded her of people back home, who said that ghosts (real ghosts, not ghost Pokemon) didn't exist, or that seeing them was impossible. They'd been wrong on both counts. Why should something like this be any different. "Ah, don't let anyone tell you that," Karin said. "I won't lie to you, it's not likely, and if you do see one it'll probably be at least in part because of luck. But if you go around thinking it's impossible, then you end up not even looking. Then you're definitely not going to find anything."

She grinned. "I'll have to sign you in, but you're welcome to come by anytime. There's a library there with a bunch of historical stuff that'll help you, and I'd even be willing to lend you some of my own collection. All you have to do is ask."

[Seria Floria]

Seria knew it was going to be hard from the get-go. That's why she was here to start with. She needed to work on it, she knew it wasn't just something that wasn't pure serendipity. However, it was somewhat encouraging to hear that she would have access to some resources that would help a lot. "Awh, that's a great thing for me to hear! I'd definitely like to read more and explore some of these things more in-depth," Seria said, blinking profusely and fidgeting. "I'll make sure to come to you in the future then whenever I'll be looking for something, then! I'm really glad you're allowing me these privileges. I'll try to make the best out of it!" Seria stepped back and curtseyed, smiling. This was a good encounter for her.