mythmaking | Once upon a time...

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Once upon a time...

[ For the residents of Märchenstraße, and all the land surrounding it, the eighth of December was a day to look forward to. Looking at it from an outside perspective, strangers and travelers could easily assume it to be a holiday. At the very least, a day for a festival, if a modest one. A day that shopkeeps spent all morning preparing for, that all manner of creatures spent days traveling to the city to witness. They'd heard the talk that passed around, the rumors from those still left. But would it work? No one knew for sure, no matter how confident the stories seemed to be. But hope was very quickly becoming all they had left.

They had decorated the whole town. Streamers, banners, wreathes and garland made of autumn flowers, plus whatever the Fairy Godmother had cooked up. Oh, she was just giddy. No skepticism could be spoken around her, not if you wanted to escape the wrath of her wand! Rumor had it that she had caught wind of a few piglets squealing about the likelihood that their magic would fail, and that they were subsequently transformed into the band of musicians who could be found performing in the park.

Well, at least the music was festive.

Of course, the decorations weren't for the newcomers alone. Autumn was coming to a close in just a few weeks, and Old Man Winter would take the reigns like he did every year, and their weather would turn cold and harsh. The chill was already there, cool and biting when the wind picked up speed. Lady Autumn was much preferred to the citizens of the city with her gentle nature, even if she failed to show up, finishing her work in the orchards instead. That was what they liked about her.

It was mid-morning when Father Time was found outside of his tower, checking one of the numerous pocket watches he kept on his person. "Unnecessary, but comfortable," he called them, and closed the watch again. It was twelve o'clock in the afternoon, and where empty space had been just seconds before, now they were. Sitting on benches, lying in flower patches, scattered about the city and outside of the gates in peaceful slumber. They would awaken to the bells of the clock tower. Some, to many friendly and relieved faces all around them, some to grateful ones carrying gifts of food and clothing and magic, and some to fearful, cautious faces. Regardless of how the town treated them, they would awaken to a celebration of their arrival, and choices to be made, and the books. Each and every one. ]

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[Well, someone's waking up in a field of flowers, and it's definitely not Mei. Her Serperior was stretched out beside her, alert and awake by the first sound coming from the clock tower. Jolting up in surprise and soon to be irritation, she scans the area quickly, red eyes glaring and blinking at the locals. This isn't Aspertia...

Mei on the other hand, is a little harder to wake up. It takes several nudges from Hibiscus to make her stir, and when she actually does open her eyes, she rubs the sleep from them many times.]

Hibi... I'm up. I'm up. What's so-- [She stops when she finally gets a good look at her unfamiliar surroundings, facial expression rather unreadable. What the heck...?] ...This isn't Aspertia. What happened?!

[Everywhere he goes, he finds more and more people waking up in the same state of confusion he did. He knows how unsettled he is by the whole ordeal. Certainly it must be worse for a young girl like this. Ja'far smiles kindly and holds out his hand to help the girl up.]

None of us know, and there seem to be many of us. Is Aspertia your country? [Yet another name he doesn't know.]

[at the very least she's not entirely alone. Mei takes the offered hand with a nod while her Pokémon just scans the boy. He looks harmless enough to her, but the grass snake is on guard nonetheless. You can never be too careful in new places.]

No, the name of the region would be Unova. Aspertia's just my hometown. [A beat.] I'm sorry but, many of us? You mean you're not from here either?

[He notices the snake creature's eyes on him, but he continues to smile, unperturbed. The creature is kind of cute, actually. He's always liked snakes.]

I'm not. I'm from a country called Sindria, and as I haven't heard of Unova, it would seem that we're also from different worlds. Whatever magic has brought us here can apparently pull us from anywhere across existence. I've met several people so far who woke up with a book like this. I'm sure you have one as well.

[He reaches into his robes and pulls out a book with "Biancabella" written on it and holds it out so that she can see.]

Different worlds? [This guy had to be kidding. Different worlds made sense in movies, but this is real life! Though... she does have to admit that she's never heard of his country either.] I guess... that could make sense, 'cause I've never heard of your Sindria either.

Hmm, I didn't see one around. [But that's when she realizes that her pack is a little more heavy than normal. Peeking into it, she sees the book with the golden writing on the spine.] "Alice?"

That's what the people here will call you. [He frowns slightly.]
I'm still not sure why. They all call me "Biancabella," like it says on my book, and have no interest in hearing my actual name.

["Alice," like "Biancabella," sounds like a name. He still can't find any rhyme or reason to the whole book situation.]

They might start making strange demands of you, too.

[The duo both frown at, that while Hibiscus audibly scoffs.] There has to be a reason. People just don't start calling you random names for nothing.

What kind of demands?

They keep...pestering me.

[He's tried to be polite about it, but he's about run out of polite at this point.]

It's like they want me to either laugh or cry and they're going out of their way to try to make me and if they aren't doing that, they're trying to get at my hair for some reason. They were intent on trying to steal something from someone else I spoke to. I can't even guess what they'll want from you.

I haven't run into anyone like that yet. [How awkward. She only hopes that they're not going to take her partner away.] ...What could they want from making you laugh or cry?

I've yet to figure that out. I suppose if they succeeded, it might become obvious, but that has yet to happen.

[He's not really the type to do either that often, much to the consternation of some of his friends back home.]

It must be tied to the names on the books somehow, but I've only come across one that meant anything to me.

[The more he's thought about that one, the more he's sure that what the children were trying to steal from Mogget had to be a metal vessel of some sort, but it was going to take more intelligence gathering to verify that.]

Maybe you should test it out yourself. Just saying. It might be easier to deal with than having people touching your hair and all!

[Experiment Ja'far! Then you'll find your answer.]

A name that you recognize? What was it?

There was a man with a book that said "Genie of the Lamp." I'm quite familiar with djinn, and though he didn't seem to be one, I could at least tell him what I know and -- ah!

[It's kind of a strangled, distressed sort of "ah!" While he was talking, he'd decided to take he girl's words to heart and fuss a bit with his hair. Pulling on it had done nothing. Plucking a hair out had done nothing, not even hurt enough to make him tear up so he could test that. However, when he'd combed his fingers through the small bit of hair not covered by his keffiyeh, he felt something fall out into his hand. When he looks to see what it is, he finds it to be a small, perfect emerald.]

What?!

[She wasn't about to interrupt him with questions, but with that startled sound she peers at him and his hand.] Is that--

[There really was no mistaking it. A perfect green jewel sitting in the palm of his hand and glistening in the sunlight. He seemed a little like the type to have jewels on him, at least from the way he dressed, but all he did was run his fingers through his hair...

...] Did that just come from your hair?

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