barring emergencies

[the_very_best]

Bella's not sure where she has wandered. She thought she was about to walk into a shop, but this appears to be an unattended bar. With none of the windows associated with the shop she thought she was entering. It could be an elaborate psychic assault of some kind, but it doesn't feel very... assault-y... and she was in the middle of a town and doesn't think any humans want to sic their 'mon on her. It's strange. She approaches the bar, looking around warily, hand hovering near her belt.

with Max (Benedict)

with Earth and Lightning (kappa)

with Ann and Sabrina (kuuskytkolme)

Comments

[can_i_stay]

"Actually, I have no idea who she is. Have we met? I'm usually good with faces."

[the_very_best]

"Have you got an identical twin? Somebody who looks just like you was in here a few hours ago."

[can_i_stay]

"As far as I know I have no biological siblings. Lucy, do you have any idea what's going on?"

[can_i_go]

"No, but I bet it's magic. Magic is cool. Also, you should get a drink. Everything the Bar makes is automatically awesome, and the first one's free."

[can_i_stay]

"The Bar..?"

[the_very_best]

"The Bar," says Bella, patting the bar. "She's neat. And she does produce free drinks, first time you're here."

[can_i_go]

"You just give her the order and it'll appear. C'mon, try it."

[can_i_stay]

"Okay... I'd like to have a sencha tea with orange, please."

She says it vaguely towards where you'd expect a barman to be.

[the_very_best]

And here is her tea. Enjoy.

"Bar, do you know why this person looks like the previous visitor?"

They are alternate universe versions of one another. Alts often look alike.

"Ooooh."

[can_i_go]

"An alternate universe Ann? Wow. How well do you know her? What was she like? How was she different? Oh yeah, what's your name?"

[the_very_best]

"Uh, I didn't know her very well, sorry. She was in here with a person called Sabrina, who tried to punch me, which kind of cut down on socialization opportunities. I'm Bella."

[can_i_go]

"Sabrina tried to hit you? She wouldn't do that. Sabrina's the nice one."

[can_i_stay]

"How about that time with Nate?"

[can_i_go]

"That doesn't count, Nate deserved it. He's an ass. This lady doesn't look like an ass."

She points at Bella.

"You didn't insult Ann, right? That's an ass thing to do."

[the_very_best]

"I didn't insult Ann."

[can_i_go]

"So you aren't an ass."

[can_i_stay]

"If you say so. I'm sorry, Bella, Lucy can be a handful. I can drag her away if she's disturbing you."

[can_i_go]

"But I want to talk to her! People here are so interesting, last time I spoke to a girl who was married to a merperson."

[the_very_best]

"I don't mind as long as nobody's going to try to hit me. The security lady was out here really fast, anyway. So what's your world like? Mine has Pokémon, apparently that's unusual."

[can_i_go]

"Well, we have reality television, kangaroos, take-away pizza, summer holidays, the internet, sliced bread, puppies, audiobooks, trees that are hundreds of years old and nuclear fusion."

She ticks the first things that come to her mind with her fingers.

"We don't have those Poké-things."

[the_very_best]

"My world has Pokémon instead of animals," clarifies Bella.

[can_i_go]

"Ooh, okay. That means you don't have kangaroos or puppies. What's it like, not having puppies? They're tiny and cute and people keep them as pets, and then they grow up to be less tiny but still cute. Some get allergic to their dogs and have to give them away. I think that was most of the relevant things about them. Ann, what do you think?"

[can_i_stay]

"Dogs are domesticated from another kind of animal and have had a basically symbiotic relationship with humans for a long while; they give us protection and company and get food and shelter. They're also smart, for animals, highly social and can be trained to do several things including herding, attacking people, working as blind person's aid and sniffing out drugs and bombs."

[the_very_best]

"Pokémon of one kind or another can do all those things."

[can_i_go]

"Hmm. If Poké-things are not animals, there must be something that an animal can do but a Poké-thing can't. What's the strangest thing an animal can do... Squirt blood out of their eyes? I think something does that."