☆76☆ [Video]

[tearsofademon]

[Oh hey, it's a rare network video from a certain elusive mage. And he's not alone, either, though a certain Very Clever Joltik seems mostly fast asleep in the frame, curled up on a green scarf.]

...So I was thinking. It can be hard, for people and Pokemon to communicate. Or, well, Pokemon seem to be able to understand us fine, but it can be harder for us to understand them. Which kind of sucks, you know? I mean, we're supposed to be partners, right? Kind of hard to do that with that kind of barrier.

And, well, some Pokemon know how to type to get their point across, which works well enough I guess, if you don't mind them having access to everything else while they're at it. But... ahh, well, I've been wondering if there might be value to some more of them learning how to use a pen, too.

[Glen's level of performance, and the reception of it, at the contest probably influenced some of this train of thought, yes.]

So I guess I was just sort of wondering if anybody'd be interested if there was a class held at the Collegiate Gym for that. Teaching Pokemon how to write by hand, or paw, or... whatever they've got to work with, you know what I mean. Or if not a whole class, even just if there were individual sessions available, for anybody who wanted to schedule one.

[He's trying to be a good co-leader, okay?]

Comments

[islandshore]

[Now this is interesting. Not something people talk about much, which is honestly surprising. It's a novel enough idea, anyhow. So Riku tunes in, chuckling slightly at the thought.]

Well, it's definitely more practical than teaching them to speak, anyway. Don't get me wrong- I'm sure Slash would love to impart his so-called "wisdom," but writing and texts are just more practical.

Might be worth doing reading lessons too, though. Some 'mons might pick it up faster than others, but if you're serious about classes, you might as well cover the bases, right?

[tearsofademon]

You've got a good point, about the reading, yeah. Kind of helps to be able to read in order to write... Could offer it to little kids, too. A 'learn to reed alongside your Pokemon' kind of thing.

[he's used to Rose teaching all of them how to do that as soon as they join up, so it slipped his mind]

I'd guess teaching them to speak would be a lot harder, though. I'm not convinced it's possible for some of them to pronounce everything...

[islandshore]

Oh yeah. No guarantee that every newbie's gonna be old enough for reading. Good call.

[Maybe he's just used to seeing teens, but yeah. There have been a few kids, huh? Cue a sheepish smile.]

Honestly, with speech, I think it boils down to what their body can muster. I know Murkrow and Chatot can learn how to mimic, but some Pokemon don't even have mouths. It's just not the most universal thing, never mind that they'd have to really want it.

...Granted, I'm not sure how you'd teach a Voltorb to write, either, but I'm sure there's some kinda workaround for them.

[tearsofademon]

[Newbie kids, native kids, same diff.]

...You'd have to get creative, but I'm sure there are ways.

[islandshore]

Hmm. Magnetism, maybe? Otherwise, I can't think of many.

[His fingers drum on his folded arms as he contemplates.]

Come to think of it, wonder how a trainer would safely handle writing with a more molten Pokemon. Like a Slugma or something.

[tearsofademon]

I mean, if you don't care about material, or size, they could always char a slab of wood or something.

[islandshore]

[Huh, that's one way to go about it, but... wait. This brings another idea to mind.]

Wait, what if they used their electricity to form letters in the air?

[He pauses.]

Though that might be even riskier. Never mind that there's no guarantee they could make it float...

[tearsofademon]

With enough practice and control, they could probably use it at a low enough power that it would just feel like static if you touched it...

[and then he murmurs, almost to himself] ...ahhh, or is this another one of those things where it seems simple to me but it would be hard for anyone else...

[islandshore]

[He shrugs.]

Eh, doesn't seem that hard to follow. Electric types should generally have control over their output, right? Kinda like fire types.

Ponyta manes come to mind.

[tearsofademon]

Ponyta manes still make no sense.

[he will never quite grasp the horses that are on fire]

sorry it took so long to get back to this. it's been a rough month for me

[islandshore]

So which would you say is weirder? Ponyta or the Charmander line?

[He pauses, brow creasing.]

Come to think of it, I wonder what happens to Ponyta in the rain. Pokemon biology's... kinda out there when you think about it.

that's fine! I hope it's getting better

[tearsofademon]

See, at least dragons and things that look like them are generally associated with being able to breathe stuff like fire. Horses aren't.

...I don't know about the rain thing, though. Sion's got a Rapidash, but I can't say I've seen Silver out in bad weather...

[islandshore]

Probably for the best, honestly. Even if they can tough it out, it still might not be good for their health.

[On the other hand...]

But moves like Rain Dance are still a factor even then, so I'm sure there's some natural tolerance. It'd be an issue if such a common attack was lethal.

[tearsofademon]

Sometimes I wonder, about attacks... No matter how huge the attack, a Pokemon only ever ends up fainting. They always survive, even huge bolts of lightning that aren't held back. I mean, that's a good thing, don't get me wrong, but... How?

[islandshore]

Yeah, that is weird. And even weirder that we can survive it at all.

[He looks down, tapping his chin with one finger.]

You think the humans here just sorta... developed a resistance? Maybe as a way to adapt to a world full of so many dangerous creatures.

[tearsofademon]

I guess that's possible. In the face of creatures that can light you on fire at will, they'd kind of have to have, or they'd get wiped out.

[...actually]

...Maybe that is why they have words for animals that don't exist here, after all. They couldn't adapt, so they died out.

[and there are no records of this because ha ha ha they keep adding new continents that have totally existed the whole time really, the locals aren't exactly competent at documentation]