Eevee Therapy for Little Magi Chapter 62: An Impromptu Coven (Patreon)

N frowned as they stepped out of the lecture they’d set in on. “...was that supposed to be helpful? It seemed… like how father got sometimes.”

“You mean how he was more preaching rather than conveying it in a manner that’s interesting?” Sakura replied with a frown. More than a bit of frustration laced her voice, for easily understandable reasons. It had been a highly educational and useful lecture, but the professor had frankly loved the sound of their voice way too much.

“...yes. He sounded like Ghetsis at the pulpit.” N frowned as the two children walked back to the library. “Why would discussions of the nature of Legendaries be uninteresting?”

“Well, for one, he didn’t allow any questions. And two, he presented one angle on the subject, and then talked on and on about that ‘correct’ interpretation without giving any counterexamples.” Ren observed, fading out of his trainer’s shadow. “Plus, describing legendaries as ‘Natural Forces and Divine Power’ given flesh seems disingenuous; that Latias we met was pretty normal, as Pokemon go.”

Sakura shook her head. “Yes, I agree. But maybe there’s a reason he’s so certain?” she asked as they entered the library, eyes drifting over to find Professor Juniper looking over Rin’s third draft. Juniper looked up at the same time Rin did, and gave them a wave.

“Hey kids! How’s it going?” she asked.

“It’s going well, mama. But the most recent lecture raised a lot of questions, which the teacher didn’t answer.”

“Well, I might be able to help,” Juniper said, Rin listening with interest.

“On the subject of legendaries, the professor claimed they were forces of nature, and the Latias we met… wasn’t. So I’m a little confused,” Sakura explained.

“It depends on the Legendary in question,” Aurea began, settling into lecture mode with practiced ease. “For the most part, for the Legends most worship as greater deities, he’s right. That doesn’t mean those legends aren’t capable of being ‘normal’, as you put it, but he also isn’t wrong.”

“So, there’s a difference between legends and ‘Legends?’” Sakura asked, a little puzzled. “That seems…”

Rin made a moue of understanding. “Is it the difference in breadth and closeness to mortals? Because that’s a lot like the differences in divinity between various Kami.” She paused. “In Japanese myths, there are enshrined ‘deities’ who are just exceptional spirits or strong monsters, and then there are the greater gods also called ‘Kami’ which are true deities."

“Animism, correct?” Aurea stated, to which Rin nodded. “That’d be an accurate assessment.”

“So then, it’s less a matter of the teacher being wrong, and more that he was focused on the highest level of Legends,” N nodded in understanding. “He didn’t go into that at all.”

“It’s one of the reasons why this school is slowly fading. A lot of what’s taught here is rooted in traditions and history, with a perspective that hasn’t changed much even as Professors like Oak, Rowan, and Magnolia peeled back a lot of the mysteries around Pokemon, in the present and past.” Aurea shook her head sadly. “Those sort of inconsistencies drive a lot of people away. Ankoku Ron is prestigious, but hardly appeals to youngsters anymore.”

Rin grimaced. “With all this knowledge here, there’s no interest?”

“Not everyone likes reading and studying like you do, onee-san,” Sakura commented. “Besides, how much of this is more interesting to Magi than Mundanes? Ones with no interest in developing rituals to invoke Time Travel?” She asked, looking over one scribbled sheet with notes about the Forest Guardian and her supposed powers.

“Point,” Rin nodded, humming to herself. “It also could be that the people that are interested simply don’t have the funds to get in, to be fair. Because I refuse to believe that no one would find this kind of thing interesting.”

“I mean… Pokemon.” Aurea waved to Ren. “Your world has magic, we have companions which you originally thought were some sort of ‘fantastic beasts.’ And ours runs on tummy rubs and friendship, not pain and relentless study.”

“I disagree.” Both women turned to N, the young man studying the pages spread out around Rin. “It’s not that people don’t find this sort of thing interesting, it’s that they assume only the exceptional and the devoted can make use of it. The Sages studied magic, I can talk to Pokemon, the Shadow Trio have their ninjutsu… magic is all around us, we just don’t recognize it because compared to the flash of a Pokemon battle, it’s much more quiet.”

“Well said, young man,” a new, childlike voice interjected, filled with fae amusement. “Too many these days are understandably drawn to the companionable flashiness of Pokemon Battling, rather than the old ways.” A small, childlike woman stepped into view, her short stature feeling somewhat unnatural, “Not to say that the old ways were all good, of course, but should one forget the past, they will inevitably repeat the mistakes therein.”

Aurea straightened. “...are you one of the faculty, or a graduate student?” she asked, curious.

“Graduate,” She responded. “Why?”

“I think Mom would’ve been more cautious if you were a lecturer here. Nice to meet you, fairy sister,” Sakura said, offering a hand to the older woman.

“Salutations, sister. Much psionic and ghostly energy touches thee.” The aforementioned girl took the girl’s hand, shaking it before grinning. “Though I suppose I should cease speaking in riddles. It’s not as if you wouldn’t have understood them anyway.”

“That would be nice. These two are smarter than me, and I’d like to understand too,” N commented.

“Don’t be hard on yourself, N. You’re younger than us,” Rin snapped at him, before turning back to the newcomer. “I am Rin Tohsaka-Juniper, and you’ve met my sister, Sakura Juniper. And you are?”

“Alicia Westbrook. Witch, connoisseur of all things mystical, and most importantly, a Pokemon Trainer.” She curtsied, the pink, frilly dress she was wearing put to good use, “A pleasure, Rin Tohsaka-Juniper, Sakura Juniper, N.”

“Westbrook?” Rin paused. “That name… no, it’s nothing.” She shook her head. “You’re almost certainly not related. Though if you are a witch… you aren’t like the Witches I’m familiar with.”

“Indeed! Yours is a world that has interacted with ours in the past, after all. I am nothing like the Witches from your origin. Think more of a witch of the popular culture type, less that. I brew potions, cast cantrips and spells, and have a perky familiar to help me out.”

“Nyaa.”

It was at this point that all involved noticed the Purrloin who had curled herself up at Alicia’s feet.

“So I see.” Rin’s observation caught up with what Alicia had said. “You can tell we’re from another world?” She asked, interested. “And… you know of Earth?”

“Of Earth, yes. In any detail?” Alice paused, raised her hand, and shook it side to side. “Not particularly. Especially when the most popular theory surrounding “Earth” in particular is that there’s multiple different ones.”

“Earth is already aware of that potential. Or at least, some people are,” Rin replied. “The Second True magic’s most banal use case is apparently dimensional travel. If any of my ancestor’s notes can be trusted, at least. One of them managed to design a tool which could access other dimensions…” She trailed off, lost in thought for a moment.

Sakura took the chance to interject. “Not to be rude, but beyond the desire to talk to someone from Earth, was there a reason you decided to speak with us? While I’m sure my sister would love to trade notes on magic and I have a small interest myself, she’s busy, and I am more focused on learning and training my team than accepting an apprenticeship.”

“Your discussion was interesting, and I felt I could contribute,” Alice answered with a shrug of her shoulders, offering a small smile in response. “I’m happy to leave if that is what you desire, miss Juniper.”

Sakura shook her head. “Not what I was looking for. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t have any other motives.” She gave a smile of her own. “If you’re willing to help onee-san, or if you just want to talk with people who actually share your interests, you are welcome to stay. One perspective Rin lacks is a full understanding of modern magic users in Garde; you are not the first we’ve met, but the first we’ve been able to talk to for any length of time.”

Clearly delighted, Alice nodded. “Magic users are rare, after all. And more often than not solitary. We tend to be at least minorly ostracized by our peers, though it is less a stigma and more a fundamental unwillingness to understand why we’d find the old ways more interesting than the new.”

N coughed. “I will admit I find technology more useful than magic, but knowing more even about subjects which are no longer current can open doors which were once closed.” He gestured to Rin. “She designed the Pokemon translator using magical knowledge applied to modern technology.” N was fairly certain the woman would have heard of the translation software; several weeks ago, it had finally broken out of the scientific community and into the public consciousness. News reports and talk shows were already flying thick and fast, and while Rin’s name had been mostly kept out of it, the rumors surrounding the supposed ‘Tohsaka Think Tank’ which must have developed it were amusing to listen to.

“Oh certainly,” Alice answered, her eyes immediately focusing fully on Rin, “Though I will admit, I genuinely did not expect that software to function off magic. Out of purely professional curiosity, how did you manage that?” She paused, blinking. “Oh, uh… Please ignore that. It’s been bothering me for weeks, but I definitely shouldn’t be asking you for trade secrets.”

Sakura sighed as Rin preened. “She’s more than happy to tell people; recreating it requires… Well.”

“Pokemon communication, as has been noted many times, is as much a function of energy transfer as vocalization,” Rin lectured. “Literally, they encode meaning into the sounds they make, which then are received by other Pokemon and are interpreted as such. That’s why all Pokemon can talk to each other, and why humans with Aura training or similar skills can ‘receive’ the idea behind Pokemon speech even if they lack the dedicated mental structures for energy manipulation or interpretation. The ‘program’ I developed literally encodes an adaptive matrix onto the silicon of the computer chips, giving the device the ability to receive the transmitted energy, and then decode it into human speech.”

Alice grinned. “Oh that’s perfect! It’s a solution that maintains the true meaning and from a purely pragmatic perspective does absolutely fuck all to offend all but the most conservative and stubborn followers of the old ways that still have some level of prestige and influence!”

“There are people who’re offended by being able to talk to Pokemon?” N asked with narrowed eyes.

“No,” Alice shook her head sadly, offering the boy a wry smile. “There are people who are and would be offended that others can more easily talk to Pokemon, diminishing their personal influence and power.”

“Mmm.” N’s lips thinned.

Rin chuckled. “They can’t do anything. It’s already global, already in use, and I’m happy to teach anyone mother– that is, Professor Juniper– is willing to send to me to learn.”

“And if anyone tried to shut us down more permanently, well…” Sakura’s lips cut a scimitar across her mouth, sharp and curved with malice. “We can handle ourselves.”

Alice’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Oh I definitely do quite like the both of you.” Pausing, she fished out a phone. “If you wouldn’t mind, could we exchange numbers? I’d always enjoy conversations with like-minded Trainers, and I’d be able to introduce you both to communities that practice the more esoteric ways to this day more easily.”

“I’d be happy to. Sakura?” At her sister’s nod, both girls pulled out their devices and got each others’ numbers. As they tucked their electronics away again, Rin gave the other woman an appraising look. “Before we begin working on my lecture, I need to get clarification on something. Do Gardian mages have any sort of elemental affinity, or typing, inherent to them?” Rin asked awkwardly.

She blinked. “Uh. Okay, so, you’re going to need to clarify what you mean by that. Do you mean the type I gravitate towards the most? Or the type that I identify with? Or do you mean the specific method that my mystical practice aligns with most?”

Rin frowned. “...I suppose there’s a bit of difference in the nature of souls here on Garde. Back home, every person born has an Element and an Origin encoded into their very being. Elements are a lens through which all Magi structure their spells; most mages have elements corresponding to the classical elements or broad concepts, sort of like types. Origins, meanwhile, are at the root of the soul, and while their influence isn’t entirely understood, they shape and are shaped by who the person is.” Pausing, Rin considered something, before continuing on. “Knowing one’s element was considered important, as it allowed for one to direct their craft in a fruitful direction. It’s very different here, apparently. Rather than something set at birth, it’s more… dynamic.”

“I see. But you think we still have these innate elemental affinities, and have a method to actually look into them,” Alice surmised. “Let me guess, you want me to go through the ritual to see if it works on Garde natives?”

Rin, amusingly, shook her head. “Nope. I’ve already attempted to discern the element of a few natives.” Honestly, Rin was about ninety percent sure that if not for the fact that Arceus was actively allowing to use things from their native universe they outright would not work. “Things are just different here.”

Sakura coughed. “Rin was wondering if you could break down the nature of how typing worked in humans, I believe. She assumed I had a high ‘affinity’ for dark and psychic type energies, but since the revelation that her scans didn’t work, she has been a bit confused. And that means her lecture could be wrong.” She needled her sister a little.

“Which is something I need to avoid, but I also need a hook to pull people into actually participating in my lecture rather than just listening. Learning one’s element would have been a good icebreaker, but absent that, I need something else simple enough for any student to interact with, but not so dangerous that we can do it en masse in a classroom. Any suggestions?” Rin finished.

“Hmm. I may be able to think of something…” Alice said after a few moments of thought.