Yep, this is it! The sequel to "A Hero's Path"! If you need to know more about the characters listed below, then it is imperative that the first story is read first. As for veteran readers:
I decided to introduce two very familiar characters to the Alto Marian scene, since it would be foolish to continue writing without mentioning them. As said in the summary, one other character is introduced, since the plot of the story is fixated around him. Just so you know, six years have passed since the original story, so now it has caught up with the current year. The first person view, since it is no longer a flashback, will shift from Calvin to Molly periodically, but most of the story will be centered around Molly for a better view of her past. The story will also follow the calendar as much as possible, bringing in the holiday season.
It was a beautiful evening in the ancient city of Alto Mare. I got dressed in a suit I bought the previous afternoon. The need for it was for a special event at the restaurant. Since 1999, the first actual year of business all the way to 2009, it had been ten years, and that meant that it was time for the Anniversary party. Of course, I couldn't join until I tied this tie, which I had spent fifteen minutes doing.
"Dad," Molly called. "Are you ready yet?"
"Give me a second!"
Six years had passed, and now I was 35. My leg had healed, and it was almost as if nothing had ever happened to it. But still, none of the memories are fazed in the least. There were some small incidents that had taken place over the course of these years, but not significant enough to top our battle with Mateo. One thing I will never forget was when Arceus made me third in command, a position originally held by Latios. I'm sure he wouldn't mind.
"Screw this," I ripped the tie off of my neck and went into the closet to change. When I came back out, I had ditched the suit, and was now wearing new jeans, a pair of black loafers, and a white turtleneck shirt topped by the black blazer that was originally part of the suit. "Much better."
I picked up a small box that was on my nightstand, and left my room. Over the banister and down on the first floor, a teenage girl stood. In an attempt to match her aqua blue hair, she wore a long, tiered skirt with a patchwork design of a similar color, brown sandals, and a sleeveless white shirt. She put a flower in her hair, which had grown down past her shoulders. It was flattened out and now looked silky smooth.
"What happened to the suit?" Molly asked.
"I ditched it, I couldn't get the tie to work," I gave her the box. "Happy seventeenth birthday."
She opened the box. In it, was a necklace with a star-shaped pendant, which had five extra pinnacles on its edges. Molly looked at it and started to smile.
"Wow, it's beautiful," She hugged me. "Thanks, dad."
The city was vibrant with life this evening. Music was playing, people were out enjoying themselves; it was a site like no other. As we walked up the street, I wondered if the anniversary was going to be big, or just a pushover for other parties going on across the city.
Boy was I wrong.
"Are those all our customers?" There was a large crowd of people headed towards the restaurant. MY restaurant, "Il Posto Per Godere". I walked up to a guy walking across from us. "Hey, where are you going?"
"That restaurant, over there," I followed his finger back to my restaurant. I held my head. "There's an anniversary party tonight, it's a can't-miss."
He walked into the restaurant. Molly joined me.
"What was that all about?"
"You know Molly," I turned to her. "This may be the biggest night of my career."
We walked inside. It was hectic. Almost every seat was taken, and there were still more people coming. Not only that, both tourists and civilians were dressed up in fancy clothing. I had hired some more employees over the years and now with a crew of twenty-five, it was just enough to handle the incoming orders. And who better to manage in my absence than Danielle Stewart?
"I'll be right back Molly," I walked into the kitchen. The employees had paused for a moment to listen to what Danielle was saying.
'Okay people,' The stern-looking Gardevoir said. 'This is a big night, and we have orders coming in like crazy. I'm going to need everyone doing their best tonight. You'd hate to let the manager down.'
I leant against the edge of the doorway. Some of them spotted me, and a bit of fear developed in their eyes. "Yes ma'am!" They all said in unison, and then went back to their individual jobs.
'Glad you could make it Calvin,' She said without turning around. 'Did you get your tie to work?'
"Uh....no, I ditched the suit altogether," I said. "I never learned how to tie a tie."
'Haven't you ever worn a suit?' She turned around and stared me down.
"Not since my marriage 19 years ago."
She shook her head. 'Well, at least you made an attempt to look good.'
We walked back out to the front. As a manager, I should've gone up to my office to avoid all of the noise, but I preferred to help out and take orders. I gained respect from the other employees that way. I took a pencil and a notepad and started to take individual orders. As I was doing this, I noticed a familiar couple talking amongst themselves. "Oh my god....no way!" I walked up to the two of them, and started to chuckle. The two of them looked up, and the woman's face turned red and she looked away.
"Calvin," Giratina said quietly. "Don't make a big deal out of this."
"We weren't expecting you to show up tonight," Arceus said.
I continued laughing. "What kind of manager would I be if I didn't show up to my own restaurant's anniversary party?" I called Molly over.
"Dad, what's wr--" When she looked at the frustrated couple sitting at the table, she joined me in laughter. "Can I just say how awkward this looks?"
"I asked Giratina to accompany me to your anniversary party, after you carelessly forgot about your other one," The two of us stopped laughing.
"What are you talking about?"
"Yes, it's been ten years since I appointed you," My eyes widened. This was truly an awkward moment for the four of us. I intentionally broke the tip of my pencil.
"Oh, whoops, my pencil broke," I gave it to Molly, and she ran off to never sharpen it. "Another waiter will come by to take your order. Enjoy your evening!"
I walked away. Instead of taking orders, I now went around to ask customers if they were enjoying themselves. I got some 'congratulations' from regular customers, and some 'great' and 'amazing' from others. As I approached a few more tables, I noticed another face. There was a young girl, probably Molly's age, sitting all by herself at a table near the window, drawing on what looked like a sketchbook. Her face reminded me of someone, and as I walked towards her, it finally clicked.
"Latias!" I mumbled, finally remembering the face. She turned to look at me, purely in shock.
"Excuse me?" Wrong girl, Calvin. I didn't need two awkward moments in one night. Plus, more exposure to the legendaries over the past few years had caused me to vividly denounce each and every aura they emitted. She wasn't emitting any to which I could remember, or classify for that matter.
"Oh, I'm sorry," I sat down across from her. "I was trying to remember the name of the city's guardian to pass the time."
"Oh yes, that's right," She looked relieved for some strange reason.
"Um, are you expecting someone?"
"No, I'm doing a favor for my grandfather. He's the city's curator....who are you, by the way?"
"I'm the owner and manager of this restaurant," She smiled and passed me a letter, then continued drawing.
I opened the letter. From what I read, I was supposed to attend a special event called "The Fine Arts of Alto Mare" tomorrow, at the Museum. Wow, I never thought I would actually have to go there, but it had always interested me at how much history this city held. I closed the letter. When I looked up, she had vanished. I looked around, but it looked as if she had left.
"I'll be there, I guess...." I got up, and rejoined Molly and Danielle at the bar.
The anniversary party was scheduled to end at midnight, but unfortunately I couldn't say no to the wave of customers still coming in, and the party went on until around 2:30 in the morning. When we finally closed, the three of us stood at the door and said our goodbyes to everyone, and then went back inside to clean up. Employees were walking around, picking up plates and dishes, wiping up the tables and turning up chairs, and I was mopping the floor. What had begun to swirl around in my mind was that mysterious girl who vanished without a trace, but had enough time to give me this letter.
"What's that, dad?" Molly asked, wiping down a counter.
"A letter this young girl gave me," I gave it to her, and she started to read it. "Something about a ceremony at the museum tomorrow night."
"The Fine Arts of Alto Mare?" She asked. "Dad....you've been nominated for an award!"
"What?" She showed me the letter. Along with tickets to the event, the letter continued to read that the restaurant and I were nominated for the 2009 Culinary Arts award, for outstanding performance for a decade. "This is great!"
When we finished cleaning, I called all of the employees together to talk to them, in the kitchen.
"Okay people," I said. "Before you all leave, I have a few things to say. I've been informed tonight that "Il Posto Per Godere" has been nominated for an award for outstanding performance over the course of this last decade," There was some indistinct chatter. "I will be attending the ceremony tomorrow along with Molly and Danielle, so cross your fingers and pray that we beat out whatever competition we've had!"
There was some applause, some agreed with me. "Okay, closing time," We all left the kitchen and one by one, exited the restaurant and went our separate ways.
"Dad, I have to ask you something," She turned to me. "What possessed Arceus to go out with Giratina?"
"I don't know, but it's definitely something to think about."
A little side note:
I didn't start noticing these little things until after I had finished "A Hero's Path", but you will find it interesting why I chose this title:
-As of 2009, Molly is now 17. That was obvious.
-Calvin has lived in Alto Mare for 17 years.
-As mentioned in the title, the story definitely has something to do with the sword and the number 17, but won't be mentioned until later.
A little Fun fact:
Calvin has been Arceus's Aide for 10 years, and has been a restaurant manager for 10 years. That makes 20. But wait. If you take those three years off from when the restaurant was closed (from the first story), then what number does that leave you with?
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