A/N: Goin' for a two shot here.

Chapter 11: First Day In The Big City

- (Pewter City – Afternoon ) -

Outside the Pewter city Poke-center, a man walks up to look at the building. "Heh, this'll be easy. As soon as she gets here, I'll catch her and receive a big reward." Walking inside, the man looked around to find that the nurse at the counter was the only one there. "Guess I'll have to wait for it, though." Finding the nearest chair, he made himself comfortable for the long wait ahead of him.

- (Elsewhere in Pewter City) –

Cael walked through Pewter city, showing whoever she found Toren's picture. Sadly, she couldn't get any information on where he could have gone. Refusing to give up, she continued to ask anybody on the streets about her missing friend. Soon, the sun began to sink lower into the sky, and her hopes started to sink with it.

"Maybe he didn't come to Pewter?" She thought to herself, looking at the photo to help calm her down. Looking around, she noticed that people were starting to leave the streets. Steeling herself, Cael decided to ask one more person before calling it a day. By the time she started moving, however, the streets were almost empty.

Walking through the streets, Cael looked for someone to ask about Toren. After a while, she finally saw someone to ask. Just down the street from her was a taller man with spiked hair, wearing a black and orange coat.

Running up to him she yelled out for him. "Excuse me, sir, but have you seen this boy?" She ran close to him and held up the picture before looking at the man. While he took the picture, she bent down to catch her breath. "If I'm going to be running like this every day, I should get into shape." She thought to herself quietly.

After she caught her breath, Cael looked up at the man she ran down. The man was a bit larger than she had expected from a distance, not in height but in muscle. Unlike her previously clean white skin, his was a tanned and dirty color. Looking at his face, he seemed a bit annoyed, she couldn't clearly tell, however, due to his eyes being squinted. All in all, he seemed a bit frightening to the young lady.

All of those fears were dispersed, however, when the man's face brightened up. "Yeah, I remember this guy." He said, his voice softer than she thought it would be.

Through her surprise, happiness filled Cael up, and all her worries seemed to life. "Do you know where he went?" She asked enthusiastically.

"Sure do, it's a bit late to go there right now though. You'll have to wait until morning for that." Hearing this, Cael seemed to deflate a bit. Still, she was happy that she could find someone who knew at all.

"Could you tell me where he went though?" she asked a bit meekly.

"Sure, he went to the museum. He said something about a tablet that was being studied there. If you'd like, I could lead you there tomorrow." The man offered happily.

"If it wouldn't be any trouble to you, it would certainly help. I'll probably be at th-"

"The Poke-center." He finished for her.

Looking at him, Cael was slightly confused. Last she checked, she was disguised pretty well, and nobody so far could tell that she was a trainer. "How did you know?"

"That's simple. For one thing, Pewter is a pretty small town for a big city, and we don't get a lot of travelers besides trainers coming to the gym. It gets to be easy to spot someone new in town. Also, the Viridian forest has been blocked off recently, so it's harder for people to get here without being a trainer." Cael nodded along to what the man was saying, not completely understanding, but getting the general picture.

Looking up, the man noticed how late it was. "I should probably be heading back." Looking back at Cael he smiled. "I have some business I need to take care of. Will you be able to find the center on your own?"

"I think I'll be alright." Cael said, nodding to him.

"Alright than, I'll see you tomorrow." At that, he started to walk away. Watching him go, Cael realized something important.

"Sir, I never got your name." She yelled out to him. She was unsure if he heard them, the distance between them growing larger by the second. Suddenly, before he disappeared, she heard him shout back.

"The name's Brock."

Smiling, Cael turned around and walked away happily. "I'm on your trail, Toren." She said to herself as she turned through the streets, looking for the Poke-center.

By the time she arrived at the nearest center, it was already dark. Walking in, she looked around to see who, if anybody, was there. Noticing the only people were a man in a red vest with a pony-tail who was sleeping on a chair in the waiting area, and the nurse at the counter whose back was turned, she walked up to the nurse.

"Um, excuse me. I'm a trainer and I need a place to sleep." Cael said softly, trying to make sure not to disturb the man sleeping in the chair. He was forgotten, however, when the nurse turned around to look at Cael.

"Ah, you're a new trainer around here. The forest checkpoint called and said you'd be here soon." The nurse smiled at her, making her jump back a bit. Confused, the nurse asked her, "What's the matter? Am I scary?"

Slowly lifting a finger to point at her, Cael said shakily, "H-How did y-y-you get here from V-Viridian so f-fast?"

Realizing what was happening, the nurse chuckled to herself a bit. "Oh, dear, seems you've had a bit of a scare. Don't worry though, I'm not the Viridian nurse. My name is Sela Joy, and I'm the nurse for the Pewter City Poke-center."

"But you look exactly like the one in Viridian." Cael pointed out.

"Oh, Center H.Q. is the cause for that. They try to hire nurses who look very much alike. It's for the Pokémon really, a common face for healing helps them remain calm. I may look close to her, but I'm actually a bit taller than the Viridian nurse. Now, how can I help you?"

Shock and confusion were obvious on Caels face. Despite that, she tried to speak clearly. "I-I need a place to sleep, and I was hoping to sleep in the center tonight."

"Of course, I'll just need you to sign the guest book, and there should be some open beds upstairs." The nurse reached underneath the counter and pulled out a large book. Flipping through the pages, she found a recent page that was mostly empty. "Just sign right under the last name there and put the date next to your name."

Taking a pen off the counter, Cael did as she was told and signed the guest book. Looking at the other names, she spotted one that she knew. Right above her name, in small letters, read the name "Aetrom". Right next to the name was the previous days date, meaning he had slept at the center the day before. She didn't know why, but for some reason, how fast he was going was annoying her.

Finishing signing in, Cael put down the pen and looked up at the nurse. As soon as she saw her face, Cael thought of something. "Oh, could you also take care of my Pokémon too? They got a bit hurt on the way through the forest to get here."

"Sure thing, I'll have them as good as new by morning." The nurse smiled at her. After handing the nurse her pokeballs, Cael walked over and up the stairs at the side. Going down the hall, she walked into the first bedroom she could find and laid in the first bed she came across.

Feeling the day she had gone through, Cael lazily kicked off her shoes and set her bag at the side of her bed. Slowly, she pulled the covers out from under her and pulled them over her. Almost instantly she fell asleep, falling into the darkness of her dreams.


A/N: And there's a two-fer. Originally this chapter was a bit shorter in my writing book, but I spiffed it up a bit. So here's a big thumbs up for getting two done at once. Merry Christmas, everybody.