Timothy was still standing in front of the north tower entrance, staring at where he last saw Serena. He longed to see her smile, to look into her ocean-blue eyes, and to feel her hand on his cheek, even though he had learned minutes ago that her heart belonged to Ash. He stayed in his pathetic state until Odyssey went outside looking for him.
"Timothy, what are you doing?" It asked. "We need to hide Ash and his Pikachu now."
Timothy snapped out of it and went back inside with Odyssey. Ash was still lying on the tablecloth on the floor with Pikachu, Electchu, and Shockwave surrounding him. He lifted his upper body up to stand until Timothy forced him down.
"Don't make any sudden movements. You might rip your stitches," Timothy said.
"How are you going to hide Pikachu and me then?" Ash asked.
"We could hide them in the bedroom," Electchu suggested.
"No, it's too far away. We'll never make it there before Master Markenel arrives," Timothy said.
Ash and Pikachu looked at Timothy befuddled, and the former asked, "Did you understand what your Pikachu said?"
"Yes, yes. I understand my Pokemon friends perfectly," Timothy said impatiently.
"Why don't we hide them under the table?" Shockwave asked.
Timothy looked at the table with his model city and figures and realized that both sides of the tablecloth covering it nearly reached the floor on both sides.
"That'll do," Timothy said. "I'm gonna need all of you to watch him from under there, though."
"You got it," Electchu said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said.
Timothy scooped Ash up from under the wounded man's arms and dragged him toward the table, trying not to make any movents that would open his wounds. He lifted the tablecloth up and gently pushed Ash underneath the table with Shockwave and Odyssey forcing his arms and legs to go inside. All four Pokemon went underneath the table, and Timothy put the cover down just in time to notice his supper was still left untouched. Not wanting his master to see that he hadn't eaten, Timothy took the bread and cheese and put them underneath the table.
"Here. Help yourself if you and your Pikachu haven't eaten," he whispered to Ash.
"Thanks," he heard Ash say.
Timothy took the plate, picked up the goblet Serena left on the floor, and rushed over to put them back in their spots on the cabinet. He then folded the tablecloth on the floor and put it in its place in the cupboard, hoping that Markenel won't notice the blood and wine stains. Timothy then raced back to the table, pulled up a stool, and began pretending to be playing with his figures. He silently prayed to the Lord that Markenel wouldn't find Ash and that Serena, Sylveon, Miette, and Slurpuff would return to their hideout safely just as Markenel was entering the room.
"Good evening, Timothy," he said.
Timothy let out a yelp and dropped his figures. He turned his head to see Markenel smiling at him while carrying a basket with his arm and holding a candle. Timothy stood up to face his adopted father with a forced grin.
"Oh, M-m-m-Master Markenel. What a surprise," Timothy said. "I didn't think you'd be coming so late while you're out doing your work."
"I'm never too busy for you, dear boy," Markenel said as he petted the hunchback's head. "I decided to bring a little treat."
Markenel placed the candle and basket on the table and sat on a stool at the end of the table. Timothy mentally sighed in relief that Markenel didn't come for something serious until he heard the judge loudly clear his throat. It took a second before Timothy realized what the judge wanted and rushed back to the cabinet to grab plates. He grabbed the plates in such haste that he tripped on his foot and nearly fell down while he ran back to Markenel. He put the plates on the table and sat back down on his stool, his heart racing as Markenel took out two stalks of grapes and put them on the plates.
"Where are your Pokemon, Timothy?" Markenel asked.
"Oh, uh, they were worn out from playing all day, so I sent them to bed." Timothy lied.
Markenel hummed and took out a grape from his stalk. He bit on his grape right in the middle and chewed slowly as he watched Timothy look at him with his hands shaking.
"Is something troubling you, Timothy?" The judge asked.
"No, sir," Timothy said.
"Oh, but there is," Markenel said. "I know there is."
"No, really, Master Markenel," Timothy claimed. "There really isn't -"
"Timothy, you know better than to lie to me," Markenel hissed.
Timothy flinched at the sharp way the judge spoke. His heart became filled with fear, unsure if he could hide the fugitives for long. The hunchback stood still with his grapes untouched and his eyes on the judge's cold gaze until he thought of an honest answer unrelated to Ash and Pikachu.
"I'm unsettled with what's been happening outside, sir," he said.
"Explain," Markenel commanded.
Timothy took a moment to think of the best way to explain without upsetting Markenel and said, "All day I've seen people and Pokemon getting arrested from afar, and then I hear screaming and crying while your soldiers set places on fire. I know your work is important, and I hope you'll forgive me for doubting, but I can't help but question whether or not what you're doing is right."
Markenel gave a light chuckle and said, "Of course it is right. What I have done today is within my divine duty."
"With all due respect, sir, I doubt the Lord would give you permission to destroy homes and arrest people at will," Timothy said.
Markenel chuckled again, taking Timothy's statement as a moment of cluelessness, and said, "My boy, I have the support of Blessed Maria herself. It is her decree that I find that Arcean woman and give her a chance for salvation through me and punish those who side with the wicked."
Timothy's eyes widened, and his mouth hung open, appalled with the judge's claim.
"Y-y-you mean everything you've done was just to try to redeem Serena?!" He asked.
"Of course," Markenel replied.
"But you can't do that," Timothy said. "No one can be saved unless they willingly repent and give their life to the Lord."
"That is not so, Timothy," Markenel claimed. "I am the justice minister tasked to bring order to this wretched city. My righteousness is more than enough to cleanse someone of their wickedness, and the rest must be brought down."
"That isn't how salvation works, Master Markenel," Timothy said. "There is only one lawgiver and judge, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge your neighbor?"
Markenel's confident smirk disappeared, and he raised an eyebrow. Timothy flinched and lowered his head, afraid that his master was going to beat him.
"Was that James 4:12?" Markenel asked.
"Y-y-yes, sir," Timothy said.
"Strange. I don't recall ever assigning that passage to you," Markenel said.
"You didn't, sir," Timothy confessed. "I decided to do some extra reading of the holy word today. I wanted to clear my mind on things, and what you've been doing does not appear to be what the Lord wants us to do."
"Indeed?" Markenel asked. "Well, let's see if you remember this passage from Micah chapter 5: 'And I will cut off sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more tellers of fortunes.'"
"The first half of Romans 12:20 says, 'To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink,'" Timothy countered.
"Leviticus 19 verse 31: 'Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God,'" Markenel recited.
"First Peter 3:9 says, 'Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing,'" Timothy pointed out.
"'You shall not permit a sorceress to live.' Exodus 22:18."
"'Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.' Romans 12:16."
"'Conceited? My boy, you are using passages out of context," Markenel rebuked. "I told you that this is God's will."
"But he wouldn't want any of us to do what you have done," Timothy said. "Yes, there was a time where the wicked had to be punished, but that's over. There's so much more in the bible that talks about loving one another, which has been one of his greatest commandments since Moses's time. The Son of Man himself said to love our enemies and pray for our persecutors and that our father is heaven causes his sun to rise and send rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous. He also said that there is no reward for only loving those who love us because -"
"You're not eating, boy."
Timothy flinched, and his heart jumped in fright. Even though Markenel spoke in the same cold, mild voice, the way he said "eating" may as well have sounded like the growl of a carnivore ready to pounce on the poor hunchback. Timothy grabbed a handful of grapes and stuffed them into his mouth. His eyes were fixed on his plate because he was afraid to look at his master's face. Markenel smirked as he watched Timothy eat, thinking the young man's submission meant he won the argument.
But then, his eyes turned to Timothy's model city, and he saw the hunchback's figure off its spot on the model of Lumiose Cathedral and standing close to a figure of Serena. He clenched his teeth from inside his mouth, and his hands turned into fists with his theory proven correct. While still keeping a calm demeanor, Markenel stood up and picked up the Serena figure to look at it closely. Timothy looked up from his grapes, and his heart froze as he realized he forgot about his new statue.
"Is this one new?" Markenel asked. "It's awfully good. It almost looks like the Arcean woman."
Timothy stood still, unable to say anything. He knew that Markenel would be mad that he made a figure of an Arcean, but he didn't think about what he would do if he saw his figure of Serena. The judge continued to look at the figure as though Timothy wasn't there, leaving the younger man unsure of what he was going to do, and then, as quick as a flash, Markenel smacked Timothy in the face so hard that he fell off his stool. Timothy crawled back a couple of steps with his arm up in defense as Markenel glowered at him with his teeth clenched.
"You let her escape!" Markenel shouted. "Admit it! All of Lumiose City is burning because of you!"
"S-s-she was kind to me, m-m-master," Timothy confessed in a near whisper.
Markenel let out an inhuman scream and slammed his fist into a model house, breaking it into pieces. Timothy backed away further, terrified as his adopted father continued to destroy his model city and knock his figures off the table.
"YOU IDIOT!" He roared. "THAT WASN'T KINDNESS! THAT WAS CUNNING!" With the cathedral model knocked off the table, Markenel grabbed Timothy by the shirt and lifted him up until their faces were close together. "SHE'S AN ARCEAN! ARCEANS ARE NOT CAPABLE OF REAL LOVE! THINK, BOY! THINK OF YOUR MOTHER!"
Tears ran down Timothy's face, and his body shook as he looked at the rage in Markenel's eyes. The judge held on to his gaze at the frightened man until he noticed that he was still holding the Serena statue with his right hand. His anger melted into a smirk, and he let go of Timothy.
"But what chance would a poor, misshapen child have against the powers of someone so wicked?" Markenel asked before he took out a dagger from his belt and pierced the Serena statue onto the tip of the blade. He held the wooden statue up to the candle with his dagger, and it caught fire. "Well, never you mind, Timothy. She will trouble us no longer soon enough."
He swung the burning figure off the tip of his dagger, and it rolled over until it was just inches away from Timothy.
"W-w-what do you mean?" Timothy asked.
Markenel's smirk grew, and he said, "In my search for Serena, I have discovered where the Court of Miracles is. As we speak, Captain Giovanni is gathering a thousand soldiers and Pokemon. At dawn, I will fulfill my destiny by destroying the Arceans once and for all. Good night, Timothy."
Markenel walked past Timothy and exited the room without another word. Timothy stayed on the floor, shivering from his master's outburst until his eyes turned to the Serena figure, which had become nothing but a black lump of crumbly wood. The hunchback's fear grew for Serena as it hit him that she, Sylveon, and their people and Pokemon were discovered and were only hours away from destruction.
His train of thought was interrupted when he heard Ash, Pikachu, Electchu, Shockwave, and Odyssey crawl out from under the table. The raven-haired man bit his lip as he put his hand on the table's edge to stand up. Timothy stood up and walked over to help him, but Ash held his hand to assure him that he was okay.
"We've got to warn the Arceans," Ash said.
"You're still wounded," Timothy pointed out.
"I'm fine. Serena stitched me up good, and the food you gave me under there helped me regain some energy," Ash claimed. "More importantly, we have to find the Court of Miracles before daybreak."
"Then you and your Pikachu better get going," Timothy said.
Ash looked at Timothy, confused, and asked, "What do you mean? You're not coming?"
"I can't," Timothy said.
"Why not? I thought Serena is your friend," Ash said.
"Markenel is my master. I'm not disobeying him again," Timothy said.
"Oh, come on. She stood up for you, and this is your gratitude?" Ash rebuked. "Countless lives are at stake."
"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted in agreement.
"He's right, Timothy," Odyssey said, standing beside the hunchback.
"And what does he expect me to do? Rescue the lady and her people and Pokemon from the clutches of evil, and then everyone thinks I'm a hero?" Timothy quietly hissed to the Riolu so that Ash and Pikachu couldn't hear. "Serena already has her knight-in-shining-armor, and it's not me."
"That doesn't matter right now," Electchu said. "Ash and Pikachu need all the help they can get in warning the Arceans. It'll be just them against Master Markenel with a whole army."
"Yeah, well, I'm sure they can take them on, no problem since Ash is the bravest person to Serena," Timothy said bitterly.
Electchu and Odyssey scoffed at how their friend was acting childish. Timothy looked away from them until Shockwave walked over and forced him to look at it with its hands on his cheeks, giving him a serious look.
"Listen, Timothy, we're all sorry that Serena chose another guy, and we wish we didn't get your hopes up, but this is more important than your feelings," Shockwave said. "Master Markenel wants to kill countless people and Pokemon just for having different beliefs, and right now, the only ones who have a chance to stop him are the six of us in this room. If we don't all do our part in finding the hideout as best as we can, then Serena and Sylveon will surely die. You said that you want to make her happy. Did you really mean that, or was that only on the condition that she is in love with you?"
Timothy stood still, unsure of how to respond. Shockwave let go of his cheeks, stepped back, and waited with its arms crossed. Ash and Pikachu didn't hear what the hunchback and his Pokemon friends were saying, but they understood that the Pokemon were trying to convince Timothy to help, and so hoped that whatever Shockwave said did the trick. Timothy looked down in thought and tried to find a selfish answer that would work in his favor, but he ultimately couldn't deny what the right choice was.
"Okay, I'm going to help," he said.
Electchu, Shockwave, and Odyssey sighed in relief while Ash and Pikachu smiled.
"Glad to hear it," Ash said. "Now we just need to figure out how to look for the Court of Miracles. Got any ideas."
Timothy opened his mouth to say no until he remembered the necklace Serena gave him. He took it out from under his shirt and said, "I think this will help."
Ash and Pikachu tilted their heads, and the former asked, "How in the world is that going to help us?"
"I don't know. Serena gave this to me and said this will show the way," Timothy said.
Ash frowned and walked over to take the necklace from Timothy's hand. He held it up to examine it closely and rubbed his chin in thought while Pikachu hopped on his shoulder to look at it too.
"Hmmm. Maybe it's some sort of code," Ash said. "Those crosses could be hieroglyphs in some ancient language. What do you think, Pikachu?"
"Pika?" Pikachu asked, finding Ash's theory to be silly.
Ash sighed and lowered his head in defeat.
"You're right. It doesn't make any sense," he said. "This could lead us anywhere in the city."
Pikachu lowered its ears, disheartened by Ash's words. Electchu, Shockwave, and Odyssey grew worried as neither of them had any better ideas. Timothy stared at the woven band, wishing Serena told him what he was supposed to do with it, but then he remembered the second thing Serena told him.
"When you wear this woven band, you hold the city in your hand."
Timothy took the pointed ellipse while Ash was still holding the necklace and studied the two crosses and the blue ellipse. He squinted his eyes as the wheels in his head turned until the answer clicked in his mind.
"It's a map," he said.
"A map?" Ash asked. "How is this a map?"
"Look closely," Timothy said while pointing at the band. "The big, white cross is the cathedral, and the blue ellipse is the river surrounding it and most of the city."
Ash looked at where Timothy was pointing and thought about it before he said, "Okay, I guess that makes sense, but what is the other cross then?"
"If it's the only other thing showing on the map, then it might be where the Court of Miracles is," Timothy said.
Ash tilted his head and scratched the back of it in confusion.
"If you're right about that, then judging from where the cross is positioned, that means the Arceans' hideout is somewhere in the city's graveyard," he said. "But how could dozens if not hundreds of people and Pokemon be hiding there?"
"I don't know, but unless you have a better idea, the graveyard is the only place we can look," Timothy said.
Ash furrowed his brow and continued to scratch his head, skeptical of Timothy's theory. He turned his head to Pikachu, and the mouse Pokemon shrugged. Timothy, Electchu, Shockwave, and Odyssey waited for several seconds before the raven-haired man sighed and said, "I hope you're right about this, Timothy. I don't know what I'm going to do if we fail to warn Serena."
"Believe me, I'm as scared for her life as you are," Timothy said.
Ash smiled and nodded in approval before turning to Pikachu again.
"Let's go save the Arceans," he said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said, nodding in agreement.
"In that case, we better make another disguise for you before we all head out, Timothy," Electchu said.
Timothy frowned and asked, "We all head out?"
The hunchback's three Pokemon friends smirked at him, and Odyssey said, "You don't expect us to stay behind this time, do you? We'd never forgive ourselves if we let you leave the cathedral without us to protect you again."
"Besides, six heads are better than one," Shockwave said.
Timothy paused before he smiled and hugged the Pokemon, saying, "Thank you, you guys."
"Hey, save the thanks until after we save the day," Electchu said.
Timothy broke the hug and nodded at the mouse Pokemon before Electchu, Shockwave, and Odyssey ran over to the last curtain on the window to make a disguise. He turned to the necklace that Ash was still holding and mentally prayed that they would warn Serena in time.