Chapter Twelve
~Wes's POV~
"Finally, Castelia City!" Wes proclaimed happily as he and Callie stood on the dock of Castelia City, each of them standing beside their bikes.
It was around noon — they hadn't left Liberty Garden until earlier that morning, due to Callie and Wes staying and celebrating with the locals a bit longer than expected. Wes had been hoping it would help lift Callie's spirits, but the attempt seemed to be in vain, as she was still just as down as she had been before. In fact, it appeared as though her mood had actually worsened.
"What do you think, Callie?" said Wes with a smile. "How different does it look from your time?"
"It looks . . . cool," Callie said plainly, barely glancing around.
"Well, kids, I guess this is where we part!" said Pop Roxie and he and Politoed emerged from the captain's cockpit. "I must say, it was quite the adventure! I'm glad I was the one to help you two reach Castelia City!"
"Yeah, thanks again, Pop Roxie," said Wes with a smile. "You too, Politoed!"
"Poli!" Politoed said with a smile.
"Do you know where you two will be staying?" said Pop Roxie.
"I think we were just planning on getting a room at the Pokémon Center, right?" Wes said, looking to Callie.
"Hm? O-oh, yeah," said Callie absentmindedly.
Wes frowned softly and opened his mouth to say something, but Pop Roxie shook his head.
"Don't bother her too much," Pop Roxie said lowly to Wes so Callie couldn't hear — Wes filled him in on the events that transpired at the light house when they got back to the boat the night before. "She's going through a lot right now. . . . That Zorua was very special to her. It'll be a while before she's okay."
Wes continued to frown, but he nodded ever so slightly before looking at Callie and offering a small smile. However, Callie wasn't looking at him. She was staring across the dock at all odd ship — it was a black ship with sails on it. Perhaps is wasn't so strange to other people, but something about that ship seemed oddly familiar, as if she had seen it before.
Wes followed her gaze to the ship and raised an eyebrow. "That's a strange ship. A sailing ship, in this day and age?"
"I feel like I've seen it before," Callie muttered. "Zoro, do you know where we've seen —"
Callie stopped talking as she became suddenly aware of the absence of his presence. With both Zoro and Celebi gone, Callie felt very alone, despite having all her pokémon and Wes along with her.
A sudden hand on her shoulder pulled her out of her thoughts, and she turned to see Wes standing there beside her, smiling sadly.
"It'll be okay," Wes said softly. "We'll get him back."
"Whatever," Callie muttered, jerking away from Wes and walking off, pushing her bike along with her as she began to head towards the Pokémon Center. She didn't need the map to guide her to her destination — after all, she grew up here.
Wes sighed heavily, shaking his head as he watched her walk away — Callie had been very standoffish since Zoro was taken. He understood why, but there didn't seem to be anyway to cheer her up. . . .
"She'll come around, don't you worry," said Pop Roxie.
"I just want to help her," said Wes, frowning. "I should have grabbed the pokéball. . . . If I had just been a little faster, none of this would have happened. . . . I could have at least kept Team Plasma from taking Zoro. . . ."
"Don't blame yourself," said Pop Roxie. "We knew that Team Plasma was going to come for Celebi, but we didn't know that Zoro was going to get caught. Callie's hurting now, but she'll heal with time."
"I've got to get him back," Wes muttered. "I've got to find Team Plasma!"
"I think you need to make taking care of Callie your first priority," said Pop Roxie. "Besides, this goal you kids have, going off and stopping Team Plasma —"
"We're not kids," Wes interjected.
"Right," said Pop Roxie, shaking his head. "Whether you're kids or not, you're both still too young to be worrying about stopping them. Just leave it to the professionals."
"Yeah," Wes said slowly. "It's a bit more complicated than that. I feel like. . . . Well, I feel like this is something I'm meant to do."
Pop Roxie sighed heavily, shaking his head. "Whatever you say. . . . Now, go take care of that girl, you hear me?"
Wes nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks again for the ride, Pop Roxie."
"My pleasure, Wes," said the captain. "You two take care of yourselves!"
"You too!" said Wes, heading off after Callie. "Bye, Pop Roxie! Bye, Politoed!"
Pop Roxie and Politoed both waved as they watched Wes catch up with Callie. As the two friends disappeared from sight, Pop Roxie and Politoed ceased their waving, and the captain sighed heavily, shaking his head slightly.
"My, my, my," Pop Roxie said quietly. "Those two. . . . They're quite something, aren't they, Politoed?"
"Poli," said the green, frog-like pokémon that stood beside him.
"They're going to get themselves into quite a bit of trouble, I'm sure," Pop Roxie muttered. "But, I suppose if anyone's going to stop Team Plasma. . . . Well, they've got what it takes."
"Toed!" Politoed said in agreement.
Pop Roxie smiled softly and nodded to himself. "Well, how about you and I go get one of those Casteliacones before heading back to Virbank? Sound good?"
"Poli! Politoed!" Politoed exclaimed happily.
So, with Callie, Wes, Pop Roxie, and Politoed gone, the pier was left empty. However, it didn't remain empty for long — two figures appeared from the strange black sailing ship. They quickly got off their vessel and looked around at their surroundings, taking it all in.
"So, this is Castelia City?" said the man to his partner, the small-framed woman who stood beside him.
"Mhmm," his partner mused. "Lord Ghetsis wants us to capture wild pokémon to help Colress with his research."
"Yes, but where does he expect us to find wild pokémon in Castelia City?" said the man crossly.
The woman shook her head. "I don't ask questions — I just do as I'm told, and it would serve you well to do the same."
The man rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right. . . ."
"Good," said his partner, pleased to have his agreement. "Now, let's get going."
Callie and Wes soon found themselves standing outside the Pokémon Center, and admittedly, Callie was left a bit awestruck — just weeks before, she had been standing in this very spot outside the building, looking at the rundown remains of the structure. In her time, it had chipped paint and broken windows, and the neon pokéball sign that hung proudly on the front was broken and faded. However, the building before her looked nothing like that. It was freshly painted, and the windows that lined the building were clean and shining, as the neon pokéball sign shone brightly and boldly, not so much as a single scratch on it at all.
"Wow," Callie said softly. "It's. . . . Beautiful."
"Really?" said Wes curiously. "It looks like a normal Pokémon Center to me."
Callie shook her head, a small smile on her face. "In my time, this place is closed off and abandoned. . . . It's kind of amazing to see it in its prime."
"You're smiling," said Wes softly. Callie looked at him curiously, and he cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I-I mean, yeah, I guess it is something then, huh?"
Callie nodded. "Well, let's go get checked in."
"Maybe we can explore the city afterwards?" Wes offered with a smile. "I'm want to know how different things are now from your time. . . . If you don't mind."
"Let's just get checked in," said Callie, her smile fading.
The two of them parked their bikes outside of center and walked inside. There were considerably more trainers inside this Pokémon Center than the one in Virbank City, but Callie also knew that Castelia was much larger than Virbank. There was a Nurse Joy sitting happily beside the desk alongside an Audino, and both of them looked up as Callie and Wes walked inside.
"Welcome!" said Nurse Joy. "How may we help you?"
"We were hoping you had some extra rooms?" said Wes. "We just need to stay for a few nights — I believe the Nurse Joy from Virbank City may have called ahead and told you we were coming. My name is Wes, and this is Callie."
"Wes and Callie?" Nurse Joy gasped, her eyes widened some. "You two — you have —"
Nurse Joy glanced around nervously, as if to make sure no one was listening, but once she was in the clear, she continued.
"You two have Celebi with you, correct?" she said.
Wes smiled softly. "We did, but Celebi made a full recovery on our journey over here, and it was able to return to the wild."
Nurse Joy's face changed, and though she smiled, Wes could tell that she seemed slightly disappointed. "Well, I'm glad to hear that Celebi was able to make a full recovery, though I must admit, I was hoping I'd get the chance to meet Celebi myself."
"I'm sure, but it's safer for everyone that Celebi" said Wes with a smile.
"Yes, I guess you're right," said Nurse Joy. "Well, I do have a room set up for you two, if you'd like to follow me —"
"Just one room?" said Callie curiously.
Wes and Nurse Joy turned to look at her, and based on the expression on Callie's face, it didn't seem like she was too keen on the idea of sharing a room with Wes.
"I believe we have a few more rooms available," said Nurse Joy slowly. "Would you two like separate rooms?"
Wes laughed softly, shaking his head. "That's not —"
"That'd be great, thank you," said Callie quickly.
Wes paused and stared at Callie with wide eyes. Nurse Joy's smile faltered some as she awkwardly looked between the two.
"All righty, two rooms then," she said with a nervous chuckle.
"Still not comfortable with me?" said Wes with a joking laugh.
Callie didn't seem to find any humor in it at all.
"I just want to be alone, Wes," Callie said shortly, not meeting Wes's gaze.
Wes's smile faded and he frowned and said nothing. Nurse Joy stood from her seat behind the desk and led the two down the hall way to their rooms, which were right across the hall from one another.
"Alright, here are your, erm, private rooms," said Nurse Joy. "You two are welcomed to stay as long as you'd like! Let me or Audino know if there's anything else we can do for you."
"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Wes said.
"Yeah, thank you," Callie said as Nurse Joy turned and headed back towards the lobby.
The two of them stood in the hallway for a moment, watching Nurse Joy walk away. Then they looked to each other for a brief moment. Wes offered a weak smile, and Callie simply nodded before turning her back to him and going into her room, closing the door quickly behind her. Wes's face fell and he sighed heavily, going into his own room and shutting the door behind him.
He wished so desperately to find some sort of way to cheer her up — he hated seeing Callie like that. He hadn't known her long, but she always seemed so happy, so hopeful. . . . Seeing her so depleted of any energy or feeling. . . . It was concerning. But she needed time to herself. . . . At least, that what Pop Roxie said, and Callie even said so herself.
So, Wes made himself comfortable in his room. For a few hours, he didn't do much except watch TV from his bed, flipping through the channels idly. Once he got tired of that, he looked through some of the magazines and books that were left on the small side table for anyone's enjoyment. A few moments were spent staring blankly out of the street facing window, watching the many different residents of Castelia City stroll by his window.
Soon enough, his stomach was growling, and Wes looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was well past seven o'clock, meaning it was time for dinner. He rose from his place on his bed and left his bedroom, strolling across the small hallway to Callie's door.
Wes sniffled a yawn as he knocked on Callie's door.
"Hey, c'mon, it's time for dinner," Wes said.
There was no response from the other side of the door, and after a few moments, Wes knocked again.
"Callie, let's go," Wes said. "You've got to eat something."
There was a series of sounds that came from behind the door that indicated bit of shuffle in the room, and then the door to Callie's room slowly opened a few inches. Standing on the other side of the door was a disheveled looking Callie — Wes guessed she must had fallen asleep.
"You, uh, look a bit rough," Wes said with a small smile.
Callie, however, didn't smile back. "I'm not hungry," she said simply.
Wes's smile faltered and he frowned, looking her over. "Do you feel okay?"
"I'm fine, Wes," Callie said, though Wes could see through that blatant lie with ease — she was definitely not okay.
"Callie. . . . Talk to me," said Wes. "Is it about, y'know. . . . Zoro?"
"I said I'm fine, Wes," Callie said again, this time sounded very irritated.
Then, with an aggravated sigh and roll of her eyes, Callie turned her back, the door closing behind her. Wes stood there, a bit stunned by her tone, but he remembered what Pox Roxie said. . . . She needed time.
"Okay," Wes muttered to himself. "I guess I'll go get dinner by myself."
He went down to the cafeteria at the Pokémon Center, having a rather uneventful dinner with just himself and his pokémon. For a bit over a week now, Wes had spent every meal sitting across from Callie, the two of them talking about the vast difference between their upbringings; Wes's filled with pokémon and life-long dreams of being a Pokémon Master, versus Callie's childhood, where she wanted to graduate from high school and go on to be a curator of a museum. . . . Wes never realized how much he actually enjoyed those seemingly never ending conversations, until he had to sit through one without it.
After he and his pokémon had all had there share, Wes stood up and went back towards his room. He opened the door to his room and was just about to go in, when he stopped briefly to steal a glance at Callie's door — maybe he should knock and see how she was feeling?
"No. . . . She needs space," Wes muttered to himself before going into his room and closing the door.
The next day, things still didn't seem to be better with Callie. She declined Wes's invitation to go for breakfast, and even the offer of a battle between the two on them. Even mention of a gym battle with Burgh didn't seem to lift her spirits. When it came time for lunch, Wes also stopped by Callie's room, but once again, she just called through the door that she wouldn't be joining him for lunch either. So Wes went off to yet another quiet meal by himself. And it was the same reaction when Wes went to bother her about dinner.
This trend continued into the next day, Wes eating alone for all three meals. He attempted to go exploring, but after a few minutes, Wes decided it didn't feel right if Callie wasn't coming along. But alas, each time Wes went to her room to speak to her, Callie called a short response from the other side of the door, not opening her door a single time. It wasn't until the very next day that Wes had grown tired of the solitude. He had just finished with another rather boring, uneventful lunch, and was about to go back to his room. However, on his way back to his room this time, he stopped at the front desk of the Pokémon Center, where Nurse Joy had been sitting with Audino.
"Nurse Joy," said Wes. "Have you seen my friend leave her room at all since we got here?"
"Your friend? Oh, you mean Callie?" said Nurse Joy with a smile. "Callie left her room her first night here to request her food be brought to her room for her and her pokémon during the duration of her stay. Aside from that, well. . . . I guess I haven't seen her leave her room," said Nurse Joy, frowning softly.
"She wants to stay in her room for the entire trip?" Wes muttered to himself in disbelief, shaking his head. "Man, this Zoro thing really has her down. . . ."
"You could always find some way to cheer her up," suggested Nurse Joy. "Castelia City has tons of fun things to do in the city — perhaps a little sight seeing will cheer her up?"
"Yeah. . . . Maybe you're right," said Wes with a smile.
So, with that, Wes went to Callie's room, knocking eagerly to himself.
"Callie," Wes said happily. "C'mon, open up!"
"I'm not in the mood, Wes," Callie called from the other side of the door.
"I'm not going away this time, Callie," said Wes. "Not until you at least open this door!"
There was silence for a moment, and then Wes heard her get out of bed and shuffle towards the door. Slowly, the door to the room opened and Wes found Callie standing behind the partially opened door. He couldn't see much of her, but the glimpse of her he did catch showed her still in her pajamas, her hair completely disheveled, and her face looked paled. She looked absolutely horrible.
"What do you want, Wes?" Callie said, sighing heavily.
"I was thinking we could go out and explore the city some," said Wes, deciding not to express concern for Callie's wellbeing. "Maybe some sight seeing will improve your mood!"
"I'm not really feeling up to it," Callie said, frowning. "Like I said, Wes, I just . . . need some alone time."
"But Nurse Joy said you asked her to deliver your food to the room for the rest of our stay here," said Wes, frowning. "You've got to come out of your room sometime."
"I will, Wes, really, I just. . . . I want to be alone," Callie said quietly, closing the door.
However, before she could close the door completely, Wes stuck his foot out, stopping Callie from shutting her door. She looked at him, her eyes narrowed.
"You can't keep this us, Callie," Wes said, shaking his head. "You can't stay in here the entire time."
"I told you, Wes," Callie said, shaking her head. "I'm just not in the mood."
"But why?" said Wes incredulously. "We did everything we could, Callie! We could have stopped Team Plasma!"
"But we could have, Wes!" Callie snapped. "We could have prevented it! I could have prevented it! Zoro getting captured. . . . It was all my fault."
"What?" Wes said, his eyes widening. "Why in the world would you say that?"
"Because it's true!" Callie said. "I pressured Celebi into using its power to teleport us out of that storm even though I knew that Team Plasma would be able to track us if it did. Celebi even warned me before it did that Team Plasma would find us, but I still begged it to save us. So it saved us, but Team Plasma tracked us down, and they stole Zoro. If it weren't for me, he'd —"
"If it weren't for you, we wouldn't even be here, Callie," said Wes, shaking his head in disbelief. "If you hadn't convinced Celebi to teleport us out of that storm, we'd all be at the bottom of the ocean right now. We wouldn't be here in this Pokémon Center — we wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you, Callie. That rogue wave would have crushed our ship, and we all would have drowned."
Callie stood there silently for a moment, and Wes thought that perhaps his words had gotten through to her. However, after a few brief moments, Callie shook her head.
"You just don't get it, Wes," she said softly as she used her own foot to gently nudge Wes's foot out of the way of her door. "You couldn't possibly understand. . . . Just. . . . Please, leave me alone. . . ."
And with that, Callie closed the door to her room, leaving Wes alone in the hallway. Wes knew better than to go on and bother her anymore, so instead he walked away from her door and across the hall to his room. Closing the door behind him, Wes settled onto his bed with a great sigh, making himself comfortable under the sheets. He grabbed the remote from the bedside table, idly putting on the television to offer him some background noise. He flipped the television to the news channel, not really paying it much attention.
"There's gotta be some way to cheer her up," Wes muttered to himself as he laid in his bed. "I know Pop Roxie said to give her time, and Callie said she wanted to be alone, but. . . . I need to cheer her up, I've just got to. . . ."
It was then that an image of a small little girl flashed across the screen of the TV. In the image, the young girl was smiling broadly, holding onto an ice cream cone. Above her, the words 'Try a Casteliacone today!' was written in large red font. Wes smiled to himself. Of course — Casteliacones! He remembered they had been on the rage a few years before, and everyone would flock to Castelia City just to try to get their hands on one.
"I got it!" Wes exclaimed. What would cheer up Callie better than a Casteliacone?
So, with a plan in mind, Wes jumped to his feet and headed out of his room, down the hallway to the front desk, where Nurse Joy appeared to just be getting herself settled back into her seat behind the desk.
"Nurse Joy!" Wes said quickly. "Do you know where the nearest Casteliacone stand is?"
"Casteliacone?" said Nurse Joy with a smile. "Of course! I would recommend going to the stand on Mode Street — they have the best Castliacones in the city by far!"
"Perfect, thank you!" Wes said with a smile before taking off out the doors of the Pokémon Center.
Castelia City was the largest city in Unova. Unlike other cities, it was a huge, sprawling metropolis, sporting many towering skyscrapers and other tall buildings. It was the heart of business and economy of the Unova region, and for Wes, who came from the small town of Aspertia City, it was easy to get lost. Most of its city streets were crowded with different people rushing around, trying to get to work, home, or other places, creating the hustle and bustle scene for city life. The city's core was the central business district, with huge skyscrapers and other commercial buildings, but the series of alleyways that lead into this core where lined with smaller shops, set up among city traffic. The city was a melting pot, incorporating cultures and foods from other regions. From across the globe, artists also flocked to Castelia to open their art galleries.
"Amazing," Wes said to himself as he stared around wide eyed. "Simply amazing. . . . But now, I've got to find Mode Street. . . ."
Wes pulled out his town map, zooming in on his location and looking around the map.
"Alright, Mode Street shouldn't be too far from here. . . . Just a few paces this way, and it should be on my left. . . ."
And so he was off. He began walking down the street and took a left, which put him on Mode Street. It was another commuter-heavy street, but not as large or as busy as Castelia Street. Many trees and plants lined its sides, giving the street a feeling of nature. Along the east side of Mode Street was Studio Castelia, a popular art gallery where people went to enjoy local artwork, and along the west side was the Casteliacone stand that Nurse Joy had told Wes about. However, much to his surprise, there wasn't a very long line — in fact, not a single soul stood outside the stand, and for a moment, Wes was curious if it was open.
Slowly, he walked over to the stand and stood at the counter, but he didn't see anyone at the register.
"Hello?" Wes called out. "Is anyone there?"
"Hm? O-oh my, is that a customer?" a voice from the back piped up.
Suddenly, a small, petite woman appeared behind the counter, her eyes widening when she saw Wes.
"Oh, it was a customer!" she said in surprise. "How may I help you?"
"I just wanted to get two Casteliacones, if you don't mind," said Wes sheepishly — Nurse Joy had said this place had the best Casteliacones in the city, but if that were true, how come there was no one else there?
"Two Casteliacones? Of course, coming right up!" said the shopkeeper happily, starting to scoop the ice cream.
As she worked, Wes glanced around Mode Street for end to end — it was definitely crowded with people, but there was no one giving this stand a second glance.
"Business hasn't been very good lately," said the woman, seeing Wes look around curiously. "We used to be busy constantly — we'd sell out daily, and people would come in crowds from all across Unova. But lately, not many people have been giving us so much as a glance."
Wes frowned softly. "I'm sorry to hear that. . . ."
"Oh, it's quite alright," said the woman, forcing a smile as she finished the Casteliacones and handed them to Wes. "I'm sure business will pick up sooner or later."
Wes smiled and gave her some money as he took the Casteliacones. "I'm sure you're right. Thanks again, have a great day!"
And with that, Wes left the Casteliacone stand. Wes had all intentions of heading straight back to the Pokémon Center, but something caused him to pause.
"Somebody, please, stop that man!"
Wes froze and looked around for the source of the cry — but it didn't appear to be coming from anyone on Mode Street.
"Please, anybody — help!"
It was coming from the next street over. Wes hurried ran in the sound of the voice, running by commuters, doing his best to avoid bumping into to anyone and dropping the Casteliacones. He followed the cry to Gym Street, which was a large street that contained its namesake, the Castelia Gym. Standing before the gym was a young girl, who stood there, her face in her hands, and an older gentleman stood beside her, trying to console her.
Wes quickly ran over to them.
"Hey, is everything okay?" said Wes when he got near them.
The young girl looked up at him, her face streaked with tears. "N-no, not at all! These two men dressed in black came right up to me and stole my pokéball off my belt! It had my Eevee in it!"
"What?" Wes's shock caused him to drop the two Casteliacones in his hand. "Someone stole your Eevee? That's terrible!"
The girl nodded. "Mhmm. They called themselves Team Plasma or something, and stole my Eevee! They said they were liberating it!"
Wes clenched his fists — Team Plasma was here in Castelia City? Why couldn't those creeps just stay gone for a while?
"Well, I've got to help!" Wes said. He then looked to the older man standing beside her. "Hey, where's the Gym Leader? He can help, right?"
The man shook his head. "I'm afraid the Gym Leader, Burgh, is already one step ahead of you. He said there might be trouble and then he took off! You can go look for him if you'd like! I believe he went after Team Plasma to retrieve this young girl's Eevee."
"Huh? Burgh vanished again?" said a voice.
Wes turned and saw a young woman with dark skin and wild violet hair looking at them with curious, maroon colored eyes. She was dressed in an elegant pink gown, and came towards the three of them.
"Oh, hello, Iris! Something came up, and Burgh isn't here right now," said the older man.
"Hmm. . . . Isn't Burgh always vanishing though? He always says he's got artist's block and just goes wandering out of the Gym. . . . Hey there, who are you?" Iris said, looking at Wes curiously.
"I'm Weston Gates," said Wes. "But most people just call me Wes."
"Wes, huh?" said Iris with a smile. She stepped forward and stepped in something that made a soft 'squish' noise, and when they all looked down, they saw she was stepping in one of the Casteliacones that Wes had dropped.
"Oh, sorry," Wes said sheepishly. "I dropped those."
"Are those Casteliacones?" said Iris, her eyes widening. "Oh, I heard there's an amazing place around here!"
"It's a few streets over," said Wes. "I'd love to show you, but I need to find Team Plasma."
"You're looking for Team Plasma? But Team Plasma disbanded two years ago!" said Iris, forgetting about her sudden desire for a Casteliacone.
"Yeah, I thought so too, but recently, they've been causing a lot of problems," said Wes lowly. "For instance, they just stole this girl's Eevee!"
"Oh no, your Eevee?" said Iris with wide eyes, looking at the girl. "Why are you just standing there? Well, I guess that doesn't matter! You're having problems, so I'll help you out! Hmm. . . . Now, where would suspicious people go to hide?" Iris seemed to be racking her brain for a moment before she clapped her hands together. "That's it! That might be where they are!"
And without another word, she took off down Gym Street and turned the corner, disappearing from sight.
"Good grief. . . . Burgh and Iris are so similar. It looks like she went around the corner, toward the Pokémon Center. Do you know where the Pokémon Center is?"
"Not from here, no," Wes said with a frown.
"If you follow the street that goes around Castelia City, it goes right there!" said the man.
Wes nodded. "Right," he then looked to the young girl. "I promise, I'll get your Eevee back, safe and sound!"
Wes took off after Iris, following the older man's instructions. He turned left at the corner, just like Iris did, and after making his way through a few more crowds of people, he found himself in front of the Pokémon Center once again, where Iris was standing just outside, waiting for him. Once she laid eyes on him, she looked at him impatiently.
"Hey, c'mon! It's just past here! If you mention a suspicious place in Castelia City, the only place that come to mind are Narrow Street and here!" said Iris as she began to take off again.
Wes nodded and was just about to follow after her when he looked back to the Pokémon Center. Where they were headed, they were hopefully going to run into Team Plasma, which meant there was a chance they could see Zoro. . . . Callie had to come with them.
"Iris!" Wes called out, stopping her in her tracks. "Wait! I've got to get my friend!"
"Your friend?" said Iris with a frown. "There's no time for friends!"
"I have to!" said Wes. "This is important to her!"
"Fine!" said Iris impatiently. "But I'm leaving without you!"
"But wait!" Wes called out as Iris took off. "Where are you going?"
However, Iris didn't respond and she disappeared into the sea of people. Great. . . . Team Plasma was somewhere in Castelia City, and the only person who knew where to go just left without him. . . .
"Hey, Wes!"
Wes looked up and saw none other than Hugh coming towards him.
"Hugh?" Wes said, a smiling breaking out across his face. "It's nice to see you! I take it as you beat Roxie?"
"Of course I did, look!" said Hugh, pulling out a small badge case from his pocket. He opened it, and inside were two badges — the Basic badge and the Toxic badge.
"That's great!" said Wes. "I'm proud of you."
"Thanks! That means I'm all caught up with you and Callie!" said Hugh happily. Wes frowned slightly though, and Hugh's eyes widened. "Don't tell me — did you and Callie already get your third badges? Am I really too late? It's only been a few days!"
Wes shook his head, still looking troubled. "No, no, it's not that — I just. . . . I have to go get Callie."
Wes headed inside the Pokémon Center, and Hugh followed after him.
"Is everything okay, Wes? You look troubled," Hugh said.
"Everything fine, it's just. . . . I'm worried about Callie," said Wes as they walked.
"What's wrong with Callie? Did she get hurt? Did something happen to one of her pokémon?" said Hugh as he followed.
Wes paused, frowning. "Team Plasma, they. . . . They attacked us the other day, at Liberty Garden."
"You two went to Liberty Garden?" said Hugh. "Oh, I heard that there's this legendary pokémon there, Victini, and —"
"Hugh," Wes groaned, cueing his friend to fall silent. "Listen. Team Plasma attacked us at Liberty Garden, and they tried to catch Celebi, but Zoro dove in front of the pokéball and got captured. Callie and I tried to get the pokéball, but Team Plasma was able to get the pokéball before us. They took Zoro."
"Zoro?" Hugh said, his eyes wide. "That's Callie's Zorua friend, right?"
Wes nodded. "Yeah. Team Plasma stole him, and now Callie's really down."
Hugh frowned, a certain darkness crossing his face. His fists were clenched, and his jaw was tense as he spoke. "Team Plasma. . . . Really did that?"
"Yeah, I saw it with my own eyes. She hasn't left her room since we got here a few days ago. She even wants Nurse Joy to deliver all her food to her room for the duration of our stay here in Castelia City," said Wes as they came to a stop outside Callie's room. "But I just found out Team Plasma is in Castelia City — I they just stole some little girl's Eevee a few minutes ago."
"They did what?" said Hugh incredulously.
Wes nodded. "I know, I know – those guys are unbelievable. But I'm hoping that if we can track down these Team Plasma thugs that took that girl's Eevee, we can find Zoro."
Hugh said nothing, instead he just nodded, and Wes knocked pointedly on Callie's door.
"Callie," Wes said. "Open up!"
"Wes, I'm not in the mood," Callie groaned from the other side of the door.
"But I have some news I think you'd be really interested in!" Wes said impatiently from the other side — as much as he wanted Callie to come with him, Wes had promised he'd find this little girl's Eevee.
Callie let out a very irritated grunt, and the door to her room opened, but this time, it wasn't Callie who opened it — it was Oshawott. The small otter pokémon frowned softly as he looked up at Wes and Hugh, looking worriedly over his shoulder to Callie. Wes and Hugh glanced at each other before stepping inside Callie's room — the curtains were drawn, every light was off, and Callie was laying in bed, buried under her covers. All of her pokémon were out of their pokéballs, and each of them sensed their trainer's emotions. Riolu and Growlithe weren't at each other's throats, and instead Growlithe laid behind Callie, trying to comfort her gently, while Riolu sat near feet, watching the door carefully. Shinx was sitting on the floor, and it looked as though he had tried to bring a smile to her face by playing with the small red ball Callie had received from Victini, though it didn't appear as though it worked.
Slowly, Callie sat up, still in her pajamas, hair just as disheveled and unwashed as earlier, her skin pale with deep purple bags under her eyes. There was a plate of food on the beside table, but it was left completely untouched — it didn't appear as though Callie had been sleeping or eating since their arrival.
"What do you want?" Callie groaned as Oshawott climbed up into bed with her.
"Wow, Callie," Hugh said, frowning. "You look. . . . Terrible."
"Hugh," Wes sighed.
"Thanks," Callie said shortly. "Is that all you had to tell me?"
"Er — no," said Wes quickly. "I-I didn't have any plans to say that. . . . No, I just was out looking for Casteliacones, but, uh, I ran into this girl, who's said her Eevee's been stolen."
"That sucks," Callie said, her face frowning some. "But what does it matter to me?"
"Because she said the people who stole her Eevee said they were with Team Plasma," said Wes.
"Team Plasma?" Callie said, as she became quite still. "Where?"
"Well, that I'm not sure of," said Wes. "I was following some woman named Iris who said she knew where they went. . . . She said there were only two places that come to mind when you think about shady spots in Castelia City. Narrow Alley and some other place, but she never said the name —"
"Narrow Alley and the Castelia Sewers," Callie said, her eyes widening. "Thumb Pier must be it!"
Wes blinked. "How do you know?"
"I grew up here, Wes, remember?" said Callie. "There's an entrance to the Castelia Sewers at Thumb Pier! They must be hiding in the sewers!"
There was a sudden flash in Callie's eye and she quickly stood from her bed and went straight to the bathroom, shutting it behind her. Wes smiled softly — it appeared as though that got her moving.
"Wes," Hugh said softly as the two boys stood there, waiting for Callie to get ready. "This may not be a good idea."
"What? Why?" said Wes as he listened to Callie shuffled around in her bathroom.
"Callie's not thinking straight," said Hugh. "She's angry, she may be reckless — it's not easy, what she's going through."
Wes opened his mouth to say something, but it was at that moment that the bathroom door swung open and Callie emerged, looking marginally more put together; she had changed out of her dirty pajamas, and her disheveled, unwashed hair had been piled into a quick, messy bun. Callie grabbed her glasses from her night stand and put them on as she began returning her pokémon.
"Riolu, Growlithe, Shinx — return!"
She put each pokéball on her belt and then looked to Oshawott, who looked positively giddy to see Callie so lively.
"Oshawott, let's go!" Callie said.
"Osha!" Oshawott said excitedly, jumping onto Callie's shoulder.
Callie made a move for the door, but Wes quickly stopped her.
"Hold on a second," said Wes. "Hugh and I will come with you!"
"No, I don't want your help," Callie said shortly. "You'll just get in my way!"
And with that, Callie pushed by Wes, leaving him and Hugh standing in her darkened room. Wes growled in irritation.
"Callie, wait!" Wes called out.
"We'll be fine!" she called over her shoulder before disappearing.
"Dammit," Wes muttered. "Hugh, we gotta go —"
"Wes, don't go after her," Hugh said. "You don't know how she feels right now. Team Plasma. . . . They stole her best friend. That's a pain that's hard to imagine."
"So?" snapped Wes. "Neither of us know what she's going through, Hugh! She's going to get hurt! She'll get the rest of her pokémon stolen! We've got to go after her."
Hugh frowned softly, shaking his head. "No, we don't. . . . But I will. You may not understand how Callie feels, but I do, Wes. I promise, I'll make sure she's okay. I can talk some sense into her!"
"But, Hugh," Wes said, frowning.
Hugh shook his head. "I'm serious, Wes. I'll follow Callie and give her some back up."
"Fine, but I'm at least going to Thumb Pier with you," Wes said. "I'll stand watch by the entrance and make sure they don't escape."
"Sounds good to me," said Hugh, and with that, the boys took off after Callie.
Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than others — it was going to be longer, but by the time I was nearly finished, I realized it was better if I split this into two chapters. So, while it sucks that this one isn't as long, chapter thirteen is nearly finished, so I should be able to post it soon. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter — it was fun to write things from Wes's point of view for a change! Let me know what you think!