Chapter Thirteen: A Dark Past
Sayo stood outside the brightly lit Pokemon Center feeling slightly surreal. The life that she had been living this past month had been her happiest time, and she thought it had been taken away forever. Now that she was standing here, about to return, she couldn't quite believe it. Sayo knew she must look strange; gaping stupidly at the front entrance, but the ability to close her mouth and adopt a dignified expression was completely beyond her at the moment. People coming in and out of the Center gawked as they walked past. She was still dressed in her evening gown with Dante's billowing cloak draped about her shoulders. Dragonite stood regally by her side, glaring at trainers that stared for too long. Obviously the pair made quite the spectacle.
"Well, Dragonite," Sayo said to her companion. "Shall we go in?" Dragonite rumbled her agreement. Sticking out her chin, Sayo marched through the double doors and into the warm room beyond. The instant she emerged from the entrance way, someone gave a great yell.
"Professor, she's here! She's alive! I can't believe it!" Then all of a sudden she saw two blurs descend upon her at once. Laughing, she hugged the green-clad figure tightly, trying in vain to hide the tears that were now flooding unchecked from her eyes.
"What the hell are you doing here Tracy?" She gasped in delight, not in the least minding his bone crushing grip. "And Xeo, if you continue thumping my back like that you will make a dent in it!"
The two boys grinned sheepishly and let her go. Clutching her ribs, Sayo squinted ahead of her and felt her smile melt. Professor Oak standing a few feet away, and on his old and wise face was a mixture of intense relief and fury. He always had the ability to make Sayo feel guilty; which intensified the longer she stood there looking at him.
"What on earth happened to you?" He said quietly. Xeo and Tracy both backed away, looking nearly as scared as Sayo felt. Tracy whispered in the other's ear and the blonde boy nodded. Boldly he faced the older man, trying to adopt a knowing, yet polite tone.
"You can't honestly expect her to tell you everything at once, Professor." He said mildly. "For goodness sakes she just walked in the door! Let her at least have a few minutes to relax and get changed, see. Then we can wring her dry."
"Xeo's right you know," Tracy told his mentor, moving to stand beside his friend. "There's plenty of time for that later. She needs to rest and…holy jeez! Where did you get that Dragonite?" Dragonite growled at him and turned her head imperiously, moving closer to Sayo.
Sayo shook her head in tired exasperation. "Excuse me, Nurse Joy?"
The kindly nurse jumped and tried to appear as if she had not been eavesdropping. "Yes, Sayo, what is it?" She said hurriedly, grasping at a big pile of forms.
"Do you have any clothes that I might borrow? I'm afraid that I will never get mine back again."
Nurse Joy gave her a curious look before she gestured to a closet behind her. "I can loan you a pair of old jeans and a shirt that I always keep for emergencies. They're nothing fancy, but should suit your purpose."
"That'll be fine," Sayo replied with a small smile. "Once I sell this dress I can buy some new clothes. I just need them for tonight."
Joy's eyes widened slightly. "Are you insane?" they seemed to say as they stared at the beautiful gown. Yet, when Sayo raised her eyebrows, the Nurse merely sighed and disappeared into the closet. Reemerging, she handed Sayo a neatly folded bundle of clothes and placed a small card key on top. "Your room is number 164, right next to the Professor's," she said in a businesslike tone. "Please call me if you need help."
Sayo bowed and swept off down the hallway, Dragonite close in pursuit. "We'll be in the cafeteria, Sayo!" Xeo called after her. She merely waved her hand, feeling the silent gaze of the Professor boring through the back of her head. Knowing that if she looked into his eyes one more time she would break down completely, Sayo clutched her crystal pendant tightly and walked on.
The pair quickly arrived at Sayo's room, and the girl swiftly swept the key through the slot. They were rewarded with a cheerful click, and the door swung open. Rooms at Pokemon Centers were not very fancy as a rule, but always very comfortable. Walking inside, Sayo switched on the light and took in the small space. The bed was small and homely, but very neatly made. A small closet and bathroom were tucked into one corner, and the large windows looked out over a view of the vegetable patch. How different this was from the elegance and grandeur that Sayo had been part of a mere hour ago! Sucking in the musty aroma of the room, the girl smiled to herself. "Well, Dragonite," she said to her silent friend. "I'm home."
A newly dressed and washed Sayo emerged from the darkened hallway fifteen minutes later. Her black hair was plain and straight again, and the jewelry that had hung liberally from her ears, neck, and wrists had been cast off. Only the crystal pendant remained. It gleamed at her throat with a pure and innocent sheen, making her eyes sparkle and dance. Nurse Joy's clothes had been a bit too long for her, and the sleeves and pant legs were neatly rolled up. Sayo had cursed and grumbled a bit as she was putting them on, feeling jealous of how long Joy's legs were. "Curse grownups and their proper proportions!" Sayo had muttered angrily as she pulled the faded red shirt over her head.
Now as she approached the group of perfectly dressed men, Sayo felt very foolish indeed. The boys merely smiled at her as she approached, and she meekly slid beside Xeo, still not looking the Professor in the eye. Dragonite stood behind her like a silent sentinel, casting murderous glances at curious passerby.
"Talk," was all that Oak said. Straightening her back like some frightened Sentret, Sayo began to squeak out a rapid string of words, all of which were incomprehensible to her audience.
"Woah, slow down!" Tracy exclaimed. "Take a deep breath and start again, in an actual language this time."
Sayo did as he said, and felt the residual adrenaline ebb out of her system. "Where should I start?" she said weakly.
Tracy shrugged. "For starters, where did you get that Dragonite?"
"She's not mine," the girl replied. "She belongs to the person who helped me to escape." Here, Sayo stopped again, hesitant to say anything else.
"We're your friends, Sayo." Xeo said sternly. "You owe us this much. Please, just tell us what happened, and don't leave anything out. Maybe we can help in some way."
At this, Sayo and Dragonite both laughed. "The day that someone like you manages to liberate me will be the day that Grumpigg fly." She said. "Even Dragonite here was only able to delay the inevitable. They will catch up to me someday."
"They?" Tracy asked quietly.
Sayo hesitated again, and was about to open her mouth when someone else spoke for her. "Team Rocket."
Turning around quickly, she saw Dante walking toward them. He was still dressed in his suit and tie, with his curly dark hair slightly disheveled. He drew even more stares than Sayo had, but like his Dragonite, he looked as if he did not care. Drawing level with them, Dante pulled off his white gloves and undid the neat bowtie around his neck. Dragonite let out a low murmur of greeting and he smiled, placing his forehead against hers. "Thank you my friend." He said softly. "You did your job well."
"Who are you, and what did you mean about Team Rocket?" Tracy managed to splutter after some time.
"And how the hell did you get here so quickly?" Sayo chimed in.
"I can drive Sayo," he said mildly. Then, pulling up a chair the young man sat down, facing the group. "My name is Dante, and as I am sure Sayo has told you, the trainer of this Dragonite."
"Dante Lorendi?" Professor Oak asked, speaking for the first time in minutes.
A brief pained expression crossed the young man's face. "The very same," he answered. "Obviously, knowing who I am answers the question of why I know so much about Team Rocket." Xeo's and Tracy's mystified faces told him otherwise however. Letting out a small sigh, he prepared to explain, but Sayo beat him to it.
"The Lorendi family heads the international criminal justice system." She said in a toneless voice. "All police forces, lawyers and judges answer to them. Dante's father is the Director of Interpol so it is no surprise that our friend here is privy to a wealth of classified knowledge and data. Since Team Rocket is the largest criminal organization in the world, it is obvious that Dante would know a great deal about them."
"And how do you know so much, Sayo?" Tracy asked, a little overwhelmed.
"Because I am Team Rocket."
The whole table, except for Dante gasped as one and grew deathly silent. Both the boys looked too scared to say anything, while the Professor remained expressionless. Smiling bitterly, Sayo continued. "My father is one of Giovanni's top commanders, a genius engineer who is the head of nearly all of the organizations' technological advancements. Also, my aunt is deeply involved in the intelligence division, gathering information on all of Team Rockets' targets as well as possible threats. She was the one who caught me a week ago."
"Go on," Professor Oak prompted, lacing his fingers together.
"I arrived in the city after dark and decided to risk a dash to the Pokemon Center, knowing full well that Aunties forces had a good chance of detecting and recapturing me. Sure enough, my sub-dermal transponder tripped all of Auntie's security nets and one of her henchmen was on me before I knew what had happened."
Sayo stopped to take a breath and then plunged on, telling her audience all about the long hours spent inside that mansion as well as the party, meeting Dante, and escaping on the back of his Dragonite. "I left my clothes at the mansion, but I managed to save all of my gear by hiding them in this purse." She held up the gold purse and withdrew her poke balls and pokedex. "I'm really sorry about the dress Professor, I know that it was a gift from you, but I can't ever go back to that place. Please understand!" Sayo bowed her head, trying to hide the tears that had collected in the corner of her eyes.
Oak remained silent for awhile, but then his stern features softened. "Now I begin to see," he whispered. "That first day we met was right after you had run away for the first time. As the daughter of such a rich family, you had no knowledge of how to fend for yourself and learned to survive on the streets. You had been used by those people all of your life and that was your only way of fighting back. It is no wonder that you connected to that Charmander so well. The pain you share is the same."
A warm smile spread across the kindly old man's face, and he reached across the table and grasped Sayo's hand. "Don't worry about the dress Sayo, I'm much more relieved to have you safely back with us. I don't think anything else should be said tonight. It's very late."
And with that, he stood up motioning the two boys to follow him. They did so uncomplainingly, still somewhat lost for words. Dante looked at Sayo with his familiar grin. "I think that went well, don't you?"
Sayo smiled tiredly at him. Then, remembering something, she rummaged through her bag. "Dante, I've been meaning to ask you; were you the one who left me this?" She pulled out the badge case and peeled off the outside shell. "It has the emblem of your family engraved on it, so I thought that you were the most likely suspect."
He frowned as he looked at it closely. Immediately his expression darkened into one of intense anger. "It was not I who left you this." He said tightly, trying to compose himself.
"I take it by your reaction that you do have a good idea who did," Sayo said shrewdly. The young trainer said nothing but turned on his heel and disappeared in the direction of the sleeping quarters, Dragonite drifting behind him.
Chapter thirteen guys! I hope I did a good job. As always read and review as much as possible, even if it is nothing but negative critiques. It really helps me to improve. Thanks again for all of you who keep up with the series!