Once in Slateport, the girls quickly ran to the beach. What a sight! The blue water was glistening in the crisp air, white boats dotted the vast open space.
"Last one to the water is a rotten egg!" Stella stripped herself of her clothes, revealing a cute pink and white bikini she had brought with her from Mossdeep.
In Mossdeep the water was way colder, but in the summer time residents greatly enjoyed the refreshing waves that lapped up in a shallow areas around the mangrove trees. Stella was almost always ready to go into the shallow waters around the island, and the bikini felt so comforting and familiar to her.
Gardenia on the other hand, had only ever swum in the lake that separates Rustboro from her home. She kept her shirt and waterproof shorts on, because she felt exposed to the great currents of the ocean.
"Gard, you're the last one in you totally owe me a soda from the beach shack." Stella splashed her friend lightly.
"Yeah well you're going to have to get that soda on your own, I'm practically broke!" Gardenia returned the splashes.
Sandshrew played on the beach, feeling right at home in his element: the sand. Shroomish, hoppip, and nidoran had made a point to explore the beach and learn from Sandshrew where all the best playing spots were.
"Gardenia! A staryu!" Stella stopped dawdling in the water and pointed a wild staryu floating near the surface. "I wanna catch it!"
"Sure thing. Hoppip! Please help us out here!" Gardenia beckoned to her hoppip. "Listen to everything Stella says for me okay? Sandshrew's not good with water, and being a grass-type, you'll be okay against this staryu."
"Wow you're awesome. Thanks guys" Stella looked at hoppip and smiled. She prepared her pokeballs.
"Now hoppip! Vine whip!"
Hoppip did as she was asked. The staryu flinched and hoppip took the opportunity to strike again. The staryu seemed to want to be caught for it did not retaliate.
"Pokeball go!" Stella threw the pokeball and crossed her fingers.
The pokeball stopped moving and started to sink to the bottom. In a flurry Stella dove after it.
"What are you going to tell Mari?" Gardenia asked Stella once both girls were back on shore. Stella was admiring her pokeball.
"Um. It's fair game if I caught it here. She wanted to punish me by taking away some of my best friends, but that doesn't mean I can't stop making new ones." Stella was unsure of what Mari would say, actually.
…
The afternoon was settling in on Slateport. The girls had decided to visit the famous open-air market.
"I'm sure I can bring this back to my mom! She loves herbal stuff like this" Gardenia picked up a jar of crushed seaweed powder.
"Yeah I'm sure of it! Your mom does work at a nursery after all" Stella looked at the small jars full of mysterious ingredients that were lined up on the seller's stand.
"Hey. Isn't that Brawley?" Gardenia put down the jar and squinted. She poked Stella repeatedly in the arm. Her grass-green eyes focused on the Shipwreck Museum right across the street.
"Ah yes, that young man who runs the Dewford gym?" the old vendor chuckled "he comes here quite often." She had a toothless smile, but it was full of happiness and affection for Brawley.
Stella had gotten sick of Brawley. She couldn't believe she once cared for him at all.
"Often?" Stella asked rhetorically.
Brawley had not much business in Slateport other than catching waves.
"Why yes. His father is very much in business with the people who run the cruise service here in Slateport." The seller informed the girls, not aware that Stella had been simply talking to herself.
"But what does this have to do with the Shipwreck Museum?" Stella asked.
"Ah, well I don't know about the museum, but he does pay frequent visits to the warehouse and the docks."
As far as Stella could remember, Brawley's family had not been one of sailors. They loved to fight and they loved island life, but sailing was definitely not their forte.
"Thanks for everything, m'am. We have to get going." Stella smiled widely and pulled Gardenia by the arm.
"Hey! I wanted to buy the crushed seaweed!" Gardenia protested.
"No time. We have to find out what Brawley's doing here. He hates museums and he can't sail for his life. There's definitely something magikarpy about this"
"You heard the woman, his dad's got some business here." Gardenia pouted.
"I know, so does my dad. Actually it's peculiar because my dad bought rights to that warehouse." Stella set her steely gaze onto Gardenia.
"And the cruise business?" Gardenia questioned.
"No. It's no cruise business. That's just a cover. They actually carry many valuable items that are used for the space missions happening in Mossdeep. Brawley's father has nothing to do with it."
Gardenia sat in thought, trying to process everything Stella had just said.
"Unless, this isn't for his father's business." Gardenia turned to her friend and smiled slyly.
"What do you mean? Who else would it be for? Himself? Brawley skips a lot of school, I highly doubt he's smart enough to run a space mission from Dewford." Stella reasoned.
"No. Look at the warehouse." Gardenia pointed to the warehouse.
Stella had been watching the museum, but she shifted her gaze towards the warehouse. Suddenly, two Team Aqua grunts scurried from the warehouse towards the museum. There they met Brawley.
"C'mon Brawley! Fight them!" Stella whispered to herself. She was praying that Brawley would stand up to them to disprove what she had seen the night they had helped Paul.
No. The situation had made it all clear. Brawley was conversing and exchanging information with them. What was he in this for? What did Team Aqua have that he wanted?
…