The next day, we bring Elliot to daycare, and then I'm back to the mission.
First stop, the reception desk. Still no word from Delcatty. I know we were expecting a few days, but…I'm starting to get worried. It seems so unlike her to just disappear without a trace.
"Don't worry, this is Delcatty we're talking about, if anyone can hold their own, it's her," Serperior assures me, although it does little to alleviate my worry. He, Rotom, and Dragalge are with me today—after checking with the reception desk, we set off to the library.
…just to be met with a crushing blow. None of the books that have been checked out—or back in—in the last few days are at all relevant. "Could you please check again? It's…really important…" I say to the sawk who regards me with irritation. But, to her credit, she reads through the titles again. Somehow I don't think books like "1001 Herbs and What to do With Them," or "Flash Cannon for Idiots," are going to help us much. We thank Sawk and make our way back to the lobby.
"So…now what? It seems we're officially out of leads," Dragalge says. "I…I don't know…" I didn't realize quite how much I was hoping this would yield a result. It really was our only lead. Lurantis seemed certain books about Hoopa were in the library, yet they haven't been checked in or out, and we couldn't find them among the shelves. The longer I think about it, the more weird it feels. Those books are just gone. And yet those papers—the very ones we needed—just appeared. If Elliot never found them, we wouldn't know Hoopa exists…so…
So who was Elliot's 'friend'?
Steph and I tried again this morning to figure it out, but to no avail. "Well, what kind of pokemon were they?" She asked. "Hmm…I dunno!" he shrugged. "They were little! And floaty!" Great, a small pokemon that can float. That narrows it down immensely.
Not.
It quickly became apparent that Elliot wouldn't be a reliable source on this, which means we have to learn about Hoopa some other way. And if answers aren't in the library, then…where? How?
"Hmm, perhaps we could—" "Oh my, hello all!" I hear the familiar voice of Cradily call out, Ampharos in tow. With Delcatty away, I've seen less of them around—I assume they're having to pick up the slack.
"Oh no, why the long faces?" She says, and I tell them how we've been searching high and low for certain books in the library, but can't find a single trace of them. "…you know, Master Delcatty has a small collection of books stashed away in our quarters," Ampharos says, "I know she's technically supposed to check them out, but…well she's not all that religious about it. Perks of being in charge, I guess," he says, leaning in and smirking. "If you wanted we could bring you up there, see if any of them are what you're looking for," he suggests. "Really? I mean, are you sure? We wouldn't want to intrude or—" "no intrusion at all! As a member of Team Starburst, they're technically your quarters too!" Cradily says with a wink. My chest tightens…after all this time, Delcatty and the others—who I hadn't even met before—have really considered us as part of the team? I'm touched.
"Well…if you're sure…" "what are you waiting for Gwen? Another invitation? Let's go!" Rotom grins, evidently eager to see their living arrangements.
So we head up to their place, Cradily guiding us. We make small talk, a little about the weather, some remarks about upcoming expeditions, but mostly about Delcatty. "Any idea how long until she gets back?" Dragalge asks, "not a clue, but I hope soon! She's never just got up and left like that before." I can't imagine…one of your closest friends just disappears, and not only are you left worrying, but you have to help keep the Center up and running until their return? "Delcatty would be proud of you and Ampharos…the way you've managed the Center in her absence? It's really inspiring," I say. She responds a moment later, voice thick, "that…means a lot. Thanks."
We continue in silence until we arrive. "Wow, this is where you guys live? Fan-cy!" Rotom says, eyeing up the grand treehouse. "It's lovely…but rather high," Serperior says nervously—I notice his tail is tightly wrapped around a branch. "Yeah, it looks pretty precarious, but don't worry! You get used to it! It seems sturdy enough, anyway," Cradily says, opening the door for us. "I'm sorry, but I actually have much to do…can I leave you to it?" "Are-are you sure? You don't mind?" I stammer. Being a 'member of the team' or not, I feel kind of weird rifling around their home unsupervised. "Absolutely! Go for it! Any friend of Delcatty's are friends of ours, and more than welcome! Good luck!" She says, turning to start her descent.
We stand in the entrance, looking at the 'organized chaos' as Delcatty once called it, spreading before us. They must have been busy since I was last here, it's worse than I remember. "Pfft, I'd expect nothing less of the great Master Delcatty," Serperior says with a smirk. It looks like it will certainly make the process more tedious. "Well, she may have the books so…let's start looking."
I try to ignore the knot forming in my chest as I say the words. Surely if she had the books, she'd know about it and would've told us. No, we're just checking in case there was an…oversight. If she had any such books for a different purpose and they happened to contain info about Hoopa, then…well that's why we're here. To check.
We start from the entrance, and slowly work our way deeper into their home. I appreciate their help, but they seem to be getting a little…distracted. "Oooh, look at this!" Rotom says, flinging a stuffed mareep at my face, "who do you think this belongs to?" She grins. "I don't know what's funnier; if it belongs to Ampharos, or if it doesn't," Serperior snickers. "Knock it off, we shouldn't touch all their stuff," I say, putting it back on the bed carefully. "Dragalge! Can you stop organizing their maps? Delcatty told me they have it 'how they like it,'" I say, noticing they're wrapping them up, some with pins still in them. "Oh my, are you sure? I just feel so bad, coming in here and leaving it all messy like this…" "It's not like we made the mess. If it's how those three little tepigs like it, who are we to judge?" Serperior mocks. "Oh, I think you're judging plenty!" I laugh, smacking him.
We continue the search. I lift a large map and see a disarranged mound of books below, sitting amidst a small pile of shattered glass.
At the top of the pile is the Professor Alakazam legendary book, sprawled open to a random page, a large dent that I'm pretty sure wasn't there before marking its spine. I smooth the pages and close it, then consider the titles below. "Legendary and Mythical Pokemon, a Complete Encyclopedia," "Legendary Encounters; a Collection of Essays and Case Studies," "Theories and Realities of Interdimensional Travel," among many more.
My heart almost stops. A moment later an immense headache starts building behind my eyes. These…these books…they're just the type we were looking for…but they definitely weren't there when we searched…there are at least 15, if not more, potentially relevant books here. So if they were already gone before we went to the library…if they were here the whole time…and not officially checked out…then that means…
Oh…oh Delcatty…you wouldn't have…you couldn't…
My legs go weak, and I feel the ground rush up to meet me.
"Gwen!" Someone's voice—I don't even have the presence of mind to tell whose—calls to me, muffled. I can hear them talking frantically, but I can't answer, my mind is too foggy. "What happened to her?" "Can you hear me?" "Gwen!" I'm vaguely aware of my surroundings, but I'm not seeing clearly. How could she? Something is smacking my face. I feel myself being lifted up, and a moment later I'm drenched with water.
I'm back to full attention and coughing profusely. Serperior is holding me, and I'm pretty sure Dragalge just used their Water Pulse—my soaked fur is dripping all over the floor. "Gwen!" "What happened?" "Are you ok?" They're all talking at once, competing for my attention with the ringing in my ears.
"Can…can you put me down?" I say, coughing up more water as Serperior cautiously obliges. They all watch me as I regain my footing. I shake my fur, covering them all in a fine mist. "…sorry…" I say absentmindedly and walk past them, back to the books.
"What's the matter with her?" "How should I know?" "Gwen, what is it?" They're all talking again, but I barely hear them. These books…Delcatty had them the whole time…so she's been…lying to us…to…to keep us here? But…I…she…
"GWEN!" I jump, startled out of my reverie by Serperior's shouting. He pulls me by the leg and whirls me around, "will you just talk to us?! What IS IT?" Dragalge and Rotom stare at him, stunned. I feel my eyes water, the full implications of her actions setting in. He lets go of my leg and backs away, "Oh…oh no, Gwen…I'm sorry, I—" "…it's the books," I interrupt, pointing weakly to the pile, feeling a tear fall. They slowly go over, regarding each of the titles, and then I see it in their faces—they understand.
"No…no she wouldn't have…would she?" Dragalge says, echoing my thoughts. "There's no way she could…keep all this from us…is there?" "Is she trying to stop us from going home or something?" Rotom says, electricity building around her body. Serperior stands in silence, expression unreadable.
I don't know what to do, what to think. Really, I just want to leave their home, run back to the dorm, and cry in Stephanie's arms. But I force myself to take a deep breath, then go back to the pile to pick up a book and start reading. "Gwen? Are you…alright?" Dragalge asks, "…no. But we've come all this way, we've found the books…we may as well read them." My heart is broken, but…but what if Delcatty comes back sooner than expected? Has the books removed or destroyed? I realize with a heavy heart that I can't trust her. Not anymore. But I can't deal with all this now—right now, we need info, and all I can do is read.
They reluctantly settle around me, each with a book and furtive glances directed my way, and start reading. It's clear Delcatty took the time to remove anything remotely relevant from the library—all the answers we couldn't find are here. Some are short, brief testimonials about catching a glimpse of an odd pokemon, or supposed reports of peering into another world, while others go into great detail about being lost in a strange place, or even conversing with pokemon unlike any they had ever seen before. Rotom finds an entry that talks about a curious object.
"The Prison Bottle," she reads, "is a device used to contain Hoopa's destructive powers, reducing them to a shadow of their true self. Its current location is unknown, but it is believed the great explorer, Aegislash, founder of the Exploration Center, sealed Hoopa's power away, then had the bottle destroyed."
Wow…so not only could Hoopa be the cause of our presence here…but they're even linked to the Center?
I force the feelings creeping up back into their box. I can't afford to be dealing with it now, not when we're so close to potentially finding answers.
"So…it seems like Hoopa could be the cause of our presence here…but…they sound awfully dangerous…" Dragalge says, "even if we could find them, how could we trust them to send us home?" They're right…how indeed? "The book I'm reading says they're a fan of deals and bargains…but to avoid one at all costs, because they always find a way to come out on top, much to the detriment of the other party." Serperior says. Great, another bargaining pokemon—I'm already in the middle of breaching my first big deal.
We go through the rest of the books, learn a few more facts, like a fictitious-sounding story about how to supposedly find and summon Hoopa. Most of the rest are cross references to each other and reiterations of the same few stories—once we're finished, we decide to leave. I look at the room again; this place where Delcatty slept, right by the books we needed to learn how to get home. My chest aches and my feet are firmly planted on the ground. Serperior has to gently push me out before closing the door behind us.
Before I know it, we're back in our dorm. I don't remember how we got back—the others must have been keeping an eye on me. Maybe they even carried me, I couldn't possibly say. I notice Elliot running around; Stephanie and the others must have picked him up. I go over to the bed and collapse.
"Uh, hi to you too," Stephanie says with a hint of annoyance, "so how was it? Find anything?" I barely notice her…I want to answer, but the words won't come to my mouth. She comes over, "Gwen? What did you find?" She says, bending over me, concern lining her features. I notice Dragalge gently guide her away, no doubt telling her our discovery.
Elliot comes over, "oh no! Don't be sad Gen!" He says, kneeling beside me and gently petting my head. I push myself up and try to stop my tears from overflowing, "I-I'm ok Elliot…don't worry," I smile shakily. The next thing I know he's giving me a big hug. I hold him tightly, trying and failing not to cry. "Shh, no no…don't cry", he says, stroking my fur. My precious, kind, perfect little boy…he doesn't even know it's me, and he's trying to make me feel better. I pull away and fight to pull myself together. "I'm ok now, thank you for making me feel better Elliot." He nods with a seriousness that supersedes his age.
Seeing that I'm out of my trance, the others come over, Stephanie at the lead. "Gwen! What happened at Delcatty's…is it true? Has she been lying to us? This whole time?" "I…yes…" I say, remembering how she repeatedly insisted she didn't know how we could possibly get home. She knew about this—she had to.
I don't know how long until she gets back…but when she does…we have some serious talking to do.