Timeline of Errors

Part 8 - Into The Cave

...okay, this guy kind of  sounds like a weirdo, I thought and frowned.

"I wanted to prove that I can catch Giratina and keep working with him. He gave me some pointers and after spending some time trying to navigate the distortion world, I managed to find Giratina," she said, "...it's a lot friendlier than I expected,"

Just as she said that, I saw a shadow creeping in behind her in the shape of a giant centipede. I felt a shiver ran down my spine as I caught a pair of red eyes gleaming from the shadows.

"You don't say," I said.

"But, I wasn't able to catch it right away. I spent what felt like forever until it appeared again," she said, "but Giratina doesn't like him. It tries to fight back, then he starts using a strange machine that hurts Giratina. Suddenly, portals to the real world opened up all over and... all I could see was the whole distortion world flooded in darkness... then Giratina snatched me away..."

"And that's how you ended up here?" I asked.

"Yeah," she nodded and looked down.

"What about your parents? And classmates? Didn't you say you go to the school in Jubilife?" I asked.

"I haven't been back since... he knows my family and they know that I work for him," she said, "he could be looking for me over there. Besides, they'll be horrified to know what happened... I don't know how to face them..."

"But this isn't your fault - it seems to me that this dodgy guy is trying to get you to do some kind of dirty work, and you just didn't know any better," I said.

"...but..." she said, her voice shaking slightly, "...because of me... so many died and..."

Huh?

Only then did it dawned on me. I turned to the shadows of the giant centipede as it loomed over the young girl who was crouching on the ground. A power from beyond this world.

"...Gista, listen to me," I said and put both of my hands on her shoulders, "I understand that you feel responsible, but you are not a bad person, nor did you start any of this. Sometimes, things happen. And sometimes, things spiral out of control because other people wanted it to be, or... it just randomly does. That doesn't mean you, as a young person who somehow got involved, is solely responsible for this whole incident-"

As soon as those words rang out, the words got stuck in my throat. The young girl was looking back at me with her lilac-coloured eyes, seemingly surprised and were at loss for words. Only then did I notice her messed up hair, which must had been hidden underneath her hoodie; the sweat layering her forehead; the grey hoodie which seemed to be sticking to her small body; the blisters on her palms. She has indeed come a long way from home.

"You've been so brave," the words escaped my mouth.

The young girl grew quiet. Suddenly, her face fell and a glint appeared in her eyes.

"I... thank you. This is the first time anyone ever told me that," she said with her shaky voice.

"Really? How come?" I asked.

"I've... always been a scaredy-cat. I never like stuffs like hiking, zip lines, bikes, courage tests, sports... the fun stuffs that people like. So people keep saying that I'm no fun," she said, smiling bitterly, "mum always said I'm not doing what everyone else is doing and that I should go out, or I'll never have friends. So as I grew older, I learnt to just suck it up and do them anyway... yet I never felt like nobody really wanted me to be there either way. I hate that feeling,"

"Well, I think facing your fears is exactly what makes you brave," I said, "not everyone can face up to what they fear... including how you own up and seek help all on your own like this. Thank you for telling me all this... though I'm quite curious how you settled on asking me for help,"