Linkage

15

When Cynthia came into Wes's office at the police station, she looked shook. He didn't need their bond to understand that. The way she sat down in his chair without saying a word, without acknowledging anything. It was a sign of defeat.

"Cynthia, are you ok?" Wes asked, surprised by his own tenderness.

She looked at him. "I almost walked out of a window, but Lt. Dunnan stopped me. It was like I couldn't control myself. I felt like I was under some kind of spell. I'm scared."

The ex-champion's emotions were so strong that something in Wes made him stand up and take Cynthia into his arms. He could feel her shaking against his body and so he tried to convey safety to her. They were safe. Nothing could hurt them right now.

"Look," said Wes. "I know you hate me for being the vigilante. But it's just something I have to do. I can't tell you why, but we have to fight together to keep everyone else safe. And then we can go our separate ways."

"Wes?" Cynthia said unsure. "I think this has something to do with Darkrai. I saw it one night and that same dark, attractive for Lee was there. And then there's the fact that Darkrai and Cresselia are drawn into the ritual book."

This confused Wes. "What's the ritual book?"

"I didn't know about this until I tried looking to the reason why we have rainbow aura based on our bond, but apparently there's a book on how to conduct the three yearly rituals. And at the end of the book there's this sketch of Cresselia and Darkrai. Inside of a scale," she said.

Wes muttered to himself, "Balance. That's what Cresselia told me when she said we were linked."

"Cynthia," Wes began, an idea forming in his mind, "what exactly are these rituals about?"

The ex-champion sighed. "It's a way to connect two lives so that they're able to fight with no boundaries."

Wes, afraid of the statement, decided to make a joke. "I suppose that's why you and dreamboat became so close for a while. How was he in bed, warrior-like?"

Cynthia gave him a sassy look, forgetting her worries for a moment. "Excuse me, but Steven and I were not a serious item. I don't get why everybody in the world brings up that dumb interview."

"Well maybe, my lady Cynthia, it's because they're jealous that you'd speak so dreamily of dreamboat alone," said Wes.

The woman rolled her eyes. "Please, just don't bring up Steven again. He's too much of a handful to think about."

"Alright, my lady, as long as we get on our way to do the ritual of distortion. We're wasting time here," he said with a laugh.

Cynthia stopped as he walked on. "Wait Wes. Are you serious about this? Because as soon as we do this there's no going back. We will be more connected."

"Yes, I'm sure," he said.

Wes wasn't prepared for himself to become closer to Cynthia, but he had to. This psychic link was the key to solving the problem, and then only way to find answers was to keep going. Wes thought about his chat with Saturn. He couldn't shy away from this. He had to keep going for what was right.

<><><>

Snowpoint City was one of Cynthia's favorite places. She loved the mystique of ice and especially the old ice temple. Her and Wes had to go to snowpoint to visit lake acuity for the ritual. Normally it would be done in Celestic Town but that was the annual festival. This was different. This was to make their connection.

Wes looked uncomfortable to her right. She couldn't help but feel bad for him. He was going out of his way for her and she knew it. Every time she blinked, which was sometimes deliberate, she felt his scaredness towards her.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Cynthia probed, as Wes kept walking in silence.

He let out a smile for a second before it went away. "I'm just thinking that you're lucky that you have memories of meeting Darkrai. Especially when you were young. I knew nothing about my connection to Cresselia but you, well I saw it in your past."

"My past? I remember nothing about meeting Darkrai..." said Cynthia.

Wes stopped. "Is there something about me that you saw? What was the first memory you saw of me?"

"It was you and your mom in the desert. And you were screaming that you didn't like it where you and you wanted to go back. And then, she made you keep going. She said she was in some kind of trouble," said Cynthia. "Then, well, she was killed."

"I remember that part," Wes said. "I think it'd be hard to forget it. I just wish I knew, you know?"

She nodded. "I find that this process has given me some answers about myself. I should apologize, for ignoring you when you went out of your way to give me something as collateral for your trust. Dawn was just..."

"Champion Hikari was just...?" Wes asked, but Cynthia declined to finish the sentence.

They were at Lake Acuity. And she could feel Wes's love of the area. It was beautiful, with snow covered trees and mountains in the background. The water was a teal color from the glacial silt of the mountains. It was all private, because only they were the ones crazy enough to take a bath in a mountain lake.

"We need to go the the center of the lake," said Cynthia. "Inside of a cavern, there's water. That water is what we need for the ritual."

Wes nodded. "We can ride over on my Pokémon."

And so they did. Wes pulled out a Lapras, a gift from Red, and had Cynthia sit behind him. She was aware of his body as she hugged him tight, as to not risk hypothermia from the water surrounding them. The feeling made Wes's heart race so strong that she could hear it. She could sense his emotions from their contact. He thought it was warm. And he hadn't felt warm like that perhaps ever. Cynthia, on the other hand, knew exactly what was going on.

Because she could feel him, she wanted more warmth.

Just like he did.

Or at least that was what she believed from the feeling of his cravings. He was only a man, after all.

As they approached the cavern Cynthia braced to change into yellow. She was a blonde so she thought she looked hideous in the color. But that was alright. Even though she hated the color, and perhaps didn't need to use it, she like the ritual clothes. They made her feel more secure.

After telling Wes to change, she finally got to look at him. He pulled off yellow well, with the yellow, black, and red pants and sash he had on. Cynthia could see the fine tone to his muscles as he shivered in the cold from changing. But it was no matter, he would soon be inside the cave and then they could begin.

"Wes," she asked, shivering in her own attire. "Are you ready to begin? Are you still sure that you want to?"

He nodded, and they walked inside. Cynthia pulled out a small crystalline vial that hung from her neck. She bent down, and collected some water from the inside of the cavern. Cynthia then faced Wes, who eyes her with those deep, scared golden eyes.

"Oh Giratina," Cynthia recited from memory, "grant these great warriors of Sinnoh linkage from thy holy power of distortion. It is the polarization of one's perspective that imprisons man to a lesser understanding. Unlock these prisons in this ritual for the vassals of Sinnoh to become whole and free."