Linkage

23

He had no clue where they were, but he was glad he was there. Behind him, he saw Cynthia on the ground eyes closed, somehow the wound he had left healed. Wes stepped away, unable to face her when her she opened them. He stepped away, looking at a shrine which was similar to that of the one in Celestic Town. He took a deep breath, thinking back to when he refused to touch it. He didn't believe in legends then, only bad people and their foolish desires.

And yet again, Wes had become someone bad.

He couldn't face Cynthia. Not when he knew that yet again his actions were responsible for the hurt of someone he cared about. Would Cynthia have been the next Rui? Another in a long list of people hurt when he decided to play hero. This is why he couldn't work with others. This was why Wes had to be by himself.

He took a deep breath and tried to go. But his feet wouldn't move. He couldn't go. He knew he had to, and so he ran a tender hand across the shrine as if to say goodbye. Goodbye to Sinnoh, goodbye to Celestic Town, and goodbye to her. He had to go.

Wes turned around. Cynthia looked at him and flinched as he did. He was the one who did this to her. She had to flinch because she couldn't trust him. Even if their bond was back, even if he could feel every worry she had towards him, she still didn't trust him. He tried to grab out to her.

"Cynthia, please, don't be scared," he said. "I'm sorry."

She shivered, which only made him feel worse. "Don't come any closer. I don't think I can trust you to be near me."

He backed up towards the shrine. "I guess that's how it is then. I'm sorry Cynthia, for failing you."

Wes ran off into the forest, past the shrine. He was defenseless against everything, but perhaps that was how it had to be. Maybe Wes wasn't made to fight evil. Maybe everything he did was useless. Why would he fight if he hurt everyone he ever knew? Maybe it wasn't worth it to fight. Maybe he should just give up, and go somewhere where he couldn't hurt anyone.

That way he wouldn't hurt Cynthia.

He took off until he ran into Azalea Town. Wes knew Azalea Town. Red and him used to go there to have custom Pokeballs made. If he kept running, perhaps he could run from Cynthia, run from everyone. But was running was too easy. He was just going to hide until she gave up and went away for her own good. All he had to do was sit and breathe, sit and breathe.

But he couldn't. He could feel Cynthia without trying, without wanting, without closing his eyes. It was if he could feel her all around him, worried, searching. But Wes couldn't let her find him. He tried to push her away, because he couldn't do it. He couldn't fight for her, much less protect her. He couldn't protect her, he couldn't protect his home, he couldn't even protect his Pokemon of over ten years.

Nothing he'd done had mattered. No amount of combat training, of learning technology and machinery, and pursuing every threat he found could prepare Wes for Fein. Nothing could fix the fact that he had to give up.

Wes was done.

In the flash of a second he saw Cynthia. Somehow, she found him. He stood up, looking for some way to run. Wes needed to get away. There was no point anymore. He was not the hero of Sinnoh.

"Wes stop!" Cynthia shouted as he took off.

She took him into her arms as he tried to go and held him there. Wes struggled, he just had to leave, but Cynthia held him there, warm and assuring like the calm sun. There was an odd moment where she looked at him with fear, a fear not from fear of him hurting her but some kind of other fear. Wes stopped moving, shocked by whatever he felt. It was then that Cynthia got restless. She took him from behind the back of the of his head with a strong and determined hug, and brought him to her lips.

Kissing Cynthia was a sensation like nothing else that he felt before. Every bit of connection that they had seemed to surge and he felt good, really good. He felt close to someone, and that warm feeling spread over his body. Everything felt as if his senses were overdrive, he felt the soft of her hair and the light of where her skin was upon him. He knew she wanted him to stay. He knew she loved him.

Which is why he had to leave.

She said to him after she pulled away, "Wes, I know you're scared right now, but don't run. You couldn't help what you did, but I was scared that you were going to use me again. I didn't know if you'd come back yet."

"But the things I said hurt you Cynthia. I could've killed you," he said.

She buried his head into him. "I know, but you saved us both in the end."

Wes was no savior. All he needed to do was mask his fears, pretend he was alright, and Cynthia would leave him be. He had to be smart about this. He just had to work around the lie detector part of her.

"Thank you Cynthia," he said. "I know I don't deserve your forgiveness but I'm glad I have it."

That was a lie. Her forgiveness made him feel worse, because he really knew he shouldn't have it. She was honest with him. He knew because he could feel the honesty, caring, and love that she conveyed. But he knew she could feel his despair.

She frowned at him, sensing what he knew she could sense. "But you still feel bad Wes. Don't hide from me please. You're my partner. We work together."

"I'm alright Cynthia," he said, "I just need time to sort out what happened."

Part of that was true. The other part, the lie, made him feel worse. They weren't partners, because Wes didn't do partners. Things were simpler that way. He just had to wait for an opportunity.

But for now, they had to investigate the scales.

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Besides having somehow magically healed, Cynthia was nervous about a number of things and they all pertained to Wes. The way he ran from her was something she never expected. But it made sense. She had a theory about why he did it.

Wes was afraid to face himself.

That's why she knew he was uncomfortable with the bond, because he couldn't run from her. She knew that he was going to run from her when given the chance. So she had to keep him there, reel him in, and help him. She was afraid of losing him. So she has to help him, help him overcome himself.

But how?

The two walked to the scales and Cynthia took a deep breath. If this was where the ritual of space took them then there was a reason. Cynthia remembered when her and Steven ended up atop Mt. Coronet. It was when he asked her out. Which, in her opinion, was a mistake, but that was long past.

When Cynthia stepped upon the stone scale it shined in a black light. She looked over at Wes, who she could sense was hesitating about continuing. However, after a moment he took a step forward. When the scale lit with a warm, iridescent tinged light, everything around them became active.

Cynthia looked at Wes, who was looking around at the trees. She admired the his face lit up just a little bit while looking at his surroundings, as if he were forgetting the concrete burden he'd placed upon himself. She wished, that when this was over, she could make him look at her that way.

But now it was time to focus.

Her mind gained an understand life as the world around her spoke to her. There was another step in the process of binding Sinnoh's vassals. They needed to finalize their bond atop Spear Pillar. One last ceremony, and they would have full divine protection.

Cynthia didn't understand what any of that meant, but the ideas had come to her from whatever mysterious force compelled the scales. She turned to Wes, who turned to her.

"We need to go back to Sinnoh," the pair said at the same time.