I woke up feeling cold. I was laying down on something that felt an awful lot like metal, and my eyes opened to a harsh fluorescent light above me. I sat up slowly, feeling the throbbing in my head painfully flare up before receding again. My hands flew to my waist, feeling the absence of my Pokeballs. I was still wearing my fancy dress, and my hair was tangled and knotted. I looked down at my hands, seeing my skin unblemished and fine.

I turned my gaze from my hands to the room I was in. There was a small, barred window at the top of the wall to my right, and a thick mirrored wall to my left. I was seated on a metal...slab with a blanket hastily tossed over it. There was a small swinging door built into the base of the mirror wall, and there was a door in the wall in front of me. The floor seemed to be made of concrete, nothing fancy about it.

I stood up slowly, noting that my shoes had disappeared and my feet seemed to be in perfect condition. I stepped slowly towards the door, once, twice, three times. Nothing happened. I twisted the handle hesitantly. It opened.

I stepped out of the room into a sudden change. The room I had entered was the opposite of the one I had exited. The carpet was plush beneath my toes, the lighting was warmer and kinder, and the walls were beautifully decorated with paintings and colour and decor. A long table was in front of me, and a green-haired man sat at the other end of it.

I could see his grin from there.

Things Left Unsaid

Chapter Ten: Trapped

"Ah, you're awake! Glad to know that you were relatively unharmed in the kidnapping." The sickly sweet voice drifted across the room, and I didn't want to listen.

"Where am I?" I yelled. "Where have you taken me? What have you done?"

"You're in my home," Ghetsis replied, standing. "Well, my family's home. N used to reside here as well, before the events involving you." He started out sweet, but he spat out the last word. "You will be staying here for at least a while, so I'd get used to it. No, I won't make you stay in that tiny room." He began walking towards me as he continued. "You will have free roam here, save for a few rooms here and there. And, of course, you will not be allowed to leave. There is no way to leave this place unless you are either with me or somehow become me." As he finished, he reached me. Ghetsis spread his arms out as if asking for a hug. "Welcome to my humble abode."

"What have you done with N?" I struggled to speak, but managed to murmur the question.

"Nothing, my dear. Absolutely nothing. Aside from having him watch your kidnapping, of course. So, naturally, he is trying to find you. Turn on any television in the house and you will know that. Oh. You might want this, though the GPS portion of it has been disabled." He handed me my Xtransceiver. There were a number of missed calls from my mom, Cheren, Bianca, and mostly, N.

Ghetsis began walking away from me. "There should be woman's clothes somewhere that fit you. If you get hungry, locate the kitchen. Have fun exploring. I have an organisation to rebuild." He slipped through a door and was gone.

I slipped my Xtransceiver onto my left wrist and dialed N.

He picked up on the first ring. "Touko! Are you alright? Where are you?"

I smiled sadly at him. "Yes, I'm alright. I don't know geographically where I am though. Where are you?"
"I'm at Interpol. They're out over every region looking for you."

"How long has it been since..." I trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

"Only about sixteen hours. You can't be too far." N seemed very determined to find me. His eyebrows creased in concentration. "Wait...I know that painting behind you. You're at the castle."

I looked at the painting hung on the wall behind me. It was of N, dressed up in royal attire, a crown on his head and a sceptre in his hand. I looked back at the screen. "Yeah, I am, but I have the feeling it's moved from where it was."

"So do I. Ghetsis wouldn't put you somewhere that you'd be easy to find." N turned away from the screen as someone burst in the door, saying something very rapidly in another region's language. N responded quickly and in kind, then looked back at me. "I have to go, Touko."

I smiled again. "It's alright. Go. I'll be here when you get back."

The person behind him beckoned, and he whispered, "I love you." With a click, the connection disappeared.

"I love you too..." I whispered back. I looked away from the blank screen and decided to begin exploring the castle. There was a large hallway opposite the one Ghetsis had left through, so I wandered down that one. I wondered if I could find N's room again. Instead, I found a number of guest rooms, each unique in their own way. When I reached the last one, I took a second to let my eyes adjust to the dimly lit room.

It was a beautiful suite style bedroom, with a large round bed and ample furniture. The sources of light were a fireplace in one area and candles scattered around the room. There was no one present, and there was a thin layer of dust covering all the flat surfaces of the room except the candles. No one had resided in the room for a long time, so I decided to make it my room.

When I searched the dresser for clothes, I found women's clothes in various sizes. I slipped out of my dress, locating the underwear drawer and pulling out a correctly-sized bra. I also searched and found a pair of comfortable sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt. Upon looking in the closet, I discovered numerous sets of the women's Plasma grunt uniform. I pulled one off the hanger and hung up my dress so that it didn't get too wrinkled.

I heard my stomach grumble, so I took Ghetsis's advice and ventured to find the kitchen. I returned to the large dining room that I had been in earlier, searching the walls for the door leading to the kitchen. Upon finding it, I cautiously slipped inside. No one was in the kitchen, so I moved to the cabinets, searching each one for something to eat. Spices, herbs...it was a well-kept kitchen. I looked in the refrigerator for other things, finding a stock of various meats, vegetables, and fruits. I pulled a cucumber out of the fridge, locating a knife and skinning it skillfully. My mother wouldn't have let me leave on a Pokemon journey unless I knew how to cook. After skinning the vegetable (though it is technically a fruit), I cut it into small pieces and put it into a small bowl, savoring the taste of it.

I continued to explore the castle until I got bored and returned to my room. When I got there, I turned on the television.

"Unova Champion Missing" blazed across the screen in flashing letters, and a news reporter deftly recanted what the media and authorities knew.

"Last night, Unova Champion Touko White was known to be dining at the esteemed Voltaire Lounge in Nimbasa City when she was electrically shocked and kidnapped. The kidnapping is believed to be connected with the more frequent sightings of former Team Plasma grunts attacking Trainers and 'liberating' their Pokemon. Unova authorities have teamed up with Interpol to locate the Champion and bring her home."

I was relieved that they didn't mention N in the portion about Voltaire. That could have gone badly. The reporter listened on their earpiece before beginning to speak.

"This just in-an anonymous source that was present at the Voltaire Lounge has confirmed that the kidnapper's name is Ghetsis Harmonia, formerly one of the leaders of Team Plasma. It is now obvious that the kidnapping is in relation to Team Plasma's apparent revival seven years after their last attempt at domination of the Unova region. In other news..."

I switched off the tv. I didn't want to hear about other things. I sank into the bed, grateful for something to lay down on. My Xtransceiver began ringing. I looked over at it, seeing that it was Bianca, then picked up.

"Touko! Oh Arceus, we've been so worried!"

"I'm okay, I'm okay. I just have no idea where in the world I am."

Cheren's voice cut in from the side. "Bianca? Who are you talking to?"

"I'm talking to Touko! She's okay!"

There was a loud metallic clanging as Cheren inevitably dropped something on accident. His face shortly shared the screen with Bianca. "Where have you been, Touko?"

I shrugged. "I've been here, all day. I'm in the former Team Plasma castle, though it's not where it was seven years ago. If that was the case, then I would have been rescued already."

Bianca nodded. "I saw on the news that they know it was Ghetsis that did it. Was it?"

"Yeah, it was. He threatened me last week when I went in for a job interview, and he danced with me at the Voltaire-"

Cheren shuddered when I said danced.

"-don't you make that face, Cheren, I didn't like it either-and he proposed that I give him..." I trailed off, feeling awkward. If I said that I had N, Cheren would be furious.

"Give him what?" Bianca asked.

"...something of value to me, in return for him keeping Plasma out of my life for good."

"And you obviously refused," Cheren concluded.

"Yeah. He had a Joltik on his sleeve, tiny lil' thing, shocked me and then they brought me here."

My Xtransciever clicked a couple times to indicate I had another incoming call.

"Alright, I have to go," I told them. "Got another call. I will talk to you later, I promise."

"Bye, Touko," Bianca said.

"Be safe," Cheren warned.

I clicked over to the other call. It was N.

"Oh, thank goodness, you're okay," he said quickly.

"I'm fine. Ghetsis isn't going to do anything to me so long as I don't try to escape," I told him. "And I don't really think an escape attempt would be wise. Who knows what he would do to me with his Hydreigon."

"That is a wise choice," N replied. "I'm sorry I left in such a rush earlier, there was an apparent breakthrough on where we thought your location was. It was incorrect."

"I figured," I said slightly sarcastically. "Logically, how long is the maximum time I will be here?"

The green-haired man before me pondered it for a moment. "A few weeks. We know that he's probably in Unova due to the fact that it was only sixteen hours between your disappearance and you picking up the call earlier today."

"How did he get away with me in a lounge full of people?" I asked. I was curious how he could do that.

"He caught you as you fell and used an Abra to transport out of the building. From there, we think he might have had accomplices."

My eyes narrowed. "Former Plasma grunts? Or people at Voltaire that knew I would be there?"

"The latter. Probably a hostess, seeing as the waiters were Pokemon."

"Alright, then you need to check the records of all the hostesses on shift at the time we entered the lounge."

"Okay. By the way, why isn't your location coming up when you call with your Xtransceiver?"
"Ghetsis disabled the GPS system. Sorry, but there won't be any help from it."

"...Unless we find out the last known location on the Xtransceiver before it was disabled!" N grinned. "We're gonna look into that, alright?"

"Okay." I could hardly contain my joy. "I'll be here. Love you," I murmured.

"Love you too," he replied. "I'll call you in the morning, kay?"

"Alright. Goodnight, N."

"Goodnight, Touko. Sleep well."

I pulled off my Xtransceiver and set it on the bedside table, slipping under the sheets of the bed. The cool fabric eased my mind, and I slipped into a dreamless sleep.

See, I don't feel too horrible now. Two chapters within the span of...a week? Not bad at all.