A Study in Mega Evolution

Chapter Twenty-Three

The sun shone over Lumiose City as the people worked to rebuild the city after the destruction the night before. Corina's heart tugged as she saw all the destruction but was filled with hope at the same time to see the people eager to rebuild. She finally checked her phone as she and Eda reentered the city. On it were about a million messages from her father, wondering where she was, if she was safe, that she was on tv battling Zygarde. She and Eda bolted towards the Pokemon Center once she saw he was taking shelter there.

She entered the lobby and looked around. It was absolutely packed with people who were displaced and looking for somewhere to stay. "Dad!?" She called out into the Pokemon Center. "Dad? Da—"

"Corina!" She looked through the crowd and saw her father rushing over.

"Dad!" She raced into his arms, and he wrapped her up in a big hug.

"Corina! I'm so glad you're safe! I was so worried about you."

"I was worried about you!" She pulled back from the hug to look up at him.

"I was the one who had to watch you on TV fighting that monster!"

"I was fine, Dad. I had my team there with me."

"I know, and I'm so incredibly proud of you." He smiled.

"Thanks, Dad." She smiled back but then bit her lip as she frowned again. "How's the café?" She asked the question that'd been on her mind all this time. He frowned too and took a deep breath. Corina immediately prepared herself for the bad news.

"It's not great. The café itself got out without too much damage. But the apartment is in pretty bad shape."

Corina frowned. "Ammphaaa..." Eda placed her paw on Corina's arm to comfort her.

"I'm going to go look." She said, finally.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." She nodded, determined. "I'll see you later."

"All right." He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Be careful."

She and Eda left the Pokemon Center and made their way to her childhood home. Corina stood outside for a moment, seeing the windows shattered and furniture displaced on the first-floor café, but she looked up and saw into her father's bedroom and the kitchen on the apartment. The walls and roof were completely destroyed.

"Ammm...." Eda looked up at Corina. Corina took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'm ready."

Cautiously, she made her way inside, trying not to trip on anything and clearing a path free of glass and debris for Eda. A stair or two almost gave out under her going up, but she was able to keep herself from falling through. Her eyes scanned the old apartment. Everything was covered in dirt and trash, and debris. Furniture was toppled over, and photos were broken on the ground. She fought back the tears at seeing her home destroyed. She made her way down the hall to her old bedroom. Wallpaper was torn from the walls, her bed was askew, her dresser was on its face, and her closet door was broken off. The wood floors were scratched and damaged. A few planks were missing here and there. Her posters and pictures were torn off the wall. Her eyes fell on her vanity table on its side, the glass mostly still intact, but a corner in the top right was missing.

Eda was quiet beside her trainer, looking around the room she had grown up in, too, but Corina needed time to process this herself.

Slowly, Corina stepped up to her vanity desk, its drawers open, and the contents were strewn about the floor, and picked it up, placing it back on its feet. She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. She was totally disheveled. With a deep breath, she picked up the stool and sat down, pulling out her hairbrush and combing through her hair. Eda moved over to the bed, dusted it off, and laid down, desperate for some rest. Corina frowned. Even after fixing herself up, she still wasn't satisfied with her reflection. She didn't feel like the same person she was when she first left this apartment looking like that.