My hand is stuck suspended in midair as I reach for the Striaton Restaurant's front door. It's a tormenting paranoia knowing an annoying brother will be on the other side to greet me. Their greetings are never fun. I cannot stress how much I dislike meeting them.

"Tristan! Err...welcome!" a voice says awkwardly, opening the front entrance. Cilan is my greeter for today? Why can't I just get a random stranger instead? It's as if these three brothers are everywhere.

"Cilan," I acknowledge simply. Going any farther than that would result in excess conversation. Please, just no.

"Thalia awaits you in the restaurant," he says sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. I nod as he takes a step back and shows me in. With a slight bow, he motions towards a table in the center of the lobby. Why did Thalia have to choose such a conspicuous spot? I like to think by this point she knows I enjoy the corners in both restaurants and desserts.

I pass a few scrambling employees trying to clean and bus tables with food and dishes left on them. They all have the uniform I'm glad I didn't immediately discard. Their energy makes me feel extra lethargic.

"Thalia," I say simply as I approach her table. She looks up and smiles to me. To think she's actually the same girl who shouted thief! at a foreigner and had such a serious talk with me after the first assignment. I guess even the most simplest and average of people are more complex than what they seem.

"Tristan! I'm ready whenever you are!" she grins. The painful smile and her beaming attitude makes me feel like I just drank food coloring. I feel like I just dyed a little on the inside.

Her comment though makes me chuckle to myself. "I like how you assume I have something already planned."

"Well, I'm just concerned because you seem to skip a lot of steps despite seeming so methodical."

I squint at her, realizing she just praised and insulted me in the same sentence. "I'll take that as a compliment." I sit down across from her as I glance off to my left. Cilan is fast approaching as he apologizes every few steps for accidentally bumping chairs.

"What have you got in mind, Tristan?" Thalia asks. I look at her momentarily, seeing her affixed gaze at me. I cross my arms and sigh as my response.

"We need Cilan's help. Once he comes, I will ask him if he will introduce us to whoever had their Pokémon stolen. Like I said last time, if you recall, we need to gather information," I explain to her. I run my fingers through my hair as Cilan finally reaches us.

"Tristan and Thalia, hello. How may I...umm...be of service?" he asks us. I quickly reply to Cilan myself.

"Introduce us to the person who had their Pokémon stolen, if you don't mind," I say. He nods quickly as the two of us get up. He walks over to a table with only one person occupying it. I recognize the girl immediately.

"Excuse me, miss?" Cilan asks. The girl turns around. All of the facial features and brown hair are easily discernable. She's the other girl of The Clique. Don't tell me she's the victim here.

"What do you want, Cilan? Or should I say Ci-lame?" the girl says. My memory is a bit fuzzy, but I recall her name being Camille.

"Cilan is the correct name," Cilan says. I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. I can hear Thalia manage to hold in a laugh.

"Who are these people?" Camille asks. Cilan nods as he clasps his hands together.

"These people? Err...they're here to help you. They personally will help you find your lost Pokémon," Cilan explains. "If you don't mind cooperating with them..."

The girl eyes Thalia and I suspiciously. She then clicks her tongue in annoyance. Sheesh, can't a guy get an ounce of respect around here?

"Whatever. As long as you find it," she says. Great, now I have to deal with yet another person. Can't wait until I have to do psychiatry for every member of The Clique.

Thalia pulls me over to the chairs across from Camille. She sits across from her while I sit to Thalia's left. Camille looks off somewhere else at the floor. The discomfort level skyrockets like a certain team blasting off again as Thalia attempts to break the silence.

"So, uh, what's your name?" Thalia starts.

"Camille," the girl answers with a glare. Seriously, Thalia? Even I could've told you that much.

"We've been told your Pokémon was stolen?" Thalia continues. Camille slams her hands on the table, causing it to shake. A loud bang echoes through the restaurant. Sheesh, show some restraint.

"My precious Purrloin has been purloined!" she shouts at us. The whole scenario itself of a Purrloin getting stolen sounds vaguely familiar.

"Okay...and where did you lose it?" Thalia continues.

"Here! The Striaton City Restaurant! I'm absolutely sure of it!" she shouts again. It makes sense she's fired up about losing her partner. In my opinion though, it's odd that she's so hellbent on the idea she lost it here. Is there no possible way it could have been lost anywhere else?

"Do you think it was stolen?" I ask suddenly. Thalia has a way of beating around the bush. Me? I'm more straight to the point so we don't waste any time.

"...yes," Camille answers. I can sense the conviction and discord in her voice. There's some sort of internal conflict with her thoughts.

"Any suspects?" I push on. She looks away for a moment, before answering.

"Three guys were here with my belongings as Abigail and I went to use the restroom that day," Camille explains, her shoulders shaking. "I hate to do it, but I suspect my friends Tim, Cory, and Mark."

I nod silently as I glance at Thalia. I have qualms with her suspecting her friends. From my experiences, people can be backstabbing piles of Trubbish when they want to be. You thought they were your friends? Well, you were wrong. You weren't even close. Far from it. They used you for their own personal gain or amusement. They're the lowest people of society.

That's probably why I relate so much. I complain, tell dirty lies, and play kids for fools. It's my lifestyle to be the lowest of the low, after all.

"Okay, can you start by telling us a little about your friends?" Thalia asks. Camille pauses for a moment, tapping her chin with her index finger in thought.

"Let me think...Tim looks unreliable, but is the life of the party. Also he puts his all into the things he does, and is an overall nice guy," she sums up.

"So a good-for-nothing sadsack, aside from when he's looking for a good time, isn't that right?" I sum up. The two of them look at me with raised eyebrows. I can tell what they're thinking: really?

"Continue, Camille," Thalia says.

"Well, Cory does things at his own pace, never trying to hurry other people up. He's nice too," she nods.

"So slow, obtuse, and indecisive to boot. Sounds like a problem child," I reiterate. Thalia rolls her eyes at my comment. Well, I'm sorry that she's painting her suspects in a positive light.

"Mark makes friends with just about anyone, and he's nice as well," Camille finishes.

"Sounds like a bandwagon-jumping wallflower," I mutter. Thalia subsequently gives my arm a DynamicPunch. I can tell you now I am certainly confused by her rash action.

"Ignore him. He's already long gone," Thalia explains. Camille glares at me ominously, making my skin crawl. Since when did she learn the icy stare that can send any guy running for Breeze Hill?

"Anyway, any more questions?" Camille asks with that same twinge of annoyance in her voice she started with. I shake my head no as Thalia sighs. I don't know why she's exhausted. She didn't even ask any difficult questions.

"No...that's all," Thalia says. Camille then shrugs and pushes her chair back. She stands up and proceeds out of the restaurant. Finally, her annoying presence is gone.

"So, what do you think?" Thalia says. I hum to myself for a moment, thinking. What do I think? Other than the fact I do not want to do this, of course.

"If you want an honest opinion...I believe Camille did it," I tell her. She immediately slams her hand in the table in confusion.

"What? She stole her own Pokémon? That makes no sense!" Thalia exclaims. I shake my head. On the contrary, Thalia. It makes perfect sense to me. What else would be the answer, especially for a cynic like myself who believes in the worst known possible to man in people? To sum it up, it's a classic case of misanthropy.

"Are you stupid or what? I bet the perp victimized herself in order to escape the radar," I tell her. "In fact, if it were me, I'd leave rumors about one of them, which would single them out for suspicion." I nod as my explanation can't be any more sound. Not even an Exploud can compare.

"Tristan, you're a jerk. You know that?"

"I prefer the term criminal mastermind, thank you very much," I nod, confidently grinning. It's been a while since I've been able to grin authentically. It's not as refreshing as people make it to be.

"Regardless," Thalia continues, twirling a lock of hair in her finger, "do you have a plan? Any course of action you want to take this?"

I smirk at her statement. "Me? Plan? I would never."

"Right. Because everything you've done up to this point was on a whim," Thalia says distastefully. I raise an eyebrow at her statement as I stare off at the restaurant surrounding us. Waiters and waitresses alike serve the onslaught of customers coming in for a rush. The idea of being enveloped by the crowd sends a chill down my spine. I can't fathom trying to turn everyone against everyone in this scenario.

"Ehem, in any case, you're missing the true point of what we have to do, Thalia," I say, clearing my throat. "It's not about finding the culprit. It's about finding the Pokémon. I couldn't care less if we find the Purrloin as roadkill somewhere or if it just shows up on her doorstep tomorrow. If it's found, then our job is finished."

Thalia sits pensively as a waiter whooshes by us with a platter of plates. All the food reminds me of my massive debt. Why did people have to be such as gluttonous as a Munchlax?

"Thalia, just go," I say, shooing her away with a wave. I sense her discomfort in the crowded area. The best thing she can do is not tremble while sitting next to me.

"Right, okay," she nods as she somehow slips her way to the front entrance in the blink of an eye. Her presence wisps away, as if she is nothing more that a Ghost Pokémon.

It's not like I sent her away on purpose.

"She really is clueless, isn't she?" I ask myself. I cross my arms as I look back at the front entrance. The same door Thalia walked through, leaving the building.

It's the same door The Clique make their way through. I admit it, this is faster than I expected. Regardless, it is time to strike while the iron is hot.