Gothita Is Not Scary at All

Caitlin... she almost died from anger!

She could hardly hold herself back from jumping up and teaching that little boy a lesson!

Were they really treating her like she didn't exist? Was this really okay? But she didn't dare do anything.

'Gothita...' She felt anxious.

She didn't know why, but there were times when her baby Gothita's eyes would suddenly glow purple, and she'd become terrifying. Every time that happened, Caitlin would always hide in the closet, waiting for the strange aura to calm down.

All of this had been happening more recently, making her feel even more anxious. She wanted to tell her father, but she didn't know how. In class, her only friend was Cynthia, but what if... what if telling her would disappoint her?

Cynthia always told her that she wasn't ready to accept her starter Pokémon, but Caitlin already had one and hadn't told her.

'Hiding something from a friend... doesn't that mean I'm betraying her?'

She decided not to tell her only friend, afraid she might leave her. Her father always told her to never tell anyone about Gothita or bring her to school—if she did, not only would she be in trouble, but her father would be, too. She never wanted to put him in a difficult situation.

Caitlin's mind was a mess. Her thoughts jumped from one to another, not knowing where to focus. And just as she was caught up in her spiraling thoughts, another one emerged, making her even angrier.

She was extremely frustrated but couldn't voice any of it. She had to silently listen as Allen entered her room, searching for her.

The room gradually quieted down. Caitlin didn't hear any more movement. She was tense and anxious, just wanting him to leave quickly.

He was just too annoying. Not here. Not in school. She didn't want to meet him at all.

'He had finally left, right?'

Just as she was wrestling with her thoughts, a voice suddenly pierced through the silence. Her eyes opened wide, and her breath caught in her throat.

"Oh, Gothita! Very rare indeed... huh?"

That was the last voice Caitlin heard from Allen.

Allen was surprised to find Gothita there, but he didn't think much of it. After all, playing with Pokémon wasn't forbidden, so he assumed Gothita was just keeping Caitlin company.

But then he noticed something strange. Gothita's eyes glowed purple, and she seemed to be staring directly at... the closet?

Then, a soft thud echoed in the room.

'So, there she was!'

Caitlin was very nervous. Just as she was struggling with her thoughts, a voice suddenly appeared. "I know you are inside. I'll count from one to ten. If you don't answer, I'm going to come in."

She shivered in the closet. 'He... How did he—?!'

"One…" The voice rang again.

Caitlin was in a panic. She wanted him to leave, but at the same time, she didn't know how. Her mind raced, trying to figure out what to do.

Should she stay silent or scold him and tell him to leave? Maybe she could headbutt him like she always did?

There was still a little time left. She kept pondering.

"…Ten!"

In an instant, Allen opened the closet door.

"..."

'What's wrong with you?! Weren't you supposed to count from one to ten?! Where did two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight go? Did you eat them?!' Caitlin wanted to curse, but her mouth only opened and then quickly shut.

She could only glare at Allen, furious. Although she found a sense of security in the darkness, she also felt a bit scared. 'Gothita… there she was.'

She couldn't help but shrink back, hugging her knees to her chest as she silently retreated to the corner, trying to distance herself from Gothita, whose eyes still glowed.

Allen was in disbelief seeing this. 'Did she just…? He paused. 'Is Caitlin afraid of Gothita? Wait… isn't her first Pokémon a Gothita? Does this mean…?'

The realization hit him, and he was momentarily stunned. But there wasn't time to dwell on it. He quickly pulled Caitlin up.

"Alright, come on. Didn't you forget? Today is Cynthia's birthday! Weren't you excited to celebrate with her yesterday?"

"B-but… Gothita..." Caitlin was trembling with anxiety.

On one hand, she was worried, but on the other, she was terrified. Just imagine someone staring at you without ever looking away. Wouldn't that drive you crazy?

"That's because you're psychic! You were angry before, and your emotions were unstable. That's why Gothita was helping you. Gothita isn't scary at all!"

Caitlin was taken by surprise. 'Psychic? emotion? ustable? what is he talking about?'

But Allen didn't let her mind wander for too long. He quickly turned on the lights, clicked the key in the door, and opened it. Her father was already anxiously pacing, like a pan on a hot stove.

"Uncle, I've brought Caitlin safe and sound! Now we're going to Cynthia's house. By the way, do you have Gothita's Pokéball? We'll bring Gothita with us to Cynthia's!"

"No, she doesn't—" He gasped, staring at the two kids and Gothita, whose eyes were still glowing. With a worried expression, he crouched down. "Is Gothita acting up again? Should we take her to the Pokémon Center this time?"

 He didn't know what to do. There wasn't much data about Gothita in Sinnoh. From the little research he had done, he knew that the Gothita line possessed powerful psychic potential.

Though he understood what psychic abilities were, it was still a mystery to him—different from the more straightforward types like Fire or Water, which were easier to grasp. More importantly, he didn't have the time to conduct the research!

Just getting a Pokémon egg from the black market already made him scared silly, so he didn't dare do anything else. What was important was that his daughter had a companion now to ease his guilt.

"Uncle, you don't know about the Gothita line? Wait... Uncle—ummm."

Caitlin then saw her father quickly cover Allen's mouth and look around nervously before sighing in relief, seeing no one else nearby.

With no other choice, he calmly began explaining, hoping this child would understand the situation.

Only after the explanation did Allen realize where Caitlin had gotten her Gothita from.

If he remembered correctly, this Gothita was incredibly powerful. The fact that the wiki mentioned how she had swept through the Battle Frontier with this Pokémon alone and managed to become a member of the Unova Elite Four already said much about how strong this Gothita was.

"Don't worry about Gothita's condition. Actually, all of this happened because Gothita probably sensed the turmoil in Caitlin's emotions earlier. The Gothita line possesses powerful psychic potential, usually focused through their ribbon-like feelers. See this?" Allen then pointed at Gothita's ribbon.

"These ribbons are their feelers, used to amplify Gothita's psychic power, and will cause Gothita to cry if touched. So..." Allen tried to explain, "Probably when Caitlin was angry earlier, Gothita became anxious, trying to understand what was happening. It extended its sense to push its visions and see what was actually happening. Right now, Gothita is still in that 'state.'"

"You know a lot actually!" Caitlin's father was surprised by how smart he was.

Even Caitlin was surprised.

However, before they could say anything, Allen beat them to it. "There's not much time, hurry, Cynthia's birthday! And... the Pokéball, don't forget! Hurry!"