Chapter 4 - "Source #1 - Finger Foods"
In the Rocket cafeteria, a very hungry James was packing away the food. One would think he were storing it for the winter, or something. Jessie, annoyed, watched him, her shoulder upon the table and her head in her hand. "James...Are you done yet?"
James looked at her, a cup of rice and chicken teriyaki in one hand, and chopsticks in the other. "C'mon, Jessie! I'm not even halfway done yet."
Jessie's head pounded on the table. "Sometimes..."
Meowth came up to the table with a tray of fish and catnip. "Well, Jessie, aren't we da overactive one? A guy's gotta eat, ya know!"
"Yeah!" James said, his mouth full of Ramen Noodles now. "Ush men have bigger shtomachs den you women."
Jessie pulled herself off the table and stood up. "Well, I'm not staying here to watch you two stuff your fat faces! I have a movie to finish." She stormed out of the cafeteria.
James watched after her, continuing to chow down. "Shuut yourshelf!"
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Mary and Jack cleverly made their way out of the fileroom. They hid their flashlights in their Pokébelts, and Mary stuffed the files down her shirt. The two of them whistled a happy tune and looked innocent. Other Team Rocket members passing by watched them.
"That Mary," one said to his buddy. "She may be cute and mean, but she's got a weird side to her..."
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Meowth finished his food ten minutes after Jessie left. "C'mon, you pig! We got work to do." James ignored him, happily chomping down on a few Pocky* sticks for dessert. Meowth got a vein on his forehead. He leapt up and slashed James across the face. "Did you hear me?"
James looked up with big wobbly eyes and funny Anime-like tears. "Ouch. That hurt!"
"We're leaving now, if ya didn't know..."
"But I'm still hungry!"
"Forget da food! Da Boss wants us to live up to our name. Time to go find Pokémon to swipe!"
Reluctantly, James sighed and stood up. Meowth ran off ahead of him to find Jessie. As James was about to exit the cafeteria, someone ran inside and pushed him over. "Watch who you're shoving!" James yelled angrily. Then he realized just WHO had knocked him down. "Mary...?"
Mary gasped and ran to the fallen James' side. "Oh, my! Are you hurt?" she gasped. "I'm so sorry." With each word, she added a honey-coated tone for emphasis.
James looked at her aghast. He then jumped to his feet and stood up. As he dusted himself off, a dainty hand extended itself out to him. James blinked.
Mary batted her eyes. James got a sweatdrop. Mary got blush. James finally took her hand and helped her up. "I'm the one who should be sorry, I guess," James said. He smiled. "I didn't know who bumped me..."
Mary's face saddened at this. She turned away from James and chewed on her gloved thumb. "Is my reputation THAT bad...?"
This made James' heart melt. He patted her shoulder. "No! No! It's not that. What I meant was..." His stomach growled. "Eh..."
"Are you hungry?" Mary said turning back around with dew-drop eyes. "I could buy you something..."
"Yes!" James exclaimed. Bloody Mary was actually going to buy him food? She had never been this kind to anyone. James tried to recall what Jessie had said about Mary. He remembered she had said something to the extent of Mary being terrible. However, Jessie was wrong. Mary wasn't that bad! Courteously, James offered his arm to Mary. She took it eagerly. It was the gentlemanly thing to do, and he needed practice. Jessie wanted him to become a gentleman for her.
Mary felt the blood rush to her face. It seemed she were walking on air. James and Mary! That was how it should be. Once Jessie was out of the way...She remembered. She was here to get information from James, not just a romantic lunch. The two sat down at the table. "Whaddaya want?" Mary asked.
James looked at the same menu he had looked at just minutes before this scene. "Hmmmm..."
While he was looking, Mary thought of a subtle way she could approach James before dumping questions on him. She would have to start with the main thing itself. "So...You and Jessie an item?" She hated the way that sounded.
James looked up from the menu and blushed. "That was a very forward question."
Mary shrugged and smiled sweetly. "Oh, well, you know..."
"No. I'm afraid I don't," James said a little angry. He put his menu down on the table. "Care to explain, Mary?"
Mary had to wriggle her way out of this one. She made her eyes water. "Oh, James...It's terrible!"
"Huh?"
Mary pounded her fists onto the table. Tears came running down her cheeks. "I just needed to know. Jessie's in big trouble."
James jumped out of his seat. "Trouble?!? With who?"
"With...With..." Mary thought. "...With...Ash Ketchum..."
"Ash?"
"Yes...That's right." Mary wiped her eyes on a napkin. "Ash is setting a plot to kill Jessie."
"OH MY GOD!"
"I need to know as much information as I can to help her..."
James sat back down and took Mary's hands in his. His eyes were wide. "Are you sure about this, Mary?"
Mary nodded. "Yes!" she wailed.
"Then..." James looked away from her for a moment. "I will tell you everything I know..."
This was it, Mary thought. James would be the key to bringing Jessie down. Good thing he was so gullible. "Yes...?"
"Jessie..."
"Yes...?"
"Jessie is..."
"YES...?"
"Jessie is...Afraid of roller-coasters."
Mary's face turned blue. "What...?"
James nodded and pounded his fist into his other hand. "That must be it! Ash wants to put Jessie on a death-defying roller-coaster!"
Mary fell over Anime-style. James grinned proudly. Mary jumped back up and faced him. "That's all you know?"
"Yes! Now I'm sure Jessie will be saved!"
This was all too much for her to bear. "I see...Well I'd better stop Ash Ketchum then." Her voice was bland. She got up out of her chair with no character and shuffled her feet out the door. "Great..."
James sat happily at the table. He had just saved Jessie's life! He was so proud of himself. Then, he looked at the menu down in front of him and his stomach growled again. "Mary," he called. "You forgot to buy me lunch!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
*Pocky - A type of Japanese cookie. It is a wafer stick that is dipped in flavored icing, usually chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry.
Chapter 5 - "The Hunt For Meowth"
Alone in her room again, Jessie lay on her bed sobbing. 'Titanic' was the best movie she had ever seen! Jack was such a romantic and artist. And Rose knew what true love was when it was face-to-face with her. She defied her fiancée and her own mother to remain with the man she truly loved. Love...Such a wonderful thing! Jessie rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. She recalled this morning and the incident with James and Mary. Mary was nasty. She knew darn good and well that James was already taken...
Meowth entered her room again, almost slashing the door in two. "Has James come back yet?"
Jessie glared at Meowth. "Entering again without my permission? You don't have any manners, Meowth!"
"Dat doesn't matter now!" Meowth groaned. "James is missing. He was supposed to be right behind me."
Jessie jumped to her feet and put her hands on her hips. "He's probably still porking out at the cafeteria!" she said, seeming somewhat annoyed. "Let's go find him."
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Bloody Mary met up with Mack near the cafeteria. "That did not go well at all..." she sighed.
Mack nodded. "Figures. James isn't exactly who you would call an Einstein..."
Bad move. Mary lifted her brother off the ground by his stubby ponytail, sustained him there for awhile, then brought him down hard upon the floor. She wiped her hands off on her skirt. "No matter. There's still another we can ask."
The bashed-up Mack moaned in pain. "Who might that be?"
"...Meowth..."
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James still sat in the cafeteria reading the menu. He was the only person in the room, besides the cookers in the kitchen. Mary had promised to buy him food and she had left. That was a problem. He was still hungry and had absolutely no money left. He sighed, and a little mushroom cloud popped out of his mouth.
Meowth and Jessie walked into the cafeteria. "There he is," Jessie calmly remarked. They walked over to James. "Ummm...Lunchtime is over, if you were wondering."
James looked up at Jessie. "But, Mary..."
"MARY?!?" Jessie fumed. "What was that woman asking of you?"
James jumped to his feet. "Ash is trying to kill you!"
"What?"
He nodded. "Yes. He was going to use a big roller-coaster."
Jessie's eyes twirled. "R-r-roller-coaster?" She dropped to her knees. "I feel dizzy..."
Meowth eyed James. "And just who told you dis?"
"Mary!" James gasped. "She was asking me to give her as much information on Jessie as I could so we could stop Ash's plan and save her life..."
"INFORMATION ON ME?" Jessie roared as she stood up and grabbed James by the collar of his shirt. "You were going to give that trash information on me?"
James cried. "But Jessie, if I hadn't, you would've died!"
"Something screwy's goin' on here..." Meowth said to himself. "First da incident with James, and now dis? What could dat girl be up to?" He walked out of the cafeteria to find Mary.
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Mack and Tack were wandering through a path that lead to Cerulean city. Tack looked at Mack. "So...Exactly what were we doing again?"
Mack, now covered with Band-Aids and wearing a sling, moaned. "Mary says our next source to ask would be Meowth. We're going to find something to help us do that."
"Something?" Tack asked. "A Pokémon?"
Mack nodded. "Yes. One that talks, so we'll be equally matched."
"What kind of Pokémon?" Tack asked, excited about the new plan.
Suddenly they heard something. Mack motioned for Tack to be silent and follow him. The two entered some tall-grass. They saw a tiny Pokémon sitting by a river. From the looks of things, it was a Meowth.
"Perfect!" Mack whispered. "Another Meowth would be more intimidating..." He pulled out two Pokéballs.
"What if it doesn't talk?" Tack questioned.
Mack waved him off. He stood up and threw one of the Pokéballs forward. "Pokéball, go!"
The ball landed right next to the Meowth. Out popped a giant Scyther.
"Scyther!"
"Scyther?" Tack gasped. "It'll kill that Meowth!"
The Scyther attacked the Meowth with it's razor-sharp arms. The Meowth dodged, scattering coins everywhere. Scyther was not impressed by that attack. It slashed the Meowth across the stomach, causing it to faint.
"Easy!" Mack exclaimed. "Good job, Scyther. Return!" Scyther was sucked back into its Pokéball. Mack threw the other one and captured the Meowth.
"Let's see what we got!"
Tack jumped up and down joyfully. "Open it up! Open it up!"
"Meowth, I choose you!" The Meowth popped out of the ball. The two young men were in shock. "It's a girl!" Mack exclaimed.
The little Pokémon sat there, her big eyes shining brightly. On her two antennae-like whiskers were little pink bows. The coin on her head was gold, but in the shape of a big heart. Her cheeks were full of blush and she had a pinkish-brownish stomach. "Meowthy!" it purred.
Chapter 6 - "And They Call It Pokémon Love"
"Meowthy!"
"It doesn't talk?" Mary grumbled.
Mack and Tack both smiled sheepishly. "We could teach it to," Tack suggested.
"Sure we could," Mary sighed. She bent over and scratched Meowthy under her chin. Meowthy purred loudly. "Oh well...Meowth will at least be able to talk to it."
Mack cringed. "But what if Meowth doesn't fall in love easilly?"
Mary winked. "I know men. They fall for anything..."
"Hey!"
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Meowth wandered around the halls looking for Bloody Mary. She had something really mean up her sleeve, and Meowth was determined to find out what it was. What was it she knew that he didn't?
By that evening, Meowth had checked every inch of Team Rocket's HeadQuarters. He decided to take a breather. He stepped outside into the night air. "Mary's sure elusive," he thought to himself. It was already dark outside. There was no noise, except for maybe a few crickets and Zubats chirping, or a few Pidgeys singing. Meowth rested his paw against a tree and leaned against it. He sighed, looking at the stars. Suddenly, and without warning, something fell out of the tree and landed right on top of him.
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Jessie was in her room again, rewinding her movie. She wanted to watch it again...Either that or find another Leonardo Di Caprio tape! A knock was heard. Jessie groaned. If it was Meowth again, she was going to give him a piece of her mind. "Whaddaya want, Meowth?"
"Can I come in?" a voice answered.
It was James. Jessie sighed in relief and opened the door. James entered. "Of course! I'm sorry...I thought you were Meowth. He's been bugging me lately."
James looked down at the ground. "Jessie, I have something to tell you."
"Yes?"
"Well, I'm awfully sorry about Mary, and everything else that happened today." He looked at her with eyes of a small child.
Jessie smiled. "Oh, it wasn't your fault. Don't blame yourself. Mary's an idiot."
He looked away from Jessie again. "Umm...I also have a confession..."
At this, Jessie prepared for the worst and bit her lip. "Uh huh...?"
"When I ran into Mary in the cafeteria this afternoon, she offered to buy me lunch. Jessie, I didn't want to believe you about Mary being bad. I truly thought she was nicer than we thought," James then looked Jessie right in the eyes. "But, after I thought about it for a while, I realized that it was bad of me to think that!" He took her hands. "I will always trust you, Jessie. You're the one who keeps me together."
Jessie blushed heavilly and looked lovingly at him. "Thank you, James-chan."
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Serena tossed and turned in Darien's bed. "No! Leave my friend alone!" she cried. "Help! Help!"
Darien, who was sleeping on the couch ran into the room. "Serena!" He took her in his arms and shook her by the shoulders. "Serena, wake up."
Serena opened her eyes, and tears began to fall. "Darien," she sobbed. "I had a horrible nightmare!"
Darien hugged her. "What, Serena? What was it about?"
"I, as Neo Queen Serenity, was sitting in a puddle of blood," Serena cried louder. "Everything hurt, Darien! You were hanging off a cliff, and a woman was standing near me holding a big chain-like weapon. Then...Then she took Princess Jessie by the throat and beat her with the weapon. I tried to move, but...Everything hurts!" She collapsed on the bed.
Darien sat there, disgusted. "What the Hell could that mean?" he asked himself, sweat streaming down his face. He quickly, but thoughtlessly, headed to the sink and doused a washcloth with cold water. Then he went back into the bedroom and patted Serena's face with it. "It's alright," he told Serena, and himself. "It will all be okay..."
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"Ahhhhh!" Meowth rolled out from underneath the being. He drew his claws. "You wanna fight Meowth?"
Two large eyes looked up at him. An innocent voice spoke. "Why, no I don't...I'm awfully sorry I fell on you."
Meowth gulped. In front of him stood the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. Redness filled his cheeks, and his heart ached.
"M-m-meowth...?"
The girl Meowth giggled. "My name is Meowthy!"
"Hiya-hiyaya..." Meowth was speechless.
"What's your name?"
"Meowth...Dat's right..."
Meowthy edged closer to him. "Well, I guess that would be right. But you can talk, can't you?"
Every step Meowthy moved closer, Meowth moved farther away. Soon he was backed-up against the tree. "Y-you can't talk?"
Meowthy was right next to him now. "No, I can't," she said. "Maybe you could teach me. It's been ages since I've seen another of my kind, let alone a talker."
"Of course," Meowth said, pressing harder onto the tree. She was so beautiful!
"Oh, thank you!" she purred, rubbing against Meowth. Meowth felt like he was a balloon ready to pop. Then Meowthy bopped one of his antenaes back and forth. He sweated more rappidly. She then went in for the kill. Meowthy kissed him on the cheek. This was too much for Meowth to bear. He jumped into the air and landed out of Meowthy's grasp.
He smiled. "So, see ya tomorrow, I guess?"
"Yes," Meowthy said cutefully and seductavely.
Meowth got a goofy grin and tried to walk back indoors, but hit against the wall. He finally found the door and waltzed in.
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Mack and Tack high-fived each other. They had been watching Meowthy and Meowth from behind some bushes. "I knew Meowthy would be a perfect choice!" Mack exclaimed.
Tack laughed. "You mean a purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrfect choice!" he said as he got a Meowth face.
Mack hit him over the head. "You are lame!"
"For one in so much pain," Tack said holding his newly-begun black eye. "You can sure hit hard.
Mack's face turned purple. "OUCH!" he cried as he held his slinged-arm, the one that he had punched with. "That wasn't smart!"
"No...It wasn't."
Chapter 7 -"This is Where Things Get Complicated"
Jessie and James sat cuddling under a big blanket in Jessie's room. "I wonder where Meowth is," James said. "He's usually in bed by this time."
Jessie stood up, taking the blanket with her. James fell over sideways. "You're right, James." She looked up at her clock on the wall. A Pidgeotto popped out like a cuckoo-clock. It clucked twelve times. Jessie gasped. "It's midnight!"
James got up. "I guess I'd better go then..."
"Oh, no you don't," Jessie laughed. "You stay right where you are!"
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Meowth walked on air to his cat-bed in James' room. His heart fluttered and his mind kept producing images of Meowthy. He smiled and purred. "Oh...Meowthy..." He completely forgot about Mary and everything else that had happened today. He was not aware of what time it was, where he was, or who he was. All that mattered to him was Meowthy.
Aimlessly, he reached for the doorknob on James' door. He opened it and walked in. "Sorry if I disturbed you, James," Meowth sighed, dropping onto his bed. When there was no groan or any other answer, Meowth walked over and jumped on James' bed. Empty? "He must still be at dinner," Meowth groaned. He rested on the bed. How nice it was to be in a human's bed! He hadn't been in one since...Since...
What was he doing? Meowth sat up and shook his head. "What are you doing, buddy?" he asked himself. "You can't fall in love with a Pokémon. You're a human, damn it!" He recalled the day he was changed from young Matt into Meowth. It was terrible. His screaming in pain while Giovanni laughed at him. Meowth's eyes wobbled. He buried his face in his paws. No, no! He couldn't fall in love. Not with Meowthy!
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Mack and Tack had reported the good news to Mary. "Meowth is doing the dirty work for us," Tack said. "He's gonna teach Meowthy how to talk."
"Excellent," Mary smiled. "The more time he spends with her, the better."
Jack and Zack nodded. This plan was going great. Besides that, their sister was happy. When Mary was happy, no one got hurt.
Little Meowthy walked into the room. "Meowthy," she said, announcing her arrival.
Mary's arms outstretched wide to the Pokémon. "Oh! Good job, Meowthy!" But Meowthy ignored her and walked straight into Mack's arms. The brothers all got sweatdrops. Mary clenched her fists. "What?"
Mack petted Meowthy gently. "You're forgetting who caught her, Mary-san. I'm Meowthy's owner."
"Not for long!" Mary said, grabbing Meowthy out of Mack's arms. Meowthy screeched. "She had better get used to me. I'm the leader of this group."
"But, Mary..."
Mary slapped Mack across the face. "No buts, ingrate! Meowthy belongs to me!" She stormed out of the room taking Meowthy with her.
Tack patted Mack's shoulder. Mack's eyes wobbled. "I loved that Meowthy..."
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The next morning, Serena went over to Raye's temple to ask her about interpreting the dream she had had. Raye listened attentively, shuddering slightly. "Serena, we're all in danger," Raye said calmly. Serena whimpered. "I'll talk to the Fires about it first, but I think it's a little obvious."
"I thought so," Serena cringed. "Ask them about the enemy, too."
"You mean the woman with the weapon?"
"Yes."
Raye knelt in front of her Fire. "Oh, sacred Flames, please give me the meaning of Serena's dream." A dark shadow filled the room and fire surrounded the two girls. Raye's eyes turned full. "Princess Jessie will die." Raye interpreted.
"What?"
"And Prince Endymion will help kill her. Then he will suffer greatly for it." Serena's eyes widened. Raye continued. "You will not be able to do anything, Princess. Your love for Darien will hold you back from doing what is right, and your friendship with Jessie will shatter. All...Will...Die!" Then Raye fell into a heap on the floor.
Serena trembled as she crawled over to Raye. "Raye-chan..." she gasped. "That can't be..."
Raye opened her eyes. They were hollow and normal again. "Where am I?" She looked at the shocked face of Serena and knew that the Flames had given her Power to understand fully. "What did they say?"
She couldn't speak. She couldn't move. Serena just sat there, clutching the Imperium Silver Crystal locket that was on her bow. She looked at Raye with blank eyes. "Jessie will die..."
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"Let's go eat breakfast!"
"James, it's still early..."
"But, Jessie, I'm hungry!"
"You're always hungry."
James ran out the door of Jessie's room to his own room at eight thirty in the morning. He had to get dressed and washed-up before the crowd got to the cafeteria. He opened the door to his room and turned on the light. He was surprised to see Meowth curled up in a ball on HIS bed.
"Great," he muttered. "I'll be trying to get cat-hairs outta my bed for decades..."
Meowth heard him and wearily opened his eyes. "James...?" James stood there in his Rocket pants and black tee-shirt. His boots and gloves were off and he looked pretty mad. "So, you finally decided to stop stuffing your face?"
"What are you talking about, Meowth?" James said, gritting his teeth. "I haven't been stuffing my face! And why ask ME questions? You're the one in the wrong bed."
"Well, if you weren't in da cafeteria, where were you?"
James smirked. "With Jessie!"
Meowth got a billion sweatdrops. "And he tells me I'M sleeping in da wrong bed..." he thought to himself.