Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I did not create Pokémon, or Team Rocket. Wish I did though...great idea...
Note: The Medians are not a melding of human and Pokémon. They are a third race on the planet. I created the Medians...but they're still based on Pokémon.
Some pronounciations...I have some odd names in here. Stethaleigh (Steth-ah-ley), Mishael (Mi-shai-el), Celina (Selina)......The rest are pretty self-explanatory, I guess...
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Part 1 - Stethaleigh
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James huddled in his sleeping bag, sitting, legs crossed, green eyes focused hard on the paper in his lap. He'd pulled the blanket around his shoulders, trying to keep warm. Jessi was close to him, almost snuggled against his hip. It was very cold out, and they'd agreed to sleep a little closer to keep warm. He'd tried not to let the emotion show in his expressive eyes when she'd asked him about it. He didn't really know what to think of it. He was too busy right now, at any rate, to think about it. He had to write this letter to his parents to let them know he was all right, even though he was sure they didn't care. He choked on the thought, hurt building up in his chest. Carefully he blanked his face and continued to write in his messy handwriting.
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Mother and Father, I am well. I just thought I would let you know. I'm sorry I can't be the son you wanted me to be, but I can't live like you raised me. I need my freedom and I -
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He stopped writing. What was he going to say? He had been about to write 'and I want to stay with Jessi.' He was a little interested in Jessi, she was strong and she was pretty good at what she did, and beautiful as well. But did he want to spend the rest of his life with her? He had to decide. He closed his eyes and erased the last sentence from the word 'and' on. He didn't know what to write.
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I need my freedom. I will send you letters every month to let you know that I'm not dead yet, and will continue with Team Rocket. Your son, James.
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He folded the short letter carefully into thirds and put it in an envelope, then addressed it, and tucked it into his shirt. Then he twisted and gently tapped Jessi's shoulder. He was almost afraid of her. She'd been in a temper the night before and he wasn't sure how happy she would be this morning.
"Jessi. Time to wake up." he said softly, looking at her pretty face. She was beautiful when she slept, but when she was awake....he closed his eyes and remembered dropping into bed the night before, semi-conscious after being whacked by her mallet.
She stirred and opened her eyes.
"No, James, I don't want to get up." she mumbled in her sleep. James smiled a little, and rubbed his head. There was a huge bump on his head. Maybe breakfast would get her up.
He stood and was dizzy for a second. Maybe the slam he'd gotten on his head had done a little more damage than he thought. He couldn't be too bad, though, so he started to pull out the bacon and eggs he was cooking that morning. They had bought them the day before in a small town nearby, without a gym, and decided to have a little treat for breakfast. He settled in by the fire and started cooking, as usual. He always cooked. Jessi hadn't a clue what to do with a pot.
Halfway through his cooking, Jessi sat up and yawned, looking at him.
"How are you this morning, James?" she asked, a kind of hooded concern in her eyes. She had realized she'd hit him awfully hard the night before. He braced himself on the ground, blacking out for a second, then turned to look at her.
"Fine. I'm making breakfast." he said quickly. Jessi pulled herself out of the sleeping bag, still wearing her pajamas, as was James. She wore loose grey sweatpants and a tightish baby pink shirt. She looked cute. James put a hand to his head. Cute but deadly.
She stretched delicately, and settled back down on her sleeping bag, pulling a fold around her shoulders to keep warm. James finished cooking breakfast and loaded it onto plates, then turning to give Jessi a questioning look as he didn't know how to serve it.
"Just sit here and we'll eat on my sleeping bag." Jessi said softly, patting the blanket beside her. James sat lightly beside her and handed her her plate, wondering if she wanted to sit beside him, or if she was just cold. It turned out she was just cold, because she didn't lean on him, or anything, just sat there delicately picking at her food with all the grace of a professional dancer. What was it with her? He didn't know what to think. One minute she was nice to him, the next...he put a hand to his head again. One of his usual migraine headaches had started up. Unfortunately, they'd spent the last of their money on breakfast and hadn't had any left for painkillers. James closed his green eyes and tried not to get nauseous. He couldn't be sick today. They had work to do. They were off-duty on the Pikachu for a while, and had to return to headquarters to get a new assignment from Giovanni. It was a short one, Giovanni had told them.
"Well, we'd better get dressed." he said, when Jessi was done with breakfast. She scooped up her clothes and stepped into the bushes to change. He took her plate and quickly washed the dishes, wondering idly how Meowth was doing visiting his parents and meeting the new kittens his mother had given birth to.
Jessi swung into the clearing again, in full Team Rocket uniform with her pajamas strung over her forearm. While she put them away, he went to get dressed.
Once the camp was all packed away, they walked towards the headquarters. James threw up before they'd traveled for fifteen minutes, and Jessi patted his back while he leaned over with his face in the grass trying not to throw up again. His head throbbed.
"This isn't my fault, is it, James?" she asked in a soft voice, sounding a little anxious.
"I don't think so, Jessi." he lied. Jessi stared at the ground.
"You don't lie well, James." she said in a low, sad voice.
"Sorry." he mumbled. They continued, and James wasn't sick again. He felt like he had nails in his eyes, but he didn't throw up again. He could handle it. They had a mission to accomplish.
They walked into Team Rocket Headquarters five minutes too late. Everything was bright to James, even though it was always dark here. Just a usual migraine thing. Eye sensitivity.
Giovanni's secretary rushed them into a room different from the usual one they met him in. Giovanni stood in the long, narrow room smiling kind of evilly at them.
"It's good that you're here." he said quietly, "At last. This is an important mission. It could make us all very rich."
"Yes sir." Jessi and James said, looking nervously at each other. James rubbed the back of his hand across his face. His eyes still hurt.
Giovanni pressed a dark red button on the wall and the wall promptly slid up to reveal a dimly lit room with white padding on the walls and a pile of cushions in the middle. The room was like a prison cell, with strong Plexiglas between Giovanni and Team Rocket and the room, and no entrance or exit except a warp tile in one corner of the room.
"I need you to take this creature and tell her to bring you to her people. We need to capture them." Giovanni said simply.
"Creature?" James asked, scanning the room with his sore eyes and finally seeing what looked like a girl curled up in a fetal position with her back to them, half-buried in the cushions. She wore a short sweater fading from red on top to blue on the bottom, flared denim jeans and huge hiking boots. The only thing that seemed odd was the fact that she had a long cat-like tail that extended around her to her front, wrapped around her like a cat would sleep.
Giovanni knocked hard on the Plexiglas and the girl stirred. She carefully got up, on her hands and knees on the cushion and did a cat-stretch. She was covered with soft cream-colored fur and from her plain jaw-length light-brown hair there extended two black-rimmed ears.
"She is an anthropomorphic Persian." Giovanni explained, "Half-human, and half- Persian. Beautiful, isn't she?"
The girl inside the room gracefully climbed to her feet and blinked her huge green eyes at them, twitching her little cat-like nose as if she was sniffing at them through the Plexiglas. Her red lips kind of pouted, as if she was extremely unhappy. Her figure was as human as Jessi, and just as...beautiful. Except for the strangeness of the cream-colored fur on her bare stomach.
"She has retractable claws, an excellent sense of smell and very sensitive touch." Giovanni continued, "She is also extremely strong."
"What is she called?" James asked, staring at the girl through the Plexiglas. She looked so sad...
"She calls herself Stethaleigh." Giovanni informed them.
"Stethaleigh? Is she intelligent?" Jessi asked, eyes wide.
"We believe so. But it is possible to capture them in Poké balls." he said, holding up the red and white sphere and smiling at the girl in the room. She walked over to the Plexiglas wall and looked at them. She stared at James for a few moments, still twitching her black nose, then at Jessi, and, same thing. Then she looked at Giovanni, who held up the Poké ball and smiled superiorly. The girl, Stethaleigh, screwed up her face into an angry expression and lifted her right hand. She flexed the fingers stiff, and black, inch- long claws slid out of the tips. She pointed the hand at Giovanni, who laughed and stepped onto the warp tile at the corner of the observation room. He appeared in the room and pushed the button on the Poké ball, pointed it at Stethaleigh and called her back. The ball shook and quivered in his hand for five minutes before it darkened and Giovanni put it in his pocket, stepped on the warp tile and stepped back out. He deposited the Poké ball in James's hand, and James shivered, thinking of the strange yet beautiful girl trapped inside.
"Don't mess this up, or you will be very sorry." Giovanni warned. James nodded once, and Jessi did too.
"Yes sir." they said in unison. Giovanni showed them to the door and they stepped back out into the outside world. James recoiled from the sunlight and dropped the Poké ball containing Stethaleigh. She popped out and looked at them silently.
"James..." Jessi said nervously. Stethaleigh looked angry.
"So he trades me off to some other freaks who want to capture us all!" the cat-girl said in an angry voice, stepping towards Jessi and James. She was a little shorter than Jessi and yet she seemed to loom over even James. Jessi and James clutched onto each other in fright.
"Oh, I'm not going to hurt you two." she said, waving her furred hand at them, walking closer with a grace that was untouched by anything fully human. Even Jessi. She stared at Jessi and James, her green eyes squinted half-shut and her nose quivering again.
"You-you talk?" Jessi stuttered.
"Of course." Stethaleigh said, and two small fangs flashed where a human's eye teeth would have been, "Of course. I'm intelligent. More intelligent than that ignoramus. I can't believe I let him capture me in a Poké ball!"
"You-your name is Stethaleigh, right?" James mumbled.
"Call me Leigh." she said, waving a hand. Jessi and James let go of each other. Leigh bent and scooped up the open Poké ball that lay on the cement.
"My prison..." she mumbled, "Anytime, anyone can just put me in here and I can't get out." She closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them they were quivering with tears.
"I'm sorry, but we have a mission." James explained, wincing from the sun again.
"You're hurting." she said quietly.
"How can you tell?" he asked innocently. Leigh sniffed at the air.
"Your...smell. Its hard to explain. I can smell you very clearly. You're tense, and...you use a very nice aftershave!" she said, smiling brightly, "Mmmm....I love that smell..." James stared at her, and Jessi glanced over at him, then smirked and elbowed him.
"James, the cat-girl likes the way you smell..." she mocked him. In an instant, Leigh was around behind Jessi with her extended claws at her throat.
"Don't ever, ever call me that!" she hissed through her teeth. Jessi nodded nervously and Leigh released her. Leigh crossed her arms and glared from narrowed eyes at Jessi and James.
"We need agreement. I could hurt you two and escape, and you'd never see me again. Only, you have the Poké ball, and that technically makes you my trainers. However, I need no training. I know all I need to know. But, yet, you have the ball. What do you have to say to this?" she asked.
"Well..." James said, looking over at Jessi, who was still quivering a bit from her close encounter with Leigh's claws, "It doesn't seem right to keep you in a Poké ball." James said, touching the Poké ball with the index finger of his right hand. He fingered the button, as if to push it, and Leigh looked terrified.
"No...don't put me in there...please..." she whimpered. James was shocked at how scared he could make her. His entire life, women had been terrorizing him. He didn't quite know if he enjoyed scaring her or not.
"I won't." he said softly, deciding he didn't like scaring her, and depositing the Poké ball in his pocket. Leigh sighed in relief and looked into his eyes.
"James, I know there is good in you somewhere. Please let me go home." she whispered.
"We can't." Jessi said, stepping in before James could cave in to Leigh, "We have a mission, and if we fail, it could cost us dearly." she said. Leigh stared at the floor.
"If you succeed, my life is over." she said, her tail drooping. Jessi sighed.
"At any rate, we don't need to make the decision now." James said, "We can think it over while we travel to get Meowth."
Leigh perked up, "You have a Meowth?" she asked.
"Yes. His mother just gave birth to kittens and he's gone to see her for a short visit. He's basically a member of the Team." James explained, shielding his eyes. Leigh dug in her jeans pocket and produced a small pill container.
"Painkiller?" she asked. James smiled and took the container.
"Thanks." he said.
"Kittens." Leigh sighed, "I wonder how my Auntie Malena is doing with her kittens...she just gave birth to two beautiful twins. Their names are Jonas-Leeam and Ivory. Jonas is a boy, Ivory is a girl."
"We'd best be going." Jessi said cautiously.
"I miss Mishael." Leigh sniffled.
"Who's Mishael?" James asked looking at the sniffling girl.
"Mishael. He will be my mate...later, when we are old enough to have kittens." Leigh said softly, "I love him very much."
"Ah. Boyfriend." Jessi said, sighing, "I understand that." Leigh looked at Jessi questioningly, eyes wide.
"You have a boyfriend?" she asked, then looked over at James, "Is it you?"
"Well..." James started. He was feeling very awkward. What should he say? This Leigh was getting a little too personal.
"No." Jessi said, "Me and the boy I'm thinking of went out while me and James were in a bike gang..." James didn't know whether to be happy or depressed that she hadn't said 'yes'. He felt like slapping himself in the forehead.
"Oh. Him." James sighed, slumping his shoulders. Then he stiffened. Nausea was building up, and he was sure he was about to throw up again, "I-I...Jessi, I think I need to throw up again..." he mumbled, then ran to the bushes and threw up. Jessi patted his back again, and that was enough to make him let loose once more. This was bad. He hoped dearly that this wasn't one of those migraines that lasted for days on end.
Leigh scampered away, and up into a tree to pluck a little bluish fruit from a branch near the top. She had climbed the tree in under ten seconds, picked the fruit in less than half that time, and was down again to pull James's hair out of his face when he threw up the second time.
"Here, James. I'm not sure how much this will help, but its good for nausea...in us Medians, anyway."
"Medians?" Jessi asked, as she stepped back to let Leigh help James sit and nibble at the fruit she'd picked for him, putting her hand on the back of his neck as if to check his temperature. He could feel the fur on her hand brushing the back of his neck softly, and it helped his head a bit.
"Yes, its what we call ourselves." Leigh said, raising a furry finger to wipe away a drip of fruit juice from the corner of James's mouth. He sunk into her hand a bit, the attention felt good. Usually Jessi just stuck him in a sleeping bag in the shade when he got this bad, and left him. Leigh stroked his face and he started to calm down a bit, he wasn't as anxious.
"Are there others like you?" Jessi asked. Leigh looked uncomfortable and stopped stroking James's face.
"Please, until we decide what we wish to do about our situation, do not ask me too many personal questions..." Leigh said. She put her hand under James's chin and lifted his face, smiling into his eyes.
"Do you feel better?" she asked him. He nodded, his stomach felt much better, and he took another bite of the fruit. Leigh stood and ran her hands down the back of her jeans, as if to clean off any loose dirt.
"Shall we go to see the kittens?" Leigh asked. They stood up and continued walking down the path.
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Stethaleigh sighed and stared down at the ground, wondering what they would do with her. The boy was a lot nicer than the girl, on the outside anyway. Stethaleigh had no doubt the girl was really nice inside as well.
They were headed to see the kittens of a Meowth. Stethaleigh loved Meowth kittens. They were always cute, and this Meowth, child of the one with kittens, they spoke of sounded nice. He could speak the human language, they said, as she could.
Stethaleigh remembered her own native tongue. Human wasn't her first language, either, it was Median. Her name meant 'freedom' in the Median tongue. She was very fond of her name. And Mishael's. His name meant 'strong one'. Physically, he wasn't the strongest of Persian-type Medians, but he was strong in spirit. Stethaleigh longed to be with him. She had known him 16 of her 17 years of life, and loved him for 11 of those years. He was more than a friend, or, as Jessi put it, a 'boyfriend'...he was her soulmate.
They walked up to a small grey house nestled in the woods, and James knocked politely on the door. He looked a lot better now, although he was still pale. Stethaleigh was getting to be very fond of him. He was also attractive in a strange sort of way, she liked the color of his hair. It was like looking at the sky through a purple flower petal. He wasn't nearly as attractive to her as Mishael was, though...
Then there was the girl, Jessi. Stethaleigh didn't know what to think of her. She had a strong outer coating, but she was soft inside, and kind to James, like when she helped him during his sickness. Yet James had accused her of causing this 'migraine headache' by hitting him over the head. It was a strange relationship between these two...Stethaleigh sighed, unable to understand humans.
A small female Meowth came to the door. She was young, and had a bright coin on her head.
"Meowth?" she asked politely. Jessi and James looked at a loss for words. They didn't understand her. Stethaleigh stepped forward and spoke in the soft, purring words of Persian Pokémon language, which Persian-type Medians also used.
"Meowth?" (Who are you?) the small female Meowth asked.
"Purr...sian...purr." (They are friends of Meowth's. He came to see the kittens.)
"Meowth...yowth." (Why are they here?)
"Persian, purr." (To see the kittens and get Meowth to go with them.)
"Meowth, yowth yowth...meowth." (I don't want him to leave. And who are you?)
"Purr-purr Persian...Purr! Purrrrrsian...sian." (I am not sure what I am to these people, Pokémon or companion. But I'm sure Meowth will be back for a visit soon.)
"Meowth Yowth." (Come in.)
The small Meowth admitted Stethaleigh to the house and, after a bit of confusion over what had taken place, Jessi and James came in too.
They met Meowth's mother and Stethaleigh scooped up one of the kittens and held it to her cheek.
"I love him. He's so adorable..." Stethaleigh crooned.
"He ain't the only one!" said a scratchy voice behind them. Jessi and James turned.
"Meowth!" they said in unison, "It's so good to see you!"
"Who's da girl?" Meowth asked, his eyes popping out at Stethaleigh, "She looks like a Persian, only human!"
"You haven't heard of Medians?" Stethaleigh asked softly, setting the Meowth kitten down in her lap, "We are a melding of human and Pokémon traits. A third race besides humans and Pokémon. In the middle. Medians."
"You're pretty." he said. Stethaleigh blushed under her fur.
"Thank you."
Meowth purred a friendly greeting to her in Pokémon and she purred a similar greeting back. They stayed for a while longer, and then set out.
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Part 2 - James's Choice
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Jessi and James stood looking at each other, bristling, while Leigh held Meowth in her arms. James wanted to free her, and Jessi didn't. James looked over at the pretty girl, who looked a little scared, and Meowth, snuggling into her chest. He squinted. The sun was way too bright today.
"Jessi, she has a right to be free!" James shouted.
"James, you heard what the boss said! If we fail, we'll get in so much trouble...he could even...kick us off the team." she said, starting to quiver at the thought. James rolled his eyes.
"Well, then maybe we could go and get our own badges and maybe be good at what we do!" he yelled, his head throbbing wildly.
"We are good at what we do!" Jessi shrieked, whipping out a mallet. James was sick to death of her and her screaming and her hitting him. He couldn't handle another knock on the head, and her screaming was killing him. He knew that he didn't deserve this. Anger built up hard and hot and he decided to do something about it.
Just as she was about to bring the mallet down on top of his head, he reached up a hand and yanked it out of her fist as hard as he could. The momentum pulled her onto him, and he brought up a forearm against her chest, across her shoulders, and pushed her away from him. She flew backwards and landed flat on her back in the dust of the path. She then put an arm up to protect herself, because James had the mallet above his head and looked about to hit her with it.
Then he stopped and looked around him. Leigh was staring at him like he was a depraved lunatic or something, Meowth looked stunned.
And then there was Jessi.
She was cowering on the ground in front of him, eyes locked on his, full of terror and fear. She was afraid of him, and besides that, there was a bruise forming on her cheekbone from something or other hitting her. Probably him. It was his fault. He'd hurt her and scared her and it wasn't even her fault. The anger drained out of him, leaving only a throbbing heartbeat in his head and chest, and overwhelming guilt like a knife in his stomach.
"Oh, no...no..." he mumbled, sounding devastated, fully realizing that he'd just hit a woman...his Jessi, no less. His hands sagged and the mallet dropped to the ground at his feet. Jessi sniffled and tears welled up in her eyes, then rolled down her cheeks, smearing her mascara. James walked over towards her trying to figure out how to apologize, and she scooted backwards, away from him.
"Jessi...I..."
"No, James...go away...don't hurt me..." she gasped. Her eyes were wild with fear.
"I won't...Jessi...I-I'm..."
"Go away!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and running off into the bushes, sobbing. James slumped, and Leigh dropped Meowth and ran gracefully over to him.
"James..." she said.
"I'm sorry, Jessi..." he mumbled miserably. Leigh grabbed his shoulders and hugged him quickly.
"You stay here and talk it out with Meowth. I have to go find Jessi." she said. James nodded numbly and collapsed onto the ground. His head throbbed. He still had the stupid migraine.
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Stethaleigh ran into the woods, using her sense of smell and knowledge of the woods to help her find Jessi. Really, Jessi hadn't gone too far, and her sweet perfume was easy to scent. She was sitting under a tree, legs folded against her chest, arms wrapped around them, sobbing into her knees. Stethaleigh sat beside her, putting a furred arm around her.
"Jessi, what is it that bothers you about what just happened?" Stethaleigh asked softly. Jessi looked up at her, sniffling.
"He hit me..." she moaned.
Stethaleigh shrugged, "Self-defense. You had a mallet over his head. What would you have done? Tell me what's really bothering you."
"I'm scared. I don't want to get in trouble with the Boss." Jessi said desperately, not wanting to state the real truth.
"The truth, Jessi..." Stethaleigh whispered.
"I'm scared of more than that...I-I guess I like James and I don't know how to tell him. But...he hit me...I don't know what to think...I'm scared...he hit me...there's no reason to think he likes me...how could he? I'm such a witch! And he hit me..."
"I don't think you need to be afraid of James. He's not...cruel...he's just not..." Stethaleigh shrugged, "I just don't think you need to be afraid of him. And I don't think you need to worry about him not liking you...he was really broken up about what he did. You may be a witch, but I think he likes you anyway."
"He...was? You-you think so?" Jessi sniffled. Stethaleigh nodded.
"I had to tell him to talk it over with Meowth. But I really think he needs to talk it over with you." Stethaleigh said softly. They clambered to their feet and walked back to the clearing.
They walked up behind James and saw him sitting in the dust with his legs crossed, elbows on his knees and face buried in his hands.
"James?" Jessi said softly. He sat up and looked back at her. His eyes were quivering.
"Jessi? Do you...do you hate me?" he asked. Jessi shook her head.
"No...I just...don't know if I can trust you anymore."
"Jessi, I'm sorry, I won't do it again, please forgive me..." he said, the words spilling out of his mouth as he jumped to his feet and walked towards her.
"I-I know. I don't think you will...I just..." she stopped, at a loss for words and shrugged, hands flung out to the sides.
"Is there anything I can do?" James mumbled.
"Not right now James." Jessi said numbly and started walking off down the path, then turned, "I'm sorry for hitting you all the time before. Now that I know what it's like..." she paused for a long time, "...come on James. We have to go."
Stethaleigh sighed and stepped ahead of Jessi, "I'll lead you to my people. Maybe meeting them will help you make your decision about what to do with me."
James stared at her Poké ball, which he cradled in his hand. She knew he had made his choice, about her and Jessi. She just had to convince Jessi to help her now.
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James followed Leigh into the clearing, shoulders still drooping, depressed. He hated it when he lost his temper. It didn't happen often, but when it did....
Usually he was so cool-headed in a crisis or a situation that would make Jessi go off like a firecracker. Why had he exploded at her like that? Deep down he figured it was probably the tension he'd been in the past few days. And the stupid migraine that still wouldn't go away. He was starting to be sick again. He hated this situation.
"Mishael!" Leigh suddenly screamed in happiness and ran off. That jerked James back into awareness, and he lifted his head in time to see a male who was obviously of the same race as Leigh grab her around the waist and lift her a half-foot off the ground and swing her around in a circle. Then he let his arms collapse and Leigh fell against him. He held her close, and they touched noses, eyes closed.
"My Stethaleigh...you're home..." the male, who was obviously Mishael, murmered. Leigh buried her head against his chest and purred deep in her chest. Mishael purred the same way.
James let his eyes skew over to look at Jessi. He wanted to make her forgive him so he could hold her like that. He just didn't know how.
She wasn't looking at him.
He rubbed his toe in the dust, and the tip of his dark-grey boot got dirty. He sighed deeply, and decided to just look at Mishael to see what was with him.
Mishael was about as tall as Jessi, not extremely large, but sturdy. He was a little more muscular than James. Like Leigh, he moved with an inhuman grace and had Persian-like ears and tail. His fur was a little darker than Leigh's and his eyes were bright yellow, his longish shock of hair orangey-brown. He wore a baggy dark-blue hooded sweatshirt and cargo pants.
"Mishael, I want you to meet my human friends." Leigh mumbled into Mishael's sweatshirt. He let go of her for a moment, staring at her, looking up and down her in amazement, like she was an exquisite statue made of solid gold or something.
"Your...human...friends?" he asked, looking at Jessi and James with his startlingly yellow eyes. Leigh nodded and stepped towards them. She touched James's shoulder.
"This is James. He is the...the carrier of my...Poké ball..." Leigh said nervously. Mishael leaped forward and before James knew what hit him, Mishael had his claws out and to his throat.
"You captured my Stethaleigh?!" Mishael demanded in a low, hissing voice, "You free her! Now!"
"I-I-I..." James stuttered, until Jessi stepped forward.
"Stop that right now, thank you very much. He doesn't have her in her ball, and he's not a cruel trainer. Leave him alone." Jessi said, hands on hips. James looked at her with admiration. Maybe she was forgiving him now...
Mishael released James and sagged, "I just want my Leigh free to be mine." he said softly. James nodded.
"If we release her, we'll be in some serious trouble, so I think we better keep her for safekeeping!" Jessi said. Mishael looked devastated, grabbed Leigh and held her. James waved a hand.
"We'll let her go." he said, trying to sound casual. Mishael let go of Leigh very reluctantly, and looked James and Jessi up and down, twitching his nose, like Leigh had when she first saw them.
They walked to the Medians' home.
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Part 3 - Jessi's Choice
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Jessi snuggled into the furry blanket and under-matress. It was soft, and made out of a fine greyish-brown fur. Jessi didn't ask where it had come from. James was right beside her, his curled back against hers. They both had their jackets off and weren't wearing thier boots. All of the Medians slept together, and the humans had been invited to join them, so they were in the big, warm communal cave sleeping near Leigh's family.
Jessi rolled over, the thoughts of their entrance into the Median villiage haunting her. They had all looked at her and James so suspiciously, like they were the enemy. Then again, she couldn't blame them, she thought with irony, they really were the Medians' enemy. At least she was. She knew James had made the decision to release Stethaleigh and not tell about the Medians whereabouts. Jessi just had to decide if she would support him in his decision.
James was another matter of concern to her. She hoped his headache was gone the next morning, and she hoped she could force herself to forgive him. He'd apologized, but he still felt bad, because she couldn't trust him. Could she? Should she?
Jessi fell asleep with her mind in chaos.
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"C'mon Jess. Leigh has someone we have to meet. Wake up Jess. We have a little trip to make with Leigh and Mishael..." James said in her ear. She opened her wide blue eyes and smiled up at him.
"Good morning, James." she said, and all the thoughts of the night before jerked into her head. She drew away from him, suddenly remembering her fear as he had thrown her to the ground. He looked sad and turned away from her, as she sat up and yawned, stretching.
"Is your headache gone, James?" she asked.
"Why would you care?" he asked, sounding almost like he was sulking a bit.
"I care." she said painfully, and he turned to look at her again.
"It's gone." he said, his expressive green eyes showing just how hurt he was by her actions. She looked down at the furs and caught sight of her Rocket jacket lying by her pillow. She occupied herself with putting it on and tucking the long sleeves into her high gloves, while James fixed their breakfast on one of the many fires in the large cave the slept in.
"Good morning!" Leigh said cheerfully, walking up from where she slept with Mishael and his family, still near her own family.
"Morning..." Jessi and James both grumbled.
"Not better this morning?" Leigh asked James.
"My head's better and that's it." he mumbled, scooping some sort of unidentifiable stuff onto a plate and handing it to Jessi, who took it and picked at it. Leigh gave a knowing smile.
'Probably thinking 'Ahh...those two are completely in love and they won't admit it.' Well, she's probably right.' She thought, sighing. She knew for sure she liked James. Just, how could he, when he'd hit her and humiliated her like that? If he liked her, how could he? She forced herself to choke down some of James's cooking, which probably would have been excellent, had he any good food to cook. James was excellent at some things, like real Pokémon training, and cooking and had an excellent sense of drama and romance. He just had his faults. One of which was his temper.
"We'd best get going to see Celina." Leigh said cautiously.
"Who's Celina?" James asked, through a mouthful of food. 'Well,' Jessi thought ruefully, 'his appetite's back!'
"I can't eat. Do you want this, James?" she said. He nodded silently and took it, making sure not to touch her hand. That made her sad. They were growing apart when they should be coming together and it was her fault. She steeled herself and reached up to push back a stray strand of his hair other than the one that usually hung down on James's face. He looked at her in surprise, his eyes widening, then he smiled his little embarassed, crooked smile and looked away, over at Leigh.
"Celina is a mistress of our people. She's a bit of a mutant, as well."
"Mutant?" James kind of squeaked, then put a hand over his mouth, cheeks getting red. Jessi smiled at him. He hated it when he squeaked.
"Yes. Not ugly, though. She's very beautiful. Come on, I'll bring you to her Ice Palace."
"Ice...Palace..." James stuttered, scooping the last mouthful up and finishing the plate of food. Jessi rolled her eyes, Such a typical male. Obsessive over food.
They walked a ways to a large stone palace on a hill. Jessi and James slowly moved towards each other, and eventually fell into a companionable silence, walking as usual, side-by-side with Meowth between and Leigh leading the way.
When they got to the massive moat, they realized it was built like an ancient castle. The moat was frozen. Ice. They crossed the huge drawbridge and Leigh spoke into a small videophone.
"Celina? This is Stethaleigh. I have two humans who need to discuss some things important to our people."
"Come in." purred a deep feminine feline voice.
The doors opened and Jessi shivered as a breath of air blew out of the door as cold as night in the middle of winter. They walked in and before them stood a woman as tall as James with black fur all over her. Out of her waist-length metallic silver hair protruded silver-tipped ears and her wide green eyes scanned them all, her feline nose twitching as she scented them. The green stone on her head was surrounded by a small silver tiara.
"These are the humans?" she asked, rearranging her floor-length skirt around her legs. Jessi's small outfit didn't provide much warmth in the frigid palace, and she was shivering violently. Without thinking, James put his arm around her and rubbed his hand up and down the arm that wasn't pressed against him.
Jessi wondered how Celina didn't freeze in the outfit she wore. She had a one- strap very tight blue dress on with a semi-transparent skirt around the waist that had golden stars and moon printed on it. Must be the fur. Jessi speculated, snuggling against James's side for warmth.
A Jynx stepped out from behind Celina's skirt.
"What is the matter?" Celina demanded, "Did you bring these humans to me for my collection?"
"No, miss," Leigh said, "I...they...captured me and I was seeking your advice and wanting to let you know what's going on..."
Celina stepped forward, "Release my subject! Jynx, Blizzard!" she called suddenly.
"NO!" Leigh called out. But the Jynx leaped towards Jessi started to Blizzard. James let go of her and she closed her eyes in anticipation of the attack. But it didn't come. James leaped in front of her, taking the full brunt of the attack. He fell back against her, cold as ice, but still conscious. He struggled to move.
"Are-are you okay, James..." she mumbled, her trust in him starting to return. He'd taken the attack for her...
He nodded numbly and tried to stand, then collapsed. Jessi bent down towards him, ready to help him up.
"Jynx, ice punch." Celina ordered coldly.
"No!" Leigh called, as the Jynx leaped towards Jessi in attack position, "No! I don't want them to be hurt!"
Jessi didn't hear Celina's answer, as the attack hit her then and she fell, unconscious on top of James, her body cold as black ice.
.
James was barely aware of the battle until Jessi fell on him. He brought his frozen arms up painfully to wrap around her and pull her close. He could move now, but he had no warmth to give her. He lay holding his Jessi and rocking slightly back and forth until Leigh made it clear to Celina that she didn't want to hurt Jessi and James, only to get Celina to help them decide the right thing.
Celina didn't want to listen, and continued her attack, now concentrating it on Leigh. She screamed as the Jynx attacked and Mishael, who was out of range to take the attack for her, or push her out of the way, or protect her tried to leap forward, his eyes full of terror. James knew the feeling. He hadn't been able to protect his Jessi.
"Stethaleigh, no!" Mishael screamed. Barely able to move, James lifted his hand with Leigh's Poké ball in it and called her back. Leigh leaped towards James as she heard his voice ring above all the confusion of battle.
"Stethaleigh! Return!" he said, his voice more steady now than it had ever been before. The Poké ball closed, with Stethaleigh inside, safe from the Jynx's attacks, and James climbed to his feet with Jessi in his arms.
All movement in the room had stopped, as James pulled a different Poké ball from his pocket, holding Jessi with the other arm, adrenaline pumping through his body.
"Weezing, go." he said in a voice of ice equal to Celina's, "Don't let her hurt my friends...our friends..." he amended, looking down at Jessi.
Weezing moved forwards, shooting out a smoke screen and Celina coughed until the smoke started to clear and all she could see was James standing back-to-back with Mishael and holding Jessi in his arms.
"Who's not helping her people now, Celina?" Mishael demanded.
"I-I didn't realize..." Celina whispered. Two icy cold tears fell on the floor in front of her, and then James knew her heart was melting.
"We're going home." James said, calling Weezing back and putting the Poké ball with Victreebell and Stethaleigh, who were safely tucked in their balls on his belt.
They turned and walked back out into the safe, warm, friendly sun, James called Leigh out and they walked back to the Median villiage.
.
When Jessi woke up it was dark. She was still cold, but she now had a huge fur blanket over her. Her head was snuggled against the furry pillow and rested against something undefinable and warm above her head. Her hair was out of its usual style and quite a large amount of it was in her face. She opened her eyes, her body registering that she was wearing baggy sweatpants and a sweatshirt that was huge on her. James's clothes.
The first thing she saw was him through her red hair. He was sprawled on his back with his covers everywhere, hair in a mess, like he always slept. It was his arm that was above her head. She tried to say his name, suddenly registering a furry back against her own that was like a living heater. Stethaleigh, she supposed. James and her weren't alone, but in the Median sleeping cave.
She tried to say James's name again, but only a soft sound somewhere between a whimper and a moan came out. She tried again, and the same sound came out.
Fortunately, James was a light sleeper in addition to a wild one, and he stirred, opened his green eyes and then turned them on her.
"Jessi?" he said sleepily.
"James..." she whimpered, on the verge of tears. He put a finger to his lips.
"Sh. Just rest." he said, tenderly stroking the hair away from her face, "There. Now I can see you."
"James...thank you."
"I...had to do it for you, Jessi. I can't let you get hurt now. It's my price to pay for what I did to you. I'm so sorry and now I can't hurt you anymore. Ever."
"I know." she said softly, "I know...and, James?"
"What?"
"I think I trust you again." she said so quietly it was hard to hear her. He stared into her eyes for a few minutes, then stroked her face again with his bare hand, his skin on hers.
"Thank you." he said, sounding free, "Are you thirsty?"
"Yes." she replied, and letting him care for her was comforting. He lifted her head a little and held a canteen to her mouth. She drank and felt better, then he lay beside her.
"You're still cold. Will you...let me...hold you?" he mumbled, sounding nervous.
"Yes." she mumbled sleepily, "You're warm..." He wrapped his arms around her and she fell asleep with her head on his chest.
.
Stethaleigh woke up when she heard Jessi's whimpering. She'd listened intently to their whispered conversation, happy that they were sorting their relationship out. When they were silent, she turned a bit to see James holding Jessi, just as it should have been. Stethaleigh smiled and fell back to sleep. They were all safe and warm.
.
The next morning Jessi was fully recovered from the Jynx's attacks and she dressed and got ready when everyone else did. James helped her with her hair, and while he was doing it, he gently tucked his rose behind her ear. She talked quietly with James for a few minutes and then they came to a consensus.
Jessi had made her decision.
There was no way she could enslave these people.
James came towards Leigh tentatively with the Poké ball in his hand...her Poké ball. He held the hand out towards her as she stood clutching Mishael's hand. Hers was cold as ice. The fate of her entire race rested on these two humans.
James dropped the Poké ball into her hand.
"You can have your own prison." he said softly, "There's nothing right about enslaving you. It's wrong."
"Thank you." she whispered, and then Mishael grabbed her and held her, swinging her in the air.
"You're my Stethaleigh now! Mine! And you won't ever be anyone else's!" he said happily.
"I wouldn't want to be!" she called back, grinning. Mishael dropped his arms and she fell towards him, into his arms, and they touched noses...the Persian-type Median equivalent of a kiss. They purred loudly.
"You're welcome back any time!" Stethaleigh said to Jessi and James. They waved, and headed off back to Headquarters to report their 'failure' to the boss.
They smiled, and held hands, feeling free.
.
. The End
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I hope you enjoyed my little fanfic. It was an odd idea that came to me one day while I lay bored on my bed doing nothing but drawing a picture of an anthropomorphic Persian named Stethaleigh...
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Give me feedback! (frogwoman_66@hotmail.com)
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