Disclaimer: Another story, another disclaimer. Again. This is getting pretty boring, so I'll just get on with it: I don't own Team Rocket, Ash-tachi, and of course I don't own *N'SYNC (although I wish I did!), so don't bother me with e-mails, 'cuz I'll just ignore them. Salright? Salright??

James was having a very vivid dream. It was weird, because he wasn't exactly himself, but he was actually watching himself and Jessie. He had no control whatsoever, he could only watch. In front of him were three creatures battling, but it wasn't a normal Pokemon battle. It looked like they were combating for their honor, for control, even.

Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres sailed around them and Ash-tachi, using their most powerful attacks on each other, aiming, it looked to James, to kill. Jessie and James clung to each other in fright.

Moltres directed a very puissant Flamethrower at Articuno, and hit its target. Articuno fell forcefully to the ground, finally defeated.

James woke up that morning cursing. He absolutely hated that dream. It'd been practically haunting him since the whole incident. What was even worse, no one knew that him and Jessie had helped to protect the world from devastation literally.

James sat up in his sleeping bag, his bedhassled lavender-blue hair dangling in his face, and looked over at his partners. Meowth was still sound asleep, but Jessie was already sitting up in her sleeping bag, reading and smiling, as though waiting for something.

"A little cheerful this morning, aren't we, Jess?" James asked with a wicked grin. He knew today was her eighteenth birthday, but he wanted to do something very special for her, something she'd always wanted to do.

Jessie looked over at him buoyantly, but didn't say a word.

"Fine, then," James said nonchalantly. "Don't answer." He stood up, and without his gloves or jacket, walked out to prepare breakfast. He saw Jessie roll her eyes, and as soon as he was out of sight, smiled.

After he was finished, him and Jessie had breakfast (Eggs, toast, bacon, and of course, out of nowhere, orange juice) alone for once, as Meowth was still sleep. Infra that, they woke up a very irritable Meowth, who really didn't want to be messed with, and got dressed fully, jackets and all. By this time, Jessie looked very anxious to say something, but held her tongue. James kind of enjoyed what he was putting her through that morning.

Before they left to find Ash-tachi that morning, James made a suggestion:

"Hey, Jess? How 'bout we just screw the twerps are go out shopping today or something?" Meowth looked at James like he was crazy, but that was just part of the plan. According to the scheme, Meowth 'was not supposed to know what James was doing'.

"And what'll the boss say?" Jessie asked curiously.

"Screw him, too!" James said, and Jessie and Meowth both laughed at this sudden outburst. "C'mon, Jessie, I really need to go get something at the Gemini Mall. Let's go!"

"If we get caught, you are in such big trouble," Jessie said, shaking her head, but she agreed anyway. James smirked; phase one of the contrivance was complete.

After the short walk to the emporium, as they were only about 10 minutes away, they stopped in front of the entrance, unsure of what to do next.

"Tell ya what," James offered. "I have to go pick something up, I'll meet you back here in hour intervals. If I'm not here, that probably means I went back to camp, alright?"

Both Jessie and Meowth acquiesced, and they all walked off in different directions. James knew where Meowth was headed; he always liked to go to the mini-adoption center for Pokemon and help out. As for Jessie, she was always all over the place, James would have to be careful not to run into her.

James had already had the first part of her gift before they even walked in here, but he needed a diversion from that, and he knew exactly what it was.

He walked straight to the electronics, music, and movies store (Sam Goody, of course), and went directly to the pop music section. He had to get this over with, because he had to do something to the CD he was getting.

James wanted to acquire a CD that he knew Jessie wanted, so he thought back to all the times she had complained. Then he remembered: Jessie had been upset that she didn't go to the opening of *N'SYNC's 'No Strings Attached' album. She'd wanted it ever since it came out, but they had been totally broke for a while then, so they hadn't gotten it yet.

He strayed over to the CD rack and picked it up as soon as he found it. Now was time for his getaway; he had to go back to camp and soon to do what he wanted. He knew Jessie wasn't a problem anymore unless she found him before he was out the doors. He paid for the disc, and got out of the mall with no problem whatsoever. He caught a glimpse of Meowth before he walked out, who smiled at him, knowing the next part of the plan.

James arrived back at camp (In the middle of Viridian Forest), and tore open the package. This was also part of the contrivance. He opened the case and slipped to small pieces of paper in the front cover. Then he got another idea: Unless he killed Jessie first, he would never get to listen to the CD, so he decided to hearken to it before she got back. If he did the math correctly, the CD was about 45 minutes long, and Jessie would be gone much longer than that. He popped it into her portable Discman and put the mode on random. He saw, on the back cover, that he had heard some of the songs in a concert that had been aired on most radio stations: Space Cowboy, Just Got Paid, Digital Getdown, and Bringin' Da Noise. He decided change the mode to program so he could skip over them. After messing with the controls a little, the first song started: "It's Gonna Be Me"

You might been hurt,
That ain't no lie,
You've seen them all come and go.
I remember you told me,
That it means you believe in no man, no cry,
Baby that's why,
Every little thing I do,
Never seems enough for you,
You don't wanna lose it again,
But I'm not like them,
Baby when you finally
Get to love somebody,
Guess what,
It's gonna be me...

'Not this again!' James thought out loud. He remembered last time he had snuck into one of Jessie's CDs, almost all of the song had something to do with him. Jessie had had so many crushes during the time they had been together, and James just wanted her to realize that she was the one he wanted. She had overlooked him so many times, he was getting desperate...

Next song: "This I Promise You"

When the visions around you,
Bring tears to your eyes,
And all that surround you
Are secrets and lies,
I'll be your strength
I'll give you hope
Keeping the faith when it's gone,
The one you should call
Was standing here all along
And I will take you in my arms
And hold you right where you belong
Till the day my life is through,
This I promise you...

Yep, it was happening again. He knew that Jessie always hated asking for help; she liked to deal with it herself. He wanted to help her every time, but she would never let him. He wanted to promise that he would never let her go through anything alone, he just needed to know how...

Subsequent aria: "That's When I'll Stop Loving You"

That's when I'll stop loving you,
I know you've heard these words before,
And I know it's hard for you to trust them once more...
But you've gotta believe me,
I'll never leave it
You'll never cry whenever I'm there,
And I will always be there,
You will never be without love,
When winter comes in summer,
When there's no more forever,
When lies become the truth,
Oh, you know this baby
That's when I'll stop loving,
That's when I'll stop loving you...

James understood this song completely. He loved Jessie unconditionally, no matter what she did to him, what he did to her, or what Meowth did to both of them on occasions. He had loved her since they were 8, and nothing in the world could change that.

Ensuing melody:"Bye Bye Bye"

I'm doing this tonight,
You're probably gonna start a fight,
I know this can't be right
Hey, baby, come on,
I loved you endlessly
When you weren't there for me
So now it's time to leave and make it alone
I know that I can't take more,
It ain't no lie
I wanna see you out that door,
Baby bye bye bye...

James absolutely hated it when they had a fight, and Jessie brought some one else into it, especially if it was one of her crushes. This is how he felt when she did something wrong to him to make him totally pissed off, he just wanted to leave her most of the time. But then again...

Next hymn: "It Makes Me Ill"

Girl I know that we broke up,
But that doesn't mean you should give the cold shoulder,
'Cause you know that I truly do adore ya,
And that other guy can't do nothing for ya,
See, I can tell that you don't really love that guy,
So there's no need for you to go and waste your time,
I think you know I love you more,
Girl you gotta let him go,
I want you so just give him the boot...

James didn't know if he would ever be able to stand if Jessie and him disbanded, and he ever saw her with another guy. Sure, they might have been just partners, but James would still feel pretty jealous, and guilty, too.

Next song: "No Strings Attached"

I see the things he does to you,
All the pain that he put you through
And I see what's really going on
Staying out at night while you're by the phone
Take it from me, it's a lesson to be learned, even the good guys get burned,
Take it from me, baby I will give you love, the kind of love
That you've only dreamed of
Baby you're not the only one
You don't have to be afraid to fall in love,
And I know that you've hurt in the past,
But if you want it, here's my heart,
No strings attached...

Of course, if James ever saw Jessie with another guy, he would try to get her back, at any price necessary. He would make sure that he didn't try to get her back in vain, but by true love.

Next up: "I'll Be Good For You"

I know you're heart's anticipating,
And my love is on the line,
But don't you worry, I won't keep you waiting,
'Cause I ain't never seen a lady so fine
I know you want me too,
It's in your eyes, they say you do,
They're telling me you'll open your heart to me,
'Cause if you want me to,
I'll sacrifice my world for you
And show you the way I'm supposed to be
I'll be good for you,
I ain't gonna take my love away,
And I will love you more, girl, every day,
I'll be good for you,
Baby girl it's plain to see, that our love was meant to be..

This was the promise James wanted to make to her. He knew that he could be everything she wanted, and more, and he just wanted her to know that, but he just didn't know how to say it yet.

Last aria: "I Thought She Knew"

A heart full of words left unspoken,
Now that we're through,
I tell my soul to have this silence broken,
Oh, I thought she knew, thought she knew,
I thought she knew my world revolved around her,
My love light burned for her alone,
But she couldn't see the flame,
Only myself to blame,
I should have known,
I should have known...

This song touched James the most. He didn't know what he would do if he lost Jessie, and never told her that he loved her. He'd held it inside for so long, and if he lost her without telling her, he would feel so awful and guilty about it.

Jessie returned to camp a couple minutes after James finished the CD and wrapped it up for her, still looking cheerful, and carrying about three bags. Apparently, if James wasn't going to buy her a present, she would get one herself.

"Hey, Jess," James greeted, holding her gift behind his back. "Back so soon? That must be a new record for you!"

Jessie wasn't as amused as James would have hoped for. In fact, she was the complete opposite. "James, I hope you know today is October twenty-seventh!" she said shrilly without any type of preamble, dropping her paraphernalia on her sleeping bag.

"Yeah, and?" James said innocently, clearly annoying the heck out of her.

"Well, I only have one thing to say to you-"

"First," James adduced, "I have something to say to you."

"What?!?" Jessie asked, still piqued.

"Happy birthday," James said, holding out the present.

"How could you forget- what?" Jessie began, still on her rampage, but interrupting herself when he held out the benefaction. "I thought- well, you could've...." she stammered, taking the gift. "I guess I should apologize, huh?" she asked timidly.

"No, it's OK," James reassured. "I wanted to put you through that! Go ahead, open it!" he added with a wave of his hand.

Jessie opened the package, and, to no one's surprise, gasped at the bequest.

"James, how did you..." her voice trailed off before she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you so much!!" she exclaimed. That was the reaction James had expected.

Then he remembered: "Jessie, look in the front cover, I wanted to see some of the lyrics," he said, lying, indubitably.

She opened the cover, and to her surprise, two small slips of paper came out,

"What the??" She picked them up; they appeared to be plane tickets.

"James, what're these?" Jessie asked disconcertedly.

"Read them," James said lackadaisically.

After a moment of interpreting the written words, Jessie looked up with a wide grin on her face. "Does this mean...Are we going..." she started to ask speechlessly.

"Yep. We're going to Vegas!"

Author's note: Wow! 11 pages in 13 hours! I should do this for a living! Well, there will be a sequel to this, hopefully, and it will be up soon (also hopefully). So if you didn't like this one, don't read the next, 'cuz their going to Vegas and- Oops, not s'posed to tell ya, am I? Well, then you have to read it!

Love, the Psychotic Nurse Joy, Cassandra Jade Tinnikis…