Seven Days of Terror

Author's Note: This is the first chapter of my story. I hope the people that read the prologue will come back to read this chapter - and the short lemon it contains.

Enjoy, and please review. (You can too if you want, yami-chan.)

Seven Days of Terror

by Perfect Purity

Chapter One: The Day Before


“Pikachu, Thunderbolt!”

Ash Ketchum, self-proclaimed Pokemon Master, commanded his faithful Pokemon and friend. This afternoon, he is celebrating his recent victories in this year’s Pokemon League competition with a sparring battle between his good friend and travel buddy, Misty, outside his home in Pallet Town, with Professor Samuel Oak, the authority on Pokemon in general, and also a Pallet resident, as judge. The townsfolk gathered at windows and doors to view the battle; they wanted to see their homegrown hero doing what he does best. Pikachu summoned energy and then let it loose. People watched as it soared towards its target, ready to rain down electric fury.

“Starmie, use Double Team!” Misty ordered. Some gasped in awe as Starmie began to split itself into several Starmie. As the bolt of lightning crashed towards Starmie, it simply dissipated into the air. The bolt had hit only a copy.

“Not bad, Misty,” Ash said. “I didn’t think you’d do that.”

“Ha! Watch this, master! Starmie! Hydro Pump attack!”

All Pikachu could do was watch in horror as all the Starmie began to prepare to use one of the most powerful Water-type attacks in the world. He looked towards Ash, desperately wanting a command. Ash, however, was just as worried as Pikachu; he could think of nothing. How could he find the real Starmie? Just then, he saw one of the Starmie begin to fade, and came up with a plan. “Pikachu! Quick Attack, straight up in the air!”

All of a sudden, all the Starmie vanished except one. As it fired the water beam, Pikachu, glad to have something to do, leapt quickly in the air, then propelled itself higher using its electricity. Starmie, unable to raise the large beam any higher, missed its target. “All right, Pikachu! Thunderbolt the water stream!”

Pikachu called forth power once again, and shot it straight down. As it hit Starmie’s attack, the electricity surged through the water, and with incredible speed nailed its target. Starmie ceased its attack, and fell to the ground, its core flashing, signaling it was near defeat. Misty could do nothing as Pikachu landed on all fours, ready to deliver the final blow. It stood up, awaiting the final command.

“Had enough, Misty? One more hit like that and Starmie’s done for.”

“Ooh, you wish! Come on, Starmie, let’s show him how it’s done! Psychic attack!”

“Pikachu, stop it with Shock Wave!”

Starmie, in its weakened state, could not muster the energy required to launch the attack in time. Pikachu’s attack hit Starmie dead-on, and that was the end. Starmie’s core light faded, and could battle no longer.

“Starmie is unable to battle!” Professor Oak said, raising one hand towards Ash. “Ash is the winner!”

The town erupted into cheers, with various people applauding Misty’s effort. As she recalled her Pokemon, Ash walked to the defeated.

“Hey, don’t feel bad, Misty,” Ash said, trying his best to put on a good show. Both of them knew that not only did Pikachu have much more experience battling than Starmie, but Pikachu also had a type advantage. “You almost had me when you used Double Team. I honestly didn’t think I would be able to counter it.”

“Yeah, well, you’re lucky that you had Pikachu. I mean, come on. You’ve had that thing since you were 10. Five years is a long time to train, and thanks to Team Rocket constantly trying to kidnap him, Pikachu gets even more experience using attacks on their machines.”

“Like earlier today?” The two laughed, remembering their encounter with Jessie and James. “Don’t they ever get enough?”

“Guess not,” Misty replied. The crowd surrounding the area began to disperse, the show over. Professor Oak congratulated Ash on his victory.

“Wonderful, Ash. I’m impressed with how you handled yourself.” He turned to Misty. “You were close. It was a good idea using Double Team to get around the type disadvantage.” He rubbed his chin. “But Ash, I don’t know why you didn’t use Shock Wave in the first place. It never misses its target…”

“If I did that, Misty wouldn’t have stood a chance,” Ash replied.

“What?!” Misty fumed, giving Ash a little shove. “You mean all this time, you were just toying with me?!”

Ash sweatdropped. He rubbed the back of his head nervously. “Well… yeah…”

Misty began to turn red, quickly filling with anger. “Why, you… you little jerk! How dare you!”

Ash went wide-eyed as Misty held a fist in the air. “Now, Misty, wait a second! Let me explain!”

“I know where this is going, and I’m getting out of here before I get hurt,” Oak said, retreating into his lab.

“No!” Misty cried as she brought her fist down. Ash, in a desperate attempt to block, held his arms in front of his face. Misty, however, expected this, and kicked Ash in his shin.

“Aah! That hurts, you know!” Ash retorted, and seized his leg with one hand. Misty grabbed Ash by the neck and tripped his foot, sending him to the ground. She forced his arms to his sides and straddled his torso, pinning his arms under her. She leaned forward, and laid an arm across his neck. She used her other hand to press down, which began to choke him.

“Say it!” Misty demanded. “I swear, Ash, you say it or I’ll do worse than this!” Ash, however, said nothing. His eyes stared into space, not blinking. She pulled back, frightened. “…Ash?” There was no response. She put her ear to his mouth, to see if she could feel his breath on her. Her eyes widened in horror as she did not. Quickly, she sat up, and began to shake him. “Ash? Ash!” No response. She turned towards the research lab and called, “Professor Oak! Come quick! Ash is – g’hey!”

She felt her legs drop to the ground, and felt something grab her arms. She looked down to see Ash Ketchum force her arms to her sides, then lunge forward and clasp his hands behind her back. He took his legs and wrapped them around her body, immobilizing her. “Ash! Why, you—”

Ash chuckled as he used his heels to propel himself forward, so Misty’s body was lying flat on the ground. He sat on her pelvis, spread her legs apart slightly, and left his feet to rest on her knees, so she could not bend them. He took his hands and held Misty’s wrists down, so she could not move at all. He looked into her eyes, smiled, and simply said: “You say it.”

"How does he do it?" Misty wondered. “…I give.”

“There’s a good girl,” Ash said, releasing his grip. He ruffled Misty’s hair a little and stood up. Misty, defeated twice in the same day, simply sat on the ground, head hung. “Oh, Misty, come on, get up. Look, I’m sorry I did that, okay? I shouldn’t have done that, even if it was to hold on to a record.” He held a hand down, and Misty accepted it. She stood up and brushed her clothes off, still hanging her head. “But hey, think about the positives! You’ve gotten so good that I have to fake death to beat you! Don’t you remember when we first started play fighting? You would always come out swinging, and I’d send you to the ground in a heartbeat. You gave up so quickly… it was a little disappointing. But look now! You’ve really improved a lot.” He gave a smile, trying to improve the mood of his comrade.

One look at Misty, however, would tell you one of two things: either she didn’t notice his smile, or she noticed and didn’t care. She took a deep breath, raised her head, and spoke. “I don’t care that I’ve never beaten you, Ash Ketchum. I don’t care that in five years and countless fights, you’ve always managed to win. I do care that you think it’s acceptable to pretend you’re seriously hurt just to win some stupid fight. I do care that I could have killed you, and you just laid there and took it just to beat me!”

Ash’s smile faded, and he drew his friend into an embrace. “You’re right. I promise you that I won’t do anything like that again. Okay? It was a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing. I did it without thinking.”

Misty laughed a little. “You? Mr. High-and-Mighty Pokemon Master, do something without thinking? My, there is a god!”

Ash hugged his friend tighter. “Hey, shut up,” he joked. “I’m not perfect, I’ll have you know. Extremely talented? Yes. Smart? I’d like to think so. Handsome and charming? Quite possibly. But perfect? Not even close.”

“Don’t forget lucky,” Misty added. “Your luck level is off the charts.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I am lucky. Lucky to have a friend as forgiving as you.”

Misty pulled away from Ash a little, and looked him in the face. “Forgiving? Is that it?”

“Huh? Oh, um… no, of course not. Forgiving and… pretty. Yes. I am lucky to have a friend as pretty and forgiving as you, Misty.”

“There’s a good boy,” Misty said with a wink, and ran a hand through Ash’s hair, messing it up. For a moment, each person stood there, looking at the other, when Misty decided to look at her watch. “Oh, I’ve got to be getting back to the Gym. I’m scheduled to battle someone tomorrow afternoon.”

“Really? At least stay for dinner. I’m sure my mom wouldn’t mind, and I can get Officer Jenny to give you a lift back home. Seriously, you wouldn’t believe some of the perks I get because my Pokemon are top notch,” Ash said, turning a head towards his partner, who had witnessed the entire spectacle. “Right, buddy?”

The mouse Pokemon nodded its head in approval. “Pika pika!” Because of Ash’s success as a Pokemon Trainer, Pallet Town has grown in size, and now has its own police force and Pokemon Center. They were constructed using some of the prize money Ash had won for winning League competitions – several times. The Pokemon League officials insisted on putting the money in his mother’s bank account, but Mrs. Ketchum persisted in getting her son his own account, despite his age.

Misty looked at her watch again. “Well… okay, if you say so. But only if you’re sure that Officer Jenny can give me a ride home tonight. I don’t want to be rushed tomorrow.”

“Tonight? No sweat. She works for me, remember? No way she’ll refuse. Plus, she totally has the hots for me. She’d rather die than miss a chance to help ‘such a cute young man.’ Well, shall we?” he asked, extending an arm.

Misty smiled and linked her arm with his. “Yes, let’s.” She turned her head to look at Pikachu, who had been taking a short rest in the grass. “Pikachu! You coming?” Pikachu opened an eye, then closed it again. Misty decided to play dirty at that moment, and said in a sing-song voice, “I’ve got keeeeetchuuuuup…” At this, Pikachu’s eyes opened, and its ears perked at the word ‘ketchup.’ It happily ran to its master and jumped on his shoulders, awaiting the delicious treat.

As the three walked into the Ketchum residence, a rather strange-looking bird Pokemon hovered overhead. Its bright red eyes scanned the area, and what the bird saw could be seen on a TV screen far away.

“Wow. It likes ketchup? Seriously, do you have any idea how much easier it would be to catch Pikachu if we had known it likes ketchup?” James said, studying the screen. The town was deserted, and all that could be seen were buildings. “I can’t believe this thing actually works. Great job, Meowth.”

“Whaddaya mean, ‘I can’t believe this thing actually works’?” Meowth said, arms crossed. "Of course the Robo-Pidgey works! I figure that if all our spying only ends up in pain and suffering for our side, at least we can spy from far away and let the machine get all the pain!”

“Yes, but how did you get it to hear the twerps’ voices and no one else’s?” Jessie asked, curious.

“Easy. I control the Robo-Pidgey using this remote control. The Robo-Pidgey is the same size as a normal Pidgey, so it can go unnoticed unless someone tries to capture it, but that’s another story I’d rather not talk about. Normally, Robo-Pidgey is only used for video recording purposes, but whenever I want it to pick up audio, all it has to do is get within 100 feet of its target. After I tell Robo-Pidgey what to lock on to, all’s I have to do is push this button! After that, any sound that comes from the target will be recorded by Robo-Pidgey.”

“Interesting,” the humans said, nodding.

“I’ll say. I really am quite a genius,” Meowth bragged. “So uh… what exactly did you need it for, anyway?”

Jessie and James looked at each other for a second. “We’re going on a mission for the boss,” Jessie said. “That’s all you need to know.”

“Yeah, and he also said we can’t take our Pokemon, so you have to stay here,” James added.

“What? No way! Come on, guys, I’m one of the team, aren’t I?” Meowth protested. “I’m so helpful!”

Jessie stood up, went to a closet, and removed a suitcase. She placed it on her bed and began to study the contents of her closet. “That may be, Meowth, but you’re a Pokemon first. And the boss specifically told us not to bring any of our Pokemon, and that includes you.” She removed an outfit, looked at it for a moment, then put it back.

“Jessie, what on earth are you doing? This isn’t a vacation, you know,” James said, shaking his head.

“I know, I know,” Jessie said. “But what if something happens to what I wear there? Then I’ll be dirty and gross and I won’t stand for it!” She took a few outfits from her closet and put them in her suitcase.

“I guess you have a point,” James said. “Let me get a few things from my room, okay?”

“Hey, wait a second, you guys!” Meowth interjected. “Just what is this mission, anyway?”

The humans looked at each other again. James spoke first. “Well, see, what we’re gonna do is—”

“—is top secret,” Jessie interrupted. “I don’t think the boss would appreciate us simply blabbing about our mission. Don’t you agree, James?” She glared at him for emphasis.

“Um… y-yeah, right, Jess. Almost ruined it. I’ve got to be more careful… heh heh.” He laughed nervously. “I’ll be right back with my things.”

"Something’s not right here," Meowth thought. "These dopes never go anywhere without me, much less not tell me where they’re going."

“Meowth!” a voice shouted.

“Aaah! What, what?!”

“Out! I need to change my clothes to make sure I’ve got the right outfits picked!”

“Okay, okay, geez… you don’t have to holler,” Meowth said, exiting Jessie’s quarters. "Honestly… so now what? Eh… guess I’ll go see James."

James’ living quarters was not far from his partner’s, so Meowth thought it a bit awkward that James had taken this long to get clothes. At first, James had been just as irritating as Jessie when it came to one’s wardrobe, but no longer. Meowth had personally seen to that. As Meowth entered the room, he saw James lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. “James, what are you doing?”

“Meowth, can I ask you something?”

“Huh? Sure, what is it?”

“If I told you to attack a human being because I didn’t like him, would you do it?”

“Well, sure! Like Jessie said, I’m a Pokemon first, and a Pokemon follows the orders of its master.”

“Even if you held no ill will toward the man? You would attack even if you yourself didn’t see the need to?”

“Well… yeah. What else am I supposed to do?”

“I wish I knew. Don’t you ever feel bad about the things we do?”

Meowth jumped on James’ bed and stared at him in disbelief. “Are you nuts? I love this job! Free room and board, three squares a day, and you two knuckleheads get to take care of me! You couldn’t pay me enough to quit doing this!”

“No, that’s not it,” James began. “I mean… I love my job, too. It’s just that… well, we’ve never had to do an assignment like this before, and I’m not so sure I want to do it.”

Meowth sighed. “Again with the mission talk! What is it that big oaf wants you to do?!”

James was silent for a minute. “If I tell you, promise you won’t say anything to anyone? Jessie was right. The boss would be furious if I told anyone about our mission. But I trust you, Meowth. Even if you are a Pokemon, you’re part of this team just as much as myself or Jessie, and so I feel you should know about what’s going on.”

“Cross my heart and hope to battle a Ghost-type,” Meowth said, using a paw to mark an ‘x’ on his chest.

James sat up. “Okay. This is it. What we’re going to do is…” He leaned forward and whispered to Meowth, whose eyes grew wider with each passing moment.

“WHAT?!”

“Shhh! Be quiet! Do you want Jessie to find out?! If she finds out I told you, she’ll have my head! That woman’s scary normally, but let me tell you, I know firsthand what it’s like to get her mad… and I mean furious. It’s scary beyond your worst nightmare. You don’t want to go there… I don’t want to go there ever again. I’ve got enough scars.”

“Oops! Sorry about that, James,” Meowth said, covering his mouth. After regaining his composure, he continued. “Man, that’s just plain wrong. I didn’t see that coming at all. Beat him up, yeah. Hospitalizing him may have been pushing it, but…” He lowered his voice. “…killing him? No way!”

“I know, and that’s my problem!” James said, lying back down. “I mean, yeah, I’m a little mad that I have to keep treating myself for shock wounds, and it’s depressing that we never win a battle against him and his friends, but I wouldn’t want him to die for it. All he’s doing is protecting his Pokemon.” He looked over at his belt that contained his Pokemon. “I can sort of understand how he feels. I would protect my Pokemon if they were in danger…”

“James, you’re starting to worry me here. I thought you said you liked this job, too!”

“Don’t get me wrong. Yeah, it’s fun using coming up with new ideas and building more machines to try to catch that Pikachu.”

“Using the boss’s money,” Meowth added with a smirk.

James laughed. “Yeah, using the boss’s money. But I don’t think he really trusts us with this mission. We do nothing but screw up, and here he goes trusting us with this. He probably plans on playing us like chumps. We’ll kill him, and he’ll say that we’re rogue agents who do things our own way, and don’t have any affiliation with Team Rocket. Then we go to prison forever and he gets away with it. He wins either way; either Ketchum dies, and we’re out of the picture for good, or we die trying, and we’re still out of the picture for good.”

“I never thought of it like that, now that you put it that way…” Meowth said, hopping back onto the floor. “I wouldn’t put it past him, that low-down double-crosser. He only wants the best.” A brief image of Giovanni's Persian flashed in Meowth's mind, as well as one of Meowth delivering several well-aimed Slash attacks to it. “Hey, James, think we should tell Jessie?”

“Yeah. She’s part of the team, too. I don’t know how she’ll take it, though.”

“Only one way to find out, right?”

“Right. Let’s go back.”

As the two men walked back towards Jessie’s room, an administrator hurried towards Giovanni’s office, and bumped into them in the process. “Hey, you! What do you think you’re doing?”

“Orders from Giovanni himself! I’ve been summoned for a special mission!” The administrator then turned and continued on his way.

Meowth stopped for a moment. “Gee, what do you think the boss wants? Is he sending everyone on special missions? This is totally not fair. I want a special mission, too.”

“I don’t know what Giovanni would want with another administrator. He already has Butch, Cassidy, Jessie, and myself… and I know he trusts Butch and Cassidy more than he does Jess and me. Only Butch and Cassidy outrank the two of us, so I guess it’s normal that he came to us first! He must be sending that administrator on a separate task, to make it look like everything is fine. Right?”

“Right…” The two resumed walking. “But if that’s true, then do we really need to tell Jessie what you told me earlier?”

“I told you, I don’t know how she’d take it. She loves this job as much as you do, and I don’t think she’d willingly accept that her boss is trying to get rid of her.” As the two reached Jessie’s room, James knocked and looked down to Meowth. “Okay, this is it. You ready, partner?”

A voice called from inside. “Who’s there?”

Meowth looked back to James with a nervous smile on his face. “Yeah, ready.” He called through the door. “Jessie, open up, it’s us!”

“Oh. Come in, it’s open.”

James opened the door to find Jessie’s suitcase on the floor at the foot of her bed. Jessie, wearing an orange halter-top and matching miniskirt, was lying on her bed. “I was wondering where you guys were,” Jessie said, sitting up. “I’ve been done for a while.”

“What was with the attitude when we knocked on the door?” James asked.

“Oh, sorry about that. I guess you could say I was overly jumpy,” Jessie explained, lying back down. “I didn’t want to risk any perverts opening the door while I wasn’t paying attention and sneaking a peek… say, you guys weren’t—” She sat up again, preparing to beat some lecherous face in.

“NO! No, Jessie, we weren’t, were we, Meowth?”

“Right! All we did was talk abo—” Meowth covered his mouth again, realizing his potentially fatal error.

Jessie suddenly stopped short. “Talk about what?”

“N-nothing!” James stammered, trying his hardest to save himself. “Just…”

Jessie stood up. “Just what, James?”

“Come on, James, don’t weasel your way out of it. I’m sorry, I screwed up. Might as well tell her now and get it over with.”

Jessie grabbed James by the collar of his shirt, and raised her fist until it was just inches from his face. “James, you have two seconds to tell me what he’s talking about, or else you’re going to be in a world of hurt unlike anything you’ve ever felt in your life!”

Remembering the torture Jessie had put him through the last time he got on her bad side, James decided it best to simply take it like a man, and decide if it was a mistake after his wounds healed. “Okay, okay! Please, don’t hurt me… not again… I’ll talk. Just… let me go? Please?”

Jessie stared him in the face for what James felt like was an eternity. She turned him loose, and he straightened himself out. He took a deep breath, but Jessie wasn’t having any of it. “Stop stalling! Talk, now!”

“Aah! Fine! I… to…m er msn,” he trailed off.

Jessie grabbed the collar of James’ shirt once more. “What was that?!”

James closed his eyes tight and prayed that there was a god of any kind, and if there was, that it was a kind and merciful one, one that would save him from Jessie’s impending wrath. “I told Meowth about our mission!”

Jessie, registering this, simply looked at him, then Meowth, then back at James again. This time, Jessie took a breath, released her hold on James, and sat back down on her bed. “What, is that all?” A confused Meowth and a relieved James looked at each other, then at Jessie, each with puzzled looks on their faces. “What? Why are you guys looking at me like that?”

“But… Jess, you said not to tell Meowth about our mission, and I told him everything!”

Jessie stood up at this remark, and again stared right into James’ eyes. “Everything?”

James gulped. He was so close to being in the clear! “Y-yes… everything.”

“Oh. Good. Saves me the trouble, then, doesn’t it?” Jessie said, sitting back down.

James sweatdropped. "I really wish she wouldn’t do that…"

“But Jessie, what gives? We both thought you’d be furious!” Meowth said.

“Yes, well, since you bozos took forever “talking,” I had plenty of time to sit down and think about what it is we’re supposed to do,” Jessie began. “I was thinking about what I had said earlier, and I didn’t think it would be very fair for us to keep anything from you, Meowth. I mean, you’ve been with us since the very beginning… we’re a family! A poor, horribly unlucky family that fails in their every endeavor, but a family nonetheless! And so I decided that when you guys came back, I would tell you about our mission, but it looks like James beat me to the punch.”

“Yeah, looks that way. So what do you say, huh? Can I come with ya?”

“What, are you kidding? Of course not! Don’t be ridiculous.”

James and Meowth facefaulted. “What do you mean, of course not! What did that whole family speech mean, then?” Meowth demanded.

Jessie crossed her arms and gave a sly smile. “I said I’d tell you about our mission, Meowth, and the fact that James already told you only means that I don’t have to! Not once did I say anything about letting you come along…”

“But you said that the boss didn’t want you telling anyone about the mission, and you disobeyed that order no sweat! What makes this one any different?”

“Actually, Meowth, think back to what I said. I said, "I don’t think the boss would appreciate us simply blabbing about our mission." I never said that the boss ordered us to keep quiet… just that it would probably be in the best interest of us keeping our job if we didn’t.”

Meowth could say nothing, stunned by the fact that Jessie was right. She had gotten his hopes up for nothing. “Oh… yeah… you’re right,” he said. “Guess I’ll…take a walk then.” And he left.

James sat on the bed next to Jessie. “Don’t you think you were a little hard on the guy?”

“What? No, of course not. He made assumptions. Never make assumptions. He’ll learn to think things through in the future.”

“I know, but… can’t we take him with us? We always managed to disguise him up before and fool the twerps no problem… what’s to say we can’t do the same to one of our own?”

“Because we’re supposed to be the only two on the plane, nimrod.”

“Oh… yes. That’s right. There must be some way to sneak him on the plane before takeoff.”

“Good luck. We’re taking the boss’s private jet, remember? It’s monitored from all angles all the time. There’s no way anyone can get within 100 feet of it without someone knowing about it.”

“Well…” James thought out loud. “What if the someone who would know about it was temporarily… detained?”

“Ooh, James, tell me more!” Jessie said, excited. She loved to hold people hostage.

“What is there to tell? We just walk in, knock him out, and then there you go. No hassle, no worries, and best of all, no one seeing us smuggle our cat on board! It makes perfect sense!”

“Fabulous! Oh, oh! Can I tie him up?”

James rested his chin on his hand. “Sure. Actually, that’s probably better. We’ll need to tie his hands behind his back, then blindfold and probably gag him. We don’t want him screaming for help. Right, Jessie? …Jessie?”

No answer. Jessie, eyes closed, was busy dreaming about torturing the unlucky sap that got to guard the jet. A shove, however, and it was back to reality. “Whaza what?” she asked, semi-sleepily, wiping a small bit of drool from her mouth.

“Stay focused, Jessie. Do you want Meowth to come along or not?”

“Well… um… yeah, I guess. No, yes. I want Meowth to come with us.”

James took one hand and began to stroke Jessie’s face with it. “Are you sure? We could get in big trouble if the boss finds out.”

Jessie edged a little closer to her partner, and turned her face towards his. “Yes, but…”

“But what, Jessie?” as he put an arm around her.

“I’m into that sort of thing…”

As Jessie moved her lips to meet James’, a rather loud banging noise interrupted them. The door opened, and an extremely happy-looking Pokemon jumped into the room.

“I HEARD EVERYTHING!” Meowth exclaimed, jumping for joy. “Oh, so you guys really do love little old me, don’tcha?” He began to kiss Jessie’s boots. “Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou THANK YOU, Jessie! I swear, I’ll never—” He looked up to find that his humans were not as pleased as he was. “What?”

Jessie picked up Meowth by the throat. “Beatin’ time.”

“Oh, come on, Jessie, we don’t have to beat him, do we? I mean… not like he was interrupting anything…right?” James said, flashing an unnoticeable wink.

“Interrupting anything? I’ll say he did! You sly dog, you were about to kiss me, weren’t you?!” Jessie said, still holding Meowth by the throat.

"Please tell me she didn’t say that out loud…" “Er… um… well, that is to say… it’s sort of like…”

A purple Meowth began to lightly scratch Jessie’s hand. “Ugh… J-Jssie…yr ch’kn m’!” Meowth sputtered, trying to breathe. Jessie looked at him, then left her bedroom, Pokemon in hand, then threw him down the hallway until he ricocheted off the wall and fell down the stairs.

“That’s for listening to a lady’s private conversation! Hmph!” She stormed back into her bedroom, shut the door, and locked it. She cast a sexy glance at James, who immediately knew what Jessie wanted to happen, and James wanted no part of it.

"No way, Jessie. You hurt me last time. I'm not looking forward to having more scars."

"Mmm, too bad," she cooed, slowly making her way to her partner, still situated on Jessie's bed. Resting her hands on James's shoulders, she carelessly kicked off her boots and slowly pushed James down onto her bed. Straddling him, she looked into his eyes briefly before bringing her lips to his ear. "You've gotten me all turned on," she continued, slowly beginning to grind against him, "and you aren't leaving until you do something about it."

James closed his eyes and sighed, both at the familiarness of the situation he was in as well as from the feeling of Jessie licking and sucking at his earlobe. Jessie's thirst for sex seemed almost insatiable. The two of them had had many passionate encounters in various locations over the years, be it at base or in the middle of Viridian Forest. Jessie didn't particularly care, as long as her own needs and desires were met. It was a plus to her because she knew James was safe (she'd been his first, and only), and he was her friend and trusted partner. And it certainly beat doing it herself.

For James, it was yet another reminder that his feelings toward her were not shared. But he still made love to her the best he could, still wanting to please her in every way, still holding on to the dream that she might one day love him. He wrapped his arms around her, immediately moving his hands to her shapely ass, his fingers playing with the hem of her skirt. Planting kisses along her neck, he noticed a familiar fragrance on her; it was the one she always wore whenever Jessie wanted to fuck, and James absolutely loved it.

"You planned this," he whispered to her, using his hands to slowly push Jessie's skirt off of her.

At this, she let out a small laugh, followed by a little moan. "I might have," she replied.

Taking a moment to remove her skirt completely, Jessie returned to straddling her colleague. She ran her hands down his chest briefly before removing the man's shirt, him leaning forward slightly to allow her to do so more easily. Leaning back a bit, she wasted no time in removing her own shirt as well, her bare breasts springing free. Tossing it away somewhere, she looked James right in his eyes.

"Touch me," she commanded, an order James had no problems following. Immediately, his hands were on Jessie's tits, kneading them, pinching the rapidly hardening nipples the way he knew she liked it. A sharp gasp escaped the girl's lips as she rubbed herself against James in an effort to get some kind of reaction from him, who up until now had not made any audible indication that what he was doing was enjoyable in the slightest.

And James was very much enjoying himself, made evident by his increased rate of breath and rapidly hardening member repeatedly requesting more room to breathe. Jessie was only happy to oblige, and in a matter of seconds the man was naked. Removing the last scant articles of her own clothing, the two lay nude in Jessie's bed.

After a brief moment of cuddle time, the girl had one of her hands wrapped around James's dick, slowly pumping it. The blue-haired man sighed contentedly. "This is nice, isn't it, Jessie?"

"I'll say," she replied, completely missing the real meaning behind his question. "I haven't gotten laid in days. I need you inside me so bad, James." She continued working his cock with one hand as she trailed short kisses all over his chest, neck, and face. Impatience taking over, Jessie ceased her ministrations and straddled the man again, positioning his cock at her entrance. She brushed his head against her opening, shuddering slightly at the feeling.

"Wait!" James stopped her before she could simply fall onto him. Leaning over to her dresser, he pulled a drawer open and pulled out a rubber. "Safety first," he said, holding it up for her to inspect.

"Oh, for the love of -- give me that," she spat, snatching the condom from him. The fact that James always demanded the use of protection was a bit of an annoyance to Jessie, but even she could appreciate the concern James displayed. Although he had been her only lover, and she was his, the risk of ruining her figure by getting pregnant (and oh yes, the baby that comes with it, she'd said) was too great, especially after the close call they'd had the first time they'd made love. She quickly ripped the wrapper open, discarded it, and then swiftly rolled it down James's length. "There. All better. Happy now?" She asked, positioning herself once more. A nod from her partner, and Jessie thrust herself down onto him at light speed, her arousal providing more than ample lubrication.

She rocked slowly on him at first, taking a minute to get used to him. She lifted herself off him until he was nearly out, then slammed herself back down again. James's hands were back on Jessie's breasts as she built up a rhythm riding him. She quickly became bored with doing all the work, however, and did not hesitate in making her complaint known. Carefully extracting James's penis from inside her, she rolled over next to him. "Now fuck me. And you'd better make me come this time."

James shuddered inwardly at Jessie's threat. Lifting himself off of the lady's bed, he wasted no time in positioning himself at her entrance. After ensuring the condom was still properly in place, he slowly pushed himself into her. He leaned over her as he began, trying to take in more of that incredible smell that drove him wild. He left tiny kisses across Jessie's neck, using one hand to tweak one of her nipples.

Jessie became bored with this, however. "I'm falling asleep here, James," she said. "Come on, fuck me!"

"R-right... Sorry, Jessie." James removed himself from atop his partner, opting to grab her hips instead. With a sigh, he began to pound into her with reckless abandon.

"Oh, shit. Much better, d-don't stop," she pleaded. She wrapped her legs around his back, urging him to bury himself as deep within her as he could. James was only too eager to comply, and he began to sweat a little from pounding Jessie so quickly.

Within minutes, James was nearing orgasm. "Jessie, I'm..."

Jessie paid him no mind, absorbed in the waves of pleasure, trying to achieve her own release. Unfortunately for her, James was not going to last that long. He came with a grunt, emptying himself into his partner. His motions slowed considerably, something Jessie did not like. She sighed. "You're finished, aren't you."

James said nothing, looking away from Jessie. He slowly nodded his head.

"Damn it, James, I was so close!" Jessie griped, carelessly shoving herself off of him, almost causing the condom to fly off with her. James quickly grasped the base of the thing, preventing his seed from spilling out. She got up and faced away from him, arms crossed. "You know what this means, don't you?"

"Please, Jessie, I tried..." James pleaded. "But... god, you're just so tight, and--"

"No excuses," she interrupted him, her voice dripping with poison. She put her face close to his and stared death into his eyes, causing the young man to gulp audibly. Suddenly she grabbed him and drew him into a long, passionate kiss. James sighed and rolled his eyes. She'd tricked him again.

"You know, I really wish you wouldn't do that."

"Well, I have to keep you on your toes, you know," she said with a wink. "I'll take care of this," she said as she took the used condom from him. "Now, go on. Meowth's probably all alone, and I've got another date with my battery-powered boyfriend."

"R-right, Jessie." He dressed himself in silence and left.

* - * - * - *

Back in Pallet, Ash, Misty, and Ash's mother Delia were finishing up a meal.

"Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Ketchum," Misty said, standing from the table. "It was really good."

"Oh, it's my pleasure, Misty. I always love preparing a nice meal for my son and his girlfriend," Delia said with a smile, taking what dishes remained at the table.

"Mom, Misty and I are just friends! Why do you always have to embarrass me in front of her?" Ash whined, handing his mother his plate.

"Honey, I'm not trying to embarrass you! If that were the case, I'd have asked you if you've been changing your--"

"Okay, that's enough, time to go," Ash cut her off as he quickly ushered his mother from the room. He turned back to his friend. "Sorry about that..."

"Oh, it's fine, don't worry about it," Misty said, taking the hand of her companion. "It's still a little early... what do you want to do now?"

"Well... how about a rematch for earlier? I really did do you kinda shady by using Pikachu."

"Yeah, you did," Misty said with a chuckle. "But what's the point? I'll just get beaten again... I only have Water-type Pokemon, remember?"

"So use some of mine. I have tons. We'll do 3 on 3, okay? I won't use Pikachu. Please?"

"Well... okay," Misty conceded. "But we have to make it quick, I want to be rested for my match tomorrow."

"Oh, I don't think that'll be a problem," Ash said, leading Misty into another room. Three walls were lined with all manner and color of Poke Balls Ash had obtained over the years, filled with almost every Pokemon one could imagine. "Here we go... take your pick. The pile of green ones over there are nothing but Tauros. You might not want to use them." Misty looked around carefully, surveying Ash's prized catches. She picked one from one side of the room, and two from another. "Here, you know what? I'll even pick random ones, same as you, just to make it even more fair, okay?" Ash said, taking one Poke Ball from each side of the room. "I have no idea what's in these, and I don't know what's in yours, okay? I swear."

"Yeah, okay, let's just get outside, okay?" Misty hurried Ash outside. "We'll need a referee. Should we ask your mom to do it?"

"Nah. We'll just do it ourselves, ok?" Ash said, moving to the place on the field he had been earlier that day.

"Well... I guess that'll work... it's not like this an official battle anyway," Misty said, taking her place on the other side of the field. "Are you ready, Ash? I won't lose this time!"

"Yeah, okay, whatever you say, Misty," Ash said, taking his first Poke Ball in hand. "I don't even have to know what Pokemon I've got in order to beat you!" He tossed his Poke Ball out. It opened with a flash. "Gardevoir, all right! This match is going to be cake!"

"Don't get too cocky, master!" Misty retorted, throwing her own Poke Ball to the field. "It's... oh my gosh, it's a Kingdra! Yahoo, I still got a Water-type! You're finished, and I know just how to do the job! Kingdra, Rain Dance now!"

As commanded, Kingdra summoned a rainstorm in the battlefield. Gardevoir, unfazed, awaited instruction. "I figured you might do that, Misty. Take advantage of Kingdra's Swift Swim ability, right? Did you forget about Gardevoir's Trace? Thanks to that, she can still keep up with Kingdra. Okay Gardevoir, you ready? Let's make this quick! Hypnosis, go!"

"No you don't! Kingdra, dodge it and use Hydro Pump!"

Gardevoir moved with blinding speed towards Kingdra and fired the sleep-inducing waves, but Kingdra, equally fast, was able to avoid the attack by simply moving out of the way. The Hydro Pump attack was launched at point blank range. Gardevoir was obliterated. There was to be no more battling for it.

"Whoa...taken out in one hit... man, my Kingdra is so awesome!... I mean, damn. Gardevoir just got her ass kicked," Ash said, recalling his Pokemon. "Well, no point in wasting any more time. Go, mystery Pokemon!" A Dragonite emerges. "Oh, this is not good at all..." Ash thought.

Misty wasted no time. "Kingdra! Waterfall, hurry!"

Kingdra moved with incredible speed, too fast for Dragonite to see. Misty's attack connected dead on. "This is bad... what can I do? I have to stop that rain... wait a sec! I got it!" "Dragonite, use Thunder!"

Kingdra was hit before he knew it was coming. Bruised, but not beaten, Misty continued giving commands. "I should have done this in the first place. Kingdra, use Ice Beam!"

Kingdra fired with little delay. Ash was quick to respond. "Dragonite, dodge it! Then, another Thunder!"

Dragonite did as commanded. While he could not keep up with Kingdra's movements, he could see the attack coming rather easily, and was able to just barely move out of the way before it hit. Dragonite called down a lightning bolt.

And the rain stopped.

Misty used this to her advantage. "Kingdra, Double Team!" Suddenly, instead of one Kingdra, there were several. Dragonite's attack hit only a copy. "Now, Waterfall!"

All the Kingdra clones began to rush Dragonite at the same time. Ash didn't seem all that worried. "Wait for it... okay, Dragonite, use Twister!" As the clones closed in on Dragonite, Dragonite spun around wildly, kicking up dirt and grass in a whirlwind. Kingdra was knocked away. Ash gave another command. "Yes! Just as I planned! Finish him off, Dragonite! Get in there and use Outrage!"

Dragonite roared a mighty roar and rushed at Kingdra at top speed. Kingdra, dizzy from the last attack, could not avoid the attack in time. It was all over. "Okay, he's fainted, I get it! Geeeeeeeez. Kingdra, return..." Misty said, calling back her borrowed Pokemon. "Well, I have no idea what this is, but come on out anyway!" It was Arcanine. "What? A Fire-type? What am I supposed to do with this? Uh... Flamethrower! I don't know, do something!"

Arcanine shot out hot flames at Dragonite, but Dragonite was unfazed and slammed into Arcanine with all his force. Arcanine flew backwards, almost crashing into Ash's house, while Dragonite had ceased its attack and yowled as if it were in pain. It held its head with both hands and could not focus. "That must be the confusion from Outrage... I'm so glad Misty has no idea how to use my Arcanine. I'd probably lose. I can't afford to see what my last Pokemon is... guess I'll have to hope for the best." "Dragonite, you can do this, concentrate! Lemme see an Earthquake attack!" But try as he might, Dragonite was just too confused from the attack. He fell over, hurting himself rather than his opponent.

Misty wasn't doing much better. "Oh, geez, why couldn't you have been a Water-type? What else can you do besides Fire-type attacks? Think, Misty... Arcanine's a dog. What attacks could a dog do?" "Let's try... um... can you do a Crunch attack, maybe?"

An affirmative howl, and Arcanine rushed to its target. It bit into Dragonite with sharp fangs imbued with dark power. Dragonite roared in pain... and came to its senses. "Thanks, Misty!" Ash said, giving a thumbs up. "That's just what Dragonite needed to get back in the game! Dragonite, try that Earthquake again, one more time!"

Dragonite jumped and crashed into the ground with intense force. Arcanine was tossed around by the shaking earth, being pelted by earth and stalagmites created by the attack. He fell to the ground, fainted.

Misty sighed. "Arcanine, return... only one Pokemon left. I can't lose three times in one day... come on out." What emerged surprised both battlers.

"Ditto?" Ash asked, dumbfounded. "Man, I completely forgot I still had that thing! Oh, Misty, I'm sorry, really," he said through bits of laughter.

"Ooh, you shut up! Ditto is great! I'll show you! Okay, Ditto, do your stuff! Transform!"

And so, Ditto transformed into Ash's Dragonite. Even as a Dragonite, Ditto still retained its cries, which was a rather odd sight to see, to say the least. Ash decided he'd put Ditto out of his misery once and for all. "Dragonite, use Outrage and let's go back inside, huh?"

Dragonite again roared and in pure fury, stormed its way towards Ditto. Misty was unfazed. She chuckled. "Ditto, Twister."

Ditto spun around exactly as Dragonite had done before. Dragonite was struck by the attack and fell to the ground, put out of commission by the attack.

Ash was speechless. He stared at Ditto, then at Misty. She had used his own tactic against him. "Thought you could borrow a trick from the master, eh?" he quipped.

"I told you Ditto was going to win this for me! I couldn't ask for a better transformation! You've only got one Pokemon left!"

"Yeah, but I have a feeling this one's going to get me a win!" Ash proclaimed, tossing his final Poke Ball into the fray. It was a Politoed. "Perfect! This will end the battle quickly! Go, Politoed! Ice Beam, now!"

"No you don't! Ditto, Transform into Politoed!"

And so it was. Ditto assumed the form of Ash's frog. The attack hit, but it did a lot less damage than Ash had hoped. "Oh, I bet you think you're pretty slick, huh? Well, how's this for slick? Politoed, use Perish Song!"

Politoed sat and began croaking out an odd-sounding melody. "You can't be serious!" Misty exclaimed, knowing full well that Ash had essentially forced them into a draw. "I had you on the ropes, and you're going to pull a stunt like that? No way! I'm not going down like that, Ash Ketchum! Ditto, use Hypnosis!" While Ash's Politoed continued singing, Ditto had succeeded in putting Politoed to sleep with the attack, but not before the Perish Song started taking its toll. It was a race against time before the countdown was up and both Pokemon fainted. Misty continued with her plan. "Okay, Ditto, Focus Punch!" Ditto had no problem nailing a sleeping target. Politoed was hit square in his nose. But he still didn't wake up. "Still snoozing? Not a problem. Focus Punch, full power!"

Ditto rammed its fake fist into Politoed as hard as his Ditto self could muster. Politoed, who remained asleep, could not block the move. It fainted. Misty cheered. "Yes! I won! All right! Fair and square, woo hoo!"

Ash recalled his Pokemon. "So you did. You did good, Misty. I totally forgot about Politoed's physical attacks... that's why I just gave up and tried to knock us both out. But you hung in there and managed to get yourself a win. Great job."

"Thanks," Misty said, putting Ditto back into its Poke Ball. She walked over to him, taking notice of the night sky. "It's getting kinda late... I should get going."

"Yeah, it is. Give me those Poke Balls, I'll put them away and call Officer Jenny to come pick you up."

"Oh, um... you think we could just walk there? It's not that far."

"Huh? Well...all right, I guess we could do that."

"If you don't want to, you don't have to. You can call Officer Jenny."

"What? No, that's not it at all. I just wasn't expecting you to say that. Is it okay if we stop at the Pokemon Center on the way? These guys could use some rest, I'm sure."

"Yeah, that's fine, Let's go."

And so the two friends began their walk down the streets of Pallet Town. All was quiet at first, but then Ash spoke up. "So, did you have fun today?"

"What are you talking about, Ash? Of course I did. Sparring with you is always fun... beating on you is always fun... I couldn't imagine hanging out with you and not having a good time."

"Oh, really? That’s good. I’m glad you had fun."

"Thanks for inviting me."

"Oh, hey, no sweat. We’re friends! And friends hang out with each other."

"And be there for one another."

"Yes, that too, friends are there for one another.”

“Ash, you’d save me, wouldn’t you? If I was in trouble?”

"Course I would. Why, you plan on getting kidnapped?"

“No... just curious, that’s all.”

"I see. The Pokemon Center's just ahead. I'll be just a second, okay?"

The young man ran ahead while his companion continued to walk. As Ash went inside the Pokemon Center, bright lights came into view from afar. It was Officer Jenny, coming back from patrol. Misty flagged her down. "Excuse me!"

"Hi, Misty," Jenny said, pulling to the side of the road. "What can I do for you?"

"Could you give me a ride back to Cerulean City? I've got a big match tomorrow and I really want to get as much rest as I can tonight."

"Sure, no problem," Jenny said, picking up the extra helmet in her sidecar. She handed it to Misty. "Hop in."

"Thanks. Ash is inside the Pokemon Center. Would you mind waiting a bit so I can say goodbye?"

"Of course." Just then, Ash emerged from inside the building. “Good evening, Mr. Ketchum,” Jenny said, tipping her hat.

“Evening, Jenny,” Ash replied. “Wow, talk about service! I didn't even have to call you guys and here you are!"

"I was on my way back to the station when Misty stopped and asked for a ride," Jenny explained. "I'm to take her back to Cerulean City."

"All right. Sounds good. You take care of her, okay?"

“Yes, sir!” Jenny replied, giving a small salute. She turned to Misty. “Shall we go?”

Misty turned to Ash and looked at him. “See you tomorrow?”

“What? You want me to come and visit you at the Gym? Sure, I’ll go.”

“Okay. See you then…” she said as she kissed his lips softly. She pulled herself away, then delivered a sound smack across his face. “And if I hear that you’re pulling any more dumb stunts like you did today, you’re going to be sorry!” She turned to Officer Jenny, all smiles. “Okay, let’s go!”

Misty hopped into the sidecar of Jenny’s motorcycle, which sent them flying into the night. Ash, bewildered and confused, stood there, holding his cheek where Misty had slapped him. "Man, that girl has got some issues," Ash thought. "But she did kiss me, though… which means that she digs me." “Yeah…”

“Yeah, what?” said a voice, heard from behind. Ash turned to see it belonged to none other than Professor Oak.

"Professor Oak! What are you doing here?" Ash asked.

"Oh, I've just come from having a drink with some old friends of mine. Come on, we'll walk together. You on your way back home?"

"Yeah... I didn't know you drank, Professor."

"Oh, don't read too into that, Ash, I'm a social drinker. I keep it in check. You're not doing that sort of thing, are you, Ash?"

"A couple times with Brock, but nothing serious. We just had a few beers. Don't tell my mom, though... you know how she likes to overreact."

The professor laughed. "Well, your secret's safe with me. So... what's "yeah" mean?"

“Yeah, I think Misty likes me,” Ash explained.

“Well, okay… do you like her?”

“I don’t know, Professor… it’s weird, because she kissed me, and then smacked me! I mean, what the hell?"

“I’m not a woman. I couldn’t tell you, Ash.”

Ash scoffed. “Some help you are.”

“Hey, my forte is Pokemon knowledge, not women. Why not ask your mother?”

“Eh… not today… I’m a little tired. I’m probably going to hit the sack in a little bit, and see how tomorrow plays out. Misty asked me to visit her at Cerulean Gym tomorrow… I guess to watch her battle. So far, that’s the only thing on my agenda.”

“Sounds like a plan. I usually tend to wing it to see how each day plays out… I find that if you plan too much, your life becomes far too organized and boring. All lives need a little bit of randomness. Perhaps that's just what you need in your life, and maybe Misty’s there to provide it for you.”

As the two arrived back in Pallet, they began going their separate ways. “That may be. I’m going to sleep now. Goodnight, Professor.”

“Goodnight, Ash,” Professor Oak said, leaving towards his lab and home. Ash returned to his house and retreated to his bedroom, where he changed into his Pikachu-pattern pajamas and covered himself in the warmth of his bed.

"Maybe Professor Oak’s right. All I do is hang out with Brock or Misty every day. Training is boring… I always win, so battling is boring… I guess I just do it to help pay bills… help Mom and everyone else around here live a better life. Maybe I’ll travel the world. I’d like to take Misty along…for female companionship at the very least. But she has a Gym to run, so that won’t be happening any time soon. But still, it’s nice to dream…"

- End of Chapter One -

Author's Note: Chapter Two should be up in about a week or so... keep checking back! Did you like this chapter? Please review and let me know your thoughts.