"Why aren't you fighting, James?" Meowth asks, as Jessie continues to fight Ash using her Arbok.
"Alright, go Weepinbell," he tosses his new Pokemon into battle.
"Bell."
"Not me, Victreebel!" He yells, holding his head.
"That's not Victreebel!" Meowth yells back, startled.
"Oh, you're right." He says with tears in his eyes, "Old habits die hard."
"Chabok!" Arbok is hit by Phanpy's rollout attack.
"Go, Weepinbell, use vine whip!"
"Bell!" Weepinbell whips Phanpy out of balance. Then, Phanpy recovers and hits Weepinbell hard.
"You can do it, WEEPINBEEEEEEEEEEEEEL!" James lets out an ear-splitting shriek.
"Where is that coming from?" Ash says, holding his ears.
"Even Larvitar can't stand it!" Brock notices the green Pokemon covering himself in pain.
Elsewhere in the forest, a Victreebel is chewing on the Magikarp Salesman's head. "Get off of me," he shouts, "This was a terrible trade!" Victreebel perks up when she hears the shriek and jumps off. "What is that horrible noise?!" While the man is distracted, Victreebel hops away.
James' scream finally dies out as he kneels on the ground. He splays his hands and hangs his head. You can hear him sobbing and his shoulders shake.
"What's wrong with James?" Misty asks in surprise.
"I never knew he could be that loud," Meowth says.
"James, what was that?" Jessie questions.
"I'm sorry," he mumbles, "I just really miss my Victreebel . . ."
"I wonder what happened to it . . ." Ash whispers to his friends.
James hears a quiet screech from behind and perks up. "Could it be?" He whispers and spins around excitedly. When he sees his Victreebel, a radiant smile spreads across his face. Victreebel moves closer, then chomps down on his head. "I missed you, but did you have to make it a painful reunion?"
"Bell?" Weepinbell watches the couple proudly and closes his eyes. A green mist releases from his mouth and spreads through the forest.
"What's that?" Misty says.
"It looks like Sweet Scent, Sleep Powder, or Stun Spore," Meowth responds, "but I don't smell nothin' and it's a different color." Eyes start to glow from the bushes.
"Bay." Ash's Bayleef sniffs the scent and turns to Meganium. "Bay?"
"Mega."
"Is something wrong, Bayleef?" Ash realizes.
Casey, replies, "I think they can smell it somehow."
James and Victreebel are too happy to notice until they are surrounded by many Grass-type Pokemon. Every Grass Pokemon from Kanto and Johto surround them in a mass, including a second Victreebel.
"What's going on?" James shouts.
"Sprout! Odd! Tangela! Bulba! Sunflora!" A multitude of the Pokemon wrap their vine whips around him, pulling his arms to his side. He starts to scream, but a few off the vines cover his mouth to cut it off. James tries to struggle and kick, but fails miserably.
"James?!" Jessie and Meowth shout before they are blocked from view.
Victreebel screeches and reaches for her trainer. A group of Bellossom and Exeggcute hypnotize her, letting her fall to the ground unconscious. James wiggles even more after he sees his friend defeated. A few Gloom waft their scent towards him mixed with some Sleep Powder and Stun Spore from the Paras and Parasect. James drifts off and can't move an inch. The smaller Pokemon help lift him up, while larger ones raise James' cherished friend.
The Pokemon trample into the forest while Jessie and Meowth try to snatch James back. The Bellossom release a cloud of Sleep Powder that fills the clearing and knocks everyone out as the Pokemon make their escape.
James is taken into a clearing near a cave. A Celebi flies out and chirps to James' new Weepinbell.
"Weepinbell," he responds. A few Grass Pokemon enter the clearing and sniff James in curiosity.
James shifts and a Venusaur knocks him out using a Vine Whip attack. Celebi finishes communicating with Weepinbell and whispers in James' ear for a while. He mumbles different words like, "Cacnea. Carnivine. Amoonguss. Snivy. Chespin. Chrubi. Tropius. Sewaddle. Gogoat. Rowlet. Maractus. Sunkern. Leafeon. Snover. Simisage. Victreebel," saying that last name causes him to pause. Then, he continues to rattle on Pokemon he hasn't even seen. He whispers a little more than eighty-four Grass-types from seven regions.
When he's finished, he slowly opens his eyes to see his Victreebel lying on the ground. "Victreebel!" He cries out and rushes to her side. She gives a soft squeal. James engulfs her in a hug, then looks up with flowing tears, "What did you do to my Victreebel?" He chokes out.
"I'm fine," Victreebel says, standing up slowly.
James' jaw drops. "Did you . . . just . . . talk?"
"No . . ." she says with confusion.
"Y-you did it again!" He starts to back against the cave wall.
"Wait," Celebi flies around him, "you can just understand her."
"Celebi?" James freezes, then faints. He wakes up to be surrounded by Pokemon once more. "Eek!" He pushes himself flat against the rock.
"Calm down," Celebi says softly, "We granted you the power to understand any Pokemon, among other things."
"How? Why?" He stutters.
"Weepinbell here noticed how well you are with Grass-type Pokemon," she glides to show James' new Weepinbell, who smiles. "I agreed and gave you powers."
"Wait, powers? As in multiple?"
"Yes, now you can morph into any Grass Pokemon of your choice, including those you've never seen."
"Really?" James stands up shakily and runs his hand through his hair. "This is a lot to take in. Besides, I'm a bad guy. Why would you choose me?"
"Because, even if you were pulled towards evil, you have a pure heart."
"Excuse me?"
"You care for Pokemon and people alike, even though you try to hide it from your peers."
He blushes. "So, how do I . . . morph?"
"We call it Pokeformation. You just think of which Pokemon you want to become. It works the other way as well. You think you're a human, you become a human."
"Sure," James looks down at his hands as he begins to imagine a certain Pokemon. They form into tiny leaves. He shrinks and his body thins extremely. His face morphs into a tube and becomes yellow, then his eyes grow beady and he makes an abnormal sound, "Bellsprout?" He quickly covers his mouth with his hands, er, leaves. "A-am I really a Bellsprout?" James realizes that he still says 'Bellsprout', but can understand his words.
"You're a little me!" Victreebel almost bites James in excitement, but he screams in terror.
"If you chew on me now, there won't be anything left!"
"Oh, right," Victreebel retreats.
James feels uncomfortable, so he morphs back into his Team Rocket uniform and human body. "How will I hide this from Jessie and Meowth?"
"Did I not tell you?" Celebi says apologetically, "You're not going back to them. You have to travel the world and help anyone in need."
"What?!" He shrieks, "I never agreed to leaving my friends!"
"They're your friends? They forced you to get rid of your favorite Pokemon."
"They may have done that, but I will still love them! We're a team and we stick together! Come on, Victreebel, let's get out of here!" James grabs his friend and stomps away.
"You're not really going to return, are you?" Celebi flies up to block James.
"Let me come with you!" Weepinbell speaks for the first time.
"This was your idea. You're going to let him become evil again?"
"I'll keep an eye on him. Besides, he was never evil before. Just hanging out with the wrong crowd."
"Be safe," Celebi taps Weepinbell on the head, then glides back to the cave.
James ignores him, but Weepinbell follows them anyway. James freezes.
"What's wrong?" Victreebel asks worriedly.
"How will we explain our disappearance? We were kidnapped by groups of Pokemon."
"I have a suggestion," Weepinbell pipes up,"You could say that it must have all been a dream."
"That seems a little cliche . . ."
"Let me finish. They were all knocked out by Sleep Powder. You could go back with firewood or food. You could say that they were attacked by some type of Pokemon and you went to find something to eat or herbs to heal them."
"How do we explain Victreebel?"
"Well, we could hide in the bushes, then come out. You act surprised and very happy when you see your friend, just like you did before. You could suggest that I found her and brought her back to you."
"Fine, where will I get the food?"
"Follow me," Weepinbell leads them to a tree filled with bright pink berries.
"Wow," James picks a clump of fruit and lightly taste tests it. "I've never seen so many ripe berries before. And they're delicious too."
"Freshest in the forest. Quick, grab an armful and let's head back."
James picks them until he can hold no more. They then arrive at a clearing where Jessie and Meowth are searching frantically.
"James!" Jessie calls out when she sees him. She almost hugs him, but catches herself before he notices. "Where were you?!" She snaps and shoves him in the chest, "You had us worried to death after you were taken away!"
"Taken away? You must have dreamt that," James plays along. "You were ambushed by Beedrill. I went to find something to help and instead found these juicy berries," he looks down at his armful of fruit.
"What? But the twerps saw you too."
"Are you sure?"
"We told them you were missing and they said to find you ourselves!"
"We just got a call from the boss," Meowth says. He spies James and runs up. "Where were you?!"
"He was grabbing food," Jessie explains, not entirely sure herself.
James is about to speak when Victreebel comes from the bushes. His eyes tear up and the berries tumble to the ground as Meowth quickly catches them. "Victreebel?" He chokes out once again. Victreebel chomps down on his head. "Stop that! Get off my face!" He pulls his Pokemon off and Jessie and Meowth stare at her confusedly.
"I thought Victreebel already came back," Meowth says.
"That must have been another part of the dream." James hugs Victreebel and Weepinbell enters. "Did you do this?"
"Weepinbell," he smiles.
"Thank you," he continues to hug the two.
"He does seem happy, doesn't he?" Jessie whispers, then points to Victreebel, "Wait, I thought we traded you away."
She screams and Meowth translates, "The Magikarp Salesman kicked her out. He didn't want her."
"That's both terrible of him and great for us!" James says. Obviously, he understood Victreebel, but waited until after Meowth was done to speak.
"So, what was the call about?" Jessie moves on.
"Oh yeah, Giovanni has a mission for us. He wants us to catch Celebi, the mythical Grass-Psychic type of Johto."
James flinches, then regains his posture. "Celebi?"
"Yes," Meowth shows a picture on the phone.
"Hey, that's a Treecko," he points to a Pokemon in the background.
"How do you know that?"
"I . . . don't actually know," James wonders.
"Anyway, he said that she's in this forest. We could set up camp tonight and search for her tomorrow." He glances at the sun setting above the treetops, causing the sky to glow with fire.
"I agree," Jessie snatches something out of the bushes, "the twerps left some of their camping gear. We can finally sleep decently tonight."
"Nice!" James exclaims and helps set the tents up. James is missing Victreebel's Pokeball, so they sleep in one tent as Jessie and Meowth sleep in the other.
Early in the morning, Victreebel shakes James awake. "What's wrong?" he mumbles.
"I have to tell you something," she whispers in his ear and leads him out of the tent into the forest, then continues, "What are we going to do? You know we can't help capture her."
"I say we go with the flow for now. If we get too close . . . I'll think of something on the fly."
"If you say so," They head back to camp quietly, unaware that Meowth was hidden in a nearby bush.
"James understands Victreebel?" He whispers to himself, "Why didn't he tell us? I should inform Jessie, but I'll wait to see what else he's hiding . . ." Meowth grabs the fish he caught from a stream and heads back, not realizing 'her' was Celebi.
"Okay," Jessie says when they finish eating the berries and cooked fish, "This is the plan for today. James, Victreebel, Weepinbell and Weezing can spread out in this direction," She points across a map splayed on a stump, "Meowth, Wobbuffet, Arbok, and I will search over here. Deal?"
"Right," James releases Weepinbell and Weezing, then heads into the forest.
Meowth tugs on Jessie's boot as she starts to walk. "What's wrong?" She snaps.
"I'm going to follow James."
"Why? I told you to come with me."
"I'm just going to check on him. He's been acting strange," Meowth checks to make sure James isn't secretly listening.
"What do you mean? He seems fine to me."
"Well, don't ya think it's a little weird how we both saw what happened, along with the twerps? Then, he tells us it's just a dream and Victreebel shows up for the second time!"
"I guess," Jessie thinks for a moment. "Fine, follow him if you want. But, meet back up with me as soon as you can."
"Of course," he sneaks into the forest as Jessie, Wobbuffet, and Arbok head the other way.
Back with James, they are walking around the forest. "Pretend to look," Weepinbell suggests.
"But no one's here."
"Just in case."
They come across a high cliff towering over them. "How are we supposed to climb that? Huh?" He gasps when Weepinbell and Victreebel use their vine whip to pull themselves to the top. Weezing follows them by floating. James' powers were already explained to him.
James bites his lip and begins to morph. His neck lengthens and his skin turns a shade of green. Antennae pop out of his forehead and his arms become legs. He grows three claws on each foot. A tail appears and a huge pink six-petal flower appears around the base of his neck. He grows larger and finally becomes a Meganium. Two vines whip around him and he grabs onto the cliff, pulling himself to the edge.
Meowth holds his paws around his mouth to keep from screaming out in surprise. His eyes bulge out of his head. Something screwy is going on! He thinks frantically. He finally calms down and finds a large tree to help him scale the rock wall.
James brushes off his uniform. "That is going to be hard to get used to," he mumbles, then gasps. The view from the cliff is amazing. The clear blue sky, with a few small fluffy white clouds, expands above his head. The forest below waves its leaves of various beautiful greens, flowing in the breeze. Pidgey are seen flying above in the sunlight. An ocean sparkles in the distance. A tear comes to James' eye, "I've never seen something so beautiful." A face comes to mind, but he pushes it aside.
Meowth finally heaves onto the cliff and sees James and his Pokemon continuing into the next forest. This forest is darker and little sunlight passes through. Meowth hurries to pass them and climb up a tree. When James walks under, Meowth accidentally slips, knocking off a fruit. Meowth cringes and scoots back when it hits a loose branch. The heavy branch snaps off and heads straight for James.
"Look out!" Victreebel screams, but is too far away to save him.
James ducks and holds his hands above his head in fear. Meowth can't help but gasp. Bright green vines shot out of the ground and wrapped around the log right before it would have smashed his head. James slowly opens his eyes. He gasps and pulls his hands away. The wood crashes down an inch from his feet when the vines retract. He stands up shakily and stares down at his hands in awe. They glow a bright green and hold an image of a rose. It fades away in a few seconds.
"What was that?!" He questions Weepinbell. "Celebi never mentioned this!"
Weepinbell is about to answer when Meowth leaps down from the tree and dashes back through the forest. "Meowth?!" James realizes and chases after him with his Pokemon on his tail. Meowth speeds up in fear. "Wait!" Meowth doesn't listen and slides down the trunk of the tree from before. James does the same, not caring that he receives a few splinters.
Meowth is exhausted when he stumbles into a clearing. He chokes out, "Jessie!"
Jessie turns around with Celebi held in a cage. "Meowth, look what I-" She stops when she sees Meowth on the ground and James exiting the forest. Leaves stick out from his ruffled hair and his outfit became muddy on the way. He freezes when he spies Jessie holding Celebi's cage and his eyes widen in fear and betrayal. Celebi pleads with her eyes.
"What happened to you two?" Jessie asks.
"James . . . can control . . . and change . . . and . . ." Meowth tries to catch his breath.
"Well?" She turns for James' answer.
He takes step back and his eyes flicker to the forest. With a burst of energy, he speeds into the trees, tears running down his cheeks "James!" Jessie cries, but he doesn't turn back and keeps running.
"What happened?" Jessie snaps at Meowth.
"He understands Pokemon. Then, I saw him morph into a Meganium right before my eyes. Also, I saw him controlling plants and he mentioned Celebi!" He points to the Pokemon, who flinches in her cage.
"Morphing? Celebi?" Jessie looks in at Celebi.
"Yes, she must have done something to him."
Jessie's eyes narrow, "Alright, tell us what you did! Right now!" She orders.
Celebi makes tweeting noises. "She says that she gave James special powers. His Weepinbell saw how much he cared about Pokemon and humans, so he called for backup. They brought him to her and told her what they saw. She could see he had a kind heart, so she agreed."
"So that wasn't a dream," Jessie replies.
"And that Weepinbell is behind this!"
"We've got to help James!" Jessie decides and drops the cage. Meowth chases after her as the door clicks open.
"James, Wait," Victreebel says calmly.
He just keeps sprinting even after he trips and faceplants. When the cliff appears, James' emotions cause a giant cluster of vines to rise up underneath him, shooting him to the top. Victreebel and Weepinbell get blocked off by the plants and try to fight through. At the top of the cliff, James continues to stumble through the forest. Small flowers grow under each of his footsteps. He trips a second time. This time, he curls up and sobs even harder. His rivers of tears soak into the grass. He doesn't notice when thick, dark, thorned vines circle around him and spread through the forest, cutting down extra flowers. The vines only leave the roses from his footprints.
Why did this all happen to me? He thinks. I understand Celebi thought I was kind, but I'm part of Team Rocket and I would never betray Jessie and Meowth. Then again, when I saw the look Celebi gave me . . . No, my team and I are more than a team. We're best friends. When Meowth looked at me that way . . . it broke my heart. And Jessie . . . Oh Jessie . . . I never got to tell her how much she really meant to me. Jessie . . .
He chokes on his tears and the vines close in tighter.
Down below, Jessie and Meowth discover James' Pokemon fiercely trying to cut away at the writhing plants, only to be knocked back by devastating blows. "We have to get to James!" Jessie shouts.
"How? These vines are too strong!" Meowth says as he's whacked by one whip, after cutting another.
"We have to find a way!" She growls, then sees the tree Meowth climbed up before.
She runs to it and starts hugging the trunk, vines following behind her. One barely misses her leg. Another tears at her boot, taking a piece of leather along. She reaches the top and hears a voice.
"Jessie!" Meowth calls from below.
"I think I see an opening!" She yells back, "I have to find James!"
She runs off before Meowth can reply. She steps on a rose and the vines whip her leg, causing her to trip. When her face lands right next to a rose, she opens her eyes wide. The bright red rose reminds her of a memory . . . The vines all seem to be avoiding the flowers carefully. Tears fill Jessie's eyes as she realizes what they must represent to James. Whenever she comes across another rose, she very gently picks them by the root. Jessie's thoughts are confirmed when the plants avoid her and the bouquet of roses. She follows the trails until she comes to a dome of dark vines covered completely in pitch black thorns. She waves the roses around to no effect.
No, James . . . I'm sorry I didn't realize sooner. I could've helped you. I would never give up on you. I will always be there for you. Just please, come back to me. I don't know what I'd do without you. Ever since we met, I knew there was something different about you. I never told anyone, but I used to feel helpless and barely held on. Then, I met you. There was something about you that brought just a little bit of sunshine into my life. That's why I agreed to only you and Meowth as my partners. Please don't leave me. I . . . I love you.
With those words, the roses in her hands glow a bright red and sparkle like jewels. Rainbow mist floats from within and swirls around Jessie. Then, it reaches out and caresses the vines. The light touch makes the outside layer of vines wither away. Jessie reaches out with her mist-surrounded glove and pushes through the thick wall. She gasps when she sees James sobbing on the ground, vines wrapping around his boots and creeping up his leg slowly.
"James!" She cries out, startling him. He raises his head quickly and his eyes twinkle with tears.
"Jessie?" He questions, standing up swiftly. The vines sink into the ground around them. Flowers spring up. Marigolds, Pansies, Lilies, Daffodils, Tulips, Jasmine, Daisies, Irises, Hibiscus, Violets, and, most of all, Roses surround them and spread through the forest. Sunlight filters in as the thick dead pine trees transform into colorful Aspens. Down below, with Meowth and the others, the vines retract into the cliff. They stare up, awestruck, as dandelion puff blows away in the wind from a line along the edge of the cliff.
"Wh-what are you doing here?" James stutters and looks at the ground. One vine slithers around his leg.
Jessie notices and quickly engulfs him in a hug. "No! Don't go!" Tears travel down her face and James stands, stunned by the sudden affection. The very last vine dies out, replaced by a Rose in full bloom.
"What happened? Why did you come after me?" James finally breaks away from the hug.
"Because I love you," she bursts out quickly. "But you better not tell Meowth!" She points in his face.
"Of course not! I-I love you too," he smiles. They walk back together and try their best not to look awkward.
"Hey," Meowth shouts and waves his arms, "There they are! Where were you guys?" He says after they climb down the cliff.
"Jessie helped me realize how much we care about each other-" he cuts off when Celebi flies around his head. "You! You started this!" He tries to snatch her out of the air, but Jessie grabs his shoulders.
"Actually," she says, "your Weepinbell did."
Weepinbell widens his eyes and is about to hop away when Meowth grabs him. "I just saw his potential!" Weepinbell defends himself while Meowth translates for Jessie. "The forest up there has been dead for years. You saw what he did. He can learn to use his powers if he keeps his emotions under control."
"Good luck with that," Jessie jokes and James elbows her seriously.
"Listen," he kneels down, "I don't really want these powers. I'm going to stay with Team Rocket. You wouldn't want a villain to have superpowers, would you?"
Celebi replies, "Fine, I can take them away, but if you ever change your mind . . ."
James nods. Celebi flies around him, releasing a sort of dust. He sneezes, but survives through the rest of the process. When she's done, Celebi makes noises and James can't understand her. Team Rocket are about to move on and forget everything before Victreebel tugs on James' shirt.
"What's wrong?" He asks.
She screeches out different noises and Weepinbell responds. "They say that they want to stay here and help Celebi," Meowth tells James.
"But, Victreebel?" Even though James starts to cry once more, he gives his Victreebel one last hug. She gifts him one more head bite, and then they're on their way.
In the forest, the flowers and trees fade with the seasons and years. The leaves fall and the snow buries the wilted flowers. However, one flower survives through rain and shine, Winter and Summer. The Forever Rose still stands to this day.