disclamer: None of these charicters are mine, its a fanfiction! only the story is mine! enjoy peoples! ^^
Prologue: Memories
A sudden frigid breeze rips through the air. I stir from my disturbed sleep, tighten my blanket around me and look outside my cave. It's a blizzard. The town below me seems peaceful and full of joy through the lashing storm. It's never peaceful up here in my cave. It is full of hatred and sorrow. I glanced around. Oh no, my fire is going out, I must have something to burn to survive…. though survival for my sake isn't what troubles me.
I slowly stood up, still clutching to my tattered, old blanket and start looking through my supplies. My hair hangs short and limp. I had cut it years ago and never again wore my hair in the traditional aerodynamic style I used to, back in the days of Team Rocket. My search comes to a close; there is nothing to burn. Another gust of frigid wind comes ripping through my cave, and whipped through my hair. Furiously, I tossed my blanket into the fire, which was immediately engulfed in flames and eaten away. I hugged my shoulders and shivered. All I had on was the remains of my proud Team Rocket uniform, which was tattered and needed mending. Wait, maybe there is still something in my bag! I grabbed my bag of belongings and searched through it frantically; there is a piece of paper in here! I excitedly took it out. My happiness dampened immediately. It was my only photo left, of James, my partner, my friend, my once love. I gazed at the picture of me and James; hugging in bliss together for we had finally confessed our love for the other. A diamond ring is taped to the upper right corner. In faded gold writing below it, are the words "Will you marry me?" I can't take it anymore. Holding the photo in hand, I lean heavily against the cold wall of the cave and slump down into a sitting position. I brought the photo to my chest and hugged at it
"James.." I sighed.
A single tear fell, and for the first time in ten years, I broke down sobbing, my breath came in irregular gasps. As I sat against the wall, I started to bring back the dreaded memories, of our last mission, together, ten years ago.
~~~~~*Broken Dreams*~~~~~~~
Chapter 1: Confession
"Jessie! Wake up! The brats got a head start!"
I groaned and flung my pillow at James.
"Never wake me up like that!" I scream at him. His bright emerald eyes showed nothing short of sheer terror.
"S…sorr..sorry Jessie," he stammered
"Meowth! Come on guys! We gotta go now!"
"Shut up, Meowth," I muttered.
"But Jess,"
"FINE!" I flung my blanket onto the cat and marched off. Meowth just showed a look of disgust and followed, James lingered behind, not wanting any more hits. I admit that I felt a twinge of regret to what I did, but my ample pride just wouldn't allow it.
"Why should I care for a self-centered, cry-baby, guy like James? He was stupid to wake me up before seven, he knew that," I tried to convince myself, but my heart knew it wasn't right. I thought to myself, "you fool, you damned fool! Don't you know that you get hurt when you soften up?!" I puffed myself up and continued walking.
"Why do I have to be the one in the skirt?!" James wailed.
"Because you look good in pink!"
"But Jessie.."
our cell phone rang. Both of us froze of fright. It must be The Boss. I picked the black R phone up with shaking hands.
"Yes, sir?" I stammered, trying to sound confident. I can't have James hear me lose it.
"Jessie, you three are assigned to a special mission. I want the three of you to break into the Legendary Birds section of the Pokemon History Museum in Celadon City and steal the rare artifacts there. They can prove to be very useful to me. Is that clear?" he said with distain.
"Yes"
"Good. Don't fail me. Or else." He dictated the last statement with heavy emphasis on the "or else" and hung up
"What was that about?" James questioned me as he finished putting on the pink dress. I sighed and explained: "New assignment, James. Get out of that and we are going to head to Celadon."
"Meowth! He musta given us a promotion! Lets go!"
Two days later we reached Celadon. James suggested we wait a couple of days before the raid. We all agreed to have a break. We got a hotel room and began to plan.
James said we should sneak in through the window. Meowth suggested we go through the ceiling panels. Back and forth the arguments flew. I finally broke the argument by hitting them both with my famous paper fan and stormed out enraged. I wasn't angry at their petty argument, I was reminded memories of the past by it: yelling, hitting, resentment. I tried killing my past but it just kept coming back. I slumped down on a park bench outside and hung my head in defeat.
"May I join you?"
I looked up to see James sit beside me. It was an unexpected presence. My heart skipped a beat and my cheeks flushed a deep crimson. I smiled. James just knew how to cheer me up. He grinned and blushed too. He timidly hugged me and I hugged back.
"Jessie?"
"Yes James?"
He swallowed and continued."I've always considered you my best friend…and I want to say…confess…." He seemed to have trouble finding the right words. " That I…."
"Love me?" I finished.
"Yes, I do." He turned a deep red as red as my hair and cowered for a blow.
"James, " I laughed at his timidness. "I've always did too, you are more than just a friend to me, James."
He looked up with surprise and happiness and flung himself at me and gave me a passionate kiss. I was taken back by surprise but got drawn into the kiss. My hate and sorrows melted away and all that mattered were him and me. I felt warmth that I never felt since my mother's decease in the mountains. In the middle of that wonderful kiss, I heard a click. Several clicks actually. Both of us drew apart quickly and looked at the clicker.
"MEOWTH!!"
The stupid cat just snickered and ran away with his camera. We looked at each other and scoffed, and then we went back to our room, hand in hand.
Chapter 2: The plan in action
"Jessie…. we need to go now." James whispered.
"Its 3 in the morning…."
"Meowth! We need to swipe da artifacts remember?" Meowth hissed
"Ok, let go put the plan into action" I tumbled out of bed and got dressed.
I slid the panel out of place and peaked out to see the room dark, deserted, and upside down. I swung my head back into hiding and silently signaled to the guys that it was clear. James jumped down and landed silently onto the floor. Meowth clamored down after him. James then offered his hands out for me to jump. I smiled and jumped into his arms into the fireman's carry and both of us collapsed into a heap on the floor. We hid our snickers behind our hands and made way for the exhibit.
"Me…you two lovebwads are so screwy these days…we gotta be more careful!" the cat hissed at the two. "I mean, you two are all over each other…and not even hitting me once! That is just weird!"
"Be quiet, there they are!" James whispered with excitement and pointed to the displays in glass. There were feathers and eggs and other artifacts from the so-called Legendary Birds: Articuno, Zapdoes, and Moltres.
"Great! Lets get them!" I exclaimed quietly and handed both my companions a sack. We set off to collect everything, being very careful to not set off the alarms. I gingerly placed artifact after artifact into the sack; everything was going smoothly for once. I winked at James and he smiled and put his hand in back of his head and grinned. In doing so, his elbow hit a sculpture. It tilted. We all gasped as it tilted more and more…. and the sculpture of the three birds flew through the air. James quickly dived to catch the piece of art and caught it. We breathed a sigh of relief. Then, the alarms went off.
Chapter 3: A Narrow Escape with a dear price
I knew it was too good to be true. I slung my sack over my shoulder and beckoned the two to follow. We ran through room after room to find our escape route out a window and finally found it- blocked. The alarms blared in my ears, echoing in my ears, blaring a familiar rhythm I've heard only too many times. We heard the police break into the museum. And heard them talking. There were five altogether.
"Which room was it-?"
"Must be the Legendary Birds exhibit! -"
"Artifacts-"
"Very valuable-"
"Its bound to be Team Rocket-"
"Break up and find them-"
"Won't take long-"
Our breaths came hard as we heard them heading our direction. I grabbed Meowth by the paw and ran towards my alternate route.
"This way, James! Hurry! Up the stairs!" I called out as so only he could hear. Team Rocket members were trained to hear very acute sounds, so he heard me. We clamored up the stairs and heard one person downstairs following. He found us!
"Quick! Take out your guns! We'll scare 'em off!" Meowth screamed as we reached the roof of the building. The night had started turning into day but cold gusts of air swirled around us, messing up our hair and whipping our clothing around. We followed Meowth's command and took out our loaded guns. I never really like carrying one around, but it's a Team Rocket rule to carry one around. Usually it was used to scare someone but not actually to kill. I set down my sack to think. James pulled me into a tight hug
"Now what?!" James shouted over the howling wind.
"Uh…jump?"
"We are on a 20 story building!"
"We had worse falls, you moron!"
"AH-HA! There you are!" Officer Jenny shouted, "Hand over those sacks and we'll head on over to the station!" She made a move towards us.
We let go and broke into a run, headed for the roof edge when I tripped. My gun accidentally discharged and the bullet found its mark in Jenny's chest. She gave a gasp and crumpled limply to the ground. Meowth ran over, took her wrist and felt for a pulse. He looked up and shook his head.
"Oh no…." I stammered, "I killed an Officer Jenny!"
I had taken away a life. The gun fumbled out of my fingers
"We got to hide! They are bound to be after us." James said while pulling my sleeve.
I nodded, picked up our sacks of stolen artifacts and jumped. James picked up Meowth, and followed. The air cut my face like a knife as I plummeted through the air. I braced myself for impact. Instead, I felt a cushioned landing. I looked up.
"Mondo? What are you doing here?" I asked
"AHHHH!!!" James fell and crashed into the cement sidewalk.
"Oops…sorry guys!" Mondo called to the two and went on, "I followed you three here as always and decided to help." The young boy explained. I slid off his ditto and it transformed back into its original form.
"You better go now, I heard them going upstairs. I'll handle this." He urged us to leave.
"Mondo, they don't have mercy, they'll-" I never finished; Mondo slapped me hard across the face.
"GO!" he cried, tears streaming down his face. "GO! Just go! Get out of here while you can!"
"James, Meowth, we gotta run!" I grunted as I pulled them out of the gaping hole. They recovered quickly and we ran off towards our hotel with the sacks. As we ran, I heard police people questioning Mondo, his refusals to answer, and the grunts as they carried him off. I was never to know what happened to our young friend; whether he was alive or dead. Probably dead. A single tear jerked loose as we ran under the cover of darkness and the howling wind.
Chapter 4: An unanswered proposal
"Have you completed the task?" The Boss demanded at Headquarters.
"Yes, Boss. Its all in here." James said, handing the sacks over to the feared man. He took them and gazed in.
"Good, you actually did what you were told to do."
"Sir, Mondo was…captured." I said.
"Hmm…I always admired the boy's determination. What a pity to lose a high-spirited young man." He mumbled almost to himself. "Well, then, here's your reward then." He handed us a small bag of money and smiled a rare smile, which immediately turned into a frown again. "now get out of my sight and do your work!"
We scampered out of the room and walked in silence. It was plain to see that we were grieving inside over the loss of our friend.
(a year later) "Jessie!" James called from the kitchen. "Breakfast!"
"Coming!" I yelled back and quickly pulled on my outer white jacket. I sauntered over to the table and plopped down on the mat next to Meowth. "Breakfast" was a few hard pieces of bread with jam and some soggy pancakes. A decent meal for us. I started eating my bread when I noticed a red rose and a photo lying on the table. I picked up the rose, which had a note attached. I read it, smiled as I read *Jessie, my one and only rose* and picked up the picture. I saw it was the picture of me and James hugging each other in the park; the one Meowth took.
"James what is this?" I asked, holding up the photo. He grinned and answered, "read it" and went back to cooking. I turned it over and over in my hands. In gold lettering, it read, "Will you marry me?" and a diamond ring was attached with a piece of tape. I smiled. Marriage? So suddenly? I took it to be a joke. I wasn't ready for such a commitment, yet.
"Lets go get Pikachu now," I said as we finished eating.
"What's your an-"
"Later James" I dismissed the matter with a wave of my hand. I saw that he psysicaly drooped.
"Meowth! Lets get this show on da road!" the feline roared and marched out the door of the small, shabby "shed"
Chapter 5: Betrayal and a game of chase
"I can't get over the fact I killed someone.." I moped as we walked in the woods.
"I know, Jessie, it was an accident."
"But I took two lives, Jenny's and Mondo's and Mondo had nothing to do with it." I said in anguish and started crying. I hit myself mentally and stopped crying. I then started thinking to myself. "no one knows it was you, and if they did, they would have caught us by now. Stop worrying about getting caught and go get that pikachu."
James put his arm around me to comfort me. I shoved him away in anger at myself.
"Leave me alone!" I growled.
"Jessie…"
"There they are, Jenny!" a familiar voice cried out.
"Ash, that stupid brat! He told them!"
"How'd he figure it was us?"
We didn't have time to think about it.
"Pikachu! Thunder shock!" the young trainer called.
A familiar shock fell upon us and we screamed in pain, but we ran as fast as we could, the brat-trio following with Officer Jennies accompanying them.
"James! We gotta run faster!" I cried as that stuck-brat, Misty, commanded her Staryu to use water gun.
"I am!"
"Meowth! Me too! Bring out ya pokemon!"
I felt around for my pokeballs and threw them.
"Arbok! Likkitung!"
"Wheezing! Vetreebell!"
Our pokemon got the message and started stalling the group. But soon, squeals of pain rang out and they kept gaining on us. All our pokemon were gone. James started to head back but I grabbed him and pulled him back to running away from our pursuers. I held back tears. My blood drummed in my ears. I clenched my teeth and kept running.
"Jessie! Look! It's a city! We can hide!"
"Not if they catch us first!"
We ran down the streets, up allies, over walls and through the buildings. It was early and people weren't awake yet. We seemed to have lost them and stopped to catch our breath in a small ally.
"That was close.." James panted
"They are after us…and its because of me…its my fault…its my fault" I sobbed and buried my head in my hands and started rocking back and forth.
"Idiot! You are Jessie! You are strong! Not a little crybaby! Now stop crying and getting so emotional!" I screamed to myself.
"Meowth, all we gotta do is hide out for a couple o' days. They'll think we headed somewhere else and we can hide again!" Meowth chirruped.
"And spend our whole lives in hiding?" James flared, "Its just not right!"
"What other plans do you have, James?" the cat argued.
"Both of you shut up and we'll hide out here for the day and go by night." I said and found a place to sleep during the day on the cold cement floor; under the cover of the dark shadows.
Chapter 6: Under the covers of darkness
I awoke at night. It was cloudy and there was…thank God, no moon. It was the perfect condition
"Pst…James..Meowth..time to go," I whispered and nudged James.
"Not now mommy….I didn't eat all my ice cream sandwiches…" he moaned in his sleep and turned over.
"JAMES!" I hissed and slapped him hard. He screamed in fright and looked at me with big green eyes.
"Oh good, I thought you were Jezebell," he sighed.
That enraged me, being compared to that…that…wimp! I slapped him again and kicked Meowth.
"Time to go, fur ball!" I stated and pulled on my disguise as a photographer and tossed James a similar outfit.
"Jessie!" he whined, "Why do I also have to wear a skirt?!"
"Shut up and put it on!" I barked at him. He immediately put it on. He then looked me over. I know, we loved each other, but we had no time to mess with it now. Our lives were at stake.
"Jessie…your hair," He stated. I looked over my shoulder at my red hair. He was right, my aerodynamic hairstyle would give us away. I got out my brush and quickly brushed it out so it hung past my knees.
"That's better," he exclaimed, running his fingers through it.
"No…" I said, as I took out a pair of scissors. It was terrible to do, but it must be done…with my eyes watering, I cut my beautiful hair short. I shook my head and my cut hair fell away. James and Meowth only stared in disbelief at what I sacrificed.
We ran out of the ally, not knowing where to go, but knowing we had to get somewhere. The sun shone down on us and we were exhausted. We had walked since 5:00am and the sun was high in the sky by now. We should have taken the balloon.
"Where are we?" I asked, wiping my brow.
"Near Cerulean City," James replied after scanning his map. "we better find somewhere to eat. I am hungry for some Chinese food."
"Meowth, maybe some tacos too!" the feline whined.
"How about we skip lunch and have a romantic dinner?" I suggested. James grinned and agreed. Meowth, however scowled but didn't say anything. We walked into Cerulean, pretending to take pictures (because we had no film) and found us a place to stay.
"The Cerulean Hotel?" I said, puzzled
"How original," Meowth said sarcastically.
"Well, its cheep but a bit fancy. It's a good place." We got a room and just collapsed on the bed and slept through the day and the day after.
Chapter 7: Romance in the moonlight
"Oh, James, you didn't have to.."
"But I wanted to," replied James as he closed the clasp on a beautiful gold necklace around my neck. "It suits you well."
"Meow…dat's purdy!" exclaimed Meowth as he gazed at the shiny bauble. James had just given me a necklace with a tiny pendent of sapphire "to match my eyes" . It was so beautiful and I kissed him out of thanks. He immediately flushed a bright red and put his hand behind his head. I had a flashback: the year we robbed the pokemon museum , the day we were caught, the day when….. I killed Jenny. I saw myself in slow motion, running, tripping. The gun going off, I heard the explosion of the gun, the gasp of pain as the bullet struck the young officer. I saw her, falling….the blood spilling from her wound…Mondo giving up his freedom and life for us….Arbok, Weezing, Likkitung and Vetreebell, fighting till the bitter end…I closed my eyes and shook my head to rid myself of the unwanted memories.
"What's wrong Jess?" both of my companions inquired.
"Nothing…nothing's wrong." I said, with a forced smile on my lips. It didn't fool them for a second, but they held their tongues.
Twenty minutes later, we walked into the restraint, in our finest clothing (which was not very formal). I was in a short, sky blue, dress, the best I had. James was in his black undershirt and normal white pants, his hair was in a short ponytail. He had left all his other clothes back in the balloon, which were back in the woods. He looked so handsome, but I wasn't about to admit it, even when we know we love each other, my pride got in the way.
"For crying out loud, Meowth, stop fidgeting with that leash"
"But its itchy!" he hissed softly and fiddled with it again.
"It's required, no pokemon are allowed unless on a leash."
Meowth just scowled. We were guided outside to the patio, and sat down. The candle on the table was lit and cast a heavenly look on James' face. He looked like an angel. I put my elbows on the table and interlinked my fingers and laid my chin on top, and grinned. His eyes were alive, like the flame in front of us. The light danced and flickered, casting shadows and light on his face, adding to the delight that came to my eyes. I smiled. Meowth saw me and giggled. I kicked the feline and he sat silent. James smiled back at me and handed me a perfect red rose. I took it and leaned over. He got the message and also leaned towards me. We were going to kiss when the waiter came. We scowled, ordered and when he left, we leaned across and our lips met. Meowth just looked sick but happy for us. He must have been thinking about Meowzy. I don't see what he saw in that girl, she was so mean to him. But I was so mean to James, and he is head over heels for me. It must be a weird love thing. I don't remember what we ate, or what we talked about anymore. All that mattered about that dinner was him and the kiss.
We laughed as we walked down the street, hand and hand. Meowth trotted by us, eating an ice cream cone Our guard was down and we just talked about everything: our past, how we met, the fun times we had, Team Rocket, roses, anything we could think of. We strolled into a park and gazed at the stars. James pointed out constellations while holding me tight. I snuggled closer to him and followed with my eyes to where he was pointing, gasping with delight. Meowth had gone back to the hotel after awhile but we stayed in the park for hours, gazing at the stars, but mostly at each other. We finally got tired and strolled back to the hotel. We should have been more cautious…we shouldn't have been in Cerulean…if only we knew what was to happen…if only…. if only…
Chapter 8: Goodbyes
I awoke to a bright, beautiful morning. But it was not as beautiful as me. I got up and swooned as I remembered the night before, the romantic dinner, the walk in the streets, him and me; together, plus Meowth and of the park. I giggled senselessly and clutched the necklace James gave me. James and Meowth were still sleeping. I kneeled by James and gave him a peak on the forehead. I swear, I saw him smile in his sleep. I ran my fingers though my unfamiliar short hair and went to take a shower.
When I returned from my shower, they were up and ready to go. We donned our disguises as photographers (but James insisted on wearing just his black shirt and white pants and did so) and we left. We walked down the street, wondering where to go. James gave me a look that said "Have you decided?" I considered; James was a nice guy and all, but marriage? It was a tough decision. I was about to say "yes" when all hell broke loose.
"Team Rocket!" Ash and Misty exclaimed.
"AHHHHHH!!!" we screamed and started running.
Running, I hate running. Running from my past, running from my fears, now running from three brats and six Officer Jennies. Meowth suddenly went down, bleeding. I scooped him up and continued running.
"Don't worry Meowth, we'll fix ya up…" I said. Running again, faster and faster. James and I started crying as we ran. I cried so hard, so many people were hunted down because of me….of my blunder. How can the good guys be so heartless? The world is just not fair.
A gunshot rang out. James let out a cry of pain and collapsed.
"JAMES!" I cried, kneeling beside him.
"Jess…they are coming.."
"To hell with them, I don't care what happens to me, get up, I'll carry you, we can find a doctor and you'll get better and, and-"
"Jessie, its over for me, I care about you…leave me…go!"
"No James…I love you!"
"THEN GO! Get out of here!"
"James..."
"GO! Run and don't turn back! If you are safe, I am content, just..."
He pulled me down and kissed me. I kissed back, putting all my feelings and emotions into that one last, bittersweet kiss.
"Leave…don't worry about me…" he stuttered, tears running down his face, "and just.whatever you do…promise that you won't let go of life, keep going. Live for Meowth and me if not for you…life is a gift. Too bad I won't be able to enjoy it with you, Jess, my love." He managed a smile.
" James, I promise…I'll never give up…I won't…never ever…I love you, James…" I sobbed, tears streaking my face.
"Meowth….James, don't leave Meowth.." The cat woke up and reached out a paw to James. He didn't want James to leave either. James brushed him away.
"They are coming, GO!" he cried and I turned and ran with Meowth in my arms. His words echoed in my mind. I stopped behind a dumpster and heard them gather around James. Meowth did his best to struggle in my arms to go back, but I held him back, sobbing.
"He's nearly dead-"
"Served him right-"
"ASH! You are so heartless! Even bad buys deserve some sympathy-"
"But he killed-"
"Our sister, he deserves to die." A Jenny chimed in.
"But we don't know," started Tracey
"But he was involved-"
"We should take him to a doctor-"
"Too late, he is going to die before we get halfway there. Lets just put him out of his misery." Another Jenny said.
I heard gasps, a gun click and go off. James screamed in pain...he moaned...then nothing. I heard sobs coming from my mortal enemies, even Ash. I felt sick and overcome with remorse and guilt. The gunshot had not killed only James, it killed a part of me and broken my dreams.
With tears streaming down my face, I turned and ran with Meowth who passed out again...faster and faster, away from Cerulean, away from Jenny, away from my dead love and companions. Their cries echoed in my mind and haunted me. I ran with all my possessions in a bag. I ran away to an island where they'd never find us...me...Meowth died soon after.
Chapter 9: Conclusions
I opened my eyes, which were red from crying. It was all my fault that James, Meowth, Mondo…. our pokemon, and Jenny were dead. And my friends, they had paid the price when it was me who should have taken it. I gazed at the picture another time. I took off the ring and slipped it onto my left ring finger. If I can't be married with James, then at least I could be married to him in memory. Another gust of wind tore the picture from my freezing hands and it fluttered into the fire.
"No…" I gasped. The picture was my last link with James. Now it is gone. All the love letters we had written each other were destroyed years ago, in my fire. The saphire necklace is gone too, traded in for needed money. Now, all that were left were memories and broken dreams. I buried my face into my arms and wept.
"Jess…."
"Who's there?" I flared. No one knew I was up here. They stopped looking for me years ago, probably assuming I was dead. Ash never did become a Pokemon Master, he became a famous pikachu trainer and breeder instead, from what I have heard. Misty left him long ago, for reasons unknown. Tracey went off on his watcher journey somewhere. All the Jennies continued with their jobs. No one would come up here.
"Jess…"
"Wha…" I turned to look outside. No one was there. I looked out into the horizon. I could have sworn that I saw three blurred streak-like figures, riding the wind. They glided around, like the most fragile fabric, as if they were part of the Aurora. Then they looked at me. They looked like…it couldn't be. I rubbed my eyes. It was!
I began to run outside. But the wind struck me and I retreated back in. They smiled and all came to swirl around me, running the wind through my hair. Two of them retreated back to the skies and suspended in the air, taking the forms of Mondo and Meowth, but transparent and shining as if an invisible sun was shining down on them. One took the form of a shining, transparent form of James, in the outfit in which he died. He smiled and I reached out to him when he caught hold of a passing wind and soared into the sky.
"James, don't leave me again!" I cried, my used-up tears trickling down my face.
"I won't, I'll always be with you." His voice echoed in my mind. My friends became swirls of light again and said their tearful goodbyes and they all took off and sped towards the clouds. The storm was over. I blinked.
Was it an illusion? I walked to the back of my cave, dazed, and sat down to think. The sunlight shone through the clouds and hit my diamond ring, creating a kaleidoscope effect of rainbows, which bounced off the walls of my cave. I smiled and for the first time in ten years, felt at peace.
*************~The End~*****************
well, this was my first fanficcie, I hope you enjoyed it! ^^
~Silver Vaporeon~
e-mail: bookwormz98@yahoo.com (any flames shall be extinguished! Bwhahahhaha!)
Prologue: Memories
A sudden frigid breeze rips through the air. I stir from my disturbed sleep, tighten my blanket around me and look outside my cave. It's a blizzard. The town below me seems peaceful and full of joy through the lashing storm. It's never peaceful up here in my cave. It is full of hatred and sorrow. I glanced around. Oh no, my fire is going out, I must have something to burn to survive…. though survival for my sake isn't what troubles me.
I slowly stood up, still clutching to my tattered, old blanket and start looking through my supplies. My hair hangs short and limp. I had cut it years ago and never again wore my hair in the traditional aerodynamic style I used to, back in the days of Team Rocket. My search comes to a close; there is nothing to burn. Another gust of frigid wind comes ripping through my cave, and whipped through my hair. Furiously, I tossed my blanket into the fire, which was immediately engulfed in flames and eaten away. I hugged my shoulders and shivered. All I had on was the remains of my proud Team Rocket uniform, which was tattered and needed mending. Wait, maybe there is still something in my bag! I grabbed my bag of belongings and searched through it frantically; there is a piece of paper in here! I excitedly took it out. My happiness dampened immediately. It was my only photo left, of James, my partner, my friend, my once love. I gazed at the picture of me and James; hugging in bliss together for we had finally confessed our love for the other. A diamond ring is taped to the upper right corner. In faded gold writing below it, are the words "Will you marry me?" I can't take it anymore. Holding the photo in hand, I lean heavily against the cold wall of the cave and slump down into a sitting position. I brought the photo to my chest and hugged at it
"James.." I sighed.
A single tear fell, and for the first time in ten years, I broke down sobbing, my breath came in irregular gasps. As I sat against the wall, I started to bring back the dreaded memories, of our last mission, together, ten years ago.
~~~~~*Broken Dreams*~~~~~~~
Chapter 1: Confession
"Jessie! Wake up! The brats got a head start!"
I groaned and flung my pillow at James.
"Never wake me up like that!" I scream at him. His bright emerald eyes showed nothing short of sheer terror.
"S…sorr..sorry Jessie," he stammered
"Meowth! Come on guys! We gotta go now!"
"Shut up, Meowth," I muttered.
"But Jess,"
"FINE!" I flung my blanket onto the cat and marched off. Meowth just showed a look of disgust and followed, James lingered behind, not wanting any more hits. I admit that I felt a twinge of regret to what I did, but my ample pride just wouldn't allow it.
"Why should I care for a self-centered, cry-baby, guy like James? He was stupid to wake me up before seven, he knew that," I tried to convince myself, but my heart knew it wasn't right. I thought to myself, "you fool, you damned fool! Don't you know that you get hurt when you soften up?!" I puffed myself up and continued walking.
"Why do I have to be the one in the skirt?!" James wailed.
"Because you look good in pink!"
"But Jessie.."
our cell phone rang. Both of us froze of fright. It must be The Boss. I picked the black R phone up with shaking hands.
"Yes, sir?" I stammered, trying to sound confident. I can't have James hear me lose it.
"Jessie, you three are assigned to a special mission. I want the three of you to break into the Legendary Birds section of the Pokemon History Museum in Celadon City and steal the rare artifacts there. They can prove to be very useful to me. Is that clear?" he said with distain.
"Yes"
"Good. Don't fail me. Or else." He dictated the last statement with heavy emphasis on the "or else" and hung up
"What was that about?" James questioned me as he finished putting on the pink dress. I sighed and explained: "New assignment, James. Get out of that and we are going to head to Celadon."
"Meowth! He musta given us a promotion! Lets go!"
Two days later we reached Celadon. James suggested we wait a couple of days before the raid. We all agreed to have a break. We got a hotel room and began to plan.
James said we should sneak in through the window. Meowth suggested we go through the ceiling panels. Back and forth the arguments flew. I finally broke the argument by hitting them both with my famous paper fan and stormed out enraged. I wasn't angry at their petty argument, I was reminded memories of the past by it: yelling, hitting, resentment. I tried killing my past but it just kept coming back. I slumped down on a park bench outside and hung my head in defeat.
"May I join you?"
I looked up to see James sit beside me. It was an unexpected presence. My heart skipped a beat and my cheeks flushed a deep crimson. I smiled. James just knew how to cheer me up. He grinned and blushed too. He timidly hugged me and I hugged back.
"Jessie?"
"Yes James?"
He swallowed and continued."I've always considered you my best friend…and I want to say…confess…." He seemed to have trouble finding the right words. " That I…."
"Love me?" I finished.
"Yes, I do." He turned a deep red as red as my hair and cowered for a blow.
"James, " I laughed at his timidness. "I've always did too, you are more than just a friend to me, James."
He looked up with surprise and happiness and flung himself at me and gave me a passionate kiss. I was taken back by surprise but got drawn into the kiss. My hate and sorrows melted away and all that mattered were him and me. I felt warmth that I never felt since my mother's decease in the mountains. In the middle of that wonderful kiss, I heard a click. Several clicks actually. Both of us drew apart quickly and looked at the clicker.
"MEOWTH!!"
The stupid cat just snickered and ran away with his camera. We looked at each other and scoffed, and then we went back to our room, hand in hand.
Chapter 2: The plan in action
"Jessie…. we need to go now." James whispered.
"Its 3 in the morning…."
"Meowth! We need to swipe da artifacts remember?" Meowth hissed
"Ok, let go put the plan into action" I tumbled out of bed and got dressed.
I slid the panel out of place and peaked out to see the room dark, deserted, and upside down. I swung my head back into hiding and silently signaled to the guys that it was clear. James jumped down and landed silently onto the floor. Meowth clamored down after him. James then offered his hands out for me to jump. I smiled and jumped into his arms into the fireman's carry and both of us collapsed into a heap on the floor. We hid our snickers behind our hands and made way for the exhibit.
"Me…you two lovebwads are so screwy these days…we gotta be more careful!" the cat hissed at the two. "I mean, you two are all over each other…and not even hitting me once! That is just weird!"
"Be quiet, there they are!" James whispered with excitement and pointed to the displays in glass. There were feathers and eggs and other artifacts from the so-called Legendary Birds: Articuno, Zapdoes, and Moltres.
"Great! Lets get them!" I exclaimed quietly and handed both my companions a sack. We set off to collect everything, being very careful to not set off the alarms. I gingerly placed artifact after artifact into the sack; everything was going smoothly for once. I winked at James and he smiled and put his hand in back of his head and grinned. In doing so, his elbow hit a sculpture. It tilted. We all gasped as it tilted more and more…. and the sculpture of the three birds flew through the air. James quickly dived to catch the piece of art and caught it. We breathed a sigh of relief. Then, the alarms went off.
Chapter 3: A Narrow Escape with a dear price
I knew it was too good to be true. I slung my sack over my shoulder and beckoned the two to follow. We ran through room after room to find our escape route out a window and finally found it- blocked. The alarms blared in my ears, echoing in my ears, blaring a familiar rhythm I've heard only too many times. We heard the police break into the museum. And heard them talking. There were five altogether.
"Which room was it-?"
"Must be the Legendary Birds exhibit! -"
"Artifacts-"
"Very valuable-"
"Its bound to be Team Rocket-"
"Break up and find them-"
"Won't take long-"
Our breaths came hard as we heard them heading our direction. I grabbed Meowth by the paw and ran towards my alternate route.
"This way, James! Hurry! Up the stairs!" I called out as so only he could hear. Team Rocket members were trained to hear very acute sounds, so he heard me. We clamored up the stairs and heard one person downstairs following. He found us!
"Quick! Take out your guns! We'll scare 'em off!" Meowth screamed as we reached the roof of the building. The night had started turning into day but cold gusts of air swirled around us, messing up our hair and whipping our clothing around. We followed Meowth's command and took out our loaded guns. I never really like carrying one around, but it's a Team Rocket rule to carry one around. Usually it was used to scare someone but not actually to kill. I set down my sack to think. James pulled me into a tight hug
"Now what?!" James shouted over the howling wind.
"Uh…jump?"
"We are on a 20 story building!"
"We had worse falls, you moron!"
"AH-HA! There you are!" Officer Jenny shouted, "Hand over those sacks and we'll head on over to the station!" She made a move towards us.
We let go and broke into a run, headed for the roof edge when I tripped. My gun accidentally discharged and the bullet found its mark in Jenny's chest. She gave a gasp and crumpled limply to the ground. Meowth ran over, took her wrist and felt for a pulse. He looked up and shook his head.
"Oh no…." I stammered, "I killed an Officer Jenny!"
I had taken away a life. The gun fumbled out of my fingers
"We got to hide! They are bound to be after us." James said while pulling my sleeve.
I nodded, picked up our sacks of stolen artifacts and jumped. James picked up Meowth, and followed. The air cut my face like a knife as I plummeted through the air. I braced myself for impact. Instead, I felt a cushioned landing. I looked up.
"Mondo? What are you doing here?" I asked
"AHHHH!!!" James fell and crashed into the cement sidewalk.
"Oops…sorry guys!" Mondo called to the two and went on, "I followed you three here as always and decided to help." The young boy explained. I slid off his ditto and it transformed back into its original form.
"You better go now, I heard them going upstairs. I'll handle this." He urged us to leave.
"Mondo, they don't have mercy, they'll-" I never finished; Mondo slapped me hard across the face.
"GO!" he cried, tears streaming down his face. "GO! Just go! Get out of here while you can!"
"James, Meowth, we gotta run!" I grunted as I pulled them out of the gaping hole. They recovered quickly and we ran off towards our hotel with the sacks. As we ran, I heard police people questioning Mondo, his refusals to answer, and the grunts as they carried him off. I was never to know what happened to our young friend; whether he was alive or dead. Probably dead. A single tear jerked loose as we ran under the cover of darkness and the howling wind.
Chapter 4: An unanswered proposal
"Have you completed the task?" The Boss demanded at Headquarters.
"Yes, Boss. Its all in here." James said, handing the sacks over to the feared man. He took them and gazed in.
"Good, you actually did what you were told to do."
"Sir, Mondo was…captured." I said.
"Hmm…I always admired the boy's determination. What a pity to lose a high-spirited young man." He mumbled almost to himself. "Well, then, here's your reward then." He handed us a small bag of money and smiled a rare smile, which immediately turned into a frown again. "now get out of my sight and do your work!"
We scampered out of the room and walked in silence. It was plain to see that we were grieving inside over the loss of our friend.
(a year later) "Jessie!" James called from the kitchen. "Breakfast!"
"Coming!" I yelled back and quickly pulled on my outer white jacket. I sauntered over to the table and plopped down on the mat next to Meowth. "Breakfast" was a few hard pieces of bread with jam and some soggy pancakes. A decent meal for us. I started eating my bread when I noticed a red rose and a photo lying on the table. I picked up the rose, which had a note attached. I read it, smiled as I read *Jessie, my one and only rose* and picked up the picture. I saw it was the picture of me and James hugging each other in the park; the one Meowth took.
"James what is this?" I asked, holding up the photo. He grinned and answered, "read it" and went back to cooking. I turned it over and over in my hands. In gold lettering, it read, "Will you marry me?" and a diamond ring was attached with a piece of tape. I smiled. Marriage? So suddenly? I took it to be a joke. I wasn't ready for such a commitment, yet.
"Lets go get Pikachu now," I said as we finished eating.
"What's your an-"
"Later James" I dismissed the matter with a wave of my hand. I saw that he psysicaly drooped.
"Meowth! Lets get this show on da road!" the feline roared and marched out the door of the small, shabby "shed"
Chapter 5: Betrayal and a game of chase
"I can't get over the fact I killed someone.." I moped as we walked in the woods.
"I know, Jessie, it was an accident."
"But I took two lives, Jenny's and Mondo's and Mondo had nothing to do with it." I said in anguish and started crying. I hit myself mentally and stopped crying. I then started thinking to myself. "no one knows it was you, and if they did, they would have caught us by now. Stop worrying about getting caught and go get that pikachu."
James put his arm around me to comfort me. I shoved him away in anger at myself.
"Leave me alone!" I growled.
"Jessie…"
"There they are, Jenny!" a familiar voice cried out.
"Ash, that stupid brat! He told them!"
"How'd he figure it was us?"
We didn't have time to think about it.
"Pikachu! Thunder shock!" the young trainer called.
A familiar shock fell upon us and we screamed in pain, but we ran as fast as we could, the brat-trio following with Officer Jennies accompanying them.
"James! We gotta run faster!" I cried as that stuck-brat, Misty, commanded her Staryu to use water gun.
"I am!"
"Meowth! Me too! Bring out ya pokemon!"
I felt around for my pokeballs and threw them.
"Arbok! Likkitung!"
"Wheezing! Vetreebell!"
Our pokemon got the message and started stalling the group. But soon, squeals of pain rang out and they kept gaining on us. All our pokemon were gone. James started to head back but I grabbed him and pulled him back to running away from our pursuers. I held back tears. My blood drummed in my ears. I clenched my teeth and kept running.
"Jessie! Look! It's a city! We can hide!"
"Not if they catch us first!"
We ran down the streets, up allies, over walls and through the buildings. It was early and people weren't awake yet. We seemed to have lost them and stopped to catch our breath in a small ally.
"That was close.." James panted
"They are after us…and its because of me…its my fault…its my fault" I sobbed and buried my head in my hands and started rocking back and forth.
"Idiot! You are Jessie! You are strong! Not a little crybaby! Now stop crying and getting so emotional!" I screamed to myself.
"Meowth, all we gotta do is hide out for a couple o' days. They'll think we headed somewhere else and we can hide again!" Meowth chirruped.
"And spend our whole lives in hiding?" James flared, "Its just not right!"
"What other plans do you have, James?" the cat argued.
"Both of you shut up and we'll hide out here for the day and go by night." I said and found a place to sleep during the day on the cold cement floor; under the cover of the dark shadows.
Chapter 6: Under the covers of darkness
I awoke at night. It was cloudy and there was…thank God, no moon. It was the perfect condition
"Pst…James..Meowth..time to go," I whispered and nudged James.
"Not now mommy….I didn't eat all my ice cream sandwiches…" he moaned in his sleep and turned over.
"JAMES!" I hissed and slapped him hard. He screamed in fright and looked at me with big green eyes.
"Oh good, I thought you were Jezebell," he sighed.
That enraged me, being compared to that…that…wimp! I slapped him again and kicked Meowth.
"Time to go, fur ball!" I stated and pulled on my disguise as a photographer and tossed James a similar outfit.
"Jessie!" he whined, "Why do I also have to wear a skirt?!"
"Shut up and put it on!" I barked at him. He immediately put it on. He then looked me over. I know, we loved each other, but we had no time to mess with it now. Our lives were at stake.
"Jessie…your hair," He stated. I looked over my shoulder at my red hair. He was right, my aerodynamic hairstyle would give us away. I got out my brush and quickly brushed it out so it hung past my knees.
"That's better," he exclaimed, running his fingers through it.
"No…" I said, as I took out a pair of scissors. It was terrible to do, but it must be done…with my eyes watering, I cut my beautiful hair short. I shook my head and my cut hair fell away. James and Meowth only stared in disbelief at what I sacrificed.
We ran out of the ally, not knowing where to go, but knowing we had to get somewhere. The sun shone down on us and we were exhausted. We had walked since 5:00am and the sun was high in the sky by now. We should have taken the balloon.
"Where are we?" I asked, wiping my brow.
"Near Cerulean City," James replied after scanning his map. "we better find somewhere to eat. I am hungry for some Chinese food."
"Meowth, maybe some tacos too!" the feline whined.
"How about we skip lunch and have a romantic dinner?" I suggested. James grinned and agreed. Meowth, however scowled but didn't say anything. We walked into Cerulean, pretending to take pictures (because we had no film) and found us a place to stay.
"The Cerulean Hotel?" I said, puzzled
"How original," Meowth said sarcastically.
"Well, its cheep but a bit fancy. It's a good place." We got a room and just collapsed on the bed and slept through the day and the day after.
Chapter 7: Romance in the moonlight
"Oh, James, you didn't have to.."
"But I wanted to," replied James as he closed the clasp on a beautiful gold necklace around my neck. "It suits you well."
"Meow…dat's purdy!" exclaimed Meowth as he gazed at the shiny bauble. James had just given me a necklace with a tiny pendent of sapphire "to match my eyes" . It was so beautiful and I kissed him out of thanks. He immediately flushed a bright red and put his hand behind his head. I had a flashback: the year we robbed the pokemon museum , the day we were caught, the day when….. I killed Jenny. I saw myself in slow motion, running, tripping. The gun going off, I heard the explosion of the gun, the gasp of pain as the bullet struck the young officer. I saw her, falling….the blood spilling from her wound…Mondo giving up his freedom and life for us….Arbok, Weezing, Likkitung and Vetreebell, fighting till the bitter end…I closed my eyes and shook my head to rid myself of the unwanted memories.
"What's wrong Jess?" both of my companions inquired.
"Nothing…nothing's wrong." I said, with a forced smile on my lips. It didn't fool them for a second, but they held their tongues.
Twenty minutes later, we walked into the restraint, in our finest clothing (which was not very formal). I was in a short, sky blue, dress, the best I had. James was in his black undershirt and normal white pants, his hair was in a short ponytail. He had left all his other clothes back in the balloon, which were back in the woods. He looked so handsome, but I wasn't about to admit it, even when we know we love each other, my pride got in the way.
"For crying out loud, Meowth, stop fidgeting with that leash"
"But its itchy!" he hissed softly and fiddled with it again.
"It's required, no pokemon are allowed unless on a leash."
Meowth just scowled. We were guided outside to the patio, and sat down. The candle on the table was lit and cast a heavenly look on James' face. He looked like an angel. I put my elbows on the table and interlinked my fingers and laid my chin on top, and grinned. His eyes were alive, like the flame in front of us. The light danced and flickered, casting shadows and light on his face, adding to the delight that came to my eyes. I smiled. Meowth saw me and giggled. I kicked the feline and he sat silent. James smiled back at me and handed me a perfect red rose. I took it and leaned over. He got the message and also leaned towards me. We were going to kiss when the waiter came. We scowled, ordered and when he left, we leaned across and our lips met. Meowth just looked sick but happy for us. He must have been thinking about Meowzy. I don't see what he saw in that girl, she was so mean to him. But I was so mean to James, and he is head over heels for me. It must be a weird love thing. I don't remember what we ate, or what we talked about anymore. All that mattered about that dinner was him and the kiss.
We laughed as we walked down the street, hand and hand. Meowth trotted by us, eating an ice cream cone Our guard was down and we just talked about everything: our past, how we met, the fun times we had, Team Rocket, roses, anything we could think of. We strolled into a park and gazed at the stars. James pointed out constellations while holding me tight. I snuggled closer to him and followed with my eyes to where he was pointing, gasping with delight. Meowth had gone back to the hotel after awhile but we stayed in the park for hours, gazing at the stars, but mostly at each other. We finally got tired and strolled back to the hotel. We should have been more cautious…we shouldn't have been in Cerulean…if only we knew what was to happen…if only…. if only…
Chapter 8: Goodbyes
I awoke to a bright, beautiful morning. But it was not as beautiful as me. I got up and swooned as I remembered the night before, the romantic dinner, the walk in the streets, him and me; together, plus Meowth and of the park. I giggled senselessly and clutched the necklace James gave me. James and Meowth were still sleeping. I kneeled by James and gave him a peak on the forehead. I swear, I saw him smile in his sleep. I ran my fingers though my unfamiliar short hair and went to take a shower.
When I returned from my shower, they were up and ready to go. We donned our disguises as photographers (but James insisted on wearing just his black shirt and white pants and did so) and we left. We walked down the street, wondering where to go. James gave me a look that said "Have you decided?" I considered; James was a nice guy and all, but marriage? It was a tough decision. I was about to say "yes" when all hell broke loose.
"Team Rocket!" Ash and Misty exclaimed.
"AHHHHHH!!!" we screamed and started running.
Running, I hate running. Running from my past, running from my fears, now running from three brats and six Officer Jennies. Meowth suddenly went down, bleeding. I scooped him up and continued running.
"Don't worry Meowth, we'll fix ya up…" I said. Running again, faster and faster. James and I started crying as we ran. I cried so hard, so many people were hunted down because of me….of my blunder. How can the good guys be so heartless? The world is just not fair.
A gunshot rang out. James let out a cry of pain and collapsed.
"JAMES!" I cried, kneeling beside him.
"Jess…they are coming.."
"To hell with them, I don't care what happens to me, get up, I'll carry you, we can find a doctor and you'll get better and, and-"
"Jessie, its over for me, I care about you…leave me…go!"
"No James…I love you!"
"THEN GO! Get out of here!"
"James..."
"GO! Run and don't turn back! If you are safe, I am content, just..."
He pulled me down and kissed me. I kissed back, putting all my feelings and emotions into that one last, bittersweet kiss.
"Leave…don't worry about me…" he stuttered, tears running down his face, "and just.whatever you do…promise that you won't let go of life, keep going. Live for Meowth and me if not for you…life is a gift. Too bad I won't be able to enjoy it with you, Jess, my love." He managed a smile.
" James, I promise…I'll never give up…I won't…never ever…I love you, James…" I sobbed, tears streaking my face.
"Meowth….James, don't leave Meowth.." The cat woke up and reached out a paw to James. He didn't want James to leave either. James brushed him away.
"They are coming, GO!" he cried and I turned and ran with Meowth in my arms. His words echoed in my mind. I stopped behind a dumpster and heard them gather around James. Meowth did his best to struggle in my arms to go back, but I held him back, sobbing.
"He's nearly dead-"
"Served him right-"
"ASH! You are so heartless! Even bad buys deserve some sympathy-"
"But he killed-"
"Our sister, he deserves to die." A Jenny chimed in.
"But we don't know," started Tracey
"But he was involved-"
"We should take him to a doctor-"
"Too late, he is going to die before we get halfway there. Lets just put him out of his misery." Another Jenny said.
I heard gasps, a gun click and go off. James screamed in pain...he moaned...then nothing. I heard sobs coming from my mortal enemies, even Ash. I felt sick and overcome with remorse and guilt. The gunshot had not killed only James, it killed a part of me and broken my dreams.
With tears streaming down my face, I turned and ran with Meowth who passed out again...faster and faster, away from Cerulean, away from Jenny, away from my dead love and companions. Their cries echoed in my mind and haunted me. I ran with all my possessions in a bag. I ran away to an island where they'd never find us...me...Meowth died soon after.
Chapter 9: Conclusions
I opened my eyes, which were red from crying. It was all my fault that James, Meowth, Mondo…. our pokemon, and Jenny were dead. And my friends, they had paid the price when it was me who should have taken it. I gazed at the picture another time. I took off the ring and slipped it onto my left ring finger. If I can't be married with James, then at least I could be married to him in memory. Another gust of wind tore the picture from my freezing hands and it fluttered into the fire.
"No…" I gasped. The picture was my last link with James. Now it is gone. All the love letters we had written each other were destroyed years ago, in my fire. The saphire necklace is gone too, traded in for needed money. Now, all that were left were memories and broken dreams. I buried my face into my arms and wept.
"Jess…."
"Who's there?" I flared. No one knew I was up here. They stopped looking for me years ago, probably assuming I was dead. Ash never did become a Pokemon Master, he became a famous pikachu trainer and breeder instead, from what I have heard. Misty left him long ago, for reasons unknown. Tracey went off on his watcher journey somewhere. All the Jennies continued with their jobs. No one would come up here.
"Jess…"
"Wha…" I turned to look outside. No one was there. I looked out into the horizon. I could have sworn that I saw three blurred streak-like figures, riding the wind. They glided around, like the most fragile fabric, as if they were part of the Aurora. Then they looked at me. They looked like…it couldn't be. I rubbed my eyes. It was!
I began to run outside. But the wind struck me and I retreated back in. They smiled and all came to swirl around me, running the wind through my hair. Two of them retreated back to the skies and suspended in the air, taking the forms of Mondo and Meowth, but transparent and shining as if an invisible sun was shining down on them. One took the form of a shining, transparent form of James, in the outfit in which he died. He smiled and I reached out to him when he caught hold of a passing wind and soared into the sky.
"James, don't leave me again!" I cried, my used-up tears trickling down my face.
"I won't, I'll always be with you." His voice echoed in my mind. My friends became swirls of light again and said their tearful goodbyes and they all took off and sped towards the clouds. The storm was over. I blinked.
Was it an illusion? I walked to the back of my cave, dazed, and sat down to think. The sunlight shone through the clouds and hit my diamond ring, creating a kaleidoscope effect of rainbows, which bounced off the walls of my cave. I smiled and for the first time in ten years, felt at peace.
*************~The End~*****************
well, this was my first fanficcie, I hope you enjoyed it! ^^
~Silver Vaporeon~
e-mail: bookwormz98@yahoo.com (any flames shall be extinguished! Bwhahahhaha!)