Pokemon

We're a Miracle

By Lucky_Ladybug

Notes: The characters are not mine (except the antagonists) and the story is! ThickerThanLove and Little Miss Firebright helped with plot elements. This is in my Classic Era timeline. There is a throwaway reference to A Dangerous Mind involving possession and there will be more critical references to Dead and Alive Redux. It might make more sense if the latter was read first, but then again, maybe this can stand alone. The only real connection between the stories is the same antagonists.

Chapter One

It would have been impossible not to hear the argument in the cafe that night. The patrons either tried to ignore it or quietly got up and left to get away from it. Ash, Misty, and Brock, recognizing the voices, tried to duck low and not be seen.

"It is your fault! Stop denying it!" screamed a girl.

"I'm tired of being blamed for this! In fact, I'm not going to be any longer!" a boy yelled right back.

A harsh slap. "What do you think you can do about it?!"

For a moment there was silence. Then, "Don't do that again." The boy's voice was dark and cold, unlike Ash's group had ever heard . . . except once.

"What did you say?!" The girl sounded surprised, tense, and a little worried. "What are you going to do if I do? Hit me back?"

"Pikachu." Pikachu couldn't resist climbing up the leather booth and peering over the top at Jessie and James two booths over.

"Pikachu!" Ash hissed. "Get down!"

But Pikachu was too curious . . . and stunned. James was holding a hand to his cheek and there was something in his eyes-a quiet, angry resolve. Normally when James snapped, he showed brief bursts of raging temper. This new reaction seemed infinitely more unsettling.

"You taught me to hit back, Jessie." James glowered at his teammate. "If I struck you, would you really blame me?"

"James . . ." Jessie's fire was fading fast, replaced by concern and worry. "This isn't like you. You're not . . . I mean . . . you couldn't be . . . possessed . . . again?"

James sneered. "Because that's the only time I'd counter you?" He dropped his hand to the table. "No, Jessica, I'm quite myself. I just won't take the blame for Meowth. It wasn't my fault. I checked every inch of that machine and there was nothing wrong with it."

"Obviously there was something wrong with it or it wouldn't have blown up!"

"Not necessarily. We could have rolled over something in the road." James looked at her with that quietly angry resolve. "I'm just as heartbroken by what happened as you are, but never once have I accused you of being responsible for it. You had better sort out what you're truly angry at instead of covering it up by blaming me. I have stood by and took it for far too long."

"James . . ."

"No!" James slammed his hand on the table and the younger kids jumped. "No more of your excuses! I'm tired of being everyone's punching bag. I ran away from high society because I couldn't stand being told what to do, and yet somehow I ended up being bossed around by you and Meowth. How's that for irony?" He went on without waiting for her to answer the rhetorical question. "Now, I know someone must have abused you or you wouldn't act the way you do. I wasn't abusive until you and Meowth taught it to me. And I'm very sad and sorry for you. But that doesn't mean I have to tolerate this. Nor should I!"

". . . What are you going to do?" Jessie quietly asked.

James got up. "Right now, I think I'm going to leave. We both need some time apart to cool off."

Jessie leaped up. "James, don't go!" she pleaded.

James hesitated. "Do you really want me to stay?" he asked. "Or do you just want me around so you can have someone besides yourself to blame? I'm sorry, Jessica. I can't do this anymore." He turned, darting through the side exit into the night.

"James!" Jessie stared after him, shaking, one arm extended to reach out for him in vain. The door closed and the spell was broken. She collapsed into the booth, the fight drained out of her.

By now all three younger kids were staring at the scene.

"I can't believe any of what just happened," Ash said at last. "James just left?"

"Hmph. He shouldn't have put up with her as long as he did," Misty frowned. But despite her words, she was still shaken by Jessie's reaction.

"Something terrible must have triggered this," Brock said grimly. "I've never heard either of them quite like that. I wonder if it has to do with why Meowth isn't here."

Ash shifted. "Should we say anything to her?"

The others weren't sure. But before they could decide, Jessie slowly got up and walked out the door.

". . . Well, she's trying to leave with her head held high," Misty said. "She always said that's how she'd react to someone leaving her. . . ."

"But her heart's broken," Brock said. "No matter how much she looks like she's alright, she isn't."

"She had it coming," Misty said. "She always treated James pretty horrible."

"Not always," Ash said slowly. "She really seemed to care about him deep down."

"And she's treated him a lot better for some time now," Brock added. "Something is obviously very wrong for her to have slipped back to her old ways."

"I guess," Misty grudgingly conceded.

Ash nodded. "And me and Brock could've gone off and left you, you know, Misty, and I don't think you'd like that. . . ."

Misty looked to him with fire in her eyes. "Are you trying to say I'm abusive like Jessie?! I'm nothing like Jessie!"

Dead silence followed her outraged shrieks. Slowly Misty came back to herself and looked around the cafe. The few remaining customers were trying to quietly slip away. Misty slumped back in the booth, actually looking a little embarrassed.

A chilling, pained scream from outside sent all of the kids flying out of the booth. "What was that?!" Brock exclaimed.

"It sounded like Jessie!" Ash ran for the door, Pikachu scampering alongside. Misty and Brock were soon chasing after him.

Outside, James had heard the scream too. His anger and pain forgotten, he turned and ran towards the sound of the cry. "Jessie! Jessie, where are you?!"

He ran into an alley and stopped short in horror. Jessie was laying on the ground in a puddle of blood, her clothes torn and her body battered and wounded in multiple areas. Arbok and Lickitung were also hurt and were still struggling to drag themselves over to her regardless.

"Jessie!" James fell to his knees and gently lifted the limp form into his arms. His heart, already badly wounded, was now absolutely shattering. Jessie was so quiet, so still. . . . Her blood was running over his hands. And this attack wouldn't have had to happen. It only had because . . . because . . .

"This never would have happened if I hadn't left!" he sobbed. "Jessie, please . . . speak to me! I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I never should have left you, no matter what you did to me! I knew why you were doing it, and I tried to stick it out because of that, but I was weak. I couldn't take it anymore."

Jessie stirred, her eyes weakly opening. "James. . . . You came back." The awe in her voice only stabbed James deeper.

"Of course I came back!" James cried. "I never intended I wouldn't!"

"You were right . . . to leave. . . ." Jessie started to slump against him. "I'm . . . poison to everyone who gets close to me. . . ."

"No, that's not true!" James fiercely protested. "Jessie, what happened?! Who did this to you?!"

But Jessie was too far gone to process the question. "I'm sorry I've . . . only ever hurt you," she whispered. "Meowth . . . hates me. . . . I wouldn't blame you if . . . you did too. . . ." Her eyes closed.

"Jessie! Jessie!" James held her close, shaking, looking out over the darkened alley. "Help!" he screamed in desperation. "Someone, please help! She's hurt. . . ."

At that moment, Ash and company ran in from one side of the alley while Officer Jenny ran in from the other.

"Freeze!" Jenny yelled.

James went stiff. "What?" He looked up, stunned, staring at the policewoman in confused disbelief. "Officer, she needs an ambulance!"

"She sure does," Jenny replied, "and one's on the way. I've also got one for her Pokemon. And as for you . . ." She pulled out her handcuffs. "You're under arrest for assault and battery. Maybe for attemped murder."

James could only stare at her dumbly, unable to process this cruel twist.

It was Ash who ran forward and got between them. "Officer Jenny, you're making a big mistake!" he cried. "James didn't do this!"

Jenny frowned at him. "Did you see who did?"

"Well, no," Ash had to admit. "But James would never hurt Jessie!"

"The people who overheard them arguing inside the cafe tell it a little differently," Jenny replied. "Especially the very interesting exchange they had over whether he would hit her."

Misty came forward now. "He didn't! He was angry and hurt and he just walked out."

"Maybe because he was trying to restrain himself from attacking her," Jenny said. "Only when they met outside, it was a different story."

Arbok hissed. Lickitung frantically waved his hands. "Tung!"

"If Meowth were here, he could translate," Brock said quietly.

James looked back down at Jessie. Both her tops were slashed through, although there weren't deep wounds in her chest. But far too much of it was exposed now. With a trembling hand he reached to pull the torn material closer around her to afford her some dignity.

"What are you doing?!" Jenny snapped. "Leave her alone!"

"He wasn't doing anything wrong!" Misty finally snapped back. "If I was laying there like that, I'd hope Ash and Brock would be that gallant!"

Brock nodded. "It's true that we didn't see who did this. But we all know for an absolute certainty that James didn't."

Still unconvinced, Jenny looked from him to the other younger kids. "Isn't he always bothering you? Why would you stand up for him?"

"Because this isn't right, Officer Jenny," Ash insisted. "James would never do something like this, especially not to his best friend! This is just cruel to try to say he did it! He's hurting enough! It's always awful to find someone you care about hurt. And then to get accused of doing it yourself is just really rotten!"

James looked up at him, stunned. He had been too wrapped up in worry for Jessie to really pay attention before, but now it was really sinking in that all of his enemies were defending him and trying to keep him from being falsely arrested. Why?

"They were arguing in the cafe, it's true," Misty said. "But that doesn't mean anything! They always argue. They're always there for each other when the chips are down!"

Brock nodded. "They've both done a lot of wrong things. No one can deny that. But if you don't have any active warrants out on them, you don't have any reason to arrest James now."

James looked at Brock in shock. It would be so easy to charge him with multiple counts of attempted theft and have Jenny arrest him for that. He had fallen right into their hands! Instead, they were letting him go?

"And you sure don't have a reason to arrest him for this," Brock continued. "He must have found Jessie after whoever attacked her left."

"That's . . . that's right," James stammered, finally finding his voice. "She woke up and talked to me for a few minutes, and then . . . then she . . ." He trailed off. He was trying to stop the bleeding to several wounds in her back, under her left shoulder, and instead of attempting to talk more he just pressed harder. Blood ran over his glove.

Jenny still didn't look friendly. "Did she say who did this?"

"No." James didn't look up. Tears ran down his face, splashing on the ground.

Sirens brought everyone else to attention. Jenny watched as the paramedics got out of the arriving ambulance and hurried over to the scene.

"Alright, I won't arrest you . . . yet," she said at last. "But don't leave town."

Now James did look up, and fire flashed in his sea-green eyes. "I'm not leaving until I'm leaving with Jessie," he spat.

No one countered him.