XO

As Jessie and James floated away, Meowth strolled—on four legs—down the center road of the small village. Small children waved and he waved back. Some Pokémon stopped to talk with him, and Meowth gave no hints that he knows anything about Team Rocket or Jessie and James. Until he saw the twerps.

"Pika!" Ash's Pikachu shouted as it ran towards Meowth.

Meowth brandished his claws and stood up on his hind legs. Ash, Misty, Brock, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie didn't even bother to ask.

"I'm alone, by de way," Meowth said, his claws ready to slash. "Dumb and dumber don't wants me no more."

"How can we trust you? We can't ever trust you," said Ash.

"Well…if he's really alone, he is harmless," said Misty, recalling past experiences. "And if he's not alone, then Jessie and James must be around here somewhere. We'll just be on-guard."

"I don't even wants to battle," Meowth announced. "I'm goin' my own way. No more Team Rocket. Call back dis Pikachu and I'll put away dese claws."

"Pikachu, return," Ash said cautiously.

Pikachu jumped back onto Ash's shoulder and Meowth returned to all fours.

"You're really done," said Brock, not sure if he believed it. "In that case, can you give me back our map? I know you took it."

"James' got it. Dey flew dat way," Meowth said as he pointed northward. "Dey plan on ambushin' you a mile off Slowpoke Ave."

"You are helping us?" Bonnie asked in disbelief.

"Wow. I feel kinda bad about this," said Serena. "Ash? Misty? Brock? You've known him longer."

"I say we leave him. The fewer Rockets the better," said Ash.

"Yeah," Meowth half-heartedly agreed.

"Good luck," said Misty.

"Thanks for the tip-off," said Bonnie.

"Happy trails," said Brock.

Meowth smiled sadly. He was already missing James. 'Happy trials' is James' saying. He never heard anyone else but James say it. He gave them a pathetic wave, then walked forward.

"I bet he'll return to them by tomorrow," said Misty. "He's prone to loneliness, and on the weak side. I think Fury Swipes is his only move. He doesn't even know Scratch or Tackle."

"Really? Are you sure about that? I thought he was on the older side…like maybe the same age as Jessie and James. It'd be odd for him to only know one move after all these years, especially being a part of Team Rocket," said Clemont.

"He is odd," Ash pointed out.

"He's demotivated," said Brock. "He can probably learn new moves and just doesn't want to. Maybe now that he's on his own, he'll try harder to develop his skills."

"I don't want to think about it," said Ash. "I'm hoping that we'll never see Team Rocket again."

XO

Within an hour Meowth managed to fetch stale cupcakes and bread out of the dumpster behind the town's largest bakery. He drank salty water from the hose of a Mareep ranch and slept underneath the porch of a small house. He found that though it was lonelier, the living conditions were not much different from what he's experienced in the past.

After he woke up, he went looking for more food. He stepped into the only building with an open door: The Aubergine Gym.

"Dis place is decorated with eggplants. How weird," said Meowth, accidentally speaking aloud.

"So here comes the talking and thieving Meowth!" A familiar voice announced.

"Yer dat old woman!" Meowth exclaimed.

Meowth tried to run away. He turned around to see that the door from which he had entered was closed shut. He jumped for the handle, but he was unable to grip it with his paws. He tried to push through, but it was too heavy. He stared back at the woman with fear and embarrassment in his eyes.

"Interesting. I've heard of talking Pokémon before, never seen one," said the lady. "My name is Helena."

"K. Lemmy out!" Meowth ordered.

"Don't you want food? I have food you can have."

"K, give me de food den lemmy out!"

She chuckled. Meowth discovered that she had two Ditto. They spoke of her kindness and generosity. Meowth was intrigued: the only Pokémon who lies is him. He trusted the Ditto and followed them to the back room. Helena handed him onigiri. Meowth ate it with satisfaction.

"Usually on travelin' days like dis, all I eats is fruit," he told his hosts.

"Ditto di Ditto," the woman's Ditto chided.

"Yeah, I knows it ain't healthy fer a Meowth to eat fruit every day, but it's all I got most of de time. Team Rocket is serious business. We work all day and all night and neva take no breaks."

"You poor thing," Helena sarcastically sighed.

"I know, rights? De oughta treat me betta. Dat's why I'm alone. My teammates weren't bein' fair. What's yer story?"

"My story?" Helena asked, intrigued by the Pokémon's curiosity.

"Yeah, tell me 'bout yourself. It's been a lonely twenty-four hours."

"This is a Ditto-themed gym and I am the leader. It is not mainstream so I don't have many visitors. It's for trainers who want to go above and beyond but don't wish to leave Kanto. My badges are legitimate so they can count towards a trainer's eight, but generally, I am not commonly sought out by youth."

"Oh, okays," said Meowth, attempting to sound interested.

"I am also half-psychic," she divulged.

"Half-psychic? Why not all-de-way psychic?" Meowth inquired.

"It's just the way I was born. I can make predictions that are mostly true. More often my powers simply allow me to get a better sense of someone's life and how they feel about it. With you, I can tell without even using my powers that you want to start fresh."

"Dat would be great. New team, new goals…no more twerp and Pikachu, no more hearin' bout Jessie's hair problems or James' collections. No more Wobbufet always bumpin' into me and hoggin' all the good fruit."

"You are talking about your family."

"I guess dere de closes ding to family I gots…but dat's over now. I'm startin' fresh."

"I have a cousin named Heleni. Her psychic powers are significantly more powerful than mine, and she has a magic touch. You should meet her. She lives far away in Sinnoh; if you want a fresh start, she will be a good person with whom to travel."

"I ain't goin' in no Pokeball. And I ain't battlin' no one, I ain't doin' tricks. I just wanna nap and get free food."

"You want to be a lap-cat."

"If dat means I get to sit on laps all day, den yes, dat's what I want."

"Then you'll love my cousin."

In the meantime, James had landed the balloon and was walking through the next closest town, another small village called 'Old Rosetown'. They visited the grocery store, the Pokémon Center, the Pokémon Nursery, the Apparel Shop, and even the Name Rater. No one saw nor heard a Meowth, let allow one that speaks like a human.

"He could have gone back to Aubergine," said James. "Do you remember the direction in which he went?"

"No. If you wanted to go find him, you should have paid attention to that detail," Jessie said coldly.

James smiled wearily. He rubbed his partner's shoulders and hummed the tune to one of their favorite songs. She smiled a genuine smile. Then sadness and guilt set in.

"He must be in Aubergine…but that's ten miles away. It will take us at least an hour, and by then the twerps could be all the way in Aqua Park," said Jessie. "And that doesn't include the time it will take to find him, assuming that we will find him there."

"Meowth is more important than the twerps. We will spend twenty more minutes looking around here—maybe he is purposely hiding from us—then we are going to Aubergine. I'll get Officer Jenny on the case if I have to!"

"She'd arrest us," Jessie sighed. "And I am not going to the nuthouse for that furball."

They groaned in unison. Eleven miles away, Meowth was napping contently, so spoiled that he couldn't care to let the thoughts of Jessie and James distress him.

XO

Notes:

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