Chapter 3
"Oh, not at all, if it means that this cute little pussy cat remembers its life," Rarity said, lifting Meowth's face up with a hoof.
Meowth once again shoo'ed her hoof away, "Look, I ain't cute, lady! What do you need us to do?"
"You could start by helping cook up tonight's dinner," Hard Bolts replied, trotting into the kitchen, followed by Meowth and Pikachu.
"Ooh, can I help, too?!" Pinkie said, bouncing towards the three, but Rarity stood in front of her.
"This is for Meowth and Pikachu," she told Pinkie in a low tone.
"But-" Pinkie began, but Rarity cut her off.
"You get to eat the dinner" Rarity responded, raising her eyebrows.
"Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie replied, bouncing over to the couch and taking a seat as Rarity did the same, minus the bouncing.
Meanwhile, back in Kanto, Ash, Misty, Jessie and James were looking all over Cerulean City for their beloved Pokemon. When they had come to the last inch of the city and there was still no sign of them, they were about to give up hope.
"We looked all over this stupid city, and still no sign of Meowth or your stinkin' Pikachu!" Jessie growled.
"Hey, watch which city you're calling stupid!" Misty retorted.
"Well, I guess...this is it," James stated softly, "We'll just...have to find new partners..."
"NO!" Ash said in frustration, "Pikachu was my first Pokemon. He didn't even like me when we first met, but we've grown over our travels and formed a really formidable bond. There is no way I'm going to just toss him aside and find a new partner! I'm going to Professor Oak's and no matter what it takes; I'm going to find him! I know he'd do the same for me"
He held back a tear.
"I'll go with you, Ash," Misty told him.
"Thanks, Misty," Ash replied, "I'd appreciate that."
"Uhm, twerp...," Jessie began, "You wouldn't mind if we tagged along, would you? Meowth was a valuable member of Team Rocket and if the Boss found out we lost him, we could...we could be fired."
"Showing a little emotion for Meowth, are we?" Misty teased the Team Rocket members.
"No...no," Jessie replied, "We just don't want to lose our jobs, that's all."
"Alright, you can come," Ash said, "But no funny tricks."
Professor Samuel Oak was just finishing starting up his recently purchased Pokemon Tracker, which was able to track every Trainer's Pokemon throughout the six regions, when there was a knock at the door. He answered it to see a boy he hadn't seen in person for quite some time, the Cerulean City Gym Leader, and two members of Team Rocket.
"Ash! It's been forever!" Professor Oak stated, giving Ash a hug, then whispering, "Why is Team Rocket with you?"
"It's a long story, Professor, I'll explain it when we all get inside," Ash told him.
At Ash's voice, Bulbasaur, Totodile, Swellow, Staraptor and Buizel came zooming into the room, almost knocking over Misty, Jessie and James. Ash greeted each Pokemon with hugs, Bulbasaur and Totodile even more as he hadn't seen those two in quite some time.
"So, what is the reason for your visit?" Professor Oak asked, as each of them took a seat.
"Originally, he just wanted to see how Bulbasaur and his other Pokemon were doing," Misty replied.
"But then Team Rocket had followed me, planning to catch Pikachu," Ash continued.
'And they caught it?" Professor Oak queried, noticing Ash's faithful partner was missing.
"Would we be here if we had it?!" James raged.
"Besides, do you see Meowth anywhere?!" Jessie argued.
"So Meowth ran off with Pikachu?" Professor Oak continued asking.
"Let him finish, Professor" Misty stated, putting a hand on the Professor's shoulder.
"As Pikachu collided with Meowth, who was about to push a button, I commanded him to use thunderbolt," Ash continued.
"Which surged through Meowth, who had tripped and come into contact with our mechanical Salamence and destroyed it in a loud explosion," James added.
"There was a flash of bright light and then Meowth and Pikachu were gone," Misty finished.
"I thought maybe you'd be able to help us find them," Ash told Professor Oak. "Pikachu did come from here, after all"
"Well, it's your lucky day, Ash," Professor Oak told them, "I've recently purchased a Pokemon Tracker, which is able to verify a specific Pokemon out of its species just by its pokeball, or even its Trainer's hand, and track it through each and every region. Come this way and we'll be able to find Pikachu for you"
The four of them followed Professor Oak into another room, followed by Ash's Pokemon who looked devastated at the loss of their friend.
"All you need to do is touch your hand on this screen, say the Pokemon's name and it will track your specific Pokemon for you and find it in any of the regions," Professor Oak explained.
"Pikachu," Ash said as he placed his hand on the screen.
The machine began beeping, searching for one specific Pikachu out of all species, through all regions. When it concluded its search, it showed a red screen and the words, "NOT FOUND".
"What-" Ash began, staring at it, but was pushed out of the way by Jessie, who placed her hand on the machine.
"Meowth!" She screamed at it.
The same results showed up.
"Stupid piece of trash!" Jessie muttered as she shuffled back to James.
"Professor, you said it tracks Trainer's Pokemon, right?" Misty asked.
"That's correct, Misty," Professor Oak replied.
"Then maybe Meowth wasn't found because he isn't Jessie or James' Pokemon, but just plainly a member of Team Rocket" Misty stated.
"That may be true," Professor Oak said, "Meowth may be in one of the regions, but the machine can't track it because he doesn't belong to anybody."
"But then, what about Pikachu?" Ash asked, "He is mine."
"That's where Misty's theory gets debunked," Professor Oak continued, "Since they were in contact with each other, Pikachu would be wherever Meowth is. And the machine can't locate Pikachu. You said there was a bright light and then they just disappeared?"
The four friends nodded.
"Hmm," Professor Oak thought, "There is one possibility. It's a long shot, but still possible."
"What is it, Professor?" Ash asked.
"We'll need this for it, though," Professor Oak said, reaching into a drawer, and pulling out a long black and yellow horn.