A/N: Per request, the episodes alluded to in this chapter are:
-DP061 (Team Shocker!)
-DP073 (Crossing Paths)
I don't think you need them to enjoy the chapter, but feel free to watch them for a refresher!
Serena stood at the entrance to Twinleaf Town with her arms pressed hard at her sides, eyes taking in the lush green of its vast open fields and humble appearance of its worn dirt roads. All things considered, it was not a particularly breathtaking sight—especially not to someone who grew up with the luster of Kalos' scenery. Still, she found a tremble accompanying her stance and a nervousness fluttering anxiously against her lungs. It was a rare nostalgia that she wasn't fond of—she'd seen far too much and overcome even more, she didn't have time to revert back to the person she was once upon a time.
"Delphox," Serena told her pokémon. "If I'm not through this gate in ten minutes, I need you to whack me with your stick."
"Phox?" The pokémon responded to the request, in a tone that said I mean yeah, but, you sure?
Serena's nod was punctuated with something unexpected from behind her, and she failed spectacularly to keep herself from yelping out in surprise when the noise hit the air.
"Oh, hey twerpette."
James wasn't able to get through his sentence, the words cut off sharply by said twerpette emitting a startled shriek. Sure, neither of them were expecting to see the other in Sinnoh of all places, but she didn't have to be dramatic about it.
Serena slapped her hands over her mouth, embarrassed at the scene she had made, before turning around to face her former enemies. There was a brief moment where she thought it must have been a trick of the mind—they never made an entrance so nonchalant and casual! Where was the glamour and the fireworks and the strange slam poetry that she was certain she'd memorized, at some point? Why were they here?
James was looking a little startled himself at her reaction, and Jessie was far more wrapped up in stylishly looking off into the distance to match. Meowth was lazily slumped over Wobbuffet's head, paws dangling in the space between the pokémon's eyes. There in their flawlessly coordinated, light pastel jackets, they didn't look much like the villains Serena was used to.
"Sorry!" Her and James said in perfect unison, both a little unsure of what they were apologizing for, but unable to resist the impulse reflexively.
"I swear…" Jessie let out as she regarded the debacle, but there were traces of an amused smile somewhere in her words.
"Whatcha doin' out on da countryside, twoihpette?" Meowth finally broached.
"I could ask you all the same…" Serena practically marveled, her already dazed-mood now intensified.
"It's our last stop on the Sinnoh tour, of course," James said. "Then we're off to Hoenn, if everything works out alright."
"That's…" his exposition didn't help any of her questions. "What are you plotting that far in advance?"
"Dat ol' song 'n' dance got pretty old pretty fast," Meowth offered. "An' ta be honest, so is da narrative of repeatin' why we quit it wit'out a gentle fade into da next scene."
Serena dragged a hand over her face, only slightly overwhelmed, honestly .
"Alright! I'm standing at the entrance to the hometown of one of my idols, losing my mind and suddenly ten years old again, and now Team Rocket is here!"
"We have names ," Jessie quipped. "And for your information, we haven't worn those out-of-style uniforms in ages."
"Perhaps… I can speed this process up?"
Soon as the sentence had left him, James dug in his bag for Greninja's pokéball. He threw it into the air far too nonchalantly, and Jessie couldn't help but smile knowingly at his quick thinking.
When Greninja materialized, its normally hard stance softened almost instantly at the sight of Serena. Its pupils shifted from thick lines straight into sparkling circles, and the croak it let out almost involuntarily was sung far higher than its normal cadence.
"Greninja!" Serena knew the pokémon as soon as she saw it, barely needing time to register its features. "I feel like it's been forever! How did you… where's Ash?"
It rubbed a webbed hand across the back of its head, unsure of how to explain itself. The language barrier eluded it with one lone exception, and the quartet behind the pokémon certainly sensed this.
"It's as I said, we've been out and about," James told Serena. "The younger twerpette, the lemondrop? She had Greninja with her."
"She practically begged us ta take it back ta Pallet with us!" Meowth added. "So we's buddies for now. Right, Greninja?"
Greninja crossed its arms and shot him a glare, letting out a ' nin - ja ' that Meowth heard crystal clear.
I take issue with being used for these purposes, scratch cat.
It moved its eyes back to Serena, nodding affirmatively regardless. Despite the circumstances, it warmed its heart to see her face again. It hadn't realized how much it had missed her until that very moment.
"So, then," Jessie began. "Are you going to tell us why you're hanging out in the middle of nowhere, or will we have to pull out even more lofty tales about our countless travels?"
"I mean, it's…" Serena told her. "A little hard to explain."
"Oh, wait!" Jessie suddenly said, her expression morphing into something ravenously excitable. "Twerpette, you perform, don't you? Are you here to challenge the Sinnoh circuit?"
"Um, yes, but…" the world was moving too quickly for Serena for the first time in a while. "How did… you know that I perform?"
"Goodness, this bit is becoming exhausting…" Jessie muttered under her breath, then raised her voice. "Let me pose to you an inquiry! Do you remember a performer named Jessilee who once dazzled the many stages scattered across the Kalos region?"
"Of course!" Serena beamed. "She was really good at what she did."
Jessie smiled, proudly, before continuing. "Did you ever find it curious how she had a gourgeist, and a wobbuffet, and a meowth…"
Serena's face went blank as she quietly connected points in her head, and she gasped as she placed a hand over her mouth, the other pointed square at Jessie.
"No way! You?!"
"I'm a woman of many talents!"
"I feel so stupid!" Serena said, eyes fixated on her hands. "I knew she seemed familiar, but there's no way I ever would've… oh my gosh, we were in the master class together?!"
"Those were the days, weren't they?" Jessie said, eyes full of promise. "But you didn't answer me, missy! Contests or no?"
Serena nodded, her world shaken just a tad. "I already made my way through Hoenn and Kanto… it just seemed like the next step."
"Sinnoh's locations are a personal favourite of mine…" Jessie admitted, almost wistfully. "Though, there wasn't a contest hall in a hick town like this, last I was here. Have times changed?"
"Oh! No, actually, I'm…" Serena began. "I'm actually here to meet with a former top Coordinator. Johanna… do you know her?"
"Know her?" Jessie said. "Her twerpy little daughter used to hang around Twerp Classic."
"Around Ash?" Serena asked, her eyes growing wide. "You… I—I'm that few circles away from Johanna?!"
"It would appear so," James observed from behind them. "He does seem to have a knack for picking up little performer friends, come to think of it…"
Serena's knees were wobbling, and she looked about ready to pass out at this point. Barely ten minutes had passed, and in that minuscule amount of time, she had learned more new info than she had all month. From people who tried to rob her at least more than once. The situation was too strange to be real, but she was staring it down regardless.
She sighed. "Delphox, I might need that whack sooner than later…"
The pokémon looked at her, concerned, genuinely unable to tell if she was joking or not.
"Why so nervous?" Jessie offered. "Last I checked, you were somehow lucky enough to beat me in the finals!"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Serena said, slightly downtrodden. "I thought I was past all this. I've been all across the world performing and I almost never have to deal with this kind of anxiety anymore…"
"I gots'n idea," Meowth suddenly piped up. "Hows about ya run yer current routine by us? Even if it's poihfect and we can't give ya any pointers, maybe it'll help ta have someone reaffoihm it for ya."
"It's not a bad idea…" the girl responded. "I mean, if you're offering, is that alright?"
"What's a little help from one performer to another?" Jessie smiled. "You better impress, twerpette."
"That I can promise," Serena cheered up. "Thanks… that's so weird to say to you guys, but I guess I mean it."
"There's a clearing a short walk east of here," James said, recalling passing it on their way. "We'll take you there. Just try not to light anything wildly aflame."
"For once? Shouldn't be a problem," Serena stuck her tongue out.
Trees blurred together lazily on either side of the group as they neared the open space, their quiet smalltalk and catch-up complemented by the sound of starly and kricketot quietly chirping around the route. Jessie and Serena chatted excitedly at the head of the pack, the boys hanging back a bit as they dominated the conversation. The three of them were unable to hide their smiles, stealing looks at each other, happy to see Jessie so happy for the first time in such a long while.
"I haven't technically done anything in Sinnoh yet," Serena was in the middle of saying. "But I've watched so many videos of past Coordinators, I feel like my head is spinning. There was Johanna, and Dawn is really amazing too! Wallace and Fantina, Nando and Zoey and Jessilina…"
"Oh," Jessie said, nonchalantly. "That's me."
"I'm not that gullible! Once, sure, but twice?" Serena shot her down almost instantly.
Jessie raised a single pointed finger near her chin, and started casually counting on the others as she listed names.
"Dustox, Wobbuffet, Meowth, Yanmega, Seviper…"
"No way," Serena stopped dead in her tracks. "No way! "
Jessie let out a hearty laugh, and Serena was instantly right back to interrogating her.
"Why were you so many people?!"
"Performing is my passion, but crime was my job ," she told the girl. "Sadly, the two are incompatible as partners, unable to dance upon the same stage. Much as I would love everyone to know my name, I can't compromise what kept food on the metaphorical table."
"Before you totally uproot my worldview any more tonight, were you any other notable performers I should know about?!" Serena said.
"Tons," Jessie grinned. "In Hoenn alone I played enough different roles to fill a Pokémon Base team!"
"Nevermind, I don't want to know how many times I was actually watching you in contests," she waved off. "That being said… I really did draw a ridiculous amount of inspiration from you."
Jessie grinned more fiercely, chest broad, brimming with joy. "Really, now?"
"Yeah! Although if I'm being honest, it was hard to pick just one style…" Serena said, sounding a little embarrassed. "You have a really varied pool to choose from."
The comment was unexpected, and made Jessie blush something fierce. She was used to that being cited as a fault of hers. To hear it painted in such a flattering light was… new. She admired the twerpette's optimism.
"Well," she said, in her best attempt to shake it off. "Who says you have to pick just one?"
The words sat with Serena, an idea she had never considered. "I guess that's true… what's a brand, after all?"
"For me, it was refusing to have one," Jessie smirked.
They'd reached the clearing in what felt like no time, and with her eyes on Serena, then on the open field, Jessie dropped to a sit against the soft grass. The rest of the team, including Greninja and Delphox, soon followed.
"Well," the redhead started. "Show me what you've got."
"Alright!" Serena smiled brightly, and tossed her ball into the sky.
Delphox seemed content to be sitting this one out, her ebony claws poised delicately against the earth below. Sylveon shimmered to life, and Serena quietly explained the situation to her. The pokémon nodded, side-eyeing the curious audience a bit nervously, but her faith strong in Serena regardless.
The pair nodded at each other, putting on their best and most enthusiastic expressions. Then, almost perfectly in sync, they dashed to opposite ends of the clearing in starting positions. Serena didn't even have to call out to ask Sylveon if she was ready—they were clearly one as the imaginary stage lights fell upon them.
As quickly as they had run away from each other, they began the quick rush back together once more. Serena got in a couple skips along the way, angling her body best she could to give off both an elegant and playful air. It was effective, to say the least, a move that Jessie had pulled out in her Kalos showcases more than once—it had taken her years to properly execute, to see Serena accomplish it so easily hung her heart with an odd combination of envy and pride.
"Fairy Wind!" Serena called out, and Sylveon cheered exuberantly as she complied with the command. Her trainer leapt forward, directly into the shimmering pink gust, not a trace of fear or hesitation on her face. Her performer's smile didn't falter for a moment, the coordination of the actions off without a single hitch. Fluidly, Serena was lifted into the air, her arms outstretched playfully as she stayed held aloft on the lustrous breeze.
Jessie peered onward with a quiet mesh of concentration and peace—the routine had only started, but she found herself oddly transfixed on the technique. Every fine detail shone like a small sun, warming her—the way Sylveon joyfully dashed around Serena as it kept her floating there, the way Serena splayed herself out to keep her balance proper, the way there was a good long while of nothing beyond their harmonious laughter. Jessie couldn't tear her eyes away even if she wanted to, her heart pounding, taken by a subtle—but nagging—sense of nostalgia.
"Alright Sylveon!" Serena lingered there in the air for just a second too long, but didn't at all seem ashamed of it. "Light Screen!"
That's an odd choice, James noted almost instantly. A simple, defensive move used mainly for strategy… performing was far more suited to flashy offensive moves. Jessie only had to lose so many contests with Wobbuffet as her star performer for that to be apparent.
Then again, he'd seen her win a few, too.
Without stopping her waltz around Serena, Sylveon responded. Within seconds, the empty air in front of the small audience had transformed into several suspended pillars of light, crystallizing to a brilliant rose-tinted wall of hexagons. It hovered there in the air, Serena's smoky silhouette barely visible from within it, the burnished chrysalis an oasis within the still settling tornado of glitter.
It stayed there only for a moment, allowed itself to be taken in, before the wind keeping the girl's foggy contour aloft could no longer reach her inside of the box. Her form was barely visible, but they could see clearly enough the sudden movement of her impact against the bottom of the flashy prison. Cracks crept across it, ominously multiplying before the entire thing shattered all at once.
The glass splintered off into hundreds of shining, resplendent slivers of light. As the sun hit them one by one and painted them iridescently, Serena seemed to almost hover there, for a moment, her form moving in slow-motion, near-phantasmal against the opalescent daytime galaxies as they blinked quietly out of existence.
Sylveon lunged forward, angling one of her ribbons in front of Serena—who then balanced her weight on one foot, springing off the appendage and jumping forward with the momentum it allowed her. The combined strength it must have taken both of them to pull of the move was equally as admirable as everything else they had brought to the table, so far.
With the extra momentum, Serena was able to adjust her stance and stick her landing as she finally felt her feet on the ground once again. Sylveon landed perfectly centered in front of her, her dainty ribbons outstretched still, framing both her and Serena in an adorable heart shape. With the performance complete, the girl stretched her arms out once more and let out an all-too-familiar 'ta-daa!', and Sylveon mirrored the tune with her own proud vocalization.
There was a moment of silence while Serena's chest rapidly rose and fell, her lungs desperately trying to catch up with the moment. The quiet was always simultaneously her favourite and least favourite part of the show—more often than not, people were only stunned into silence when they liked what they saw. Even in the wake of a terrible routine, people are going to clap out of pity.
It didn't last long, however, as James began furiously clapping his hands like an excited child almost as soon as her performance had ended. Jessie was still lost in her reverie, and had to shake herself out of it to join him. Almost instantly, the whole clearing was taken with scattered applause. Serena smiled gratefully, happy to have pulled off the unorthodox routine, before kneeling to gather her pokémon's bearings as well.
"Solid routine, twerpette," Jessie said, walking closer to Serena, a hand on her hip.
"You think?" Serena asked her, smile unfaltering.
She nodded. "To be honest… I don't know if I would change anything. Your tastes really have aged like a fine wine."
"I don't know why I'm surprised to hear you say that…" Serena admitted, a little sheepishly. "As long as we're doing honesty hour, I might have drawn a little inspiration from your Solaceon win way back when."
"Solaceon?" Jessie said, willing her head to remember one success on a long list of accomplishments. "Solaceon…"
"Yeah!" Serena said, not offering much in the way of memory-jogging. "You and Dustox were incredible, the way you dragged your ascent in the air out just long enough to keep people in suspense and make the ending super satisfying? It's no wonder you won. You really blew away the competition!"
"That's right!" Jessie said, remembering the finer details all at once, her eyes staring off at something in the distance behind the girl.
That's right… her heart echoed. Solaceon…
Jessie's memories were, more often than not, incomparable to a gentle trickle of water into a sink, or sands falling one by one through an hourglass. Her recall didn't work in grey—it was far more suited to the black and white that she usually found herself thinking in. Either agonizingly vivid, or nothing at all. A better metaphor for how things came back to her would be turning the sink on expecting a quiet drip and instead being met with a firehose.
Serena's simple words grabbed that faucet and pulled it so hard it dislodged itself from the stained, fading metal. The water couldn't stop even if one were to beg it from running.
Months throughout Hoenn, Jessie didn't see a single win. The world wouldn't allow her that, seemed to go out of its way to deny her it. Even when she'd make it to the second round, a faulty attack or a technicality would keep her from victory, stepping on her fingers when the trophy was in sight, within reach.
Jessie was, at her core, a loser. But damn it , she was a professional loser.
The morning after every lost contest would see her up against the sunrise. Wobbuffet on one side of her, Dustox on the other, Seviper coiled around them with its full length. They would watch its slow ascent into the sky, feel the chill of the air and the dew on the grass beneath them, listen to the taillow and swablu quietly begin to awaken. Closing their eyes, they would focus on the feeling of the air slowly but surely growing warmer—proving to the frigid stillness that it was not infallible, no matter how long the night it held domain over seemed.
Dustox was there when she won her first ribbon. No, it was just as much Dustox's ribbon as it was anyone's.
The day it happened, Meowth and James were so moved to tears in their joy for the pair that they took them out on the town—it was an awful idea, they were already low on money, but they couldn't resist celebrating. There were shops upon shops displaying clothes and accessories for pokémon who performed, especially in a city with a contest hall. They tended to revolve around a more mammalian template, however, and Jessie found that dressing a large poisonous insect was something easier said than done. She elected long before to fashion her own ribbons for Dustox and for herself, an adorable coordination that— honestly —looked better than anything anyone else had brought to the table that day.
Ducked away in the corner of a spooky little shop, boasting knickknacks far more suited to a Hex Maniac than a beauty queen, Jessie found a box full of loose rhinestones. Dead in the center of the pile's top was one with a dappled background that made its round shimmer look nothing short of moonlight. She tore into the container, desperately searching for three more of them, thanking the universe for finally giving her break after break when she pulled the last one out.
Cautiously, she angled her head around to take in her surroundings. No people, no cameras, clear exit. She dropped the tiny miracles into her handbag and turned the corner, intent on finding her team and getting out of there as soon as she was able.
That night, Dustox sat with her as she pinned the small embellishments onto both of their ribbons, a smile stuck on her that was uncharacteristic in its serenity. Jessie held them up against the moon before placing them gently onto the pokémon's antennae, and in her excitable chanting and fluttering wings, the newly-reborn Coordinator found another reason to keep getting back on stage.
In a few weeks, Dustox was gone.
Jessie blinked back her focus, a bit surprised at how suddenly the fine details had rammed into her. A pang of panic hit her chest—how long had she been silent? Had this since grown awkward?
"Goodness, that was such a long time ago…" Jessie admitted, shaking off the heaviness her heart suddenly held. "I'm amazed and flattered that this adorable face is still circulating amongst the common folk!"
She laughed, and Serena laughed with her, not taking note in the slightest of the sentimental, bittersweet dip in the woman's voice as she spoke. Jessie breathed an internal sigh of relief at this, eager to put that one back in the vault and not ever have to think about it again.
James looked to Meowth, then to Wobbuffet, and was unsurprised to see his own concerned expression easily mirrored in theirs.
As things turned out, the extra push was exactly what Serena needed in order to march to Johanna's place and ask upfront for the former Coordinator's guidance.
What she had hyped up in her head as a big, terrifying moment, was far quieter in reality. An invitation inside for tea, a thrilling contest battle out in the back behind the humble home, a quiet game of storytelling as the sun quietly made its way across the sky. Right now, Johanna was midway through offering Serena feedback on the routine she'd previously shown the former Rockets—who'd been invited to tag along and complied as per usual.
Pictures upon pictures hung on the walls, framed alongside newspaper clippings and polished ribbons. Dawn and Johanna's achievements seemed to blend into one another as they decorated the home, and Jessie found herself squinting in an attempt to tell them apart more than once. They made such a perfect team, mother and daughter, burning brightly with their goals so in sync… she emitted a quiet sigh and hoped the crackling of the fire did enough to cover it up.
"You have a very tactful routine," Johanna was in the middle of saying. "But I think there's a habit there of falling into Kalosian techniques… when you do the Light Screen, it would do you better to leave the front of it open so that the judges—and a good chunk of the audience—can see you the entire time."
"How come, though?" Serena inquired. "Isn't the emphasis on the pokémon, rather than the trainer, in Sinnoh contests?"
"That's exactly it, actually!" The woman responded. "When the screen shatters, it's surprising, so all eyes immediately go to you and off of Sylveon. If you leave the front open, then it won't come across as an instinctual perspective shift! You'll be much more nicely in sync."
"You're right!" Serena responded, sounding a little awestruck. "Geez, I was so focused on the little things, I didn't even think about the bigger picture… what a rookie mistake."
"Old habits die hard, dear," Johanna smiled. "The important thing is that eagerness to overcome. And you seem to have that in spades."
"Thanks for saying so!"
A momentary silence fell while the two of them sipped at their tea, its warmth fading in the wake of their long, excitable conversation. Jessie sat with her eyes fixated firmly on the carpet, her team sat with their eyes stealing nervous glances at her.
Johanna let out a smooth exhale, content to have visitors for the first time in quite a while, and broached the topic—
"So, Jessie," she said. "Serena here mentioned you were a Coordinator, too?"
"Oh!" Jessie was eager to have something to distract her from her thoughts. "Yes, in fact, I actually competed alongside your daughter."
"What, really?" Johanna marveled. "With Dawn?"
"Indeed!" She boasted. "Her and I have crossed paths more than once. I saw her in Unova just recently!"
"Strange…" Johanna said, voice soft. "She never mentioned you…"
"I think calling us acquaintances would be painting things a touch too nicely," Jessie offered. "But back when we competed, my stage name was Jessilina."
"Oh, that makes sense! I knew your face seemed familiar!" Johanna went right back into her warm disposition. "You were excellent in Solaceon."
The name of the town felt like needles in her heart all over again, but she powered on through it. "Yes, so I've heard…"
Jessie grabbed her cup and took a quiet, almost sheepish sip—hoping desperately that the warmth of the drink would travel down into her frame and heal her bruised and bleeding soul. Her eyes traveled back off her conversation partner, somewhere out of focus, and Johanna seemed intent on pressing her.
"Was there a reason you stopped?"
The redhead tensed a little at the question, then set her tea down and quietly laughed it off.
"Oh, do we ever truly stop loving our passions?" She said in a smitten voice, although one that sounded like she was reading off a script. "The spirit of a Coordinator will always exist within me. But for now, it's taking a backseat so I can figure some more grown-up things out. It's a drag, I know."
This seemed to resonate with Johanna, and she shut her eyes with a knowing grin. "Hear, hear."
"Miss Johanna," Serena followed. "Why did you stop?"
The woman leaned back in her chair, her voice permeated with a kind nostalgia as she spoke.
"Well… when I was preparing for what would eventually be my last real contest, I wondered a lot about where I'd go afterwards. I'd dedicated my life to contests, made so many amazing friends there..." she said. "In the end, fate just seemed to pave the way for me. I fell in love shortly before becoming a Top Coordinator, and there was this part of me I just couldn't ignore that told me to take the chance and start a family."
Something awakened in Serena at this revelation, and her eyes were oddly intense. Fists balled on her legs and shoulders slightly bunched up, she asked Johanna another question—
"Wasn't that hard for you?" She said. "Just giving it all up for love?"
Johanna shook her head. "I didn't see it as giving up. No matter how you look at it, the only thing stopping me from going back to that life someday was myself."
The girl seemed to relax a bit, meditating on this revelation, as if it were something deeply important for her to internalize.
"Sure, there were days when I missed performing alongside my pokémon more than anything…" Johanna said, and turned to give her sleeping glameow a gentle scratch on its head. "But as fate would have it, I had a wonderful daughter. I got to watch her find her own way… and in a lot of aspects, watching her grow made me feel the same way I did when I was going through those early motions, too."
The room stayed quiet, allowing her words to sink in, before she spoke once more.
"That's when you know you love someone," the woman said, adoringly. "When their successes, no matter how small, are your successes as well. When their pain is your pain, their joy your own."
The statements as they stood, back-to-back, resonated with every single person in the room, in vastly different ways. For some, the silence as they quietly settled in was comforting by way of reflection—for others, it was the exact opposite.
Jessie shifted in her seat, trying to quiet her aching, blazing veins as they pumped more hazardous memories directly to her heart.
"It's getting late," Johanna noted. "Do you all know where you're sleeping tonight? You're free to stay here, if you like."
"The offer is much appreciated, but we've actually already set up camp a little ways out of town," James told her.
"Pity ta waste it, but them's the breaks!" Meowth added.
"I think I might actually go with them, if that's okay?" Serena said. "We haven't really had much of a chance to catch up, actually!"
Johanna smiled, amused at their gumption. "There's much more to be said for a warm reunion than a warm bed. But if you do change your mind, feel free to drop by."
The group mirrored her hospitality with a resounding 'Thanks!' Serena quietly rose to her feet, picking up her empty cup and keeping the conversation going as she made her way to the kitchen.
"You better believe I'll be back tomorrow, though!" The girl beamed. "I wanna run the improved routine by you if I can!"
"Sounds like a plan!" Johanna said, standing up herself. "Looking forward to it."
The stars of the countryside hung bright as ever in the open cosmic abyss, and Serena found herself almost lulled to sleep by the warmth of the fire and the atmosphere of the quiet town. She was leaning on Greninja's shoulder with her knees cozily pulled against her chest, and the former Rockets present at the campfire couldn't help but fixate on this. She made it look so easy, being so close to the pokémon. They weren't sure if it meant that they were too rotten or Greninja was too particular.
Serena had been trying to catch up with them to no avail—they had stories, sure, but there was a lack of gusto and drama that she'd come to expect from Team Rocket in her short time knowing them, and she wondered if it was just how they were now or if it was a fault of her own. That morning, they had seemed same as ever, albeit far more behaved. Now, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet all seemed despondent, and Jessie had taken off to run some sort of errand almost as soon as they had hit camp.
Well, if there's something I can do… Serena thought. No point in sitting here wondering.
"Hey, uh…" she said out loud, during one of the many silences of that night. "I didn't do something to upset you guys, did I? You've been kinda quiet."
Meowth immediately matched her concern, giving it to her straight. "Ah, geez. Sorry, twoihpette. It's not'in' poihsonal."
"I promise we're trying to be jovial," James added. "But when Jessie's down, group morale plummets a touch."
"Wobba," Wobbuffet punctuated, his voice absolutely broken.
"Wait, back up!" Serena said. "Jessie's upset? She seemed fine this morning, what happened? I feel so bad, I didn't even notice..."
"Don't sweat it," Meowth told her. "She's real good at hidin' dat sorta t'ing. We only notice 'cause we spend every wakin' minute wit' her."
"You mentioned that win she had with her Dustox," James said. "I think it might have unearthed some memories she wasn't exactly ready for."
"Oh no," Serena panicked, and with the statement came the sudden realization that she never remembered seeing Dustox in another contest after that.
"Ya couldn't have known, kid," Meowth said.
"Her and Dustox… parted ways shortly after that contest."
"Do you…" Serena picked her words carefully. "Do you know what exactly happened?"
"Dustox fell in love," Meowth mentioned, simply. "And when da time came for her to choose between love and poihformin', her trainer kinda lost it. Da subject musta been somet'in' real touchy for Jessie, 'cause she smashed Dustox's pokéball right den an' dere, screamin' t'rough her tears for her ta get lost. She wasn't about ta let her give up on love t' stay beside her."
A hard pang of empathy hit Serena. She swallowed the painful feeling, unprepared for it to get at her so fully and completely. Without saying anything else, the girl rose to her feet and began to bound off in the direction Jessie had gone earlier.
Greninja made a quiet noise of confusion, and Meowth, James, and Wobbuffet were far less graceful in their surprise. Meowth uttered an unflattering sound and called out to her before she could make it too far, desperate to know what it was she was doing.
"I'm gonna go find Jessie!" Serena shouted, as if it was the only acceptable answer. "If she's hurting, then I should try to help her!"
"No offense, twerpette," James said. "But Jessie didn't even ask Wobbuffet to come with her. I don't think this is a battle you can win…"
"You're probably right!" Serena said, optimistic smile betraying her words. "But I have nothing to lose by trying and a lot to regret if I don't! See you guys in a bit!"
She offered them nothing else, certainly not an opportunity to persuade her further. Serena turned tail and ran off across the dirt road, her shoulders looking broader than they ever had as the moonlight illuminated her outline and she disappeared from sight.
Greninja crossed its arms and let out a sagely, amphibian chuckle.
When Serena found Jessie, she was sitting on the shores of Lake Verity, her legs bunched up to her chest much in the same way Serena's had been back at camp. The pose on her was far less comfortable, even from a quiet distance, the girl could see the anguish hiding beneath her façade. When Jessie took note of and addressed her, it almost amazed Serena how nonchalant her tone sounded in contrast to how miserable she looked.
"Oh, hey," Jessie said, looking up at the girl. "Awfully late for children to be having quiet lakefront contemplations."
The statement made Serena laugh a little, and she strode closer to Jessie.
"I came to find you, actually," she said. "I mean, I feel like before, we barely got any time to catch up. And they miss you back at camp, too."
"I don't doubt it," Jessie responded. "Those crybabies can't handle five minutes without my wonderful presence. I wish they'd learn some self-sufficiency."
"Something tells me you don't resent it as much as you're letting on," Serena winked, and Jessie couldn't help but grin.
"When you're right, you're right…"
Their gentle banter trailed off a bit, and Serena motioned to Jessie with a gesture that asked if she could sit. Jessie nodded, and the pair took in the sight of Lake Verity. It was a humble little landmark, probably one of the more interesting quirks of Twinleaf. When night fell, its waters ran near still, their visage becoming a brilliant, picturesque mirror. The lake was not just a body of water in the wake of the moon—it was a vast, swimming cauldron of stars.
It was hard not to be taken by the sight of it. Serena was unsure if she had ever seen something so beautifully reflective and crisp in her life. It might have been a trick of the mind, but the cosmos hanging above her looked even more brilliant, burning even brighter, as they rippled softly near her feet.
"Is there…" Serena said, a bit unsure. "Is there something you need to get off your chest?"
"I can't imagine what it is you mean," Jessie retorted, her voice sharper than she would've liked.
The girl inhaled. "It's just… the Jessilee I know… heck, even the Jessie I know was always loud and passionate in what she did."
To this, Jessie turned a bit, her gaze reluctantly on Serena.
"But it seems like…" Serena continued. "It seems like you're running on embers, right now. And I just wanted to make sure you're okay."
Jessie sighed, sounding more bored than anything. "This journey has really taken it out of me. Easy to be unapologetically evil—you never have to consider the consequences of your actions or the things that you feel. Now that we're on the same side, I can't go a single day without getting upset and then wondering if my emotions are justified."
Serena listened to her words carefully, trying her best to get herself into the mindset, even if it was hard for her to understand from the get-go. She closed her eyes, propped her head in her hands, and thought really hard about what she wanted to say next.
"Wanna know what I think?"
Jessie didn't answer, merely turned to face her again, and she continued.
"I think your emotions are always justified. It's just up to you to decide what you do with them," Serena said. "I mean… you can't help feeling a certain way. Why should you apologize if you feeling that way inconveniences other people?"
Jessie's eyes widened, a little. It was… incredibly validating to hear, something she didn't know she needed, info she wasn't aware she was privy to. She lifted her head up, and looked wildly to her left, then to her right, then to Serena once more.
"Alright, cut it," she said. "Did the others set you up on this?"
Serena shook her head. "They tried to stop me, actually."
The woman wasn't sure how she felt about that. On one hand, good, please don't draw any attention to my heartache, thank you! On the other hand, wait, why aren't you worried about me? Don't you love me? Don't you want to help?
From beside her, Serena took a deep breath. She let it go shakily, and what she said next was so blunt and so simple in its phrasing that Jessie almost couldn't believe it was being said out loud by her of all people.
"You know," Serena said, her voice trembling a little but trying to keep the air of composure. "I loved Ash Ketchum about as much as anyone could at that age."
The flutter in her voice told Jessie that putting 'loved' in the past tense wasn't entirely accurate. Still, she remembered Serena far more timid than this near-stranger sitting beside her. There was a sense of pride there, as well as a sense of longing. Jessie ached for the days where she had less birthday candles behind her, when feelings like that were new and exciting. When love wasn't the scariest thing she could imagine and the only thing she wanted all at once.
"Saying it out loud is a big step…" Serena reflected. "I couldn't even say it quietly to myself a year or two ago! Silly, huh?"
Jessie gave her a soft, knowing smile. She had a feeling that Serena was content to just let her listen, that she was building to something here. Her voice faltered a little, but the girl pressed on.
"There came a time, at the end of our journey together, where I had to choose between what I felt in my heart for him, and what I felt in my heart for performing."
Jessie softened almost entirely at this, a little taken aback. Obviously, it was something she didn't know, but…
"You chose performing…" she said to Serena, a small shock hanging in her voice.
Serena nodded, and a confident luster entered her eyes as she brushed a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Did you know, Jessie?" The girl asked. "You helped me that day. The day I decided."
"What?" Jessie said, confused. "When?"
"In the wake of the rebuilding of Lumiose, Shauna and I decided to put on a performance for the people of Kalos," Serena explained. "And mid-way through that performance, who would show up but Jessilee…"
Jessie vaguely remembered it, now… a stage in one of the smaller parks surrounding Centrico Plaza… tailing the Twerp there and then darting off to perform instead…
Serena kept on. "Sure, it's a conclusion I probably would've come to on my own eventually. But the three of us on that stage together? The way we all made people smile, even after such a terrible disaster? In that moment, I was that much more sure of what I wanted to live for."
Jessie dragged her gaze from Serena out to the sparkling, star-stained waters. Did I make the right choice…?
"That day, I went out," Serena said. "Shopped a little... took one last look at Lumiose. And you know what I learned?"
Jessie turned back to her, eyes fighting off anguish. "Hm?"
"No matter what storms rage inside you… no matter how hard it is to make a decision like that and know with certainty if you were truly right…" Serena told her. "You'll be able to make it through if you can learn to rely on your friends, and let them rely on you."
The redhead let the words sink in. They didn't exactly come from a place of ignorance… Serena's choice was Jessie's choice once, and Dustox's as well. Jessie felt strange at precisely how comfortable she felt having a talk like this with Serena, her mind asking her why she couldn't gain that same kind of comfort in even the idea of confiding in her closest friends.
"Someone important to me told me that... and it's always been true to my own experiences," Serena said. "I just wanna let you know that if you can't open up to your friends just yet… maybe someone who's more of a stranger… someone who you'll have minimal contact with in the future... could also offer you some much needed solace."
Jessie sighed, deeply, wholly, like her life depended on it. This was such a bad idea. This was not what she wanted to do. She was going to regret this. Opening up to anyone in a moment of neediness and weakness was like indulging in a microwaved meal—it's divine at first, and then you reach the frozen tundra dead center.
"My dustox… did the opposite of what you did," Jessie said, the words tumbling from her lips. "She chose love. Well… if I'm being honest, I don't know what she chose."
"Yeah?"
"She seemed okay with it, until the very end," Jessie said, her throat tightening. "She came back for me at the last second, and I just couldn't stand to watch her be hurt the way I was. I couldn't forgive myself if I put her through even a fraction of what I had been through."
She gasped a little when the sentence left her, letting out a quiet 'oh…!' By the time she had realized just how much she'd divulged into her own past, it was far too late to take any of it back.
Make a joke, her brain screamed. Laugh or something, what are you doing?!
"Goodness, listen to these dramatics ," Jessie rolled her eyes. "I'll admit, I'm making this a far bigger deal than it should be, but…"
Serena peered into her. "But?"
"Look at you, twerpette," Jessie said, pouting. "You're so happy with your choice. I remember you as such a pitiful little thing, never speaking too loud, walking like you're always scared. You've grown into such a woman with conviction."
Serena's face flushed a deep pink. Jessie of all people, complimenting her on her personal growth? The night had taken a rather interesting turn.
"It's just, if you did this, and you're happy, and Dustox did the opposite… I mean—" Jessie stuttered a bit. "I forced Dustox to do the opposite… what if she's just miserable, wherever she is?"
The girl was quiet a moment before she spoke. "But what if she isn't? Look at Johanna."
Serena had a point… Johanna had chosen the same as Dustox, and there wasn't a trace of regret in what she had said before. She truly seemed to be at peace. The mental image flashed briefly in Jessie's head of Dustox with her partner, a tiny wurmple snuggled in between their sparkling wings, that wide-mouthed smile she remembered so well painted on her pokémon's face. Desperately, her heart grabbed at it as it faded—she wanted so badly to photograph the happy vision and keep it in her bag for every rainy day, now and forever.
"I suppose that's true…" she said as the dream began to dissipate. "I just hope what I did is right."
"Right and wrong are way more complicated than that," Serena said, her wisdom far beyond her years. As if aware of this, she followed it up with a lighthearted "Y'know?"
"Unfortunately, I'm coming to realize that, yes," Jessie sighed once more. "It's making it a lot harder to do good and be confident in the good I've done."
"I can see you trying," Serena told her. "I think others can, too."
"I hope you're right."
It seemed like a good end to the talk. Serena was a little amazed at how much she had gotten Jessie to say, and she had to fight off the satisfied smile that so badly wanted to creep its way onto her face. Helping anyone just felt too good, she wondered if it was alright that she allowed herself to take so much enjoyment in an activity that, at its core, was meant to be selfless.
From beside her, Jessie closed her eyes and loosened her sitting position a little, letting the arch in her knees become wider. A wind seemed to pick up, skimming across the water playfully, and she let the quiet sound of the small waves it produced take her somewhere else.
Jessie tried to let the words offer her some solace as she focused on the quiet of the night… there was the chance that Dustox was happy, and there was also the chance that she regretted leaving every day of her life. It was clearer, then—what was hurting Jessie deepest wasn't parting from a dear friend, wasn't the end of a chapter—what was tearing her apart was that lack of an answer. The racing thoughts, the raw anxiety, the feeling of papercuts inside of her, lining her frame. If Jessie were to explain what her emotions felt like to someone who felt less intensely, she would liken them to bleaching your hair with a ten-dollar dye kit. That cold, agonizing burning—but inside of you at all times, screaming in pain unless you find a way to numb it or focus the static, manic energy on something else.
With the pain came a twinge of resentment she didn't want to acknowledge or address— why does James get his perfect reunion with the friend he had to part ways with? Where is mine?
She tried to shake the thought from her mind, to tell herself it was unfair. James was her best friend and eternal partner, she had no business being jealous or resentful of him, she was happy that he was happy and that was that. Her thoughts were growing louder as the waves at her feet grew louder, banging on iron, clanging around wildly in her head, their dissonance absolutely agonizing, forcing a crease in her brow and her teeth gritted and her fists balled hard and—
Something was wrong.
Jessie felt things more strongly than the average person, yes, but this was unprecedented. The pain was more physical than anything she had ever felt in her life, harrowing and enveloping and dreadful. Claws on her heart, squeezing the life out of her, noise, noise, noise—insects squirmed under her skin. She couldn't breathe, there was something coiled around her lungs, something living in her bones. Trembling, she tried to move, to speak, to do anything. The sense of fear and powerlessness was unlike anything she'd ever known. Her eyes snapped open.
Silence.
Soon as it had come, all the suffering was gone. Jessie leaned, then fell forward, palms pressed hard against the grass for support. There was no tranquility in this quiet, no relief in the sudden absence of pain. There was just… nothing. She felt nothing . Her thoughts were quiet, her heart was quiet, the storm inside her was not settled—it simply ceased to exist in the first place. She could hear the blood running through her veins.
The silence was a million times scarier than what was previously there, the lack of worries inhuman and unharmonious. Who was she? Who wasshe? What was this?
Jessie's unkind, intrusive, toxic thoughts were lifelong companions. Abusive, traumatizing, horrible lifelong companions, yes—but anyone who knows what they're talking about will tell you that abuse is an addictive substance like any other. The phantom of the night had taken them away from her all at once with no opportunity to detox. Her stomach turned, and she shuddered fiercely, fingernails nearly breaking as they dug into the dirt.
The screaming silence intensified—something was chattering from above her. Through the painful lack of pain, she turned to take in her surroundings. The edges of the world were foggy. Serena was gone. Meowth was not here, James was not here, Wobbuffet was not here. She was alone in a burning photograph, the flames quietly making their way to the center. The sound rang out again, from upwards, and she mechanically moved her head up to take it in.
Her eyes spawned galaxies. A single light floated in the night sky, across the moonlight. Starting only a simple speck seemingly universes away, she watched as it slowly came closer.
A single emotion returned to her, in that moment, and the silence began to exit. A creeping, hopeful euphoria, lining her weakened voice as she shakily choked out her desires—
"Dus...tox…?"
The falling star grew blindingly bright as it neared her, as if it actually was a chunk of the cosmos coming into scale with the tiny blue planet. She reflexively pulled a hand to her eyes, trying to block out the searing radiance, her weight shifted onto her other arm.
Then, soon as it had come, the light flickered out, a single red beam shining through it in its place. Jessie put her hand down, squinting in a desperate attempt to make sense of the figure—but there was no way for her to put words to or comprehend what it was she was looking at.
Blue and pink, twin tails, a blood red gemstone on its head. This creature stared at her, tilting its head almost curiously as the two of them locked eyes. It was unlike anything she had seen in a long, long time—beautiful, serene. It was not Dustox.
Jessie screamed.
With everything she was, with everything she had, she belted out a primal, unending shriek. She cried for the reunion she was cheated out of, she cried for the never ending list of people she'd had to part ways with, she cried for the trials and tribulations of the journey and what little reward she had gotten. She screamed until her throat was raw, screamed until she was sure she could taste copper, screamed until her lungs gave out and until her body screamed right back at her to stop. She was so much more than the world wanted to acknowledge, she deserved so much better than the hand she had been dealt, she had worked so much harder than anyone or anything, so why, so why —
"Jessie!"
There were voices on the outside of the burning photograph, speaking in syllables and buried in her shouts.
"Jessie! Please!"
She shook her head, willing them to stop. Whoever they were, they had no place here.
"Wake up! "
The tornado within her halted. She breathed deep, choking breaths, the kind of breaths that a person takes when they breach the water's surface.
Serena was back in her peripheral, her hand clasped over her mouth in trepidation. Meowth and Wobbuffet were beside her. Staring her down with his hands gently holding onto her shoulders was James, his viridian eyes trembling with tears.
"Jessie," he whispered, his voice like a prayer. "Jessie, are you with me?"
There was a tenderness in him she could not find the words for. His hands were shaking as they touched her, as if he saw through her tenacious front and knew how human and breakable she actually was. As if too much of him would shatter her to pieces.
Two perfect trails of silent tears fell from her eyes, one after the other. Jessie forced herself further upward—to her knees—and reached out slowly, cupping James' face in her trembling palm. She slowly traced down the outline of his jaw, willing herself to focus of the feeling of her skin on another person's, her mouth still hanging open in utter shock. James tilted his head into the motion, his expression burning with questioning and concern.
As if to reciprocate, he moved a his palm off her shoulder, tucking a messed lock of hair behind her ear, trying to pierce the veil once more.
"Jessie?" He whispered.
She took her hand off of his face, looking startled at the sound of her name. As if she had momentarily forgotten that she was a person with a name, with a place, with a favourite colour and hopes and dreams and…
And.
Jessie couldn't take her eyes off James, and he in turn could not look away from her. Their profiles stood symmetrical from each other against the backdrop of the sparkling, cosmic lake behind them, the full moon hanging above. In the center of the bittersweet portrait's background, hovering quietly in the space between their faces, was a pokémon neither of them knew the name of, nor had the concentration or resolve to learn.
"Jessie," James repeated again, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Can you speak? If you can't, that's okay, just…"
His words trailed off, and her eyes filled with more tears. They were different, this time—stained with an emotion she could identify, but refused to. James was staring at her as if she were the only thing that existed to him, his touch poignant and warm and watchful. A gesture that said I know your soul, and I promise to take care of it when your chips are down. Deep inside of her, something quietly stirred, awake and breathing after years of neglect.
James sat there, the world unmoving around them, gaze transfixed. There was a quiet fire burning somewhere within him, and he wished with all he had that it could be as big and as bright and as all-encompassing as Jessie's own. How did she keep it ablaze after all these years, with so many people constantly hosing it down? Looking at her now, the hurt she had seen in her life had never been clearer. She didn't deserve to sit there and be forced to hold it all inside, she deserved to cry freely, to laugh freely, to be herself without the stifling guise of strength. She deserved to know that there was valor in tears, in mourning. She deserved, more than anything, to take her armour off after a long day of fighting. She deserved someone by her side who would bandage her broken fists and massage her wounded heart.
In the wake of a life falling apart, Jessie was the one person who could easily pick up the pieces of her tattered world and face forward. This was an undeniable truth. James only wanted her to never have to be forced to again.
"I'm here now," he said, his mouth running to quell his own anxiety as much as hers, same as ever. " You're here now. Whatever happened, between the two of us, it can't hurt you. We have a white tomorrow to chase after."
He caressed her face as she had his, desperate to transfer any semblance of care and protection to her, desperate to keep her safe as she had so often kept him. Warmth radiated from the area where his skin touched hers, and though it was a gesture that he had done time and time again throughout their history, something lingered there that she never took note of before.
"James," she choked out, finally, and she had said his name a million times and then some, but never like this.
In their peripheral, the mysterious pokémon started to glow with a rose light, its expression focused and its gaze still firmly on them. As if it were honing in on something, as if it were greeting whatever it discovered there like an old friend. Jessie and James refused to register anything beyond each other as the creature glowed brighter and vanished out of sight.
The clearing darkened, went back to swimming in nothing but starlight. Jessie seemed to snap out of her reverie, looking around wildly as if trying to gain herself back. James abashedly took his hand off her face, wondering what it was that had made him so embarrassed, suddenly? Had he done something stupid just now and made a fool of himself? Why was his face so hot, why was his heart beating a mile a minute?
Jessie seemed equally flustered, so at the very least, if something had happened, they had made fools of themselves together in their usual, comfortable fashion. Serena was also looking a little red, but she quickly shook it to scramble to Jessie's side, asking her if she was okay. The woman's words came easier, this time.
"I… I'm not sure what happened," Jessie said, sounding more lost than any of them had ever heard. "I—I mean, I suppose I'm fine , but…"
"You disappeared…" Serena marveled. "It was like a fog rolled in and you just… you were gone…"
"Curious…" Jessie muttered, not knowing what to say to that.
"Wait… Jessie…" James began. "Did you… see a pokémon, by chance?"
"What are you getting at?" was her response, and he pressed on.
"A, um…" he pieced his memories together haphazardly. "Like, a smaller one. Blue and yellow… closed eyes… with a shining red jewel on its forehead?"
"What are you—?" She began, then caught herself. "I mean… I think so… it wasn't exactly like that, but…"
"Did you guys… really not notice?" Serena butted in. "There was… a pokémon watching you from the lake the entire time you were sitting here, just now. It was in plain sight."
"What?" Jessie said, sounding almost fearful in her confusion. "I didn't… wait, I did see it, but it was gone, when did it—?"
She sounded like she was trying to piece a puzzle out of nothing, and James looked equally confused. From beside them, Meowth and Wobbuffet stayed almost uncomfortably quiet, exchanging subtle, but incredulous looks at each other.
"Listen… whatever happened, just now…" Serena said. "I think maybe it was out of our understanding."
"The girl has a point," James said. "As long as you're safe, Jessie… maybe this is a mystery better left to wonder about tomorrow. What do you say?"
I say "no," I feel… incomplete , was her instinctual answer, but it hung on her tongue. Years ago, she would have torn away, angry still at the lack of answers and blaming it on the first person who dared to stop her from pursuing those answers well into the morning.
Now, she was taking in James, his being so open and so tied up in knots over her. Jessie looked out for herself more than anything—she loved her team, but the fact of the matter was, it didn't matter how much someone claimed to love you right back. In the right mood, anyone will abandon you. That was a truth that had kept her safe, an acknowledgement that made the blow so much easier to take head on. James had chosen someone over her before, and he easily could again, but…
She zeroed in on his expression, again, and her heart lurched. For the first time in her life she felt angry at herself for daring to think this man would ever run from her. The thought made no sense—he ran like his life depended on it, right? The idea that James who ran and Jessie who people ran from would one day fall into a game that was predestined for them was nothing special, nothing that hadn't always been lingering in the back of her mind.
Usually, when the thought occurred to her, she was mad at him. How dare he hypothetically abandon her? After all they've been through together? She'd either spend the day in a rotten mood with him nervously stealing glances at her, wondering what he had done wrong—or she would force the feeling down, not wanting to deal with troublesome thoughts like that when she had a job to do.
She didn't want to acknowledge what she saw in James' eyes, but its benevolence made her furious with herself for that lack of faith in him, now. The feeling was alien, and it bubbled ominously beneath her skin like magma around her heart.
"You're right," she said, putting a lid on the emotion, trying her best to quiet it. "I'm exhausted."
She stood up, suddenly composed, a facade that the group knew all too well. It didn't do much to help for their concern, but it was something they all knew they couldn't parse even if they were to try. James followed her lead.
"Twerpette," Jessie said, turning over her shoulder to look at Serena, who was also following. "I hope I didn't startle you."
Serena tilted her head, a bit caught off guard by the gentleness in Jessie's voice. "It's not your fault. Let's focus on resting for now!"
"Sounds like a plan," the redhead smiled, and Meowth and Wobbuffet lingered behind as her and the others marched forward.
The pair of pokémon stared at the silhouettes of their backs rising and falling through the night as they walked, unbelieving and unsure of what to feel.
"I can't believe it," Meowth uttered, quiet enough so only Wobbuffet could hear it. He turned to the pokémon. "Did yous know about dis?"
No way... Wobbuffet responded, just as amazed.
"Well, well, lookit dat…" the cat said, forcing himself to walk forward, his gaze transfixed on his human companions.
"I guess it's finally happenin', buddy."
After the night's debacle, Jessie knew she had to be on her guard to appear less outwardly moody. She was tired of her team's general vibe being down, tired of not dazzling everyone they met with their usual demeanour. If they weren't going to have the allure and dramatics of Team Rocket, they needed to work twice as hard to still be the lovely, charming individuals they knew they could be at heart. She wasn't going to let anyone take that from her, from them.
Serena and Johanna were embracing, right now, and Jessie couldn't help but take note of how easily they fit together, there against the blue skies and emerald fields. Despite their different hair colour and skin tones and faces, despite all the differences between them—with the kind of love Johanna so warmly radiated, they looked just like a mother and daughter.
"Serena," she began, strength in every ounce of her voice. "Your confidence is something to be admired, and it doesn't come without humility, either. You're easily Top Coordinator material. Keep working hard, alright?"
"Thank you so much, Miss Johanna! I will!"
Serena really was different from the girl they had all known before. Granted, their relationship was tumultuous and not exactly one where either party were privy to the details of the other's life. Still, there was an obviously acquired sanguinity to the way the young girl carried herself.
As if on cue, the sheepish girl they were used to flashed in her eyes if only for a moment, and she turned her head a tad to catch the former Rockets in her peripheral. Shifting the tone, she inquired—
"Hey, um…" Serena said, picking her words. "Do you think… do you think everything would have turned out alright for you if you had kept performing, too?"
"Who can say?" Johanna had an answer for her almost instantly. "I turned it over a lot in my head… I constantly battled with the idea of if I was settling and if it was my time yet. But you know what, Serena?"
"What?"
"I knew my worth and I knew who I was," she said, eyes ablaze with resolve. "There's no point in turning over those 'what if?'s in your mind. You're an amazing, strong young woman. No matter what choices you make in life, happiness is always achievable if you fight hard enough for it."
"Thanks again, Johanna!" Serena said, and it sounded, underneath everything, as if she was reading off a script, mashing buttons in the cutscene to get to the secret ending. "I think so, too."
Jessie brought her eyes off to the side, trying to hide the feeling of exposure with the promise of some sort of optimism. She followed her own script, said her goodbyes, and did what she always did: kept walking forward.
Serena cast a longing glance back at Johanna as their collective footsteps echoed on the humble dirt roads crisscrossing Twinleaf, and Jessie used the opportunity to crystallize her own final portrait of the home of the woman living a life she feared and envied all at once.
Don't look back, she had always said. Just this once, she allowed herself.
Johanna was smiling. A pride in her expression that was impossible to put justified words to, a maternal energy that permeated every heart it touched. Safety. Security. The promise of a family.
Jessie watched her, there. She took in the scene in full. She thought about Dawn, a girl with an equally bright smile, a smile that had been forged by a kind upbringing, a smile that had been forged by Johanna.
Must be nice, she thought, tearing her gaze away from the quiet respite, reminding herself that even if she were still a wicked thief, there was no one in the universe who could steal something so intangible, so precious.
A mother who raised you, waiting at home for your safe return.
Jessie held her chin high and kept on walking.
A/N: i hate this chapter a lot and i'm sorry you were forced to come on this trash journey with me lol. i promise it'll be better next time.
sorry it took so long and that the result was not very good! i was very sick for the entire first half of this chapter and i don't know how much of my fever-induced ramblings i was able to edit out.
some tough news to break is that i just got a job that i'm uncertain on the hours of, and i have no idea how much time i'm going to have to be writing DTE now. i know the update schedule is already atrocious and for that i'm very sorry... i hope you're willing to be patient and bear with me. i'm still going to be writing it whenever i get the chance. beyond that, ven and i are still in kind of a 'loose concepts' stage with hoenn ideas, so it might be a little while before chapter 11 OTL im sorry. but you'll get it. make no mistake.
sorry i don't have much to say, again i'm feeling kinda bad about this chapter. i know it's another one that's kinda heavy! alas. i'm getting kinda tired of apologizing for the sads and i kinda just wanna write what i wanna write knowing what the end result will be, i hope thats okay.
as always, i will do my best.