James began patrolling his section of the play area intently. Within half an hour, however, he grew incredibly bored. He sighed and decided to take a small break. The trunk of a large tree looked warm and inviting - James sat down and rested his back on it. Soon, his eyelids grew heavy...
"Nappin' on the job, eh?" a voice jumped him awake.
"Meowth!" James said. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be patrolling your side?"
"I got bored," he said matter-of-factly. He took a seat on the opposite side of the tree trunk. "Ya know, dis tree is smack dab in da middle of da play area. We could just guard da entire place from here!"
James knew that that was a terrible idea. But he was too tired to stand up and walk around. So he decided to go with it.
"By da way, I've been meaning ta ask..." Meowth started. "What's da deal wit da girl? How'd she end up joining Team Rocket?"
"Well..." James told him the story, from the Pokedex mix-up to the jailbreak.
"Jailbreak, huh? Y'know, I still remember our first jailbreak..." Meowth said wistfully.
James remembered, too. He smiled a bit at the memory. As the saying goes, "You're not a real Rocket until you've spent some time behind bars..." James thought out loud.
"Ain't dat da truth." Meowth replied. James couldn't see it, but he knew Meowth was smiling at the memory, as well.
Suddenly, the sound of an explosion pierced the calm. James and Meowth both snapped to attention.
"What was-" Meowth started.
"It came from the the shed!" James yelled, already sprinting towards it. Meowth followed.
"What a bunch of dolts, leaving the eggs unguarded like this," Cassidy jeered. She and Butch followed Raticate as it dug a tunnel into the shed. She remembered the guard layout: they saw James and Meowth patrolling outside, which meant the light at the front desk must have been Jessie. And she doubted those idiots had the foresight to install some kind of security system in the egg shed.
"Yeah. This'll be easier than stealing candy from a baby!" Butch, her partner, added.
Before long, they were underneath the shed, according to Cassidy's mapping device.
"This is the spot. Raticate, dig upwards!" Cassidy commanded.
Raticate did as it was told, and the two Rockets climbed up into the egg shed.
"What the-!" they both said. To their surprise, they saw a certain redhead napping on top of the eggs.
"Nnngh...huh?" Jessie said, stirring awake from the noise. "You...! What're you losers doing here?!"
"We could ask you the same thing!" Cassidy angrily yelled.
"And the only loser here is you!" Butch added.
Jessie skipped the rest of their usual 'pleasantries' and reached for Pumpkaboo's Pokeball. "Pumpkaboo, use Shadow Ball!"
"Boo!" Pumpkaboo formed a shadowy blob of ghostly energy and fired it at Raticate.
"Raticate, send it back with Skull Bash!" Cassidy ordered.
"Rat!" Raticate did as it was told, lowering its head and then charging at the ball, succeeding in returning the attack back at its sender.
Pumpkaboo howled in pain as it was blasted by its own attack, sending it flying into a wall before exploding in a rush of ghost energy.
James panted as he reached the door. Shauna came, as well.
"Mister James! What's going on?" she asked frantically.
"We're about to find out."
James had the urge to tell her to run to safety. But he knew what the answer would be, and they didn't have time to argue - Jessie might be in trouble! Besides, Shauna had demonstrated that she can handle herself in battle. He would need all the help he could get, in case the thief was too strong.
Without wasting another second, he kicked the door open...
...and was greeted by Cassidy and the green menace - Billy or something?
"It's BUTCH!" the green haired main said, reading James's mind.
James scanned the rest of the room. Jessie was in a corner with Pumpkaboo out; Cassidy was in the opposite corner, with Raticate. They must have been battling, which would explain the explosion...
"About time you guys got here!" Jessie said angrily. She turned back to her rival. "It's four on two - I know you're not that bright, so I'll save you the trouble: you're outnumbered."
"Four?" Cassidy asked, locking in on Shauna. "Who's the brat?"
"Hey! They have R's on their shirts! Are they agents too?" Shauna asked.
"What're you two doing here?" James asked.
"Stealing Pokemon eggs? Duh?" Cassidy flippantly replied.
"No, I meant in Kalos. What are you two doing all the way out here?"
"If you must know, we were sent here on special orders from the boss, to assist agent Domino with her mission." Cassidy answered with a smug sense of superiority. Butch stuck his tongue out at them.
"Well, in that case, as Domino's third-in-command, I order the two of you to return everything you stole from the daycare!" Shauna declared.
"Domino's...third-in-command?" Cassidy said, a little confused. It took her and Butch a few seconds to register what she had just said.
"Wait, WHAT?!" the two of them screamed when they realized what she had said.
"Yup! I outrank you! Now return everything you stole!" Shauna repeated.
Butch and Cassidy's faces flushed red with anger and embarrassment, but they calmed themselves.
"Nice try," Cassidy said. "But there's no way Domino would promote a brat like you. If you're even a part of this organization, which I doubt you are!"
"But it's true! Just ask Mr. James! He's Domino's second-in-command!" Shauna said.
"Him? Second-in-command to Domino? That's even less believable!" Butch laughed.
"Look you dolts," Cassidy started. "Either you get out of our way, or our Pokemon will send you flying. Your choice."
James hesitated. Butch and Cassidy were both formidable opponents. Even outnumbering them, he doubted he and his team would be able to win. Besides, wouldn't it be easier to wait until Domino arrived to straighten things out?
"No way! We're not letting you steal any more eggs, you meanies!" Shauna declared, standing her ground.
"Wait-!" James said, attempting to diffuse the situation. But Shauna was dead set on protecting the eggs, and Cassidy wasn't one to not follow through on her threats.
"Fine," Cassidy stated. "Have it your way. Raticate, use Thunderbolt!"
"Cassidy's Pokemon loosed a bolt of electricity at Jessie's already-weakened Pumpkaboo, hitting it dead on and sending it flying back at Jessie.
"Jessie!" James cried out. He grabbed Growlie's Pokeball. "Growlie, Flamethrower on Raticate!"
James's Pokemon burst forth from its Pokeball, wasting no time in letting out a stream of fire directly at its target.
"Not so fast! Cloyster, douse it with Water Gun!" Butch ordered, sending out his own Pokemon.
Fire and water collided in midair, filling the room with a layer of steam.
"Shauna, go help Jessie out. I'll take care of greenie here." James ordered. The steam offered the perfect veil for hiding Shauna's movements - hopefully she'll be able to use this to get the jump on Cassidy.
"Got it!" Shauna ran to Jessie's side.
As soon as the steam cleared, Butch ordered another attack. "Cloyster, Water Gun!"
"Growlie, dodge it!"
Growlie jumped into the air as a gush of water struck where he once stood.
"Hah! Now, ready up a Hydro Pump and strike him as soon as he lands!" Butch ordered.
James panicked. There was no way Growlie could change his trajectory now; the fire Pokemon was going to take a Hydro Pump to the face. Thanks to the type disadvantage, James would be in a really tight spot...
"Fury Swipes!" A scared voice yelled - Meowth. He threw himself at Cloyster and swung his claws around like a madman. Though it did very little damage against Cloyster's tough shell, it succeeded in distracting the Pokemon, allowing Growlie to land safely.
"What the-!" Butch yelled. Cloyster withdrew itself into its shell to defend against Meowth's relentless claws.
James instantly took advantage of his opponent's confusion. "Meowth, jump out of the way! Growlie, use Fire Blast!"
"Don't have ta tell me twice!" Meowth said, doing as he was told.
"Growl!" Growlie fired off a tremendous blast of fire from its mouth, cooking the poor Cloyster in its own shell.
"Cloyster!" Butch cried out.
"Cloy..." his Pokemon responded, swirls forming in its eyes, indicating unconsciousness.
"All right, enough messing around. Raticate, end this with another Thunderbolt!" Cassidy ordered. Her Pokemon readied up the finishing blow.
"Chester, stop her with Vine Whip!" Shauna ordered.
The attack took the rat by surprise, knocking it off balance and cancelling its attack.
Both Cassidy and Jessie looked toward the source of the attack. To Shauna's surprise, Jessie wasn't so grateful about being saved...
"I don't need your help, you brat!" Jessie snarled.
"Sorry, Commander James's orders!" Shauna smiled, a little nervously.
"Grr..." Jessie growled.
Cassidy took advantage of their little exchange and ordered another attack. "Raticate, use Super Fang on that Chespin!"
"Raticate!" Cassidy's Pokemon lunged at Shauna's, sinking its teeth into the poor Chespin.
"CHES!" it cried out in pain.
"Chester, no!" Shauna cried out, as well. The attack looked incredibly painful.
"Now, follow up with a Seismic Toss!" Cassidy ordered.
"Raticate!" The rat Pokemon grabbed Shauna's Chespin and prepared to jump.
"Pumpkaboo, bind them both with Leech Seed!" Jessie ordered.
"Boo!" Her Pokemon fired off a spray of tiny seeds onto the two Pokemon. Chespin, being a Grass type, was able to shrug the seeds off harmlessly. Raticate, on the other hand, winced as the seeds eased into its body, sucking out energy.
"Yay! Thank you Miss Jessie!" Shauna cheered.
"Shoot...I forgot Leech Seed doesn't work against other Grass types..." Jessie remarked quietly to herself.
Shauna noticed Jessie mumbling to herself, but couldn't hear her. She ignored it and went back to focusing on the battle."Okay, Chester, use Headbutt!"
"Raticate, dodge!" Cassidy ordered. Before her Pokemon could get out of the way, however, Leech Seed activated again, holding it in place as Pumpkaboo drained its energy, and allowing Chester to land a direct hit.
"Rat!" the Pokemon cried out in pain, flying back towards its owner.
"Grr..." Cassidy fumed. "Butch, I could use some help over here!"
"That makes two of us..." Butch grumbled. "And it's Botch, not Butch! I mean...GAH!"
"Useless!" Cassidy scolded her partner. "Can't you even take care of one idiot?!" she said, pointing at James.
"Like you're one to talk!" Butch countered. "How's your battle going?"
"Um...hello?" James said.
"WHAT?!" the two defeated agents snapped at him.
"N-Nothing..."
"Ugh, forget it, this isn't worth the trouble..." Cassidy said. "We have a ton of Eggs already, let's just hand them to Giovanni and then report to Domino."
Butch nodded in agreement. "Mightyena, blow a hole through the roof with Hyper Beam!" Butch ordered, sending out his Pokemon.
"Mightyena!" his Pokemon cried out, before firing off its attack towards the roof. The explosion rocked the building.
"No way! We're not letting you steal those eggs!" Shauna called out.
"Houndour, cover our escape with Smog!" Cassidy ordered.
"Houndour!" Before anyone had time to react, the room was flooded with dark, toxic fumes.
"Later, losers!" Cassidy called out as she and her partner recalled their Pokemon and flew through the hole with jet packs.
"No..." Shauna coughed, struggling to breathe through the smog. "Chester! Pull them back with Vine Whip!"
"Ches...Ches..." The Pokemon was in no condition to use the move.
"Chester?!" Shauna cried out worriedly.
"It's poisoned..." James said, getting his bearings as the smog cleared. Butch and Cassidy were long gone.
Shauna frantically ruffled through her bag. "Oh no...I forgot to stock up on Antidotes..."
"Ches..." her Pokemon coughed, struggling to stay conscious. Shauna was on the verge of tears.
"What happened here?!" the Pokemon Breeder - Zach - finally arrived at the scene.
"What the heck took you so long to get here?!" Jessie yelled furiously.
"I'm a deep sleeper. Anyway, were you guys able to catch the thieves?" the breeder asked. He looked at Shauna, the leader of Team Righteous, but she simply looked away, stung by their defeat and still worried about her poisoned Pokemon.
"We were able to prevent them from stealing anything more, and it doesn't seem like they'll be back, but they were able to get away..." James answered for Shauna. "Her Chespin got poisoned in the scuffle, though. Any chance you could fix it up?"
"Of course." Zach led them to the daycare's infirmary to heal their Pokemon. The group plodded along behind him, the bitter taste of defeat lingering in their mouths. Shauna lagged behind, still hung up over her failure to catch the thieves and return the stolen eggs.
"Geez...you'd tink after failing so often, I'd be used to it by now..." Meowth said. "But seeing dat twerp look so sad...it's pretty contagious, ya know?"
James nodded, sharing his sentiments. Jessie just huffed, saying "She'll get over it."
They walked the rest of the way in a tense silence.
A/N: Hi! It's been a while since I updated lol. As always, any reviews/thoughts/criticism would be much appreciated! As well as the pointing out of any obvious mistakes I may have made in continuity or grammar or anything. Thanks for reading!