***A/N: I know it's been a bit, but it's been insane and hectic here and I haven't had much time to do anything extra. Hopefully things will calm down soon and I can start updating more regularly. I'll do my best, dear readers!***

They stared at him in utter confusion, still backing away as he stepped closer.

Finally Jessie risked a step towards him, "Will you snap out of it? I don't know why you don't recognize us but you need to-"

Persian hissed and swiped at her, nearly tearing a hole in her pants. She yelped and jumped away.

"So now what?!" wondered James.

"Honestly, I have no idea! Why is he acting like this?"

"What did being in there do to him? We need to get him some help, and fast! No telling if this is permanent or not!"

By this point Persian had herded them into a corner formed by two interconnected buildings, cutting them off if they tried darting away. Realizing there was only one real option left, Jessie pulled out Arbok's Pokeball.

James gaped at her, "You're not really thinking about-?!"

She glared back at him, though her voice noticeably shook with anguish, "If you have a better idea, I'd love to hear it. If we can just weaken him enough to get him to the Pokemon Center...we might have a chance of getting our friend back."

Calling out the snake Pokemon, Jessie pleaded one more time, "Please don't make us do this Persian! Remember us!"

Persian cocked his head, "So ya wanna fight huh? Good!"

Grabbing Weezing's Pokeball, his heart aching, James said, "Then we have no choice. If this is the only way we can possibly help you, so be it. I'm sorry, pal..."

He released Weezing, so now all three Pokemon faced each other on strangely opposite sides.

Jessie raised her hand, "Arbok! Use Glare!"

"Weezing! Sludge attack!" added James.

The two poison types hesitated, looking at Persian, then at their trainers with obviously bewildered expressions. They couldn't believe their ears and didn't understand why they were being ordered to attack one who was practically their brother.

"Chaaaarr?" Arbok whimpered, Weezing joining him with an equally distressed cry of "Weeez...?"

Stomping her foot, tears welling in her eyes Jessie yelled, "Just do it!"

"We're doing this to help him; you have to trust us!" James cried, his own tears already running down his face.

Suddenly, Persian leapt at Arbok with a vicious yowl and claws extended! Startled, Arbok wasn't able to dodge it fast enough and got hit full-force with a Slash attack. He fell back with a hiss of pain, but quickly recovered. Seizing the chance, Weezing let loose with Sludge, hitting Persian dead-on and covering the feline's fur with the sticky, thick ooze. Persian snarled in rage and tried to struggle out of the viscous puddle his paws were stuck in.

"Okay Arbok, Tackle!" called Jessie.

Arbok whipped forward, lowering his upper half and struck a still-immobile Persian across the head, cringing as he made contact. Persian cried out, mewling helplessly and both humans were pretty sure they could feel their hearts break at that sound. With another blow Persian dropped to the ground, one paw still stuck fast and his head lolled back.

Jessie and James ran over to him, pulling his foot from the sludge and checking him over. Arbok and Weezing stood over them, trying to see if they could help after what they had done to him.

"Persian!" cried James, laying a hand on his side, "Wake up! Please!"

Jessie looked over her shoulder, seeing the lights of the Pokemon Center glowing faintly through the fog a short distance away, "We're pretty close. We'll carry him the rest of the way."

Standing, James lifted Persian into his arms, "I've got him."

"You sure? He's not exactly a Meowth's weight any-'

"I've got him!" he repeated firmly, his green eyes flashing with determination...and guilt, Jessie saw.

She stood and nodded, "Let's hurry then. Arbok, Weezing?"

The two Pokemon listened attentively and she said, "...We might need you again. Stay close."

Their odd little parade only got about halfway there before Persian suddenly jerked awake, lashing out and struggling! Unable to hold him safely, James kneeled down and Persian wriggled from his grasp, getting about two steps before collapsing, then weakly pulling himself to a sitting position. They cautiously went to him, asking if he could hear them and was okay. He didn't answer at first, the only sounds he made small whines, until he suddenly whirled around and threw himself on Jessie! His weight threw them both to the ground where she landed on her rear with the feline in her lap. Bracing herself for an attack, she was startled, relieved, and scared all at once when he buried his face in her chest and began to sob openly.

"I...couldn't...I didn't know who ya were!" he wailed, "Dat ball did somethin' ta me!"

He continued to cry and tremble, Jessie gently holding him to her, stroking his head as if he were a frightened child awoken from a nightmare.

"Hey, it's okay now...you're back and we're gonna get you fixed up." she said reassuringly, not even caring he was getting dirt and foul-smelling ooze all over her clothes.

Rubbing his back to further calm him, James watched Jessie soothe the Pokemon and smiled. As much as she played the cold, indifferent type he knew deep down she had a warm, loyal and loving heart. After all, a truly uncaring person wouldn't be doing this right now, nor all the other compassionate and selfless things she had done in their time together. A fleeting vision flashed across his mind; a nice house with a large yard and several Pokemon playing in it, him looking out the window watching them, and suddenly a tiny voice calling for him as he turns and scoops up an energetic, purple-haired toddler, Jessie right behind them with a bemused smile as she kisses him good morning...

James shook his head hard to knock it out of his thoughts. What the hell was he thinking, he chastised himself...though the vision was so powerful he could almost smell the coffee brewing and his-their child's hair fresh from a bath. He felt the tears welling in his eyes at a future his soul secretly ached for but wasn't sure would, or could, ever come to be. He glanced at her, wondering if she could ever feel the same. Jessie raised her eyebrow at him, and he quickly wiped his eyes and waved his hand in a 'never mind' gesture.

Persian lifted his head, "Dere's somethin' horribly wrong wit dose Pokeballs!"

"Let's get you to the Pokemon Center!" said Jessie as she stood up, helping Persian to his feet, "You can tell us more on the way. Can you walk?"

Persian took a few, tentative steps, "Yeah, I think so..."

Arbok slithered up to him at this point and hung his head, "Chaaar-bok..."

"Hey, it ain't your fault," said Persian, "You was just following your trainer's orders. I ain't mad at ya, or you either Weezing. Heh, in fact you two knocked some sense back into me!"

Arbok smiled and moved his tail closer, gesturing for Persian to hop on, "Chaar?"

"Sure! I'll take cab service!" Persian laughed weakly, climbing onto the snake's back, "My legs are still a bit wobbly anyway."

James chuckled as they started off, "It's a good thing it's so late and there's no one around."

Jessie added as she surveyed their group, "Because we must look ridiculous!"

She grabbed his hand, lacing her fingers with his as they continued on toward their destination. James recalled Weezing, thanking him for a job well done and Persian sat comfortably on Arbok's back.

"So tell us," Jessie asked after a minute, "What's the matter with those things?"

Persian's ears flattened as he spoke, "I was in a Pokeball once. A while before I joined Team Rocket and met you guys, some kid tried ta catch me. He managed ta get me into a Pokeball, but dere was no way I was lettin' some little snot-nosed brat get ta best of dis Meowth-well, ya know what I mean-so I busted out and ran off. It was actually real nice in dere; warm and comfy and safe-feelin'. But inside dis ball..." he shuddered, "It was like bein' trapped in a bad dream. It was dark, and cold, and felt way too small and like...like somethin' was tryin' ta get into my head. It's hard ta explain. But it was awful, and when I got out I didn't know who ya were...all I felt was anger and I wanted ta...hurt ya...dat knock ta my noggin' musta snapped me outta it!"

James scratched him behind his ears, causing him to start purring softly, "It's okay pal. We understand. The important thing now is to get you healed up and stopping those bastards before they hurt anyone else."

Jessie did a slight double-take and stared at him. She knew he rarely ever cursed, and especially not like that. Sure, he had tossed around the odd colorful word on occasion, especially when they had found themselves foiled by the twerp and his friends, but even that wasn't all the time.

She had always suspected it was another ingrained aspect of his upbringing. Glancing down she noted his free hand clench into a fist and his eyes become icy and dark as the night sky. Goosebumps pricked the back of her neck. He didn't get truly angry often, but it was kind of frightening when he did.

Touching his chin and turning his face to hers she said resolutely, "They won't, because we're going to stop them."

His eyes softened back to their normal state, and with a small, hopeful smile he kissed her gently.

Persian rolled his eyes and smiled at Arbok's slightly befuddled expression, "We're just gonna hafta get used ta this, bud."

Finally making it to the Pokemon Center, they ditched their hats and gloves in the shrubs outside, trying to make themselves look a little less suspicious. The dirt, sludge and sweat sticking to their clothes was bad enough. Jessie proclaimed she was getting a nice long shower the next time the chance presented itself. She flushed red, grinned and slapped James lightly when he quietly suggested they both get one, causing Persian and Arbok to glance at them in confusion, having not heard what he had whispered in her ear. Entering the large, brightly lit lobby, they were greeted with silence, which wasn't surprising considering the hour. Jessie glanced up at the wall clock over the main counter and noted it was already after two in the morning.

With a small sigh, James remarked, "The look of this place kind of reminds me of the Pokemon Center where-"

"We first ran into them." she finished, unable to conceal the note of bitterness in her voice.

"Mrah, I haven't thought about dat in ages...and I like ta keep it dat way." muttered Persian as he tried to scrape off the gunk that still clung to his fur.

After a few moments, a nurse, followed by a Blissey, emerged from a set of double-doors marked 'Staff Only'.

Smiling, she greeted them, "Hello! You're out late. Can I help you?"

Jessie resisted a sarcastic remark as she replied, "My Persian needs some help...he um, got into a fight with some wild Pokemon."

The nurse looked curiously around Arbok to Persian perched on it's back. He meekly lifted a paw and meowed.

Glancing at their ragged clothes and Jessie's skinned knees, she said, "Looks like you guys did too! Why don't you rest a bit in one of our rooms and we'll have your Persian in tip-top shape in no time!"

"Thanks but, we're fine. We'll be back shortly! Thank you!" said James with the overly-cheerful tone he used when he was nervous, uncertain, or dealing with someone who could possibly get them arrested. Jessie smiled inwardly; some things never changed.

After leaving Persian in their care and reassuring him they'd be back as soon as they could (also quietly reminding him to keep his mouth shut), they headed back outside and discussed the best way to handle presenting their claim to the police.

James crossed his arms, "Let's face it; if we waltz into the police station like this, we'll probably be the ones getting arrested."

Jessie looked down at their filthy, totally-not-suspect-all-black-attire and said, "Good point. Which is why I packed a back-up plan!"

Kneeling down, she dug into her bag as he waited curiously, finally pulling out two outfits, a huge, teasing grin acorss her face, "Look what I brought! I thought, what the hell, for old time's sake?"

James raised an eyebrow at the girl's student uniforms she held up.

"Jess...I don't think that's going to work this time," he said flatly, pointing to the stubble already re-growing along his jawline, then pulled up his sleeve, flexing his arm, "Not to mention this."

She hummed as she put them away, "I suppose you're right."

Despite the task at hand, she suddenly felt devious, and standing back up she wound her arms around his neck, backing up against the wall and pulling him with her, raising one leg to wrap it around his waist, "Honestly, I'm not sure how you ever pulled it off."

Startled but enjoying the moment, he smiled and pulled her tightly against him. Grasping her thigh with one hand, he slipped the other under her shirt and up her back, leaning his face toward hers, "Hmm...is that a compliment?"

"Yes..." she murmured against his lips, goose bumps again prickling her skin, this time for a different reason.

She kissed him hard, relishing the feel of his hands on her skin, the taste of his mouth and just this. Somewhere deep down she kicked herself for being so damn stubborn and not admitting how she felt sooner. They had already missed out on two years of who-knows-what-might-have-been and she swore they wouldn't waste another moment now that-

He pulled away suddenly, panting slightly, cursing himself but knowing they had important things to take care of first, "We...we have work to do. We really shouldn't-"

"Have sex against a wall when we should be fighting crime?" she smirked, a little breathless herself.

James blinked, "Ironic, isn't it?"

Jessie bit her lip, her heart-rate still up, "Yeah...later?"

"Later."

They pulled back, composing themselves and getting back to figuring out what to do.

Clearing his throat, James rifled through his own bag, "I've got a plan of my own, actually..."