-The Legal Stuff:-

1) I am not affiliated at all to Game Freak nor to Nintendo, nor any other companies that write/produce Pokémon.

2) I do not own any part of Pokémon.

-A Waiver:-

1) I am not following any storyline already created, not a game, not the television show, my storyline is completely original as far as most characters go and as far as what is going on with the plot.

2) The only thing I borrowed from the game (I just started playing Crystal Version again) is the Gym Leader's names and their Pokémon, the city names, route names, and a couple of Team Rocket situations. I think I also mention well known people like Professor Elm and Professor Oak.

Basically…storyline and main characters are of my creation, the other stuff I borrowed from Crystal Version.

-And finally, the story. (: Enjoy!-

Chapter Twenty-Five:

Team Rocket!

"Go! Raticate!" One of the grunts shouted.

"Come on out Zubat," the second guy yelled as he produced a pokéball.

The rat Pokémon and bat Pokémon appeared on the grass just ahead of the rockets as Ashley sidled up closer to me. "I can take on Raticate," she said. "You get the Zubat."

"It'll be my pleasure," I muttered, then raised my voice as I pointed out across towards the small bat Pokémon flapping its wings to hover in the air. "Espeon! Go!"

Espeon launched herself out ahead of me, staring down the Zubat ahead of her. Ashley grabbed a pokéball from her belt and tossed it into the air. "Flareon! Let's do this!"

"Those are some good Pokémon," one grunt laughed, he had blonde hair sticking out from under his hat. The Raticate was standing out in front of him.

"That's what I was thinking too Alex," the second chuckled. His hair was a darker brown. "We'll have to take them Pokémon from these girls when we beat 'em!"

"Enough talk!" Ashley spat. "Flareon! Fire Blast Raticate!"

"Espeon, use Psychic on Zubat," I shouted afterwards, throwing my hand out dramatically towards the small, blue bat across the grass from her.

Espeon planted her feet while Flareon gathered a huge fireball in her mouth. Espeon thrust her head upwards and her jewel lit up. An aura surrounded Zubat which slammed it into the ground at Espeon's control. Flareon shot the fireball towards Raticate, the fire attack acquired arms and legs as it moved towards its target.

Both Zubat and Raticate slowly picked themselves off the ground. "Raticate," the blonde Rocket shouted. "Use Hyper Fang on Flareon!"

"Zubat, use Leech Seed on Espeon," the other grunt commanded.

"Dodge!" Ashley and I retaliated at the same time.

"Espeon, Psybeam!"

"Flareon, Flamethrower!"

Espeon jumped forward by several bounds, evading the Leech Seed that had been launched at her. She then stopped and called a high note out as the gem on her forehead lit up and sent an almost translucent beam towards Zubat.

Flareon leapt up next to Espeon and let loose a torrent of flames towards Raticate as Zubat pummeled into the ground, unconscious. Raticate fell backwards, but managed to stay cognizant. He pushed himself back onto his feet as the dark-haired Rocket recalled his Pokémon. "Raticate," the blonde rocket hurriedly said, panic present in his tone. "Use Quick Attack!"

"Espeon, Confusion!"

"I said I got Raticate!" Ashley snapped at me.

Espeon reacted instantly to my command, leaping in front of Flareon, who was still awaiting Ashley's next orders. Waves rippled across the air towards Raticate as its eyes rolled back into its head and it toppled over, out for good.

"This is not the time to argue," I hissed, pushing around her to grab the Rockets before they fled the scene. We needed information from them.

"Recall your Pokémon Alex, we gotta go inform the others!" The dark-haired grunt hissed. "Hurry, come on!"

"You took my KO!" Ashley grabbed my arm as I darted towards the already fleeing Team Rocket members.

"Ashley, stop! They're getting away!" I shouted, ripping my arm from her grasp.

"Good, I hope they do get away!" She folded her arms across her chest and twisted away from me.

I glanced over my shoulder as the two Rockets, completely clad in black clothing, leapt into the brush again. I narrowed my eyes, the last I saw of them was the black beret on top of their heads. And something clicked in my mind.

"That guy," I hissed, whirling around to grab Ashley's arm and yank her in my direction. "The one that ran into me in Goldenrod, he was dressed exactly like those two!" I explained, pointing back towards the brush where the Rockets had disappeared.

"He was Team Rocket!" Ashley squealed, forgetting her anger.

"How is Goldenrod connected to the Lake of Rage?" I quickly said, then turned in order to think to myself as I released my grasp on Ashley. "Uh! What did he say to me after running into me!"

'The Radio Tower,' Espeon said.

"What?" I looked over at her.

'That's where he said he was going,' Espeon reminded me. 'And that's what Goldenrod and the Lake of Rage have in common.'

"The sound," I murmured.

"What is going on?" Ashley asked.

Espeon nodded her head, her ears still flattened against her head. 'The sound is caused by a radio wave-'

"From a Radio Tower," I finished her sentence and again she nodded.

"The Radio Tower?" Ashley shrieked. "In Goldenrod City? Team Rocket's invaded the Radio Tower?"

"We have to go back," I decided.

"Down there," Ashley and I peeked around the corner of a red-bricked building and down a long street. "It's down there," Ashley pointed down the street.

"You're sure?" I asked.

Ashley glared over her shoulder at me and then pointed upwards. "Do you see that huge building looming up over everything else?"

"Yea," I looked up at the tower she was referring to.

"See the radio antennae on top?" She asked next and I knew where this was going. It was an attempt to make me feel like an idiot.

"Yea," I sighed.

"It's the Radio Tower," Ashley hissed. Her attempt succeeded.

"It's a huge building," I muttered, moving past my embarrassment. "It's bound to be swarming with Rockets! There's no way we can beat all the members that are guaranteed to be in there."

"I took a tour of it," Ashley smiled at me. "The chairman took a liking to me and decided that he wanted to share his knowledge with me," she explained. "I know all the shortcuts inside the building."

"How old is this guy?" I daringly asked, I was sure I already knew the answer though.

"He's…experienced," Ashley hesitated a moment then answered. She shrugged and I made a face as a shudder went down my body.

"Gross," I mumbled.

"This is irrelevant! We need to get into that building!" Ashley went darting away from our spying place and running down the street towards the tower.

"Ashley!" I hissed, swinging out to try and grab her, I missed. I had to leave the place I had been crouching in order to hurry after her. "We have to think out our strategy of infiltration!"

"Definitely Team Rocket!" Ashley shouted over shoulder at me.

"Stop Ash!" I snapped. I passed by a large building that had a railway track running out behind it, the track cut through the middle of Goldenrod. It was the Magnet Train station building. It would take a trainer from Goldenrod in Johto to Saffron City in Kanto extremely quickly, or so my father had told me. As I passed the door, it opened and someone leaned out and snatched me into the building. In an attempt to save myself, I grabbed Espeon's tail, but only succeeded in dragging her in with me.

Before the door shut, I saw the two grunts guarding the Radio Tower door grab Ashley and drag her into the building. "Holy Murkrow! Ashley!"

"Stop!" The person who had grabbed me whipped me around and I found myself face to face with Doug. "You just relax, it's her own damn fault."

"I can't just let Team Rocket have their way with her!" I shouted, then gasped. "You're Team Rocket! You set us up!"

Doug's eyebrow arched onto his forehead. "I'm what? And I did what?"

I stared at him. "What are you doing here?" I finally shouted at him, successfully ripping my arm out of his grasp.

He cleared his throat. "I can be wherever I want to be," he spat back at me after hesitating for a moment. "You should just be glad that I was here to save your scrawny, little ass."

"I am not scrawny!" I hissed as I fought the strong urge to stomp my foot against the ground as hard as I could.

'Rowan,' Espeon suddenly hissed, 'forget this silly argument! We need to get into the Radio Tower.'

I looked down at her, realizing she was right. "I have to go," I said as I glanced back up at Doug's face. "I may not be particularly fond of her, but Ashley needs my help."

"And," Doug grabbed my arm again as I turned away from him, "you need my help."

I cast a glare down at his hand holding onto me before looking back up to his face. "I don't think so," I retorted through pursed lips. "How could you possibly help me?"

He let out a breath. "I have a plan, but it requires you to trust me."

I was having a hard time staying calm. I didn't even have Espeon to tell me how silly I was being. She was safely stored away in her pokéball. I threw a side glance up at Doug. He looked completely different in the all black outfit and with a black beret on top of his head. His hair hung low into his eyes, shadowing his eyes so he looked even darker. His Umbreon walked just ahead of us as we neared the Radio Tower.

"Halt!" One Rocket shouted as we neared, then he smiled. "Look who finally returned. You see this man?" He called to the other grunt.

"Hey, hey Dougie!" The second grunt laughed. "We thought you were a goner for sure."

Dougie? Criminal gangs like Team Rocket called people Dougie?

"Yea, well," Doug laughed back, I glanced up at him again. He had a dark, malicious smile across his face. "The Boss knew what I was up to," he now pulled his arm up, the one he was hanging on to me with. I was pulled up onto my tiptoes. "Just caught another brat snooping around where she didn't belong."

"She'll go well with the other little pretty thing Susanne caught awhile ago," a grunt laughed.

Doug threw a glance up at the tower. "Which floor?"

"Eighth," one of the two Rocket members answered.

"Thanks," Doug flashed another grim smile before passing between the two guards and into the building. He glanced over his shoulder as he herded me towards the elevator. "We probably won't be able to take this all the way up," he murmured.

"Why not?"

"Team Rocket may be a criminal gang," he said, "but that does not mean that they're stupid."

He pressed the eighth floor button, but as he had assumed, the elevator shuddered to a stop on the sixth floor. "Shit," Doug hissed as the door dinged open. He quickly snatched up my wrist and dragged me out of the machine.

"Halt," someone shouted, a woman's voice. "Who goes there?"

"Susanne," Doug cooed as the woman came into view, two men followed behind her, all three in the black Team Rocket attire. I bit back a wretch at Doug's suaveness.

"Well, well Douglas," she stopped just ahead of him, placing her hand on her hip as she cocked her hip off to the side. "Fancy seeing you again."

"Fancy that," he replied nonchalantly.

A nervous feeling formed in the pit of stomach as I stared at the woman. Something didn't feel right about this at all. Doug was too comfortable with this whole thing.

"And who is this?" The woman now affixed her glare on me.

"Bringing her up to the boss on the eighth floor," Doug muttered, yanking sharply on my wrist. "Isn't that right?"

"The boss ain't here," one of the two men said and Doug looked over to him.

"He's not?"

"Nope."

"Doug," I whispered. I felt slightly betrayed and I couldn't shake the horrible feeling that something was wrong, something was terribly wrong. "I don't want to do this anymore."

He threw a glare down at me. I immediately know why I didn't trust him. He was still a member of Team Rocket, loyal to only them. I shouldn't have ever trusted him.

I wrenched my wrist out of his grasp and ducked under his arms when he swung around to grab me again. I turned and hurried back in the direction of the elevator. "Rowan," Doug shouted after me.

"Don't worry about it Doug," I heard the woman say calmly. "Rick, Caleb…fetch."

I heard the footfall of the two grunts as they raced in my direction. I hit the button to take the elevator down, but the machine didn't react fast enough. One of the Rocket's grabbed me and swung me over his shoulder. I let out a squeal as my diaphragm was pressed uncomfortably against his shoulder.

"Now, take her upstairs. You know the pass code to get up to the eighth floor," Susanne commanded them.

"Right away," the one that was holding me replied.

"Umbreon," Doug spoke now. "Quick Attack, go!"

"Doug?" Susanne sounded confused.

"Go, Slowking," Doug shouted and I assumed he had thrown a pokéball to release the Pokémon he'd mentioned.

"I don't think so," Susanne hissed now as Umbreon slammed into the back of the knees of the man who was holding me. I dropped painfully hard onto the floor. "Golbat, go!" Susanne called out a Pokémon of her own.

"Slowking, use Psychic on Golbat," Doug shouted as he ran over to me. He grabbed my hand and pulled me up to my feet before following through and slamming his foot into the stomach of the other Rocket member. "Umbreon, help Slowking, use Shadowball!" He shouted as he thrust his elbow down between the shoulder blades of the Rocket.

Umbreon bounded over next to Slowking, who had already weakened Golbat considerably with its Psychic technique. Umbreon's Shadowball knocked it out, but Susanne was nowhere to be seen. I whipped around and found she was trying to come up behind Doug to hit him in back of the head with a metal pole.

As Doug was now fighting both of the male grunts off, the other had finally recovered from Umbreon's Quick Attack, I pushed off the wall and towards the woman. I stuck my foot out and successfully tripped her, causing her to drop the metal rod. She instantly whipped around, glaring at me.

Without missing a beat, I swung up with a closed fist and slammed it into the side of her head. She was first stunned that I had struck her, then a look of absolute fury crossed her features. "You little-" she hissed.

I interrupted her by slugging my fist into her nose, which caused an intense amount of pain to shoot up my hand. I stomped my foot down onto her toes as hard as I could, then swung my elbow into her gut. This was an easy technique for me to use due to the fact that I had watched too much television as a child. I could beat someone up.

Copying Doug's technique, I slammed my elbow in between her shoulder blades as she was bent over, holding her stomach. As she collapsed to the ground, a light blue aura surrounded her and carried her off to a corner, where Doug had already managed to tie the other two thugs up.

"Thanks, return Slowking," Doug said, holding out his ball. Slowking's Psychic was released on Susanne and she dropped to the floor with a loud thud. Doug grabbed her and tied her up like the other two. He then turned and faced me, glaring at me. I tried to flash him a weak smile to know avail. "I told you to trust me," he hissed as he walked towards me and pointed his finger into my face. Umbreon followed behind him, throwing a red-eyed glare up at me as he passed by me.

"I'm sorry," I muttered lamely as I hurried after him. We quickly took the stairs up, without bothering to stop on the seventh floor. Doug rushed up the last flight of stairs, easily taking the steps three at a time. Umbreon was hot on his tail, and I brought up the rear, panting and nearly out of breath. "What a pansy," I mumbled to myself as Doug pushed the door open to the eighth floor.

"No one is here," Doug muttered as he stepped out of the staircase. I followed after him, struggling to catch a breath after running up the two flights of stairs.

"Doug," I said, pointing across the small room that was the eighth floor as I pulled out Espeon's pokéball and released her. "Maybe we should start there." Espeon glanced up at me, then over at the door I had just acknowledged.

Doug threw a glance over at the door, then grabbed a pokéball off his belt and tossed it across the room. "Go, Feraligatr!" The tall, blue Pokémon appeared across the room. "Hydro Pump the door."

'That's subtle,' Espeon sighed and I glanced down at her. 'Blow the door right off its hinges.'

"Maybe he's going for a more dramatic entrance," I shrugged.

'That's precisely what he's going to get,' Espeon hissed as Feraligatr opened its mouth and a deluge of water slammed into the door, blowing it inward.

"I hope that didn't hit anyone," I muttered.

Doug rushed into the room, followed by his Pokémon. I walked over to the door and peeked inside before walking in next to Espeon.

'Rowan! Over there!' Espeon shouted and darted away from me, ducking behind a large desk in the room. I hurried after her and saw who she was talking about.

"Holy Murkrow," I hissed as I dropped to the ground in front of the older man. His hands were tied behind his back and there was tape over his mouth. "I'm sorry about this," I said to him before ripping the tape off his mouth.

"Behind you!" He shouted.

I whipped around, finding Doug standing behind me and on the other side of the desk. Behind Doug there was a small group of Rockets, Ashley stood in front of a male Rocket. "Ashley!" I yelled, standing up to completely face them.

"Surprisingly Rowan, they're actually really nice," she smiled at me. I arched my eyebrow at her. "It's really not that bad being a hostage."

'Except that you're a hostage,' Espeon hissed. 'She really his an idiot, isn't she?'

"Alright Mark," Doug spoke up, "how about you just hand over the girl and you guys can go on your way."

The man Doug was talking to shook his head. "I'm afraid this ain't gonna work that way. You guys know what's going on, we have to use her as collateral so you don't interfere."

"I'm going to interfere regardless," Doug hissed.

"Wait," Ashley looked over to me. "He's part of Team Rocket too? That's why we ditched him?"

I shot her a glare, but ignored her otherwise. "We already got what we needed," the man scoffed. "We were just trying to hold the fort so no one else figured out what we were doing," he explained.

'They don't really know when to keep their mouth's shut, do they?' Espeon murmured.

"You can keep the old man," the Rocket continued. "He's of no use to us."

"She's not either," I spat. "She's just a nuisance."

"Hey!" Ashley hissed.

"The old man took a likin' to her," the Rocket said, his hands tightened around Ashley's arms. "I did too."

"That's just creepy," I mumbled.

"I'm not letting you escape," Doug hissed. "Feraligatr, no one goes through that door."

"Aw," the Rocket laughed. "You're using the first Pokémon you ever stole! Team Rocket didn't even ask you to get that one. Regardless, we weren't planning on leaving that way."

"Shit!" I heard Doug shout as he grabbed my arm and tossed me over the desk. "Feraligatr, return!" He shouted as he bounded over the desk and Umbreon suddenly appeared crouched next to me. The entire room shook and chill came over the room. Doug straightened up next to me and I heard him whistle. "That's new."

I sat up. On the wall opposite of us, a huge hole was blown out of the side of the building. "What did they do?" The man sitting on the floor asked.

'See for yourself,' Espeon said and I glanced over my shoulder as a shroud of light blue enveloped the older man and lifted him to his feet.

"Oh dear," he muttered. "That's going to cost a lot to fix."

"They already got what they came for," Doug was mumbling.

"What did they mean?" I asked him.

"They took something of mine," the man sighed and Doug and I looked over at him. When he didn't say anything further, Doug let out his breath.

"What did they take?" He shouted at the old man.

"I'm certainly not telling you," the man said as I walked behind him and untied his hands. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," I said as I walked back out in front of him. "But you can tell us, we're here to help."

"He's one of them," he nodded towards Doug who was still completely clad in his Team Rocket uniform.

I looked over to Doug, then I grabbed the man's arm and pulled him towards me. "You can tell me," I whispered. "I came here to rescue Ashley."

"You must be the scrawny girl she was constantly talking about," the man chuckled and I furrowed my brow.

"I am not scrawny!" I shouted.

'Rowan, relevance,' Espeon chided me.

"Look, if you're worried that he'll overhear," I waved to Doug, he looked upwards in annoyance, "you can just think what they took and my Pokémon can retrieve it from your mind," I waved towards Espeon. The man looked over at her as she sat down and nodded.

'Got it,' Espeon said, leaping up onto the desk to get a better view of the gaping hole.

"Thank you," I smiled.

He nodded and I turned to tell Doug we could leave. He wasn't standing near me. I turned in a full circle until I finally spotted him leaning out over the hole. "What are you doing?" I hissed.

He glanced over his shoulder at me, he was scowling. "I'm looking, don't get your panties in a knot."

"Can we leave?" I asked, planting my hands on my hips. "We have to get to the Lake of Rage."

Espeon's laugh sounded in my mind. 'You tell him Rowan, take charge.'

"Thanks," Doug muttered as the nurse handed a plate of food to he and I. I smiled up at her before she turned and headed away from us. "How's your hand?" he asked me.

I glanced over at my right hand, it still throbbed. "It's fine," I said to him, then laughed to myself. "I've never hit anyone before."

"And you wouldn't have had to if you had trusted me," Doug snapped, glaring across the table at me. "And we probably would have gotten your dumb friend back too, successfully."

"Trust you?" My voice immediately rocketed up three octaves and grew in volume.

'Rowan, inside voice,' Espeon hissed. 'This is no one's else business but your own.'

I glanced at her, acknowledging she was most definitely right with a nod of my head. I let my breath out slowly as I looked back over to Doug, he was still glaring at me. "If you want me to trust-"

He interrupted me. "You need to trust me if you want to stop Team Rocket."

"Okay," I sighed with a roll of my eyes. "Since I need to trust you, you need to be straightforward with me."

"About what?" Doug muttered through a mouthful of food.

'That's attractive,' Espeon sighed.

"I was thinking the same thing," I remarked sarcastically to her before clearing my throat to readdress my original point. "You're part of Team Rocket."

"No," Doug shook his head.

I waited a moment longer, but Doug said nothing else. "This is when you explain how every Rocket member we crossed in that building you knew."

Doug shrugged as he shoved another forkful of food into his mouth.

"Fine," I snapped, shoving myself out of the booth I was sitting in, giving Doug a smart-ass and nonchalant laugh. "I'll just do it on my own. It was my plan after all to get to Mahogany Town tonight, not stay in Goldenrod."

Doug threw himself across his seat and grabbed my arm. "You can't do it on your own," he said.

"Watch me," I spat, yanking my arm out of his grasp.

Doug let out his breath as I stood there glaring at him with the most detestable look I could muster up. "Sit down please," he finally sighed.

His soft and slightly gentle tone surprised me, so I slowly slid back down into the booth. "You going to tell me then?" I asked him.

Doug looked away from me and out the window. The sun had almost dipped below the horizon, throwing its final rays through the window. "I was a Rocket," he said lowly, looking over at me now. "Was," he emphasized.

"Was," I said to show that I believed him.

"Don't mock me," he hissed. My plan had backfired.

"I wasn't," I muttered.

He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice catching the soft tone again. "Just don't say anything until I'm done."

"Even if I have a question to ask?" I inquired of him. He shot me a look and I frowned. "I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"A little less than a year ago," Doug began, I felt like I was about to get his entire life story. "I left New Bark Town."

New Bark? He was from New Bark? Why didn't I remember him?

"No, you wouldn't have known me," he said. "I didn't attend your school, I was home-schooled."

"Oh," I muttered.

"I was sheltered," he laughed to himself. "I didn't know anything about the Pokémon Gym Challenge, or the Elite Four, or Team Rocket," he looked over to me, I met his stare. He cleared his throat. "The information I did know about Pokémon was very limited, only what my father wanted me to know."

"Who is your-"

"I'm getting to that," he held his hand up to stop me.

'Patience Rowan,' Espeon muttered, looking away from the window to look over at me.

Doug let out his breath. "A few weeks before the first group of older trainers were about to leave, I found out about the entire Pokémon Trainer to Master Challenge. I found out what my father actually did."

"Doug," I slowly said as a thought formed in my mind.

"He forbade me to even think about going," Doug hissed, his hand clenching into a tight fist. He looked towards the window, all the muscles along his jaw were ground taut. "Asshole, he doesn't have any favorites."

I was right. How had I not seen it before? "Doug?"

He looked over at me, a dark look across his face.

"What is your last name?"

Doug let out his breath as he looked back out the window. His Umbreon, like my Espeon, was staring out into the now dark streets of Goldenrod. "Evergreen," he whispered, then looked over at me. "Douglas Evergreen," he hissed.

"How did I not see the similarities before?" I muttered, tilting my head to the side as I looked at him.

'It is rather uncanny,' Espeon cocked her head as she looked at Doug with a curious stare.

Doug was nodding. "Yea, he's my old man."

"And he doesn't trust you at all," I said.

"Why should he?" Doug asked me with a sarcastic laugh. "I mean, with what I did and all."

"What do you mean?"

Doug let out his breath. "Professor Evergreen doesn't have favorites, I'm his son. I of all people know," he said. "When I told him that I wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer, he was so livid," he explained, looking away from me again. "But I wanted to go."

'Feraligatr,' I thought.

'He got it from Professor Evergreen,' Espeon replied.

I looked at her and shook my head. 'Not quite.'

"Whoever got Totodile," Doug muttered, "of that first group of trainers, was at a severe disadvantage."

I stared at him.

"Because Professor Evergreen only trained it for a few weeks before giving it off to the trainer who wanted it," he muttered and shook his head. "Because I stole the first one."

'What that Rocket said,' Espeon murmured.

I nodded. "The first Pokémon you stole, Team Rocket didn't even ask you to steal."

Doug looked at me. "Yup," he agreed. "I ran into them pretty quickly once I left New Bark. My dad had put my name out there for authorities without hesitation."

"And?" I prodded.

"The Rockets found me, thought they could turn me in for some money," he said, then shrugged. "Then they realized my," he hesitated a moment, "my talents, could be used to further their gang."

"And you became a Rocket," I said. Doug nodded in agreement.

"Six months," he said. "For six months I was a member of Team Rocket," he explained. "Stole so many Pokémon for them, from good trainers. And I gave them to Team Rocket," he sounded angry now. "I had to leave, and I had to vow I would do whatever I could to reinstate myself as a legitimate Pokémon Trainer."

"The authorities have already forgotten about you?" I asked.

He shrugged. "They're more concerned with the current person stealing Pokémon," he replied.

"Pokémon," I said and he looked over at me with an eyebrow arched. "It's a Pokémon stealing the other Pokémon."

"And who do you think is commanding that Pokémon?" Doug asked.

"Oh," I whispered. "I didn't think about that part."

Author's Notes: Chapter Twenty-Five: I would like to share something with you guys. (: This is a segment from a private message sent to me from psykokwak54, here goes:

~-~My original review started off by saying how Doug seemed like an anti-hero because he "is (or maybe was, we don't know that yet) a member of Team Rocket who may or may not be stealing abused Pokemon and then releasing them to be found by more compassionate trainers. He also has an Umbreon, which seems kinda weird for Team Rocket, because they care more about stealing Pokemon than becoming friends with them, and as we've seen a trainer has to be very friendly with his/her Eevee to have a chance of it evolving into Umbreon." Then it hit me, and I had to rush back into the story to find it (yes, it is 3 am my time, but I got really excited about this). There it was in Chapter 3, staring me right in the face, and it had slipped under my nose throughout our back-and- forth about Doug: '"He [Professor Evergreen] bought one of our Eevees one time. Gave it to his youngest child I believe, he loved it, it loved him."'~-~

She figured it out before I even posted this chapter, I am so proud of her and glad that my little hint at the beginning of the story didn't go unnoticed! I felt so witty when I typed it up! So yes! Doug is solved for the most part, hooray!

Thanks again to: Delu, psykokwak54, FunTerry and hey-hi-oh! I'm glad that you guys like the story so much! :D

As I mentioned...last chapter? I believe, there will be MORE Team Rocket in Kanto. I guess the reason the Johto Region is so much battle, battle, battle and not a lot of training/pokemon-trainer interaction is because I was getting use to the genre and the writing style. So I promise that Kanto will be a lot more exciting as far as side stuff goes. It won't just be battle after battle after battle after battle. (:

As always, review/comment and subscribe!