Notes: Penultimate chapter! The last chapter itself is relatively short, so I'll probably have it up relatively soon.

16

Getting over heartbreak was something that Jessie had gotten very used to. It wasn't just regarding romance. She was used to all kinds of people leaving her life, from circumstance or just because they'd decided they were too good to be around her. She had the power to dismiss all of them, and live just for herself. She'd do the same with James - just forget him.

It was too bad that she hadn't had much to do to distract herself. "Have you got any missions for me?" she asked Meowth after tracking it down.

"Na, maybe later," Meowth said. It didn't even turn to look at her, just used a single claw to sort through some papers.

"You said that the last time," Jessie pointed out.

"Well, I've still got nothing," Meowth said, finally giving her some attention. "There's stuff for lone agents to do, but nothing that fits you lately!"

Lone, as in reminding her she was now alone. Why did that fact hurt her at all? It wasn't as if she hadn't been constantly alone before thinking she might have found something with James. She could handle it. More guys would be there in the future, better looking, more experienced, less depressed ones at that. She'd just have to wait for the perfect one to come along, then she'd never feel this badly again.

"Hey, something up?" Meowth asked, a hint of concern on its face.

"What?" Jessie purposefully frowned. Apparently, she'd been letting her feelings show. She just had to hide them until she was really over it.

"Um, okay." Meowth looked back down at its paperwork. "Oh, wait, it's that guy, isn't it? You've sure been pouty since then. You miss him, don't you?"

"Miss Jessie, I thought you said-" Mondo began, suddenly paying attention to their conversation from the other corner of the room.

"It's nothing!" Jessie shouted. "If you two have time to be so nosy, you'd be better off spending it thinking up something where I can impress the boss."

"Oh, I forgot about the job today," Mondo said. "The team is providing an excellent barbecue for everyone before everyone leaves. That must be now! Let's get some."

Mondo ran out before waiting for them. Jessie wasn't sure she felt like a crowd, but she hadn't had any kind of meal that day, and maybe hadn't been eating much recently in general. For the food or maybe just out of boredom, she decided to head out when Meowth did.

Everyone seemed really busy that day. Jessie passed several agents in the hall, and once she'd gotten outside, many more were there for the festive food. Going to get some of her own, she caught sight of Cassidy's partner. She'd already passed Cassidy herself in the hall, but would rather avoid the guy as well, so she ducked away from him, waiting before approaching the table. Once she'd gotten her food, she tried to find an open spot, but it looked like the only ones were nearby him. Jessie paused before going there, still not wanting to deal with unneeded animosity.

"What's so interesting about a bottlecap?" Cassidy's partner asked.

"Wait!" the man across from him, just out of Jessie's view, called. "Be more careful when you open it."

"How else are you supposed to open it?"

The other man grabbed the bottle. "Like this, just push."

The bottlecap flew up, the other man taking it from the table. "See! Some of these kind of bottlecaps have a design underneath. Yours is unique from mine. Do you see the secret pokemon design?"

"Huh. Never noticed."

"These are special editions. Here, you take yours."

"No, forget it." Cassidy's partner backed away, giving a clear view of who he was talking to.

"You mean I can have it?" James said, looking down at the trash in his hand with a happy expression. "Thank you!"

She'd known it was him before she saw him, though she was hesitant to believe it. James had been overly reverent when opening these kinds of bottles around her as well. Jessie stared at him, momentarily at a loss for what to do. He looked different, much happier than the last time she'd seen him. His hair was cut, thought still relatively long for a man, hanging a few inches higher than usual. He also wore black instead of the off-white uniform he'd made before, but it was certainly him. Seeing him in such good spirits relieved her at the same time as drudging up feelings she'd been trying to forget.

"Hey, it's James," Meowth said from near Jessie's feet. "Let's sit there."

Before it could open its mouth and draw attention to them, Jessie grabbed it and dragged it. "Hey! You made me spill some of my lunch!" Meowth complained once Jessie got him near back.

"You didn't tell me he was back," Jessie said.

"Didn't think you'd want to hear it," Meowth said. "Yeah, I heard he came back a while ago. Don't know the reason."

Did she want to hear it? Not outside of certain contexts, but it still would have been nice to get a heads up before running into him. Jessie peered back his way, seeing others were still hiding her from his view, and vice-versa.

"Are you ready, boys?" Cassidy walked up to the two of them.

"We're still eating," her partner said.

"Well, hurry up. We can't lounge around all day," Cassidy chided.

"We'll be right there," James assured.

Why was he going with her? Jessie ignored the irritation of the implications and tried to find the answer. "What's Cassidy got going on?" she asked Meowth.

"Oh yeah. She thinks she can upstage our heist." Meowth frowned. "She's going right for that fancy pokeball shop in Viridian."

"Isn't there tons of security? Not to mention all the cops nearby?"

"Yeah. She said she has a plan for all of that or something," Meowth said, stirring its chip in the dip as it frowned. "I could think of a good plan too, you know."

"Why don't you, then," Jessie groused.

"Hey, I'm trying here! Seems like things are getting a little overcrowded over here. Every time I think of something good, someone else goes there and tries something nearby first."

"You sure have a lot of excuses." Jessie stood up, feeling irritated at Meowth's lack of direction, as well as just irritated in general.

"Jessie!"

Jessie caught sight of James as he exclaimed her name. Well, she didn't want to blow him off or anything. Jessie walked over, arms folded, as James and that other guy threw away their trash. "You decided not to stay home?" she said.

"Yes. I made a decision on my own," James declared.

He'd just get upset when his parents got angry at him, but he was acting happy about it, like he'd accomplished something. It was the same old, same old, wasn't it? "So you haven't resigned from Team Rocket yet?" she asked.

"Resigned?" Cassidy's partner interrupted, putting his arm around James with a creepy grin. "Why should he do that? This guy's pretty useful, you know?"

"Lay off him," Jessie snapped, giving the man a shove to move him away from James.

"No, it's okay. We're friends now," James assured.

"Friends?" Jessie repeated, her eyes darting from one man to the other. It seemed like James was being mocked or teased, but it was hard to tell with Cassidy and her stupid partner.

"Yeah, sure. Something like that," the other man said. He nudged James. "Let's go get seconds, then we should hurry out."

Cassidy's partner wandered off. James lagged behind, turning his gaze to Jessie.

"Are you sure you should trust him?" Jessie asked.

James smirked. "For the most part. I'm making a plan for what I can do for myself. I'll own it."

"It sounds like he thought you were a tool for them," Jessie pointed out.

James shrugged. "Well, I can't do everything on my own. I can do them favors in exchange for help."

"What kind of favors? What are you up to here, anyway? Aren't you making your parents worry?"

James shook his head, a calm smile appearing on his face. He pat Jessie's shoulder then spoke in reassuring tone. "You don't have to worry about me anymore, Jessie." He turned, located the annoying guy he was apparently currently working with, and walked away.

James had seemed as pleased as punch to inform her of that, but it only left Jessie feeling empty. Besides, she didn't trust Cassidy at all, even if James had decided to. She went into base, looking for the one who could answer her questions.

She quickly found her target near the door. "Hey, Cassidy," she snapped, interrupting the other woman's conversation with Mondo.

Cassidy quietly sighed, touching her forehead before she let out a breath. "What is it, Jessie?" she asked.

"What are you up to with James, anyway?"

Cassidy chortled. "Jealousy is never a good look," she said.

"That's not what this is about. I just don't want you taking advantage of him being new and sending him out to do something stupid."

"James is a perfectly competent agent who understands risks," Cassidy said plainly. "I don't really have time for this." She turned her back. "Mondo-"

Cassidy was only going to turn her nose up as usual, Jessie realized. Between that and not fueling whatever fantasies Mondo had from listening to them, Jessie decided there was no point in staying there. That didn't mean she was going to stand by and let whatever went down go down.

Going along with the large group, Jessie soon figured out that James and his two new compatriots weren't among them. Losing them was simple enough, and thankfully they were relatively close to Viridian. According to Meowth, that was where Cassidy had planned to go, wasn't it?

It took the rest of the day to reach it. Jessie slept nearby the city. Then once she went in, she got lost looking for the shop. She'd been by it before, but never went in. It had to be somewhere nearby.

There. Jessie walked into the desired store in her uniform, not wanting to waste time by changing into plainclothes. "Welcome!" a clerk chirped cheerfully as she entered. Jessie ignored the greeting, taking an inventory of everyone there. There was no one there who might be anyone from Team Rocket, Jessie asserted after a thorough scan. There was just a really old guy and some lady with big hair and two kids. Neither was likely associated.

Who said James and the other two were going here for sure? Jessie started to feel silly for rushing over this way, and relaxed as she browsed around. Pokeballs really were expensive, especially for an agent like her who hadn't quite struck it rich in Team Rocket yet. It might be nice to have one just in case she ran into a useful pokemon she could battle and catch, but budget-wise, she probably shouldn't at that point, especially not from this place.

"Excuse me, Miss?" Jessie turned to the person who had spoken to her. It was a uniformed employee of the store, who looked from the logo on Jessie's shirt back up to her face, unable to hide her apparent disgust. "What can I help you with?"

There was no one there she wanted to see and nothing she could buy, so she may as well not stick around for snobbery. "I thought this place was supposed to be classy," Jessie said. "I guess I was wrong," she added, turning around and heading out the door.

Just as she went by the bench not far from the door, a familiar annoying voice spoke to her. "Wow Jessie, you sure look obvious."

It was Cassidy's partner. Right next to him was Cassidy herself. "I didn't expect to see you here," she said. The two of them were dressed in plainclothes, casually reading magazines, which they pulled down from their face. "Did Meowth send you to try and get ahead of me?"

"I came on my own, none of your business why," Jessie replied. She couldn't help but notice James wasn't with them. "Did James go home?"

"James kept his promises to us. We need him as a distraction here. What we don't need is you as a harbinger, so I'd appreciate it if you'd head out." With that, Cassidy put the magazine back up over her face, and her partner looked away, making it obvious they were planning to end the conversation and default to ignoring.

That was just fine. Jessie decided she'd happily do the same, and continued on her way, looking carefully around for where James might be. She wouldn't trip them up, but she'd come here to make sure he was okay. What kind of 'distraction' could he be planning anyway?

Just as Jessie was about to give up looking, she heard the shout. "Attention! Attention!" Following everyone's line of sight, she finally found James, standing on the roof. Though it was far away, she saw he was back into his white uniform. But what was he doing up there, besides precariously leaning down? "Attention Viridian City!" he shouted into a bullhorn. "My name is James. Team Rocket is here. Who knows what we're up to."

Jessie tore toward the building as fast as she could go. James kept speaking on the megaphone, ranting about Team Rocket's ideals and bright future and repeatedly introducing himself by name. Jessie found the entrance to the building he was in. The door opened easily enough, though the inside was falling apart. Obviously no one had been in there for a while. "Ekans, go!" Jessie shouted, releasing her pokemon in case any strays had made the place a home. "We're going up," she instructed. The pokemon hissed in understanding, and they started on their way.

Jessie swiped past the cobwebs, then realized she could see some subtle footprints in the thick dust. Getting out a light, she followed them to the door that led to the very top. "Hey!" she shouted to get James's attention when she opened the door.

James turned her way, at first seeming surprised before his expression changed to almost anger. He clicked off the megaphone and turned her way. "You shouldn't be here," he declared.

"Why not?" Jessie asked.

"For the plan. This part is only for me."

"It's a pretty dumb plan. Don't you know the cops are probably on their way?"

"That's the plan." James clicked back on the megaphone and turned to the outside. "Team Rocket is about to show force! You'd all better step back."

Random terroristic threats, really? What was something like this supposed to accomplish?

"That includes you, Jessie," James said, megaphone off, not even turning around.

"I don't know why they convinced you this was a good idea. Let's leave, I'll give them a piece of my mind later."

"It's fine," James said. "This is the choice I've made. If you run now, you'll be able to make it out."

"Hey, what are you saying?" Jessie demanded. James had put on the megaphone and now turned it off. "What's going to happen here?"

"It's something I've been planning for a while, to rid myself of all burdens. With this, I'll finally be free from everything," James said.

"That's enough of that!" Jessie shouted. Anger overtook any previous anxiety as she ran over and dragged James by the arm away from the edge. He shouted as he fell to the ground, dropped his megaphone which cracked on the ground. Jessie continued to berate him. "Stop being an idiot! This isn't an answer to anything! You want to make your parents cry again? You want to make me cry?"

James finally turned his gaze to her, a look of surprise and longing on his face. Jessie felt her heart rate increase, but it was no time at all for making eyes at each other. Jessie pulled him to his feet. "We're leaving now, before the police get here, if they aren't already," she declared.

"Wait! I have to stay, otherwise I'll miss my chance," James whined.

"Shut up and let's go," Jessie tugged him along.

Ekans hissed as it made its way out into the open, another pokemon hidden in the shadows.

"Mr. Mime! Hurry!" James shouted.

Now it was James that led her, pulling her next to the door to the stairs. The both of them along with the pokemon stayed by the wall. James hugged Jessie, leaning them against it as there was a loud explosion. Jessie shut her eyes, opening them to see Mr. Mime's shiny barrier attack in front of them, smoke everywhere, though the pokemon's technique had proetected the humans along with most of the building itself. James sighed in relief. "Thank goodness, you're alright."

"Me? Weren't you worried about yourself?! I'm sick of this kind of crap from you!" Jessie pushed James away.

"You don't understand," James said. "It's not what you think."

"So what were you doing then?"

"I was standing up on my own. I told my parents I was going to leave and find my own way, but of course they didn't listen. They absolutely didn't plan on letting me do as I wish, so I was trying to fake my own death. They'd likely know I was fine, but it would deter any officials, maybe others helping them find me."

So that was it. Jessie calmed somewhat. Maybe she'd been kind of rash to consider the worst, but she couldn't help it considered what she'd witnessed from him before.

"I'm sorry," James lamented. "I didn't mean for you to be dragged into helping me again. I didn't want to be a burden to you."

"It sure was a pain in the ass," Jessie said, standing up and brushing herself off. "I had nothing better to do, anyway."

James also stood, smiling at her. "I am glad to see you again... And I'm sorry."

"You can stop saying that. What are you so sorry for, anyway?" Though feeling somewhat better, Jessie still was drained from running around along with the whole thinking he was going to off himself again, and wasn't too interested in his self-depreciating apologies.

"I understand what you were saying before. Since you knew everything that happened to me, I wanted you to tell me to do what I wanted to do. I shouldn't have put that on you. I should have been able to stand on my own to do it. But now I am... I have been." With that, James grabbed her hand, looking into her eyes. For real? Jessie had thought her feelings for him had gone, or at least that she'd be able to summon enough anger here to not be reminded of them, but here she was, loving his attention again.

A squeak interrupted the moment. Coming in from the back door was Cassidy and her partner again. Cassidy sighed, putting a hand to her head. "Now we can see up close how this plan has really gone awry," she complained.

A loud crashing sound, this time from the front of the building, interrupted them again.

"Let's get out of here," Cassidy's partner said. As the agents went in the building and down the stairs, he threw out a pokeball. "Koffing, smoke screen!"

Jessie squeezed James's hand as the smoke filled the area. Even though they were on the run, she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief as they went out the backdoor and ran into the clear air. Despite the situation and even knowing it might not last, she'd enjoy the fact he was there, next to her in the moment.