Pokémon: Masters
Chapter Three – Masters of the Heart
Ash and James had been sent out to refill the canteens while Brock and the girls set up camp. After they found a stream and fill the canteens with water, they decided to rest before walking back to the other.
"James, why don't you say Jessie's your girlfriend?" Ash asked the older boy.
James sighed. "She just isn't, Ash," he replied. "We're just friends."
"But you two have been together longer than Misty and me," Ash commented. "Are you saying that since you meet her, you never wanted to be more than friends?"
James did not answer the question, but Ash knew the answer. "We should get back to camp," James replied.
"Sure," Ash sighed.
"As soon as Ash and James get back," Brock told the girls who had finished setting up camp, "we can eat dinner."
"Okay, Brock," Misty replied. Pikachu and Meowth where busy playing poker with Charizard, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur.
"Read 'em and weep," Meowth beamed. "Full house."
When Pikachu, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur threw their cards down on the tree stump they were using as a table, Meowth greedily reached to grab the pot until Charizard showed his cards with a huge grin.
"What?!" Meowth screamed. "A royal flush!"
"Bulbasaur (I'm broke)" Bulbasaur sighed.
"Squirtle," Squirtle agreed.
"Pi pikapi (I want my money back)" Pikachu replied as he shuffled the deck.
"Me too," Meowth said as he glared at the dragon who was counting his chips.
"(Think I'll cash in now)" he roared as he left the table.
"Hey, come back here with my money," Meowth yelled as Charizard disappeared into his pokéball.
"Pi cha ka," Pikachu said as he shook the pokéball furiously. Hearing something like a raspberry, both pokémon gave up.
Misty laughed at the scene of the two pokémon wondering to join Squirtle and Bulbasaur who were playing with Togepi. She looked over at Jessie who was watching the sunset.
"So, how often does James take you out," Misty asked. It had been a while since her and Ash had chance for a date, and she wanted to know if this was unusual.
"Oh," Jessie sighed with a blush, "me and James don't date."
Hearing this, Meowth started laughed. "You two do make such a cute couple, though," he replied.
"Who asked you?" Jessie yelled back.
Misty laughed nervously at this response. "Sorry," she said, "I just thought that…"
"Please," Jessie interrupted. "Me and James."
"That's what Ash and Misty used to say," Brock said from where he was cooking dinner.
This time both Misty and Jessie blushed. Jessie was about to respond to this challenge when James and Ash appeared with the canteens.
"Sorry it took so long," Ash said as he sat next to Misty. "The stream was further away than we thought."
"We would've gotten back sooner," James grumbled as he sat on the ground across from Jessie, "if Ash hadn't gotten us lost."
Misty laughed. "I guess some things never change," she said as Ash blushed from embarrassment.
Jessie sighed as she watched the couple begin a petty argument. It seemed more from play than anything serious, and it reminded her of her own feeling for the boy next to her.
James, on the other hand, was ignoring them all together. He was too busy staring at Jessie. Ever since they had first met at pokémon Tech, they had been close friends, but when they started working together in Team Rocket, he began to notice something strange about his friend. She is so beautiful, he thought.
The two couples were interrupted when Brock announced that dinner was ready. Ash and Misty stopped their fighting and grabbed some food. Jessie and James followed after them still thinking about each other.
Shane Rocket looked out the eleventh floor window of the Silph Co. headquarters in Saffron. He reflected back at the many years that he had spent learning how to replace his father but never dreamed it would be so soon. A knock at the door broke his mediation.
"Enter," he said.
"Mr. Rocket," a minor executive greeted as he came into the office, "I have here the lab reports you requested."
Shane never turned away from the window. "Leave them on desk and return to your duties," he replied emotionlessly.
"Yes, sir."
When Shane heard the door closed, he looked back out the window. The sun was sinking beneath the horizon ending the day.
Soon will come the night, Shane thought as the twilight's glow lingered. The cold night.
Butch and Cassidy were waiting by a videophone impatiently.
"The little twerp should've called by now," Butch grumbled.
Cassidy did not reply. She was too busy thinking about the new pokémon that they were given since their old ones where still in police custody.
The phones ringing startled both teens, but Cassidy composed herself before she answered. "Hello?"
The videoscreen came on revealing Jake Rocket. "I got your first assignment," he told them. "You are going to Viridian City and battle for control of the gym."
"Right, boss," Cassidy replied.
"Don't screw this up," Jake warned them.
Butch and Cassidy both gulped. This kid may be younger than they, but he had all the power.
They let out a sigh of relief when the monitor went blank.
"Guess, we're on the road to Viridian City," Butch sighed.
"Come on," Cassidy replied. "Let's get going."
"Your pokémon will be ready in about an hour," Nurse Joy told the trainers.
"Thank you," Brock said a he stared at her.
"Snap out of it," Jessie yelled as she brought her mallet on his head.
"Thank you very much, Jessie," Ash replied as he lifted the now unconscious Brock up. "I don't know whose worst, you or Misty."
Both girls glared at him, but he held Brock up as a shield.
"Hurry up, Ash," James called trying to save his friend. "We need to sign up for the match."
Misty looked over at Ash. "Your not really going to be a gym leader are you?"
Ash laughed. "No," he said as he followed James out the door. "What's being a gym leader compared to being a Pokémon Master?"
Misty glared at him again. "Bet you couldn't even do that job right," she called.
They were only a few trainers at the sign up booth for the matches. This was due to the fact that they had to pass a written test in order to compete. James lucked out since he picked up a few things from working with Giovanni and placed high enough to enter.
While James stood in line to register, Ash looked over the rest of the test results. He then noticed who placed above all the rest.
"How ya doin', Ash?" a familiar voice said from behind him.
"What are you up to, AJ?" Ash said before he turned around.
When Ash turned around, he saw that AJ's Sandshrew had evolved into a Sandslash. "Just trying out to be the gym leader here," he replied. "I figured I be the best for the job especially since I have over five hundred victories."
Ash's mouth dropped when he heard this. "Over five hundred?"
AJ shrugged. "I lost count past 532," he replied.
Ash shook his head. "You're incredible, AJ," he sighed.
James came running back from the table to join the Ash. "I got a match in a few hours," he told him. "Oh, hello," he said when he noticed AJ. "Have we met before?"
"Sure you have," Ash replied. "This is AJ, the guy who had the 'unofficial' gym."
James thought for a moment then remembered what Ash was talking about. "Right the guy who really bet Pikachu," he said.
Ash growled at him, and AJ laughed. "Yep," he said with a smile. "That was me and good ole Sandslash here."
"Sandslash," the pokémon said as his trainer rubbed his head.
"Let's go get Jessie and the others," James said as he pulled on Ash's sleeve. "I want her… uh, I mean, them to see me at my first match."
Ash and AJ both laughed at James's slip up. "Someone has a crush," AJ laughed.
"We're just friends," James sighed.
"Please," Ash replied as he tried to stop laughing. "But you're right. Besides, I promised Misty I would take her out for lunch."
AJ blinked at his old friend. "You and the red-head got together?"
"Yeah," James replied. "They're quiet sickening about it too."
"At least we don't try to hid it," Ash snapped back. James just laughed nervously at this.
"See you guys later," AJ said as Ash and James headed back to the Pokémon Center.
"I'll sign up," Cassidy told Butch, "since I passed the written test."
Butch murmured something under his breath. Even with cheating, he still failed the test.
After registering, Cassidy looked at the schedule. "My first match is tomorrow morning," she said when she saw her name.
"Good," Butch replied. "That give us all night to rig the ring."
Cassidy laughed. "No way I'm losing this."
Misty and Ash had spent about fifteen minutes staring at each other before they ordered at the diner.
While waiting for their order to arrive, Ash asked, "What do you think about Jessie and James?"
Misty laughed. "They deserve each other," she replied.
"Now if we could only get them to admit that," Ash agreed.
"That's the hard part," Misty sighed
Ash nodded in agreement when they're food arrived. "Oh, I ran into AJ today," Ash told her as she began eating her meal.
"Is he here to compete for the gym?" she asked between bites.
"Yeah," Ash replied. "I feel sorry for James."
Misty laughed. "You're right."
James was down to his Wheezing, but his opponent only had a Pidgey left.
"Wheezing, sludge attack," James called.
"Wheezing," the pokémon replied as the black goo fell on the Pidgey, sending it to the ground.
The referee raised the red flag. "Pidgey is out, match goes to Wheezing and James."
James jumped around the arena. "I won, I won!"
While Jessie went up to congratulate him, Ash, Misty, and Brock began to scheme on how to get the two together.