Chapter 4
"Prepare For Trouble"
Team Rocket…I'd never thought I would end up wearing their uniform…and actually being part of their team. It was like a nightmare come true…Maybe even worse.
"Okay, Ash. Have you ever worn a disguise before?" Billie asked.
I thought back…
Well…there was that time that……
* * *
"What do you mean, you won't let me in!?" I asked. They were an official gym! They couldn't just kick me out!
"You wouldn't want to come in here anyway!" replied the girl who had just kicked me out, "In this gym, we don't just train Pokémon, we also manufacture that 'yucky' perfume that you hate so much!"
"What!? You make that stuff!?"
"Yes. And we don't allow anyone in here who doesn't appreciate our perfume. Good bye!"
With that, she promptly stamped an "X" on my face and shoved me out of the doorway.
…I needed to find a way in there, or else I couldn't win my Rainbow Badge. I kept walking around to see if there might be another way in. That's when I saw none other than Jessie, James, and Meowth hanging in a tree. Jessie told me that she knew a way that I could get in there. I really hadn't wanted to cooperate with them, but I didn't have a choice. I needed to get that badge…
…They put me in a dress.
* * *
"…Yeah…but it wasn't a very good one…" I said.
"……We're going to have to get you a really good one. You're gonna need a different name, too."
"What!?"
"…You mean you don't know?" she asked in surprise.
"Don't know what?" I asked.
"My gosh! Ash! You're famous!"
I raised an eyebrow. "You didn't recognize me."
"You had glue stuck all over you."
"But they cut me out!"
"Still, you had to wash to get it all out of your hair and stuff, didn't you?"
"……Yeah."
"See? People will recognize you, Ash! They've got your picture all over the news! You're a missing person! Everyone wants to find you!"
Everyone…? They're looking for me?…Wow…
"…Really?" I asked redundantly.
"Yeah," she said in exasperation, "Geez. You need to get out more."
I flushed slightly. She was right. I had spent all of last afternoon, last night, and this morning trapped in a straightjacket of super glue.
"…So…What disguise did you have in mind?"
"Um…Well……You're gonna need a wig…"
"A wig?" Last time, my wig hadn't worked out too well…
"And, uh……Basically a complete makeover. A different voice wouldn't hurt either. Anyone who's watched the Pokémon League tournament this year knows what you sound like."
"Not another voice…" I groaned. I was terrible at voices. I always forgot and slipped back into my regular voice.
"Um…Either that…or……We just won't go out on any missions until everyone thinks that you're dead."
"What?"
She shrugged. "When someone's been missing for a certain number of days, they assume that they're dead."
"…I don't want that to happen…"
"Then you get a disguise! Come on. Let's go pick one out."
"U-h! I get to be a boy, right?"
She gave me a quizzical look. "Duh!"
* * *
The guy in the mirror did not look like me.
"…I don't like it," I said finally.
"Huh? Why not?" asked Billie.
"Well…It's just…not me," I said.
She bonked me on the head. "Of course not, you dummy! That's the whole point!"
"Ow…" I said, rubbing my head, "You didn't have to hit me…"
"Talk back again and I'll smack you!"
……Are all girls this violent…? I wondered.
"…So what's your name gonna be?"
"Huh?"
"Your name! You can't just go around telling everyone that you're Ash Ketchum! They'll turn you in to the police for sure!"
That wouldn't be all that bad…They could help me get my Pokémon back.
"Um…"
I needed a name………What could I use? Not Ash…Something else………What about…?
"Uh……How about……Tom Ato?" I grinned nervously. At least if we saw Misty or Brock, they would recognize that name…
"Tom…Ato?" she asked skeptically.
"Uh-huh!" I nodded vigorously.
"Ehh……I guess it could work…"
Yes! I congratulated myself for my cunning.
"Okay…Tom……Let's go steal some Pokémon."
I blanched. I really didn't want to steal anyone's Pokémon…
"Uhh…Do we have to?" I asked.
"Yeah," she stated, "We're Team Rocket. That's what we do. It's our job."
"…Oh."
"Oh is right. Now let's go. There are Pokémon out there just waiting to be stolen!"
For some reason, I don't believe that…
"…Right."
* * *
I blinked at the sunlight. It had been a while since I'd been outside…even longer since I'd been outside without my hat. Billie wouldn't let me wear it, because one, it would help people recognize me, and two, it was an official Pokémon League hat, and Team Rocket was separate from the Pokémon League…At least, that's what Billie said. I guess she didn't know who was in charge of the Viridian Gym…
"All right, Ash, since you're new at this, I'll guide you through step by step. First of all, Team Rocket always takes the low roads. We can't be seen until we want to be seen. Next, when see a trainer, or a group of trainers, we figure out a way to get their Pokémon. Then we make our move!"
"…That's it?"
"………Oh yeah…"
"What?"
"Um……What do you think we should say for our motto?"
"Not that!" I groaned.
She flushed. "Well, every other Team Rocket team has a motto! I don't see why we shouldn't!"
"Because mottos are dumb! They're the same thing every time, and they're a waste of time!"
She got angrier. "They are not! Mottos are part of the fun of being on Team Rocket! You were just jealous before, because you didn't have one! Now you can! Come on! We need a motto!"
I sighed. "Then you write it. Let me know when you're done."
"…Really?"
"Yeah."
"Oh……Okay!" She grinned. "I'll make it the best motto ever!"
That wouldn't be too hard…
"…Um…While you're doing that…What am I supposed to be doing?"
"Huh? Oh…You can look out for Pokémon trainers."
"…Okay."
We were sitting on a wooded hill above the path into Viridian City. The Spearows and Pidgeys in the trees around us chirped merrily. I kind of wished they would shut up. What I needed was a way to get my Pokémon back and get back to Indigo Plateau.
I sighed and scanned the path. No one was coming into Viridian City. All the good Pokémon trainers were at Indigo Plateau…Except me……
"Huh?"
Billie looked up. "What is it?"
It couldn't be…
"Someone's coming!" I whispered.
"Yes!" she hissed, "Now we get to try out our new motto!"
I should have smacked her.