My Coney Island Baby

My Coney Island Baby

Part 2

by Spruceton Spook

"God, I hope Togepi is all right." Misty looked depressively at her feet as she, Ash, Brock, and Mrs. Ketchum walked swiftly down the Coney Island Boardwalk. She couldn't get Togepi off her mind, and it was beginning to worry her more than the fact that they had just been transported 52 years into the past.

"Don't worry about it, Misty," Ash replied. "He's with Pikachu. Besides, they're probably still asleep right now."

Misty smiled. "I guess you're right. I still can't help but worry, though."

The four walked abreast each other. They had been walking for only a short while, but Ash was becoming impatient. He looked up in awe at all the sights of Coney Island, and he couldn't believe the amount of rides that were crammed into the tiniest corners of the park. It didn't help much either that he hadn't seen so many people in one place in his entire life, making Coney Island stuffy and crowded, but nonetheless thrilling. The attire of those around them still confused him, and he often felt awkward when others would stare at his "unusual" t-shirt and jeans.

"Wow, look at that!" Brock suddenly exclaimed, pointing at a hot dog stand. Above the heads of three attendants and a mob of customers hung the prices of the food. "Five cents for a hot dog?!"

Ash laughed. "This meal's on me!" he exclaimed insanely.

"What, you guys want hot dogs?" Mrs. Ketchum asked, rummaging for change in her pockets. "These are the best in the world, I assure you!"

"Well, in that case, sure!" Misty replied happily. "I just got finished eating one, but I was gonna have seconds anyway." She shrugged and laughed.

They finally reached the head of the line, and the vender joyfully flipped four bright-red hot dogs, which were about a half-a-foot long, onto perfectly grilled buns. He handed one to each of them, and Mrs. Ketchum handed the man four nickels. Ash was the first to bite down zestfully into his hot dog, which he noticed had the most delicious and distinguished hot dog taste he had ever encountered.

"This was the birth-place of the hot dog, ya know," Mrs. Ketchum said, afterwards taking a bite from her hot dog.

Brock smiled surprisingly. "I didn't know that," he replied, shaking his head.

As they stood around eating their hot dogs, Team Rocket froze dead in their tracks about ten feet behind him. Jessie's jaw dropped when she spotted them, which was not very hard considering their contrasted appearance. James and Meowth couldn't believe their eyes, either. James almost dropped the cotton candy that was holding in his hands. He purchased it as soon as he saw that it cost two cents, which Jessie called an unsurpassable steal.

"I can't believe it!" said Jessie. "It's the twerps!"

"How'd dey get here?" Meowth exclaimed.

James blinked. "They must have been teleported, too! They . . .they probably don't know we're here, either."

Jessie regained her nerves, and she stood up straight. Her face appeared to be in conflict, and she licked her lips fixedly. "I hate to say this, believe me, you have no idea how much . . . but I think we should stick by them. You know, just in case they know of a way to get back."

"Doesn't sound like a bad idea to me, Jess," James replied, taking a huge, sticky bite of his cotton candy. "This place freaks me out."

Jessie's eyes narrowed. "Oh please! You practically had a conniption fit when you saw the merry-go-round."

"There is nothing wrong with liking merry-go-rounds!" James shot back angrily. He suddenly calmed down, a look of discomfiture spreading over his face. "I just hate all these people staring at me."

"Believe me, they stare back home, too," Meowth put in. He looked over to where the twerps were standing to notice that they begun to walk again.

"Hey, they're leavin'!" Meowth said, pointing.

"Quickly, before we lose them!" added Jessie, and Team Rocket started off in their direction.

"Where are we going, Ma?" Ash asked, excitement practically exploding from him. He was walking backwards facing them, hopping around and occasionally glancing over his shoulder as to not bump into anyone.

Mrs. Ketchum grinned mischievously down at him. "I know exactly where we're going," she replied. "I'm gonna take you on the first ride I ever went on here."

She led them off the boardwalk, and all of a sudden the number of people drastically doubled. Ash, Misty, and Brock could only see the few tops of rides over the heads of the unruly crowds of people. About three dozen kids seemed to have had collided into Brock during the time it took them to get from the boardwalk to the Wonder Wheel, which to him felt like forever.

"Oh my God," Misty murmured when they finally reached the massive Ferris wheel. "This is the biggest Ferris wheel I've ever seen!"

"Not quite the biggest," Mrs. Ketchum corrected, looking up admiringly at the slow moving Ferris wheel that was built in 1920. "But. . . pretty big!"

Ash looked up at the Wonder Wheel, noticing that it had two different kinds of carts. One kind was stationary, which went the highest but never moved. The other kind were swaying carts, which rolled on tracks forward and backward, depending on what position of the Wonder Wheel you happened to be. He had seen pictures of the Wonder Wheel before and heard his mom talking about it constantly, but it didn't add up to what it was actually like being there.

"Let's get on," Brock said. "There are a lot of folks heading this way."

The ride cost a mere ten cents, which shocked Ash, Misty, and Brock even more than the food prices. Mrs. Ketchum dug into her pockets for more change, but found only a quarter and a few dollar bills which she had happened to have stuffed into when she had been to the store earlier. Brock noticed when she looked disappointedly at the dollars, knowing that it would be a sort of small problem when it came to change refund.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Ketchum," he said, digging for his wallet. "This one's on me. My treat."

"No, honey, you don't have to do that," smiled Mrs. Ketchum. "I have enough."

Brock insisted. "Listen, I'll pay for me and Misty. You used the quarter for you and Ash."

Misty looked at him and smiled. "Thanks Brock!" she said, playfully leaning her head on his shoulder. "You're the best!"

Brock smiled down at her and laughed, shoving her off in the same playful manner. "Don't rub it in, now!"

They made their way to the ticket booth of the Wonder Wheel, were the ticket agent took their change and handed them small pink ride tickets.

"Hold on to those with your life," Mrs. Ketchum whispered, grinning. "You won't believe their worth when we get back!"

Ash clenched his tightly, then stuffed it into the deepest part of his jeans pocket. When they reached the lines under the canopy, he immediately broke off in the direction of the swaying carts. Without an objection, Misty, Brock, and Mrs. Ketchum followed.

Behind them, Team Rocket had secretly purchased their tickets. Meowth was ready to claw the ticket agent to pieces when he was told that no Pokémon were permitted on the rides, but Jessie quickly clasped a hand over his mouth and whispered to him to stand by the exit and watch were the kids were heading if they got off before them. Meowth begrudgingly replied, and sauntered over the exit in a huff.

They watched Team Twerp carefully, making sure that they were not spotted. In an event like that, who knows what would happen. Either they would be thrilled to death to realize that they weren't alone, or they would immediately give away their identity. By this time, Team Rocket noticed that Pikachu was not with Ash, and it made it a lot easier to follow with an open mind.

Team Rocket saw their adversaries enter one of the carts, and got onto one of the lines. With the twerps out of their sight for now, they got excited again. James chose the swaying carts, which Jessie was not too thrilled about. She decided that it wouldn't be that bad, though. She never got sick on Ferris Wheels, so hopefully this wasn't going to be an exception.

Ash and Brock's hearts took a leap and Misty let out a small yelp as the cart made it's first swaying descent. They had almost reached the top when suddenly the cart dipped down and rolled swiftly to the other side of its small track, where it stopped then swung back. Ash had grabbed onto the cage surrounding the cart, and he, Misty, and Brock exchanged horrified but fun-filled glances at each other.

"That was, uh, really fast," Misty gasped, catching her breath. She was all smiles. "It doesn't look that fast from the ground."

"Whoa, look at the view!" exclaimed Brock, looking down at the world beneath them. "This is awesome."

"You can see the whole park!" Ash added, his eyes shooting towards the distance. A large building, which stood out amidst the various amusements, caught his attention. It looked almost like a warehouse, and was covered by large windows all around. Behind it stood the Parachute Jump, which his mother had pointed out when they first got there, and in front of it was a tremendous wooden roller coaster.

Ash's eyes lit up when he saw the roller coaster. Mrs. Ketchum had talked about Coney Island's famous big roller coasters all the time, but he wasn't sure of which one it was. As the cart made another swooping dip, Ash squinted his eyes at it. He could make out one of the cars reaching the top of the hill, then falling again to the earth.

"Mom, what roller coaster is that?" Ash asked, pointing. Misty and Brock raised their heads a little to see over the sides of the cart.

Mrs. Ketchum raised her head and squinted her eyes just as Ash had done. Ash saw her mouth suddenly fall in happy wonder and she smiled from ear to ear. She practically screamed but it came out in a loud whoop instead. "I can't believe it! It's the Steeplechase!"

"Steeplechase?" Ash asked, looking confoundingly at her. "You never mentioned a Steeplechase roller coaster."

"No, no, no! Not the roller coaster," Mrs. Ketchum replied with a small giggle. "That's the Thunderbolt. No, I'm talkin' about the building behind it. That's the Steeplechase!"

"What's the Steeplechase?" Brock asked.

"It's this huge indoor amusement park with the actual ride, Steeplechase, running all around it," Mrs. Ketchum explained, waving her hand around to depict the run-around of the ride. "Oh, God, Steeplechase is so cool. You ride on these little horses down bouncing tracks that go around the entire place."

Misty smiled. "Wow, sounds awesome. Were you ever on it?"

"It closed before I was born," said Mrs. Ketchum with a small laugh.

Ash looked at Steeplechase, but he didn't see any little horses on tracks. Perhaps they were too high up. "Can we head there next?"

His mother nodded. "You'd better believe it. I've dreamed of going on that ride all my life. And now I'm gonna do it!"

Below them, two carts down exactly, Jessie was clutching her stomach. The sudden swaying of the carts was starting to make her queasy. "God! Doesn't this ride ever end?!" she belted loudly as the Wonder Wheel made another assent.

James was smiling happily. He was thrilled with Coney Island, and his eyes sparkled with enrapture. He looked over at Jessie. "Whaddah ya think?"

Jessie growled at him. "I think I'm gonna throw you out of this thing! Why did you pick the moving cars?"

James crossed his arms. "How many Ferris wheels do you know that move other than around in circles?" he asked.

"I don't want to know about those Ferris wheels!" Jessie screamed. She winced. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

James huffed. "You're no fun at an amusement park."

When the ride finally ended, which was a relief for Jessie and a disappointment for the others, Team Twerp bolted off in the direction of the Steeplechase, while James and the staggering Jessie made their way over to Meowth, who had hidden behind a popcorn vender.

"They went that way!" Meowth informed, pointing. Team Rocket immediately began in the same direction.

"Hey, cool! A shooting game!" Brock said energetically, as the four made their way through the bustling crowds. He sauntered happily over to a game booth, where small wooden ducks appeared from behind the wall, after which kids shot at with small BB Guns. "I've never played one of these before."

"Well go ahead, Brock," Ash said. "Let's see how you are."

Brock smiled and accepted the challenge. As soon as one of the kids gave up, he moved to the front and handed the attendant five cents. Gripping the gun in his hands, he aimed at one of the small, yellow ducks. He shot, but unfortunately missed.

"Hey, nice shot, Brocko!" Ash teased, laughing. "You're some Davy Crockett!" Brock smiled slightly and shook his head, a small look of disappointment in his face. He turned back to the game, his body tensing. He didn't know who he was trying to impress, but all of a sudden, his arms starting shaking nervously.

"Come on Brock, you can do it!" Misty suddenly rang out. Brock looked back at her and managed a small smile. Misty looked at him confusingly, but smiled nonetheless. She hadn't expected him to turn back to her. With that, however, he returned his attention back to the game.

Catching one of the ducks in the bulls-eye, he shot the gun again, this time knocking one of the ducks down.

"Nice shot!" the attendant chimed. "Try again, son!"

Brock grinned and aimed the gun once more. Ash, Misty, and Mrs. Ketchum let out small hollers when Brock shot down another duck.

"Two out of three! Not bad!" the attendant said. He reached up and took down a small Marill stuffed animal. Brock took it with a smile and thanked the man.

Brock walked over to Ash, Misty, and Mrs. Ketchum, admiring his prize.

"What happened the first time?" Ash asked, putting his hands on his hips. He had a look of fun tormenting in his eyes.

"Shut it Ash!" Misty scolded. "I think he did great for a first try."

"Thanks, Misty," Brock said, blushing slightly. For a moment, he felt that it was Misty's heartening shout that helped him to focus. He really hadn't aimed that much the first time, he had merely just shot the gun at the targets. He looked down at the Marill doll and then at Misty.

"Here you go," he said, handing Misty the Marill.

Misty smiled as she took the doll gently from Brock's hands. "Thanks," she said. "It's so cute."

"Well, you were the only one who was encouraging me," he replied with a proud grin. "Not like someone else I know."

Brock stuck his tongue out at Ash, which Misty happily copied. Ash scowled.

"Yeah, well I could have done better!" Ash fumed. "I would have gotten all three!"

Misty snickered. "Dream on, Ashy Boy."

Ash's eyes narrowed and he grumbled. "I'd rather have a real Marill, anyway."

"Ash, calm down," Mrs. Ketchum said, placing her hands around him as if to restrain him. "Don't fight."

Such a stubborn jerk, Misty thought. She wished that Ash could have played the game, just so that he could have eaten his words. Those shooting games weren't as easy as they looked.

"Come on, let's get going," Mrs. Ketchum said, waving Misty and Brock over. They started again for Steeplechase, which they could barely see popping up in the distance.

"And keep your eyes open for a psychic Pokémon," Brock reminded them. "We still have to find a way home."

They nodded, but for now, they had other thoughts running through their heads.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .

I hope you like it so far! Please review and tell me what you think. I'm having so much fun writing this. Did you see the hints of romance so far in it? God, I'm gonna be flamed! Just to let you know, all the rides that I've mentioned or will feature in this story are all real (that is, if you're not familiar with Coney Island to begin with). Sadly, some aren't there anymore, but the Wonder Wheel is still there and operating. The whole scene of Ash seeing the Thunderbolt from the Wonder Wheel is a total recount of my experience (only the Thunderbolt wasn't working when I saw it!). Every now and then, some of the scenes will be of how I saw Coney Island, you know, the mere hour that I was there! LOL