Meowth sat back, a look of disbelief on his face. He had the oppurtunity he had dreamed of for years - to be the top cat.
Of course, then again, he still had friends he'd had for years, too.
But still, the temptation chewed at his mind; would he do it? His mind drifted back slightly, to when he went to Hollywood, and found Meowsie. The Persian had ganged up on him ...
But Jessie and James saved him.
And then, on the island, where he had tried so despiritely to learn Pay Day attack, and who had thrown the coins to help him?
Jessie and James.
And yet ... what had being top cat ever gotten him? When was the last time Giovanni did something that was kind to Meowth?
An easy answer. When he handed Meowth over to Jessie and James.
"I think I'll pass," Meowth smirked.
"What?!" Giovanni snapped. "But you've always wanted ..."
"Not anymore," Meowth shrugged.
"Oh really, well, we'll see about that," Giovanni grumbled, grabbing Meowth by the scruff of his neck and throwing him back in the cage violently. "Roxanne? Take this hairball away."
***
"Cassidy, Cassidy ... where could she be?" James studied the woods around him, knowing that Cassidy had run off in that direction. He stopped to listen, straining to hear any sign of life ... and heard a faint sobbing to his right.
He took of in that direction, travelling not very far to find Cassidy, sitting on a large rock, face buried in her hands, crying.
"Cassidy ..." He rushed over. "Don't cry, Cass ..."
"How can I not cry?" She sobbed. "They've got Butch, and Jessie ..."
"If there's one thing I've learned about Jessie, it's that she can survive through anything," James smiled. "And if she's there, then you can be sure Butch will be alright too."
"You think so?"
"Sure," James helped her up. "But just in case, we might as well go back to help them out ..."
"But which way do we go?" Cassidy asked. "Just look around you. All woods."
"You're right ..."
"At least we're not seperated anymore," Cassidy said sincerely. "Let's try going one way, and figure out where we are from there ... or something like that."
"Sounds like a plan to me."
***
Jessie shivered. The room was frigid, and with nothing on but her bare midriff and short skirt, she was freezing. She longed for James' jacket to wrap around her ...
"If you were cold, you could've just said something," Butch grinned, taking off his own jacket and draping it over Jessie's shoulders.
"Yeah, well ..."
Jessie pulled her knees up to her chest, then glanced around the room. The only object was a single, dim lightbulb above their head, shining little light into the tiny room. A single door laid in the corner, though she knew on the other side there were too many locks to even try to break through.
"Think they'll come?" Butch asked quietly.
"Who?"
"Cass and James."
"Yeah, they will," Jessie smiled slightly, then sighed. "But what's going to happen to us before then?"
"Well ..." Butch shifted uncomfortably. "To be quite honest, they really just want to get rid of us."
"Yeah. I know."
Jessie pulled Butch's jacket around her tighter and bit her lip nervously.
"Just to shoot the breeze a bit ... what happened to you and Cass that made you hate each other so much?"
"Oh," Jessie laughed nervously. "Just a little jealousy ... Cassidy was angry, I was wild, and things just sort of blew up ... I had a friend named Bianca, and she had me doing some bad things ..."
She paused, looking at the wall, debating whether to tell any more.
"Go on. We have plenty of time."
"Well ... James and I were at the dance together ... and ... I went off for awhle ... James and Cass danced ... and ..."
She shook her head.
"That was years ago. It's all over now."
"Okay," Butch said, knowing Jessie didn't want to talk about it anymore. Jessie looked to the ground sadly.
"James ..." She said quietly to herself, longing for him to take her in his arms, to comfort her like he always did when he was sad ...
"You miss him?"
She jerked up, and Butch smiled at her sincerely.
"You must really like him a lot," Butch said. "As much as I like Cassidy."
"Yeah," Jessie said in a whisper. "It's funny ... I just feel like he doesn't know that I like him ... sometimes I just let my temper get the better of me ... I just want him to like me too ..."
"What does he do that makes you think that?"
"I don't know ... it's me, really. He's so sweet, and I'm just so mean to him ..."
"But don't you think that if he liked you, he would like you whether you were angry or not?"
"Yeah ..."
"Love's unconditional."
"I guess you're right," Jessie laughed. "I feel like I'm talking to a psychiatrist."
"Guess I should've been one, huh?" Butch grinned, then looked up behind Jessie.
His smile disappeared.
***
"C'mon ..."
Meowth pawed at the lock ferociously, hoping he would pop it open. But to no avail. He heard footsteps from down the hall faintly, but continued to paw at the lock. The door opened, and a girl with long lilac hair looked in.
"Oh, le petite chat," She smiled, running over to Meowth's cage and gently grasping his paw in her hand. "Wonderful idea, but I do not believe it will work."
Meowth looked at her funny.
"You look at me like I was dement, oui?" She laughed. "Francais, chat, Francais."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
The girl jumped back, her eyes wide in surprise.
"Petite chat, vous pouvez parler anglais!" She said suddenly. "Little cat, you can speak English!"
"Yeah, but what the heck are you speaking?"
"Oh, yes, Francais, French!" She smiled. "How did you learn to speak English?"
"I taught myself!" Meowth said proudly.
"Tres bien! Very good!" The girl laughed and clapped her hands together excitedly. "Oh, pardon moi for being so rude ... Je m'appelle Allison, or as you would say, my name is Allison. I was born in France."
"How'd you end up here?"
"Ah, I moved," She smiled. "I'm not very good with English, though."
"Well, I'm good," Meowth said.
"I can see that! Well, little cat, if you don't mind me asking, how did you end up here?"
"Got caught," Meowth said sadly. "I've been seperated from my friends, and I don't know where they are ... I was asked to testify against them, but I refused, so I was stuck in this room by myself ..."
"I was sent down here to check on you," Allison said. "Are you hungry?"
Meowth nodded with eager eyes, as Allison pulled a few bits of cold roast beef from her pockets. She set them inside the cage, and Meowth set at them hungrily.
"My, you were hungry! When was the last time you ate?"
"Mmm," Meowth swallowed. "About two days ago, I think ..."
"Oh, pauvre chat! Poor cat!" Allison paused, and looked thoughtful. "I wonder if perhaps the Boss would let me take care of you ..."
Meowth shook his head.
"I can't stay with anyone but Jessie and James. They're the only friends I've ever had, and I have to find them."
"You really do care about them ..."
Allison checked around her, then bent over to whisper to Meowth.
"I will help you escape, and then we will find your friends. We will all escape, and find refuge somewhere else ..."
"Could you do that?"
"Of course. I'm Allison, therefore, I can do anything," She grinned.
"Well, there's Butch and Cassidy ..."
"Are they friends? We'll find them too. We can do this."
She looked around herself again, then took a key from a pocket in her long cloak. Meowth took a moment to study her uniform, which was vastly different from anyone else's ... it was a beautiful white uniform, a long cloak flowing out and around it. Her long lilac hair hung down loosely, with a few waves splashing over her shoulders.
"Voila!" She snapped the lock off, then picked up Meowth in her arms. "Au revoir, goodbye little cage ... you're with me now."
She held Meowth in her arms in such a way that he barely poked out, and was hardly noticible. She opened the door, and checked the hallway. All was clear. She shot down the hall, and into another room by herself.
"We will get your friends tonight, Meowth."
"But ... James and Cassidy weren't caught ..."
"Do not worry, we will find them somewhere," Allison switched on a light, reveiling a small living quarters, with a bed and a tiny tv. Allison set Meowth on the bed, and pulled a cover over him, making sure to place a pillow beneath his head.
"You sleep for now, petite chat, for we will be doing much tonight."
Allison stroked Meowth, and began to sing a beautiful lullaby in French, gently soothing him to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~
"James ... I'm so tired ..."
"I know, Cass, me too, but we've got to keep going."
It was early in the evening, as Cassidy and James continued to travel through the woods, both cold, starving, dirty, and exhausted. They hadn't stopped all day, both with their minds set on finding the headquarters.
"I'll tell you what, Butch better be pretty thankful ..."
"Yeah," James laughed slightly. "Knowing Jess, though, she'll find something wrong with what I did, and she'll hit me with that mallet ..."
"What?" Cassidy raised an eyebrow.
"She always does that ... I don't know why ... I think she must hate me now, or something."
"Hate you?" Cassidy nearly burst out laughing. "The girl is *mad* about you!"
James didn't say anything, just looked at her curiously.
"She's crazy, obsessed, head over heels in love with you!"
"With ... me?"
"Yes! With you!" Cassidy rolled her eyes. "It's so totally obvious ... Butch and I were talking just the other day about how distracting it is ... I just want to stick you two in the middle of a romantic, candlelit dinner, then *make* you kiss just so there wouldn't be anymore suspension! Honestly!"
"Really?"
"Yes!" Cassidy sighed. "I don't understand why you two don't just talk to each other ... I mean, Butch and I have talked to each other a lot about this stuff ..."
She stopped walking for a moment, her face clouded with saddness. The topic had distracted her for a few minutes, but the depression just set back in.
"We've got to keep going if we want to find them," James reminded her, and she nodded her head in agreement. The continued the walk in silence for a few minutes, when suddenly Cassidy stopped walking again, this time with a look of surprise.
"L-l-look, James!" She pointed ahead. James turned around, then gasped ...
"We made it!" Cassidy said excitedly, barely able to contain her excitement. "Now we can save them!"
"You're right," James grinned at her, then grabbed her arm. "C'mon, we haven't got a moment to lose ... we've got to find them!"
The two raced towards the building, then slowed down as they neared the back, taking care to hide in the shadows. Their time as criminals was finally paying off.
"We've got to be silent," Cassidy said as they snuck towards the back door. "I know where some of the back rooms are ... I went exploring one day, and found out a lot more than they let the regular members know."
"Then you lead the way."
Cassidy opened the door slowly, then, making sure the coast was clear, snuck in, James right behind her. She paused in the doorway and slipped off her boots, which were torn up from the long walk in the woods anyway, and threw them outside. James did the same, not knowing why, and gave her a questioning glance.
"If we're barefoot, we won't make a sound," She explained in a whisper, then motioned for him to follow her again.
They continued down the hall, checking in each room. It was late, so nearly everyone had retired for the night into their tiny living quarters, to the relief of the two. They were just going around the corner when they stopped dead in their tracks.
"James, there's someone ..." Cassidy said nervously, looking ahead of her. A girl was stepping out of her room, looking around carefully, then catching Cassidy's eye and retreating.
"Who was that ...?"
Her question wasn't answered, but the door cracked open again, and a small feline head poked out, then grinned.
"It's Meowth!" James said, and the two set off down the hall quickly. As they reached the door, James knelt down, and the happy cat jumped into his arms, purring.
"Now all we need is Jessie," Meowth grinned. "And I found someone to help us ... James, Cassidy, meet Allison."
"Enchante de faire votre connaissance," Allison said quickly in French, then blushed. "I am sorry, just the excitement reminds me of my beautiful country ... I'm very glad to meet you."
"Great, we can use more help," Cassidy flashed her a friendly smile. "Plus, a French girl could come in handy ..."
"Do you know where they are?" James asked Meowth, who shook his head sadly.
"I've been locked in a cage for a long time, until Allison found me ..."
"Then let's keep going, we don't have much time," Cassidy insisted, already making off down the hall, continuing to check each room. They reached the back of the building, or so they thought ... but Cassidy revieled another door, cleverly hidden behind a bookshelf.
"Not many know about this," She said, pushing the door open. A sudden blast of cold air hit them in the face, and the whole group shivered, as Allison collected Meowth into her arms, hoping to keep him slightly warm.
They walked down the hall a little more slowly, taking care into checking each room carefully, looking for Butch and Jessie. Finally, as Allison glanced in a window of a room, she held up Meowth to look inside.
"Guys! It's them!"
Cassidy and James rushed over to look in the window, though they couldn't see much ...
"C'mon," Cassidy pushed against the door hard to open it, but then sneered. "Darn it, it's locked!"
"Do not worry, madmoiselle, for they gave me keys for every room you could think of," Allison grinned, taking out a set of keys, then leafing through them casually. She held up a key after a few moments, then fit into the lock and turned the doorknob ...
"Jessie!"
"Butch!"
Both Cassidy and James cried stimutaniously as they ran in the door, each going to their partner.
"Jessie, Jessie ... what did they do to you?" James held up her chin in his hand and looked into her sad eyes. Her entire body was covered in cuts and bruises, her uniform tattered completely, as was Butch's.
"Oh my god, I can't believe this ..." Cassidy threw herself at Butch, glancing up at the chains that held his wrists, keeping him attached to the wall.
"If I had free arms, I'd hug you," He smiled slightly despite his pain. "Jessie's in worse shape than I am though ... something's wrong ..."
"Jessie, Jessie, Jessie ... speak to me ..."
"James ... I ..." Jessie's eyes flooded with tears. "They came, and they ... beat us ..."
Her breathing came in short gasps, her face flooded with pain.
"My god, Jessie, you're lucky you're still conscious!"
"I ... wasn't ... before ... I just ... wanted you ..."
James took her head in his hands, though the usual flame that was in her eyes had burned out.
"It's so cold in here ... how could they do this to you?!" Cassidy said, resting her chin against Butch's shoulder, sobbing.
"Madmoiselle, they do this quite often," Allison said quietly. Meowth sat in her arms, not wanting to see Jessie in her present condition.
"Butch ..." Cassidy ran her hand around the frame of his face, then down his shoulder, stopping at a deep gash, the blood soaking through his shirt. "Oh my god ..."
She immediately reached over and tore the end of her uniform, taking the cloth and pressing it onto his shoulder carefully.
"We cannot stay here much longer," Allison said nervously. "We must take them and escape from here ... if you would allow me ..."
She checked her keys, then pulled one out, first unlocking the chains that held Butch's wrists, then Jessie's. Cassidy tore off another long scrap on her dress, then placed the scraps on his torn up wrists.
"I was hoping you'd come," He said meekly, trying to sound cheerful to help lighten Cassidy's mood.
Jessie collapsed as the bands were taken off her wrists, falling straight into James' awaiting arms, and bursting into tears.
"Shh, Jessie, it's alright, we're going to get out of here, then we'll make sure you get better ..."
He carefully held her in his arms and stood up, carrying her as he might carry a baby. She buried her face in his chest, sobbing.
"Alright, I'm getting you out of here," Cassidy said determindly, using all of her strength to pull Butch to his feet, then wrapping his arm around her shoulder to support him. "And once you're all better, you get to pay me back for all this, okay?"
She grinned at him, happy to finally be getting out of the cold room.
"Follow me, my friends, and we shall escape," Allison said, leading the group out into the hall. She stepped quietly along the floor as the group made their way to the bookcase door. They stepped out, continued down the hall, and Allison was just stepping around the corner when suddenly, they heard footsteps coming towards them.
"Qu'est-ce que c'est? What is it?" Allison peeked ahead, then gasped.
"Allison ... my dear little French maiden, what brings you out so late at night?"
Allison swung her arm back to keep the rest of the group behind the corner.
"Je suis malade, I am ill monsieur," Allison said, placing a hand on her forehead. "I went out to get a cup of water."
"All the way back here?"
"There is a water fountain," Allison pointed behind her. Giovanni raised an eyebrow.
"I didn't know you had a Meowth, Allison."
"Oh, oui monsieur, I found him just yesterday out in the woods alone. He was sick and hungry, so I took him in."
"How kind of you ..." Giovanni smiled sinisterly. "Train him well. Good night."
"Bonne nuit."
Allison watched as he continued down the hall, then stepped into an office alone. She breathed a sigh of relief, and pet Meowth softly on the head.
"He's gone," She whispered, motioning the others to follow her. They didn't take but two steps when they heard a loud hissing behind them.
"It's Persian!" Meowth hissed, baring his claws.
"Just ignore him, Meowth," Allison advised, continuing to walk. The others followed suit, until Cassidy shrieked in pain.
"Stupid cat!" She kicked the Persian away, glancing at the blood on her achielles, then trying to ignore the pain. The Persian lunged again at her foot, but Cassidy swiftly knocked him to the side. Persian hissed loudly, and a door opened.
"Persian? What's ..."
Giovanni stopped, his eyes wide, staring with disbelief at the group. Allison set down Meowth on the floor, then pushed the others behind her.
"Courir! Tout de suite, depechez-vous!" She shouted, positioning herself in front of the group as they hurried down the hall as fast as they could.
"Allison, I knew you were up to no good ... releasing prisoners! What a shame, really ..." He pressed a button on an intercom, ironically placed just outside the door. "Security? We've got a few prisoners excaping ..."
He smiled slyly, then pulled a small gun out from his pocket.
"S'il vous plait, monsieur, please sir, do not shoot!"
Giovanni said nothing, but held up the gun, and pulled the trigger. A shot rang through the air, and headed straight towards James ...
"Meowth!"
Meowth jumped up, placing himself between the bullet and James, and the bullet pierced through his fur as he collapsed to the ground. Allison rushed over to Meowth, gently picking him up.
"Not a smart move," Giovanni smiled, then held up the gun again.
"I wouldn't shoot if I were you," Cassidy said, reaching behind her back and pulling out her own gun. "Luckily I didn't put this back after our last mission ..."
Butch pulled away slightly from Cassidy, then pulled out his own gun, pointing it carefully at Giovanni.
"How intriguing," Giovanni said. "I guess it's two against one, though Cassidy is in the best shape of the two ..."
"Because you nearly killed him!" Cassidy yelled, shakily holding up the gun.
"Shooting me wouldn't be very smart ... bravery only results in tragedy," He nodded towards Meowth's bloody form in Allison's arms.
"If bravery results in tragedy, then trickery results in success."
Cassidy squeezed the trigger, and her single bullet flew out, hitting Giovanni straight in the shoulder. He staggered backwards, wincing in pain. Cassidy grabbed Butch's gun without hesitation and held it up.
"Let us go, now."
"Never," Giovanni said, picking himself up, then holding up his gun. Before anyone could think, he shot a bullet straight at Cassidy. The bullet went off slightly to the side, but hit her in the arm nonetheless. She keeled over, dropping the gun to the floor.
"Not so tricky anymore, are you Cassidy?"
"Nobody hurts Cassidy," Butch sneered, carefully reaching over, then grabbing the gun. He held it up and shot it, the bullet hitting Giovanni in the chest this time. Giovanni shouted in pain, as Butch grabbed Cassidy around her waist, despite his own pain, then motioned for Allison and James to run.
***
"The girls will be fine," The doctor smiled politely, as Butch and James exchanged relieved glances. "You can go on in and see them."
They hurried into the hospital room where Jessie and Cassidy sat in opposite beds, both looking bored to tears.
"Finally!" Jessie said, annoyed. "I didn't think they'd ever let you in here! We've been doing nothing for hours!"
"Seriously," Cassidy rolled her eyes.
"Well excuse us!" James laughed, sitting at the end of Jessie's bed. "What'd the doctor say?"
"I had some kind of exhaustion, dehydration, and hypothermia ..."
"Like me, only worse," Butch put in, then turned to Cassidy. "And what about you?"
"Hmm ... well, I got shot in the arm!" Cassidy rolled her eyes again. "That's not very hard to figure out, Butch ..."
"Well, now that you two can get out of the hospital tomorrow ..." James grinned at Butch. "Me and Butch decided to do something for you ..."
"Uh oh," Jessie looked at Cassidy, then grinned.
"We scraped together our money and got a few tickets for a little cruise ..."
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"
"Of course!" James flashed the tickets to everyone. "Plus there's an extra one for Allison too, after all, I think we owe her for saving our life ..."
Jessie threw her arms around James happily, as did Cassidy. After a few moments, Jessie pulled away and frowned.
"Does that mean that ... Meowth ...?"
"I though he used up all his nine lives ... but he must've had an extra one stuck in there somewhere."
Jessie grinned.
"He'll be out of the vet tomorrow," James said, taking Jessie's hand in his. "So you have about a week to go shopping."
"Great! We'll have to get at least six new swimsuits, a few new outfits, some dresses for the evenings ..."
The group laughed at Jessie's remark, happy to be together and well again.
For once, bravery *did* result in sucess.
Of course, then again, he still had friends he'd had for years, too.
But still, the temptation chewed at his mind; would he do it? His mind drifted back slightly, to when he went to Hollywood, and found Meowsie. The Persian had ganged up on him ...
But Jessie and James saved him.
And then, on the island, where he had tried so despiritely to learn Pay Day attack, and who had thrown the coins to help him?
Jessie and James.
And yet ... what had being top cat ever gotten him? When was the last time Giovanni did something that was kind to Meowth?
An easy answer. When he handed Meowth over to Jessie and James.
"I think I'll pass," Meowth smirked.
"What?!" Giovanni snapped. "But you've always wanted ..."
"Not anymore," Meowth shrugged.
"Oh really, well, we'll see about that," Giovanni grumbled, grabbing Meowth by the scruff of his neck and throwing him back in the cage violently. "Roxanne? Take this hairball away."
***
"Cassidy, Cassidy ... where could she be?" James studied the woods around him, knowing that Cassidy had run off in that direction. He stopped to listen, straining to hear any sign of life ... and heard a faint sobbing to his right.
He took of in that direction, travelling not very far to find Cassidy, sitting on a large rock, face buried in her hands, crying.
"Cassidy ..." He rushed over. "Don't cry, Cass ..."
"How can I not cry?" She sobbed. "They've got Butch, and Jessie ..."
"If there's one thing I've learned about Jessie, it's that she can survive through anything," James smiled. "And if she's there, then you can be sure Butch will be alright too."
"You think so?"
"Sure," James helped her up. "But just in case, we might as well go back to help them out ..."
"But which way do we go?" Cassidy asked. "Just look around you. All woods."
"You're right ..."
"At least we're not seperated anymore," Cassidy said sincerely. "Let's try going one way, and figure out where we are from there ... or something like that."
"Sounds like a plan to me."
***
Jessie shivered. The room was frigid, and with nothing on but her bare midriff and short skirt, she was freezing. She longed for James' jacket to wrap around her ...
"If you were cold, you could've just said something," Butch grinned, taking off his own jacket and draping it over Jessie's shoulders.
"Yeah, well ..."
Jessie pulled her knees up to her chest, then glanced around the room. The only object was a single, dim lightbulb above their head, shining little light into the tiny room. A single door laid in the corner, though she knew on the other side there were too many locks to even try to break through.
"Think they'll come?" Butch asked quietly.
"Who?"
"Cass and James."
"Yeah, they will," Jessie smiled slightly, then sighed. "But what's going to happen to us before then?"
"Well ..." Butch shifted uncomfortably. "To be quite honest, they really just want to get rid of us."
"Yeah. I know."
Jessie pulled Butch's jacket around her tighter and bit her lip nervously.
"Just to shoot the breeze a bit ... what happened to you and Cass that made you hate each other so much?"
"Oh," Jessie laughed nervously. "Just a little jealousy ... Cassidy was angry, I was wild, and things just sort of blew up ... I had a friend named Bianca, and she had me doing some bad things ..."
She paused, looking at the wall, debating whether to tell any more.
"Go on. We have plenty of time."
"Well ... James and I were at the dance together ... and ... I went off for awhle ... James and Cass danced ... and ..."
She shook her head.
"That was years ago. It's all over now."
"Okay," Butch said, knowing Jessie didn't want to talk about it anymore. Jessie looked to the ground sadly.
"James ..." She said quietly to herself, longing for him to take her in his arms, to comfort her like he always did when he was sad ...
"You miss him?"
She jerked up, and Butch smiled at her sincerely.
"You must really like him a lot," Butch said. "As much as I like Cassidy."
"Yeah," Jessie said in a whisper. "It's funny ... I just feel like he doesn't know that I like him ... sometimes I just let my temper get the better of me ... I just want him to like me too ..."
"What does he do that makes you think that?"
"I don't know ... it's me, really. He's so sweet, and I'm just so mean to him ..."
"But don't you think that if he liked you, he would like you whether you were angry or not?"
"Yeah ..."
"Love's unconditional."
"I guess you're right," Jessie laughed. "I feel like I'm talking to a psychiatrist."
"Guess I should've been one, huh?" Butch grinned, then looked up behind Jessie.
His smile disappeared.
***
"C'mon ..."
Meowth pawed at the lock ferociously, hoping he would pop it open. But to no avail. He heard footsteps from down the hall faintly, but continued to paw at the lock. The door opened, and a girl with long lilac hair looked in.
"Oh, le petite chat," She smiled, running over to Meowth's cage and gently grasping his paw in her hand. "Wonderful idea, but I do not believe it will work."
Meowth looked at her funny.
"You look at me like I was dement, oui?" She laughed. "Francais, chat, Francais."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
The girl jumped back, her eyes wide in surprise.
"Petite chat, vous pouvez parler anglais!" She said suddenly. "Little cat, you can speak English!"
"Yeah, but what the heck are you speaking?"
"Oh, yes, Francais, French!" She smiled. "How did you learn to speak English?"
"I taught myself!" Meowth said proudly.
"Tres bien! Very good!" The girl laughed and clapped her hands together excitedly. "Oh, pardon moi for being so rude ... Je m'appelle Allison, or as you would say, my name is Allison. I was born in France."
"How'd you end up here?"
"Ah, I moved," She smiled. "I'm not very good with English, though."
"Well, I'm good," Meowth said.
"I can see that! Well, little cat, if you don't mind me asking, how did you end up here?"
"Got caught," Meowth said sadly. "I've been seperated from my friends, and I don't know where they are ... I was asked to testify against them, but I refused, so I was stuck in this room by myself ..."
"I was sent down here to check on you," Allison said. "Are you hungry?"
Meowth nodded with eager eyes, as Allison pulled a few bits of cold roast beef from her pockets. She set them inside the cage, and Meowth set at them hungrily.
"My, you were hungry! When was the last time you ate?"
"Mmm," Meowth swallowed. "About two days ago, I think ..."
"Oh, pauvre chat! Poor cat!" Allison paused, and looked thoughtful. "I wonder if perhaps the Boss would let me take care of you ..."
Meowth shook his head.
"I can't stay with anyone but Jessie and James. They're the only friends I've ever had, and I have to find them."
"You really do care about them ..."
Allison checked around her, then bent over to whisper to Meowth.
"I will help you escape, and then we will find your friends. We will all escape, and find refuge somewhere else ..."
"Could you do that?"
"Of course. I'm Allison, therefore, I can do anything," She grinned.
"Well, there's Butch and Cassidy ..."
"Are they friends? We'll find them too. We can do this."
She looked around herself again, then took a key from a pocket in her long cloak. Meowth took a moment to study her uniform, which was vastly different from anyone else's ... it was a beautiful white uniform, a long cloak flowing out and around it. Her long lilac hair hung down loosely, with a few waves splashing over her shoulders.
"Voila!" She snapped the lock off, then picked up Meowth in her arms. "Au revoir, goodbye little cage ... you're with me now."
She held Meowth in her arms in such a way that he barely poked out, and was hardly noticible. She opened the door, and checked the hallway. All was clear. She shot down the hall, and into another room by herself.
"We will get your friends tonight, Meowth."
"But ... James and Cassidy weren't caught ..."
"Do not worry, we will find them somewhere," Allison switched on a light, reveiling a small living quarters, with a bed and a tiny tv. Allison set Meowth on the bed, and pulled a cover over him, making sure to place a pillow beneath his head.
"You sleep for now, petite chat, for we will be doing much tonight."
Allison stroked Meowth, and began to sing a beautiful lullaby in French, gently soothing him to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~
"James ... I'm so tired ..."
"I know, Cass, me too, but we've got to keep going."
It was early in the evening, as Cassidy and James continued to travel through the woods, both cold, starving, dirty, and exhausted. They hadn't stopped all day, both with their minds set on finding the headquarters.
"I'll tell you what, Butch better be pretty thankful ..."
"Yeah," James laughed slightly. "Knowing Jess, though, she'll find something wrong with what I did, and she'll hit me with that mallet ..."
"What?" Cassidy raised an eyebrow.
"She always does that ... I don't know why ... I think she must hate me now, or something."
"Hate you?" Cassidy nearly burst out laughing. "The girl is *mad* about you!"
James didn't say anything, just looked at her curiously.
"She's crazy, obsessed, head over heels in love with you!"
"With ... me?"
"Yes! With you!" Cassidy rolled her eyes. "It's so totally obvious ... Butch and I were talking just the other day about how distracting it is ... I just want to stick you two in the middle of a romantic, candlelit dinner, then *make* you kiss just so there wouldn't be anymore suspension! Honestly!"
"Really?"
"Yes!" Cassidy sighed. "I don't understand why you two don't just talk to each other ... I mean, Butch and I have talked to each other a lot about this stuff ..."
She stopped walking for a moment, her face clouded with saddness. The topic had distracted her for a few minutes, but the depression just set back in.
"We've got to keep going if we want to find them," James reminded her, and she nodded her head in agreement. The continued the walk in silence for a few minutes, when suddenly Cassidy stopped walking again, this time with a look of surprise.
"L-l-look, James!" She pointed ahead. James turned around, then gasped ...
"We made it!" Cassidy said excitedly, barely able to contain her excitement. "Now we can save them!"
"You're right," James grinned at her, then grabbed her arm. "C'mon, we haven't got a moment to lose ... we've got to find them!"
The two raced towards the building, then slowed down as they neared the back, taking care to hide in the shadows. Their time as criminals was finally paying off.
"We've got to be silent," Cassidy said as they snuck towards the back door. "I know where some of the back rooms are ... I went exploring one day, and found out a lot more than they let the regular members know."
"Then you lead the way."
Cassidy opened the door slowly, then, making sure the coast was clear, snuck in, James right behind her. She paused in the doorway and slipped off her boots, which were torn up from the long walk in the woods anyway, and threw them outside. James did the same, not knowing why, and gave her a questioning glance.
"If we're barefoot, we won't make a sound," She explained in a whisper, then motioned for him to follow her again.
They continued down the hall, checking in each room. It was late, so nearly everyone had retired for the night into their tiny living quarters, to the relief of the two. They were just going around the corner when they stopped dead in their tracks.
"James, there's someone ..." Cassidy said nervously, looking ahead of her. A girl was stepping out of her room, looking around carefully, then catching Cassidy's eye and retreating.
"Who was that ...?"
Her question wasn't answered, but the door cracked open again, and a small feline head poked out, then grinned.
"It's Meowth!" James said, and the two set off down the hall quickly. As they reached the door, James knelt down, and the happy cat jumped into his arms, purring.
"Now all we need is Jessie," Meowth grinned. "And I found someone to help us ... James, Cassidy, meet Allison."
"Enchante de faire votre connaissance," Allison said quickly in French, then blushed. "I am sorry, just the excitement reminds me of my beautiful country ... I'm very glad to meet you."
"Great, we can use more help," Cassidy flashed her a friendly smile. "Plus, a French girl could come in handy ..."
"Do you know where they are?" James asked Meowth, who shook his head sadly.
"I've been locked in a cage for a long time, until Allison found me ..."
"Then let's keep going, we don't have much time," Cassidy insisted, already making off down the hall, continuing to check each room. They reached the back of the building, or so they thought ... but Cassidy revieled another door, cleverly hidden behind a bookshelf.
"Not many know about this," She said, pushing the door open. A sudden blast of cold air hit them in the face, and the whole group shivered, as Allison collected Meowth into her arms, hoping to keep him slightly warm.
They walked down the hall a little more slowly, taking care into checking each room carefully, looking for Butch and Jessie. Finally, as Allison glanced in a window of a room, she held up Meowth to look inside.
"Guys! It's them!"
Cassidy and James rushed over to look in the window, though they couldn't see much ...
"C'mon," Cassidy pushed against the door hard to open it, but then sneered. "Darn it, it's locked!"
"Do not worry, madmoiselle, for they gave me keys for every room you could think of," Allison grinned, taking out a set of keys, then leafing through them casually. She held up a key after a few moments, then fit into the lock and turned the doorknob ...
"Jessie!"
"Butch!"
Both Cassidy and James cried stimutaniously as they ran in the door, each going to their partner.
"Jessie, Jessie ... what did they do to you?" James held up her chin in his hand and looked into her sad eyes. Her entire body was covered in cuts and bruises, her uniform tattered completely, as was Butch's.
"Oh my god, I can't believe this ..." Cassidy threw herself at Butch, glancing up at the chains that held his wrists, keeping him attached to the wall.
"If I had free arms, I'd hug you," He smiled slightly despite his pain. "Jessie's in worse shape than I am though ... something's wrong ..."
"Jessie, Jessie, Jessie ... speak to me ..."
"James ... I ..." Jessie's eyes flooded with tears. "They came, and they ... beat us ..."
Her breathing came in short gasps, her face flooded with pain.
"My god, Jessie, you're lucky you're still conscious!"
"I ... wasn't ... before ... I just ... wanted you ..."
James took her head in his hands, though the usual flame that was in her eyes had burned out.
"It's so cold in here ... how could they do this to you?!" Cassidy said, resting her chin against Butch's shoulder, sobbing.
"Madmoiselle, they do this quite often," Allison said quietly. Meowth sat in her arms, not wanting to see Jessie in her present condition.
"Butch ..." Cassidy ran her hand around the frame of his face, then down his shoulder, stopping at a deep gash, the blood soaking through his shirt. "Oh my god ..."
She immediately reached over and tore the end of her uniform, taking the cloth and pressing it onto his shoulder carefully.
"We cannot stay here much longer," Allison said nervously. "We must take them and escape from here ... if you would allow me ..."
She checked her keys, then pulled one out, first unlocking the chains that held Butch's wrists, then Jessie's. Cassidy tore off another long scrap on her dress, then placed the scraps on his torn up wrists.
"I was hoping you'd come," He said meekly, trying to sound cheerful to help lighten Cassidy's mood.
Jessie collapsed as the bands were taken off her wrists, falling straight into James' awaiting arms, and bursting into tears.
"Shh, Jessie, it's alright, we're going to get out of here, then we'll make sure you get better ..."
He carefully held her in his arms and stood up, carrying her as he might carry a baby. She buried her face in his chest, sobbing.
"Alright, I'm getting you out of here," Cassidy said determindly, using all of her strength to pull Butch to his feet, then wrapping his arm around her shoulder to support him. "And once you're all better, you get to pay me back for all this, okay?"
She grinned at him, happy to finally be getting out of the cold room.
"Follow me, my friends, and we shall escape," Allison said, leading the group out into the hall. She stepped quietly along the floor as the group made their way to the bookcase door. They stepped out, continued down the hall, and Allison was just stepping around the corner when suddenly, they heard footsteps coming towards them.
"Qu'est-ce que c'est? What is it?" Allison peeked ahead, then gasped.
"Allison ... my dear little French maiden, what brings you out so late at night?"
Allison swung her arm back to keep the rest of the group behind the corner.
"Je suis malade, I am ill monsieur," Allison said, placing a hand on her forehead. "I went out to get a cup of water."
"All the way back here?"
"There is a water fountain," Allison pointed behind her. Giovanni raised an eyebrow.
"I didn't know you had a Meowth, Allison."
"Oh, oui monsieur, I found him just yesterday out in the woods alone. He was sick and hungry, so I took him in."
"How kind of you ..." Giovanni smiled sinisterly. "Train him well. Good night."
"Bonne nuit."
Allison watched as he continued down the hall, then stepped into an office alone. She breathed a sigh of relief, and pet Meowth softly on the head.
"He's gone," She whispered, motioning the others to follow her. They didn't take but two steps when they heard a loud hissing behind them.
"It's Persian!" Meowth hissed, baring his claws.
"Just ignore him, Meowth," Allison advised, continuing to walk. The others followed suit, until Cassidy shrieked in pain.
"Stupid cat!" She kicked the Persian away, glancing at the blood on her achielles, then trying to ignore the pain. The Persian lunged again at her foot, but Cassidy swiftly knocked him to the side. Persian hissed loudly, and a door opened.
"Persian? What's ..."
Giovanni stopped, his eyes wide, staring with disbelief at the group. Allison set down Meowth on the floor, then pushed the others behind her.
"Courir! Tout de suite, depechez-vous!" She shouted, positioning herself in front of the group as they hurried down the hall as fast as they could.
"Allison, I knew you were up to no good ... releasing prisoners! What a shame, really ..." He pressed a button on an intercom, ironically placed just outside the door. "Security? We've got a few prisoners excaping ..."
He smiled slyly, then pulled a small gun out from his pocket.
"S'il vous plait, monsieur, please sir, do not shoot!"
Giovanni said nothing, but held up the gun, and pulled the trigger. A shot rang through the air, and headed straight towards James ...
"Meowth!"
Meowth jumped up, placing himself between the bullet and James, and the bullet pierced through his fur as he collapsed to the ground. Allison rushed over to Meowth, gently picking him up.
"Not a smart move," Giovanni smiled, then held up the gun again.
"I wouldn't shoot if I were you," Cassidy said, reaching behind her back and pulling out her own gun. "Luckily I didn't put this back after our last mission ..."
Butch pulled away slightly from Cassidy, then pulled out his own gun, pointing it carefully at Giovanni.
"How intriguing," Giovanni said. "I guess it's two against one, though Cassidy is in the best shape of the two ..."
"Because you nearly killed him!" Cassidy yelled, shakily holding up the gun.
"Shooting me wouldn't be very smart ... bravery only results in tragedy," He nodded towards Meowth's bloody form in Allison's arms.
"If bravery results in tragedy, then trickery results in success."
Cassidy squeezed the trigger, and her single bullet flew out, hitting Giovanni straight in the shoulder. He staggered backwards, wincing in pain. Cassidy grabbed Butch's gun without hesitation and held it up.
"Let us go, now."
"Never," Giovanni said, picking himself up, then holding up his gun. Before anyone could think, he shot a bullet straight at Cassidy. The bullet went off slightly to the side, but hit her in the arm nonetheless. She keeled over, dropping the gun to the floor.
"Not so tricky anymore, are you Cassidy?"
"Nobody hurts Cassidy," Butch sneered, carefully reaching over, then grabbing the gun. He held it up and shot it, the bullet hitting Giovanni in the chest this time. Giovanni shouted in pain, as Butch grabbed Cassidy around her waist, despite his own pain, then motioned for Allison and James to run.
***
"The girls will be fine," The doctor smiled politely, as Butch and James exchanged relieved glances. "You can go on in and see them."
They hurried into the hospital room where Jessie and Cassidy sat in opposite beds, both looking bored to tears.
"Finally!" Jessie said, annoyed. "I didn't think they'd ever let you in here! We've been doing nothing for hours!"
"Seriously," Cassidy rolled her eyes.
"Well excuse us!" James laughed, sitting at the end of Jessie's bed. "What'd the doctor say?"
"I had some kind of exhaustion, dehydration, and hypothermia ..."
"Like me, only worse," Butch put in, then turned to Cassidy. "And what about you?"
"Hmm ... well, I got shot in the arm!" Cassidy rolled her eyes again. "That's not very hard to figure out, Butch ..."
"Well, now that you two can get out of the hospital tomorrow ..." James grinned at Butch. "Me and Butch decided to do something for you ..."
"Uh oh," Jessie looked at Cassidy, then grinned.
"We scraped together our money and got a few tickets for a little cruise ..."
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"
"Of course!" James flashed the tickets to everyone. "Plus there's an extra one for Allison too, after all, I think we owe her for saving our life ..."
Jessie threw her arms around James happily, as did Cassidy. After a few moments, Jessie pulled away and frowned.
"Does that mean that ... Meowth ...?"
"I though he used up all his nine lives ... but he must've had an extra one stuck in there somewhere."
Jessie grinned.
"He'll be out of the vet tomorrow," James said, taking Jessie's hand in his. "So you have about a week to go shopping."
"Great! We'll have to get at least six new swimsuits, a few new outfits, some dresses for the evenings ..."
The group laughed at Jessie's remark, happy to be together and well again.
For once, bravery *did* result in sucess.