James stopped in a park after a while and sat on a bench. Jessie sat on her haunches beside him.
"Jess, before anything else happens, I just wanna say…" James gulped. "I am sorry for what happened. I am sorry that I insulted you…really, I am. Forgive me?" James was just surprised at himself as Jessie was. Though he did apologize many times in the past, it was merely to escape the wrath of a punch or a slap of the fan. This was probably one of the first sincere apologies they had exchanged since they joined Team Rocket and life became stressful. Would she even understand?
Jessie nodded and turned her head away, smirking happily. Now what was left to do?
"We'd better head to Viridian Labs and get you back to normal!" James signaled to Jessie to follow him. Jessie shook her head. Too dangerous.
"Flare," Jessie leapt off the bench and signaled for James to follow him.
"Wait! Where are you going?" he called as he tagged along behind.
Soon they reached Viridian City but Jessie didn't want to go to the Labs. Instead she sat down by a pay-video phone and yapped at James to dial a number.
"Who are we going to get help from? I don't even know who to call!" James said, phone in hand.
Jessie snarled at him to shut up and started to trace a phone number out in the dirt.
"8…5...oh!" James got the message and called up Rebecca. She might have heard something around Rocket Labs. Besides…she was the only one in the Labs that Jessie knew besides Xavier and she couldn't contact HIM.
"Hello?" the image of a woman in her mid-30's appeared on the screen. James gulped. "Rebecca?" he asked.
"James?!" Rebecca's voice came in surprise. "You know that everyone is looking for you?"
"What? What did I do?" James gasped.
"Supposedly betrayed the Team."
"Now look, I didn't-" James protested.
"I know that you didn't betray Team Rocket, James. I know all about the experiment," Rebecca said simply.
"Hold on a minute…YOU know about this?" James asked, picking up Jessie with his spare arm, which wasn't hard, considering her small size. "I thought you were only in the handle and care division."
"Flare!"
"Let me explain; there's this new guy down at the labs, Xavier. We were having lunch the other day and he told me everything, not knowing I knew Jess personally. Apparently the Metamorphosis division of the lab has suddenly gotten enormous amounts of funds from a lady-he didn't catch her name though-and Jessie was a targeted test subject. No one knows why she's funding this whole thing though."
Jessie's ears had perked up when she heard Xavier's name. She started yapping away.
"I wish I knew what you were saying, Jess. It would be a whole lot easier," he patted her.
"Now just a minute…I might still have them…" Rebecca disappeared from the screen and reappeared shortly. She found what she was looking for and brought out two objects. She sent it over to James through the teleportation slot and James examined it. It was a hearing aid-like device that was gray in color and quite bulky.
"What do I need a hearing aid for?" he asked. Rebecca sighed and put her own hearing aid into her ear and motioned James to do the same. He stuck it in his ear a bit warily, hoping it wouldn't explode in his ear.
"Just talk, Jessie," Rebecca said.
"How would you even understand me?" Jessie said, exasperated.
"Whoa!" James lurched back, hearing not yaps and growls but Jessie's human voice. "This thing translates pokè-speech?"
"You got it, kiddo," Rebecca said. "Now, Jess. Tell us everything."
*********
"How long does it take to find a blue-haired freak and a talking cat?" Terri muttered.
"Come on, Terr. We've done this thing before," Clark replied, snaking his arms around Terri's shoulders. Terry sighed and glanced at him. "And we'll get them together. I promise."
*********
"…and then...here I am." Jessie finished. She was glad that both humans could understand them with the translating devices and perhaps Allie could figure out a solution. Rebecca opened her eyes after being deep in thought.
"Hmmm…first off, come to Rocket Labs. Take the translator. It might help along the way." She sent over her ID card.
"Thanks," James held the card in the same hand as he held the phone. " We'll be on our way then. Thanks and bye, Rebecca!"
Jessie felt puzzled but smiled anyways.
Rebecca waved before hanging up the phone and turned back to the mirror. She reached to the base of her neck to find the edge of the mask and pulled it over her head in a quick motion. Sarah shook out her short auburn hair, removed the voice modifier and smiled at her own reflection, glad to see her own face again. Now she knew where Jessie was. She put her disguise back on and headed to the Lab.