I had to divide this into two chapters due to the constraints of notepad. Here's the rest. Please R+R. Once again, I dunno if this idea has been done or not. Please do not flame me if it has. This is an OLD story.
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"I appreciate your being here on time..." Giovanni began. "...but would you like to explain what's wrong with HIM??" he asked less than kindly, pointing a finger at James who was crouched before Persian, clutching the ketchup bottle between both hands and working his nose as though he were sniffing the pokemon.
"Perrrrr...." the Persian hissed warningly, flattening its ears against the bullet of its skull and displaying its claws.
"Pika! Pikachu!" he declared, patting the cat roughly on the head.
"Who him?" Meowth asked, jerking a thumb at James. "Well, he's outta his--"
"He's..umm...practicing the pokemon language." Jessie said quickly, covering Meowth's mouth firmly. "But he seems to be getting a bit too involved with his role. Come on now, James! Don't bother Persian...I don't think he's in the mood for talking!" she said in a patronizingly sweet voice, darting forward and hurriedly grabbing James and yanking him into a standing
position.
"Chuuuuu..." he growled threateningly at her.
"Practicing the pokemon language..." Giovanni said thoughtfully, mulling the idea over in his mind for a few moments. "I love it." he said finally.
"You do?" Jessie and Meowth asked at the same time.
"Yes. A skill like that would be most beneficial. Perhaps if you could communicate with the pokemon, you would have more success in stealing them than your current success rate of zilch." His remark made Jessie and Meowth flinch.
"Pika." James muttered, turning his attention to the ketchup bottle in his hands and tilting it onto its side, licking the red drops as they oozed out.
"Very well then. Maybe your new skill will come to some use." Giovanni stated, casting a look at James who cocked his head at a questioning angle. "Off with you...and there had better be a new pokeball on my desk when you return."
"We'll do our best!" Jessie nodded vigorously.
"Your best isn't good enough! Come back with a rare and valuable pokemon this time or don't come back at all!" he bellowed, a vein throbbing in his forehead, the force of his voice making Jessie, Meowth and James keel over backwards.
"Well James, I don't know what your problem is..." Jessie said as they walked out of Giovanni's office, "But you almost got us killed in there! You'd better at least be willing to help us steal pokemon with that 'talent' of yours..."
"Pika!" James snorted, turning stubbornly away.
"You hoid what da boss said!" Meowth told him. "If we don't bring back a new pokemon, our goose is cooked!"
"Pikapi?"
"Whaddya mean 'so what'???" Meowth roared, leaping up and clawing James' face.
"Stop it!" Jessie screamed, a stunning number of three veins standing out on her forehead. "If you two are going to kill each other, at least wait until we get outside!!"
"Pi!" James chirped, grabbing Meowth off of his face and dropping him to the ground.
"Now come on!" she snapped, heading briskly down the hallway. "We don't have all day!" Meowth followed closely behind and James hesistantly brought up the rear. Suddenly he stopped, having caught sight of his reflection in the glass pane of a framed portrait of Persian on the wall. He blinked once and experimentally shook his head from side to side....yes, no doubt about it. That was him, all right.
"CHUUUU!!!!" he cried, sinking to his knees, his head thrown back in anguish. Jessie and Meowth froze in their tracks, abruptly looking over their shoulders at James who had tears streaming down his face. "Pika pika! Pikapi! Pikachu!" he babbled, sobbing.
"He wants to know what happened to'im." Meowth translated.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jessie asked, cocking an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Pika! Pi pi! Pikapika! Kachu! Pika!" James replied through teary eyes.
"He says he wants to know where Ash is so he can find someone to fix this. He says he doesn't want to see a human when he looks in the mirror." Meowth stated, looking beyond confused at this point.
"Pika!" James replied, nodding as if to confirm Meowth's translation as he wiped his eyes on the back of one hand, looking disdainfully at the leather glove and white sleeve.
"Hmm....ya'd almost think he really DID think he was a pikachu." Meowth said thoughtfully.
"That's almost as unbelievable as a pikachu acting like HIM." Jessie scoffed. "We're wasting time!" and with that she grabbed up Meowth and the still sniffling James under her arm and continued down the hallway.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Again!" Ash ordered, watching intently as the pikachu before him tensed and was briefly surrounded by electricity and then grunted, making it dissipate. "Again!"
"Ash, don't work James too hard." Brock warned. They had left the pokemon center due to Nurse Joy's request and gone out into a clearing in a nearby field where the electricity wouldn't do anyone any harm. "He won't have enough strength left to do an actual thundershock when the time comes at this rate."
"That's right!" Pika-James panted, his legs wobbling beneath him. "Can we PLEASE take a break? I'm all shocked out..." and, saying so, he collapsed in a tired mass on the grass.
"Yeah, I guess so." Ash agreed. "Sorry James. I guess I'm just looking forward to getting my pikachu back."
"Well I haven't been too thrilled about being in the body of a pokemon either but that doesn't mean I'm working myself ragged!" Pika-James replied irritantly, pulling himself into a sitting position, still catching his breath.
"At least you're getting better at it." Misty put in.
"Briii!" Topegy cooed from where he sat in Misty's lap. Pika-James gave the duo an utterly helpless look.
"Better?" Ash asked after the pokemon's panting had subsided. He nodded in reply, standing. "Good. Let's get started again." Pika-James groaned in reply. "Hey come on! You don't wanna be a pokemon anymore and I don't wanna HAVE you as a pokemon anymore!"
"Are you saying I'm not GOOD enough to be one of your pokemon?" Pika-James inquired, his anger evident.
"Err...no, but..."
"Look out!" Brock interrupted, pointing overhead. Everyone looked up in time to see a Fearow swoop overhead, just narrowly missing Ash and the others.
"Feeaarrrr!!!" it squawked, preparing for another pass.
"What's it want, Ash??" Misty asked, doubling over to protect Togepi from impending danger. Ash didn't answer and instead withdrew his pokedex.
"Fearow." the pokedex informed him. "This evolved form of Spearow, though usually withdrawn and docile, it is known to attack travelers out of anger or hunger." it droned mechanically.
"Ash do something!!" Misty cried, making him look up. Fearow dove straight at Misty, its claws displayed, making her recoil and accidently drop Togepi.
"Gepi! Pii!" it squealed, tumbling to the ground. This, evidently, was what the Fearow had been waiting for and dove straight at the infant pokemon with a ravenous gleam in its eyes.
"TOGEPI!!!!" Misty screeched, frozen in place by apprehension.
"Go, Pikachu!" Ash cried out of sheer reflex and then sweatdropped. "Oh yeah, all I have is James." he mumbled disappointedly. "Okay then...Go--" he didn't get a chance to choose another pokemon as a yellow blur shot past him. "Huh?"
"What's he doing?" Misty whispered to Brock who stood beside her as she watched Pika-James race straight for the baby pokemon.
"It looks like he's....saving Togepi." Brock finished, sounding flabbergasted. Indeed, that's what it looked like. Pika-James positioned himself protectively over Togepi.
"Go away!" he commanded the Fearow who seemed to take no notice. "Umm...scram! Beat it!" he tried, beginning to look nervous as the bird dove closer, showing no signs of stopping. Pika-James ducked at the last possible second, hearing the Fearow's claws close directly above his head. It gave a cheated growl and turned in mid-air to make another pass.
"Briii! Togepi!" Togepi whimpered, curling up under the pikachu's body for protection.
"Its...its okay. I won't let it get you." Pika-James said in the bravest voice he could muster. "Ugh, what I'd give for my human body right now." he lamented, seeing the Fearow was preparing to attack again.
"James, use Pikachu's thundershock!" Ash ordered. Pika-James swallowed hard.
"R-Right now?" he asked. "But--"
"Do it!" Ash and Misty commanded in unison, startling him into action. He tensed his body and sank to all fours, closing his eyes in deep concentration. He felt a familiar tingling sensation as electricity began to surge through his veins and, as usual, began to tire. He felt himself go weak in the knees as lightning bolts snaked over his body. He recalled all the times in the past when he had blundered....but not this time. This time it would be different. He would actually succeed, he told himself.
"Don't give up! You're so close!" Ash urged. James, though he had never really liked Ash, found the boy's words slightly encouraging and gained a better footing in the grass.
"Briii!" Topegi wailed beneath him, fascinated by the spectacle.
"I'm this little pokemon's only hope...only hope. Have to----have to-----" he mentally urged himself, feeling a great pressure on his entire body and suddenly a massive release as a white streak of lightning flew straight at the Fearow.
"Row!" it clucked just as it was engulfed in the beam of electricity. "R-R-R-Row! F-F-F-F-Feearr!!!" it jolted, its beak clacking together. Pika-James shuddered, his strength quickly draining from his body. At length, holding up the thundershock became too much for him and he relaxed, bringing the electricity to an abrupt stop. "Fearow...." the bird croaked, hovering in the air a moment more before falling to earth in a charred heap.
"Toge! Toge! Toge!" Togepi cheered, hugging one of the pikachu's legs tightly. Pika-James let a smug smile of satisfaction cross his face as the three humans rushed over.
"Togepi! You're all right!" Misty exclaimed with pure elation as she knelt and scooped up the baby pokemon, hugging it tightly.
"Bri! Togepi!" it giggled.
"Wow, guess he DOES have it in him." Brock smiled as Ash picked up Pika-James.
"I guess you're right!" Ash declared with some degree of pride. After all, James probably wouldn't have been able to master the thundershock without his coaching. "Congratulations! Sorry I said you didn't make a good pikachu." he apologized, almost hugging the pokemon but then thinking better of it.
"Its...okay." Pika-James replied. "Now can we PLEASE find out where your pikachu has gotten with my body?? A pokemon is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there!" he whined, regaining his composure.
"Sure thing, James." Ash chuckled, setting him down. "Where should we start looking? Any ideas?"
"Well, there's the hideout...or maybe headquarters....or even---" he was cut off by shrill laughter in a voice he knew all too well.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie declared, leaping out from behind a tree.
"Pikapi! Pikachu!" James added, dropping out of the branches with an apple clutched between his hands. Jessie glared at him.
"You're ruining the motto!!" she growled. James responded with a shrug as he sank his teeth happily into the fruit.
"Aww not again..." Misty groaned. "We already had to listen to this once!"
"Then we'll cut to the chase! Hand over your pokemon!" Jessie ordered.
"Never!" Ash told her, defiance gleaming in his eyes.
"Very well then, maybe you need a little persuasion." Jessie smiled wickedly. In one quick motion, she had thrown a pokeball to the ground. "Go, Arbok!" she commanded.
"Charrrbok!" the purple snake hissed, slithering toward Ash, Brock, Misty, Togepi, and Pika-James.
"Use your glare attack!" she ordered. Arbok's eyes opened wide, its pupils growing to immense proportions and freezing them in place. "Quick James, get their pikachu before it wears off!" Jessie cried.
"Pika!" the blue-haired boy replied, shaking his head as he took another bite of the apple, tossed it aside and scurried back up the trunk of the tree for another one.
"James!!! GET DOWN HERE!!" she shrieked. In reply, a large browning apple smacked wetly into her face, its fermented juice trickling down her cheeks and smearing her makeup. As Jessie gave a scream of outrage, Pika-James cringed.
"I'm NEVER going to hear the end of this..." he muttered to himself, slowly becoming aware of the glare attack wearing off and being able to move again.
"Meowth! What happened, Jess?" Meowth asked, poking his head out of the leafy branches and eyeing the odd yellowish substance that trickled down her face.
"Nevermind! Get down here!" she ordered, grabbing the cat by the tail and yanking him out of the tree.
"Owww! Hey!" he whined, rubbing a bump that had surfaced on his head as he hit the ground.
"Get that pikachu!" she said, pointing at the yellow pokemon staring at them with apprehensive eyes.
"Wit pleasure!" Meowth grinned, quickly getting to his feet and displaying his claws.
"M-Meowth! Stop! Don't you recognize me?" PIka-James asked, dodging out of the way of the feline's scratch attack.
"Course I do! Yer that annoying little rat who's gonna save Jessie's, James' and my positions in Team Rocket when we give ya to da boss!" the cat filled him in.
"But---But I AM James!" he cried out, sheilding his face with one yellow arm.
"Heh! Nice try!" Meowth said, narrowing his eyes. "James is over there!" he added, pointing at the tree where James had resurfaced from the leaves, crunching on another apple. "You must tink I'm pretty dumb ta fall fer dat! Ya think yer the ONLY pokemon dat's ever loined ta talk?"
"He's---telling--the--truth!" Ash said slowly as he regained the ability to move.
"Quiet, runt." Jessie snapped.
"KACHU!!!!!" James suddenly screeched, dropping out of the tree and making all heads turn to look at him as he scrambled over to where the fight was about to break out and grabbed Meowth up, restraining him tightly.
"HEY! Whaddaya tink yer doin'?? Let me go!!" Meowth cried, thrashing wildly.
"Pika!" he replied, tossing the cat aside and running forward to gather up the pikachu. Pika-James wasn't sure if he ought to be happy or extremely frightened as he was hugged by himself. "Pikachu! Pika pika pikapi!" the bishounen cooed happily.
"Well, looks like ONE problem's solved." Brock remarked with a smirk as he flexed his arms to get the stiffness from the glare attack out of them. "Now we've just gotta change'em back."
"Change them back? What are you talking about??" Jessie demanded to know.
"It's a long story." Ash sighed.
"CHUU!!" James declared excitedly, hurling himself at Ash.
"Woah! HEY!" Ash cried as the older boy alighted heavily on him, knocking him over. "Get off!" he ordered.
"Pika?" he asked apprehensively, his eyes wavering as he backed away. Ash felt a pang of pity and reached out and uncertainly ruffled James' hair.
"I'm glad to see you too, Pikachu." he grinned.
"Pika!" he exclaimed happily.
"James, what's come over you??" Jessie demanded to know. "Fraternizing with the enemy? HUGGING him?? What's next???"
"Jessie, I can explain!" the pikachu called, loping forward. "I'm not myself! I mean....I'm me, but I'm in a pikachu body!"
"Huh?" Meowth and Jessie asked, exchanging a look of utter confusion.
"James and Pikachu switched minds." Brock tried, looking at them both to see if they understood any better. Meowth burst out laughing.
"Dat's da most ridiculous ting I ever hoid!" he giggled.
"Oh really? How else do you explain THAT?" he asked, pointing at James who was on all fours and engaged in a fervent conversation with Togepi as Misty stood uncertainly nearby.
"He has a point, Meowth." Jessie said reluctantly.
"We've gotta get them switched back!" Ash put in, stepping forward. "Will you help us?"
"Us? Help you?" Jessie inquired, wrinkling her nose with distaste.
"Unless you like listening to James babble on in pokemon and being pelted with rotten apples..." Brock grinned, looking at the brownish stains on Jessie's white uniform. She trembled with rage for a moment.
"Fine!" she spat. "Where do we start?"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"So what's this supposed ta do exactly?" Meowth inquired, watching as Ash and Brock ushered James and the pikachu into standing positions on either side of a signpost advertising an inn known as Bellsprout's Bed & Breakfast.
"Well, what changed them is when James grabbed ahold of that Vermillion City signpost and made that explosion...so all we gotta do is make another one." Ash explained.
"And that's supposed to change them back?" Jessie inquired.
"Right!" Brock nodded.
"Okay, we're ready James! Give us your best thundershock!" Ash said, patting the pokemon and then backing away to a safe distance.
"It ain't gonna woik." Meowth said decisively.
"Pikachu! Pika pika CHUU!" James replied, shaking a fist at the doubtful cat.
"Hey! Do I insult YOUR mother??" he replied indignantly.
"Chu!" he answered, crossing his arms over his chest and pointing his nose in the air in an effort to snub Meowth.
"C'mon James!" Brock urged.
"I don't think I can..." Pika-James said uncertainly.
"Sure ya can!" Misty told him. "You fried that Fearow to save Togepi earlier, didn't you?"
"That was just a lucky shock!" Pika-James whimpered. "I don't know how I did it before....it might have been because a life was on the line!"
"So pretend a life is on the line now!" Ash answered.
"Its not that simple!" James protested.
"A life WILL be on the line if you don't cooperate!" Jessie threatened, grabbing Pika-James by the ears and lifting him, making him wince. "YOURS!!"
"Okay, okay! Just put me down!" he cried, struggling. Jessie obliged by throwing him to the ground.
"At dis rate, he'll be lucky if he lives long enough ta be a human again." Meowth remarked. Jessie drew her foot back to kick the obnoxious cat, but was interrupted by a loud clap of thunder.
"Aww man....its gonna rain!" Brock groaned, looking at the cluster of ominous black clouds above. "Can we hurry this up? I don't want to get wet..." Pika-James clutched the post tightly with both paws, arching his back and attempting to summon his inner reserves of strength to duplicate his feat from earlier.
"No good..." he grunted at last. "I can't do it."
"Well, I guess we can try again later..." Ash sighed disappointedly.
"That's too bad, Ash." Misty said gently. "You were so close to getting your Pikachu back..."
"Yeah I know...but there's no point in beating a dead rapidash, I guess" he told her dejectedly. He cringed a little as he felt cold raindrops begin to pelt against his clothes and skin. "Maybe we should wait for this rain to stop anyway..."
"Good idea." Brock hurriedly agreed, dashing under the cover of the apple tree.
"Ya know, its not smart to stand under a tree in a rainstorm." Misty pointed out.
"Why's that?" Brock asked just as a white streak of lightning zig-zagged down from the sky and struck the tree, catching the branches on fire. "Yeeow!" Brock cried, dashing out from under it.
"THAT'S why!" she replied.
"Pikapi!" James cried, covering his head and looking for cover. Soon he caught sight of a small building nearby at the rear of the pokemon center that stood a short distance away. "Pikachu!" he declared, ambling towards it.
"Wait! Come back here!" Pika-James called, loping after his human body.
"Huh? What's that?" Misty asked, watching the duo scramble towards the small structure.
"Looks like a storage shed." Brock answered. "I don't care as long as its dry...let's go!" he said, beginning to follow after the blue-haired human and the pikachu.
"Uhh...guys? Did anyone happen ta see just what dat shed's made out of?" Meowth asked, pointing at its shiny surface.
"Yeah, looks like sheet metal. So?" Ash asked.
"So metal conducts electricity, ya moron!" Meowth snapped. "If lightning strikes THAT building, we'll all get fried!"
"Uh oh..." Ash muttered, watching as James grabbed ahold of the doorknob.
"What do you mean, 'uh oh'?" Misty asked. "This could be the answer to our problems!"
"Stop shoving! Unngh! I'm getting all wet!" Pika-James grunted, attempting to wriggle past his human body and get through the door to the storage shed first.
"Pikapi! Kachu!!" James said warningly, fending off the pikachu as he wrestled with the doorknob which seemed to be stuck.
"Its a rare exception, but this time brains should come BEFORE beauty!" Pika-James grumbled, butting his head against the back of James' legs and nearly buckling his knees.
"Pika pika!" the boy snarled, regaining his balance and latching both hands onto the doorknob as the pikachu did the same.
"Stuck?? How can it be stuck??" Pika-James demanded to know. "Its cold and wet out here! I'll get sick!"
"CHU!" James replied as though he was saying "Deal with it!" As the two of them continued to fight with the stubborn door, neither one noticed as another peal of thunder clapped loudly in the heavens. Ash and the others looked up to see a large lightning bolt streak from an unseen source within the clouds and head straight for the shed. There was a loud zapping noise as the lightning made contact with the shed's room, engulfing everything in
a crackling yellow glow.
"N-N-N-N-Not again!!!" Pika-James whined, jolting wildly and unable to let go of the doorknob.
"Piiiiii!!" James wailed, the pikachu entity in his body obviously not used to a human's low tolerance of electricity as he shook, his jagged mane of blue hair standing on end. The others watched, spellbound, as the two of them shone with an unnatural light for a brief moment.
"Rrrghhhh...make it stooop!!" Pika-James said between clenched teeth.
"Kachuuuu!!!" James replied. There was a booming crash as the shed came apart in several pieces, one of its walls narrowly missing the group of onlookers as it was thrown backwards. For a long moment, there was a maddening silence as the glow from the lightning slowly vanished and all that could be heard was the gentle pattering of rain over the landscape.
"Did it work?" Misty asked at last, squinting her eyes to see.
"I don't know..." Ash said apprehensively, looking forward. All that remained of the metal shed was a large black crater in the grass. A collective gasp went up from the group as they rushed over to further investigate.
"Do you think they were---" Brock began, but didn't finish. Jessie felt her eyes tear a bit as she knelt to pick something up. It was the rose James had been carrying in his Team Rocket jacket. The petals were slightly charred and fell off as she touched them.
"James..." she said quietly.
"Moidered in da prime of his life!" Meowth exclaimed angrily, turning to Ash, Brock and Misty. "All right. Who's bright idea was it to blow'im up? Huh? I want names!" he yelled, pounding a fist into his open paw.
"Will you be quiet??" Misty yelled back. "Ya know, Ash lost his pikachu too! The least you can do is show a little respect!!" The cat thought of saying something more but then thought better of it and instead averted his eyes from the angry girl.
"Pikachu, I'm sorry..." Ash sulked, his eyes scanning the rubble. "That was a really stupid idea. I never should've made you try it." He knuckled a tear away with the back of his hand.
"C'mon Ash..." Brock said quietly. "We should go."
"I guess you're right." Ash sniffled, squeezing back tears.
"Chuuu..." a weak voice muttered as they turned to leave. Ash froze, whipping his head around to look over his shoulder.
"Pikachu??" he asked, his voice trembling with hope.
"Chaa." the voice replied.
"Pikachu! Where are you??" he asked, looking about himself wildly.
"Over there!" Misty cried, pointing at the pokemon center's roof.
"I see him!" Brock exclaimed, looking upward where Pikachu was sprawled half on and half off of the center's roof, blinking its eyes slowly.
"Pikachu!!" Ash cried, running forward.
"Pika pika!" the pokemon managed, getting shakily to its feet and leaping into its trainers arms.
"Its so good to have you back to normal again!" Ash grinned, hugging it tightly.
"Pika...pikachu!" Pikachu replied happily, patting its master on the back.
"Amazin'!" Meowth declared. "Dat pokemon actually outlived James!"
"Unnngghhh..." a familiar voice groaned from nearby.
"Huh?" Jessie asked, looking over her shoulder at a large bush planted beside the pokemon center. Casting a sideways glance at the other humans who were engrossed in welcoming PIkachu back, she moved toward the plants.
"Prepare for trouble?" she asked hesitantly, bending over to get a closer look at the bushes.
"M-Make it double..." someone replied in an exhausted voice. Jessie immediately reached into the tangle of branches and drew James out by the hair.
"You're back to normal!" she exclaimed happily, looking at him in his bedraggled and dazed state. "Err....so to speak..." she added quickly. Upon hearing this James quickly ran a hand first over his head and then over the Team Rocket uniform he was wearing.
"I'm me again!" he declared upon being satisfied with his inspection. "I'm human!" Jessie winced as he crushed her in an almost suffocating embrace.
"Welcome...back..." she wheezed, attempting to pry his arms off of her. "We still have some unfinished business with that twerp!" Jessie reminded him, leaping to her feet after managing to release his hold on her.
"Right!" James agreed, climbing out of the bushes.
"Let's get that Pikachu!" she whispered. James suddenly froze in his tracks. "NOW what's the problem?" Jessie asked angrily.
"Does it HAVE to be Pikachu?" he groaned. "Can't we try to steal Togepi or Onix for a change?" Jessie favored him with a glare.
"That explosion must have fried your brain." she growled. "Now come on!"
"We were awfully worried about you, Pikachu!" Ash laughed, holding the pokemon as Misty scratched it behind the ears.
"Pika!" it giggled, obviously enjoying the attention.
"Ya know, we never DID find out what happened to James..." Brock said thoughtfully.
"Yeah..." Ash muttered. "Hope he's okay."
"It takes more than a little lightning to keep Team Rocket down!" Jessie announced triumphantly, making the group turn to look at her. She stood back to back with James in a typical melodramatic pose Team Rocket was reknowned for as a breeze touseled their hair for convenient effect.
"Weezing, smokescreen!" James commanded, releasing the toxin-spouting purple creature from its pokeball.
"Weeezziiinnngg..." the pokemon choked, belching out a thick blanket of smog.
"Boy...ten seconds back....in his old body....and he's already...acting like a rat again!" Misty remarked contemptously amid her gagging on the foul emissions lacing the air.
"You didn't think that being a pokemon for a day would honestly change him, did you?" Jessie chuckled cruelly. "Quick James! Get that Pikachu!"
"Why can't YOU get it??" James asked irately. "Haven't I been through enough??"
"What?? Do you have any idea what that smoke would do to my hair?!?" she shrieked, taking out her mallet that she always seemed to have with her and knocking him toward the vile black cloud with an audible "kwong" sound. He sat up, slightly dazed, reached into his jacket for a pair of goggles which he placed over his eyes and then covered his mouth with the collar of his white jacket before venturing into the smokescreen attack. Ash, Brock and Misty all stood coughing uncontrollably amid the cloud of black smog.
"I---can't see a thing!" Brock choked.
"Piiiii!" Pikachu wailed piteously from somwhere nearby. James, his mouth and eyes protected from the smoke, was spared the coughing fit and easily spotted the pokemon who was doubled over in misery as the smoke attacked its sinuses and throat. A determined look crossed the bishounen's face as he reached out to grab ahold of the pokemon. "Pikapi?" Pikachu gasped, turning and staring through the smoke with bleary eyes straight at him.
Though unsure of whether the electric mouse had seen him or not, James froze stock still.
"P-Pidgeotto!" Ash wheezed, throwing a pokeball.
"Pidgeooooo!!" the large brown bird cried, spiraling into the air.
"Use your gust attack....to...blow this smoke away!" Ash managed to say between gasping for air.
"Oooottoooo!!" it squawked, flapping its wings wildly and making the smoke dissipate. Pikachu sneezed a final time before opening its eyes and finding itself nose-to-nose with a rather apprehensive-looking James.
"Pi!" Pikachu chirped, whirling on its heels so that its tail was placed directly between James' eyes.
"Oh no..." he gasped, seeing sparks of static already beginning to leap off of the pokemon and crackle noisily in the air. With a loud zapping noise, James was thrown backwards straight into Jessie and Meowth. "If I never see another Pikachu again, it'll be too soon!" he cried as the three of them flew through the air.
"Dat was coitenly a 'shocking' experience!" Meowth quipped as he hurtled alongside Jessie and James.
"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off agaiiiinnnnn!!" Jessie cried as the trio sailed out of sight.
"Well, I'm sure glad that's over with." Brock remarked, sighing with relief.
"No kidding." Ash agreed as he recalled Pidgeotto into its pokeball and caught Pikachu as it leapt into his arms.
"Pikachu!" it nodded in agreement.
"So Pikachu, how'd ya like being a human?" Misty asked.
"Chuu..." the pokemon replied, screwing its face up into a look of disgust and sticking its tongue out as Ash, Brock and Misty laughed.
THE END
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"I appreciate your being here on time..." Giovanni began. "...but would you like to explain what's wrong with HIM??" he asked less than kindly, pointing a finger at James who was crouched before Persian, clutching the ketchup bottle between both hands and working his nose as though he were sniffing the pokemon.
"Perrrrr...." the Persian hissed warningly, flattening its ears against the bullet of its skull and displaying its claws.
"Pika! Pikachu!" he declared, patting the cat roughly on the head.
"Who him?" Meowth asked, jerking a thumb at James. "Well, he's outta his--"
"He's..umm...practicing the pokemon language." Jessie said quickly, covering Meowth's mouth firmly. "But he seems to be getting a bit too involved with his role. Come on now, James! Don't bother Persian...I don't think he's in the mood for talking!" she said in a patronizingly sweet voice, darting forward and hurriedly grabbing James and yanking him into a standing
position.
"Chuuuuu..." he growled threateningly at her.
"Practicing the pokemon language..." Giovanni said thoughtfully, mulling the idea over in his mind for a few moments. "I love it." he said finally.
"You do?" Jessie and Meowth asked at the same time.
"Yes. A skill like that would be most beneficial. Perhaps if you could communicate with the pokemon, you would have more success in stealing them than your current success rate of zilch." His remark made Jessie and Meowth flinch.
"Pika." James muttered, turning his attention to the ketchup bottle in his hands and tilting it onto its side, licking the red drops as they oozed out.
"Very well then. Maybe your new skill will come to some use." Giovanni stated, casting a look at James who cocked his head at a questioning angle. "Off with you...and there had better be a new pokeball on my desk when you return."
"We'll do our best!" Jessie nodded vigorously.
"Your best isn't good enough! Come back with a rare and valuable pokemon this time or don't come back at all!" he bellowed, a vein throbbing in his forehead, the force of his voice making Jessie, Meowth and James keel over backwards.
"Well James, I don't know what your problem is..." Jessie said as they walked out of Giovanni's office, "But you almost got us killed in there! You'd better at least be willing to help us steal pokemon with that 'talent' of yours..."
"Pika!" James snorted, turning stubbornly away.
"You hoid what da boss said!" Meowth told him. "If we don't bring back a new pokemon, our goose is cooked!"
"Pikapi?"
"Whaddya mean 'so what'???" Meowth roared, leaping up and clawing James' face.
"Stop it!" Jessie screamed, a stunning number of three veins standing out on her forehead. "If you two are going to kill each other, at least wait until we get outside!!"
"Pi!" James chirped, grabbing Meowth off of his face and dropping him to the ground.
"Now come on!" she snapped, heading briskly down the hallway. "We don't have all day!" Meowth followed closely behind and James hesistantly brought up the rear. Suddenly he stopped, having caught sight of his reflection in the glass pane of a framed portrait of Persian on the wall. He blinked once and experimentally shook his head from side to side....yes, no doubt about it. That was him, all right.
"CHUUUU!!!!" he cried, sinking to his knees, his head thrown back in anguish. Jessie and Meowth froze in their tracks, abruptly looking over their shoulders at James who had tears streaming down his face. "Pika pika! Pikapi! Pikachu!" he babbled, sobbing.
"He wants to know what happened to'im." Meowth translated.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jessie asked, cocking an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Pika! Pi pi! Pikapika! Kachu! Pika!" James replied through teary eyes.
"He says he wants to know where Ash is so he can find someone to fix this. He says he doesn't want to see a human when he looks in the mirror." Meowth stated, looking beyond confused at this point.
"Pika!" James replied, nodding as if to confirm Meowth's translation as he wiped his eyes on the back of one hand, looking disdainfully at the leather glove and white sleeve.
"Hmm....ya'd almost think he really DID think he was a pikachu." Meowth said thoughtfully.
"That's almost as unbelievable as a pikachu acting like HIM." Jessie scoffed. "We're wasting time!" and with that she grabbed up Meowth and the still sniffling James under her arm and continued down the hallway.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Again!" Ash ordered, watching intently as the pikachu before him tensed and was briefly surrounded by electricity and then grunted, making it dissipate. "Again!"
"Ash, don't work James too hard." Brock warned. They had left the pokemon center due to Nurse Joy's request and gone out into a clearing in a nearby field where the electricity wouldn't do anyone any harm. "He won't have enough strength left to do an actual thundershock when the time comes at this rate."
"That's right!" Pika-James panted, his legs wobbling beneath him. "Can we PLEASE take a break? I'm all shocked out..." and, saying so, he collapsed in a tired mass on the grass.
"Yeah, I guess so." Ash agreed. "Sorry James. I guess I'm just looking forward to getting my pikachu back."
"Well I haven't been too thrilled about being in the body of a pokemon either but that doesn't mean I'm working myself ragged!" Pika-James replied irritantly, pulling himself into a sitting position, still catching his breath.
"At least you're getting better at it." Misty put in.
"Briii!" Topegy cooed from where he sat in Misty's lap. Pika-James gave the duo an utterly helpless look.
"Better?" Ash asked after the pokemon's panting had subsided. He nodded in reply, standing. "Good. Let's get started again." Pika-James groaned in reply. "Hey come on! You don't wanna be a pokemon anymore and I don't wanna HAVE you as a pokemon anymore!"
"Are you saying I'm not GOOD enough to be one of your pokemon?" Pika-James inquired, his anger evident.
"Err...no, but..."
"Look out!" Brock interrupted, pointing overhead. Everyone looked up in time to see a Fearow swoop overhead, just narrowly missing Ash and the others.
"Feeaarrrr!!!" it squawked, preparing for another pass.
"What's it want, Ash??" Misty asked, doubling over to protect Togepi from impending danger. Ash didn't answer and instead withdrew his pokedex.
"Fearow." the pokedex informed him. "This evolved form of Spearow, though usually withdrawn and docile, it is known to attack travelers out of anger or hunger." it droned mechanically.
"Ash do something!!" Misty cried, making him look up. Fearow dove straight at Misty, its claws displayed, making her recoil and accidently drop Togepi.
"Gepi! Pii!" it squealed, tumbling to the ground. This, evidently, was what the Fearow had been waiting for and dove straight at the infant pokemon with a ravenous gleam in its eyes.
"TOGEPI!!!!" Misty screeched, frozen in place by apprehension.
"Go, Pikachu!" Ash cried out of sheer reflex and then sweatdropped. "Oh yeah, all I have is James." he mumbled disappointedly. "Okay then...Go--" he didn't get a chance to choose another pokemon as a yellow blur shot past him. "Huh?"
"What's he doing?" Misty whispered to Brock who stood beside her as she watched Pika-James race straight for the baby pokemon.
"It looks like he's....saving Togepi." Brock finished, sounding flabbergasted. Indeed, that's what it looked like. Pika-James positioned himself protectively over Togepi.
"Go away!" he commanded the Fearow who seemed to take no notice. "Umm...scram! Beat it!" he tried, beginning to look nervous as the bird dove closer, showing no signs of stopping. Pika-James ducked at the last possible second, hearing the Fearow's claws close directly above his head. It gave a cheated growl and turned in mid-air to make another pass.
"Briii! Togepi!" Togepi whimpered, curling up under the pikachu's body for protection.
"Its...its okay. I won't let it get you." Pika-James said in the bravest voice he could muster. "Ugh, what I'd give for my human body right now." he lamented, seeing the Fearow was preparing to attack again.
"James, use Pikachu's thundershock!" Ash ordered. Pika-James swallowed hard.
"R-Right now?" he asked. "But--"
"Do it!" Ash and Misty commanded in unison, startling him into action. He tensed his body and sank to all fours, closing his eyes in deep concentration. He felt a familiar tingling sensation as electricity began to surge through his veins and, as usual, began to tire. He felt himself go weak in the knees as lightning bolts snaked over his body. He recalled all the times in the past when he had blundered....but not this time. This time it would be different. He would actually succeed, he told himself.
"Don't give up! You're so close!" Ash urged. James, though he had never really liked Ash, found the boy's words slightly encouraging and gained a better footing in the grass.
"Briii!" Topegi wailed beneath him, fascinated by the spectacle.
"I'm this little pokemon's only hope...only hope. Have to----have to-----" he mentally urged himself, feeling a great pressure on his entire body and suddenly a massive release as a white streak of lightning flew straight at the Fearow.
"Row!" it clucked just as it was engulfed in the beam of electricity. "R-R-R-Row! F-F-F-F-Feearr!!!" it jolted, its beak clacking together. Pika-James shuddered, his strength quickly draining from his body. At length, holding up the thundershock became too much for him and he relaxed, bringing the electricity to an abrupt stop. "Fearow...." the bird croaked, hovering in the air a moment more before falling to earth in a charred heap.
"Toge! Toge! Toge!" Togepi cheered, hugging one of the pikachu's legs tightly. Pika-James let a smug smile of satisfaction cross his face as the three humans rushed over.
"Togepi! You're all right!" Misty exclaimed with pure elation as she knelt and scooped up the baby pokemon, hugging it tightly.
"Bri! Togepi!" it giggled.
"Wow, guess he DOES have it in him." Brock smiled as Ash picked up Pika-James.
"I guess you're right!" Ash declared with some degree of pride. After all, James probably wouldn't have been able to master the thundershock without his coaching. "Congratulations! Sorry I said you didn't make a good pikachu." he apologized, almost hugging the pokemon but then thinking better of it.
"Its...okay." Pika-James replied. "Now can we PLEASE find out where your pikachu has gotten with my body?? A pokemon is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there!" he whined, regaining his composure.
"Sure thing, James." Ash chuckled, setting him down. "Where should we start looking? Any ideas?"
"Well, there's the hideout...or maybe headquarters....or even---" he was cut off by shrill laughter in a voice he knew all too well.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie declared, leaping out from behind a tree.
"Pikapi! Pikachu!" James added, dropping out of the branches with an apple clutched between his hands. Jessie glared at him.
"You're ruining the motto!!" she growled. James responded with a shrug as he sank his teeth happily into the fruit.
"Aww not again..." Misty groaned. "We already had to listen to this once!"
"Then we'll cut to the chase! Hand over your pokemon!" Jessie ordered.
"Never!" Ash told her, defiance gleaming in his eyes.
"Very well then, maybe you need a little persuasion." Jessie smiled wickedly. In one quick motion, she had thrown a pokeball to the ground. "Go, Arbok!" she commanded.
"Charrrbok!" the purple snake hissed, slithering toward Ash, Brock, Misty, Togepi, and Pika-James.
"Use your glare attack!" she ordered. Arbok's eyes opened wide, its pupils growing to immense proportions and freezing them in place. "Quick James, get their pikachu before it wears off!" Jessie cried.
"Pika!" the blue-haired boy replied, shaking his head as he took another bite of the apple, tossed it aside and scurried back up the trunk of the tree for another one.
"James!!! GET DOWN HERE!!" she shrieked. In reply, a large browning apple smacked wetly into her face, its fermented juice trickling down her cheeks and smearing her makeup. As Jessie gave a scream of outrage, Pika-James cringed.
"I'm NEVER going to hear the end of this..." he muttered to himself, slowly becoming aware of the glare attack wearing off and being able to move again.
"Meowth! What happened, Jess?" Meowth asked, poking his head out of the leafy branches and eyeing the odd yellowish substance that trickled down her face.
"Nevermind! Get down here!" she ordered, grabbing the cat by the tail and yanking him out of the tree.
"Owww! Hey!" he whined, rubbing a bump that had surfaced on his head as he hit the ground.
"Get that pikachu!" she said, pointing at the yellow pokemon staring at them with apprehensive eyes.
"Wit pleasure!" Meowth grinned, quickly getting to his feet and displaying his claws.
"M-Meowth! Stop! Don't you recognize me?" PIka-James asked, dodging out of the way of the feline's scratch attack.
"Course I do! Yer that annoying little rat who's gonna save Jessie's, James' and my positions in Team Rocket when we give ya to da boss!" the cat filled him in.
"But---But I AM James!" he cried out, sheilding his face with one yellow arm.
"Heh! Nice try!" Meowth said, narrowing his eyes. "James is over there!" he added, pointing at the tree where James had resurfaced from the leaves, crunching on another apple. "You must tink I'm pretty dumb ta fall fer dat! Ya think yer the ONLY pokemon dat's ever loined ta talk?"
"He's---telling--the--truth!" Ash said slowly as he regained the ability to move.
"Quiet, runt." Jessie snapped.
"KACHU!!!!!" James suddenly screeched, dropping out of the tree and making all heads turn to look at him as he scrambled over to where the fight was about to break out and grabbed Meowth up, restraining him tightly.
"HEY! Whaddaya tink yer doin'?? Let me go!!" Meowth cried, thrashing wildly.
"Pika!" he replied, tossing the cat aside and running forward to gather up the pikachu. Pika-James wasn't sure if he ought to be happy or extremely frightened as he was hugged by himself. "Pikachu! Pika pika pikapi!" the bishounen cooed happily.
"Well, looks like ONE problem's solved." Brock remarked with a smirk as he flexed his arms to get the stiffness from the glare attack out of them. "Now we've just gotta change'em back."
"Change them back? What are you talking about??" Jessie demanded to know.
"It's a long story." Ash sighed.
"CHUU!!" James declared excitedly, hurling himself at Ash.
"Woah! HEY!" Ash cried as the older boy alighted heavily on him, knocking him over. "Get off!" he ordered.
"Pika?" he asked apprehensively, his eyes wavering as he backed away. Ash felt a pang of pity and reached out and uncertainly ruffled James' hair.
"I'm glad to see you too, Pikachu." he grinned.
"Pika!" he exclaimed happily.
"James, what's come over you??" Jessie demanded to know. "Fraternizing with the enemy? HUGGING him?? What's next???"
"Jessie, I can explain!" the pikachu called, loping forward. "I'm not myself! I mean....I'm me, but I'm in a pikachu body!"
"Huh?" Meowth and Jessie asked, exchanging a look of utter confusion.
"James and Pikachu switched minds." Brock tried, looking at them both to see if they understood any better. Meowth burst out laughing.
"Dat's da most ridiculous ting I ever hoid!" he giggled.
"Oh really? How else do you explain THAT?" he asked, pointing at James who was on all fours and engaged in a fervent conversation with Togepi as Misty stood uncertainly nearby.
"He has a point, Meowth." Jessie said reluctantly.
"We've gotta get them switched back!" Ash put in, stepping forward. "Will you help us?"
"Us? Help you?" Jessie inquired, wrinkling her nose with distaste.
"Unless you like listening to James babble on in pokemon and being pelted with rotten apples..." Brock grinned, looking at the brownish stains on Jessie's white uniform. She trembled with rage for a moment.
"Fine!" she spat. "Where do we start?"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"So what's this supposed ta do exactly?" Meowth inquired, watching as Ash and Brock ushered James and the pikachu into standing positions on either side of a signpost advertising an inn known as Bellsprout's Bed & Breakfast.
"Well, what changed them is when James grabbed ahold of that Vermillion City signpost and made that explosion...so all we gotta do is make another one." Ash explained.
"And that's supposed to change them back?" Jessie inquired.
"Right!" Brock nodded.
"Okay, we're ready James! Give us your best thundershock!" Ash said, patting the pokemon and then backing away to a safe distance.
"It ain't gonna woik." Meowth said decisively.
"Pikachu! Pika pika CHUU!" James replied, shaking a fist at the doubtful cat.
"Hey! Do I insult YOUR mother??" he replied indignantly.
"Chu!" he answered, crossing his arms over his chest and pointing his nose in the air in an effort to snub Meowth.
"C'mon James!" Brock urged.
"I don't think I can..." Pika-James said uncertainly.
"Sure ya can!" Misty told him. "You fried that Fearow to save Togepi earlier, didn't you?"
"That was just a lucky shock!" Pika-James whimpered. "I don't know how I did it before....it might have been because a life was on the line!"
"So pretend a life is on the line now!" Ash answered.
"Its not that simple!" James protested.
"A life WILL be on the line if you don't cooperate!" Jessie threatened, grabbing Pika-James by the ears and lifting him, making him wince. "YOURS!!"
"Okay, okay! Just put me down!" he cried, struggling. Jessie obliged by throwing him to the ground.
"At dis rate, he'll be lucky if he lives long enough ta be a human again." Meowth remarked. Jessie drew her foot back to kick the obnoxious cat, but was interrupted by a loud clap of thunder.
"Aww man....its gonna rain!" Brock groaned, looking at the cluster of ominous black clouds above. "Can we hurry this up? I don't want to get wet..." Pika-James clutched the post tightly with both paws, arching his back and attempting to summon his inner reserves of strength to duplicate his feat from earlier.
"No good..." he grunted at last. "I can't do it."
"Well, I guess we can try again later..." Ash sighed disappointedly.
"That's too bad, Ash." Misty said gently. "You were so close to getting your Pikachu back..."
"Yeah I know...but there's no point in beating a dead rapidash, I guess" he told her dejectedly. He cringed a little as he felt cold raindrops begin to pelt against his clothes and skin. "Maybe we should wait for this rain to stop anyway..."
"Good idea." Brock hurriedly agreed, dashing under the cover of the apple tree.
"Ya know, its not smart to stand under a tree in a rainstorm." Misty pointed out.
"Why's that?" Brock asked just as a white streak of lightning zig-zagged down from the sky and struck the tree, catching the branches on fire. "Yeeow!" Brock cried, dashing out from under it.
"THAT'S why!" she replied.
"Pikapi!" James cried, covering his head and looking for cover. Soon he caught sight of a small building nearby at the rear of the pokemon center that stood a short distance away. "Pikachu!" he declared, ambling towards it.
"Wait! Come back here!" Pika-James called, loping after his human body.
"Huh? What's that?" Misty asked, watching the duo scramble towards the small structure.
"Looks like a storage shed." Brock answered. "I don't care as long as its dry...let's go!" he said, beginning to follow after the blue-haired human and the pikachu.
"Uhh...guys? Did anyone happen ta see just what dat shed's made out of?" Meowth asked, pointing at its shiny surface.
"Yeah, looks like sheet metal. So?" Ash asked.
"So metal conducts electricity, ya moron!" Meowth snapped. "If lightning strikes THAT building, we'll all get fried!"
"Uh oh..." Ash muttered, watching as James grabbed ahold of the doorknob.
"What do you mean, 'uh oh'?" Misty asked. "This could be the answer to our problems!"
"Stop shoving! Unngh! I'm getting all wet!" Pika-James grunted, attempting to wriggle past his human body and get through the door to the storage shed first.
"Pikapi! Kachu!!" James said warningly, fending off the pikachu as he wrestled with the doorknob which seemed to be stuck.
"Its a rare exception, but this time brains should come BEFORE beauty!" Pika-James grumbled, butting his head against the back of James' legs and nearly buckling his knees.
"Pika pika!" the boy snarled, regaining his balance and latching both hands onto the doorknob as the pikachu did the same.
"Stuck?? How can it be stuck??" Pika-James demanded to know. "Its cold and wet out here! I'll get sick!"
"CHU!" James replied as though he was saying "Deal with it!" As the two of them continued to fight with the stubborn door, neither one noticed as another peal of thunder clapped loudly in the heavens. Ash and the others looked up to see a large lightning bolt streak from an unseen source within the clouds and head straight for the shed. There was a loud zapping noise as the lightning made contact with the shed's room, engulfing everything in
a crackling yellow glow.
"N-N-N-N-Not again!!!" Pika-James whined, jolting wildly and unable to let go of the doorknob.
"Piiiiii!!" James wailed, the pikachu entity in his body obviously not used to a human's low tolerance of electricity as he shook, his jagged mane of blue hair standing on end. The others watched, spellbound, as the two of them shone with an unnatural light for a brief moment.
"Rrrghhhh...make it stooop!!" Pika-James said between clenched teeth.
"Kachuuuu!!!" James replied. There was a booming crash as the shed came apart in several pieces, one of its walls narrowly missing the group of onlookers as it was thrown backwards. For a long moment, there was a maddening silence as the glow from the lightning slowly vanished and all that could be heard was the gentle pattering of rain over the landscape.
"Did it work?" Misty asked at last, squinting her eyes to see.
"I don't know..." Ash said apprehensively, looking forward. All that remained of the metal shed was a large black crater in the grass. A collective gasp went up from the group as they rushed over to further investigate.
"Do you think they were---" Brock began, but didn't finish. Jessie felt her eyes tear a bit as she knelt to pick something up. It was the rose James had been carrying in his Team Rocket jacket. The petals were slightly charred and fell off as she touched them.
"James..." she said quietly.
"Moidered in da prime of his life!" Meowth exclaimed angrily, turning to Ash, Brock and Misty. "All right. Who's bright idea was it to blow'im up? Huh? I want names!" he yelled, pounding a fist into his open paw.
"Will you be quiet??" Misty yelled back. "Ya know, Ash lost his pikachu too! The least you can do is show a little respect!!" The cat thought of saying something more but then thought better of it and instead averted his eyes from the angry girl.
"Pikachu, I'm sorry..." Ash sulked, his eyes scanning the rubble. "That was a really stupid idea. I never should've made you try it." He knuckled a tear away with the back of his hand.
"C'mon Ash..." Brock said quietly. "We should go."
"I guess you're right." Ash sniffled, squeezing back tears.
"Chuuu..." a weak voice muttered as they turned to leave. Ash froze, whipping his head around to look over his shoulder.
"Pikachu??" he asked, his voice trembling with hope.
"Chaa." the voice replied.
"Pikachu! Where are you??" he asked, looking about himself wildly.
"Over there!" Misty cried, pointing at the pokemon center's roof.
"I see him!" Brock exclaimed, looking upward where Pikachu was sprawled half on and half off of the center's roof, blinking its eyes slowly.
"Pikachu!!" Ash cried, running forward.
"Pika pika!" the pokemon managed, getting shakily to its feet and leaping into its trainers arms.
"Its so good to have you back to normal again!" Ash grinned, hugging it tightly.
"Pika...pikachu!" Pikachu replied happily, patting its master on the back.
"Amazin'!" Meowth declared. "Dat pokemon actually outlived James!"
"Unnngghhh..." a familiar voice groaned from nearby.
"Huh?" Jessie asked, looking over her shoulder at a large bush planted beside the pokemon center. Casting a sideways glance at the other humans who were engrossed in welcoming PIkachu back, she moved toward the plants.
"Prepare for trouble?" she asked hesitantly, bending over to get a closer look at the bushes.
"M-Make it double..." someone replied in an exhausted voice. Jessie immediately reached into the tangle of branches and drew James out by the hair.
"You're back to normal!" she exclaimed happily, looking at him in his bedraggled and dazed state. "Err....so to speak..." she added quickly. Upon hearing this James quickly ran a hand first over his head and then over the Team Rocket uniform he was wearing.
"I'm me again!" he declared upon being satisfied with his inspection. "I'm human!" Jessie winced as he crushed her in an almost suffocating embrace.
"Welcome...back..." she wheezed, attempting to pry his arms off of her. "We still have some unfinished business with that twerp!" Jessie reminded him, leaping to her feet after managing to release his hold on her.
"Right!" James agreed, climbing out of the bushes.
"Let's get that Pikachu!" she whispered. James suddenly froze in his tracks. "NOW what's the problem?" Jessie asked angrily.
"Does it HAVE to be Pikachu?" he groaned. "Can't we try to steal Togepi or Onix for a change?" Jessie favored him with a glare.
"That explosion must have fried your brain." she growled. "Now come on!"
"We were awfully worried about you, Pikachu!" Ash laughed, holding the pokemon as Misty scratched it behind the ears.
"Pika!" it giggled, obviously enjoying the attention.
"Ya know, we never DID find out what happened to James..." Brock said thoughtfully.
"Yeah..." Ash muttered. "Hope he's okay."
"It takes more than a little lightning to keep Team Rocket down!" Jessie announced triumphantly, making the group turn to look at her. She stood back to back with James in a typical melodramatic pose Team Rocket was reknowned for as a breeze touseled their hair for convenient effect.
"Weezing, smokescreen!" James commanded, releasing the toxin-spouting purple creature from its pokeball.
"Weeezziiinnngg..." the pokemon choked, belching out a thick blanket of smog.
"Boy...ten seconds back....in his old body....and he's already...acting like a rat again!" Misty remarked contemptously amid her gagging on the foul emissions lacing the air.
"You didn't think that being a pokemon for a day would honestly change him, did you?" Jessie chuckled cruelly. "Quick James! Get that Pikachu!"
"Why can't YOU get it??" James asked irately. "Haven't I been through enough??"
"What?? Do you have any idea what that smoke would do to my hair?!?" she shrieked, taking out her mallet that she always seemed to have with her and knocking him toward the vile black cloud with an audible "kwong" sound. He sat up, slightly dazed, reached into his jacket for a pair of goggles which he placed over his eyes and then covered his mouth with the collar of his white jacket before venturing into the smokescreen attack. Ash, Brock and Misty all stood coughing uncontrollably amid the cloud of black smog.
"I---can't see a thing!" Brock choked.
"Piiiii!" Pikachu wailed piteously from somwhere nearby. James, his mouth and eyes protected from the smoke, was spared the coughing fit and easily spotted the pokemon who was doubled over in misery as the smoke attacked its sinuses and throat. A determined look crossed the bishounen's face as he reached out to grab ahold of the pokemon. "Pikapi?" Pikachu gasped, turning and staring through the smoke with bleary eyes straight at him.
Though unsure of whether the electric mouse had seen him or not, James froze stock still.
"P-Pidgeotto!" Ash wheezed, throwing a pokeball.
"Pidgeooooo!!" the large brown bird cried, spiraling into the air.
"Use your gust attack....to...blow this smoke away!" Ash managed to say between gasping for air.
"Oooottoooo!!" it squawked, flapping its wings wildly and making the smoke dissipate. Pikachu sneezed a final time before opening its eyes and finding itself nose-to-nose with a rather apprehensive-looking James.
"Pi!" Pikachu chirped, whirling on its heels so that its tail was placed directly between James' eyes.
"Oh no..." he gasped, seeing sparks of static already beginning to leap off of the pokemon and crackle noisily in the air. With a loud zapping noise, James was thrown backwards straight into Jessie and Meowth. "If I never see another Pikachu again, it'll be too soon!" he cried as the three of them flew through the air.
"Dat was coitenly a 'shocking' experience!" Meowth quipped as he hurtled alongside Jessie and James.
"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off agaiiiinnnnn!!" Jessie cried as the trio sailed out of sight.
"Well, I'm sure glad that's over with." Brock remarked, sighing with relief.
"No kidding." Ash agreed as he recalled Pidgeotto into its pokeball and caught Pikachu as it leapt into his arms.
"Pikachu!" it nodded in agreement.
"So Pikachu, how'd ya like being a human?" Misty asked.
"Chuu..." the pokemon replied, screwing its face up into a look of disgust and sticking its tongue out as Ash, Brock and Misty laughed.
THE END