Chapter 2

.....lightning hit the tree ahead of Team Rocket, causing it to split and fall--towards them.

"James! Meowth! Watch out!" Cried Jessie, warning her team. They heard the sickening crack of the tree as it fell towards them, and looked up to the oncoming tree. Jessie, who was walking farther behind her shocked teammates, charged towards them to push them out of the way. James and Meowth were still staring at the oncoming tree.....each second seeming like minutes as James managed to turn hid head to see Jessie running towards him and Meowth. It finally snapped in James' mind to run out of the way of the tree, so he did...he ran as fast as he could and didn't stop till he heard the sound. He heard the cracking of the tree hit the ground, he thought he heard something else.

Jessie's scream. The amount of rain falling seemed to double that second.

He had been quickly turned on his heel, making Meowth, who had been hanging on his back, fly off. James had his eyes locked on the unsettled area where the tree impacted with the ground. After reaching the tree, he frantically began searching for Jessie through the wet, debris-filled air. He heard a faint moan from under a nearby branch. Through the setting debris he saw a black glove and a streak of red.

He saw Jessie laying on her side, her back towards James, covered in small branches and debris.

"Jessie! Jess-," James called out Jessie's name while starting to remove the debris from her slender form, but stopped short. As he removed a branch, he noticed red everywhere, and it wasn't her long mane of hair.....it was blood. It was all over her back, coming from her left shoulder blade. James winced when he saw the blood, felling slightly light headed, and his stomach lurched with sympathy pain.

"Jess? Jess? Can you hear me?" He asked, almost afraid.....in case....no, he couldn't.... wouldn't think that. Jessie moaned in reply as James turned her over to face him, with tears in his eyes.

As James did this, Jessie let out a horrendous scream of pain through the surrounding mountains, then passed out from pain and exhaustion. James was now crying because he knew she was injured and he had rolled Jessie to face him, thus inflicting her with pain. Now, with Jessie in his arms, looked again to see blood all over her tattered shirt. The aerodynamic end of a wooden shaft protruded from the back of her left shoulder, the arrow tip had entered from her back obviously, but James couldn't find the tip protruding through the front.

"Oh God, Jess," James said into the chilly air, lifting Jessie off the ground; now careful of the arrow.

"Hey James, Where's Jess? I tot she was right behind us when she pushed us outta da way. Hey, watcha doi-," Meowth was catching up to James but stopped short as James stood up and slowly turned around. Then Meowth saw who lay in James' arms. To Meowth, James seemed very tall that moment.

James looked from the crimson covered woman in his arms to the cream colored cat with tears forming mournful rivers through the dust on his face, and spoke to him. He spoke to him in an eerie, deep, solemn voice, full of meaning and concern, the cat had hardly ever heard James use.

"Meowth.....we have to get to that cabin."

"Follow me," nodded Meowth with understanding. He had no idea what had happened to Jessie, but he knew it was serious...and by the look in James' eyes and the tone in his voice, he meant they needed to get to that cabin now! Whatever had happened, Meowth could tell Jessie had lost a good amount of blood, and would ask questions later.

With that, he headed off running towards the cabin, James closely at his heels- but still mindful of the arrow in his partner's shoulder.

* * *

"That's it! Noctowl, go!" Cried a frustrated Ash. "Try and find us a shelter. I know it's raining, that's why we need you, Noctowl. Just watch out for the lightning clouds!" He cried as Noctowl flew off through the trees.

A minute later, Noctowl returned and motioned in a direction where shelter was found. The twerps followed Noctowl through the woods.

"What the-?" Brock asked.

"What was that?" Misty questioned also.

"Huh?" Ash stupidly asked. Brock and Misty simply ignored Ash.

"Am I seeing things or did you see it too, Brock?"

"I saw it too, I wonder what it was. Should we find out?"

"Find out what? What are you guys talking about?"

"Brock and I saw something red and white moving through the trees. I wonder if it was a Pokemon." Knowing that the chance of catching a Pokemon would intrigue Ash to go after it, Misty said that what she saw could be a Pokemon, although the figure didn't move like any Pokemon she had ever seen, so Ash would join her and Brock in searching for it.

"If it's a Pokemon, I wanna catch it! Rain, storm, or lightning...I'm gonna find out what that was!"

"Ash, come on! We're way ahead of ya!" Yelled Brock, who was already running with Misty after the mysterious figure.

"Hey!" Ash took off through the wet foliage , dodging trees left ad right through the rain after his friends. He finally caught up to his friends who had stopped. After catching his breath, he asked his friends, "What did we stop for? Which way did the 'Pokemon' go?"

"Sshhhh!" He got from Misty. Ash looked then for an answer from Brock, who seemed to be concentrating. Brock's eyes were closed and his hands cupped, making semicircles over his ears.

"He is trying to listen for Crobat. He sent out Crobat to look for Noctowl. since you left him behind. Crobat might also pick up some things above the trees that the rain would have disabled Noctowl to see because his supersonic isn't strong enough.

"Oh."

"Zubat and Noctowl are on their way back together," Brock announced, his concentration pose still in use.

"How can he hear them?" Ash whispered towards Misty, next to him.

"He's a Pokemon breeder, Ash. He's more in tune with Pokemon, especially his own, than we think. Him and Crobat have been together ever since Crobat was a Golbat, and even a Zubat. Remember?" 'Do I always have to explain everything to him like a child?' Misty often wondered.

"Oh."

"Here they are," Brock announced as the two flying Pokemon swooped down through the forest canopy to their masters.

"Find anyplace for shelter, Noctowl? Or see that red and white thing?" A hoarse voice asked his Pokemon.

"Yeah, did you find anything with your supersonic, either, Crobat?" After a few minutes, and a series of chirps, pitches, and other noises flying Pokemon make, exited Crobat's and Noctowl's mouths, Brock spoke. By now, the forest was turning dark from the clouds' shadows and the nearing of the closing of the day.

"So, you guys are saying that there is a cabin not far off, a few hollow trees, and a cave, right?" Summarized Brock.

A "chirp" confirmed Brock.

"Didga see that red and white Pokemon that I'm gonna capture?"

Another "chirp" left Ash looking disappointed. The Pokemon couldn't sense things very well through the foliage with the storm. At that moment, thunder could be heard loudly.

"Ah man! I really wanted to capture, or at least see, whatever it was you guys were talking about!" wailed Ash.

"We can still look for it on our way to a shelter," said Misty.

"She's right, Ash. Now, where should we go? The cabin sounds best to me, but Crobat said that the cave is closest!" Brock was now trying to yell over the sounds of the storm.

"O.K. Which way is the cave?"

"Just call back Noctowl, I'll use Crobat to lead us there. Come on, let's go!" With that, the trio headed at a fast speed through the storm to find shelter; their green, pink, and blue ponchos whipping violently as they went.

* * *

'How did this happen? I thought she would have escaped from falling under the tree.....but that arrow. Where had it come from? For what purpose? And who shot it? My God.... Jess is so still....her crimson blood soaks herself and me....it's everywhere. I want to cry and puke. I can't, though. Jessie is depending on me. For once, Jessie is depending on me. Jessie, Meowth, and I need to get to that cabin. Oh, I hope Meowth knows where he is going. God...that arrow didn't come through her other side. What are we going to do? Come on Jess.....please open your oceanic eyes.....twitch an elegant finger....cry....anything! God, I....I....I....nevermind. I can't think that now. I'm going to get you through this.......I have to.

This storm is really bad. Just our luck, huh, Jess? Nothing good ever comes to us. Maybe that's because we're part of Team Rocket. I wish we were never mixed up in this organization. At least it's better than other things........

Okay, I have to concentrate on following Meowth now, because knowing me, I'll just trip over something and drop Jess if I don't stay alert.' James had a million other thoughts flooding his brain at the moment. The storm, the arrow, Meowth, the tree, and Jessie. Especially Jessie. She has been his best friend since....well, ever since they were both admitted to Pokemon Technical Institute. After only one night of fun, they were both flunked. Then there was the bike gang. And finally, they became Rockets. They had journeyed through so many obstacles together that James knew he wouldn't be the same if....if....no, he couldn't think about that now, not when it hit so close to reality.

James could now tell that the trees were starting to thin as they neared the cabin. At this point James was glad he wasn't tired of running and carrying Jessie. He figured it was adrenaline and just being toughened up by being in Team Rocket. Finally, he spotted the cabin. Meowth, being a ways ahead of James, picked the door open, then closed it to the thundering storm outside after James entered.

Once inside the cabin, Meowth noted that there was a simple fireplace, a sofa, two recliners, and a coffee table in the main room. There was a kitchen, bathroom, and two bedrooms also.

James laid Jessie on the sofa on her right, and uninjured, side.

"Jess, hang in there," James said to the unconscious woman, wiping wet hair from her wet and pale forehead. "I'm gonna help you.... Meowth and I, I mean." James then quickly went into the kitchen, clearing the wetness from his eyes, and returned with towels to dry everybody off.

"Jimmy, is dere anyting dat I can do ta help?"

"Yeah...go get some fabric or more towels to use as bandages, then boil some water to sterilize things...thanks ," James replied . James was scared to death knowing what he and Meowth would have to do to remove the arrow. Everybody on his team had standard training in medicines and first aid, but removing an arrow from someone...no-removing an arrow that had not gone all the way through was not in the training. James knew in his brain he had to do this though, because going to a regular hospital was out of the question due to the fact that they were in Team Rocket, and the closest Team Rocket hospital wasn't close at all. Removing the arrow would cause more pain to Jessie than actually being shot, James knew, and he was afraid to hurt her more than she already was. The last thing he wanted to do was inflict pain to the woman he loved, but she would die if the arrow wasn't removed, and if she did survive the removal, she would heal in time.

Just as Meowth went to find some fabric, "Meowth?" James asked, like a lost, sad little boy, with his eyes filling with tears.