Chapter 43

Being a traveling Pokémon Trainer, one would tend to lose track of the days. Especially when they would be on the road for long periods of time. A normal wash of relief would rush over them like wave in the ocean when they would see a town after such gaps between towns, but when they saw the glimpse of the town they were approaching, their eyes were drawn to the Pokémon-shaped banners blowing in the wind. They were in the shape of three Water Pokémon: Gyarados, Goldeen, and Magikarp.

"Oh, look at all the Pokémon banners!" Ash commented, a smile stretching up his cheeks.

"You know what that means, don't 'ya?" Brock responded.

"All right! It's my favorite day of the year!" the Pokémon Trainer said excitedly, and the pair exchanged grins.

"It's Kid's Day!" they said simultaneously.

"Let's go see if this town is celebrating in any way!"

"Yeah – our best bet is to probably go right to those banners," Brock suggested. Ash agreed with his suggestion, and they followed the path with the banners calling to them like a lighthouse's beacon. When they got closer, they saw that the banners were raised on a flagpole in front of a school. Though class was still going on inside despite the holiday, Ash reminisced about his own class days during Kid's Day. Classes would be canceled all day, and they would just have one big party where the teacher would bring food and drinks, and they would just play games all day. There was one year that Professor Oak came by and brought some Pokémon from the lab as well.

"Wouldn't it be nice to just play all day like we used to as kids?" Ash asked with a dreamy smile on his face, but then it scrunched up in the corner of his mouth and he folded his hands behind his head. "But we can't just take the whole day off to play around while I still have that Volcano Badge to win."

"Look, the way I look at it," Brock brought up, "If Kid's Day is today, then that means that the Princess Festival just happened." The Princess Festival was a holiday that celebrated women and girls everywhere, and while females got steep discounts and even got to participate in special occasions and celebrations, the men just had to follow along. "So Kid's Day should be a way for us boys to celebrate! It should be... for men."

"Real men!" Ash agreed.

"Real tough men!"

That was all the convincing Ash needed. "Let's play!"

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here!" The third voice that spoke up was unfamiliar to them, and they both turned and looked to see a young woman in a dress standing by the gate of the school they were standing by. "I've been expecting you Pokémon Trainers! Although, I thought there would be three of you joining us, today." Ash looked with a cocked eyebrows as she gestured back to the school. "Please, come in. All the children are waiting for you in the playground."

Immediately, Brock was in front of her in a heartbeat, and he clasped her hands in his own. "I didn't mean to keep you waiting. Please forgive me. My name's Brock!"

"Brock, uh... hello..." the teacher responded hesitantly, thrown off by the sudden grasp.

"It's a... pleasure to meet an educator as... as enchanting as you are." The awkward conversation was thankfully cut off when a phone inside the woman's apron began to ring. Taking out the flip-phone that was held in a case that resembled a Chansey, she flipped it open and brought the receiver to her ear underneath her shoulder-length brown hair.

"Hello! Little Kiddo Preschool!" The teacher listened for a moment, but then stepped back from Brock and frowned instantly. "What?! What do you mean you can't make it? But there are two-" She looked at the pair of newcomers and listened longer before letting out a sigh. "I see... Yes. Thank you." She hung up the line and cupped her cheek as she let out another disappointed sigh.

"What's the matter, miss?" Ash asked her.

"Some Pokémon Trainers were supposed to visit today and let the children play with their Pokémon," she explained. "They're so excited about playing with the Pokémon; now they're going to be so disappointed..."

"We're Pokémon Trainers," the black-haired boy replied.

"You are? Oh, but you don't have time to let the children play with your Pokémon..." Once again, Brock wedged himself between Ash and the teacher, and clasped her hands.

"Yes we do! We have all the time in the world! We have tons of time!" he said desperately while the young teacher blinked at him. "The kids can play with all of our Pokémon. Those other Trainers must be heartless! You can count on us, miss!" He chuckled and looked back at his friend for support. "Right, Ash?"

"Right! No problem!" Ash stated with a fist on his hip. And besides, it was a good excuse to be able to play for the day and not feel guilty about it. The young woman was thrilled to hear this as well, and she bowed in thanks to the pair.

"Oh, thank you! The children will have so much fun!"

Ash laughed in response. "So will we!"

"Oh, please; come in!" she invited, and gestured once again toward the school.

"Thanks!" She led them around the front of the school to the fenced-in playground that had all the basics of a children's recess area – jungle gym, slides, swings, etc. Though it was a fairly large area, the children were nowhere to be found. That was, until, their teacher called for them.

"Children! You can all come out now and meet our two Pokémon Trainers!" A back door in the school opened, and a flood of children all wearing similar uniforms of blue and pink came rushing out excitedly toward them. Ash and Brock smiled at their enthusiasm, but the smiles quickly vanished when the children swarmed at them and grabbed at their pants, the bottom of their shirts, and the Poké Balls at Ash's waist. They all spoke at once which made understanding them harder, and between that and the grabbing, it was quickly overwhelming.

"H-hey, kids! Take it easy!" Ash protested, trying to shoo their small hands away from his Poké Balls so they wouldn't grab any of his Pokémon.

"Children, you have to be gentle!" their teacher scolded lightly as they bum-rushed Ash and Brock. "When the Pokémon come out you can't treat them like any old toys!" But the children ignored her and continued grabbing at Ash and Brock. "QUIET, YOU BRATS!" The sudden outburst gave Ash and Brock a fright and they recoiled, but the children seemed use to it, and only settled suddenly and all at once with calm smiles on their faces now.

"'Kay!" they all replied back, and their hands fell to their sides.

"There! That's much nicer," she said as her hands folded by the side of her face.

"Hey! We wanna see your Pokémon!" one of the boys in the group called to them.

"Yeah! All of them!" a girl beside him added.

"All right! We have a real treat for you today," Ash told them, and plucked all six Poké Balls from his belt and held them up. "Wait 'til you see these Pokémon!" He threw the balls high into the air, and they all burst open all at the same time. Pidgeotto was the first to come out, and it flew through the air before landing with its wings tucked. Wartortle and Bulbasaur came out next, followed by Mankey, Charmander, and Tauros.

"That's not all, folks!" Brock called, throwing out his own Poké Balls. Psyduck appeared first, holding its head and blinking at the children, and then this was followed by Geodude, Vulpix, and Zubat, who each gave a happy cry when they saw the children. Finally, Onix appeared, but the children didn't seem intimidated by its size at all, and instead all looked at the wide spread of Pokémon around them with an excitement that they could barely contain.

Two kids stroked Vulpix and played with its tails, and despite the Fire-type known to be a little prissy when it came to not being touched by people it didn't trust, it seemed to know that these kids meant no harm, and simply let them be. Wartortle looked positively pleased as it walked on all fours while letting one kid at a time ride on its shell. Bulbasaur was also letting the kids touch and inspect its bulb. So far, the only one who didn't seem thrilled by the children was Psyduck. The Pokémon cried out in pain as one of the children pulled at its tail, and two other children bonked its head and poked at its arms while Geodude watched from the background, floating high through the air and letting kids hang off its arms.

A loud roar was let out off to the side, and two kids wearing blue uniforms giggled with delight as they held onto Onix's head crest as the Rock Snake Pokémon lifted them high into the air. "All the kids are having a blast!" Ash commented, the smile back on his face now that he wasn't getting mauled by the rush of children any longer. He watched Pidgeotto soar by while holding a child in its talons, and his eyes drifted over to Brock, who was scrawling in a notebook.

"It seems like playing with children helps the Pokémon relax," Brock elaborated when he noticed Ash watching, and they all watched as Psyduck hurried to the other side of the playground to get away from its assailants, but the children followed and rushed after it like it was playing tag. "That's important for Pokémon Breeders to know."

Ash watched Mankey carefully, knowing how its short-temper tended to lead to disasters of many, but it seemed to be enjoying playing with the children as well, and Ash noted how similar to a child it was. But before he could turn away, he noticed one child didn't seem to be having a good time, and was sitting off to the side. He was leaning against the jungle gym farthest away from the group of Pokémon, and was looking down at his feet as he kicked a rock mindlessly. "Miss, who's that little boy over there?"

"Oh, that's Timmy."

Ash frowned. He definitely related with the child, as he was always the outcast in school as well, but if there were ever Pokémon around as there were here, he would have been playing with them just like these kids were. Slowly, he approached the child with Brock close behind. "Hey, Timmy; what's the matter? Don't you want to play with the Pokémon?"

The boy looked up with eyes that matched his uniform, and his mouth was curled down into a saddened frown. "I want to, but..."

"Y'know Timmy, if you're afraid of the Pokémon, you don't have to," Brock said.

"I'm not scaywed!" he responded quickly. "The only Pokémon I wanna meet is Meowth!"

"A Meowth?" Ash repeated with furrowed eyebrows.

"Why a Meowth?"

"Well, you see..." Timmy began. "One day I was playing in the woods. All of a sudden, I got attacked by a Beedwill! I was so scaywed! But just befowe it got me, a Meowth jumped out of the woods and saved me! It used its Fuwy Swipes and then gave it a big kick and chased it away. But befowe I could say anything to it, it wan off into the woods again."

"Wow, that's an amazing story..." Ash replied.

"It must have been a wild Meowth that fought off that Beedrill and saved Timmy," Brock said. "It's very unusual for a Meowth to take on a Beedrill like that."

"That's why Meowth's the only Pokémon I wanna meet! That Meowth is my hewo!" Timmy stated while waving his hands in the air excitedly. The other children seemed to hear this as well, and some of the others walked over to join them.

"Are you telling that old story again?" another boy with a gruff-looking appearance asked Timmy with his hands on his hips.

"No Meowth can do what you say it did," a girl beside him added.

"Can too!" Timmy shot back, but they still didn't back down.

"Well, prove it, then!" the first boy said, and Timmy lowered his angered hand.

"But I..."

"But, you can't prove it, can 'ya?"

"You're just a liar, Timmy!"

"I am not a liar!"

"You're a liar-liar-pants-on-fire!"

"Okay, okay! Settle down!" Ash interjected, and when he did, the children that were teasing Timmy gave the boy one last look and walked away, leaving Timmy with his head down. Ash bent at the knees to look at the boy at eye-level. "It's okay, Timmy. I believe you."

Timmy's head whipped up so his dark brown hair bounced slightly, and he looked at Ash with widened eyes. "You do?"

"Sure I do!" the Pokémon Trainer replied brightly. "I've been on this journey for a while now, but I've seen some amazing things that Pokémon can do. I think they can do anything; don't you think so?" Timmy smiled for the first time since he told his story, and nodded his head so hard that they both thought it was going to pop off. "You know, something similar like that happened to me, too."

"It did?" Timmy asked, cocking his head slightly.

Ash nodded in response. "I wasn't rescued or anything by some heroic Pokémon, but I remember I got lost in the woods once when I was your age, and then it started to rain. I found some Pokémon and we all huddled together under a tree until the rain stopped. That's when I knew I wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer. And I did. Do you see that Wartortle over there?" Timmy's eyes looked at the blue Turtle Pokémon carrying one of his classmates on his back. "That Wartortle was my first Pokémon ever. He was the one I wanted from the beginning, and if you want a Meowth that badly, I know you'll get one one day."

Timmy's mouth opened slightly in admiration of Ash's words. He definitely looked a lot more happier than when they first walked up to him. Even Brock looked proud of Ash. Finally, Timmy spoke up. "Hey... Is it okay if I wide your Wawtowtle?"

"Sure. You'll get the next one!"

o 0 o

The kids and the Pokémon played for the rest of the day. Sure, Timmy was disappointed neither Brock nor Ash had a Meowth, but the little pep talk that Ash gave the young boy seemed to cheer him up quite a bit, and he finally joined in on the fun with the Pokémon. But finally, it was almost time for the children to go home, and it was also time for Ash and Brock to continue on their journey.

They stood outside the front gates of the school, and with Miss Reiko in front of the children, she bowed in gratitude once again. "Thank you. Thank you so much for letting the children play with your Pokémon."

"If you need any more help, just call me!" Brock said enthusiastically.

"You know what, Ash?" Timmy, who was standing beside his teacher, asked the dark-haired Trainer. "When I get big, I'm gonna be a Pokémon Trainer just like you and Brock!" He laughed excitedly and continued. "Then, me and my Meowth are gonna enter the Pokémon League!"

"The Pokémon League, huh?" Ash replied, grinning back at the younger boy. "It'll be fun to compete against an old friend, won't it, Timmy?" The preschooler giggled and nodded and grinned up at Ash from ear to ear. Ash laughed back, and gave a wave. "Take care!"

"Bye, everybody!" Brock called, and after they all waved, they parted ways from the school and headed off into town to stock up on supplies.

o 0 o

Their stay in the town didn't last long at all, and the pair of traveling Trainers were already continuing onward to Cinnabar Island. It had been a while since Ash had been in a Gym Battle, and he was especially looking forward to it.

Their travels brought them through a peaceful forest. All was quiet enough for a baby to take a nap in. That was, until they heard a cry. "Stop, thief!" The cry broke through the silence of the forest, and Ash and Brock frantically looked around for any sign that stuck out among the green and brown of the forest.

"A thief? Where?" Ash asked aloud.

"I-I'm not sure..." Brock responded. A flurry of movement in Ash's peripherals made the boy whip around, and he saw a burly man with a beard looking at him through the corners of his own spectacles. He was carrying a large sack on his back that looked to be full, but in his hand, he held a firearm. "Look! That must be him!"

Reacting quickly, Ash pulled out a Poké Ball and threw it forward. "Go, Wartortle!" The ball opened in the middle in midair, and his starter Pokémon appeared in a flash of light.

"Wartor!" it declared, looking angrily at the thief. But then, its eyes trailed over to the weapon in the man's hands, and it backed up hesitantly. "Wartor-war..."

"What's wrong, Wartortle?" the Pokémon Trainer asked his Pokémon, but Wartortle never responded before a shadow came darting out of the bushes behind them.

"Attack!" Ash and Brock cried out as they looked up, and a flash of orange and cream jumped high over them. Once it landed on the ground, the pair could see that it was a Growlithe, and it bent down and growled at the man. His eyes widened behind his glasses and he tried to get away, but the unseen female Trainer gave another command in the background. "Sic 'em, Growlithe!"

"Growwwl!" the Puppy Pokémon howled, and jumped at the man. The Fire-type collided with the thief, and the strike took him by surprise. The man let out a cry and stumbled backward, and when he did, he dropped the pistol he was holding. With the weapon sitting comfortably in the grass, Ash looked down at his Wartortle once again.

"All right, Wartortle, BubbleBeam!" he told it.

"Wartor wartor..." Now instilled with confidence, Wartortle jumped into the air and drew in a deep breath before letting it out as a stream of bubbles. "WARTORTLE!" Growlithe turned back and leapt out of the way as the blue bubbles soared past it and hit the man. This time, the attack knocked him off his feet and onto his backside.

"All right, Wartortle! Show that thief who's boss!" A whistle cut through the air, and the smirk on Ash's face quickly faded when barking sounded from all over, and in an instant, the pair and Wartortle were surrounded by Growlithe that came out from the bushes and trees. Instead of the thief, all of the Growlithe were hunched and baring their teeth at them. "Uh... what's going on..."

Three uniformed personnel all dressed in police uniforms came out of the woods, and one of them Ash recognized as Officer Jenny. The said police officer knelt down to the thief and looked down at him with a worried look. "That's awful; are you okay?" On his other side, the Growlithe that jumped at him also pawed with worry at his hat.

"Uh, yeah... I think so..."

"Just what do you think you're doing interfering with us?!" Jenny exclaimed once she was able to confirm the thief was okay.

"I-interfering?!" Brock repeated, his face already starting to glow red at the sight of the female officer.

"But we were just trying to help you capture that dangerous thief before he got away!" Ash explained.

"He's not a thief!" Jenny responded as the other two police officers helped the man up. "He's a police officer training our K-9 Police Unit."

"K-9 Police?"

"These are police Pokémon!" Jenny elaborated, opening her arms wide and gesturing to the Growlithe that surrounded them. The two Pokémon Trainers looked down at the Fire-types in a new light, and Ash took out his Pokédex and scanned it.

"Growlithe, the Puppy Pokémon. While loyal to its master, the Growlithe will drive away enemies by barking and biting."

"Then Growlithe really is the perfect Pokémon for the police to use," Ash commented, seeing the Pokémon in a new light.

"The K-9 unit! These Growlithe pups are so well-trained! And so cute, too!" Brock reached down to pet the Growlithe closest to him, but the Pokémon's lips peeled away from its sharp teeth and it growled louder, causing the Pokémon Breeder to flinch back in fright. "Look out!"

"Don't worry," Jenny chuckled. Now that she could see that they really meant no harm, she lowered her hardened demeanor. "The Growlithe won't Bite unless I order them to attack. Growlithe, line up!" At her command, the Growlithe all instantly disregarded the three and all lined up in two lines in front of the police officers before turning and sitting with their backs toward Jenny. "These people are our new friends. Say hello, K-9 squad."

"Growlithe!" they all barked at the same time, and Ash couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

"That's so cool!"

o 0 o

After Ash and Brock apologized to Jenny and explained that they were just trying to help, Jenny forgave them and even invited them back to their training camp for a hot meal. They accepted without a doubt, and Jenny, the police officers, and the rest of the K-9 unit brought them back. The sun was just starting to go down as they sat in the cafeteria. Jenny brought them out a meal on a tray each and apologized that it wasn't gourmet food before leaving to bring them beverages. By the time that she had come back out, they were both devouring it, and she was too focused on walking and not spilling their mugs of hot chocolate on another tray to notice.

"You kids must be exhausted; I hope you'll be able to eat something," she said. Her smile faded when she looked up and saw the pair devouring the meal provided to them, and she gave a nervous chuckle. "I guess that's... not a problem!"

Swallowing a mouthful of rice, Ash turned his head to Brock and smirked. "Did you see the way that Growlithe tackled that guy, Brock? It was braver than Wartortle!"

"But the officer playing the thief was holding a gun," Brock reminded in between chewing. "You can't expect Wartortle to attack somebody like that."

"Having a Pokémon take on an armed opponent is very, very dangerous," Officer Jenny inputted, sitting across from them and wrapping her gloved hands around her own mug. "Unless it has special training."

"I guess that's true..." Ash realized, and put down his bowl onto his tray. It still had food in it, but he was now too deep in thought to eat further. "So far, I've only been using my Pokémon to battle and help capture other Pokémon..."

Brock could see the gears turning in his traveling companion's head, and he frowned. "Wait a minute, I hope you're not thinking of having Wartortle train with the police, like Growlithe."

"What's wrong with that idea?" Ash snapped back. "It'll make Wartortle even stronger!" Ash's stubbornness didn't wait for Brock to respond, and he turned back to the turquoise-haired officer. "Officer Jenny, will you train my Wartortle the way you trained the Growlithe?"

"Well, this school is for training Growlithe... We can't admit just any Pokémon," she responded.

"Maybe Wartortle just isn't cut out for that kind of training!" Brock added.

"You keep saying you want to become the world's best Pokémon Breeder, don't you, Brock?"

A confused look crossed Brock's face – the question had thrown him off-guard. "Well, sure, of course I do."

"Well I want to be the world's best Pokémon Trainer, and I also want my Wartortle to be the best Pokémon it can possibly be!" Jenny watched the scene with a serene smile on her lipstick-covered lips, and she spoke up.

"Well, if you really want your Wartortle to be the best, why don't you bring your Wartortle down to our training class tomorrow?" she suggested. Immediately, Ash stood so fast that the chair he was sitting on almost fell onto its back.

"Do 'ya mean it?!" he exclaimed happily. "That's great! Thank you!"

o 0 o

A shrill whistle pierced his eardrums, and though he bolted up into an upright position and blinked away the crust in his eyes, the room was still dark. Despite the darkness, he could still see the even darker outline of Officer Jenny's body standing over his and Brock's bunk bed. He had barely begun rubbing his eyes with the back of his still-gloved hand when the police officer walked over and flicked on the light. Movement above him showed that Brock was stirring as well.

"What's going on, Officer Jenny?" Ash asked, feeling his pupils dilating from the sudden light.

"Well... it's time for our class!"

"W-what time is it?" Ash mumbled, taking out the alarm clock that he had set before going to bed the night before. It hadn't gone off yet. It lay tucked halfway underneath the pillow he had been using, and when he looked at the hands of the clock, his eyes widened slightly. "It's only four o'clock!" Pulling the blanket back over his upper body, he rolled over and turned his back to Officer Jenny. "Eh, goodnight..."

Officer Jenny didn't seem to take too kindly to this, but a mischievous smile crossed her lips as she once again brought the whistle to them again. Pulling in a sharp intake of air, she blew again, this time harder than before. If the sound was piercing before, it was shattering now, and Ash quickly jumped up and cried out frantically before stumbling to the ground. "C'mon, rise and shine! It's time for you to start your training class!" The black-haired boy only let out a groan of a response – seems he had no choice but to stay awake now.

Jenny gave Ash and Brock some time to eat breakfast and ready themselves, and by the time they had gone out onto the training grounds in the back of the school, the sun was just starting to peek up from the horizon. The whole area looked like an adult's version of a playground, with all sort of training structures that resembled giant jungle gyms.

"Okay, first we'll test you out on the obstacle course," Jenny began once Ash had brought out his Wartortle. The Water-type Pokémon looked tired, and gave its Trainer a questioning look as to why they were awake so early. But after Jenny spoke up, Ash smiled down at his Pokémon.

"Here's your chance, Wartortle; let's show 'em what you can do!" he encouraged it. "Don't let that Growlithe beat you!"

"Wartortle..." the Water starter mumbled in response and its ears lowered slightly.

"Don't worry! I know you can win!"

"Actually, Wartortle won't be the only one running this race because you have to too, Ash," Jenny corrected the younger Trainer, who glanced up at her nervously.

"Me? How come?" he asked, but she only wagged a finger at him.

"Ash, a master will never be respected if he won't do something he asks his own Pokémon to do."

"Really?" He seemed anxious still, but she put a gloved hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

"I'll be running too, so let's get started, shall we Ash?"

"U-uh, okay..."

"Looks like Ash is having some second thoughts," Brock commented on the sidelines jokingly with his hands on his hips. Wanting to show and prove his friend wrong, Ash gained a small confidence boost, and him and Wartortle went over to the beginning of the track alongside Jenny and her Growlithe. Pokémon and Trainer each stood side by side at the lines marked in the sand and faced forward. Finally, Jenny gave the call.

"Ready... set... Go!" All four of them bounded forward, with Growlithe taking the lead ahead of all three of them. Wartortle seemed a little unsteady, but being out and training in the world had its advantages, and though it lingered beside Jenny – who was staying close behind her Growlithe – it didn't show any signs of slowing down.

"Go for it, Wartortle! We can beat them!" Exerting all their energy, both Pokémon and Trainer gained a burst of speed, and quickly passed Jenny and Growlithe and leaving them behind in their dust. The now-overconfident Trainer threw a smirk over his shoulder now that there was a distance between him and his opponent. "This is too easy!"

"Wartor!" The cry from his Pokémon brought his vision forward again, and the pair skidded to a stop when they saw the first obstacle before them. A large patch of grass laid out in front of them, and just inches above it was barbed wire suspended by wooden poles in the four corners of the grass.

"Hey, what's this thing?" he asked. "How're we gonna get past it?"

"Wartortle..." It didn't seem to have the answer either. Moments later, Jenny and Growlithe caught up to them, neither of them breathing as heavily as Ash was, and neither of them stopped or hesitated in the slightest.

"Crawl, Growlithe!" she commanded, not even breaking her stride as she knelt down and crawled on her hands and knees through the grass and under the wire. Growlithe barked and slid down onto its belly as well, and it too kept in pace with Jenny.

"If they can do it, we can do it, too!" Ash told his Wartortle. Getting down onto his stomach, he army-crawled through the grass. It was a lot more difficult than it looked, as he had to keep a certain distance away from the barbed wire or it could catch his clothes and he would have to stop and untangle himself from it. "This training is... tougher than... I thought..."

"Wartor!" The worried voice of his Pokémon sounded behind him, and he carefully turned himself to try and glance behind him.

"What's wrong, Wartortle?"

"Wartor Wartor!" the Water-type said in frustration. Wartortle's fluffy tail had been caught in the barbed wire, and it seemed like it was hopelessly tangled in it. No matter how had Wartortle tried to pull, the wire would just move instead. Ash crawled backward to try and help his Pokémon, but his efforts were quickly in vain as after a few moments of unsuccessful tugs, Wartortle got impatient and fired a stream of water at its tail. This only resulted in Ash getting blasted by the water as well.

"Cut it out... Wartortle...!" he cried through getting soaked. But it was just what was needed, and the wet fur was able to come out of the wire. Now knowing what a danger it was, Wartortle tucked its tail into its shell, and they continued onward. They managed to get out of the obstacle, but Jenny and Growlithe were still quite a distance away from them and they had to catch up. Hurrying forward, they started running just in time to see their opponents getting to the next obstacle, which was a towering wall. Growlithe was the first to climb, and Jenny did it next, and they were well on the other side of the wall by the time Ash and Wartortle arrived to it.

"Now we have to climb this thing?" he questioned. It looked a lot bigger up close.

"Wartor Wartor..."

"Okay!" Ash was determined as ever, and he launched himself up and tried to scale up the wall. "Follow me Wartortleeee..." he called, but began to slide down after losing momentum and finally fell flat on his back. Pulling himself onto his feet again, his brows were now pulled together in determination. "All right!" He threw himself onto the wall again, and frantically hurried up the side of it with all his strength. Miraculously, he was able to get his hand onto the top of the wall, and hung suspended in the air.

"Wartor!" his Pokémon celebrated on the ground. But gravity was his enemy in this instance, and though Ash had managed to get his other hand up to help support him, his shaky fingers were covered in sweat, and before long, he gave way. While Ash cried out as he plummeted to the ground, Wartortle had time to only turn around before its Trainer landed hard on it.

o 0 o

"This police K-9 training sure is tough. Are you sure you're gonna go through with it?" Brock questioned his friend. They were now taking a small break, and while Officer Jenny and her Growlithe didn't seem tired at all, Ash and Wartortle were positively exhausted. He didn't even have the strength to make it back to the bench, and just collapsed on the ground using it to support his back.

"Of course I'm going through with it," Ash responded to his friend's question. "Cause I want Wartortle to be the best!"

"But don't you think Wartortle's a great Pokémon just the way it is?"

"Yeah, Wartortle's great," Ash replied with a cocked eyebrow. "But I want it to be just as tough as Growlithe." The black-haired Trainer turned to his Wartortle who was laying down beside him on its stomach. "That's what you want too, isn't it, Wartortle?"

"War-tor..." the Turtle Pokémon answer was a sigh. Ash let out a gasp of surprise, but before he could elaborate any further, a loud crash coming from the side of the building immediately pulled Ash and his Pokémon to their feet. They hurried over to the source of the noise, and there, a huge vehicle stood amongst the rubble of the broken wall that it had crashed through to get in.

"Hey, what's going on here?!" Ash called. The driver couldn't be seen in the truck through the tinted windows, but either way, the destruction the giant steel van had caused was seen as a threat. A series of barking sounded and the whole school of Growlithe came out and quickly surrounded the tank.

"Come out of the vehicle with your hands up!" Jenny demanded, stepping out from inside the building.

"This person must be crazy for breaking into a school for police K-9!" Brock stated. "Isn't that kind of like saying 'please arrest me'?!"

The window opened on the driver's side, and though the driver still couldn't be seen, a pale purple Pokémon came floating out of the opened window. It had two faces and its two bodies, one smaller than the other, was attached to one another. "Weezing!" it moaned, and then released a thick dark gas from both of its mouths that quickly covered over the area.

"Don't breathe it in!" Brock warned, quickly covering his mouth and nose with his forearm. "That Weezing is using its Poison Gas attack!" The thick gas quickly shrouded their view of everything around them, and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of coughing. When the smog faded and they could finally see once again, everyone gasped when they looked at Officer Jenny. There wasn't one Jenny standing there, but two. Both Jennys looked at each other and took a step back.

"I don't know what you think you're planning, but I'm placing you under arrest for trespassing!" Jenny yelled.

"I'm the real Jenny! You're the fake!" the other Jenny exclaimed, and pointed at her doppelganger. "Okay Growlithe, round her up and take her into custody!"

"Don't listen to her, Growlithe! Take her into custody!" The Growlithe looked confused, and looked back and forth at the two Jennys. They seemed like they wanted to obey their commands, but didn't know which one to obey.

"What's going on?" Ash questioned, looking at the Growlithe.

"Normally, a Growlithe's sense of smell would be able to tell the difference between them. But that Weezing spread its noxious fumes to cover the area with one scent that blocked out everything else, so now they can't tell which one is which just like we can't!" Brock looked at the two Jennys and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "However... I can tell the difference!"

"Y-you can?!" Ash exclaimed, and even the two Jennys glanced over at Brock.

"Yes. That one..." Brock pointed at the Jenny that was closest to them. "...is the wrong Jenny!"

"How can you tell?!"

"The heart knows, Ash. And my heart is telling me that not only is that not Officer Jenny, but that she is also... a man!" The accused Jenny seemed taken aback, but then smirked a lipstick-covered grin.

"Impressive," she responded in a perfect imitation of Jenny's voice still. "I haven't had anyone see through my disguises until I decided." Quickly, she pulled out a remote control from her uniform and held it in her gloved hand. "However, I always have a backup plan." She pressed a button on the face of the remote, and the engine on the van started right away. It was now that they noticed that it had a muffler connected to the front of the vehicle as opposed to the back, and a white steam started to pour out from it. Once again, everyone began to cough, aside from the imposter Jenny who placed a gas mask over her face.

"What is this now?!" Ash questioned, but his voice sounded different. "M-my voice!"

"It's a gas that's making our voice all high and squeaky!" Brock exclaimed. His voice also sounded much different.

"Growlithe, arrest him now!" the real Jenny commanded, but the Growlithe didn't move at her command in the slightest. Instead, they all were looking at the fake Jenny who removed the gas mask and stood with her hands on her hips. "What's wrong, Growlithe! Apprehend him!"

"The Growlithe aren't listening to Jenny because they don't recognize her voice!" Brock observed. Jenny looked at the Growlithe helplessly, and her worried eyes scanned over the orange Puppy Pokémon who didn't even glance in her direction.

"Now, let's try that again, shall we?" the imposter asked rhetorically once they removed the gas mask from their face that had been placed over it during the commotion, and looked at the Pokémon at her feet. "Sit, Growlithe." Right away, the Growlithe all sat down. "Beg, Growlithe." The real Jenny seemed horrified as the Fire-type Pokémon all sat up onto their hind legs. "Now, lie down!" Like obedient puppies, they did as they were told.

"What's wrong with all of you?! That's not me, that's a fake! Don't listen to them!" Officer Jenny squeaked.

"Growlithe, place that woman under arrest!" the fake Jenny told them. The Growlithe all turned to their original Trainer and surrounded her while baring their teeth. The imposter Jenny tossed them a rope that she retrieved from the van, and the Growlithe snatched it up in their teeth and quickly spun around Jenny, binding her arms to her body. "Good, now, line up, Growlithe." All of the Growlithe lined up in front of the fake Jenny as they made their way toward the van. She opened the side door and gestured inside. "Hop in, Growlithe!"

"Hold it! You can't take those Growlithe!" Ash exclaimed, both him and Brock running up to stop them.

"And just how are you going to stop me, Squeaky?" she responded rhetorically with an evil smirk, and then looked down at the Pokémon at her heeled feet. "Growlithe, surround them!" As she commanded, the Growlithe circled around Ash, Brock, and Wartortle, growling menacingly, though a bit high-pitched from the gas that had been released from the van.

"Uh, oh..." Ash murmured. "I know! We'll use our Pokémon to battle them!" He reached down to his belt, but he brushed against nothing and gasped. He let out a high-pitched scream and opened up his jacket. His belt, which was normally lined with Poké Balls, was completely empty.

"What's wrong now, Ash?" Brock asked him, too afraid to take his eyes off the Growlithe.

"I left my Poké Balls behind!" he answered. In his mind's eye, he knew exactly where they were: sitting with his backpack on the bed they had slept on last night.

"I-I didn't bring mine either!"

"We're in trouble..." Ash moaned.

"Growlithe, move in!" the fake Jenny commanded. As the Fire-type Pokémon stepped forward, a blast of water was let out and hit the ground in front of the lead Growlithe, who instantly took a step back.

"Wartor Wartor!" Wartortle called, stepping forward with its arms spread wide. Its voice was high and squeaky as well, but it still stood confidently in between its Trainer and the Growlithe.

"Uh, Wartortle? You know who I am?" Wartortle walked up to Ash and tugged on his pant-leg while smiling up at its Trainer.

"Wartor-War!" The moment was so heartfelt that Ash could feel his eyes prickling from tears threatening to escape, but he held them back and smiled instead.

"Wartortle..."

"Ash, you and Wartortle recognize what's in each other's hearts, so Wartortle can't be fooled by a high-pitched voice," Brock commented, putting a hand against his warmed heart.

"Who cares!" the fake Jenny exclaimed. "Growlithe, get that Wartortle and his Trainer now!" The Growlithe all barked and leapt forward, and Ash and Brock flinched back, but Wartortle took in a deep breath and stopped them with a blast of Hydro Pump. The Super-effective attack hit three of the Growlithe and knocked them to the ground soaked to the bone. This seemed to annoy the imposter. "Quit fooling around and get them!" Three more Growlithe jumped forward, but the result was the same, and Wartortle send forth another Hydro Pump that blew them backward. But as soon as one group fell, another would swoop in. Waves of Growlithe kept getting blasted down by Hydro Pump, but if Officer Jenny's Growlithe had one thing in common, it was their determination. As far as they knew, they were just obeying their Trainer, and didn't want to let her down. They were pushed beyond exhaustion, but still did their best to apprehend their target, as what was taught to them.

Wartortle, however, was nearing exhaustion as well, and soon enough, its Hydro Pumps soon began to become less powerful until finally, the Turtle Pokémon collapsed on the ground. "Oh, Wartortle!" Ash exclaimed, and rushed up to scoop up his Pokémon. "Please, tell me what's wrong, Wartortle!"

"War..."

"You're dehydrated from using too much water!" he realized from how heavy Wartortle was breathing. The Growlithe were soaked, but still shakily stood up and growled at Ash. "This looks bad..."

Off to the side, the real Jenny had managed to free herself from the ropes tying her arms down, and she rushed forward to Ash's aid. "Listen to me, Growlithe! That Jenny is the bad guy!" Seeing Jenny looking down at them, they stopped growling and donned confused looks on their faces, as if they were looking at someone who they hadn't seen in a really long time. The imposter Jenny could tell the gas was starting to wear off their voices, and panic was starting to settle on their face.

"Take care of them, quickly!" she commanded. The leader of the Growlithe's ears twitched in recognition, and it jumped at the real Jenny with its maw opened. Jenny flinched back, but didn't move and closed her eyes in preparation as it bit down on her fist. Jenny's face scrunched up in pain, but she opened one of her brown eyes and locked it with the Growlithe's. The two stared at each other with Growlithe growling loudly, but after a few moments of her getting used to it, she smiled down at her Pokémon. This seemed to throw off Growlithe, and it loosened its grip and scanned her face. Silence passed over the academy grounds with everyone holding their breath, but suddenly, Growlithe let go of her glove and licked her wound. A gasp escaped her, and she opened her arms. The Puppy Pokémon dove into them, and they embraced each other tightly.

"Growlithe! You remember me!" she said as Growlithe licked at the side of her face.

"What are you doing, Growlithe?! Don't lick her, attack her!" the imposter Jenny screamed now that their plan was falling apart. But it had already crumbled, and all the Growlithe now turned toward her and bared their teeth. "Attack them! They're the enemy! Do as I tell you, you dimwit dogs!" But the Growlithe didn't falter, and instead took a step forward in warning.

"The gig is up!" Ash declared.

"They know you're not the real Officer Jenny, so why don't you tell us who you really are!" Brock exclaimed. The imposter Jenny bared her teeth and took a step back before looking at them and smirking a nervous grin.

"To infect the world with devastation... to blight all people's in every nation..." the fake Jenny said, and then suddenly her voice changed to that of a male's. "To denounce the goodness of truth and love, to extend our wrath to the stars above." The imposter Jenny jumped into the open side door of the van and closed it for a moment before opening it back up again. But in her place, a man with a purple Mohawk stood, wearing a black uniform with a familiar red 'R' on the front of it. "My name's Petrel, Team Rocket's very own master of disguise."

"Brock, you were right! It is a man!" Ash couldn't believe his eyes.

"You're under arrest for trespassing, destruction of property, impersonating an officer of the law, and attempted Pokémon kidnapping!" Jenny yelled.

"Not today, officer," Petrel smirked, and tossed out a Poké Ball. Once again, in a flash of light, his Weezing appeared, and took in a deep breath before releasing more Poison Gas. Everyone began to cough once again, and the sound of a door slamming and tires screeching on the ground filled their ear drums. Finally, when the smoke cleared, the only evidence of the Team Rocket member's presence was the hole in the wall that he had come from.

o 0 o

The other officers that occupied the building were already on repairing the damage that Petrel had caused in his break-in. Ash and Brock helped with the clean-up, but had to get going on their journey, so Jenny offered to walk them out. With their backpacks on their backs and Poké Balls back firmly where they should be – on their persons – Ash looked at Jenny bashfully. "I sure made a big mistake," he said, and looked down at the Pokémon at his feet with a smile. "Wartortle doesn't have to train with the K-9 squad to be the perfect Pokémon."

"Wartortle!" his starter Pokémon replied, and returned his smile. It seemed to like that realization.

"I like Wartortle just the way it is!"

"You two recognize what's in each other's hearts, and that's what counts," Jenny agreed, and chuckled as she bent down and pet the Growlithe's head beside her. "I'll try to keep that in mind."

"So will we."

"Well, keep up the good work – both of you."

-end-

Ash:

Party:

Wartortle (Poké Ball)

Moves: Skull Bash, Dig, Hydro Pump, BubbleBeam

Pidgeotto (Poké Ball)

Moves: Gust, Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Wing Attack

Bulbasaur (Poké Ball)

Moves: SolarBeam, Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Leech Seed

Charmander (Poké Ball)

Moves: Flamethrower, Fire Spin, Skull Bash, Ember

Tauros (Safari Ball)

Moves:

Mankey (Poké Ball)

Moves: Thrash, Mega Kick, Scratch, Seismic Toss

At Professor Oak's Lab:

Muk (Poké Ball)

Moves:

Tauros (Safari Ball)

Moves:

Krabby (Poké Ball)

Moves: ViceGrip

Badges:

Boulder Badge

Cascade Badge

Thunder Badge

Marsh Badge

Rainbow Badge

Soul Badge

Brock:

Party:

Onix (Poké Ball)

Moves: Tackle, Bind, Dig

Geodude (Poké Ball)

Moves: Seismic Toss, Tackle

Zubat (Poké Ball)

Moves: Whirlwind, Supersonic

Psyduck (Poké Ball)

Moves: Tail Whip, Water Gun, Disable, Confusion

Vulpix (Poké Ball)

Moves: Fire Spin, Flamethrower, Agility