"Misty!" Delia cried happily as she opened the door and gave her future daughter-in-law a hug.
"We had to drag the bride kicking and screaming all the way up here," Daisy teased.
"Oh, let me see this precious little girl," Delia smiled, bending down next to the stroller and tickling Shelly's cheek. The baby gurgled happily in reply. "Oh, you are so adorable!"
"Where's Ash?" Misty asked.
"He's in the apartment over the lab, but you know as well as I do that the bride can't see the groom before the wedding," Delia said, steering Misty in the direction of the stairs. "You can use the guest bedroom to get dressed for the ceremony."
"Come on, Misty," Lily said, taking her sister's hand. "Let's get you into that gorgeous gown of yours."
"And how are you doing, Violet?" Delia asked the hugely pregnant woman sympathetically. "Misty told me that you're expecting twins. You must be so excited!"
"Can I use your bathroom, please?" Violet replied uncomfortably.
"Certainly, dear. There's one next to the guest bedroom," Delia said.
"My back's been killing me all day," Violet groaned as Delia helped her up the stairs. "I can't wait until the babies get here."
"Well, you just rest up until the ceremony," Delia said, opening the door to the room where Daisy, Lily, and Misty were opening the box containing Misty's wedding gown.
"Oh, Misty, your gown is absolutely beautiful!" Delia exclaimed at the sight of the white silk and lace creation.
"Come on, let's get you out of those grubby clothes and into something that Ash is really going to like," Daisy said, grabbing Misty's shirt and pulling it over her head.
Delia barely heard the doorbell ring over the giggling of the four young women. "Oh, dear. There's the doorbell again. It's probably the caterers. Let me go take care of them, and I'll be right back up." She hurried downstairs in time to see Tracey answer the door.
"Yes, can I…?" Tracey was shocked into silence at the sight of the blue-haired young man and a crimson-haired woman approximately the same age, both of whom were wearing tuxedos, standing on the doorstep holding an elaborately decorated wedding cake.
"Oh good, you're here!" Delia smiled at her visitors. "Bring the cake around to the table in the backyard. The ceremony is being held in the garden."
"Wait a second," Tracey said, moving his arm to block the pair's path. "What are you two doing here?"
"Make it three, twerp," said Meowth, who was standing behind Jessie and James, holding a huge spray of flowers.
"It's simple, twerp," Jessie said, pushing Tracey aside. "We're the caterers. Now get out of our way so we can get catering."
"They had the best price in town," Delia explained to a confused-looking Tracey. "And they said that since they've known Ash and Misty for a long time, they wanted to give them their personal attention."
"I'll bet," Tracey grumbled.
"Tracey, will you be a dear and show these nice people where they can put the wedding cake?" Delia asked.
"Oh, I'll show you where you can put that cake," Tracey muttered under his breath, frowning at the trio.
"Hey, did youse just say something, twerp?" Meowth demanded.
"It's not 'twerp', Meowth. My name is Tracey," the irritated young man replied.
"Professor Tracey Sketchit," Delia added proudly. "And we're all so proud of him."
"You're a professor?" James said, his jaw falling open in disbelief.
"Guess they'll make anyone a professor nowadays," said Jessie. "Maybe we should give that a try."
"Yeah, dat would look good on our resumes," agreed Meowth.
Tracey rolled his eyes and motioned for the trio to follow him to the backyard.
"I don't trust you guys for one second," Tracey said once they were out of earshot of Delia. "And I'm going to keep my eye on you."
"Keep your lab coat on, twerp," Jessie said.
"Professor Twerp," Meowth corrected her.
"Believe it or not, Professor Twerp, ever since we left Team Rocket, we've gone straight," James explained as the group made their way to the garden where the ceremony would take place. "We've had lots of part-time jobs since then. Catering is our latest enterprise. Let's do the motto for him, Jessie."
The pair put the cake down on the banquet table and leapt onto a nearby rock.
"Prepare for trouble, but not today!" Jessie began.
"We'll put ourselves out for your special day," James continued.
"To protect your guests from hunger and thirst,"
"Our food's not bad, at least not the worst,"
"To cater your wedding or special day of love,"
"We'll cook up some goodies on our very own stove!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"J&J Caterers, blasting off at the speed of light!"
"We'll cater your event, either day or night!"
"Meowth, dat's…"
"Wobbuffet!"
"That's it! I'm tired of you always havin' the last word!" Meowth jumped atop the blue bloblike Pokémon that had just emerged from its Poké ball. The two began fighting and rolled in the direction of the table holding the wedding cake.
"Look out!" Tracey cried, leaping for the cake that was wobbling precariously. He caught it just in time to prevent it from tumbling to the ground.
"Hey, nice catch, Professor Twerp," Jessie said admiringly.
"I should've known you two would cause trouble," Tracey said, replacing the cake on the table. "Now that you've delivered the cake, why don't you guys leave before you do any more damage?"
"Oh, we're not done yet," James said, pulling out an apron. "We've got to get the rest of the food for the reception ready. And then we've got to get the flowers arranged, the bar set up, the chairs in place, roll out the white carpet…"
"Fine. Just as long as you stay out of the way," Tracey said, brushing a smudge of icing off of his jacket sleeve. "And if I catch you trying to steal any of the Pokémon here at the lab, I'll have you thrown out of here before you can say 'Geodude'."
"Don't get your underwear in a wad, Professor Twerpo," Meowth said, delivering one last blow to Wobbuffet's head. "Even though youse may not believe it, we have gone straight. All we're interested in now is making money."
"All right," Tracey said warily. "But I'm going to be watching you closely, understand?"
"Just let us work our catering magic and I think we'll be able to convince you that the only thing we're interested in taking now is orders," James said, arranging champagne glasses on a tray. "Want one?"
"No, that's all right," Tracey said.
"It's the finest champagne ever to come out of a cardboard box," James smiled, proffering his tray.
Tracey made a face. "Uh…I think I'll go check on the wedding party and see how everyone's doing."
Tracey spotted a few guests arriving and went to greet them. One was a dark-haired boy in glasses who looked to be in his early teens. Spotting Tracey, the boy gasped and eagerly ran up to him.
"Hello," Tracey greeted the boy. "I'm…"
"Professor Tracey Sketchit!" the boy said in breathless awe. "Former research assistant to the great Professor Samuel Oak and now his partner. It's an honor to meet you!" The boy shook Tracey's hand eagerly.
"You…how do you…?" Tracey was stunned by the boy's adulation.
"Oh, Professor Oak is my idol," the boy, whose name was Masato, explained. "I know everything about him. And I know everything about you, too. I read your Ph.D. thesis and everything -- it was brilliant! It's an honor to meet the protégé of the great Professor Oak."
"That sounds familiar, doesn't it, Tracey?" Professor Oak smiled, placing a hand on his former assistant's shoulder. Tracey had been just as worshipful of Professor Oak when he had arrived at the lab years ago.
"Oh my gosh! It's you! It's really you!" Masato began trembling at the sight of his idol.
"It's nice to finally meet you in person, Masato," Professor Oak smiled, extending his hand. "Where's your sister?"
"She…she…gym leader…Houen…" The instant Professor Oak's hand touched Masato's, the boy's eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted.
"Oh dear, history is definitely repeating itself," Professor Oak said, kneeling next to the unconscious boy. "Tracey, go get him some water."
As Tracey went off to fetch Masato a glass of water, Sami and AJ came wandering over. "What happened to him, Daddy?" she said, pointing at the boy lying on the ground.
"I think he's had a little too much excitement for one day," Professor Oak explained to his daughter. "The poor boy's fainted."
"Let's help him out, AJ," Sami said. "AJ, Thundershock now!"
"Sami, wait…!"
A huge bolt of electricity shot out of the Pikachu's body and surrounded Masato, who instantly leapt to his feet.
"What th'…? What happened?" a singed Masato said, looking around wildly.
"My name's Sami," the girl standing next to him explained. "And this is my Pikachu, AJ. It's short for Ash Junior…that's my brother."
"Ash…? You're Ash's sister?" Masato said, staring at the girl in disbelief. "Your brother is an awesome Pokémon trainer. He helped me and my sister on our journey in Houen."
"Yeah. And this is my daddy," Sami said, giving her father a quick hug. "Come on. I'll show you around the lab."
"Wow, I didn't know you were Professor Oak's daughter and Ash's sister," Masato said, a respectful smile appearing on his face. "You must know everything there is to know about Pokémon."
"Not yet," Sami said, taking Masato's hand. "Come on. I'll introduce you to Heracross."
"Looks like Sami has a boyfriend," Tracey teased as he returned with the glass of water. "Maybe we'll be hearing more wedding bells soon."
A stunned-looking Professor Oak turned to his partner, took the glass of water from him, and drained it in one gulp.
To be continued…