"No no no, Mewsie," Meowth reprimanded the little Mew. "Ya gots ta kinda twiddle your toes when you play with blue yarn balls."

Mewsie stared at the larger cat with wide blue eyes, then yawned, making a little noise that caused Meowth's eyes to tear up in admiration.

"Aww, youze such a cute lil' ting! C'mere," Meowth scooped the white bundle up into his arms, and Mewsie snuggled into his chest. "Ahem. Hush little Mewsie, donts say a wud. Meowth's gonna buy you a Pidgey-bird. And if that Pidgey-bird tastes bad, Meowth is gonna buy you a...Uh." Meowth looked around, spying an empty tuna can on the ground.

"Meowth is gonna buy youze a tank of fish. And if that tank of fish gets broke, Meowth is gonna buy youze a...nice big boat. And if that nice big boat, gets...sunk?" he coughed, "...Meowth is gonna buy you a Tauros-and-cart. And if that Tauros-and-cart rolls over, Meowth is gonna buy youze a..." Meowth was running out of ideas, "Stuffed dog named Rover. And if that stuffed dog named Rover won't shred, Meowth is gonna..." Meowth glanced down. Mewsie was fast asleep, snoring softly. "--put you down to bed."

Gently, Meowth laid his "baby" down on a pile of leaves, and laid down beside him. He rested his arm across the little feline's stomach, and pulled him slowly nearer. "Fuhget about stealin' Pokémon, Meowth likes bein' a mudduh." Meowth smiled, and placed a soft kiss on the little white Psychic Pokémon's head. "Dis is da life."

~*~*~

Panting, Ash stopped. "I...can't run...anymore."

Everyone else shared his sentiments, except Cat, who looked like she could keep going on for quite a while. "Yeah, maybe we can go at a slower pace...There's even a stream near here...Would you like to go swimming, Ashie?"

Ash blushed with embarrassment, and Misty flushed with envy. Holding a bouncy Togepi, she said quickly, "I think we should keep going to Pallet. We don't want Meowth to leave before we get there."

"But surely we have enough time for a quick dip, don't we Ash?" Catherine Enilef pressed.

"Well--" Ash faltered.

Brock jumped in, "I would love to go swimming with you, Cat!" Hearts dotted his eyes.

Looking disappointed, she shook her head. "That's okay. I guess we can just go on."

Suddenly, something white and sparkling streaked across the sky. Everyone's eyes followed, but it passed by too quickly.

"What was that?" Ash asked worriedly.

"Pika pika?" Pikachu echoed.

"I don't know, Ash," Brock shook his head in wonder. "I don't know."

~*~*~

Wrong.

Something was going to go terribly wrong.

Something that would bring evil...

Something that Articuno was powerless to stop.

That was the reason she was flying as swiftly as possible across the sky. Lugia and Ho-Oh were nowhere to be found...And she didn't get along with Zapdos and Moltres very well. Her wings flapped quickly, sending a cascade of sparkling snow towards the ground, although it melted before it touched the surface.

Faster, she told herself. Faster!

She zoomed across the sky, a mere blur to the few that managed to see her. Panting, she finally slowed. She had reached her destination.

She fluttered down to the ground, and walked inside the cave. "Ta!" a sound came from within, and out scurried a frightened Rattata.

Concerned, Articuno went deeper into the cave. "Coo?" Her call echoed throughout.

She continued walking, and stopped as she felt something at her feet. A whiff of rancid air assaulted her beak, and her eyes widened in avian horror. She was deep into the cave, so not much light was let in. But she had sharp eyesight, and finally identified the two carcasses at her feet.

"Nooooo!" Articuno shrieked, scaring a few perching Zubat out of the cave. The two were gone.

Articuno had known it was foolish to stay in an area where Team Rocket's presence was becoming increasingly well-known among wild Pokémon. They had known, too, but they had wanted to stay where they were raised. And now they were gone.

Who was she to turn to now?

Wait...

Didn't they have children?

Yes, if she recalled correctly, they had three or four kittens.

Her gaze scanned the cave floor. There were no other dead bodies.

They must have escaped...

Hopefully they were still alive.

But they were too young to help anyway. She needed help from someone now!

A sudden morbid sort of curiosity struck her, and she quickly flew out of the cave.

She encircled the forest a few times before her sharp eyes finally caught the glint of machinery, and as she drew nearer she could see that it was indeed Team Rocket's handiwork. Countless machines were digging deep into the land (which harbored rare fossils and even some gemstones). Toxic waste by-products were being carelessly released onto the land, and the wastes traveled on into the nearby river, which was slowly beginning to lose its crystal clear quality.

She surveyed the sight for a few moments with disgust, her anger at humans flaring up inside her. She needed to find someone who could help her stop all of the monstrous acts caused by these wretched humans...

Her eyes glinted as an idea came into her head, and she shot up into the sky, beating her wings frantically.

Her journey lasted a while, but she was swift and determined, and she finally reached the Ilex forest shrine. "Arty!" She called.

But Celebi was nowhere to be found.

She heaved a big sigh. The little Psychic- and Grass-type probably wouldn't have been much help anyway. Celebi would rather play hide-and-seek than fight someone in a battle.

Where the Legendary Dogs were was anybody's guess. She was just as likely to find them on her first try as she would a needle in a haystack.

There was always the hu--

No...She couldn't ask a human for help.

Then what was she to do?

She didn't have very many choices.

Articuno sighed. Being a Legendary Bird wasn't all it was cut out to be.

~*~*~

Giving an evil grin, Giovanni set the phone down.

For the past four years, he'd had several scientists working on cloning Pokémon. They had been able to successfully create stronger forms that could learn more attacks than their predecessors.

Almost as soon as he'd gotten Devon from Jessie and James, he had sent his scientists a tissue sample, and instructed them to make a new type of Mew. One that would be unbeatable...Yes, soon his creation would be complete.

And he would have two of the most powerful Pokémon in the world.

He chuckled sinisterly. Things were falling neatly into place.

As they always did when he constructed their fall.