"There they are! I never thought we'd catch up with those twerps."
"Can you see what's going on, Jessie?"
Jessie, James, and Meowth had spent several days searching for Ash and Pikachu in Hoenn until they had learned that they had returned to Kanto. The trio arrived in Pallet Town early that morning and had luckily happened to stumble upon the gathering at the Pokémon cemetery on the Oak preserve.
"It looks like they're having a gathering of some kind," Jessie reported as she peered through her binoculars from their perch atop a nearby tree. "And look at all those Pokémon! Squirtle, Pidgeot, and even Charizard."
"Ooh, the Boss is going to be so pleased when we bring him a vast assortment of Pokémon," James squealed gleefully.
And then Jessie noticed something odd. "Hey, where's Pikachu?"
"Whaddya mean, Jessie?" asked Meowth.
"See for yourself," Jessie said, shoving the binoculars in Meowth's face. "The twerps are there, but no Pikachu."
"Hey, you're right, Jessie," said Meowth as he scanned the crowd assembled around Pikachu's grave. "Where is da little yellow furball?"
James peered through his own pair of binoculars. "Uh…does it look like to you guys that they're having a funeral?"
"A funeral!" Jessie and Meowth exclaimed in unison.
"Give me those!" Jessie snatched her binoculars back from her feline partner and took another look at the scene below. "You're right, James. I wonder who died?"
"Was it da ol' geezer who owns dis Pokémon preserve?" wondered Meowth.
"No, the old professor is right over there," Jessie replied.
James gasped and turned pale. "Jessie…take a look at the coffin."
"So what?" Jessie retorted. "Whatever's in there isn't very big. Oh, I wish I could hear what was going on down there."
"I gotta idea, Jess. How about dis?" Meowth held up a small disk that was shaped like a Ledyba. "It's a bug dat looks like a bug."
"How cute!" James gushed.
"Knock it off, James," snapped Jessie. "So how are we going to get that down there where the twerps are?"
"Leave it to me," Meowth volunteered. He carefully crept down from their treetop perch, stealthily made his way over to the shrubbery that bordered the edge of the cemetery, and flung the bug over the bushes. It landed in a clump of grass ten feet away from Tracey's left foot.
"Now dat should do it," Meowth said proudly as he climbed back up to the tree where his partners were awaiting him anxiously. Meowth inserted a receiver into his ear. "Now we should be able to hear what's going on over dere."
"So what's going on?" Jessie asked impatiently.
"Well, da ol' guy is sayin' somethin' about…oh, my…!" Meowth looked horrified.
"What is it, Meowth?" James asked, concerned.
"Dat…dat's Pikachu in dere!" Meowth shrieked, pointing at the casket in the middle of the crowd of mourners below.
"Shut up, Meowth!" Jessie hissed as she quickly slapped her hand over her partner's mouth. "Don't blow our cover!"
"Pikachu? What would Pikachu be doing in a casket unless it was…was…" Then James realized what was going on.
"But…but how can Pikachu be dead?" Meowth wondered aloud, his voice shaky. "Da little rodent looked pretty healthy to me the last time we saw it. Especially after we sucked all da extra electricity outta it."
"Give me that!" Jessie said sharply, yanking the receiver out of Meowth's ear. She held it in her palm so that all three could hear what was going on.
"Pikachu meant a great deal to all of us," said Professor Oak, whose voice could be clearly heard through the receiver. "So today we'll honor Pikachu's memory with memories of our own. But first, I'd like to read a couple of e-mails I received earlier." Professor Oak unfolded a piece of paper and started reading it. "Ash, I'm really sorry about your Pikachu. He was always a tough opponent – one of the toughest Pokémon I'd ever battled. I couldn't believe it when the Nurse Joy here at the Sapphire Coast told me Gramps had called to say that Pikachu was dead. Ash, I had a lot of respect for your Pikachu. You did a great job of training him, and you should be proud. I know you're really gonna miss him. Tell Pikachu good-bye for me…Gary."
"Good ol' Gary," Ash smiled through his tears.
"I never thought I'd hear Ash say that," Misty whispered to Brock.
"The second one is from Professor Birch," Professor Oak continued. "Ash, Professor Oak told me the news about Pikachu this morning. I've asked Officer Jenny to keep a lookout for Team Rocket. However, if I get my hands on them first, there won't be enough left of them to turn into the police."
"Team Rocket?" James said incredulously. "What's he talking about?"
"Shh!" Jessie hissed.
"Ash, if you decide to return to Hoenn someday, I have a Pokémon here waiting for you. But if you don't, I understand. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to do more to help your Pikachu. And I'm truly sorry for your loss. Pikachu was obviously a very special Pokémon."
"He sure was," said Misty, wiping away a tear.
"If I ever get my hands on Team Rocket and that machine of theirs…" Ash's face hardened.
"Ash, revenge isn't going to solve anything," said Brock.
"They killed Pikachu, Brock! Them and their stupid electromagnet! And I'm gonna make them pay for what they did!" Ash shouted.
"Did…did you hear what the twerp just said?" gulped James, his face pale.
Jessie stared at the bug with a stunned look on her face. "I…we…but…"
"We killed Pikachu!" sobbed Meowth.
"But…but we didn't mean to kill Pikachu," said James, who looked as if he were ready to cry. "Capture him, but never kill him."
"Poor li'l Pikachu," wailed Meowth, blowing his nose on James's sleeve. "Pikachu, we're so sorry! We didn't mean to kill youse!"
Jessie suddenly came to her senses and slapped her companions. "Shut up, you two! They're going to hear you!"
"I can't believe you, Jessie," sniffed James. "How can you be so heartless at a time like this?"
"Look, all this blubbering isn't going to bring Pikachu back," Jessie said harshly. "And if those twerps find us sitting here, we'll be joining Pikachu – you heard what the twerp said. Come on. Let's get out of here before they spot us."
As Team Rocket silently slipped away, the mourners gathered around Pikachu's coffin were taking turns saying good-bye to the little Pokémon that had touched all of their lives.
"Pikachu," began Tracey, "we had some good memories in the Orange Islands. And I'll never forget our adventure at Shamuti Island. How many Pokémon can say that they helped save the world? You were a brave little Pokémon and a good friend." Tracey unfolded a picture in his hands and handed it to Ash. "Here. I did this sketch during our journey in the Orange Islands." Ash saw that it was a drawing of Pikachu sitting atop a rock, eating an apple. "I figured you might like to have this."
"Thanks, Tracey," Ash said, taking the sketch from his friend. "This is a great drawing."
"Good-bye, Pikachu," Tracey said, taking one of the yellow roses from the bouquet sitting at the head of the gravesite and placing it atop the small casket.
"That was so sweet of you, Tracey," Misty said, giving her friend's shoulder a squeeze as he returned to his place among the circle of mourners.
Brock stepped forward. "Pikachu, when you and Ash first arrived at the Pewter City Gym, I honestly didn't think much of either one of you. But you proved me wrong. You were a special part of my life and all our lives. And more than once you helped get our butts out of a tough situation. You're an unforgettable Pokémon, Pikachu. Good-bye, little guy." Choking back tears, Brock placed another yellow rose atop the Pokémon's coffin.
Misty was obviously too choked up to go next, so Delia stepped forward. "Oh, Pikachu, you were such a sweet little thing. You brought so much joy to everyone's lives. And you even saved my life when I was kidnapped by the Unown in Greenfield. I still can't believe you're gone, poor little thing." Delia laid a bouquet of the prettiest flowers from her garden atop Pikachu's coffin. "Mimie and I picked these just for you. Good-bye, Pikachu." She wiped away the tears rolling down here face and returned to her spot next to Professor Oak, who gave her arm a comforting squeeze. (Since Delia's back was to everyone, no one saw the tender private gesture.) He then stepped forward.
"Pikachu, when you first came to my lab, I didn't know exactly what to do with you. And I definitely had my doubts about giving you to Ash, but he was so stubborn and persistent that I couldn't say no."
"Yep, that's our Ash," Brock said, eliciting a soft laugh from the congregation.
"But it turns out that it was probably one of the best decisions that I had ever made. You and Ash made a perfect team. As Tracey said, you helped restore the harmony of fire, ice, and lightning on Shamuti Island. You helped rescue Delia from the Unown. And you helped a young boy named Sammy save his friend Celebi. You've made a difference in all our lives, and for that we're all grateful for having known you. And we will all miss you. None of us will ever forget what a truly special Pokémon you really were. Good-bye, Pikachu." He added another yellow rose to the growing mound of flowers atop the casket.
"Oh, Pikachu," Misty said, gulping back tears. "You were one of the sweetest Pokémon I've ever known. You always took time out to play with Togepi." She cuddled the upset-looking little Pokémon in her arms. "And you were also incredible when it came to battling too. There weren't many other Pokémon that could beat you and Ash. You and Ash were as close as a person and a Pokémon could be. And we're all going to miss you so much. We all loved you a lot, Pikachu." Misty lifted Togepi up so it could put another yellow rose atop Pikachu's coffin. "Good-bye." Misty sniffed back her tears and returned to her spot next to Ash.
"That was really nice, Misty," Ash whispered to her before stepping forward. "Oh, Pikachu…I don't know what I'm gonna do without you now, ol' buddy. This is all so unreal. I stil can't believe this is happening." A tear started rolling down Ash's face.
"Oh, Ash." Misty reached out and laid her hand on Ash's shoulder.
"I loved you so much, Pikachu," Ash continued in a quavering voice. "And I'll never forget you."
Brock stepped forward and laid his hand on Ash's other shoulder.
"Oh…oh…guys…what am I gonna do without Pikachu?" Ash's tears were falling freely now. Misty and Brock embraced their friend, and Tracey joined the group hug. Delia took a step forward to comfort her son, but stopped when Ash turned to Misty and threw himself into her arms.
"Oh, Misty, what am I gonna do?" Ash sobbed into the girl's red hair as he clung desperately to her.
"Go ahead and cry, Ash," Misty whispered as she stroked Ash's hair comfortingly. "Just go ahead and cry."
Ash's other Pokémon, all of whom were crying as much as Ash was, gathered around their trainer and joined the group hug.
"Come here, Delia," Professor Oak said, gently pulling her towards him.
"But what if Ash sees us?" Delia said with a worried glance towards her son. She hadn't disclosed to him the intimate nature of her relationship with Professor Oak.
"Don't worry. There's nothing wrong with friends comforting each other," Professor Oak said, taking her into his arms. She buried her face in his neck, and her sobs joined those of the other mourners.
And that afternoon, everyone wept for the special little Pokémon that had touched all of their lives.
To be continued…