Time flies when you are having fun.
The same can be said about deep inner turmoil from a confrontation with your best friend, because several hours had passed in a blink of an eye since Ash's departure from Cerulean City on Charizard's shoulders for a Kanto round trip.
Viridian City was his last stop for the day.
Or better, the pokemon gym of Viridian City.
Ash couldn't explain what brought him here in the middle of the night. This was the only gym he had never beaten both times around. During the first time, the leader hasn't been available for a battle and the gym closed long before his second round around Kanto.
Rumours were plenty about the gym and the incredible strength of his owner, giving it the unofficial title of strongest gym in Kanto.
Maybe he was hoping subconsciously to meet this trainer for a fight to distract him from the problems of the present.
Whatever he wanted, Ash doubted more and more he would find it in this dilapidated building. The doors and windows were barricaded shut, except from a small basement window at the back.
Charizard looked at the small hole unimpressed and signaled his trainer that he would wait on the roof.
One tight fit later, the young man stood among rows of empty cages and his opinion about the former gym leader dropped like a stone.
Pokemon definitely had been kept in there for a long time under abysmal conditions.
Ash hurried to get upstairs and reached the most upper floor with all the offices. The largest one, beyond two massive wooden doors, belonged to the gym leader.
In its prime, the office must have been ridiculously lavish.
Expensive carpets and furniture were gathering dust which released into the stale air with every step. Ash sat down in the large leather chair and fiddled with drawers, who were all empty to his great disappointment. The curiosity about the gym leader had increased to a burning desire to know what type of person he had been.
The simple answer was stored in the wardrobe behind him and simultaneously explained the sudden disappearance.
A black trench coat and matching shirt emblazoned with the signature red R of Team Rocket.
"Villain or not, the dirtbag had taste," Ash thought and couldn't suppress the urge to try the clothes on.
They fit like a glove and he posed in a nearby mirror after wiping the dust off. The choreography that Jessie and James did with Meowth seemed fitting for the occasion.
"Prepare for trouble…"
The words rang through the empty room and Ash smiled sadly after completing the routine flawlessly from memory.
Sometimes he missed the three goofs.
Ash missed a lot of things from his past and musing about them brought back thoughts of one constant throughout.
Misty.
Her words had hit him hard. Not because they were cruel or inappropriate, but Misty had voiced what he feared since his return.
Nobody really needed him.
Years have come and gone and everybody was fine without the annoying boy from Pallet. They had their own dreams and problems and didn't have to rely on an eighteen year old without plans for the future.
Misty had every right to get angry. What made him think he could do better with Psyduck than the woman who looked after him for half of her life?
Ash kicked the desk in frustration with enough force to topple it with a loud crash and saw sudden movement from the corner of his eye. "Who's there? Show yourself!"
After a high-pitched gasp, a child walked into view to stand attention. The little girl had long unkempt brown hair and stared at him with big green eyes. She wore a small skirt and a brown jacket which was several sizes too big on her small frame. On her feet she had worn out and dirty white sneakers.
The most eye catching piece of clothing was her black headwear. She wore a Team Rocket cap in impeccable condition compared to her other dirty clothes.
Ash relaxed his posture and tried to look more friendly. The girl clearly was frightened of him after the outburst, shaking like leaves while trying to stand as straight as possible.
"Rocket Grunt Leaf reporting for duty, sir!"
The girl named Leaf didn't look older than six or maybe seven years. Even if Team Rocket still existed in some capacity, they wouldn't recruit children barely old enough to be out of kindergarten.
"You are with Team Rocket? Are you sure about that?"
The girl let her head sink low and mumbled quietly. "Not yet, but I want to be a Team Rocket member!"
All of a sudden, the shy girl spoke with a lot more confidence in her voice, her fear blown away.
"Why?" Ash asked, not understanding how a small child would want to join a bunch of criminals.
"Team Rocket has lots of money to buy food and everything they want! And you aren't lonely because they have tons of pokemon to keep them company. Oh, and nobody can tell them what to do!"
It made sense on a very childlike level. Ash figured this girl had a very romanticized impression of what Team Rocket was all about.
The freedom came with a price and she should learn about it now rather than later, before she started hanging out with the wrong crowd.
Team Rocket have never been the only villains around the block. "Team Rocket has so much money and pokemon because they steal it from other people. Do you want to be a thief?"
Leaf reacted as he expected. She was stunned and bit her lip to stop it from quivering. "Did you ever steal from other people?"
Ash answered honestly, confused about the sudden shift to him. "No, never!"
And just like that, the quivering stopped and Leaf brightened up with a big smile. "Then I want to be a Team Rocket member like you! Can I join please?"
Ash's eyes went wide when he realized how this whole situation must look for the girl. She found a man in Team Rocket uniform rummaging through the office and loudly demanding to show herself as if he owned the place.
"I even have a pokemon!" Leaf produced a small battered pokeball and threw it. "Rattata go!"
The purple and blue mouse pokemon materialized and looked around. Ash could tell it was underfed and exhausted from a glance. Its eyes fell on Ash and froze in fear from the red R on his shirt.
The poor thing was most likely a remnant from the locked up pokemon in the basement. He kneeled down and petted the Rattata carefully until it ceased to shake.
The weak display disheartened Leaf and she hugged her little mouse. "I'm sorry, sir. We didn't have much food lately and my Rattata won't eat when I go hungry."
The girl really didn't compare much better on a second look. Besides being very dirty, she was very thin and bony at all the wrong places.
"What about your family?"
"I have no family!" Leaf said happily which caused Ash to raise an eyebrow. "There's nobody who cares about me, so I won't be distracted from doing my best for Team Rocket!"
Sudden sirens and blue light from the windows startled them both. Ash saw a police car stop outside and an old lady pointing at the gym for the two officers getting out.
Somebody had seen him enter.
"They found our home!" Leaf embraced her pokemon protectively. "I can't go back! They don't allow pokemon like Rattata and would chase him away!"
A girl with no family had no other place than an orphanage. Viridian City didn't have one, which meant the girl had traveled quite a distance.
From a bigger city most likely, which explained her reaction. Rattata in cities are used to living off the trash of people and are often seen as pests, joining ranks with other second class pokemon.
Ash remembered how difficult it had been to let his Muk roam around without causing a commotion.
Leaf loved her pokemon too much to abandon it and that left her with the difficult decision to either fight for Rattata of flee together.
Neither looked promising.
"What should I do? Where should we go?"
The child entered the first stages of a panic attack, tears and desperation visible on her face. In that singular moment, Ash made a decision that wasn't the smartest but in his eyes the only right one.
"Grunt Leaf!"
"Yes, sir?!" The girl replied and stood attention on reflex.
"Gather your belongings and come back here as quickly as possible. We are leaving!"
The girl smiled with her Rattata pressed against the chest, wiped the tears away and saluted to him. At lightning speed, she and her pokemon had gathered their few belongings; a spare change of clothes, a second empty pokeball and a grimy backpack with the logo of the Pokemon League.
Ash took off the Team Rocket trench coat and shirt, giving it to Leaf to put it in the backpack. "Nobody can know that we are part of Team Rocket. Look after this uniform and don't let anyone see it!"
Leaf took off her Grunt cap and looked at it sadly. "This too?"
"Keep the cap. There isn't the Team Rocket insignia on it."
"Thank you sir!" She proudly put the cap back on and recalled Rattata back in its pokeball. "How are we going to get out?"
A quick whistle with two fingers in his mouth answered that question. The roof above them evaporated and Charizard landed among them.
"Get on and hold tight!" Ash helped the spellbound girl on the giant pokemon and saw the first rays of a flashlight approaching from the corridor. "Charizard use Smokescreen and fly out!"
Thick black clouds filled the room from Charizard's mouth before the pokemon took to the air with one giant leap. Leaf almost fell off from the acceleration but Ash had a tight grip and pulled her towards him.
They flew in silence as Leaf gazed in wonder at the city skyline of Viridian City. Soon the buildings of the city were behind them, followed by the thick canopy of Viridian Forest and finally the first lights of Pewter City.
"Bad timing to remember we forgot Brock in Pallet," Ash mumbled as he was on the lookout for a specific building.
"What are we looking for, sir?"
Ash pointed at the only building which still had its electric billboard turned on.
The 24/7 Diner of Pewter City.
Charizard landed gracefully out of sight and waited with a thumbs up that Leaf replied with enthusiasm.
The red dragon was the coolest pokemon she had ever seen!
They entered the diner and sat down on a free table in the back. Ash handed Leaf the laminated menu. "Take out your Rattata. The owners don't mind smaller pokemon and you both need some food."
"We don't want handouts…" the girl let out Rattata but didn't take the card from him, pouting and avoiding his eyes with crossed arms.
The proud stubbornness was kind of adorable. Luckily, Ash knew an angle that seemed to work with the girl this far. "That wasn't a request rookie! I can't have two of my newest members fall over from hunger. I expect my team to be in top condition at all times."
Leaf turned her head so quick, Ash feared she would snap her neck. "You will accept us? Really?!"
"Yes, but listen Leaf. I'm not really in contact with other members of Team Rocket. I usually work deeply undercover as normal citizen."
Ash was playing a dangerous game, willfully lying to Leaf to gain her trust. He calmed his consciousness with the excuse of wanting the best for the girl.
And she bought it hook, line and sinker. "Like a spy? That's so cool boss!"
"Kinda. And call me by name. It's less conspicuous in public."
Leaf nodded with a wink and frowned after a short moment. "What is your name Mister?"
He never had told this girl his name. Ash wasn't used to the need of introducing himself anymore through the years as a champion. People usually knew who he was but he figured the new haircut and stubble made him less recognizable.
"I am Ash Ketchum."
Leaf and Rattata squinted at him, then gasped and squeaked in unison.
"THE UNBEATABLE CHAMPION IS PART OF TEAM ROC-"
Ash put his hand over her mouth and looked around in panic. They were the only patrons at the moment and the cashier gave only a small raise of an eyebrow. A quick wave and smile mollified the employee back to his magazine.
"A secret spy remember?" She nodded with stars of wonder in her eyes and he let go with a sigh. "Now order what you want. Money is no issue."
"Team Rocket is so awesome…" Leaf whispered to him and Ash had to suppress a laugh as girl and pokemon vanished behind the menu with excited chatter.
He never would have imagined to hear such a sentence from a small girl at two in the morning. Ash also never imagined becoming one of the last remaining Team Rocket members after fighting them for years.
Life could be weird.