I went back and edited all of the previous chapters. Most of the changes were grammatical or just to make it flow better, but I did change a few things in the story itself. It might behoove you to read the previous chapters again, but you shouldn't be too confused by future chapters if you decide not to do so. If anyone notices any big mistakes, I'd appreciate a heads up so I can go back and fix it. I hope you all enjoy the chapter! Reviews are my bread and butterfree. Please leave one and make my day. :)
Chapter Eleven
Humming, Ash walked ahead of the group with a smug grin on his face. He was on cloud ninetales after capturing Bulbasaur and Charmander, overflowing with confidence in his ability as a pokémon trainer. Brock and Misty walked behind him, chatting, and Mariah trailed further back from the group as she had been doing for a couple days now.
"Stop dragging your feet, Riah! We need to hurry to Vermilion City and get our next badge!" Ash yelled back at her.
Before she could reply, Ash's foot sunk into the ground, trapping him. Brock and Misty hurried to help him, but Mariah kept a safe distance. There was a reason she had been moving slower. She winced in sympathy at the resulting thuds from bodies hitting the ground. Groans and complaints floated out of the pitfall, but she was more interested in the laughter coming from behind some nearby bushes.
Mariah grinned as the Squirtle Squad revealed themselves. The little pokémon gang was made up of five mischievous squirtle, one with pointed sunglasses that she recognized as the leader and four with matching rounded sunglasses. The delinquents were laughing up a storm at Ash and the others' expense as they dragged themselves out of the pitfall.
"Dangerous practical jokes are nothing to laugh about!" Ash growled.
The squirtle weren't deterred, finding his annoyance highly amusing. As was his habit when meeting a new pokémon species, Ash got out his pokédex. He scanned the leader.
"Squirtle, the tiny turtle pokémon. It withdraws into its shell when in danger and strikes back with spouts of water at every opportunity. The shell's shape minimizes resistance in water and allows it to swim at high speeds. This squirtle is male and has the torrent ability. It knows tackle, tail whip, water gun, withdraw, and rapid spin."
Ash grinned and put away his pokédex.
"With my very own squirtle, Gary'd never beat me. Go, Pikachu!"
"Pika!"
Mariah barely held back a snort.
He can be such a little kid. What kind of logic is that?
Pikachu released a thundershock at the squirtles' leader, without prompting. It would have hit, but one of the other squirtle bravely moved in front of its leader and took the attack. The squirtle weren't laughing any more as they looked at their defeated comrade. The leader angrily stepped forward and glared at Pikachu, who glared right back at the water type. They all knew Pikachu would win even if he battled the whole squad, he was more experienced and had the type advantage. Regardless, Squirtle didn't back down, either from pride or from a sense of responsibility as the leader, until they heard the blaring of police sirens. Squirtle backed off immediately and said a few words to his crew. In seconds, they had picked up their fallen comrade and fled the scene. Concealed in the clouds above, a pokémon flew after them.
Officer Jenny arrived on her motorcycle and shut off her ear-piercing siren.
"Are you guys alright? Has anyone been hurt?"
"Officer Jenny! We met you back in Viridian City, remember?" Ash asked.
Officer Jenny looked at him in confusion but quickly figured out the misunderstanding.
"Oh, you mean one of the other Jennys, my cousins." She said.
"Cousins?" Ash parroted.
"My cousins are all police officers, all of us look identical, plus we're all named Jenny." She explained.
She showed them a family picture, and although Mariah wasn't as bothered by the weirdness of the Jenny and Joy clans as she used to be, it was still strange seeing so many people with identical appearances.
"Talk about family resemblance." Ash commented.
"At least they remember all their names." Misty joked.
After chatting a little, Jenny asked them to follow her back to the police station so that they could make a report. While they were there, Jenny told them a little about the squirtles' situation.
"That pokémon gang calls itself the Squirtle Squad. They're all squirtle who were deserted by their trainers. Since they don't have a trainer, they just run wild and play tricks on the whole town. It's really kind of sad because if they had somebody to care about them they wouldn't have turned out to be as bad as they are. It's a real shame." She said, looking down at her desk sadly.
Mariah clenched her fists, confused and so angry. She couldn't understand the people, the trainers in this world that treated pokémon so poorly. Pokémon were a gift, a precious irreplaceable gift that she thanked Arceus for every day of her new life, and to discard that gift so callously was something she would never forgive. She cleared her throat.
"Officer Jenny, you care about the Squirtle Squad right? Even though they cause trouble?"
Officer Jenny stood, sending her chair rolling away from her.
"Of course! I care about all the people and pokémon in my jurisdiction. It's my responsibility as an officer of the law and as a member of the Jenny clan. The Squirtle Squad has caused problems, but like I said, they wouldn't do bad things if they had someone to watch over them. They're not bad pokémon."
"Would you be willing to be that person?"
Jenny looked at her with furrowed brows.
"What do you mean?"
"Yeah, what do you mean, Mariah? Do you think she should be their trainer?" Misty asked.
Mariah shook her head.
"I don't think the squirtle would accept another trainer unless one managed to earn their trust, but I actually meant that she should be like their caretaker or supervisor. They need someone to watch out for them, someone that can not only make sure they're healthy and safe but can also give them a purpose."
"A purpose? Like a job?" Brock inquired.
"Exactly, Brock. They need something to do besides play pranks and think about their crappy ex-trainers. They don't trust humans, so it might be difficult to convince them though."
Officer Jenny suddenly lunged over and wrapped her arms around Mariah's shoulders, pulling her captive's face down into something warm and soft. Mariah's brain stopped working, her cheeks set ablaze.
"That's a great idea! I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner. I know exactly what job to give them. Thank you, Mariah!" Officer Jenny said, squeezing her tighter to show her gratitude.
Mariah couldn't reply if she wanted to, her mind was a scrambled mess of panic, embarrassment, and bliss. The older woman thankfully, or maybe regretfully, released her. Their report was filed, and Officer Jenny was very busy, so they left after asking for directions. They walked down the road that Officer Jenny confirmed led to Vermilion City, though their pace wasn't fast. Mariah was still recovering from shock, Brock was dying of jealousy, Misty was struggling to restrain a fit of giggles at their expense, and Ash was oblivious to all of them as he thought about the Squirtle Squad and his disappointment at not getting to catch one of the turtle pokémon.
They stopped by a river for lunch. Misty wanted to fish after eating, and the boys decided to sit with her and enjoy the nice weather. Before Misty could dig her fishing pole out of her red bag, a pidgeotto flew by at top speed. Misty screamed, reflexively throwing her bag. It would have landed in the water, but luckily, Brock caught it. Pikachu's cheeks sparked as it prepared a thundershock. Mariah stepped in front of the electric mouse to block him. Exasperated, she yelled up at the bird.
"Bolt, stop playing around or you won't get any pokéblock for a week!"
Bolt immediately stopped zipping around and dropped down beside her, nudging his beak into her hand and looking up at her with an expression so sweet it could cause cavities. Berating herself for being a pushover, Mariah affectionately brushed her fingers over his colorful crest.
"Did you find them, Bolt?" She asked.
"Pidgeotto!"
"Good job. Would you lead me to them?"
He nodded and flew back into the air, circling overhead while he waited for his trainer.
"What's going on, Riah? Where'd Bolt come from?"
Mariah scratched her head, she didn't want to lie to Ash but didn't want to tell him the truth either.
"Uh, Bolt was looking for something for me. I need to go take care of it. I should be back in a few hours, lunch time tomorrow at the latest."
"Oh, we could go with you. What was he looking for? A pokémon?"
"No, that's okay, Ash. You guys stay here, fish and relax, or you can keep going without me. I'll catch up."
Mariah didn't give him time to reply, running back the way they came. Bolt stopped circling and started leading her to the group she'd asked him to track. He had been flying freely for days, following their group's progression and waiting until they met the Squirtle Squad to carry out the orders she'd given him.
"See you guys later!" She yelled over her shoulder.
Silently apologizing to Ash, Mariah kept moving until he was out of sight. Then, she stopped and released Athena. The butterfree cocked her head.
"Free?"
"Athena, I need you to watch over Ash and the others. Meowth from Team Rocket and a group of squirtle should attack them soon and take them hostage. I know it's weird for me to ask, but don't stop them. It's important that Ash spends time with the Squirtle Squad. Pikachu might get hurt battling them, but I made sure Brock has medicine, so he should be fine. Stay out of sight and don't interfere unless someone's in serious danger. Okay?"
Athena nodded.
"Free free."
Mariah grabbed a sweet poffin from her bag, Athena's favorite treat. Her butterfree accepted it happily and took enthusiastic bites until every last crumb was gone.
"Thank you, Athena. I'll be back in a few hours."
"Free!"
Athena departed, and Bolt led Mariah a ways down the road to a rickety bridge. Remembering Anime Ash's untimely swim, Mariah had Bolt find an alternative route before continuing on to a little town. It was the same town where Anime Ash had gone to get super potion for Pikachu, who had been seriously injured.
Mariah jogged through the old western style town. Bolt directed her to a diner, the last place he had seen Team Rocket before he left to get her. Unfortunately, the villains were nowhere in sight. Bolt flew off to search for them while Mariah bought a cold drink and waited at one of the tables outside for his return. She nearly choked on a sip of the sweet juice when a familiar boy slid into the seat across from her.
"Well if it isn't Gloom. I didn't expect to find you here. I haven't seen any posters advertising a beauty pageant."
Mariah prayed to Arceus for patience as she glared at Gary Oak.
"I've told you a million times not to call me Gloom. It's childish. And don't think I won't tattle to your sister about the beauty pageant comment. Daisy may not be a coordinator any more but she'd still lecture you til the tauros came home if she knew you'd disrespected pokémon contests."
Gary winced, rightfully scared of her threat. Daisy was a calm, gentle young woman, but she ruled the Oak household with an iron fist.
"What are you doing here anyway, Gary? This town doesn't have a gym."
He leaned back in his chair and dismissively waved his hand.
"There's some famous salon nearby that the girls wanted to visit. Where's Ashy-boy? I thought you two losers were traveling together. You're a real saint for dragging that deadweight around. I bet he hasn't won a single badge yet."
Mariah slammed her glass down on the table.
"For your information, Ash has two badges. He won them on his first try, and he'll get his third as soon as we get to Vermilion City. I don't know if your grandfather told you, but Ash recently caught a bulbasaur and a charmander. They've got a lot of potential and so do his other pokémon. Surge and the other gym leaders won't know what hit them after he trains them up a little."
Gary scoffed in disbelief.
"He must've gotten lucky, or the gym leaders gave him their badge out of pity. As for his pokémon, it doesn't matter how much potential they have with Ashy-boy as their trainer. A weak trainer can only raise weak pokémon."
Snarling, Mariah stood and leaned over the table.
"Watch your mouth, Gary. How many times do I have to give you a black eye before you learn not to badmouth my brother in front of me?"
Gary smirked and stood.
"Fighting is for little kids, Gloom. We're pokémon trainers, let's settle this with a one on one battle."
More than ready to knock Gary down a peg, she agreed. He led her out of town to an open field where they could battle freely. They each palmed a pokéball and simultaneously released their pokémon.
"Nidorino, go!" "It's showtime, Nini!"
The two nidorino lowered their horns at each other and pawed the ground. The nidorino and nidoking species tended to act aggressively toward each other, an instinct derived from many generations of competition for territory and mates. The nidorina and nidoqueen species were the opposite and tended to form groups and raise their young together. Gary snorted.
"I can't believe you named your pokémon."
"So what? I give all my pokémon a name if they want one."
"Don't you know that a pokémon trainer should catch so many pokémon that it's impossible to name them all? I guess it's easy when you don't even have a full team. I've already caught about four dozen pokémon myself, and by the time I win the league, I'm sure I'll have hundreds of pokémon."
Mariah rolled her eyes at his bragging. She had already caught over a hundred pokémon, if she included the swarm of beedrill she had captured in Viridian Forest, but she decided to save that surprise for another day.
"Are we going to battle or are you going to keep stalling, Gary?"
Gary flicked his hair and started the battle.
"Use fury attack, Nidorino!"
"Nini, focus energy!"
In contrast to Gary's nidorino who charged with his horn lowered, Nini stilled and took a deep breath. He exhaled, signaling the completion of the move, and grunted as his opponent released a barrage of fury attacks on his purple skin.
"Nini, use water pulse! Then leer!"
The water pulse sent Nidorino sliding away. Mariah couldn't see Nini's expression as he activated leer, but it must not have been a very nice one. Nidorino's ears went down, and he took a step back in fear.
"Don't back down, Nidorino! Show them what a real water pulse looks like!"
"Ice beam, Nini!"
The condensed ball of water and water-type energy weakened the ice beam, but it still landed, and as Mariah had hoped it would, the move froze the water on Nidorino's skin from their previous water pulse. Their opponent should have trouble moving in his condition. Mariah bared her teeth in a grin. The stage was finally ready for the big finale.
"Time to end this, Nini! Use thunderbolt!"
"Nido!"
Electricity gathered around Nini and arced toward their opponent. The moisture in the air and on their opponent's skin would give the electric-type move the extra zing it needed to win them the match.
"Protect!"
Greenish energy gathered around Nidorino and nullified the thunderbolt.
Mariah tsked. Gary laughed.
"Sorry to ruin your moment, Gloom, but you'll have to try a lot harder than that to beat me."
"Don't call me Gloom! Nini, use-!"
"Pidgeotto!"
Bolt dropped from the sky and landed next to her. For once, he didn't attempt any unnecessary theatrics. Instead, he urgently gestured toward town before taking flight again. Mariah groaned in frustration but didn't hesitate to return Nini to his pokéball.
"I got to go, Gary. We'll have to finish our battle some other time."
Gary frowned and returned his nidorino.
"What's wrong?"
"There isn't time to explain."
Mariah started running after Bolt. Gary followed, and she didn't try to dissuade him. If worse comes to worse, she could always use his overly inflated head as a shield. Arceus knows the boy's ego was big enough to cover a wailord.
They soon arrived at a familiar convenience store. A woman ran out of the store yelling something about thieves and guns, and Mariah had a good idea of what was happening.
This is the store where Anime Ash bought the super potion. Team Rocket's robbing it like they did on the show, but that's not supposed to happen until tomorrow morning. The timeline's changed.
Mariah moved toward the store, but Gary grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"Are you crazy? You heard her. They have guns. Are you trying to get yourself shot?"
Mariah jerked her arm free.
"Either help or get out of the way, Gary. You should go find your cheerleaders. If you keep them waiting too long, they might cry and stain the seats of your sports car with their mascara." She snapped.
He didn't stop her a second time. Mariah cautiously walked up onto the store's porch, avoiding the open front door, and peeked in one of the front windows. Jessie and James had their backs to her and were pointing weapons at four hostages. Their voices drifted out from the open door, and Mariah could hear Team Rocket demand that the store owner hand over all the flash powder he had, as well as dental floss and few other insignificant supplies. Like typical cartoon villains, they proudly explained their evil plan to chase the Squirtle Squad out of town with bombs.
Athena could've put them to sleep in no time, too bad I needed her to guard the others. Without her, we'll have to take a riskier approach.
Mariah released Sol and Nini, making a shushing motion so that they knew to be quiet. She whispered.
"Team Rocket is robbing this store and they have hostages. Sol, I want you to use smokescreen to flush everyone out. We need to take Team Rocket's weapons and try to restrain them. Don't use any attacks that are strong enough to blast them off. I want them to be arrested this time, not free to cause more problems."
They nodded. Sol moved to the side of the open door, while Nini and Mariah got into position. Sol peeked around the door frame and scanned the room before releasing black smoke into the store. They could hear the hostages coughing as well as Team Rocket arguing.
"Did you cough release Koffing?" Jessie yelled at James.
"No- cough. He's cough he's in his pokéball." James replied.
The villains stumbled out of the store coughing heavily, followed by the hostages. Sol's path to Jessie was inadvertently blocked by an old man, but Mariah and Nini had a clear shot at James and took it. The blue-haired man found himself on the receiving end of a water pulse that sent him flying off the porch. While he laid on the ground in a daze, Mariah snatched the gun from his limp hands and Koffing's pokéball off his belt. She straightened and turned to check on Sol, freezing as she looked down the large barrel of Jessie's weapon. Behind the redhead, she could see Sol struggling to free herself from Ekans tight grasp. The charmeleon was panting heavily and her face was tinted purple, suggesting a moderate to severe case of poisoning. Jessie spoke coldly.
"I suggest you recall your pokémon, girl, unless you want to see what my little toy can do."
Nini growled, but Mariah held her hand out to restrain him.
"I understand. No need to do anything rash." She replied.
Mariah slowly took Sol's and Nini's pokéballs from her belt. They protested but couldn't avoid the red beams that pulled them into their pokéballs.
"Don't worry. I'll take good care of your trainer." Jessie chuckled darkly.
Jessie kicked her fallen partner.
"Get up, James! This isn't the time for a nap!"
James whined a protest but got up at Jessie's order and took Koffing's pokéball back from Mariah along with all of her pokéballs. She felt uncomfortably naked without their slight weight. The faint sound of approaching police sirens could be heard, but Team Rocket had just enough time for a little revenge before making their escape.
"You shouldn't have messed with Team Rocket, girl. We've taken your pokémon, and now, we're going to see what'll happen to that pretty little face of yours after I pull this trigger. Any last words?" Jessie sneered.
Mariah smirked.
"Now, Bolt!"
The pidgeotto swooped down from his hiding spot on the roof of a neighboring building and cleanly knocked the weapon out of Jessie's hands with steel wing, breaking it in the process.
Jessie squealed, dodging an attack from Bolt.
"Ekans, use poison sting!"
The serpentine pokémon sprayed purple darts at Bolt, and the two began to battle. Mariah would have to trust that her favorite bird could handle Jessie and Ekans on his own, while she retrieved her stolen pokémon. She grappled with James and managed to snatch one of her pokéballs. She immediately released its occupant, and James scrambled to release his Koffing. He mocked her when he realized he was battling a magikarp, on land no less.
"What can that useless fish do besides flop around?"
"Kick their mudbrays, Courage! They stole Sol and Nini!" Mariah roared.
"Karp!"
After several angry splash tackles from Courage, Koffing was knocked out and James was once again on the ground looking up at the blue sky in a daze. Mariah grabbed her pokéballs and was startled to hear the chirp of a hoothoot from an alley across the street. Once he had her attention, Gary peeked out at her from the alley and signed a short message before moving back out of sight.
Professor Oak was right, sign language can be useful for pokémon trainers. I figured he just wanted me and Gary to learn it in case he went deaf in his old age.
She returned Bolt, the red beam snagging him mid-dive. She clipped his pokéball to her belt, dropped to her knees, and put her hands behind her head. Ekans hissed, head tilted, and Jessie eyed her suspiciously.
"What are y-."
"This is the police! Drop your weapon!" Officer Jenny yelled, charging out of the same alley where Mariah had seen Gary.
A half dozen officers and their pokémon partners swarmed out of a different alley and made a combeeline straight for Team Rocket. Pale-faced, Jessie abandoned James, who still hadn't recovered from Courage's punishment, and tried to run for it.
"Stop her, Growlithe!" Officer Jenny ordered.
A perfectly executed take down attack knocked Jessie off her feet. Officer Jenny skillfully handcuffed the struggling redhead and left her in the custody of her fellow officers, who carted her off to join James in a squad car. Mariah held her position as Officer Jenny walked over to her, expecting to be arrested as well until her innocence could be proven. The blue-haired officer was the same woman she had talked to earlier that day about the Squirtle Squad, but Mariah didn't expect biased treatment because of their short acquaintance. However, instead of pulling out handcuffs, the woman pulled her to her feet.
"Don't worry, Mariah. You're not under arrest. Your friend Gary explained everything, and witnesses have already corroborated his statement. You should leave situations like these to the police, but you were a big help. The criminals might've gotten away if your friend hadn't alerted us so quickly and if you hadn't intervened. Thank you for your help."
Officer Jenny saluted her. Mariah smiled shyly.
"There's no need to thank me. I had my own reasons for stopping Team Rocket. Actually, you should know that there's another member of Team Rocket a couple hours walk from here. I can lead you to him if you or one of your officers will give me a ride."
Officer Jenny nodded seriously.
"I'll take you myself."
While the officer, who was way too trusting in Mariah's opinion, strode off to get her bike and inform her people, Mariah turned to find a certain spiky-haired boy. Gary was leaning against the side of a building, just a pokéball's throw away from her. She grinned and trilled like a hoothoot. The boy snorted.
"What pokémon was that supposed to be? A pidgey?"
"It was a hoothoot and you know it. Thank you for helping me. You didn't have to."
Cheeks tinted the faintest shade of pink, Gary shrugged and flicked his hair.
"I didn't do it to help you. I was just doing my civic duty. Forget about it."
Mariah gave him her most sincere smile. Gary's cheeks darkened.
"I won't forget, Gary."
After Gary left to find his cheerleaders, Mariah treated her pokémon's injuries and bought supplies from the convenience store's owner, who was grateful to her for rescuing him and gave her a much appreciated discount. She didn't have to wait much longer after that for Officer Jenny to appear on her motorcycle. She hopped into the sidecar, and Officer Jenny took off like a zubat out of the reverse world. Mariah only had a general idea of where Meowth was keeping Ash and the others hostage, but luckily, Athena heard them when they got close. The butterfree showed them the way, before returning to her pokéball for a nap, and they arrived in the small clearing where Team Rocket would have dropped their bombs if it weren't for a couple of meddling kids getting them arrested.
Athena had said that everyone was fine, but Mariah still believed that they'd find her friends in the cave, tied up and helpless to the whims of Meowth and the Squirtle Squad. Contrary to that expectation, they were all gathered outside, enjoying the sunshine and preparing for dinner, and the only one that was tied up was Meowth, who was bound up in rope with tape over his mouth. The little villain was sitting next to a campfire and staring longingly at whatever Brock was stirring in a pot placed over the flames. Pikachu was also by the fire, acting as Brock's assistant. She was relieved to see that her brother's starter seemed healthy, if a bit less energetic than usual. Ash, Misty, and the Squirtle Squad were sitting in a circle playing Mimikyu, a group game that was just like Medusa in Mariah's old world. They heard the sound of the bike's engine, and Misty and Ash abandoned the game, running over to them. Pikachu got to her first.
"Pi pikapi!"
Mariah scooped him up and rubbed his red cheek in just the way her and Ash, through shockingly painful trial and error, had learned he liked. He groaned happily, limp as a wet noodle in her arms.
"Pikachu! How are you? Did you get hurt? You smell like super potion."
Misty answered for him.
"He got hit by a horn attack from a wild high-level goldeen. We were worried at first, since we thought that you were the only one that had any pokémon medicine left, but luckily, Brock just happened to find super potions in the bottom of his bag."
Mariah gave herself a mental high-five, not seeing the suspicious look the redhead was giving her.
"That is lucky. So when did you guys become friends with the Squirtle Squad?"
Ash jumped in to explain, hands waving dramatically while he told her everything that happened after she left.
It sounds just like what happened in the anime, up until Brock found the medicine I put in his bag. Ash has a knack for winning over pokémon, so I understand how he might've convinced the Squirtle Squad to trust them, but I can't figure out what caused Jessie and James to rob that store a day early. Maybe they're feeling more pressure from Giovanni since I got them arrested in Viridian? He must've been really angry about having to bail them out. . .
Lost in her internal musings, Mariah missed whatever was said next. She tuned back in when Officer Jenny knelt down and shook Squirtle's hand.
"Thank you for accepting the job. The town will be much safer with the Squirtle Squad as our very own firefighters. I swear on my shield that you'll all be well taken care of in return for your service." Officer Jenny promised.
"Squirtle squirt!"
I'm glad that this part didn't change, but what about Ash and Squirtle's relationship?
. . . . . .
After parting ways with the Squirtle Squad, Mariah and company were once again heading toward Vermilion City. There wasn't much daylight left, but they wanted to try and make up for lost time. After all, the pokémon league was less than a year away, and Ash and Mariah still needed six more badges in order to qualify. Mariah walked next to Misty with a heavy heart. The redhead bumped her shoulder against hers.
"What's wrong, Mariah? You haven't said a word since we said goodbye to the Squirtle Squad. Are you depressed about leaving the beautiful Officer Jenny behind?"
I'm quiet because I cost my brother a great pokémon. I should've just let things play out, but I couldn't stomach the thought of watching bombs being thrown at Ash and Squirtle, even though I knew they'd be fine. I'd hoped that Ash could win Squirtle over while he was being held hostage, which is why I told Athena not to interfere, but I guess that wasn't enough.
Mariah felt so crappy that she didn't even react to her friend's teasing.
"I'm just tired, Misty. Running all the way to town and battling Team Rocket took a lot out of me."
Misty looked at her in concern.
"I'm sure Ash and Brock will stop and set up camp early if you ask."
Mariah shook her head.
"No. I-."
"Squirtle squirtle!"
Mariah whipped around, her bad mood disappearing like a ghost pokémon. She blinked back tears of relief and whispered.
"Thank Arceus. It didn't change."
Misty was observing her with squinted eyes, but Mariah didn't notice, too busy watching the leader of the Squirtle Squad remove his signature sunglasses and run into her brother's arms. Ash hugged him, laughing.
"Welcome to the team, Squirtle!"
"Squirtle squirt!"
Mariah hummed happily as they resumed traveling. The future looked bright and better than ever.
TO BE CONTINUED
