Episode 130: His Own Medicine

"Pikaaaaaaaaa chuuuuuu!" Pikachu uses its Thunderbolt to destroy a target hung on a tree.

Ash cheers, "Alright, Pikachu! That was your best one yet! With us in top shape like this, there's no way we could lose at the Kanaveral Gym!"

Pikachu gives Ash a thumbs up and a grin, but then suddenly collapses in exhaustion.

Not only are our heroes working as hard as ever, they're working harder. And it seems like that's taking a toll on Pikachu.

Ash scoops Pikachu off the ground. "You alright, buddy?"

Pikachu manages a grin at Ash, but still looks very tuckered out.

Brenda comments, "You two have been working so hard, this was bound to happen. Not even Pikachu can go on like that forever."

Brock steps in holding a bottle. "Here Pikachu, why don't you try some of this?"

Pikachu grabs the bottle and cautiously sniffs the contents.

Brock laughs. "Trust me, you'll like it."

Pikachu shrugs and drinks some. Once it finishes the first sip its ears perk up, it smiles, and it declares, "Pika!" excitedly before going in to drink some more. Its energy quickly returns as it drinks.

Brock explains, "I'm calling it Brock's Energizing Health Drink. It's a special blend I came up with."

Ash puts Pikachu down and comments, "It seems to be doing wonders." Pikachu continues to gulp down the drink.

Brenda asks, "And Pikachu seems to love the taste. What's in that stuff?"

Brock explains, "I start off with Oran Berry juice, both for the taste and for its energizing properties. There's also some vitamins added for health, crushed Nanab Berries to provide electrolytes, and a special immuno-booster derived from Sitrus Berries." He then remembers, "Oh, and there's the secret ingredient."

Ash asks, "Secret ingredient? What's that?"

Brenda points out, "It wouldn't really be a secret if he told you."

Brock chuckles. "No, I just call it that. It's not actually a secret. You see, it's actually the reason I came up with this blend. Do you remember that heard of Miltank I was studying the other day?"

Brenda nods. "Yeah, something to do with medical research, right?"

Brock nods. "Exactly. According to the farmers, people who drank the Moo Moo Milk from those Miltank on a regular basis were far healthier than average and rarely got sick. I wanted to know why, so I studied them. That's when I discovered this wild-growing herb." He pulls a handful of non-descript dried-out leaves out to show Ash and Brenda. "The Miltank would eat this herb while grazing, and I'm certain it's what makes their milk special. I decided I had to try to make a health drink out of the stuff and see what happens. Study the effects. And so, Brock's Energizing Health Drink was born."

Pikachu is unsuccessfully attempting to get the last drops out of the bottle. It sticks its tongue in, but it's nowhere near long enough to reach. Instead, Pikachu attempts shaking the bottle while upside down over its mouth, but that doesn't do much either.

Brock laughs and takes back the bottle. "Don't worry Pikachu, I'll whip up another batch later. There will be plenty."

Pikachu happily, "Chu!"

Brock suddenly realizes something. "Wait a second! Look at the time! I'm late for my date!"

Ash asks skeptically, "You? A date?"

Brenda laughs. "As if."

Brock isn't listening, instead rushing to pack up everything. "Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!"

Brock, throwing on his doctor's coat, rushes in through the doors of a Pokémon Center, shouting, "Nuuuuurse Joy!"

The Nurse Joy behind the desk smiles at him. "Oh, you must be the other traveling doctor who signed up to help today. Welcome."

Ash and Brenda come in behind him. Brenda comments, "I suppose this shouldn't surprise me."

Ash points out, "And yet it always does."

Head-over-heels, Brock leaps to Nurse Joy and declares, "Oh gorgeous Joy, I am here for the sole purpose of making your life easier. You and me. We will make a dynamic duo the likes of which the medical world has never seen! The two of us will…" He trails off as he realizes, "Wait… did you say, 'other traveling doctor?'"

Meteorfight scowls at having lost its opportunity to attack Brock, returning itself wordlessly to its Pokéball.

Nurse Joy grins. "Yeah, the other one arrived just before you did."

An arrogant voice announces, "Well, well, well. Look at what the Meowth dragged in. A Sock."

Ash complains, "Not this jerk again."

Brock recovers from his previous state and turns to see Alistair walking out from the medical room. He politely responds, "Alistair, it's been a while. And the name's Brock."

"Yeah, whatever. When I was told I'd be working with another doctor today, I assumed it would be someone with a little more… class."

Brock crosses his arms. "In the field of Pokémon medicine, what does 'class' matter?"

Alistair shrugs. "It depends on who you ask." The two stare at each other for several tense moments. Alistair finally throws his hands in air. "But hey, what does it matter. You can play doctor here if you'd like. After all, the world's greatest Pokémon doctor will be here to pick up any slack."

Brock points out, "It's the job of one Pokémon doctor to help another. If that's your way of offering help, I'll gladly take it."

Having been expecting a retort, Alistair is caught off-guard for a moment. He eyes Brock with annoyance.

Looking for a distraction from this awkward situation, Ash points to a nearby bulletin board. "Hey Brenda, look. There's book sale at the library next door. Let's check it out."

Brenda tilts her head. "Since when do you read books?"

"Since that jerk walked in the doors." He pulls Brenda by the arm out of the Pokémon Center.

As they leave, a boy urgently walks in. He looks distressed. In his arms is a Luxio that doesn't look healthy, and sparks are flying from its body. He shouts, "Please help me! My Luxio, it can't stop sparking!"

Alistair swivels to look at the body and the Pokémon. After one quick glance over the Pokémon, he announces, "It's clearly AOD, Amperage Overload Disease. Very serious."

Brock nods. "I concur."

Alistair scoffs. "Did you hear anyone ask you for your diagnosis? Because I certainly didn't."

Brock crosses his arms in frustration, but doesn't reply.

Alistair looks back to the boy and says, "Just bring your Luxio into the urgent care room, and I shall begin treatment right away. You're lucky, getting a doctor of my caliber usually costs millions. Now go." He ushers the boy into the back. Nurse Joy follows him.

Alistair rubs his hands together. "AOD is a very rare and very hard to treat illness. Curing this Pokémon will score me a Certificate of High Medical Honors for sure." Before he can leave the room, he's stopped by someone in his way.

He looks down to see a little girl tugging at his coat. She holds a cardboard box in her other hand. She says, "Please mister doctor, my Pokémon is sick, can you make it better?" She opens up the box to reveal a small Pokémon curled up inside. It's a kitten-like Pokémon colored mostly orange with some black lines through its fur. It sneezes, "Kit!" It shakes its body after the sneeze.

Alistair scoffs at the notion. "Out of my way, girl. That Pokémon has a cold. I'm here to treat a real illness." He pushes her away and heads into the back. The girl starts to cry.

Brock approaches her and smiles at the cute Pokémon. "A Kittainer. What's wrong with it?"

The little girl sniffles and explains, "She keeps on sneezing and won't play with me."

Brock puts a hand to the small Pokémon's forehead. "And quite the fever. But don't worry. It's just the common cold. Kittainer will be alright."

Sounding disappointed, the girl asks, "Can't you do anything to make it better?"

Brock looks back to the door where Alistair and the Luxio disappeared. He says to himself, "AOD may be rare, but it is well-documented. I think Alistair, despite all his faults, can handle it himself." He smiles kindly at the girl. "Let's have a look and I'll see what I can do."

She cheers, "Yay!"

Jessie, James, and Meowth are gathered around a tree stump with blueprints rolled out on top. Some sort of over-the-top mechanical contraption is detailed on the blueprints.

James declares, "I say this plan is foolproof!"

Meowth remarks, "And that's good, considering the fools who will be enacting it."

Jessie grumpily asks, "What's that supposed to- achoo!" She cuts herself off with a sneeze.

Meowth says, "Gesundheit."

Jessie promptly takes a seat on a rock behind her. "I suddenly don't feel too good."

James walks over and puts a hand on Jessie's forehead. He gasps. "Jessie, you're hot!"

Jessie laughs and flaunts, "Are you only just noticing?"

James looks at her with annoyance, "You know that's not what I meant. You're burning up. You have a fever."

Jessie sneezes again. "If I'm sick, we'll never capture Pikachu!

"Gesundheit."

Jessie looks at Meowth with aggravation. "That wasn't a sneeze!"

Meowth shrugs. "You said 'achu.'"

James sighs. "Bad puns aside, Jessie's right. This plan will never work if we're down one."

Jessie adds, "And I can't get sick! Sick people never look good! I can't lose my good looks, not even for a day!"

Meowth asks, "What are we supposed to do about it though?"

Jessie shouts angrily, "Get me a doctor! What are you waiting for? I need to be cured!"

James whispers to Meowth, "Should we tell her that there's no cure for the common cold?"

Meowth shakes his head and whispers back, "That would only make her angrier."

But it's too late for that, as an angrier Jessie shouts, "Get me a doctor now!"

This startles James and Meowth into running off to find a doctor. As they do, James asks, "But how are we supposed to find a doctor?"

Meowth grins. "I already have one in mind."

Who's That Pokémon!?

Its legs are short. Whenever it stumbles, its stiff antennae clack with a xylophone-like sound.

Brock sets Kittainer, still in its box, down on a medical bed. Brock notes the colorful scribbles and stickers plastered across the box. He asks the girl, "What's your name?"

"Sally."

Brock smiles at her. "Sally, did you decorate Kittainer's box yourself?"

Sally nods and grins. "She never leaves the box, so I thought I would make it look pretty."

Brock nods. "A Kittainer will never leave its box, it lives in it its entire life. I'm sure Kittainer very much appreciates you putting in the effort to decorate it."

Hearing this makes Sally beam with pride.

"Now, let's take a look at Kittainer." From a nearby counter, he grabs a thermometer and places it in Kittainer's mouth. "Now, just leave that there for a moment. There we go. Perfect." He pulls the thermometer out and reads it. "Hmm… 105. Yup, that's a nasty fever." He puts down the thermometer and grabs a tongue depressor. "Say aaw."

Kittainer opens its mouth wide and says, "Kiiiiiit."

Brock places the wooden stick inside the Pokémon's mouth and looks inside with a flashlight he holds in the opposite hand. "Throat is swollen. Must have a sore throat."

Kittainer sneezes so strongly that it launches itself to the opposite side of the box.

Brock makes some notes on a pad. "Bless you. And of course, there's the sneezing."

Sally asks, "Is she going to be okay…?"

Brock answers with a big smile, "She's going to be fine. You should know, there's not much doctors can do to cure a cold, but I'm going to give Kittainer some medicine which should help." Blissey hands Brock his medical bag and he places it on the counter to search through it. He pulls out a bottle of his Energizing Health Drink and takes a close look at it as he ponders something. "Hmm…"

Sally asks, "What is it?"

Brock grins at her. "Oh, nothing much. I think I may have something that your Kittainer will like, though." He pulls out a saucer and pours the drink into it. He places the saucer down in Kittainer's box. "How about you try drinking some of that?"

Kittainer, after sneezing, sniffs at the drink with interest. It decides it likes the smell and proceeds to lap up the juice.

Sally asks, "What's that that? Is it medicine to cure Kittainer?"

Brock shakes his head. "Unfortunately not. But it does contain many of the vitamins and nutrients that a sick body needs to heal. It could help Kittainer to beat the cold a day or two earlier."

Sally looks a little sad. "Oh, I was hoping she would be better now…"

Then Kittainer purrs, "Kiiiiiiit."

Brock and Sally look back to Kittainer with surprise. The Pokémon is standing up, filled with more energy and vitality than moments before. Sally cheers, "You're all better!"

Brock looks at the kitten Pokémon skeptically. "Interesting…" He walks back over to it and feels its forehead. "Fever seems to have broken." He confirms this by giving it the thermometer back. Brock is shocked by the results. "It is. We're back to normal temperature. This isn't possible." He grabs another tongue depressor and checks Kittainer's throat again. "Swelling of the throat has gone down substantially! Amazing!"

Sally points out, "And she's not sneezing anymore!"

Brock agrees, "And she's not sneezing anymore." He shakes his head in disbelief. "I've never seen a Pokémon get over a cold so fast. This should be impossible. There's nothing special about a Kittainer's immune system. What could have caused this…?"

As he's pondering this, he notices the empty bottle he kept his health drink in. He picks up the bottle with disbelief. "Could it be…? No… that's not possible…" Then it hits him. "The herbs! They must have curative properties that work as a broad-spectrum antiviral agent! That combined with all the other health and immune-supporting ingredients have combined together to form – dare I say it – a cure for the common cold! Eureka!" He looks to Blissey and asks excitedly, "Do you know what this means, Blissey?"

Blissey says excitedly, "Blissey bliss!"

Brock nods. "Exactly! We can change the world with this! No one has to get sick with a cold ever again! This is stupendous!"

Blissey cheers, "Blissey blissey bliss!"

"We need to tell the Pokémon Medical Corps about this at once!" He looks to Sally, who can't help but smile due to Brock's contagious enthusiasm. "Sally, I'd just like to keep Kittainer here for observation for a little while longer, just to make sure this isn't a temporary effect. Would you mind waiting here with Kittainer for just a bit?"

Sally nods. "Of course."

"Thank you." He looks back to Blissey. "As for us, we need to find more of that herb, and stat. That was the last of my Energizing Health Drink, and we're going to need a whole lot more for trials."

Blissey agrees, "Blissey."

"Let's go!" He and Blissey rush out of the room, only to run right into a large sack placed at the other side of the door. James and Meowth snicker as they seal the bag and drag Brock and Blissey away.

It's Kricketot!

James and Meowth dump the bag, sending Brock and Blissey tumbling out. Brock sees them and demands, "Team Rocket!? You kidnapped me!? What's going on!?"

Meowth extends his claws threateningly and states, "I'll make it plain and simple for you, Dr. Twerp. Jessie is sick, and you're going to help her, or else things are going to get mighty unpleasant for you."

James unnecessarily adds, "By unpleasant, he means we're going to rough you up."

Meowth groans. "James, the threats don't work as well when you blatantly explain them like that. You have to leave things up to their imagination."

James objects, "Hey, I just wanted to make sure he understood his situation."

"I was pretty obvious about-"

Brock cuts them off to ask, "Jessie's sick? Where is she? I can help."

This surprises both James and Meowth. Meowth asks, "Let me get this straight, even though I just threatened you a second ago, you're fully willing to help anyways?"

James adds, "And we didn't even need to threaten you?"

Brock nods. "Of course. I'm a doctor. It's my job to help others. We have our differences, but I would never turn down a patient that needs help."

James and Meowth are both dumbfounded by this explanation. They can't form words to express their confusion. They look to each other, then back to Brock, then back to each other.

Meowth just shrugs and says, "The mind of a twerp will always be an enigma. But whatever, Jessie is right over here." He beckons to direction.

Brock steps that way and finds Jessie bundled up in a sleeping bag. The cold has fully set on, leaving Jessie looking as ugly as she feared. She sneezes, then wipes her nose with arm. With a stuffed nose altering her voice, she says miserably, "Help me, Dr. Twerp…"

Brock says, "That looks like a nasty one." He goes through many of the same tests as with Kittainer. He feels her forehead to confirm a fever, then checks her throat, noting that it's swollen.

Jessie begs, "Please tell me I'm still hot." She sneezes.

Brock cracks a minor grin. "Well, you are in one way."

Jessie groans, knowing what he means. "Can you cure me?"

Brock grins. "Fortunately for you, I can."

James and Meowth both say in surprise, "You can!?"

Brock nods. "Only this morning I discovered the cure for the common cold. If Jessie takes the medicine, she'll be back to her old self in no time at all."

James urges, "Then what are you waiting for, give it to her already."

"Unfortunately, I used up my last dose already. I need to gather some more herbs that grow in a field nearby here. If you two could help me out, I know we could get them fast."

Jessie shouts, "Do it! I need to get rid of this cold!" She sneezes again.

James says, "I know, we'll take the balloon! Show us the way, and we'll get you to that herb field ASAP!"

Brock flies in Team Rocket's balloon with James and Meowth. Brock chuckles and says to himself, "You know, I never thought I would willingly fly in this thing."

Meowth points out, "It's a surprise to us both. But if it means we don't have to care for a sick Jessie, then I'm all for it."

Brock contemplates, "Speaking of caring for her, you guys really shouldn't have left Jessie alone. What if she needs something?"

James chuckles. "Don't worry, she's in capable hands."

The scene quickly changes back to Jessie, who says weakly, "I could really use some water."

Wobbuffet comes in and hands her a glass of water. "Wobbuffet!"

Jessie gulps down the water and says, "Thank you. What did I do to deserve such a helpful Pokémon?" She grins at Wobbuffet and Wobbuffet grins back. But then the grin fades from her face as she realizes something. She shouts in horror, "Oh no! I've gone delirious!"

"Wobbuffet!"

Back in the balloon, Brock points ahead announces, "Land the balloon here! This is it!"

Meowth responds, "Aye, aye, captain." He takes the balloon down for landing.

Before the balloon has even completely landed, Brock hops and looks around excitedly. He marvels, "There it is. One of the most valuable discoveries a doctor could make."

Brock gets down on his knees, and begins carefully picking leaves, being extremely careful not to pick the plant itself. Blissey is next to him helping. Brock explains, "This herb is a treasure, we have to make absolutely certain that we don't kill the plant. All we need are the leaves. That way more can grow later."

Blissey agrees, "Bliss."

Brock adds, "We may not need that much for Jessie, but I just know the PMC is going to want to get as much of this stuff as they can for trials, so let's make the job easy for them and get as much as we sustainably can." As they pick the herb, they deposit it into a basket at Brock's side.

James and Meowth join in the harvesting, taking Brock's advice from before. James comments, "You know, it actually feels kind of nice to be doing some honest work. Not only are we reaping the benefits of the land like our ancestors, but we're helping Jessie, not to mention the world."

Meowth nods. "It does kind of give you that warm fuzzy feeling."

Brock says, "Thank you two so much for your help. We'll have enough of this miracle herb in no time at this rate."

After harvesting in silence for a while longer, Meowth asks, "Alright Dr. Twerp, there's still one thing I can't wrap my head around. After everything we've done to you and your friends. After we try to steal your Pokémon day after day. After we literally kidnapped and threatened you, you're still helping us. Why?"

Brock looks up to Meowth to smile at him. "I told you before, it's a doctor's job to help any patient. I swore an oath to heal those in need and prevent disease. Maybe we're normally enemies, but today Jessie is my patient, and that means our differences don't matter. Any doctor who would do any less does not deserve to be called a doctor."

James marvels, "Wow, you're a really great guy, you know that?"

Brock grins. "No, I simply strive to be a great doctor. And I wouldn't even say that's what I am yet."

Meowth rolls his eyes. "Come on man, you literally found the cure to the common cold. I think that makes you a great doctor by even the strictest of definitions."

Brock shakes his head. "No, not yet. There's always higher to reach. A doctor can never stop bettering himself. Besides, I'm not even technically a licensed doctor yet. I'm getting there, little by little, but my title is entirely provisionary."

James scoffs, "Title, smitle. We both know you're a better doctor than most of the white coats holed up in hospitals. You travel the world, learning medicine through first-hand experience. That beats out a medical degree any day."

Meowth points out, "Not to mention, how many of those 'official' doctors would drop everything to help the fools who just kidnapped him? I'm willing to bet none."

Brock shrugs. "That's not my place to judge. I'm just here to make myself a better doctor, and that's all that matters."

James decides, "And that's what makes you both a great guy and a great doctor."

Brock decides not to object this time. He simply grins as he continues his work.

James sighs. "Unlike me. I'm an awful guy…"

"Hey, don't say that."

"But it's the truth."

Meowth agrees, "Yeah, he is a pretty awful guy."

Taking offense from this, James retorts, "Hey, so are you!"

Meowth points out, "Hey, I'm not even a guy, I'm a Pokémon."

"Well you're a pretty awful Pokémon then!"

Meowth sighs. "Who am I kidding? You're right."

Brock shakes his head. "I think you two are selling yourselves short. Sure, you're Pokémon thieves, and that's pretty terrible. But you're also really bad at being Pokémon thieves, which means you're terrible at being terrible."

James and Meowth freeze up. Sounding confused, James says, "I'm not sure whether that's a compliment or an insult…"

Brock chuckles. "All I'm saying is that the potential to change is within you. You're not the best now, but you could be. Kind of like how I was saying that I'll always work towards being a better doctor, you could work towards being a better Team Rocket."

James and Meowth both slowly nod as they ponder this. They say in unison, "A better Team Rocket…"

Finished with that train of thought, Brock returns to harvesting. He muses, "When I was here before, I knew I had found something special. But I never imagined how valuable this field would actually be!" He gets right to work harvesting some of the small leaves that grow from the ground.

Meowth looks to James and asks, "Did he just say valuable?"

James nods. "Indeed, he did."

"As in 'worth a lot of money?'"

"That's one interpretation of the word."

They both grin mischievously, knowing exactly what the other is thinking. Meowth comments, "Time to become a better Team Rocket."

James nods. "Let's do it." They sneak off.

Brock wipes some sweat from his brow. "Whew, this is some tough work." He looks to the basket. "But I figure we've nearly picked enough."

Suddenly the ground begins to shake violently. Brock stands up and looks around in surprise. "An earthquake!?"

"Blissey!?"

Then he spots a giant vehicle driving in. It's shaped like a giant Crustle with treads instead of legs. Its mouth is wide open, and the pincers sift through the dirt, forcing plants into the mouth. On the side of the rocky shell is a large red R.

"Huh!?"

James appears atop the giant Crustle and announces, "Make it double!" He pauses. "To unite all people within our nation!" Pause. "To extend our reach to the stars above!" Pause. "James!" Pause. "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

Meowth appears and smacks James atop the head. "Meowth, that's not right! You can't just say half the motto! No one will understand what you mean!"

James argues, "I don't see anyone else to fill in for Jessie while she's on sick leave!"

Meowth shouts back, "I'm standing right here!"

James laughs. "Yeah right! You would screw it up it a heartbeat!"

Before there arguing goes any further, Brock shouts, "Guys, I appreciate you trying to speed things up, but this machine is just going to ruin the field and kill all the plants! You have to turn that thing off!"

James and Meowth look to each other, then crack up in laughter. James laughs, "Ha! You think we're trying to help you!"

Meowth points out, "That must mean he didn't understand the motto. That's what you get for only doing it halfway!"

Brock demands, "What are you saying!?"

Meowth laughs. "What we're saying is that we're here to pick all the miracle herb we can, then sell it for a fortune!"

Brock objects, "But what happened to becoming a better Team Rocket?"

James chuckles. "That's exactly what we're doing! We're going to be a better Team Rocket by actually succeeding and making lots of money in the process! Thanks for helping us with that breakthrough, Dr. Twerp!"

Meowth adds, "Forget the doctor thing, you should become a life coach!"

James points out, "Or a therapist, that way he can still be called doctor!" They continue to laugh together.

Brock groans. "I suppose I should have chosen my words more carefully." He suddenly remembers the problem at hand. He shouts to Blissey, "We have to stop them before they destroy the field and all the herbs! Blissey, use Mega Punch!"

"Blissey!" Blissey leaps at the giant machine and punches with all its might. However, even given Blissey's tremendous strength, the machine rolls on."

Brock shakes his head in frustration. "Shoot! That machine is too heavily armored to break, and too bottom-heavy to topple! We'll have to come up with a different plan."

James declares, "You'll never stop our Crustle Collection Tank. It will keep on picking until all the herbs are ours! It's invincible!"

"I can't believe I trusted them to bring to a place like this. What was I thinking?" He clenches his fists in frustration. "Blissey, try using Strength to push them over!"

Blissey grabs the bottom and tries to topple the machine, but just as Brock predicted earlier, it's no use.

Meowth taunts, "Hey, maybe you should stop trying to attack us. You did swear to 'do no harm' and all that junk."

It angers Brock to hear Meowth throw those words around so nonchalantly. Suddenly inspiration hits him. "Blissey, he's right!"

This confuses Blissey. "Bliss?"

Brock nods. "We need to approach this problem like a doctor. It's time for some surgery!"

"Blissey!"

Brock explains, "When a Crustle needs to be removed from its shell for a medical procedure, sometimes the only option is to crack the entire shell. The heavy rocky shell is at its thinnest, while also bearing the most weight, on its very back center. A strike from a chisel there will shatter the entire thing! Blissey, use Mega Punch!"

"Blissey bliss!" Blissey gets behind the harvester and gives it another powerful punch, right where Brock indicated.

Nothing happens, which leads to James and Meowth laughing even more. James teases, "Maybe you're not as a great of a doctor as I thought!"

But Brock simply grins. A second later, and the entire machine shatters into hundreds of pieces. The already picked herbs come tumbling out of the storage inside of the shell. James and Meowth fall off the top and land on the floor with a thud.

They both look up slowly and nervously to Brock, who stands before them now. Meowth gulps nervously. "Yeah, remember that 'do no harm' thing from before? I'd like to remind you of it."

Brock grins. "Sometimes a doctor must inflict some pain to cure a disease. Don't worry though, this will only hurt a little. Blissey, use Egg Bomb!"

The explosion of Blissey's attack launches James and Meowth into the air. As they fly, James complains, "Don't I at least get a lollipop!?"

Meowth points out, "You don't need one, seeing as you're already one big sucker."

Then they shout together, "Team Rocket's blasting off again!" as they disappear.

Brock looks around and sighs as he sees the damage Team Rocket inflicted. "Well… it's not as bad as it could have been. Most of the plants are still intact. I suppose we better gather what Team Rocket picked and not let it go to waste."

Blissey agrees, "Blissey."

Several hours later, at sunset, James and Meowth, looking absolutely exhausted and beat up, trudge their way back into their camp. James shouts, "Jessie!"

They hear a cough. A weak voice calls out, "James… Meowth… come closer…"

Hearing the urgency in her voice, they rush over to her sleeping bag. She's bundled up in it entirely, making it hard to see her. James asks, "Jessie, what's wrong?"

She coughs again and struggles to say, "I'm afraid… that this is the end…"

Sounding worried, Meowth asks, "The end? No, that's not possible. It was just a cold!"

"No… much worse…" She coughs some more. "After you left-" she coughs, "everything went wrong… I don't know how much longer I can hold on…"

James starts to panic. "Don't say that. We'll get you a doctor! You'll be better!"

Jessie shakes her head. "No time…"

James and Meowth say, "Jessie…"

"Just promise me one thing…" Another cough.

James nods. "Anything Jessie. Anything."

"You swear…?"

Meowth nods. "We swear. What do you want?"

Jessie suddenly leaps out of her sleeping bag, looking completely healthy. "I'm holding you to that, you know. Anything I want, you'll do it."

James and Meowth are shocked and outrage. "Whaaaaaaaaa!?"

James asks, "How'd you get over your cold?"

Jessie chuckles. "That twerp from earlier came by and gave me some medicine like he promised. The moment I drank it, I felt completely better."

Meowth shakes his head in disbelief. "Even after that betrayal, he still went through on his promise to cure Jessie. That twerp is something else."

Jessie grins. "Now, about that promise from earlier…"

James and Meowth groan.

Brock sits in a medical lab, looking at one of the miracle herb leaves through a microscope. He looks up when he hears someone stepping in. It's Alistair.

Alistair peels off his rubber gloves and gloats, "I just healed that Pokémon with AOD. What did you do today, Clock?"

Brock ignores the misname and the tone of Alistair's voice. "I helped a Pokémon that caught a cold."

In a demeaning voice, Alistair mocks, "Aah, isn't that precious. The pretend doctor helped a Pokémon with some sniffles. Did you give it a hankey? What about its blankey?"

Brock ignores him.

Alistair gloats, "As for me, that medical procedure was pretty touch and go there for a bit, but I pulled through, as expected of a doctor of my caliber. It's probably for the better that you busied yourself with that low-brow work."

Brock continues to ignore him.

Then Nurse Joy walks in. She's a carrying a piece of paper. She says, "This is amazing, you've been awarded a Certificate of High Medical Honors!"

Alistair stands straight and proclaims pompously, "While I am amazing, me earning another certificate is not, as it is to be expected for a doctor of my caliber." He takes the certificate. "Oh, it would appear they misspelt my name. Funny, it almost looks like they were trying to write…" then it sinks in. "Brock!? What!?"

Brock stands up, allows himself a moment of indulgence as he smiles smugly at Alistair, and takes the certificate from him.

Alistair demands, "How is this possible? I treated a rare and acute disease. He treated the sniffles!"

Brock explains, "Severity isn't everything, Alistair. While it's true that AOD is a rare and acute disease, its treatment is well-documented. While you should certainly be commended for the successful treatment, it was nothing groundbreaking. Meanwhile, I decided to care for a Pokémon that no one else would pay attention to, and in the process, I discovered a cure to a disease that was thought to be completely uncurable, regardless of its severity. It's not the severity that matters, it's the ingenuity. That's why the PMC hands out these certificates. Think about that next time you scoff at a patient with the 'sniffles.'"

Alistair is flustered, unable to come up with any words. Finally, he just storms out angrily. A moment later he puts his head back in through the door to assert, "You haven't seen the last of me, Lock! Next time we meet I'll prove to you that it was a mistake to think you're better than me!" Having gotten the last word in, he leaves for good.

Brock sighs. "I never claimed to be better than him."

Nurse Joy states slyly, "Between you and me, you are."

Brock grins. "I will nether agree nor disagree with that statement." He looks down to the certificate for the first time. He says to Blissey, "Wow, this is already our third certificate. If earn just one more, then we're officially doctors. Our dream is within reach…"

James was right. Brock may not be a doctor in name yet, but that doesn't mean he isn't a great doctor. And he's also a great guy. Perhaps it takes being a great guy to be a great doctor. If that's the case, what does that mean for Alistair? I'll leave that one for you to figure out.

Ash is sitting at a table in a library with a book in front of him. He reads aloud, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." He shuts the book closed in frustration and shakes his head. "Nah, it was just the worst of times."

Brenda, who's sitting next to him, deep into what appears to be a science-fiction novel, simply shakes her head in disapproval.

To Be Continued…