Fated
Summary: Jessie finds herself in exile, forced into captivity with a mysterious stranger. With nowhere to go and seemingly no hope of escape, they share the stories behind their miserable fates. Hers is filled with questions. His is filled with answers.
Chapter 24: The Kindness of Strangers...and People Who Want to Mug You
You dance like a queen
In spite of all the things you never wanted
When you're left out in the cold
You dance like a queen
Your silhouette is still my reflection
You speak to me in riddles
You speak to me in riddles
Is something on your mind?
Hands are cold as ice she says
Tell me about your secreat life
And all the things you've seen
Tell me what you think of me
...Thriving Ivory - Secret Life
Jessie had her knife and chipped away at the wooden wall, her mind running through the things that she had just learned. Aside from her speculations about Butch and Cassidy, there had been a lot of new information about her past. Someone had wanted her and her mother dead when she was little. She frowned and fidgeted. Was that why she grew up without a mother? Was Miyamoto Lillis dead? Jessie felt her stomach do flip-flops at the thought. It would certainly explain Jack's moments of despair, but Jessie didn't like the idea. She remembered the moments where she spent sleepless nights wondering what happened to her mother and how angry she had been. She felt a little guilty about that now.
"Blizzard weather, yeesh," Jack shivered as he entered the cabin pulling a rope tied around a bundle of logs.
"That's a lot of wood," Jessie commented.
"Blizzard's coming," Jack sighed, pulling off a toque to reveal the messy red hair beneath, "I've got enough wood to hold us for a few days. Chances are we won't be able to leave the cabin for a while."
"We?" Jessie asked, raising an eyebrow and looking down at the explosive cuffs on her wrists. Jack chuckled.
"Sorry," he apologized, shrugging out of his coat. Jessie watched as he stacked the wood on the pile and remembered what he had said before.
"I'd give almost anything to see her again…although…if that did happen, I wouldn't want to see her here. I don't want her anywhere near this place. It's my hell and I hope that she never has to call it hers too. I just hope that wherever she is, she's happy and safe."
Jessie squirmed. She was in the Andes, exactly where her father didn't want her to be. How would he react to that? Probably not positively.
"Plus side: lot's of story opportunities," Jack was saying, shooting her a grin, "Your go."
"My go," she repeated, setting her knife down and thinking of the next part of her story, the part where she got to meet some very good people.
James looked green as he navigated the vehicle down the gravel path leading away from Silver Shoal, our home. He had opted for gravel so he could stay off the main roads. I could see the strategy behind it. The Rockets would take the fastest route into town, the highway. That strategy was flawed, though. The Rockets also had to stay inconspicuous, like on back roads. That meant that we were basically screwed no matter where we went, which is why I stayed silent.
James obviously knew that his plan was not foolproof. That was apparent in the way he clenched the steering wheel and looked like he was about to puke.
My silence was for the eight-year-old boy who had curled himself next to Growlie in the backseat. He reminded me of when I first met him. He had made himself seem as small as possible and those intelligent green-eyes nervously took in the landscape outside. If there was one thing I had learned about Teddy, it was that he needed stability. He didn't do so well with uncertainty.
"So where are we going?" Meowth asked, hopping up onto the center console. I bit my lip and looked at James, who mirrored my clueless expression back at me.
"Uhh..."
Meowth let out an exasperated sigh, "How did Meowth guess dat youse two wouldn't have a plan? Didn't youse two dopes listen to me back when I was sayin' you needed to tink of your futures?"
"Meowth, I'm warning you-"
"Now if Meowth remembers correctly," the cat continued, hardly phased by my death threats, "Tojo Village is a couple hours away, which it kinda da crossroads between Johto and Kanto. I say we make our way dere and den we can figure out where we can crash for a few months," he finished.
"He does make a point," James sighed, looking over at me. I groaned. I hated it when Meowth was right.
"So what can we do to kill da time 'til we get dere?" Meowth wondered aloud. I could tell from his tone that he already had something in mind.
"Oh, this should be good," I muttered.
"Well, seein' as how dere's only a couple more months before da lil' ones are born, we should probably figure out what we're gonna call dose kids," he announced. My eyebrows shot up to my forehead. James was wearing a similar look.
"You think you're going to name our kids?" we said at the same time.
"I've come to realize dat youse two don't do so well under pressure. What's gonna happen when da kids come out and youse two are starin' at them and can't come up with names? We can't just call 'em 'goil baby' and 'boy baby'. We need to plan dis out so da poor kids aren't saddled with names like Waldo," Meowth shuddered. Where did he get off thinking that he could just name our kids? And insulting our naming abilities?
"Well, they do need names," James sighed. I scowled. He was entirely too easily convinced. Over the past few months, he had been throwing out random names, but whenever he approached the subject, I changed it. I needed to see something before I named it. What if all the names we picked didn't work or what if we saddled the babies with a dumb name that didn't fit at all?
"And it would get our minds on sometin' else," Meowth chimed in, throwing a look over his shoulder at Teddy. Suddenly, I knew why he wanted to discuss names. He wanted to get Teddy's mind off everything. How could I say no to that?
"Fine," I relented.
"Alright, so any suggestions for James and Jessie Junior?" Meowth asked, looking around the car.
"Not those ones," I muttered.
"So 'Jamie' is out?" Meowth asked.
"Middle names, sure, but not as first names," I declared.
"Well, there are plenty of other good names," James allowed, "I was thinking of 'Jillian' for a girl. What do you think?"
"I'm not crazy about it."
"Hey, you could call da boy baby 'Jack'!" Meowth declared.
"It is a pretty solid name," Jack chuckled. Jessie rolled her eyes
"It was very NOT solid," she told him, silently thinking about how weird it would have been if she had named her son 'Jack'.
"Jillian and Jack," James mused, "Jack and Jillian...Jack and Jill!"
My mouth dropped open, "Oh Mew help you if you even consider naming our children after two kids who can't climb a hill."
"But Jess, it'd be so cute-"
"No," I said flatly.
"But-"
"NO!"
"I'm sure your children will one day thank you for not naming them that," Jack commented.
"Okay, how 'bout 'Jordan' and 'Josie'?" Meowth asked in a desperate attempt to ease the tension.
"I like those!" James chirped, shooting me a grin. I frowned.
"Jessie, James, Josie, Jordan..." I listed, "Too many 'J's."
"What do you mean?" James asked.
"It's like a really bad tongue-twister," Meowth said, cringing.
"No 'J' names," I ruled. James pouted over that one for a bit.
"You could go with sometin' like 'Thomas'," Meowth suggested, "It can be cute, like 'Tommy' or serious or-"
"No," James said in an uncharacteristically firm voice. Meowth and I exchanged a look.
"Why?" we asked.
"It's a family name that I would rather NOT give my son," he replied, glancing in the rearview mirror at Teddy, who looked a little interested in the conversation.
"How 'bout "Timothy"?" Meowth asked, "It's like 'Thomas' where it can be cute, like 'Timmy' or serious like 'Tim'."
"Maybe," I mulled it over.
"Youse could call da goil 'Tiffany'-"
"Hey, that sounds good!" James chirped.
"No," I vetoed, "Remember Tiffany Hews? Cassidy's bitchy friend at PokemonTech?" I asked. James scowled.
"Absolutely not," he agreed, "And maybe 'Timmy' isn't so great either. Kids would call him 'Tiny Tim' and if he's like me, he'll be small until he's fourteen."
"There's twins in my grade called Andy and Randy," Teddy suddenly piped up.
"That's not bad," James allowed, "We could go 'Andrea and Randal' or 'Andrew and Randene' or-"
"You know, I'm not crazy about the rhyming thing," I decided.
"It's cute," James protested.
"Lots of kids make fun of them," Teddy revealed, proving my point.
"What name do you like, Ted?" I asked, intent on keeping him involved.
"Uh...
This went on for the next couple hours, throwing out random names and teasing each other. We didn't get anywhere. There were a couple that could be recycled, like 'Max' or 'Hailey', but most of them were gone for good...like James's suggestion of 'Edward and Bella' or 'Jacob and Bella'. I refused to name my son after Sparkles the Vegetarian Vampire or the jealous CGI werewolf. And I WOULD NOT do my daughter the disservice of naming her after a screamy lovesick girl.
James pulled up to a gas station in Tojo Village to fill up the vehicle and stock up on snacks and drinks. I wandered to the magazine/book rack thing. I grabbed a couple magazines, knowing that it could be a long trip. I also grabbed maps of Kanto and Johto. Then I examined the book section, looking for something that would help pass the time on the road. I was being picky, already dismissing the last four books I had examined. I picked up a book with a half-naked built guy and a busty auburn-haired woman. Hmmm…
"Mom?"
I jumped and hastily shoved the book back on the shelf as I turned to look at Teddy.
"Uh, yeah, Ted?"
"Look what I found!" he showed me 'The Big Book of Baby Names', "It can help us name the babies!"
He looked so proud of himself and I had to smile, even as I wondered why a gas station had a baby-naming book, but then it also had a toy section and gift section, so it probably wasn't a stretch. I sighed and took the book, "We'll get this and you can pick out something you want to read."
I left him to it and went to find James, who, surprise surprise, was in the candy section.
"I'm not sweet enough for you?" I teased. He looked up and his mind seemed to be whirring for a response. I raised an eyebrow.
"Uh, I was looking for uh..."
He was saved a response as I grabbed a little baggie and helped myself to the self-serve candy containers. Sour raspberries, blue whales, sour soothers...
"You're such an airhead, Roberts!" an all-too familiar voice snipped as the door chimed open. My eyes widened. The last time I heard that voice, I had been falling off a cliff. I exchanged a look with James as the Devil Herself pulled a scared-looking man to the magazine rack, where Teddy was. My stomach lurched horribly as I saw Teddy jump as they approached.
"How you even manage to walk with your head screwed on backwards, I'll never know!" Domino snapped at the man, presumably an agent, "Here is a map. I suggest you take it and start driving to Silver Shoal!" she barked, smacking the agent with a map, "And so help me if I see you driving around aimlessly ever again, you incompetent dolt!"
The agent took the map in shaking hands, "M-Miss Domino, I-I-"
"Oh, shut up, Roberts!" Domino snapped, and to my relief, Teddy scampered over to me and James, "Quite wasting my time! I have to be in Violet City in a couple hours! Move!"
I ushered Teddy and James to the back of the store, where Meowth had cowered under a beef jerky rack. The agent shakily paid for his map and Domino stormed out. I looked at the two maps I had picked up. I set the Johto map down on a shelf.
"Kanto it is, then," I said, waiting for the agent to pay and leave.
"Agreed," James squeaked. We paid for all of our stuff and scampered back to the car. I'm sure we looked ridiculous, huddled together, but I didn't really care. I felt like Domino could be around any corner. I jumped in the back and James turned around to look at me, Teddy, Meowth, and Growlie.
"So where-"
"Kanto Mountain Road," I said in a clipped voice, "Drive now. We're getting out of this town."
James eased the car onto the appropriate exit. I could see that he was chewing on his lower lip in the mirror. I shared his unease. It was nearly dark and the Kanto Mountain Road was a long, winding highway that went alongside the Silver Mountains. It wasn't the best road to take on a sunny summer day, let alone a cold winter night. Aside from a couple rest-stops, there was no civilization for at least five hours, when we would hit Rina Town, which was about an hour from Viridian City. We had no choice. It would have been easier to find a hotel and wait until morning, but there was too much chance that we would run into Team Rocket. We couldn't take that chance.
After about two hours, James pulled off the mountain road and turned into a rest-stop for the night. Rest-stop was a generous word. It had an outhouse, a vending machine, and some monument to a legendary pokemon. It did the trick, though. I really didn't want us driving at night on the winding roads. It just wasn't smart. James was a little paranoid about the whole thing, considering that we weren't that far from the road and potential incoming rockets. The goal was to only stay as long as necessary.
We set everything up just as we had done during that first road trip to Silver Shoal. The seats were folded down and we set up sleeping bags. James and I unzipped one and then used the other one as a blanket. Now it was a little hard to fit both of us in the sleeping bag. Teddy was in his, laying close to Growlie. For a while, James and I lay in silence, staring at each other in hopes that sleep would somehow come. It didn't. both of us were still worked up about the day we had, leaving home, catching sight of Domino of all people...
It wasn't too long before Teddy sat up, his outline faint in the dark, and pulled his blanket and pillow near James's feet. I frowned.
"Ted, you're going to get kicked down there," I said, not bothering to whisper. Everyone was awake.
"S-sorry, I-"
"You can't sleep either," James finished for him, "Come here," he offered, moving so that there was a little space in between us. Shyly and cautiously Teddy crawled in between us.
"It's okay?" he asked in a whisper.
"Sure thing," I said, brushing a fringe of teal hair from his eyes. Much to his delight, his hair was now back to its original length. Mine was still short, but I was slowly beginning to become accustomed to it.
"Is that mean lady going to come get us?" Teddy asked.
"No," I said firmly. After our escape from the convenience store, we had to explain to Teddy who Domino was. After that, even he was a little scared of her.
"But if she finds us-"
"She won't, Teddy," James said patiently, "Tomorrow morning, we'll be on our way to Vermillion City and everything will be fine. I promise."
"Famous last words," Jack commented. Jessie laughed.
"Yeah, no kidding. We never did make it to Vermillion City. Instead, we ran into the Menace of Johto."
The next morning, we awoke to a flat tire.
"Just fucking great," I muttered, crossing my arms over my large stomach and watching as James and Teddy tore apart the vehicle looking for the jack and the spare, "How does that happen?" I moaned.
"Wid a knife," Meowth answered, tracing his paw along the great gash in the rubber.
"A knife?" I asked, frowning, "But that would mean that somebody-"
"Cut it? Yes, that would be me," a voice called. All of us looked over to see a tall young man, probably a little older than me, with long red hair that hung in front of a pair of metal-grey eyes.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I growled, "Why the HELL would you cut our tire?"
"Because he's a bandit," James said, coming up beside me and glaring at the newcomer, "The Menace of Johto."
The Menace of Johto smirked and tossed a poke ball up and down as he approached us. He laughed, "It's always nice to meet a fan."
"I'm no fan of yours, you arrogant ruffian!" James growled, clenching his fists. The Menace's eyes lit up in recognition.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Homeless Boy," The Menace jeered.
"What?" I asked looking between James and the stranger.
"After I left the bike gang in Sunny Town, I ended up running into this piece of filth in Mt. Moon. He took my bike," James explained.
"It was a crappy bike," The Menace taunted, "Training wheels. Hopefully I get more than that from you this time, Crybaby."
I could tell James was getting pretty hot-under-the-collar and I didn't particularly like this jerk calling my boyfriend names or hinting that he was going to rob us blind.
"You and what army, Punk?" I shot at him, stepping around James to face The Menace. He actually had the gull to laugh.
"I hardly need an army to take down this loser, a little kid, and a pregnant lady," he stated. I picked a poke ball from my belt.
"You should have brought an army," I told him evenly, "You'd need one to take down THIS pregnant lady."
"Jess-"
"Ease up, dere, Jim," Meowth whispered, "You don't wanna get on her bad side again."
"Bring it on," The Menace smirked, throwing out his poke ball. A sneasel popped out. I threw mine and Seviper sprang forwards.
"One-on-one. I win, you fix our tire," I spat.
"Agreed," he nodded, though the arrogant smirk clearly said he thought he'd be winning, "Sneasel, quick attack!"
This little navy sneasel was fast, but there was a way around that and I knew it, "Seviper, dig!" I ordered. Seviper disappeared underground.
"Hiding?" The Menace taunted.
"Hunting," I corrected, flashing him a smirk of my own. As if reading my mind, Seviper burst out of the ground, pinning Sneasel the way he had pinned rattata on the beach in Silver Shoal.
"No!" Sneasel's trainer yelled in shock.
"Poison Fang!" I ordered and with pleasure, I watched as Seviper injected Sneasel with deadly venom. Sneasal swayed.
"Seviper, finish it!" I called, "Poison Tail!"
Seviper's strong tail sent the smaller pokemon flying into the monument of Suicune. With a scowl, The Menace recalled his pokemon and grabbed for another ball.
"But it was supposed to be one-on-one!" James protested as a crobat chirped loudly. I smirked.
"Seviper, Haze!" I shouted.
"Crobat, Whirlwind!"
"Seviper, Poison Tail!" I called before Crobat could finish blowing the smog away. It fell to the ground, favouring an injured wing, "Bite!" I cried. Seviper chomped down on the crobat with his powerful jaws and threw the bat into the monument. The Menace was dumbfounded as he stared at the fallen pokemon.
"How-"
"I could do this all day, Chump," I told him, "Keep going," I taunted. The Menace recalled his pokemon, but didn't grab another poke ball.
"I've clearly underestimated you," he said softly.
"Clearly," I said back, putting a hand on my stomach, where I felt one of the twins pressing against me, almost as if it were saying "Way to go, Mommy!".
"I'm not a man who repeats my mistakes over and over," The Menace said, "Sneasel and Crobat were two of my best pokemon, but you bested them with brute strength and underhanded skill. I applaud you. I shall honour our bargain and do one better. I know a retired mechanic who could patch up that tire in no time."
"That's the least you could do for us," I said.
"I don't trust him," James growled, his arms crossed over his chest.
"James, he's the best hope we have to getting back on the road-"
"He tried to mug us!" James said. The Menace smirked and stepped forwards.
"I respect few people and it would seem that your wife is now one of those people, James, is it? When I give my word to one I respect, I honour that word. Your tire will be fixed," he said.
"I don't trust you," James spat.
"What's your name?" I asked, "Your real name?"
The Menace took a bow and said, "Silver."
"Jessie."
"Do you trust me, Jessie?" he asked, again with one of those smirks. For some inexplicable reason, I did.
"I trust that abide by your code," I said, "Take us to this mechanic."
"Silver?" Jack questioned with a smirk reminiscent of the Menace of Johto, "You've been holding out on me, Jessilina."
"Please," Jessie rolled her eyes, "I have no idea if he was actually your nephew. He wasn't exactly a fountain of information."
Silver called on a feraligatr to carry us and the flat tire to his mechanic, who lived in a valley not far from there. As his feraligatr smashed through the barren trees and trudged through the snow, I could make out a small cabin in the distance. That was where we were going, I assumed as the strong pokemon navigated treacherous cliffs that I would have never dared to climb myself. Then we were in front of the small shack. Sliver eased Feraligatr to a stop and gestured for us to get off. I was amused to see that the glare on James's face hadn't dissipated during the ride. Apparently he wasn't a big fan of this stranger who nearly mugged us. Go figure.
"Yeah, it's a real mystery why James wasn't taken to him," Jack rolled his eyes. Jessie smirked. So that was where she got her sarcastic streak from.
James helped me and Teddy down and then we followed the red-haired man towards the shack. Growlie was at my side while Meowth caught a ride on James's shoulders. I could tell that Meowth and Growlie weren't too fond of the newcomer either, especially as he paused to offer me a hand to go down a small slope. I got the feeling that he wouldn't do this for many people.
"I'm good," I told him, carefully manoeuvring my way down. Silver didn't press the matter. He just did one of those half-smirks that he was so good at. He led us a little further, snow crunching under our feet. We rounded a bend and saw a small shack with smoke billowing from the chimney. A tall, thin greying man was shovelling a path to the door, grumbling as we approached.
"Talk about a fixer upper," Meowth muttered.
"Seto," Silver greeted. The man, Seto, looked up from his shovelling and eyed us warily.
"Silver-"
"This is Jessie and James Logan. They had car trouble a couple miles back," Silver explained, his voice ringing with quiet authority. Feraligatr tossed the flat tire to the old man's feet. Seto hardly batted an eye.
"We don't do visitors," he stated, eyeing us with cold, calculating eyes. From beside me, I heard James gulp and felt his hand in mine, a silent plea to get the hell out of there before Seto started swinging the shovel.
"Consider them my guests," Silver vouched for us. Seto glared some more.
"Boy, you have a lot of nerve showing up on my doorstep at all, but then you go and bring these...these tourists onto my property and-"
In a flash, Silver was in his face, glaring at the older man, "Remember, Old Man, I happen to know some powerful people that would just love to learn of your location."
For a moment, Seto and Silver glared at each other. Then Seto went back to his shovelling, muttering under his breath about a no-account, blackmailing, entitled piece of scum. Apparently he wasn't a huge fan of Silver either, who simply shrugged it off.
"Follow me," he told us. James let out a whimper as I dragged him forward. He and Growlie made sure to be between me and Seto, though they clearly didn't like it. Silver led us to the front step, where I suddenly paused, causing Teddy to bump into me.
"Jess?" James asked, worry and fear lacing his voice. My eyes were on four perfectly round globs of snow sitting on the railing of the stoop. It was strange. Very strange, yet also...
"Papa! Can you-"
The young girl stopped in her tracks when she saw us. She looked to be in her late teens with shoulder length black hair and aqua eyes framed in a thin, pale face.
"Akira," Silver greeted with a nod. Akira looked from her father, to Silver, to us.
"Father, what is going on?" she asked cautiously, her eyes shifting to Seto.
"These are guests of Silver's," Seto growled, "Ask him."
Akira's light eyes landed on Silver, "Silver?"
"This is Jessie and James Logan. They had car trouble and are in need of assistance. Naturally, I thought of your family's hospitality," Silver explained, leaning against the rail like he was the proud owner of this shack. Akira looked troubled.
"Silver, you know that we can't entertain-"
"Akira! Akira!" a voice called from behind the shack. Everyone seemed to stiffen, even me. That almost sounded like...
"Mother, don't-" but Akira's plea was too late. A frail looking woman in her late forties rounded the corner, carrying a heavily-laden basket of perfectly round snow balls. Her greyish hair hung about her shoulders, frizzy and unkempt and her faint, aqua eyes were glassy as they tried to focus on her daughter. I felt my blood freeze in my veins.
"Akira, there you are! Child, you must finish the gathering...supper..."
There was a clatter. We turned back to see that Seto had discarded his shovel and rushed to take the woman's load, "Love, let me," he said. He had done a complete one-eighty, his face now softer, more compassionate as he took the basket of snowballs from what I'm assuming was his wife. Then he glanced at us, embarrassment colouring his cheeks as he hurried to deposit the basket by the steps. As he moved away, the woman saw us. Her aqua eyes got big and her gaunt face was tight in panic.
"Them! It's them! They come to take me! More coming! Take us! EVIL!"
James, Meowth, and Teddy jumped in alarm as the woman began to panic. Seto dropped the basket of snowballs and rushed to her, trying to help his daughter calm the woman. Silver didn't bat an eyelash.
"Excuse her. She does this from time to time," he said. I just stared in shock and horror.
"Snow, snow, snow!" I sang, my six-year-old laughter ringing as I danced in the falling flakes. Winter was my favourite time of year.
"Jessie! Dinner!" a soft, warm voice called. I giggled and bounded into the little house on the outskirts of town and rushed to my chair. I looked at the feast spread out in front of me. Snow rolls with soy sauce and snow ice cream with snow strawberries. My favourite.
"What the hell?" Jack asked, an eyebrow raised. Jessie opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it. She had already revealed too much.
"When I was young...in my first foster home, my foster mother was poor. We had to eat snow and pretend...snowgasfort..."
"Jesus," he sighed. Jessie bit her lip. She wondered what he'd think of snowgasfort when she finally mustered the courage to tell him who she was.
I picked up a snow roll and brought it to my lips, hoping that this time the cool food would satisfy the ache inside me. The crash of dishes made me drop it before I could take a bite. I looked at my foster mother in alarm.
"Mama Miki?"
"They're coming! They see me! They see us! Hide! Hide!" she gasped, diving under the table. I followed her as always, waiting for the danger to pass. I reached up for my snow roll and offered it to my hyperventilating foster mother.
"Here, Mama. Eat this and they'll go away when you're done," I said. That was what she always told me when I complained of monsters and nightmares in the night. With a shaky hand, she took it and slowly began to eat.
"They come! They come! They see me! They see us! Hide! Hide!" the woman cried, dropping to her knees into the cold, wet snow, shaking and crying and weezing. I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed one of those perfect round snowballs from the rail and lurched forwards, dropping to my knees in front of the woman. Growlie, James, and Meowth cried out in alarm, but I offered the snowball to her, as I had done years before.
"Here. Eat this," I said, "They'll go away when you're done," I recited the lines from long ago, never really forgetting them. I had no idea if they would work or not. It had been so long. Then, to everyone's astonishment, she took the snowball from my outstretched hand, her eyes unfocused as she took a bite.
"Miki?" Seto asked in concern, his voice soft and soothing as he watched her eat snow. She didn't respond. She finished the snow roll and then she looked at me, her eyes wide and suddenly very focused on me.
"You, little one. You've come back. Jessie," she whispered, reaching up to cup my cheek. I let her.
"Mama Miki," I whispered, smiling at the woman I had not seen since the December after my sixth birthday. She smiled a watery smile back at me.
"Jessie. Jessie. My-" and then her face contorted as if in pain, "My...My...ah..."
"Mother?" Akira asked, "Here, let us help you inside."
She and Seto pulled Miki to her feet and helped her into the shack. Miki turned her head to look back at me as her husband and daughter took her inside.
"What da heck was dat?" Meowth asked, he and James sharing identical looks of disbelief. Silver smirked at me.
"Well, aren't you full of surprises," he said, turning and following the family inside.
"Jessie, who-"
"Come on," I interrupted James, following Silver inside. The shack was small, lit by candles and the fireplace at the stove. Miki was sitting on a sofa with her daughter beside her. Silver had taken a lounge chair and was now sitting like a prince observing his subjects. Seto was standing and looked at me as we entered his home.
"I would like to know who you are and how you know my wife," he demanded.
"Miki was my foster mother. She took care of me when I was six," I explained, refusing to meet James's sympathetic glance, "Child Services took me away because..." how did I say malnourished without offending?
"Because she fed you snowballs," Seto finished for me, frowning, "So you're the famous Jessie."
"I don't know about famous," I said back.
"She speaks of you often," Akira spoke up, and Seto nodded, though he looked in pain.
"My...ah...my...ah...my..."
"Mother, she's your foster child, Jessie," Akira said gently, "The one you talk about."
Miki's eyes focused on me and she stared at me with such sadness.
"Child...so sorry..." she gasped.
"Miki-" I didn't know what to say.
"Promised...protect Jessie...take care..." Miki was crying, tears trickling down her cheeks. Seto turned and reached for her.
"Love, I'll help you to bed. Time to rest," he said. He scooped Miki into his arms like she weighed nothing.
"Dinner! Must have dinner!" Miki protested.
"I'll bring you some, Love," Seto said calmly, carrying her to another room.
"Dat was weird," Meowth commented. I didn't even look at him, my eyes glued to the spot where my former foster mother sat.
"Jessie," James whispered softly, gently pulling me into him and towards the sofa. That's when I realized that I had been crying too. I brushed away the tears, and pet Growlie behind the ears as he settled by my legs. Miki. My foster mother, the woman who did her best to care for me when she had nothing. I swallowed a lump in my throat as I thought of what she had become. When I was young, she was sick, but not nearly as bad as now. Now, she walked around in a daze where before she could actually focus and her speech had gotten poorer and poorer. Now one had to listen carefully and try to derive meaning from the broken sentances and strange words. Miki, the woman who cared for me, was a prisoner, trapped by her own illness.
"Sorry. I shouldn't have-" I started, but Akira looked at me with amazement.
"I've never seen her like that before," the girl revealed, her aqua eyes bright and focused, the opposite of her mother's, "She was so...alert...I've never seen that before."
"I don't understand what's going on," James admitted, looking unsurely around the room as Teddy huddled beside him. I sighed.
"As I said, Miki was my first foster mother," I repeated, "She was a really nice woman who really cared for me, but she couldn't find work so she had a hard time supporting us. She was always so paranoid about people coming..."
"Most of the doctors say it's some kind of induced paranoia or something," Akira said.
"I coulda told ya that," Meowth muttered.
"She has good days and bad days, but ever since we came to live out here, there's been more good," Akira sighed, "She's best in the wintertime when she can make snowfood, but every so often, she thinks that someone is coming after her. That's when she says your name the most," she looked over at me, "I can't believe that you're real. Papa and I always thought that it was something from her head."
"It's been a long time," I commented, "I'm surprised she even remembers me."
"I don't know what it is," Akira said, flicking a strand of ebony hair from her eyes, "but usually she seems so...out of touch. It was like you brought her around."
"Well, I think your father owes me an apology," Silver said, stretching out smirking at the young girl. Akira narrowed her eyes at him. I could see what Seto meant about entitled.
"Silver, I wish you wouldn't try him," she said sternly, "and aside from that, you can just bring strangers into our home."
"These are the first and last strangers I will ever bring into your home, Akira," Silver promised, "However, in this case, I lost a wager and now it is my duty to aid these people as they trek through our mountains."
She raised an eyebrow and then looked at me and James, "A wager? One of you finally beat the Menace of Johto in a battle?" she asked incredulously. Silver sighed and shook his head.
"That would be me," I replied, "My family and I are on our way to Kanto."
"And where are you from?" Akira asked.
"Silver Shoal," James answered, "It was kind of an abrupt departure."
Silver suddenly chuckled, "Ah, so you're running from Team Rocket."
My eyebrows shot to my hairline.
"And what do you know of it?" James asked sullenly. Beside him, Growlie let out a soft growl.
"Everybody knows that Team Rocket are attracted to the rare water pokemon that flock to Silver Shoal this time of year," Silver said back, causing James to colour, "Makes me wonder what you two did to get on their bad side if you can't even stay in the same town."
"Fishing for something to hold over their heads?" Seto asked. I hadn't even noticed when he re-entered the room. He was glaring at Silver, who lounged back further in his chair.
"One can never know too much about the company they keep, Seto," Silver replied. Seto muttered a string of curse-words as he made his way to the kitchen nook in the corner. Akira blushed.
"Forgive Papa," she said, "He doesn't appreciate visitors. He hates that they upset Mother."
"And me," Seto grumbled, shooting a nasty glare at Silver.
"So why does Silver feel like he belongs here?" I asked, "Enough to invite his own guests, I mean."
"I came, I saw, I conquered," Silver recited, his grey eyes dancing with delight as Seto slammed a pot down on the stove. Then those eyes shifted to Akira, who was biting her lower lip.
"Silver came across our family a couple years ago," she explained, "He liked the seclusion so he battled Papa to stay."
"It was a quick match," Silver gloated. I rolled my eyes.
"And has anyone here ever tried deflating that large ego of his?" I asked.
"From the sounds of it, you'd have the best shot at that, Jessie," Akira said. Meowth snickered and hopped onto my lap.
"Dat's funny cuz Jessie's ego is nearly as big as his," he commented. A vein twitched on my forehead the same time as Growlie let out a warning growl.
"Hey, Mutt, you ain't da boss of dis cat-"
"Grow!"
"Oh yeah? Try it!" Meowth was hissing and unsheathed his claws at the same time as Growlie began to snarl.
"If you two even THINK about it, I'm going to make sure both of you need a pokemon ICU!" I threatened. Meowth grudgingly crossed his arms while Growlie lay down on the floor. James and Teddy sighed in relief. Silver was laughing.
"Well, I guess it's true what they say: poorly trained pokemon stay out of their balls. I'm assuming the meowth and growlithe belong to Jim?"
"It's James to you!" James growled.
"I don't belong to no one, youse red-headed thug!" Meowth spat. Growlie was indignant as he glared at Silver. Their ire just fuelled Silver's laughter, at least until Akira got involved.
"Meowth and Growlithe are male mammal pokemon," she observed.
"Yeah. So?" Silver shrugged.
"So as male mammal pokemon, they have certain instincts," she explained, "and one of those instincts is to protect the vulnerable members of their groups. In the wild, both meowth and growlithe are very protective of their mates, especially when the females are about to have a pokemon egg."
"Woa, hold on there a second," I said, "You're saying Meowth and Growlie are acting so weird because they're trying to protect me?"
"It's not uncommon," Akira said, "When Mother was pregnant with me, Papa says that his houndoom refused to leave her side and would attack anyone or anything that got too close."
"At least they aren't doing that," James said. I frowned. What Akira said made sense. There were times when I could see that both Meowth and Growlie were close to that point.
"Wait...Dat's why I feel so weird?" Meowth asked.
"Yeah-" Akira stopped short when her mother re-entered the room. Miki approached me.
"Child...you small...stay...stay?"
"Mother, Jessie and her family are on their way to Kanto-"
"Stay?" Miki beseeched me. I looked at James, who clearly looked as if he wanted to be elsewhere.
"We'll stay until your husband has a chance to fix our tire," I promised. Miki beamed and went bustling towards the door, presumably to retrieve her basket.
"Mother!" Akira called, chasing after the woman.
"About that apology, Seto?" Silver questioned now that Akira was out of the room. Seto scowled and glowered at him before he turned to me.
"I won't be able to do anything with your tire until this evening. You're more than welcome to stay the night. You can have his room," Seto said, jerking a thumb at Silver, who glared.
"Thank you so much for understanding-"
"Don't mention it. I generally take pity on the people unfortunate enough to have a run in with that criminal. Aside from that, my wife likes you," Seto said gruffly, "I'll make some lunch."
"Uh, would you like assistance?" James asked, his voice squeaking horribly. Seto shrugged and James hopped to his feet to help.
"Manly," Silver commented. I looked over at him.
"Shut up, Silver," I said, "They're probably bonding over their mutual dislike for you. Which way to your room?" I asked. He shook his head and chuckled as he pointed me in the right direction.
Lunch was interesting, to say the least. In addition to the normal food, there was also a generous helping of snowfood, supplied by Miki. Seto and Akira explained that this was Miki's tradition and that everyone at the table had to have a portion. I gladly ate mine, even as James and Teddy stared in confusion. Seto and Silver were quiet, sitting at opposite ends of the table. Akira made most of the conversation, asking about my pregnancy and where we were headed. Then she'd try to explain it to Miki, who looked at me like I was a book she didn't undertand.
After lunch, Teddy and I helped Miki and Akira clear up the dishes while Seto enlisted James to help with the tire. Silver and Meowth tagged along, though I think that was more for the purpose of getting on James and Seto's nerves. Miki chattered along, mostly about the old days when I had been in her care, but I think she even asked about the babies. It was a bit hard to decipher her stilted speech, but at the end of the day, I was getting better at it. After the dishes were done, we followed Miki outside where she proceeded to gather more snow for supper.
"This is when she's happiest," Akira shrugged, helping her mother roll snowballs. I leaned down and helped too, regressing back to my childhood where I spent hours gathering snow and mashing them up for Miki's snow-cooking. It kept her calm and I wondered if it was because she remembered the times when we made snowfood together when I was a little girl. I liked to think so Miki fussed over me, scolding me for not having mittens or a scarf. Akira laughed and leant me a pair of mittens to appease her mother.
"Usually I'm the one who gets yelled at," she said. Teddy seemed to enjoy the day too, laughing as he played with Akira's swinub, even when it sneezed a bunch of snow on him. He just laughed and gazed adoringly as Akira swept snow from his face. I think he had a little crush. We were making our way inside just as the guys returned from Seto's little garage. James was positively filthy. Silver gloated and tried to taunt him, but Seto just grinned at my boyfriend.
"You have a real winner here, Jessie," Seto said, no trace of sarcasm in his voice, "With the right training, I bet he'd make a great mechanic."
"Well, let's put that in the job list," I said back.
"The only thing he was good at was getting dirty," Silver commented.
"A dirty man is a working man," Seto declared, "That says a lot about you, Boy. I don't think you've ever done a hard day's work in your life."
Silver rolled his eyes and sat at the table, ready to be served. James grinned sheepishly and pecked me on the lips as he rushed off to clean up. Meowth smirked and hopped up on my lap.
"You know, dis place is alright," he declared.
"You're welcome to come back anytime," Seto offered, "Much better company then him," he said, jerking a finger at Silver, who was trading a mischievous glance with Akira. I cringed as Seto slammed a bowl of rice on the table, making both Silver and Akira jump. No wonder Silver liked this place.
Day two on the road ended with me, James, Teddy, Meowth, and Growlie crammed into Silver's room, which probably doubled as a large storage closet. The next morning, Silver and Seto would take us back to our vehicle and we'd continue on our quest to Vermillion City. For now, though, I was content to lay with James on the tiny single cot under the same roof as the first mother figure I could remember. I wondered for how much longer she would remember me after I left again. Her mind was frail and fragile. At one point, it was strong and I would have given anything to return her to that time when she knew what she was saying and didn't live in fear of the monsters in her head. I couldn't do that for her, though. It was impossible to change the past.
I sighed and snuggled closer to James. I made a promise to myself that I would return to that lonely little shack at every oppertunity. I would not forget her, nor would I let her forget me. She was my link to my childhood...my family.
"Sounds like the strangers were very kind to you," Jack observed, "Even the Menace of Johto."
"They were," Jessie agreed, "I guess it helped that Miki was calmer with us there. With that family, if you win over Miki, you win over Seto and Akira, too...unless your name is Silver, in which case you win over Akira, but Seto hates your guts."
"I'm very interested in Silver, actually," Jack admitted, leaning back against his bed.
"I don't know much about him," Jessie confessed, "He's kind of like one of those Zorro anti-hero guys who breaks the law, but at the same time tries to live by his own rules or something. And he hates Team Rocket. He knows a lot about how they operate, nearly as much as me, but he just can't stand them. He calls them weak. He really doesn't like Giovanni."
"Well, if he is my nephew, I'm sure I can understand why," Jack sighed. Jessie raised a curious eyebrow.
"And why is that?" she asked. Jack smiled.
"I'm getting to that, but first, you need to understand exactly how I won so much favour with my mother."
TBC
AN: So here's the next chapter. Hopefully it comes across better than it did writing it. Slight writer's block. The addition of Seto, Akira, and Miki weren't originally planned for this chapter, however, once I got thinking about them, I knew I had to include them. Silver, on the other hand, was included from the get-go. Hurray for cousinly bonding.
Songs that inspired this chapter:
-Must Get Out by Maroon 5. Adam Levine is my god. Enough said.
-Hero by Mariah Carey. It's a beautiful song and reminds me a lot of Jessie.
-Through the Trees by Low Shoulder. If you recognize this song, it means that you've also seen Jennifer's Body. The song was the only half-decent thing about that movie and it kind of inspired the bond between Miki and Jessie, who would do anything to help her former foster mother.
-Secret Life by Thriving Ivory. This was too perfect for Miki and Jessie.