Chapter 9: Kanto Superstar

After their short time in the Pokémon Center, our friends finally got to Saffron City, one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Kanto. Matt was particularly anxious to arrive, because one of his favourite singers was going to perform in the city.

-I'm gonna meet Hillary Spice! After Misty-Chan, she is the girl that makes me crazier – said the swimmer enthusiastically.

When they got inside the city, the trainers saw buildings that were taller than they could see, giant advertisements of manga, videogames and movies all along the streets, shops and restaurants, and a long river of people that seemed to never stop.

After walking for hours, tired from the trip and overwhelmed by the hectic activity of the city, Ash and his friends decided to enter a cafeteria to rest. In the logo it had the white silhouette of an Arbok. Once inside, the group sat down in a round, wooden table and decided to rest in the cushions that were put on top of the chairs.

The place was almost empty, it was midday. But the people that usually went there were people with a high economic level, the level that allows them to buy a coffee only to take a picture of it to upload the picture to Pokégram.

Brock took the menu and started reading aloud:
-Mocha with caramel coffee with aroma of Caoca Berry from Alola, 15 pokédollars. Sherbet of Oran Berries with meringue ice cream, 16 pokédollars. Kalos-style waffles, 18 pokédollars…

The guys thought that the place was too expensive, so they decided to leave and to search for another place. But before they could go out, a pair of familiar voices caught their attention:

-Hey little brats, long time no see!

The guys looked back, and they saw two familiar faces: Jessie and James, the old members of Team Rocket and sworn enemies of Ash and his friends during their travelling. Brock, Ash and Misty were shocked to see that they had seemingly started living on the right side of the law.

-What are you doing here, Team Rocket? – said a smiling Brock.

-Team Rocket? We don't steal Pokémon anymore. Giovanni broke up Team Rocket. We're too old to keep chasing Pikachu and, let's face it, we'd never be able to win over the bond between Pikachu and his trainer – said Jessie.

-That's why we'd been so quiet in our last trips… - murmured Ash.

-Pika, pika…

His friends looked at him with a wry smile.

-Maybe you know something about the organization called "Team Rocket 2.0", they're following us since we arrived at Kanto . said Ash.

-Well… yeah… maybe you saw our kids – said James, blushing.

Ash, Brock and Misty were shocked.

-You've formed a family!? – said them at the same time.

-It seems Team Rocket got resurrected again by new members that say that they want to get back the Team's old glory. But they're all very naïve, as we were. It's not good to try and steal Pokémon, and to keep them away from their Trainers and friends… - said Jessie.

-It's incredible to hear that from you.. – said Misty smiling.

Jessie and James acted like they didn't hear her.

-Then, why do you allow your kids to repeat the same mistakes that you did? – asked Matt.

- Those brats are worse than you were! – said an angry Jessie. – When they come back home they won't leave their rooms again for forever!

-Well, let's stop talking about problems and let's relax for a while, shall we? – said James. – Sit down guys, this round goes on the house.

Some minutes passed, and Jessie's Arbok came with the order on its head. The mugs had the shape of a Koffing. After drinking the coffee, Matt nervously asked about Hillary Spice concert. Jessie and James showed him in a town map where the theatre was and when the show would start. The swimmer impatiently got away with his friends, and they couldn't even say goodbye.

The theatre was closed as expected, and four policemen, along with their Growlithe, protected it. They arrived two hours early. Misty was about to punch Matt when some paparazzi caught their attention. They were running behind a young girl, who wore a huge raincoat and hid her face behind huge sunglasses and a fancy hat. Her hair was blonde and he carried a Jigglypuff-shaped purse. The paparazzi weren't able to catch her, even though she was wearing high-heeled shoes.

The girl was trying to avoid the media at all costs, and so she ran towards the theatre, were Ash and friends were standing. She pushed the guys aside and entered.

The reporters then started interviewing our guys: "How does it feel to be touched by a celebrity? Are you going to sue Hillary for physical damage? Are you going too wash the clothes you're wearing ever again?"

The girl was listening from inside the theatre, and she pushed the guys in. She couldn't let anyone get mobbed because of her. The young girl, who had already taken off her sunglasses, looked at them apologetically. Matt, who had recognised her in a second, ran towards her and hugged her.

-Hillary-Swan, I'm your biggest fan! How lucky I am to have met you in person!

Then his nose started bleeding and he fainted.

-Is he OK? – asked a worried Hillary.

-Don't worry; it happens to him more frequently than you think… - said Misty while holding Matt's head. – Nice to meet you, I'd never thought I'd meet a celebrity in person – said Misty smiling. Ash appeared behind Misty, and said:

-Hey, I'm also happy to meet you.

-I hope you like loud music Ash… - said Misty angrily.

-Why do you say that? – answered Ash.

The red-haired girl then punched Ash very hard, sending him inside one of the speakers for the show. Then Ash started humming a catchy but unknown tune, and Hillary got an idea for a new song.

-Be yourself… and you'll get beaten… by the stupid cow… - said Hillary repeating Ash's words. – This is pure gold for my next single!

The girl got emotional, and shaked Misty's hand first. When she was going to shake Ash's hand, she stumbled with Brock, who hadn't got up still. Hillary blush and looked away. Since he didn't understand what was going on, Brock asked her if she had a cold, and put his hand into the girl's forehead. She answered by blushing even more and looking away again. No one understood why the singer behaved like that.

Hillary, still blushing, got up and helped Ash get out of the speaker. She finally got to shake Ash's hand, but she did that so hard that Ash got crushed against the ceiling. Bayleef got out of her Pokéball in order to help her trainer with her vines, allowing him to avoid a harsh fall.

The singer apologised repeatedly and gave her some tickets for her concert as a compensation, and ran for her dressing room.

When the time arrived, the guys sat in their allotted spots, and the show started. Every light got off except for the ones in the stage, and a Clefable appeared, wearing a bowtie and a smoking. He also carried a pink microphone with which he announced the entrance of the singer:

-Let's give a warm welcome, to the fantastic, the marvellous, and the unique Hilary Spice!

-Seriously, what's happening with all this human-like talking Pokémon? - said Matt.

-Shut up and listen, remember we're here because of you – said Misty.

The Pokémon quit the stage and Hillary appeared. She was wearing a dark blue dress with flounces, high-heeled white shoes with a platform shut by a bow-shaped clasp. Her hair was undulated, complete with a white diadem decorated with pearls. Hillary took the microphone and welcomed her fans:

-How are you doing tonight Saffron City?

Her fans screamed enthusiastically.

-I'll open my show tonight with a ballad that talks about me and you, of how we can confront adversity together. For all of you, here is Immortals.

Her band started playing the music of the song, which was the #1 in downloads since a long time. She then started singing:

we aren't insecure

if what we feel is pure

we fight Against all

we are rebels, it is in our blood

what we feel is immortal

What we feel is innmortal

While she sang, a Pokémon with a lotus flower on her head appeared behind her on stage and started performing very pretty Sacred-Water attacks, combining to offer the spectators a really pretty visual show. Ash took out his iDex to identify that Pokémon:

"Lottier, is the Lotus Pokémon. It inhabits inhospitable lagoons in ancient forests, where she communicates with water spirits and also purifies it."

Suddenly a sweet melody started to make everyone drowsy, and a rounded shadow appeared and started looking inside the purses and pockets of the spectators. The singer, who didn't get badly affected by Sing, noticed that somebody was robbing her fans. Hillary, puzzled, tried to stop the shadow from moving, but the shadow was very agile. After a few minutes of following the shadow, Hillary caught it, and she saw that the shadow was a dirty and emaciated Jigglypuff. The Pokémon took advantage of the puzzlement of the singer and ran away.

Then the spectators started waking up. The fairy-type Pokémon had disappeared, leaving one of the robbed wallets on Hillary's hands. The owner of the wallet saw her, and after a few seconds everyone started searching their pockets. Everyone had their purses and valuables missing.

The young girl started feeling a rush of emotions that prevented her from moving or explaining, and her eyes started to flood with tears. The only thing she thought about was running away.

-Does Hillary really have defrauded us? – said one of the spectators.

-Did she really rob us!?- said another fan.

The policemen came inside to see what happened and Matt, worried because of Hillary, went out to search for her.

After wandering the streets for hours, Matt saw Hillary in a poorly lit park. She was in a swing, sitting and looking down. Matt put his jacket in her shoulders and sat alongside her. The singer looked at Matt with the eyes still full of tears and said, puzzled:

-Why are you being nice with me? Don't you think I robbed that people?

-I never thought so, I know you. I've seen all your interviews, all your video clips and I follow you since the beginning… I don't think you did that. – said Matt, smiling warmly.

The girl was puzzled, admiring the innocent smile the boy gave her, and she felt confident again. Just after that Ash, Brock and Misty appeared, after searching for them both everywhere in the city. Neither of them noticed that a policeman had been following them. The policeman put the handcuffs on Hillary and said:

-Hillary Spice, You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you before any questioning if you wish.

The Trainers were freezed on the spot, not believing what was happening. Before the policeman got Hillary into the police car, Brock asked him if he has asked the singer for her version. The policeman thought about it for some seconds, and decided to question her on the police station.

When they arrived there, Hillary explained her version of what happened.

-It may seem impossible, but on the last weeks we've registered some thefts that agree in the description of a Jigglypuff. We'll set you free, but we certainly need some help to solve this matter as soon as possible.

-Don't worry Hillary, we'll go with you and we'll solve this together – said Matt.

Hillary answered with a grateful smile.

The trainers, the singer and the policemen who were available started searching for the Jigglypuff everywhere around the city. They divided into two teams and were helped by their Pokémon.

After hours of searching both groups reunited in a very important supermarket in Saffron, where they saw the Pokémon. Jigglypuff was getting out of the store with a trolley full of snacks and milkshakes, all bought with the money stolen in the theatre.

The policeman took the Pokémon to the police station to get the matter solved and, after a long questioning, the Pokémon looked down and confessed, in her own language, that she was the sole culprit. The policeman interpreted her gestures as such and decided to handcuff her, but then she started speaking stuff that no one could understand.

What made her start to rob was that a 5 year old boy threw her like a ball and so separated her from her trainer, and the Pokémon had to survive without money, food or a house to live. Those things made the Jigglypuff a delinquent. Ash and his friends knew her well because he was the Pokémon of one of the fangirls who were at the nursery who was on the way to Bill's house.

Hillary was compassionate about the Pokémon, hugged her and both started crying. The policeman recommended the singer to catch her, because that was the only way for Jigglypuff to not go to prison. Hillary looked the Pokémon in the eye and asked her if she agreed to be with her and to go with her in her future adventures. She smiled and agreed. The singer then proceeded to touch her forehead with a Poké Ball, and so she was immediately captured.

When she got out of the police station she noticed that the guys were waiting for her.

-Guys, thanks a lot for everything. Without you I'd never had arranged a solution for all of this. You've saved me and my reputation as an artist, and as a recognition I'm inviting you to the filming of my new video clip, which is tomorrow.

Ash, Misty and Brock accepted cheerfully.

And that is how our trainers decided to go the next morning to the fliming of a new awesome video clip, while continuing their travel to Neoball Island.