Chapter 19

"Not a Dream, But a Nightmare"

So, the first day of the trial was over and the prisoners were escorted back to their cells. Many were not very impressed with neither my opening address nor Harry's opening address. It seemed to some that the sentences were being carried out already because we were boring them to death. In reality, we were setting the tone for their ultimate demise when everything would be all said and done. When the prisoners had their dinner that night, Giovanni was quick to criticize our opening addresses.

"Schneider's speech, Radcliffe's speech, Pedandent," he said as he sat down at a table with several other prisoners. "A tiresome lot of nothing, I nodded off twice."

"Well the food is better today," said Cyrus, munching on some chicken as he went to another table. "Do you think they will feed us like this every day?"

"They always feed you well before they hang you," remarked Namba. "It's the way it has always been with our captured comrades."

Everyone at the table nodded in agreement over this and Giovanni was very impressed that it seemed that the good food that they were eating was to do just that. However, he had something quite different in mind.

"They can't hang us," he said, eating a piece of bread. "We're soldiers, they have to shoot us."

But, Fuji, who was unfortunately sitting with his comrades, was sensitive to this conversation and wanted it to stop right away.

"Please!" he cried, banging his hands on the table. "Stop this talk! We must concentrate on our defense."

He then crossed his hands together as if he was going to pray and Giovanni eyeballed the uneaten food that was in front of him.

"If you are not going to eat Fuji, give it to me," said Giovanni sarcastically, pulling it away. "It is a crime to waste such good food."

Everyone laughed and Fuji frustratingly walked off, trying to get away from the laughter that was going on at the table. Meanwhile, in another part of the dining room, Jessie and James were holding a private conversation while James looked out the window smiling.

"Look at what they have done to our beautiful city," sighed James heavenly as he stared out the window, but Jessie was not interested to hear what her partner had to say.

"Viridian City was not ours," said Jessie indignantly.

"But it was, Jessie," said James. "Remember how we first set our sights on the twerp's Pikachu and how we spent so much time and effort to get our hands on it? Think of the moments when the boss would mention the rewards we would get for capturing Pikachu or any other rare Pokemon."

James then looked away from the window and looked down at the floor while sighing, knowing that the days he thought about were over.

"But, it seems now that it was just a dream," he sighed, walking back over to a chair and sitting down in it. Jessie knew very well why she and her partner were in this situation and knew that they both had to face the truth.

"It wasn't a dream, James," she said, staring down at him. "It was a nightmare. You and I joined Team Rocket to make a living, not kill innocent people with Pokemon."

James looked up at his partner for a moment and then looked back down again.

"We only did what we did to make a name for ourselves," said James. "But we had enjoyed so much time together, Jessie. Can't you see that?"

Jessie pulled a chair over to her partner and sat down next to him, almost like a mother would to her child. She then grabbed his hands and clutched them in her hands.

"I do see that James," she sighed. "But when Meowth was killed in the raid, that was when I knew that what we were doing was capturing and selling Pokemon on the black market and it all added up to us hurting and killing innocent people, but I wanted to deny it, but I can't now and neither can you."

James then looked back up at Jessie and released his hands from her grip. For he was now beginning to get the picture of what was really at stake and that whatever he and Jessie did for Team Rocket was for all the wrong reasons.

"It's time to wake up, James," she said firmly. "The dream is over and now we must face the truth with the rest of our captured comrades."

"You're right, Jessie," he said, with a look of determination in his eyes. "The world needs to know the full undeniable truth about our involvement with Team Rocket and how it led to innocent people getting hurt."

She then got up and walked back towards the window and stared out once again over the city of Viridian City and how she felt ashamed that it was the home base for Team Rocket and their affiliates. Now, it seemed that even she was wondering if she and James would've had a better future had they quit Team Rocket and made a new life for themselves and because of their thoughtlessness and wrong choices; here they were with the world watching them.

"And yet," added James mournfully. "I'd wish Meowth would be with us, sharing the guilt we have caused on the world. I would give anything to avoid the gallows and serve my time and then prevent others from doing what we have done to the twerp and all Pokemon."

Jessie looked back at James again and then looked back down and clutched her hand on the skirt suit she wore.

"I would do the same thing James," she said, holding back tears. "But, I was put into this position by my mother and if she were alive today, I would tell her that I would no longer want any part of this nightmare. We need to fight for our freedom James and even if we are found guilty, we look to spend it in prison. Do you understand?"

So, the two partners hugged one another as Giovanni looked on from his table. He clutched his fists together from out of view and growled softly like a tiger.

"Traitors," he muttered…