They arrived in Ecruteak a few hours after the sun had set. It was a large town, Dixie noted, but the entire place had a quiet, traditional air about it. The little wooden buildings with their peaked roofs and traditional color schemes seemed so archaic. Dixie followed Arden into a small inn. "We'll have to go see the kimono girls, too," Arden said as they entered. "They dance. And wear kimonos—but that much is obvious, huh?"
"Welcome," said an old man behind the counter of the inn. "How can I help you?"
"We'd like two rooms, please," said Arden, leaning against the counter as, at his feet, Prometheus surveyed the lobby timidly.
"We're all booked up 'cept for one room," the man told him.
"Two beds?" Arden asked hopefully. The man shook his head, prompting the young trainer to let out a groan.
"That's alright," said Dixie. "I can sleep on the floor."
"Alright," said Arden, turning back to the old man. "We'll take the room, then."
"Very good," said the old man. He turned and pulled a key from a peg on the wall behind him and handed it to the boy. "Come see me whenever you're ready to check out. Sleep well, young men."
Dixie thanked the man and they headed down the hall to their room. The room was small and tidy, with a single bed at its center, and a window which looked out on a dark courtyard with a serene fountain bubbling away, surrounded by carefully manicured grass. Arden threw himself onto the bed and lay there, with his hands folded under his neck, as Prometheus tried to climb up onto it.
"I can't believe Felicia cheated me like that," he mumbled, watching the cyndaquil struggle. Dixie picked the pokemon up and placed him on top of the bed.
"She's… a very ambitious girl," Dixie said, leaning against the wall. He hadn't mentioned anything about robbing the lab and he didn't plan to. "I'm sure she would've gotten that ninetails from you, one way or another, if her mind was set on it. This was the least unforgivable way."
He fished a cigarette from his belt and Arden sat up. "What're you doing?" he said. "You can't smoke in doors!"
"Why not?" asked Dixie, holding it just short of his lips.
"Because it's gross," said Arden. "You'll make it smell like smoke in here. And not nice smoke, like barbeque smoke."
Dixie sighed. "Fine," he said. "I'll take it outside, then. See you in a few."
He straightened up and left the room, clenching the unlit cigarette between his teeth. The Rocket grunt left the inn and walked around to the side of the building. Leaning against the wall, he looked up at the starry sky, silently marveling at how many could be seen from here. He pulled his lighter from his belt and lit his cigarette, his eyes still turned towards the heavens. He was taken with the beauty, and failed to notice the stantler dashing toward him before it was too late to react. The stantler crashed into him, knocking him against the wall. Before he could recover, he took a hard punch to the jaw, and his chest was slammed against the wall as someone unseen held his arms behind his back.
Dixie took a sharp breath and struggled against his attacker, but the other party pressed hard against him, preventing him from getting free. "Wh—who are you? What is this?" he demanded. He could feel a fresh cut on his lip bleeding slightly.
"Hello, Dixie," the assailant whispered into his ear. He recognized the voice immediately.
"St-Stanislaus?"
The attacker turned him around roughly so that they were face to face. By the moonlight he saw the face he knew so well—the dark blue eyes and light brown hair and broad, powerful bone structure of Wolf Stanislaus, a member of Team Rocket little older than himself. They stared each other in the eyes for a few moments and then, quite suddenly, Stanislaus leaned forward and kissed Dixie violently on the lips. He let go of Dixie's arms and the younger Rocket pushed him away.
"Stanislaus," he said, rubbing his lips with the back of one hand. The cut in his lip stung terribly. "What's—what're you doing here? Why did you hit me?"
Stanislaus smiled. "I thought I'd surprise you," he said. His stantler was slowly walking back and forth behind him, his eyes focused on Dixie.
"Well, mission accomplished," said Dixie, hunching his shoulders. "You busted my lip, Wolf."
Stanislaus narrowed his eyes slightly. "You know I don't like it when you call me Wolf," he said quietly.
"Sorry," mumbled Dixie. He nodded his head toward the pacing stantler. "What's that?"
"That's Adalhelm, my stantler," said Stanislaus, half turning to look at the pokemon.
"What happened to Orla?"
"She died," Stanislaus said flatly. "Killed in battle."
"Oh," said Dixie, frowning. "I'm sorry, Stanislaus…"
"Think nothing of it," the older boy said, his voice without emotion. "She was weak and useless, anyway. Adalhelm's superior in battle; it's all that matters."
Dixie bit his lip. "I hear that sentiment a lot lately," he said slowly. "You know, it's funny—I was just thinking earlier about paying you a visit, but I wasn't sure where you were…"
"I was following you," Stanislaus said, his gaze turning on the younger Rocket.
"Following me?" said Dixie. "Stanislaus—I really, really don't think we… I mean, I mean what I said back then, and I still mean it."
"You've been missing a lot. That's the message we got in Mahogany," he said, crossing his arms. "I volunteered to track you down and make sure you hadn't gone rogue."
"Oh," said Dixie, looking vaguely disappointed. "So then you haven't been following me for any other reason…? Ah, good then…"
"Well, perhaps—after all, I did volunteer when I found out it was you," he answered, looking sideways at Dixie. "All the same, it's not so good for you. See, what I found, my dear Dixie, is you look an awful lot like you have gone rogue."
Dixie's eyes widened. "I haven't," he said quickly. "I swear it!"
"See, now," Stanislaus said leaning forward and pinning Dixie against the wall. "That's not what I observed. I saw you make a move on a laboratory with no direction to, and then I saw you travel with some girl, and then with some boy… And all this after you deserted your post in Saffron. You were s'posed to be guarding Silph Co, I heard, but then you left, and let the entrance free to be breached by a ten-year-old wonder-kid. He stopped the whole operation—beat everyone. Because you abandoned your post to go on a walk about through Johto."
"I didn't know—oh, you've got to believe me, Stan," he replied. "You know me; you know I wouldn't up and quit Team Rocket."
"Well, that's not how it looks," said Stanislaus, narrowing his eyes. "It looks like you've left us, Dixie, and we really don't like that…" Behind him, Adalhelm lowered his head and ground one hoof into the street.
"It's not—I didn't," said Dixie quickly, he was beginning to shake.
"Then how about you explain to us what it is your doing, eh?"
"The—the kid you saw me with," Dixie said. "I'm trying to recruit him. That's all."
"Not a very good reason to leave your post," said Stanislaus. "But far less suspect, at any rate. Hm… If you're serious, bring the kid to Mahogany. That's where we're based out of for this region. Bring him there, and we'll get him suited up and ready to join the ranks."
Dixie swallowed hard and nodded. "Ah, yes," he said.
Stanislaus leaned against him, sliding his hands down to rest on Dixie's hips. "I've missed you, you know," he said softly.
"Let's not do this, Stanislaus," Dixie pleaded half-heartedly.
The other Rocket ignored him, kissing him on the mouth, much gentler this time—kissing him just like he used to. Dixie's knees shook and he felt weak, and when Wolf Stanislaus pulled away, Dixie was sadder than he'd ever been. "Mahogany, tomorrow," Stanislaus said, taking a step back away from him. "If you're not there tomorrow, I'm going to assume you've been lying and that you've gone rogue. You know what'll happen then; I won't show you mercy, either. Adalhelm, come."
He started away and, with an angry snort directed at Dixie, the stantler followed. Dixie stared after Stanislaus until his black uniform blended into the night and he was gone. Touching the cut in his lip gingerly with his thumb, he headed back to his room.