A/N: Hey, everyone. My apologies for not updating this in a while; life just gets busier and busier. I try to get these chapters out as fast as I can, but only if I feel the quality is to my standards. This chapter was another difficult chapter to write, as there was a mix of slice-of-life and action scenes, making for a rather long chapter. But enough of the updates, here is the latest chapter.
Chapter 13 – The Waterflowers of Cerulean
-Pokemon League Executive Hotel – Room 7503 -
October 8th, 2007 – 5:30 AM
A tall, brown-haired man stretched his arms and let out a great, big yawn as his alarm woke him from his peaceful slumber. He glanced at the red letters on the clock that sat on the night stand. Painfully, but acceptingly annoyed, he slammed the palm of his hand on the large red button, stopping the obnoxious ringing. The first thing he did was to grab his specially encrypted PokeGear, filled with government secrets and stood up to pace around. He glanced at his email inbox and saw a rather peculiar email, marked as urgent and important:
From: William Ketchum
To: Matthew Oak
Subject: *URGENT* Assignment from Murdock
Matt,
There has been urgent development regarding the activities of Team Rocket. They were recently sighted at Mt. Moon where they attacked a group of trainers, Ash and Leaf included. Ash and another trainer were critically injured while Leaf and a Gym Leader only received minor injuries. Take this how you will, but I've already brought it up last night to Executive Director Murdock and he gave us the go ahead. We'll wait for your report to decide the next move. Attached is the case file.
Best regards,
Commander William M. Ketchum
P.S: Your boy Gary was not involved in the attack; he is currently safe, but I suspect he's under watch by Team Rocket from the Viridian City robbery attempt.
He opened the attached file which housed all the case information. Picture after picture, he saw the damages of what looked like a bomb blast in the open crater with piles of dark, shiny stones scattered about. Matt stared at his phone wide-eyed for a minute, processing all the details of the email. For better or for worse, he cared about Ash and Leaf as much as he cared for his own son. To hear them involved in one of Team Rocket's ploys drove him to worry. He immediately pulled up his phone book and contacted his most trusted field operator.
~ring~
~ring~
~ring~
~click~
"Director," a stern, feminine voice coolly addressed.
"There's been a new assignment. I wanted to let you know that this involves some very important people and it's personal. I'll fill in the details once I get there. We'll be working with the Black Ops on this one since it involves Team Rocket."
"Roger that. When should I be expecting you?"
"I'll be there in a couple of days. Assemble the rest of your team in the meantime. You have substitute Gym Leaders, right?"
"A lot of my students are still in training, so not at this point. I'll work something out though. My parents could hold down the fort if need be."
"We'll spec out the details once I'm there. I'll keep you posted. You are dismissed."
"Thank you, sir."
-Cerulean General Hospital – Room 805A-
October 11th, 2007 – 8:00 AM
There were several knocks from the door heard throughout the room. As the sleeping trainer on the bed was a rather light sleeper, He slowly opened his eyes, checking his surroundings. He then noticed some extra weight pinning down his left arm. Glancing over the edge of the bed, he saw a girl with her head face-down on the covers. He looked towards his left arm and saw her hand latched onto his. One would have expected his face to turn a deep crimson red, but he sat there and just savored the moment.
'Oh Leaf… were you always like this? I'm not sure why, but this seems kind of comforting.' The door suddenly opened to reveal a rather well-endowed nurse, complete with curvy specs, nursing equipment, and pink scrubs. This must be the head nurse.
"Good morning, Mr. Ketchum. I see you are recovering nicely and that girl is still attached to you. I'm going to perform one last check up before you and Ms. Waterflower are allowed to be discharged." Ash looked over to the sleeping beauty again and attempted to wake her up, only to fail miserably like he normally did.
"Leaf… wake up, Leaf…" She remained unresponsive. Ash tried a different method, reaching over with his free arm to shake her.
"C'mon, Leaf… time to wake up," Ash called a little louder. She still would not budge. The nurse, while grinning rather mischievously, walked over and wrapped her hand around Ash's pinned arm forcefully yanked it away from the sleeping girl. Naturally, this caused the arm to move and lose its grip, waking the said girl up. The nurse, being the nurse she was, quickly wrapped her arms around Ash, who now began to blush, feeling her "massive marketing materials" swallow his arm whole.
Speaking of the girl, she drowsily lifted her head, shamelessly rubbing her eyes of debris. She checked her surroundings as her eyes readjusted to the sunlight. She stretched her arms out and let out a short yawn.
'Huh… why am I in a chair?' She dug deep into her memories and remembered she fell asleep watching Ash… sleep. 'Geez, he must think I'm some sort of stalker, now…' Speaking of Ash, she glanced to the right to see if he was awake, only to find a very attractive nurse latched to his arm. This really woke her up.
"H-H-H-Hey! Who are you and why are you holding his arm like that?!" she yelled as she jumped out of her chair and viciously pointed her finger at the nurse. Said nurse voluptuously chuckled, all while staring up at the boy (who was now feverishly sweating).
"Oh, I'm sorry. Is this your boyfriend? I seriously didn't know…" unfortunately, Leaf's face turned bright, bright red.
"H-H-He's not my boyfriend!" she managed to scream loud enough to wake the other two tenants in the other room.
"Oh? So that means I can have him? I'll gladly take any younger man, especially a tall, built stud like him."
"N-N-No you can't!"
"And why not?"
"B-Because I'm his best friend and won't let anyone dangerous like you take him!"
"Ohoho… and just how are you gonna stop me?"
"That's easy! I'll just… just…" Leaf finally quieted down and sunk back into her chair, sulking all the while. The nurse thought she should end it there to spare the poor girl the situation she put herself in.
"All joking aside, I need to do one last examination before we discharge you from the hospital. Your transportation should be here shortly."
"Wait, what transportation?" Ash finally spoke up.
"You'll see in a moment. I'd say you guys are really, really lucky to be staying over there."
"WHERE?!" Ash asked even louder, feeling irritated and excited at the same time. The nurse chuckled again.
"I can't spoil everything for you, yah know." She looked over to the still sulking Leaf.
"Alright, young lady. I must ask you to step out of the room while I perform the checkup." Leaf silently picked herself up and slowly trudged towards the door. The nurse followed her, gently dipping down to her ear level just as she was about to open the door.
"I can see your feelings for him," she whispered, "You've been eyeing him for two days straight and never leaving unless you had to. You latched onto him in your sleep and your expression earlier confirmed my suspicions. Here's my advice: don't expect him to make a move since he's denser than a golem on steroids. Make your move soon, or a certain Waterflower is going to beat you to the punch. She's been eyeing him the entire time as well, just giving you a pro tip, since you two clearly have a history together." Leaf's face began glow a brighter red than before.
"I-I told you it's not like that!" she vehemently whispered back and made her way to the chairs outside.
"~sigh~ Teenagers… they never know love, even if it hit 'em," the nurse bitterly thought as she walked back into the room. Ash stared at her the entire time, wondering what that entire scene was about. She stared back at him, as if waiting for a question she knew he was going to ask.
"Uh… what was that all about?"
"Something I hope you'll understand in time," the nurse responded, "now, then. Let's get going, shall we?" She grabbed a pair of latex gloves from the cart beside her and threw them on, stretching the wrist for effect.
"You know… I am really good with my hands…" Ash could only gulp.
-Outside Room 805-
Leaf sat silently, hoping that the nurse wouldn't do anything impure to her best friend. Thanks to her, all Leaf could think about was Ash. Just where does their relationship stand at this point? Does she still think of him as a childhood friend? Would she care if he started dating another girl, like Misty? For the 12 years they have known each other, either one of them left each other's side. That's how Ash sees it, or so Leaf thought for years. She was confident in herself that it was nothing more than a deep friendship that dates back to when they were kids, living next door to each other, walking to and from school together.
'What do I feel for him?'
"Hey, you okay there?" a deep male voice called out from beside her. She looked up at the direction of the voice and found Brock standing over her, his face full of concern. Blushing, she quietly looked back down.
"…it's nothing."
'Down-trotted and blushing… must be about Ash.' "Look, based on what I've seen, just give it time. I'm sure you two will sort it out. Don't feel so down about it."
"Thanks, but I think I'm fine now. That nurse just got to my head."
"Oooooh… the nurse is here today?!" Leaf's expression went from slightly happy to utter disgust.
"Down, boy. Yeah, the head nurse went to go check up on Ash and Misty. I'm guessing you were out for breakfast while this was going on."
"You haven't had breakfast yet?" Brock asked in surprise.
"No. I suspect we're going to get some in a bit since our transportation will be here in half an hour." Brock stared at her puzzled. He definitely was not informed of transportation to the Pokemon Center.
"Our transportation?"
"Yeah. I'm pretty sure you were too zoned out by the nurse yesterday to actually care about anything." Brock fell silent after that. "Looks like I'm not the only one with problems."
"…Shaddup…"
Fifteen minutes had passed with Brock's and Leaf's usual small talk, usually Leaf poking fun at Brock and his attempt to be Casanova. This was interrupted by a clatter of footsteps heading towards their end of the hallway. They marched like they owned the entire hospital, the four women that made up the pack. The oldest one stopped in front of the two.
"Ahhh, I see you two are waiting for the other two," she warmly greeted, a far cry from the abhorrent mood she was in the first time they met her. She was in a purple sundress, which brought attention to her fiery-red hair. She was also tall for a woman with a thin, athletic build. She smiled at the two while they, or more so Brock, deeply admired the cool, yet fiery, mature redhead in in front of them. Of course, Brock being Brock, grabbed the lady by the hand.
"Ho thither, pretty lady! Wherefore don't thou come with me to a far aroint land whence we can live in bliss, love, and happiness together f'r all eternity?" Brock smoothly purred, shocking the woman. Even the three girls that were with her were more so taken aback by the suddenness (and tackiness) of his confession to their mother.
"Ummmm, hon," the woman slowly uttered.
"Yes, my dearie dear?"
"You do realize that 1) I am older than you by at least 20 years, and 2) I am a married woman and 3) my husband's about 3 times your size." Per usual, Brock was immediately shut down.
"How about you fine ladies in the back?"
"How about no," the three younger women responded at the same time.
"How abou—"
"Wiggly, if you will," Leaf muttered over to her pokemon, who sat beside her watched on in disgust at the tall man. She cocked herself back and released like a spring-loaded catapult. All at once, she launched her fist and singlehandedly knocked out the failure of a Casanova. Birds could be seen revolving around the downed man.
"I apologize for this loser here," Leaf spat, "He doesn't know how to control his libido."
"Oh, it's quite alright; it made me feel good as a woman anyways."
'Wait… really?' Leaf silently questioned the sanity of the woman before her. Just hearing her say that radiated sparkles of confidence and valor. She even posed in a very model-like fashion, cuing facepalms from the three younger women.
"Anyways, I shall go tend to my youngest. I'll fetch you both in a bit. C'mon, girls!" The four of them marched off into the room where Misty was receiving her final checkup. Leaf looked back over to Brock and still found him knocked out cold.
"Sheeeh… what a perv…"
'You said it,' Wigglytuff replied.
-Room 805B-
"Heyo, Claire!" Ms. Waterflower yelled as she threw open the door. The nurse looked over her shoulder and saw the middle-aged woman and her three daughters at the door. The girl in the bed also saw the four women before her, and frowned upon their eyes meeting.
"Mornin' guuuurl!" the nurse cheerfully greeted back.
"Hey, guys," Misty grumpily greeted.
"Mornin', hon!" Mrs. Waterflower shouted, waving her hand in the air. She bounded over to the bed-ridden teen and hovered over her face. Said teen was still not interested. "So, when am I gonna call the cremation service?"
"Ha ha ha," Misty laughed nonchalantly.
"Oh, don't give me that… it was just a joke!"
"Yeah, you definitely need to work on those."
"Anyhow, yah doin' okay?"
"Yeah."
"Misty and the boy next door are ready to be discharged. They have passed all the necessary tests. All vitals are stabilized and performing just fine. I've just removed their IVs, so have them change and they're free to go."
"Welp! You heard the woman; let's get you changed." The steel curtain that separated the rooms suddenly opened to reveal the doctor that was helping the two injured teens the past few days, as well as Ash, who was standing upright, and Pikachu, who sat happily on his head.
"Mornin' Misty!" Dr. Ichijo warmly greeted.
"Morning."
"Yah feeling alright?" Ash asked out of concern. Misty put on a slight smile from that concern.
"Yeah, I'm feeling much better."
"That's great! You needed more attention than I did, that's for sure."
"Of course… not everyone gets the chance to be blasted at point-blank range."
"Aaanywhooo," Dr. Ichijo interrupted, "it seems you two are just fine. I wouldn't do anything strenuous for the next day or so until you are sure that your wounds are fully healed up. They might seem fully healed for now, but just give it a day or so to sink in. This does include training and battling (he directed towards Ash). Just be sure to rest up."
"Got it," the two teens replied, Ash much less enthusiastically. He really lamented that he wouldn't get to train for the rest of the day. He really wanted to get Pikachu up to speed on his training since they all had been slacking off with the random encounters of trouble, but all that didn't matter if he wasn't well to begin with; he'll have to get well first before anything else, even if it meant being unproductive.
-Outside Room 805-
After a good 15 minutes, everyone was hauled out of the room and into the hallway where they found the other two people waiting. Brock had finally woken up after the brutal punch to the face, which could be seen as a large red mark on his right cheek. Wigglytuff wouldn't even look him in the eye, and Leaf just stared blankly at the wall with hundreds of thousands of thoughts crossing her mind.
"Hey, Leaf!" Ash greeted in his usual cheery manner, with Pikachu squeaking his usual greeting. Of course, this took Leaf by surprise and as such, she blushed at the very mention at her name.
"Y-Y-Yes?!" she squeaked. She found herself balling up in her chair, not quite normal for the normally headstrong teen.
"Hey… is everything alright? You usually don't stutter and blush like this."
"I-It's nothing!" she shouted uneasily, trying not to make eye contact with Ash. Pikachu just shook his head in shame.
'Oh, Ash… everyone can see it but you…'
"Well, I say… we're gonna get going! C'mon, everyone!" Ms. Waterflower loudly announced. This caught everyone's attention, especially Brock's.
"Wait… you mean we're gonna ride with the Waterflowers?!"
"Wait… you're an actual fan of theirs?" Leaf wondered out loud.
"Wait… what's happening?!" Ash panicked.
"Wait… why are we saying 'wait'?" Misty deadpanned.
"Brock, I swear they told you this yesterday. It was really easy to figure out when the nurse 'dropped some hints,' not to mention Misty was frowning when the word 'transportation' was mentioned," Leaf reminded the smitten young man.
"But that nurse and the Waterflowers captivated me!" Brock tried to counter to no avail. As such, the nurse blushed.
"Of course they would… are you seriously 20? Anyways, let's go. Are we taking two cars?"
"Yup!" Mrs. Waterflower gleefully responded, "I'm driving one car and Daisy is driving the other." The blonde woman behind her nodded in agreement, all while looking at Misty. Misty stared back her, and then her mother, and then back at her again.
"…I'll go with Daisy." Said mother let out a short gasp.
"My baby doesn't love me anymooooore."
"Oh please, as if anyone could hate you; you're just annoying at times, and now is one of those times."
"Ahem, anyways… who are you three going with?" Ash looked at Leaf. She looked at Brock, who was looking at the three younger women. They threw up in their mouths at the same time, not that Brock noticed.
"I'm going in the girls' car!" Brock shouted, waving his hands in the air. Everyone in the area slowly backed away from the tall, young man. Misty quietly made her way back over to her mother's side, her mother smirking in the process.
"Well…" Mrs. Waterflower pondered, "we're all going to the same place, so it wouldn't matter. Since Daisy is driving, I'll be taking Lily and Misty. Where will you two be going?" Ash looked at Leaf for an answer.
"Where do you want to go, Leaf?" Of course, Leaf's face reheated itself as she looked at Misty, and then at Brock.
"Uh- Uh- Uh-Ummmmm…" Leaf stammered until she began to slowly walk towards Misty. Ash followed suit, and Ms. Waterflower took very special note of this along with Misty, whose frown sunk even lower. They both looked at Lily, who seemed to receive the same signal.
"…I'll go over to the other car…" she sighed. She walked over to the group of girls attempting to stay as far away as possible from the love-struck buffoon.
"Girls," Daisy quietly called out, "like, just deal with him for the next 10 minutes; it won't be, like, that long of a drive. Who wants to sit in the back with him?" Of course, no one volunteered. "Paper, scissors, rock, then?" They both nodded, and drew back their fists. Brock, being Brock, took it completely the wrong way.
"Please, please girls, if you're gonna fight over me at lea—"
"WE ARE NOT FIGHTING OVER YOU!" all three screamed at the top of their lungs. "Okay, ready?"
"Paper."
"Scissors."
"Rock!"
Two fists were thrown towards the center; one of them had a balled fist and the other had a flat hand. The girl with pink hair visibly cringed, and then resigned to her fate. She then looked at Brock with disdain and contempt.
"So I'll be sitting with the lovely Lily Waterfl—"
"Shut it," she coldly interrupted, "we may be, like, sitting in the back together, but lay a finger on me and you can, like, forget about having children." Brock retreated and chuckled nervously.
"Oh snaaaap!" Ash chuckled. Leaf couldn't help but join in. Even Pikachu and Wigglytuff threw their heads back laughing. Soon, everyone broke out into laughter as they all headed down the hallway and out of the hospital.
-Waterflower Residence, Northpointe Estates, Cerulean City-
9:30AM
As with any rich family, one could see a caravan of a white Mercedes-Benz S550 and a black GLK350 making their way up Northrop Avenue. The convoy eventually moved from the tall buildings that made up the city's core and to a more residential area. Ash and Leaf could immediately tell this was the more affluent side of the city, based on the size of the houses and their growing extravagance. Instead of the traditional houses that Ash and Leaf lived in Pallet Town, these houses were very geometric, polished, and contemporary.
In the white car, Mrs. Waterflower made Ash sit up front, with two rather displeased teens in the back (well, at least one was displeased; the other was rather indifferent to the situation). As anyone could guess, this was supposed to relieve the awkward tension surrounding Ash, Leaf, and Misty, although it did little to actually relieve it.
"So," Mrs. Waterflower started, hoping to warm the rather frosty air in the car, "I assume you two are trainers?" This woke Leaf out of her semi-trance like state.
"Yeah!" Ash shouted, "we're training and winning badges to hopefully get into the Pokemon League."
"Ahhh… I assume you're doing the same," she directed towards Leaf.
"O-Oh, yeah! We've been traveling together the entire time."
"That's nice… What are your names?"
"My name's Ash Ketchum!"
"And I'm Lily Greenway, but people tend to just call me Leaf."
"Ahhh… Greenway was it? I thought you looked familiar. You are a swimmer, correct?"
"Yeah."
"That's great! I'm sure you'll enjoy our house then. Oh, here it is!" The car reached the gate and it automatically opened. Inside this gate were probably some of the largest houses that Ash and Leaf had ever seen. The car turned right and made its way down a windy stretch of hilly road where they passed some of the most elegant stretches of neighborhood. The streets were clean of debris, the grass was greener than green, and the entire area was covered in a thick canopy. They soon came to a lone driveway, arched with giant trees. They drove through the short tunnel and opened to a massive estate. Gardens lined either side of the driveway, with trees and bright flowers. A fountain could be seen in the middle of the driveway circle where it sat in front of an expansive, 3-story mansion.
This wasn't an ordinary Victorian mansion, but a mansion fit for the modern ages. Tiers of balconies lined the sides, with waterfalls flowing down each level into the moat that surrounded the house. Perfect curves, corners, and prisms outline the exterior, with the windows just barely visible. The house itself was made of a mix of marble and plaster, with thick, mahogany accents surrounding the support beams. This house was elegant as it was contemporary. This was even more impressive than Brock's mansion back in Pewter City. Ash and Leaf were definitely floored by the grandiose presence of the residence.
"Whoaaa!" Ash gawked, "I've never seen a house so cool before!"
"I've never seen a house designed this way!" Leaf marveled.
"Yup, this is my house," Misty nonchalantly replied.
"And it was designed by yours truly!" Mrs. Waterflower shouted. The two cars pulled up to the front bridge where they stopped. "Alright, wait for us at the front and we'll let you in after we park the cars."
The first thing Leaf noticed was that although the terraces looked quite low from afar, it was actually quite tall up close. She speculated that each ceiling hung 12 to 15 feet high above the floor, almost like a hotel. Not only was it tall, but the entire house was wide giving it the illusion of being short. Ash, Leaf, their two pokemon, and Brock (whose car ride was silent the entire time, with all advance being promptly ignored) walked underneath the marble archway that led to the double black doors. Surprisingly, none of them got wet from the water that fell from the terraced balconies. The five of them looked to the right and found tables and chairs that lined the patio. The giant, black doors opened up to reveal the Waterflowers (minus the father).
"Welcome to the Waterflowers Residence," Mrs. Waterflower cordially greeted, "we invite you to stay and make yourselves at home. My name is Rosalia Waterflower, and these are my daughters Daisy, Lily, Violet, and of course Misty, whom you've already met." The five of them stepped forward and bowed.
"Thank you and we are grateful for your invitation," Leaf spoke for the group. The three of them stepped forward and bowed.
"Well, now that we've done proper introductions, let's go ahead and eat breakfast, shall we?" Ash, in his usual fashion, began to salivate at the mere mention of food. "Oh, don't worry hon; you're going to get your food in a bit."
On a scale of one to massive, the interior of the house clearly laid on the massive side. From how small it looked outside, inside told a much bigger tale. Not only were the ceilings tall, but the hallways were wide. They eventually passed the living area, which opened up to a large, 3-story bay window overlooking the large pool and in the distance, the bay. They turned the corner to a grand dining room, fit with a long black marble table with white dishes containing egg benedict, bacon, and buttered French toast with fruits, bread, and other breakfast items at the center. The dinnerware shone its pure-white sheen from the set of large windows at the wall. A maid was found standing to one side of the room. Once again, Ash and Leaf were floored.
They all took seats, with Ash sitting in between Misty and Leaf. Ash started to pick up his fork, only to find both of his hands pinned down by the girls sitting on either side of him.
"Hey, c'mon now!" Ash complained.
"Where are your manners?" Leaf sternly whispered. Rosalia cleared her throat, grabbing everyone's attention.
"Since we're all hungry, let's dig in!"
One hour later…
Breakfast was lively, filled with small talk and chatter amongst the group. Ash promptly ignored his surroundings and devoured any and all pieces of food in sight, much to the disgust of Leaf, Misty, and her sisters. Ash, Leaf, and Brock suddenly found themselves walking around the house with Misty. They were currently walking down an open hallway on the second floor where it looked down to the foyer.
"So on the second floor, we have all of our rooms. My parents' bedroom is down at that end of the hall. My room is just beyond the corner over there, and your rooms are going to be at this end. Everyone will get their own separate rooms." This was obviously directed at Leaf, who grumbled in response. "Which rooms will you all choose?" Ash thought for a moment. He seemed to be putting much thought into it as his face began to turn a deep purple.
"By the way," Misty interrupted, "all the rooms are the same, so it doesn't matter which one you pick."
"In that case," Ash said suddenly, "Pikachu and I will choose this one!" They both disappeared into a room. Leaf was quick to grab the room next to his while Brock snagged the room across the two of them.
Inside the rooms was a queen bed with a very cubic dark brown frame and pure white mattress. The furniture was in the room was either dark brown or white with a large flat-screen TV sitting atop the dresser. Ash threw down his bag and took a seat on the bed. He took note of not only how firm it was, but how soft it was as well; it was almost like sitting on a puffy cloud that doesn't sink. The sheets and pillows were of a dark brown and black variety, and the plants in the room only accented the colors more. He turned his head towards the large window that looked out to the pool and the sea. Ash felt like he was staying at a luxurious hotel rather than a room.
"Well Pikachu, let's live it up for the next couple of days we're here; it's a nice break from it all."
'You said it, dude!' Pikachu chirped. A knock on the door interrupted their blissful ignorance.
"Hey Ash?" Misty called out.
"What is it?"
"Can you come out here?"
"Uh, sure! What for?"
"Just needed to tell you all something." Ash and Pikachu exited their room where he found the other three waiting outside.
"So," Misty began, "I forgot to tell you all where the bathrooms were. They are right down the end of this hall. And let's continue looking around."
Another Hour Later…
They had walked every inch of the house. On the first floor, other than the dining room and living room (which was themed with stones and such, earning the approval from Brock; it was also centered with an 84 inch 4K television from Sony and various entertainment components), they found a fully equipped gym, several other rooms, a small dance studio, a kitchen and eating area, and a large office. The third floor was completely dedicated to entertainment, as the entire floor was a theater, game room, and computer room. In other words, Ash could stay up here for a year and never leave.
Outside, there was a large patio with a grill off to the side, several tables, and a very large pool. This pool had a full 25-yard lap pool to one side, and a beach-like component at the other. There were diving boards at one end, and a decorative waterfall at the other. Simply put, it was Leaf's dream pool. Also in the back yard were basketball court on one side and a tennis court on the other. Cedar fir trees lined either side of the back yard, opening to the view of the sea; the property was atop of a hill, after all.
"Hey Misty," Brock suddenly asked.
"Hmmm?"
"If you have a house this big, where are the maids?"
"I never liked the idea of having live-in maids," Rosalia called out from the other side of the pool, in a black 2-piece bathing suit, lounging in a layout-chair underneath an umbrella. Brock and Ash's noses suffered under the intense blood rush to the head, in which Misty and Leaf whacked the two, respectively. They made their way to where the woman was lounging.
"Our maids come and take care of things as we need them and then leave as they please; only one or two stay for the entire day. I leave the coordinating up to them. We only have chefs cook for big events of more than 10 people, or on a whim, such as this morning. Daisy, Reggie (my husband), and I usually like to handle the cooking. We have a team of pool guys from a company come out from time to time."
"So I heard rich people have drivers, yet you guys don't…" Ash realized. Rosalia chuckled at the thought.
"Oh, silly boy; you have had to be really dense and close-minded to think that all rich people don't like to do things for themselves. Of course many of them don't, but there are some like us who are independent thinkers."
"Oh."
"Why don't you all come out for a swim? I'll have lunch ready by 1:00." Ash, Leaf, and Brock turned excited, until Leaf remembered she didn't have a swimwear.
"Wait," Leaf remembered, "I don't think I packed swimwear."
"Neither did I," Ash agreed.
"Oh, don't worry," Rosalia quickly answered, "I went and bought these while you four were in the hospital." Leaf quickly shrank.
"Y-You mean… you can tell my size?"
"I personally can't, but Daisy can."
"Oh…" Just then, Daisy walked out of the back door with three bags.
"So," Daisy called to them, "these are, like, your swimsuits, all picked out by yours truly. Try to figure out which ones are yours." The three of them grabbed a random bag. Ash was the first to quickly open his to find a… red and blue 2-piece bathing suit.
"W-W-WHAT THE?!" Ash almost screamed as he fell over and tossed the bathing suit back into the bag. Leaf and Brock rushed over to help him up.
"Hey! Are you okay?" Leaf cried. Ash looked up at her with a deadpanned face.
"Leaf…" Ash started slowly.
"Yeah?"
"…here's your swimsuit…" Leaf took the bag and opened it up, and smirked at him. Ash, knowing what was coming, gave her a blank stare.
"I'm pretty sure this is yours," Leaf said in a low, mischievous voice.
"Ah, no."
"Of course it is. I mean you picked it out and seemed pretty excited over it."
"That was before I looked into the bag."
"Maybe you want to see me in this," Leaf purred almost erotically, whilst pulling the set out of the bag and displaying it over her clothes, leaning over Ash for further effect. Misty became rather crossed, the Sisters and Rosalia chuckled, and Ash was still not impressed. "But too late! No take-backs!"
"Oh, really?" Ash countered, "So if I wear this swimsuit, I'll still be pretty covered. Granted I'll look like a total perv, but I'll be fully covered. What about you? You'd seemed like you'd be missing something." Leaf thought about it for a split second and realized that Ash had won this argument. She would be missing her top… and on top of that, the swim trunks that she had may not fit her waist and completely fall off, exposing her nether-regions. Realizing this, she quickly threw the swimsuit in the bag and marched to the bathroom, not without a blush.
"By the way," Brock spoke from behind, "check out that bag that Leaf dropped." Ash ran over to the bag and found a pair of red and black swim trunks. He had to admit he liked the color a lot, so he couldn't wait to try them on. The rest of the teenagers rushed inside to get changed.
15 minutes later, the four teenagers, the three Waterflower sisters, and all of their pokemon met at the edge of the beach entrance to the pool. Here, lounge chairs and umbrellas covered the area. Ash and Brock showed up in their swim trunks, with Pikachu pulling out a pair of shades. The girls paid attention to the young men, eyeing every detail they saw. Having run on the track team in middle school, Ash had a very well-developed physique. Lines were sculpted along his body in the right places, leading one to believe he was Atlas with the world on his shoulders. Although not bulky, his muscles were lean and well-defined. His chest formed a V-shape, hour-glassing to his swim trunks, which hugged his slim waist. His legs were lean, but firm. All of the girls, save for Leaf and Rosalia, squealed at the allure figure before them that was Ash Ketchum. Rosalia just stared in interest, and Leaf looked elsewhere, blushing. No one stared at the taller, but notably less-built Brock, in which he quietly sulked to the side.
The girls then trained their eyes to each other, which eventually gravitated towards Leaf. She was wearing an aqua-blue, two-piece bathing suit, accented by velvet-red border. Ash had only seen her in a one-piece suit, as part of the swim team which hid the magnitude of her buxom. Now, it was out in full effect, the red borders accentuating every single curve. Violet looked at Leaf's chest, and then looked at her own.
"D-D-D-D-D-D-…" she continued to sputter like a broken engine, pointing at the mounds of wonder. Leaf stood there expressionless, gradually becoming more irritated.
"It's just one 'D'; I'm sure they're not much bigger than that." Ash, either out of arousal or just sheer embarrassment (he wanted to believe it was the later), felt liquid dripping out of his nose. Brock was not excluded from this, and promptly fainted. Ash also got to see her toned mid-section, which he caught a sneak preview during the morning mishap back at Viridian City. The other girls, including Misty, rushed in and started badgering her with questions.
"OMG, Leaf! You're so fit! How do you do it?"
"I'm concerned with, like, fat and everything! What's your diet like?"
"Your skin is, like, so smooth! What lotion do you use?" Leaf held up her hand, and everyone wet silent.
"I just eat right and exercise every day; I don't have a diet or anything. Oh and I shower once a day and use the stuff you buy at the local Costco. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna swim." She walked towards the edge of the pool (rather than the beach-side) and gracefully dove in. The water caressed her body as she slipped in. A soft splash could be heard and she swam back towards the beach. She poked her head out of the water and glared at Ash, uttering a single word.
"Sunscreen." Ash turned from awed-by-beauty to feared-by-beauty within a split second.
"…Yes, mam…" She promptly dipped her head back underwater. The other girls, Ash, Leaf, and Misty's pokemon jumped into the water. Speaking of Misty, she was wearing a two-piece red swimsuit. Much like Leaf, she was graciously curved and toned, just less exaggerated in a sense. Her sisters wore simple two-piece swimsuits in coordination with their hair: Daisy had on a yellow swimsuit, Violet wore a purple swim suit, and Lily wore a pink swimsuit. Brock bled through his nose again and passed out. Ash, having already put on sunscreen, made his way into the water.
3:00PM
"Girls!" Rosalia called from the poolside, "don't forget you have a show tonight at 8PM!"
"Okay!" the older girls all replied. They all swam towards shore and leapt out, grabbing their towels and heading towards the same changing room. Brock, being Brock, started to wear a perverse smile. Misty and Leaf, having finished their fourth race, could be found behind him with their hands raised. They promptly knocked the poor, perverted man unconscious.
"I don't even wanna know what you're thinking…" Leaf chided.
"Those are my sisters, you perv!" Misty growled.
Ash was actually not in the water and could be found on a pool chair, with a drink in hand. His body almost sparkled under the sunlight through the water droplets that rested on his skin, blinding anyone who was looking in his direction. His face, however, showed a sleeping Ash snoring loudly and drool collecting on the chair where his face was resting. He awoke to the sound of a loud splash, jerking his head in the direction of the water. What he saw was a face-down Brock, and the two girls behind the assault.
"Oh, it's just Brock," he sighed and went back into his slumber.
The pokemon were found either swimming (for those who could) or on various floats. Pikachu was splashing around with Wigglytuff, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle. The two nidoran napped with each other on a boat float. Zubat was chasing a mortified Clefairy, for some odd reason. Beedrill and Butterfree were relaxing on a nearby tree. Onix and Geodude were resting at the rear of the backyard.
"Hey you four," Rosalia called out again, "the Sisters are going to put on a show later tonight. You all are invited… and you all get front-row seating. Come out and get ready!"
"Alright!" Leaf yelled back. She turned to Misty, who she for sure thought to be part of the Sisters. "Hey Misty."
"Uh huh?"
"Aren't you part of the group?" Misty's smile faded to a slight frown.
"Ehhh… that's kind of a touchy subject," Misty chuckled sadly.
"What happened? It's okay if you don't want to tell me about it."
"No, it's fine. It all started when I saw my sisters perform water ballet for the first time…"
October 23rd, 1999
A seven-year old Misty watched with her mother and father from the VIP section of the auditorium. The three dancers in the water coordinated with each other, creating beautiful scenes and illusions based on their movements and the water's. It was mesmerizing for Misty, enough to want to try to be like them.
She met her older sisters afterwards in excitement, a radiant smile plastering her face.
"You guys were so cool! I want to be like you when I grow up!" she yelled, hugging her oldest sister, Daisy. She looked down and smiled.
"One day, Misty… one day we'll let you join up here."
Eight years had flown by. Through the eight years, the sisters kept distancing themselves from her, choosing their own performance rather than sending time with the young Misty, even resorting to minor verbal bullying on her small build. Through the eight years, she practiced gymnastics, swimming, anything to get her in league with her sisters. It was two years ago that Misty walked up to Lily and asked her if the offer was still open.
"Look, Misty," Lily talked down (she was a few inches taller than Misty), "adding you to the lineup would, like, totally ruin our image. We already have fans and I doubt they'd want a runt like you on stage."
"…are you serious?" Misty flared up.
"I'm not lying, Daisy and Violet agree, too. You're just annoying and a pain to deal with. Seriously, like, all you keep doing is asking us to join when we clearly don't want you." Misty began tearing up. Everything she's done until now was for naught. She turned away and ran in tears, straight to her room. Thus began two years of relentless bullying by the Sisters, mostly on Violet and Lily's part. Daisy was busy most of the time helping out with the family business.
For two years, Misty rarely talked to the two younger older sisters, as Daisy realized she could do nothing about it.
"Misty," Daisy said one night, "I know I feel bad for doing this, but there really is no other way. To add a fourth member would change our routine and cause some problems. We're stable for now, so please try to, like, understand."
"…but you promised…"
"I know I did, and I'm sorry. Tell you what: it's better to make a name for yourself than to try to live in someone else's shadow. I know you're the most athletic out of all of us, so maybe you should try competitive swimming. I'm sure your middle school has it."
"Make a name for myself?"
"Like, you could be your own star instead of sharing it with us. I promise we'll support you."
"I'm assuming you're the only one to support me."
"That's 'cuz I'm your oldest sister."
"Yeah, your go-to response. Mom and Dad would say the same thing and they're both barely home."
"Don't worry. Just try to live your own life…"
Present Day
"…and that's how I got into competitive swimming…" Misty sadly trailed off. Who knew such a strong swimmer could have such a sad tale?
"Do your sisters still bully you now?"
"Yeah, but I got used to it. My mother thinks of it as sibling rivalry, so I just got used to it and tuned them out. Of course, when they saw me at the hospital, they had looks of regret in their eyes, so it's calming down a little. But whatever, I don't care about the Sensational Sisters and their stupid water ballet. All I live for is being fast in the water! Oh, and water pokemon!"
"That's good! Anyways, do you want to go watch your sister's perform?" Leaf asked. Misty looked rather conflicted.
"I guess I haven't seen them do it in a while."
"Cool! We'll I'm gonna go change and get ready. Hey, Ash!" Leaf yelled, waking up the sleeping trainer.
"…huh?"
"Shower and get dressed! We're gonna go see the Sensational Sisters!"
"Oh, okay. Uh…"Ash trailed off as he looked as the still floating corpse, "what do we do about that?"
"Oh… drag him to the shore and leave him there."
"Um, okay." Ash turned to Pikachu. "Hey Pikachu."
'Yeah?'
"Make sure you wake up Brock and send him upstairs to shower; I'm heading in first."
'Roger that!'
5:00PM
Everyone gathered around the dinner table. Ash wore his newly washed attire, and Leaf wore her black dress (also freshly washed). Brock wore a grey button-down shirt and khaki slacks. Misty wore a yellow and white-striped dress, much in the fashion of Leaf. Her hair was also notably down.
"Wow, Misty!" Ash greeted, "I couldn't even imagine you in a dress!" Tick marks began to form on her face, increasing by the second.
"I can be a girl, too, yah know!"
"Sorry," Ash lightly chuckled, "it's just a whole different side of you than the tank-wearing short-haired girl we've gotten to know the past couple of days."
"Well, he's not wrong," Brock chimed in.
"Nobody asked you!" Misty yelled.
'…shot down again…' Brock inwardly cried.
"Haha! What's all the screaming in here?" a fifth voice chuckled. This voice was burly and deep, like a real man had stepped into the room and raised the testosterone level of every living being within a 50 foot radius. Brock turned around and came face-to-face with a 6'6" hulk. He had a full set of neatly-combed dark-brown hair with a touch of grey. His suit could barely contain the size of his chest and arms, which were three times the size of Ash's own arms (and even he thought he was well-built). His chest and mid-section looked like it could be made of military-grade armor. He was a giant, the manliest of all men.
"Guys," Misty sighed, "this is my dad." The man threw out a peace sign, his hand large enough to almost cover Ash's face. He looked up in awe.
"…you're very strong, sir…" he nervously croaked.
"Hahaha! I get that all the time! Don't worry about it. I hope you three have been making yourselves comfortable, here; we've got lots to offer."
"No, thank you for letting us stay here," Leaf bowed.
"Don't be so formal! Makes me feel old!"
"You are old, Dad…" Misty deadpanned.
"Oh, c'mon! I'm just turning 29!"
"Uh, no you're not. So anyways, we have about 2 and half hours before the show starts so is Mom ready?"
"She'll be ready in a couple of more minutes. So how about we go out for steak before the show?" Ash and Brock looked at each other, and then looked at the hulk. Their eyes lit up immediately.
"Oh, hell yes!" Ash screamed, "Steak is my favorite!"
"I haven't had good steak in so long!" Brock happily cried.
"Can you boys ever just shut up?!" Leaf vehemently sighed.
"Hahaha! It's all good. Looks like your mother is ready. Let's all hop in the car."
The six people and their pokemon made their way out front where there was a white Mercedes-Benz GL63 waiting for them. The head maid, who waited outside of the car, walked up to the party and handed the key to the hulk.
"Alright, let's get in! Oh, my apologies for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Reginald Waterflower of the Department of Defense's Marine Operations and WRG Consulting, ltd. It's a pleasure to meet you all," he formally greeted and owed before getting into the driver's seat.
-Cerulean Aquatic Pavilion, Downtown Cerulean City-
7:30PM
Dinner was astounding. Instead of a normal steak restaurant like Ash and Brock were expecting, they arrived at a "Steak Buffet," a concept that was completely new to Ash and company. They ate selections of different meat found all around the world, some cooked in the styles of regions like Unova and Kalos. There was an assortment of meat, ranging from beef, to chicken, to pork, to fish and shrimp. The guys and Pikachu pigged out, while the girls and Wigglytuff took their time, eating more of the salad bar than anything else. By the time all was said and done, they found themselves sitting in a water auditorium, sitting in the front row looking down into the pool.
"Ahhh, I haven't seen my daughters' performance in a while… this is certainly refreshing."
"I couldn't agree more, hon!" Rosalia cooed as she curled up next to her husband. Misty looked over and tried to puke, glancing over at Ash who sat next to her, and Leaf sitting next to him.
"Oh, hold it in!" Ash quietly yelled, "Whose fault was it for eating too much?"
"Speak for yourself!" Misty quietly retorted back. Soon, the house lights dimmed to black, drum rolls filled the air, and the spotlight was directed towards the center of the pool. A platform lowered from the high ceiling above lowered just above the water's surface. At the center of the platform, three women in very decorative one-piece swimsuits walked towards each edge of the platform and dove in, the platform reeling itself backup. Energetic, yet classy classical music (which Ash assumed to be the soundtrack for the entire set) began playing. The sisters synchronized their movements with each other and to the music. Various pokemon began jumping in and out of the water, performing various acrobatics and theatrics much to the pleasure of the audience. With every splash of water, the audience cheered, awed, gasped, and everything they would utter from their mouths; some were even rendered breathless from the emotion and elegance behind it.
One such pokemon that took everyone's breath away was a large, dragon-like creature. Its rather intimidating face was overshadowed by the gaping mouth that looked like it could swallow an entire person. Its long, blue body slithered underneath the water, it most notable feature being the long-red streak that flowed down its entire body. Daisy, who was trailing behind it earlier, reached out and grabbed onto its decorative crown, lightly tapping its head. Receiving the signal, the dragon launched itself out of the water and Daisy with it. She let go mid-air and flew high above the pool, flipping herself, and then gracefully landing on its head. She posted a V-sign with her arms, signaling the end of the act. What they didn't notice was the net beneath the water beginning to move upwards…
October 9th, 2007 – 11:00PM
A group of three people, well two people and a pokemon that could somehow talk, waited in the dark corner of the rear loading dock of the Pavilion. They wore nervous, anguished faces as they prepared to take on a mission that seemed easy enough, but made harder by the fact that they didn't know if they were in the same town. The Boss didn't know the two opposing groups ended up in the same place by coincidence and drove nails through their seemingly perfect plans all at the same time. Instead of their white Rocket uniforms, they outfitted themselves with their black ones, making them near impossible to see. Even the normally red "R" was significantly darkened. All three donned black burets, the only thing standing out was the woman's long, magenta hair.
"Looks like the last one's left," Meowth signaled. James and Jessie looked at each other and nodded, confirming the signal while Meowth ran to the door to plug it before it slammed shut. Behind them, the steel garage doors were lowered, and the lights were powered off. Domino had informed them during their briefing that the door's alarms were set to go off in one minute after being shut. They also automatically lock, in which they will have to escape using a passcode generator to shut down the security system.
"Do you have the tablet and the code breaker, right?" Jessie whispered.
"Yes, they're in my bag. Check if you're unsure!" James responded. He took out a cellphone-like device and started punching numbers in. Suddenly, the blinking red lights have stopped and 30 minutes of footage prior to the disabling.
"Good, we should be clear now. We should still keep quiet in case a random security guard passes by," Jessie confirmed.
They silently tiptoed to the main bowl where the show was to be held. Domino had informed them that they will not be able to get into the aquarium since they were unable to replicate the card access needed to get in; that was an entirely different security system, and one so secure only 6 people and key guards had card access to them. This aquarium held the show's pokemon, ones they were supposed to get.
The main bowl had a trip net system to automatically pull the performers to the surface in case of emergency. Whenever a certain button was pushed, the net would rise, bringing anything above it out of the water and out of harm's way. Now, what these three people were supposed to do was to install a second net over it where upon getting to the top, it would contract and constrict, catching anything inside. This was their ideal way of catching all of the show's pokemon and the rare Gyarados.
"Alright, we're here. They should have drained the pool by now for maintenance. We'll have to work quick since they'll be here in the morning," Jessie reminded the two of them.
"Right!" they both agreed.
Present Time
Daisy saw the net move, in which she jumped out of the water, using Gyarados as support. Glancing at the show engineer on staff, he looked back puzzled and had no answer. She looked down, and saw the net was near the surface with no explanation as to why and threw a sign that meant there was an emergency and to quickly get out of the water. Luckily, the two other sisters were able to swim to the edge platforms. Just then, the net broke the surface and clammed up in an instant. Gyarados, sensing danger, threw its master directly at the audience, landing face-first into Brock.
"Ooof!" he muffled as he fell backwards, breaking her fall, "Are you okay?"
"I'm okay, but the pokemon aren't," Daisy replied as she turned around and pointed at the large net dangling from the ceiling, filled with the show's pokemon, including Gyarados. It tried to wriggle its way out, chomp, and blast a water gun at it to no avail; it seemed the net was made from a dense polymer only diamond could cut.
"Shit!" Daisy grunted. Lily and Violet held the same expression. Ash, Leaf, Misty, Rosalia, and Reginald armed their pokeballs, preparing for the attack to show their face. Suddenly, the lights were cut, and the spotlight flew upwards to the platform. Up top were the people that Ash, Leaf, Brock, and Misty least wanted to see: Team Rocket.
"Oh, hell…" Ash whined.
"Here we go again…" Leaf sighed.
Brock remained silent, and Misty was seething. The PA system clicked on, and Team Rocket began their routine introductions.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie sang.
"And make it double," James continued.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extent our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket: blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!" Meowth jumped in. The four people who have heard it before just stood there with blank faces. Of course, the rest of the audience looked more confused than scared.
"Hey, if they're supposed to be the bad guys, why are they claiming they'd 'protect the world from devastation?'" one member of the audience whispered to another.
"Is this part of the show?"
"Whatever this is, this just became badass as fuck!"
"And plot twist!"
"Kooooool!" one child yelled.
"James," Jessie sighed, "I don't think they're taking us seriously…"
"We must show them evil! Unto evil!"
"…I think you're using dat wrong…" Meowth sighed.
"Bulbasaur! Poison Power! Keep it above the platform!" Ash shouted as he threw his pokeball towards the platform. In mid-air, the ball spat out the small plant pokemon, flying right towards the kitten. The pokeball returned to his right hand in a boomerang-like fashion. To those who have never seen it, it may look like he was rather good with curveballs; in reality, each pokeball clip on his belt was fitted with microchip receptors (acquired at Professor Oak's Lab), and each pokeball automatically registers with a clip and homes back to it when thrown,
Bulbasaur flipped himself and in mid-air, released a cloud of dark purple powder. The three Rockets on the platform began to suffocate, until James threw out his pokeball overhead, summoning the dual-headed purple balloon.
"Weezing! ~cough~ Use poison gas to blow ~cough~ it all away!"
"Wait, Jam-" Jessie yelled as she covered her and James' mouth and nose. The poison balloon released the toxic gas into the stadium, eventually reaching the audience.
"~cough, cough~ Wow, these are some really realistic effects!"
"It almost seems like I am being poisoned!"
"I can't breathe! This is so awesome!"
"Babe!" Reginald yelled, "Get Tini to open all of the doors, pronto! I'll get Wirlly to take 'em on!"
"Got it, hon!" She threw out her pokeball and out flew a long, beautiful, serpent-like creature. Too bad, everyone was captivated by the supposed performance to notice what was going on.
"Tini! Fly through all of the doors to open them!" the serpent understood and flew to all of the doors, opening them simultaneously and letting the outside air circulate.
Meanwhile, Wirlly joined Bulbasaur on stage, ripping the two human Rockets to shred with its giant fist. Its face looked angry as ever, narrow eyes protruding out of its circular body.
"That's it, Wirlly! Keep giving 'em hell!"
"Bulbasaur, whip 'em up into shape and help Wirlly out!… Is that how you say its name?"
"Got it right, kiddo!"
"Hey! I'm not a kid!"
"Well considering I'm almost a head taller than you…"
"Fine, fine, I get it."
"Butterfree!" Leaf suddenly shouted, "Make 'em nuts!" She also threw her ball, with the butterfly speeding at a rather terrifying speed towards the team that was getting savagely beaten up. She did a fly over and shouted to the two pokemon below.
'Guys! Jump in the water!' Butterfree called from way overhead.
'Got it!' both Wirlly and Bulbasaur nodded as they leapt offthe platform and into the water. Butterfree flew back around over the platform and started spewing random noises. Luckily, both pokemon were already in the water. Meowth would have jumped with them, his hatred of water the only thing holding him back. All occupants of the platform began to look at each other rather strangely.
"Ekans!" Jessie suddenly shouted, "Sting the cat!"
"Wait, what? Oh, yeah; sting me please!"
"I LIKE BISCUITS!" James yelled at the top of his lungs.
"…okay…" Ash sighed completely giving up on comprehending the situation, "Beedrill! Cut the bag open with Fury Attack!" Unlike Gyarados's fangs, Beedrill's twin drills were meant for, well, drilling. The point was sharp enough to pierce through steel cables. This was enough to weaken anything he stabbed. The netted bag holding all of the pokemon, thought to be unbreakable, weakened to the point of tearing.
"Tini! HYPERBEAM!"
A powerful beam of colors erupted from the rear of the auditorium, completely clipping the top vertex of the bag. All of the pokemon fell into the water.
"Misty!" Leaf yelled, "Ready for this?"
"Let's go Staryu and Starmie!" she cried.
"C'mon out Squirtle!" Leaf screamed.
"Gyara! You join in, too!" Daisy yelled once she grabbed the attention of her newly freed Gyarados.
"Water gun!"
"Bubble!"
All beams combined to one super water beam that headed straight for the platform, hitting the three square in the face. The force of this water beam picked them up and threw them out of the roof, breaking part of the atrium glass that covered the pool.
"FUCK YOU ALL!" Jessie screamed.
"We'll never forget this!" James added on.
"One day we'll crush you!" Meowth ended as they faded into the night sky, never to be heard from again…
Back in the auditorium, Daisy took the microphone and made an announcement about the show.
"Well, we will now be taking a 15 minute intermission. There are refreshments and restrooms outside." Ash, Leaf, and Misty looked at each other, wondering what in the world just happened.
"Dude… w-what the hell just—" Ash stammered, offering a puzzled look.
"Yeah," Leaf agreed, "Team Rocket never learns. You'd think by now they know we can beat them, especially those three."
"Man, how are they going to explain this to the audience? In fact, how come we blasted them high into the sky and not turn them over to the police?" Misty wondered out loud. No one had an answer to the second question. The answer to the first question soon came from the casual conversations going on in the audience.
"Dude! That was one of the coolest, if not the coolest, acts they've put on in their past 10 years!"
"Man, this just keeps getting better and better!"
"I'm throwing more money at it!"
"More! More! MOOOOOREEEEE!"
Meanwhile, the Sisters wondered back to their dressing room where they took a well-deserved break.
"I guess the reception's been, like, positive and shit?" Violet pondered out loud.
"Yeah," Daisy agreed, "we gotta, like, incorporate more surprise-based performances like this."
"We could've made, like, Misty play the villain or something!" Lily happily suggested. Daisy frowned a bit.
"Guys, doing you think Misty's, like, had enough… of the antagonizing coming from you guys?"
"Ehhh, I think she could, like, handle it! I mean she hasn't brought up, like, a single issue with it for the past 8 years."
"Well…"
"Oh, time for us to, like, go back on! Let's, like, kill this second act!" Lily shouted, already halfway out the door.
"H-Hey! Wait up!"
A/N: I don't think Team Rocket will be making appearances anytime soon (or very much at all) after this, if you were a fan of them; this keeps their appearances succinct and important to the story, not like what the anime did and throw them in every episode. The next chapter should be quicker to write with the battle for the badge on deck. It should be a fun read next time. As always, read, love, review! :D