"Woooooobuuuufffetttt!" Wobbufet screamed, wobbling towards the group, arms wide open. Jocelyn laughed and embraced her mother's goofy Pokémon. She was even happier when Meowth came out.
Behind him was Ash's Pikachu, Axew, Pansage, and Azumarill, all riding on the back Misty's Articuno. The cheery Pokémon were flying towards their group, calling out their names in enthusiasm, behind them were more Pokémon and their human masters.
"June!" Iris and Cilan called out together, running towards their daughter. Luna and Ines in hand.
"Mom! Daddy!" June exclaimed as she met them with a crushing hug.
James squeezed the life out of Jay while Jocelyn did the same to Meowth. Jessie nearly choked Annastasia.
"Chill," Annastasia told her mother.
"Anna-ta-ya!" Alex exclaimed, reaching out his arms, indicating that he wanted Annastasia to pick him up, which she did.
"You got big, Alex. I bet my parents were driving you crazy."
"Yes."
While everyone told their families about their adventures and headed inside, James and Jay stayed outside for a while.
"I am so happy you got all those badges. It sounds like you did better than Ash! I always knew you'd be good at this," said James. "So, have things been better? No one's giving you a hard time, right?"
"Everything is great. I'm a lot happier traveling than I ever was at school," Jay replied. "Everyone here accepts me."
James lowered his voice. "You would tell me if something was bothering you right? The kids aren't harassing secretly you or anything?"
"Of course not! Everything's great. I love getting to see my friends all the time…I mean, just having someone to be friends with other than Amber and my sisters is cool…I feel safe here."
James breathed a sigh of relief. "That was the goal. I was worried that the opposite would happen. What about Soledad? Is Miss Popular still on your side?"
"Don't call her that! She left her school 'friends' behind to come traveling with us. At first, they made fun of her a lot for leaving to travel with a bunch of losers. Now they just don't text her at all. She doesn't mind. She says they're the losers."
"It's about time things went your way. You have to tell me more about everything, but for now, we should go back inside. I'm sure you're hungry, and we have something cool to show you."
"Like what?"
James didn't answer. Instead, he took Jay's hand and led him into the house.
Everyone was starting to settle down. Jay saw his mother playing with Jocelyn's hair and Togetic talking to Inkay and Chimecho. Annastasia was introducing Rita to Serena and Clemont, who was holding their daughter Camille. They were standing in front of some kind of tall machine. His father pulled him in that direction.
"Hi Jay," Serena said brightly as she gave him a side hug.
"Hello," Jay responded, hugging both of them and smiling at Camille. "So, what's that tall metal thing?"
Clemont patted the machine. "This is a human teleporter."
"He still isn't very creative with names, but like Bonnie always used to say, at least they are descriptive," Serena added.
"Whoa…this machine teleports humans?" Jay asked.
By now the other younger members of the group had gathered around, including the teenagers who had just arrived.
"So cool! Can we try it?" Jocelyn asked. "I want my own!"
"Flaa?"
"It's not ready for commercial use yet—I only built two so far," Clemont responded.
"It's still incredible," said Annastasia.
Annastasia noted that even Michio looked impressed.
"Does it work just like your portable Pokémon teleporter?" Lexi inquired.
"Yes. Except this isn't all that portable. It collapses so that you can move it more easily, but I had to make it bigger so that it can be large enough to fit a full-grown human," Clemont replied. "But it does work. I've tested it on myself dozens of times."
"I wanna try it," said Amber.
Clemont looked to Misty, who nodded confidently.
"I'll demonstrate, then if you still want to do it, I'll give you a try," he told Amber.
Half the group groaned jealously. The other half looked scared.
"Uhhhh, are you one-hundred percent sure it's safe?" Jay asked as Clemont opened the door to the machine.
"I promise you that this is the safest invention I ever created," Clemont responded.
"How high's that standard?" Michio mumbled.
"He's the best at what he does," Annastasia whispered back. "I'd trust him with my life a thousand times over."
Michio didn't expect anyone to respond. He just nodded and looked on while a white light filled the chamber. Everyone gasped in shock when it was obvious that he'd vanished.
"Whoa!" Jocelyn squealed. "Whooaa!"
"Flaaaa!"
"Where'd he go?" June asked as she, June, Takeshi, and Jay examined every inch of the chamber.
"Well, you said it's like the Pokémon transporter, so that means he was transported to the other machine," said Soledad. "Because that's how they work in the research lab."
"Correct," said Serena. "The other machine is at our house. Any minute Clemont will return and bring back something to prove he was there."
The machine made a 'ping' noise. Everyone watched as another white light filled the capsule. This time when the light faded, Clemont was back inside. As he opened the door, the children bombarded him with questions, which he answered as quickly as possible.
"What did it feel like?"
"Did it hurt?"
"How long does it take?"
"Did you really go to your house?"
"What did you bring back?"
"Whoa calm down," he told the group.
"Yeah guys, give him some air," said Ash.
"To answer your question, June, it doesn't really feel like anything, so it didn't hurt. Amber, it only takes a second. And Jocelyn, I did really go back to my house. I brought back this daisy to prove it." Clemont handed her the flower. "Yesterday someone sent Serena a bouquet of daisies for doing so well in her latest performance. We had them out in a vase on the counter."
"Wow," they sighed in unison.
"I want to ride!" Jocelyn cried for the fifth time.
"Flaaa!"
"He said I could go first," Amber argued.
"And you may, but first, let's eat," said Serena.
"We have lots of food: yakisoba, yakitori, udon, and ramen of course," said Misty. "Jessie, James, Meowth, Brock, Clemont, Cilan, and Serena made it."
"You really didn't have to do all that—but we fully appreciate it," said Annastasia.
"Thank you so much," June bowed.
"Yeah, thanks," the other replied.
"Meowth, did you cut the ramen?" Jay asked as they entered the kitchen.
"Of course," Meowth replied. "Cuz I'm the only one 'round here dat can do it purrfectly."
"Ah, a pun," Annastasia sighed happily. Again, Michio sniggered at this. "What?"
"You're easy to impress," he replied.
"It's actually harder than you think."
"Making a stupid pun or impressing you?"
"Either both or neither."
"What?"
"Pii," Scarlett sighed.
"I know," Annastasia said as she patted the Pikachu.
"What?" Michio repeated.
"Let's eat."
"Okay, sure…whatever."
Everyone took a plate, filled it with food, and then found a seat somewhere in the house. Ash and Misty's home was only one floor, and they didn't have a lot of furniture or extra space.
"It's too cramped for comfort," Michio mumbled as he got into the line for food.
Only Annastasia and Scarlett heard him.
"Frontier Brains and Gym Leaders don't make a lot of money," she whispered.
"But they're supposedly famous," Michio replied.
"They aren't fond of making appearances for money. For as long as I've known them, I recall them saying they'd rather have freedom and privacy than the high-life."
"High-life…a pun?"
"No, I mean they value stuff that isn't fame and fortune."
"Annastasia, Lexi, Nolan, Rita—we really appreciate what you're doing for the kids," said Misty.
"Don't mention it," said Lexi.
"I'm having fun," said Nolan.
"Ditto," Annastasia replied.
"And I'm looking forward to the road ahead," said Rita.
"It has been so strange without you here," Misty told. "We missed you."
Ash's Pikachu and Pip rubbed their cheeks together affectionately. Amber told her parents and the others about all her battles and new Pokémon. Like Ash, she used a lot of words like 'wow' and 'awesome' and 'so cool' to describe her adventures, and she spoke using her hands and a lot of adjectives. She also talked about how she had been using her bow and arrow to get fruit off the trees and to help capture Pokémon. Next up was Jocelyn, who in a very similar manner of speaking, talked about all the cute Pokémon they found and exposed some of the embarrassing things she witnessed since she had been traveling with the older kids. Lily and Logan helped with this brazenly. The rest of the conversation was mostly about random things between the kids and their families.
Michio stood towards the edge of the group, against one of the walls. Annastasia sat closest to him and Scarlett. Bleu and Lil-G were sharing her food with her.
"This food isn't so bad," Michio mumbled.
"Have you eaten yakitori before?" she asked.
"It's not a thing in Aolepilikia."
"Pikapikapi?" asked Scarlett.
"Aolepilikia is the village near your estate," Annastasia inferred. "It's been a while."
"It's where most of our cooks live," Michio replied. "What do you mean 'it's been a while'?"
"I had to go there for a mission once. Aolepilikia is nice. I can see how you miss it."
"I didn't hang out there. Like I said: it's where our cooks live."
"Well, you're missing out."
Before Michio could respond, James came and sat next to them. Michio walked away so that she and James could talk alone.
"It sounds like it's going well," said James. "Even with Michio."
"The kids have been wonderful, and Michio…I think he just needs people to listen."
"I don't understand."
"I think he's keeping a lot inside."
"Well, if anyone can know that it's you. What are you going to do about it?"
"Just let it ride."
Annastasia told her father about Giovanni's assignment and how Rita planned on hanging around them for a while.
"After tackling the Cerulean City Gym, we're heading to the Coral Gym on the outskirts of Valencia City," said Annastasia.
"Richie's place. Isn't that also a water-type gym?" James asked.
"It's beach-themed—features many tropical Pokémon, not just water-types."
"You really have this all figured out."
"Not 'all' but certainly most of it."
"I love you so much Annastasia, and we really miss you. We think about you all the time. I can't wait for us to be together again. This is the first time you have been away for so long, ever since you were a baby."
"I miss you too—but I'm not a baby."
James lowered his tone and leaned in so that only Annastasia could hear him. "Speaking of babies, I have something I want to tell you…"
At that moment Jessie, Alex, Jay, Lucy, Meowth, Lily, Logan, Jocelyn, and Flaafy interrupted them. Their family dragged them towards the rest of the group.
Meanwhile, Michio sat alone watching Scarlett play with Pip and Ash's Pikachu. He didn't notice Rita and her Zorua sneak up behind him.
"So," Rita started, tapping him on the shoulder. "Bored?"
"Not bored enough to talk to you," he retorted.
"Why're you so nasty? It's such a waste for a guy to look good but act mean."
"I like being mean. Why do you have to be so pushy?"
"Some people need to be pushed…besides, I'm not pushy; I'm just making sure I leave an impression."
"Okay, impression left, now go away."
Rita and Zorua giggled, pissing Michio off further.
"If you decide you want me, just know that I will be around," Rita whispered. "All night. Find me."
Rita looked around for someone else to talk to while Michio looked for a spot to be alone. It wasn't because they were Kantonians—he hated all crowds. The idea of being in such close contact with other people and then being asked a bunch of questions was annoying and overwhelming. Scarlett joined him on his quest to find peace. After surveying half the property, he spotted something he had hoped would eventually resurface.
"This again," he whispered to Scarlett. "She did this before—come with me."
"Pi," Scarlett agreed.
Lil-G yapped defensively as Michio and Scarlett approached Annastasia, who did not indicate in the slightest that she had noticed. Lil-G knew better than to attack, so she just eyed Michio and Scarlett as they observed her.
Annastasia was sitting cross-legged on the ground with Bleu halfway on her lap. Her eyes were squeezed shut she was biting her lip. It looked like a meditation—a painful one.
He debated with himself, wondering if he should find someone to help. His instincts told him to stay there. He put both hands on her shoulders and tried to encourage her to get up.
"Uhhh Annastasia?" he asked. "Can you hear me?"
"Pikaaa," said Scarlett.
"Ruuu up," Lil-G told Scarlett.
Annastasia didn't move, because as usual, she couldn't tell who was there and what they were doing. The visions and noises in her head became more powerful and concentrated.
Scarlett placed a paw on Annastasia and looked up at Michio.
"No!" Michio gasped. "Don't do it—"
Scarlett shocked Annastasia. Annastasia groaned, then blinked at the three Pokémon and Michio, literally shocked and confused.
"Did…did…you…electrocute me?" she asked Scarlett.
"Pika!" the Pikachu cheered.
"I didn't tell her to do it!" Michio defended. "What the fuck was that?"
Scarlett jumped into Annastasia's arms and rubbed her face against her lovingly.
"Michio, what…just…happened….?" Annastasia stumbled.
"You looked..." he started, unsure of what word to use. Possessed? Half-dead? In pain? That would work. "It looked like something was hurting you…I think…you couldn't move or hear anything. But I have a feeling you know what just happened. There is something you're not telling me."
"It worked. Thank you so much, Scarlett."
"Pika Pi," Scarlett said as she snuggled closer to Annastasia.
"What the fuck?" said Michio.
"When Scarlett shocked me, it worked. I've spent hours like that before. Sometimes it only takes a few minutes, once it took five hours, but most of the time it is somewhere in between," she explained, though Michio still had no idea what she was referring to. "I never thought of using electricity before."
Bleu helped Annastasia to her feet. She grabbed onto Michio's shoulder for support, not caring whether or not he minded. After she steadied herself, she started walking towards the bathroom so that she could check her hair before everyone else saw her. Lil-G, Bleu, and Scarlett followed her. Michio cursed silently and followed after her.
"That's it? You aren't going to tell me what just happened?" Michio asked desperately. "You can't just do that!"
"I can do whatever I want," Annastasia retorted. "It's no big deal. Just forget about it. Thank you for helping me; It was…nice of you."
Annastasia turned away. Scarlett climbed onto her shoulder.
"I wasn't being nice," he grumbled. "Scarlett? Come on! You're taking her side?!"
"Pi," she nodded.
"Something's up. Something's been up this whole time!"
"Leave me alone," Annastasia demanded.
Scarlett jumped between the two of them and cried as if she just wanted them to get along.
"What's the matter?" Annastasia asked Michio. "You don't want anyone to know that you're genuinely considerate?"
"No…"
"I'm fine. This is just a thing that happens. I can handle it—so drop it."
Michio was angry that she was acting so casual as if this was a normal thing. He was about to grill her some more when Rita and Zorua came from the other room.
"There you are!" Rita exclaimed. She pulled Annastasia towards the other room, adjusting her friend's hair in the process. "I was wondering where you were, come talk to me."
"Sure," Annastasia smiled.
Rita smirked at Michio, then pretended to be shocked to see him there.
"Well, well…why do I have the feeling that this isn't a date?" she asked as she clutched Michio's arm.
"Because it's not," he replied.
"Not really," Annastasia added. "Michio, I'll see you later."
The girls and Pokémon left him alone. He was angrier and more confused than ever, and now he didn't have anyone to rant to.
He couldn't get the image of Annastasia's trance out of his head.
After turning a corner, Michio was met with the mini harbingers themselves: Amber, Jay, and the rest of the junior Rockets.
"What's the matter?" Jay asked, genuinely concerned.
"Ask Annastasia," he grumbled. "If she's in the right mood, maybe she'll tell you."
"I was worried because I thought she was having a—um, well, anyway, I was just wondering where she went."
"With Rita."
"Then they're probably outside," Amber reasoned. "Let's check."
Michio finally found some peace in the Ketchum's small basement.
"Piiii," Scarlett squeaked as she climbed onto his lap.
"Thanks for coming back," he told the Pikachu.
"Pi."
Scarlett's affection forced him to recall the Pokémon he left in Alola. It made him angry to realize that there was a real possibility that he may never get to see them again. He closed his eyes and tred to forget what just happened. Michio noted how with few exceptions, the electric rat seemed to be attached to him more than anyone else.
"You remind me of Peruva," he told Scarlett. "Unless I make it through this entire fucking journey, I may never see any of my rare Pokémon ever again. Doesn't that suck?"
"Pi," she said sympathetically.
'I'm seventeen too,' he thought to himself. 'Why's she the boss? I'm just as good—better—at battling, and I don't have that… whatever that was that she had.'
"This is a game changer," he whispered.
"Pika?" Scarlett questioned.
"Annastasia thinks that she holds all the power, but that isn't true. She still thinks that she is just so God-damned special and that she can use manipulation to control me. If I follow her rules, there is no way to win. I have to change the rules and do this my way. It's the only way."
"Pikachu pika pi."
Scarlett wasn't confident in his idea; she wasn't even sure if it counted as a full idea.
"You'll see," he responded. "I just need some time to think."
A few minutes later Annastasia found Michio again.
"Are you ready to leave for the Pallet House?" she asked.
"Just stop," said Michio.
"Excuse me?"
"You act like everything's normal between us, but it's not, and it's pissing me off."
"This is who I am. If I'm not the type of companion you'd prefer, that isn't my problem—it's yours."
"I need you to be fucking straight. One minute you're all 'you can trust me I'm so sweet', then something weird happens and…I don't get it."
"If you were me, you'd understand."
"Well, I'm not you, so I don't."
Annastasia took a deep breath and rubbed her temples. "Okay, perhaps we do need to talk, but not here and now. We have to leave. Amber and Jay are staying here, everyone else is coming back to the Pallet House. My parents are waiting for us, and they have my little old cousin with them. They need to put him to bed soon, so let's go."
"Fine, come on Scarlett."
"Chuuu," Scarlett sighed as she followed Michio and Annastasia down the hall.
"All ready to go?" James asked when Annastasia and Michio joined them outside by the car.
"We should do a head count," Annastasia responded.
"Go for it."
James lifted Alex and buckled him into his car seat. He stared at Annastasia and Michio curiously.
"Anna-sta-ya?" he asked after she finished counting. "Coming?"
"Yep," she said. "Me and Michio and allll the others. "We will have lots of fun the next few days."
"Yessss!"
"Thank you for letting us stay with you," June called from the backseat.
"No problem, twerp," Jessie replied.
"Just no late-night antics ok? We need our beauty sleep," said James.
"Okay," the children responded in unison.
"We'll see," said Amber.
"Amb, really? I need my beauty sleep too," Jay replied.
"Dang, you're beautiful enough."
"Awe."
"If I find another arrow stuck to my bedroom door, you and your accomplice will be sleeping outside," Jessie said as she looked to Amber and Jay.
"I never have anything to do with that," said Jay.
"Why do you always assume it's me?" Amber said as she slid the bow out of view.
"Amber and Jay have been model citizens," Annastasia assured her. "No arrows will be stuck in anything they're not supposed to be stuck in."
"Aye," said Amber and Jay together. "Jynx!"
XO
When they got to Pallet, Lexi and Nolan went their homes down the street while everyone else went to the hotel. Annastasia joined them since her bed had been given to Alex for the week.
Annastasia was brushing her teeth when she heard a knock at her door.
"Hi, Rumika," Annastasia said as she opened the door. "What's up?"
Rumika gave her a side-hug. "Can we talk?"
Lil-G and Bleu sat beside them on the bed. After several minutes of small talk, Rumika told her about the monster fusion: how powerful it was, how ugly, and how it kept on escaping from its Masterball.
"I'm worried there's more like that one out there," Rumika finished.
"Is there any way of getting even under temporary control?" Annastasia inquired.
"Tranquilizers. If it's calm it's defenseless—when it's awake it's impossible to coexist with anyone: humans, Pokémon, or animals."
"Other fusions?"
"We don't want to risk putting that fusion near the other fusions because if it has a way to communicate with them…another dangerous can of worms."
"When you first laid eyes on it, it was in the center of a room, being observed by a dozen scientists. They must have been controlling it somehow."
"That's been on my mind since we captured it. They weren't using any type of technology we could find—when we sifted through the goods taken from the base, nothing seemed to fit even remotely."
"Perhaps they were using another Pokémon, like a Drowzee, that kept it civilized."
"We considered that but we're almost at wit's end with that idea."
They took a few minutes pondering the situation silently. Annastasia could tell Rumika needed something from her, but even a master aura reader can't pick out details.
"Are you telling me because you think there's something I could do about it?" Annastasia finally asked.
"Not specifically," Rumika replied. "But you're still a part of Team Rocket, even though you're on maternity break with your seven spontaneous preteens…you should know what's up."
"Well, if you think of a way I can help, will you tell me?"
Rumika hesitated. "Yes, I will. Goodnight."
"Goodnight and good luck."
"Ditto."
Annastasia closed the door. Several minutes after Rumika departed, someone else came to her door.
"Michio? What do you need?" Annastasia asked, bewildered.
"Um, I don't need anything," he mumbled.
"Then why are you standing outside my door in your underwear?"
Michio heard several of the kids getting ready for bed in the surrounding area stir. Michio turned red and leaned forward to cover her mouth with his hand.
"Don't talk so loud—and boxers and a t-shirt aren't underwear," he whispered.
Annastasia rolled her eyes and moved his hand from her mouth. "Just come in. Quickly; I wanna go to sleep."
Michio followed her into the room. Lil-G yapped until he petted her. Annastasia sat on the bed and Michio took the chair from the desk and moved it to face her directly.
"So, tell me why you're here," Annastasia yawned. "I thought you hated me or something like that."
Michio shifted in his chair and then stared her directly in the eyes for a split-second before turning away. "There's something up with you. I think you should tell me."
"No thanks."
"I can't figure you out. You won't leave me alone when I want to be alone but then when I have a question you won't give me the time of day. It's not fair."
"I said I was going to treat you just like everyone else, and that is what I'm doing. I was literally hired to keep you in line and to make you humbler. By definition, I'm your authority. So, you have to leave me alone or there is going to be problems."
"What about that whole 'I'll be your friend' shit?"
"I never said we couldn't be friends. There are limits though. Besides, you declined. I remember you said something along the lines of ' I don't need friends'."
"Fine, I'll stop bothering you."
Michio had no real intentions of giving up. Annastasia sensed this, but neither of them commented on it. Michio pushed the chair back into the desk.
.
"Goodnight," he said, his tone unconvincing.
"Goodnight," Annastasia replied.
Michio shut the door and headed towards his room, which just happened to be next door.
"Tarrrri?" Bleu asked.
"I don't know why," Annastasia told the Pokémon. "But I'll let you know when I figure it out."
XO
AN: Please let me know what you think in reviews and enjoy your life :)