It was 10:00 pm by the time everyone got settled at the Pallet House.
As usual, Meowth, Lucy, Jessie, James, and Alex went to their home across the street.
"Today was a long day for you, wasn't it?" James yawned as he helped Alex into his pajamas.
"Why can't it always be today?" Alex replied.
"Because everything ends eventually. Even the really good stuff. Try to remember all the good stuff and try to turn the bad times into good times. Then you won't be sad when everyone's gone."
"You should take your own advice," Jessie said as she stepped into the room.
"I thought you went to bed."
"It's too early for me. You though, look exhausted. Must be all that child care."
"Alex, you wore me out but I like it."
She patted his back. "Go to bed before you faint. I'll finish getting Alex settled."
"It's okay...I did say I'd do it…I'm not that tired."
Jessie sighed. "Acorn, Aliyah, make sure he goes to bed. Alex, I'll tuck you in."
"Okay, Aunt Jessie," Alex yawned.
"Goodnight," James said the Eevee pushed him out of the bedroom.
As Acorn and Aliyah helped him wash up for bed, James thought about how they were billionaires with two of the most powerful Pokémon in the world, yet they were living in Pallet Town and still working for an organization that put their lives in danger. Some habits die hard, he reasoned.
Jessie's proposal about them retiring and becoming one of the mega-rich, beautiful couples that traveled the world seemed really appealing at a time like this.
James fell asleep beside Mime Jr. and Chimecho with his Pokémon curled by his feet. He dreamed of cruise-ships and private islands, all-you-can-eat buffets and donuts the size of limousines. It was the first time he had such visions since he was in his early twenties, back when he, Meowth, and Jessie were living off of stolen junk food and sleeping in the forest.
Meanwhile, Jessie brushed Alex's teeth and washed his face. Then she carried him back to Annastasia's bedroom.
"Read a story?" he asked, big brown eyes pleading.
"It's late. You shoulda been in bed hours ago," Jessie replied. "Even the grown-ups are going to sleep."
"I can't sleep without story time."
Alex started to cry.
"No, no, don't cry," Jessie begged. "I'll do it, just don't cry."
Alex grinned as Jessie turned to evaluate the pile of books that James had neatly stacked on the nightstand. She picked out a slim-looking hardcover titled The Very Hungry Caterpie.
"Is this one okay?" she asked.
Alex nodded, then climbed onto her lap. Jessie slowly and quietly read through each page. It was familiar, and a memory popped into her head once she got to the third page…
December 2016
Jessie was in a café in Cerulean City, having lunch with Misty and two businesswomen whose names she has long since forgotten.
"Jessie! Jessie!" James exclaimed, pulling his partner's arm.
"What is it? Can't you see we're occupied?" Jessie asked irritably.
James looked ridiculous. Annastasia was about a year old, and she was strapped to his chest, hanging in one of those Kangaroo-mom devices that she told him vehemently not to buy. His hair and glasses were disheveled and he jumped up and down like a little kid with a book titled The Very Hungry Caterpie in his hands.
"Look at this book, isn't it great?! I had to tell you about it right away!" James continued, grinning widely. Annastasia squealed and reached a slobbery hand towards the book, but James gently pulled it away before it was damaged. "Look at the cover!"
The cover had a shiny Caterpie decorated with sequins and glitter.
"It's great," Jessie replied. "I'm sure Annastasia will love it. Why don't you go read it to her now?"
"Great idea! We'll be over by the fountain!" He gave her a peck on the cheek and tucked the book into the portmanteau haphazardly dangling from his left shoulder. "Enjoy your lunch!"
James skipped away. A few moments later he was sitting on the concrete ledge of the fountain, reading to the infant who thus far only understood the words 'Mom', 'Papa', and 'Eat'. Though he was out of earshot, Jessie knew he was describing the pictures to her as well, as the doctor said that her eyes were not well adjusted yet. James was still dopey like that.
"So, was that your husband and daughter?" one of the businesswomen asked in a condescending tone.
"Well duh," Jessie replied.
"I thought you said your daughter just turned one. She's so little! Looks more like four months than thirteen."
"And James is…unexpected," said the other.
"Are you two feeding her properly? Anna-something looks undernourished."
"And why were those goggles on her eyes? Is she blind? How'd that happen?"
"Well, James is flighty...an accident?"
Jessie hated these people already but hated them even more when she heard one of the women make fun of James under her breath. She was about to beat the shit out of her but seeing as she didn't want to create yet another scene, instead, she went on to gush about how wonderful James was. She even exaggerated to the point of no return. Misty found this hilarious and joined in on the fun. Looking back, Misty was probably relieved that Jessie didn't resort to violent measures. It ended up being strangely satisfying.
Later those two women rejected her and Misty's business proposal anyway, but it didn't matter, she couldn't even remember what it was about. No one got away with acting like they were more important than her. Or James. Or Annastasia and James' stupid Caterpie book.
Alex was out cold by the time she had finished reading the story. She opened it to the first page, the one with no real content, and saw that James had written a note there sixteen years prior.
"Dear Annastasia and other future kids,
I hope that you like this book. I picked it out for you because I liked the pictures.
Jessie stifled a laugh. Future kids? He couldn't just leave a space and write their names later? And of course, he explained his reasoning behind the purchase. She continued to read his little note.
But I suppose it has a message too. You have to learn and grow and change a little bit before you can fly.
Jessie closed the book.
'Wow, he's deep. I had no idea,' she thought to herself.
Jessie carefully climbed out of the bed and flipped the bedrail up. When she got to her room, she noticed James snoring soundly with outstretched arms—the usual.
"I'm not that tired," she whispered in a mocking-James tone.
She moved his arms so that she could have some space to lie down. She propped her feet up on one of their fifteen pillows and rested her head on another. She looked back and forth between the ceiling and James.
"I can't believe it," she murmured to Acorn, who was resting on her stomach. "He's manipulating me."
"Eevee eve veee," the Pokémon whispered.
"I suppose it's not manipulation if he doesn't realize he's doing it, and chances are he has no idea…"
"Veee."
"Help, Acorn. Give me advice."
"Eevee Eevee eve Veee veee."
"I know that no matter what I choose things will be okay. But I don't want 'okay'. I want better than okay. If we start acting normal, that means something's wrong."
"Veee."
"I know you know: I'm just saying…"
"Eevee Eeeveee."
"Perhaps adding more chaos to this house would be good for us. James and I build our lives out of chaos and hope. It's always been that way. Neither one of us wants that to change."
"Eee, veeee."
"I don't care what Meowth and Lucy think. This'll have no effect on their lives anyway."
"Vee vee veee vee."
"I haven't made my mind up yet. I still get the last word and I'm going to take my time. I think. I have to go to sleep…I'm thinking too much …"
"Eee."
"I love you too. Goodnight."
'Even though you really didn't help,' Jessie added in her thoughts. She looked over at James, who was now snuggling with Chimecho in his sleep. 'Stupid James'
XO
The next morning James cooked chocolate-chipped pancakes. Jocelyn displayed her gratitude by singing and dancing through the house with Flaafy, Scarlett, and Pip after they downed at least two pancakes each per round.
"I didn't know electric-types were attracted to pancakes," Takeshi remarked. "Scarlett alone had like, eight of them already."
"Scarlett and I are kindred spirits," Annastasia giggled.
"I thought you never ate junk," Michio remarked.
"Chocolate-chip pancakes are A's exception," said Jay. "As long as they're gluten-free, she wants them. Usually all of them."
"Low-sugar's preferable but not a requirement," said Annastasia. "Besides, low-sugar's good for all of us; you don't want to see Jocelyn on excess sugar."
"And the last thing I want is acne. That'd add at least an hour to my morning routine."
"Sugar doesn't cause acne," said Soledad. "Jay, that's a myth."
"No, it's real alright. Wait for it: three years from now, you'll all have acne and I'll be…perfection."
He gestured to the almost flawless skin on his face as he finished the last three syllables. A moment later, Amb smeared half-melted chocolate across his forehead and nose.
"Amb, how could you?!" Jay cried as he searched for a mirror.
"How could I not?" she retorted.
"Pichuu!" Pip laughed as he and Togetic pointed.
"Even after all this time…" Jay mumbled.
"Here," Annastasia said as she handed him a washcloth. "We'll wait."
XO
As soon as Jay finished redoing his morning skin ritual, the group was on the road to Cerulean. They took the long way, hoping to catch some new Pokémon or at least raise some experience points along the way.
"I wanna catch a new Pokémon asap," Takeshi told Annastasia. "How'd you catch so many?"
"Patience. When I was ten, I only had Bleu, Lil-G, and a handful of Stage One and Two evolutions that I managed to snag for the boss," Annastasia replied. "When I was eleven, I had improved, but unlike you and your Cyndaquil, I had a many more opportunities to practice, plus I had already passed standard Rocket training, which you all won't do until later, and that is only if you decide that you want to become agents like me. I didn't get Star, my Espeon and third recurrent team member until I had been officially training for about two years. Abnoba—my Xerneas—is technically 'mine', but also not—I only summon her as needed, the rest of the time she spends wherever she pleases."
"You only have six Pokémon?"
"Right now, I only have Bleu, Lil-G, and Star on me, with just a Wobbuffet, Ribombee, and Victini chilling at headquarters who I can summon if needed, but probably won't unless there's an emergency."
"You're so cool."
"I don't have a full squad either," Rita said as she finished planting one of Giovanni's spy-bugs. "Zorua, Zoroark, Garagara, and Jellicent are the only ones with me, and overall, I only have five other Pokémon that are 'mine'. It's not all because of choice—I was never good at catching Pokémon, but I had other skills. I relied on A a lot in my earlier days."
"When I was eleven, I only had seven Pokémon by the end of my journey," said Nolan. "And none of them were evolved or passed level fifty until several weeks before I attempted the Pokémon League."
"I had six until a few weeks before the Indigo League," said Lexi. "Bulbasaur was the only one who reached the final stage of evolution."
Almost everyone was at least a little surprised, but Michio most of all.
"I thought you people were good trainers," he said.
"We're excellent trainers. We just took our time," Lexi replied.
"Friendship and Affection points are important too, and those points take time. Plus, we didn't try to keep Pokémon that did not want to come with us," said Nolan.
"But most of them weren't even rare," Michio continued.
"I want everyone in this group to understand that rare Pokémon are great, but even the rarest legendaries cannot lead you to success if you don't add hard work, empathy, and passion to your list of priorities," said Annastasia.
"Then how was Michio successful?" Amber asked. "He only cares about Scarlett, and that's probably only because she's good at what she does."
"I'm sure Michio has many Pokémon that he loves in addition to Scarlett."
Everyone awaited Michio's response, but he remained silent.
"I just really want more Pokémon," said Takeshi. "I have almost no chance of defeating Misty with just some Rattata, Cyndaquil, and an Oddish."
"You could borrow Flaafy," Jocelyn suggested. "Everyone knows electric is strong against water."
"Fla Flaafy."
"Squirtle, Squirttt," said Squirt Gun.
"Squirt Gun says he'll battle for you too," Logan explained.
"And I'll help you train," Rita told Takeshi. "We'll set two goals for today. First, let's get your Oddish to evolve into Gloom. Second, we'll get you another Pokémon."
"You think we can do all that in just a few hours?" Takeshi asked.
"Of course!" said Rita. "We just have to focus."
"Wow, thanks…where should we go first?"
"The north end of this lake has a great training spot," said Lexi.
"Can I come along?" June asked, Metapod in hand. "I want Scooter to evolve."
"Great idea," said Annastasia, winking at June.
"Sure June, let's go!" Takeshi responded brightly.
June, Takeshi, and their Pokémon followed Rita. Amber organized her arrows then dragged Jay off somewhere. Logan and Lily went on a mini-adventure, Soledad looked over her trainers' manual, and Jocelyn played with Scarlett and Flaafy. Michio dozed off in the grass.
"Lexi, Nolan—can you keep an eye on Amber and Jay for me?" Annastasia asked. "I don't want another Gyarados incident."
"Sure," they replied.
"Ooh, I wanna go too!" Jocelyn exclaimed.
"Flaa!"
"Sure, you can come," said Lexi, offering her hand.
"Yay!"
"Flaaa!"
Flaafy took Jocelyn's other hand.
"Are you sure it won't be too much?" Annastasia asked her friends.
"It's no problem," said Nolan.
"Thanks. I know I can count on you two."
"Looks like it is just me and you," Soledad said as the others walked away. "And him."
Michio opened his eyes are her comment. "You talking about me?"
"Sort of. Are you going to sleep all day?"
Michio yawned dramatically. "Yes."
Scarlett sneezed forcefully, releasing enough electricity to fry the grass in front of her. Michio promptly sat up.
"Shit…forgot her medicine…" he mumbled as he dug through his backpack.
After she swallowed the pill, Michio returned the bottle and lied back down.
"We can look for Pokémon too," Annastasia suggested. "Michio, you want to come with?"
"Nope," he replied.
"Scarlett?"
"Pika!" she said cheerfully. The Pikachu ran and jumped on Annastasia shoulder.
"Looks like Scarlett will be with us," said Annastasia.
Michio opened his eyes and sat up. "So, you're just gonna leave me here defenseless? What if I get attacked?"
"Use one of your other Pokémon," said Soledad. "Scarlett doesn't want to sit around all day."
"Fine, but if something gets me, it'll be your fault."
Michio dozed off while Annastasia and Soledad led their Pokémon through the forest.
Meanwhile, June was trying to pry Takeshi's attention away from Rita.
"I never knew you were so accomplished. You're so cool," he gushed as June silently fumed.
"Thanks, but if I didn't know any better, I'd say that for the last five minutes, you've been trying to hit on me," Rita responded.
"What? Me? No…I…I...wouldn't…"
Takeshi bowed his head and ducked behind Cyndaquil.
"See, the thing is, I do know better. I'm just letting you know now that you have to stop. Just stop now, because I will never like you like that. Neither will Annastasia. Never ever, so just give it up and move on," Rita continued. "I'm saying this for your own good."
June was satisfied; Not only did Rita call him out in such a heart-crushingly direct way, but she also caused him to blush majorly, for once she wasn't the embarrassed one. Maybe the humiliation would motivate him to stop crushing on older girls.
"I'm so sorry!" he bawled.
"There, there," Rita said half-heartedly, patting him on the back. "It's nothing personal. Well, maybe it is, but don't cry about it."
Cyndaquil offered Takeshi a tissue out of his own backpack. He used it to wipe his eyes. Takeshi caught June watching him for a moment, but they both looked away. Rita noticed this.
"Interesting," she remarked.
"What?" the kids responded in unison.
"I'll tell you when you're older. Or later if I get bored. Now we have to focus. We have goals, remember?"
"Right!"
"Okay, now let's hide. I will leave out some Pokepuffs as bait. If we wait long enough, a wild Pokémon is bound to come along. Then Takeshi and Cyndaquil, challenge it to a battle. It doesn't matter what it is. Battle every Pokémon what comes your way. You never know your opponent's strength until you battle. Now let's go!"
"Yes, Ma'am!"
They covered themselves in leaves and waited for a Pokémon to come. After about ten minutes, a Wigglytuff and Scyther came into view.
"OMG!" June whispered excitedly. "I can't believe it!"
"Perfect," Rita whispered. "There's one for each of you. I suggest you take the Scyther, Takeshi, since your fire-type will be strong against a bug-type. Is that okay with you?"
"Sounds good to me."
"Me too," said Takeshi.
"Which Pokémon should I use?"
"Bulbasaur or Raticate—whoever you feel more comfortable with."
"Bulbasaur, wanna go?"
"Bulba," she nodded.
"On the count of three, hustle," Rita instructed. "One…two...three!"
June and Takeshi bombarded the wild Pokémon. Cyndaquil used Ember on Scyther while June had Bulbasaur use Infestation on Wigglytuff.
"That's it! You're doing great!" Rita cheered.
Scyther attempted Leer, but Cyndaquil's Flamethrower was quicker. Takeshi proudly secured his newest catch.
Bulbasaur's Infestation had little effect on the Wigglytuff, who responded with Defense Curl and Cosmic Power. Bulbasaur tried to use Vine Whip, and after that failed, she nearly gave up.
"Go, June! You can do it!" Takeshi cheered.
"Yes, I can," June told herself. "Bulba—Swords Dance and Razor Leaf!"
The status move Swords Dance raised Bulbasaur's attack just enough for the Razor Leaf to be potent. After one and a half hits, Wigglytuff was too weak to battle. June captured it.
"That was incredible," Rita told the children. "I'm impressed."
"Thank you," said June. "I can't believe I just caught a Wigglytuff! I hope it likes me…"
"Scyther looks like a cool Pokémon. I wanna begin training right away," said Takeshi.
"You should ask Scyther to help train Oddish," Rita said as handed the trainers potions. "Then maybe Oddish can evolve into Gloom before you face Misty."
"I can use Wigglytuff to try to get Scooter to evolve into Butterfree," said June. "I know bug-types aren't super-effective against water Pokémon, but I bet I can teach Scooter a helpful new trick once he evolves."
"I bet you can."
XO
On the other side of the lake, Amber, Jay, Jocelyn, Logan, Lily, Lexi, Nolan, and their Pokémon teams were fishing.
"I think I have something on my line," Jay said as his bob dabbled. "What should I do?"
"Slowly reel it in," Nolan advised. "Have a Pokémon ready to battle."
"Togetic, are you ready?"
"Toge Togetic."
"I hope it's not another Gyarados…"
"Chill Jay, you can handle it," said Amber. "Think about how cool it'd be if it is a Gyarados."
As the Pokémon drew nearer, Togetic floated over the water to get a closer look.
"Toge!" he exclaimed.
"Togetic's happy about it," said Lily.
"I can't wait to see what you got!" Jocelyn exclaimed.
"Flaafy!"
"Togetic!"
Jay tightened his grip on the pole and walked backward to try to bring the unknown creature to the surface. Amber, Lily, and Logan helped him tug on the line. Suddenly the creature leaped out of the water.
"It's a Goldeen!" Jocelyn shouted. "It's so pretty!"
"Flaaafeee!"
"Goldeeeeeeen!"
"Wow," Jay sighed. "It's soooo lovely."
"Admire it later! First, you gotta catch it!" Amber scolded.
"Oh yeah. Go Togetic! Use Confusion!"
Goldeen flopped onto the ground and flailed helplessly. Jay tossed a Pokéball.
"It's in!" Jay said the moment the ball flashed. "Yes! Yes! I caught a beautiful Goldeen!"
Jay embraced Amber, Jocelyn, Lily, and Logan in a victory hug. He and Amber did their new-Pokémon pose together.
"Congrats," said Lexi. "Goldeen tend to do well in underwater battles; it'll be helpful in your match against Misty."
"You should start training immediately," said Nolan.
"I will," Jay vowed. "Squirt Gun, can you help?"
"Squirtle!" Squirt Gun replied enthusiastically.
"We'll be practicing on the other side of the lake."
"We'll come," Logan and Lily said in unison.
"Me too," said Jocelyn.
"Fla."
"I need another water-type on my team…so Imma keep fishing," said Amber.
Nolan escorted the others to the far end of the late. They met up with June, Rita, and Takeshi, and after explaining their latest adventures, decided to train together.
XO
While the others—minus Michio—trained, Soledad, Annastasia, and their Pokémon came across some Paras, Parasect, and Exeggcute. They stopped to feed them some acorns.
"Do you think I should battle them?" Soledad asked Annastasia quietly.
"I sense a peace with these Pokémon, but you can always just ask them to join us," she replied.
Soledad turned to the Pokémon and coughed. "Um, do any of you want to come with me?"
Soledad held out her hand and offered them acorns.
"They like you," Annastasia noted.
Three Paras, one Parasect, and two Exeggcute seemed to like her most of all. They gestured to her belt of empty Pokéballs.
"I didn't think they'd come!" Soledad exclaimed after she released the monz. "You're right—all I needed to do was ask. But, now I have more than six Pokémon on me and I'm only a level one trainer…won't I get in trouble?"
"We have that portable Pokéball transporter," Annastasia replied. "You'll have to send all but six of your Pokémon to the lab."
"Well, I definitely want Chary, Raticate, and Jigglypuff to stay…I'll keep one Paras, one Parasect, and one Exeggcute."
"You father will be happy to see all those new Pokémon coming into his lab."
"I bet."
Soledad introduced all her Pokémon to the rest of the group, then met Amber and Lexi near the fishing hole. Amber was reeling in another catch.
"Pip, Pidgeotto, Spearow, get ready," said Amber. "This could be Gyarados."
"Look! It's a red lobster thingy!" Jocelyn yelled as the Pokémon was dragged out of the water.
"Flaaaafy!"
"Ah, well it looks familiar…" Amber said as she scanned it with her Pokédex. "Kingler…a water-type. Spearow, wanna catch it?"
Spearow nodded and stepped forward.
"Awesome. Use Peck!" Amber instructed.
Kingler snapped its claws and hardened its shell as Spearow pecked. The bird's attack had almost no effect. Amber called out random flying and normal-type moves off the top of her head, but Spearow stuck with Peck.
"Spearow probably doesn't know any other attacks," said Lexi. "It needs more practice before it can level up and add to its catalog."
'Now I'm doing this my way,' Amber thought to herself.
Amber instructed Spearow to back down while she lifted her bow. She aimed an arrow above Kingler, who was now on the land and released the arrow, which shot out a net. Once it was trapped in the net, she threw a Pokéball. After some struggling, Kingler eventually stayed inside.
"Ha-ha, yes!" she cheered. "I gotta tell Jay so we can do our pose!"
Amber and her Pokémon dashed in the direction of the fishing hole, where she reunited with everyone else except Michio.
Takeshi was halfway through a battle between his Oddish and one of Jay's Tauros when his Pokémon started to evolve.
"Look, everyone! Oddish is becoming a Gloom!" Jay exclaimed.
"Flaafy, Flaaafy!"
June paused her battle with Soledad and Amber paused her battle with Rita to watch Oddish evolve. Jocelyn jumped up and down excitedly as the Pokémon changed shape.
"Gloooooooooom," the Pokémon moaned.
"Whoa, you're bigger than I imagined," Takeshi told Gloom. "I'm so happy for you."
"Gloom Gloo."
June joined Takeshi as he spoke to his new Pokémon. After everyone scanned Gloom with their Pokédexes, they resumed their practice battles.
"We should go get Michio and then head over to the gym," Annastasia said about two hours later. "It's already 3:00 pm and must stop by a Pokémon Center for a quick checkup first."
"I agree," said Nolan.
"Lil-G and I can sniff out Michio, then we can be on our way."
Rita, Lexi, and Nolan gathered the children and Pokémon. As they packed up their stuff, Annastasia, Lil-G, Scarlett, Jocelyn, and Flaafy found Michio still asleep in the grass, Ekans and Poliwag napping beside him.
"Waky, waky!" Jocelyn chanted as she stood in front of a sleeping Michio. "Time to get up!"
"Pikaaa!" said Scarlett, poking him in the side. "Chu chu!"
"Ekansssss," the snake Pokémon hissed irritably.
"Poli?" Poliwag inquired.
Lil-G put her paws on Michio and bounced until he woke.
"Huh, what?" Michio said. He cursed when he noticed the rest of the group watching him.
"We're moving on," Annastasia explained. "Jay, Takeshi, and June wanna battle Misty asap."
Michio stood and straightened his look, then they were off.
"On we go!" Jocelyn exclaimed. Jocelyn and Flaafy laughed and sang woefully out of tune.
"What do you feed that kid?" Rita asked Annastasia. "So hyper."
Annastasia shrugged. "Just like my blond hair, her extreme enthusiasm towards everything is a genetic anomaly."
Jocelyn sang and danced all the way to Cerulean's largest PC.
"Hello again," Nurse Joy said warmly as they approached. "How may I help you today?"
"We would like to give our Pokémon a check-up before we battle at the Cerulean Gym," Annastasia replied.
Nurse Joy and Chansey brought the Pokémon of Jay, June, and Takeshi, plus Squirt Gun and Flaafy, back towards the patient rooms.
"Wait!" June called out suddenly. "I would like…Is it okay…I would truly love to watch you give the Pokémon their check-ups…I'm interested in Pokémon nursing."
"Trainers don't ask me that often, but you're always welcome," Joy replied.
"Thank you!"
June followed the nurse and Pokémon to the back of the center.
"I wonder why June did that," said Takeshi.
"June said that she wants to be a Pokémon nurse when she grows up like five times already," said Amber.
"I forgot."
"I wish I could go see what Nurse Joy is doing," Jocelyn pouted.
"Flaaaa."
"You could've gone," Annastasia said as she tidied one of Jocelyn's pigtails. "But you didn't ask."
"Well, next time I will."
"Flaa."
AN: This was a fun chapter to write. I like doing flashbacks:) Please reviews—I love your speculations:)