Hey Everybody! This can't be, can it? A new chapter after only two weeks? Y'all better Google it, because I think this is mentioned as one of the signs of the apocalypse, along with Adam Sandler getting an Oscar. Ha,ha. But seriously, I am so glad that I am able to bring this to you guys after having such a poor on-time record. I hope this at least partially makes up for all the sleepless nights you've surely suffered wondering if I was going to update or not. I will not lie though. This chapter was difficult to write. I mean, I'm very happy with the end result, but to give you an idea of how hard this was for me to complete, I actually finished this last week. That's right, I almost had a new chapter up after only a week. However, I could not stand to send it, because it was just not up to par, so I went back and rewrote all seventeen pages, and though I'm much more satisfied with this version, it was difficult to grind out along with schoolwork and other stuff. I'm still not going to tell you anything specifically about what passes in this installment, but I will say that even more happens this chapter than did in the last. So please, read and REVIEW PLEASE!
Actually, speaking of reviewing, I want to give my sincere apology to my reviewers from the past couple of weeks. I am truly sorry for not writing you back and expressing my gratitude for your input. Believe me, I took all suggestions into consideration. However, as you just read, this has been a hectic two weeks trying to get this sucker published. Please, please forgive me, and review this chapter. I promise to respond to all reviews for this installment.
Okay, one more matter of business before you read the chapter. I owe licoricejellybean my gratitude. Again, there is a lot of Misty-Dawn dialogue in this chapter, and once more she has taken my jumbled mess of a conversation between the two girls and turned it into something legible. Not only that, but she was up until the early morning hours completing her editing of this chapter…not because she had procrastinated, but because I had been selfish enough to ask her yesterday to have it done by today. That's right, I didn't even give her twenty-four hours to work on this, because obviously she has nothing else more urgent or fun on her agenda to do. Okay, LJB, you're off the hook this week from my scathing criticism…but wait until next chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any of its affiliated companies including, but not limited to, 4Kids, The Pokemon Company, Game Freaks, or Cartoon Network. The characters written within this fic are soley based upon the fictional characters created by these companies, and the story is not meant to, nor will it, receive any monetary funding.
Characters' Ages:
Ash: 17
Brock: 21
Misty: 17
Dawn: 14
Delia: 40
Oak: 55
Gary: 17
"W-what?" Dawn asked blankly, assuming she had misheard the redhead.
"You heard me," Misty insisted heatedly. "Do you like Ash or not?"
"Uhhh…well, th-that's kinda personal, dontcha think?" Dawn asked, playing for time as she quickly tried to discern the Gym Leader's intentions. The suddenness of Misty's disconcertingly probing demand meant she was ill-prepared to conceal her emotions, but Dawn was determined not to give anything away.
"It's not personal," Misty responded sharply. "You've been acting weird around Ash ever since I came back, and I think I deserve to know why."
"It is personal," Dawn shot back, her face beginning to flush angrily. She was not one to indulge in aggressive discussion frequently, unlike her redheaded counterpart, but such aggressive questioning in relation to Ash was bound to provoke her dormant temper. "And it's none of you're business! You're asking about my personal feelings for Ash, and that's between me and him. And just because you've been acting weird around him lately doesn't give you the right to start banging on my door in the middle of the night, demanding to know things that have nothing to do with you!"
Misty gritted her teeth, ignoring the guilty feeling swirling in the pit of her stomach. Dawn was right; her private hopes and emotions were none of Misty's business. However, this was different. Misty had to know.
"Besides," Dawn continued snootily, before Misty could speak up. "Why do you care anyway? I thought you and Ash were just friends." She crossed her arms and glared fiercely up at the older girl.
"We are just friends!" Misty interjected defensively, endeavoring to keep her expression neutral in the tide of emotions threatening to overtake her. She was acutely aware of the danger of revealing her true feelings for Ash to Dawn, and the last thing she wanted was for her apparent rival to discover such lucrative information.
"Then why did you wake me up just to ask me how I feel about him?" Dawn questioned triumphantly.
Misty paused, narrowing her eyes. "You weren't asleep!" she exclaimed scornfully. "I heard you say goodnight to Ash just a minute ago when you went by his room!"
"You did?" Dawn began, momentarily dismayed by this surprising bit of information. "Wait a minute! How did you know that I said goodnight to Ash? Your room's on the whole other side of the hallway, and I didn't see you anywhere near me!"
"Uhhh…" Misty began awkwardly, rapidly trying to conjure an explanation for her apparently excellent hearing. She had forgotten the fact that she wasn't meant to have heard Dawn's final farewells to the black-haired trainer.
The Coordinator narrowed her eyes, glancing critically at Misty's attire. "Why are you so dressed up Misty?" she asked, determined to get the reason this time.
Misty sighed, wishing that she'd stopped long enough to get changed instead of barging into the Coordinator's bedroom so incriminatingly dressed. There was no way she could talk herself out of this one, and given Dawn's dangerous previous inquiries, this was not information she desired to share. "I was talking to Ash," she relented unwillingly.
Dawn's face paled. "You were in his room?" she demanded in a shrill voice.
"Yes," Misty said slowly, carefully watching Dawn's reaction. The Coordinator's expression was a mixture of shock and horror, and Misty watched as her rival swallowed sharply.
"What were you doing in there?" Dawn continued, lifting her chin stubbornly as she tried to keep her tone steady. She was almost too afraid to ask such a question, but she wasn't about to let Misty know that.
"We weren't doing anything," Misty responded, sounding indignant. "I don't need a reason to go to and see my best friend, you know!"
"Okay then - why were you in his room dressed like that?" Dawn insisted, indicating Misty's outfit.
"I was showing him the dress I'd wear to the party if he decided to choose me," Misty explained, trying not to sound too pleased with herself. She considered divulging the information of Ash's choice, but opted against it.
I'll let Ash tell her. It'll be easier for her that way.
"So you just suddenly like him?" she questioned rudely, sounding incredulous.
"That's personal," Misty bit back acidly, smirking triumphantly down at her younger counterpart.
Dawn's eyes widened and she stepped backwards, immediately understanding the weight behind Misty's provocative remark. Misty paled, watching Dawn's reaction and wishing furiously that she could snatch back those last few words. She hadn't realized just how revealing they were.
However, Dawn wasn't interested in discussing what she already knew. "You already told him that you like him?" she asked urgently, not caring if she sounded desperate. Had her and Ash already professed feelings for each other, and she had just been the naïve, oblivious third wheel?
"Well, not yet," Misty muttered, still furious for herself for being so careless.
So there's still time.
"Why did you wait till now to decide to tell him how you feel?" Dawn demanded, though she was immensely relieved to hear the Gym Leader's answer.
"That's none of your business,' Misty shot back heatedly.
You had six years to tell him, Dawn estimated sardonically. And you suddenly decide that now's the time to tell him… just when you realize that someone else is interested in him too?
Dawn smirked up at the older girl, beginning to understand exactly why Misty was so desperate to make her move.
Looks like someone can't handle a little competition.
"Well, good luck with that," she replied mockingly as she began to close the door, but Misty wasn't giving up so easy. Her arm shot out and grabbed the handle before the door could close in her face.
"You never answered my question," the redhead insisted stubbornly. She'd come here to quit the mind games and she was going to get a straight answer; whether Dawn liked it or not. "Do you like Ash or not?"
Dawn raised her eyes to Misty's, staring challengingly up into the Gym Leader's face. When she spoke, her voice never wavered.
"Yes."
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Several hours later, Ash's head was spinning as the Dragonite finally seemed to land. He'd been lying horizontally facedown upon the beast for at least an hour, and had long since lost his bearings on which direction he was flying. He had tried several times to sit up, but every time he did, the Rocket grunt supervising him would threaten to knock him off. Seeing that they were hundreds of feet in the air, Ash opted to remain quiet until he was at a more advantageous angle to rid himself of the Rocket member.
As he felt the dragon Pokémon make contact with the ground, Ash decided to make a run for his life. Sliding off the Dragonite and falling hard upon the cement beneath him, Ash quickly stood up, removed the cloth which had been suffocating him the entire ride, and began to sprint away. However, a vine quickly grabbed a hold of his right leg, and sent him plummeting to the ground in a heap before he made his escape. Grunting from the pain, he looked back to find that the Rocket member had called upon a Tangela to stop the champion with its Vine Whip. Ash was lifted into the air, and from where he hung he could see a car driving towards him.
"Grunt number three to base," reported the man wearing a black Rocket uniform and dark hat over his eyes. "We have the prize."
"Roger, Grunt," replied a muffled voice over what sounded like a walkie-talkie. "The car should be there momentarily. Be prepared to use force if necessary, but remember what the boss said."
"I know, I know," the grunt answered tiredly. "Don't hurt the idiot."
"Over and out."
As the black car neared him, Ash looked in vain at the windshield, hoping to catch a glimpse of the driver. Unfortunately, the glass seemed to be tinted, and the headlights were far too bright in the dead of night to look very long upon the automobile.
"Put him in and hurry," ordered a feminine voice from inside as the car came to a screeching halt. "The boss wants this done quickly."
"You know what to do Tangela," the man behind Ash said, as the trainer was flung closer to the car. The grass Pokémon halted his approach just a few inches in front of the door, with which Ash had been expecting an impact and had braced instinctively for. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ash saw the door open upwards suddenly, and felt his body shoved into the vehicle swiftly. Before he had time to react, the door slammed shut, and the car's wheels screamed against the pavement once more as the driver accelerated down the road.
What the –
"Don't bother trying to escape, Mr. Champion," came a voice from overhead. There was a wall between the backseat and the front, so he could not see who was talking to him. "These doors have all been locked from the inside. I suggest you just sit back and enjoy the ride."
"What's going on???!!!" Ash yelled suddenly, finally finding his voice. "Who are you, and what do you want?" He banged upon the wall separating him from the driver, but to no avail. No voice came back on the overhead, and he could hear nothing except the quiet hum of the engine.
Where am I? he wondered, suddenly realizing that he had no idea how long it had been since he'd been forced to leave his hotel. He could only imagine where Team Rocket was about to bring him.
Probably some warehouse where they'll… Ash tried not to think of what Team Rocket would do to him.
Looking out the window, he found that the glass had been tinted both from the outside and inside. Stomping his foot in aggravation, he sullenly folded his arms and lowered his cap.
Several minutes passed before Ash felt the car come to a halt.
"Get out of the car," ordered a gruff voice. The door opened and, to his surprise, Ash found himself in front of a large, brick mansion. He felt his arm suddenly gripped by the grunt.
"Let go of me," Ash demanded, ripping his arm angrily from the unknown criminal. However, a clicking sound attracted his attention. Looking down, he found the grunt cocking a small pistol.
"Which way do you wanna go?" asked the criminal, a smirk apparent under his hat. "To the building, or to the ground?"
Silently, Ash turned stiffly around and began walking towards the mansion. On both sides of the path leading to the front doorstep were large marble fountains. As he came up to the door, Ash noticed a brass Persian doorknocker.
"We're here Charlie," mumbled the grunt behind Ash. The door instantaneously swung open, and the grunt pushed Ash into the dark building. Despite its outer beauty, the inside of the structure was cold and dark. Ash could not see his own hand in the inky blackness of the building, and as the grunt grabbed his arm once again, he wondered where he was being led.
Walking, very cautiously, down a flight of stairs, Ash saw a glowing number pad on a far wall. The grunt walked directly to it and entered several numbers, forcing an unseen door to automatically open. As he was shoved inside, Ash was surprised to find the room well-lit and furnished beautifully.
Lighting the room was a crystal chandelier slightly out of his reach, to his left were seven bookshelves, all filled to the brim with various pages of knowledge. To his right was a fireplace with a green marble base and a golden hearth. Underneath his feet was a thick and soft red carpet, and directly in front of him was a large oak desk.
However, what captured his attention beyond all this was who sat at the desk; Giovanni.
"Leave us alone," he ordered the grunt, who gave a quick salute and instantly retreated behind the closing door.
"Welcome Ash Ketchum," the Team Rocket leader said in a calm, polite voice. "Have a seat." He extended his arm to the front of his desk where a single plush brown chair waited, impaled to the ground by a thick metal bar directly underneath.
"Where am I?" Ash asked, not heeding the invitation. "What am I doing in this place?"
"I'll answer all of your questions in a moment," the boss answered with a small smile. He appeared satisfied that he'd confused the teenager. "But first I must insist that you take a seat."
"No," Ash said, eyeing the chair suspiciously.
"Very well then," Giovanni said with a shrug, malice underlying his tone. "I guess you can just be locked in the attic until you learn to comply. We're a great distance from civilization out here, so I wouldn't count on being found for quite some time."
"What do you wanna talk about?" Ash asked, ignoring the last statement.
"I just have a small…business presentation I would like to give you," Giovanni explained with a smirk. "At the end, you can decide whether or not you accept."
"I'm not going to give in, no matter what you threaten to do," Ash snarled. "I'd rather die than work for Team Rocket."
"Die?" Giovanni asked, sarcastically. He feigned a surprised expression. "Who said anything about killing you? No, no, my dear boy. Team Rocket certainly has no problem with murder, but only if it's beneficial to our interests."
"So killing me's not an interest?" Ash asked incredulously.
"Of course not!" Giovanni exclaimed. "Why, if we killed you, what would we gain?"
"M-my Pokémon, for one," Ash answered. As he looked upon the powerful man, a new wave of fear began to overtake his emotions. He suddenly realized that he was giving a reason for his own destruction.
"Ha!" Giovanni guffawed while staring at the young man in his office with disbelief. "Do you really believe I want these?" He opened a drawer and placed five pokéballs on his desk. He then reached under his desk and put Pikachu, who was trapped in a glass container asleep, next to the capsules.
"Pikachu!" Ash cried, running towards the desk.
"Not so fast, Ketchum," Giovanni warned holding up his hand. Ash stopped, worried what may happen to his Pokémon. "You take one more step and I'll call security. You'll never see this…precious rat again."
"Leave Pikachu alone!" Ash ordered.
"Very well," the man replied. He pushed a small red button on his desk, and the top suddenly split in half. From the middle arose a large metallic box. "I'll teleport your Pokémon directly back to the hotel if you agree to sit down." He hissed the final two words. Though Ash was necessary for his plans, he was not a man who enjoyed bargaining with others.
"How do I know you'll even bring them back?" Ash asked.
"Please," Giovanni said with a frown. "What do you think I would want with a few measly Pokémon? I'm the head of the most powerful criminal syndicate in the world! I have more Pokémon than you could ever dream of!"
"Fine," Ash relented. He could barely believe that he was allowing himself to be ordered around by the man, but the only chance he had of saving his Pokémon was through submission. "Just let 'em go."
"As you wish," Giovanni said, returning to his lighter tone. He placed all the Pokémon, including Pikachu, in the box and closed the lid. "First, you must sit down."
Slowly, Ash took a seat in the comfortable brown leather. Immediately, though not surprisingly, his arms were bound to the chair by once-hidden metallic bands within the armrests. He didn't attempt to break loose as he awaited Giovanni's teleportation of his Pokémon.
"Very well then," the middle-aged man said with a sadistic smile as he pressed a green button on the lid of the container. The box shook temporarily before standing still once more. Giovanni pushed the red button again, and the chrome capsule lowered as the desktop slid back into place.
"Now, let's talk business."
"Fine," Ash said as calmly as he could. He couldn't help but think of old spy movies he'd watched where the hero, even in the presence of the villain, maintained cool superiority over his foe. However, as his heart raced in his chest, he realized that sounding calm was a greater feat than he'd imagined. "W-what do you wanna talk about?"
"Mr. Ketchum," Giovanni began as he sat back in his lush black chair. Though Ash's view was blocked by the large desk, he could see the Rocket C.E.O. was scratching behind the ears of some pet. "For some time, Team Rocket has been a successful business enterprise. As the head of this enterprise, it is my job to insure that we stay successful, which is why we have been so interested in talking to you."
"That's why you've tried to steal my Pokémon?"
"Yes, or at least that's why for the past several months. You see, we knew if we simply sent you an invitation, the cops would show up in your stead, but our logic followed that perhaps we could convince you to speak with us privately by-"
"Getting me to chase you," Ash interrupted, having already realized this.
"Precisely," Giovanni said with a nod. "You know, Mr. Ketchum, you're not nearly as… shall we say dense, as your youth would suggest."
"What do you mean?" Ash asked, squinting his eyes at the man across the large foundation of oak wood.
"As you've surely noted, we had a few of our…lesser agents following your trail for quite some time. Though they were apparently never successful in any of their ventures to capture one single mouse Pokémon, they were very helpful in giving us information about you."
With this, Giovanni took a remote from inside the drawer of his desk.
"What good would information about me do for you?"
"Take a look," the Team Rocket leader said with a flourish as he pointed the remote towards the bookshelves on Ash's left. Suddenly, one set of the shelves began to spin clockwise, as a large television screen opposite it took its place in the office.
When the screen turned on, Ash saw himself as a much younger trainer, wearing his original travelling clothes, with Brock and Misty by his side. It seemed he was battling an equally young rookie trainer's Squirtle with Pikachu.
"Where'd you get this?" Ash asked as his chair was suddenly spun in the same direction as the screen.
"Those morons who followed you all those years ago used our video viewers to spy on you constantly," Giovanni explained as Ash watched Pikachu emit a very weak Thundershock attack on the turtle Pokémon. "Even though they look like simple binoculars, they actually transmit all information brought to their lenses to the Rocket database where the footage is stored in our archives."
Instantly, the tape changed to more recent footage, when Ash and Treeko were training with May and her Torchic in the middle of some forest.
"Why is this important?" Ash asked, realizing that this footage, though indeed creepy, was in no way harmful in terms of blackmail.
"Because I have hundreds of expert trainers who work for me. They've gone through all the hours of footage which shows you battling and training, Mr. Ketchum, along with of course your battles at Indigo Plateau, the Silver Conference, the Ever Grande Conference, and with Cynthia. They know each Pokémon you possess, along with its weakness."
"So what?"
"So if I wanted to, I could have your position as Champion taken away in the blink of an eye," Giovanni explained, smiling. "I hope you bear this in mind as I bring forth my offer."
Just get on with it, Ash thought bitterly as he stared at his hated enemy from across the desk. Though he hadn't seen the Rocket leader in almost six years, when Mewtwo had almost been killed atop Mount Quena, he noted that the man seemed to have barely aged at all. His brown hair was still pulled sleekly back, and though he now wore a dark sports jacket with a black tie and white shirt, his crisply-ironed clothing still gave him an air of importance.
"What's the offer?" Ash asked keeping his voice as hollow as he could to show that he was not afraid, nor intimidated by the man.
"It's quite simple really. You allow us to make you the Pokémon Master, and in return I am appointed the new president of the Pokémon League."
"Wha-did you say you wanna be the Pokémon League president?" Ash questioned, stunned by the request.
"Yes," Giovanni answered, maintaining his smile. "Surprised? As you know, if you become the new Pokémon Master you will, of course, have that power."
"Why do you wanna be the president?" Ash asked, his eyebrows raised at the request. For the moment, at least, he seemed to have forgotten that he was kidnapped; instead he appeared very interested in the Rocket leader's motives for such a desire.
"I thought you would ask such a thing," the brown-haired man said with a cold chuckle, turning towards the television once more. Ash's chair turned him in the direction of the television as well.
Pressing a button on his remote, Giovanni brought a picture of a Mewtwo on the screen.
"This, as you no doubt already know, is Mewtwo. He was, arguably, the last Pokémon found on the Kanto continent."
Ash, of course, was well acquainted with the rare psychic Pokémon, and he found it intriguing that the last time he'd seen Mewtwo was the last time he'd seen Giovanni. He wondered if there was a connection.
"Mewtwo was my father's greatest innovation. He was perhaps the strongest Pokémon to be created, and he would have brought about the ultimate goal of Team Rocket, global domination, had a few glitches been avoided."
"Glitches?"
"Yes. You see, apparently my father, while a brilliant man, had not foreseen that his ultimate creation may not be pleased with its existence. With all the power it contained, my father's Mewtwo destroyed both my father and the lab in which he was created on Cinnabar Island and fled; never to be heard from again."
Ash remembered hearing this story long ago, when he was a small child. However, most people were not sure of the story's accuracy, only knowing that the mysterious psychic Pokémon existed because of its place as the 150th Kanto-native creature.
"The last time I met you, Mr. Ketchum," Giovanni continued, "we were not far from here. We were in Purity Canyon. The reason for why I, or my elite team of bandits, was there in the first place continues to plague my mind to this day. However, though my memories of the events leading to that encounter remain foggy, I clearly remember that moment in the canyon as the moment I was inspired to recreate my father's invention."
"Mewtwo?" Ash asked, his eyes wide with curiosity. He remembered that Mewtwo had wiped away Giovanni's memory before taking away the clean spring water which had revived him. Apparently, the amnesia brought upon by the psychic Pokémon had never been lifted.
"Precisely. The sheer power of such a Pokémon would make me a formidable opponent to all. However, while I was poring over the research of my father to achieve such a goal, I was continually nagged by something."
Ash, who had been turned back to the Rocket executive, was now completely absorbed in the story he was being told. Though he would not admit so aloud, the tale was quite interesting.
"I could not shake the feeling that the process which I formulated, along with my engineers and geneticists, was ultimately going to fail. I suppose it was the example of what happened to my father which guided me to this belief…though it almost felt as if I'd experienced the failure of this project firsthand already."
Ash did not really understand what the leader was talking about now, but didn't dare to interrupt.
"Anyway," Giovanni said after a moment of silence, shaking his head, "I ordered my geneticists to completely ensure that nothing was wrong with our plans for the creation of the powerful Pokémon. Though they insisted upon the plan's perfection, I continued to urge them for months, until at last they found a problem."
"What was the problem?" Ash urged, his voice giving away his interest.
Giovanni grinned and continued. "They found what we have labeled the 'Berserk Gene' in our computer prototype. Though I will not bore you with the advanced details of such a phenomenon, I will briefly explain the gene's purpose. Apparently, after so much genetic abuse brought about by significant splicing in order to give it unparalleled psychic abilities, the Pokémon becomes inherently hostile to the world around it and will more than likely be uncooperative to a human master."
Makes sense, Ash thought.
"Therefore, we have worked hard and discovered a very effective, and extremely expensive method for removing this gene from the Pokémon," Giovanni concluded. "This is where you enter the picture, Mr. Ketchum."
"How will becoming president help you take the Berserk Gene out of Mewtwo?" Ash asked, regaining his air of cool disconnection at the end of the leader's story.
"Every year the Pokémon League brings in hundreds of billions of dollars," Giovanni explained, once again turning his and Ash's seat towards the television set. Pushing a button upon the remote, a large bar graph appeared with dozens of small, colored lines pointing upward. "This graph shows the several ways in which the organization profits. Here you can see that Pokémon battle tickets actually make up a very small percentage of their total revenue. Much of their income comes from the several television stations, radio companies, and toy manufacturers that they own. Not to mention all of the money their investments have made over the last several years."
"I'm not going to help you Giovanni," Ash informed the man after a moment of quiet observation of the chart. He had heard all he cared to about the organization's plans.
"I don't think you understand, Mr. Ketchum," Giovanni began, turning Ash to face him once more. He looked at the boy straight in the eye, appearing gravely serious. "If I can create just a dozen of these psychic Pokémon, who are completely subservient to their human masters, then no man, Pokémon, or machine could stop me. Bullets and bombs would melt before the very presence of such psychic energy." The man's voice grew more excited as he explained his motives.
"The entire planet would have to bow down before Team Rocket."
"That's exactly why I won't help you," Ash responded coolly. "Besides, even if I did make you president, do you honestly think they would just allow you to give all this money to Team Rocket?"
"Mr. Ketchum, I'm surprised at your lack of awareness," the Rocket leader said, regaining his sadistic grin. "Team Rocket would receive none of the League's money. However, I believe the League would, under my supervision, take a new interest in Goodwill Management." With this, he clicked a button on the remote once more, and a plain, black-font logo reading "GM" appeared on the screen.
"Goodwill Management is a study organization dedicated to the improved standard of living for all," Giovanni announced in a monotonous tone, indicating that the line was well-rehearsed and untrue. "I think they would be a good investment for the League to venture upon. Don't you, Mr. Ketchum?"
Though he did not understand economics, Ash certainly understood Giovanni's intentions. "Goodwill Management won't be getting any money from the Pokémon League."
"I see you're still resistant," Giovanni whispered with sarcastic hurt evident in his tone. "That's really quite disappointing. I was hoping I could work with you rather than that other, quite appalling young man. Frankly, you seemed better-mannered and a far better trainer than he."
"A young man?" Ash asked, surprised once more. "Who are you talking about?"
"Why, this young man," Giovanni said, pressing another button.
Upon the screen, Paul Ikari's solemn face appeared.
"Paul???!!!" Ash yelled in shock. "Paul's working with you?"
"You sound surprised," Giovanni remarked lightly. "Yes. You see, after you defeated Paul in the Sinnoh Conference, he vowed to make a comeback and win in his next battle against you. I knew you may not be 'on board' with this plan, so several months ago I made a deal with Mr. Ikari promising him your defeat and his promotion to Master if he agreed to my plan."
"He agreed to this?"
"Quite readily, yes. He seemed very intent upon defeating you in battle. In fact, my sources have told me that he won his first battle of the Sinnoh Conference earlier today quite handily. Of course, he hasn't even received our support yet."
Ash had completely forgotten that the Sinnoh Conference had indeed begun the day before, and the preliminary battles started today to decide who continued in the tournament. It was hard for him to believe that only a year ago he had been one of several hundred trainers competing in the popular conference.
"I don't care," Ash responded stoically. He refused his mind from even considering what was being told to him. "I will not make a deal with Team Rocket."
"As you wish, Mr. Ketchum," Giovanni replied as his smile disappeared. He pushed one final button on the remote and the television returned to its original location behind the bookshelves. "You will be returned to your hotel room. Don't expect to remain Champion much longer."
Ash tried to argue, but a suffocating tiredness crept suddenly over him and his protests died in his throat. Though he could not turn his head, he heard a Gengar quietly utter its name as he began to fall asleep.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"Ash, are you awake yet?" Dawn asked, rapping timidly upon the young champion's door. "It's ten o'clock!"
"I'm up, I'm up," she heard him mutter through the door.
Dawn took a deep breath. "Can I come in and talk for a minute?" she blurted out in a rush, biting her lower lip as she awaited the answer. Dawn knew that now was not the ideal time to confess her feelings for the young man - moonlit sky and soft music being notably absent - but after Misty's revelation the night before, she knew she couldn't afford to delay any longer. If the gym leader chanced to speak to the Champion first, there was no telling how things would turn out, and Dawn was convinced that getting there first was the best chance she had of securing Ash's affections.
"We can talk later," Ash responded, still sounding groggy. "I have to get dressed."
"Well…okay," Dawn relented, somewhat relieved to hear his negative reply. She didn't wish to rush her news anyway. Also, she was now sure that Misty hadn't already spoken to him, since he didn't even seem to be out of bed. She would simply have to wait until nighttime when she could once again be alone with the trainer. "I'll see you downstairs. Me and Misty are already packed and ready."
"Alright."
Walking down the stairs, Dawn found Misty sitting atop her suitcase in the lobby. She was wearing jeans and a form fitting yellow sweater, her long red hair pulled back by a blue ponytail.
As she neared the gym leader, Dawn felt her temper begin to rise. However, she did her best to maintain a calm and impassive persona in front of the redhead. She didn't want their morning encounter to be any more awkward than it was already destined to be.
"He said he'll be down in a minute," Dawn informed Misty in a level voice.
"Okay," Misty muttered, looking at the ground. She had already pulled around the car to the front of the hotel, and hoped Ash would come soon. She wasn't sure how long she and Dawn could remain alone together.
Dawn plopped down on a large blue sofa placed next to the entrance of the hotel. Misty was seated to her left, and was technically facing her, though the redhead immediately averted her gaze towards the reception desk upon the coordinator's choice of seat.
"So…" Dawn began uncomfortably, casting about for a topic of discussion. Anything had to be better than this awkward silence. "Did you sleep well last night?"
Misty started a little at the sudden break of silence, raising her eyes and looking curiously at her companion. "Uh, yeah, sure did," she managed to reply, hoping she sounded tolerably polite. She had no desire to talk to the person who was trying to steal Ash from her. "Did you sleep well?" she pursued, trudging ahead with the conversation so as not to seem rude.
"Uh-huh," Dawn answered with a nod. "Very, uh, comfortable beds. Huh?"
"Sure are," Misty replied flatly. This was physically painful. She was not in the mood to deal with Dawn and her drama; at the moment, her thoughts were taken with a more pressing issue, and the person it concerned was due to arrive at any moment.
The two girls had just fallen back into the awkward lull of silence when Ash finally emerged in the lobby from behind the elevator doors. He looked haggard, as did Pikachu, but neither girl took notice of this for long.
"Morning," he grumbled as he came upon the young women. "Is the car ready to go?"
"Um, yeah," Misty replied, her tone vacillating between shyness and eagerness as she smiled up at him. The events of the previous night flashed vividly before her eyes and she flushed, dropping her eyes to the floor.
"Good," he responded, no sign of excitement in his features. "Let's hit the road."
"Pika," Pikachu agreed wearily. Ash had a difficult time awaking the small Pokémon that morning, and he realized that his beloved companion must have been drugged. He came to this realization upon remembering Pikachu's slumbering form when Giovanni put him on his desk the night before. It was clear that the Pokémon was still dazed as he clumsily followed the three humans out the door, and tried to climb into the vehicle unsuccessfully two times before Dawn picked him up and placed him next to her in the backseat.
"Pikachu is worn out, huh?" she asked as Pikachu lost his balance, fell on his stomach, and instantly went back to sleep.
"Uh, yeah," Ash answered, his mind completely preoccupied. In spite of barely getting any sleep, he was completely alert. However, he did not heed the chit-chat of the young woman as his mind replayed the news he received the night before. He had come to terms with the fact that he had not simply dreamed up the encounter, but he was still trying to decide how he was going to handle the situation.
"Are you okay Ash?" Misty asked tentatively as she pulled the car away from the hotel, her eyes flicking from the road to his face and back again. She now noticed that Ash was not acting as he usually did in the morning; annoyingly upbeat.
"Huh?" he asked, already entrenched in his own thoughts moments after getting in the car. "Yeah, I'm fine Mist."
Chilled by his indifference, Misty's hands tightened on the wheel and she focused on the road. All her fears over the placing of Dawn's affections were suddenly quelled as a flurry of questions arose in her head. The night before she had been sure that Ash felt the same way…but what if she'd accidentally trapped him into reacting that way? What if he'd been so stunned that he hadn't been able to think straight? Or had she simply conjured his reciprocated affection in her mind? She decided to attempt conversation once more as they pulled onto the highway, hoping that perhaps he was just a little groggy.
"So did you sleep well?" She winced at her weak attempt at conversation; apparently, was no better than Dawn at creating topics for discussion.
"Uh-huh," Ash answered mindlessly as he continued to stare out the passenger window. He rested his head upon his right palm as he looked placidly out upon the Johto region
"Did your stomach feel better after you rested?"
"Uh-huh."
Did a brick fall on your head and cause you to forget what happened last night? she wanted to ask as fear grew in the pit of her stomach. Does he even want to go to the party with me?
Dawn sat in the back seat, carefully observing all that passed in front of her. As Misty fell silent once again, her eyes worried in the reflection of the rearview mirror, Dawn could not suppress a grin. Perhaps all was not lost.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"Misty sure is acting a little weird, don't ya think?" Dawn asked as Ash tried yet another tuxedo jacket from the rack.
"I guess," Ash mumbled as he realized the sleeves were several inches too short for him. Half his forearm protruded from the dark outerwear. Sighing, he took off the jacket and handed it to the woman standing next to him.
"Did you like that one, Mr. Ketchum?" the young lady asked the champion politely as she placed the jacket back onto its hanger.
"Yeah, but it was a little short."
"That's no problem," the woman responded kindly. "Just let me get your measurement real quick and we can have that style ready for your big party tomorrow."
"Thanks," Ash said as he lifted his left arm so the saleswoman could measure its length. He was beginning to grow tired of standing in the stuffy tuxedo shop while the employee measured his every ligament, but he knew that he must look nice for the party.
"I mean, she's been acting all goofy around you recently," Dawn continued as the woman rolled back up the measuring tape and wrote something on a pad of paper she had placed next to her.
"Uh-huh," he replied, not really listening. Besides remembering to find the proper attire for such an event, Ash had thought of nothing else than the meeting with Giovanni. He wasn't quite sure whether to trust the Rocket leader or not. He'd known that Paul was an abusive trainer, as had all others who'd had the pleasure of meeting the soulless young man. However, it was hard to believe that even he would stoop so low as to join with Team Rocket.
He even seemed like he was becoming a better guy, Ash reflected as his eyes roamed a wall dedicated to bowties. Though Paul certainly wasn't huggable before their Sinnoh League match, Ash had begun to notice a shift in his personality. It was as if he was beginning to truly respect Ash's Pokémon-rearing methods.
Of course, Ash also realized quickly that just because Paul had started to understand there was more to training Pokémon than simply haranguing the poor creatures, that did not mean he was not still a bad guy. Though he'd shown more respect for Ash as their match drew closer, that deference probably did not translate into the end of their rivalry; and it certainly did not translate into the end of Paul's dream to be Champion. Therefore, Ash concluded, it was entirely possible that he did join with Team Rocket out of a mixed desire to become Champion and defeat his archrival of the Sinnoh region.
"Isn't that weird?" Dawn concluded.
"W-what?" Ash asked, shaken from his thoughts by the question. He turned to find Dawn still sitting in the blue fold-out chair, eyeing him intently.
"I was saying that she's been talking about you a lot," Dawn repeated after a sigh. "Isn't that a little weird? I mean, why would she keep talking about you to me?"
"I dunno," Ash answered with a shrug, trying to regain his thoughts. He'd originally agreed to let Dawn come along because she was usually so fashion-conscience. However, today she was much more a burden on him than an asset. It seemed that she'd spent their entire trip out discussing Misty, and since Ash hadn't listened to a word she'd said so far, he had no idea why she was suddenly so keen to discuss the third member of their trio.
"Here you are Mr. Ketchum," the saleswoman said as she reappeared from behind a large rack of suits. "This is your receipt for the tuxedo. It should be ready by tomorrow afternoon as you requested."
"Thanks," Ash said with a smile, glad to see his time in the stuffy suit shop was almost at an end. He grabbed the receipt and looked to Dawn.
"You ready to go back to the hotel?" he asked.
"Yeah, sure," Dawn answered dejectedly, getting to her feet. She'd hoped that talking about Misty would give her a chance to assess Ash's feelings for the gym leader, and thus help her decide the best way to reveal her own feelings to the Champion. However, since Ash had barely acknowledged her presence all afternoon, let alone entered into a conversation, her attempts had gone unnoticed.
As they walked out the store and down the sidewalk towards the hotel which they had consented upon staying at, Dawn decided to simply breach the subject of the party. After all, it was tomorrow evening, and she didn't want to wait until the last minute to be given the news.
"So Ash," she began carefully.
I don't wanna be too straightforward.
"Am I going to the dance with you?"
Dang it!
"Oh, um, actually I told Misty she was going with me," Ash answered, once again awoken from his reverie. Though he'd hardly had time to think about their encounter two nights earlier, he did remember his agreement to Misty's invitation.
"You did?" Dawn asked, crestfallen.
"Yeah, she came and asked me a couple of nights ago, and I said she could," he answered vaguely, oblivious to Dawn's disappointment. When she didn't reply he turned to look at her, and noticing her visible unhappiness, he attempted to cheer her up. "But the next time there's one of these parties, I promise you can go instead of her, okay?"
Sighing, Dawn muttered a "thanks" dejectedly.
So that's why she was in his room, Dawn realized. She got all dressed up just so she could take advantage of Ash. Suddenly, she felt her blood boil and her fists clench as the walked down the sidewalk.
It wasn't fair of Misty to cheat like that! Ash was supposed to make his own decision, not have others influence his choice, Dawn thought angrily as nasty thoughts of the gym leader began to race through her mind. She conveniently forgot that she had done the same thing by giving him medicine and talking privately in his room about the party. Upset as she was though, Dawn decided that she wouldn't be deterred by Misty's cheap tricks.
This isn't close to being over, she vowed as the two continued silently towards their temporal residence. Even though she wouldn't be going to the dinner party with him, she was determined not to give in without a fight.
Author's Notes: So there you have it. The next chapter will have Misty pulling a gun on Dawn…ha,ha not really (though that would be awesome, wouldn't it?). I hope everyone enjoyed learning of Team Rocket's plans (finally!), and I'm sure you all liked the Misty-Dawn dialogue. Please tell me what you thought by REVIEWING PLEASE.
Also, as was foretold by the Chinese in an ancient prophecy, here are this week's reviews:
"Victory or Death" by Templar of Honor – Okay, this guy gives awesome reviews, so I'm going to assume his story is awesome too. I actually haven't gotten a chance to look at it yet, but if his comments to me are anything to go by, then he's certainly a discriminating author with excellent writing abilities. Check this out the moment you have a chance (so will I, TOH).
"The Saviours" by Princess Tiger – I actually have read the first two chapters of this expansive fic, and thus far I really like what I've read. PT's writing abilities are second to no one's and she gives this fic (a complicated wartime Pokémon story) a grim air of realism as she sends her main characters off on a quest to rescue the Pokémon protagonists who have almost all mysteriously disappeared. PT, I promise you as well that I'll get to chapter three soon, and I recommend this to everyone looking for a deep, exciting story.
Alright, those are my recommendations for this week. I want to point out that both these fics were requested to me by their authors, so if you have a story which you think is good, recommend it to me in your review, and I'll probably share it in my next chapter.
Okay, well that's all I got for this week. Remember, look both ways when crossing the street and REVIEW PLEASE!