Chapter 10

tyuo- You're correct on that. We'll eventually get back to this plotline when it becomes relevant.

Reader- No she isn't. But it'll get better later on. I promise. Until then, it's probably going to get worse for her. Yeah.

And yeah Team Rocket. Our resident plot and conflict starters. Our lovable resident plot and conflict starters.

Boulder Family home

Brock

It had taken some convincing, but Brock managed to get Winona out of his room and to the living room where her fellow colleagues were waiting for her. In addition, he also convinced Yolanda to take everyone from the house to the Gym or go outside to play. There were some protests from some of the younger siblings, but Yolanda managed to get everyone out of the house. She and Brock had a feeling that this conversation between the Hoenn Gym Leaders wasn't going to be civil at all. Or, at the very least, devolved out of being civil.

Winona, grasping her hands tightly, stared at the coffee table ahead of her while the other Hoenn Gym Leaders were looking at her expectedly. Brock, sitting next to Winona, placed a hand on her shoulder before speaking.

"Winona, it's best that you start the conversation." Said Brock, causing everyone to look at him. "Don't worry about anything. If anything goes wrong, you have me to be there for you. Trust me." He said all this with a smile. Winona, upon hearing that, gulped a bit before looking at her old friends. Sighing, she soon spoke.

"How did you all find me?" Asked Winona, starting the conversation first with a question that she knew both she and Brock would like answered. She was confident that she had covered her tracks well and she didn't tell anyone where she was leaving. That should have prevented anyone from either the League or her colleagues from sending anyone for at least a few more weeks. So she wasn't sure how they managed to track her down so soon.

"Juan." Said Tate as he looked at Winona, who looked surprised at the mention of their fellow Gym Leader. "When we learned that you had gone missing, he asked his contacts within the Pokemon Activities Committee to keep an eye out for you." Upon hearing that, Winona couldn't help but groan at that. She had forgotten that Juan had contacts in the Pokemon Activities Committee. Being a Top Coordinator, Juan had quite a few contacts and made quite a few friends in the committee in charge of all Pokemon Contests. Thus, it stood to reason that he would ask them to keep an eye out for her when he learned of how she went missing.

"So when he learned that you were spotted in Pewter City, he told us and we went here along with Roxanne and Brawly." Said Liza as she looked at Winona, disappointment and worry in her eyes as she looked at her friend and former Gym Leader colleague.

"Brawly and Roxanne are here in Pewter City too?" Asked Winona in shock, surprised that so many of her colleagues would come for her. It touched her that they would go all the way from Hoenn to Kanto just for her. It made her heart flutter, but that quickly went away as she remembered the reason why they were here along with her.

"So, did the Hoenn branch of the League ask you to find me and bring me back?" Asked Winona as she looked at her friends, believing the League had some involvement in this. To her surprise, Norman squashed down that theory.

"They have nothing to do with us being here." Said Norman as he looked at Winona, who was stunned to hear the League had nothing to do with them being here. "We came here of our own volition." He then gave a small smile to Winona, who was still shocked at what he said. "Winona, we're your friends and colleagues first, Gym Leader's second. Yes, we came here to bring you back to Hoenn, but not to drag you back to the League and police to face punishment. We're here as your friends. And we want to help you get through this because we all know you're innocent."

"But the last time we spoke you…said those things to me." Said Winona as she remembered what Norman said the last time they met, which caused Norman to sigh.

"I meant what I said, Winona." Said Norman honestly, causing everyone to look at him in shock. "But, when I cooled off, I realized that I shouldn't have said so bluntly or left after I did so. You were in pain and under so much frustration from what was happening to you at that moment. How that Officer Jenny hurt you and insulted you. And how so much the people turned against you for something we know that you would never do. I, admittedly, was angered a bit when I heard that you just up and left without telling any of us, but I eventually realized that you thought that you needed to go by yourself to prove your innocence. Or thought you couldn't rely on your friends after what I said to you. For that, I'm sorry, Winona." Hearing that caused Winona to look at him with a smile.

"Norman." Said Winona as tears started to erupt from her eyes. She had been crying a lot, she noted, but she didn't care. "Thank you." Seeing this, Flannery went over to her friend, sat next to her, and hugged her.

"We're all sorry, Winona." Said Flannery as she embraced her friend with a smile. "If we all just have been there or helped you during this whole situation, then you wouldn't have felt the need to leave to prove your innocence. Or, at the very least, do it on your own. We would have helped you all the way. Even do all the fieldwork while you stay at home."

"You don't need to do that much." Said Winona as tears began to fall, causing Flannery to grab a handkerchief she had on her before using it to wipe Winona's tears away. "That's just taking advantage of you guys and I don't want that at all."

"No, it's not, Winona." Said Flannery with a smile as she finished. "Why? Because that's what friends do. We look out for each other and help each other out, even when it's not to our benefit." She then looked at Brock, feeling a bit of annoyance at him, but that quickly went away when she realized how much he was smiling at her speech. "Isn't that right, Brock?"

"Of course." Said Brock, recalling all the times he'd been there for Ash, Dawn, Misty, and Norman's kids when it didn't benefit him at all. Because he was their friend and he knew that they would always have his back just as he would them. "I've always been there for my friends, even when they've inconvenienced me in the past or it doesn't benefit me at all. Honestly, I was going to suggest looking for you guys so we can talk things over. See where you guys stand on Winona's case. But it seems that's already taken care of."

"You got that right." Said Liza with a smile. "The others are in the same boat as us, Winona. We all think you're innocent and we're all going to help out in proving it to the League and the police."

"And we can start now." Said Tate with a smile. "Are you ready to go prove your innocence and Gym Leader position back, Winona?"

"Sort of." Said Winona, surprising everyone. "I sort of need some help from you guys before we can go out and do all that. I was thinking of suggesting it to Brock when you guys interrupted. You see, ever since left Fortree City, I've been on a serious losing streak." She then pulled out her Gligar's Pokeball. "I don't blame my new Gligar, but we've been losing battle after battle without an end in sight. Whenever we try to take flight, I keep getting flashbacks to…"

"To what Skarmory did at the Feather Carnival." Said Flannery, guessing what the issue is. When Winona nodded, Flannery sighed. "Okay, that's definitely something we need to fix. Norman, any advice?"

"Well, being unable to battle will certainly be a problem." Said Norman as he clutched his chin. "Both right now and later when Winona gets back her position as Gym Leader. It's a problem now because we may need to battle against those that are actually at fault for what happened at the Feather Carnival and that caused Skarmory to be unleashed in Fortree City. If those people can do those things without any care to the potential deaths and destruction that those incidents can cause, I have no doubt in my mind that they'll be itching for a fight with some powerful Pokemon." Though Winona was annoyed that Norman didn't bring out any hint that he knew it was a different Skarmory that was unleashed in Fortree City and not her own, she still nodded in agreement. "And I don't think I need to explain to you all how important it is for Winona to be comfortable in battling with Flying-types." Upon hearing no questions or objections, Norman spoke up again.

"So, I think it's best that we help Winona get back her confidence and help her overcome her traumatic experience at the Feather Carnival." Said Norman before looking at Brock. "Brock, is it okay if we use the Pewter City Gym battlefield to help Winona?"

"Of course." Said Brock, unsure if this was a good idea or not, but since Winona suggested it he'll give it a try. "Though I have to ask my brother first. He may have a challenger there or even coming soon. So we may have to do it somewhere else."

"Understood." Said Norman with a nod. "In that case, let's all go. I'm actually interested in seeing what the Pewter City Gym is like and how different it is to Rustboro City Gym." With that, everyone got up and proceeded to go to the Gym. Unbeknownst to them, a certain trio was listening in to the entire conversation. Once they were certain they got everything, the only female in the group spoke.

"So, nearly all the Hoenn Gym Leaders are going to be in one spot." Said Jessie, her long dark-pink hair in an almost snake-like hairstyle. "Oh, this is so juicy. All their Pokemon ripe for capturing." The three had been in Pewter City to take a long overdue break from Pokemon snatching. After their latest attempt to capture Ash's Pikachu failed, the three decided they needed to have a break to recharge and relax. Thus, they took off to Pewter City to relax and recharge their think tanks so they'll be fully prepared to take on Pikachu and take him from that twerp, Ash Ketchum, and give him to their boss, Giovanni. However, when they learned most of the Hoenn Gym Leaders were here in Pewter, well, they couldn't let such an opportunity to steal powerful Pokemon go to waste now, right?

"Didn't I tell you guys that this was an opportunity of a lifetime?" Said Meowth with a smirk. "Even if it isn't the powerful Pikachu, getting a handful of Pokemon that are used by Gym Leaders will certainly get the boss happy. Especially when some of them are Pokemon we know are super powerful."

"Well, yes, but how are we going to get all those Pokemon?" Asked James as he scratched his bright blue hair in wonder. "Minus that poor excuse of a Flying-type Gym Leader, we got five, potentially seven, Gym Leaders in one spot. How will we catch all of their Pokemon before they bring them all out and send us all blasting off? Not to mention they're all going to be in the Gym. How are we going to fit our mechs into that."

"Not to worry, my friend." Said Meowth with a smile. "I already got a plan. You see first we need to…"

Later

Pewter City Gym

"Well, this is certainly different than the Rustboro City Gym." Said Norman as he looked around the Pewter City Gym with a smile. He had been to the Rustboro Gym and he noticed right off the bat how much smaller the Pewter City Gym was than the Rustboro one.

"True, but I rather like it." Said Roxanne as she looked at the Gym along with Norman. Being a Rock-type specialist, she was intrigued by seeing the Gym of another Rock-type Gym Leader. She had to admit, she was impressed with what she saw. She liked the minimalistic and practical approach that Pewter City's Gym did with their battlefield and facility. She should take some notes and have the League potentially renovate her Gym to match some of the designs she sees in the Pewter City Gym right now. They could really help in increasing the challenge her Gym offers to Trainers.

Through either sheer coincidence or luck, Roxanne and Brawly were making their way to the Pewter City Gym just as they spotted everyone else entering the Gym. After scouring parts of Pewter City for Winona, they decided to head for the Gym for both Winona and potential clues to where she was, thinking it will help to have a local Gym Leader by their side. Needless to say, one thing led to another, and now they met up with their fellow Gym Leaders and were now in the process of helping Winona get her confidence back, having heard from everyone about Winona's battling situation.

After some discussion between them all, it was decided to have Brawly battle with Winona. It was hoped that having a Type advantage would help bring back Winona's confidence a bit and help assure her and her Gligar that they have a shot at winning. Brawly promised Winona that he'll go easy on her, to which Winona simply smiled weakly, thanking him.

Fortunately for them, Brock managed to get the Gym for this battle from Forrest, who thankfully had no challengers at the moment. Thus their usage of the Pewter Gym for this little confidence booster.

While Brawly and Winona were taking their positions at either end of the battlefield, everyone else was in the stands, eager to see what their old friend can do against Brawly. With them were Brock's siblings. When some of them heard what the plan was with Winona, they quickly spread the word to their brothers and sisters and soon all of Brock's siblings were with the Hoenn Gym Leaders, eager to see a battle between two Gym Leaders from a different region battling against each other in their own Gym. It was something that almost never happened and they weren't going to miss it at all. Even Forrest was eager to see how Gym battles were done in Hoenn, thinking it can help him with his own Gym battles. Thus, that left Brock to referee, which he did eagerly.

In a position to referee safely, Brock looked at both Brawly and Winona before speaking.

"Are both Gym Leaders ready?" Asked Brock, knowing what he said was technically incorrect but he hoped that it wouldn't be for long.

"Ready." Said Brawly with a smile while Winona gave a weak yes.

"Yes." Said Winona weakly, accusing Brock to frown.

"If you don't want to Winona, you don't have to do this. No one is forcing you." Said Brock, concern rising for Winona due to her response. Initially, Winona was coming back to her old self while they were walking to the Gym, but as they got closer, Brock noticed her getting less and less confident as they approached the Gym. Ultimately cultivating her uncertainty coming back in full force and he could see that she was quietly shaking as she brought out her Pokeball.

"It's alright, Brock." Said Winona with a smile upon hearing that. "It's just a practice battle. Nothing more. Don't worry about me. I can handle this." Brock wasn't convinced but nonetheless told both Trainers to send out their Pokemon.

"Alright, Machamp I choose you!" Yelled Brawly bringing out his massive four-armed Pokemon.

"That must have been the Machop that Ash fought all those years ago." Thought Brock as he saw the Pokemon ready for a fight. Once everyone saw the fully evolved fighting Pokemon, Flannery yelled out at Brawly.

"Brawly! What the heck!?" Yelled Flannery, annoyed at the Pokemon Brawly chose to battle Winona with. "This is supposed to help bring Winona's confidence back! Not you, showing off!"

"Sorry." Said Brawly with a sheepish smile. "But I honestly don't have any weak Pokemon on me right now. I left them all back in Dewford Town." He then looked at Winona with an apologizing look. "Sorry, Winona. I promise I'll go easy on you, alright."

"It's okay Brawly." Said Winona with a weak smile before tossing her Pokeball. "Let's just get this done. Gligar, I choose you!" Sure enough, Winona's only Pokemon came out, revealing a flying scorpion-like Pokemon on the ground. To the surprise of everyone besides Winona, the Gligar materialized on the ground and looked nervous and outright pathetic as it looked around its surroundings nervously.

"Gligar." Said Gligar as it held its claws together tightly as if to comfort itself before it saw its opponent. Upon seeing the Machamp, Gligar yelled out in horror before turning and jumping towards Winona, who caught the Gligar before it started crying into her chest.

"Oh Gligar." Said Winona as her Gligar's tail wrapped itself around her stomach. "It's okay, I'm here." As Gligar continued to cry into her chest, everyone else was looking at each other in uncertainty. They didn't consider the possibility that Gligar has confidence issues like Winona. Perhaps even more so with how scared it was.

"If you want Winona, we can cancel the battle." Said Brock as he looked at Winona comforting her Gligar. "You and your Gligar don't have to do this battle at all. I don't think it's wise to have a battle with a Pokemon that is too scared to face their opponent, even if it is a mock battle. Even more, if the trainer has an issue that handicaps that Pokemon as well as themselves." Winona just smiled at Brock.

"I appreciate your concern Brock, but this is nothing. Gligar just needs a little assurance from me that nothing will seriously hurt her. Nothing more." Said Winona before she looked at Gligar, stroking the back of Gligar's head as she spoke. "It's okay, Gligar. It's just a practice battle. Nothing more. The trainer of that Machamp is a friend of mine. He and his Machamp won't hurt you too much as the last few trainers did. I promise." Gligar looked at Winona upon hearing that, a little assured with what she said, but still unconvinced. Sighing, Winona spoke again. "I know you're still thinking about the last time we battled against another Pokemon and their trainer, but I promise you that this battle won't go as badly as that one. I promise. Besides, we have a certified Pokemon doctor here and I can tell Brawly to take it easy on you. I promise." Gligar looked a bit uncertain but nodded her head. "Thank you. Brawly, can you go easy on my poor Gligar? She hasn't had the best battling record since I caught her." Upon hearing that, Brawly slowly nodded.

"Yeah sure." Said Brawly before addressing his Machamp. "You hear that, Machamp. Let's take it easy on the Gligar, alright? It's not cool to pick on the weak, after all." Machamp nodded its head in agreement before taking a fighting position. Looking at Winona one more time, Gligar got out of her grip and went to face the Machamp, still a bit uncertain about battling. Brock was also uncertain and was everyone else, but nonetheless began the battle.

"Alright, begin!" Yelled Brock, starting the battle.

"Gligar, use Sand Attack on Machamp's eyes." Said Winona as she took the first move of the battle. Gligar, receiving the command, sent sand and dirt at Machamp's eyes. Instead of taking it, Machamp blocked the attack with his upper arms.

"Nice work, Machamp!" Yelled Brawly with a smile. "Now use Work-Up!" Machamp began flexing and strengthening his muscles, making them bulge even more than they already did. Seeing this, Gligar started to get more nervous. And so did Winona. They couldn't afford to get hit even once by a Work-Up-powered Machamp. Especially Brawly's. No doubt it got super strong since she last saw it as a Machoke. Thus, she needed to end this fight before things could get hairy.

"Gligar, use Quick Attack!" Yelled Winona, causing Gligar to charge at Machamp as it continued to get roided up. To the shock of everyone, Gligar was running towards the Machamp rather than taking to the skies and fighting that way.

"Why isn't that Gligar going up in the air?" Asked Tilly as she saw the Gligar running towards the Machamp. "Isn't it better at flying than running?"

"I'm guessing it's bad at flying or something?" Suggested Billy as Brock's younger siblings talked amongst themselves. The Hoenn Gym Leaders, however, knew what was wrong and they were worried.

"Is Winona's trauma with Skarmory's incident really that bad that any flying type Pokemon will trigger it?" Asked Liza as she looked at her brother and Norman.

"Has to be. Otherwise, Gligar would be in the air and attacking Machamp that way." Said Roxanna as she looked at Gligar worryingly as it used Quick Attack on Machamp just as it finished using Work-Up. To the surprise of no one, the Quick Attack didn't so much as scratch Machamp. In fact, the Pokemon barely registered the attack at all. Seeing this, Winona gritted her teeth in frustration before ordering Gligar to use poison sting.

Sending out its tail at Machamp, Gligar used its stinger to hit Machamp with the tip glowing purple. Again, the attack barely did damage to Machamp, who was starting to feel bad at the weak attacks that Gligar was giving him. That only increased as Gligar kept using Poison Sting after Poison Sting at Machamp only for the same effect to occur. Seeing this, Gligar eventually stopped trying and simply sat down on the ground, tears forming in its eyes.

"Oh, man." Said Brawly when he saw this, causing him to scratch his hair in pity. "This is just heartbreaking, man. No way am I going to even use the weakest attacks Machamp knows on her. That's just too cold for me." Machamp just nodded as he watched Gligar begin to cry.

"Oh Gligar." Said Winona as she looked at her Gligar as it began outright bawling. Eventually, it got up and ran to Winona, jumping into her arms and crying into her chest again.

"So, do you forfeit, Winona?" Asked Brock as he saw this, feeling sorry for the Gligar. When he heard about Winona's string of losses, he didn't expect it also had to do with Gligar being a weak Pokemon as well. Granted, Gligar didn't use its advantage in flying at all, likely because of Winona's own trauma with Skarmory. So, this just added more complications to the issue at hand.

"I have to." Said Winona as she comforted her Gligar, a bit disappointed with how things went out along with being humiliated by it as well. "I forfeit."

"Then the victory goes to Brawly by default." Said Brock, causing Brawly to sweat drop while chuckling sheepishly.

"Not going to lie, that was probably the most undeserved win I ever had in my entire life." Said Brawly, causing Machamp to nod in agreement. "No offense Winona."

"None taken." Said Winona before sitting on the ground and comforting her Gligar, who still continued to cry against her hoodie and chest, dampening them. "Oh Gligar, I'm sorry. If only you can fly then we have a better chance at winning."

"But you can't because of your trauma with Skarmory." Said Norman as he went over to Winona and the other Hoenn Gym Leaders. "Is that right?" Winona looked at Norman before nodding.

"Yeah." Said Winona as she looked at Gligar again as she remembered all the times that Gligar took flight whenever she was in battle. "No matter how hard I try to move past it or ignore what happened at Fortree City, whenever Gligar takes flight, I'm reminded of what happened with Skarmory and I just freeze up or have panic attacks. It leaves me powerless and unresponsive, allowing any wild Pokemon or Pokemon Trainers to use that against me and take out Gligar. Even when we train, I'm reminded of it all and it completely handicaps our training."

"And since Gligar needs to fly in order to make the full use of its potential, Gligar is always fighting at a full disadvantage." Said Flannery as she looked at the crying Gligar.

"Not to mention being unable to train effectively can really impede a Pokemon's growth." Said Roxanne as she looked at Gligar in pity as Brawly made his way to them after returning his Machamp. "We really need to work on this trauma Winona. We really do if you ever want to get back your position as Gym Leader of Fortree City." Winona looked at Roxanne and was about to nod her head in agreement when suddenly one of the walls of the Gym suddenly exploded, sending debris and dust everywhere. Fortunately, it wasn't the walls nearest to the Gym Leaders, Brock, or Brock's siblings nor was the explosion dangerous enough to harm any of them, but it still caused everyone to shield themselves or yelp in surprise from the sudden explosion. When the dust settled, everyone looked at what caused the explosion and were all shocked to find a certain trio there.

"Prepare for trouble!" Yelled Jessie as she got into their usual introduction motto.

"And make it double!" Yelled James as he also did the motto.

"To protect the world from devastation!" Said Jessie as she suddenly was dressed in Roxanne's usual attire for some reason.

"To unite all people within our nation!" Said James as he began digging a hole in the Gym with a shovel, wearing a construction man's uniform.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!" Said Jessie, this time in Flannery's usual attire.

"To extend our reach to the stars above!" Said James, using a pickaxe on the wall this time.

"Jessie!" Said Jessie in Winona's typical attire.

"James!" Said James, returning to his typical Team Rocket attire.

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!" Said Jessie, now in her usual Team Rocket attire along with James.

"Surrender now or prepare for a fight!" Said James with a confident smirk before their teammate Meowth came with a smile.

"Meowth! That's right! Yelled Meowth as he finished the motto along with Jessie's Wobbuffet

"Wobbuffet!" Yelled Wobbuffet doing a salute.

"Team Rocket!" Yelled Brock as he saw the trio of crooks that had pestered him and Ash for so many years until he eventually decided to pursue his dream of being a Pokemon doctor.

"You crooks again!" Yelled Norman as he saw the goons that had tried to steal his Pokemon, Ashs', and even his little girl's Pokemon time and time again years ago when Ash was competing in the Hoenn League.

"No way, dude. These guys are still stealing other people's Pokemon?" Asked Brawly in shock as he saw Team Rocket again after so many years.

"And now they're stealing other people's clothes too. How the heck did you find clothes that match mine!?" Demanded Flannery, enraged that Jessie decided to adopt her look. Oh, she was going to get it.

"First off, I look much better in those clothes than any of you." Said Jessie with a smirk, enraging or annoying the female Hoenn Gym Leaders.

"And second of all, yup. We still are." Said James. "We're Team Rocket after all. It's what we do for a living."

"Only this time we decided to take a break from trying to grab Pikachu and instead go after all you're Pokemon instead." Said Meowth with a smile. "Consider it payback for all the humiliation you bozos gave us all those years ago. Originally, we were taking a break from going after Pikachu, but having you all here presented an opportunity we couldn't resist."

"Man, talk about tenacious and stubborn." Said Tate when he learned that these three were still after Ash's Pikachu and causing trouble for the common people. "You guys have been at it for years and you haven't gotten that Pikachu at all, not to mention failing to do anything of note for years as well. Talk about being passionate in one's work."

"More like desperate and not knowing to give up." Said Liza as she brought out her Pokeball containing her Lunatone. "If you guys need another lesson on why crime doesn't pay, then I'm more than willing to give it to you!"

"Same here!" Yelled Tate as the other Hoenn Gym Leaders brought out their Pokeballs along with Forrest and Brock. The latter two were angered by what Team Rocket did to their family Gym and endangering their siblings. So, they were eager to fight Team Rocket. Rather than being worried, however, Team Rocket laughed.

"Not this time, you bozos and twerps! Because we got a secret weapon for you!" Yelled Meowth before the trio of criminals jumped out of the way for a giant magnet attached under a massive cannon. "Presenting our newest invention! The Pokenabber three thousand! What a demonstration?" With that Meowth pushed a button in a remote he was carrying and soon the cannon fired a ball of some pinkish substance. The ball hit both Liza and Tate sending them crashing to the ground.

"Tate! Liza!" Yelled Norman as he saw this. To his relief they were fine but they were struggling to get out of the ball of pinkish substance, which exploded and trapped them in some gum-like substance to the ground. They were so focused on getting free that they didn't notice the magnet activating and taking their Pokeballs away.

"Lunatone!" Yelled Liza in horror as her Pokeball was taken from her grasp.

"Solrock!" Yelled Tate as his Pokeball was taken from his grasp too. Then, before the others could do anything, their own Pokeballs were either taken from their hands off whatever hook, chain, or whatever the others used to hold their Pokeballs that allowed them to be seen outside were taken from their person. Only those that were secured in cases or in bags were safe from the magnet. But they weren't going to be safe for long because Team Rocket's sticky cannon fired more balls at everyone, pinning them all to the ground.

"Damnit!" Yelled Flannery as she was sent to the ground, being stuck in the same pile of pink glob as Brock and Norman. She tried to break free from them to no avail. Everyone else was in the same boat, even all of Brock's siblings, and tried to break free as well, but the sticky substance was too strong for any of them. Laughing at their foes, Team Rocket quickly went to whatever bags that the Hoenn Gym Leaders left behind at the stands, which was actually only Roxanne's traveling bag as everyone else left their stuff at the hotel rooms they were staying in while they were searching for Winona, grabbed it and began leaving the Pewter City Gym.

"Thanks for the Pokemon, losers!" Yelled Meowth with a smile as he collected the Pokeballs they snatched from the magnet along with James.

"This bag is tacky, but the contents surely won't be!" Yelled Jessie before taking off once James and Meowth collected the other Pokeballs. In just a few minutes, they were taking off in their hot air balloon, celebrating their victory.

"No!" Yelled Norman as he saw Team Rocket getting away. "We got to stop them! Does anyone have any Pokemon left!?"

"They took all of mine." Said Flannery, annoyed that Team Rocket got her Torkoal, and both of Magcargos. "Damnit. Knew I should have brought a traveling case for my Pokemon."

"Can you not say any foul language in front of my siblings." Said Brock, his big brother instincts kicking in. Flannery gave him an annoyed glare, but he ignored it as he tried to bring out his own Pokemon. Fortunately, he still had Croagunk's Pokeball so he just needed to bring him out and they're all free. He had been planning to deal with Team Rocket with Steelix when they used their new invention, capturing them along with everyone else's Pokemon. Struggling to get out Croagunk's Pokeball from his pocket, Brock eventually sighed in defeat. The sticky substance Team Rocket used was strong. Strong enough that he couldn't move an inch at all. It was only through luck that the side of his pants that had Croagunk's Pokeball in one of his pant pockets was out in the free air, free from the pink, sticky substance. With this in mind, Brock hoped that he can get them all out of this predicament or, at the very least, get some help from his other Pokemon like Blissey or Sudowoodo. Try as he might, however, he couldn't move enough to reach for Croagunk's Pokeball. Sighing in frustration, he thought of what to do before realizing Winona and Gligar.

"Winona! Did Team Rocket take your Gligar!" Yelled Brock as he tried to find Winona, but his head was stuck on the ground by the sticky substance, preventing him from moving too much.

"No, but she's not going to help." Said Winona as she looked at Gligar, who was crying out into her chest as the two were embedded onto the ground on their backs and with more sticky pink substance around their front, preventing them from doing anything. Upon hearing that, Brock sighed before realizing what needs to be done.

Clearing his throat a bit, he began flirting with Flannery.

"Flannery, even with all of us trapped like this, I have to admit you still look as stunning as ever." Said Brock in the huskiest voice he can manage given the circumstances. Upon hearing what Brock was doing, everyone groaned out in annoyance.

"Dude, this isn't the time to be flirting." Said Brawly as he sweat dropped at what Brock was doing. He heard about Brock's flirty ways with beautiful women and he had to say this wasn't a good time to do it right now.

"Brock, for Arceus' sake, I'm going to beat you up when we get out of this!" Yelled Flannery as she tried to move her hands and legs to either punch or kick Brock for flirting with her again. Their Pokemon were all taken, they were trapped in some stick, adhesive-like substance and Brock insisted on flirting with her. Oh he's so going to get it when she's free.

"Your hair is as beautiful as the shiniest of rubies and your face looked like they were sculpted by Arceus himself to make you look like a god…yeow!" Yelled Brock as Croagunk escaped his Pokeball and used Poison Jab on Brock. "Unlike…me." With that Brock passed out from the pain while Croagunk shook its head.

"Croagunk." Said Croagunk before looking at everyone else. "Croa?"

"Brock that's brilliant!" Yelled Norman, now seeing what Brock's plan was. "Croagunk, can you get us all out of this stuff? Or at least get another Pokemon to help out? Surely both Forrest and Brock have more Pokemon than just the ones that Team Rocket took." Croagunk, upon hearing that, looked at everyone, puff's expanding in and out as he observed the substance, they were all stuck on. Then, without a second thought, Croagunk began making his way outside.

"Hey! Get back here!" Yelled Flannery as she saw this. "Get back here and get us out of this stuff!"

"He's likely going to get help, Flannery." Said Brawly as he tried his best to move. Unfortunately for him and Roxanne, the ball that hit them pushed them on top of one another with him on the bottom and her on top. Roxanne blushed at how close they were to one another while Brawly just tried to ignore it. "If I recall correctly, Croagunk is a fighting and poison type, right?"

"He is." Said Brock after he recovered from Croagunk's latest Poison Jab against his own trainer. "So he's likely not going to be much help against this stuff. I actually faced this stuff before back at Sinnoh. We had to use a specific spray made by Team Rocket in order to get it off us. Hopefully, Blissey or Ludicolo can find a way to get us out of this stuff without it. It'll likely wear out in time, but we need to get out of this stuff quickly if we want to catch Team Rocket in time.

"Agreed." Said Norman as he looked at the sticky substance, he was trapped in. "I still can't believe they're still going out and stealing other people's Pokemon. And they've still been attempting it since they left Hoenn?"

"Yup." Said Brock. "According to Ash, they've been trying to steal his Pikachu along with other people's even after we parted ways. Even during the Coronation series they kept at it. They're a stubborn bunch. I'll give them that."

"No kidding." Said Brawly as he looked at Roxanne's red eyes. "You think they would have given up after so many years of going after the same Pikachu over and over again, right? Guess some things never change."

"Sometimes it's good things." Agreed Tate as he tried to get free to no avail.

"And sometimes it's the bad things." Finished Liza before looking over at Winona, who was comforting a crying Gligar again. "But hopefully we can change that." Just as soon as she said that Croagunk came back with Brock's Sudowoodo, Marshtomp, and Blissey. The three were at the house sleeping or relaxing when Croagunk came barging in and told them what happened. That got the three rushing back to the Gym with Croagunk leading them.

"Thank Arceus you guys got here so quick!" Yelled Brock. "Now get us out of here!" The four Pokemon then went to work on freeing everyone from the sticky substance so they can go after Team Rocket and get back their Pokemon. As the Pokemon went to work, however, no one noticed the figure looking at them from a distance with a pair of binoculars. They were intrigued by what happened and were quite curious about what the Hoenn Gym Leaders and the Boulder family intended on doing to save their Pokemon from Team Rocket.