Wow...it's been a year and half...in fact it's been so long, that the impossible happened. Ash Ketchum has become a world champion, and his anime run is coming to an end after all these years. I know there are a lot of Pokeshippers - such as myself - who are eating well right now, as Misty (and yes, Brock too) have returned for a final 11 episode run to officially conclude Ash's journey to become a Pokemon Master.

All I can really say, ladies and gentlemen, is that I am so sorry it took me so long to return to this. In many ways I have missed this story, and even still I intend to see it through to the end. There is still a lot of work to do here. True, Ash's journey may be over in the anime as we know it today, but the purpose of this story still holds weight. Ash's battling may have reached all new levels of hype, but his relationships (and his age) have remained forever stagnant. That, more than anything, is what I wanted to change.

So with all that said, we're back for another episode/chapter of the Sinnoh series, and though they were a long time ago, I still have anonymous reviews I want to answer.

Guest: Team Rocket's rhymes are just part of their schtick. To remove them would be like tearing their whole personality away.

Rylek196: Don't like? Don't read.

DRM210: The future of this fic has been slowgoing, but it is going! I'm glad that you're able to enjoy this story even today, and I hope to give you so much more soon!

And that's it. Forgive me for the midnight story drop, but I didn't want to wait any longer. It's time to continue! I own nothing except the story.

Chapter 77

Misty's POV

It's amazing what kind of things can lead people closer together. Even run-of-the-mill encounters with Team Rocket can turn into things that lead me to realize just how important certain people in my life are.

And in this particular instance, I'm not talking about Ash.

I've reflected on this many times already since arriving in Sinnoh, but I feel it's important to reiterate just how close Dawn and I have gotten since we met. She really is the little sister I never had, and I have this intense maternal instinct when it comes to her. Seeing her suffer in any way hurts me in ways I've never felt.

So seeing her so downtrodden over how Kenny backed out of his confession at the last minute, I just wanted to wrap her up in a hug and never let go. Then during our brief adventure with Rhyanna and her little brother Mitchell really drove home to both of us how much we mean to each other all over again.

I'm not gonna sit here and say that Dawn and I will never have our disagreements, we've already had plenty of those during our journey and I'm sure we'll have many more in the future. But sometimes it's good to have a reminder of what being siblings really means to make sure you don't take each other for granted.

Speaking of which, I really should call home again just to see how my actual sisters are doing.

Thankfully, it looks like I'll get that chance, since we're coming up on a fairly sizable town on our way to Sunyshore City for Ash's final gym match. Once we get to the Pokémon Center, I'll make that call to check up on Daisy and the others. Hopefully nothing too bizarre happens to distract me.

Normal POV

As the teens entered the town, they were amazed by the sheer scope of it. While the buildings weren't terribly impressive size-wise, certainly not on par with most of the big cities in Sinnoh, the town seemed to stretch on and on in every direction. "Wow, what a town, it's big!" Dawn said as Piplup chirped his agreement in her arms.

"Gotta agree with you there." Misty replied. "Why don't we head to the Pokémon Center first, and then we'll take in the sights and see what this place has to offer?"

"Good idea, Mist, I think the gang could use a quick recharge with Nurse Joy." Ash petted Pikachu's head briefly as they made their way to the tall building with a large 'P' on the roof, and as soon as they went through the sliding doors, Ash announced their presence to the town's Nurse Joy. "Hello there!"

Nurse Joy was briefly startled as she had her back turned to them, apparently conversing with her Chansey, but she quickly turned to face them and give them a warm greeting. "Why hello th-"

"Hi!" Then as expected, Brock barreled through to give Nurse Joy an even warmer greeting, much to the woman's shock. "It's such a treat to view none other than Nurse Joy! The viewer's name being Brock…but my journey here was fraught with hardship! Rain will not defeat me, and wind will not defeat me! But though the wind and rain fought to keep me from you, they're powerless against my love for you! Fate has grabbed me and made my dreams come true!"

"Croagunk!"

"Though Croagunk knows how to grab too!" The Pokémon Breeder groaned in agony after being thoroughly incapacitated by Croagunk, as he was once more forcibly dragged away from Nurse Joy across the floor.

"Oh dear…should I…get him something to treat that with?"

Misty waved the nurse off. "Don't even worry about it, you'll be shocked how fast he recovers from that. We're sorry about him."

"Well, all things considered, I've faced much worse in my years." Nurse Joy laughed sheepishly. "Would you like me to heal your Pokémon?"

"Yes please!" The teens all handed over their Pokémon to Nurse Joy for her to work on them.

"What about your…excitable friend?"

"Don't worry about Brock, he'll be back before you know it." Dawn turned her attention to her friends. "So, we've got some time to kill, what now?"

"Well I dunno about you, but I need to call my sisters and see how they're doing." Misty sighed slightly. "Gotta make sure the gym is still standing, y'know?"

"You really should stop underestimating your family." Dawn waggled her finger. "From what I saw, Daisy is a bit of an airhead but she means well, and she's better than you give her credit for."

"Yeah yeah, whatever you say." Misty took a brief moment to kiss Ash on the cheek before walking away towards the videophones, and after taking a seat and dialing the gym, it only took a few moments for Daisy to answer. "Hey Daisy, just thought I'd check in and see how you were doing."

"Hey sis. Yeah, things are…things are okay."

Misty raised an eyebrow, Daisy's tone and expression didn't match her words. "You sure about that? Because you don't sound like things are okay. Are you and Tracey doing okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine. Although…it's weird, Misty. Tracey seems majorly stressed these days."

"Well he does work for Prof. Oak, that can't be an easy job."

"But it's more than that though…it's like, he's on edge. And it's not just him, Prof. Oak has been working like a madman these past few days too. They both keep mumbling something about one of Prof. Oak's friends and his research notes."

"Huh, you're right…that is weird."

"Right?" Daisy sighed and slouched in her seat. "I keep trying to get Tracey to tell me what's going on, but he just tells me he doesn't want me to worry. Which is sweet, don't get me wrong, but I hate seeing those awful dark circles around his eyes."

Misty crossed her arms in thought, pondering the situation. "Have you been able to learn anything else? Maybe overheard them talking to someone?"

"I wish." Daisy shook her head and shrugged helplessly. "Since Tracey hasn't been by the gym, I've had to take care of most of the chores, and I am exhausted to say the least!" Daisy whined and covered her face with her hands. "I miss my boo, Misty! I want my warm, lovable Tracey back! It sucks that I can't seem to make him feel better no matter what I try!"

"I know how you feel." Misty nodded slowly. "Just stick with him, Daisy. In times like these, even if they don't admit it, that's when they need us most." She smiled slightly. "I've lost count of how many times Ash and I have had to be each other's anchors in a storm, so to speak."

"You're right, and I'm not giving up on him! Not ever!" Fire blazed in Daisy's eyes. "I am going to raise Tracey's spirits even if I have to go to my last resort!"

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Last resort?"

"I'm not telling you, especially since you got all squeamish the last time I implied it."

That was all the hinting Misty needed to instantly know what Daisy meant, as her eyes widened slightly and her voice got involuntarily louder. "And on that note," She nearly shouted. "We're changing the subject! How are Lily and Violet?"

"Here you are! Your Pokémon are all completely rested!"

"Thanks, Nurse Joy!" Ash happily took Pikachu and the rest of his Pokéballs from her, giving the yellow mouse an affectionate headpat before raising a determined fist. "So now that you're feeling recharged, whaddya say we do some training now that we've settled in?"

"Pika pika!" (Sounds great!)

"I'll come too, Ash!" Dawn rushed up with Piplup in tow. "I could really use something to keep me occupied, and I've been feeling kinda lonely lately…"

"Got used to having Kenny around, huh?" Brock appeared next to the two younger teens, a sympathetic smile on his face. "We'll see him again soon."

Dawn didn't answer, though she did blush a light pink and smile bashfully as she and the others walked outside to the practice field. But as they did so, Piplup stopped paying attention to where he was going, and so he caused Pikachu to trip, leading him to zap Piplup with a wayward Thunderbolt by accident. "Aah! Piplup!"

Naturally, Pikachu apologized immediately, but Piplup was in a rotten mood and started chirping furiously at the electric-type. "Hey, come on, Piplup. You know Pikachu didn't mean it!" Ash exclaimed.

"Yeah, Piplup." Dawn bent over a bit to get closer to her Pokémon. "And besides, you know that was your fault, so try to calm down. Pikachu did nothing wrong, no need to get angry."

But Piplup just wasn't having it, as he continued to go off on Pikachu in a series of shouts and chirps that the humans could tell was leaving Pikachu feeling bad. It was at that moment that another flash of light appeared from Dawn's side, and now Buneary was acting as a buffer between Piplup and Pikachu, immediately jumping to Pikachu's defense and forcing Piplup to back down somewhat.

"The romanticism of it all!" Brock exclaimed with tears streaming down his face. "A determined woman coming to the aid of their battered partner! Have you ever seen anything so noble?!"

"You're still feeling the effects of that Poison Jab, aren't you?" Dawn narrowed her eyes at Brock.

"Just a little!"

As the Pokémon argument continued, Piplup's angry chirps came to an extremely abrupt halt, as hearts suddenly appeared in the water-type's eyes, and his tone became drastically more tender. "Um, that was fast." Dawn said in shock. "Buneary, what did you say to Piplup?"

Buneary just shook her head, indicating she hadn't been able to get many words in at all. But then things got even weirder, when she turned around and saw that Pikachu had that same dopey expression that Piplup had. "Bun bun?" (Pikachu?) The rabbit waved her paw in front of Pikachu's face, and got absolutely no reaction.

"Uh…" Ash scratched his head. "What's going on here?"

"They do seem a little strange." Brock added.

Then without any warning, Piplup and Pikachu both completely bowled over Buneary as they rushed to embrace each other, cuddling and cooing in what could only be described as pure infatuation. "Okay, now they seem a lot strange!" Dawn hurried over to pick up Buneary. "Are you okay, Buneary?"

"Bun buneary bun?" (What just happened?)

"Brock, you're the expert…what's going on?" Ash couldn't tear his eyes away. "Why are they…doing whatever it is they're doing?"

"Don't ask me, I don't have a clue. This is strange, even for those two."

"Pikachu?" Ash knelt down next to his Pokémon. "I'm tryin' to talk to ya…can you even hear me?"

"Please, Piplup, are you getting sick or something?" Dawn just shook her head before looking back up at Ash and Brock. "It's like talking to a brick wall, they don't even seem to realize we're here."

Then Buneary gave it a try, as she sidled up to Pikachu and tried to tap his shoulder to get his attention. "Bun buneary? Bun buneary bun?" (Pikachu? Are you okay?) But the results were the same, Pikachu just kept snuggling with Piplup without even acknowledging Buneary was there.

"Wow, not even Buneary can get a reaction out of Pikachu." Brock scratched his chin in thought. "Whatever's going on has them both completely oblivious to any outside stimuli."

"Outside wha?"

Brock glanced at Ash. "It means nothing we do seems to make them notice us."

"What's going on?"

The group looked up to see Misty walking towards them. "Your guess is as good as ours," Dawn sighed hopelessly. "First Pikachu and Piplup start fighting, and literally less than two seconds later, they're practically glued to each other!"

"Okay…and here I was hoping for something not bizarre to happen today." Misty scoffed. "Have you guys tried just pulling them apart?"

"I guess we could do that." Ash looked over to Dawn. "Why don't you grab a hold of Piplup, 'kay?"

"Right, got it."

"Okay, here we go…" Ash grabbed onto Pikachu while Dawn held onto Piplup. "And pull!"

Together the two trainers started tugging with all their might, audibly grunting as their Pokémon refused to budge even an inch for several moments. "Come on!" Dawn huffed. "Leggo!"

Then they finally started making some progress, as Pikachu was slowly inching away from Piplup. "Yes, you're almost there!" Brock exclaimed. "Just a little more!"

"Uh, guys? I see sparks!"

But Misty's warning came too late, as Ash, Dawn and Brock all received a Thunderbolt for their trouble, causing them all to fall to the ground in pain. "Man," Ash moaned through his teeth. "Was that really necessary?"

"I really don't think zapping us solves anything." Dawn added woozily.

"The craziest thing? Pikachu didn't even blink." Misty went over to help the others sit back up. "Aaaand they're back together again."

"This sure is a big problem," Ash rubbed the back of his head. "No matter what's going on."

"No duh," Dawn slowly got back to her feet with Buneary's help. "What's gotten into them anyway?"

"Hey, Dawn, I just got an idea!" Brock snapped his fingers. "Why don't you try putting Piplup back in his Pokéball?"

"That's a great idea!" Dawn grinned. "That'll force those two apart!" Dawn reached for the penguin's Pokéball aimed down. "Alright, Piplup, return!" The red beam of the Pokéball hit its mark, and seconds later, Piplup was sucked back into the Pokéball's confines. "Wow, that was easy! Worked like a charm!"

"Yeah, sure did!" But Ash immediately felt he spoke too soon, as his jaw dropped when he saw Pikachu fall on his back, still in the same position he was in while he was hugging Piplup, stiff as a board. "What the?! Pikachu, what's wrong?! Say something!"

Then Dawn yelped as the Pokéball she was holding physically burst open in her hand, and Piplup reappeared and held his flippers wide open. "Piplup?!"

"Piplup just pulled a Psyduck and came on his own!" Then one of Misty's Pokéballs lit up, as the aforementioned Psyduck made an appearance as well, much to Misty's chagrin as she facepalmed. "Why do I open my big mouth?"

Just like before, Pikachu and Piplup made a beeline for each other, leaping into each other's embrace and cuddling like they'd been worlds apart for years. "Here we go again." Ash sighed hopelessly.

"Back to the drawing board I guess." Brock scratched his head in confusion. "I wonder what's going on in their heads."

It has been said that the messier a person is, the more of a genius they truly are. Considering the state of the small laboratory just on the outskirts of town, the scientist working there must have been an unparalleled genius. Papers covered nearly every inch of the floor, beakers and test tubes filled with bubbling liquid were scattered across various desks, and all the while, a massive machine took up most of the space in the middle of the room.

That machine was in the process of being worked on by a middle-aged man in a lab coat, the sleeves rolled up as he worked at a feverish pace, with one hand making programming adjustments while the other held his notes with an iron grip that nearly crumpled the paper.

"A puzzlement…this can't be happening…" The scientist suddenly shouted with frustration, throwing his notes everywhere as he held his head in his hands. "What's going on here?!"

"Notch it down, Professor Kodama…we're trying to clean up!"

"Which is made that much more difficult with you flinging documents…"

"Da circular nature of dis job's a real drag! And wit Professor Slobbo it never ends!"

Jessie, James and Meowth, the infamous Team Rocket, had been hired out of the blue by this professor to help his keep his lab in some semblance of order. But like most things, this task was proving to be too much for them.

However, the trio did have a point. Prof. Kodama did have a bad habit of just throwing things wherever he felt like on a regular basis. "Blast it!" He shouted in frustration without even acknowledging Team Rocket's objections. "It's simply not scientifically possible for this not to have worked!"

Jessie glanced at her partners with a deadpan look. "I think the only things he hears come out of his own mouth."

"Hey!" The professor pointed accusingly at them. "You may call yourselves Team Rocket, but all I see are three good for nothing bums without a job before I hired you out of the goodness of my heart! Complain all you want, but you won't get paid for it!"

James shrugged helplessly. "Though he can hear the grass grow, I do wish he'd turn a deaf ear on our quips."

Jessie whined and shot up to her feet, her fists clenched in a dramatic tantrum. "Now hear this! I'm sick of cleaning!"

"I just remembered, I've got grocery shopping to do!"

"And I'll go with you!"

"Hey!" Jessie cried helplessly as she reached out for her fleeing partners. "Come back! You can't leave me with Mr. Mess!"

"Excuse me, Jessie."

Jessie glanced over at Prof. Kodama. "Huh?"

"Do me a favor and organize those papers over there."

The magenta-haired woman looked around the room, at all the papers that covered literally the entire floor. She groaned and slumped heavily in defeat. "Over where?" Then the sound of two growling Pokémon caught her attention, as she glanced over to see the professor's Quagsire and Magnemite glaring daggers at each other. "Haven't you two had enough of the staredown already?!"

But the Quagsire and Magnemite paid Jessie no heed, as they simply continued staring at each other, a fire burning in their eyes.

"Really, Brock?" Misty raised an eyebrow. "You sure this is a good idea? You guys already got zapped once."

"Of course!" Brock nodded confidently. "When they first got together, even if we pulled them apart for a moment, as soon as they let go, they go rushing back to one another, like they had absolutely no control over what they were doing, as if they were behaving exactly like two magnets!"

"I guess I get the magnet comparison," Dawn said. "They're certainly stuck like magnets."

"Exactly! So like magnets, if we turn one of them around, they might actually repel each other instead of attract!"

"Technically the science is sound," Misty shook her head skeptically and shrugged. "But somehow I don't think it applies here."

"Well it can't hurt to try." Ash said.

"It quite literally could." Misty picked Buneary and Psyduck up and took a few steps back. "We'll just be back here."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Ash stuck his tongue out at Misty. "Come on, Dawn, let's do this."

"Right."

"And pull!"

Once again the two trainers started tugging intensely on their Pokémon, and this time they seemed more stuck than ever as they just refused to budge. "Piplup, come on already, let go!"

"Give it up, Pikachu!"

Finally they were able to get the two Pokémon separated once more, slowly but surely. "That's it!" Brock shouted. "Now quick, turn them around!"

Both trainers immediately turned their Pokémon's backs to each other, and all seemed calm. "Did that work?" Ash asked.

"It looks like it did!" Dawn sighed in relief. "Who would've thought?" But then suddenly Piplup kicked her in the face and broke free, while Pikachu did the same to Ash, and instantly the two Pokémon were together again. "Oh man, after all that work! And it looked so good at first!"

"Well, look at it this way," Misty stepped back up to them. "At least you didn't get zapped this time."

"Bun buneary!" (That's enough!) Buneary suddenly hopped over in apparent frustration, and smacked Pikachu across the face with her palm. "Bun bun buneary!" (Snap out of it!) But Pikachu didn't even react, so Buneary then opted to try and physically get between them, squeezing into the tiniest of cracks. But that would prove to be a mistake as all she ended up becoming was a fluffy pillow to buffer them. "Bun…bun!" (Can't…breathe!)

"Buneary, no!" Dawn started yanking on Piplup again with earnest, and Ash followed her lead and started tugging on Pikachu. Again the initial separation worked as Buneary was able to get free, but then the sparks started to build. "Oh no!"

With a bright flash, everyone got zapped this time, Misty included, and they all fell to the ground, smoking from the voltage. "I guess I couldn't avoid it forever…" The redhead moaned.

It took a few minutes for everyone to recover, but once they did, they all collectively stared down at Pikachu and Piplup in utter bewilderment. "I was so sure that turning them around would do the trick." Brock scratched his chin.

"It's like they're being hypnotized or something!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Hey, now I have an idea!" Misty looked at her boyfriend. "Ash, are you getting anything from their auras?"

"Hey yeah, that's a good point!" Ash closed his eyes and focused on the two Pokémon below him. "That's weird…"

"What is it?" Dawn asked.

"Normally when someone is under someone else's control, their auras are dark purple, almost black, like Riley's Lucario back on Iron Island."

"But…" Misty prompted.

"Their auras are…pink?"

"Pink?" Dawn put a hand on the side of her head in confusion. "What in the world does pink mean?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, but I can definitely tell you it isn't normal."

"Well," Misty grappled for an idea. "Could you…try to disrupt whatever's affecting them? You were able to do that with Xatu's psychic energy back in Twinleaf Town."

"I can try. But if I'm gonna do that, lemme get some help." Ash pulled out a Pokéball. "Lucario, I choose you!"

Lucario appeared in a flash of white light, eager to assist. "Ready when you are!"

"Alright, let's do this then!" As Ash and Lucario closed their eyes and channeled their aura, they felt their power flowing through them and onto Pikachu and Piplup. "Anything?"

"Actually…yeah!" Dawn exclaimed as she saw Pikachu and Piplup start to actually blink. "I think it's working you two, keep it up!"

The aura energy began to physically manifest itself as a barrier surrounding Pikachu and Piplup, and once it was fully formed, the two Pokémon snapped out of their trance, looking around in confusion. "There, that should do it." Ash opened his eyes and smiled with satisfaction.

"Ash, your eyes!" Misty exclaimed. "They're blue again!"

"Yeah, that's the aura. Lucario and I have to keep the barrier up in order to block whatever's affecting Pikachu and Piplup. We should be able to for a little while, but we gotta find a better solution."

"Pika pika?" (What happened?)

"Pi pi plup." (Good question.)

As Dawn knelt down to take Piplup into her arms, she shrieked as Piplup suddenly leaped towards Pikachu, once again in a trance. "What happened?!" She got her answer once Piplup was back in the confines of the barrier, as he instantly snapped out of it. "Guess it only works if they're both in there. So really we're no better off than we were before."

"Let's take them to see Nurse Joy," Brock suggested. "If anyone can help us figure out what's going on, it's her. This is way beyond even my knowledge."

"Pikachu, Piplup," Ash looked down at the two trapped Pokémon. "We're gonna walk to the Pokémon Center. Don't leave the shield, okay?"

Pikachu's ears drooped. "Pi Pikapi…" (Okay Ash…)

Buneary quickly made her way to her partner's side, nuzzling him in a show of comfort. "Bun buneary bun bun." (It'll be okay, Pikachu.)

"Pi pi plup pip." (No love for me.) Piplup huffed and crossed his flippers.

"Bun buneary! Buneary bun bun!" (Well duh! It's your fault!)

"Pi plup pip!" (It is not!)

"Okay, that's enough out of both of you." Dawn put her hands on her hips disapprovingly. "Until we figure out what's making Pikachu and Piplup act all weird, we might as well at least try to get along."

"Pip. (Fine.)

"Bun." (Fine.)

"Nice work, Dawn." Misty smiled, but it quickly went away when they entered the Pokémon Center and witnessed the scene in front of them. "Are you guys seeing what I'm seeing?!"

"I am!" Ash nodded in disbelief. "It's a Squirtle and a Raichu!"

"And look!" Dawn pointed across the room. "There's a Marill and a Luxio!"

"And over there's a Mareep and an Octillery!" Brock exclaimed. "They're all acting exactly the same way Pikachu and Piplup were outside!"

"Pi pi plup?!" (That was us?!)

"Nurse Joy," Dawn scampered over to get the bewildered looking nurse. "My Piplup and his Pikachu were acting the exact same way up until just a few minutes ago!"

"They were?" Nurse Joy's eyes widened suddenly. "Wait, you mean to tell me they're not anymore?! What did you do?! Did you find a cure?!"

"Um…not exactly." Dawn sweat-dropped. "We think it might be because of a sort of outside influence, since my friend Ash's aura is protecting Pikachu and Piplup from whatever is happening."

Nurse Joy just blinked, trying to process that information. "Well whatever it is you're doing, you should probably keep doing it. All of their Pokémon are stuck together exactly the same way!"

The Raichu's trainer was a young boy with spiky brown hair and a green t-shirt. "I called it out of its Pokéball for a battle when all of a sudden…this stuff!"

The Squirtle's trainer spoke up as well. "They're stuck together tight, and won't separate!"

The young girl who trained the Luxio also chimed in helplessly. "And when I try to get it to return to its Pokéball, it just pops out again! I don't know what to do!"

"Nurse Joy!" All the trainers collectively exclaimed. "Please do something!"

"I will do everything I can, everyone. I promise!" Nurse Joy crossed her arms as a grim expression came over her face. "Although right now, that doesn't amount to much."

"Hold on," Brock looked around the room as his eyebrows went up in realization. "No way!"

"What's up, Brock?" Ash asked.

"Do you guys see the pattern here?"

Dawn tilted her head. "Pattern?"

"Think about it." Brock tapped his head with his finger. "There's Pikachu and Piplup, there's Squirtle and Raichu, then Marill and Luxio, and Mareep and Octillery!"

"Brock, you might be onto something!" Misty gasped. "They're all water and electric-type Pokémon!"

"Nurse Joy," Brock leaned forward to look past his friends and at the nurse. "What other Pokémon do you have here in the Pokémon Center?"

"Just what you'd expect, we have all kinds!" Nurse Joy. "But these are the only ones who are stuck together!"

"So it's only water-types and electric-types that are being affected." Brock held his chin as he pondered the puzzle. "What on earth could it mean?"

As Prof. Kodama continued working on his project, the large machine whirred with a loud hum as energy surged through its systems. Jessie had managed to briefly sneak away for a break, while the professor was wholly engrossed in his project.

All the while, the professor's Magnemite and Quagsire continued to stare each other down in barely contained aggression.

"Those two are causing my stress level to go through the roof." Jessie grumbled as she heard the lab door click, her two partners in crime walking in to stand beside her. "It's about time you two got back from your sabbatical. If you don't say something to grouchpus, I will!"

James just shushed Jessie without even looking directly at her, whispering under his breath. "Let's leave the fact finding to Meowth!"

As it turned out, James and Meowth had been stealthily observing Ash and the others' problems with their Pokémon, and as a result they'd formed a theory that they hoped to get confirmation on. Meowth slowly walked up to the busy scientist, clearing his throat as he put his paws behind his back. "Prof. Kodama?"

The professor scowled as he looked down at Meowth. "What is it?"

The Scratch Cat Pokémon kept his cool demeanor in spite of the frustrated glare he was getting. "See, I was wonderin' if de experiment you're currently conductin' happens ta involve makin' Pokémon stick togetha!"

"Ridiculous!" Prof. Kodama clenched a frustrated fist. "I'm not trying to get them to stick together, I'm trying to force them into being friends with one another, fool!"

"What?!" Jessie barked, much to James's worry. "Oh please!"

"Shh!"

Undeterred by the interruption, Meowth continued with his question. "Hmm, so…" He pointed at the humming machine. "Dis device is whatcha use ta make dat happen?"

"Correct. I've dubbed it…the Affinity Enabler."

"Boy," Meowth looked back at his teammates with a sarcastic tone in his voice. "Dere's a nifty name dat just rolls off de ol' tongue."

"Hey," Prof. Kodama scowled. "What was that?"

"I-It's beautiful!"

Satisfied with the quick turnaround, Prof. Kodama smiled and looked back up at his creation. "The Affinity Enabler takes the Pokémon move Attract and converts it into a digital signal, that is then transmitted using the antenna located on the roof of the laboratory! When Pokémon receive the converted signal, even the bitterest of rivals will change their attitudes and wind up becoming the best of friends!"

"Is he on the level or is that a bill of goods?" Jessie scoffed.

James pointed at the two antagonistic Pokémon in the corner. "Looking at that Quagsire and Magnemite gives me disbelieving pause too."

Prof. Kodama continued, unaware of Jessie and James's hushed whispers. "I'm still in the initial stages, but it will work! This device is groundbreaking in many ways! The Affinity Enabler is highly effective on Pokémon in a similar manner to the move Attract, but is even more powerful as it also works on Pokémon of the same gender, and that is truly historic proportions!" The professor looked up at his Quagsire and Magnemite, sighing sadly as he saw that the two were still at odds with each other. "But those historic proportions aren't there as of yet."

"I think he means he blew it." Jessie whispered.

"Yes, truly." James chuckled softly before raising his hand to directly address the scientist. "Pardon, sir, but have those two Pokémon always been at it like this?"

"Yes, sadly." Prof. Kodama lowered his head and closed his eyes in disappointment. "One Pokémon a water-type, and one an electric-type. Quagsire and Magnemite are totally mismatched for battle which causes me to wonder why they act so bitter all the time.

Then out of nowhere, the tense staredown was broken as Magnemite surged forward with a Tackle attack, but Quagsire was able to step back and dodge, and retaliate with a Water Gun attack of its own, much to Team Rocket's shock as they were nearly in the crossfire. "Hey!" Jessie screeched. "Watch where you're aiming!"

But as fate would have it, Magnemite dodged the Water Gun attack, and fired back with a ThunderShock attack, which Quagsire dove onto its stomach to dodge, which left Jessie and James screaming as the electricity surged through them. Once again, wrong place and wrong time.

"Stop it this instant!" Prof. Kodama's infuriated shout got the two Pokémon to stand down, as Team Rocket laid on the floor twitching from the aftermath of the attack. "You see, I love them both dearly so I have no choice but to figure out a method to get them to love each other." Prof. Kodama looked at his machine, then back to his Pokémon. "Perhaps if I simply increase the power!"

"Ugh!" Lucario grunted as he suddenly started pouring even more aura energy into the shield. "Dad, little help?!"

"What's happening, Lucario?!" Ash looked around the room and saw that the other Pokémon in the center were suddenly getting even closer than they already were, if that were even possible. Not only that, both Pikachu and Piplup were starting to get a glazed expression in their eyes in spite of the shield. "Whoa, they're all even closer!" Ash refocused his aura back into the shield, his eyes glowing an even more intense blue as he pushed himself to his limits to keep Pikachu and Piplup from falling prey to whatever was happening. "We've gotta find out what's causing water-types and electric-types to flip out like this, Lucario and I won't be able to keep this up for long, whatever's affecting all the Pokémon around here just got a whole lot stronger!"

"For all the Pokémon to have such an immediate reaction…" Brock crossed his arms in thought as he looked around at all the Pokémon in the center. "Usually, water and electric-types don't work well, but that's only during battles, and there are exceptions to the rule…but outside of battle, there's no reason these two types of Pokémon can't be the best of friends."

"I'm not sure what you're getting at, Brock." Misty said. "I mean we all know how well Pikachu works with my whole team, and in battle even he and Piplup function pretty well. But even on their best days, we've never seen them act like they have today!"

"Pika chu." (You said it.)

"Pi pip plup!" (Hey watch it!)

"My point exactly." Misty gestured towards the two. "Usually they're more like that."

"But not today." Brock looked around the room again, taking it all in. "I'm thinking we have to consider the theory that whatever we're seeing here isn't happening naturally. This isn't a virus or something Nurse Joy can fix, the only way any of this makes sense is if some outside force is causing this to happen!"

Nurse Joy shook her head in disgust. "That's awful, who would do that?!"

"Time to recycle that hunk of junk." Jessie shrugged now that she recovered from Magnemite's zap. "Even pushing that lever as far as it'll go hasn't stopped those two from wanting to kill each other."

"It has to work!" Prof. Kodama shouted defiantly. "I won't give up, I'll make them be best friends if it's the last thing I do!"

"At this rate, it will be the last thing you do."

"Hey, Jess! Huddle up!"

The magenta-haired woman spotted James and Meowth gathering in the corner as they waved her over. "You have to admire his sticktoitiveness, but I've just about had enough of this crackpot."

"I'm tinkin' da best thing we can do is stick around!"

Jessie raised an eyebrow at the Scratch Cat Pokémon. "And what exactly is in it for us at this point?"

"I say we swipe dat bucket of bolts!"

"Huh?!"

James chimed in next. "When you consider the facts, this experiment's a success!"

"You two are so strange, and your definition of 'success' is even stranger."

"Look," Meowth grinned. "Da twoips are all at da Pokémon Center where dere Pikachu and Piplup are stuck to each otha like airplane glue!"

"And there are scads of Pokémon all suffering the same fate!" James added. "Pairs and pairs of Pokémon plastered as one!"

"Okay," Jessie gestured behind her. "So how do you explain Quagsire and Magnemite?"

"Dat's da $64 dollar question!" Meowth replied. "But once da ghosties are all gotten outta da machine, dat ting's gonna be a real love and friend makin' winner! And dat's when we swoop in and scoop it, dig?"

"Uh huh…" Jessie stared blankly at nothing for a few moments before looking back at Meowth. "And what do we do with that winner once we have it?"

"Okay," Meowth smirked. "Whaddya tink would happen if Pikachu and I were ta become best buds?"

Jessie finally cracked a smile. "No more battling!"

"Dat yellow pain in da neck's given us so much grief over da years!" Meowth sneered evilly. "But since BFFs play nice and don't fight each otha, den at long last we'll be able ta catch Pikachu and give it to da boss and put dis baby ta bed!"

"I like what you've said!"

"Now we're on da same page!" Meowth snickered. "So for now, let's lay low and keep woikin' for da prof while he woiks out all da kinks, then whammo!"

Suddenly Magnemite charged again, and this time Quagsire just swatted its attacker away, much to Team Rocket's horror as they ducked in anticipation of another zap. "Not again!"

But no zap came as Magnemite bumped harshly into the machine, stunning the professor and causing him to bump into the lever that controlled the machine's power level, and instantly the loud whir faded away as the machine was shut off. "Curses!" Prof. Kodama shouted. "My machine has stopped working altogether thanks to you!"

"Guys, we're losing it!" Ash panted as sweat beaded on his forehead from the exertion of so much aura energy.

"Brace yourselves," Lucario grunted. "They're gonna hug each other into the next century!"

But just as the shield was about to fade altogether, all the Pokémon in the Pokémon Center instantly split apart, all extremely confused as to why they were hugging their friends, rivals or even borderline enemies. "Hey, everyone's back to normal!" Misty exclaimed.

"Oh thank goodness." Lucario dropped the shield along with Ash, as they both slumped to the floor in exhaustion while Buneary jumped in to finally hug Pikachu properly herself. "I dunno what that was all about but I'm so glad it's over." But just as quickly, all the Pokémon leaped right back into each other's arms, and without a shield to protect them, Pikachu and Piplup bowled Buneary right over so they could embrace each other with a vengeance. "Aaaargh!" Lucario banged the back of his head against the wall in frustration. "Of course I spoke too soon!"

"There they go again!" Ash sighed wearily. "I'm sorry guys, we can't keep them apart anymore, we're fried."

"You did your best, Ash." Dawn replied. "You too, Lucario. Thanks for trying."

"Maybe…it's better this way." The trainer who owned the Raichu said as he watched his Pokémon act crazy again.

"Huh?" The Squirtle owner looked at his friend in shock. "Whaddya mean?"

"Well if you think about it…my Raichu and your Squirtle have never gotten along, even before they were ever battling."

"I guess that's true…but-"

"No buts! They'd always get into an argument, and that stopped them from even starting a proper battle! Knowing that, this could actually end up working better!"

"Well…"

Brock walked up to the debating trainers. "Is what you said true? They never got along before this?" Brock received nods from both trainers. "Guys, if I'm right and this is a man-made phenomenon we're all dealing with, given what those two just said, wouldn't it make sense that whoever caused all this to happen would have Pokémon that don't get along well at all?"

"You might have a point, Brock!" Misty exclaimed, briefly taking a moment to grab Psyduck's hand to stop him from waddling away aimlessly. "You stay put."

"Psy." (Kay.)

"Anyway, if you're right, then that means that whoever did this has a good reason, they want their Pokémon to get along too!"

Nurse Joy suddenly gasped in realization. "Prof. Kodama!"

"Who's that, Nurse Joy?" Brock asked.

"Prof. Kodama conducts lots of experimental Pokémon research! His laboratory is located right behind the Pokémon Center!"

"And the professor has Pokémon that don't get along?"

"That's right, Ash! His Quagsire and Magnemite fight all the time!"

"There's the pattern!" Misty exclaimed. "Quagsire and Magnemite, water and electric-types!"

Ash stood back up. "Can you take us there, Nurse Joy?"

"Yes of course, follow me!"

"Ash," Dawn leaned down. "You take one side and I'll take the other."

"Right." Ash sidled up next to Dawn so they could carry both their stuck together Pokémon. "Okay, let's go!"

It only took a few minutes for them to reach the professor's laboratory, and almost the instant they were in range, Lucario started snarling. "Heads up everyone," He said as his paws lit up with aura energy. "Team Rocket's nearby."

"Oh great." Dawn sighed. "Like we don't already have enough to deal with!"

"We'll keep an eye out for them." Misty nodded. "Let's try to take care of the current crisis first."

"I'll get us inside." Nurse Joy quickly opened the door to the lab, and she led the teens inside. "Prof. Kodama, how are you doing?"

"Fine." His voice was much softer towards the nurse. "What can I do for you?"

"I was hoping you could take a look at this."

Upon being shown the two Pokémon, Prof. Kodama's eyes widened in awe as he stepped closer. "Amazing!"

"See, they've been stuck together like this for a while." Ash explained.

"This must mean my experiment's a success!"

"So I was right!" Brock exclaimed victoriously. "Professor, this experiment, what's it all about?"

"This is the key, you see!" Prof. Kodama gestured proudly towards his creation. "I engineered this equipment in order to bring Pokémon closer to one another! And your Pokémon are now proof positive that all my years of research have finally paid off!"

"But wait, Nurse Joy said that you have a Quagsire and a Magnemite that don't get along." Misty glanced over to the other side of the room where the two Pokémon in question were still glaring at each other. "Yikes, and it looks like she was right. How come those two aren't getting along?"

"I got news for you guys," Lucario spoke up, much to the professor's shock. "That's not what's happening there."

"Remarkable!" Prof. Kodama was suddenly all over Lucario, invading the Pokémon's personal space in an impromptu examination. "I'd heard rumors of Pokémon having the ability to use telepathy, but I've never had the opportunity to be near one myself before!"

"Yeah," Lucario winced as he tried to get away from the professor's grip. "I get that a lot, but listen!" But then Lucario's eyes widened, as he growled lowly and spotted three figures trying to sneak away. "Hey, it's them! Mom, Dad!"

"Wait, them?" Misty glanced over at the figures Lucario was pointing at.

"Those are just my new assistants, they call themselves Team Racket." Prof. Kodama suddenly blinked. "Wait, no, sorry, it's Team Rocket, that's right."

"There's nothing worse than a brainy big mouth!" Jessie screeched. "Except for twerps and their disguise-defying Pokémon!"

"Alright, that's enough!" Ash exclaimed. "What are you up to?!"

"Ohh don't ask them that!" Misty facepalmed. "You just opened the door for their motto!"

"We're busted, so off with my disguise!"

"There's lots of time to feed you more lies!"

"On the wind!"

"Past the stars!"

"My how time flies!"

"Bringing you chaos at a breakneck pace!"

"Dashing all hope and putting fear in its place!"

"A rose by any other name's just as sweet!"

"When everything's worse our work is complete!"

"Jessie!"

"And it's James!"

"Meowth! Dat's a name!"

"Putting goofy do-gooders in their place!"

"We're Team Rocket!"

"AND WE'RE IN YOUR FACE!"

"Wobbuffet!"

"Well, now I know why they were so terrible at cleaning," Prof. Kodama scoffed. "They spend all their time working on awful choreography."

"Who are you to judge?!" Jessie snarled.

"Setting the record straight, even your own mother wouldn't be able to clean up after a human tornado like you!" James added.

"Like you three can talk!" Misty scowled. "Whatever you have up your sleeves, it won't work!"

"Forget up our sleeve, we're takin' dat machine up in de air!" Meowth pressed a button on his remote that he pulled seemingly out of nowhere. "Dere!"

"What are you doing?!" Ash looked up as the room began to shake, and just as the roof suddenly caved in, he and Lucario threw up an aura shield to protect everyone from the debris, but as a result, Team Rocket was free to use their balloon to grab the machine and slowly lift it into the sky, as the trio cackled and leapt into the basket.

"Two points!" Meowth cheered. "From now on just call me da Sultan of Strategy!"

"No!" Prof. Kodama ran out from under the shield and leaped up, hanging onto the machine before it was out of reach. "Where do you think you're going?!"

"Prof. Kodama!" Nurse Joy cried. "Come back!"

"Excellent!" James chuckled. "By accompanying us, the good professor can address any remaining techno issues!"

"Hold it!" Ash and the others were down below, running as fast as they could to chase after the Meowth balloon. "Professor, turn off the machine! We can't help you like this!"

"R-Right!" Braving a chance to look down, the professor kicked the lever that powered the machine, and in an instant, both Pikachu and Piplup split apart, giving the teens back their freedom. Unfortunately, a sudden burst of turbulence forced the professor to hang on tighter in fear, and he accidentally kicked the lever back to its full strength position, which meant Pikachu and Piplup were back to square one.

"Man," Ash growled in frustration. "This is nuts!"

"It helps to remember that loser is as loser does!" James shouted.

Jessie laughed with glee. "And you're about to lose Pikachu to the Team Rocket crew!"

"Piplup too!" Meowth sent an extendo-arm down towards the two artificially lovestruck Pokémon, and without so much as a reaction, they both were pulled towards Team Rocket. "Dig, I just can't miss! Wahoo!"

"Well done, Meowth! A Pikachu in the hand!"

"And it packs much less of a jolt without that Thunderbolt!"

"WHAT A DOLT!"

"There's no way I'm letting them get away with Piplup and Pikachu!" Dawn pointed towards the balloon. "Buneary, hit them with an Ice Beam!"

"Dawn, wait!" Brock's shout stopped Buneary mid-charge. "If you launch an attack now you'll hit Prof. Kodama!"

"But we can't just let them escape!"

Then all of a sudden, the gathered group saw Magnemite fly over their heads, headed straight towards the professor. "Now what?!" Ash exclaimed.

"I don't believe it!" Jessie shouted in disbelief.

"I concur!" James added. "Is that Magnemite?!"

Even Prof. Kodama couldn't believe it, as he looked over his shoulder to see Magnemite hovering next to him, after having been launched by none other than Quagsire. "Magnemite, it's you!"

"Did they just work together?" Misty turned to see Quagsire running past them as fast as it could. "I think they're trying to save Prof. Kodama!"

Prof. Kodama eventually worked up the nerve to grab onto Magnemite, and though it was difficult, the electric/steel-type Pokémon was able to carry the professor lower to the ground, but not before launching a ThunderShock attack that burned through the cables holding the Affinity Enabler up.

"Burned again!" James cried as the machine smashed to pieces when it hit the ground. "Oh no…Jessie, Meowth, about face!"

The entire trio looked into the corner of their basket, and saw that Pikachu and Piplup were now totally back to normal, and they were not looking very happy.

Meanwhile, Quagsire was supporting Magnemite's descent with a pillar of water courtesy of a high-pressured Water Gun attack. "What just happened?" Prof. Kodama wobbled a bit from the shock. "Were you two working together to save me?"

"I told you guys they didn't hate each other." Lucario smirked. "They were just itching for battle practice. In other words, they were going stir crazy standing in that lab all day!"

"Makes sense to me!" Ash smirked. "You know what else makes sense? Now that Prof. Kodama is safe, let's rescue our Pokémon! Charizard, head on up there and save Pikachu and Piplup!"

Charizard emerged from the Pokéball with a roar that echoed throughout the area, and within seconds, both Pikachu and Piplup burst past Team Rocket and leaped onto Charizard's back.

"James, get them back!" Jessie shrieked angrily.

"They were great stuck together, but now I'm stuck with you."

Charizard didn't even need any prompting as just before he swooped back towards the ground, he turned around in midair and launched a blazing Flamethrower attack, one powerful enough to cause the balloon to explode, and send Team Rocket flying.

"Your stupid strategies are slick as sandpaper!"

"Look at da bright side!" Meowth shrugged. "When we wanna kill a Thunderbolt or Bubblebeam, we know just who ta call!"

"I need that sort of thanks like I need a hole in the head, which thanks to Carnivine I have an abundance of!"

"WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"

*Ping*

Later, after everything had calmed down and Nurse Joy had seen all of the grateful young trainers and their water and electric-type Pokémon, Prof. Kodama reflected on the experience, looking at both Quagsire and Magnemite in utter bewilderment. "On the one hand, I'm glad to know my Pokémon don't actually despise each other, but one thing still bothers me…even after all that, the machine still didn't work on these two, but it worked on every other Pokémon."

"I've actually been thinking about that as well." Brock raised a finger. "Maybe it's because both Quagsire and Magnemite have secondary typings. Quagsire isn't just a water-type, it's also a ground-type, and Magnemite is a steel-type on top of being an electric-type! All the other Pokémon we've seen today have been mono-typed Pokémon."

"You know, that might be it!" Prof. Kodama raised a determined fist as he rolled up his sleeves with a determined grin. "It looks like I now know exactly what my next research project will be! So, I'd better stop lollygagging and get to work!"

"And I do hope it goes easier next time." Nurse Joy chuckled. "Just please let me know if you're planning on changing the way Pokémon behave so I can at least prepare myself."

"All's well that ends well, right, Piplup?" Dawn giggled as Piplup chirped in agreement in her arms, then she looked down to see Buneary happily snuggling with Pikachu. "Looks like Buneary agrees…but there's one thing that's confusing me too."

"What's that, Dawn?" Brock asked.

"Well, if all the plain old water and electric-types in the area were being affected by Prof. Kodama's machine…" Dawn glanced down near Misty. "Then how come Misty's Psyduck never seemed to get attracted to any of the electric-types?"

"You know…" Brock rubbed his chin. "That is a mystery."

"Guys, no it's not." Misty shook her head and smirked as she crouched down next to the blankly staring Psyduck. "You do remember who this is, right?" She gently knocked on Psyduck's head, and a slight echo sound was heard. "Head empty, no thoughts, especially not ones like those."

"Guess that answers that." Ash and the others began to laugh, happy to know that everything was now officially back to normal, and they could now resume their journey to Sunyshore City for Ash's next gym battle.

Meanwhile, Psyduck just tilted his head and stared into the middle distance, blissfully oblivious to everything happening around him. "Psy."

A/N: And there you have it. The next few episodes are going to be very, very exciting, and believe me, I am not going to just make minor changes here and there. There are going to be some serious changes being made! I intend to start working on those ASAP. In the meantime, I have to prepare to fly to Texas so that I can help my fiancée move down to Florida so we can finally start living together! I'm very excited to start this new chapter in my life, and I hope you all were excited for this new chapter of this story! Thank you everyone for sticking me with all this time! I intend to have more soon!