Disclaimer: Erlack my foot fell asleep. Pins and needles, pins and needles. Oh, my god. Disclaimer, I choose you to tell the world that I do not own Pokémon!

ML: It's been one of those days. I had to work on another story on the other computer, the one with the screwed keyboard. I'm serious. Caps Lock no work, ditto for up arrow key. Had to edit using mouse. Painful, painful.

James: Are there donuts in this story?

ML: You sound like Vash. No donuts, no dying, can't think of any spoilers. It's another night for Team Rocket. Should be fun. Jesse sort of OOC. Not quite as bitchy!

Rarer Than Articuno

I looked over at the girl with the fuchsia hair, stretched out on the grass. I wondered if she shared in my insomnia. I already knew that Meowth was asleep, but then again, he's a cat. He's supposed to sleep something like twenty-two hours a day.

"Jess?" I whisper. There was no response. I crawled across the field until I was right next to her. Her eyes were open, fixated on something high above them. I rolled onto my back and followed her gaze up to the sky.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She finally said. I nodded.

"Almost makes you want to turn good, huh?" I asked.

"Yeah. Though, lately, a lot of things make me question our employment. We've been going after Pikachu for about a year now, right? The closest we came to actually getting it to the boss is the night we had captured that whole pack of them."

"Are a group of Pikachu called a pack?"

"Damn if I know," she turned to me. "But it is fun bothering those brats. I have to admit that girl, Misty, she is really touchy."

I smiled and Jesse turned back to the sky. It actually creeps me out when she's this nice. I mean, I'm basically the idiot of the operation. I've screwed up so many plots and have done so many stupid things with our meager salaries that I'm surprised she didn't just leave in the middle of the night. Especially the night at the Shrine of the Maiden. I was surprised that she didn't just leave when she realized I vanished.

Of course, she passed it off as her hatred for weepy, wimpy little girls like the ghost of Maiden's Peak.

"Prepare for trouble," I heard her whisper.

"Make it double," I automatically repeated.

"To protect the world from devastation,"

"To unite all peoples within our nation,"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love,"

"Uh, Jesse, why do we denounce love?"

Jesse looked at me. "I don't know. That's just how it goes. But, it's not like anyone in our position could have a relationship. We move around too much. And I refuse to pine away over someone I might see once a year."

"How about someone you see everyday?" I looked straight up. I didn't want her to see how red my face was at that moment.

"Well, I really don't have any interest in the twerp or his friend."

My face burned. Why did her mind automatically go them? I'd been working with her since we were five years old in Sunshine town. Our partnership continued into our awful days at Pokémon tech, which we flunked out of miserably. The boss had found us, with our pathetic Pokémon outside Viridian city and hired us, thinking that we might have made an excellent team.

Suddenly, Jessebell came into my mind. Did Jesse automatically think of the twerps because she thought I was actually interested in my fiancé?

I decided I'd have to tell Jesse myself that I had meant myself when I said that. I closed my eyes. Yes, it would be easy.

"Jesse, I," I started to say, but I choked on the words. I blinked. Who knew those words were going to be so hard?

The stars above us looked so perfect. This would have been the perfect time to tell her. I started again, but this time, I didn't get past "Jess". Tears welled up in my eyes. Was I doomed to have to work with her, pretending not to feel the way I do? I had a feeling that if I attempted it again, I wouldn't be able to get even her name out of my throat.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love," Why? What was so evil about it? I mean, yes, they cause pain, just look at that maiden. She turned to stone waiting for her lover. But there had to be more good than evil, because it was all over. I saw it even in those twerps, between Misty and Ash. It was no secret that they had something for each other. Even that other one, Brock, who fell in love with every girl he laid eyes on, sans Jesse or Misty of course.

I sat up, and pulled up the grass with my hand. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Jesse sat up too. We could see the lights of a city below us. I was sure that the twerps were probably resting up in the Pokémon center of that city.

I felt Jesse's hand grab mine. Did something happen?

"James? What's more rare than Articuno, but the boss wouldn't want us to catch?" A riddle. I hate riddles, and she knew it. I looked at her, a bit ticked off, but she was smiling, her eyes soft.

"I don't know Jesse," I answered, my aggravation obvious in my voice. "What?"

"The fact that I love you," she answered, her eyes looking at me dead on. I could see the reflection of the millions of stars above us in her eyes.

So I closed my own and kissed her.

~~A/N~~

Eh, so, extreme Jesse and James fluff. Well, I can't really do more than fluff with Pokémon. It's a little kids' show! But I just adore J/J matching. Sorry So Short.