Me: Ugh, I suck, this is so late. Anyway, this chapter's a little less light and happy than the others, 'cause of Kai's emo. Never fear, no much emo after this XD. Enjoy!
Jessie poked her head out from behind a rock sticking out from the main wall of the cave. She sneered happily when she saw a small group heading towards them. "Good. Someone's coming."
James looked at the small black device in his hand; there was a green radar on it with a small blinking red light heading slowly towards the centre. "These must the guys with the weird Pikachu" He commented, "They've got the fossil we gave that old man."
"Now we can capture it for the Boss!" His partner announced with a grin, straightening.
"It was a good t'ing the Boss was interested in dat Pikachu." Meowth said, his eyes gleaming with greed as he fantasised of the reward their boss would give them if they handed over the Pikachu. "You two ready?"
Team Rocket nodded, each of them taking a small red and white pokeball from their belts.
"Let's get them." Jessie murmured, striding boldly from their hiding place to block the group's path. "Sorry for barging in, but you have something we want." She told them with a confident smile.
"Yeah! And no shocking us this time either!" James said, his arms folded and oblivious to his companions' exasperated faces.
Kai twitched one ear from his perch on Tyson's shoulder. They had nearly made it out of Mt. Moon without any difficulties when Team Rocket decided to show up. "They aren't the most threatening of bad guys." He muttered dryly, jumping down to land quietly by Tyson's feet.
"No, but Chief and Hilary aren't aware of their stupidity." The blue haired teen replied mildly, tilting his head to give his anxious looking friends a grin. "Don't worry guys, these three aren't that dangerous."
"They're not?" Kenny asked, his voice high with fear as he surveyed the crooks. "I don't like the look of them…"
Hilary, who had gotten over her shock, was glaring at the trio barring their way. "Listen, I don't know what you want but we aren't giving to you. Now move out the way, I have had up to here with this cave!" She snarled.
Jessie laughed at her, "not without a battle little girl."
Meowth poked her with a claw. "Wasn't the plan just the snatch the Pikachu without any hassle?"
The red haired woman glared down at him, "they're resisting, and we're battling." She insisted.
"And I want revenge for that electric shock." James frowned, enlarging his pokeball. "So I say we fight too!"
Tyson frowned at them, and reached for Spice's pokeball. "Fine. We accept!" He said, rising to the challenge.
"Is this wise?" Kenny whimpered.
"Of course! Once we beat them, we can get out here!" Hilary told him vehemently, pulling a pokeball of her own from her belt and enlarging it. "Squirtle! Go!" She launched the ball and it burst open to reveal the small blue turtle Pokemon with a bright flash of white light.
"Spice!" The Chikorita appeared next to Squirtle with another flash.
"Ekans!"
"Koffing!"
Team Rockets' pokeballs soared forwards and opened, and a long purple snake Pokemon appeared on the rocky ground, slithering forwards and opening its mouth. "Ekanssss" it hissed. Another purple Pokemon, darker in shade, floated next to it, green gases spilling from the holes in its skin, "Koffing…"
"Poison types…" Kenny murmured, "Be careful guys."
"They don't look that tough." Kai said eyeing their opponents.
"Looksss can be deceiving little moussse" Ekans hissed, glaring at the Pikachu with yellow eyes.
"Whatever. Spice, Tackle that Ekans!" Tyson ordered, hearing Hilary order her Squirtle to do the same to Koffing.
The plant Pokemon dashed forwards, leaping to the side as Ekans darted its head forwards to try and bite her and smashing her body into the snake's side. It reared and hissed angrily.
"Bite it, Ekans!" Jessie shouted.
Ekans twisted and aimed carefully, spitting the rocks from its mouth from its previous attempt. It shot forwards, snarling angrily as it missed again. "Ssstay ssstill!"
"No thanks." Spice replied quietly in her polite voice, jumping daintily out of another Bite attack's way.
Tyson bit the inside of his cheek, thinking, "Spice!" He called on a sudden bout of inspiration, "use Razor Leaf to stun it!"
Spice swung her swung, launching two sharp leaf blades spinning towards Ekans. They struck its head and it hissed, waving its head around.
Across the passage, Hilary was grinning in triumph as her Squirtle managed to avoid Koffing's poisonous fumes by withdrawing into its shell. "Now, Squirtle! Water Gun!"
A thin spray of water smashed into Koffings, just below its eyes and it cart wheeled in the air before coming to stop by bumping gently into the cave wall. "Ouch…" It groaned, before ducking down to avoid another water attack.
Jessie clenched her teeth in frustration as her Ekans was picked up by Spice's vines and thrown against the wall. "James! Give me a hand!" She shouted at her partner, before recalling her unconscious Pokemon with a grimace. "Now it's your turn." She ordered the cat Pokemon huddling by her side, reaching down to grab Meowth by the scruff of his neck and threw him into the fray.
"What! But I don't fight! I scheme!" Meowth screeched, his fur bristling in fear and Tyson and Spice prepared to battle him. Whimpering, he brought out his claws and held them feebly in front of him. "Don't come any closer…"
The cat Pokemon needn't have worried if Spice was going to hurt him or not, as Koffing came hurtling through the air, blue gas billowing from it. It floated to the ground, sparkling, and coated Spice, whose red eyes grew hazy as her eyelids drooped.
"Argh! Sleep Powder!" Tyson growled in frustration as he watched the Chikorita sway before flopping on her side, snoring gently.
"Get that Koffing, Squirtle!"
The turtle, hidden safely inside its shell, came spinning along and hit a rock protruding from the earthy ground. The obstruction caused it to soar through the air and smash straight into Koffing's side, knocking it to the ground where it lay, still.
Squirtle emerged from its shell and winked at its trainer as she congratulated it and recalled it into her Pokeball.
Team Rocket scowled in anger at their loss, and Jessie clenched a fist and shook at the group. "Why you…" she growled, before grabbing James's collar, Meowth's tail and hurrying towards the exit. "We'll be back!" She shouted over her shoulder.
James's voice floated after them, echoing around the cave walls, "that was so humiliating…"
"See, Kenny? That turned out fine, didn't it?" Hilary told the quivering teen beside her, "they're gone, didn't do any damage and more importantly, we can get out of here!" She lifted her arms above her head in her joy and strode forwards towards the end of the cave's route.
"I hope they don't show up again…" Kenny murmured, following her, clenching his hands together nervously.
Behind them, Tyson had hurried towards Spice's side and was shaking her awake gently. He smiled when the small plant Pokemon opened her eyes blearily. "Hey, sleepyhead." He greeted gently, "you ok?"
"…Yes. What happened?" Spice questioned, getting to her feet and looking curiously. "Team Rocket has gone…"
"Yeah! We won!" Tyson told her enthusiastically, getting to his feet and grinning down at her. "Koffing put you to sleep with his gas, but Squirtle clinched it." He explained.
"Oh…I am sorry I fell asleep." Spice apologised, lowering her gaze in her shame.
"Hey, don't apologise, it's not your fault." Tyson knelt down and stroked the side of her head gently, "it doesn't matter, and you still did really well!"
Spice beamed up at him, her eyes shining.
Tyson returned her grin and recalled her, gesturing to Kai, who was watching close by, to hurry up and he jogged after the others.
The Pikachu followed on all fours, impressed by how good Tyson was with Spice. 'He's very good at understanding Pokemon, and I don't think it's just down to understanding what they're saying, either.'
Hilary stretched, lifting her face up to take in the late afternoon's warmth. "Oh, it's good to be out of that cave." She sighed, strolling along the worn path that sloped slowly down towards Cerulean City.
"I agree, though it would've been nice to watch those Zubat some more." Kenny said, "Their sonar is really fascinating."
Kai flicked his ears restlessly from where he walked beside Tyson, looking down eagerly at the group of buildings that made up his hometown. Hopefully, Bill would be there and he would be alright, and he could become a human again.
Tyson looked down at him, "excited?" He questioned.
"I suppose you could say that." Kai replied, walking forwards at a faster pace, "Although I do want to know if Bill is alright."
"The police wouldn't have hurt him, I don't think." Tyson replied, scratching his cheek in thought, "hopefully they'll have let him go too, so you can turn back straight away when we get there!" His smiled down at Kai, though the happiness didn't quite reach his eyes.
Kai tilted his head at him, tail twitching. "Something wrong?"
"Nope!" Another strained grin.
"Hey, what are you two talking about?" Hilary questioned, popping up by Tyson's other side and making him jump. She looked curiously from the blue haired teen to the Pikachu.
"None of your business, Hil." Tyson huffed at her, turning his head away.
The brunette poked his shoulder. "Why are you so grumpy?"
"I'm not grumpy! You're bothering me!"
Kenny sighed at the two dissolved into a small squabble, "why did they both have to have tempers?" He groaned to Kai, which earned a shrug from the Pikachu.
Kai watched Tyson carefully as he and Hilary turned away from each other to simultaneously fold their arms in a sulky huff. Even if Tyson had said nothing was wrong, something was definitely bothering the teen, Kai could see it in the distant look in those blue eyes.
Clambering up to perch on Tyson's shoulder as the group marched silently down towards Cerulean; Kai felt a small shock of excitement of being able to go back to his proper form and seeing his old friend again. Tearing his gaze away from his goal, and smothering the urge to simply race down the path to Bill's, he tugged at Tyson's ear.
"Ouch! What?" Tyson grumbled at him.
"What's wrong with you? You keep staring off into the distance." Kai questioned. He didn't like it when Tyson was quiet and sad, it didn't suit him and it made the Pikachu feel concerned. Tyson was, after all, the only friend and person he properly trusted at the moment.
"I already told you, nothing's wrong!" Tyson replied, his voice a little louder than usual because of his agitation, and looked away, eyes blazing.
"Really."
Tyson stopped walking, stuffing his hands in his jean pockets and shrugging Kai a little roughly off of his shoulder. He glared down at the ground, looking as though he was making a very hard decision.
Kai felt his ears droop a little. "Tyson?"
"I… I just really like your company, that's all." Tyson replied quietly, his eyes downcast and no longer angry. "I guess I don't want you to go just yet." He had gotten used to the Pikachu's attitude and dry remarks, and was fond of him and the warm weight he presented while riding on his shoulder. He admired Kai's bravery at being a creature completely alien to what he was used to, and the calm he showed at his situation.
Kai felt a little wordless, unsure what to say to that. He was touched, grateful to thought of like that. "I… thank-you." He replied quietly. "I don't know what I'll do when I turn back to normal, but…" He paused, wondering if whether he should offer to continue to travel with Tyson, or go back to his life in Cerulean.
He was surprised when he saw Tyson smiling warmly at him.
"It doesn't matter. Sorry, I was being selfish, you can do what you want when you're back to a human. You helped me start my journey, and I help you get back to normal, it's not fair of me to ask you stay." The blue haired teen winked at him, "so let's just go and see Bill, right Kaichu?"
"Don't call me that." Kai muttered, though he was relieved that Tyson was cheerful again. He resumed his spot on Tyson's shoulder, and began to drift into thoughts of what he would do once a human again.
Hilary's voice shouted at them as Tyson began to walk down the path again, "hurry up you two, or we'll never get there by dinner time!"
"I am hungry…" Tyson said, mostly to himself, and broke out into a full run as he hurtled down the path into the Cerulean City, Kai clinging desperately onto the fabric of his jacket.
The next morning found the group standing outside the Pokemon Centre, trying to decide what to do first.
"I think we should look around first." Hilary said, glancing around buildings.
"Agreed, but you want to visit the gym, right Tyson?" Kenny asked, looking at his friend for confirmation.
"Uh, yeah, but I have something to do first." Tyson replied, "So how about you two look around and tell me all about it later?" Kai nodded from the ground beside him.
"What do you have to do?" Hilary questioned, curious.
"Just a small errand for a friend, it shouldn't take too long." Tyson assured her with a thumb's up, "I'll see you back here in a few hours, ok?" He turned to leave, waving.
"Well, ok…" Kenny said, watching the bluenet head down the path at a brisk pace. "Wonder what errand he has to run?" He said to Hilary.
She shook her head, bemused. "No idea, and I don't see why we couldn't have gone with him. Folding her arms, she said, "I bet it has something to do with that conversation he was having with Kai earlier."
Kenny hummed his agreement. "I hope everything's ok."
Further down the path that wound from the Pokemon Centre, Tyson looked around. Most of the buildings in Cerulean were white with brightly coloured roves, and none seemed to stand out as being Bill's house. He had expected a larger building with many rooms and at least three floors to accommodate all the science Tyson thought he did. "Um, where is Bill's house?"
Kai pointed with a tiny yellow paw at an average looking house to the left, beside the stream that wound around the edge of the city. "There."
Tyson felt a little disappointed. "That's it?"
"What were you expecting?"
"I dunno. I thought because he liked science and stuff he'd have a big house or a lab or… something."
Kai shrugged the best he could on Tyson's shoulder. "Bill doesn't have enough money to build himself a bigger house, with all the things he makes."
"Huh." Seeing no reason to hang around looking at Bill's house, Tyson broke into a light job towards the white building. He could feel the Pikachu perched on his shoulder tense with building excitement and grinned gently.
The happy expression lifted soon after, to be replaced with one of confusion and Tyson slowed down to gaze curiously at a man clad in a black uniform dart from one house and tree to another along the path. "What's he up to?" He wondered.
"Who cares?"
Tyson began to job again, shooting one last look over his shoulder, and frowned angrily when he saw a bright red 'R' emblazoned on the man's back. "He's a rocket!" He growled.
Kai glanced at the criminal sceptically, "And he's not very good at hiding, either. The police will catch him soon enough."
The blue haired teen made a noise at him, understanding the Pikachu's rush, but not liking it so much. "He'd better not 'cause any damage because we left him…" he grumbled to Kai, hurrying down the worn path to Bill's.
"He won't." Was the confident reply.
"Huh?" Tyson jolted, startled, when he heard loud sirens and an engine. Watching with wide eyes, he gaped as one of the infamous Officer Jenny's zoomed after the Rocket on her gleaming white motorcycle, the red and blue lights wailing the warning sound of the police. "Guess he was running from her…"
Kai scowled at Tyson's slowed pace again and tugged on his hair. "Bill's." He reminded him, sternly.
The teen rolled his eyes in irritation and batted Kai's hand away impatiently. "Yeah, yeah, I get it."
Kai's body froze when Tyson swung open the broken door of Bill's house forward, calling for the young scientist. He had grown concerned when he noticed the cracked wood of the door, but he wasn't prepared for the utter chaos that was inside.
Papers and notes were strewn about the floor, the furniture was haphazard and it didn't look as though Bill was there. Kai took a few tentative steps forward, staring at the mess with wide, disbelieving eyes, listening vaguely to Tyson's calls grow slowly quieter as it became evident that Bill was not in.
"He must still be at the police station…" Kai growled to himself, his eyes dropping down sharply in his anger, and small sparks flew from his cheeks. It had been days since the police had raided Bill's! Surely he must have been cleared by now.
"Hey, Kai?"
The Pikachu flicked his eyes up, ears twitching. He heard a note of hesitance in Tyson's voice, but was too absorbed in his own anger and frustration he didn't pay much attention to it.
"Is… is this the machine that turned you into a Pikachu?"
Kai's head snapped up. If the machine was still intact, then that at least would be some good news… yet Tyson's quiet tone was present in his voice and he felt his heart drop somewhere beneath his feet when he saw the cracked glass and metal of the broken Pokemorpher.
Tyson ran one finger down the shattered surface of the machine, his chest aching that Kai's hopes had effectively been destroyed. He turned slowly to the frozen Pikachu, biting his bottom lip in empathised sadness, and began to pick his way through the bits and pieces littered about the floor to crouch down beside the Pikachu.
Resting one hand on Kai's back, he rubbed it gently, "it can be fixed, don't worry."
Kai swirled around to face him, snarling. "How? It's completely destroyed! Even you can see that! Better yet, Bill's still stuck in prison for all I know for a crime he didn't commit and it might be weeks before he can get out and be ready to try and fix this. And it'll take months if he has to build another one!" He growled and more sparks flew, larger and more dangerous.
Tyson tensed but held his ground and kept his hand firmly against Kai's back. "Don't get so pessimistic! If you think like that then how are you supposed to help Bill and become a human again quicker, huh? This machine can be fixed, and Bill will get out of prison, do…" He didn't get to finish his sentence as Kai hit him with a sharp bolt of electricity. He was thrown backwards onto his back, and coughed.
"Don't lecture me. You don't know anything of this machine or how long the police keep people in custody."
"Maybe not, but that's no reason not to hope, and make it happen." Tyson groaned from his position on the floor. He winced as sharp tingles ran up and down his body and let his head hit the floor with a 'thump'. "You didn't have to shock me, it hurt." He grumbled, feeling his own anger begin to boil and pulse along with his aching body.
Kai felt a small pang of guilt but ignored it. "I'm being realistic."
"And giving up."
The Pikachu snarled at him again in fury, cheeks crackling.
Tyson raised himself onto his elbows with a grunt. "What? It's true!" His voice had risen, "stop moping and think concentrate on getting Bill out of prison so the machine can be fixed!"
Kai growled again, furious at himself for being wrong, he hated to admit that someone else was right during an argument. Yet, the sparks in his cheeks faded, and his ears dropped. "I… you're…"
The blue haired teen shook his head and raised a hand to halt him as he sat up. "Don't worry about it, let's just go to the police station and ask about Bill, ok?" He stood, dusted off his clothing and waved for Kai to follow him.
Following Kai's quiet directions, Tyson stopped outside of the glass sliding doors of the police station, watching with some amusement as the Officer Jenny they saw earlier march the captured Rocket towards the entrance of the station. The black uniformed man was scowling and muttering threats under his breath, tugging gently at the handcuffs around his wrists.
"Stop grumbling and struggling, you're still going in." Jenny told him sternly. She paused by the doors to give Tyson and Kai a curious look. "Can I help you?"
"Uh, yes! Is there a man named Bill here?" Tyson asked her.
Kai watched the officer hopefully.
Officer Jenny frowned, "him? He's been moved to the station in Saffron for further questioning." She shook her head lightly, nudging the Rocket forwards a little to make the glass doors slide open silently. "I'm not sure why, we questioned him for all we needed to know, but I guess Saffron wanted more knowledge, they deal with more Team Rocket related incidents than we do."
Tyson frowned. "So, he's innocent?"
The officer gave him a stern look, "I can't tell you what conclusion we came to."
"Why not!"
"It's confidential, and not to be released to the public." Jenny replied firmly, "you'll have to try your luck in Saffron." With that, she walked the rest of the way into the station.
"…Great. Now Bill's being held in Saffron." Tyson muttered as the police station's doors slide closed. He sighed and glanced down at Kai, who was looking solemn by his feet and gave him a weary smile. "Guess we'll have to bug the officers at Saffron when we get there, huh?"
Kai looked up at him, slightly surprised, and his ears perked up. "Yeah, I guess so." He hesitated, before climbing up to perch again on Tyson's shoulder. "I'm… sorry for shocking you earlier." He said quietly after a while.
"That's okay, just don't make a habit out of it, or I'll dye your fur." Tyson grinned at him, making his way back to the Pokemon Centre where he had said he would Hilary and Kenny. "I wonder where the others are."
Kai looked around, relaxing on Tyson's shoulder, and he quickly spotted the rest of their group leaving the blue roofed building that marked the Pokemart. "There they are." He pointed to them.
"Oh?" The blue haired teen tilted his head and waved, "Hey! Guys! Over here!"
Kenny looked up at the sound of Tyson's voice and waved back, pulling a distracted Hilary's hand to make her follow as he want up to join Tyson. The brunette had just bought a new fishing rod, and was smiling at it, decidedly pleased with her new purchase.
Tyson pointed at the long wooden rod, "What did you buy that for?" He questioned, confused.
"To catch Pokemon of course!" Hilary replied, rolling her eyes at the other teen's ignorance, "you can fish for them in streams. Some old guy tried to sell me a battered old one, but everyone knows you can only catch Magikarp with them." She lifted her new fishing rod proudly. "This baby however can catch a whole bunch of different species! I can't wait to try it out!"
"Well, you're going to have to wait because I have a gym battle to fight, right Chief?" Tyson said to Kenny, grinning with excitement.
"And here I was worrying you'd forgotten, you were taking a long time on your errand." Kenny replied, "The gym leader here is Misty, she's a water trainer."
"Oh, I'm going to enjoy watching her fight!" Hilary exclaimed, as she folded her new fishing rod reluctantly along the hinges running down the wood and stored in safely in her bag. "What was that errand, anyway?" She questioned Tyson, lifting a brow.
He waved her off dismissively, "none of your business. I just had to find something out for a friend that's all. Now then, Chief, where's the gym?"
"This is going to be a piece of cake, Misty's water Pokemon are weak to both Kai and Spice!" Tyson exclaimed confidently as they went through the large blue doors that lead into the gym.
"Don't get too confident, Tyson. She's a gym leader, so she's much tougher than average water trainers." Kenny cautioned, he winced and whimpered in pain after receiving a smack on the head from Hilary.
"Just because she's a gym leader doesn't mean she's better than the rest of us that use water Pokemon!" She said furiously, glaring at him.
"I'm sorry! I was just pointing out that Tyson shouldn't underestimate Misty just because he has the type advantage!"
Tyson ignored the small fight behind him to look around the gym for its leader. It was definitely much nicer looking than Brock's gym. It was a large and brightly light room, with orange tiles and small pools of water dotted about a much large one on the middle. There were two platforms on each end of the large swimming pool. "Uh, hello? Anyone here?" He called, and jumped, startled, when a girl with bright orange hair pulled herself up onto the side of the large pool.
"Did you know she was in there?" He asked Kai weakly, as Misty dried herself off with a nearby white towel.
The Pikachu shook his head.
Misty cocked her head at the trainers. "Are you here to challenge me?" She questioned, smiling. She wrapped her towel around her neck.
Tyson spotted a belt tied around the gym leader's waist with two Pokeballs on it, attached to the bottom of her blue swimming costume. "Yeah, I am!"
"Good!" Misty replied, and made her way to the far end of the swimming pool to stand on one of the platforms. "This will be a two-on-two battle, do you accept?"
"I do!"
"I didn't think she'd be so young." Hilary commented, a little amazed, as she and Kenny watched the orange haired gym leader release her first Pokemon, the brown star shaped Pokemon, Staryu.
"Age doesn't necessarily mean better skill." Kenny pointed out, as Tyson directed Kai into the fight first.
"So, think you can take this one down quickly?" Tyson asked Kai with a grin as the Pikachu readied himself to fight.
"Of course. It's only a starfish."
The red core on Staryu's centre flashed once in anger, "A fast starfish, rat." He bit back, as Misty instructed it to Tackle, and it zoomed forwards, spinning in the air like a frisbee. It swooped down towards Kai and narrowly missed at the Pikachu dived into the water to dodge the attack.
Kai came up spluttering slightly, finding swimming a little awkward as a Pikachu. He dived as Staryu shot a Water Gun at him.
"Just keep dodging it, Kai!" Tyson called, as an idea hit him. He watched carefully as Staryu tried again, unsuccessfully to hit Kai with another Water Gun and grinned when Misty called for it to use Rapid Spin, a more ferocious spinning attack than Tackle had been.
"Kai, Thundershock it when it gets near!"
The Pikachu's ears twitched in response to the command and he dodged, narrowly, again, cheeks sparkling with electricity. The Staryu hit the water with the force of its attack and Kai let loose an electric shock, igniting the entire pool with light.
Misty scowled and cursed lightly under her breath when Staryu bobbed on the surface, knocked out, its core blinking on and off. "Well done, Staryu, return!" She called, recalling the brown star into its Pokeball in a thin beam of red light. "Now, Starmie! Finish it off!"
Kai looked behind him as another star shaped Pokemon, bigger this time and purple, appeared in a flash of white light. He growled and tried to swim the rest of the way back to the platform.
"Too slow." Misty said, her eyes dancing tauntingly, "Starmie! Hydro Pump!"
Starmie immediately let loose a huge jet of churning, rushing water towards Kai, who was scrabbling up the side of the platform. It hit its mark and the Pikachu went flying through the air.
"Kai!" Tyson called out in distress, dashing forwards to catch him before he could meet the floor painfully. He shook the unconscious Pikachu worriedly, but Kai didn't seem to be too hurt. "I'm sorry." Tyson murmured to him.
Kenny watched sympathetically from behind, while Hilary watched Starmie return to stand by Misty.
"That Starmie is well trained." She commented, eyes shining.
Kenny gave her an annoyed look. "Hilary! We're supposed to be cheering for Tyson, not Starmie!"
"I know, I know. But you have to admit that that Starmie is strong."
Kenny hummed in worried agreement.
On the battle platform, Tyson rearranged Kai so he was resting comfortably in one arm before reaching down and grabbing Spice's Pokeball.
"Go, Spice!"
Me: Oh, Tyson. You are definitely Kai's bitch. Anyway, review?