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Jesse leaned back against James' chest her eyes closed as he played with her hair. She sighed happily and snuggled into his chest. He shifted, and looked into her eyes. She smiled shyly, and leaned in for a kiss.
"Hey, it's Team Rocket!" shouted an annoying voice. Jesse and James, incredibly disgruntled that their romantic reverie was cut short, twisted around to find Ash, Misty and Tracey glaring down at them, their belts starkly devoid of Pokeballs. James groaned inwardly and stood up, Jesse hanging onto his arm, trying to regain her balance.
"Who?" asked a tall boy with black hair.
"Team Rocket, Tracey. They're our mortal enemies."
"Oh, sorry. I'm still getting used to traveling with you and things."
"It's okay. Brock still needed help finding anything with those eyes of his, so you're not any worse than he was."
"Thanks- I think."
"What do you Twerps want?" James asked exasperatedly.
"We want our Pokemon back!" shouted Ash, his hat, like usual, twisted backwards. He glared defiantly at Jesse and James, his fists clenched and teeth bared slightly.
Jesse sighed. "Look, Twerp, why is it that you're threatening us when you don't have any Pokemon?" she asked smoothly. Ash halted and pondered that thought that had obviously not occurred to him. "Well, ummm, we just will, that's all! Plus, Tracey has a Scyther!"
"Ah, impressive. We have a Pikachu, a Charizard, an Onix... Need I go on?" Ash blinked, but stood his ground. He crossed his arms and glared at Jesse some more. Jesse crossed hers as well, and cocked an eyebrow at Ash. Ash gulped, and skittered behind Misty.
"Save me, Misty!" Misty disgustedly rolled her eyes and gave him a painful boot to the behind, sending him flying into the woods. His yells were cut off as twigs snapped and loud growling could be heard. A few minutes later, bruised and out cold, Ash came flying back to land with a smack at the edge of the clearing. Into the woods, the poor, frustrated Weepinbell could be seen thrashing and growling to itself. James couldn't help but give a low chuckle. Misty ran to Ash with a cry. Tracey was about to follow, but by then Jesse had him by the neck.
"Oh, no you don't," she hissed into his ear. "We're sick of you Twerps bothering us, so we're taking you hostage." Tracey gave a frightened yell, then yelped as Jesse tightened her grip slightly. "You hush." Tracey gave out another yelp, and Misty looked up, her eyes wide in surprise.
"Tracey!" she cried, running to him. Tracey choked slightly, the air to his lungs slowly fading. Misty stopped in mid-stride. Jesse relaxed her grip, but still held him.
"That's it, Twerps. We're sick of you guys bothering us, so we're taking this Twerp here..." "My name's Tracey!" broke in Tracey.
"Oh, shut up, you. We're taking him hostage. And if you want him to remain healthy, you'll leave us alone. Got it?"
"Got it," said Misty in a small, quavering voice.
Jesse nodded to James. "Let's get out of here." James nodded and took Tracey from her, as she was still weak from her episode with Pikachu. Jesse wearily walked off to get the Meowth-balloon and James followed quickly behind, Tracey in tow. Misty slumped down to her knees, her tears running silently down her face.
A little while later, in an abandoned storage building, Jesse and James were curled up by a fire together, while Tracey, bound and gagged, sat on the other side. He glared at them over his gag. When they returned the stare, he sullenly turned to watch the fire's questing fingers probe the night air. The air was comfortable, thanks to the smoky fire, and overhead a large gap in the ceiling let the smoke out. Bright stars twinkled down, a calming reminder of the day's end. Every so often, a night animal would cry out in a lonesome call. Jesse shivered and burrowed further into James' arms.
"I sill doh get whah ye hah t' kep me hossage," Tracey muttered sulkily around the gag, breaking the calm silence of the building. Jesse reluctantly slipped from beneath James' arm to walk over to Tracey. She undid the gag, and looked at him sweetly.
"What was that?" Her smile was falsely innocent and kind. Tracey gulped.
"I... um, don't really get, why I, um, have to be here..." he whimpered subserviently. Jesse cocked an eyebrow at him and stood up again, sighing.
"You Twerps are really getting on our nerves," she began. James stood up and wrapped his arms around Jesse's waist, nodding into her shoulder. Jesse blushed slightly, but went on. "So, if were to keep you here, the other Twerps won't do anything. Got it now?" Tracey nodded meekly. Jesse gave him a dazzling smile and turned around into James' embrace. They looked at each other, their eyes meeting and...
"Ummm, can you untie me?"
Jesse whipped around, fire snapping in her eyes. "Fine. Fine. Anything to make you shut up." She impatiently undid the ties and stalked back to James. Tracey stood up, wobbling, and collapsed against the wall. He looked up to see the pair kissing. Tracey rolled his eyes and shook out his legs, trying to work the feeling back into them. He stretched, and sat down again, his hands in his lap, staring at the fire. After a few moments, he looked back up.
The two were comfortably entwined in each other's arms, their eyes closed and back propped up against the wall. Tracey blinked. He was untied, and the enemies were asleep! He couldn't believe his luck. He silently stood up, and tiptoed to the door.
"Don't even think about it, Twerp." The male voice cut through the dark building- the fire had burnt down and gave off a faint, red glow. Tracey turned to look at Jesse and James, but they were still lying down, their eyes closed. Tracey shrugged and went back to getting to the door.
Suddenly, he was jerked back and fell to the floor. A pair of bright eyes glared down at him. "When he tells ya t' stay put, ya stay put!" commanded Meowth insistently. Tracey grimaced.
"I'm being told what to do by a Pokemon. Great. Just great." He shoved Meowth aside and walked back to the door. As he put his hand on the knob, four streaks of pain flashed down his face. Meowth stood above him, his paw ready for another strike.
"Go back t' bed, Squoit. Or ansa t' tha consequences!" Tracey yanked at Meowth, tugging him down. "No. I'm leaving, and there's nothing you can to do stop me," he said adamantly, and strode towards the door.
"Don't be too sure, Twerp," came a cold female voice from behind him. Jesse booted Tracey into the wall, where he stayed for a few moments, groaning. He fell to the floor, out cold. Jesse frowned at his unconscious form. "C'mon, James, let's get him into one of the storerooms." She walked over and picked Tracey up from beneath the arms & James grabbed his ankles. They carried him awkwardly to a small storage room in the back of the building and set him gently down in one corner. Jesse brushed off her hands and gave James a coy, sidelong look. "Now, where were we...?"
The next morning, sun streamed in through several small windows which opened up to a scene of lush green forest. Birds could be heard chirping outside. Tracey woke up, moaning and holding his aching head. He remembered trying to get out, flying into a wall and... the rest was blank. He sighed and collapsed next to a large wooden crate serving as a table. On top of it was a plate of steaming scrambled eggs, bacon and bread, along with a glass of milk and a fork. Tracey stared at it, confused. Was it poisoned? Why else would he be given food? He shook his head, refusing to eat, and crossed his arms, looking the other way.
His stomach growled, giving him a loud reminder that he hadn't eaten since lunch the previous day. He scowled at the food, and turned away. A whiff of scent reached his nose; scrambled eggs, cooked to perfection. He coughed and tried to ignore it. He closed his eyes, trying to go back to sleep. All the scents in the small room seemed to be magnified. The eggs smelled better than ever, the bread gave off a pleasant, yeasty smell and the bacon was heavenly. He drooled slightly. He was so hungry! He shook his head. He couldn't let it get to him.
Finally, after long minutes of inner battle, he couldn't stand it any longer. He leapt towards the plate and gave the eggs a cautious nibble. He sighed happily, as there was no pain washing through his body, no poison. He busily ate the entire thing, humming under his breath.
About an hour later, Jesse strode in to clean up the plate. She glared at him while picking up the dishes, making muted clinks as they hit each other. Tracey built up his courage.
"Umm, can I ask you something?" he asked hesitantly. Jesse frowned. "Make it quick," she demanded huffily, and turned to watch him, bored. Her foot tapped the dirt floor, a sign of her growing impatience. Tracey fidgeted.
"Well, I'm a hostage, right? So why are you being to good to me, relatively speaking?" Jesse frowned. "Because we don't feel like making your life a living hell right now," was all she said, tossing the words over her shoulder as she stalked out and closed the door. Tracey sighed. He had no idea what to think of Team Rocket. They had stolen his Pokemon, sent him blasting off for miles, kidnapped him and now were feeding him breakfast. He rubbed his eyes and lay back onto the crate, thinking.
And so it went for nearly a week. For lack of elsewhere to take him, Jesse and James remained in the storage building. Tracey, after a short while, was allowed to wander about the building, poking into the crates and finding whatever had been left in them. Jesse and James spent their time talking and playing with Arbok and Wheezing.
The days blended together in a dull blur, and every day was like the next. Until one day, Tracey was examining a room that he had checked over at least twice before, poking into each crate. In some, he found blankets or packs of paper, others had cans of nuts long past the sell by date and cookbooks. He was about to leave when he was looking through his last crate. Inside were five bottles of amber liquid. 'Hey!' thought Tracey. 'Cream soda!' He opened one of the bottles and gulped down a huge swallow.
Fire poured down his throat, making him hack and cough. He swallowed several times, trying to rid himself of the sensation. He held up the bottle to examine. No labels were apparent. He shrugged, and thumbed the lip of the bottle. After a cautious sniff, he took another wary sip. The fiery sensation burned down his throat again, but this time he expected it and enjoyed it.
He sat down, kicking his feet up and continuing to take drinks from the bottle. He gave a cocky grin and tossed down the empty bottle, reaching blindly for another. He lurched back up and stumbled out of the room and out of the front door, which the pair had carelessly left unlocked while on a picnic with Meowth and the other Pokemon. He swaggered out along the path, going in no particular direction, and singing off-key to himself.
Jesse laughed, her eyes shining at James. "Get out of here? And go where? And what about Tracey?" James grinned down at her.
"We'll take the Meowth-balloon and go to, oh, I don't know, Acapulco."
"No! Anywhere but Acapulco!" laughed Jesse, tickling James. James squirmed, trying to get away.
"Okay! Bermuda, then."
Jesse grinned. "Fine, just no cross dressing, okay?" James grinned.
"Fine. No cross dressing. Just for you." He tackled Jesse, tickling her and making her laugh helplessly. James stood up and grinned down at her. "I'll go get the Meowth-balloon. Do you want to go get the things?" Jesse laughed gaily and nodded. "Great. I'll meet you outside the building in about an hour." He waved and trotted off into the woods in the direction of the balloon.
Jesse stayed down for a few moments, watching James' retreating form. Finally, she sighed, and sauntered over to the building. Her brow furrowed; she knew something was wrong. "Tracey?" she called. Then it hit her: the door was open. Tracey was gone!
She leapt up and dashed outside, frantically looking for his tracks. She found them, and followed them through the woods. The prints were haphazard, like Tracey had been spinning while he walked. She followed the random tracks worriedly for nearly two miles. The tracks were easy to follow, cut deep into the path and obvious. The sun was high in the sky, beating down on her back. The sky was a bright blue, unmarred by clouds and the wind was a playful breeze that skittered mischievously about the forest. Jesse ran along the path, until she saw something that made her heart jump into her throat.
Tracey was wobbling along the edge of a steep cliff, singing off-key in a shrill voice. He spun around and tried to focus on her. He couldn't tell who it was, but he grinned and waved anyway. The wave sent him off-balance, and he teetered dangerously close to the edge. Jesse ran as fast as she could towards him, catching him as he nearly fell off.
"Oh!" said Tracey in a slurred voice. "It's you!" He went back to singing and staring behind her at the trees. Jesse tugged at his clothes, trying to get him away from the danger of the cliffs. He grinned happily and swung to the edge, wind-milling his arms. Jesse grabbed at his shirt, but she could feel the cloth slipping through her fingers.
"Nooooooooo!!!!" she screamed as the last bit of Tracey's shirt slipped and he went tumbling from her grasp. The rushing air and lack of footing knocked Tracey instantly into sobriety.
He screamed as he realized where he was, and where he was going. He could swear he saw his life flashing in front of his eyes. His family, Ash, Misty, his love for drawing, all glittered in front of his eyes like a wall of light. The bottom of the cliffs came rushing at him, and all was dark...
Jesse was huddled at the top of the cliffs, stunned, clutching her knees as she stared over the precipice at the rocky terrain beyond. Tears welled up in her gleaming eyes, and spilled down across her cheeks. Soft sobs wracked her body. She had never killed before, but she as good as killed Tracey. If only she had held on, if only she hadn't let him find the liquor, if only she hadn't kidnapped him in the first place. If only...
James had waited patiently by the building, the Meowth-balloon weighted down, but ready to go at a moment's notice. He was ecstatic; he was going on a vacation with Jesse! He skipped around the balloon a bit, tapping his fingers on the edge, impatient to go. Over the next half an hour, his good mood was quickly sliding into a sour one.
"Where is Jesse?" he asked the balloon, which refused to answer. He finally weighted down the balloon with a few more rocks and trotted off in the direction of two sets of footprints went in. Twenty minutes later, he found Jesse, her long, tangled red hair swirling about her shoulders, the hairspray worn out by the winds of the cliffs. Her face was pale, her eyes, though sparkling with tears, were blank. James crouched in front of her and took her in his arms.
"Jesse," he whispered. "What is it? What's wrong?" Jesse looked up at him, the first reaction he had gotten from her since he came, and she burst into tears again. James held her close as she wept into his shirt, much like he had done into hers only a week before. He tried to pull her up, but she refused to move. He stopped trying, and Jesse wound her arms around his neck, crying silently. James, even though he didn't know why she was crying, found that his eyes stung from unshed tears.
Finally, Jesse fell into an exhausted sleep. Her eyes were haunted as she closed them, tears still falling down her cheeks. James tenderly cradled her in his arms and carried her back to the building. He spread out a blanket one-handed, Jesse still in his arms, and lay her down, lying down beside her. Her sleep was plagued by dreams. She tossed and turned fitfully through the night.
James simply held her, staring at the fire. The coals slowly died into a blue-gray ash, one by one. The air was cool and quiet; even the forest animals were silent. Jesse had finally stopped struggling, and her breathing was calm and even.
"James?" came the frightened whisper.
"What?" he asked, looking down into her face. The stars illuminated her eyes, which seemed all the larger in the pale starlight. Her face was tortured, as if something was eating away at her soul.
"I-" she started. James held her close, trying to comfort her.
"It's all right. You can tell me anything."
"I- can't!" she sobbed, pounding her fists on James' chest. James jerked involuntarily, surprise lacing his eyes. "I can't tell you! You'd hate me for it!" She threw herself away from him and struggled up, racing out the door and into the darkness of the nighttime forest.
"Jesse!" James called after her. He sprinted after her, her long red hair red hair streaming behind her like a colorful banner in the darkness. Trees flashed past, the forest an eerie shadowy black. The starlight lit the path into a pale blue strip. Jesse ran without purpose, without a destination. She only had to run. James put out one final burst of energy and tackled Jesse by the shoulders. They both fell, and rolled to a nearby tree.
"Jesse! Listen to me," cried James, sitting up and pulling her with him. "There is nothing you can do to make me hate you. Nothing!" He pulled her into his arms. "I love you, Jesse, and there is nothing you could to make me stop loving you."
"Nothing?!" Jesse cried in anguish. "Nothing? Try this: I killed Tracey! I killed him!" She threw herself at James. "I killed him-"
James was stunned. "Impossible," he murmured. He pulled Jesse back to look her in the face. "Impossible. You didn't kill him. How could you?"
"I'll tell you how," Jesse spat. "This whole thing. I kidnapped him and brought him to the building where we've been staying. He somehow found some kind of liquor, like vodka or gin or something. I- I think he got drunk, and he got to the cliffs. I tried to keep him from going over, I honestly did! But, his shirt slipped from my fingers- I should have tried harder. If I had, he would still be alive." She drew back from James' hold, hugging her knees. James, again, took her in his arms.
"Jesse, there was nothing more you could do about it." Jesse shook her head adamantly.
"It's my fault. It's all my fault-"
Jesse stood up and looked around. She was at the cliffs, the breeze tugging at her hair and clothing.
"Jesse."
Jesse whipped around to find Tracey staring sadly at her. He looked the same as always, but ghost-like. He stretched out a hand; the path could be seen through it.
"Jesse, why did you kill me?" he whispered. His eyes were filled with pain and sorrow.
"I didn't! I didn't! I didn't mean to!"
"Jesse, you killed me. Why do you deny it?"
"Please! I never wanted you dead!"
"If you had held on, I would be alive today."
"I tried! I tried to hold on, but you slipped!"
"Yes. If you had tried harder, I would not be dead. Do you deny it?"
"No, I don't deny it."
"Then you are a murderer."
"No! I'm not a murderer!" Jesse backed up, panicked. Tracey continued to advance on her, his eyes narrowing and seeming to glow. Jesse's foot slipped on jagged pebbles by the cliffs edge. She threw herself forwards, away from the edge of the cliffs. Tracey caught her by the shirt, and held her up to his eye level. His eyes were cold; fury and hate raged behind them. He leaned forward and whispered in her ear.
"Murderer-" And with that damning word, he threw her from him, flinging her into the deep abyss. Jesse screamed, and her scream seemed to go one and on-
"Jesse! Jesse, wake up!" Jesse shot up, flinging the blanket from her. James was by her side, looking concernedly at her. "Jesse, wake up. It's all right. It was just a nightmare." He drew her into his arms, cradling her. Jesse resisted, and stared at him, confusion and self-hatred filling her eyes.
"James- I'm a murderer-"