|
|
"Two, please."
The vendor handed James two hotdogs on green buns. James studied them carefully. "This isn't mold, is it?"
The vendor shook his head. "It's on account it's St. Patrick's Day. Can I get you two mugs of green beer to go with that?" James considered carefully. The beer was tempting, but... he looked over at Jessie, who was resting on a bench nearby. She didn't have a very good tolerance for alcohol. When she was drunk, she had a tendency to do some strange things. She lost most of her inhibitions, i.e. she smiled more, worried less, and relaxed a lot. Not to mention the fact that James had never once seen her hung over. James smiled. At least she wasn't a mean drunk.
"I'll take 'em."
"Ash, let's let it go and get out of here," she said, gesturing to the fairy. "It's just messing with our minds, anyway. We don't need the last wish. Let's just go enjoy the fair, okay?"
When Ash didn't respond, she turned to him, her anger boiling. Arrogant, self-centered... she thought angrily. But all anger dropped from her countenance when she saw the look on Ash's face.
He had been quiet these past couple of minutes - a feat Misty thought she'd never see him manage. His hat was pulled over his eyes as he rubbed his chin with his hand. He looked thoughtful and a little sad. It made Misty extremely nervous. Ash was thinking.
"You can grant any wish at all, correct?" Ash asked the fairy, looking up to make eye contact. The fairy flipped its long green hair off its shoulder and smiled that evil smile, causing everyone to cringe. It rubbed its hands together and nodded vigorously.
"Yep! I sure can. Anything you want. Just say the word."
Ash nodded and pulled his hat back over his eyes. He took a deep breath. Pikachu, sensing his friend's distress, hopped up into Ash's arms. He smiled at the little electric mouse and hugged him close for a moment. He took another deep breath and looked up.
"I want to talk to my father."
"What do you think, Jess. We could do better, ne?"
"I think Ekans could do better," she said with a chuckle. This poor sap was going to make a fool of himself. Oh, well. At least it was entertaining to watch. The juggler gave up on clubs and decided to try rubber balls for a while instead. He was doing okay for a few minutes, but then they came tumbling down, bouncing in all directions across the field. One bounced straight towards them and rolled gently to a stop against James' foot. A call of apology rang out to them.
"Want me to shoot them?" asked Jessie with a smile. James just shook his head and bent down to retrieve the ball. As his hand passed over it, he blinked in amazement. Picking up the ball and plucking something from the ground, he sat up and tossed the ball to the juggler, who gave him a cheerful wave and went back to practicing.
"Close your eyes," said James as he stood up and walked around the table to where Jessie was sitting. "Hold out your hand." Jessie eyes narrowed as she regarded him and his odd request. There was a sparkle in his eyes that told of mischief. She sighed and complied with his wish, figuring if he did something bad to her, she could get back at him tonight. Jessie felt him press something into her hands.
"You can open your eyes now."
She did and smiled brightly when she saw what he had given her. It was so like James to notice the little things. Between this and the toy pikachu...
"Trying to get lucky?" she asked with an evil grin. She closed her hand around the small four-leaf clover he had given her, grabbed the front of his shirt with her other hand, and pulled a surprised James down into a rather passionate kiss. Somewhere behind them, they heard the juggler drop the implements of his trade again, as well as some whistling and hooting.
Neither one of them cared.
"Granted."
Ash closed his eyes, expecting something horrible. He wasn't sure how the fairy was going to react to a wish like this. Nothing else had been really serious.
"Ashton?"
Ash froze, his eyes going wide. His father had passed away when he was little, but he never forgot his voice. Besides, nobody else would ever call him 'Ashton.' He turned around slowly and saw...
"DAD!" Ash ran to the man who suddenly appeared on the other side of the field. His hair was spiked out in all directions and he wore clothes that seemed a little out of date. Above his head floated a golden ring. But, he had a warm smile and got down on one knee, scooping the little pokémon trainer in training into his arms. Ash was sobbing gratefully.
"Oh, Dad. I've missed you so much. There is so much I want to tell you." He held his father in a vice-like grip, afraid that if he let him go, he would lose him again forever.
"My little Ashton. I'm always watching over you. I'm so proud of you and all you've accomplished." He took off Ash's hat and ruffled his hair. His father looked at him in the eye. "Oh, you look so much like I did when I was younger - but you have your mother's eyes. I'll always be there for you, Ash, if you only look into your heart."
Brock began to feel tears coming to his own eyes. It was all so... beautiful. He felt a light hand on his shoulder as he continued to watch Ash and his father talk.
"Sweet, ain't it," murmured the floating trickster. Misty had tears coming down her face. Brock could only nod. Everyone was so absorbed in the drama unfolding before them that no one noticed as the fairy started to dissipate into a puff of smoke, giving a 'thumbs up' before vanishing completely.
"Jess, I think I just remembered why I don't go on Ferris Wheels." Jessie sat up and looked at James. He was obviously nervous - he could never hide anything from Jessie. He was clutching her arm tightly and gazing at the ground far, far below.
"Don't look down, silly," chastised Jessie. As she leaned forward, the seat rocked again. The ground got a few inches closer and the two passengers were leaning down towards it at a precarious angle. Well, James felt it was precarious, anyway. He gasped again and tightened his grip on Jessie.
"Where do you expect me to look?" he asked franticly. "Down seems to be the dominant feature in this situation!"
Jessie sighed and rolled her eyes. She leaned back, the chair once again reacting to her movements. James gave up on her arm and put both of his arms around her waist in an attempt to get her to stay still. Jessie giggled.
"Look out there," she said, pointing forward. James forced his eyes away from the ground followed Jessie's suggestion. In front of them was the most beautiful sunset James had ever seen. He relaxed slowly and loosened his grip a little, mesmerized by the sight. The sky was a bright mixture of oranges, reds, blues, and purples. A warm wind blew across fair, bringing a little relief to the chill evening. He tore his eyes away from the beautiful sight and focused on another - Jessie sitting next to him. She was staring at the sunset with a child-like wonder, holding him tight and leaning her head against his chest. James sighed; maybe he could get used to the Ferris Wheel thing after all. He changed his mind instantly as the chair lurched backwards, putting them at the top of the wheel. He let out a cry and pulled Jessie close to him in fear, nuzzling his head against her neck to block out any sight of the ground below them.
"Just tell me when it's over, Jess!"
Jessie smiled as she looked down at her partner who had thrown himself into her arms. She suddenly remembered why she liked Ferris Wheels so much.
"Maybe next year we can come back and you can have a talk with your mom, Brock," said Misty, turning her head to look at the pokémon breeder wannabe. Brock shook his head.
"That's alright, Misty," he replied cheerfully. "I talk to my mom all the time, in here." Brock put his hand over his heart. Misty patted him on the back.
"Well, at least we still have time to go to the fair, right Ash?"
Ash nodded. He had been quiet since his talk with his father. He jogged in front of Misty and Brock, giving them both a 'victory' sign. Pikachu jumped on his shoulder.
"Come on! I'll race you there!"
The three kids ran towards the fair ground laughing and joking. It was almost time for the parade. They dodged through a group of bad jugglers and nearly ran over a small troop of Irish step-dancers ("No big loss there," murmured Misty).
"HEY! YOU THREE!! GET OVER HERE AND LINE UP!"
Misty, Brock and Ash all stopped short. They looked around and saw a man waving franticly for them to come over. With a shrug, they complied. What they saw amazed them.
There were two large lines of very green people. They were, in a sense, the color guard of the parade. The trio looked confused for a minute until they looked down at themselves. Misty groaned. They were still wearing those stupid robes and the body paint Robin had sold them.
"Oh, we're not supposed to be in the para -" Misty was cut off by Ash clamping his hand over her mouth.
"Sorry we're late!" exclaimed Ash, winking at Brock and Misty. "We got lost."
"Whatever," said the man, pushing them over to the hoard of green people. "Just get in line."
"What are you doing Ash?" asked Misty once they had been lined up.
"Well, I figure we're probably too late to get a good seat to see the parade, so we might as well be in it!" Ash flashed a smile at his friends and got an enthusiastic "Pika-pi!" from his little mouse. Brock just shrugged.
"Why not?"
"Isn't this great, James, dear?" asked Jessie, throwing her arms around her partner's shoulders (and nearly missing). James steadied her with his own arms and watched as she took another drink from the cheap plastic mug they'd received from the vendors. Noting that it was empty, she shook it up and down a few times as if expecting it to refill. She looked down at James' glass.
"Are you going to finish that?"
James held his mug close to himself and chugged its entire contents before answering, "Yesh."
Jessie groaned and stood up, thrusting her glass into they air and yelling "REFILL!" James grabbed her by the waist and forced her back onto the ground. They wrestled for a few minutes before James, being the more sober of the two, heard the trumpets heralding the start of the parade. Struggling to a sitting position, they watched the entourage of badly costumed people, badly tuned instruments, and gaudy floats. James felt there was simply too much green for his own comfort. Of course, the parade was helped along significantly because of the fact that most of the people watching it were totally wasted. Jessie and James were no exception, watching it all through a dim, drunken haze. Suddenly, Jessie sat up straight and pointed at a group of green people.
"Pi-pi-ka-shu and, and those ba-brats!" she stuttered, trying to stand up. She reached for her gun, only dimly remembering that she had left it at home. James squinted at the crowd. Everything seemed to be blending together, so he really couldn't tell if they were there or not. Instead, he grabbed Jessie's flannel and yanked her to the ground.
"Shcrew it, Jess. Itsh our vacation, dammit," he slurred, the chugging of the beer having finally hit his brain. Jessie looked at him for a moment then nodded. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the hotel key. She threw up in the air and (miraculously) caught it. She pulled on James' arm and dragged him to his feet.
"Come on, James. Let's blow 'dis joint." She smiled. "Looksh like Team Rocket's blashting off again," they said somewhat together. They threw their arms around each other and walked away, happy beyond anything that they were together.