by Pika-chan
Chapter Six - The
Rocket Raft
Jesse continued
his speech. "And of course we'll want to cross that river and have a
picnic on that great patch of grass on the other side and course we
can't......"
"Cause I
can't swim and Jesse and James don't wanna get wet and we don't have a
boat!" Meowth wailed.
Team Rocket let
out a heavy sigh and hung their heads. Behind them, with Ryer carrying the
picnic basket, Team Rocket Two got a bright idea.
"I had hoped
I'd never have to use this." Ruka said, quietly pulling an orange oval
from her skirt pocket. She held it up in the air and shouted.
"But for the
sake of our picnic I will!"
"What's
that?" James asked drolely. "A bar of soap for us to float across the
river on?"
"No."
Ryer said putting the picnic basket on Mew's head. She fell over.
"Ruka is
that what I think it is?" His sister nodded energetically.
"THE ROCKET
RAFT!" they shouted together high fiving one another.
"What's the
rocket raft?" Jesse asked. Ruka set the little oval in the water and
pulled on a string. "It's a raft." she said obviously as an eight
foot inflatable boat grew in the water.
It was white with
a large red R on the side.
"We'll just
paddle over to the far bank, eat and come back." Ryer grinned.
"A
boat?" James said fearfully. "Um.. maybe we could just eat over
here."
"What's
wrong with a boat?" Jesse asked.
"The last
three times I was on a boat were disastrous!" James wailed.
"The St.
Anne sunk and we just about died, then that kid rigged that boat and his
Farfetche'd stole our Pokemon and the first time I ever took a boat I..."
He stopped short. "Oh I can't even talk about it!"
"Does it
involve Jessebell throwing away oars?" Jesse asked. James screamed and
collapsed, holding his head. "Aaaah! Don't say that name!"
"Ooh,
old-girlfriend-related anxiety." Ryer said.
"Maybe we
could blindfold him and take him across." Ruka suggested. "That's
what they do to a scared Rapidash."
"I'm not an
animal!" James screamed indignantly.
"Would you
feel better if I held you?" Jesse asked. James blinked at her. A long
moment of scilence passed.
"Would you
cover my eyes for me?" he asked finally. Jesse nodded. Meowth looked at
her as though she were insane.
"Okay."
James said quietly. "I guess thank might work."
"Are we in
the boat yet?" James asked nervously, clinging to Jesse.
"Yes,
James?" Jesse said for the thousandth time as Ruka and Ryer slowly rowed
across the river, trying to shake the boat as little as possible. Mew sat with
Meowth on the front seat. Ruk and Ry in the middle, Jesse and the terrified
James in the back.
"I can't see
anything." James whined. "I'm scared Jesse!"
"You asked
me to cover your eyes." she wheezed as he tightened his grip around her
waist.
"Can I
look?" He whimpered. "Just to see how far across we are?"
"Do you
promise not to panic?" she asked. James nodded.
"Okay."
The instant Jesse let go of his eyes James took one look at the tiny ripples on
the calm water, screamed and began jumping around in the boat.
"We're
sinking! We're sinking!" he shrieked.
"Mom!
Distract him or we really will be sinking!" Ruka yelled, tipping sideways
on her section of the shaking raft. Meowth and Mew were both yowling like
Airodactyls in the front of the boat.
Jesse then
angrily grabbed James by the chin and kissed him hard. His body went slack and
he sunk into the seat next to Jesse.
Ruk, Ry, Mew and
Meowth all stared for a moment at the two of them, locked together at the
mouth.
"Works for
me." Ruka said finally and she and Ryer paddled as fast as possible to the
opposite shore.
As the two Team
Rockets climbed onto the shore Jesse let go of James.
"Sorry."
James mummbled, curling into a nervous ball.
"It's
okay." Jesse sighed, seating herself in the grass. "I shouldn't have
let you look."
"Well we're
across at least." Ryer said.
"I told you
we should have blindfolded him." Ruka growled
"Guys?"
Mew asked, softly. "Would now be a good time to tell you that you left the
picnic basket on the other side?" Jesse, James, Ruka and Ryer looked
across at their picnic, sitting quietly on the opposite shore.
A unanimous cry
went up through the trees.
Chapter Seven -
Dinner with Team R
"Well the
mechanic said he'd be a few more hours fixing the balloon." James sighed,
looking at his watch. "Let's get something to eat."
"I am sort
of hungry myself." Jesse said. "Hey what's that sign say?"
"Free all
you can eat buffet if you can show the cook his favorite Pokemon." Ryer
read.
"I wonder
what his favorite Pokemon is?" Ruka said.
"Well how
about you show me what you've got." said a cheerful voice from behind
them. The two Team R's spun to see a chubby man with a bushy red mustache.
"My
brother's a Psyduck fan but I've got a diffrent favorite. We both run a deal
like this at our resturants." he grinned from under his chefs hat.
"Oh yeah. I
heard about that deal. Pretty neat." Ryer said.
"I bet your
favorite Pokemon likes food." Ruka mused. "And I bet it's cute and
small.
"Yup."
the man nodded.
"And I bet
it's full of surprises." Ruka said.
"Yes."
Said the man. "So what is it?"
"My
Ditto!" Ruka cried, holding up her pink blob proudly.
"Nope."
said the man. Ruka sweatdropped. "Yes it is. See. Ditto. Duplicate an
Eevee." The Ditto ducplicated the Pokemon perfectly.
"Wow! Hey
that is my favorite Pokemon!" the chef cried.
"Smart girl.
Come on in!"
"Wahoo!"
James cheered. "Free food!"
"You find
us." James called and nodded for Ryer to follow him. They picked out a
secluded table for four on the resturant's upper level and sat down, ordering
water for everyone from the waiter. As he leafed through the menu and sipped at
his water James looked up at Ryer.
"So..."
he asked akwardly. "Any girlfriends in the future?"
"I go steady
with one of the quads." he replied, shrugging. "Do you like Mom
yet?"
"Well I've
always liked her." James said slowly. "She's a great friend."
Ryer raised his eyebrows knowingly from across the table.
"Hell I love
her." James groaned. "I'm just trying to think how to say it so that
she won't hit me with her mallet."
"I'm just
trying to think how to say it so that he won't go crazy and pass out on
me." Jesse sighed in reply to Ruka's question, twisting up her tube of
lipstick.
"Well I bet
if you just told him that you love him he'd understand totally." Ruka
said, hoping up on the edge of the sink counter as she dabbed some concealer
powder over the bridge of her nose. She smiled at her mother.
"Trust me.
He'll understand."
"I
know." Ryer said, leaning nonchalantly back in his chair and sipping his
water. "Listen. If you never told Mom that you loved her...?"
"...Would I
be here?" Ruka asked, pointing to herself with one hand.
"I think
not."
"You know, I
really can't picture myself as a married mother of two." Jesse said,
putting away her makeup bag.
"It'll
come." Ruka grinned. "And sides'wich Dad probably feels the same
way." Jesse and Ruka slid into the seats next to James and Ryer.
"We ordered
water." James said quietly, pointing out the glasses.
"Thanks."
Ruka said, taking a sip from her glass. She picked up a menu.
"Man,
nothing with chicken. Oh well I guess I could have a steak." she said
immediately, her eyes scanning irrationally over the menu. Jesse looked through
her own menu. "Hmmm." she placed her finger on an item.
"I guess I'l
have that." she said quietly and put it down. Ryer and Ruka glanced from
their mother to their father with a knowing expression.
"We'll be
right back." They said in unison and quickly distanced themselves from the
table, leaving Jesse and James sitting together alone.
"I wonder
where they're going." Jesse said.
"I think I
know." James mummbled, looking at his hands. Jesse looked at him.
"You and Ryer weren't ..uh.. talking while we were gone were you?"
she asked.
"Umm...yeah."
James mumbled beginning to blush.
"What
about?" Jesse asked.
"Just
stuff." James replied. "Water, the future....you."
"Oh. Ruka
and I talked a bit too. You know, water, the future....you." James met her
eyes. They were quiet for a long moment. Then both of them in unison said.
"So...me, huh?"
James and Jesse
both laughed.
Jesse settled her
hand on the table, looking at the wall until she felt the gentle warmth James'
hand lying over hers. She looked back at him, meeting his eyes again. Neither
realized how close they were until they kissed...
A few feet away
underneath a table Ruka, Ryer, Mew and Meowth let out a collective, quiet
cheer.
Part Eight -
Homeward Bound
"So you're
going home?" James whined.
"I figured
it out over dinner." Ruka said. "Ditto... duplicate Meowth's time
machine."
"Ditto!"
The pokemon cried transforming into the time machine which really was a dead
energizer battery and tin can.
"Smart
Ruk-chan." Jesse said quietly.
"I'll miss
you too." Ruka said, flinging her arms around her mother's neck.
"You only
have to wait six years." Ryer smiled, hugging James.
"I don't
wanna..." James sniffed. Jesse stroked Ruka's hair and kissed her cheek.
"Be good for us." She said.
"We'll
try." Ruka said. "But you have to keep in mind. We are Rockets. It's
in out blood to be naughty."
James laughed,
and patted Ryer on the shoulder. "Promise you'll never let me force you to
marry someone like Jessebelle, okay?"
"Dad you
wouldn't do that." he replied. The twins backed away from the balloon
waving to their now crying parents. Mew purred something in Pokemon to Meowth
just before the three futures touched the tin can and disappeared in a
colourful shower of light. Meowth sat down sadly on the floor of the balloon.
"I'm gonna miss Mew." he said, pressing his paws together. James
hugged Jesse around the waist. "I know what you mean." he said.
"Hey cheer
up guys." Jesse encouraged. "Six years will fly by if we try not to
think about it."
"In other
words this is gonna take forever." Meowth said.
"Okay fine,
I'm sad too." Jesse confessed, putting her arms around James' neck and
resting her head on his shoulder. She sighed. "We could always pretend
they're here."
"Or we could
just look through the pictures they left." James said.
"Pictures?"
Jesse asked. James pulled a thick photo album into view.
"Ryer told
me to keep this for when we were missing them." he said.
So as the rocket
balloon drifted off into the star scattered sky the three members of (the
first) Team Rocket sat down and leafed through a book of photos from the
future.
"What a
weird picture of you Jesse."
"What do you
mean weird!?!?!"