Viridian Love Story (Rocketshipping)

Chapter 9: The wash

Misty stared at them in disbelief. "What is the wash? Is it dangerous?" she wanted to know, even though she could already guess the answer. Jessie and James nodded in agreement, Jessie was the first to find words again and explain the facts.

"The wash is performed by Hypno. As the name suggests, he hypnotizes his victims and makes his way into their memory. All memories that could either be useful or pose a threat to Team Rocket are extracted and preserved, but the prisoners are left without any memory of their past and eke out an existence as lifeless shells, like ghosts", she explained.

If there was still a small glimmer of hope in Misty, it had just been extinguished. She slumped down and sobbed. Ash carefully put an arm around his friend. This could not be her definite fate. Her family was perhaps still alive, but could no longer remember their own daughter?

"Is there any way to reverse the hypnosis so that the memory comes back?" Ash asked. James fussed, not wanting to give them false hope, yet he had heard of some rumors. "There are reports of people who have been hypnotized but still have occasional lucid moments and can remember their past lives. At least that is what I heard when we once accidentally barged into a conference", he shrugged his shoulders.

"Meowth, that's right. I can confirm that, because it was all about a planned escape attempt by a prisoner who could suddenly remember everything. Unfortunately, they were able to catch him and he is now serving an even harder sentence in the maximum security section of the prison."

Misty had to let all the information sink in. Her head was about to explode, there was so much they had to consider if they wanted to save her parents. But she was determined to give everything and, if necessary, to put her own life on the line.

"I'd say let's got for it! Ash, Brock, are you with me?" The guys nodded their heads. Now Misty turned to Team Rocket.

"I know we haven't always been best friends, we have our differences, we have our strengths and weaknesses, but now is the time for a truce because this is a matter of life and death. You bring the necessary know-how; I bring the longing for my family. Only together can we face this adventure. Even though we didn't always get along, I ask you to help me out; and believe me, this is anything but easy for me", a faint smile flitted across Misty's face. James returned the smile and held out his hand to her.

"We're in! But I warn you, it will be dangerous, very dangerous! We risk our heads if they catch us, but at least one of us deserves the security of a loving family," thus the matter was decided and they started the journey.

After several hours of hiking, it was finally time to take a break and have some dinner. Brock, who continued to hone his cooking skills, offered to prepare a meal for his friends that they would never forget. But he needed everyone's help and support to make it a real feast. James and Meowth had volunteered to gather firewood and had only recently set out into the dark woods. The cat Pokémon noticed days ago that James had woken up on the wrong side of the planet. The guilty conscience gnawed at his teammate and almost made him despair.

"You need to talk to her!" Meowth insisted that James would finally talk turkey, but the young man was not up to the challenge yet. James heaved a deep sigh.

"You know, Meowth, sometimes I wish Hypno would cast a spell on me too and erase all memories of my messed up childhood and adolescence. By that I mean the terrible time with my parents, the bad days and weeks with Jessiebelle, the beatings, the torture, the endless hours of piano lessons, the bullying, the desperate attempts of my environment to educate me to become a gentleman."

It was hard for James to talk about these things, but Meowth knew the answer to his problem. He made his friend pause and put a paw on his shoulder.

"Jessie can help you with all your worries. She is your safe rock, and you can always rely on her. She has never let you down, even when you ignored her feelings or stepped on them. She likes you, James, everyone can see that. You must finally dare to talk to her", Meowth wanted to be persuasive. "You're right, my friend. Tonight, I will face my fears."

The adventurers enjoyed their festive meal. Brock had outdone himself, there were mashed potatoes, rice balls, steak and sausages, chocolate pudding with fresh strawberries and a cream cake garnished with cherries. Team Rocket's stomachs growled; they hadn't eaten something so delicious in years. A few hours passed, during which the new acquaintances talked about old times, about every botched trap Team Rocket had ever set for the twerps, about all the funny costumes they had used to fool Ash, Misty and Brock. There was a lot of laughter and some tears were shed too.

Ash yawned heartily. "I'm going to bed. Tomorrow will be another busy day", he pulled Misty with him and they disappeared into their three-person-tent, which they shared with Brock. Their friend followed them shortly afterwards and Meowth made himself comfortable in the thicket of trees. Only Jessie and James were left.

No one dared to take the first step, but then James finally found words. "Jessie," he began. She looked at him with her big sapphire blue eyes. "Yes?"

James cleared his throat. He reached for her hand and stroked it vey gently, running his fingers along her delicate hand. He was already fighting tears, he wanted to stay strong, but the emotions got the better of him.

"It's okay, James," Jessie caressed his face, but James shook his head.

"No! Nothing's okay," he sobbed. "I almost lost you once, I don't want that to happen to me again. I felt what it means not to have you by my side anymore and it hurt inhumanly. It ate at me and I could no longer grasp a clear thought. Then you came back to me and the world was all right again. I had not lost you to that doctor. And what do I do? I take advantage of you and your feelings, I hurt you and put the blame on you. I'm so sorry for everything, Jess. You're all I've got! You're my guardian angel, you saved me from Jessiebelle and I can't be grateful enough!" Tears ran down his cheeks, James' eyes were red from all crying.

"Will you forgive me, Jess?" There was still the faintest hope in his request. Jessie smiled gently at him and nodded. Suddenly, all the weight that threatened to crush him was blown away. He felt so free and light-hearted. He would have loved to kiss his best friend, caress her and hold her tightly in his arms, but Jessie had already sunk into a deep sleep. So he interlaced his fingers with hers until he too began to dream.