Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Ripples ❯ The Waiting ( Chapter 8 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

In a way, I had been alone for a very long time. Well, technically not. I had Nigel, two of our cousins, and the farmhands to talk to. However, the farmhands were employees, and I wasn't really that close to them. I was semi-close to my cousins. Ever since our parents had died, we'd been busy running the farm. Nigel had made friends, but my powers had kept me from getting close to anyone. But it turned out that things were going better than I expected. For the first time since my telepathic powers had emerged, I wasn’t accidentally picking up things from other people. And I was enjoying the company of our new guests, and so apparently was Nigel. Well, some of them, anyway.
Brock and my brother were getting along famously. They talked for hours about pokémon. And I had to admit that he was very helpful with the housework.
Ash was fun. Ever since I’d been forced to quit my pokémon journey, I had only had the opportunity to battle against my brother, my cousins, or buyers who came to our farm. Now I had a new opponent, and a very eager one at that. I liked him a lot. Sometimes he won, and sometimes I did. There was one thing I noticed that troubled me, though. Regardless of who won, he seemed to take it personally. If he won, he gloated. If I won, he sulked. I didn't appreciate being treated as an enemy, even if I happened to be in his enemy's body. After two days of this treatment, I had to ask someone about Ash's behavior. Ash wasn't forthcoming, and Brock was with my brother, so I asked Misty.
“Misty, can I ask you something?” I said.
“Sure,” she replied.
“Is Ash so hard on me just because I happen to be in Jessie’s body?” I said.
“Well...maybe. But I think he remembers who you are right now, or he wouldn‘t keep battling you,” she said.
"Or maybe he does it to blow off steam," I said. "I mean, you guys have been dragged into a pretty stressful situation."
"It's worse for you," said Misty.
I nervously ran my hand through my hair. I hadn't wanted to bring that up. Changing the subject, I said wistfully, “Ash is lucky to be able to pursue his dream. Not everyone can."
“What do you mean?” said Misty.
“Nigel and I were like Ash once,” I said. “We wanted to become pokémon masters too, but then I collapsed in the middle of a gym match and nearly died.”
"That's awful!" exclaimed Misty as her eyes went wide with surprise. "What happened?"
“The doctors think it may have been a virus, but they were never quite sure,” I said. Of course that was a lie, but I didn’t dare tell her the truth. “Maybe it was a seizure--I don't know. But not too long after I recovered, my parents died in a car crash, and we had to take over this farm. We knew we’d be doing this someday, but it hurt having our dreams cut short.”
“Well, not everyone can be a pokémon master,” said Misty. “Many trainers never make it that far. And some people are pokémon breeders; others are gym leaders; others are police officers.
I nodded. "But they had a choice; we didn't. Nigel's taken to it pretty well--he's always had more of a knack for this sort of thing, and at least he got all of his badges and had the opportunity to compete in the League. I didn't even get that much," I sighed. "I guess not everyone gets to fulfill their dreams."
Jessie, James, and Meowth were keeping to themselves. Well, mostly. I tried to avoid Jessie. But the day after my encounter with Misty, I caught Jessie doing something that really made me mad.
I was about to go out and do some sketches when I heard the sounds of munching and slurping. I peeked in.
There I was--I mean, there she was, munching on a bag of potato chips. But that wasn’t all that was there. There was also a bag of chocolate chip cookies, pistachio nuts, and a bag of microwave buttered popcorn, next to a bottle of Jolt cola.
My eyes widened. I like a little bit of junk food now and then, but I usually don’t pig out--and certainly not like that!
How long has she been doing this? I thought darkly. I hope she wasn’t doing this during the day I was on the computer! How dare she make my body fat! She’s going to pay for this!
Jessie murmured, “Oh, it’s so nice not to have to watch my figure...”
I slammed down my sketchpad and stomped to the freezer. I took out the tub of Rocky Road ice cream that Diana had bought. I was about to telekinetically open the cabinet when I remembered that I wasn’t alone, so I stormed over to it and got out all five of our big metal tumblers. Then I got the milk, the malt powder, and the chocolate syrup. Taking out a big spoon, I started mixing the contents of each.
I heard Jessie stammer, “Er--making malteds for everyone?”
My eyes narrowed and I glared at her viciously. Turning back to my task, I finished mixing them, took out five straws, and put one in each tumbler. I then stared at her darkly again and stuck the ends of all five straws in my mouth.
As I was about to start drinking the contents, Jessie shouted, “Okay! Okay! I surrender!” She immediately put back all of the food she’d been eating and looked at me worriedly. I would have offered some of the malteds to the others, but they weren’t there, so I dumped the malteds, put all the food back, and washed the dishes.
Jessie sighed in relief.
“Don’t even think of pigging out again while you’re in my body,” I said. “Now get out of the kitchen!” She did, running into my parents’ room and slamming the door.
I waited a few minutes, and when she didn’t come out, I headed off to do some sketches. After that, I noticed she didn’t eat that much at meals.
When I saw Meowth, I mostly saw him flying through the air. At least once a day (but sometimes several), I saw Meowth go flying off our farm after he made some smart aleck comment about Jessie. Several hours later, he'd come staggering back. He was getting incredible aerial views of our farm and all of the surrounding land. Every day, he went a little farther; at the rate he was going, he'd end up seeing the entire world.
As for James, I didn’t really get to talk to him much. I saw him at meals, but that was about it--until one week after our guests’ arrival.
I awoke shortly before sunrise and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I went off to do a painting of Jade and Wanderlust. Suddenly, Wanderlust and Jade’s ears perked up. I then heard a sob, and running.
“Who or what was that?” I said.
“James,” replied Wanderlust.
"James! Stop! Don't run! It's too dangerous! It's very muddy out here!" I yelled. But he kept running. I was worried. He didn't realize the extent of the danger.
After the spring rains, there was lots of mud, sinkholes, and many other hazards. Cursing, I threw Breezy's poké ball. As it emerged, I said telepathically, <<Breezy, James is running ahead of us. Find him and tell me what's happening. If possible, stop him!>>
Breezy nodded and flew off. I kept in touch with Breezy telepathically.
There's a problem, thought Breezy. He's on a straight line for the river, and--oh no, he's slipped and is rolling in the mud in the direction of the river! I can't get a hold on him! You have to get here, fast! Breezy gave me a mental picture.
I teleported into a nearby tree, and sure enough, James was rapidly rolling toward the water. The muddy slope he was on was slick with rain, and he was trying desperately to grab onto something. Breezy was trying to grab onto him, but to no avail. He was too muddy and moving too fast toward the swollen river. It was a fifty foot drop, and then nothing but white water and rocks. I saw him go over the edge--
I couldn't catch up with him on foot; it was too slippery. There was no time to throw a poké ball. No time for anything--except one thing.
I reached out with my mind and telekinetically dragged him to safety. Then I teleported him and Breezy back to where Jade and Wanderlust were.
“James, are you okay?” I said. He was shivering, crying, and staring into space.
I knelt down and waved a hand in front of his face. He saw me, hugged me fiercely and began sobbing into my shoulder.
“It’s okay, James,” I said, absentmindedly stroking his hair. To be honest, I didn’t mind the fact that he was embracing me. It felt rather good, even though my clothes were now muddy and somewhat damp.
Then he sniffled, looked at me sadly, and said, “You’re not Jessie; you’re Kerri. I keep forgetting."
"It's understandable, considering the circumstances," I replied. "James, you have to be more careful! Do you realize how dangerous it is around here at this time of year!"
He cringed and tensed. I saw so much fear and sadness in those beautiful green eyes. "I--I'll go," he said. "I--I'm sorry I bothered you." He pulled away from me and tried to stand, but he was trembling so hard that he couldn't get back up. "W--what's wrong with me? Why can't I get up?!"
"James, you nearly fell in the water. You're in shock." Gently, I said, "I'm sorry I yelled at you, but I was worried. It's very dangerous around here at this time of year--the rains make it muddy, and the river turns into rapids. You could have been killed!"
"I would have been better off," he whispered, hugging himself. His eyes closed, and he shivered.
"Why?" I said.
"Y-you--I mean, Jessie's been driving me crazy! All she does is complain about how being trapped in your body is such a curse! She's angry, and scared, and--and--she takes it out on me! She's been taking it out on Meowth, too, and I've been trying to keep them from fighting, and I haven't been sleeping! I came out here to try and clear my head, and then I saw you, and you looked so peaceful with your Arcanine and your Pikachu, and I wanted that for Jessie and me, and I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't think you'd want to talk to a loser like me, and--" After that, he dissolved into incoherent sobs.
I drew him to me and let him cry on my shoulder. He hugged me tightly. I kept myself tightly shielded.
Poor James, I thought. Putting up with Jessie must be sheer hell. I could understand her being angry and scared over what had happened. I was myself. But Jessie had been practically homicidal and had been so nasty to everyone. And poor James had been trying to keep her from my throat.
When his sobbing seemed to let up a bit, I said, "James, maybe we should go back to the house and warm up."
He squeezed me tightly and said, "No! No! I'm not ready to go back yet!" He became hysterical, and with an apparent rush of adrenaline, he slipped out of my arms, got up, and looked as if he were trying to run.
I telekinetically restrained him, and his body became surrounded by a blue glow.
"There it is again! And before, I went over that cliff! I almost fell into the water! And then I came flying back up! How did I get here? And now I can't move, yet nothing is holding me.” James' voice revealed his astonishment. "How--how can this be?"
"Thanks again, Merlin!" I exclaimed.
James replied, "I don't recall seeing Merlin..."
Oh no, why did he have to notice that?
"It's the, um, aurora borealis," I said.
"We're not near the north pole," said James.
"A miracle?" I offered.
"It's you," he said.
I tensed. My secret was out. I cringed, waiting for the inevitable cries of "witch" or "freak" to come pouring from James' mouth.
“Kerri,” he said softly and gratefully, “Thank you for saving my life. How can I ever repay you?”
I said, “Don’t tell anyone. Please.”
“Why not?” he said.
“I don’t want to be a lab experiment! And do you have any idea how many people have turned on me because of what I am? The fear that I live with that no one will accept me because I'm different? My great aunt had powers just like mine, and one day, she threw herself into that river because she couldn't stand what her powers were doing to her! My boyfriend dumped me because of my powers!” I snapped.
Fighting back tears, I lost my concentration, so he was no longer restrained. I turned away and put my face in my hands. I was trying to muster the concentration for a teleport when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
I began to shake. Tears started streaming down my face.
He turned me around to face him and drew me into a hug, whereupon I started sobbing.
“It’s all right, Kerri. I'm here,” he whispered into my hair. No, Jessie’s hair. Well, for now it was my hair.
“You can’t possibly know what it’s like,” I sobbed.
“To be psychic? No. But I do know what it’s like not to be accepted for who you really are,” James replied.
“I feel like such an idiot. I’ve just blurted out my secrets to a guy I met only a few days ago,” I said.
“You’re wrong about that, Kerri,” replied James. “We have met before.”
“No,” I said, looking into his eyes and shaking my head. Jessie was nearly the same height as James; he was just a tiny bit taller. So in her body, I was eye to eye with him. Oh, I could lose myself in those eyes of his! Our eyes met for a moment, then we blushed and pulled out of the embrace.
“Yes, we have. Kerri, where did you get your Arcanine?”
“From the Sunny Grove pokémon farm,” I said. “But it was a Growlithe then.”
“And that’s where I got Growlie from,” he said.
“Growlie?” I said.
“My Growlithe,” said James. “Kerri, we’ve met before. You and I were in that Growlithe training class together.”
“No, it can’t be,” I said.
“Arcanine arc arcanine,” said Wanderlust, nodding. (“It’s true. I recognized his scent when we met again.”)
“Why didn’t you tell me, Wander--” I stopped myself.
“He knows you’re a psychic; you might as well tell him that you can understand me,” said Wanderlust. “And you were preoccupied.”
James looked at me quizzically.
“Oh yeah, I can understand pokémon because of my psychic powers. Wanderlust says that it recognized your scent from before.”
He nodded in understanding, and I found myself looking at James in disbelief. I thought back to the boy I'd met on that fire pokémon farm. Yes, James looked like him. The hair and eyes were the same color; the voice, of course was deeper, but that was to be expected. He was telling the truth. He had been that dorky boy I’d despised so much. Well, he certainly wasn’t dorky anymore! He’d grown to be quite handsome. I’d seen him as a villain because he was part of Team Rocket, but now he was showing a sweetness I hadn’t thought possible for someone who was supposed to be a criminal.
“You don’t know what it was like for me growing up. Sure I was rich, but my parents just wanted me to continue the family line. They controlled my every move except for one brief week when they got called away on some important business just before I was going to go get my Growlithe. That week I spent with you guys was the happiest one in my whole childhood.” He smiled at me. “You guys were the first people who ever accepted me for who I was. And you showed me that there were other ways to live.”
“I never forgot you or Nigel,” he said. “I begged my parents to let me see you guys again, but they wouldn’t.” He closed his eyes against the emotional torment he was feeling. “And it got even worse after I returned home. Eventually, I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I ran away so I could find you guys and live my own life. I hoped--I hoped that your parents would adopt me.”
He looked embarrassed. “I guess that’s stupid,” he said.
“No, that’s kind of sweet, actually. Though I doubt it would have been legally possible--I’m sure your parents would have fought it,” I said.
He nodded sadly. “But I ran into Jessie instead, and we eventually ended up in Team Rocket, and that’s where I met Meowth. And that’s been my whole life ever since. I didn’t recognize you when we met in that meadow--I mean, when I met Jessie in your body in--oh, you know what I mean. Anyway, I thought you were beautiful.”
I blushed, and so did he. He had just made me blissfully happy. After days of hearing Jessie do nothing but say how much she hated my body, hearing this was like seeing the sun after a thunderstorm. I felt like I was floating on air. He continued, “But then I saw you sign your name when you did that sketch for Nigel, and I saw some of the old pictures in your house, and then I knew it was you.” Tears filled his eyes. “I’m so glad to see you again, even if it’s under such weird circumstances.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I said. “I didn’t recognize you!”
“I wanted to tell you two, but not in front of Jessie, Meowth, or the twerps--I mean, the others. But every time I wanted to tell Nigel, he was with the big t--I mean, he wasn't alone. This was the first chance I got to tell you. And I was so afraid that you’d both hate me,” he said.
“I can’t speak for my brother, but I don’t hate you, James,” I said. “I am very sad that you’ve chosen this path, though. Why can’t you do something else?”
He hesitated a moment, as if reaching deep inside himself. “Jessie and Meowth are the only friends I’ve ever been able to keep. They’re like family. But I’d like to be able to have other friends, too.”
He shivered.
“James,” I said. “That could prove to be rather difficult. I mean, my brother and I are pokémon breeders, and you’re--well--you know,” I said.
He looked at me sadly.
“But you don’t seem to be such a bad guy,” I said. He brightened somewhat when I said that. “However did you end up as a member of Team Rocket?”
He sighed, looking pained. “I--sort of fell into it. I’d never learned a trade because I hadn’t needed to while I was living with my parents. You saw how they dressed and what kind of car they had. When I ran away, I had hoped to find you and Nigel. Of course, I didn’t find you; instead, I found Jessie, and it was her idea for us to join Team Rocket. I get so tired of all our plans failing and never getting what we want. Yet I don’t want to be separated from Jessie and Meowth, and they want to stay with Team Rocket. I don’t have my parents’ money, but I’m free.”
Then he took my hands in his, looked into my eyes, and said, “And that’s what you need to do--free yourself. Kerri, it’s not going to do you any good to try to hide what you are. It’s better for you to admit who you really are and risk being rejected rather than live in fear all the time. I know--I spent the first few years of my life like that. And those powers you have are a gift, Kerri. If it weren’t for them, your pokémon wouldn’t have recognized you so quickly, and I wouldn’t be alive right now.”
“If you want, I’ll keep your secret. But you really should come out,” he said.
“James! I’m not gay!” I said.
He said, “No, um...I didn’t mean it that way!”
“I know that,” I said. “I was just teasing you.”
“I’ll go now,” he said. “But just remember, Kerri--I accept you for who you are.” He squeezed my hands and then left.
I sat there and started to shake again. I needed someone to talk to. I let out my remaining pokémon and asked them what I should do.
I filled them in on what had happened. Merlin said, “Although you shouldn’t tell just anyone about your powers, I believe it would be best for you to be honest with our visitors.”
“But Jessie might hand me over to Team Rocket to get back at me!” I said.
“Soon we will be going on a quest to free you both from this curse, and you may have to openly use your powers. It is best that they know--even Jessie. Stop living in fear," said Merlin.
“James was right--you do have a great gift!” said Jade.
“Forget about Brian,” said Wanderlust. “You must be who you are--even if that means you are different from other humans. Sometimes you make mistakes, but you get accepted anyway. Remember the day we met?”
“Of course,” I said.
“Remember when that Butterfree landed on my nose?”
“Yes...”
“I was humiliated when I sneezed. I thought no one would want me, but then you took me in anyway,” it said as it licked my face. “I feel that some humans will accept you for what you are. Your brother does, your cousins do, and now, so does James.”
I hugged Wanderlust and began crying.
"Maybe you should clean up before you see them. I mean, what will people think if they see you full of mud when James is full of it too? They'll think you were mud wrangling or something," said Wanderlust.
"Um, Wanderlust, that's mud wrestling, not wrangling!" I replied.
In spite of the malapropism, Wanderlust was right. I was a mess. Although my clothes weren't as muddy as James', if people saw me come in wearing them, and saw the mud all over his clothes--oh boy. When I calmed down, I had Breezy scope out my room. It was empty, and the door was closed. I teleported myself in, took a shower, and changed into clean clothes.
When I finished, I sent telepathically, <<Nigel, I’ve decided to tell them about my powers.>>

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