{With the gang}
It had been a few days of travel since they left Mauville City. With May doing her thing, and with Ash pretty much covering May and Max's food and shelter, May got to use all of her monthly sponsorship allowance on whatever she wanted.
She was more than happy to spend it at the mall, considering the Mauville City Mall was the second or third biggest mall in all of Hoenn. Honestly, what kind of person wouldn't want to spend money there?
And granted, since Ash was with her, he carried her bags. Granted, it wasn't hard, considering Ash basically had super strength even without Aura. Even then, the amount May bought couldn't hold a candle to how much Green and Misty had made him carry before.
For context, as Ash remembered, Misty's family was rich, so that was easy enough. But Green… well, Ash actually had no idea how much money she had. She had Oak's sponsorship, sure, but her scamming had also earned her a lot over the years.
Not to mention that after getting third place in the Indigo League, she, unlike Ash or Gary, immediately capitalized on it and took sponsorships. Both of her parents worked and were probably well off, too. So Green had money. A lot of it. And she had dragged Ash shopping more than once.
Anyway, all of that was beside the point.
They were now about halfway through Route 113, heading toward Fallarbor Town for May's next Contest.
With that in mind, May had happily started her own training, debating whether to use Ralts this time, or maybe Beautifly.
Ash was taking it easy. Still, he'd come to this route specifically because May was meant to get something important here.
That something was Skitty.
Like in the original story, they found the sick and injured Skitty curled up in the grass. Since there was no Pokémon Center nearby, and because everyone had somehow conveniently forgotten that Ash was a licensed doctor, Brock announced that he knew exactly what to do.
And instead of helping the Skitty himself, despite having medical training, he led the group a little too enthusiastically toward an aromatherapy laboratory known as The Greenhouse.
When they arrived, Ash immediately remembered why Brock had "conveniently" forgotten he could've just healed Skitty himself.
The aromatherapist was a beautiful girl named Eliza, the same one Brock had seen in a commercial.
No wonder he'd been so enthusiastic.
As Brock stared at Eliza with hearts practically in his eyes, Ash tilted his head and squinted at him. He knew exactly what kind of man Brock was. He knew Brock's real goal in coming here. He just couldn't prove it.
"Hello there!" Brock suddenly said, sliding in front of the group with a speed that honestly should've been illegal, "My name is Brock, and I couldn't help but notice that you are the very picture of grace, beauty, and—"
"Brock." Ash grabbed the back of his shirt and yanked him backward before he could finish, "We have an injured Skitty. Remember? The actual reason we're here?"
Brock coughed and straightened, trying to regain some dignity, "R-right! Of course! Medical emergency first, romance later."
Ash muttered, "That's not reassuring."
Pikachu and Vee also looked at Brock with a squint, and they could just tell what was going to happen, so they slowly climbed off Ash's shoulders to avoid getting dragged into this.
Eliza, to her credit, didn't seem bothered. She smiled warmly and knelt down to look at the small pink Skitty curled up in May's arms, "Oh my… poor thing."
May hugged Skitty closer, "Can you help her?"
"Of course," Eliza said gently, "Bring her inside. The Greenhouse specializes in healing Pokémon through aromatherapy."
Eliza laid Skitty down on a soft cushion and began preparing a mix of herbs and oils, "She'll need to stay here for a few hours," she explained, "The treatment works best when the Pokémon is completely at ease."
May hesitated, "Hours… but if we do that, then—"
Ash stepped forward before May could overthink it, "That's fine. We're heading to Fallarbor anyway, and we're not in a hurry. You've got plenty of time."
Brock nodded enthusiastically, "Yes! Waiting is good! Very good!"
Following Ash's lead, Max jumped up onto Brock's back and yanked his ears, pulling him away, "You're not subtle."
A few minutes later, Eliza straightened up, "She's responding well. You're welcome to stay for a bit if you'd like."
"I, um, I don't know if I—" May started, but she heard Ash speak up.
"Nah, don't worry about it, May. You can stay here, we have to deal with this," Ash said. When May and Eliza looked back, they saw Ash grabbing Brock in a chokehold as Max came down with an elbow, knocking him off balance.
Ash tightened his grip just enough to keep Brock from escaping, not enough to actually hurt him. Mostly because Max was already doing plenty of damage. Pikachu and Vee had left Ash's shoulders a while ago and were now sitting on the couch next to May, eating popcorn as they watched.
"LET—go—Ash—this is true love!" Brock wheezed, one arm dramatically reaching toward Eliza like a fainting heroine in an old movie.
Max, seeing what Ash was doing, joined in like a true fanboy, "True love my foot!" He sprang off a nearby table, "MAX-IMUM ELBOW DROP!"
WHAM.
Brock hit the floor face-first with a soft thud, his dignity scattering somewhere near the potted plants.
Eliza blinked.
May blinked harder.
"Is… is this normal?" Eliza asked carefully.
May gave a nervous laugh, "Uh… yeah. Pretty much."
Ash adjusted his stance and shifted Brock into a full-on headlock, "Okay, Brock, you've had your five seconds. Remember, I can legally fix anything I do to you."
"But, Ash," Brock groaned, muffled against the floor, "love is the greatest medicine—"
Max grabbed Brock's ankles, "Cool. You can prescribe it from outside."
Together, Ash and Max dragged Brock out the door.
Brock clawed at the polished greenhouse floor as he was hauled backward, boots squeaking, fingers scrabbling uselessly, "Eliza! Remember me! Remember my eyes! My dream of us raising Vulpix together—!"
Ash didn't even look back, "Max, lift the legs."
"I am lifting the legs!"
"No, lift them higher. He's trying to anchor!"
Max hoisted Brock's ankles up, and Brock slid the rest of the way out the door like a sack of potatoes.
That left May, Eliza, Skitty, Pikachu, and Vee in the room as the aromatherapy started working.
Eliza scratched her cheek, "Well… how about I prepare some tea?"
"Ah, well, if it's not too much of a bother, I can stay here and keep Skitty company," May said, rubbing the back of Skitty's neck. Meanwhile, they could faintly hear the sounds of Ash and Max, and the muffled clang of what could only be described as a steel chair.
May opened her mouth, closed it, and looked over at Pikachu and Vee, who were still munching. They both looked back at her and shrugged. She didn't need to speak Pokémon to know they were saying, [Not my problem].
So she gave up and slouched on the couch. Pikachu slowly pushed the bag of popcorn toward her with his tail, and she took a handful.
—
{Meanwhile, back at the Team Rocket base}
Jessie, James, and Meowth stood in front of Matori, who looked like she hadn't slept in three days and was already on her third coffee. Off in the corner, they noticed that Carr had escaped his punishment corner and gone off to do whatever he wanted. Honestly, a lot of the members were afraid that if Matori and Carr were ever left alone in a room together, Matori would strangle him to death.
And while Carr was stupid, greedy, and incompetent in a lot of ways, he wasn't useless. There was a reason he was still an Admin. Still, that didn't mean anyone had to like it, especially Jessie, James, and Meowth, who all still had beef with him.
As for the rest of Team Rocket, many members had been dispatched across Hoenn to begin D's plan to make Magma and Aqua provoke each other. With Petrel's skill at disguise, he was perfect for the job, so Matori gave him a team and sent him out.
Admittedly, Jessie, James, and Meowth were a bit salty they didn't get to go too. I mean, they were also masters of disguise. Sure, they weren't as good as Petrel, but they were second to none. Still, they knew they were on thin ice with Matori, who looked about ready to bite someone's head off.
As for Archer and Proton, they'd been sent on separate missions to collect abandoned bases and resources from Team Aqua and Team Magma. Other Admins and Grunts who could spare the time were either training new recruits or preparing new bases.
Anyway, back to the present.
Matori finished the work she was doing on her tablet, glanced at her coffee, which had long since gone cold, and sighed. Then she looked up at the trio. Her expectations were low, so she might as well rip the bandage off now.
Matori finally raised her eyes, "Well?"
Jessie recovered first, flipping her hair back and stepping forward, "So! The casino project you assigned us?"
"Yes," Matori said, "The one I gave you because it was low risk and required you to stay out of my way."
"Mission accomplished on both counts," Jessie said brightly.
Matori's eye twitched.
James jumped in quickly, "Construction is complete, ahead of schedule and under budget."
That earned a pause.
"…Under budget?" Matori repeated, like it was a phrase she hadn't gotten to say since arriving in Hoenn, thanks to certain tiny idiots.
Meowth cleared his throat, "By a lot."
Matori set her mug down very slowly, "Define 'a lot.'"
Jessie slid a neatly organized report folder across the desk, "Twenty percent," she said.
Matori stared at the folder like it might explode. Then she opened it. She flipped through each page, running the numbers in her head. It looked like she read through it three times, as if trying to figure out whether this was real, or if her lack of sleep had finally caught up with her.
"…This is correct," she muttered.
Jessie smirked. James and Meowth sighed in relief and gave each other a fist bump.
Matori leaned back in her chair, eyes closing for just a moment, "…You built a fully operational casino," she said carefully, "that meets safety regulations, optimizes airflow, minimizes waste, and generates passive income—"
"Already signed its first vendor contracts," James added helpfully.
"—while we are functionally starting from nothing," Matori continued, eyes snapping open, "and you did it better than our previous Hoenn fronts ever managed?"
Jessie grinned, "We do our best work when expectations are low."
Matori stared at her.
Then, unexpectedly, she laughed. It was short. Dry. Exhausted.
"…I sent you three to make money because it was the only thing you've ever been reliably good at," she admitted, "I did not expect you to outperform central accounting."
Meowth tipped his hard hat, which he was still inexplicably wearing, "Turns out yellin' at people works."
Matori rubbed her temples, "I hate that this worked."
Jessie beamed, "You're welcome."
"No, I really hate that it worked. Like, I want to tear my eyes out right now," Matori said, burying her face in her hands with a sigh.
Jessie blinked, "Because we did… good?"
"Because now I can't yell at you," Matori snapped, "And I needed to yell at someone."
She rubbed her temples again, then sighed, "…Fine. Your performance is noted."
Jessie, James, and Meowth blinked in unison. Was that almost praise? From Matori? The sleep deprivation must really be getting to her.
"Just transfer the ownership, and we can start preparing the underground base in the casino. Take a few weeks off. I'll call you when I need you for something else."
Jessie, James, and Meowth just stood there, staring, like they couldn't believe the words that had come out of Matori's mouth.
"…We're getting," Jessie began slowly, "…time off."
James tilted his head, "Actual time off."
Meowth squinted, "Like… no explosions, no disguises, no getting yelled at, no 'this is your fault' speeches?"
Matori waved them away without looking up, "Go. Before I change my mind."
They did not need to be told twice.
The door slid shut behind them, and for a solid three seconds, none of them moved.
Then Jessie grabbed James by the shoulders, "JAMES."
"Yes?"
"IS THIS WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE COMPETENT?"
James adjusted his glasses, still dazed, "I… think so?"
Meowth leaned against the wall, arms crossed, staring into the middle distance, "Wow. So dis is what respect feels like. Don't like it. Feels like we're not supposed to feel like dis."
Jessie scoffed, "She didn't even insult us."
"She threatened to," James added.
"Yeah, but she didn't, so it doesn't count," Jessie said, "That's basically affection, coming from her."
Meowth snorted, "Next thing ya know, she'll be askin' us how our day was."
The trio left, practically dancing in each other's arms.
Inside Matori's office, the silence didn't last.
The door slid open again, and a grunt nervously walked in, clipboard clutched like a shield. He hurried forward, "Ma'am! A team just returned!"
Matori straightened instantly, spine rigid, "Which one?" she said flatly, already thinking about how to verbally dismantle someone to relieve her stress.
"It's D's squad."
Matori visibly deflated, like the fight had been drained out of her, "…Of course it is," she muttered.
The grunt hesitated, "Do you… want me to—"
"No," Matori cut him off, "Whatever he did, I'm sure he did his best. Just… bring him in, and I'll take care of it." She rubbed her eyes, silently hoping no one was doing something incredibly stupid at the moment.
—
{Meanwhile, in the hidden warehouse}
Something stupid was happening.
Colress was seated at a desk, reviewing the results of tests he'd been conducting. In front of him stood two tanks containing the bodies of two Deoxys.
Carr and Sird had brought him to this place when he arrived in Hoenn, spouting nonsense about this being a project "for the good of Team Rocket." He was smart enough to know they were trying to use him, so he didn't believe a word they said.
But he pretended that he did.
He acted like he was just a researcher eager to work for Team Rocket's benefit. Honestly, it was almost too easy to manipulate them, well, Carr at least.
He could tell Sird was hiding something, but he didn't care. If it didn't interfere with his research, the world could burn for all he cared.
And that was where all of this came in.
He'd been taking cells from the Deoxys, and he hadn't been able to sit still since.
For one, he noticed that each and every cell in Deoxys's body seemed to be alive, capable of acting independently, like a colony rather than a single organism.
Basically, if he tore off a piece, it would try its best to return to the Core.
And that Core, it was the real "heart," in a sense. The simplest way he could explain it was that the Core powered everything. As long as the Core was intact, it didn't matter if every other cell in Deoxys's body was disintegrated; Deoxys would still survive and reform given enough time.
And the last thing, when he compared this DNA Pokémon to his database, he noticed that Deoxys's DNA had a similar genetic structure to the Pokérus virus.
That discovery alone raised countless questions he desperately wanted answers to.
It was also why he hadn't rested. He'd been too excited, so excited, in fact, that he was already preparing to merge Deoxys cells with other DNA to see what would happen.
But then Carr and Sird's footsteps echoed long before they entered the lab. Colress didn't look up.
"Colress," Carr called out, his voice as grating as ever, "You've been in here long enough."
Colress adjusted his glasses, eyes still glued to the scrolling data on his screen, "Fascinating," he murmured, more to himself than to them, "Even when isolated, the cells attempt reintegration. Not random movement, directed. Purposeful."
Sird folded her arms near the doorway, sharp eyes scanning the room, the tanks, the instruments, "That wasn't an answer."
Carr scoffed, "Yeah, yeah, science is great and all that, but you were told this was temporary. You can't just camp out in our little hidey-hole forever."
Colress finally turned his chair, swiveling smoothly to face them. A thin smile crept across his face, "Temporary is a relative term. Discovery does not operate on schedules."
Carr's eye twitched, "You're not as funny as you think you are."
"I disagree," Colress replied pleasantly.
Sird stepped forward, heels clicking against the metal floor, "People are already asking questions. You vanished from the main base, and now Matori is on edge. That combination tends to end badly for everyone involved."
Colress hummed thoughtfully, "Ah. Yes. Matori. Efficient. Overworked. Highly intolerant of… surprises."
Carr crossed his arms, "Which is why you're coming back. Today."
Colress glanced sideways at the tanks again. His fingers tapped once against the armrest, "…Unfortunate timing."
Sird narrowed her eyes, "What did you do?"
"'Did' implies completion," Colress corrected, "I would say I am on the verge of something extraordinary."
"Yeah, well, you can keep working on it later. If anyone looks for you, they might find this place," Carr said.
"That would be a problem," Sird sighed.
Colress let out an overdramatic sigh, "I suppose. But if I may offer a suggestion, could we send one of these to another lab? I happen to have an… acquaintance who owes me quite a lot. He's in LaRousse City. It just feels unwise to keep our only specimens in one place."
Colress, of course, was lying through his teeth. The way he was talking almost made him cringe. He didn't believe any of it, but he also knew these two had something. And if he didn't take at least a few precautions, he might lose such a valuable research subject. He could not possibly allow that.
"Uhhh…" Carr blinked, clearly not having thought this far ahead, "I… I mean, I don't see why not. If no one finds out, I guess…"
"Oh, I assure you, my acquaintance has the utmost integrity in these kinds of matters," Colress said smoothly, "But I'll fill you in on that later. For now, please escort me back to the base."
As Carr and Sird turned to lead him out, Colress discreetly palmed a vial full of Deoxys DNA and slipped it into his coat pocket, just in case.
—
{Back with the gang}
A few hours later, the sun had shifted just enough to cast warm orange light through the greenhouse's glass ceiling. The air was thick with soothing floral scents, the kind that made it hard to stay tense even if you tried.
Skitty stirred.
At first, it was just a twitch of her ears. Then her tail gave a small, uncertain flick. Slowly, she pushed herself upright, wobbling slightly before sitting up on the cushion. Her big eyes blinked once… twice… then focused.
"Ski… ttii?"
May, who had been sitting beside her the entire time, practically jumped out of her seat, "Skitty! You're awake!"
Skitty looked at her, head tilting, then gave a soft, happy chirp and scooted closer, rubbing her head against May's arm.
May melted instantly, "O-oh… you're feeling better, huh?" She laughed softly, gently petting her, "That's good… that's really good."
Eliza approached, checking on Skitty, "She should be completely fine now."
May let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, "Thank you so much. Really."
"You're welcome," Eliza said warmly, "She's a strong little Pokémon. Whatever she's been through, she didn't give up."
As if understanding, Skitty puffed up proudly and spun in place, nearly tripping over her own tail before catching herself.
May giggled, "Careful there."
Right on cue, the greenhouse door creaked open.
Ash stepped in first, looking completely relaxed, hands behind his head, "Alright, doctor's orders say the patient should be good to go—"
Behind him, Brock limped in, covered in dirt and leaves, hair slightly singed at the ends, for reasons no one wanted to question.
Max followed last, dusting his hands, "He tried to flirt with a Hiker."
Brock straightened instantly, "She had kind eyes!"
"She was married," Ash gave him a flat look, "You're not helping your case."
Eliza blinked, "…Did I miss something?"
"Nope," Ash and Max said at the same time.
"I don't know if I should be scared that you two are getting along as well as you are, but I'm going to ignore it," May muttered to herself.
Ash walked over and crouched beside Skitty, letting her sniff his hand. She perked up immediately, tail swishing happily.
"Looks like you're back to full energy," Ash said with a grin, "Good timing, too."
May smiled, "Okay then!" She stood up, grabbed Combusken's Poké Ball, and pointed at Skitty, "Time to catch that Skitty!"
Just as May was about to throw the ball, Ash bonked her on the head and stopped her, "What do you think you're doing…?"
"Ow—! Ash!" May rubbed her head, glaring up at him, "What was that for?!"
Ash stared back at her, completely deadpan, eyes half-lidded, "May."
"What?"
"You were about to start a Pokémon battle," he said flatly, then slowly turned his head and gestured around them, "inside a glass greenhouse… full of fragile equipment… chemicals… and one very patient aromatherapist."
May froze.
Eliza looked down at the delicate trays of oils, burners, and glass vials surrounding them.
Max squinted, "Wow. That would've been really expensive."
Brock, still brushing dirt out of his hair, nodded sagely, "And dangerous. Aromatherapy oils are flammable if overheated."
Everyone looked at him.
"…What?" Brock said, "I do know medical stuff."
May's face flushed red, "I—I wasn't actually going to fight-fight. Just, you know, a quick—"
Ash raised a finger, "Uh-huh."
May crossed her arms, "Ash."
"Uh-huh."
She pouted, "You caught Pokémon like this all the time."
"Yeah, but not with a Fire-type in a place full of plants and oils," Ash clarified, "So here's an idea: how about you just ask?"
Ash gestured at Skitty, who had found a comfortable spot next to Vee and was nuzzling against him, making Vee's brain glitch again.
May ignored that, "Ask?"
"Yeah. Have you learned nothing from when we were out with Wally? You can just ask and see if she wants to come with you. If she does, you don't even have to battle." Ash flicked her forehead again.
"I… well, if you say so, I guess I can try…" May muttered. She was more inclined to do it, especially since it was Ash's recommendation, and she remembered how Wally had gotten his Ralts.
She crouched down next to Skitty, "Um… hey, Skitty. Do you want to come with me?" May said, smiling as she held out an empty Poké Ball, "Please?"
Skitty looked at her, then at the ball, then tapped it with her tail and hopped inside. The ball didn't even roll, it just clicked shut.
Skitty was caught.
"That really worked…" May blinked.
"What did you expect?" Ash said, "And look, you didn't have to battle, and Eliza's lab isn't destroyed."
Eliza let out a sigh of relief, "Thank you for not destroying my lab…"
Brock was about to say something when Max grabbed him again, "No problem," Max said, using all his strength to keep Brock from escaping.
May let out a breath that was almost a laugh and smiled, "Well… thanks, everyone."
"Don't thank us yet," Ash smirked, "You've still got a Contest left to win, so go knock 'em dead."