Chapter 28

It is almost noon, and Timothy, Coovers, and Electchu decided to camp out last night before they went to rent bikes at the bike shop near Cycling Road. As soon as they enter the shop, a clerk turns to them and gives them a friendly smile.

"Hi, how can I help you?" she asks.

"That depends," Timothy answers before he gives the clerk a hopeful look. "Do you really offer to rent bikes to get through Cycling Road now?"

The clerk smiles and says, "We sure do. I assume you are renting two bikes?"

"You are correct," Coovers said with a friendly smile.

"Alright, I'll go get some bikes for you at the back," the clerk says before going into the back room.

When the clerk is gone, Timothy suddenly shakes his fists into the air and starts jumping up and down excitedly like a child. Coovers looks at him worriedly while Electchu sighs.

"Are you okay, Timothy?" Coovers asks.

Timothy realizes how he's acting in front of his companions and smiles sheepishly.

"Sorry," he said. "It's just that I've never been able to ride a bike through Cycling Road so I could get from Celadon City to Fuchsia City or vice versa. It's just so much faster, and I always hated taking the long way."

Coovers looks at his friend, unconvinced, and says, "Still, I don't think that's a good reason to act that silly."

Timothy rolled his eyes and said, "Dude, when your experience with traveling between the two cities exceeds mine, then you can criticize me about how I act."

"Raichu," Electchu sighs again at its partner's response.

Suddenly, there is a knock on the glass door to the bicycle store, and the two men and Electchu turn around to see Ash, Serena, Pikachu, and Brock enter the store with friendly smiles.

"Hey, you guys," Brock says.

"Hey, everyone," Coovers' greets before giving a confused look. "Where's Dawn?"

"She decided to part ways to get more contest ribbons after I defeated her at Saffron City for my first ribbon," Serena answers.

"Hey, you guys going to Fuchsia City too?" Brock asks. "We're going there so that Serena can enter the Pokemon contest there."

"Yes, we are," Timothy says. "We're renting bikes to get to Fuchsia City."

"Huh? I thought you could only buy bikes here," Ash says.

"So did we," Coovers says. "It turns out because the bicycle stores on both sides of Cycling Road were making so little money because of how much it costs to buy a bike, they figure it makes sense to give travelers an option to rent bikes."

"Really? That's great," Ash says.

Coovers smiles and nods before he gets an idea.

"Hey, why don't you guys rent some bikes, too and we can all ride to Fuchsia City together?" He suggests.

Serena frowns and rubs her arm before she, replies, "I don't know. Getting to Fuchsia City right away would be great, but we were planning to take the long way where Ash and Brock are going to show me where they rescued a Celebi."

"Wait, they rescued a what?!" Timothy and Coovers shout at the same time.

Ash turns to Serena and gives her a smile.

"Don't worry, we can still show you that from Cycling Road," he says.

"Really?" Serena asks, hopefully.

"Yeah, I remember we saved it someplace just a few yards from the road," Brock says. "I'm sure we can spot the location from Cycling Road."

Serena smiles excitedly while Timothy sighs in relief.

"Okay," the honey blonde girl says. "Then, I'm all for riding together with you guys."

"Yeah, me too," Ash says.

"Pikachu," Pikachu says in agreement.

"Awesome," Coovers says.

"Good deal," Timothy agrees.

Unbeknownst to all of them, however, Jessie, James, Wobbufett, and Meowth have been listening to them the whole time from outside the building using their spying equipment.

"Oh joy," James sarcastically says with a sigh. "Looks like our target will be hanging out with the twerps again, and we still can't use an opportunity like this to catch Pikachu."

"Will you knock it off with that?!" Jessie rebukes. "What part of top-secret mission that will lead us to promotions and fortune do you not understand?"

"Yeah, James, lay off already," Meowth says before sighing too. "Although even I have to admit it's crazy how this makes two opportunities to nab Pikachu by following our target, and we can't do a thing about it. Fate's acting pretty cruel lately."

"More so than usual?" James challenges.

Jesse gives both of her friends a deadly glare before she lets out her own sigh.

"Admittedly, I can think of a dozen ways that we could steal Pikachu right from under their noses, and they would be none the wiser," she says. "But there's still the risk of failing miserably like we always do."

"Ah, look at it this way, guys," Meowth suggests. "No interfering with da twerps means that Timothy chump will get to his destination sooner. And da sooner he does that, da sooner he leads us to Brandon and then it's promotions for all of us."

"That's true," James says.

"So let's let them have their little bike ride and make their way to the Battle Pike stat," Jessie says with a grin.

"Wobbuffet," Wobbuffet agrees with a salute.

**************************************************************

Thus, the five trainers each get a bike to ride on and start riding down Cycling Road together with Pikachu and Electchu on Ash and Timothy's bikes respectfully. Ash and Timothy ride ahead while Coovers, Serena, and Brock ride behind. After a few minutes of riding, Ash turns to Timothy and decides to strike a conversation.

"So, Timothy, how did it go with your battle with Tucker?" Ash answers.

"It went well," Timothy replies. "Tucker wasn't too hard to beat, but his strategies were clever. Honestly, it was a fun battle."

"Yeah, that sounds like him, alright," Ash says with a chuckle. "Did he use that fire and water fusion combo?"

"Yes, he did," Timothy says. "A creative combo, to say the least."

"Yeah, he hurt my Tallow and Corphish pretty good with that," Ash admits. "It was fun to battle him, though."

"Yeah, he spoke of you a couple of times during our battle," Timothy says. "In fact, it was because we are rivals that he decided for our match to be a double battle."

"Really? That's cool," Ash says. "How did you beat him?"

Timothy smirks at the raven-haired teenager and playfully says, "I'm not going to tell you."

"What? Why not?" Ash asks.

"Because if I do, then you'll know one of my own combos, and I don't want you to know that before I crush you at the Indigo League," Timothy answers teasingly before riding ahead with Electchu sticking its tongue at Ash and Pikachu.

"Hey, come back here!" Ash shouts, grinning as he tries to catch up.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu calls out.

Serena giggles cutely at Ash and Timothy's behavior as she rides alongside Coovers and Brock. The older man from Unova smirks as he watches the two rivals at a distance before turning to Serena.

"Look at those two. They're acting like twins," he says.

"Yeah, they're getting along pretty quick since they last saw each other," Brock agrees.

"Well, that is Ash, for you," Serena says while smiling fondly. "He's always looking to be friends with anyone, people and Pokemon alike."

"You said it, Serena," Brock says.

Coovers smile falters as he watches Timothy continue to tease Ash with Electchu.

"I only wish it didn't take so long to see Timothy like this," he says.

Brock and Serena stop smiling and turn to Coovers, who rides his bike with a frown.

"Was he really that hard to be open to people?" Brock asks.

"For as long as I've known him, yes," Coovers answers.

"How did the two of you meet if you don't mind my asking?" Serena asks politely.

Coovers stays silent for a moment before turning to the honey blonde girl with a soft smile.

"No, I don't mind you asking at all," he says before turning back to look at Timothy while looking back. "I was probably about fifteen when I met him. I wasn't a Pokemon trainer back then because my mother needed me to look after my sister, Laura, since she was often gone on business trips. We stayed in a humble town in Unova, and the only Pokemon we had in the house was Laura's Snubbull."

"A Snubbull?" Brock asks, surprised. "I didn't know Snubbull live in Unova."

"They don't," Coovers confirms. "It was a gift for Laura from our father back when she was eight. He found this purple-grey Snubbull and caught it for her while he was at a business conference in the Johto region for work. Laura loves that Snubbull like you wouldn't believe. Even though I wanted to travel and be a Pokemon trainer, I knew I had to stay and look after Laura and, consequently, Snubbull to make sure they were both safe."

Coovers pauses for a moment, and his frown deepens before he continues.

"Then one day Snubbull went too far walking through the woods behind our house," he says. "Laura and I looked all over the woods to find it. But by the time we found it, it was already in a cage in the back of a truck that belonged to a Pokemon poacher."

Serena and both gasp softly at the information.

"We reported to the police, but the trail was too cold for Officer Jenny to track the culprit down by the time she got there," Coovers says. "Laura was brokenhearted, to say the very least. She was crying her heart out, worried about Snubbull."

"That's horrible," Serena says. "I've seen a poacher try to capture a group of wild Pokemon, but to have one stolen from its owner is about as low as Team Rocket."

"Well, it later turned out that this poacher had his eye on Snubbull for a while since they are never seen in Unova," Coovers says before giving the honey blonde girl a smile. "Though it's funny you should mention Team Rocket because that's where Timothy came in."

"Really? How?" Brock asks.

"Well, word got around about the poacher kidnapping Snubbull as well as stealing other Pokemon that are rare in the region, and soon native companies started asking for trainers to volunteer to look for the thief. Even our mom got permission to be a representative of her company so she could come home and ask trainers for help with us," Coovers says. "It soon caught the attention of a thirteen-year-old trainer with short brown hair wearing a grey shirt that said 'H.A.K.' in three different colors. He just started his journey with three Unova gym badges to his name and happened to be passing by our town when he heard the news. Laura and I were at the town center asking around for help with our mom when the trainer came to us, asking about what happened. After my mom told him what happened, Laura went down on her knees, begging this boy to help. I will never forget how serious he looked when he told her that he will get her Snubbull back. He looked like someone that wanted to seriously hurt the poacher as if Snubbull was his Pokemon."

"I see," Brock says with a frown. "I guess he wanted to help out of bitter experience from having Electchu and Poliwhril and his other Pokemon stolen from him by Trent and Team Rocket."

"Indeed," Coovers answers. "At that moment, I was concerned about what he was thinking when he had that look in his eyes. I didn't know why, but it felt like I needed to be there to stop him if he was going to try anything foolish or harmful if he ever found the poacher. So, I took a stand and told him that Laura and I had to come with him. He immediately refused, but I pointed out that he had no idea what Snubbull looked like or what its personality was to know that it was my sister's Pokemon. He still refused, saying that we'd hold him back since we don't have any Pokemon. Thankfully, that's when our mom got the idea that I should get a Pokemon and some Pokeballs and suggested that the trainer teach me how to be a trainer myself. She figured that way, I could aid him and protect Snubbull and my sister if anything like the poacher happened to us again. The trainer was very reluctant, clearly wanting to handle the search on his own, but he ultimately accepted that what my mom said made sense. So she contacted Professor Juniper, and like any new trainer from Unova, I had the option of choosing either a Snivy, Tepig, or Oshawott and I chose my Oshawott."

Serena smiles and says, "And that's how you finally became a trainer."

"Well, it's not how I planned to be one as you can imagine, but I admit both Laura and I were happy when Oshawott's Pokeball was transferred to our town. We became friends with it the moment it came out of its Pokeball for the very first time," Coovers says with a soft smile. "Anyway, after the trainer introduced himself as Timothy Durbin from Pallet Town, we gathered some supplies from home, kissed our mom goodbye, and began searching for Snubbull together with Timothy."

"By the way, you're talking about Timothy back then; I'm guessing he didn't enjoy you being around him back then," Brock says with a frown.

"You're not wrong, Brock," Coovers says sadly. "While Timothy never yelled at us or acted annoyed with us for asking questions or help in any way, you can tell that he still felt frustrated that he couldn't find the poacher on his own. Still, he was patient enough to teach me the basics and even some of his own special tricks to catching and training Pokemon. Thanks to that, Oshawott evolved into a Dewott, and I caught myself a Sandile, Litwick, Zorua, Klink - and both Timothy and I caught ourselves a pair of Rufflet. Each time I trained, caught, or evolved a Pokemon felt exciting for both me and Laura. I felt like I was growing strong enough to catch the poacher and protect my sister by the day. Even Timothy was presently impressed with how I was improving with my Pokemon, though he tried to hide it back then."

Brock and Serena both smile before Serena frowns and asks, "But did you ever find the poacher?"

Coovers frowns back and says, "Barely."

"Barley?" Brock asks.

"Yes," Coovers answers plainly. "By the time we found his hideout, he was getting ready to sell Snubbull and all the Pokemon he apparently spent months trying to capture to the highest bidder. Any longer and he would have sent them all away to whoever bought them. I suggested contacting the nearest police station right away, but just like with rescuing his own Pokemon, Timothy wasn't willing to wait. He convinced me to have both of us attack the poacher while Laura secretly freed all the Pokemon. So together, the two of us charged at him with my Dewott and Timothy's Pignite nicknamed Titus, and the poacher quickly responded with his Eelektross and Ferrothorn. He was a difficult opponent with his Pokemon, but we managed to defeat Eelektross and Ferrothorn together. The poacher was so shocked that he tried to escape, but Timothy wasn't satisfied that we simply took down the man's Pokemon. He ordered Titus to attack him with Flamethrower, and the Pignite was hesitant but compliant to do so. Laura and I couldn't believe what was happening. Timothy had a look of anger and hate and a desire for vengeance in his eyes. It was in that moment when he looked at the poacher groaning from getting hit in the back with the Flamethrower that my fears were true."

Brock and Serena look at Coovers, shocked, while the three of them are still riding their bikes.

"What did you do?" Brock asks.

"Well, what else could I have done but stop him?" Coovers asks. "He was about to tell Titus to attack the helpless man again, but that's when I told Dewott to use Hydro Pump on his Pokemon. Being a fire type, Titus was knocked out instantly by Hydro Pump, which made Timothy angrier. He started running towards the poacher to attack him, but I grabbed him from behind. Finally, he started screaming at the poacher, rebuking him for stealing helpless Pokemon from their owners or their homes in the wild for money. After a while, he started tearing up and running out of words to say. He finally broke down and got down on his knees like he was Laura's age. After I figured he wasn't going to try to attack the man again, I found a phone and called the police. Before long, the poacher was arrested, the wild Pokemon were sent to their homes and Laura, and I were finally reunited with Snubbull. The two of us were relieved to be reunited with it, but Timothy just had an emotionless face the whole time."

Coovers stays silent for a moment while riding his bike until he lifts his head to look at Timothy, who is still chatting with Ash.

"That night, the three of us and Snubbull got rooms at the nearest Pokemon Center and started getting ready for sleep," he says. "Before we did, however, Timothy came into my and Laura's room with a broken face and apologized for his actions. After that, he thanked me for stopping him and decided to tell us why he acted that way."

"So that's when he told you everything about Trent and Team Rocket?" Serena asks.

"Yes," Coovers says. "After that, the way he acted made sense. Laura and I took pity on him and decided to stay with him on his journey through the region. He gratefully accepted, and so with our mom's permission, the two of us and Snubbull followed Timothy through the rest of his journey in getting the last five gym badges. As time went on, Timothy learned to be more friendly around us. We started to become good friends and with his help all six of my Pokemon fully evolved. At the Unova League, Timothy only made it to the top 8 and so he decided to go back to Kanto and try again. Our mom didn't want us to leave the region, so we sadly went our separate ways while keeping in touch as Timothy continued his journey. He has visited us a few times whenever he wanted to give the Unova League another go."

"So was that when he started to become a little more open to people besides his family?" Brock asks curiously.

Coovers thinks about Brock's question and says, "In a way. It was clear he had a caring side when it came to his family or his Pokemon, but he's always had trouble being open to other people after spending his early years growing up with a bully like Trent. Laura and I are the only true friends he has, but I hope he will open up to your guys more over time."

Serena nods in understanding and asks, "So, does your sister still live in Unova."

"Yes, she does," Coovers says with a smile. "Laura's become a little bit of a businesswoman herself, but she still loves to play with Snubbull in her spare time."

Serena smiles warmly, glad to hear it, and turns her head to keep her eyes on the road until Coovers speaks again.

"Oh, that reminds me, Serena," he says. "How's that little Absol doing?"

Serena's eyes light up, and she turns to the Unova man with a cheerful look.

"Oh, it's doing great," she says. "Absol is a sweetheart. In fact, I'm hoping to have its debut at the Pokemon contest at Fuchsia City."

"Oh, that sounds exciting," Coovers comments. "Do you think it's ready for that?"

"Oh, I don't know," Serena answers, nervously. "Most of its attacks are good, but I'm training it to create a good combo that would work for the appeal stage. In fact, I'm hoping to find a way where it can learn Double Team."

"Double Team, eh?" Coovers asks, intrigued. "Well, if you're after teaching that move to Absol, then I would suggest giving it special training that involves it running very fast. Why don't you try it now since we're on our bikes."

Serena looks away from Coovers and thinks about it. She remembers how Ash's Greninja learned to use Double Team back when it was a Froakie with the help of Sanpei and his then-Frogadier. She smiles at the idea of using the same concept as Ash did and turns back to Coovers.

"Alright, I think that's a great idea," she says as she takes out Absol's Pokeball and tosses it into the air. "Come on out, Absol."

Absol comes out of its ball, and Serena, Brock, and Coovers stop their bikes so that the honey blonde girl can talk to her Pokemon.

"Absol, we're going to do some special training," she says with a smile. "While we're on our bikes, I want you to run to work on improving your speed. But don't run too far from the group, okay?"

"Absol," Absol says, nodding obediently.

"Alright, then start running," Serena says as she starts moving on her bike again.

Absol smiles excitedly and starts running to catch up next to Serena, Coovers, and Brock. The disaster Pokemon struggles to be at the same speed as the bikes for a couple of minutes before it slowly runs faster and faster. Serena smiles happily, as Absol begins to run ahead of her.

"That's it, Absol. Keep going," she says encouragingly.

Absol keeps running as fast as its four legs can carry it. Eventually, it starts to run ahead of Ash and Timothy's bikes and takes the lead in front of the group. The two rivals and Pikachu and Electchu are taken aback that an Absol is running past them for a moment until Ash realizes that it's Serena's and turns his head to look at her.

"Hey, Serena, did you take Absol out to run while we're on our bikes?" he asks.

"Yeah, I'm using this as a practical training for Absol so it can learn Double Team," Serena calls out.

"Ah, not a bad idea to do that," Timothy says with a smirk. "Personally, I am not big on moves like Double Team, but I know for some people it -"

Suddenly, Timothy's voice dies in his throat as he catches his eye on a tree standing next to the road. On one of the highest branches of the tree, he sees two figures with one carrying what looks like a missile launcher aimed at Absol. Timothy's pupils shrink as he turns to the unaware happy Pokemon.

"ABSOL, WATCH OUT!!" he screams.

Everyone looks at Timothy, confused, until one of the figures fires the launcher and a large net heads straight toward Absol. Luckily, the disaster Pokemon sees the net and dodges it just in the nick of time. Everyone stops their bikes while Absol runs over to Serena's side, and the two figures jump out of the tree and land on the road perfectly and glare at the group with evil looks on their faces. Timothy and Electchu glare menacingly while Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Coovers frown seriously, and Serena gets off her bike and hugs Absol defensively as they all look at a man and a woman wearing Team Rocket uniforms.

"Looks like we were found out," the woman snarls.

"Nothing that we can't fix ourselves though," the man growls in a raspy voice.

"Team Rocket," Timothy grumbles menacingly.

"Not just Team Rocket, it's Mitch and Cassidy," Brock says.

"It's Butch!" The man shouts. "Have you seriously still forgotten my name?"

"Ash, do you know these members of Team Rocket?" Serena asks.

"Unfortunately," Ash says as he gets off his bike. "We've come across these guys a few times before. What do you guys want?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouts while making a defensive stance in front of Ash.

Butch and Cassidy both smirk evilly and make poses as they respond.

"Prepare for trouble," Cassidy says.

"Make it double," Butch says with a grin.

"Here's our mission, so you better listen," they say simultaneously.

"To infect the world with devastation," Cassidy says.

"To bought all people in every nation," Butch says.

"To denounce the goodness of truth and love!"

"To extend our wrath to the stars above!"

"Cassidy!"

"Butch!"

"We're Team Rocket and circling Earth all day and all night!"

"Surrender to us now, or you will surely lose the fight!"

When they finish, Butch and Cassidy smile proudly for their performance. But their triumphant poses weaken, and then they see Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Serena glaring at them while Timothy, Electchu, and Coovers stare at them dumbfounded as silence fills the air.

"What in the world was that?" Coovers asks.

Butch and Cassidy look at each other in confusion before Butch answers, "That's our motto."

The two men and the Raichu look at each other even more dumbfounded before turning back to face their foes.

"In what universe is it a bright idea to do a motto in the middle of trying to steal other people's Pokemon?" Timothy rebukes. "No one in their right mind should do something so redundant."

"Redundant?!" Butch and Cassidy shout at the same time.

"Actually, Timothy, this is kind of normal for us," Brock says with a sigh. "Whether it's these two or the Team Rocket group that usually follows us, they always introduce themselves with a motto."

"Seriously?" Coovers says in disbelief. "You mean to tell me that you get a motto like this whenever you get attacked by Team Rocket?"

"Every. Single. Time," Ash says with an unamused look while Pikachu and Serena nod in agreement.

"Why you meddling punks. We'll force you to love our motto after we help ourselves to that Absol," Cassidy barks.

"You're not laying a hand on my Absol!" Serena barks back as she tightens her defensive hug on Absol.

"Sol!" Absol growls.

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that, little missy," Butch says with a cocky grin as he takes out an orange ball and throws it into the air. The ball explodes into a large cloud of smoke that immediately covers the area.

"Blitzwing, clear the smoke away!" Timothy says, quickly throwing a Pokeball into the air before the smoke reaches his lungs.

"You too, Braviary!" Coovers shouts.

The two balls open to reveal the two Braviary, who rapidly flap their wings and clear the smoke away. Just as they finish, however, a large net flies into the air and catches both bird Pokemon, causing them to fall into the ground trapped.

"Blitzwing!" Timothy shouts.

"Braviary!" Coovers cries out.

"Ha! What a catch!" Butch says proudly. "We don't see these two Pokemon very often in the Kanto region, so I imagine the boss might give us a raise if we brought them before him along with Absol."

"You're not going anywhere with my Pokemon," Timothy growls. "And you'll be imagining what your leader thinks all you want in prison, Benny."

"It's Butch!" Butch whines.

"I don't care," Timothy says as he throws the Pokeball. "Poliwrath, come on out. Electchu, join in."

Poliwrath comes out of its Pokeball while Electchu stands next to it, both of them looking ready to fight.

"Ash, do you want a piece?" Timothy asks.

"Thought you'd never ask," Ash says with a smirk as he takes out a Pokeball. "Boldore, I choose you! Pikachu, let's go!"

Boldore comes out of its Pokeball, and Pikachu runs over to stand next to the ore Pokemon.

"Well, if you're both using two Pokemon, then I guess we'll have to fight fire with fire," Cassidy says as the takes out two Pokemon. "Radicate, Sableye, let's go!"

"Hitmontop, Mightyena, time to fight!" Butch shouts.

Radicate, Sableye, Hitmontop, and Mightyena all come out ready for battle. Meanwhile, as Ash and Timothy start the battle against Butch and Cassidy, Coovers walks over to Brock and Serena and talks quietly.

"Do either of you have any flying Pokemon with you?" He asked.

"Well, I do have my Crobat.," Brock says.

Coovers smiles and says, "That's perfect. Let's write a note, attach it to your Crobat, and have it sent to the nearest police station."

Serena takes out her tablet as she looks at where they are before she says, "The closest police station is back where we came."

"Alright, then, we better hurry and get Crobat to deliver the message. The sooner we get these Team Rocket guys behind bars the better," Coovers says.

"Right," Brock says in understanding as he takes out Crobat's Pokeball, and Coovers looks for a piece of parchment in his backpack while Ash and Timothy keep Butch and Cassidy's Pokemon at bay with ease.

"Hitmontop, use Rapid Spin! Mightyena, use Bite!" Butch says.

"Radicate, use Skull Bash, and Sableye, use Fury Swipes," Cassidy says.

"Heh, charging with all four of your Pokemon at once? And I thought this was going to be a challenge," Timothy says mockingly with a smirk. "Poliwrath, use Surf on Mightyena and Electchu, trip Hitmontop with Iron Tail!"

"Boldore, use Rock Blast on Radicate, and Pikachu, hit Sableye with Thunderbolt!" Ash says.

Poliwrath summons a large wave of water that it rides on and crashes on top of Mightyena. Hitmontop does a headstand and spins toward Electchu only for the Raichu's to use Iron Tail to hit the spike on top of Hitmontop's head. The move causes Hitmontop to fall down flat on its face before Electchu hits it again on the head, slamming its face to the ground. Boldore fires several silver energy waves that hit Radicate on the head right as it's about to ram into the ore Pokemon. Finally, Pikachu fires a powerful Thunderbolt that hits Sableye hard. As a result, all of Team Rocket's Pokemon are out cold, leaving Butch and Cassidy in shock.

"Wow, that Surf and Iron Tail were pretty powerful, Timothy," Ash compliments.

"Thanks, Ash. That wasn't a bad use of Rock Blast and Thunderbolt either," Timothy says with a smirk before turning to the two Team Rocket members. "If you guys want to switch Pokemon, I know mine would appreciate the exercise."

"Yeah, same with mine," Ash says.

Butch and Cassidy grind their teeth and return their Pokemon before taking our different Pokeballs.

"Houndour, Granbull, get going!" Cassidy shouts.

"Primeape, Shuckle, crush them!" Butch barks.

Ash and Timothy keep their confident smirks as Butch and Cassidy's next Pokemon come out.

"Pikachu, come on back," Ash takes as he takes out a Pokeball and throws it into the air. "Why don't we see how Primeape does against another Primeape?"

"Pika," Pikachu says in understanding as Ash's Primeape comes out of its Pokeball.

"Granbull, use Fire Fang on the Raichu, and Houndour, use Ember on that Boldore," Cassidy commands.

"Shuckle, Sludge Bomb on that Poliwrath, Primeape, use Thrash on that puny Primeape," Butch orders.

"Primeape is anything but puny," Ash rebukes with a grin. "Boldore, counter with Flash Cannon, and Primeape show them why you're a true champion!"

"Electchu, Poliwrath, dodge those attacks and counter with Iron Tail and Dynamic Punch!" Timothy calls out.

Boldore fires a Flash Cannon, which collides with Ember, causing an explosion that covers the area with smoke. Ash's Primeape uses the smoke to charge at Butch's Primeape and attack it without warming. Timothy's Pokemon dodge Fire Fang and Sludge Bomb with great speed before Electchu wacks Granbull in the face with another Iron Tail, and Poliwrath's fists turns white before it runs over to Shuckle. Unexpectedly, however, Shuckle fires another Sludge Bomb right on Poliwrath's eyes, and it tries to get it off before Shuckle tackles it. The muscular tadpole Pokemon takes steps back, groaning in pain. It accidentally bumps into Electchu, which distracts the Raichu long enough to get hit by another Fire Fang from Granbull. Butch and Cassidy both grin to see both of Timothy's Pokemon disoriented.

"Granbull, finish off that Raichu with Bite," Cassidy says. "And Houndour, use Flamethrower on Boldore."

"Shuckle, use Rollout," Butch orders.

"Boldore, use Flash Cannon again, and this time give it everything you've got," Ash says.

Shuckle gets inside its shell and starts rolling toward Poliwrath while Granbull charges at Electchu with its mouth wide open. Meanwhile, as the two Primeape are fighting each other, Houndour fires Flamethrower at Boldore, who fires back again with Flash Cannon, causing a standstill between both attacks. Butch and Cassidy, both grin, thinking they are about to take down both of Timothy's Pokemon, only to stare in shock as Electchu spins around and wraps Granbull around its neck with its long tail and Poliwrath catches Shackle with both hands despite still blinded by the Sludge Bomb.

"What?!" Butch and Cassidy shout simultaneously in shock.

"You guys were very smart to try to catch my Pokemon by surprise like that, but we're smarter," Timothy says in a matter-of-factly tone. "Electchu, Poliwrath, finish it however you see fit."

Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Serena all look at Timothy, confused while Coovers smirks. Electchu grins mischievously, and Poliwrath chuckles evilly as it gets the sludge off its eyes. Without warning, Electchu uses its tail to slam Granbull to the ground repeatedly while Poliwrath finds one of the holes in Shuckle's shell and starts firing Hydro Pump right into it. Butch and Cassidy watch helplessly as the Raichu fires a powerful Thunder before letting go of Granbull and Poliwrath slams Shuckle to the ground where it's head comes out of its shell to show it has fainted. The two Team Rocket members stare at their two fainted Pokemon until they hear their other two Pokemon screaming in pain. They turn around to find Ash's Primeape victoriously standing on top of Butch's Primeape that looks beaten to a pulp, and Boldore's Flash Cannon appears to have overpowered Houndour's Flamethrower and hits the fire Pokemon.

"Boldore, finish it off with Rock Blast once more!" Ash days quickly.

Boldore fires another Rock Blast that instantly hits Houndour, knocking it out cold. The ore Pokemon cheers triumphantly, happy to have taken down two opponents so quickly, making Ash smile. Butch and Cassidy, on the other hand, are livid that their Pokemon are beaten.

"How dare you!" Cassidy screams as she and Butch return their Pokemon and then reach for more Pokeballs.

"I don't think so," Timothy says as he quickly throws another Pokeball. "Shockwave, use Psychic on both of them!"

Shockwave comes out of its Pokeball with its eyes immediately turning blue. Butch and Cassidy instantly start panicking as a blue outline surrounds them, and they are lifted high into the air.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Butch yells.

"You should have thought of that before you tried to steal Serena's Absol and my and Coovers' Braviary," Timothy says with a wave of his hand before turning to Coovers. "We should send a message to the police that we caught two Team Rocket grunts."

"It's already done, Timothy," Coovers says with a grin. "We sent Brock's Crobat to the nearest station with a note while you guys were battling. Officer Jenny should be here any moment now."

"And I just had Absol use Scratch to free your Braviary," Serena says proudly while petting Absol's head.

"Sol!" Absol says, happy to make Serena proud of it.

"Braviary!" Blitzwing and Coovers' Braviary shout simultaneously.

"Excellent," Timothy says with a smirk.

"Great job, Serena," Ash says with a toothy grin, making Serena blush.

As they are talking, however, Butch and Cassidy try in vain to move their bodies. Suddenly, Butch notices a Meowth hot-air balloon floating several yards away behind the trainers. Inside the basket, Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet stare back at Butch awkwardly before moving their hands, gesturing Butch to not alert their presence. But their rival glares at them, determined to take the four of them down with him and Cassidy.

"Don't celebrate yet you fools!" He calls out while still hanging in the air. "More members of the mighty Team Rocket are coming right behind you!"

The trio and Wobbuffet freeze in place, afraid that their cover has been blown. Fortunately, before anyone can turn to their direction, Timothy loudly scoffs unamused.

"Oh, please," he rebukes. "Trying to make us turn around and look? What are you, eight?"

Cassidy, however, looks and sees their rivals quickly lowering their balloon so that they can hide from the trainers.

"No, it's true," she protests, pointing at the trio. "Those two losers and that talking Meowth and Wobbuffet are right behind you on their tacky hot-air balloon."

Ash, Pikachu, Serena, and Brock quickly turn around, immediately concerned that Cassidy is telling the truth. But by the time they do, the Team Rocket trio have already moved their balloon so that it's covered by the trees. The four of them frown before turning back to Butch and Cassidy.

"There's no one over there," Serena says. "They were just trying to trick us."

"Just as I figured," Timothy scoffs before turning to his Gardevoir. "Shockwave, clap your hands and silence these punks, please."

Shockwave smiles and claps its hands, causing Butch and Cassidy to ram into each other in the air, knocking them both out before it gently lays them to the ground. Timothy pats his Pokemon on the back while Ash walks over to him, impressed.

"Wow, Timothy, that was an interesting way to knock out your foes using Psychic," he says.

"I'll say," Brock says. "I'm also surprised with how you left your Pokemon to decide how to take out Granbull and Shuckle. Do you have a deep enough bond where you trust your Pokemon to take down their opponents on their own?"

"More or less," Timothy says with a shrug. "Honestly, it varies on the battle. Even then, I usually only give that kind of trust to Pokemon like Electchu and Poliwhirl who I've spent enough time battling with that every now and then I'll tell them to finish their opponent on their own if I feel like they don't need any instructions to do it."

"So you only did that with Electchu and Poliwrath because you believed they could take down Granbull and Shuckle on their own?" Serena asks.

"Pretty much," Timothy says. "It's like I said with those goons, they were good, but I knew we are much stronger."

"Raichu," Electchu says with a boastful pose.

"Wrath," Poliwrath growls while flexing its muscles.

**************************************************************

Before long, Officer Jenny and a couple policemen come in a policetruck and handcuff Butch and Cassidy, who are still knocked out. After the police leave with their prisoners, Timothy, Coovers, Ash, Serena, and Brock return their Pokemon apart from Pikachu and Electchu and start riding their bikes again. The group rides quietly for a while until Coovers decides to speak up.

"Well, that was an unexpected surprise," he says with a small chuckle. "I didn't think we would have to fight a couple of Team Rocket members. But you seem to be used to it by the way you handled yourselves, Ash, Serena, and Brock. Didn't you say that there is a group of Team Rocket members that tend to follow you around?"

"All the time, I'm afraid," Ash says with a sigh. "They always try to kidnap Pikachu or other Pokemon before we ultimately stop them. They've been following me since my first day of becoming a Pokemon trainer."

"Pikachu," Pikachu groans, agreeing with Ash.

"So, they always try to kidnap Pikachu?" Timothy asks.

"It is pretty rare that we would ever go through a day without them trying to do something," Brock says.

"Yep, that sums up how it was when Ash and I were on our journey through Kalos with our friends, Clemont and Bonnie," Serena says.

"So have you encountered them since you guys started your journey right now?" Coovers asks.

Ash looks at Coovers for a moment before he looks down and thinks while he's riding his bike.

"Now that you've mentioned it, we haven't," he says. "In fact, the reason we turned around to where Butch and Cassidy were pointing was because, at this point, it is a possibility for us to have encounter Jessie, James, and Meowth again."

"Well, I'm glad they aren't because I don't think I can take dealing with Team Rocket that frequently," Timothy says. "How can you deal with people like that so frequently is amazing to me, Ash."

"Well, it isn't always that bad," Ash says. "Sometimes dealing with them has worked out for the best. Every now and then, me, Brock, Serena, or some of my other friends and their Pokemon learn something important, and it leads to us getting closer or even some of our Pokemon evolving."

"Yeah, and there have been times where we have ended up working together with Jessie, James, and Meowth," Brock says.

Timothy and Coovers both stop their bikes and stare at Brock in shock as if he said the weirdest and most random thing imaginable.

"You ended up working together with members of Team Rocket?" Coovers asks in disbelief.

"Well...yeah," Ash answers for his friend. "I know it sounds weird, but Team Rocket has also been there when we needed help saving lives or even the world."

"Yeah, they even helped me when I was sneaking into Team Flare's headquarters when I was trying to help our friend, Mairin rescue her Chespin, Chespie," Serena adds.

Timothy blinks, while Coovers continues to stare dumbfounded.

"Are you sure you're talking about people from the same crime organization as the ones we just defeated and sent to prison?" Timothy asks.

Ash, Brock, and Serena chuckle lightly, understanding their friend's reaction.

"It does sound strange, especially when you consider how they've done more bad things than good," Ash admits. "But I guess in the end, it's proof that there's still some good in people, even from an evil group like Team Rocket."

Timothy frowns skeptically and looks away from Ash and his friends with his eyes closed. His thoughts are interrupted, however, when he hears Ash speak again with an excited tone in his voice.

"Hey, we're here," he says.

Timothy opens his eyes and turns to Ash in confusion only to find that the raven-haired boy has already gotten off his bike and run over to the edge of the bridge with Pikachu, where he sees a small spot of open land in the woods. Brock, Serena, and Coovers get off their bike and run over to where he is before Timothy and Electchu eventually do the same.

"What is it, Ash?" Coovers asks.

But instead of looking at Coovers, Ash turns intently to Serena with a smile on his face.

"That right there," he says, pointing at the spot of open land. "That's where we found and rescued Celebi."

Serena smiles brightly, happy to finally see the place where the boy she cares for saw a rare Pokemon.

"Yeah, that's the spot," Brock says with a nod. "That takes me back."

"So you guys really rescued a Celebi in this exact spot in the woods?" Coovers asks.

"We sure did," Ash says before scratching the back of his head. "Well, us and our friends May, Max, and a Pokemon Ranger named Solana."

"Ah, Solana," Brock says with a gaga look on his face before Serena shakes his shoulder to snap out of his state.

"So, what happened?" Timothy asks, sharing Coovers' curiosity.

Ash turns to the two men and then turns back to Serena before he says, "Well, Brock, May, Max, and I were on our way to the Battle Pike and were about to cross Cycling Road when Officer Jenny told us to take the long way because water was flooding the road. Suddenly, Pikachu sensed something and ran into the woods, and we chased after it. That's when we met Solana, who was investigating strange vines that were growing in the forest, and she allowed us to help her with Pikachu navigating us through the vines. Eventually, we found out that the source was none other than Celebi who was really weak and tired, and Team Rocket was also there trapped in the vines. Solana freed Jessie, James, and Meowth, and they ran away, promising to leave the area."

"That doesn't sound smart to trust members of Team Rocket that they would simply leave for good when a rare Pokemon like Celebi is there," Coovers comments.

"I guess you're right because they did come back and try to capture it," Ash admits. "We managed to earn Celebi's trust and try to bring it back to health, but then the next day, Team Rocket came back with another giant machine and captured Celebi. Solana freed it, which lead to Brock and me battling Jessie and James until their Pokemon were defeated, and Pikachu sent them blasting off with Volt Tackle. But then their machine exploded and set the forest on fire. Luckily, Celebi was in good enough health to summon more vines and used them to put out the flames. After that, we said goodbye to Celebi as it flew away, and then we parted ways with Solana."

Serena has her hands clasped together the whole time Ash was telling the story. She looks at him amazed with the kind of luck he has to come across such a rare and legendary Pokemon. Her mind comes back to the time that the two of them encountered legendary Pokemon with Clemont and Bonnie in Kalos, such as Diancie, Xerneas, Yveltal, Hoopa, Volcanion, Magerena, and Squishy and its friend. Deep down she's thankful that she has a chance to hear about Ash's other adventures like his encounter with Celebi.

At the same time, Brock is also smiling, remembering that day fondly while Coovers looks at Ash, intrigued with his tale. With Timothy, however, his mind is still on the part of Ash's story that involves Team Rocket.

"Interesting story, Ash, but it seems unbelievable that you can talk about some good deeds that this Jessie, James, and Meowth have done before telling us a time when they broke a promise to leave a Pokemon like Celebi alone," he says.

Ash turns the man in the "H.A.K" shirt with a frown.

"Yeah, I understand why you feel that way, Timothy," he says. "Most days, I see them as nothing more than awful crooks after everything they've done to me, my friends and especially the Pokemon they've harmed or tried to kidnap. But I guess since I never experienced them successfully kidnapping my Pokemon or any other foul deed, I don't have the complete loathing you do for the organization even though I do hate what they represent."

"Then I envy you, Ash," Timothy says with a frown. "For the sake of myself and my Pokemon, I would do anything to have the kind of experiences you have with facing an organization as horrible as Team Rocket without the harm that it can do for people and Pokemon less fortunate than you and your friends."

Everyone looks at Timothy, sadly, and Electchu tugs its trainer's jeans and snuggles its head against his side. Timothy turns to his Raichu and gives it a sad smile before petting its head as thanks for trying to cheer him up. Coovers puts his hand on Timothy's shoulder, and they both share a sad look before Timothy turns to Ash, Pikachu, Serena, and Brock apologetically.

"Sorry, everybody," he says. "I guess I dampened the mood."

"It's alright, Timothy. We understand," Brock says kindly. "But you shouldn't let what happened to you get you down all the time."

"Yeah, and I know your Grandma Judy wouldn't want you dwelling on the past like that," Serena says. "She would want you to keep moving forward with a positive attitude."

Timothy chuckles lightly at the way Serena talks about his beloved, late grandmother.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Timothy says. "In any case, I should aim to do so by heading to the Battle Pike."

"Right, then let's head to Fuchsia City already," Ash says energetically. "You got a battle with Lucy to win."

"Oh, Lucy! Now there's a beauty I can't wait to see again!" Brock shouts gleefully.

"Brock, calm yourself down already," Serena says with a sigh before shaking her head and smiling. "Anyway, Ash is right. Let's get to Fuschia City, where I am also going to win my third contest ribbon."

"Right," Ash, Brock, Timothy, and Coovers say at the same time while Pikachu and Electchu nod while saying "Pika," and "Rai," respectively.

Thus the five trainers get back on their bikes and continue peddling down the road with Pikachu and Electchu. Meanwhile, Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet are still following them on their hot air balloon.

"Finally, they're back on their bikes," Jessie grumbles. "They've been held back long enough with Butch and Cassidy trying to take their Pokemon right in front of us and almost blowing our cover."

"At least they're locked up and hopefully won't bother us again for another long time," Meowth says optimistically. "And now we can continue our operation of following those two dopes all the way to Brandon."

"For sure," James agrees.

"Wobbuffet," Wobbuffet says.

Unknown to them still, the cloaked figure is secretly flying behind them and stops for a moment to look at the spot where Ash and Brock saved Celebi.

"So after all these years, Ash has continued to be so caring for Pokemon," it says warmly. "It is a shame that this Timothy has such a foul experience with Team Rocket, but that's why it's all the more dire that he and his companions lead me to the Gieldanstone."