Pokémon Not Backing Down

_**Not Backing Down**_

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon/Pocket Monsters. Nor any of the characters or the monsters, themselves. Only the respective company, does. This special story takes place after Pokemon Chronicles: Raikou – Legend of Thunder. Read & Review and please, no flames!

Deep in the forest was a tall young man with light-lavender spunky hair with a yellow cap on his head, blue eyes, red sweater, yellow shorts and black sneakers with white stripes. He's also carrying his handy-dandy Poke-gear with him at all times.

Before long, he remembered the time when he met Marina; the Idol trainer wannabe. Not the least of which, there was also his rival, Vincent. During the course of their friendship however, both Jimmy and Vincent were battling each other's throats for Marina's affections. Of course, he wouldn't admit the fact that he carries a few feelings towards her, while Vincent holds more than him. There was even the part, where he believes that Marina likes Dragon-type master, Lance more than him.

Just then, his Poke-gear began to rang. As he takes it from out of his pocket and opened it, he hears a familiar voice calling out to him. "Hi, Jimmy. It's me, Marina."

Upon hearing her cheerful voice, his body began to shook. "Eh? Marina! Why are you calling me?"

"Oh, I just wanted to hear from you. After all, I'm the most popular idol and Pokemon trainer that there is!" she ended her sentence with a small giggle.

Jimmy pouted at her comment. "You called me up, just to tell me about you being popular? Is that far important than me and Vincent or even that crush of yours, Lance?"

Marina responded, back at him. "No, no! That's not true! I really do care about you, Jimmy! Please, believe me!"

The young Pokemon trainer was in deep thought and then sure enough, he answered. "I'm sorry, Marina. I didn't know what came over me. And yes, I do believe you."

"I'm so glad to hear that from you. Oh! I've got to go, now! Let me know, when you have some spare time. Bye!" After that, his connection to her went off and lets out a deep breath.

As he looks up at the big blue sky with some white clouds, he gave himself a moment to think about his current friendship with Marina; including his rival/friend, Vincent.

"_What am I going to do? I haven't even confessed my feelings to her. If not worse, Vincent getting mushy on her every time when he's around her."_ He began clenching his fists tightly, while his face was filled with jealously and anger. _"And that, just gets me very annoying. I mean, how will I be able to win Marina's heart before he does?"_

Meanwhile at a secured location, two members with an 'R' symbol on their shirts are contemplating on how to capture more Pokemon without the usage of Poke-balls. One was a tall man with green hair and black eyes, while the other has yellow double-spiked ponytail hair and purple eyes. The looks on their faces were filled with frustration and boredom.

"Another plan, foiled again." The young blonde smacks her head on the table in shame. "There's got to be a way of getting more Pokemon."

"I know, Cassidy." He places his feet on the table, as he starts rocking the chair with his hands placed at the back of his head. "But, hey. At least, we don't get much failure like the other two dim-wits."

She became infuriated of his comment by mentioning the other members of the same faction they run with but only on different occasions. As she got out of her seat, she places her hands from underneath the table and responds to him. "The only dim-wit around here is you, Butch!"

When she lifted the table, he fell off of his chair and landed head-first on the ground. As a result, he has a small bump on his head due to Cassidy's insult.

"Ow! Hey, c'mon. Can't you at least take a joke for about a few minutes or something?"

Again she was upset of his silly gesture; as she grabs him by the shirt and glares at him with a look of disgust on her face. "The answer is no, you fool! Don't you know that Team Rocket doesn't take any humor at all?"

Butch grunted. "Well, duh. It's not like that I enjoy it. I only do it, just for the fun of it. Of course, that would be more embarrassing than listening to someone becoming an idol trainer."

"Who's this idol trainer that you're babbling about?" yelled Cassidy, as she screams at his face.

During the argument, their television was left on and that's when they hear someone's voice.

"Joining me now, I'm speaking to Marina. The up-and-coming idol trainer that has caught audiences and even pokemon, worldwide. Tell me, Marina, what do you plan to do next on your pokemon journey?" says the interviewer.

She answered to him. "It's simple. Not only am I an advertiser, I'm also a bit of a singer. My voice is so sweet, I've caught every attention to all of my adoring fans."

"Sounds to me that you're quite popular. Does it also include pokemon as well?"

"When it comes to training, raising and perhaps catching them, than yes." She lets out a small giggle, while she waves at the TV camera. "Anyone who wants to come and see me, feel free!"

After watching and listening to the young girl's interview from the television, Butch and Cassidy were exchanging their looks about the person's involvement of becoming an idol trainer and pokemon.

"See, what I mean? That's just boring. With a voice like that, she can never catch anything that easily. Why, if we were her agents, we could book a concert for her and then, we…"

Cassidy interjected him and laid out her response. "Get all of the pokemon that we want." She later made a small grin on her face. "Yes. It would be a very delightful plan, indeed."

"Maybe, but where do we find her?" Butch wondered.

As she began to ponder the situation, they hear the girl's voice from the television once again.

"Let me ask you one last question, Marina. When and where, are you planning to perform your next act?" says the interviewer.

"I'll be performing at Violet City, today. Hope to see everyone there!" she said, cheerfully.

By turning off the television and understood of where she'll be, an evil smile had moved across their lips.

"Now, we know her next location. Ready, Butch?"

"Yeah. The sooner we get to that kid, the better chance for Team Rocket to resurface and claim victory!"

In the mean time, down on Route 31, Jimmy was almost becoming exhausted after walking down the forest for a very long time. His legs were stiffed, his arms were slouching and his stomach continues to growl completely.

"Oh, man! I've barely had any food, lately. If only there was a Pokemon Mart or something, that would be great."

Fortunately for him, he came across a huge city and by reading a huge sign, he knew that he was in luck. "Hey! I'm in Violet City! Sweet!" Knowing that he's found the place, he came into the town only to discover that the sky was becoming dark. He could tell that it was becoming late for him and so, he went inside the Pokemon Center and restart his day in the morning. He manages to find an open bench and starts falling asleep.

The next day, a morning sunbeam peaked through the window and than it shines brightly on Jimmy's face. By feeling the warmth of the sun, he groaned; as he covers his eyes and begins to get back up from the bench that he was on. He stretches his arms out and makes a huge yawn, after taking a well-deserved rest.

"Well, that's more like it." Than, his stomach starts growling once again. "Darn it! I didn't had anything to eat, yet. Might as well, head to the Pokemon Mart and get something from there."

He leaves the Pokemon Center, after having his pokemon healed. As he walks down to the Pokemon Mart, he by-passes a billboard that has a promotional poster on it and from the looks of it, it shows a familiar girl on the front cover stating her next appearance: Violet City. The same place that Jimmy is in, right now.

By reaching the Pokemon Mart, he makes a sigh of relief and goes right inside. But after he says a friendly _"Hello"_ sign, an unexpected alarm had come off and numerous confetti were spreading all over the place including on Jimmy as well. He became utterly surprised, when the alarm was sounded.

Then, a tall salesperson walked in and later shook Jimmy's hand in a form of gratitude.

"Congratulations, young pokemon trainer."

"Why are you thanking me, for?"

The Pokemon Mart worker pressed forward with his answer. "For becoming our tenth-thousand customer. And as a token of my appreciation, you get a special reward."

Jimmy's smile grew big, when he was told that he was getting something special. "Reward? What is it? Please, tell me!"

He chuckled. "No need to get excited, young man. Besides, I've been saving this prize for just such as occasion." By getting his keys in pockets, he reaches to one and opens up a secret compartment from underneath the cash register. As he places the key into the knob and twists it to the right, a medium-sized miniature tube appeared and some steam was coming out after being stored for such a long period of time. When it rose up, there was something inside of it. The worker opens it up and presents to Jimmy, a special gift: It was a poke-ball, except it was purple on top with blue stripes on it and with white on the bottom.

As Jimmy carefully examines the item, he asked. "Whoa! I've never seen this type of poke-ball like this, before."

"Oh, correction my dear follow. It's actually, a Master Ball."

"A…A Master Ball?" Jimmy gasped.

"That's right. I've received it in a parcel, not too long ago after we've spotted a recent Pokemon sighting out here in this facility" he explained to Jimmy.

Jimmy narrowed his eyes. "What kind is it?"

He passes to him a drawing of the Pokemon that he has seen just recently on a piece of paper. As Jimmy looks over to see what it looks like, his eyes widened in shock. He somehow has recognized that creature from last time, when he thwarted somebody's plan to capture it without a poke-ball. He was at a loss for words by staring at the picture of that same creature while some sweat was formed on his forehead and his teeth beginning to chatter.

The salesperson glanced at Jimmy's expression and realized that he has encountered this Pokemon. "I can see that you've already seen him. Well, with that Master Ball I gave you, you can catch it without fail."

"You mean…that I can catch him first-hand?"

He nodded his head in agreement.

By looking at the Master Ball that the worker had given to him, a huge smile loomed over his face. _"This is great! With this, I'll be able to catch him in no time and perhaps, confess my feelings to Marina!"_

"Oh, and one more thing, lad" the worker interrupted him.

"Yeah?"

"There's an event happening here in Violet City. Of course, if you haven't noticed that billboard from outside, it's being hosted by Marina herself."

"What? Marina is here?" cried Jimmy as he stood there in total shock, when he found out that his childhood friend is attending at the same city he's at.

"So, I see that you've heard of her. Are you her boyfriend?" he asked.

Jimmy's cheeks were tinted red, as he becomes very shy. "Me? No way! Besides, I haven't had the chance to tell her of how much I care about her."

"Well, once you see that the time is right, you'll be able to confess to her eventually."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. And, I'll take this while I'm at it." With some words of encouragement and purchasing a water bottle, he leaves the Pokemon Mart with his prized possession and placed it inside his pocket. Later, he quenches down the water bottle for a good sip and closes the tap.

Than all of a sudden, he hears the bushes shook while some leaves on the trees were falling and several pokemon were fleeing. As Jimmy looked back, he saw something in the wilderness. But when he gets in a little bit closer and going back into the forest, he gets knocked down by an unknown figure when it went passed him. After he recovered the fall that he suffered from, he turned to see who or what had tackled him. As he did however, he was shocked to see who it its.

It was a large yellow creature with black stripes, a blue sharp-edged moustache, red eyes, a purple wig at the back of its head and a light-blue lightning tail at its backside.

The instant that Jimmy had confronted this being, he knew that it was fate that brought him here and the gift that he received.

The large pokemon that attacked him, stood his ground and awaits his next move. It slowly moved one step back and later, it pounces right into Jimmy's path.

Jimmy panicked, but not before he pulled out the item that he acquired earlier. He takes it from out of his pocket, clicked it once until it was big and round and threw it at the pokemon that's about to strike him by saying these words: "Master Ball, go!"

As it makes a direct contact on the creature's head, it moved back, opened its case and sealed him inside the ball. When that happened, the ball was closed and the struggle between capture and failure was on. It was shaking back and forth with the flashing red light blinking on and off. Jimmy looked on in anticipation.

After several minutes, the unthinkable has happened: As the ball had stopped shaking, the red light disappeared; indicating that it has now been caught. When Jimmy witnessed that the Master Ball had worked and captured its prey, he became very excited. As he picks it up, he held it up high and shouted his in-famous catchphrase. "Ok! Perfect!"

When he was finished posing and also capturing a new pokemon with a new Master Ball, he clicks it once and placed it inside his pouch where he keeps the rest of his fabled pokemon.

Back at Violet City however, an event is happening by a young and talented soon-to-be idol trainer girl, Marina. She's showing off her dance routines to the audience for some helpful advice on their pokemon.

Elsewhere at the back of the podium itself, two mysterious strangers dressed in business suits with black sunglasses are poised to move in and confront the individual that's performing on-stage.

"Can we get her, now?"

"Not yet. Once we see an opening, we'll move in and proceed with our plan."

While they're busy contemplating their next move, back outside the forest from across Violet City, Jimmy has made his way out when he caught a new pokemon with the usage of a Master Ball.

He feels very excited after encountering and catching a pokemon that he somehow recognized from last time. He sees a huge crowd that has surrounded the podium, in which, had made him very puzzled.

By the time he got there and moved in more closely, his jaw had immediately dropped and his eyes grew very big like the size of a golf ball. The young girl he's watching on-stage has wavy aqua blue hair, deep emerald green eyes, while wearing a white thin jacket with a light pink t-shirt, a small white cap, gray and navy blue trunks, and white sneakers with light blue stripes and small white socks. She's also equipped with the same device that Jimmy is wearing; a new Poke-gear.

_"Marina…"_ thought Jimmy as he stares at her amazing features.

After she finished her stunning performance, she bowed to the crowd and received a standing ovation.

At the backstage area from where the curtains are, the two people dressed in black have noticed the show's closing by the young brunette. As they both nodded their heads together, they walked in and appeared on-stage.

The audience including Marina have detected them by the time her show had concluded and were all surprised, when the applause had immediately faded.

One of them extended their gratitude and gave their thoughts of Marina's performance.

"Greetings, Marina. You've put on a great show."

"Yes, it was. Your moves have really inspired us. Would you like us to help you by hiring us?"

She answered in a shy tone. "Thanks but, I don't need some assistance for my tour. I'm capable of doing this on my own. So, you might as well find someone else for a change."

The agents in black weren't satisfied of her decline. The male agent had whispered into the female's ear about taking this the hard way, by force.

"She won't respond. Do you think that we should…"

"Of course."

Jimmy was becoming very suspicious about them, as he raised his eyebrow and narrowed his blue eyes. _"There's something odd about them. But, what?"_

"Now look, like I've said before, I can handle this by myself. So, later." Just when Marina was about to make her exit, one of the agents in black grabbed her arm.

"We're not asking you, Marina."

"We're demanding."

Both the crowd and Jimmy gasped to see that the agents are threatening Marina, since she turned down the offer from them.

"_What the? They're assaulting her! I have a hunch that those two aren't really agents at all!"_

As Marina struggles to break free, she asked them. "Hey, let me go! I told you, the answer is _'no'_! You're not really agents, are you?"

After a while, they've released her arm. That's when they've made their presence felt. By adjusting their black sunglasses, they both grinned.

"Well…aren't we impressed."

"Or so, we thought."

By taking off their clothing, they revealed their true identities. They're now wearing black clothes with an 'R' symbol on their suits. Somehow, Jimmy has seen that symbol and found out of who they really are.

"_Team Rocket! Damn it! I've got to do something!"_

"Now that you know who we truly are, we'll be gladly taking you for the ride!" says Butch.

"And to top if off, you'll be getting a front row seat!" added Cassidy.

"Forget it! I'm not going! You can take your request and shove it right down your throat!" replied Marina, as she back away from them.

Butch and Cassidy, grunted with displeasure. So, they both took out one poke-ball and threw out their pokemon.

"Than, you leave us with no choice! Go, Mightyena!"

"Time to play fetch, Houndoom!"

As they threw out their poke-balls, out came a gray and black fox-like animal with red eyes while the other was a huge black dog with white horns, fangs, an orange torso and black eyes.

Marina became terrified that she's outnumbered by them and there wasn't anything that she could do, when she checked her belt. "Oh, no! I'm trapped! I wish I had my pokemon here, but I left them back at my trailer."

"Tough luck for you, missy. Mightyena, use Shadow Ball!"

"Houndoom, use Hidden Power!"

With their combined strength, a medium sized-ball covered with black and purple outings with lightning was formed with Mightyena. Later, a mystical circle with white orbs were shown around Houndoom and than in an instant, they both fired their attacks on Marina.

She was left helpless against the combined duo of Team Rocket and their pokemon. Believing that this could be her end, she covered her eyes and turned away. Suddenly, an unexpected flamethrower was launched from somewhere and cancelled out their attack on her.

The members of Team Rocket were furious that somebody had interfered.

"Eh? What just happened?"

"Someone's here!"

"And you have just found him!" says a new voice.

Not only did they gasp, so did Marina.

"_I…I know that voice!"_

Along the way, she hears some footsteps approaching and has a pokemon with him. It was a tall dark green and yellow creature with red eyes, flamed markings on its back and some razor-sharp claws and fangs. When she sees that certain someone, her eyes widened and her mouth dropped upon staring at that man who saved her.

"Hey, you! If you want to pick on her, you'll have to go through me first!"

"Jimmy!" she cried, after learning that it was him who stopped them in their tracks.

"Curses! So, you're the one that got in our way!" thought Butch.

"We might as well leave, while we can" insisted Cassidy.

As they called back their pokemon into the poke-balls, they immediately made a hasty retreat in order to avoid getting caught by the authorities.

With Team Rocket leaving the scene, Jimmy also calls his Typholsion back into his poke-ball. "Typhlosion, return!" After that, he placed it inside his pockets with the rest of his trusty pokemon. Seeing those two retreating, he wondered. "Those creeps! Just what's the big idea of taking her hostage, anyways?"

"Jimmy…"

Slowly but surely, he turned his head around to see his longtime childhood friend, Marina. Her eyes were shining brightly and made a warm smile on her face. He became a bit shy as a hint of redness had appeared on his cheeks, while he reluctantly waved to her.

She right away rushed to him and threw her arms around his neck. He felt surprised upon meeting her again, after seeing Team Rocket attempting to abduct her and do something cruel.

"H-Hey, nice to see you, Marina."

After she hugged him, she pressed forward with her statement. "I'm so happy that you're here. If it wasn't for you, I would've been taken away by them. Which reminds me, what would they need me for?"

"They're probably interested of using your talents by manipulating you and perhaps, draw out as many pokemon that they can" he explained.

"What? How horrible" She then stared at the audience, looking dumbfounded and perplexed by seeing her having a conversation with someone. She looked at him and whispered in his ear. "Uh, maybe we can talk about this some place else, okay?"

"Sure."

A few minutes later after her live performance, Jimmy was inside a huge trailer with her as he became very amazed of what she has contained in her camper. There's a desk with a mirror and several make-up kits on it, some blue and white flowers in a vase with water, a few posters of herself on the wall and piles of her clothing and fan-mail were scattered around the place.

He sort of sweat dropped a little, in view of the fact that Marina's popularity as an idol trainer was growing rapidly. _"Looks like she's been awfully busy, lately."_

"So, Jimmy. I assume that it's been awhile, hasn't it?" she said, carrying something behind her back.

"Yeah, I believe it is. Huh? Hey, what are you holding, Marina?"

With a small giggle, she shows to him of what looks to be a huge booklet that has the same color as her hair. It was huge book with approximately fifty pages that made him pretty confused.

"Oh! Is this your…diary?"

Marina laughed. "No, silly. That's my scrapbook. It not only has my pictures, but it also one-hundred fifty signatures of my adoring fans."

Jimmy gasped. "What? A hundred and fifty signatures?"

"I travel a lot. And, the more people I meet, the more signatures I get. Isn't that wonderful?" she finished her sentence with a striking pose.

For Jimmy however, he felt intimidated and asked her about a certain individual. "Would one of those signatures happen to have Lance's name on there?"

When she listened to his suspicions about the infamous leader of the Elite Four, she frowned. "No, I'm afraid not."

He became relieved that she didn't get his full name signed on her scrapbook. "That's a relief. But, what would've happened if you did get his name? Would you ask him out?"

"Huh? Hey! What's that suppose to mean?" she felt very upset that Jimmy is being rude on her about Lance.

Not sure of what to make of it, he stammered. "Well…I…he…"

She tapped her foot a few times, while she raised her eyebrow and awaits his answer. "I'm waiting."

He gulped his throat and replied. "Are you always interested with guys, dressed in capes? Because, you don't see me wearing one."

Marina felt very shocked, upon hearing those words that came from out of his mouth as she drops her scrapbook on the floor. It was half-opened in the middle.

"You…You don't even know of how I feel about you? Why?"

Unable to answer, he was left clueless. "I…I don't know."

Knowing that he hasn't had the consideration of how much he cares about her, she made an unprecedented move on him: With a look of despair and hate on her expression, she physically slapped him right across the face.

It was so hard that Jimmy had nearly lost his footing until he was able to stand firm. As he feels the small red mark that was formed on his cheek, he was left shaken. "What…What was that for, Marina?" Before he could get an answer from her, he observed that there were some small tears flowing down on her pretty face. When he was about to console her by placing his hand on her shoulder, she pulled it away from him and shouted.

"Don't touch me! I don't want you to come near me!"

"Marina, wait! Please, let me explain."

"Shut up! Do me a favor and leave me alone!" After her harsh conversation with him, she ran inside her dressing room and slammed the door behind her. The star logo that had her name on it was shaking back and forth until it feel on the carpet.

As he picked up the logo where it had Marina's name and glanced at it, he could feel his heart sinking like a boat into the ocean. By making a few quiet footsteps, he placed his ear on the door at her dressing room and can still hear her crying hard. For some reason, he was ashamed for his actions and lets out of sigh of disbelief. He sat on the couch, before he picked up her scrapbook and placed it on his lap. After he flipped through so many pages that had numerous fan signatures, he witnessed that there's five pages remaining and were left completely blank. In order for him to make up an apology to her, he wrote down a special sentence on the blank piece of paper in the scrapbook. When he was done writing, he closes the scrapbook and places it back on the desk as he hits the sofa.

Hours has past by and Marina was feeling batter. But when she left her dressing room, while rubbing her eyes and stretching her arms, she sees that Jimmy has fallen asleep on the couch. She made a funny laugh of how Jimmy was sleeping.

Just when she about to hit the sack like him, she saw that her scrapbook is on her desk and completely closed. This made her curious, as to why it was on there since it used to be on the ground. By sitting down on the chair and moving up to the desk, she checks to see of what was written in there. As she did, she made a huge gasp when she read the sentence in her scrapbook. It said:

"_Marina, I'm sorry for what I said to you. I didn't know what occurred me to lash you out like that. I never intended to be so hard on you, because I only wanted to tell you of how much I really care about you. Besides, it's come to my attention that ever since we were kids, I've seemingly grown to like you. Therefore, I'm wiling to stay at your side. That way, you won't have any difficulty of finding somebody to guard you. __Thank you. Signed, Jimmy."_

Having read the message that Jimmy had wrote in her scrapbook, Marina's heart was starting to thump faster and faster at every second. Her cheeks were even tinted red. By taking a deep sigh of comfort, she could tell that Jimmy has shown an affection towards her.

Later, she turned off all the lights in her camper with Jimmy on the couch and she plopped onto her bed and also fell asleep. But little did she know, she forgot to close and lock the main door.

During the evening, two people quietly sneak inside the camper by opening the door slowly since Marina had left it unlocked. With every small step, they easily moved past Jimmy, sleeping. As they walked into the dressing room, they also saw Marina resting. Sensing that this could be their big chance of getting their prey, one of them closes the door softly and locked it.

Marina's eyes were opened quick and when she got up, they instantly grabbed her and covered her mouth with a white cloth that had a small dosage of chloroform on it. The scent was so strong, she right away passed out and became very limp.

With a sick laugh, they exit out of the dressing room, going right past Jimmy while carrying the unconscious Marina and putting her into their black vehicle with an _'R'_ symbol on the side doors. Now that their plan had been pulled-off big time, they jetted the engine and headed back to their local hideout with Marina as their stowaway.

Morning came and the sun has risen, as a ray of sunlight peeked though the window and right into Jimmy's face. Feeling the deep blinding light of the sun, he opened and shielded his eyes before he accidentally fell off of the couch. After rubbing his backside roughly, he was able enough to get out of the sunbeam that he was resting from.

"Aw, man! Talk about a rude awakening." As he rubbed his blue eyes from the sunlight, he scouts out that Marina isn't here. He checked her dressing room to see, if she was still there. Strangely, she isn't. So, he looked around the place until he spots a note that's been taped on the mirror. He ripped it out and read the paper:

"_Hey, kid. We've taken your precious friend, hostage. If you ever want to see her again, meet us at the old abandon factory which is north from where you are. Just try and stop us! Signed, Team Rocket."_

Realizing that his best friend has been abducted by the notorious group known as Team Rocket, Jimmy crumpled the paper.

"That does it! They've gone too far! But, wait. How did they get in?"

He checks all the windows in Marina's camper, if they were opened. Frankfully, they were closed. But as he checks the front door, he gasped in shock to find that it was opened throughout the entire day and he had a feeling that Marina was the one who accidentally left it, unlocked.

"_Marina, how come you didn't close the door? Was it because of my argument with you? Damn!"_

Before he could settle his heated conflict between himself and the young girl that he's known since they were children, Jimmy must find, defeat Team Rocket and rescue Marina. As he leaves, he finds the keys to Marina's camper and thankfully locked it tight while he places them inside his pockets. He than, begins his search for Team Rocket's location and Marina as well.

"_Wait for me, Marina. I'm coming for you!"_

Back at the old abandoned factory where it use to process supplies and such, Butch and Cassidy are now holding Marina as their prisoner.

The young idol trainer was out-cold for a while until she manages to open her eyes. She feels that she can't move her hands and feet. They've been tied tightly with a thick rope and she's also inside a small cage.

"Hey! Where am I? Why can't I move and what is this place?"

"This is where you'll set the stage for us."

"And once that happens, we'll get every pokemon that we can."

Marina knew that they're going to use her for their scheme of capturing Pokemon, when she glanced at their uniforms. "No! I will not do it! Just walk on your own two feet!"

"Why, you little…" Just as the duo were about to teach Marina a lesson, one minor member of Team Rocket had interrupted them.

"Sir! Ma'am! I've detected an intruder from outside!" he said.

Cassidy made a command to him. "An intruder? Show it to us, now!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

After he turned on some of the switches, the viewing screen has lit up and it shows a young pokemon trainer running towards their base.

The infamous pair had bumped into him before, when he interfered in their plan of kidnapping Marina. Their first attempt was foiled but in their second try, it proved to be the difference maker.

"It's that wretched kid, again!" yelled Butch.

"And in good timing" grinned Cassidy, as she places her hand on the pedal of a special stick and thrusts it down.

Back to where Jimmy was, still running down the field searching for Team Rocket's hideaway and Marina. After a couple of hours, he stumbled upon an old warehouse building that has many rusted spots on the wall and a few cracked windows. As he observed the place, he figured that this is the place where Marina is being held.

"_This must be it! When I get in there, I'll stop Team Rocket and bring Marina back in one piece."_

But as he was busy dealing with the search and rescue mission, he hadn't accounted the hidden trap door that was underneath him.

When he tried to move, he felt nothing and as he looked down, the chute was opened whole and he fell in. But not until he had this to say: _"Uh-oh!"_

By falling down, he was on a metal structure slide and was zooming across it while screaming in fear. For approximately three minutes, the thrill ride had ended when a bright hole had appeared at the end. As he came right through, he crashed onto the floor. Despite having a rough landing from the trap door he came from, he stood himself up and opened his eyes.

As he did, he gasped in astonishment. Standing a few feet away from him were Team Rocket members, Butch and Cassidy. With his fists clenched and grinding his teeth, he ask them to know where his best friend is.

"Okay, you two! Where's Marina?"

"Right here" told Butch, as both he and Cassidy moved away slightly to show Jimmy their captured prey: Marina. Trapped inside a small cage with her hands and feet tied up with a thick rope.

"Marina!"

"Jimmy! Please help me!" she said, struggling to untie herself from the thick ropes. But, she was unsuccessful.

"Be quiet, you twerp!" Butch kicked the cage so hard, it made Marina fell on her stomach.

"Stop that! You're hurting her! Let's just settle this once and for all in a pokemon duel!" Jimmy insisted to them.

"Fair enough. But since that there's two of us and you're the only one, this shall be a 2-on-1 handicap duel" says Cassidy, grinning.

"I may be outnumbered, but I'm never outclassed" replied Jimmy.

"How true. Now, let us begin. Take charge, Granbull!"

"You too, Primeape!"

After they've thrown their pokemon out from their poke-balls and onto the battlefield, Jimmy quickly handpicks his pokemon despite the numbers gain on Team Rocket's corner. "Okay, than. Go, Beedrill!" He threw out one of his favorites, since he raised it when it was a Weedle and than, a Kahuna.

"Is that your best move, you have to offer?"

"That's the lamest pokemon choice, you've ever made!"

Despite their harsh results on his Beedrill, Jimmy keeps his focus intact. "Dream on! Beedrill, use Agility now!"

Hearing its command from the trainer, the flying-insect type zooms into battle against Granbull and Primeape.

As the duo looks on the see their opponent's pokemon closing in, they also made their move with their pokemon.

"Granbull, use Head Butt!"

"Primeape, use Karate Chop!"

Both the ferocious Granbull and the raging Primeape have acknowledged the response from their trainers and use their attacks on Beedrill. But due to the quickness and speed of Beedrill, they've missed their target.

This gave Jimmy to counter-attack. "Now, Beedrill. Use Fury Attack and later, Twin Needle!"

Beedrill unleashes its power on Granbull three times and than, on Primeape five times. Later on, it finishes them with its fearsome needles and knocks them out. Butch and Cassidy were steaming mad that Jimmy was able to outmaneuver them.

"I don't believe this! Primeape, return!"

"Granbull, return!"

By rubbing his nose and with a smile on his face, Jimmy was enjoying himself in this heated match-up. As for Team Rocket however, they were very unpleasant in their efforts of getting their first lead of victory, denied.

"It looks like that we've underestimated him. Time to use brute force!"

"And we mean business!"

Knowing that they're going to bring out a stronger pokemon against his Beedrill, Jimmy immediately called it back. "Beedrill, return!" After he stored his bug-type pokemon back in the poke-ball, he sends out his loyal companion ever since he received it from Professor Elm. "Go, Typhlosion!"

With its fearsome look and red-hot flames shooting from its back, its poised for some competition.

Cassidy and Butch became a little intrigued of their opponent's choice. Luckily, they weren't buying it.

"Let's start fighting fire with fire! Take him down, Houndoom!"

"Same with you, Mightyena!"

Throwing their poke-balls like a pitcher, out came the two similar creatures that almost assaulted Marina earlier in the day. Jimmy recalled the event that transpired, during Marina's spectacle. So, this is his chance for a dosage of payback.

"Okay, Typhlosion. Use Smokescreen, now!"

With a huge growl, the fiery creature blew out a huge gust of black smoke from its mouth and surrounded the entire field. Team Rocket couldn't see through the thick fog and neither could their pokemon.

"Blast! I can't see a darn thing!"

"I'll take care of this. Houndoom, use your Fire Blast to clear out this Smokescreen!"

Houndoom nodded its head from Cassidy and with its loud roar, he spat out a huge fire symbol and cleared out the thick smoke.

Jimmy gasped to see that they've found a way to get rid of the smokescreen, Typhlosion had made.

"Ha! Now, it's our turn! Mightyena, use Shadow Ball!"

"Houndoom, try Hidden Power!"

Mightyena fired his attack, before Houndoom made his and with their unified strength, they've manage to knock Typhlosion down to the ground. But, not for very long.

"Keep it together, Typhlosion! Use your Flame Wheel!"

The red-hot beast got back on his feet and then, he roared so loud, a spiral of flames begins to surround his body. It went up in the air and landed straight on both Houndoom and Mightyena, taking massive damage.

When the fire had subsided, Mightyena fainted but not for Houndoom. They've made a huge glare at each other, by narrowing their eyes.

"Looks to me that your Houndoom still wants another tussle. What do you propose?" Butch asked.

Cassidy responded. "I'd say, let's bring it! Houndoom, Fire Blast!"

"Typhlosion, Flamethrower!" called Jimmy as he made a quick-command to him.

As both pokemon fired their special attacks, it became a heated battle of tug-of-war. After they kept on pushing each other back and forth, there was a massive explosion and smoke started to spread across both competitors. When the smoke was cleared, both Jimmy and Team Rocket including Marina couldn't believe their very own eyes: Due to the impending struggle between the Flamethrower and the Fire Blast attacks, both Typhlosion and Houndoom are down and completely out of this match-up.

"This can't be good. Typhlosion, return!" Jimmy calls back his fiery pet into his poke-ball and takes a breather or two. So did, Cassidy.

"Houndoom, return!" She turned to Butch and popped out a question. "Do you know, what this means?"

"Yeah, we're now at a standstill between us and that kid."

During their conversation, Marina thought to herself about the duel. _"What's Jimmy going to do? All he has left is his Beedrill and they've got a couple more left. Oh, no! That means…"_ Than, she spoke. "Jimmy! They've only got one pokemon left and you've only had two. Please, don't do this!"

Butch and Cassidy were somewhat a bit surprised from what Marina had said about how many pokemon, Jimmy was carrying.

"Hey, kid! Is this true?"

"You only have two pokemon?"

Jimmy was disgusted, upon listening from her. So, by taking a deep breath, he made a bold statement. "It's true that I had two, but not anymore." He takes out a Master Ball from his pocket, where it contains a new creature inside that he recently caught. "And more importantly, I'm not giving up both this duel and Marina! Because, she means everything to me."

Marina became touched by his thoughtful words. "Jimmy…"

"You're fighting us for the sake of your girlfriend? Oh, please! We'll make sure that you won't accomplish that task so easily! Go, Cloyster!" Butch threw out his last pokemon and out came the hard-shell, water-type pokemon known as Cloyster.

"And once this is over, you'll be washed up in no time! Get him, Tentacruel!" Cassidy also threw her last pokemon and it was a giant creature with red spots on its blue head, huge numerous tentacles and sharp black eyes. Unlike Butch's Cloyster, it was a poison-type pokemon.

After they've thrown their pokemon out on the field, it's now Jimmy's turn to throw out his. _"Hang on, Marina. Just wait for me."_ Than, by clicking the Master Ball once and made it large, it was his time to show them and Marina of what kind of pokemon he recently got. "Here's goes nothing! Go, Master Ball!"

As he threw out the Master Ball, it popped open to reveal his latest pokemon. And than, when it was revealed to Team Rocket, they were in total shock to see what pokemon Jimmy has.

"This…this can't be!" cried Cassidy.

"No way! Why, that's a Raikou!" added Butch.

Not only were they shocked to see the legendary Thunder-Type Pokemon, Raikou, so was Marina. She too couldn't believe that Jimmy has caught a new pokemon, during his journey.

"J-Jimmy…"

"Raikou! Thunder attack, now!" he said, making a direct command to him.

Raikou turned his head and stared at his face for a brief moment. By going back, he uses his special Thunder move on both Cloyster and Tentacruel. Enormous bolts of electricity were surging through both of those water-type pokemon and were yelping in pain, since water-types doesn't stand a chance against grass and electric-type pokemon. As a result, they've both fainted.

However, Jimmy wasn't finished yet. "Now, use Zap Cannon!"

With its loud growl, Raikou charges his power with an electrical ball containing huge amounts of electricity from within him and after he completed charging, he fires his attack on Team Rocket. They were screaming in sheer pain and were later blown up high in the air.

"This is just like from what happened to Jessie and James, when they kept on failing!"

"Who cares! At least, we didn't get caught. But all we know one thing…"

Like the other members of Team Rocket, they too shout out the familiar catchphrase every time their plans go up in smoke and later on, they disappeared into the sky. "That we're blasting off, again!"

Now with them out of the picture, Jimmy has found a key on the floor that Team Rocket had dropped when Raikou attacked. Right after he opened the cage and untied the ropes from Marina, she threw her arms around his neck and the two later embraced.

"Oh, Jimmy! You've saved me! Thank you!"

Upon feeling her warmth, there was a hint of redness on his cheeks. "N-No problem, Marina. C'mon, let's get out of this joint. Raikou, return!" Than, they right away leave the abandoned warehouse where Team Rocket used to be at.

Back at Violet City, once again. Jimmy and Marina are now inside of her private trailer with both windows and the doors, completely locked.

By moving in closer, Jimmy threw his arms around Marina's lower back while she threw hers around his neck.

"Marina."

"Jimmy."

As they hugged each other, she remembered of what he had written in her scrapbook. "Say, Jimmy? About what you wrote in my scrapbook, is it true that you like me?" Her cheeks were reddened, when she felt her heart beating.

All that he could do was laugh a little, when he sees her of being shy. So, he takes her by the hand and looked deep into her aqua blue eyes.

"To be honest Marina, I really do. In fact…" During his confession to her, he could feel that his heart was racing like a Rapidash and than, he spat out these words to her. "I love you, Marina. Very much."

By hearing him say that, she became overjoyed as her eyes were filled with tears of greatness. "Jimmy…I-I-I love you, too!"

At first, there was a brief silence between them. It quickly changed, when Jimmy leaned over to Marina and then, he pressed her lips against hers. Marina moaned deeply, by feeling Jimmy's tongue traveling inside her mouth. As he breaks up the kiss with her, he escorts outside of her trailer to show her his newest pokemon.

"Come on out, Raikou!"

As he tosses the Master Ball onto the ground, it opened up to show Raikou appearing front and center.

The yellow and black striped creature turned to Jimmy and stared at him with its red eyes. Than, without warning, he pounced right onto him and fell on-top of him as Marina becomes scared of Raikou attacking him.

"Jimmy!"

But when she began to panic, it quickly altered when she viewed of what Raikou is actually doing to Jimmy. He starts rubbing his head on Jimmy's face in a friendly manner, as she becomes very awestruck that Raikou is somehow acting different. Jimmy was already giggling with joy, when Raikou begins playing with him in a pleasant mood.

"Hey, cut it out, Raikou! That tickles! Okay, stop that!"

After a while, Raikou got off of him and stepped back a few feet away. Than, he watched Jimmy reaching his hand out and later placing on his head. He glares at his face carefully and that's when, he hears him say something to him in loyalty. "Thank you, Raikou. I couldn't have saved Marina without you."

With a small gasp and understanding his persona, it nods its head in gratitude.

"Raikou, return!" Jimmy calls him back inside the Master Ball and went back to Marina, who became bewildered of how close both he and Raikou have now become.

"Jimmy, how did you…"

He interjects her. "It's a long story, Marina. Right now, all that matters is you're safe. If anyone tries to harm you, I'll protect you." He then, made a huge smile on his face. "And like I said before Marina, I love you."

She also smiled, as she says the same thing. "Oh, Jimmy. I love you, too"

Like before, they held onto each other and pressed their lips once more.


End file.

Pokémon, Romance