Thank you to my Patrons, who are once again paying my ridiculously high heating bills, you are the real heroes (turns out it's hard to write with frozen fingers): HaZ, didi19555, Eric Pope, LifeOfConfusion, Jackson Terry, Taylor Pank****, Aleksei Vladimirov, Dropped Waffle, Korgal74, enflamed, T S, Trevor Rawlings, Davidrgodhee, Nicholas Loebm MIkeNP, AESTHETIC MEMER, Kunta
-/-
Finding James at the Poketech Institute was a bit random, considering he'd just met Jessie less than three weeks ago.
At this point, he'd only have to meet Meowth, and then he'd have the whole trio.
Thinking about it… He had also met Ash in Pallet Town.
It seemed that his life was slowly starting to come into contact with the original cast members of the anime.
Regardless of anything else, after talking with James during breakfast, Joey had learned that the boy had left home under mysterious circumstances that weren't to be elaborated on.
Joey remembered something about James coming from a rich family, but not much else. There had also been a bit about the boy being part of a bicycle gang, but considering that James was currently only 14, that would likely happen in the future.
Anyway, James was the only other boy actually staying at the dormitories during winter break so they would have the opportunity to spend more time together in the future. They'd already decided they would eat meals together, and maybe play some cards in the evening.
Joey wasn't necessarily trying to be friends with the boy or anything, but it was nicer to be on good terms with people and have someone to occasionally do stuff with rather than not.
Also, his interactions with the other kids attending the institute hadn't really given him the best impression. At least he knew that James wasn't a complete psychopath and that he should at least know something about Pokemon breeding.
After breakfast, Joey went to the training grounds, not feeling the need to book it as would be necessary later when term started again. He let out his Pokemon and gave them their exercises before going to the terminal through which, with his student card, he could access the technical machine catalogue.
He'd won money again betting on Lorelei, so it was time to spend.
He ordered one reusable copy of Shadow Ball for Rattata.
His conversation with Agatha hadn't turned out as badly as it could have; the woman was obviously just trying to manipulate him for her own purposes. But, well, it was always good to be prepared, and Rattata, with his focus on normal and fighting-type moves, wasn't really going to hurt a ghost anytime soon.
Conveniently, Ghost was also a typing that was super-effective against Psychic, which was going to be his biggest issue at the conference next year.
He'd watched the tournament, as unimpressive as it had been after the fight between Bruno and Blaine, and Blaine and Michelle.
With the way seeding worked, assuring that trainers in their first year mostly got pitted together until a certain point, he was fairly sure that he would find himself facing Sabrina, one of them, then continuing on to battle more experienced participants.
He was quite sure of his fifth badge, so getting Shadow Ball to prepare for the future beyond that wasn't such a waste. Rattata was at the fifth badge level anyway. It was the others who needed to catch up more. Diglett, Misdreavus and Metapod. Although Metapod really couldn't do much until she evolved.
"Joey!" a voice suddenly exclaimed, causing the boy to turn around from his finished purchase, which would arrive tomorrow by post. The person who'd said hello to him was the principal, wearing his yellow mustard chinos and dark green sweater with red candy canes and other Christmas iconography spread graciously over the rest of his ensemble. Next to him, dressed in the institute's school uniform, was Sabrina. Green skirt, vest, with a white puffy shirt underneath.
The principal's hand was resting on the girl's shoulder in a display of sponsorship affection and it was clear that the man was showing the girl the institute.
Joey's eyebrow twitched. The messaging couldn't be any clearer.
While he got the tour from the secretary of the principle, Sabrina got hers from the head honcho himself.
The results of the youngsters tournament were rippling into the future.
He narrowed his eyes at the girl in a playful challenge, at which she simply continued looking at him with a blank face. Why was she here again? Wasn't she supposed to be at her parents' place?
"Hope you're ready to get your ass beaten at next year's conference," he told her with a smirk meant to communicate that it was a joke, even though it mostly wasn't. Sabrina's face reddened in excitement. The battle maniac was obviously looking forward to the challenge.
He'd worked on that line, now that they were officially rivals, he had to have some rival dialogue stored away for future use. He hoped she appreciated the effort.
He exited the room with the terminal and started making his way to the library.
-/-
"Wow, you have so many Pokemon!" James exclaimed the next day after Joey invited him to spectate at his training session.
There were stars in the boy's eyes as he saw Diglett, Metapod, Rattata and Misdreavus.
The Shadow Ball technical machine arrived this morning, and Joey hadn't hesitated to upload it onto Rattata's Pokeball.
His starter was looking around confused, seemingly not knowing what to do with his new knowledge.
"We'll get to you, Rattata," Joey said reassuringly. "Let me settle the others first, and then we'll do it together, alright?"
At his words, Rattata went over to the trees bordering on the training grounds of the academy and sat down in a lotus position to try and meditate on the dao of the ghost he now had access to.
"How do you decide what to train?" James asked as he and Joey walked over to Diglett, who wouldn't be sparring with Rattata for Counter this time but working on his own thing.
"My thinking is usually quite simple," Joey started explaining as he knelt down to talk to Diglett. "Due to the gym badges representing a known challenge, a move needs to fit into the category of being useful against the next gym if it is to go on the training schedule. However, in preparation for the conference, which is a more free-style event, it's good to pair what you're working on as also being something that expands the repertoire so as to have super effective options against more types."
"What badges do you have again?" James asked curiously, kneeling down next to Joey and idly offering Diglett a ripe sitrus berry from his pocket. That was interesting, since Joey hadn't told the boy that this was Diglett's favourite berry.
"We have the thunder, rainbow, marsh and the normo badge," Joey explained while Diglett happily ate his newly acquired berry. "Diglett here is in an interesting position, because his typing and thus the main moves he knows will be super effective against the next three gyms we'll take on."
The blue-haired boy next to Joey seemed to consider for a moment. "Cinnabar, Pewter and Fuschia?" he asked.
Joey nodded. "Ground is super-effective against Rock, Fire and Poison. Thus, I've been mainly helping Diglett focus on his main typing, which does get an efficiency bonus from the synergy. He's gotten incredibly good at the moves he knows, such as Sandstorm, Sand Attack and Mud Slap. His Dig is at a level that, quite frankly, can't be improved anymore. The usual strategy is to bring up a Sandstorm, which synergises well with his Sand Veil, which makes him blend in against the background. Then he can bombard the enemy with either Mud Slap or Mud Bomb, depending on how hard they are to hit. We're still improving the latter." He paused as Diglett preened under the praise. "He also knows Astonish and is very good at it."
"So you'll just be improving his current moveset?" James asked curiously.
"There is one move which I think would be a great addition," Joey admitted. "Other than Sandstorm, all the moves are single-target. If we could add Magnitude to the repertoire, then we'd also have an area of effect. Diglett wouldn't even have to aim anymore to knock someone out."
"Magnitude can be developed into an Earthquake later, right?" James asked curiously.
"Yes, and then in the end it can become Fissure, a perfect knockout move for Diglett since one of his greatest strengths is his speed and mastery of the ground type." Joey turned to his Pokemon. "So what do you think, Diglett, ready to start on Magnitude?" he asked. "It'll be a bit unfair, you, hidden in the Sandstorm, just knocking out those Pokemon that can't fly into the air while they fail to find you."
Diglett's eyes turned into stars, and he nodded vigorously.
"Alright, then we'll start with that today and have it ready in two months, ok? Just in time for Pewter. Magnitude is a move similar to Mud Slap in that you channel your control and energy into the ground. The only difference is that instead of kicking up mud, you keep the energy contained in the earth around you and then shake it, or vibrate it. Dig should also help with your understanding of the move, since during that, you infuse the earth with ground-type energy to soften it up. How about you try it?"
Diglett nodded resolutely and closed his eyes, Joey couldn't see it, but he could feel something seeping into the ground beneath the small mole Pokemon. Considering that Diglett was looking a bit constipated with the way he was focusing Joey sincerely hoped it was just type energy.
A few seconds passed, during which Joey held up a hand to shush James. A minute. Two minutes. Then they felt it. A small vibration going through the ground, kicking up some kernels of dirt.
"Good job," Joey praised, interrupting the effort. "Now hold onto that feeling and grasp it, and reproduce it!" he urged.
Diglett opened his eyes, closed them, and opened them again.
The ground shook violently, causing James to almost fall down. "Woah!" the boy exclaimed. He stabilised himself, then sweatdropped. "Are you sure Diglett is practising the move for the first time? That was quick!"
Joey nodded. "Continue with the practice, we'll give you space," he told his Pokemon before walking off with James, past Misdreavus and Metapod.
The blue-haired boy ran to catch up as Joey explained.
"Diglett is a ground-type, that means he's incredibly familiar with ground-type energy. Additionally, he's already mastered five ground-type moves to an extremely high degree. Last but not least, a lot of Diglett learn Magnitude in the wild without trainer involvement. He was always going to pick it up fast. Him also being smart and a hard worker, that's just icing on the cake."
"So Diglett will be focusing on ground-type moves until it's time for the eighth gym badge, huh?" James asked curiously as Misdreavus flew beside him, Metapod gripped in a psychic grip right beneath her.
Diglett was giving it his all, and the minor earthquakes weren't going to be helping anyone's concentration.
"Yeah, he knows Astonish already, which is super-effective against ghosts and psychics. There's nothing he can realistically learn to help against water-types, but Rock Slide will cover up a weakness since it's super-effective against ice, which he's weak to, and then Sludge Bomb to counteract grass types."
"Isn't Sandstorm a rock-type move?" James asked curiously.
Joey shook his head. "Technically, I just see it as an evolution of Sand Attack, though, and the difference between ground and rock typing has always been hotly debated."
"What will Misdreavus and Metapod be learning?" James asked once they'd gotten far away from Diglett to not feel the shakes anymore.
"Metapod accidentally swallowed an Everstone while saving me from a feral Arbok," Joey calmly explained, "so her move pool is a bit limited until she's degraded it. She's mastered several moves by now, such as String Shot, Toxic Thread, Bug Bite and Iron Defence. Currently, she's working on Electro Web and Sleep Talk. As a Butterfree, she can learn Rest, so we're prepping for the future."
"That's a wide moveset!" James commented with a slack jaw.
"The issue is the lack of mobility," Joey muttered. "Anyway, I've had Misdreavus for the least time, and she has a bit of a different issue. She's quite old, so she has a lot of moves, but she's hardly mastered any of them. We're building her proficiency with Psywave, Shadow Ball, Astonish, Ominous Winds and Shadow Sneak, but what I really want to master is Dream Eater. We've gotten it down to a certain extent, but we can push for more. The combo will do great in any battle, and I'll worry about other types of moves afterwards. Maybe Charge Beam for the eighth gym badge.
"You have it all figured out, huh?" James asked, almost bitterly.
"Not really," Joey replied idly as he arranged Misdreavus and Metapod to practice their respective moves. "You figure it out as you go, and plans change. I've been thinking I would teach Rattata Iron Tail next, but some things changed."
James remained silent at that as they once again walked through the large training grounds towards where Rattata was sleep-meditating.
"I think I'll go hit the books then, this is getting me all pumped up!" James exclaimed. "Almost, I'm pretty close to failing the next semester," he admitted more quietly.
Joey nodded idly. He'd imagined that James wasn't doing the best in school, or he'd have hardly joined Team Rocket in the future.
"Good luck," he wished the other boy, who promptly ran off towards the dorms.
Joey watched him go before turning to his starter, who'd opened his eyes and was looking at him curiously.
"For Shadow Ball," the trainer said idly, conjuring one of his own on top of his palm. "I can help with that. There's a training method I want to try."
Rattata tilted his head curiously. "Rattata?"
"You're immune to ghost-type attacks, but that doesn't mean you can't feel it. It just means you can be suspended inside a Shadow Ball without taking damage. Your special attacks will never be the bread and butter of your fighting style, and we can transition into Shadow Claw or something in the future, but for now, this is the best option. Just Swift is a bit boring." The Shadow Ball in Joey's hand suddenly grew in size, until it was almost as big as the boy's torso. In other words, big enough that Rattata could technically be enclosed by it on all sides.
"Hop on in, brother," Joey said with a twisted smirk as he looked at his starter.
The purple rat cracked his knuckles, his neck before jumping up and landing in the Shadow Ball.
"Now that's what I call cultivation," Joey muttered as he went to sit down, trying to extend the time he could use the move for as long as he could.
Thirty minutes later, at which point Joey had gotten tired, the Shadow Ball dissipated.
Rattata jumped off of Joey's palm, landed on the ground and summoned a crackling sphere of ghostly energies in front of himself. It was about the size of his head, so like an adult man's fist.
The Shadow Ball suddenly surged forward and shot off, hitting a tree and dislodging some of the bark.
"Well, you're definitely more talented with ghost-type energy than dark-type energy," Joey said happily.
"Ratta, Rat," his starter chittered happily as he started firing off Shadow Balls in all directions.
"You know what this means?" Joey asked sadistically, getting a suddenly apprehensive look from the purple Pokemon.
"We'll be fighting some battles in the next few weeks, and you'll only be allowed to use Counter and Shadow Ball. You think you're up for that?"
"Rattata!"
"I guess we'll see. I guess we'll see."
-/-
"How do you fit in so well?" James asked suddenly while he and Joey were hanging out on the roof of their student dorms, which were accessible and even had a few chairs and a railing.
Joey looked out at the wide forest behind the building. "What do you mean?"
"You were so good as a trainer that they offered you a sponsorship. You were almost as good as the other girl," James started.
Joey's eyebrow twitched, and his smile became a bit strained.
"And now you're here, you took your room and you're using the training grounds and the cafeteria, wearing the uniform."
Joey didn't really understand the question, but he did get the feeling that he knew what the boy was getting at.
The sun had moved halfway underneath the forest, casting the world in shadowy hues of pink.
"The academy is just a place," he answered briefly. "Being a trainer is just a profession."
"What do you mean?"
"Every occupation in this world can be broken down into a few major components. A baker has to be good at creating or sticking to recipes, having a good plan of when to make what. A trainer has to be good at bonding with Pokemon, training them, and commanding them in battle. All professions benefit from a few core traits such as the ability to manage one's finances, schedule one's day for maximum efficiency and working hard on a consistent basis." He paused. "Is being a trainer complicated? You have to wake up every day and go to sleep having made sure your Pokemon are a bit stronger, a bit more experienced, or just a bit more knowledgeable than they were yesterday. The major issue is that being a trainer is measured on a relative scale against others doing their best. But realistically, most people are never doing their best, so being in the top 10% is always manageable, for any industry."
"As for the academy?" Joey wondered aloud. He was a grown ass man, he wasn't too excited to be spending a few more months with a bunch of kids. But, he had autonomy; he didn't technically have to attend any classes he didn't want to. "Every place is just a place with upsides and downsides. At the academy, I can improve my theoretical fundamentals, get discounts on technical machines and make connections for future sponsorships. Rather than asking me why I fit in well, perhaps you should be asking yourself what you're even trying to do."
James awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "What am I trying to do?" he asked.
"Yeah, why are you here? In this world. What's your purpose? What's the best outcome for your life, and what's the worst you're willing to accept? Most importantly. What are you willing to sacrifice to get there? Just time? Or also blood, sweat and tears. Would you be willing to sacrifice your dignity? Your self-respect? Maybe even your life?"
The blue-haired boy just looked at Joey with a question, completely lost.
"What I'm trying to say is. If you don't know who you are. Who are you trying to be? What are you doing to become that? Then you'll always feel lost, like your efforts are being wasted on trivialities. I'm Jonathan Joestar. I'm here because I was born here, and I want to make something of it. I want to be a strong trainer who lives off the bonds with my Pokemon. I'd prefer being the strongest, but life is life; I could be convinced to settle for the global top five. I'm willing to give my youth, my twenties, my thirties to this cause. Time, sweat, blood, I'll give it. Dignity? Sometimes, circumstances demand that it take second place. Self-respect? I'd prefer not to. Life? Perhaps for a greater cause." He glanced at James. The Team Rocket trio had been talented in the anime, but they just never amounted to anything. "When I look at you, I see wasted potential, in search of purpose. You could be anything, but the thought paralyses you, and you become nothing."
James hung his head at the words.
"That's not very special, to be honest," Joey reassured him. "Most kids are like that."
"But you're right," James answered. "I don't know what I'm doing. I'm just running away."
"Running away from what?" Joey asked curiously. He didn't really know much about James' backstory. He'd always thought the people who made the anime were bullshitting most of it. Ash was just a boy who wanted to be the best, while Jessie was a ninja, nurse, failed pop idol turned master criminal. It was a bit stupid.
"Running away from my parents," James admitted. "They wanted me to get engaged to a girl named Jessebelle, but she's horrible! I'll never marry her!"
"Well, it makes sense you don't feel like you fit then," Joey commented idly. "Running away from something is different from having a direction. It just means your decisions are made in accordance with the potential of being caught." He paused and tilted his head. "How are you going to school here, though? Wouldn't your parents be able to find you?"
"Oh, my parents would definitely never look for me in the school they actually wanted to send me to, it's a foolproof plan," he said with a grin and a double thumbs up.
Joey just stared at him with a deadpan face. "Or maybe they know you're here but they're just waiting for you to run out of money, cave and go back home with your tail between your legs."
James froze, his smile becoming a bit brittle. "Well, I won't!" he blustered. "I'd rather join a gang than go back to that crazy girl!"
"Why don't you just leave the region?" Joey suddenly asked. "They're probably not very connected past Johto. You go to Hoenn, Sinnoh or even Kalos, and nobody will find you ever again. You could just live your life, doing whatever you want to do. I mean, you'd need a profession, but so does everyone else."
James froze at the suggestion, biting his lip. "I can't go, there's something, someone I left behind. I haven't yet found a way to get them back."
"What do you mean?"
"I had a pet Growlithe, Growlie. The girl I was engaged to, Jessebelle, told me to replace him with a Skitty since she didn't like puppy-Pokemon. That's how I knew she was a horrible person! I ran away, I panicked, but I forgot to bring him!"
"That was pretty shitty of you," Joey agreed, at which James hung his head. "But what's preventing you from simply going back and getting him?"
"My parents! They might catch me," James whispered. "I know they're just waiting for me to try. He was my best friend, and they know it."
"So you can't move on until you have your Pokemon back, huh?" Joey muttered. "What do you want to be, though? Would you use him as your starter for a trainer journey?"
James vehemently shook his head. "I don't like battling, actually," he said awkwardly. "Or rather, I'm not very good at it. It's the classes I'm failing at, and since this is mostly a battle academy…" He seemed thoughtful. "I think… I think I'd like to be a breeder. Take care of Pokemon, rather than raise them to fight."
Joey didn't remember if James was good at the general breeding activities such as nutritional planning, grooming and matching.
"You could probably do it if you applied yourself," Joey said with a shrug.
"You think so?!" James asked.
"If you applied yourself," Joey repeated.
James slumped his shoulder. "But how do I get Growlie back? He's locked up at the estate."
"Unless he's your parents' registered Pokemon and he's willing to come with you, there's no real reason why you can't just go back and catch him," Joey eventually said.
The blue-haired boy crossed his arms and seemed to mull it over. "But my parents might catch me," he whined.
"You seem to be unable to move on until you've done that," Joey reminded him.
"You're right," the other boy eventually said, before awkwardly stuttering. "Co-could yo-you help me?"
Joey shrugged. "It's not really my fight, man," he said. He didn't want to get into trouble with the law. He already had a happy egg he'd acquired under dubious circumstances "Won't you feel more independent if you do it yourself? Run to the future, all that?"
"Trainers get paid for jobs, right? I took some pocket money when I left," James muttered.
Joey was just about to say that pocket money wasn't going to convince anyone to help steal a Pokemon, no matter how justified- when.
"How about 1 million?" James asked with a decisive nod.
"You only had to ask, brother, I'm in. For the greater good, free the puppy," Joey immediately replied with a serious face, stepping forward to put a hand on the boy's shoulder.
James gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, I'm glad that's enough. I would have gone up to two million otherwise."
Joey twitched, his smile becoming a bit strained.
"Let's do this."
-/-
AN: The next few chapters are actually something I'm quite proud of so you have something to look forward to if you like, *whispers: heist movies. Anyway read ahead and help me not freeze on Patreon, or just chill here and enjoy the ride.