“What exactly are they doing?” hissed Becca as she peered at the odd mechanical machine as it trundled through the forest.

“I think they’re… capturing Pokémon, or are trying to? A better question is, how in Dialga’s name did they get that thing up here? And when?”

The machine in question looked almost exactly like a gigantic zigzagoon, only with multi-jointed grabbing arms that came out of the back of it. It had a gigantic tail too, that swept to and fro almost as if it was some sort of radar.

“ZIG-ZIG-ZAGOON! ZAGOOOOOON!” the machine roared, its eyes lighting up. Apparently this was enough to enrage the local zigzagoon population, who appeared at the other end of the clearing in a pack, grouping up angrily to take on the… imposter? Interloper? It wasn’t quite clear to the children what was happening, but what was clear was that these were the troublemakers the espeon was talking about.

“What do we do?” Ed hissed.

“Take them on, I guess? Okay guys, time to do your stuff… Chompy, you keep back for now, we want to rescue the zigzagoon, not scare them off and scatter them. Tully, give the rest of us some aerial support. Sissy, rip and tear. Bart, confound the machine from below. Shadow, give ‘em hell. It’s a pity we’re missing Lux, she’d love this.”

“Tai-tai?” Tully asked Ed, who nodded.

“I think that’s a pretty good plan Becca… and I know you’ve been working on a move in secret, Tully, you think you might be able to pull it off?”

“Taillow… tai? Llow-llow!”

“Not sure huh? Well, when you’re ready! Now go! Up and at ‘em! Attack!” Ed leaped out of the bushes, hurling his taillow skywards as he plucked a pokeball from his belt, enlarged it and lobbed it at a zigzagoon that was moments from being snagged by one of the grabby arms.

“We’re here to help! Get back out of reach! The less of you get trapped in that thing, the more there are to fight! Ziggy,” Ed called, as he caught the returning ball and released its occupant in a flash of light, “you want in, by my side?”

“Zig-zig? Zigzagoon!”

“Great! Uh..." Ed thought for a moment, the pointed. "Ziggy! Run interference with Bart! Extreme Speed into Headbut! Bust those grabby arms! Pin missile the tracks!”

“Sissy!" yelled Becca. "Make sure you’ve got an Iron Defense! Then Crunch those poachers! Bart, sink ‘em with Dig!”

In moments, the rather one-sided picking off of zigzagoon turned into a free-for-all melee as explosions rocked the clearing, the zigzagoon robot sunk with a resounding crash into a pit and the distressing sound of tearing metal reverberated throughout the area.

“Hey, what’s wid da discount squoits?” came a relatively high-pitched voice from inside the machine, as it fought to reverse up and out from the trap it found itself in. The robotic arms, so recently grabbing zigzagoons, were now pushing and probing somewhat ineffectually at the sunken sod around the robotic vehicle.

“I don’t think these troublesome tots know quite who they’re dealing with! I think it’s time we got serious! Arbok! Go! Let’s wrap up this intervention!” called a woman’s voice, as a large arbok appeared on the field, immediately lunging for Ziggy, who blurred away using his Extreme Speed.

“Indeed, I think it best we show them what they’re up against! Morpeko! Quickly!” A small rodent appeared, flying up into the air… and back down. “No… no wait! Quick attack them! Ow! Stop! Augh! I’ll feed you just…stop biting! There, that’s… yeah, those guys have snacks and aren't sharing! Now get the brats!” The pained male voice echoed through the speakers of the robo-zagoon, and finally the morpeko leaped out of the top, giving a loud cry as it did so.

“And now it’s time to properly introduce ourselves; prepare for trouble!” A woman with a long, magenta, gravity defying side-do leaped skywards out of the machine, to land in a pose on the top.

“And make it double!” added the owner of the male voice, as he too leaped out to stand next to his compatriot, his purple bob haircut flouncing in the wind.

“To protect the world from devastation!” the woman said, holding her hand out to the male.

“To unite all peoples within our nation!” he replied, spinning her around in an expert twirl.

“Are we just supposed to sit through this?” Rebecca hissed loudly to Ed, as seemingly the whole clearing had stopped fighting to watch.

“Sshhh, I wanna see where they’re going with this!” Ed hissed back.

“To denounce the evils of truth and love!” the woman continued, either ignorant of the interruption or uncaring, as she now looked up into the eyes of the man, being dipped expertly by him like a ballroom dancer.

“What’s that even supposed to mean?” asked Rebecca.

“Heck if I know,” Ed replied.

“To extend our reach to the stars above!” with an expert flourish, the woman was sent spinning upwards in a perfect arc by the purple-haired man. She landed on her feet lightly.

“Jessie!” she cried with a flourish.

“James!” shouted the man, half bowing, one arm out and the other across his midriff.

“I’m Ed, this is Becca!”

Jessie glared, tapping her foot. “Shut it, you’ll get your turn, twerps! At least the electric mouse brat has the courtesy to let us properly introduce ourselves,” Jessie sniffed, before glaring for silence then continuing with an ‘ahem’. “Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!”

“I knew it! I knew it! It’s Team Rocket!” Becca shouted, “From the Not Wanted posters!”

“That explains the gigantic ‘R’ on their outfits. Do you think they have a chain store for merch?” wondered Ed, aloud.

“Surrender now or prepare to fight!” James continued, nonplussed.

“Meowth! That’s right!” a beige, fur-covered form popped up from the machine, standing between them, a Pokémon in fact, a meowth.

The two children looked at each other. “Did that… did that Pokémon just talk?”

“Is he just… did you teach him that trick or can that meowth actually talk too? And what do you criminals want out here!?” Rebecca demanded, stamping her foot and pointing an imperious finger at the trio.

“I can talk real proper, brat-features! And what I’m telling you is to clear off, before things get ugly!”

“We’re here to catch zigzagoon, and there’s nothing you can do about it!” preened Jessie.

“What do you mean ‘Not Wanted’?” complained James. There was a flash of light behind them, expanding into a large, blue creature that looked kind of like a water balloon.

“WOOOOOBBBBUFFET!”

“Unfortunately for you, we’ve been tasked to deal with you troublemakers! Sissy, show ‘em what’s on the menu!”

The mawile leaped in from where she’d been tearing at the armored covering on the robotic vehicle and chomped at the wobbuffet.

“Surprise! It’s you! You’re on the menu!” continued Becca, but the blue blubbery Pokémon glowed brightly, its already smooth skin taking on a mirror-like sheen, and Sissy’s massive teeth just seemed to bounce off. The wobbuffet threw Sissy to the floor, then leaped after here, and just like that the battle was back on.

The zigzagoons — the live ones, not the robo-zagoon — had scattered around the clearing, but now converged as one on Team Rocket’s Pokémon and on Team Rocket themselves.

“Ahh! Morpeko, save me!” cried Jessie, as he leaped off the robo-zagoon. He tucked and rolled as a small rodent leaped after him. Then he started sprinting even faster. “AAAH! Morpeko! Save me!”

“Meowth-meowth! We’ve got enough of a score for one day! You keep da replacement rugrats busy and I’ll get da loot!” shouted Meowth, diving back into the robo-zagoon. Moments later, the robotic arms latched onto the vehicle itself, and tore open some back doors as the tail folded up and over.

“Shadow! Make ‘em regret running away! Thunder Wave!”

“Rrrrrraargh!” roared the electrike, as a crackling yellow horizontal beam-like wave of energy burst from his body. It arced to the ground, zapping from divot to divot in a visible aura, then leaped at the robo-zagoon as the meowth that was emerging from it. With a blossoming explosion, the vehicle spread itself all across the clearing, a cacophony of screeches and yelps from the assorted creatures following it, as they were pelted with debris.

Meowth was sent flying, the sack he carried sent flying with him. Pokeballs burst across the grass, many of them popping open as their release buttons were pressed. “Meee-owth, not quite as much of a punch as that kanto brat, but I am still not fond of electric attacks.” He shook his head, then spotted the escaping Pokémon. “Why you! I oughta...! Jessie, James, let’s get outta here! Head for the balloon!” Meowth called, angrily stuffing as many balls as he could back into his sack.

“Get back here with those Pokémon!”

“Yeah, I’ll get right on dat! Meowth meowth meowth.” Meowth pulled down one eye and stuck his tongue out before legging it back the way the robo-zagoon had entered from.

“Weezing! Smoke Screen!” James shouted, another of his Pokémon appearing on the field, covering the battle with smog.

“Discretion is the better part of valour, and we’re the better part of everything, so let’s go!” sang Jessie, with a scornful laugh. Engaging in a hasty exit, it was only moments later when the clearing held only the lingering acrid taste of the weezing’s smoke screen, burned out robo-zagoon parts and a whole pack of triumphant zigzagoons.

Cries of excitement and triumph broke up, but the trainers urged caution.

“Don’t celebrate too much, we’ve got to get the rest of your pack back! Do any of you have ranged attacks? If you do, come with us and snipe as soon as you see the cowards! If we catch up, those of you with close-ranged attacks might want to help, but don’t get caught again! Let’s go!” Becca swooped her arm in a large over-arm gesture at where the fleeing trio had vanished to, and started running. Not so many feet later, there was another, smaller clearing which held various boxes of tools and parts — most probably used for the robo-zagoon — and a meowth-shaped hot air balloon, tied down with several guide ropes set into sizable eye-hooks plunged deep into the ground. Heavy-looking sandbags swung from the sides of the basket beneath the balloon’s envelope.

“Blast them! Pin Missile, everyone that can!” shouted Ed.

Green darts of energy sped out from the charging horde of zigzagoon, exploding with ear-shattering force as they impacted the balloon and basket. None of the missiles seemed to have enough punch to actually damage the balloon itself, but two of the four guide-ropes snapped just as James was clambering up into the basket. He almost slipped, seeing as he was the last and the one carrying the sack with the pokeballs in it. Sandbags rained around the balloon as they came loose, throwing the basket around like some demented carnival ride.

“Hit them again! Pin Missile!”

“And get those pokeballs back! Shadow, Wild Charge! Use your speed! Grab the sack!”

“We’re getting outta here, meowth meowth!” shouted Meowth, scrabbling to pull James as the third rope keeping them grounded snapped.

“I’ll get the last one! So long, brats! Let’s not do this again. Mwah!” Jessie blew the two children — and presumably also the zigzagoon and other assorted Pokémon — a kiss as she cast off. This wasn’t quite fast enough to stop Shadow, who blurred forwards like a burst of lightning, leaping into the air… where he bit James right between the pokeballs. With a heartfelt scream of agony, James dropped the bag, just as the last guide-rope was loosened and the last sandbag fell.

“Team Rocket are blasting… off… actually this is quite painless compared to our usual fare,” commented Meowth, as the balloon rose slowly and statefully into the air.

“Speak for yourself!” complained James, voice hoarse and eyes screwed shut as he held on to his injured anatomy delicately.

“Tai-taillow tai!” cried Tully, a vicious gleam in his eyes as he swooped in a wide arc around the meowth-balloon.

“You think you got it? Your new move?" asked Ed. He grinned, clapping his hands and jumping for joy. "Then give it to ‘em good! Go, Boomburst!” cried Ed triumphantly, jumping in the air with his fist held over his head.

“Oh this aint gonna be—”

“TTTAAAIIIIII-LOOOOOWWWWWWW!” there came a gigantic explosion of light and sound that flattened several trees as it bellowed forth from the tiny bird-Pokémon, it sent several Pokémon tumbling… and caused the balloon to accelerate as if a rocket had been lit under it, almost warping space as it flung them skywards.

“We’re really blasting off agaaaiiiiinnnn!” the trio in the basket cried, as it disappeared out of sight into the upper atmosphere, vanishing with a twinkling of light.

For a few moments, there was silence — not that anybody knew, seeing as their ears were ringing — and then the cheering started in earnest. Pop after pop of light filled the tiny, though now somewhat expanded, clearing as the last of the formerly captured zigzagoon were released and the pokeballs they’d been in were collected into the sack once more. Shrunk down, they weren’t even that heavy.

“We… we did it. We won! We really won!” shouted Ed, jumping for joy. Ziggy — his hastily named temporary companion — leaping into his arms. When the boy stopped twirling, he set the zigzagoon down. “You know, I couldn’t have done it without you. We couldn’t have done it without you all. I guess there’s only one last Pokémon to release.” With a flash of white light, the already present Ziggy was set free. The zigzagoon shook himself, then went over to his pack without a backwards look. Ed sighed, but wasn’t able to be sad for long, as a hand come down onto his shoulder.

“That was pretty cool back there,” said Becca. “You really put your heart into it, Tully even picked up a new move!”

“Yeah, but-”

“Zig. Zig-zagoon-goon!” Ziggy wandered back over.

“You wanna say goodbye after all?” Ed asked him. The zigzagoon nodded, then gestured.

“Okay, a proper goodbye hug?” Ed leaned down, Ziggy put a paw up… and then yanked on the pokeball sack. He expertly scooped one out, then nosed the button. He all but dived into it, and it closed behind him.

Poink… poink… poink… ding!

“I guess that’s one way of capturing a Pokémon. Well done!”

“I… I…”

“Well, don’t keep us all waiting!”

“Come on out, Ziggy! Come join the team!”

With a flash of light, Ziggy reformed, yapping and growling playfully as he danced around his new trainer.

When I next opened my eyes, it was to blinding sunlight, and two very tired girls curled up next to me on a more human-sized hospital bed. I rubbed my paws across my muzzle to get the last of the sleep dust out, wincing and yelping as I tugged at various drips.

“Shh shh, calm down little one,” said a soft, feminine voice. “You’re probably wondering who I am? Well, who else would have to be present when these two little darlings are out all night?”

“[Mama?]” I mumbled. A soft hand came down and gently stroked between my eyes and down the back of my neck. I looked up at a smiling angel as she eased herself out of the oversized chair she’d been snoozing in. She hovered around my bed, gently disconnecting various tubes before picking me up.

“That’s right. I’m Sophia, Mia and Gina’s mother. You are a lucky little thing, aren’t you? My two girls saved you. Don’t struggle, you’re very hurt. I’ve had enough first aid training to be able to make things a little easier for you though. Let’s get you to the pokepotty so you can do your business, alright? Don’t strain, you may pop your stitches, it’s okay if nothing—oops! There we go!”

I blushed with the force of ten thousand suns as my body did the necessary, then went supernova as Sophia cleaned everything up.

“No blood, that’s a good sign, and everything’s working, which is even better. You really are on the mend, aren’t you?”

“[I guess so? Have you found my trainer yet?]” I asked plaintively.

“I bet you’re wondering where your trainer is, right? Well he’s worried sick about you, and he’ll be in as soon as he can. He’s been ordered not to rush himself or his friends down from the mountain — they were chasing after you, you know that? — and he knows that you’re in the best possible place. We’re expecting him very soon, so can you wait a little while? Please? For me? Such a good little kit. Brave, too! I don’t know why you ran off — and I wish you’d promise not to do that again — but my girls said you fought off an entire poochyena pack! That’s impressive. You’ll make an incredible battler one day, whatever you choose to be.”

I lay in the woman’s arms, trying hard not to cry. Her words were so soft, her body so warm, her tone so loving. I’d done the worst possible thing in the world to my trainer, to my family, I’d put hers in danger, and she… just forgave me, just like that, and worried about me. I buried my head in her embrace and wailed, tears streaming down my muzzle.

“There there little one, there there, it’s all over now, you’re safe. Let it all out. It’s good to have a cry now and again, for both Pokémon and humans.”

When I came to once more, it was some indeterminate time later, but still day. My bed was oddly shaped, and warm… and moving. I realized I was snoozing on Sophia’s lap. As I sprung up in surprise, Sophia too awoke.

“Good afternoon, precious. I bet you’re hungry?”

“[Very,]” I replied, with a long and plaintive ‘veee!’

“Well, I’ve been told I can feed you these — slowly! — until we know everything’s really alright with you. Careful, one at a time, and don’t snatch it, it’s rude.” Sophia brought out three sizeable — for a little eevee — chewy, meaty snack-roll things. My tummy gurgled as they came closer, and my initial snatching movement brought her admonition to behave as she took the rest of the first away.

“[Sorry Mama,]” I replied, choking on my accidental choice of words.

“See, that’s what I mean, silly thing.”

I ate the rest of the meaty chew-rolls daintily, being careful to chew properly before swallowing and to not nip at Sophia’s fingers. I was just licking my paw and washing my muzzle when I heard a commotion out front, and some familiar voices.

“Where is she?”

“Calm yourself, young sir. I just need to verify your trainer I.D. card before I can let you in to see-”

“Please, just tell me if Lux is okay?”

“Lux is fine, Edgar. Miss Rebecca I presume? Thank you.” Rustboro’s Nurse Joy took first Ed’s and then Becca’s trainer I.D. cards and verified their identity, before showing them through into a recovery room.

“I’m not in trouble, am I? I-I-I mean she j-just ran away and-”

“No, no, although you may get a visit from Officer Jenny just to get the whole story. Do you have Lux’s ball with you?”

“Right here!”

“Then first let’s get you and your Pokémon back together, and then we’ll run her through the recovery cycle, alright? Chansey, take charge of the front desk will you?”

“Chansey!”

“Oh! Miss Joy! Please, can you call Officer Jenny for us?”

“Hmm? There’s no hurry-”

“No, I mean, we met Team Rocket! We fought them off up the mountain. I think I know why the poochyena pack you told me about was causing trouble, why there’s been an increase in dangerous Pokémon behaviour.”

“In that case, I’ll call her right after I’ve seen to you and Lux, alright?”

If there had been any doubts in Joy’s mind about the real story behind Lux’s disappearance — not that she knew what had really caused it — the way the Pokémon perked up and immediately struggled to get to her trainer assuaged them regarding the relationship between trainer and partner. Ed’s eyes were red and puffy by the time she managed to separate him from Lux long enough to get the eevee back in her ball for a tense few moments of the restorative cycle of the Pokémon scanner. The scanner wouldn’t cure everything in one go, not like this, but it would certainly speed recovery from weeks to days if not hours.

Seeing the eevee come out of her ball hale and hearty after the tense night and morning gave back many of the years that the previous long hours had taken. Hearing that Team Rocket really were snooping around up to their old tricks again almost took them away again.

He hugged his eevee to his chest, tight as he could, as tight as he dared. They'd gone back to the espeon after dealing with Team Rocket and had informed her of what they'd done. She'd been as mysterious as ever — talking to a pokemon! Actually talking to one! And a wild one, at that! — and he'd begged her to tell him more, but she'd refused, partly unwilling but also obviously partly unable. Her exact words, if such a thing could be used for telepathy, were 'she is my daughter, but she is not my daughter'. That had worried and confused him, but seeing as he and Becca had dealt with the Team Rocket threat, she'd softened, and had given the pair her blessing to take Lux with them, whether they ever figured out her secrets or not. 'She is yours now, I see that', the espeon had said, some unfathomable melange of emotions flitting across her face, 'take her with you, protect her, help her grow, and if you find out what happened and you see fit to let me know, I will be grateful, but my heart is at least set at ease seeing that she is with good trainers. You have good hearts.'

He hadn't known what to say, but it had seemed that there wasn't anything more to be said. The espeon had vanished into the wild, leaving Ed and Becca with the burning need to remove themselves from the espeon's mountain and to go find Lux, who'd last been seen heading to the nearest town.

He looked down at the little form in his grasp, sleeping peacefully. Maybe it was as simple as the weird ball he'd used. He put it out of his mind for now; Lux was safe, they were together again. Maybe one day he'd figure it out.