We called Sabrina from the motel and as I predicted she seemed upset that her brother had been hurt, and glad he was alive. We told her that her Alakazam was at the Pokemon center and she nodded. She didn't even seem surprised that we had succeeded.
The police interviewed us several times, and I also had to talk to the hospital staff about Karl. We decided to stay around for several days.
The gunman had been Serena's spy. He had been taken over just as the others had, but as soon as Karl weakened he had remember his gun. It was determined that he had shot in self-defense (not to mention in a confused state of mind) and he would not go to prison when he left the hospital. Karl on the other hand did deserve prison, but no one knew quite where to imprison a powerful psychic. Finally his father offered to take responsibility for him, with Sabrina's help. He was convinced he could do something to save his son.
Sabrina did in fact offer us a permanent position, a combination of gym work with her non-psychic type Pokemon and any "special assignments" we might choose to accept. James and I agreed that it would be better than working for Giovanni, and Meowth just shrugged and said he couldn't go back to the Boss without us. We began making plans to go straight from the motel to an apartment by Sabrina's gym. Our old place and most of the furniture belonged to Team Rocket.
After a couple of days in the motel I began to have more time to think. I thought about my mother and other memories Karl had brought up. And I thought about James and wondered whether I should have some sort of serious talk with him. But I didn't know where to start.
James must have been thinking the same thing, except evidently he knew where to start. One day while Meowth was visiting Meo in the Pokemon center he came up to me and said "Jesse, will you marry me?"
I was a little shocked. I raised my eyebrows at him and said, "What's this, you're not going to get down on one knee and offer me a rose or anything?"
I hadn't meant it to be mean but James looked terribly hurt. I put my hand on his shoulder and said, "I'm sorry. I really am. I'm just trying to picture myself as a wife."
"What, do you think I expect you to sit around at home and knit? The household part is the part we've got figured out already."
"So what changes if we get married?" I asked.
James started giggling. "Well, if you can't think of anything..."
"That wasn't what I meant; you are so immature!" But I was smiling and soon I started laughing too.
"Look at it this way," he said. "We could give Meowth the spare bedroom."
"Stop it!" I yelled.
"Fine, he can keep sleeping in the living room."
Then he stopped laughing, and held out his arms to me. I cuddled up close to him and he said, "I just keep thinking that this way I'll be less worried about losing you. Maybe that's selfish of me."
"You don't have to worry about losing me," I said. "And yes, I will marry you."
We kissed, and Meowth walked in very soon, so of course he was the first to hear. He just rolled his eyes and said, "Aw, what am I getting into here?"
Then he told us that Meo was due to be released from the Pokemon center but it might be quite a while before her trainer was ready to take care of her.
"Can she come stay with us?" he asked. "We are still a team, right?" We nodded, and he headed off into the kitchen. James followed him, saying, "Just wait until you want some privacy, Meowth, you are going to be so sorry you bothered us."
"Yeah, right," yelled Meowth, "you're going to be way too busy with Jesse!"
I just sat on the couch and laughed. I wasn't entirely sure what I was getting into either, but I was looking forward to it.
The End