General notes on the story - see the first chapter, posted a few minutes ago.
C&C I'm specifically looking for in this chapter: This is the first
part I've written where I've attempted to portray canonical
characters. Is anything jarringly out of character, particularly in
their dialogue? Did I overdo Meowth's mafioso accent? Other C&C is
appreciated, of course.
(I don't intend to use Jessie, James, and Meowth very frequently -
I've always found them rather silly, and will probably come up with
more competent and interesting antagonists. But I did specifically
want to use them here because of Meowth's special ability.)
Disclaimer: Pokemon is owned by Nintendo. This is merely fanfiction.
Secrets of the Ditto Masters
Chapter 2
As Nathan and his grandmother ate breakfast on the front porch, a tall
blue-haired woman turned the corner onto the street. "Grandma, is that
Gym Leader Claire?"
"Yes, it is, Nathan," said Eugenia. "She told me she would be coming
this morning to pick up Dragonair and the eggs."
"Hello, Professor. Hello, Nathan. How are you doing today?"
"Quite well, thank you. We were just eating breakfast before Nathan sets
out on his Pokemon Journey."
"Congratulations, Nathan! So will I be seeing you soon at my Gym?"
"No, I won't be entering the League. I'm helping Grandma with a special
project."
"Really, what kind of project?"
"I need him to find a blue Ditto for me. My latest research shows that
Pokemon bred from a shiny Ditto are more likely to be shiny themselves."
Eugenia had already told her grandson to keep quiet about the real
reason for his search - she didn't want anyone else figuring out the
secret before she had proof.
"Hmm. There are some Dittos living in the Dragons' Holy Land, but I
don't think any of them are blue. I could ask the Dragonite there to
check for me, but you'll probably have better luck around Goldenrod
City."
"That's where I'm heading, Miss Claire."
"Well, it sounds like you have an interesting journey ahead of you. Now,
Professor Pine, how has Dragonair been doing?"
"Here he is," said the professor, handing Claire a Pokeball. "He's done
quite well indeed. He was quite popular with the Dittos - I have four
eggs for you which should hatch in a few weeks."
"There might be a fifth later today, Grandma. Xerox copied Dragonair
three days ago, and hasn't changed back yet, so I think it's going to
lay an egg today."
"Well, in that case, Claire, why don't you have breakfast with us, and
we'll see if Nathan's right about Xerox?"
"I'd be delighted, Professor."
________________
In an abandoned house across the street, three figures were watching the
Professor's home and eavesdropping on the conversation via a parabolic
microphone.
"We've really stumbled on a gold mine this time, Jess! A whole pile of
Dittos to sell to those Pokemon thieves from Hoenn, *and* five rare
Pokemon eggs for the Boss!"
"*Four* eggs for the Boss, James. I'm keeping one."
"But why, Jess? What would we do with a Pokemon egg?"
"Don't you know what a Dragonair's egg hatches into?"
"A Dragonair, I suppose."
"No, you moron! Dragonair is the *evolved* form of Dratini, which means
a Dragonair's egg will hatch into a cute little Dratini! Last time we
were here those twerps stopped us, but they aren't here now. I'll get my
very own cute Dratini if it's the last thing I do!"
"Will you twose knock it off!" said the third member of the team in a
loud whisper. "If ya keep yelling like dat, ya'll give da whole game
away."
"Right, right, Meowth. So Jess, what's the plan? How will we catch all
those Dittos and get the Eggs?"
"Let's see. Build a giant robotic Ditto?"
"Meowth! Are youse kiddin'? Da only t'ing Dittos can do is transform
inta other Pokemon - do *you* know how ta build a machine like dat?"
"Hmm," said James. "Good point. Too bad, a transforming machine like
that would be practically invincible. How about a disguise?"
"James, what disguise would *possibly* trick them into giving us all
their Pokemon? These aren't some easily fooled little kids - it's a
Pokemon Professor and a Gym Leader!"
"I know!" exclaimed the cat Pokemon. "Howse about we use James's new
Gloom? We can hit'em with Stun Spore, and grab'em while deyse
paralyzed."
"Let's see, we have gas masks and Salvea weed, so we shouldn't have any
trouble with the spore ourselves. Let's do it!" said James.
________________
Soon, the villainous trio had erected a large fan, and placed Gloom in
front of it. The fan blew Gloom's Stun Spore up and across the street,
to fall over Professor Pine's house and yard.
The two ladies were still having breakfast outside, while Nathan had
been sent into the house for more tea. Claire was quickly paralyzed, but
Eugenia had time to warn her grandson. "Nathan! Don't come out - there's
Stun Spore all ov..." She, too, succumbed to the deadly powder, unable
to move further.
"Grandmother? Gym Leader? What's going on?" Mindful of the Professor's
warnings, Nathan stayed under cover, but looked out to see what was
happening.
"Ha ha ha!" A smoke cloud appeared in the yard, and a feminine voice
spoke from inside it. "Prepare for trouble!"
"And make it double!" spoke a masculine voice.
The cloud thinned, revealing two tall figures and a shorter one, all
wearing gas masks as they completed their chant.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all people within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love..."
"To extend our reach to the stars above..."
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"MEOWTH, Dat's right!" spoke the shorter figure.
"Hmm, it looks like we missed the kid," said James.
"It don't matter. He can't come out, or send out his Pokemon, 'cause o'
all the Stun Spore. Long as he's stuck in dere, he can't do nuttin'."
"Umm... is that a Meowth? How'd it learn to talk?"
"Dat don't matter, neither, kid. You just stay right there while we's
gets all da Dittos, and dose Dratini Eggs," said Meowth.
"Mind if I try something? Kagami, can you Sketch that Meowth's ability
to talk?"
"Smear-GULL!", shouted the Pokemon, as her tail whipped forward to
sketch a glowing green symbol in the air.
"I believe I've learned the technique, Master. What do you want me to do
next?" spoke Kagami in a sultry voice.
"Oh, my," said Meowth. "I tink I'm in looove."
"Meowth!" exclaimed Jessie. "It's not even your species!"
"Dat really don't matter much - she's da right type for me, and dat
voice jes' sends shivers down my spine."
"You don't know much about Pokemon breeding, do you, Miss?" Nathan
chuckled. "Nevertheless, I don't think Kagami should associate with
Pokemon-stealing scumbags like you! Xerox!" he called out. "Use Rain
Dance to wash away the stun spore!" From the yard behind the house, a
Dragonair rose into the air, beginning a swirling aerial dance which
summoned clouds out of nowhere.
"Wait a minute!" yelled James. "How can it do that - the stun spore
should have paralyzed it!"
"You forgot one major fact, guys. Dittos like Xerox are immune to all
forms of paralysis, even when transformed! Now, Xerox, Hyper Beam these
guys out of here!" said Nathan as the rain began to fall.
The globe at the Dragonair-shaped Pokemon's throat began to glow.
"Meowth, do something!" yelled Jessie.
"Sorry, Jess, it looks like we're gonna be blasting off again..."
"That's for sure," said Nathan, as Xerox unleashed a Hyper Beam,
striking the ground just in front of the villains, and causing an
explosion which sent the trio flying.
________________
A few minutes later, the Rain Dance had successfully washed away all the
Stun Spore, and Nathan treated his grandmother and Claire with Salvea
weed from the first aid kit the Professor maintained.
"Nathan, you did great against those hooligans, and I'm proud of you,"
praised Eugenia. "But why did you use one of Kagami's Sketches on such a
useless technique?"
"I don't think it's nearly as useless as you think, Grandma. A Pokemon
who can talk to humans can also translate what other Pokemon are saying.
Being able to communicate more fully with Pokemon is a big advantage -
those Team Rocket idiots don't really realize what they could do if they
went legit as Pokemon interpreters rather than being thieves. For
instance, when I get to Goldenrod, Kagami can ask the local Dittos if
they've seen a shiny Ditto, and then she can tell me what she's learned.
Having a Pokemon I can communicate with directly could be a big help on
my quest."
"It sounds like a good idea to me, Professor. That was quick thinking,
Nathan."
"Thanks, Gym Leader."
After finishing their breakfast (indoors this time), the three went to
check on Claire's eggs. When they walked into the backyard, they
discovered Xerox, still in Dragonair form, curled around a newly-laid
egg. As Claire checked on her fifth egg, Xerox slithered over to
Professor Pine and looked at her with pleading eyes while pointing to
the Gym Leader with her tail. "Air? Air?" she questioned.
"What is it, Xerox?" asked Eugenia.
"Air! Dragonair?"
"Mistress Pine? Xerox says she wants to go home with Claire," said
Kagami.
"What?" said the Professor as she turned to the Smeargle, who had
followed her new trainer.
"She wants to go home with the Gym Leader. It seems Xerox is in love
with Dragonair, and wants to stay with him."
"I see. Claire, what do you think?"
"I don't have any objection. Let me ask Dragonair, though. Dragonair?"
she asked as she released the Dragon Pokemon. "Xerox wants to come home
with us - would you have any problems with that?"
Her Pokemon shook its head vigorously. "Air! Air!"
Kagami translated. "He doesn't have any problems. He says he really
likes Xerox, and would love to have her around."
Professor Pine was impressed. "You were right, Nathan. Having a Pokemon
who can translate for us humans is really useful. I don't know how long
it would have taken us to figure out what Xerox was trying to tell us
without Kagami's new ability. I'm going to have to make sure one of the
other Dittos copies Kagami's form before you leave. Claire, I have no
objections to you taking Xerox home - far be it for me to stand in the
way of true love. And I'm sure it and Dragonair will produce lots of
Dratini eggs for you in the future."
A few hours later, all the eggs were safely packed, Claire had been
given Xerox's Pokeball, and Eugenia had gotten Blobbie to copy and
memorize Kagami's form. (It should be noted that the serious-minded
Professor would never give any Pokemon such a silly name as "Blobbie" -
unfortunately, she had acquired the Ditto in trade, and was unable to
change its name.) Nathan was preparing to set off on his journey to
Goldenrod City.
"Good luck on your quest, grandson. Remember to call me regularly - at
least once a week! I know this won't be an easy quest, but I'm sure you
can handle it. And I'm sure you'll learn a lot on your Pokemon Journey."
"Thanks, grandma. I'll do my best. And you remember not to get too
wrapped up in your work! I won't be here to make sure you eat, you
know!"
"Don't worry about that. You know Duplica from Kanto, right? She's
coming here to apprentice under me, and will be here in a few weeks. In
fact, you'll probably meet her along the way. I'm sure she'll prevent me
from starving. Good-bye, Nathan, and good luck."
"I love you, grandma. Good-bye!" Nathan waved as he and Claire set off
down the street.
________________
AUTHOR'S NOTES
* In this universe, Pokemon Advanced never happened, so Jessie and
James still have Weezing and Arbok (although Victreebel is gone). This
is largely because I didn't want to introduce Hoenn Pokemon, at least
not at this time.
* Talking Pokemon: The most famous of the talking Pokemon is, of
course, Team Rocket's Meowth. There is also a talking Slowking in one of
the movies, and the Gastly of Maiden's Peak could also talk. I have also
seen on the net a list of Pokemon from other sources (such as the manga)
which use human speech. In this story, many types of Pokemon can learn
human speech, if they practice (probably for several years).Â
* When Duplica's Ditto copies Team Rocket's Meowth in the first
season episode "Ditto's Mysterious Mansion", it actually says at least
one sentence in human speech. It's also revealed in another episode that
TR's Meowth sacrificed learning the move "Payday" in order to learn
human speech, indicating that such speech may be similar to a Pokemon
technique. Hence, in this series, Dittos can speak when copying a
Pokemon which has learned human speech, Smeargles can use sketch to
learn the technique, and other Pokemon could even use Mimic to speak
(until the Mimic technique wears off).
* Can't change Blobbie's name - this is a restriction in the games,
which I thought would be funny to make a reference to.
--
Shadow Wolf
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