Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or its characters.

Author's Notes: Here's my first fanfic, retouched.  Here it is, the last five chapters, with paragraphs and all!

Heart of Lead, Heart of Gold (Part 2)

Chapter 6

The two boys slept cramped together in a small and narrow bed.  Pikachu slept on one of the bedposts.

The night wasn't so peaceful.  One of them was always falling off the bed and the other was always tossing, turning, and snoring.  And they even heard the jingle of a bell in the hallways.

They woke up with the sun shining in their faces and a crowd of little children around them.

"Augh!" yelped Ash, as he jumped out of the bed.  The children giggled at him.

"Good morning everyone," greeted Brock, and he gathered all of his siblings into a great hug.

"Were you sleep-walking last night?" he asked one of the little girls crowding him.  She held up her hand to show a little bracelet with a bell attached to it.  "I thought so."

"Father sent us to get you both to breakfast!" the siblings chorused in unison.  They grabbed their arms, pulled them out of bed, and led them to the kitchen.

The table was already set, and the kitchen smelled like pancakes.  Everyone's mouths were watering.

"Breakfast is ready!" announced Flint, and everyone ran to the table and ate their breakfast.


Misty awoke to the sound of the birds chirping and cooing outside in the garden.  Togepi uncurled himself (because he usually sleeps all folded up) and yawned.

She then heard a knock on the door, so she got up to see who it was.  She opened the door to find that there was nobody there, she looked around and then down to see a tray of food.  There were some muffins, a cup of tea, and a bowl of food for Togepi.

I guess she also studied how to cook for people and pokemon, she thought to herself.

Misty carried the tray inside and began to eat.


Breakfast filled everyone's appetites, it seemed that Flint learned to cook through trail and error.

"Hey, Brock, let's go back to the gym and see if Misty's still there."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot.  Just let me get my stuff."  Brock ran back to the room to get his backpack.

Ash, Pikachu, and Brock left the house and walked towards the gym.  It wasn't a very long walk, and they were both anxious to see the "secret garden".

They arrived at the doors and stepped inside.  Ash showed Brock the way to the back door into the garden.

Brock couldn't believe what he saw!  It was breath taking.  He then saw the wall.  So this is what was behind the wall, he thought to himself.

He then saw Misty come out a small cabin carrying Togepi, and they both ran to her.

"So, Misty, how was your stay here?" questioned Ash.

"It was wonderful!  You both should have been here!" she exclaimed.

Both of them groaned in disappointment.  "I can't believe I missed this!" they both complained.

"I see that your friends are here," said a serious voice.  All of them turned to face the speaker in surprise.  It was none other than Roxanne.

"Would you like them to get out of here?" said Misty nervously.

"They're your companions, and as I said, do what you wish."

"Can we get a tour of this place, please?" Brock asked politely.

"I'll only do this for courtesy, but not for you."  And so she led them around the garden/forest.  "This place was made by me, and my pokemon.  We built it together," Roxanne explained.  Just then, she took out a pokeball from her pocket and threw it.  A Dugtrio emerged from the ball.

"Trio!" the three moles called out.

"Dugtrio helped me plough the soil, and care for it.  He even helped these trees grow faster and taller.  Dugtrio, return."  And she held out the ball and Dugtrio returned to it as a beam of red light.

She went on showing them the rest of the area, and then she finally showed them the hot spring. "Dugtrio dug a pit first and then dug all the way underground to find a source of water.  The water that filled in was cold, so I used my Growlithe to heat up the water."

"Can we give it a try?" asked Ash excitedly.

Roxanne then turned to Misty.  "They are your companions, do what you want," she told her.  And she walked off to another small cabin that was hidden by some trees.

"Well, you guys can use the hot spring, I guess.  You two can change in my cabin."  She then pointed them to where she was staying.

They both changed into their trunks and both got in.  It was so relaxing and warm, they gave out a contented sigh.

Misty soon came into the spring, changed into her bathing suit, to join them.

"Don't worry about Togepi.  He's asleep in my cabin," explained Misty.

"I wonder what she has against us?" pondered Brock.

"Maybe she just likes girls better than boys?" commented Ash.

"Maybe that's it."


Ash and Misty soon got tired of sitting around in the spring, so they got up to walk around the garden.  Brock was left alone.

He sat in the water at the far end of the spring, where it was shady because the foliage nearly hid him.  Suddenly, he saw Roxanne at the other end, but she couldn't see him.  A Growlithe was barking happily at her feet.

"Okay Growlithe, remember, even though the water is hot, you can only swim in it for a short time," she said softly and kindly to it.

"So, what do you think of our new guests?  I already know about Brock, and he sounds very nice, not like you-know-who, but that's another story."  The Growlithe barked at her.  "I know I have an image to uphold, but he is nice, I just don't know why I sometimes have to be so mean.  I guess I do have a little crush on him, but that's just our secret."  She then blushed a little, though not much. "Maybe I shouldn't act like this, I don't want to get hurt again."

Brock listened carefully.  Wow, she actually likes me. If it's a secret, I shouldn't mention it, he thought to himself.

"It seems that nobody's here.  I think I'll take a dip too.   I'll just change." So Roxanne left to go to her cabin.

After a while, she came back in a dull grey swimsuit and a bucket full of water.

I guess from here she kinda looks and acts nice.  Maybe I should go over there and be friendly.  He got up from his spot and half walked, half swam to her.

Roxanne saw him, and she blushed, but hoped that it looked like the heat from the spring made her look flustered.

He came closer to her, smiling with his hand out to help her in.  Brock was getting closer when she suddenly grabbed the bucket and poured its contents over his head.  The water was freezing!

"AHHH!  What did you do that for?!" Brock yelped.

"That's for trying to get your hands on me!" Roxanne replied harshly.  She was back in the same mood.

"I just trying to help you into the spring!"

"I don't need any help!  Hmph!"  She suddenly walked away briskly and the Growlithe followed after her.

Brock was left shivering until the hot water warmed him up.  He was left alone and confused.

Chapter 7

Team Rocket was (clumsily) trying to climb the wall that surrounded the garden.

"Ahhh!  Catch me!" cried James as he almost made it over the wall.  Instead, he fell to the ground with a crash.  "Umph!  Why didn't any of you catch me?!"

"Huh?  Were you saying something?" asked Jesse.  "What did you see over the fence?"

"Well, I'm not telling you, not after an apology."

"Meowth!"  And with a blur of two paws, there were scratch marks on both of their faces. "Apologize to me for wasting my time!  Meowth!"

"Aghh!" the two cried as the pain set in.

"Tell me, what did you see back there?" asked Meowth.

"Well, I saw lots of trees, some plants, and even a hot spring!  If we got rid of the owner, we could get that wonderful place!  Unfortunately, I also saw those annoying brats with our Pikachu!" described James.

"Let me see!" cried both Jesse and Meowth.  They jumped on James' head to see over the large wall.

"Oh, my."  "Wow."  "It's beautiful!" were what James could hear between his two team-mates on his head.  They finally got down.

"Well James, you're right!  It would be wonderful to get that place to ourselves!" complimented Jesse.

"Pokemon and a paradise!  This will surely please the boss!" cried Meowth.

I thought I also saw a glimpse of the owner, but it can't be her, thought James.

"What are you staring off into space for?" asked Meowth.

James snapped out of his thinking.  "Oh, nothing."

"Good.  Now let's get to work."


Brock had changed and was frantically tried to look for Roxanne and finally found her tending to some plants in a corner.

"Listen, I didn't know what that was about-"

"I finally accept your challenge!  It was that earlier insult that finally convinced me that I should have that match with you!  Let's get into the gym!"


"I just heard that they're getting into a match!  Now's the time to put the plan in motion!" announced Meowth.

"Since when were you the leader of this operation?" snapped Jesse.

"I'm the boss' top cat, so I'm always the leader of you two idiots!  Let's get moving!"


The lights shone brightly onto the rocky fighting arena.  The competitors were on opposite sides of the area. Ash and Misty both sat on the spectator's seats and watched silently.

"We shall both use four pokemon each!" declared Roxanne.  "Let the match begin!"

Brock reached from his belt, threw his pokeball and yelled, "Vulpix, go!"  The fiery fox appeared on top of a stone pillar.

"Growlithe, go!" yelled Roxanne as she threw a pokeball from her pocket.  The same Growlithe from earlier appeared.  It jumped onto another pillar.

"Vulpix, tail whip!"  Vulpix wagged its six tails, and Growlithe watched it, hypnotized.

Ash, Misty, Pikachu, and Togepi cheered on from the stands.

"Snap out of it Growlithe!  C'mon, give it your fire spin!"

The orange and black dog shook its head to recover from the tail whip.  It barked, and from its mouth, it released a tornado of fire.

"Vulpix, cancel it out with another fire spin!"

Vulpix opened its mouth and released a another fire tornado.

The two spinning fires collided and released a huge explosion that knocked out both pokemon.

Brock took out another pokeball.  "Onix, go!"  The towering rock snake appeared between the stone pillars.

"An Onix, this is interesting.  Rokbit, go!"  She threw another pokeball from her pocket.  From it appeared a small rabbit made out of rocks.  It was small compared to Onix.

"Wow!  I never saw pokemon like that!" cried Ash.  He whipped out Dexter from his pocket and pointed it at the pokemon.

"There is no information on this pokemon," said Dexter blatantly.

"Rokbit-" she was about to yell when suddenly the lights turned off and then on again.  Everyone paused to see that two dark figures appeared.

"Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

"To protect the world from devastation . . ."

"To unite all peoples within our nation . . ."

"To denounce the evils of truth and love . . ."

"To extend our reach to the stars above . . ."

"Jesse!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."

"Meowth!  That's right!"

"James," Roxanne whispered to herself.

"What wonderful pokemon we have here today!  We'll gladly take all of them, especially Pikachu," said Jesse.

"When will they ever learn?" muttered Ash and Misty.

Team Rocket suddenly saw Roxanne.

James saw Roxanne and her Rokbit, and said, "Maybe we should be leaving now!"

"What's wrong James, are you chicken now that one of our plans is going right?" taunted Jesse.

"That's the gym leader?  Do you know her, James?" Meowth surprisedly asked.

"S-s-sort of.  N-n-now let's g-get those p-p-pokemon!" he stammered in fear.  He almost couldn't move because of fear.

"James!  You finally married Jessebelle and took over Team Rocket!  That just burns me up, and seeing you again is steaming me off!" yelled Roxanne.  "Rokbit, rage tackle!"

Rokbit began to run quickly at Team Rocket.  Jesse and Meowth could only laugh.

"Arbok, go!"  "Weezing, go!"  And Team Rocket released their pokemon.

"Ch-ch-arrrbok!" hissed the purple cobra.

"Weezing!" cried the grey gas-ball.

"Meowth! I think I'll take CHARGE of this!" called Meowth.  He held in his paw a bomb.  He then threw the bomb at the small stone bunny.  The bomb gave off an explosion, and when the dust cleared, there lay the unconscious pokemon.

"Arbok, wrap!" commanded Jesse.  Arbok wrapped itself around the Rokbit and dragged it over to Jesse.  She threw a pokeball at it, and it went inside.  "Hahahaha! Where are you now without your 'powerful' pokemon?  C'mon!  Let's get out of here!"

"No!" cried Roxanne.

"W-w-weezing!  Smoke screen!" stammered James.  Weezing released some thick and noxious green gas.

Ash released Pidgeotto and it blew away all of the gas.

Team Rocket was gone!

Chapter 8

In the middle of the arena was a single red rose and a note.  Roxanne picked both of them up.

The note read: If you want to see Rokbit again, please join Team Rocket!  We can be the best team together!  James.

Roxanne took the heart shaped badge pinned on her vest.  She opened it.  It was actually a locket with James' picture in it.


"Ha!  That was too easy," commented Meowth as they hid in their wrecked balloon.

"James, why did that girl suddenly turned that rock rabbit on us, and how does she know you?" asked Jesse.

"Yeah!  What was that all about?" chided Meowth.

"Well, if you both must know.  It happened just after I was hired by the boss, and before I was teamed with you two..." began James.

FLASHBACK

James is walking alone in a forest, in his uniform.  The sun was beginning to set and the green forest had an orange hue to it.  "The boss said that I should steal only rare pokemon from anyone!  I just can't find anyone to steal from!"

Suddenly he hears a girl's voice, coming from behind the bushes.  "Finally!  My first successful steal. In fact, my only steal!  I can prove myself to the boss!"

He parts the bushes and sees a young girl with a statue of a bunny.  "Well, we better go looking for our next match!  If we win again, we can buy ourselves seeds for our garden!"  the girl says softly to the rabbit.

James stares at her, his cheeks turning pink.  He begins to step towards the girl.  The rabbit hears James footsteps and turns towards James, it stares at him.

"Who are you?" asked the girl.

"I-I-I'm James.  Who are y-you?" he stuttered nervously.

"I'm Roxanne," she introduced herself, and gently patting the stone bunny, said, "this is my Rokbit. What are you doing here?"

James calmly composed himself.  "I'm just going on my own pokemon journey.  I'm looking for new pokemon to capture," he lied.  "What is an unprotected lady doing out here?  Shouldn't you be at home?"

"I'm just out here training my Rokbit, and as far as I know, you can't catch any around here.  This is one rare pokemon.  As for being at home, I'm an orphan, these woods are my home."

Instead of stealing the pokemon from her, maybe I can get her to join me and give the Rokbit to the boss!  "Why don't you join me on me pokemon journey?"

"Thanks for inviting me, but this place is my home."

"Then I hope you don't mind if I hang around with you for a few days."

"I was just starting on building a new cabin, you know, for the travellers.  I'm almost done, so I guess you could spend the next few days here."

So she led him to a small clearing with two cabins.


That night, they both enjoyed each other's company.  They spent the night talking and Roxanne learned why he ran away from home, because of an arranged marriage that he didn't want.  He especially ran away from his controlling fiance, Jessebelle.

That day, they were having a picnic together in the clearing.

"Actually, my pokemon journey is my job," said James.

"Oh really?" Roxanne replied curiously.   "What is your job like?"

"I collect pokemon for my employer. The job pays well, and I would like it if I had a partner."  James took another bite out of his sandwich.

"I am looking for a way to make some money to feed myself and Rokbit here."  She tapped at the pokeball on her belt.  "Actually, I really like you.  I would be happy to be your partner, but let me think about it."  And she began to turn pink in the cheeks.

"I actually like you too!" he confessed.  "And now that we know the truth, I feel much better!"

They both laughed and went on eating.


"I should be leaving now," said James as he began to leave the clearing.  "Have you made up your mind yet?  Because if you don't, here's a picture of me to remember."  James reached into his pocket and pulled out a grey heart pin, and inside was picture of himself.  "This was part of my dowry," he said sheepishly.

"Well, I should get out of this place and travel more," she replied wistfully, taking her present.  "I can tell you how you can get the job.  Just give the boss your Rokbit.  It's extremely rare, and that's all that he wants."

Roxanne was shocked.  "Give away my Rokbit?!  I can't do that, we've been together for a long time!"

James suddenly became nervous.  "You should give it over to the boss!  I could lose my job!"

"Is that your job?  Stealing other people's hard earned pokemon!"

"To tell the truth, yes!"

"Then I won't have any part of this!  And to think that I wanted you for a boyfriend!  Good-bye!" Roxanne turned away from James and began to walk briskly away from him.

"Koffing, go!"  James threw a pokeball and out came a gas ball.  "Smoke screen!" he commanded, and Koffing released a dark green gas.  Roxanne couldn't see what was going on around her, and didn't notice that James took Rokbit from her belt.

James and Koffing ran out of the smog and were almost out of the clearing.  Until Roxanne yelled, "Rokbit *cough* go!"  The pokeball in his hand glowed red and out came the bunny pokemon. "*cough* Rock throw!"

Rokbit turned its back to James and Koffing, and it popped its tail into the air.  A new tail appeared and Rokbit kept popping it up into the air.  It stretched its ears out to catch all the tails.  It bent its ears forward, and like a catapult, hurled the pile of stones on its ears at James and Koffing.

They were thrown high into the sky and were seen as a bright sparkle.

PRESENT

Ash, Pikachu, Misty, and Brock listened intently.

"That's how I met James," Roxanne ended her story.

Chapter 9

Roxanne showed them the note.  "I have to get Rokbit back.  I know that Team Rocket would never control her.  She knows who I am."

"I'll help you find your Rokbit," offered Brock.

"Count us both in!" added Misty and Ash.  "Pi-pika-chu!"

"No, I can't let you guys do that.  I mean, I can't get you involved.  This is my own problem, I'll handle it myself.  I guess a life of stealing pokemon won't be so hard.  Now please leave."

"But-" pleaded Brock.

"I said leave now!" Roxanne ordered.  Her voice nearly choked.

They left her alone in the gym.  As soon as they were gone, she began to cry.


Meanwhile, Team Rocket was getting ready to meet their boss.  They found the old electricity mill and set up the communications system.

On the screen, a dark figure sitting in a chair and wearing a suit appeared.  "What have do you three have to report to me now?" the figure asked impatiently.  The dark figure had a deep and intimidating voice.

"Team Rocket reports that we have a new pokemon for you, boss," replied Meowth nervously.

"It's about time that I got a decent report from you idiots.  Your failing streak has worn down on my patience."

"Oh, we assure you that this new pokemon won't be a disappointment," said Jesse.

"And we even recruited a new member!" exclaimed James. " I left the gym leader a note!"

"You what?!" cried Jesse and Meowth in disbelief.

"Hmm.  A new member to Team Rocket.  I hope that this new recruit will be much better than you three."  A sleek and stately Persian appeared and nuzzled the boss' leg.  "I want perfection like this Persian."

"If this works out, can your Meowth be top cat again?" asked Meowth.

"Maybe.  Report back to me when you are done with your mission, and it better be successfully."

"Team Rocket out."  The screen went black.

"You better do some explaining, James.  Or else."  Jesse held up a large mallet that would crush his head.

"I still like her!" he confessed and began to bawl like a baby.  Jesse took her mallet and hit James' head.  A large lump appeared on his head, and he was out cold.

"I hope that his plan better work," muttered Jesse.


It was sunset, and Roxanne walked alone to the old electrical mill.  Bad guys have to have a hideout. I just hope that this is it, Roxanne thought to herself.

Soon, she reached the mill, ducked down, and looked through the window.  She saw James unconscious on the floor and a girl looking like Jessebelle standing over him.  She thought she saw the Meowth in the corner talk.  She could see on a control console in front of a big screen was a pokeball.  It must be Rokbit!

She reached into one of the pockets on her vest to take out the note and rose James had left.  She then waited for the time to enter the mill and confront Team Rocket.


Brock followed Roxanne from afar as she reached the mill.  It was a relief knowing that he left Misty and Ash behind without them noticing what he was doing.

He jumped behind some bushes and spied on her.  It seemed that she took some things out of her pocket and was waiting for the right moment to crash Team Rocket's hideout.

He began to start liking her, after he told them her story and after that secret confession of hers.  She seemed to be the only girl he could keep a cool head around.

He suddenly saw her stand up and approach the entrance to the mill.  He got up and tried to move in closer.


Roxanne felt angry at herself for doing what she had to do, but Rokbit her first pokemon, and when they first met, they had an instant bond that no one could break.

With all her anger, she kicked at the door again and again.  She hoped that her kicking would startle Team Rocket.  She then gathered all of the courage she had inside her and waited.

She glanced at the window to see that they were startled and that James quickly got up to answer the door.

He approached the door cautiously while rubbing the back of his head.  He opened it slowly, expecting an ambush, peeked through the small opening, and saw Roxanne standing outside.

She held in her hand the note and the rose.  "I'm here for your opening in Team Rocket.  I've decided to take you up on that offer," Roxanne said.

"Uh, yes, come in," replied James as he fully opened the door to let Roxanne in.

She strode in nonchalantly and fixed James a cold stare.  She then looked around the room to see Jessebelle and the Meowth looking suspiciously at her.

"This is Jesse and Meowth," James introduced the girl and the pokemon.

So that girl isn't Jessebelle.  I shouldn't care about her or the Meowth.  I should care only about getting Rokbit back.  Roxanne nodded and said nothing.

"This is the pokemon you're looking for," said Jesse, and she pointed to the pokeball on the console. She took the pokeball threw into the ground and commanded, "Pokemon, go!"  The pokeball glowed red, but nothing came out, the ball bounced into Roxanne's hands.

"You'll have trouble trying to get Rokbit to obey you.  I wouldn't want you three to have the trouble of handling her," Roxanne replied professionally.  "Here, let me show you."  She quickly scanned the room and noticed that the Meowth was gone.  She quickly shrugged that detail off.

She held the pokeball, and out came her Rokbit.  She walked slowly out the door, and Rokbit followed her.  Team Rocket nervously followed her outside.

"My pokemon hasn't been out in a while, I'm thinking of a match in order to keep it experienced and well trained.  It would be good if I showed you the power of this little pokemon."

"James told us all about it.  Maybe I should take you up on that match."  And Jesse took out her pokemon, Arbok.


Brock saw that they were beginning a pokemon battle.  Jesse's Arbok hissed and tried to bite at the Rokbit. Arbok finally got a bite at Rokbit, but coiled back in pain from biting the its hard skin. Roxanne then commanded her Rokbit to finish it off with a rock slide attack.  And she won the match.

The two opponents called back their pokemon.  They were all about to go back inside the mill when Roxanne turned around and began to run the other direction.


That stunt caught Jesse and James off their guard, it seemed too late to catch her, but with a flash of fur, Meowth appeared in front of her holding a bag of bombs.

"Meowth!  I don't think you're going anywhere with that precious pokemon of yours!  Now hand over the Rokbit unless you wanna go boom."

Roxanne quickly reached into one of her pockets, plucked out a pokeball, and threw it.  "Growlithe, go!" she shouted.  The fire dog appeared and barked at Meowth.

"A known fact is that cats don't like dogs.  Sick 'em, Growlithe!"  Growlithe began to run at the scared Meowth.  Meowth reached into his bag and threw a bomb at the dog pokemon.  Roxanne held up her pokeball and called Growlithe back before the bomb could hit it.

Roxanne then called back out her Rokbit.  Meowth was about to hold out another one of his bombs when a large Onix circled itself around Roxanne and her Rokbit.  Onix shielded them from Jesse and James on one side, and Meowth with his bombs on the other.

Roxanne looked over Onix and saw Brock running over to help them.

Team Rocket quickly recovered the distraction and sent their pokemon out, Arbok and Weezing. The two hideous pokemon were trying to crash their way through Onix's hard skin.

"Meowth!  Don't just stand there!  Throw the whole artillery at that rock snake!" cried Jesse.

Meowth began to swing the bag around, building its momentum.  Brock realized that if the bag of bombs was thrown, it would fall right where Roxanne and her Rokbit were!

"Onix!  Open up the circle and let them get out of the way!" Brock yelled.

It seemed that Roxanne realized the danger too, and so she began to run away as soon as Onix let them go.  But Rokbit was paralyzed by fear, it remembered what happened the last time it tangled with a bomb.

"Rokbit!  Come here!" called Roxanne, but it still didn't move.  Roxanne sprinted to Rokbit to pick it up and carry it away from danger.

As soon as she picked up Rokbit, Meowth let go of the bag and it came hurtling towards them.

Chapter 10

Brock kept running towards them to try and save them.

"You fool! Save yourself!" screamed Roxanne.

He continued running until he pushed them out of the way of the bombs.  Unfortunately, the bag exploded right where Brock was!  A large cloud of smoke and dust appeared.  The explosion seemed to be so strong that no one could have survived the blast.

Onix roared a cry of distress at the loss of its owner and whipped it powerful tail at Team Rocket.  It hurled them high into the sky.

"Team Rocket's blasting off again!" they cried, and they were seen as nothing more than a bright speck of light in the sky.

Roxanne called Rokbit back into its pokeball.  The dust from the explosion settled and Roxanne saw Brock's still body lying in the grass.

Roxanne realized that Brock risked his life to save her.  She ran over to him to see if he was alright. "Brock!  Brock, please!  Are you okay?  Say something!" she desperately cried.

He fluttered his eyes open and groaned softly.  He weakly called Onix back.  "I'm fine.  Onix's hard skin somehow protected me from the blast."  He smiled and then fainted.

Ash, Pikachu, and Misty were running towards them.  They were winded when they arrived.

"We thought we could give Pikachu a recharge at the mill.  Then we heard the explosion, and we got really worried," explained Ash.

"Enough yakking!  Let's get him to a hospital right away!" said Misty.


All of them were waiting nervously in the lobby of the hospital.  A familiar looking doctor approached them.

"Doctor Proctor!  The last time we met, we were helping some injured pokemon.  How are they doing?  Are they okay?" asked Ash.

"I'm sorry, you must have mistaken me for my brother.  I'm Doctor Shoctor," he replied.  "Your friend Brock just has a minor concussion, and a few bumps and bruises.  He'll be fine in a few days."

The video phone at his desk rang.  He answered it to find that Nurse Joy was calling.

"Doctor Shoctor!  I'm glad that I could finally reach you!  I would like to schedule a check up for next week.  And maybe this Friday we could both go out for some pizza together," flirted Nurse Joy.

"Well Nurse Joy, I'll see if I could fit you into my tight schedule.  I hope to see you this Friday then." He turned off the video phone.  "Well kids, you go see your friend in his room.  And tell him that he can go soon."

All of them walked into the hospital room and found Brock sitting on the bed.  He seemed in much better shape, but he had some bandages over his head and arms.

"Hey guys!" he happily greeted them.  "Don't get worried about me, I know that I'll be fine."

"That's great to know.  Do you want us to get you out of here right now?" asked Misty.

"No thanks.  Can you guys leave me alone with Roxanne?"

"Um, sure thing Brock," replied Ash.

They left the room to let the two be alone.  Both were silent until Roxanne said, "I'm sorry for treating you the way I did."

"It's okay.  I actually know that you think of me."

Roxanne blushed bright pink out of embarrassment.  "I guess after you heard my story, you understand why I acted tough."

"Yeah, so you wouldn't get hurt the way James hurt you.  But I wouldn't do that to someone like you."  He flashed her a weak smile.

"I just had a lot of anger, and the only way to let it out was through pokemon battles.  "Roxanne sighed softly.  "Since the doctor said that you need a few days of rest, maybe we could spend that time getting to know each other better."

"I would enjoy that.  Now let's get out of here."

Brock got off the bed, took her hand, and they walked out the door.


Brock found out that he needed three days of rest, and he spent most of it with Roxanne.  Misty always made fun of their time together, but it surprised her that Brock didn't give her a punch in the face for taunting him.

During their time together, they both learned of each others' past and dreams for the future.  Roxanne really changed and became more of the opposite of who she was.  Brock, for most of the time, didn't become red-faced and clumsy like he usually was around girls.


It was Brock's last day in Pewter City.

Brock and Roxanne were talking and having a picnic in the garden.  The food that Roxanne cooked was delicious, and Brock even brought some of his own recipes.

"I already know that you want to be a pokemon breeder.  So what do you want to be?" Brock asked.

"Well, I really want to be a pokemon researcher.  That's why in my spare time I study all that I can about pokemon.  I want tolearn more about my Rokbit," answered Roxanne.  "The facts that I have so far is that it is a girl and what her attacks are."

"How did you find her?"

"I was looking for a home, and I got lost in the rock cave, off of Route Ten.  It was really dark and I soon tripped on a rock, or what I at least thought was a rock.  I was really scared when I felt the rock move.  I felt it and held on tight as it suddenly ran out of the cave.  In the light, I found out it was Rokbit, and she didn't run away like wild pokemon do.  We immediately became friends, and that's how I got her.  She even helped me catch Growlithe and Dugtrio."

"Wow!  I hope that you learn all that you can about Rokbit."  Brock ate some rice and sticky rolls that were in the basket.  "These are really good!  Not only are you smart, but you can cook!"

"Well, your cooking isn't so bad either."  Roxanne then looked at him nervously, thinking of something to say.

"What's wrong?  Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Yes.  You've given me such a wonderful time.  I want to repay you by letting your father, Flint, become the gym leader of Pewter City again.  Your father will be busy with running the gym that he won't have any time to take care of your ten siblings, so I want to be their baby-sitter."

"That's so generous of you, but I also have something to give you."  Brock reached into a pocket in his vest and pulled out a heart shaped pin, but it was the colour gold.  He opened it up to reveal a picture of himself.

Roxanne was so happy that tears welled up in her eyes.  "It's beautiful!  Thank you!"  She excitedly gave him a hug, and just as quickly let go.

She took the grey pin from her vest and threw it away.  She then took the golden heart, and fastened it on where the old pin used to be.


That night, they all celebrated Flint's return as gym leader.  The dinner was held in Roxanne's garden, behind the gym.

Roxanne and Brock cooked up a feast together, and almost everyone enjoyed the food.  Pikachu just stuck with a bottle of ketchup, and Timmy ate his cold noodles.

Brock's brothers and sisters took a quick liking to Roxanne when they found out that she would be their baby-sitter.  They forgot the fact that she was the one who defeated their father.

Roxanne led Brock away from the festivities and near her cabin.  She looked up at the starry sky and sighed.  "This our last night together.  I just want to know, is this good-bye?"

Brock took her hand in his and held it gently.  "I don't know, but I'm sure that this isn't good-bye."

They stood there looking at each other, saying nothing.  Then their faces came together slowly until their lips met.

They quickly pulled away, abashed.  "I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to do that," they apologized in unison. Their faces turned bright red, but realized that they both liked their first kiss.

They smiled at each other and kissed again, and held it a longer than before.  The stars twinkled above them as their friends continued to celebrate.


That morning, our heroes gathered outside the gym where Roxanne, Flint, and all of Brock's siblings there to wave them good-bye.

Roxanne had changed her look, she wore the same clothes as before, but everything was coloured red, and even her glasses were rose-coloured.  But Brock still thought that she looked pretty.

"Remember, I'm in your heart," said Brock, and he pointed at Roxanne's gold heart pin.

"Here, take this," offered Roxanne.  She handed him her old locket, he opened it to find that there was a picture of her and Rokbit inside.  "This is to let you know that I'm in yours."

They both kissed each other good-bye.

Brock was sullen to leave his home and his new girlfriend.  But he knew that he would return someday, and he would be welcomed with lots of love.

END

Author's Additional Notes: That's it!  When I first wrote this, I wanted to create a new pokemon, and to use a character with a name pun.  (I got the name from a knock-knock joke.)  Thanks for reading!

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