A White Today, and a White Tomorrow: A Phony Matrimony?! 
A Phony Matrimony?!
by Cori Falls
@->->- 
It started out as another typical day for Team Rocket...and ended as anything 
but! I'm tempted to spare you the gory details of the day's crappy beginning and 
just cut straight to the good part, but my story wouldn't make much sense if I 
did that, so here goes.... 
@->->- 
It all began that morning, when our travels brought us to a little town on the 
road to Olivine City. We'd come to this town because we'd heard that there was a 
huge pokemon lab in the area...and we wanted to capture the pokemon! 
Everything went smoothly when we arrived at the lab. We caught all the pokemon 
in nets, recited our motto, outsmarted the twerps (who just so happened ta be 
the special guests of the professor who owned the lab...go figure), and made a 
clean getaway. Unfortunately, when we got to safety, we learned that during our 
escape, the net lines had been severed, and instead of capturing the pokemon, 
we'd captured the professor's daughter! 
And that's when things got really strange. 
As we landed the balloon and discovered that we'd lost our nets, Temacu tumbled 
out of the basket. Before she could hit the ground, however, James caught her 
and helped her back to her feet. And when Temacu looked up at James, she fell 
madly in love with him and started babbling about how he was her knight in 
shining armor and how she wanted to marry him! 
It wasn't really Temacu's behavior that struck me as odd. (As sweet and handsome 
as he is, I'm surprised MORE girls don't throw demselves at James like dat! Of 
course, I guess most girls can tell dat he's already taken and think better of 
incurrin' the jealous wrath of Jessie.) I'll admit this chick was pretty dense 
to not realize that James already had a girlfriend, but having a crush on him 
wasn't weird at all. No, if anybody around here was acting weird, it was Jessie! 

While Temacu was grabbing at James and talking relentlessly about their wedding, 
Jessie didn't even bat an eyelash! Normally, she gets pissed if another girl 
even LOOKS at James, but this time, she looked like she didn't care...and she 
even made a remark that James had himself a girlfriend! What the hell was going 
on?! 
When Temacu declared herself his fiance, poor James looked like he was going to 
have a heart attack! He started screaming that the f-word gave him the 
heebie-jeebies, and he scrambled up a nearby tree to escape the grasp of this 
love-struck lunatic. I could tell from the look of terror in his emerald eyes 
that he was probably having a nasty flashback about Jessiebelle. 
Just as I was about to ask Jessie if she was going to bitch-slap this bimbo into 
the next millenium for daring to even think of coming between her and James, she 
pulled me aside and told me that if we could get James to marry Temacu, then it 
would be the perfect chance for us to capture all the pokemon in the lab. For a 
moment, I thought Jess had completely lost her mind, but as I looked into her 
eyes, I realized what was going on. 
Jessie wasn't jealous because she knew that there was nothing to be jealous of! 
She could tell that James had no interest in Temacu and that the idea of leaving 
us to marry her repulsed him. Not even Hell freezing over or Swinub learning how 
to fly would make James fall in love with another woman -- as insistent as 
Temacu was, she wasn't a threat...and Jessie knew it! She wasn't upset because 
she was confident that their relationship was strong enough to withstand this 
test. She wasn't jealous because she trusted James enough to know that he'd 
never leave her or be unfaithful. And since she was so secure in the knowledge 
that Temacu didn't stand a chance with James, Jessie simply wanted to take 
advantage of the opportunity that was being presented to us. 
James, however, didn't share her enthusiasm. When Jessie came to Temacu's side 
and congratulated her on her engagement to James, the poor guy looked like he'd 
just been stabbed through the heart. He reluctantly decided to go along with the 
plan when Jess explained that he didn't really have to marry Temacu and that all 
he had to do was distract her and the professor for a couple of hours. Jessie 
assured him that once we captured the pokemon, we could leave, and he'd never 
have to see Temacu again, but he still didn't look too thrilled. I know James 
well enough to know that he hates toying with peoples' emotions...and that he 
hates the idea of himself with any woman but Jessie. 
This was definitely one of our diciest plans to date...but it was just crazy 
enough to work. 
And our plan did, indeed, work for awhile. After we changed out of our Team 
Rocket uniforms, we took Temacu back to her father, and Jessie explained how 
brave, handsome James had battled valiantly to save the girl from two evil Team 
Rocket agents. While James kept everybody distracted, Jessie and I went and 
raided the lab. As we were about to find James and make our getaway, however, 
Temacu's father invited us to stay for dinner. Not wanting to seem rude (and 
never able ta pass up free food), we accepted the invitation. 
Unfortunately, the twerps returned to the lab while we were eating dinner...and 
Misty was finally able to recognize Jessie and James without their Team Rocket 
uniforms. (Took dose stupid kids long enough, didn't it?!) When the brats 
started making a big stink about what a cad James was for tricking Temacu into 
falling in love with him (never mind dat he was the LAST person in the world who 
wanted ta do dis), we decided that it was time to leave. 
Now that our cover was blown, however, they didn't want to let us get away. As 
we tried to make our escape, the twerps gave chase and battled us. Arbok and 
Weezing were beaten by Ash's pokemon, and the brats took back the pokemon we'd 
stolen. But that still wasn't good enough for them -- once we'd been defeated, 
that little bitch, Misty, commanded her pokemon to attack James! (Honestly! Why 
were dose assholes bein' so mean ta poor James?! All he did was keep Temacu from 
fallin' on her face -- it ain't his fault she noticed how gentlemanly and 
handsome he is and fell in love with him! I guess he's livin' proof dat no good 
deed goes unpunished.) When Temacu saw that James was being attacked, she jumped 
in the path of the Water Gun in order to protect him. We were unharmed by the 
blast (not dat a piddly little Water Gun attack could ever do anythin' ta hurt 
us anyway), but Temacu was sent flying and fell to the ground, unconscious. 
And when that happened, Ash went even crazier than he already is and started 
screaming about how he was going to make us pay for what we'd done to her! 
(Excuse me, shit-for-brains! We wasn't the ones who attacked Temacu! It was 
Misty's fault she got hurt, not ours! Besides, it ain't like we was usin' Temacu 
as a human shield or makin' her take the blow for us -- she CHOSE ta do it! I 
swear, dose fuckin' twerps are a buncha sadists!) He got his Chikorita to 
strangle poor Arbok and Weezing and slam them into Jessie and James. Then, he 
and Misty hit us with a double-whammy and got Pikachu and Poliwhirl to blast us 
away with an electric Water Gun combo. 
Like I said. Another typical day. 
@->->- 
After our blast-off, we landed in the woods and made our way back to the Team 
Rocket safe-house where we'd spent the previous night. Jessie and James didn't 
speak a word to each other on the way to the cabin, but I could tell that 
something ugly was festering beneath the silence. (And I sure as hell didn't 
wanna be around when it came to a head!) 
When we arrived at the cabin, James stormed into the bedroom and slammed the 
door behind him. Jessie, meanwhile, put one of her Stabbing Westward CDs in the 
stereo and flopped down on the couch as Violent Mood Swings began to play at 
full-blast. Wanting to stay out of the way, I went into the kitchen to find a 
snack for myself and feed James's baby Articuno. 
The baby cheeped at me and flapped his little wings as I brought him out of his 
poke ball. 
"Mommy and daddy ain't feelin' well tonight, so uncle Meowth is gonna feed ya 
dinner instead," I told him. 
As I got a bag of pokemon treats from the refrigerator and began to feed the 
baby, James came back out of the bedroom. "Will you please turn that down?! I'm 
trying to sleep!" he shouted. 
Jessie scowled at him and turned the stereo off. "Fine. Jeez, what's your 
problem?" she grumbled. 
James scowled back and turned away from her. "If you have to ask...." 
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I DO!" she snapped, jumping to her feet. "How the 
hell am I supposed to know what's bugging you if you don't talk to me?! I can't 
read your mind all the time, you know!" 
A fire sparked in James's eyes as he turned to face her again. "Take a wild 
guess what's bugging me, Jessica! Take a wild goddamned guess!" 
I cringed. It's a rare occasion when James gets angry enough to raise his 
voice...and he was furious now! "I don't think you need ta be hearin' dis," I 
whispered as I placed my paws on either side of the baby bird's head. 
"This isn't about Temacu, is it?" Jessie huffed. 
"BINGO!" came his reply. 
Jessie's eyes widened. "James, don't tell me you're still upset about that fake 
wedding plan! You KNOW I wouldn't have made you go through with it! Why are you 
so bent out of shape about this?!" 
"Well, how the hell do you expect me to react, Jessie?!" James demanded. "That 
bimbo was all over me, and I was looking for you to throw me a lifeline! But 
what did you do instead?! You threw me like a piece of meat to a den of wolves, 
that's what!" 
Jessie rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah. A ditzy, fickle teeny-bopper who passes out 
when she gets wet! That's SUCH a den of wolves! How on earth did you manage to 
survive, James?!" 
"That's not the point!" he shouted. 
"Then what is?!" she cried. 
James ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I can't believe you! I can't 
believe you think so little of our relationship that the thought of me marrying 
another woman doesn't even bother you!" 
Jessie looked as if James had just slapped her across the face when he said 
this. 
"I wanted to capture the pokemon in that lab just as much as you did -- I'll 
give you that," he continued. "But why did you have to make a total mockery of 
our love in order to do it?!" 
Now Jessie looked angry again. "Me?! What about you, Mister Don't say 'fiance,' 
that word gives me the heebie-jeebies?!" she shouted. 
"NO! Don't you DARE make this my fault, Jessie!" he shot back. "That 
fiance-phobia had NOTHING to do with you -- I was referring to Jessiebelle, and 
you know it!" 
Jessie bit her lip and turned away from him. 
"And that's why I'm so upset!" he told her. "Our relationship is the most 
important thing in the world to me, but it's like you don't even care! You 
would've had me marry Temacu, just so you could catch a few lousy pokemon...just 
like the time you tried to make me marry Jessiebelle so that you could get your 
hands on my parents' money! You have no idea how much you hurt me on that day, 
Jessie...and you hurt me like that again today!" 
I could see tears welling up in Jessie's sapphire eyes. "You don't 
understand...." she whispered. 
"Oh, I understand, alright!" he interjected. "You used me, Jessie! You put me in 
a really uncomfortable position, and you didn't even care enough to be bothered 
by what that tramp was doing to me!" 
"STOP IT!!!" Jessie screamed as the tears began to spill down her cheeks. 
"That's not what it was at all!" 
"Then what was it?" James demanded. "Tell me!" 
"James, I KNEW that little flake wasn't going to get anywhere with you! I saw 
that you weren't interested in her, and I knew that I didn't have anything to 
worry about! It wasn't because I don't care -- it was because I trust you enough 
to know that I didn't need to be jealous!" she explained. 
James's expression softened when he heard this. 
Jessie shook her head as more tears fell from her eyes. "James, I'm so sorry. 
I...I didn't know you were still mad at me about Jessiebelle. When you saved me 
from Ayesha last week, you told me that you wanted me to leave all of those 
things from the past behind. But how can I do that? How can I forgive myself for 
something you haven't forgiven me for yet?" 
James reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Jess, I didn't mean it 
like that," he said quietly. "I'm not angry with you about Jessiebelle -- I 
never was. I wouldn't have come back to you that night if I hadn't forgiven you. 
And I still mean what I told you last week -- I don't want you to punish 
yourself for things that don't matter anymore." 
Jessie sniffled and closed her hand over his. 
"All I'm saying is that it's still possible to hurt somebody, even when you 
don't mean to," he continued. "Even though you hurt me on that day, I know you 
didn't mean to, and I forgave you. But answer me this, Jessie. If you know that 
what you did to me then was a mistake, and you regret it, then why did you make 
the exact same mistake today? Why did you hurt me like that again?" 
Jessie closed her eyes and exhaled in a ragged breath. "You're going to think 
this sounds so lame," she whispered. 
"Try me," he whispered back. 
After a long pause, Jessie opened her eyes again. "I...I honestly didn't think I 
was making the same mistake," she told him. 
James raised an eyebrow. 
"I didn't see Temacu as somebody who'd hurt you or frighten you the way 
Jessiebelle did, and I knew that our love for each other was strong enough that 
she wouldn't be able to come between us," she explained. "That's why I didn't 
think it'd be a big deal for you to feign interest in her for a couple hours. 
And I even said that you didn't have to marry her. I thought you knew that...." 
"Yes, but it's not nice to toy with people," he replied. "Even if she was 
shallow and fickle, that girl still liked me for awhile -- it made me feel 
sleazy to take advantage of that. That's what your old boyfriends were like, 
Jess -- they toyed with you and tossed you aside the moment they realized you 
weren't going to give them what they wanted. I thought you, of all people, 
would've known how wrong that is." 
Jessie buried her face in her hands and began to cry again. 
James put one of his arms around her waist and cupped her chin in his free hand. 
"I'm not that kind of man...and I never want to be that kind of man!" he told 
her as his eyes began to fill with tears, too. "Our love is so precious to me, 
Jessie -- I don't ever want anybody or anything to make a mockery of it or 
cheapen what we have! I love you too much for that." 
"I love you, too," Jessie muttered as she returned his embrace. "Please forgive 
me, James." 
James smiled tenderly at her. "Of course I forgive you, angel...but only if you 
forgive yourself." 
Jessie smiled back and hugged him more tightly than ever. 
As the two of them sat down together on the couch, I found myself smiling, too. 
I was glad that they'd worked this misunderstanding out and talked to each other 
right away instead of shutting each other out until things became explosive the 
way they used to when their relationship was just beginning. They've always been 
a great couple, but they're a better couple now than they were in the past -- 
they'd made the transition from teenage love to a serious adult relationship. 
And as I watched them continue to hug each other and share a healing cry, I 
suddenly got an idea! 
I removed my paws from the baby bird's head and grinned. "Kiddo, I do believe 
I'm havin' a genius moment!" 
The baby gave me a quizzical look. "Cheep?" 
I winked at him and jumped down from the table. "Just sit back and watch yer 
uncle Meowth in action!" 
When I went into the living room, I saw that Jessie and James had stopped 
crying. They were still in each other's arms, and their lips were locked in a 
tender kiss. 
"Heh. Am I safe in assumin' dat the knock-down drag-out fight is over?" I asked. 

Jessie and James drew their lips apart and looked down at me. 
"Leave us alone, Meowth," Jessie muttered as she brushed the last of her tears 
away. 
"Yeah," James chimed in. "We don't need you lecturing us about our fighting!" 
"I ain't here ta lecture ya or make fun of ya," I told them. "Truth be told, I'm 
proud of youse guys." 
"Proud of us?" they said in unison. 
"Look, every couple argues now and den -- dat just comes with the territory. I'd 
be more worried about youse guys if you was happy-happy joy-joy all the time," I 
explained. "I'm proud of ya cuz when ya argue nowadays, yer a lot more mature 
about it den ya use ta be. I think youse guys have grown up a lot since gettin' 
tagedda." 
This made them smile again. 
"Which is why I wanted ta talk to ya," I continued. "I have an idea for how 
youse guys can prevent another fight like dis from happenin' and ensure dat 
nobody ever comes between ya again." 
Jessie raised an eyebrow. "Really?" 
"Do tell!" James exclaimed. 
I folded my arms across my chest and grinned at them. "Well, since yer always 
talkin' about how ya wanna get married someday...and ya already act like an old 
married couple, argue like an old married couple, and make up like an old 
married couple...." 
The two of them leaned closer. "Mmm hmm? Mmm hmm?" 
"Why don't ya just go ahead and get married, already?!" I concluded. 
"G-g-g-get married?! Now?!" Jessie stammered. "Meowth, you can't be serious!" 
"Yeah!" James cried. "We're only eighteen, and...." 
"And dat means yer both legally adults!" I argued. "What's wrong? Ya think yer 
too young now, but bein' in yer twenties is automatically gonna make ya ready 
for marriage? If yer old enough ta make love all the time and be engaged ta be 
engaged, den yer old enough ta go a step further and tie the knot, I say!" 
"That's not what I meant," he said. 
"Den, what did ya mean?" I asked. 
"I just mean that we can't afford it yet," came his reply. "Believe me, Jessie 
and I are physically, mentally, and emotionally prepared to get married...but 
we're NOT financially prepared! I want to give Jess the best wedding money can 
buy, and I'm NOT compromising on that! But it's going to take a couple more 
years of saving before that can happen. I thought you understood this, Meowth." 
"I do! And dat's the beauty-part of dis whole plan!" I told him. "You and Jess 
can have a weddin' now, and it won't get in the way of yer dream-weddin' when ya 
finally are ready!" 
Now they looked confused. 
I gave them a sly smile. "Aw, come on, guys! Don't tell me dat with all the fake 
weddin' schemes we've cooked up before, ya never once thought about havin' a 
fake weddin' for yerselves!" 
"A fake wedding?" they said in unison. 
"Sure!" I replied. "It don't need ta be nothin' big, expensive, or fancy cuz 
it's fake! Matter a fact, the more cheap and absurd it is, the better! Plus, 
it'll be a great way for youse guys ta practice for yer real weddin' and renew 
yer commitment ta each other...and it's a good excuse for us ta call a buncha 
our old friends and have a party! I can't think of a better way for us ta 
celebrate our friendship and love! And den, a couple years down the road, when 
ya are financially prepared, you can still have yer dream-weddin'!" 
"You know, this actually sounds like a good idea," Jessie remarked. 
James nodded. "It sounds like it'll be a lot of fun! Romantic, too!" he agreed. 
"This is your best plan ever, Meowth!" 
I buffed my claws on my fur and smiled proudly. 
"That settles it!" James exclaimed. With that, he got down on one knee and took 
Jessie's hand in his own. "Jessica?" 
Jessie blushed. "Yes, James?" 
"Will you pretend to marry me?" 
She nodded and put her arms around him. "Yes, James! I'd love to be your fake 
wife!" 
"So, we're definitely doin' dis?" I ventured as James scooped Jessie into his 
arms and pressed his lips to hers again. 
"Definitely!" Jessie replied between kisses. 
"We'll start making arrangements in the morning," said James. "But first, Jessie 
and I have some...other business to attend to." 
"Like havin' some super-hot make up sex for dat fight ya had earlier?" I 
snickered. 
James nodded and began carrying Jessie to the bedroom. "Yes. And after that, 
some super-hot fake engagement sex! I think I'm going to be up all night!" he 
quipped. 
"Oh, James!" Jessie giggled. 
I winked at them. "Have fun!" 
"Oh, we will!" they replied. 
Once they'd closed the bedroom door, I went back to the kitchen and seated 
myself at the table. The baby was still munching on pokemon treats. 
"What'd I tell ya, Junior? Yer uncle Meowth is a genius!" I said to him. 
He stopped eating and nodded approvingly. 
"Now I just need ta figure out how we're gonna do dis fake weddin'!" I 
continued. 
The baby preened his downy feathers for a moment and looked back at me. "Cheep! 
Cheep!" he said. 
"Yeah, I know it's gonna be low-budget, but it's still gonna be a lotta work!" I 
replied. "I need ta get a guest list tagedda, and I've gotta decide on a time 
and place for dis thing before I can mail out the invitations...and I need ta 
get Jess and Jim's approval on all dat -- since it's dere weddin', dey have the 
final say on everythin'. Jeez, den dere's the caterin', the rings, reception 
activities...suddenly, yer uncle Meowth don't feel like such a genius 
anymore...." 
Articuno cocked his head and went back to eating. 
I waved my paw at him. "Ah, what am I tellin' you for? Yer too young ta 
understand," I groaned. 
At that moment, one of Jessie's poke balls rolled out of her backpack, and 
Wobbuffet emerged. Hey, Meowth. What's up? he asked. 
I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw him. "Wobbu! Boy, am I glad ta see you!" 
Heh. That's a first, he said sardonically. Where are Jessie and James? 
I facefaulted as the sound of Jessie and James blissfully moaning each other's 
names and crying out in ecstasy reverberated from the bedroom. "Do I really need 
ta answer dat question?" 
Wobbuffet smirked. Ah. I thought I heard them fighting earlier. Now I guess 
they're making up! 
I smiled again. "Oh, it's more den just make up sex dis time, Wobbu!" 
What do you mean? he queried. 
My smile became a grin. "Wobbuffet, my friend, Jessie and James are gettin' 
married!" I announced. "Jimmy just popped the question, and Jess said yes!" 
Now Wobbuffet was grinning, too. Really?! That's wonderful! he cheered. I know 
they've been planning this for ages, and now it's finally happening! 
"Well, sort of," I said. "Dey ain't officially gettin' married just yet. Dis is 
gonna be more of a fake weddin' ceremony." 
Wobbuffet's grin faded. A fake wedding?! Egad, man, what's the point?! 
"Dere's several, actually," I replied. I then proceeded to tell him everything 
that I'd told Jessie and James. 
Hey, you're right! This really is a great idea! he remarked once I'd finished 
explaining everything to him. 
"Yeah, but it does put me in a difficult position," I sighed. "I hafta get ta 
work on plannin' dis thing and gettin' it all organized, but I don't even know 
where ta begin...and dere ain't much I can do without Jess and Jim. Dey said 
dey'd start makin' arrangements in the mornin', but I kinda wanted ta get 
started on it now." 
Too excited to wait, huh? he chuckled. 
I felt my face getting hot. "Precisely." 
He laughed. Well, you've been waiting for this day a lot longer than I have! 
Hell! I'm as excited as all get out about this, so I can only imagine how you 
feel! 
I smiled at him. "No kiddin'! Just be glad ya didn't hafta put up with dose two 
back in the days when dey was just friends! I tell ya, nothin' was more 
frustratin' den seein' 'em madly in love with each other but too afraid ta say 
or do anythin' about it!" 
Yes, you've told me this horror-story many a time, Wobbuffet replied. 
"Dat I have," I told him. "So, let's get back ta the subject at hand -- how the 
hell do I get started on plannin' dis weddin'?!" 
Wobbuffet thought for a moment. Well, you said yourself that we can't make any 
big decisions without Jessie and James, so why don't we just brainstorm for now? 
he suggested. We can probably come up with a ton of ideas, and then we can get 
Jessie and James's input in the morning. 
"Good thinkin'," I replied. "I've already got a few ideas, too!" 
Really? Like what? he prompted. 
"Well, it's prolly gonna take me awhile ta think of everybody who actually likes 
us and would wanna attend, but I do have some definites for our guest list," I 
explained. 
Like your friends, Mondo, Annie, and Oakley? he asked. 
I nodded. "Yeah! We can't have a party without dose three! Plus, Annie's got a 
keyboard -- she can play the music durin' the ceremony! And Oakley would be the 
perfect minister!" 
See! We're making progress already! Wobbuffet exclaimed. And I think I have an 
idea, too! 
"Really? Let's hear it!" I said. 
You know those rings we were gonna give Jessie and James for Christmas? 
"Ya mean the stockin'-stuffers?" 
He nodded. We can probably use them for wedding rings since the ceremony isn't 
going to be real! 
"Yeah! Dose would be perfect!" I agreed. "Why don't ya go get 'em?" 
Wobbuffet saluted me and went back into the living room. Once he was gone, I 
took out a piece of paper and started jotting down potential guests, tentative 
times and locations, and various other details. 
When Wobbuffet returned a few minutes later, he set the rings on the table and 
grinned at me. Here ya go! 
I grinned too as I picked the rings up and examined them. They were both made of 
clear plastic with silver sparkles. Jessie's ring was red with a big heart in 
the setting, and James's ring was green with a big shamrock in the setting. 
Silly and inexpensive, yet fun and stylish -- they were ideal for a fake 
wedding! "Oh, yeah!" I exclaimed. "We've got weddin' rings!" 
Articuno cocked his head at us. "Cheep! Cheep!" 
"Hey! Who're you callin' cheap?!" I asked. "Wobbu and I had ta eat twenty boxes 
a Lucky Clovers, mail in the cereal box tops, AND pay $2.95 shippin' and 
handlin' ta get dese babies! Dey're the best glittery plastic money can buy!" 
Yeah! They were worth every penny! Wobbuffet chimed in. Though we're probably 
gonna have to eat another twenty boxes and send away for the blue moon ring and 
the purple horseshoe ring so that we can still have something to give Jessie and 
James at Christmas.... 
"Yep. Sometimes friendship means makin' sacrifices," I sighed. 
So true, my friend, Wobbuffet chuckled. So true. 
And that's how Wobbuffet and I spent the rest of the night -- brainstorming and 
coming up with ideas for Jessie and James's fake wedding. It was going to be a 
lot of work, but I knew that it'd all be worth it. 
@->->- 
I awoke the next morning to the warm, sweet aroma of baking pastries. As my 
vision came into focus, I saw Jessie and James seated across from me at the 
kitchen table. Jessie was sitting in James's lap, and the two of them had their 
arms around each other. Their lips were locked in a passionate kiss. 
"I love you, Jessie...my beautiful fiance," James whispered when their kiss 
ended. 
Jessie ran her fingers through his blue-violet hair and smiled. "I'm glad that 
word doesn't give you the heebie-jeebies anymore," she whispered back. 
James placed a hand on her cheek and gently caressed her face. "It only scares 
me when a woman I don't love uses it," he told her. "But when it refers to you, 
the only word I can think of that's more wonderful is wife!" 
"I love you, James...you big flatterer!" Jessie sighed as their lips met again. 
"Ahem. I hope youse guys ain't plannin' on doin' what I think yer plannin' on 
doin' -- people eat here, ya know!" I said as James laid Jessie down on the 
table and started to undo her robe. 
Seeing that I was awake, the two of them blushed and released each other. 
"Well, good morning to you, too," Jessie grumbled, closing her robe again and 
blushing more brightly than ever. 
I laughed. "And how're the happy newlyweds-ta-be on dis fine mornin'?" 
"We're okay...though we didn't get much sleep last night," James replied as he 
took Jessie in his arms once more and planted a kiss on her neck. 
Jessie blushed again and giggled when he did this. 
"Looks like you were busy, too," he continued, pointing to the stack of notes in 
front of me. 
I grinned. "Yep! Me and Wobbu and the baby was up til who knows when makin' 
plans! We didn't get too much done since we need yer opinions, but we did get 
youse guys some rings and compile a guest list." 
"Yeah! We saw the rings," James chuckled. "Very nice!" 
"And we'll go over some of the other stuff after breakfast," Jessie promised. 
"Speakin' a which, what are we havin' for breakfast?" I asked. 
"Cheese danish. Jess and I made them from scratch," came James's reply. "And 
they should be done any minute now!" 
My mouth began to water when he said this. Nobody makes better cheese danish 
than James, and we hadn't had a treat like that since our stay at the Sunflora 
Lodge! Today promised to be a good day! 
Suddenly, the oven timer went off, and Jessie and James jumped from their seat. 
While James pulled the pastries out of the oven and set them on a platter, 
Jessie mixed up some powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk in a large bowl. 
Once they were cool enough, Jessie and James drizzled the glaze onto the 
danishes and brought them to the table. 
"Breakfast is served!" James announced. 
The sound of his voice and the aroma of the food roused Wobbuffet and Articuno 
from their slumber, and their mouths began to water, too. 
Jessie laughed as she fixed a plate for Wobbuffet and took a danish for herself. 
"So, let's take a look at this guest list, Meowth," she said. 
James seated the baby bird on his lap and fed him a piece of pastry. "Yeah! 
Let's see how many friends we have." 
I nodded and handed the list to them. 
"Hmmm...yeah, we definitely want to invite Mondo, Annie, and Oakley," James said 
as he perused the list. 
"Oh, I was thinkin' we could have Annie play her keyboard and Oakley perform the 
ceremony," I told them. 
"Yeah! They'd be perfect!" Jessie agreed. "I bet Oakley would come up with a 
hilarious sermon!" 
"You know what would be even funnier?" James asked. 
Jessie gave him a quizzical look. "What?" 
"If he wears his Dungeons & Dragons costume, too!" 
"Yeah! That cleric robe would be perfect!" 
Now they were laughing. 
I grinned as I listened to them. Aw, man! Dis is gonna be a riot! I said to 
myself. 
"Ooohhh! I just thought of another idea!" Jessie exclaimed. 
"What?" James queried. 
"You know that song, Aniron, on our Lord of the Rings soundtrack?" 
He nodded. 
"I want Annie to play that while I'm walking down the aisle instead of Here 
Comes the Bride!" she replied. 
James became starry-eyed! "That's a wonderful idea, Jess! It's the perfect song 
for us!" 
Jessie laughed again. "We're geeks, aren't we?" 
James draped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a kiss on the cheek. 
"Yes...but I wouldn't have it any other way!" 
"Ah, who cares?" I told them. "The geekier, the better, I say!" 
The two of them smiled at me again and went back to perusing the guest list. 
"Hmmm...Lulu, Rachel, Terra, Celes, Rhiannon, Laine...yeah, I think they'd all 
want to come to our wedding!" Jessie said. 
James nodded. "And let's not forget Gary, Cairdea, Emanuela, Simone, Cassandra, 
Sofia, and Marcello. Wow. I never knew we had so many friends!" 
Jessie looked at the list again and raised an eyebrow. "The Cat Islanders? Are 
they those people who thougt you were the Great Meowth of Bounty?" 
I grinned sheepishly. "Uh...I put 'em down as a maybe. I...well...dey really 
liked Me-owth...and I'm sure dey woulda liked youse guys too if I hadn't 
commanded 'em ta throw ya offa the island. I thought, since dis is gonna be such 
a happy day for me, it'd be nice if I could invite a few of 'em so dey could 
share my happiness and see what wonderful friends ya are," I explained. "But if 
ya don't want...." 
James placed a hand on my head and silenced me. "Go ahead and keep them on the 
list," he said. "Inviting them to share in your friendship and happiness is a 
wonderful gesture...and it's a much greater bounty than money will ever be." 
Jessie reached over and scratched behind my ears. "James is right -- you really 
are the Great Meowth of Bounty!" 
Tears filled my eyes as I smiled up at my two friends. "Thank you," I whispered. 

They smiled back and looked at the list again. 
"Hmmm...the boss isn't on here," James remarked. "Shouldn't we invite him, too?" 

"James, do you really think the boss would be interested in something like 
this?" Jessie asked. 
"You're right, Jess -- he'd just think it's a bunch of nonsense," James sighed. 
"Okay, forget the boss." 
Suddenly, Jessie frowned. "I have a question, Meowth." 
Uh, oh. "Yeah?" I said. 
"Why do you have Officer Jenny listed as a guest?" she asked. 
"It was three in the mornin' when I was writin' dis thing! Gimmie a break!" I 
grumbled. 
"Being half-asleep is no excuse!" she snapped. "Why the hell would the thought 
of inviting somebody who's always out to get us even cross your mind?! Jeez, you 
might as well invite the twerps, too!" 
"Dat ain't what I meant!" I retorted. "I meant dat I shoulda been more specific 
about which Officer Jenny it is." 
"What difference does it make? Every single Officer Jenny out there hates us!" 
she argued. 
"Not the one from The Big Orange. She seemed ta like us just fine, if I recall 
correctly," I explained. "She even wanted ta give us a reward for helpin' her 
bring Botch and Crappidy ta justice, and she was sorry ta see us go!" 
"Hey, you're right," said James. 
"Anyway, I just thought it'd be nice ta invite her, seein' as how she's one a 
the few people out dere who actually gave us a chance," I continued. 
Jessie and James exchanged looks. 
"What do you think?" Jessie asked. 
"Meowth is right," James replied. "It couldn't hurt to invite this Officer 
Jenny." 
She nodded. "Yeah. But only this one!" 
James turned back to me and smiled. "Okay, Meowth! She stays on the list." 
Jessie smiled, too. As she consulted the list again, however, her expression 
became grim. "Oh, no. No...." 
Now James was frowning, too. "What's wrong, Jess?" he asked, placing a hand on 
her shoulder. 
"Meowth, we can't invite Blissey! We just can't!" Jessie cried. 
"Why not?!" I demanded. "She's one a yer best friends, Jessie! How could ya NOT 
want her ta be at yer weddin'?!" 
Jessie closed her eyes and sighed. "It's not that I don't want her to 
come...because I do. I want more than anything to share this with her...." 
"Den, why....?" 
"You KNOW why!" she interjected. "Blissey and I promised that we'd keep our 
friendship a secret! If I invited her to the wedding, I'd be breaking that 
promise -- Nurse Joy would find out that she's our friend, and then poor Blissey 
would lose her job! I can't ask that of her, Meowth! I can't ask her to put her 
career on the line and risk destroying her lifelong dream for my sake! I'm not 
worth it...." 
James put his arms around Jessie and held her to him as she began to cry. "Oh, 
honey," he whispered. 
Jessie sniffled. "In a perfect world, I would invite Blissey to our wedding. I'd 
even ask her to be my maid of honor. But it's not a perfect world...." 
I felt a pang of guilt as I watched James stroke Jessie's hair and whisper 
soothing words to her. It had never occurred to me that inviting Blissey to the 
wedding would be so risky...and making Jessie think that her friendship was some 
kind of curse made me feel terrible. 
"I'm sorry, Jess. I didn't know it'd be such a big deal," I sighed. "I just 
thought it'd be nice if one a yer best friends could be here on yer big day...." 

"It's okay, Meowth. I know you meant well," she muttered. 
As she buried her face in James's shoulder, a smile spread across his lips. "I 
just got an idea," he said. "I know how we can still invite Blissey to our 
wedding without putting her job in danger!" 
Jessie looked up at him. "You do?" 
"When we send the invitations, why don't you just include a note with hers?" he 
suggested. "Tell Blissey not to let anybody know that she'll be at our wedding 
and to think of a good cover story. And if she can't do that without arousing 
suspicion, then she shouldn't feel obligated to attend. I know that's not much, 
but at least it gives us hope that she can be here...and even if she can't, 
she'll know that we thought of her." 
Jessie brushed her tears away and smiled. "You're right, James! I can't overlook 
her, but I don't want to get her in trouble either. This just might work!" 
James kissed the tip of Jessie's nose and rested his forehead against hers. 
"You're so sweet," he whispered. "I don't ever want to hear you say you're not 
worth being friends with or being loved, because to me, you are! You're worth 
everything to me, Jessie." 
Jessie's smile grew even wider than it already was. "I love you so much, James. 
How did I end up with a wonderful guy like you?" 
James grinned. "Just lucky, I guess!" 
After gazing into each other's eyes for a moment, the two of them went into 
another liplock. I had the feeling they were going to be doing a lot of this in 
the days to come. 
"The guest list looks great, Meowth," James said when he and Jessie drew their 
lips apart a few minutes later. "You did an excellent job." 
"Now that we know who we're inviting, do we have any ideas for when and where to 
have the wedding?" Jessie asked. 
I smiled at her and produced James's copy of the Team Rocket Field-Guide. "As a 
matter a fact, I do," I replied. "Wobbu and I conducted a bit a research last 
night and discovered dat dis safe-house is just a few miles from Cape Jasmine! 
It's a quaint little town by the sea, and it has lotsa beautiful parks, rustic 
resorts, and stuff! I was thinkin' maybe we could take a trip over dere today 
and check it out." 
Jessie and James exchanged smiles. 
"Good idea!" James exclaimed. "I'm sure we can make some solid plans while we're 
there." 
"And once we do, we can send out the invitations!" Jessie chimed in. 
"Den let's make a day of it!" I said. 
@->->- 
After breakfast, Jessie and James went back to the bedroom to freshen up and get 
dressed. Once they were ready, we all set out for town. 
And Cape Jasmine was every bit as beautiful as the field-guide said. With lush, 
green forests to the north and east and the crystal-blue sea in the south and 
west, there was a splendid vista no matter where you looked! All of the 
buildings in town were made of stone and wood, making the place look more like a 
fantasy-world than a modern-day tourist trap. The gardenias that the town was 
named for were everywhere, and they were all in bloom, perfuming the air with 
their sweet fragrance. 
I couldn't imagine a better place for a wedding! 
After scouting around for awhile and admiring the scenery, we found a little 
slice of paradise on the southern edge of town. Floral Park was right on the 
ocean, and the verdant maritime forests surrounded an expansive botanical 
garden. At the heart of the park, a cobblestone walkway lined with rosebushes 
wound around a white marble fountain and led up to a large wooden gazebo that 
had vines of ivy twined throughout its lattice structure. 
Jessie became starry-eyed as she took in our surroundings. "Oh, James! This 
place is beautiful! It makes me feel like a fairy-tale princess!" she cried. 
James and draped an arm around her shoulders and smiled. "I think we've just 
found the perfect place for our wedding ceremony!" 
Jessie returned his smile. "I can just picture it now!" she sighed dreamily. 
"You'll be standing here under the gazebo with Oakley and our pokemon entourage, 
and I'll come through an archway of roses as I walk down the aisle towards you! 
And all of our guests will be in little white lawn chairs on either side of the 
path, and that big fountain will be in the background...." 
James became starry-eyed too as he listened to her. "I can picture it too, 
Jessie!" he exclaimed. "It sounds wonderful!" 
The two of them clasped hands and rested their heads together as they continued 
to daydream about the ceremony. 
"Uh, guys? Ya do remember dat dis is supposed ta be a silly weddin', right?" I 
said. 
Jessie snapped out of her reverie and frowned at me. "Of course we remember, 
Meowth!" she replied. "But who says it can't be silly and pretty at the same 
time?!" 
"Yeah! We do everything in style...even the absurd stuff!" James announced. 
"That's what Team Rocket is all about!" they said in unison as James pressed 
Jessie's body to his and led her into a dance. 
I couldn't help but laugh at their impromptu tango...and their logic. "Can't 
argue with ya dere," I conceded. 
"You know, Jess, this would be a good place for the reception, too," James 
remarked as he dipped her. 
Jessie scanned the area and grinned as James brought her back up. "You're right, 
James! Converting it from a wedding to a party will be easy, and it'll save us 
time and money, too!" 
I nodded approvingly. "Dis place is purr-fect! Now we just need ta decide when 
ta have the weddin'." 
James closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "Well, we need to give ourselves 
enough time to make preparations...and enough time for our guests to make travel 
arrangements and get here once they receive the invitations...." 
"Let's see," Jessie muttered as she cupped her chin in her hand. "Today is 
Thursday...and if we mail the invitations today or tomorrow, it'll take a couple 
days for everybody to get them and a couple more for everybody to get here...." 
"Howzabout a week from Saturday?" I suggested. "Dat should give us all plenty a 
time. Plus, it'll be the first day a fall, so the weather should be nice and 
mild." 
Jessie nodded. "Sounds good to me." 
"Next Saturday it is, then!" James cheered. 
With that, the two of them linked their arms and began to hum The Wedding March 
as they walked down the cobblestone path together. 
@->->- 
After admiring the tranquil setting and daydreaming about the wedding for 
awhile, we went to the main offices of Floral Park and reserved the gazebo for 
September 22. Then, it was off to the local pokemon center. Jessie and James 
wanted to call Annie and Oakley to invite them personally and make arrangements 
for them to be the organist and the minister. They also wanted them to transfer 
Vulpix, Growly, Lickitung, and Sunflora to us so that Jessie could get to work 
on their outfits. 
While Jessie and James were on the phone, I brought out our laptop and started a 
new bitmap file so that I could make the invitations. After finding some 
clip-art of white roses and doing a bit of copy and pasting, I selected a Celtic 
calligraphy font and typed up a little motto announcing Jessie and James's fake 
wedding. Then, I added a paragraph giving the time and location of the wedding 
and various other specifics. When I finished, I ended up with this: 
 
As I was admiring my handiwork, Jessie and James got off the phone and returned 
to my side. 
"It's a go!" said James. "Annie and Oakley will definitely be here!" 
"And we've got the rest of our entourage!" Jessie chimed in, holding up four 
poke balls. "Four bridesmaids and four groomsmen! And little Articuno can be the 
flower bird and sprinkle rose petals everywhere before I walk down the aisle! 
Oh, they're going to be so cute, James!" 
James smiled at her and then at me. "And let's not forget our best man, Meowth!" 

Jessie's face fell when he said this. "I just hope Blissey can be here, too," 
she sighed. "If not, I'll still need to find a maid of honor...and I'd hate for 
her to miss out on this...." 
"I'm sure she'll come, Jess," James assured her. "You're one of her best friends 
in the world -- she wouldn't want to miss out on your big day for anything." 
"Yeah! Blissey'll find a way ta get here without gettin' in trouble!" I said. 
This made Jessie smile again. "I guess you're right...." 
James cupped her chin in his hand. "I know we are. Now, cheer up," he whispered, 
touching his lips to hers. 
Jessie's smile grew even wider as she kissed back. 
The two of them gazed into each other's eyes for a moment before turning their 
attention back to me. It was then that they finally noticed the little project 
I'd been working on. 
"Say, Meowth, what have you got there?" James asked. 
I grinned and turned the computer so that they could see the monitor. 
Their faces lit up as they read the invitation. 
"You did this just now?!" Jessie asked. 
I nodded. 
"It's perfect, Meowth!" James exclaimed. 
"And it's so beautiful!" Jessie added. "It really captures the essence of...us!" 

"We couldn't have done any better ourselves!" they said in unison. 
I felt my face turning red. I'd only been experimenting with possible invitation 
layouts, and this was just a first draft! I hadn't expected Jessie and James to 
like it that much! "Y-ya really think so?" I asked. 
Jessie nodded. "These are good enough to print and mail out right now!" 
"Yeah! Add that to the list of things we can get accomplished while we're here 
in town!" said James. "Good work, Meowth!" 
"Thanks, guys!" I replied. 
@->->- 
While James was hooking our laptop to the pokemon center's printer and running 
off a couple dozen copies of the invitation, Jessie wrote a note to add to 
Blissey's invitation, and I started addressing the envelopes. Once we had all 
the invitations printed, signed, sealed, and labeled, we went to the post office 
and mailed them express priority. It cost us a little extra, but knowing that 
everybody would get their invitation in one or two days, even the people who 
lived far away in southern Kanto and the Orange Islands was worth it. 
By the time we left the post office, the afternoon was half over, and we were 
getting hungry. So, we decided to go back to the gazebo in Floral Park and have 
a picnic lunch before returning to the cabin. Since Jessie and James had their 
hands full with the pokemon (and I could tell from all the flirtin' dey was 
doin' with each other dat dey wanted some time ta demselves), I volunteered to 
get lunch and catch up with them later. 
Once they'd taken their leave, I headed up the street and checked out all the 
different restaurants. With pizza parlors, sushi bars, French bistros, Mexican 
eateries, and such, there was certainly no shortage of things to choose from. 
But the spicy-sweet aroma of cajun cooking wafting from a place called Dalila's 
is what decided me. 
As I entered the restaurant and grabbed a take-out menu, the woman behind the 
counter gave me an odd look. I didn't enjoy being stared at like I was some kind 
of freak, but I guess I couldn't blame her -- not everybody is used to the fact 
that I can walk and talk like a human, after all. 
"Can I...help you?" the woman asked. 
"Yeah. I wanna order some lunch for me and my friends," I replied. 
Her brow furrowed. "....Okay. What would you like...sir?" 
"Gimmie a sec," I told her. 
After perusing the menu and deciding what to order, I looked back at the 
proprietor. She was a black woman in her late fifties or early sixties. Her salt 
and pepper hair was tied up in a bun on top of her head, and the eyes behind her 
spectacles were as dark as coal. Pinned to her apron was a gold tag that had the 
name "Dalila Garnier" etched on it. 
A strange feeling came over me as I looked at the woman. She seemed familiar 
somehow, and when I saw the name-tag, I realized who she was. The name, the old 
photographs James had shown me -- it had to be her! 
"Uh...I don't mean ta pry, ma'am, but...did you use ta work for a couple named 
Quentin and Judith Woodson a long time ago?" I queried. 
The woman raised an eyebrow. "I...I did. How do you know this?" 
"I'm a good friend of somebody who knows ya," I explained. 
"Who?" she asked. 
"Dere son, James Woodson." 
Her eyes widened when I said this. "James?! You know my Jimmy?!" she cried. 
I nodded. Oh, yeah! Dis is definitely her! 
A tear rolled down Dalila's cheek. "My Jimmy. He was the sweetest boy in the 
world...sweeter than a little tea-cake. But his parents engaged him to a 
monster! That nasty ol' swamp-witch had me fired after she moved in -- said it 
wasn't proper for James to associate with lower classes. That poor boy...I don't 
know if I want to ask how he's doin'. I can only imagine how miserable that 
rotten Jessiebelle is makin' him...." 
Poor Dalila, I thought as I listened to her. She's spent all dese years thinkin' 
James married Jessiebelle. Whatta nightmare! Then aloud, "I got some good news 
for ya, Dalila." 
She looked back at me. "You do?" 
"Yes," I told her. "James didn't marry Jessiebelle -- he ran away from home when 
he was ten, and he broke off the engagement last year...." 
Dalila covered her mouth with her hand. She was still crying, but now they were 
tears of joy. "Oh, thank God...thank God...." she whispered. 
"Now dat James is eighteen, his parents can't make him get married," I 
continued. "And oddly enough, dat's what brought us here -- next week, James is 
gettin' married ta somebody he really does love, and...." 
"James is here?!" she interjected. "Right now?!" 
"Yeah! I...." 
"Will you please take me to him?" she asked, her eyes filling with tears again. 
"Of course!" I replied. "James has told us so many good things about ya -- I 
know he'll be happy ta see ya again! But first...can I order some lunch?" 
Dalila laughed. "If you're a friend of my little Jimmy, then lunch is on the 
house!" she exclaimed. 
@->->- 
Once she'd filled a large picnic basket with fried catfish, red beans and rice, 
a fresh loaf of honey cornbread, and a few bottles of soda, Dalila closed her 
restaurant for the afternoon and followed me to the park. 
When we arrived, I saw Jessie and James sitting together under the gazebo. All 
of the pokemon were either playing in the grass or napping beneath the trees. 
"There he is," Dalila whispered as her eyes grew moist with tears again. "Oh, 
I'd recognize my little Jimmy anywhere!" 
"Wait here," I said as I took the picnic basket from her. "I want dis ta be a 
surprise." 
Dalila nodded and hid herself behind the fountain. 
"Hey, guys! Lunch is served!" I announced as I walked over to the gazebo and 
held up the picnic basket. "Cajun catfish with all the fixins!" 
"It smells delicious, Meowth!" Jessie replied. 
"Yeah! It kind of reminds me of our chef's homecooking when I was a young lad," 
James remarked. 
"Funny you should mention dat," I told him. 
James raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And why is that?" 
I grinned and looked back towards the fountain. "Come on out!" I called. 
After a moment, Dalila emerged from behind the fountain. 
James's eyes widened, and his jaw dropped when he saw her. "It...it can't be!" 
he stammered. "D-Dalila, is that you?!" 
Dalila nodded and held out her arms. 
James's eyes filled with tears as he raced to her side and swept her into an 
embrace. 
"Is this one of the servants he used to be friends with?" Jessie asked. 
"Yeah! Dis is the chef he's always tellin' us about!" I replied. 
Jessie smiled and looked back at the two of them. 
"Oh, Jimmy! Oh, my sweet little tea-cake!" Dalila cried as she threw her arms 
around James. "I can't believe it's really you!" 
"Dalila...I missed you so much," James whispered. 
After a moment, Dalila released James and held him at arms' length. "Let me get 
a look at you," she sighed. "Oh, my little tea-cake's all grown up...and what a 
handsome young man you've become! Goodness, how long has it been?" 
"About ten years now," James replied. "The place just wasn't the same after you 
left -- mom and dad hired all new servants...except for Hopkins." He paused for 
a moment and sighed. "I've always felt terrible about that -- it was my fault 
you lost your job...." 
Dalila grabbed James by the shoulders and gave him a gentle shake. "No! Don't 
you ever blame yourself for what happened to me, Jimmy! It was your parents and 
that bitch they wanted you to marry! They're the ones I blame, not you!" She 
smiled again. "Besides, I've got a better job now -- I own my very own 
restaurant! Except for worryin' myself to death every time I thought about you 
marryin' that Jessiebelle, I've been doin' just fine!" 
"Well, as you can see, I didn't marry her," said James. "I used the inheritance 
my grand-papa left me to get away from there...." 
When she noticed the grim expression on James's face, Dalila frowned, too. "I 
heard about your grandparents passin' on. Jim and Rose Morgan was good people, 
and I know you were very close to them. I'm sorry, James." 
James sniffled and brushed away the tears that filled his emerald eyes. "I miss 
grand-mama and grand-papa so much, Dalila...but thanks to them, I have a better 
life now. I may not have the best job in the world, and I don't make a lot of 
money, but none of that matters to me. I have my freedom, I have friends who 
love me for who I am, I have wonderful pokemon, and I have a new fiance whom I 
love more than life itself." 
Dalila smiled again. "Yes, a little cat told me that you're gettin' married next 
week!" 
James blushed. "Actually, this is more of a commitment ceremony with a comical 
twist...but yes, Jess and I do have plans to get married soon." 
"Well, whatever it is, I hope you're invitin' me!" Dalila laughed. 
"I wouldn't have it any other way!" James replied. 
"Is that the lucky lady over there?" Dalila asked, pointing to Jessie. 
James nodded. "Yes, that's her. I believe it's time for a formal introduction." 
Before leading Dalila to the gazebo, however, he leaned closer and whispered 
something into her ear. 
Jessie and I exchanged looks. We both knew that James was warning Dalila about 
Jessie's resemblance to Jessiebelle. 
"Don't worry," I whispered. "James and I know the truth...and Dalila's a nice 
lady -- I'm sure she ain't gonna hold it against ya." 
"I know. But, still...." Jessie whispered back. There was no missing the sadness 
in her voice -- no matter how much reassurance she got from me and James, it was 
always going to bother her that she looks like Jessiebelle. 
Once he'd returned to our side, James took Jessie by the hand. "Dalila, this is 
my fiance, Jessie. Jessie, this is Dalila, an old friend of mine." 
A nervous smile made its way across Jessie's lips. "Pleased to meet you, ma'am," 
she said softly, extending her free hand. 
Dalila squinted at Jessie for a moment as she took off her spectacles and 
polished them. When she put them back on, she smiled and shook Jessie's hand. "I 
see what my Jimmy was talkin' about. There's a light in your eyes...a light that 
shows you're every bit as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside, he 
said. I see it...." 
"My Jessie is everything that Jessiebelle isn't," James said as Jessie and 
Dalila shook hands. "She's sweet, she's gentle, she's affectionate, and warm, 
and humble, she loves me for who I am, and she makes me happy!" 
Now Jessie was blushing. 
Dalila's smile became a grin. "Bless your heart, child! You were afraid I was 
gonna think you were...her, weren't you?" 
"It did occur to me," she admitted. 
Dalila shook her head. "If there's one thing I know about my Jimmy, it's that 
he's got high standards -- only a very special woman could capture his heart the 
way you have," she chuckled. "When he told me about that light in your eyes and 
said that he loves you more than life itself, I knew there was no way in hell 
you could possibly be Jessiebelle!" 
Jessie breathed a sigh of relief. 
"Besides," Dalila continued, cupping Jessie's chin in her hand, "you're much 
prettier than that little heifer ever was!" 
James snaked his arms around Jessie's waist and planted a kiss on her cheek. 
"Yes! I agree!" he said slyly. 
Jessie smiled at James and returned his embrace. "I can see why you like her so 
much, James -- she's got good taste!" 
Dalila sighed dreamily as she watched Jessie and James hugging and gazing into 
each other's eyes. "Oh, tea-cake, I'm so happy for you! I'm so happy to see you 
again, I'm so happy that you got away from that rotten Jessiebelle, and I'm so 
happy that you've found such great friends! 
"You were always such a sweet boy...as kind-hearted and adorable as could be!" 
she continued, her eyes filling with tears again. "I'm so glad that you didn't 
let anybody change you. You can't imagine how happy I am to see what a wonderful 
man you've become, James! I know you're gonna make Jessie very happy...as happy 
as she makes you!" 
"He does, Dalila," Jessie told her. "He does...." 
Jessie, James, and I spent the rest of the afternoon with Dalila. She and James 
reminisced about the old days and swapped stories about what they'd been doing 
since they last met, Dalila played with Growly (who was also very happy ta see 
her again) and met the rest of the pokemon, and she got better acquainted with 
me and Jessie. 
When it started getting dark, Dalila invited us back to her restaurant for 
dinner, and she also volunteered to cater the wedding reception free of charge! 
Jessie and James protested at first -- she'd already given us two free meals, 
and they didn't want Dalila to blow her budget on their account, but she was 
adamant. She was every bit as excited about the wedding as we were, and she told 
us to consider it her gift. James knew from personal experience that it was 
impossible to win an argument with Dalila, so he and Jessie conceded. 
I know they felt guilty for accepting such an extravagant gesture, but I 
couldn't have been happier! I'm the last person who's gonna protest when 
somebody offers us free food with no strings attatched, and knowing that Dalila 
wanted to do this for us set my conscience at ease. Besides, her offer to help 
meant that there was one less thing we had to worry about where planning the 
wedding was concerned! 
Crossing paths with Dalila couldn't have been a coincidence. It had to be 
another sign that this wedding was meant to be! 
@->->- 
The days that followed were some of the longest...and shortest of all my nine 
lives. Anticipation made it seem like September 22 would never come, but at the 
same time, each passing day was filled with excitement, and making preparations 
for the wedding ensured that I was never bored. 
Dalila came to the cabin that weekend and helped us plan the menu for the 
reception. Jessie and James wanted to keep things simple, but Dalila insisted 
that she'd make anything they wanted, no matter how extravagant. They finally 
reached a compromise and agreed on a simple yet elegant menu of spinach salad, 
honey dijon chicken, and honey wheat-berry rolls for dinner and sparkling cider 
as a beverage. 
Once the menu had been taken care of, the three of us went back to town to run 
more errands. Jessie went to the craft store to buy fabric and sewing supplies 
so that she could make the bridesmaid and groomsman outfits, and James went to 
the grocery store to buy the ingredients he was going to need to make the 
wedding cake. Meanwhile, I went to a novelty store and bought a pair of bride 
and groom dolls and a set of model paints. After we met up again, we went to the 
drycleaners, and Jessie took the tuxedo and wedding gown she'd made last summer 
for our Nidoran-napping plan out of storage. 
Since she'd originally made the bridal gown for James and the tuxedo for 
herself, Jessie had more than a few alterations to make on them now. 
Fortunately, since James didn't have to bake the cake until the day before the 
wedding, he was at her beck and call for the refitting and refurbishing of the 
tuxedo. It didn't take her very long either -- by Monday night, she'd broadened 
the shoulders of the jacket, lengthened the sleeves and pant legs, and let out 
the waistline so that the suit would conform to James's masculine frame rather 
than her smaller, feminine one. 
Once the alterations to the tux had been made, Jessie got to work on the gown. 
After hemming the skirt and bringing in the waistline so that it would hug her 
hourglass figure, she decided that she didn't like the way the high collar and 
puffy sleeves (dat she'd originally put on it ta conceal James's muscular chest 
and arms) looked on her, so she tore them off and re-seamed the edges. The new 
plunging neckline and tank-sleeves were much more flattering, and the ice-blue 
embroidery on the bodice, which she'd left intact, was the perfect accent. 
Jessie also got rid of the veil (arguin' dat it was a sexist and outdated 
vestige of an era when brides was given as property ta dere husbands...and dat 
hidin' her lovely face was a crime against nature anyway) and opted to simply 
twine a white rose in her hair instead. 
They were going to be the most beautiful bride and groom! 
After she'd finished the tux and the gown, Jessie took the blue satin she'd 
bought at the craft store and used it to make little bowties for Weezing, 
Growly, Wobbuffet, Victreebel, and Articuno. Then, she took the red silk roses 
she'd bought and made little floral tiaras for Arbok, Vulpix, Lickitung, and 
Sunflora. (Fortunately, she didn't hafta make anythin' for Me-owth since I 
already had a formal suit.) 
Meanwhile, James concerned himself with other things, like planning the layout 
for the wedding ceremony and the most efficient way to convert it to the 
reception once the ceremony was over. He also went through the MP3 collection on 
his computer and burned a CD of romantic rock songs that he and Jessie enjoyed 
so that they could have something to dance to at the reception. 
While Jessie and James were busy with their tasks, I took the bride and groom 
dolls that I'd bought at the novelty store and started painting them. I gave the 
bride sparkling sapphire-blue eyes and painted her long mane of hair a rich 
shade of crimson. Then, I gave the groom glittering emerald-green eyes and 
painted his long hair, which was pulled back in a ponytail, a deep blue-violet 
hue. I even painted a little blue-violet wisp in his face! When I was done, the 
two dolls bore a striking resemblance to my two friends -- they'd be the perfect 
toppers for the wedding cake! 
Once I'd finished painting the dolls, Wobbuffet and I put our heads together and 
did more brainstorming about what kind of activities to have at the reception. 
Along with the standard best man's speech, toast, tossing of the garter and 
bouquet, cutting the cake, and opening the presents (if dey got any, of course), 
we also decided that it'd be fun to make Jessie and James play a little version 
of The Newlywed Game to test just how well they knew each other. (And lemme tell 
ya, Wobbu and I had a blast comin' up with the questions for Me-owth ta ask -- 
dere was a few dat was really gonna make 'em think...and more den a few dat was 
really gonna make 'em squirm!) 
And while all of this was going on, the inbox of our e-mail was steadily filling 
with responses from our invitees. Everybody had received their invitation, and 
almost everybody was planning to attend! (The only people who couldn't make it 
to the wedding were Emanuela and Simone -- the two of 'em were in Italy cuz 
Manu's mother had fallen ill, and dey needed ta stay with her until she was 
feelin' better. But even though dey'd had ta decline our invitation, dey sent us 
dere best wishes and love, and dey promised ta get a nice wedding present for 
Jessie and James when dey got back from Italy.) 
Now I really couldn't wait for the big day to arrive! 
@->->- 
On Friday morning, James got to work on baking the cake. He and Jessie had 
decided ages ago that they wanted a red velvet cake for their wedding since 
that's their favorite flavor, so that's what he was making now. And what a cake 
it was gonna be! I'd seen the preliminary sketches and ingredient calculations 
that James had done beforehand -- when this cake was finished, it was going to 
be three tiers high and covered from top to bottom in cream cheese icing and 
frosting roses! (Just thinkin' about it made my meowth water!) 
The other pokemon and I watched intently as James measured and mixed the 
ingredients, and Jessie did whatever she could to assist him. Once the batter 
was ready, he had to bake the tiers one at a time since they were so big. It 
took several hours, but when James finally put the last tier into the oven, he 
let me, Wobbuffet, and all the other pokemon lick the beaters of the electric 
mixer and the bowls. (And if the batter was any indication, dat cake was gonna 
be the best -- it tasted just like the chocolate wafer part of an ice cream 
sammich, and its texture was smoother den silk!) 
While the final tier of the cake was baking, Jessie and James washed all of the 
bowls, spoons, and cups that they'd used and got to work on the icing. Jessie 
followed the recipie instructions to the letter, taking the cream cheese, 
powdered sugar, and vanilla extract and whipping them together until the mixture 
was smooth and fluffy. (Fortunately, it was a simple recipie, and dere wasn't 
really any way she could mess it up...not dat I have any room ta talk!) 
Meanwhile, James whipped some egg whites, powdered sugar, and cream of tartar 
together in another bowl. Then, he divided the frosting into several bowls and 
added different food coloring to each. When he was finished, there was a bowl of 
red frosting, pink frosting, blue frosting, purple frosting, and green frosting. 
He then put a damp cloth over each of the bowls so that the frosting wouldn't 
dry out before he was ready to decorate the cake. 
Once all three of the tiers had been baked and cooled, Jessie and James 
slathered them with icing and carefully stacked them on top of each other. Then, 
James got out his decorating tools and covered the cake with red, pink, blue, 
and purple roses and little green leaves. When he finished making the roses, he 
held me up so that I could put the little bride and groom dolls on top. 
When the cake was finished, we made another trip into town. Since the 
refrigerator in our cabin wasn't big enough to hold the cake (and since it had 
ta be refrigerated cuz of the cream cheese icin'), Dalila had volunteered to 
store it in the industrial-sized refrigerator at her restaurant. After dropping 
the cake off with her, we went shopping again and bought some flowers and a big, 
white banner. Then, we went to the main offices of Floral Park and borrowed some 
trellises, lawn chairs, and folding tables. After that, we returned to the 
gazebo and began setting things up for the ceremony. 
Jessie arranged the chairs so that there were three rows of six, ensuring that 
everybody would have a good view of the ceremony. Meanwhile, James set the 
folding tables behind the gazebo so that they wouldn't be visible during the 
ceremony, but would be easy to reach once it was time for the reception. He also 
set up the trellises, and he and Jessie began twining roses and sprigs of ivy 
into them. While they were doing all of this, Wobbuffet and I painted wedding 
bells, roses, and the words, "Congratulations Jessie & James" on the banner and 
hung it over the gazebo. 
@->->- 
Once our work was done, Jessie and James sat down together under the gazebo. 
Sensing that they wanted a little privacy, Wobbuffet and I excused ourselves and 
went to take a walk. As we followed one of the nature trails deeper into the 
park, however, I got the feeling that we weren't alone. 
What's the matter, Meowth? Wobbuffet asked, sensing my unease. 
"I think we're bein' followed," I whispered. 
The two of us paused and listened. After a moment, I heard the sound of 
crunching pine needles in the forest. Then, Mondo appeared from behind a tree. 
I breathed a sigh of relief...then I found myself getting slightly annoyed. 
"Mondo! What the hell do ya think yer doin', sneakin' up on us like dat?!" I 
demanded. 
Mondo grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, guys. Didn't mean to startle you," he 
apologized. "But I don't want Jessie and James to see me." 
"Why?" I asked. "Is somethin' wrong?" 
"No, nothing at all!" he chuckled. "I just need to speak with you and Wobbuffet 
in private -- if Jessie and James find out, it'll ruin the surprise!" 
Now my curiosity was piqued. "Surprise? What kinda surprise?" 
"Everybody you invited to the wedding arrived in town last night, and we all 
sorta hooked up," Mondo explained. "We thought it'd be fun to throw a little 
bachelor/bachelorette party for Jessie and James tonight." 
"A party? Dat's a great idea!" I exclaimed. 
You're right, Mondo -- Jessie and James will really be surprised by this! said 
Wobbuffet. 
He nodded. "And that's where you guys come in -- we need your help." 
"Help? With what?" I queried. 
"You see, we had a coupon for one of those big, hollow cakes from Cakes a 
Poppin', and we got one for the party," he replied. "But we don't want a 
stripper in the cake, so...." 
I could see where this was leading. "So, ya want me and Wobbu ta get Jessie in 
on dis and have her be the girl dat pops outta the cake instead?" I ventured. 
"Precisely! We need you to talk Jessie into it without James finding out." 
Wobbuffet frowned. That's gonna be tricky. Those two are inseperable, and they 
can read each other like a book! 
"But we can do it if we work tagedda," I assured him. "I'll tell James dat the 
guys wanna throw a bachelor party for him, and you can pull Jess aside and 
explain things ta her while I keep him occupied." 
Wobbuffet considered this for a moment. 
"Sounds like a plan to me!" said Mondo. 
"Den let's do it!" I cheered. 
"Annie, Lulu, and Sofia are up at the cake place -- it's in the shopping plaza 
on Main Street. They already bought the cake, and now they're just waiting for 
Jessie," Mondo informed us. "Everybody else is down on the beach, waiting to get 
the party started." 
"We'll see what we can do," I promised. 
Mondo smiled and took his leave. "Thanks, guys! I knew we could count on you! 
Good luck!" 
Once he was gone, Wobbuffet and I turned to each other and grinned. This was 
gonna be fun! 
@->->- 
When we got back to the gazebo, Jessie and James were still sitting together and 
making out. It didn't look like they'd even noticed our absence. 
"Ahem," I said, clearing my throat. 
The two of them reluctantly pulled away from each other and frowned at me. 
"What do you want, Meowth?" James asked with more than a hint of annoyance in 
his voice. 
"Oh, I just wanted ta let ya know dat while youse two was busy tongue-wrestlin', 
Wobbu and I went for a walk. And while we was out, we ran into Mondo," I told 
them. 
"That's nice," Jessie said, placing her hand on James's cheek and pressing her 
lips to his again. 
"Mondo sez dat all the guests are here," I continued. "And dey're all so happy 
dat youse guys was thoughtful enough ta invite 'em ta yer weddin' dat dey wanna 
express dere appreciation! The guys are down at the beach, settin' up a bachelor 
party for Jimmy, and the girls are up at the shoppin' plaza on Main Street, 
settin' up a bridal shower for Jess!" 
Now I had their attention. "A bachelor party and bridal shower?" they said in 
unison. 
I nodded. "Dey're just waitin' for youse guys ta show up!" 
Jessie and James exchanged looks. 
"What do you think, Jess?" James queried. 
Jessie smiled at him. "I think it sounds like fun!" 
"I think so, too!" he agreed. 
"Just don't get drunk, or anything," she chuckled, giving his nose a playful 
tweak. 
James took her hand in his own and kissed her fingers. "Don't worry, sweetheart 
-- after that mishap at the bike gang Christmas party, I promised myself that 
I'd never get drunk again. Besides, these are our friends. I think we can trust 
them." 
Jessie leaned closer and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I know. I just wanted to 
hear you say it." 
After sharing one more passionate kiss, Jessie and James released each other and 
went their separate ways. 
"I'll see you later tonight, Jess!" James said. 
Jessie nodded. "Okay! Have fun, sweetie!" 
"You, too!" 
As I began leading James to the party on the beach, I looked over my shoulder 
and saw Wobbuffet whispering something to Jessie. Her face turned as red as her 
hair for a moment, but then she covered her mouth with her hand and laughed. 
"Oh! One more thing, James!" she called after us. 
James paused and looked back at her. "Yeah?" 
"No running off with the stripper, okay?" 
Now James was the one who was blushing. 
I snickered as Jessie winked at me and started heading for town. She's doin' it! 
I said to myself. Man, I can't wait ta see the look on Jimmy's face! 
@->->- 
When James and I got to the beach, Mondo, Oakley, Gary, and Marcello were 
waiting for us. 
"Surprise!" they cried in unison as we approached them. 
James grinned. "Oh, I'm surprised, alright!" 
"Yeah!" I agreed. "We're glad youse guys could make it!" 
"Are you kidding?! We wouldn't miss this for anything!" said Marcello. 
Gary nodded. "That's right! What kind of friends would we be if we missed your 
big day?" 
"And what kind of friends would we be if we didn't give you one last hurrah 
before you slap on the old ball and chain?" Oakley laughed. 
"So, what all have we got on the agenda for dis party?" I asked innocently. 
Mondo smirked. "Well, we ordered some pizzas, and we've got a big cooler of 
soda. We don't really have anything planned...except for the giant, hollow 
cake!" 
James facefaulted. "You guys didn't hire a stripper, did you?" 
Oakley laughed again and pressed a bottle of soda into James's hand. "You'll 
just have to wait and see, won't you, Jimbo?" 
"You did," he groaned. "Oh, great...." 
Now I was laughing, too. Oh, dis is gonna be priceless! 
@->->- 
For the next half hour, the six of us just hung out together on the beach, 
drinking sodas and talking about the wedding. Before long, however, a delivery 
boy arrived with a gigantic cake. 
"Is this the Woodson bachelor party?" the delivery boy asked. 
James sweatdropped. "Yes, it is," he sighed. 
There was a collective snicker from the rest of the guys as James reluctantly 
signed for the cake. 
I snickered, too. Yeah, you ain't gonna be so reluctant when ya see who's in the 
cake, Jimmy-boy! 
Once the delivery boy was gone, Gary, Mondo, Oakley, and Marcello grabbed James 
by the arms and seated him in a chair. Then, they wheeled the cake over to him 
and began to sing an off-key rendition of Girls, Girls, Girls! 
"Alright, come on out," James groaned once everybody stopped singing. "But if 
you're going to do any lap-dances or strip-teases, then don't do them to me! I'm 
not into that kind of stuff...." 
"You don't like lap-dances or strip-teases? Could've fooled me, because you sure 
weren't acting like it last night, James!" 
James did a double-take when he looked and saw Jessie popping out of the cake. 
And when he saw that she was wearing nothing but a black lace teddy, his eyes 
widened, and his jaw went slack. 
"Surprise!" she said, seating herself in his lap. 
James smirked and put his arms around her. "Let me guess. There was no bridal 
shower in town -- you all just wanted to play a big prank on me and make me 
squirm, right?" 
"Yep! And I'd say we did a damn good job, too!" Gary remarked. 
"Hah! We really had ya goin' for a minute dere, Jimmy!" I laughed. "Ya shoulda 
seen the look on yer face when ya thought a real stripper was gonna pop out! Dat 
joke really takes the cake!" 
"Alright, that's enough!" James cried as his face began to turn red. 
Jessie giggled and planted a kiss atop his head. "You're so cute when you're 
embarrassed." 
James smiled shyly and held her closer. "Hey, Jess?" 
"Yeah?" 
"I've changed my mind about that lap-dance and strip-tease," he replied. 
"I thought as much," she whispered. "That's why I've planned an extra-special 
private show for you tonight!" 
James's smile became a grin. "Well, what do you know? Looks like I'll be running 
off with the stripper, after all!" 
"You're even cuter when you're naughty than you are when you're embarrassed!" 
she laughed. 
As the two of them pressed their lips together, the guys started snickering 
again, and all of the female guests emerged from their hiding place in the 
forest. 
"Sorry to keep you ladies waiting," Marcello apologized. 
Sofia put her arms around her husband and planted a kiss on his cheek. "That's 
okay. It's not like you guys were doing anything exciting anyway," she told him. 

"But now that both guests of honor are here, we can get the real party started!" 
said Lulu. 
Jessie blushed. "Well, before we start anything, I need to get changed -- this 
teddy isn't the most comfortable thing in the world, you know." 
"Yeah!" I laughed. "Jess ain't used ta wearin' lingerie for long periods a time 
-- Jimmy always rips it offa her after a few minutes!" 
Jessie and James's faces turned even redder than they already were. "SHUT UP, 
MEOWTH!!!!!" they shouted. 
Sofia and Marcello snickered. "The cat strikes again!" 
Gary held up his soda bottle and winked at me. "Good one, Meowth!" 
I smiled proudly and buffed my claws on my coat. "Just tellin' it like it is!" 
"Yeah, but sometimes I wish he wouldn't," Jessie grumbled as she jumped from 
James's lap and excused herself to get changed back into her regular clothes. 
When Jessie returned a few minutes later, she rejoined me and James, and we 
began milling with the guests. While James showed off his new baby Articuno to 
Sofia and Marcello (who "ooohhh"ed and "aaahhh"ed over him and thought he was 
the cutest little thing...which he is!), Jessie and Wobbuffet chatted with Lulu 
and told her about some of the adventures we'd had since we last saw her. And 
after speaking with Lulu, Jessie's attention drifted to another guest.... 
"Blissey!" she whispered. "Blissey is here!" 
James and I looked to where Jessie was pointing and saw Blissey speaking with 
Gary. As we approached, we could hear her telling Gary the story of how she'd 
tortured Ash while he was at the Happy Town Pokemon Center...and Gary was 
enjoying every second of it! 
"So, you spilled his dinner all over him, and he had to go take a shower?" Gary 
asked. 
Blissey nodded. 
"Oh man, I bet that pissed him off!" he laughed. "Mrs. Ketchum always had a 
devil of a time getting Ash to take a bath, change his clothes, and stuff." 
Yeah! That was probably the first shower he'd taken since leaving on his pokemon 
journey -- he looked pretty scruffy to me! she agreed. I scrubbed his back til 
it was raw, and it still didn't get the dirt off of him! 
Gary shook his head and sighed. "I don't think any amount of soap or scrubbing 
would work -- he's had dirt on his face for as long as I've known him. That shit 
looks permanent to me!" 
Blissey grinned. I also did something else to him because he had the nerve to 
beat up my old friend when she was trying to help me...but that's a story for 
another time! 
Gary raised an eyebrow. "Your old friend? You mean the one you gave part of your 
egg pendant to?" 
She nodded. I finally saw her again after all these years...and she's also the 
reason I'm here today -- she invited me to her wedding because she wants me to 
be the maid of honor! 
Gary turned to us and smiled. "So, you're Blissey's old friend?" 
Jessie nodded and brought her half of the egg pendant from her pocket. Then, she 
leaned down and interlocked it with the half that Blissey was wearing. "I'm so 
glad you were able to make it, Blissey!" she whispered as her sapphire eyes 
filled with tears. 
"I met Blissey a few weeks after I set out on my journey to Johto," Gary 
explained as Jessie and Blissey embraced. "She was really sweet, and she told me 
about a good friend she had while she was in nursing school. I never would've 
guessed at the time that it was Jessie, but now it all makes perfect sense. I 
remember Jessie telling me that she once wanted to be a nurse, and she also said 
that everything in life happens for a reason...and she's right. That's pretty 
cool." 
"Yes, it is," James agreed. 
Jessie sniffled. "Thank you for coming, Blissey. You have no idea how much this 
means to me." 
Don't mention it, Jess. I would've come, even if it did put my job in danger, 
she replied. 
"Fortunately, there was nothing to worry about!" a new voice said. 
Gary, Jessie, James, and I turned and saw Nurse Joy standing behind us. 
Jessie's eyes grew wide with fear. "Blissey, what's Nurse Joy doing here?! I 
told you not to let her find out about this!" she cried. 
"Why?" Nurse Joy asked. "I think it's wonderful that you invited Blissey to your 
wedding!" 
Jessie, James, and I exchanged confused looks. Why wasn't Nurse Joy upset that 
Blissey was friends with Team Rocket?! 
"After Ash, Misty, and Brock left the pokemon center, Blissey told me 
everything," Nurse Joy explained. "She told me that you were an old friend from 
nursing school, and that she never would've graduated if you hadn't helped her. 
She also explained that you didn't trick her into stealing the food from our 
pokemon center -- she said that she chose to give it to you because you were 
hungry, and that you chose to give it back and take the blame so she wouldn't 
get in trouble. I think that was a very noble thing to do...." 
James raised an eyebrow. "You mean you know what really happened, and you're not 
mad at Blissey...or us?" 
She shook her head. "Of course not! Why would I be mad?" 
Jessie frowned. "Blissey, why did you tell her?! I wanted you to keep it a 
secret! You could've gotten in trouble!" 
"She knows that...but it was a risk she was willing to take," said Nurse Joy. 
"From what I hear, you've always been a good friend to her, Jessie, and the way 
you and your friends were treated was shameful. You didn't do anything wrong to 
begin with, and you were only trying to make things better. Blissey didn't think 
it was right that you were punished for trying to help her, and I don't think it 
was right, either! That's why Blissey told me the truth -- because you didn't 
deserve to go hungry or be attacked, and I deserved to know what really 
happened. 
"I'm sorry that I didn't do something to stop Ash from attacking you," she 
continued. "And I'm sorry it took me this long to apologize for it and let you 
know that nobody thinks badly of you. It was all just a big misunderstanding -- 
I'm sure we could've sorted the whole thing out, and you could've stayed for 
dinner if...." 
"Yeah, fat chance a dat happenin' while the twerps was dere," I sighed. "Dose 
kids never cut us any slack -- whenever anythin' goes wrong, it's automatically 
our fault." 
"Ash doesn't even have the decency to apologize for condemning them when he's 
got proof that they're innocent!" Lulu grumbled. 
Gary rolled his eyes. "That sounds like Ash, all right. He's so judgemental, and 
he can never admit when he's wrong! Sheesh!" 
"Well, I know the truth now, and that's what matters," Nurse Joy replied. 
"That's why Blissey brought me along -- she wanted me to let you know that she's 
not going to get in trouble because of you...and so that I could see for myself 
what a good friend you are. You don't have to keep your friendship with Blissey 
a secret anymore, Jessie. Not with me, anyway. You and your friends will always 
be welcome at the Happy Town Pokemon Center." 
Jessie hugged Blissey again and smiled. "Thank you, Blissey. But you didn't have 
to do this for my sake." 
Yes I did! Blissey replied. Jessie, for as long as I've known you, you've always 
given me a helping hand and made sacrifices for my sake. Clearing your name and 
James's and Meowth's was the very least I could've done. And even if it did 
cause me to lose my job, then so what? I shouldn't have to be "ashamed" of you 
or keep our friendship a secret. Even if it was my lifelong dream to become a 
nurse, that doesn't mean it's worth hurting a friend over. 
James wrapped his arms around Jessie and rested his chin atop her head. "See, 
Jess! You're worth everything to the people who care about you! Never let 
anybody or anything make you think otherwise!" 
Jessie blushed. "Thanks, James." 
As she turned and touched her lips to his, I tapped Blissey on the shoulder. 
"Hey. Didn't ya mention dat ya did somethin' ta get revenge on Ash after he 
blasted us off?" I whispered. 
Blissey gave me a wicked grin and nodded. I sure did, Meowth! 
"Well, quit holdin' out on us! What did ya do?!" I exclaimed. 
Jessie shot me a warning look. "Don't be a troublemaker, Meowth!" 
"What?!" I asked. "I just wanna hear what Blissey did to the twerp! Is dat so 
wrong?!" 
"No, but if it's something...unethical, and Nurse Joy finds out, then Blissey 
really will get in trouble," James muttered. "There's probably a reason she 
didn't tell the whole story...." 
Blissey chuckled. The only reason I didn't tell the whole story earlier is 
because I didn't have a big enough audience! But if you all gather round, I'll 
be glad to tell it now! 
"Are you sure it's okay, Blissey?" Jessie queried. 
Nurse Joy smiled innocently. "I disavow any and all knowledge of the events that 
transpire in this tale." 
"I guess that means it's okay!" Gary snickered. 
"Den, whaddaya waitin' for, Bliss?! Talk, already!" I cheered. 
Blissey chuckled again. It all started one night when three children arrived at 
the Happy Town Pokemon Center, she began. I don't know what it was, but when I 
saw them, I got these really bad vibes...especially from the scruffy boy with 
the Pikachu. And as it turns out, I was right -- the kid was so whiny and 
self-centered, he gave me a headache! So, as I was telling Gary earlier, I 
decided to have a little fun with him. When I brought out their dinner, I 
"tripped" and spilled it all over Ash. Then, when he went to take a shower, I 
offered to help clean him up and scrubbed his back with a broom! Well, 
apparently, one swipe with a little straw broom was all it took to draw blood, 
so I stopped scrubbing him and decided to patch him up. I did this by pouring 
alcohol into his cuts and using a big roll of gauze to wrap him up like a mummy! 
He ended up going to bed without any dinner...and whining incessantly about how 
unfair life is and how everything bad always happens to him.... 
Jessie and James snorted, and several other people who were listening to the 
story rolled their eyes. 
"Hmmmph! I'd like ta see how long dat twerp would last if he had ta go through 
even a fraction a the shit we put up with on a regular basis," I grumbled. 
Not long, I'd wager, Wobbuffet replied. That kid is such a wuss! 
Anyway, after Ash and his friends went to bed without any supper, my old friend, 
Jessie, showed up at the pokemon center, Blissey continued. I hadn't seen her 
since nursing school, so I was thrilled to cross paths with her again! We spent 
the next few hours reminiscing about the old days, talking about what we'd been 
doing since nursing school, and Jess even introduced me to her new friends, 
James and Meowth! When I found out that they'd come to the pokemon center 
because they were starving and needed something to eat, I knew that I had to 
help them. I never would've become a nurse or evolved into Blissey if not for 
Jessie's friendship, so I decided to give them the food we had in our 
store-room. It was the very least I could do to return the favor. 
Unfortunately, when Nurse Joy found the store-room empty the next day, she 
assumed that the pokemon center had been robbed...and when she went to the 
surveillance cameras and saw that I was the one who'd taken the food, I got in 
big trouble, she sighed. But Jessie, James, and Meowth found out what was going 
on, so they brought all the food back and made up a story about how they'd 
tricked me into stealing for them. I was so touched that they'd do something 
like that for my sake that I wanted to thank them, but when I approached Jessie, 
she got her pokemon to pretend to attack me -- she wanted to make it look like I 
was atoning for my "mistake"...and didn't want anybody to find out that I was 
her friend. Once Nurse Joy and the twerps were convinced of my innocence, 
Jessie, James, and Meowth decided to leave before things got ugly, and Jess 
whispered that it'd be our secret. But then, stupid Ash went ballistic and beat 
the living daylights out of them because he was hungry and wanted the food I'd 
given them. My real friends ended up getting blasted away, and the twerpy kids 
made a big deal about how they'd saved the day. 
Several people in the audience (Jessie, James, and myself included) began to 
grumble. 
Blissey grinned again. But here's where the story gets good! After recovering 
the food, I made a big victory feast for the twerps...and then I made a very 
special dessert for them -- brownies! What Ash didn't know is that I laced his 
serving with an entire package of chocolate-flavored laxatives! He ate 'em all, 
too! Ash and his friends left town before the stuff kicked in, but I'd imagine 
he was baking brownies of a different kind for a few days after that! 
Jessie, James, and everybody else in the audience covered their mouths with 
their hands to stifle a fit of laughter. 
I thought back and recalled that Jessie, James, and I had steered clear of the 
twerps for a few days after they left Happy Town because Ash had, indeed, had a 
case of the screaming shits. We thought it had just been a stomach bug, though 
-- we never would've guessed that it was Blissey's handiwork, and that she'd 
gotten revenge for what he'd done to us! 
I started laughing, too. "Aw, man! Dat's classic! You rule, Blissey!" 
"How disgusting!" Jessie said, barely able to control her own snickering. "But 
I'm glad Ash got his just desserts for the shit he pulled on us! Thanks, 
Blissey!" 
James was still snickering, too. "I guess it's a good thing Ash left before 
those laxatives kicked in -- otherwise you might've had to change the name of 
the place from Happy Town to Crappy Town!" 
"Good one, guys!" Gary laughed. 
"Now that was a priceless story!" said Lulu. "Ash is such a jerk -- it's good to 
know that somebody got back at him for it!" 
"Yeah! Jessie, James, and Meowth told us plenty of horror-stories about him 
while they were our guests! I just might have to add this one to our 
collection!" Sofia remarked. 
"With the names and location changed to protect the identity of the innocent 
Blissey, of course!" Marcello added. 
I snickered again. "Heh! I've got the perfect title, too -- you can call it 
Ex-Lax Marks the Spot!" 
Now everybody was roaring with laughter. 
"I think quite a few of us have Ash Ketchum horror-stories to tell," Gary sighed 
once the laughter died down. "I know I sure do!" 
"I'll drink to that," Cairdea said, taking a swig of her soda. "But we shouldn't 
be ruining this party with talk of the brats -- let's get back to celebrating 
our friends' wedding!" 
Everybody turned to Jessie and James and began to applaud. The two of them 
exchanged smiles and blushed. 
Before anybody could say anything and embarrass them even more, another delivery 
boy arrived with several large, red cases. 
"I've got an order of twenty pizzas for the Parker-Woodson party," he said. 
"Yeah, that's us!" said Oakley. 
"That'll be $69.95." 
Annie got out her wallet and handed the money to the delivery boy. Then, she and 
Oakley took the pizzas and set them on the picnic table. Once they'd opened all 
the boxes to make sure the order was correct, the delivery boy took his leave. 
My mouth began to water as I grabbed a napkin and paper plate and got in line 
behind Jessie and James. Most of the pizzas were pepperoni and mushroom, but a 
few of them had green peppers, too. Others had ham or bacon on them, and there 
was even one with anchovies for me! 
Once everybody had filled their plate with pizza and grabbed a bottle of soda, 
we all sat down together on the beach blankets to enjoy our dinner. 
"You know, Blissey gave me a great idea!" Mondo remarked as he took a bite of 
his pepperoni pizza. 
"And what would dat be?" I asked. 
He smiled. "Well, since she told us a story about how Jessie and James touched 
her life, I think it'd be nice if the rest of us do the same! It doesn't have to 
be a story or a speech -- just a little something to show how much they mean to 
us." 
"Dat is a great idea, kiddo!" I told him. 
Jessie and James smiled sheepishly and blushed. 
"That's...really not necessary, guys!" said Jessie. 
"Yeah!" James agreed. "You don't have to if...." 
"Of course we do! Now, quit bein' so modest!" I interjected. With that, I held 
aloft my soda bottle. "I'll start! Ta my good friends, Jessie and James -- the 
first...and for the longest time, the only people who could accept me for who I 
am. Thank you for showin' me friendship, teachin' me dat I'm not a freak, and 
givin' me a place where I belong." 
Everybody else raised their soda bottles. "Hear, hear!" 
Wobbuffet smiled at them and saluted. Meowth just took the words right outta my 
mouth, but I'll say it anyway. Thank you for showing me love, teaching me that 
I'm not a loser, and welcoming me into your family. My life is filled with 
happiness because of you, and for that, I'll always be grateful! 
"To Jessie and James...and Meowth!" Mondo said, holding up his own bottle. "For 
teaching me the importance of friendship and unity!" 
Annie and Oakley held up their bottles, too. "To Jessie and James -- the nicest 
kids we've ever met," they said in unison. "May your friendship and love lead 
you to the bright future you're striving for!" 
Dalila smiled and brushed away the tears that were filling her eyes. "To James, 
for fillin' my life with sunshine! To Jessie, for fillin' his life with 
sunshine! And to the little cat, who made my reunion with them possible!" 
"To the Team Rocket Super Squad!" Cassandra cheered. "You helped my Paras 
evolve, and helped me make my dream come true! Thanks to you, my miracle potions 
have helped hundreds of pokemon and their trainers...and they even saved my 
grandma's life! For that, you'll always be my heroes!" 
Officer Jenny saluted us. "To Jessie and James! You helped me save the pokemon 
of The Big Orange and bring Butch and Cassidy to justice! I'm sorry that you 
left before I could thank you for what you did or give you your reward...but I 
hope you'll accept it now." With that, she handed them a certificate. 
Jessie and James smiled as they read it. 
"What is it, guys?" I asked. 
"It's...it's a declaration of citizenship!" Jessie replied. "We've been made 
official citizens of The Big Orange!" 
James's smile became a grin. "Thank you, Officer Jenny!" 
She saluted again and winked. "No thanks are necessary -- you earned it!" 
Everybody started clapping again. 
When the applause died down, one of the Cat Islanders got to her feet. "I don't 
know the bride and groom personally, but I do know Meowth," she said. "The Great 
Meowth of Bounty brought an age of wealth and prosperity to my people...but more 
than that, he taught us that friendship is the greatest wealth of all. His 
friends -- the bride and groom -- are what make him happy, and he chose staying 
with them over being a god to us. We're honored that the Great One thought of us 
on this day and chose to share his bounty with us once again. Any friend of 
Meowth's is a friend of my people -- you have our blessings, Jessie and James." 
When she finished her speech, Terra, Celes, Rhiannon, and Laine raised their 
soda bottles. 
"To Jessie, James, and Meowth, who saved our city from the clutches of evil!" 
said Celes. "You three are heroes in the truest sense of the word!" 
Rhiannon nodded. "You've shown us the meaning of heroism in this time of 
disillusionment and corruption. The establishment was screwing us, and the hero 
we were supposed to look to for help was in on it. Thanks for giving us a breath 
of fresh air and showing us that heroic fantasy is still alive and well!" 
"Speaking of heroic fantasy, you also gave us the inspiration we needed," Terra 
added. "Thanks to you, our comic book dreams became reality!" 
"You've made a lot of dreams come true!" Laine chimed in. "You guys rule!" 
Gary smiled. "I've known Jessie, James, and Meowth for a couple years now...but 
I didn't really get to know them til just recently. For the longest time, I 
didn't think of them as anything but the three Team Rocket agents that are 
always after Ash, but a couple months ago, they saved me from a pair of pokemon 
poachers. That's when I got to know them as people. I learned that Jessie has a 
sweet, nurturing side. I learned that James is an artist and a great cook. I 
learned that Meowth has a sarcastic wit, and that he's one hell of a fun person 
to talk to. I learned that they love reading Tolkien and playing Dungeons & 
Dragons, just like I do. I learned how much they love their pokemon, and how 
much they love each other. I learned about their past hardships and their dreams 
for the future. And I learned that they're good friends to have. Compared to all 
of that, the Team Rocket uniforms they wear just don't matter. Jessie, James, 
Meowth, Wobbuffet, I'm proud to call you my friends, and I'm proud to be here on 
the happiest day of your life!" 
"We're proud to call you our friends, too," said Rachel. "Wobbuffet Village is 
still grateful to you, and Lulu and I are honored to be here, representing them 
today." 
Lulu nodded. "To Jessie, James, and Meowth! And their adorable Wobbuffet! You 
saved our festival with your courage and selflessness, and you taught us that 
what we have is worth fighting for, regardless of what the law may say!" 
"We heard about that," Sofia told her. "Actually, my husband and I have heard 
about a lot of you here today and how you came to be a part of Jessie and 
James's lives. And we're proud to be counted among you." 
"You see, Jessie and James...and Meowth and Wobbuffet came into our lives in a 
very special way," Marcello chimed in. "Sofia and I were celebrating our golden 
anniversary. Our annual tradition is to have our picture taken together in the 
Sunflora field near our lodge, but this year, the weather was cold, and all of 
the Sunflora were gone. And that's when they showed up. They got our Sunkern to 
use his Sunny Day attack and make the sun come out again...and that's what 
brought the Sunflora out of hiding. Our golden anniversary picture turned out to 
be the most beautiful one of all thanks to them!" 
"And that's not all they did!" Sofia continued. "Later that evening, Marcello 
and I found them and invited them to stay at our lodge. They'd been attacked by 
Ash, and we felt bad about not doing anything to stop him, so we wanted to repay 
them by giving them a place to rest and recover for awhile. Marcello and I spent 
the whole night swapping stories with them. It was so wonderful to make new 
friends...and seeing how deeply in love Jessie and James were reminded me of how 
Marcello and I were at that age. It made us feel fifty years younger!" 
Marcello smiled. "Remembering our youth and seeing young love was the greatest 
golden anniversary gift of all," he said. "Jessie, James, thank you for the joy 
you brought me and Sofia on our anniversary...and thank you for inviting us to 
your wedding. May you spend the rest of your lives as happy and in love as you 
are now, and may your own golden anniversary be as happy as ours was!" 
With that, Sofia and Marcello held aloft their soda bottles, and we all toasted. 

"Jessie, James, and Meowth are really special to everybody here," Cairdea 
remarked. "And I'm no exception. I met Jessie and James almost three years ago. 
They'd just been promoted to field-agents, but before they could go into the 
field, they had to work with a trainee group for a few months. I was lucky to be 
one of those trainees. Jessie and James were always so kind to me, and they made 
me feel like I belonged. I tell you, when I barely escaped with my own life 
after the St. Anne fiasco and got word that they hadn't survived, it absolutely 
crushed me. I looked up to them as mentors, and I was proud to call them my 
friends, too. You can't imagine my elation when I learned that they were alive 
and well! When I finally saw them again a few weeks ago, it made me feel like I 
was alive again, too -- it was nothing short of inspirational!" She held up her 
bottle and winked at us. "And we also had a damned good time messing with that 
twerp's head and whupping him in a game of Dungeons & Dragons! Here's to you, 
Jessie and James. Here's hoping that you'll be able to retire and live normal 
lives before long. And that we can have another D & D session 
someday...Ash-free, of course!" 
When all the guests finished giving their speeches, I looked up at Jessie and 
James and saw through the tears that clouded my vision that they were crying, 
too. I knew that everybody who was here liked us in their own special way, but 
hearing it out loud made it even more special. 
Now, more than ever, I was convinced that this wedding was meant to be. The love 
and blessings of our friends was the greatest gift we could ask for, and we'd 
received it in abundance! 
We probably could've spent the whole night on the beach, chatting with our 
friends, dancing, eating pizza and cake, and drinking sodas, but tomorrow was a 
big day, and we all needed our rest. So, shortly after midnight, the party came 
to a close, and we reluctantly bid farewell to our guests. I was kind of 
disappointed that we couldn't stay longer, but as we returned to our cabin, I 
reminded myself that the sooner I went to bed, the sooner it would be Jessie and 
James's wedding day. (And believe me, dat weddin' couldn't come soon enough for 
Me-owth!) 
@->->- 
As it turned out, I didn't get much sleep anyway. All night long, I tossed and 
turned in my bed and kept looking at the clock on my nightstand, wondering if 
morning would ever arrive. I felt like a little kid on Christmas Eve, 
anticipation of what the next day would bring ensuring that I was too excited to 
fall asleep. And the fact that I could hear Jessie and James giggling and 
fooling around in the next room (Jess was givin' Jimmy dat private lap-dance and 
strip-tease she'd promised him, no doubt) sure didn't do anything to help. 
I don't know when I finally drifted off to sleep, but I awoke the next morning 
to golden sunlight and the cool breezes of the first day of fall coming through 
the window and the warm, sweet aroma of French toast wafting from the kitchen. I 
looked at the clock and saw that it was nine AM. 
Only six more hours to go! 
When I got to the kitchen, I saw that Jessie and James had already eaten their 
breakfast. Now, they were rehearsing their vows. 
"Mornin' guys," I said, fixing a plate of French toast for myself and joining 
them at the table. 
"Good morning, Meowth," James replied. 
"Sleep well?" Jessie asked. 
"No. I was too excited," I told her. "Plus, I could hear youse guys bein' 
amorous again." 
The two of them blushed. 
"Ya ready for yer big day?" I asked, changing the subject. 
James nodded. "Yeah. Just getting our lines down. I tell you, Oakley really did 
his homework -- he researched actual wedding ceremonies and brought a bunch of 
different ones with him so that we could pick what kind of sermon we want him to 
give...and what kind of vows we want to give!" 
"Well, I didn't suggest dat he be the minister for nothin', ya know!" I replied. 

"You know what was really cool?" said Jessie. "He didn't bring any traditional 
church-wedding sermons or dry civil-wedding ones -- they were all Pagan 
Handfasting-type ceremonies! It just...I don't know how to describe it." She 
paused for a moment so that she could put her thoughts into words. "Well, James 
and I don't want a big, religious church-wedding -- we're not even Christian, so 
that just isn't right for us. And we don't want a plain civil-wedding, either -- 
even if it's not in a church, we still want it to be something beautiful and 
meaningful. And...well...that's exactly what the ceremonies Oakley showed us 
are!" 
James smiled. "When Jessie and I read over the Pagan rituals, they just seemed 
right. They seemed to capture the essence of who we are, what we believe, and 
what matters most to us! It reminded me of my grand-mama, and how peaceful I 
always felt when I'd see her communing with nature. I remember she once told me 
that she and grand-papa had a Pagan Handfasting for their wedding ceremony, and 
in the back of my mind, I've always wanted the same for me and Jessie. When we 
actually read the words, and all those happy memories came back to me, something 
changed...." 
"Changed?" I queried. 
He closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "The whole fake wedding idea. At 
first, we thought it was just going to be zany and absurd, yet still 
romantic...but now I'm not so sure that's what we want," he replied. 
I felt my throat tightening. "Y-youse guys ain't gettin' cold feet, are ya?" I 
stammered. 
"Of course not, Meowth! That's not what we meant at all!" Jessie exclaimed. 
"Den, what DO ya mean?" I asked. 
Jessie took James's hands in her own and smiled. "We just meant that when we 
read over the actual ceremonies and saw how profoundly they spoke to us, it 
reminded us of a few things. That mishap with Temacu showed us that commitment 
isn't something to be taken lightly...and true love isn't something that should 
be made a mockery of. Having an absurd fake wedding just doesn't feel right 
anymore...because it's not a fake wedding -- it's a demonstration of our love 
and commitment to each other." 
"We're still going through with this, but we don't want to do it as a joke 
anymore," James explained. "We want the ceremony to be more like our real 
wedding is going to be someday. Because when all is said and done, that's what 
this is -- practice for our real wedding!" 
Now I was smiling, too. "Oh, I get it. Youse guys are goin' serious on me!" 
"Pretty much," James chuckled. "I guess it'll still be funny in places -- we've 
got those Lucky Clovers rings, and you know Oakley won't be able to resist 
throwing a few smart-ass remarks into his sermon...." 
"....But for the most part, it's going to be peaceful, and romantic, and 
beautiful...just like our real wedding is going to be!" Jessie said, finishing 
the thought for him. 
"Well, youse guys can do whatever ya want -- it's yer weddin'!" I told them. 
Jessie and James nodded at me and went back to rehearsing their vows. They 
probably thought I was disappointed that the fake wedding wasn't going to be 
such a farce after all, but truth be told, I was happy with their decision. It 
showed how seriously they took their commitment to each other. 
They'd definitely made a good choice. I knew they weren't going to regret it. 
@->->- 
After reading through the script a couple more times, Jessie and James decided 
to start getting ready for the wedding. First they gave Arbok, Weezing, 
Lickitung, Wobbuffet, and Articuno a bath, watered Victreebel and Sunflora, and 
brushed Vulpix and Growly so that they'd all be looking their best. Then, they 
dressed them up in their little bowties and floral tiaras. 
Once all the bridesmaids and groomsmen were ready, Jessie and James got into the 
shower. While they were getting cleaned up, I brushed my fur, gave myself a 
meowth-icure, polished my charm, and put on my tux. By the time I was ready, it 
was one o'clock. 
Only two more hours to go! 
After fixing myself a ham salad sandwich for lunch, I went back to the bedroom 
to check on Jessie and James's progress. They'd taken forever in the shower, but 
now they were finally getting dressed. 
"How do I look, Jess?" James asked as he buttoned the black jacket of his tuxedo 
and fastened a red rose to the left lapel. 
Jessie smiled as she straightened the collar of his white shirt and adjusted his 
red bowtie. "Very handsome. What about me?" 
James smiled back and ran his fingers through her hair, which was cascading past 
her knees since she'd left it down. Then, he twirled her around and helped her 
twine a white rose into her crimson mane. "You're the most beautiful bride in 
the world." 
The two of them wrapped their arms around each other and admired their 
reflections in the mirror. 
Suddenly, however, James's brow furrowed. "Hey, Jess, should I tie my hair back, 
or not?" he queried. 
Jessie reached up and ran her hands through his blue-violet mop. After pulling 
his hair back in a short ponytail, she studied him for a moment and smirked. "It 
doesn't matter to me -- you look sexy either way!" she replied. 
James pulled her closer and brushed his lips against hers. "Now who's the 
flatterer?" he whispered. 
Her eyes sparkled. "Just telling it like it is!" 
James looked back at his reflection. "I think I'll just leave it down," he said. 
"I don't really feel like messing with it today." 
Jessie nodded approvingly as he shook out his hair and began to brush it. Then, 
she started putting on her make-up. When they were finished, they looked back at 
each other and smiled again. 
"Well, I'm all set," said James. "What about you?" 
Jessie looked down at herself. "Let's see...I've got something old -- this 
dress. Something new -- the rose in my hair, I guess. Something borrowed...." 
Her voice trailed off for a moment as she fingered a gold chain with a broken 
egg pendant that she was wearing around her neck. "Blissey loaned me her half of 
the pendant." 
"And I guess the embroidery on your bodice counts as something blue?" James 
ventured. 
Jessie's smile became a wicked grin. "I guess it does...but I had something else 
in mind!" With that, she lifted her skirt and showed him the pair of blue 
string-bikini panties that she was wearing. 
A light sparkled in James's emerald eyes. "Ooohhh! That's even better!" he 
squealed. 
Jessie squealed too as James pulled her to him again and slid one of his hands 
into her panties. Then, she began to unzip his pants. 
"Hey, HEY! Break it up, youse two!" I snapped. "Ya don't have time for a 
pre-weddin' quickie!" 
Finally noticing that I was in the room with them, Jessie and James released 
each other and blushed. 
"What are you doing in here, Meowth?!" Jessie demanded as she pulled down the 
skirt of her dress and smoothed the fabric. 
James scowled at me and zipped his pants up again. 
"I came in here ta see if you was ready...and apparently ta remind ya dat ya 
ain't got time ta be foolin' around!" I replied. "In case ya haven't noticed, 
it's almost two! We need ta get goin'!" 
Jessie and James exchanged looks and sighed. 
"You'll have plenty a time ta make love after ya get married," I told them. "But 
right now, we have a weddin' ceremony ta get to." 
The two of them blushed again. "You're right," they said in unison. 
I nodded. "Damn right I'm right! Now let's go! Yer gonna make Me-owth explode if 
I've gotta wait any longer for dis!" 
"Jeez, you're almost as excited about this wedding as we are," James remarked. 
"Almost...but not quite!" Jessie chuckled. 
With that, the two of them draped their arms around each other and left the 
bedroom. 
Oh, if ya only knew how excited I am! I thought as I followed them. But aloud, 
all I said was, "Damn horny teenagers...." 
@->->- 
After getting all the pokemon together, making sure that I had the rings, and 
double-checking to make sure that they were looking their best, Jessie and James 
were finally ready to leave. 
By the time we got to the park, it was a little after two-thirty, and some of 
the guests had already arrived. Mondo was helping Annie set up her keyboard on 
the left side of the gazebo, and Oakley was looking over his script and 
rehearsing the sermon he was going to give. Meanwhile, Gary was chatting with 
Dalila, Blissey, and Nurse Joy. 
"Hey, everybody! Here comes the bride and groom!" I announced once we were 
within earshot. 
Everybody dropped what they were doing and came over to greet us. 
"Hey, guys!" said Annie. "Ready to take the plunge?" 
"You're not getting cold feet, are you?" Oakley chuckled. 
"We're fine," Jessie told them. 
Mondo became starry-eyed as he gazed at Jessie. "You look really beautiful," he 
sighed. 
"She sure does," Gary agreed. He was blushing. 
James smirked at them and wrapped an arm around Jessie's waist. "Eyes left, 
boys. She's mine!" he said. 
Jessie gave James's nose a playful tweak. "Like anybody else even has a chance!" 

My heart fluttered as I watched the two of them hold each other closer and press 
their lips together. There were only twenty minutes until the wedding, but to me 
it seemed more like an eternity! 
@->->- 
The next twenty minutes did, indeed, seem like forever. I sat next to Jessie and 
James on the edge of the fountain and watched as more and more of the guests 
began to arrive. As they found their seats and got comfortable, Oakley continued 
to read over his sermon, and Annie played songs on her keyboard to keep 
everybody entertained. By three o'clock, everybody was present and accounted 
for. 
It was time! 
Once all of the guests had taken their seats, Annie began to play the 
processional song -- Maria's Aria from Final Fantasy VI. 
James took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "I guess this is it," 
he whispered. 
I gave him a thumbs-up. "Go for it, Jimmy!" I whispered back. 
Jessie winked at him. "See you in a few minutes, sweetie!" 
James nodded. Then, he took another deep breath and began his walk down the 
aisle. 
Once James reached the altar, Blissey came to my side. Then, the two of us 
linked arms and began our march down the aisle. My heart was pounding harder 
than ever now, and I felt a big sweatdrop forming on my temple. My two best 
friends in the whole world were getting married, and I was here by their side -- 
it was a dream come true! When we reached the end of the aisle, I took my place 
next to James, and Blissey went to the other side of the altar. 
After a moment, Arbok and Weezing came down the aisle and took their places. 
Then came Vulpix and Growly, followed by Lickitung and Wobbuffet, and finally 
Sunflora and Victreebel. Once all of us were in place, Jessie put a little 
basket of red rose petals in Articuno's beak and signed for him to go to 
daddy-bird. Articuno flapped his wings and nodded. Then, he began wakling down 
the aisle and scattering the rose petals everywhere. By the time he reached 
James, the basket was empty. James chuckled and scooped the baby bird into his 
arms. Then, he placed him on Growly's back and ran a hand through his hair 
again. 
"Nervous?" I asked. 
James shook his head. "No. Just excited," he whispered back. 
I nodded. "So am I." 
When Annie finished playing the aria a moment later, she switched on the CD 
player and made a selection. After a few seconds, a soft, haunting melody began 
to play. It was Aniron -- the love song from Jessie and James's Lord of the 
Rings soundtrack. The first time I'd heard the song, I hadn't understood a word 
of it because it's in Elvish, but the English translation had been printed in 
the CD booklet, and Jessie and James had read and explained it me. And now, as 
Jessie took her bouquet of white roses in her hands, took a deep breath, and 
began her walk down the aisle, I could see why the song was so meaningful to her 
and James. Now, I understood why James sometimes called Jessie his beautiful 
Evening Star, and she sometimes called him her king. And as I listened to the 
words and watched my two friends, I knew why they wanted this to be their 
wedding song.... 
From darkness I understand the night. 
Dreams flow, a Star shines! 
Ah! I desire Evenstar! 
Look! A Star rises out of the darkness! 
The song of the Star enchants my heart! 
Ah! I desire.... 
When the song came to an end, Jessie took her place next to James, and the two 
of them joined hands. Annie quietly switched off the CD player and took her 
seat. 
Once everything was silent and he had our undivided attention, Oakley cleared 
his throat and began to speak. "Dear friends, we've gathered here today to 
celebrate the joining together of James Woodson and Jessie Parker in the most 
sacred of unions," he announced. "There are many things to say about marriage. 
Much wisdom concerning the joining together of two souls has come our way over 
the course of history. With each union, more knowledge is gained and more wisdom 
gathered...and with a couple of wise-guys like these, I think we're gonna learn 
a lot about love today!" 
There was a collective chuckle from the audience. 
Oh, yeah! I said to myself as I covered my mouth with one of my paws. Oakley's 
definitely gonna make dis interestin'! 
"The law of life is love unto all beings," Oakley continued. "Without love, life 
is meaningless, without love, death has no redemption. Love is anterior to life, 
posterior to death...quite possibly the strongest force in the universe. And 
marriage is a bond to be entered into only after considerable thought and 
reflection. As with any aspect of life, it has its cycles, its ups and its 
downs, its trials and its triumphs. With full understanding of this, James and 
Jessie have come here today to be joined as one in marriage. 
"Normally, this is the part of the ceremony where I'm supposed to ask who's 
giving the bride in marriage. However, since a woman isn't property to be bought 
and sold or given and taken, I ask simply if she comes of her own will. Jessie, 
is it true that you come of your own free will and accord?" Oakley asked. 
Jessie blushed as she tightened her hold on James's hand. "Yes, it's true," she 
said softly. 
Oakley nodded. "I thought as much. But before we continue, there's one more 
order of business that needs to be addressed. James and Jessie, do you know of 
any reason why you shouldn't be joined in marriage today?" 
James blushed too and smiled shyly at Jessie. "No, we don't. We wouldn't be here 
otherwise!" 
Oakley winked. "Yeah, I know. It's just a formality," he told them. Then, he 
turned his attention to our guests. "And by that same token, does anybody here 
have any reason why these two shouldn't be joined in marriage? Speak now if you 
do...though I can't imagine why our friends would invite somebody who has a 
problem with this!" 
The guests laughed again. 
"I can't think of anything!" Gary replied. 
"Neither can I!" said Mondo. 
Lulu shook her head. "Nothing comes to mind!" 
"Go for it!" Sofia and Marcello cheered. 
"Then, it's unanimous -- you're getting hitched!" Oakley chuckled. Before he 
could continue his sermon, however, there was a loud shriek. 
"A WEDDING!!!" a young woman's voice cried. "OHMYGODAWEDDING!!!! THIS IS SOOO 
WONDERFUL!!!!!" 
Jessie and James tensed when they heard the voice. 
Aw, dammit! Dat better not be who I think it is.... I thought. 
My suspicions were confirmed when I turned and saw Temacu standing in the aisle. 
Her eyes looked like they were about to pop out of her head. 
Jessie scowled. "Oh, no. What's she doing here?" she grumbled. 
James buried his face in his hands. "Oh, shit...." 
As Temacu looked around and continued to shriek, a young man with light brown 
hair came to her side. "Uh...I don't think this is the time or the place, 
shmoopie," he said, taking her by the arm. "We're bothering these people!" 
"But look how pretty everything is!" Temacu squealed. "This is exactly how I 
want our wedding to be! Only I'll be wearing a gold gown, and you'll be...." 
All of the guests began to mutter amongst themselves. 
"Uh...who the hell is this?" Oakley asked. 
James looked back at Temacu and frowned. "Some flake we ran into last week. She 
had a crush on me and wanted to marry me." 
Oakley snickered and gave Jessie a playful nudge. "Bet that led to the biggest 
cat-fight in the history of the world, huh?" 
"Nah," Jessie replied nonchalantly. "I knew James didn't like her -- there was 
nothing for me to worry about. Besides, you have no idea how fickle this girl 
is. As soon as James was out of sight, she forgot all about him." 
"Yeah. Dis new guy's prolly her flavor of the minute," I commented. 
"Too flighty for a big commitment like flavor of the week?" Oakley ventured. 
"Precisely." 
He sweatdropped. "Sheesh!" 
As Temacu kept babbling about her dream-wedding, the young man tried to pull her 
away. "I'm really, really sorry about this!" he said sheepishly. "My fiance, 
here, is just so excited about our wedding that she can't control herself!" 
"Look, lady, you can be as excited about your wedding as you want, but that 
doesn't mean you have to be rude!" Gary told her. 
"Yeah!" said Lulu. "Our friends are trying to have their dream-wedding, and 
you're ruining it!" 
"That's really disrespectful to Jessie and James!" Mondo snapped. 
At the mention of the bride and groom's names, Temacu's eyes grew even wider 
than they already were. Then, she broke away from her boyfriend du-jour and 
raced up to the altar. "J-James?! James, what do you think you're doing?!" 
"He's getting married, you twit! What does it look like?!" Jessie shouted. 
Temacu's eyes filled with tears. "But...but you were supposed to marry ME, 
James! How could you?! How could you leave me for the maid of honor, you 
two-timing cad?!" she cried. Then, she cast a venomous glare at Jessie. "And how 
dare you steal MY fiance, you slut?!" 
I placed a paw to my temple. "Jeezus tap-dancin' Christ...." 
This girl ain't the sharpest knife in the drawer, is she? said Wobbuffet. 
"No, she ain't," I sighed. 
A fire sparked in James's green eyes. "How dare YOU speak to my Jessie that 
way?!" he growled. 
Temacu gasped as she looked back at him. 
"Now you listen to me, and get this through your thick skull once and for all!" 
he continued. "I. Don't. Love. You. I never have. And I never will." 
"Wh-what are you saying, James?" she asked. 
"I'm saying that I was NEVER your boyfriend, and I NEVER wanted to marry you! 
Hell! I never even showed the remotest interest in you!" James shouted. "If 
you'd been paying attention, you'd have realized that I was already in love with 
Jessie and backed the hell off, like I kept asking you to!" 
"But...but why did she say that you wanted to marry me?!" Temacu stammered. "Why 
did she offer to be the maid of honor at OUR wedding if she was already your 
girlfriend?!" 
"She was bein' sarcastic, ya dip-shit!" I snapped. "Ya know what sarcasm is? Go 
get a dictionary and look it up!" 
"Yeah!" said Jessie. "You should've known that I wasn't being serious because it 
should've been obvious that James and I were already a couple!" Her blue eyes 
narrowed to slits as she stepped closer to Temacu and grabbed her by the collar 
of her dress. "But I'm being deadly serious now. James doesn't love you -- he 
loves ME! That's the way it always has been, and that's the way it always will 
be! So, you get the hell out of here, let us get married in peace, and never 
bother us again...or I will bitch-slap you clear into the next millenium! You 
got that?!" 
"Hmmmph!" Temacu snorted as Jessie released her. "OUR wedding would've been so 
much prettier, James! SHE'S not even wearing a blue dress to match your hair 
like I would've!" 
"That's because unlike you, I'm a one-man woman, and I can wear a white dress at 
my wedding!" Jessie retorted. 
There was a collective "Oooooh!!!!!" from the guests. 
James and I snickered. 
Unable to come up with a decent reply, Temacu turned up her nose at Jessie and 
James and walked off in a huff. "Come on, snuggle-dumpling! Let's get out of 
here!" she said to the young man. "I like YOU a lot better anyway!" 
"Yeah, but for how long?" I wondered as I watched the current boyfriend cast 
another nervous glance at us and follow Temacu. 
Jessie and James facefaulted. 
"I'm no psychic, but I predict that if she actually marries that poor guy, 
she'll be faithful to him for all of five seconds," Jessie muttered. 
"Yeah," James agreed. "And he looks like he only wants to marry her so he can 
get laid." 
"A match made in heaven," I said sardonically. 
James took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped away the sweatdrop that had 
formed on his temple. "Well, at least she finally got the message that I don't 
like her." 
"I just wish she could've done it without turning our wedding into an episode of 
The Jerry Springer Show," Jessie sighed. 
"Ah, don't worry about it," I told them. "Youse guys ruled! So what if dat 
little interruption didn't fit inta yer vision of a perfect weddin'? It still 
kicked ass!" 
When I said this, all of the guests began to applaud and chant Jessie and 
James's names, Jerry Springer-style. 
The two of them blushed more brightly than ever. 
"See what I mean?" I laughed. 
"Well, that was certainly entertaining," Oakley remarked. "But now, let's get 
back to getting this lovely couple hitched, shall we?" 
The guests applauded again. 
Once the noise died down, Oakley cleared his throat once more and continued his 
sermon. "A marriage that lasts is one that's based on true love, and true love 
only comes about through true understanding of each other. True understanding of 
another isn't something that can be achieved in a short time. Real love and 
understanding can only develop fully with years of intimacy...as that little 
interruption so clearly illustrated for us. James and Jessie, over the course of 
the past eight years, you've been best friends, boyfriend and girlfriend, and 
lovers...and now your love for each other, your knowledge of each other, and the 
intimacy you share is bringing you a step further and making you husband and 
wife! 
"With earth below and stars above, we've come to witness one of the greatest 
gestures of love two people can possibly express! James and Jessie, may your 
love be as firm and constant as the earth beneath our feet. May your union 
protect you from devastation and help you extend your reach to the stars above. 
May the powers of the mind and of the intellect guide you in your marriage. May 
the strength of your wills bind you together. May the power of love and desire 
make you happy, and the strength of your dedication make you inseparable. Have 
patience with one another, for storms will come, but they'll pass quickly. Be 
free in giving affection and warmth. Have no fear and let not the ways of the 
unenlightened give you unease, for true love is stronger than anger, hatred, and 
ignorance combined. May you be blessed with true love forever. Are you ready to 
give your vows?" 
"Yes, we are," Jessie and James replied in unison. 
"What tokens do you give that you'll keep these vows?" Oakley asked. 
I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out the red and green rings. 
"We give these rings," Jessie and James said as I handed them to Oakley. 
Oakley chuckled for a moment when he saw that the rings were made of plastic, 
but he quickly became serious again. "The ring is a symbol of the spirit; that 
which was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be -- love which is deathless 
and eternal. Let these rings represent eternity...love without end." When he 
finished his speech, he handed the red ring to James. "Take it away, Jimmy!" 
James took Jessie's hands in his own and gazed into her sapphire eyes. After a 
moment of silence, he began: 
"I, James Eric Woodson, Esquire, 
By the life that courses within my body and the love that resides within my 
heart, 
Take you, Jessica Rachael Parker, to my hand, my heart, and my spirit, to be my 
chosen one, 
To desire you and be desired by you without sin or shame, for neither can exist 
in the purity of my love for you. 
I pledge to share my life openly with you, 
To speak the truth to you always, 
To be faithful to you in love, 
And to honor and cherish you forever. 
I promise to love and tenderly care for you, 
In plenty and in poverty, 
In sickness and in health, 
For better and for worse, 
For as long as we both shall live. 
I promise to respect your needs, 
To support you in your endeavors, 
To encourage you as an individual, 
And never seek to change you in any way, 
Through all the days of our lives. 
With these words, I pledge my love, 
And with this ring, I seal my vows now and forever." 
When James finished his speech, he placed the red ring on Jessie's left ring 
finger. It complemented the promise ring she was already wearing surprisingly 
well. 
Oakley smiled and handed the green ring to her. "Now it's your turn, Jess!" he 
said. 
Jessie took James's hands in her own and gazed into his emerald eyes. Then, she 
began her vows: 
"I, Jessica Rachael Parker, 
By the life that courses within my body and the love that resides within my 
heart, 
Take you, James Eric Woodson, Esquire, to my hand, my heart, and my spirit, to 
be my chosen one, 
To desire you and be desired by you without sin or shame, for neither can exist 
in the purity of my love for you. 
I pledge to share my life openly with you, 
To speak the truth to you always, 
To be faithful to you in love, 
And to honor and cherish you forever. 
I promise to love and tenderly care for you, 
In plenty and in poverty, 
In sickness and in health, 
For better and for worse, 
For as long as we both shall live. 
I promise to respect your needs, 
To support you in your endeavors, 
To encourage you as an individual, 
And never seek to change you in any way, 
Through all the days of our lives. 
With these words, I pledge my love, 
And with this ring, I seal my vows now and forever." 
When Jessie finished her speech, she placed the green ring on James's left ring 
finger. 
The two of them smiled at each other and blushed again. Then, they turned back 
to Oakley. 
Oakley nodded approvingly. "Before we wrap things up, I'd like to speak about 
some of the things that those of us gathered here today wish for you, James and 
Jessie," he told them. "First, we wish for you a love that makes you both better 
people, that continues always to give you joy and a zest for living, and 
provides you with the energy to face the responsibilities of life. We wish for 
you a home -- an island of serenity and sanity. We hope that your home isn't 
just a place of private joy and retreat, but rather serves as a castle wherein 
the values of your life and family are generated and upheld. We hope your home 
stands as a symbol of humans living together in love and peace, seeking truth 
and nurturement through each other. We hope that it has within it the elements 
of simplicity, exuberance, beauty, silence, color, and a concordance with the 
rhythms of life. We wish for you a home filled with books, art, and music -- for 
a home with all the things that represent the highest strivings of men and 
women. And finally, we wish that your love gives you a white today and leads you 
to a white tomorrow. May your love be a light to you in dark places, now and 
forever. 
"James and Jessie, you've expressed your desire to be wed, shown your love and 
affection by joining hands, made promises of faith and devotion to each other, 
and sealed these promises by giving and receiving your rings. Therefore, in the 
presence of this company of witnesses, and by the power vested in me, I now 
pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." 
When Oakley said those words, I felt my heart filling with more joy than I ever 
thought possible. It happened! It finally happened! I said to myself, doing my 
best to hold back the tears I felt coming. But it was no use -- as soon as they 
looked into each other's eyes again, I became a sobbing wreck! 
Through the tears that clouded my vision, I saw James take Jessie in his arms 
once more and smooth back her hair. "I love you," he whispered. 
"I love you," she whispered back. 
They slowly leaned closer to each other and rubbed noses for a moment. And when 
their lips finally met, it was the most passionate, most pure, most beautiful 
kiss I'd ever seen! It was their first kiss as husband and wife -- the kiss I'd 
been waiting for since the moment I found out they were in love! It was 
everything I'd dreamed of...and more! 
And apparently, everybody else thought so, too. As Jessie and James's kiss 
deepened, all of our guests got to their feet and gave them a standing ovation. 
Several of them were even crying as hard as I was. But I doubt Jessie and James 
even noticed any of us -- they were lost in each other. 
This is the happiest day of my life! Wobbuffet exclaimed as he brushed away his 
tears. Happier, even, than the day I met you guys! I'm so glad that I got to be 
a part of this! 
"Grooooow-lithe! (So am I! Seeing James marrying his one true love is a dream 
come true for me!)" Growly howled happily. 
When their kiss finally ended several minutes later, Jessie and James remained 
in their embrace, gazing lovingly into each other's eyes. 
Oakley smiled again and leaned closer. "Normally, I'd charge fifty bucks for a 
ceremony like this, but since you guys are my friends, it's on the house. 
Consider it my gift!" he muttered. 
James chuckled. "Good one, Oakley!" 
"I'm serious," he said. "You don't owe me a cent -- it was my pleasure!" 
Jessie and James exchanged looks. "What's he talking about?" 
"Didn't you two get the memo?" he asked. 
"What memo?" Jessie queried. 
"I was doing research on alternative religions awhile back, and since I enjoyed 
what I learned, I decided to become an ordained Pagan minister!" he explained. 
"I got my license and everything last winter. If you don't believe me, ask 
Meowth -- he was visiting me and Annie at the time...." 
"So...you mean...you're a...real minister?" Jessie stammered. 
James sweatdropped. "And...this was...a real wedding?" 
"Of course! I thought that's why you wanted me to do the ceremony!" he replied. 
"W-we thought you knew this was only supposed to be practice for our real 
wedding!" said Jessie. 
"And we didn't know you were a real minister!" James added. "We thought Meowth 
was insisting on you giving the sermon because you're a good public 
speaker...and that he explained all of this to you...." 
Oakley shrugged. "Meowth didn't tell me anything. And apparently, he didn't tell 
you anything either." 
Jessie and James both cast a venomous glare at me. 
Whoops! Did I forget to mention that Oakley was a real minister and that I'd 
planned for today's wedding to be the real deal all along? Silly old Me-owth! 
"Meowth! You've got a LOT of explaining to do!" Jessie growled. 
"Yeah! If this is your idea of a joke, it's not funny!" James snapped. 
"Ah, whatta youse guys so bent outta shape for?" I asked. "Ya wanted ta get 
married eventually anyway, and ya made dis ceremony as much like yer 
dream-weddin' as possible! So what if it happened a little earlier den ya 
expected? Life is fulla surprises -- you should be use to it by now!" 
The two of them looked back at each other. 
"He has a point," Jessie admitted. 
"Yes, but I wanted our wedding to be perfect," James sighed. "I wanted you to 
have a golden band with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires, not some 
piece of cheap, red plastic...." 
Jessie placed a hand on James's cheek. "Sweetie, that doesn't matter to me. As 
much as I talk about wanting jewelry and designer clothes, that's pretty much 
all it is -- talk. I'd rather have you and a cheap piece of plastic than all the 
jewelry in the world." 
James took Jessie's hands in his own and kissed them. "You're right, honey -- I 
guess it's not so bad, after all," he conceded. "We're surrounded by old friends 
and new friends, and we had a beautiful ceremony despite Temacu's interruption. 
And I can't think of anybody I'd rather have as my bride!" 
Jessie blushed. 
"Oh, well," James chuckled as he held his new wife closer. "I'll still give you 
that diamond ring someday, Jess. And as for that real wedding we wanted to have 
a few years down the road? I guess we'll use it as an opportunity to renew our 
vows." 
Jessie nodded approvingly and returned her new husband's embrace. "Sounds great 
to me, James!" 
My smile grew even wider than it already was. "So, youse guys ain't upset no 
more?" I ventured. 
"Of course not! Even if you did catch us off-guard, we couldn't be happier!" 
James replied. 
Jessie smirked. "But we're still going to get you for this, Meowth!" 
Yeah. You'll have yer revenge for Me-owth makin' the happiest day a yer lives 
possible. I'm real scared, guys! I said to myself. Then aloud, "Well, Jimmy, ya 
did say dat the only thing you could think of dat's better den Jess bein' yer 
fiance is her bein' yer wife! I'm glad ta see ya put yer money where yer mouth 
is!" 
"Oh, that's not all I'm going to put where my mouth is!" James replied. With 
that, he pressed his lips to Jessie's again. 
As our guests gave them another standing ovation, Annie went back to her 
keyboard and began to play The Wedding March for the recessional. When Jessie 
and James finally stopped kissing, they turned to face the guests again, and 
everybody lined up to congratulate them on their fake marriage, which turned out 
to be real, after all. 
Once all of the guests had shaken hands with the bride, the groom, the minister, 
and the rest of the entourage, James scooped Jessie into his arms and carried 
her down the aisle. Then, the two of them disappeared into the woods. 
"Heh. I bet dey're off ta have demselves a little post-weddin' quickie!" I 
remarked. "I had ta pry 'em offa each other before the ceremony -- guess dey 
couldn't last much longer...." 
Jessie and James came back out of the woods and frowned at me. "We heard that, 
Meowth!" they shouted. 
"Ah, so what?" I shot back. "We all know what yer doin' anyway!" 
The two of them made a face at me and disappeared into the woods again. 
Everybody began to roar with laughter, myself included. 
This had definitely been one of the most exciting days of my life...and the fun 
was only just beginning! 
@->->- 
While Jessie and James were off consummating their marriage, the rest of us 
began getting ready for the reception. Annie and Oakley helped me set up two 
small, round tables under the gazebo while Gary and Mondo helped Dalila carry 
the wedding cake from the refrigeration unit in the back of her van. Once they'd 
placed the cake on one of the tables under the gazebo, we arranged all of the 
wedding presents on the other table. 
After taking care of the cake and presents, we all placed two of the long, 
rectangular tables side by side and arranged the chairs around them to form a 
dining area. Across from that, we set up a third table to place the food on. 
Between the tables was a space that was wide enough to serve as the dance-floor. 
Then, we helped Dalila bring the hot-plates, trays of food, dishes, glasses, 
napkins, silverware, beverages, and ice-buckets from her van and set up the 
buffet table. 
Once we'd finished setting up the reception, Jessie and James returned from 
their tryst. Their clothes were a little rumpled, and James had a bit of 
Jessie's red lipstick on his collar. The two of them were brushing leaves and 
twigs from their hair. 
"Enjoy yerselves?" I snickered. 
"Yes, as a matter of fact, we did!" James replied smugly. 
I nodded. "Good! Cuz I'd hate it if youse guys had a lousy time after cuttin' 
out and dumpin' all the work on Me-owth!" 
Jessie stuck her tongue out at me. "I told you we'd have our revenge!" 
Aw, cut 'em some slack, Meowth, Wobbuffet said, giving me a pat on the shoulder. 
It's their wedding day! 
"Yeah! A wedding that you didn't even bother to tell us was real!" they reminded 
me. 
I smiled at them. "I know, I know. I'm just funnin' with ya...again. Now come 
on. Let's go get some dinner. I'm starvin', and we can't start without ya!" 
After smoothing their clothes and hair and making themselves presentable again, 
Jessie and James went to the buffet table and got their food and drinks. Then, 
they took their seats at the head of one of the dining tables. 
Once everybody else had served themselves and found a seat, I took my spoon and 
tapped on my glass to get their attention. 
"Ahem," I said, clearing my throat. "I...guess since I'm the best man, dis is 
the part where I'm suppose ta give a speech." 
At my side, James snickered and nudged me with his elbow. 
"You'd better watch it, or I'll say somethin' embarrassin' about you and Jess!" 
I warned him. 
"How is that any different from what you normally do?" he countered. 
I smirked at him and turned my attention back to our guests. "I, uh...I first 
met the bride and groom a little over three years ago," I began. "I dunno what 
it was, but the moment I saw 'em, somethin' told me dey was special. As time 
passed, I got to know 'em, and I learned dat I was right -- dey was special. And 
even more surprisin', I learned dat dey could accept me for who I am, and dey 
was proud ta call me dere friend. And it didn't take me long ta notice somethin' 
else, too -- dey was madly in love with each other! 
"I think I figured it out before dey did, though," I continued. "I'd see 'em 
doin' dere damndest ta hide dere true feelins cuz dey didn't wanna risk ruinin' 
dere friendship. But dey couldn't hide it from Me-owth -- I'd see the way dey'd 
cast longin' looks at each other, hold hands a second too long, the way dere 
faces would light up when dey touched each other. It was so obvious dat dey was 
soul-mates, but it drove Me-owth nuts dat dey was too afraid to admit it. 
"Fortunately, dey didn't keep me waitin' for long -- dey figured out dat dey was 
madly in love with each other eventually, and dey've been a cozy couple ever 
since! Now, the only thing dat drives Me-owth nuts is when dey get too noisy 
while dey're doin' the horizontal mambo!" 
There was a collective snicker from our guests. 
"Meowth!" Jessie and James whispered through clenched teeth. 
I flashed them a wicked grin and continued. "Dere relationship hasn't been 
smooth sailin' the whole time, though. I'll be the first ta admit dat dey've had 
plenty a disagreements...and even a few fights! But, like I was tellin' 'em last 
week after dere last big argument, dat's just a normal part a bein' a couple. 
What makes dese two succeed where other couples fail is dat dey don't let the 
hard times get 'em down -- dey work through the disagreements and fights and end 
up closer ta each other den ever before...and den dey drive Me-owth nuts by 
havin' a buncha super-noisy, super-hot make up sex!" 
Now everybody was roaring with laughter. 
Jessie and James buried their faces in their hands. I could hear them giggling, 
too. 
"And dat's precisely why we're all here today," I said. "Since Jess and Jim is 
always arguin' and makin' up, just like an old married couple, I figured, What 
the hell? Why not just make 'em get married, already?! It took a bit a 
convincin'...and connivin', but I think we all know how dis story turns out!" 
With that, I took my glass of sparkling cider and held it aloft. "Ta Jessie and 
James -- the best friends in the world...and the best couple in the world! May 
ya be as successful in marriage as ya are in friendship!" 
"Here, here!" everybody replied, clinking their glasses together. 
Once I'd finished my speech and we'd all toasted the bride and groom, we dug 
into our food. With all the free lunches and dinners Dalila had given us since 
we'd arrived in Cape Jasmine, and this wonderful meal now, it was obvious to me 
where James had gotten his cooking skills. The spinach, tomatoes, and peppers in 
the salad were ripe and fresh, and the salty-sweet flavor of the bacon dressing 
complemented them perfectly. The chicken breasts had been marinated in honey 
dijon sauce and grilled to perfection, and the spicy-sweet flavor permeated 
every juicy bite. The rolls were soft, sweet, and fluffy, and the whole grains 
of wheat and oat in the bread added lots of texture. And the non-alcoholic 
sparkling cider, which looked and tasted like champagne, was the perfect 
beverage to wash it all down. It tasted exactly like something James had cooked 
himself, and I told him as much! 
James smiled sheepishly at my compliment. "Don't thank me, thank Dalila -- she's 
the one who taught me everything I know about cooking!" he replied. Then, he 
held up his glass and smiled at Dalila. "Thanks again for coming to our wedding 
and for all of this wonderful food!" 
Dalila winked at him. "It was my pleasure, tea-cake!" 
As we continued to eat, I stole glances at Jessie and James, twining their arms 
so that they could feed each other and drink from each other's glasses. Every 
few minutes, they'd stop eating altogether and dab each other's lips with their 
napkins. Then, they'd wrap their arms around each other and go into a full 
liplock. 
"Heh. Lookit youse two. Just like a couple a newlyweds!" I remarked when they 
finally finished their dinner and started kissing again. 
Jessie smirked at me and rested her head on James's shoulder. "Well, that's 
exactly what we are!" 
James planted a kiss on Jessie's forehead and made her blush. 
I smiled at them. "I'm glad youse two ain't mad at me about dis bein' a real 
weddin'." 
"Why should we be?" James asked. "While Jess and I were alone earlier, we talked 
about it, and we agreed that even though this isn't what we thought our wedding 
was going to be like, it'll definitely be a day to remember." 
"And we'll remember it in a good way!" Jessie chimed in. "Thanks, Meowth!" 
"Ah, don't mention it!" I replied. "I just hope youse two can still be good 
sports, cuz I've got another surprise for ya!" 
Jessie and James exchanged looks. 
I winked at them. "Don't worry -- it's all fun and games!" Then, I nodded to 
Annie, and she turned on the CD player. After a moment, the theme music for The 
Newlywed Game began to play. 
"Uh, oh...." James muttered as the guests placed two chairs in the middle of the 
dance-floor. 
"....I see where this is leading," Jessie muttered back. 
As the theme music played, the guests led Jessie and James to the two chairs and 
gathered around them like an audience. Once everybody was seated again, Annie 
turned off the CD player, and everything became silent. 
"Dat's right!" I said in my best game show host voice. "Since youse two are 
newlyweds, me and my assistant, Wobbuffet, came up with some questions ta tease 
and tantalize ya and test how well ya know each other!" 
The guests began to cheer and applaud. 
Once the noise died down, I approached my friends. "Alright, folks, let's meet 
our two contestants -- Jessie and James Woodson! Dese little love-birds have 
been married for almost two hours now! I dunno about you, but I'd say dat sure 
as hell qualifies 'em for newlywed status!" 
Everybody clapped again. 
"Well, since we already know dis lovely couple, I think we can skip the lengthy 
introductions and just get straight to the torture!" I continued. "In round one, 
we're gonna put Jessie in the isolation booth and have James answer a few 
questions about her, den we'll see how well Jessie's answers match his. In round 
two, we'll put James in the isolation booth, have Jessie answer some questions 
about him, and see how well James's answers match hers. Den at the end, we'll 
have both of 'em answer the big bonus question! And the number of matching 
answers dey have will determine just how well-matched dey are! So, let's get to 
it!" 
With that, Wobbuffet took Jessie by the arm and led her over to the gazebo. He 
turned her so that she was facing away from James and the audience and put a 
pair of headphones on her so that she wouldn't be able to hear any of the 
questions and answers. Once Wobbuffet was sure that she was sufficiently 
"isolated," I grinned and brought out the notecards that we'd prepared. 
"Okay, Jimmy. It don't look like Jess can hear us. Are ya ready?" I asked. 
James smiled confidently. "Bring it on!" 
I nodded. "Alrighty, den! Question number one! What ride would yer wife never go 
on if the two of ya was at an amusement park?" 
James's smile became a grin. "That's too easy -- the roller coaster! Jessie 
can't stand those things!" he replied. "We've only ever been on one once, and I 
remember she was scared out of her mind and kept screaming that she wanted to 
get off. Somehow, I don't picture her ever wanting to ride one again." 
"Okay, question number two. Finish dis sentence: If I was Prince Charming and 
she was Cinderella, I'd know exactly what size the glass slippers would be. 
Dey'd be a size __." 
James chuckled. "I know this one, too -- Jessie wears size eight shoes! Come on, 
Meowth! Give me a real challenge!" 
"Alrighty, you asked for it, Jimbo!" I snickered. "Question number three! What 
dessert best describes yer wife? Apple tart, vanilla ice cream, or strawberry 
cheesecake?" 
"Ah, a figurative question! But I'm afraid this one's a no-brainer, as well. 
She's not a tart, and she's certainly not plain like vanilla -- my Jessie is a 
smooth, sexy slice of cheesecake all the way!" James replied, a sly smile making 
its way across his lips. 
There was a collective "Whooooo!!!!!" from the audience. 
I smiled back at him. "Good answer, Jim...but I ain't done with ya yet -- it's 
time for the grand finale!" My smile became an evil grin. "Question number four! 
Where's the strangest place you and yer wife ever made whoopie?" 
James's face turned bright red. After a moment, however, he regained his 
composure and laughed. "Okay, now this is a tough one -- Jess and I have made 
whoopie lots of places. We've done it in the woods, on the beach, in hot 
springs, we've gotten some mile-high club action in our hot-air balloon, we did 
it in the Magikarp sub, the Arbo-tank, the Meowthinator Impersonator, the 
Robo-Mecha-Wobbuffet, hell, practically every mecha we've ever used! Oh, yeah! 
And then there was the time we...." 
I felt a drop of sweat forming on my temple as James continued to name off 
unusual places where he and Jessie had made love. "Damn horny teenagers," I 
muttered under my breath. 
"....But I think I'm going to go with the Arbo-tank," he concluded. "We actually 
did it five or six times in that one...and it got pretty wild, too! Jess did say 
she liked my big rock-drill, after all!" 
The audience began to laugh again as James gave me a sly wink. 
I laughed, too. "Guess I asked for dat one, huh?" 
"Yep!" he replied smugly. 
"Well, ya sound like ya know yer wife pretty well, James," I said as I handed 
him a pen and a few notecards. "Now, why don't ya write yer answers down, and 
we'll bring Jessie back out and see if dat confidence is merited!" 
Once he'd finished writing his answers, Wobbuffet took the headphones off of 
Jessie, and she returned to James's side. 
"Okay, Jessie. We just asked James four questions about ya," I told her. "Now 
I'm gonna ask you the same four questions and see how well yer answers match 
his!" 
Jessie nodded. "Sounds easy enough!" 
I smiled at her. "First question. If the two of ya was at an amusement park, 
what ride would ya never go on?" 
"Ugh! The roller coaster! Don't even get me started...." she grumbled. 
Once she'd given her answer, James held up his first notecard, showing that he'd 
given the same answer. 
Jessie smiled at James and tousled his hair. He blushed again. 
"Okay, next question, Jess," I said. "Finish dis sentence the way ya think yer 
husband would: If I was Prince Charming and she was Cinderella, I'd know exactly 
what size the glass slippers would be. Dey'd be a size __." 
"That's easy!" came her reply. "My Prince Charming knows that I wear size eight 
shoes!" 
James grinned and held up his second card, showing that he'd matched her again. 
"Come on, Meowth! Didn't you ask him anything difficult?" Jessie asked. 
I looked over at my assistant. "Hey, Wobbu, are ya sure dose headphones was 
workin'? Jessie's repeatin' everythin' James said!" 
Jessie held up her hands. "I didn't hear a thing! Honest!" 
I snickered. "Okay, den. If ya want trickier questions, ya got 'em! What dessert 
would ya say best describes ya, Jess? Apple tart, vanilla ice cream, or 
strawberry cheesecake?" 
Jessie licked her lips. "Strawberry cheesecake, definitely!" she replied without 
hesitation. "That's only my favorite dessert...." 
James gave her a playful nudge with his elbow and held up the third card. "I 
said cheesecake, too...but I picked it because you're so damn sexy!" 
Now she was blushing just as brightly as he was. "You keep answering these 
questions correctly, and I'll give you something a lot better than cheesecake 
for dessert tonight!" she whispered. 
James squealed happily. 
"Alright, save it til after the bonus round, youse two!" I told them. "I ain't 
done with ya yet -- ya still hafta answer question number four, Jessie! And here 
it is. Where's the strangest place you and yer husband ever made whoopie?" 
Jessie closed her eyes and thought for a moment. "Hmmm...this is a tough 
one...." 
For the next few minutes, Jessie named off places where she and James had made 
love (all the same places dat he'd mentioned). I cast another venomous glare at 
Wobbuffet, but he insisted that Jessie hadn't heard anything while James had 
been answering the questions. 
"....I'm tempted to say the Robo-Mecha-Wobbuffet," she muttered. "Those 
turbo-kick engines really kicked it into high-gear for us! But...I think I'm 
going to go with the Arbo-tank. James was so sweet to make that mecha just for 
me...and I really enjoyed showing him how much I loved it!" 
James's eyes widened. "Well I'll be damned -- we matched again, honey!" he said 
as he held up his final card. 
Jessie threw her arms around James and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Good work, 
sweetie!" 
"Wow! I guess James really does know his wife!" I announced. "But dis game ain't 
over yet -- now it's time ta see how well Jessie knows her husband!" 
The audience cheered as Wobbuffet led James over to the gazebo and "isolated" 
him the same way he'd "isolated" Jessie. 
"Ya ready for yer questions, Jess?" I asked as I brought out four more 
notecards. 
She gave me the same confident smile that James had. "Let's do it!" 
"Okay, den! Question one! When did you and yer husband share yer first kiss?" 
"What kind of kiss are we talking about, here?" she asked. "Peck on the cheek? 
True love?" 
"Just yer first mouth ta mouth kiss," I clarified. 
Jessie's brow furrowed. "Hmmm...well, this happened before we became a couple, 
but it's still the first time James kissed me on the mouth. It was almost four 
years ago now -- we were still in the bike gang at that point, and we'd gone to 
a Christmas party." She paused for a moment and chuckled. "James drank a whole 
six-pack of beer and got drunk...and then he staggered over, planted a big wet 
one on my mouth, and passed out. I had to spend all the next day taking care of 
the poor sweetheart because he had such a wicked hangover." 
Several members of the audience laughed. Several others "aaawww"ed. 
"Interestin' story," I remarked. "Now for question two! How would ya describe 
yer husband's performance the first time ya made whoopie? Synthetic, athletic, 
or pathetic?" 
Jessie blushed again. Then, she smiled. "Well, I know James told me that he was 
really nervous and didn't know what he was doing when we shared our first time. 
But believe me, there was nothing pathetic about his performance! Even then, he 
knew exactly what to do -- it was so invigorating! I'm going to say athletic!" 
"Yeah!" I snickered. "Somethin' tells me youse guys wouldn't be goin' at it the 
way ya always do if he wasn't satisfyin' ya!" 
Everybody in the audience began to laugh again. 
Jessie reached over and grabbed me by one of my whiskers. "We don't need your 
smart-ass commentary, Meowth! Just ask the damn questions!" she growled. 
I pulled away from her and rubbed the sore spot on my cheek. "Alright, alright! 
Don't get yer little blue panties in a twist! Speakin' a which, here's question 
three! What kinda underwears is yer husband wearin' right now?" 
"Oh, please! This is too easy!" she said smugly. "James is wearing a pair of 
black silk boxer shorts with red hearts on them!" 
I winked at her. "Yeah, you would know! But will ya know dis? Question four! 
Finish dis sentence the way ya think yer husband would: Sometimes, when I look 
at my wife's chest, I think ta myself, 'Gee, ___________.'" 
Jessie folded her arms across her chest. "If he knows what's good for him, James 
will say, Gee, my Jessie has beautiful breasts, but her sparkling personality 
and keen intellect are more important to me -- her perfect body is just the 
icing on the cake!" came her reply. 
Yeah, fat chance a dat happenin' -- he's a guy! I said to myself. Then aloud, 
"Okay, Jess, ya gave some pretty good answers dere! Now let's see what James has 
ta say!" 
Once she'd written down her answers, Wobbuffet brought James back out. 
"Alrighty, Jim! Are ya ready ta find out how well Jess knows ya?" I asked. 
He nodded. "I sure am!" 
"Good! Cuz we're findin' out, whether yer ready or not!" I told him. "First 
question. When did you and yer wife share yer first kiss? Yer first mouth ta 
mouth kiss, dat is." 
James buried his face in his hands. "Oh, god. I know this one. I'd rather not go 
into all the details, but Jessie and I had our first mouth to mouth kiss at a 
bike gang Christmas party almost four years ago...." 
"Fortunately, you don't have to tell the story, James," Jessie told him as she 
held up her first card. "Because I already did!" 
James looked back at her and blushed. Jessie winked at him. 
"Don't worry, Jimbo -- everybody thinks it's cute," I assured him. "Now, it's 
time for our next question! How would ya describe yer performance the first time 
you and yer wife made whoopie? Synthetic, athletic, or pathetic?" 
His face flushed more brightly than ever. "Well...no matter how badly I think I 
did, I know Jess enjoyed it. Since there was nothing fake about what we shared, 
and she didn't have any complaints, I'm going to use the process of elimination 
and say athletic." 
Jessie leaned over and gave James a kiss on the cheek as she held up her second 
card and showed him that they'd matched again. 
"Holy freakin' crap! Youse guys haven't missed one yet!" I remarked. "And I'm 
sure you'll match on dis one, too. What kinda underwears are ya wearin' right 
now, Jimmy?" 
James grinned. "I should hope Jess knows this one -- she's only seen my 
underwear about five times already today! I'm wearing a pair of black silk 
boxers with red hearts on them!" 
"Like I told Meowth -- that one was too easy!" Jessie said as she showed him her 
third matching answer. 
The two of them leaned closer and brushed their lips together. 
"Heh, heh, heh. Youse two think ya know each other so well," I snickered. "But 
I'll be a Mankey's uncle if ya match on dis last question! Finish dis sentence, 
Jimmy-boy: Sometimes, when I look at my wife's chest, I think ta myself, 'Gee, 
___________.'" 
James looked down at Jessie's cleavage for a moment. Then, he looked back into 
her sapphire eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, here's what I'm thinking right 
now...and I know that even if I don't match, she'll like this answer. I'm 
thinking, Gee, my Jessie has the most beautiful breasts in the world. But her 
wonderful personality and her keen intellect are so much more important to me -- 
her perfect body and dazzling beauty are just the icing on the cake!" 
Jessie gave him a sly smile and held up her card. "It's like you read my mind, 
James!" 
A light sparkled in his emerald eyes as he read the card and saw that he'd 
practically quoted Jessie's answer verbatim. 
Holy shit! What're the freakin' odds?! I wondered. Then aloud, "Are youse guys 
sure ya didn't overhear each other's answers?" 
"Positive!" Jessie replied. 
"The only thing I heard was music," James told me. 
"Face it, Meowth -- you can't stump soul-mates!" they said in unison. 
"We'll see about dat," I retorted as I handed a pen and notecard to each of 
them. "Now it's time for the bonus round! I'm gonna ask both of ya the same 
question, and ya gotta turn away from each other and write down yer answers 
separately! No lookin' at each other for help, no listenin' in, no copyin' offa 
each other -- dis is the real deal! Are ya ready?" 
"Ready as we'll ever be!" they said. 
"Okay, here goes. Where do the two of ya see yerselves fifty years from now? And 
I don't want no generalities, either -- I want at least three specific 
predictions!" 
Jessie and James turned away from each other and began to write. When they 
finished, they turned their cards over, turned to face each other again, and 
smiled. 
I nodded approvingly. "Alright, you first, Jess!" 
Jessie held up her card. "In fifty years, I predict that James and I will still 
be happily married, we'll have three beautiful children, a whole bunch of 
beautiful grandchildren...and maybe even a nice farm with orchards and gardens, 
and stuff!" 
I nodded again. "Now it's yer turn, Jimmy!" 
James held up his card and grinned at Jessie. "Well, what do you know? I 
predicted that in fifty years, Jessie and I will still be happily married, have 
three beautiful children, a whole bunch of beautiful grandchildren...and maybe 
even a nice farm with orchards and gardens, and stuff, too!" 
Jessie gasped and threw her arms around James. He smiled tenderly at her as he 
returned her embrace. "Why are you so surprised, sweetheart? We talk about our 
future all the time!" 
"I know," she replied. "I'm just surprised that we worded our answers exactly 
the same!" 
I couldn't help but smile as I watched the two of them go into another liplock. 
They were right -- there was no way I could stump them! 
"Congratulations, Jessie and James -- ya got a perfect score!" I announced when 
they finally released each other. "We don't have any cash and prizes for ya 
today, but I will say dis. Dere ain't too many couples out dere who know each 
other as well as you do. I guess it just goes ta show how perfectly matched ya 
are! I predict dat all dose great predictions ya made about yer future are gonna 
come true! If anybody can make a marriage last forever, it's youse guys!" 
All of our guests applauded when I said this. 
"Take a bow, guys! You've earned it!" Mondo exclaimed. 
Jessie and James blushed for the thousandth time that day as they slowly got to 
their feet and bowed. 
"You know, all this talk about marriage lasting forever's got me to thinking," 
Sofia commented. "We all know that the twenty-fifth anniversary is silver, the 
fiftieth is gold, and the seventy-fifth is diamond. But what about after that?" 
"Yeah! How come nobody ever makes a big deal out of a hundredth anniversary?" 
Marcello asked. 
"Maybe because nobody's ever been able to survive a hundred years of marriage 
before!" Oakley laughed. 
"Maybe the hundred year anniversary can be the medicine anniversary!" Annie 
suggested. 
"What kind of gift would one give on an occasion like that?" Gary wondered. 
"Viagra?" 
Jessie and James exchanged wicked grins when he said this. 
"You know, Viagra comes in liquid form now," said Jessie. 
"Yeah!" James chimed in. "It's called Mydixadril!" 
"Dat's right! Now guys can pour demselves a stiff one whenever dey want!" I 
said, delivering the punch-line. 
Everybody started laughing again. 
"Now, dat'd be the perfect gift ta give a couple dat manages ta survive a 
hundred years a marriage!" I continued. "It'd sure get a rise out of 'em!" 
"Ugh!" Jessie groaned. 
James placed a hand to his temple and sighed. "That was bad!" 
Fortunately, I don't think Jess and Jim will need any form of Viagra on their 
medicine anniversary -- they can always "rise" to the occasion without help! 
Wobbuffet quipped. 
"Alright, that's enough!" James snapped. 
"Don't start with us, or you're going back in your poke ball!" Jessie warned 
Wobbuffet. 
I held up my paws. "Okay, got it! No more raunchy sex-jokes!" 
Not for a couple minutes, at least! Wobbuffet laughed. 
Jessie and James rolled their eyes. They knew all too well that trying to stop 
me and Wobbu from making dirty jokes was like trying to stop the sun from rising 
and setting. 
"Hey, while we're on the subject a gifts, why don't youse guys open yer presents 
and see what everybody got ya?" I suggested. 
Their expressions softened when I said this. "That's not a bad idea, Meowth!" 
they said in unison. 
As we started heading for the gazebo, however, we were met with an unpleasant 
surprise -- Ash was there...and he was eyeing the wedding cake and the presents. 

I felt the bile rising in the back of my throat as I watched him picking up the 
presents and shaking them. "What the hell does dat twerp think he's doin'?!" I 
growled. 
"He probably thinks that if there's a party, then he's automatically invited," 
Jessie grumbled. 
"Or worse," said James. "It looks like he thinks this party is for him!" 
I looked up at my two friends -- they were every bit as outraged as I was that 
the twerp was crashing their wedding reception. I wanted nothing more than to 
give Ash the Fury-Swiping and cussing-out of a lifetime, but I knew that I 
couldn't. If he somehow managed to get it through his thick skull that this 
party was for Jessie and James and that they'd just gotten married, there'd be 
no end to hassling and torment he'd subject us to. 
But we still couldn't let him ruin the party. What were we going to do? 
Fortunately, Jessie, James, and I didn't have to do anything -- our guests were 
none too thrilled to see Ash either, and they were more than happy to take 
matters into their own hands. 
"Excuse me! What do you think you're doing with those presents?!" Lulu demanded. 

Ash smiled at her. "My friends and I are on the way to Olivine City, and we just 
made it into town today. Brock sent me to the grocery store to get some food so 
that he can make dinner, but I got lost on the way to the store. I guess it's 
good that I did, though, otherwise I wouldn't have found this party that you're 
having to honor my outstanding skills as a pokemon master...." 
Jessie and James buried their faces in their hands. 
"Oh, jeez, he really does think this party is for him! What a dumbshit!" James 
groaned. 
Jessie shook her head in disbelief. "And he just now arrived in Cape Jasmine?! 
It's only ten miles from the town where he met Temacu last week!" 
"Heh. Dat twerp is livin' proof dat one doesn't make good time by always 
wanderin' around with dere head up dere ass," I commented. 
As Ash continued to rattle the presents and decide which one he wanted to open 
first, Gary stormed over and grabbed the packages from him. "Ash, you moron! 
This party isn't for you -- it's a wedding...and you weren't invited!" 
Ash scowled. "GARY!!!! What are YOU doing here?!" 
Gary smirked. "Well, unlike you, I WAS invited!" 
"Grrr! I bet you told them not to invite me so that you could have all the cake 
and presents to yourself!" Ash said through clenched teeth. "You're such a jerk, 
Gary! I challenge you to a pokemon battle!" 
Gary rolled his eyes. "Ash, just go away. Please?" 
I shook my head and sighed as I watched the exchange. Poor Gary knows as well as 
we do how irritating Ash is when he throws a shit-fit. 
Gary tried to explain several more times that the party wasn't for him, but Ash 
refused to listen to reason. Finally, Gary just threw his hands into the air and 
turned away. "I give up," he grumbled. 
As Ash continued to rant, Cairdea walked over and smacked him upside the head. 
"Listen, you dumbass! You weren't invited to this party! Nobody here likes you! 
Now, if you don't shut the hell up and go away, then I'm going to rip your 
tongue out and make you wear it as a necktie! You got that?!" 
"Augh! Why is everybody here so mean?!" Ash whined. 
"Maybe because you're mean to our friends!" Rachel told him. 
"You're just as bad as Team Rocket and Gary!" Ash shouted. "I challenge you to a 
pokemon battle, too!" 
"Look, kid, nobody here is going to battle you!" Rhiannon told him. "Just go 
away and let our friends have their party in peace!" 
"What's the matter with you?!" Ash demanded. "Why are you all taking up for Gary 
and kicking me out of MY party?! I'm a better pokemon trainer than he is -- I 
got in the top sixteen at Indigo League, I won the Orange League championship, I 
got...." 
"Okay, that does it!" Rhiannon growled. With that, she grabbed a bottle of 
sparkling cider from a nearby ice-bucket and began to shake it up. Then, Gary, 
Cairdea, and Rachel each grabbed a bottle and started shaking them, too. Once 
they'd built up enough pressure, they popped the corks and hit Ash with a giant 
jet of bubbly. 
"Augh! This isn't fair!" Ash whined again as the torrent of sparkling cider 
slammed into him and blasted him away. "I'm not the one that's supposed to get 
blasted off!" 
"Good riddance!" Rachel shouted after him. 
"Sorry we had to waste your cider like that," Rhiannon apologized. "I just 
couldn't stand that stupid kid anymore." 
"Don't worry about it," James told her. 
"Yeah! Dat ruled!" I exclaimed. 
"I'm just glad that the twerp is gone...and that he didn't figure out what the 
party is really for," Jessie remarked. 
"Jeez. This reminds me of the time Ash invited himself to my tenth birthday 
party -- he saw the cake and presents and assumed that we were throwing a party 
for him," Gary sighed. "My parents had to call his mom to come and get him. 
Fortunately, he didn't open any of my presents or take any cake, but damn if he 
didn't make a nuisance of himself. I guess some things never change...." 
"Heh. I guess if ol' Ashy-boy don't make it as a pokemon trainer, he can always 
be the Pallet Town village idiot!" I snickered. 
Yeah! That kid's got "village idiot" written all over him, said Wobbuffet. 
"Alright, can we please not talk about the twerp anymore?" Jessie asked. "Just 
thinking about his raging stupidity is giving me a migraine!" 
James nodded. "Yeah. Let's get back to opening our presents! Then, we can all 
have some cake!" 
This suggestion cheered everybody up. And as Jessie and James began to unwrap 
their gifts, putting Ash's unpleasantness out of our minds was a simple matter. 
There was quite an impressive haul of presents, too -- even though we'd made it 
clear that bringing a gift was optional, everybody had something for Jessie and 
James. Annie and Oakley had provided us with their music and ministry services 
free of charge, Dalila had catered the reception, and Officer Jenny had made us 
official citizens of The Big Orange. And even the inexpensive and gag gifts that 
everybody else had brought were all wonderful and thoughtful. Terra and Celes 
gave us a subscription to their Black Rose manga, which had become a series 
after its extremely successful debut; Rhiannon and Laine gave us a DVD of the 
entire first season of That's My Shrubb!, which had also become a hit series; 
the Cat Islanders gave us a golden maneki neko figurine; Cairdea gave us each a 
custom set of polyhedral dice; Blissey and Nurse Joy gave us a first-aid kit; 
Lulu and Rachel gave us a lifetime membership in the Dessert of the Month Club 
on behalf of Wobbuffet Village; Mondo gave us a set of ear plugs to protect us 
from Ash's incessant whining; Gary gave us a jumbo bottle of extra-strength 
Tylenol for all of the blast-offs and stupidity-migraines that the twerps 
inflict on us; Cassandra gave Jessie and James a set of herbal bath soaps that 
she'd made herself; Sofia and Marcello gave Jessie and James a pack of flavored 
condoms; and even the boss had gotten something for us! 
"The boss got us a present?!" Jessie said in disbelief as she picked up the 
final package. 
Mondo nodded. "He knew about the wedding, but he couldn't attend. He still 
wanted to get you something, though," he explained. 
"I wonder what it is," James remarked. 
"Only one way to find out!" Jessie said. As she tore the wrapping paper away, 
however, she sweatdropped. 
James raised an eyebrow when he saw what the gift was. "His and Hers brass 
knuckles?!" 
Jessie facefaulted. "How romantic." 
I leaned closer and examined them. They weren't just any old brass knuckles -- 
they'd been custom-made for us! There was even a little set of cat-sized ones 
for Me-owth! "Hey! Dese babies have lines from the motto engraved on 'em!" I 
exclaimed. 
Jessie and James looked more closely at the brass knuckles. 
"Hey! You're right, Meowth!" James exclaimed. "Now we can really leave an 
impression when we say the motto!" 
"We should've tested these out while Ash was here!" Jessie laughed. 
"Yeah!" I agreed. "Dat woulda been funny ta see him walkin' around with Team 
Rocket blast off at the speed of light! Surrender now, or prepare to fight! 
Me-owth! Dat's right! printed on his face for a few days!" 
"Oh, well! Some other time," said James. 
Jessie smiled at him. "Yeah. But right now, let's take a look at all the other 
great things we got! Like these herbal soaps -- they smell just like a garden 
full of flowers!" 
James became starry-eyed as he sniffed one of the clear green bars of soap. 
"Ooohhh! I can't wait to try these out!" 
"Thank you, Cassandra!" they said in unison. 
Cassandra nodded. "Don't mention it!" 
"And check out dis first-aid kit!" I said as I held up Nurse Joy and Blissey's 
gift. "Dis'll really come in handy...especially if youse guys wanna, ya 
know...play doctor, or somethin'!" 
James's face turned red again. "Behave, Meowth!" 
"Aw, come on, Jimmy!" I laughed. "You know ya want naughty nurse Jessie ta make 
ya turn yer head and cough!" 
Now Jessie was blushing, too. "Knock it off, Meowth!" 
"Let's just ignore him and see what else we got," James told her as he picked up 
another gift. "Ooohhh! Like this Dessert of the Month Club membership!" 
Jessie's eyes lit up when she read the card. "Every single month, a brand new 
delicious, decadent, and delectable dessert will be delivered directly to our 
door! Now, that's what I call a sweet present!" 
They smiled at Lulu and Rachel. "Thank you so much!" 
"You're welcome!" they replied. 
I grinned as I picked up another of their presents. "Speakin' a desserts, check 
out dese flavored condoms Sofia and Marcello got for ya!" 
It's a condom! It's a mint! It's a condiment! Wobbuffet quipped. 
"Oh, dese don't come in mint flavor -- dese are the fancy ones!" I told him. 
"Dey've got chocolate truffle, tiramisu, and strawberry cheesecake! Heh. I bet I 
know what Jess is havin' for dessert tonight!" 
Jessie blushed again and grabbed the box of condoms from me. "Mind your own 
business, you nosy thing! These are OUR presents!" she snapped. 
James frowned at me. "Haven't you ever heard the expression, curiosity killed 
the cat?" 
"Yeah, but satisfaction brought him back!" I countered. 
The two of them rolled their eyes. 
When Jessie and James finished admiring all of their presents and thanking 
everybody, it was time for cake. We all gathered around and watched as Jessie 
and James took the knife in their hands and cut the first two pieces together. 
Then, they each took one of the pieces and held them up so that they could eat 
from each other's hands. (Dey'd agreed beforehand dat dey wasn't gonna smash any 
cake in each other's faces -- dey both considered dat ta be a really stupid and 
childish tradition...not ta mention, a waste of perfectly good food!) After they 
finished eating their pieces of cake, they gently licked the icing from each 
other's fingers. As they leaned closer and began to lick the stray bits of icing 
from each other's lips, I took the knife and started cutting pieces of cake for 
everybody else. 
Once everybody had been served, I cut two more pieces of cake for Jessie and 
James, and we all sat down together to enjoy our dessert. And if I thought the 
batter I'd tasted yesterday was good, then the actual cake was ten times better! 
It was a beautiful shade of red -- the same color as Jessie's hair, and the 
texture was soft and fluffy, like real velvet! It still had that wonderful 
chocolatey flavor, and along with the sweet, creamy icing and sugary roses, it 
was like heaven on earth! 
As I savored my cake and watched Jessie and James feeding each other again, I 
congratulated myself once more for coming up with this idea. 
After we finished eating cake, Jessie and James were ready for the tossing of 
the garter and bouquet and their first dance as bride and groom. Jessie seated 
herself on the chair that was still in the middle of the dance-floor, and Mondo, 
Gary, Wobbuffet, and I gathered around and watched as James lifted her skirt and 
slid the little lace garter off of her thigh. (Oakley was already engaged ta 
Annie, so he didn't count as single.) Once he'd removed Jessie's garter, James 
fired it at us like a slingshot. The four of us made a mad dash for it, but 
Mondo was the fastest, and he ended up catching the garter (and bein' the butt 
of all the "next victim" jokes.) 
Mondo blushed as he put the garter on the sleeve of his jacket. "Guess I'd 
better find myself a girlfriend -- otherwise, it may be awhile before there's 
another wedding!" he laughed. 
"How old are you, Mondo? Fifteen?" Marcello asked. 
He nodded. "Yes, sir." 
"That's what I thought! We have a granddaughter that's about your age!" Sofia 
told him. 
The two of them beamed as Marcello brought out his wallet and produced a 
photograph. 
Mondo's indigo eyes lit up when he saw the picture. Unable to resist, I jumped 
onto his shoulder so that I could have a look, too. And I could see why Mondo 
was so impressed -- the girl had long auburn hair and large, crystal-green eyes. 
She looked a little like a younger version of Sofia. 
"Whoa! She's cute!" I commented. "You should ask her out, Mondo!" 
"Yeah," he sighed. 
"Her name is Felicia," said Marcello. 
"If you give us your phone number or e-mail address, we'll be glad to set you 
two up," Sofia offered. "I'm sure she'll like you!" 
"That'd be great!" Mondo exclaimed. "Thank you so much!" 
As he gave his e-mail address to Sofia and Marcello and got them to tell him 
more about Felicia, I turned my attention back to Jessie and James. Several of 
the women were on the dance-floor, waiting for Jessie to toss her bouquet of 
white roses. When she turned away from them and threw the bouquet over her 
shoulder, most of the women raced to catch it. But in the end, it landed in the 
arms of Blissey, who'd been hanging back because she didn't want to get trampled 
by everybody else. 
Jessie grinned and clapped her hands when she turned back around and saw that 
her old childhood friend had been the one who caught the bouquet. 
"Congratulations, Blissey!" she cheered. 
The rest of the women smiled at Blissey and applauded her, too. 
Blissey's face turned even more pink than it already was as she hugged the 
bouquet and inhaled the sweet fragrance of the roses. 
"Thanks again, Blissey," Jessie said as she knealt by her friend's side and gave 
her a hug. "For clearing our name, coming to our wedding, being my maid of 
honor, loaning me your pendant...everything!" 
Blissey hugged back. Don't mention it, Jessie! It was my pleasure! 
When the two of them released each other, Jessie took off the egg pendant she 
was wearing and gave it back to Blissey. Then, James came to Jessie's side and 
placed a hand on her shoulder. 
"Care to dance?" he asked. 
Jessie's eyes sparkled as he brought her to her feet. "I'd love to!" she 
replied. 
As Jessie and James wrapped their arms around each other, everybody cleared off 
the dance-floor so that they could have the first dance to themselves. And as 
the soft, melodic music of The Only Thing by Stabbing Westward began to play, 
the two of them gazed lovingly into each other's eyes and sang along: 
There's so many things 
We need so desperately, 
And the TV preaches 
We can't live without them. 
You tell me what is neat, 
I'll tell ya what I believe -- 
If I ever were without it, 
Then I'd be worthless. 
'Cause you are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
You are everything, 
The only thing I need! 
You are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
Yes, you are everything, 
You are the air I breathe! 
I wonder if someday 
We took all their toys away, 
You think they'd find the strength 
To go on living? 
'Cause deep inside I know 
If I lost everything I owned, 
I'd be a king 
As long as you're beside me. 
'Cause you are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
Yes, you are everything, 
The only thing I need! 
Our love is everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
Yes, you are everything, 
You are the air I breathe! 
The air I breathe..... 
I hope someday they find 
A place to bid online 
Where all lost souls 
Can buy their lives some meaning. 
I know we'll survive -- 
All we need's more time. 
As long as we've got love, and art, 
And the ocean. 
And we are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
We are everything, 
There's nothing else I need! 
Our love is everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
Yes, we are everything, 
You are the air I breathe! 
The air I breathe.... 
You are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
You are everything, 
There's nothing else I need! 
Yes, you are everything, 
The only thing that matters! 
Our love is everything, 
You are the air I breathe! 
You are everything, 
You are the air I breathe! 
The air I breathe.... 
When the song ended, Jessie and James rubbed noses and brushed their lips 
together. "I love you," they whispered in unison. 
As they kissed again, another song called You Complete Me, which was also by 
Stabbing Westward, began to play, and several people joined them on the 
dance-floor. But I doubt Jessie and James even noticed -- they were lost in the 
moment...and each other again. 
@->->- 
While Jessie and James danced the night away, I helped myself to the leftovers 
at the buffet table and chatted with some of our old friends. It made me a 
little sad that everybody had to leave tomorrow and that this wonderful weekend 
would soon be over, but it was nice to know that the happy memories we'd made 
today would last forever. 
As all of their favorite love songs played, Jessie and James remained in their 
embrace, gently swaying to the music and gazing into each other's eyes. With 
every passing minute, it seemed like it was getting more and more difficult for 
them to keep their desire in check. 
"Gettin' hungry for dose flavored condoms, Jess?" I ventured as I came to their 
side. 
Jessie stopped nibbling on James's ear for a moment and frowned at me. "Mind 
your own business, Meowth!" 
James's face turned as red as the rose on his lapel as he removed his hand from 
Jessie's breast. 
"Aw, don't be embarrassed -- everybody knows yer anxious ta go on yer 
honeymoon," I told them. "We don't mind if ya cut out early." 
"Are you sure?" Jessie asked. 
"Yeah!" said James. "We don't want to be rude...." 
I winked at them. "Sure I'm sure! Besides, it's not like yer never gonna see 
everybody again once ya leave the party -- while youse guys was dancin', we all 
made plans ta get tagedda at the Cape Jasmine Hotel tomorrow mornin' for Sunday 
brunch," I replied. "Now go on! Go enjoy yer weddin' night! We're perfectly 
capable of partyin' without ya!" 
Jessie and James exchanged looks and blushed. Then, Jessie grinned and started 
running. 
"Last one to the honeymoon suite is a rotten Exeggcute!" she cheered. 
"Heee!" James cried happily as he gave chase. 
Jessie squealed with delight as James caught up to her and playfully spanked her 
behind. 
I couldn't help but laugh as I watched the two of them racing each other back to 
the cabin. After a moment, however, they stopped, did an about-face, and 
returned to the gazebo. Jessie and James flashed me a wicked grin as they 
grabbed the herbal soaps and flavored condoms. Then, they resumed their race 
back to the cabin. 
"Is our lovely couple off to celebrate their wedding night?" Oakley ventured as 
he came to my side. 
I nodded. "Yep! Dey was gettin' pretty antsy, so I told 'em it'd be okay ta 
leave early." 
Oakley chuckled, but quickly became serious again. "Hey, Meowth, can you do me a 
favor?" 
"Sure thing," I replied. "Whaddaya need?" 
"When we get together for brunch tomorrow, can you make sure Jessie and James 
bring their marriage license? I should've asked them about it while they were 
here, but it slipped my mind...." 
"Marriage license?" I queried. 
"I need their signatures on it, and then I need to sign it and get it filed so 
that they can be issued their marriage certificate," he said. 
Now I was confused. "Marriage certificate?" 
"Legal documentation that a wedding ceremony took place and that they're 
married," he explained. "That's what seals the deal, but I need to file the 
marriage license in order to get it for them." 
I felt a sweatdrop rolling down the side of my face. "Uh...dey ain't got one," I 
told him. 
He gave me a quizzical look. 
"Dey wasn't plannin' on dis bein' a real weddin', so dey didn't do any a dat 
legal mumbo jumbo stuff." 
"Oh, that's right," he muttered. 
I hung my head. "So...what does dat mean? Dis wasn't a real weddin' after all, 
and dey ain't really married?" 
"No, it was a real wedding, alright. And Jessie and James are officially married 
in spirit and in the eyes of the Pagan clergy. They're just not officially 
married on paper, that's all," he said. 
Now I was beginning to understand. "So...dey really did get married...but 
technically, dey ain't really married til dey get a marriage license?" I 
ventured. 
"Exactly," came his reply. "In order to tie the knot, you have to cut through 
the red tape. The certificate doesn't really mean anything...not compared to the 
actual commitment, anyway. But until they get that piece of paper, for all 
practical purposes, they're still single." 
I placed a paw on my forehead. "Ugh. Where's dat Tylenol Gary got for us? Dis is 
givin' Me-owth a headache!" 
Oakley laughed. "Don't worry about it, Meowth. Since they've already had a 
ceremony, getting the license and my signature should be easy. The hard part 
will be telling them that they still have a bit of unfinished business to take 
care of before their marriage is completely official." 
I poured myself another glass of sparkling cider and washed down a couple 
tablets of Tylenol. "Ah, maybe dis is for the best," I sighed. "Dey wanted ta 
wait a couple years before dey really got married, anyway. I guess dey can get 
dere marriage license and certificate and junk when James gets dat diamond ring 
for Jess...and den dey can have dere dream-weddin' and renew dere vows. 
"I think I'll wait awhile before breakin' the news to 'em, though," I continued. 
"Don't wanna spoil dere fun, ya know." 
"Yeah," Oakley agreed. "I doubt it'll even be an issue, but you still need to 
tell them before too long." He smiled slyly and shook a finger at me. "That 
means no waiting til the first baby shows up!" 
I winked at him. "Don't worry. I won't wait dat long. But I will wait til the 
honeymoon's over before I spring it on 'em." 
He laughed again. "Knowing those two, that's gonna be one long honeymoon -- 
they've been like a pair of newlyweds ever since they became a couple!" 
"Dat's what I'm countin' on, my friend," I told him. "Dat's what I'm countin' 
on...." 
@->->- 
True to my prediction, the party was able to last for a couple more hours after 
the bride and groom left. Once all the food had been eaten and all the music had 
been listened to, however, things finally started to wind down, and the guests 
began to leave so that they could be rested for tomorrow's brunch and their 
trips home. And once everybody started to leave, I got to work on cleaning up. 
Since the trellises, tables, and chairs belonged to the park, an employee would 
come by to pick them up in the morning. And since the serving dishes, plates, 
silverware, glasses, and cloth napkins had come from Dalila's restaurant, she'd 
taken them with her when she left. This made cleanup a simple matter for Me-owth 
-- all I had to do was throw out a few pieces of garbage, take the banner down 
from the gazebo, and gather the flowers and presents. 
And I wasn't alone while I worked, either -- Wobbuffet and the other pokemon 
were still there, and even Gary had stayed to keep me company. 
"Thanks again for inviting me to the wedding, Meowth," he said as he helped me 
fold the white banner. "I had a blast!" 
"Ah, don't mention it," I replied. "Yer our friend -- we couldn't have a party 
without ya!" 
This made Gary smile. "I had fun meeting your other friends, too." 
I smiled back. "Yeah! Dey're great, ain't dey?" 
He nodded. "You know, I'm always running into people who say they've met Ash and 
befriended him, but most of them are pretty annoying or just plain mean. Not so 
with the people who were here today -- they all seem really nice. I guess it 
just goes to show that any idiot can be mean, but it takes a special kind of 
person to see past Team Rocket and like you guys for who you really are." 
"Can't argue with dat!" I laughed. 
"Anyway," he continued, "I had a lot of fun this weekend. And that bit with 
Oakley turning out to be a real minister and the ceremony turning out to be a 
real wedding was priceless! I'm glad Jessie and James didn't mind -- if anybody 
deserves to be happily married, it's those two!" 
"I think dat's why I did it," I told him. "Cuz I just couldn't wait for dere 
weddin' any longer!" 
Gary gave me a thumbs-up. "Well, it worked! Great plan, Meowth!" 
I smiled again. "It was, wasn't it?" 
"So, where are you guys staying tonight?" he asked, changing the subject. 
"Uh...I dunno yet," I confessed. 
Well, I know we're not staying in the cabin, Wobbuffet remarked. 
"Yeah," I sighed. "Don't wanna disturb Jess and Jim on dere weddin' night." 
"I have a room at the pokemon center -- you're welcome to crash with me," Gary 
offered. 
"Really? Ya don't mind?" I asked. 
"Not at all!" came his reply. "I'd love the company." 
"Well, in dat case, you've got yerself some company!" I exclaimed. 
@->->- 
When we finished cleaning everything up, Gary helped us carry all of the flowers 
and presents to the pokemon center. I put the things that didn't have an 
immediate use in storage so they wouldn't get lost or broken, and I set 
everything else aside to give to Jessie and James in the morning. 
Once I'd taken care of the gifts, we went to Gary's room and helped him set out 
some extra cots so that we'd all have a place to sleep. I stayed up and chatted 
with him for awhile after the rest of the pokemon had fallen asleep, but before 
long, the events of the past week finally started catching up to me, and I found 
myself drifting off to sleep as well.... 
@->->- 
After falling asleep, I found myself standing in the middle of an immense rose 
garden. Jessie and James were at my side. The two of them were dressed in a 
white gown and a dark blue suit, and they were repeating the vows they'd given 
at today's ceremony. As they placed the rings on each other's fingers, however, 
I noticed something -- the bands were made of gold rather than plastic, and they 
had tiny ruby hearts, sapphire moons, and emerald shamrocks in the settings. 
Once they'd exchanged rings, Jessie and James's lips met in a passionate kiss, 
and rose petals began to rain down on them from the heavens. As I looked to the 
sky, I swore that I could perceive the spirits of Miyamoto and Jim and Rose 
Morgan smiling down on us and showering us with rose petals. 
When their kiss ended, James leaned down and planted another kiss on Jessie's 
stomach, which was still perfectly flat. Then, he took her in his arms again, 
and they held each other as close as they possibly could. 
"I love you," they whispered in unison as their lips met once more. 
In the back of my mind, I knew that this was only a dream...but I also knew that 
this dream was going to be real someday! James really was going to get Jessie 
that diamond ring, and they really would have their perfect wedding...and I was 
going to be an uncle! 
My eyes filled with tears as I watched them. I was right, I said to myself. All 
dose great predictions dey made about dere future really are gonna come true! 
@->->- 
When I awoke the next morning, I found myself consumed by a feeling of total 
peace and happiness. I knew that it'd be a couple years before my dream became 
reality, but I also knew that when it did, it'd be every bit as wonderful as I'd 
imagined. It was reassuring to know that even though our life may not be perfect 
now, it'll all pay off someday soon. In the meantime, we'll keep striving for 
that dream and getting one step closer every day. 
And Jessie and James had taken a big step yesterday...a very big step. 
As I sat up in bed and looked out the window at the pink and purple light of 
dawn peeking through the curtain of green forest that surrounded Cape Jasmine, I 
found myself consumed by thoughts of Jessie, James, and our future together. I 
felt like I could sit there and daydream forever! 
"You're up early," a voice said, snapping me from my reverie. 
I turned around and saw that Gary was sitting up in his own bed. He looked like 
he'd been staring out the window, too. 
"Yeah. Still too excited ta sleep, I guess," I told him. 
"Me, too," he confessed. "I'm looking forward to seeing everybody at brunch 
today. I'm looking forward to going back to Pallet Town, too. My mom and dad are 
on their way home from another trip, so I'd like to visit them...and grandpa and 
May for a couple weeks." 
"Dat sounds nice," I said. 
He nodded. "What about you?" 
"Once brunch is over, it'll prolly be back ta the daily grind for us," I 
replied. "But Jessie and James's newlywed bliss oughtta shake things up for 
awhile." 
"No doubt!" Gary chuckled. "I can only imagine some of the ribbing you and 
Wobbuffet have in store for them!" 
I laughed. "Oh, yeah! Dey're definitely in for it! Speakin' a which, I should 
prolly get goin' soon. Somebody needs ta get Jess and Jim so dey won't be late 
for brunch -- knowin' dem, dey're either still bein' amorous or still sleepin' 
it off." 
He smiled. "I won't keep you, then." 
After getting cleaned up and waking all of the pokemon, we said good-bye to Gary 
and promised that we'd see him at brunch later. Then, we set out for the cabin. 
@->->- 
By the time we reached our destination, it was half past eight. An empty bottle 
of sparkling cider and two glass goblets were on the coffee table, and a thin 
stream of gray smoke wafted from the smoldering embers in the fireplace. Red 
rose petals were scattered everywhere, and the air was thick with the warm, 
sweet fragrance of scented candles. 
Heh. Think they enjoyed themselves last night? Wobbuffet remarked. 
"I'll be damned if dey didn't," I told him. 
When we peeked into the bedroom, we found Jessie and James lying pleasantly 
spent in each other's arms. Jessie's head was resting on James's chest, and 
their naked bodies were engulfed by a sea of red rose petals. Their fingers were 
twined, and sunlight was streaming through the window blinds, glinting off of 
the red and green rings they were still wearing. The light was also filling the 
room with a soft, pink hue and making Jessie and James seem to glow even more 
than they already were. 
They were almost too beautiful to be real...like two radiant angels come to 
earth. 
Hey, aren't we going to wake them up? Wobbuffet whispered as I walked into the 
room and draped a satin sheet over them. 
"Ah, let 'em sleep," I whispered back. "It's another three hours til brunch -- 
we don't hafta disturb 'em just yet." 
Wobbuffet nodded and headed back into the other room. You're right. They need 
their rest. 
As I started to follow him, I glanced back at Jessie and James one more time, 
and my smile grew even wider than it already was. They looked so peaceful as 
they slept in each other's arms, as if they were having a pleasant dream. Who 
knows? Maybe they were having the same dream that I did! 
In the back of my mind, I knew that I had to wake them up...and tell them about 
the marriage license eventually, but I promised myself that I wouldn't do either 
until I absolutely had to. Until then, I'd leave them to their pleasant dreams 
and wedded bliss. 
Hey, I know a good thing when I see it! And who am I to mess with a good thing? 
The End
Author's Notes
I did lots of research for this one. First, I researched flower names and their 
meanings, so all the flowers in this story are there for a reason. Red roses 
mean passion and true love (that one's obvious), white roses mean purity, cape 
jasmine means "you're lovely," and ivy means fidelity, marital love, and 
friendship. Second, I researched various types of weddings, and the ceremony 
that Jessie and James had is an actual Pagan Handfasting. (I made a few changes 
to the sermon and the vows, but for the most part, the Pagan ceremonies didn't 
require that much "motto"fying because they already did a terrific job of 
capturing our heroes' essence!) 
And last but not least, special thanks to my friends, Shigeru1313 and Hot Lips 
(who had cameos in this story -- they were Rhiannon and Rachel, respectively). 
They both helped me come up with ideas for the gifts that everybody got. I'd 
also like to give an extra special thanks to Shigeru1313 for the beautiful 
illustration of Jessie and James in their bride and groom outfits! She did an 
excellent job, as always! *.* Additionally, I make a few references to her 
story, More Than Allies, since she wrote it to fit into my timeline, and I drew 
a lot of inspiration from our conversations and RPs. Thanks again! I couldn't 
have done it without ya! *hugs* And more special thanks go to Christine for the 
gorgeous illustration of the newlywed Jessie and James and their pokemon 
entourage, and to Jupiter for the sweet illustration of James thanking Cassandra 
for her wedding gift! ^__^ 
@->->- 
Back to the Library 
@->->-